#I genuinely think I tried to grasp the idea of never meeting my sister before I could read

[newvision]

grieving as a child is insane like I grasped the finality of death before I could ride a bike lol

[myrulia]

About the Kokushibou x Muzan little sister ask can I get prompt 8 please 😅 sorry for the inconvenience.

.｡.:*✧Prompt 8: "It feels right, promise I don't mind."

.｡.:*✧Warnings: Slight sexual tension

╰╴⇢｡.:*✧A/N: If an appearance/personality is made evident, then it is because you are related to Muzan.

`` [Y/N], my beloved sister, have you considered ever finding a suitable partner such as I did? ``

Your elder brother, Lord Kibutsuji Muzan, spoke as you both were seated in one of the many rooms of the Infinity Castle that was well away from everyone else since your discussion held private matters. 

`` Brother, you made your past wives go insane, and the one you have now is a fake. So therefore, it does not count. ``

Muzan let out a huff of annoyance at the same time you did, the habit being something you both inherited unfortunately which led to the Upper Moon Two to tease you about, which led to him becoming disciplined right after.

`` That is not the point. [Y/N], I do not want you to be alone- ``

`` But I'm not alone, I have you and the other Upper Moons..- ``

`` Ah yes, the Upper Moons you say? ``

There was a glint of mischievousness in Muzan's eyes that you became all too accustomed with, knowing he was coming up with a great plan that you know utterly nothing about. Truth be told, finding a partner would not seem like the worst thing, but your stubbornness has stopped you from giving into your older brother's wishes.

`` Since you brought up the Upper Moons, I'll start from there. ``

You quirked a brow up in response to his choice of words, crossing your arms habitually and holding the same accursed scowl Muzan would also make during his meetings.

`` Why don't you get to know them, `` he started, referring to the higher ranks. `` The Upper Three ranks would make suitable partners and would have no trouble protecting you when I am absent. ``

You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose trying to see a somewhat decent future with any of them. Sure, the idea had its pros, but far too many cons, especially with Douma. He was tall and handsome, sure, but had little to no emotions whatsoever and was too much of a masochist for you to handle.

Then there is Akaza. He was respectful to women and you actually found that trait attractive, but he was too focused on becoming strong and probably would not even give you the attention you would need.

Lastly, Kokushibou. An even taller demon who was quiet, well reserved, and surprisingly good looking despite having three sets of eyes. For once, you did not know the male's motives due to his nature, which allured you to him further. You have tried to strike up a conversation but he was quick to end it and would disappear somewhere else in the Castle.

`` Muzan, I would never consider Douma suitable, Akaza is a 50/50 chance, but Kokushibou- well..- ``

`` Well? ``

You wanted to voice out your opinion of the Upper Moon One to your brother, but knowing him, he would rat you out instantly just so that your relationship with him would get a move on so he can be satisfied.

`` Actually, nevermind, I'll take some time to think about it brother. ``

You got up from your chair and exited from the large room, jumping from the balcony and onto another platform. You repeated this process until you were well away from Muzan's quarters.

You were not even set on a destination, you just wanted to clear your head of his desire to find you a future husband. The idea was not a bad one, in fact it was a smart move in the first place, but it felt forced and not genuine to have to pick based off your brother telling you to.

You were so lost in your thoughts that you did not notice the large figure just in front of you, and before you knew it, you bumped right into the figure's back, causing it to fall over with you on top. 

`` Who- ``

`` I apologize! `` You blurted out before the voice could finish. `` I was not looking where I was going and ended up tumbling onto you so I'm sorry. ``

You quickly got off of the large figure who also stood up and adjusted his hakama accordingly that got slightly messed up in the fall. Once the figure is turned around, you are met with 3 pairs of eyes glaring down at your shorter form. It was none other than Kokushibou, or better known as the Upper Rank One based on the kanji in his eyes. You look stunned as you take in his appearance. You expected a much more piercing gaze due to him usually having one, but instead of that, his face was more relaxed and dare I say neutral.

`` There is no need princess, `` the male said as he bowed in respect, not daring to leave unless you order for him to do so. The demons that lurked around the Castle were ordered by your high and mighty older brother to refer to you as "Princess" since he deems himself as the king. You objected of course, but in this moment you had no ounce of rejection to give. Usually you would dismiss the demons that call you such a thing, but it felt different with Kokushibou.

`` Still I bumped into yo- nevermind. Kokushibou I can trust you right? ``

Your question came out of the blue for the demon. Why were you suddenly asking if you can trust a man like him? Of course he did devote his life to both you and Muzan but his inner feelings and self doubt block himself from doing so fully. You always made things difficult for him.

`` Yes, you can entrust me with your life. ``

`` Are you only saying that because my brother told you to, or are you genuine? ``

The demon was rather taken aback by your bold choice of words, his eyes slightly enlarging before going back to a neutral expression. He tilted his head to the side ever so slightly, confusion taking over his features.

`` Why would I not want to protect someone dear to me? ``

You took a singular step back, desperately fighting the heat rushing to your cheeks and so to not embarrass yourself in front of him you covered the bottom half of your face and feigning a look of pondering. 

`` If you are genuine as you claim to be, then I shall tell you. Muzan wants me to find a suitable partner. ``

You were blunt yet again, believing that sugarcoating information only draws away time that could be spent doing something much more worthwhile. You removed your hand from your face, now holding a stern look with the much taller Upper Moon whose expression has shifted. A visible vein was pulsing on his neck that you learned was due to annoyance.

`` Have you found anyone? `` Kokushibou said with no clear indication of aggravation, but you knew of the male's habits from the years that you have you have to learn of the Upper ranks and their habits. You stepped closer towards him until your chest dangerously brushed against his, your hand reaching up to his hand and grabbing it gently. Kokushibou tensed up at the feeling of your soft hand being interlocked with his, so much so that he could not take his eyes off of your enticing ones. 

`` Yes. You. ``

You stood on your tippy toes just to move closer to his face. His height may have been an obstacle but you succeeded, leaving the demon to be well enough flustered for it to be noticeable. Your little manipulative tactics resembled those of Muzan's, you are siblings after all. You tugged your hand away from his, sliding it up his forearm ever so slowly and to his chest, resting there and not daring to break the eye contact you have built.

`` Even though I am directly blood related to Muzan, would you be willing to be my partner and love me for who I am instead of who I am related to? ``

Kokushibou was well aware of what you meant with those words, after all he himself is very intelligent and could see through your advances. But even so, he found himself falling for them time and time again. You could simply be doing your hair and his mind would wander to how your raven locks would feel in between his fingers. With you being his Lord's younger sister, he thought it would be practically sinning to think of you in such ways, but now that the opportunity presented itself, he would not let it slip from his grasp.

`` It feels right, promise I don't mind. ``

`` That's all I needed to hear from you Kokushibou. `` 

It took one small lean forward for your lips to land on his. Kokushibou instinctively returned the kiss as if he was programed to do so, except it was his full will driving him forward to finally have you as his own. To be able to have you by his side was almost a dream come true for him without even realizing it. Demons are essentially deprived of any real feeling so to have you return his feelings of infatuation fed into his desire all the same.

Although before the kiss could turn into a much more scandalous one, you retracted, but cupped his face in your hands.

`` Would He approve of this? `` Kokushibou asked whilst peering into your enchanting eyes again. His hands had moved to your waist but were quickly removed after the kiss, his own fears blocking him from allowing himself to submit to your enticing touch.

`` I don't need his approval, I am my own person who can make her own decisions. But, it was his idea so there is no need to worry. ``

`` That is all I needed to hear. ``

Kokushibou was the one who leaned forward this time, but before your lips could connect, he went to your neck and bit on your skin harshly which was bound to leave a mark. You gripped at his hair and tugged him away from your neck after you let out a small whine since your greed was increasing.

`` I am simply marking what is mine now, isn't that right, Princess? ``

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[readyplayerhobi]

Jung Hoseok and the Magic to Happiness | 05

; Hufflepuff Teacher!Hoseok x Reader

; Genre: Fluff, angst, future smut

; Word Count: 3.5k

; Synopsis: An unexpected issue with your Ministry of Magic job leads to you taking the role of Transfiguration Professor at Hogwarts. It’s here that you meet your best friend’s younger brother for the first time in years, the Hufflepuff Head of House, Jung Hoseok. While you contend with seeing him once again, Hoseok tries to show you that he’s very much a man and no longer the gangly teenager you once knew.

; A/N: Not as much of an ‘interesting’ chapter as the last one, but hopefully you’ll enjoy it all the same! I know some of you have been hoping to see this character and what their thoughts are all about what’s going on. This chapter is more of one that’s just self-assessing!

Last Chapter ; Next Chapter

-

You don’t go to breakfast the next morning. Not because you’re trying to avoid Hoseok or anything, but because you didn’t fall asleep until the early hours of the morning and so slept through the morning meal. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what had kept your mind occupied instead of letting you drift off.

Thankfully, no one questions your absence. It might be because most of the castle is likely sleeping in today or is packing for the Hogwarts Express. You don’t have to be present when the students begin their journey back to London and you feel that’s probably a good thing at the moment. 

The awkwardness between Hoseok and you would be excruciating for anyone to be around, particularly yourself. So you’d burrowed into your duvet when the usual alarm went off and only woke up properly around noon. 

You’re still in bed though, the covers pulled up to your chin and helping you to feel snug and warm against the constant coolness of your stone room. Which means that you’re staring up at the ceiling of your bedroom intently, brows furrowed as you think over the night before once more.

As if you haven’t already replayed every moment in excruciating detail, latching onto the most ridiculous things. For instance, you couldn’t stop thinking of what Hoseok’s lips looked like up close or the heady scent of him that no longer inspired only safety and friendship in you. How hot his hands had felt against you.

It was embarrassing how often that thought morphed into you imagining the same scenario but minus any clothes. Would his hands be warmer? Would they be as gentle as they’d been on your back last night? Would his hands feel soft on your bare skin or would you be able to feel the subtle callouses formed from years of caring for magical animals?

Groaning out loud, you roll onto your side and bury your face into your pillow. How are you meant to face him when all you can think about is the taste of him on your lips? 

A delicate chiming causes you to peek at your bedside cabinet, eyes narrowing as the noise repeats itself. You don’t even need to check to see who it is; you know already. So you reach out and blindly grasp for the magic mirror, eventually feeling your fingertips pressing against the smooth, reflective surface.

Now your grimace is more because you know that you’ve just smeared fingerprints all over. But you don’t get a chance to clean it because as soon as you look at the hand-sized surface, it activates with a gentle tinkling. The silver mirror shimmers slightly and you’re left looking at the image of Jisoo’s pretty face, smiling at you.

For a moment, you forget that you’ve not even bothered to get out of bed yet. You’ve not been able to shower, and the crustiness of your eyes tells you that your makeup wasn’t removed either. You’d obviously been in more of a fugue state than you’d realised when you’d gotten back to your quarters.

Normally it wouldn’t bother you as Jisoo has seen you in much worse states. But this had been caused by Hoseok, her brother. Her little brother. Her little brother who was incredibly attractive, a great kisser and had looked at you like you’d hung the stars when you’d pulled away from him.

As you think that, you immediately remember his annoyance at any topic relating to age and feel like hitting your forehead. Chaeyoung was right; he did like you. Merlin, how stupid were you to miss all those obvious signs he’d been giving? The poor guy had been practically shouting it from the rooftop for weeks now.

“I’m so stupid!” You curse, spitting out a few more severe swear words after that to the surprise of Jisoo. It’s not helped when you notice how similar they look, maturity making the familial genes even more prominent between the two. Just your luck.

“Hi...are you okay?” She asks, her brow furrowing in concern and you sigh deeply. Ignoring her question for a few seconds, you take the time to push yourself up the bed and fluff up the pillows, letting them act as a backrest for you to prop yourself up. A quick spell cleans your face and mouth, studiously ignoring the fact that it’s considered lazy to use magic for these kinds of tasks.

Still, you feel a little more refreshed and not like one of those zombies from muggle television shows.

Taking a deep breath, alongside a few swallows of water from the glass you always keep by your bed, you pick up the mirror once more and smile at Jisoo. It’s pretty obvious that she doesn’t buy it though and you didn’t expect her to. She’s known you too long to let you get away with pretending, so you drop it quickly.

“I’m...okay, I promise. I just...I’m a little confused about something.” You’re not entirely sure that you want to admit the fact that you might fancy her little brother just yet. Jisoo is very open-minded and she’d always thought Hoseok’s obvious feelings when he was younger had been cute. But the unrequited emotions of your teenage brother are very different from the mutual attraction between your adult brother and your adult best friend.

“Oh? Did something happen last night? Hoseok was acting a little strange as well when I talked to him earlier.” The urge to sink under the covers is very strong when you hear that, but you use pure will to remain in place.

Of course, they’d already talked. 

Scanning Jisoo’s face closely, you try to use your own best friend's sixth sense to see if she already knows that you’d kissed him last night. But she’s either a master of acting or she has no idea because there’s only genuine concern in her expression.

You feel the need to talk though and you want to do that with your best friend, even if she is Hoseok’s sister. The feelings you have are confused and you just want to try to sort through them all. 

“I kissed Hoseok last night.” The words rush out in a breath, almost mumbling with how quiet they are. Still, Jisoo hears them perfectly thanks to the spell on the mirror. From the way her eyes widen in shock, you know that Hoseok hasn’t revealed that little tidbit to her. Part of you wonder if that’s to protect your privacy, but you don’t get a chance to consider it further.

“Merlin...so that’s why you’re both being odd! What happened? It was the Winter Solstice Ball, right?” Relaxing back, you nod and make an affirmative noise while chewing on your lips.

“Yeah, it was. It was all going fine, the students were having a good time and all that but then Hoseok finally arrived and-” Pausing, you frown before groaning out and running a hand across your face. “You don’t want to hear this! This is your brother.”

“Ignore that. As long as you don’t give me...descriptive details then it’s fine. This is one time that I have no interest in hearing about how well he kisses or what he’s like in bed, so keep that to yourself. Otherwise, keep talking.” Mortification runs through you at Jisoo’s mischievous smile and she laughs in delight.

“We didn’t do that! I swear.” Muttering, you reach for your glass and take another swig in an attempt to give yourself time to get yourself under control. Partially because you’re embarrassed about Jisoo thinking you’d slept with her brother so quickly but also because you’re feeling a little warm at the thought of sex with him.

A thought that you’d likely come back to at a later time but isn’t something to consider right now.

“I didn’t think you had. Firstly, you’ve never been the kind of person to shag someone on the first date. Or before the first date, I guess, as you’ve not even had a date. Secondly, neither is Hoseok. Don’t ask how I know, I’m surprised he didn’t blurt this news out this morning.” One of your eyes narrows in contemplation at that and you realise that you don’t want to ask.

The idea of Hoseok sleeping with someone else causes an unpleasant sensation to bubble in your stomach. Something else you don’t feel like analysing at the moment.

“Okay...well...firstly, I hate the word ‘shag’ and you know it. Secondly, I’m really confused right now. I mean, objectively I’ve known Hoseok is hot. Like, I’m not stupid. I have eyes and he’s well...yeah. But I think I’d always managed to have some kind of barrier between us, you know? Like...he was your little brother and he was just my friend here. But then last night he came into the hall and Merlin. It was like something switched in my mind, and I finally realised that he’s not just attractive, but he’s...he’s my kind of attractive.” You realise halfway through talking that you’re just telling Jisoo your thought process as you go through it.

She doesn’t respond though, just gives a considerate look with her lips slightly pursed before taking a sip of her drink. You don’t know what she’s drinking as it’s a mug, the image on the front just a generic cat. The fact it’s not moving gives away that it’s a muggle creation.

“And then we just kept talking, all night. Even when we had duties, we kept meeting back up and it felt so natural and normal. It’s like I’ve known him for all my life or something, our conversation is so easy and I don’t feel uncomfortable around him. You ever have that with someone?”

“Once or twice. It’s a good sign though. I know you’ve become pretty good friends over the last few months so maybe that’s why it’s all clicking now. Relationships that start from a solid friendship usually end up being some of the best. Maybe that’s why it’s all feeling a little more natural than normal. You’ve found someone that makes you feel comfortable and safe.” You wonder how many times you’d told Jisoo that her brother inspired those feelings within you since being here at Hogwarts.

As that runs through your mind, you suddenly become distracted with an entirely different thought.

“Hang on, did you suspect that I might like him? You’ve always been very accepting of my friendship with him and if I remember right, you’ve been the one encouraging me to spend time with him. Is that why you’re not surprised at this?” Jisoo’s cheeks blush a pretty pink, so like her brother that you can’t help but smile.

“I may have suspected something. I am your best friend, after all. And his sister. When you’re close to both sides, you notice things.” Her voice is teasing and you wonder if other people have been suspecting this as well. 

Suddenly, all the times your fellow professors had arranged for events and Hoseok had happened to just be attending as well began running through your mind. Was everyone scheming?!

You’d never considered yourself a suspicious person before but you certainly were now. Seokjin and Chaeyoung, in particular, were going to be at the end of a very serious set of questions whenever you next saw them.

“In all seriousness, I didn’t think that you might like him. I just thought you were enjoying having a good friend at Hogwarts as Hoseok is someone you already know, so you at least had a link with him. You finding him nice to look at was expected; I’m not stupid, I know he’s pretty. He’s my brother and I’m gorgeous,” There’s a slight smirk to her smile, and you roll your eyes at her ego, fully recognising that she’s trying to cheer you up. “But you never really gave the inclination that you wanted anything romantic with him, so I didn’t suspect too much with you.”

Humming, your nose wrinkles as you look away from the mirror and contemplate her words. She’s not wrong, mainly because you hadn’t considered that with him until last night. Hoseok had been firmly in the friend box in your mind. It’s only now that you realise he’d been subtly creeping into the romantic box without you noticing.

“That’s because I didn’t realise I wanted that. I feel like I missed something really obvious, and everyone around me knew. I’m pretty sure Chaeyoung and Seokjin knew; there’s no way that they wouldn’t try to interfere. They’re those kinds of people, you know?” Jisoo giggles lightly, running her hand through long, silky black hair.

“Sounds like my kinda folk. Seriously though, don’t stress over it. All you’re going to do by over analysing things is get yourself tied up into knots. I know you and you’ll just talk yourself out of anything that could potentially happen. There’s nothing wrong with going for what you want if it’s going to be good for you. As his big sister, I can safely say that Hoseok will be very good for you and to you. He’s a good guy and I don’t want you to throw away a chance at happiness.” 

You groan yet again, pulling one of your spare pillows to stuff your face into. Even if you’re feeling completely confused about what to think or do, you’re glad that you get to talk it through with Jisoo. She always knows just what to say and how to help you come to decisions that felt right.

Shifting, you sit up straight and look at Jisoo’s image in the mirror, feeling even more thankful that she’s willing to talk about this particular subject. At that thought you frown, knowing that she’s close with her brother.

“Did you suspect anything with Hoseok? You said that you got to notice things from both sides…” Trailing off, your eyes narrow as you watch the way she bites her lip in an almost coy way. It wouldn’t surprise you as she knows her brother far better than she knows you.

“Yes, I did with him. He fancied you so much when he was a teenager and I thought he’d just...grown out of it, you know? Neither of you saw each other for ages so I just assumed his hormones had finally settled down. But then he practically jumped at the chance to help you apply for the job and...well, he’s being very obvious lately. I swear, every conversation has to include you in some way and he gets this look on his face.” Jisoo says, brow creasing as she thinks back.

“What look? Does he get a look? What kind of look?” The questions pepper her but she doesn’t look annoyed by them. Instead, she just smiles before laughing lightly, taking another sip from her mug before taking her time nibbling on a milk chocolate covered digestive biscuit. It makes you scowl, realising you’d given yourself away once more.

“Yes, he gets a look. I don’t know how to describe it to you but it’s like...he gets this smile and I swear his eyes get all shiny. He’d be appalled to know I’d noticed this as he’s never come out and said anything but I know what he looks like when he likes something. Hoseok talks about you the same way he talks about anything else he loves.” The last word makes your eyes widen and you’re thankful Jisoo doesn’t comment on it.

She’s noticed though, you know that she has. 

“Oh, okay. Well...I haven’t noticed.” What a stupid thing to say, but you don’t have anything else.

“Obviously.” Jisoo gives you a droll look, causing you to glare at her. It’s probably not as effective as you’d like given the two of you are hundreds of miles away and only visible through a reflective surface. Still, it makes her laugh at least.

Not the reaction you wanted but you’ll take it.

The conversation between you both falls into a lull, the silence of your room almost deafening. It lets you start to think once more and you don’t think that’s a good idea. Jisoo is right in that you tend to talk yourself out of things that might have a big impact on your life.

You’d taken a whole month to finally apply for the job here at Hogwarts and even then, you’d had to have Jisoo convince you that you should accept the offer when they made it. A good choice now, but you had a constant fear that big change might have negative effects on you.

The possibility of beginning something romantic with Hoseok was perhaps the biggest change you could do and it had the potential for so many repercussions if it went wrong. He was your work colleague, your friend and your best friend’s brother. It wasn’t like if you tried dating him then you could just never see him again.

Hoseok was likely to always be a part of your life in some way.

But he was such a good person and he could be something positive in your life, too. You found him to be charming and kind, funny and thoughtful, intelligent and attractive. There were a lot of reasons against trying a relationship with him, but there were so many more reasons for it.

“Would it not bother you? If anything happened then you’d be stuck between us, and he’s your brother so you’d have to take his side.” Your words are quiet, almost reluctant. Jisoo doesn’t respond immediately though, giving you the benefit of thinking seriously about your question before shaking her head.

“I would be stuck between you both if it ended badly. But I don’t either of you are the kinds of people to make me choose something like that. More importantly, I have high hopes that kind of scenario won’t even happen. I have a good feeling about this, for both of you. You both have to decide what’s right for you but...I don’t have any issue with it. If anything, it’d be great. My best friend and my brother getting together? If you married him then you’d be my sister-in-law and your kids would be my nieces and nephews!” There’s palpable excitement in her voice now, matched by the way she almost vibrates as her imagination runs wild.

You, on the other hand, feel your cheeks going warm with embarrassment as you try to follow where her mind is running. It feels a little overwhelming if you’re being honest, but you just push those thoughts away.

The last thing you needed was to start fantasising about marriage when you’d only kissed the man once.

“Jisoo!” You scold.

“What? I don’t get to live this life of romance so let me have my dreams. I’d rather you marry him than anyone else. Your babies would be so cute.” She wriggles in her seat, hands clapping and you’re reminded once more how similar the siblings are.

“Jisoo,” Whining, you pout at her before rubbing at your temple. “Don’t marry us off before we’ve even talked after last night.”

“Fine, fine, spoilsport. Anyway, it’s your decision. Yours and his. But just know that I think you’d both be good together. Don’t push him away because you’re scared, he’s a good guy. Not saying that just because he’s my brother, either. If you decide no, then don’t be afraid of that either. I know him, he’ll be a gentleman and will accept it.” You know she’s right and it makes you feel a little better as you take a deep breath.

Nodding slowly, you give her a weak smile before wincing when your stomach gurgles almost painfully. A glance at the clock shows that it’s been a very, very long time since you last ate and your stomach is not happy with that. 

“I’ll think it through, I promise. I won’t make any rash decisions. For now, I need to just analyse my feelings and thoughts regarding him before thinking about anything else. But I’ll admit that I’m not opposed to the idea. As much as I’d like to continue this conversation though, I need to go get something to eat or my stomach might eat itself. I’ll talk to you again later, okay?” It’s only a few minutes later before you’re ending the spell on the mirror, watching as it turns into a reflective surface once more.

Placing it onto your bedside table carefully, you let yourself fall back onto the mound of pillows and simply stare up at the ceiling. 

Of all the decisions you’ve made in your life, this one seemed to be the most daunting. Yet just the thought of his bright smile makes your lips quirk automatically, causing you to let out a breathy laugh.

Yes, he’d be good for you.

[barzzal]

Could you do 13 from the physical affection prompts ? Maybe the reader looks at Mat and their baby play and y/n is so happy and feels so lucky to witness this moment and then decides to go and play with them 🥺 -🐛

kissing someone’s forehead

“daddy, no!!! get him not me!!” your son, calvin, zoomed past you towards the garden, his giggles echoing in the air, startling you for a moment whilst you busied yourself with setting up the outdoor dining table.

as you hugged the plates close to your body, the urgency to remind your son to be careful exudes off you. you were about to meet him down one of the hammocks situated across the garden when your husband, carrying your three-year-old, calix, came straight out the huge sliding doors seconds after your eldest did.

you cautiously place a hand on your chest, attempting to suppress what seems to be an incoming heart attack.

“goodness gracious.” you breathed out, clutching the plates hard as you watch how mathew carelessly sprung your youngest into thin air, “again! again!” calix demands in between giggles, mat tickling his middle once he’s crouched to put him down.

mat calls on his first born and motioned their way, signaling him to come. as per you, you watch your little family from afar. admiring the bliss covering such scenery despite having to live your whole life with such energetic boys who happened to be as competitive and spirited as their father.

a quiet smile forms on your lips, in awe of what was perfectly laid out for your eyes to see. one that despite all the years that’s passed by, depicted how said scenery was still undeniably surreal for you.

you were pulled back from your selfish thoughts when you heard calvin’s voice embracing the entirety of the place, “mom!”

“come out here, mom!” mathew adds with a giant grin on his face. his hand shielding his crinkled eyes from the sun just so he could see you.

you take no second guesses and do what you were told. you carefully place the plates onto the wooden table and tread your way towads them.

with an arched brow, a sly smirk, and a hand on your waist, you meet them and say “what are you boys up to, huh?”

your little boy, who’s embraced by mathew’s free arm looked at you the same way his father does when he knows he’s done something you’ll never approve of.

“mommy?” he asks for you to come down. you only smile at him– holding his brother in your arm when he comes near you, “yes, bubs?”

calix exchanged look with calvin before looking onto mathew’s afterwards. mat’s eyes landed on yours for a second but was quick to pull away just so he could reassure calix that everything was going to be okay.

“you can do it. go on, ask mom what you asked me and i’ll give it to you.” he says, a hopefull look rests in his eyes as he rubs calix’s back.

you watch your little boy fiddle with his fingers for a while, his head pinned hard on the grass, trying to figure out the words he’s yet to have a full grasp on.

“we want a baby sister.”

a sudden wave rush thru your veins, meeting mat’s gaze at once— sending him a silent plea that you couldn’t go through the hell of going into labor for the third time. to which mat only answers with an unknowing shrug, obviously not trying to hide the fact that such idea wasn’t completely off his mind.

“um, why do you want one exactly?” you ask, running your eyes in between calvin and calix. you were pushing some of the hair that went astray on his face when calvin chimes in. “because we need another player for my team! dad and calix always gang up on me, i need a team so i can tag them too...” he pouts, hiding his face in the crook of your neck, admittedly making a compelling case.

“i can play!” you retort, parting your head so you could take his chin up, smiling in an effort to forget their recent request. a thing that’s made you miss how mat rolled his eyes, stifling a chuckle, evidently amused at how amazing you were at handling the matter.

“but mom, you’re bad at games.” calvin says without an ounce of guilt in his eyes as he spoke of an obvious truth.

you shot him a hurtful look, pretending— (well, a little), that you take offense of his remark. “hey! i rock at scrabbles, young man.”

“mom, there’s a reason why we play tag, and that’s scrabbles.” mat erupts with laughter upon hearing the bluntness of his kid. catching your competitive ass off-guard as your boys team up against you.

“okay, fine. why don’t we play tag first and then we eat? i’ll be on your team. what d’ya say?” you bob your brows up and down, trying to convince your eldest son whose eyes were as captivating as his fathers, enough for you to reconsider their simple wish.

calvin sighs, shoulders receding in defeat, already knowing that he was, just like all the other times, in the losing team. “fine.”

you watch the kids run off and chase each other just before you and mat were able to gather yourselves from the ground.

mat stands close to your behind, whispering words in your ear, a soft tone in his voice bright as day, “i think i want one too.”

you quickly turn your back to face him, the same familiar expression painted on your face for when he tries to have the talk with you.

“oh you do?” you ask him, making mat smile wildly, his arms immediately wrapping around your waist as he plants a kiss on your forehead, letting himself drown in you and be a husband first for you know he’s got to do the dad thing the moment you break off.

“i want a girl, y/n.” he genuinely says, asking you to try again. “once you’re able to push two persons out of you, i might reconsider.” you say half laughing.

“that’s unfair, you know i can’t do that.” he pouts, resting his chin on your shoulder.

“hm. alright, you’ll just have to catch me then— tag! you’re it!” you shout as soon as you untangled yourself from his hold, joining your little boys, now screaming under their own adrenaline.

you see mat’s smug smile under the sun, sending horrors your way as you’ve let yourself forget another one of your fatal flaws.

you married a competitive man.

[hyuckssunchip]

Redemption Pt. 2

Pairings: Jungwoo x reader, ft. Johnny, Jaehyun, Mark

Words: 2.3K

Warnings: Language (there is almost always language in my writings), some angst

Summary:

Y/N finds Jungwoo in a compromising position weeks after their breakup. A list of misunderstandings leads to outcomes neither of them can bear to handle. Will the two of them be able to move past this and sort things out again? Or is there no room for redemption?

Part 1 | Part 2 |

The tickets from the movie of our first date

"Hey I'm sorry I'm late." There was a breathless voice that came from across the room. A boy in a grey shirt stood before his date and she blushed shaking her head.

You reached for another piece of popcorn, slowly chewing on the piece before sighing and reaching for another.

As the last call for your movie showed on the big screen you glanced at your watch again.

"Is this your movie?" He was tall, wearing a baby blue shirt and wore a thin pair of spectacles. Definitely not your blind date.

You sighed.

"Yeah, it's supposed to be."

"Supposed to be? You don't want to watch it anymore?" He asked, taking the seat in front of you.

"My date stood me up." You said bluntly, "I'm not really in the mood for a romance movie right now."

"How about murder mystery?" He flashed two tickets in the air, and sent you a sweet smile.

"Murder mystery? You don't really seem the type." You laughed, looking at the screen one last time. Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise.

“Excuse me? I’ll have you know that this is research and I kill people on my down time.”

You cringed at him.

“Okay, that was bad, I know. But don’t you pity me now? Now you have to join this loser for a movie date.” He smiled, his dimples on display.

You laughed standing up from your chair, “If you promise never to say stuff like that again, I’ll join you.”

“So it worked!” he fist pumped the air before skipping the way to the right theater with you in tow.

Maybe this won’t be so bad after all.

“I can’t believe that it was the police officer the whole time!” You spoke animatedly, genuinely shocked that you spent the majority of the movie liking the man.

“I know right! People are so crooked.” He said, shaking his head on disappointment. “But what a great plot twist right?”

“Yeah I thought for sure that it was the store owner. I mean who carries around a metal wedge like that?” You nodded enthusiastically, way too into the conversation.

Jungwoo laughed beside you. “So you don’t regret joining me?”

“Nope, I think I rather enjoyed myself.” You sent him a cheesy smile when you noticed that the two of you had already made it to the exit.

You didn’t want this to end quite yet.

Almost as if he sense your hesitation he spoke up. “How about dessert? There’s this fantastic ice cream shop just down the street and I’d love to treat you, y’know cause I just stole two hours of your time.” He grinned softly.

“I’d love that.” You couldn’t help the smile that was bursting to break free.

“Then shall we?” He asked in a fake posh manner, sticking out his elbow for you to grab onto.

“We shall.” You linked your arm and his and the two of you left for the shop.

The evening had started out sour, but like always Jungwoo managed to bring a little extra spark into your life. Imagine if he had never come up to you that evening, imagine if he had never stepped foot in that movie theater. You might’ve lost out on the most important thing in your life and never started your journey with Jungwoo. Where would you be now?

JUNGWOO’S POV

PRESENT DAY

The movie ticket of our first date.

The three boys looked down at the list and contemplated what they should do next. 

“Okay, how am I supposed to find movie tickets with the same movie and date?” Jungwoo groaned. “This isn’t going to work it’s just stupid.”

“Hey, it’s gonna be fine. All we need to do is get comfortable with photoshop. Right? It’s not like it’s that hard to make a pretend movie ticket.” Jaehyun rested his hand on Jungwoo’s shoulder, “It’ll be fine.”

“Sure it will.”

“Do you atleast remember the movie? And date?” Mark asked, notebook already in his hands again.

“Of course I do. How could I forget?” The last bit he muttered under his breath, but still loud enough that the boys could hear him. 

They gave each other pitying looks.

“Right. Write it down then.”

Jungwoo’s hands moved on its own. 

“Dude! No way! That’s what you watched on your first date?” Mark couldn’t help but giggle at the title, earning a glare from Jungwoo and a shove from Johnny.

“Dude. Not helping.” Johnny shook his head at the youngest before turning back to Jungwoo.

“Sorry. It’s just that they’re making a sequel to that. It came out last week.”

Jungwoo cringed at the thought, vowing not to watch it.

“Was it good?” Jaehyun asked, more interested in the movie than the current situation.

“Yeah! God you would not believe the plot twist there. It was awesome, I would totally watch it again-”

Johnny shoved the two of them. “Guys, not important right now.”

Jungwoo had retreated back, heads in his arms again and sighed, hearing the others talk.

“Sorry.”

You didn’t know how you got yourself dragged to the movie theater in the middle of the week. It was Wednesday and it seemed like all of a sudden your friends decided that movie night could be moved up a few days.

“Popcorn?”

You nodded haphazardly in response to your best friend Jennie’s question. 

“Cool, I’ll wait in line, go ahead and go to the bathroom, I can see you squirming from here. I’ll meet you in the theatre.”

You sent her a look of relief, and rushed towards the bathroom. 

Staring at yourself in the reflection of the mirror, you couldn’t help but notice the large black circles under your eyes. You rubbed them once more before heading to the theatre. 

Jennie had picked out the movie, dragging you along and you pulled out the ticket that she shoved into your hands the moment you walked in the building. 

Theatre 2 B14.

That should be easy enough to find. Although your direction skills could always use improving.

You froze as you stood before your theatre, noticing the large poster next to it. 

No.

You recognized the familiar poster, same cast, give or take a few, but it was almost identical to the one you remembered as your first encounter with Jungwoo.

You scrambled for your phone and typed in the title of the movie, your heart dropping at the description. It was the sequel. 

Your feet refused to move, stuck in the same spot and you heard a loud bang coming from the theatre. The commercials had already started. 

A group of teenagers bumped into your shoulder trying to enter the theatre, you stumbled forward, hearing the faint giggles and muttered apologies. 

It was the push that you needed to make your way into the theatre. 

As you walked up the aisles to find your seat you felt a wave of anxiety as you noted the group of rowdy boys in the seats next to yours. 

You sighed, knowing that you were in for a uncomfortable movie. 

Taking your seat, the boy next to you turned to give you a hesitant smile, almost as an offering of an apology in advance. 

Your blood ran cold. 

“Jungwoo?” It came out as a whisper, catching in your throat, but it was undeniable that he heard you.

He gulped, eyes fluttering across your face.

The noise next to you seemed to hush, a familiar voice called out to you, tearing you from Jungwoo’s face.

“Y/N?” Mark couldn’t control the amount of shock as well as the other boys, letting you know that you were the last person they were expecting. You lifted your hand into a shy wave, to which they returned, leaning back into their respective seats.

“So...”

You turned awkwardly to your ex, waiting for him to continue.

“Are you excited for the movie?”

You raised your eyebrows, the idea of small talk still uncomfortable to you.

“Yeah, I guess... I hope it lives up to the first one.” You blushed in memory of your first date brought up subtly.

Although it was dark, the red tint on Jungwoo’s was noticeable by you.

“Yeah... I heard it was good though, Mark’s already watched it and he dragged the rest of us here again.” His voice dropped a few octaves, lowering as the commercials got quiet as well.

You nodded, facing the screen, refusing to take your eyes off of it.

“Y/N.” There was a hiss coming from your right, you found Jennie desperately trying to find your form before initiating a crouch run to your side. She sank into the seat and leaned towards you, not noticing the boy next to you.

“I’m so so so sorry. But Lucas just asked me to pick him up from school. My mom stranded him again and he won’t stop calling.” She grimaced and looked at you apologetically.

Your eyes widened, realizing that she was planning on leaving you here. 

“He’s been waiting for three hours and I actually think he’ll try to kill me in my sleep if I don’t go to pick him up.”

You nodded, knowing that Lucas may be younger than his sister, but he was ten times bigger and had enough passion in him to do so.

“Okay.” You moved to get up, you didn’t really want to stay here alone. “I’ll come with you.”

“No. You should stay for the movie, we already paid and movie tickets are not cheap. Plus I think you’ll like this one, it looks right up your alley. I’ll call you tomorrow.” She shoved the bucket of popcorn into your lap and left before you could respond.

You sighed, slumping in your seat and picking at the pieces of popcorn that sat on top.

Jungwoo looked over at your side profile nervously from his seat.

You were tempted to move into Jennie’s unoccupied seat, eager to distance yourself from Jungwoo. But your body didn’t move.

His eyes followed the movement of your fingers, aching to reach out and grasp them in his own.

Less focused on the beginning of the movie and more concentrated on the bucket in front of you, you could feel yourself eating your way through your anxiety of the situation.

You choked slightly, turning red from embarrassment and tried to suppress the urge to cough.

You felt a nudge in your side, Jungwoo slid his drink towards you, and invitation to relieve your throat of pain.

You hesitated, as childish as it seemed you really didn’t want to drink from the same cup as him, but you were suffering.

You gave him a thankful smile and sipped for moment until you felt alright again.

In return you stuck the bucket of popcorn out towards him, after all there was no way that you could finish the whole thing on your own.

Halfway through the movie you felt the warmth of his hand graze yours as you simultaneously reached for a handful. As cliche as it seemed you felt sparks fly up your arm and you flinched pulling away, watching him do the same.

You hated that you still felt your heart rush at the close proximity. You hated that  he still made you nervous. You hated that you still had these feelings.

Before you knew it the closing credits had rolled across the screen and the lights of the theatre began to fade on.

From the corner of your eye you could see as the other boys stretched and stood up, making their way out of the theatre. It was only you and Jungwoo now.

You avoided eye contact, moving to make your exit. He followed.

The bright lights of the lobby had you blinking in distress. Johnny grinned at your fazed state and walked the group over to where you were standing, Jungwoo steps behind.

“Hey Y/N.” Jaehyun waved shyly at you before shoving his hands back into his pocket.

You smiled in response before turning to face Johnny, who looked like he was dying to say something.

“Y/N fancy seeing you here.” There was a grin that crossed his face, he looked too happy to be seeing you here.

You furrowed your eyebrows and nodded at him, not saying anything.

Standing awkwardly in the group you glanced at your phone checking the time. It was getting late and you groaned suddenly realizing that Jennie had left earlier. You no longer had a ride. 

You grimaced, pulling your phone out to text her, then realized that it was best not to bother her,  as she was dealing with a very upset Lucas.

“What’s up?” Johnny asked, peering over at your screen.

“Nothing.” You sighed, “I just remembered that my ride left earlier. I should go now to see if I could catch the bus.”

He shook his head, “No way, why don’t you let us give you a ride?”

“Oh. You wouldn’t mind?” As much as you hated the thought of being confined in a car with the four of the them, it was much better than getting on the sketchy bus that comes by every hour.

“Of course not, the bus is gross.” You nodded thankfully.

“Oh, that makes things easy then, could we pick up my box of things on the way then?” You asked, remembering that Johnny said they were at his place.

There was a pause, and you didn’t miss the look the three of them gave each other.

“I-uh... I forgot I actually have this thing I have to go to, with Mark and Jaehyun. Jungwoo, why don’t you drop her off?”

Your eyes widened at him. 

Jungwoo nodded more enthusiastically than you expected him to. 

You glanced at him, reluctantly following his lead. 

How bad could one car ride be?

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© Copyright 2021. hyuckssunchip. All rights reserved.

[robinofgothamcity]

♡ prompt: “your complexion is scaring me, please sit down.” 

♡ pairing: marcel barthel x fem! reader

♡ lyric inspiration: “cause i’m right here, darling i’m right here. close your pretty eyes, my butterfly, baby have no fear.” 

♡ note: not checked for grammar or spelling mistakes / 

you felt yourself getting dizzy once again, not knowing where the feelings was coming from. this was going on for the third week of you just feeling completely sick to your stomach and frankly, you had no idea why it was happening or why it hadn’t gone away yet. 

you fell back onto the chair with a thud, not feeling in any mood to get up and workout. as you took a sip of water and tried to regain your breath, you saw Fabian walking past you. you waved at him as he stopped in his tracks and saw your state of being. 

“you okay?” he asked, seeing the sweat coming down from your forehead, “just tired,” you murmured, taking another gulp of water. Fabian grabbed a chair and sat next to you knowing that Marcel would thank him later, “where’s your boyfriend?” he asked. 

pulling up your phone and saw the last text he sent you, “he’s training with Alex,” you told him, “why?” you asked. Fabian stayed silent for a moment, not knowing whether or not to confess what he was thinking, “you’ve been feeling like this for a while now, haven’t you?” you nodded, “ever think Marcel knocked you up?”

“excuse me, what?” you choked on your water at the wild thought as Fabian hit your back, “i’m just putting a thought out there. you’ve been feeling like this for a while now and i mean, my sister felt the same way you did when she got pregnant with my nephew,” he explained. 

there was no way you could’ve been pregnant with his child. you were on the pill and Marcel made sure he wore protection when you asked him too. “come on, you’ve got to be kidding me,” you murmured to him, not so sure on what to think of what he said. 

“if you aren’t sure, i can accompany you on the trip to the store,” he offered, taking his hey out of his pocket. you nodded and the two of you walked towards the parking lot, “what if I am?” you asked him quietly, “i genuinely don’t know how Marcel would take to the news.” 

Fabian could see the panic expression on your face as he started the engine. there was a store not even a minute out of the performance center and although he didn’t respond, he rubbed your shoulder in comfort, “listen, i can’t answer that question because i really don’t know how he would react either but i don’t think he’d be mad or upset about it.” 

you gave Fabian one final look before hopping out of the car and running inside of the Wal-Greens. you grabbed a few things and pretending that the pregnancy test was for a friend in case the cashier knew who you were by random chance. after she scanned you out and gave you your things, the two of you booked it back to the performance center. 

“stay right there,” you told Fabian in a threatening tone, “if I have to find out the news, you’re finding out right with me,” you added on. 

Fabian nodded as you walked into the single bathroom and locked it. the hallway you dragged Fabian too was generally a lonesome hall. hardly anyone that wasn’t custodial came down here and you knew that Marcel or anyone else wouldn’t come down here. 

after you took the test and put it back inside of the box, you walked out and timed the rest of the four minutes, “okay, we need to wait another few minutes and then i’ll find out if i become a mom or not,” you murmured, your eyes widening at the statement you made. 

you looked at Fabian with nervousness as you felt your phone ringing, “fuck, it’s Marcel,” you screamed in panic. you tossed him the phone and telling him to pick it up, “why? he’s gonna wonder why i have your phone to begin with!” he yelled back. 

Fabian, despite not wanting to answer it, picked it up, “hey Marcel,” he said as smoothly as possible, “Fabian? why do you have her phone?” he asked curiously. you yelled at him to make up a lie, “uh, she’s in the bathroom and left her phone on the table so i figured i’d picked it up considering it was you,” he said in a panic. 

Marcel’s eyes scrunched in confusion, not fully believing what he was saying. your phone rang off again, indicating that the time was up and your test would be ready with the answer. you grabbed your phone and hung it up, not bothering with Marcel at the moment. 

“ready?” he asked as he watched you fumble with the box. you gulped not, tears threatening to spill even though you had no idea what the test read. you took it out of the box slowly and grasped onto the side where the result was, not ready to read it yet, “okay, on three,” you whispered. 

Fabian counted to three and you lifted your hand up. 

positive. 

you stared to Fabian, your heart racing a mile a minute and the urge to throw up crawling up your throat. you found the nearest trash bin and threw up for a solid minute before pulling back up and seeing Fabian’s surprised expression as he held the test. 

“does that mean I’ll be the godfather or something?” he asked, trying to make a light joke. you smacked him on the shoulder, “shut the fuck up! this is not the time to make a joke, you ass! i’m pregnant with your best friends child!” you screamed. 

Fabian wanted to laugh, he really did but a part of him knew that if he did laugh, you’d probably beat his ass for it. you looked down to the Clear Blue test and sighed, not knowing whether to celebrate the news or to throw up once again. 

“Marcel’s calling you again,” Fabian informed you, seeing your phone ping up for the second time. you grabbed your phone and answered it, “hey babe,” you whispered, your voice wavering, “hey, i called you twice and Fabian picked up your phone the first time. you okay?” he asked. 

you stayed silent for a second, not knowing whether to slowly break the news or just make up a complete lie. 

“i continued feeling sick and was inside the bathroom for a while. i had left my things with Fabian to make sure it didn’t get taken or anything,” you lied, Fabian’s eyes widening in surprise, “i’ll meet you in a few, okay?” Marcel hummed in response before clicking goodbye, slightly annoyed at yours and Marcel’s attitude. 

you stared at Fabian, your heart racing as you heard footsteps coming down the stairs. your eyes widened in panic as you tried to hide the test when it revealed that it was actually Walter who managed to find you and Fabian down here. 

“hey Walter,” you greeted in panic. he looked between you and Fabian, confused and slightly accusatory, “what are the two of you doing down here....alone?” he asked, seeing the way the two of you were acting. 

you looked up to him finally and sighed. Fabian could tell you were on the verge of bursting into tears as you fumbled to actually say something, “she’s pregnant with Marcel’s baby,” he screamed in a confession. Walter looked at you in surprise as you shakily handed him the test, “what the fuck,” he whispered to himself. 

“fuck, i don’t even know how i’m going to tell Marcel about this,” you exclaimed to his two friends, “we’ve never spoken about children and we are in no way even ready for it. he’s in the midst of his prime wrestling career and i’m chasing the fucking women’s title,” you continued, “but there’s a part of me that’s excited and wants to keep it.” 

Walter and Fabian stared at each other as they remained quiet. this was one of the times that Walter wished his wife would’ve accompanied him on his trip over here. you still hadn’t gotten off the floor as Walter read the positive test on the ground. 

“listen, you should get home and take a break from all this. you stressing out isn’t probably healthy for the baby,” Walter finally said. you nodded, figuring that he was right, “i’m going home, i guess. if Marcel asks for me, tell him i wasn’t feeling good at all and had a migraine or something,” you got up from the floor and looked up at the two boys before leaving. 

you had purposely took a way out of the performance arena that you knew wouldn’t cross over into Marcel’s view. you drove home, taking the back way there as you tried to clear up your thoughts. the tears that had stained your face remained as you got into the parking lot. 

as you walked inside of you shared apartment and sat down on the couch, you couldn’t help but relive the memories you had with Marcel in your head. the two of you were pretty free spirited. you enjoyed going out with Fabian every once in a while and traveled when you were able too. 

there were times where the two of you had a designated drinking nights and got plastered beyond belief to release some stress or tension that was going on. 

all of those things would have to come to a halt as your baby was on its way. a part of you knew that Marcel wasn’t the kind of guy to just drop you and the baby but you also had no idea how he would react. he didn’t seem like the kind of guy to settle down into a family but the thought of a baby Marcel running around warmed your heart. 

with all your thoughts running wild, you hadn’t realized how much time had passed until you heard the front door jingling. the thought of having to tell Marcel the news made you sick to your stomach out of nervousness as felt bile crawling up your throat again. 

you instantly ran to the bathroom and threw up whatever else was left in your stomach. at this rate, you were throwing up water as you hadn’t ate anything since the morning and you managed to throw that up when you read the test earlier in the day. 

you heard Marcel walk into the apartment as he set his things down on the floor and came to find you. you had thought that you locked the door when you ran inside but that didn’t seem to be true when Marcel walked in, a look of worry and panic instantly crossing his face as he saw how you looked. 

“hey, hey! what’s wrong?” he asked, holding your hair back. you shook your head as you tried to stand up and push him off of you, “nothing, i’m fine,” you managed to say as you went to the sink to brush your teeth and clean your mouth. 

Marcel stood against the doorway, seeing the color of your skin drained. he had never saw you this way in the years that you were together with him and as you finally looked back up again, he could see that you didn’t look healthy in the slightest. 

“your complexion is scaring, please sit down,” he stated, helping you to the couch to sit you down. you slumped into the couch, feeling a migraine coming on, “you need to go to the hospital. you’ve been sick for nearly a month and you haven’t been getting any better!” he exclaimed. 

you sighed knowing that if you even tried to hesitate, Marcel wouldn’t let it go and probably physically drag you there himself. you looked up to Marcel and asked him to grab your backpack from one of the kitchen chairs. he looked at you in confusion but nevertheless grabbed it for you. 

“what i’m about to tell you might be news you aren’t prepared for so you might want to sit down for this one,” you stated as you had trouble looking at him. he remained confused but didn’t listen to what you said and remained standing, “Marcel, please,” you repeated, “no, i’m fine standing.” 

you sighed as you took a deep breath in and rummaged through your bag until you felt the pregnancy test in your hand, “don’t freak out on me, i’m begging you. i’ve been through enough today and if you are planning to do anything irrational when you find out, just leave,” you said as you took the test out and handed it to him. 

Marcel’s eyes widened, reading the test before looking at you. he remained silent for what felt like an eternity. a million thoughts ran through his head until he finally realized that he hadn’t said anything at all. you remained looking at him, trying to read his expression. 

“you’re pregnant?” he asked. you nodded slowly as he stared at the test again, “you’re not kidding? when did you find out?” he asked again, “of course not but today. that’s what i was doing with Fabian. he found me puking my guts out earlier and offered to take me to the store to buy a test and i was too scared to take the test alone so i made him sit with me to find out the results. Walter knows too.” 

Marcel looked at you, “why did you hide it from me? i feel like i should’ve been there,” he murmured. you sighed in slight annoyance, “i know but we’ve never talked about kids and i was scared. i’m pregnant. pregnant as fuck and i want to keep it,” you stated, emphasizing the ending. 

Marcel walked up to you and gave you a hug as you immediately cuddled up to him and let the tears go free, “i’m just surprised, baby. we weren’t planning on having one but i’m not mad or scared. that just means we’re going to be parents earlier than anticipated. nothing wrong with that,” he finally said. 

you smiled at him, happy that he was on the same boat with you, “so you’re happy?” you asked. Marcel laughed, “of course i am. you’re making me a dad! we’re going to be parents!” he exclaimed, “we just need to find a home and start building that nursery as soon as possible.” 

you brought him down for a kiss and remained that way for while before finally pulling away, “i’m sorry happy that you’re happy about this,” you confessed. Marcel brought you in for another hug as you put your head on his chest, “if we have a son, you wouldn’t mind naming him Axel, would you?” he asked with a serious tone. 

your heart fluttered as you realized he wanted to name your possible son after his father, “of course i wouldn’t mind. it’s a beautiful name,” you whispered back. he nodded in agreement as the two of you remained hugging in the middle of your living room. 

you knew you’d tell everything to Fabian and Walter later on but for the moment, you just wanted to remain in Marcel’s embrace. 

[indianamoonshine]

Strawberry | Chapter 12 | Flames

Summary: Will joins the family dinner. The night can hide many things.

Rating: (+18) for…situations.

A/N: I'm SO SORRY for the long hiatus. Please accept this peace offering (jealous!Din) as a token of my gratitude.

TAG LIST: @t3a-bag @lumimon47 @dodgerandevans @hallway5 @dancingwiththeplanets @steeevienicks @orneryscandallousandevil @ficthots @gaiusfrakkinbaltar @reginagina-blog1 @loveme-tenderly @lastphoenixrising @rattlemyb0nes @rebellou @alljusthumans @gaiuswrites @lovecatsnotpeople

The symposium of a midwestern dinner sounds a lot like Bach's work.

Difficult notes with high to reach places and then very low caverns just a moment later. The cicadas in the background are a nice touch; it's something Tchaikovsky might have wished he could capture. Silverware - old enough to be considered vintage now - clank against the porcelain dinner plates. Charlotte lets out her fae-like laughter and Rhea listens intently, eyes gazing dreamily upon Tommy as he carries on conversation. The house is full tonight.

You suppose it was out of the kindness of your father's heart to invite Will to this dinner. Everyone within a two mile radius usually came to these spur-of-the-moment things. Will was an old family friend and his father supplied yours with fresh goat's milk and chicken eggs, so it wasn't all that strange he came along. Still, it made the meal a bit more difficult to swallow. Quite literally.

Din is sitting directly across from you. You think it might have been intentional because Will chose to plop his happy ass right beside you, grinning that lopsided smile and charming his way out of the discomfort with a joke. You play the part by laughing when he tries to outwit everyone in the room or by asking him how the farm manages these days. Will isn't a cocky person by nature, but something about the rigidness of his composure when Din asks for the green beans makes you all too suspicious.

It doesn't make any sense. Will broke things off with you. If he were to be jealous, it wouldn't be for anything but pride and show. A year ago it would've bothered you that Will was cajoling the room for the sake of his vanity, but now it was just embarrassing for everyone involved.

"Din, do you remember the summer of '90?" your father asks across the table, clearly involved in another conversation that pertains to this anecdote.

The man across you hums and shakes his head with a reluctant grin. "I try not to," he fibs, cutting at his steak.

Your father chuckles. "I was nineteen and Din was..." he pauses. "Jeez, Din. How old were ya?"

"Seventeen."

"Ah, right! Rhea hadn't been born yet but Scarlett was pregnant with her by the end of the summer. That was our last free year, wasn't it? Well, mine anyway." You dad points his fork in Rhea's direction, a bit of steak dangling from its end. "And then you came along."

Rhea scoffs. "Well, geez. My bad for existing."

There's no darkness in either of their words so the exchange makes everyone at the table chuckle in good humor. Your father and Din go back and forth about the irresponsible and, well, illegal things that had been done that summer. Underage drinking. Trespassing. And somehow Din always got away with it.

"He never got us caught. Ever. I still don't know how you did it." Your father says to his friend, eyes wrinkling with a genuine smile. "Damn good thing too considering how much pot we smoked. It's a good thing my girls didn't get that rebellious streak."

A witty response is formed upon your lips but only until Will cuts you off.

"I don't know about that," he pipes in.

You're taken aback, quite literally tossing your head to gauge his interjection. "What?"

An indifferent silence hushes the dinner party. Your sisters chew their food carefully, eyes glued upon the scene before them like it was one of their soap operas. Your father awaits an explanation with a rather scandalized look upon his face, but Will's father - Clarence - doesn't seem at all fazed by any probability of illegal activity.

Will rolls his chin to serve you an exasperated look. "Oh, come on. We're adults now; we can come clean." He drenches his steak in more A1 sauce before revealing: "Your daughter was the one to egg the sheriff's house."

The entire room initially goes as silent as a graveyard before everyone chokes on a snort and begins to roar with laughter. Clarence slaps your father on the back as the two of them snicker like a pair of hyenas.

"Will!" you growl. "You said you'd take that to your deathbed!"

The pain in the ass beside you howls with laughter, holding his stomach, and having to pause from drinking his beer. "Daffi, it's fine. They can't do anything about it now."

"That's not the point!" you scowl.

Din is grinning from ear to ear, obviously amused by your humiliation. It was a childish thing to do but the sheriff was a dick in the worst way and you wanted him to know it. That was a hot summer - record breaking, actually - and by the time he'd woken, the egg had dried upon his lawn and across the face of his home. Ole' Sheriff Winslow scoured the town for weeks before finally abandoning his quest altogether.

"You got something to say, Mister Djarin?" you inquire playfully, scolding him with a fire in your eyes.

Din clears his throat and furrows his brows. "No, no. I wouldn't dare."

The two of you exchange a glance that was far too intimate for this dining room. His eyes softened upon meeting yours and his smirk was silly, drunk on something other than the beer in his hand. If it weren't for dear Will's additional reminiscence, you might've fallen under the spell lingering in the space between you.

"Yeah, that was a great summer. We had our first kiss that year, remember?"

You blink, all thoughts of Din's mouth upon yours fizzling away like steam. Instead, it is replaced with the frayed-edged memory of Will's rusted pick-up parked in the darkest corner of the local McDonalds. It was hardly a first kiss worth mentioning if it hadn't been for how good he was at it and how bad you were. Still: what the fuck?

You wanted to say just that but refrained from doing so. Instead you say, "Lots of awkward fumbling if I recall." It comes out sharp - petty. If he wanted to behave like a child, you could do it too.

Din's trying so desperately hard not to glare at Will. You can see it in the deliberate chug of his beer.

-

“What. The. Hell.”

“I know.”

“Wait,” Charlotte holds up a hand, expression dumbstruck. “I’m not done.”

You roll your eyes and scrub at a particularly stubborn dish, waiting for her dramatics to be over.

“…was that?” she finishes.

Rather anti-climactic.

“It’s Will,” you tell her, voice bored but teetering on the edge of fury. “It’s fucking Will. What do you expect?”

Charlotte shakes her head, eyes bulging with disbelief as she blinks over and over again as though trying to compute. She takes a dish from you, sopping wet, and begins to dry it with a rag. You know Charlotte is eager to gossip because she never - never - offers to help clean after supper.

Everyone else is carrying on from the awkward conversation by sitting at the bonfire and making pudgy-pies. It’s the kind of snack one eats when they need to forget about anything other than the impending weight gain. You watch from the window as Rhea slathers Nutella upon a piece of white bread and then some cut strawberries. Honestly, you could really go for one, but the idea of being anywhere near Will makes your skin crawl.

“Did he say anything to you? Before dinner? Or after? Like…why would he say something like that?” Charlotte carefully stacks the delicate plates atop each other. They clank against one another noisily.

Like cymbals within the symphony.

“Nope,” you tell her. “Not a word. I have no idea what’s gotten into him.”

Charlotte goes silent, rubbing at the plates until they’re dry as a bone, and then whispers, “He obviously knows.”

You square your jaw, glancing around to make sure no one is in the vicinity, and then let out a great sigh. “Yeah, I’m sure he does. I was all over Din at the bar.”

Your dear sister brightens at the mention of the night prior. She stops her drying and places her hands upon your shoulders so that you may look her in the eyes. You see mahogany. Deep. Rich. Full of life and excitement. In her eyes, it is proof that she’s a good spirit and in good health. (And…well, maybe a little tipsy, but that’s besides the point.)

“I like him. For you.” Is what she confesses. She places her hands upon your cheeks and squishes them together. You protest, taking her wrists and wrestling her, but giggling all the while. “I mean it. I think he adores you. And so do I.”

You nod in her grasp. “Okay, okay! I know, yes. I know!” you chuckle, breathless from the lack of air supply. She still has you in a chokehold. “Can you please let me go now?!”

Charlotte releases you from her trap and you gasp a throat-full of air, belly aching from laughter. The two of you embrace one another in a hug, attempting to lift the other, and then falling upon the linoleum - sore with serenity.

-

There is something stirring in Din.

It is a fire that has just been fanned from embers he sought to snuff out. But they hadn’t perished, despite how hard he had tried. The coals burned. He burned.

For you.

At the bar, Din ignored Will to the best of his ability; sort of like how one ignores an irritating bumblebee. Leave him be, Din had chanted. He’s harmless. After all, Din had years stacked against Will. How was it possible to be so insecure by this kid?

Because that’s essentially what he is, right? He’s so goddamned young; he looks as though he’s never taken a hit in his life. He’s too pretty, too put together. He’s firm skin and tight abs. And Din, well…

Din was not.

Din was old. He was well past forty years of age now, playing house with a woman over twenty years his senior. No matter how well he managed to keep the façade so believable, it would one day end in disaster - embarrassment. Heartache. And defeat. He can’t bear the thought.

It wasn’t like him. He’s never given a shit about anyone’s perception of him before, nevertheless mulled over the ex of a romantic interest. Not to say that Din’s ever felt the way he did with you; no one has even come close. Xian was his longest “situationship” and when it inevitably burst into flames, he didn’t bat an eye. (He wonders if that makes him a terrible person.) If his toxicity with Xian was worth anything, it was just a testament of his endurance.

But you. The world fucking blurs when you’re near.

So when Will - cocky as Din once was - utters unsolicited bullshit, it takes every ounce of dignity he has left to remain silent.

We had our first kiss that year, remember?

There is a primal urge to reach across the table and wring the smug expression from Will’s face, to grab you with an unfamiliar hunger, carry you across the acre, and toss you onto his bed and just…

No. That was brutish. He wasn’t like that. He couldn’t allow himself to feel possessive over you because you couldn’t be owned. He knew that. But that fire licked at his inner conscious until he had to excuse himself from dinner altogether.

The darkest parts of him pace during the bonfire, though he manages to sit still and interpret Will’s behavior. His youth glows betwixt the crazed flames, an ombré of red and orange dancing across everyone’s skin. Din watches, he listens, he notes every little thing like hunters do. Because for some reason - some ungodly, twisted reason - Din felt as though Will were a bounty now. It’s the only way he could feel superior.

“Daffodil!” Will calls out suddenly. “Get over here!”

The hinges in Din’s jaw pop as he clenches his teeth, grinding them so forcefully he thinks Rhea - who sits beside him - might hear. When you arrive from the house (he guessed you were cleaning up, just as you always do), he notes the skimpy length of your cotton shorts and…

Wait. Is that his shirt?

It is. It’s the very same shirt Din offered you after the rain debacle after the bar. It was one of his favorites despite how plain it was; just a grey t-shirt that fit snugly on him but dwarfed you entirely. It skimmed the top of your knees and pressed against the swell of your chest. That something within him growled once more.

“Come sit,” Will instructs, patting at his lap.

You hesitate. “I…”

Will chuckles, urging you with waggling fingers. “We’ve been like this since we were kids, Daffi. Come on.”

There’s a pathetic attempt to steady himself as Din watches you perch upon Will’s lap.

You’re wearing his shirt. You’re wearing his shirt. You’re wearing his shirt. You’re wearing his shirt…

The group chats a while longer, exchanging stories Din’s never heard, but none of it matters. You’re on another man’s lap. And despite Mark’s very obvious presence, he wants so badly to grip your wrist and run.

“I’ve seen you before,” Will says suddenly. He points a finger in Din’s direction, eyes a little hooded from drink. “Weren’t you at the bar a couple of nights ago?”

Those who partook in the rendezvous go silent. Rhea freezes and Charlotte blanches, looking towards their dear sister who’s pale in the face now. Mark, in his sheer oblivion, raises a brow. Din’s been in every intense situation imaginable, but something about now makes his gut churn.

He could loose you. Right now.

He’s about to lie, to make up some bullshit excuse about having ‘one of those faces’, but Rhea pipes in.

Her voice is strong and firm when she says, “What the hell are you talking about? He wasn’t there.”

Effortless. Shoulders sag, the tension subsiding thanks to Rhea’s impeccable skill.

“Strange. Swore I saw you with…” he shakes his head and shrugs. “Never mind.”

An artificial laugh - so sickly sweet that it’s almost impossible to digest - escapes your lips. “You must’ve drank too much. It wouldn’t be the first time.”

-

His kiss takes you by surprise.

You’re walking back to the house after the men have soiled the fire and everyone’s said their good nights when he just does it.

It’s covertly enough, but it’s shocking. A massive hand encircles your wrist and pulls you behind the shed out back, pressing you against the mossy wood and stealing the breath from your lungs. It’s the biggest risk the two of you have taken. For God’s sake, your father is just now walking inside the main house and Din’s mouth is attached to the hollow of your neck.

You’re dizzy, gripping his shoulders so tightly that the fabric of his shirt warps beneath your fingers. “Din,” you breathe out. He kisses you speechless again and you break for air. “Din, what’s the matter?”

He curses under his breath. It’s sharp. Fuck. It’s not angry, per say, but it is damaged. You weave your fingers through his hair as he settles his breathing, concentrating on the strings of your shorts that he fiddles with.

“I…” He sighs, pressing his nose against your cheek. His breath is warm and you shiver. “He touched you.”

He sounds ashamed. Embarrassed. You can’t imagine how difficult it must be to vocalize your self-doubt as someone who relishes in secrecy. He had a wall built around him and it was made of iron.

“Not like you,” you whisper shyly.

You had some walls of your own. He was tearing them down like that of Jericho.

There’s softness in the air. The two of you are silent, eyes closed, and mouths inches apart. Exchanging of breath. It’s an ancient form of intimacy.

You trust him. You trust him with your life.

His hand feels natural in your own as you lift it to your breast. The trembling of his fingers is almost endearing; the man was far older than you and he still shook at the mere touch of a woman.

“No one can touch me like you.” Your hands glide south, pressing underneath the fabric covering the raw parts of you, until you stop at the band of your panties. “No one can.”

It’s all he needs to hear.

Soon after, he kisses you fiercely, but not without nodding in agreement. And that very hand, which grazes so deliciously at your belly, finally dips.

Sparks.

[rubix-writings]

Punisher Pt. 8

Eighth part of Punisher. This has been sitting in my drafts forever, I’m not in love with it, but want to get the story moving along. This is a Chicago PD/Fire imagine with an original character. I don’t own any of the plot points or characters from the show. Also, it doesn’t follow any particular season or sequence in the shows.

Series Summary: Josephine (Jo) never expected to find support and pure love when she left Los Angeles. She ran away to Chicago and was content with living an insignificant, hidden life. But everything changes when she walks into Molly’s to get a job.

Josephine (OC) x Jay Halstead

The italicized lines are internal thoughts of the character.

Warnings: language, mentions of drinking, mentions of violence

The week after the renewal I hardly saw or spoke to Jay. A case came in the day after and the entire Intelligence Unit rarely left the station. From what Will told me, it was a house invasion and so far only one young child survived, but they’re coming close to catching the people who did it. 

I thank the man handing me brown bags full of take-out. The thin handles dig into my palms as I make my way towards the precinct. I try to hide my face in my warm scarf, as my eyes water from the cold wind flying around the street. I quickly jog up the steps and dodge the people exiting the building. Trudy’s working the front desk per usual. She shoos a man in an expensive suit as I walk up to the front desk.

“Hey Trudy,” I smile and grab her meal out of one of the bags.

“You got something for me,” she asks in her normal pleasant tone. I slide the closed container across the top of the desk. She inspects the meal quickly before closing the lid again. “I’ll buzz you up.” 

I grab the handles, hopefully for the last time, and walk up the stairs to the wire gate closing off the Intelligence Unit. My heeled boots announce my entrance to the team. Kevin and Adam are hunched over a computer, while Haley and Voight are going over the board taped with various pieces of information. 

“I smell Angelino’s!” Adam announces. 

“That’s impressive,” I stand in the middle of the room and gesture with the heavy bags. Adam and Kevin leave their current task behind and take the food away to the kitchen. “Hello to you too,” I say under my breath. 

“Hey, Jo,” Hayley waves. 

“I’m Hank,” Voight reaches forward to shake my hand. This was the first time we officially met since he doesn’t come to the bar. I only know him from stories and photos. 

“Nice to finally meet you.”

“Thanks for bringing this by, there’s only so much vending machine food one can take,” Hayley interjects. 

“Of course, it’s from everyone at Molly’s.” Jay and Kim walk up the steps, they are donning their heavy winter coats and their cheeks are pink from the cold. Jay smiles as we make eye contact, I can’t help but smile back. 

“Hey Jo! What are you doing here?” Kim asks. 

“Angelino’s! You guys have to get in here before it’s gone,” Adam yelled with a mouth full of food. Kim dashed to the kitchen to join the rest of the team. 

“You should get in there, that sounded like a threat,” I say to Jay. 

“I’m sorry I haven’t reached out this week, after everything that happened at the renewal,” Jay practically whispers. His eyes are red and purple circles sit underneath, his lack of sleep is apparent. 

“Hey, there’s no need to apologize about it, that’s not why I’m here. Will found me right away to fill me in. I get it, well I don’t fully get it, but you know,” I match his tone and step towards him, placing a comforting hand on his forearm. 

“Thanks,” Jay looks towards the floor. 

“How’re you doing?” It’s a stupid question, he’s obviously consumed by this. 

“I’ll be better once we finally get the people who did it,” I slide my hand down his arm to find his hand. He grasps it immediately, clinging to any part of the outside world that isn’t tainted by this case. 

“You call me if you ever need a break, even just for a minute okay?” I take a step closer and Jay nods. 

“You want to stay and eat with us? I can get us some plates and sit in the interrogation room,” Jay offers. 

“As intriguing as an interrogation room sounds, I have to get to Molly’s. You’re not the only one pulling a late shift tonight, except I’ll be making the world drunker, not better.”

“Some would say that’s better,” I laugh. 

“Be careful out there detective,” Jay leans forward and kisses my temple.

“You too,” I squeeze his hand before letting go. I walk down the steps to head out of the precinct. 

***

It took a few more days for the case to finally come to a close, but not in a way everyone hoped. The Intelligence Unit found the criminals that killed the family but soon after they were arrested, men in suits came into the precinct and took them away. They claimed that these men were a part of a bigger operation trying to take down a syndicate. So they practically get to walk free in witness protection and not pay for the heinous crimes committed. 

The entire team were angry and rightfully so. A few of them sat quietly at a table against the wall drinking to try and shake the bad case. It’s hard to watch as I know there’s nothing I can do to ease their pain. 

“They’ll be okay,” Stella says. I keep staring at the table and watch Jay bring his whiskey to his lips. 

“How do you know that?” I genuinely ask. 

“Sadly, this isn’t the first case like this and worse, it won’t be their last,” Stella starts pouring tequila into shot glasses. “Alcohol helps.”

“Stella, are you sure that’s the best idea?”

“It’s one shot,” she brushes off and takes the tray over to the table. The Intelligence Unit gladly accepts and down the shots without hesitation. This isn’t going to end well. 

The table orders three more rounds of shots, but most of them stop once they start feeling tipsy and the weight they were carrying around was finally lifted. Jay on the other hand kept ordering whiskeys. I stand behind the bar and watch the once stoic man begin to crumble. He’s not crying or yelling, but his demeanor is different. Kim walks up to the bar while putting on her coat. 

“Hey Jo, can you keep an eye on Jay? He’s taking this one really hard. He had to tell the kid what happened to his family when he woke up in the hospital, stuff like that sticks with you,” she puts her hands on the bar top. 

“Of course, thanks for the heads up,” I look back to the table and see Adam and Kevin getting up, leaving Hayley and Jay at the table. Adam and Kevin wave before heading out the front door with Kim. I’m happy that Jay has Hayley, she gets it way more than I ever could. Normally it’s fun to watch Hayley and Jay interact, it’s like a brother and sister pushing each other’s buttons. There’s no humor between the two right now, Hayley is leaning forward, her brows furrowed trying to get through to Jay about something. I pour a few drink orders before heading over to take the empties away from their table. 

“Jo!” Jay slurs, if he wasn’t drunk out of pain his slurred speech and lazy eyelids would’ve been really cute. 

“Hey guys, can I get you anything? Water, maybe?” I ask while grabbing the empty beer bottles and glasses. 

“I’d like another whiskey, no ice. Hayley?” 

“Jay - “ Jay cuts Hayley off.

“No no no, I’ll order it at the bar. I gotchu Hales,” Jay gets up and walks a diagonal line towards the bar. 

“Is this normal?” I ask Hayley as we both watch Jay. 

“It’s not the first time, but it doesn’t happen often,” Hayley sighs. Hayley rubs her eyes, obviously tired. 

“Hayley, I got him, you go home,” she shakes her head. 

“No I’m fine -”

“You’re tired, I’m almost off shift anyway. I’ll give him a ride home, it’s not a big deal. Go get some rest,” she opens her mouth to fight, but it turns into a yawn proving my point. 

“Call me if anything changes okay?” I nod as she puts on her jacket and heads out of the bar. I gather up the empty bottles and glasses sitting on the table and make my way behind the bar. 

“Jojo, one whiskey neat,” Jay hiccups. I giggle and pour Jay a nice glass of cold water. 

“Whiskey Jojo, I can’t drink straight vodka.”

“It’s water Jay, and I’m not a huge fan of this little nickname you’ve started,” Jay smiles and takes a sip of water. 

“I think it fits you.”

“Keep drinking that water,” I roll my eyes and I start cleaning the used glasses. Jay makes himself comfortable on the stool while sipping his water and causally watches me finishing up my work. Kelly comes in to keep Stella company since she’s closing tonight, but gets sucked into sharing stories with Jay at the end of the bar. 

Stella and I start to seal open bottles and close out tabs. I peel off to grab empties and clean tables while she deals with a few more customers. I constantly look towards Jay and Kelly, worried that Jay will start breaking down or switch moods, but it never happens. Jay continually laughs with Kelly, but his eyes start to droop as his exhaustion starts to beat out the alcohol in his system.  

“Do you mind if I bail early? Make sure he sleeps in his own apartment rather than the floor of Molly’s,” Stella laughs and nods her head.

“Yeah I’m good, drive safe,” I squeeze her arm before grabbing my things from the back. When I start making my way over to Jay, his head is resting in his hand that’s propped up on the bartop. 

“Hey Kelly, you’ll stay with Stella while she closes right?”

“Of course, don’t worry she’ll put me to work,” I thank him and then put my arm on Jay’s bicep. 

“Jay, c’mon let’s get you outta here,” he clumsily tries to stand. 

“If you want to get outta here, Jojo. Lead the way,” he grabs his jacket and starts walking towards the door without me.

“Go get ‘em Jojo,” Stella mocks. I point at her with a look that could kill.

“Don’t,” I quickly chase after Jay so he doesn’t trip down the few stairs leading from the bar. I grab him, not fully trusting his ability to stay upright. “C’mon, this way,” I wrap my arm around his torso and hook his arm around my shoulders. 

“If you wanted to cuddle, all you had to do was ask,” he slurs. I bite my tongue and hope he’s too drunk to see the blush on my cheeks. I rest him against my car as I unlock the passenger door. 

“Wait is this your car?” 

“Yes, one you’ll be getting in,” I open the door and wait for Jay to climb in. 

“Do I need to sign a waiver first?” 

“Get in the car,” Jay laughs at his joke, but finally gets into the passenger seat. 

It didn’t take long to get to Jay’s apartment from the bar, but in that short time he managed to change all my set radio stations to all the Christian pop stations because he thought it was hilarious. But as the night carried on, Jay starts to succumb to his fatigue, he’s sleeping with his head leaning against the window.

“Jay help me out here,” I plead. Jay shakes himself awake and leans into me allowing me to pull him out of the car. I lock the car quickly and grab Jay’s waist making our way into his building. 

“Just a little bit further,” I coax Jay to make the last few steps out of the elevator and into the hallway. Jay struggles to unlock his front door, after a few minutes and refusing my help multiple times Jay opens his apartment. 

“See, I told you I’d get it,” Jay strides through the door making his way to the living room and falls down on the leather sofa. 

“Yeah, you got me,” I say while taking in Jay’s apartment. It’s a lot more put together than I thought it would be, don’t get me wrong there’s a ton of sports memorabilia, but at least it’s all neatly framed. It looks like all the furniture was bought together, rather than gathering old hand me downs. I throw my purse and jacket on the counter, then start the search through the kitchen cabinets to find a glass. 

“Cabinet closest to the fridge,” Jay yells. I furrow my brow as I walk over the said cabinet and sure enough even in his tired, drunken state he’s right. I pour Jay a glass of water and make my way over to the sofa where he’s laying face down into the cushions. I run my hands through his soft hair making him stir to turn to face me. 

“There’s a big glass of water on the coffee table when you need it,” he closes his eyes and smiles.

“You’re so beautiful.”

“How’d you know, your eyes are closed?”

“Your gorgeous face is printed on my eyelids,” and now I’m happy his eyes are closed, I can’t control my blushing cheeks. 

“I got to head home Jay, you sure you’ll be okay?” I rise and take his military boots off since it doesn’t seem like he’ll be moving from the sofa anytime soon. 

“Don’t worry your pretty little mind,” Jay cuddles one of his throw pillows causing a massive smile on my face. 

“Text me tomorrow Jay.”

“Hey Jojo.”

“Yeah Jay?”

“Get ready, I’m gaining the courage to ask you out.”

“Thanks for the heads up,” I grab my stuff and leave Jay’s apartment. 

***

I walk into Molly’s the next day to start my shift. Most of the lovely firefighters of Firehouse 51 are at the bar this afternoon, since they have the day off. 

“JOJO!!” they scream out when they see me. I instantly stop in my tracks and search for Stella, who's hiding behind Kelly. 

“You dug your own grave,” I whisper to her. 

“I’m sorry, it just came out.”

“Yeah I’m sure,” I throw my things into the back office before going behind the bar. 

“So… How was the rest of your night?” Stella asks, I’m grateful that she’s whispering. 

“Nothing happened, Jay passed out on his sofa and I left.”

“I highly doubt that’s it. He didn’t say anything more to you?” 

“Um…” The phone starts to ring. “I got it!”

“This isn’t over,” Stella goes to bring over some orders to tables. 

“Molly’s,” I say as I pick up the landline. 

“Hi baby,” his voice is rough like gravel and low. A voice I hoped to never hear again in my life. “You thought you’d run away and I’d never find you? I am your future, you’ll regret ever leaving -” 

I hang up the phone before he can say anything else. I can hear my blood pounding in my ears and it’s like at any second my legs are about to give out. 

“Jo you okay?” Matt asks, bringing me out of my own mind. 

“Ugh yeah, spam. It was a spam call, I always almost fall for it,” I smile. He’s going to kill me. 

Taglist: @whit85-blog @bestillmystuckyheart @nocturnalherb16 @5sos-imagine​ @miranda0102

[pretend-writer]

Down Below (Chapter 72)

Summary: After being sent down on Earth with the other prisoners from the Ark, Y/N Reyes faces series of events and learns about survival. With new things happening around her, she is now starting a new chapter in her life.

Pairing: Bellamy Blake x reader, John Murphy x reader, Raven Reyes x sister!reader

Word Count: 2k words

Warning: swearing, mention of death

✤  ·  ✤  ·  ✤  ·  ✤  ·  ✤

It was hard to grasp why majority of us were in on staying in Sanctum. Call me paranoid but it was hard to trust someone who we barely knew; I mean look what happened with the grounders, Mount Weather, Diyoza and McCreary.

But Clarke always knew what was best for us right? She was the person we had to listen to because she kept us together, kept us sane and had our back throughout everything. Obviously Clarke knew what she was doing.

She knew it was a great idea to leave Raven, Marcus and Octavia outside when the radiation was going to kill us. Clarke knew to shoot me in the head when I tried to save them. She knew to betray her family and side with the enemy that was trying to kill them for the valley.

So it was such a great idea to listen to her to stay here. Not that we had a say in it at all.

Some of us knew that this was a terrible idea. They interviewed Clarke, horrible candidate to represent us, to show us that we were reliable to the community. That we were no harm.

But that was a lie wasn't it? All we've been doing since we landed on Earth was fight war one day after another. We've made enemies, soon joined clans but continued to kill each other. Who were we to tell them that we deserve to live with them.

Somehow, someway Russell and his people accepted us into their community. Don't know what lie Clarke pulled out of her ass but they were more than excited for us to stay with them. Too excited.

So enthused about welcoming us that they've invited us to attend their Opening Ceremony for "Naming Day", whatever that meant.

John and I sat together, watching everyone mingling and introducing themselves to our new "people."

'You know it's bad for your skin to crinkle your brows like that.' John laughed softly, watching me stress over these new people that we had to live with.

Looking over at Murphy, I rubbed my forehead as I tried to hide my facial expression. 'I'm sorry. Force of habit to not trust people, that's all.'

'Enemies wouldn't save lives. Matter of fact, I wouldn't be alive if it weren't for them.'

'Please don't tell me you're defending them.'

'Ah, no. It's just that-' He bit his lip as he gazed at the people. 'I don't know, it doesn't hurt to have a little hope. For us.'

My jaw dropped, 'John Murphy talking about hope? Wow, you must be a different person.'

He nudged me, 'I died, didn't I?'

'Not funny.'

'What? Too soon?' He chuckled a little until he saw that I wasn't joking. 'Aw, baby I'm sorry.'

The flashback of that moment still terrified me, the way he lied silently, not moving a muscle. 'I was scared that I was going to lose you.'

John smiled, kissing me on my temple as he wrapped his arm around me. 'I'm not going anywhere. Your sister calls me cockroach remember?'

'Right, the infamous cockroach.' I kissed his cheek, leaning into his chest.

As I look up I see Raven approaching us with a huge grin on her face. 'It's been a long, long time since I've seen you two cozying up like this. You two lovebirds need a room?'

'I think you should get Jordan a room.' John pointed at him flirting with Delilah, the girl that everyone was celebrating Naming Day for. 'Man, I bet Monty is so proud.'

As I was laughing at the joke, I saw Bellamy and Clarke talking in a serious tone then eventually hugging. I didn't know what they were talking about but my guess was she was apologizing for the billionth time about all the "mistakes" she had made.

Raven stood in front of my view, looking over me with her arms crossed in front of her. She was probably confused, assuming that I was staring at Bellamy for a different reason.

As I looked up and met my eyes with Raven, she shook her head. I continued to stare at her with a straight face, showing her that I didn't care about what he did, more so annoyed about what Clarke was doing. I didn't want to say that aloud, of course.

Besides, I was angry with Bellamy. I didn't give a damn about what he was doing. If he wanted to make amends with Clarke that was going to betray us again, he can knock himself out.

Speaking of the devil, I heard their voice getting closer. Knowing Clarke's voice from miles away, I rolled my eyes as she started to speak to us.

'The ceremony is about to start soon. Don't really know what we're supposed to do but it'll be good for us to attend.'

'Count me out.' I laughed sarcastically, 'You guys can have your fun.'

Clarke rested her hands on her hips, 'We don't want them to think we're being disrespectful right?'

'I don't give a damn about what they think about us. I never agreed to stay here anyways.' I stood up and approached Clarke. 'They were digging into our history, did you ever think to ask them questions as well?'

Bellamy cut in, defending Clarke. 'She's doing the best she can for our people. They've agreed to take us in and because of that, we have a home now.'

'Okay, so where are the rest of our people? Some are still in cryo and stuck in the ship, correct?' I shook my head, 'It's always whatever that's convenient for you. Not us as a whole.'

'Soon enough, we will bring them here. Right now, we just bring whoever can represent us as a whole and look the best we can.'

'Mhm.' I hummed, staring at Clarke as my thoughts went elsewhere. She brought Madi back, having Gaia by her side as she was trained to control the flame in her neck.

She only brought people who were convenient for her, using us as bait to make ourselves look good when in all reality was that we had a ugly history behind us.

Why couldn't she bring Indra? She was smart in these situations, great at communicating and talking with people. Matter of fact, knew how to handle and escape tough situations. Yet she brought Gaia with us; without her mother. Only to use her to benefit her "daughter", Madi.

The fact was that nothing that was coming out of her mouth made sense; if we were safe and welcomed into the family, why couldn't we bring the rest of our people? Why couldn't we start settling into this "wonderful" place if this was our home now?

'Clarke again with the bullshit. How long will it take for you to betray us this time?' A chuckle escaped my mouth. 'I'll be in here, away from these people while I enjoying the booze I haven't had in years.'

'Same here. I'm going to the bar.' Raven didn't bat an eye before she walked away. I followed her to the back, where the bar counter was.

Sitting down as I took a deep breath, I pouring my first shot. 'I probably should just go back to cryo, pretend that none of this is happening.'

'I hear ya. I'll join you if you actually mean it.' John jumped in, sitting next to me as he poured a shot as well.

'Do we really believe this crap? I mean come on, it's so obvious Russell or someone has something on Clarke.' Raven shook her head, taking a sip from her beer that she had before.

'Clearly, he didn't want us near Sanctum and now he's so welcoming. I agree, something is definitely not right.' I knew I sounded paranoid, but given the fact that Russell almost wanted nothing to do with us, it did sound a bit odd.

Raven looked at me with a smirk on her face. 'You want to snoop around? I mean no offense to them but I just don't trust them.'

Murphy raised his brows, 'The perfect Raven Reyes suddenly wants to be bad? Wow.'

'How is this bad? I need to make sure we're not falling into some trap.'

'I'm down for that. Whatever we need to do to keep us safe.' I smiled.

'Do we have to ruin this?' John sighed, 'I mean come on. We're in paradise right now. Let's leave it be for a few days, enjoy ourselves.'

Raven shook her head as she grinned, 'Okay now you're crazy. You want to turn down being bad?'

John nudged Raven, 'Leave me alone. Recently died here.'

I instantly looked over at him, Murphy noticed too because he apologized. 'I-Sorry Y/N. I guess it's just my way of coping. I'm sorry.'

'Yeah, I know.' I sighed, understanding his part but also sensitive to the subject. It hurt to see him like that and the flashbacks just drove me crazy.'

'This is why we need to keep it be, for now. Let's just enjoy this moment. Y/N, when was the last time you were relaxed?' John smiled, 'Let's go on a date, you and me.'

'A date?' I didn't know why but my mind went blank, what is a date exactly?

My whole life I was trapped in a metal box that was floating out of space, the life after that all I knew was fight and survival. I've never in my life never dreamed or even thought of a date. A moment to spend quality time with a significant other.

'What did you sound like that.' John scratched his head. 'I mean if you don-'

'No, no. It's just that, I've never even thought about any of that stuff.' My cheeks got warmer, I could feel myself blushing. 'I'd love to go on a date with you.'

His eyes widened, John's cheeks getting pink as well. Raven giggled, 'You two act like you haven't seen each other naked. Why are you guys shy all of the sudden.'

The joke made everything worse, our cheeks getting redder. I took another shot and then hit my sister, 'Okay stop with that!'

'What? It's true.'

Murphy rolled his eyes as he laughed at Raven, then turned back to me. 'Meet me in front of the staircase tomorrow night. The one that goes up to that palace, okay?'

I nodded, butterflies in my stomach as I was excited. It had been a long time since I've looked forward to something, hell, it had been a long time since I've been genuinely happy.

Bellamy's POV;

She was smiling, so beautifully and so happily. I haven't seen Y/N smile so genuinely since I left her on Earth. Now she was smiling, except I wasn't the reason behind that joy.

Reyes was done with me now, I knew all the reasoning behind it. Everything she had said about me was true; I was a hypocrite, I was a cheater, I was everything she didn't deserve at all.

Of course she left me for Murphy, he was good. He'd done a lot better in the Ring than I ever did. Hell, anyone up there did better.

Now, I deserve what had come to me. The love of my life with another man, me being miserable once again. But I couldn't complain, I deserve this. After hurting Y/N, not pulling her out of the struggle that she had been facing under the bunker.

She had called for help so many times, the silence but loud cries of suffering that I ignored. Not to mention the fact that I've pushed my sister away also; I didn't know why I was behaving the way that I was.

This time, I was alone. Facing these new strangers that we started sharing their spaces with, facing them by myself. No one wanted to be near me but Clarke. I didn't know how I felt about it, considering Y/N had really strong feeling towards her but it was better than nothing.

The fact of the matter was I had to do better, I had to win Reyes back and make her love me again. Go how it used to be, how it was supposed to be when she flew up to the Ring with us.

But I couldn't tell her my secret; Y/N couldn't know about the six years that happened with me while I was up there. She should never know.

[autumnslance]

Febhyurary 28: Celebration

(In which I finally publish a long-held draft. Also on Ao3. More words and pictures below the cut!)

“There’s the hero of the hour,” Thancred said as he ambled over. The child Aeryn had been speaking with waved and dashed off, eager to share with his friends whatever secrets the Warrior of Darkness had divulged. Thancred watched him go, smiling, before turning back to Aeryn.

She shook her head. “I’ve had my fill of accolades tonight,” she said. “What about you? Not joining the festivities?” She gestured down to the Exedra, where many of the Crystarium’s residents still laughed, danced, and sang in thanksgiving.

Thancred sighed dramatically and shrugged. “I thought to indulge in a little revelry myself...until Urianger began to list all the names of my drunken conquests. I’ve been drinking water. Water.”

Aeryn laughed. “Ryne was within hearing, was she?”

“Our colleague seems to be of the opinion I must be respectable for her sake.”

“Also Urianger just enjoys tormenting you.”

“That too.”

Aeryn stretched. “Where is Ryne now?” She asked, noting the girl was not at her guardian’s heels.

“The twins have stolen her off once again,” he replied. “‘Tis a good night for them all to unwind as youths ought to.” He frowned a little. “Just not too much like youths are wont to…”

“They’ll be fine, Thancred.”

“Do you have any idea the stories Krile has of Alphinaud’s Studium days? The boy--”

“Reminds you of someone?” She teased, poking his shoulder.

“...Let’s not go there, shall we? Also I have just as many concerns about his sister, truth be told.”

“Ryne can handle either of them,” Aeryn assured him. She ignored the little voice in her head pointing out there was no longer a ghost following her young friends, enjoying their antics, returning to get her attention should anything happen. She stifled a yawn.

“Feeling alright?” He asked, the joking quickly dropping for genuine concern.

“I’m fine; just not up for reveling all night. I might just sneak off to my room.”

“No one would blame you, really, you’ve been through hell. We all have.”

“Want to walk with me?” She asked, before she could lose the nerve.

“You just want me to block unwanted well-wishers as you wend your way to your quarters,” he teased, as he fell into step alongside her.

“You’ve gotten very good at defending the rest of us from so many other hazards,” she said with a grin as they made their way through some of the lesser-trafficked areas of the Crystarium.

The entire city was in a grand mood, however, making even those less common routes busy as others had similar ideas to avoid the impromptu celebrations happening throughout the town. The sunless sea spun overhead, the everlasting light vanquished for good this time. The Exarch was safely returned to his people, and the Warriors of Darkness had triumphed over the Light and the dark figure who had orchestrated its blaze.

All it had cost was one dead man giving up his soul to save hers.

“Something wrong?” Thancred asked. Aeryn realized she had grown quiet, and must have looked a bit too pensive, thinking of Ardbert.

“Not really,” she said, honestly. “Just...I promised I’d explain in full, about the Blade of Light and how I was healed of the Lightwardens’ corruption. Tomorrow, when we’re all together again in the Ocular. I think I’m still attempting to process it all.”

He’s not really gone, she reminded herself. He’s always here, now. Emet-Selch would perhaps say as we ought to be--if it hadn’t led to his own…

“I think I just need a good distraction,” she said. “So much has happened.”

“Well, I’ve been known to be very distracting,” Thancred said with a grin. “A story, a song, an impromptu dance in the yard...Whatever you wish, my lady.���

There was a slight, hopeful thread woven into his lighthearted words. He meant to mask it, she knew, but it resonated with a stirring in her own heart.

Things had certainly changed since Nabaath Areng. There just also hadn’t been much time or opportunity to discuss those changes. At least, she had not been in a good place for...gods, it felt like ages, and yet no time at all, like a fading nightmare.

“I’ll have to think about it,” she replied glibly, as they crossed into the yards of the Quadrivium.

“Why think?” Thancred asked, as music played from the Wandering Stairs. He grasped her hand and pulled her into a spin. She allowed it, laughing as the cape on her jacket flared out behind her. They fell into the rhythm easily, aware eyes were on them and not caring as they danced across the walkway, others following along at various levels of skill but more than making up for it in enthusiasm.

She tried to remember the last time they had danced like this; carefree, at ease with the world and each other--they even laughed as they were bumped into by less surefooted dancers, their own feet stumbling until one of them rediscovered the rhythm and led the other back to synchronous motion.

The Liberation of Ala Mhigo, she recalled finally. It had then led to hiding away from the world and discussing what they meant to one another. So much kept happening that in some ways it still seemed as if they were in those early, tentative days of figuring out their relationship.

Most of a bell passed before they ended up spinning into the Pendants, still giggling over a ronso trying to cut into their dance and nearly sending Thancred off the edge of one of the wide stairs.

“Good thing you’re light on your feet,” Aeryn said as they passed by the front desk. The manager waved them through, other matters holding his attention.

“All part of the plan to see you safely to your quarters,” Thancred replied. “Never was one for such heavy armor and weapons as, say, Hoary Boulder uses, but being quick works.”

“Certainly does. And here we are.”

There was a pause; not entirely awkward, but the expectancy could quickly turn that way.

“Well,” he began. “I suppose--”

“Do you want to come in?” She blurted, feeling her face redden. His brows raised. “I just...after everything...I don’t….”

The room will be empty. I can’t talk to him about everything anymore, and it saddens me more than I thought, even if he isn’t really gone, I know, he’s still always here…

Thancred’s hand cupped her cheek, bringing her thoughts to a halt. “I very much do,” he murmured, the mirth faded. “If you wish for me to stay.”

She looked up to meet his golden-brown eyes. “Please stay,” she whispered.

“Very well,” he replied, closing the distance between them for a gentle, drawn-out kiss. He was warm, and solid, and smelled still of the Tempest’s brine and the desperate exertion of that last battle. They were both exhausted messes, but she suddenly did not feel like sleeping.

It was, after all, a night for celebration.

[backalley-requests]

The Proposal | Chapter Four

The Proposal Masterlist

Summary: The Proposal™ au, where Ivar gets swept away in a lie about a fake engagement to stay in the country and needs to convince everyone (including his family) that he’s genuinely engaged to a woman he works with

Warnings: use of the word cripple, almost swearing

Word Count: 2,515

You didn’t truly conceptualize how far away Denmark was from New York until you were flying there. It felt like an eternity. You and Ivar hadn’t spoken since your last exchange. Things felt tense and your stomach felt sick. “Get the luggage,” Ivar spoke his first words when you got off the plane.

Even though you would’ve appreciated a “please” you didn’t argue, waiting by the conveyor belt. “Are you going ahead?” You turned to talk to him as he was already going. It seemed as if he was incredibly successful at pushing you from his mind.

It took several minutes before you found the last of your bags. As if on cue, you heard a woman shout in danish. “You left her?” Followed by the harsh thud of a smack. “You can’t just leave your girlfriend, Ivar.” Your grasp on the language was tentative at best. You used duo lingo daily but hearing it in practice was a different beast entirely.

“She’s fine, mor.”

“If she’s dating Ivar seriously enough to visit us in another continent then she’s probably used to this by now,” a man laughed.

You could hear the annoyance grow in Iver's voice as he bickered back. You caught some of the language but less than you’d have liked. You grabbed the luggage and started to head over.

“This must be Y/N,” Aslaug walked over and you immediately recognized her, a smile on your face as you waved.

“Hey! Um— nice to meet you,” you offered your hand to shake and instead she pulled you in for a hug. Her arms wrapped around your body and you could’ve died with no regrets. Why was it so warm?

“Oh, I’d rather you not butcher the language, dear. But the attempt was lovely,” Aslaug smiled sweetly and placed her hand on your upper arm sympathetically. Her English was a lot better than your Danish. It was the nicest way you’ve ever been told to stop trying because you sucked so badly.

Your face flushed in embarrassment and you laughed. “Sorry— I’m still learning.” Maybe you should just stop if it was that bad. It sounded fine to you. You glanced over to see Ivar as he rolled his eyes at you.

His brother walked over, to introduce himself. “I’m Hvitserk, Ivar’s cooler brother. And the only one willing to tolerate him,” he flashed a grin and shook your hand.

“Then you must have great perseverance.” The words slipped out of your mouth before you could stop them. It was easy to forget that this was the part where you were supposed to convince people you were in love with the man.

“Is father not coming?” Ivar was quick to change the subject. He wasn’t happy with the situation— but when was he ever happy? Even the fleeting moments between the two of you managed to turn sour by the end.

“No— he had a prior engagement, but Ubbe is waiting in the car!” Aslaug tried to save the conversation, the disappointment was evident from Ivar’s face. “I’m sure you two much be tired, jet lag is killer.” She was swift to move into the next conversation, ushering them away.

You grabbed the luggage and began to roll both bags when Hvitserk stopped you. “Let me help with that. If my brother wants to let you do all the work the least I can do is offer to share the load,” he teased. “Trust me, he used to make me do his chores too.”

Hvitserk was immediately more welcoming than his brother. It made you question how the two could’ve been related at all. Ivar spared a glance, scowling at you. You took the natural course of action and scowled back. “Thanks,” you laughed and immediately eased up. “Tell me then, which one of you two is adopted. Because I highly doubt you’re related.”

How could the same family raise such opposing figures. Even if Hvitserk turned out to be some evil bottom dwelling menace, he made an effort to appear nice. You wasn’t sure you ever saw Ivar bother to do the same, at least not to a stranger.

“You wouldn’t be the first person to ask that. Ivar’s different,” Hivserk went along with it. And soon the two of you managed to easily slide into conversation. You found out a bit more about the family.

The father, Ragnar had two family trees. One with his first wife, Lagertha, with whom he had a son, Bjorn. The second was with Aslaug, and they had four children: Ubbe, Hvitserk, Sigurd, and Ivar. Their father wasn’t married but often far from single. Bjorn is married to Gunnhild. Ubbe is married to Torvi who used to be married to Bjorn. Sigurd and Ivar didn’t get along. Some of this you knew already and the rest of the facts started to blend together.

By the time you got to the car you forgot much else that Hvitserk tried to prepare you for. Ubbe was leaning against their car. “Long time no see, my baby brother.”

Ivar rolled his eyes and tried to just enter the car but was stopped by his brother. Ubbe hugged Ivar who failed to reciprocate the hug, nearly dropping his cane from the intensity of the squeeze. The older brother didn’t seem to mind it and instead easily moved on to hug you. “At least one of you two is more affectionate, you could learn a thing or two from her, Ivar.”

—

“Don’t get too close to them,” Ivar whispered to you when you got to his family’s home. The car ride back had been filled with childhood stories of the boys, mostly Ivar. You understood why he was so agitated, they seemed to mess with him a lot. Not that you agreed with the irritation, but clearly Ivar didn’t handle it well. He was the youngest, it made sense to you. “None of this is real.”

Yet, the warning annoyed you. You wanted to get closer just to spite him. He was right, you two weren’t in a real relationship and they wouldn’t be a real family. It still wasn’t nice to say. His words distracted you from the mansion his family seemed to own.

“He didn’t tell you that we’re made of money, did he?” Hvitserk asked you with a lazy grin, he placed his arms around your shoulders. “If you’re going to become my sister then you’ll just have to get used to it.” You didn’t know his family that well but they didn’t deserve this. They were already making an effort and it was for a lie.

“Let me show you guys to your room,” Aslaug smiled. The inside of the house was just as beautiful as the outside. You never even saw something so big. It felt unreal. She showed the two of you one room. “I’m not going to bother pretending to be dumb. I know you two sleep together.”

You tried to stammer your way into a guest bedroom but she didn’t seem to be listening to you. “Dinner is at 7 if the two of you want it.” The room was on the ground floor, just outside was a view of the backyard and a river. It was huge. The only issue is that there was only one bed.

“You can stay on the floor,” Ivar answered before you could ask. The moment his mother was gone he didn’t hesitate to remind you where you were going to be sleeping. “I need the bed.”

It made sense. He had needs you didn’t. “Fine.” For some reason you expected to enter a fanfiction where there was only one bed and you were forced to share— it was evident the thought didn’t cross Ivar’s mind. “Can I at least have some pillows and blankets. I get cold.” You were more a tropical kind of person, and spent most of your life feeling cold.

“They’re in the closet.”

You watched as Ivar laid in the bed. He sighed heavily and sunk deep into it, as if finally resting. It looked like the euphoria you got from laying down after a run or a workout. Maybe he was more tired than he let on. “Is it soft?”

Ivar opened his eyes and stared at you, “what?”

“The bed, you just look really comfortable.”

He patted the side next to him. “It’s expensive. It ought to be.” You weren’t sure what he was doing at first until he did it again. “Try it.”

Tentatively, you walked over and sat down. Yours went wide as you immediately sunk into it and you were just sitting. Why is this so good? You couldn’t help but relax your body into it and lay down for a moment, just a manny. Any soreness was being sapped out. “Wow.”

“I know right.” The two of you laid there for a moment, staring at the ceiling.

Maybe you ought to try and get some money from the divorce, get yourself a mattress like this. You closed your eyes softly, your eyelids never felt so heavy.

“Now get out of my bed.” The words made your eyes shoot open. He decided it was time for you to go.

“What?”

“You’re about to fall asleep on my bed,” Ivar reminded you. “Which means you probably s shouldn’t be in it.”

You immediately got up and nearly fell on your way out. “You could’ve been nicer about it,” you glared. Being there for a moment was going to make it all the more difficult to lay on the floor. It was so hard compared to it— then again your own mattress was hard compared to his. “Did you do that just so I’d feel worse when I had to sleep on the floor? Knowing a bed like this existed just outside of my reach?”

Ivar laughed. “No. But that would’ve been a good idea. I like the way you think.”

“Are you two ready for dinner?” Aslaug knocked and entered the room.

“We’re not hungry,” Ivar answered for the both of you. You personally couldn’t agree with his statement but it was clear he wanted to be left alone from them and didn’t trust you to be alone with them.

“Get up. You have to go.” She entered the room further and before she could grab Ivar he was already up, as if repulsed by the idea of her touching him. You were quick to follow behind

Ivar grabbed his cane and started going. “Is there any reason?” Aslaug didn’t answer and instead bit her bottom lip before she left.

“What was that about,” you asked as you walked to the door. Ivar stared down where his mother left, deep in thought.

“I have a bad feeling about this. Mor is up to something.”

The two of you walked together out towards the common areas of the home when a number of people eagerly shouted, “welcome home!” It was a lot of people, and it became evident this is what Aslaug had been wanting them out of the room for.

A number of people came by to greet Ivar, he seemed ambivalent to the conversation at best and annoyed at worst. You were greeted as a secondary and remained far more polite. You knew nothing much at all and the best you do was follow, that didn’t seem to make things less annoying for Ivar. “Will you stop following me?”

“Where else would I—“

“Ivar!” An older man appeared and wrapped his arms around Ivar, a grin on his face. This was the first person Ivar didn’t instantly pull back from, and the laugh he made was genuine in response.

“Floki, you old bastard. I’m glad you could make it,” Ivar seemed to genuinely mean that. It made the whole thing even stranger to you.

Floki eyed you and then Ivar and then laughed, “how did an ugly poor cripple end up with a beautiful woman like this?” He immediately hugged you and pulled back. “Maybe it’s best not to question it. We wouldn’t want her to realize,” he winked at Ivar.

The two seemed to get along better than most and Ivar left with the man. You tried to follow but got cut off by the people who stood around talking to each other.

—

“He left you alone?”

It had been who knows how long since he had left and you hadn’t seen Ivar since. Where he was, it wasn’t here. And it was clear to you he didn’t care where ou were. Hivtserk appeared beside you and attempted to make you feel included.

“I’m used to it,” you shrugged.

Hvitserk furrowed his eyebrows, “the two of you make for an odd couple.”

Panic began to fill you. “I— no. Not really. We’re very real.” The words were dumb and you hated yourself for having made the sentence at all. “Normal, I mean, normal.” None of that made it better.

“Then you love him?” If Hvitserk didn’t believe you then he didn’t show it. The truth was harder to believe. That you were pretending to marry your boss so he could stay in the US and give you some big promotion.

“What? N—“ you couldn’t say no, “not yet. Or maybe.” You admired the man. But this was all fake. Still, he never appeared more human than in these past few days. It just sucked that he was never willing to keep doing that. Whenever he relaxed he was so quick to correct himself.

Hvitserk laughed at you, “then you probably do. He’s a difficult man to love but I’ve managed it.” How Ivar find it in himself to not talk to his family more, or show them more care? “I can tell from the way you look at him sometimes.”

Your face got flushed. You had to keep reminding yourself this whole thing was fake. Hvitserk was expecting these sorts of things and said them. Just like your coworkers. None of this was real. Yet, it felt easy to want to get swept away. “Well— I’m not sure if we’re quite there. He certainly isn’t.”

His brother shrugged, “maybe. But I’ve ever seen him let anyone tease him without getting hit with his cane for as long as you have. And he doesn’t bring women around to the family. That has to mean something.”

You knew why you were meeting his family. It was the same reason he seemed to tolerate this but— it was different. You wanted to be different. It would feel nicer that way, and you couldn’t quite understand why. Every soft moment lingered in your memory for too long and you desperately wanted to hold onto them. “Maybe,” your eyes caught Ivar.

It was the first time he was so casual and seemed relaxed. He was gorgeous. You allowed yourself more time to just stare at him, knowing he was none the wiser. “You’re good for him.”

“I certainly like to think I am.”

“Good,” Hvitserk responsed. “So where are you from?”

He started to ask question upon question about your origins and your life story. He seeemd more interested than anyone else here. You admitted you weren’t from money and that you were trying to make a name for yourself in New York.

“So how’d you meet Ivar?”

“I actually work for him,” you admitted. “He might act like a dick most the time but it’s gotten some amazing results. I admire what he can do, I just wished he went about it more... humanely,” you laughed.

Hivtserk watched you carefully, “fair enough. He was never very personable. And that doesn’t bother you?”

It did. A lot. “No.”

“Then maybe you two are suited for each other.”

The two of you weren’t. “I like to think to.”

—

Taglist** @youbloodymadgenius @heavenly1927

[chilly-me-softly]

Every Little Thing’s Gonna Be Alright • Chapter 19

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10 - Chapter 11 - Chapter 12 - Chapter 13 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 18

Evelyn goes to open the door paying little attention to it sure it's one between her brother or Deb, going back to focus on her suitcase before she forgets anything. When she hears no comment she turns around, finding Jack leaning against the doorframe with a grin on his face.

"What are you doing here?"

"Did you really think I was going to let you just walk away?"

"But I left you a note"

"It wasn't enough" he murmured moving closer, wrapping his hands around her waist and leaving a tender kiss on her lips.

She had woken up happy that morning despite the few hours of sleep, but she was used to that. Jack was still asleep and she had spent a few minutes watching him in adoration. Then she had glanced at the clock and carefully untangled herself from his grasp to get up. She'd taken the first piece of paper she'd found around and a pen and written him a little note. She knew that if she woke him up, the chances of getting out of that room would be nil.

She gathered her things and gently closed the door behind her. No feeling of panic on the horizon, just an overwhelming desire to get back inside. And she'd prayed not to meet anyone on the way to her room, where she'd taken a shower and hidden Jack's clothes in the bottom of her suitcase.

It had turned out that she had lost track of time in the shower, they had a set time for leaving but if she had to be honest she imagined them still in bed not knowing what time they had returned the night before and not hearing from either of them until then.

"Perfect, now I don't want to leave" she moaned into his lips as he left a kiss on her cheek.

"Come on, Ben's waiting for you"

"For all I know he could still be sleeping" she giggles heading towards the bathroom to grab the last of the things left there.

"Nah we just had a really interesting conversation a few moments ago" Jack states sitting down on the bed and Evelyn is quick to turn back.

"Sorry what?"

"But Deb's the one struggling to get up if you really want to know"

"Oh no don't change the subject now. What did you guys talk about?"

"You know..." he vaguely says playing with the zip of her suitcase as she runs a hand through her hair.

"Tell me you didn't. You didn't tell him did you?" he smiles guiltily and she groans then.

"Why?" she murmurs with her face hidden in his chest when he then reaches out and hugs her.

"I wanted to be clear. I don't want to hide that we know each other or that we talk every day, not anymore"

"Still too soon" she murmurs making him smile.

"I want to be free to shower you with kisses always no matter where we are" he states before actually starting to do it, kissing her on the cheeks, on the lips as she wiggles around laughing.

"What did he say? Did he say something right?" she then asks apprehensively and Jack doesn't lose his smile.

"I won't tell you what we said. But I'm in one piece, aren't I?!"

"You are stupid, do you have any idea what the journey home will be like?" she complains again hitting him lightly on the chest as he laughs it off.

"It was the right thing to do"

-

There is silence in the car, the two siblings' eyes have met a couple of times but Evelyn has always deflected it knowing that he knows now.

"Are you going to start talking or should I ask the questions?" asks Ben after yet another smile at the phone. Parting with Jack had been hard but they were exchanging plenty of messages since she left, having arrived with one of his teammates the boy had both hands free to do so.

"Ben, I was going to tell you. Just not now" she sighs, he doesn't seem angry or anything. His eyes are fixed on the road as they should be and from the outside he just looks like he wants to chat. Deb on the other side just seems to be so excited not to have to hide that whole situation anymore, so genuinely happy for Evelyn.

"This is already hard enough for me, I just wanted to make sure of everything"

"I admit I was quite surprised when Jack asked me to talk. I could never have imagined that"

"I didn't know it. That he'd talk to you" she admits truthfully, their gazes meeting again in the rear view mirror only breaking contact as Ben returns his focus to the road.

"Anyway if you wanted to tell me what you two talked about..." she blurts it out looking at her nails pretending she doesn't care that much.

"Everyone has their secret" he states chuckling hearing a choked sound coming from the back.

"You're my brother, you're supposed to be on my side!"

"He's my friend, don't put me in the middle of this" he retorts quickly firmly as Evelyn puffs up her cheeks letting the air out little by little.

"Would you tell me if I was jumping into something bigger than myself?"

"What exactly are you worried about?"

"Lots of things" she laughs nervously running a hand through her hair, "At first I wondered if I hadn't mistaken a few polite gestures for something more. I wondered if I wasn't misinterpreting my feelings because I'd just ended things with Lucas or if I was so desperate for a father for my little girl to throw myself at the first guy who came along. And being hormonal certainly didn't help me think more clearly"

"Lyn, Jack practically met you when you were already pregnant. If he hadn't wanted to, he wouldn't have gone near you" her brother tries to reason with her, there are so many 'what ifs' in the world and we have to be good at stopping in time before our heads fill up with questions and doubts. And unfortunately her sister has yet to master this technique.

"I know, it's just... ugh I don't know. I can't be completely at peace that's all"

"Life's a gamble Eve, you bet on one person and hope they're the right choice"

"Oh is that what you did with me then?!" Ben turns his head towards his girlfriend for a moment smiling brightly at her.

"Actually if you recall I was aiming for someone else, but you turned out pretty good Chilwell" Deb reaches out from her seat to leave a quick kiss on Ben's cheek before returning to the conversation.

"Why don't you try to I don't know live it up and let each day surprise you with what it wants to give you"

"You're funny. Ben your girlfriend's funny"

"I know" he comments sticking his tongue out at her and she pretends to be disappointed, turning on the radio and crossing her arms over her chest making the two siblings laugh.  

"Just one last thing" Evelyn leans out from the back lightly touching the girl's shoulder, "I just want to thank you both for what you've done for me over the last period. I don't think I have done it yet but I am eternally grateful. For listening to me with my endless paranoia and for the support"

"You don't have to. You know we're always here if you need us" Ben commented after exchanging a quick glance and smile with his girlfriend.

"But no sex talk. Or I'll block you" and the rest of the car ride passes quickly between more chatting, laughing and embarrassing each other. They stop briefly along the way for a break and before she knows it Evelyn has her little girl in her arms.

It had only been a day but she had missed her so much, she even seemed bigger than when she had left. She'd showered her with kisses and apart from the brief moment she'd been in her uncle Ben's arms, she hadn't left her for a moment. Sitting on the couch with her snuggled against her chest, she'd watched her fall asleep and smile and unconsciously clench her little fist around her shirt. She had changed her and fed her, and the smile had never left her face. She'd missed her routine, if she'd had Cece with her in that room too she could swear she'd never come home.

"You are mummy's little cutie. Yes you are" she cooed cuddling the little one filling her ears and heart with the little sounds she makes.

"What?" she asks looking at her brother seeing him with a strange expression on his face intent on watching her.

"Nothing, it's just that sometimes I can't believe my little sister has a baby girl"

"I actually grew her inside me and it seems unbelievable sometimes" she states dreamily before sighing.

"So you don't think I should have let more time pass?"

"Stop. Overthinking" Ben flicks a finger on her forehead, "Seriously, or I'll tell mom"

"No you won't!"

"Guys how come you two always have to bicker?" their mother commented heading to the kitchen passing by just then making them giggle.

"He started it" Evelyn sticks her tongue out at Ben just before her phone starts vibrating not far from them. She then looks up at him smiling innocently and he rolls his eyes stretching and smiling cheekly before running his finger across the screen.

"Stop bothering my sister dude, there's a reason I'm not answering you" Jack's laugh comes soon after.

"Sorry mate, I'm just desperate to see you" he replies as Ben shakes his head turning the camera around framing Evelyn looking for attention waving by moving Cece's arm. And he sees his friend's gaze change slightly as a sweet smile makes its way across his face.

He leaves them alone giving the phone to the girl heading into the kitchen keeping an eye on them from afar and seeing his sister laughing at something his friend is saying to her.

"Do you know someone named Lucas?" his mother distracts him as he tries not to give away information with his body stealing something to eat from the bowl nearby.

"Lucas? You'd have to give me more information to get an answer"

"Fine" the woman plays along stopping what she's doing looking at her son, "Lucas, your niece's father. Who came here yesterday asking to see her"

"He did what? Okay mum don't get mad..."

"Why would I? You just keep hiding things from me" she retorts sarcastically tapping her hands on her thighs and Ben wraps his arms around her body leaving a kiss on her temple.

"Don't try to flatter me now mister" she chastises him failing however to hide the smile that arises on her lips.

"It's just a tricky matter. Lyn just wants to see if he's serious before doing anything, she knows it won't be easy"

"What do you think of him?"

"Lyn kept me away too, I only saw him when he showed up here a couple of weeks ago. I don't think I can say anything"

"They're young, caught up in something bigger than themselves. Don't hold it against him, especially if he's decided to step up now"

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because you're my son and I know you, and I know how you think. Life is not all black and white, draws are also in the mix"

"I'm sorry, is that a football analogy I just heard?!"

"Watch your mouth. I can still put you in your place" the woman says, trying to pull away from her son as Ben begins to shower her with kisses.

"Am I interrupting something?" with hilarity in her voice, Evelyn steps inside the kitchen and Ben loosens his grip on his mother allowing her to pull away.

"No. Come, there's something we need to talk about" he really wants her to enjoy that moment, but she cannot not know. What he hopes at this point is that nothing else will add to the situation, because he doesn't know how long his sister can take it before she bursts dangerously.

----

Tag: @alexajanecollins @emwritesfootball @rosie7703

Chapter 20

[emilycollins00]

Hiiii! May I have Masumi scenario where he falls for director's friend who is a singer as a hobby (the boy needs some love and respect, I always feel bad for him T_T). Thank you for the great content!

First things first! Thank you for suggesting the request dear 💕 Second thing, this got longer than I thought so you’ll have a second part soon!

Masumi’s still underage so I also had to choose a closer age for sweet reader but leaving a connection with Izumi and everything else intact. I hope you and everyone enjoy it. 💕

Title: More than I expected

Pairing: Masumi Usui x Singer!Reader

Masumi couldn’t believe his luck.

He was on his way back home when he saw Izumi’s figure in the distance, walking inside Veludo Station. Was that destiny? Hurriedly, he moved his feet in the same direction.

When he arrived looking for her, a pair of squeals caught his attention, more than anything because one of them came from Izumi. The other, from you.

Who is that?

He stumbled when he saw his dear director hugging you. He still hadn’t hugged her.

“You are so big Y/N…! Wow look at you.”

Izumi released the grasp as she moved around, looking at you up and down. You laughed at her enthusiasm “Izumi-san, it’s been less than a year since we saw each other.”

“And yet you look so different! It’s-“

“Director.”

You both turned to see the Hanasaki student standing next to you two.

“Masumi-kun! Didn’t see you there. Already back from school?” Masumi didn’t answer, frowning in silence in your direction “Ah, let me introduce you to Y/N! They were my neighbor in the area I lived before coming to Mankai”

“Hi there” you waved at him. He kept silently looking at you. Was he okay?

“…anyway, they are going to be living in a rental house close to our dorm. Please be friends with them, okay?”

“Izumi-san I’d like to remind you I’m starting my major this semester. I’m not a kid” Izumi stuck her tongue out playfully to you. You rolled your eyes amused.

The spring member saw all the luggage you had brought. So you were a friend of director’s, uh. He yawned. You didn’t look like competition, so he decided he didn’t care “Director, let’s go to our house”

“I’d appreciate you didn’t phrase it like that, Masumi-kun.”

“Member of your theatre company?” she confirmed your suspicions. You two had talked a bit about what she was up to whenever Izumi came back home to visit her mother. She had also been the one to mention the rental house near the dorm for you to move in after all.

“I’m going to go home later” Izumi explained while putting a hand on your shoulder “I met here with Y/N to help her move.”

“Me too.”

“Sorry what?”

“I’m helping too.”

                                        -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“A major in vocal performance, that’s amazing! I am so happy you made your hobby turn into your dream. You have a great voice.” Izumi exuded genuine joy as you all headed to your place. “Do you still work on your music mockups? You used to have many”

You looked with the corner of your eyes how the boy just walked next to Izumi in silence, not really trying to take part in your conversation. Maybe he just wasn’t the talking type…? You decided not to pry. He had really taken a big part of your luggage, after all.

“Y/N?”

“Ah, sorry” you laughed, taking notice of her enthusiasm “Yes, well, If I find the time between lectures and work! I’m almost done, I hope. Heard there’s this famous company that accepts demos from new singers to promote themselves.”

“That’s so cool! I’m sure they’ll love you.”

You smiled. It felt good to see Izumi again after so long. She had always been like an old sister, supporting you as you grew up. You would always be grateful for her.

A few hours later, because it took longer than expected, Izumi ended up inviting you to have dinner at Mankai, much to Masumi’s luck.

                                            -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Weeks passed by as you finally got used to the whole aspect of living alone, not that there was much to do. Izumi kept telling you to come a few times a week to eat at the dorm and you had grown fairly confident in your control over the washing machine.

As a whole, your daily routine had also become easy to follow, however, something was up.

You had many trial demos in your apartment. Many. But nothing struck you enough to send it to that company people were all about, so you kept making more songs, hence, your stress.

You were starting to think it was because you had become too used to your sound that it started sounding bad “Maybe I should…” Having just left the station to head home from university, you noticed the quiet spring member stepping out of the Veludo music shop. You stopped walking, an idea forming in your head.

“Masumi!”

Recognizing your voice, the boy sighed. Every time you greeted him or asked how he was doing over dinner, Masumi found himself unable to push you away due to your relationship with Izumi.

“Ey! Sorry if this is sudden but I just remember Izumi-san telling me you liked music?” you mentioned as he left the store with you behind him.

“So.”

“Well! The thing is, I’m a singer. Or, well, an aspiring singer. It used to be a hobby but it grew on me you know.”

“Didn’t know”

You raised an eyebrow “We talked about it the day you helped me with my move, remember…? I’ve talked about it with everyone having dinner too.”

He shrugged, not bothering to answer.

“Anyway, I recalled Izumi-san telling me you have good taste in music, so I need your help with something”

He stopped walking and looked at you.

                                      -.-.-.-.-.-.-..-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“Don’t you have friends to review your songs?”

“I do, but what I need is the opinion of a stranger that could as well tell me what to change and that…” you turned to point him as you opened the door to your apartment “…is where you enter.”

“Remember to-”

“Yes, yes, I promise to tell Izumi-san you helped me.”

He sighed, entering in your place. He hadn’t paid attention the first time, but it wasn’t that bad. Your room was filled with CDs. You had a microphone set and headphones standing in the corner, most likely to record yourself.

“What do I need to do so I can leave.”

You punched him in the back angry, could he get more impolite? “I want a few of my songs to be approved to promote myself but I’m not sure which ones, so I want to hear your thoughts. Easy right?”

Masumi sat on your bed as you prepared the room. He was only half paying attention when he heard you singing.

He hadn’t expected you to sound like that. He focused on your voice, low-key admitting you had a pretty good balance. The concept of the lyrics wasn’t that bad either. After you finished, you took off your headphones and looked at him, seeking opinion.

“So you really are trying to become a singer.”

“Want me to punch you again?”

Masumi shrugged “It was okay” he got up but was forced down when you pushed him “Hold on, Reynold-kun, I really need more than that before I send this in.”

“Reynold…?”

You looked at him as you sat on your study chair. By his confused look, he didn’t know him “Music critic? Famous for his sharp tongue? You guys would be twins!”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Then just tell me your opinion about my piece.”

You saw him frowning and although you kind of imagined at this point, you discovered that Masumi did not have a filter whatsoever. He started talking, spending a few minutes giving his thoughts. You whistled unconsciously as you grabbed a pen from the desk and started notes “Didn’t think about any of that…”

He leaned on the edge of your bed “Can I go now?”

“Do you mind if I ask you to come in a few days after I change some things?” you looked up at him.

“Don’t.”

“I’ll go to the dorm then” you shrugged. You had to admit he had impressed you “You ever thought about studying music? You have a good ear.”

He looked around the room. Truthfully a small part of him thought it hadn’t been bad, although he wouldn’t admit it “…never thought about it. Also, don’t come to the dorm.”

“Too late, Omi-san already sent me the menu. Your parents might disagree?

“I just need director.”

“Eh~” you smiled at him, your hand resting on your chin “But I didn’t ask that.”

For some reason, Masumi’s stomach twisted, a weird sensation running ”Stop smiling like that.”

                                       -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Over the next weeks, although mainly forced, Masumi saw himself spending more and more in your house.

At first, he had been uncooperative, not even with Izumi’s help. However, he soon discovered had lots of tracks from different types of music, many new. And so, while you corrected your songs, in exchange, you let him listen to the CDs. He had tried to take them home so he didn’t go that much, but you disapproved the idea of separating yourself from your precious discs.

He wouldn’t say it out loud, but it also didn’t bother him as much as he thought.

“Masumi do you- ah, are you going to Y/N’s place?” Tsuzuru looked at his roommate as he crossed paths with him in the entrance.

The student stopped before opening the door, unable to contradict him “…keeps bothering about their demo unless I go…what do you want.”

“We were just going shopping. It’s okay, I’ll ask Sakuya or someone else, say hello to Y/N for me.”

Tsuzuru had to hide the smile that grew on his face as the high schooler walked out of the dorm to yours.

Whenever you came to Mankai to have dinner now, the whole dorm had noticed how you had been able to enter his world fast. Well, as far as fast was in terms of Masumi’s walls.  

“Tsuzuru-kun? Did you ask Masumi-kun to come?”

“He left to go to Y/N’s”

Izumi smiled when she heard the reason. It really had been a gratifying surprise when she saw how many conversations Masumi initiated with you. Mainly about music yes, but that wasn’t all. Over time, he seemed to have grown comfortable with you. The biggest changes were moments when he would still meet with you even though Izumi was asking for people to accompany her somewhere. They were rare of course, as Masumi still trailed behind most of the time, but they were there.

Izumi knew Masumi wasn’t conscious of it yet, but something inside him was changing, and you had become the key.

Part 2 here!

[justauthoring]

even after it all.

Request: I’m such a slut for Until Dawn, so you’re crazy if you think I won’t jump on the opportunity to get more Until Dawn stuff and from my favorite fanfic writer. I’d love a Josh Washington fic where the reader (his gf) finds out that he’s been behind everything and goes out with Chris and Mike to the shed to stand up for him because she knows they’ll be hard on him and she knows he just needs help and better meds. Thank you!

Requested by: @itsfangirlmendes​

Pairing: Josh Washington x Reader Word Count: 2,019 Please don’t plagiarize my work!

Surely, you were imagining this...

right?

You eye both Chris and Ashley, who are both still tied to the chairs, to Mike and Sam who both work quickly to untie the former’s. But you can see the looks on their faces. The anger on Ashley and Mike’s, the absolute disgust and dismay, and the complete confusion on Sam and Chris’ face. An expression, unlike the others, you mimic because you’re just as confused. Maybe even more so.

You’re positive you are just dreaming. Or someone was playing some sort of prank on you. Because... this? Josh being the one behind all of this? It... This can’t be real.

“Josh...”

Your call for him isn’t heard over the yells of the others. Nor is it heard over the maniacal laughing that pours from Josh’s lips as he circles around, pacing on his feet aimlessly with the brightest smile upon his lips you’re sure you’ve ever seen in a long time. And it hurts, because since his sisters, you’ve never left his side, never once abandoned him or made him feel guilty about needing his support. You were just there for him, whenever he needed you. And you’d tried to make him smile like that, like he used to, for months, but nothing ever worked.

Except, apparently, this.

“Oh, oh, very good!” He applauds, circling past you. You find yourself slipping to the back, unable to believe the sight before you. And honestly, it doesn’t even really hurt you that Josh doesn’t acknowledge your presence. “Every one of you. Got my name! And after all you’ve been through. Good-good-good-good! I mean how does that feel?”

You catch Mike’s gaze, your own distraught, tearful gaze meeting his harsh, frustrated expression. You want to defend Josh, but you can’t. Not in this scenario. So as you look at Mike, you can’t blame him for being so angry, only managing to avoid his gaze you glance down at your feet, your hand falling to your cheek where -- who you’d originally thought was the psycho -- had hit you.

“Right? How does it feel? Do you enjoy feeling terrorized? Humiliated? I mean, panicked? All those emotions that my sisters got to feel a year ago! Only guess what? They didn’t get to laugh it off? No! Nope! No! No! They’re gone!”

“I don’t know if you noticed this,” Mike speaks up for the first time, gesturing around himself. “Josh, but none of us are laughing.”

“Oh come! Come-come-come-come! Why the long faces? Come on!” 

Your heart sinks, entire body tensing when Josh makes his way over to you. You don’t have the heart or strength to shrug away from him as he pulls you close, wrapping his arm tightly around like he always has but this time, it feels different. For obvious reasons why. And your heart both hurts and pounds madly against your chest in fear. Which feels so incredibly wrong because he’s your boyfriend and you shouldn’t be afraid of him.

“It’s good to get the heart racing every now and then, right?” You cringe, trying to pull away as he pulls you closer, eyes twisting shut. “And race they did, I mean, every one of you, just pitter-pat, pitter-pat! I hope you appreciated my little phantasmagorical spectacle! I mean, no detail too small. No opportunity missed. It was such a delight to play the puppet master to all your Pavlovian panic! And all that gore? I mean, gore, there was gore-galore! Fake bodies... I mean, god that shit was expensive. And no retakes. Nope. Nope. Only double takes. You should’ve seen your faces.

“Hook line and sinker, for every little stinker!”

“Josh,” Sam calls, desperate, “why are you doing this?”

“Don’t even ask this squirrelly little runt. He’s got no clue. He’s out of his fucking tree.” You blink when Mike makes his way over to you and Josh, slipping his hand gently around your arm and pulling you from Josh’s grasp. You notice the look of distraught and surprise on Josh’s face but don’t do anything about it, glad to be out of his grasp. “I mean, you hit your own fucking girlfriend. What the fuck, man.”

You meet Josh’s eyes, and you know he’s eyeing the bruised spot on your cheek.

“Well, he’s definitely off his meds.” Chris concludes.

“Aw, come on, you guys,” Josh calls, as if surprised by your none-too-impressed response. “Revenge is the best medicine.”

But I didn’t even prank Hannah. I... I tried to stop them. I tried to help her...

“You’re done!” Mike demands, shaking his head.

“Mike,” you call softly, shaking your head. “He’s sick.”

“What?” Josh mumbles, “come on, you guys are all gonna thank me when you become internet sensations!”

“Wa-Wait, what?”

“Oh you better believe this is little puppy going viral ladies and germs.” Josh exclaims, an excited glint to his eyes. “I mean... we got, we got unrequited love. We got... we got blood! I don’t think there’s enough hard drives in China to-to count all the views we’re gonna get, you guys.”

“What are you talking about, you ass-hat?” Mike demands. “Jessica is FUCKING DEAD!”

Maybe it’s wrong of you, maybe it’s biased, especially after all he’s done, but as you glance over at Josh, something tells you he’s genuinely surprised. Genuinely upset. That what Mike just said, he hadn’t had any part of it.

“What?”

“Did you hear him?” Mike asks, circling around the table to quickly make his way over to Josh. Jessica is dead and you are gonna fucking pay you dick!”

-

“You only see what you wanna see. You’re blind!”

With great reluctance, you’d managed to convince Chris and Mike to let you come with them to tie Josh up. They tried to convince you to stay back with the other girls, that it would be safer for you. But, even after all he done, to you and the others, you still cared for Josh. And you weren’t about to just leave him. Not now, when he was clearly so sick.

“Stop talking!” 

You wince as Mike shoves Josh to the ground, pulling unceremoniously on his tied wrists and he presses him against the snowy ground. “You are-- argh!”

“Dude--” Chris calls out.

“It’s not my fault you suckers can’t take a joke.”

“That wasn’t a joke, Josh,” you mumble, thought you’re not sure if he even really hears you.

Mike presses his knee into Josh’s back, eliciting a small yelp from the latter’s lips. “Oh, did I hurt you?” Mike taunts, still pointing the gun at his head. “Did you just... did you feel a little bit of pain? Right now? I am so... so, so sorry!”

“Stop it!”

Rushing forward, you grab Mike by the arm, pulling. It only knocks him back a little bit, and he turns to stare at you in disbelief. “Y/N, what are--”

“I understand you’re mad and hurt but... just please,” you whisper, “stop.”

“Y/N, he killed Jessica,” Mike explains, eyes lighting with anger at the memory. You frown as he explains, your chest twisting in guilt though you’re not exactly sure why. You didn’t do anything. You weren’t at fault. But yet, you still felt guilty. And even more so, you still felt the need to defend your boyfriend. “I mean, he fucking punching you in the face. Aren’t you mad?”

“Of course I am,” you explain, shaking your head as you scarcely avoid Josh’s gaze. “Just... just tie him up and stop. Please.”

You step back and Mike’s eyes wander on you for a moment longer before complying, standing up to help pull Josh against the nearest poll. Of course, Josh decides to speak. “Michael... man, i’m sorry. I can’t tell you how sorry I am that something happened to Jessica but I swear, I swear to you I have no idea what happened to her...”

“Josh?” Chris calls, “be honest with me. Do you expect us to trust you for a single goddamn second after all the shit you put us through?”

Letting out a low chuckle, Josh head rolls as he mumbles out; “can’t we all just get along?”

-

Mike tried to convince you to go back with Chris. But, like before, you refused.

So, now, here you were, sat in front of Josh, not really sure what to say. Mike was stood by the entrance of the cabin, keeping his distance out of respect but you could feel his eyes wander over to you every few minutes just to make sure you were okay even if Josh’s hands were tied. You didn’t blame his mistrust of Josh, and part of you would like to say that Josh would never hurt you but after everything that’s happened... you weren’t so sure anymore.

He already had, first off. But Josh was also so far gone that you’ve never seen him this bad before. It was a sight you’ve never wanted to see either. And a sight you’d worked so hard to help prevent. All those months, those long nights you’d spent with him, trying to make him better. You wouldn’t change anything and you’d do it all again, you just thought... you thought if he’d gotten this bad he would come to you.

Instead of... this.

“Y/N.” Eyes falling shut at the sound of Josh’s voice, you hesitate on glancing up at him, heart pounding madly against your chest. “Y/N/N.”

Blinking, you glance up at him with a huff, shaking your head. “What, Josh?”

“Are you mad at me?”

You pause for a moment, wondering if he’d really just asked that. But then you take in the dazed expression on his face, the distant look in his eyes, and all you’ve heard. Standing there and listening as he made fun of his own best friend, teased him about Ashley after all he’d forced Chris and her to endure. Or to talk about Jessica like that, not only in front of you, but to Mike when she was... dead.

He was so clearly gone, you knew he didn’t really understand the severity of what he was doing.

Because the Josh you knew, the one you’d fallen in love with, wasn’t like this. And he never would’ve done this to his own friends if he was in the right state of mind.

That, you knew.

“No,” you sigh, “no, Josh, i’m not mad.”

He frowns, eyes drooping. “You look mad.”

Inhaling deeply, you let your head drop, the tip of your head resting on his forehead. “What have you done, Josh?” You whisper, voice faint, raspy. “You went too far.”

Josh doesn’t say anything. And after a moment, you dare to glance up at him, finding that he hadn’t looked away from you and instead, was just frowning down at you. The sight of it breaks your heart, even if you feel like it shouldn’t. You felt conflicted, stuck, because he’d done so many horrible things and said some too, but yet, as you looked at him; this broken-hearted, out-of-his-mind boy that you loved, your heart broke for him.

“It’ll be okay, Josh.” You soothe softly, even if you know it won’t. “We’ll figure it out.”

He nods and his lips part to speak, but the sound of a shrill scream echoes. It causes you to jump to your feet, spinning round to face Mike who quickly makes his way over to you. 

“What was that?”

“I don’t know,” Mike shakes his head. “It sounded like it came from the lodge.”

You eye Mike, frowning.

“We’ve gotta to check on everyone.”

Glancing back at Josh, you shake your head. “I can’t leave him.”

“Y/N--”

“You go,” you encourage, nodding at him. “I’ll be okay.”

Mike hesitates, his eyes narrowing in concern as he shakes his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Y/N. It’s not safe for you--”

“I’ll be fine,” you assure, cutting him off as you send him a sharp look. “I just can’t leave him, Mike. I’m sorry.”

Frowning, Mike’s shoulders fall. “Even after all he’s done?”

Glancing back at Josh, you sigh, shoulders falling.

“Even after all he’s done.”

-

Let me know what you thought?

[hopevalley]

Season 8, Episode 4: Welcome to Hope Valley

Another fun episode, everyone. I’m finding that, this season, I’m genuinely looking forward to each episode. Let’s hope things stay that way!

--

Scene 1: Awkward Library Encounter

Elizabeth walks in on Lucas sleeping in the library early in the morning; he stayed up all night and didn’t go to bed.  He tells Elizabeth that he managed to save the oil derrick before it was ruined in the fire, and I’m sure he was trying to make the numbers come out in the books and all that. Elizabeth is there to get some books to give to the Canfield children since everyone else is bringing stuff over to welcome them to town.

It’s a pretty awkward scene, probably because he was mean to Elizabeth last episode (though nothing he said was untrue lol). They then talk about Nathan’s trial a little bit, but it doesn’t really go anywhere beyond Lucas saying that “evidentially” Nathan was not “entirely” exonerated. 

--

Scene 2: The Canfields

Elizabeth brings over the books. Apparently they’re from Jameson. Angela is blind and is schooled at home by Minnie, her mother. Minnie asks Elizabeth if she wants to stay for breakfast, but Elizabeth politely declines as school is starting soon. Elizabeth makes it clear that Angela is welcome at school, too, but Minnie cuts her off and thanks her; it’s very clear this is not an idea she’s willing to entertain.

Not much to say about this scene. I would die for the Canfields.

--

Scene 3: The Train Station

Lee and Rosemary meet Lee’s sister Susannah and niece Rachel. They’re in Hope Valley for three days. It comes off a little silly because they were no doubt on the train longer than three days, but...eh. It’s all good. Rachel is cute and thought the train ride was...divine.

--

Scene 4: Inquiry Part One

Bill is on the “witness stand” in the inquiry “trial” and he details the events of the prisoner transfer. The short version of this is that Bill did not see the woman discharge her gun; he was looking at the mountie who had drawn his. Hargraves suggests that perhaps the woman fired her rifle due to Nathan’s actions—actions Bill was incapable of seeing.

This is probably the first scene we get where it’s incredibly clear that Superintendent Hargraves just straight-up has it out for Nathan. Meh.

--

Scene 5: Infirmary

Carson is looking for his stethoscope but it’s around his neck. He’s been called away to assist in a modern surgery. Carson tells Faith that they’ll figure things out and Faith admits that right now it feels like they either have to stop working together, or stop seeing each other, and she doesn’t like either option. Carson suggests a date to talk things over when he comes back from his trip.

Molly interrupts them about to kiss, and tells Faith it sounds like they’re working things out. Faith admits that it feels like the status of their relationship changes from minute to minute. Molly...then...asks...Faith for her advice?

Like if Faith isn’t that secure in her relationship, why ask her? My only thought would be that Faith would keep it to herself...unlike some other women in town lol.

--

Scene 6: Barber Shop

Jesse and Mike deliver some small things to the barbershop and we get exposition about how Jesse is in the doghouse after the whole motorcycle thing. I want to say this is a good scene because it continues the flow of the last episode (and we get to see what happens), but... I dunno. It was just okay, I guess.

--

Scene 7: Thirsty Rachel

Rachel and Susannah make it to town and Rachel is a thirsty girl. Specifically for Jesse when he walks by.

I kind of hope this isn’t a “plot” that’s dropped suddenly, but...eh.

--

Scene 8: Fort Clay

Allie is afraid of what will happen to Nathan and tells Elizabeth that she’s worried because Nathan’s been in trouble before; he was suspended when he was stationed at Fort Clay. Fort Clay was Jack’s last post, and nobody seemed to know that that was where Jack was last stationed. Big shocks all around.

This would be...more believable if it hadn’t been three years, and if we didn’t have the most obnoxious man in the world in town already who would have looked into Nathan’s past before trusting him fully. (Hint: I’m talking about Bill.)

I just find it super hard to believe that Bill wouldn’t know this lol. I guess we have to assume that if Bill did look, he only looked at Nathan’s last posting (Ft. Simpson) and didn’t go back to the previous post before that, which was Ft. Clay.

--

Scene 9: Elizabeth talks to Joseph

Elizabeth speaks with Joseph about the kids. She wants him and Minnie to know that Angela is welcome at school for real...and Joseph says he knows, but Minnie is protective of Angela and would prefer to keep schooling her herself.

Elizabeth talks about wanting to learn how to teach a blind student and says she understands why Joseph and Minnie are protective of Angela, but...Joseph tells her she doesn’t actually know, and that he doesn’t expect her to really understand it. He’s exceedingly kind in the way he states this, too. Like he knows Elizabeth grasps the basic concept, but cannot see the whole picture. He’s right, of course. Elizabeth literally cannot understand it.

--

Scene 10: Inquiry Part Two

Nathan gets raked over the coals some more, and him and Hargraves are kind of rude to one another. Bill tries to act as Nathan’s lawyer even though it’s not a court of law. Bill objects to Hargraves’ questions to the point where all the men are at each other’s throats and they call a recess.

It’s kind of nice to see Bill being unreasonable for the right reasons, actually. He so rarely gets to do that anymore... Feels good, feels organic, thank you.

--

Scene 11:Early Dinner

Susannah is a joyless strict woman I guess, and Elizabeth confides in Rosemary that she heard Nathan was stationed at Ft. Clay. Elizabeth feels bad about Nathan never telling her the truth about it and Rosemary suggests that...maybe Nathan didn’t want to bring up something that would be hurtful to her. Elizabeth thinks maybe there’s something he’s not telling her though-- like a reason he wouldn’t want to bring it up.

--

Scene 12: Bill talks to Nathan

Bill confronts Nathan about the “incident” where he was suspended at Fort Clay, and the short version is: Nathan disobeyed the newly promoted Hargraves’ orders and acted on his own. He made the arrests himself but Bill is firmly on Hargraves’ side in that Nathan still disobeyed orders.

Bill admits that it doesn’t sound like the Andrew Hargraves he knew, but Nathan reminds Bill that he knew Hargraves before he was promoted. Bill asks Nathan if he ever met Jack and Nathan says he did not ever have the honor.

It seems clear there’s something more going on there... My guess is that Nathan was part of the team that recovered the bodies of the men that died (specifically Jack’s).

Anyway, Bill tells Nathan he should get some sleep and be ready to come in swinging when they reconvene in the morning. “And this time, take my advice!” This confused me at first, but he means that Nathan should take the advice he literally just gave him: to get sleep and come in swinging.

--

Scene 13: Early Dinner

Gustav tells Lucas he’s spending too much time trying to manage the oil business: “When a man wears two hats, one is sure to fall off.” This comes up because Lucas thought he did the ordering for the saloon but didn’t.

Rachel calls a meal “delish” to the annoyance of her mother. (Delish was in print in 1920 at least, and was probably used well before that, so this is not as inaccurate as it might feel.)

There’s some awkward conversation about Rachel’s future (she wants to do something exciting). It’s the worst.

--

Scene 14: Jesse and Clara

Jesse and Clara have a chat about buying things without talking to one another first and everything is okay and fine again. 

The camera pans over to Nathan and Allie. He tells her he’ll always be there for her and that’s...that.

--

Scene 15: The Motorcycle

Lee tries to sneakily get on the motorcycle to avoid spending time with his uptight sister. Rosemary tells him that she’s sure Susannah wants to ask them something. Lee tells her it’s really none of their business how Susannah raises Rachel.

--

Scene 16: Cooper Goes to School

Cooper gets introduced to the class and the Canfields sit outside listening in on it. He tells the class about his sister. Angela confesses to wanting to play with kids her own age. She’s lonely. Minnie is worried about how the other kids are going to treat Angela, but Joseph feels Hope Valley will be different.

Minnie promises to think about it.

This makes me excited for the potential of a friendship between Angela and Allie. ;o;

--

Scene 17: Inquiry Part Three

Nathan doesn’t try very hard in the courthouse tbh. Bill makes his chair thud loudly so that he can find an opening to speak his mind. “It’s not an objection...you just happened to all be looking my way, so...”

He says it’s possible if Nathan had complied with the woman’s order to release her brother, that they all could have died.

Nathan seems...slightly amused by this?

--

Scene 18: Piano Woman

Angela climbs up on the wagon to play the piano and it’s nice. There isn’t much else to this scene but there didn’t really need to be much else. It’s clear Angela has a passion for music.

--

Scene 19: Molly’s Glow-Up

At the dress shop, Molly tries on the dress Dottie sent over from Union City but feels uncertain about it. Rachel suggests a necklace & sash to complete the look. She admits to Rosemary she’s trying to catch someone’s eye, and Faith tells her she will, looking like that!

Molly decides to buy it.

Rosemary tells Rachel to find something she likes in the shop, and that she can wear something from it.

--

Scene 20: Piano Part Two

Jesse and Elizabeth take Cooper home as Jesse was planning to help Joseph move his piano. Elizabeth seems moved by Angela’s playing. I have to admit I like this scene specifically for the fact that music would be a very popular and enjoyable pastime at this time period because there wasn’t a lot else to keep a person occupied, so it was nice to see it here.

Elizabeth has a heart to heart with Minnie about Angela. Minnie admits she wants Angela to feel safe and encouraged and also tells Elizabeth that she doesn’t understand how cruel people can be. Elizabeth says that wouldn’t be allowed in her classroom (which is silly cause if people say shit, she can’t take that back even if she disciplines a child, you know what I mean?).

But she also tells Minnie that she’ll never stop trying to understand how things are for Angela, or for Minnie, and she won’t stop trying to help. I think Minnie kind of ‘gets it’ but isn’t ready to let go just yet.

--

Scene 21: Tension at the Coulters

Rosemary brings Rachel home wearing the Freedom-Alls (and a lot of makeup). Susannah tells her to change right away. Rosemary tries to intervene and Susannah says that Rachel will be working her the family store. Lee tells Susannah not to talk to Rosemary like that. Everyone is upset. 

--

Scene 22: Bill Confronts Hargraves

While Ned and Florence are on a date in the background, Bill confronts Hargraves about doing the right thing instead of just trying to end Nathan’s career out of some petty grudge he’s feeling. 

I think this scene functions specifically to show us that Hargraves doesn’t actually think he’s being petty, or that he’s abusing his position of power, but part of what Bill is telling him is helping him to see that that’s what he’s doing. It just doesn’t click until later.

Bill storms out of the room only barely acknowledging Molly as he leaves.

It clearly hurts her feelings and Florence rushes over to tell her how hot she looks. Molly’s like, “Yeah I know, I’m hungry and looking amazing. Let’s eat.” And then says “When it comes to Bill it’s all about the long game.”

I need me some of that confidence.

--

Scene 23: Susannah Apologizes

Susannah apologizes for speaking that way to Rosemary (first to Lee and then to Rosemary herself). She then asks Lee and Rosemary to let Rachel live with them for a little while, because she feels they can do better for Rachel than she can, since she’s so much different than Rachel is.

Lee doesn’t want to agree to it, but the answer is an instant yes from Rosemary.

Awkward.

On the plus side, they do talk about how when Susannah was Rachel’s age, she was a caretaker already for their father and never had a chance to live a youthful life. That was a nice touch.

--

Scene 24: Allie’s Speech

Allie tells Elizabeth she’s gonna bust into the courtroom and give them a piece of her mind and Elizabeth doesn’t try to stop her... she just...kind of lets it happen.

Allie busts in just as Hargraves is about to read his recommendation (a two page long spiel). 

Allie says Nathan is all she has and he’s like a father to her. Elizabeth gently coaxes Allie out of the room while everyone looks either moved or uncomfortable lol. Hargraves puts down his speech and decides to drop the inquiry. Lol.

I really wish we’d gotten a scene with Bill and Hargraves after this, just to get more insight into that... but eh. I already posted my minor nitpicks on the scene.

--

Scene 25: Susannah Leaves

That’s the scene lol. She apologizes a little to Rachel for not being better. But it’s mostly a wholesome little scene. Lee seems really NOT on board letting Rachel live with them, though. Yikes.

--

Scene 26: Carson Returns

Carson brings back a gift for Faith and it’s a doctor bag embroidered with her name. Very nice. It would be more meaningful of a gift if he’d gotten it for her well before the whole “not treating her equally” thing.

--

Scene 27: Molly

Molly is standing outside and Florence approaches her to ask what’s up. Molly tells her that she’s outside ‘cause Carson came back and Florence tells her that she needs her own office.  I really do like the way these two talk.

Florence tells Molly again that she looked amazing last night (GAY!!!! I mean, I’d ship it) and Molly says “I did, didn’t I?”

Bill walks by and greets them and then says, “Molly, that was some dress.”

The best part is Florence’s face.

Molly says, “$23.00 well spent!” and they walk off together.

Hey y’all, $23.00 in 1918 is $400.00 today. Yikes?

--

Scene 28: Jinx! Buy me a soda!

Clara and Fiona run into each other and say something at the same time, so they both also say, “Jinx, buy me a soda!”

I literally could not find any information about the history of this saying, though one person did say it dated at least back to 1913 when their great-grandmother would say, “Snap! You owe me a soda!” It feels more 1950s to me than rural 1918 speech, so I personally would not have included this phrase in the writing just for that reason, but...I guess at least it has energy to it.

Fiona mentions that she’s going to visit her family and suggests maybe Clara could run the barber shop while she’s gone.

--

Scene 29: Elizabeth and Lucas, and also Nathan on the Side

Elizabeth decides to be the first to reach out. She apologizes to Lucas for hurting him and he accepts her apology but tells her he had no right to be mean to her.  He apologizes too.

She tells him that she told Nathan she can’t give him what he wants and she won’t be seeing him anymore. So Lucas asks what that means for the two of them, and she says they’ll have to see.

Lucas seems very pleased about that.

Nathan approaches Elizabeth and she tells him that she knew the Mounties would reach the right decision and asks him why he never told her that he was stationed at Ft. Clay. 

He says he meant to tell her but after so much time had passed he didn’t know how to bring it up. He tells her he never met Jack but is kind of evasive about it, which again suggests he did meet him...just possibly...not when Jack was alive.

I still feel it’s going to be that he recovered the body or something like that. Oh, or worse, that he recovered Jack from the landslide but he wasn’t dead yet and possibly even died in front of Nathan.

I really hope if they go that route that Jack didn’t say anything about Elizabeth to Nathan, because that would...make things really weird.

--

This episode had fewer scenes in it than the other episodes, and did more “sweep camera over to the next scene so that the transition is seamless” and that kind of camerawork is really...working for me. It looks nicer and helps things feel less disjointed. You might also have noticed we have fewer massive closeups and a lot more long/wide shots (of people walking or sitting together). I’m really enjoying that, too.

I hope y’all’re looking forward to the next episode as much as I am. :)

[severetimetravelnerd]

Hatred and Love (ft. G Dragon) Mafia AU

Part 14

Jiyong realises something very important.

(I don’t own any of the images used. All credit goes to the original owners.)

Taglist:

@unabashedturkeytreeslime​

@happiestgirlontheeastcoast​

@kwonnansi​

@aarfyie​

@suhappysuho​

If there is anyone else who would like to be tagged, you can comment or leave me a message :))

I only write on this blog on tumblr, so if you see my work on any other platform, please let me know immediately.

Now, things are coming to a close. It has appearances from Daesung, Taeyang, TOP, Mino, Hanbin and EXO (mostly Kai). This continues with the EXO storyline, but again, I have nothing against EXO :)) I love them, but I had to use someone for the plot. This chapter has a lot of Suho. It also has a good amount of Xiumin:))

This is the last part of the series and I’m so sorry it took me so long to upload it :(((( I know it’s been ages, but after all of this, I just blanked out when it came to the ending. Thanks for supporting me and following the story :)) I’m going to miss this one :))

Warnings: Violence, Death(not main character), Injury, Blood, Eventual smut, Abduction, Guns and Knives, language. 

————————————————————————–

You had no idea what to expect. You turned to Jiyong, eyebrows raised, wondering what Joonmyeon could possibly want, but Jiyong looked just as stumped as you. He was also way angrier. His eyes immediately became cold and hard. 

“What does that fucker want now?” 

You gently took his hand, trying to calm him down. 

“Let’s go into this with an open mind? Maybe he wants to come up with some sort of agreement?” 

Jiyong tried to conceal his anger but that didn’t work very well. His jaw was absolutely taut when he spoke. 

“Y/N, he wants to fuck things up somehow. Why else would he want you there? You’re the one person I’m scared of disappointing.”

 You planted a light kiss on his cheek, instantly making him relax.

 “Then maybe that’s a good thing. You won’t do anything that would disappoint me.” 

He sighed, but he kissed you back.

 “You’re right, Y/N. You’re the only person I can stay calm for.”

The two of you walked into Jongin’s room, that had been turned into a makeshift conference room. Joonmyeon was there in a wheelchair. Yixing and Sehun were also there with their hands bound, both flanked by Hanbin and Mino, making sure neither of them try something funny. Jiyong took his place at the head of the table, prepared to let Joonmyeon start, but Joonmyeon looked up straight at you. Still looking at you, he said, 

“No Jiyong. That seat isn’t for you. That seat is for her. Your side of the table is over there.” 

Jiyong stretched his neck, unable to believe what Joonmyeon just told him. You were also in complete shock. Why would he want you at the head of the table? Before you could overthink it, Joonmyeon said, 

“I want Y/N to be the head and mediator of this meeting. She can guide us towards a merger.” 

His eyes were thrown at you, as though daring you to take up the challenge, daring you to mess up. Jiyong eyes turned dark with pure, unadulterated rage and he was about to step in when you met Joonmyeon’s gaze. This guy had messed with you one too many times. You had had enough.

 “Okay Joonmyeon. I will.” 

Every single head in the room whipped towards you, wondering what you were playing at. Jiyong, still in shock, quietly got up and went to his seat. You sat down, slowly crossing your legs. Your eyes were so determined, they were nearly piercing through Joonmyeon. No one there had ever seen you that way before. Not even when they first abducted you. Staring straight at him, you began. 

“Well, Joonmyeon, what did you want to discuss?”

 Your gaze was hostile, openly challenging him to try and mess with you. Joonmyeon hated it. He hated that he felt so guilty about harming you and Jongin. He hated that he owed you his life. He hated that he couldn’t completely hate you. This was just his way of trying to find reasons to hate you. But none of this struggle showed on the outside. Eyes cold and calculating, he said, 

“If we’re doing a merger, only I have control over my men.”

 Even before he finished the sentence, you could feel the anger and the protests from the rest of the room, including EXO, but you silenced them all with a glare. Joonmyeon just wanted to make things messy and you wouldn’t let him. Jiyong snarled when he heard that, but he calmed down when he looked at you there, his grip on his gun slowly loosening. Your voice was quiet but firm when you spoke. 

“Joonmyeon, I don’t think you understand your position. You asked for a merger. Not a partnership. With a merger, you become part of an organisation and work the same way the organisation had worked. So, no. You won’t be the only person to have control over your troops. You will be at the level assigned to you. And you will have to report to Jiyong.” 

Joonmyeon already knew all of that, but he just wanted to get a rise out of you. Nonchalantly stretching, he said,

 “Okay, but I’m second in command.”

 That was too much for Jiyong to bear and he scoffed. He threw his head back to laugh and then he slammed the table. His voice was dangerously detached when he did speak. 

“Joonmyeon, is this a joke to you?”

 You saw the glint in Joonmyeon’s eyes. He was happy he succeeded in getting a rise out of Jiyong. He felt that it somehow validated his behaviour and his deep-rooted hatred for them, although he knew they weren’t that bad. You had saved his life. Jiyong saved his men. He was just clutching at straws to justify his behaviour. You were determined to not give him those straws. You would make him realise that there wasn’t any justification for his behaviour. He would take accountability and realise where he went wrong, so that he could go back to being himself, instead of being obsessed with taking Jiyong down. Your hand quietly wrapped around Jiyong’s hand, silently urging him to not say anything. Jiyong eyes flashed, and he glared at you, annoyed that you were telling him to not react, but he kept quiet anyway. You tried to look at Joonmyeon, but he was refusing to look at you. He didn’t want to make eye contact. He could only put up the act as long as someone didn’t see through him. You tried to get him to peacefully meet your gaze, but when he absolutely refused to, you resorted to desperate measures. Standing up, you grabbed his chin and forced him to look straight at you. Your voice was still calm when you said,

 “Joonmyeon, you and I both know that’s not going to happen. You might not even get a commanding post for a while, because you, Yixing and Sehun have to prove your loyalties first. How are we supposed to trust you after everything that happened? You turned on Jongin. Why wouldn’t you do that again?” 

Joonmyeon could feel this crushing pain when you said that. He didn’t want to accept that he did that, but there was no other way to it. Joonmyeon lost all fight when you said that. You had seen through him. He quietly slipped out of your grasp and turned to Jongin, bowing deeply before saying, 

“Jongin, I’m sorry.” 

Jongin sat there, on his bed, in complete and utter shock. Joonmyeon hyung never apologised, especially not in front of other people. He was too in shock to say anything. Heart sinking even further, Joonmyeon turned to you, bowed and apologised. He then looked up and for the first time, his eyes were genuine. 

“Thank you for saving my life Y/N.”  

Everyone other than Minseok was in shock. Minseok had the slightest smile on his face. 

“Maybe we will get out Joonmyeon back after all.” 

Sehun and Yixing were both furious, and they were about to protest it, and Hanbin and Mino were ready to supress it, but you beat them to it. Voice cool, you said,

 “To prove their loyalty, Joonmyeon, Yixing and Sehun will work directly under Minseok and Youngbae for the next three months to start with. They’ll work on the Hongdae area.”

 Joonmyeon’s head shot up when he heard you. You were giving them control over Hongdae? The area that they’d been fighting for? Joonmyeon’s eyes teared up a little. He would finally get to take care of his sister’s grave. Joonmyeon immediately bowed before you. Yixing and Sehun were too shocked to do anything except stare at you in disbelief.

 “Thank you, Y/N. You don’t know how much this means to me.” 

You had the slightest smile on your face when you replied, 

“You’re welcome Joonmyeon.”

Jiyong sat there watching all the events unfold, feeling detached. He didn’t mind that you were making decisions for him. he knew the others wouldn’t mind either. He knew it was only because of you that they managed to resolve things with Joonmyeon. But he was more worried about the other things. The slight tremble in your hands from dealing with this. Your pale and tired face. Your tendency to flinch slightly when people make sudden movements. The near imperceptible tremor in your voice. You weren’t used to this, and it scared you. He felt awful. You didn’t deserve this. You had been through so much. You needed a break. And he would make sure you got one. For the first time in his life, Jiyong decided he would take a break with you. It wasn’t because he wanted to take a break, but more because you needed him around. As weird as it was, although Jiyong was the one drawing you into this world, your only way to feel better about everything was around him. And also, for the simple reason that he missed you, and couldn’t stand being away from you any longer. He was staring at you, making up his mind about exactly what to do when you turned to him.

 “Jiyong, that’s okay right?” 

He didn’t hear you. He had zoned you out, wondering how he got so lucky as to have you in his life. He would protect that at all costs. He would protect you at all costs. He would protect your happiness at all costs. You raised your eyebrows, wondering why he didn’t reply. You mentally scolded yourself for shooting your mouth off like that without talking to him first. You turned to Jiyong, much more nervous. 

“Jiyong? All okay, Love?” 

The vibe of the meeting had changed. Everything was much more relaxed. Sehun was trying hard not to cry, Yixing was apologising to everyone, Jongin was playfully guilt-tripping a very apologetic Joonmyeon about his injuries. But when you said that, everyone turned to Jiyong, a little nervous. He had a rather…intimidating reputation. Youngbae was the only one who was sure Jiyong would be okay with it. He was more interested in watching the drama between you and Jiyong unfold. Jiyong just stared at you, looking at him nervously. There was one thing that was different about you. No matter how nervous you were at that moment, there was no fear in your eyes. You looked at him trustingly, knowing fully well that no matter how dangerous a man he is, he would never hurt you. Ever. Jiyong didn’t bother answering your question. Jiyong just stood up, leaned over the table, grabbed your face and kissed you. A deep, hungry kiss. All his longing, all his fears, all his worries were in that. He deepened the kiss because as he felt your soft hands gently caress his bruised knuckles and kiss him back, he realised that there was something he needed to do. He needed to meet his grandmother.

You were very surprised when you were pulled up from your seat and kissed like there was no tomorrow, but you kissed him back equally longingly. You had missed him. You had never stopped worrying about him. You were right. You didn’t know whether there was going to be a tomorrow. You kissed him until you felt like you had the feel of his lips committed to memory. Cheers erupted all around you, although the two of you were quite oblivious to it. Hanbin rolled his eyes, laughing at the two of you while Jongin whistled. Hanbin leaned over and muttered to Jongin. 

“Thank god the two of them are back together. I didn’t think it was possible, but they’re more annoying on their own.”

 Jongin scoffed. 

“Hanbin, I can see that you’re tearing up.”

Jiyong pulled away first, both of you gasping for breath. You blushed at all the hooting boys around you, some newer than others, but all equally determined to embarrass you. Jiyong didn’t even bother to acknowledge the hooting. He just turned to Youngbae and whispered something in his ear, making you look at him quizzically. He turned to give you a quick, reassuring smile before speaking. 

“Okay. Now that the merger is done, I have an announcement. I’m going to be away for a month. Youngbae is second in command. Don’t try to reach me unless it’s absolutely urgent.” 

Your heart fell. He was going to be away for a month. After everything. When you had just gotten back together. You had missed him so much. But you tried your best to not let your face fall, sticking a weak smile on your face. If he was leaving, it had to be important. You would talk to him about it in private. Everyone nodded except Hanbin. Hanbin was pouting when he said,

 “Who’s after Youngbae hyung?” 

Jiyong froze for a second, staring at Hanbin before sighing and answering. 

“Seunghyun hyung.” 

“After him?”

 “Daesung.”

 “After him?” 

“Minseok.”

 Minseok looked surprised while Hanbin’s pout deepened.

 “Hanbin, are you really going to make me list this out in order?”

 “Yes.” 

Jiyong glared at him and answered. 

“Then it’s Mino. Then it’s Jongdae. Then it’s Baekhyun. Then Chanyeol. Then it’s you. Then it’s Jongin. Then it’s Kyungsoo. Then it’s Joonmyeon, Yixing and Sehun. In that order.”

 While the others laughed at Hanbin arguing with Jiyong, you struggled to keep that smile on your face. Jiyong playfully glared at the rest of the room before grabbing your hand and walking out of the room. Your heart sank even more. He was going to say bye. He was going to leave again. You were staring at the floor, letting yourself get lost in your thoughts when he tilted your head up and beamed at you, the smile leaving quickly when he saw that you weren’t smiling. 

“What’s wrong love?” 

You bit down on your trembling lips and looked away, not wanting to make him feel worse. He gently cupped your face and made you look at him. 

“Talk to me Y/N. Tell me what’s wrong.”

 You took a deep breath.

 “I’m just going to miss you Jiyong.”

 He looked terrified. 

“Why? Why’re you going to miss me? Are you leaving me?” 

You stared at him confused. 

“No. You’re going somewhere, remember?”

 Jiyong’s brows knitted together in confusion before he laughed and pulled you into a hug. 

“Sweetheart, if you think I’m going anywhere without you after not having seen you for the past month, you’re in for a surprise.”

 It took a while for it to hit you, but when you finally realised he wasn’t leaving, you hugged him tight, burying your face in his chest. You looked up at him, confused.

 “You mean I’m coming with you on work?” 

He leaned in and nibbled on your ear, pressing a light kiss against your neck before saying,

 “No. I mean we’re going on a holiday.”

 Two weeks later, you lay down on the plush bed in Jiyong’s hidden away holiday home, buried under the blankets and wearing his hoodie, so utterly happy with how everything just felt right. You closed your eyes and buried deeper into the bed, enjoying the warmth of it. You felt the bed dip as you heard Jiyong’s sleepy morning voice.

 “Good morning love. I got you your tea.”

 He sat and was about to sip his tea when you crawled into his lap and wrapped your arms around his neck, snuggling into him. Amused, he asked,

 “Do you not plan on letting me drink my tea?” 

You took in a deep breath, letting Jiyong’s familiar scent wash over you.

 “Nope.’’

 “Do you plan on moving from here?”

 Pressing a light kiss against his smile, you said,

 “Nope.”

 You stared out of the balcony. It was 3 am on your last night there, and you were lost in thought while you stared at the stars. That one month was magical. You had Jiyong all to yourself, and both of you sat and worked through the problems in your relationship. You knew you loved him. You knew you wanted to spend the rest of your life with him. You knew you weren’t scared of him. You couldn’t live without him. You didn’t realise how windy it was until he walked out behind you, wrapping a blanket around you. He wrapped his arms around you and nuzzled into your neck. 

“Love, you have to be careful. You can’t stand out here in just my t shirt.” 

You turned around to face him, wrapping the blanket around the both of you. 

“Jiyong, you came out here in just your boxers. I don’t think you should be lecturing me.” 

He had this blissful smile as he kissed your forehead.

 “I couldn’t help it Y/N. I just needed to be out here with you.” 

You had the same blissful smile as you kissed him, letting yourself get lost in the kiss. He pulled away, suddenly looking nervous. 

“Y/N, I know we’re going back tomorrow, and I know I’ll get busy, but like we discussed, I promise I will always make time for you.” 

He paused to take a deep breath, desperately trying to calm down that rising feeling of nervousness in him. 

“I know you can do way better than me, and you deserve way better, but I promise I will always respect you, and I will do anything to make you happy. I’ve realised I can’t live without you, and I know this might be too sudden, and I don’t want to put any pressure on you, but you’re the only person I want to spend the rest of my life with and start a family with. So, Y/N L/N, will you do me the honour of marrying me?” 

You stared at him in shock for a minute, unable to comprehend what was going on before a single tear slipped down your face, and you burst into the largest smile you had in you. You nodded vigorously. 

“Yes, Kwon Jiyong, I would love to marry you.”

 Jiyong felt all the nervousness leave his body only to be replaced with an overwhelming, indescribable feeling of joy. There are no words for how he felt in that moment. And as he slipped on the beautiful ring his grandmother had given him to give you, he lifted you up and kissed you, knowing that everything finally felt right.