#I genuinely believe these two are -1 brain cell couple

[house-in-country]

Is this fandom still alive?

[certifiedceraunophile]

Hi! A fan of your writing here. I just love the way you write Caroline. An Avoidable Heart is my comfort fic and I am constantly in awe with the way you write and craft the dynamics in that story. Caroline's inner monologue is just priceless and God! I just love that intro scene where Caroline is walking into the Mikaelson compound with vampires and hybrids in the surrounding ready to pounce on her.

I would love to hear how you would have visualized Caroline crossing over into TO or not? Like in what season and why? How it would have likely gone?

Thank you!

First of all lovely anon gimme a moment to breathe, asdfghjkl why are people so lovely 😭😭🥺✨ It means sooo much to me that you’d take the time to jump into my inbox and send these kind words, like please I’m not worthyyyyy, But you make me smile and feel really freaking warm so *handcuffs your hand to mine* you aint leaving 💖✨💞🙃

But OK ALSO oh my god dude THAT CAROLINE WALTZS INTO THE COMPOUND AND TAKES ON A COUPLE HUNDRED VAMPIRES BY HERSELF SCENE???? Ughhhhh I’m sorry but I have SUCH a boner for Caroline in that, like my badass -I admit kinda op- QUEEN IS HERE and she’s fucking shit up, I’m sorry but I love that scene so much it’s so dear to me I was killing myself over how self-indulgent and grossly Over powered Caroline is but like idgaf man it’s such a hot scene and Caroline is practically invincible and we just love to see that, so seriously lovely anon, you telling me you LOVE that scene??? Puts the biggest smile on my face and reassures me a LOT bc I was whining and cribbing over how absolutely unbalanced that scene is to literally everyone BUT LIKE YOU JUMPING OUT OF NOWHERE and pointing that exact scene UGHH…...meant to fucking be the both of us 💖💞✨

And ALSO Caroline’s monologue is quite honestly the easiest inner monologue out of the three voices I wrote for that work, Klaus’s is the real pain in the ass tbvh like it is NOT easy writing pretentious besotted losers with a Kardashian complex especially when you need to make them sound cool when they’re the lamest OP dude bros to ever exist - and no I don’t hate Klaus although I seem to try my darndest to convince ppl I do- I just personally believe that a feral fucker like that with a thousand years of existence under his belt can grow a pair and graduate from his kindergarten level of emotional maturity to adult sometime soon, But then on the flipside he’s so grossly adorkably smitten and feral for Caroline plus hella horny for her all the time that its usually easy to write the trashed and devoted idiot he is into something pretentious and powerful and potent when relating to his unflappable arrogance and his narcissism, but sometimes I also need him to be *deep* and ffs profound for the sake of the plot and jfc my muse just wont work with me on that, she’s like I’m sorry I’m not about to bust my ass to make this mongrel intelligible like no sir all I wanna do is make him uncomfortably horny for Caroline and leave him like that.

So smh yeah the struggle is real….but lmao Caroline is just so precious and fiercely protective and just so achingly lonely in that story, so desperate for connection and trust and intimacy yet so guarded and impervious to everyone like it hurts me to write her like that but it really challenges me as an author to balance out her inherent light with the “void” I create in her and through her, so yeah it’s a very fulfilling task and I wouldnt change it one bit, and also I had to balance out her physical op-ness w half a millennium of the ugliest emotional trauma lol so I guess that figures, but the point being….once again I am overjoyed knowing that you liked a facet of the story that I tried so hard to make as authentically Caroline and achingly real and moving as I can and I cannot possibly feel more accomplished than rn for it so ty ty ty ty for reaching out to me and telling me *tackle hugs* It makes me GIDDY knowing that you enjoyed that particular part of the story like ugh stab me please you're too sweet.

And ok NOW, coming to The Originals part of the ask, (also please note that when I say TO headcanon; Hope does not exist, Hayley is a dead in a ditch and ofc Klaus will stop being that lil bitch they tried to pawn off as Klaus in TO) 

HEADCANON 1

Honestly my biggest headcanon when it comes to TO crossovers somehow always include non-humanity!Caroline like it’s just so perfect to me?? The opportunity to make shit BLOW UP b/w them like imagine the DEBAUCHERY, the heat, the SEXUAL TENSION, the repression of one Klaus Mikaelson, the EXPLORATIONS, and omg the role reversal when Klaus has to be the voice of moral reason between them and not bc he believes Caroline would not be able to stand herself if she does something heinous and monstrous but bc he wants her to be completely and utterly herself, and yk *aware*, when she DECIMATES ppl to the ground and is in full-on predator mode, like he wants her monster to come out and play with him when no part of Caroline is locked away or suppressed, so obviously when she is w/o her humanity KLAUS exercises restraint on her behalf, like can you imagine that, Klaus restraining himself and being the vague, extremely broken and just largely inaccurate moral compass between the two of them for ALL the wrong reasons- and the entirety of NOLA just standing there watching him herd this baby vampire who seems to be intent on riling him up and angering him when all she is doing is giving him a massive hybrid hard on, like IMAGINE THE GOODNESS of non-humanity Caroline wrecking NOLA and Klaus letting her wreck it bc he is helpless in the face of Caroline Forbes and also bc he is quite honestly *enjoying* the debauchery himself so why put a damper on the festivities.

-I might wanna add that I favour this headcanon a lot bc I genuinely do not even remotely *like* the idea of NOLA as Klaus's chosen place to set his roots so like I would love Caroline going to NOLA and destroying everything there just bc I detest NOLA and the storyline behind it in TO. (yes is it petty? Obvi, but like I am a petty soul and I make no apologies ma’am)

HEADCANON 2

So yeah that’s my main TO headcanon, but my other one being, one I talk about very frequently, scream about in tag rants to an obsessive level, and like this is a cracky one but still very valid, where Caroline rolls up to NOLA humanity intact and all, finds Hayley preggo and is just laughing her fucking ass off bc anybody ANYBODY, with half a brain and a two minute convo w klaus would know how UTTERLY stupid the entire baby shit is especially when it’s with an immemorable one night stand, and Caroline’s just losing her shit about how like an entire city is obssessed w this baby and she just straight up tells Klaus he’d SUCK as a dad (which he really does tho like he was a shitty fucking dad canonically too) and Klaus is just like *sigh* girl tell me about it. I mean basically he’s finally relieved that someone is on his side about the whole baby thing and how he definitely does not want his entire millennium of life to finally sum up to this one squalling leaking stinky infant/unicorn Hayley is apparently baking in her oven, and I say this headcanon is cracky bc klaus would never have put up w this mess long enough for Caroline to come in and sort it out, there’s this preferred method of disposal of his called heart ripping that would've been employed quite early on and honestly saved us all a lot of brain cells and minused years of life, bc let’s be real any Klaus who’s NOT a lil snivelling bitch wearing a Klaus skinsuit would’ve yeeted the baby and the mama first chance he got, and that’s just how I see it.

Lmao I really hope I didnt scare you away w my *strong* opinions Ik they can be a bit much but I enjoy having them so theyre not going anywhere, anyways this ask answer got WAYYYY too long but I’m hoping I answered your question well with this or atleast left you slightly confused and bemused over my feral screaming....either ways I’m really really really happy to have got your ask and the chance to rant so much bs, Twas cathartic and honestly I had nothing to do today so I was more than happy to dish this baby out for you. Thank you so much sweet anon for putting a smile on my face today I am absolutely HONOURED by your words you’sa cutie 💖💞✨🗣🗣

[equestrianwritingsstuff]

The Assassin and the Caretaker Part 2

Part 1

Warnings: blood, scar, torture, mind control, killing, long injury descriptions (blood, cuts, dislocation, broken bones, etc), barbed wire as restraints, head injury, starvation

Caretaker watched silently as Villain and Hero's limp bodies were hurried away. When the door finally slammed shut, they felt a foreboding presence behind them.

"Call me," Assasin said. "When you are ready for your next mission. A man up North hired me to kill a gang of rebels. I could use your help, but I understand if you need... time."

Time? Yes, time would be good. Caretaker pictured Villain's last futile attempts to protect Hero in their mind. They couldn't cause that anguish, not any time soon.

"How do you do it?" Caretaker whispered, clutching the twenty thousand dollars in their hands. "How do you-"

"Do my job? I need the money."

Caretaker gave a curt nod. They needed the money too since they recently quit their job as a computer mechanic.

"Well," Assasin sighed. "I'm gonna go now, but, uh, call me. Yeah?"

"Sure," Caretaker replied. Once Assasin closed the door behind them, Caretaker sunk onto their couch. Villain's blood was still on it and Caretaker wondered breifly if their injury was bleeding again. Would Supervillain take care of them? No, duh, they were going to kill them, that's why Assasin caught them. Right?

And then what about Hero? Their head injury was so bad that Caretaker suspected that they wouldn't get away without some form of brain damage. Memory loss at the least.

What if they got out? What if Hero never remembered Villain? Caretaker was reminded of Villain quiet pleas to protect Hero. Why did they do this? Why...

Three months later...

"Oh my gosh Caretaker!" A voice broke the heavy silence of the room of a guilty person. Caretaker looked up to see Assasin strolling into their bedroom, uninvited.

"What?" Caretaker asked, unfased. "You said I could have time."

"Not three months of sitting around doing nothing at all," Assasin yelled. They stopped walking and leaned against the foot of Caretaker's bed. "I think it would do you good to do something."

"Like what? Kill people for money?" Caretaker scoffed. "Never again."

"How 'bout saving people?"

"That's better, but you wouldn't save anyone. You hardly look after yourself," Caretaker nodded towards the bruises that littered Assasin's body.

"These?" Assasin laughed. "A small price for obtaining some valuable information."

"About your next victim?" Caretaker mused.

"In a way," Assasin flashed a broad smile and walk to Caretaker's side. They took out their phone and showed a picture to them.

It looked like and black and gray screen.

"And this is supposed to show me..."

"Open your eyes Caretaker," Assasin snorted and put the phone two inches in front of their face.

"Okay!" Caretaker snapped and took the phone. For their sake, they observed the picture closer. The gray spots seemed to be figures. Yes, figures. One was hunched over and the other stood above it. The hunched figure had a white splotch above it.

Caretaker zoomed in on the picture. They could just make out notable features like an open mouth, arms, and eyes. Terrifyingly familiar eyes.

"Is this-" Caretaker croaked out. Assasin smiled.

"Villain," they said. Then their cheery gaze faltered. "With Supervillaim torturing the crap out of them."

Caretaker could not believe Assasin. First, they broke into their house. Second, they brought up painful memories and assisted in bringing fresh guilt back to the surface.

"Y-you don't, um," Assasin stammered. "You don't think my intentions are true. Do you?"

Caretaker shook their head. There was probably money involved in this.

"Where do you think I was for the last three months?" Assasin asked, getting irritated with Caretaker's lazy figure.

"Getting rich."

"Idiot!" Assasin yelled and punched the wall. Caretaker slowly looked up at the hole in the drywall.

"You better pay for that-"

Caretaker was cut off by Assasin forcibly grabbing them out of bed and pinning them to the wall.

"I got hurt taking care of that gang," Assasin lifted up their shirt to reveal a scar made from a bullet wound. "At the hospital, after my surgery, a doctor approached me. They told my that they worked for a group that took care of people... like me." Assasin stood back and breathed in deeply.

Suddenly, their eyes glowed red and they ordered in a deep voice, "Sit."

A strange feeling quickly overcame Caretaker and they sunk to the ground on their seat bones. The feeling vanished as soon as it came on, leaving Caretaker speechless.

"I have mind control powers," Assasin crouched next to Caretaker and looked them eye to eye. "Villain has powers also. Something to do with storms and stuff."

Caretaker was still speechless. All the recent events suddenly clickes into place. Assasin didn't need Caretaker's help in kidnapping Villain and Hero. They needed someone to administer the power suppressor so that they wouldn't get any on them.

"Bastard," Caretaker spat. Assasin gave a half-grin.

"Maybe," they said. "But I don't care. I know the second I leave you are going to follow me and we are going to save both of them."

Caretaker hated the fact that they were right.

Caretaker leaned their head against the window as Assasin drove to Supervillain's base, thinking of Assassin's stupid plan.

"What's the plan?" Caretaker had asked earlier.

"Kill some guards, take their uniforms and ID cards or whatever stuff they have on them," Assasin began. "Then," they continued after a pause. "We get into Villain's cell saying there was eletrical issues. Supervillain is gonna be out tonight, so we just have to deal with their minions which shouldn't be too hard."

"What about Hero?"

"After I make Villain sleep," Assasin glanced at Caretaker's paling face as they remebered three months ago. "With my powers," they reassured them. "It will only take a second since they will be tired anyways. After that, we get... Hero."

Caretaker frowned at the hesitation. "Is Hero okay you think?"

"No," Assasin choked. Caretaker stared dumbfoundly as they wiped a single tear off their cheek.

"Oh," they said.

"We got reports that they are not themselves," Assasin explained further. "Due to their head injury that I might've inflicted."

Caretaker was genuinely shocked that Assasin could care this much.

"No matter," they laughed suddenly. "Not that they are entirely innocent, but..."

Assasin never finished their thought and they drove the rest of the way in silence.

The pair did as planned and, let's just say got rid of and hid, a couple guards. Assasin being the bigger figure got changed into the larger uniform, and Caretaker the smaller. But it still dangled off their shoulders.

"Oh my gosh," Assasin laughed as they rolled up Caretaker's sleeves. "You are itty-bitty." Suddenly, they guided Caretaker behind a dumpster.

"Supervillain," they hissed silently and peered out. Caretaker could just make out a shadow entering a shed before Assasin recoiled back.

"That dang henchman!" They growled. Caretaker assumed that the henchman that they fought earlier lied. Then, a horrible thought struck them. Supervillain probably knows that they were coming. They had to get out of there like right now!

But Assasin had other plans. Without warning, they hurried into the shed after Supervillain. Caretaker hesitantly followed.

The first thing Caretaker noticed was Supervillain kneeling on the floor, pushed down by an invisible force that was Assasin. Their eyes glowed even redder than what Caretaker remember as they ordered Supervillain to keep still.

"Assasin," Supervillain growled, only to be shut up by Assasin.

"Get them," Assasin said in a low, but partially normal voice. Caretaker looked over at the wall to see Hero slumped in a corner motionless. Villain was suspended in the air, their head hanging limply.

And wow did they look awful. Villain's hair was matted in blood and dirt. Their upper half was stripped. Caretaker would see the half healed stab wound on their abdomen. Festering cuts decorated their body disgustingly. Deep purple, nearly black, bruises were on their throat where they were likely choked, or worse hung from for short periods of time. And that wasn't even the worse of it. Caretaker could see numerous bones shifting awkwardly as they dangled from enlongated arms. Likely dislocated at the shoulders. Caretaker wanted to gag as they approached them.

Gosh, they regretted everything all over again. Villain's chest barely rose and fall. It hurt to watch. Caretaker gulped and reached upwards to take off the wires that bound Villain's wrists to the wall.

They earned a heart-wrenching scream from the injured villain as they shot awake. Caretaker noticed only then that the restraints were barbed wire. They felt sick to the stomach as their eyes took in the deep wounds around their wrists.

"I'm sorry," Caretaker muttered when they realized with the proper strength (which they lacked), they could rip the barb wire out of the wall.

Villaim screamed and sobbed throughout the entire process as Caretaker yanked at the restraints. Out of the corner of their eye, they saw Assasin losing their control on Supervillain. They didn't have much time...

They broke one of them free, cutting their hand in the process. Ignoring the sting, they broke the other wire. Villain collasped on the ground, motionless.

"Assasin!" Caretaker called. Assasin nodded and rushed towards the unsuspecting Supervillain. They threw them against the wall and ran towards Hero, picking them up.

"We don't have much time," Assasin rasped, their voice strained from the effort of mind controlling Supervillain.

Caretaker didn't hesitate in scooping Villain up who thrashed and weakly kicked around, gasping in pain. As Caretaker left, they saw Supervillain getting up.

"Start the car!" They yelled at Assasin and started jogging. Villain was much lighter than the last time they carried them.

Caretaker opened the back of the car, put Villain in, and crawled in themselves. Assasin shut the door from the driver's seat and they sped away.

"We aren't safe anywhere," Assasin said, turning sharply into a highway. "Take care of them in the car. Now!"

Caretaker looked at Villain, who seemed to have passed out, to Hero writhing around in the backseat. Seeing that Hero was currently in more pain, they went to work taking care of them.

For the most part, Hero looked better than Villain, but Caretaker knew better. They were half-starved, eyes glazed over, and just weren't... right.

Caretaker knew that both victims needed medical attention, but Supervillain would get to them that way.

Caretaker opened the first aid kit and began cleaning the wound on their temple. A fresh one, Caretaker realized. That meant...

No, don't go there, Caretaker willed themselves and disinfected the wound. It was too thin to stitch up, so they put a gauze pad on it.

Hero didn't have anymore bad wounds to take care of. They woke up, or at least Caretaker thought so.

"Piggy back ride," they murmured and weakly clutched Caretaker's hand. "Hero wants a piggy back ride."

Caretaker's heart sank when they heard Assasin sniffle.

"You're gonna get one once we are safe," Caretaker assured the delirious Hero who nodded slowly in reply.

Caretaker crawled back to where Villain still laid. They had no idea where to start. There was too many, way too many wounds. Caretaker leaned heavily against the side of the car, straining their eyes to see the faint rise and fall of Villain's chest.

Getting a hold of themselves, Caretaker began disinfecting the largest wounds. They were running out of disinfectant.

Caretaker's fingers traced the stab wound, making Villain gasp lightly, but not wake up. It wasn't healed properly at all. They took out some soothing cream to rub on the irritated areas, including the rub burns all over Villain's skinny body from where they were possibly dragged around.

The next largest concern was the dislocated shoulders, broken ribs, and the broken hand, but it wasn't as big of a concern than the black SUV that was following them.

The SUV with the license plate of "EVIL".

[asian-hero]

i was wondering if i could do a mina x fem!reader where the reader is pretty butch and is friends with mainly the guys; however all of them still think that she likes guys, so they are all trying to set up todoroki (who has no clue on what the guys are doing) with her, until one day they see them talking in a cafe and they think that they’re actually together, until one of them sees/hears her gushing over mina with big brother todoroki paying for her coffee because f endeavor’s credit card ❤️❤️

A/N: I’m glad that the entire fandom collectively agrees that Todoroki would absolutely steal his father’s credit card to buy the dumbest things

Maybe I’ll write a part two where the reader tells Mina how she feels

Summary: The guys of 1-A, while they absolutely owned your heart and you’d do anything for them, all collectively shared a total of three brain cells, and most of the time it was either Bakugou or Iida who held them. So, while you thought it was clear that there was a certain pink haired girl you were crushing on, it somehow got lost in translation, and instead you were set up with a red and white haired boy instead.

They were so close.

Words: 1,970

Ever since you were little, you always found yourself gravitating towards your male classmates versus your female ones. It wasn’t as if you had anything against the girls in your classes, no, it was quite the opposite, in fact. You were just so enamored by them that it often rendered you speechless, so instead of trying to overcome your slight fear of a woman’s rejection, you instead sought comfort with the male students, and then it just became natural for you to gravitate towards them instead. 

By the time you had enrolled in U.A. practically nothing had changed, you were the same girl-avoiding woman you had been growing up, but at least now you knew why you were so infatuated, yet so afraid. On your first day in class 1-A, you immediately found yourself drawn to a nerdy green-haired boy and the seemingly strict glasses wearing kid. It only took a few minutes for you to become fast friends with the two of them, as you and Midoriya found yourself geeking over pro heroes and reading his journal with all of their stats. Iida, while not quite sure how to react to having two extreme pro hero fans, merely watched as you and Midoriya talked a mile a minute about every hero on the scene currently, who your favorites were, and who’s quirk you’d like to switch with for a day. It also didn’t take long for you to be introduced to Uraraka Ochako, though it took much longer for the two of you to become friends. Not because she was hard to get along with, but because she was just so cute that you were having a hard time forming any coherent sentences. You did get past it, eventually, but the two of you knew that you weren’t as close as you and the other two boys.

As you had progressed in your class, gaining more control over your quirk, you also had progressed in terms of how many friends you had gained as well. Shortly after the first week of class, you had somehow managed to be caught in Kaminari, Sero, and Kirishima’s little group, though you mostly acted as their mom and made sure that the three of them didn’t end up of the receiving end of a certain blonde-haired porcupine’s explosive quirk. 

Shouji, Ojiro, Tokoyami, and Sato were also quick friends of yours as well. Though you didn’t hang out with them much, you always knew that you were welcome to hang out with them and just have a relaxing time. Sato had even baked you a few things as the two of you got closer, and now you were currently his sole taste tester when it came to baked goods. 

You did try to befriend Mineta, but quite honestly, you’d rather take Bakugou’s anger issues and insults over the tiny boys perverted stares and attempts to touch you. Thankfully, Bakugou also recognized this as an issue for you, and even though he’d deny it to his dying day, he’d make sure that the perverted boy was never within six feet of you.

The most surprising friend you’d made, and the closest one you had, was the one and only Todoroki Shouto. How the two of you clicked was a mystery to the both of you. With his cold, aloof attitude at the beginning of the school year, and your rather boisterous personality, the two of you had formed some sort of mutual agreement to never speak to one another, both because Todoroki didn’t have the mindset of wanting to make friends, and you didn’t have the mental capacity and patience to deal with that boy without smacking him. However, shortly after the sports festival, he found himself sitting near Midoriya, formerly his only friend, which also meant that he was sitting close to you as well. After a few weeks of awkward silence between the two of you, you finally tried to start a conversation, hoping that your love for pro heroes and maternal personality would make him feel more at ease with you. While it worked to an extent, what really drove Todoroki to becoming your best friend was when you had accidentally let it slip that you didn’t really care for Endeavor, and before you could even attempt to take back what you said, Shouto told you he felt the same, and soon after the two of you became what seemed like the anti-Endeavor club. Instead of the two of you feeling awkward during lunch, you two had actually found yourself ignoring the rest of the group unintentionally, instead lost in your own conversation. 

It was also safe to say that you did have relationships with the girls of 1-A as well, though they were more superficial than the ones that you’d made with the boys. You always made sure to exchange pleasantries with them in the morning, and you made it clear that if any of them needed someone to talk to, they could always reach out to you. Other than that, though, your friendships with them weren’t quite as deep as they were with the boys.

This didn’t stop them from caring about you, though. Even though you never hung out with them, they always made sure to pay close attention to you and your needs, in case you ever needed them.

So, it truly couldn’t be helped that, upon further inspection, they had come to the conclusion that, because you spent so much time with him, you were absolutely, one hundred percent without a doubt, in love with Todoroki. 

It seemed obvious to them, as why would you spend so much time with the boy if you didn’t feel anything for him. You were always smiling around him, and you were one of the only people in the class who could get him to laugh and smile like a regular teenager. They didn’t even think that he could do that! So, in order to be the perfect wingwoman for you, Ashido, Uraraka, and Hagakure decided to plant the seed into some of the boys’ head, more specifically, Midoriya, Kaminari, and Kirishima’s heads. While the first had acted as he normally does, with a flustered look on his face, the other two had some of the most devious smiles you had ever seen. 

Not long after, all of the boys, minus Todoroki, had been let in on your little “crush,” and they decided to hatch a plan to get the two of you together. 

They weren’t subtle by any means, in fact, if you and Todoroki had more than one braincell shared by the two of you at any given point, you both probably would’ve recognized what your classmates were up to. Unfortunately for the both of you, while you were book smart, you were rather dense when it came to social cues, so every obvious attempt made by the other boys went over your head. You did start to pick up on certain things though, like how whenever there was a partner project, everyone would automatically push you towards Todoroki, saying that they already have a partner. Or when the two of you were sitting together at lunch, Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka “conveniently” forgot to tell you that they weren’t able to sit with you, leaving you and Todoroki to eat by yourselves, not that you minded. 

The most obvious way that the boys attempted to get you two together was whenever you all had hero training, whether it be in rescue or media, if there was a way that they could get you partnered together, then you better believe that was what they were planning. 

Around the tenth time the boys had tried to set you up once again, only to fail miserably, as the two of you genuinely enjoyed each other’s company, and were about as smart as a brick. They were all so close to pulling out their hair, and before they could just call it like it was, Kirishima was the “voice of reason:”

“Those two already hang out a lot as is, right? Maybe they’re dating but they’re hiding it from us, so we should see if we can tail them,”

While most of the boys were agreeing to tail the two of you, with Iida going purely to put an end to any chaos they could cause, they missed the way you were wistfully sighing, and the way that Todoroki was trying to hold back his laughter at your love sick attitude. They also missed the way his eyes lit up with mischief as a certain pink haired girl walked by, waving at the two of you while holding back her pleased grin. Or how you immediately punched his shoulder to get him to stop from doing anything that would embarrass you more.

So, once school had let out, Kaminari, Kirishima, Midoriya, Sero, and Iida had followed closely behind you and Todoroki, hoping that the two of you would do something more interesting than just walking back to the dorms.

Luckily for them, the two of you had planned to head to one of your favorite cafes, just a little ways away from the campus. Blissfully unaware of the eyes glaring holes into the backs of your heads, you carried a pleasant conversation, talking about the training from today, and how both of you thought the other could improve. As you headed into the cafe, the stalkers you had acquired waited a couple of seconds before going in after the two of you, hoping that you two would keep being ignorant of your surroundings, for at least a few more minutes. 

They couldn’t help but be amazed at the sight in front of them: with your arm wrapped securely around his, waiting in line as you pointed out all of the options you thought he’d like. Once the two of you were up to order, Todoroki had ordered for the both of you, and even paid with a shiny credit card that they were sure wasn’t his. Kirishima thought it was rather manly of him, whereas Kaminari was impressed that Todoroki could be “suave.” As the two of you sat down at one of the tables, they were starting to believe in Kirishima’s little theory before they heard you talking about someone else:

“Did you see how cool Mina looked during training today?” You sighed, resting your face against your palm as you stared off to the side.

“‘Mina?’” He teased, sipping on his drink and enjoying the way you seemed to grow embarrassed, “Since when were you two on a first name basis?”

You hid your face in between your hands, mumbling out a quiet “shut up.” He couldn’t help but laugh, leaning in to flick your head.

“You should just tell her you like her, I don’t see the harm from doing so,”

Your head shot straight up, sending a non-threatening glare towards the boy in front of you, “I can think of so many things that could go wrong. One: she could not like me, and then tell the rest of the girls in the class and get them all to hate me,” You took a minute to shove two fingers into his face, “Or two: she could just not like girls in general, and I could make her so uncomfortable that she’ll never want to see me again.”

“You are the most dramatic person I’ve ever met,”

“Well clearly you’ve never met yourself.”

As you both continued to bicker back and forth about your huge crush on the pink girl, the four boys, who were sitting right behind your table, found themselves dumbfounded. Kaminari turned towards the rest of the group, a puzzled look on his face.

“So, she doesn’t like Todoroki?”

[pluckyredhead]

wip amnesty: super sons fake dating (but different)

So while I was working on It Wouldn’t Be Make Believe (If You Believed In Me), my brain abruptly gave me a completely different Super Sons fake dating scenario, insisted that I write two scenes, and then abandoned me entirely. There is like a 1% chance that I will ever finish this so instead I offer it up to you, my very patient friends. (Don’t worry, I have different Jon/Damian fics planned!)

Also, this completely ignores the Bendis run, because...well, you know why. SIGH.

-

Damian cast a weary eye over the guests assembled at the gala, the latest tribute of the Gotham elite to their own wealth and frivolity. He wasn’t even sure what this one was ostensibly raising money for, but he had a feeling most of that money had gone into the refreshments and entertainment rather than the intended charitable recipients.

He hated these things, but Father was in space with the Justice League, Richard was undercover, Drake was on Earth-3, and Todd was just generally unsuitable for public consumption. Once again it fell to Damian, as the heir to the Wayne name, to carry the entire family on his shoulders. He usually didn’t mind, except when it took the form of wearing a tuxedo and making small talk with empty-headed socialites.

Maybe the Riddler or someone would show up and try to steal everyone’s jewelry. That would be a pleasing diversion.

He saw Gracie Van Nuyck, daughter of one of the few Gotham families older than the Waynes, making her way over to him and quickly took out his phone. He was meant to be the latest irresponsible Wayne playboy; he could be rude and spend a whole party texting and not talking to anyone as long as he kept a stupid expression on his face.

He already had a few texts from Jon, he saw when he unlocked his phone.

giant kraken attacking honolulu

titans & i r teleporting over

u in?

Damian clicked his tongue.

I know you’re overriding your autocorrected capitalization to irritate me.

And I can’t. I have to attend this gala.

sucks 2 b u 🐟 🐠 🐬

“Damian Wayne.” Gracie had not been put off by his texting - in fact, she had her own phone in her hand. Damian dimly remembered that she’d once told him she was an “influencer.” She had influenced him pretty strongly to get as far away from her as possible, so he supposed she was good at what she did. “Look at you, all dressed up and looking like a snack.”

“Gracie,” he said. “Nice to see you.” He did not attempt to make it convincing, or glance up from his phone more than briefly.

Trust me, I’m aware. Everyone here is an imbecile and none of the hors d'oeuvres are vegetarian.

“Do you like my dress?” Gracie asked, giving a little twirl.

“Lovely.” Damian did not have Richard’s ability to give genuine compliments, or even Father’s ability to fake them well. It didn’t deter Gracie in the slightest.

“I have a proposition for you, you beautiful boy,” she said.

“I’m the same age as you.”

that blows. what about the orderbs?

Damian fought a smile. I also know you know how hors d’oeuvres is pronounced.

😂 😂 😉

“What’s that smile for?” Gracie asked.

Damian forced his facial expression back to neutral. “What’s your proposition?”

She held up her hands like she was illuminating a marquee. “Gotham’s new dream couple: Dacie. Or we could be Gramian, I guess, but that sounds horrible.”

“Excuse me?”

“You and me, joining forces,” she said. “Me and my millions and my beautiful body, you and your millions and your beautiful body...we’d be the toast of the glitterati.”

“You want to date me,” Damian said, flatly, disbelievingly. This was what Father and Richard’s inability to resist a pretty face had brought him to: being literally propositioned at parties by socialites who thought every Wayne was an easy mark.

“I want to date you,” she agreed. “It must be your lucky day. Well, night.”

Damian stared at her for a long moment, just enough to let it become uncomfortable. “No,” he said finally, and turned back to his phone.

once weve kicked this things ass i bet i can bring u some shave ice before it melts

Bring the kraken instead. It can eat everyone here.

“No?” Gracie repeated.

“No, thank you,” Damian said, as a sop to good manners.

He glanced up. She looked bewildered. It might be the first time she’d ever been told no in her life. “Why not?”

“I’m seeing someone,” he said. Totally untrue, but a reason she couldn’t argue with.

Not that she didn’t try. “Oh? Who’s the lucky girl?” she asked, her expression calculating.

Damian raised an eyebrow. “Not sure why you would assume pronouns,” he said, more to wrong foot her than anything else, though it was true that gender didn’t make much difference to him. He disliked most people equally.

Her eyes widened before she recovered herself. “My apologies,” she said. “Do I know...uh, them?”

Damian’s phone buzzed in his hand. It was a selfie of Jon, with Billy and Lian pulling faces behind him and a tentacle snaking through the air above their heads. Idiots. He fought another smile.

Stop taking selfies before you get drowned.

“It’s a long distance relationship,” he said. The last thing he needed was Gracie tracking down Colin or Maya or someone and pestering them.

no its cool we made friends with it

i gave it ur shave ice

sorry

“Oh?” Gracie asked. “Where do they live?”

Out of the corner of his eye Damian could see that she seemed to be on her phone too, so he felt even less bad about ignoring her. “Metropolis,” he said, because it was the first city he thought of. You traitor, he texted Jon.

“Innnteresting,” she said. “Well, it was worth a shot. See you around, hot stuff.” She brushed a kiss in the air near his cheek and sauntered off.

Damian blinked. That had been...relatively painless. Maybe the whole night would go by so quickly and easily.

He checked the time. Three and a half hours to go.

Tt.

*

Jon had heard the noise before he stepped outside, but he hadn’t really processed it. Metropolis was a noisy city, and if there were no gunshots or cries for help, he had gotten pretty good at tuning it out.

Which was why he was so surprised when he walked out of his apartment building to be confronted with a sea of reporters flashing cameras at him.

“Jon!”

“Jon Kent!”

“Jon, over here!”

His heart stopped. Had they somehow found out he was Superboy? Which meant they knew about Dad, and Mom was probably in danger, and all of his friends, and…

“Jon, long have you and Damian Wayne been dating?”

What?

“Back off, you vultures! Leave him alone!” Uncle Jimmy emerged from the crowd, red-faced and disheveled. He put one hand in front of Jon’s face and the other on his shoulder. “No comment! He has no comment! Come on, Jon, back inside.”

Thoroughly baffled, Jon allowed Uncle Jimmy to steer him back into the building.

“Hey, Frank, don’t let any of them in unless Mr. or Mrs. Lane-Kent says it’s cool, okay?” Uncle Jimmy said to the doorman.

Frank, who Jon had known since they moved here when he was ten, put his imposing frame in front of the door. “Absolutely not,” he said.

“Thanks, Frank,” Jon managed, and waited until he and Jimmy were in the elevator and out of sight of the reporters. “What the heck is going on?”

“You’re a social media sensation, kiddo,” Uncle Jimmy said, and held up his phone to display a picture of Damian wearing a tuxedo and looking elegantly bored. “Apparently Bruce Wayne’s kid told someone called ‘GraceFace’ that he was dating a boy who lived in Metropolis, and she told her three million Instagram followers. A bunch of them found this photo.” He swiped to show a slightly blurry picture of Jon and Damian in Centennial Park, clearly taken on a cell phone by someone moving quickly. Jon remembered that day but hadn’t realized anyone had recognized Damian, though it did happen. “And someone figured out your name.”

“And assumed I’m the boy Damian is dating in Metropolis,” Jon said, putting it together. “Wait. Is he dating someone in Metropolis? Did he mean me? Why would he say we were dating?”

Uncle Jimmy held up a finger. “No, first question before that: how the hell do you know Damian Wayne?”

“Uh.” Jon paused. Uncle Jimmy knew all about him and Dad, since he was basically Dad’s best friend, but not any Gotham secret identities, and Jon was pretty sure both Damian and Mr. Wayne wanted to keep it that way.

Uncle Jimmy’s eyes flicked to the counter that showed what floor they were on. “And before we get to your apartment...any chance you want to give me the exclusive on this saga of young love?”

Jon’s mouth dropped open. “Uncle Jimmy!”

“What? I’m a reporter, it’s in my blood!”

“I’m telling my mom you asked me that.”

“No, please, tell your dad. He can only heat vision me or throw me out the window. Either way it’ll be quick.”

“Yeah, that’s why I’m telling Mom.”

[tsukidrama]

hiii!!

ooh avoiding the spoilers is a huge mood. and aot is easily one of the worst fandom for this, i got spoiled like half of the story when i started watching it, it was so irritating.

i watched some episodes of what we do in the shadows (4 or 5 i think) and you're right it’s so great so far!! the new characters are as good as the previous ones, and the episode with the werewolves was really funny lmao, also laszlo’s topiaries omg. guillermo has to be my favourite so far. do you have a favourite in the show? and thank you for the heads up!!

hey friend!

thank you for your understanding and the nice message the other day! i'm still in a funk unfortunately but an effort is being made.

GIRL I BET... that's one of the reasons i'm really glad to have started up with attack on titan years ago. it was horribly painful to wait through every hiatus but at least i never got spoiled. it's so complicated, there are so many layers to the spoilers for that series.

god the werewolves are so funny. my favorite overall episodes from season 1 are episodes 6 and 9 "The Baron's Night Out," and "The Orgy." but every episode has at least a couple of lines that make me laugh out loud. picking a favorite character is hard because i love them all for different reasons! but if i had to pick a favorite:

Nandor! he's this notorious war lord but 99% of the time he walks around with 3 brain cells in his head that Guillermo has custody of. plus the two of them are so cute (for the most part lmao) and i love how Nandor had 37 wives but still can't talk to a woman to save his life. he has a lot of existential crises too and i relate!

i’m definitely watching the movie over the weekend! aah i’m glad then 🥰. english teachers are the backbones of our society but WOW she must have loved you at this moment omg and her keeping the essay must have been so gratifying!! this is all making me even more excited to watch the movie, especially if there are parallels. i’ll keep you updated!!

aah i hope you enjoy! whenever or if you ever get the chance i'd love to hear what you think about it! it's not much of a happy story but it's the kind that sticks in your head forever.

you're right about English teachers though! i've always had good ones, but the teacher i had my last 2 years of high school really stepped up for me. that lady is genuinely a saint. i used to skip other classes just to talk to her, and the summer before my final year i went on a trip to Europe with her that she sponsored.

thank you for the details!! 3 and 4 are going to be interesting but girl i can’t wait for 5, this is going to hurt and we're all here for it (and 6 too because i want annie to go better while the rest is for your writing). kittens!! i can’t believe annie is going to be a mom (or grandma?). super-spy annie is also something to look forward to, and i know i’m going to love pieck already. only good things planned!!

in case anybody besides me forgot what i had said: "3) Paradis peace ambassador trip 4) Papa having a lady friend (or does he?) 5) rock bottom mental health and a very bad night terror, then finally the long awaited 6) Annie goes to therapy!"

omg do you love pain?? you're either going to love me or hate me once shit gets real. i mean, there's going to be a fair amount of comfort written in as well. i'm trying to build up the suspense in these next couple of chapters so that it doesn't feel like a gut punch.

i think Annie is the kittens mom too! she'll definitely insist on keeping all of them. there's enough space on the farm and she couldn't bear to split up the family. the super-spy arc is going to be a little farther down the line but i'm super excited to write it!!

Pieck actually will show up in chapter 6! briefly, but still significant.

aksdjld yes!! if you ever post the playlist i’m totally here for it 👀, and i totally get it if you don’t want to post it because of the 🤢 shippers so if you don’t what’s the style of music in the playlist? have a nice day! - j

heh, honestly i probably will post it. i got another anon asking about it, so i just need to come up with a better name than anti-****** or else i'll probably get death threats. it's basically songs about women who are in unhappy boring relationships, or singing about wanting to date girls/break up with their boyfriends. OF COURSE.

AND THIS CLIP TOO sorry about the weird editing on top but it was the only clip i could find that had the whole monologue and the lines afterward lkasjfhlCSJNDV iconic and wildly enough fits so well

[jalebi-weds-bluetooth]

10 Headcanons about IPKKND

Headcanon: It refers to something that the reader assumes about the story (in this case, a television show) or a character, though it's never officially stated in the books (tv show) or by the author (writer/creator).

Of course, I’m in the bandwagon of watching Iss Pyaar Ko till the end of my life, and now I’m so mentally convinced that these are ten things that definitely happened in the Iss Pyaar Ko world (beyond the script & screen).

P.S: I love you writers, creators, actors and the sensible decision makers <3 

#1 Arnav and Anjali are the mirror images of their father and mother, respectively.

#2 Anjali realised the truth of her marriage on the day of Arnav & Khushi’s remarriage.

#3 Aman Mathur is Arnav’s best friend.

#4 Aman and Anjali DO FALL IN LOVE.

#5 NK and Lavanya fall in love as well.

#6 Aarav grows to become closest to Khushi.

#7 Shashi recovers and tells the families about his ‘paralysis’.

#8 Akash and Payal get to know about Arnav & Khushi’s first marriage.

#9 Arnav and Khushi explore dating and friendship after their remarriage.

#10 Arnav gets shy when Khushi makes the first move.

#1 "Aap wohi kar rahe hain, jo aapki pita kiye rahe.”

“You’re exactly doing what your father did.” Nani to her grandson, Arnav.

Although Nani unfairly does use this line on Arnav far too many times, one thing that is true is that Arnav is his father’s son. From the only picture we have of Mr. Malik - there is an uncanny resemblance of the man who does not want to look like his father in any way. 

When Arnav talks to Khushi about his father’s mother, he is pissed at how tenacious, prejudiced, judgmental and stubborn his grandmother is. And this line of cruelty seems to be a Malik streak that even Arnav has. 

There is no denying that Arnav has the Malik blood in him coursing through his veins. But it’s just a magic that he has turned every weakness, fault of the Maliks into his biggest strength. 

And in between all this we perhaps miss how identical Anjali is to their mother. Anjali is not only pivotal to Arnav’s life like his mother, she is also literally similar to Ratna Singh Raizada.

Calm, composed, ability to see through their Chote’s anger, clad in a rich saree, always present with a large smile. 

But along with personality and features, she also inherited her mother’s fate. 

A cheater for a husband. 

However Anjali fared worse. Not only did Shyam cheat on her, he did not care about his child and made numerous attempts to murder his wife and was behind the Raizada wealth. 

But when Ratna and Anjali realize the true faces of their husbands - they seemingly say the same thing;

“Aapne mujhe pyaar kiya hi nahi,” You never loved me.

“Aur aap humein pyaar bhi nahi de paaye.” You couldn’t even love me.

And you have to wonder, if not for Khushi in their lives - what would’ve happened? Her presence helped Arnav step out of the shadows of his family’s past and gave Anjali the support to escape the emotionally manipulative marriage she was in. 

#2 “Nahi Shyam ji, humare Chotey aur Khushi ji ka rishta itna kamzor nahi hai. Inn dono ka rishta toh iss sab se bohot upar hai.”

“No Shyam, my brother and Khushi’s relationship isn’t that weak. Their relationship is above and beyond all this [misunderstanding, tragedy, manipulation].” Anjali to her husband, Shyam.

This is one of the few times in Anjali’s marital relationship where she has gone against her husband. And this was more than going against, this was dismissing him. While I rejoiced that Arnav came back to his Khushi to live their happily ever after - I was more surprised by Anjali’s calm demeanor.

For a woman who had clung onto her grandmother, Dadi, the minute she entered their house - Anjali did not even have a single hesitation to Dadi leaving the house permanently. 

There’s a sudden maturity and clarity in Anjali. She laughs, teases, worries just as before but there’s a realization that history has never been the way she and Arnav saw it. 

I think that maybe Anjali too believed it was an outsider who ruined her parents’ marriage - but perhaps seeing Khushi crumble without Arnav and her brother’s strength to face his past and embrace his present, and above all blatantly seeing her grandmother’s manipulation shifts Anjali’s perspective. 

She sees what no one else does. That Dadi chose this day, the day of her dearest Chote’s wedding, the happiest day of her brother’s life to speak about a past that does not matter. This freezes Anjali against all her hatred she had for the other woman, her father, their past. For Dadi her grandson’s happiness does not matter.

But for Anjali, nothing was worth more than her brother’s happiness. 

And I positively stand by this head canon because immediately Anjali signals her brother that he did the right thing after he asks Khushi to marry him. She requests for Khushi’s happiness from Arnav as her nek. She keeps insisting, in front of her family, that Arnav and Khushi are made for each other. And above all, when Arnav tells Anjali that he might hurt her - she immediately shushes him that he can never hurt her. 

And so one of the first things Anjali tells to Shyam is that; 

“Why should I trust you? So you can betray me... again? My family was against you, every evidence was against you but I... I stood with you.”

#3 *Gets SOS message from Arnav to send Khushi a gift* *Sends the gift but signs it off with his name*

Somehow I have this deep feeling that Aman messes with Arnav on purpose! I find it hilarious that we never see Aman so genuinely he is a figment of our imagination - why is why I believe this man is canonically Aman and I have evidence which I refuse to be disputed on!

But in general I also feel that Aman is one of Arnav’s closest friends apart from colleague. According to me, Aman Mathur is one of the first men to join AR and a key employee who helped Arnav grow AR to what it is. He is responsible for the functional logistics, is Arnav’s best friend and one of the only people to not be intimidated by ASR. 

In a world of ‘yes men’, Aman is a ‘no’ man and it is their intellectual arguments that makes him Arnav’s best friend because Aman truly looks out and cares for Arnav as his own family. Also, he wants the best for Arnav.

He probably knows everything about Arnav and Khushi’s contract marriage, gets to know everything about Shyam’s duplicity and even though we never see him in the family - I can imagine that Arnav, Akash and Khushi, consider Aman as their own. 

And either Arnav and Aman function on the same brain cell, i.e.,

Arnav - can memorize the entire Oxford dictionary but cannot conjure ‘Happy Birthday’. Runs a fashion house but has NO IDEA that his wife needed a bag for functionality, not accessory. Can have telepathic conversations with his wife but NOT a real one.

Aman - one of the most efficient person on this planet. Immediately organizes a gift for Khushi, upon Arnav’s instructions. Finds the best handbag, puts it in a box and sends it through a worker in time. FORGETS TO REMOVE HIS NAME AND SCREWS UP ARNAV’S HALF ASSED APOLOGY ATTEMPT #8592.

- OR -

Aman - tries interrupting ASR by dropping subtle hints that Khushi needs a ‘happy birthday’ instead of a bag. Seeing the density of his best friend Aman does two things; selects a bag that is completely out of taste for Khushi but pleases Arnav because it’s expensive, makes sure to leave his name behind for Arnav to understand what a gift is. 

Tell me which one sounds more like your imaginary Aman ;)

#4 “WHAT THE FU-”

He completes that sentence the day Arnav learns about Anjali and Aman’s relationship. Definitely the two people, apart from Khushi, who is closest to Arnav and cares for him the most. 

The two people Arnav loves the most.

The two people Arnav would NEVER WANT TO LOVE EACH OTHER.

How and when Aman and Anjali fall in love - I’ll leave that to competent fan fiction writers - but to add in a few thoughts;

- Aman and Khushi develop a strong friendship. Khushi and Anjali are more than sisters. 

- Aman and Anjali connect because of their common point (their sincere care and concern for Arnav) and maybe there were prior feelings? I leave it open - but their love has this trance like gentleness that grows into humor and friendship and more as they try to sneak their way as an official couple.

- Khushi is the first to notice and connect the dots between Aman and Anjali and she is glad. Arnav denies the thought and is positively horrified by it. 

- Khushi bears the brunt of having to placate Arnav into Aman and Anjali’s romance. It’s hilarious (and we get to see another flare of Dramatic Singh Raizada).  

- Oh there’s almost always going to be a love-hate relationship of Arnav and Aman. While Arnav truly is happy for Aman and Anjali, he never fails to remind Aman he’s the boss. While Aman truly loves being accepted into a family and cares for Arnav as his younger brother, he never fails to remind him that he is married to Arnav’s sister. *Khushi and Anjali’s exhausted eye rolls*

- But in times of adversity they stand together against anything and everything. 

#5 "Shurukiya Lavanya.” “Shurukiya NK.”

Let me say, I began to ship NK and Lavanya the day NK said ‘shurukiya’ instead of shukriya - just like Lavanya! While the intellect, grasp of the Hindi language and foreign lifestyles match - they are also a case of opposites when it comes to personality. 

In my head they meet - either for the first time or again - at Khushi’s birthday. This time Arnav babua knows how to win his lady love’s heart and how to say happy birthday so he does organize a small, intimate but colorful party with all the people who matter. 

Which includes NK & Lavanya - Khushi’s two best friends (which she found thanks to Arnav). 

There is definitely attraction at first sight but love? That takes its own sweet time to grow. It does NOT help that NK is Arnav’s cousin - but NK and Lavanya do end up together and are perfect for each other.

Neither NK nor Lavanya need to change, and their love story is like any other Hollywood romantic comedy - there’s everything (much to Khushi’s delight and Arnav’s dismay); meet cute, misunderstanding, accidental kissing, pretend boyfriend/girlfriend, denial of feelings, final grand confession at airport/balcony of La’s house and of course a white, hilarious wedding! 

AND OF COURSE KHUSHI SHIPS IT! And Arnav curses his life because he was probably just coming to terms with Aman and Anjali coming together! (How come every employee gets married to a family member - the only exception being Payal and that Khushi is married to the owner and she was an employee so that doesn’t count). 

I can just imagine an over enthusiastic Khushi helping a besotted NK and an empathetic but practical Lavanya. And probably there’s a breakup, or Lavanya chooses to not pursue the relationship until, ironically but according to clichés, Arnav saves the day by tapping into the friendship he shared with Lavanya. 

And by driving NK to the airport - or La to the airport.

There is an airport scene ok. 

#6 “Mom”

Never, in a million years, with all her twenty imaginary babies would Khushi have ever imagined to be called ‘mom’. In her fantasies of Laad Governor & Sanka Devi’s Shaadi Shuda Zindagi she thought she had imagined it all;

A hot, passionate but crazy marriage. Their brood of children would be half western, thanks to English Singh Raizada, and half traditional. Her son would probably take after his father in looks (which she would be grateful for) and in temperament (which she would curse Arnav for). Their daughter would be just like Khushi (which Arnav would be grateful for) and probably believe in all love and romance (which Arnav would curse Khushi for as he fought off suitors for their daughter). 

And then Arnav and Khushi would have another set of a son and daughter to have the roles switched. Of course, they have mastered the skill of making love and babies. 

Arnav would be positively traumatized upon being called “Babuji” and would drop all his business to make sure his brood calls him “Dad/Papa” and Khushi would leave all her jalebis and shop to make sure her little army of Raizada's called her “Amma” instead of “Mom!”

That is until the day Aarav calls her mom. Suddenly, that is the sweetest word Khushi has ever heard and she does not want Aarav to call her anything else. Because it's what Aarav calls her. 

Aarav, although shown to be identical to Arnav and immediately close to him because he believed all along that Arnav was his father - hence tried to impress him as much as he could - grows to become mamma’s boy. It’s Khushi’s childishness, sense of humor, joy for life, maturity and zest that brings out the boy’s childhood. 

I am sure one day Khushi sits and talks about being an orphan - and Aarav would be surprised at Khushi’s happiness despite her tragedy. I feel Khushi would actually play a key role in nurturing Aarav and making him a wholesome boy who can laugh, dance and enjoy life like his mother. 

In a nutshell, Aarav grows to become the perfect combination of his parents; slightly religious, loves sweets, plays pranks, is extremely sharp at mathematics, sarcastic, introvert, dry sense of humor, values relationships, values money and is temperamental enough to get people to obey him. 

Oh, and did you think Arnav was a terror if anyone insulted Khushi in front of him? That Arnav would slap and rip away the person from planet and protect his wife from all costs. 

Don’t even think of insulting Khushi with Aarav Singh Raizada around. 

Even Arnav can’t raise his voice on Khushi in front of Aarav. 

Aarav is obviously, protective about his father too - except he’s not too vocal about his. Arnav becomes a mentor, guide and a loving father for Aarav, while Khushi becomes Aarav’s best friend. 

#7 “That was not an accident.”

One line that would shake the worlds of the Raizada's and Gupta’s would be to learn that whatever happened with Shashi Gupta was not an accident. Of course, the show was great the way it was but with Shashi Gupta being such a competent and fantastic character - I just have this head canon where this last knot is tied up as well.

I think nothing adds more gravity to Shyam’s villainy than the fact that he nearly murdered a man right under their noses and no one even had an inkling. I just think it was important to address how disastrous it was for Buaji and Garima to immediately rely on Shyam and hasten Khushi’s wedding. Like Garima is truly selfish when she asks Payal to not say the truth and how horrible it was for Khushi to believe Shyam could change. 

All along her father lay paralyzed by that very man’s hideous actions. 

A part of me is not okay that they show Khushi, out of all people, trusting Shyam again. That Shashi’s paralysis is never addressed - it was a murder that failed. That Buaji and Garima have no idea what the consequence of their decision was. 

They nearly married Khushi off to her father’s murderer. There’s just a part of me that does not want to blame anyone or expect any drama, but I need to know that the family knows how close they had been to losing everything because of their gross naivety. 

Anjali lived with a murderer for so long; it’s been out there! Shyam paralyzed the man who suspected him, attempted killing his wife multiple times, kidnapped and nearly murdered his brother in law for wealth and then finally he did kill his child. 

So I just need a moment for the Raizada's and Gupta’s to realize what a horrifying man Shyam is - independent of everything else. And I would have loved to have seen Shashi Gupta and Arnav’s interactions! So for me, it is my head canon that they all get to know the other truth once Shashi heals enough to speak.

#8 The Six Month Contract

I mean I am completely fine with no one having an idea of the nature of the marriage. But also, I can’t imagine that Akash and Payal - who are very quiet but very in tune with their siblings and aware of their siblings nature - would be just quiet. 

Especially when both of them knew that Arnav and Khushi were a bubbling pot of feelings on the day of their marriage. Arnav’s attraction for Khushi at that time was not a secret, and I am positive that an observant character like Akash would have picked that up.

Payal, the one we know, knows every single thing about Khushi - from her dreams to her wishes - would be completely shocked to know that Khushi agreed to a marriage where there was no priest. 

If any character knows Arnav and Khushi best - it’s Akash and Payal. They are the only characters that Arnav and Khushi don't justify themselves to. But I feel in dignified manner, both Payal and Akash would try to find the truth on what happened that night. 

Unlike Di, Nani and Bua ji, they won’t be happy with “oh they’re getting married again.” In my head canon, Akash and Payal are more active than what they were shown. And they would do this together - no secrets. They would discuss that knowing Khushi, she would never say yes to a marriage without a priest. And Bhai does seem like the last character to elope - especially when there is no reason to. With the way things were going, naturally Arnav and Khushi were next in line. 

Probably from Nani Akash and Payal would learn what happened on their wedding day. They would learn about the fact that Arnav knew about Shyam, on that day. He thought Khushi was involved with Shyam. And he did make a big mistake in his life on that day. 

From Di they would learn that Arnav did not marry Khushi because he loved her. 

And that would give them all the knowledge that they knew and it would lead to a difficult but poignant conversation between all four of them. Akash and Payal are the ones who know the whole picture, but they’re also the ones who are closest to Arnav and Khushi.  

#9 “You’re going on a date?” “Haan.” “HAAN! KISKE SAATH!?!” “Obviously Khushi ke saath.”

“You’re going on a date?” NK

“Yeah.” Arnav

“YEAH! WITH WHOM?!” NK

“Obviously with Khushi!” Arnav

This is probably one of the funniest scenes because NK has to question his cousin, who is about to be remarried to his wife, who he’s going on a date with. 

And that sparks this head canon for me that Arnav and Khushi enjoy all the joys of courtship, friendship and dating post their marriage. They start heading to the movies, playing pranks, discussing business, traveling countries and flirting with each other shamelessly. 

It’s an aspect of love they scratched on right before Akash and Payal’s marriage and their remarriage. With the absence of all hate and prejudices - Arnav and Khushi probably have a really fun marriage with one always pulling the other one’s leg. 

When they’re serious and romantic - they burn the house in flames from their intensity.

When they’re pulling pranks they’re  also bringing the house down with Khushi screaming murder and running behind Arnav to maul him. 

We see glimpses of this when Arnav, seductively, draws a mustache on her. Or teases her about the moon and she slaps him, lightly on his chest. Or when he suggests that the world isn’t weird but she might be. Or when Khushi teases Arnav on being called “chote.” 

*sigh*

In a nutshell - Arnav & Khushi explore the facets of romance and courtship post marriage - dates, friendship, movies, travel, exercise, cooking, gardening, pranks, arguments, etc.

#10 Arnav Shy Singh Raizada

Another completely silly head canon - the silliest of all - is that when Khushi takes control, Arnav becomes shy. He isn’t as vocal as Khushi when it comes to expressing his emotions but he does have his brief moments of being slightly flustered which he graces with his one look. A soft smile and a sweet challenge brewing in his eyes. 

We get a hint of him being bashful when anyone else interrogates him about his feelings for Khushi - there’s the obvious nonchalance and anger, but this little heart likes to believe that there’s a soft boi underneath who’s going starry eyed every now and then. 

If anyone read this in full then may Devi Maiyya bless you with infinite happiness and patience. It was a lot, even though it was supposed to be a silly list of head canons! Thank you for your time!

[im-justso-bored]

Week 6 of Clown Theories and Analysis

S03E06: End of Game

So this one is a bit late, I guess I was a bit underwhelmed by this episode but I’m finally getting around to typing this out. I’ve noticed that for each episode this season, I’ve appreciated it much more the second time I watched it. I think it’s because I have certain expectations of the episode and the episodes end up being completely different from what I thought but idk if it’s in a good way or not so I have readjust my expectations and I usually enjoy it more the second time around. 

Also I wanna say that while I am just as disappointed as everyone else that Eve isn’t getting the screen time she deserves, it does make sense that they would be splitting up the time for each character differently this season. With everyone being separated (Eve no longer working for Carolyn, and V no longer working for Konstantin), there are a lot more storylines to keep up with. And in the promos leading up to this season we see a lot of all four of them, not just Eve and Villanelle. Carolyn is to Eve what Konstantin is to Villanelle, they’re just as much affected by everything as Eve and V. That being said, I do want to see Eve on screen more and I think that season 4 will more Eve and Villanelle centric, hopefully with more emphasis on Eve (kind of like season 1). Especially because depending on how these last two episodes play out, it’s looking likely we won’t be seeing Konstantin at all next season and possibly even Carolyn. KE does have a history of really focuses and building up characters before killing them off (i.e. Bill and Kenny). 

Piss off forever - So I still don’t understand how Niko survived a pitchfork to the neck. I take back my RIP from my episode 4 review. 

I’m really glad that he’s still done with Eve though. Dude doesn’t even care to find out who tried to kill him, he just wants Eve as far away from him as possible and I’m here for it. Whatever it takes for no more Niko. He was still wearing his wedding ring in this scene which confused me but I think this is the last we’ll be seeing of Niko (I hope). Otherwise the whole pitchfork scene would have been for nothing because it clearly didn’t make Eve think it was V. And I guess the goal for the writers wasn’t to kill Niko either so they must be just giving Niko and Eve the only other way out of their doomed marriage which is for Eve to really see the position she’s putting Niko in by still being connected to him. 

To Villanelle, the Keeper - You never really see V care much about who she works for or why is tasked to do what she does.

For a long time, she did what she was told until Eve brought it to her attention and she stole the recording of Frank and learned about the Twelve. And then you see in episode 7 of season 1, V is asking Konstantin for the names of the Twelve. I think Eve asking about who she works for and listening to the recording of Frank opened up a can of worms for V. After this, she’s in this constant struggle within herself to either be powerful or to be free. For a long time, she’s always been stuck in the middle and given the illusion of power and freedom but she never really has either. I think V’s interest in being a Keeper this season has a lot to do with that. You see her talk about freedom a couple of times.

“Run. You’re free.”

“You’re free now. You can be whoever you want.”

Each time, she received the response of “I don’t want to be free.” You can tell she’s really confused at how someone would willingly give up their freedom. She doesn’t have that luxury, she has the illusion of freedom but she’s never truly free. So seeing others give up their freedom is something that perplexes her. I think V sees gaining power the only way she can truly have freedom which is why being a Keeper is so important to her. And despite the shit she went through in episode 5, she seemed genuinely happy to receive the news that her request was successful. Until she realizes that nothing has really changed and she’s still being given orders and not the other way around. The title of “Keeper” is nothing more than an illusion of power and freedom.

She knows she can’t touch him - I’m all here for Eve not believing for one second that V tried to kill Niko.

I’m a little confused on how Eve figured out it was Dasha who tried to kill Niko based off a couple of photos, an online profile, and one conversation with Carolyn. But I guess they do have to move the plot along so I’m just going to say it’s because Eve is a badass investigator even though we all know her and Villanelle share one brain cell. 

Does it really matter who? - I love how Carolyn constantly calls Eve out on her obsession for Villanelle. Because Carolyn is kind of right, if it was the Twelve, why does it really matter? It was important for Eve to know because it means that it wasn’t V. Not to say that Carolyn is completely right though, with a death so personal, of course she would want to know exactly who killed him just like Carolyn would want to know exactly who killed Kenny. But as we all know, it’s more than that for Eve and Carolyn sees right through her as always. 

Also how is that Carolyn always has ties to sketchy Russian people? Konstantin and now Dasha. 

I send for you - I think I speak for us all when I say that I’m tired of seeing V cry or with tears in her eyes, let her be happy pleaaseee. Villanelle is desperately trying to hold on to the few people she has left. After the letdown of finally being promoted to Keeper, the only thing she has left now are Konstantin and Eve, both of whom she shot. These are her last ties to holding on to her humanity and sanity, which parallels nicely with Eve and the red string of fate. You see Konstantin choose Irina over Villanelle in this episode just as you see Niko choose his freedom over Eve. Which leaves Villanelle with Dasha who she doesn’t fully trust and Eve with Carolyn who she also doesn’t fully trust. 

Are you working for them, Paul? - Just a quick note about this scene. This brought up a question a lot of us have been asking since season 1. Is Carolyn working for the Twelve? Was she ever working for the Twelve? It seemed less likely after Kenny’s death but sometimes I still wonder and this scene definitely brought my attention back to that. 

He asked if I was his father - So I’m not even going to touch the whole “Geraldine kissed Konstantin” thing because as of right now, everything about Geraldine confuses me and she has not added anything to the plot so far. Although I do want to know why she lied about Konstantin visiting. It’s definitely not over something as small as a kiss.

Carolyn was such a badass in this scene. She’s definitely become more careless and a bit more unhinged like Eve and Villanelle. As I said before, both Konstantin and Carolyn are just as affected by all of the events that have built up since season 1 and we’re seeing huge contrasts from them then and now. This is definitely building to something big for the last two episodes. I wonder if the idea of Konstantin being Kenny’s father will have any significance later on. Also I want to know how Kenny came to that conclusion and if that’s part of what got him killed. Carolyn’s shock at finding out what Kenny asked Konstantin about makes me wonder if there is something else she’s hiding and wondering if Kenny found out. Not about being Konstantin’s son but something bigger like Carolyn possibly working for the Twelve or formerly working for the Twelve?  

Trying to get my step count up - So yeah, Konstantin is fucked.

She is perfect killing machine - Eve had such top energy here and I love it. Eve definitely surprised Dasha here, maybe even scared her a little. Eve managed to figure her out in a matter of days and then track her down. Dasha definitely underestimated the connection that both Eve and Villanelle share and it’s apparent in this conversation. It’s also very clear that Eve knows V better than Dasha does despite Dasha spending more time with her lately. Dasha sees Villanelle as a “killing machine” but Eve knows that she’s much more than that even after all the shit that V put Eve through. Dasha continues to dig her own grave by underestimating Eve and putting Villanelle on a pedestal, which I think she realizes more in the last scene of this episode. 

This is bullshit - So this scene reminded me of a scene from Dexter where after killing his brother, it really put him off his game and Dexter struggled with his next couple of kills after that. Same with Villanelle and killing her family, this is the only time that we actually see V really falter during one of her kills. 

I don’t want to do this anymore - I’m making it illegal to make Villanelle cry, I can’t take it anymore 😭 What a heartbreaking scene but also what an amazing scene and the parallel to 1x05 is just fantastic. I’m a sucker for good parallels and the ones in this show are just *chef’s kiss*.

Killing her mother definitely broke something inside of Villanelle. I guess you could say that it broke Villanelle and what’s taking place is Oksana. After her promotion not being what she wanted and Konstantin choosing Irina over her, she lost the only way to either of the two things she really wanted, power and freedom. Now she’s stuck doing the same thing she always has (reminds me of what she said during the AA meeting “I’m just so bored.”) but now she’s a different person and that’s not enough anymore. Maybe it was a little more bearable when she didn’t feel anything but now that she feels more, I can imagine that it’s much more suffocating. From the beginning (season 1), she constantly mentions wanting to be normal and do normal things and the only way she can do that is if she’s on top with no one controlling her (power) or if she’s free. But she has neither and both are slipping further out of her reach. 

Also this ^ isn’t allowed. The crying nor her still being so attractive while falling apart. Like how is that possible????

Irina - So like Irina killing her mom’s bf came out of no where but also at the same time, it didn’t? I think it’s definitely in character for Irina to do something like that. But like...eventually. Definitely not so soon. But I guess it can make sense seeing as V and Irina are constantly battling for Konstantin’s attention and maybe Irina thought that this would get his attention if she were a killer like V. 

Thanks to Irina’s little joy ride, Konstantin is now forced to stay in London longer which makes him a target and if Konstantin does die within the next two episodes, I think it’s going to have a huge impact on Irina and she might even blame herself since he had to stay in London because of her. Or this will cause Irina to become more unhinged and for her behavior to escalate. 

OVERALL - This episode was decent, it was one of the weaker episodes for me this season. It gave me a lot to think about but it definitely lacked the excitement and tension that I’ve grown to expect from Killing Eve. Also I’m not a big fan of what they’re doing to the location title cards. I guess they’re trying to be funny or maybe match the same chaotic energy that the characters are giving off. Idk but I don’t really like it. 

I think the last two episodes are definitely going to be a lot more fast paced (or at least I hope) as the season is wrapped up. I’m really nervous for the next week and a half, also I’m sad that this season is coming to an end already! I’m glad we have at least one more season after this to look forward to.

[muwur]

Hiii and welcome!! May I please request for the lovable annoying baby Hinata who has a HUGE crush on this popular girl in his class and one day she sees him at the mall or something and rushes to him begging him to pretend to be her boyfriend because there’s a group of guys that won’t leave her alone and that’s when she finally realizes that this gorgeous sweetheart exists and Hinata is just on cloud 9 the entire time but then he remembers it’s all fake :((((( teeeee

✿ pretend boyfriend pt. 1

♡ scenario ♡ for hinata

❧ fem reader

✎ 3.2k words

a/n: aw hello ty for the welcome <3 also this request made me cackle AAHAHAHAHA. also this format is interesting lolol, im so indecisive about how i want it

anyways, hope u enjoy hehe >.> this came out a lot longer than i had originally planned but did i even have a plan in the first place buut i aint complaining LOL

also yes theres going to be a pt 2 firhfnxfwifj hehe

requests: open! pls bbys dun b shy i have summer skool soon fml i need this to make me procrastinate on work LMAO

-having been preoccupied with volleyball, crushes never crossed Hinata’s mind

-however, he was about to find out that he was quite clueless when it came to love

-he found himself speeding to school on his bike one morning, riding at breakneck speed to try to make it on time

-ahhhh, i was so excited about the first day of going to karasuno and seeing their volleyball team that i couldnt sleep until 4 am...!

-that explains why he overslept

-lost in his thoughts, he nearly failed to notice the girl who was walking in front of him

-and so, at the very last minute, he swerved. i nto a tree.

- “oh my gosh! are you okay??”

-if he wasn’t okay before, now he’s cURED because the most beautiful girl was looking down at him with an outstretched hand, concern in her eyes

-he jumped up instead and waved his arms in front of himself, blushing and nodding, “y-yeah, I’m fine! don’t worry about me, a-are you okay??”

- “you’re the one who crashed into the tree!” you responded with shock as you moved to pick up his bike off the ground (luckily, it was undamaged)

-he took the handlebars after you offered them to him

-you frowned slightly. “i’m sorry, i should’ve watched where i was going. are you hurt?”

-he was too busy gawking at you to realize his head started bleeding

-cue you yelling frantically “y-your head! it’s bleeding!” and rushing him to the nurse’s office

-in his head: ‘i-im holding her hand’

-nearly combusted on spot

-and that was how he met you

-later he found out he actually shared the same class with you!

-though you never seemed to notice LOL

-you sat on the opposite side of the room, closer to the front of the class

-he sat all the way in the back, so it’s not like you would’ve really seen him but it was the perfect spot for hinata to stare at you and not pay attention to class

-and during breaks or when the teacher left the room for a few minutes, everyone around you would try to spark up a conversation with you

-oh how he wished he could make you smile and laugh like that too

-and whenever he saw you outside of class, he hid immediately (behind walls, doors, lockers, people *coughkageyamacough* “hinata boke!”, etc) and admired you from afar, way too nervous to approach you after your first encounter several weeks ago

-he just kNOWS he’ll do something stupid and end up a stuttering, blushing mess

-besides, you probably forgot who he was ;((

-one day at lunch, he hid behind yamaguchi, who was confused until he followed hinata’s intent gaze to your form, which was walking by in front of the pair

-kageyama, who also took notice, smiled devilishly

- “pfffft, she’d never glance your way”

- tsukki deadpanned, “you don’t stand a chance. she’s way too pretty for you and people are lining up just to talk to her”

-cue hinata fighting kags n tsukki, blushing and with tears pricking at his eyes

- “aw, guys, don’t be so mean, I think he just has a crush!” yams snickered what an angel (no i am not in love w this man)

-one weekend, hinata was out in a nearby shopping area to get some snacks for natsu cuz she wouldn’t stop bugging him about it (“you ate the rest of my candy, so you have to go get me some more!”)

-as he was leaving the store, hand in his bag, he felt a tug on his sleeve and heard a “psst”

-some higher being must’ve blessed him that day because here he was, face to face with the girl who’s been on his mind everyday for several weeks

-sdgfhjkljihyuitufjhk

-error.exe

-he opened his mouth to say something, maybe like a:

-“h-hey! you look familiar, I totally don’t know your name or think about you before i sleep at night, s-so hOWS the weather???”

-but before he could humiliate himself speak, you gave him a small smile and asked, “aren’t you the guy i took to the nurse after you crashed into that tree?”

- “y-yeah, that was me!” he stuttered out

-he was trying so hard to keep his cool, but he could feel his palms get sweaty and his body quiver with pANIC

-you stifled a giggle with your hand (hinata: so cute dfghjfgljkl) "im glad to see you’re doing well. sorry, i never introduced myself. my name’s y/n, what’s yours?”

-you extended your hand as a greeting

-yet all he could do was stare at it, dumbfounded

-the two brain cells he owned said we ouTTIE

- “my name’s hinata!” he yelled dramatically for no reason. “sorry, my hand’s a bit sweaty, otherwise i would shake yours!” so instead, he bent forward in a bow

-eyes wide at his sudden outburst and gesture, you laughed in response and waved a hand, “it’s okay, really! nice to meet you again, hinata”

-a few moments of silence passed by, he was still bending over, and you were looking at your surroundings awkwardly

-risking a glance up, he caught a nervous expression on your face, and it made his eyebrows furrow in concern

- “hey, are you okay?” he asked as he straightened his body

-nice. smooth and direct.

-you sheepishly looked at the ground and absentmindedly itched the side of your head, twirling a strand of hair with your finger

- “this is kinda embarrassing, but um... could you do me a favor? i promise it’s nothing too bad!”

-little do you know he would literally do aNYthing for you right now

- “of course!” he replied a little too quickly. “w-what is it?”

- “soooo, i ran into these guys from school earlier, and they won’t stop bothering me, especially this one guy. a lot of girls like him and think he’s cool, but he’s such a jerk! i honestly don’t know what they see in him. he’s been so insistent on dating me the past few weeks that i try to avoid him as much as possible...”

-you shyly looked up at him and he had to refrain from exploding

- “could you please, uh, pretend to be my boyfriend?”

-b-b-b-boYFrIeNd??

- “y-y-y-your b-b-b-boyf-f-friend?” he managed to sputter

-you clasped your two palms together in front of your face like a prayer and leaned forward slightly, closing your eyes. “just for today, i promise! i remember you were really sweet when i first met you, so i thought i could ask you! i need to get a few things and i know he’s still around here, so i might run into him and his friends again. also, earlier, i uh... kinda told him i had a boyfriend to see if he would back off, but i think it just made him angrier...”

-you were talking a bit too fast for hinata’s nonexistent brain to process, but he got the gist

-basically, he needed to pretend to be your boyfriend in front of some guy that wouldn’t leave you alone

-it almost sounded like a dream come true

-except for the fact this was all fake and he wasn’t actually your boyfriend

-BUT HE GOT TO TALK TO YOU AND PRETEND TO BE SOMETHING HE WANTED TO BE

-AND PROTECT YOU

-AND HE GOT TO TALK TO YOU

-but...

- “err, how do i do that?”

-you looked back up at him questioningly. “do what?”

-he looked off to the side in embarrassment. “w-well, i’ve never really dated anyone, so i’m not sure how to act and make it believable...”

-you clasped his hands making him even more flustered and jumped up in excitement

- “so you’ll do it??”

-he could only manage to nod in response

- “great! ahhhh, thank you so much! you don’t know how much i appreciate this! as for the acting... well, we just have to do couple-y things. y’know, hold hands, stand close to one another, feed each other, take pictures together, kiss, all that stuff. just follow my lead!”

-did his ears deceive him?

-did you just say

-kISS??

-he?? was going to get?? to?/ kisS yOu?//dfokgjif

-he definitely looked like an idiot right now

-wide eyes glazed over, mouth opened slightly for the soul leaving his body, a grey and sickly pale complexion, stomach twisting from nerves and butterflies

-noya and tanaka would be so jealous

-and possibly kill him so they could replace him as your pseudo boyfriend

- “hinata? what’s wrong, d-did i say something?”

-your concerned voice brought him back to earth

-gazing into your cute, confused eyes, he took a deep breath and exhaled

- ‘im acting so uncool right now! y/n needs my help!’

-he mustered up the courage to flash you a determined smile and a thumbs up. “i’ll be the best fake boyfriend you could ever ask for!”

-you could’ve sworn you felt your heart skip a beat

-you chuckled at his genuine display and smiled back. “then in that case, would you mind tagging along as i pick up a few things?”

-he could barely hold himself together when you clasped his hand and scooted close to him

-so close he could smell a pleasant scent wafting from you

- ‘i cant believe this is happening im holding her hand agAIN was this meant to be—‘

-and then his mind went blank for like the hundredth time in the last several minutes

-he followed you around, trying to steady his rapidly beating heart and ignore the warmth that remained on his cheeks

-how could you be so calm when you two were holding hands for so long?? (kags: it means she doesnt like u)

-he was both elated and terrified at the same time

-hinata couldn’t help but relish the way your fingers felt interlocked with your own

-how you slightly swung your arms together as you walked

-the way your eyes shone as you talked so casually with him

-the crinkle of your eyes and the sweet sound of your laugh when he said something that was apparently funny

- ‘fjjkdjnf i made her laugh‘

-he couldn’t help but notice the way your hair brushed your face when you leaned forward to inspect an item on a shelf

- “this is kinda cute, don’t you think?” you held up a small plush of a hedgehog

- “y-yeah, adorable!” but i’m not talking about the hedgehog

-it was no surprise to him, really, to see why you were so popular with everyone

-what’s not there to like? aside from your stunning beauty and intelligence, you were naturally charming and radiated an aura that just drew others in

-two hours passed and you both ended up sitting at a table, hands linked together across the table’s surface

- “ah, i need to answer this,” you breathed out, letting go of his hand to rummage your bag and answer your ringing phone

-ngl his hand was already getting cold and he missed your touch

-after a few nods and short replies, you ended the call and stood up

- “well, now that i’ve gotten everything, i have to head home now. ..”

- “oh... i-i mean, oh, alright! uhh, it was nice um, shopping with you!”

-his heart sank a bit now that this blissful time had come to an end

-disappointment seeped in hello darkness my old friend

-you, too, were a bit dismayed. you never expected to have enjoyed your time with him that much

-how come you never saw him at school? you definitely would’ve loved to get to know him more...

- “y-yeah, i had a good time, too! er, shopping, i mean! thanks again for following me around, though. you’re really sweet, hinata. i don’t know what i would’ve done without your help...”

- ‘come on, this is your chance!’

-boyo took another deep breath and opened his mouth to say, “y/n, could we do this again som--”

- “y/n! heyyy, i’ve been looking for you, sweet cheeks!”

-you both whipped around to see a group of guys approaching your table

-quickly, you pulled hinata close to you and whispered in his ear, “act natural.”

-nAtUral?????

-nodding, he stood up straighter and hesitantly snaked an arm around your waist

-then stiffened in fear when you were both surrounded by a group of guys who were all way taller than him

-you gave the boys a suspicious eye and scooted closer into hinata’s touch

-“what do you want? for the last time, i am not going out with you. don’t you know anything about respecting other people? besides, i’m already with someone,” you huffed

-the one in the front cocked an eyebrow at the sight of you two

-he had silky dark hair, smooth skin, a captivating gaze, and a smirk that could creep right under your skin

-“you expect me to believe small fry’s your boyfriend? him? with YOU? you could do so much better, buttercup. I could make you feel so good.”

-hinata could tell this guy was bad news. really bad news. he was the type who wouldn’t take no for an answer

- ‘ahhh, what do i do?? if i just stand here, he’s gonna keep harassing her! and possibly even hurt her...’

-the guy inched closer to you, much to your obvious discomfort as you stepped back, and he reached out to touch your cheek

-but hinata was quicker, and he slid in front of you before the guy could lay a finger on you

- “leave her alone! she obviously wants nothing to do with you.”

-the fiery glint in his eye was almost enough to make the other guy back off, but his pride wouldn’t let him

-angry, he instead grabbed fistfuls of hinata’s collar and spat in his face, “say that again, shorty.”

-hinata continued to stare into the other guy’s eyes daringly and grabbed a hold of his wrist in response

- “she said no. quit harassing a girl who’s made it clear she’s not interested, or else.”

- “or else what.”

-his grip on the guy’s wrist tightened and his eyes sharpened. “you’ll have to get through me, first.”

- “tch,” the taller male scoffed. he let go of hinata, pushing him back and glaring as he did so. then he glanced over at you still standing behind the orange-haired boy

- “bet you’ll get bored of shortstack over here soon enough. i’ll be waiting,” he remarked with a wink

-then he and his friends turned and walked away, disappearing from view

-hinata, who’s been running on pure adrenaline during this whole encounter, then collapsed on the floor from all the excitement and terror he tried to contain

- “h-hinata?!” you gasped, using your arms to support his sluggish body

- “ahhh... i thought he’d at least swing at me, but i got lucky...”

-he sounded breathless

-however, the last thing he expected was the soft press of your lips on his cheek

- “thank you, hinata. i really appreciate the way you stood up for me back there. no one’s ever really done that for me.”

-how many times can you die and come back to life in the same day?? p sure hinata’s broken the record for that by now

- “o-o-o-of course! i couldn’t just let him keep thinking that going after you like this is o-okay! i-i didn’t even do much, i-i mean you’ve been standing up to this guy for weeks, this was the least i could do to help--”

-and you were huGGING HIM

-he awkwardly returned the gesture, eyes wide with shock as he patted your back

- “i mean it. thank you. i hope he backs off, but...” you bit your lip and pulled away

- “w-what’s wrong...?”

-you sighed. “i have a feeling he’s still going to be bothering me for a while. i hate to ask this of you, but...”

- “could you pretend to be my boyfriend for a bit longer? at least until he gets the hint and stops...?”

-did this mean...

- ‘dating’ you at scHOOL???

-kageyama and tsukki will never let him live it down, he could already imagine their comments

- “why’d she pick you of all people for this job?? you’re so?? you???”

- “couldn’t she have chosen to be with someone more believable??”

-he shook his head from his thoughts

- “i-is that a no?” you asked worriedly

- “n-no! i mean, yes! i mean, ignore that! i can pretend for as long as you need, y/n.”

- “ahhh, thank you so much, hinata! i promise i’ll treat you to something in return!” you brought him back in a hug, swaying side to side in glee

-you both stood up after you let go. “we should exchange numbers!” you suggested

- ‘oh my gawd, im getting her number rdftegiuofref’

-tanaka and noya would be so proud tho

-you quickly typed down your contact information on his phone before handing it back to him. “alright, here you go, just give me a text! i have to go now.”

-you picked up your bags and gave him a parting smile. “i’ll see you at school! get home safe!”

-and with that, you were on your way

-he stood there and watched as you left, holding onto the cheek you had kissed earlier

-he couldn’t believe it

extra:

-he had texted you after he got home, giggling like a lovesick preteen (was he not thooo LOL) as he was reading your messages and sharing memes with you

y/n 乁( ⏒ ͜ʖ ⏒ )ㄏ : oh ye btw, who’s your teacher? also, where do you usually hang out? just so i know where to find you. i never c u around school for som reason

me: oh rlly? thats strange... (pretending like he doesnt hide from you lol) im usually in the courtyard during lunch or in the gym for volleyball practice, and i have class with ms. akio

y/n 乁( ⏒ ͜ʖ ⏒ )ㄏ : WE’RE IN THE SAME CLASS??? omg im so sorry, i never noticed :((

me: oh no its okay! i sit all the way in the back, so

y/n 乁( ⏒ ͜ʖ ⏒ )ㄏ : well, i’ll make sure to greet you next time :) ! we’ll be seeing each other a whole lot more now, so

-he was still smiling like an idiot when natsu burst open his bedroom door

- “where’s my candy?!”

-shit, you probably took it with all your other bags by accident

- “uhhh....”

- “shoyooooo! you owe me, big time!”

-he rolled his eyes. “yeah, yeah, i know, i’m sorry, i’ll buy you twice as much tomorrow.”

-he went back to typing away at his phone

-natsu raised her eyebrows in curiosity. “whatcha doinnn?”

- “nothing, go away.”

- “you’ve been on your phone all day!”

- “and?”

- “are you talking to a giiirrrlllll?”

- “n-no!”

- “then why are you blushinggg?? moommm! shoyo has a girlfriend!” then she added to her brother, “can i see her?? is she pretty??”

-he just groaned, putting a hand up to his face to cover his blush, and nodded

a/n: OKAY this def took me longer than i thot AAHAHA but no ragrets. ty for your request, anon, i rlly enjoyed writing this and i hope you liked it! there will be a part 2, ill try to get that done soon >.> stay tuned hehe. msg me or send me an ask if you wanna be in the taglist cx <3 have a great day or night, lovelies, wherever you are

[anubislover]

A Family Matter - Chapter 1

(As far as Ikkaku was concerned, deep down, every Marine was a corrupt scumbag. Some were just better at hiding it than others)

“Really hope Law doesn’t take too long to rescue us,” Shachi sighed, laying against the cool tiles of the prison floor, staring at the florescent lights in the ceiling, “otherwise I’m gonna die of boredom.”

“Agreed,” Penguin said from the cell next to him, using his shoelaces to make a cat’s cradle. They’d been locked in there for two days, and he had managed to tie and untie every type of knot he could think of for the sake of having something to occupy his brain. “They could have at least let me keep the deck of cards I’d brought.”

“Or given us a checkerboard or something. Hell, I’d take a book on Marine rules and regulations at this point—at least I could use it to beat my own skull in.”

“Ah, it’s not so bad,” Ikkaku chuckled from her cell across the room, folding her hands behind her head as she settled against the wall. “There are worse places to be incarcerated than Drake’s ship.”

It was true; while the brig was grey and boring, it was undeniably clean and well-kept, which was far more than they could say for other prisons they’d seen. On top of that, while the three Heart Pirates were locked up in separate cells, they weren’t chained to the walls or even cuffed, there were small cots with pillows and blankets, and no one was being tortured or interrogated. Hell, they’d even been given regular meals that resembled actual food, which was a pleasant surprise.

Really, the only concerning part was the cell in the far back corner that, from the look of things, had Seastone bars and shackles. Anyone could guess who Drake had reserved that one for. He might as well have hung a welcome banner.

Of course, the brig could have resembled a 5-star spa resort with meals prepared by a personal chef and Ikkaku would still have a fairly low opinion of the commodore. He was still a Marine, and she’d never known a Navy dog that wasn’t some kind of corrupt scumbag deep down, especially those that attained an officer’s rank. Some were simply better at hiding it than others.

But for now, she’d appreciate the decent-by-Marine-standards captivity, then take great pleasure in wrecking their shit.

“Maybe, but that doesn’t make me any less antsy,” Penguin stated quietly, suspicious of any guards that might be listening just out of sight. “We’ve got to be ready. Remember the plan.”

The mechanic rolled her eyes. “Of course we remember the plan.” Law had basically drilled it into their heads; the three of them had been dropped off on Einer Island to cause a commotion as a decoy while Law took the ship to Zwei Island to quietly raid the Marine base housed there.  He’d known Drake would take the bait and capture the three of them, and the Polar Tang would intercept his ship a few days later so Law could sneak aboard, free them, and they’d set about causing some wonderful havoc for the commodore and his crew. It was convoluted and complicated and she had no doubt Law would get the exact result he wanted. Which was, she suspected, the ire and attention of a certain Allosaurus.

Her grin widened as she connected the dots. “You’re not worried about the plan; you just don’t like thinking about the last time we were aboard this ship.”

Shachi sniggered while Penguin blushed from his neck to his hairline. His expression was nearly as mortified as it had been during the incident in question. “Damn it Ikkaku! I was so close to repressing that, too!”

“When we next hit land, I’ll buy you a bottle of grain alcohol as brain bleach,” she cackled without remorse. Really, being locked in a Marine prison cell would never be her idea of fun, but she was glad she was stuck with these two—teasing Penguin was far more entertaining than any poker game.

The good cheer was swiftly vanquished as a deep, cold voice from the doorway stated, “Honestly, Ikkaku, are you really still such an idiot? Or do you find the idea of dying in prison amusing somehow?”

No. It can’t be, she thought, freezing as her mind registered the familiar, intruding voice. She hadn’t heard in years, save the occasional nightmare, but it still made a wave of dread crash over her like a tsunami. Her palms immediately began to sweat while her heart pounded in her ears. He’s supposed to be stationed in the West Blue, not the North.

In sync, Penguin and Shachi turned to observe the unfamiliar man that entered the brig. He was about Law’s height but with at least three times the muscle mass. He wore the crisp white suit of a Marine officer, his coat dutifully perched on his broad shoulders. His hair was jet black and gelled back, but it was clear that the locks were naturally curly despite his efforts to tame them. There was something vaguely familiar about him, though neither man could put their finger on it. He wasn’t that different from most Marines they’d encountered; he held himself with the same over-bloated self-importance to match his too-polished appearance. His smile was especially disconcerting—there was nothing genuine about the curl of his lips, as not a hint of warmth reached his dark brown eyes.

The newcomer approached Ikkaku’s cell with measured, slightly-too-loud steps. “What, not going to greet me properly? It’s been at least four years.”

“…hi, Ushi.”

His insincere smile dropped as he scowled in disapproval. “Tch. Try to say my name with more respect, you worthless little brat. I’m a Marine captain now.”

“Good evening, Captain Ushi, sir.”

Shachi’s jaw dropped when Ikkaku didn’t make some sarcastic, biting comment. The woman he knew never let someone talk to her like that. She’d certainly had no trouble sassing the Marines when they’d been captured. Hell, once she’d gotten comfortable among the Hearts, she’d taken to back-sassing Law on the regular. It was funny as hell to watch the two of them go at it like a couple of squabbling siblings. In fact, he suspected Law enjoyed and even encouraged it to an extent, as he’d just argue right back instead of pulling rank or disciplining her. The crew occasionally wondered if their captain spoiling her like that was a good thing, as it reinforced her lack of respect for more powerful figures.

To see that fire doused so easily by one man set Shachi’s teeth on edge.

“Better,” the Marine said blandly, pulling a key out of his pocket. “Though, it’ll be Commodore Ushi soon; there’s been talk of promoting me. I’ve made a good impression among some important people. People who want to see me advance. Unfortunately, that’s unlikely to happen unless I clear up a few loose ends first.”

Instinctively, Ikkaku shrank back, pressing herself hard against the wall as if it might open up and swallow her. Her big brown eyes were fixated on the floor, and her lips were pressed together so tightly they’d turned white.

It was easy to guess what “loose ends” he was referring to. Ushi had always been ambitious. Praised for his strength, intelligence, sense of responsibility, and charisma, the whole island had loved him, giving him a grand send-off the day he left for the Marines. On the few occasions he’d had time to visit home, everyone was quick to call him the pride of Rivet and a future hero.

The handful that knew better had learned to keep their mouths shut long ago.

In the cell across from her, Penguin’s hands clenched as he watched the interaction before him. This was very, very wrong. In the year and a half that he’d known her, Ikkaku didn’t shrink. From anyone. Not Law, not enemy pirates, not drunken brutes twice her size—even Drake had gotten a few bruises when he’d been forced to subdue her during their capture. She was feisty and scrappy and wasn’t afraid of slamming her foot into some asshole’s groin when threatened.

It became clear that this particular Marine was the exception when he unlocked her cell door, marched inside, grabbed her by the collar of her jumpsuit, and dragged her to her feet.

Ikkaku didn’t resist. Resisting had never done her any good in the past. Ushi always took it as a personal offense and would come up with worse punishments. Or make Hapushiru, Nausagi, and Fukuro beat her up instead so he could keep his hands clean and maintain his image as the “responsible” one.

Of course, she was swiftly reminded that he’d never been shy about taking matters into his own hands when he was in the right mood when he sharply smacked her across the cheek so hard she saw stars for a moment.

At the loud smack, Penguin and Shachi sprang to their feet, ready to fight. “What the fuck—”

“You’ve got some balls hitting our crewmate!”

Ushi ignored them in favor of sneering down at the woman in question, “Can you believe the twins were actually bragging about you being part of the most wanted crew in the North Blue? As if you’re the one the family should be proud of! You’re going to come with me, nice and quiet, or we’re going to have problems. And you remember how I tend to make problems disappear, right?”

She shuddered at the memory. Three days. She’d spent three days wandering alone in the woods, cold and hungry and terrified that she’d be eaten by wolves. Three days wondering if Ushi was right—that Mama and Papa would be better off without her. Without a worthless daughter than would never amount to anything holding everyone back…

Gramps had been the one to find her. Nausagi and Fukuro had realized that, even if their baby sister annoyed them, and even if having one less mouth to feed meant more money for toys and treats, leaving her out there to die was sick and wrong. The twins had defied Ushi and told their grandfather she was missing. The old lighthouse keeper had searched the woods in the middle of a storm for the sake of finding his seven-year-old granddaughter, and she could still remember his wrinkled face lined with worry and raindrops when he’d finally found her shivering in a hollowed-out tree.

As relieved as her parents had been that she was safe, Ikkaku had been scolded for causing such trouble and forcing Gramps to abandon his post and risk something happening, like the light going out and a ship crashing into the rocks. How dare she run off without telling anyone? She’d put herself and others in danger! Why couldn’t she be more responsible like Ushi?

Neither she nor the twins had told anyone that it had been Ushi’s fault—no one would believe them, and he’d just make them pay for it.

He had made them pay for it. He’d taken his aggression out on Nausagi and Fukuro, beating them both bloody while making Ikkaku watch, telling her that it was her fault, that he wouldn’t have to hurt his beloved little brothers if she’d just stayed gone…

CLANG! Shachi threw himself against the bars of his cell, desperately grasping for Ikkaku in hopes of getting her away from the Marine. She hadn’t even noticed that Ushi had dragged her out of her cell—she’d been too caught up in the past. Of the memory of how pointless it was to fight Ushi.

“Buddy, I don’t give a shit if you’re an Admiral—you let Ikkaku go right the fuck now, or so help me I’ll rip your goddamn throat out!”

Meanwhile, Penguin was yelling towards the doorway, “Hey! Is somebody out there? I know this asshole isn’t part of Drake’s crew! Get him out of here!”

Ushi gave the younger men a death glare. “Shut the hell up. I sent the guards to get some coffee so I wouldn’t have any interruptions. Not that they’d step in anyway; what self-respecting Marine would help a bunch of pirates?”

As if to prove his point, he slammed his fist into Ikkaku’s stomach, his grip on the collar of her boiler suit the only thing keeping her from crumpling to the floor.

She would have sobbed if she had the breath to. He was right. Ushi could do what he wanted, and no one would help them. Hell, they’d probably thank him for taking them off their hands; no need to expend resources on prisoners, after all.

Men like Ushi were the reason she could never trust the Marines. The fact that they’d allowed such a violent bastard to advance to a position of authority—that “certain people” wanted to give him even more power—told her everything she needed to know. The World Government was just a gang of bullies who liked to push people around just for kicks. She’d seen it plenty of times; Navy dogs refusing to help innocent civilians, valuing the glory of arresting a notorious pirate over human decency.

Hell, Commodore Drake was probably lounging in his cabin, greedily counting however many belli her brother had paid him to take a single problematic prisoner off his hands.

No one would come to help the Heart Pirates.

That didn’t stop Shachi from straining against the bars harder, the veins in his neck bulging as he struggled to rescue his friend. “Go fuck yourself!”

Smirking, Ushi moved so he was just out of reach of Shachi’s grasping fingers, making sure to harshly shove Ikkaku behind him to keep her out of the way. “Do yourself a favor and stand down, scumbag, before I break that spindly arm of yours. This is a family matter, anyway.”

“Then it definitely involves us! We’re nakama!” Penguin snapped, turning away from the door to face the Marine. If the guards couldn’t help them, he’d just have to figure out how to take down this asshole himself.

Ushi raised a disbelieving eyebrow. “Seriously? You wanna fight me for her? Why? Is it because she’s the only woman on your ship?” He glanced over his shoulder at Ikkaku, who was still clutching her stomach in pain, silently praying that the boys would back down before they got hurt. She knew from experience that breaking an arm was far from an empty threat. “Are you the ship’s whore or something? God, you’re an even bigger disgrace than I thought.”

Eyes lighting up with fury, Shachi pulled his arm inside his cell, took several steps back, and then rushed forward, slamming his shoulder against the door in an attempt to break it down.

“She’s our mechanic!” Penguin defended, teeth grinding as he tried to figure out some kind of plan. Damn it, there had to be something in that stupid cell he could use as a weapon. He couldn’t just stand there while this bastard manhandled and insulted Ikkaku! He’d throw his boot at the son of a bitch if he had to!

“Tch. You people must have been really desperate to hire a talentless brat like her.”

“Ikkaku! Are you really gonna let this guy talk to you like that?!” Shachi shouted as he futilely slammed into the door again. He winced at the pain the shot through his shoulder, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. Not when his shipmate was in trouble.

“She’s the best damn mechanic in the North Blue,” Penguin stated, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Soon she’s going to be the best in the whole world. And you’d better let her go right now; otherwise, you’re in for a world of pain when Law finds out you’ve threatened his nakama.”

A pang went through Ikkaku’s chest at their words, warm and stronger than even the pain in her stomach. It was still such a foreign feeling, having people that genuinely cared about her. That believed in her abilities and her dream. Only the twins had really ever had her back, and it had been too dangerous to show it until Ushi had finally left…

She was given a stark reminder of why that was when her oldest brother drew his pistol.

“Ugh, arguing with you two is a waste of time,” he scoffed, pointing it casually at Penguin, whose eyes widened beneath the brim of his hat as he realized there was no space to dodge in the cramped cell. “I’m on a tight schedule, and I’m pretty sure Drake doesn’t need both of you alive to lure out Trafalgar.”

Without even thinking, Ikkaku lunged forward, desperately grabbing Ushi’s arm and jerking it upwards so the bullet hit a ceiling light instead of her friend.

“Don’t you fucking touch them!” she screamed, spinning around and slamming her foot into his ribs. For a moment, her boot appeared black as it made contact, and the blow made the Marine faulter, the gun falling from his hand to clatter on the tile floor.

Unfortunately, he recovered quickly, and before Ikkaku could dive for the gun he grabbed her by the shoulders, lifted her up, and bashed her right against the bars of her empty cell. The impact shook her to her core, and she once again curled into herself, the blood pounding in her ears sounding like frantic footsteps to her dazed mind.

“You stupid fucking bitch!” he shouted, shifting one of his hands so it wrapped around her throat. “You just never fucking learn!”

Thinking fast, Penguin reached through the bars for the pistol, but it was just out of reach. He yanked off his hat, planning to use it to catch the gun and drag it towards him before Ushi could strangle the mechanic.

Everything came to a halt when the sound of stomping boots became unmistakable.

“WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!” Drake bellowed from the doorway. He charged into the brig, sword drawn, ready to end whatever fight had resulted in a gun being fired on his ship. His eyes widened at the sight before him; a Marine officer choking his sole female prisoner—who for some reason was out of her cell instead of locked up tight like he’d ordered—while another prisoner reached through the bars for the smoking pistol at their feet. Shards of glass littered the floor of Penguin’s cell, the remains of the florescent light sparking dangerously above him while Shachi clutched his shoulder in pain.

Instinctively, the two guards that flanked Drake drew their rifles, though no one was quite sure if they were aiming at the Captain or the pirates.

“It’s about fucking time,” Shachi said shakily, gripping his shoulder. The adrenaline was beginning to wear off, and the pain was making its presence known. He was sure he’d injured himself trying to break the door down, but there was no way he was going to stand down until he knew his comrades were safe.

Drake didn’t spare him a glance, his intense grey eyes solely focused on the two figures that weren’t locked up.

“Captain Ushi,” he growled, “while I gave you permission to come aboard my ship, I don’t recall giving you leave to visit the brig. Mainly because you didn’t request it.”

“Ah, yes,” Ushi said, releasing Ikkaku’s throat. His grip on her shoulder remained firm as he lowered her back down to the floor. “I apologize for that. You seemed extremely busy planning Trafalgar Law’s capture, so I planned to bring it up at dinner.”

“Dinner started ten minutes ago. I was waiting for you.”

“Must have slipped my mind.”

“Much like I’m sure your hand slipped when you fired that gun.”

“More like it was forcibly jerked about,” Ushi replied, sparing the wheezing Ikkaku a disdainful glance. “I drew my weapon in self-defense.”

Drake sheathed his sword, mainly so he could cross his arms in disapproval. “Against three unarmed prisoners, two behind bars and one of which is a woman a third your size?”

He had the gall to shrug. “From what I’ve heard, you shouldn’t underestimate the Surgeon of Death or his men. I mean, they’ve been crafty enough to slip through your fingers before, Commodore.”

Grey eyes narrowed at the small show of disrespect. “While this is true, I’m curious as to what business you have with them. And why you sent the guards that were stationed here away. Surely if you’re intent on not underestimating them, you’d want backup? And given the state I’ve found everyone in, I’d say it’s a damn good thing they came to find me instead of taking a coffee break like you suggested. Otherwise you’d have been shot in the back by Trafalgar’s first mate, and the woman could have unlocked the cells, thus allowing them to slip through my fingers once again.”

Ushi glowered at the man in question before grimacing, fully aware that Drake had backed him into a corner. “Fine. I’m here because I’m taking custody of the Heart Pirate woman.”

“Do you have some sort of official paperwork formally requesting a transfer?” he asked, lifting a critical eyebrow.

“Well, no. I was hoping I could make that request of you personally. Of the record, so to speak.”

“Why?”

Shooting Ikkaku a sharp warning glare—the kind that promised unimaginable pain if she dared speak against him—Ushi indicated the woman he had pinned against the bars. “You see, sir, I’m ashamed to admit it, but Ikkaku of the Heart Pirates is my baby sister. She’s always been a spoiled, disobedient brat, but I’d never expected her to devolve into piracy. Maybe it’s my own fault; I left to join the Marines when she was twelve, and I guess without me around, there was no one willing to discipline her.”

Drake looked thoroughly unconvinced, giving a meaningful glance at her cheek, which was already darkening into an ugly bruise. “Is that what you were doing? ‘Disciplining’ her?”

Penguin and Shachi could practically hear the air quotes around the word, and the duo found their hopes beginning to rise just the slightest bit. Drake was their enemy, but they knew for a fact that his tolerance for bullshit was exceptionally low.

Ikkaku was less convinced. There had been plenty of times when it seemed like someone would finally see past her brother’s lies, but he always managed to talk his way out of it and push the blame back onto her. Partially because people didn’t want to see the town’s Golden Child as anything but the perfect, responsible young man everyone had set him up to be.

Seeing that his superior was less than impressed with him, Ushi immediately set to justifying himself. “Look, our parents worked long hours to put food on the table for five kids; keeping them all in line fell to me. I did my best but, well, I guess her career choice shows she’s always been a bad seed.”

Drake actually scoffed. “Your failure as an authority figure among your siblings does not fill me with confidence, Captain Ushi. Get to the point—why do you want me to hand the woman over to you?”

His jaw tightened in frustration. “Because this is a family matter. I’d rather spare our poor parents the shame of the world finding out their daughter became a pirate.”

“You fucking liar!” Shachi shouted.

“You just care about your damn promotion!” Penguin grabbed the bars of his cell in a fruitless attempt to break down the barrier and get to the man who held his crewmate hostage.

“Like he’d listen to scum like you,” Ushi jeered.

“And yet I find myself inclined to believe their side of the story over yours,” Drake snarled, jerking his head towards the prisoners. “I have no time for games. If you don’t start telling the truth in the next three seconds, I will report you—and your little ‘off the record’ request—to Headquarters.”

Frustration finally coming to a boiling point, the Marine captain snapped, “Look, I know it’s a bit unconventional, but my superiors say I could be up for a promotion soon, and I can’t let her cost me everything I’ve worked for. Surely you understand just how difficult it is to advance your career when the Navy knows you’re related to a pirate, right Commodore Diez?” he finished with a sneer.

Silence filled the room at the utterance of the ginger’s surname. Penguin and Shachi actually froze; they vividly remembered the name Diez Barrels, the pirate captain that had made the neighboring Minion Island his base of operations. They’d never seen the man himself, but their parents would often whisper about bodies of those he’d brutally murdered washing up on Sparrow Island’s beaches.

Drake was the son of a pirate?

Meanwhile, the man in question took a deep, calming breath as he assessed the situation. As tempting as it was to rip the man to shreds for daring to bring up his father, doing so would do nothing but make things spiral into blood and chaos. He needed to keep his temper in check and be rational before he made his call.

He regarded his colleague carefully. Captain Ushi had been perfectly cordial when he’d requested permission to board his ship. Had commended Drake’s bravery and impressive record, and the way he led the men under his command. He’d been polite, professional, and while perhaps a bit heavy-handed with the praise, a generally respectable man.

Now, he had his little sister pinned against the cell he’d dragged her from, a smoking gun at his feet, and two prisoners declaring he’d basically tried to kill her for the sake of a promotion.

Drake turned his full attention to the woman. She hadn’t spoken a word since he’d arrived—very odd based on what he knew of her, though their interactions were limited. What he did know was that the mechanic was mouthy and quite the plucky fighter. After all, she’d tried to break his nose and had called him a rather colorful array of curse words during her arrest. Yet now, she was silent.

Her body language spoke volumes, however. Glistening eyes averted to the floor so as to make her assailant feel dominant. Shoulders hunched in pain. Teeth digging into her bottom lip so as to hold back any defiant words that might slip out. Hands and knees trembling ever-so-slightly.

It was when a pair of tears bubbled over and trailed down her bruised cheeks that he made his decision.

“You’re right,” he said slowly and calmly, taking a few casual steps forward. “I do know how difficult it is. It takes an exceptional amount of hard work and ambition to overcome the stigma that comes with being related to a pirate. You may have her.”

One of Drake’s hands shot out to rip Ikkaku from Ushi’s grasp while the other fisted the collar of his shirt, lifting him up so his toes dangled over three feet off the ground as the ginger growled, eyes momentarily burning orange, “When you have the appropriate transfer paperwork, signed by an Admiral, stating the exact reason you wish to take this particular pirate into custody. Until then, she remains my prisoner on my ship. And speaking of, I’m revoking any permission I gave you to come aboard. As such, I’m going to ask you—once—to leave quietly. Immediately.”

For his part, Ushi stared at his superior in unconcealed shock, however any argument he might have made was swiftly silenced as Drake unceremoniously dropped him to the floor. He crumpled a bit, but at the larger man’s ferocious glare he backed off, clumsily scooping up his gun before marching out of the brig with his head held deceptively high, not even sparing Ikkaku a glance.

“Athos, escort Captain Ushi to his ship so he doesn’t get lost,” Drake ordered.

One of the guards nodded and lowered his gun, running off after the chastised officer.

Silence weighed down the cramped room until the pair’s footsteps faded. It didn’t escape Drake’s notice that Ikkaku’s slight shoulder still trembled beneath his hand. Duty momentarily fought with compassion in his mind. Her reaction to her brother’s presence was painfully familiar. And while he shouldn’t give any preferential treatment to a pirate, even a female one, he had no doubt this would not be the last time Ushi came after her.

“It’s Ikkaku, correct?” he asked her, voice gentle but firm.

She blinked up at him, surprised at his tone. “Uh…yeah.”

Nodding to the remaining guard, he shifted his grip so his large hand wrapped almost entirely around her bicep. “Given the current circumstances, I believe it is no longer safe for you to reside in your cell, at least until I can be certain your brother is well and truly gone.”

Loathe as she was to agree with a Marine, Drake was right on the money; Ushi may have retreated for now, but there was no way in Hell he’d let Drake’s ship out of his sight so long as she was on it, especially with the added threat of his superiors finding out about both their relation and his attempt at an under-the-table transfer.

Marines were shady bastards, but they liked to pretend to be squeaky-clean. Ushi’s screw-up might have cost him his promotion, but that didn’t mean he’d give up. If anything, he’d be even more determined to kill her.

She glanced at Penguin and Shachi, who seemed just as conflicted. Separating them wasn’t in Law’s plan. Sure, there was no place on the ship they could put her that he couldn’t find, the it could cost him the element of surprise if he had to Scan the whole ship.

Then again, if Ushi did manage to sneak aboard before Law arrived, there was the very real possibility that he’d come to find a dead engineer, and potentially even the corpses of his first and second mates, too.

On top of that, Drake’s firm grip on her arm and the fact that he’d managed to throw Ushi around like a rag doll made it clear that, as polite as he was being, she didn’t really have a say in the matter.

Heart in her throat, Ikkaku found herself nodding. “Ok. Yeah, that’s…that’s reasonable.”

Pleasantly surprised at the Heart Pirate’s compliance, Drake gave her a brief smile before leading her towards the hallway, turning to the remaining soldier. “Porthos, double the guards in the brig, and if anyone you don’t immediately recognize as a member of this crew shows their face, notify me at once.”

“Hey, where are you taking her?” Penguin called, eyes narrowed. In all honesty, he didn’t disagree with either Drake’s or Ikkaku’s decision—it was more important for his crewmates to be safe than conveniently together. Law should be there to get them tonight, and it didn’t matter if they were on opposite sides of the ship or not; he’d rescue them all. The plan would be fine. Drake wouldn’t know what hit him…

His blood ran cold when Drake actually smirked at him over his shoulder. “When he comes to rescue you, tell your captain that he can find Miss Ikkaku safe and sound in my quarters. And that the cell in the corner is reserved just for him.”

To Be Continued...

[womeedoodles]

Theories of MLB Final Part 1 (Mistake Love)

Ok ok ok! Miraculous Ladybug is a WHOA! Many tears, laugher, heartbreaks, and mostly the frustration of the lovesqaure XD. But since the recent episode cause a MAJOR heart ache, I feel like the episode gave a few clues (even though Cat Blanc and Félix haven’t air yet 🙃🙃)

BUT ANYWAYS!

Here’s my thoughts...

In the beginning of the episode Marrinette starts talking, “Experiencing loss is a part of life, some people lose their first love, some lose the harmony in their relationship, some people lose hope, others lose patiences.” She basically explain this whole situation that is going in this very episode “Loveater.” All these people are going through their own love situation.

Master Fu losing his first love

Major Bourgeois and Mrs. Bourgeois are losing the balance on their relationship.

Chloe losing her hope in Ladybug

AND FINALLY!! DUH! DUH! DUUUH! The famous Cat Noir giving up on Ladybug.

When CatNoir says to Ladybug about having a “girlfriend” he tried to make her jealous but it didn’t work, therefore he leaves saying it hurts. But looking at Ladybug she too looks hurt, because of her love interest “perfect” Adrien Agreste. She too is hurt because Adrien doesn’t like her back. This is where the it gets complicated.

Now cut to them both looking at their love interest on their phone. UP POPS THEIR OTHER interest....HA WHAT A COINCIDENCE!!! Marinette sees Luka’s message, meanwhile Adrien gets a photo of both Marinette and Kagami. Now the question is who is he looking at?? Both? Marinette? Kagami? Too be honest I don’t know either BUT! The photo could be either two ways....

Ladybug/ Marinetter or Kagami

He doesn’t know Marinette is Ladybug, but is the viewers know. So the photo is showing he’s fighting between his lady or Kagami, or in his eyes (LOOK AT MY FRIENDS!!) As the shot switches to a photo of him and Kagami, so I feel like it’s saying he’s gonna try for Kagami! But also if you notice his eyes shifts to the left, where Marinette is...or maybe he’s looking at the heart button XD WE DON’T KNOW!!

Alright! Now look when Adrien, Kagami, and Marinette are all hanging out. They are having fun! All three of them are enjoying their freedom! (Especially Adrien and Kagami) Now Marinette...HER HAIR GOES DOWN! Let’s looks at Adrien’s face. It’s a genuine surprise look! He’s like “Wow I never seen your hair down before!” To Him staring at her dreamy with her hair down with Kagami. “Your hair looks beautiful.” There is something going on right here. It could be that Adrien does have hidden feelings for Marinette, it’s just that well...HAS NO BRAIN CELLS!🤣🤣 Ok no we will discuss that later.

Now another part of this is the important ANDRÉ! If you know André, he is basically the ice cream that goes around Paris selling ice cream, but people say his ice cream brings love to the perfect match! These three approach him and he says this...

Adrien and Kagami = “Orange and Peppermint, a perfect pairing that’s always a success. Nothing can turn into a mess.”

Adrien and Marinette = “ BlackBerry and Peppermint, an explosive mix that’s a fact, but oftentimes its the opposites that attracts. “

Now listening to these two lines really confused me but then again I got something strange from it.

First looking at our “perfect” match Adrien and Kagami, for me that’s too perfect. There is no such thing as a perfect couple. The “perfect” or should I say realistic couple is when two work well together, They understand each other, and most importantly fight with each other. The more arguments, the more you see the person and understand them. That is how teamwork comes on. Adrien and Kagami are just friends who do fencing together, and they are living in space with no freedom. That is why they look at each other for help and comfort. Yes they understand each other in that level, but do they work well together?

MEANWHILE....Adrien and Marinette! Their alter ego Cat Noir and Ladybug. They fight, work together, and that brings them into a deep trust. It’s important to have these types of things in a relationship. That way it brings the bond closer. And opposites attract like what André says. Obviously Adrien is the peppermint and Marinette is the blueberry. OPPOSITES ATTRACT! An explosive mix! This tells you something. The unexpected and unknown. They just don’t know because love comes in full of surprises! It could mean Adrien and Marinette will have a surprise in the love they have for each other. That’s why we love André.

This whole episode was a rollercoaster, but there was this one scene that caught me the most! And nooooo it’s not the ALMOST KISS FROM ADRIEN AND KAGAMI and LUKA HUGGING CRYING MARINETTE (Which I’m sure a lot of us were heart broken)

It was this scene 

My man André again! But this scene really stand out for me. So in this shot we see André looking over at Adrien and Kagami “kiss”, but look at his position and cart. He can be thinking about two things...

Happy that he got the “perfect” match

OR

Upset that he got the Wrong match!

I feel like André is upset that he got the wrong match. Why you ask? The cart’s top. The ice cream that has the colors of Ladybug. André plays his role of been the matchmaker and believes that love can be shared through ice cream. But now looking at this, maybe he thinks he doesn’t have the right match?!?!? We don’t know. But when the three kidos go to André, André was worried about our dear Marinette for choosing Adrien with Kagami. He KNOWS! He knows she loves Adrien, but she believes that the mix of her and Adrien isn’t a good mix. NEVER JUDGE ITS COVER DAMN IT!!! 

NOW FINALLY! The big fish....this ship war dear god...

Now looking at Adrien and Marinette. They both got their heart broken by the person they love. Now how do they heal that broken heart??? Finding another person to heal that heart.

TADA THAT’S WHEN KAGAMI AND LUKA STEP IN!!!

These two are going to “heal” that broken heart and give them the comfort they want. The LOVE THEY WANT! THE ROMANTIC LOVE THEY CRAVE!!! 

But overall what is the purpose of Luka and Kagami. Well it’s kind of obvious...TO BREAK THE LOVE SQAURE AWAY!!! MWAHAHAH....No...

These characters are going to help these blind full love birds. People say “Adrien is so stupid!” “Marinette is so blind!”  Um yea...their like 15 years old....

Maturely is what they need. Growth. Their young! Of course their gonna act like this! But with the help of Kagami and Luka, they are going to help our characters to grow and then in the end Adrien and Marinette will finally break that wall between them (hehe...get it...wall between us...)

But hey this is my thoughts XD and how MatPat would say...It’s just a theory ;)

[madebycoffee]

if nobody has asked for all of them yet i am here to do that with 1 brain cell (also sorry if this is a lot of work i am genuinely curious skdjfbd)

Oh hey let me finally answer this 💀💀I had written half and then i exited out of the window and gave up. ily paige. answering for gianlerette and the simblr lol

1. Do you hide any secrets in your stories that only a few people will find?  G: In the Behind the Scenes posts I do hint at things. Most of the time it’s just vague dialogue that I throw everywhere. I love being vague af. S: And same with the Simblr. Vague dialogue everywhere. but in general I figure no one is paying attention close enough to notice anything huehuehehue

2. Sims writing has a visual component. How do you utilize color/objects and settings in your stories? G: I don’t do that too much as far as color. I mean, there are specific cc creators that I use for specific contestants (sentate cc is Val and Savnannah thru and thru lol) (oh and darte for gian but more so keith) Mostly I just use what looks ~aesthetic~ to me lol. S: I use photo filters in editing more for a visual aspect! Cool toned things for things that either are set at night, or when things get Sad(tm) Usually I always use a magenta one for Whitney. That’s really the most that I do. (For those interested, the Gianlerette also uses a magenta photo filter for all posts and the Behind the Scenes posts don’t have a filter.)

3. Which process do you dedicate more time to, editing visuals or editing your writing? Why?   G: I take a lot more time editing the photos with the writing on them. It takes me so long and it makes me hella understand why on my simblr I put the text in the tumblr post lol.  S: And for the Simblr I spend more time writing as well. Editing visuals are p simple if I’m not putting text on them lul.

4. What scenes do you find hardest to write? G: R O M A N C E. It’s really hard for me to feel like I’m actually writing a believable budding romance. It always takes me the longest, and I always write and re write. It’s a struggle. I often feel like I’m just writing some nonsense from a romcom.... The longer this goes on the longer it’s gonna take me lmao. S: Same as above, but also anything that gets close to technical. Medical stuff, technical stuff. I do my best to research but I still struggle with it. 

5. Are there any scenes in your story that you enjoy re-reading?   G: So far I haven’t gone back and read anything, I’m sure that when this is all over I’ll love to go back and read through all of the beginning surrounding the winning ladee. S: I love going back to the very beginning, and then I also love re-reading from the beginning on any character I’m really vibing with. Currently it’s Whitney. She’s my fave on my leggo, and the other night I scrolled back to the beginning of her tag and reminisced. 

6. Are there any scenes you wish you could go back and re-write? G: So far no! My original plan for the fitness challenge in posts, would have been dodgeball (and Trina def would have taken a dodgeball to the tit lmaoOOOO) But rn everything looks good to me. S: YE, it’s from a long time ago but my Gen 2 heir finally ~getting together~ with her man I wanted to have it set up on the beach in Willow Creek over in the area where the two big lots are. Those lots were where they grew up and such. At the time I didn’t know how to pose couples off lots so I ended up staging the scene at a nightclub. But that’s oki. 

7. Do you have any characters you believe might be misunderstood by your readers?     For both: IDK I don’t think so. 

9. Are you writing with a deadline in mind to complete the story?   G: Oh yiss, there’s an end in sight. Granted It probably won’t be for a year from watching how long it’s taken other people to run these kind of challenges, but still. After the GIanlerette is wrapped, IDK how much I’ll post concerning him after that yknow? We’ll see tho!! S: Hooooo on my first post on my simblr it says “10 generations” I’m currently on 3 after 3 years.... so we’ll see on that one too lmao.

10. If you could choose to be one of your characters for a day, which one would it be? G: Let me be Rochelle pulling all the strings and knowing e v e r y t h i n g about everyone. I mean that’s essentially what I’m doing but I’d like to do it in a nice pantsuit. S: I think I would opt to be one of the kids that are not yet born in my leggo lmao. Give me some truly ignorant bliss lololo. 

11. What are some elements you think are becoming cliché in the genre you’re writing? G: OOF. Going on vacation to Sulani with the final contestants lmao. For the record that’s not where any of the top ladies will be traveling. What with Snowy Escape coming out soon AND the fact that I wrote it into the story that Gian wants to go to Selvadorada. There’s probably others but :shrug: S: Unknowing Pregnant Person Throws Up and Then Realizes What’s Up. Am I about to run that cliché again in my legacy soon??? You’re DAMN RIGHT I AM. I love me a good cliché tbh. 

14. What is something that you think most of your readers might miss? G: I think people probs miss the dynamic trio of Noor, Magnus, & Gian. And sometimes I feel like I’m not writing Gian as good as Cam did lmaoooo. There is something magical about how you wrote my boi. S: So far no one BIG BIG has died yet, so there isn’t much to miss. But also i now no one is as invested as I am lol so it’s not a big deal.

if u got through all of that congratulations 

[seokstyle]

critical condition (m) - 1

pair: hoseok x reader, light jungkook x reader (series) themes: med student!reader, nurse!hoseok, lots of medically-related flirting genre: smut, some fluff, future angst warnings: dom/sub undertones, dirty talk, thigh riding, orgasm denial

you knew that your first rotation as a medical student was going to have its challenges. you did not anticipate one of those challenges to be dealing with a handsome ER nurse who won’t give you a break.

word count: 5.3k 

part 2 | masterlist

“Joon, I genuinely don’t know if I’ll make it.”

“Ah, don’t be so negative,” he reassures you. “It takes a learning curve but it’s only been one week.”

“I’ve messed up so much though! They’ll just stand me in the corner and shame me until I melt into a puddle.”

 “It takes time to adjust,” he protests. 

You fix him with an annoyed look. “Did you know someone came in and they tried to give it to me as an easy first case? One that’s dumbass-proof, right?” He nods, a little weary of what you’ll say next. “It was an ear infection. Did you know what I forgot to do, Namjoon?” You lean in across the cafeteria table towards him for dramatic effect. “I forgot to look at his fucking ear.” You lean back in your chair and groan into your hands.

Your friend winces, but does not let up on his optimism. “We’ve only just started, Y/N. Don’t be so hard on yourself.” 

“Why do you always try to be so reasonable,” you grumble as you spoon the last of the mashed potatoes into your mouth. “It makes it harder to throw myself a pity party.”

Namjoon chuckles in response. “I’m saying it as much to myself as I am to you. Peds has not been easy,” he added with a sigh. “So many crying children, so many angry parents, so many impatient doctors…” He trails off, and you both sit there in silence thinking about the hellscapes you both have to return back to in a few minutes.

This was the first rotation for both of you as medical students, and though you had heard that most residency programs were more lenient on the first couple since you were still getting the hang of the clinical setting, you didn’t want to completely blow your chances at a good recommendation from your supervisors. Though your reputation during this past week was not doing you any good. 

You and Namjoon had become fast friends in the whirlwind that was your first two years of medical school. He had saved your ass in anatomy lab, and you had come to his rescue in biochemistry. But despite your successes in the classroom, neither of you had anticipated how abrupt the transition would be from looking at textbooks and lectures to talking to real patients and actually diagnosing diseases yourself. 

Add getting thrown into the ER for your first ever clinical experience, as was your luck. With the fast pace, the trauma emergencies you had to assist in on, just everything… you were in over your head. Just thinking about all of the questions you were going to have to ask (and would inevitably forget to ask) when you went back upstairs already was making your head spin. At least you could hold onto small fragments of your sanity when you grabbed food breaks, though you both had to return to reality soon.

Namjoon sighs as he pushes his chair back from the table, picking up his tray and giving you a small smile. “Best of luck.”

“You too, pal.”

The night started off better than your previous shifts this week have been. You had been more attentive when it comes to asking patients what brings them in today, remembered key aspects of physical exams when it applied, and you actually felt a little competent. But then you had left for your dinner break, and by the time you made it back to the ER all hell had broken loose.

The other local hospitals were at capacity which meant that all ambulances were going to come to you instead. On top of that, a new rush of admissions had come in, and now the ER was overflowing with people who needed quick medical attention. Soon there were a million things going on and before you knew it, it was past midnight and you were barely staying afloat. You were quickly sent out by the attending to grab a laceration tray, and all of your usual spots to check for supplies were empty. You close your eyes and take a deep breath, using all of your 3 brain cells to think. If I was a laceration tray, where would I be hiding?

“Looking for this?” you heard someone say in a playful tone. You opened your eyes. An outstretched hand had appeared in front of you holding the coveted tray, and you turned to see a handsome nurse you had gotten to know well. 

“Oh my God, Hobi,” you sigh in relief. “How did you know?”

He smirked, and you wanted to roll your eyes at him. “I overheard the resident while I passed outside of the room, so I went ahead and grabbed one for you.” 

You smile. “Thank you, seriously. This shift is getting insane, I thought I was going to have a heart attack.”

He gasped dramatically in response. “Well we wouldn’t want that! Though,” he added as he leans in closer to you, “I guess it’s a good thing I’m CPR-certified,” he responds with a wink. 

You actually do roll your eyes this time. “You and everyone else in this hospital.”

The first shift in the emergency department may have well been the worst day of your life. Patients had gotten upset with you for forgetting to fulfill requests they had made, you had gotten lost three times in the maze of hallways, and you kept fumbling with every question asked of you. You were under the resident Dr. Kim for that shift, and would continue to be on his charge for the rest of the week. You were petrified because he was chief resident, but he urged you to drop formalities and just call him Seokjin. He was incredibly kind and understanding when you made mistakes (which was often). 

Near the end of the shift, Seokjin had asked you to grab a suture kit so he could close up someone’s finger that had gotten sliced. You had agreed enthusiastically, eager to redeem yourself, but realized the second you stepped out of the room you had no clue where the sutures were kept. 

Great. 

You didn’t know what to do but you were NOT going back into there to ask and make a fool of yourself for the 20th time today. As nice as the resident was being to you, you didn’t want to test his patience either. You wanted to lock yourself into one of the closets and hide until they found you and kicked you out of medical school, because it felt inevitable at this point. 

Right as you were contemplating ways to escape the hospital, you felt someone tap on your shoulder. 

“Are you looking for something?”

Maybe your prayers had been answered, because when you turned around to see who was speaking you swear you saw an angel sent from the heavens for you. His smile was dazzling, with adorable dimples peeking out from the corners of his mouth, and his chestnut hair looked divinely soft as it swooped down onto his forehead. He brushed it out of his eyes, and you noticed that his arms looked strong and toned, and it only made you wonder what other muscles he must be hiding under his scrubs. 

He looked like a sun-kissed god who had somehow gotten lost in the ER hallways. And from the way he was smirking at you, he could definitely tell you had been checking him out. Shit.

“D-do you know where the sutures are kept?”, you managed to squeak out. He grinned. It would be your luck that he procured exactly what you needed from his pants pocket at that moment. You weren’t going to die, after all.

“I always keep a few packs on me, it’s come in handy before. Do you need nylon or monofilament? Probably monofilament.” He muses to himself as he rummages through his pockets some more. He looks up at you and asks, “Do you know what size you need either, 4-0 or 3-0?” You shake your head. “That’s okay! I’ll just give you one of each just in case.” He takes your hand, placing the suture packets into your palm and sending you a dazzling smile.  

You were so relieved you could cry. “Oh my God, I love you, thank you so much,” you blurted without thinking, immediately cringing at your words. 

“Wow sweetheart, at least take me out to dinner before you confess like that.” You felt your cheeks burn from his words, and he must have noticed your embarrassment because his tone was more gentle when he spoke next. “First day?”

God, it must be that obvious that you’re a deer in the headlights right now. You nod, putting the sutures into your white coat pocket.

He looked down at your badge, reading your name and credentials. God, your name sounded so much nicer coming from his lips. “Medical student?” You nod again.

“I remember my first day, it was rough. It does get better though, I promise.” You nod dumbly once more, not fully believing him. He offers you a small smile. “Listen,” he says as he comes to stand behind you, lightly grabbing your shoulders and maneuvering you towards wherever he wants you to look. You could feel the heat of his touch through your thin hospital-issued scrubs and coat, and it sent your pulse running. 

He pointed a little way down from you in the hallway. “Do you see that door? That’s the supply closet, it will have almost anything you ever will need, on a shelf with a label. If it’s not there, try asking the ER secretary,” he steers you a little more to the right, pointing to the center of the area to where the nurses’ desks are located. “They know if no one else does. And if they can’t help you, you can always come find me.” He turns you around so that you are facing each other now, removing his hands from your shoulders, and you almost miss the feel of his touch on you. He points to himself. “My name’s Hoseok, see?” He points to his badge. Hoseok Jung, RN. 

“You’re a lifesaver,” you sighed in relief. He laughed, and you could almost swoon at how pretty he looked when his eyes crinkled up like that. “I guess that is my job, technically. But for someone as cute as you? Anytime,” he replied with a wink. And with that he turned around, leaving you with cheeks red again from the compliment he had added without a second thought. 

“Are you saying you wouldn’t want me to give you mouth-to-mouth?” He pouted, his dimples poking out from the corners of his mouth, but you saw the twinkle in his eyes. Cheeky bastard.

You laugh at him instead of entertaining his comment, taking the tray from his hands and preparing for your mad dash back to the patient room before the resident came looking for you. “Thank you, Hoseok!” 

“That wasn’t a no!” he called after you. You shook your head, smiling to yourself. He had come to your rescue again and again over the past few days, almost as if he knew exactly when you needed his help. Maybe you were growing immune to his charms (or maybe you were becoming emboldened by them), but you were less intimidated and a little more flirtatious with each new interaction with him lately.

You make it back to the patient’s room, and Seokjin even lets you assist with suturing and repairing the wound, under his supervision. The attending had come in shortly after and praised your handiwork as well. You were over the moon! 

But your joy at helping in a procedure for the first time was short-lived. In the next three rooms you entered, the family and patient decided you were the best person on staff to yell at about their outrageous waiting times in the ER. The patient after that did not verbally abuse you, and you made what you thought was a stellar interrogation and clinical analysis, but as you presented to the attending he sent you back for 15 more questions you hadn’t thought to ask. You just wanted to go home to pass out or cry, you would be fine with either at this point. 

As you go to enter the room of the last patient you are assigned for the shift, you see Hoseok wheeling his mobile scribing computer out as he finished taking the preliminary exam. “Hey,” you place a hand on his upper arm to catch him from leaving too soon. “Can you brief me real quick on what’s up? Seokjin was too swamped to give me many details.” 

“Oh, yeah sure.” Hoseok pulls up the patient chart. “Kid came in with severe abdominal pain going on for a couple of hours now. He’s hypertensive at 160/90 but that’s likely due to pain, and he’s tachycardic at 110 bpm. All other vitals look okay,” he added as he scrolls through. “I did a super quick overall physical exam on him just to make sure he wasn’t going to code. Lungs sound clear, heart sounded okay, but I have to run to the trauma bay since they’re short-staffed tonight, so I wasn’t able to do anything too focused on exam,” he explains. “That should get you started off at least though.” He grins and starts walking backwards away from you, tugging his computer along with him. “See you later, angel!” You slide open the room’s door and send him a smile back. “Thanks, Hobi. Good luck!”

You go inside and confirm all of the findings that Hoseok mentioned to you with the patient. The pain is all over his abdomen he says, and he can’t tell you exactly where it’s coming from but it’s clear he’s in a lot of discomfort. You ask a few more pointed questions to try and narrow down your diagnosis, double-check that his lungs and heart sound normal, and tell the patient the doctor will be in shortly to discuss their plan of care.

You go back outside and find Seokjin and the attending to present your findings in the small conference room connected to the ER hallway. “25 year-old male presents with severe abdominal pain, dull in character with increased severity upon ingestion. Pain began within the past two hours but patient states that it has been getting increasingly worse, and has increased to an 8 out of 10. Reports having nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Patient appears dehydrated which could be symptomatic of his condition or could be a result of his vomiting, and is tachycardic and hypertensive.” 

Jin nods encouragingly, and the attending contemplates on what you have told him. “Good presentation, good initial history. Okay,” he continues, “what did you find on the physical exam?”

“His lungs appeared clear to auscultation and heart sounds were all normal, no murmurs noted. Patient did appear diaphoretic and feverish and had weakened grip strength and poorer motor skills than expected, but is capable of ambulation.” 

The attending hums in response, looking over the patient’s chart. “Okay very good, no reason to suspect any cardiac or respiratory abnormalities. That’s important to ensure with all patients.” You beam, proud that you were at least ending the night on a high note and being praised for your work. “What else?”

You hesitate for a moment. “I believe that was everything, sir.”

“What about his abdomen?”

“Sir?”

He looks up at you from the computer. “What were your abdominal exam findings?” You can see Seokjin’s face pale slightly behind him, understanding what is happening. 

You didn’t do it, you forgot. You didn’t examine the abdomen. Of a patient. With abdominal pain. You hear white noise ringing in your ears as panic sets in. “S-sir, I didn’t do a full abdomen exam.”

He raises an eyebrow at you. “You didn’t do it?” You nod. “So then what were your differential diagnoses?”

You gulp. “I suspected appendicitis, diverticulitis, or colitis.” 

“So what would be plan of care?”

You guess you had a chance to redeem yourself maybe now, if you were thorough with what you wanted to do with the patient. Maybe then the doctor would ease up on you some. “Initially manage pain and nausea with anti-emetic and pain relief medications. All of my differentials would be confirmed either by CT scan, most likely, so that would assist the patient in feeling better while imaging returns from radiology.” Hopefully, that was enough.

“I see,” the attending muses, looking back at the charts for a moment. You brace yourself for what he would say next. “So, you had made some ideas of what the patient could have going on, all abdominal-related, but,” he turns back towards you. “You didn’t even think to touch the patient first?”

Fuck. It had backfired. You wanted to melt into the ground. Seokjin offers you a sympathetic look from behind the attending as he grills you further while you shrink into your seat. You were getting your ass handed to you and you deserved it. You had to say something at this point; you would be damned if you had to keep working with this doctor who made the assumption that you were an enormous dumbass because of ONE mistake you made. You had to recover, and quick. 

So you go with the first idea that comes to mind. 

“Sir, I am regretful for not performing the physical exam myself, that was wrong of me to do,” you apologize. “I had spoken with the nurse assigned to this patient prior to taking the history, and he had told me that he had already done a physical exam and the findings should be in the chart from his records, but I suppose he failed to do so.” 

You knew what you were doing wasn’t fair, but Hoseok was in the trauma bay and would never know. And you had to do something to save face or any chance you had at matching into emergency medicine were going to be gone at this rate. “I had higher expectations from him but it was my mistake for entrusting him to do that correctly.”

The attending is quiet as you make this excuse as believable and apologetic as possible, then scrolls through the chart. “It says Hoseok Jung was the nurse assigned to his care.” You bristle at hearing his name. “He’s usually incredibly thorough with his job,” the attending mentions in surprise. “I guess this time he didn’t record the findings as he normally would.” He turns to you now, and you pray for salvation from his wrath. “Next time, don’t rely on anyone else on staff. Make sure you do the exam yourself, and trust your own knowledge and intuition most. Others can be wrong, too.” He sighs, and you let out your own sigh of relief. “Okay, I’m going to go grab a coffee and I’ll take care of the patient from here.” He gets up and heads out the conference room door, but turns around to add one last comment before he goes. “Good work, Y/N.”

You thank every power in this universe for sparing you this once. Your recommendation letter was still safe, for now.

“Hey,” you hear the other person left in the room call out to you. You look over at Seokjin and feel a pang of guilt from the expression he has.

“I know what you were trying to do there.” He sounds disappointed, and you feel like a little kid, caught doing something they shouldn’t. You avert your eyes, opting to look down at your shoes instead of look at him directly. His tone softens some. “It’s been a rough week for you to start on, and it’s hard to get the hang of talking to patients and all. I don’t blame you for it, but it’s best to just own up to a mistake instead of bringing someone else into it.” He gets up from his seat to leave, and pauses as he walks by you to put a hand on your shoulder. You look up at him again.; his eyes are empathetic and understanding. “You must be exhausted. Go home and get some sleep, okay?” You nod, and he turns to leave out of the door.

God. You felt like such a colossal bitch. You close your eyes and rub your temples. At least the shift from hell was finally over, and you survived. You still had a chance to properly earn the respect of this attending, and you could finally enjoy your first day off tomorrow. You get up and head out of the conference room as well, closing the door behind you. 

“Hey there,” you hear someone say to your left, and you jump. You look over and see Hoseok with his scribing computer, staring intently at the screen. 

Your blood runs cold for a moment, and you look at him nervously. “Hey,” you answer quietly. “How was the trauma?”

He doesn’t move to look over at you as he responds. “Oh, they had it under control so they sent me back to this hall,” he says offhandedly as he resumes his typing. 

“Oh.” You nod slowly, looking at the floor for a second, thinking to yourself in a panic. Fuck, what if he was right outside the room the whole time? Could he have heard you throw him under the bus like that? You look back over at him, very tentatively. He doesn’t seem as animated and charismatic as he usually is with you, his jaw clenched tight like he’s frustrated with something. 

But maybe he’s just tired after a long shift, or had a bad patient? Right? 

“Okay well, I’m done for the night so I’m going to finish up my charting,” you offer eagerly. He doesn’t move to even look at you, and the guilt comes creeping into your bones again. You turn and walk back towards one of the computer desks, swiping your badge to log in. You start typing notes up, but your thinking gets more and more muddled with every line you write.

There would probably have been so many other chances to recover from that one slip-up. Why did you act like it was the end of the world? Was it worth it just for the off-chance that you might get a good recommendation? You haven’t even liked this rotation so far. You sit in your chair, staring blankly at someone’s lab report from 4 hours ago mulling over whether or not you completely ruined your friendship with Hoseok. 

Lost in your thoughts, you don’t hear when the mobile computer rolls up behind you, and someone says your name quietly. 

You jump, and you feel your ears turning pink as you recognize the voice, lacking its usual light-hearted tone. You turn to look at him, and his face was completely devoid of any emotion. You feel a chill go down your spine. “Can you help me get something from the supply room?” 

God, he did. He must have heard you. You nod, not trusting yourself to say anything out loud, and get up to follow him meekly down the hall and into the supply closet, the same one he had pointed out to you on your first day. Ironic, somehow. Hoseok opens the door, motioning for you to walk in first, and you oblige. 

He walks in after you, flipping on the lights and shutting the door behind him, locking it quickly. You barely have enough time to turn around to face him before you felt him move. He pushed you backwards, your back meeting the wall behind you with a soft thud. His forearms rested on either side of your head, propping himself up and caging you in. You look at him in surprise and can’t help yourself from letting out a small gasp. His jaw was still set but his eyes had turned overwhelmingly dark, swimming with anger. 

You had expected Hoseok to yell at you, call you a bitch, threaten to tell the attending. Best case scenario, he actually needed your help getting something and you would be fine and he heard nothing. What you did not expect was this. 

“So,” he starts, a lazy drawl to his voice, “I heard someone thinks she’s been around the block enough times to put a nurse in his place.” 

Your cheeks burn at his words. “That’s not what I was-” 

He cuts you off. “What did you say again?” He pulls back for a moment, pretending to be lost in thought. “You had ‘higher expectations’ of me?” He chuckles. “I’m sorry to be such a disappointment, princess.” The pet name sent shivers down your back. 

God, you had really fucked up. “No, wait,” you push your hands up against his chest to try and get some space for a moment so you could explain yourself. You tried not to think about how firm he felt under your fingertips, and how your pulse was quickening from being in such close proximity to him. “I didn’t mean to-” 

Hoseok moves so fast you don’t even fully process it, grabbing your wrists away from your feeble attempts to make room between you two and pinning them above your head. It takes everything in you to not gasp out loud, the action going straight to your core. What the fuck was happening right now?

“Shh,” he whispers condescendingly against your ear, your heart fluttering from his close proximity. “I think you’ve said plenty today, wouldn’t you agree? I think it’s my turn to talk, hmm?” He pulls back to look at you, a wolf-life expression engulfing his features. You swallow and nod dumbly. “Good girl,” he smirks, and you hold in the urge to moan out. 

“Did you forget that I have been at this ER for three years?” He crowds your body against the wall, his chest flush against yours. “That I have more experience than you?” You felt breathless like you had been running for miles. You were losing your mind.

“That just because you’re a medical student,” he grabs your white coat and pulls you closer to him, making you shudder, “doesn’t mean you get to push me around like that?” 

Your head was swimming and you had lost all coherent thoughts, but you were still desperate to clear the air between you. “If you just would let me explain-” Your words are cut off as Hoseok pulls back and places his hand across your mouth, muffling anything you have to say. Your eyes widen in anger and in arousal, and he smirks again.

“Didn’t I say no talking?” You try to protest, muffling words against his palm, and he lets out a sound of disapproval. “Are you going to be a good girl and listen?”

You actually moan out against his hand this time. Something about being at his complete mercy like this was unraveling you in ways you had never felt before, and he was clearly catching on. Hoseok grins, eyes swimming with lust, and leans in to whisper against your ear once more. “Oh? Does someone like being put in her place?” You moan out again, a muffled quiet admission. He uses his free hand to dip behind your white coat and pull you closer to him by the waist, until you lay flush against him. 

“Sweetheart, I think you should remember,” He had pulled you so close against him that you could feel his growing arousal against your lower stomach. Your eyes roll back, and he chuckles. “If you didn’t have me, you still would be fumbling around the hallways, in a daze.” You could barely process his admonishing words at this point. You cant your hips towards his, desperate for any stimulation, and he groans deeply against the shell of your ear. You felt so fucked out, and he hadn’t even touched you.

Hoseok finally acquiesces, using his thigh to part your legs open, and you let out another muffled moan as he ground his leg up against you, offering you some relief. “Look at you, so desperate for me,” he traces the shell of your ear with his tongue, “grinding against me like a dirty whore.” You didn’t even realize it, but you were right; he had stopped moving and you were still chasing your pleasure, riding his muscular thigh without realizing it. “I can feel how soaked you are through both of our scrubs. So wet, just for me?” His words should have embarrassed you, but you were so far gone you didn’t care. It only turned you on more.

He pulls back from you suddenly, much to your displeasure, and you whine out in protest. “Oh I’m sorry angel,” he comments unapologetically, drawing his gaze up and down your body, “but only girls who behave themselves get what they want.” He had the cockiest look you had ever seen on his face, and you could feel tears pricking the corners of your eyes from frustration. 

You could choke Hoseok right now, but you were too desperate for him to continue. You needed to reach your end. So you grabbed the hem of his scrub top. “I won’t do it again, I’ll be a good girl,” you begged, not even fully hearing yourself as you tried to pull him back and finish what he started. “I promise, please!”

The tears in your eyes, your flushed cheeks, the desperation in your voice. It was unraveling him too, though he didn’t want to admit it. He closed his eyes, throwing his head back with a groan. “I don’t think you’ve quite learned your lesson yet,” he tuts as he looks down at you again, his eyes hooded and you moan again, almost in relief. “I think you need me to remind you where you belong.”

At that exact moment, someone turns the key in the locked door, and Hoseok springs back away from you towards some of the shelving on the opposite side of the closet. Your thoughts are still flustered, not processing anything, and you stay pinned against the wall as though his hands are still on you, holding you there. The door opens to reveal none other than, as your luck would have it, Seokjin.

“Oh, Hoseok,” he starts, then notices your presence in the closet as well. His cheeks flush, and you are mortified. You must look like the definition of a hot mess. “Oh...Y/N… I thought your shift ended already?”

“Oh hey! It sure did!” You respond, sounding way too chirpy, pulling yourself up from the wall and towards Seokjin. You see out of the corner of your eye that Hoseok suppressing a laugh. How the fuck does he look completely unaffected and flawless, and you’re still trying to catch your breath? “I was just… making sure that we had enough supplies for next shift! There weren’t any laceration trays here earlier.”

He eyes the two of you wearily. “Okay… I guess so.” 

Hoseok shrugs, back to his cheery self leaving his dark, dominating persona behind, as though he had flipped a switch. “Hey, Jin!” He exclaims as he walks over to the resident. “Y/N was just telling me about her amazing case with the kid with appendicitis! It’s a shame I forgot to write down the abdomen exam findings though.” Seokjin looked over at you in confusion. “She said she would teach me a thing or two about being a good clinician whenever she got a chance,” Hoseok adds while giving you a look laced with hidden meanings. You wanted to kill him.

Hoseok clapped Jin on the back. “I’ll see you later, man,” and he saunters out of the closet. Seokjin looks at you for a moment, looks out the door at Hoseok, decides not to press any further questions, and turns around and out the door. Leaving you alone, still incredibly affected, confused, and pissed.

a/n: this is my very first fic in a loooooooooooong time!! i got hit with some inspiration recently and wanted to try my hand at writing again, and i really like how it turned out considering i’m kinda rusty hehe. i hope you enjoyed reading this, i’m planning on making it into a bit of a series with a few more parts. thank you so much for reading!!

[angry-slytherin]

Heaven Help Me(Ch 1)

[prompt credits to @imfullofideas thank you!

Prompt: AU. Izzie never got cancer and she and Alex are happily married. Well sort of. Alex is just going through the motions while trying to keep his wife happy. His life is turned upside down when he meets Jo Wilson and realizes she's what he's been missing all along ]

Some background: For story purposes, Jo is/was only 2 years behind Alex and Izzie in residency. Alex and Izzie are second-year attendings and Jo is a fellow. Alex and Izzie got married in their third/fourth(?) year of residency, like in the show. Also, Alex will not cheat on Izzie with Jo, because cheating is gross and adultery is worse. Jo will become a general surgeon(forever bitter she isn’t ortho in canon, but whatevs), as well as Alex being a gen. pediatric surgeon. Izzie is in oncology, but she will also perform surgery. Because despite her big heart, I cannot find anything I genuinely could see her doing as a surgeon; she’s a great doctor though. I just went with the crack canon that 16x16 brought us.

Without further ado, Chapter 1:

•••

It doesn’t take Jo Wilson very long after she moves to Seattle to conclude that the reason the small population of the city is so contrary, is due to the constant rain. Good weather means good moods, and lots of barometric pressure equals a lot of headaches. Which is what Jo has right now. A raging headache.

“Cross, how many times do I have to have these results sent back to the lab? You are a fifth year. Next year you’ll be an attending general surgeon. You will call the shots. If you can’t get simple lab results right, how is anybody supposed to trust you with their life? Get me a white-cell count and glucose levels for my mice, please.”

Cross nods his curly blonde head vigorously.

“Right, sorry Dr. Wilson.” Cross stares at Jo for a moment, before she shoos him.

“I swear the fifth year’s get duddier every year. You could steal another resident for your trial that has half a brain, I’m sure. And mice?” Jo turns around, to see Izzie Stevens leaning over a chart, smiling at her.

“You’re right, Dr. Stevens. But he knows my research so well. I have a pretty competent intern on it too, though. An oncology intern that I’m borrowing.” Jo leans on her elbow on the nurse’s desk.

“Ah right, you’re our new research fellow. I’m inspired by your work, Doctor...”

“Wilson, Josephine Wilson.”

“Doctor Wilson; its innovative. I was surprised to see Chief Bailey even put out a personal check to fund your fellowship.” Izzie smiles, and it makes Jo feel warm inside.

“Uh yeah, it was certainly a great opportunity. It wasn’t my original plan to come to Seattle, but plans change.” Jo gives a small smile, as Izzie hands her tablet to a nurse.

“Welcome to Seattle, then. The warnings are true, it rains a lot here.” And Izzie walks off.

“Thanks.” Jo calls over her shoulder.

“Doctor Wilson, your pager is going off.”

Jo looks at the nurse over the desk, “Right.” She feels her face flush. 911, OR 2.

***

A nurse slips latex gloves on Jo’s hands.

“You paged me?”

“Are you a general resident or something? If so, then yes, and get your damn hands in the patient, please.”

Jo looks up to see a face matching the voice; a male surgeon. She assumes he either hates female surgeons or residents with that tone.

“Fellow, a research fellow. I am also a board certified general surgeon, but I’ll gladly play resident for a minute.” She steps over to the table, “What do we have here?”

“Two-year-old boy; biliary atresia, I need an assist.”

“That would be why I’m here.”

Jo grabs the suction tube.

“It feels incredible to be in an OR. I’ve been here for a week and so far it’s been all paper work and setting up my lab, no operations yet for me. It’s like I have that intern-level high of being in here for the first time.”

“That’s great; but this kid needs your focus. I’ve been his doctor for a long time, and I’ve known you less than five minutes.”

“Doctor... well I don’t know you either, but look at his bile duct. He needs a Kasai.”

The male surgeon inspects the patient’s abdomen, and sighs defeatedly.

“Crap. You’re right.”

“It’s okay, we’ll do it right. You’ve gotten this kid this far, and I’m pretty confident in my skills. Let’s get ready.”

***

As Jo scrubs her hands after surgery, it occurs to her.

“I still don’t know your name.”

“Doctor Alex Karev, pediatric general surgeon. But you knew that. And yours?”

“Doctor Jo Wilson. General surgeon and research fellow. But you knew that.”

Alex smiles, and it makes her smile back. He has a ruggish look, almost hardened that attracts her.

“Your whole motivational thing helped. Thanks. I didn’t mean to be an ass in the there; still working on that. I’ve been an ass my whole life, and I revert when I’m stressed.”

“It’s okay, I kick and scream when I’m stressed too. Maybe we should both work on our coping mechanisms. Make a switch to ortho?” Jo can’t help her cheeky grin.

“Oh yeah, definitely. Let’s get right on that.” Alex’s eyes widen as he says it, and his grin soon matches her. Jo studies his face for another moment, before her pager goes off again.

“I have to go. It was nice meeting you Doctor Karev.”

“You too, Doctor Wilson.”

Jo leaves the scrub room, feeling lighter in her step as she walks toward her lab. Her elation even leads her to believe that Cross will have gotten the correct tests. She turns the corner.

“Doctor Wilson, these results look weird to me.”

Cross hands her the paper, and Jo feels her heart rate speed up as she reads it.

“Why the hell is her white count so low? Mouse number three I mean,” She trails over to the mouse, not looking up.

“Doctor Cross, did you or Doctor Rayn notice this mouse looking sickly? Maybe she’s got an existing illness?”

“It’s a mouse.” Cross says.

“Yes, I know that. What I’m saying is that if she doesn’t, this means that this treatment won’t work. This research is basically useless.” Jo gapes sadly at the mouse. Her stomach sinks and her chest hurts.

“Please, go run white counts again on all the mice. And test them all for anything weird. Consult a veterinarian if you have to, just find out if there’s something wrong with my mouse. Find Rayn to help you.”

“Got it. I hope she’s alright; it had been going so well.” Cross looks down, the air in the room feeling heavy.

“I know. So go get those work ups done.”

Once her resident is gone, Jo takes a seat at a lab table for a moment, before deciding that what she really needs is a lunch break.

***

“That looks absolutely disgusting.” Jo feels like she might throw up looking at her friend, Doctor Atticus Lincoln’s lunch.

“She’s right Link, that looks like it was burnt, thrown in a dumpster and harassed by a koala.” This comes from Amelia Shepherd, Atticus’ longtime girlfriend and recently— fiancée.

“Well, I’m going to it eat it. And neither of you,” He looks between the two women, “Can stop me.” And with that, he shoves a bite of meatloaf into his mouth.

“Oh god,” Jo squeezes her eyes shut, and shoves a bite of salad into her own mouth to wash away the second-hand disgusting that she feels.

Amelia goes unbothered, instead becoming interested in Jo.

“So, have you found any new friends. Better than this loser; a boyfriend, or perhaps a very lucky man in a bar? There’s one right here, no discount, but the owner probably knows more about us doctors and nurses than we do.”

“Maybe, no, and definitely not.”

“Oh well that’s boring. Who’s your friend?”

“Doctor Karev. We didn’t speak all that much, and I wouldn’t call him a friend yet, but he seems nice, and we clicked.”

“Oh he’s like a rugged hot right? Not my type, but good looking,” She then turns to Link, “The one with the crazy wife, right?”

Link looks up innocently from his meatloaf, “You think everyone is crazy. She’s normal to me.”

“Okay...he’s normal though? Safe to be around?”

Amelia laughs, “She’s not dangerous. She is crazy though, crazier than me; and that’s saying something. She’s charming to some, but I wouldn’t marry her, if you know what I mean.”

Link adds, “She’s nice though.”

“Sunshine-y like my fiancé here.”

Jo nods.

“So no crazies, right Link? They’re both normal people?”

Link glances at Amelia, “Amelia only hates her because she believes she should’ve been kicked out of the program for something she did as an intern. It’s not my story to tell, but it was kind of crazy. The whole thing.”

Jo smiles, “Okay, then I might just have a new friend.”

***

“Doctor Wilson! So this is your lab. It’s very organized. It also reeks like med school.”

“Not much worse than ORs get, Doctor Karev.” Jo smiles to herself.

“A hundred percent. Can I ask what you’re working on, oh wise research fellow?” Alex walks over to Jo and the mice, studying them.

“A cure for cancer. In the long run, that’s the goal. This is just phase testing, still on mice. Right now, me and my team are studying a whole bunch of boring crap to get to the fun stuff. It’s just me, two residents, a couple of biomed engineers and some mice.”

“That’s a big goal. And kind of an incredible one. How did you get the grant money?”

“The chief of surgery wrote a personal check. She was inspired by my work at Hopkins, in residency, and I gave up my minimally invasive fellowship at Mass Gen to come here.”

“Wow, someone’s got expensive taste. Family money?”

“What, no? Brain power. I was a foster kid, but I’m just ridiculously smart. You probably couldn’t comprehend half of what I do here.” Jo teases, grinning.

“Oh yeah, I’m just really stupid. But hey, I was a foster kid too. On and off.”

“Oh yeah, any good homes?”

“One. The rest were all crap.”

“Mine were all crap. Every single one. But life goes on. You have to get past it, or it’ll sink you.”

“Wow that’s deep. Real insightful.” Alex deadpans. Jo rolls her eyes.

“Shut up! It’s what my therapist taught me when I was in my early years of med school. That’s what happens when you’re messed up in the head.”

“Hey, at least you have your self-proclaimed ridiculous smarts, I just have messed up.” Alex cracks, as Jo tinkers with a tool.

“Ever been to therapy?” She asks hesitantly.

“No.”

“It’s horrible. I threw up every time, and I think it made me worse. But then it made me better.” She puts the tool down and faces Alex.

“Good, I’m glad.” Alex smirks sideways for a moment, and Jo can’t help but smile back. Then, after a beat, Jo works up courage.

“So I heard you have a wife. What’s she like? You can’t be that messed up if you have a wife.”

“Uh yeah. She’s a doctor, an oncologist. She pops in here often, she did a surgical residency. Doctor Izzie Stevens.”

“Oh. I’ve seen her around; talked to her this morning. She’s very nice, pretty too.” Jo compliments.

“Yeah, she’s great. What about you, anyone special? Husband, girlfriend, dog?”

Jo laughs, “Just me right now. New city, cross country move, you know?”

Alex nods, “Gotcha. Anyone you had to leave back home? Personally I ran from where I grew up, but some people have a hard time letting go.”

Jo bites her lip, “No, not from Maryland. I’ve ran before, but not from there.” Her voice is quieter and she seems to shrink into herself.

“Oh. Well that’s nice, I guess.”

“Yeah. No running anymore. Seattle is growing on me. I like that rain.”

Alex smiles.

[natsspammityspamspamham]

Dino Watches Anime (April 26)

I haven’t made one of these for a while, and after the first draft went and deleted itself, I wondered whether it was worth making another one (I make these primarily for myself then get really surprised whenever people notice these). During harsh times like these, I find myself being drawn to the cheesiest and the most cringe-inducing shows, but maybe I just like them because you can put them on double-speed without missing a thing because you know what’s going on. It’s like instant noodle broth: satisfying, warming, but you know it’s going to kill your insides with self-crisis. Seriously, I didn’t come to terms that I really, really like romance as a genre until a little while ago. 

With that being said, I want to take a short break from romance now. 

I often ask myself, “Why are you watching these when you can be watching really good anime?” Well, that’s probably because I don’t want to have my analytical brain on right now. I want to watch an anime that takes two brain cells to enjoy. I only have two. Once I garden some more, maybe then will I get into the stuff I know I will enjoy like Hunter x Hunter (2011)

Things that I just started but couldn’t get into

NHK ni Youkoso! (1/24)

For one, I didn’t want to watch this before because it would’ve hit too close to home. The show’s about a NEET aka a freeloader (not in employment, education, or training), and I’m... almost that description (but that’s mostly because of the pandemic). Really, this show is riddled with paranoia, and it wants you to really know that with its changing art styles to its cynical script lines to its main character honestly needing some help (seriously, he needs help). I read further (aka spoilers) and realized that I probably won’t have fun with this anime right now, and I will never touch the manga because that stuff is even more insane than its adaptation. NHK ni Youkoso is about people who fall between the cracks of normal standard society and their desire to seek their own normal by any means necessary, and during stressful times, I think it belongs on the backburner.

Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei (2/12)

After seeing how much I enjoyed Kakushigoto (which will be mentioned later, I just thought, “Wow, I want to see that other really famous work!” I didn’t enjoy it at all. I forgot why I put the series on-hold. It’s about a suicidal teacher who will stop at nothing to die then ask people why they almost killed them. Through a bunch of errors, he ends up becoming some sort of a harem king to his students (and he attracts the weirdos). I enjoyed the lengths Studio Shaft went to to make this anime appear the way it does (which helps in a lot of ways), but I just can’t continue with it until a much later date.

Appare-Ranman! (2/?)

I just lost interest after looking at the rest of the cast. I’m all for being vibrant and out there, but some of those character designs imitate more of a “racial stereotype/caricature”. I’m not saying that I dropped the show only because of that (I’m quite dense when it comes to that), but I didn’t like the characters either. I can’t get behind a show that won’t let me enjoy it a single moment over two episodes. 

I’ll pick it up again later (probably)

Free! (5/12)

I feel like they’re shoving fanservice a lot. I try to skip every fanservice scene, and I managed to watch up to episode 5 in less than an hour, and I didn’t even get through them all. But I will say that ending is stuck in my head now. (humming)

This show has taken me at least two attempts to watch so far. Let’s see how many more it takes before I finish/give up!

Darker Than Black (18/25)

I’ll probably finish this one for the sake of finishing it. I just find that the episodic nature gets stale after a while, and the overarching story is often disregarded. In exchange, we do get some fun side stories, character development, and world building, but I’d like to settle down too, you know?

Clannad (1/23)

Yeah, I’m doing that now. I’m going to see whether my feels bones are as strong as they were before... after I take a hiatus because I’m not sure if I’m in the appetite for that kind of romance now that I’ve watched two shoujo in a row. 

Sousei no Onmyouji (20/50)

I bet you, someone was like, “Let’s throw all these shounen cliches into a pot then see what comes out!” Bruh, this is bordering that story I wrote when I was 14, and I’m not even dissing this anime. I enjoyed it but need a break now. It’s very cliche, predictable, and honestly, I can see why it has such a low rating. Studio Perriot likes cutting corners sometimes with their long-running series (*stares at Naruto*), and this anime is no exception. Sometimes, it feels like a visual novel. “We don’t need to animate anything if she’s so fast that no one can see her.” Dang, but it gets repetitive. It also has a magical girl power that only works when the main couple does it? Cool, but that also gets repetitive. I just didn’t see myself watching the same thing another 30 times (at least right now).

Maison Ikkoku

I’m actually on the fence about continuing this one. It’s really sweet, but I’ve had my fill of romance. I have been wanting to watch some more Rumiko Takahashi works though. There’s no reason for me not to continue this. It gives me strong Princess Jellyfish vibes (which I should also finish). 

Recently Finished

Itazura na Kiss

Just... end my suffering. It’s not worth it. The thing about shoujo anime is that I watch it late at night when my brain is at its worst when it comes to analyzing or taking in any emotional circumstances. Then I asked myself, “Would I want any young, impressionable people to watch this?” And my first thought was “F**K NO!” This anime was an absolute trainwreck. As my Discord friend put it “It’s so bad, yet you can’t look away!” But what makes this anime unique? What sets it apart? It shows life after high school. Just like Clannad, it shows that life is more than your secondary education. There is more to life than just being a teenager. I’m not saying these characters ever grew though because that’d be a FAT JOKE. 

Episodes 1-13: Girl gives boy a love letter. He laughs and doesn't even want it and goes "no thanks". Girl gets upset. Then they find out they're living under the same roof after the girl's dad made them a house out of popsicle sticks (because the dads are childhood friends). She keeps trying to push herself onto him, and his mom joins in and is plotting so much more than you'd expect. The best part is that this main girl already has a childhood friend who's like "please marry me. I'll cook for you, work for you, take a bullet for you, slice my head off if it means you won't chip a nail--" then the girl replied by chasing after the guy who calls her stupid on a daily basis and genuinely believes she can't do anything. 

Episodes 14-25: Guy gets dragged to his own wedding and generally does not care for the girl unless she’s either not looking or is on death’s bed. He practically deserts her every other time, and we’re supposed to think it’s romantic when he finally gives a crap about his wife (even when she’s pregnant). The show constantly reminds you that even other characters have doubts that our main character cares about anyone other than himself and his aloofness. They have a bunch of missed affairs including a hoe that tries to leave her husband on her honeymoon to get with Mr. Aloof and a nursing student that genuinely cares about MC and the fact that her husband doesn’t care about her at all.

The moral of the story of this anime: If you chase after somebody long enough, they will cave in and marry you even if they don’t like you, want you, insult you, bully you, or generally show all the signs of an unwilling partner.

Anyway, this anime is crap. I can’t believe I watched it. I want those few hours back (I fast-forwarded a lot, okay?) I can’t believe I finished it. Looking back makes me want to press undo. Having this under my history is a shame to my family. Even if I was sleepy and generally out of it, that’s no excuse for choosing this. Sayonara

 I will say that Daisuke Hirakawa and Nana Mizuki did give good character voices despite the circumstances. That, and I haven’t heard from Hirakawa besides those couple of scenes from School Days (which... is a different type of romance), Free! (which I dropped when his character joined), that gumball scene from Jojo, and that introduction to him being the new Demon Slayer villain. I didn’t realize he was that old though.

Special A

This is one of the anime that my sister watched, and I thought, “I need to be reminded of what a somewhat healthy relationship can be” I wasn’t disappointed because the last anime left such a bad taste in my mouth that literally anything could’ve soothed the aching wound which was bad decision making. Even under regular circumstances, I probably still would’ve enjoyed it, but since it came at the right time, I give it an extra nod of approval. I also never realized that the second opening was inadvertently drilled into my brain because I kept overhearing my sister watching it. Now that I’ve grown up, I realize I was listening to the voices of some of my favourite seiyuu. Go figure. 

The story was really sweet with characters that I genuinely liked by the end (not my favourite cast by a very long shot, but it was slightly above average). It was slightly above average for me in a lot of ways (ironically), and it was enjoyable. The art is very fitting for its time, the music was very... ordinary, and the story was simple enough that you knew exactly what was going to happen at any given moment. This show should be titled: Special A(ppreciation for those brave people who have fallen in the friendzone; we’ll get ‘em next time). 

Akatsuki no Yona OVAs 

Unlike the actual TV series, this stuff actually ends conclusively without ending on the CLIMAX OF THE BIG ARC. SERIOUSLY, I WAS ROBBED. You can say, “There’s a perfectly good manga right there.” Shut up. I want my fight scenes animated with a big helping of a strong female lead. It gave me a sudden appreciation for Hiro Shimono and his character Zeno who literally just inserted himself in last minute in the anime (but these OVAs perfectly explain everything). You probably shouldn’t watch the anime without watching these OVAs because they’re canon, funny, and touching at times. It enhances the series.

According to the animation, we know it can do fight scenes. Give us another season, cowards! Actually, it’s Studio Perriot, so if we ever get it, it might be two stickmen duking it out. 

Haikara-san ga Tooru Movie 2

You know, I really enjoyed the movie. The first one. This one? Not so much. Actually, I felt so done. I was looking forward to this so much. It’s like going to a restaurant, expecting really good pasta, and then being served some leaves from the weeds out back. Eventually, it tastes better when you add some dressing and cheese, but it still isn’t a bowl of pasta. This show casts aside everything I like about it (present-tense because they didn’t kill everything of it) and leaves one little inkling of its valued ideas. Instead, we get a romance-chasing movie that feels a bit more like an amnesia fiction that’s slightly higher quality than usual. I can’t say I regret watching the movie. There were some redeeming qualities, but they jumped from a 9/10 to a high 6/10 that managed to squeak itself into an overall 7/10. 

(This gif is from the first movie, but I can’t find any from the second movie anyway)

Currently Watching (Not Seasonal)

Samurai Champloo

This anime is a staple of Shinichiro Watanabe, and after this, I will probably watch Cowboy Bebop, Carole & Tuesday, and Space Dandy. I did enjoy Sakamichi no Apollon and Zankyou no Terror. 

Plus, after all that romance, I need some samurai slaughter. The fight scenes and the music get me every time. I don’t even need to say anything else about the anime. The fight scenes are enough to watch alone.

[coffee-obsessed-writer]

When You Least Expect It: Part Six

Jensen x Musician!Reader

Also featured this chapter: Jared Padalecki & Briana Buckmaster

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

A/N: This is a slow burn fic that I have been working on for a while. Its a story I wrote for myself and just wanted to share with everyone. Yes, the “Dee” in the story is who you think, but there is no intended hate on her or their actual marriage. It is a work of fiction, that is all. Part five is from BOTH POVs. There is also a playlist to go along with the series.  Series Playlist: “When You Least Expect It” (Spotify).

Beta’d by @closetspngirl​ who has contributed so much to this fic! Thank you for not only indulging my lunacy but encouraging it with gusto!

Chapter Summary: The fall out from New Year’s Eve isn’t exactly what Y/N had hoped for but after some counsel from a friend, she makes a rash decision that could either be the answer to her prayers or be the beginning of her nightmare.

Chapter Warnings: Angst (We’re sorry. Kinda.)

WC: 6.8K 

*Banner created by me; pics & gifs found online

Y/N barely remembered the ride home. She remembers Bri parking and walking her to the door, but the ride itself was a blur. She was sad and confused, but mostly angry with herself for running out on Jensen. She just kept thinking if they hadn’t stopped, if she would have just not been a hot mess for a second, she could have stayed, then he would be the one bringing her home.

“Come on, you go up and change, and I’ll make some tea.”

“Hm?” Y/N asked as Bri’s voice pulled her back from the dark winding alley of what if’s.

“Tea?”

“Oh, yeah. Help yourself. I have a bunch of different kinds in the cabinet,” she replied, vaguely pointing towards the kitchen.

“Ok,” Bri said, and guided her towards the stairs. “Go up and get comfy. If you got a pair of sweats I could borrow, I’d love ya forever. This dress is cute and all, but I believe the rest of the evening calls for comfort.”

“Bri, you don’t have to stay. I feel bad making you leave the party. I’m sure things were just getting started.”

Bri waved her off. “It’s fine. I’d much rather be on that couch over there talking to you with something warm and soothing than getting drunk and dealing with handsy men.”

“I thought you were married,” Y/N chuckled as she climbed the first two stairs.

“Who do you think I was talking about?”

Y/N laughed and kept climbing. “I’ll bring you down something.”

“Bless you!” Bri called after her before she disappeared to the second floor.

Y/N walked into the bedroom, her luggage still packed from her trip home; the clothes she wore on the plane still in a heap on the floor at the foot of the bed. The bags her dress and accessories had come in were in a crumpled pile in the middle of her comforter. Slowly, she unzipped the dress and laid on the chair in the corner of the room. One by one she removed all her jewelry, except the necklace Jensen had given her. For the second time that day she stared at her reflection and was disgusted with what she saw looking back.

“What the fuck is wrong with you,” she asked herself softly. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see her face any longer, or the tear-streaked mascara that currently painted her cheeks. She concentrated on clothing, then found an extra pair of sweats and a T-shirt for Bri. The thought of the woman downstairs currently making tea made her feel a little better, and knowing she wouldn’t have to manage this night alone, helped to calm her nerves just a smidge.

When she returned back to the kitchen there were two mugs on the island, with tea bags ready for steeping. Y/N handed Bri the clothes and when she left to change, Y/N continued fixing the tea. She tried to just focus on that for the moment, and not the line of questions her brain wanted to throw at her. Y/N knew she’d be answering those exact questions from Bri any minute now, so why bother going through it twice?

“So much better, thank you,” Bri moaned as she came back into the kitchen. “This is a great place you got here.”

“Isn’t it? I told him it was too much house for me, but…”

“He insisted.”

“He did.”

“Of course, because that’s Jensen.”

“I know,” she sighed and stopped what she was doing to rest her hands on the edge of the counter, her head falling down to hang between her arms.

“Y/N, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you,” Bri said and was at her side with a hand gently laid on her back.

“You didn’t Bri. I’m just so mad at myself right now. You’re absolutely right. That’s just... Jensen. Generous and overly kind. He is one of the most genuine people I’ve ever met.”

“Agreed. So, if you don’t mind me asking, what’s the problem? I know I was sort of teasing you about it earlier, but I wasn’t kidding when I said I saw you two walk in. Anyone that looked at the two of you and thought you were just friends would be crazy to think that.”

“Or in denial,” she added, making Bri laugh.

“Or that.”

Y/N pushed off the counter and grabbed her mug. Bri followed suit as they transitioned to the living room and sat on opposite ends of the couch. Y/N sipped at her tea, and while it offered the calming comfort she needed, she still regretted that it wasn’t another shot of bourbon with Jensen at the bar.

“Seriously though,” Bri said after placing her tea on the end table. “What happened? I know we’re new friends, and I don’t want to be intrusive, but when you run out of a room like that, leaving a man that fine standing there with his heart in his hands… there’s gotta be a reason.”

Y/N was quiet. She could feel Bri’s eyes on her but kept hers cast down into the cup as if she was trying to read tea leaves.

When she did finally answer, her voice was raspy and small. “There’s a reason.”

“Do you want to--”

Y/N nodded. “It’s not a question of whether I want to talk about it or not, I think I need to. Especially to him… but where do I start?”

Bri considered this and shrugged. “The beginning?”

“Might as well,” she sighed. “But that level of… truth. That amount of vulnerability, how do I know I’m trusting the right person with it? How do I know that Jensen wouldn’t use it again me, or judge me, or--”

“Because that’s not Jensen. Honey, look…” Bri slid along the couch to get closer to her and rested a comforting hand on her knee. “We all have a past. We all have trauma and baggage… exes…”

Y/N’s head snapped up at this, confirming Bri’s already established suspicions on the reasoning for her quick departure.

Her voice was still barely above a whisper. “I know.”

“But,” Bri continued, “at some point, you have to realize that all that crap you carry along with you, is only going to weigh you down. It won’t let you actually rise up to experience better things. And, as far as knowing who you can trust, I think you already know he’s different. I think that if you didn’t, you wouldn’t be here in the first place.”

“You’re right… he is different. I know that. I’m just a fucking coward who doesn’t know what to do.”

“You’ll figure it out. I know it’s not always as simple as follow your heart. Especially not when that heart has been pulled out, torn to shreds and glued back together with Elmer’s as I suspect yours has. So, before you make up your mind in any way, you need to figure out what’s most important. For you.”

Y/N sipped at her tea and was grateful for Bri’s sudden appearance in her life. There were a lot of things she was unsure about, and the way that Bri could offer counsel without judgment or telling her what to do was not only greatly appreciated, but much needed.  

“I will say one thing though,” Bri continued, and when she sat up straighter on the couch, Y/N worried for a moment that she was wrong and the barrage of judgment would begin. “I may not be as close to Jensen as say, Jared and Robbie, but I’ve gotten to know him well over the last couple years. That man is as genuine as they come. There’s not an ounce of pretension or malice in him. He’s been through it, too.”

“Dee?” she asked hesitantly.

“Yeah, and others. I can see he likes you; everybody can see that he likes you. All I’m saying is, if he likes you, he means it. I doubt he would go above and beyond for just anyone. He’s had his walls up, too. So maybe, instead of second guessing yourselves, you both need to start taking those sledgehammers and do some work, hmm?”

Y/N knew Bri was right, she had a lot of work to do. The most important of which was to call Jensen and apologize. The problem with that was she wasn’t sure what else to say, other than she was sorry for leaving him the way she did. The same fears and concerns were still there, festering due to years and years of insecurity, distrust, and mistreatment. Her disappearing act was due more to herself than to Jensen, and he needed to know that; if he would even still talk to her.

“I should call him,” she said, more to herself, but Bri nodded along with her.

“Yes, you should.”

From the kitchen, the sound of Y/N’s cell phone ringing made them both sit up straighter and start laughing.

“Well, if that’s not perfect timing…” Bri giggled excitedly. “I bet it’s him calling to check on you!”

The thought made Y/N’s stomach both drop and flutter with excitement. She put her tea down and slowly walked into the kitchen, almost afraid to pick it up out of her purse and answer it. By the time her fingers were able to retrieve it from the bottom of her bag, it had stopped ringing. She brought it with her into the living room and once she was back on the couch, she felt brave enough to swipe up and see who it had been.

One Missed Call

One Missed Text

Y/N saw it wasn’t Jensen that had tried to reach her, but Nathan. If there was a word for the feeling of both being disappointed and relieved at the same time, she didn’t know what it was, but that’s exactly how she felt. She wouldn’t return the call, but she did read the text after she made sure her read receipts were turned off.

>>Sorry I called so late. I know you were at your work thing, just wanted to say Happy New Year. I hope this is the year we can find our way back to being friends again. Call me soon, ok?

“From Jensen?” Bri asked eagerly. “What did he say?”

“Not Jay, Nathan.”

“Nathan?”

“The ex.”

“Oohhh,” Bri said, elongating her response and leaned back into her corner of the couch. “So, the complication has a name.”

Y/N looked up at her and wasn’t sure how to answer. The longer she just looked at Bri and didn’t speak, the more she just wanted to cry. In the years since Nathan had left, many tears were spilled and at some point, she’d had enough. A switch was flipped in her, and she went from one extreme to another; having gone two years without one of her sobbing, snotting breakdowns. Now there was one lurking, she could feel it bubbling up from the depths of her heart; the parts she’d closed off to just about everyone. Sitting with a stranger, in a strange city wasn’t the best time for it, despite the fact that Bri was starting to feel like an old friend.

“Yeah,” she sighed. “He, uh… he just recently came back into my life and…” she didn’t know how to finish it because she thought her feelings about him had resolved. Clearly, she had been wrong. Nathan had been terrible to her in the last year they were together, but before that… there had been decades of good times. Could she really just walk away from all that? Nathan was one of the reasons that made her walk away from Jensen, she knew that. Now, Y/N needed to understand why Nathan was on her mind at all.

It wasn’t hard to sense that Y/N was going to open the flood gates, but Bri could also tell that it was hard for her to trust that she’d be safe enough too. Y/N’s eyes were brimming with tears and the way her bottom lip was quivering just trying to hold it in, broke Bri’s heart. She swung her legs to the floor and motioned for Y/N to come and sit closer beside her.

“Come on… you gotta let it out, honey.” Bri rested her arm along the back of the couch and watched as Y/N slowly moved along the couch and curled up in the crook of her arm. “Just let it go. And when it’s all out, we can talk about it, or not. But you can’t deal with anything until you just let it go.”

That’s just what she did. And when she was done, having soaked through part of her new friend’s shirt, Y/N fell asleep with a new understanding of what it means to truly be vulnerable.

The pain in Jensen’s head woke him before the afternoon sun did. There was no use in trying to remember how much he drank, just that it was somewhere in the vicinity of a bottle of bourbon and maybe a couple tequila shots for good measure. When he was finally able to command his body to move, he pushed himself up on his elbows and waited for the thumping in his brain to stop. Of course, it didn’t.

“Motherfucker…” he groaned, finally able to sit up a little more. Within minutes, he was fully sitting, knees pulled up and his arms around the loose sheet covering him. His chest was bare, and he could feel the linen against his thighs, telling him that he was sans pants, as well. Trying to remember how he ended up Jared’s guest room, he rested his forehead against his knee and left it there. He knew he had to keep moving towards getting up, dehydration was imminent, yet as much as he demanded his body to function it refused to listen.

A soft knock at the door was what finally got him to lift his head.

Thump, Thump, Thump…

“Yeah,” he called out, though his throat was too dry to give it any oomph. “Yeah!” he tried again, this time seeing the door crack open as he winced at the burn it caused.

“You decent?” Jared asked and paused before coming in any further.

“Am I ever?” he quipped and groaned again when Jared came all the way into the room.

“Nope. Here, I thought you could use this.” Jared offered a bottle of water which Jensen took gratefully. “You hit the bottle pretty hard last night, man. Surprised you’re upright, to be honest.”

“I am? Cause in my mind I’m still laying down and passed the fuck out…” He twisted off the cap and sipped at it slowly. He’d learned his lesson a long time ago about the benefits of slowly hydrating.

Jared waited for him finish his drink and rest back against the headboard. “So, wanna share as to why I found you in the game room with an empty bottle of Jim Beam?”

“Nope,” he said again and went back to the water.

“Alright, at least tell me if it has anything to do with why you were alone and not with Y/N?”

Jensen’s eyes looked up quickly, the movement of which made black spots appear behind them. He blinked them away and brought his fingers to his forehead. “Can you give me like ten minutes to just remember where I am before you start the Spanish Inquisition?”

Jared sighed heavily and knew that his friend was simply stalling. “Dude…”

“Fine. Yes, it has to do with her, alright?” Jensen replied sharply.

“What happened?”

“I just said I didn’t walk to talk about it.”

“If I were anyone else, you could get away with that. But I know you. If you don’t talk about it now, you’ll bury it and all that bullshit. Then it festers and you act like an ass. So, talk.”

Jensen picked his head up and glared at Jared. Of course, he wanted to bury it; he felt humiliated and angry. He didn’t want to admit to what happened, not because Jared would judge him, but because he didn’t want to acknowledge his own mistakes.

“Y/N and I kissed at midnight,” he said flatly.

“Ok, and?”

“It quickly got… heated.”

“Oh,” Jared breathed and sat on the edge of his guest room bed. “I see. And then?”

Jensen shrugged his entire face. “Briana walked in. Y/N got… I don’t know, spooked? Then she ran out. Last thing I remember is Gen popping in to say that Bri was going to take her home.”

Jared leaned towards Jensen and inhaled, scrunching his nose at the smell of liquor still oozing from his pores. “Then you hung out with Jim and... José, apparently.”

“I guess, yeah.”

Jared mulled everything over in his head, but couldn’t quite grasp it. “I have so many questions…” he said with a snort, but when he looked back at Jensen’s expression, his smile faded. “Are you alright?”

The question hit Jensen harder than he expected. Was he? No. Clearly not, if he proceeded to drink as much as he did after she left.

“Honestly, I don’t know what I am right now except hungover.”

“Did you try to call her? Text? Anything?”

“No. I didn’t know what to say.”

“How about, what the fuck?”

Jensen snorted a laugh. “That may not have gone over well.”

“Jay, she ran out on you for no reason--”

“I’m sure she had a reason,” Jensen interjected.

“I like Y/N, but, maybe trying to hook up with her now may not be the best idea,” Jared said carefully. He wanted to help his friend, but he also wouldn’t enable him to make stupid choices on a whim.

“It wasn’t planned, Jar. It was a New Year’s kiss. That’s all.” He was lying and he knew it. That was anything but just a New Year’s kiss. If Briana hadn’t walked in, he’s fairly certain the night would have taken a much different turn. Not that he blamed Bri, there was that pause right before she walked in where Y/N spoke his name…

‘The way she said it, Jesus Christ...’ he thought as he rolled his head back again and closed his eyes. Jensen pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers and prayed for the pounding in his brain to stop. He just needed five minutes of quiet to think, but his relentless thoughts both of the pain, and how she felt pressed against him, wouldn’t be denied.

“That’s all?” Jared laughed sarcastically. “Ok, you keep telling yourself that, champ.”

“Bite me.”

“I’m not trying to be an asshole, I swear. But you’re my best friend and I’ve seen you go through a lot of bullshit because of a woman. I just don’t want to see it happen again, especially with some girl you barely know just because you’re lonely.”

“I’m not lonely,” Jensen bit back defensively, even though he was once again lying to Jared and himself. He could tell that Jared didn’t buy it anyway. “At least not like… all the time.”

“You work like a dog, travel constantly, go from one empty apartment to another. The only time you aren’t alone is when you’re working on set. That’s partly why you started this whole project, right? To not feel lonely after Dee left? But then I had other shit to do, so did Robbie and Jason…and it left you alone, all over again. Until you met Y/N.”

“So?”  he shrugged. He was starting to feel frustrated but didn’t want to take it out on Jared because his intentions were pure, even if they were annoying the shit out of him.

“So? Come on, man. Don’t be an ass. She’s gorgeous, she’s talented, she’s creative, smart and she’s just as wrapped up in the Brewfest as you are. How could you not want to take it further? Besides, be honest… how long has it been?”

“Since?”

Jared rolled his eyes and gave him the ‘give me a fucking break’, look. “You’re gonna make me say it? How long since you got laid?”

“Seriously?”

Jared nodded. “Yeah, seriously. I’m sure it’s been a while. Add that to the fact that you end up at a party with a pretty girl who looks at you like you hung the moon, then you have some drinks. Maybe she flirts with you a bit, makes you feel good. Oh, let’s not forget running into your ex, and then having said pretty girl stand up for you.”

“Oh shit… I forgot about that,” Jensen groaned. “What a fucking night…”

“My point is--”

“I get your point.”

“Do you?”

“Yes. Now shut up and let me die.” Jensen let his body slide down into the mattress and covered his face with the other pillow.

“I guess I’ve tortured you enough for now,” Jared said and patted his friend’s foot as he stood up from the bed. “We got food downstairs if you want. Gen and the kids are heading off to see a movie, but I’ll be down there if you want to talk, ok?”

“Mmmmm,” Jensen growled, and Jared took that to mean, ok.

When Jensen heard the door click softly, he moved the pillow off his face and sighed deeply. Exhaling the air slowly through his lips, he allowed his eyes to close again and conjure up Y/N’s image. He thought of how she looked when she threw the darts and then celebrated hitting the target. He remembered how her skin felt when his hand rested on her bare back, and the look in her (y/c) eyes right before he finally kissed her.

Despite the hangover and despair his body felt, he felt his cock twitch at the thought of kissing her again. He tried to make himself stop, but it replayed in his mind as if it were a movie on a screen. “Fuck,” he growled and forcibly pushed her from his mind as the disappointment set in that it all ended so suddenly.

Jensen threw off the covers angrily and stood up from the bed, waiting for his knees to lock and safely support his weight. On the floor to his right were the clothes he’d worn the night before. He picked them up and went to get dressed, but the second he pulled the shirt over his head, he got a lingering whiff of sandalwood and lilac… Her.

“FUCK!” he barked again and ran his hands through his hair then back down over his face.

There was so much to think about and consider; not just the things that Jared said, but the things Jensen knew to be true. Yes, he had been lonely, and yes, Dee had crushed him… but hadn’t he deserved that? He wasn’t an angel in their time together; not that he’d cheated on her or anything of the like. He had, however, been withholding sometimes; maybe treated her like she wasn’t as important to his life as she should have been. Yet, when Dee would ask him if he was happy, or if he wanted something different, he gave her the answer she wanted, not what he actually felt. When she finally left, it shattered him and he reveled in that guilt for months.

Was he doing the same thing with Y/N? Was he dragging her along in a different way? In one breath he had said that he was so focused on the festival, there wasn’t time for anything else. Yet in another, he was kissing her like she was his long lost lover who he’d just reunited with. Maybe it was better that she stopped it. But then again, if she hadn’t… maybe it could have been something great.

“You need to just fucking stop,” he mumbled to himself as he pulled his pants on and fastened the belt.

From the depths of his pocket, he could feel the vibration of his cell phone notification. Something there was waiting for him; a missed call from Y/N, perhaps? He dared not let himself linger on the tiny shred of hope he had at seeing her name there; he couldn’t hope for anything from or about her until he decided what he really wanted from Y/N. When he unlocked the screen and saw he had a text message waiting, he nervously hovered his finger over it. Finally finding the courage to press the little message icon, he exhaled shakily when her name was highlighted with a little “1” next to it.

>>Hey, any chance you’re free for coffee today? We should probably talk.

Jensen sat back on the bed and felt his stomach bottom out. He assumed this would be where she told him she couldn’t do the job anymore, or be around him, and was moving back to New Jersey. The thought of which churned his stomach more than the bourbon ever could. He didn’t want to see her yet, he couldn’t. He needed more time, he needed to be completely free of the hangover and regret that corrupted him at that moment.

He hit reply on the text and realized she had sent it more than a few hours ago. Trying to think of an excuse, he used Jared and the kids as his out.

<<Hey. I wish I could, because we probably do need to talk, but I can’t today. Promised Jar’s kids Uncle J would take them to a movie. Rain check?

He hit send, sat back on the bed and squeezed his eyes shut while waiting for her response. When none came within a few minutes, Jensen gathered the rest of his belongs and decided it was time to go home, shower, and figure out what the Hell he was doing.

Y/N sat on a stool at the island counter of her kitchen, letting her fingers toy with the string of the envelope tie. In the padded manilla package were half a dozen proposals to various schools around the city of Austin and several contracts that needed Jensen’s signature. It was the last bit of business they had conducted for the festival before winding down for the holidays. Now it sat in her hands, almost mocking her. She wanted to push it off the counter like a child having a tantrum, but she refrained. Instead, Y/N picked up the envelope and shook the papers just loose enough so they were sticking out of the opening. She pulled the top one out and looked at his signature on the bottom of the page and ran her finger over it lightly.

A myriad of thoughts raced through her mind, including Bri’s words from both the night before and that morning as she was on her way out of the door.

“Remember,” she had said, her sunglasses pulled down on her nose so she could stare Y/N in the eye, “Talk to the man. Explain why you left, even if you just do it for you. Don’t lie, don’t sugar coat it. Be real, raw and if you like the man, tell him.” She left then, but not before wrapping her arms around Y/N and squeezing her tightly and making her promise to call or text soon.

Y/N did what Bri suggested, and decided that she did want to just rip off the bandaid and talk to Jensen. She had to. Him, Austin, the job… it was completely unexpected, but now that it had been a major part of her life over the past couple months, she didn’t want to lose it. That meant allowing herself to be vulnerable and explain why she ran out the night before.

Problem was, he said he was busy. She had texted him that morning, hoping he would be quick to respond with a ‘Yes, let’s talk as soon as possible’, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, he told her he was taking Jared’s kids to the movies. It didn’t sit right with her. Y/N wanted to believe that she knew him, but that was one of the things she was unsure of… did she really know him?

“Uggghhh!” She let her forehead hit the counter and covered the back of her head with her hands. “I can’t take this shit,” she muttered.

Picking up her gaze, she remembered the notepad in the drawer and hopped off the stool to retrieve it. Before she could really think about it, she began to write. Biting down on her bottom lip, as she always did when nervous or deep in thought, her hand scribbled furiously until the stream of conscious writing blissfully came to an end.

Y/N laid down the pen, exhaled shakily, and began to read back what she wrote.

  Jay,

I really am sorry about last night. I want to explain what happened if you’ll let me. I know you were busy today, so maybe we can get together soon?

I am leaving this with the contracts at your place so you don’t have to wait until the start of business day tomorrow. I know you were anxious to get these off to the lawyer’s office ASAP. Things are really looking good to get these out with the information packets and in the mail to the various School Boards as well as the Texas Creative Arts Council. Everything’s moving forward nicely.

Hope you and the kids enjoyed the movie!

-Y/N

 “Well, it’s not poetry, but, its to the point. I guess…” she trailed off as she started to second guess herself, then shook it off and quickly shoved the note into the envelope, and finally sealed it. Grabbing her keys and purse, she left the townhouse and headed over to Jensen’s place, before she lost her nerve completely.

It wasn’t more than twenty minutes to get to Jensen’s house. She had been there a few times since moving to Austin, and luckily he had already added her to the gatehouse’s frequent visitor list. Y/N’s heart was pounding harder with every mile closer and by the time she parked her car in front of his house, it was damn near rattling in her rib cage. Once she climbed out and began walking up the path to the door, she froze. She had planned to just leave it between the screen and front doors since he was out with Jared’s kids, but when she saw his car parked in the driveway it hit her that he had lied about being free to talk.

Y/N got her feet moving again. In the mere seconds it took to reach the front door, she asked a thousand different questions…. Should she leave it and go? Should she knock and just give it to him? Should she, should she…

She wanted to scream, is what she wanted to do. She was angry and hurt, and was hoping that it was just a fluke.

He wasn’t supposed to be home! She thought. Was Bri wrong? Was I wrong? Is he just lying to avoid me?

She wanted to give him benefit of the doubt… was it good timing on her part, maybe? Did he stop here and then go in Jared’s car? Possible. She couldn’t shake the thought that he did lie and in her heart, she knew that would be the truth.

Y/N knocked on the wooden front door with one hand as she clutched the envelope to her chest with the other. She was gripping her keys so tight in her fist the metal was beginning to leave its imprint in her palm. It took less than a minute for her to hear the lock tumbler and to see the door open. Jensen stood before her, his hair soft and still a little damp from a shower, dressed in dark blue sweatpants and a white V-neck t-shirt. His feet were bare, and in one hand, he carried a bottle of water.

“How was the movie?” she asked flatly, still holding onto the envelope for dear life. It was her anchor in that moment, and she was afraid if she released the tension she held on it, she may lose it completely.

“I--we… Gen took them...” he swallowed hard and sighed. “I’m sorry. When I saw the text, I just wasn’t ready to talk.”

“That was all you had to say, Jensen! You didn’t have to make up some bullshit.” She tried to stay calm, but she could sense the hurt feelings rising fast.

“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings,” he said. “I was hungover--”

“Just, stop. It’s fine. I just came to drop these off,” she paused, suddenly feeling the need to get away from him, and maybe Texas altogether. “I’m, uh, I’m gonna go back to Jersey for a while. This was the last few things we talked about before Christmas,” she pushed the envelope into his chest and released it, forcing him to take it or let it fall to the ground. She stepped back and crossed her arms tightly over her chest. “I need to finish up some things back home and I can do whatever else needs to be done from there.”

“Wait, you’re leaving now? Why?” he asked incredulously, his brow furrowed in confusion. “You just got back.”

“To be honest, I cut that trip short to come back here for the party,” she replied, lifting her gaze to finally meet and hold his. “Since you’re not ready to talk about it, then, I think it’s just better if I go back for a while. We don’t have that meeting with the Texas Creative Arts Council until the end of January, so until then…”

Jensen frowned and slowly nodded his head, but not in any way that really agreed with her. Y/N could feel his growing frustration, in turn making her both sad and yet still defiant. It was something she had always done, and on more than one occasion it got her into trouble. There was a stubborn streak in her, that wouldn’t completely allow her to just stop a trainwreck conversation in progress. She was both the conductor and the passenger on a collision course of misunderstanding, yet still completely helpless to stop it from happening.

“Maybe that’s a good idea. I gotta leave for Vancouver anyway. Work and all.” His tongue rolled out over his top teeth and raked back into his mouth over bottom lip. Y/N had seen that gesture when he was trying to hold back his frustration, but it had never been at her before. “So, just text me if you need anything, or give Robbie a call.”

They stood there silently for less than ten seconds, but to each of them, it felt like an eternity in Hell.

If he had just said he didn’t want to talk, instead of a stupid, pointless fib about a movie…  she thought as she stood on his porch, still gripping her keys far too tight. If you had just stayed, last night… her heart countered. Her stomach fell, and she just needed to get away.

“I’ll text you anything important,” she said quietly.

“Yeah, ok,” he replied, but it came out garbled and rough. She couldn’t tell if this change in his inflection was due to disappointment, anger or both, but she hated it.

Not knowing what to do, she just stood there, waiting for him to say something more. Had she blown it all already? She could recant, say she would stay, and please could things go back to how they were? But after what happened the night before, not just her running out, but the kiss, Dear God, that fucking kiss, she thought… that kiss changed everything.

Maybe going home would be a good thing. She could go out onto the beach, watch the sunrise, and let her toes reconnect with the cold grains of sand; they were always able to ground her when she needed it. So much had happened in twenty-four hours, hell in the last week, that her head was reeling, her heart was hurting, and her feelings were a fucking mess.

“Alright then, well, I guess--uh--have a safe trip back to Vancouver, Jensen,” she said, unable to withstand the silence any longer. She turned to go, not wanting to wait for a response. He could’ve called out to her, called her back, told her to travel safe, but he didn’t. In her current state, Y/N continued to let the doubts, insecurities, and fears that had followed her around most of her life win out, as they continued to drive her away from Jensen, his house, and his city.

It cost a good size chunk of her savings, but Y/N found a flight that landed in Newark around midnight that evening. She had to move heaven and earth to get a seat on the flight that took her from Austin to North Jersey, and then at least an hour wait for a rental car. The drive itself put her pulling onto the dirt lane of her bungalow at almost three in the morning. Even as her tired, heavy eyes begged for sleep, the rest of her felt exhilarated by the smell of the salty air. It didn’t matter that she had just been here two days before, the feeling of walking up to the front door where she had spent all of her life was calming and much needed.

Y/N dropped her one carryon bag onto the couch and pulled her phone from her pocket. There had been a few notifications she ignored while driving and wanted to check them before she went down the hallway and fell onto her bed.

The first was a missed text message from Bri.

>>Well, what happened?! Did you get to talk to him?

The next was a missed call from an unknown number, but it had an area code that was local to Seaside. Ignoring that for the time being, she checked the last notification… this time it was from Jensen. She paused before hitting the little envelope on the screen, petrified of what it may say. Before New Year’s Eve, she would have been excited to open it, but now a feeling of dread washed over, making her worry that maybe he was texting to tell her to forget about the job after all, and she could just stay where she was.

>>I hope you landed and made it home okay. Can you just text me and let me know you made it safely?

Y/N went to the couch and fell onto it, using her carry on as an armrest, she put her elbow on it and rested her head against her hand. The phone was still in her other hand, and she absently scrolled through a bunch of text message exchanges she had with Jensen since first meeting him in October.

>>Hey Trix, I lost my copy of the grant proposal for the TCAC, any chance you got another laying around?

<<Only if you ask nicely.

>>Hey, I’m always nice.

<<Sure, when you want something ;)

>>.... So?

-----------

<<Dammit Jensen! I told you to wait for me. You suck. How could you go to Salty Sow without me? I thought we had something…

>>No one told you to spend three hours in the bookstore. A man needs to eat.

<<... Fine. Guess I’ll just order pizza like a college freshman...

>>Nom, Nom, baby.

<<I hate you. You owe me a Sow burger.

>>Deal.

-----------

>>Still up?

<<Nope.

>>.......

<<What? I’m half asleep. That counts.

>>Just wanted to say tonight was fun.

<<It was! I’m surprised. Never thought I’d be able to line dance.

>>You did great. We should go again when we aren’t scouting for bands. If you’re gonna be in Texas a while…

<<Only on one condition…

>>Yeah, anything

<<This summer you let me teach you how to surf.

>>Like in the ocean? With sharks?

<<Coward.

 Y/N inhaled slowly and held onto the breath as she finally looked away from the screen. She thought about the messages, and then that last interaction she had with Jensen. She dared to let herself even think about the kiss they shared on New Year’s Eve. It did nothing more than add to the confusion she carried in conjunction with his name. The whole night, including her talk with Bri, the text from Nathan, all of it left her completely unsure of what was right, wrong, up or down. She needed to clear her head, figure out what came next.

Bri’s words rang loudly in her ear, “...before you make up your mind in any way, you need to figure out what’s most important. For you.”

With that, and despite the very late, or early hour, depending on how you looked at it, Y/N closed the messaging app and went to the recent calls to find who she was looking for.

Hitting call next to their name, she waited anxiously for the phone to stop ringing, and an answer on the other end. One ring later, she could hear someone fumbling the cell and waited for the raspy greeting she was bound to get.

“Hey? Hel--hello?”

“Hey, it’s me,” she said, trying to sound relatively awake for three a.m. “Sorry to wake you.”

“No, no, you’re fine. What’s up, Y/N?” he asked, surprised to hear her voice.

“I was thinking… maybe it’s time to talk.”

“Now? Over the phone? Is that a good idea?”

“Well, I had a change of plans and I’m actually back in town. Thought maybe we could go have coffee tomorrow or something?”

“Seriously?” he asked, even more, surprised at that, then at hearing her voice at all.

“Yeah. I think Harry’s is open. Say around eleven?”

“Yeah… that would be great, Y/N. I’d love that.”

“Ok, awesome. Well, back to sleep, sorry I woke you. I’ll see you later today, Nathan.”

She ended the call and settled back into the comfort of her couch. Y/N closed her tired eyes and tried not to think anymore that day. Not about Jensen. Not about Nate. Not about anything, then the sound of the ocean waves off in the distance.

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