#I put too much effort in this late night Valentine's day post
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bobbinfire · 14 hours ago
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The Court Paperwork Battle of Optimus and Megatron: Valentine's Day edition.
<<The Original Paperwork
<Previous Law Suit
Next
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almond-lebkuchen · 2 days ago
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Happy Valentine's day folks!
I decided to post a quick fanfic for Faust, the reason I got dragged back into this fandom. I've been so busy, and hadn't been able to write creatively in a good long while so I was half afraid I wouldn't be able to write this at all. So I'm quite glad to have actually finished one of my WIPs for once, and on time too, even if I am very rusty.
A Chocolate Temptation
Summary
It's almost Valentine's day, and you are looking to get the perfect chocolates for Faust as a surprise gift. Unfortunately for you, he runs into you just as you get your gift. (I'm bad at summaries)
Content warnings: None, just fluff with a little spice at the end, (nothing explicit though), and some vampiric biting.
archiveofourown link here.
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The smell of flowers and chocolate seemed to fill the morning air as eager townsfolk bought gifts of affection for their lovers. Pink and red hearts and chubby cherubs adorned shop windows, perfectly decorated to entice customers. People chattered happily with each other, all smiles and laughs over the excitement for the romantic holiday. 
All except you it seems. Your stomach churned, anxiety forming unpleasant knots inside you as you made your way towards the marketplace. Valentine’s day was tomorrow and despite your efforts, you still weren’t ready for it.
So far nothing had gone as planned. You had decided to borrow the mansion’s kitchen to surprise Faust with some homemade chocolates, but it seems like this week cursed you with baking disaster after baking disaster. First you mistakenly bought the wrong kind of chocolate powder, and they came out dry and very bitter. You tried to compensate by adding more sugar to your next batch but apparently you put in too much, as they came out disgustingly over-sweet. Plus the lack of access to a modern refrigerator or electric oven gave you a whole new set of difficulties to navigate as well. You either burned or under cooked them, and you were having trouble getting them to set properly. 
You let out a small groan, rubbing at your forehead. Already you could feel a headache forming just thinking of all the mistakes and wasted ingredients. Not to mention the late nights you spent cleaning up.
So here you were now, giving up and buying some from the store. Faust had mentioned that he was going out today, so you decided to take advantage of his absence and visit a rather popular confectionery that everyone was talking about. It wasn't the romantic personally crafted gift you had envisioned, but you were running out of time. Besides, you could see that Sebastian was starting to lose his patience after your last batch accidentally ended up on the floor thanks to a certain writer’s dog had started barking around your heels. 
The tantalizing aroma of rich cocoa filled your senses immediately as you walked in, the smell mouth watering. Your eyes wandered over to the display cases, where a variety of beautifully arrayed artisan chocolates of all shapes, colours and flavours were proudly showcased. You sighed in relief, as you had been half afraid they would already be sold out by other last minute buyers. You clearly came at a good time, especially since the shop wasn’t too busy either; only a few lingering customers that were finishing up their purchase.
You examined their products carefully in deliberation, while the shopkeeper happily gave you some recommendations. You weren’t entirely sure which would be best, so you eventually settled for a combination of different ones you thought Faust would enjoy the most. The shopkeeper wrapped them up in a decorative box and placed them in a lovely bag. You paid for them, and headed back to the castle, feeling a bit better than earlier. While you were still a little disappointed, maybe it was for the best. You couldn’t possibly measure up to something professionally made, and at the very least, perhaps he would appreciate being able to experiment with the different flavours. You struggled enough trying to get one right. 
You had almost reached the castle gates when you heard a voice call out your name. You cursed your luck, recognizing it immediately. Faust. 
Of all people to run into. Didn’t he say he was visiting the orphanage? Maybe I could pretend I didn’t hear him. I’m almost at the doors after all, I could make it if I hurry. 
Before you could plot your escape, Faust’s stern face popped into your view, giving you a mini heart attack. You quickly tried to hide the bag subtly behind your back and hoped he didn’t notice. 
“Faust! Sorry, I uh, didn’t expect to see you back yet. I thought you were going to see the children?” You tried to smile brightly at him as you tried to compose yourself. 
“I did. I finished up a little early, I only needed to drop off some medicine.” 
He gazed down at you, a small frown gracing his features as he crossed his arms in disapproval. “I don’t recall you notifying me that you were going out today.”
You laughed nervously, trying to act cool. “I just had some small errands I suddenly had to run, that's all.”
“Hmm, is that so? Is it related to whatever you have behind your back?”
“No, that’s nothing important!” 
You cringed slightly at the panicked edge in your voice and scrambled to come up with an excuse
“What I mean is, it’s just a little something I picked up from my errands…you don’t worry about it”
You groaned internally at how flimsy your excuse sounded. Great, super convincing.
He narrowed his eyes at your words, as he studied you suspiciously. Feeling guilty, you couldn’t help but look away as his stare burned into you, clutching the handle of the bag even tighter. 
“You’re hiding something.” He stepped closer, and you couldn’t help but squirm a little at his words.
You inched away from him, trying to put some space between you. “I’m not hiding anything, you’re just imagining things” you protested weakly. 
His frown deepened, and reached his hand out to pinch your cheek.
“Hey!”
He ignored your indignant exclamation, his fingers moving down to your chin to lift your face up back towards him.  
“I’m imagining things? You’ve been avoiding me lately, and disappearing without warning for hours on end without word of where you’ve been. I don’t like it when my guinea pig isn’t within my sight or not knowing where you are.”
You winced a little at his words. So much for your plan. You genuinely did feel a little bad about your evasive actions leaving him in the dark for the last week, even if they were for good reasons. 
He raised an eyebrow at your silence. 
“No answer? Hm, then shall I open up your chest and examine it like a guinea pig’s?”
Ugh, he’s so stubborn.
You couldn’t help but glare at him for messing up the surprise. You let out an irritated sigh, having no choice but to fess up since you knew he wouldn’t let this go so easily. 
You bitterly averted your eyes in frustration, your answer coming out more huffy than intended. “You really are the worst sometimes you know that? I was trying to surprise you by making some chocolates for you, but it was a total failure and I ended up getting some from a store.”
You grumpily removed the gift hidden behind your back. “I wasn’t sure what would suit you so I got you a variety to experiment with”
He blinked, caught off guard by your forceful reply before laughing, which only made you more annoyed. 
“Heheh, such an angry way to deliver such a romantic sentiment don’t you think?”
He looked down at you smugly as you pouted.
“I wanted this to go differently. It’s all your fault that it came out like this, it was supposed to be for tomorrow!”
He laughed again to your chagrin, but before you could argue further, he swept you off your feet and into his arms in one quick move. He chuckled at your startled cry as you scrambled to hold onto him without dropping the gift.  
“Ah, your efforts to surprise me are admirable, but I think my favorite sweet is right here. Besides…”
He buried his face against your neck, his breathy sighs against your skin sending a small shiver through your body. 
“I think we can celebrate a little early. As your lover, it’s only right that I give you a gift of my own.”
Grinning widely, he headed towards the castle and to the bedroom, where he set aside the chocolates on the nearby night table before kissing you again. He pushed you down on the bed, covering your body with his own.  
He yanked open your shirt, peppering kisses across your collarbone, gleeful at your embarrassed expression. Still, you didn’t fight him, and in the end you sighed, a mixture of defeat and happiness at his amorous affections. You wrapped your arms around him, a rush of pleasure running through your body as he leaned in and sank his teeth into your neck.
Maybe celebrating a little early isn’t too bad after all. 
~~~
You don’t know when you dozed off after being with Faust, but when you woke up, the sun was just starting to set, casting its soft yellow and orange hues through the windows. A pleasant floral scent enveloped the room, and you sat up, the smell piquing your curiosity. You glanced around, Faust nowhere in sight. Your eyes landed on a stunning bouquet of your favorite flowers, meticulously arranged and tied off with a decorative lacy ribbon on the nightstand by the chocolates. A small red envelope addressed to you in Faust’s handwriting lay right next to it. Reaching over you, you gently opened it and read the contents. 
To my most precious lover,
Thank you for the chocolates, your efforts are appreciated. I do hope you aren’t still upset about earlier. I’ll admit, you still managed to surprise me in the end, and it pleases me to know you cared enough to get me something, even if you were unhappy with how it resulted. But know this: I’m interested in anything you make, whether you discount it as a failure or not.
Do you know what drives the heart to beat?
Truth be told, I could go on about how the heart rate is dictated by the electrical impulses of the sinoatrial node of the right atrium, but truth be told, none of these reasons hold a candle to you, the real driving force behind my still beating heart. 
And each beat belongs to you alone, my beloved Versuchkaninchen. 
But these mere words are not enough to truly capture how much I love you, nor completely convey my feelings for you. My need for you forever grows stronger with each passing day, and I won’t rest until I make sure that your heart is entirely in my grasp. I wanted to give you these flowers tomorrow, but considering the circumstances, I think it's only fair to give them to you now. I hope you will accept them, as a symbol of that promise.
You may blame me as you like, but you must take responsibility for capturing my heart and soul, and for that, I will never let you go.
Happy Valentine’s day,
Johann Georg Faust
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xandy-toady · 2 years ago
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Lyle Wainfleet || Late Valentines
uhhhh enjoy this is literally ass but I needed this okay leave me alone☝️ Afab reader teehee
Requests are open, I should have a bigger Zdinarsk post coming up and a Neytiri one is close to done too 🤭
MINORS DNI NSFW
Just Lyle fucking you silly, nothing more to add 🤷
—————
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Tonight, he was coming home, and you had plans.
Setting up your lab so it’s dimly lit by lights you managed to find, putting on music that you knew he enjoyed for background noise. Candles also splayed out and about, the gentle soothing smell of very faint vanilla hitting your nose.
He spoils you so much, and even though it was a few days late, you were determined to give him this Valentine’s gift, he had been out on a mission to your disappointment but you weren’t going to let that stop you.
So you here you were, setting up you lab at midnight, wearing a large fluffy robe you had brought in along with the supplies, wearing part of his surprise underneath, a very skimpy and lacy red lingerie set that fit on your form just right.
You made sure you were absolutely breath taking, he always told you that you were always stunning to him, but you couldn’t help but want to look your best for tonight, for him.
Finally him calling you, saying they just got back, and you knew it was time. So in hearing him announce his return, you insisted he come to your lab, that you have something to show him right this instant—
Lord did that make him excited.
Lyle’s tail was wagging when you hung up, and he ended up running all the way over, what could you have to show him? Probably some science junk, but still, it was you, and honestly he just needed you right now, especially after having you urge him to come to you.
Then he turned the corner, finally at your lab.
Seeing you stood in a white robe, barely able to make out the faint red that poked out, looking around at the very romantic display.
He was fucking weak in the moment, and when he looked back to you, watching the robe fall?
He found himself with a shit eating grin, approaching you swiftly to guide you to the spot he assumed was made for him to take you, a nest of blankets and pillows layer on the floor, rose petals scattered around.
“Happy late Valentine’s Lyle!”
To say the least, this night wasn’t just the two of you fucking, it was a night where you made him feel more wanted then ever, so much effort put into this all for him.
You made him feel loved. He was going to make sure to show you that, especially right now.
“Oh tonight’s gonna be reallll good, just you fucking wait sweet cheeks.”
Lord did he ever show you—
You don’t even remember when the two of you had started, once he had you under him it begun.
Now, you lay with Lyle’s balls slapping harshly against your ass, dick reaching every spot you needed him most making you quake underneath him, weeping cunt already spilling his cum and your own. He was just as much a mess, he himself was shaking by the end, having you in a mating press rutting into desperately—
He fucked you for hours.
He couldn’t help how he starts to purr loudly seeing how your mind blanks aside from thoughts of him, listening as you’re only able to repeat his name over and over again.
He had you drooling, you looked downright fucking filthy under him and he loved every second of it, his stupid little angel he would coo out, balls deep in you, pressing down at the large bulge his cock made in your stomach—
He left you stuffed in every hole by the end of the night, satisfied in every way possible, your Valentine’s gift clearly a success— once finished, you firmly stated while laying on top of him that you think your clit fell off, he’s never cackled so hard—
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purplekiwis · 3 years ago
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𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗜𝗡 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡🔸
Summary: Tracy Turner's Valentine's Night plans couldn't have kicked off any worse... but could it be that stumbling into a secret, private club after hours changed the fate of her night?
Warnings: A bit of ANGST, some CURSING, and a shitload of SMUT
Wordcount: 13k
AN: Is it too late to post a Valentine's Day themed fic? Probably but I'll do it anyway! This story is set in San Francisco, in 1986 🌞 It's also inspired by a bunch of 80's songs, and especially “Chain Reaction” by Diana Ross 💗
P.S: Even though the main character of this story is an oc, I made an effort to keep my descriptions of her physique to a minimum, so that it was all still somewhat bleary and inclusive ✨
**
I had a date tonight.
He had told me to put on something fancy before he left, so I did.
I wore red because he liked it - a turtleneck striped sweater, a miniskirt and matching gogo boots. I even pulled my roller set from the back of the drawer to try and tame my feathered hair into something resembling of the trendy Farrah Fawcett waves. Needless to say that that didn't go as planned, but it wasn't a total disaster either. I felt pretty and that was what mattered... a little frustrated too, once I saw the wall clock’s hands tick past the time he had promised to be home to pick me up.
A car honked outside, and I ran to the porch window to look. A huff left my lips when I saw it wasn't Andrew… just my neighbor's friend who happened to own a car of the same model he did - a 1974 Ford Maverick, that was currently pulled over the side of the road. I watched through the drapes as my neighbor fled out of the house sheltered under a vinyl umbrella and slid inside the car, where the driver greeted her with a passionate kiss.
The car's windshield wipers were on full blast, which reminded me that Andrew should also be driving in rainy weather. Before I knew it, I was nervously chewing on my thumb, as a vast collection of worst-case scenarios came popping into my head. Andrew had always been a fast driver, and the worn tires on that old car of his should have been changed months ago... but money had been tight – It always was, with me working at the five-and-dime and him constantly jumping from one temporary job to another.
He had never been the hardworking kind, and neither had I, but I tried… I showed up on time on the days my boss was there, smiled at rude costumers, and did my best not to spend much on myself...
I couldn't say the same about him.
That was the main topic of discussion under our roof - Andrew's spending habits. He bought more than he could afford and was never willing to make sacrifices - he went for a beer with the boys every night, while I stayed home and invited my friends over. He ate our leftovers outside meals, while I took less food into my plate than I wanted. He made foolish investments, promises he couldn’t keep, and never, ever put my or our interests first when it came to money.
Remembering these things was starting to make me feel angry, but I was more worried than anything else. For every extra minute that passed, there were 8 more laps I made from one side to the other of the hallway.
I was starting to get a bad feeling about his lateness but decided not to focus on that. It was Valentine’s Day, and he had promised this morning that he would take me somewhere nice… where we would eat duck in orange sauce and share a bottle of chardonnay… and then we’d go for a moonlit walk in the park before he drove us home, where he would make love to me.
I knew his promises weren’t to be trusted, but surely he wouldn’t let me down like this, would he?
I had probably just misunderstood the time of our reservations. That's what I told myself while I slung my leather coat over my shoulders and grabbed my purse from the hanger stand - just so he didn’t have to wait for me when he arrived.
And I waited.
And waited.
But that feeling of relief didn't last, once I realized he was drunk – not just drunk, but rotten. My arms naturally crossed over my chest while I stood there speechless, watching my boyfriend stroll inside the house without a care – hollering about football and dropping beer from the bottle in his hand onto the lobby rug.
Until he showed - two hours later and accompanied by two snarky big guys that I knew to be his friends.
“Oh my god!” I jumped up from the sofa, where I had ended up sitting after many minutes of standing by the front door like a dog waiting for its owner. The first emotion that went through me was relief, in finding my boyfriend was still in one piece and not dead in a ditch somewhere, like I was starting to worry he might be.
I could feel the indignation starting to bubble inside me, taking over my features and heart. “Andrew!” I yelled, but frankly I don't think he heard me. It was like I was invisible in his world, a world filled with nothing but beer, chants of victory and body sweat, apparently.
“Andrew!” I repeated, louder this time, what finally got the three heads to turn to me. Upon taking notice of my angered disposition, Andrew’s bulky friends exchanged a look in between them. As if they were debating if they should leave, but I saved them the time – “Out.” I growled, before they could take another step towards the sofa, where I knew they were headed. They followed my order, shutting the door behind them.
“Tracyyy!” Andrew sang back at me. The shit-faced grin he portrayed made me want to smack him unconscious on the spot, but I refrained from it… I needed to yell at him first.
The thing was I was at a loss of words - I couldn't believe this was the life I was living - a life where my boyfriend had stood me up on our special day to go get smashed instead. It wasn't unusual for Andrew to come home like this, but I expected more today. Maybe that was my problem… that I continued to expect different from him, even when everything I despised about him remained the same.
The sudden sound of a clash and porcelain shattering cut through my thoughts.
Andrew, who was moving like a stranger inside his own house, had bumped on the accent table on his way inside the living room - sending the lamp perched over it tumbling down. “Oh shit. My bad,” He paced back with his hands raised, stepping all over the shards and causing them to break into even smaller pieces.
“What the fuck is your problem?!” I finally managed to shout. His eyes jumped to mine, and what I saw in them disgusted me. He was staring at me with lust - like I was prey he had an appetite for.
“Tracy, Tracy, Tracy...” He murmured my name as he advanced – or stumbled – towards me. “You look so fuckin’ good…” He hissed through his teeth, reaching out to grab and kiss me.
“Get off!” I used my arms and hands to push him off my face. “Your breath reeks of beer - it’s disgusting.” I spat bitterly, shoving his shoulders back to force him to plunge on the sofa.
When faced with my rejection, Andrew groaned. “Right… let me hear it, what the fuck did I do to you this time?”
I scoffed a laugh, in utter disbelief. “Are you kidding me, right now? We had a date tonight, Andrew! A date you didn’t show up to!”
He sighed. “Yes, I know we had a date but baby… didn’t you watch the news? The niners won their first game of the season today. Do you have any idea of how big that is for us? It’s huge - and it’s also why I had to go celebrate with the guys...”
I shut my eyes and breathed in effort to calm down. “Are you… talking about football right now?”
“Yes, Tracy… the niners. As in, the best football team of all time.” He scoffed condescendingly, like he thought my question was dumb. “Oh, babe you should have seen them… Joe Cool was blistering through that field. The man was unstoppable. It was… fuckin’ epic.”
“You’re fucking unbelievable…” I shook my head, incredulous at his words. I could have been forgiving if he'd forgotten… it was something that could happen to anyone... but clearly, that wasn’t the case this time. Andrew had remembered the plans he’d made with me, and consciously decided not to follow through with them. His reason? A frigging football match. That! That was his reason. - “Why Andrew? Just… why?” I yelled in exasperation but all I got back was a vacant look. There wasn't a single flash of regret in his drunken eyes. It was like he couldn’t even see that he’d hurt me. “Why do you do this to me? Why am I always the one thing that comes last on your priority list?”
“Are you really going to start a fight over this? It was a fuckin’ dinner date, Tracy. We can go tomorrow.” I snorted at the utterance of that phrase. – “We’ll go tomorrow” – That was what he always said… but then, when the time came, we never got to go.
I let out a desperate sigh, running my hands through my hair. “No, Andrew. We can't! Because today was the day. It was today! Not tomorrow. Not the day after. Today!”
Andrew’s voice rose at my tone, now much more exalted. “And what does that even matter? It's a day, like any other day. It doesn't have to mean anything.”
“It meant something to me, goddamn it!” I finally snapped, stomping my foot hard enough to make the broken pieces of porcelain on the floor dither. Hot, mascara dyed tears began to stream down my disgruntled face, leaving traces of black in their wake.
Andrew stared at me wide-eyed when he noticed them. “Jesus Tracy, calm down… you don't have to cry.” He sneered. “If you’d told me dinner was this important to you, I obviously wouldn’t have missed it. Christ… I mean, you could have just said something instead of-”
“That’s the problem! I shouldn’t have to say anything.” I sobbed, even though I knew it wasn't going to be worth it. How could I expect him to understand the motives of my anger, when he couldn't even see I had motives to be angry? - “Do you even realize how selfish it is of you to ask that? You shouldn't be breaking promises! You shouldn’t even be making them if you're not counting on keeping them!”
“Oh so now I'm the selfish one? You’re the one who’s never satisfied with anything I do! You’re so fucking ungrateful, and then you cry just to make me feel sorry.”
I blew out a scathing laugh. “Oh I wish making you feel sorry was that fucking easy…”
“Maybe if you weren’t such a bitch all the time it would be.”
His accusation made me flinch. I fell silent for a moment, once again left speechless. We argued sometimes, but he had never stooped so low as to call me that. “What did you just call me?” I asked, incredulous.
Andrew squirmed uncomfortably on the sofa. I could tell he knew he'd said the wrong thing, but it was too late to take it back. “It’s what you’re being right now…” He said with a shrug.
Andrew’s reply didn’t surprise me. I knew better than to expect an apology from him. That was another thing about Andrew, the word Sorry never seemed to be part of his lexicon…
That was the kind of guy he was.
That was the kind of guy I was dating.
In this case, however, it didn't matter if he chose to apologize or not... he had called me a bitch - that was something I could never excuse.
I walked out of the room for a moment, just for as long as it took me to reach the closet where I knew Andrew’s sports bags were. I picked one at random - the first one I got my hands on - and took it back with me to the living room. “Here.” I tossed it into his lap, harshly and with no preamble. “I’m giving you half an hour to pack your things and walk out that door.” I said as I put my coat back on and shouldered my purse, considering I had stripped off both during my long wait. “I’m going for a walk. When I come back I want you gone. You can come get the rest of your stuff tomorrow.”
“What?” He practically barked, leaning forward on the sofa. “Are you out of your mind? You can’t kick me out - this is my house too!”
“Why are you never in it then?” I asked, knowing he would have no answer to give me. “Besides, I was already living here before you moved in from your parents’s. All you have to do is go back to where you were months ago. It's not like it's going to make much of a difference to you anyway.”
“Tracy, wait…” I was already on my way towards the front door when I heard Andrew’s calls for my name. My intention was to ignore them, but unfortunately I couldn’t because in his drunken state he had somehow managed to get up and come after me. “So that’s how it’s going to be? I screw up once and you decide to throw it all away?”
“Once…” I repeated through a humorless chuckle, turning although my fist remained firmly wrapped around the doorknob. “When’s our anniversary, Andrew?” I asked suddenly, what took him by surprise. I knew he didn't know because the date had gone unnoticed by him months ago. “What’s my favorite flower?” He had never given me any. If he had, he'd know that whatever he chose would become my favorite. “What’s my biggest dream?” I asked and on his part, again, there was silence.
“Babe c’mon, we don’t have to do this...” He supplicated, grabbing my wrist, and forcing me to stop and face him again. “Look, I’m sorry okay? I know I haven't been the nicest lately, but I love you… can't you see that?”
I rolled my eyes and turned my back to him. There was nothing about his statement that rang true. I turned the knob, but he tugged on my wrist and tried to kiss me again. “Stop! Just stop!” I pushed him back, irritated by his insistence – and once I opened my mouth next, it was like every syllable coming from it trembled with emotion. “It’s always like this with you and I’m done! I’m done with hearing the same crap over and over only for it not to mean anything!”
Andrew was still coming after me when I opened the door and ran down the outside stairs that led to the porch, but thankfully he gave up on following suit once he saw me step under the pouring rain and start walking up the street with no destination in mind.
The idea of ​​bringing an umbrella completely passed me by in the midst of everything else, and now it seemed that it was raining even more than the last time I looked out the window. I didn't care though, the cold rainwater felt sobering as it poured over my hot, heavy head – morphing my already withered Farrah waves into a cascade of unflattering wet strands.
The water dripped down my shivery body and ran beneath the sidewalk gullies under my feet as I walked. The crunch of my soles on the wet floor reminded me that I was by myself.
Not just out on the street, but in my love life as well.
A trickle of guilt shot down my spine, but I made a conscious effort to ignore it. My decision hadn’t been rushed… I had been considering ending my relationship with Andrew for months, but for some reason I always ended up changing my mind… afraid I would end up regretting it.
I knew Andrew wasn’t the type to change and still, I persisted. I gave him endless opportunities by tricking my brain into believing he was going to do better next time around… even if, deep down, I knew I was setting myself up for disappointment. – Being around Andrew was always going to be like this. Like sailing through life without an anchor to support me.
Up until this point I had made the choice to put up with that…
But not anymore.
And I felt good with my decision.
Not so much with the decision to go out alone after dark though. Due to the deterrent creeps running over my skin at the sight of two suspicious-looking guys leaning around the street's corner. I wasn't one to judge by looks... Living in San Francisco, it was common to run into scary-looking strangers. I felt comfortable around groups of loud protestants and punks with spiky hair and ripped t-shirts, but something about the way these men were looking at me made me feel uneasy - enough to have me walking to the other side of the road before I crossed paths with them.
Their eyes wouldn't let go of me as trudged the small street that led to Alamo Square Park. I hoped that there would be more people there... and this wish only intensified once one of the men whistled as I walked past them. I pretended not to hear… just quickened my step and sharpened my ears to detect any kind of movement on their part, and lo and behold: there were footsteps trailing behind me. “What’s the matter sweetheart?” An eerie voice asked from my back. “Are you feeling down? Me and my friend would love to feel you up.”
“Fuck off.” I replied in a bad mood. My legs sped up even more, while my eyes kept dancing all around, looking for an open establishment I could enter but there was nothing here - the street was deserted and I still had more than 5 minutes to go until I reached my destination.
“O-Oh… feisty, and she’s got a filthy mouth on her too…” Another guy said behind me, and I hated the grisly tone in which he spoke.
I wanted to tell them to fuck off again, but I knew that wasn't the smartest thing to do taken the fact they had found it amusing the first time. “Leave me alone, I’m not interested.” I said instead, making an impulsive decision to turn to a street on my left, in the hope that it would throw them off and make them stop following me.
It didn’t work, they kept walking after me. “Where are you going, sweetie? Trying to run from us?” I heard their footsteps getting faster, so I sprinted. I didn't know where I was going, but I knew the area and had passed these streets before. There was a set of stairs to my right, and I ran down them. It was tempting to look back and see if my pursuers were getting closer as I ran, but I refused to do it. Instead, I kept running further - through alleys, back streets, passageways, and parking lots.
My mouth tasted of blood due to the racing heart pounding in my chest and the adrenaline pumping through my veins. Water splashed under my feet, making my footsteps audible even in the streets adjacent to the one where I was currently at. My body was asking for a break, but I didn't know if I could give it that – I was terrified. I had never been in such a situation before… sure, I had been catcalled before, but never stalked to the point where I was legitimately afraid for my life.
I dared to glance behind my back, sighing in relief once I saw that there was no one there anymore. “Holy fucking shit…” I finally allowed myself to breathe, leaning against a wall of a building hidden in the shadows. There was a store on the first floor, but it had been shut for a while by the looks of it - the windows were covered with old newspapers, and the door sign that marked it as a hardware store also looked a bit outdated. Something about its placement looked offbeat however, it made me wonder if that was the reason why they had gone off the market... it couldn't have been easy to captivate customers being so hidden down an alleyway.
At least the storefront had an awning where I could shelter from the rain - not that it was worth much now that the water had seeped through all the layers of my clothes, but at least it gave me a little solace. My body was freezing, but there was still so much adrenaline running in my system that I didn't even notice I was shaking until I felt my teeth chatter.
All I wanted to do was go back home, take a warm shower, go to bed, and forget that this terrible, terrible day had ever happened… but I couldn't, not just because Andrew should still be there by now, but also because I was hearing heavy footsteps again, coming from somewhere close – probably one of the streets surrounding me. I covered my mouth with my hand and slipped further into the darkness, silently praying for a way out to help me get home safely.
As if the universe was listening to my prayers, once I pressed my body against the wall where I thought I was less likely to be spotted, my ears took notice of a drumming coming from within the building I was hiding outside of. That was when I finally realized where exactly I was. I had heard about this place – The Hardware – through the vine before. It was a homey thing. A private club. I had a few friends who came often, but I had never… I had always assumed for the place to be a bit dodgy – Why would its existence be made known solely by a word of mouth system if they had nothing to hide, after all?
But now it was my best option...
I could hear the voices and steps becoming louder and clearer. They were getting closer – I knew if I stayed here, it was only going to be a matter of time until they found me…
So I rang the doorbell - relentlessly, until I finally saw the sliding peephole pulling open, and a set of eyes come into view - a set of surprisingly kind, light in color and sober looking eyes. A deep voice followed before I managed to get a single word out. “Password please.” It asked pressingly.
The request surprised me… I knew the place was restrictive, but never in a million years would I have expected to be asked for a bloody password. “Uh...” I rambled for a beat, searching every corner of my brain for something, anything... surely my friends had mentioned it around me before... but of course I hadn't thought to memorize it. “I can’t remember what it is, but-”
“Sorry dear.” The man interrupted, sounding more like a record when he said, “No password, no entry.”
“No, no, no – listen, you’ve got to let me in.” I muttered urgently, before he got the chance to close the peephole in my face. “These guys- they’re chasing me and I'm alone out here.” I hated the way my voice sounded – all pitchy and wavery from despair, but I was too nervous to stay quiet. “ Please, just for a little while. I'll be out in a minute, I swear.”
I figured my hopelessness had somehow appealed to this man’s heart, because he seemed to be actually debating over my words, eyes focused on mine until he finally asked, “What’s your name?”
“Tracy.” I shivered. “Tracy Turner.”
It didn’t take longer than a few seconds for the door before me to creak open. Automatically, my lips parted to thank whoever kind soul had agreed to let me inside, but the gentle touch of their hand on my back ushered me in before I could.
When inside, the first thing I noticed were the clouds of smoke swirling in the air… and the colorful cocktails and beer being prepared and served at the counter. Brother Louie by Modern Talking rumbled through the club speakers, courtesy of the disco jockey mixing records of swooshing electronic music with heavy basslines.
The atmosphere of the club was interesting, and not nearly as subversive as I had imagined when I learned of the existence of such a place. There didn't seem to be anything illegal going on... there was no contraband or obscene sex happening, just a hodgepodge of fashionable, frizzy haired party people dancing and socializing with each other.
“The rain got you bad,” The raspy voice from earlier caught me off guard once it spoke beside me, making my eyes flicker up to finally get a good look of whoever I’d persuaded into letting me inside the privy club I was at. As I did, I felt warmth wash over me as if I’d soaked into that bath I so desperately craved. He was… a stunner.
Starting with his beautiful eyes that I had already met through the peephole - specked with shades of green and blue that reminded me of a forest pond. His eyes wouldn't be that big of an issue though… if only the rest of his face wasn’t just as equally mesmerizing - with lips the color of watermelon sorbet and features just like they describe in romance novels. Even his hair was dreamy, for god’s sake... sleek, yet messy with the occasional self-willed curl falling over his forehead.
But the worst part had to be the groovy, carefree charm he exuded… that had my foolish heart skipping a beat when he said, “Christ love, you’re freezing cold…” I was going to tell him I wasn't, in fact it was even quite sweltry inside the bar when compared to the weather outside… but he had just touched my soaked clothes, and he seemed quite distressed over them. “Come with me, yeah? Let's get you something to dry up.”
I nodded and followed him, not wanting to undo his will when he’d been so kind to me. Besides, I figured me, and my wet clothes might be drawing a little too much attention for his liking… supposing that he'd get in trouble with whoever owned this club if they realized I was an intruder he'd let in. He took me behind the bar, and then through a door next to the counter, into the service room – from where he rushed to gather two clean bar towels. “Here,” he said, extending them towards me. “They’re not very big so, if you need more, please just suit yourself.”
“Oh-uhm, one should be fine… and thank you. You really didn't have to.”
“It’s no problem, really.” The guy chuckled, turning around to spread open a beaded curtain at the back of the room. There was a wooden staircase behind it. “Give me a minute, will you? I'll be right back.” He told me, but before I could answer he had already vanished behind the bracket of multicolored beads and was now climbing up the stairs at a brisk pace.
When alone in the room, I finally allowed myself to take a deep breath - something I felt I hadn't done since I'd seen the man. Dear god... tall, handsome, and friendly? No wonder they kept him locked in here… he was a menace to the rest of the male species out there.
I brought one of the towels to my nose out of curiosity, it smelled fresh and flowery. I used it to dry my hair first, squeezing out as much rainwater as I could before I made use of the second towel to wipe my face and clothes. My heart raced when I heard footsteps coming down the stairs, and even more so when the curtain opened. He held a blanket scarf in his hands, that was promptly laid over my shoulders. “It’s a bit bohemian, but it should keep you warm…” He smiled. “I’m Harry, by the way.”
“Tracy.” I smiled at him, adjusting the blanket over my shoulders a bit. “Thank you, for letting me inside… and the towels, and this. You really didn't have to...”
“Aish… don’t mention it, yeah? It’s the least I could do.” He turned his back to me for a moment, but the lack of answer from my part had his head tilting around to face me. “Are you okay?”
“No, yeah. I’m okay. It was just… a bad night, to say the least.”
He hummed in acknowledgment, “Those guys that were bothering you… what’s up with that?”
“I don’t know them. I was out for a walk when they approached me- I would’ve ignored them, but I was upset ‘cause I had gotten into a fight with my boyf- I mean, ex. He’s my ex.” Harry's brows jumped at my admission. His reaction intrigued me, but I didn't know what to make of it, so I carried on. “I talked back at them. And from there they started following me and wouldn’t-” My talking got cut off by one of the bartenders swinging the door open. Her eyes widened as she poked her mullet head inside. She reached for a bottle behind me, muttering a small “Sorry,” as she left. Her surprised reaction reminded me that I was an intruder in this club, and even more so in its service room. “Are you sure it's okay for me to be here? I don't want you to get in trouble with your boss over this...” I asked Harry, feeling a little sheepish.
He chuckled at my assumption. “Nah... you’re fine. Boss's a tranquil guy.” He said, pausing for an instant before finally adding, “It’s me. I’m the boss.” He smiled at my surprised face before bending down to pick up the towels I'd used. “Which, by the way... if there’s a next time you want to come, the password is Clandestine. Feel free to spread it around with friends, yeah? But only the nice ones...”
My mouth parted around a stunned breath, too puzzled to speak as I watched him toss the used towels onto a basket to wash. “Wait, so you actually want me to spread the word around?” I asked, what made his head snap up with a nod. “I thought- Isn't this like- a super exclusive club? As in, a ‘to be kept on the hush’ club?”
“Well… it is, sort of, but it still needs promotion and new customers just as much as any regular club does...”
My brows knit slightly. “Why not just make it a regular club, then?”
“Honestly?” Harry’s expression sobered as he leant back against a cupboard and crossed his arms. “Do you want the absolute, unfiltered truth Tracy Turner?” He asked menacingly, although his face was still traced with humor. I nodded positively, mirroring his stance. “Okay well, let’s see… It’s homier. The taxes are cheaper. I don't have to entertain idiots I don't want in here, plus... the secretiveness keeps the customers coming. People love secrets, Tracy Turner… and love to spread them too, it’s why new people show up here every day.”
“So how do you keep it a secret and promote it at the same time? That sounds like a catch-22 situation.”
Harry coughed a genuine laugh at my question, angling his head a little to the side in thought. “Well, I’d say the key to the deal is finding balance between periods of admission and restriction for new customers, and of course, changing the password from time to time to keep that feel of exclusivity… Oh! and never revealing any of this to any curious, pretty customers who ask…” He said, and then with a cheeky smile gracing his features, he added, “Suppose I still have a bit of work to do on that last one, hm?” He winked, and I felt my cheeks blush but luckily, he saved me the embarrassment of answering when he turned around and casually asked, “Do you like hot chocolate, Tracy Turner?”
“I- um, yes. I like hot chocolate.” I mumbled, taking a curious peek over his shoulder to see what he was up to – drinking chocolate, obviously.
My tongue was itching to tell Harry that he didn’t have to make me one, but the thing was… I wasn’t sure that he was making it for me, and I didn’t want to risk making a fool of myself, so I decided to keep quiet (and also, an eye out to make sure he wasn't spiking it… better safe than sorry, isn’t that what they always say?
“Do you want sugar in yours?”
I breathed out in relief at the question. Finally. A chance to say something. “Oh no, I’m okay.” I spat quickly, ignoring his question. “You don’t have to make me one.”
“Are you not in the mood for one?” He asked, looking a little let down by my response. “It’s on the house... I wasn’t planning to charge you for it.”
I contemplated saying I wasn’t but honestly, a cup of hot chocolate sounded fantastic… warm, sweet, and soothing to my sad, empty stomach. “No. I am, but-” I reached for my purse, to pull out my wallet. “I'll pay for it.”
“Sure, alright.” Harry shrugged, extending out an open hand. “Cadbury is ten dollars a spoon. I added two, plus the milk… that'll be thirty dollars, please.” My eyes widened at his price, unsure if he was joking but praying he was. “I'm kidding. It's free, okay? No one ever buys it so you're doing me a favor just by helping me drink it.”
I drew in a breath, feeling my cheeks warm as I hesitantly breathed out my response, “Oh-um… okay, then.”
Harry’s dimples winked at me. “Soo.. sugar?”
“Just half a spoon, please.”
I stood silent for a while as I admired Harry finish stirring the chocolate in our drinks and putting them to warm in the microwave. Once it dinged, he opened the fridge and took out a can of Reddi-wip, that he used to top our drinks with a swirl Chantilly cream. Plus a dash of cinnamon powder.
“Alright. There you go, Tracy Turner.” He said, handing me one of the amber colored glass mugs. “Is it good? Warm enough?”
“It’s perfect. Thank you.” I said, even before I put the edge to my mouth to taste it. “It looks beautiful too, with the cinnamon...”
Harry chuckled, lifting the mug to his mouth for a sip. A lick of whipped cream underlined his top lip, stuck to his stubble. I broke a smile at it, until he got the hint and wiped it off. Shaking his head and turning a light shade of pink, he murmured sheepishly “I’m sorry you had to see that.”
I wanted to tell him that I found it cute, but I refrained from it. That would be weird to say to a stranger, wouldn’t it?
“It’s okay.” I said instead, “It happens to me all the time too.” My face lowered to my mug and as if to prove a point, a thin strand of hair flit from my fringe and dipped right into the whipped cream. “See?”
Harry was staring at my face, but his attention seemed to be on something other than my messy ways. “Do you like it? Is it good?”
“Yeah, it’s… really good.”
We finished our drinks in between shared moments of comfortable silence and casual conversation. I liked the way Harry talked to me, like he genuinely wanted to get to know me. He would ask about my interests, in a spontaneous and casual way. All small things, really… such as what part of town I liked the most and what kind of gigs I liked to go to. To be completely frank, I was enjoying the attention more than anything else... even though I knew it was cordial.
What could I say? Being the target of someone’s interest and company felt nice for a change. Really nice. Nice enough to make me overlook the chilly temperature outside to have a cigarette at the back of the bar, just so we could keep talking.
“What did you come down here for? It's too cold for you outside!” Harry scolded me. Half seriously, half-jokingly when he saw me walk out the back door right after he'd told me he was going for a smoke… but would come back to pester me some more in no time. His words, not mine.
“I’m here for the same thing you are.” I laughed, taking my pack of cigarettes and lighter out of my bag. I lit one, trying my best to ignore my shaky lips and fingers as I took the first puff.
“You could’ve smoked inside. I just don't do it out of habit, but everyone else does…”
“It's fine. I'll have to go home in a bit anyway, so it's not like a little cold now is going to make much difference.” I chuckled behind the smoke coming from my mouth.
We smoked quietly for a while, leaning against the back wall side by side until Harry broke the silence with a question, “May I ask where you live?” I was going to tell him my address, but his hand stole my attention when it touched my wrist. “Don’t hit me with street names please, I can never figure my way around like that.”
Harry’s grip dropped the next second, leaving behind a tingly vacancy. I felt like my reasoning had left with his touch, but thankfully after a silent note I finally managed to ask, “Do you know where the Hotel Majestic is?” He hummed around his cigarette in confirmation. “It's on that street. Not the one that shows the front of the hotel, but one of the sides.” I clarified, taking another conscious drag.
“But you walked here, right?” He asked, blowing out a thick cloud of white smoke into the air. I nodded. “Do you have someone coming to pick you up?”
“Oh no, I wish...” I jerked my shoulders, partially to hide a shiver. “I don't mind the walking though, it's not that far anyway...”
Harry opposed. “I can't let you walk home by yourself at this hour…” He affirmed with a brisk shake of his head as he reached down to put out his cigarette on the sidewalk. “Especially after what you told me happened earlier.” He threw the butt in the trash and held the lid open, noticing I was putting mine out too. “I'll drive you home, okay? Just give me a few minutes to shut everything down. We’re already pushing past closing time anyway.”
“No I- I can't accept that.” I fretted, tossing my cigarette into the bin after him. I didn't comment on it, but I liked the fact that he was careful not to leave his cigarette butts on the floor… or on the flower beds by the door. “You've already done too much for me, plus I'm used to walking around at night and nothing ever happened... other than that thing earlier, but I'm sure it won't happen again anytime soon.”
I held Harry's blanket tighter around me when a gust of wind blew over us, making the pink flowers tremble in their beds. Thankfully, Harry felt the cold too and walked to the door, opening it. “It will definitely not happen tonight, because I’m taking you home...” He said calmy as he ushered us back inside. “I’ll keep you company walking in case you don't want to get in my car… which I completely understand if you don’t, by the way.”
“No, it’s not that- it’s just… not necessary. I go for walks at night all the time and-”
“I want to, okay?” Harry ensured, smiling. “You are fun to talk to, Tracy Turner. And I want to get to know you better, so… if you think I'm insufferable you better speak now, ‘cause otherwise I'm not budging.”
I huffed, hoping it would blow the giddiness off my face. “Alright. Fine, under the condition that you'll let me help around a little while you close the club.”
Harry snorted, crossing his arms as he leaned against one of the walls. “Do you have any experience working in the field, Miss Tracy?”
I pursed my lips at the question. “Not exactly but I do have loads of experience scrubbing counters, washing dishes, sweeping and mopping floors.”
“That's a deal, then.” Harry grinned, holding out his hand. “I’m hiring you for the night, Tracy Turner. Better not let me down.”
I grabbed it immediately, thinking he was going for a playful handshake. Instead, he led me out of the service room – his hand clasping mine until we were back behind the bar, with our senses getting swarmed by the loud and smokey atmosphere going on in the club's main room.
Billy Idol’s Rebel Yell seemed to have awakened the craziest side of the dancing part of the audience, that gathered in front of the DJ booth jumping with their arms in the air. They looked to be having a great time, which made me feel a little sorry when I saw Harry wave at the jokey and mutter something about wrapping things up.
The man nodded once, but let the tape run until the song ended. His kindness didn't amount to much, however… for as soon as the music stopped, a roar of boos and hoos broke through the sudden silence, coming from a batch of disgruntled heads in crowd.
“Hey-hey, cool down peeps!” Harry shouted from behind the counter. He didn't look miffed by their complaints however, but more so entertained in a way. “There'll be more of the same tomorrow. Same time, same place… We’ll be having a Run DMC tribute night- make sure not to miss it! Those are always fun!”
I waited for most of the clients to clear out before I turned to Harry again, “So… what can I do?” I asked, looking around.
“Oh uhh… you can… let’s see… go have a seat?” I narrowed my eyes at him. “Seriously love, you don’t have to do anything...”
“Yes but I want to!” I replied convincingly. “Okay. Tell me, should I go wipe the tables or... wait! I need to pick all the glasses first, don’t I? Can I use a tray for leverage or is that lame?”
The mullet girl from earlier laughed at my noticeable lack of experience, what Harry saw as a chance to introduce me to her, along with the rest of the staff members. “So… this is Tracy. Today’s her first day and, by the look of things… the last day she’ll be working with us also.”
His playful nagging got them to laugh but caused my lips to go droopy from dejection. “Hey! How come? I haven't even broken anything yet...”
“Yet.” Harry rehashed my word. I pouted again. “Aiish… don't pout with those pretty lips at me! That’s playing dirty…” He bantered, before head-signaling towards the tables area. “I’ll clear them and you wipe after me. How does that sound?”
He thought my lips were pretty?
“Sounds good.” I nodded, trying not to pay too much attention to what he'd said about my lips.
It was just a form of expression...
Surely. It had to have been that… And yet, the fact that I believed so did nothing to stop that sentence of his from lingering in the back of my mind the entire time we worked together cleaning the tables.
Was he interested? I thought his lips to be quite nice too… especially when they split into a big smile or laugh at something I said or did. I really liked the way he carried himself too… his easy breezy attitude… tall physique… bedraggled hair...
Crap! Was I interested?
No. I couldn’t be… Harry was just handsome. Very handsome, and acting all nice and attentive towards me. Plus it was Valentine’s Day, and I had just broken up with mine...
I was just vulnerable and needy.
That was what I was choosing to let myself believe, because how else would I justify my craving for another man already? What kind of person did that make of me?
I should be at home crying for the idiot who let me down, or for the duck in orange sauce that I never got to eat, but instead I was back at the rear of the bar, watching a cloud of smoke break through a practical stranger's lips, wondering if they tasted as deliciously pink as they looked…
“I was just realizing,” Harry started, smiling sideways at me. “You haven’t told me what you do for a living yet…”
“Oh.” I jolted, feeling a little embarrassed about the answer I had to give him. I had been counting my blessings over the fact he hadn't asked me, but I knew it was only a matter of time until my luck ran out. “I work at a five-and-dime near where I live… It’s not the nicest job but… I make do.”
“I get it.” He claimed through a puff. “Is there something you’d like to do, if not that?”
“You’ll poke fun at me if I tell you.”
“I won’t, I promise.”
“Yes you will, but fine – I guess I’ll tell you.” I sighed through the wave of smoke that surrounded us. “Ever since I was little I’ve always wanted to work for the radio – like, as a host. I don’t know why; I just… have some sort of fascination for it, I suppose.”
“No fucking way... Really?” Harry’s eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open in surprise. “Have you ever tried it? With proper radio equipment and all that…”
“Oh, I wish... but no, never.” I said wistfully.
Harry smiled, with one of those smiles where the eyes shine brighter than the teeth. “Would you like to? Right now?” My face scrunched, confused until he said, “There’s a setup upstairs…”
“Are you pulling my leg?” I asked above the grin splitting my face in two.
Judging by the smug smile staring back at me, it didn't look like he was... he looked plenty serious, even when my obvious excitement made him cough a laugh as he spat, “Swear on my life!”
“Your bar has a radio station?” I asked full steam ahead, still a little in disbelief but undeniably excited. “Is it open? Can we go see it?”
“Not the bar, it’s um- it’s in my house. I live upstairs. On the first floor.” Harry clarified, through sheepish pink cheeks. “I’ll still take you to go see it if you want to, I just thought I should let you know before… in case you didn’t feel comfortable going there just us.”
“Oh, um- I’m comfortable if you are. You don’t have to take me though, if you don’t want to...”
“Will it make you happy, Tracy Turner?” He asked. I nodded. Our eyes sparkled. “Then I want to.”
And so it was. Once we had finished our cigarettes, Harry led me upstairs. Up the stairs hidden behind the beaded curtain and through a hallway in his house that looked more like it belonged inside a 70’s office room, than as part of a home. “Are we alone or are your parents around?” I whisper asked as we walked. Harry shot me a funny look. “I’m just asking to know if we need to keep it quiet, that’s all…”
“They never lived here. My dad used to own the place though… but he gave it to me once they shut down the station a couple years ago.” He stared up at the cork covered ceiling as we walked. “This room I’m taking you to used to be one of the main radio rooms I think..? It's cluttered in old stuff I haven’t gotten rid of yet… that’s also why that bad boy over there is still around-” He flicked the light on.
“Woahh…” My gaze danced over the setup in front of me. The only things I knew what they were for were the reel to reel tape recorder, the mic and headphones and the soundboard mixer. That didn't make me any less excited, however. “Does it work?”
“Mhmm…” Harry hummed. “Bet you’re dying to play with it, aren’t you?”
“Is it that obvious?” I asked through a breathy laugh.
“Oh yeah… super-duper obvious.” He chuckled back. “Alright, you can take that chair near the microphone and put on the headphones. As for me… let’s see if I still remember how to crank this thing up and get it going.”
I did as Harry said, waiting patiently while he checked and adjusted a bunch of cables and wires around. I tried to pay attention to what he was doing, but his concentrated face was way more appealing. The creases showing between his arched brows, his lips slightly pursed…
“Okay so- the soundboard.” He started, plopping down on the other chair and rolling over its wheels until we were sat side by side. “As you can see it has loads of buttons and being honest, I don’t know what all of them do so for now let’s focus on this volume slider here and this yellow button, which is basically what you want to move whenever you want to speak. So if I do this,” He clicked the button and made the switch go up on the board. “We should be on-air.”
“Can people really hear us?” I whispered, pulling slightly away from the microphone.
“Well… I can't promise you that there’s someone tuned in on the other side but in case there is, then yeah… they can hear us.” Harry replied quietly, before he leaned closer to me. “So, if there’s any messages you’d like to share with the world, now would be the time to do it.”
“The whole world?” I gasped.
“Okay… that might have been a slight exaggeration. Not the whole world, maybe just one local or two. Which, speaking of,” He leaned over our shared microphone, clearing his throat comically. “Dear listeners if you’re there… don't give up on us yet. We promise we’ll get it together in a second.” I smothered my laughter with my hand, as I leaned back in the swivel chair. Harry pulled the vocal slider down to nil, then with a big smile on his face he turned to me and asked, “Should we hit them with commercial break tapes from 20 years ago?”
“Oh yeah, let's.” I agreed at first, but then my eyes fell on the record player. “No, wait- actually, can we play some music first?”
“What do you want to play?”
“What are my options?”
“Well... most like- tapes and shellac options are from the 60's and 70's but one of the tonearms is set up for vinyl, so we can play some recent stuff too.” I nodded and acted like I was on topic. I didn't own any vinyl’s… the way I got my music was by sitting next to the five-and-dime’s radio player waiting for my jams to play so I could hit the ‘record’ button quickly enough. It was free and easy… then all I had to do was pray the DJ didn’t ruin my recording with any mid-song nonsense. -- “We have… Tears for Fears… Beastie Boys… Foreigner! That would make for a great choice, in my opinion...” Harry tipped, trying to influence me. I scrunched my nose. “Let’s see what else… Pixies, MJ… Oh! And my personal favorite at the moment… Laura Branigan!”
“No way!” I yelped. She was one of my current favorites as well. “You don’t happen to have Self Control, do you?”
“I like to think I have some, yeah…” Harry bantered, as he moved through his queued up records.
“No… I meant the record… by Laura Branigan.”
“On it, Tracy Turner.” He winked, moving to get the disc out of its cover. He placed it on one of the turntables, then flicked some stuff onto the board, arranged the tonearm over it and lo and behold, we were playing music!
“You know… you say my name a lot.” I commented out of curiosity, or just to see what he’d say really.
He chuckled at the question, scratching at his stubble before answering. “I like your name. It’s a good name.”
“And what exactly defines a good name, hm?”
“It’s a name I like saying?” He left it at that, letting the music fill the silence for a few seconds before throwing me is own sudden question. “What’s your favorite song? In general, not just this record.”
I pursed my lips in thought for a moment. “Ummm… I really like that Billy Idol one they were playing earlier downstairs. Oh, and A Kind of Magic by Queen! I freakin’ love that song… Yours?”
“Oof… let me think…” He took a big breath as he did so. “I really like… Sledgehammer by Peter Gabriel. That’s a good song…”
I snorted, shaking my head. “That’s a dirty song, Harry.”
“Okay but… Rebel Yell is pretty dirty too and you just said that you liked it…” My head cocked to the side in consideration. “But I mean at this point it's a bit like, what gives, isn’t it? If you think about it, there are sex related bits and pieces in every song… and it makes sense… since sex is like, a universal language almost. Everyone loves it.”
“Ehh… you’re right about the songs. I don’t know if I agree with that last bit so much though.” I said honestly, what brought Harry’s eyes to narrow with heed. “It must be good for you guys I suppose… but us girls... most times than not, we’re left feeling achy and unsatisfied.” I clarified myself, knowing he’d ask me to.
“What?” He questioned instantly. “Is that how the people you've been with made you feel?”
“Hmmm... not always. There were times better than others, but I never got to, you know… finish.” I didn’t know how he managed to pull that away from me… I had never admitted that to anyone, but with Harry it was like by the time I realized, I had already told him. “But it's one of those things that makes me think that maybe the problem is mine. Like, maybe I can't because my body isn't made to do it.”
“Yeah no. That’s not true love, and you know it. All bodies are made to feel pleasure, so sorry to tell you but you’ve been having sex with sloppy blokes... or blokes who didn't really know what they were doing. Most times it's more like that.” Harry paused, looked down and then rose his eyes up to me again. “Can I ask you something really personal? You don’t have to answer it though, if you don’t want to.”
“Sure, go ahead.” I agreed with a small smile.
“Have you- erm, never touched yourself before- I mean… to the point of.. finishing?”
Shit. That one caught me off guard, and also made me stutter slightly, “I-uh… I have, yeah… I know what an orgasm is. I've had them before, just never with another person.” I chatted on, a little nervous about letting the conversation fall into silence. “...But to be fair I know it's harder for girls to get there… and for boys to figure out how we work-”
“It's not harder, it's just different…” Harry responded calmly. He sounded like he was sure of what he was saying too. Which addled me a bit at the time, but started to make perfect sense once he added, “Look, I'm not going to sit here pretending to be a saint to impress you... I've fooled around a bit when it comes to these things - girls, boys, in-betweeners... I mean, you name it… I probably did it. So believe me when I tell you, the fact that you're a girl has little to do with it. If a guy really wants to give you an orgasm, he won't give up until he gets you there. No matter how hard it is or how long it takes… and he’ll enjoy every second of it.”
Shit... Shit.
I couldn't tell if it stemmed from his words or the way he seemed so lost in my eyes when he said them, but something about that moment made my temperature soar to the point that my head felt tipsy.
“You’ve slept with men before?” I asked suddenly, trying to shift the topic to something that distracted me from those last words of his echoing inside my head.
Judging from the way his brows creased, I could tell his mood had shifted a little at my question. “Is that a problem to you?”
“No, no – God, not at all. It’s um... it's hot, actually.” I felt my cheeks burn at the admission, but when his beautiful smile followed it, it made the embarrassment worth it.
Harry’s arm, that was placed on the table, bent over his elbow. “Mm… is it?” He pried teasingly, resting his head on his hand just so he was staring right at me. “And why is that?”
“I don’t know, it just is.” I laughed, shyly covering my face with my hands. “Can we move on with the subject, please? This one is sort of making me want to jump out the window.”
“No, I quite like this subject.” Harry insisted jokingly, “You’re cute when you squirm, did you know that?” His question spawned a groan from me. He laughed at it, but when I dared to meet his gaze again, he looked solemn… contemplative, “It makes me wonder however…” He added calmly, looking down for a beat before his eyes darted up to mine. “If that’s how you get when you’re about to cum. And I think I would very much like to find out.”
My heart skipped a beat at his suggestion, but contrary to expected it didn't make me gasp or yelp. I wasn’t jolted like by it like I probably should have been… mostly because the same want had been hammering in my mind too. “I think I would like that a lot, but-” I sighed, before I carried reluctantly. “I don't think we should, at least not-”
“Hey, it’s okay. It’s all good. You don't owe me an explanation… if anything, I should be apologizing for my bluntness.” I felt his fingertips brush along a strand of my hair, so delicately that I could’ve dreamed it. “I just hope it didn't make you uncomfortable...” I shook my head in denial, not trusting my tongue to respond when my body was practically melting under his touch. “Would you like me to take you home now?”
“No”, my heart answered honestly, but realistically I knew I had no reason to stay longer now that sex was out of the equation. “Yeah, that- that would probably be good.” I answered, looking down to avoid his eyes – otherwise I didn’t know what I might do.
“Alright-” Harry stretched as he stood from his chair, allowing me to catch a glimpse of the skin of his belly as his t-shirt rose slightly. But my body heated up even more once I noticed the swelling happening at the front of his jeans, letting me in on the fact that our conversation had left him as hot and bothered as it had me. That wasn’t helping. The knowledge that I’d made him hard was only making me want to leave less. “Just give me a sec to go get my keys.” He petted my hair as he squeezed behind my chair to go fetch his car keys from another room of the house.
I groaned silently as I watched him go. He seemed so calm and collected despite the bulge in his pants. That was what was making my head reel the most… how okay he was with my rejection. It wasn't very usual for men to react so well to something like that… meanwhile, Harry hadn't even tried to steal a kiss! Something I was partly thankful for, but then at the same time I kind of wished he had – if only he knew I was a heartbeat away from having a change of heart, maybe he would 've…
After all, what was keeping me from going through with this? Andrew?
Granted, we hadn't formally broken up yet… but I was planning to do that in a few hours once he came over to get his stuff – knowing him, probably with flowers and chocolates and more empty promises to try to get me to change my mind, but I wasn't going to fall for that. Not after finding out there were interesting people like Harry out there…
Harry, well… he made me curious. He was sweet, straightforward, open-minded, and most importantly, he seemed like the kind who knew how to make it good for both parties the bedroom. I wanted that for myself. I had for a while, actually… but whenever I thought to broach the topic with someone, I always ended up feeling like I was being too picky or painting my sex life to be horrible when it wasn’t. I enjoyed sex… just never got to enjoy it thoroughly like other people did. Honestly, it felt like whenever things started to feel that good for me, it ended – and I was left pent-up.
It wasn't as if opportunities like these came every day, though. Not with men like Harry at least...
“Ready to go?” He asked as he peeked back inside the room, smiling warmly at me whilst fiddling the keys in his hand.
I got up from the chair, leaving behind the blanket Harry had lent me and the little willpower I had left before I walked to meet him at the door. And when his hand reached for the handle to open it, I surprised him and even myself by darting mine over to stop him. He looked at me in question. “I uh- I changed my mind.” I blurted.
Harry’s face relaxed, but the dark in his eyes gleamed brighter. “You sure?” He breathed into the short distance between us. I felt the question more than I heard it.
“Yeah.” I replied in a whisper. “I am.”
A lopsided smile warped his features, as his arm reached behind to place his car keys on the windowsill. He reached up to fondle my face, gently guiding my chin up just so I looked into his eyes. “I wish I could tell you how happy it made me to hear that, but I think perhaps I'd be better showing you in another way...”
He was still cradling my face as his head dipped down. My eyes shut expectantly, but I felt his lips touch my forehead first… and then my cheek… and my nose. Softly, unhurriedly… as if he was savoring the anticipation. A pant of desire formed in my throat, so visceral I couldn't keep it to myself—I let it out, and only then did his mouth move away from my skin, lowering to press against my lips.
A shaky breath left the both of us as our lips wringed together, blending as one. His scent enveloped me, penetrating deep into my senses. He smelled like warmth, mint and vanilla – intense and beyond compare… just like his kiss,
And I needed more of it.
It’s why I twisted my fingers through the loops of his jeans and pulled him closer. “Mm, fuck…” Harry groaned, blindly goading me backwards so he would pin me against the door. His hips rutted against mine instinctively, while mine rocked back persuasively. “Eager, aren't you? Am I making you feel good?”
“So good.” I whispered, low and lewd against his mouth. “You’re a great kisser.”
“It's your mouth bringing it out of me. So… fucking… sweet.” He drew his other hand up to my jaw as well, holding it whilst his lips carried on tasting mine in between each muttered word. “I want to give you that orgasm… It's driving me mad, it’s all I can think about…”
“Yeah..? You think you have what it takes?” I teased, causing his hands to drop from my face and grip at my hips instead. And the next time his rolled over mine, he did it to let me know he had that and more.
“I'll give you as many as you want, I can promise you that. A gorgeous, lovely girl like you won't be leaving my bed unsatisfied.”
“And where’s that bed at, exactly?”
Our lips remained glued together as he guided me out of the hall, until our bodies melted away into the darkness of the corridor. We bumped into a few things here and there, but honestly I didn't even feel the impacts - my body was too focused on the desire Harry was making me feel.
He walked me backwards into his bedroom, not bothering to turn on the lights. The curtains were open, and the streetlight illuminated the room enough - bathing it in stark shades of yellow and orange. I was too distracted to notice the decor details, but I noticed he had some interesting posters and art pop prints on the walls, a television on top of the wooden dresser that must have been inherited from his grandfather, tacky curtains like mine... frankly I noticed a lot, except that his bed was a mattress on the floor – Until I tripped and fell on top of it.
Harry came down with me, falling on his knees between my legs. “Pretty and clumsy… could you get any cuter, Tracy Turner?” He smiled, leaning over to bump his nose on mine. “Are you okay? Didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”
“No.” I giggled, “Just my tush, but it’s gone now...”
“Oh,” He chuckled, whilst carefully urging me up in the mattress to lean back against his pillows. “‘S a shame it’s gone… I was starting to look forward to kissing it better…” He teased, leaning over further until his body encircled mine from above. My breath caught in my throat at the sudden proximity, and his proposition. No one had ever offered to kiss me there, but I would let Harry if he wanted to – Hell, I would probably let him do anything he wanted at this point. “Guess that means I’ll still get to kiss your perfect mouth some more, so I can’t say I mind.”
I could feel Harry’s hips recommencing their rubbing against mine – gradually increasing the friction as our breaths became more labored with desire. He was taking his time though… we were both still fully clothed, and his hands and mouth hadn't gone any lower than my neck yet,
It surprised me.
Any other guy would have tried to strip my clothes off the moment I got into their bed, but Harry hadn’t – He was simply enjoying the moment for what it was and making the most of it… and frankly, that was turning me on immensely.
I'd never been the kind of girl to make the first move, but I felt like I was on the edge of exploding from want if I didn’t. I wanted more. I needed more, so I started to strip him off his jacket… and failed to stifle a laugh once he looked at me and smirked knowingly. “What?” I asked, feigning innocence.
“No, it’s nothing.” He chuckled against my mouth, pulling the jacket the rest of the way off his body. My hands roamed around his chest as our lips touched. I could feel warmth under his heartbeats. Reactive flesh too - what had me eager to remove the remainder of his clothes. My hands rose beneath the hem of his shirt… dragging it up and shedding it off. Longing to get closer. To see more. To feel more.
His body shape was different than I’d imagined – unmistakably beautiful, but different. Most of his strength seemed to be stored around his chest and abdomen. He looked fit, but still felt soft around the edges. The lax in his posture made him curve forward, as if he was made to hug, to nest.
His hands reached for the waistband of my skirt, untucking my turtleneck blouse from under it. I giggled once the neckband got stuck over my nose momentarily as he peeled it off. I shook the unruly hairs away from my eyes, and once I could see again, I found Harry looking at me. Not just at my bare chest - at me. “You’re so beautiful.” He whispered, tracing my jaw with his fingertips. I took a heavy inbreath as I felt his touch outline the round contours of my neck and breasts.
“So are you.” I breathed feebly, using the tips of my fingers to limn over his torso the same way his did over mine. “Harry… I need you-”
“I know, sweet girl. I know.” He said, slanting us back down over the mattress. His hands loosened up the rest of the buttons down the front of my skirt, until it snapped open at the middle. Leaving my pastel pink underwear exposed through my thin nylon pantyhose.
Desperate, I lifted my bum up for Harry to strip me off them, but he had other plans. He bent down to taste my mouth again, and from my lips, his trailed an invisible path down my ribs, suckling on my breasts… circling my belly button… leaving me breathless and leaky until he reached my knees, where he began to unzip my boots.
Once those were off, he flipped me to lay on my belly, and my ass immediately rose in the air. I wanted him to rip my stockings apart and penetrate me right there without further delay.
I wasn’t normally like this, but Harry was leaving me beside myself. The ringing inside my skull was a mantra for more. More, more, more. I wanted more of him. I wanted him inside. I needed him to fill me.
The sound of his belt unbuckling was enough to make me moan softly, “Harry, please… I’m all sticky…”
“Fuck baby… That- that’s good. That’s how I want you…” My back arched up higher in response, and I nodded in agreement from where my head laid against the mattress.
Only then did he move to peel my stockings down… and still, he halted. Once he had them rucked halfway down my thighs. “You're spotting…” He muttered in amusement. I couldn't see it, but I could definitely sense it. The center of my panties felt icy in contrast to the heat throbbing beneath them. I whimpered when his thumb came to caress me there, pressing the wet fabric into my opening. “I’ll give you what you want, pretty girl… but I want my mouth between your legs first. I want that stickiness coating my tongue.”
“Are you- Are you sure?” I asked hesitantly.
It wasn’t the first time I would be trying that… but usually guys only did it if they couldn’t get me wet enough otherwise, never just because they wanted to, or because it felt good for me. Harry wanted to though, I could tell from the way his blown pupils were eclipsing through the green in his eyes. And from the edge in his voice when he spoke next, “Sure of what? That I want to taste your pussy? Babe, my mouth was watering thinking about it before I even got to kiss you...”
He prod my legs together, reaching to slide my bottom clothes the rest of the way down. I felt him lie on his stomach between my legs, so I spread them further apart. “…You’re this gorgeous down here too? How’s that fair, hm? Trying to make me burst in my pants?”
“Noo… don’t stare!” I stressed, feeling my cheeks warm. “I haven’t- trimmed in a while…”
“Hush, love. Just... relax, okay? Let me make you feel good.”
“Yeah okay. I’ll try to…I’ll try to- Ohh! Harry-” I groaned once his mouth hedged my pussy. The feeling I got from getting licked in this position was… unlike any other I’d felt lying on my back. My lips were spread-open, leaving my bud unsheltered and more susceptible to the advances of his tongue.
And gosh, it was advancing without any apprehension. Harry’s face was practically buried in my pussy. Kissing it… licking it… making me moan out his name, just for him to grunt out my own in return.
“God, you taste so good…” He muttered as he pulled away, breathing shallowy. “Do you want me to go inside you? Would that feel good?”
“Yes!” I gasped, not bothering to try and disguise my enthusiasm. “Yes. Yes, Harry. Inside would feel so good.”
“Okay but- Let’s just turn around first, yeah? I wanna see your pretty face while it goes in.” I flipped onto my back, just in time to catch the moment Harry zipped down his jeans. He was so hard that his tip was peeking through the waistband of his jockey briefs. I swallowed thickly. I had always turned up my nose at colorful men's underwear... but heck, if my opinion wasn’t changing drastically before my eyes...
His cock bobbed freely once he stripped himself out of the orange, stripy fabric. His head was ruddy and glossy with precum, the base thick, with a slightly aslant curve to the right that stood out in the midst of his bush. “He’s all-right, isn’t he?” Harry joked when he noticed my fazed looking.
“He- well, he is…” I laughed, then extended my arm. “Come here…” He crawled back over the mat, to hover on top of me. “It's perfect. And looks like it'll feel really good...”
“It will. It will feel so good...” He kissed me again, transferring my own scent from his lips to mine. “I’ll make it feel so good...” I licked myself off his tongue without shame, soaking up my juices like I did to his spit. I felt his arm raise over my head, but it was the noise of a vase being stirred that ultimately made me pull away to see what he was up to.
“Really? A vase? That’s where you keep your condoms?”
“Well… it keeps them at hand, doesn’t it”
I bit my lip once I saw him kneel and rip the package open. “Yeah, I suppose it does…” I answered at last, watching with curious eyes as he tugged his foreskin back and unrolled the rubber over himself, giving a few testy pumps to make sure we were safe before drawing nearer and nudging his plump tip at my entrance.
His gaze sought mine, waiting for my consent. “You can.” I gasped needily at the feeling of my wetness getting smeared around by him before his hips edged forward, slowly pushing inside me. I moaned at the wholeness. It was a wholeness that didn't hurt like it usually always did at first. No. It was all pleasure this time. Pure bodily pleasure, and it felt so, so good.
“Fuck… it fit so right.” Harry groaned softly, voicing my exact thought as well. “Tell me how to make love to you, baby… I’ll fuck you just the way you like.”
“Harry… please can you- can you move?” I asked, or practically pleaded. “You feel so good and I feel- I feel like I’m already close…”
“Christ… Yes. Yes, I’ll move. I’ll do anything… just- keep holding me like you are, okay? I’ll take care of you.” My nails grazed his back as his hips began to sway, keeping him close. His thrusts felt trained – they made me feel full, but not overly so. He was moving just so his tip brushed upwards inside me, reaching a spot that was making my toes curl with each pump. “Feels good like this?” Harry made a point of asking, wanting to be sure.
“Yes! God, yes. Keep- Keep going like that.”
“Yeah? You like it like that?” He rutted his hips just so his cock pressed deeper into my wetness, although his pace remained the same – unhurried, ponderous, and intense. “Are you going to cum if I keep going like that?”
“Yeah. I- I think so…” I said honestly because I felt like I was. Each gentle squeeze in of Harry within my insides pumped up my internal crescendo, that tingled with growing need. My face clung to the base of his neck. I mewled.
“That's it baby... just feel it. Feel me. Focus on how good it feels… You’re so good for me too... so soft… so warm.”
With my face still tucked into his neck, I wrapped my arms around him too. “H-Harry…” I called his name, as my fingers painted pink rivers across his shoulder blades.
“I know, …Fuck. I know.” He comforted me through my moans, kissing my hair and increasing his pace. I could feel my hips punctually jolting up into his, ruled by all the sensations arcing from the places where our skins thoroughly connected… and then it happened.
My orgasm. It happened.
And it was… mind-blowing. My head felt void as it tilted back against the mattress. My jaw went ajar, and a hoarse whine came through. Harry’s hips stuttered at the sudden grasp of my pussy massaging his cock all over, but he didn't budge until he was sure I had borne every stroke of pleasure he’d bestowed on me.
I whimpered when Harry’s movements came to a sudden halt as he detached himself from me, leaving me tortuously empty. He let out a breathy laugh before leaning to kiss me tenderly. “I'm giving it to you again. Just give me a second…” He laughed, then let out a long breath. “Alright… I think we're good to go again.” He told me, and then asked, “Do you wanna get on your belly like before? With your bum a little raised?”
I smiled eagerly at the suggestion, rolling into a facedown position and raising my hips slightly for him. “Christ…” He murmured at the sight, before settling on top of me. “This one’s a killer for me, so I won't promise I can give it to you like this for long… but I could tell from earlier that you like it too and I want to provide that for you...”
“I don’t mind if you don’t last… it's your turn to cum now. I want to do it in the way that feels best for you.”
Harry grunted against the back of my neck before kissing. “If there's one thing I want you focusing on right now, it's in not saying those filthy little things when I'm about to enter you. Understand?”
“Mhm... Sorry daddy. I won’t do it again.” I said teasingly, guessing it would get him going just like it did to most guys.
“Fuck…” Harry groaned lowly, proving my point as he guided the cock in his stroking hand against my entrance again. “Scoot that bum up, sweet thing. Let me mount you.”
I moaned once his cock set back in its place inside me. It fit snugger and deeper in this position, but the fullness was, once again, nothing but pleasant. One of his arms wrapped itself around my chest to hold me, while the other went down between my legs, so his hand could reach my hardened up clit. His fingers swirled over it. “One more…” Harry’s deep voice breathed against my ear. “Can you?”
“I-Yeah…yeah, I can.” My voice sounded breathy, shaken by his snappy thrusts. “Mm… harder. Hold me harder.” I pleaded, clutching onto his forearm that swaddled my chest. Keeping me close while his pelvis rammed into me from behind. I was stuck to him. Feeling sheltered and safe, but also… small… and bound. That was what was getting me there: the animalistic notion that I wasn’t going anywhere. I was under him. Being made to take whatever he chose to give me.
I shut my eyes and focused on where Harry was hitting that spot, just like he had told me to do before. My walls fluttered around his length moving inside me, making him moan above me. “Come for me again, Tracy.” He urged, panting against the back of my ear. I could feel a pulse roaring from my belly up to my eardrums. “My sweet, pretty girl… Come for me.”
My body tuned in to his request.
My sex spasmed as I climaxed once more, engulfing Harry’s in a beating pad of heat and softness. The raw cry of pleasure that escaped my chest, got quieted by his lips, that dipped down to kiss me as my head tilted back against his chest. “So good… So. Fucking. Good!” He drawled amidst his kisses, forcing his hips to slow whilst we both relished on the waves of my pleasure. “Can I make myself finish too?” Harry questioned against the sticky skin of my forehead. His despair as palpable on the weakened voice in which he spoke, as it was in the pulsing shaft inside me.
“Yeah.” I replied, slightly appalled that he’d even think to ask. “Yeah, please do.”
My body felt soft and pliant once his arms held me close. The creaminess between my thighs bolstering the heaviness of his thrusts as he proceeded to drive into me again. “Aah... you’re making me – ngh. I’m gonna–” His flow began to lose precision. Hips skipping a few whacks in between moans and groans until he met his release at last. His cock slammed fully into me, and he groaned - satisfied once it began to throb, pumping white ooze inside the rubber.
He clung to me in his high, allowing his chest to press fully onto my back for a moment. I welcomed the added weight pining me to the mattress. It felt good… like a warm, heavy blanket to fall asleep under. And I think I would have, had Harry not turned us over so we were facing each other.
“That was…” He puffed his cheeks, through a weary smile. “Shit. Hold on… Let me just-” He got up to discard the condom, and I rubbed the sleepiness out of my eyes.
I knew I should probably start getting dressed, but there wasn’t a single part of my body that wanted out of the bubble I was living in lying in Harry’s bed on the floor. A bubble that grew thicker and twice its size once he came to lay back down beside me and pulled me in for a cuddle. “It was really good.” I replied to what he started earlier, smiling sheepishly against his shoulder.
“Yeah?” He ran his fingers over my arm, smiling back. “Good enough to make you want to stay over?”
“Do you want me to?” I asked, biting back a smile.
“Yeah, of course.” He openly admitted, breathing in the moment before speaking again. “I really like you, Tracy Turner… and I wouldn't be saying this if it wasn't true.” His fingers combed through my hair. “I'd like to see you again… regardless of whether we have sex again or not.”
I reached up to fondle his tousled brown curls as well. They were soft and inviting to the touch. “When?”
“You mean when after tomorrow morning?” He joked, like he was already assuming I was staying the night. I never corrected him. “Whenever you want or can. I don’t want to pressure you, I’m just… trying to let you know where I’m at.”
“Okay.” I moved closer, snuggling into his chest. “I’ll see you again...”
“After tomorrow morning?”
“Mhm,” I grinned. “After tomorrow morning.”
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lizzy-williams · 4 years ago
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❝𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚠𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 & 𝚌𝚒𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚜❞
ღWarnings: SMUT (18+ please!), language, rough sex, unprotected sex (wrap before you tap), sexual situations.
ღMasterlist
ღRequest: Can you do the most dirty hard good sexy lovely spanking doggy position french kiss smut EVER please PLEASE with tom 🙂🪓
ღSummary: You’re been in a mood almost all week, Tom having to leave right on Valentine’s Day for filming. The day before he has to leave, you’re the meanest you’ve been, and Tom’s had about enough. 
ღA/n: ANON YOU DIRTY BEAN I LOVE YOU. This will be the first thing I’m posting since I came back, So I hope you guys enjoy, feel free to send in more requests. 
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𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐁𝐄𝐄𝐍 in a mood the entire week. More specifically at your boyfriend, who chose a job that somehow, someway got him taken away right on Valentine’s Day. 
Even worse, this would be your 5th Valentine’s Day together, which you saw as a mile stone. You knew you were being irrational and a bit selfish, but you were too blinded by your anger to realize it. 
For the time being, you were giving Tom hell, inside and outside your small flat. On Monday, you and Tom went out for coffee, but of course, being the little minx you are, you teased him right then and there, in public, and you managed to turn Tom into a needy, whiny child with only a few touches.  
But when the two of you got home, you did a full 180, becoming completely distanced and untouchable, evading every advance Tom tried to make on you. You just kept all your attention on Tessa for a majority of that day. 
At first, Tom was clueless, the sudden distancing confusing the hell out of him, but it only escalated from there. 
On Tuesday, you had some things to do for work, and there you sat on the couch, typing away on your computer before Tom, still flustered and needy from yesterday, came waltzing into the living area and plopped down right next to you, resting his head on your shoulder. 
Yet you sat there, still typing away, acting as if Tom wasn’t there at all. Tom adjusted himself a few times, seeing if his movements gained any attention or reaction from you. Still. Nothing. 
Now he resulted to sighing loudly, and due to where his head was, it was right in your ear. It was erotic or teasing, it was just straight up annoying and childish. 
You finally pried your eyes away from the screen and turned to look at him, “Do you want something?” was all the response he was going to get, and even then it was a grumble. 
“I wanna cuddle.” 
He sounded so much like a kid, and in any other circumstance, you would tend to his request. But no. You were mad at him. 
“I’m working, Tom.”
That’s when Tom knew something was definitely wrong. No usual ‘bubba’ or ‘bub’. Not even honey. Just his first name. Not even his full first name. Just Tom. 
You felt him recoil and slip away into the other room. 
Tom: 0, You: 2
˚。⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆。˚
Wednesday rolled around, and Tom was talking to Harrison on the phone. Once again, you had been giving him the bare minimum all day, but when you kissed him, it was long, passionate and lingering. And Tom was, to say the least, baffled. 
“I dunno, man, she’s been like this all week.” 
You happened to be in earshot, and slipped behind a doorframe, listening in on what Tom had to say. 
“No, I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong. I’ve even been making an effort to put the toilet seat down, and somehow she keeps being so distant. I even tried hugging her from behind this morning and she just brushed me off.”
That one was true. You were making yourself lunch when Tom, who woke up late as usual, came into the kitchen and wrapped his arms lovingly around your waist, but staying true to your previous attitude, you brushed him off, using the stove as an excuse. But instead of reassuring him, like you normally would have, you turned and gave him a purple and red hickey on his sweet spot before turning back around and acting as if nothing had happened at all. 
“No, it’s not that time of the month, she already had it. I kinda know these things.”
That was also true. Because you and Tom had such a frequent and vibrant sex life, he made it a personal mission to know when your period came so he could work around it and comfort you. All things aside, he truly was a good boyfriend. 
“Ohhhhh,” he made a sound of realization and it made you perk up a little, wondering if he truly understood why you were so evasive. 
Wait, did he?
The sound of his footsteps clamoring down the hall made you frantically look around for something to look busy with. 
“Darling?” he called out. 
“In here!” you called out, trying to sound unbothered. 
“Ah, Darling,” he seemed giddy, as if he had just solved the worlds biggest mystery, “I know why your angry at me.”
“Oh?” you questioned, as you kept fiddling with whatever you were doing, acting as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. 
“You were upset about the paparazzi pictures. The ones with Ciara.” 
“What?!” you seethed, now not caring about acting like you didn’t care. 
“Th-The other day, when I went out to lunch, you knew about it...?” he was terrified by the look in your eyes. 
He was being honest. He did say he was going out with the female co-star, and you were okay with it. You trusted him. But what you didn’t think about were the tabloids. The gossip sights that would no doubt leak into Twitter, causing an un-needed uprising in Hollanders and shippers. 
Immediately you pushed passed him and went straight for your phone, looking up news sight after news sight. 
Ciara Bravo and Tom Holland: New Hollywood Couple???
Tom & Ciara, A Valentine’s Day Miracle
Did Y/N and Tom SPLIT? Ciara and Tom Spotted!
At this point you couldn’t stand to be in the same room as Tom. Despite him and you understanding there was nothing going on, the outside world put pressure on the both of you, and you needed to breathe. 
Tom didn’t say a word when you got your coat and left with a ‘I’m going out. Don’t wait up.’
By time you got home, Tom slept on the couch, and you slept in the bed. 
˚。⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆。˚
Tuesday was quiet, nothing happened. The two of you didn’t speak to each other, a day going by silently, but when you were going to bed, that’s when things got interesting. 
“It isn’t my fault.”
He stood in the bathroom as he spoke, and you were on the bed reading a book with Tessa at your side, sound asleep. 
You gave a small, unbothered sigh, “I know.”
Tom perked up, “What do you mean, ‘you know’?” he asked irritably. 
“I mean I know it isn’t your fault about the media. I don’t care, it’s fine.”
“Then why are you so mad at me?!” he was annoyed now, making you raise a brow. 
“You really don’t know?” you hissed, closing your book, not caring if you lost your page or not. 
“No, of course I don’t know!”
“You’re leaving me! On Valentines Day!” you snapped, standing up, Tessa’s ears going back. 
“Are you serious??? That’s it?” he questioned with wide eyes. 
You glared at him, giving him an expression that only meant one thing, slipping out of the room without a word. 
Needless to say, you slept on the couch that night .
˚。⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆。˚
Friday. The day before Tom leaves. The day before Valentine’s day. 
And as always, you woke up before Tom, hearing Tessa scratch at the bedroom door from the inside. You walked down the hall, turning the bedroom door handle slowly and letting Tessa out the door, but not before catching a glimpse of your sleeping boyfriend in nothing but boxers, holding onto your pillow as he slept. 
Thats when the idea popped into your head. You were going to make a lovely Valentine’s day themed breakfast. For yourself.
If there was any way to get Tom back, it was with food, your food more specifically. 
You immediately got to work, prepping the veggies for the omelette, mixing the batter for waffles, and washing the strawberries, planning on using them for a garnish.
You worked for a good hour, almost everything done, the last thing being cutting the strawberries when you suddenly heard the bedroom door open. 
Tom walked out, his curly hair all a mess on top of his head, purposefully not wearing anything except for his Calvin’s, and you shamelessly checked him out, in hopes that would get him going. 
Before he got too close, you whipped back around and began slicing in the berries in front of you. Just like he did the many mornings ago, he let his arms wrap around you right before you felt him leave a small peck below your earlobe, and you had to bite back a smile. 
“Good morning, darling.”
Fuck. His morning voice. It was rough, deep, and gravely, making your stomach do summersaults and slick glisten between your legs. 
“Morning.” 
The sexual tension was palpable, so thick you could cut it with the knife in your hand. But you needed to stay strong. You were mad. You were still mad....
Right?
“Are those for me?” he questioned, motioning to the breakfast platter you had spread on the kitchen island, complete with a glass of OJ. 
You did a silent self-pat on the back. 
“Nope,” you smirked, before popping a strawberry in your mouth. 
His demeanor switched, “That’s it-”
You squeaked as he took the knife from your hands, throwing it into the sink before sweeping his hands across the counter, knocking the cutting board aside, roughly grabbing your hips and putting you on the counter. 
“I’ve just about had it with your attitude,” he growled, pulling his semi-hard-on out of his boxers before grabbing the back of your neck, pulling you into a messy, lustful kiss, his tongue diving in the instant that his lips touched yours, making you whimper out, trying you best to regain control of the situation but failing quickly. 
A sudden smack to your ass made you quit your pursuit of control, a whine finding it’s way out of your throat as you felt him smirk into the kiss. His tongue prodded around your mouth as you held onto him desperately. You wrapped your legs around his hips, pulling him closer, his member pressing right up against your clothed clit, daring him to do whatever he was going to do next. 
Suddenly, he picked you up off the counter, breaking the kiss and pushing you down to your knees, harshly, shoving his member against your cheek. 
“Suck. I’m not gonna ask nice again,” he grunted, and you knew that he would keep his word with this one. 
You hesitantly took him in your hands before stocking him slightly, sticking your tongue out and licking a strip from his base to his tip, before taking it in your mouth, using your tongue to tease the angry veins and ridges on the underside of his cock. 
“Oh - FUCK - you’re so fucking precious.” he hissed, his hand weaving in your hair before pulling you down on his cock, going so deep it touched the back of your throat, praying that your gag reflex was on your side. 
Suddenly he pulled you back, before pulling you all the way back onto him, tears welling up in your eyes as he repeated his movements, using your face and whispering obscenities into the air around you, harshly fucking your mouth. 
“My bratty girl, shit, you sound so much better choking on my cock,” he grunted, his pace suddenly faltering, cock twitching, signaling he was about to release. 
He looked down and his eyes widened as he caught sight of your hips moving slowly and gently. You were so cute like that, humping the air like a little bunny, Tom taking immense pride in the fact that he made you like this. 
Without another warning, you felt his cum fill the back of your throat, making you whine as you had no choice to swallow it all, knowing he wouldn’t take his cock out of your mouth until you did so. 
Tom watched tentatively for the bobbing of your throat. The one indication that you swallowed. You shivered slightly as you felt the salty substance make it’s way down your throat, and he finally, finally, pulled himself out, and you gasped for air. 
Tom admired your fucked out state, tears wetting your cheeks and your lips swollen, hair ruined from his grip. He could have you looking like that...
He used one hand to stroke and caress your cheek, the other smoothing out your hair the best he could before standing you back up, your eyes dazed as you looked at him with pleading eyes, your past angers forgotten as you were desperate for his touch. 
“Go to the bedroom, strip, lay down, ass up darling. Wait. You touch yourself and I’ll leave you there for the rest of the night, understand?” he hissed before you nodded, scampering off down the hall.
˚。⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆。˚
 You waited on the bed as you were told, your back arched as you put your ass in the air, your head resting in your arms as you scowled slightly impatiently. It had been 5 minutes since Tom promised he’d be back, and yet there you were. 
You began to play with the sheets between you fingers as you sighed quietly to yourself. But your head propped up slightly when you heard the sound of the door swinging open, a now completely nude Tom stepping through, a small box in his hands. 
“I was going to wait until tomorrow, but now seems like a much more... fitting time,” his smile was devious as he opened the small box, pulling out a thick, bullet shaped piece of equipment. 
Right as he twisted the bottom, you heard it buzz softly, and the realization hit you like a ton a bricks: the realization that this was going to be a long night. He stalked around you like a predator trying to catch pray, and you felt the bed dip behind you, and you heard him let out a sigh of content as he looked at your completely wet pussy, courtesy of the events earlier in the kitchen. 
“Fuck, you look so pretty all wet like this for me... this is for me, right darling?” he kneaded your ass in his hands before you could answer, “Who am I kidding, of course it’s for me.”
You knew what was coming next, knowing how much Tom loved your ass, and jus as expected, you felt his tongue lick a long, rough lick from your clit to your rim, making you jolt forwards slightly. 
Soon enough you felt two of his fingers plunge inside of your pussy, making you moan sweetly into the open air of the bedroom. His movements made the coil inside you tighten and spark, your need for release becoming more and more apparent. 
But the sudden buzzing on your clit made you lose your mind, release coming sooner than expected, your cunt squeezing around Tom’s fingers like a vice as you moaned out, breathless as his pace never faltered, his speed, (if anything), increasing as your body shook. 
Even after your high was ridden out, he continued, making you gasp. 
“T-Tom, I can’t, I can’t I- AHHH!” your babbling was cut of by another sudden shock through your cunt, making you scream out in such quick pleasure. 
“Holy fuck, so wet-” Tom was in awe of your actions, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out what just happened. 
You just squirted. 
Tom wasted no time getting down there and sucking your clit harshly, his movements driving you crazy as you tried to collect your thoughts and make a complete sentence. 
He was so high on you, so drunk on your taste as he continued to taste and tease every part of your most sensitive place. 
“P-Please Tom,” you begged, shifting. 
Please what? Please keep going? Please stop?
“Please fuck me,” 
It was a soft whimper, oh so soft, but he heard it, and it drove him crazy. He sat up and positioned his newly hardened, throbbing member up to your entrance. Without a second thought, he pushed in the tip with ease. 
You silently thanked god for the slick of your cunt as he drove in farther, and to your surprise, he waited. Waited until you were ready. He knew that no matter how many times he fucked you, you would always be tighter than hell. So he waited. He always did. 
But as soon as you nodded, his demeanor flipped again like a light switch, drawing himself out and slamming himself back in. Soon enough he set a rough and punishing pace, throwing you back onto him like a rag-doll as your body went limp, letting him use you. 
You jerked when you felt him land a slap on your ass, knowing he enjoyed the way it move after he did so, before kneading the flesh, planning on repeating his actions. 
You were whimpering and keening at his movements and pants, the feeling of him pounding into you taking you over, and the only thing you could think about was him. 
Him, him, him.
Not the fact that he had to leave the following morning, or the fact that the tabloids were a nuisance. Just that fact that you were completely fucked out and it wasn’t even noon yet. 
“Shit, darling, so. Fucking. Good,” he grunted, punctuating his final words with harsh, long, hard thrusts, accompanied with slaps to your already sensative ass. 
His pace was faltering, dick twitching, his pants getting more frequent and louder. You knew he was getting close, the sight of you so out of it only spurring it on. 
“C-Cum for me, Tommy,” you whimpered, making his thrusts almost come to a full halt, “Cum inside me, please,”
Tom knew you were on the pill, and it was always for other reasons, and he usually pulled out, more as a personal preference to you. But now that you wanted him to claim you, so intimately and so passionately, his movements went from 0 to 100, before he felt himself snap. 
This of course made you plummet backwards off the cliff of ecstasy, the both of you coming together as a symphony of moans and whines and growls filled the air around you, your body feeling as if it were floating as your ears rang. 
˚。⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆。˚
You both fucked like rabbits till noon, the both of you feeling drunk off each other’s touch, just not getting enough. You were both starved all week after all. And it took it’s toll. 
By time you two were done, your body was weak, your muscles completely spent and you heartbeat doing it’s best to settle down. You felt Tom’s arms help pull you up, laying you on your back and disappearing into the bathroom. 
When he came back, it was with a warm, wet washcloth, and be began slowly wiping up his mess, whispering praise and words of admiration while doing so. You found your eyes closing as you basked in the attention and after-glow of orgasm. He was completely in love with you, he couldn’t stop if he tried. 
Tossing the rag off the the side, you felt the area beside you dip before you were greeted with Tom’s arms, once again, finding home around your body, and you immediately leaned into his touch, laying your head softly on his chest as he played with your hair. 
The both of you enjoyed the silence. His other hand drifted up and down your arm, making goosebumps erupt in its wake, the space to think being larger than life. 
Finally, you spoke. 
“I’m sorry.” you muttered, holding him just a little bit closer. But Tom being Tom, you knew he would milk it as much as he could. 
“For?”
You sighed, embarrassed that you had to admit it out loud, “For being a bitch all week. I was just angry. It wasn’t fair to you. Ergo, I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted. But you’re buying me coffee on the way to the airport tomorrow morning,” he insisted. 
That’s when your senses finally took in the fact that it was still light outside. The clock on your bedside table read a shocking 12:23 pm, and you let a small smirk creep across your face at the Valentine’s Day sex you were truly going to be missing out on. 
Sure, it still made you sad that he was leaving. But knowing Tom, you knew he would do something special for you, no matter how far away you were. Besides, there was hours of Facetime sex to be had, and you couldn’t wait for that. 
“Do you want lunch?” you questioned quietly, your hand gently gliding up and down Tom’s abs, which always felt like you were touching marble stone. 
“Yeah. You’re buying though,” he contested, and you smirked. 
“Nope. I’m making. I was thinking tomato soup and grilled cheese,” 
You knew it was one of Tom’s favorites, one of the few things on this planet that Tom would die for, (besides you, of course).
“That would be lovely, darling.”
˚。⋆୨୧˚˚୨୧⋆。˚
“I’m gonna miss the fuck outta you,” you whined, standing at the gates, your doe eyes peering up at him as you held his hands. 
“I’ll be back before you know it, love, and you can text me and call me at the end of every day. I can even fly you out to visit if you want.”
Tom was doing his best to soften the blow of him leaving; it was hard on both of you, and it was supposed to be for 2 months. 8 weeks. 56 days. You hated it. 
“Love you,” you grumbled like a child, before hugging him with all your might, trying to remember this feeling to keep you company. 
“I love you most,” he challenged, making you pull back to rest your chin on his chest before leaning up and giving him a kiss, but it turned heated quickly. 
Before it could get any more hot and heavy (because the paparazzi are VULTURES), you pulled away. 
“I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you more,” you replied. 
Suddenly the lady on the overhead speakers began to talk, “All first class passengers on flight 32-B to Atlanta, Georgia, is now boarding.”
“That’s me,” he sighed. 
Tears pricked your eyes unexpectantly, and before Tom could see them, you gave him one last, rib crushing hug. 
He pulled back with a smile, waving a wordless goodbye, walking away, but not without giving you one last look, mouthing the words:
‘Happy Valentine’s Day’
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THANK YOU FOR 1K!!!!! YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING AND I LOVE YOU!!!
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hopefulstarfire · 2 years ago
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Day 4 of my valentines ship prompts!!
Prompt 5: Dance.
So. This one's fun bc I finally get to do one for the comfort ship!! I love getting to write Mason, he's one of my favorite ocs and Celeste, who belongs to @kohakuhime, is the love of his life and they bring me joy. This is gonna take place post series as another imagining of their path together
Previous Days Prompts
Day One || Two || Three
Hope you enjoy!
Mason knocks back the shot of whiskey with ease, before he went back to flipping through his noted. The music in the bar thumped loudly in the speakers just barely drowning out the lively conversations happening all around or the slamming of hands from art wrestling competitions just mere tables over.
It was one of the nicer ones he'd been to since Paradius fell apart; and he couldn't turn something down when they were offering a discount night. He and his traveling buddy would be able to get their fill -- whenever she got there -- at a decent price with the money they still had left over and it was a nice enough night for them they could sleep in the truck if they had to, before they'd pick up and move on.
Being in Texas so far hadn't resulted in any luck. He had had his doubts to begin with. Frankly, he wasn't even sure that his boys would be in the states, probably having scattered themselves across the world. But, well...he had to start somewhere. Even if it took him until his last breath, he was going to put the effort into finding them and making sure they were safe and know that they had a place to turn to, someone to turn to. That they were still loved.
He wasn't sure they'd even want anything to do with him. He understood if they didn't; after all he had done, all for the blind devotion to the man who ruined their lives and they didn't know it until it was too late, he didn't really want to be around himself much either. But Raphael and Alister had cousins that would probably desperately want them home; the papers he found at the ranch the one night he snuck back home were enough to prove that.
And Valon -- Valon, his brave, wild, and fearless boy -- had someone special trying to find him. She had for years; and there was no way that he wasn't the baby she had had ripped from her arms. It wasn't like there were that many Valons his age and from Australia, or with a thick brown mane of hair like hers or a laugh like that.
He had to make sure they got reunited and then he could disappear. Once all his boys were taken care of, he'd just. Disappear. If that's what they wanted. It'd probably be for the best, anyhow. A man still struggling to get all his memories back and who had stupidly done what he had, who committed unforgivable horrors when he was old enough to know better, wasn't what they needed. They needed stability.
He just...probably should stay hidden, after that. The boys probably hated him anyhow. His family...his siblings, his Mama, his son-in-law...his still living daughter...
Well. They wouldn't want him back. He didn't deserve to have them back, either, not after he resented all of them but his Katie for all those years, because of a lie.
...He just had to set things right. That was all he could do.
The shuffling of footsteps and somebody scooting into the booth in front of him made him look up from his cheap spiral notebook. Mason couldn't help the laugh that rumbled in his chest as he saw the excitement practically vibrating off of Celeste, hands folded perfectly in front of her as she grinned at him. Three months of traveling together and she still found new ways to be even cuter. "I take it ya got some good news?"
"I just found us a way to make an easy five hundred bucks."
Well. That was good. After their meals, they'd probably have maybe $100 left over; that would be used for gas and any immediate necessities. $500 could go a longer way; cheap motel room for a couple of nights, restock on a couple of essentials. They could get close enough to the next safehouse for him to check for the boys. He didn't want to touch the money hopefully still stashed away there, just in case they came by one of them and needed it more; and also because a very petty part of him didn't want anything from Dartz. At the very least, this money was a good push in the right direction if they got it.
"Great! What do we gotta do?"
"They're hosting a dance competition here tonight!" She told him, voice lilting in glee. She dug around her pockets for a moment before unfolding a flyer and sliding it across the table for him to look over. It was an advertisement for the very bar they were in; a dance competition for anyone to compete in for a chance at a $500 cash prize. "We enter into this, win the prize -- we might just be able to get to sleep in real beds for a night!"
He tilted the black ball cap he wore to keep attention off of him down further as he hesitated. "Celly, I ain't exactly much of a dancer -- I don't think I'm good enough to get us a prize like that." He glanced up, hands shooting up in defense as quickly as the words left his mouth. "Not that I wouldn't love to dance with ya -- I would, it ain't you; I'd love to get to be your dance partner, any guy would be lucky to, i just--"
God he was bad at this.
Why? Why did he have to get so tongue tied and googly eyed over Celeste? He wasn't supposed to get these kinds of feelings again. The first time around had done enough damage to him as it was; he knew a second relationship could just end in heartbreak and this time it'd be his fault. He didn't want to put anyone else through that.
But she was also an angel on earth and the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. She was kind, but a spitfire and nothing could hold her back from what she knew she needed to do. She was funny and patient, never put on airs, and she was a pinnacle of strength.
He'd been falling for her from the moment he first laid eyes on her and it scared the hell out of him.
It also tended to make him jumble his words.
Celeste didn't care. She playfully rolled her eyes and leaned forward. "Mason, don't sell yourself short! I think we've got a chance!" She told him. There was a faint dusting of pink spreading across her cheeks as she tucked some of her hair back behind her ear. "B-besides, it'd just be a nice way to relax and I think you'd be a great dance partner. A--and, it looks like we only have a little bit of competition."
Mason eyed the dance floor for a moment, shifting in his seat. Well. He wasn't lying; he didn't really dance. If he ever had, it was before the accident and he couldn't fully remember if he had or not to begin with.
But there was something hopeful in her and he couldn't say no to that face.
"Guess it wouldn't hurt none to try," he finally relented, giving her a smile. " 'Specially if it means real beds for us and a shower."
Celeste grinned, pushing herself up from her seat and she stepped out, holding her hand out to him. "Well, then, how about we get some practice in?"
He laughed, letting his hand wrap around hers as she tugged him along. "I can only promise I'll try not to step on your toes."
"I could just step right back on yours; make the judges think it's a new dance." She teased, giving him a wink.
"Celly, I think ya could sweet talk anyone into anything."
°°°
The competition started about a half an hour after they started practicing. Celeste had been right; there was only three other couples that moved onto the dance floor when they announced it would begin. They would, as they found out, would be judged on style and passion, as well as how long they could stand out on the dance floor.
There had been some nerves as they practiced together, Mason trying to be conscientious of making sure he didn't step on her feet, or stumble or otherwise make a fool of himself. Celeste had seemed just as nervous originally, letting him guide her through it. But, as soon as they realized what they were doing, they laughed and it made all the difference.
Once the competition properly kicked off, they were practically gliding across the dance floor. The other competitors, the spectators and even the judges soon began to fade out of their thoughts and attention. All Mason saw was Celeste grinning at him as they tapped along to the country songs playing.
They gave a bit of a line dance (it was one of the only ones Mason found himself remembering), hands locked together. He'd pull her into his embrace to guide her around the dance floor or twirl her around as they got lost in each other. At one point, he spun her out for them to both get some freestyle each and he smirked playfully as he picked up a rose from a vase on one of the tables, sticking it between his teeth and offered her a wink, clapping his hands to the beat. Celeste burst out laughing, still keeping up with trying to shake her hips, her arms out stretched to him to come back to her.
Two of the other couples, for one reason or another, quit about halfway in and left them with only one other couple to compete against.
"I got an idea." He whispered with a grin, swaying with her.
"What's that?"
He almost asked if she trusted him. He knew that was too dangerous a question to ask; it wasn't like he really was that trustworthy.
"I'm gonna do a lift. You okay with that?"
His back would probably hate him later. But this would be worth it.
Her eyes went wide for a moment, a blush settling on her cheeks before she finally nodded quickly. He offered a reassuring smile and spun her once more before pulling her back by the waist to lift her into the air. His hand found her thigh for support as he then proceeded to dip her.
Their faces grew close and they were both red.
But the grins settled in and, in, any other case, he would have kissed her and not stopped.
Maybe in some lifetime he would have deserved her.
But, in this, he was just happy to dance with her for one night.
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anemo-writes · 4 years ago
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hello travelers! again, thank you for putting up with my inactivity, it’s been hard to write lately haha. anyways, i thought this would be something fun to post and for everyone to enjoy, whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day or not :) (note: this will probably be more fanon than canon so please bear with me, i’ll make it as canon as it can be :’) i also kept this pretty short, so hopefully that’s okay too,, and sorry for this being late haha—i wrote this very late at night so don’t mind any typos you find please)
much love,
~ anemo-chan <3
(The Playable) Genshin Impact Characters on Valentine’s Day (Romantically)
super romantic; gifts you a bouquet of flowers and takes you out to eat at a fancy restaurant/cooks for you.
Diluc
He is nervous. He’s never paid close attention to the countless amount of people who have lined outside the tavern to ask him to be their Valentine, only to be rejected. There was absolutely no way that he would turn to Kaeya for advice, so unfortunately this was something he would have to figure out for himself. He figures that it wouldn’t hurt to go traditional, so that’s what he does; he buys a large bouquet of roses (which he had to get from Donna, seeing that at the hours that he ended work were very late and Flora’s shop was not open at the time—yeah, that was not fun) and presents himself outside your doorway, to which he invites you to join him for a late dinner—which he makes!
Lisa
She leaves a letter on top of your nightstand, paired along with a singular rose. The letter states for you to meet her outside of Good Hunter, where you find her sitting at a table with a candle dimly-lighting up the surroundings. She greets you with a warm smile, gesturing for you to sit down—the two of you enjoy a candle-lit dinner as well as bolognese she specially requested for Sara to make for the two of you to enjoy together why does this remind me so much of Lady and the Tramp,,
Tartaglia
Oh boy. It’s always a fun time spending a holiday with him, seeing that it could go two ways; one, he would be too busy to celebrate it with you on the day of, and he would take you out the day after, or two—have a store’s entire line of merchandise presented to you outside your doorstep, in which a very, very smiley Tartaglia hidden within the pile (after all, he was the best present!) After you’re done moving all of the gifts into your house (it took up the space of your entire living room), he tells you to cover your eyes and follow him. He takes you to one of the most well-known restaurants in Liyue (which currently doesn’t have a name because it is very late here!), and insists that you order whatever you want, and however much you want.
Zhongli
Over the years, he’s witnessed many, many couples celebrate this holiday and every year he’s wished to do the same. He finds the perfect opportunity to do so when Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and boy does he plan it out for the two of you. He’s even made sure to have his wallet on him at all times—it would be extremely rude for you to have to pay if he happened to forget his wallet. He makes sure to stop by to pick up a bouquet of flowers, as well as a bottle of perfume (not in a bad way, just to clarify) from Ying’er’s shop that he recalled you liked. He makes sure to pick you up early from your work place to make sure you made it to your appointment on time; after all, being late to an appointment was similar to breaking a contract, no?
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surprises you with homemade sweets.
Fischl
Oh, she is so nervous—of course, she doesn’t show this. The entire week, she spent researching recipes to create a special batch of chocolate-dipped strawberries just for you—she even sent Oz to the nearby farms to “borrow” the freshest strawberries for the treat (the farmers were too scared to confront the talking bird who “borrowed” their strawberries, so luckily they got away with it). She dips them in a purple-colored chocolate (because what other color would she use, really?) and drizzles on a dark-chocolate syrup to top it off. She’s too shy to actually give it to you herself though, so she has Oz drop it off for her.
Ganyu
Even though she’s quite busy, she’s somehow found time to whip up a special batch of chocolate just for you! She shapes them into Glaze Lilies (which she found quite hard, which is why there are so few of them) and presents them to you in a neatly-sealed box. She’s quite modest when your eyes widen and tell her it’s the best chocolate you have ever eaten, claiming that she only followed a recipe, when she really made it from scratch.
Keqing
Like Ganyu, you have no idea how she finds time to create a perfect array of chocolates, which she made herself! However, with her tightly-packed schedule, she has to drop it off at your house in advance, to which you accept happily. She tried to decorate them with designs of cartoon-versions of your faces, but they’re a bit...messy. Nonetheless, they’re tasty, and to her relief, you enjoy them.
Mona
Somehow, she’s managed to scrape up enough mora to buy you a necklace; yes, a necklace, and a real one at that—none of that fake, costume jewelry stuff! She even added a pendant shaped like star, just so you could be reminded of her whenever you fiddled with it or even glanced at it. She’s quite flustered when she gives it to you, ignoring the way you ask how she managed to save this much mora to be able to buy something like this, changing the subject on how you should never-ever take it off (because it looks great on you.)
Noelle
One word: pancakes. (Have you seen the ones she makes for her special dishes? They’re frigging amazing) As a dutiful maid should, she wakes up especially early to prepare a homemade breakfast just for you, to which she serves to you just as your wake up in bed. The fluffy stack of pancakes are decorated with fruits cut up in heart-shapes, as well the words, “Happy Valentine’s Day, Y/N”, written neatly with chocolate syrup—it’s quite a sight to see, to be honest, and utterly delicious. Lucky you!
Xiangling
The day before, she tells you to meet her at the restaurant around noon. When you arrive, the restaurant is adorned with Valentine decorations, as well as a terrifying amount of food; she insists that she only made it for you, so you better eat up! Before she can show you the other dishes, the restaurant is suddenly filled with a strong, bitter smell—something burning. With a yelp, she runs into the kitchen, coming out a few minutes later with a tray of half-scorched cupcakes, their Gouba-shapes adorned with...a lot of burn marks. Oh well, it’s the thought that counts, doesn’t it?
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buys/makes a present for you.
Albedo
Without your knowledge, Albedo has been creating a collection of artworks throughout all the time you had spent together. The pieces include portraits of you, portraits of you and him (sucrose helped with this), as well as just random sketches of the little things that remind him of you, such as the bare, snowy-white terrain where the two of you first met, as well as its flora and fauna. If you request it, he’ll even make the painting come alive (literally), and the two of you run to Sucrose’s dwelling, who is very shocked to see the pair of you running from a Frosted Lawachurl when she peered out her window to see if she could pinpoint the sounds of distant screaming.
Amber
Is there anything better than a matching set of wind gliders? Not only that—they were homemade! She spent the last couple of weeks putting together a pair of gliders for the two of you, customizing them to your tastes (which she nailed!) She quite literally drags you to the nearest hill to test them out, and the two of you end up challenging each other on who can get back to the Knights of Farvonius Headquarters the fastest—spoiler alert: she did.
Barbara
Oh, she would make the cutest card for you—the envelope is decorated with cute stickers (some of them even had her face on it; there’s nothing like promoting merchandise, am i right? jkjks) She also pairs it off with a box of chocolates that she bought from Sara—however, what she didn’t know was that in the box was a special-edition spicy chocolate truffle. With your luck, that was the first one you chose—and boy, were you met a surprise (it was so bad that you were begging Barbara to use her Vision on you, which she refused of course). Fun times.
Chongyun
He’s real sweet. After his expeditions and commissions, he opens the freezer (yes he keeps them in there, don’t judge him) to an array of ice sculptures, shapes varying from flowers, hearts, and such—although it’s quite the simple gift, he’s put a lot of effort into them, even putting in the extra effort to cast a spell to make sure they would not melt; it’s all worth though, when he sees the absolutely giddy expression on your face, and the look of pure awe as you pick one up and study it closely, admiring all of the details and work that’s he put in.
Ningguang
She sends out informants to find out what you like, whether it be something that your gaze settled on for too long or something you’ve mentioned while talking to her—on the day of, you open your door to a mountain of gifts, with Ningguang herself peering out from behind it with a calm smile and a wave (which was the opposite of your reaction, because who has that much mora to purchase all of these gifts?!?)
Razor
He doesn’t have a clue on what the holiday until Lisa asks him if he’s planned something for the two of you during one of his lessons. When he shakes his head no, Lisa suggests that he make you something, to which he sets out on an adventure to do, looking for flowers and flower stems to weave into a pair of matching bracelets—they’re not the prettiest, but he is pretty proud of it; after all, it was his first time making something like that. He’s quite nervous to present it to you, afraid that you might not like it, but all feelings of worry melt away when you slide it on with a huge smile on your face, insisting that he wears his too.
Sucrose
At first, she considers gifting you a present that she created herself; of course, with her work being alchemy, she isn’t sure if that would be the safest option, despite being talented herself. And so, she resorts to buying a present for you—she is very picky with the present though, insisting that it should be perfect since she could not make one herself. She even consults Albedo when selecting some of the presents (he doesn’t help her unfortunately; he believes that she should figure it out herself haha). Like Razor, she’s quite nervous to give it to you, but lets out a huge sigh of relief as you thank her happily for the gift, wiping a bead of sweat from across her forehead (sucrose bby anything you give us would be perfect,,)
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whisks you away somewhere sentimental, where the two of you can enjoy a special date.
Beidou
It’s ungodly early in the morning when Beidou presents herself in front of your doorstep, announcing that you’ll be joining her and the crew on a special ride. She tugs you along beside her until you reach the harbor, where you are met with the sight of her ship adorned with streamers and banners, varying between shades of pink and red. Onboard, there is a table filled with goodies the crew collected and made, and boy do they look delicious. The group sets out to sea, and you take your place next to the captain, who even lets you steer the boat (momentarily, at least.)
Bennett
He takes you to meet his dads; yes, yes—he knows that it’s not the most romantic thing to do on a day dedicated to lovers, but he figures it’s just as important. Besides, they’ve been asking about you for quite a while—they even set up a small party within the Adventurer’s Guild, with the help of Bennett, of course. You spend the day listening to their old adventuring stories, as well as bits from Bennett’s childhood (poor boy is flustered from all the information his dads are spilling, but he’s still happy either way; after all, he’s with the most important people to him.)
Kaeya
He quite literally kidnaps you; one second you’re walking in the streets of Mondstadt on your way to work when suddenly someone grabs you by the waist and pulls you into an alley way (that sounds so creepy but i swear he means it in a good way). He only chuckles and shields himself with his arms as you punch him lightly, retorting that he scared you. He doesn’t care that the two of you have an overwhelming amount of work to do—after all, Valentine’s Day only comes once a year, right? Surprisingly, he doesn’t take you the tavern, but instead...Dawn Winery! Diluc received quite the surprise when he is met with the two of you standing outside his gates, with Kaeya requesting a wine/grape juice taste-testing. Yeah...you guys didn’t get any of that, but you did manage to snag a couple of grapes on your way out! Good for you!
Venti
You wake up in your bed, opening your eyes to see a very-smiley Venti laying beside you, chin propped up against his hand as he watches you yawn sleepily as you force yourself out of bed. You’re then presented with a handpicked-bouquet of Ceceilias, the freshest of the bunch, if he may add. You barely have time to thank him before he hoists you up in his arms and out of your dwelling, gliding over the city of Mondstadt as he whisks you away to Starsnatch Cliff, where he’s prepared a special performance just for you (and no, you don’t need to pay.)
Xingqiu
While he’s not the most romantic, he does have a clue on what people look for on Valentine’s Day; after all, that’s what cheesy-romance novels were for, right? Unbeknownst to you, he takes you on a date very similar to the one the main characters in his favorite novels partook in—and you don’t find out until you catch him peeking into the pages while you weren’t (you were) looking. Again, it’s the thought that counts—
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doesn’t celebrate Valentine’s Day.
Jean
Sadly, she probably forgets about the holiday. She’s too busy holed-up in her office to notice the couples gathered up in the courtyard, sharing moments with their lover. It’s not until she walks out to take a breather that she notices the commotion—she immediately calls you over, apologizing frantically. Of course, to this you respond that’s it’s okay, but that you would much rather her take the rest of the day off to spend time together, to which she reluctantly agrees.
Xiao
“I do not have time to celebrate silly human traditions like that.” He would say as you bound up to him, exclaiming that it’s Valentine’s Day, the day where you can give sweets to your loved ones, and asking if he had someone special in mind to spend it with. He’s irked when your gaze falters and the grip on the object you’re hiding behind your back tightens—he only grows more irked as you mutter to yourself how you’ll give the chocolates you made to someone else. He scoffs loudly, avoiding your gaze as he lays out his hand in front of you to accept the chocolates (just because he doesn’t celebrate the holiday doesn’t mean he can’t get jealous!)
581 notes · View notes
ppangjae · 4 years ago
Text
PLANET GIRL | part 1
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SUMMARY. When Jaehyun turned twenty-one, he started to hear his soulmate’s voice singing an unfamiliar song in his head. He should be happy, right? Wrong. There are two things wrong with this:
He’s taken. He’s off the market. He’s in a 3-year relationship and,
The voice singing in his head is not his girlfriend’s voice.
Now what?
GENRE. soulmate!au | cinderella!au | cupid!reader | college!au | fluff | angst
WORD COUNT. 6k+ words
author’s note. after much consideration, i decided to post this fic in three parts so that it’s not as hectic! you know me, i love adding ✨drama ✨ now, before you come at me for posting this and not a made to fall in love update, this first part of this fic has been done since mid-september. i’d rather release it than let it collect dust in my drafts. so yes, here she is. happy reading!
taglist: @billiondollarworth @cafemochi @stae-yong @chanyeolscoon @ggaayyyong @soothingjae @taestannie @plump-peach @oshmendes @lanadreamie​ @justineasian​ @jjpmoans​ @beryllium-io​ @jaeismytamtation​ @noonapabo127 @hanniesbubble​ 
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PART ONE. cupid | PART TWO. jupiter | 2.5 intermission | PART THREE. PLANET GIRL
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“Mark, get your ass over here before I do it myself!”
“Holy shit, what’s the rush?”
“Tomorrow’s Valentine’s Day.”
“And what about it?”
It’s that time of the year again; Valentine’s Day. It’s the day where people fall in love or get their hearts broken. But to you, it’s the day where you’re designated to a new target. To put it simply, you’re Cupid. You are part of a family of Cupid’s. However, you hate being called Cupid, you moreso see yourself as a matchmaker. 
Every Valentine’s Day, you’re designated to a new target. As a matchmaker, it is your responsibility to make your target fall in love within one year. If you fail to complete your mission, you will be stripped of your abilities of matchmaking. 
Last year, your target was Johnny. Johnny was an easy target to work with, for he fell in love with the local cafe barista within three months. The two of them are happily dating now and it’s almost as if they’re still in their honeymoon phase. 
Two years ago, your target was your roommate Mark. It took a while for him to fall in love. He was quite difficult to work with because he was so focused on his studies that he barely batted an eyelash at a human of the opposite sex. But you still managed to do it and all it took was to introduce him to Mina, the studious chemistry student who’s been crushing on him since freshman year. 
But this year, you’re not quite sure who to expect. 
“Are you getting your new assignment tomorrow?” Mark finally enters your room after what seems like forever, falling against your bed. He lands and lets out a soft ‘oof!’. You turn away from your desktop to face him. 
“Of course,” you reply with a quirk of an eyebrow. “What kind of question is that? Tomorrow’s Valentine’s Day, the day of love and the day of heartbreak.”
“Are you excited?”
“Not the slightest bit.” You let out a tiring sigh.
“Why not?” He frowns.
“Because I have to stress over someone else’s love life for another damn year.” You shrug your shoulders as you explain. “I already have other things to stress out over.”
“You’re always granted a year per love assignment. A year is enough to make someone fall in love, right?”
You laugh. “A year per love assignment? I wish a year was enough. A year goes by with a blink of an eye. Before you know it, it’s Valentine’s Day again.”
“You’re being too hard on yourself. Why don’t you just skip out on the matchmaking just for this year?” He suggests and you shake your head.
“I can’t.” You purse your lips into a tight line. 
He lets out a snort. “I’m sure it’s possible—”
“It’s impossible.”
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There are many great things about being a Cupid; you help people fall in love with each other and the outcome is always beautiful. But there are also many downfalls about being a Cupid, one of them being cursed to never fall in love. You’ve always craved the feeling of being loved by someone. As much as you hate to admit it, you’re needy for love. But the closest you’ll ever feel to being in love is witnessing the love being shared by two people, specifically between your love assignment and their soulmate.
You wonder how it feels to have someone care for you. You wonder how it feels to be sought after. You wonder how it feels to hug someone and hold their hand. But you guess you’ll never know because you’ll never experience it.
“God, I want to throw up.”
Johnny lets out a snort as the both of you pass by the seasonal section of the department store. There’s a plethora of Valentine’s Day chocolates on the shelves, along with teddy bears and heart plushies. Seeing the bright, flashing red on the days leading up to Valentine’s Day is surely a sore to the eye. 
“I know, it makes me want to poke my eyes out.” Johnny sighs.
“And what are we here for again?” You ask Johnny as you follow him to the baked goods section of the department store. Your question seems to be answered when you find yourselves standing in front of a shelf filled with ready-made birthday cakes. You quirk an eyebrow. “Who’s birthday is it? It’s definitely not Mark’s birthday, don’t even try to trick me.”
“It’s Jaehyun’s birthday tomorrow, I figured it would be sweet of me to get him a birthday cake.” He shrugs his shoulders as he points between two cakes on the shelves. “This one or this one?”
You point at the plain birthday cake on the left. “This one. You know what would be really funny? If you printed his face on the cake.”
Johnny looks at you and squints his eyes. “You're a genius.”
You have no idea who Jaehyun is. You don’t even know what he looks like. You’ve only heard of him through Johnny. The both of them host the university’s famous evening radio show, Night Night with JohnJae. You’re a listener of their show, mainly because you are supportive of your best friend Johnny. You’re sure Jaehyun is a great guy, especially since Johnny and Jaehyun share good chemistry with each other. You’ll probably get along with him well if you met him. But that encounter has yet to happen. 
As Johnny hands the cake over to the bakery chef to print Jaehyun’s face on it, he turns towards you. “And now we wait.”
“What time do you have to be at the studio?” You question.
He looks down at his watch. “I’ll make it on time. By the way, Mark has been making great song requests by this SoundCloud artist. From what he tells me, the artist is a student from our university.”
You quirk an eyebrow, gulping nervously. “Who’s this SoundCloud artist?”
“Planet Girl.” Johnny pulls out his phone and opens up the music app before handing it over for you to see. You stare at the artist’s profile. “Do you know her?”
You shake your head in reply. “Unfortunately, I don’t.”
“Damn,” Johnny lets out a sigh. “I was hoping you did. Jaehyun and I want her to be a guest on the show, it could probably help her get more attention in the industry.”
“Sorry to disappoint,” you purse your lips into a tight line. “I only know so many people in my program. I have a very small, closely knitted group of friends. They are the only people I’ve known since I stepped on campus in freshman year.”
“I was hoping you’ve heard of her, at least.” He chuckles. “But damn, her music is so good. I can’t wait until her mixtape drops. I’m sure it’ll be such a banger.”
“I should probably check her out.” 
“You should!” Johnny exclaims. “I wonder who she is.”
You fiddle with your fingers. You stare at Johnny who’s scrolling through the SoundCloud artist’s profile, adding a couple of the artist’s songs to his playlists. You blink and with a slight tilt of your head, you clear your throat. “Yeah, me too—”
“I have an order for Johnny!”
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11:51 pm.
“Right before we sign off for the night, do you have anything to say to our listeners?”
Johnny has a shit-eating grin spread across his lips. He comes back into the studio with a birthday cake. It’s not just your typical birthday cake. It’s a birthday cake with Jaehyun’s face on it and it’s blown out in an odd proportion. The candles aren’t birthday candles either, in fact, they’re heart-shaped candles, perfect for Valentine’s Day. Jaehyun lets out a sigh. What is he going to do with Johnny?
“I just wanted to greet our handsome radio host slash Valentine boy, Jaehyun, a happy birthday! We have—” Johnny glances down at his wristwatch before continuing. “—nine more minutes before it’s officially Jaehyun’s birthday and Valentine’s Day. And what’s better than celebrating it with a birthday cake?”
“Is that my face?” 
“Who else would it be, doofus?” Johnny scoffs, pulling out a lighter to light the candles. Jaehyun lets out a snort as Johnny starts to sing him a happy birthday. After the happy birthday song, Johnny frowns and sends him a death glare. “Why aren’t you getting emotional? I did all of this to get that reaction?”
Jaehyun gives him a look. “And so as we sign off for the night, I just wanted to thank Johnny for his efforts in kicking off my birthday on a high note. I also want to greet everyone with a Happy Valentine’s Day. Whether you are happily dating someone or admiring someone from afar, just know that you are all in our hearts.”
“Stop being greasy.” Johnny winces. “Anyways, we’re going to sign off for the night with a song request from Mark Lee! Goodnight and see you tomorrow, here is Loose by Daniel Caesar.”
They turn their microphones off and Johnny pushes the birthday cake towards him. “Quick! Make a wish before the candles go out.”
Jaehyun clasps his hands together and makes a wish. With a satisfied grin, his eyes flutter open and he blows out the candles. Johnny’s taking a video of him blowing out the candles before dipping his finger into the icing. Jaehyun gives him a warning look but it’s too late because Johnny smears the icing on his cheek.
“You little shit—” 
“It’s midnight! Happy birthday, Jaehyun!”
12:01 am. 
It all happens quickly. Johnny’s dipping his fingers into the icing to smear more of it on Jaehyun’s cheeks. Jaehyun hears a slight ringing in his ears and his eyebrows knit together. Johnny doesn’t seem to notice how uncomfortable Jaehyun feels until he’s about to smear his cheeks with icing. 
“Jaehyun, are you alright?” Johnny asks him with a concerned look.
The ringing in his ears halts to a stop. He remembers this. He remembers his father telling him that he experienced a distinct ringing in his ears before he started to hear his mother’s voice humming in his head. Jaehyun blinks. The ringing in his ears causes him to see different specks of colours, red, blue, and even green. He feels like his head is spinning. He feels like he’s going to pass out. But it only happens for a brief moment.
Suddenly, he hears a soft voice humming a melody in his head. In an instant, the soft humming in his head stops him from seeing colours and he no longer feels faint. He’s too absorbed in his thoughts to snap back to reality. Johnny is waving his hand in his face to pull him out of his trance. Jaehyun sucks in a deep breath, almost like he’s gasping for air. The soft humming in his head slowly turns into a voice that’s singing an unfamiliar song. He’s never heard this song before.
Johnny sighs with relief when Jaehyun snaps out of his deep trance. Jaehyun looks at Johnny with slightly widened eyes. 
“Johnny, I think we have a problem.”
Johnny snorts. “What are you talking about? You’re probably just tired. We should head back to the dorms before you knock out cold in the studio again.”
Jaehyun runs his fingers through his hair. “R-Right. We should probably go.”
Johnny rests his hand on his shoulder. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything’s—everything’s alright.” Jaehyun stutters.
No, nothing’s alright. Nothing’s okay. 
His phone buzzes in his pocket. He pulls it out to see a new text notification from his girlfriend. 
ara (12:03 am): happy birthday my love! and happy valentine’s day! i love you 3000.
Jaehyun just turned twenty-one. Not only that, but he just started to hear his soulmate’s voice in his head. He should be happy, right? Wrong. There are two things wrong with this:
He’s taken. He’s off the market. He’s in a 3-year relationship and,
The voice singing in his head is not his girlfriend’s voice.
Well, shit. Now what?
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It’s the day you dread with your entire existence; Valentine’s Day. The campus couples flock to the local cafes and parks, the dormitories and even the campus football field. It truly makes you want to throw up. If you could take a shot of vodka for every time you’ve witnessed a couple kissing or giving each other their Valentine’s Day chocolates, you’d be shitfaced drunk by now. 
The only person keeping you sane is Mark. But even with Mark’s presence, he’s too absorbed by the presence of his own girlfriend, Mina. You guess this will do. It’s not like you really have a choice.
Today, you’re going to get your new love assignment. You’re not sure who to expect. Every year, it’s become less surprising and more disappointing. You guess it has to do with your aching desire for love, but you’re not going to dive deep into that. 
You’ll know who your love assignment is when you meet their eyes. When you meet your love assignment’s eyes, you won’t see yourself reflected through their eyes, but their soulmate, their partner you’re supposed to link them to. The moment you witness it, your year to make them fall in love begins. 
Be careful though, time is ticking.
“Can you guys stop talking to each other in baby voices?” You snap at the couple sitting next to you on the picnic blanket. 
The couple had decided to bring you along on their picnic date, just because they figured that you needed to ‘spice’ your life up a bit. You feel like a huge burden to them because whenever you’re with them, all you do is complain about all the things they do as a couple. Could you really blame yourself at this point? 
“Y/N, if only you had a boyfriend, you would know how it feels.” Mina sticks her tongue out at you and you feel your eye twitch. 
Mark lets out a nervous laugh. “Y/N is an independent woman who doesn’t need a man—”
“Yeah, your boyfriend’s right.” You cut him off, looking at Mina dead straight in the eyes. “Got a problem with that?”
“Stop giving me attitude—”
“And stop acting like I didn’t help you and Mark get together.” You snap.
She smiles and laughs sheepishly. As she gets up onto her two feet, she dusts off her straight-cut jeans before pointing towards the local cafe. “Do you guys want anything? My treat.”
“I’ll have the usual,” Mark replies. “Take my card—”
“Babe, no—”
“I’m not letting you pay for our drinks again—”
You let out a scowl, placing some cash into Mina’s hand. “Here. I’ll pay. I’m this close to ripping my hair off my scalp and it’s because of you two.”
“Did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?” Mina frowns. “You’ve been petty all day.”
“Get me a double shot on ice,” you mutter. “No sugar or cream. Got it?”
“You’re just like how you like your coffee,” Mina folds her arms. “Bitter.”
As Mina is walking away from you and Mark, you fall back against the picnic blanket. The clouds come by in funny shapes today. You spot a tiny, heart-shaped cloud floating past in the blue skies. You snort, love seems to be everywhere today, even in the skies. Your eyes flutter shut. You’re so close to dozing off into a quick nap until you hear a loud yell from a couple of metres away. It’s too late for you to open your eyes and see who’s yelling because the moment you do, there’s a soccer ball flying in the air. The size of the soccer ball grows when you start to realize that it’s literally going to land right on your face—
“Nice save, dude.” Mark says as he looks at you with amusement. Just in time and with your fast instincts, you managed to cover your face with the palms of your hands to catch the ball. 
Mark’s pulling you up into a seated position. As you sit up, you see someone approaching you from the corner of your eye. 
“I’m so sorry about that!” A soft voice exclaims and you turn to your right. You look up at a woman around your age. She has long black hair and a soft face. She looks warmhearted. Her vibe radiates happiness and happy-go-lucky, welcoming and sociable. Everything you’re not. She’s sporting a soccer jersey and a pair of athletic joggers. “Are you alright? I hope you didn’t get hurt or anything.”
You wave it off. “I’m A-okay. There’s nothing to worry about. Here’s your soccer ball.”
She slightly bends down to retrieve her ball. Her long black hair blocks your eyesight for a brief moment until the wind blows it away. Your eyes meet hers and a soft gasp threatens to escape your lips. 
You’ll know who your love assignment is when you meet their eyes. Her eyes are a nice warm brown, shining underneath the sunlight. You swear you could see stars in her eyes. No, scratch that, you can see galaxies and stars in her eyes.
When you meet your love assignment’s eyes, you won’t see yourself reflected through their eyes, but their soulmate. And indeed, you look at her with slight surprise and shock when you don’t see your own reflection through her eyes. Instead, you see what seems to be a soccer player. The more you look into her eyes, the more information you obtain about her soulmate. He slowly turns around and it reveals his name on the back of his soccer jersey—
“Yuta?” You whisper.
The woman’s eyebrows knit together in confusion. She takes her ball and straightens up her posture. “Thanks again. What’s your name? I feel like I’ve seen you before.”
You snap out of it. “Y/N! My name’s Y/N. Nice to meet you.”
She smiles and her eyes form into beautiful crescents. “Nice to meet you, Y/N. I’m Ara. I should probably get going before I run late for lecture. See you around?”
You nod your head vigorously. “Yeah, I’ll see you around. Nice to meet you too, take care.”
You find yourself staring at her as she walks away. Mark looks at you as you seem to fall into a deep trance. He follows your gaze that falls on Ara. “Hey, is everything alright?”
You tear your gaze away from her to look at Mark. “What’s her name again?”
Mark looks at you with a funny smile. “You forgot her name already? Her name’s Ara.”
“Mark,” you gulp nervously. “She’s my love assignment for this year.”
Mark’s face pales. His funny smile vanishes from his face. He looks like he’s seen a ghost. You can’t seem to comprehend the expression on his face but you know that something’s not good. There’s an unsettling feeling in the pit of your stomach as Mark’s mouth hangs open.
“You’re joking, right?” Mark frowns. “How could Ara be your love assignment? That’s—That’s impossible, I—”
You shake your head. “I’m not joking. I didn’t see myself reflected through her eyes, I saw Yuta—”
“You saw Jaehyun.” Mark cuts you off. “Right? Jaehyun. You saw Jaehyun, right?”
You let out a nervous laugh. “Why would I see Jaehyun? I didn’t see Jaehyun. I saw Yuta, the university’s soccer team player. He was wearing a jersey and he turned around. I saw his name printed on his jersey. Nakamoto Yuta—”
“Please tell me you’re kidding.” Mark winces.
“I’m not kidding!” You exclaim in a panicked voice. “Why would I be kidding?”
Mark palms his forehead and lets out a laugh of disbelief. He shakes his head. You stare at him questioningly. What’s happening? What’s going on? 
“Mark, you’re confusing me.” You say with worry etched on your face. “I am telling you the truth. I saw Nakamoto Yuta reflected in her eyes—”
“Ara is Jaehyun’s girlfriend. They’ve been dating for three years. Now you’re telling me that Ara’s your love assignment and you don’t see Jaehyun reflected in her eyes… but Yuta?”
“Holy shit.”
“I’m back with our drinks! Wait, what’s wrong? Why are you guys looking at each other like that?”
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The image of Yuta’s reflection in Ara’s eyes never seems to leave your mind. In fact, it has been the only thing haunting you ever since. The revelation leaves you in nothing but a spiralling mess. You are required to make Ara fall in love with her soulmate, who so happens to be Yuta. But at the same exact time, to complete your mission, you must do something to end Ara’s relationship with Jaehyun.
You wish it was a joke.
It all comes down to whether you have the heart to lead Ara to her destined soulmate and end her relationship with Jaehyun or leave things for her to figure out but lose your matchmaking abilities as a Cupid.
The sticky situation makes you want to pull your hair off your scalp. It makes you want to look up to the heavens and yell at your ancestors for being Cupids, for passing down their matchmaking abilities to every generation after them, and for passing down the curse of never falling in love. 
“Stop thinking about it too much, it’s making you age faster.” 
You glare at Mark. “I don’t even know Jaehyun personally but I’m sure he’s a great guy who deserves everything in the entire universe, not some soccer player and a so-called Cupid to ruin his three-year relationship with Ara.”
“What happens if you don’t make Ara fall in love with her soulmate within a year—oh, Johnny, hey!”
Your mouth clamps shut and your head whips around. Johnny occupies the empty seat next to you and greets you with a light nudge. He nods his head at Mark. “What happens if what?”
Mark gulps nervously. He lets out a squeak. “Nothing!”
Mark makes eye contact with you and you give him a warning gaze. Johnny shrugs his shoulders and brushes off the conversation by starting a new one. “Tonight at six. Jaehyun’s apartment. We’re going to have a chicken and beer night.”
“This is exactly what I needed—” Mark points at him.
“I think I’ll have to pass on that one. I have a—” 
“Uh, no you’re not.” Johnny shakes his head. “What excuse are you going to tell me this time? Your excuses are getting lamer every time. It’s quite obvious.”
You sigh. “I’d rather study. Besides, I have a midterm coming up and the last thing I want is to tank it.”
“It’s just one night. Chicken and beer. Who turns down chicken and beer? With friends, too?” Mark tries to convince you but you’re using your eyes to communicate the idea that this will not turn out well.
“Who’s coming?” You tear your gaze away from Mark when he doesn’t seem to take a hint. You’re reaching for your water bottle to take a quick sip of water.
“It’ll be me, Mark, Jaehyun, Jungwoo, Ara,” Johnny recalls the guests from the top of his head. “Oh! Yuta is coming too—”
You choke on your water. As you’re going through a coughing fit, Mark grabs your water bottle to prevent any more water from spilling onto the table. Johnny pats your back. “Y-Yuta? As in, Nakamoto Yuta?”
Johnny smiles. “Indeed. Why? Do you have a crush on him or something—”
“No!” You and Mark blurt out in unison.
Johnny gives you both a funny look. “Okay, geez, I was just joking around. Unless, you do, have a crush on Yuta, Y/N—”
“Look who we have here.” 
It’s a foreign yet familiar voice. You’ve heard that voice somewhere. You sneak a quick glance at Mark, whose eyes are wide like saucers. You could see his Adam’s apple bob up and down as he gulps nervously. Mark’s eyes trail down to meet yours. 
“Jaehyun! Ara! Perfect timing!”
Definitely not perfect timing. You mirror Mark with the same wide eyes. It’s almost as if you’ve shrivelled up or froze up into an ice statue. Johnny doesn’t seem to notice you shoving your things into your tote bag out of sheer panic. Mark’s eyes dart between you and the newly-arrived couple. 
“Hey, sorry, I completely forgot that I have a meeting with my group for our project.” It comes out as a squeak. Everyone’s looking at you and you can’t find the strength to look at any of them in the eye. But you can surely feel the attention that’s been shifted towards you. 
“Leaving already?” Johnny pouts. “I just got here—”
“Sorry!” You exclaim, standing up from your seat and making a beeline for the exit doors of the study room. You look over your shoulder. Johnny has a cute pout on his lips as he watches you scurry away from them. “I’ll make it up to you!”
“You’ll make it up to me by joining us tonight for chicken and beer!”
When Jaehyun and Ara take up the spot you used to sit at, Mark can’t help but look at Ara with round eyes. He just can’t seem to look at Ara the same way anymore, especially when she’s with Jaehyun. Mark decides to settle his gaze on Jaehyun instead, but he still feels the same. He can’t look at Jaehyun the same way either. The first person that comes to mind when he looks at the couple sitting across from him is Nakamoto Yuta. The second and last person that comes to mind is you.
There are two innocent people being brought into this mess. It’s you and Yuta.
And what’s worse is that Jaehyun and Ara are just as innocent.
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You and Mark find yourselves standing in front of Jaehyun’s door. Surprisingly, it’s quiet. You don’t hear Johnny’s loud voice through the thin door. Instead, right when Mark knocks on the door, you hear someone’s faint shuffling that gets louder and louder as they get close to the door. The door swings open and your mouth slightly parts open. This is—?
“Jaehyun!” Mark exclaims, crashing into Jaehyun’s arms. 
You stand there awkwardly as you watch them embrace. Jaehyun pats Mark’s back until his eyes meet yours. Jaehyun. You’ve known of him. But now that you can put a face to his name, you’re immediately brought back to your freshman year, specifically your freshman orientation week. You’ve seen his face before. Jaehyun was amongst the popular freshmen in your year mainly due to his charisma and charm. By the end of freshman orientation week, he had become a magnet that attracted everyone to him. But not only did you remember him from orientation week, but you remember being one of the many people who were attracted to him. He had become your first university crush, but ever since orientation week, you never saw him again.
Until now.
“I’m guessing you’re Y/N?” Jaehyun asks and you find yourself snapping out of your trance. “I’d be surprised if you weren’t.”
You slowly nod your head. “Yes, that’s me.”
“The one that was scurrying away earlier?” He chuckles.
You roll your eyes. “God, please don’t remind me. That was embarrassing.”
“Nice to meet you,” he smiles and oh boy, are those dimples? 
You swoon. Too bad Jaehyun’s off the market. But at the same time, it’s a shame that you’re going to be the one to ruin his relationship and put him back on the market. You muster up a smile. “Nice to meet you too, Jaehyun.”
You and Mark make yourselves comfortable in Jaehyun’s apartment. Your eyes scan the place and just by the small touches to his apartment, you can pick up what kind of person Jaehyun is. From the LP turntable sitting in one corner of the room accompanied by a great stack of records—he has some exquisite taste in music—to the mini fridge filled with bottles of wine, you can tell that he’s a young man with an old soul. You turn to your right when you spot a piano and a microphone stand. It’s a makeshift studio in the opposite corner of his living room. He sings?
“I’ve heard many things about you from Johnny,” Jaehyun starts a conversation as he hands you a can of beer. “And Mark, of course.”
You open the can of beer to take your first sip, making sure to squint your eyes at Mark. “I hope they’re good things.”
He smiles. “There’s nothing to worry about. They put you up to the highest standard.”
You cough. “As they should.”
Mark scoffs. “You’re being too obnoxious right now.”
“Shut up,” you mutter, taking another sip of your beer. “What’s taking Johnny so long to get here? After scolding me for bailing out on every single function, here he is, pulling up later than promised.”
“Speaking of,” Jaehyun says as he stares at his phone. “His uber just pulled up. I’ll meet up with him downstairs. While I go fetch him, make yourselves comfortable.”
Jaehyun leaves you alone in silence. The moment Jaehyun shuts the door, Mark shoots you a cheeky grin. He’s wiggling his eyebrows at you and you can’t help but squint your eyes at him. 
“Why are you looking at me like that—”
“You like him, don’t you?”
You scoff in disbelief. “I do not like him like that—”
“You do.” Mark cuts you off. “I’m getting that type of energy from you—”
“Well, sorry to disappoint, I don’t like him like that. Besides, he’s in a relationship with Ara—”
“He’s in a relationship that you’re destined to end.” Mark reminds you and you frown. “What? It’s true!”
You shake your head and with a stern voice, you say, “I don’t like Jaehyun. I just find him... charming.”
“That’s all—”
“And handsome—”
“Oh—”
“And sweet.” You add. “But other than that, I don’t like him. I’m Cupid, remember? I’m cursed to never fall in love and so the chances of me liking Jaehyun? Very slim.”
Mark smirks. “But you find him charming, handsome, and sweet. Isn’t that more than enough to like someone?”
“There’s a very distinct line drawn between infatuation and love, Mark.” You state with a matter of fact. 
“So, you’re infatuated with Jaehyun—”
“What’s up party people, put your hands up!”
Both of your mouths clamp shut at Johnny’s freakishly loud voice echoing the apartment the moment he walks in. You dumbly put your hands up and Mark lets out a loud cackle. Entering right after him are Ara and—
“Yuta, my right hand and my go-to!” Mark exclaims.
You wish you were invisible, especially when Ara spots you on the couch and sends you a wave. You’re mustering up a very tight-lipped smile as you wave back at her. Great, this is going to be a long night. Jaehyun follows suit, throwing his arm over Ara’s shoulder and pecking her cheek. Mark sneaks a glance at you as you’re tearing your gaze away from the couple to take another sip of beer.
“Y/N actually came for once,” Johnny teases you. 
Everyone gathers around the small coffee-table. Scattered on the small table are three boxes of chicken along with a can of beer for everyone. You’re sitting right across from Yuta, who hasn’t uttered a single word since he got here. But surprisingly enough, his eyes meet yours and you quickly look away. Your heart begins to race. 
And your heart starts to beat much faster when Yuta never seems to break his stare at you for the rest of the night.
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Yuta has definitely seen you before but he can’t seem to pinpoint exactly where he’s seen you. It must have been a fleeting moment, where the both of you passed by each other unknowingly. But after looking into your wandering eyes, after watching you chug a can of beer right across from him, he has found his answer.
Valentine’s Day.
He was biking on his way home after a three-hour lecture. Too many couples. He remembers the excessive amount of couples strolling down the busy streets. He remembers having the urge to rip his eyes out whenever he came to a stoplight and spotted a couple sharing a passionate (way too passionate) kiss. But he also remembers the sudden loneliness he felt.
Ara. He’s always found her pretty in her own special way. His first encounter with Ara was when she auditioned for the co-ed soccer team. He was seated at the bleachers as one of the head coaches who chose the new team members. She was everything he adored in someone. It was like she had her own glow whenever she ran down the field, with her hair bouncing as she ran. 
But too bad because she’s—
“Taken?”
Jaehyun let out a sigh on the other phone line. Yuta pursed his lips into a tight line. “Listen, I tried to get those concert tickets for you tonight through my connections. But all of the available seats are taken. Well, there are still some seats but the seats you wanted are gone.”
“Do you have tickets for other seats?” Jaehyun questioned.
“Yeah, but the seats are pretty far from the stage. Are you alright with that?”
He heard distinct chatter on the other phone line. He heard Ara’s soft voice and a smile threatened to escape his lips. Right… she’s taken by Jaehyun. “We’ll take them!”
“Perfect.” Yuta chuckled. “I’m on my way to your apartment, actually. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes to give you the tickets.”
Yuta turned to his right and into a familiar neighbourhood. He slowed down his bike when he reached Jaehyun’s apartment building. As he headed up a couple flights of stairs, he reached Jaehyun’s apartment completely out of breath. The door opened and he saw—
“Oh, hey, Ara.” He scratched the back of his neck nervously. “Is Jaehyun here?”
Ara beamed up at him and nodded her head. “Come in. You look like you’re out of breath. Do you want a glass of water, or something?”
“I’m good. Thanks.” He mumbled, too shy and nervous to utter anything other than those three words. Ara bit her lip to stop herself from smiling. God, why is he so nervous around her?
“Yuta!” Jaehyun said in a sing-song voice, greeting him with a fist-bump.
“Hey—oh?”
Yuta clamped his mouth shut when he looked into Jaehyun’s eyes. Jaehyun’s eyes sure do look pretty, he could see stars shining back at him. But that’s not what he saw.
He saw an unfamiliar woman. He’s never seen her before.
In Jaehyun’s eyes, he saw a woman holding what seemed like a microphone. She had headphones on and her face was illuminated by what he assumed was a laptop screen. She was singing a song he couldn’t hear. Yuta blinked, soaking in every little detail about the woman he saw in Jaehyun’s eyes. But it was not long until his face paled when he realized something terrible.
The woman he saw in Jaehyun’s eyes was not Ara.
Valentine’s Day. It’s the day he dreads the most out of the entire year. It’s the day where he receives his love assignment for the year. He has one year to make his assignment fall in love with their soulmate. But how is he going to do that when his love assignment is Jaehyun? 
Cupids are cursed to never fall in love. Although, Yuta does have sheer hope that he could definitely find love. How could he not, when he’s a hopeless fool in front of Ara? It’s this specific Valentine’s Day that he dreads the most out of all the Valentine’s Days he’s spent. Why? Because while he found out that Jaehyun’s soulmate isn’t Ara, that surely doesn’t mean that he has a chance with Ara. In fact, he’ll never have a chance with Ara. He could potentially be the man Ara will hate the most.
Because one way or another, he must tear Ara and Jaehyun apart.
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author’s note. welp, i hope you enjoyed the first part! i should be able to post the second part after all of my midterms. look out for it! thank you for reading!
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hawkinsindiana · 4 years ago
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this changes things
ALMOST PARADISE: PART THREE - CHAPTER FOUR OF ELEVEN (!!)
pairing: steve harrington x henderson!reader
word count: 2.3k
a/n: we’re back to eleven chapters baby!!!! this one ended up being longer than i thought. i know i usually post on friday nights, but i couldn’t help but give you all a lil valentine’s day treat. pls enjoy!!!!
masterlist
Steve’s nervous. 
It’s down to the wire; there's only a few short weeks left of his final high school semester. Four out of five college applications have been rejected. Each one received has fed the anxiety more and more. 
Every day that passes without a lick of news from the remaining university has him reconsidering everything. His education. His career. His future.
The only thing Steve knows about his future is that he wants you in it, in whichever form that might be. You’re the constant. Without you, he’s afraid he’d eventually go back to being that person he was before. You make him want to be better. Trying to be worthy of you gives Steve purpose. 
He imagined that getting a college education would help keep him on that path. It seems farther away with each rejection letter he receives. 
Steve hasn’t told you that he hasn’t gotten into any so far. He’s afraid of disappointing you, especially after everything you’ve done for him. 
The spring of ‘85 has been particularly unforgiving. It’s been storming all week - the air still hangs with that familiar smell of rain soaked concrete. You read that the Hawkins Post reported a record amount of rainfall; the local stream overflowed and flooded a few basements. 
The mail is still damp when Steve retrieves it after practice. It sticks to his fingers as he shuffles through each envelope, drying his sneakers on the welcome mat. 
And then his eyes linger on one addressed to him; Steve nearly drops his backpack when he sees who sent it. 
Haphazardly, he tosses the rest of the mail onto the kitchen counter as he contemplates whether to even open the damn thing. Steve’s pretty sure he knows the answer. Is it an answer he wants?
Whatever the words inside this parcel read, it changes Steve’s life forever. His future is planned from the moment he breaks the seal - there would be no going back. Either he stays here in Hawkins, trapped by an education he neglected for far too long, or he gets to take a step to distance himself from this shitty town and prove his worth. 
Steve isn’t a fan of the former option.
He wishes you were here to read it for him. He’d rather you tell him the news; hearing it come from your lips would make it easier. 
By the time Steve decides to open it, a few minutes have passed. Why does this feel like the scariest thing he’s ever done?
Due to the water, some of the ink bled through the paper; pieces of the letter are illegible. But at the top, a familiar phrase answers his question: Unfortunately, we regret to inform you-
Steve curses, angrily throwing the envelope and its contents into the trash. He refuses to read anymore. 
He has no one to blame but himself. Maybe that’s why he’s so angry. There were multiple opportunities for him to change course and put effort into his schoolwork. By the time he finally tried, it was too late. 
Thunder booms in the distance once Steve parks his car beside your mother’s. He doesn’t remember deciding to come here; the only thing he can recall is grabbing the keys, without a destination in mind. His heart brought him to your warmth. 
As Steve gets out of the car, he wonders if this was maybe a bad idea. It isn’t very often that he feels afraid to face you - he’s scared of your reaction, and the outcome that could follow.
He knew that he could love you, that he could fall just as hard as you did for him. But admitting it to himself, and then you - he doesn’t know if he has the strength to do it again. That phrase has left a sour taste in his mouth, one that Steve hopes he can wash away. Because you deserve to hear it too. 
Maybe he’s closer to saying it than he thought, perhaps that’s why he’s so scared to tell you. Maybe-
“What the hell are you doin’ here?” Dustin’s voice startles Steve, who turns to see the boy walking his bike up the driveway. Steve fumbles his response, head spinning with thoughts about you, “I don’t, uh-”
Dustin interrupts him, not noticing the nerves Steve displays, “Hey, you should come in! It’s mac ‘n cheese night.” 
Steve hangs his head in defeat, knowing that he’s going to follow your brother inside. He can’t say no to this kid. 
Dustin hangs up his raincoat once the pair of them enter the house; the bell on Tews’ collar jingles as they run to greet the boys. The kitten weaves between Steve’s legs before he kneels down to give them a few pets. 
“That you, Dusty?” Your mother calls from within; clattering silverware echoes from the kitchen. Steve chuckles at the nickname. Dustin punches him in the bicep. 
He kicks off his shoes as he replies, “Hey Mom! Get out another bowl - look who I found loitering around.” 
Steve scoffs, shoving Dustin as they walk forward through the threshold into the living room. Your mom moves to welcome them; her warm smile widens when she sees Steve by her son’s side, “Well look who it is! Steve, sweetheart, how are you?”
He’s baffled by her every time he shares a meal with your family. Her kind soul is infectious, and drastically different from the parents he was raised by. Steve tries not to think about the fact her beloved pet is secretly buried out back - he’s reminded of it whenever he sees her. 
“I’m good, Mrs. Henderson. How are you?” Steve answers, returning her grin. She envelops him in a quick hug, “How many times am I going to have to tell you? Just call me Claudia, hon.”
Steve laughs along with her as he follows her to the kitchen, “I think you’ll need to remind me one more time.”
And then his eyes meet yours from across the room. They smile nearly as much as your lips at the sight of him; your heart flutters at this unexpected surprise. 
When you catch onto the sadness in his expression, the corners of your mouth drop. It’s obvious to you that something’s wrong. Steve doesn’t usually stop by without an invitation; something must’ve happened. 
Throughout dinner, you take mental notes on his deflated behavior. It’s subtle enough to fool your family, but you know him better. With each minute that passes, the more anxious you become to hear the cause. So when he volunteers to help you with the dishes, as he always does, you know it’s only a matter of time. 
“How was practice?” You ask before drying off a cup. Steve takes it from your hand as he replies, “Uh, it was good. Although it’s annoying that we’re still practicing even though the season’s over.”
You hum in agreement as he places the glass on the shelf. Steve glances back at you briefly, “What about you? What’d you get up to?”
A beat passes - you’re looking for the words to describe your afternoon. Maybe not the words, but the courage. It’s only when he turns around, brow creased, do you answer him. 
“I studied at Nancy’s,” You say. Steve’s eyes widen in surprise, “Oh yeah? How’d that go?”
You nod your head, focusing your gaze onto the floor, “It was nice, actually. It wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be.”
“Now when you say studying…” He trails off for a moment as he thinks, “You two didn’t… exchange notes about me or anything, did you?”
Steve’s growing smirk makes you laugh; you hit him playfully with the towel, “No! And I haven’t told her, if that’s what you’re worried about.” 
A part of him can’t help but be relieved. There’s no limit to what you two could chat about.
“We just ended up talking about college most of the time,” You add, “She wanted to know some tips since she’ll be applying soon.”
Steve grabs a plate to dry; in order to try and quell his anxiety, he has to do something productive. But your mind recognizes it as a distraction - you’re no stranger to coping mechanisms. 
“Have you figured out where you’re gonna go yet?” He questions, praying your answer isn’t far; lightning flashes outside the kitchen window, followed closely by the low rumble of thunder. 
You sigh as you lean back against the counter, “I’m not sure. Nancy was helping me talk through my options earlier, but it’s such a big decision to make. I wanna make sure it’s the right fit.”
Steve nods slightly, forehead creasing as he wipes his hands on the towel. And by the way he clenches his jaw at your reply, you know that this is the source of contention. 
You nudge his leg with your foot, “What about you? Get any responses back?”
The breath hitches in Steve’s throat; there’s no way this conversation doesn’t end with his reveal. The longer it takes for him to speak, the more concerned you grow. 
“I, uh-“ A sigh passes his lips as he grips the counter, keeping his focus away from you. He doesn’t want to witness your reaction. 
“I didn’t get in,” Steve mutters. He exhales, shaking his head in disbelief; until now, it almost didn’t seem real. It took admitting it to you for his brain to accept it. 
You shift on your feet, unsure of what to say. Over the past few weeks, you and Steve had been discussing how your relationship would persist once you both had made your college commitments. This wasn’t an outcome either of you prepared for. 
“Holy shit, Steve. I’m sorry…” You whisper. Steve pushes his face into his hands; his voice is muffled from behind his palms, “Yeah, yeah… holy shit.” 
You don’t hesitate any more to comfort him. Steve straightens as you place your hands on his arms; he melts into your touch, unable to prevent you from turning his body to face yours. 
“Hey, it’ll be fine,” You reassure him, “College isn’t the only option, you know. There are other things you could do.” 
The expression on Steve’s face breaks your heart. You’d do anything to wipe it away and brighten his mood. But Steve just sighs again, appreciating your efforts to help him, but nothing seems to be working. 
“How’d your parents react?” You ask. The only thing keeping Steve grounded to this moment is the firm grip you have on his shoulders; he thinks he’d float away without it. 
He scoffs a bit; the sound breaks the deafening silence that formed as he thought of a response. His eyes are still focused downwards as he finally answers you, “They don’t know yet. I just got the last letter today. I couldn’t think of going anywhere else.”
When your fingers brush against his cheek, Steve instinctively moves his hands to rest on your waist, “I’m sorry, I just-”
Steve finally lifts his head. Your eyes are wide, pupils filled to the brim with nothing but your fondness for him. All of a sudden, he’s confused why he was so scared to tell you. He realizes that he never should’ve doubted you. 
“I was scared this would change things. Or that you’d be disappointed in me or some shit.”
Your brow furrows as you laugh softly - baffled by his words, “What could ever make you think that I’d be disappointed in you?” 
A flash of previous memories answers your own question. You decide not to pull on that thread anymore. 
“This changes things,” You mutter. Your eyeline drops as you pause, choosing your words carefully before continuing, “But it doesn’t change how I feel about you.”
Finally, Steve feels a bit of relief. The sincerity in your voice calms the fear, and a deep exhale allows him to let it go. Your compassion and understanding permits him to begin thinking clearly again. He knew there was a reason he came here. 
You’re right though. This does change how you both navigate the future. But with you here to support him, Steve figures he’ll be just fine. 
“I mean…” The corner of your mouth curls up at the thought that pops into your head, “The only way my opinion of you changes is if you killed my brother or something like that.”
Steve chuckles slightly, “But Mike’s still fair game?”
“Oh yeah, go ahead,” You quip, “He’s had it comin’ for a while.” 
Even though your voices are hushed, the joke still makes you crack a pair of brilliant smiles; it almost makes Steve forget about his future for a moment. Standing here in your arms, Steve can’t help but realize how safe he feels. 
And then you sigh, reaching up to brush back a lock of his brunette hair - the sensation of your touch fills Steve with something new, something different. A direct contrast to the violent storm brewing outside, this is soft, warm, and golden. Like daylight.
Your eyes meet again. Honestly, he’s not sure he ever wants to look at anything else. 
Your hand lands on his chest, “This doesn’t make me love you any less.”
Steve throws caution to the wind - he kisses you. And already, you can tell that this is one you’ll remember. His lips are soft against yours, but without sacrificing an ounce of passion. You almost forget that someone could walk in and expose your relationship; when Steve finally pulls away, it doesn’t matter anyways.
As if you weren’t left breathless enough from his kiss, the words he mutters afterwards could’ve done it themselves. 
With one of his trademark smirks plastered across his face, Steve moves to hold your head between his palms, “Fuck, I love you.”
You kiss him again so quickly that you both didn’t have enough time to wipe the twinkling grins from your lips. Your noses are squished against each other, but neither of you cares enough. Your shared love dulls the pain. 
Steve smiles into the kiss even further. This is what it’s supposed to feel like.
—   taglist: @djjarin / @hannarudick / @crazycookiecrumbles / @hellisateenageheather / @alewifex / @l0ve-0f-my-life / @naomiiiiiiiiiii04 / @daddystevee / @thecaptainsgingersnap / @let-the-imaginationflow / @asianravenpuff / @im-a-stranger-thing / @mikariell95 / @pilunb / @harringtherin / @royalestrellas / @ultrunning / @buggs177 / @poutfull / @yoheyyosup / @duchessdaisybat / @janieavalos / @sassisaluxury / @beththebubbly / @i-bitch-you-bitch / @captainstilinskis / @juliebean247 / @im-nada / @whatabeautifulsurrender / @rexorangecouny / @pass-me-jeez-it / @ahoy-scoops-troop / @halefirewarrior / @jointhehunt67 / @peanutem / @ketchuplukehemmo / @m-a-r-i-n-t-p / @fangirl485 / @emmegirl827 / @lookalivesunshine-x / @elite4cekalyma / @marjoherbo / @just-my-fandom / @idumpyourgrass / @alafolieee / @mochminnie / @phantomalchemist / @dustyblueboo / @alonewolfsblog / @ggclarissa / @hufflepuffing-all-day-long / @bippityboppitybabe / @readinthegarden12 / @bakugouishusbando / @stxtch72 / @random-girl-army / @wisdaemon / @thatawkwardlittlefangirl
if you want be added to the taglist, just lemme know!
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sdvharveybby · 4 years ago
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How the Bachelors and Bachlorettes surprise the farmer on Valentines Day!
So, my friend @soft-bois-make-me-simp and I decided we wanted to collab for something on Valentines Day!! As this was our first time doing a collab with another person, we actually had a ton of fun throwing around ideas and getting stuff together! Not to mention that they had so many ideas that my mind was swimming, it was honestly so cool. I have a hard time writing about the bachelorettes, but they just blew me out of the water. I couldn’t have done this post without them and it was totally worth it. We had a ton of fun so we hope you enjoy this!!! All the Bachelors and Bachelorettes are below, thanks and WE LOVE Y’ALL. HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!!!
I did all the bachelors! @soft-bois-make-me-simp did all the bachelorettes!
Bachelors~
Harvey
Oh, he spends a lot of time trying to present you with the best Valentine's Day present. He researches ideas on how to do that. In the end, he decides he wants to surprise you with dinner at his place and he is prepared. Throughout the day he spends it gifting you different presents like flowers, little love notes, and even a box of chocolates! Then, he calls you up and invites you over. Opening the door to the clinic, rose petals line the floor leading up to his door upstairs. Stepping into his room, the lighting is low with candles and jazz quietly breaking up the silence in the background. There’s a table set up in the middle of the room with a lacy pink tablecloth, dinner is set up, and rose petals decorate the floor. “H-hey!” He says nervously to you, “I-I wanted to surprise you, d-do you like it?” Even without the room completely lit up you know he’s blushing, but you can see that he’s wearing a nice undershirt like he always wears, but without his long green coat, and he’s wearing dark dress pants. He approaches you and softly gives you a kiss on the cheek, he then pulls you into a big hug. The dinner was delicious and you two spend the time complimenting each other and being in each other’s company. After dinner you help him clean up, you then see that he had been researching on how to be romantic… by watching romance movies. His efforts to show you how much he appreciates and loves you shows no bounds. He walks you home and before you walk through the door he says, “I love you, you know? I really do love you.”
Elliott
You wake up at your usual time and head outside to do your daily chores. You head towards the mail box and it’s stuffed to the brim with letters! Eyes wide, every single one is addressed from Elliott, you carry the stack of letters inside and as you open them they’re all love notes with various dates on them. By checking each date you realize he had been writing love notes, with you mind, for an entire month! You check the one for today’s date and it’s the shortest letter within the stack. He explains that he wants you to meet him at his place around 8pm but he doesn’t explain why (his signature has many red hearts around it.) Arriving at his place at 8pm he greets with a big hug and a tender kiss, “I could hardly wait for you, my love!” In his small shack he put together a wonderful dinner for you two to enjoy. During the meal he explains his love for you the only way a poet would, it goes from him desiring your beauty over the sun to how excited he gets whenever you’re in view. After dinner he gestures for you to sit and relax on his bed. The evening ends with him playing the piano, he wrote a piece (for the first time) completely inspired by you and the love he holds for you… and only you.
Alex
He is up and ready at 6am. With groggy eyes you open the door to see Alex with a big goofy smile holding flowers. “Good morning! I just wanted to say that I love you!” He says this all in one breath and thrusts the flowers to you, “I’ll come pick you up at 6pm. I love you, bye!” It seemed over in a flash once you accepted the flowers, but he seemed confident and happy- you couldn’t deny his puppy dog eyes. At 6pm he strolls up the path, and linking your arm with his, you both begin to walk to the beach. Nervously scratching the back of his neck, he blushes and says, “You’ve been there for me a lot. I know I’m not book smart or anything, but you’ve been my-” he reaches in his pocket to pull out a scribbled note, “-light at the end of the tunnel. I’ve never loved anyone more than I’ve loved you,” He awkwardly laughs, and with the sun setting behind him he stops and holds both your hands in his. His eyes are full of love and devotion, “I found these in Zuzu City, I hope you like them,” He pulls out matching necklaces giving you the one with ‘A’ on it. “See, this one has your letter on it! I hope you like it,” You couldn’t say no and he helped you put the necklace on. With his large and goofy smile you two end the evening in each other’s company, holding hands and watching the sun set.
Sebastian
Sebastian gets really excited to show you a new DND adventure that he’s compiled for you two to play. He explains that he’s thought about this for a while and through a slew of note writing and trial and error, he is convinced that he has made you the best gift for Valentines Day. It’s an odd adventure that asks you to find Sebastian his one true love- you laugh thinking it’s just Sebastian being goofy but you play along. Through fighting and exploration you begin to gather clues as to who his true love is supposed to be, the clues are subtle but explain the personality and appearance of the one he wants to be with. At the end of the campaign you smile because all along, through all the notes you’ve gathered throughout the adventure, they all describe you. You are his one true love and the only one he wants to be with.
Sam
Sending you a letter in the mail, Sam explains he wants for you to be home around 8pm. Course you comply, a bit curious considering you had no idea what he had planned. Coming up the path, carrying his guitar, he gives you an awkward smile. He seems nervous and his voice sounds shaky when he greets you, “I wasn’t sure what to give you for Valentines Day, so I did what I know best,” he says, unlocking his guitar case. He gestures for you to sit and with a shaky voice begins to play the guitar and sing you a love song that he created himself. Sam avoids eye contact with you for a bit as he plays, unsure of how you feel about it, but as time went he grew more confident. When he locks eyes with you it’s filled with appreciation, love, and admiration. After finishing his song he gives you a hug and a kiss on the cheek- he didn’t want to be with anyone else.
Shane
Shane decides that he wants to take you out to the Stardrop Saloon for Valentines Day. He opens the door for you and as you two sit he gives you a peck on the cheek. You can tell he’s certainly trying as you see he has gel in his hair and he’s wearing clean clothes. “I… Look, I don’t do sappy stuff, b-but you know, I really enjoy your company and I-uh I wanted to try and do something special for you.” He explains as a blushy mess, he avoids eye contact with you as he says this, but you can tell by the sound of his voice that he really means it. Without ever ordering, Gus approaches the table with a big smile and sets down a pizza that’s in the shape of a heart! “I-uh… I really like you, you know. I’m not good with this stuff, but you mean a lot to me so let’s enjoy some pizza!” He remarks trying to divert the conversation from anything sappy. Through the rest of the night he spends it trying to make you laugh, and you didn’t know how late it had gotten until Gus had kicked you guys out. When he walks you home you see him noticeably get sadder, you realize that he never wanted the night to end.
Bachelorettes~
Abigail
Abigail wants to take you for an adventure. One where it’s quiet and a place only she knows about, or so she thinks. Telling you to clear your schedule that day and to meet near the wizard tower she’ll blindfold you. It’s a secret she wants to share with you, but when she reveals the secret forest you smile at her. Hesitating for a second to tell her that you’ve been here often though when she’s about to lead you to a dead end and you tell her; she knows it wasn’t a secret to you. She asks you to lead the way to the pond where she has a blanket prepared and asks you to sit down. Once you are settled she plays you a piece on her flute that you haven’t heard before. It’s calming and beautiful, you would even describe it as enchanting. After she finished she tells you it was an original piece inspired by you. 
Emily
Waking up you find Emily gone from her side of the bed. In her place was a wrapped up box tied together with a bow and a note saying Open. Inside was an outfit that was absolutely stunning in your favorite color. It was a more formal attire then what you both normally wear but that wasn’t all that was in the box. Another note attached to it saying she hopes you get a positive energy from the outfit as it was made with love. For another surprise please wear it and meet at the bus stop at 7pm. Wearing your new glamorous outfit that fits like a glove you see Emily dressed up and waiting for you. She takes you to ZuZu City where to your surprise the bus stops in front of a ballroom studio. Emily tells you she’s been taking a class on the “Dances of Love” and wanted to show you what she’s learned. You spend the rest of the night dancing, both getting lost in the music and each other. 
Haley
Haley didn’t mention to keep your schedule open or to come at a certain time but you knew Valentine’s Day was important to her. It was a day she looked forward too each year and you were excited to spend it with her. After the chores around the farm were done you headed to her house with a pink cake you made yourself and a sunflower pouch Emily helped you make. You put the cake in the kitchen and head to her room. She was standing in front of the vanity, but when you walked in you heard a closing noise, almost like a book being closed. She is holding something behind her back when you approach she shoves something into your hands. It’s a scrapbook decorated in pink and sunflowers with both your names on the cover in a heart. Opening it, it's a collage of photos she’s taken over the time you’ve spent together. Polaroids of the first gift you gave her, your date with the cows, some of the mornings you’ve spent together and all the events you’ve been to together. She goes over how special each moment is to her and tears up saying how much of a better person you made her. Thanking you for coming into her life and showing how beautiful a photo can truly be when you’re in it. 
Maru
Waking up you were excited as Maru asked you to meet her tonight. A special viewing of the stars with you space girl is something that always makes you happy. Though walking out you see all your crops have been waterd, in fact next to your crops were sprinklers. Confused, you walk to the mailbox where you find a letter from Maru telling you she built some sprinklers for you and if they are something you liked she’s happy to make more. She also reminds you about tonight and to dress warm! When the time arrives you head to the mountain and enjoy hearing her talk about space. That is until she mentions one star that you’ve never noticed before. She asks if you know the name but it’s one you are unfamiliar with. Maru smiles at your confusion. Telling you that for Valentine’s day her present besides the sprinklers, was getting you a star. A way that if you ever need to be reminded of her love just look up and know that she loves you more than all the stars in the sky. 
Leah
Everyone in town was buzzing about a big Valentine’s event happening this year. It was something that was kept a big secret and nobody in town knew what was happening just what time to go. Leah was not one to usually express extreme interest in going to town events but she seemed very excited for this one. If not to find out what was the big event you decided to go for Leah. She mentions having to finish up some work and she’ll meet you at the event so heading alone you’re floored when you see it’s an art show. Not just any art show but one Leah is putting on! It’s a Valentine’s day art show with each piece centered around the theme of love. She tells you how you inspired these pieces and how you are her muse. Not just for today but forever. 
Penny
Ever since the chili incident you have been trying your best to avoid Penny’s cooking. You love her, you really do and want to support her but cooking was just not a strong point. So when she asks you to a Valentine’s day picnic where she plans on cooking the food you’re a little hesitant but seeing her eyes light up talking about it you tell her of course. Walking into the forest you see her and a large basket next to her. She starts talking out dish after dish and encouraging you to try them all. You take a pepper popper and eat it. It was really good! You try all the different dishes from the stuffing to fish stew all delicious. She tells you she’s been practicing with Gus and is very happy to see you eating her cooking. Penny tells you she has one more surprise and gives you a book. It was your favorite book, looking inside you noticed a message. It was a message from the author, she got your book signed by your favorite author. Penny tells you to look on the last page as well where she wrote a note, although this book may be your favorite, our story will always be mine.
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jaewin97 · 4 years ago
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Forever
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This year for his birthday, Jaehyun’s only wish comes true.
Words: around 1k
Fluff
AN: this is my first written post so please bear with me! I wanted to create something for my valentine baby on his special day <3. 
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   Jaehyun sighed as he finally sat inside the designated car that was supposed to drive him home. He took off his mask and reached for his phone quickly turning it on to be met with the time reading 8 pm and your smiling face staring back at him. 
He noticed he had a notification of a new message from you and he quickly unlocked it and opened it already feeling his heart rate pick up.
"hey baby, I know you're probably still filming but I wanted you to know that I spent the whole day thinking about you. I hate that I can't be with you on your birthday but know that I love you and I am always thinking of you.
your birthday gift should have arrived by the time you get home. get some rest babe I'll call you tomorrow.
happy birthday my Valentine baby ❤"
   Jaehyun felt his heart flutter as he saw your message, answering you quickly about how much he loves and misses you and thanking you for your sweet message.
His heart hurt knowing you were miles away and he couldn't see you because of the current pandemic. He missed you so much and despite calling, face timing, texting, and even sending pictures and voice recordings to each other constantly it wasn't enough. He had to have you by his side. He truly didn't realize how much you meant to him until he hadn't seen you for almost a whole year. He realized that he never again wanted to spend time away from you. 
With a tap on his shoulder he was snapped out of his thoughts as his driver informed him that they had arrived at his dorms.
   Jaehyun walked out of the elevator once he reached the 10th floor and made his way to his door quickly inputting the code and entering his dorm.
The lights were all off which he found extremely weird seeing as though it was still fairly early and his members usually were up until late at night. 
‘They probably went out to eat’, he thought as he took off his shoes and placed his backpack by the door.
As soon as he stood back up the lights flickered on and a chorus of "Happy birthday Jaehyun" and "Surprise" were heard.
To say he was startled was an understatement. All 22 of his members were standing in the middle of the living room with party hats and confetti poppers which were being aimed at him. He couldn't help but laugh as he realized his members had set up a surprise party for him.
   One by one his members went up to him and congratulated him.
"Wow you guys really caught me off guard" he laughed as he pulled away from Taeyong who was the last member to congratulate him.
"Yeah it took a while to plan and organize because everyone kept forgetting what they were in charge of," Taeyong laughed as he pulled away from the hug and turned towards the members as he spoke.
Jaehyun finally noticed that they had hung up birthday banners with his face on them and had blown up balloons and placed them all around the dorm. Seeing all the efforts his members went through he couldn't help but feel extremely touched that they did this for him.
"We even have a special gift area since there were so many presents," laughed Mark as he joined in on the conversation, quickly pointing to a corner near the living room window where Jaehyun saw all the gifts Mark was mentioning. There were different sized bags, fruit arrangements, gift baskets, and a huge box was right in the middle of everything wrapped in a bright red paper with white hearts everywhere. 
"OH which reminds me, it's time for the gifts!" Taeyong shouted as he turned to gather all the members.
"Already?" Jaehyun questioned "I just got here" he laughed as Taeyong grabbed Mark by his arm and dragged him towards the living room.
"Yeah just open them right now that way we can eat after" Kun said as he made his way to sit on an empty seat on the couch.
"Okay" Jaehyun said as he tried to make his way towards the corner of the living room where the gifts were, carefully maneuvering his way around his members who were sitting on the floor since the couch was full.
"Here I'll help pass you the gifts" Winwin spoke as he stood up from the floor and made his way to Jaehyun. 
"Open mines first!" Jungwoo screamed from somewhere on the living room floor "it's the bag with a whale on it." Jaehyun spotted the bag and opened it revealing a new hoodie.
"Ah thank you Jungwoo! I needed a new one" he smiled at the younger boy.
"Open the big box next! it was already here when we arrived I'm curious as to what's in it" Johnny said from the couch.
"Oh really? I think it must be from yn then" Jaehyun spoke feeling himself get giddy at the thought that it could be from you.
"Wow look he mentioned yn and he's already blushing" Haechan laughed 
"Shut up" Jaehyun responded earning laughs from everyone else.
He stepped closer to the box and waited for Winwin to finish moving the other gifts that were surrounding it.
"Okay open it" Winwin said as he moved to the side and pulled out his phone, earning a questioning look from Jaehyun "it's so yn can see you received it" Winwin laughed .
"Hurry on now" Doyoung encouraged with a bright smile.
Jaehyun nodded as he reached for a corner of the wrapping paper that was slightly ripped.
He ripped it off revealing the top of the box and before he could go any further the top flew open earning a startled yell from him.
"Surprise!" 
He nearly fell on the floor if it wasn't for Lucas who quickly grabbed him from behind. no way, he thought, this is a dream! he shook his head and cleaned his eyes with the back of his hands and looked back at the box only to be met with you staring back at him with the most beautiful smile he had ever seen.
"It's real" Lucas laughed, making Jaehyun realize he was speaking out loud earning laughs from all 22 members.
"Get yn out of there Jaehyun!" Yuta laughed.
Jaehyun quickly snapped out of his trance and basically pounced on you the moment he and Winwin helped you out of the box. 
You pulled away a little bit and were face to face with a teary eyed Jaehyun.
"Wh-what are you doing here?" he said as he engulfed you in his arms.
“I came to surprise you for your birthday, but why are you crying baby?” you teased him as you wiped away a tear that managed to escape and roll down his dimpled cheek.
“I’m just so happy you’re here. I missed you so much I feel like I’m dreaming” he whispered as he leaned into your touch, completely forgetting you had an audience watching. At this moment in time there was no one else there but you and him. You were the only thing he saw.
“You’re not dreaming angel, I'm here.” you smiled as you pulled your hand away and instead wrapped it around his neck pulling him closer to you and finally feeling his lips on yours. 
Jaehyun relaxed into your touch and quite literally felt like there was an explosion going on inside his body. 
“I’m never letting you go” he whispered as you two finally pulled away to catch your breath, putting his forehead against yours. “Stay with me. Please”
You pulled back and watched him with wide eyes, not quit believing what you heard.
“I mean it. Move in with me, marry me. Just please don’t leave me again:” he said staring into your eyes and grasping your hands for dear life.
“Jae-”
“I love you. All this time that I couldn’t see you I realized that I never want to go through this feeling again. I want to be with you forever. I want to wake up with you by my side and I want to do it everyday for the rest of my life.” 
At this point your tears had started running down your face. No words can explain what you are feeling or even begin to grasp what’s running through your mind. The only thing you know is that you love Jaehyun and you want to spend the rest of your life with him too. So with a watery smile you nod a yes, not trusting your voice to say anything.
Loud cheers are heard throughout the dorm as Jaehyun quickly twirls you around and kisses you passionately as he sets you down. 
When you pull away you’re met with the rest of NCT clapping, whistling and even crying.
“I can’t believe we just witnessed this” Ten cried into Johnny’s arms as the elder rubbed his back and tried to calm him down.
“Wow, our Jaehyunie is growing up” Taeyong said with teary eyes.
    The rest of the night was full of laughter about how the members helped you and almost knocked you over while getting in the box, congratulations and hugs from your new family, and loving touches and kisses between you and your forever love.
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x-childish-x · 4 years ago
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Valentine’s Day Mystery Special! Part 3
How They Would Spend Valentine's Day With You!
Request: No
Warnings: Swearing, fluff
Word Count: 1243
A/N: Day Three! Here it is! The Mystery Valentine's Day Special! It's basically a brief list of some head-cannons of what spending V-Day with these characters would be like (from my opinion). SORRY THIS IS LATE MY COMPUTER DIED LMAO! Characters who receive their own special are not included on this list. Another reminder that requests are still open but will not be posted until after 2/15. However, you can send in a Valentine's Day request and I'll do my best to post it with the specials! If you would like an extension of any of these, send in an ask and let me know! I hope you enjoy!
Part Three: X-Men
Kurt Wagner
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Shyest person ever. Oh my god, so shy and awkward. He would be so shy that you almost didn't become his valentine, even if you were dating, because he was way too afraid to ask. And gifts? Oh god, for gifts he'd get so shy he'd probably teleport away by accident and then reappear and ultimately startle you from how quickly he disappeared and reappeared. He'd immediately begin to apologize about scaring you and about a "bad gift" because you'd have tears in your eyes. But the tears would be happy tears because Kurt would put literally SO MUCH time and effort and thought into your gifts. It'd take you a while to reassure him that they were indeed happy tears and not bad tears. Kurt loves you so much but he'd still be so shy and awkward about the whole day.
Warren Worthington iii
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Listen, I love Warren but he would be so full of himself. He likes Valentine's Day but mainly because it means that he gets chocolate and he gets you to spend the full day with him. He'd get you a stuffed animal and some candy/chocolate, he'd wanna watch a movie with you and probably would ask you to make dinner. You'd both share a lovely dinner but, overall, Warren's not the most romantic guy. He's the type of person who's into Valentine's Day for like two hours and then it's just another regular day (and he's not necessarily wrong). However, despite all this, he would spend the day making sure you understand that he loves you dearly and he appreciates you. You mean so, so much to him for giving him a chance after the whole Apocalypse thing, so he would definitely want you to understand your special and he loves you so much.
Erik Lehnsherr
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ROMANTIC. Oh my... I can't even begin to explain how secretly romantic this man is. Erik loves you, and I mean he loves you, and he 100% uses the excuse of Valentine's Day to flaunt it. He would wake you up with breakfast in bed of your favorite breakfast foods and he'd give you your favorite flowers and your favorite sweets. Erik would definitely pamper you the whole day and he would not be an ounce of shy about giving you gifts. He'd just be so happy to give you stuff. You'd watch a movie together and then he'd make you a gorgeous, candle-lit dinner. Of course you'd end the day taking a bubble bath together and he would be the freaking cheese to leave a trail of rose petals. Erik is the definition of romantic himself, so I have no doubt that he would love Valentine's Day for the sole purpose of getting to have an extra reason to spoil you all day because, "You are perfection and therefore, you should feel like perfection."
Logan Howlett
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Bless his heart, bless Logan's heart, but he definitely lets his ego get in the way. He'd definitely try to act all manly about the day because he doesn't like Valentine's Day that much. He would think flowers aren't manly so he'd get you some chocolates and something you'd been asking for for a long time, maybe he'd even make you something. Logan loves you more than he could ever actually express but he's just not the most romantic person, seeing as his past relationships never ended that well. Logan would definitely be watching some sports game and you'd kiss his cheek before getting up to like, refill your drink or something and this is when his guard would fall. He'd snatch your wrist and be like, "Where are you going? You're not leaving are you? I'm sorry I've been so.." and you'd just smile and raise your glass, quickly refilling your drink before coming back to sit beside Logan only to be yanked into his side and have a kiss placed to your temple as he'd mumble, "Love you so much, bub."
Wade Wilson
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Wade loves Valentine's Day so much. He'd get one of those corny Valentine's Day shirts and wear it with so much pride, and you can of course expect him to have matching Valentine's Day socks. You though? Oh you can bet your ass you are forced to stay in bed or on the couch. Wade barely even lets you lift a finger because, you're his queen and "Queens let their Kings serve them." He would get you anything and everything you wanted. Candy? He bought you enough to last you years. Flowers? You don't even have enough vases. Jewelry? You don't have enough body parts. Your first Valentine's Day, it took you maybe two hours to realize he was purposefully going over the top because... it's Wade. But you know his intentions are all good because holy fuck he loves you so much. However, when night comes Wade would literally get so flipping kinky with you because... again... it's Wade. One last thing, there's a 99.9% chance that Wade didn't even ask you to be his Valentine, he probably just demanded it.
Hank McCoy
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Hank is... well he really has no opinion on Valentine's Day. He doesn't dislike it but he doesn't necessarily like it. As for your date/gift exchange all I can say is picnic. Picnic, picnic, picnic, picnic! I can't stress this enough, Hank would take you on the cutest picnic you've ever been on. Like, it'd be next to some beautiful waterfall or on some hill with an outstanding view, but it'd be so cute and so neatly packed. He'd definitely be shy about giving gifts but would love the tiny squeal you'd left out when he'd hand you your favorite candy and something you'd mentioned a few times but not enough to suspect he'd actually paid attention. Hank is shy, so naturally he'd just want to spend the day appreciating you and making you happy. You'd be laid back in his lap, taking in your surroundings and Hank would mumble, "I'm truly the luckiest guy in the world."
Alex Summers
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This boy loves Valentine's day, can't express it enough. He full-heartedly believes that the mansion needs to be decked out in decorations, every single year. Alex is definitely not the most romantic person but he tries so hard to be romantic and his efforts definitely work. Not only would he get you chocolates and candies and flowers but he'd definitely be the person to get you balloons and a card. He would put so much thought into the gift because he'd definitely make it all into a little gift basket with all the gifts and the card would definitely bring you to tears.
Scott Summers
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Scott pretends to hate Valentine's Day but everyone knows he loves it. He loves seeing you smile and hearing your laugh. I touched a small bit on Scott in the Peter special. Definitely gives you flowers, and he would go more off of which flowers smelt the best rather than which were the "prettiest". Scott would totally get you chocolates and your favorite candy but he'd get you like those Lindt Lindor chocolates or Sees Candy. I feel like Scott would leave the whole day up to you. If you wanna watch a movie, sure! Which one? If you want to go out to eat, sure! Which restaurant? If you want to go exploring, sure! Where to first? Scott literally finds joy in seeing you happy so I think he'd just spend the entirety of Valentine's Day trying to make sure that you're as happy as possible.
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sugako · 4 years ago
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c+k: hinata
hinata x f!reader
sum: a long day of many dates with hinata 
cw: 18+ minors dni, nsfw, smut, lots of fluff, mentions of food/eating, fingering, slight exhibition, outside, implied sex, established relationship, l-bombs
wc: 2.2k
a/n: am i posting this 30 minutes before the end of valentines for c+k..yes,,
February 14th with Hinata was always a full day, so it came as no surprise when he shook you from your sleep early in the morning. Even though it was a yearly event you never grew tired of the special moments created each time. You had barely stirred an hour or so ago when he had silently risen to go for a run before the long day ahead. 
“Wake up, cutie, I made breakfast.” He kept his voice low to not disturb you too much, but the excitement was still evident in his tone. Sleep pushed aside you used his strong arms to help yourself sit up and stretch before slinking out of bed. 
“Thanks, Shoyo, I love you.” You clear the sleep from your throat and wrap your arms around him. With your head resting against his chest, still trying to blink the sleep away, you can���t see how big he’s beaming. He holds you close, rubbing away the tension and stress from your back and shoulders. After a long, quiet moment, you pull away and kiss him tightly on the cheek. “Let me brush my teeth and I’ll out, mmkay?” 
“Of course! Just hurry so it doesn’t get cold.” He urges with those perfect puppy dog eyes. You wouldn’t dream of dawdling around or taking your sweet time when you had such a perfect, hardworking boyfriend who obviously put far more effort into everything he did than maybe he should.
He pushed himself in all aspects of life. You hadn’t known him in high school, but he told you stories of his time playing volleyball with the Karasuno team, the first time they lost, all the times they won, and when they went to Nationals his first year. Some of the stories broke your heart to hear. He was hard on himself, something he covered up by his bright demeanor, but you always saw it. 
Sometimes your relationship was just as much of an effort for him as volleyball. He went over the top, pushing himself just a little too far, but it always worked out in the end even if he did stress you out every now and then. So you brushed your teeth a little too quickly and rushed out to the tiny dining area you shared. 
The small spread of your favorite breakfast food, most shaped or cut into messy little hearts. He was sitting, a little impatiently, absentmindedly typing on his phone. A warm smile lit up your face as you made your way over and sat across from him. Before you could even ask who he might be talking to, he threw his phone face down and spoke up. 
“Kenma.” He answered your unspoken question. “Was asking him about something I wasn’t sure about.” 
You nodded, taking a sip of the drink he had set out for you. The two of you dug in, mostly in silence until Hinata spoke up again.
“After this, we can go to the park to walk. If you want.” He half-asked and half-said through a bite.
“That sounds perfect, but can I give you my present now if we’re going out?” You stepped away from your finished plate before he had a chance to answer. 
“Yeah, sure!” He nodded quickly. 
You nearly jogged to the guest room where you had hidden his present, hoping that maybe this time he hadn’t snooped. Every year it was more of a game to hide his presents than it was to pick something out for him. This time when you found his gift the careful stack of odds and ends you had placed around it was completely intact and not a thing was out of place. Excited to see him genuinely surprised this time, you quickly shuffled back down the hallway.
You plopped beside him on the floor and handed over the medium-sized box, wrapped up as best you could in your favorite paper. 
“I forgot a card,” you explained as he ripped the paper back, “but I hope that’s okay.” 
His smile nearly dropped when he saw the outside. 
“These...How did you?” He sputtered out, throwing the paper to the side and tearing open the slick cardboard of the shoe box. Under the soft light of your house, his pretty, amber eyes grew glassy and his smile twisted up. “These are sold out everywhere and they were so limited. I don’t… I don’t understand…” 
They were pretty simple sneakers even if they were incredibly nice. He had picked them out forever ago, but they sold out in minutes and after that were near impossible to find. Thankfully, you had been one of the people who got them in the brief seconds they were available. According to the description, they were everything he was looking for in terms of shape, support, function, and even style. 
“I got lucky. Ordered them the second they dropped because I knew you wanted them and it was too late for Christmas and I couldn’t wait for your birthday.” You watched as he pulled them out and carefully inspected every little detail. 
“They’re perfect. They’re so perfect. I could have never imagined… I mean just growing up…” he cut himself off with a small shake of the head and threw himself around you before he got any more choked up. Hot tears stained the shoulder of your shirt as he let himself silently cry it out. He took a big, deep sigh to catch his breath and held you back at an arm’s length to admire you for a moment before pressing a long deep kiss against your lips. Cheeks still damp brushed against yours sweetly. “Thank you. I love you.” He finally said when you pulled away, brushing a stray tear from his cheekbone. 
“You’re welcome, I love you too.” 
...
The walk in the park was short and sweet. Really, he was just taking you to a little spot hidden by some trees and bushes so he could lay out a couple of thick blankets. It hadn’t been quite long enough since your breakfast for a full lunch for you at least, but he was happy to dig into the array of snacks he had packed.
After a second, much longer and slower walk around you found yourself in front of a movie theater. The only thing not sold out was a rough-looking action movie, but it didn’t matter much to either of you. Sitting through the movie, Hinata started stealing little kisses every now and then. Although he was the one who planned these long dates, he found himself wanting to just go home and growing impatient about halfway through every time.
His muscled hand kneaded and toyed with the soft flesh on the inside of your thigh. It wasn’t too distracting at first, but you practically choked on your water when his pinky slipped up and brushed against your clothed center. With a small smirk, he pulled his hand away and opted to lace his fingers with yours instead to hold himself back. 
As soon as the movie ended he rushed you out of the theater and back toward your home. You struggled to keep up with his pace, nearly tripping over your own feet. 
“Sho!” You giggled as he dragged you along behind him. “Sho, slow down, why are we running?!” 
“You’ll see! We have to be on time though.” He grinned back at you, not giving up his speed. 
When you got home he dragged you into the bedroom and made you cover your eyes - asking multiple times and, you assumed, checking to see if you were peeking. 
“Really, I promise. My eyes are closed.” You whined as he helped you sit on the edge of the bed. 
“Okay, okay. One second!”
Staying true to your word, you kept your lids shut, listening to him shuffle across the room. You hummed in confusion when you heard him fiddling in the closet before he headed back to stand before you. In your head, you carded through every possibility, but even though what happened next made so much sense, you were still a little surprised.
“Now open!” He commanded. You moved your hands away and blinked your eyes open, smiling as soon as you saw what he had displayed in his hands. 
“Shoyo…” Held up for you was the prettiest dress you had seen. It was far more expensive looking and far more eloquent than anything you currently own. “Thanks,” you said at last taking the slick fabric into your arms, “but why? I don’t even know where I would wear this.”
He rocked on his heels, trying to hold back a grin. “We had to hurry home because I got reservations at a really nice restaurant. I hope you like it, I didn’t think you had anything to wear, and I wanted to actually get you something real too so it felt right.” 
“How long until we need to leave?” You’re already shucking off your clothes to throw the dress on. Hinata tried to tear his eyes away from your bare chest and body in order to answer you, but it felt impossible. When you shimmied your panties off under the dress, going to the dresser to get different ones, he nearly came undone. “Shoyo?” You asked again, sitting down at the vanity and rushing to get ready. 
“Oh, yeah, uh like twenty minutes.” He managed to squeeze the words out, heading toward the closet for his suit. 
...
You thought dinner might be the end of the night, but you were mistaken. Hinata insisted that he drive home even though you had driven to the restaurant. As soon as he turned out of the parking lot you realized you weren’t going home. 
“Where are we going?” You asked a couple of minutes into the ride. 
“You’ll see, it’s not far. Just to the top of the hill.” 
“The overlook?!” You pipe up excitedly. He knows you love to sit out and look at the stars, especially with him by your side. 
“No, maybe, stop guessing.” He grumbles, putting a hand over your knee. 
The feeling of his rough fingers through the soft fabric of your dress, rubbing little circles into your skin, distracts you from ruining his last portion of the day. A little tired from the day, the two of you remain mostly silent for the rest of the short ride up the hill. 
It was exactly as you expected. Thankfully, the sky was completely clear, and away from the bright city lights, it was much easier to see the stars up here. They glistened and sparkled like little gems against black velvet. Hinata laid out the same blankets from earlier, grabbing out a third to combat the cool night air. 
You snuggled next to him under the plush quilt, pushing your cold fingers under his neatly tucked dress shirt and against his warm, toned stomach. He squirmed under your touch but didn’t make any move to make you stop. 
“C’mere if you’re cold.” He mumbled out, pulling you closer. His hands settled under the swell of your breasts, distracting you from the pretty constellations. Fingers tapped against your skin and fiddled with the fabric of the dress until your breathing was uneven. No one was around, but you couldn’t help feeling a little ashamed that you were panting in his arms out in the open. 
“Sho…” You sigh when he hikes up the skirt around your hips and slides a finger against your clothed slit. 
“You’re really wet, what were you thinking about, hmm?” He groaned, pushing the thin fabric to the side. 
You let out a little gasp when you heard the quiet squelch from between your thighs. The roughened tips of his fingers slipped up and down, spreading the slick around your lips. Not bothering to tease you, he focused in on your clit. Along with putting an amazing amount of effort into the romantic part of your relationship, he did the same with the sexual parts as well. It wasn’t really a bother that he wanted to ‘practice’ that part so much. 
Keening against him, you felt yourself growing closer to the edge. Your pants were coming out louder and whinier now, echoing in the silent night. He eased two fingers in, making sure to press his palm against your throbbing bud. They expertly curled and pumped inside of you, hitting every spot you couldn’t quite get on your own. 
“Come on,” he whispered against the shell of your ear, “cum on my fingers.” 
His words were the last thing you needed to push you just over. When your cunt clenched and pulsed around his fingers he accidentally let out a low moan, imagining how your pretty pussy would feel around his cock. Hips twitched against his hand as he slowed his motions, easing you off your high. You called out his name in a hoarse whisper, grabbing onto the fabric of his pants to steady yourself. 
As you caught your breath, he helped to smooth your dress back out. You rolled over to press a messy kiss against his neck and loosely hold him. 
“Did you have a good time?” He asked quietly, sitting up and helping you with him. The question was sincere, but you could tell he couldn’t wait to get home to finish what you had started. 
“Amazing.” 
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kitazura · 4 years ago
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it’s the thought that counts, tendō satori
1.6k words of fluff; gn!reader
synopsis: tendō doesn’t understand the excitement surrounding valentine’s day until he decides to celebrate it with you.
notes: i haven’t finished the manga but i’m making timeskip content :D thank u rissie (@sugas-cookie) for beta-ing mwah <3
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Tendō’s come to learn that Valentine’s day brings waves of purchases made by eager youth preparing to confess their affections, frantic lovers who’d completely forgotten about the occasion, and other last-minute shoppers looking for gifts to give their loved ones. This year is no different; the orders pile up so quickly he can barely keep up with them.
He’s not complaining—not when his bills are getting paid—he just doesn’t understand why everyone lets themselves get carried away by the Valentine rush. At the root of it all, it’s blatant commercialism, another scheme by society to run your bank account dry through obligatory benevolence, so why play into it? Well, as long as it keeps him in business, he supposes he’ll keep his critiques to himself.
“Don’t you think you’re being a little cynical?” you say when he shares his thoughts, the gentle smile on your lips showing you mean no harm. “I think the idea behind Valentine’s day is charming.”
He brushes his thumb over your cheek, humming in response. “Why’s that?”
“Isn’t it sweet when someone puts time and effort into something just for you?” you gush. Tendō watches your gaze turn dreamy as your mind wanders off into the clouds. “Like making chocolates for the person you like.”
“That’s what I do for a living, darling.”
“You like all of your customers?”
“Of course; they give me money, after all.”
You laugh, swatting his arm lightly. “I guess it’s hard to romanticize something you do as work.”
You’re not wrong. At some point, it’s expected for your job to lose its magic, no matter how passionate you are about it in the beginning. Chocolate has long lost its allure to Tendō, and now he spends day in and day out pouring it into molds and hurrying to shape it before it hardens beyond salvation. It’s become a chore for him, and even just catching a whiff of a candy bar sends his brain into the stress of work mode.
“What do you think about when you make chocolate, Satori?” you ask, interrupting his thoughts.
“What an odd question,” he remarks, clicking his tongue like a fussy mother hen. “I think about what I have to do to make it look presentable, of course. And then I count down the minutes until I come home to you.” He beams, proud of his response.
But pride turns to dismay when he catches a glint of disappointment in your eyes. His expression falls as he pulls you closer. “What’s the matter?”
You shake your head. “Nothing, nothing. Would you ever make me Valentine’s day chocolates?”
He tilts his head in surprise, then kisses your forehead. “I’d make you chocolate any day; all you have to do is ask.”
You seem to drop the matter, although he swears you sigh, “It’s not the same.”
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He spends the next couple of days convincing himself he’d only imagined it, but something about your tone and attitude makes it stick in his brain. Whether you’d said it or not, there was clearly something behind your first question.
He asks you about it over dinner: “Is there a reason you want Valentine-themed chocolates in particular?”
“You’ve been thinking about that?” You laugh a little, surprised. “It’s not the Valentine theme I want; just the knowledge that you’re thinking of me on that day.”
He pesters you to elaborate—he’s always thinking of you, don’t you know that?—but you dodge his questions, leaving him in the dark once more.
Since you won’t give him any answers, he’ll just look for them on his own.
He texts Ushijima that night: “Why do you buy chocolate for the one you love?”
“Because they like it,” comes the reply. It’s simple, straightforward, but it’s not what he’s looking for.
He texts Semi the same question. The response is the length of a school essay, explaining the motivations of love in depths only a poet could reach, but it’s still not enough.
At work, your question echoes in his mind: What do you think about when you make chocolate, Satori?
What was he supposed to think about aside from the process? His customers?
He looks again at the order he’s making. It’s one he expects every year—it comes a week before Valentine’s, by a man whose wife adores chocolate covered strawberries. Tendō remembers it not only because of its consistency, but also because it’s always preceded by an order by the aforementioned wife, who asks for milk chocolate filled with raspberry créme that her husband is so fond of.
He wonders why they order the same thing at the same time every year. There’s no surprise in it, so what’s the point? Had he been in the husband’s place and you in the wife’s, he’d make sure to buy you something different every year, each present more extravagant than the last. He’d make sure that you’d always have something to look forward to in your married life.
A cheery little tune takes form beneath his breath as he pictures a life with you: silver bands around your fingers, lazy mornings on your days off, walks along the Seine.
He sweeps the excess chocolate off the molds in one clean stroke, sighing dreamily. You would buy a bigger, better apartment once you’d saved up enough, or even move to a quiet little cottage in the countryside.
His thoughts wander through the clouds as he mindlessly flits from one project to the next, forgetting to count the hours until his duty for today is through.
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Lately, some of Tendō’s usual customers have been dropping by to say the same thing: there’s something different about his work these days. It’s not negative; on the contrary, actually, the quality’s spiked. But he can’t figure out what he’s been doing differently for the life of him.
It weighs on his mind from the time he clocks in to when he clocks out. He’s been using the same ingredients, the same equipment, so what was it?
His answer arrives in the form of the Chocolate Strawberry man, on the very eve of Valentine’s.
The man enthusiastically shakes Satori’s hand and thanks Him for his work, his hands warm and clammy from excitement despite the biting Parisian air.
“My wife would have liked to come along as well, but she’s preoccupied with the baby,” the man explains. “She wants you to know how much she enjoys your work, though. We look forward to it every year.”
“Then why not buy it off-season, when it’s cheaper?” Tendō asks. The man looks surprised, prompting him to continue. “With all due respect, you order the same thing every year, anyway, so why wait?”
The man laughs at the sincere look of curiosity in the chocolatier’s eyes, patting him on the shoulder, like a father to his son. “Why wait until birthdays to buy a cake? Why wait until Christmas to exchange gifts and set up the tree? It’s old advice, but it’s good: it’s always the thought that counts.” With one last pat on the back and an affectionate chuckle, the man wishes Tendō a good night—“Enjoy tomorrow with your loved ones.”
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The stores are packed with the usual extremely last minute rush on Valentine’s morning, and for the first time, Tendō Satori is part of that crowd.
His arms are filled with the goodies he’d woken up early to buy: heavily discounted candies in tacky packages, a cheesy card, a bouquet, an offensively pink stuffed bear, crumpled foil balloons. (He’d made chocolates for you too; those were waiting in the fridge at home.) If it was an authentic Valentine’s experience you wanted, he decided, then it was an authentic Valentine’s experience you’d get.
He’d sent you out to pick up a cake across the city just before he’d left that morning, so the apartment is still empty when he returns. He checks his watch—only half an hour at most until you’d come back. Setting the bear on the counter, he gives it a determined grin.
“Think I can set everything up in fifteen?”
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He’s just barely managed tying the balloons closed when he hears the knob on the front door jiggle as you unlock it.
“I’m home!” Your shoes thud to the floor, joined by Tendō’s footsteps as he hurries to help you with the cake. You thank him when he takes it out of your hands and leads you to the dining table while you chatter away. “Boy, did you see how many people are out there? It’s like all of Paris decided to run their errands this morning. It’s a miracle I got the cake here in one piece—what’s all this?”
Tendō grins, proudly motioning to his handiwork. The bouquet sits in the center of the table, surrounded by neatly arranged dishes of your favorite foods. The plush bear sits at the head, the card and candies tucked into its paws. Balloons reading “Happy Valentine’s” are tied to your chairs, gently swaying to and fro in greeting.
“Do you like it?” he asks. “I figured you wanted to do something for Valentine’s, but all the restaurants are booked so I had to improvise—”
You cut him off with a kiss, and another, then another. “I love it! I love you and I love”—you wave at the room—“all of this.” Another kiss to his cheek. “Thank you for thinking of me, Satori.”
He laughs as you hug him, squeezing as tight as you can. He thinks back to the strawberry man’s remark, “It’s the thought that counts.” And maybe, just a little, he’s starting to understand that there’s more to Valentine’s than business.
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As you prepare the cake and gush over the bear, he pats the pocket of his jacket. The pretty little velvet box would have to wait until after lunch.
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postscript: heyyy <3 i stopped writing for like three months srry LMAO but im back in business baby !! if i try hard enough and school stops kicking my ass maybe i’ll start posting twice a month ahaha ... unless?
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onechicago-upsteadrhekker · 4 years ago
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I’d go black and blue (to make you feel my love) - Upstead one-shot
I’m an hour late for posting on Valentine’s Day but better late than never right??
I wrote this for the @upsteadofficial Love Song Prompt Challenge! It’s probably a little different from a typical V-Day fic but what can I say? I apparently love angst and hurting my own feelings.
Also a HUGE shout out to @mashleighh! Thanks for listening to my ramblings, checking my stuff and always making things better❤️❤️
I hope you all enjoy it!
Read on AO3
Worrying her lower lip between her teeth, Hailey watched Jay slip down the hallway dodging the various cops coming in and out of the run-down house before he turned the corner and disappeared from her view.
Blinking, she tried to push down the urge to follow him. She had a job to do and she’d told Jay she would cover for him, but the text Jay had just showed her mere seconds before settled uneasily in her gut.
Jim. I need your help. Please come over.
“Hailey!”
She gave a start, turning to Kevin who had clearly been calling her a few times, a puzzled look on his face as he tried to get her attention. Realizing she was still standing in the middle of the busy hallway, she moved off to the side with Kevin to let forensics pass.
“You okay?” Kevin asked, his eyes following a couple of patrol officers passing them before turning his gaze back on Hailey, “I called your name like five times. Where’s Jay? Sarge wants to know if you found anything from the security footage.”
Whatever Kevin had just said didn’t register; her eyes still trained down the hallway Jay disappeared through. Sliding her gaze back to her coworker, Hailey gave his chest a distracted pat already moving towards the front of the house, “I need to go. Will you cover for me?”
But before she could leave, Kevin gently grabbed her arm, “Hold on. What’s going on, Hailey?”
She turned back to him, sucking in a breath as she debated over how much she should tell him.
“It’s nothing serious,” Furrowing her brow, she shook her head, “Not yet anyways, but I need to go make sure Jay doesn’t do anything reckless.” She saw Kevin opening his mouth to say something, but she cut him off, “Kevin. Please. Just do this for me, okay? I know what I’m doing.”
Hailey flashed a small, reassuring smile at his concerned expression before she took off in the same direction Jay had a few minutes ago hoping that for once, the sick feeling in her gut was wrong.
*
Her headlights lit up Jay’s truck as she quickly pulled over to park behind it, turning off the engine to sit in the dark for a couple of seconds as she decided what she should do.
It was obvious he wasn’t in the truck and the nagging feeling that something wasn’t quite right wouldn’t leave her alone. After a brief debate in her head over whether she should go undercover or not, the over-cautious part of her won out, quietly opening her car door and tucking her gun into the back of her waistband.
Hailey definitely didn’t want Angela Nelson to find out who Jay was and her by association, but she wasn’t about to enter a situation blind without him and not have a firearm.
She crept up the worn stairs and cautiously peeked into the windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of Jay doing nothing but repairing a broken appliance.
If that was the case, she could then creep back down the steps, shake her head in annoyance for overreacting and never tell him that she’d followed him, but as soon as she saw the front door slightly cracked from where it had been kicked in, her heart sunk, knowing that she was right to worry.
Swallowing hard, she ordered herself to get it together so she could get Jay out of whatever mess his big heart got him into. She was a cop; she knew better than to jump to conclusions without evidence.
But then the part of her that quietly dreamed dangerous dreams and lingered on forbidden hopes also knew all the scenarios running through her mind were very real possibilities
The house was deathly quiet, and it made the hair stand up on the back of her neck as she carefully swung the door in and edged into the living room as quietly as possible, her hand never straying far from where she’d hidden her gun.
Hailey was barely a few feet inside when she heard the distinctive click of a safety being flipped off followed by cool metal touching her temple, “Make a move and you die.”
Before she could react, she was pistol-whipped in the back of the head. Her last conscious thought to dump her star and pray that Jay was still alive.
*
When Jay came to, the first thing he noticed was that his hands were tied behind his back, the second was that he was in some sort of basement and the third was that he wasn’t alone.
His head was pounding, and his vision was blurry, but he would know that blonde hair anywhere.
At first, he thought his mind was playing cruel tricks on him. He hoped his mind was playing cruel tricks on him because why would she be here?
God, she shouldn’t be anywhere near here. Not like this, not laying on the cold, hard floor, unmoving.
He blinked a few times, her facial features partially hidden by blood-matted, blonde hair coming into focus.
His heart stopped and his breath shuttered in his chest. His worst nightmare just came alive right in front of him because it was Hailey. Passed out and tied up a few feet away, out of his reach.
A million questions ran through his head of how, why and who but the most prevailing one was if Hailey was still alive.
Desperate, Jay tugged on his restraints, ignoring the pain it caused his shoulders and wrists. Squeezing his eyelids shut as he strained away from the pole he was tied up to and towards Hailey’s still form.
He had to get to her.
Tears that had nothing to do with the physical agony he was in sprang to his eyes as he realized there was no way he was getting out of the binds he was in. The steel chains were trussed behind his back and around the pole in such a way that he didn’t have much slack if any at all.
Just out of reach. A cruel twist of fate, mocking him. Reminding him that she was always just out of his reach. That she was there with him but not in the way he truly wanted.
Except now, in this moment, it wasn’t metaphorical. And god if that didn’t anger him even more than his cowardness in telling Hailey how he really felt about her.
Because there was nothing he could do. Her skin was unnaturally pale, and he needed to put pressure on her sluggishly bleeding head wound but the damn chains wouldn’t budge. He trained his eyes on her upper body, watching intently.
Was she even breathing? God, he couldn’t tell.
*
“Hailey!”
She was floating in that state between restlessness and unaware, not sure where her dreams stopped and reality started.
“Hailey!”
Jay’s voice wasn’t uncommon in her dreams, but he wasn’t saying her name in the husky manner that she’d come to assign to her night visions.
“God, Hailey! Please do something--say something. Anything! Please…”
Why was he being so loud? And why was her bed so hard?
“Please, just let me know you’re alive.”
It was the sound of his voice breaking that brought her back to the present.
The text message. Angela Nelson. Following Jay.
Jay. His voice. He was alive, thank god.
A sharp pain shot through head when she tried to open her eyes and that’s when she remembered getting knocked out. She moaned, trying to take stock of her injuries over the pounding that slowly surfaced to accompany the harsh stabbing. Her hands were bound in front of her and her ribs hurt from an injury she doesn’t remember receiving.
“Hailey! Oh, thank god!” She heard Jay croak out followed by a murmured, “She’s alive. She’s alive,” Clearly talking to himself.
And that’s when she realized he must have thought she was dead.
Oh, Jay.
He must be tied up far enough away from her to not be able to check for a pulse. Knowing that if he were able to move, he would be right there next to her.
She redoubled her efforts to open her eyes so she could at least see him and reassure him that she was okay. Maybe figure out where they were and ask if they could manage an escape or if they should sit tight, knowing that Jay had probably already run all the possibilities through his mind.
Groaning, she forced her eyes to open and she found herself thankful for dim lighting, “Jay?” She managed to rasp, trying to figure out exactly where he was in relation to her.
“Yeah, I’m right here Hailey.” He paused, and she could almost hear the way his jaw clenched in frustration at not being able to move, “Can you come over here? I just need—I need you over here. Next to me.”
If they weren’t in such a dire situation, Hailey might have downright swooned at hearing those words fall from his lips after she’d recovered from the shock. As it were, her heart was beating a little too fast in her chest and that feeling in her stomach might just be borderline butterflies.
Clearing her throat, she answered, “Just give me a sec.”
She slowly stretched each of her limbs as much as she could with her hands tied in front of her, carefully checking what hurt and what didn’t before she even attempted to sit up. Once she was satisfied that she wasn’t majorly injured, Hailey turned so that she was lying flat on her back which instantly caused her head to spin and her stomach to churn.
Letting out a low groan, she closed her eyes and willed herself not to be sick as the world slowly stopped spinning.
“You good?” Jay’s worried voice cut through the dizziness.
She sucked in a deep breath and decided it was best not to lie about her condition, “Yeah. Just feeling a little sick. I’m like ninety-five percent sure I have a concussion.”
Before he could respond, Hailey forced herself to sit up, using her abdominal muscles since her hands were tied in front of her. If he said anything to her after that, she didn’t hear it, white noise flooding her eardrums as she desperately tried not to pass out.
The comforting words of “Breathe, Hailey. Just breathe,” reached her as she started to become accustomed with sitting upright, finally feeling confident she could open her eyes without seeing stars.
She was facing Jay, and the first thing she noticed was the blood coating his hairline and running down his neck. His lip was a little bloodied and his eye was slightly swollen, and it made her stomach clench in a way that had nothing to do with her head injury.
Gingerly, she scooted herself over to his side, grateful he was only a few yards away and angered as she realized that the way he was tied up meant he didn’t even have an inch of slack.
When she finally maneuvered herself so she was sitting shoulder to shoulder with him, she couldn’t stop herself from leaning her head on his shoulder. She told herself it was because she was still dizzy, and while she knew that was part of it, she knew she craved the comfort of being physically connected more.
And if Jay resting his head on top of hers was any indication, then he needed that physical touch just as much as she had. Silently reassuring themselves and each other that they were here. Together. Alive.
After a few minutes, Jay broke the silence, “What are you doing here Hailey?”
She couldn’t help the humorless uptick of her lips at the irony of the situation, “Well, I had a bad feeling, so I pinged your phone and followed you in hopes of getting you out of trouble.”
Glancing up at him, she gestured half-heartedly to the basement they were in, “You can see how well that turned out.”
When he didn’t say anything, Hailey lifted her head so she could get a better look at him. Careful eyes roamed over his slightly slumped form, checking him more thoroughly for injuries.
Now that she was closer to him, she could clearly see the beginnings of a black eye and an obviously split lip. The blood from his hairline mingled with blood that seeped from a wound on the back of his head, running sluggishly down the slope of neck and into the collar of his shirt.
She was relieved to not see any blood lower down on his shirt or pants, so she concluded that the most damage had been made to his face. His head injury did concern her slightly but he seemed pretty lucid so she figured it couldn’t be that bad.
Hailey knew it could be a hell of a lot worse, and that thought was what prompted her to raise her bound hands and gently touch his face in the pretense of checking his wounds but really, she was just reassuring herself that he was okay.
A lump formed in her throat when she thought about what she could have woken up to.
Shaking the thought away, she dropped her hands, sighing, “What happened, Jay?”
She felt more than saw his frustration. At himself, at the situation--she wasn’t entirely sure, but she had a pretty good feeling that it might be both.
“I got to Angela’s house and when I knocked, there wasn’t an answer, so I kicked in the door. The next thing I knew I was being hit in the back of the head with a pipe or something and then I woke up here.”
He tilted his head back, resting it on the beam he was tied up to. His eyes fluttered closed and she could see his throat working, “God, Hailey,” He turned to her and she was slightly surprised to see tears swimming in his eyes, “When I saw you lying over there, not moving. I-I thought my heart had been ripped right out of my chest. You scared me so bad. I didn’t know why you were here—I didn’t even know if you were alive.”
The way he was looking at her felt dangerous and she couldn’t help but think that they had been here before. Not even four months ago, standing in the breakroom when the threat of being torn apart was looming over their heads. When she was afraid to really look at him; afraid of what she’d find in his eyes if she did.
But today, right in that moment, when they were tied up and unsure of what the future held, she looked. She looked him right in the eyes and she clearly saw what he’d been telling her every time she’d caught him looking at her from across Molly’s and in every knowing glance they shared in the bullpen.
In the way he always checked with her silently before busting down a door, telling her without words that he had her back. In the way he told her he trusted her only using in his eyes.
And now. He looked at her like she was the very breath he needed to breathe. Like the world could crumble and he wouldn’t even blink.
He was looking at her like he was just realizing what love was; his eyes telling her that he loved her.
He was opening his mouth to say something. She wasn’t sure what—it might have even been those three little words, but before he had a chance to get it out, there was a commotion from the floor above, breaking their gaze.
They were suddenly brought back to steel chains and dirty basements, reminding them of the danger they were in. If they didn’t figure out a plan, their great love story could be over even before it had the chance to begin.
“Do you know why we’re here?” Hailey asked a little shakily, drawing back when she realized how close she was to Jay’s face.
Blinking, he did the same and she could almost see the spell fully breaking as he slipped back into level-headed detective.
“From what I gather, Angela helped some friend of hers steal some drugs. The people who she stole them from didn’t take it too kindly; she called me and now we are here,” He said it in the weary manner of one who had been there and done that way too many times.
And sadly, they had, but this time it was different because they were the ones caught in the crossfire.
Hailey sighed, wincing slightly from her bruised ribs, “Where’s Angela?”
Jay shrugged, “She was here when I woke up. She’d been shot in the side, passed out. The two guys who have us carried her out of here; said something about dropping her off at a hospital because they didn’t want any unnecessary blood on their hands. And besides, it was pretty clear she wouldn’t be able to give them any information. Not in the condition she was in.”
Sighing himself, he turned his head towards her, “I don’t what they ended up doing with her, and frankly I don’t care at the moment. I’m more worried about getting us out of here.”
That wasn’t like him to just disregard someone he’d been trying to help—or anyone for that matter—for his own gain, but she had a sneaking suspicion that he really meant he was more worried about getting her out of here.
He was always putting others before himself. Her especially now that she thought about it, and she knew it was just another way of him telling her he loved her.
As soon as they got out of this mess, they needed to have a talk.
“Alright,” She nodded, “So what’s the plan?”
Jay’s heart swelled. Those words, the sure look on her face, the absolute trust she held in her eyes. She was looking to him for guidance, entrusting him to get them out of this without even one ounce of hesitation.
The love he felt for her only seemed to grow with each passing second and he was tired of hiding it. He’d intended on telling her, showing her exactly how he felt, but then he was reminded of the situation he’d dragged her into and the need to protect her outweighed anything else.
And it was because he loved her so much that he needed her to be safe. If anything happened to her—
He knew there was no coming back from that.
Once they got out of here, he was going to tell her everything he’d been harboring in his heart for what felt like ages. He was going to lay it all on the table; that she was it for him and even though he was terrified at the thought of losing her, he was going to work his ass off to make this work. To show her that they could do this.
He knew he had made mistakes in the past, especially regarding his love life and he knew that being together and working together had its fair share of challenges, but he wasn’t about to let her go. Not when he finally found the girl he knew he was meant to be with.
The sound of a heavy steel door clanging shut snapped him out of his thoughts and if he subconsciously tried to inch in front of Hailey despite his restraints, she didn’t call him out on it.
“They don’t know we’re cops, and you know nothing,” Hailey heard Jay rapidly whisper to her before turning back in time to see their two captors appear at the bottom of the steps.
The taller of the two made a beeline straight towards them and Hailey could feel Jay tensing up, using his broad shoulders in an attempt to shield her. It didn’t do much good because the next thing Hailey knew, she was being jerked up, a gun pressed to her temple.
“You are going to tell me right now where those drugs are,” The man’s words were harsh, his breath was heavy on her ear and she could smell the vodka on him.
Jay looked panicked but in control as his jaw clenched in barely restrained fury. She couldn’t help but notice how hot he looked, and she immediately kicked herself for even thinking it under these circumstances.
“She doesn’t know anything,” He practically growled, “Let her go.”
Vodka man brandished his gun menacingly towards Jay before returning it to the side of her head, “She was at that house! There was a gun in her waistband! She knows something!”
Hailey kept quiet, trying to weigh the risks of attempting to knock him out but she decided against doing anything while the other guy was lurking in the shadows. With Jay tied up and unable to move, she knew she wouldn’t be able to take both of them down, especially while tied up herself.
The words that fell out of Jay’s mouth next made her heart beat wildly, and not in a good way, “I’ll tell you all I know, okay? Just take me and leave her alone!”
But that was a lie. He didn’t know anything, and she knew once these guys figured that out, there was no telling what they would do to him. He flashed her a look, pleading with her to be silent, to let him do this for her.
She didn’t want to, but she knew that the best chance of their survival was to do what Jay was asking. So, she stayed silent, glaring when Vodka Guy threw her down and unchained Jay from the pole, leaving his arms bound before hauling him up.
Hailey watched as Jay was shoved towards the steps, his eyes never leaving hers until he was out of her sight.
*
A series of muffled cries suddenly broke the relative silence she’d been sitting in for the past hour and it took all of her might to not scream out his name as she desperately fought with the chains wrapped around her wrists and feet. There were tears brimming in her eyes and she could feel her heart shattering.
They were low, guttural shouts filled with pain and she could only imagine what they were doing to him to make him sound like that. Jay was the toughest person she knew, had endured things beyond her comprehension and hearing him like that scared her.
And knowing that he was in pain for her and that there was nothing she could do about it made her physically sick.
But more than that, she was livid at the people doing this to him. How dare they touch a hair on his head? How dare they do this to him? That this was to be his payment for doing something so kind, so good in a world filled with hate.
Jay was a good man—a great cop—with a golden-heart that wouldn’t let anyone stand in his way of what he thought was right and that was what she loved most about him.
She loved him. And she wasn’t afraid to admit any more.
If this whole experience had taught her anything it would be to not hold back. Life is short, and she knew that. She’d been in similar spots before and had these same profound revelations about how precious life was, but today felt different.
Because the truth was, he had her heart, completely and irrevocably. He had it before she even had the chance to say no and the way she loved him made her question whether she’d ever truly loved anyone before.
She’d been scared before. Falling in love with another partner; just falling in love in general. It was risky and scary and honestly downright terrifying. But what she felt for Jay, she was starting to realize was worth the risk.
Life wasn’t without risks, and experience taught her that a lot of the time she ended getting hurt when she took them, but right here, right now, listening to Jay literally telling her and showing her how much he loved her in every scream, she knew the potential of what they could have wasn’t pointless or without reason.
It was the whole damn universe.
And if someone asked her right here and right now, she would give up her spot in Intelligence, her career, her life, everything—all without a moment’s hesitation, and she would do it all for Jay.
Being thrust into this situation with him has removed any old inhibitions and the lines that were being carefully walked had been completely eradicated.
The whisperings of her heart that had once told her she should give it a try, that he felt the same were now roaring inside of her with words of “I told you so.”
And it was ripping her heart apart.
After all, they say actions speak louder than words and right now, Jay was screaming.
*
It was silent now, and it had been for a little over an hour. Hailey was starting to think she’d rather hear Jay be in pain than sitting in the quiet, wondering if he was unconscious, bleeding out, or worse, already dead.
The only thing that had kept her from going totally down the rabbit hole of worst-case scenarios was attempting to get out of the chains she was in. She was grateful that she hadn’t been tied to the pole as Jay had been, giving her the mobility to scoot around the floor in hopes of finding something that could help her out of her restraints.
She was done waiting for the team. She needed to get them out of there as quickly as possible even if she didn’t know exactly how she was going to go about it yet.
A few minutes into her search, she’d found a file and she’d been diligently sawing back and forth at the weakest part of the rusty chains for last hour or so. It seemed to be working, and she felt like she was finally getting to a point where she could just break them by applying some outside pressure.
The sound of a door banging shut caused her head to snap up and she quickly hid the file in her back pocket. What she saw then she knew would be haunting her dreams for years to come.
The nicer of their two captors had Jay’s arm slung around his shoulder, practically dragging him down the steps before he deposited him in a heap beside her.
“What did you do to him?” Hailey couldn’t help but gasp out, already moving to shield Jay protectively.
He didn’t say anything, and she could see the remorse in his eyes as he headed back up the stairs and out the only door to the basement. As soon as he was gone, Hailey turned to Jay, fighting back the tears at seeing him in this condition.
There was significantly more blood in his hair, his lips were split in multiple places and she was pretty sure he had two black eyes, but that wasn’t what looked the worst. His shirt was torn, and she could see significant burn marks from a taser dotting his chest along with what looked like shallow cuts from a knife.
“Jay,” She whispered brokenly, hoping to get some kind of reaction from him, “Jay, babe.” It fell from her lips effortlessly and she didn’t even think twice about what she had said as she moved to use her body weight to break her chains.
As soon as she could use her arms and legs, she knelt beside him to cradle his face and used the pads of her thumbs to stroke his cheekbones, “Hey Jay. Look at me, baby. Look at me.” Not waiting for a response, she quickly started going over his body to check for other injuries all the while murmuring his name over and over again.
This time she gasped out a sob, all the air leaving her chest as she rucked up his shirt and found the distinctive welts from being whipped covering his torso and back.
“Oh my God, Jay,” She cried softly, wanting to provide him with some kind of relief but afraid to do anything, not wanting to cause him any more pain, “What did they do to you?”
She was surprised when he moaned, not expecting a response as he let out a raspy “I’m fine”.
Hailey couldn’t help but let out a watery chuckle, her hands going back to carefully frame his face as she caught a glimpse of those vibrant green eyes she loved so much, “Only you would say that in the condition you’re in.”
“Kev called undercover. The team’s close,” Even talking seemed to cause him pain, but he powered through knowing she needed to know this, “Found the drugs. They’ll be here soon.”
It was spoken brokenly, but she got the message, and she couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. There was no way she would be able to get him out of here by herself with him so injured.
Why did he have to be so adamant about her not knowing anything? He didn’t know anything either, but he’d somehow kept their captors from really harming her.
“Hailey,” Jay practically wheezed, catching her attention as he opened his eyes to find hers, “I can’t sit like this. It-it hurts too much.”
She barely managed to stop from crying again, biting her lip as she willed herself to stay strong for his sake. For him to admit he was in pain she knew he must be in a lot of it.
“Oh God, Jay,” Hailey swallowed back another wave of tears as she helped him move in a more comfortable position. She ended up half cradling him, his head resting on the swell of her breast and a protective arm around his shoulders to keep his back up off the ground.
She ran a gentle hand through his still miraculously styled hair, rocking him slightly and in all honesty, at the moment, she felt more like a woman sick with worry over the man she loved than a badass cop looking out for her partner.
Hailey’s not sure if she’s ever cried this much in her entire life or worried so deeply.
“What were you thinking Jay? Why would you offer yourself up like that?” She whispered to fill the silence, a couple of tears escaping on their own accord.
His gaze found hers. Strong, steady and certain in spite of all the pain, “I wasn’t about to let them hurt you. Not on my watch.”
Jay shifted in her arms, wincing slightly, “It’s my job to protect you, Hailey. And that doesn’t mean I don’t know you can protect yourself because you can—you’re a freaking badass, but it’s more than that,” Pausing, he reached up to tenderly brush away her tears with the pad of his thumb before whispering, “it’s because I love you and I can’t bear the thought of you getting hurt if I can prevent it.”
Before she even had a chance to respond, the tell-tale sound of the metal door shutting prompted Jay to move faster than she thought possible with his injuries. She scrambled up after him, but she could tell he wanted to keep her behind him in an attempt to protect her.
If it was anyone other than Jay, Hailey would balk at the notion, but she knew that’s just who he was and how he operated. It was how he protected the people he loved. She knew it wasn’t some caveman idea that she wasn’t capable of taking care of herself. So, she stayed behind him, letting him do what he does just as he let her be the badass she was any other day.
Except for this moment when she was terrified, worried about Jay who by all accounts shouldn’t be standing.
“Where’s our father!?” The drunk one exclaimed angrily, stomping into the basement, “You said your people were getting our drugs and now my father’s not answering my calls!”
He was focused on Jay and Hailey’s eyes were drawn to the pipe she’d found when she found the file, cursing at herself for not bringing it with her to Jay’s side. It was only a few feet away; if she could just get there before their captor noticed, she’d be able to knock him out.
His reactions were slow because of the alcohol in his system so that’s what she was banking on, but she also knew it made him more dangerous and unpredictable.
The gun pointed in Jay’s face made her nervous and she was hoping to get out of here without either of them getting shot but if someone had to take a bullet, it was going to be her for going for the pipe.
It happened so fast. There were two loud pops and suddenly Jay was on the floor in front of her.
She could vaguely make out Adam calling her name as he dashed across the room, knocking Vodka guy’s gun out of his hand but all Hailey was focused on was Jay, on the ground, bleeding. She dropped to her knees, hands immediately going to the gunshot wound in his shoulder and yelled at Adam to call an ambulance.
Kim was suddenly in front of her, kneeling at Jay’s other side and Hailey looked up, her hands still keeping pressure as tears welled in her eyes. Meeting her friend’s gaze, she whispered out brokenly, “He just took that bullet for me.”
*
“What the hell, Will?” Hailey exclaimed in disgust, pissed off about the entire situation.
The red-headed doctor looked about as exasperated as she felt and part of her felt bad about the harried look in his eyes, but she was getting anxious and he wasn’t cooperating with her, so she didn’t feel too bad.
“Hailey, it’s against hospital rules,” Will stressed for what felt like the one-hundredth time. He shook his head; and he thought Jay was stubborn.
If possible, the frustrated look on Hailey’s face grew as she crossed her arms, somehow looking very formidable sitting cross-legged in the middle of a hospital bed wearing nothing but a hospital gown.
“Rules are overrated,” She stated through a clenched jaw.
Will’s eyebrows rose, “Uh. Not gonna lie. It’s a little alarming to hear that coming from a detective.”
She just glared harder and Will was starting to realize he had nothing on a pissed Hailey Upton.
He wasn’t sure if they were engaged in a battle of wills or what, but he was afraid of what she might do if he broke their gaze and looked away. He was honestly a little afraid to blink.
He’d gotten to know Hailey pretty well because of her partnership with Jay, but he wasn’t quite sure he realized just how fierce she could be until this moment.
How fierce she could be when it came to his brother.
Will had always noticed the concern and the protectiveness she’d had when it came to Jay’s injuries on the job. He’d thought the nature of their jobs was the reason for this but over time he’d started to wonder if it was because there was something more there.
Today, he stopped wondering. It was clear there was something there and when Hailey turned her head to conceal the tears welling up in her eyes, he wondered what exactly went down between her and his brother in that basement.
She turned back to him, the determination and love clear in those glassy blue eyes he knew his brother had fallen for, “Will, I have to be with him.”
Still, he hesitated, “Hailey…”
And just like that, the angry pissed off look was back on her face despite the tears in her eyes, “I’ll have you know that I can make your life a living hell, Will Halstead.”
The threat was clear in the way her jaw was clenched but he could see her resolve starting to waver and he just didn’t have the heart to argue with her anymore, hospital rules be damned.
His head dropped in a resigned nod, “Alright. You win,” The relief that wafted off of her was palpable and he couldn’t help but give her a small smile even as he tried to look stern, “But, you have to take it easy because you’re a patient too. Also, if I get fired, I’m blaming it on you.”
*
If there was thing Hailey Upton was capable of, it would be getting her way when she wanted it.
Maybe it was all that time spent manipulating suspects in giving her the information she needed or maybe it stemmed from wheedling sweets and trinkets and whatever the hell else she wanted out of her older brothers when she was a kid, but usually, when it came right down to it, she was always able to convince people to hand her the requests she’d made on a silver platter.
And that’s how she found herself sitting on her own hospital bed that had been rolled into Jay’s ICU room for the foreseeable future.
As soon as the nurses that had transported her from her room were out of sight, Hailey very carefully got out of her bed, maneuvering around the IV going into her hand and gently slid in beside Jay. He was asleep but she knew from Will that he had already been awake, asking for her first thing as he came out from under anesthesia.
She was extra cautious to not upset the various lines running from his body and to machines monitoring his vitals as she settled in bedside his warm body, gently resting her head on his uninjured shoulder.
Hailey didn’t know how long she’d been laying there when she felt Jay shift, his voice slightly horse, “You know, I might start enjoying hospital stays if they mean I wake up next to you.”
Lifting her head, she blinked back tears for what felt like the millionth time in the last twenty-four hours. He was staring at her like she was his whole world, and he was just realizing what life was.
She wanted to kiss him. Was planning on it, but first she had to know, “Jay, why on earth would you take that bullet for me?”
Hailey was pretty sure she knew the answer. She was pretty sure it’s the same answer she would give him if she’d just taken a bullet meant for him, but she needed to hear it and not when he was laying on a dirty basement floor, writhing in pain.
She wasn’t sure laying on a hospital bed in a hospital right after he’d been shot was any better but it’s what they had, and he seemed pretty coherent for someone who had just had major surgery.
“Because I love you,” He said it so simply, so matter of fact and she marveled at the way it was so easy between them now.
And all it took was being kidnapped together.
Something happened between them while chained together in that basement. Something they had both been fighting for a while now and maybe it seemed sudden or rushed but Hailey knew in her heart of hearts that she and Jay were meant to be together.
Love wasn’t something you forced. It was something you had to wait for, maybe even had to get hurt along the way to really understand, but she now knew it was worth the wait.
“I love you too,” She almost whimpered before kissing him.
It wasn’t lusty, but it had an almost frantic urgency about it as they both silently acknowledged they could have very easily not had this moment.
He kissed her like he thought he’d never see her again and he told her yet again with his actions that he would follow her to the ends of the universe and to the very last of their tomorrows.
She knew they still had a lot to talk about. The things he especially went through in that basement, but she knew that could wait because they were alive and that was enough.
Because there was no doubt in either of their minds now.
They were right where they belonged.
Leave a comment! I’d love to know what y’all thought!!
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yuta1forme · 4 years ago
Text
like magnets | ten
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summary: in which you and ten are up and coming choreographers who are forever at each other’s throats. but maybe fighting is just an excuse to get close.
pairing: ten x reader
genre: angsty fluff
warnings: some swearing, alcohol mention, loads of bickering
length: 4.3k
tag list: @sly-merlin​ @animegirl366​ @yonoohcore​
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He’s confident to the point of arrogance. He knows exactly how to get under your skin. When the pair of you start fighting, all the other dancers make their way out of the studio, not wanting to get involved in another explosive Y/N-Ten showdown. He counters your every suggestion. He always has more critique for your performances than praise. 
And yet, he is the best dance partner you could ever ask for. He matches your poise with his passion. In dance, you both have found a middle ground. 
When Ten first joined the studio you really wanted to like him. He was a young, up and coming dancer from Thailand. What you had not seen coming was that besides being the same age, you and Ten had precious little in common. The day you first met Ten, you had decided in less than ten seconds that you two would never, to put this lightly, become the “best of friends”. 
You had entered the break room of the studio that day, late and soaking wet because of the heavy downpour that had begun the night before. Hungry and disgruntled, all you had wanted to do was to grab a steaming cup of green tea and the last of your favorite jelly doughnuts. Only the thought of those jelly doughnuts had you hanging on during your hour and forty-five-minute long journey to work this morning. They were your emotional support food, your one and only indulgence. After almost three years at the studio, all the other dancers knew not to touch your jelly doughnuts. All except for the bucket-hat wearing Thai newbie who clearly hadn’t gotten the memo. 
“Those were my doughnuts”, you had barely managed to huff out, focusing your mind on not raising your voice or worse, bursting into tears.
Now, if he had just apologized for eating them without asking you first, you both might not have started off on the wrong foot. No, the fucker just shrugged and said, “Didn’t see your name on them”. No shame in his eyes, not an ounce of regret in his voice. The powdered sugar from your doughnuts still around his mouth and dusted over his all-black ensemble. That fucker.
“So people just waltz into a room and eat someone else’s snacks where you’re from?”, you asked, your pitch becoming shriller with annoyance. 
“No of course not. Because where I’m from, people don’t leave their snacks where everyone can see them, without putting their name on it first”, he replied, cool as a cucumber. 
Taeyong had entered the break room at this point. He took one look at the powdered sugar on Ten’s face and the eyes-gonna-pop-out expression on yours and connected the dots. As one of the senior choreographers in the studio, Taeyong had developed a sixth sense for sniffing out conflicts before they broke out. 
“Y/N! I see you’ve already met Ten! He’s the new dancer from Thailand. Ten this is Y/N”, Taeyong had prompted by way of introductions, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge and inching closer to the door he had entered from. 
“Oh, you’re Y/N. The one who choreographed the last Pink Cashmere comeback, right?”, Ten had asked, suddenly sitting up straight. Seeing that your conversation was turning civil, Taeyong had left the room just as quietly as he had entered it.
“Yes, that would be me”, you had responded. That was your first time working with an idol group and was a milestone in your career. You had spent weeks running on pure adrenaline and Americanos (and the occasional jelly doughnut), spending day and night listening to the new comeback track, reviewing concept photos and looking up old performances to get their style down just right. When you watched the girls perform the choreography for the first time, you were so immensely proud of yourself, you hadn’t stopped beaming for days. 
“I should’ve known it was you, it had your signature footwork style all over it”, Ten had said, nodding his head slightly. You had felt flattered at that, surprised that anyone had even picked up that you had a certain trademark in your choreography.
“But, I thought it was too showy if you know what I mean”, Ten had continued, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair, a slight frown on his face. 
You were almost embarrassed at how much his words affected you. While you were used to internet trolls taking jabs at your work, it was something entirely different to hear full-blown criticism from your peers. As the youngest choreographer in the studio, you rarely got challenged when it came to choreography, with most of your colleagues wholeheartedly encouraging you to spread your wings and grow no matter the outcome. It probably was not intentional on their part but it had become a fear of yours - what if nobody would outwardly challenge your decisions because they thought you were too weak to handle the truth?
Still, you felt a need to defend your creative decision. You needed to stand up for yourself. “The girls are great dancers and I thought a more challenging choreography would push them out of their comfort zone. Sooji and Maya were actually part of a hip-hop dance crew pre-debut. They were itching to try out a new concept”. 
“But why not use more formations in the dance? It’s an eight-member group. You could’ve used that to your advantage”, Ten had countered. He made a good point. But you didn’t want to concede to him. Who did this man think he was? Walking in here and questioning your vision as a choreographer?, you though to yourself.
“Most of the other girl groups that came back around that time had similar songs but only Pink Cashmere had a distinct choreography. I wanted to make their choreography memorable”, you had said. 
Ten had remained quiet for a while. “I didn’t think of it that way”, he had replied, a thoughtful look on his face. “In that case, I think you succeeded at whatever you set out to do with that choreography.  It was definitely memorable, Y/N.”
He turned his gaze up towards your face and flashed you a sweet smile. He looked like a whole different person, almost innocently brushing powdered sugar off his cheeks like a mischievous cat who had just been caught doing something he shouldn’t have done. 
Your whole first interaction with Ten had confused you. First he walked in acting like he owned the place, critiquing your choreography as if he was a veteran dancer. But then he had just as easily praised your abilities. But at the back of your mind you had this nagging feeling that whatever Ten had said to you was not in an effort to undermine you, unlike some of the backhanded compliments delivered by your peers. He had criticized you because he thought you could take it, because he thought of you as an equal. And you kind of enjoyed that.
Arguing with Ten became a part of your everyday routine thereafter. So did labelling your snacks with your names and leaving passive-aggressive messages on post-it notes.
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At nineteen, you gave up a full-ride scholarship to a prestigious law school in your country and moved to Seoul with a single suitcase and your old school backpack in hand. Your family had threatened to cut off contact with you if you left the country, but you left anyway; Your passion for dance was stronger than your fear of losing them. Dance was your first love. You lived and breathed it. Like hell were you giving up on your first love that easy. 
You worked odd jobs during the day and filmed original choreographies for your YouTube channel during the night. After struggling for over a year, your hope slowly dwindling, you got a notification that changed your life. Kim Jongin, one of South Korea’s ballet prodigies had shared one of your videos on Twitter. Your subscriber count had quadrupled overnight, with hundreds of thousands of commenters dubbing you a “prodigy”. Fate brought you to Jongin, who then introduced you to Taeyong, who brought you to SM studios. 
It was a dream come true - for years you had only struggled, floating in dark and murky water, swimming forward towards a hazy future. Now, you had thousands of fans, dozens of supportive friends, and a solid foundation from where you could dream. Your friend Hendery liked to joke that you would need more than twenty-four hours a day if you wanted to do everything in your planner. And truth be told, he was right. You had given up a lot to pursue your dreams. Given up on your family, most of your friends, your home country. You wanted to make sure it was all worthwhile. So you wanted to spend every day making the most of the opportunities that you now had. You went to bed each night with a head full of ideas and woke up every morning with the fire to bring them to life. 
Of course, dedicating your life to your craft came at a cost. The rest of the world had not stopped moving just because you decided to make dance your life. This dawned on you one rosy Valentine’s Day evening, when you, date-less for the fifth year running, quite naively decided to scroll through Instagram. Amongst the sea of pink, flowers and picture-perfect happy couples were two faces that made your stomach instantly drop - your ex and a stunning woman posing for the camera with their fingers intertwined. On her ring finger, a diamond the size of a blueberry. 
You remember the day you broke things off with your ex like it was yesterday. You were at the airport, waiting to get on your flight to Seoul, positively buzzing with nerves. You had waited until you were seated on the plane to send your ex a rather heartless text message saying you were breaking up with him to find yourself and that it was best if he forgot you. Very dramatic, even for you. But you were nineteen and had just watched ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’. In return he had left you an equally dramatic voicemail, pleading with you to not end the relationship and proclaiming that he would never stop loving you. You had all but laughed at his message then.
You weren’t laughing anymore though. He was happily engaged, while you were lonely, lying in bed on Valentine’s day in a pizza grease-stained sweatshirt. You had spent the last few years working relentlessly which had given you a career that you could be proud of, friends you could rely on. But besides the occasional fling here and there, you didn’t have much in terms of a romantic life. You guessed you deserved this, that karma had finally caught up to you.  Didn’t stop you from feeling like shit though.
So you did what you always did when you felt particularly shitty. You went down to the studio, turned the music on full blast and dove right into a new choreography. You were freestyling, too lost in the moment to hear the door creak open.
“I gotta hand it to you, Y/N, that was pretty impressive!”, a male voice exclaimed. You had spun around expecting to see Sicheng or Hendery at the door. Instead, you were met with a tired but rather amused looking Ten.
He was dressed in a white silk shirt and a pair of black slacks. You noticed the roses in his hands, slightly wilted but still beautiful nonetheless. He was clearly dressed up for a date. He looked striking as always but you didn’t linger too long on that, thinking that it was your romance deprived mind projecting thoughts onto the first attractive male it saw. 
“What are you doing here? It’s Valentine’s day, don’t you have a crowd of screaming fans to attend to?”, you asked sarcastically.
“One date. And they stood me up, actually”, he replied with a bitter smile. He must have been quite upset if he didn’t have a snarky response for you.
You were truly taken aback. Ten? Getting stood up by someone? Ten, who could charm the socks off of anyone he set his eyes on, getting stood up on Valentine’s day? 
“But how?”, you blurted out, instantly regretting it when you saw the quizzical look on Ten’s face. Yet you foolishly continued mumbling, or rather digging yourself deeper into a hole.
“I mean, you’re just...so...you”, you said vaguely gesturing at his whole form. From his boyish good looks to his ability to sweet-talk, Ten’s charms were undeniable. Ever since he joined the studio, the number of signups for the afternoon classes had doubled. Dozens of people would come to the studio every day, just to catch a glimpse of him. And he indulged them all too, flashing them his signature grin or paying them a cheeky compliment. If only you weren’t all too familiar with the way he could run his mouth during an argument, you too might have fallen for his charms. 
“Sorry to disappoint you, Y/N, but I’m not quite the Casanova you expected me to be. But I will take that as a compliment”, he said with a wink that had you resisting the urge to roll your eyes.
“Still doesn’t explain what you’re doing here though”, you mumbled out.  
“I like to choreograph at night. I think I’m my most creative after midnight. Besides I just got my heart broken and I should channel that emotional energy somewhere right?”, Ten said feigning nonchalance. You could tell he was genuinely upset from how his night had played out and couldn’t help but sympathize with him.
“Well, I’m here for reasons along similar lines. You could join me? Help me choreograph this new freestyle piece I’m working on?”, you had asked. 
Ten cocked his eyebrow at you, clearly not expecting you to extend an olive branch to him in this manner given how you were still being snarky with him five minutes ago. But he accepted your offer nonetheless.
You both entered your element pretty quickly, letting the music move your body freely. You worked out a simple choreography, cheering for each other when you came up with a particularly impressive move. You were having fun, even though you wouldn’t admit it to yourself. At least you hadn’t thought of your ex in the last couple of hours, mind completely occupied with the thought that you and Ten surprisingly made good dance partners. Perhaps the friction between the two of you translated to great chemistry when you were dancing. Taeyong would be pleased to know that.
“I’m beat”, you exclaimed, slumping down on the floor after the final round of practice. Ten sat down next to you, resting his back against the mirrored wall. The pair of you sat wordlessly for a few minutes, letting your heartbeats slow back down. You lay flat on the floor, too physically exhausted to move. As soon as you closed your eyes, your traitorous mind brought back the images of your ex’s engagement and you groaned loudly.
“Long day?”, Ten asked, giving you a slightly concerned look. You just chuckled bitterly in response.
“Want to talk about it?”, Ten pried in an almost uncharacteristically gentle voice. You wondered if he had ever spoken to you in that tone before. 
“I don’t know if we’re close enough to have little heart-to-hearts yet Ten”, you replied. There was an invisible wall between you and Ten that you were just not ready to tear down. The thought of sharing embarrassing details about your love life with someone you could consider a frenemy at best, too jarring. You didn’t miss the way Ten’s shoulders slightly slumped at that. You hadn’t meant to sound harsh, yet you felt somewhat guilty.
“But…maybe we are close enough to have a drink together?”, you asked, suddenly emboldened by a rush of confidence that confused even you. You took his cheeky smile as a yes.
You spent the rest of the night drunk and giggling with Ten. The thoughts of your ex were long forgotten. Perhaps you could learn to do more than merely tolerating Ten’s presence. Perhaps you could learn to enjoy his presence too.
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Soon it became a ritual - if you and Ten were the last ones left in the studio, you would grab some beers and head to the roof. It was such strange departure from your usual selves that you often wondered why it was so easy for you to enjoy his company sitting under the stars like this when you would be at each other’s throats the rest of the time. 
Over time your conversations had gone from discussions about art, to plans of travelling the world, what you were currently binge-watching on Netflix, and everything in between. Still, there were some topics that you both steered clear of - talk of family and love lives was seemingly off the table.
Until one night after a couple of drinks, when Ten pulled his phone out to show you a picture of two women, one older and one younger. The striking resemblance between the faces in the photo and Ten confirmed that they were indeed his mother and sister. His sister was clad in a dark blue graduation gown and his mother was holding a beautiful bouquet of light pink roses. 
“She graduated last week, my baby sister”, Ten said practically glowing. The proud look on his face was a testament to the close relationship he had with his sibling. 
“You must miss her a lot”, you said, voice barely a whisper.
“All the time. My family are my biggest supporters. I don’t think I would have had the courage to move out here on my own if it weren't for their encouragement”, Ten answered. 
You hadn’t spoken to your family ever since you came to Seoul. In the past, the longing left a pressure in your chest that sometimes made it feel like your throat would close, choking you on your guilt. Now, it just left you numb. 
“What about you?”, Ten asked, cautiously prying into your personal life.
“What about me?”, you countered, diverting your gaze away from the man sitting next to you, instantly wary of how much you wanted to share about your past. 
“What about your family? Your old home?”, Ten asked. 
It couldn’t hurt sharing with Ten, right? It’s not like what he thought of you really mattered to you. Right?
“I actually don’t keep in touch with my family any more. They weren’t too keen on me becoming a dancer. It’s been, what, three? Three and a half years since I last saw them. When I first left home for Seoul”, you said, trying your hardest to suppress any trace of emotion in your voice. You kept your gaze focused on the city skyline ahead of you, too afraid to turn and see the expression on Ten’s face. You wondered what he thought of you, whether he thought you were stubborn. Worse yet, whether he pitied you.
After a few moments, Ten broke the silence. “I guess sometimes, not having a family is better than having one that doesn’t love you for who you are. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t possibly know how you must have felt, all these years. But I want you to know that the people who love you now, love you without any agenda. Not because they are related to you by blood, not because they are obligated to love you. But because they just love you”, Ten said, eyes shining with an emotion you didn’t know how to react to. 
“And they could be your family too”, he finished in a voice that was so warm, so gentle, you wondered if this really was the Ten who stole your jelly doughnuts when you first met.
You were speechless, processing his words for what felt like hours but was probably just a few seconds. Then you did the only thing your impulsive mind could think to do - you leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. In response, he wrapped you up in his embrace. You stayed still, focusing on the faint scent of his cologne on the sleeves of his hoodie. You breathed out a thank you, soft as a whisper. Whether or not Ten heard you, he moved his left arm slightly, gently stroking your hair and continued to chatter on about some entirely different topic. 
You knew that once the sun came back up and both of you returned to your lives inside the studio, this little moment would not be brought up in front of anyone else. That moment was just for the two of you to share and bury deep within your hearts.
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You knew you were in too deep one day when Ten gave you a friendly smile in passing while making his way to the break room, and you felt your cheeks and neck heat up. You had finally let the Thai dancer charm his way into your heart. 
Typical Y/N, you thought to yourself, Falling in love with any cute boy who gives you attention. But he wasn’t just any cute boy. It was Ten. Ten, your frenemy turned close confidant. Ten, who would send you pictures of cute animals he saw on the street just because you once told him you wanted to adopt a cat. Ten, who took you dancing to a club in Hongdae when you were feeling low and all but carried your drunk ass back to your home. Ten, who over the last couple of months had heard every single one of your deepest insecurities and had still chosen to stick by you. Ten who had just left a box of jelly doughnuts in the break room, next to a post-it note with your name on it. To make matters worse, you were supposed to start working on a new collaboration together this week, a contemporary piece set to an R&B slow jam. How were you meant to work with him all week when you could barely make eye contact with him? You had to physically restrain yourself from facepalming.
You spent the week, evading conversation with him beyond work and some small talk to fill the silence. But none of your usual banter. You had even turned down his suggestion to grab dinner together several times that week, to the point that even typically non-confrontational Sicheng had picked up that something was off.
“Why have you been avoiding Ten all week? I thought you guys had given up fighting?”, Sicheng asked after he cornered you one day.
“Avoiding him? Now, why would I do that when we’ve been working together all week?”, you had chuckled nervously, desperately looking for an out from this conversation.
“He’s been sulking around since Tuesday, Y/N. He said he doesn’t know what he did to upset you”, Sicheng had asked you sharply. 
The guilt in your eyes must have been apparent because Sicheng dropped his voice into a gentle whisper for what he said next. 
“I know the two of you are as good at dancing around your feelings as you are at dancing on stage. But maybe try talking to him, Y/N? I think right now, you two might have more in common than you think”, Sicheng told you as he gave you a knowing look. 
The day of the performance shoot came and there was a noticeable awkwardness between you and Ten. You decided to cut the tension by apologizing to him, citing the nerves for the performance as the reason you had been on edge the whole week. Whether or not Ten believed you, he accepted your apology and wrapped you up in his arms. You wished you had psychic abilities so you could read his mind. Did he have the same butterflies in his stomach right now?
As soon as the music started any nervousness you felt around Ten melted away. Dancing with him was like second nature to you by now. The song started with you on stage alone, dancing under the single spotlight illuminating the stage. You could see him out of the corner of your eyes, following your every move and observing you with nothing short of adoration. You left the stage for Ten’s solo and you could feel the goosebumps on your skin from watching him perform. He was absolutely stunning, moving fluidly through the movements as though he was painting with his body on the canvas of the stage. You joined him on stage for the chorus, dancing apart but facing one another as though mirroring the other’s movements. Through the bridge you inched closer and closer to one another. You felt your heartbeat beginning to rise from the proximity. 
Both of you could communicate with each other with your eyes alone. You danced perfectly in sync with one another, pulling apart only to fall right back into each other, just like magnets. So different yet inseparable. You could see it in his eyes, when he looked at you, that the emotion in his mirrored yours. You knew you weren’t imagining it when he audibly gasped as you melted into his embrace for the final move. His heartbeat was racing a hundred miles an hour, just like yours. The pair of you stood there, lips just a few millimeters apart, breathing deeply as the studio erupted into thunderous applause. You were no longer afraid to admit to yourself and to the world, that you had it bad for Ten Lee. 
And when he kissed you on the rooftop that night, you knew that he had it bad for you too. 
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