#I just feel like I'm being held back by the requirements of other people idk

[melivora]

Being restricted at work is pushing me to my limit lol

[danieyells]

If you could, could you post Alan’s lines? I like him but he’s so stone cold at low affinity it’s hard to sus out his personality

SORRY THIS TOOK ME SO LONG ANON AND @otomelover23 so many things got in the way. . .mostly myself lol. . . .

Honestly that stone coldness is a big part of his personality. He's not great at expressing himself and he's very to the point. But as his affinity goes up, he's more. . .concerned for you. And he wants you around more, trusting himself to have you around more.

I posted all of them again this time! A lot of his have similar energy because of his stiffness, so I feel like being able to see them all helps to idk see the gradual change i think.

Hello: (the first time the game is opened after that character is set as home screen NPC. Only happens once per day, unless the character is switched out and back.)

"Get your things. We're going."

You've Got Mail: (whenever there's something in the inbox, usually Arena rewards)

"Some letters here for you."

Default: (requires no affinity, has no time constraints)

"...What do you want?"

"Don't get involved with me."

"I'm going out. You guys get back to work."

"Get back. It's dangerous."

"Slack off once, and you'll find out how hard it is to get back in the game."

Affinity 1: (between 5am and 11am)

"Oh, you're awake."

Affinity 2: (between 11am and 4pm)

"I don't eat in the cafeteria. Portions aren't big enough. That's the only reason."

don't feel awkward in there or like people find you too intimidating to be near or anything? aren't worried about seeing Dante? if you say so.

Affinity 3: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"My wallet? Yeah, it's pretty beat up. Can't bring myself to chuck it though. Got some good memories with it."

reminds me of my brother, who kept our dad's old wallet. It's basically in tatters, held together by rubber bands, but sometimes what you have is what you have. . . .

Affinity 4: (between 8pm and 5am)

"I'm going to the Pit. You should go back to your house, {PC}."

he doesn't want you to see him punch a man into oblivion.

Affinity 5: (between 8pm and 5am)

"That sounds like a bike engine, but it's not one I know. ...Be right back."

INTRUDER ALERT INTRUDER ALERT INTRUDER ALERT much like Tohma he's probably pretty security conscious. Maybe he's more security conscious because Tohma isn't around. Or maybe he's not used to how Bonnie sounds yet.

Affinity 6: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"Was that class really revision...? I didn't think I missed that many..."

my boy is not book smart, he is fist smart and maybe street smart. please study with him. he needs flash cards. pretty sure the only reason he's passed any grade is because he goes on plenty of missions.

Affinity 7: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Lunch? Huh. I forgot to eat. Guess I'll just grill some meat and have it with rice and miso soup. That's my go-to."

y'know what i'm glad someone here eats proper meals. even if you forget at least you're eating eventually!!!

Affinity 8: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"One of the Vagastrom guys asked me to add him on WickChat... Do you know how to do that?"

Affinity 9: (between 8pm and 5am)

"I don't want to get anyone mixed up in my life."

He looks sad when he says this. . .he's really worried about how being close to him will affect others huh.

Affinity 10: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Better sleep. Got an early day tomorrow."

Affinity 11: (between 5am and 11am)

"497... 498... 499... 500... Phew..."

don't mind pc they're just gonna watch you do 500 sit-ups/push-ups/pull-ups/whatever. . .no no they don't mind the sweat at all please continue--

Affinity 12: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Bandana seems to disappear right around this time every day lately... What's he doing?"

Pretty sure Sho would be busy with the food truck around thhis time of day. . .does Alan not know Sho runs a business lmao. . .I mean I guess Alan doesn't go into the more populous parts of Darkwick much.

Affinity 13: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"The first-years've each got their own strengths. Both can do stuff I can't."

Affinity 14: (between 5am and 11am)

"Bandana's got potential. He's quick, and he's strong. Rest comes down to motivation."

I think Sho's motivated, just motivated to do his own thing. Although I'm sure he'll develop more interest in the world and actions of the Institute and anomalies eventually. . .maybe. Or maybe Hyde's interest will keep him away lol.

Affinity 15: (between 5am and 11am)

"I'm heading out. Mission. Make sure you go to class. ...I'll let you know when I'm back."

alright mom i'll go to class gosh. does this feel like a headpat or forehead kiss line to anyone else? he just doesn't want you to worry about him. He knows he's doing something dangerous. But he promises he'll come home. He won't be reckless because you're waiting. Maybe I'm reading too much into it lol.

Affinity 16: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Where am I...? Guess I should tell them I'm gonna be late. WickChat was this picture, wasn't it...?"

poor boy is so lost lmao please help him get where he needs to go. . .how does this man go on hikes in the mountains and shit. . . .

Affinity 17: (between 10pm and midnight)

"You're still awake? Don't stay up too late."

Affinity 18: (between 8pm and 5am)

"Oh, didn't see you there. I'm heading out for a run, but... Could you wait here for me?"

He wants to spend time with you, so please be waiting when he comes back. . . .

Affinity 19: (between 10pm and midnight)

"I pat people on the head a lot? Didn't notice. I'm doing it again? ...Sorry."

IT'S HARD NOT TO WHEN PEOPLE ARE SO MUCH SHORTER THAN YOU also that wasn't a complaint please give them lots of pats :'3

Affinity 20: (between 5am and 11am)

"I'm taking some of the Vagastrom guys to the mountains today. ...You want to come too?"

CAMPING TRIP WITH DA BOIS!!!!!

Affinity 21: (between 11am and 4pm)

"This one's all fixed up. I'm gonna take a shower. Wait there."

there like in the shower or--(he uses そこ which refers to someplace near the listener, so he just means 'where you're sitting' but still.)

Affinity 22: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"{PC}. Got time after this? A friend of mine gave me some fresh boar meat."

He wants to cook for you! He cooks in a very wilderness style, but still! He wants to share his bounty! He's showing you he can be a good provider. No, he didn't hunt it himself but good community connections are also important!

Affinity 23: (between 8pm and 5am)

"You're you, not someone else. You're doing a good job. Hold your head high."

he doesn't want you to fall into a cycle of self-loathing or of trying to be anyone but yourself. Maybe what others do feels more impressive to you, but you aren't them and you can't compare yourself to them. Even if you're 'weak' in one way or another, you have your own worth in other ways. So be proud of yourself, instead of trying to get the pride of somebody else. I think he really cares about your mental wellbeing and he doesn't want you to lose yourself. Because he's lost himself--and he doesn't want that for you. Don't wallow in self-pity, don't agonize over the past. Be proud of how far you've come and walk your own path.

Affinity 24: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Can't sleep? ...I'll take you for a drive. Quick run should help you reset."

Imagine falling asleep in his car and he has to figure out. . .does he wake you up, does he carry you somewhere. . .he could bring you back to your place but he doesn't know how to get there so. . .you wake up in his room, in his bed. . .does he have the understanding that "you probably shouldn't sleep in the same bed as somebody without them okaying it first" and he sets up his tent and sleeps in it or uses his sleeping bag or sleeps somewhere else in the dorm or maybe in his car. . .frankly even if he doesn't he'd be afraid of hurting you in his sleep. There's no way he'd sleep in the same bed as you. Maybe lie awake in there with you or something. But he'd be too scared of what harm he could cause to fall asleep.

Affinity 25(max): (no time constraints)

"I'm lucky I've got you, {PC}. As long as you're with me, I feel like I won't lose sight of who I am."

HE SMILES WHEN HE SAYS THIS. 99% of his lines have his usual expression, but this one he really smiles and that's how you know how much he appreciates you. I feel like he kind of gave up on himself--he's a big, dangerous brute, he's not someone worth getting close to, it's dangerous to even want to. . .but you make him feel like maybe he has a chance again. You make him look in the mirror and see someone he hasn't seen in a long time, and he realizes that person is himself and he would have never seen the version of him who isn't dirtied with blood again without you.

Spring: (March-May) (between 5am and 11am)

"Don't get lax just 'cause it's warm out. Stay focused."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"... Good camping weather."

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"Oh, it's you. Must've dozed off. Better get back to work."

BABY IF YOU NEED A NAP JUST TAKE A NAP. . . .

(between 8pm and 5am)

"The cherry blossom illuminations? ...That kind of thing's not for me."

Summer: (June-August) (between 5am and 11am)

"It's getting hot out. Make sure you stay hydrated."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Looks like we've got another mission order. There's more anomalies out there in summer."

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"The Pit's getting noisy. Those guys better not be pulling stupid shit again..."

LET LEO PLAY MUSIC IN THE PIT HE MISSES GOING TO THE CLUB.

(between 8pm and 5am)

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you again... I was just going for a jog. Didn't think you'd be round this corner."

Alan turning a corner and slamming straight into you and being shocked aw--

Autumn: (September-November) (between 5am and 11am)

"Good season for a workout. Want to join me?"

(between 11am and 4pm)

"...Maybe I'll go check out the fall leaves."

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"The days are getting shorter. You should get home before it gets dark."

(between 8pm and 5am)

"...Long nights make me think about stuff I'd rather forget."

he killed dante in the autumn or winter. noted.

Winter: (December-February) (between 5am and 11am)

"Cold out in the mornings lately. Guess I'll warm up with a coffee."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"The first-years ditched... What do they mean, "too cold"?"

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"As long as you got some muscle, you can handle the cold."

i handle the cold well because i'm fat, myself. my brother, who's plenty muscular, gets cold much easier than i do U:

(between 8pm and 5am)

"It's freezing... Guess I'll break out the kerosene heater. Gotta make sure you ventilate if you use it indoors, but it works real fast. Can't do without it in winter."

His birthday: (April 25th)

"Whose birthday? ...Mine? Oh... Forgot all about it. ...Thanks."

Your birthday:

"Today's your birthday, yeah? ... Get your stuff. I'll take you for a drive."

New Years: (January 1st)

"You helped us out a lot last year. Hope you'll stick around."

Valentine's Day: (February 14th)

"This chocolate's for me? Do everything proper, don't you? Thanks. I appreciate it."

HE SMILED AGAIN. I wonder if he's ever been given valentine's chocolate before. Even if he thinks it's just out of obligation, I think he must be really happy. . . .

White Day: (March 14th)

"White Day's when you repay people for what they got you on Valentine's Day, right? Sorry if these aren't your thing... Didn't really know what you like..."

. . .my first thought was that i read that sometimes lingerie is given as a white day return present. . .and i just imagined that Alan asked what he was supposed to do if he liked the person he got a valentine's day gift from on valentine's and Leo saw an opportunity for chaos and said to get them some sexy white underwear and Alan just. . .believed him. And it's a very embarrassing moment for everyone involved. pc absolutely wears them when alan asks them out for things tho. waiting for the day alan finds out they're wearing it.

April Fool's Day: (April 1st)

"I'm actually a dog. Woof. ...Sorry, that was a lie. Forget I said anything."

he's a little confused but he's got the spirit.

Halloween: (October 31st)

"Saw an anomaly I'd never seen before just now. Ran away when I tried to stop it. That's when I realized it was a human."

i would not be surprised if his upbringing was sheltered and he just did not know about halloween to begin with haha

Christmas: (December 25th)

"...You should spend Christmas with family."

Well everyone's stuck at Darkwick so that's not likely to happen. Also don't tell that to Sho. . .but we can be family now! And spend Christmas together!

Idle: (about 20 seconds without interacting with the game) (below 13 affinity)

"...You okay?"

(13 affinity and above)

"...You seem busy. Let me know if you need anything."

Absent: (logging in for the first time in 2 or more days?)

"...You came back. You look all right. We're gonna need you for the next mission."

SO YOU SEE HE'S A LOT KINDER AND SWEETER WHEN HIS AFFINITY GETS UP THERE. . .BUT HE'S STILL COLD. BECAUSE HE'S AFRAID. . .but you make him feel more comfortable. You help him feel less like a destructive monster and more like a person. Where he pushed you away before, he keeps you closer now. Still a little at arm's distance but much closer than before. I HOPE THIS HELPED YOU SEE MORE OF HIS PERSONALITY, ANON o/

[aladaylessecondblog]

i messed around and got addicted (gortash x good tav pt. 13)

Author's Note: Was going through comments in my inbox and saw one where somebody asked for a Gortash POV so uh...here you go.

idk let's pretend it's a journal entry. Kind of jumps around a bit in the timeline so far.

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

It was supposed to be much easier than this. Gauge her interests, see where her lines were, mold the puddle of weeping and wailing into something that I could use. And it was easy enough at first. It worked.

Tav did exactly what I thought she'd do. She took the offer, yielded to every request I made of her. Even better, she liked to submit, and at first I thought it was because she longed for some direction after the shock she'd gotten thanks to that mad dog Orin.

It was easy.

Those "friends" of hers made it SO EASY. A few shorter letters--whatever Tav might have suspected at the time, I held none back from her--and that was it. That do-gooder Ravengard boy did more than I thought, but he's always been that sort of person. Looking after people.

After that meeting later on, Karlach sent an angry letter demanding to know what I'd done to her, what spell I'd put Tav under to make her so compliant with what I wanted. I replied more politely than she frankly deserved.

I said it was not what I did, but what she and the rest of Tav's former friends didn't do. They left the door open; I simply walked on through.

Falling in love with Tav was never going to happen, and a good thing too, for Bane does not care for such things. It is weakness and nothing good can come from it.

I told myself that enjoying the weekly, expected visit to her bedroom (or mine) was merely because she was a good lover. (That tongue of hers is a gift from the gods. It tends to make me feel like I'm having a bloody stroke when she's at work with it.)

I told myself that enjoying her submission to my will was only natural.

My plan went perfectly. And when she fell pregnant--even better! I meant what I said when I told her about my lifespan. I make no plans to live forever, as that would require my being beholden to an outside entity.

I did that once, and not of my own will.

Never again.

Never again.

Bane--is different, and I believe Tav understands this, considering her devotion to Ilmater. A deal in which both benefit is different than having one's soul at the disposal of a monster. I don't particularly consider her association with Silvanus one way or the other. That one's more distant. Doesn't really count, as he neither gets in my way nor serves me.

I think I know when things began to shift. The first morning that I really noticed the way her body was filling out, when her pregnancy was particularly obvious to me.

And...perhaps the sight of her was arousing. A little voice sounded off in the back of my head. You did that, it said, Look at her, swelling with life because of YOU.

That meeting with Karlach, that day...Tav fell right into my hands.

I heard word that she'd said some inflammatory things in the Elfsong. It sparked rumors that I managed to quash - my poor wife was obviously feverish and overworked. It worked.

I just had to deal with Tav herself. The woman was putty in my hands, and all it took was a few tender words to get her talking. About Cazador, about the plans the vampire lord had. And then--

--then she mentioned--him.

That he was dead.

And I might, perhaps, have celebrated the fact a little too enthusiastically. But Tav begged and moaned like the best whore I've ever heard, and not even knowing at that point what this was about--

It kept getting worse.

Cazador began to follow her about at gatherings he was invited to. She mentioned not being fond of swift death and...I, finding that rather charming, mused that she was vengeful. She replied that she was only such to those who deserved it, and I naturally replied that WE decided who deserved it.

It was beautiful, watching her eyes light up, her expression change. As if I'd opened a door to a new idea she'd never considered.

But, of course, with things going so well...

...Cald was born. Cald was born, and...

I'm not going to go on overmuch about it. But staring at that defenseless face made me wonder why. What was wrong with me?

And I didn't believe her when she gave the answer she did. We yelled. Some...regrettable things were said, and I still can't understand when such things BECAME regrettable.

We figured it out, eventually, and all was as it should be. And seeing her hold the boy--OUR boy, OUR son--seemed to change something within me. She loved him, watched him like a hawk. Saw danger at every turn and worked to guard against it.

Tav was just what a mother SHOULD be.

We learned each other's stories...

Hearing Tav praise certain skills was one thing.

But no matter how much control I asked her for, she gave it. She yielded to every command, submitted to every demand.

I didn't want to let go of her.

I wondered what the name was for my malady. What WAS this?

I realized it the day Tav encouraged me to speak to Cald, even if he didn't understand me. I felt utterly stupid, explaining the intricacies of their inner workings to a baby. I chanced a look at her, saw her smiling down at Cald. She happened to look up at me, and gave me that smile too.

I love my wife.

FUCK!

[genderqueerdykes]

I'm neurodivergent (ADHD & Autism), and I have mental health issues that can make me a very sensitive person who has a hard time doing things; I've tried explaining this to people but they often still tell me I need to "contribute" by finding a job/going to school to "prove im doing something". It hurts whenever I get told this stuff cause its supposed to be for my benefit but often it makes me feel like I'm not worth anything if im not a "proper adult"? I've gotten this numerous times from family, but I just got a similar talking to from my partner and it fucking sucks not only cause now I feel like I'm on a deadline to fix my relationship but also I don't know if im allowed to feel upset at anyone? Idk many disabled people who are high needs/can't work so I don't know if im being dramatic about my ability or making excuses

hello there, apologies for the delayed reply to this

i just wanted to say from the bottom of my heart i'm very sorry people are telling you these things, especially that you need to "contribute" by getting a job or going to school- that's very shitty thinking and it's not fair to the person it's pushed on. getting a job and going to school don't inherently "contribute" to your local community, your family, and especially YOURSELF. you don't have to "Contribute" to anything but yourself, your needs, and your own life

being a "proper adult" is a social construct that people push that literally doesn't mean anything. i am 30 years old and i have never held down a job for longer than a year, nor have i paid off student debt loans. i have been homeless numerous times because of my illnesses. i have chronic fatigue, hypermobile EDS, arthritis, degenerated discs in my back, schizophrenia, autism, adhd and more and even if people have fewer conditions going on than that, i understand how disabling even 1 neurotype of health problem can be

i have days on end where i don't recover from symptoms, massive flare ups, days where i dislocate limbs, can't sleep, am in so much pain i can't lay down, can't walk, bad sensory overstims, focus issues, migraines, and a lot of other issues. being high needs isn't a "problem", it just means you need help, and every person needs help. abled people fail to understand that every person requires accommodation in one fashion or another.

needing reminder texts is an accommodation. needing bigger font is an accommodation. glasses are an accommodation. needing to be informed of something in advance is an accommodation. only drinking out of certain cups is an accommodation. everyone needs help with something.

if the people in your life are refusing you help, i'm sorry they're failing you. you don't deserve an ultimatum to fix your relationship by a certain date, that is so unfair to you, and that is conditional love- conditional love is not fair and often leaves people feeling very messed up. love should not be held behind barriers, you should not have to perform for love

i hope you're able to get into a better situation soon. people don't understand that disabled people are Disabled and no amount of "contribution to society" will make our disabilities go away. no amount of jobs will make you feel healthier, going to school will not reduce your symptoms. stress only adds to poor health, and you don't deserve to have to go through something just because other people feel you should.

i hope this helps, take care, if you have any more questions feel free to ask, stay safe out there, good luck in your situation.

[mirage-of-the-virtuoso]

Okay, this may be a hot take, but I feel like I don't see this being mentioned enough in general.

I rarely see anyone doing training runs for things. With new stuff, I see training runs in lfg for all of maybe a month tops, then no one does them. They expect 90% of players to know how to do that mission. Very rarely do I join a pug group in either training or experienced tabs that explain mechanics for a strike.

Like, I get it with experienced lfg to know the mechanics. But there have been times when I join a training lfg for something (help other people usually), and there has been zero input on how the mechanics work.

I will admit I am guilty of the same thing, and part of that is not knowing how to say what's important without surrounding that with unnecessary stuff (minor things that won't hurt if you get hit by it one time every so often).

But it also makes very unfriendly for those trying to get into those things without requiring a discord call for callouts. Myself included, I don't want to join a random discord call to do content. Sure, you could leave immediately after, but that feels rude to me, so I don't usually do so. But I also don't want to run the risk of being verbally harrassed because I'm not min-maxing right out the gate. As a perfectionist and recovering people-pleaser, this makes it near impossible to do this content with randos, even more so if you're the only one that plays among your friend group, and even harder when crippling anxiety makes it impossible to ask friends you do know to take part with you because lack of interest, lack of numbers, or they don't know how to do the content either.

Idk, maybe I'm just being petty and complaining to complain, but it sucks that I wanna do this content and am held back by so many fears and things that can go wrong

[753398445a]

Details to consider:

-The Gang often betray each other, even in life-or-death scenarios. (Hundred Dollar Baby, The Gang Gets Held Hostage, The Gang Goes to Hell part 2, etc.)

-Frank Reynolds is constantly armed with a handgun, trigger happy, has no firing discipline, and has poor aim. He would almost certainly start blasting immediately, and while there's a good chance he hits at least one member of the Greendale Seven there's also a strong possibility of harming his own allies.

-Pierce Hawthorne apparently always carries a handgun as well, but he only ever pulled it out once to give to somebody else so seems to be less inclined to use it. Based on his performance in paintball we can assume he is a good shot.

-Annie Edison was revealed to be carrying a gun in an alternate timeline of Remedial Chaos Theory. It is unclear if those alternate timelines are real or just imagined by Abed Nadir, but since we see in Horror Fiction In Seven Spooky Steps that she has to fashion scizzors into an improvised weapon we can assume she is not armed at all times in the way that Frank and Pierce are.

-Charlie Kelly has demonstrated a frankly superhuman resilience on multiple occasions.

-Pierce's instinct to fake heart attacks is unlikely to help in this situtation, and in fact just leaves him more vulnerable

-While we don't have the full story on Shirley Bennet's past, we do know that she's often portrayed as a badass with hidden depths, has "thinly-veiled rage issues", and is implied to have grabbed somebody by the back of the head and shoved it through a jukebox at some point. We can assume that she is competent at beating the shit outta people.

-One of the 5-minute study breaks (which I assume are canon?) established that Abed was taking karate classes and was proficient in at least one... maneuver? Is that the term? Idk.

-Paradigms of Human Memory established that Annie's instictive response to being startled by a person behind her is to punch them in the face so hard they collapse.

-Mac's response to the same thing is to elbow the person instead, which requires them to be closer but doesn't require him to turn around first.

-Frank is a former boxer

-Britta Perry lived in New York

-There are seven members of The Greendale Seven (hence the name) and only five members of The Gang

-The times the G7 have been in fights (both actual violent ones and paintball ones), they've demonstrated an impressive amount of instinctual teamwork and understanding of what the other members were doing

-The Gang have killed before and would likely not feel hesitation or remorse if doing so again

-All members of The Gang (except maybe Mac?) are in awful shape whereas Jeff Winger, Troy, and Abed are specifically portrayed as being physically fit.

-Troy Barnes combines the power of a football player with the grace of a dancer

-The speed and ingenuity with which The Greebdale Seven were able to weaponize the objects around them when the lights went out for ~2 seconds in Horror Fiction In Seven Spooky Steps demonstrates that they are functionally always armed.

My decision is below the cut:

I think that the fight opens with Frank trying to shoot everybody. Assuming the bullets hit nobody but escalate this into a life-or-death situation, Greendale Seven absolutely body The Gang. If the bullets hit every member of the G7, obviously The Gang win. Really, once Frank's out of bullets I think that any four uninjured members of The Greendale Seven can take out all five members of The Gang. So its really a question of how likely I think it is that Frank could kill/injure more than half of the Greendale Seven with one clip. And to be honest I wouldn't bet on it.

I'm voting Greendale.

[venusandsaturnsrings]

I was thinking abt incel childe all DAY while waitressing at work and kept dropping things and moved at a snails pace when I thought too hard,,,, and all my silly lil brain could muster up was "childe wouldn't let me work for other people like this, I'm too fucking cute for this"

So then it made me think of like what'd he'd do if he was reader's boss or if he ever visited her at work. Like him noticing her mess up every now and then and thinking how he'd train her to be a better housewife for him

IDK IF ANY OF THIS MADE SENSE BUT LIKE MY BRAIN HAS BEEN SO HEAD EMPTY EXCEPT FOR INCEL CHILDE

ALL OF THIS MAKES SENSE!! if im being totally honest a solid 20% of my posts have been made while im at work... ill write down a couple sentences once in a while and i'll be done far faster that i should be LMAO which is so funny bc im one of the best workers in my division and yet i write incel childe fanfic when im on shift... ANYWAYS you get two small bits for each of these scenarios, congratulations!! no explicit content, just incel childe being himself <33

if he was your boss, you know damn well he was just keeping you around as something pretty to look at. the quality of your work doesn't matter when he's fisting his cock in his office half-hoping you'll walk through the door. he also only had basic requirements for work attire prior to hiring you. promptly, this down bad fellow, he designed and had made custom uniforms for all the staff. it was a rather high-end restaurant so he certainly couldn't expose as much of you as he'd like but, he made due. did he purposefully have your skirt made shorter and your top cut lower than the rest? yes, but you wouldn't dare point it out to your boss. if he didn't see it as a problem then neither should you. he also tended to hover around more while you worked. if anyone ever gave you trouble or behaved slightly inappropriately he would personally deal with them. you thought he was just a nice guy until the rest of the female waitstaff started complaining about how he never did that for him. they were envious and you could feel it.

it came to a head at one point when a girl made a rather pointed comment about how you were probably hooking up with him. the tears came rather quickly and you headed to his office to have him stop helping you, dispel the thoughts of the others, or just quit. you could find work elsewhere if needed. when you entered the room with watery eyes and a soft tremble to your words it took everything in him not to go and break the nose of the girl who said such horrible things to you. instead, he placed one hand on your shoulder and grabbed your own with the other.

"you shouldn't have to deal with this, sweetness. though it is true that i've had my eye on you... how 'bout you quit and let me take care of you for real, hm? i'll treat 'ya extra good, promise." <3

if he worked elsewhere and decided to stop in every once in a while to have you serve him, it'd be a bit different. he doesn’t have to hold back on any impulses to save face or keep raking in money.

his stops weren’t frequent. Ajax loved being able to surprise you so he’d make sure not to warn you beforehand. he’d ask for a table in your section and wait until you came by. he wasn’t all that hard to miss considering the bright ginger hair and such. but, it always brightened your day to see him. on this particular day, nothing seemed to go right for you. you’d keep missing important notes on orders, spill drinks, and otherwise mess up what should’ve been easy tasks. it was frustrating to say the least and Ajax got a front row seat to every second. he’d placed his head on one hand and drummed softly against the table with the fingers of the other. it was amusing to him but upsetting to you. he always did find pleasure in your suffering. when you finally got to him, he held a look you saw too often on his face; a knowing and pitiful smile.

“havin’ a hard time, girlie?” his voice came out softer than you had expected. usually, he’d pop out a couple teasing remarks before showing his concern. he was skipping the middle man for once. “it’s hard being such a cute girl, huh? and it’s hard having real tasks to do when you should be at home takin’ care of me and our place.” he pretended to think deeply for a few seconds. “say, what do ‘ya think about quitting finally? you shouldn’t be out here working for obvious reasons. i know you wanna so just do it.”

“be my little housewife for real, okay?” <3

[apompkwrites]

in your arms || aether, bennett, chongyun

masterlist characters: aether, bennett, chongyun genre: fluff summary: in which their s/o is in desperately need of cuddles. notes: ah i miss cuddles :(( if you can't tell from how i write cuddling, i'm big on physical affection like hugs and stuff. can't do that now tho :( also, hun is a petname i use like... all the time. idk man, i just really like it :D

aether -

i feel like this boy gives some of the best cuddles.

i like to think he's the "older" twin out of the two.

on the coldest nights of their adventures, him and lumine would cuddle up next to each other next to a fire to keep warm (platonically of course).

if you're in teyvat after he's lost his sister, he'd put everything into those cuddles.

he misses her so much and he hates the idea that one day, you'll be gone too.

although he held high statuses in both mondstadt and liyue, aether still preferred to camp outside the city limits.

something about the calm and quiet outdoors brought peace to the otherworldy traveler.

and you never really minded it.

as long as you were able to be next to him, you were content with any living condition.

luckily, it never really affected your nightly cuddles with the blond :)

one day you both split up to handle separate commissions, right?

one brought him all the way to mondstadt while yours required you to head to liyue.

this commission, however, was one you didn't particularly enjoy.

it wasn't because you couldn't handle, because of course you could.

in fact, it was purely because of the neverending stress building on top of you.

so once your commission was complete, you definitely were in need of some good ol' aether cuddles.

you waited for him by your usual spot, the aching feeling in your chest growing more unbearable as time went on.

until eventually--

"(name)! sorry, did you wait long?"

"we brought you some food to make up for it!"

the familiar voices of of your beloved traveler and his emergency food companion called out to you from down the path.

aether was running over to you with paimon in tow.

and you, desperately wanting to wrap your arms around him, ran over to him and met him halfway down the path.

before he could talk again, you had already jumped into him and were squeezing him as you wrapped your arms around his shoulders.

"wh-whoa! (name)?"

instinctively, he'd wrap his arms around you.

he wouldn't need to ask about how your commission was, he could already tell by how tight your grip was around him.

"c'mere."

he'd pat his hands on your legs, signalling for you to jump up into his arms.

and, of course, you do.

he still needs to set up your tent and all, but he doesn't want to let you go either...

next best plan? just build the tent with you in his arms.

it'd take him longer than it normally would since he was busy holding you, but he'd get it done.

paimon definitely wants to tease the two of you, but she'll save that for tomorrow when you're feeling better :)

once paimon disappears to wherever she goes, it's just you and aether in your tent beneath the moonlight.

you're both accustomed to the hard floor beneath your tent, but that never mattered.

all that mattered was that the two of you were together.

if you're still awake, he'll whisper some stories of how his day was and what happened during his commission.

i like to think his go-to position for cuddling would be the honeymoon hug?

i mean, like i said before, cuddling is something that reassures him that you won't be leaving anytime soon.

so something like that type of cuddling where your both holding each other is his absolute favorite.

but if you're in need of comfort, he'd be laying on his back with you on top of him, his arms wrapped around your waist and hugging you close to him.

he likes to talk to you, surprisingly.

i mean, we've seen how quiet this boy is.

but with you, he'll talk to you even after you've fallen asleep.

"i know today's been kind of rough on you, hun... i hope just being here with me, holding you close to me, is enough to help comfort you."

bennett -

bennett... has absolutely no experience in cuddling whatsoever.

you'd have to be the one to help him out.

he's always afraid something will go wrong due to his bad luck that he's tried his best to stay away from intimate things like that.

plus, he's also very energetic and jittery so cuddling isn't something that's crossed his mind to begin with.

you'd be the one to show him all of the different positions you could do, include those where you're just sitting next to each other.

he's definitely touchy since he's never experienced this before.

still kinda hesitant though because of his luck ://

he needs a lot of reassurance from you before he even thinks about fully cuddling in his sleep.

in fact, a lot of the time it'd be you who's cuddling him after a bad day.

i think his favorite position before fully allowing himself to cuddle would be ones with lingering touches.

like a simple arm slung over the shoulder and your legs crossing each others' in your sleep.

those small gestures.

but once he's used to cuddling...

he loves the idea of having you hold onto him while sleeping.

kinda like the sweetheart cradle with you being the one to hold him.

he just needs that reassurance that you're okay with him and his luck won't do anything to change that.

but sometimes you need to be cuddled too.

you're day has been rough, what with the countless things you needed to do that day (be it because of procrastination, schedule mishaps, etc.)

you'll head towards the adventurer's guild in search of bennett.

his dads all know you, of course, so whoever meets up with you takes him to wherever he is.

you wouldn't need to say a lot to bennett for him to know something's up.

probably just a small hum or murmur would be enough to clue him in.

you'd drape yourself over his back, wrapping your arms around his shoulders and digging your nose into his neck.

he'd jump for a moment, thinking someone else knocked into him because of his luck.

but then he realizes you and he relaxes.

he'd bring his hands up to rub your arm, hearing your muffled whines as he does so.

his dads would already notice you're having a bad day, so they don't say anything that'll disturb you two.

honestly? bennett would probably want to cuddle with you right then and there.

he's not one to get embarrassed too quickly, so he wouldn't mind.

but his dads bring up a good point that you both should probably be resting in an appropriate bed instead of the floor or a bench.

so the two of you would head home as soon as you could!

bennett would talk your ear off about his adventures that day.

if you don't wanna talk, he can do enough for the both of you!

anyway, you'd both head home and jump into bed as soon as you can.

he'd instinctively go to your standard position but then he remembers that you're in need of some well deserved cuddles.

so instead, he'll be the one to hold you close.

he'd let you rest your head on his shoulder or chest.

you could trace the scars running up and down his arms.

he'd rub your back lightly while talking about his adventures again.

he'd tell you tales of the mare jivari he's heard.

and when you're off to sleep, the stress leaving your system, he'd continue to rub his hand along your back.

"how about tomorrow we go on an adventure? just me and you. we could do whatever we want to get your mind off of things..."

chongyun -

this poor boy doesn't cuddle a lot!!!

he's gotta stay cold, y'know?

as much as he'd love to just wrap his arms around you all night, he can't...

but he will try!

he'd definitely try to push himself near the beginning of the relationship.

i'm talking forcing himself to cuddle all night, no matter how hot it gets.

but, as the loving s/o you are, you tell him that it's okay he can't do the full body cuddles like other people.

but he still wants that touch, even if it's a little.

his cuddles are the ones where only a certain body part is touching the other.

like his arm is up against yours or your legs are touching.

those types.

he feels bad he can't do more though :((

he for sure owns those cooling blankets, even if it isn't for cuddling.

if you're under one of those, it's more likely for him to try and give you a hug as you both drift off.

he'd eventually separate from the hug if he's feeling too hot.

and as much as you're okay with those small cuddles with fleeting touches, there are times where you just need a good cuddle full of hugs.

he'd come home from another day of trying to exorcise evil spirits, wanting to simply fall into bed where he knows it's nice and cool.

he'd greet you once he walks into your bedroom but he'd notice...

you're wrapped up in your blanket and hugging your pillow tight, acknowledging his entrance with a simple nod.

he doesn't know what's causing you to feel upset or stressed, but that doesn't really matter anyway.

he'd hop into bed right next to you, slowly unwrapping your body from the blanket.

you're still clutching onto your pillow once the blanket is gone.

he'd have to turn you over for him to even be able to look at you.

you're resting your cheek on top of your pillow while looking up at him with tired eyes.

he'll cup your cheek with his hand, smiling softly when you nuzzle into his cold palm.

he would stay on top of the sheets while you're lower body is tucked underneath it.

he'll rub his thumb along your skin, watching as your eyelids flutter every now and then.

"have you been awake long?"

you shake your head.

"i see... come here."

he'd open up his arms, a gesture you hadn't seen for a long time.

this one, however, was different.

he didn't have a forced smile on his face and his arms weren't tense like before.

this time, he had that soft smile you'd always see when you two are enjoying popsicles together and his arms were relaxed.

you'd scooch over the bed, tossing your pillow behind you as you nuzzle into his chest.

he'd let out a quiet chuckle before pressing a quick kiss to your forehead.

"i'm sorry i don't do this often."

"...it's okay. i like our cuddles no matter what."

"but you deserve this every once and a while."

you'd just hum in response, smiling at the feeling of his thumb rubbing your skin.

he won't talk as much as the other two, opting to keep the calm silence in your room.

you could hear his quiet breaths and his heart beating in his chest.

and you fall asleep to it, the feeling of his arms around your body permanently marked on your skin.

"i normally... get too hot when we cuddle like this. but now... it's feels really nice."

[potatopossums]

my platonic polyamory

polyamory as an aroace is fuckin wild

(i say this as someone who fluctuates in and out of their ace label. some days I'm ace, other days I'm allo. it's confusing and wild and probably has a lot to do with medication rn. anyhow, i have a lot of empathy and personal understanding for each side of that spectrum.)

i made a post a while back that was something along the lines of "my version of polyamory is just holding hands w all my friends"

and like, yes

to expand upon that, bc that definition is still pretty loose, i think I'm coming to better terms with the word "platonic."

not every aro person is alloplatonic and i probably am alloplatonic but I'm also a recovering people pleaser and i think that contributed a ton to my struggle to feel close to friends (not the only struggle by a longshot but still)

somehow my closest friends have also been people who are neurodivergent, which says a lot for my own neurodivergency: an aspect i often overlook or forget bc i was diagnosed as an adult, so i spent forever framing my life that way, so ofc I'd forget i have ADHD and "oh that's why I do that!!!" happens a lot.

but like. back to "platonic."

i never understood platonic attraction when i first heard of it. i heard the term squish and was like "wut." i understood what it meant for other people and I respected that but i never ever felt like i had a friend crush on anyone. i had crushes that were aesthetic and sexual but never platonic that i was aware of. maybe i wanted platonic things to come along naturally but idk. i don't recall ever looking at someone and thinking "ah yes i want to be their friend so badly!" i don't think i experience that, and if i do, it's demiplatonic, which is hilarious if you think about it, because that requires that I'm ALREADY FRIENDS with someone before i realize how much i want to be friends with them. and that's if that happens at all.

yeah, no, most of the time i just enjoy hanging out with my friends and doing normal friend stuff but once I'm done doing that I'm done and I'm off to my own stuff again. i enjoy being out in public and i have a social job so i like being in social environments to get my people time indirectly, and friend time can be a nice way to relax and explore, but often times I'm just meh? like it's cool but also mm ok. i just do things with people based on how interested they seem in hanging out with me and how much i enjoy hanging out around them and whether we get along during our planned hangouts. seems weird to type it out that way, but that's how my brain operates. kind of how my mind works for sex as well, but that's a different post.

but platonic used to be kind of a dull word for me. like, it really lacked the excitement that romantic held for me, especially in terms of the books I'd read or the movies I'd watch. they were so much more exciting and always filled with some kind of fantasy adventure if i could manage to find that genre. i loved that stuff. it was about people who came to really know and understand and care about each other through their journey and they overcame things together, or they overcame things by applying what they learned from each other. i thought that was the best damn thing ever.

fast forward to me learning I'm aro. and now I'm looking back at all those relationship dynamics in the stories and movies i enjoyed, minus the unearned, not priorly verbally discussed romantic elements, and I'm like OH SO THAT'S WHAT PLATONIC RELATIONSHIPS ARE.

like sure I have friends who are very much acquaintances, work friends, etc. people i don't see outside of work often, people who i don't talk to very much, but people i still care about. and then there are my Friends who just AGH i will go on a whole expedition with them if they're up for it. and i love that. and some of my friendships didn't really have that foundation but have it now, some of them are still developing that, and some were like that from the start (shout out to my aro friends we are INSANE and go on adventures every damn day somehow).

but to me, Platonic is when your people go with you on quests and Tolkien-esque adventures. u can't change my mind.

[coldmilkcreamery]

Luminescent Moonlight

𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴: nct dream x male reader 🥀🌹

𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁: 1862

𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: y/n sneaks out of the dorms every friday night. the dreamies notice and follow him only to find out that…

𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴/𝘀: degradation; swearing

𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝘆 🌙

𝗮/𝗻: uhh... idk how to feel about this? at first i was proud of it but now reading it i'm like... meh but enjoy ig ^^ this marks the last day of our launch week, which means we won't be posting daily anymore :(( we have 2 requests and we're working on them, if you have any feel free to drop it at the ask box !! good night <33

> 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 <

-

Both hands on the clock point at 12 again, signaling Y/N’s departure from the NCT dorms. As their newest and youngest member, Y/N was thought of as the sweetest, purest, and on top of all, most respectable member of NCT. He graduated Neo High with honors, was friendly on campus and auditioned for SM only once, unlike the sea of trainees who had to audition for more than three times. Because of this, he was viewed as this innocent prince once SM told the boys that he would be joining NCT. But, just like any cliché scenario, none of them knew of what Y/N did in the dead of night, when the moonlight shone on the city and no one knew him, not even by his silhouette.

✦ 𝙨𝙞𝙭 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚 ✦

“Has anyone noticed Y/N during the weekends recently? He usually isn't sleeping on his bed when he’s supposed to be.” Shotaro asks, genuinely worried about him.

“He probably just goes to the comfort room and stays in there for the whole night or something, no biggie.” Jeno says sarcastically, shoving a mouthful of popcorn into his mouth as he blabs his mouth.

“Hm,” Jisung mumbles, skeptical of Y/N’s actions, “there is definitely something up with him.” Jisung wasn’t one to get jealous often but with the addition of Y/N into NCT, the beloved, innocent, has-never-committed-a-sin Y/N, the attention wasn’t on him anymore. He was a tad bit jealous, but he would never admit that out loud.

“So what do you wanna do about it then?” Jeno replies, still staring straight at the television playing Titanic, “Confront him about it? It’s not like he’s gonna budge. What are you gonna do then, force him to tell you? Huh?”

“Quit being an asshole Jen.” Jaemin slaps Jeno sitting beside him, a frown on his face.

“How about we just, you know, pretend to sleep and wait till he gets up and leaves, then follow him?” Sungchan suggests, equally as worried as Shotaro. Both the former and the latter know how hard it is to be new members of a group that has already debuted. So, they felt the need to let Y/N know that he didn’t have to keep leaving the dorms, for an escape or whatever.

“Then it’s decided,” Jeno speaks up, finally peeling his eyes off the television, “tonight, we find out what the fuck Y/N has been doing for the past 6 weeks.”

✦ 𝙨𝙞𝙭 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨 𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧 ✦

Y/N rises up from his bed, making extra effort not to make a noise. He grabs the hickory duffle bag from under his bed and unzips it to check if he’s had everything for his night out ready. He zips it back just seconds after and drapes it over his shoulder, getting ready to leave. He pulls his hoodie up and ties his black converses before opening the wooden door and leaving the Dream Dorms, oblivious to the boys’ plans.

Renjun, Jeno, Haechan, Jaemin, Chenle, Sungchan, Shotaro and Jisung are led from the warmth of their dorms into the cold autumn night as they follow the figure wearing a black hoodie in front of them. The 8 boys walk for what seems like hours, crossing street to street, going through alley to alley, main road to main road as they do nothing but stay in silence and tail the (H/C) boy in front of them. They don’t know how many neon signs they’ve passed by now, only noticing how red ones become more and more evident as they venture deeper into the city.

“I think we’re in the red light district.” Haechan blurts, being met with shushes from the 7 other boys he was with. This doesn’t go unnoticed by Y/N of course, who pauses and turns around, only to look at a dark, empty street behind him. Y/N furrows his brows, confused, as he resumes his amble towards his destination.

Hiding behind garbage bins, the 8 boys sit in disgust as they hide from Y/N, scared of being caught halfway through their stalking session. Haechan peeks his head out and speaks up once again, but this time quietly, “The coast is clear.” All 8 stand up synchronized, noses scrunched as they glare at Haechan.

“No shit sherlock,” Chenle whisper-shouts, hues of scarlet and crimson decorating his face, “it’s red everywhere! Of course we’re in the red light district!”

The others giggle as they stare at Chenle.

“No, you dumbass,” Haechan replies calmly, “a red light district is like a place full of clubs and.. you know…” He trails off as the other seven’s brows furrow.

“Let’s not jump into conclusions,” Sungchan cuts him off, remaining positive, “let’s just keep following him.”

They sneak behind Y/N once again, trying their best not to get caught. It was only a minute or two before they saw Y/N turn a corner. The 8 slowly creeped up on the opening of the alley, just in time to see Y/N enter a building with an indigo sign, which stood out in the sea of bright, neon red signs.

“You don’t think… he’s a…” Jaemin spoke up as all of them shared a glance. The eight of them stood in silence, too scared to speak up, under the illusion that Y/N may be a male stripper. That wouldn’t be a problem but he was… 17.

“Only one way to find out.”

♪♪♪♪...

The deafening music boomed from the speakers, resonating into the indigo aesthetic of the club. Contrary to the word, this side of the club was the opposite of aesthetic: sweaty bodies stuck together, giving the 8 boys an unsettling feeling. They had almost started contemplating on leaving the said club, but not before Jaemin spots a quiet section, free of the sweaty bodies grinding against each other. It wasn’t free of people, per se, as there were a few people making out here and there, but it definitely wasn’t as congested as the indigo dance floor they had previously stood on. They saw vacant seats at the bar and, just like anyone who had been walking and hiding for 30 minutes, took a seat. All 8 of them had their backs turned away from the bar as a familiar voice spoke up.

“What can I get for you?” Y/N asks, a smile forced on his face. Y/N’s blue velvet suit shimmers under the spinning disco ball, exhibiting various accents of blue. Azure, cobalt and lapis and sapphire compliment Y/N’s face as he looks down, glass in one hand and towel on the other, wiping. He’s wearing nothing but a blue velvet blazer as a top, chest out as if he was as the beach. The boys turn around, mouths agape and unable to speak. They lock eyes with Y/N when the latter looks up due to the long, uncomfortable silence, eyes wide open, his body frozen in shock.

Attempting to cover his exposed chest, Y/N drops the glass and immediately places his hands flat on his chest, the feeling of fear, embarrassment and surprise devouring him.

“Y/N what the fuck?” Jeno blows up, completely losing his self control, “What the fuck are you doing in this… this.. strip club? You’re sev-”

Y/N unsticks his palms from his chest and re-sticks it onto Jeno’s mouth, shushing the older. “Shhh. let’s…” he pans his eyes from left to right, staring into his hyung’s disappointed faces, “let’s talk outside. Wait for me.”

The boys head towards the exit as they pass by the cramped dance floor once again, the silver disco ball spinning endlessly above them. They exit the club, the chilly breeze of the autumn night slapping them on the face once again as they step out. They wait in silence, leaning on the wall, occasionally staring at the indigo sign above them. Just as Chenle was about to break the silence, the cushioned doors of the club open slowly, revealing a boy in a more decent outfit. Y/N steps out, head burning holes into the stone floor. As soon as the doors of the club seal shut, all 8 of them went into chaos.

“What the fuck?”

“Is this what you’ve been doing for the past 6 weeks?”

“What are you doing with your life?”

“I can’t believe you’re actually a fucking stripper. What made SM recruit a stripper?”

He let himself get scolded but got caught off guard when Jisung uttered those words. “Wait, stripper?” Y/N looks up from the now-molten floor, eyebrows furrowed, tears pricking the corner of his eyes, “I— how could you even call me that?”

“Don’t act like you didn't have your chest on display before we got there.” Jisung replies, disgust written on his face, “Is this really what you've been doing for the past month and a half? Whoring yourself out? I guess you love people’s attention on your body don’t you?”

The gates of the dam that had held his tears finally gave out, spilling endlessly as Y/N tried to find his words, “I— that’s just the uniform for us bartenders… I work in a club so… we’re required to—”

“Exactly Y/N!” Jaemin shouts, “You’re 17 for fucks sake, why the fuck are you working at a bar? You’re a fucking idol! You're going to be publicly announced as a new member next month! What if people start recognizing you, huh? Then what?”

“I-I’m sorry hyungs. I—” tears gushed from Y/N’s orbs, coating his face, “I just did this for money.” Disgusted looks turned to looks of confusion as the 8 boys stared at Y/N, puzzled.

“M-my mom is in the hospital, she’s dealing with stage iii breast cancer and,” Y/N says, shaking, unable to complete a sentence without stopping, “and my family couldn’t afford the hospital bills, and the company wasn’t paying me yet– and I– I couldn’t wait any longer so when I saw a poster one day, looking for a bartender, I applied and lied about my age. Hyungs I’m really sorry, I- I didn’t do it because- because I liked putting my body on display. To be honest I was really uncomfortable but– but I would do anything for my mom and—”

Y/N pauses as he feels a warmth envelope him, curing his heart’s hypothermia. “We’re sorry. You know we can always lend you a hand, right?” Jaemin says, regretting his thoughts. Renjun adds to the two boys hugging, then Shotaro, then Chenle, and soon enough, all 9 of them are one; all hugging it out in a giant fluff ball, in the aged alleyway under the moonlight.

“I’m sorry,” Jisung states, voice softer as ever, “for calling you that. And, I know your mom is strong, she’ll get through this.”

Y/N felt warmer, and suddenly, under the moonlight, all his worries and doubts vanished. Nothing was more calming than a hug from the 8 boys he loved the most. They stayed like that for as long as Y/N needed, the moonlight’s luminescence lingering in the air.

End.

-

𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙: 01.11.21

𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙: 01.12.21

[fandomfluffandfuck]

hi. so, yesterday my boyfriend and i dared to finally do a scene we've been planning for months. we basically invited 2 other of our friends and 3 guys fucked me at the same time and it was beyond amazing and as the good writer i am (or so i think i am) I'm thinking on writing the experience but instead me, it's gonna be Sebastian in my place, do you have any recommendations to write about a man being double fucked anally in a way that sounds realistic?

Hey!

Congrats on finally doing your scene! 👏 That sounds like a hell of a lot of fun for everyone! A dream come true lol

Mmm, I mean, you are the one who had the experience in real life so I would say to mostly draw from your own experience, y’know? If you had a good time, I don't doubt your ability to put that feeling into the writing.

(Also I'm so fucking Curious about who you're gonna pair with Sebastian for this fic 👀 Chris and Anthony? Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth? Maybe Anthony and Daniel Brühl? Maybe even just a fic inspired by Seb's slutty, early Hollywood days with randoms who agree to use him the way he craves? Maybe those Pam & Tommy makeup artists haha)

(Also also I can read this ask 2 ways, 3 guys fucking you as in 1 in the front hole, 2 in the back hole OR 1 in the mouth, 1 in the front, 1 in the back so I'm covering my bases with either of those options lol)

Other than that:

When I need help writing a scene, I usually do research for whatever BDSM type scene or specific kink I'm going to be playing with whether it be learning more about rope, flogging, or some specific toy from online reading (with good sources, of course) or reading other fanfic available in a similar vein to what I want to write (if I haven't already read it, which I probably have lol) or even watching porn for a basic sense of positions I might describe. Though I don't feel like you can get much more than that from porn, y’know? It's not ment to be educational in any sense.

Anal requires more lube than you think, don't forget to add it into your fic! (Also... I'm just gonna say it: excess lube can totally be sexy, getting someone so slick and wet that it drips down to their balls/vulva and they're all glistening and slick? Plus the sounds it makes? 🥴)

And you totally don't have to because fanfiction is fantasy but, if I were you I would add a little ball or something held in Sebastian's hand that he can drop if he wants to stop, since he'll be unable to speak and probably unable to get away easily with two people holding him down, y’know? (Although, again, I don't know if for Sebastian you mean double fucked as in 2 in 1 hole or 1 in his mouth and 1 in his ass lol)

You should spend time describing the time spent fingering Seb open BUT don't drag it out for a super, super long time unless you're having the tops/doms tease Sebastian and draw it out or if the top is being extra, super careful on purpose. Being extra gentle, y’know? (With fingering, if you're doing 2 dicks, 1 hole, I would recommend having the first top put their dick into Seb and then the second starting to finger him that way rather than a bunch of fingering then one dick and then another.) As weird as it sounds, with enough patience, the anus stretches a lot bigger than you think it would lmao

1 dick in his mouth, 1 in his ass: don't forget that, especially if Seb's being fucked doggy style, every thrust with push him forward or backward and he might choke. Which is fun. But its not fun to throw up from it.

2 dicks, 1 hole: don't forget about the fact that the tops dicks will also being rubbing together tightly inside Sebastian, so... they probably won't last super long. Everyone will be a mess 😏

Uh, hopefully that hoped! Idk if it did or not but happy writing

(Also I would love it if you wanted to link it whenever you finish the fic!)

[kithtaehyung]

I just read 3tan7 and I'm sobbing into my hello kitty blanket. I'll tell you why. I'm in a long distance relationship since 7+ years. It's not pretty, it takes away so much from my soul but it also gives me hope and makes me want to wake up everyday. We've only seen each other 6times in our entire relationship, don't ask why. I lie at my home and fly to see him. Sometimes he does the same. Everytime we see each other we forget that the world exists for a few days, it's just us in our happy bubble. And when the day where we have to leave arrives, we make love and we look into each other's eyes with a thousand emotions, most of them being how much our hearts are breaking that we don't even know when we'll be seeing each other in person next. We kiss goodbye with promises of love and tears of hurt. We haven't seen each other or hugged or kissed or made love or held hands since January 2020 after which covid hit us like a bitch. Believe me when I tell you it physically hurts me to even think about him now but we're keeping our shit together either way.

Reading the last part of 3tan7 just took me back 2.5 years to the day I saw and made love to him and I could feel so much in such little time reading it, it's insane. Its not quite same, I know. It's completely different but it's also not, you know? Both of them want to make the best of the little time they had left because no one really fucking knows when they would be close like that. It's true, every word you wrote describing everything they felt. It happens. Its not just fictional. Maybe it happened in a different way for me but it did.

Now that I've written you a thesis, imma go hydrate myself because I cried like 1.5 buckets. You could water your plants with all my tears and my therapist shall hear about this super soon. I will be sending the bill across, love you.

Just FYI, I fucking love the way you write, please NEVER stop. We need you to write. In case it wasn't apparent, I loved 3tan7 so fucking much. Including all the waterworks that followed because it's life and we are here to feel. I feel more than required sometimes, idk man, sue me.

oh.. oh my gosh. i just want to go to wherever you are and hug you and bring you right to your partner this INSTANT!! your story is so beautiful and i'm sitting here trying not to cry for the upteenth time today. wow.

i am so proud of you both for persevering through it all, and it's a testament to your love how long you've fought. love is a choice and if your story isn't proof then i dunno what the hell is. thank you for sharing your story and it means so much to me that this one spoke to you.

it does happen. i wanted that specific emotion, the one you get when you know something has to end and you don't know when it will start again. i tried my best to put that into words and your feedback is super encouraging.

yes, please hydrate!! i will go do the same after today and tonight. send the bill omg tell your therapist i just wrote my heart out😭

and thank you endlessly. i hope i never have to stop, but kind people like you and words like yours will certainly keep me going for as long as i can. and you're so right. it's life. we're all human.

[rosepetalsthings]

Hello,

I was wondering if you could give me your point of view on a Dream related thing?

It's about Dream and how he interacts with his stans, also please feel free to ignore this if you are not interested in debating this topic.

From my perspective he appears to not take a lot of responsibility for the actions of his stans, please keep in mind that I do not mean his following of stans as a whole, I mean the ones who are worrisome at best. Or as another way of putting it, the people who are more like the original meaning of stan, stalker fans.

I've seen his video (https://youtu.be/VEBg7UZcD0M) on his DreamXD channel discussing his thoughts on them, and I fully agree with some of his points but he never really addresses the behavior of his more troublesome stans.

Like for example the ones who send threats to other ccs for going up against dream whether it's in mcc or in other fun. The example I can think of off the top of my head is after MCC 14 him, quackity, sapnap, and punz were saying that Hbomb cheated by using a glitch in hole in the wall. I'm fully aware that it was done lightheartedly and that it was mainly punz and sapnap doing most of the teasing but from what I'm aware the only apology was given out after quackity made them, they might have said sorry to Hbomb off of camera but that doesn't stop Hbomb from being sent threats. (Clip in question https://youtu.be/weOHxg0Za0I)

A lot of the stalker fans just take jokes too far and it ruins it for everyone and I'm not just talking about Dream stans in this particular example, but Dream stans are more vocal about stuff like this.

I fully understand why Dream doesn't address some of his more creepy stans but I don't get why he doesn't address the ones telling other ccs that they wish horrible things would happen to them.

I'm hoping that you can provide a differing view point and/or some options on this, as I curious as to what your thoughts on this are.

Thank you for taking the time to take apart my arguments instead of just telling me that I'm wrong and not saying why. -Clip Anon

Hi clip anon,

Hmmm, this is a pretty complicated situation I feel.

So first off, is he responsible for his more extreme and toxic fans behaviour? I think in general no, he's not responsible for the actions they take, including harassment of other cc's, since people have agency and should be held responsible for their own behaviour.

However, do I think he's responsible for (unintentionally or at least not maliciously) targeting certain creators? That's where I think it gets more complicated.

Dream has definitely encouraged a stan base, which isn't really a bad thing, cause as you've said, as a whole they're not bad. Stan culture means something different to what it used to, and is now just fans who are very passionate. It's just that for some, this passion gets incredibly toxic.

Also, I wasn't really watching Dream back when he posted that vid, but from what I understand, Dream was a lot more lenient on stan behaviour, focusing on the positives rather than the negatives (and why wouldn't he be? They essentially make his career possible). I think that did leniency lead to harassment of other cc's, because he didn't really set up clear boundary's on that. And people get defensive if they see their fave cc upset, which Dream was... pretty public about (He has a lot of instances of react defensively first, think later. He is admittedly better about it now, or at least better about it on twitter since this is where most of that stems from). I think he now is more against those stans then he once was with the official Boundary List (idk what else to call it but I think that was a turning point)

Now, finally getting to the Hbomb clip, I don't really think a public apology was needed cause fans aren't required one, and I honestly don't think anything that Dream could say at that point would have stopped the stans doing that. To Dreams credit, he does say to not send any hate to Hbomb (with Punz jumping in on that).

I also disagree slightly and think he does address the bad behaviour of stans, it's just not always useful or needed (like he states in the Anthony Padilla interview, it would just bring more attention to them half the time. So I get it, gotta pick your battles). For instance, when he appeared on Hannah's Bedwars stream I believe he addressed the Stans that got Hannah neg trending for the crime of being a girl. Also a good example of Dream could be doing literally anything and people would still find a reason to try and sen hate on his behalf despite that being a horrible thing to do and not at all what he wants.

So, I don't think addressing the stans is always a good idea, that most of these people would do so no matter what Dream says, since they would already know Dream doesn't approve, so addressing it would just bring more of these stans to light.

This is really long and probably very complicated, but tl;dr, I think that Dream himself is not responsible for the behaviour of his stans (but he has done things that have unintentionally lead to harassment), I don't think a response is always needed but I do think he does respond when appropriate.

[wild-aloof-rebel]

leslie-- what do you think of the first two episodes of season 6? tbh im trying to not be really disappointed... but i am. I just feel like they are not up to the same standard of schitts creek that I've come to know and love. I also feel like I'm in the minority regarding ep 2 and how supposedly "funny" it was. I thought it was one of the worst episodes they've ever put out. It felt forced and v "try-hard". IDK :// what are your thoughts/what have you thought of s6 so far?? xx

first of all, you’re certainly entitled to feel however you feel about the season, and i doubt there’s anything i can say that’s really going to change that tbh. and you’re def not alone in that opinion either, as i have seen other people both in my inbox and elsewhere who seem to feel similarly to you, if that’s any kind of comfort.

i do think it’s pretty clear from my posts that i did enjoy the ep, and while yes there’s a whole lot of secondhand embarrassment that goes hand in hand with watching it, i did also think it was ultimately both very funny and very sweet. but you’re certainly not required to agree with me on that, and not every episode can be a favorite anyway. there are going to be eps that all of us like or dislike more than others, and that’s totally fine.

as for the season overall, yes, i’m enjoying it so far, though of course it’s hard to judge a whole season on two eps. but i like the glimpses that we can see so far of where the show is going as a whole. i’ve definitely seen some complaints elsewhere that the episodes feel like filler, which i wholeheartedly disagree with. i think it’s pretty clear that they’re setting up the threads of the plots that will continue throughout the rest of the season, which is how this show has always operated. not every episode is filled to the brim with Major Plot Points, but there are important things that happen in every episode to push the story forward or build our understanding of the characters in a way that leads to the eventual climax of the season. think about last year’s second episode for instance. in “love letters,” we’ve got moira just back from bosnia and hung up on john’s love letters to “another woman,” alexis and ted talking about mementos of past relationships, and david and stevie being held up at the store. plot-wise, none of those are anything that really has a major effect on anything else further down the road (except maybe the robbery, which causes them to install security cameras at the store, which leads to the ending of “roadkill” with ted and alexis, but that’s a pretty minor plot point all things considered). but it does give us better understanding of where the characters are in the season. particularly, we get glimpses of ted and alexis trying to work through their past and build a stronger future together, which is all part of how alexis eventually agrees to go to the galapagos, and we see how moira’s experience with the crows film has reinvigorated her desire to rebuild her career, which of course is part of what leads to her devastation in the final scene of “life is a cabaret.” and i feel like these first two episodes of s6 are doing much the same, though obviously we now have the benefit of context for s5 because we know how it ends, and we don’t have that here. but so far we’ve clearly got johnny’s desire to continue expanding the motel business, stevie’s desire to step away, david and patrick’s excitement about their wedding, moira’s once-again renewed desire to jump start her career, and alexis’s struggle to balance her relationships with both ted and her family with her fledgling pr career. all of that certainly feels like it’s important to where the season as a whole is going, so while the individual stories being told in each episode may not ultimately be connected to anything down the road, what it’s telling us about the characters certainly is. and that’s how pretty much every episode of the show has always operated. we get these little glimpses throughout all the episodes, and there are a few bigger reveals spread along the way, and so far i feel like this season is doing exactly that. it feels the same to me as it always has in that sense.

i don’t know what your particular situation is with this, anon, but in general, i know that there are a lot of people for whom this is their first time watching the show slowly instead of all in one go, and i do think that that changes the experience a bit. personally, i love watching them week by week, with everyone yelling about the same episode at the same time, rewatching and finding new things to focus on, speculating about where things will lead, etc., but it is still a different experience to bingeing it, and i just wonder how much that plays into the enjoyment for some people. for one, it gives you more time to have to think about episodes you didn’t like as much–when you binge the show, you breeze right past them and largely forget about them by the time you’re three more episodes down the road, but this way you’re forced to sit with it for a week, which i think can potentially increase the feelings of dissatisfaction. but also, if you’re a binge and rewatch kind of person, you get to the end, and then when you rewatch the earlier eps you have a different perspective on them because you can now see where they’re going. it’s a lot harder to see where eps are leading before you have the ending for context, and so even though i obv think the threads are there, i can see how the open-endedness of it might feel dissatisfying to some people in the meantime too.

i’ll end with this thought: if you ask most people their top five episodes of the show, how many of those are going to be episodes from the start of a season? yes, you might get one or two on some of those lists–”pregnancy test” in particular is one of the early-in-the-season eps that i think gets a lot of love–but by and large i think most people’s lists are going to be populated with episodes from the middles and ends of seasons because you have to build up to the kinds of pay-offs we get in episodes like “grad night” or “meet the parents” or “open mic” that make them so enjoyable. so the fact that you don’t absolutely love these two episodes so far isn’t necessarily all that surprising or unusual. there’s still twelve more chances for this season to change your mind, and i hope that you find that it does.

[taetaespeaches]

Idk if requests are open so I'm sorry if they're not, but could i request bestfriend namjoon, where you go w him to his home town to see his family and his family don't believe you're "just friends" and constantly ship you both? Sorry if your requests are closed - I'll use this as an opportunity to tell you how much I love your writing. You're one of the best writers I've found! You nice, keep going 💓💓

“We believe you. We believe thatyou think you’re just friends”

Namjoon x Reader

Word count: 5.3K

a/n: Thanks for requesting this babe, and thanks for the amazing compliment :) I’m so flattered that you like my work. I loved writing this, obviously, since it’s by far my longest piece so far. I’m just so soft for Namjoon and the whole friends to lovers trope. I hope you and everyone else enjoys this! 

p.s. My requests are always open, I just may not get to it for a while. Thank you for being patient! :) 

You almost didn’t notice the lackof music buzzing in your ear as the busy sounds of the subway car flooded youreardrum. “Where are you right now?” Namjoon whispered into your ear, causingyou to quickly turn to face him in surprise, noticing him holding your earbudbetween his fingers.

“Huh?” You asked him with big eyesas his lips turned upwards a bit at your surprised reaction. “I’m right here.”Namjoon cocked his head at you, appearing to disapprove of your answer.

“No,” he shook his head. “Yourbody is here, but your mind,” he gently tapped his finger on your forehead, “issomewhere else.” You simply shrugged in response, Namjoon lightly chuckling.“Are you nervous?” He asked gently with a small smile.

As a bashful smile formed on yourmouth as you nodded. “Kind of.” Namjoon watched you intently, trying to gageyour emotions. “It’s your family, and they’re important to you, and you’reimportant to me, so therefore, they’re important to me and I just want them tolike me,” you admitted with an embarrassed giggle as your cheeks tinted pink.

Namjoon actually laughed inyour face, shaking his head in disbelief, causing you to pull your eyebrowstogether in a glare. “Y/n, you’re my best friend. I love you and they’ll loveyou too,” he assured you as he slung his arm around your shoulders, pulling youinto his body. “Just relax.” And relax is what you did as a response to histouch. He popped the earbud in his own ear, ignoring the glances from theothers on the subway, who were intrigued by your sudden and unnecessarycuddling. “What are we listening to?”

Playfully rolling your eyes, yousighed as you held your phone up to him to show him the name of the song andartist displayed on the screen. He simply nodded, and the two of you stayedjust like that for the remainder of the 25-minute subway ride to Ilsan.

Walking down the streets of Ilsanas you made your way to a bus stop, Namjoon pointed things out to youexcitedly. He had been talking about bringing you home to Ilsan with him forwhat seemed like forever, and he was ecstatic you were finally there with him,even if just for a day. The original plan was to stay for the weekend, butBTS-related business required him to shorten the trip to just one night.

Loading the bus, you struggled tocarry your overnight bag through the seats, causing Namjoon to laugh at yourstruggle. Shooting him a glare, he tried to cut his laughter off, but to noavail. Holding his hand out, he gestured for you to give him the bag. “Come on,”he told you as he took the bag out of your hands with a smile still on hisface. “Sit down,” he gestured to the two seats. “You get the window seat so youcan see the city.” Taking your seat, you smiled fondly at Namjoon as sat downnext to you.

“Thank you,” you told him quietly,making him nod at you, placing his hand on your knee for a moment, just longenough to squeeze it affectionately before he removed his touch.

As the bus started moving, youstared out the window as Namjoon stared at you, watching your face forreactions to his hometown. Feeling his stare on you, your lips turned upwards.“Stop watching me,” you teased him without even a glance towards him, to whichNamjoon quickly averted his eyes to the opposite side of the bus with a bigsmile spread across his features, dimples on full display for anyone who mayhave been looking at him. As he looked away from you, feigning innocence, hemade eye contact with an elderly couple who were both smiling adoringly at him.Feeling slightly nervous under their gaze, he bowed politely.

“You two make a beautiful couple,”the man said as the woman nodded in agreement. Their words made you turn tolook at them, cheeks already flushed with red at their comment. You smiled atthem and bowed, not wanting to correct them.

“Thank you,” he told them as hisbody heated up in embarrassment. Turning to face you, you both looked at eachother and tried to hold back your laughter. You and Namjoon? Yeah right, youthought. It wasn’t that you weren’t interested. In fact, you had always beeninterested in Namjoon. But when you first met, you went straight intofriendship, and it would difficult for that relationship to change into somethingelse… wouldn’t it? Sometimes the way he flirted with you made you feel like hemay be into you, but you also couldn’t believe that your best friend wouldactually reciprocate the confusing feeling you had for him.

Suddenly, by the grace of god,Namjoon pointed out the window. “This is our stop.“

As you stood up, you both smiledand bowed at the couple once more before exiting the bus. “That was soawkward,” you laughed as the bus drove away, Namjoon bursting into his ownlaughter. However, he didn’t say anything else regarding the topic. Did it meannothing to him, or did it mean too much?

“Here, the house is this way,” hesaid, stepping in front of you as he led you towards the direction of his home.As you tried to take your bag out of his hand, he pulled it away from you. “Igot it, babe,” he told you with a smile. You nodded, smiling graciously at him.

After walking just for a coupleminutes, he stopped and pointed at a cozy looking house. “That’s it,” hesmiled.

Your eyes lit up at therealization that this was where your best friend grew up. “Oh wow,” you smiledbrightly. “It’s beautiful, Joonie.” As you took in the sight of the home, hiseyes were locked on your features, admiring your enthusiasm for a simple house.

“Namjoon!” A woman yelled inexcitement as she stepped out of the house, pulling his gaze from you to thevoice.

“Mom!” He smiled happily, quicklystepping towards his mom. Looking back at you, he gestured for you to followhim, to which you obliged, following closely behind. As he greeted his mom in ahug, you watched the scene, feeling an overwhelming happiness. When his dadstepped outside, Namjoon greeted him with a hug as they both chuckled into theembrace. You stood by, watching the reunion fondly. As Namjoon stood next toyou once again, he grabbed your hand in an effort to calm your nerves.

“Mom, dad, this is—“

“You must be y/n,” His mominterrupted him with a giddy grin.

“Yeah, this is my best friendy/n,” he looked at you. Namjoon’s parents shared a knowing look, though youweren’t sure what they knew, before his mom stepped towards you andpulled you into a hug.

“It’s so nice to meet you, y/n,”his mom told you as she squeezed you tightly.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” youtold her as she pulled away, keeping her hands placed on your shoulders as shestudied your face.

“Aren’t you beautiful,” she saidmore to herself than to you. Looking up at her husband, she asked for hisconfirmation. “Don’t you think, Dear?” Namjoon cocked his head in confusion athis parents’ reaction to meeting you.

Mr. Kim nodded in agreement,flashing Namjoon a proud smile, to which Namjoon scrunched his eyebrows, hisconfusion increasing. His dad held his hand out for you to shake. “Nice to meetyou, y/n.”

“You as well,” you said as youshook his hand.

“I’m happy to be able to put aface to all the stories,” he told you with a happy chuckle.

Eyes widening, you looked from Mr.Kim to Namjoon. “Stories?” Namjoon immediately blushed. “Hopefully goodstories,” you smiled, still a little nervous.

“Oh, of course, sweetheart.Namjoon just likes to talk about you. We feel like we already know you,” Mrs.Kim smiled.

“Oh he does, does he?” You teased,looking at Namjoon as he bashfully hid his grin behind his hand.

“Now, come in, you two,” his momsaid suddenly, leading the way inside. “How was the trip?”

“It was good,” Joon told hisparents. “Quick. It’s amazing how little I make it out here when it’s soclose,” he frowned slightly.

“You’re here now, though,” his dadsaid as he patted his son’s shoulder. “How do you like Ilsan so far, y/n?”

“I like it a lot,” you assuredwith a smile. “I’m excited to tour the city a little bit. It’s very prettyhere. And the people seem nice.”

“Yeah,” Namjoon agreed, his eyeswidening. “We already met a sweet older couple on the bus. They thought we madea beautiful couple,” he laughed, as you shook your head with a smile,both of you still in disbelief of being mistaken as a couple. Namjoon’s dadsmiled widely at that.

“Well, you do,” Mrs. Kim confirmed.“A very beautiful couple.” Joon quickly shook his head as you blushed.

“Mom—“

“You two go get settled and thenI’ll cook us some lunch, ok? You sister will be here shortly,” she toldNamjoon. “You know where your room is, and I’ve prepared the guest room fory/n, but, perhaps you want to share a room?”

Namjoon quite literally choked ashe shook his head. “No, that’s ok,” you smiled. “I’ll take the guest room,thank you.”

“Mom,” Namjoon finally sputteredout.

She looked at him with wide eyes.“What? I’m not naive.” Namjoon stared at her questioningly. “If you want toshare a room, we’re ok with that.”

“Mom, we’re just friends,” hesaid, making his mom look at him in surprise. “We’re friends,” he gesturedbetween the two of you.

“Ha!” Mr. Kim laughed out loud.

“Sure, sweetie,” she smiled at youboth. “Go get settled.”

His parents walked out of theliving room to the kitchen, leaving you and your best friend standing thereawkwardly. “What the fuck?” You whispered, making Joon chuckle.

“I have no idea,” he said as heturned to face you.

“Do they think we’re together?”You asked with shock lacing your tone. Namjoon shrugged, making you look at himwith wide eyes. “Joon,” you whined.

“I’ll set them straight, don’tworry,” he assured you, making you sigh. Namjoon pulled you into him for a hugas you sighed into his chest.

“I was already nervous to meetthem, and now they think we’re a couple,” you complained as you wrapped yourarms around the comforting man’s waist.

“I honestly don’t know where theygot the idea that we’re a couple,” he said as you literally stood in the middleof his home holding each other comfortingly.

Pulling away to look at him, youflashed a teasing grin. “Maybe because you talk about me so much,” you giggled.

“Don’t,” he warned as he pulledyou back into his embrace. You continued to chuckle into his chest.

“I like them,” you smiled as heheld you. Looking up at him, you were met with his excited grin.

“Yeah?” He asked, his dimplespopping out. You nodded as he squeezed your body against him. “I’m glad.”

“Namjoon!” A younger girl’s voicesounded across the room, your best friend and you quickly separating to see hisyounger sister standing there with a grin.

“Hey!” Namjoon greeted cheerfully.“Come here,” he gestured for her to come to you both. “You remember y/n,right?��

“Of course,” she said as you bothsmiled and waved at each other before Namjoon pulled her into a hug. You hadmet his sister over FaceTime once and ended up talking to her for nearly 40minutes before Namjoon made you both cut the call off. “I thought you werebringing a friend, not y/n,” she said suggestively, looking up at her bother.

“Y/n is my friend,” heclarified with a confused look. She raised her eyebrows, nodding, however, notbelieving.

“It’s nice to meet youofficially,” you smiled at his sister, holding your hand out to shake.

Shaking your hand, she agreed witha big smile. “Wow,” she said looking at you. “You got yourself a looker,” shetold her brother, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Oh my god, we’re just friends,”he groaned.

“Uh huh,” his sister said as shemade her way to the kitchen, sporting a sly smile. He looked at you infrustration.

“We’re just friends,” he yelledout so his whole family could hear, making them all giggle, as your faceflushed with heat.

“I’m so sorry,” he looked at you,his lips remaining in the shape of a small smile, showing his amusement of thesituation.

Smiling, you shook your head.“It’s ok,” you assured. “It’s just kind of weird how everyone here thinks we’rea couple.”

He shook his head in disbelief ofeveryone’s perceptions of your relationship. “How come no one in Seoul evermistakes us for a couple? We’re practically still in Seoul, why would it be sodifferent here?” He complained. 

“There must be something in thewater here,” you joked as you reached for your bag. Namjoon chuckled as hegrabbed his bag and led you to the bedrooms.

“So, here’s the guest room,” hesaid as he opened the door and led you inside. Setting your bag on the bed,your eyes scanned the room. “My room is right across the hall,” he pointed. Yousimply nodded as a wicked smile overtook your face. “What?” He asked nervously.

Shaking your head nonchalantly,you tiptoed to the door, your grin growing. Namjoon suddenly caught on, rushingto stop you from entering his childhood room. He caught you in the hallwaybefore you could open his bedroom door, his arms wrapping around your waist,lifting you off the ground, your back pressed against his chest. You squealedin laughter as he sported an amused grin. “Just let me see your room,” you whinedas you squirmed in his arms.

You both didn’t realize yourlaughter had caught the attention of his family, who were standing down thehallway watching you both fondly.

“I will,” he assured. “On onecondition, though.” You hummed in acknowledgement, waiting for his terms. “Nomaking fun of me for whatever you find in there,” he whispered against yourear, sending tingles across your skin.

“You’re no fun,” you teased,making him sigh through a shy smile. “Joon, I promise,” you assured. At that,he set you down and that’s when he caught his family watching you out of thecorner of his eye. You noticed the surprise in his face and followed his gaze.Upon seeing them all smiling at you both, you suddenly felt shy, instinctivelytucking yourself into your best friend’s side for comfort, Namjooninstinctively pulling you in closer.

“We’re just friends,” he told themsternly before shoving you into his bedroom. As he shut the door behind him, hestarted ranting about his family and apologizing for you. However, you were toobusy looking at his childhood room to care about that.

Looking over the plushies thatadorned the walls and were scattered throughout the room, you smiled to yourself,thankful that this sweet man hadn’t changed from youth to adulthood. Walking overto his nightstand, you picked up a picture frame of him as a young boy, hislittle sister on his back. “Oh my god, Joonie, you were so cute.” You cut himoff mid rant, making him look at you with big adorable eyes and a small ‘huh?’You smiled at him as you held the picture frame up. “You have the same smile,”you cooed.

A bashful grin appeared on hisface as he looked down towards the floor. “You promised you wouldn’t make funof me.”

“I’m not,” you defended. “I’madmiring how freaking adorable you are.”

“Did you just say how adorable youare? As in how adorable I am? Presenttense?” You glared at his widely grinning face. “Is that what you said?” Hecontinued to tease.

“Just take the compliment andknock it off,” you giggled. He smiled bashfully, covering his mouth with hishands.

“Thanks,” he said quietly as helifted his eyes to meet your own fond ones. Setting the frame back down, yousaw the notebook laying on the table. As you reached for the notebook, Namjoonwas suddenly at your side, grabbing your wrist to stop you. “Please don’t,” hebegged. Looking at him, you cocked your head.

“What is it?” You smiledmischievously. He stared at you, silently pleading with you not to look at thenotebook. You gasped. “Old songs?” Your smile grew when he didn’t deny yourguess. “Babe, please let me read it, please,” you begged as he shook his head.“I promised I wouldn’t make fun of you,” you pouted.

“No,” he said as he took thenotebook off the table and held it above his head.

“Really?” You glared. “Holding itover your head? I’m not that short,” you complained, making him laugh.“Joon, I’m not gonna read it if you don’t want me to,” you told him sincerely.Looking into your eyes, he saw your sincerity.

He lowered his arm, holding thenotebook out to you. “No, it’s ok,” you smiled. “You don’t have to show me.”

“No, go ahead,” he assured you itwas ok as he placed the notebook in your palm. Your smile spread further acrossyour face, but you still waited for his go ahead. “I already show you everysingle song I write, no matter how shitty it is—“

“None of them are shitty—”

“Go ahead. I actually don’tremember what any of these lyrics are so we’ll read them together,” he smiledbashfully. Instead of taking the notebook from him, you instead crawled ontohis bed, laying on your stomach, propping yourself up on your elbows.

“Come on,” you patted the spotnext to you, Namjoon immediately plopping down next to you. He opened thenotebook and you both started reading the childish lyrics. They weren’t bad fora kid, but some of them were pretty silly, making you both laugh. Every once ina while, you pulled your eyes from the pages to watch Namjoon’s amusementdisplayed across his stunning features.

Eventually, you both started todoze off, both of you exhausted from staying up late in the studio the nightbefore. Namjoon was working tirelessly on the comeback, and you had brought himdinner and ended up crashing on his sofa.

When Namjoon’s father came in tocollect you both for lunch, he fell upon the scene of you curled into Namjoon’sside as he slept on his stomach, his arms protectively wrapped around yourshoulders. You were both lightly snoring, making his dad almost sad to wake youboth. He shook Namjoon’s arm until Joon stirred awake, his eyes immediatelyfalling on your sleeping form, tucked in tightly to his side. He could feel yourarm draped across his lower back, your legs wrapped around his own like a koalabear. Namjoon smiled contentedly before looking up to see his dad smilingfondly at the two of you. Namjoon’s cheeks flushed as his dad shook his head.“You’re just friends,” his dad said with a knowing smile. “I know, son.” Thetone in which he spoke, mixed with the smile he flashed, made Namjoon shove hisface in the bed in embarrassment. He felt as though his dad just ripped downevery wall Namjoon had ever built up, leaving him and his feelings bare, withnothing to hide behind anymore.

His dad gently patted Namjoon’shead. “Y/n is a good person to have, no matter what you two are to each other. Youboth are very lucky to have each other,” his dad said, smiling at his son.“Lunch is ready, so come and eat.” With that, he left the room, leaving Namjoonto deal with the butterflies that had just exploded in his chest at therealization that followed his dad’s words.

Reluctantly, he rolled away fromyou, tickling your nose to wake you up. Groaning, you pushed his hand away, buthe then just attacked your sides with his fingers. “Babe, stop,” you whined,your eyes fluttering open. Babe. He’d heard you call him that name amillion times before, yet this time it made his heart pound against his chest.

“Let’s go eat,” he said. Withthose words, you popped up, your stomach immediately growling in response.

“Food,” you whispered, Namjoonlaughing at you. He took your hand and led you out of the room to the kitchen.

As your sleepy forms stumbled intothe kitchen, Namjoon’s family all looked at you, his mom giggling a bit at yourand Namjoon’s puffy eyes. “Did you two get a good nap in?” She asked as she setthe final dish on the already full table. Namjoon nodded as he pulled out achair and sat in the one next to it, you sitting down in the chair he pulledout. The subtle action did not go unnoticed by Namjoon’s family as they allsilently swooned.

“Thank you so much for this meal,it looks amazing,” you bowed to Mrs. Kim, making her graciously smile at you,Namjoon affectionately smiling at you both.

“Why are you two so tired, anyway?”Namjoon’s dad asked you both as everyone dug into the food. Slurping down somenoodles, Namjoon spoke up.

“We were up late. I’ve beenworking on the album, and y/n was kind enough to hang out with me in thestudio,” he told them as he ate a bit more. His mom shook her head indisapproval.

“You need to stop working yourselfso hard, Namjoon. Working hard is one thing, but I’m worried you’re overdoingit.” Namjoon’s dad nodded in agreement. You stopped eating as you glanced atNamjoon to gage his reaction. This was a touchy subject for Joon, and you knewthat because you had attempted to tell him the exact same thing on severaloccasions.

“I’m not overdoing it,” hedefended calmly. “I’m just doing my job.”

“But rest is important,” Namjoon’sdad told him.

Namjoon nodded in acknowledgement.“I’m getting rest. My schedule is just different than most people.” Namjoonlooked at you to meet your gentle gaze, helping him to keep his aggravation atbay. “Trust me, I get rest. This one makes sure of that,” he gestured to youwith a laugh.

“Well we’re very thankful to youthen, dear,” his mother told you with a smile. “But who is making sure youget rest if you’re staying up with him all night in the studio?” She asked youbefore looking to Namjoon, making his body flood with guilt.

“Oh, no, I don’t usually stay upwith him. I’ll bring him food or just hang out for a bit, and then I go home beforeit gets too late. Last night was a rarity. He doesn’t usually let me stay toolong,” you looked at Namjoon gently. “He worries about me too much to let mestay up late,” you laughed. “I can sleep pretty much anywhere, and I think thecouch in his studio is just as comfortable as my bed, but he still insists I gohome to get a good night’s rest,” you explained with a smile. His family’s eyesbounced between you and a bashful Namjoon as you spoke. “I actually wish he’dlet me stay late with him more often,” you continued. “It’s inspiring to seehim work on something he’s so passionate about.” Namjoon’s sister pouted at yourwords, overwhelmed by how cute you two were, while his mother and father lookedat each other and smiled.

Namjoon caught on to his family’sreactions, groaning in response. “We really are just friends,” he said quietly,your cheeks heating up instantly, realizing how you just furthered theirsuspicion of your relationship.

“Mhmm,” his mom nodded. “You’rewhatever you say you are.” His dad nodded in agreement with his mother.

“You still don’t believe us, doyou?” Namjoon asked in defeat.

“We believe you,” Namjoon’s dadassured. “We believe that you thinkyou’re just friends.” You couldn’t help but giggle at his dad’s choice ofwords, making his dad point a finger at you with a wide smile. Namjoon chuckledas well, looking down at his plate as he placed a hand on the back of yourchair.

“Would it be so bad to be morethan just friends?” Namjoon’s mom quietly asked you both, just as you shoved abunch of food into your mouth. Joon looked over at you and chuckled fondly atyour full cheeks which might as well have been permanently painted red at thispoint. He found himself smiling like an idiot, utterly amused by you and yourcuteness.

“Ok, ok, let’s just eat,” Namjoontold them with a blush across his cheeks. You hid a smile with your hand as youswallowed the last of the food. Looking over to Namjoon, you were met by hisadoring gaze. Admiring the man you called your best friend, you couldn’t help butlet your mind wander over the possibilities if you ever did allow yourrelationship to venture into romantics. No, it wouldn’t be so bad.  

After finishing the meal, you,Joon, and his sister prepared to head out so they could take you on a shorttour of the city. With the weather still being a bit cold, Joon handed you a beanieto wear. Smiling, you took it, pulling it over your hair. Looking up at him, heflashed you a close-mouthed smile, his dimples popping out, as he looked at thetufts of hair sticking out wildly underneath the beanie. Reaching up slowly, headjusted the beanie, tucking your hair into it nicely. When he finished, henodded at you, leaving his hands on the sides of your face for a moment.

“Oh my god, just date already!”His sister yelled at you both as she walked outside, ready to leave. Both ofyour cheeks flushed red again as he quickly removed his hands from you. Youswiftly walked past him to head outside, pushing aside the butterflies thatwere now fluttering throughout your body.

As Namjoon and his sister escortedyou around, showing you their favorite spots, your interactions with Joon feltdifferent. For example, Namjoon often held your hand. It was never anythingthat concealed more meaning, but rather just a friendly display of affection.You both did love each other, but you weren’t in love… at least you didn’tthink so. Did everyone around you see something you both didn’t?

However, when he reached for yourhand to bring your attention to his favorite cafe, you felt a spark ignite wherehis skin touched your own, heat bursting in your chest, flowing throughout yourentire frame. You pulled your hand out of his grasp, almost scared of how itmade you feel, making him look at you with confusion and a bit of letdown. “Doyou want to go in?” He asked you as if you didn’t just have that awkwardinteraction. Nodding, the three of you walked towards the cafe.

Upon entering, you could seeexactly why Joon loved this cafe so much. It was cozy and modern. The woodenshelves full of books and albums that littered the walls gave it a verycomfortable vibe. You imagined a younger version of your best friend, cominginto this very cafe and feeling at home, surrounded by the experiences ofothers that had been put into words on a page and into the grooves of therecords.

“This place feels like you,” youtold him with a smile, making him blush under your adoring gaze.

After ordering, Joon’s sisterwaited at the counter for your drinks and desserts, while you and Joon found aseat next to the window. “I’m sorry if my family’s comments have been makingyou feel awkward,” he told you sadly, obviously feeling bad about it especiallysince you pulled your hand out of his. Quickly, you shook your head, placingyour hand over his in an attempt to let him know you didn’t feel awkward. Ifanything, you felt too comfortable with what the commentsinsinuated about your relationship “I just don’t know why they keep makingcomments.”

Looking down at your hand that washolding the back of his, you let out a mixture of a scoff and a laugh. “Joon,”you gestured at your hands. “You don’t know why? Really?”

Looking at your hands, pink tintedhis cheeks. Readjusting your hands, so they were palm to palm and your fingerswere intertwined, he smiled shyly. “What? This?”He asked teasingly as he squeezed your hand. “So now we’re a couple because wehold hands sometimes?”

“We call each other babe,” youtold him.

“Yeah, as like, a friend thing,”he justified. “We’re affectionate towards each other. That doesn’t make us acouple.”

Nodding, you agreed. “I know, butcan you at least see why peoplethink we are?” Sighing, he nodded.“As long as we know what we are though, then who cares what other people think,right?”

“But do we know what we are?” Heasked, slightly shocking you.

Suddenly, Joon’s sister appearedat the table, balancing three drinks and three desserts. you quickly removedyour hand from Namjoon’s to help her set the treats down. “Thanks,” she told youas you smiled at her. Noticing the heavy atmosphere between you and herbrother, she excused herself to the restroom. “I’ll, uh, be back in a few,” shesaid as she made her way across the room, looking back at you with a curiousgaze.

Locking your eyes with Namjoon,you chuckled. “She’s observant,” you noted, making him cock his head at you,waiting for an answer to his previous question. Sighing, you shrugged. “We’rebest friends, Joon.” He nodded in agreement.

“We are. But that doesn’t make us justfriends.” He looked back down at your hands which were no longerintertwined, but your fingers were playfully dancing together on the tabletop,making both of your lips turn up just the slightest bit.

“Have we ever been just friends?”You asked him, locking your gaze on his features to try to read what he wasfeeling.

He didn’t say anything, but youknew what he was telling you with his eyes. Both of you knew you were never just friends. There were other factorsat play when you met that kept you both from allowing yourselves to feel morethan friendship with each other. Timing was a big one. You were balancingschool and part time jobs and he was busy being the leader of a massivelypopular boy group. Another one was the fear you both had to let someone in. Itwas scary giving yourself to someone, putting your trust and faith into them.However, throughout your friendship, you let each other in anyway. He was theperson you trusted the most. You believed in him and you had faith in him. Andthe feelings were mutual.

“Ok, I tried to stay away, but mydrink is getting cold and I really want to eat my cookie,” Namjoon’s sisterwhined, sliding into the seat next to you. You laughed and pushed her drinktowards her.

“You’re fine,” you assured her.

“Did I give you enough time?” Sheasked you both, looking from you to her older brother. “Are you still justfriends,” she mocked Namjoon’s voice.

You both laughed in response,looking at each other to see how the other would respond. You shook your head,giving him the answer he needed. Reaching for your hand again, he tangled hisfingers with your own. “No,” he answered his sister, however, he was looking atyou, letting you know his words were for you. “We’re not just friends.”

[no-i-didnt-notice-im-short]

Keith "I never asked to be the leader!" with Lance saying "Well too bad because idk if you noticed but there are more people than just you!" Keith getting emotional and everyone getting on Lance for that? I'm sorry i love Klangst >~

Hope you like it, thanks for the prompt ❤

Ao3

This is post S2 for obvious reasons :)

—–

Keith was used to people abandoning him by this point, but the same person twice in a row was just a cruel joke from the universe.

His relationship with lance was thriving but the sense of familial closeness lacked in an unbearable way without Shiro. He was the closest thing he had to an older brother or even a father. He mentored him for years, taking him under his wing in the journey that is… life.

Finding him all those months ago in Garrison’s captivity after he crash-landed was a saving grace for the orphan boy. That small shred of familiarity he was given back subconsciously saved his life and kept him from falling apart after they were blasted off into space. A shred he lost again.

His and Lance’s relationship was still in its honeymoon phase when it all happened. That phase where you lay next to each other and whisper sweet nothings to remind each other that you are both here and that this tender moment was actually happening. Shiro’s disappearance ruined all that for Keith. He couldn’t afford to lie down, to not do anything that could get him closer to the Black Paladin.

Shiro said to take the lead if something was to happen to him but he couldn’t help but feel like he made a mistake trusting Keith with all of this. After the whole thing with the Black Lion, he had two paladins with new Lions and another two that didn’t know the first thing about combat. Keith was in over his head.

The new Black paladin spoke with Coran to give him the training records of the Paladins of Old to try it with the team. He set the training deck to the required settings and started the workout. Allura was to go first followed by Hunk then Pidge and ending with Lance. Each of their strengths and weaknesses were taken into consideration and Keith couldn’t help but feel slight pride in his work.

Overworking himself was his coping mechanism, he already knew it was bad but he couldn’t think about that right now. He did it back on earth when Shiro first disappeared with the weird energy and drawings in the cave, which later turned out to be super important and now he was doing it again with training exercises and trying to move forward.

He hadn’t seen much of the team outside of training due to him holing himself in the gym or the training deck. Keith needed to be better for the sake of the team, for the sake of finding Shiro again and for the sake of distracting himself, something not even Lance had been able to do… He just thought about it too much and he needed that intoxicating rush of adrenaline.

By the end of the first week of their new training schedule Hunk seemed like he had dead weights on his punches while he dodged the oncoming punches clumsily instead of the usual calculated precision. Allura’s moves were sluggish and too slow which was shocking considering she was their best fighter.

Lance was slightly better aiming/shooting wise but horrible in hand-to-hand combat, a note Keith didn’t spare from Lance as he kept repeating it all throughout his turn to remind him to get better. But the ex-Blue Paladin barely entered the training deck to train and it was showing in his hand-to-hand combat, being the only trope he was lacking in.

Today’s training was going fine. Everyone was doing their parts and Keith was giving pointers like he usually did, Coran was at the controls and whoever finished or were waiting for their designated session were doing light cardio on the sides.

By the time it was Pidge’s turn Keith was running out of temper to spare.

“Pidge! It’s like you are not even trying. You don’t duck the minute you think there might be a punch, you try to counter it.” Keith said in a rather stern way, but it was all for good reason. “Do what I’ve been telling you for the past week: Use. Your. Size.”

He walked closer to the bot and demonstrated the move he wanted and how he wanted it. He needed her to be ready for anything, why can’t she see that?

“Hey man, we get what you want but can you just calm down for a sec?” Hunk surprisingly said. He was wearing a training shirt with what looked like basketball shorts, and was also sweating buckets. His training today was weights and Keith tried to get him to push his body limits as much as possible for a better result. “She is trying to do what you are saying, can’t you see that?”

“Not really. All I see is weakness that could be exploited by our enemies in times of actual battle. She is already the smallest Paladin she can’t afford to be the weakest one too. She won’t make it.”

“What the hell DID YOU JUST SAY!?” A voice boomed from across the training deck. Lance came charging at him with inhuman speed, the sweat and flush on his face making him look scarier than usual. The fire in his eyes burned brighter than Keith had ever seen.

“I didn’t mean it in a bad way, Lance.” He visibly sighed and made eye contact with Lance, regretting it almost immediately but held it for a few more minutes anyways. “All I am saying is that she needs to train more. You all do!”

“But we are training.” Hunk voiced out. Lance was fuming and looked like he had a lot to say but kept it in for everyone’s sake. Keith didn’t understand the reactions he was receiving; he was doing this for them all get better. This was war, not a playground fight.

“Not nearly well enough.” Keith shrugged. “Your level is close to pathetic and we all won’t survive the next battle at this rate.”

“Fuck you Keith we are all tired here, look around you we are all working our asses off” Lance threw his arms up dramatically.

“Not you.”

Pin drop silence.

And it may have been the fact that he didn’t expect this person to ever do this to any member of his team or the fact that his brain was racing too much to comprehend reality but the next thing Keith knew he was on the floor and his nose was dripping blood from the force of being decked in the face by Lance.

“We are all tired and worn out.” Hunk said. He had a hand on Lance’s shoulder, probably to keep him in check. “We have been training non-stop for the past week while dealing with a lot of issues on our own. Don’t think for one second you are the only one here who has been overworking themselves.”

Keith turned to the Yellow Paladin and stared. “I know that, I just think that right now the most important thing for us to do is to train. I am the leader according to Shiro and this is what I think is best.”

“What you think is best?! Right, so because Shirochose you based on his biased judgment we are supposed to follow your lead toour deaths?” Lance narrowed his eyes, holding eye contact with determination. Keithdidn’t understand where all this was coming from. “You do get that with how weare training, we won’t need to go to battle to die. You will do so during thesetraining sessions.”

“I never asked to take over as the leader, you know!!”Keith yelled at Lance. “It was Shiro’s decision and he’s GONE! All I am doingis respecting his wishes and doing what I think is best for the team. We needto train.”

“-We are not all YOU, KEITH! WE DON’T TRAIN LIKE COLD-HEARTED SOLDIERS!” he took a deep breath before composing himself. “I don’tknow if you noticed but there are more people than just you on this team.Shiro’s disappearance hit all of us. Maybe you more than the rest but we areall hurting after losing a friend. Open your damn eyes and look around you! Dios,we are your teammates, your friends, not your pet soldiers. Today’s session isdone.” He turned and left with that.

Their relationship was a secret. They didn’t have their friend’s expectations hanging over their necks on how they should treat each other, in private or in public. These new developments after the battle against Zarkon wasn’t really discussed by the lovers, both were choosing to focus on other matters. Keith didn’t tell Lance but it left a sour taste in his mouth thinking the Blue Paladin didn’t take all of this seriously, despite Lance making his insecurities pretty clear after their first few nights spent together, that he doesn’t want to disappoint anyone.

But at this moment, he wished they told the team of their new found closeness so Hunk or Pidge could punch Keith for what just happened.

Lance understood stress. He had anxiety for fuck’s sake.

What Keith was displaying, though, was getting out of hand on so many levels; it didn’t just affect him, it affected the whole team. He stalked Keith in the training room and saw his hopeless haunting look when he thought no one was watching. The small tremors that overtook his body when he overthought about a certain plan or when someone fucked up a training session; Keith was terrified that whatever happened to Shiro would happen to one of them too.

But what Keith failed to see was that everyone else was terrified too.

Lance had spent the better half of his time making sure everyone was healthy. Pidge over worked herself to an extent that he knew she won’t sleep if not reminded so he took her laptop from her when it was time for bed. He had his fair share of run-ins with the other paladins at night after being woken by a nightmare, another reason why he didn’t sleep in the first place, so to say the least: he saw first-hand how much everyone was suffering.

Hunk baked every possible recipe he could remember from earth while helping Coran fix a million things around the castle. Both males ran around all day trying to keep themselves busy by any means necessary with Lance going after them trying to get them to eat, drink and sleep. Allura’s situation was a bit tricky because she didn’t take him as seriously as the others, at first, so he had to get creative with getting her to take care of herself. And it all worked.

Taking care of everyone was so much work that he knew he was forgetting himself but the smile he would sometimes receive from Pidge when she wakes up from a long uninterrupted nap or from Hunk when he talks and lets out everything bothering him and Lance listens to him or from Allura when he helps her after reaching a supposedly dead-end in her planning by giving her a fresh point of view on things was way more than worth it in his books.

After leaving the training deck he goes to the Red Hanger to seek some comfort, he would’ve gone to Blue but Lance wasn’t over the rejection yet. As he reached the hanger door, he tiptoed to the Lion’s jaw to get into the cockpit but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to find Coran smiling sadly at Lance.

“How are you, my boy?”

“I’m okay, Coran, just tired from training.”

“You know that we appreciate all that you’ve been doing to us these past few days.” Lance looked at Coran and found sincerity but he couldn’t get himself to believe him. Not completely.

“Keith seems to think otherwise.”

“You don’t know that, lad. He is just tired.”

Lance gave him a confirmation hum before he turned to leave, the hanger suddenly a few degrees colder than before. Exhaustion seeping into his soul more by the second; he was so tired. His vision started blurring the minute he caught sight of his bed. He locked the door, took off his training clothes and got under the covers and let the world turn black without interruption.

Coran walked into the training deck ready to kill someone and Keith almost had an idea why.

“I will make it up to everyone later.” He grumbled as he punched another bot, killing it in an instant.

“You will make it up to Lance this very second.” Coran’s gentle tone discarded for a hostile one that sent shivers down Keith back. Coran stalked up to him and stood mere inches away from his face while jabbing a finger in his chest. “You have no idea what that boy has been doing to everyone here and you need to start taking notes.” He said with a final jab and left.

What Lance has been doing?

Keith hasn’t seen much of Lance, but then again he hasn’t seen much of anyone. Pidge was always on her laptop while Hunk was always in the Kitchen. He helped Allura sometimes with strategy but didn’t talk to her otherwise. And Coran was Coran…

He ended the simulation and walked out the deck determine to find answers. He passed the kitchen and heard a voice that he later identified as Pidge.

“-too tired.” She finished.

“Yeah… those eyes bags are getting worse. We need to help him find himself again.” Allura conversed. He didn’t know the girls talked outside of missions, let alone about other members. He always assumed everyone was busy doing their own things between missions, like he did. “Keith had no right to disregard his hard work like this.”

Hard work?

“Yeah he’s been too down lately and he’s not talking to anyone about it.” Hunk was there too? The ringing sound of a tray set on the table. “He doesn’t come to me anymore, he hasn’t in a while but before it wasn’t as serious now.”

“Wasn’t he close to Keith before this?” Allura asked. “I thought they were finally getting along.”

“Yeah, me too.” Pidge answered.

Keith couldn’t listen to any more of this. He walked to his room, closed the door and trailed down to the floor with his head on his knees. Hot shame and guilt washed over him as he thought about of Lance. The others even noticed how close they were, he knew they didn’t hide it well but he didn’t think they would notice it to the extent of noting the difference.

He thought of every night he went to train and how the light of the lounge was always on. He assumed it was Pidge or Hunk as Lance took his sleep religiously but he was starting to doubt all his beliefs when it comes to the ex-Blue Paladin these days.

He looked around his room and saw random garments that didn’t belong to him. A shirt here and there, a pair of pants and some socks. He never realised how much he missed Lance and how much the Cuban softened him up that he without him there to go to bed with, he was beginning to suffocate. Lance has been hurting too but, unlike Keith, he was putting all that aside and helping the others.

Keith missed Shiro’s presence immensely at the very moment hating the responsibility he thrusted on his shoulders. He had finally found someone who would like him for who he was… flaws and all. And he ruined it by being a self-absorbed prick. He thought of what Shiro would say at a situation like this and came up blank.

Keith needed to fix this on his own.

Lance heard a knock on his door, yanking him out of dreamless sleep.

He opened the door finding a glass jar at the foot of the door. Lance bent down and lifted it to his face and stared. It was filled with little pieces of paper, all different colours. He opened the lid and took one of the pieces out and read what’s on it.

You make me a better person.

He tried thinking of everyone’s handwriting and couldn’t think of anyone’s that could match the one on the paper. He blamed it on the fact that no one writes anymore when you can easily type it out.

He took another one.

I appreciate everything you do for this team.

Red couldn’t have chosen a better Paladin

The fourth one however gave him a clue as to who his mystery person was.

You remind me I’m still human.

Lance thought of a conversation he had with Keith after they returned from the first time they had reached out for the Blade and it ended with Lance comforting a sobbing Keith. He was terrified of being Galra that he opened up for the first time ever about his past and how much Shiro meant to him and how he didn’t want to scare Shiro after what he went through at the hands of Galra. It took Lance literal hours to calm him down and get him to sleep that night. It was also the first time they ever slept together.

A small smile made its way to his lips as he took another paper.

You are all the better parts of myself.

He knew Keith was apologizing to what happened but he also knew that if he went to him right now he couldn’t trust his mind to make the right decision, words wise. He went back to bed with the jar in his hand and went through every single one of the papers, his smile growing more by the second. He really liked Keith and he was going to make sure that that boy knows when to relax.

I haven’t had motivation to write for a while… Finally got some clarity of mind and decided to do this prompt that i got months ago.

Hope you guys liked it! And i am so sorry if this is shit...