#I have so many thoughts but posting-wise I’m always head empty
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velvetwyrms · 1 month ago
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Wild that I’ve been on tumblr for over a decade and I still have no idea what to say on here ever.
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lostcauses-noregrets · 1 year ago
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Why is the answer always "Levi said this Levi did this" whenever one asks about the signs of Eruri in canon? Levi's side is pretty clear, but every time I talk to an Eruri and I ask "but why do you think Erwin loved Levi" the answer is very long but it's mostly empty and just "I am sure he did" or "but Levi loved him so Eruri is canon". Sorry this isn't a "hehehe your ship is one sided it's not canon" type of question. It's more of a writing-wise question, since you are a writer yourself I thought you'd give the best answer to this.
I am wondering, is this because of lack of Erwin's pov in aot manga or anime? I know Erwin is important and plays an important role and story revolves around him in s3 p2 and all that but when you look at the bigger picture he's mostly just there. He's in the story but you don't see his pov. We don't get to see the inside of his head until the end. Is this why "does Erwin love Levi" question is a hot topic in aot fandom always? Or are there any side stories like smartpass aus that suggest Erwin had feelings for Levi? I'm sorry I don't know those very well I only know the manga and the anime.
Lastly, I am sure you answered this before but my question is very specific, do you actually believe it was mutual? After all it's fiction and you don't need their love to be mutual to ship them. People ship characters who barely interact. It's what fandom is and that's totally normal and valid. I guess I am wondering if you ever doubted, th ship or even yourself which I do a lot (in a "oh I love this so much and I read so much fics I made myself believe" way) Thanks I hope this doesn't sound rude or offensive, my English isn't very good so if I sound rude that must be it it's not my intention :)
Ooof there’s  a lot of different questions here but I think they boil down to the following: 
Are Erwin and Levi’s feelings for each other mutual? / Does Erwin reciprocate Levi’s feelings?
Why do people question Erwin’s relationship to Levi? 
Do I personally believe their relationship was mutual, and have ever “doubted the ship”?
I’ve answered the first question many, many times over the years. You can read all my various answers here.  In short I do think that Erwin reciprocated Levi’s feelings and I think the evidence is there in the manga, the official guidebooks, the Smartpass stories, and the side content for anyone who cares to see it. I’m not going to list all the side content here, but there’s a very old post by @erbeansandravioli that links to a lot of it: Eruri receipts.
As to why people question Erwin’s relationship to Levi, well that’s an interesting one.  Some people clearly just don’t get Erwin’s character (see the previous ask I just answered), they don’t understand his role in the plot or the significance of his relationship to Levi.  For example I’ve seen people arguing passionately that Levi’s vow had nothing to do with Erwin, which is just mind boggling to me. It’s certainly true that Erwin is a much harder character to read than Levi who very much wears his heart on his sleeve.  Erwin is more reserved, and holds his cards closer to his chest.  However the fact that Levi is the only one who he reveals his true self to is significant. Daisuke Ono put it beautifully when he said in an interview that the amplitude of Erwin’s feelings is so great that it can be hard to see.  
It could also be that some, perhaps younger, readers just don’t recognise their relationship for what it is. It’s certainly not a typical shounen romance, but it is a deeply believable adult relationship; one that is based on mutual trust, respect and understanding. This is from a previous ask I answered on the subject:
It frustrates me enormously when people deny their canon relationship, despite Yams being at paints to explain it repeatedly in the guidebooks. I want to shake them and ask what the hell they think a relationship looks like when you’re an exhausted 30 + year old war veteran who has spent their entire life fighting for survival.  It looks like this; finding someone who you can trust with your life. If you were to ask me what characterizes a successful adult relationship I would say it’s exactly this; mutual trust, respect and understanding, and when push comes to shove, the willingness to do everything in your power to help the person you hold most dear, even if that means letting them go. 
And as to whether I’ve ever doubted the ship, the answer to that would be no, never.  Sure we’ve never seen them swear undying love in canon (though some would argue with that and point to Erwin’s "Arigatō Levi".) I wrote this in response to an ask about Eruri canonicity: 
Do you mean that you don’t believe they’re canon because we never see them kiss? Because they never marry?  Because the main focus of the story isn’t romance?  All those things are true, but in my opinion, they’re also not the only things that make a relationship canon.  Particularly when that relationship is between two war-weary 30 year old men who have been fighting for survival almost their entire lives. The irony is that, in some ways, Erwin and Levi’s relationship is actually quite conventional. They really do behave a bit like an old married couple.  They have a long standing relationship that has matured over many years, they have their own weird sense of humour, they’re not afraid to challenge each other, but they care about one another deeply, and they also trust each other unconditionally.  That’s all the canon evidence I need tbh.
Having said that, you are absolutely right that you don’t need any canon evidence to ship a couple.  Hell, I’ve had great fun written Hanji and Petra as a side ship and I don’t think they ever even interacted in canon.  In Erwin and Levi’s case though there is more than enough evidence in canon to attest to the significance of their relationship. 
Hope this answers your questions.
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seekers-who-are-lovers · 3 months ago
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The Keisoin Academy personalities from the Yatagarasu fan book (Part 1)
As it turned out there are so many info included on the fan book that describes the characters of the fourth book, “The Empty Coffin” (and “Volume 6: The Prosperous Ravens”). Like always, this is a rough translation, so apologies in advance. This is also to coincide with mangaka Natsumi Matsuzaki’s old new illustrations she posted recently in honour of the latest paperback release of “The Crows’ Green Feathers.”
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Haruma
Originating from the Eastern Territory
It is said that the hierarchy at the Keisoin is strict. Do you have any concerns about the senior-junior relationships?
Not at all! Especially since I am particularly favored by Yukiya, who is two years my senior, and he always kindly listens to my concerns if I have any.
Yukiya, renowned as the prodigy of the Keisoin! He declined my request for an interview. What kind of senior is he from a junior's perspective?
He is not only wise but also full of compassion, the best senior one could possibly imagine.
There are rumors that he is mean or has a bad personality. What do you think?
I think those who say such things are blind.
A word from Abe-san to Haruma.
Even the author doesn't quite understand why they became so enamored with Yukiya. It's probably not logical, more like love at first sight. If it's love at first sight, there's nothing you can do about it. *
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Seiken
Keisouin Instructor, Head of Academic Studies
I heard that the generation expected to graduate this term had quite a few problem children.
I don't quite understand what you mean by “problem children,” but I believe they are all kids who are seriously exploring the path they should take and are capable of making efforts.
I heard there were many fights and some even rebelled against the instructors?
That is true. However, when you have a group of children at that age, fights occur no matter the generation (laughs). I do not believe that students who don't fight or are obedient to instructors are necessarily good students. Furthermore, the fact that they can defy instructors is itself proof that Keisouin has become healthy. I am proud of such a Keisouin.
So, what if rowdy or delinquent individuals wish to join?
Bring them on. We look forward to them.
A word from Ms Abe to Seiken.
Although working as an instructor, which is his calling, he barely manages to appear as a decent Yatagarasu, but I think he is quite a dangerous person. He is by no means a saint. He appears calm, but is astute and fierce.
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Suikan
Former professor of the Keisoin Academy, in charge of Military Tactics' exercises
Is it true that Yukiya of the Northern family, a graduate of this term, suffered a major defeat in board training when he was a novice?
It is true.
From your perspective, is Yukiya from the Kita Family promising?
There is no doubt about his talent in military tactics. He will likely soon be regarded as the top strategist within the organization. In that sense, he can be considered promising, but personally, I hope that doesn't happen.
What do you mean by that?
(Laughing) It might sound like I’m sourgraping, but I'm speaking with the thought of emergencies in mind. In any case, I hope it doesn't come to a situation where he holds all the military power.
A word from Ms Abe to Suikan.
I admire (Midori) Suikan and aspire to become a professor like that, but as a teacher, he is still very inexperienced. He is in the process of being nurtured as a teacher by his students. Keep it up!
* So who has caught on Yukiya’s charms? There’s Nazukihiko/Wakamiya for one.
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m1ckeyb3rry · 8 months ago
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Ok I’m just gonna merge and put my response to both responses here so I don’t keep double sending stuff into your inbox LMAO
Tbh from what I’ve seen he’s still a pretty volatile player (maybe he’s got brother trauma too) so your kiyora probably cooks LOL
TRUE I do enjoy the Prince yuki duo…imagine Chris giving him tips on training to help him build up stamina so he doesn’t get as tired and strain his eyes as much I’m crying….pause Chris cameo in yuki oaeu….youre onto something
FS I lowk forgot about kurona for a min (sorry bro) but Reo’s physicality esp after the training with Chris would seriously up the plays that Isagi could make too omg I have to admit I’m mainly in it for the character development though LMAOO like Reo and Isagi becoming besties /hj Id honestly love to see them interact more on good terms because a good chunk of what we’ve seen now is Reo being like “Isagi give me back my loser” I dying with the nagi slander hiori would totally be like “if he can haul his ass out of bed to kick a ball maybe I should start moving too” but LMAOOOO I actually laughed out loud the “your mom” comment is BRUTAL I can totally see it happening like Kaiser crumples on spot gripping his next and Nagi’s just standing like wtf is “your mom” that powerful maybe I should try “deez nuts” next time (imagine he does and Kaiser just stares at him like wtf are you 12) Noel noa and Nagi being the ceos of no thoughts brain empty to the point that they have no other option and it forces a Nagi awakening…
I’m just imagining a mean girl powerpuff trio….i guess by color default Rins buttercup and hiori is bubbles so Nagi’s gotta be blossom LMAO I see the vision though
I can imagine asks being distracting especially since our convo is always so long LMAOO (I live for it though) Mira on that grind…flashbacks to your mention of that one baby Justin Bieber audio (I love how I can remember this but not whether or not I’ve sent in an ask)
OH IM WALKING ALRIGHT let’s go grab coffee while we’re at it I think you’re gonna wanna sit down for this convo…ok but wait this is actually dangerous you can’t just drop this thought into my mind and dip!! Yotd x bllk crossover…hold on….im ngl it has been a bit since I’ve watched but imagine aiku or Otoya as jaeha too…both personality wise and color…
Ok now kiyora notes response response LOL
OFCCC and tbh I figured you’d be on the mark with his character (as usual) LMAOO miraverse just too powerful…
Ok wait I think the street fighter thing fits with him perfectly…like he’s always raring to go with breakdance battles and whatnot so I can lowk see it? He lowk would be a street dancer I feel in bllkverse so not that far off in terms of vibes I feel…we also saw him straight up squaring up with Nagi (soccer wise though) in epinagi LMAO so definitely a relatively combative character
LMFAOOOO that panel is so funny but FR thinking back on epinagi where Karasu insinuates that Kiyoras the weak link of the team and kiyoras like “you wanna go bro??” it all makes sense…makes me more excited for epinagi though I wanna see how they interact mid match!! Maybe Karasu and Otoya really were carrying their team (as expected) I’m also crying because from the clip I saw the HEIGHT DIFFERENCE the top of kiyora head reaches like the middle of Karasu ear they really said “ok time to really show how small he is”
- Karasu anon
HAHA i’m abt to post in the next hour or so i hope so you can see for yourself 🙂‍↕️ also side note i can’t stop using the head nod emoji JFNSKKS
AWW no because chris somehow getting involved and teaming up w aiku too?? he gives very blustery sweet but embarrassing uncle vibes where he def has no clue what’s going on but he’s doing his best…gasses up yuki whenever he sees reader meanwhile aiku is giving yuki tips to pull…absolutely insane combo LMAOAO honestly the best part of the oaeu is how many random combos that i can write about (for example i think the premise of the nagi one is going to be that aiku’s going on a double date and he needs another guy who’s going to make him look good in comparison so he picks nagi who’s like tall/cute/athletic enough to not embarrass aiku but uninterested and weird enough to not steal aiku’s thunder but then he accidentally DOES steal aiku’s thunder so he becomes aiku’s opp 😭 aiku turns into the anti wingman fr meanwhile reo and chigiri are like “nagi likes a woman???” so they’re beefing w aiku as well because they need nagi to touch grass FJDJSJSJ)
EXACTLYYY it would help isagi develop as a player and reo develop as a person >>>> no because hiori is def like hold on if THIS idiot can enjoy himself playing maybeeee it’s not thatttt bad 😩 PLS nagi thinks kaiser is just weak to fortnite insults so he’s like “kaiser do you know what happened to candice” and kaiser is like ? who IS candice ? and nagi’s like “candice nuts fit in your mouth 🤣” kaiser considers ending it because wdym he has the most fuck ass immature teammate ever 😰 also wait imagine wildcard kunigami but with nagi instead of isagi 😭 he’s all emo and traumatized and nagi is just like wow you have big muscles it reminds me of barou 👍 or he’d accidentally bring up how he beat him in the 3v3 and it would make poor kuni spiral 😓 also a nagi + kunigami bm vs rin + shidou pxg feels like such an ultimate second selection get back like they def wouldn’t win because plot but it would be insane!! LMAOOO forget nagi developing a new ego because he’s creative or curious he’s forced to because noel noa is NOT abt to help him in any way shape or form 😟
LMAOOO no i love our convos but sometimes i have to just lock in 😩 HAHA the justin bieber audio is a miraverse staple like that’s literally me writing about sooo many random characters it’s unreal (but very enjoyable!!)
i thought abt otoya for jaeha but i feel like jaeha is more extroverted than otoya (plus ponytail) so i thought reo fit better!! although i can def see the aiku vision especially because jaeha is much older than all of the other dragons…also lowkey kaiser kinda serves soowon (cunty blond) it’s too perfect HAHA i’m just thinking yk 🤭
miraverse always ends up connected to canon even unintentionally 🤫 i do agree considering he likes when people provoke him it just made sense to me to put him in that au!! and yeahhh bro karasu is actually kinda mean to kiyora but honestly that’s just the tabito signature like love him but he is top ten assholes in bllk (he’s just joking around though so it’s okay) HAHA okay wait kiyora and i are almost the same height (he’s 165 cm and i’m 163 cm) so that’s good to know for ah…research purposes…hehe so basically i’d barely even come up to the middle of karasu’s ear 🤗 that checks out though because i knew a guy who was 6’3 (nagi’s height) and i deadass had to actively look up to talk to him it kinda made things awkward though because even hugging was lowkey a gymnastic endeavor 😭 i’m perfectly alright w lime 5’9 that’s still tall to me (also that’s otoya’s height i believe…so basically more proof that miraeita 🔛🔝‼️)
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flokali · 3 years ago
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post!imposter au where everyone is soooo desperate for your forgiveness. honestly, seeing so many of the genshin impact characters get on their knees and beg and cry for you had a sick and twisted sense of pleasure coursing through your veins.
so imagine telling zhongli that you would give liyue another chance if he became your disposable little sex toy. and the geo archon is already hard beyond belief, many of his fantasies coming to life as you stepped on his hard-on without a trace of shame, harshly rubbing your shoe against it. he comes a fucking lot and you have to punish him somehow once his cum stains your bare skin. he doesn't even remember why he was there in the first place, he just wants you to ride him until his balls are empty or rail him until his hole basically takes the shape of your cock. slap his face, tell him how stupid he is for not being able to recognize you as the real creator as he sobs sorries pathetically under you, coming for the nth time that night.
and imagine how whiney venti would be once he finds out about this. you should be fucking him!! not that boring old man!! please!! and he can act like he's doing it *for the sake of mondstadt* all he likes but you and morax know better. especially when he's humping your leg like a crazed, air-headed dog. he'd honestly be so desperate for you- i mean, your forgiveness, that he'd basically do anything that you ask of him.
alternative idea: everyone recognized you as the creator the moment you arrived in teyvat and months later you started a new custom in which you put hand-picked characters in a giant room and order all the characters to put on a show with each other (imagine all the ships, hehe) until you can eventually choose the best amongst them and add them to your new list of toys.
Warnings: yandere themes, sagau, gn! and dom reader, smut, mentions of cum, sub! venti and zhongli, implications of past mistreatment, jealousy, ask to tag.
Literally speechless at how big brained this concept is, like it’s genuinely god sent. This isn’t particularly long but just know I’m going to think about this everyday until I die.
18+ UTC
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Zhongli is immediately intrigued when he hears about a way for you to possibly forgive Liyue and its people, his heart still ached at the memories of your past treatment. He wondered how exactly it was he could possibly make it up to you, he’d be willing to do anything – he had told you so himself – but he never expected your request to be so lewd, nor did he realize how much he would like the sound of it either.
It’s uncharacteristic how fast he replies, even when it comes to you; a contract is a contract and he prides himself in always analyzing each and every single one he, himself, partakes in. Maybe, you tease, it’s because all the blood that normally circulated around his brain flowed straight down into his dick.
He had always been a bit shameful, some habits die hard; even the ones he’s had for thousands of years, even if it includes some from his younger and more, let’s say, aggressive youth. All this to say, Zhongli had always thought of what it’d be like to have sex with his beloved creator.
He doesn’t even remember how or when his clothes were torn off, the normally pristine suit he always wore was sullied with dust as he kneels in front of you, he can’t even remember when his hard on had grown so painful; all he knew was that your feet feel too good rubbing his cock. His face begins to twist into one of unrecognizable pleasure, his normally wise and pristine personality long since crushed under the intense bliss he was feeling in the moment.
It’s funny, you realize, how even when clothed you could feel the way he pulsated with every touch, his face was turning impossibly red as he let himself be toyed with, he couldn’t help the way his breathing began coming out as pathetic pants, you wondered if maybe this was something he’d always wanted; to become someone’s toy.
You doubted the shoes you were wearing were comfortable down there but he didn’t seem to mind as the wet patch in his pants grew in size and dampness, it was pitiful how easily worked up he was. Eventually, you let him take off his pants, which he does in a manner too sloppy to have come from a man such as Zhongli, and you son come face to face with his dick, and maybe it’s the sudden release from its confinement in Zhongli’s trousers, they always did appear to be quite tight, or maybe he had been close to shooting regardless, because soon enough you find splatters of cum in your skin. The pearly liquid is thick as you scoop it out from your arm and it’s not hard to look down at the archon with a questioning look.
You chuckle as you slowly remove your underwear and clothes; “Already coming, Mr Zhongli? I’m afraid you still have an awful lot to make up for…”
The news of your sexual randevouz with the Geo Archon travels quickly through the winds to the eager, and jealous, ears of Barbatos, the deity of Anemo. It’s as such that he immediately requests your presence in his humble region under the pretense of a much needed apology.
That is, until you arrive – soon enough he’s throwing himself at your feet, tears in his eyes as he begs for your forgiveness. Oh, how was he so blind? To hurt you was the last thing he’d ever dreamt of, he can’t even live with himself for what he and his people have done!
With faux tears, and an aching cock, he asks what could he ever do to receive your blessed forgiveness before bringing up what the wind had carried.
The minute you agree he’s back on his knees, desperately humping your clothed legs, he was so grateful for how revealing his Archon outfit was because it only took a few movements until his cock was free and he could excitedly rub himself against your skin.
“I-I just can’t-t believe you’d go to that – oh, ah! Fu~ck! – that old hag first! He’s s-suchgh… a brute with no brain…!”
Venti makes sure not to cum on you nor your clothes, completely and utterly focused on not commuting the heinous crimes his fellow archon had given way to. It’s incredibly hard to part his cock from your body but he makes sure to angle his cum in a way that will ensure your precious skin is clean.
“S-see? ‘M nothing like that- hmm?” You decide to just kiss and shut him up, “Ahh~ My lord, hah, if you wanted to kiss me s-so badly… you could’ve just said so… heh.”
He lets you unrobe him, in fact, he relishes in the way you undress his form; the intimate way you tug and pull at his clothes is so enchanting to him, he’s basically panting by the end.
“Oh no,” he moans, letting you push him on the marble table, “what will you do to me? Don’t tell me you’ll defile~ No! Don’t leave, please! I was just joking, your grace, you know I want you, I want you so bad… just, use my body~ Please?”
By the end of the night, his beautiful voice is but a mere whisper, his throat long since hoarse from screaming and moaning.
“Ha-ah!” Tears swell in his pretty, round eyes, “Ye-esh! Thankyouthankyouthankyou- hghhh…!”
Now, all you have to do is see if Ei will take your offer too.
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indigoh4ze · 4 years ago
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party || rafe cameron
warning- SMUT // vaginal fingering, eating out, vaginal penetration, mentions of intoxication
rafe cameron x fem!reader
a/n- so this is my first time writing for outer banks, im terrible at writing actual interactions so im sorry its so bad at first lmao. also disclaimer: rafe in this fic is nothing like he is canon, so his characterization is off. enjoy :)
also feel free to request for any outer banks characters i write for
turn on notifs here - @slvt4fakerealities-library - to be notified when i post a new fic
join taglist (add yourself to the outer banks section)
the lights were blazing, different colors zapping throughout the room as you made your way over to the couch. your head was slightly fuzzy from the intoxication, but you managed.
since the couch was empty, you took the chance to sprawl your whole body out on it, head on one arm and feet dangling off the other. you watched as everyone danced and made out and filled their bodies with even more toxins. soon, you found yourself just dazing up at the ceiling, lips opening and closing slightly as you lip-synced in a whispering tone to the loud music.
after what felt like hours, but could’ve only been a few minutes, you felt something nudge your thigh. without moving your neck, you let your eyes flash down to find the source of the movement.
hovering over you was rafe cameron. his dirty blonde hair framed his face messily, a single cross earring dangling from his left ear, a red solo cup in his hand as his free hand poked at your thigh.
“what?” you slurred, now moving up on your elbows and blinking back the haziness.
“i wanna sit,” he said, taking a sip from the cup. even in this state it wasn’t hard to notice how good the boy looked, tilting his head back and gulping down the liquid, eyes never leaving your own.
you groaned, pulling your knees to your chest and allowing rafe to throw himself onto the cushion. you were now facing his side, as his hands gripped your legs and pulled them back to their original position, except now they laid over his leg. giving him a curious look, you laid the side of your face on the back cushion and fidgeted with the bracelet around your wrist.
“shouldn’t you be like- getting shit faced or something.” rafe snickered at your words, sending you a glare before looking back down to his cup, which he was also mindlessly playing with.
“sorry, did i interrupt your little..nap?” he teased with a hint of amusement, referring to the previous state you were in, and you scoffed in return, mind clearing a bit more and making room for annoyance.
“whatever.” and then, you were pulling your legs off him and standing up, albeit wobbly as you almost fell to the side, caught by rafe’s firm grip around your arm.
“you good?”
“‘m fine,” you dismissed the boy, confused as to why he was even talking to you in the first place.
the truth was, you never liked him, he was rude and careless and selfish and way too much to put up with. but you couldn’t deny the attraction you felt towards the boy, and the tension that was always evident when the two of you were together.
but you always just pushed those thoughts aside, because even the thought of anything happening made your mind whirl with a plethora of emotions, not good ones by any means.
but then, you also couldn’t deny the recurring fantasies of things that could happen. could but wont, because he’s rafe cameron, and not even you’re desperate enough to be one of his bitches.
“hey?” a light tug of your arm pulled you back to the present, and you turned to see rafe at your side, cup forgotten as one of his hands molded around your waist and the other wrapped around your bicep to steady you.
“i’m really fine-.” you pulled away from him, and right as you did so, you felt someone back up on you, pushing you towards rafe and into his chest as a cold liquid spread from the lower half of your head and down your back.
you gasped in surprise, suddenly awake and alert as you sharply turned to see a boy standing there, cup tilted and empty as all its contents spilt on your back. he mumbled a quick apology, then took off laughing with his friends about something they said that probably wasn’t even funny.
“you sure about that?” rafe inquired, eyebrow raised in amusement as you stepped away from him, this time more cautiously. “c’mon, we’ll clean you up.”
although you wanted to say no and tell him to fuck off because you could handle it yourself, you were too exhausted from the long night to put up much protest other than a dramatic groan. then, you nodded, and rafe led you away from the crowd of people with a tug of your wrist.
—//—
now, you found yourself in a bedroom, rafes bedroom, waiting expectantly as you stood in front of the boy.
“what now?” you ask, palming your eyes and yawning, looking back at rafe with glossy eyes now, which were sending waves of tingles through the boys stomach.
“take a shower,” he implied, as if it was obvious. you scrunched your brows as he pointed to the bathroom on the other side of the room.
“i don’t have any spare clothes.”
“i’ll find you something to wear,” rafe shrugged, “go on,” he urged you to the bathroom, and you followed obediently, not having it in you to put up any sort of fight or ask questions.
“i’ll be right back,” rafe said from the room as you closed the bathroom door, only to hear the door to the bedroom close as well, meaning rafe left.
your mind was filled with the thought that he just ditched you, which was a possibility, but you ignored that thought and slipped your shirt over your head. once all the articles of clothing were thrown onto the cold tile floor, along with your shoes which sat messily in the corner, you lift a foot into the tub, stepping in.
immediately, you played with the oddly fancy knobs and managed to turn them on, warm water rushing through the shower head as your tilted your head back into it. the odd colored drink washed away from your hair, falling onto the floor of the tub and down the drain smoothly. you searched for soap, quickly cleaning up and scrubbing your hair twice for good measure. the smell of the soap reminded you of rafe, not surprising considering it was literally his own soap, you told yourself, annoyed by your current thoughts.
the feeling of the slightly cold water hitting your skin was enough to wake you up fully, but you were too lost in the blissful feeling of the water to pay much attention to your surroundings.
that was until you heard the door to the bathroom open, and you peaked your head through the curtain to find rafe, setting a towel on the counter, along with a shirt and a pair of shorts.
“who’s are those?” you questioned, making rafe jump as he realized you were watching him.
“sarah, i just took some from her,” he shrugged, and now you were even more confused.
first, he started talking to you randomly. then he’s helping you stand. then he’s taking you to his room..so you can shower. then he’s getting clothes for you to wear? how much did you have to drink? you started to ask yourself, questioning if this was all you just being wasted.
but it wasn’t, you felt pretty much fine. so there had to be something you were missing.
“just hurry up and change, i’ll be in the other room.” without another glance towards you, rafe left the bathroom, leaving you standing there, wet hair dripping forward from the way you had tilted your head to peek through. you went back to getting the soap out of your hair, rushing a bit more now.
meanwhile, rafe was in his room, just outside the bathroom, sitting on his bed with his head in his hands. what the fuck am i doing? was his only thought.
he was honestly just confused as you were. it started when he saw you laying on the couch, mouth agape as your eyes sketched shapes on the ceiling. you just being there was tempting enough, but after that he just had to make his way over to you.
the two of you hadn’t had many conversations in the past, at least no genuine ones. most were just bickering, to be honest. but, just as you thought, the tension was undeniable. the feelings weren’t one sided, that was for sure.
when he caught you from falling over, you had leaned into his warmth and something almost turned in his stomach, which was quite nauseating on his side. it was annoying how fucking worked up he got around you. his mind would spin with options of what to do with you. did he want to just kiss you, fuck you or annoy you to death? he had no idea, but it was overwhelming, to say the least.
so when he invited you to his room to clean up, he wasn’t really thinking about it, because everything was happening at once. he even searched his sisters room for goddamn clothes for you.
interrupting his inner monologue, a door opened and out came your figure, except you weren’t wearing the clothes he had given you. no, you were just in your towel, actually. your skin looked slightly damp still, but your hair had been fluffed out and dried a bit from the towel.
“what are you- where are the clothes i gave you?” rafe asked, standing hesitatingly.
“dunno, wasn’t my style i guess,” you shrugged, looking around his room casually, taking in the very rafe feel it gave.
rafe just scoffed, messing his hair up and stepping closer. “well, you can’t really go out in a towel now, can you?”
this reminded you that there was still a party going on, although it was muffled and a bit quieter as people began to call it a night.
“then i won’t go out.” you stepped closer, looking up at rafe with an expression of uncertainty, trying to identify the look behind his eyes, figure out what the fuck he was up to. but you saw nothing. if anything, there were just a bit of nervousness hidden there.
“and what exactly do you plan on doing, then? since your obviously so wise.” now his guarded demeanor was back up, though he had taken a step closer so your heavy breaths were hitting each other perfectly, hands close to grazing one another’s.
“i don’t know.” then, another reminder flashed in your mind, and you looked back at rafe, “wait, why are you even here? isn’t this like- your party?”
“well, technically topper wanted a party, i wanted to go to bed and sleep for a year.” you chucked at this, figuring he had already gotten fucked up today and didn’t feel like another party. then, taking a risk, you leaned in just a bit, and rafe didn’t pull back. actually, he pushed forward, bringing his large hands to wheel around your waist, setting fire through your veins.
it was as if both of you snapped at the same time, first eyeing each others lips, then pushing forward and taking said lips between your own. the kiss was hungry and long waited, immense relief flushing through you, which took you both by surprise.
not even a few minutes of this passed by before rafe was tugging at the towel, still clinging around your naked body, droplets of water probably wetting his floor.
before letting the fabric reveal your body, rafe looked at you, pulling away for a moment and looking over your features, silently asking permission. a quick nod was all it took for the material to be ripped off and throw to the side, rafe spinning you both around until the backs of your knees hit the bed and you fell back onto the mattress.
rafe looked over you with a smirk, eyes skimming over each and every detail of your body as if savoring it. a lick of his lips was all it took for your thighs to rub together, anticipation becoming too much as you waited for him.
this obviously pissed him off, because now his hands were tearing your legs apart, exposing your bare cunt inch by inch. “don’t even try to cover this up, got it?”
his voice was demanding, and luring, enough to make you nod, eyes softening in obedience, resulting in a snicker from rafe.
he leaned back in, delving down to leave kisses along your collar bone and suck on the flesh until bruises built against your skin, making you whimper and grab his dirty blond tressed with your fingers.
the sound of your whimpers made rafe go crazy, but he tamed the need inside him long enough to work his way down your stomach, placing teasing kisses down your inner thighs, but not once touching the spot you needed the most attention in.
“please, rafe,” you pleaded, not sure where it came from but gong with it once you saw the way he looked up at you, lust blown eyes and parted lips, waiting to be against your cunt.
“please what, hm? tell me what you want me to do, baby,” rafe cooed, fingers clenching around the inside of your thighs so he could push them apart and kiss your inner thighs, resulting in your back arching and hips begging upwards.
“n-need your mouth.” your face blushed with embarrassment of having to speak the words, but rafe just tsked, one hand moving upwards as he used his thumb to draw circles around your cunt, only passing your folds, earning a cry from you.
“i need more than that, doll.”
“fuck! please, j-just need your mouth on me, rafe, need to feel your mouth on my pussy, please!”
it seems that was acceptable for rafe, his thumb pausing just above your clit, then dragging down, finally grazing over the sensitive bud and stimulating it perfectly. your hips jerked at the sensation, but you grew accustomed to the feeling once he began working in small circles.
soon, his mouth was on your cunt, tracing paths over your folds and rubbing at the nub with a flat tongue, constantly sending shivers through you as you moaned with pleasure. his hands stayed at your side, ring clad finger’s cold against your flesh as his tongue dug inside you and began fucking your hole with no remorse.
the shapes and letters his warm tongue carved into you were almost too much, and when you reached down to rake your fingers through his hair, you fought the urge to push his head down and allow him to bury himself completely between your thighs.
“f-fuck! rafe, oh god, feels so good,” you sobbed, voice becoming louder as he hummed into you, a smirk on his lips, no doubt, from seeing you fall apart for him.
rafe pulled away within a second, licking his lip and keeping his eyes on your cunt, calculating his next move. you watched as he did so, suddenly feeling exposed as he raked his eyes over the slick coating your folds and your clit throbbing painfully through them. you squirmed at the emptiness, about to squeeze your thighs together, but you were too late as rafe brought a hand up, middle and forefinger pushing through your folds and embedding themselves within your walls.
a loud gasp escaped your lips as he did so, and you bit down painfully on the cushion of them as his fingers pumped in and out of you with nonstop speed. rafe looked up at you, his own lips parted beautifully as he watched moans flow easily out of your mouth.
“you like that, baby?” came his husky voice, only intensifying your already great pleasure that ran through your body. you nodded at his inquiry, not able to form coherent thoughts under his gaze. and that was when his fingers made a hook and pressed against your most sensitive part, making you squirm.
his smirk became bigger, and his fingers fucked you harder, a desperate attempt to ruin you right there. then he was leaning down, still pumping his fingers, and began to lick your clit with fervor, flicking the bud and sucking without resistance until your thighs were clenching around his head and you were a complete moaning mess.
“oh fuck- i’m g-gonna come rafe, pleaseplease,” you begged pathetically, having no time to be embarrassed as he hummed, nodding his head while still sucking on your clit, and permitted you to let go.
the orgasm took over in a huge wave, which came surprisingly fast, and the only thing on your mind was the bubbling in your stomach that was finally freed. moans and gasps fell from your lips as you wet his tongue and fingers, and rafe didn’t let a drop go to waste as he lapped up your slick, helping to prolong your orgasm.
hands reaching for his hair in dazed motions, eyes closed and lips parted, you mumbled, “t-too much, rafe,” which was the boys que to give you a final kiss on your clit, then remove his head and fingers from your cunt.
now, rafe stared up at you, swiping a ring clad thumb over his bottom lip, which was glistening with your arousal. his thumb then moved to enter your mouth, and you dutifully took in the digit, sucking with starry eyes, and whimpering when he removed it from your grasp.
rafe rose to his full height, still in his shirt and pants, which were no doubt keeping his hard dick from standing tall. suddenly, you felt that flush arise to your cheeks from your being nude, and you bit your lip and reached a hand out to grapple at his shirt. he took this as a sign to pull the material over his head, then going in for his buckle as well. the sound of the metal clinking as he loosened it from its straps was enough to send you into a spiral of anticipation, eyeing his clothed prick impatiently.
rafe had that smirk plastered to his face still, throwing his belt aside and then his pants, making sure not to go too fast as he tormented you.
you let out a whine as he hooked his fingers around his boxers, not pulling them down fully but revealing his v line. “rafe,” you pouted, and he decided to be nice and let them fall down, now unclothed as he kicked off his shoes and settled ontop of you, marking your chest and neck immediately.
sighing with content, you held him close and let his lips suck on your flesh, until the arousal was too much and he began to grind against you, slowly. your cunt was already becoming slick again as he rubbed against your thigh.
rafe lift himself up to his knees, pumping his cock, the point of his tongue poking out from the side of his mouth in concentration. the image of your breasts on display for him, and your lips parted and chest thumping was enough to make the boy cum on the spot.
he raised a brow at you, making sure you were still okay, and once getting a quick nod, he pressed the head of his cock against your folds. in the next second, he was thrusting into you, earning a loud gasp from you, which he covered with a hand on your mouth.
“shh, ‘m gonna fuck you good, okay? just lay there and look pretty,” he teased, but you nodded, wanting nothing more than to do as he said.
the thrusts started out mild, but soon quickened tempo, hips stuttering against yours as he wrapped a hand around your leg and pulled it over his shoulder. this allowed a better angle, and you moaned with him as he repeatedly pounded into your already sensitive cunt.
you slid a hand down your bouncing breasts and stomach, then to your throbbing clit, soothing it with your gentle fingers before rafe slapped them away, as if saying “mine.”
his own hand went around your propped up leg to thumb at your clit, whilst the other made a path over your hips and breasts, fondling with the mound of flesh and pinching your nipple.
the overstimulation was rushing through you violently, his thrusts becoming sloppy, orgasm at the brink. you watched his head fly back, eyes rolling and mouth a gape, hypnotized by how pretty he looked even when he was fucking you.
“rafe,” you repeatedly mumbled, forming no other words in your clouded mind.
“hm? does it feel good? d’you like the way i fuck you, pretty girl?”
“y-yeah, so good,” you hummed, your own head rolling back onto the pillow, hips thrusting up to meet his and satisfy the hunger that once again boiled in your core.
“i’m gonna cum on your tits, are you gonna be good for me?” he said just as your orgasm was about to wash you away, and you nodded fast, once again wanting to be the best you could for him.
then, you came, waves of pleasure splashing through you before he pulled out, still thumbing your sensitive bundle of nerves, using his free hand to fist his cock which hovered over your breasts.
you held your tits in two shaky hands, squeezing them together and massaging them while rafe came, painting your breasts and stomach until he had milked out every last drop he could. he mumbled yes’s and fuck’s, along with your name until his high died down.
breathing harshly, you set ur sight to the ceiling, deep intakes of air causing the ends of rafe’s lips to turn upwards slightly. he leaned down to place one last kiss on your flushed cheek before letting himself fall onto the mattress beside you.
“let’s clean you up,” rafe said, turning to look at you, “the party’s not over yet.”
uhhhh yeah idk how i feel ab this i hope it wasn't terrible ig. reblogs appreciated :)
@o-rion-sta-r @saggyb1lls @rylynn-m @dobbysockcollection @arcaneslut @arianagreyy @el-imaskingforyourlefthand
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michiieewrites · 5 years ago
Text
THORST COLLAB: Bakugou - Starving till I tasted you
A/N: First: IF YOU’RE UNDER 18, BEGONE FROM MY BLOG SINCE I WRITE MATURE CONTENT!! This one has been sitting in my documents for almost 2 months now. This week inspiration finally struck me once again tho!
This fic is actually a Thorst Collab between my lovely friends & I on Discord. I’m the first one to post mine, so I can’t wait to see what the others will write!
Now.
STRAP ON YOUR SEATBELTS CAUSE THIS MOTHERF!@#$%CKER IS 4.2K+ WORDS LONG
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If someone told you a year ago that you would have enough money to pay off your student debt, buy your dream apartment, help out your family and friends, move abroad and drive in a ’67 Chevrolet Impala, you would’ve died laughing at the joke.
You told yourself it was stupid, buying that lottery ticket. But here you are; $100.000.000,- on your bank account. A young and now rich Omega in her prime. After making sure you had spend part of it wisely, you made sure to live the rest of your life on interest alone.
The first month had been nice. Decorating your new place, going out for dinner every day, getting a new wardrobe, spoiling yourself silly. You got new nesting materials, softer blankets and bigger pillows. It felt nice. Until it didn’t anymore. It started to feel pointless and empty. You felt like you were becoming one of those people that flaunt their money and that isn’t the type of Omega you are.
So here you are. Sitting in your peach colored dress and a numbered paddle in your hand. Tonight, you attend a charity auction. The charity was a rehabilitation program for criminals who want to get back on the right path.
The auction items aren’t exactly… items. They’re Pro Heroes. People could bid on having a date with some of the most desirable Pro Heroes, Alphas, Betas, Omegas, all of them. Even No. 1 hero Deku and No. 4 hero Red Riot are up for auction, both being Omegas.
One of the last dates are being auctioned and you realize you have been zoning out. Not having bid anything yet, you put up your paddle.
“Going once, going twice… SOLD TO NUMBER 917 FOR TONIGHT’S HIGHEST BID OF $300.000,-! A date with explosion pro hero Ground Zero!”
Oh lord. Yes! You got- wait��� You got actually got it? You won a date with Pro Hero Ground Zero. Wasn’t he the one with the explosion quirk? Impressive power and always capturing the villains. What separates him from Deku is his social skills. Or lack thereof, to be more precise. Ground Zero isn’t really the type of hero to stick around the people he saved to see if they’re okay.
On top of all that he’s also an Alpha. Highly sought out by Omegas who want a pup, but not the Alpha. His genes are what people want, not the man himself. His personality also making it harder for people to approach him. And you just won a date with the most desired and aggressive Pro Hero Alpha there is.
“Oi!”
The voice behind you pulled you from your thoughts. The subtle scent of caramelized candy apples caught your attention. You turn around and find a handsome Alpha standing there. Arms crossed, cardinal red eyes watching you and his lips in an almost angry looking pout. This is the man you just bought yourself a date with.
“H-hi!” you manage to stammer out.
With a huff, he places a card on your table. You pick it up and see that it’s a business card from Ground Zero’s agency. At the bottom, writing in sleek handwriting, is a phone number. You look back up at him, ready to ask him why he gave this to you. But he’s already turning around and heading for the exit.
“Just contact me when you wanna plan that date things.”
And just like that, you had Ground Zero’s personal phone number.
 ~ A few days later ~
 You’re sitting at a small booth, sipping on your matcha latte. You were a half hour too early, so you decided it wouldn’t hurt to go ahead and order a drink before Bakugou would arrive. In his very first text he made it clear to call him ‘Bakugou’ and not by his hero name. He said that it would feel too much like an interview otherwise. In return you told him to just call you ‘Y/N’.
After some back and forth texting the last couple of days, you two agreed to meet up at a local coffee shop. Not a lot of people know about this shop. It’s small and the interior looks more like cozy living room than a flashy coffee shop. It was your favorite place to sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee, tea or like right now, matcha latte.
Neither of you had any set plans for the rest of the day. Just kind of going with the flow seemed like the way to go. This would give you the freedom to hopefully have a quiet ‘date’. But you can’t really know that for sure when the person you’re on a date with is a Pro Hero.
The sound of the bell above the front door rings. You look up and see him walk in. Sitting all the way in the back, you can’t even smell him scent. Weren’t Alpha’s supposed to have very strong scents? Maybe he’s on suppressants?
He scans the shop, probably looking for you. His eyes land on you. He walks over and sits across from you. He leans back against the chair and swings his right arm over the arm rest while the left one is resting on the table. His eyes trail down from your face to the drink in your hands.
“I see you couldn’t wait for me to arrive,” he gruffly says.
“Uh-uhm, yeah. Sorry, I was super early. I hope you don’t mind.”
The silence that spreads between you two makes your Omega feel uncomfortable. Something doesn’t feel right and you’re starting to think that the Alpha in front of you truly doesn’t want to do any of this. So, to make it a little more bearable for yourself, you pump out a small amount of calming pheromones. Just to take the edge of this meeting.
Bakugou keeps looking at you. Until he finally picks up the menu card and says: “It’s fine. It’s your day, after all.”
He was right, you figured. But you still wanted him to have a pleasant time today too.
And so the day continues. The conversation isn’t very lengthy or deep. You discuss basic things like work, hobbies, favorite food. After a while the conversation kind of dies down. You suggest you two head out and into town. The man in front of you doesn’t seem overly thrilled about it, but still agrees.
When you go up to the front to pay, you hear him quickly walking up to you. He pulls your arm back. Surprised, you let out a small sound of shock and look up at him. A confused look is on his face and he pulls his hand away from you.
“The heck are you trying to do?”
Confused, you say: “Uh, paying?”
“I see that, but why? Omegas don’t pay when they’re with Alphas.”
Wow. At first you didn’t know how to respond to this remark. True, Omegas usually aren’t the ones paying on dates. In the past an Alpha would go out and hunt for their Omega. Since the hunting days are over and many Omegas work nowadays, treating them on dates are a way to show the Omega they can provide for them.
“Well,” you say as you hand over the money to the Beta barista behind the counter and thank him, “I don’t know about other Omegas, but I’m perfectly capable of paying for drinks too. I can provide just as well as any Alpha.”
You two walk outside and turn left to head into town. You’ve been meaning to go to the bookstore and hopefully find some new reading material. Two birds, one stone, right?
“Tsk, should’ve known a rich Omega like you doesn’t like to be told what to do,” Bakugou mumbles to himself.
You stop in your tracks. What? Was that really what he thought of you? A rich and snobby Omega?
Realizing you’re not walking beside him anymore, Bakugou turns around. Your head is bowed in shame. Normally your scent smells like peaches and hazelnuts, but now it turns into that of rotten fruit. You feel called out. For winning the lottery, for treating this Alpha to some drinks, for basically buying yourself a date with someone who clearly wishes to be anywhere else but here.
Your voice shakes, but you gather all your courage. “I’ll admit I was given a lot more financial freedom recently. And yes, I don’t like being told what to do. I believe everyone should be treated equally, regardless of their second gender. But I have never in my life asked for something. I was taught to work hard, to help people and to help and reward the people that help you.”
You pick up your head and look him straight in the eyes, politely smile and say: “I’m sorry you had to do this. This isn’t really how you planned your day would go. You can go, if you want to.”
As you pass him, determent to still go to the bookstore, you feel a weight being lifted from your heart. It really is unfair to the Alpha to make him go on a date with someone he doesn’t like. Deep down inside your Omega whines sadly. She recognized a good and safe provider in the Alpha, one who isn’t driven by hormones to just get an Omega pregnant. One who isn’t controlled their Alpha status. Too bad his Alpha isn’t interested in the Omega.
“Fuck, crap- wait! Shit!”
The cursing Alpha quickly catches up to you. He stops in front of you, holding up his hands to halt you. “Okay, fuck-just… let me explain.”
You cross your arms at him and wait for him to continue.
“Okay, so… Listen, I’ve been a real dick to you. Not just today, but basically since that charity event when I gave you my card. It was wrong of me assume anything about you. Shit Y/N, you’ve been nothing but nice to me. You don’t mind carrying the cost of a date, you’re not flaunting it around town that you’re spending time with a Pro Hero, you put up with my shitty responses and that isn’t how you should be treated. Or anyone for that matter! You deserve a proper date. So just, maybe I can make it up to you?”
By the end of his apology, Bakugou practically gives you angry puppy eyes in an attempt to ask for forgiveness. He reminds you of an angry Pomeranian. Smiling, you tell him that you forgive him. This day is supposed to be a fun one.
“But! You’ll have to carry the books I’ll buy as a punishment. And just so you know, I always come out with two shopping bags,” you tell him.
Bakugou just grins. “Fine. They’ll probably weigh nothing for me.”
Something in the air changes. A little sniff of your nose helps you identify the change. The scent coming from the Alpha next to you is slightly peaked. You heard that when an Alpha is preening their scents get stronger. You hardly think that’s the reason. Maybe it’s just because he’s in better mood now. Whatever the reason, you find yourself agreeing with your Omega; it’s a very nice scent.
 ~ An hour and a half later ~
 “I’ve never met someone who spends over an hour inside a bookstore!”
“I told you when we came in that it could take a while,” you reply to Bakugou’s complaints.
“You do this with nesting stuff too? You know, blankets and shit,” he asks.
In both his hands, Bakugou is carrying a bag containing close to twenty books you can add to your bookcases back at home. Even underneath the sleeves of his hoodie you can see the muscles of his arms. He’s not as bulky as Pro Heroes Deku and Red Riot, but those muscles are pretty impressive. You bet your money that those thighs could squish a watermelon. You can practically feel the water filling your Omega’s mouth. She wants nothing more than to chomp down on those delicious shoulders. And honestly, you wouldn’t mind that either.
You remember you were asked a question. “I do. How else am I gonna know I made the right choice? All of those blankets and shit, as you put it, go in my nest. I’m at my best with a perfect nest.” A confident smile forms on your face and from the corner of your eye you can see Bakugou looking at you. A small smirk creeps up on his face.
While enjoying our little banter, you both failed to notice the Alpha towards the two of you. Until he opened his mouth. “I bet I can make your nest even better, little Omega.”
The other guy stops right in front of you, completely ignoring the Alpha next to you. You’re shocked and take a step back to create some distance between you again. But the guy doesn’t let up and steps closer again.
“No, now get lost,” you firmly say. This wasn’t the first Alpha-asshole you encountered.
“Awh, why the sour face, baby? Bet I’ll be more fun than the hedgehog here.”
“Oi, asshole! She said to get lost.” The smells of pheromones of two Alphas are dominating the air. The strongest one being the creepy guy, Bakugou’s not so much. You honestly confused on that point. With an Alpha as desirable as Bakugou, you truly expected a stronger scent.
You can’t help but release your own distressed scent. The tension is getting to you. Even other people noticed and are stopping to see how this plays out.
The creep briefly looks at Bakugou before returning his attention on you. “Come on, baby. Ditch this  guy and then you and I can have our fun. What do you say?”
He extends his hand to put it on our waist and before you know it, you slap his hand away and punch him in the face. He stumbles back while cupping his now bleeding nose. Screaming in pain and shouting names at you. He’s beyond pissed; punched by a fucking Omega!
The adrenaline is pumping through you and every instinct in your body is telling you to run. Hide. Find an Alpha to protect you. You’re frozen on the spot. Your mind shutting down.
That’s when you feel a hand tugging you away. Your Omega recognizes the person this scent belongs to. Caramel candy apples. Bakugou.
You don’t know where he’s taking you. Your mind still processing things. All you know is to follow. ‘Cause he’ll lead to safety. Alphas keep Omegas safe. Follow. Safety. Alpha.
By the time you get to take in your surroundings, you realize you’re in an office. An office? What are you doing here? You look around and see a wooden desk with a black leather chair. A small bookcase, a closet and a couch with coffee table. A puffy black rug is covering the wooden floor, complimenting the one black wall behind you. The other walls are a tinted orange color.
The scent hanging in this office is… comforting. Soothing. Safe. You’re safe in here.
You’re seated on the couch. Wrapped in something soft. A blanket. A big, fluffy and soft blanket. The scent is even stronger on the blanket. You slowly inhale, imprinting this delicious mix of sweetness. After a couple seconds you finally notice the man next to you. Bakugou grins as he sees your focus shifting to him.
“I take it the blanket is approved,” he jokes.
You slowly nod. This small little cocoon makes you feel less vulnerable. Just like the presence of Bakugou next to you. It feels right. “Where are we?”
“Oh yeah, fuck. We’re at my agency. This is my office.”
You’re confused. “Your office? Why? I’m sorry, I kind of… froze. Can you tell me what happened afterwards?”
The smile that spreads on his face makes you feel funny inside. “What happened?! Y/N, you punched that fucker right in his fucking face! Shithead had it coming, tho. You just beat me to it. Omega or not, you know how to fight.”
You two look at each other and burst out laughing as you think back to that glorious moment. The creep definitely didn’t see your punch coming. It feels good to know the man next to you thinks you’re a decent fighter. He seems to actually be enjoying your company. Maybe he’s one of those people that are careful with who they get comfortable with. It feels good to know he feels like he can relax a bit more around you now.
You jokingly nudge him and say: “I bet I can even take you on, you big grump.”
“Oh yeah?” His eyebrow is raised, grinning with his canines on display. “Prove it then.”
Knowing a challenge when you see one, you keep your eyes fixed on his cardinal ones and slowly lean in closer. Baring your neck to the side in submission to lure in his Alpha. Your Omega is very pleased by the motion. Just as he moves to lean in too, you throw the blanket in his face, grab his neck and shove him down on the ground. Stradling him and jabbing your elbow into his side, pressing your nails into the skin of his neck.
Smiling down at the man below you; “How’s that, Alpha?”
A short lived victory as he snarls and the two of you roll over, with Bakugou keeping you pinned underneath his weight. He may not look like it, but this man weighs a ton!
“If you’re trying to be a worthy opponent, why not call me by my first name? It’s ‘Katsuki’,” he breathes heavily atop of you.
Next to your ear you hear a low grumbling sound. Still seeing this as a playfight you laugh and reach back. Your fingers finding pressure points in his neck, making him let go of you. This gives you the chance to overpower him again and straddle him once more while holding his wrists above his head.
Victorious once again, you look down. Growling and teeth bared, the air around you growing thick. The smell surrounding you hits you like thunder. The caramelized candy apple scent overwhelming your senses. Your eyes travel down to his neck and see something you failed to notice before; gland patches. Patches to block someone’s scent from becoming too noticeable. That’s why the other Alpha smelled so much stronger. But now, now you’re drowning in it. You can pick up on rage, possessiveness and… arousal. As much as he’s growling and snarling at you, you know that he’s enjoying this too.
Chuckling at you, he cranes his neck. His face now closer to you than a moment ago. “I’m pretty sure I just got my ass handed by the most perfect Omega.” His words push through the alarm bells his instincts are sending off. His Alpha is not pleased about being pinned down. But as it takes in the Omega’s scent of peaches and hazelnuts, it can’t help but lie down and surrender itself to this tasty smelling Omega. An Omega that can fight back. An Omega that can hold him close. An Omega worthy of carrying his pups.
His Omega.
Before either can properly get out any words Bakugou has wrestled his hands free and grabs a hold of your hips while your hands pull his face closer and seal the distance between your lips. The taste of sugar coated apples is even stronger on his lips and you can’t get enough of it.
His fingers press deeply in your skin, kneading the flesh. His hips pushing upwards while holding you in place. The low rumbling sound in the back of his throat being accompanied by your mewling. You wanted more of him, your Omega needed more.
The Alpha makes his displeasure heard. You both part to breathe in fresh air. His lidded eyes are on fire and following every movement you make. Your hands slip down to his collarbones and settle on his shoulders. The path of your hands make Bakugou throw back his head. His body is pressing into yours desperately, like he has no control over it anymore. His growling increases in volume.
Through gritted teeth he manages to speak to you. “Fuck, Omega. What are you doing to me?”
Taking a leap of faith, you answer: “I don’t know. All I know right now is that I need capable Alpha to take care of me. Are you that Alpha, Katsuki?”
Before you can even blink, you’re being rolled over again. This time you’ll let him have his way. His hands are sliding their way up to your chest, grabbing the front of your shirt and tearing it apart. You try to protest, but you’re stopped by the warning growl of his Alpha. You lay back down and occupy yourself with running your fingers through his hair. Your gently massage making the Alpha let out a content sound.
Entranced by the man above you, you hardly even notice his onslaught on your clothes. And his own clothes. Getting those replaced will be a worry for later, your Omega decide. All you need to focus on right now is Katsuki. You want this Alpha to mate you and it needs to happen right now, or else your Omega just might perish on the spot.
That’s when you feel it. The hard and heavy feeling of his cock rutting itself against your core. Your body can’t help but react to it and release a good amount of slick. Katsuki’s mouth nipping along your collarbones as your bare you neck in submission. You feel his fangs graze your scent glands and you start to whimper desperately.
“Fuck, Y/N. Keep making those pretty noises,” Katsuki says.
“Yes, Alpha, yes. Just-ah shit! Just fuck me already!” you loudly exclaim.
Now who is Katsuki to deny such a nice plea from such a good Omega?
Wasting no time, he slides himself inside. The stretch making you cry out for more, deeper, more, anything he can give you. You just know you need more. Barely able to hold himself back from ramming himself inside and fucking you like you’re in a heat, he takes his time for your to fully take him in. A sigh of satisfaction leaves you both when he finally does.
Your legs wrap around his waist and try to pull him deeper in. Your fingers curl around his spikey locks and tug harshly to get him moving. Grunting, Katsuki finally complies. Being buried inside you sends him into over-drive. You feel too damn good around him. He feels too good inside you as he sets in a brutal rhythm. You’re pretty sure no other man could ever make you feel this good. No other Alpha could ever please your Omega ever again. Feeling his body slam into yours like his life depends on it is possibly the best feeling in the world. Your lungs are sending out a mix of his name, pleas for more, for him to go faster.
Katsuki can’t help it, he can’t stop himself anymore. He need to do this, he needs you, his Alpha needs to mate your Omega. Give her everything she wants and all that she’ll take. Only the best for his Omega, he will be worthy of giving her pups.
You can feel the base of his cock starting to inflate. His knot. His knot is growing. As soon as you notice, you start to claw at his back. A need filling you till the point you’re almost bursting.
“Alpha! Knot, please- Alpha, knot me- I need- Need your knot, Alpha!” you scream in desperation.
He wants to. Oh, he wants to so badly. But in the back of his mind there’s one braincell left that tells him that now is not the time nor the place. His Omega deserves better.
“You deserve better than to be knotted in my office, Y/N,” he moans, “please give me a chance to give you something better one day. I’ll be the best fucking Alpha there is!”
You love the sound of that. Something better. Somewhere in the future. A future with Katsuki. “Yes, Kastuki! Only you, you’re the only Alpha, please, I’m so cl-“
The moment he sinks his teeth into the flesh just above your collarbone, you’re send into a world of blinding lights and exploding fire. His name keeps falling from your lips. The waves of fire keep pulsing through your body.
The tight grip around him becomes too much for Katsuki. He needs to pull out or else he’ll knot you for sure. When he you keep chanting his name, he pulls out and covers you in thick, long, white streams of his cum. Covering you in his seed, marking you as his in an obscene, but beautiful way.
“Look at you, perfectly covered in my cum,” he pants.
You preen at the compliment. A content scent is released. The smell of a happily fucked Omega. Katsuki could get addicted to this smell.
With the shredded pieces of clothing he cleans you up. He pulls the blanket you discarded earlier over you both as he lies down next to you. Your tired and warm body cuddles closer to him. He drinks in your scent a you purr softly.
“What did you have the blanket for in your office?” you ask with a yawn.
Katsuki looks down at your half-asleep face. A smile forms on his lips as he gently kisses the top of your head.
“I kept it for my future mate.”
Tagged: @reinawritesbnha @thots4daze @hipster-merchant-of-death @aizawascumslut @strawbirb @ravenfeet222 @sailor-manga @yanderart @league-of-villians-headcanons
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chokingonpaper · 4 years ago
Note
Ohla Bola, how are you today? I come bearing a request; ej, with a "kidnapped" s/o, but they went willingly, because they are a monster lover, and who would pass up the opportunity to be with that hunk of a demon 🥵 (I know I wouldnt). So the gist of it is, they are compliant, they know exactly what is going on, manipulation wise, dont care because they are finally being loved (emotional distant parents maybe?) And fully reciprocate the affections and obsessions that ej has for them. (Maybe they see it as the only way they will ever find true love?)
If this is possible? Many thanks adieu
Im doing good, and of course! Again, I might make a part two :D This ended up kind of being the prologue for how this would go in the future ig- If I make a part two it’ll be more about the kidnapping and stuff like that
Also happy 100 posts!
//
𝐍𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞 (𝐄𝐉 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫)
//
1,390 words
//
You had always been a lonely person. Often times people avoided you, and the people that decided to stick around always seemed to fade away sooner or later.
You lived at the edge of your neighborhood with most of your house concealed by large, dark trees. The community was always planning things and arranging little parties, but you never went. It wasn’t entirely other people’s fault that you were alone, you just weren’t that interested in other people. Though a part of you yearned for a friend, someone that understood you and wouldn’t leave at only a moments notice. But that person hadn’t arrived yet, and you had given up hope that they ever would.
Life was dull, and every morning you woke up you wondered if anything would ever change. Every day was the same. Wake up, go to work, get home, and sleep. Then it’d repeat over, and over, and over again. Every time you came home you found your house empty, and you were once again reminded of how alone you were.
But then one day you felt the strange feeling of eyes on your back. Not having very many friends, you often spent your time observing rather than socializing. You knew this feeling very well, and you knew that you were being watched. Yet along with this unnerving feeling, you felt a rush you’d never experienced before. You weren’t alone, and for whatever reason you were okay with that.
Whenever you walked through the kitchen, you felt eyes trailing you from your windows. You didn’t know who the person was or why they were watching you. You hadn’t even managed to catch a glimpse of them yet.
Whenever you got ready for work and headed out the door, you felt the same thing. Even when you were at work, you swore you could still feel their presence. A part of you wondered if you had just made this person up, just to make you feel less alone. By the other part of you wondered if you were in danger. If this was real, you had a stalker on your hands, and you had no idea who it could be.
It could be a coworker, an old employer, or even just a passing customer. Their identity was completely unknown, and you spent hours pondering who they could possibly be and what they looked like. But they were good at hiding themselves, and you hadn’t even seen a shadow.
Weeks passed and you began to tell yourself that it was all in your head, but then knocking came. It was almost like it was to reassure you that they were there, that they hadn’t left, and that they were anything but imaginary.
The first time it happened you nearly jumped out of your chair, but as time passed and the little knocks and taps continued, they became almost comforting. You weren’t supposed to feel at peace when you had a stalker, but it’d been so long and they hadn’t hurt you yet, so who’s to say they ever would? They might just be an observer, like you.
But soon enough just observing wasn’t good enough for them. It had been over a month, and now Jack wanted a little more than just standing to the side and watching your life as if it were a movie. He wanted to be around you, to hold you, to be the one to take you away from your loneliness. He knew how little you went out besides when you had to work, and he knew how much you wanted someone to talk to and spend time with. He’d seen you watch groups of friends with envy, wondering what it was like to be so close to someone. He’d seen you lie on your back staring up at the ceiling, feeling so empty that you couldn’t even cry. Jack had seen you stare out the window where he stood only a moment ago with eyes full of desperation, silently begging him to reveal himself.
He knew you, and he wanted to take you away from everything you disliked about the world.
So the next time you looked out the window with a sad sigh, he decided to try something he’d never even thought to do before. Jack slowly stepped out of the shadows and in front of your window, finally allowing you to see the dark figure who had been watching you nearly every hour of every day.
Your eyes widened in pure shock and you froze, just studying the man who had presented himself to you.
He was tall, several inches above six feet. His physique was impressive, with broad shoulders and muscular arms. Though he was at a distance, you could tell how much he towered over you. He stood still, holding eye contact with you and staring you down with an intense gaze. Anyone could see that this man wasn’t someone to be messed with, and it was already clear to you that you weren’t getting out of this one.
But even if you could, would you want to?
Then suddenly he was no longer still, and his noticeably large hands reached for the window. The window was locked, but you guessed he already knew this. This was was a stranger who had been stalking you for a little over a month. You had never seen him before, and you knew damn well that if he got into your home he could overpower you with ease. Yet as your heart beat faster, pounding loudly in your chest, you hesitantly stepped towards the window.
A small sliding lock was the only thing keeping the man out, though you could guess he had other ways of getting in if he needed to. After all, the windows weren’t bullet-proof.
You gulped down a lump of nervousness and placed your shaking hand over the lock. The man, Jack, watched with interest as you slowly unlocked it, giving him access to your home, and to you.
Why were you doing this? Why were you letting him in? You were unlike any human he’d ever encountered before, and that only made his desire to keep you for himself grow.
Not doing anything more than unlocking it, you backed away from the window as the man pushed it open and climbed inside. Once he stood at his full height you looked up at him in awe. Covering his face was a navy blue mask that dripped black from the eyes. It sent a chill down your spine and froze you in place. Now that he was closer it was only more obvious just how strong he was. He was so much taller than you and obviously very strong. He was the definition of intimidating, and if you weren’t frozen in place you would have crumbled to the ground.
The two of you stared at each other in silence for what felt like hours, but then he took a step forward and your eyes widened.
“I’m not going to hurt you.” His voice came out less comforting than you would have liked. It was deep and incredibly raspy, as if he hadn’t spoken in weeks.
You nodded slowly, his words not really making you feel any safer. “W-Who are you?” You asked in a tone only a bit above a whisper. It was clear that you were afraid, yet you made no attempt to leave.
“I’m Jack.” He answered simply, not offering any more information that could help you understand what exactly was going on. You had just let your stalker into your home, and now you were having a semi-calm conversation with him.
Jack soon took another step towards you, and now only about a foot was between you.
“I’m going to take you with me. Either cooperate, or I’ll knock you out. Understand?” He stated lowly, staring down at you with complete seriousness. You were about to be kidnapped, but instead of fear you felt almost… relieved. Someone wanted you. Someone wanted you so badly that they were going to simply take you. It sounded so wrong, so terrifying, yet all you could think about was how you would no longer be alone.
And so you nodded, letting him silently lead you out of your house and into the tree line from which you would never emerge from again.
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riddlecrux · 4 years ago
Text
Why rejection leads to the endgame: Rowaelin and Elriel comparison.
This meta is based solely on textual pieces of evidence that can be found through the whole ACTOAR and TOG series written by SJM. My observations come from the text and what was given to us, the audience, by the author of the book. This post is going to be about two very prominent scenes that occur to the main characters and how they are played in the books, setting-wise but also plot-wise. Of course, a small warning: this is strictly pro-Elriel meta, so if it isn't your cup of tea you are in the wrong place. Also: SPOILERS FOR TOG!
I would like to start this meta with a short preface about how I am going to approach the subject. The things I will be looking into are setting, wording, and emotional attachments. (With a sprinkle of speculations).
We will begin with Rowaelin and how the rejection scene developed. The plotline setting is after a very tense situation, which was confronting Arobynn.
Queen of Shadows, pg. 321
Rowan was done waiting. (...) The lamplight glinted off the combs in her hair and along the golden dragon on the dress.
Emphasis on: - hair - light, and how it glides across combs of Aelin hair - "glinted"
Also worth mentioning is how Rowan finally overcame his inner battle. He became impatient.
Azriel POV, pg. 1
Azriel couldn't stop it. (...) he found himself leaving the room. Entering the foyer. (...) and there she was. The faelights gilded Elain's unbound hair, making her glow like the sun at dawn.
Emphasis on: - hair - light, and how it lightens Elain hair - "gilded"
Again, we have a male who is questioning his inner feelings and after an imminent mind battle, he decides to move and goes towards a place when he meets up with a female.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 321-322
She half turned toward him. (...) The look in her eyes—guilt, anger, agony—hit him like a blow to the gut.
(...) and though she tried to hide it, he could see the fear in her gaze, and the guilt.
Rowan can read Aelin without words. Just one look and he knows exactly what she feels or what hides behind her words - which often are laced with lies. Yet, he, Rowan was able to always see beneath the false facade - even before they were told about them being true mates.
Azriel POV, pg. 2
Lie. Well, the second part was a lie. He didn't need his shadows to read her tone, the slight tightening of her face.
Elain's large brown eyes flickered, well aware of all that. Just as he knew she was well aware of why Azriel so rarely came to family dinners these days.
Azriel, just as Rowan can easily deduct lies underneath Elain's words. Him being a shadowsinger and spymaster could help him in knowing the truth, yet we have an emphasis on the fact that he didn't need his powers to realize and catch Elain's lie based on her tone and facial expressions.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 322
He watched her throat bob as she swallowed.
Azriel POV, pg. 2
He watched her swallow.
The same imagery, similar wording. Both males are focused on the females' emotions and their nervousness/trepidation.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 322
She rested her head against his chest, the tips of the bat-wing combs digging into him enough that he eased them one at a time from her hair. The gold was slick and cold in his hands (...)
Emphasis on: - Aelin initiating physical contact - piece of jewelry - golden color - Aelin's hair
Azriel POV, pg. 2-3
"Put it on me?" His head went quiet. But he took the necklace, opening the clasp as she exposed her back, sweeping her hair up in one hand to bare her long, creamy neck.
The golden necklace seemed ordinary -- its chain unremarkable.
Emphasis on: - Elain initiating physical contact - piece of jewelry - golden color - Elain's hair
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 323
She huffed a laugh that might have been a sob and wrapped her arms around his waist as if trying to steal his warmth.
He flattened his hand against her waist, his fingers contracting once as if debating letting her go.
We have Aelin seeking Rowan's touch, she is the one who pushes on the physical line between them. It's important to note that it's her constantly assessing Rowan, trying to close the distance between them. She's acting on her feelings and a need for closure.
Emphasis on the wording used by SJM: - "flattened his hand (...)"
Azriel POV pg. 3
Elain shivered, and he took a damn long time fastening the clasp.
Slowly, Elain pivoted into his touch. Until his palm lay flat against her neck.
Emphasis on: - "until his palm lay flat (...)"
In this setting, we have Elain who, once again, closes on the distance between her and Azriel. Just like Aelin she chooses to move along her feelings - which are obstructed from the reader's point of view due to the text being singular POV. It is her who slowly builds up the courage and makes Azriel touch her. Settle on her skin.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 323
She waited for him to pull back, but he just stared at her—stared into her in that way he always did. Friends, but more. So much more, and she’d known it longer than she wanted to admit.
Carefully, she stroked her thumb across his cheekbone, his face slick with the rain.
Aelin realizes her feelings. She comes with the terms of their friendship and its possible development - both she and Rowan started out on the wrong foot, yet they formed an amazing friendship. They built their relation slowly, surely with many heartful moments that bordered on the line of friendship and something more.
Emphasis on: - Aelin "stroking" Rowan's face
Azriel POV pg. 3
It had never gone this far. They'd exchanged looks, the occasional brush of their fingers, but never this. Never blatant, unrestricted touching.
Azriel's fingers lingered at her nape, atop the first knob of her spine.
Letting them brush the side of her throat, savoring the velvet-soft texture.
As in the Rowaelin case, Elain and Azriel also built their relationship from a friendship. It was formed during the very dark period of time on Elain's behalf - just like it was for Aelin's. Both Azriel and Elain found comfort with each other, they both started to enjoy the company of the other - sitting in comfortable silence. Yet, we have an idea that this friendship slowly started to bloom into something riskier, more emotional. Both, Azriel and Elain already had their first love ripped away, never fulfilled, and ending in a painful manner. And for the first time when we are inside Azriel POV, it confirms that they balanced on this thin line for a while.
Emphasis on: - Azriel "brushing" Elain's throat and nape
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 323
It hit her like a stone—the wanting. She was a fool to have dodged it, denied it, even when a part of her had screamed it every morning that she’d blindly reached for the empty half of the bed.
Emphasis on: - realization of desire - mornings in the bed - desperate search for Rowan in the sheets
Azriel POV, pg. 2-3
Prayed she didn't understand the shift in his scent. He had only allowed himself these thoughts in the dead of night.
(...) a headache powder he kept on his nightstand at the House of Wind. Not to use, but just to look at. Which he'd done every night he’d slept there. Or attempted to sleep there.
Emphasis on: - desire - night and bed - looking at the gift from Elain on his nightstand
Both scenes and paragraphs signalize that both Aelin and Azriel fought with their newfound feelings. They were realizing that the friendship was slowly turning into something more - a feeling of desire to not only be close to the other person but also a desire to close the distance between friends and lovers.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 324
She lifted her other hand to his face and his eyes locked onto hers, his breathing ragged as she traced the lines of the tattoo along his temple.
His hands tightened slightly on her waist, his thumbs grazing the bottom of her ribcage. It was an effort not to arch into his touch.
Azriel POV, pg. 3
(...) his thumb sweeping in long strokes along the side of her throat.
But Azriel just stroked her neck again. Elain shuddered, drifting closer.
Emphasis on: - constant engaging in physical contact - touching vulnerable parts of the other person - answering to the touch
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 324
“Rowan,” she breathed, his name a plea and a prayer. She slid her fingers down the side of his tattooed cheek, and—
Azriel POV pg. 4
“Yes" Elain breathed, like she read the decision. Just this taste in the dead of the longest night of the year, where only the Mother might witness them.
Emphasis on: - how the last word before the almost kiss is breathed - "religious" themes such as comparison to Rowan's name to the prayer - Mother (a "religious" figure) being present during this intimate scene between Elain and Azriel
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 324
Faster than she could see, he grabbed one wrist and then the other, yanking them away from his face and snarling softly. The world yawned open around her, cold and still.
He dropped her hands as if they were on fire, stepping away, those green eyes flat and dull in a way she hadn’t seen for some time now. Her throat closed up even before he said, “Don’t do that. Don’t—touch me like that.”
Rowan rejected Aelin in a brusque manner - and it wasn't necessarily because he didn't want to engage in expanding their relationship past the friendship. Rowan at this moment still lacks self-reassurance about how he should feel after Lyria. He is scared. It is something different than the feelings that restrained him from the kiss.
Azriel POV, pg. 4
Rhys's voice thundered through him, halting him mere inches from Elain's sweet mouth.
His stomach twisted as he pulled his hand from her hair and stepped back. Forced himself to say, "This was a mistake.”
We have Azriel who rejects the kiss because of Rhysand. It was not on his own terms. It was an order of his High Lord that involuntarily stopped him from kissing Elain.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 324
There was a roaring in her ears, a burning in her face, and she swallowed hard. “I’m sorry.”
“I didn’t mean—” She backed away a step, toward the door on the other side of the roof. “I’m sorry,” she repeated. “It was nothing.”
Azriel POV pg. 4
She opened her eyes, hurt and confusion warring there before she whispered, "I’m sorry."
He shook his head, unable to stand the bleakness he'd brought to her expression.
In both scenes, it's the female that apologizes. The one who initiated physical contact. Aelin apologizes twice, meanwhile, Elain is rendered speechless and hurt - and it's Azriel who assures her that it is she doesn't need to apologize. However, Elain is left alone without an explanation and Azriel can't stand seeing her like that.
Both scenes are built in a similar manner - we have friendships border lining on a thin line of something more. Both Elain and Aelin are the ones who initiate physical contact and are the ones who are "rejected", left hurt, and confused. Rowan and Azriel are battling their self-hatred and feeling of unworthiness that is very sound in both of their POVS. There is a lot of things that contribute to the rejection - especially their feelings. Rowan and Azriel feel the romantic pull towards their loved ones - they know that desire and their feelings are reciprocated. Yet, their inner struggles are in the way of fully accepting the fact that the female they yearn for is able to accept them.
More parallels:
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 322
He’d almost fallen to his knees when he’d first seen her earlier tonight.
Azriel POV, pg. 3
He'd beg on his knees for a chance to taste it.
Both males are on the verge of falling to their knees in front of Aelin/Elain. They are ready to submit to their loved ones.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 324
(...) understood that though she’d seen his eyes shine with hunger—hunger for her—it didn’t mean he wanted to act on it. Didn’t mean he might not hate himself for it.
In this chapter in Queen Of Shadows, we are presented with dual POV, both from Rowan and Aelin so it's easier to see what Aelin had felt when she was rejected. She tells the audience that she was aware of the fact that Rowan exhibited a desire for her. Furthermore, we have another instance of Aelin being able to understand Rowan without words. She knows that Rowan feeling lust for her might have resulted in him hating himself for that because of what had happened with Lyria.
Azriel POV, pg. 2
Just as he knew she was well aware of why Azriel so rarely came to family dinners these days.
We are obstructed from Elain's point of view and her understanding is explained by Azriel. He knows that Elain understands him. It's an important thing to remember since their friendship was built on the comfortable silence in which both of them bask. Elain and Azriel, just like Aelin and Rowan understand each other without words.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 337
He hated it. Hated that he couldn’t reach her when she was that person. Hated that he’d snapped at her last night, had panicked at the touch of her hands. Now she’d shut him out entirely. This person she’d become today had no kindness, no joy.
Azriel POV, pg. 2-4
(...) Azriel had needed to stay by the door the whole time because he couldn't stand the sight of it, the scent of their mating bond, and needed to have the option of leaving if it became too much.
He shook his head, unable to stand the bleakness he'd brought to her expression.
Both Rowan and Azriel don't want to hurt their significant other. They battle their inner demons, their inner self-worth problems while trying not to put the weight of it on Aelin and Elain. Rowan has his mind troubled because he, at this moment in the books, is still burdened with what had happened to his "mate". On the other hand, we have Azriel who can't bring himself to be in the same room as Elain and Lucien due to their bond. A mate that Elain doesn't want. Azriel's reaction to the mating bond is also very strange - he can see it and scent it. Which I believe should be very telling if we're taking true mate/second mate theories into consideration. So, overall the problem of both males stems from the notion of "mate".
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 345
Even now, he honestly couldn’t decide if he was amused or enraged by Rowan’s words—Don’t touch me like that—when it was obvious the warrior-prince felt quite the opposite.
Azriel POV, pg. 3
He needed to know what the skin of her neck tasted like. What those perfect lips tasted like. Her breasts. Her sex. He needed her coming on his tongue --
Rowan and Azriel want to indulge in their desire for Aelin and Elain. Both of them weren't able to do so because of the "rejection", yet we are presented with the fact that even the rejection doesn't mean anything as long as both males feel completely opposite to what they had told during the refusal scenes.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 348
Her scent hit him as she unbound her hair and nestled into the pile of pillows. That scent had always struck him, had always been a call and a challenge. It had shaken him so thoroughly from centuries encased in ice that he’d hated her at first. And now … now that scent drove him out of his mind.
Azriel POV, pg. 3
Her arousal drifted up to him, and his eyes nearly rolled back in his head at the sweet scent. He'd beg on his knees for a chance to taste it.
Emphasis on: - the scent - how it affects the male
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 348
They were both really damn lucky that she currently couldn’t shift into her Fae form and smell what was pounding through his blood. It had been hard enough to conceal it from her until now.
Azriel POV, pg. 3
Azriel's cock strained behind his pants, aching so fiercely he could hardly think. He prayed she didn't peer down. Prayed she didn't understand the shift in his scent.
Both males explain to the audience that their desire and lust were and are something they are battling as well. Rowan and Azriel are anxious because of their own problems with self-worth that they are struggling to keep as a secret.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 348
He’d seen her naked before—a few times. And gods, yes, there had been moments when he’d considered it, but he’d mastered himself. He’d learned to keep those useless thoughts on a short, short leash. Like that time she’d moaned at the breeze he sent her way on Beltane—the arch of her neck, the parting of that mouth of hers, the sound that came out of her—
Azriel POV, pg. 3
He had only allowed himself these thoughts in the dead of night. Had only allowed his hand to fist his cock and think about her then, when even his shadows had gone to sleep. How that beautiful face might appear as he entered her, what sounds she'd make.
Emphasis on: - keeping the desire to himself - imagery of the female body - the sounds/moans
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 348
She was now lying on her side, her back to him. “About last night,” he said through his teeth. “It’s fine. It was a mistake.”
Azriel POV, pg. 4
His stomach twisted as he pulled his hand from her hair and stepped back. Forced himself to say, "This was a mistake.”
I think this is self-explanatory. The same words, similar situation. Rejection followed by a declaration of it being a mistake when the truth is that both couples are yearning for each other and want to be with one another.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 349
The desire hadn’t been what shook him at all. It was just … Aelin had driven him insane these past few weeks, and yet he hadn’t considered what it would be like to have her look at him with interest.
Azriel POV, pg. 3
Her arousal drifted up to him, and his eyes nearly rolled back in his head at the sweet scent.
So close one deep breath would brush her breasts against his chest. She looked up at him, her face so trusting and hopeful and open (...)
Rowan and Azriel didn't even think about the fact that their desire could be reciprocated- and more than lust they were shocked that Aelin/Elain would look at them with interest, longing, hope. They weren't ready to acknowledge the fact that they weren't alone in this spiral of emotions and feelings.
Moving forward we have the acceptance stage and romantic moments for Rowaelin in Queen Of Shadows. Of course in the case of Elriel we are limited to an extra chapter, however, there are still very prominent similarities in setting and wording.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 378
“Aelin,” he breathed. Not in reprimand or warning, but … a plea. It sounded like a plea. He lowered his head to her exposed neck and hovered a hair’s breadth away. She arched her neck farther, a silent invitation. Rowan let out a soft groan and grazed his teeth against her skin.
He let out another low groan, answer and confirmation and request, and the rumble echoed inside her
Azriel POV, pg. 4
“Yes" Elain breathed, like she read the decision.
Azriel's hand slid up her neck, burying in her thick hair. Tilting her face the way he wanted it. Elain's mouth parted slightly, her eyes scanning his before fluttering shut. Offer and permission. He nearly groaned with relief and need as he lowered his head toward hers.
Both couples operate without words. In the case of Rowaelin we have: - a plea - a silent invitation - an answer - a confirmation - a request
In the case of Elriel we have: - an offer - a permission - a decision - a relief - a need
The same setting, very similar description, and usage of words. As I was saying, in the case of Elain and Azriel relationship we are obstructed from Elain's point of view due to the content being a bonus chapter. Yet, we can draw a comparison between both couples. Why? Because SJM structured both rejections in the same way. Rowaeiln's rejection leads to a relationship, later to a discovery of being true mates. Is it a coincidence? From a writer's point of view and an avid reader - I don't believe so. She structured both rejections, in the same manner, using very similar vocabulary and even the familiar setting. In the case of Elriel - Azriel's "rejection" is what essentially builds a start for their relationship in the next book. We also have to remember that in Elain and Azriel situation we have:
- a mate - political background - forbidden romance - compatible powers - blood duel - connection to Koschei SJM gave us a setup for the premise of the next book which we know is Elain's. Azriel and Feyre's POV focus on her, but we know that it's one couple per book. Which perfectly aligns with Elriel and their rejection and pining. In SJM universe such rejections as the ones presented are used to further develop a couple, not to bring it down. The parallels are evident and if you are thinking that she doesn't use foreshadowing and she doesn't focus on details I would recommend rereading both series and see that SJM is an expert in foreshadowing - even the tiniest bits of it come out through the series.
That's why in the cases of her HEA couples rejection means endgame.
Queen Of Shadows, pg. 379
“This changes things,” she said, hardly able to get the words out. “Things have been changing for a while already. We’ll deal with it.”
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belphies-cuhm-sluht · 4 years ago
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Belphegor with a s/o who is best friends with Lucifer.
Everything's Gonna Be Okay (Belphegor x GN!Reader ft. Lucifer) ANGST -> FLUFF
Word Count : 2.2K Warnings : Spoilers to lesson 16; Mention of death;
“Where were you?” His voice cut through the pitch black of the room, sharper than a knife, accusatory and angry as he always was whenever you were with Lucifer. He knew exactly where you were, his question was more so to ask what you were doing without seeming like he actually cared. You had explained to Belphie before that he had no reason to worry, but at this point you figured that he wasn’t worried about anything, he was upset with you for still being friends, let alone best friends, with Lucifer after everything the guy had done. You walked over to the bed, sitting on the edge and preparing yourself to give him the same explanation that you had given him so many times, it was like being on constant repeat. “I was helping him file his papers, I just lost track of time.” You turned your head, trying to make out the shape of him on the bed. He was turned away from you, but you could tell that his entire body was stiff, like he was on edge. “You know, he’s just as much my friend as everyone else in the house.” He rolled over finally, growling quietly. You knew now that you shouldn’t have said it, but you couldn’t take it back now. “Oh yeah, that’s great, Y/N. I’m sure you’ve all just forgotten completely that he locked me up here and lied to my brothers about everything to cover his own ass. He’s a great friend to have.” He pulled the blankets from your side of the bed and wrapped them around himself, deciding to be petty and immature instead of just listening to you. It wasn’t unlike him, but it was so agitating. “He did it to keep me safe from you!” You snapped at him, and you were trying really hard not to bring up the sore subject of what he had done to you, but he just refused to listen to anything that you had to say. He scoffed, turning his back to you once more and you should have bit your tongue, but it was so hard to do when he was acting this way. “I’m sure you’ve just forgotten the fact that you killed me, and then tried to do it again, you know, the reason you were locked in the attic in the first place.” You heard his teeth snap together, the deep growl that was building in his throat and his heavy nose breathing. He was trying to keep himself calm, keep himself from absolutely losing it at your mention of his previous mistakes. “That’s right. I’m awful, I’m the absolute worst, because Lucifer hasn’t tried to kill you before either. None of my other brothers have ever tried to kill you, it was just me.” His laugh was humorless, and you could feel the bed practically vibrating beneath you, he was shaking so much. He was beyond angry, he was livid, and you weren’t sure if you could backpedal your way out of this one. “I never said that! Lucifer isn’t getting mad at me for being with you though!” You huffed loudly, crossing your arms in front of your chest. For once there was nothing but silence from his side of the bed though, and you actually thought that you had potentially gotten through to him. The evident sounds of his agitation were gone, and it almost seemed like he had stopped breathing for a second, he was so still. That’s when he shot up straight in bed, kicking the blankets off and pushing himself off the bed. “I can’t believe you just fucking said that.” Now he just sounded exhausted as he walked over to the door, shaking his head as he grabbed his cardigan off the bed post. “Lucifer would have no right to get mad at you for being with me because HE’S not your fucking boyfriend, Y/N… I don’t even know if I am at this point.” You watched him as he walked out, his words hung in the air and you couldn’t think of anything to say, you didn’t know how to respond. Not that you had time to anyway, he was already out of the attic, slamming the door behind him as he walked down the stairs, most likely going to his and Beels room to sleep. Maybe that’s what you both needed, to just sleep it off and hopefully you’d both be able to talk things over in the morning.
Morning came, and for a second you thought that everything that had happened last night was just a really bad dream. That is, until you turned to the side and saw Belphies' side of the bed was empty. He had essentially broken up with you last night before he walked out and you had never felt more heart broken than you were right now. You needed to talk to him, but you were sure that he didn’t want to talk to you at all right now, but you needed to talk to someone. There was nowhere else that you could think of going right now, and there was only one person that you knew would be up this early. It would be a problem, especially if Belphie knew that you went there to talk about his and your relationship issues, but Lucifer was your best friend, and you needed some sort of guidance. You knocked lightly on his office door, waiting for him to call out to you to come in, but this time he actually opened the door for you, smiling softly when he saw you standing there. “Y/N… You’re up early.” He stepped to the side to let you in and you went straight for the armchairs, letting yourself drop into one, your head falling against the back as a loud groan escaped you. “Rough night I assume?” He followed you over, sitting in the chair beside yours and folding his hands on his lap. “I think Belphie broke up with me…” You whispered, not even wanting to say it out loud. The words didn’t sound right, they didn’t feel right leaving your lips. Lucifer’s eyes narrowed as he looked at you, and he seemed just as shocked by it as you had been. “He doesn’t like me spending time with you… and I know he hates you, but… You’re my friend. You’ve been my friend way longer than he’s been my boyfriend… I don’t want to hurt either of you though.” It was emotionally tolling, emotionally draining for you to even think about, let alone talk about. You didn’t want to have to choose between the two of them, and you shouldn’t have to. Lucifer reached out to pat the top of your hand, giving you that same soft smile that he had at his office door. You didn’t know how he could possibly reassure you right now, but you knew that he was about to try. “Y/N, you don’t have to hurt either of us, and you don’t have to choose. I’m still going to be your friend, no matter what. If Belphegor doesn’t like it, that’s his choice. You’ve done nothing wrong, but it would be wise to talk to him about this, and try not to let your emotions get the best of you.” Your emotions… they had gotten the best of you last night, and you had said something without even thinking, and that’s why he stormed out. You had to stay in control, even if Belphie couldn’t.
Taking a deep breath, you knocked quickly on the door to Belphie and Beels room, Lucifer’s words replaying in your head. You needed to talk to him about this, but as seconds ticked by and your heart raced, you wanted nothing more than to turn around and run into your room. You didn’t know how you’d be able to look at him, let alone talk to him without getting upset. It would be so easy to just go to your room and lock the door, and just as that idea was starting to sound like a better plan than anything else, the door swung open. “Hey, Y/N. Belphie’s still sleeping… He was up for a while last night tossing and turning… I even think he was crying. He didn’t want to talk about it though… Do you know what happened?” Beel was smiling at you just as he always did, but you worried that if you told him what had happened, the reason for his twin brother's lack of sleep, he would be upset with you. There was no use in lying to him or acting unsure though, you were sure that Belphie would tell him about it at some point anyway. “We got into an argument last night… I just really need to talk to him.” He hummed thoughtfully before nodding his head, stepping out of the room and watching you walk in. “Thank you…” For not asking any further questions, for not trying to poke at yours and Belphie’s relationship. If you didn’t tell him right away, he wouldn’t ask, and that’s the thing that you really liked about Beel. He was quiet, and he respects people's privacy. He gave you a quick nod before pulling the door shut, leaving you alone in the room with Belphie. Everything sounded so loud, even your breaths seemed to echo off the walls of the room, like everything was in acoustic. Your steps over to the bed sounded more like you were stomping even though you were being as quiet as you possibly could, not wanting to wake Belphie up. He would just be even more angry if you not only made him lose sleep last night, but also woke him up once he was finally able to get some shut eye. “I wasn’t crying, by the way. My nose was just stuffed up.” You stopped where you were, looking over to see Belphie sitting up in his bed. “Why are you here anyway?” He was going to be like that right off the bat, but you needed to stay calm, keep your composure. Things would be easy if at least one of you kept your cool, although it would be even easier if you both talked this through like grown adults. “I need to talk to you… You said last night… That you didn’t know if you were my-... What did you mean?” At this point you were standing in the middle of the room, awkwardly twirling your fingers as you looked at him. He sighed quietly, shaking his head as he looked up at you. “I was just mad. You know I didn’t mean that.” He watched your face closely, the way you bit your lip and shuffled your feet. “You do know I didn’t mean that, right?” His eyes softened and in a blink of an eye he was out of the bed, wrapping his arms around you so tight that it seemed like he wasn’t going to let go. “I’d never leave you over something like that, I just… I got mad, and I said something I didn’t mean to say.” He pushed you back just enough to kiss your forehead before looking down at you, his eyes holding your own. “I know… I know you wouldn’t…” You were holding onto the sides of his cardigan tightly, trying to think of how to tell him how you felt and what you were going to do without pissing him off again. “I love you, Belphie… I love being with you… But I’m not going to give up my friendship with Lucifer. I know you hate him, but-” He kissed you quickly, as if he was trying to quiet you before you went too far, and maybe it was the best thing for both of you. At least with his lips against yours you were sure of two things, and those were that you wouldn’t say anything to piss him off, and that he still was in a good enough mood to kiss you, and those were both very good things. The kiss lasted until the both of you were out of breath, both of your chests rising and falling quickly as you stared at each other. His cheeks were lightly flushed as he took a step back, chuckling
softly. “I’m not asking you to give up your… friendship with him.” He bit his lip a little, like the next part was hard for him to even try to say, and you began to mentally prepare yourself for whatever it was he would say next, fearing that it would be something you didn’t want to hear. “All I want is for you to not stay with him so late… I… I like falling asleep next to you at night.” His cheeks turned a brighter shade of red and he quickly pushed your face back into his chest, hoping that you didn’t notice it. Being held by him made everything that happened the night before seem like a nightmare and you were finally waking up from it. Lucifer was your best friend and nothing was going to change that, just like nothing was going to change the fact that Belphie was your boyfriend, and you loved him. As long as you got to end your nights in his arms and wake up to see his face everything would be alright.
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dreamsoflevi · 4 years ago
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Love Was Not Enough | Part 1
Summary: A titan shifter is working in the Scout Regiment with a plan. Growing up with hate for Paradis takes a complete turn when falling for a certain Captain and developing friendships. Is it too late to make a change?
Word Count: 4.2k
CW: Some fluff, angst, mentions of violence, description of an emotional breakdown, stress.
Author’s Note: My first post on Tumblr! I’m so slow when it comes to using Tumblr lol. Starting off with an angsty story because it's raining and gloomy. It was supposed to be an one-shot but it ended up being super long. There will be 1-2 more parts. Hope you enjoy! ♡
You loved him.
You really did.
You still do.
When you first met him, you were surprised this was the person everyone was referring to when they would mention Humanity's strongest soldier, Captain Levi. His aloof and brash attitude would prove those thoughts drilled in your head about the devils in disguise living amongst the lands as you. He didn't care for anything and he wouldn’t hesitate to remind you of that. “You will become titan shit.” His exact words spat to your face. Who does he think he is?
You were exceptional at what you did, full of intellect and skills landed you on his squad along with a group of newer cadets. The 104th cadets. You were all replacements for his previous squad who were killed by the female titan, your comrade Annie during the 57th expedition. You were trained for this after all. You were prepared and you had a plan along with a few others. Secret glances, nods, and meetings were shared amongst you four any chance you could get.
You ended up befriending a few too. A shy yet wise Armin, an extremely passionate Eren, a wild and resourceful Sasha, and some others. A bunch of children putting their lives on the line for a better tomorrow, a hopeful future. Aren’t you doing the same too?
During expeditions, you would watch Captain Levi swinging through trees on his ODM gear, slicing through the napes of every titan he landed his eyes on. Now you understand why he is humanity’s strongest. Slicing through titans without a struggle and with immense strength and speed.
He'd frantically look around making sure the others were okay. He'd shout the names of his squad and any other names he could remember hoping to get a shout in return. The panicked look on this face when he would hear screams and race to the source of them. Maybe he does care. When returning to the walls, you could see him grimace watching the gates open only for it to quickly change back to his normal neutral expression.
-
“L/N!” A voice breaking your thoughts as you walk back inside the headquarters after training. You turn around to see Captain Levi standing behind you with a small stack of papers in his hand.
“Yes, Captain?” You wiped the sweat off your forehead with your sleeve.
“Are you doing anything after this?”
You shook your head. “No, sir. Do you need anything?”
“Yes. Deliver this paperwork to Commander Erwin. He should be in his office now.” He handed you the small stack of papers he was holding.
“Yes, sir.” You nodded your head grabbing the papers and walking in the direction of Commander Erwin’s office.
Approaching his office, you knocked on his door. You heard a deep voice respond and turned the knob to enter. Opening the door, you see the distressed Commander sitting at his desk. One hand resting on his forehead and the other scribbling away. He glances up and sees the stack in your hands.
“Ah, thank you (Y/N), I was waiting for these.” Raising his hand in anticipation of the papers.
You walked up to his desk handing it to him. “No problem, Commander.”
You look around his messy desk. Papers spread all around, empty teacups resting on the side, and two ink bottles sitting on his desk. Your eyes take a peek at his face, dark circles under his eyes, and his hair slightly messed up. You couldn’t help but feel bad for him. No. You try shaking those thoughts away. They are the devils and we are paying for their actions.
But you take another look at him. Imagine being in his position. Are you aware of what your ancestors did, Commander? He’s shuffling through the small stack of papers that were just handed to him. You can see the squares and circles in the form of a large triangle. The formations. The lives and the future of thousands rest upon this single man’s shoulders. Of course, he has to spend hours on end meticulously planning the expeditions and making sure the formations are properly formed. A plan for a better tomorrow, a hopeful future. Don’t you want that too?
You internally sigh in defeat. “Um... Commander?” You nervously play with your fingers.
“Yes, (Y/N)?” He looks up at you, hand still holding the quill and the other now resting on the desk.
“Do.. do you need help? I just finished training and If you need help, I…” You bite your lip, your nerves getting the best of you as his eyes remain in contact with yours.
The curves of his mouth turn upwards. “If you can, please.” He gestures to the seat in front of him.
You flash him a smile, nod your head and take a seat. He hands you a stack of papers. “For these, you just need to write today’s date under the line where it says date received. Then organize them alphabetically.”
That’s where you found yourself at least twice a week. Helping the commander out whenever you could, organizing his paperwork, and filling them out whenever he needed you to. Sometimes you would work in complete silence. The sounds of pens scribbling, paper shuffling, and the sips the Commander took of his tea. Sometimes he would tell you a little story about his life and of his childhood. He would speak of his father being a major inspiration in his life and the reason he pushes forward every day. He had a sudden death, though the Commander never told you why, you can imagine it was a traumatic one for him.
A couple of months pass by and you are now sitting in the Captain's office. Coming into Commander’s office one day and seeing his surprisingly organized desk for once and him telling you that he didn’t need any assistance today. However, Captain Levi might need help with the reports from a previous expedition. Nodding your head and giving a quick salute, you made your way to Captain Levi’s office.
Working with Captain Levi was soothing. His office was very neat. Paperwork in his office sitting on his desk in organized piles. You can smell the faint scent of lemon which was refreshing. You visiting his office became a more frequent occurrence since he appreciated the assistance he would receive though he’d never tell you that. He would have a stack ready for you set up on the side table in his office. He was not much of a talker like Commander Erwin nor was he someone who reminisces his life it seems.
However, you would still have conversations here and there. He would ask about how you were feeling with training and if you dared to complain about the exercises he was giving, he would simply tell you to get better with the exercises or get eaten. Then realizing his bluntness and the silence that filled the room after, he would elaborate on his statement.
What he means is, he would say, these exercises help with increasing stamina and balance that will aid us on the battlefield. Outside the walls, anything can happen. Titans pop out of nowhere catching you off guard and little mishaps like getting tangled, being too slow, or even aiming your anchor wrong can lead to a fatal mistake. You could agree with that.
“(L/n), why did you decide to join the scouts?” He asked without looking up from what he was doing.
You stilled for a second and looked up at him. His eyes were still on the paper in front of him. This question always catches you off guard even if you rehearsed it so many times. It makes you nervous and vulnerable as if the person asking can see right through you and your facade.
“Same reason as everyone else, sir.” He glanced at you now and you immediately looked back down at the paper in front of you. You tried to avoid as much eye contact as you can.
He cocked an eyebrow. “Which is?”
“F-freedom.. from the titans.” You heard a scoff.
“Now you sound like Eren.” He was still looking at you. You dared to meet your eyes with his. He still had a stoic look on his face but there was curiosity simmering in his eyes. He was waiting for an answer. You had no choice but to give one. How would you say it though? You don’t want to lie. Captain Levi can be very perceptive and you’re sure he could see through your facade.
You bit your lip. “I… I want a better future for myself, my loved ones, and future generations. All my life, I’ve experienced confinement and.. oppression. But I have been given the power- er, the opportunity I should say to aid in defeating our e-enemies and... and I hope to accomplish that to live a more liberating life.”
He remained in eye contact with you without saying anything. The silence was deafening in the room and you hoped he would say something. Each second of silence was building the temperature in your body as your nerves were starting to get the best of you. Your chest was burning and you could feel a bit of sweat forming on your scalp. Did you say the wrong thing? Or maybe you said too much? Why isn’t he saying anything?
Your lips parted in anticipation to say something. But what else were you going to say? Before you can process what you are going to say, he hummed and looked back down at his work.
“You are right. We all have the same reason, more or less. To break out of these confined and oppressive walls and defeat these shitty titans. Whatever is out there must be better than what we live in now.”
You internally sighed. It’s not better but hopefully, it will get better. I guess we have the same mission, just different targets. You and everyone else here being mine Captain. You felt your throat dry up. Can you imagine killing these people? Watching Captain struggling on his last breath? Commander Erwin? Hange? Connie, Sasha, Jean, Armin? But your ancestors... Now you are suffering because of these devils.
Shaking your head of these thoughts, you try to focus back on the paper in front of you. “Ar-” You cleared your throat. “Armin believes there’s a sea out there.”
He snorted. “That kid and his shitty dream...” You could see a hint of a smile forming on his face. “Who knows, maybe there is.”
You come to realize that he’s not rude, he just doesn’t know how to express himself. His actions speak louder than words and you can’t help but grow a lot of respect for him. But he’s still a devil. But he has a heart and he cares for every single person in this regiment, including you. It doesn’t matter. They caused your people pain and betrayed them.
-
A perk of being on Captain Levi’s squad is getting to sit on meetings planning the expeditions. Commander Erwin would call these meetings for input on observations made from previous missions. Armin enthusiastically shares what he learns from the missions. Plans are being formed around Eren and his abilities. He’s learning new things about what he can do every day and recently he learned about hardening abilities from Annie. Working with Hange to train how to harden properly to be able to plug walls in the future.
They have no idea though. No idea what is beyond these walls, where these titans come from, where do they go, or anything else. They are risking their lives for the answers, the answers that you already know.
Walking through the dark hallways, you step into the mess hall. There sitting on a table in the dimly lit corner were Reiner and Bertholdt. The ones on the mission with you alongside Annie.
“Where have you been lately?” Reiner asked as you sat down on the bench. You usually had these meetings at least once or twice a week, but since Annie was captured, things have gotten more hectic. In fear of getting caught or being busy with so many tasks, you haven’t had the chance to meet with them as often as you should.
“Sorry.. I’ve just been swamped with training, meetings, and helping the higher-ups with their paperwork.”
Reiner narrows his eyes at you. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with them lately.”
“Yeah but I’ve managed to learn a few things.”
“Like what?”
“Well, Eren is close to figuring out his hardening abilities. Hange had taken the sample from Annie but she didn’t get far with that. Now she and Eren are working together to see how Eren can unlock his own ability.”
Reiner hummed. “If Eren learns how to harden, he could start landing attacks on me. He’d still be no match for Bertholdt though.”
You nodded in response. There was an awkward silence. No one had much to say which was a huge difference from before when you had to plot your next moves and practice your stories together. Usually, Reiner was the one who would come up with the plans and assign tasks to the rest of you three. This was before the fight between Eren and Annie. You didn’t expect Annie to lock herself into the crystal.
You looked at Reiner who seemed to be deep in thought. “What are you thinking?”
He sighed. “I think another attack is coming soon.”
Bertholdt and your eyes widen. “Are you sure? Isn’t it a little too quick, Reiner?” Bertholdt wearily asks. You nod your head in agreement.
“They already have Annie. We need to get Eren and try to get Annie out of there as well.”
“Yes!” Bertholdt interjects. “We do need to save Annie.” Bertholdt always had a soft spot for Annie. You have an inkling he has a crush on her because he gets flustered and avoids the topic every time it’s brought up.
You don’t know if you’re ready for another attack. The last one was devastating. The fight between Eren and Annie destroyed so many homes and lost lives. Children losing their parents, parents losing their children, lovers lost… It is heartbreaking. You don’t know if you can stomach another attack at this point. What are you saying? That is what you’re here for. You need to do this for your people back home. You let out a long exhale and close your eyes.
“It bothers you too, doesn’t it?” You open your eyes to Bertholdt looking at you.
“They are people… just like us.”
You nod your head meekly. “Just like us.” You repeated in a whisper.
Reiner sighs. “And they have no clue what is happening.”
“No clue.” You and Bertholdt breathe simultaneously. You three sit in silence, all three of you lost in your own thoughts. Why did it have to be us?
-
During training you noticed Captain Levi limping a little more than usual. Since the 57th expedition, his leg has been in bad shape. He still supervises your training and some days, he can walk properly and some days he’s limping. You turn back to your task at hand, slicing through the titan dummies set up.
“(Y/n)! Straighten your back!” He yells from the field and you obey, straightening your back while you and Connie swing to the titan dummy.
“Oi Sasha! You have to aim your anchors a bit higher!”
“Mikasa, don't go too fast!”
The comments usually went like that for the entire training session. Watching all of you train and critique your performances. You’re not going to lie, it was a pain in the ass. But you noticed it does help you outside of the walls. Captain Levi is good at what he does. He’s perceptive and knows exactly what to do and when. He is a natural titan killer. Being able to take down small to abnormal and maybe even ones like you. After you were done, you all were panting and sweating while walking back to the field.
“Phew! That was some training today,” Connie wiped the sweat off of his forehead.
Jean clicked his tongue. “That was nothing! Probably too much for you right Yeager?” He smirked at Eren.
Eren rolled his eyes. “You wish, Jean boy. That’s why you’re drenched in sweat.”
“Am not!”
“Are too!”
You all groaned as Eren and Jean started arguing for the fifth time today. The first two times Armin tried to interject to try and diffuse the argument but at this point, even he gave up.
“You’re on Yeager. After dinner, we’ll have an arm wrestling match.”
“After dinner,” Eren confirmed. “Don’t horse around Kirstein.”
“Shut up titan freak.”
“Are you ladies done bickering?” Captain Levi glared at them with his arms crossed. Eren clicked his tongue and Jean muttered under his breath. Captain narrowed his eyes at them, a warning to fix their attitudes. They immediately straightened their backs.
“Yes sir!” A few of you silently giggled watching them get scolded by Captain Levi.
Watching them with a smile, you loved the banter between Eren and Jean. Despite the arguments, you know deep down they have respect and admiration for one another. It’s distinctly shown during battle when they are looking out for another. Even during Eren’s fits of rage, Jean is understanding and never attacks Eren for his impulsive decisions. He might get a little bit of teasing though.
They were very friendly with you too. Always giving you a pat on the back or a cheesy grin whenever they see you. Looking back at you when riding through the gates to make sure you’re okay or screaming your name to make sure you are fine when fighting titans. And let’s not forget Jean’s flirty nature. His love for Mikasa is strong but he can’t help it when he sees any walking and breathing female. Just kidding. He’s not that girl crazy.. maybe. It’s too soon to decide that.
I think another attack is coming soon. You heard Reiner’s voice suddenly appeared in your mind. You suddenly started feeling a bit nauseous. Another attack on these people. These people you are considering your friends. You felt the salty taste in the back of your throat. Trying to calm your nerves, you took some deep quiet breaths. It wasn’t helping. It was getting harder to swallow with your throat tightening. You silently walked back hoping no one starts a conversation with you. As soon as you get back, you were planning on taking a very, very cold shower.
Grabbing your clothes, you ran into the showers. Breathing hard and with shaking hands, you turned the shower knob. The cold water hitting you and startling you for the first few seconds. You can’t. You can. You can’t. You have to. But these people, you can’t do that to them now. Not when they are just started to grow on you. They were normal people with normal feelings. They’re not… devils? Yes, they are.
You remember the attack in Trost. The chaos that spread through the walls. These same cadets hopelessly try to fight the titans. You were all newly graduated. Thomas getting eaten by a titan. Screams and cries filled your ears along with the sounds of loud thumps and bone-crunching.
When you were discussing things with Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie, poor Marco being in the wrong place at the wrong time. How devastated Jean was losing his best friend and not knowing ultimately it was you three that led to his death. Not only his but everyone else’s. The way Armin looked when Eren sacrificed himself to save him.
Can you do this again?
A sob escaped from your throat. Tears flew down your cheeks getting mixed in with the water. You are no different than them, aren't you? The blood of these innocent lives on your hands. But they were the reason for all this, no? Except they don’t know. Is it justifiable blaming them for something that happened so many years ago? While you are oppressed by the Marleyeans, they are oppressed by these titans. Aren’t you any different from the Marleyans then? Punishing innocent people for things out of their control?
Leaning your head on the tiled wall, you needed to make a decision. Whose side are you on? No, whose side do you want to be on? Do you want to continue the same treatment you received? Do you want to be the reason a child loses their mother? Their father? You need to make a decision and make it quick. You grabbed the soap bar and cleaned yourself off. You will make a decision. You just need time.
After your shower, you remembered you were going to go to Captain Levi’s office to help him with his paperwork. You also remembered how he was limping badly today. Before going into his office, you decided to make a trip to the infirmary.
Asking the nurses for some balm for Captain Levi’s leg, you grabbed a small jar and made your way to his office. What’s the reason for this? Are you trying to relieve some of the guilt eating away at your conscience?
Entering his office, he offered a small greeting before pointing to the paperwork that needed to be done today. Before getting seated at the table, you walked over to his desk and held out the small jar. With an eyebrow raised, he looked at the jar in your hand.
“It’s for your leg. You were limping today and I thought this might help sir.”
He took the jar from your hand. The curves of his mouth turned upward, not enough to call it a smile since he hardly ever did. “Thank you.”
Thank you. You felt your heart flutter. You barely hear words of acknowledgment from him and you can’t help but feel happy that you were on the receiving end of them. So what? Why do you care? Because you do admire him. After all, he was your Captain and you respect him. And he is looking nicer than usual in his black suit and cravat. What? Are you okay? You’re just acknowledging his looks. It means nothing-
Wait, he said thank you. You need to answer him instead of disputing with your own self.
“It’s no problem.” You smiled at him and walked over to your seat and began working.
-
That is how things went for a while. You have been avoiding Reiner and Bertholdt any chance you can get because you were unsure of how to explain the inner turmoil you are having with yourself. You are close to walking away from it all, officially dedicating your heart to the Scouts, to Commander Erwin, to Paradis. You are willing to throw it away. Your family, friends, and everyone else back home. They don’t understand what you’re going through. The struggle you are facing. It’s easy to be on the other side of things but when having to see these losses head-on, it’s gut-wrenching.
You managed to get even closer to everyone. Sharing laughs and jokes with your squad during breakfast and dinner, working with Commander Erwin more closely and offering suggestions when he’s planning the formations, engaging in more conversations with Captain Levi, and even spending time in Hange’s office.
“Oh! Hello again (Y/n)! Guess what Eren is doing today!” Hange exclaimed while wrapping her arm around Eren’s neck. Eren holding onto her arm trying to relieve some pressure on his neck.
“What is he doing today?” You gave Eren a little smirk.
“Drinking a lot of water. We’re testing out his pee!” She shoved a large canteen into Eren’s chest.
“Pee? Wait, why?”
“Because Eren, we’re tested your blood but we haven’t received consistent results. So we are going to try your bladder. So drink up! We need at least a liter.”
“A liter?!” Eren squeaked.
Hange cackled. “A liter indeed!”
“(Y/n), do you want to help Eren out?” She flashed a grin at you.
“Sure,” you shrugged. “What do I have to do?”
“Just make sure he drinks this entire canteen of water. And if he doesn’t..” her smile dropped and she grimly looked at you, “Force him.”
Eren managed to drink the canteen of water and he also managed to give a liter of urine samples. Unfortunately, Eren had to run to the bathroom every half hour for the rest of the day. This resulted in a very irritated Captain Levi and a snickering Jean.
“What experiment did four eyes do on the shit head today?” He asked you when you walked into his office.
“She needed urine samples from Eren so she forced him to drink an entire canteen which is a gallon of water in one hour.” You grinned while grabbing your stack of papers.
He cringed. “Poor Eren.”
You snapped your neck to look at him in shock. “Did you just have sympathy for someone, Captain?”
“Oi, shut it. Don’t get mouthy with me.” He teasingly pointed a finger at you.
You snickered, taking your usual seat at the table. “I mean… It’s Hange. I always have sympathy for anyone who works with her. Look at poor Moblit.” He chuckled.
His chuckle rang through your head. He chuckled. You quickly caught your thoughts and felt heat rushing up to your cheeks for getting flustered about him chuckling. Why are you feeling like this?
“Captain, what’s the occasion? I don’t think anyone has ever heard you laugh.” You grinned at him.
“That wasn’t a laugh.” He immediately responded while scribbling on papers.
“Fine. A chuckle.” You rolled your eyes and began shuffling through the papers and organizing them.
“Well feel special I guess. You heard your captain chuckle.” He mockingly repeats the word in your tone.
Special. You smile. I do feel special.
103 notes · View notes
maybeiamdownbad · 3 years ago
Text
For the first time ever I'm actually going to post a story that I wrote! I don't know how many chapters it's going to be but I know I absolutely want to continue it!
Title: Entity 001
Warnings: Heavy Angst, horror aspects, aliens?, major character death (future chapters), eventual fluff, colossus trope, thoughts of death, the government is evil (duh)
WC (this chapter): 3.8k
Mist surrounded the edges of Finley’s mind. A deep kind of fog that only vanished after being truly awake and focused. An alarm blared with a shrill buzz breaking him out of that calm state like a lightning strike to a still ocean. Turning over in bed, Finley smacked his hand-me-down alarm clock, willing it to be silent. Sitting up his dark blue sheets fell from his shoulders, air nipping at his bare skin.
The apartment he moved into was big enough for him and his sister to both have a room to themselves. It was a vast improvement from their grandmother’s basement, but it came with an unknown cost. Lodging and bills had been paid for by Finley’s new employer who had taken a class of recent college graduates and promised them a chance to explore new aspects of life from beyond the stars, but he hadn’t known what his new job would truly entail. They had been very vague but when offered a job that would pay six figures a year right out of highschool Finley had not hesitated to take the opportunity. Most of the other students however hadn’t been so easily convinced to move their lives.
Finley took a moment to gather his haze filled thoughts and began to get dressed for a brand new day. The cold white coat hugged his arms as he opened the door from his room to the living area. Kylie had already been awake and waiting for Finley to start making breakfast. She was a small girl who had a passion for anything and everything that caught her attention. In the last few months she had been drawing everything she saw, which Finley had decided might not be the best thing to tell his employers. 
The petite girl sat in the corner where the only window in their apartment sat. She had drawn little clouds on blue sticky notes and put them up along the window sill. At the moment she was working on drawing the willow tree just outside the complex. It stood large and tall even though it seemed lonely in the otherwise empty courtyard.
Finley had begun pouring cereal into the bowls that came with his temporary apartment. Off white porcelain sat on the marble counter and as he poured the milk Finley thought, Wow they really sprung for marble, amazed by little things that seemed so large to him in that moment. There were no splinters that came up with the bowls like there would have been in grandma’s little kitchenette. 
“Here ya go kiddo,” Finley handed Kylie her bowl and sat down to begin eating his, “How long have you been up anyway?”
Kylie gently took the cereal and responded “Not too long.” 
She had been very quiet since moving and Finley was sure it was because she didn’t want to leave her friends behind. But she took the change of pace like a champ and didn’t complain nearly as much as the average child would have so the older brother counted his blessings and moved on. 
We can move back once we’re well enough off to be comfortable. She’ll be ok, she’s strong.
Money had always been scarce and although he felt a pang of pain every time his sister sighed he knew she understood where he was coming from. She had always been wise beyond her years.
“Alright well I better head off, I’ll be back in a few hours. Will you be good here till I get back?” Finley broke the silence with a simple question.
“Mhm” The ten year old didn’t even look up from her sketch.
“Ok well don’t commit any crimes you can't cover up while i’m gone!” He watched a small smile form on her face as he walked out the door and down the stairs to his second day on the job.
Air clung to the pale white walls with vigor. Every breath he took sounded off like the clicks of an empty gun. The lonely creature lay still in the corner of a white room with one hollow light that hung from the ceiling precariously.
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Click click click. A breath in. Click click click. A breath out. 
It had been several light cycles since he had seen the sun, how many it had been he did not know. The last memory of any warmth feeling so far away that he could barely remember the sweet hug of light. Vast limbs clung closely to his dark purple skin. How long had it truly been since the monsters had taken him hostage? He couldn’t remember. He couldn’t remember anything anymore.
Landing on the small blue and green marble had been a mistake. A break had cost him his life. Stranded away from any of his kind it seemed there was nothing he could do to get home. Small beeps filled the air, with sounds of mechanical contraptions unknown to his kind. They were harsh and never slept, a constant reminder to where he was.
A large mirror covered one of the six sides of the extra terrestrial’s confinement. Mocking him, as if to say, look at how far you’ve fallen. Where was he now? He didn’t know, all he knew were the confines of this room. But the moment he got out, his captors would know the meaning of death. He would swarm them like a plague, one that seeped into your very soul, ripping them apart from the inside out. They would know no peace.
Click click click. In. Click click click. Out.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Finley's first day on the job had been meeting most of the scientists he would be working with, as well as becoming acquainted with some of the other highschool graduates that were taking the opportunity. He still didn't have a full idea what their job was going to be but from what had been explained yesterday he was going to be working hands on with items from space.
He wasn’t entirely sure what his bosses were referring to but he was just as happy to be a part of scientific history, as he was to be making enough money to have whatever he and his sister needed.
Sitting under the willow tree right outside his apartment Finley heard his bus round the corner and quickly come to a halt in front of him. Despite clearly having been expensive and new the bus ground to a halt with a loud screech. Finley stepped inside with a greeting to the driver and took his seat. The metal machine whirred back to life and he was officially on his way to his new job.
Taking a moment to note who was on the bus with him he saw some familiar faces from the day before. At the front Dave sat talking to Carter, or Carey… he wasn’t sure what the blond scientist name was but Finley had met him the other day.
Behind them sat a man in camouflage, who he hadn’t met. Looking around he noticed that each seat of scientists had one or two men, who were military protection, sitting behind them. Though his guide yesterday had said the military was very invested in their discoveries, Finley hadn’t expected so many guards. At least not on the bus to wherever they were going.
The more he thought about it the more nervous he got. Sweat started to form near the cuffs of his sleeve. They hadn’t told him where they were actually going. Sparse trees began to thin even more as the bus went on a winding road into rocky mountains covered in sand. 
The sun rose higher and higher into the sky, beating down on the window to Finley’s right. Seconds turned into minutes and those turned into more than an hour of non-stop driving. 
After what seemed like an eternity  the bus came to a halt in front of a river-worn bluff. Nothing but sand filled dirt and scattered dry bushes filled the vast area for miles and miles. The passengers departed the metal monster and all gathered outside, and though he had been told they were going to a remote base Finley was unable to find one in the vast expanse of desert.
Moments passed and the bus drove off. Standing by the bluff, fifteen scientists, ten soldiers, and six students who had been brought along all waited.
One of the soldiers with a higher stature than the others spoke above the murmur of the crowd, “Alright you all know the drill, phones in the box.” He held out a cardboard box with large sharpie lettering that wrote, phones. Though the sharpie was barely legible but Finley got the idea and put his phone in along with everyone else, and as the last phone hit the bottom of the box a mechanical whirring sounded off.
Dirt rose from the ground in a single large rectangle and a metal box lifted from the ground effortlessly. Though many of the men and women standing around him didn’t bat an eye at the mystical event, the other students were quietly freaking out. The large stainless steel box had partly glass doors outlined with metal trim that slid open without a hitch and the first group of half a dozen people went inside to be lowered down into the ground. 
Each small group of people boarded, taking nearly ten minutes for the contraption to rise back out of the ground to accept more people yet again. Group after group went down into the ground, and though this was passed off as a normal occurrence, the other new employees seemed less than thrilled to be venturing into the unknown sharing many of the same fears Finely was just beginning to feel.
    The sweat that had begun to form near the cuffs of his sleeve moved down his wrist onto the palms of his hands. 
Why do they need so many soldiers? 
Why is this so far away from other people? 
Why was the entrance hidden like that?
    The wuestions he had would have to wait. It was the student’s turn to follow suit. The officer with the cardboard box motioned for the group to step into the hidden elevator, the warm temps making his hair fall out of place. Step after noisy step Finley and the other teens entered the elevator and began their decent.
    The glass doors shut with a quiet magnetized sound and the dirt he had just been standing on lifted above Finley’s head. The fact that the doors were clear didn’t make much of a difference when the shaft they had gone into was so dark. The officer standing behind Finley and the others stuck his right hand into his pocket holding the phone box in his left hand. The action made Finley realize that everyone in the elevator had been holding their breath aswell. As if any one of them making a sound would cause the elevator to break away from its cable.
    Several long minutes passed and just as Finley was about to ask one of his never ending questions light flooded through the glass. The largest cave Finley had ever seen opened up in front of his very eyes. Every question he had before was replaced by a new one.
    Powerful lights hung from the roof of the cave, countless balconies jutted out from the walls connected by more elevators. On the base floor there was what seemed to be a command center filled with blinking lights and stange machines Finley had never seen before.
The most astounding thing however, was at the far end of the cave. Made of layers and layers of bullet proof glass a wall stood nearly twenty storries high. Behind it a monster of gigantic proportions kept curled into a large mass of dark purple limbs and spines that stuck up from its thick skin. 
    A dimmer light than the rest hung from the ceiling of the creatures confinement. The ligtht flickered seemingly begging to be anywhere else. The light didn’t reach far enough to fully acentuate the beast, and the almagomation of flesh moved only in juts. Its breathing seemed to come slower than that of a humans.
    “What the fuck is that?” One of the students, Al, questioned with a slight quiver to his voice.
    “That, my friend, is exactly what we have been trying to figure out for a long time. So far we call it ‘Entity 001’ though.” The officer spoke in an almost bored tone.
    Another of the students, Jessie, brought up the first ligitimate question, “Is that what we were brought here for,” she didn’t seem very confident, nor did any of the other students for that matter though,”are we studying…that?”
    “Up close and personal doll.” Jessie cringed at the nickname but didn’t say a word back.
    In a strange and dangerous way the beast seemed beautiful. Light speckless dotted a deep and saturated purple skin. It was covered in shadows but just behind arms, hands, and fingers that were to long to be proportional, a crooked face rested with tear stained cheeks.
--------------------------------------------------------------
The frigid metal floor stung the receptors just under his skin. A large white door opened and the alien stayed still. It had been too many cycles where he had been prodded and poked with metal from that door, but he did not have the energy to move away from it or fight. 
Luckily his captors seemed to choose peace today. A large vessle of water had been rolled in on a metal beast. He did not need to eat, his speices had evolved past that necessity. However the desire and need to drink had not been moved past so easily.
The door shut quickly, it always did, and after a moment when he was sure it would be safe the alien unfurled himself from the position he had been laying in and moved over to the water. Moving one of his many clawed and webbed hands to the water he lifted the substance to his mouth before taking a greedy drink.
Click click click. A breath in. Click click click a breath out.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Finley stood shocked as the glass doors slid open. The decent had been a long one, but with the information given to the students it had seemed to go by in an instant. The group took what felt like a never ending journey to the glass.
Behind Finley a very heated coversation was held by Al and Jessica arguing about weather or not the monster should even be alive at all.
“It should be put down.” Al continued with fast hand gestures.
“You don’t even really know what it is, besides if it’s that big the thing can probably hear you-”
Jessica was cut off by a new voice,”I assure you it cannot hear you, or see you for that matter.” Finley turned around to see a tall woman with bright eyes and even brighter pink hair tied up in a loose bun abover her head. 
“Well I guess it can’t do much but that’s beside the point. The real point is you all being here. Albert, Finley, Jessica, Tyler, and Amber,” The woman took a quick breath,”Well that was a mouth full. I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Dr. Rinsley, you may call me Dr. Rinsley. I didn’t go though 15 years of training to be called anything less.”
“Dr. Rinsley, what are we doing exactly?” The question had been the first words Finley had heard Amber speak.
“Well each of you have volunteered to be paid a heafty amount to put your lives on the line for our scientific future. In your job description Shutter Labs told stated you each would be working hands on with items from space. ‘Entity 001’ just so happens to be ‘those items’.”
A ringing began in Finleys ears. I’m going to have to go in there. Only that thought crossed Finley’s mind. His vission went white and every sound other than the ringing was blocked out. For a split second Finley believed he may faint.
His breath deepened, heart rate slowed and then, a vision came to him. It was a day in the summer, before he and his sister had moved. She was playing in their grandmother’s garden. She happened to be sneaky enough that she had taken a salt shaker outside and eaten the tomatoes right off the plant.
His senses returned to him slowly. He might not make it through whatever these people had planned, but his sister was going to make it out of her pre-teens with enough money to go all the way through college and be happy.
The other graduates were in an uproar of arguments directed at Dr. Rinsley, some worried that their life would be on the line, others bringing up the deceit in the waivers. In truth, they all knew it would be dangerous if they were getting paid that much right out of highschool. But out of every issue Finley saw in his recruitment it didn’t matter compared to what he was fighting for.
“What do you need us to do?” his question stuck out among the raised voices like a sore thumb.
He had spoken without even realizing what he was doing, and the answer Dr. Rinsley had given him back was something he and the others should have seen coming.
“You’re going to go in there with ‘001’ and see how it reacts,” The other students quieted down the moment she continued, “If you have any issues with it you can take it up with me before you change into the testing clothes. I will be in my office.
Dr. Rinsley strode off in a direction he and the others could only assume her office was in. Every person but Finley practically tripped over themselves to get to her office and spew every question they had at her.
“One at a time.” The officer who held their phones grabbed onto the hood of Al’s jacket, which stuck out over his white lab coat stopping him from following the pink haired doctor.
Finley took his chance to walk beside Dr. Rinsley and state his own concerns, “I don’t care what you want me to do, if its go in there and kiss the thing i’d do it. However, I need to know that my next of kin will get the money.” 
Step after step they went up a set of stairs into the doctor’s office. The wood creaked, seemingly worn from years of abuse. How long has this place been here? That was something Finley hadn’t considered, but it really didn’t matter at this moment.
“We can set up a payment plan or trust fund for them. I assume you’re referring to your sister?” She spoke without even looking up from her phone, and opened the door to her office.
“Yes.”
“It will be done within the hour, now go change. The bus ride home is long, as im sure you’re well aware, so we don’t have all day for the first test.”  She said it so nonchalantly, as if his life couldn’t be ended in a moment if he went into the cage with that beast.
As Finley left her office he glanced at the glass wall. The alien unfurled its arms and legs and strode over to the pool of water in its massive enclosure. Finely could barely comprehend the proportions of the beast.
It had four arm-like limbs wich streached forward as it made its way to the water. Its powerful legs propelling it forward at a relatively slow pace. Each step it took sounded off like great earthquakes, and as it took one of its webbed hands up to its face its jaw seemed to detach from its skull. A pale blue light emerged from its maw as it took drink of water.The speckles of light on its back pulsing with each gulp.
    Tearing his eyes away from the event Finley continued down the stairs, and was directed to the dressing rooms.
    The cold white clothes were made with low quality cotton and had sections of cloth cut out for heart rate monitors and mics. The other graduates had gone to ask their endless questions to Dr. Rinsler, but Finley finished getting dressed. He wanted to get this over with. If he was truly the first person to ever interact with this being, he would likely die.
    The thought made him shudder as he pulled white socks up his calves. He had to do this for his sister. She might not understand but it will be worth it. He didn’t really want to do this. Infact if he had any possible way to avoid it he would, but the sheer amount of military in the cave alone made it abundantly clear leaving wasn’t really an option. Might as well get it over with fast. 
    After getting fully dressed, Finley made his way out of the changing rooms and into the grand expanse of cave. He mustered every ounce of courage he could, and before he could take a step towards Dr. Rinsley’s office, one of the higher ranking study group scientists intercepted him.
    “Finally, ok we’re putting you in there in 5, follow me.” The scientist waved for Finley to follow.
    The ringing that had faded in the teen’s ears returned with vigor. Each breath he took and each step he came closer to the door that would ultimately lead him to his demise made him want to run further away than possible.
    Once he approached the enclosure multiple people came up to him, testing the mics and the cameras attached to his form. Moments later the pink haired doctor approached him aswell, shooing away the other scientist.
    Looking into his eyes she began, “I know this isn’t what you were imagining but I promise we will do everything we can to make sure whatever the outcome of this interaction is, it will better our scientific progress. And we will take care of your sister.” 
    Finley could tell she was being genuine but that didn’t quell his fears, in fact it heightened them, heartrate monitor beeping in protest. Dr. Rinsler rested her hand on his shoulder in sympathy and left taking all of the others with her.
    “Are you ready?” She shouted from her observation station, hand on a switch which read ‘door unlock 1’. The officer from before heald his hand above a similar switch which read ‘door unlock 2’.
    “No, but that doesn’t really matter.” Finley spoke with a huff. Sweaty palms held close to his sides.
    For a few agonizing seconds, nothing happened. Then with a whirr a door the size of a small car opened. He stepped inside, each placement of his foot echoing in the large cement and glass cube.
    As the door shut behind him his eyes couldnt keep up to adjust and he was surrounded in darkness. 
    A light glow of blue came from the corner of the massive gymnasium like structure, and the last thing Finley heard before passing out was an intense vibration in the air like the firing off of a machine gun with deep misfires.
    Click, click, click… Click, click, click.
(To be continued)
4 notes · View notes
fruitcoops · 4 years ago
Note
Could you maybe write a “73 questions with Sirius Black” Vogue one? Or something like that.
Yes! I had never seen these videos before and it was a fun challenge to write. Hope you enjoy! Sweater Weather credit goes to @lumosinlove!
The house is large, two stories tall and painted a soft gray with white trim around the windows. Holiday lights have yet to be taken down and shine in all colors of the rainbow from the eaves as the camera crew walks up the front steps. The curtains in the window tremble for a moment, then a dog pokes her head through—she is all-black and curious, and looks quite large.
Dorcas Meadowes knocks on the front door; a moment later, it swings open and reveals Sirius Black. “Hey, guys, come on in! You can leave your shoes by the door inside.”
“Thanks, Sirius.” Dorcas kicks off her flats and follows him inside as he sets a dish towel on the end table and leans against it. “How are you today?”
“I’m doing pretty well. Morning practice was productive and I’m feeling good about our upcoming game.”
“We’re here today to ask you 73 rapid-fire questions while you lead us around. Sound good?”
“Sounds good. You can all come inside instead of freezing on the porch,” he laughs, waving them closer. The door shuts with a gentle click.
“First question: on a scale of 1-10, how excited are you about life right now?”
“Hmmm. A solid seven.”
“Do you have any pets?”
“I do!” Sirius leads them into the other room, where the dog is curled up on the couch below the window; he picks her up and gives her a kiss on the head. “This is Hattie and I love her very much.”
“Cute! If you could do a dramatic love scene in a movie with anyone, who would it be?”
Sirius sets the dog down and thinks for a second. “Aside from my fiancé, I’m going to say James Potter. We would kill it and I don’t think it would be that awkward.”
“What’s the origin of your name?”
“Pretty much my whole family has star-themed names. Sirius is the dog star from Canis Major.”
“Brightest star in the sky, too. What’s one thing people don’t know about you?”
“I’m an introvert. Lots of people assume that I’m super social because of my job, but I’m very quiet in real life.” He walks back out to the entrance and takes the towel off the table, then moves into the kitchen. It’s well-lit and painted a deep, warm red. The countertop is scattered with knickknacks and picture frames—clearly, this is a place people spend a lot of time. Hattie, who followed them in, lays down by the oven with a heavy sigh.
“What’s your wakeup ritual?”
Sirius reaches up and pulls two mugs out of the cupboard. “I wake up around seven am and make coffee while Re is in the shower, then rinse off and get dressed while he makes breakfast. It’s a good system. Want some tea?”
“Sure. What’s your bedtime ritual?”
“I don’t think I have one,” he says as he puts the kettle on and ignites a burner on the stove. “Usually we read or watch a movie, then go up to bed and talk for a while. There’s not a big routine or anything.”
“Sounds nice. What’s your favorite time of day?” Dorcas sits on the other side of the kitchen island while he takes a box of peppermint tea down.
“That’s a tough one. I like the in-between spots, like just after sunrise or dusk. Three in the afternoon is usually pretty chill as well. Does anyone else want a cup?”
There are a few murmurs behind the camera and he takes two more down. “What is one thing no one knows about you?” Dorcas asks.
He raises an eyebrow. “If I told you, everyone would know, and it wouldn’t count.”
“Fair enough. Dream country to visit?”
“Anywhere. I think I want to go to Ireland first, though.” Small wisps of steam begin curling out of the kettle, but it doesn’t whistle.
“Do you ever feel pressure to post things on social media?”
Sirius makes a face. “I used to. Eventually I just got tired of it, you know? The whole point of social media is sharing bits of your life with people and it makes me happy to show off my dog, or Re, or my friends. I post things just for fun now.”
The kettle begins to hiss and he reaches back to turn it off. “Sneakers or skates?”
“Skates.”
“Vintage or new?
“Vintage, especially for t-shirts and sweaters.”
“Who is your biggest role model?”
“Pascal Dumais.” Sirius stops pouring for a moment to look up at the camera. “If you ever get a chance to meet him, listen to what he has to say. You’ll be better for it.”
“Wise words. How do you deal with negativity? Oh, thank you.” Dorcas wraps her hands around the mug and takes a small sip while Sirius passes the other ones to the crew.
“Honestly? I don’t give a shit. It used to really bother me, but I’m happy, I have a job I love, and my family cares about me. Why should I care what people I’ve never met think of me?” He sits on the counter and rests his elbows on his knees, blowing on the hot water.
“What are three things you can’t live without?”
“My dog, Remus, and my family.” There is no hesitation in his voice.
“Not hockey?”
“I’d be devastated if I couldn’t play, sure, but it’s not the central focus of my life anymore.”
“What’s one ingredient you put in everything?”
“Does salt count?” He winces as he takes a drink. “Ugh, burned my tongue. I put salt on a lot of things because I drink so much water that it throws my balance off.”
“What is something you’re completely bored of right now?”
Sirius rolls his eyes. “Gossip columns and tabloids in general.”
Dorcas hums in agreement. “What’s your biggest fear in life?”
“Losing my loved ones.”
“Window or aisle seat?”
“Window. Anyone walking by always steps on my foot or hits my elbow if I’m in the aisle. Plus, I get a good view and an easy nap spot.”
“What’s your current TV obsession?”
“Avatar: The Last Airbender, which I’m watching for the third time already.” He shakes his head. “It’s just so good.”
“Favorite app?”
He takes a second to think. “Spotify.”
“Secret talent?”
Sirius looks at her over the rim over his cup. “This is going to shock you. Ready?”
“Ready.”
“Hockey.”
“You’re the worst.” Despite her words, Dorcas smiles. “What the most adventurous thing you’ve done in your life?”
“Uh, probably going to Europe with some of the guys last year. We had a lot of fun, but it was crazy.”
“I can imagine it was. How would you define yourself in three words?”
“Tall, dark, and handsome.”
“And apparently not humble,” Dorcas teases. “Favorite piece of clothing?”
“Hoodies.”
“Clothing item everyone should have?”
“Hoodies.”
A door opens behind them and the camera turns; Remus walks out of the basement, covered in sweat as he wipes his forehead with the hem of his shirt and holds his skates in his other hand. “Baby, have you seen…” he trails off when he sees the group of people in the kitchen. Hattie’s tail thumps on the floor. “Um. Hello.”
“Hey, Remus, how are you doing?” Dorcas asks mildly.
The camera pans out to catch both Sirius, who is laughing quietly, and Remus, who flushes pink. “I’m good. I thought you were coming at ten?”
“It’s ten-thirty, sweetheart,” Sirius says, hiding his smile in his tea.
Remus glances at the clock before giving an awkward nod and walking toward the stairs. “I guess I’ll take a shower, then. Sorry about that. Uh, carry on.”
“What’s a superpower you would want?” Dorcas asks as soon as he disappears.
Sirius shakes his head with a grin. “Uh, teleportation. That would be really cool.”
“What’s inspiring you in life right now?”
“Ah, une grande question.” He thinks, then tilts his head toward the staircase. “Moments like that. And the Stanley Cup, of course.” He reaches back and knocks on the wooden cupboard.
“What cause is closest to your heart?”
“LGBT+ rights, especially trans rights. I’m privileged enough to have a platform and I intend to be loud as hell about that.”
“Good.” Dorcas sets her almost-empty mug on the table. “What’s one thing you’d say to your teenage self?”
Sirius lets out a long breath and drums his hands on the light blue ceramic of his cup. “I would say…it gets better. It really, really does. You’re going to feel super shitty for just a little bit longer, but then I promise you will be so incredibly happy that you wake up every morning and it hits you all over again.”
Dorcas nods, and the kitchen is quiet for a moment. “What’s a book that everyone should read?”
“The Hobbit, by J.R.R Tolkien.”
“What would you like to be remembered for?”
“This is going to sound so corny, but I want to be remembered for just being a good person.”
“That’s not corny. How do you define beauty?”
“Remus Lupin.”
“That’s corny,” she laughs, making him smile. “What do you love most about your body?”
“I’m a big guy, which can be a little bit intimidating, but it means I give really great hugs. I’m sure everyone saw the video that went around a while ago.”
“Cap Cuddles?”
He snorts. “Right. You’ve got Finn O’Hara to thank for that.”
“In your opinion, what’s the best way to take a rest or decompress?”
“Being alone,” Sirius says. “There is literally nothing better than getting home and sitting down with a book or something while I can hear Re doing his own thing and Hattie’s napping. It’s one of my favorite parts of the afternoon.”
“That’s the most introverted thing you’ve ever said.” Dorcas grins and finishes her tea just as a faint beeping noise begins in another room. “What’s your favorite way to experience art?”
“Through music, for sure.” He slides off the counter and walks down the hall, leading them toward the laundry room. He gives the camera crew a look as he pulls dry clothes out of the machine and heads back to the living room. “What? Did you think I didn’t do my own laundry?”
“You lost a sock,” Dorcas informs him, picking it off the ground and laying it on top of his head.
“Thanks, D.”
“What question do people ask that you wish they wouldn’t?”
“Lots of people have asked me when I decided to be gay, which is wrong on so many levels.”
“If you could master one instrument, what would it be?”
“Guitar or piano.” He dumps the load of laundry on the couch and opens the back door, holding it for the crew as they walk out into the sunshine. Hattie weaves through their legs and disappears into the bushes along the back.
“I might have to take your dog home with me. If you had a tattoo, where would it be?”
Sirius mock-glares at her. “Let me have my girl! Um, I would love to have a tattoo somewhere on my arm.”
“This might be a hard one. Dolphins or koalas?”
“Oh, that is hard. Probably dolphins. The ocean is terrifying but those little guys are just having a blast.”
“What’s the best gift you’ve ever received?” Dorcas asks as he picks up a tennis ball and throws it across the yard. Hattie emerges from the bushes and races after it in a blur of black fur.
“An engagement ring.”
“Yeah, it was.” Remus walks into the backyard and kisses Sirius’ cheek before bending down to catch Hattie in his arms. His hair is still damp from the shower. “Hello, sweet girl!”
“Who’s your favorite musician?”
“Queen.” Sirius laughs at her surprised look. “I’m gay, what did you expect?”
“True. What’s your favorite board game?”
“Monopoly.” Remus and Hattie disappear from the frame, but the bouncing sound of the tennis ball creates some background noise and Sirius watches them for a moment with pure affection.
“Favorite color?”
“Blue.”
“Least favorite color?”
“Orange.”
“Bowties or knot ties?”
He frowns. “Don’t they all have knots?”
“Smartass.”
“Yep! Uh, regular ties.”
“Bowties are superior!” Remus calls.
“Get your own questions!” Sirius laughs.
“Going off your music answers: records or CDs?”
“I don’t own a lot of records, so I’m going to have to go with CDs. I love the way vinyl sounds, though.” His eyes widen as he looks to the side. “Are you okay?”
“Fine,” Remus wheezes. “I didn’t need those ribs anyway.”
“For the viewers, the dog just football-tackled him into the grass,” Sirius says, and Dorcas snorts.
“Your hair is famously luscious. Blow-dry or air-dry?”
“Air dry.”
“Coffee or tea?”
“Coffee, but tea is nice in the evenings.”
“What’s the weirdest word in the English language?”
Sirius laughs. “There are so many. Uh, ‘jeez’ is the one that comes to mind first.”
“What about the French language?”
“Oiseaux,” he says in a crisp accent. “It means ‘birds’, and you pronounce about three of the actual letters.”
“Good to know. Do you prefer dark chocolate or milk chocolate?”
“Dark chocolate.”
“Stairs or elevators?”
“Elevators. I don’t want to walk up three floors after playing hockey for two and a half hours.”
“Summer or winter?”
Sirius bites his lip in thought as they walk around the yard, where small flowers line the fence in beds and colorful pots. “I love summer because I have actual free time to be with my friends, but winter is hockey season. I don’t know, next question.”
“What’s a dessert you don’t like?”
“I’m not a huge fan of caramel. It’s too sticky.”
“A skill you’re working on mastering?”
“Will you ban me from more interviews if I say hockey?”
“Yes.”
“In that case, I’m working on keeping plants alive, as you can probably see.” He taps the nearest flowerpot gently with his foot; it has ‘Harry’ painted across it in sloppy blue letters. “My godson made that for my birthday.”
“What’s the best thing to happen to you today?”
“This, for sure,” he says with a smile. “I haven’t seen you and Marley in ages.”
“We missed you, too. What’s the worst thing that happened to you today?”
He pouts slightly. “Burning my tongue on tea.”
“Hugs or kisses?”
“Hugs! Though I’ll accept kisses from a few very specific people.”
“Do you have a favorite smell?”
He pauses and cranes his neck to look behind the cameras. “Re?”
“Yeah?”
“What shampoo do you use?”
“Uhhh…” There’s a moment of quiet. “It’s something with lavender, I think.”
Sirius turns back to Dorcas. “Something with lavender.”
“How specific,” she laughs. “What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received?”
He smiles to himself. “There was a young woman, maybe sixteen or seventeen, that came to one of the games earlier this season. I saw her standing with a puck and went over, and while I was signing it she looks at me and says, ‘you are exactly what I wish my older brother was like’. Turns out, she was bisexual and her brother wasn’t super accepting of her. That was…” He shakes his head. “That meant the world to me. I’ll never forget it.”
“You’ve definitely made a big impact on the community,” Dorcas agrees. “What’s the last piece of content you consumed that made you cry?”
“I watched ‘Soul’ the other night and almost had to pause it at one point to pull myself together.”
“Do you prefer animated movies or live-action?”
“Animated, mostly because I wasn’t allowed to watch Disney movies as a kid, so I’ve been catching up as an adult and they rock.”
“What’s your nerdiest quality?
“I love watching documentaries.”
“Sweet or savory?” The back door creaks a bit as they walk back inside and the camera catches a few frames of Hattie and Remus running around the yard together.
“Sweet.”
“In ten years, you have a daughter. What age do you let her date?”
Sirius gives Dorcas a look. “Whenever she wants to. I’m going to impose curfews and stuff, but I’m the last person on the planet to police her love life.”
“Good answer. What’s a song you can listen to on repeat?”
“Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen. Absolute banger.”
“If you could switch lives with someone for a day, who would it be?”
“Arthur Weasley,” he says after a moment. “I would love to know what it feels like to get up in the morning and know you’re about to spend another day wrangling our team. It’s a miracle he hasn’t killed us all with his clipboard.”
“How do you know you’re in love?”
“Oh.” Sirius blinks at her in surprise at the sudden topic change. “Well, for me, I think it’s just…being comfortable around someone. Being able to spend time with them without saying anything and knowing you’re safe, no matter what. It’s the best feeling in the world.”
“What are you most excited about at this time in your life?”
A slight smile crinkles his eyes. “Getting married. That’s going to be awesome.”
“Who is your go-to for having a good laugh?”
“James Potter. He’s the best, and I love him.”
“Last question,” Dorcas says, sliding her list into her pocket. “Many LGBT+ people, especially teenagers, have spoken about how you’re an inspiration. Any words for them?”
Sirius hums in thought. “First of all, thank you for being so open and welcoming. I would never have expected the sheer force of people’s love to come through like that when so many people were saying horrible things. Second, to any kids out there who need to hear it: I’m proud of you. It takes a lot to be true to yourself and even if you’re still in the closet, you’re just as valid as the rest of us. Stay proud.”
“That’s a wrap.” Dorcas gives him a quick hug that he happily returns. “Thanks for letting us crash your morning, Cap.”
“Any time. Thanks for tuning in to Lion Pride, everyone!”
264 notes · View notes
gukyi · 5 years ago
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good luck charm | kth
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summary: kim taehyung has nearly everything he’s ever dreamed of: an apartment in new york city, a lead role in an off-broadway play, and a best friend to share it with. but even still, there’s one thing missing—love. and when he goes on the hunt for it, he dots every i and crosses every t, leaves no stone unturned, but forgets to look at the person who could ever love him the most: you.
{friends to lovers!au, roommates!au, actor!au}
pairing: kim taehyung x female reader genre: fluff, angst, unrequited love word count: 11k a/n: a huge thank you to MK for commissioning me for this piece–i hope it’s everything you dreamed of!!!! these are tough times, but i hope this can serve as a distraction to everyone!! please stay safe and wash your hands! if you’re interested in commissioning me, check out this post! also, if the pictures are unclear, click on them for higher resolution!
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“Well, if it isn’t my favorite customer.”
You see a tuft of purple hair sticking out behind a basket of orange pansies, two nimble hands with long fingers fiddling with the stems. 
“I bet you say that to everyone,” you tease, as Namjoon peers out from where he’s hiding behind a shelf of flowers, greeting you with the same warm grin he always wears. 
Namjoon pauses, gaze tilting upwards as he corrects himself, “my favorite customer who’s about to confess to her best friend of four years with a bouquet arranged by yours truly?”
You roll your eyes, thankful that there’s nobody else inside this little flower shop. Not that you seem to have an issue exposing your entire life story to certain strangers, especially if they’ve got dimples and colored hair to match. Namjoon has always been something of an exception—perhaps he is one of the closest friends you have here in the city, where everything moves so quickly you barely have time to say hello to a new acquaintance. Namjoon and his flower shop are a respite, a safe haven in a bustling world, where time always seems to move slower than it does outside. 
“Don’t remind me, I’m sweating just thinking about it,” you tell him, trying to cover your nervousness with a laugh. 
“Ah, well how could I forget, when you came to me to arrange the perfect bouquet for tonight?” Namjoon says. He chops a wilting flower from its stem and places it behind his ear. Even though it’s a little sadder, a little less lively than its comrades, the bright yellow of the primrose complements his hair nicely, making him look even more ethereal, magical, than he already does. 
“Who else would I ask besides the best bouquet-maker in town?” You ask as Namjoon leads you to the counter, where various bouquets have been laid out in vases, ready for pick-up. It’s a secret garden here, all green and fresh and calm, a sharp contrast to the industrial machine outside. 
Namjoon heads to the back, a room behind a little wooden door that’s the slightest bit too short for him, so he has to bend down to avoid hitting his head (he still hits his head rather frequently, though), as you breathe in the scents of the flowers surrounding you, the roses and the daisies and everything in between. It’s not much, but it does calm the thick beating of your heart ever so slightly, and that’s enough. 
He emerges a minute or so later, banging his head on the way out. In his hands is one of the biggest bouquets you’ve ever laid eyes on, thick with some flowers you recognize but more you don’t. It’s breathtaking and gorgeous and impressive, all at once. 
“Namjoon, you know that I didn’t ask for this many flowers,” you chide as he plops the bouquet down onto the counter, clicking away at the ancient cash register to his left. 
“Consider it a good luck gift,” Namjoon tells you with a wink. 
You sigh, pulling out your card to pay him. “I could use all of the luck I could get.” The likelihood of tonight going more right than wrong is miniscule. But what else can you do, besides try? “What do they all mean?”
“Well, the daffodils represent honesty and truth. The red carnations mean love, obviously. So do the chrysanthemums. The baby’s breath is just for decoration, but it also means everlasting love. The gardenias are for secret love. And the freesia is just because I thought it went well with the bouquet,” Namjoon says expertly, pointing to each one as he tells you what it means. “I don’t know if Taehyung’s super up with his flower meanings, but I think that even the gesture will say more than enough. But if he is, this is just a bonus.”
“I feel like it’s going to go really badly, is that wrong?” You say, the nerves overtaking you. You were hoping to just act calm and collected, thank Namjoon for the bouquet and be on with your lives, but even you can’t help but seek advice from him. 
Namjoon lets out a laugh. “If you think it’s going to go so badly, why have you planned so much?” He poses. “It’s normal to be nervous about this sort of thing—what if I mess up, what if he doesn’t feel the same way, what if he rejects me—but I think that, deep down inside of you, there’s a part that thinks that it will all be worth it. And I don’t know, maybe I’m just a sucker for happy endings, but I think that that’s the most important. The part of you that doesn’t want to spend the rest of its life thinking about what might have been.” Namjoon’s phone lights up next to him, his lockscreen a picture of him and another boy, shorter, but with the same dyed hair. The two look so happy together. He gazes down at it, exhales, and shuts his phone off. “Just my two cents.”
“You’re wise beyond your years, Kim Namjoon,” you tell him with a smile. Maybe you are nervous about the what ifs, nervous that this whole thing could blow up in your face, but is it so naive of you to listen to that whisper in your heart? The one that says, maybe he feels the same? “I wish you’d take your own advice, sometimes.”
“It’s different,” Namjoon murmurs to himself. “He and I… this is all we’ll ever be.”
“You don’t know unless you try,” you tell him. You know the feeling. Perhaps, if tonight goes well, it will encourage him to give it a shot himself. “You never know.” Namjoon looks up at you, smile wide but eyes sad. There’s clearly something more that he isn’t mentioning, but you won’t push it. You get it. How could you not? “What if he does feel the same?”
The bell above the door rings on your way out, fingers clenching onto a bouquet, praying and wishing and dreaming that maybe this will all be worth it, in the end.
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Something is up with Kim Taehyung. 
When you return to your apartment, Kim Taehyung is slouched on your dinky loveseat, arm deep inside a six-month-old box of Frosted Flakes, as an episode of Jeopardy! plays on his laptop, his eyes empty and glazed over as he stares at Alex Trebek, wordless.
You nearly jump in shock, terrified that he’ll spot you and the enormous bouquet in your hands, terrified that he’ll ask you about it, terrified that your entire plan for tonight will get flushed down the toilet the moment you and him lock eyes. But it doesn’t, because Kim Taehyung doesn’t even acknowledge you when you walk in, for better or for worse, and you manage to stash the bouquet into a vase in your bedroom before rounding on your roommate, because something is up with Kim Taehyung. 
Kim Taehyung hates Frosted Flakes. The only reason they’re in your apartment to begin with is because Jungkook had brought them over one time when he was visiting, and even then they were stale. Now they’re extra stale. So stale that they make a hollow sound on your countertop when you tap them against the laminate. 
Kim Taehyung normally shuffles through Jeopardy! like it’s nobody’s business. He gets at least a quarter, if not half of the questions correct, and always earns more points than you. But he doesn’t even open his mouth when Alex Trebek says, “This Renaissance artist left Florence to serve as principal engineer for the Duke of Milan’s army” and you know that he knows it’s Leonardo Da Vinci. 
Kim Taehyung normally has plenty to say, especially to Sawyer the Suspicious Floor Dip, who currently resides in your living room. Sawyer the Suspicious Floor Dip has been your honorary second roommate ever since the two of you moved into this apartment four months ago. Taehyung made him a little museum placard that is framed and hanging on the wall above him, and he has an account on every social media website under the sun. Sawyer the Suspicious Floor Dip has more followers on Instagram than you do. But today, both he and Sawyer are silent and unmoving. 
“Tae?” You ask, treading over to the couch as he empties the box of Frosted Flakes into his stomach, finishing up the episode. “Is everything alright?”
“Mmrph,” he mumbles in response. You suppose that means he said fine, which means that no, everything is not alright. 
“What’s going on? You’re normally really excited the day of your shows,” you ask. At least he hasn’t entirely turned into a soulless hermit, and he moves his legs off of the couch so you can sit beside him. “Is something wrong?”
“No,” Taehyung says, louder. “I don’t know. I feel like it’s going to go really badly, is that wrong?”
You smile softly, shaking your head as you reach a hand out, letting it rest in his lap before he takes your hand in his. “No, it’s not. Tonight’s a big deal, isn’t it? You must be under a lot of pressure to do well.”
“I’m just so worried that I’ll fuck it up and everyone will hate me forever,” Taehyung says, exasperated. It’s almost as if he’s tired with himself for being so negative. 
“You’re not gonna fuck it up and nobody is going to hate you. I’ll always love you, you know that,” you assure him. 
“Yeah, I know,” Taehyung says, but the worst part is that you’re not sure if he really does. 
“It’s okay to be nervous, and to worry. Tonight is really important. But you’re an incredible actor, and you’ve always been so good at what you do,” you tell him, thumb rubbing against the back of his hand softly. “I can’t tell you how proud I am of you.”
Taehyung lets his head rest on your own and the two of you sit together on the couch in silence, watching as the minutes on his laptop clock tick by. You can hear his heartbeat, steady and soft, firm underneath his chest. You wonder if he can hear yours. Hear how it’s picking up speed, hear how it beats only for him. 
“You always know what to say,” Taehyung tells you. “I wish I knew how to do that.”
You grin sadly to yourself, happy that the two of you are side by side so he doesn’t have to see your face. How could Taehyung tell you something like that? How could he, when every time you’re near him, you’re speechless?
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You never really considered yourself to be a theater person when you were younger. You would fall asleep when you went to see plays with your parents or on a school field trip. You never made an effort to go see the performances that your school put on. You were one-hundred percent confident that you would go through all four years of university without seeing one of the fifteen different theater groups’ shows, not because you hated them, but because they never crossed your mind in the first place. 
And then, you met Kim Taehyung. 
You met Kim Taehyung halfway through your freshman year because the two of you were in the same Cinematography in the 1900’s class. And then, suddenly, you were eating the same shitty food in the dining hall after class ended at seven in the evening. And then, suddenly, you were studying together, spending nights watching Jeopardy! on his laptop when you didn’t feel like doing any work. And then, suddenly, Kim Taehyung mentioned in passing one day that he had a show that Friday, and would you like to come, it would really mean a lot to him, he thinks you’ll really like it. 
And then, suddenly, you were a theater person. 
That night was the first night Kim Taehyung had ever taken your breath away. And every performance, every night, every fucking moment after that, he never stopped.
Tonight is no exception. You can’t say that you’re super well-versed in theater fame and its technicalities, but you think that this may just be Taehyung’s best performance yet. Here, in this theater off of Sixth Avenue, to a crowd of two, perhaps three hundred people, Taehyung is nothing short of amazing. He never is. From the moment he steps on stage in a raggedy old flannel and jeans, eyes wide with dreams, he reels you in and makes sure that you won’t leave this theater, won’t leave here unscathed. But the fatal blow is halfway through, when he finally spots you in the third row, sees you staring up at him in wonder, and he smiles. 
There is so much that you wish you could tell him. 
After the show, you race back to your apartment, desperate to finish up the last of the preparations before he arrives, after taking off all of his makeup and his costumes, saying goodbye to all of his co-stars. Normally, you’d hang around, let him introduce you, but tonight is different. Special. 
[September 8th, 9:35PM]
You: Had to go home bc I’m planning a special something for the star of the night! Sorry I missed all of the fun afterwards You: Something very important to tell you
Taehyung: ohoho Taehyung: I wonder who that could be Taehyung: Coming soon. I have something to tell you too! ^^
You stare at the text as you grab the vase of flowers from your room, setting it up at your very unimpressive kitchen table. What could Taehyung possibly have to tell you? Other than perhaps a thanks for showing up (as if you weren’t going to). 
What if, that voice whispers. The part deep in your heart, the one that you wish would shut up sometimes. 
“No,” you say aloud, perhaps more for yourself than anyone else. “No. I have something to tell him. I have to tell him this.”
You never know, she says. He might. What are you waiting for?
You pull out all of the scented candles in the apartment, setting them up on the coffee table and on the windowsills. There’s a plate of macarons that you had purchased from the fancy bakery in Midtown sitting by the vase, a little treat for the two of you since your diets usually consist of premade Costco pasta and takeout. 
There is so much you want to tell him. So much to say, and no way to do it. It seems impossible. As the minutes tick by, as he gets closer and closer, you wonder if you even have the courage to open your mouth. It’s not as if this is life-changing news. It would be so easy, so easy to just pretend that this is nothing but a celebration of Taehyung’s very first major off-Broadway show, to push down the ache in your heart and tell that voice to stay quiet, if only for a little longer. You’ve lived like this for so long already. Who’s to say you can’t live like this forever?
Taehyung comes home as you’re flicking through late-night television show reruns and fiddling with a Rubix cube, anything to keep your mind occupied and your fingers busy. You hear as he fumbles with the lock—his key has always been a little bit off—and scramble to get everything ready, shutting your laptop and putting the Rubix cube on your designated Weird Stuff Shelf. The apartment smells like a hodgepodge of vanilla, flowers, cinnamon, and champagne, and the flowers are already starting to wilt slightly. But it’s now or never, really. 
Taehyung swings the door open with a grin and gasps in excitement when he sees you, standing in the hazy, flickering yellow light of the kitchen, surrounded by candles, with a plate of macarons and a vase of flowers on the table. 
“Oh my God!” He says, overjoyed, high off of the adrenaline from a successful show, eyes still sparking from the spotlight. “Y/N! What is all of this?”
“Just a little something from me to you,” you say awkwardly. You have no idea how to tell him. You’re not sure if you even will. “To celebrate.”
“Dare I say, this apartment has never looked better,” he tells you, beaming. He walks over to where you’re hovering by the kitchen table, knee deep in it all, admiring the sight before him. He leans over you, ever so slightly, as he takes in the scent of the flowers, the macarons sitting before him. And then he turns to you, the glow from the candles making his eyes warm and caramel-y, almost as if they’re shimmering in the light, and he says, “You did all of this for me?”
“Of course,” you tell him, because you would do this again and again if it means you could see him like this. If you could watch him burst through the front door for the rest of your goddamn life, watch as he comes home to you. “Tonight’s special.”
“It wouldn’t be without you,” he tells you honestly, candidly. He tells you that because he means it. You wish you could say the same things to him. “You’re my best friend, Y/N.”
It’s now or never. If he takes one step closer, turns to look at you one more time, you don’t know if you’ll still have the courage. You don’t know if you even have it right now, but tomorrow, when you wake up, you don’t want to regret this night. You don’t want to wonder what if, what might have been. You’ve been friends for so long. Who’s to say you can’t be more than that?
“I have something to tell you,” you breathe out, words heavy on your tongue. You can feel your heart seize up, almost like it’s holding its breath with you. 
“Right, you said that,” Taehyung says with a nod, stuffing a cherry macaron into his mouth. “I have something to tell you, too.”
“Do you want to go first?” You ask him. You just need a little more time. You just want to hear his voice once more. 
“Okay,” Taehyung says happily. “I got a girlfriend!” 
Oh. 
Oh. 
Well. 
Okay. 
“Really?” You ask, trying to make it sound more like a Really? That’s great! and not a Really? I thought that we had something special. You don’t think that you’re doing a very good job.
“Yeah!” Taehyung says. He’s ecstatic. It tears your heart in two. “I mean, I know I’m just… a super, hopeless romantic and I fall in love with people when they hold the door open for me, but I’m really happy with her. It’s Ariel, actually, she played Lucy! Isn’t it funny how even though our characters never even officially met, we still found something there?”
“Yeah,” you say, emotionless. Taehyung is far too excited, far too joyous to notice. 
“I just—I wanted to tell you, because you’re my best friend and you deserve to know,” he says, breaking off half of the raspberry macaron and holding it out to you. “What did you want to tell me? Did you say it was important?”
“Oh, uh…” you fumble, shaking your head at the macaron. Your stomach has never felt smaller. It’s like there’s nothing left to say to him. “I think I’m getting transferred to another office.” It’s not news. Your job told you that last week. But it’s something, and it’s better than being honest. Anything is, at this point. “They might pay a little more.”
“Yay!” Taehyung says. “That’s great! Now, maybe we can fix up the lights in the kitchen. So they don’t read horror movie every time I try to make pasta at 2AM. I’m happy for you, you deserve it!”
You smile, putting on a brave face, just for him. “Me too.” You can’t muster up the strength to say anything else. 
Taehyung spends the rest of the night gobbling down the macarons and telling you all about Ariel, as you try desperately to tune him out. Even the sound of your own thoughts would be better than this. Anything. Anything. Eventually, after it’s long past midnight and Taehyung realizes he’ll need his sleep for the show tomorrow night, he bids you goodbye and sets off to his room, a bounce in his step.
You stand in the middle of your apartment. Even though it’s small, and even though you have him, it’s never felt emptier.
Namjoon always says that flowers don’t just need food and water to stay happy. They need love, they need to be surrounded by happiness. He says that they can feel it, that they react to it. That’s why he always tries to be happy when he’s working. Because he hates seeing the flowers so sad. He says they remind him of himself.
It’s no wonder why the flowers in the vase look even more wilted than before.
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Here’s the thing: You had pretty much always known that it was going to hurt like this. There had always been that part of you, deep down inside, that knew that there was no way it wasn’t going to hurt like this. That knew that there was nothing you could do to stop it from hurting like this. 
And still, foolishly so, you allowed yourself to believe that maybe, just maybe, telling him would make it stop. You gave into this fantasy that, even if he didn’t feel the same, even if he let you down easy, even if he told you that he just wanted to be friends, it would be better. 
That’s the worst part of it all, really. The fact that you never even told him. Couldn’t. Wouldn’t. Didn’t. You never told him, and now, somehow, everything is even worse than before. 
The flowers have long been thrown out by now, tossed out after hardly a week, unable to stand the tension in the air, the emptiness that lingered far beyond that night. Still, you remembered to keep one, plucking it from the vase before it died of secondary sadness. Because even if they hurt you, even if they tear at your heartstrings one by one, you’ve always had this terrible habit of never letting go of what you love. You pressed the flower with an old college textbook, placed it into a thin little vase, meant for one flower only. A red carnation, to remind you of what you could have had. What might have been. 
Kim Taehyung is significantly less worried this time around as he prepares for the opening night of his latest play. He wakes up early and does some yoga in the living room, pushing all of the furniture to the walls so he has enough space to Downward Dog in peace. He watches a couple episodes of Jeopardy! as he eats the Pad Thai he Doordashed to your apartment, and gets half of the questions correct. Even from your bedroom, you can hear him talking to Sawyer. 
“I’m excited for tonight, Sawyer,” he says to him. “I don’t know, last time I did Shakespeare was sophomore year in college, I think? I was Mercutio. It was fun and I got to use a sword. Y/N came to that show, too. I annoyed her so much that night that she told me that she was glad Tybalt killed me, but we had a good time anyway.”
Sawyer doesn’t say anything back, because he is a Suspicious Floor Dip in your living room. But it’s so lovely to hear Taehyung’s voice again. 
“Do you think that Y/N’s been acting weird, lately?” Taehyung asks. “I just feel like—I feel like she and I aren’t as close these days. She works in her room a lot more and some days I don’t see her at all. Which is crazy, because we live together. My ex always said it was a little weird how I lived with my best friend who is also a girl. But I don’t think it is. Do you think I did something wrong?”
No, you wish you could say, leaning against your thin bedroom door as you hear Taehyung wonder aloud. Never, in a million years. It was me, you want to tell him. I got my hopes up and now I’m paying the price. It’s not you. It’s never you. 
“Yeah, I guess she’s just busier these days,” Taehyung says with a sigh. “She did get transferred to that new office a couple of months ago. But she’s still my best friend. I’ll never stop telling her that—she deserves to know that no matter what, she always has me.”
“Sawyer the Suspicious Floor Therapist, huh?” You interrupt, finally getting the nerve to open your door. Taehyung’s on his way out, all dressed, backpack on his shoulder. He has to be at the theater a few hours before the show begins, anyway. 
“He’s just so easy to talk to,” Taehyung jokes. “Did you… uh… did you hear that?”
“The part about being your best friend?” You ask with an eyebrow raise, making Taehyung smile. You don’t mention the other things you heard. You don’t think that would make things better. 
(You’re not sure what will, at this point. Telling him is off the table. You distantly wonder if it was ever on the table to begin with.)
“Just making sure you knew,” Taehyung says with a grin. “Don’t want you forgetting about that.”
“How could I?” You muse, and it makes him smile something fierce and makes you wish that things were different. 
“You’re coming tonight, right?” Taehyung says. He must know the answer, already. 
“Of course I am,” you tell him. “Who do you take me for?”
“I’ll look for you in the crowd, okay?” Taehyung says, a hand on the doorknob as he gets ready to leave. “Keep an eye out for me. Promise?”
It’s always been so hard to say no to him. 
“Promise,” you tell him. 
That night, you sit a little further back, shadowed by the mezzanine above you, but Taehyung finds you anyway. As he schmoozes his way through the storyline on stage, he sends a wink your way, a couple of the girls in the row in front of you giggling to each other when he does. You sort of wish he was really winking at them. That way, it would hurt a little less. 
Afterwards, you linger around in the lobby, waiting for him like you always have, like you always do, like you always will. You don’t have anything special waiting for him back at your apartment. There’s nothing left to tell him. 
You spot his head of soft, wavy brown hair far before he spots you, can make it out in a sea of cast members as they cheer for themselves, celebrating another successful opening show. Your face lights up when you see him, when you see that he sees you. This is how it has always been. This is how it should be—you find each other in the crowd, grinning as you congratulate him, as he introduces you to his cast members and then invites you to the afterparty. You spend the night together, high off of the adrenaline and just a little tipsy, before stumbling back to your apartment, basking in the afterglow. 
You want nothing more than for things to go back to the way they were. 
And then, you see her. 
“Y/N!” Taehyung shouts excitedly, and it takes all of your strength to not let your face fall as she comes into view, hand interlaced with Taehyung’s. “I knew you’d be here!”
“How could I not be?” You say, letting Taehyung wrap you in a one-armed hug rather than two. “You know me.”
“This is my girlfriend,” Taehyung introduces proudly, motioning to the pretty girl beside him as she waves at you good-naturedly. “Madison, this is my roommate and college best friend, Y/N.”
“Taehyung talks about you non-stop,” Madison says with a smile. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
“All good things, I hope,” you say, because what else are you supposed to say to the love of your life’s new girlfriend? How else can you salvage this conversation when you already see it going terribly? “You both were really good tonight. I’m happy that I came.”
“Me too!” Taehyung grins. “Did you see me wink at you? I promised you I would.”
You nod, eyes desperately scanning the rest of the room, the rest of the people, the floor, anything to keep from watching as Madison drapes herself over Taehyung, intertwines their hands as she leans against him, like she can’t get enough of him. 
“Hey, do you want to come to the afterparty? It’s at Alex’s house, apparently he has this brownstone in Brooklyn all to himself, I’ve heard it’s gorgeous—”
“No, actually, I have a lot of work that I need to catch up on,” you interrupt. You don’t think you’d last five minutes there, where the only person you know is Taehyung, where he’s got a girlfriend on his arm the entire time. You aren’t even sure how you’re faring now, if you’re even  breathing, standing before him and his equally-gorgeous new partner. 
You just wish everything could go back to normal.
Taehyung’s brows furrow, disappointed. “Oh, you do? But—”
“Yeah, I’m just—I’m really sorry, Tae, you know I want to. But I should get going. It was really nice meeting you, Madison, I hope we can see each other again sometime—” You spew out a few more goodbyes and even more apologies as you rush towards the exit, turning away so you don’t have to see Taehyung calling after you. 
On the way back, you bump into Namjoon, who’s closing up shop for the day. He looks positively exhausted, always working diligently from morning to far past sunset every day, but he smiles when he sees you, setting aside his tired eyes to say hello. 
“Hey, Y/N, fancy seeing you here,” he greets. “How are you? How’d it go?” He gives you a sort of grin that means that he thinks it went super well. 
“Not great,” you tell him truthfully, because it’s late and you don’t feel like hiding things anymore. 
“Oh,” Namjoon says. He opens his mouth to say something else, but you can see the hesitation in his eyes, the way he thinks that none of the things he has to say will go down very well. You know the feeling. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“It’s alright,” you assure him, even though it’s not. “It’s not that big of a deal.”
“Isn’t it, though?” Namjoon asks solemnly. 
You frown. “Do you really think we should both be having this conversation?” Namjoon has his own secrets, his dreams of a short boy with colored hair by his side. “You aren’t much better.”
“No, I’m not,” he muses to himself. “But it is a big deal, Y/N. Please don’t act like it isn’t. You love him, don’t you? Even if he doesn’t love you back.”
You love him. 
It’s not a secret anymore. 
You love him like the stars love the moon, surrounding her in their light, making sure she never gets lonely. You love him like an old Hollywood movie, film faded and worn, getting played once in a while to make sure you never forget where you started. You love him like a flower, carnations, daffodils, chrysanthemums, perking up when you’re around him and wilting when you’re not. 
“It doesn’t matter,” you say with a sigh. Certainly, there are more important things to dwell on. You’re looking for a new job because being an office temp isn’t exactly what you were envisioning for your life. You want to start fixing up the bathroom, because the grout by the shower is starting to disintegrate. Sawyer the Suspicious Floor Dip is a fire hazard. “I’m okay with just being friends.”
Namjoon smiles, and it’s so sad, but not with pity. It’s sad with I know, and sad with feeling, because he gets it, and that must be why you’re here, standing on the sidewalk at ten on a Friday night, underneath the street lamps as the city begins to open its eyes. “But when you have him the way you do, how can you be okay with any of it?”
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Taehyung comes home late that night, and you only know because you’re running to the bathroom at the same time he fumbles with the door. He takes longer than usual, which means he’s drunk, and you can only hope and pray that he’s alone. You watch as he finally manages to unlock the door, stumbling inside, managing to turn on the main overhead lights in your apartment as he does. From where you’re peering at him from the darkness of the hallway, you can make out dark red, purple spots all along his skin. 
You pull the bathroom door almost shut, leaving it a little ajar so you can gaze out at him, watch as he pours himself a glass of water and downs the entire thing before he makes his way to the hallway, heading for his bedroom. From here, you see the way his hair is mussed, all fucked up from someone’s hands in it, see the marks up close, the way they line his neck, his jaw, his collarbones. He finds his way to his bedroom and shuts the door behind him as you stand, trapped in the bathroom, mad at him for not knowing but furious at yourself for being so ridiculous.
Love was never supposed to hurt like this. 
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The next time that you attend one of Taehyung’s opening nights, you don’t stick around long afterwards. 
You were planning on it, of course, like you always do, because ever since college you’ve made a point to see him after a show, tell him all of the things you wish you could say to him all of the time, you were amazing, you were brilliant, you were perfect in every way. You even have a small bouquet of flowers in your hands, arranged by none other than Namjoon—a pity bouquet, an I hope that you two can still be friends bouquet—ready to give to him, ready to see them sitting on your kitchen table as a reminder. 
And then, you see the way he kisses her, overcome with joy, running on that post-show high. You see the way he pulls her into him and plants one on her, arms wrapped around each other as they celebrate, in their own special way. 
Suddenly, the flowers feel like dead weight in your hands. 
You manage to catch one of the few co-stars of Taehyung’s that you recognize, one who was in Our Lives with him. His name is Seokjin, and he’s gorgeous. Broadway material. Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony material. He stops to say hello to you, and you ask if he could give the bouquet to Taehyung, tell him it was from you. 
Seokjin’s nice. He doesn’t ask why, he just nods. It saves you the trouble of telling him. Nobody wants to listen to your sob story. He says goodbye to you, and that he hopes to see you again soon. You hope so too. 
You spend the night curled up in your room pretending that everything is fine. You don’t see Taehyung when he comes home, and you don’t see him the next day, either. 
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It’s not as if you’ve started to avoid Taehyung entirely. You live together—it would be downright impressive if you didn’t see each other for a whole day. It’s just, sometimes he still—
“Y/N? Wanna order Pad Thai?”
“Hey, Y/N, they’re playing The Devil Wears Prada on Freeform, do you want to come watch with me?”
“Central Park is having a Dog Festival, do you wanna go together?”
And sometimes, you just can’t. The thought of spending time with him makes your heart ache, whether it be from not wanting to be too close, or from missing him terribly. Either way, you don’t know if you’ll ever be able to muster up the same courage you once had. 
Turning to look at the pressed carnation in the vase atop your dresser, you laugh to yourself. It’s hard to believe that just a few months ago you thought that you would finally be able to tell him, to open up your heart and let him look into it like a kaleidoscope. Hard to believe that there was once a time when you thought that maybe, just maybe, he loved you back. It feels like it was eons ago. Like it was another universe entirely. 
You know that it’s not right for you to do this to Taehyung. He’s still your best friend. He always will be. He has no idea. He’ll never know. 
But sometimes—
Sometimes he comes home love drunk, wasted on kisses, splotches of pink lip gloss decorating his skin. 
Sometimes he spends dinner telling you all about the date he went on, the amazing vodka shrimp linguine he had, as the two of you eat Kirkland spaghetti in your dinky apartment. 
Sometimes he tells you that you’re his best friend, and that he misses you. 
Being in love with Taehyung had always been easy. It was being best friends, and making sure to keep the feelings a secret, that was hard. 
Taehyung isn’t home tonight. You hadn’t asked him where he’d be. You didn’t think that it mattered. 
And you tell yourself, over and over again, that it doesn’t matter. That you don’t need to know where he is every second of every day. He’s got a life outside of what exists in your stuffy apartment, a whole world of people craning to see him. He has reviews written about him in  The New York Times and people lining up outside the theater for his autograph on their Playbill. There’s so much more to his life than what he has with you. 
It’s better this way, you tell yourself, even if it’s not. Even if every time you step into your apartment, glance over at the vase on the kitchen table, you are reminded that it’s worse. Every time you see a damn carnation, daffodil, chrysanthemum, you can’t help but wish that things were different. You’re even starting to avoid Namjoon. 
That night finds you at a small Italian restaurant in a tiny alley off of Ninth Street. You’ve never been, but it had good reviews on Yelp and you could do with spending some time alone, wallowing in your feelings somewhere other than your bedroom. You’re starting to feel suffocated just being there. It would be good for you to get out. 
It would be good for you to get out, because the apartment reeks of what ifs, of what could have beens, and you can’t spend more than five minutes inside without throwing yourself your own personal pity party. You hardly see Taehyung nowadays because you can’t bear looking into his eyes anymore. Everything is awful, and you wish that it wasn’t, but you don’t know what to do to fix it. 
But Fate seems to love doing that thing where it’s out to get you. From the moment you met Kim Taehyung, Fate decided that you would be her next target. That no moment with him would leave you unscathed. And tonight is no exception. 
It’s just your luck that, ten minutes after you’re seated, the bell above the door rings to signal another customer, and you look up to see Taehyung and his girlfriend strolling in, glowing under the warm yellow light. You’ve never been more thankful, in that moment, to be seated right beside the bathroom, just out of sight of the booth that the hostess leads them to. It’s terrible, and it’s terrible, and it’s terrible. You watch as they order two glasses of a fancy rosé and giggle as they cheers to their show, to their lives, and to themselves. They spend the evening in the light of a single exposed bulb above their head, laughing and smiling and talking. 
The craziest part is that once upon a time, that would have been you. You and Taehyung would have decided that the night was a restaurant day and not a stay-at-home-and-cook-meal day. You would have found a quaint little place on Yelp and gotten the cheapest food on the menu. Once upon a time, you looked like that. 
[April 17th, 7:34PM]
Taehyung: [image sent] Taehyung: MMMMM look at this yummy yummy fish that I had tonight!! Taehyung: We should go here sometime!! I think you’d like it hehe
You look down at your plate. The food in front of you tastes like ash. 
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“Congrats,” you say when you hear Taehyung leaving his bedroom, feet padding against the hardwood floor as he makes his way to the kitchen. 
“Huh?” Taehyung asks, eyes wide. It’s almost as if he’s surprised to see you out here, sitting on the couch, answering emails. Like he can’t believe you’re in your own home. You can’t blame him. “What are you talking about?”
“The review on The New York Times,” you tell him distantly, switching over to the tab on your computer where you read it. There’s a picture at the top of Taehyung and his co-star, front and center, holding hands as they look off into the distance, staring into an unknown future. “It’s your first five star review, isn’t it? They even listed it as the Critic’s Pick.”
“Oh, I… uh,” he begins, “I haven’t seen it yet. Been too busy.”
Bitterly, you wonder why. Even when you two are further apart than you have ever been, even when he spends all day out of the apartment and you spend all day inside, even when you barely fucking see each other, you can’t help but click on the articles that mention him, scroll through every review that mentions his name. 
Things might be different now, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t be proud of him. Of what he does. Of who he is. 
“Well, they said great things,” you tell him, sparing him the trouble of looking. “You deserve it.”
“You’re coming tonight, right? You have to, if the play is getting such good reviews,” Taehyung asks, an olive branch. You’ve spent so much time doing everything you can to keep your relationship as distant as possible, hiding in your bedroom and eating dinner at odd hours. But this is the one thing that you both can still hold onto. Taehyung’s shows, his performances, and you, in the audience, always finding his eyes. If everything else is in shambles, at least you will always have this. “I think you’d like it.”
“It sounds very Matrix-y.”
“Well,” Taehyung says, shrugging. “It sort of is. But it’s also about love. You’d like that, right?”
You suppose you’d like it a little more in another timeline.
Taehyung continues, barely giving himself time to catch his breath. “Basically, these two kids are playing this life-simulation game where every move they make directly corresponds with the actions of the characters they’re playing as. Cue me and Lancaster. And we meet, and slowly fall in love, over a series of chance encounters. You know, a coffee shop, the bank, a restaurant.”
“Really?” You ask, brows furrowed. 
“Why?” Taehyung’s eyes widen in concern, smile downturned ever so slightly as he takes in your expression. 
“I don’t know—” you begin. There’s just something about the storyline that rubs you the wrong way. “Maybe I’m just being cynical. But is it really possible for two people to find love like that? Through chance? Luck?”
Perhaps, Namjoon would say. You can hear his voice echoing in your head now. After all, wasn’t it luck that brought the two of you together?
You shake his thoughts away. Namjoon’s got his own set of problems—he’s in no position to be the wise one in this scenario.
Taehyung shrugs, as if he’d never given that a thought to begin with. “I don’t know,” he says. “I think that love can blossom anywhere. Just so long as you nurture it, water it and give it lots of sunlight. I just—I think that if you look hard enough, you can find love anywhere.”
You turn to face him, blinking up at him as you stare at each other, sitting on this damn couch in the middle of your apartment. Taehyung waxes poetic in front of you, tells you that if you just fucking look for love, you’ll find it. But he doesn’t know—and he never will. You’ve been looking for love for the past four years, you’ve been searching in all of the nooks and crannies of your body, and the only place you’ve ever found it has been in the deep pit of your heart, dusty and quiet and forgotten. Even now, staring into his eyes, scanning every bit of his irises for even a sliver of it, a spark, you come up empty. 
How could he say something like that, when he lives with you? When he looks at you while you’re eating takeout or sitting and watching a movie together. Does he just not see it? Or worse—does he know, and just refuse to say anything?
Suddenly, your body turns cold. It’s hard to believe that someone as hopelessly romantic can’t see what’s right in front of him. 
“I wish that was how it worked,” you say sourly, the words leaving a bitter taste on your tongue. You snatch your laptop from the table and head into your room, leaving Taehyung alone on the couch, speechless.
He may be the one with flowers blooming in his heart, but you have been drowning for the past four years, and never have you felt further from the surface than right now. 
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You don’t go to Taehyung’s opening show that night. 
Taehyung leaves to get ready at the theater at three in the afternoon, and you bid him goodbye before holing yourself up in your bedroom and keeping yourself busy. You start watching the newest season of Stranger Things and tidy up the knick knacks you have scattered all over the place. Anything to keep your mind occupied. 
Taehyung texts you during intermission.
[June 3rd, 8:55PM]
Taehyung: Hey are you here?
You don’t respond. 
By ten at night, you end up with the cleanest room you’ve had in years and half of the season left to watch. It’s not a great kind of busy. The red carnation atop your dresser stares into your soul and you nearly throw it out three different times. But it’s an okay kind of busy, because you don’t know if you could have beared to see Taehyung on stage tonight. See him dancing around with a beautiful girl on his arm, confessing his love for her and pulling her in for a kiss. 
Over the years, you have seen Taehyung kiss so many people. From the shy freshman boy cast next to him in a student-written play in college to the model-esque women on stage in an off-Broadway play with him. And it never used to hurt—not like this. You saw him lock lips with another and you supposed that that was just show business. 
But it’s not show business anymore. It stopped being show business that night, when he came home to an apartment lit up with candles, the sweet scent of macarons wafting through the air, and told you he had found someone. It hasn’t been show business since, not when Taehyung is looking for love and finds it everywhere except where you wish he would look most. 
Maybe you’re just being selfish. Taehyung doesn’t have to love you for you to love him. You knew that. You lived with that. He’s your best friend. He always will be. You can’t do anything to force him to love you back. You had always been fine with just being friends. 
But just—knowing that he doesn’t feel the same. Having that certainty rooted deep within you. That’s the part that hurts the most. 
Taehyung comes home earlier than he normally would on a day like this, catching you in the kitchen as you brew some chamomile tea, hoping that it will calm the waves that crash against the pier inside you. You turn to meet his eyes, and suddenly, you feel like you can’t see anything in them at all. 
“Why didn’t you come tonight?” He demands. “I looked for you and you weren’t there. Where were you?”
“Here,” you tell him. “I was thinking maybe I would go tomorrow.”
“But you’re always at my opening show,” Taehyung says, like you don’t know that already. “Why didn’t you come? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, you didn’t,” you tell him. You don’t think you’re drunk or tired enough for this conversation. At ten at night, you’re still cognizant, aware of what consequences this conversation might have when you wake up in the morning. 
“Then why weren’t you there? You know I need you there,” Taehyung pleads, coming up to you as you stand in your kitchen, waiting for the kettle to boil.
“No, I didn’t know that,” you tell him firmly. You went to his opening shows because it was tradition. Not because it was necessary. 
“You’re my good luck charm, for god’s sake, Y/N,” Taehyung says, fists curled up at his sides. You can tell that he’s trying hard not to burst at the seams, like there are so many things he’s holding at the tip of his tongue. “I did such a shit job tonight without you there. I spent the entire first half of the show looking out into the crowd so much that Lancaster asked me if I had taken anything before we started.”
“That’s not my fault,” you tell him. “I didn’t know that you thought I was your good luck charm, or whatever.” And, because you’re bitter and petty and heartbroken, you add, “I would have thought that would be something your girlfriend is.”
Taehyung loses it. “What’s been going on with you, Y/N? Why are you being like this? Ever since my first show, I feel like we’re drifting further and further apart. You never want to spend time with me, you never want to come to my afterparties, you barely spare a glance at my girlfriends when I introduce them to you, and now, you’ve stopped coming to my shows. All of these things that I thought that we shared, ever since college. Tell me, Y/N, am I doing something wrong? Is there something that I’ve missed? Because it feels like we’re fucking strangers.”
The water finishes boiling, the kettle whistling on the stovetop as steam billows from the spout. “I’m not obligated to do any of those things, Taehyung,” you tell him harshly. “Just because we did them in college doesn’t mean I have to keep doing them now. What, did you think we’d still be doing that sort of stuff when we’re thirty? Forty, fifty? They were just college traditions.”
“‘College traditions’?” Taehyung asks, astounded. “Were all of those nights that we spent together just college traditions, too? Are we not allowed to do those things anymore? I miss you, Y/N. I hate not having you around and tonight was the worst it’s ever been. I don’t know what to do or say, I don’t know how to fix this, I don’t even fucking know what’s broken.”
“I just need space, Taehyung,” you tell him, hands gripping the edge of the countertop as you stare at the laminate, eyes tracing the lines to keep you from meeting his own. “I just need some time to myself, that’s all.”
“But why, Y/N?” Taehyung pleads, He reaches over to grab your hand, holds it in between the two of you like a lifeline. 
“‘Why?’” You echo angrily. “You don’t know? You can’t tell? We’ve known each other for four years and you haven’t realized?” You tug your hand from his grasp. It’s clear you’re beating a dead horse. You wonder why you even tried in the first place. How naive you were, standing in the kitchen surrounded by scented candles and flowers and macarons, dreaming of a life with him by your side. Foolish. 
“Realized what?” 
“That I’m in love with you!” You shout, and the world goes silent. The kettle stops whistling, the water having evaporated into nothing, the packet of chamomile tea left, forgotten on the countertop. You stand there, breaths heavy, chest heaving, as you look at Taehyung, angry and mad and in love, all at once. 
“You’re what?”
“Don’t make me say it again,” you hiss. “I already know that you don’t feel the same.”
“Y/N, wait—”
“Goodnight, Taehyung.” You turn on your heels, storming into your bedroom and collapsing against the door. Finally, finally, finally, you let the tears wrack your body, sending shivers down your spine. There’s salt on your tongue and smudged liner beneath your eyes. 
You thought pressing flowers makes them last forever. But even the red carnation is starting to shrivel. 
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Subject Title: New Project????
From Park, Seojoon, to me
Hi Taehyung,
You did a great job last night in Chance Card! Really proud of you for accomplishing so much. Pretty soon you’ll be on Broadway and be too big for a small manager like me. You’ll need an agent, and a publicist, and a stylist, and a dog-walker…
Anyway, just emailing to let you know that Hugo Cleveland reached out to me to see if you were interested in auditioning for his next play. He personally wanted to see if you liked the part, and would give you preference if you did want to audition. It’s called Cupid, and it’s another one of those modern-day retellings of an old tale. I thought you might like it. Attached is the script and a short description of the play. Let me know if you’d like to give it a shot! I think this might be the project that gets you onto Broadway!!
As always, contact me if you need anything at all.
Park
Taehyung, still in bed despite it being nearly noon, taps around on his phone, pulling up the description of the play. He hates reading PDFs on his phone, so he’ll check out the script on his laptop later. 
Cupid by Hugo Cleveland
Cupid chronicles the tale of the world’s most well known hopeless romantic—Cupid himself. Set in a world of magical realism, Cupid has the power to make two people fall in love with a single shot of his arrow, and spends his life walking around the city of New York, bow and arrow by his side. 
The only problem is that Cupid has no way to make people fall in love with him, because his magic operates under the assumption of soulmates—a single person meant for another. And as the years have gone by, he has searched and searched and searched over millennia, desperate to find love, but it’s almost as if everyone has soulmates except for him. 
Little does he know, he need look no further to find the person he shall spend the rest of his life with—not when his best friend has always been by his side. 
Taehyung glares at the description like it’s personally offended him. He knows that it’s just a coincidence that he happens to receive this email the morning after his fight with you, but he can’t help but feel like God is playing the world’s worst practical joke on him. 
Cursed with the memory of an actor, he replays last night in his head over and over and over again, looping the feed back and forth as your words echo in his mind. 
You don’t know? You can’t tell? We’ve known each other for four years and you haven’t realized?
He never knew what he was supposed to be looking for. You were just friends, you had always been just friends. But then he looked out in the crowd and couldn’t see you anywhere, couldn’t make out your eyes even in a sea of hundreds like he always does, and it felt like there was more than just another audience member missing. He spent the rest of the evening getting his hopes up, thinking that maybe you’re just sitting somewhere else, maybe you put in colored contacts, maybe you’re hidden by some really buff guy in front of you. 
He missed you, last night. He’s been missing you a lot recently, missing the way the days you spent together would bleed into nights. Missing the way you wrap your arms around him and smother him in cuddles, missing the way you always remember his takeout order for the fifteen different restaurants you frequent. Missing the way he once thought that you could spend your whole lives together. 
Realized what?
He supposes that he has always been a bit foolish. All of his ex-girlfriends broke up with him, never the other way around. And while they all ended on good terms, they all said the same thing to him: it always seemed like his heart belonged to someone else. But he misread that, too. He just thought that he hadn’t found the right person, yet. He would keep searching until he did. 
That I’m in love with you!
The craziest thing about it all is that your confession didn’t even shock him that much. After the initial surprise wore off, it was almost as if the dust settled around you, the storm finally calming. Like finding the last puzzle piece after thinking it had been lost for days. Like feeling everything click into place.
Taehyung has been thinking a lot about last night, but his least favorite part is always this:
I already know that you don’t feel the same.
He wishes that he could have told you. He wishes that he could have been strong enough, could have realized what he had before it slipped through his fingertips. Wishes that he could have reached out and grabbed onto you and never let go. There’s nothing more that he wants to do than see you again. You live in the same tiny New York apartment, and you’ve never felt further away from him. 
Taehyung wills himself out of bed and washes his face, clearing away the leftover makeup and the sleep in his eyes. It’s a fresh start. It’s a new day. 
He sees you standing in the kitchen, making that tea that you had left forgotten last night. He catches your eyes for just a second before he loses them again, watches as you turn your back to him in a desperate attempt to avoid contact. 
“I got a new potential show to audition for,” he says loudly, breaking the silence. 
“That’s cool,” you say, emotionless. 
“Do you want to know what it’s about?”
You don’t respond. Taehyung takes this as a cue to continue. 
“It’s about a boy on a search for love,” Taehyung begins, rallying himself despite only being able to see your back. “And he goes out and sees all of these people falling in love and wants that for himself. And he wonders why nothing is sticking, why he can’t seem to fall in love with anybody. And then he realizes that the reason he can’t seem to fall in love with anyone else is because he’s already found his person.” A pause. He’s just summarizing a story, but this feels like a confession. “His best friend.”
You turn around sharply, tea sloshing in the cup in your hand. Taehyung inhales, then exhales. It’s now or never. You’ve been friends for so long. Who’s to say you can’t be more than that?
“Don’t you think I’d play this part well?” He asks. 
You shrug, closing your eyes and breathing heavy. He can tell that you’re holding something back, trying not to burst at the seams. “I’m not sure, Tae.”
“I think I would,” Taehyung tells you confidently. He takes a step closer to you, reaches over to take the cup of tea from your hands, placing it on the counter. “Because I’ve been doing it for so long, already.”
You gasp when he kisses you, a gust of air escaping your lips and immediately mixing with his, seize up at the feeling of his lips on yours. Immediately, Taehyung wonders if he’s overstepped a boundary, or two, or five, but then he feels you relax under his touch, feels you reach your hands up to cup his cheeks as you press against him insistently, drunk on the taste of his lips on your own. 
Taehyung’s kissed a lot of people in his day, but this one is different. He’s felt sparks, seen fireworks, but with you, it’s as if he’s sinking into a warm bath after a cold day. As if he’s returning to an apartment filled with the things he loves after a long day out. As if he’s coming home. 
All of these emotions, all of the little things tucked away in the corners of his soul, in the dark attic of his heart, come bubbling up to the surface, and all he can do is hope that you can feel them, swallow them up like wine, as you press your lips against his, grinning. 
Finally, you pull yourself away, almost as if you think you’ll get drunk if you keep going. 
“How long?” You ask. 
Taehyung shrugs. “I don’t know. A while now, definitely.”
“Really?”
“I think so,” Taehyung says. “I guess that I was wrong, what I said before about looking for love. I looked everywhere, I wanted to see it in every spark that was set my way, but I forgot the most important place. I should have known.” You curl into his touch, resting your head against his chest as his arms wrap around your waist. “How about you?”
“Forever,” you breathe out. “It started and it never stopped.”
Taehyung beams. The flowerbud in his heart had been shuttered for so long, hardly watered and never in the sun. And then suddenly, the curtains opened up and the clouds began to cry, and everything blossomed. You make him feel like he’s always home. You make him feel safe. 
You make him feel like a red carnation in bloom.
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↳ links are broken, but don’t forget to message me with any thoughts or feedback!
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yoshibb · 4 years ago
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Hi! Little something different from usual. I saw the @shepherds-of-haven summer prompt list and I decided to give it a try. Shepherds of Haven is a WIP interactive fiction and it has been such a huge comfort read for me, I highly recommend it! While I'm in love with all the characters, my favorite RO is Chase, so this story is for the prompt sleep with my F!MCAerynXChase. I did my best to keep everything as accurate as possible character and lore wise >.< Thanks for reading! Blinding Light Chase can't sleep. The concept itself isn't disturbing. He's gone plenty a night without a wink of shut-eye. But to not be able to, to have his thoughts jumbled, his leg bouncing, it's unusual. He stretches his fingers in front of him, flexing them soundlessly in the dark like he can find the answer in the lines of his palms.
Something is wrong.
He sits up, not bothering to find a light, his eyes long adjusted to the dark. There are still sounds coming from the Shepherds' Compound, but it's clear that the majority of the occupants have turned in. He doesn't always stay on grounds, but he's been making more exceptions recently for whatever reason.
There's no point in trying to join them in their well deserved rest. He rolls out of bed, slipping into an outfit suitable for traversing the city's rooftops. If his mind refuses to be silent then he might as well occupy it before it decides to turn to more... uncomfortable subjects.
He climbs out onto the rooftop and pauses. An irresistible urge to check on Aeryn tugs at him. For a moment he considers ignoring it. It's late, she needs her rest more than anyone and despite his stealth there is always the small chance he could wake her. But like most forces involving Aeryn, it's less of a tug and more of a compulsion. He spins around, lightly stepping to her bedroom window. He starts to undo the lock but finds it already open. He smiles to himself, forgetting that she'd stopped bothering to latch it after he'd picked it so many times.
She never asks him 'why he never uses the door' like a normal person would or scolds him for invading her privacy outside a brief huff of annoyance. It is strangely difficult to get under her skin, but a challenge he's taken to whole-heartedly.
However, though the space inside is dark, the bed is empty. His heart trembles with an ominous thump. He shakes his head, scolding himself. There are plenty of explanations for this. His eyes drift about the room to take in what's missing. Most notably her sword that usually rests against her nightstand. She normally leaves it close enough to grab in case of danger. The bed is made and her uniform is gone.
He should check the patrol schedule.
What are you doing?
He stutter steps when he reaches the low lights of the hallway. What is he doing? He should be picking the lock on some unsuspecting noble's balcony by now. And yet nothing stopped him from progressing towards the large board downstairs.
The lamps provide just enough light for him to read. Letters which were once incomprehensible now make perfect sense thanks to Aeryn's tutoring. His smile lengthens as her name jumps out at him. He even knows the route she's covering. Not the best part of Haven, but not the worst. He has nothing to worry about.
He blinks and looks down. He plants his hand on his disobedient limb, physically stopping his right leg from bouncing. He studies it like it's a mystical object rather than a part of his body. His eyes slide up to Aeryn's name again, the discontent tug now like a rope around his wrist, dragging him to where she should be.
He was going to do a little sightseeing anyway, what would the harm be in 'bumping' into her?
Soon enough he is outside, climbing the walls and out into the streets of Haven. Darting into the first alley, he bounces off the wall and uses his momentum to reach the ledge, pulling himself up onto the roof without any trouble. The air is cool, comfortably so. The wind barely provides any resistance as he leaps from rooftop to rooftop.
Normally, he'd take in the sights, watch for a potential target, enjoy the rush of adrenaline. It's the perfect night for a sprint, but his mind is clouded by the hunt. He scans the streets below, empty besides the rare drunkard or overworked laborer.
Until he finally sees her, long golden honey hair that somehow still shimmers under insufficient light. A presence that always seems to blind him the minute she catches his gaze.
His heart beats against its cage, his smile stretching until his cheeks hurt. His sunshine, his Aeryn.
He catches himself, pressing a hand against his mouth as a cold shiver courses through him. No, not his. Free to come and go as she pleased. In and out of his bed, to be with whoever she wanted. Just as he is.
Regaining control of himself he looks down again, studying the sway of her hips and the grace of her walk. It's enough to ignite a flame inside his core that he's eager to chase. A smirk smooths its way across his lips. It would be a matter of convincing her to abandon her post, but she's never turned him down before.
He skips over one more roof and leaps down silently, a building's distance between them. The first time he'd snuck up on her like this, she'd nearly taken his head from his shoulders. He had the reflexes to dodge her if he needed to, but she stopped her stroke before it nicked his throat. She'd sighed and asked him not to do it again. He'd simply smiled and stepped closer to her, promising nothing.
He'd repeated his stunt again with similar results but never in the dead of night. A thrill weaves through him as he approaches her, his tongue dancing out over his lower lip.
And then she turns.
Sharply, west, down a dark alley. The move startles him and unlike his normal marks, he trails her blindly.
An arm shoots out and cuts off his progress, causing him to stumble to a stop. Her other arm grazes against his back, effectively caging him in.
"Chase," Aeryn says in a scolding yet fond manner.
"It appears you've caught me, Captain," he reclines against the brick wall between the barrier of her arms, a lazy smile painting his lips. "So what do you plan to do with me?" Aeryn shakes her head.
"That's it? No tricks? You're just giving up? I don't believe it." Her eyes dance across his form and he's more than happy to allow it.
"I'm finding this position more than agreeable at the moment, but we'll see how things play out, sunshine." He propels himself forward from his lounging position. He pauses, their similar heights allowing him to nearly brush his lips against hers. To her credit she doesn't flinch, keeping her arms fixed on either side of him. He tilts his head in playful innocence. "I can offer a bribe, but I've heard you are an honest sort."
Aeryn hums unable to stop her own smile from echoing his, "I may be open to a different sort of bribe."
He chuckles low in his throat, the flicker of heat growing into a furnace. He nearly closes the distance, but he manages to draw back. He wants to see the thirst in her eyes first. The inescapable longing he's felt all night.
Instead, he's met with her concern. It catches him off guard, and he struggles to keep his nonchalant grin in place. "Aeryn?"
She catches his chin in her fingers and ignites a magelight with her other hand. He swallows tightly as she examines his face like a healer would.
"Your skin is pale," she says.
"Just a trick of the light. Nothing worth worrying yourself over." He gently tries to push her hand away. But she's insistent, thumb tracing his bottom lip, faintly cracked beneath her touch.
"You have dark circles under your eyes. Have you been sleeping?" She chides him. He tries to defend himself, but he's too distracted by the way her fingers glide across his cheek and lightly stroking his eyelashes. His eyelids flutter, and his body shivers under her featherlight caresses. Soft and caring and so completely foreign. He leans into her palm, lowering his guard for just a moment.
And she doesn't waste it.
She leans in and presses a tender kiss to the curve of his jaw. Wrapping her arms around him, she folds their bodies together until the two of them become intimately one. He turns his head into the crook of her neck, deeply inhaling the heady scent of sage. He cards his fingers into her long hair, enjoying the feel of it as it slides through the gaps of his fingers.
And it's enough. He allows himself to sink further until he's drowning in her embrace. Where no one can touch him, nothing can ever hurt him again, as long as she has him. She lays butterfly kisses on his forehead and each of his eyelids before releasing him. He very nearly clings to her but forces himself to let go, knees weak as he falls against the wall. She holds his hand for a moment longer, squeezing it tightly.
"Go to bed, please. For me? I'll be back soon." She promises, her grip slipping from his.
Instead of letting him disagree, she kisses him softly good night, her lips offering no more than a caress. He stands frozen for a moment, watching her disappear around the corner. As if leaving is so simple.
Confusion muddles his mind as he slides down the wall, hitting the ground with a thud. He stares at his hand, still tingling from her touch. Her scent still lingering on his clothes.  
He starts to get up, ready to continue on with his plans for the night only for his limbs to betray him. He stumbles against the tidal wave of exhaustion. It suddenly feels as if he could sleep for days. He searches for the cure for his insomnia and finds her further down the road. His heart soars to life again. And then a deep fear creeps up his spine.
What's come over me?
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If Glee did a Taylor Swift Tribute Episode...
Just my opinions, feel free to add on to them. I know I have some fellow gleek swifties following me. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Obviously they have to do some of the hits but I think some people would have some out of the box picks.
*This post assumes all Taylor songs are available to choose from as of May 14th 2021 but focuses on Taylor’s first 6 albums (if you want more glee and Taylor I have fics with that; LOVER and FOLKLORE) and takes liberties with where this episode’s placement is in terms of canon. But since it’s all made up anyway who cares (but Blaine’s involved so I guess season 3 idk).*
Okay, trying to do a full plot here (completely inspired by @kurtdeservesbetter head canon posts. I hope this lives up to her fabulous posts). This will be my version of glee so everyone gets solos and Rachel can’t hog the spotlight. Also, this is about to be super long (both post wise and episode wise).
Let’s open the first episode with
...Ready For It because the New Directions are in their reputation era. Santana does the opening cough centerstage. Everyone in black and/or camo green outfits (can you just see Kurt in a dark green bedazzled snake jacket, Santana in a black leather dress, and Tina digging out some goth clothes for people to borrow?), snakes everywhere, but probably no Karyn (she just wouldn’t fit on the auditorium stage). Santana takes the first verse but we have Blaine step up for verse 2. (I just love their friendship in the Michael tribute, cute little badasses are BACK. Also him singing “Burton to this Taylor” is such a Klaine thing to do).
Everyone is still dressed in their rep outfits but we’re in the choir room now. Mr. Schue is talking about why Taylor had to disappear and clap back with rep, how rough the industry is for women and tries to uplift the ladies in the room and encourage them to not silence their voices (cue snarky comment from Santana about Rachel needing to be silent).
Then, Mr. Schue goes on about how you can only understand how Taylor got to her rep era by studying her earlier music. So we have a performance of Tim McGraw. Simple, front of the choir room performance, maybe Puck does guitar, and sitting on stools.
Everyone is surprised to find out how pumped Sam is for this assignment but he is all over it. “It's about time we did some country in this room.” Cue Sam and Quinn at her locker talking about their ‘date’ last night, Sam’s all cute and teasing and Quinn is not into it. She tells him it was fun but she was wrong, they shouldn’t do this again. In turn, he does a wonderful performance of Bye Bye Baby. He thought it was more but clearly he’s “a part of her past.”
Then, we’re in the empty choir room. Tina and Mike are there. (I love their cutesy duets) They sing Everything Has Changed and it’s utterly adorable. Can’t you hear Mike asking Tina if she’s “good to go” like Ed does? And while we’re on the subject of cute duets and RED, we flash to the courtyard to see Santana and Brittany. They turn Stay Stay Stay into a duet. “I’ve been loving you for quite some time,” “before you I only dated self-indulgent takers who took all their problems out on me,” “no one else is gonna love me when I’m mad, mad, mad,” and “it’s occurring to me that I’d like to hang out with you for my whole life” it’s perfect for them. Adorable ladies kisses are had.
Let’s toss in some boy drama for fun. Idk shit about football but somehow Puck is praised by their coach over Finn, which gets him all pissy, and Puck’s upset and jealous because Finn is back with Quinn now (this is why Quinn shut Sam now earlier, she changed her mind). Can we say duet of Bad Blood? “So if you’re coming my way...just don’t.”
After their dramatics, we have a Brittany solo in the choir room. It’s after school at this point (or whenever glee club is). Brittany does You’ll Always Find You Way Back Home.
When she finishes Mr. Schue tries to explain that it’s a Hannah Montana song. Britt injects that it’s confusing how she’s really Miley Cryus “like how can you be two people at once?”. Before Mr. Schue can continue, Kurt pipes up “you never specified that the songs had to be sung by Taylor Swift, just that they were her songs.” Mercedes adds, “yeah, Mr. Schue, Taylor wrote that song.” Mr. Schue concedes that he has once again been outwitted by Kurtcedes. The friends do their little hand shake thing.
With a sigh, Mr. Schue asks Mike if he’s ready to go and Mike asks to take things to the auditorium for some dancing room. Everyone’s on stage with him and it’s kind of a group number but Mike is the focus. It’s Shake It Off. All inspired by the music video. He’s tried to fit in elsewhere (i.e. football, with the smart kids, etc..) but he’s really himself in glee when he’s dancing.
Part 2 of Taylor Tribute Episodes
We begin with an ALL GIRL NUMBER of A Place In This World. Just because.
Glee is dismissed and we zoom in on Artie. He’s watching Tina with Mike and Brittany with Santana. Both Tina and Britt have broken his heart by this point. So, he’s rolling down the halls singing A Perfectly Good Heart. While Artie’s soloing, we cut to Rachel watching Finn and Quinn chatting. Artie’s song playing over this scene. Rachel is feeling similar to him at the moment.
She’s pretty sure Finn dumped her to be with Quinn again even though Kurt and Blaine told her they saw Quinn and Sam at the movies last night together making out in the back row. Fine, if that’s how he’s going to be, she doesn’t need him anyway. Cue Mr. Perfectly Fine. Uber dramatic solo performance walking around McKinley’s halls watching Finn and Quinn together ending in the auditorium alone. (see what I did there, both broken hearted peeps singing a song with Perfectly in it (this was not at all planned, actually, happy accident))
After some good old heartbreak, we have Kurt and Blaine on screen. Blaine walks into the auditorium to see Kurt sitting on the edge of the stage. “What’s all the fuss?” he asks from the door. Kurt had texted him “EMERGENCY.” The band starts to play and Kurt just starts singing, Enchanted. It’s time to profess their love for each other, just like they sing Perfect together in the car, this duet needs no audience. Blaine catches up and sings while walking towards his boyfriend. It’s very reminiscent of past New Directions competitions where they come in from the back and make their way to the stage. “Wondering if you knew I was enchanted to meet you?” Kurt and Blaine both know the answer to that question now but just a few months ago they were both wondering that exact thing.
They kiss before we cut to Kurt and Blaine walking hand in hand into the choir room where everyone else is already. Mr. Schue is praising the performances thus far and of course asks Rachel if she’s ready to solo (some practice for her completion solo). This causes an uproar from Mercedes and Santana. Another classic argument of how she gets too many solos. Mr. Schue tries to shut them both down but Santana tells Rachel to watch her back, and we get three very different reactions to this. 
All three girls storm out.
First, we visit Mercedes alone in the courtyard. This solo is all about being hurt over this great thing in her life (glee) and her being denied happiness within that club. Thus, Cold As You. (mostly to indulge myself because she’d blow us away with this song).
Next, Rachel in the auditorium. A huge bridge on stage (very Speak Now Tour of her), belting out Better Than Revenge. Santana’s dropped the last straw (the humiliation, name calling, Finn at one point and now solos,) it’s too much this time.
And finally, Santana walking around McKinley, showing us flashes of Rachel ‘outshining’ her and the rest of glee and Mr. Schue being unfair, while singing Look What You Made Me Do.
Tina walks out at the same time as Rachel, Mercedes, and Santana but no one seems to put two and two together. She feels just as underutilized as the latter two do. She ends up in an empty classroom and sings The Outside. “Nobody ever lets me in” and “on the outside looking in.”
Once the 3, err 4, divas have left the room, Finn sticks up for Rachel. Quinn, of course, has something to say about this along the lines of “you always defend her.” Finn, intimated by her ‘scary Quinn’ fumbles and blurts “because she’s my girlfriend” WHICH IS NOT TRUE AT THIS POINT. Quinn dumps him on the spot, cuts quickly to Blaine and Kurt sharing some ‘oh my god, can you believe this’ expressions, and vanishes from the room.
By this point, Rachel is long gone from the auditorium but the bridge is still there.
Here’s where we go way off script but imagine, Quinn has decided to just quit boys. They’ve all failed her anyway, she’s better off being alone. She walks up the bridge and thinks to herself “god Rachel’s so dramatic, where did this thing even come from” before it hits her “fuck, I’m as bad as Finn. I want her.” Then, she starts singing Clean to herself in the auditorium, likely tearing up throughout and ending with a good cry. (Because Dianna would DELIVER with Clean.)
While Quinn is having a sexuality crisis, the rest of glee is still happening. They’re discussing upcoming competition and debating solos and songs.
Kurt’s all: “Mr. Schue, if I may” and performs a lovely rendition of Call It What You Want. Those opening lines are too good. “My castle (ie McKinley) crumbled overnight, brought a knife to a gun fight (ie couldn’t fight off Dave Karofsky), “I’m doing better than I ever was ‘cause my baby’s fit like a daydream,” and “at least I did one thing right.” When he’s done, Blaine’s a mess in the back of the choir room, and Mr. Schue says: “not really what we’re looking for but very nice, Kurt” however, Kurt’s too busy sitting beside Blaine teasing him about blushing.  
Then, the missing girls return to the room having sung out their emotions. Quinn, having realized her feelings for Rachel, ends up soloing You Belong With Me to the New Directions in the choir room. Odd looks all around, no one knows what’s up with her and why does she keep glancing at Rachel? (Faberry just fit so well I had to add it, don’t know if I’m a shipper or not but it’s here now) (also thanks to @spicygemini for pointing out the obvious “Quinn would have ate YBWY”).
Mr. Schue wants to move the group to the audition to perform their final number of the Taylor Swift tribute well but Tina asks to sing first. He’s surprised but allows it, taking a seat with the rest of the New Directions.
Tina sings Beautiful Ghosts. “Watch from the dark, wait for my life to start” because New Directions is refusing to use her talents AGAIN. She’s singing this to Rachel and the girls who were in the Treble Tones. Because she absolutely SMASHES this number, the glee kids agree she gets solo for their next competition (and they deliver on that promise).
To conclude Part 2 of the Taylor tribute episode, we have a group performance of Long Live. “One day we will be remembered”, “all the years we stood there on the sidelines wishing for right now”, “for a moment a band of thrives in ripped up jeans got to rule the world” ie wining completions, “when they look at the pictures please tell them my name...”
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