#I have two midterms next week so updates will be slow

[gojosoups]

Imagine I make a squirting fic with gojo, and the title is called squirtle, wyd then? 🗿

(btw the Sukuna pic is a teaser for what’s about to happen in my sukugo x reader threesome fic… no it’s not I’m joking, I hope I got your hopes up for nothing)

[theorphicangel]

𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐨 𝐜𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐦𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬. | 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐮𝐞𝐥 𝐨’𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐱 𝐟𝐞𝐦!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

Tags: enemies to lovers, college au, smut, 18+, slow burn,

synopsis: It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single, brooding man in possession of a good future in genetics, must be in want of a girlfriend.

Or at least a fake one to get his family off his back.

(college au & fake dating trope ft my favourite grumpy man who doesn't fall first but ends up falling harder. ouch.)

Chapter two: low expectations.

taglist: @oharasfilipinawife @palesatan @yougavemeyourheartyouknow @amelialysm @crimin4llyins4ne

A/N: sorry for the late update, but imma catch you guys up 🫡

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Over the next few days you manage to get your pre-reading all done and dusted.

You can’t help but already feel exhausted by the amount of things that you have to juggle at university.

Just as soon as you were completed with one task, you groaned at the thought of your long list of remaining errands. Bills, assignments, grocery shopping and your shifts at the cafe were all piled on top of you constantly, not to mention your attempt to attend your lectures and classes, double checking that they were the right ones.

But the most stressful by far was trying to avoid your mother’s calls, which occurs at least twice a day. As of recently, you had thought that you were safe, coming up with excuses left, right and center.

At least that was before you had seen a missed call from your dad this morning.

That’s how you know that you’re really in the shits.

You’re gonna have to come up with something. And in quick timing.

But for now, you’re going to have to sideline your personal dilemmas.

With your new job at the cafe, you have no choice but to remain consistent with your routine, that is of course, if you want your new job to last.

After weeks of rejection or rather, the lack of replies, you had managed to secure a job at your roommate’s favorite cafe spot.

And by secure you mean that you had sort of lied about having experience in a cafe previously.

You didn’t entirely lie…just exaggerated the truth a little bit.

This was one of the only jobs that had replied to you out of a whole stockpile and you weren’t going to let it go to waste. Not under any circumstances.

You did have the experience of watching and observing what your classmate did at her family owned cafe whilst you were on the till for a few minutes.

But nonetheless, what’s so hard about making coffee? Anyone can do this shit. It’s okay if you’re learning on the job, doesn’t everyone? Currently, you succeed in trying to rotate between keeping track of orders and making drinks as well as trying not to get in MJ’s way too much.

But you were handling it to the best of your abilities. Even if that did mean messing up a few of your customers' orders every once in a while. MJ had said nothing about it so far which means that you're in the green light.

For now.

“You really should be getting some sleep, don’t let your first year knock you out before midterms.” She acknowledges, elbowing you slightly.

“I kno–” you barely finish your sentence, another yawn coming out of nowhere.

“See?” She hums, finishing off an order for the previous customer. “You need some beauty sleep.”

She’s referring to your bruised under eye bags that have started to appear. Ultimately, the results of you staying up till midnight yesterday to finish off an assignment. You had only managed to get a few hours of sleep before waking up in time for your 6am shift.

“I also need money, but we can’t have it all can we MJ?” you note, keeping your tone light before you move on to serve another customer.

You’ve only been on shift for a couple of hours but you think you’re coping well so far. MJ forewarned you about the morning lecture rush hour. You guessed that it was soon by glancing at the old clock hung up on the wall, indicating that it was just after 8:30 am. Students continued to spill in and out of the cafe, the bell above the front door continuously ringing in your ears.

A small line had begun to queue up and you swiftly moved through them with ease. As your next customer came up to the counter, your face lit up at the sight of a familiar face.

“Oh hey stranger–” you begin, recognising the same grueling face that you had seen last week bore into you. But you barely get a chance to finish your sentences before he cuts you off sharply.

“Coffee. Black.”

Your mouth forms an ‘o’ as you tap his order into the machine, immediately sensing his disgruntled aura. By the expression on his face, you can tell that he doesn’t seem up for teasing.

He seems…frustrated? Or maybe even upset?

“Name?”

“Miguel.”

You can’t tell whether he’s cranky because it’s 8am in the morning or rather that you failed to notice this the last time you saw him. Either way, it makes you a little dazed. Perhaps he wasn’t a morning person. You understood that because you were the complete same. Taking his name, you brush him off instead hoping that your coffee will cheer him up.

You inform him of the price and he swipes his card without a second glance. He leaves to take a seat in one of the corners of the cafe which just so happens to be the only part of the cafe that wasn’t so overwhelmed with customers.

It’s not long before you head over there yourself with his order.

“Here’s your black coffee.” you say, setting it down in front of him. Hastily, you’re about to run off to prepare your next order before his words stop you.

“I ordered a black coffee. Not a latte.”

You turn around abruptly, realizing your full mistake. “Oh shit, I’m sorry—”

“Are you new here or just incapable of making a simple cup of black coffee?” Miguel interrupts, his tone laced with vexation.

“Who do you think you’re–”

Your outrage comes to a halt by the sound of your name being called by MJ. You glance over your shoulder and notice her point towards an ever growing queue of customers. Shit, you don’t have time to cuss him out.

Taking a deep breath, you make the decision to be the bigger person, after all it’s like what your manager Steve said…

‘ The customer is always right.’

“I’ll bring it over for you, m’sorry.” you apologize again, rubbing at your forehead, suddenly overwhelmed with the pressure. With sweat beading at your brows, you look over to see a small queue beginning in front of the till again.

MJ throws you a hurried glance, a look which you know means ‘hurry the fuck up and make these orders.’

You end up taking longer than five minutes to return back to him, run ragged with the new orders of coffees, teas, lattes, macchiatos and hot chocolates that continue to pile up.

“Here you go, sorry about that.” You place his new and correct drink in front of him.

“No worries.”

You’re almost taken aback by his response. First he snaps at you and now he’s telling you not to worry about it? God, he was so confusing.

“Enjoy.”

You think that you hear a mutter of ‘thanks’ leave his mouth but you don’t turn back to hear his words clearly. Yet… you can’t exactly keep away.

For some reason your brain keeps lingering towards a burning question which has rattled your mind all through the past week. Giving in to your temptations, you end up turning around and prompt Miguel with another question.

“How did you know ‘Pride and Prejudice’ was set in the 19th century?”

“Huh?” He glances up from his phone, his thumb paused in his mindless scrolling.

“Last time, when I saw you in the library. You knew it was set in the 19th century.”

“I didn’t.'' Miguel huffs, and your eyes can help but notice the size of his biceps. You estimate that they’re bigger than your fucking hands. “It was an estimated guess.”

“Really? You don’t seem too-”

“Listen.” Miguel quips, his sharp tone suddenly returning, causing your voice to trail off midway through your sentence. His fingers pinch the bridge of his nose as he speaks. “I’m going to try and say this in the nicest way possible, but I’m really not in the mood for some crap about your literature degree, okay? I really couldn’t care less.”

Ouch.

Your expression drops and you’re immediately aware of the distance between the two of you.

He’s right. You barely know him. He’s just a guy who just so happened to be there at one of the most embarrassing moments of your life. “Right, sorry.”

You’re about to leave his table before he stops you…again.

“Y’know I ought to tell your manager that you messed up my order.” Miguel begins, continuing to scroll on his phone, not bothering to even look up at you. “This is a very reputable cafe and if you start slacking on the job then…”

“Then what?” You question. “Are you trying to threaten me with a bad review?”

“I wouldn’t necessarily say threaten is the right word but…now that you say that perhaps I should write one.”

Your stomach drops at his words. “Oh, you fucking wouldn’t.”

He smirks, still peering down at his phone. “Maybe I would.”

“Bet.”

“Don’t start betting on things that you’ll end up regretting, nena.”

Your brow raises at his phrase which you don’t entirely understand but you really don’t have time to question it. Your patience is running out as well as your time to get back on track with the orders.

As you walk away from his table, his words seem to settle into your skin.

He wouldn’t? Would he? No… he hasn’t got the balls to. What kind of person has that amount of free time on their hands to write a bad review? At least he had gotten his coffee in the end, you were in your right mind not to spill it all over him on purpose.

“He’s a dick, he’s a dick, he’s a total dick.” You mutter under your breath, making your way back to your station. But you should’ve guessed that from your conversation with him in the library, recalling his mocking tone of your embarrassment.

You should’ve kept your expectations low if you ever thought that you were going to be friends with him.

“What did you say?” MJ queries, hearing your mumbles as you join her.

You nod towards Miguel, still sitting in the far corner scrolling mindlessly on his phone.

“He’s an evil, brooding…” You fail to think of an appropriate ending.

“Dick?” MJ ends.

“Correct.” you say. You promise to yourself that from this moment onwards you are refraining from looking over at that corner.

You find that time passes quickly during your shift and once the rush hour of students finally dies down, you and MJ get the chance to finally take a break.

“Fucking hell, I never want to do that again.” She murmurs wiping down the surfaces near the coffee machines for any spilt substances.

“Ditto that.” you murmur, grabbing a cloth to wipe down some empty tables.

Learning that MJ was a performing arts student made you more than happy to get along well with her. She was in her second year, yet in a sea of sickening STEM students here you had real proof that you weren’t the only humanities student.

Take that Miguel.

/

Currently eating dinner alone in your apartment, you reminisce on your day in silence, your roommate out at her weekly computer coding club. You think that it was safe to say that it was a good day today, despite all the stresses at work.

Speaking of work, you recall the conversation from this morning.

You don’t want to give this Miguel guy too much credit but you’d be lying if you said that his threat earlier didn’t scare the shit out of you for the remainder of your day.

Even MJ had to ask if you were alright when it got to the end of your shift and you had brushed it off, blaming it on your exhaustion.

He was totally bluffing….right? I mean, he doesn’t even know you.

You bite down on your metallic fork, anxiety rapidly filling you within.

No, you can’t help it. You have to check.

Chewing on your fingernails, you type in the name of the cafe that you work out and head over to the reviews section on Google.

Scrolling down to find the latest reviews, your stomach practically drops at one comment, under the simple username of: @miguelohara20.

‘New barista lacked the ability to do her job. Couldn’t pay attention to even get my order right. Talks way too much unprovoked, to the point where you might as well save some money and make the damn coffee yourself.’

The fucking nerve of this guy causes so much anger within you that your fork practically falls from your other hand as you immediately go to text MJ. You send her a screenshot before typing with fury.

- ‘Did you see this? This was that guy that I was complaining about earlier: the rude, evil, brooding STEM one.’

Sent: 7:34pm

It’s not long before you receive a reply from MJ and it’s one that makes your stomach drop.

- ‘Yeah I did :/ Steve texted me about it actually.

Received: 7:36pm

MJ sends through another text, a few seconds later.

- ‘He wants a meeting with you on ‘customer etiquette’ !!

Received 7:36pm

Dropping your phone on the table, you let out a groan, holding your head in your hands. Now, this day went from ‘good’ to being the second worst day of your life, now with your job on the line.

Yeah…you think you fucking hate Miguel now.

reblogs are much appreciated!

lmk if you would like to join the taglist!

[mirkwoodshewolf]

Hellfire's Mama fox Chap. 9; A Munson Christmas

*Author's note*

Since the last chapter was pretty short I give you guys a longer chapter to digest and enjoy. Kinda had difficulty with this cause writing a Christmas fic when it's summer time just doesn't feel right, especially when there are days when the humidity is too high to get into the Christmas spirit. But I hope you all enjoy this chapter nonetheless and until the next update my lovelies :)

NEXT CHAPTER

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@queen-paladin

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@remussl0vers

@sweetpeapod

@assassinsasha23

______________________________________________________

Another thing about the holiday season is that we don’t just get a half week off for Thanksgiving, but our two week of Christmas and New Years also happens right around the corner.  After getting through our midterms everyone from freshmen to seniors could breathe a sigh of relief as this past week was a relaxing time before the Christmas holiday.

And as mentioned before, every Friday when hellfire met, I brought out my oneshot campaign of ‘The Wrath of the Snow Queen’.  Today was our final day to wrap up the entire story then Eddie had said he had an announcement about our New Year campaign.

“The freezing cold of the fortress has weakened your strengths. Though you all have fought bravely and valiantly, it would seem the Snow Queen’s wrath was too great for you all to handle. Do you yield and become part of her Winter army? Or does one of you have the guts to try one final time to finish her off?” I announced as I looked to the boys.

“Time out!” proclaimed Jeff as he and the boys huddled up.  “Guys I hate to say it but we’ve got to surrender.”

“I concur.” Agreed Gareth.

“Now hold on! If we yield now we’ll become eternal white walker zombies.” Eddie stated.

“He’s right. We’ve still got 15 hit points left we can’t just give up now!” exclaimed Dustin.

“We got lucky last time, maybe we can have a luck of the dice again.” Mike suggested.

“Unlikely Mike. The Snow Queen has frozen my sword unbreakable and Gareth’s scepter. Without our most powerful weapons we’re fucked!” said Lucas.

“Hey!” I interjected.  The boys turned to me as I then spoke as Jadis, the Snow Queen.  The motherly-like tone that held an icy, chilling tone.  “While I commend your efforts to defeat me, it’d be wise to heed the words of your comrades. Come and stand at my side. You know you have no hope of winning this.” I extended my hand out to them and gave them a sinister grin with a lustful, hypnotic look in my eyes.

“One sec.” Dustin held his finger up to me before the boys came back into their huddle.  “What do you think Mike?”

“Who here has at least enough hit points to go against her?” asked Mike.  They were silent before Eddie said.

“I guess that’s me. But it’s only 10.”

“Alright Eddie. I know it’s risky as hell but you’re the only one with enough strength to fight. So it’s your call.” Eddie pondered before coming up from the group huddle and he sneered at me.

“This isn’t over until the last one stands you bitch.” My smirk widened.

“Foolish mortal.” I taunted.

“Eddie, are you sure man? There’s no shame in running.” Jeff said to him.

“If we don’t win this, the entire kingdom will be engulfed in an eternal winter. And I can’t let that happen.” He said to Jeff before holding out his palm. “Give me the D20.” I picked up his black and red dice and tossed it over to him.

Eddie brought the dice up to his lips and blew into it twice before slowly rolling it between his palms then really began to shake it up.  The boys gathered around him all waiting with anticipation and anxiety as their fates came down to this last roll.

Finally Eddie let the dice go onto the board.  It skipped and rolled across the board until it started to slow down and finally land on it’s number.  Unlucky number 8.  The boys exclaimed in disbelief and fear as my grin went wider and I did a few hand movements, bending my fingers or flexing them like a dancer’s before whispering.

“Frozen heart.” I then shot my hands outward and Eddie froze to where he stood before collapsing onto his chair.

“NOOO!! BEREN!!!” the boys exclaimed.

“Do not weep for him gentlemen, you shall soon join him.” I spoke as Jadis before speaking once again in my Dungeon Mistress tone.  “You soon feel an icy chill on your feet, slowly inch by inch ice begins to encompass up your bodies until each of you are nothing but frozen statues. With a few waves of hands, you all soon awake but all any of you saw was a vision of a world of eternal ice and snow. You all have now become part of Jadis’ White walker army. And have failed in saving the Kingdom from an eternal winter.” I then laughed as Jadis before switching off the lantern.  “And thus ends our winter campaign Hellfire.”

“Damn Roxxi, you really showed no mercy on any of us.” Said Dustin.

“Can’t have you boys winning all the time.” I shrugged as I turned on the main lights in the drama room and started packing everything up.

“Alright my little sheepies. Before we depart on our Winter solstice holiday, I’d like to make an announcement about next year’s campaign.” The boys all turned to Eddie giving him their full attention.  “I want all of you to prepare new character sheets by January 6th because this new campaign will be the biggest one that Hellfire’s ever known. For we are about to embark on the Cult of Vecna.”

The boys cheered and high fived each other all talking about the well-known history of Vecna and his cult.  I too was excited and couldn’t wait to help Eddie with this campaign.

“Happy Christmas you guys, see you next year.” I bid farewell as the boys all packed up their stuff before leaving the drama room leaving Eddie and I alone to place everything back for the holiday break.

“You really were a brutal Dungeon Mistress with this campaign my Queen.”

“You’re not the only one who can be cruel when she wants to in her campaigns. You have no idea how hard it took me to try and make sure that none of you was going to come out on top. The rewrites I had to do.”

“Well if I’m honest sweetheart, this was probably better than your Halloween campaign. I mean don’t get me wrong, you went above and beyond for Halloween. Far more than you’ve ever done. But this campaign…..” he let out a low whistle.  “You had me sweating my balls off.”

“A little too graphic there babe.” I grimaced.

“You knew what dating me would entail. Explicit language and innuendos.” I rolled my eyes and playfully shoved him with my shoulder as I walked past him but he quickly caught me by the waist and pulled me onto his lap as he sat down on his throne.  Our noses grazing against one another’s as he let out a soft moan.

I pressed my forehead to his before capturing his lips with mine in a soft, loving kiss.

“And I wouldn’t have you any other way my Lord of darkness.”

“Good to know I surpass Ozzy Osbourne in your eyes.”

“Please, Ozzy don’t hold a candle to you. Plus he’s way too insane for me. No offense babe.”

“He may be absolutely bat-shit crazy.” He eyed me on that pun to which I gave him a slap to the chest for the terrible reference.  “But the man in a music god.”

“I thought that was Metallica?”

“Don’t get ahead of me sweetheart.” God I love it when Eddie gets so passionate about his favorite musicians.  “So, shall it be the usual Christmas at the Munson residence?”

“Not completely. I’ve got something special for you and Wayne this year.” His eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas.

“What is it? Come on tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me!” he pleaded as he bounced in his throne happily jostling me around before burying his face into my ear as he spoke as low as his voice could go, “Tell me.”

“Nah-ah-ah-ah. Not until Christmas Eve. Plus you and I still gotta decorate the trailer. We promised Wayne we’d help out this year.” Eddie groaned.  “Come on please. Please?” I gave him my best bunny face with cute nose twitch.

“You know I can’t resist the bunny face.” He pecked my nose.  “Okay, okay. For the old man.” I smiled and pecked his lips once again and we continued to clean everything up and pack up our D&D folders and figurines before finally shutting all the lights off and locking up the drama room for the winter break.

We drove into downtown Hawkins and gathered up the groceries for the Christmas dinner I would soon prepare for the Munson boys.  And with the recent rise in paychecks Wayne’s been getting, we got ourselves a decent 16lbs turkey.

I also gathered up some eggnog, beer, potatoes and gravy, and corn on the cob.  After paying for the groceries and as we came out of the store, we saw how the snow was beginning to fall.

“And just in time too. And thank god I got the essential groceries two days ago. Weather man was saying this could be our biggest snowfall of the Christmas season.” I said to Eddie.

“Well let’s get this stuff home and hunker down before the roads get too icy.”

“Yeah, with your driving we’d never survive.” Eddie gawked offended.

“Have I ever got us into an accident?”

“Yet. But there’s time, there’s time.” I felt a pinch to my butt as I let out a squeal before hitting Eddie in the arm.  Once we loaded the groceries into the back of the van, I took the cart back to the pickup area and got into the passenger seat as Eddie drove off.

“You’ve got snow on your hair.” Eddie chuckled as he reached over and took a strand of multi-colored hair and stroked the snow that had landed on the pink and blue parts of my hair.

“Both hands on the wheel Munson.” I gently reprimanded him as I pushed his hand towards the wheel and used the visor mirror to brush out the large snowflakes from my hair.

Once we got home, we unloaded the groceries and I packed them away into the fridge when I saw Eddie just standing in the middle of the trailer lost in his head.

“Eddie?” I walked over to him and took his arm which made him jump slightly and he looked down at me and seemed to relax.  “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare yah.”

“No you-you didn’t.”

“Where’d you go Eds?” I asked him.  He was about to argue but with a raised brow he sighed and said gesturing towards the trailer.

“This time of the year always makes me feel depressed. No matter how much Wayne works, we can only ever have a smidge of what a real Christmas is like once every few years. I can’t even remember the last time I decorated a Christmas tree. I see all throughout Hawkins how people can have these big trees, hell there’s one at the center of downtown every year for Christ’s sake!” he scoffed.  “But we Munsons……we don’t have that luxury.”

“Trust me, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. Putting up the tree and decorations may be fun and exciting but packing them up after the holidays. That’s where the fun stops. It’s a pain in the ass packing it all back up again and having to store it somewhere or just throw it away. Not to mention all the pine needles that fall from some trees, or the tinsel that you still find in your hair when it’s the middle of April.” Eddie softly chuckled.

“Still…..it doesn’t change the fact that I have to have the Christmas traditions and their seasonal looks shoved down my throat and I can’t do anything about it.” I leaned against his arm and rubbed his back.

“You still got Georgie’s number right?”

“Right on the side of the fridge, why? You know he’s not in Hawkins anymore.”

“I know but I was thinking. You were one of the best auto-mechanics he ever hired here in Hawkins. Maybe he’d give you a job in his new shop in Chicago. I’d find a job there as well and along with your night gigs with the band, we might be able to finally afford a yearly traditional Christmas that you’ve always wished for. We could even get Wayne to come up and enjoy it every year.”

“You think we should move to Chicago once we graduate?” he asked me.

“It’s an option. Do you not like it? Is it too specific?”

“No, no. Just—this is why you’re the brains and I’m just the arm candy.” He said as he nuzzled his nose against mine.  I scoffed softly and pecked his nose.  “I mean it. All I had in mind was just us getting the hell out of Hawkins in general. No destination, no plan, just you, me and the open road.”

“I don’t think I’d be cut out for full on open road life. At least not until you make it big as my metal rockstar.”

“By day I’m an auto-mechanic at Georgie’s Tire shop. But by night, I’m Eddie Munson metal God of rock.” I nodded as I softly laughed.

“Exactly babe.” I then felt Eddie pick me up and swing me around before setting me down.  “Now come on, let’s get the lights strung up.” I took Eddie’s wrist and lead him towards the storage closet where he kept the fairy lights that he’ll sometimes decorate for either a special ‘at home dinner date’ or for our pillow forts that is required at least three times a month (at least according to him).

Together we strung up the lights all over the living room and we also got into the old Christmas packages that were stored under the crawlspace of the trailer and brought out some of Eddie’s old homemade Christmas decorations that were made by Little Eddie.

You know those snowmen and mittens you used to make back in elementary school during the Christmas season.  Apparently Wayne was given some of those by Eddie’s mom back in the day and only until I had moved in and discovered them did I want them to also be put up around the trailer.  Even when Eddie gets embarrassed of having these things be put up on display, I think its adorable seeing little five year old Eddie’s first cutout snowflake and Christmas trees.

Once the decorations were all put up, Eddie and I stood side by side and admired our handy work.

“Not bad.” I complimented.

“Not bad at all.” Eddie agreed as he wrapped his arms around me as he stood behind me.  “Plus I think the old man missed having some sort of Christmas spirit in this trailer.”

“Really?” I asked turning to look up at him.

“Oh yeah. Told me how ever since you came along, the holidays seemed to seep its way into our humble little trailer.”

“I think he also once said at our first Christmas together of how you’d managed to stop acting like the Grinch.” I teased with a giggle.  I felt Eddie poke me in the ribs making me jump but he made sure to keep a firm grip around my waist.

“You’re lucky I’m feeling merciful tonight. But push my buttons any further and I’ll tickle torture you until the New Year.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Try me.” He darkly chuckled into my ear as he brought my closer to his back.  I squirmed in his hold but he kept me close as I felt him kiss my neck trying to subdue me.  It would’ve worked too had it not been for the front door suddenly opening up and in came Wayne with patches of snow on his shoulders.

“Wayne!” I exclaimed as I pushed Eddie’s face out of my neck.  “You’re home early.”

“The factory decided to let us off early due to this snow storm. Been getting updates from every station that it’s gonna be a big one in years.” He said as he locked the door behind him and took off his winter gear.  It was then he finally took notice of the fairy lights we had stringed up and the decorations we had set up.  “Now it’s starting to feel like Christmas in this place.”

“Roxxi’s idea. And thanks to her quick thinking, we’ve got plenty of food to get us through the storm.” Eddie said as he rocked us from side to side.

“Thanks Roxxi. We don’t know what we’d have done if not for your organized preparations.” Wayne thanked me.

“You boys would be living off on canned food and beer. Growing men need more than that.”

“I get me by why include Wayne?” Eddie teased.  I elbowed him in the stomach making him let out a grunt.

“Eddie, behave.” I reprimanded.  “So Wayne, do you think you’ll be getting a few days off work due to this upcoming storm?”

“Who knows. I’ll get word about it from the office sometime tomorrow.”

“I think it’d also be best to just stay home even if they tell you to come in. The slippery roads aren’t worth driving, especially at night.” I advised him.

“I’ll keep that in mind Roxxi.”

“Now then, how’s about I make us some grilled cheese and tomato soup for supper?” I asked them as I got out of Eddie’s arms and headed over to the kitchen.

“Sounds good to me.” Said Wayne.

“I can go for that.” Added Eddie.  I gave them a nod before gathering the stuff I would need to make them what we all had agreed to have for the night.

Once all of it was made, we gathered around the dinner table for the first time in a few weeks since Wayne’s been doing some overtime lately to try and get that Christmas bonus this year.

“So, in case we do end up being shut in from the storm, what’s the plan for Christmas Eve?” asked Wayne.

“Well like Eddie said. Thanks to the babysitting money I’ve been getting from Ms. Mayfield and a few of the other trailer moms around here, the savings Eddie’s had since his work at the automobile shop two years ago, I was able to get us a decent size turkey. Figured we’d cook that up, along with some mashed potatoes and gravy and corn on the cob.”

“Sounds like the perfect Christmas meal.” Wayne praised.  “Think you can help out this time without burning anything Eddie?”

“I swear on Metallica themselves.” Eddie said holding up his right hand followed by crossing his heart with his left.

“If you do good this time, I might just take that ban off of you so you can help cook more food besides soup.” I told him.

“Walking on thin ice there sweetheart.” He threatened playfully.

“Don’t back sass her boy. Be thankful she gives you as many chances as she does.” Wayne told him.

“I’m just too nice I suppose.”

“Yeah haha, maybe I should ask the big guy in red to give you both lumps of coal in your stockings this year for your attitude tonight.” I giggled and wrapped my arm around his shoulders before pecking his cheek.  “If that’s your way of bribery my love, you’ll have to do better than that.”

“No bribes, just to let you know we’re both teasing. Right Wayne?” he nodded with a hum as he kept eating his dinner.

Once our dinner was done, Eddie did the dishes and put them up to dry and we all decided it was best to hit the sack since it had been a long week for all of us.

A few days later and after helping Wayne for a few days of clearing out the snow from the trailer when it would snow every couple of days in between and the big day finally arrived.  Christmas Eve.

And like every year when Eddie and I started dating I made my Munson men my grandmother’s special Christmas chocolate chip cookies.  Every year she always made sure to make a whole bunch of them for me and Steve.  Of course mother dearest always tried to make her own mother stop feeding me fattening foods but gran-gran was always one step ahead of her own daughter when it came to spoiling me.

“I swear babe, did your grandma put some sort of drug in these cookies?” asked Eddie as he had his fifth cookie.

“No drugs whatsoever. And don’t talk with your mouth full, you’ll choke.” I reprimanded as I bopped his nose.

“So Roxxi, about what time you thinking about cooking our Christmas feast?” asked Wayne.  I let out a soft hum before looking at the clock to see that it was just past 11:30.

“Well the turkey’s gonna be the longest to prep. At least I’ve been letting it thaw out since six this morning. I’d say about…..2ish. That way we can eat by 6-7ish at the latest.”

“Works for me. I can handle the turkey prep. You kids handle the rest.” We nodded then Eddie proposed that the two of us should head out to do one final snow day before the Christmas day crowding.  So he and I got on our winter gear before heading outside with Wayne telling us to be careful out there.

If you’d like to compare just how much snow we’ve gotten for this year; using Eddie as a measurement the snow that had been shoveled away to clear a path from our trailer to the cars was up to his knees. 

As for the rest of the neighborhood when the snowplows came through the road, the piles alongside the road were well past every trailer.  I’m told there’s even been a call for this area to have some construction trucks up in and take some of the snow away like how they do with dirt sometimes.

But whether or not they’ll end up doing it that’s up to the politicians, which usually means they won’t cause they’ve got other important things to take care of.  Eddie took my hand and led us towards the woods just behind Max’s trailer, or I should say almost dragging me to the woods.

“I swear you’re like Bambi when he saw his first snow, Eds.”

“Hey it should be a crime to lose their inner child when it comes to playing in the snow! And anyone who does….” He trailed off before releasing my hand and got a handful of snow and just shot it at me making me shriek.  Suddenly I felt a snowball hit my face.  “Is punished by the Lord of snowballs.”

I spurted out the snow and wiped it out from my brow before turning to Eddie with a harsh glare in my eyes.

“So, you think you can take on the Snow Queen, foolish mortal?” I said lowering my voice to the tone I had used at my Winter’s D&D session.  I readied a snowball in my hands and took aim before firing at him and managed to get him in the arm.  He let out a groan before exclaiming.

“A flesh wound! Nothing but a mere flesh wound your highness!” he ran towards a tree while I kept throwing snowballs at him, some getting him in the back but most I ended up missing him completely until he got to his shelter.  I took shelter behind a large snow covered bush and readied my arsenal with as many snowballs as I could.

“This be war foolish creature! Once this war is over, I shall be the victorious one and you shall join my army of the frozen empire!”

“Nay! It is I that shall be victorious and free all that you have ensnared ice witch!” Eddie’s voice cried through the woods.  We soon began throwing snowballs at each other as viciously as we could but then Eddie made a suicide attempt as he came out from his hiding spot and began to charge at me.

“A foolish maneuver. Attack my White walkers!” I then proclaimed as I imagined Jadis’ white walker army marching out to meet Eddie head on.  He maneuvered with skill pretending to decapitate each of them (the only way to kill a White walker) once he got close enough to me, he revealed a hidden snowball and threw it right at my chest sending me falling backwards into the soft powder of snow.

“Hear me now. Eddie the Banished have doth vanquished the evil Jadis the Snow Queen! And spared this forest from her eternal winter.” He said as he stood over me victoriously.

“You may have defeated me…..but I’ll—be…..back.” I playfully choked and coughed out before closing my eyes and lying still in the snow.  I heard Eddie chuckle and heard the snow crunch beneath him as I felt him hovering over me.  I opened my eyes and saw the gleaming look in his eyes as he looked down at me in pure adoration.

“Hi.” He greeted me.

“Hi.” I echoed back with a giggle as I reached up and brushed the hair out of his face.  “Really wish you had worn a hat at least. Your ears won’t be too happy with you later.”

“I know a girl that can warm them up later.” I playfully shoved his shoulder as he reached up and took my beanie off and brushed the tangles out from underneath the hat hair I would have.  “This tri-colored pattern really makes it pop out in the snow, especially the blue.”

“You don’t think I overdid it do you?”

“Hey, if it makes you happy, I’m happy sweetheart. Plus I think each of these colors represents who you are.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. The yellow tips represent your beautiful creative mind. Usually girls only think about makeup and boys and the current fashion trend. But you my beloved Elf-witch; you think beyond materialistic things. You create beautiful words and stories that I’ve only ever dreamed of. Which leads into the magenta middle, and since it’s part of the red family. It shows your fiery passion to achieve those goals. And you don’t let anyone stop you. And at the roots, this deep blue shows your empathy and maternal instincts towards those that need it. You will gravely defend those who are closest to you and won’t take anyone’s crap for it.”

“If you’re trying to win brownie points from me Munson, know that it’s working.”

“I’m not looking for anything. I’m just stating the facts.” He took a strand of my hair and twisted it around his index finger gently before letting it slide off.  “You’re one hell of a woman Roxxi Murdock. And I can’t imagine anyone else I’d rather be with.” I smiled lovingly at him before bringing him down into a soft, passionate kiss in the snow.

After awhile we both grew cold and decided it was time to head back and get warmed up before we’d prepare our Christmas eve dinner.  Once the time came around, the Munson men and I got to work at our stations and worked for the next couple of hours to prep, cook and set the table up.

Once the turkey was good and prepped, Wayne set it down at the center of eating table while I lit the candles and set down the mashed potatoes while Eddie set down the gravy.

“Shall we?” asked Wayne.

“I can lead this time.” I volunteered.  Now Eddie and his grandpa weren’t all that religious like most of the people in this town were.  And I had lost my faith shortly after being kicked out of my parent’s room but deep down I felt like every holiday there still needed to be a Grace spoken to bless the meal and this holiday.  So I was fortunate that the Munsons had allowed me to indulge in this small favor after them taking me in when I had nowhere else to go.

We sat down at the table and held hands with each other across the table and bowed our heads as I spoke.

“It hadn’t been easy this past year Heavenly Father, but somehow we managed to pull through and make it another full year. Bless this food and the hands that helped prepare it. Give us warmth, love and hope as we try to get through the remainder of this year and into the new year. Bless these fine men who helped me in a dark time and give them praise for all their hard work. In your son we pray, Amen.”

“Amen.” Wayne and Eddie softly echoed as we let go and ate our well deserved Christmas meal.  “Mmm I swear sweetheart, without you we’d be feasting on beer and bean dip. This is the best mashed potatoes and gravy I’ve ever had.” Eddie praised.

“It’s not that hard to mess up mashed potatoes and my granny’s recipe for gravy is pretty easy. But you gotta give Wayne the credit for the turkey. Not even my aunt’s turkey could compare to this.”

“The key is proper spicing and some good old melted butter.” He said as he took a bite of his turkey.

“And mixing it with some gravy is just as good, if not better.” Eddie said as he dunked his spoon into the gravy bowl and poured it over his turkey.

“Can’t argue with that. Now quit hogging the gravy Eddie!” I said reaching out for it but he pulled it away from me.

“Not here and now you two. Gravy’s delicious but it’s a nightmare to clean up if it stains the carpet.” Wayne warned us.  After that, we didn’t say much of anything else as we continued to eat and enjoy our Christmas eve meal together.

Once we were full and packed away the leftovers in the fridge, as Wayne went to go get our presents, I went over to his old record player and grabbed a Christmas record and placed it into the record player.  Soon the trailer was filled with the soft gentle piano playing of ‘The First Noel’.

Wayne soon came out with two wrapped presents and handed them to me and Eddie.

“Merry Christmas kids.” Eddie quickly unwrapped his gift and stared wide eyed as it was the new Iron Maiden album that had came out back in October.

“No way! Iron Maiden’s Live after Death album. Been waiting to get my hands on this for months!”

“Good thing you didn’t.” Wayne said as he took a sip of his beer and sat down on his chair.

“Thanks Wayne. Really I—thank you.”

“It was nothing boy. Jerry at the record shop owed me for helping him when he got that flat tire back in the spring.” I unwrapped my gift and saw that it was a couple of X-men and Daredevil comics that I didn’t have in my collection.

“Oh my god Wayne. This is…..these comics are almost nearly impossible to find. How did you…..”

“You’re not the only comic book advocate. I’ll teach you the network and how to get your connections to all the good stuff.”

“Thank you. Guess I’ll go next.” I stood up and jogged over to Eddie’s room to find my presents to them.

Boy I’ll tell yah it was not easy to keep these gifts hidden away especially from Eddie.  Guy always like to peek and poke around especially as the holidays get closer to see if any presents are hidden away.  But thankfully I managed to find a good hiding spot for each of them.

I pulled out the long rectangular one out from behind the dresser where Eddie keeps his hand-me-down guitars gifted to him by Wayne then pulled out the smaller box out from one of my old shoeboxes.  I came back and handed Wayne the small box while Eddie got the big rectangular shaped one.

I watched as both boys unwrapped their gifts and hold their gifts up.  For Wayne I did a handmade mug that I personally hand sculpted and painted myself with the word’s GREATEST UNCLE written across.  And for Eddie, I drew him his own personal Rockstar poster.  Him with his infamous Sweetheart guitar standing at the edge of a volcano with smoke, ash and lighting dancing behind him as he shredded on his guitar.

“While I was away at the rehab center, they had an art and pottery making class. So I signed up for lessons and made you guys those. Do you like them?”

“Roxxi this is about the best mug I’ve ever received. Thank you darlin. I’ll find a special place for this mug to hang on.” Wayne said.

“That mug there was the fourth one I had to make. The first two ended up having cracks after they were baked, and the third one got broken by my roommate.” I then turned to Eddie and reached out to touch his shoulder.  He slightly jumped and I asked him, “You okay babe? You’re pretty quiet.”

He set the charcoal picture down and grabbed my face before placing his lips firmly against mine.  I was shocked at first but succumbed to his kiss as our arms wrapped around each other.  After a bit he separated from me and said.

“Roxxi, is there anything you can’t do?”

“Changing a car tire and taxes.” He booped my nose and picked up the picture.

“I swear, this could be an actual cover for Iron Maiden or even Metallica.”

“Well, when Corroded Coffin makes it big, you can use this as your first cover album picture. I give you the rights to it.” He looked at me in awe.

“Sweetheart—”

“I’m serious Eddie. Take it and promise me you’ll use it one day.” I held out my pinkie and he softly scoffed but wrapped his pinkie around mine sealing the deal.

“I swear.” He kissed our interlocked pinkies before standing up.  “I hope you now know that your gift to me will be inadequate to yours.” He said disappearing towards the storage closet.

“You know what I always say! It’s not about the price but the amount of thought and care into a gift that matters.” He soon came back and handed both Wayne and I our presents.  I opened mine up to see that it was a new handmade t-shirt.

It was the same color pattern as everyone else’s Hellfire t-shirt but when I went to unveil in, across the front it read:

HELLFIRE’S MAMA FOX. With the D20 dice acting as the O and a proud nine-tailed fox standing below the lettering with it’s paw resting on top of the Tiefling’s head and each of the fix tails were on fire.

“Eddie…..”

“Put it on, I wanna see how it looks on you.” I set the box aside and put the shirt over my current one.  I gave it a bit of a stretch so that it fit a bit more before turning to Eddie and asked.

“How’s it look?”

“Perfect. And I don’t just mean the shirt.” I rolled my eyes at him before pecking his lips once more and thanked him again.

“A free admissions ticket to the Hideout for an all-night Happy hour.” Wayne said.

“Figured you and I could go together or something. We’re hard working men after all. We deserve some nights off, right babe?” Eddie asked me.

“Agreed.”

“Even though I can’t condone you both drinking underaged. I know there’s nothing I can say to stop either of you. But then again this town could care less about high school teens drinking underaged at times. How long till these expire?”

“We got till the end of the year to use them. Figured we’d go the day after Christmas?”

“Sounds good to me. Do you mind if I steal my boy for the night Roxxi?”

“He’s your nephew, I got no leash on him. I can man the palace whilst you two are on your quest.” And with the gift exchange now complete, the only thing left for us to do was enjoy a little Christmas movie marathon starting with the greatest movie of all, A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Eddie and I were cuddled together on the couch while Wayne remained in his chair.  A glass of hot chocolate sat in front of us thanks to Wayne and I took my last sip of hot chocolate before cuddling close to Eddie and falling asleep somewhere during the start of A Christmas Story.

*Eddie’s POV*

Somewhere during our Christmas movie marathon, I felt Roxxi doze off against my shoulder and the second I heard her moan tiredly and snuggle deeper into my chest, I knew that she was now in that state between awake and deep sleep.

Very carefully I picked her up from the couch and took her into our room and set her down on the bed.  I covered her up and stroked the strands of hair out of her face, all while staring down at this gorgeous goddess before me.

I know I say this every time but this time there’s no question about it.  Roxxi is it for me.  She’s the only girl who I see being my endgame.  I want her to be the last thing I see before I go to sleep, the first thing I see when I wake up. 

She’s never once denied me of my dream to become a metal rockstar but she also encourages me to find roots before achieving that dream so that way we’re already on steady ground instead of going off of nothing.  After all she’s been through these last few years, she deserves a better life and I promised her I’d give it to her.  I leaned down and softly kissed her cheek and whispered to her.

“Merry Christmas Roxxi.” I soon shut the bedroom door behind me and returned back to the couch and let out a sigh.

“She really means that much to you, doesn’t she Eddie?” Wayne said.

“I still sometimes can’t grasp why she’d choose me out of any guy in Hawkins.” I told him.

“Because boy what you lack in ego and pride, you make up for in empathetic intelligence. You were the only one to stay with her when she had no one left.” I turned to my uncle and told him.

“She’s it for me Wayne. Once we graduate, I…..I’m gonna ask Roxxi to marry me. I know we might be too young but—I can’t wait any longer. She’s my wife and I want to make it official. Even if I can’t prove it with a ring, I still want her to be mine.” Wayne stood up without another word then went over to one of the cabinets and started rummaging through it.

I tried to look over to see what it was he was trying to find until he pulled a small black film canister out and came over to me.  He held out the canister and I looked at him confused.  He gestured for me to take it and I hesitantly took it.  I gave it a small shake and heard something rattling in it.

I popped the top open and turned it over and soon falling into my palm was a beautiful engagement ring.  I turned to Wayne in shock as he sat down next to me.

“This was my Mama’s engagement ring. Your paternal grandparents were married for 56 years. My mama gave me this ring hoping I’d find a girl to give this to. But as you know I’ve never been the one to settle down, and your old man would’ve sold this to get his next fix. But you Eddie, I see in you a man who knows what he wants. And if you believe with all your heart that that girl is a part of that dream, you give her this.”

“Wayne I—I don’t……this is……”

“Say no more son. But don’t give this to her until you both graduate. Let this be another motivation for you to get off your lazy ass and graduate.”

“Thanks to her I managed to pass my quarter classes, and get by with decent grades in my yearly ones. All that’s left is the spring term and then we’re done.”

“She’s good for you boy. Keeps you in line better than I ever could.” I placed the ring back into the film canister and pocketed it into my black leather jacket. 

This was never leaving this pocket, if I were to put it somewhere in my room I’d know either it’d be lost forever or Roxxi might stumble across it while cleaning up or reorganizing my stuff.

“Thank you uncle. For everything.” Wayne and I never really were much for sentimental feelings.  As men we just sorta—I don’t know just know when we love and appreciate each other.  But ever since Roxxi came into our lives, I guess I’ve been….wanting to show it a bit more lately.  Especially when Wayne agreed to have her live here after her parents kicked her out.

Hesitantly I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around my uncle and embraced him tightly.  I immediately felt his arms wrap around my back as we both gave each other a pat on the back.

“Merry Christmas son.” He told me.

“Merry Christmas, old man.” I told him giving him one last pat then separating from our hug.  “Think I’ll head to bed. Promised Roxxi I’d help make breakfast for you in the morning, don’t tell her that I told you that.”

“My lips are sealed.” He gave me a nod.  I nodded back before getting up and headed back towards my room and saw that Roxxi was still asleep.  This time she was on her stomach curled closer to the wall.  I walked over to her, got undressed and carefully got into the bed and cuddled close to her before falling asleep holding her in my arms.

Oh yeah, she’s definitely the one for me.  I hope the end of the school year comes faster than this first half of the year did.

[wosomarvel]

communication - 03

i thought i'd let you guys know that this takes place after the wwc, but i will probably stray from what happens in real life from here on out.

also i am taking 6 classes this semester so i apologize for slow updates! i promise i do have a plan for where this story goes and roughly how long it will be. i'm sorry this took so long, but hopefully i can get another update out within two weeks because my first round of midterms is over.

-----

"how's your rehab going?"

sim never liked questions like that when she'd had her surgeries on her knee. the same question that everyone she talked to had asked her. she hated the repetitiveness of it. she hated the pitying gazes she got when she told the other person that her rehab wasn't going at all, that she'd never step foot on the pitch again.

but she'd asked leah the question anyway. she knew that having to miss out on yet another lionesses camp had to be weighing on her friend. sim knew leah probably felt that as captain, she couldn't talk to anyone on the team about feeling left out and probably felt she had to put on a supportive front for the team.

she'd asked leah because she wanted her to know someone was there to listen.

"i'll be running on grass again next month, so i'm not too concerned," leah answered, setting a cup down on the coffee table before settling down on the sofa across from sim with her own.

as camp was nearing, sim made an effort to spend more time with the older girl and had become quite familiar with leah's comfortable flat a few minutes away from london colney.

"i meant... like emotionally. can't be easy watching your team play from the crowd. i know you're still going to camp to support, but being that close and not being able to play..." sim trailed off.

sim had great admiration for the support leah had shown the lionesses from off the pitch. attending the world cup, attending camps to support coaching staff, and doing anything just to be involved wasn't something sim thought she could've handled if she'd been in leah's position.

sim fought back a surge of bitter jealousy when she reminded herself that it was different. leah would get to play again. and even though it had only been a year and a half since sim's own knee reconstruction, the doctors hadn't tried to sugarcoat the low chances of her ever regaining the ability to run, let alone play rugby at the level she had been before it all went to shit.

but she pushed all of it down and away. if she didn't think about it, she could pretend like everything was normal. like she was just out with a sprain for a few weeks and any day now she'd be making her return to the forward pack.

it was less painful to pretend, and if there was one thing sim was good at, it was pretending.

"it's still tough, but i'm not struggling as much as i did at the start. playing again seemed so far away right after the surgery but i think being there for the girls has helped me keep me motivated."

sim nodded at leah's answer, sending her a soft smile before reaching for the cup she'd placed in front of her.

"i appreciate you checking in," leah spoke. there was another beat of silence, almost like the gunner was testing the field before speaking again hesitantly. "what about you?"

sim could feel leah's eyes boring into the side of her head, the weight of the curiosity and concern in her gaze.

sim pulled a long sip of coffee. "well, rehab for me isn't really a thing anymore. they did what they could. this is the best it's going to get."

leah cringed at the iciness that took over the younger girl's tone. she didn't miss the way sim's whole body straightened, muscles taut with tension.

"you know that's not what i meant," she said, her voice soft. she set her coffee cup down on the table, reaching for sim's and doing the same. "how are you dealing with it?"

sim wasn't dealing with it. but she knew that wasn't the answer leah was looking for. she forced herself to relax, painting a smile on her face.

she hoped it was believable.

"it's been almost two years now. i'm over it," she replied with a shrug.

leah took note of sim's seeming nonchalance. the blonde knew it was a facade. sim might be trying her best to claim she was fine but leah knew better.

her ACL injury was hard enough even when she knew she'd make a full recovery. that knowledge hadn't stopped her from itching to rush back. if leah hadn't had the support system she did at the time of her injury, she'd be in much worse shape. physically and mentally.

her heart broke for sim, knowing she didn't have the comfort of making a full recovery. sure, they'd only known each other for just under a year, but leah could see the way sim's reduced mobility was eating away at her.

it was apparent in the look in her eyes when she observed the girls playing football, when she thought no one was paying attention to her. it was apparent in the way sim never let herself rest for a moment, in the way she avoiding talking about rugby, in the way she never talked about her life before the injury.

plus, from what leah could tell, sim didn't have anywhere close to the support system she herself did. sim hadn't even discussed her injury in detail with leah, and the pair were the closest from anyone else on the national team.

knowing what she had gone through with her own fight back to playing football, leah could not imagine what it would feel like if she'd never be able to play again. if she hadn't had her friends, family, and teammates by her side.

"you don't have to do that."

"do what?" sim replied, shrugging her shoulders.

"pretend."

"i'm not," sim defended. "it's in the past. no point dwelling on it. i don't like to think about it."

leah sighed, but decided not to mention that not thinking about it wasn't healthy. sim wouldn't be receptive to further pushing.

instead, she resolved to try and bring the girl out of her shell during camp. she only really talked to leah, beth, alessia, and tooney. maybe, leah thought, maybe she'd click with one of the other girls.

-----

"what are you doing here so early?"

sim jumped, almost dropping the coffee she'd picked up from the meal room at st. george's park.

"i could ask you the same thing," she quipped back.

"i'm filling in as captain, aren't i? got to take it seriously while leah recovers," millie replied.

sim smiled at the thought. this would be leah's first national camp in almost a year. though the older girl wouldn't be fully training with the team, sim knew she was happy just to be back in the environment.

"i'm just getting my equipment set up. i'm going to try and get shots of everyone arriving to camp. i'll clip that together really quick for the socials, shouldn't take too long, but if i set everything up right now i should be able to get shots of training on one of the better cameras, and i'll be pulling some of you lot aside for que-"

sim was cut off my a smack to the shoulder.

"hey!" she whined, rubbing her shoulder with her arm.

"sorry, love, you just kept on rambling and i couldn't get a word in to stop you," millie explained with a grin. sim blushed a deep red, smiling at the ground sheepishly. "and listen," millie added, "don't stress too much about it, yeah? you're good at your job and this team is a lively bunch. you just have to point a camera at tooney for a minute and you're guaranteed content."

sim nodded in response, forcing herself to relax. millie was right. you'd be hard pressed to find a slow day with the lionesses.

millie was proven correct within the next half hour. sim decided to forego using one of the higher end cameras to film the team's arrivals as she was quite aware of their propensity for hugs. settling for using her phone and a tripod for this bit, she'd only been stationed by the entrance for ten minutes before ella came bounding towards her.

"what've you got that cane for, grandma," she teased, throwing an arm around sim's shoulders.

"it's easier to hit you with, isn't it?" sim grinned. katie zelem snorted as she walked up behind the two at a normal pace. sim rolled her eyes playfully, spotting the pout that had taken over tooney's face. "nah, honestly, it's just easier to use and doesn't hurt my ribs as much."

it was true. if the perpetual bruise on her side was anything to go by, sim's prolonged use of a crutch wasn't exactly convenient. she'd made the decision to switch to using a cane instead, teasing be damned.

"good for you, then." the sincere look on ella's face caught sim by surprise, causing her to tear up a little, something that wasn't missed by zel.

"right, who are you and what've you done with ella?" zelem chortled, steering her into the building. sim sent a grateful look her way before getting back to work.

sim didn't know why such a simple comment had her on the verge of tears. she brushed it off as a result of the wind, rather than acknowledging that ella's sincerity had made her feel cared for in a way.

god forbid sim let herself feel an ounce of regular human emotion.

-----

millie might've been right about the ease of capturing content, but that didn't make editing any less of an absolute nightmare. in fact, sim would argue, the chaos of the lionesses only made it more difficult.

the chaos wasn't all bad; it certainly made for some funny clips that could be put together for videos sim knew the fans would love. when it came to more structured videos, however, the process was an extremely tedious one. she was currently working on a best friend challenge video for the youtube, trying to find a balance between letting the girls' personalities shine through in all the giggles and off-topic conversations and keeping the actual challenge front and center. sim didn't know how she was going to manage both without making the video about thirty minutes long.

"couldn't sleep?"

sim was snapped out of her trance by a soft, familiar voice.

"something like that," she replied as alessia took a seat beside her at the meal room table. "what about you? it's two in the morning. shouldn't you be resting for the game tomorrow?"

sim directed her attention towards the slightly older blonde, pushing her laptop shut when she noticed the troubled look on her face.

"hey, what's wrong?" sim inquired.

"it's stupid," alessia mumbled.

"if it's bothering you enough to have you up at this hour, it's anything but stupid. you don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but i'm here if you do," sim spoke softly.

"i just-" the forward stuttered. "we lost the world cup final. then i come to arsenal and i miss a penalty kick and we're out of the champion's league. what if i don't-"

"right, i'm going to stop you right there," sim interjected, turning to face alessia. she reached to grab one of the girl's hands, rubbing soothing circles on the back with her thumb. if sim had learned anything in the months she'd spent building a friendship with alessia, it was that she responded well to touch.

"look at me, less," sim prodded softly. when her own brown eyes met blue, she continued. "i watched all your games at the world cup. i've watched all the arsenal games that i could. you are absolutely tearing it up. you made the world cup roster for a reason. if you don't think you're an adequate player, i've got hours of footage that proves otherwise. and even if you have a bad game tomorrow, that doesn't take away from the fact that you're a stellar player, and it sure as hell doesn't make you any less of a wonderful person. do you hear me?"

sim smiled when she saw some of the tension leave alessia's frame. "yeah," she replied, voice so soft that if sim hadn't been listening, she would have missed it.

before she could say anything else, alessia leapt onto sim, squeezing her in a tight hug. "thank you," she whispered into sim's neck.

sim was caught off guard, but after a few moments of hesitation, wrapped her own arms around alessia's frame, rubbing circles on her back.

"let's get you back up to bed, yeah?"

-----

"told ya you'd kill it," sim said, grinning as she pointed her camera at less.

the lionesses had just won their first olympic qualifying match, and sim was tasked with getting some celebration shots.

this was her favourite part of the job: getting to capture such pure joy after matches was something sim would never get tired of.

"oh, shut it," alessia laughed as she made her way back to the locker room. sim missed the way her face flushed.

"nice header you had, hempo," sim called out to lauren.

"nah, it was the cross from rach that should get the credit," she replied, shooting the camera a quick smile.

"charmer, that one," millie joked as she bounded through the hall, arms tangled with rachel's.

sim chuckled, shaking her head as she trailed after the pair on her way the locker room. she was greeted by the sight of ella, georgia, alessia, and jordan dancing around the room as music played through a portable speaker sat on one of the benches. it soon fell silent as sarina walked in.

sim got a quick shot of the post-game brief before shutting the camera off. she made to leave, but sarina's voice stopped her in her tracks.

"sim, there's someone waiting for you in the car park. says she coached you in uni?"

sim tensed. the last thing she wanted was for her two worlds to mix. she didn't like to think about her life before her injury. she'd completely isolated herself after her surgery. the only interactions she'd had with her former teammates and coach since then were when they'd run into each other at school. after graduation, she'd cut them off and she wasn't eager to reconnect.

sim sighed and contemplated her options. she could either confront her feelings and have a chat with her coach, or she could continue to live as she had been, pretending everything was fine and devoting herself to the life she'd created in london.

unsurprisingly, sim chose the latter. without acknowledging sarina's words at all, she swiftly left the room, her camera dangling like a pendulum from the strap around her neck.

-----

sim was so caught up in lugging her bag back to the bus, intent on keeping her head down and ignoring her surroundings, that she'd completely missed leah waiting by the back entrance for the rest of the team.

the older girl frowned to herself in confusion. something was off about sim's demeanor. she seemed rushed in a way that indicated she was running from something. leah pushed herself off the wall she'd been leaning on and made to follow the younger girl outside.

she'd only just exited the building when she caught sim's wavering voice.

"please, i don't want to speak with you, jen," sim let out, almost pleading.

leah knew that she was listening in on a conversation not meant for her ears, but her concern for the girl who'd become somewhat of a little sister to her outweighed her consideration of sim's privacy.

"i just want to check in. we haven't spoken since-"

"how did you even find me?" sim cut off the unfamiliar voice.

"you hadn't responded to anyone's messages so i asked around. one of your professors mentioned you got a job in media here. i already had tickets."

"usually, when someone doesn't respond to messages, it means they don't want to speak with you."

leah was taken aback at how cold sim's voice was. she almost didn't recognize it.

"look, sim, the girls miss you. they miss their captain. just- i get that you don't want to talk, but if you ever need anything, we're here, okay? there's an assistant coaching position open for you, always. it's been cleared by admin-"

"i appreciate the offer, but i'm fine, okay? now, i've got footage to edit and post, so i'm leaving."

leah frowned. sure, sim wasn't the most extroverted person, but leah had never heard her be so short with someone. sim was one of the kindest people she knew. her heart hurt for the younger girl. sim was clearly still going through a lot and leah just wished sim would let her help.

hearing a bit of commotion, leah turned around to notice some of the team making their way towards her. she rushed off to the bus, where sim was undoubtedly burying herself in work, once again. leah wanted to sit beside the girl on the way back to st. george's and offer what little comfort she could.

[knightyoomyoui]

Dahyun x F Reader - “Rewrite The Stars”

HAPPY 50K READS TO THIS BOOK AND BELATED HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY TO OUR JJANG DUBLANGDUNGIE BABY SUPERHERO, KIM DAHYUN! #HAPPYDAHYUNDAY2023💞🎈🎉

I know that I'm way too late on updating this, a week passed after her birthday and I'm really sorry for that. I've been really busy with all the school stuffs especially that I'm recovering from being drained on our midterms. WE'RE IN THE MONTH OF JUNE, BY THE WAY ... SO HAPPY PRIDE MONTH ALSO TO MY READERS AND EVERYONE WHO ARE PART OF LGBTQIA+ COMMUNITY!

And since this is released in Pride Month, expect that I blended the story to show my support and respect for gay people. I just really hope that my average English vocabulary and how sensitive the topic included in this story won't cause misunderstanding that might offend any members of the community who reads this. I swear I don't mean to hurt anybody's feelings, all I just want is to express my love and acceptance for you guys. Lastly, this doesn't portray Dahyun's parents in real life. I repeat, this is alternate universe FANFICTION. This has nothing to do to their true personality. TRIGGER WARNING: homophobia and discrimination

A cold, peaceful, starry night in the seaside area where the two lovebirds YN and Dahyun are currently strolling together as they let out the remaining time they had to just run out after spending their moment with some of the things they wanted to do.

Both sensing that their feet are slightly aching from the amount of time they've spent walking around the places they've gone through, YN led the initiation for them to take a space across the length of the stone barrier on the seaside.

They climbed while helping the much smaller Dahyun reach the layer. When they did, they sat aside from each other as the waves of the body of water were now present in front of them.

Inhaling the salty, fresh aroma of the breezy air, both felt the relaxation they'd needed for a short break, which was sent through their bodies to at least lessen their tiredness.

They were quiet for a moment until YN planned to bring them into a conversation to escape the silent and awkward atmosphere they may have constructed.

"How's that for a celebration?" YN asked, keeping her sight on the splashing waves of the Seoul sea with a smirk on her lips.

"The best one I had so far." Dahyun smiled largely, glancing at her lover's side profile. "Thank you for this, YN. I enjoyed it a lot with you."

"Glad that I did, you deserve it Dahyun-ah. You did really well earlier on your class." YN clapped her hands as she tilted her body to face her beautiful girlfriend. "Woah, it's still so awesome. Being the top scorer in the test. Congratulations again."

Dahyun giggled sheepishly and blushed. "Yah! I couldn't have done it if it wasn't for you, okay? Y-your... good luck message you sent me while I'm about to pass out from reviewing motivated me back up. So I give the credits to you, babe. That's for you too and my another way to express how grateful I am at you for being my supportive girlfriend."

Dahyun pursed herself to give a kiss on her cheek. Her face enlightened and heart bloomed at her love sign. "I'll do the same for you when you got one next time."

"Do as you wish, Dubu. I'll need that too since I've learned it's effective." YN playfully replied. Dahyun found it hilarious as she grinned.

The two went quiet again to resume their admiration for the sight they were watching together in front of their eyes. This allowed YN to recall this particular fact that popped into her mind and realize something interesting afterward.

"Dahyun."

"Hmm?"

"We're on the road to taking that first whole year, right?"

"Yeah. It would be our first anniversary too." Dahyun blushed at how special it would be for them to also celebrate once they arrived there successfully.

"We've been together for that long now... and I just think that what if..." YN paused to slow it down and not make it too sudden for Dahyun to understand easily.

She is now looking at her, as that halt in the middle of her words got her attention entirely. "What if it's time for us to let your parents know now about our relationship?"

Dahyun stared at YN after hearing that. It got her in a short recall that she and YN were already approved by YN's parents, who have willingly lent their blessings as a way to support the two lovers.

That was a few weeks ago. They were about to inform Dahyun's parents after, but Dahyun requested that they take more time to do it. YN understood that she wasn't ready as much as she is, but that didn't make YN interpret that she was ashamed to announce this to her parents.

All YN knows is that Dahyun is nervous, and she gets it because this is both their first time being in a relationship together. They have to take things slow.

"I mean... yes, I know that last time you said that we should give it a time for now but I'm not rushing you, okay? I just have this idea that what if we have our own parents have the knowledge about us before we reach our first year together." YN explained her suggestion calmly.

Dahyun looked away and nodded, taking her girlfriend's side understandably. "I do get it, and I agree with you."

YN's curves in her lips formed at that response. not until it stopped when Dahyun followed up on her words.

"But I don't know why. I'm still nervous, YN."

That same exact reason is what YN got again for the second time. She respects it and wants to accept it truly, but couldn't there be a much wider story behind it to make it even more... concise?

"Then tell me, Dahyun-nie." YN glanced at Dahyun, lowering her head down. "I'm always here, ready to listen to what bothers you. You know that I stayed to be your company too, right?"

Dahyun nodded.

"Let me know. What makes you nervous about revealing our status to them, Dahyun? We can use it to prepare ourselves more."

She reached for Dahyun's hands clasped together and held them in her touch to ease the lady's feelings. It helped Dahyun, and it permitted her to breathe lightly before answering your concerns.

"It's just... m-my parents. My family."

"What's with them?"

"I grew up on a highly religious family, YN and this... w-what we have here... I'm scared that they won't let it pass through."

YN went speechless. Hearing Dahyun's fears, it struck her to the complete clarity that she was involved to many church services with a purpose. That's because their family was a lifelong servant of God, passed and influenced through their generations, to become a believer and follower of all the gospel of the Lord.

And it seems that she and Dahyun's relationship doesn't include to one of the beliefs that were applied to their bloodline.

"S-so you're nervous because... you're thinking that they won't accept us for what we are?"

Dahyun nodded, her sadness and embarrassment growing inside of her. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you or anything, YN. I just want you to understand. I want to say again that I may be nervous... but I'm not afraid of introducing you to them."

You were noticing some little sniffs and shivers on Dahyun; indicating that she's dealing now with her emotions attacking her. Being a considerate and carefree girlfriend like you always do for Dahyun, you pulled her towards you and wrapped her in a warm cuddle.

"I know. Don't overexplain too much, I'm not angry. Do you know why I couldn't take your words as a lie to me?"

You began caressing her back and stroking her long dark hair from behind to add the soothing effects of your comfort.

"It's because you still decided to come after me despite knowing the consequences it will bring when it comes to your religion. That's enough for me to become grateful and appreciative of you, Dahyun... that you still chose to love me even though they say it's wrong."

"I love you too much, YN. I couldn't resist it. My heart just wants you." Dahyun buried her face deeper in to your arms.

"I love you too... always, Dahyun." YN smiled and kissed the top of her head. "We'll get through this. I'll accompany you. I'll be there on your side and whatever happens, we'll face it together."

Dahyun lifted herself to replace her head to lay it down on YN's shoulder and circle her arms around her waist.

YN pressed the side of her head against Dahyun's as the two proceeded to view the captivating nightsky beyond the sea without any more traces of worry about the obstacle they had to encounter soon.

- 2 DAYS LATER -

A not-so-tiring and stressful class schedule has just finished as usual. Dahyun is riding with YN on her motorcycle, holding onto her body like her life depends on it. Probably due to her not being too used to it as a medium of transportation.

They are on their way to Dahyun's address, with Dahyun instructing all the directions on where they'll take and the turn that will lead them to her house.

Their main agenda begins today. Dahyun will finally introduce YN to her parents, as per what they talked to each other days ago.

"There, the third house on the right. The one with the second level had lights on." Dahyun gave her final instruction after they crossed another street.

YN listened, slowing the speed of her motorcycle using the brake. It stopped just in front of Dahyun's residence.

They hopped out together on the seat. YN escorted her to take off the helmet on Dahyun's head and fix her hair.

Knowing what would happen tonight, they viewed the exterior of the house, where the two people they had in mind to confront with regards to their plan are just right there inside; unknown to what they're about to encounter.

"This is it, huh?" YN sighed and licked her lips. "You good, babe?"

"Yeah. We're already here. There's no turning back now. I just hope my expectations come true." Dahyun rubbed her forearm and stared at the gate in melancholy.

YN reached for her girlfriend and side-hugged her to show good luck and comfort. "They will. We must have to."

She looked at the doorbell displayed beside the gate. Turning her head, she looked at Dahyun to ponder a question. "You ready?"

Dahyun only nods. YN kissed her on the forehead one more time before she let Dahyun nervously press the button, sending an alarm to the inside of the house.

Opening the gate, she entered first, bringing YN with her as they locked hands from behind.

The door opened after they gathered the attention of the people inside the house. As it swung in full swing, Dahyun and YN saw a middle-aged lady with proper home attire standing in front of them.

"Hello, mom." Dahyun acknowledged the presence of her own beloved mother personally.

Mrs. Kim smiled sweetly at her only daughter and accepted Dahyun's willing hug. "Good evening, my little tofu. How's school?"

"Just an ordinary school day, as usual, Mom," Dahyun answered. Mrs. Kim nodded.

Behind her, a space was taken when her husband and Dahyun's own father, Mr. Kim stood behind his wife and hooked his arm around her. "Dad." "You came home safe," Mr. Kim commented as he hugged her daughter back. He lets go, just for him to notice that his wife was squinting her eyes, observing the young stranger standing with their daughter. "It seems that you brought a guest with us tonight." Mr. Kim reacted. "Who is this, Dubu?" Mrs. Kim pointed at YN. The two looked at each other, and YN gestured discreetly to Dahyun that it would be alright. "Uhm, good evening to both of you, Mr. and Mrs. Kim. The n-name's YN, I'm Dahyun's classmate in our university." YN bowed respectfully in front of the two.

Dahyun and YN looked at each other to compose theirselves. Giving theirselves a trustworthy nod, their hands slowly intertwined with one another.

Returning their gazes back at the married couple and wonderful parents of such a lovely, down to earth woman, the person who personifies those attributions courageously monitored the pair.

"And mom... dad, I would like you to meet YN here as something more."

"Mr. and Mrs. Kim, your daughter and I are in a relationship." YN proudly spills out her announcement to the parents. "Dahyun here is my girlfriend."

Their faces fell off into a mixture of seriousness and confusion. Furrowing her eyebrows, Mrs. Kim asked YN. "What did you just said?"

YN and Dahyun looked at each other, the concerned and frightened sight of Dahyun's face on what she's spotting to her parent's reaction is what makes YN's nervousness and worries increase.

"Did we hear it that clearly? Y-you two... are" Mr. Kin who is sporting that befuddled expression, inquired about the information they just learned.

"Yes, Dad. YN is my girlfriend. We've been together for 8 months and counting-"

"Dahyun. What is this?" Mrs. Kim interrupted her daughter to express her cluelessness about what is going on between them. "You're saying that she's not just your classmate nor a friend... but what? A girlfriend?" She said, with a glimpse of weirdness in her tone.

That's it. YN and Dahyun's hearts fell at that one particular obvious note that doesn't require any long or precise definition to do so. They got the answer to what they sought.

"Are you serious right now, Dahyun?" Mr. Kim mentioned her daughter without her nickname, another one for Dahyun to clearly tell that they are in a serious mode. "You're telling us, right here. On my property. In front of us, your parents who raised you what wanted you to become just to show us the opposite as what? That you're gay?"

"And what if she's gay, Mr. Kim? Does that off-"

"Silence, kid." Mr. Kim warned YN, daringly pointing his fingers at the defensive girlfriend. "Don't you dare speak to your elders without permission."

"Especially that you don't know us well. How disrespectful of you." Mrs. Kim scolded the young woman. "And what were you trying to say? That having our daughter to reveal that she's gay offends us? YES! It's not just like that. It's blasphemy! A shame to our family!"

"Dahyun, when did we ever tell you to be like this? This isn't how we teach you to grow up in the future." Mr. Kim asked Dahyun who is now bowing her head down in embarrassment and guilt.

"I-I'm sorry. Mom, Dad. I just wanted you two to know and understand that I love YN so much."

"And we want you to know that it's not right for both genders. To be exact, two women to engage in a romantic relationship or simply, to love each other. You know the words and so do we, Dahyun. That's what it says on the church and in the bible!"

"And yet, you brought her here, and for what? To say in our faces that you two are girlfriends, while knowing that it's against our beliefs?!" Mr. Kim grunted in frustration. "Aren't you both even ashamed of yourselves?!"

Dahyun is now crying beside YN, who quickly noticed the poor state of her partner as she consumed all the hatred they've got for their own undeserving actions. YN looks at Mr. and Mrs. Kim with poor and pleading eyes.

"Please, stop. We didn't mean to cause any disrespect or offense to both of you. We're simply loving each other and I am here with your daughter, desperately telling you two that we all just wanted both of your blessings for our relationship as we want our sides to support what we have for each other." YN persuades her partner's parents, who actually turned out to be one of the existing homophobes, while she eases the wailing Dahyun.

"It's too bad that we aren't alike on what we believe in when it comes to love. For me, we shouldn't dictate or choose for others on what we should love. Love is not just for men and women only and certainly, if that somebody makes you discover what is love, then you might as well go for it without anybody restricting you." YN said as she stood in her position to defend her and Dahyun as much as she could.

"Enough!" Mr. Kim stomped his foot aggressively on the floor, scaring Dahyun and intimidating YN in the process. "You don't lecture us as if you know better than we are. Twist it whatever you want, being gay is a sin to the heavens and to the gods above. You two are clearly disobeying the wise gospel of the Bible and as a father , I would not let that forgiven for what my daughter has done."

"I'm so disappointed, especially to you Dahyun. After all we've done to ensure that you'll live in a good, normal life, this is what you'll repay us?" Mrs. Kim shook her head disapprovingly.

"Go inside. Now. We'll deal with this privately."

YN looked at Dahyun concerningly. The latter nodded and tried her best to assure her lover that she will handle it.

"I'm sorry." Dahyun muttered before letting go from YN's grasp.

"You shouldn't be. Go on. Just remember that we're not done with this." She said as she wipes one more teardrop away from Dahyun's devastated demeanor.

"What are you whispering to my daughter? Leave, now! And don't you step here on our property ever again. Or better, stay away from my daughter." Mrs. Kim harshly gestures for YN to disappear.

"Don't make us be the ones to separate you two from each other. Stop this nonsense as soon as possible!" Mr. Kim offers a warning to YN before pulling Dahyun with them inside and slamming the door shut.

YN sighed heavily; her eyes became watery after enduring the pain and remaining calm and patient with all of their backlash against your identities.

She clutched her chest and stared at the door worriedly, wondering what Dahyun would go through with her parents' hurtful insults and lecturing.

"I'm sorry too, Dahyun. Just hold on tight, they'll accept us someday." She whispered to herself before she weakly returned to her motorcycle to go home after being rejected by Dahyun's unsupportive and discriminating parents due to the truth that you and Dahyun are in a lesbian relationship.

THE NEXT DAY

YN was sitting in one of the kiosks located on the far left of the engineering course building, awaiting the arrival of her girlfriend, whom she wanted to greet and check up on instantly after what happened to both of them last night.

Her eyes soon caught a trace of Dahyun entering the gate, with the security guard scanning her belongings first before she was given access to enter the grounds.

She abruptly moved her feet, intersecting in Dahyun's direction, and used herself to become the blockage on her path. Dahyun was taken aback at the sudden emergence of her girlfriend around her.

Both stood in their spots, and they shared the same sorrowful and pained look in their eyes when they looked at each other's faces.

"Dahyun." YN muttered her partner's name solemnly.

Without any further ado, Dahyun came towards YN and crushed themselves in a hug. YN felt the vibrations in her skin, created by the muffled sounds of Dahyun's cries, burying her face on her upper chest.

"I'm sorry."

"What did I tell you yesterday? It was nothing, Dahyunnie. At least we tried, right? And we were aware of them doing that to us. Don't take all the blame here," YN said, lowering her voice.

"Are you okay? Did they do something bad to you?"

"No. Even if they do, what they all said about you still hurts worse."

YN winced and twitched her lips in her words that struck directly in her heart.

"I couldn't think straight, YN. I didn't even get a proper sleep from having you on my mind while I'm being distracted by all these rude and cruel words they spat on you," Dahyun said, squeezing your arm. "I'm still in disbelief that they had that side, and I couldn't be more frustrated about it. They didn't care for your feelings, YN!"

"Yes, I do admit that it hurts a lot, but I have to be strong for us, Dahyun. I give you my word that I will do everything for us to retort them into the appropriate attitude they must have. I won't give up on us, okay?"

Dahyun hummed in response, signaling a similar desire as yours.

"Save your tears up and don't be sad now, babe, we still have a day to complete." YN kissed Dahyun on the cheek, which won her a slight smile of positivity in return for being relieved at least.

Days have passed, and they used them to recover and move on from their first attempt at convincing Dahyun's parents to accept their identity and their so-called forbidden relationship.

They still meet up outside, away from the vision and lack of knowledge by Dahyun's parents that their daughter couldn't stop herself from being attached to the only person she prefers to enjoy all these moments while storing this flaming love, almost making her think that nobody could ever do the same to her other than YN.

Same as what could be told to YN, she only wants and needs Dahyun in her life, no matter how many objections and judgments are thrown at them; she will never let her guard loose to express the love that fuels her whenever she has Dahyun with her.

Both are determined in their unconditional love; it looks like the opposing side has to do anything worse from time to time until they succeed in yielding either of them to their ridiculous principles.

One day, both Dahyun's parents hit the bullseye when they greeted their daughter, who had just gone home on a fake excuse.

Dahyun had to stay in the stairs and pause her steps as her eyes widened when her mother unveiled some news to her that easily had her irritated and surprised at the same time.

"You thought you would just sneak up to us thinking we wouldn't knew about this, don't you?" Mrs. Kim said as she presented a polaroid featuring a captured photo of Dahyun and YN hanging out on an arcade.

"M-mom?! What is this? Are you spying on us?!"

"We had someone to do it for us." Mr. Kim followed. Dahyun's dumbfounded look switched to him. "Haven't we told you enough that you should stop this joke between you and that disgusting gay associate of yours?!"

"Don't call her that! She's much better type of person that y-"

Dahyun didn't had to finish her words when she met an unexpected slap on behalf of her mother who didn't allow her daughter's over the limit outburst to her husband.

Stunned by the attack, Dahyun's terrified eyes wandered to the figure of her parents, who stared at her with smug faces. Probably, they are even thinking that Dahyun deserved the karma they perceive it to be.

"I've had enough of this nonsense and disrespect, Kim Dahyun! Listen to me, from now on. I dare you, if you ever set yourself close with that girl and continue to be stubborn. You don't have a home to stay anymore," Mrs. Kim said, furiously warning her daughter, who is now in shambles.

"Break up with her... or we will take everything we gave from you. That gay companion of yours... or your own parents. Make your choice before we do it ourselves."

Dahyun ran upstairs as she couldn't bear the heavy upset housing inside of her from her parents' unsupportive and rebellious policies for her wellbeing.

She slumped down on her bed before throwing all the pillows away from her room as a method of releasing her anger.

Dahyun stared at the ceiling while replaying all the words that her mother told her, especially the choice she had to make.

She loves YN ofcourse, but she does loves what she also have in her life aside from her too.

A proper education, balanced allowance, cozy house, a personal room.

She has what most of the youngsters like her to dream and wish on just to make theirselves or found out that they're are indeed in a good life.

Although her parents are now showing their new side that Dahyun is completely against with, that won't change the fact that they are her parents, the provider, the one who introduced her to this world.

Without them, she will never be standing where she is right now.

Now in the midst of turmoil, it was all come down to this two choices.

Deeply thinking about what would be her decision, Dahyun couldn't help but to be extremely stressed and agitated that she must have to face this instead of just simply being accepted not just by who she really is, but also to her relationship with YN.

Meanwhile, the married Kim couple watched as their daughter infuriately made her way to her room. Mr. Kim who became speechless from the slap given by his wife, cleared his throat and cupped Mrs. Kim's shoulder.

"Hon, you shouldn't have done that. Wasn't that a bit too far?" The father suppressed a slight concern for her daughter's emotional state.

Mrs. Kim shook her head and sighed. "No. That's just right. She must be disciplined. Our kid is growing up to be a troublesome."

She went back to the kitchen to prepare their dinner for tonight, leaving Mr. Kim to mentally contemplate her wife's actions.

THE NEXT DAY

In one of the tables placed inside a fancy restaurant, YN was there on her own reserved one, sitting and waiting patiently as she observed all the people minding their business to keep herself pleased and distracted by the time at least.

After many minutes of waiting, Dahyun has entered the restaurant and roamed her eyes around to find her girlfriend. She saw a hand raising and got it.

"Hi babe." YN stood up and kissed Dahyun on the cheek to welcome her beloved partner. She looks beautiful in her pearly white dress, which matches her flawless skin.

"Hi," she timidly replied, and she took the seat pulled by YN with an act of gentleness.

YN quickly sat and fixed her posture to prepare herself for yet another wonderful moment she'll be having to share with her girlfriend.

She wanted this to be a surprise date for Dahyun, which is why she picked this place for them.

"How are you doing, babe?" YN smiled while asking that. She couldn't contain the joy forming inside her.

"Fine."

That was very... short and cold coming from her. It helped YN to snap out of being indulged at this precious time when she's having to identify that there's something wrong with Dahyun.

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Dahyun gave another thrifty response. "Why did you want us to be here? I won't be staying for long anyway."

YN furrowed her brows; that was new from her. Something is now telling her differently, upsetting her anxiety. "Wait, Dahyun, are you really okay? What do you mean about that?"

Her lowered head, frowned lips, slumped shoulders. That's the usual things that YN recognize whenever Dahyun isn't feeling well.

And all of it are evident in front of him simulteanously. She's beginning to not liking what's going on.

"I'm just here to talk to you about something."

"I-I'm listening." YN slapped his lap. "Just tell me please, I'll be here to h-"

YN was reaching Dahyun's free hand resting on the table when the latter pulled back, disheartening the lover.

"There's no need."

"Dahyun. What's going on?"

Dahyun bit her lips before lifting her eyes to match your troubled gaze. She would be lying if she didn't tell you that those looks pierced her heart. She didn't want to do this, but she has to. and she just wants YN to understand.

"YN, I think we should break up."

YN's eyes widened, her senses ruptured temporarily, and the whole world around him turned upside down.

Only the sounds and movements of her crumbling heart being smashed by the words formed like a sledgehammer that she didn't expect to be heard of Dahyun saying it to her were noticeable.

"I'm sorry, but we had to. That's all my purpose of coming here. Goodbye." Dahyun stood up from his seat, alerting YN, who was about to be left alone in this place. They were supposed to share a wholesome moment together, arguably the best one they would have.

YN clutched her pocket, where a small box containing a very memorable item was stored inside.

She stood up from her seat, speeding her footsteps to chase Dahyun who is also increasing the pace of her walk, obviously wanting to escape her confusion.

"Dahyun!"

YN crossed the street, moving next to the sideway where Dahyun is now meters away from her.

"DAHYUN!"

She decided to run this time. Her agility became a necessity for her to catch up her girlfriend seemingly ignoring how painful she had just done to her lover.

"D-DAHYUN! DAHYUN! HEY!"

YN dodged all the bypassers, taking all the available spaces to use it as her never ending way to finally reach her girlfriend. She touched and grabbed Dahyun's arm, rotating her around to make her face you.

"Let me go, YN!"

"I will if you tell me what was that for!" YN and Dahyun were both being brought on by their overflowing disastrous emotions.

"What did you just say? Y-you want us to end all of this? All that sudden?"

Dahyun still tried to break from YN's hold as she avoids her look but her strength is giving up also to her decrease of composure.

"Look at me." YN cupped Dahyun's face. "What happened? What did they do to make you say that? Huh? I know you didn't do it volunta-"

"They just... h-helped me to realize something."

"Realize WHAT?!"

"That even if I stayed with you, I will still lose everything!" Dahyun screamed in return. YN was befuddled at Dahyun's reasons. She doesn't get what she's referring to. How can them being together would cost Dahyun whatever she has in her life currently?

Unless...

"Dahyun, no. Don't say that. They threatened you, I know it. I see it on you! You can't just fool me with that excuse, we both know that not the only time they tried to tear us apart!"

Dahyun bowed her head as pair of rivers were now visible on her face, staining her cheeks wet from the burden she's carrying placed by her parents through this situation.

"J-just let me go, YN. Please, I'm doing this for us."

"So you think that breaking up with me would solve everything?"

"YES! And you know that all too well, YN. We can't have this any longer, don't you see that these aren't leading us anywhere for the better? Why don't you try to wake up and that we're just hopeless after all?!"

YN scoffed, astounded by the words chosen by Dahyun. She just couldn't believe it that it's the same person she didn't mind at all that will display that kind of negativity who's letting out those unpleasant words he's hearing right now.

This Dahyun she's encountering was successfully blindsided and manipulated by the prejudice and homophobic beliefs of her religious parents.

It felt like she was defeated. She lost the battle. She wasn't able to save her Dahyun from all of these selfish views.

"So that's it?" YN's lips shuddered, and the first teardrop released in her eyes. "You don't love me anymore? What have they done to you? W-what happened to us, I-I thought we were going to solve this together?"

"Have you already given up, Dahyun? Because I haven't... and I would never. Am I the only one anymore who's still holding on for us? "

Dahyun disregarded the disguise she's wearing the entire time, unable to resist your distraught appearance making her feel incredibly guilty and saddened.

She cupped your face this time while holding your arm for support. Wiping the trail of wetness on your cheek, she glanced at you apologetically.

"It's not easy, YN. I didn't want to do it. Ofcourse, I would prefer you to stay with me or run away with you but I have no other choice, YN. This is a sacrifice I'm making here. I can't lose either you or my life."

"Your l-life? What does it have to do with this?" YN asked puzzledly.

"M-my parents... they'll scrap everything they gave to me if I remain linked to you. It's not that I'm siding with them, but please I want you to understand what I'm doing here, YN. I can't let them do something to you."

YN's breath hitched, heart pounding in pain as she learnt that.

"W-why are they doing this to us? Couldn't they just be happy for what we are?"

Dahyun nodded as she sobbed. Removing her hands from covering her mouth, she holds YN's hands and patted it.

"I'm really sorry. You know I want you too and it's not a secret I try to hide, but the more we progress... with all what's happening to us because of me, that's where I could point out that I couldn't have you."

YN looked at their stacked hands in agony. She removes her touch from Dahyun, only to pul out something in her pocket.

The small special box she's been hiding since she entered the restaurant.

Spreading her hands, she placed the box on the palm of Dahyun. "What's this?"

"Open it."

She did, revealing two shining necklaces with a design of two sparkling stars, earning a gasp from Dahyun.

"Today was supposed to be our date. A surprise one... including that." YN said as they both admired the glittering jewelry. "Consider it as my promise gift."

Dahyun looked at YN.

"At first, I want these to give it to you as it holds our promise that we will never separate no matter what happens. But here you are, claiming that it wasn't dictated in our story for us to have a happy ending, telling me that your fate is pulling you miles apart and out of reach from me."

YN spilled the necklace in her hands and took one of the necklaces and wore it around her neck. She looked at the pendant and picked it up.

Dahyun was awestruck at how perfect it looked on you.

"So, what if... we'll just rewrite the stars among us? Now, as long as I am wearing this while I have you in my heart, no one can stop from deciding that you're my destiny, Dahyun... and we are meant to find each other again."

YN removed the other necklace in the box before stuffing it back into her pocket, she wore it around Dahyun's neck; a smile plastered in her lips at how it fits exceptionally well on her.

"Wear it always for me, please." YN sent her last wish to Dahyun.

They kissed, lips brushing and tongues danced in rhythm to how they savored the pleasure.

After they kissed, Dahyun leaned her forehead to YN's, both were breathing heavily at the intensity of their exchange of intimacy.

Dahyun gulped her courage to say this, she swayed some hair behind YN's ear and stared intently on her captivating features one last time before they part ways.

"It just feels too impossible, YN. How can we say what we'll get to be if everything that surrounds us keeps us apart?"

YN lowered her head and cried harder at Dahyun's touch than earlier. "Don't you see that we're hopeless after all? As long as my hands are tied, we're bound to break and won't last longer like we want."

"I love you too, YN... but I would be very happy for you to try again with somebody out there who deserves you much as I do."

In an accurate timing to their mood, the clouds that were forming darkly above the skies finally dragged heavy rainfall to the entire area of Cheongsan.

YN was left there on her spot, standing alone in the middle of the rain as she had to watch the disappearing sight of Dahyun from the distance walking away from her.

Before they wouldn't be seeing one another for how long it would take them to reconcile and assumingly start all over again, YN took the opportunity to shout at the departing Dahyun about something.

"DAHYUN! Say whatever you want for me to move on, but I won't give up on us. I'll prove it to you someday! When I come back and we meet again, we will change the world to be ours!"

Dahyun who was about to remove the necklace wrapped around her neck, heard that loud, determined statement by YN. Thankfully, the ears falling down in her eyes were being washed away from being showered in rain; the impressed smile that formed weren't going to be ruined nonetheless.

6 YEARS LATER

Recently graduated with her degree and closing her college life to enter a new chapter in her life, Dahyun was offered to become a new professor in Science, Technology and Society subject by the head administrator; which she gratefully accepted, fulfilling her dreams of becoming a mentor and instructor to the future generation of students.

One of her classes scheduled for today in the morning was cancelled due to the unexpected news she received from the household that her father was sent to the hospital once again, complaining about the stomachache he's been enduring for weeks.

Fortunately, the higher campus facilitators allowed Dahyun to be excused to visit and guide her father, who is now confined in their neighborhood's nearest hospital.

It lasted for 3 days, her father was still getting treatments and operations to aid his illness, which was revealed to be a slightly worsened ulcer based on the check-up.

The nurses were informing them about the total amount of money they had to sped for the recovery of her father,  despite their average wealth status, Dahyun and mother couldn't avoid but to be shocked still at how expensive the costs were.

One day, Dahyun was about to pay the bills when the nurse told her something that is mind boggling.

"Maam, you're already paid."

"Wait, what?"

The nurse on the desk flipped her monitor to let Dahyun witness the evidence.

"But how did that happen? I-I didn't even came here few days ago?"

"Uhm, maam actually... there's someone who came here and told that the money should go to your record."

Dahyun scratched her nape and stroked the side of her hair. "There's somebody w-who paid all the e-expenses?"

"Yes, maam."

"Can I get whoever that person's name is?"

"I'm sorry, but that one requested for me not to reveal the identity." The nurse pouted and shook her head.

"A-alright. It's fine. Thank you for that."

Dahyun returned to her father's room in utter confusion. "Mom." She called her mother who is busy peeling off some fruits.

"Did you pay our hospital bills?"

"No? Why would I even instruct you to give the money to the-"

"Is it just you couldn't remember?" Dahyun lifted her one brow up.

"I swear, Dahyun. I didn't do it. What's with you ask that anyway?"

"Sorry, it's just... some nobody paid the bills for us."

"WHAT?" Dahyun's mother dropped the knif to the table and stood upright in astonishment. "That's a whole lot of money. Who would ever do that?!

"It looks like whoever did that must be so rich and kind." Dahyun muttered, looking at her mother and her resting father on the bed curiously as she roamed around the room wondering who could be responsible for this.

She literally wants to meet that person and show her huge appreciation and gratitude.

A week has passed, and her father is now regaining his energy after such a successful surgery to heal his damaged organ. The nurse was strolling Mr. Kim in a wheelchair outside of the hospital as they headed onto the car parked alongside the rest that belonged to the other visitors.

"We should go home now so you can take as much rest as you want, Dad." Dahyun said before hugging her father from behind, bending her body to reach the upper half of his body.

Unbeknownst to the relieved and happy family, someone is focused on watching them entertainingly from inside the hospital; not too far on the doors, just beside the reception area.

She was observing them well until it was interrupted by a personal manager calling her name for attention. She turned around, and the two conversed shortly.

"It was nice meeting you again, Dr. LN. If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to gain inspiration from how you conduct a presentation to the webinar. I'm still blown away with how you presented all the datas smoothly and precisely. It really looks like you are having a fun stay here."

"Thanks, Dr. Lee. It was a pleasure meeting you too. I am indeed enjoying my stay here knowing I could save and take care of many lives of patients as much as I can. And I don't mind, honestly. It would be a great honor actually."

The two professionals in the same field bowed with respect to each other before Dr. Lee and his assistant left.

As she was about to return her attention to where she's watching, her eyes widened, as if breaking a fourth wall had just occurred and shocked her plainly.

Dahyun was looking directly at her also as she froze in her spot.

She had been finally caught, so might as well surrender then.

The newly licensed psychiatrist Dr. YN LN walked out of the hospital, slowly narrowing her gap with Dahyun until they were inches apart.

The shot of their side profile staring at each other with a visible longing and delight in their faces.

YN smiled at Dahyun. "I told you, we'll meet each other again. There you are, you found me too."

"Y-YN..."

"Yeah. Long time no see, Dahyun."

Dahyun was flabbergasted as she traced the appearance of YN. She almost feels like she never recognize or met this person standing in front of her. "O-oh my god... y-you're here."

She noticed the garment coating around YN's body. "W-wait, you're a doctor?"

"Psychiatrist, to be exact... and I'm not actually based in this hospital. I'm on Busan, but some of us were gathered to be switched places for evaluation. Some of us might be transferred here officially if the results were impressive." YN clarified. "And oh, that reminded me... did you like my help?"

Dahyun remained silent for a while before her face expanded and her eyebrows floated when she understood what YN is referring to.

"T-that's you?!"

YN nodded. "Expensive, I know. But if you have a successful job that pays a damn high salary, it's no biggie."

"What about you? How did you go through all these years?"

"I'm became a professor in our alma mater."

YN hummed and nodded. "Oh wow. Great for you."

"Yeah."

The two grinned before Dahyun couldn't take it anymore, she enveloped YN into a tight embrace.

"I missed you so much, Dahyun."

"Me too. I admit I wasn't used not seeing you around in year not until you showed up today."

"I said that I'll come back for you, right?" YN stroked her hair from behind.

"And you did... I knew that you would be."

They separated from the hug. YN detected something that sent an immediate adrenaline rush of joy through her soul. "You kept it."

Dahyun held the golden star necklace laid in her chest. "I knew you would come back, so I waited for you. I heard what you shouted to me 6 years ago. Everyday I never went to search for anybody to love aside from you, because I still have you inside my heart just like you are."

YN's tears fell, as did Dahyun at how touched they were by their reunion. Everything is meant to happen, and their fate would always lead them back together how many turns and spins they took in this world.

Some people crossed paths to fall in love with each other, but not all of them were meant to last; yet YN and Dahyun are exempted for that matter. For them, it was all nothing but a full circle for their own story, which they've created altogether.

The door of the car opened, Mrs. Kim exits and interrupted the moment between her daughter and the person she used to hate and dislike for the sake of Dahyun.

"M-mom." Dahyun nervously said as she stepped back, her hand tightening around YN's as both felt fear at the sight of the person who highly objected to their relationship.

Mrs. Kim just ignored her daughter and stepped closer. The pair is now facing her, as she observes them carefully, squinting her eyes.

"You know...

... how dumb of me not to realize early that you two do look really great together."

YN and Dahyun was shocked at Mrs. Kim's comment.

The mother reached for YN's tender and stable hands, she looked at the woman she owned a lot of forgiveness for the harsh treatment she has done.

"So it's you who paid all of our my husband's hospital bills." Mrs. Kim said to YN. She was actually listening to the two's entire conversation earlier through the slightly lowered window.

"Y-yes, maam." YN shyly said.

"I would like to say that I truly appreciate your generous help, YN. Despite we didn't even asked for it, you did it... but, why?"

YN glanced at Mrs. Kim's confused look. "After what my husband and I had done for you, why did you still helped us?"

"I don't know." YN shook her head and shrugged. "One thing's for certain, I don't want Dahyun to get hurt by seeing her father suffering."

Mrs. Kim understood, confirming that this woman indeed cares a lot for her daughter, and she couldn't be happier more than that. "I'm sorry for everything we've said to you, YN. We exhibited homophobic views to both of you and Dahyun. My husband and I belittled you, despised you, discriminated you for not being straight as we thought we believed that it was better, but no. Instead, we became ignorant, biased and careless of how our words would affect your wellbeing as a part of the gay community."

YN couldn't contain the overflowing happiness inside of her as she cried while Mrs. Kim tries to comfort her by massaging her trembling hands. "M-Mrs... Kim..."

It was simply surreal of her to witness her lover's parents finally acknowledging and held accountable of their mistake. They had a moment of vulnerability, realizing that love should never be restricted from societal norms.

"We should've been more informative, understanding and educated about it. We chose to judge you just because of your sexuality. We realized that are committing more sinful deeds and it's a shame to our part. We're so sorry, YN. I don't beg for your forgiveness, but I hope you can tell that we are very sincere of saying this to you that we've been too occupied, blinded and misled with our religious beliefs and views, and we would really glad for you to give us a chance to change."

Mrs. Kim was about to kneel on the floor when YN forcefully pulled her back up. "N-no, no Mrs. Kim you don't need to do that!"

"I forgive you and Mr. Kim. That's enough for me to be contented and satisfied that you and him knows where you went wrong, and I hope this would be the start of us to set aside that in peace and let me-"

"Y-yes. We'll forget about that. From now on, you're now part of our family... and we want to invite you for us to get to know you more for our daughter here."

Mrs. Kim and YN hugged for the first time, making the doctor emotional. Dahyun was in awe. She was so surprised at this improved, positive and supportive her mother has turned to be as what she always wanted for a long time.

"Are you s-serious, mom?!"

Mrs. Kim nodded. "I give you two my blessings for your relationship. My dad would agree as well too, right hon?"

She gestured a thumbs up to her husband who is inside the car, sitting in the passengers seat watching them in the window with a proud smile. The latter gave his wife a thumbs up in return.

All three of them laughed. Silence ensued as they sink in everything that just happened.

"Well what are you two waiting for? Go ahead and do whatever you want, we'll wait inside the car Dahyun-nie." Mrs. Kim chuckled.

"Oh y-yes, mom!"

Before her mother was about to open the door, Dahyun hurriedly hugged her mother. "Thank you so much, mom."

"You're welcome, my sweet Dubu. I'm sorry for the torment we've caused you both."

Dahyun nodded and pecked her mother's cheek. "Like YN said, I forgive you and dad too. It's never too late to change, and I'm happy that you two quit on being disrespectful and offensive to one's sexuality."

Mrs. Kim smiled and rode the car. "Say goodbye to YN, I know she has to return back to her shift."

Dahyun closed the door and walked back on YN who is standing confidently. "Now the world is in favor of us now, Dahyun. I told you I would never give up on us and  when I come back, I would make it all possible.

"And I knew you could it do it all along, babe." Dahyun smirked and pinched YN's tip of the nose.

"I love you, Dahyun. I won't let anything that will make me lose you this time."

"I love you too, YN."

After the exchange of wholehearted words, Dahyun and YN embraced their unconditional, romantic relationship full of triumph, pride and equality with another kiss as it adds to the wonderful things they possess in the new chapter of their love story together where they overcome the barriers and bridge their gap to be in each other's arms again.

[hanniiesuckle17]

Chapter 10: Playing Hooky

A/n: okay this gonna be a rough two weeks. lots of assignments. plus midterms next Sunday. day after that I'm fucking seeing WEi and probably meeting fuckin kim yohan cause i have hi touch and a group photo omfg. i might make a sign. anybody have any funny or sweet sign ideas? Tag List is Open <3

Tag List: @mini-meanhoe​​​ @leggomylino @hanstagram​​​ @desertofdessert​​​ @hoes4hoseok​​​ @jeonqqin​​​ @mrsunshine999​​​ @jisungsjheekies​​​ @hannie-squirrel00​​​​ @cotccotc​​​​ @yangs-jeongin​​​​ @binniebutter​​​​ @orangegyu​​​​ @little-precious-baby​​​​ @raethethey​​​​ @sofie296​​​​ @love-letters-2-jisungie​​​​ @bluejayboys​​​​

SMIY Tag List: @sanccharine​​​​​ @txt-yaomi​​​​​ @lyramundana​​​​​​ @jaycheoluwu

Pairing: Jeong Yunho x Reader    

Genre: Series, Fluff, Angst, Comedy, Idol au, Secret Relationship

WC: 2.4k

Updates: Saturday 9 AM CDT (Hopefully)

Warnings: Cursing, Privacy Invasion, Dieting, Overworking, 18+Themes (eventually)

Summary: Privacy. Normalcy. Love. Y/n was ready to give all of that up when she became an idol. She was more than happy with the absence of those qualities in her life until a certain six foot mountain of sunshine and chaos was cast opposite her in her first drama. Confronted with the fact that she no longer knows what she wants; Y/n must decide if he’s truly worth giving up the life she’s dreamed of…and how much damage she’ll let happen before she makes a decision.

✭

Third Pov

Though she had no idea where the destination was, Y/n felt at ease as Yunho drove smoothly through the quiet neighborhood streets. Soft music played through the speakers and she enjoyed the ambiance it created.

Yunho looked over at the girl staring out the window. The streetlamps cascaded over her face giving it a warm glow in the dark. By second nature he quietly sang the words of the familiar song under his breath. It was hard to focus on where he was driving the technically but not technically stolen van when Y/n was sitting so close to him. Just the two of them.

Despite being nervous, this was the most at peace and happy the idol had felt in a long time. Had he voiced it out loud Y/n would have wholeheartedly agreed. The length of their acquaintanceship was quite short but the two felt like comfortable friends already. One felt a little more than that and he was doing his best to control how happy being alone with her felt.

The car slowed to a stop and the tall boy unbuckled his seatbelt. The two exited the vehicle- cautiously looking around. "Not many people are ever here this late. So, we should be fine- but just in case!" Yunho produced face masks and hats with a wide grin.

They had parked in a darker corner of the lot leaving less of the streetlight's glow to reach them. Her fingers fumbled over his own as she reached for the mask.

Yunho's heart thumped rapidly in his chest. He tried to savor and remember what the fleeting moment of her touch felt like. With care, the handsome idol gently covered her head with a bucket hat that Hongjoong had most likely left in the backseat.

"Where are we?" The girl asked with a laugh. "Is this where you murder me, Yunho?"

He only laughed and put on his mask and hat. "Shhhh. Me telling you would ruin the surprise." The keys to the van were quickly shoved in his pocket after he locked the car. "Okay, I'm gonna close your eyes and you're gonna have to follow me!"

Y/n gave him a questioning look over the edge of her mask but allowed the man to place his hands over her eyes. "You know when the director had us go through trust exercises, I don't think this was one he had in mind." Yunho laughed as the two started walking.

They moved slowly, the boy careful not to let her bump into anything. Occasionally, the sightless girl would feel her back brush against the tall form of the man behind her. Her hands would instinctively come up and gently hold onto the man's long slender fingers covering her eyes.

"Are we there yet?"

"Almost."

"What about now?"

"Not yet."

"Are you sure?"

Yunho's bright laugh filled the air and made her chest feel warm. "Alright, now we are here. Open your eyes in three, two..." She felt the light weight of Yunho's hands leave her face and heard him shuffle around her. "One!"

Y/n's eyes opened and she took in her surroundings. "Oh my god," A slow smile spread across her face in disbelief.

"Ta Da!" Yunho spread his arms wide with a large grin on his face to match. Behind the boy was a completely empty but well-lit playground with lots of equipment to explore.

Yunho could not begin to describe how it felt to see Y/n's face. Her eyes lit up and she wasted no time in racing past him towards the park. For a moment he watched as she ran and climbed over every piece of the playground. Their laughs mingled as he saw her come down a slide that was meant for a person half her size and then run back up around to the top.

Not wanting to let her have all the fun, Yunho ran through the woodchips before scrambling up the slide. A joyous scream left her lips as he chased her all around the playground. The two idols spent the next hour and a half exploring every piece of playground equipment in the park.

The girl would not stop laughing as she watched her giant counterpart attempt to cross the monkey bars. Even with his feet tucked, only a few inches separated the ground and Yunho. Before he was at the end of the jungle gym Y/n was already hanging upside down from the bars and swinging side to side.

The two laughed as Yunho tried to catch her hat which, unlike its wearer, obeyed the laws of gravity. The girl's hair fell loose and hung in sheets around her face upside down. "Why does this look like your natural habitat?" He shook his head and crouched in front of her so they were face to face.

"I am a bat." She was not ashamed of the childish giggle that came out of her mouth. "When I was a trainee-" The girl pulled her mask down and let her arms hang above her head, fingertips brushing the ground. "I had a lot of trouble with my breath control and pushing out my high notes. After I got off the bus from leaving SM, there was a park on the way to my house. I would just kind of sit on the monkey bars and hang there."

Yunho stayed crouched in front of the upside-down girl and listened to her story intently, his eyes never leaving hers. "The day before one of my reviews I was really nervous. I had been doing really bad in practice. I was just hanging on the jungle gym and I started singing. And all of a sudden my voice was so bright and clear! It really helped!"

"No way?"

"Your duct tape is my jungle gym."

"I need no further convincing." Yunho dropped his hat and pulled down his mask. With a small grunt the large boy flipped himself upside down until the two were hanging side by side, shoulders brushing. "Oh fuck-this is not something for tall people-"

She laughed beside him but tapped his shoulder. "Try it!" Taking a breath the girl began to sing, "Blow my speakers, play it loud! The world's got nothing left to say that I can't say myself! So, blow your speakers up!" Her voice was clear and stable, even as she reached the high note at the end and added a riff that sounded as if she was singing in cursive.

Y/n turned to him with an expectant look. Yunho could feel his face turning red and thanked the lord for the body's reaction to being upside down. Taking a deep breath, Yunho began to sing and was surprised the sound. "It was you, my Shine Light, came like fate, true light. Looking at each other in the night sky starlight!"

"Wow! That was so good!"

"Okay, I admit that was cool- but I'm gonna pass out if I stay like this." He turned himself upright and shook out his hair with a smile. "You wanna go on the swings?"

"Hell yeah!" Yunho's hands gently grazed her sides as the girl flipped off the jungle gym, simply there to catch her if she fell. She had no need as the singer gracefully landed on her feet before sprinting to the swing set.

It gave the boy a heart attack to see the girl faithfully launch herself forward onto one of the swings. She used her running start to hop onto the seat, standing tall, holding onto the chains as she began to swing back and forth. "Are you trying to give me anxiety- oh my fucking god I thought you were gonna like break your neck in three pieces."

Y/n only looked over her shoulder at the boy and laughed. He sat down on the swing next to her and gently started to push himself since there was no way his feet would make it off the ground. "Yunho, this is so amazing! Thank you so much!"

"I figured both of us could use a fun serotonin recharge and a chance to actually get to know each other better."

A shocked look took over the girl's face and she crouched on the seat, the swing still moving back and forth. "That's right! We barely know anything about each other." He chuckled, turning his eyes towards his lap.

Yunho knew things about her. In their short time working together he had noticed many things. He knew she liked tea instead of coffee. Even when it was scalding hot outside she insisted on drinking warm beverages because the ice would dilute the flavor. He knew that she never double-knotted her shoes or completely finished a bottle of water before losing it. He knew that she often fell asleep in the makeup chair and that when she forgot a line she started singing made-up words.

"Tell me about yourself, Jeong Yunho."

"Well...what do you want to know?"

She thought for a moment. Her feet finally touched the ground as she sat fully on the swing. The two face opposite directions but had a clear view of each other. Yunho rested his forehead against the cool melted chain as he stared at the thinking girl with adoring eyes.

"Hmmmmm.....I don't know....tell me everything!"

He looked at her with a smile in his eyes. "Everything?" She nodded. "Well, then what about your night attendance?"

Y/n laughed out loud. "Oh, I'm already screwed at this point. Do you think demerit points exist in vain? They are there to receive them!" Yunho burst out laughing, his head falling back and clapping his hands. The sound made Y/n smile. It was the kind of laugh that immediately made anyone near feel a warmth in their chest. "But, seriously! Tell me everything, Yunho!"

"Well, uh...." the boy began to calm himself down to the ability to speak. "I am right-handed. I have a younger brother. I cry. Like a lot. Big cryer."

"No, you are not."

"Oh yeah! Sad movie. Tears. Nice birthday card. Tears. I once cried cause I found a coupon for 60% off sotteok."

It was Y/n's turn to throw her head back in laughter. "Well to be fair that's a great fucking deal. You just don't look like someone who cries a lot."

Yunho shrugged. "Well, I cry really easily. I also get jealous pretty easily as well. I really like Harry Potter. My MBTI is ENFJ. I like potato chips. I'm pretty sure I've got a really, really, big fucking crush on you. Oh- once I broke my nose getting off the subway. I don't really like reading. I'm from Gwanju. I can juggle- little known fact. Nothing serious though like chainsaws or anything."

"You like me?"

"Well...yeah."

"You like-like me?"

Yunho then processed everything he had just said. There was no taking it back now. Choosing not to regret it, Yunho nodded, rubbing his hands over his thighs. "I mean...well...no...yeah- yeah I do."

"I was kind of just expecting your favorite color." She let out a nervous laugh, looking around the empty playground.

"It's black. Or maybe silver."

"That's good to know."

A silence fell between them. It wasn't necessarily unpleasant....but the mood had definitely shifted from the comfortable banter that was had before. Before either could move to break the silence, Yunho's phone started ringing. He apologized before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the device.

Y/n watched as he answered the phone. She found her eyes following the lines of his profile. The gentle slope of his cheeks going down to his lips, then his jaw. She smiled, recounting everything that had happened tonight until just a few moments ago.

"That was Seonghwa-hyung. Apparently, everybody is looking for me."

"Oh! Okay! Let's head back then."

The two idols slipped back into their hats and masks and silently walked back to the car. Yunho's hands were shoved in his pockets. Y/n found herself looking toward them and remembering the feeling of her fingers brushing over his as they lay over her eyes only a short time before as they walked this path.

The car ride was also quiet save for the soft music coming from Yunho's playlist. Thousands of thoughts were running through both of their minds. Y/n was contemplating what this meant for their relationship and how this change would affect their work together.

Yunho on the other hand was simply relieved she had not run away screaming at his impromptu confession. It definitely had not gone as planned, but she seemed happy most of the night and that was most important to him.

The vehicle came to a stop in front of a tall building and Yunho shifted the van into park. He watched Y/n undo her seatbelt and tried to think of something to say that would make the situation better or at least...not worse?

"Thanks for playing hooky with me."

She smiled at him and stepped out of the van. The door shut and she began to walk away. Yunho dropped his head onto the steering wheel. He hoped thumping it against the wheel a few times would magically make him less of an idiot.

A gentle knock came from the driver's window next to him. Looking up he saw Y/n standing there. With confused eyes, he rolled down the glass and waited for her to speak. "I had fun. Nobody has ever done anything like that for me before."

Yunho was unsure if there was hidden meaning behind what she was saying so he just chose to smile and nod. "Any time,"

"Goodnight, Yunho,"

"Bye! Don't bite the bed bugs!" Y/n laughed as she started to walk into the building. "I mean-.... goodnight...."

"Goodnight, Yunho."

"Yep- I'm just gonna- I'm going to leave now." He rolled up his window and waited until he saw Y/n walk safely inside the dorm building. As soon as she was out of sight he let out a frustrated groan and slumped as far as he could down the seat without the seatbelt suffocating him. To be honest, that would not have been an unwelcomed outcome for the idol right now.

Previous Chapter ✭  Next Chapter    

SMIY M.List

Masterlist

[lume-nosity]

hello! so i’ve decided to pop back in for the next two weekends, as i’ve gotten an update on my exam dates! 1/23/23-1/26/23. so i’ll see to respond to my unanswered stuff and post for the duration of the weekend(s) before i vanish for the school days once again,,, but the little absence from tumblr was refreshing actually! i was productive and fresh frfr!

on another note, the two weeks (including this one) i have before midterms i’ll be on tumblr during the weekends (most likely friday after school/saturday but it entirely depends on how busy i am, it’ll just be slow replies/no replies) it’s confusing but bear with me everyone 🙏 the third week is when i actually study, so yeah!!

[jujujitsu]

Word Count: 6260

Genre: AoT AU! Modern Foreign Exchange Students x OC, Slow Burn Romance (My OC Adelaide x Reiner Braun and @sparklekitteh x Jean Kirstein). This fic is literally for the two of us (but there are some single characters so, if you want a pairing, we can plot)

Warnings: Characters are appropriately aged up for NSFW situations. Do not repost, copy, or duplicate. Sorry for typos. I try. Remember I’m hella dyslexic. NSFW Minors DNI mentions of boners and sexual conquests. Please if you are going to criticize my attempts to use another language, be gentle. I did the best research I could. Constructive criticism is welcomed concerning the German and French language and cultural stuff mentioned. Also, when I say football, I mean actual football, not the American version.

Featured Characters and ships in this series:

AOT: Ymir x Historia Reiss, Eren Yeager X Mikasa Ackerman, Connie Springer x Sasha Braus, Bertholdt Hoover x Annie Leonhart, Marcel Galliard, Porco Galliard, Marco Bodt, Erwin Smith, Levi Ackerman, Armin Arlert, Pieck Finger, Mina Carolina (Will be updated over time) My OC: Maru Anshul, Dresen Zalargin, Kaleo and Nerao Caldera, Catorce Oreic, Teresan Molnier

Next Chapter here!

Synopsis: Adelaide Drust plays hockey for her university in a little country called Paradis. It's the destination for many foreign exchange students, including herself. There's always something to do, but she prefers her solitude outside of class and practice, until her classmate and project partner Jean Kirstein invites her to his frat's last weekend BBQ of the year. She rolls the idea of going in her mind as she takes in all the new projects thrown her way during midterms. A chance meeting with a stranger at the gym late at night further solidifies her decision to socialize and get to know the student body.

Adelaide blinked as she tried to regain some sort of focus for the remainder of her midday art class. She realized she was absently staring outside the window as if lost in another time and place. She recalled the strange daydream floating about her head. It was vivid and strong. She was in another world with dragons and other fantastical beasts. She even had wings! But, that was just it. All those thoughts weren’t real nor were they related to her current, ordinary life.

She was just a college student who played on her university’s hockey team. She was missing out on the information her professor was providing concerning their first group project. She should have been paying attention and she scolded herself for not catching the first half of her instructions.

"Presentations are due by the end of next week," the professor told them. "You and your assigned partner will have five minutes each to present. Don't wait till the last minute. Go ahead and pair up with your partners for the remainder of the class and get a plan hammered out."

Chairs scraped across the floor as students got up to meet with their project partners. Adelaide opened her email to see who she was paired, but before she had a chance to let it load, a shadow fell over her.

"Looks like we're working together," stated a smooth, relaxed accented voice off to Adelaide's side. "Adelaide, right?"

She turned to regard the tall, ash blonde youth who had a nice little goatee coming in on his pointed chin. She went ahead and locked her phone because she knew who he was. "Yeah, that's me and you are Jean Kirstein, right?"

"You recognize me?"

"Forward on Paradis University's football team, yeah? Exchange student from France. I know a couple of girls who won't shut up about you."

Jean rubbed the back of his neck and became somewhat bashful. "Is that right? Well, I know a couple of boys who won't shut up about you, Ms. Hockey Star and Fencing Prodigy."

Adelaide gave him a charming little smirk. "I bet that's annoying, huh? Almost as annoying as hearing about you all day from my roommates."

"Not too bad," Jean admitted. "Only when you pass by the practice field. I haven’t said shit about having a class with you yet. They'd beg me to give you their number."

"I haven't said anything to my roommates about you either for the same reason."

"They'd just be disappointed. I have someone." He held up his phone after clearing his student email app to show her a picture of his girlfriend. He was just bursting with so much pride as he showed her off. She had long brown hair with little ringlets throughout her mane and she had the most adorable, pronounced nose, much like him. "Her name is Julianna. She's the love of my life."

"She's gorgeous," Adelaide replied with a genuine smile. And she meant it. The woman was soft and had the most pleasant energy. It reminded her of someone rabbits would just flock to. It was an oddly specific thought, but it was the first thing that came to her mind. This woman, sitting in the middle of a meadow with bunches of bunnies and birds just existing peacefully in her presence.

"Guess while I have this out, I should get your number so we can talk about our art project," Jean chuckled.

"Oh, yeah probably a smart thing to do," Adelaide reasoned. "Just don't give it to any weirdos."

"Hey, I'm not that kind of dude!"

"To have a girl like that one on your arm, nah, you're trustworthy," Adelaide replied. She gave him her number and Jean sent her a little emoji, so she'd have his.

"We'll brainstorm on Sunday. Got a party tomorrow with the frat. Say, do you want to come? It's just a bunch of people from various sport teams, so you'd fit right in."

"I think my teammates were talking about some sort of get together earlier this week," Adelaide revealed. "I guess it was your party."

"Yeah, last BBQ of the season. I'll send you the address. Come on by if you want. Plenty of food and booze. And lots of drinking games."

"I'll think about it," she promised as she looked up at the clock on the wall. "Nice to meet you, Jean."

The idea of going to any sort of party quickly vanished as the day wore on. It was hectic as projects and other assignments were dished out in preparation for midterms.

It was late that night when Adelaide finally made her way to the gym for her daily workout. She imagined she'd be the only one there, especially in the weight room. She swiped her student ID and noted how quiet the foyer was. It was so strange hearing almost absolute silence in a place that was normally so lively.

She heard weights clinking as she neared the weight room and she realized she wasn't the only insane person hitting the gym at 1 AM. Through the glass she saw this massive blond-haired man with his chiseled back facing her as he effortlessly worked the cable machine. He was a steel beam column of a man from head to toe. Every inch of him was carved to perfection. And yeah, he had a dump truck of an ass to flaunt in those gray sweatpants he wore. She could only imagine how the front looked.

He was drenched with sweat in his sleeveless workout shirt. His arms glistened beautifully and when she opened the door to enter, she heard this lovely low grunt as he pushed himself to complete his set.

The weights were maxed out on the machine, and he was just going at it without any indication of fatigue. Until he looked up in the overhead mirrors and saw her, that is. He noticed she was looking at him. He was used to it. People always interrupted his workout to chat or hassle him for tips and pointers. Honestly, he wouldn't mind if a cute girl like that came up and started talking to him. But she admired him quietly and for some reason, it made him blush and become fixated on her completely.

Adelaide knew better than to keep staring. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable. She went on about her business like he didn’t matter because she was here to work out, not to admire the beautiful herculean blonde across the room. She went straight to the pull up bar to start her routine. He, on the other hand, was so captivated and instantly smitten that he couldn’t take his eyes off her. She was so short, and lean compared to him. Honestly, he found it adorable.

She looked familiar but he wasn’t sure where he knew her. Maybe he had a class with her, but surely, he’d remember someone that cute. Then it hit him. He realized he'd seen her before because one of his roommates had her poster on his wall.

Porco Galliard wouldn't shut up about the captain and center player for Paradis's female hockey team, The Ice Witches. Captain Adelaide Razori Drust. The Ghost in the flesh. She was given that nickname because she was so damn fast and always won a faceoff. She had the highest scoring stats in the collegiate league and Assistant Captain Annie Leonhart wasn't too far behind her. Mikasa Ackerman was an impressive goalie too. Nothing got by her and her perfected butterfly style guard.

Reiner knew all about them because his buddy Bertholdt dated Annie and his brother in the frat Eren dated Mikasa. Porco stupidly fanboyed over Adelaide and begged them all to hook him up. But Adelaide was elusive, and her teammates respected her privacy.

Reiner always scoffed at Porco when he'd go on about her like she was God's gift to the world. Even Marcel vocalized his crush on her to an unhealthy degree. He found it annoying only because they spoke about her so lewdly. He'd never seen her in person. Not like they had. Porco often saw her in passing but he didn’t have the balls to approach her. Marcel bragged that she waved at him at the football field once, and boy did that heat Porco up. But here she was, and suddenly he understood why they were so infatuated because he suddenly was too.

Reiner slowed his reps until he finished his set completely. He wiped off his face and what not while he watched her warmup with a few well thought out stretches. Her range of motion was extraordinary. The way she could bend and turn with such fluidity made his breath hitch. And she looked so defined and strong. For someone who was known for her agility, she had a beautiful carved body and honestly, it turned him on.

He watched her jump up and take the pull up bar. Her gaze was set forward into nothingness as she started her chin ups. Reiner gave her a soft smile and went on about his business too.

The entire time they did circles around one another with their music pushing them on. Occasionally, they'd glance at one another while the other was oblivious. Reiner strutted and poked his chest out and it was so odd because he never acted like a macho jackoff in the gym. But for some reason, he wanted her attention.

He observed her on the free weights and her form was so perfect on every exercise she did. And when she eventually went to do squats, he had to turn away. He'd never gotten hard in someone's presence while they worked out, but holy shit, she had a phenomenal thick ass. He was flustered like an idiot and when he heard her grunt, he knew he needed to leave. He was getting too worked up and the last thing he wanted was for someone to feel unsafe at the gym. He'd go manage his frustrations in the privacy of his bedroom.

He was gathering up his stuff when she called to him. "Hey, are you done? Can you spot me?"

His heart skipped a beat or two, maybe five. Hell, he should have been dead. Her voice sounded so sweet. How could he possibly say no?

"Yeah, s-sure, I'd be happy to," he said without turning around. His voice cracked. It actually cracked! He was so embarrassed that it deflated his half hard dick quickly. He was at least thankful for that. Now he could face her without feeling like a creep. Adelaide noted his accent immediately. It was so heavy, and she didn't recognize it whatsoever. She didn't even hear his pitch change because she was so caught off guard by his unfamiliar tone.

"Where are you from?" she questioned as she wiped the sweat from her face. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Germany," he replied as he finally turned around. "And you?"

Adelaide's eyes immediately went to his shirt. It had a fat cat lifting weights with a captain saying, 'Oh Lord! He Liftin'. She lost it and full-on belly laughed without any attempt to try and compose herself properly. "Oh gosh, that's adorable!"

Reiner blushed hard and found himself smiling as she tried to gather herself. That's when he noticed her tank top with a buff witch in a pose with the caption, 'Hexin' and Flexin'." Now he was the one wiping a tear from his eye as he recovered from explosive laughter.

"Seems we have similar humor," Reiner pointed out. "I love it."

"I'm sorry about that, honestly," Adelaide sighed. "I wasn't expecting to see that shirt on you. I mean. You were just so serious about your sets."

"I like to have fun," he informed with a playful wink as his confidence took hold. "No sense in having a stick up your ass, yeah?"

Just as quickly as his confidence came, it left. He felt himself becoming bashful as her eyes lingered on him. Despite feeling a bit shy, the energy between them just was just so right and he wanted to see where it would go.

"I should probably answer your question," she said as she cleared her throat and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm from Canada, British Columbia to be exact."

"Munich then since we're being specific," Reiner informed. "I'm here for more than a semester. Hopefully permanently."

"I'm Adelaide," she said as she extended her hand. "Adelaide Drust"

"Reiner Braun," he replied smoothly as he took it in his own oversized mitt. He felt his face heat up more. It was adorable how small her hand was compared to his. He wanted to hold it and admire it, but he knew that would be so weird. He was already holding on to her for far too long. He released it quickly and looked into her brilliant gray eyes for some indication that he'd made her uncomfortable.

She just smiled up at him. And it was so goddamn beautiful. He was lost in her image, and he knew he looked so stupid obviously flustered. And the dumbest shit spilled from his mouth without him thinking.

"Du hast wunderschöne augen," he muttered absentmindedly. "Mein Gott."

Adelaide tilted her head to the side. Reiner frantically shook his head and averted his gaze. "S-sorry, I, uh...you needed a spotter?" He rubbed the back of his neck as he cursed himself for being so silly. Thank God she didn’t understand him.

"If it's not too much trouble," she replied.

"Will you...do for me too?"

"Of course, I will!"

She replied with so much enthusiasm that his heart continued to melt into this disgusting puddle of cringe worthy fascination. He followed her looking like a pathetic love-struck puppy until she turned around, then he resumed his stoic expression.

And suddenly, they were hitting it off, casually talking about their work out goals, the sports they were involved in, their countries, and life here in Paradis. Reiner gave her pointers because he wanted to be a personal trainer after he competed in the Olympic games. His degree was in exercise science and his minor was sports management. Despite her own knowledge, she took everything he said with gratitude and grace, and he loved that she allowed him to talk so freely.

"What about you?" He asked after they sat the bar back in place when he finished up his work out. He looked up her while he caught his breath and he found himself lost in her eyes again. He wanted to tell her how beautiful she was, even at this angle, but he was just too shy.

It was funny. He was this huge, massive dude who could get anyone he wanted, but this short, swole chick with a mischievous glint in her eyes and charming smile just...made him weak.

"I'm kind of divided," Adelaide admitted as she braced herself and leaned over the barbell. "I want to compete in the Olympics too. Both Winter and Summer. But after that, I don't know."

"Eh? You aren't going for a professional league?" Reiner asked as he sat up. She immediately handed him his water and he purposefully made it a point to brush against her hand when he took it. He caught the gentle smirk on her face and knew he had been found out. Still, he remained neutral just to gage her reactions further.

"Dunno," Adelaide shrugged. "Maybe I will. I'm just kinda winging life right now. My major is Pre-Law and I have an Art minor. Has nothing to do with the sports I play."

"You want to be a lawyer?"

"I'm really good at debates and arguing," Adelaide laughed as she reached down and grabbed her own water. "And I enjoy research so, it just made sense."

"You have an intimidating presence," Reiner pointed out. "But I like it. Something tells me you don't smile much, but here you are grinning like that...from ear to ear. Is it because of me?"

"Why don't you tell me something else in your language and maybe I'll keep smiling for you?"

Reiner immediately chuckled but it faded quickly when he realized she was serious. He couldn't stop the cheeky grin that spread across his face. He wanted to tell her something bold because, fuck it, why not? She didn't know German. And the energy around them was becoming…something else. That simple method of touching her hand drew her in and he wanted to keep the momentum going.

"Ich steh’ auf dich."

He expected her to ask what it meant. But she didn't. He definitely would have explained himself if she wanted him to elaborate. Instead, she quietly observed him for a moment as if she were trying to interpret what he said based off his body language. And the way she ended up looking into his eyes made his dick start to rise again.

His confidence came back to him in force and all he could think about was the two of them making spontaneous love together in the showers while he vocalized all these endless praises about her beauty and how he wanted this to be something regular between them, if she liked how he felt. Especially if she could handle his thick cock without much fuss because, not many could. Everything about Reiner Braun was big and intimidating.

Her phone buzzed and she broke away from his brilliant gaze to see who messaged her. She knitted her brow together. "Ah, shit, guess I'm cutting this short. Gotta go pick up a drunk friend."

She gathered up her things but before she left, she stopped next to Reiner and gently placed her hand on his shoulder. He melted. He absolutely melted under her touch and the genuine appreciative expression she gave him. It literally broke his brain.

"Thank you for helping me. Maybe I'll see you around? Catch you later Rhino."

She didn't wait for a response. Not that he could give her one anyway. He just stared at the wall with his lip partially parted. She gave him a nickname and he adored it. It played in his mind like a broken record, and he hoped he heard her call him that often. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind after that moment. He was in love. It was love at first sight and it was so damn cliché but that's what it was.

He heard the door close, and he woke out of his daze. That's when he realized...he didn't get her number. "Scheiße!"

Reiner gathered up his stuff. He didn't have time to wipe down the equipment. He tucked his dick the best he could because, yeah, he was pitching a fucking tent. He had it bad for that little lady. He needed to see her again. Nothing else had any meaning because his dumbass was suddenly in love.

He stumbled out the door and ran toward the foyer. She was nowhere to be found.

"Ja leck mich doch mal kreuzweise!" He shouted as he snagged a fist full of his hair and sighed in personal defeat. Then he thought maybe he could catch her in the parking lot. By the time he was out the door, he noticed taillights at a stop sign down the road and he just hung his head, finally accepting that he'd have to figure out another way to meet her again.

The next morning, Adelaide dragged herself to her car after morning practice.

“Hey! Addie wait up!” Ymir called.

Adelaide groaned. The bags under her eyes were horrible and she didn’t perform well today.

"You okay? You really weren’t present today.”

"Yeah, I’m just exhausted," Adelaide admitted. “It was a long night and, I didn’t get much sleep.”

“Are you still going to try to go to that party tonight with us?” Ymir questioned.

"Going to take a nap and figure out what to wear."

"I'll be over with Historia at 4pm then. She'll help get you looking nice. You know how she is I mean, she's my little princess."

"Alright, sounds good," Adelaide sighed as she hopped in her car

"And I want to hear about this Reiner guy you met last night," Ymir urgently told her before she got in her own vehicle.

"Yeah, yeah," Adelaide scoffed as she waved her off dismissively and shut the door. She pressed her head against her stirring wheel and sighed. “Fuck me, I need to sleep.”

Down the road, Reiner Braun was scouring social media apps, trying to find Adelaide on some platform so he could connect with her. He couldn't get her out of his mind. Jean Kirstein looked up at him from his morning study session while he drank some of French pressed coffee.

"Your protein shake is going to separate before you finish it," he teased. "What's up Reiner? You look so distracted. Like, you’ve met the love of your life and you’ve let them slip away from you."

He just sighed and set his phone down. "That’s probably an over exaggeration of my situation, but, yeah, I’m looking for someone I met last night at the gym. We hit it off and I didn't get her number."

"Reiner found a girl he liked?" came the gritty voice of a sleepy Eren Yeager as he shuffled into the kitchen. "Is that what I just heard? And you didn't get her number like a dumbass?"

"And she's not on social media?" Jean questioned while he rolled his eyes at Eren.

"Nein," Reiner huffed as he placed his head in his hand.

Eren just shrugged and went to the pantry to retrieve his favorite sugary cereal. Both Reiner and Jean gave him this judgmental expression as he filled a bowl impossibly high with it.

"Milk will make that shit go everywhere," Jean pointed out.

"Fuck off, Kirstein, I know what I'm doing," Eren snapped as began pouring milk into his bowl.

There was a crash overhead and a series of shouts. Reiner, Jean, and Eren all looked up at the same time.

"Well, there goes our peaceful morning," Jean sighed. "Hell's demons stir."

Eren grinned but he didn't realize he overflowed his bowl. Reiner glanced down just in time to snatch up his phone. "Eren! Halt das maul, du kleiner Scheißkerl!"

"Fuck! Sorry Reiner!" Eren shouted as he slammed the milk carton down and yanked half the paper towels from the roll.

"Eren, putain d'abruti," Jean said while shaking his head and slamming his book shut.

Another crash sounded from upstairs, and Marco's cry followed. Porco began his shouting match and Jean stood up to give Eren an earful. The chaos of the frat house had only just begun. Reiner just chuckled and crossed his arms as he watched the situation unfold. He’d figure out how to find her later. Today was their BBQ and he was looking forward to it.

Adelaide's alarm went off way too soon. At least that's how she felt. She could smell the evening coffee brewing strong in the common room. She looked across to Maru's shared space and saw she was already up.

While running her fingers through her hair, she left their room to fix a cup before she began getting ready.

"Addie!" Maru called. "I was just making your coffee how you like."

"Maru, you're too good to me."

Maru skipped over and hugged her tightly. It never failed. She always greeted Adelaide like she hadn't seen her in days. But that was just Maru and how she showed her love to her adopted sister.

"Did you like the cake I picked out?" Adelaide asked gently stroking her hair.

"Yes!! I was so happy to see it in the fridge when I got home. You always know when I'm having a bad day."

“Mhmm, that’s what I’m here for.”

“I’ll have it ready Addie. You’re going out tonight and I’m so excited. You never go to parties! “

A series of hard knocks came to the door. Maru immediately jumped because it startled her and Adelaide glared in annoyance at the continuous sound.

"That'll be Ymir and them," Adelaide explained as she briskly made her way to the door.

"Oh! I'll get some more cups out!" Maru stated as she hurried into the kitchen.

Ymir impatiently pounded on the door again and while she was in the middle of knocking, Adelaide flung it open. Historia gasped and almost squealed in response.

"About fucking time, sheesh," Ymir groaned as she marched her ass into the dorm. "I aged 60 years standing there."

"Ohhh I smell coffee!" Historia clapped.

"Well come on. Maru is getting some ready for you."

“She’s always so good to us!” Historia cried. “We don’t’ deserve sweet Maru.”

"So, we're starting out at the small frat BBQ then we're all going to the big one on Greek Row," Ymir revealed while the girls all sat around drinking coffee. "The theme is Rave Ragger so I felt this was perfect for you Adelaide since you love EDM."

"Yes! We're heading to that one too!" Maru squealed.

"Oh, I have the perfect outfit in mind," Adelaide said as she got up. "Let me get it."

She came out with a pair of black and white Calvin Kline sneakers, a pair of black high waist jogger cargo style pants, and a black short-sleeved mock neck ribbed knit crop top zippered shirt.

"Shit! Addie showing some skin!” Ymir howled. "Fucking hell! Flaunt them big tiddies babe and that brick house of an ass! Just call me a wrecking ball cause, god damn!"

"Mmmm that cleavage is going to be sexy. Got a matching undies set?" Historia questioned. “You want to make it all work nicely incase you find a piece of ass you like.”

"Duh, all I wear is black," Adelaide laughed. "Then I'll just pile on the neon when we go to the rave."

"Oh, we got plenty of that shit," Ymir promised. "And body paint."

"Addie, you should wear a pencil skirt and flats to the BBQ then change into those after," Historia suggested.

Adelaide considered her suggestion. "Yeah, okay. I'll just throw it in a duffle bag and change before we head over to the rave."

Between a few more cups of coffee and some goofing off, all the girls got ready and fixed themselves up. Maru had other plans with the cheer squad, but Adelaide, Ymir, and Historia were soon heading out the door to head to their first destination.

"Selfie!" Historia yelled as the two of them boxed Adelaide in and snapped a picture. "Can I put this on my Instagram, Addie?"

"Just don't tag where we'll be going," Adelaide warned.

"Right, don't need the fanboys showing up," Ymir nodded. "Though Mikasa said you have a few admirers at this place. Just knock them out if they get annoying."

"Ymir! Don't encourage violence," Historia whined.

"Babe, we play hockey. Our sport encourages violence and Adelaide, despite her size, can square up better than me!"

"I don't start shit, but I'll damn well finish it," Adelaide promised as she got into the driver's seat. Ymir and Historia sat together in the back.

"You know, if you don't find some good dick tonight, you're welcome to have a little fun with us," Ymir smoothly mentioned causing Historia to insanely giggle. "I loved the energy you brought to our dynamic that last time."

Ymir reached around and caressed Adelaide's cheek. She just smiled back at her. "Oh yeah? Historia, what did you think about it?"

"Sandwiched between two doms is just...." She sighed happily. "I can't shake the feeling "

Adelaide grinned wide and just shook her head. "We'll see. I'm not exactly cruising for a lay."

"You never know!" Historia chuckled. "Maybe one of those silly boys will strike your fancy. Like that guy you met last night."

"Yes! Addie give us the tea!" Ymir squealed. "You've never talked about a man before. I know you're pan but..."

"Generally, I don't care for men because I have a high standard," Adelaide revealed. "But he was definitely someone I wouldn't mind running into again."

"So, he met all the right things on your list is what you're telling me?"

"Oh, how exciting!" gasped Historia. "Did you get his number?"

"No, unfortunately," Adelaide sighed. "One of our teammates had an emergency situation and I didn't get the chance."

"I bet he's on social media," Ymir reasoned as she pulled out her phone. "He's a beef cake gym rat, so you know he likes to show off."

"I don't use social media," Adelaide reminded.

"But we do!" Historia countered.

"Come on, what's his name?" Ymir pried. "I'll find him."

"Later, we're here already. Let's just mingle and have a good time. I'll worry about His Thighness later."

Ymir and Historia howled with laughter before Adelaide parked and turned off the car.

"His Thighness! Holy fuck Addie! Ahhh, I'm going to be laughing about that shit all night." Ymir quieted down first and turned to Historia to look her over with a sudden burst of emotional pride. "Hey, you got everything princess? You look so pretty."

"Aww, Ymir stop," Historia whined as she blushed.

Adelaide just shook her head and exited the car. She smoothed down her black knee length pencil skirt and looked herself over in her side mirror. "You did great on my makeup Historia. Love the smokey eyed look with the silver shadow.”

Historia gave her a thumbs up and the three girls made there way through the front gate.

“Ugh, definitely a bunch of boys that live here,” Ymir grumbled. “This is a corner lot, and it should have so much more curb appeal.”

“Historia, have you and Ymir been binge watching home renovation shows again?” Adelaide groaned.

“M-Maybe,” Historia muttered.

“Like every night!” Ymir shouted. “But honestly, it’s my guilty pleasure next to reality tv. I love a good, scripted cat fight.”

They continued chatting, following behind a girl with wavy brown hair that went to her shoulder blades up to the main entrance to the frat house. Suddenly the door to the house slung open and Historia gasped in surprise.

“Ma chérie!” cried a familiar ash-blonde man. He dramatically held his hands up and bolted to the girl in front of them to wrap her in a strong, warm embrace. He picked her up and spun her around while planting a passionate kiss on her lips. “I have missed you dreadfully, mon petit chou.”

She just giggled and sunk into his form while he rocked back and forth with her, rubbing his hands lovingly over her back. “It’s only been a day.”

“A day too long,” Jean sighed. “Even an hour is just too long without you.”

Jean realized they weren’t alone, and he glanced up to Adelaide and the other two girls. “Oh? Adelaide, you came! My apologies I just have been so distraught. When I am without the woman I love, I just weep. My heart aches and the only way to heal is to have the most beautiful woman in the world by my side.” He gasped dramatically and snapped his gaze to the blushing girl. “And wouldn’t you know it? She’s here! And suddenly I am better.”

“Yeah, I am weeping over how cringe this shit is,” Ymir scoffed. “Where’s the beer? Actually, I need some fucking vodka to cleanse this shit from my head.”

“Y-Ymir please!” Historia cried as he stumbled after her. “Be nice!”

Jean just shrugged. “Sometimes people just aren’t a fan of love. It is what it is. But! Adelaide, I am so glad you are here! This is Juliana. Juliana, this is Adelaide Drust my art class project partner and Captain of The Ice Witches! She plays hockey and has all of her teeth…erm, I think.”

“I promise I have all of my teeth,” Adelaide laughed as she extended her hand. “Pleased to meet you, Juliana.”

The mousy, sweet girl shuffled forward and took Adelaide’s hand. She was blushing and Adelaide couldn’t help but flash her a charming smile. Jean was eating the whole thing up, watching with wide eyes as Juli averted her eyes. “I…I think your cheek bones are pretty.”

Now it was Adelaide’s turn to blush and Jean just clasped his hands together and mad an exaggerated ‘awww’ face.

“Well, aren’t you just charming and adorable,” Adelaide replied. “You have beautiful energy, and your hair is just so lovely.”

Jean could have had heart eyes if this were some sort of anime, because that is just how smitten he was with the image of these two. Juli squeaked with embarrassment and stepped back with Jean who cooed to her while Adelaide chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck.

“Now that you have met, we should head into the house, yes?” Jean suggested. He quickly ushered them both inside. Clearly, he was excited, and Juliana realized this because she offered Adelaide a bashful apologetic smile. Adelaide replied with a little wink to let her know she understood and would go along with the whole thing.

Jean suddenly took Juliana’s hands and looked deep in her eyes. “Ma chérie, can you wait for me? It won’t be long. I promise. I cannot bare it, but please, forgive me for a moment. I am going to take Adelaide to the backyard, and I will be right back by your side.”

Adelaide watched as he waited for her complete consent before kissing both of her hands and departing. He waved Adelaide forward. “Come, come! I will not keep her waiting.”

“This is a normal thing?” Adelaide questioned.

“Yep, and I wouldn’t change it for the world,” Juliana sighed.

“Good, it’s beautiful. You’re both so in love and I hope it never fades.”

Juliana’s blue eyes lit up. “Normally people get annoyed with us. Thank you for your kind words.”

“See you around Jules.,” Adelaide laughed as she made her way down the hall.

At the back of the house, things were heating up not just on the grill but between the macho boys and their attempts to one up the other. The moment Porco and Reiner were in each other’s sights, their pissing competition began.

"I'll beat you this time, asshole," Porco growled as Reiner stared him down.

"That's big talk coming from someone who can't hold their alcohol."

"Let's go! Right here, right now! I'll out chug you, Braun."

"Porco! You need to stop!" Marcel gasped as he held his brother back before he could grasp one of the large, frosted beer mugs

"Nah! Let me go! He thinks just cause he's bigger than me that he can out drink me! I'll show him!"

Reiner smirked down at the struggling youths when Jean came outside. He found it odd. Normally once Juli got here, he disappeared with her for a while. “And here we are! Have a good time. I'm going to see my Julianna."

Adelaide walked outside and suddenly cheers and calls erupted on the other side of the yard from some of the players of the men's hockey team.

"Ah shit! Adelaide's here!"

"Fuck yes! Finally!" cried another.

"What?" Porco muttered as he turned around to look in her direction.

Reiner was already fixated on her as four hockey players met her and embraced her in a bro hug.

"She's...here," Porco muttered. “Adelaide is actually here…”

"Oh my..." Marcel trailed off.

"Hey! Adelaide!" Eren shouted as him and Mikasa made their way over. "Didn't expect to see you here. Have a beer!" He even cracked it for her, and she took it with a smile. The crowd walked with her to where Ymir and Historia were sitting near the bonfire. All of them became loud and filled with so much jovial energy.

Reiner felt his heart racing. She looked so beautiful and everyone on both the men's and women's team wanted to be around her. They were all cutting up, talking their sport, swapping stories, and she'd just got there. He had to get to her. He needed to save her number. He couldn’t believe the luck!

"I'm going to talk to her tonight," Porco said, which pulled him from his fixation. He crinkled his brow in disgust.

“Not if I talk to her first,” Marcel countered.

“You’re on!” Porco snarled.

“Wait, weren’t we going to drink?” Reiner reminded as he considered how to eliminate his competition.

“No, this is more important!” Porco snapped. “Fuck you and your silly drinking competition.”

“Are you saying…you are just going to give up?” Reiner questioned. “Like a little bitch?”

Porco’s face suddenly flushed and he glared at Reiner. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me. Are you saying I am better than you? You’re just too scared to follow through and that woman arriving is just your sad attempts at trying to play off that fact that you know you can’t win.”

Marcel couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Reiner never pushed Porco like this. He slowly released his brother and felt it was necessary for him to get involved just so he could defend his honor. “You’re on,” he announced. “The Galliards Vs Braun in a drink off.”

Reiner kept his stoic expression. This was going to be too easy. If he could get these two drunk off their asses, he wouldn’t have to worry about them speaking with Adelaide first. They were so stupid; how could they possibly expect to out drink a German man of his height and build? He didn’t often play into the German stereotypes, but for the sake of his personal endeavors, he would for tonight, at least.

[ajwamiju-archives]

Chapter 12

Warnings: Graphic depictions of violence, kidnapping, harassment, swearing, a lot of it, manipulation, slow-burn (?), eventual romance, eventual smut, enemies to allies to lovers, coercion, slight dub-con, minor character deaths

Mafia boss! Kita Shinsuke x Spy! F! Reader

Summary: For as long as you’ve been on God’s blue earth, you’ve been taught to help your family by gathering information and spying on other crime syndicates from all over Japan. To say you’re good for your age is an understatement, you’re one of the best out there with all of the information you’ve managed to gather.

Once you turn 20, you are to be given your first official mission as a fully grown adult, retrieving the important documents the Inarizaki clan has managed to steal. You’re confident you’re able to do it, but a lot of things don’t exactly go according to plan...

Note: Sorry for disappearing like last week, midterms really kicked my ass lol.

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“Penny for your thoughts, Matsushima-san?” Ito asks, snapping you out of your train of thoughts during another night of your hang-outs. You’ve been meeting up with Ito almost regularly for close to a month, ranting to each other about anything that comes to mind. The updates Suna receives are nothing new since you two have gathered basically Ito’s whole life history as on top of following you to Hokkaido, Kita ordered for you to give regular updates to Suna. You don’t even know what the hell he’s doing right now, but you know he’s nearby, you can always feel the daggers on you from his sharp gaze.

“Just thinking about… well… old me, I guess.” You answer, tracing the wood patterns of the table. “I used to be such a workaholic that I would often neglect my own needs in order to get the job done. I just thought, if my old self were to see me now, she’d probably not like the change. I mean, I still work a lot but it's just... not as much as I used to.”

“Are you thinking that you’ve changed for the worse?”

“You could say that, sure.”

“Well, I don’t think you did.” Ito says and leans back in his seat. “You’ve started to let go of the toxic mindset and take care of yourself, haven’t you? You’re starting to feel happy with how things are, aren’t you?”

“Even if I feel jealous when a guy who I caught feelings for yet barely know is just living his life? I really do feel like a possessive girlfriend even if we’re… friends? Now that I think about it, I don’t know what my status is to him and it makes it sound… worse.” You ask, lowering your voice.

“Liking someone is normal, the extent of your affections to him is what a lot of people will feel at least once in their lifetimes; your feelings of jealousy over seeing him with another woman is completely normal and acceptable, everyone would be jealous and heartbroken if their crush was going out with someone else, even if they don’t know much about their crush in their first place.”

“It still just feels… weird, how could I even like someone who I barely know?”

“I know you’ve always liked people you know well before this, maybe that’s why you justified your jealousy before, you know them, you had prior connection to them before, so it must be confusing falling in love with someone… out of your norm. But love is unpredictable, you know, the heart wants what the heart wants. That’s why they call it falling in love not… floating into love.”

“That is… a very odd expression… floating into love…”

“I was never that good in expressions…”

“I can tell…”

The both of you stay silent for a few minutes, feeling the wind blow through the open doors of the café. It’s been a week since you two met up at the bar, opting for non-alcoholic drinks after one disastrous night where Ito had a bit too much to drink after a particularly shitty day.

During your talks with him, the things discussed stay relatively light-hearted, you would listen about how he would vent about two of his demon bosses, his upstairs neighbours who are far too loud for the comfort of the two floors above and below them, while you would vent about vague hints of your past, fabricated enough for him not to be suspicious of the dealings that go on behind closed doors.

“Hey, Ito-san, if you don’t mind me asking… um… is there a reason that might’ve warranted your father’s disappearance? How are you feeling about it?” You ask cautiously, hoping to know him as a person rather than a target.

“… My dad has always been drowned in debt, especially recently. He’s been working hard to pay it off, but I think one of the loan sharks he lent from decided he’s not able to pay and took him. I’m really worried for him and I hope he comes back soon, I’m sure the police are doing everything they can to look for him.”

It takes everything in you not to physically cringe at whatever Ito’s father told him, the poor man deserves so much better than the fate he’s heading to. As someone who knows of his father’s whereabouts and the truth of what his father is up to, you can’t help but feel bad for him.

“Matsushima-san?” Ito asks, snapping you out of your thoughts.

“Sorry, I just… that sounds horrible. I hope everything gets sorted out soon.” You answer. “It just… I don’t know… did the loan sharks just decided he can’t pay without giving him a deadline?” You ask, for no good reason actually.

“I don’t know the details, one day he just went out of his house and never came back.”

You reach over the table and place a hand comfortingly on top of Ito’s hand as he sighs heavily. You feel bad for scanning his body language for signs of lying, but he seems to be telling the truth which makes the situation all the worse. “Let’s hope he will return safely and those loan sharks get what they deserved.”

Your night ends after the deeper talk you have, you walk with him to the park where you always part ways, giving him a pat on the shoulder before turning on your heel. You take your phone out and text Suna the details you’ve learnt about Ito, getting a meme in return of low-quality picture of Osamu’s face with the caption “Yikes.”.

You look up from your phone to find Kita standing in front of an alleyway near your apartment complex, waiting for your arrival before pulling you into your apartment, making sure no one has seen him. You return his gaze, your lips tugging down into a deeper frown. “Ye’re gettin’ attached to Ito.” He states as a greeting.

“Good evening to you too, Kita-san.” You answer, stuffing your hands in your pockets as you toe off your shoes and walk further into the room. “He’s dying in three months, the least he can get is someone to listen to his troubles so he can get it off his chest.”

“Ya won’t be able to go through with it if ya keep lettin’ yerself get attached to ‘im.”

“I will be able to go through with it, don’t you have at least a semblance of faith in me?”

“‘Course I do, ye’re one of the best spies the yakuza world has, but not for this job. This is a long-term assassination job, ye’re not collectin’ any information.”

“And your point is? I’ve been here for close to a month, you can’t pull me out of this mission and suddenly replace me.”

“My point is ya come here for personal reasons too, didn’tcha? I know ye’re aware of where yer capabilities lie, this long-term assassination is a first for ya. Ye’re not someone who tries to move outta yer comfort zone much, yet ye’re willin’ to break yer end of yer contract for a mission ya have no extensive trainin’ on.”

Your nails bite harder at your palm at how Kita has managed to read through you, you want to refute the claim and tell him he’s wrong, but he’s not. The reason you impulsively took on this mission is to get away from the stupidly attractive man in front of you, yet you can’t seem to achieve your true goal from this mission.

“And so what if it’s personal? At the end of the day, Ito-san will die anyway, whether you decide to let me kill him or send someone who you think is capable, I don’t care. So leave me alone and let me finish my job.”

“Ya expect me to leave ya alone when ye’re underqualified for this job? I just wanna know what the hell ye’re thinkin’ ‘bout to warrant ya to do this!”

“Look, I don’t know what the hell your grand scheme of things is to want to know my reasons for going. I don’t know why you didn’t kill me months ago. I may be an asset but I know you can easily find someone at my level. I don’t know why you don’t trust me after everything you did to make me trust you. Do I know where I stand with you? No. Am I your worker? Your underling? Your friend? Am I still your captive? At this point, I don’t want to think about the finer things. I want to get my thoughts in order during this, and I really, really just want to straighten the things in my head out. That’s what I’m thinking. That’s my reason for forcing myself on this job.”

Kita’s eyes widen at your answer and the display of emotions you’re showing to him at this very moment. It’s the first time you’ve see him almost unable to form words from the things you’ve said to him. “I don’t understand, what made ya even think about all of that?”

You take a deep breath and bite your lip to hold yourself back from making any impulsive decisions or saying anything impulsively. How are you going to tell him everything stemmed from your heart being broken, by him no less. You still can’t face him without thinking about what you saw, but the fact it’s affected you this much means you still need to let go of him more and understand yourself more.

“What if… I told you… after I’ve collected my thoughts. Since you’re watching over me, you have your guarantee that I have nowhere to run and… I’ll have time to collect myself before I tell you.” You propose, softening the tone of your voice significantly after your outburst. “I know I’ve broken my contract once, but I promise I will fulfil this one. As a bargain, I… I’ll reveal my brother’s plan against my father.”

Kita is silent as he contemplates your offer, you can see the slight furrow of his eyebrow that he most probably doesn’t understand why you’re doing all of this; you don’t blame him, would probably think the same if you’re in his shoes. “Fine, I accept yer offer.” He says and extends his hand out to shake your hand.

You slowly pull your hand out and shake his rough, calloused hand, so warm against your freezing palm. Your hands shake firmly as you look up from your hands to his eyes. “My brother is planning to overthrow my father and take over the clan as soon as he possibly can. It’s a plot formed by Hiroshi, his mentor, Watanabe Ichirou, my grandfather, [Surname] Chikao, my mentor, Uehara Arata, and a number of my grandfather’s supporters. They plan to execute it after Hiroshi’s first official mission, as far as I remember, they planned on killing my father, but it’s the last I’ve heard of it.”

“D’ya know the reason for this plot?”

“It may be because my father’s going against my clan’s morals, that’s what I gathered from the snippets of the conversation I’ve heard backed by evidence. Ever since my father took over, he’s been… trafficking humans and exotic animals, his most successful sales deal with women ages 15 to 25 and endangered animals, has connections to those who have access to them, I presume. Our family’s morals are against harming innocent people and animals, especially those who have nothing to do with the clan. The human trafficking business in particular is still extremely hidden, even some higher-ranked members don’t know of the business.”

“Human traffickin’? How’ve we never heard of this?” Kita asks, furrowing his eyebrows at the information you just dropped. “Surely we woulda heard if some clan in Japan did a deal on human traffickin.”

“His clients are mostly foreign people, foreign mafia families, I think. I wasn’t able to obtain information on who he’s dealing with in terms of the trafficking in Japan, but I’ve pin-pointed somewhere in Europe and America for his regular clients.” You answer, stopping your gaze at your still connected hands. You pull your hand away and quickly pocket it once more, subtly gripping the fabric in the pocket when you feel like you want to hold his hand for longer.

“Is there anythin’ else ya wanna tell me?”

“You won’t get anywhere with questioning members under Ishikawa’s sector. He’s sided with my father which makes him and most, if not all of his men unaware of the plot.”

“I see, I’ll send this information over to Suna as soon as possible.” Kita says as he turns to walk to the door.

“Alright… please leave me alone for the time being.” You respond, walking deeper into the small apartment as an imaginary rift behind you grows bigger from your request.

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Taglist: @youracidqueenmina @shinsou-rii @kris-1 @kenmaslov3r

Comment or ask if you want to be included in a taglist!

© of ajwamiju. Planned repost of the story is only for AO3 under the name ajwamiju, any other reposts to other platforms under any other name is not me and I do not give permission.

[nneogram]

think about it — part one. get laid!

pairing: jaehyun x reader (f)

genre: enemies to lovers!au, college!au, fluff

word count: 8.4k

warnings: language, mentions of sex but not really (oc keeps being told to get laid “emotionally” idk), jungwoo gets scolded about the importance of consent, jungwoo’s in a frat but not really but yes really, quick reminiscent phone call w/ bestie jungkook, oc has unhealthy studying habits but dw it gradually gets better from here

a/n: i’ll say it for all of us - FINALLY, an update on here. this is result of my own college shenanigans, stories from my friends, and far too many fantasies whilst in quarantine. jeni needs to lay off the k-dramas, sheesh. i’d also like to note that this is unedited! there may be a few grammar/spelling mistakes.

▸ playlist (to be linked later)

Your roommate claims that you need to, in the simplest terms, “Get laid.” You are vehemently against this proposal, despite her insistence and clarification.

“Emotionally. You need to get laid emotionally, Y/N,” Megan whines. That’s all she can do from where she is sitting, tucked safely away beneath the blankets on her bed. It’s cocoon-like, she’s explained to you before, “like being in the womb.” Safe. Secure. Warm. You think that if that was her cocoon, then Megan would emerge a butterfly. If you were in her place? You would emerge a moth.

“I don’t think any getting laid needs to be done, regardless of if it’s emotional or not.” You take another flashcard from your prepared deck. Strong Acids. HCl, HBr, HI… HClO4? A hiss leaves your lips when you flip the card over to see the answer. You were missing two more acids. You reluctantly place the card into the pile to review again, which sat next to a much smaller pile of correct cards. The goal for the morning was to move all the cards in the “wrong” pile to the “right” pile, but considering the size difference of the two stacks, that goal would not be achieved.

Megan’s sigh pulls you from your focus. “Dude. Do you see yourself right now? I don’t think I’ve seen you doing anything other than studying for the past two weeks. I’m going to ace this chem midterm and I’m not even in chem. I’m not even a STEM major.”

You frown. “Sorry. Was I being too loud? I can go-”

“No, don’t worry about me. This is about you. I’m concerned for you - you’ve been cooped up more these two weeks than you were in the entirety of fall quarter. Have you taken a break recently?”

“I slept for eight hours straight, I think that’s a good enough break?”

“No, like a real break. Away from studies and school and just doing something… I dunno, fun?”

You shake your head. The past few weeks had been nothing but relentless studying. In an effort to maintain your pristine GPA, you shoved aside what little downtime you allotted yourself in fall quarter to focus on school. It was the least you could do, considering that you were on track to apply to medical school at the end of your undergraduate career. You were only in your first year, so all of the other requirements for med school - clinic, shadowing, research, the works - were inapplicable for the time being. There wasn’t much to get you ahead other than your 4.0.

Megan knows this, but she also knows that you have little to no social life outside of the bare minimum. It’s an unspoken truth that the two of you being assigned as roommates was a blessing in disguise: your studious tendencies help motivate Megan to stay on task while Megan’s more laidback nature reminds you to take a breather sometimes. 

This was one of those times.

“I’m telling you,” Megan crawls over to the edge of her bed to get closer, “You should relax a bit. Just a teeny, tiny bit. Have some fun, live out your first year of college! Make some art, go to the gym, I dunno, step out of your comfort zone. Get laid!”

“You say that last one as if talking from experience,” you tease. 

What was the charge on sulfide again? Fuck, it was two minus. Another card goes into the “wrong” pile.

Megan scoffs. “Please. I’ve only ever had one boyfriend, and that was in middle school. The most we did was hold hands. Besides, we don’t need men… I just want one.” She mumbles this last part as an afterthought before returning her focus to you. “I think getting a boyfriend would be a great distraction for you.”

You gawk at your roommate, eyes flitting from her to your toppling stack of incorrectly answered cards and back to her. “Do you see this? I don’t need any distractions right now.”

“No, no, I - fuck. I got that all wrong, didn’t I.” Megan facepalms. “What I mean is maybe you should befriend some people, or find some kind of emotional outlet. As much as I pride myself on being your source of positivity, I’m not around all the time to tell you to take a break and relax. You tend to be hard on yourself, y’know?”

Your gaze once again travels to your flashcards, their amount of use prominent in the worn-down corners and smudged ink. “I guess…”

There’s a smile of satisfaction on Megan’s face. “Think about it,” she concludes, then crawls back to her cocoon of blankets to take a nap.

--

The gloom of the rainy weather hits most forcefully in January. With the merriment of the holiday season behind you, it seems there is nothing ahead but cold, and rain, and emptiness. Only so many mugs of hot chocolate could keep your heart warm, and it wasn’t even the good type of hot chocolate - it was the powdery stuff that you mixed in with your lukewarm water because the water kettle you brought with you to the dorm was buggy and never fully heated up a pot of water. 

Yeah, you could buy yourself a cup of cocoa from the coffee shop on campus, but as the college kid stereotype proved, you were broke. So you settle for your half-assed attempt at a comfort drink, taking extra effort to stir the dregs that tend to settle at the bottom of your styrofoam cup.

“So you need to get laid?” Jungkook’s voice crackles over the phone.

You sigh. For getting into one of the most prestigious universities in the country, Jungkook lacked the ability to draw proper conclusions from given information. He clearly hadn’t paid attention to your five minute spiel on your deteriorating motivation for life and your roommate’s unusual suggestion. “No,” you begin slowly, because if you didn’t control yourself you were going to get annoyed quickly, “I do not need to get laid.”

It’s dusk, around that time of the evening where the world slows down as the sky is painted a myriad of pinks, purples, and oranges. Even in January the sunsets in your college town never failed to astonish you. However, it’s also the time of the day when loneliness hits you most, and for a fraction of a moment you get homesick and usually end up calling someone from home. In this case, you end up contacting a close friend - though you’re beginning to question Jungkook’s title as a close friend, considering he completely missed the point of your rant.

“Well it sure sounds like it,” Jungkook refutes. There’s a loud crunching noise on the other end of the call, and you have to bring the phone away from your ear as the crackling continues. You know for a fact that Jungkook has bitten into a chip, most likely the barbecue ones he always had on hand. The audacity to snack on junk food in the middle of a conversation about your existential crisis - you sometimes wonder how you and Jungkook became friends in high school. 

Then again, you were on the other end slurping the remnants of your hot cocoa. Maybe there was something going for the two of you.

“Think about it.” You’re reminded of that afternoon when Megan said the exact same thing. “You’re unmotivated. Why? Because you’re lonely. How do we fix that? You need to get laid-”

“-Emotionally. Emotionally laid-”

“-Yeah yeah, same difference. They go hand in hand,” Jungkook brushes off. “The point still stands. When was the last time you were in a relationship?”

You hesitate to answer. “I’ve never been in a relationship,” you mumble.

“I couldn’t hear you. What?”

“I said I’ve never been in a relationship,” you repeat with a sigh.

There’s a beat of silence. “You’re kidding.”

You shake your head, momentarily forgetting this is a phone call and not an in-person conversation where Jungkook can see you. Students begin to flood the sidewalks outside of the dorms, likely the last wave of students returning for their later classes. A girl - Megan, you realize after squinting - waves at you from across the street. You wave back, gesturing to her that you’re on a call. She nods and goes on her way to the dorm. 

You return your focus to the call. “No, not kidding.”

“I’m taking that lapse of silence as you actually having to think about it.” You roll your eyes, another gesture that Jungkook cannot see. “How? You’re telling me all four years of high school you never got with someone? Not even a fling? Not even that weird ‘talking’ phase kids do these days? What have you been doing all this time?”

Your mind immediately goes back to your high school graduation. “Valedictorian, weighted GPA of 4.8, Y/N Y/L/N, attending…” You remember the smile on your face as the principal handed you your diploma. You remember the smiles on your parents’ faces, the pride and joy in their eyes. That was when you knew it had all been worth it - no one but you, your parents, and your own pure ambition fueling your fire for the four years of high school.

Maybe the closest you got to any sort of romantic relationship was… with Jungkook.

You liked Jungkook before your brain could fully process it, denying it as platonic affection for the better half of three years as he took you under his wing your freshman year. It was comforting to have someone older than you help you navigate high school, but as much as you tried you could not view Jungkook as an older brother as he so claimed to be.

Of course, nothing was ever to happen. Jeon Jungkook was a boy entirely out of your league - star student, star athlete, poster child for all things good and right in the world - but most importantly, he was your closest friend. It was this label that helped set a boundary for your affections, and your crush became more of a pastime to delve into when you wanted a break from your studies. A fantasy that would never come true.

It wasn’t until he moved away for college your senior year that your crush subsided, hitting you like some sort of epiphany when he returned for his winter break. You had been beyond elated to reunite with your friend, but when you looked in his eyes it dawned on you that the weight of his words and actions no longer affected you as much as they did in the past.

That was your only stint with romance, and you were fine with it staying that way. Yeah, it was a fruitless endeavor, but look what you got out of it: a great friend! And only at the price of three years of unnecessary emotional turmoil and relentless unrequited pining. What a bargain.

“I’ve been busy with school, mainly.” It’s an insufficient summation of your high school experience, but it got the point across. Technically, it wasn’t a lie.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud of you and all - and I respect your decision to be single! Human rights and all that - but maybe it’s time for you to get into a relationship.”

You snap your fingers loudly enough to startle a group of guys walking past. You hope the grimace on your face is enough of an apology. “Oh my God, thanks Jungkook! Now that you mention it, let me just hit up one of the many young eligible bachelors pining over me, because there are so many right now.”

The feigned enthusiasm in your voice does not entertain Jungkook as much as you would have liked it to. “I’m sure there are, Y/N. There were plenty in high school.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Nope.” The playful smile you sport falls from your lips as he proceeds to dive into a list of names. 

“The one guy with the yellow hair… Yugyeom thought you were cute… Oh, Taehyung liked you too-”

“-Taehyung?” You gawk. “The Kim Taehyung. The guy two years older than you, editor of the yearbook and captain of the lacrosse team? The Kim Taehyung who was Prom King. Him?” It’s difficult to process a senior that you had regarded so highly had taken  interest in you in your lowly freshman year.

“Yeah, I know, right? I told him he was out of your league-”

“-Hey!”

“-But I said that out of jealousy. Heck, even I liked you at some point, Y/N. You’re quite a catch, just super oblivious.”

The reminder of your phone call with Jungkook consists of your disbelieving laughs and Jungkook’s reassurances that yes, that many people liked you in high school.

“I’m sure there’s plenty of people interested in you. You just have to see it for yourself first.” Oddly prophetic for someone who claims he could survive solely off of energy drinks and barbecue chips, but considering he was studying at an Ivy League, he had to have some credibility. You end the phone call possibly more confused than you had been before the conversation. Swirling the contents of your cup absentmindedly, you realize you’ve drunk all of your hot cocoa. All that is left at the bottom of your cup are the clumps of cocoa powder that hadn’t been properly stirred. The dregs. Of course.

You relay your findings to Megan the next day over a lunch of poorly cooked rice and under seasoned chicken. “Food crafted by the gods to remind us of our inferiority,” as Megan liked to call it.

She claps her hands like a seal. “So I was right!” She cheers over a mouthful of food. “You need to get laid!”

You’re a bit too late to cover her mouth, her ambiguous words now out in the open for others nearby to hear and assume the wrong thing. Glancing around, you’re relieved to find that no one seemed to notice, save for one boy at a nearby table surrounded by some of his friends. He gives you a look but you refrain from making eye contact.

“I feel like you and I heard different stories just now.” You keep your voice down. “Meg, I just found out my high school crush - debatably, my first love - liked me at some point when I liked him. Do you know how big that is?”

“Do you know how big that isn’t?” Megan shoots back. “Because nothing came out of it. You never acted on your feelings. And something tells me that even if this John Cook-”

“-His name is Jungkook, but okay-”

“-Even if he had acted on his feelings, you would never believe it.” Ouch. She really went for your lack of self-esteem right there, and that shit hurted. Regardless, she’s right, and you both know it.

“You know when we say this, we’re not trying to force you into anything you don’t want to do,” Megan clarifies. “I’m not saying you should get dicked down by the first guy who gives you attention, but wouldn’t it be nice to let someone - someone who genuinely cares for you - to let them into that dark and twisty mind of yours? God knows what’s going on up there.” She gestures to your forehead with her spoon.

Brushing aside Megan’s crude wording near the beginning, you’re at a loss for words. Unsure of how to respond, you mumble, “But there’s no one like that in my life. Other than you, that is.”

“Because you never let anyone close enough to truly know you. Just…” she pops another spoonful of rice into her mouth, “Just think about it.”

-- 

D-1 until your midterm. Nomenclature and ionic charges are now extremely familiar to you, having taken the spot from Megan as Number One Friend. And yet, you still haven’t successfully completed your flashcards.

Strong Acids. You suck in a deep breath, swerving in between groups of people as you make your way to the cafe. Walking quickly with your head down as the sure fire way of getting to any destination as quickly as possible. Okay Y/N, you got this… HCl, HBr, HI, HClO4… HNO3? You flip the card over and hiss. You were missing one more response. You truly hated it here.

The cafe is bustling with students on their laptops and scribbling away in notebooks, all likely studying for their respective exams. The scent of freshly ground coffee beans pervades the entirety of the interior, drawing you further inward until you’re standing at the cashier. 

“One tall vanilla latte, please.” You hand the girl behind the counter your money and stand aside to let the next person in line order. Once your order is called, you grab your drink - Ah, nothing like a fresh cup of capitalism to revitalize your motivation to study - and search for a place to sit. As if by the grace of God, someone leaves their seat at the barstools just as you turn around. Beautiful.

“Excuse me,” you tap the shoulder of one of the people next to the open seat. “Is this seat taken?” He shakes his head no, and you take that as your signal to sit.

You find yourself sandwiched between two young men, each immersed in their own studies. The one to your right, the one you had talked to briefly, appears to want no further interruptions, both earbuds in his ears. The one to your left never turned around to begin with, head down as he types away at his laptop. All you can make out are his broad shoulders in a brown leather jacket and a mop of strawberry blond hair. An interesting choice of hair color, but you weren’t one to judge. He’s nodding his head to some tune, and it’s only then you realize he has one earbud in. You wonder what kind of music a cute man like himself would listen to -

Get a hold of yourself, Y/N, you chastise yourself for showing sudden interest in a complete stranger. The day before your midterm at that - there was no space in your head for an unknown young man who was probably good looking, too - No! Focus. Flashcards. You fumble in your jacket pocket for your index cards.

Chemistry nomenclature, round fifty-six.

As you’re reviewing, you overhear the conversation proceeding next you with the cute guy and a girl. “Excuse me, is this seat taken?” The familiar words make you think of mere moments before when you were asking the same thing.

“It isn’t, but… you can’t sit there.”

Huh? 

“I’m sorry?” The girl seems to mirror your confusion.

“You can’t sit here. I’m sorry.”

“But someone else can?”

Your flashcards go ignored as you choose to eavesdrop on the full conversation. The man stalls, looking at the girl up and down. “... Yeah, maybe.”

Trying your best to not draw attention to yourself, you turn your head in slow, languid movements to look around. Was anyone else seeing this? Hearing this? Were you the next unsuspecting victim on an episode of What Would You Do? You were half expecting a game show host to step out and introduce himself at any moment. Y/N, you’ve just been Punk’d! 

Unfortunately (or fortunately, you couldn’t decide which scenario was better), no game show host steps out from behind a curtain, and it sinks in that this guy wasn’t joking. He was intent on not letting this girl sit next to him.

“Look,” the girl runs a hand through her hair, a habit of frustration, maybe. “I really need a place to sit and work on things, and this seat is open. That, and it’s a public space. So if you’ll excuse me-”

The young man easily lifts his backpack from his chair with one hand and places it in the open seat. “There. It’s taken now. Sorry.”

The girl’s eyes widen, and you can only imagine what your face looks like right now. You’re in just as much shock as she is. 

You scoff, and this time you don’t care if he hears. And he does: the stranger finally turns around in his seat to reveal an extremely attractive face. Chiseled jawline, deep brooding eyes, dimples even when he was scowling. You freeze and your breath hitches in your throat. It’s a shame he had to go and open his mouth.

“Excuse me,” you cut in sweetly, making a point to only make eye contact with the girl. “You can sit here. I’m about to leave.”

The girl’s eyes go wide at the addition of a third party. “Oh, no, you don’t have to! Thank you so much though.”

You shove your flashcards into your backpack and stand up from the seat. “No no, I insist, it’s fine. Besides, I didn’t want to sit there anymore.” Only then do you shoot a glare at the young man. “I couldn’t focus.”

Judging by the way the girl eyes the strawberry blond next to you, you think she doesn’t want to sit there anymore, either. Nevertheless, a seat was a seat. She thanks you profusely and you head out the doors and down the path to return to the dorms. 

Naturally your mind drifts back to the stranger. Who was he to have so much pride as to deny a seat to someone he didn’t know? A seat that wasn’t his, either? The thought that people like him exist irks you.

He was so good-looking, too, your subconscious proceeds to remind you. 

But alas, a jerk was a jerk, and at the end of the day you had far more important things to worry about than an indecent stranger whom you doubt you would see again. More important things such as -

Your phone rings with an alarm notifying you of your next scheduled event: Final Review B4 Exam! You sigh. Looks like it was back to the books (and flashcards) for you for the rest of the night.

It doesn’t hit you until you crash land into your desk chair: in your anger-fueled exit from the cafe, you had completely forgotten your barely touched vanilla latte sitting at the barstool counter. At this point you’re ready to tear your hair out at the roots. You’re five dollars and one fresh cup of caffeinated capitalism short for the night’s study session. You really hated it here.

If Megan were here, she would whip you into shape real fast, shouting at you that you’re a “Bad Bitch!” or some other expletive motivation that would comfort you. Except Megan isn’t here, attending some kind of club meeting, leaving you alone in the dorm. Another sigh escapes your lips and you tilt your head back to stare at the ceiling. 

Maybe, just maybe, you needed to follow through on this whole “getting emotionally laid” thing.

--

The midterm you had so diligently studied for was a success. Inorganic Chemistry A5 didn’t know what was coming when you rolled up with your beloved flashcards - all successfully completed, mind you - ready to fight. Needless to say you were able to enter the weekend with no qualms. You now had much needed time to recuperate and as Megan had said before, to “take a break” (among other things you were not going to address anytime soon). 

Some students recovered from the trauma of frequent exams via partying, deciding it was better to be under the influence in order to get over their academic standing. Some would meet up with their friends, maybe gossip about the latest episode of the hottest reality TV show. In your case, you decide to binge watch as many k-dramas as humanly possible. While you preferably do so in the comfort of your bed, tonight Megan has taken authoritative control over the dorm room. Meaning, she had a psychology midterm the following Monday and needed to be able to focus on nothing but the role of the amygdala without the OST of whatever drama you were watching in the background. You know for a fact if you were in the room minding your own business Megan would ultimately get distracted and join you in your k-drama marathon. Thus you are thrown to the streets with nothing but the clothes on your back and your belongings stuffed into your backpack.

You take extra care to avoid the puddles forming on the sidewalks, the result of on and off rain throughout the day. There are noticeably less people outside, and you have a feeling that any building you choose to house yourself in will be quite the opposite, likely packed with students. 

After milling about campus for a few minutes, you finally settle down in the Student Community Center - a fancy name for yet another building on campus where students could lounge about and study slash socialize. As predicted, there are significantly more people crowded in the lobby area of the two-story building. Your boots squeak against the tiled floor as you make your way down an inconspicuous hallway. Tile turns to carpeting when you step into an almost empty study room. Only a handful of people are present in the room, scattered across the tables and couches. No one ever bothered to check the rooms at the very ends of the hallways - only those more dedicated to being unbothered ever made it that far - and you were grateful for this as you settled down at one of the open couches.

Hotel Del Luna is the show of choice for the evening, and you cuddle up to the armrest of the couch as you press Play. You had watched this one before, having been forced to do so with Jungkook at its release. Curse him and his admiration for IU - some of the ghost scenes kept you up at night the weeks after watching. You much preferred the more lighthearted slice-of-life k-dramas, but following your phone call with Jungkook you were drawn to the darker show. Call it nostalgia, call it an attempt to relive the happy memories of the past, call it denial of reality, whatever.

You’re two hours into your binge watch when you notice an unfamiliar presence at your side. A boy, and a breathtaking one at that. When he had joined you, you’re not sure, but you catch him glancing at your laptop screen every so often. He doesn’t stick out too much, black hair hidden beneath a black baseball cap and similarly monotone attire with a black hoodie that was definitely way too big for him. Yet no amount of nondescript clothing could cover up his impeccable bone structure. This man had a jawline and a nose bridge that were to die for, and although you haven’t made eye contact with the stranger you’re already feeling self-conscious. There’s no way in hell you’re initiating any sort of interaction with him.

But there’s no need to worry, because the stranger does it for you.

You’re on episode three when there’s a gasp from beside you. “Lee Jun-Ki!” You crane your neck to see the stranger leaning over to watch your laptop screen. The work in front of him - whatever that mess of hieroglyphs and symbols was - is completely forgotten as he scoots closer. 

It’s not until you lean a bit away from him that he realizes his actions. “Oh, sorry. I kinda needed a break from studying or else I was gonna lose it.” His ears turn a bright pink as he explains himself. “Is it okay if I watch with you?”

“Uh…” Now that your full attention is on him, you give the stranger a proper glance-over. He was indeed studying, some sort of language of shapes and numbers that was foreign to you sprawled across his notebook in a variety of colors. Other than the all black attire (which was reasonable for college - wasn’t everyone attending their own funeral during exams season?), he didn’t look too shady… “Sure.”

“Sweet.” He extends a hand to you, pulling back the ginormous sleeve that threatens to hang over his fingers. “My name’s Jungwoo.”

You tentatively take his hand. “Y/N.”

“Nice to meet you Y/N. Are you a first year?”

You nod your head, and Jungwoo smiles. “Cool. Me too.” He moves back to his side of the couch, but quickly scoots back to sit directly beside you after he has shoved all of his work into his backpack. He settles beside you on the couch, slouching down similarly to you. “Alright, let’s do this.”

You crack a smile at the boy’s unabashed boldness. He immerses himself in the episode alongside you, clear adoration in his eyes whenever IU makes an appearance on screen. “You like IU, I take it?”

Jungwoo shakes his head. “Not half as much as one of my friends. He idolizes her. I just... look at her very respectfully.”

“Me too, actually,” you confess. “My friend forced me to watch with him. I usually watch happier things. My favorite is Weightlifting Fairy.”

Jungwoo’s eyes go wide. “I love Weightlifting Fairy!” His theatrical gasp attracts the attention of the few students nearby. This newfound information seems to make something click in Jungwoo’s head, because he wiggles all the more closer to you. “You’re quickly becoming my best friend, Y/N.”

“I’m a friend?” 

“Duh. This was established when you didn’t run away from me in fear when I was quite literally looking over your shoulder. And that’s happened before with other people. Twice.” He seems to feel the need to add in the last few details, much to your amusement. “Now shush. Lemme admire IU in peace.”

--

That interaction with Jungwoo is only the first of many, many more. While you’re the type to keep to yourself and not approach others, Jungwoo was the opposite. You’re only a bit surprised when he yells out your name from across the street a few days later, sprinting towards you with unbridled excitement on his face. The last time someone was that happy to see you was when your dog greeted you after returning home for the holidays.

“Good morning, Y/N! Where you headed? I have Material Sciences in an hour. I got time, so I’ll walk with you wherever you’re going!”

Much like your first encounter, you agree with some hesitance. Jungwoo seemed to not have a bad bone in his body, no ill intentions whatsoever. It was refreshing to be in the presence of someone who wasn’t already jaded by the world. 

As promised, Jungwoo walks with you to your destination, the coffeeshop, even waiting with you in the insufferably long line. You find out that Jungwoo is the same age as you, a Mechanical Engineering major, and is a part of some sort of club that allowed him to connect with upperclassmen of different majors but with similar interests.

“It’s called Nu Kappa Tau, everyone there’s really nice! I’ll bring you with me to the next social event.”

“Nu Kappa Tau?” You test out the syllables on your tongue. “Greek? Are you in... a fraternity?”

Your tone of voice insinuates something bad, and the way Jungwoo reacts quickly tells you he has a similar stance on the Greek life in college. That similar stance being that frat boys were vermin. “No, no no no no. It’s Greek, yes, but we are definitely not a fraternity. It’s more like… a social, cultural, and academic club?”

“Jungwoo. That’s exactly what a fraternity would say to make it seem like it’s not a fraternity.”

“Okay, but in this case we’re actually not a fraternity, I promise.” He tugs on your shirt sleeve and looks at you with pleading eyes. “You should come with me to the next event. It’ll be fun, and I’ll prove to you it’s not a fraternity. Please?”

You remain silent, eyes turning to the coffeshop’s menu. Even when your gaze is somewhere else you can sense the way Jungwoo is staring you down with those puppy dog eyes of his. This was what, the second time you were talking to him, and already he wanted to go to a social event with you? “I don’t know. You’re nice and all, but I’m not the type to warm up to people easily. I’ll have to hang out with you more first. No offense.”

Most people cower at your denials, retreat to more comfortable territory where there’s no fear of rejection. Jungwoo, however, beams at you. “None taken, Miss Y/N. You know why?” He pauses for dramatic effect, quirking an eyebrow in mischief. “Because that wasn’t a no.”

A few people in line crane their necks to peer at the two of you as a resonant smack rings out in the coffeeshop. 

“Ow - Y/N - Ow!” Jungwoo rubs at his upper arm. You know you didn’t hit him hard enough to elicit this sort of dramatic reaction, but it’s what he deserves. 

“You can’t use that logic, Jungwoo,” you scold, bag poised in the air ready for another attack. “The only means of consent is a yes. Say it with me. The only means of consent is a-”

“-Yes, yes, okay! I got it, I’m sorry. I sincerely apologize.”

--

Fast forward two weeks later, and you know Jungwoo a bit too well for your liking. Following your rejection of his offer, Jungwoo goes ahead and makes it a point to see you for at least an hour a day, weekends included, in order for you to “warm up to him.” Some days, it’s lunch shared in the cafeteria between classes. Other days it’s hours upon hours of studying together in the back of the library, you and Jungwoo taking shifts napping while the other crams for their classes. 

He forces - “heavily insists” - you to share your location with him on your phones, so it’s of no surprise to you when he starts showing up outside of your lecture halls after class. It’s when he’s walking you back from your last class of the day that you find that he lives a floor above you in the same building. Of course.

Dare you say it, it’s easy having Jungwoo in your life. He walks with you everywhere, always initiates conversation, and eats as many meals as possible with you - or as many as Megan allows. 

“Hey Y/N,” your roommate greets you with a warm smile which quickly turns into a steely glare when he acknowledges the young man standing by your side. “Ahem. Jungwoo.” 

If Jungwoo was a legitimate candidate for your mission of “getting laid,” Megan would be ecstatic. However, you explain to her that Jungwoo is nothing more than a friend, and suddenly Megan thinks he’s out to take her spot as Y/N’s Best Friend (insert trademark emoji here). 

“Megan, always a pleasure,” Jungwoo croons. If he’s perturbed by your roommate’s aloof greeting, he doesn’t show it, a smile growing on his face. Jungwoo turns to you. “See you at nine?”

You nod. “See you at nine. Bye.”

“Bye.” Jungwoo waves then walks down the hallway to the stairs. You wait until he’s out of sight to turn back to Megan, who has one eyebrow raised.

“What’s going on at nine?” She questions.

A defeated grin makes its way onto your lips. As much as you had been dreading what was to come, you couldn’t deny the excitement building up within you at the thought of something… new, for once in your life. “I’m going to my first party.”

--

Jungwoo, as promised, picks you up from your dorm room later that evening. He texts you an ominous message of i’m outside ur dorm lol for you to find him in the driver’s seat of a car far too expensive for any broke college student to own.

Hesitantly, you hop into the passenger seat and gingerly close the door. You’re not sure who he borrowed this from - or maybe it was a rental? - but you wanted to make sure you took no part in any damage fees he’d pay later. “I thought first years couldn’t have cars on campus.”

“I know. I’m a rule breaker, Y/N. I can’t be stopped… And maybe I borrowed it from a friend.”

Jungwoo insists on manning the aux, which you oblige to as you don’t trust your music taste to be liked by others. Something about the artist name Sergio Rachmaninov didn’t always hit well with the young folk these days. The queue starts up as he pulls out of the parking lot, a bass-boosted R&B song filling the expanse of the lush interior. 

“I’m going to warn you, this music queue is all over the place.” All over the place is correct, because after the R&B song finishes a ballad comes on, followed promptly by the song “Good Time” by Owl City. It’s a good song, a tolerable one, but after the second run, and third run, and even a fourth run you can’t help but wonder if the queue is glitching.

“Jungwoo.” He grunts in response. “Did you mean to put this song on loop?”

He shrugs. “What can I say? It helps me focus.”

You’re really questioning the sanity of the man behind the wheel.

Four and a half plays of “Good Time” (or fifteen minutes) later, you and Jungwoo arrive at your destination.

You audibly gulp. “Jungwoo. You are so in a frat.”

“No I’m not!” The man whines. “I swear!”

You and Jungwoo must not be looking at the same house, because the one you’re looking at is nothing less than a mansion: two stories, covering a wide expanse of vivid green lawn, with pillars on either side of the double-door front entry. Windows line the top and bottom floors, and hedges line the cobblestone walkway in the front. It looks like something out of a Southern period drama with the Victorian, colonial style architecture.

“You sure?” You can’t break your gaze away from the three enormous Greek letters placed above the entryway. “‘Cause no normal house emblazons the symbols of their group name across the front like that.”

As soon as you step foot in the door, you regret your decision to come. “Kim, I think I left something in the car-” 

You’re rudely interrupted by Jungwoo swinging an arm over your shoulder a bit too harshly. 

“Relax,” he reassures you. “My friends don’t bite. Only I do that.” You’re given no time to question that statement before he leads you further into the house.

If there’s one thing you can count on with Jungwoo, it’s his ability to socialize. It seems he knows everyone in the house, proven to you by the way he either nods his head or does a handshake with every individual present. He leads you to the kitchen where two guys are conversing, one looking like an overgrown man child and the other looking like… well, an actual child.

“Hey, look who finally decided to show up,” the much taller boy croons. “And he brought a friend.”

“Johnny, this is Y/N. Y/N, Johnny. He’s in his fourth year.” You shake hands with Johnny, who grins at you. He seems nice, other than the fact that he continues to stare at you through the duration of the handshake. Perplexed, you refuse to break his gaze.

Johnny is the first to look away, turning immediately to Jungwoo. “Oh, I like her. No one has yet to win my staring contest this year, other than you, Y/N. Congratulations.”

You force a laugh. “Thanks?”

Jungwoo steers you to the second boy, this one noticeably shorter - or was he still tall? Anyone standing next to Johnny seemed to be dwarfed in his presence - with dyed blond hair. He has a cap over his head and circle glasses, and you can’t help but think he looks awfully young to be at a frat-but-not-really house party.

“And this is Mark. He’s a fellow first year, but he’s our baby.” Jungwoo coos the last word, making Mark huff. Lowering his voice to a stage whisper, Jungwoo explains, “He was born in 1999, so we have a good year on him.”

You click your tongue. Ah, that explains why he looks so young. You deem Mark to be far more approachable than Johnny and shake the young boy’s hand eagerly.

“Where’s Peaches?” Jungwoo asks Johnny. The older boy shrugs. 

“I dunno. Not my problem.”

“Oh, I don’t think Jaehyun’s coming,” Mark cuts in. “Texted me saying something came up. Something about a paper due. Wait. Didn’t you take his car?” He points to Jungwoo, who shrugs with a look of Whoops, sorry on his face.

Johnny groans. “Oh, shoot. That’s right. We have a paper due tomorrow morning.” As quickly as the realization hits him, the worry is gone. “Eh. It’ll be fine.”

The three boys converse a bit longer, exchanging pleasantries and whatnot, before you and Jungwoo make your departure. The most that comes out of your mouth are feeble courtesy laughs and the occasional sarcastic quip to keep Jungwoo’s chaotic energy at bay. You wait until Jungwoo’s led you away to voice your thoughts. “What kind of name is Peaches?” You repeat.

“Right. One of the upperclassmen got the nickname because he smelled like them his first day of recruitment. Apparently he lives near a peach tree orchard or something. Therefore, he’s Peach Boy.”

You make a mental note of the phrase recruitment your friend uses. One day, you’ll compile a long enough list of evidence proving Nu Kappa Tau was a frat, and the word recruitment was one of them. “So what’s your nickname then?”

“Me? I’m not technically initiated yet,” - did this man use the word initiated? Yet another piece of evidence for the fraternity agenda - “but if I had to choose…” Jungwoo pauses and drums his fingers against his chin. “I’m Cheese Boy.”

You pause, letting his name sink in. The laughter bubbles up within you, threatening to spill out in a snort. It instead comes out as a strong exhale through your nose.

“Whatever, Cheese Boy,” you tease. “How much longer until I can go home?”

--

The next time you see the boys of Nu Kappa Tau is when Jungwoo drags you to yet another one of their events but a few days later. “This one’s right up your alley,” he insists. He also bribes you with the promise of buying your lunch, and the kabob food truck was on campus today, meaning you were eating well this afternoon. Making an appearance at his frat was but a small price to pay for your beloved meal of choice.

Jungwoo’s right - this event is up your alley, because you recognize the route he takes across campus. “The library?”

He nods. “NKT Study Hall.”

As you enter the building Jungwoo pulls you down an unfamiliar corridor then up a flight of stairs. An unspoken farewell is bid to your usual study spot by the second floor window as you continue up, up, up, until finally stopping at the fifth floor where no more stairs remain. You didn’t realize the library went up that high, and you probably frequented the building more than all of the boys combined - not that you knew any of the Kappa Tau boys yet.

Though they do look extremely threatening now that you’re standing in front of them.

Jungwoo brings you to stand in front of him. “Men and Mark Lee-” (“Hey!” Mark complains,) “-I introduce to you my partner in crime, Y/N.”

You give a feeble smile to the young men surrounding the table. You recognize a few of them from the party, Johnny and Mark being the only ones you can put a name to. The two wave to you and you feel a little more welcomed. Aside from the duo, everyone else is unfamiliar, giving you emotionless head nods and scowls.

“Y/N, you know Johnny and Mark, over there’s Lucas, and that’s Sicheng.” You nod at the two of them, who seem nice enough. The latter actually gives you a soft smile, so you consider that a win in your book. “And over at that table is Doyoung, Ten… You know what? I’ll just introduce you to everyone later. Have a seat.”

You trust your friend to guide you to the safest open seat, directly across from another empty chair at one end of the long table. Immediately you pull out your biology notebook and pens, hunkering down and getting to work without further notice. If you couldn’t feel welcomed by the boys at the table, you could at least get some decent studying done. You felt far more familiar with the speciation concepts in front of you than the actual human beings next to you. You allow your head to burrow itself closer to your notebook, dwelling in this small comfort in an environment of unfamiliarities.

The moment of peace doesn’t last long.

“Peaches!” Johnny’s bellowing voice makes you jump in your seat, your beloved biology notes neglected.

“Hey. Sorry I’m late.” Huh. You’ve heard that voice before. You can’t place where you know it from, but it causes a sneer to form on your face. Glancing up from your notes you can’t help the strangled gasp that leaves your lips.

It’s him. You’d recognize that faded pink hair and smugly complacent upturn of lips anywhere. That, and he’s holding a coffee cup that violently catapults you back to the incident from a few weeks ago in the coffee shop. You left your perfectly good vanilla latte behind because he made you mad, that jerk.

“Oh, Jaehyun.” Jungwoo leads the man to the open seat across from you. Pointing to you, he says, “This is Peaches - I mean, Jaehyun. Jaehyun, this is-”

“-Y/N, right?” Jaehyun interrupts with a grin. You lower your eyes at the dimple that forms when he smiles. “I believe we’ve met before.”

Jungwoo looks from your displeased state to Jaehyun’s smug smirk. “Uh, okay. Cool. Well then. I’m gonna go ahead and grab lunch, I’ll be right back.” You watch as Jungwoo beckons Johnny and Mark to join him, the only three familiar faces present at the table now leaving.

Jaehyun leans back in his chair, arms moving to rest behind his head. “Looks like it’s just the two of us.”

You weigh your options. You could recognize that the two of you have indeed met before, and try to get past your differences. Or, you could refuse to acknowledge Jaehyun’s presence a mere few feet across from you at the table and try your best to study until Jungwoo returned with your food, at which point you would then flee the scene as fast as your non-athlete self could. Only one of these outcomes enticed you, and it wasn’t the one that involved talking. 

“So, Y/N,” Jaehyun leans forward. The width of the table is enough to keep him at a safe distance from you, yet he’s still close enough to invade your personal space somehow. It’s suffocating, how whatever musky cologne he’s wearing wafts over to you - he smells nothing like peaches. “How’s your day been?”

“Fine.” You keep your eyes glued to your biology notes. Allopatric Speciation occurs when two populations of the same species become isolated from one another due to-

“Aw, just fine? That’s it?” His voice is low. With Jungwoo, Johnny, and Mark out getting food, you’ve been isolated at one end of the table with Jaehyun. Lucas and Sicheng are present as well, but both seem to be deeply immersed in their own studies. It’s just the two of you.

“Yep.” Allopatric Speciation occurs when two populations of the same species-

“C’mon, I’m sure someone like you has had at least one interesting thing happen today.”

Allopatric Speciation occurs when - Someone like you? What was that supposed to mean? You sigh, but refuse to look up from your notes. Allopatric Speciation-

“Are you a first year? I took that class last year. If you ever want notes or something-” Jaehyun jumps a little when you slam the notebook shut. Good. Serves him right.

“I don’t like you, Jaehyun.”

Jaehyun tilts his head, a smirk tugging at the end of his lips. “You don’t even know me.”

“I know enough.”

He leans in by resting his forearms on the table, leveling his gaze with yours. “I don’t think you do.”

“You know what I think? I think you’re distracting me.”

Jungwoo comes back at the most opportune time, wielding a kabob skewer in each hand - one untouched and the other halfway eaten. “One chicken kabob for Y/N.”

Deeming the conversation with Jaehyun at its end, you stand up from your seat and grab your backpack from the table. Jaehyun fixes you with an intense gaze but remains silent. Whether he was sizing you up or not you didn’t care.

The tension is palpable at the table, and Jungwoo clears his throat. “Did I interrupt something?” 

“No,” you respond quickly. Grabbing your food from Jungwoo, you give him an apologetic smile. “Something came up. I gotta go. Sorry, Kim. See you tomorrow?”

You despise this man. You don’t even know Jaehyun - he is nothing but a familiar stranger - but you despise him. Him and his ethereal appearance. Why were the terrible ones always the ones blessed with above average looks? Why’d he have to open his mouth?

“Wait.” You do not, in fact, wait, but instead continue marching forward. It’s not until the figure stands right in front of you do you stop. It’s Jaehyun. Holding your biology notebook in the air. “Don’t want to leave anything behind. Like last time, right?”

The last few words out of his mouth have your blood boiling and your fists clenching at your sides. That explained the foreign lightness of the bag on your shoulder.

“Oh, right, the vanilla latte.” You fake a cordial laugh. “You mean the time I was so desperate to get away from your insufferable presence that I left behind a perfectly good coffee? The time when you treated that girl as if she wasn’t a human being? That time you couldn’t be a decent enough human being that you were that disrespectful to someone you didn’t even know?” 

Jaehyun stands before you with an astonished smile and a hand frozen in the air. You pluck the notebook out of his grasp and stride away before he has a chance to respond.

“I’ll see you around, Y/N,” Jaehyun calls.

“I’ll see you around my ass,” you mutter under your breath. You’re willing to go out of your way to avoid interactions with Jaehyun, no matter what it takes.

a/n 2: hope you enjoyed part one of this series! it’s been a while since i last posted a fic on here so i apologize for my rusty writing skills. part 2 is projected to be posted in one week from now, but that’s tentative. we’ll see where life takes me and if i have the capacity to post in a week from now. in the meantime: stay safe! 💕

[tuanhood]

alpha

pairing: frat!im jaebeom x reader 

genre: lil bit of everything. lil smut, lil angst, maybe lots of fluff, established relationship

warnings: language, cringey frat stuff, public(??) fingering

word count: 4,200+

summary: your boyfriend’s frat doesn’t allow dating outside of greek life. hence the reason you two have had to sneak around for ten months... and hence the reason you’ve somehow found yourself stuck and hiding in a closet. 

a/n: wow long time no see! sorry for the delay, I’m really busy/stressing about dissertation stuff lately so updates and writings aren’t going to be frequent. but I really wanted to write this for ya’ll real quick to have SOMETHING, but yeah it’s not edited and NOT very good bc of the quickness. But I hope ya’ll will forgive me :) 

lambda | delta | gamma | kappa | theta | sigma

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When you woke up this morning, you really didn’t think you would end up in a closet at the Alpha Sigma Phi house.

The space is cramped, dark and a little smelly. Judging by the odor, you guessed that this was the closet that the boys in the house used to throw garbage in whenever they had to “clean” the house. Maybe this situation would have been a little bit better if you had been pushed into the closet that’s on the second floor – that way there would be less garbage and less boy smell. But who were you kidding? There would be a boy smell regardless.

In theory though you really shouldn’t be stuck in a closet at a frat house thinking about which closet you’d rather be in. What had your life become lately?

“Just a little bit longer, okay?” You heard Jaebeom utter through the door. It instinctively made you roll your eyes. The tone of his voice was so nonchalant, as if you weren’t stuck in a small space. But of course, he was on the other side of the door in fresh air, with as much space to roam around as he pleased – he didn’t understand “just a little bit longer” was triggering.

As much as you lo- liked Jaebeom… you weren’t sure if you would be able to hide in small spaces for the entirety of your relationship.

Babe it’s not for our entire relationship… Just until we graduate.

When he had first said that you didn’t really think about the bigger picture. All you had thought about was how happy he made you and how much you loved being with him. And that was the most important thing to you. But lately the sneaking around and the hiding had been a little too much for you – you weren’t sure if you could keep it up for another year… It had already been 10 months and you were at your wits end. Every time you wanted to sit down to have the conversation with Jaebeom – the one where you tell him it’s either the end of hiding or the end of your relationship – he’d give you those eyes, that smile and it would be completely wiped from your thoughts.

Damn Im Jaebeom. You think you fucking love him.

“Jae…” you grumbled, hitting your head against the door a bit. It had already been what… a half hour?

You heard him shush you and another voice emerged from the other side of the door. “Hey man, any particular reason you’ve been standing here?” Jaebeom’s nervous laughter is a giveaway, you just hope that Yugyeom doesn’t pick up on it. “No reason… just… like the space over here… It’s good party watching space.”

There’s silence and you pressed your ear up to the door further, hoping to hear something. You jumped back when you heard your boyfriend’s panicked voice, “what are you doing?”

Yugyeom snorted, “Dude chill… I’m just getting more cups from the closet.”

“Uh… Let me! I’ll get them!”

“What?”

“Yeah no worries dude, I didn’t really do anything to help prep for the party so I might as well get some fucking cups from the closet,” Jaebeom chuckled, his voice shifting to a more normal tone, “to be honest I didn’t really even know this was happening tonight… otherwise…” He drifted off, mumbling the last part to himself. You know he’s referencing the fact that the two of you thought the house would be empty – many of the guys typically going out to a local bar on Thursdays, but to your surprise as you crossed the main foyer in the house, the front door opened with most of the guys in the frat piling through. That led to your push into the closet.

“Yeah well… Red Room was closed because apparently they have a rat problem. I feel like that’s a bunch of bullshit. I mean we go there every week… we would have noticed if there was a rat problem.”

“Maybe they were just good at hiding it.”

There’s a lull in silence and Yugyeom clicked his tongue, as if he thinking deeply about something, “but I guess you wouldn’t know… You really don’t go out with us on Thursdays anymore…” As much as you liked the guys in Jaebeom’s frat – from stories you’d heard through your boyfriend of course – it seemed like they were often pretty slow when it came to certain things. If Yugyeom was starting to get skeptical and began piecing things together then surely the rest of the guys would too.

“Let me get you guys those cups.”

Taking a small step back, you turn to the shelf on your right, finding the red cups almost immediately through the dimmed closet. As the door cracks open slightly, your boyfriend’s long arm appears in the small space, gesturing around – clearly looking for the cups.

“Dude what are you doing?” Yugyeom asked.

“I know where the cups are so why should I go in all the way and get claustrophobic?” You have to cover your mouth to stop yourself from laughing at Jaebeom’s fake explanation.

Yes, because why would anyone ever want to be stuck inside of a closet? Rolling your eyes – happy he can’t see – you thrust the cups forward into his wandering hand. You swear you hear him grunt at your force.

The cups and his hand disappeared along with the small sliver of light that comes from the door being open. “Well… here you go… the cups you wanted.” There’s another pause and you wished you could see what was going on – to know if Yugyeom was buying how uncharacteristically strange Jaebeom was being or if he was still suspicious.

“You should leave your creepy party watching spot and actually join the fun, ya know? Some of the girls from Theta are going to be by soon and I know Amanda’s been asking a lot about you lately.”

Yugyeom’s mention of another girl makes your skin crawl and you’re almost ready to pounce out of the closet and call it a day, but instead you clenched your fists and waited to hear your boyfriend’s response.

“Nah man… I’m good.”

“Come on… how long has it been since you last had any action? I’m pretty sure Amanda would be down to hook up tonight.” Instinctively you felt your hand go to the doorknob, gripping it tightly.

To your dismay Jaebeom says nothing in response and your mind starts running wild thinking about possible nonverbal responses he could have communicated to Yugyeom – perhaps one of them being “yeah I’ll totally bang Amanda tonight.”

And you know what… maybe he should. Maybe it’d be better for him to be with someone he can actually walk around campus with. To be with someone he could actually introduce to his friends. You weren’t any of those things.

The circumstances of your relationship with Jaebeom had been complicated from the beginning. The two of you had met in a random general ed class you were both forced to take for a stupid credit. Never in your life did you think you were going to meet your next boyfriend in “Comparative Post-Communist Politics.” The two of you had the lowest scores in the class and found yourselves bonding over your almost failing midterm grades, but luckily the two of you had passed the course. Thank god for the grading curve.

It had started just that simply – two people who were “class friends.” Nothing more, nothing less. You’d sit next to each other every lecture and laugh over how dumb you both were, but never made efforts to hang out after class or even study together in preparation for exams. It wasn’t until the final day of class that Jaebeom had asked you to get drinks. His request shocked you as you had figured that just like most “class friends” you two would part ways and never see each other again except for the occasional pass by on campus where each of you would squint and wonder how do I know that person? Were they in that one class I took that one time?

You were perhaps even more shocked when you agreed to go.

From then on, the two of you talked about things besides class and got to know each other on a more personal level. You had already known some very basic things about him – such as his affiliation with the Greek system – but soon enough Jaebeom was pouring his heart out to you, and you to him. Both of you admitted that you had never felt this comfortable with someone before.

It was probably you fifth- or sixth-time getting drinks at a secluded place downtown when Jaebeom revealed to you how much he liked you. You felt your heart leap out of your chest and just as you were about to reveal your own confession, he hit you with a “but…”

“but… I can’t technically date you. My frat’s chapter is really strict about dating outside of Greek life. When I was a pledge, they told me that they’ve kicked guys out for going out with girls who aren’t affiliated.”

In any other situation you would have gotten up and said “no thank you” to whoever the guy was, not wanting to waste your time on anything or anyone who prioritized some stupid brotherhood over their feelings for you. But this was Jaebeom… The Jaebeom that you had grown close to over such a short period of time and had told you how much Alpha Sigma Phi meant to him. He had grown up an only child and spent much of his younger years feeling lonely, which was what made him want to rush the frat. He wanted the close experience and to have strong loyalty and ties with the other members – just like with real brothers.

“We can make it work. I really like you too Jaebeom… I’m willing to try this and figure something out…”

At the time… you weren’t sure what “figure something out” really meant – especially since you weren’t supposed to be seen together by literally anyone. Most people on campus knew someone who knew someone that was in Alpha Sig and if anyone saw the two of you together, you’d risk it getting back to the guys at the house. Which was why for 10 months the two of you had been dating in secret – him coming over to yours almost every night and you sneaking over to the house every Thursday when the guys were usually gone until the early hours.

You felt like you were fighting back tears at the thought of Jaebeom with someone else, but maybe it was what was right. You deserved to not be a secret forever – you were in a closet for godssake – and Jaebeom deserved to be with the perfect sorority girl that he could take wherever he wanted without the risk of getting kicked out of his second home. Tightly shutting your eyes, you attempted to stop yourself from crying, but somehow it makes it worse with the first drop rolling down your cheek slowly.

“Baby? Are you crying?”

It’s then that you realized the door had been cracked open once again, Jaebeom looking behind him before slipping in with you, shutting the door tightly. It occurred to you how pathetic you must look, crying in a dim, cramped closet at a frat house.

Quickly, you tried to wipe the tears of your cheek and hiccupped slightly, “N-no I’m not crying. It’s just my allergies with all the dust in here.”

“You don’t have allergies…” He positioned himself closer to you, bringing his own hand up to your face to rest it on your cheek, feeling the wet trails your tears had left behind, “what’s wrong?” Biting your lip, you don’t say anything in the hopes that he’ll drop the subject. Jaebeom knows you well enough to know when you want to move on and not address a topic, but this time he can’t find it in himself to just let it go.

“Y/N tell me.”

The way his thumb continued to gently caress your cheek back in forth, makes you want to close your eyes and pretend you’re anywhere else besides here in this closet having this conversation. You’d rather be with your boyfriend in a place far away from here where you don’t have to hide and you don’t have to worry about perceptions.

“I was just thinking about what Yugyeom said about the girl from Theta.”

“Baby… I would never go behind your back and do something with her-”

You sighed deeply and felt your stomach drop as you kept wedging your way further and further into the conversation you had once been wanting to have. Not seeing his sparkling eyes and that look in bright light made the words somewhat easier to get out. “I know you would never do that… I just think sometimes maybe it’s best if you had someone you could actually be seen with.”

Jaebeom doesn’t say anything, because it’s at that moment he feels his own stomach churn and feel sick. Making out your saddened face in the dark closet and listening to your words he realizes what he’s done. The way you had said “if you had someone you could actually be seen with” as if there was something wrong with you. As if you were less then. He wanted to kick himself for making you feel like that when it was in fact his fault and his own issues that stopped the two of you from being together publicly. Was brotherhood really so important to him when he was at risk of losing the person he loves?

Loves.

Reality hit him again.

“No,” Jaebeom finally said shaking his head, “I don’t want anyone else. I only want you and I’m sorry for making you feel like this. You’ve been so willing to hide this just because I’m a fucking idiot… because you understand how much this all meant to me.”

“Meant?”

He delicately brings his hands to rest at your waist, leaning close enough forward until you can feel his breath on your face, “I have something in my life that’s more important than getting kicked out of a stupid frat. I-I love you Y/N.”

You don’t answer him for a moment and he feels like he’s going to collapse at first from your lack of response. He wonders if maybe he had read the last 10-months completely wrong or if you had finally had enough with his bullshit and he was just too late. Jaebeom feels all of these worries and doubts fade away when you lean forward to press your lips against his. “I love you too,” you mumbled against his lips and you felt your boyfriend smile, his grip tightening on your waist and bringing you even closer to his body until you’re flush against one another.

You felt one of his hands drift down from your waist to the hem of your skirt, slowly caressing your thigh and slipping itself underneath the material until it’s hitched up above his hand. Removing yourself from his lips, you let out a lustful sigh to let him know how much you want him to do what he’s thinking about doing. As he rests his forehead against yours, he looks down between your two bodies, his hand going to your panties, gently playing with the waistband – snapping it back and forth gently to tease you.

“Do you want me to take back that I love you?” You asked playfully.

Jaebeom laughed, “you wouldn’t dare.”

Just as you’re about to respond with a bratty “try me,” you feel him dip his hand underneath the now damp material. He smiled at your caught off guard reaction. His fingers brushed your core, his index finger moving along your slit as he gathered your juices on his finger before he brought it to his lips and sucked them gently. You watched him in the dim light and felt yourself somehow grow more wet than before. He moved his fingers back down, his thumb pressing up against your clit and you felt yourself suck in a breath at the feeling, before two of his digits pushed into your completely. With the small amount of space, you had, you lifted your hips in an effort to get more of him inside of you and he chuckled at the action.

“We have all night baby girl, don’t worry. I take care of you, always.”

You exhaled at the feeling of his thumb massaging your clit and his fingers began to pump into you at a slow rhythmic pace. He watched you for a moment wondering how he got so lucky before returning his lips back to yours.

A groan arose in your throat and against Jaebeom’s lips as he curled his middle finger into you, hitting that spot that always made you so weak and you feel your thighs begin to twitch as you near your high. Sometimes it amazed you how quick he could make you reach your release, but he already knew everything else about you so well it shouldn’t come as a surprise that he would excel at this as well.

When he picked up the pace of his fingers fucking into you, continuing to hit your g-spot each time, you felt yourself quickly come apart and your walls clench around his fingers tightly. You dropped your head down to his shoulder and felt like there wasn’t any breath left in your body as you rode out the waves of your orgasm, Jaebeom making sure not to overstimulate you and slowing his fingers down. When he finally removes his hand from you, you feel so empty almost like your body just wants to be that close to him all the time – not even in a sexual way.

When you finally feel strong enough, you bring your head off of Jaebeom’s shoulder and wrap your hands around his neck tightly, bringing him in for another kiss.

“I love you.”

“I love you too. I never want to stop saying it and I never want to stop hearing it.”

With arms still around his neck, you gently play with the hair at his nape. You feel happier than you’ve felt in a long time – which was saying something considering how happy your boyfriend had made you the past 10 months.

“Should we get out of this closet?” Jaebeom asked with shut eyes, feeling relaxed every time he’s under your touch.

“Now? You want everyone to see us now?”

He shrugged, “They’re going to find out either way so might as well just do it now. I just hope they give me time to get my stuff before they kick me out.” You feel yourself frown at his candor and the thought of Jaebeom losing the sense of belonging he had gained from being in Alpha Sig, but you remember his previous assurances. You had one another and everything was going to be fine.

Just as you’re about to respond to him, you’re interrupted by a sudden emergence of light into the closet signaling the opening of the door. You and Jaebeom both freeze when you see Yugyeom and some of the other brothers behind him.

“Can you two just come out already?”

It’s almost as though both you and your boyfriend had forgotten all of your words. Instead you stare at one another with wide eyes.

“We’re tired of all this waiting. Just come out and introduce us to your girlfriend already man,” Yugyeom whined.

This was embarrassing. Had they been… listening?

“Listen ‘Gyeom I know you chose today’s date in the pool, but that doesn’t mean you win the bet,” one of the guys from behind him said.

Yugyeom lets out a large groan and turns to the member, “what? Why not? I chose today and he was going to do it today! I swear!”

“Yeah but you ruined it by opening the door! You pretty much made the whole thing void… Haven’t you heard of like… not ruining the controlled variable in the experiment or whatever the fuck?”

“The controlled variable was the door? That doesn’t make sense. You’re as dumb as a bag of bones dude,” Yugyeom snorted, turning back to you and Jaebeom. It’s then that you feel relief as Jaebeom finally cleared his throat to say something to the many pairs of eyes fixated on you both, “can you guys please explain to me what’s going on here?”

Yugyeom rolled his eyes at Jaebeom as if it was the most obvious thing in the world to understand, “we had a bet going for when you would finally tell us about your secret girlfriend… Who to be honest isn’t really a secret. I sit next to Y/N’s friend in Econ… class friends ya know.”

You felt your mouth go dry. If they knew about Jaebeom dating an unaffiliated girl this entire time why did they let it play out for so long? Why didn’t they say something to him and make him break up with you or kick him out of the frat? Were they trying to torture the two of you for the longest amount of time possible?

It’s then when you really take in each member of Alpha Sig’s face and you see no malice or disgust at the fact that you’re not a non-affiliate. They almost seemed… happy.

You felt Jaebeom take his head into yours and he sighs once more before looking back to the guys, “listen… Y/N is my girlfriend and has been for the last 10 months… I’ve put her through so much shit and made her sneak around which she did willingly because of how amazing she is. I’ve never felt so loved and cared for by someone before and I can’t put her through more shit that’s going to make her feel less then she is. I love her and I’m sorry you guys can’t accept that. I can be out of here by tomorrow.”

As Jaebeom goes to move the two of you out of the closet, Yugyeom places his hand up causing you both to stop in your tracks.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Jaebeom looks to you and then back to Yugyeom, “the rule… that we’re not allowed to date anyone who’s not affiliated. When we were pledges they told us they’ve kicked guys out for breaking the rule… remember?”

The boys in front of Jaebeom all look at him blankly until Yugyeom begins to laugh, the rest of the guys following him until you have approximately 6 frat guys laughing in your faces. Looking at your boyfriend his eyebrows are furrowed. You can’t tell if he’s confused at their reaction or annoyed.

It takes a moment for Yugyeom and the boys to finally stop laughing, “Jae… are you joking? Is that why you haven’t introduced her to us? Because of that stupid rule?”

“Yeah…”

Coming closer, Yugyeom placed his hand on Jaebeom’s shoulder, “Dude… that rule is not real. They’ve never kicked anyone out over dating someone who’s unaffiliated. Sure, the upperclassmen then didn’t want us to date someone not in an org, but they would have never made us leave… That kinda goes against the whole brotherhood thing. Besides, now we’re the upperclassmen and we just care that we’re all happy. You included.”

You felt like you could run a marathon at the amount of energy and feelings coursing through your body. You wanted to hug all of the semi-strangers in front of you, but also you wanted to hit Jaebeom for thinking that rule was a real thing when it was in fact… apparently not. In the back of your head, you make a mental note to lecture him on next time it never hurts to ask questions before you get into a secret 10-month relationship that might not need to be a secret.

“Thanks guys,” Jaebeom smiled at his brothers, with his hand still holding onto yours, caressing your smooth skin with his thumb.

“Now let’s continue this party, shall we?” Yugyeom yelled loudly as the rest of the guys cheer back in response, most of them heading back to the main living space until it’s just you, Jaebeom and Yugyeom.

The younger boy shakes his head, “I still can’t believe you were in that closet the entire time… which reminds me. I am never going in there again after the actions that occurred in there,” you felt your face grow hot at his admittance that he had heard or at least knew what had happened in the closest just moments before his grand entrance.

“I still can’t believe you knew the entire time and didn’t say anything!” You whined.

“I was expecting you to jump out as soon as I mentioned Amanda… That’s why I brought it up. Which by the way man,” Yugyeom turned to Jaebeom, “none of the girls at Theta give a shit about you.”

“That’s totally okay. There’s only one girl I want to give a shit about me,” Jaebeom smiled proudly placing his arm around you in front of Yugyeom and everyone else at the party. He relishes in how comfortable it feels to finally be like this with you in front of some of the most important people in his life. Besides you of course.

You hummed in delight and nuzzled your head against his arm, into his shoulder, “She doesn’t just give a shit about you. She kind of loves you too.”

“Just kind of?”

“Nah with her full heart.”

[kookoosbunnynose]

Ch.1 || Ch.2

Pairing: Neighbor!Jungkook/FWB!Jungkook x Artist!Reader

Genre: Slowburn, Smut, Angst, Humor

Word Count: 11.4k

Warnings: Cursing | Slutty Jimin, we love him | mentions of emotional abuse | large jungcock | dom!jungkook | dom/sub themes |a singular use of a sir kink | dirty talk, lots | oral (f recieving) | he so gentle uwu, and then he’s very not gentle lmao

Summary: You’re an art student in need of a partner for your new collaboration piece, who is there to help you but your new neighbor, Jeon Jungkook. You two paint together but leave with much more than a colorful canvas.

A/N: Hello! I know! Dumb bitch finally updated the fic lmao. but i’m really excited about this part and even more excited for the rest of the fic. If you haven’t read chapter 1 yet go read it! 

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

Thankfully, even though you didn’t get to bed by the time you wanted last night, after the whole ‘y/n is a dumbass and got locked out’ debacle, you woke up with enough time to take it slow this morning. Mornings like these were your favorite, no rush. Just you sitting at your vanity getting ready for your day, jamming along to whatever song comes on your shuffle, using various items as a makeshift microphone.

You’re in the heat of Colors by Halsey when there’s a knock at your door, you abruptly cut off your poorly tuned melody, feeling caught. You quickly finish the eyebrow you’re working on as you don’t want the person at the door to see you with the one and a half you’re currently sporting. Good enough.

You rush to your front door, careful not to let your fluffy socks make you slip on the linoleum. When you open the door only to be greeted by your fluffy haired neighbor. He looks good in the morning too? Well that’s just fucking peachy. You’re making this difficult Jeon.

“Good morning.” You smile trying to hide how distraught you are.

“Good morning, sorry to bug you” he smiles sheepishly. “I was just hoping I could steal an egg from you? We’re out.” He asks hopeful.

“Oh, yeah of course. Just a second.” You turn on your heels to grab an egg from the kitchen. When your face is hidden by the fridge door you take a second to take a deep breath before making your way back to him. “Just one?” You ask when you hand it to him.

“Yeah one’s good, thank you y/n.” He gives you a small bow and opens his door. “See you later.”

---

“Hello gorgeous.” Yoongi says as your trio approaches the counter.

“Morning handsome.” Jimin smirks and steps in front of you.

“I was talking to y/n.”

“Her?” He looks over his shoulder at you. “While I’m here? That doesn’t sound right.” He scrunches his nose as if he’s doing mental math.

“I’ll just get your usual started.” He says leaning to the side so he can see your face.

“Thank you.” You laugh at them swipe your card and take the blueberry muffin he slides your way. You step to the side and wait for your boys to order their drinks.

“Remind me why we still come here.” Joon asks the two of you as you make your way to the pick-up end of the counter.

“Because we’ve been doing it since we started uni. We’re old and stuck in our ways, Joonie. There’s no backing out now.” You reply woefully.

“What are we? Boomers? We can go to a different coffee shop.” Namjoon furrows his brows.

“Order for Sweets!” A now familiar boxy smiled boy behind the counter says.

“Oh no we can’t. Not anymore.” Jimin says his attention caught by Tae.

“Look who wants to fuck the neighbors now!” You whisper yell at them before stepping toward the counter.

“Ha! You admit it!- Wait, neighbor?” You hear Jimin behind you.

“Hi Tae! Thank you.”

“Hello y/n!” He smiles and leans in to make his voice hushed. “If you don’t mind me asking, are you and Yoongi a thing? He covers like half your bill and calls you pet names everyday.” He lists off the, admittedly odd, circumstances of your relationship. 

“Oh, no we’re not. We just flirt back and forth. I think if he had any real intention behind it he would’ve asked me out by now, in my experience he’s pretty straight forward.” You chuckle.

“Ah okay. Would you want him to ask you out?”

“I did in the beginning but it’s been well over a year. As far as he goes, I’m sated with just the flirting.” 

“Ah, I see.” He turns away to grab the next two cups. “Orders for Jimin and Namjoon!” He calls over.

“Why do you ask?”

He pauses for a second. “I was just curious, he’s kinda like that with a couple girls but you seem to be his favorite.”

“Well it’s been a while, seniority I guess.” You shrug and your counterparts join you at the counter. “Oh how rude of me, these are my roommates. This is Taehyung.”

“Ah, nice to meet you, I’ll probably be seeing you guys a lot. I’m across the hall pretty often.” You all chuckle. “I wish I could talk longer but I don’t want to hold up the line, see you!” He smiles. 

The three of you give various forms of a goodbye as you leave to find your usual table. 

“Okay, is no one gonna say it?” Jimin says once you’re seated and safely out of ear shot.

“Say what?” Namjoon asks scrunching his face at his hot coffee.

“What do you mean ‘say what?’” Jimin says blinking slowly at your brother. “What is in those boys’ cheerios?” 

“Fiber?”

“No! You fucking tree!” 

“Y/n really? Now he’s calling me that, too?” You shrug.

---

You take a breath in as you walk into the art studio, the smell of paint and pencil lead tickling your nose. You take your usual seat at a large table and check your phone for your list of assignments. The professor sends you a large list of all the assignments at the beginning of the semester. Giving students the freedom to choose what order they do them in, the only stipulation is that you must have half turned in by midterms and the other half by the end of the semester. A much more doable lesson plan than a lot of your past professors. Being forced to be creative is draining and doesn’t get you far.

You scan down the list of possibilities until you find one that catches your eye. Monochromatic self portrait (any color)? No. Pretend you have synesthesia and illustrate your favorite song? Eh, not today. Collaboration piece? Ugh, I can’t even if I wanted to. I need to find someone to work with. Create 5 random custom colors and paint a landscape using only those colors (5”x5”)? Sounds like I could get that done before I leave. Perfect.

You pop in your earbuds and get to work. Deciding acrylic would be best for a quick painting, you grab a pallet and a sizable glob of each of the primary colors along with black and white. A little red here, a little yellow there, and some white for this one. You continue putting in different combinations until you have five colors you’re happy with not worrying if they’ll make sense for scenery. Fuck it. Who says trees can’t be purple? 

As you dip your brush into your small selection of paints and watch the way the colors glide onto the canvas, it makes a sense of ease wash over you. Breathing life into a piece no matter how simple creates a new little reality in it’s own right. Expands our universe one brush stroke at a time. In the least cringy art kid way possible, of course.

You continue your work, mouthing along to your music as you go. Rust tinted grass and a peachy sky coming together in a way that definitely isn’t realism but ends up having a sunset feel due to the warm hues you chose. Just a few touch ups here and there and you’re done.

You pack up your things and head home with your new little creation to dry completely overnight. It’s already mostly dry but the textured parts still have a way to go. 

---

  “I really need to go grocery shopping. Thank you again, y/n.” Bunny teeth shining as he leaves your apartment with a mug of tea in place of the hot water he showed up with.

Today is day… eight? Of a new routine has developed over the course of the week. Everyday without fail, whether it be morning or evening, an egg or a cup of milk. Jungkook comes over and asks for a small food item, thanks you, and returns home. No big deal, but it’s apparent that those idiots really need to restock their fridge. It’s like having a stray cat that comes around every night after you feed it once. A really big stray cat… with pretty hair, and a cute lip mole, that always smells like fresh laundry and citrus… anyway-

Time to officially start the day and pretend that little mental tangent didn’t just happen. Go team!

You finish doing some light makeup and throw on some ripped mom jeans and a black hoodie. Enough effort to look like you care, but still comfy. You throw your bag over your shoulder, slip your boots on and head out the door.

Finding parking on campus at this time of day is a nightmare and usually takes longer than just walking since you live just off school grounds. So you make your short walk and stop by the cafe by yourself. You usually go alone only once a week; there’s only one day where you’re the only one of your roomies to have a morning class. 

You order, give Tae his morning hello and make your way to class. 

Classes pass with relative ease. You listen and take notes; taking notes more so meaning doodling along the margins of your notebook than anything else. Really putting those scholarships to good use. 

Art history, meeting with the theater department about painting props, studio, home. 

You enter your apartment and are met with Jimin and Namjoon sitting on the couch about to start the obligatory bi-monthy screening of Your Name. 

“Hey! Were you gonna start the movie without me?” You kick off your shoes and take a running leap onto your spot on the couch.

“No! We were waiting for you, we’re not monsters.” Namjoon retorts in defense.

“That’s exactly what someone who wasn’t waiting for me would say.” You narrow your eyes at your little brother at the other end of the couch.

“Would you two stop bickering for two seconds. It’s starting.” Jimin puts a hand over both your mouths from his spot between you.

“Sheesh, grumpy pants.” You grumble when he lowers his arms.

The movie is filled with the same sobs and ‘awe’s that it always is, always ending in tears for at least one of you. Breathtaking animation coupled with a heart wrenching story, no matter how many times you watch it, it never fails to amaze. As much as you would’ve loved more closure at the end of the movie, the ambiguous ending couldn’t be more poetic. 

“Joonie, what would you do if we switched bodies?” You turn to your brother as the credits roll.

“Probably get a discounted coffee.” He deadpans.

“Oh, you’re no fun!”

“More money in my bank account sounds very fun.” 

Your retort cut off by a knock at the door from your neighbor for his daily snack, so you settle for throwing the pillow sitting in your lap in his direction as you stand. Which he tries to swat away only to end up with a faceful of cushion. Ha, get got bitch.

“Do you need an egg?” You say as you open the door.

“Uh- No I’m good? Thank you for asking.” Tae chuckles, you freeze your eyes widening.

“Oh my god, I thought you were Jungkook.” You let out a stiff laugh and shuffle your feet in embarrassment. “Anyway, what brings you all this way?” You joke, attempting to alleviate a bit of the blush on your cheeks.

“I just wanted to see if you’d wanna chill with us tonight? We had a lot of fun last time. Nothing special, but I wanted to see if you were up for it.” He smiles. “You guys are more than welcome to join too if you’d like!” He shouts over your shoulder at the boys sitting on the couch when he notices them sitting there.

“Nah we’re good Jimin and I have a test in the morning, and if I don’t force him to study with me he’ll fail.” Namjoon says from the couch

“I would not!” Jimin turns to him offended.

“Okay, I’ll study alone then.”

“No, please help me.” He deflates.

“See.” Joon smirks. “Thank you for the offer though!” He calls over to Tae.

“No problem, next time?”

“Next time.” He echoes.

“I’ll hold you to it.” He points a slender finger in your brother’s direction. “What about you, y/n? Are you down?” He directs his attention back to you.

“Right now?”

“If that works for you, Kook will be back from work shortly, it’ll just be Hobi and I for a little bit.” 

“Yeah, sounds good to me.” You smile. “Just let me go grab a couple things real quick and then I’m good to go!”

You scurry to your bedroom and take a look at yourself in the mirror, evaluating the damage the day has done to your makeup. Not bad. You give the apples of your cheeks a quick squeeze to bring back a little color, scramble to find your tinted lip balm, and fluff up your hair a little. There we go. Cute. Now to find something to bring with me so this little panicked face check isn’t a complete lie. Phone charger is good.

With your phone charger in hand and a revived complexion you head back out. 

“Thanks for waiting.” Tae gives you a nod and you smile while you give your boys a wave as you walk out the door.

You walk into the boys apartment and are immediately greeted by a wagging Bread who you kneel to give a plethora of loves, giggling when he hops up and tries to kiss your face.

“Hey y/n!”

“Hey Hobi!” You say as you follow Tae over to the couch with Bread right on your heels. 

“Glad you decided to join us. Kook will be here soon, he left work not long ago.” 

“I gave her the run down before we came over.” Tae smiles.

“How have classes and shit been?” You ask them

“Not ideal. I pulled a muscle in my leg.” Hobi rubs his calf. “With a big performance coming up on friday, but the show must go on, you know.” He shrugs.

“Oh shit dude, will you be okay?”

“He does this at least once a semester.” Tae says waving it off, used to his friend pushing through his injuries. 

“Yeah, it sucks for a bit but I’ll have some wiggle room to rest after this test.” He reassures.

“Okay good, just don’t die.” You chuckle.

“I’ll try not to.” He laughs.

“I’ve been doing a few surveys for my psych classes, would you mind if I get some data from you?” Tae looks to you, taking full advantage of the small lull in conversation.

“Tae no.” Hobi’s face falls and he rubs his temples.

“Do you find Chuck E. Cheese fuckable?” He asks, a genuine question mark in his eyes.

You blink. “What the hell kind of psych classes are you taking?”

“Just answer the question, y/n.”

You look at Hobi for some sort of answer, though you’re not even sure what your question is. “You’re gonna have to just answer him, he’s been on about it all day.” 

“Fucking of course not. Why on earth would I want to fuck a rat? And even if I did, why would I want to fuck a robotic rat roughly the size of an entire kindergarden class?” 

“First of all, he’s a mouse.” Tae corrects. “Second of all, THANK YOU!” He throws his arms up and flops against the back of the couch. “One kid in my class started this somehow and the room was surprising split. About forty percent of the people in that room said ‘Charles Entertainment Cheese’ was sexy! It got pretty heated, people were yelling that the opposing side that we ‘just couldn't handle his raw sexual power.’” He says exasperated with overdone air quotes. “So I’ve been asking everyone all day because I just can’t stop thinking about it.”

“I suppose I can see how that would plague your mind.” You laugh.

“Anyway!” Hobi interjects, clearly tired of the subject. “How are your things going, y/n?” 

You chuckle at his wide eyes. “They’ve been good. I’ve been spending more time in the studio with midterms coming up. But I need to find someone to work with me on a collab piece. I wanna have it in by midterms so I don’t have to worry about it during finals.” you sigh at the thought. 

“Awh, I would help with that but I already did that assignment and I’m not sure if they’d let me do it again with someone else?” Tae says with a small frown.

“I’d offer but the only thing I am versed in is drawing stick figures and arguably anatomically incorrect dicks.” Hobi chuckles.

“Thanks you guys.” You smile. “It’s alright though, I might just ask Jimin to get drunk and throw some paint at a canvas with me.”

“Hey! This reminds me, a couple days ago when you got coffee you promised you’d show me some of your work when we hung out next.” Tae looks at you sternly, arms tight across his chest. “The time has come Miss y/n.” 

“Ah, I suppose I did.” You say as you grab your phone to show him your album of a bunch of your work. “Okay, but I’m no Van Gogh. Go easy on me.” You warn before you hand over your device to him; you always get a little nervous when you show people your art for the first time.

“Hey hey! None of that nonsense! If the way you talk about art is any consolation, then I’m sure the passion alone is enough to make it beautiful.” Tae gives you a stern look followed by a reassuring smile.

“Do you want me to cry? Because this is how you make me cry.” You chuckle and relent your collection of work over to him for them to inspect. 

They open the first photo and you’re met with a mixture of a ‘holy shit’ from Hobi and a ‘wow’ from Tae, their reactions make you smile and your face heat up. 

“These are amazing y/n!” Hobi says as Tae swipes through.

“Thank you guys so much, really.” You say blushing and all but clutching your chest.

You watch their faces intently as they go through, Tae stopping every so often to zoom in and inspect a certain brushstroke that catches his eye. They get toward the end of the photoset when you hear a key in the front door. You’re the only one to turn your head to see Jungkook walk into the apartment. He sets his keys down on the table next to the entrance and his feet stutter a little when he sees you on the couch with his friends. 

“Hey Kook! Y/n was just showing us some of her art, dude she’s so talented!” Hobi calls over his shoulder.

“It’s really good, you should come take a look.” Tae adds, and you laugh nervously.

“That’s so awesome, I will.” He says looking at you with a smile. “I just need to talk to Tae, for a quick second.” He says turning his gaze toward him and tilting his head toward the hall. 

“Oh, is it about that thing?” Tae grits his teeth and sucks in sharp breath.

“Yes, exactly, the thing.” He confirms vaguely, looking relieved.

“Is everything okay?” You furrow your brows and look at each of them.

“He just has a rash, no worries.” Tae tells you in a hushed tone as he stands up. All you can do is blink in response. Jungkook lets out an exaggerated laugh as they disappear into the dark hallway and out of sight.

Once they are safely in the other room Jungkook flicks Tae in the forehead. 

“Ow!” Tae gasps.

“What the fuck was that for?!” Jungkook whisper yells at his idiot of a best friend.

“I was covering for you!”

“You could’ve said literally anything else! I don’t even have a rash!”

“She doesn’t know that!”

“Exactly, you fuck!” Jungkook whispers flicking him again. “Why is she here?! You didn’t warn me!”

“This is what I get for trying to help you?” Tae says rubbing his forehead with a pout.

“Hey! I was handling it just fine on my own!”

“Oh yeah, your plan to slowly raid the entire contents of her fridge was going so great!”

“I just thought!... I thought we would eventually talk or... something?” Jungkook says realizing maybe it wasn’t the best plan in the world. “That’s how my parents used to get to know our neighbors, they’d borrow each others sugar and shit.”

“It’d be easier to talk to her if you just hung out with her and I invited her over for you. You’re welcome! And your parents weren’t trying to fuck your neighbors, were they! Different goal calls for different strategy.” 

“Dude gross, I hope not.” Jungkook scrunches his nose. “And I don’t… just wanna fuck her.”

“Aww, does Googie have a bigger crush than we thought he did.” Tae teases pinching his cheek.

“Fuck you. But thanks I guess… just warn me next time, will you?” Jungkook relents.

“You got it.” Tae says patting him on the shoulder. “I’m only kinda sorry though!” He whispers as he slips out the door. Jungkook follows him to join all of you in the living room.

“Sorry about that.” Jungkook smiles at you as he and Tae take their places next to you on the couch. 

“No worries.” You assure.

“Kook you should take a look at her work, I think you’d like it.” Hobi says passing your phone over to him and your face heats up a little. “I was just telling y/n how you were really artsy in high school.” 

“Oh, it was nothing.” Jungkook waves him off as he starts to look through the photos and stopping a little longer on ones that catch his eye. 

“It wasn’t nothing.” Tae interjects. “Actually y/n, you mentioned needing a partner for that collab piece? Since I can’t assist, I’m sure Jungkook could help you out.” Tae gestures to the two of you.

“Oh no, I couldn’t ask him to do that for me.” You shake your head, looking at both their faces.

Jungkook tilts his head to the side for a second. “I wouldn’t mind at all, it would be fun. I might be a little rusty though.” He says with worried eyes.

“Really? you wouldn’t mind?” You light up. “That would help me out a ton. I’ve been stressing over that piece for weeks.”

“I’d be happy to.” He smiles bright. “I’m off on Saturday, we could work on it then. If that works for you, of course.” 

“You’ve got yourself a deal.” You reach out to shake his hand, effectively sealing the deal. “Thank you so much.” you say and squeeze his hand a little.

“So Kook, I’m collecting data for my psych class-” Tae takes this opportunity to stain your moment of gratitude.

“I already told you, I’m not fuckin’ rats!” Jungkook cuts him off.

“He’s not a rat!”

“Which side are you on?!”

---

“Did I call it? Or did I call it?” Jin looks at you with his stupid smug ass face.

“Listen! It’s nothing!” You throw that damp rag you’re wiping down a table with in his direction.

“It’s not nothing! I can smell your pent up sexual frustration for him from here. You guys are gonna be alone for several hours making art together? What is he, Swayze?”

“Men and women can be platonic friends! You’re not thinking very progressively here, old man.”

“Of course, men and women can be platonic friends.” He says gesturing at the air between you. “But you and what’s his fuck, Junglebook, you said? You two, cannot.” 

“Your lack of faith in me is astounding.” 

“I wouldn’t call it a lack of faith in you, more of an educated assumption… And a lack of faith in both of you.” He smirks. Asshole.

“Fuck you.” You deadpan.

“You know you love me y/nie.” He blows you a kiss.

“You’re lucky I do.”

---

You: I can bring the supplies over whenever you’re ready, just lemme know! Thank you for letting me come over there, it would be hard for creative juices flowing with Joon hovering over us all night. Trying to figure out a deep psychological reason for me painting a flower yellow lmao

You: Oh! And wear clothes you don’t mind getting paint on, stains are inevitable :)

And send. 

Okay listen to me you dumb bitch. You can do this. We got this. For fuck sake why are you so nervous? Pull yourself together! Just enough to prove Jin and Jimin wrong. Do it just to rub it in their faces! Fuck. What are you 12? We can hang out alone with him. This is stupid. I’m stupid. It’s fine. Everything is fine! Shut up.

Tight Buns McCute-Dog: You can come over now, I’m just gonna change real quick, the door is unlocked! (: 

After receiving that reply, instead of him just cancelling, you were relieved he was still willing to help you. However it didn’t help the whole sweating from your ass cheeks with nerves, thing. So overall about the same. Great. 

Doing an abstract painting in these mental conditions will result in accidentally painting several phallic shapes. A Freudian Slip of the wrist if you will. 

After a couple deep breaths, effectively shoving half your feelings deep into the crevices of your mind, and changing his contact name, just for good measure. You grab all the supplies you’ll need and walk across the hall. 

You struggle to open your door while balancing your small box of acrylics, easel and canvas in your arms. Deciding to abandon your easel in the hall for a second while you knock on your neighbor’s door a couple times before you turn the knob. 

Bread is already eager and yipping at you for attention while you attempt to bring everything in and set it up to the side of the living room adjacent to the kitchen. 

---

Jungkook opens your texts and mouths a small ‘oh shit’ not wanting to keep you waiting, but quickly regretting his decision to work out right before he saw you. He wanted to look a little extra muscley but didn’t consider that he’d be a sweaty mess after doing so. 

He settles for telling you he’s changing and hopes you take a few minutes to gather your things so he can blow dry his hair a little. 

Your presence in his apartment is made known when he hears his dog barking and scuttling around. He gives his hair a quick tousel, throws on one of his many black hoodies and a little spritz of cologne. 

Jungkook emerges from his bedroom to find you fumbling with your easel. Cute. 

“Do you need help?” he asks through a giggle.

“Nope! Got everything a hundred percent under control over here.” Your sentence punctuated by your canvas falling to the floor. “Shit.”

“Allow me.” he says handing you the canvas.

“Thank you.” you breath and run a hand through your hair. 

“So what’s the plan? I hope you’re not expecting any Sistine Chapel level work from me.” he chuckles.

“A bunch of naked babies and a priest with the ears of an ass? I appreciate that you don’t bring that to the table.” you raise your brows. 

“Point taken.” 

“The plan is no plan. I mean I wanted to go for something abstract because it’s fun and doesn’t require a lot of brain power. Just put the brush where you think it should go.” you mime a couple brush strokes in the air.

“Sounds easy enough, paint from the heart.” he confirms, patting his chest for emphasis. 

“Oh, I did think one of us could be in charge of warm colors and tints, and the other could do cool colors and shades, and see where that takes us.” you look up expectantly, hoping he likes your almost-plan.

“Sounds interesting.” He looks at the empty canvas, eyes scanning for possibilities. “Which do you want?” 

“I’m partial to cool colors, myself.” 

“Then today, I’m partial to warm.” he smirks. “So are we just feeling what we feel in the moment or is there an emotion we’re trying to convey?” He turns to you, eyes expectant. 

You pause for a second, unsure if you should abandon the theme you were pondering for this piece before you knew Jungkook would be your partner in creation. “Is it too cliche if the theme was ‘love’?” You ask him hesitantly. Immediately regretting not just saying ‘nah man, just throw paint at that bitch.’ 

But much to your surprise. 

“Not at all, it’s a ‘cliche’ for a reason.” He states nonchalantly. “Love is powerful. Whether it’s the painful bit or the part that makes you feel untouchable.” 

A certain fondness hits his eyes that tells you he’s speaking from experience but you don’t pry.

“I’m glad you like the idea.” you smile, relief filling you after he doesn’t exhibit any signs of being uncomfortable. 

He claps his large palms together. “Shall we get started, Miss y/n?” His gaze once directed at the blank canvas, now fully on you. 

“Choose your weapon, Mr. Jungkook.” You feign a serious tone, giving him a small handful of various brushes. Keeping a few of your favorites for yourself. 

You push your box paints toward him indicating he can grab what he likes. Normally you’re a bit protective over your art supplies, seeing as not only are they stupid expensive, but you care for your tools a lot. You wouldn’t let your klutzy brother within a ten foot radius of your things when you were growing up and even now your blood boils if he’s anywhere near your expertly sorted colored pencils. But Jungkook is always gentle and seeing the way he meticulously places small globs of white, reds, and yellows onto his palette, you know you’ve made a good choice in trusting him. 

He steps slightly back letting you put the first ceremonial brush stroke of charcoal black diagonally across the upper most half of your canvas. He joins shortly after deciding to start with white in contrast with your black, laying down some bases for shapes and choosing to run his brush through to disturb the various lines you’ve made, dragging the two tones into a fading grey. 

As your mind wanders towards the way his slender tattooed fingers wrap delicately around the paint brush you quickly come to the conclusion that it’s time to play some background music. Absentmindedly sticking the handle of the brush between your teeth to grab your phone and open your music library.

“What kind of music do you like?” You turn to him, the thin strip of wood in your mouth giving you a slight lisp. 

“I’m not picky, play whatever you want.” he says warmly but his brow still furrowed with concentration while he finishes up his base layer. 

As his answer didn’t do much in the way of helping your quest, you opted for the safety of one of those throwback playlists spotify procures for their listeners, the 90’s one to be exact. Everybody loves some good nostalgia, and it may aid in the sincerity of your painting. Past emotions and whatnot. 

The first song that comes on after you hit shuffle is Heart-Shaped Box by Nirvana and you hum in content. Jungkook on the other hand is pleasantly taken aback by your song choice. 

“Oh shit yeah! I love Nirvana!” He smiles brightly, taking his crinkling eyes off his work for the first time since you started. 

“Everybody loves Nirvana.” you tease him and roll your eyes at the possibility of him being one of those frat boys that ‘misses Kurt Cobain so much’ but can only name Smells Like Teen Spirit and maybe Aneurysm if you’re lucky. 

Jungkook, sensing your tone, smirks and runs his tongue along the inside of his cheek. “You think so, huh?” he bemuses, rolling up his sleeve to uncover this inked skin. Across his forearm is a quote reading ‘rather be dead than cool,’ a lyric from their song Stay Away. He watches you with a quirked brow.

“I stand corrected.” you hold your hands up in defense. Trying not to let the way his inked skin hugs his veins increases your heart rate become too apparent on your features. “You do indeed love Nirvana.” your emphasis on the word being placed differently this time.

“Never doubt me again y/n.” He eyes you suspiciously. “I’ll get more tattoos just to spite you.” He narrows his eyes to add validity to his semi-empty threat.

“I will never doubt you again, scouts honor.” you say playfully saluting him. 

“Now start the song over. Your lack of faith in me, made me miss half the song.” he points a finger at your phone.

“I can’t, I don’t have premium.” you let out a heavy sigh.

“What?! That’s dumb. You suffer through those god awful ads?” He screws his face up in disgust. 

“Eh, I don’t mind too much.” You shrug. “I don’t wanna spend the extra money every month.” 

“Okay, I guess that’s fair.” He squints at you as you pick up your brush again. “Why don’t you just use my account? I’ll text you my login.” He says fishing for his phone in his pocket. 

“That’s completely unnecessary.” You laugh, and wave for him to stop. “You’re already helping me out so much with this.” you gesture to the now less blank canvas in front of you.

“I really don’t mind. What’s the worst that could happen? We expand our music libraries? Oh no!” he pretends to gasp and you roll your eyes. “And besides, I’ll sleep better at night knowing I saved a soul from those creepy ass vitamin water commercials.” He chuckles.

“You really don’t have to.” Your eyes softening at his seemingly endless stream of kindness. 

“Already sent you the login, too late.” he says, sucking in a breath as if to say ‘what a shame.’

“Thank you, Jungkook.” you say as you gently grab his forearm and run your thumb over it.

“You’re welcome.” He smiles. “Back to work now!” he declares, sticking his paint brush, that at some point in your conversation tucked it’s way behind his ear, into his small mountain of yellow. 

You work like this together for a while. Humming along to your music, that is now playing off Jungkook’s phone after he insisted he didn’t wanna hear ‘Colonel Suck-My-Ass’ sing about his chicken deals one more time. The two of you working together seamlessly; the way you blend your colors and make textures complimenting each other nicely. Switching sides of the canvas every so often so it remains balanced. 

After about an hour of being immersed in your work Jungkook turns to you. “Noodle break?” He asks you frowning at his empty tummy.

Your brush stutters on the canvas at his words, your stomach not realizing it’s been hours since you’ve eaten until he mentions food. “That sounds wonderful, actually.” 

“One or two packets?” he asks making his way into the kitchen.

“Just one is good.” you smile, setting your brush into your cup of water. You follow him into the kitchen. “Where do you store your liquid?” you ask standing between the pantry and the fridge, looking lost.

“Fridge.” he answers giving his approval to let you grab the two of you some drinks.

“I see you guys finally went grocery shopping.” you chuckle at the butter and cartons of eggs in his fridge.

“What?- oh right, yeah. Finally dragged Hobi out earlier today.” His smile not quite meeting his eyes while he opens up three packets of ramen, and waits for the water to boil. 

“Can I steal a soda?” 

“Yeah, just not the sprite. Hobi can and will throw a fit.” his tone far more serious than the situation calls for.

“Well damn, okay.” you say and grab a coke for both of you. 

“Thank you.” He smiles and your fingertips brush perhaps a little too long when you hand him his drink. 

He pulls the tab, puts the cold metal to his lips and you watch the way his throat bobs up and down with every swig. When you feel yourself staring your ears heat up, and turn your gaze to the water starting to roll in the pot. 

As Jungkook is finishing up cooking the ramen, the song changes to Iris by The Goo Goo Dolls, you let out a small gasp and start to sing along. He smiles at your apparent love for the song and starts to harmonize with you to encourage you to keep going. Which, much to his dismay, did the exact opposite.

“Jeon Jungkook!” you scold. “I didn’t know you had such a beautiful voice!” 

“It’s alright, I guess.” He breathes out and rubs the back of his neck a little embarrassed. “You’re not too bad yourself.” He looks at you with those big doe eyes. And you swear you’ll only look at them for a couple more seconds, as not to fall under their spell. A half hearted oath at best. 

But you start to sing again, you tell yourself it’s to make the most of the song while it’s on but really, you just want to hear honeyed voice hit your ears again. And it does, eyes closed tightly and mouth wide to control his sound. You can’t hold a tune to save your life but the way he carries your sounds with his, it doesn’t matter. Your song is beautiful.

After your musical interruption, you take your bowls to the table and slurp away at your noodles. All the while Bread is at your heels begging ever so sweetly, which Jungkook scolds but ultimately ends up throwing him a noodle when his bowl is just about gone. 

You take your bowl to the sink but when you start rinsing Jungkook comes over to push you out of the way so he can take care of it himself. You stand your ground for a minute but lose the silent argument due to his advantage of stature. You mutter a small ‘fuck you’ before you return to the canvas, and he smiles contently to himself.

Jungkook joins you back at your station, stepping back for a moment to assess where the two of you left off and what he’d like to add. He lets his eyes run over the varying sized lines and the way they come together but also fight one another in some spots. Some colors as bright as the sun and others look like the depths of the ocean. All coming together in a way that only really makes sense to the two of you. 

You finished what was left of your drink and picked up your brush, dipping straight into your black paint for the second time since you started like you were on a mission. You drew a fluid line near the center curving over a few existing splotches, near the end of your brush stroke it became jagged and split off into several directions. A pessimist would call it a shatter, an optimist would call it several opportune paths, and a realist would probably just call it a painting. But Jungkook did none of those things.

“Y/n, have you ever been in love?” He asked as if he had only asked what time it was. He started swirling some colors together while he waited for an answer.

You blinked, trying not to show how much that question shocked you. “I suppose…” you breathed, actually struggling to come up with a real answer. “I mean, last time I was in a serious relationship was in highschool.” You trailed off. “I don’t know if I can say I’ve been in love but I’ve loved someone before… I feel like being in love sticks with you in a different way. More of a life experience than a life lesson.” You scrunched up your face a little, hoping he’d be satisfied with your answer even though you yourself weren’t.

He nodded, taking in your words. “I think being in love can be just as much a life lesson as ‘lesser relationships,’ if not more so.” He adds putting air quotes as not to come across the wrong way. “But hopefully you end up with more positive lessons than not.”  

“Yeah, you’re right. Like learning how you love and need to be loved. What you deserve and what you won’t put up with. Learn to let yourself be loved-” You stop your word vomit after that last comment, feeling a bit vulnerable. “Those kinds of things?” you let out a little laugh.

“Exactly.”

“Is it fair to assume that you have?” You question, hesitating slightly.

“That I have what?” 

“Been in love, dummy.” You laugh, strategically placing a light green around the canvas.

He pauses slightly. “Yeah, I have.” The same fondness that found his eyes earlier that day sets in again. Not in a painful or bitter way, you noted. But in the way you’d regard your favorite childhood memory.

“I didn’t rub salt in a wound, did I?” you tensed slightly incase you read him wrong.

“No no, you’re fine!” He reassures. “It was a long time ago. Don’t get me wrong, it hurt like a bitch in the moment, but as they say, time heals all wounds.” he shrugs.

“Can I ask what happened?” You prompted, feeling a little braver this time.

“Well you know, same old story with high school sweethearts.” He paused to fix a spot he didn’t like. “She was a year older than me. She left for university. We tried long distance and after a few months we decided it was too hard. Nothing particularly spectacular.” He tells the story, for what you can tell is at least the thousandth time. “What about you and Mr. Not-Quite-In-Love?”

“Nothing, super special either. Unfortunately, the lessons I learned from him were less than positive. After the initial honeymoon phase, he didn’t treat me the best. Looking back I learned to know the level of respect I deserve, but in the moment his lack of just made me desperate to ‘earn’ it. It was a vicious cycle for about a year but things ended and I grew up. And like you said, ‘time heals all wounds.’” Jungkook looked at you with furrowed brows, not sure if he wants to hug you or the seventeen year old girl you used to be who would see herself as anything less than what she was. But he settled for the former.

He wrapped his arms around you, taking you by surprise. But you accept his embrace and smile against his shoulder. “I’m okay now Jungkook.” You giggle. “It was a long time ago and I learned from it.”

He pulls away. “I know, I’m just sorry it took that dickbag for you to know your worth.” he gives you a sheepish smile, and a fire in his eyes dulls when he looks at you.  

“Thank you, you’re very sweet.” you pat his arm before you both turn back to your respective parts of the canvas. 

“Hey, just cause I’m not a complete asshole, doesn’t mean I’m sweet.”

“I’m holding firm at you’re sweet, and you can’t change my mind.” You both laugh and return your full attention back to your work.

Your rhythm returns to where it was before you ate. Both of you humming along to whatever song is playing at the moment, using your paint brushes as microphones if a particularly good song came on. Exchanging a few words here and there. Each admiring the small things the other chooses to add to the work of art. You noticed Jungkook has a habit of biting his lips when he’s concentrating. Cute. 

Now here you finally are after another hour of blending, layering, and tweaking. Both of you put down your brushes down and stepped back slightly to admire what you’ve created. Letting out a sigh at your hard work, taking in the finalized piece. The way the colors run together or bump into one another. The juxtaposition of fluid lines being interrupted by jagged edges. The way the soberness of the colors you put down calm and soothe the firey and vibrant ones he laid down for you.

Ordinarily, when you finish a painting, you never quite feel done. There’s always one more thing you could fix, one more stroke you could add. But not this time. It’s finished. Breathtaking in a simple way. You’ve never felt such a sense of completeness when you set your brush down, and you can’t help but feel you have Jungkook to thank for it. The way his colors and brush work complemented yours was… for lack of a better term, a work of art. 

---

Jungkook puts down his brush, watching you lay down your final touches. Truth be told he’d been watching you out of the corner of his eye the entire time. Checking in on you every so often when you’d put down your tool and furrow your brows in concentration. Smiling when you’d absentmindedly mumble to yourself about what you’re doing. He was in awe of how much of yourself you put down on the canvas, not entirely sure what wordless stories you were telling meant. Though that didn’t stop him from taking the puzzle pieces you laid down and arranging them into a y/n shaped jigsaw in his mind. Perhaps your fondness of calming colors was to tame the wild fire he could see within you. 

And just as quickly as you’d started, you were done, setting your brush down and smiling at what you saw in front of you. 

“Thank you so much, Jungkook.” You breathe still taking in the painting. “It’s beautiful.” 

“Yeah, it is.” He says just above a whisper, never taking his eyes off your beaming profile. 

“Hm?” You turn to him. He looks into your eyes, once filled with fire are now a calm ocean. His gaze shifts to your lips after they form a confused pout at his silence, his body leading his brain when he leans toward you.

It’s now or never.

He leans in further looking into your eyes for any sign of apprehension before he cups your jaw in his paint stained hand. Finally taking the leap all at once when you lean into his touch. 

His lips are even softer than you imagined when they meld against yours. He pulls away slightly to look at you a question mark across his features. You put your hands flush against his hard chest and answer his question by reconnecting your lips with his with fervor and you feel him smile against you. He deepens the kiss, putting his free hand on your hip to pull you closer to his warm body. 

He swipes his tongue along your bottom lip, testing the waters further. You mirror his action, noting that his lips taste faintly of strawberries. You slide your hands into his soft hair and curl your fingers into fists against his scalp making him groan into your mouth. 

His hand that held its feather like touch against your face leaves it’s place to join his other around your waist. His hands squeezing harshly at your hips, his fingers digging into the strip of skin your shirt rode up to expose, making you shiver against him despite your rising temperature. 

He pulls away to place sloppy kisses along your jaw, nudging your jaw with his nose gently to gain access to your neck. You suck in a breath when you pull him closer causing his teeth to graze your pulse point as his swollen lips leave rosey marks in their wake. He sucks harshly at the soft spot below your ear causing your nerves to flare and a moan to escape your lips. He groans in satisfaction at the way his actions affect you, running his hot tongue over your skin to soothe the marks he made. 

His hands move higher on your abdomen slipping just under the hem of your shirt, making you tense slightly under his calloused palms, he feels your shift and rubs his thumbs below your ribcage to relax your tensed muscles. His gentle fingers vastly opposing his flushed cheeks when he brings his face up to yours again, his hair already messy and his eyes dazed as he looks at your lips like they’re the first glass of water he’s seen in days. He crashes his lips back into yours hungrily causing you to squeak at his desperation. You disconnect your lips leaving almost no distance between you.

“Bedroom?” you ask lowley against his lips, your vocal chords betraying you making the word come out far more shaky and less sexy than you wanted. His shoulders flex under your hands at his request.

Jungkook slides his hands down your ass to squeeze the flesh in his hands when his finger tips graze the back of your thighs. 

“Up.” he says firmly, offering you free transport to his bed. You hop up, his strong arms hold you and you wrap your legs tightly around his narrow waist. He starts the small walk to his bedroom, and you try to ignore the way his stomach pressed against your clothed clit is providing the smallest amount of friction with each of his steps, instead deciding to direct your attention to him instead. You give a gentle open mouthed kiss to the small mole on the side of his neck, you make a small path sucking where his jaw meets his neck, and he hums deeply making his chest rumble against yours in response.

When you reach his room, the smell of his fabric softener fills your lungs as he presses your back against his now closed door. His hands trail from your ass, trusting you to hold yourself up around him, up your sides, he slides your arms from around his neck and to the wall until your hands are effectively pinned above your head. The air between you is heavy for a moment as his dark eyes take in how you look like this, your eyes starry as your chest rises and falls in anticipation of his next move. 

He kisses you again, slower this time. You whimper into his mouth when his hips grind his hard dick into your clit. His thighs flexing under yours as he grinds up again harder, swallowing as many of your beautiful sounds as you’ll give him. 

He stops his hips and tucks his arms under you again to set you on his bed. 

You reach your shirt to pull it over your head but he stops you.

“Let me.” He says half a statement, half a question. 

You smile and say nothing but grant him permission by raising your arms above your head. He hooks his fingers into the hem of your shirt grazing your skin making goosebumps blossom on your flesh as he pulls it up and over your head. He reaches for the clasp of your bra slowly and gently like you might break, as if he wasn’t just shoving you against his door with his cock. 

“Fuck.” He breathes out harshly when your hardened nipples are finally released to the cool air of his room.

He quickly strips off his hoodie revealing that he’s been painting without a shirt underneath the whole night. Your breath hitches as all the times you’d touched his arm or chest the hours prior, not knowing there was only a thin barrier between your fingers and his skin. You run your eyes over his bare chest and hard stomach, you knew he worked out but hot damn, those baggy clothes he wears does no justice to what’s under them. However he doesn’t give you much time to marvel before he reconnects his lips with yours leaning into you until your back is on his duvet, you spread your legs to make room for him to settle in between. 

His hot skin drags softly against your nipples as he descends down your frame to pepper kisses along the valley of your breasts. He licks his fingers to roll one of your nipples between his wet digits while he attaches his mouth the other, swirling his tongue in intoxicating circles. You sigh at the small relief his mouth is bringing you and tangle your fingers in his hair, tugging roughly when his teeth bite down onto your sensitive bud. You feel the bed bow slightly below you as his hips stutter at your action. He quickly tends to the small sting with his tongue. Giving a gentle kiss to your nipple as he pulls away. 

He sits up and hooks his fingers into your pants, but stops before tugging them down. “Is this okay?” He asks sincerely. 

“Very.” You say, your heart clenching at his concern and help him slide your pants to your ankles, eager to have his soft skin on yours again. 

He brings his lips to your neck again and you wrap your legs around his waist rocking your hips up to rub your neglected clit against his rigid cock that he has yet to spring free. The wet spot on your panties rubbing off onto his sweats. You moan into his ear at the small relief you’re able to bring yourself, arching your back further in attempt to get more friction and he chuckles against your skin.

“Patience, sweetheart.” He smirks down at you and your feeble attempt to feel his cock. 

“Don’t wanna be patient. Want you to fuck me.” You say trying your best not to whine, as you reach for the waistband of his pants. 

He runs his tongue along his lip and leans down until his lips brush the shell of your ear. “Oh, don’t worry beautiful, I will.” He moves your hands and rolls his hips into yours once to punctuate his sentence. “But I wanna taste you first.” He says and quickly sits back on his knees to slip your underwear down your legs, tossing them behind him not worrying about where they land. 

He settles his shoulders under the back of your thighs and makes a path of open mouth kisses from your knee to your inner thigh, stopping right before your sex and inhaling deeply as he sucks a bruise into your skin, your face heats up and your hips shake in excitement. 

“You smell fucking delicious, sweetheart.” he looks up at you with soft doe eyes that completely contradict his filthy words. He lingers just a whisper away from where you want him and you roll your hips to meet his lips. He smirks again at your frustration moving his lips to your other knee to make a wet path up your other leg with his mouth, seeing how long he can push you. Stopping midthigh to speak again into your skin. 

“I wanna take my time with you sweets. Greedy little girls don’t get to cum on my tongue.” His eyes darken when they look up at you, his words sending electricity through your nerves and arousal dripping onto his sheets.

You opt for silently nodding as the only thing you could muster at the moment is a whine that you want to keep at bay. 

“Are you gonna take what I give you, sweetheart?” He says rubbing circles into your hip.

“Yes, Sir.” You breathe trying your best not to roll your hips into his touch and get scolded again. 

“Good girl.” He smiles at your compliance and finally gives you what you want.

He licks a long flat stripe up your slit, collecting your arousal on his tongue and swirling it around your throbbing clit. Your thighs tighten around his head and he groans against you. 

“Taste even sweeter than I imagined.” He all but moans into your folds. He swears he could get off just like this, with his tongue buried in your cunt and his hips rocking his cock into his mattress. 

You reach down and tangle your fingers in his hair, trying to pull him impossibly closer to you. He obliges you and wraps his lips around your clit sucking harshly, crude slurping noises filling the room but both of you are too lost in the sensation to care. Your hips start rocking against his mouth again, this time your body fully taking a mind of its own, your climax being the only thing you can think about. 

“That’s my good girl, use my tongue to get off.” You moan louder at his words and speed up your movements, balling his hair into fists. As he looks up at you with lidded eyes, he gets lost, lost in your taste, lost in the way your sweaty chest heaves with your heavy breaths, lost in the way his name falls from your lips with your eyes screwed shut.

“I’m s-so fucking close!” your voice comes out in a strained moan cracking at the end of your sentence. 

“Cum for me beautiful, wanna taste your cum.” He says wrapping his lips around your clit again to pull your orgasm from you. He may have called you greedy, but he couldn’t get enough of the way your thighs shook around him. 

“Holy shit! Jungkook!” your orgasm hits you like a wave starting in your stomach and sending fire through your veins. Your hips stutter and Jungkook licks you languidly through your high. All the while your mouth mutters his name in an incoherent mantra. 

He wipes his mouth on the back of his hand and climbs over you leaning on his forearms, and captures your lips in his. You taste yourself on them and smile against his mouth.

“You look so beautiful when you cum.” He says placing soft kisses along your jaw. And you’re glad he can’t see the way your cheeks flare at his comment. “Think you can still take my cock?” he says squeezing himself at the base through his pants. 

“God yes.” You say perhaps a little too enthusiastically and he chuckles at you. 

“You really are a greedy one, aren’t you sweetheart?” He says teasingly. “Let me get you ready first.” He says rubbing his thumb in small circles on your clit, your sensitivity makes you jump a little.

He looks down to watch the way your velvet walls swallow his fingers, but he stops his movement, realizing his hands are still covered in paint. 

“Shit.” He mutters almost silently. “I’ll be right back.” He says with a smile pecking your lips before he slips out his door. Closing it behind him just in case, as not to let Hobi unknowingly come home early only to find you spread eagle on his roommates bed. 

What the hell is he doing? Your eyebrows furrow, worried he’s gonna get some sort of convoluted sex toy. Which while you wouldn’t normally object, that’s a tad presumptuous on his part. 

Your mental ramble cut short and worries put to rest when he reenters the room with clean hands. He strips his sweats from his hips and climbs back over you.

“Sorry, I didn’t want you to get some sort of paint-chemical related rash on your… lady bits.” He says hesitantly breathing out a laugh against your cheek.

“While that’s incredibly considerate of you. That sentence didn’t do much for my ‘lady bits’.” you know what his venom filled tongue is capable of, so his childish use of words makes you giggle. 

He rolls his eyes at you and cups your face, pulling you in for another deep kiss. His hand snakes down between your legs and when his thumb connects with your clit you squeak and break the kiss.

“Your hands are freezing.” you say with more of a pout than you’re willing to admit. You presume he didn’t wanna make you wait too long so he washed his hands in cold water. 

“Why don’t you warm them up for me?” he quirks a brow and smirks. Bringing his hand up to your mouth and sticking his middle and ring finger between your lips. You happily wrap your lips around his digits; licking, sucking, and humming in content around them.

Jungkook’s cock twitches in his boxers as he watches your cheeks hollow slightly around his slender fingers, resisting from pushing them deeper in your mouth and seeing how pretty you look when you gag for him. 

He removes his hand from your mouth, marveling at the string of saliva that follows it. He reaches down to tease your entrance letting your spit and arousal get you ready for his stretch. He slips his fingers into your dripping core and has to hold back from moaning at how well you hug him. 

“Your pussy is so tight, sweetheart.” He breathes. “Your sweet cunt is gonna squeeze me real well won’t it?” He says catching your bottom lip between his teeth. You can’t help but clench around his fingers. “That’s my good girl.” He says, his eyes darkening and he curls into your sweet spot, you moan at how quickly he seems to be learning your body. Like he could figure out exactly what makes you tick if you stayed in his bed for just a while longer.

He removes his fingers making you whimper. He slips his boxers down a little and uses your arousal and his precum to wet his dick. Your mouth waters and you clench around nothing at how beautiful he looks slowly pumping himself with furrowed brows, until now he’s done a good job of not showing how badly his body demands to be touched just as much as yours does. 

He lines himself with your entrance and teases your clit with the tip of his cock, fighting the urge to slam himself into you to the hilt. 

“Do you want me to grab a condom?” he says mere millimeters away from slipping into you. 

“I’m on the pill.” you reassure and gasp at how close he is to giving you everything you wanted since he crashed his lips into yours at the easel. Or possibly before that.

That’s all he needed to hear before he pushed his cock past your entrance and into your wet pussy, the stretch he’s giving you making you thank him silently for insisting on warming you up first. 

“Fuck.” You both moan at how well you squeeze around him. He goes slow, inching in to give you time to adjust. You wrap your legs around his waist to encourage him deeper. He continues his slow pace breathing hot and thick against your neck. 

He sits up to watch how he disappears inside you. “Look how well you take my cock, sweetheart.” He says picking up some speed in his thrusts. You moan at how well he hits every spot in you that’s been left untouched tonight, his dirty words only further building the pressure in your pelvis. 

His thrusts become harder and you reach up you brace yourself on his biceps, his muscles flexing while he supports his weight above you. He angles his hips up slightly hitting your sweet spot perfectly, and you nearly yelp at the sensation, digging your nails into his arms making him hiss.

“Right there? Is that how your little pussy likes it?” He feigns a subtle innocence in his voice. Like he can’t see with his own eyes how well he’s fucking you.

“Yes, fuck! Please don’t stop.” you beg, mostly to get him to do just that, but also because of the sweaty fog his delicious cock has worked into your mind isn’t exactly allowing you to form the most intelligent of sentences.

He sits back on his knees and pushes one of your legs to your chest, his dick hitting deeper than you thought possible making your eyes roll back and your jaw slack. Your moans become uncontrollable and the words you’re attempting to say just come out in broken sounds.

“Such a good slut for me, look at you falling apart on my cock.” his voice almost a growl. “You gonna cum soon, sweetheart?” He says with a voice like silk to mask how close he is himself.

You can’t do more than nod fractically at his words in fear your voice will betray you. He rubs your clit with his thumb to earn your second climax from you.

And you do, your walls tighten around his cock but his pace doesn’t falter. Your legs shake and your eyes roll back. You cover your mouth to muffle a scream. Your orgasm ripping through you so hard you feel like you might burst. 

Jungkook hisses at how hard you’re squeezing him and fucks you through your high. He reaches to his headboard to fuck into you harder, being selfish for the first time tonight, using you to chase his own high.

“Where do you want it?” He says in a stifled whine.

“Cum inside Jungkook. I want you to fill me up.” You say pressing your nails into his chest. The overstimulation you feel in your core is worth every thrust when he finally lets go and fills you with his cum. His cock twitching as he slowly rides out his climax. 

He collapses on top of you, breathing heavily into your neck. Then rolls over to the other side of the bed, to allow both of you some cool air on your skin. 

“I hope I didn’t go too hard at the end there, are you okay?” He looks over at you with worried eyes.

“No. No it’s okay, I liked it.” you smile, your lungs and heart rate working hard to steady themselves.

After he’s caught his breath a little he reaches into his bedside table to get a small rag to wipe up some of his cum leaking out of you, and you suddenly feel very vulnerable at his thoughtful gesture. 

The post sex clarity hitting your mind, not quite in the way you hoped. As you lay there the height of what you two just did sending your mind go into overdrive.

Oh fuck. You run through the events of the night starting to panic a little. He’s my friend, how did this even happen? I wasn’t gonna do this. I wasn’t gonna let this get more complicated than my attraction to him already was. Shit, I’m an idiot. I mean he did kiss me, but… I can’t let this happen again. I don’t want this to end badly and have to move just because I think with my idiot vagina. It makes things too complicated. Okay, I have to end whatever that was now before things get even more complicated. He won’t mind right? He’s a college dude, he’s probably fine with just hittin’ it and quittin’ it. Yeah, everything is good. Friends can fuck once and then be good, it happens all the time. 

You sit up from his bed and run your hands through your hair a couple times in an attempt to tame it and start to pick up your clothes. 

“Are you okay?” He says, watching you as you attempt to find your underwear.

“Yeah, I’m good, just have an early class in the morning and I should probably get going.” you force a smile. 

“Oh, uh okay.” He says not quite convinced. Though you weren’t lying about that, you really did have a class in about seven hours.

“Hey um,” you hesitate, sliding your pants on just choosing to abandon your underwear. “This was just a one time thing, right?” you ask him, hating the way you said that. 

He senses your tone and feels a little twinge in his chest, but he ignores it, putting on a smile instead. “Yeah, definitely. Why do you ask?” 

“Okay, good.” Another twinge. “I just don’t want things to be too complicated, with us being neighbors and all…” You trail off, trying not to cringe at yourself. 

“Yeah, that makes sense.” He pauses, realizing for the first time that this could have negative consequences. “No worries, it’s forgotten. Just friends.” He reassures pulling his pants on.

“Just friends.” You smile and extend your hand to him. You shake on it. 

You pull your shirt over your head. 

“See you later, neighbor.” You say attempting to bring back the way things were just an hour ago. And you slip out his door.

He doesn’t walk you home like he normally does, and honestly you’re thankful. You just want to be back in your apartment where you can pretend that didn’t just happen. Even if that was one of the best fucks you've ever had, you're certainly not going to think about it. What is there to think about? Nothing happened.

You slip out his door, and into yours, met with Jimin munching in your kitchen, presumably after a party and your feet halt in their tracks. 

“Damn babe, you look positively wrecked.” He says with a knowing smirk.

“Jimin, I am so not in the mood for whatever you’re about to say.” you say exasperated.

“Oh, so I should save the ‘I told you so’? Would you rather get it in the morning?” He asks innocently, though he’s anything but.

“Preferably never.” You quip and slip into your bedroom.

Yeah, never is good, we’re just gonna pretend none of that happened.

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

Taglist: @taezeus​ @spoopysoph​ @gucci-prince-tae​ @jiminiesthiccthighs​ @veryuniquenamegoeshere​ @hermiones-enchantment​ @irissilujm​ @flo-music​ @scalbra​ @sugarrimajins​ @embrace-themagic​ @megsmiiiii​ @nerdycookiemonster-1222​ @livorna​ 

[twomoonstwosuns]

sick day.

back to you [series masterlist]

previous part · next part

pairing: professor!poe dameron x reader

warnings: swearing, smut in a dream (18+), heavy amounts of fluff

word count: 4.0k

a/n: i’m sorry for the delay, it’s been a weird week. i hopefully won’t make you wait as long for the next part. this is kind of a filler chapter, but i hope you guys enjoy it still! the poe dameron x reader tag hasn’t been working so if you’re missing updates, blame Tumblr. 

also thank you @dameronsgalaxygal for helping me when i was stuck <3

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“Baby, fuck you feel so good.”

Poe gripped your hips, sliding you to the edge of his desk and sliding his cock into you. The hand on the back of his neck tightened, grabbing some of his curls in its grasp at the intrusion. Your mouth was on the base of his neck, decorating it with different sized bruises. One particular bite to his pulse with a tight clench of your pussy made him groan loudly and you quickly pulled his mouth down to yours with a tug of his tie.

“Do we have to worry about you being loud?” You breathed heavily. Poe lifted your legs higher up on his waist, the new angle allowing him to drive deeper into you. A loud gasp left your lips as your eyes fluttered closed and a smirk crossed his face. He leaned down to your ear, taking the shell of hit in his mouth. 

“You know what I’ve thought about?” He said lowly, his breath hot against your ear as he slowed his thrusts. You gave a quiet, strangled moan as a response as he bit down on it. “Taking my tie, tying you up. Completely at my mercy.”

His hand was on the side of your neck, his thumb slowly rubbing up and down the front of your throat. You were a trembling mess, the thought of him putting just a little more pressure there enough to make you come hard right on the spot. 

“I could—fuck yes, Poe—get into that.” Poe’s mouth covered yours, swallowing the sounds coming from you. You giggled against his lips as an item fell off of his desk from the harsh movement against it. 

A knock on his office door made you both freeze, horrified looks on your faces as you looked at each other and then at the door. 

“Just a sec!” Poe yelled before dropping his voice to a whisper. “Get under my desk.”

You both scrambled as quietly as you could, pulling your pants up and fixing your shirts. You tucked yourself underneath his desk, feeling very grateful for the backing on the front of the desk. Poe tamed his hair the best he could as he unlocked his door and opened it, immediately greeting the person on the other side. 

“Ackbar, how are you?”

“I’m good, I’m good, I just wanted to run something by you.” Ackbar said, nodding towards the door handle. “Who are you trying to keep out, Dameron?”

His tone was suggestive, but Poe shut it down with a shake of his head. “Some of my students like to barge in and hang out in here because of my very lenient open door policy and I have several phone calls I’m taking today. Including one in five minutes, so you have to make it quick.”

Ackbar left the door open as he sat down across from Poe’s desk. Poe sat back in his chair, scooting all the way in so his entire lower half was underneath the desk to shield you. 

“So, what’s up?” Poe spoke, providing cover for the movement you were making under his desk to make room for his legs. 

“What do you think about forgoing a final exam for anyone who’s averaging a C in the class?” Ackbar asked. “I mean, if they want to take the final to try and raise their overall grade they can, but if they fail it’ll count against them.”

Poe squirmed in his seat as he felt your hands on his thighs, rubbing slowly and traveling higher. His leg hit the underside of his desk when he felt the vibration of his zipper being slowly pulled down, which he told Ackbar was a muscle spasm. 

“You’re teaching two hundred freshman over four lectures, you sure you want to do that?” Poe said slowly, the attempt to keep his voice level and controlled extremely difficult. 

“It’s definitely less grading for me to do, but I was also thinking that—“

Everything Ackbar was saying was going in Poe’s ear and right out the other as the soft skin of your hand made contact with his cock, applying firm pressure and pumping him. He wasn’t entirely soft yet and a few strokes of your hand brought him back to fully hard. He coughed to cover the groan that almost erupted from him. 

“Here’s my opinion,” Poe said, interrupting Ackbar, sucking in a breath as your thumb brushed over the head of his cock. “I’d do it for seniors but freshman? They’ll most likely take the easy way out and skip it. Don’t let them settle for mediocre grades. Not one of them will willingly take the final.”

“Alright, you’re right.” Ackbar put his hands up in surrender. Poe felt his cock start to tighten up, the thought of coming in your hand under the desk with Ackbar just a few feet away stoking a fire inside him. Instead, Poe felt you carefully tuck him back in his pants and skillfully disguised the deep groan he let out as one of agreement. “You catching the game later?”

“I’m going to try.” Poe looked at his watch. “Sorry man, I have to take a call in a minute.”

“No worries,” Ackbar stood up, Poe doing the same and straightening his shirt so it covered more of his groin area as he walked towards the door. “You wanna grab a beer at Maz’s later? Watch the game?”

“Yeah, sounds good.”

Ackbar shook Poe’s hand and patted him on the back. “Have fun with those calls. Take it easy, Dameron.”

As soon as the door shut and the lock clicked, Poe let out an exasperated laugh. You crawled out from under his desk laughing so hard that you had to lean against his desk to keep yourself from falling over. Poe came around to his desk again, laughing as he plopped back into his chair.  

“I can’t believe you did that,” he said in disbelief, though the smile on his face said he wasn’t the least bit upset about it. 

“Exhilarating though.” You leaned down and pecked his lips, your hands going back to his pants and unbuckling them for the second time as you got on your knees. 

“Let me finish what I started.”

Poe woke with a jolt as a cough rocked through him, groaning at the congested pain it left behind in his chest. His eyes screwed shut and his groan grew louder at how turned on he felt at that moment, knowing he had no energy to take care of it and no energy to enjoy you taking care of it for him. Poe looked up just as you came in, a cup of water in one hand and a sleeve of crackers in the other. You set the items on his nightstand and sat on the edge of his bed, rubbing his back. 

“You ok?”

“No,” he said, shoving his head into the pillow. “I was having a good dream about you.”

“Oh yeah?” Poe pushed his hips into the mattress, looking for relief. You stifled a laugh. “Oh, that kind of dream. Do you want me to help you out?”

“No, ‘m too tired.”

You leaned down to his ear, your voice lowering. “You know, I have those dreams about you too.”

Poe reached over and squeezed your thigh. “Y/N…”

“Baby…” you mocked his whine. Poe shivered and you saw goosebumps appear on his skin. You placed your hand against his forehead and then the cheek that wasn’t resting on the pillow. “You might have a fever, do you have a thermometer?”

“I don’t think so.”

You went into his bathroom and looked for anything that would help. You found some ibuprofen and you helped him sit up enough to swallow them. Pulling the blanket up around him, you leaned down and kissed his head. 

“Sleep. I’ll be in the living room if you need me.”

You left the door opened a crack, enough to hear if he needed you and for Beebs to come and go as he pleased. He was already snoring by the time you got to his kitchen to make yourself a cup of tea. 

You knew Poe wasn’t feeling great when you talked to him the night before and you were surprised when you got an email saying he was canceling class. In the two semesters worth of classes you’d had with him, he’d never canceled a class without notice. You skipped your last class of the day and went straight to Poe’s. He tried to argue with the very little energy he had that you didn’t have to skip class to take care of him, but the minute you got him to lay in bed, he was completely submissive. 

Your phone vibrated in your pocket with an incoming call and you grabbed it to see it was Jessika calling. 

“I’m at the grocery store, do you need anything?”

“Actually yeah, do you mind picking up some things to make soup and dropping them off at Poe’s? He’s sick and he has nothing here to help him feel better.”

“Yeah you bet, send me a text?”

“I will. I’ll send you his address too. Text me when you get here.”

“No problem, see you in a bit.”

You tossed your phone onto the table and grabbed your backpack, setting yourself up on his couch. You had a long list of things that needed to get done, midterms coming up quicker than you were prepared for. You also had to order your robe for graduation so you had time to get it hemmed if needed. But an assignment that was due the next day required your immediate attention. You opened your book and you’re notebook and dove right in. 

Fifteen minutes later and you’d read the same paragraph four times. You alternated between staring at your book and tapping your pen against the page to staring to scrolling through apps on your phone. There was no motivation to do anything productive. What you really wanted to do was curl up with Poe under his blankets and just sleep, but you were already risking getting sick by being there and cuddling with him would pretty much guarantee it. Throwing your stuff aside, you walked over to the shelves that lined Poe’s living room, seeing if there was maybe a book he had that would be far more interesting than reading about marketing and trade shows. You looked through all the titles of his books, some maybe’s coming to your head when you spotted a picture frame stuck between a book and the back of the shelf. You carefully moved the book, grabbing the picture frame and wiping the dust off of the glass. 

He looked just like her. Thick and curly raven-hair sat on top their heads. They shared the same eyes, deep brown like milk chocolate, though hers were just a bit lighter. Their smiles matched, easy and laidback like it took no effort at all. You recognized the ring on her finger as the one worn around Poe’s neck. In the picture, Poe was mid-laugh as his mother carried him on her back, his tiny arms wrapped around her neck and his head against hers. You felt a pang of guilt in your chest. The way Poe talked about her and seeing the picture that you found, they were clearly very close. You couldn’t even begin to imagine how devastated Poe must’ve been when she passed. 

Poe had said he’d forgiven you for what you said, but you still hadn’t forgiven yourself. If you were being honest with yourself, you didn’t know if you’d be able to. 

Your phone vibrated in your hand, the message telling you that Jessika had arrived. You told her the code to enter the building and a few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. 

“Thank you so much for doing this,” you said as you opened the door, immediately taking the bag from your roommate. 

“No problem at all.”

Jessika looked around behind you, her eyes curious. You chuckled and held the door open.

“Come on in.”

“Inside a professor’s apartment,” Jessika said as she stepped in. She looked around the room when Beebs came up and jumped on her. You tried to apologize and tell Beebs to stop but Jessika just leaned down and picked him up. 

“Ah, the infamous Beebs,” she laughed as he licked her face. “You really are cute, aren’t you?”

You stepped into the kitchen and put a couple bottles of gatorade in the refrigerator, leaving out the ingredients to start making soup with and digging around the cupboards for the items you’d need to make it. 

“So, what’s he sick with?” Jessika asked. 

“A cold from what I can tell. He doesn’t have a thermometer so I don’t know if he has a fever.”

“How’s he doing?”

You sighed heavily. “Poe’s amazing and wonderful in many ways, but he is still a man who thinks he’s dying because he has a cold.”

“You hear that, Beebs?” Jessika said in Beebs’ pointed ear. “He’s got a man-cold. And they’re supposed to be the superior sex.”

“Yeah, supposed to be.”

Beebs wiggled in her arms and she let him down, watching him walk off. You watched Jessika laugh quietly at the adorable dog before looking back around the apartment, giving a small nod of approval. 

“Hey Jess?” You spoke quietly, your voice hesitant and unsure. You walked over to Jessika, who had been looking at you with a questioning look. “I’m sorry.”

Jessika opened her mouth to speak and you put a hand up. “I’m sorry for being a bitch, for treating you like shit, and taking forever to forgive you. You said things and I said things and even though what you said hurt, it doesn’t mean you’re a terrible person and I’ve been treating you like you were. And I’m really sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry.” Jessika replied and you shook your head. 

“Yes, I do.”

“Well, I forgive you then. Because I’ve missed you.”

Holding your arms out, Jessika met you in a tight hug. You really had missed her too. She had been there for you when she didn’t have to be, and thinking back you were surprised she was because you felt you had treated her like shit. Beebs jumping up on both your legs trying to be included in the hug tore you apart, Jessika leaning down and scratching his ears. 

“When we’re done with school and all that and it’s fine for you guys to be in public together, I’d really love to sit down with Prof—Poe.” Jessika said, the use of his first name foreign on her tongue but the effort graciously appreciated by her friend. “You know, get to know him. As one of your best friends, it is my job to tell him that if he hurts you I’ll destroy him.”

You chuckled. “I’m sure we could arrange that if you really want to. I’ve met his friends, seems only fair that he gets to know mine.”

“Exactly!” Jessika said. “Alright, I have to get going. I’ll see you later?”

“Yeah, I have class a 7:45a.m and he needs to sleep, so I’ll be back later tonight.”

Jessika squeezed your shoulder as she passed and you thanked her once more before she left. You set to work, setting up everything you’d need and pulling up the recipe saved on your phone. 

Chopping vegetables in your boyfriend’s kitchen was oddly domestic, like you were waiting for him to come home from work and you were cooking dinner. You wondered what you would be doing at that very moment had you not pursued your professor that Halloween night. Would you have given Ben another chance? Would you be in a relationship at all? You pondered the what if’s, yet each scenario couldn’t bring you to the level of happiness that was your reality. You really thought you had lost it all during that fight and you would never go another day without being grateful to Poe for forgiving you.

As you added all the ingredients together, your mind went to the dark place you tried so hard to push to the back of your mind. Graduation was just two months away. What was going to happen after your relationship graduated and the lease for your apartment was up and you moved back home? Poe certainly didn’t act like he would dump the relationship just because you were done with school, but you couldn’t help but think that way. You copped it up to having developed a small fear of abandonment, no doubt thanks to the sudden departure of your father. 

Slow, heavy footsteps filled the empty silence as you adjusted the temperature on the cooker. Poe slid his arms around your waist, his chin resting on your shoulder.

“You didn’t sleep very long,” you said.

“Can’t sleep anymore. Smells good,” Poe mumbled, leaning into you to see what was in the cooker. You gently bumped your head against his. 

“I’m glad you can smell,” you said. “It’s my grandma’s recipe. My mom used to make it for Tallie and I when we were sick. It’s done now, eat some. You need to eat.”

You moved around each other, him scooping up soup and you grabbing him something to drink. 

“Did I have all of this stuff?” Poe asked, looking at all the ingredients he could see in the soup as he walked to sit on the couch. 

“No, Jessika dropped off stuff. You have nothing here,” you teased, taking a seat next to him. Your expression turned a little more serious. “She wants to sit down and talk with you, you know. Get to know you. When the school year’s over. If that’s ok with you.”

“I’d like that,” he said, taking in a spoonful of soup and groaning at how nice it felt against his sore throat. “I didn’t know you could cook.”

“I still have some secrets left,” you smirked. “I’m glad you’re feeling better enough to eat something. I was starting to worry a little bit.”

“I’m hoping I can kick this in a few days. I’d hate to cancel class again.” You assured Poe that no one would be mad if he did, to which he laughed and then immediately coughed. You hoped he’d be able to get rid of it soon, too. “You’re going to Cabo for spring break, right?”

“Yeah, with a few girlfriends from high school. Why?”

“I just forgot.” There was something about the tone of his voice that sounded nervous, but he didn’t say anything else. You and him had discussed your spring break plans and you knew he was going to California for a few days with Finn and Rey. 

“So, I’m—“ Poe started, pausing to figure out how he was going to ask what he wanted. You urged him to continue. “After California, I’m spending a few days at my dad’s. If you can make it work, would you want to spend two or three of those days with me?”

Your mouth dropped and a small smile started to form on your face. 

“You want me to meet your dad?” Poe shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal, but it was to him. And it was to you too. 

“Yeah, I do,” he said, putting his near empty bowl on the coffee table. You were happy to see he was able to finish most of it. “I was thinking you could fly out Thursday and we’d get a late flight back here on Saturday night so the chances of running into people from here are slim.”

“That’s very specific, how long have you been thinking about this?”

“Since we last talked about spring break. I just didn’t know how to ask you.”

“Were you scared to ask me?”

“I thought it might be too soon to be meeting family.”

“It might be,” you said softly and Poe nodded in understanding, but his face fell a little. You placed your hand on his leg. “But I still want to.”

“Yeah?”

You nodded and Poe’s face lit up. This was so important to him, like meeting his friends had been. And it stirred something in your chest that he already wanted you to meet his dad. It gave you more hope for your future together. “I’ll call my friends tomorrow and see if we can figure it out.”

Poe put his hand on top of yours and squeezed it, not exactly what he wanted to do but trying not to heighten your chances of getting sick. “I’ll get the soup put away, do you want to watch a movie before you leave?”

You nod and get up at the same time as him, grabbing the blanket from the floor and stretching out on the couch. You opened up Netflix and scrolled through, deciding on a movie that you’d both seen before in case Poe fell asleep. Poe turned a couple lights off as he came back, taking the blanket from you and settling between you and the couch. Half of his body laid on top of yours, legs tangled together and his cheek resting in the middle of your stomach. His arm laid along your other side, hand curved in so his fingers grazed against your side. You were his body pillow and you didn’t mind one bit. 

Poe was a physically affectionate person. He loved to be touching you in some way, from something simple like holding your hand or throwing your legs across his lap to wrapping you completely around him while you laid in bed together, limbs so intertwined you wouldn’t know where he started and you ended. You weren’t surprised to find out that Poe was extremely cuddly when he wasn’t feeling well. A lot of people got that way. 

You started the movie and brought your hand up to run your fingers through Poe’s hair, gently massaging his scalp as you did. You had learned pretty quick that his hair was a weakness for him, something that both relaxed him and excited him depending on what you were doing with it.

It had only been about a month since your first date but you were so incredibly happy with Poe. You adored everything about him, especially the way he treated you. He didn’t talk to you or see you or treat you like a naive girl in her early twenties. He respected you as an equal, an adult in an adult relationship. It was so early in your relationship, but you couldn’t help but think about a future with him. 

This was the real thing for you. You were young and very well aware that a lot of people your age didn’t get into serious relationships. But you really wanted this to turn into something long-term. You hoped he did too. 

He had your heart; completely, fully.

“You’re staring,” Poe mumbled. You chuckled. 

“I can’t help it. 

He looked up at you, his chin on your stomach. “Thanks for taking care of me,” he said quietly, placing a kiss on your stomach over your shirt. You smiled softly down at him.

“Of course,” you said. “If I wasn’t, you’d be curled up in the fetal position starving and dehydrated.”

“I would not.”

“You would too. You’re such a baby when you’re sick.”

Poe nuzzled your stomach, the action making you giggle when his two day old stubble made contact with your skin. You relaxed into him, the hand that was in his hair traveling down to rub soothing circles on his back. Within thirty minutes of the movie starting, you were both fast asleep. 

When you were sick with a cold a few days later, Poe was better prepared to tackle the cold. You slept in his bed all day in his bed and he took care of you the same way you did for him.

tag list [open!] - @ah-callie @darksideofclarke @leilei-draws @imaginecrushes @i-ievu @brianamaree @yeeintensifies @spider-starry @krazykatkay456 @fanfiction-trashpile @afootnoteinyourhappiness @easterncryptid @my-child-gaara @myrandom-fandomlife @onebatch--twobatch @the-cry-of-youth @p3nny4urth0ught5 @porgiez @umchrisevans @galaxy-of-stories @seeking-a-great--perhaps @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @dameronsgalaxygal @mserynlarsen @yougottakeeponkeepinon @linibirdimagine @goddamndameron

[artificialqueens]

Ms. California, Chapter Six (Crygi) - Mik

A/N: I am SO sorry for taking so long to update! I had the worst case of writer’s block ever, and I had midterms this week. Thanks for being patient. I hope this makes up for my lack of posting!

Summary: Crystal moves to Los Angeles from Missouri and meets Gigi Goode, captain of the varsity cheer squad. Queue the 1990s lesbian high school AU that absolutely nobody asked for.

It’s been two weeks since Gigi announced to the cheer squad that Crystal was, in fact, her friend. And those two weeks had been delightful.

Every day, Gigi made a point to either sit with Jackie, Crystal, and Jan at lunch, or pull Crystal over to the squad’s lunch table. Crystal found herself beginning to enjoy getting to know the group: most of them were, to her surprise, funny, genuine, and generally good-natured. She especially found herself clicking with Nicky and Jaida. Although they were standoffish at first, Crystal quickly bonded with Nicky over her interest in fashion (although many would consider Crystal’s taste questionable at the very best, Nicky seemed to think it was “perfectly unique and lovely”) and Jaida over being the “new kid”, as she had moved from Wisconsin just a few years prior.

When Gigi first began sitting with Crystal, Jackie, and Jan, Jackie seemed to be pensive. She kept quiet and let the other three girls do all of the talking. However, this changed as soon as Gigi talked about what it was like sneaking into gay clubs in West Hollywood. Jackie lit up, asking questions about it for almost the entire lunch period. Crystal knew Jackie wanted nothing more than to have an out-and-proud gay community surrounding her - she was the only one of the four who everyone knew was gay. Gigi promised that she would accompany Jackie, and the other two girls, on one of the “18+” nights that the clubs held. From then on, Jackie seemed to gradually warm towards the blue-eyed cheerleader.

Gigi would drive Crystal home most days, often electing to come inside to do homework and cook dinner. The two would spend the first hour unable to focus, finding themselves tangled up in Crystal’s bed, lips attached and make-up smudged. Eventually, they’d compose themselves and start homework until Crystal’s mom arrived home. She’d hug both girls, and the three would automatically make their way into the kitchen. Gigi had made the comment that she felt, in many ways, that she was already closer to Crystal’s mom than her own. Crystal felt sad for her - Gigi never talked about her family and assumed that the situation was less-than-ideal - but her heart soared when she saw the blonde and her mom in fits of laughter together. Gigi would eat dinner with her family most nights, and Crystal would kiss her goodbye through the window of her magenta convertible before she drove home. They had fallen into a comfortable routine and Crystal could not have been happier.

~

Crystal is sitting with Jackie at their secluded lunch table, sketching the outline of a bird for an art project while Jackie flips through her government textbook. It’s a strangely gray day in Los Angeles and Crystal almost wonders if it will rain: the sun is completely hidden behind fog and dark clouds and it’s chilly enough that Crystal wishes she’d brought a hoodie with her to school.

She’s pulled out of her thoughts when she hears Gigi’s familiar laugh from a distance. It’s light and high-pitched and it makes Crystal light up. She turns around to see Gigi making her way over with Jan; they’re both wearing their cheer uniforms and Crystal doesn’t think she’s ever seen anyone look as stunning as Gigi does.

“Hey girls!” Gigi says as she sits down next to Crystal.

“Hey!” Crystal grins. “You look uh, really pretty in your uniform,” she says in a hushed tone. It’s the first time she’s seen Gigi in it.

Gigi blushes. “Thank you.”

“So, we were talking about what we could do tonight after the game!” Jan interrupts, nudging Jackie softly to get the girl to look up from her textbook.

“What’s that?” Jackie asks, shutting the book.

“What if we all had a big sleepover?!” Jan suggests excitedly.  

“Where?” Crystal asks.

“Jan’s house, her mom is really cool,” Gigi explains.

“Yeah, she knows about Jackie and I and is like, super happy for us,” elaborates the other blonde.

“She’s just happy that you’re finally dating someone who hasn’t had all of their braincells tackled out of them,” Jackie quips with a smirk.

“Ouch. But you’re not wrong,” Jan laughs, “I guess football guys aren’t always the brightest tools in the shed.”

“So, what do you think?!” Gigi interjects.

“I’m up for it!” Crystal agrees quickly, excited to spend more time with both of her new friends and her… whatever Gigi is to her.

“Jackie?”

“Obviously!” Jackie smiles.

“Yay!” Jan and Gigi simultaneously exclaim.

“Will you gals come to the football game, then?” Jan asks.

“I guess,” Jackie decides hesitantly.

“I’ve never been to a football game,” Crystal says. “I’ll give it a try, though. Why not?”

“You and I can just hang out at the top of the bleachers and read, Crystal,” Jackie tells the curly-haired girl.

“For sure.“

“Oh, come on, where’s your school spirit?! You gotta cheer the team on!” Jan jokes with her girlfriend and Jackie rolls her eyes playfully.

The wind begins softly blowing, making Crystal shiver again. She doesn’t understand California weather - it’s usually hot enough that she feels like she needs an ice bath, but right now, a warm sweater and some hot chocolate sounds delightful.

“Crys, are you cold?” Gigi asks.

“Oh no, I’m fine,” Crystal assures the blonde, trying not to shiver as another gust of wind blows through.

“You look like you’re cold, I’m giving you my jacket,” Gigi tells her decidedly.

“Gi, no, you totally don’t have to -”

“Here,” Gigi says, pulling off the purple letterman’s jacket.

Gigi drapes the heavy jacket around Crystal’s shoulders. The jacket is huge on her, probably because Gigi is so much taller than she is, and it envelopes her in warmth. Crystal can’t help but notice that it smells like vanilla - exactly like Gigi.

“Thanks,” Crystal blushes as Gigi leans in closer to her.

“You look really good in my jacket and I really want to kiss you right now,” the blue-eyed girl murmurs matter-of-factly.

Crystal’s face heats up more, and although she’s (kind of) gotten used to hearing compliments from Gigi, her brain still seems to short-circuit whenever Gigi says something sweet.

“Get a room!” Jackie laughs, noticing the romantic tension between the two.

“Maybe we will,” Gigi responds, raising an eyebrow. “Crystal, I think I left something in my car that I need some help with.”

“Oh, yeah, the um… the thing!” Crystal stutters out.

Gigi stands, motioning for Crystal to follow her.

“I’ll see you girls later tonight! And Jan, make sure to be on time for warm-ups today!” Gigi calls out, waving back at Jackie and Jan.

“How much longer do we even have at lunch?” Crystal asks once they’re in the parking lot.

“I don’t know, probably fifteen minutes,” Gigi guesses.

They walk briskly to Gigi’s car, and the second the doors shut behind them, Gigi captures Crystal’s lips in a heated kiss.

Crystal is sure that she’ll never get tired of the way that Gigi’s plump lips move softly against her own or the way that Gigi’s hands feel gripping her hips or the way that Gigi always bites down softly on Crystal’s bottom lip after she lightly drags her tongue across it. It’s all nothing short of magic.

Their kissing becomes increasingly passionate, and before Crystal knows it, Gigi tentatively moves her hands below the older girl’s shirt. Crystal lets out a quiet moan as Gigi’s hands make their way up her hips, her fingertips ghosting over Crystal’s ribcage.

Crystal knows this is all very “high school”; her best friends at home had countless stories about making out - or more - with boys in their cars. Crystal never thought she’d be one of them, but here she was, teenage hormones raging.

Crystal’s breath hitches when Gigi’s fingers brush over the side of her chest. Gigi breaks the kiss, still not moving more than a few centimeters away from Crystal.

“Is… that okay?” she whispers.

Crystal nods, reconnecting their lips.

Gigi hesitantly places one of her hands over Crystal’s breast and gently presses her hand against it, eliciting a slight gasp from the shorter girl. The blonde caresses her chest, and Crystal can feel her heart racing. She can’t think about anything but Gigi: Gigi’s hand moving languidly against the fabric of her bra, the feeling of Gigi’s heartbeat, the taste of Gigi’s breath in her mouth…

They’re interrupted when the lunch bell rings out, loudly enough that the two can hear it even from the confines of Gigi’s car.  

“Fuck,” Gigi stammers.

“We should uh, get going,” Crystal attempts to slow her breathing.

“Definitely,” Gigi agrees breathlessly.

“That was…”

“Yeah.”

“We should… try that again, not in your car,” Crystal says, her cheeks pink. She almost wants to laugh at how completely and utterly cliché this situation is: if they weren’t both girls, would this not be equivalent to the quintessential high school experience of getting felt up in some boy’s car?

“I’d like that,” Gigi says, regaining her composure. “Ready to go?”

“Yep,” Crystal says, adjusting her shirt.

They walk into the gates of the school, parting ways at the entrance.

Crystal realizes she’s still wearing Gigi’s letterman’s jacket and smiles.

~

“You did what?!” Jackie yells, wide-eyed.

Crystal and Jackie are sitting in Crystal’s bedroom, getting ready to go to the football game. Crystal could care less about supporting her school’s team, or “school spirit” as Jan referred to it, but she painted purple and white streaks on her cheeks anyways. If anything, she thinks Gigi will find it cute.

“Yeah,” Crystal replies to Jackie sheepishly.

“Weren’t you scared of someone seeing?! Not even a student, but like, a teacher!”

“Not really, my mind was… elsewhere,” Crystal replies honestly.

“You’re braver than I am, I’ll give you that,” Jackie mimics Crystal’s idea, dragging purple and white face paint across her own cheeks. “I’m scared to even kiss Jan on the cheek in the car. Or anywhere on campus.”

“Yeah, it might not have been the most responsible idea, in retrospect,” Crystal admits.

“Just be careful, I’d hate for people to find out about you guys,” Jackie warns.

“I don’t plan on people finding out,” Crystal assures her. “On that topic, what’s the deal with Jan’s mom?”

“What do you mean?”

“She just… knows about you guys? And lets you have sleepovers?” Crystal elaborates.

“Yeah,” Jackie smiles. “I remember the day her mom found out. We were laying in her backyard, drinking smoothies, and her mom was supposed to be at the gym. She got home early, I guess, and saw Jan lean in and kiss me.”

“What did she do?”

“She knocked on the window and Jan completely freaked out. She ran inside, and her mom apparently just asked if we were dating, and Jan tried to say it was nothing and completely innocent. Her mom didn’t buy it, and walked outside and asked me . I can’t lie, and I thought she was angry, so I said yes and offered to leave.”

“Was she mad?”

“Oh god no. She gave Jan a hug, and gave me a hug, and said she was happy that if Jan was going to be dating in high school, it was someone like me. It was the first time I’d ever heard that,” Jackie’s eyes light up.

“That’s insane, and really sweet,” Crystal muses. “My parents are both really great, but I doubt they’d respond like that.”

“Mine definitely wouldn’t. I’d be disowned in a second.”

“I’m sorry, Jackie,” Crystal sympathizes.

“Don’t be. Jan’s mom does a good enough job at making me feel like I’m a part of their family.”

The two spend the rest of the time getting ready in relative silence. Six o’clock rolls around, and the pair make their way downstairs to ask if Crystal’s mom can drop them off. Jackie doesn’t want to deal with parking at school during a football game.

“Hey mom! We’re ready to go,” Crystal tells her.

Her mom looks up at her from the book she’s reading. “Oh honey, you two look adorable !”

“Thanks,” Crystal smiles.

“Do you need me to pick you up?” Crystal’s mom asks.

“No, I think we’re staying over at Jan’s - Gigi will drive.”

“Sounds good!” Crystal’s mom grabs her keys. “Let’s get going, then!”

The car ride is short and sweet; it’s filled with small-talk and her mom’s bad taste in music.

“Have fun and be safe, girls!” Crystal’s mom calls out as the two exit the car.

Crystal waves, telling her mom that she loves her, and sets off towards the bleachers with Jackie.

“So, if I’m being completely honest, I don’t uh, really want to sit in the back the whole time,” Crystal laughs.

“Oh?”

“I mean, I wanna like, cheer on Gigi or whatever,” she says. Crystal is wearing the blonde’s letterman’s jacket, and she feels like the girlfriend of the high school quarterback.

Except she isn’t Gigi’s girlfriend and Gigi is the head cheerleader.

“That’s… cute. Okay, well, fine by me,” Jackie shrugs.

The two sit several rows back from the front, far enough away from the over-zealous fans but close enough that they can still see the field, waiting for the game to start.

“Do you come to these much?” Crystal asks.

“Not as much as Jan would like, I’m sure,” Jackie shares. “I guess now that I have you to come with, I’ll come more.”

“It’s like a reverse double-date, or something,” Crystal laughs. “I never thought I’d be sitting at a football game for a girl .”

“I never thought I’d actually make a friend at this school,” Jackie says seriously, attempting to cover the serious nature of her statement with a laugh.

“Come on, you have other friends, right?”

Jackie shakes her head. “I came out and everyone dropped like flies. That and being the weird Persian kid kind of kills my ability to have a social life.”

“Geeze, I’m sorry, Jackie.”

“Hey, I’ve got you and Jan, and oddly enough, Gigi is back in my life, so I can’t complain, can I?”

The game starts, and all of the football players make their way onto the field. The cheerleaders run out shortly after, and Crystal cranes her neck to see her favorite blonde. She stands front and center, leading both the audience and the squad in chants. Gigi is bubbly and upbeat and in her element; she dances and kicks and does the splits and Crystal is nothing short of amazed by her. Next to her, Jackie smiles at Jan and waves to her several times when the squad has a break. Jan beams up at her, waving back each time.

Crystal couldn’t say who won the game, or how many points were scored; she knows next to nothing about sports and was far more entertained by watching Gigi down on the field than the game itself. When the game is over, she and Jackie make their way down to the field to wait for their respective blondes.

Crystal sees Gigi emerge from the field, a smile painted across her face.

“Gi, you were awesome!” Crystal grins, hugging her.

“I’m glad you had fun!” Gigi says enthusiastically.

“Sorry that I sort of stole your jacket,” Crystal apologizes. “You probably wanted it during the game.”

“It looks much cuter on you,” Gigi winks. “Plus, I kind of like seeing you in my jacket.”

“Gross!” Jan jokes, elbowing Gigi. “Are you lovebirds ready to go?”

“I’m ready,” Crystal nods, and Gigi agrees.

“Great! Mom said she’d order pizza for us all!”

The four head to Gigi’s car; it’s less than a five minute drive to Jan’s house from the school.

Jan’s house is surprisingly large; Crystal isn’t used to the gigantic houses that seem to line the streets in Los Angeles. Jan unlocks the door, yelling to tell her mom that she’s home.

Jan’s mom emerges from the kitchen, approaching the door.

“Hi, sweetie, how was the game?” she hugs Jan.

“It was good, we won!” Jan tells her.

“Hello, Jackie!” Jan’s mom moves to hug her daughter’s girlfriend. “You look adorable with your face painted like that!”

“Thank you! It was Crystal’s idea.”

Jan’s mom turns to look at Crystal. “You must be Crystal, the girls have told me so much about you! It’s so nice to meet you.”

“It’s nice to meet you, too!” Crystal reaches out to shake her hand, and much like her own mother, Jan’s mom pulls her into a hug.

“We’re big on hugs here, handshakes are for strangers!”

Crystal laughs; she thinks her mom would get along swimmingly with Jan’s.

“And Gigi, you don’t get to avoid my hugs, either!” Gigi laughs as she’s wrapped in a hug. “I’m so glad to see that you aren’t third-wheeling with these two anymore!”

“Hey, she never third-wheels!” Jan laughs, faux-scowling at her mom.

“Well, I’m just happy you have a girlfriend, it’ll give you all some super fun double-dates, I’m sure! You make a cute couple!”

“Oh, we’re not gi-” Crystal begins to correct her before Gigi talks.

“Thank you, hopefully Crystal can get Jackie out to more games!” Gigi jokes.

“Let’s hope! Anyways, what kind of pizza do you girls want?”

~

The four sit on Jan’s living room floor, eating pizza on a mountain of sleeping bags and pillows as It plays in the background. Jackie is cowering into Jan, clearly terrified of the movie that her girlfriend insisted that they watch.

Crystal has seen it before - it’s one of her favorites - and Gigi seems almost as freaked out as Jackie is. The blonde has trapped Crystal’s hand in a death grip and Crystal swears her fingers are losing circulation. She can’t bring herself to care; the sensation of Gigi’s hand in her own is inarguably one of her favorite feelings.

“Why did we have to watch this movie?” Jackie squeaks out. “It’s so… violent.”

“It’s a masterpiece, babe!” Jan debates.

“It’s gory.”

“It’s interesting!”

“Whatever you say, darling,” Jackie says, continuing to hide behind Jan.

Crystal has to stifle a laugh - their exchange is adorably hilarious, and she thinks that they’re perfect for each other. She looks down at Gigi, who has buried her head in Crystal’s arm, and squeezes the blonde’s hand.

Her mind wanders as the movie plays on. Gigi didn’t tell Jan’s mom that they weren’t girlfriends and wonders if Gigi is interested in being exclusive. Crystal hasn’t thought about it much until this point - she’s been enjoying living in the moment with Gigi - but now the thought won’t leave her mind.

She can see herself in a relationship with Gigi easily. They’ll go on dates and fall asleep next to each other and surprise each other with flowers and Crystal will show up at all of Gigi’s cheer events with enthusiasm. She wants to wear the letterman’s jacket every day, and she never wants to go a day without feeling Gigi’s fingers intertwined with her own.

Crystal’s thoughts trail on until the end of the movie. Jackie has fallen asleep in Jan’s lap and Jan is lazily stroking her curly, dark hair as she, too, begins to drift off. Gigi is wide awake, still clutching Crystal’s hand.

“Do you wanna go sit on the porch?” Gigi asks Crystal quietly.

Crystal nods, and the two stand. Gigi has clearly been over to Jan’s house enough that she knows exactly where to go, because she leads Crystal to a sliding glass door. They sit down on the wooden porch in Jan’s backyard, and Crystal lets out a contented sigh as Gigi plants a kiss on her cheek.

“Thanks for coming tonight. It really, really means a lot to me, Crys.”

“Hey, of course. I like watching you, you look so happy when you’re cheering.”

“Not as happy as I am when I’m with you,” Gigi hums.

“That was cheesy,” Crystal jokes, wrapping her arm around the blonde.

“Look what you’ve done to me, Crystal Elizabeth. You’ve turned me into a complete dork! I’m almost as bad as Jan!” Gigi jokes.

Crystal can feel butterflies fluttering around in her stomach when Gigi uses her middle name - it feels like a term of endearment.  

“Who said dorky was a bad thing? I happen to think your dorky comments are adorable - or should I say, adorkable!” Crystal laughs.

“Okay, now that was bad,” Gigi snorts.

“You love it.”

“I know.”

The two sit in silence, wrapped up in each other’s arms, enjoying the cool night air.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about something,” Gigi breaks the silence.

“What’s up?” Crystal asks.

“I hate to be that girl that asks this question, but like… what is this?”

Crystal doesn’t know how to answer - she doesn’t know what will be too much for Gigi and doesn’t want to scare the girl off. She doesn’t want to look inexperienced and over-eager.

“I, uh, I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it,” Crystal lies.

“Oh.”

“Not that I don’t want to think about it!” Crystal quickly follows up. “What do you think this is?”

“Hey, not fair! I asked you first!” Gigi giggles.

“I mean, I really like you. Enough that I went to my first high school football game in four years for you.”

“I really like you too, Crystal.”

“So…” Crystal trails off, avoiding the question she knows she needs to ask.

“You’re going to make me be the one to say it, aren’t you?”

“I have no idea what you mean,” Crystal feigns innocence.

“Crystal, I want you to be my girlfriend,” Gigi declares.

Crystal presses a light kiss on Gigi’s lips before replying.

“Gi, I want nothing more than to be your girlfriend.”

Gigi leans her head on Crystal’s shoulder and throws her arms around the older girl’s waist. Crystal runs her fingers through her blonde hair, pressing gentle kisses to the top of her head as the two sit in a comfortable quietness.

Crystal can’t think of anything better than this.

[currentfandomkick]

Miraculous Team and the Batboys

Longer update, wrote the ao3 version first this time. if you want to find me there, crazyjc.

--

Thankfully there weren’t any akuma attacks that day or that night. Marinette was glad to get some sleep for once. Her body, confused and used to a few hours a night, got her up early.

Marinette decided to help with the morning rush—quick to handle the register and make adjustments to some people’s orders (no extra charge for the exhausted high school and college students) when she managed to find someone as dead as she was after an akuma messed up her commission schedule and sleep was skipped for a week.

“Wow, you’re getting the ‘Please Don’t Let Me Die Again Yet’ special.” Marinette turned before the zombie could speak. “Maman, watch the register, someone looks worse than midterms and commissions me.”

Once Maman took the register again, Marinette worked on her disaster drink that only a few particular customers knew of from her personal menu--mainly the dead college and high school students insane enough to pull a weeks worth of all nighters like her. And baby parents that liked her parents bakery.

Gurarana beans instead for the extra caffeine with her special blend of licorice root, peppermint and green tea poured in--double the caffeine with less effort, glucose for the brain fuel, sweet and mint for wakeup and focus, and green tea for lasting energy boost.

“Here, this should keep you up and a bit more functional than usual.”

The man raised an eyebrow.

“Oh my god, what got Finals Angel up this early?” One of the regulars almost yelled, staring at her with a look that screamed the universe was going to collapse in on itself, and they were now anticipating this outcome until they got their morning fix.

Marinette shrugged, moving to the next customer as the dead man took a seat and pulled out his laptop. She continued to help until it was getting close to class.

“Maman, the rest of that brew is under the cabinet for the laptop zombie, I’m taking my morning delivery now.”

Maman took over while Marinette made her way to school, passing out the usual deliveries as she moved about.

“Adrien, your insult to caffeinated monstrosities everywhere.”

“Thanks Marinette!” The blond held his (essentially) hot chocolate with one pump expresso, and five three shots of caramel on top of whip cream.

“Chloe, why you have me grab something this sweet this early is only further proof of your crimes against humanity.”

“You’re welcome Dupain-Cheng.” The girl nabbed her (in Marinette's opinion) low caffeine sugar water--licorice root with half a bottle of honey, and lots of ice with whip cream and honesy drizzled on top. She would never understand that order, but was too afraid to ask at this point. She might be taking the Bee thing too far.

“Alya, thank you for being a sane coffee person, Nino, we are having a talk about your scheduling.”

“Thanks gurl." Because close or not, Alya was an addict with a simple and reasonable coffee that restored Marinette's sanity while making it.

Nino groaned as he took his pastries and three cream, one expresso. “Not again, I still haven’t recovered from the last time.”

Marinette shrugged. “Your mistake, not mine.”

“Oh, did you get my cookies?” Sabrina asked.

Marinette rolled her eyes with a fond smile. She likes Sabrina when she isn't in full cling mode, and giving her boxes of pre-paid cookies put together on Marinette's whims? Very calming after dealing with Adrien and Chloe's offending orders. “Yes. You paid for a different set everyday.”

“Thanks!” Sabina examined her current mix, more obscure cookies since Marinette got them before the morning rush.

“Markov, please tell me Max got some sleep last night?” Marinette asked as she handed another of her special “Max needs a nap but is to stubborn to” order--which is essentially an energy drink blend with a few slow-release teas mixed in.

“Affirmative. He got the requested minimum of three hours. I will ensure he gets more once school is out.”

“I’ll take what I can get.” He was less prone to akumatazation with more sleep, and Hawkmoth does like using Max. Marinette likes knowing she can have her teammate in the field without wondering if he'll pass out.

Marinette took her seat by Alya. They weren’t as close anymore, but it did mean Lila was alone in the back and didn’t see the group document.

“Class, we have a new student today!”

Marinette frowned. She wasn’t informed of any newcomers. She looked over at Chloe who huffed. She didn’t know either then.

“Class, this is Damian Grayson from America. His father is here on business and will be joining us for the semester!”

Chloe and her shared a look. With Chloe as the current president and Marinette as the head of the welcome committee, this was very last minute for them not to be informed. Especially as Bustier had the time to since both were here early.

Alya shot her a look.

Marinette shook her head. She really didn’t know, and it bugged her.

Alya narrowed her eyes as the new boy came in. Black hair, stood too straight and Middle Eastern. She wondered what his first language was briefly--someone in school was bound to be fairly fluent. If it was related to Arabic, Rose would be a good translator. Her and Adrien both have Mandarin now, and her English was passable to Americans--not so much for the UK. Alya has Spanish while Nino has Portuguese covered. Chloe was good for UK English and so was Adrien, but those two weren't good for new kids... especially from the America. Mylene, Ivan, Nathaniel and Juleka were bad at talking most of the time, so they were no-gos...

And she still had to finish Ali's commission… This would be a headache if they were an old Chloe-type.

“Damian, why don’t you tell us about yourself.”

“No need to. I do not plan on making friends.”

And he was worse than an Old Chloe-type. There went her free period for commissions.

The entire class shared a look, and Marinette wanted to groan. This boy would be in for a rude awakening—there was no escaping friendship in Bustier’s class. And anyone difficult? They would sent Marinette as envoy--hopefully Alya didn't make easy.

“I presume my seat is in the back?”

“Actually,” Alya stood up with a grin, “I was going to sit back with Lila to help her catch up in our next class.”

Marinette froze as she realized what Alya was doing. Keeping the new kid from Lila was good, but she also needed to keep Alya from falling for Lila’s lies again. And she has no clue on his preferred languages and uh!

“Alya,” she hissed.

“Don’t worry, I got this.” Alya moved to the back with ease before the boy could say a word.

Marinette hit her head. Why was her friend like this?

“I guess that means you’ll sit next to Marinette. Marinette, can you show Damian around during your free period?”

Marinette knew that tone. There was no refusing without a lecture on being a good role model and another reprimand for stepping down from class representative and student government when she got more commissions and needed more time.

“Of course Miss Buster.”

Damian took his seat without saying a word.

Marinette decided it was better to stay silent with this one--he didn't want friends, and would only be here briefly. She could respect that, even if she could feel the others scheming otherwise.

“What do you mean you know—“

“Oops,” Lila grinned. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

And that was what Marinette was hoping to avoid.

Damian twitched next to her. Marinette sighed, “One sec, I need to remind someone to check her sources before getting ahead of themselves… again.”

Nino shot Marinette a sympathetic look while Marinette linked three redacted articles that starred Lila as her main source.

“And done.”

Damian raised an eye brow at her. “You aren’t going to pester me, correct?”

Marinette rolled her eyes. Honestly? “You made your stance clear. I’m here as the actual head of the welcoming committee, and during free period I’ll just need to know your interests so we can avoid the parts of the school that aren’t relevant for you, and to make sure you have an idea how to handle akuma attacks since I’m going to guess they didn’t tell you about that before you applied.”

“tt,” Damian leveled her with a scowl. “Of course I know about them.”

Marinette didn’t bother to hide her surprise. “So you know where to go for shelter, the drills, the apps and news sources that are good for tracking, which hospitals are contactable during attacks and which ones go into lock down, oh and what actions are allowable and not as civilian aides to the miraculous team?”

The boy froze before her. He didn't then.

Her face slid into a more neutral one--keeping her gloating to herself.“That’s what I thought. I have a few flow charts in the committee room to grab since its an info dump and no one processes those well, and your learning style may benefit from it for all I know.” Marinette made sure not add ‘since some people can’t be bothered to tell me.’ The new boy clearly wasn’t interested in friendship, and despite what the class thinks, she is not friendship-nip.

“I…”

“Class, turn to page 67 of your textbook. Marinette, make sure to share with Damian.”

“Yes Miss Bustier,” Marinette moved the book between the two of them, ignoring Damian besides checking where his eyes were on the page before turning as they followed along.

Once their free period began, Adrien had a Chloe guarding him against the Lila octopus, with Sabrina flanking his other arm as backup.

“I take it those three are together?” Damian asked once they left.

“No, Chloe doesn’t share her friends well,” Marinette explained as they moved through the halls. “And it keeps away his fans, so no one stops it anymore.” Not unless they wanted the Mayor’s ire at least. It was very effective against Lila.

“I see…” He was watching her. She wasn’t sure if it was an American thing or just a tic of his. Possibly both.

“That’s where the teacher’s offices are for before and after school,” Marinette gestured to one wing. “All the doors are labeled, so its easy enough to find who you’re looking for as long as you have a name. You’ll find most of the school services there as well, minus the nurse who’s room is closer to the quad.”

Marinette smiled when they got to welcoming committee room. None of the other members were there at the moment, but the file cabinet was. She grabbed one of the ready-made packets and grabbed a spare Bustier Class packet too.

“Here’s the information for being new in Paris, everything from common places to eat, the good hole-in-the-wall places itemized by what you’re looking for, everything relating to akumas is on the red papers, and the yellow is the school’s map and procedures.” Marinette handed him the blue folder, then the orange. “This one is the Bustier-class specific one approved by Miss Bustier. It lists everything from class rules, what caused various akumatazations with the victim’s consent to disclose it, so not all are listed, and it has your schedule and the class outing dates plus who’s interested in what on the pink pages for possible friends, but you said you weren’t interested so we can skip that.”

Marinette watched him look over the papers for a moment, waiting until his attention was back to her. “Now, anything you have a vague interest in that you might have some random inclination to do at Dupont during your free periods, before or after school?”

Damian raised an eyebrow at her.

“Its you let me tailor the tour for you, or you have to go all over the school and talk to me the entire time, when we both know you’re really not interested.”

“Tt.”

Marinette shrugged. “Have it your way, now, on with the tour!”

--

Damian gawked at the core ciruculum including what he knew was more college level than high school level. Then there was the fact these students had access to multiple state of the art facilities tailored to current students interests on campus, with little issue getting them apparently.

“How does your school get all of this?”

The pigtail girl almost laughed at his question. “I guess they just sent you here since we have the most flexible curriculum routines then.” The girl shifted how she stood. “Dupont is an experimental school, everyone is given high expectations on entry but as long as you keep up with grades the school gets whatever any student requests—a few years ago we had one kid that was allowed to do rocket science as part of his program, he went to some German facility with a translator every other day. Alix has a blanket permit to do street art and installations on public property, as long as she gets her design approved and can give them her schedule as long as she helps other student with history classes. I get full access to any designing materials as part of my deal with the school in exchange for doing any school event costumes and tailoring jobs that I get a two week notice on.”

Damian nodded along, processing this new information. Suddenly, the high amount of akumas from graduates and current students of Dupont made sense. They were specialists, extremely skilled at their crafts and more likely to be knowledgeable than the general population on a variety of topics.

--

Marinette was glad for their hour-long lunch. “I’d ask if you wanted someone to eat with you, but you look like you need some time to process. I’ll check in before school ends.”

She ran home, noting that the man from that morning was still there but looked much less like he would keel over sometime soon. She knew that brew would help. She grabbed a croissant and ran upstairs to finish Prince Ali’s latest commission—a variant on his usual princely attire that was more maneuverable but still formal enough that no one would notice when he wore that one instead of the traditional one.

She had a feeling he was going to use it to sneak away from his guards.

She set an alarm and got to work.

She was quick to leave once the alarm sounded—she gave herself an extra five minutes this time.

“Hey, you’re the coffee angel, right?”

Marinette turned to see the man from that morning, now much more alive.

“I guess.” Marinette knew not to give out names to customers unless her parents deemed them not-stalker-y.

“Thanks, that thing actually worked. What’s in it?”

Marinette smiled at that. “Sorry, that’s a secret not even Maman and Papa get to know.”

“Huh,” the man processed her words. “Guess I’ll have to keep coming when I’m low then.”

Marinette nodded. “Guess so, good to see you’re no longer a zombie monsieur!”

She ran off at that, not sure what to think of them yet, other than if they needed that drink regularly, they might be worse than her. And she has heroing as an excuse. He doesn’t.

--

Holy shit was not expecting this response.

Thank you all so much, was not expecting this much positive response and i think my brain broke a bit, in the good way.

So, we have a new fan to Marinette's secret menu, and a Damian slowly realizing why the school is targetted who is also going with the 'I don't do friends' thing, again.

leaving this one as a poll: Damian calls out Lila by the end of the day for how Marinette and him end up as friends, or he puts together Marinette is doing a lot for the class by the end of the day and wants to figure out why, especially after reading the Ladyblog during lunch, or any other ideas.

Any ideas on how Marinette meets Dick and Jason for when she meets the next round of Batboys?

@worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @littleredrobinhoodlum @northernbluetongue @kceedraws @pirats-pizzacanninibles @theatreandcomicfreak @daminett4life @catthhay @weird-pale-blonde-person @amayakans @chocolatecatstheron

[krabstick32]

Update!!

This is basically just an update post, so hello everyone!

first of all, i’d like to thank ya’ll for 100+ followers! it warms my heart to see notifs from my tumblr and I honestly didn’t expect i’d make it this far, but you guys proved me wrong. thank you so much! 💖💖💖

Next is that there are a lot of requests on my inbox, and ohmygosh i am tickled pink—it makes me really happy that you guys trust me enough or like my writing enough to request for something🥺

Like?? You guys are so so nice and have such amazing ideas and I am super stoked, super excited to write for them! there are some I’m already writing for actually!!

but online classes are starting to get really heavy, midterms are coming up, and I had a hard time thinking up of some ideas to add to your request, so I apologize if it’s taking me an actual month, and for being incredibly slow with your request :(((

DONT WORRY THOUGH!!! I am getting to them, and there’s probably one (hopefully two!!) that I will post within the week if all goes well!

I’ll probably arrange a masterlist and a request rules post soon too. Lord knows I keep forgetting and/or putting it off 😔(I also have a ao3 account now if some of you prefer reading there uwu)

Demon slayer is just so swell, and i love all of the characters (ESPECIALLY GIYUU) to bits. i am willing to sell my soul to make them happy, even if it’s just through my writing because pls they deserve it, so to see that others read my crappy writing? AaaaAAaAaaa my heart💘💘💖💝

Bottomline is that I just want to thank you guys for your support. It means a whole lot to me that there are people reading my stuff and liking them.

anyways, if you have a request, or just wanna be my friend or chat with me about how much love giyuu (and literally every single charactar in kny) deserves or about anything in general, come on in!!! we can even do buzzfeed quizzes or bake virtual cookies together uwu