#I think the talk of hands is going to make some people suspicious

[randomness-is-my-order]

i disagree with even this, tbh. i don’t think it informs me in a way to make me reconsider jiang cheng’s character in a favourable light. here’s the thing: 1) i do think he is a bad person. his yelling and throwing things is not just his way of expressing anxiety/worry, it is also his default for his never-ending rage and grief and bitterness. when such expression of emotion is directed at the undeserving, it doesn’t make jc’s inability to process his emotions sympathetic, rather it makes me condemn him for carrying on with such behaviour even after thirteen years of time to atleast make some progress. 2) i do consider him a villain and an antagonist because what else would i call someone who contributes to a genocide and holds onto his hate and targets innocents out of his own uncontrolled fury?

i’ll get to one other point in a bit but i also do not consider the flashback his moment of realisation. i think jc does show a bit of growth when he breaks down in front of wei wuxian and admits to being so blinded by his anger all these years (the whole “i’m a fucking clown” declaration is the only moment he’s been transparent with his flaws and acknowledged his own hand in his misery). the flashback does add something. like you said, it shows that jc once cared. but that is truly it. it adds a component of tragedy and emotional complexity to the downfall of jc’s relationship with wei wuxian but it’s not a plot-twist in any sense of the word. it does not add anything to the perspective of jc to make me less angry at what he’s done throughout the story. it’s not about a black-and-white lens. at the cost of repeating myself, a murderer having a humane nature instead of a completely cold-blooded outlook does not make me condemn them any less.

second-to-last point: i disagree with the equating of wei wuxian and jiang cheng’s perspective on one another. wei wuxian does not think jc did something “stupid” that caused the harm. infact, i believe he is much less harsh in his thinking of jc, considering jc’s “stupid” actions led to the killing of the wen remnants who were completely innocent and contained the elderly and a child! i also think wei wuxian’s pov on jiang cheng is actually quite empathetic. he repeatedly considered that jc’s harsh words were not as cutting as they came out, that jc’s insecurities were sowed deeply by madame yu. wei wuxian assured jiang cheng and helped with his worries and tried to divert attention from himself so jiang cheng wouldn’t feel bad after they returned from the indoctrination camp. hell, wei wuxian bore jc’s aggression after the lotus pier massacre and protected him despite going through the very same grief jc was going through. if anyone assumes the other is foolish and stupid and causes dismissal, it is jiang cheng—towards wei wuxian.

and lastly, i completely disagree that jiang cheng was hunting demonic cultivators out of his righteousnesss to “punish” them. for one, nowhere have we gotten any subtext about these people committing any vile acts in name of wei wuxian. second, who the fuck is jc to play god and individually decide to “punish” these cultivators? that is blatant misuse of his authority and doesn’t really make a favourable case for him. and thirdly, these are NOT random rumors because jc’s violence is consistently mentioned in the books, not just by the narrative or people around or the proprietress wwx and lwj encounter but also by jin ling. by jiang cheng’s nephew who has been in prolonged contact with him for years and has seen firsthand what he does to the demonic cultivators. jin ling, who found it necessary to distract jc so he could help wei wuxian escape, who at the time he believed to be mo xuanyu, because he knew jc wasn’t all talk.

“Yeah. He suspects you’re Wei Wuxian,” Jin Ling said.

Wei Wuxian thought, It’s not “suspicion” this time. He’s caught the right person. Then he asked, “What about you? Aren’t you suspicious?”

“It’s not the first time my uncle has done something like this,” Jin Ling said. “He would always rather catch the wrong person than let them go. But since Zidian couldn’t whip out your soul, I’ve determined for now that you can’t be him. Besides, that Wei guy isn’t a cut-sleeve, but you still dared to harass…”

mind you, the offense being made here wasn’t about “vile acts” being committed because what did “mo xuanyu” do, except summon wen ning for HELPING the juniors, that justified jiang cheng whipping him in broad daylight with a spiritual tool? no, just resemblance with wei wuxian was crime enough and jiang cheng had no qualms against subjecting innocent parties to his anger.

none of this gets altered or changed by the revelation of jiang cheng’s one act of good will. that was the whole point of my post. these facts cannot magically be put in the muddy areas of interpretation and a softer reading of jiang cheng’s undeniable “villainous” acts as you suggest.

___

that said, i’m not making this rebuttal as a confrontation. i’m simply clarifying my personal stance! i do agree with some of what you said and i do accept that there is hope for growth in jc, post-canon, but it needs to take a metric fuck ton of accountability on his part, and involves leaving wei wuxian alone, which is already a step taken in the right direction.

___

also, just wanted to quickly address @stgroversfire’s tags:

jiang cheng knew what wen qing and wen ning did for him! wei wuxian tells him! sorry for highlighting your tags but i think this point makes a huge difference in understanding why some of us are so vehement about not excusing jc’s attitude and actions towards the wens. (if you’re not okay with me addressing this, i’ll take this addition down. just send me a comment/dm.)

for me, nothing at all changes about jiang cheng’s end-of-canon circumstances by the reveal that he distracted the guards that led to his capture by the wens after the lotus pier attack and the reason for it is simple: you can’t be redeemed by something you did before you committed your wrongdoing. the change of character and growth needs to happen after you fucked up. his prior “good” choices/“heroic” acts do NOT make him a better person in hindsight because he went ahead and acted like a piece of shit later on, anyway. it’s like saying a murderer should be pardoned because they saved a bird from dying ten years ago or that they donated to charity that one time, “omg look they had a good heart <3”. even the text treats it like this afterthought, contextually, because by the time any of it would be revealed—it’d have been way too late for anything to change. a history of violence and hate cannot be erased nor reduced by an action taken in good faith (if not good sense) before this history ever began.

redemption happens as a response to your choices in the aftermath of your fuck-ups (or in some cases, the narrative effectively nullifies the wrongdoing itself which leads to a blank slate/redemption; but that is NOT the case with jc), not as callback from the distant past when you were perhaps a less shitty person. many think jc revealing this “secret” would be significant in some way. but... how exactly would you expect wei wuxian to react to this revelation? show gratitude after jc’s choice inevitably led to the loss of his golden core? be happy that his once-buddy cared for him before jc contributed to his death and the death of the wens and the death of countless other innocents? imagine someone once close to you lied and betrayed your trust and say, framed you wrongfully so you got jailed. later, they recount how they kicked your bully in the balls when you were both in school. okay...? how the FUCK does that change anything? you are STILL in jail?

jc’s prior good will means nothing after the bridges he’s burned to the ground, burying them twenty feet under. and he knows this. he knows that revealing the truth will make no dents. wei wuxian won’t have a better view of him just because of it. jiang cheng’s actions do not gain a softer edge. the redeeming action has to come after the tragedies he has helped with and participated in. he’s not magically a better person with this context. he’s just as who he was before. because what we are evaluating his morals on was not his supposed love/care for wei wuxian but his actions. his violence. his hatred that targetted people unjustly. these do not change. these don’t go away. these should not go away. these should not be as easy to go away. that’s all.

[damn-stark]

Chapter 6 That’s life

Chapter 6 of Sinnerwoman

A/N- “I'm on my way to save Elena!”—“I'm on my way to kill Elena!”

Warning- ANGST!! Some fragments of fluff. Talks of pregnancy. Weapons, swearing, blood, violence, and death. Spoilers for the show!

Pairing- Hwang Jun-ho x fem!reader

Episode- 2x07

(Let me know if you want to be tagged)

——

Just as you were going to try and stop everyone in order to share your intricate plan, the solemn voice of Gi-hun travels out first. “Wait.”

Your curiosity piques and before everyone can go to bed you stop first.

“Before we go to our beds I need to talk to you all first,” he shares, making everyone share confused yet curious looks before he guides everyone to a secluded corner.

“Those bastards are acting suspicious,” Dae-ho points out as he’s the last one to join the group. “It looks like they’re up to something.”

Everyone tries to steal a peek at the opposing side, but you keep your eyes on Gi-hun to wait for what he wants to say. However, he looks almost like he’s trying to figure out a way to share what he has in mind.

“Whatever those idiots do, once we win the vote tomorrow, it’ll all be over,” Jung-bae shares with a hint of cockiness.

“You think we’ll be okay?” Dae-ho asks the group. “They say things were really crazy in the bathroom earlier.”

You sigh and Gi-hun finally breaks his silence. “Once the lights go out, people on the other side will attack us.”

Fear and tension spread through the gathered group, meanwhile, Player 007 is the first one to probe. “Really?”

Gi-hun nods stiffly. “Because if they kill us, they’ll be able to win the vote and increase the prize,” he adds, making Player 007 stammer.

“So what do we do?” He asks now.

“Let’s attack them first,” In-ho suggests before Gi-hun can respond. “They’re probably thinking we’ll just wait for the second vote. We can use it to our advantage. We’ll attack them first once the lights go out.”

You blink and look at your hands whilst Player 047 speaks up. “That’s right. It’d be better to attack them first. We have more women and elderly on our side.”

Your eyebrows furrow in response to his comment.

“If we get attacked, we’ll be at a disadvantage,” he adds. “Attacking them first would give us a better chance of winning.”

“I agree,” Player 145 says shakily just before Gi-hun cuts in.

“We can’t do that,” he states, making you lift your eyes off the ground and narrow your gaze on him.

“But we have to get out of here,” In-ho argues to press him. “You said it yourself. Staying calm won’t get us anywhere now.”

You shake your head. “But we’re not here to kill each other,” you counter, gaining In-ho’s immediate attention. “Some of them may have lost their minds due to that money, but we can’t play into their trap.”

“Their?” Jung-bae asks as he leans forward.

“Those who created this game,” Gi-hun answers for you. “Those who watch us play. If we’re going to fight someone, it should be them.”

“Where are they?” Dae-ho asks.

“Up there,” Gi-hun says and looks up and everyone around slowly follows his line of gaze, but you and In-ho. You both look at each other and he doesn’t miss the chance to pass you a questioning look that you pretend to act clueless about and instead look back at Gi-hun to not miss a single thing.

“On the upper levels are the rooms they control the games from,” Gi-hun continues as he now points up with his finger. “The man in the black mask is their leader.”

You stay still to avoid giving even a small reaction.

“Once we capture him, we’ll be able to win.”

Jung-bae sighs after Gi-Hun’s comment and In-ho proceeds to add a question to the matter. “How are you going to fight them? They have guns.”

You want to give Gi-hun an idea taken from your plan, but now that he saved your hind by sharing his plan first, you wait to avoid looking suspicious to In-ho or anyone watching behind those cameras.

“We’ll fight them with guns too,” Gi-hun shares what you hoped he’d say.

“But we don’t have any,” Jung-bae points out the obvious.

“We’ll take their guns,” Gi-hun deadpans.

“From those masked men?” A Player asks.

Gi-hun nods stiffly, making Jung-bae sigh and lean his head back.

“That’s too dangerous,” In-ho pretends to be concerned. “Even if we manage to take a few guns, we’ll still be outnumbered.”

“What then?” Gi-hun interjects swiftly. “Are you going to kill each other all night and hope you survive? Is that what you want, Young-il?”

“But we also can’t just shoot aimlessly,” you finally chime in with a doubt that has yet to be answered. “What do we do after we get the guns? We’ll be sitting ducks in here. They have all the control from out there.”

Gi-hun finds your gaze and as much as he seems to have thought his plan through, you see that he can’t give you an answer to your question. Thus a silence falls that Player 120 fills with a question.

“Do we…stand a chance?” She expresses worry.

“We do if we catch them off guard,” Gi-hun tries to assure the group. “Out of everyone, they’re the ones who would least expect us to attack first. This is our last chance to end these games once and for all.”

“And we will,” you try to add more consolation to try and boast everyone’s confidence.

“How are you going to take their guns?” In-ho asks.

“Once the fight begins tonight, we’ll have our chance,” Gi-hun shares what you had in mind. “Once the lights go out, get under the beds quietly. You must not get caught by those planning to attack us.”

With all that said you realize you’re more interlinked than you thought. It’s true there’s only limited options to survive the attack and then get guns, but he’s more tactical than you thought.

“We have to hide until the fight ends,” Gi-hun continues. “Don’t get caught up in the fight.”

“But that would put people on our side at quite a disadvantage,” Jung-bae shares. “Without us in the fight, they’ll be outnumbered.”

Gi-hun nods. “I know. But if we fight with them and some of us end up dead or injured, it’ll ruin our entire plan. We can't beat those bastards with a lower headcount.”

He’s also more selfish than you thought, considering he’s all about not killing each other.

“Are you suggesting that we make a small sacrifice for the greater good?” In-ho asks as he also finally gets to see Gi-hun be selfish and show that he’s just like him and everyone else in charge.

“If we miss this opportunity,” Gi-hun says after a moment of silence. “The sacrifice will be even greater. Even if it takes a sacrifice…we must put an end to this game now.” He states, causing you to slowly glance over at In-ho as his point is proven right at that moment.

“In that case, I’m with you,” he says, further gaining Gi-hun’s uttermost trust.

“As am I,” you say but you’re not deceitful like In-ho. You’re sincere.

“Thank you,” Gi-hun whispers and then addresses the whole group. “The fight won’t last long. Because if all of us end up hurt or dead, there can’t be a next game, and they wouldn’t want that. So once the lights come on, the soldiers will come to settle the situation. They’ll try to break up the fight first. They won’t pay attention to the dead. They’ll scan our trackers to identify us. That’ll be our window.”

You nod slowly to show you understand and a second later the PA turns on and an announcement is given. “Lights out in five minutes.”

You all glance up at the speakers before you all stand up.

“Remember,” Gi-hun adds. “Go under your beds once the lights go off. Be careful everyone.”

“Shout if anyone ends up in any trouble,” you offer the group. “I’ll be there as quickly as I can.”

“Thank you,” Player 149 offers you, causing you to offer her a smile before you follow everyone to bed to pretend to follow along cluelessly.

However, before you can climb onto a bed you catch Jun-hee walking further away, so you call out to her. “Hey, Jun-hee, where are you going?”

Said girl stops in her tracks and turns on her heels to face you. “I’m going to talk to someone,” she says. “I’ll be right back.”

Your eyes dart behind her to try and find if someone is nearby, but you don’t catch anyone in particular so you just offer her a comprehensive nod. “How about when you come back you take the bunk under mine, hm?”

Jun-hee nods, letting you smile with relief before you turn away to let her do what she needs to do. However, when you are climbing to your bed, you hear your name being called from under you, so you stop and look down, catching In-ho with a hand on a bed frame and his eyes attentively on you.

“I just want to tell you that this is our last stretch,” he says in that fake friendly voice he’s been using for the past couple of days. “Just a little longer until we get to go home.”

You hold his gaze and find yourself having trouble offering him a smile. Not because of your own hidden agenda, but because you can’t tell if it’s a warning or a threat.

He’s seen how close you’ve gotten to everyone. You’ve broken that barrier you isolated yourself behind and he sees that, so you can’t tell if he’s threatening you to remember why he thinks you’re here.

Or maybe he’s figured you out and is threatening you about that.

Then again he could also be discreetly warning you that he intends to foil Gi-hun’s plan before he can reach the control room.

You don’t know, you can’t figure it out, so after your lashes flutter you offer him a strained smile and a soft nod.

In-ho takes what he gets with a nod before he turns away. You stay where you are and watch him walk off to his bed with concern. Once he’s climbing in you peel your eyes away from him and finish ascending to your bed, making sure to do every step to make it look like you’ll be going to sleep once the lights go off.

You remain there like some frozen statue forever staring off in the distance, and wait, feeling your pulse skip a beat before it starts to rise with every second that passes and gets closer to lights out.

“Lights out in ten seconds,” the PA echoes, making you turn towards the ladders. “Ten,”

Ba-dum.

“Nine,”

Ba-dum.

“Eight.”

Ba-dum.

“Seven.”

Ba-dum.

“Six.”

Ba-dum.

“Five.”

Ba-dum

“Four.”

Ba-dum.

“Three.”

Ba-dum.

“Two.”

Ba-dum.

“One.”

Your breath hitches and you’re unable to exhale, so you hold your breath and watch the bright lights go off and a yellow-orange light remain.

After a couple of seconds, those dim lights also go off, so you relieve your body by breathing, and then with the adrenaline kicking in you throw your blanket off your body and fling yourself to the stairs to climb down discreetly but quickly, making sure to glance at the other side so no one in particular is watching you.

Once you’re on the ground you see Jun-hee, and you let out a sigh of relief before you help her get on her knees so she can drag herself under the bed. The moment she’s made it halfway across you’re much swifter since you don’t have a swollen belly in the way, and quickly slide under the bed with her.

“Don’t worry,” you whisper and proceed to pull out the fork you got for dinner. “I’ll look out for you and your little one.”

Jun-hee turns her head and through the dim red and blue lights shining from the floor, you catch the fear brimming in her eyes. “Okay,” she whispers without a quiver, but the fear is still clear in her eyes.

“We’ll be okay,” you add in a sweeter voice.

Jun-hee lets out a shaky breath, and for a second relief flickers in her eyes before her fear returns to take over. Thus you drape your arm around her to keep her as close as possible and keep her comforted as the other players finally start to make their way to your side, making sure to be as quiet as possible.

And much to your surprise their plan worked without a hitch. No one cluelessly in bed was aware of what threat was lurking their way until the first victim let out an agonizing cry that alerted everyone of the attack and started the chaos.

Lights were also flashing from above, escalating everything around you, and making every dying cry and every sound of attack sound that much more horrifying and intense.

You would say work has prepared you for such horrors, but nothing can prepare you for not being able to do anything but hear people die. You know what you have to do though and you don’t feel an itch to step out of line to help.

Perhaps that is what leaves you an easy target or perhaps your acceptance to do nothing makes karma strike, but before you know it, cold hands slap around your ankles and drag you out of hiding.

Jun-hee yells out for you as you’re suddenly robbed from her side and you’re unable to hear, but through your confusion and panic, you yell back. “Stay! Don’t you dare try to help!”

From one second to the next, you’re flipped over, facing the woman who attacked you on the first day; the woman who’s been trying to figure out ways to curse you with her glares, and the woman who attacked you during mingle.

“You,” you snarl and quickly throw your hands out to try and claw her face to try and gain the upper hand, but she hits you with a right hook that leaves you disoriented and feeling a dull burning pain on your lip.

She hits you again, making you groan and feel streams of thick and warm blood run out of your nose and mouth. You feel the pain heighten and turn sharp now too, but through that pain and through your disorientation you swing your fist and jab your knuckles in her throat, causing her to choke and falter.

“I didn’t want to hurt you,” you growl and pull your fork out of hiding. “But you’re leaving me no choice,” you say and snap up to quickly scramble to your feet.

The woman sees you’re up now and tries to tackle you, but you use your body strength to slam into her so hard that she hits the wall.

You then try to bring your hand forward to impale her with the fork, but she doesn't take the time to collect herself. She manages to capture your wrist before she quickly grabs your throat with her other hand, going straight for the attack and managing to hurl you on the ground and disarm you.

“I learned how to fight in prison to try and kill the monster that locked me away,” she seethes, making the corner of your lips curl to a scowl.

However, you don’t waste a breath trying to respond. You throw your hands up to wrap them around her throat too, so she responds by picking your head up and slamming it on the floor.

You cry out and feel your world spin and a darkness blur your vision.

The woman then reels her hand back and swings her fist across your face for a third time. She then doesn’t give you time to try and recover, she grabs your head and picks it off the ground. Albeit before she can slam it down a second time, suddenly her body weight is lifted off you and through your blurry vision, you notice In-ho grab her by the collar and pull her to her feet before he slams her against the bed frame.

He doesn’t make another move after that. He lets her go and she collapses on the floor, letting you flip your body around to push yourself to your knees through all the confusion. When your eyes fall on her you notice her lifeless eyes, and the blood spilling from the back of her head.

He killed her for you. And it shouldn’t be as shocking as it currently is, or maybe it’s because your mind is still fuzzy and your vision is still blurry, but you’re left speechless and staring completely dumbfounded at the woman’s limp body.

It’s not until In-ho towers over you that you snap out of your stupor moments before he grabs you by your arms and pulls you to your feet.

“You weren’t supposed to come out of hiding,” you scold him softly whilst he squints through the flashing lights to try and see the cuts on your lips and the marks on your face.

“But I did,” he snaps with no real venom.

“But you did,” you whisper back and finally lock eyes, feeling at the heat of the moment as your vision finally clears and your head stops spinning; your heart skip a beat, and a warmth start to unfurl in your stomach that makes you hold his gaze in between the chaos for a second too long.

You also feel the urge to close the gap, so you do. You move in and wrap your arms around his neck to pull him in for an embrace. “Thank you,” you whisper sweetly, feeling the gentle touch of his hand on your back moments before the flashing lights come to an end and the bright lights come on again.

Now there’s a choice In-ho can make. He can either continue playing along with Gi-hun or expose himself as the Front Man.

Will he do the latter? You wonder as you watch him and prepare yourself to turn against him so the plan can go on.

Nevertheless, he pulls back and makes sure to grab your hand before he pulls you with him past the beds to throw yourselves on the floor and play dead.

“I’ll pass a gun to you,” he whispers as he closes his eyes. “Just cover us. Don’t strain yourself right now. Wait until after.”

You would argue, but your head still hurts, and by the time you try to storm to the control room you want to be stable enough to help them, so you give in and close your eyes.

In the following seconds, the alarm buzzes before the doors open, and pink soldiers storm in shooting their guns to make everyone stop fighting. They waste no time after that. Some men go around searching for anyone hiding, some point their guns at people they caught fighting, and others approach the dead to check the IDs.

However, since they know In-ho and you, the guard walking over simply crouches down and pretends, and it’s at that moment that In-ho jumps up and grabs the guard by the head to throw them on the floor. You then push yourself off the floor and watch In-ho yank the guard's gun off them to shoot them before he throws it at you to catch it.

After that with no time to examine the scene unfolding around you, you turn on your heels and shoot a guard straight through their mask, letting In-ho run over to the dead guard to rip their gun off their body. Much like you, with little time to breathe, he turns and ends up saving Gi-hun’s life by shooting the guard who was about to shoot him.

After that, since In-ho has a gun you turn and proceed to shoot a guard on the opposite side, while the other one is taken down by a different player. However, more guards are hidden between the beds trying to find their way out, so you find somewhere to hide and try to take them down while the other players try and take down the ones in the front.

You only manage to shoot down two before a bullet flies past you. When you look back you see a guard falling on the floor, so it means someone thought they were saving your life. Who? You ask yourself before you come out of hiding and see that it was Player 120.

Thus you offer them a thankful nod before you turn your aim ahead and take a guard down before the PA comes on to make an announcement. “Retreat.”

The guards gather up and start to walk backward towards the doors. Neither of you stops trying to shoot them though, you keep shooting with more ferocity as they all try running out of the closing doors, becoming an easy target.

Albeit you only manage to shoot one guard because they all manage to escape before the doors close. All except for one.

“Stop! Hold fire!” Gi-hun orders once the commotion has come to a halt and he spots the trapped masked manager. “Everyone, hold fire!”

Jung-bae and another player run up to the masked manager whilst you scan the room so there aren't any other masked guards hiding inside.

“Hands above your head! On your knees!” Jung-bae orders the masked manager.

“You goddamn bastards!” You catch someone shout and when you look over you notice Player 047 pointing a gun at the other players, so you quickly run over and yank his gun down.

“Drop it!” You bark without worrying about what plans the others have for the masked manager because no matter what, they're not allowed to expose who In-ho or you are unless you do it first.

“Drop it?!” The man remarks shakily. “Do you not see this? They are not human. They’re like goddamn vermin blinded by money!” He cries and brings his gun up again, causing the others behind you to yelp in fear.

However, you quickly counteract by pulling his gun down again and trying to get him to calm down. “Perhaps,” you agree about one thing. “But that’s not why we took these guns. If you shoot them now what do you gain from it? Satisfaction? For a little while maybe, but at the end of the day, you would have just repeated that cycle. You would be just like the people behind those masks.”

The man’s breath trembles and he keeps looking at you for a moment before he drops his aim and drops his head to cry quietly.

“We’re all tired,” you whisper as you start to walk past him. “But we won’t get out of here if we don’t keep pushing. Just for a little while longer.”

You pat his shoulder and then run over to Jun-hee as you notice her crawling out from under the bed.

“Everyone!” Gi-hun talks in the background. “Don’t be scared. Gather round, please!”

“It’s okay to come out,” Jung-bae echoes Gi-hun.

“We’re not trying to hurt you!” Gi-hun adds. “Come on! I have something to say!”

Before you can reach Jun-hee you come to a skidding stop as you catch Se-mi’s lifeless body bleeding out on the floor. The defiance once so lively in her eyes has now been swallowed by death.

What a tragic affair…

Yet you can’t stand there and feel guilty because if you blame yourself for not warning her then you’ll blame yourself for every dead player here, so, no you can’t feel guilty. You pull yourself away and finally reach Jun-hee.

“Are you okay?” She beats you to the question, so you respond to her first with reassurance.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little banged up but I’m fine. Besides, with all the adrenaline pumping through me I don’t feel a thing. You, are you okay?”

Jun-hee grabs her belly and smiles gently as she nods. “Yes, I’m okay,” she assures you, making you sigh with relief before you grab her shoulder and give it a gentle squeeze.

“It’s a good thing Young-il went to go help you,” she says with a sweeter smile as if she’s prouder than you are that he did what he did. “He’s a really good man. He seems to really care about you.”

Your smile falters but you don’t give anything away. You just nod softly. “Well, it’s a good thing he does because I probably would have come out worse than I look.”

“You held your own though,” she praises you. “That’s very impressive.”

You scoff and smile shyly at the ground. “Shucks.”

You proceed to roll your head up and meet her gaze with your lips slowly losing that smile. “Jun-hee, as you know, we’re going to leave soon to continue with this plan. And as you know it’s a risky plan. I just want you to know that…I will try what I can. Even if I don’t come back,” you add, sounding a little morbid.

“What does that mean?” She asks quietly as she looks at you with concern.

“Just,” you breathe out. “Know I will try everything I can,” you say with a smile before you pat her shoulder one more time and then turn away to walk to the front of the room with Gi-hun and the others as they also gather in front with collected guns, ammo, and radios.

“Everyone,” Gi-hun addresses the entire room. “We will now head up to the masked men’s headquarters. We’ll capture the ones who captured us, put an end to this game, and make them pay. Anyone who knows how to use a gun and wishes to join us, please step forward.”

You watch the ground as you wipe the blood off your face, but don’t see anyone coming forward. There’s not even a moment of hesitation.

Thus it’s probably why Jung-bae steps forward to address the crowd too. “Hey. I know you’re scared. I’m scared too. But this may be our last chance to make it out of this place alive. Ride with us so we can go home together. All together.”

You scan the crowd again and four people volunteer. Four out of all that remains after the bloodshed, after everything you, Gi-hun, and even Jung-bae have said, which actually gives your mind clarity since now you don’t have to debate whether adding a speech of your own or not because no matter what you have to say, nothing will change their minds.

At least some people chose to fight.

“Please check your guns and ammo,” Gi-hun orders after no one else decides to join.

“Let's take one radio each,” Jung-bae adds as he shows the radio in his hand. “We’ll use channel 7, the lucky number.”

You take a few steps forward and pick up two radios, one for you and one for Dae-ho who seems to be nervous.

“Are you doing okay?” You ask and he gives you a delayed answer.

“Yeah. Yeah,” his voice quivers. “You? You took quite a beating by the looks of it.”

You shrug whilst you check your ammo. “I’ll be okay. But you…are you sure you’re okay?” You ask as you notice how shaky his hands are.

“Yes, yeah I am, don’t worry about me,” he throws out at you.

“Attention!” A loud voice calls from a few paces ahead, and when you look over you see Player 120 facing the group with her gun pointed up. “This is the MP5, a submachine,” she says. “First, if you press this lever in the middle and pull the magazine, it comes off like this,” she says as she demonstrates how it’s done, making it seem rather easy. “If the selector switch is down, it’s set to full auto mode. Up is single-fire mode. We don’t have many magazines, so set it to single-fire mode. Lastly, insert the magazine, pull the handle, and then release it. That’s how you load it. Are we clear?”

“Yes,” you all agree in unison, and even if you already knew, it still still felt nice to hear it over again.

Soon thereafter, Gi-hun and Jung-bae approach the masked manager with a revolver.

“Take it off,” you hear Gi-hun order and when you look over you see the masked manager break the rule and expose himself to the masses.

“Good god,” Jung-bae gasps as he sees how young the manager looks. “Do your parents know what you’re doing here?”

With no space to answer Gi-hun cocks his gun and steps closer to the manager to sound more threatening. “Take us to your captain.”

Without the control room, exposing In-ho now would be stupid.

You keep telling yourself that as you leave the room and make your way to the control room following behind Jung-bae.

“All Players,” the PA cuts off the lullaby to give an alert. “It is bedtime now. Please return to your quarters immediately. Otherwise, you will be eliminated from the game. Let me repeat. All players, it is bedtime…”

The voice behind the PA tunes out as Jung-bae interjects. “I think I’ll be hearing this voice in my dreams. Don’t you?” He asks and looks back, making you sigh and agree.

“Every night.”

You then peer back at Dae-ho and he spares a glance at you and Jung-bae and agrees awkwardly before his eyes continue to dart the hall.

“…otherwise…”

Once again before the announcement on the PA can be finished, it’s interrupted. This time by Gi-hun shooting a speaker in the distance.

Nevertheless, it’s while you’ve taken that stop and waiting for Gi-hun to continue pushing forward that you spot three guards with the high ground across the hall, so you quickly react with panic. “Duck!”

A lousy interjection is given by the guards shooting their guns at you in hopes of hitting anyone that came with you, but luckily everyone ducks in time, leaving you stuck in the corner.

“One o’clock!” Gi-hun lets everyone know where the gunfire is raining from.

“Cover me!” You hear Player 120 shout from the back, which is why it’s not aimed at you, but you glance over and catch Player 047 standing up to shoot, so you quickly push yourself up and turn around to aim at the guard in the middle while they’re all distracted, managing to hit them right in the center of their mask.

There’s two guards left after that, but you crouch down again, catching Player 120 already ahead taking cover behind a corner before immediately going up and shooting ahead, managing to shoot one. There’s one left after that and they get taken down, but more guards pop up, so wait until there’s a second of silence and then peek out.

Guards come out of hiding, so you quickly aim your gun and shoot one before they start to shoot again, causing you to take cover and let the others pop out to try. After a few rounds are shot, Player 120 cuts in. “Hold fire!”

“Hold fire!” Gi-hun repeats so the others can be heard and no one can hit their triggers.

After that, when no fire rains down from above you all slowly stand up and scan the area to make sure the ghost is clear.

“Is everyone okay?” Gi-hun asks after he doesn’t catch anyone, but you keep looking so there aren’t any guards sneaking over.

“Yes,” people reassure him.

“Yes, I’m okay!”

“All right,” Gi-hun says with some hint of relief. “Let’s go up!”

He proceeds to turn around to pull up the manager so he can continue to lead the way.

“Good shot,” you praise player 120 as you pass by her.

“Thank you.” She nods. “You too.”

You flash her a quick smile and then realize that she lingered behind to shoot singular shots at something you aren’t able to see, but given the fact that they were singular bullets, she probably shot at the cameras like she did before.

Not like it does any good given the fact that you’re already passing that section and she can't shoot out any cameras that you’ll come across. If you could turn the cameras off from anywhere else but the restricted levels, that would be great, but alas, you can’t so they know every step you take.

They know when Jung-bae finds ammo in the pocket of a dead guard hanging over the wall, and they see when you all come to a stop in front of a protected door.

“How much farther?” Gi-hun asks the manager after he brings him and everyone else to a stop. “Is this the right way?” He asks as he turns him around.

The manager turns to point at the protected door. “The entrance to the management area is around that corner. The control room is right above it,” he says with a shaky voice.

“Move it then,” Gi-hun urges.

“Wait,” the manager says and proceeds to try and pull out his mask, but since Gi-hun doesn’t know that’s what he needs, he stops the manager.

“What are you doing?”

“I need my mask to pass security,” the manager assures him, so Gi-hun lets him go and the manager takes out the mask.

However, as the manager is lifting his head up to look away from what he’s doing, you see his eyes lock on In-ho seconds before his eyes drift behind his shoulder to also spot you and look at you with the same disbelief.

He recognizes the both of you, but nothing brings him more fear than In-ho, because he knows that there’s no escaping the fate that awaits those who break the rules.

Moreover, as if spotting In-ho is some bad omen, the sound of a bullet breaks the silence seconds before it rips right through the manager and steals his life. Neither one of you hesitate to take cover after that to avoid succumbing to the same fate.

Well, all but one player avoids getting hit in the surprise attack. He was trying to be brave and stood out in the open. The rest of you stay hidden for a few seconds. After that, a couple of players pop out and shoot at the guards.

When they take cover again after a few rounds are shot, other players take their turn shooting. You wait albeit until the tail end of the group takes their turn to shoot to catch the guards off guard. There's no real need to do so since bullets hit below or above you and never at you, but you’re no longer playing a part. Killing them is you dropping your act, but they don’t know that, so it’s easy to bring them down and play it off like you’re an excellent shot.

“I’ll go look for the management area!” Gi-hun tries to shout over the gunfire so he can be heard by the group.

“Will you be able to find it?” In-ho asks as he keeps pretending. “Should I come?”

Much to your surprise Gi-hun declines his offer. “I’ll go with Jung-bae. I need you to buy us some time!”

“Gi-hun!” You exclaim and inch forward to be seen by him. “I’ll go with you.”

Right away In-ho looks over and turns you down before Gi-hun can try and answer. “No, I need you here with me, covering for me.”

Gi-hun’s eyes shift to you and you see him debate that decision before he nods stiffly. “Young-il is right. I’ll see you again soon.”

You clench your hands around the gun and nod softly. “Alright. Good luck over there. Let me know if you need backup.”

He hums and then looks at his friend. “Jung-bae, let's go.”

He proceeds to swipe the mask off the floor before he goes off and disappears around the corner with Jung-bae, leaving you to instead try and take down as many guards as you can.

Yet just as you’re about to turn around you notice how recklessly Dae-ho is shooting. He’s not even looking over at his targets. He’s just shooting blindly as if he’s scared or never actually shot a gun before. It’s why he runs out of bullets.

“Here,” you exclaim and then quickly scurry over to the wall he’s hiding behind to hand him the extra ammo you had in your pocket. “And stop shooting like that. You’ll waste all your bullets, or worse, shoot one of us.”

He nods frantically and then grabs the ammo to insert it shakily.

“Dae-ho,” you call out softer, and he clicks in his ammo first before he gives you his attention. “Breathe, okay?” You try to comfort him the best way you can. A way you would like to be comforted. A way…you’ve been comforted before. “You’ll be okay.”

He looks into your eyes, so you make sure to soften them so he can find ease in your comfort before he exhales deeply and offers you a comprehensive nod before looking away.

After you turn the other way to try and come out of hiding to continue shooting, you catch In-ho’s wandering gaze that hardens slightly as he furrows his eyebrows.

You don’t know what he can possibly mean by it so you just look away and pop out of hiding to shoot.

Yet no matter how many guards you or the others take down more and more guards come out in groves. Which is expected by you, but it doesn’t make it any less annoying because you know there’s no way the Players will survive this if Gi-hun doesn’t reach that room, or if you don’t go ahead to help him.

“We’re in the management area,” you hear Gi-hun come in through the radio, making you pick it up to bring it to your ear—“We’ll make our way up.”

If only you could warn him, but there’s too many reasons you can’t right now and one is next to you, growing angrier and angrier the closer Gi-hun gets to that room. The best thing to do is keep trying to pick off the number of these guards. How long can you keep this up with the limited ammo you all have and the small group you came with? You don't know, all you know is that if you don’t move forward you’ll be picked off or trapped.

Player 046 notices the predicament and comments on it. “This isn’t getting us anywhere! Let’s follow them to the upper level!”

“We might get surrounded if we move together without a plan!” In-ho responds with the actual harsh truth. “Let’s wait until they find the control room!”

“Young-il is right!” You add as consolation. “We’ll only get killed if we move ahead now.”

Player 047 groans but doesn’t push. He keeps trying to fight and so do you.

“Everyone! Check your magazines!” Player 120 yells not so much later, but first, you come out of hiding and try to shoot a guard, but you miss as they duck in time.

“I’m down to half,” you hear someone say before other players proceed to announce their current status.

“I’ve got less than half.”

“Same!”

“I’ve got two-thirds left.”

“I’m almost out!”

“Mine is empty!” Dae-ho announces.

“I’m almost out!” You say but only guess because you don’t actually check even if you take cover again.

“I’m almost out too!” In-ho says last.

“Young-il, Dae-ho!” Jung-bae comes through the radio at long last. And after he says your name too he proceeds with what he needs to say. “Can you hear me?”

“Go ahead!” In-ho responds for the group.

“I think we’re right below the control room! But we need backup and more ammo,” Jung-bae shares.

“We’re running out of ammo too!” In-ho shares loudly.

“There should be spare magazines in the soldiers' pockets in our quarters,” Gi-hun says this time. “Go get them!”

“Got it!” In-ho assures them before he turns to the group. “Did you hear that? They need backup! Four of us will go, and the rest will stay! Join us once you get the magazines! Besides, Player 002, who wants to go with me?”

“I’ll go!” Player 047 volunteers before Player 015 does the same.

“Let’s go!” In-ho commands and is quick to lead the way. Before you follow them though you turn to Dae-ho.

“You’ll be okay,” you add one last piece of comfort. “Just remember to breathe.”

He nods quickly and then speaks shakily. “Be careful.”

You offer him a gentle smile. “I will,” you assure him before you turn away and follow the others, finding it easy to reach the management area since no guards pop out and scare you, and Gi-hun and Jung-bae propped the door open with a gun—Which is smart on their behalf. And that's not all, they also seemed to use the mask they took as a decoy to distract the guards they faced.

“Dae-ho,” you hear Jung-bae speak through the radio. “Can you hear me? Where are those magazines?”

“Yes?” You hear Dae-ho’s shaky voice. “I’m on my way to get them.”

“All right, Dae-ho! We’re counting on you!”

“Yes, you can count on me, brother!” Dae-ho assures him. “I’ll be there soon!”

Hopefully, he stays true to his word. He looked rather terrified when you left him. It’s a long way from there to here.

“Was that boy even in the Marines?” Player 047 wonders out loud. “He was shaking like a leaf and shooting like a madman.”

You shrug as you keep your gun up and your eyes peeled. “Who knows, but we need to trust he’ll stay true to his word. People are relying on him,” you say as you move along.

After you ascend a few stairs and walk a few paces, you finally come across the first violent scene that marks that Gi-hun and Jung-bae are going the right way. You also hear bullets, but with the way this section is built the sounds echo, so there’s no way to pinpoint where the noise comes from. It’s a good thing you’re not going into this blindly.

Albeit In-ho still walks slowly and pretends to be clueless so as to not give anything away, and with no other choice, you pretend too.

Once you find Gi-hun and Jung-bae you keep up your act because of the number of guards there is ahead of you. In-ho surely would end up turning them against you if you expose yourself now.

You need to wait. Just a little longer.

“Gi-hun!” In-ho announces your presence as you round the corner. “Did you find the control room?”

Gi-hun points his head toward the guards as he responds. “I think it’s right up there, but we can't go this way. I want you to find another way.”

“I did a quick scan of the layout here. I’m sure there’s a way to go around them,” In-ho says. “I want you guys to keep their focus on you. We’ll hit them from behind.”

Gi-hun nods. “Okay.”

And before In-ho and the rest of you go, Gi-hun stops him. “Wait. Here take this,” he says and offers him his spare ammo. “You’re going to need it.”

You clench your jaw and turn away to avoid giving anything away.

“Are you sure?” In-ho asks as he makes sure to pretend to be hesitant. And without a damn fault, Gi-hun shows that he is a good and reliable man.

“Dae-ho will be back with more.”

He’s the humanity In-ho seems to lack…

But you also can’t be sure. Not at this moment. Not here because no matter what way you view this current situation, the truth is you are stuck and need to find a way out.

Maybe you shouldn’t rely on those running thoughts. You can’t find an excuse for him because you know him more than you care to admit. Yet wouldn’t it be foolish to not hold out hope?

He leads the way so confidently, like if he’s not hiding a secret, like if he is just another desperate player. Every step he takes to carefully lead the group drives you further into the belief that his heart has softened and that he wants more than just this island.

“Gi-hun,” he says after you find your way around the guards and wait with the other Players taking cover across from you while In-ho and you hide next to each other—“we found it. Start attacking and draw their attention. Then we’ll hit them from behind.”

“Okay, got it!” Gi-hun responds and ends the conversation. Not long after that, he’s not hesitant to do what he’s supposed to do.

Thus once the guards are distracted, In-ho gives the other two the okay to sneak out and stalk toward the guards from behind. You wait until they’ve rounded the corner before you try to follow after them, but In-ho then puts his hand out, telling you to wait before he walks out.

You don’t listen to him however and carefully follow after him.

The moment you round the corner you’re startled by him killing the Players.

You don’t know why you let such a violent act scare you. It’s what he does. He’s cold and quick to act, but…you still wanted to hold out hope. Desperately. Because maybe just maybe he would turn out to be different. He would have had a change of heart. He would have learned from Gi-Hun’s heroism and his bravery and remembered that there’s a point to life. There’s so much more than this island and this frigid life of games and death.

You thought that maybe, just maybe you had changed his mind too. Not with what you have said, but with your kindness toward him and the reminder that there are people who love him. Not just Jun-ho, but you too, but…he just killed those Players only trying to escape this hell, so what can you hold onto now? A flickering glimmer of hope?

How stupid, but…you hold on like a fool. You don’t show him kindness. That’s a mercy you don’t grant him.

First, you spin around and shoot out the cameras with haste. In-ho had grabbed his radio and was going to talk through it, but as he hears the sounds of your gun, he pauses and wants to turn, but you don’t let him face you so he doesn’t have the chance the point his gun at you. You press the head of your gun against his head and snatch the back of his collar before you tug.

Without commotion or alerting the guards, In-ho walks back with you so you can hide behind the wall so the guards don’t come to help him.

“I’m going to give you one chance, In-ho,” you break your silence and start to answer his confusion. “Do the right thing.”

He scoffs. “What’s the right thing?” He retorts. “Don't tell me you’ve believed what you said and the bullshit Gi-hun has spat.”

You swallow thickly and with that, he has his answer, so he strains a chuckle and steps forward, slipping from your grasp and attempting to turn. Albeit you press the head of your gun harder against his head, making him stop and mutter. “I should’ve known…”

“You should’ve known,” you continue for him in his brief silence. “I was nothing like my father. I was nothing like everyone here. You should’ve known that I would fight against the monsters.”

In-ho takes a deep breath and stays quiet for a moment before he responds. “Is that what you believe? That you’re different? You may try to fight for the right thing, but you are just like your father.”

Your breath hitches and when he hears that he drops his gun and turns around, locking eyes with you above the gun still pointing at him.

“You let all these people die for your plan. You played them in their faces to try and achieve your own goals,” he continues, making your bottom lip tremble as the truth hurts. “No matter how many times you turned away from the violence you still let the blood shed. At least Tae-woong didn’t turn a blind eye.”

You inhale sharply and reaffirm your aim.

“So no you’re not different,” he remarks. “That’s why your place is here. Don’t be stupid. Put the gun down. There’s nothing waiting for you out there. No one. What life can you have out there when you’re so dependent on wanting a family?”

Your breath trembles and tears break out of your eyes and run down your cheeks whilst the hold on your gun falters.

In-ho is quick to use that slight mistake and moves forward, but no matter how much hurt you’re hit with at the sound of him using your vulnerability against you, you still step back.

“Prove your father wrong by doing better than he did here,” he adds and steps forward, but you take a step to the side and he follows your lead.

“So,” your voice quivers and you begin to walk around him slowly, but he never lets you get behind him. In-ho follows your every step without letting go of your gaze as if you’re in an intimate dance—“That’s your answer then? You don’t even want to try? Jun-ho will take you back.”

He finally gulps at what you said and sighs as that coldness he looks at you with falters. “No,” he deadpans. “There’s no option to retreat. Not here.”

Like a candle against a breeze. That hope is snuffed out and you’re left standing there cold and swallowed by the dark.

“Okay,” you mutter and stop dancing around him, instead, you tighten the hold around your gun as you accept the harsh truth that he picked this damn island.

Just like your father, In-ho also picked the Island…

It hurts. It angers you to accept, but even so, you still don’t raise the gun to point it at anything past his shoulders. You keep the head of your gun slightly lowered to try and catch him off guard.

Albeit In-ho is smarter than that, he sees your thoughts forming behind your eyes and instead, catches you by surprise when he grabs the head of your gun with both hands and pushes the gun back harshly to hit you with the butt of your own gun.

You groan and stumble back, but refuse to let the gun go, so he pushes back again, making you hit the wall this time.

With the gun still attached, you try to press the trigger, but he catches that attempt and throws his leg out to kick you hard on your belly, causing you to groan and your hold to falter as you’re riddled with pain.

Thus, In-ho snatches the gun from your hand and swiftly turns it around to point it at you now. Yet before he can hit the trigger, you ignore your pain and lunge forward to tackle him to the ground.

In-ho drops the gun, but he doesn’t let you gain an opening. He grabs your shoulders as you try to slide your hands to his throat, and then wraps his legs around your waist before he flips you over, unaware of the fact that you were on the ledge of a top step so you both tumble down the stairs.

Thankfully, the flight of stairs is short so you hit the ground soon and manage to land on top of him. He does quickly try to push you off him, but you slap his hands away and pin his arms down before you bring your head down to headbutt him.

In-ho groans and becomes dazed, whilst your head throbs too. Yet you don’t let your pain overwhelm you, you slide your hands up his arm to wrap your fingers around his throat.

Without hesitation and with anger that he decided to choose the Island over leaving with you, you squeeze forcefully.

In-ho doesn’t give up, of course. He drags his hands up and also wraps his hands around your own throat with a firm squeeze. And rather than competing in a challenge of who can run out of air first, he manages to fold his leg and jab his knee in your stomach, making you let him go as every muscle in your body is overcome with pain.

In-ho then shoves you aside and pushes himself on his feet to run away. You watch him run and you assume he’s going to grab a gun, so once again you shove the pain aside and pull yourself up shakily. When you’re on your feet you break into a sprint and manage to catch up to him so you throw yourself at him to shove him against the wall using your body. You then grab a ball of his hair and yank him back a few inches before you slam his face against the wall with vigor.

“Ah!” He yelps and you do it again and again, but when you’re going to do it a fourth time he jabs his elbow on your side, making you stumble and letting him turn around to grab your throat with both hands and throw you against the other wall.

When your body hits the wall your radio slips out of your pocket, so you purposely fall to the ground and reach out for the radio, managing to swipe it off the ground. In-ho is busy grabbing a gun so you press the button to talk. “Gi-hun!” You shout through the radio. “Jung-bae! Young-il is—”

Before you can finish warning them about the truth of how In-ho is, he kicks the radio out of your hand and then proceeds to reel his arms back to slam the butt of his gun against your head. Albeit you manage to catch his attempts and quickly react by snapping your head away, resulting in him hitting the ground.

Instead of proceeding to attack him, you flip around as you hear Gi-hun calling you through the radio, but In-ho drags you back and then flips you over.

“Do it,” you grimace as he points the gun at you. “Kill me…but then,” you say with tears running down your cheeks. “I want you to look your brother in the eye and tell him you killed the woman he loved. Kill me and make me a martyr you fucking monster!” You cry out.

In-ho lets out a deep breath through his nose and clenches his jaw as he points his gun at you, making you tilt your chin up to hold his gaze with defiance and rage. He then proceeds to hover his finger over the trigger, but before he can shoot you in the head, he lowers his aim and shoots your shoulder, causing you to cry out in pain seconds before he turns the gun around and once again reels his arms back.

This time instead of missing he manages to hit you with the butt of the gun and knocks you out.

——

*A LITTLE BIT LATER*

“How many?”

“Three on both sides.”

Your eyes flutter open, but before you can focus your eyes you’re blinded by a natural brightness you haven’t seen in days, so you immediately shield your eyes and keep hearing distorted voices.

“That’s enough. Close it and push it into the water.”

“Yes sir!”

Between the throbbing pain completely radiating from every muscle of your body, you hear the sound of footsteps hitting against rocks, so you quickly bring your arm down and see where you are now that the panic lets your eyes focus. You’re outside.

Your eyes quickly take in your surroundings and you notice that you’re lying in a black box. You’re in one of the boxes they put dead Players.

Pink guards proceed to appear above you and they look down with their masks.

“Where is he?” You blurt. “Where is the Front Man?!” You demand to know, but neither guard responds, instead they disappear for a second, making you heave with panic.

“In-ho?” You call out in hopes he’s nearby. “In-ho?!”

The pink guards appear again but this time they appear with a black lid that they don’t hesitate to bring down, meaning one thing; they’re trapping you inside. They’re going to send you out to sea.

“Wait!” You cry out and try to throw your hands out but you can only throw out one hand because the other pierces you with sharp pain. “WAIT!” You bellow and try to push the lid away, but they’re stronger between all four of them. They slam the lid down, pushing your hand down and enveloping you in darkness.

“No,” your voice quivers as you’re overwhelmed with terror. “No, please! Wait! In-ho, please! PLEASE!”

You hear the sound of drills before you hear the sound of nails securing the lid on the box to make sure you can’t escape.

“The Crane has been eliminated,” a distorted voice announces before you feel the box getting pushed and then proceed to hear the sound of their footsteps as they move forward on the sand with your box.

“Please don’t do this!” You cry with absolute horror. “Please take me out! Please! Please!” You beg and begin slamming your fist against the box. “Get me out of here!”

The box stops moving but only because you feel it hit the water. You see the water splashing in through the holes on the box and you completely panic.

“PLEASE! PLEASE! DON'T DO THIS! IN-HO! IN-HO!”

Yet no one responds. No one pulls you back on land. They push you further away so you can drift away with the waves and eventually drown or starve to death. Either or this is punishment because you’ll die in the sea…

.

.

.

.

A/N- OH MY GOODNESS! WILL WE BE SAVED?! And if so, by who?!!!

[lore-grandma]

Me: *really liking to cook and bake things*

My hands:

[hadersversion]

but daddy i love him!

“no, i’m not coming to my senses. i know he’s crazy but he’s the one i want.”

pairing: rafe cameron x innocent kook!reader

word count: 5.8k

warnings: smut, minors dni!!! dry humping & fingering. corruption kink of sorts (rafe and an innocent reader has taken over me fully i apologize). parental violence/verbal abuse. fighting. rafe showing his true colors but quickly hiding it from the reader because rafe is a big softie for them. pet names (sweetheart, honey, darling, baby, pretty/good girl). aftercare. let me know if i miss any!

mood board!

rafe cameron was bad news.

anyone in the outer banks could tell you that.

he was a fighter, a shit-talker, a guy who you couldn’t trust.

but there was something so intriguing about him that you just couldn’t turn away.

from the day you moved to island almost 10 years ago, you haven’t been able to get him off your mind. you would see him at parties, the country club, when you would hang out with his sister, around town on his motorbike with his buddies. but you had to push that crush deep down because no one in their right mind would go after that boy.

except you.

you stretched yourself on the court, waiting for your dad to come out with drinks before your tennis match. that’s when you saw him and his friends making their way to the locker room. they had just got done their round of golf, you could tell by their bags. you tried not to stare, but your eyes seemed to have a mind of their own.

“hey, y/n.” you heard him call, with a smirk painted across his face.

your face blushed and you waved to him. “hey rafe.” play it cool, play it cool.

you can see him look you up and down, staring at your legs. “nice skirt.”

you looked down at the new, white tennis skirt your dad had bought you for your report card. your fingers found a loose thread, beginning to toy with it to deal with the embarrassment you felt. “t-thanks.”

he nods before looking behind you. “mr. y/l/n.” he nods with a quick wave. you turn around to see your dad with two waters and a stern look on his face. “enjoy your game.” he says before going inside.

your dad stands over you as you sit, handing a water bottle over. “that cameron boy…” he lets out a deep sigh.

“what?” you question, getting up and brushing your legs off.

your dad pinches the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes. “he’s not the kind of guy you want to be friends with, sweetie. he’s a bad seed.”

“but how do you know that?” you question, trying not to sound too suspicious.

your dad picks up his racket and makes his way over to his side of the net. “i know ward cameron. and i know how rafe is just like his dad, thinks he can get anything he wants. thinks there is no consequences to life. but there is. there always is.” your dad shakes his head. “i saw him beating up some kid here not that long ago. sure, he was a pogue but doesn’t give rafe the right to walk around like the king of the outer banks. but until someone stops him, humbles him, things’ll never change.”

you stand there, uncomfortable. all you wanted to do was defend rafe, though you weren’t close like that. but your dad is a one way street. it’s his way or no way. so all you can do is nod. “oh…okay.” you say simply, getting ready for the match.

“just promise me you won’t get mixed up with the likes of that boy, please?” your father looks sincere.

you bite your lip and look down at your clean, white shoes. “yes sir.”

“good, now watch me beat you in tennis.” he says with a laugh. i fake a smile, getting on with the game, but still have rafe in the back of my mind.

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───

you didn’t see rafe again until the night of a house party at topper’s house.

your friends and you walk in, buzzed from the pre-game. they immediately all go their separate ways, looking for drinks, boys, or both. this leaves you standing awkwardly by a table, talking to some people from school. they talk about prom, their grades, and teachers, making you mentally check out from the conversation. that’s when he catches your eye, he is talking to topper and kelce with a red solo cup in his hand. you watch his every move, how big and veiny his hands are, practically cover the entire cup. how he constantly pushes his hair back while he talks, almost seeming like a force of habit he has. he also licks his lips a lot, sending a very graphic image of rafe between your le-

he looks up, meeting your gaze. a blush forms on your face as you try to hide your embarrassment but taking a sip of alcohol from your cup. you give yourself some time, staring into the cup before looking up again. but when you look at him, he hasn’t stopped staring at you. the blush you fought so hard to keep away makes your face feel like it’s on fire.

you watch as he excuses himself and makes his way over to you. this has to be a dream? or some prank, right?

“hey there, y/n.” he snaps you out of your spiraling thoughts. every person who you are talking to looks over to rafe then back at you. “didn’t know you were coming.”

you awkwardly shrug. “last minute choice by my friends.”

his eyes burn holes into your body as he looks you up and down. “well, i’m glad you’re here.” you nod at him, offering a shy smile. “looks like you need another drink, come inside and i’ll get you one.” he nods his head towards the kitchen door. the group you're with is watching this conversation like it’s a TV show. you make my way through them and stand next to him. he automatically puts his hand on your back and leads you inside. the feeling of his touch sends chills down your spine but it almost feels like his hand is meant to be there. like his touch is the missing piece in your life.

you get into the kitchen and he heads towards the fridge, grabbing juice and handing it over. “you strike me as a vodka and juice, girl.” he says with a smile, making my insides melt.

“and what makes you say that?” you ask, putting your hand on my hip, playing into his little game of flirting.

“well, you’re sweet and you seem to play it safe. you don’t really drink a lot but when you do, you’re never blacked out.” he admits with a laugh, giving his diagnosis. “juice is sweet and vodka is the safest way to get a little drunk, in my opinion.” he stares at your face, waiting for a response.

“you’re good, rafe cameron. a little too good.” you admit, grabbing the juice and filling up the cup. he stands over you, giving me the vodka next. “didn’t know i was that easy to read.”

“you’re not.” he admits, staring down at you while you drink. “i just think i have a special interest in you.”

you freeze in place, there’s no way he’s admitting this to you. right now. the boy you’ve been pining after since the first grade. you can tell you're shutting down but you need to play it cool. “oh really?” you look up at his blue eyes, getting lost in them instantaneously.

“really.” he steps closer, inches away from my face. you know you are not that drunk but your head feels like it’s spinning under his gaze. he leans in a little closer, your noses brushing, when the kitchen door slams and topper can be seen stumbling in. his obnoxious laugh fills the room, making rafe close his eyes and sigh. “what could you possibly want right now?”

topper laughs and comes up beside rafe, he’s clearly fucked up. “i’m just looking for some weed, man.” he hits his chest playfully. “don’t let me get in your way.”

rafe pushes him away, making topper laugh harder at us. he looks at you before speaking. “sorry for being a cockblock.”

rafe narrows his eyes at him. “just get the fuck outta here, top.”

topper staggers into the other room, still laughing.

“sorry about him. when he drinks, he becomes an asshole.” he says, running a hand across his face.

“is he drunk all the time?” i ask with a new found confidence in my voice.

rafe looks at me and laughs. “seems to be.”

you both stand in silence, not moving away from each other but unable to bring the moment back.

“i like you.” he admits.

you stare at him, unable to speak. “w-what?”

“i think you heard me, y/n.” he smiles cockily, looking into your eyes.

you look back at him. “you barely know me, rafe.”

“doesn’t mean i can’t like you.” he sips his cup and nudges your shoulder with his. “i think you could say the same about me.” he gets closer, whispering into your ear. “don’t think i don’t notice how you stare at me when i’m around.”

you feel the air leave your body and you bite your lip. you feel like your cornered and have nowhere to go. “i-i-uh…”

he brushes his finger against your lip, almost like he’s shushing you. but you can’t even fight the way your body reacts to his touch. “it’s okay, honey. i like it. i like it a lot.” he says in a whisper, almost making you forget you aren’t the only two people in the world. it feels like you can read his mind just by looking into his blue eyes. he wants you…screw that, rafe cameron needs you. and you need him. forget what your father says, or the town, or even your friends. this seems to be all you need.

how am i ever going to recover from this? you thought to yourself.

you hear your friend call your name from outside. rafe looks over as they yell from outside. “i’ll see you around, how’s that sound?” you look at him, unable to think when he looks at you like this. his hand brushes against your face before walking back out into the party.

you stand there, still as your friend comes in. “you alright? looks like you seen a ghost or something.” she asks you, laughing a bit.

“all good.” was all you can get out, staring straight ahead at the door rafe just left in.

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───

ever since the party, rafe found little ways to be around you.

whether it was joining you at the country club while you played tennis or hanging around you when he saw you at the beach reading. he even started knocking on the front door of your mansion to just talk on your porch, something you had to hide from your dad. with these interactions, you had no idea what everyone was warning you about with him. he was one of the sweetest guys you ever met. for weeks, you and rafe had begun a nice friendship.

but the almost kiss at topper's party was never spoken of again.

the two of you sat on your porch swing, the air was warm as summer was slowly approaching. your legs laid flatly across rafe’s lap, looking directly at him. you poured a glass of lemonade for you both, sparking rafe to hit you with a “you sure you don’t want some vodka in this?”

when you’re with rafe, the conversations seem to just flow like you are the oldest of friends. you could talk about anything and nothing at the same time. he went on for the past five minutes about how he used to love playing lacrosse but one injury affected his whole career for him.

“it sucked, ya know? i never felt like i belonged anywhere, or had a close bond with anyone like i did on that team. then one fucking torn acl later and it’s all gone for me. i had college scouts looking at me and everything. i could’ve escaped this place and lived the real college experience.” he looked out into the water that faced your house. he turned to you and smiled awkwardly. “jeez, i’m sorry i just don’t shut up.”

you chuckle at him, loving how he put some of his walls down around you. “it’s okay, i like hearing ya talk. it’s soothing.” you smile innocently at him.

he gazes into your eyes and nods, his expression softening. “really?” you nod and he just stares at you. “you’re one of a kind, ya know?” his fingers start to rub innocent circles on your leg.

“and why’s that?” you ask him.

“i-i don’t know, i feel like i can be myself around you.” he admits. “don’t ever quote me on that because i’ll deny that shit.” he points, gaining a laugh from you.

“don’t want anyone to know rafe cameron can be a softie?” you tease him.

“shut up, i’m not a softie.”

“i think you can be behind close doors.” you say.

he stops rubbing your leg and turns to you. “oh shut up.”

“well, you’re gonna have to make me then.” you say without thinking.

rafe looks at you with a fire in his eyes that you haven’t seen since the party. “what was that?” he cocks his eyebrow at you.

you just stare into his eyes, straightening your shoulders back. a confidence striking you like never before. “i think you heard me, rafe.”

without missing a beat, rafe connects your lips. all of that pent-up tension, gone within that very second. his hands found his way to your face, cupping it ever so lightly like you were a delicate flower he was so lucky to have found. his hands slowly slid down your body, like he was trying to memorize every inch of your skin. "jesus, this is all i've been thinking about." he said breaking away, looking into your eyes.

"then, don't stop." you say breathlessly, climbing on top of his lap, kissing him again.

you can tell this move took rafe by surprise as he let out a soft moan in the kiss. the innocence he once thought you possessed was now all gone. you slowly began grinding yourself against rafe's clothed cock, which was slightly hardening. "fuck, who knew you had it in you, honey." he said as he kissed down your jaw. you never felt so needier in your life chasing a high with rafe that you thought you could only dream about.

your face blushed as you looked down at rafe who was staring up at you like you were a painting held high in the louvre. the more you looked down, the more self-conscious you became. your pace which was rapidly increasing started to falter. "hey, hey, sweetheart. don't stop now. what's wrong? talk to me." he caressed your face so lovingly.

you bit your lip and closed your eyes, still out of breathe. "i-i-i don't know. what if i'm doing this wrong? or it's weird for you? i'm just nervous, i never did this before."

"did what, sweetheart? dry humped?" he almost laughed, pushing hair out of your face.

you shrugged. "well yes and no..." your voice started to trail off.

"yes and no?" rafe stared at you with a puzzled expression, trying to crack the code. you watched as he deciphered your words and the gears started to turn. "y/n, have you ever been with someone like...sexually before?"

you wanted to cry, the embarrassment being too hard to handle. you just laid your head against rafe's chest and sighed. "please, don't think of me any differently. i just...i just haven't found the right person to do all this with, ya know? i used to be scared but with you...i don't know, i feel ready." rafe sat there in silence, his hands falling to your waist and gripping them. you break away from his chest and stare into his eyes, which have seemed to darken. "rafe?"

"you trust me?" he asks simply. you nod shyly, causing his breath to hitch. you can feel his pants grow tighter under you. "i want you to keep going, do you hear me? don't stop until you cum on my pants." it sounds like he is giving you orders. he brings his thumb across your lip and gives a menacing smirk. "you wanna be all mine, huh? you pretty girl. show me your mine."

with his reassurance, you pick up you begin to rub yourself against his pants. your hands grip his shoulders as he holds you down on him. "good girl, keep it going." the material of his jeans feel rough against your clothed cunt but it adds a sensation you have never felt before. "shit, look at how pretty you look on me. can't wait to bury my cock inside you. would you like that? my cock being so far inside you, you can feel it in your stomach?"

you let out a pathetic whine, your head falling back from the pleasure you have building up inside. "y-yes."

"good girl, but we gotta start with the basics, right?" his hands start to trail up your body, stopping at your closed breasts. he cups them with his hands and smiles when you cry his name. "i got you, baby. c'mon, you know you wanna cum."

you quickly grind against him, feeling desperate as you chase your high. with his words of praise and reassurance, you can feel yourself ready to release. with one quick movement, you feel the tension building up in your stomach release as you cum on rafe. tears prick your eyes as you repeat his name over and over again. "rafe, rafe, rafe."

he stares at you in awe as you finish on him. the sight of your teary eyes and his name falling from your lips in such a needy way pushed him over the edge. he found himself cumming in his pants like he was a high schooler all over again.

you both stayed there, out of breathe, not moving once. you felt like a whole new person even though barely anything has changed.

"you alright?" he asks, pushing hair away from your face.

you tiredly nod, not knowing how to form words. your hooded eyes just take in the view of rafe, his face read and sweaty with a cocky smirk painted across it.

he bites his lip and kisses you gently. "there's more where that came from, you know?" he says and your head reels. "i've been waiting for so long to have you to myself, sweetheart. i don't plan on letting go now."

you giggle into his chest and nod. "don't gotta worry about me leaving, trust me. i've never felt so good in my life." the sweet yet sensual moment you two shared came to a halt when you heard your dad's truck pulling up the gravel road to your house. "shit." you quickly climb off rafe, trying to compose yourself.

your father quickly exited the truck, slamming the door behind him. he seemed to race up to the two of you as you sat there. rafe's hand protectively went over yours as your father approached. "the hell is he doing here?" he fumes.

"d-dad, we're just hanging out." you lie to his face.

"yes sir, that's all we were doing." rafe says camly, looking at him in the eyes.

your father head snaps towards rafe. "was i talking to you, boy? no. stay outta it." his attention focuses back to you. "i told you to not mess with the likings of this boy and what do you do behind my back?" he screams at you. "you go around with this...this hooligan! i want him off my property now. acting like some easy girl, i raised you better."

"b-but, daddy." you pout, trying not to cry as rafe squeezes your hand.

"sir, you're being too hard on her. it's not her fault." rafe tries to calm him down.

your father's finger rests on rafe's chest as he gets close to his face. "oh i know that, rafe. it's you and your typical bullshit. my daughter wouldn't act this way if it wasn't for you. look at you, you're probably using her."

rafe's fists clenched as your father talks down to him, no one does this to him and gets away with it. "sir, i suggest you put that finger down."

"or what?" your father snickers in his face.

rafe's whole demeanor shifts, the sweet boy you were just talking to now gone. like he was never even there. it honestly scared you how fast rafe can change personalities. "you don't even want to know." he grits his teeth. you hate to admit the affect this took on your body, clenching your legs together.

your father drops his finger and turns to you. "inside, now." he says, grabbing your arm. before you can fight him off, he's dragging you away from rafe.

"it's okay, baby, we'll figure this out." he reassures as you are being brought into your house. "fuck!" he screams as soon as the door slams shut.

you watch as rafe makes his way to his truck, slamming the door shut and driving away. you turn to your father who just stares at you as you cry. "screw you!" you say before running upstairs and locking yourself in your room.

you finally had him and now you lost him.

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───

the days past since you saw rafe.

your father grounded you and cut you off from the outside world.

you sat by your window and waited, having some false hope that rafe would be your knight in shining armor and take you away from this place. your father pulled up the driveway and seemed to struggle getting out of his truck.

you met him at the door, ready to deal with the bullshit he would throw you today. when you opened your door, your father seemed battered and bruised.

"holy sh-i mean...what happened?" you asked, holding the door open for your dad as he sat on the recliner.

"nothing." he shuttered. "nothing happened."

you stood there and crossed your arms. "clearly something happened."

he shook his head, seeming almost fearful. "nothing happened, now drop it." you stood there as he turned to you. "you aren't grounded anymore. your phone is on my dresser." he seemed almost defeated.

you stared at your dad trying to understand what the hell is going on. are you in the twilight zone? you knew you wouldn't get an answer out of him so you grabbed your things and raced out of the house before he could change his mind. the sun was setting but you didn't care, you had one thing and one thing only on your mind.

you got on your bike and raced towards tannyhill. when you finally got there, you threw your bike down and almost ran to the front door. with two knocks, wheezie opened the door.

"y/n?" she said with a smirk.

"hey, wheezie, is rafe home?" you say, snooping around the insides of the home.

she rolls her eyes and opens the door. "in his room."

you walk up the stairs and stop right before his door. your fist hovering over it before connecting it to the wood. after a few seconds, rafe stands there in the almost dark room.

"y/n." he says, almost as though he was expecting you to be here.

you quickly jump into his arms, holding onto him by his neck. you missed this. the way he smelled, the way he felt, everything about this boy drive you wild. "i missed you."

"i missed you too, honey. come on in." he lets you into his room. this was your first time being in here. sure, you've seen it through snapchat and pictures he sends but that's it. it's the typical boy room but it felt authentic. it felt like rafe.

you sit down on his bed as he walks around, picking up clothes off the floor. "didn't think i'd be having guests." he doesn't seem like his usual self, maybe you caught him at a bad time? but he invited you in, so you stayed.

you laugh at him. "no big deal, the old man let me off the hook tonight. it was weird, he came home all messed up. i tried asking but he kinda pushed me away. it was weird."

rafe stood there, silently. "oh really?"

"yeah, super strange. he's not usually the fighter type. never has been." you watch him stand there. "you all good?"

he nods and turns to you. "i am, now that you're here."

you smile at him as he approaches you. you open your legs so he can stand in between them, looking down at you. he traces your face with his finger, stopping at your lips. "all mine, sweetheart. all mine." he says before bending down to kiss you. the kiss feels rough, almost as though you are a fresh breathe of air that rafe has been waiting for. he pushes you down onto his bed and crawls on top of you.

you break the kiss and look into his eyes, his room is dark so you can only make out certain features. but you bring your hand to his face and hold his cheek, which makes him wince. "oh, i'm sorry, did i hurt you?"

"n-no, it's all good." he tries to kiss you again but you stop him.

"rafe?" you ask him, making him stop once again. "what's wrong? tell me."

"goddamn! nothing is wrong, okay? i can't miss you." he says, running a hand through his hair. you try to study his face but can't even see him. you reach over for his bedside lamp. "no, no, leave it of-" before he can stop you, the light is on. his beautiful face has a large bruise under his right eye and cheek. his lip busted and knuckles bruised.

"rafe?" you question, sitting up.

"y/n, i can explain." he pleads.

then it all makes sense. your father coming home all battered and bruised, rafe's current state, you being let off the hook too easily.

"you don't even want to know."

"it's okay, baby, we'll figure this out."

his words from that night ring through your head. the way his whole demeanor changed that night into a person you've never seen before.

"d-did you?" you ask with teary eyes.

"baby, look at me. i can explain." he begs you but you start to get up.

"explain what? how you beat up my fucking dad!?" you yelled, trying to grasp the millions of thoughts you had. "h-how could you?" you stand by his door, pacing, with your head in your hands.

he walks up to you, grabbing your hand. "look at me, honey, please. look at me." he begs you, trying to grab your attention.

when you finally turn to him, you see the cuts and bruises again. "rafe, why?" you say with a tear slipping down.

"because i love you, honey. you're my girl and i don't give a fuck who it is, they cannot talk to you the way your own father did. calling you easy, acting like your dumb for being around me. nobody should ever talk to you like that, ever." you stop and he cups your face in his hands. "i just wanted to talk to him, okay? all i wanted to do was talk. but then he started again with how i'm a bad person and how you were being stupid for even acknowledging me. he said he didn't need a guy like me corrupting his daughter and i snapped."

you gazed into his eyes, they looked as though they were pleading with you to see why he did what he did.

"please, say something. please." he states.

you sigh and close your eyes. "rafe, i don't need you going around defending my honor, especially to my dad. it's not worth it."

"not worth it? sweetheart, look at me." you open your eyes. "you are worth everything to me, you hear me? everything. i would kill for you if you asked me to. i never had someone care for me the way you do, have someone listen to me, or even treat me normally. you mean the world to me, y/n. i love you."

and there it was.

rafe cameron, for once in his life, showed affection.

he told someone they love them.

"i'm sorry it was your dad, okay? sometimes, i black out and can't remember things when i'm angry. i act on my impulses. but with you, i never feel that way." he shakes his head, trying to contain all his emotions. your eyes water again, causing him to wipe the tears. "what's wrong, baby? talk to me."

you smile through the tears. "i just, i love you too." no one has ever made you feel so safe and loved in one moment than rafe has this past month. he's all you could ever ask for.

he beams down at you, shaking his head. "you mean that?"

"with every ounce of my body, i love you." you admit.

his heart swelled as he connected your lips once more to his. you were all his, all he ever needed in life to feel whole.

rafe pushes you against the door, a light moan slipping from your lips as he presses himself against you.

"you like that?" he asks, a satisfied smirk on his face as he kisses your cheek and goes down your neck.

you nod under his touch, like you're cast in his spell. "y-yes."

"you want more?" he asks, sucking on one spot of your neck for a long time. all you can do is nod, already becoming a mess because of him. he pulls away, having you almost whimper from the lack of contact. "not uh, baby, gotta hear some words out of that beautiful mouth of yours. i'll repeat myself, do you want more."

"y-yes, rafe, yes please."

he groans at your begging and nods. "good girl." he pulls you over to the bed and guides you toward it. you feel the bed hit the back of your knees and you sit down, looking up at him. he quickly takes his shirt off and tosses it to the side.

he kisses your lips lightly as his hands find the end of your shirt, lightly toying with the fabric. "y-you can take it off." with the reassurance, he slips the top off and leaves it next to you. his eyes take in your body, your breasts pooling out of a flimsy green bralette. he sucks his tongue and gently runs his fingers over your tits.

"so pretty and they're all for me." he slowly reaches behind your back and unclasps the bralette with one hand, letting it fall down your body. you could swear rafe has tiny hearts in his eyes as they bore onto your half-naked body. "lay down." you follow his orders and lay against his pillows. his bedroom light shines over his features and the cuts from the fight. you bring your hand up to touch them and he gives into your touch. "you okay?"

"more than okay." you tell him.

he kisses your hand then his lips meet with yours once again. he then lets his lips trail across your cheek, jaw, neck, and down to your chest. he stares at your tits before peppering them both with kisses. he then takes one nipple in his mouth, slowly, and grabs your other one with your free hand to give a squeeze. your body instantaneously reacts to rafe's touch, moaning at the sensation of his lips. "you like that, huh?" he almost teases, switching to the other nipple.

"m-more." you whisper out, clenching your eyes.

"what was that, honey? need you to speak up for me." he grins.

"please, i want more, rafe. touch me more." you raise your voice.

"you got it." his hand leaves your tit and trails slowly down your body, resting at the hem of your jeans. he unbuttons them and lets his hands slide down your underwear, his hands automatically getting soaked. "shit, baby, all this for me?" he runs ins finger down your cunt and gathering your slick, bringing it to his mouth. he sucks it off his fingers as you watch in awe. "you're just too sweet for me, you know that?"

he doesn't even give you time to think before he puts his fingers back inside you, swirling your cunt. your hands grab his shoulders, holding onto them for dear life. "it's okay, i got ya, i always got ya." he reassures as he slowly slips one finger into your tight hole. "jesus, honey, with a hole this tight i don't know how long i'll last." he says as he slips his finger in and out of you, his thumb still toying with your clit.

your head falls back as more moans fall from your lips. "more, rafe, please give me more."

he laughs slightly. "cocky little thing, aren't ya? if you insist." he adds one more finger, your hole clenching around him as his finger slip in and out. "look how pretty you look with my fingers inside of you." he says before kissing your mouth, collecting your moans. you're so wet you hear the noises your pussy is making around him. you feel overstimulated as rafe keeps going, not stopping once. tears prick your eyes as you feel your high approaching. his thumb rubs harder as your nails connect to rafe's chest, dragging them down. "my pretty baby, i just love you so much." he says, staring at you.

with those words, you feel yourself being pushed to pleasure. you cum all over rafe's fingers, crying out his name. "rafe!"

he lets you ride out your high before taking his fingers out and putting them in his mouth like he did before. "never gonna get tired of that."

he gets up and heads to the bathroom. you want to talk to him, ask him where he's going, but you're too tired. you've never felt this good, not even from your own fingers. rafe comes back with a towel in his hand, gently, he pulls off your shorts and panties, cleaning off your pussy. the water is nice and warm as he gets you situated. he drops the rag and crawls into his bed next to you, holding you tightly.

"you know, if you want me to go dow-" but before you can finish that sentence he kisses your forehead.

"no need to rush there, honey. i wanna take my time with you, wanna show you how good i can make you feel." your heart melts in your chest as he rubs your back lightly. "get some rest, alright?"

you fall asleep fast in his arms, he holds you there the entire night and doesn't plan on letting go.

[seitmai]

Many thoughts...

Even now the apartment felt quiet. Elena was at work and it was just you. The silence was deafening. Elena had asked if you wanted her to stay a couple night to keep you company but you lied and said you were fine. Last night you had just stared up at the ceiling until exhaustion finally took over.

🥺🥺🥺

Your mom shook her head “No we didn’t, we knew that you clearly didn’t want to be around him and we respected that”

As it should be!

“Thank you and I’m so sorry that the wedding has been called off, I know you guys have put a lot of money into it” you sighed, guilt wracking your body. “Sweetpea, money means nothing if you’re unhappy, we’d rather you be happy than marry that piece of shit because of the money that’s been spent,” your dad told you. “And look the wedding wasn’t going to be until spring so we might be able to get some of the deposits back,” your mom said “Why don’t you leave that with us to sort and you just focus on yourself and your happiness” “Thanks Mom,” you said before chuckling quietly “I don’t know why I was so scared to have this chat” “You never have to be scared to talk to us, the only person who should be scared is that piece of shit, I swear he’s dead when I next see him” your dad swore.

Urgh I feel like she really needed this talk with her parents and they couldnt have reacted better 🥹🥰

“A mutual connection helps, makes it more believable. If fans and media outlets can easily trace how they would have potentially met then they’re more likely to believe it. So in this case if it was someone a fellow teammate knew, there’s a clear link, if you pick someone who has no connection to the player people are going to be suspicious” you continued. “And you’re close with Elena and Chris aren’t you?” 

Oh oh 👀

As you walked back to your desk you wondered which of the team needed a PR relationship. You barely knew any of them, so you could only go on what El had told you. Chris was out for obvious reasons, from what you knew of Curtis you doubted it was him. Ari came to mind but you instantly shook that thought from your head. Not because you didn’t think it was him, but because you didn’t want to work with him. You settled on Johnny instead, even though El said he was a bit of a secret softie he was known as a player. 

I love that Johnny’s secret softie side isn't as secret anymore 🤭

You nodded to yourself, yeah it had to be Johnny. You instantly thought of different strategies for him, where to stage the dates. He’d be an easy client too, the only problem would be getting him to keep it in his pants. You just hoped that whatever reason he had would be incentive enough to keep him in line. 

I mean, a valid concern 😅

Ari hated physio, he swore it was just the medical team’s excuse to get some revenge. 

I get it Ari, I truly do (coming from a person that definitely needs physio but chickens out all the time because I know it will hurt like a mother fucker to get better longterm🥲)

“i know, i just haven't seen her to apologise” he sighed glancing down at his hands.  “Haven’t seen her or avoided her?” Elena asked with a brow arched “She was in the gym on Monday” “I was at my 1-2-1 analysis while she was there” Ari reasoned “getting ripped into by your dad for that yellow” he added a pointed look. Elena shrugged “You deserved it”

Elena is not holding back and I love it😅

Elena nodded “It is criminal that you haven’t been picked yet” she hummed “Don’t worry I’m sure whatever Y/N has cooked up will work, she’s the best around” she winked before pointing at him “Just don’t make her life difficult, she’s been through enough shit” she warned.

What agreat friend she is!

Ari held his hands up in surrender. He still didn’t know the full picture, only that you were back on the East Coast without your engagement ring. He’d asked Chris what had happened but he said it wasn’t his story to share “I swear, I won’t” he promised “You can beat the crap out of me if I do”

Oh I'm sure she will

Ari huffed as he walked out, he wanted to stop doing stupid shit too.

You and me both lol

“I wanted to apologise for the other week, I was out of line” he apologised “I was tired and was having a shitty day and I took my anger out on the first person I came across” “That’s no excuse” you pointed out as you looked down at your feet.

Period👏🏻

That response was closer to what he expected from you, the words were right but the delivery was off. The words should have been sharper, not downtrodden. 

Yes!! Hopefully their back and forth will come back soon too 👀

He reached out to put a hand on your shoulder, feeling the need to provide comfort in any way he could. He wanted to ask what happened, what he could do to make it better and bring back the version he knew.

🥹🥹🥹

The smile on Steph’s face widens “Well we want this to work so I’ve brought in the best” she grinned before turning her attention to you “Y/N will be the perfect match” “Excuse me?” you squeaked in surprise. Ari frowned, you had clearly been blindsided by this idea. Something that didn’t sit right with him, it wasn’t fair on you. 

“Is there any evidence of your relationship online?” Steph asked, her head tilted in question. “Uh- no, I- I deleted everything,” you said your voice cracking.  “Well that’s one less thing to worry about, plus it's not uncommon for people to get into a relationship soon after another” Steph points out. 

Wtf Steph! This feels like some workers rights violation but I guess pr relationships are not covered in that 🥴

He's a good one!

Ari’s heart broke, as much as he would love just the chance to be your boyfriend even if it was just pretend, he didn’t want to make you uncomfortable.  Ari took a moment before turning and looking at you, hoping his expression conveyed how sincere he was “I’m in if you’re in” he said softly “I need this and I trust you, but if you really don’t want to do it then we don’t have to”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Ari said moving to crouch in front of you, keeping enough distance between the two of you to make sure you were comfortable “Take some deep breaths,” he told you, when you didn’t respond he put a cautious hand on your knee “deep breaths sweetheart”

🥺🥺🥺

“You’re doing this for a spot on the national team?” you questioned “Seems a bit extreme” Ari let out a small chuckle “Yeah well I’m pretty desperate, it’s been a dream of mine ever since I was a kid, a dream that hasn’t happened yet” he admitted.

He really wants it

 You took a couple of moments before admitting “My fiance cheated on me with the wedding planner” “The fucker” Ari growled making you jump “Sorry” he apologised taking a deep breath to calm himself “Well dating a sexy rugby player is a great way to say fuck you to him” he then smirked. 

Fair 🤷🏻‍♀️

You rolled your eyes “Yeah but Johnny’s not the one who needs it” you muttered making Ari grin. This was the side of you that was missing, it wasn’t completely gone it just needed coaxing back out. 

Just like Ari, I love and miss this side of her!

You shifted in your seat, glancing down at your fiddling fingers unable to focus with his intense gaze “I don’t know, it might be too expensive this year”  “I could help if-“ Ari started but you interrupted. As much as you wanted to see your parents for Thanksgiving, you didn’t want to owe Ari money.

He's really sweet 🥺

You were grateful for the slight change in topic but the only thing left to discuss was the part that made you the most uncomfortable. Public displays of affection. You knew you couldn’t outright ban it but you just weren’t sure how you felt about Ari holding you and kissing you. 

I know how I would feel: absolutely fucking great 😅🤭

You looked over at Elena and felt instantly guilty “I know and I’m grateful for what you guys have done but sports PR is a bit of a step-down, I’m staying on the east coast though so we’ll be able to see each other easily” Elena gave you an understanding smile “Guess I can live with that” she playfully rolled her eyes.

Sounds like a plan, even is Elena is not particularly amused

Ari with his long legs had no issue keeping up with you, following you at the door and towards your car. His jeep parked next to yours, you had expected him to be more of an Audi kinda guy. You had seen more sides of him since landing in Boston than you expected. The angry, grumpy side, the cheeky side and a really calming and sincere side.

Many great sides imo

Ari smirked down at you “private displays of affection” You let out a scoff that sounded more like a squeak “Definitely not” “C’mon we can call it practice, the only reason I play well on game days is because of practice” he points out “It’ll mean you’re not as awkward when it happens” “What about you?” “Trust me the last thing I’ll be feeling is awkward” Ari’s smirk grew as he stepped closer and cupped your jaw “one kiss” he promised with a whisper before leaning in.

Oh he's going all in from the beginning 🤭🥰

Boston Bears: Fake Out - Rugby Player! Ari Levinson x Reader (Part 2)

Summary: After a week back on the East Coast you start your new job at the Boston Bears only to find out your boss has an interesting job for you.

Word Count: 7.6k words

Warnings: Language! Angst! Mention of Cheating! Sexual Tension!

Rugby Explained

Dividers by Me!

Fake Out Series Masterlist /Boston Bears Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 2

You were sat with your chin resting on your knee, on Elena’s bed which technically was your bed now. You glanced around the room which was now yours, the entire apartment was yours. The first thing Elena did Tuesday morning was put your name on the lease and take her name off. That evening she started packing up her stuff and helped unpack yours.

It didn’t feel like your apartment though. You wondered whether it would when she was fully moved out and only the small collection of your belongings remained. But then it would just be as empty as you felt, most of your things were back in LA and you wouldn’t get them back for another couple months.

Even now the apartment felt quiet. Elena was at work and it was just you. The silence was deafening. Elena had asked if you wanted her to stay a couple night to keep you company but you lied and said you were fine. Last night you had just stared up at the ceiling until exhaustion finally took over.

You were pulled from your thoughts by your laptop coming to life. A video call from your parents. You’d been expecting this, your mom had texted you yesterday to ask what was going on. You hadn’t felt ready to tell them yet so you said they could call you today.

“Hey mom, hey dad” you forced a smile as the call connected and you saw the concerned faces of your parents.

“Hey sweetpea, how you feeling?” Your dad asked with a sympathetic look.

You let out a weak chuckle “shit” you admitted. There was no point denying it, they knew how you felt even if they didn’t know why.

“Has this got something to do with Dan calling us to ask if you were here?” Your mom asked softly.

You nodded, you expected that too. Dan had called Elena Monday evening, she played dumb and said she didn’t know where you were and if she did she wouldn’t tell him “did he tell you why?”

“No he didn’t, he just asked us to call if you turned up” your dad told you. 

You scoffed and shook your head. He didn’t tell Elena what he’d done either, didn’t admit his mistake “Did you tell him I was with El?” 

Your mom shook her head “No we didn’t, we knew that you clearly didn’t want to be around him and we respected that”

“Thank you” your voice felt weak as you looked down “The um- the wedding’s off… he’s been cheating on me with the wedding planner”

“The motherfucker!” Your dad growled shooting up from his seat, only sitting down when your mom grabbed the back of his sweater and tugged him to sit back down.

“More like wedding planner fucker” you joked weakly.

Your mom sighed “I’m so sorry sweetheart you don’t deserve that, he doesn’t deserve you either” 

“Is El looking after you?” Your dad asked.

You nodded “She’s at work now but yeah she has, she’s given me her apartment and her and Chris got me a job working in the PR department with the Bears, I start tomorrow they’re gonna give me a bit of an induction ahead of the game again Washington on Friday night”

“That’s good, will you be travelling with them?” your dad asked.

“No the PR and comms team takes it in turns to go on the road and report back, I’ll just be shadowing the team who stay in Boston and post updates on the match etcetera” you explained.

The new job was a bit of a step down, not just in pay. You’d gone from one of the best PR firms on the West Coast that handled movie stars to being a PR and Comms staff for a sports team. But it was just temporary, you’d find something with better pay once you were a bit more settled.

“Well I’m sure you’ll smash it darling” your mom said, making you snort quietly they’d been living in the UK for less than a year and the British vernacular had already snuck in.

“Thank you and I’m so sorry that the wedding has been called off, I know you guys have put a lot of money into it” you sighed, guilt wracking your body.

“Sweetpea, money means nothing if you’re unhappy, we’d rather you be happy than marry that piece of shit because of the money that’s been spent,” your dad told you.

“And look the wedding wasn’t going to be until spring so we might be able to get some of the deposits back,” your mom said “Why don’t you leave that with us to sort and you just focus on yourself and your happiness”

“Thanks mom, that would be really helpful,” you said, a lump of emotion forming in your throat.

“What are you going to do about Christmas? You’re more than welcome here” your dad said.

“I don’t know, I’ll have to look into it, money is gonna be a bit tighter now and I don’t know what my work commitments will be” you sighed with a shrug of your shoulders.

“That’s okay let us know as soon as you know what you’re doing, you know we’d love to have you” your mom smiled.

“Thanks Mom,” you said before chuckling quietly “I don’t know why I was so scared to have this chat”

“You never have to be scared to talk to us, the only person who should be scared is that piece of shit, I swear he’s dead when I next see him” your dad swore.

You chuckled “that’s good to know, so how is rainy Britain?” You asked to change the topic.

You and your parents caught up for the next hour or so, by the time you finally ended the call you felt so much better. You wished they were here to hug you and make you feel better but just talking to them did enough to make you feel a little less empty. It made taking on the next chapter of your life less scary.

Your first couple of days working at the Bears had been a whirlwind. While you were mostly shadowing over the weekend it still felt like you had been dropped in the deep end. The entire office was a hive of activity during the game. You were used to this level of activity being a bad thing because it meant someone was having a PR disaster. But in this new world, it was a good thing because it meant the team was winning.

You had to admit the excitement was a little contagious, the entire PR team were avid fans. Cheering and complaining at the ref as the game played on the big screen. You didn’t know much about the sport nor the players so you couldn’t follow it very well. You did see Ari get sent off for a yellow, one of your colleagues said he was lucky it wasn’t a red but there was enough mitigation that his high tackle remained as a yellow. What that actually meant you had no clue.

It was Monday morning when your new boss, Steph called you into her office.

“Is everything okay? I haven’t done something wrong have I?” You asked as you followed her into her office.

“No, no, you’ve been great! Frankly, you’re overqualified” She smiled as she sat down “I just want your input on something that’s all” She gestured for you to sit.

“Oh I’m very flattered, I know I don’t know much about the rugby world,” you said bashfully as you sat.

Steph smiled softly “You’ve done a lot of PR work with celebrities back in LA right?” She asked leaning back in her chair.

“Yes my company worked with a lot of celebs” You nodded shifting in your seat.

“Did you do a lot of PR relationships?” She then asked.

You nodded your head again “Yeah there are not as many PR relationships in Hollywood as people think, but I have worked on quite a few” 

“Good, so what makes a successful one?” She asked.

“Um well, it depends on what image you’re trying to get across” you explained.

“Someone settled, someone you can trust and is moving past their wildcard days” Steph  supplied gesturing with her hands in a vague manner.

“Right well you want someone who is that kind of person, no one who grabs the spotlight for the same reasons you’re trying to fix” you told her.

She sat forward and started taking notes “What else?”

“You have to make sure the people are well matched, if one of them has a clear type then you need the meet that type. So if someone has publicly said they like a woman with curves you can’t set them up with a Victoria’s Secret model” you explain.

She hummed studying you for a moment before returning to her notes “Anything else?”

“A mutual connection helps, makes it more believable. If fans and media outlets can easily trace how they would have potentially met then they’re more likely to believe it. So in this case if it was someone a fellow teammate knew, there’s a clear link, if you pick someone who has no connection to the player people are going to be suspicious” you continued.

 “And you’re close with Elena and Chris aren’t you?” 

Your brows furrow for a moment confused as to what the relevance was  “uh yeah Elena is my best friend, I don’t know Chris that well though” you shrugged your shoulders.

“Okay” she hummed tapping her pen against her chin in thought.

“Are you considering it for one of the players?” You asked.

“Yes, I’ve never suggested one before though, usually you just send the players to charity events but he needs a long-term solution” she explained.

“Well if you want I could maybe take the lead, or advise?” You suggested.

A smile tugged at her lips “I’ll keep that in mind, thank you for your insight I have a lot to think about before my meeting with him tomorrow”

“No worries glad to help, is there anything else you need?” You asked.

“No thanks, can you go with the team who will be filming training content? Familiarise yourself with that?” She suggested.

“Of course” you nodded before getting up from your seat.

As you walked back to your desk you wondered which of the team needed a PR relationship. You barely knew any of them, so you could only go on what El had told you. Chris was out for obvious reasons, from what you knew of Curtis you doubted it was him. Ari came to mind but you instantly shook that thought from your head. Not because you didn’t think it was him, but because you didn’t want to work with him. You settled on Johnny instead, even though El said he was a bit of a secret softie he was known as a player. 

You nodded to yourself, yeah it had to be Johnny. You instantly thought of different strategies for him, where to stage the dates. He’d be an easy client too, the only problem would be getting him to keep it in his pants. You just hoped that whatever reason he had would be incentive enough to keep him in line. 

Ari grunted in pain as Elena dug her hand into the back of his shoulder “Jesus fuck woman” he complained, fists clenched “Do you get off on torturing people or something”

Ari hated physio, he swore it was just the medical team’s excuse to get some revenge.

“It’s your own fault you’re here” she pointed out as she continued to work on his shoulder. 

He knew she meant his high tackle that resulted in a yellow card and sore shoulder “There was mitigation” he reminded her. 

“You were lucky, if Chris hadn’t tackled him too your shoulder would have gone straight into the wolves’ head and it would have been a red” Elena pointed out as she finally stopped working on his shoulder. 

“Like I said mitigation” Ari said as he sat back up sending a smirk her way. 

She rolled her eyes “That’s not the only reason I’m pissed at you” she said with a pointed look as she grabbed a towel and wiped her hands clean.

Ari dropped his shoulders with a heavy sigh instantly knowing what she meant again. You. You had been on his mind for over a week now. He was pissed off at himself for the way he treated you, he kept replaying the situation to see what he could have done differently. In the perfect situation, you would have ended up in his arms as he comforted you. He wanted to apologise and make it right but he also didn’t want to make it worse.

 “i know, i just haven't seen her to apologise” he sighed glancing down at his hands. 

“Haven’t seen her or avoided her?” Elena asked with a brow arched “She was in the gym on Monday” 

“I was at my 1-2-1 analysis while she was there” Ari reasoned “getting ripped into by your dad for that yellow” he added a pointed look.

Elena shrugged “You deserved it”

“Whatever” Ari huffed as he pushed himself off the medical bed “Look I promise I'll apologise to her now, I’m heading up to the PR office for a meeting after this” 

“What do you need PR for?” Elena asked her brows furrowed.

“I want to make the national team this summer, your dad said I need to improve both on and off the pitch” Ari explained as he grabbed his top and pulled it back on.

Elena nodded “It is criminal that you haven’t been picked yet” she hummed “Don’t worry I’m sure whatever Y/N has cooked up will work, she’s the best around” she winked before pointing at him “Just don’t make her life difficult, she’s been through enough shit” she warned.

Ari held his hands up in surrender. He still didn’t know the full picture, only that you were back on the East Coast without your engagement ring. He’d asked Chris what had happened but he said it wasn’t his story to share “I swear, I won’t” he promised “You can beat the crap out of me if I do”

Elena smirked “Good, now go on and stop doing stupid shit,” she said waving him out of the medical room. 

Ari huffed as he walked out, he wanted to stop doing stupid shit too. But that was easier said than done. He’d been told that he was hot-headed for as long as he could remember, there were times when it felt like he blacked out and one came back around after he’d done the stupid shit. Like the fight he started at the cup final, he remembered seeing Bryce make the illegal tackle on Chris and then the next thing he remembered was Bryce on the floor below him as he landed multiple blows to the face. 

He’d always been like this. Like there was pent up anger he had at the world. He could blame the first five years of his life for that. He was signed up to play rugby at the age of 7 at the advice of his teachers to try and work through a lot of that anger. Rugby helped a lot, it gave him somewhere to direct his anger and frustrations and work through it in a healthier way. 

It didn’t take away all the pressure though, evident by the way he shouted at you. Another moment when his frustrations got the better of him and he blacked out. He just hoped that you would accept his apology.

He spotted you as soon as he stepped into the PR and Comms office. He couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips as he looked over you. You were standing at a coworker's desk, looking over his shoulder at something on the screen. You had a contemplative look on your face, your red-tinted lips pursed. You listened to whatever your co-worker was saying before nodding your head, arms crossed over your chest. You were wearing a red sweater that seemed a little baggy on you but still looked incredible. Especially with the black skirt and knee-high boots you were wearing.  

When you finished what you were saying you finally looked up and over at him. The expression on your face became guarded as you studied him. He expected you to tilt your head up in defiance but you did the opposite. Your chin dropped as you went to move back to your desk, shoulders turned inwards. 

Ari internally cursed at himself, he’d fucked up majorly if you weren’t fighting back against him like you did back in LA.

“Y/N,” he said as he stepped in your path. 

“Ari,” you said forcing a smile as you looked up at him, which was wrong you should have crossed your arms and arched an unimpressed brow at him. 

“I wanted to apologise for the other week, I was out of line” he apologised “I was tired and was having a shitty day and I took my anger out on the first person I came across”

“That’s no excuse” you pointed out as you looked down at your feet.

That response was closer to what he expected from you, the words were right but the delivery was off. The words should have been sharper, not downtrodden. 

“You’re right it's not,” Ari said before holding his arms out “So c’mon rip into me” he invited with a playful smirk “We both know how well you can do it, knock me down a peg or two” 

You studied him for a moment. Ari could see the gears turning in your head which made his smirk grow. He knew you were going to come out with something brilliant, something that would knock a less confident man out. He couldn’t wait. He wanted to see that side of you again, he wanted to play. 

“I’ve got work to do” you muttered as you dropped your gaze and stepped around him.

Ari frowned as he turned around “Y/N” he muttered in disbelief, his hands dropping back down to his side. 

“I’m busy Ari and I’m sure you have training or something” you sighed as you refused to look at him as you gathered a notebook from your desk.

“Y/N c’mon” he pressed stepping in your way as you went to walk away again, “I said I was sorry, why are you still freezing me out?”

“Apology accepted, now leave me alone I have a meeting” you said looking up at him with a tired expression on your face. 

Ari’s brows furrowed in concern as he took you in, how tired and worn out you looked. It made his fists clenched. Whatever happened back in LA did this to you and he wanted to know what so he could beat the crap out of it. 

“Y/N,” he said softly. 

He reached out to put a hand on your shoulder, feeling the need to provide comfort in any way he could. He wanted to ask what happened, what he could do to make it better and bring back the version he knew.

He didn’t get the chance though, before his hand even made contact he was interrupted by Steph “Ah Ari, perfect timing, we have the perfect strategy for you” she smiled from her office. 

He didn’t look away from you so he saw how your brows furrowed in confusion, looking over at Steph and then back at him. 

He let out a quiet sigh as he took a step back “Glad to hear it” he said as he turned and walked towards her office.

He stopped though when she said “Good, right c’mon Y/N” She waved for you to join.

He looked over his shoulder and saw you take a deep breath as you looked down at your boots. The fake smile plastered on back on your face when you looked back up and said “Of course”

Ari blinked in surprise when you walked past him into Steph’s office. You didn’t know he was your meeting and clearly weren't happy being trapped in a small office with him for the next half an hour or so. Evident by the way you sat in one of the furthest away chairs. 

“Right I have decided on the best strategy for you, and I want to remind you that you said you’d do anything” Steph said as Ari sat down in his chair. 

“That doesn’t concern me at all” he smirked as he leant back. 

“Trust me this will work” Steph smiled “We’re going to set you up with a PR relationship for the rest of the season”

Ari arched a brow, he wasn’t expecting that at all. He expected lots of charity work, which he wouldn’t have minded, but not this “a relationship?” 

“Yes, we want to portray you as settled or at least settling, what better way to do that than a relationship” Steph said with a proud.

Ari nodded slowly as he took in the information “With who?”

The smile on Steph’s face widens “Well we want this to work so I’ve brought in the best” she grinned before turning her attention to you “Y/N will be the perfect match”

“Excuse me?” you squeaked in surprise. 

Ari frowned, you had clearly been blindsided by this idea. Something that didn’t sit right with him, it wasn’t fair on you. 

“Yes you said so yourself, there needs to be a mutual connection and you were the only person we found that had one” Steph explained as she gestured over to you “Plus you know how to do this better than anyone, I trust you to take lead on this”

“Steph this isn’t going to work” you stuttered sitting forward in your chair “I’ve just broken off an engagement, no one would believe this”

“Is there any evidence of your relationship online?” Steph asked, her head tilted in question.

“Uh- no, I- I deleted everything,” you said your voice cracking. 

“Well that’s one less thing to worry about, plus it's not uncommon for people to get into a relationship soon after another” Steph points out. 

“There must be someone else” you pleaded.

Ari’s heart broke, as much as he would love just the chance to be your boyfriend even if it was just pretend, he didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. 

“Not someone who fits the criteria you gave me, and we need this to work for Ari” Steph sighed, her voice sympathetic “you’ll be in charge and will take the lead on it so you’ll have control over what happens, you can make it suit you, I only ask that it's believable” she continued before turning her attention back to Ari “what do you say?”

Ari took a moment before turning and looking at you, hoping his expression conveyed how sincere he was “I’m in if you’re in” he said softly “I need this and I trust you, but if you really don’t want to do it then we don’t have to”

You sat there stunned, staring back at him with a look of panic in your eyes. 

“Why don’t I leave you two to talk it through some more and get back to me when you’ve come to a decision” Steph said as she stood from her chair and strode out of the room. 

Once she was gone Ari turned to look at you, your hand was resting on your heaving chest, the look of panic in your eyes getting worse. 

“Hey, hey, hey,” Ari said moving to crouch in front of you, keeping enough distance between the two of you to make sure you were comfortable “Take some deep breaths,” he told you, when you didn’t respond he put a cautious hand on your knee “deep breaths sweetheart”

You finally responded to him and took the deep breaths you needed, your eyes finding his. He watched as the panic slowly faded from them with every deep breath you took.

“Feeling better?” he asked after a moment. 

“Not really” you admitted as you shook your head, “I thought it was gonna be Johnny that needed this not you” you muttered as you rubbed your forehead “and that I would just be leading it not actually part of it”

“Yeah, I didn’t like how she blindsided you with that” Ari told her earning a huff of a laugh from you.

“You could say that again” you mumbled “What do you even need this for? I mean you got yellow cards recently but I thought those weren’t a big deal” 

Ari nodded his head “Normally they’re not, but if I don’t reign myself in this season I won’t make the national team, the head coach is gonna be watching me and I want him to know he can trust me” he explained. 

“You’re doing this for a spot on the national team?” you questioned “Seems a bit extreme”

Ari let out a small chuckle “Yeah well I’m pretty desperate, it’s been a dream of mine ever since I was a kid, a dream that hasn’t happened yet” he admitted. 

“Right” you muttered looking down at your fiddling hands. 

“Can I ask what happened back in LA?” Ari asked, causing your eyes to shoot back up at him. 

You took a couple of moments before admitting “My fiance cheated on me with the wedding planner”

“The fucker” Ari growled making you jump “Sorry” he apologised taking a deep breath to calm himself “Well dating a sexy rugby player is a great way to say fuck you to him” he then smirked. 

You rolled your eyes “Yeah but Johnny’s not the one who needs it” you muttered making Ari grin. This was the side of you that was missing, it wasn’t completely gone it just needed coaxing back out. 

“There she is” Ari whispered earning a small confused frown from you “Look I won’t lie to you and say I don’t need this because I really really do, but considering all the shit you’re going through and the fact I don’t think you’ve actually accepted my apology” Ari continued “it's up to you, take the time you need to think it through and I promise if you decide to do this I won’t make your life difficult and I’ll do whatever you say”

You took a deep breath and nodded your head “Yeah okay… I’ll think it through and I’ll um get back to you”

“Great, that's all I can ask for” Ari said standing back up “And look I’m sorry about your fiance, he’s a dick and clearly insane for not realising he already had the most incredible woman on the planet” he said, Your lips parted in surprise as you stared up at him. 

You went to say something but Ari didn’t want to hear you turn him down so he just flashed you a smile and walked “See you soon” he said as he stepped out.

You thought about Ari’s proposition all day and still couldn’t come to an answer. You thought it would be a simple answer, a straight-up no, but you couldn’t bring yourself to say it. There was a small niggling thought at the back of your mind that was holding you back. 

So instead of going straight home after work, you went to Chris and Elena’s house to talk it out with them. Hopefully hearing them say it was an insane idea would reassure that little thought and you could just say no. 

So here you were sitting on the couch, feet tucked up beneath you as you cradled a cup of tea. You would have preferred a glass of wine or something stronger but you needed a clear head, drunk decisions were almost always bad decisions. 

“Right, so what is it that Steph wants you to do?” Elena asked as she sat down on the adjacent couch next to Chris, their dog Dodger jumping up to join them. 

“She wants me to be Ari’s fake girlfriend for the rest of the season” you sighed, running your finger around the rim of your mug. 

“Why you?” she questioned. 

“Because I stupidly gave her the perfect criteria and I match it” you scoffed shaking your head “the mutual connection, someone who’s looking to settle down” you didn’t say the part about being his type because you weren’t quite sure what to do with that information yourself. 

“And there’s no one else?” Chris asked as he scratched Dodger behind the ear. 

“Apparently not” you shrugged, “Steph said she trusted me because of my expertise in the area”

Chris hummed and nodded his head “What did Ari say about it?”

“He’s in, said he’s desperate to make the national team and is willing to do whatever it takes” you sighed, taking a sip of your tea. 

“Makes sense, he’s 30 now, will be 31 by the next world cup and 35 at the one after, but he might have retired by then” Chris shrugged “This might be his last chance”

You let out a small huff “Thanks that doesn’t make me feel guilty at all”

Chris gave you an apologetic smile “Sorry, it’s just that being his captain I want to see him make that team, it would be awesome to play alongside him at the world cup”

“Why is it that you don’t want to do it? I mean before last week you two seemed to get on pretty fine” Elena asked as she sat forward a bit.

That was another problem. You two did get along well, too well. You could recall the first time you saw him, you noticed him the moment he walked into the hotel. It was like a moment in a romance novel when the female lead sees her love interest and the whole world stops for a moment. 

You’d looked away before he spotted you, you were engaged and couldn’t be ogling other men. When he came over and shook your hand it made your entire body jolt and your next breath felt like the very first. You tried to put up a front and push him away but he kept coming straight back and you felt your resolve breaking. You had felt so guilty at the time, especially when you had a less-than-innocent dream about him that night. 

You had tried to forget about him, but he seemed rooted in your mind. When you watched the livestream of the cup final you told yourself it was for Elena’s sake, even if you had told her you wouldn’t be watching. But deep down you knew it was because of a large man with gorgeous long locks and a thick beard. 

“Because I just got out of a long-term relationship” you landed on with a sigh “I can’t just fall back into another one”

“It's not a real one though” Elena pointed out “You’ll still be single, and you’ll have time to be single for a while without interference and find who you are without Dan”

“I guess” you sighed.

“And we both know Dan is going to work out you’re here if he hasn’t already, if he saw you had moved on with a big beefy rugby player he’s gonna be too scared to try and win you back” Elena added. 

“You know when I came over I expected you to agree that it was a bad idea” you pointed out over the top of your mug, taking another large sip.

Elena chuckled “I’m sorry but I wouldn’t be a good friend if I straight up lied to you” she pointed out “I understand where you’re coming from but I can see how this benefits you too”

“Yeah and frankly i don’t think you could find someone better to do this sort of thing with” Chris added.

“You really think you should do this?” you sighed. 

“I think you should at least give it a go” Elena nodded. 

You took a deep breath. Everything they said was true, yeah you would be in a fake relationship in person but in private you would be single and undisturbed. Ari would provide you with that privacy, and in return, you could help him achieve his childhood dream.

“Okay fine I’ll do it” you sighed in resignation. 

Elena smiled back excitedly “Yes this is gonna be great!” she grinned “You should let him know now”

“Not now, we’ll have to go over the rules and the plan,” you said shaking your head. 

“You could invite him over here? Go over it together with us?” Chris suggested with a shrug of his shoulders.

“You’re not going to drop this are you?” you sighed knowingly.

“Nope. please this is so exciting! It's like something out of a movie!” Elena grinned. 

You rolled your eyes “Fine, but I don’t have his number so you’ll have to call him”

“Sure not a problem” Chris said reaching into his back pocket to grab his phone.

Faster than you expected Ari was knocking on the front door. Dodger instantly ran to greet him, you could hear Ari’s deep chuckle down the hallway. Chris and him were chatting as they walked towards the living room. You noticed that his long hair was damp, it wasn’t raining so you wondered whether he’d just gotten out of the shower when Chris called. The mental image of Ari in the shower flashed through your mind, your mouth went dry at the image, all the moisture travelling elsewhere. You cleared your throat and shifted in your seat as you pushed the mental image from your mind. 

Ari’s gaze shifted to you and a lopsided smile grew on his lips “Y/N” he greeted.

You cleared your throat again “Ari” 

“Chris said you wanted to talk to me about the whole fake dating thing,” he said as he walked over and sat on the same couch as you. 

You took a deep breath, which you quickly regretted because even though he was sitting on the opposite end of the couch you could smell his body wash. It was pine with a hint of citrus, it was fresh and comforting all at the same time. 

“Uh yeah, I uh thought it over and I think we should do it but we have to lay out some rules” You shifted and turned towards him, fidgeting with your hands in your lap. 

“Of course, like Steph said you’re in charge and I’m your puppet” he smirked reclining back, arm resting across the back of the couch.

Your gaze shifted to his hand, his long thick fingers which were now much closer to you. You hadn’t noticed how large his hands were. Your mind started down the rabbit hole again, you wondered how warm and comforting they were. How they might feel against your body… holding you…

“So what rules have you got in mind?” Ari’s fingers drummed against the couch breaking you out of your trance. 

“Right yes rules” You cleared your throat, shifting further away from him “Well obviously we cannot tell anyone about this, the fewer people that know the better”

Ari nodded “of course, I’m assuming you two won’t say anything” he glanced over to Chris and Elena. 

“Lips are sealed” Elena confirmed, “what about your parents though Tommi?”

You shrugged your shoulders “with them in England it should be fine, especially since we’re gonna take this slow, a whirlwind romance doesn’t sell settling down” you looked over at Ari who was rubbing his hand over his beard “what about your parents?”

“Same as you, they’re travelling” he hummed “How slow are we taking this?”

“Uh well we need to lay some groundwork first” you explained “like establishing that I’m here in Boston not LA”

“What about your ex? Are you sure you want him to know that?” Ari frowned, hand dropping back down to the back of the couch. 

“Not really, but I’ve blocked him and any of his friends so I should be fine,” you told him. 

Ari tightly nodded “As long as you’re sure, so what’s after that?”

“Uh well, maybe a social event that we’re both at, somewhere where we can appear in the back of photos chatting?” you suggested.

“Johnny is throwing a Halloween party next week? You could be my plus one” Elena suggested. 

“What about me?” Chris huffed looking over at Elena.

“You have your own invite meatball” Elena slapped his chest, shaking her head at him. 

“Okay yeah that works, there will be group photos and we can be in the background of a couple” you nodded thinking it through in your head “It’ll establish a when and where we met”

“But we met back in LA, don’t tell me you forgot that lunch?” Ari pointed out, a fake look of hurt on his face.

You rolled your eyes “It will establish it for people online” you clarified before taking another deep breath “And then after that, we need a time where we meet up, maybe as a four?”

“We can go to brunch?” Chris suggested. 

“Perfect, and then we just need to go out a couple of times just us two but we can decide on that later, are there any events I should be aware of?” You asked glancing around at everyone, only allowing yourself to look at Ari for a second or two.

“Only Thanksgiving and the Christmas charity dinner at the beginning of December, the rest of our events are at the end of the season” Ari explained.

“You don’t go home for Thanksgiving?” You frowned, you couldn’t imagine not spending time with your family for Thanksgiving. Although it didn’t look like you’d be able to fly to England to celebrate with your parents this year.

“It depends on what day the match is that weekend, if it’s Sunday or Saturday some players do go home to family but if it’s Friday like it is this year my dad organises a team Thanksgiving for players who don’t have family in the state” El explained “players can bring a friend or their partner”

“Are you going to your parents?” Ari asked grabbing your attention.

You shifted in your seat, glancing down at your fiddling fingers unable to focus with his intense gaze “I don’t know, it might be too expensive this year” 

“I could help if-“ Ari started but you interrupted. As much as you wanted to see your parents for Thanksgiving, you didn’t want to owe Ari money.

“No it’s fine, me going to this player's thanksgiving is good for PR, it can essentially confirm the relationship and then we’ll make our official outing as a couple at the charity dinner” you said with a sharp shake of your head.

It looked like Ari went to argue but when his eyes met yours his mouth snapped shut. He cleared his throat and nodded in agreement “sounds like a good plan… what else do we need to discuss?”

You were grateful for the slight change in topic but the only thing left to discuss was the part that made you the most uncomfortable. Public displays of affection. You knew you couldn’t outright ban it but you just weren’t sure how you felt about Ari holding you and kissing you. 

“Right” your voice came out strained so you cleared your throat “Of course we will have to do some PDA but we should ease into it as a normal couple would and we should clear it with each other beforehand”

Ari nodded “Understandable, I’m not one for big displays of public displays of affection”

You breathed out a sigh of relief even though there was a small part of you that was ever so slightly disappointed. You pushed that part away though, you had just gotten out of a serious relationship, you needed to be single for a while and focus on yourself. Even if you did have to be in a fake relationship to do so. The irony was not lost on you.

“Cool I think that’s it for now, I’ll um plan out more of the strategy for later on is there anything you want to ask?”

“What’s the end date on this?” Ari asked.

“Well I guess once we know if you’ve made the team we can start putting things in place that lead to the eventual breakup” you shrugged “which works nicely since I’ll probably want to move onto a better-paid job in New York or something”

Ari frowned “You don’t plan on staying here?”

“You just got here” Elena pouted.

You looked over at Elena and felt instantly guilty “I know and I’m grateful for what you guys have done but sports PR is a bit of a step-down, I’m staying on the east coast though so we’ll be able to see each other easily”

Elena gave you an understanding smile “Guess I can live with that” she playfully rolled her eyes.

You smiled back before shifting your gaze back to Ari who still looked unhappy at the idea of you moving. For whatever reason you had no clue. You could practically see the cogs in his head turning as he looked back at you with an unhappy frown. It made your hands itch like you wanted to reach out and comfort him. It made you quickly jump up from the couch, you needed out. Especially when Ari’s frown changed to one of concern at your sudden motion.

“Right if that’s everything, I’m gonna head home because it’s been a long day” you ran your hand through your hair, pushing it from your face.

Ari slowly rose from the couch “Me too, I’ll walk you out” he said barely looking away from you as he said “Thanks for having us Evans”

Both Chris and Elena had amused looks on their faces as they looked up at you “sure we’ll see you both at the Halloween party” Chris nodded.

“Thanks, I’ll see you tomorrow El” You cleared your throat and grabbed your bag and made a swift exit.

Ari with his long legs had no issue keeping up with you, following you at the door and towards your car. His jeep parked next to yours, you had expected him to be more of an Audi kinda guy. You had seen more sides of him since landing in Boston than you expected. The angry, grumpy side, the cheeky side and a really calming and sincere side.

You couldn’t forget the way he put his hand on your knee and calmed you down with just that gesture in Steph’s office earlier today. The way he had apologised and told you how blind your ex was. An apology that you had yet to officially accept. You paused as you reached your car, you couldn’t go into a fake relationship and not accept his apology.

With a deep sigh, you quickly turned around. Ari’s brow quirking in surprise as you looked up at him “I accept your apology for the other day, you had a bad day and so had I, it’s all water under the bridge”

Ari nodded “My bad day was no excuse, I am really sorry and I promise not to hurt you like that again” he held his hand over his heart.

“Thank you… I’ll um see you at the party or at work I guess” You nodded, and just as you turned back towards your car Ari spoke up. 

“Hey I know you said about asking before doing public displays of affection, but what about the other kind of PDA?” Ari asked. 

You frowned in confusion and turned to face him “What other kinds?” surprised to find him a couple of steps closer. 

Ari smirked down at you “private displays of affection”

You let out a scoff that sounded more like a squeak “Definitely not”

“C’mon we can call it practice, the only reason I play well on game days is because of practice” he points out “It’ll mean you’re not as awkward when it happens”

“What about you?”

“Trust me the last thing I’ll be feeling is awkward”

You thought about his reasoning. You had seen plenty of fake couples who couldn’t sell it because they seemed uncomfortable in each other’s presence. The slight flinches here and there.

“Fine but you have to ask” you huffed starting to turn back towards your car.

“Good, so can I kiss you?” Ari asked 

“Now?” You squeaked.

“Yeah I don’t see why not” he shrugged “It's dark, no one’s around, seems pretty perfect otherwise I’d have to sneak to your apartment or something and risk getting caught and that’ll blow the going slow part” he sighed.

“Fine! One kiss” you snapped glaring up at him.

Ari’s smirk grew as he stepped closer and cupped your jaw “one kiss” he promised with a whisper before leaning in.

Your intention had been to pull away a second later. It didn’t need to be anything more than a peck. But it was like your mind shortcircuited and instead of pulling away you stepped forward. Your hands moved to rest on his chest as he tilted your head back, his other hand moving to the small of your back to pull you closer. 

You had planned to be the one to pull away but when Ari did you found yourself chasing his lips. 

“I’d say that was a perfect practice attempt,” he said, voice low as his thumb brushed over your cheekbone.

That snapped you back to reality. You scurried back until your back hit your car door. Your hand touched your lips as they continued to tingle. 

“Yes, right. Bye. I’ll um see you at work or the party or” you didn’t finish your sentence. You just got in the car, slammed the door shut and drove off as quickly as you could.

You glanced in the rearview mirror as Ari disappeared into the distance. You could see him laughing as he shook his head, watching you go.

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[prlssprfctn]

I think Jason should be allowed to manipulate his family with the "oh, you are my favourite, actually" line. It sounds very flattering to them (because Jason? Jason-I-Want-Nothing-To-Do-With-This-Family-Todd? Admitting you are his favourite? Oh, the hundred per cent bust of ego!) and more to say, this system of manipulation is eternal.

They can argue with each other as much as they want, but none of them would believe the other — Jason Todd is too tsundere to say something like this aloud, to each of them. So, someone is lying. For sure.

(And they are too self-assured in themselves to doubt that they are his favourite. Also, Jason makes every manipulation, specifically individual. So, it is not like he repeats the same confession and reasons. Very believable. Aka: this family needs someone to be open about their love, so they latch on everything and everyone who is willing to admit that openly)

Dick, slightly frustrated: Why are you asking me this favour? You know, I don't usually do these sort of things, I don't really... I don't know, it is too dangerous, I don't like the whole idea.

Jason, face dropping: Oh... Sorry. I shouldn't ask you, just... Dunno, I thought since you are my only big brother, and... Urgh, I guess I am still too attached to you more than to others. You are right. I'll ask Timbers or—

Dick, with his eyes suspiciously wet: oh-

Dick: NO, no. I'll do it. Don't worry. Big brother got your back, Lil Wing!

Tim, frowning: So, am I getting this right — you want me to hack into some system in someone's high school to fix the diploma of a kid who got a ONE bad grade—

Jason: He needs this scholarship. He is a kid of the streets! He can't do it otherwise, and it is not like the world would collapse if you fix one grade!

Tim: Yeah, I don't care about morals, I am just confused. Why would I want to spend my time on this, I am pretty sure—

Jason, dead ass serious: You know I don't like to communicate with this family. I only ever love talking with you, so sue me for thinking you could do me a favour.

Tim, instantly smirking: Ah, so I am your favourite... Well-well, big brother, I guess I can do this.

Damian: I am *not* going to tell you what our father is planning to do with this specific villain. Who do you think I am? An idiot?

Jason, sighing: Damn, and I really thought we had each other's back since League of Assassins.

Damian, scoffing: Emotional manipulation will not work on me.

Jason, all confused: Why would I manipulate you? From all people? I didn't raise you to fall on shit like this.

Damian: Tt.

Damian: Fine. Since, I guess, I owe you for babysitting me...

Bruce: Jason, I appreciate your... strive to help me, but nothing has ever gone well when you worked on cases like that. Let me handle this, and—

Jason, silently sitting down on the armchair, hands on his head: (sniff)

Bruce, panicked: Jaylad?..

Jason: I get it. I really do. No matter how much I love you, no matter how much I keep choosing you over anyone in this family, you don't love me anymore. I really understand it. I... I came in peace with it. I just wished you would tolerate my work... a little bit. You know?

Bruce: No, no, sweetheart, I— I am your favourite?

Jason, sniffling angrily: Who else it could be, old man?

Bruce: Oh. Oh, Jaylad— (instantly hands him the case)

(The family dinner)

Bruce, mentally humming to himself: Oh, these kids have NO idea that I am Jason's favourite because we are connected like that ^•^

Dick, mentally beaming: Oh, no one here has an idea that I am Jason's favourite because I am his big brother and protector! :>

Tim, mentally laughing evilly: Oh, these flops have no idea that I am Jason's favourite and that he wishes I was his Robin!

Damian, mentally kicking his feet: None of my family members suspect that I am Akhi's favourite because he was practically my nanny through all childhood. Tt.

Jason, munching on food: Lol

[0mg-bird]

Hangman’s Mystery - J Seresin x Fem! Reader

Pairing: Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin x Shy! Fem! Reader

Summary: Jake takes you to meet the crew after claims of him hiding you from them. You’re extremely shy and aren’t a fan of lots of people, making Jake be more protective of you. For once, Rooster knows more about Jake’s life than the others do.

Warnings: Mentions of anxiety - protective Jake- Fluff!- language.

“All I’m saying is it’s a little suspicious.” Payback says, opening his locker up. Jake just rolls his eyes, preparing himself to go through this debate one more time.

“I hate to say this, but I agree with him.” Fanboy pipes in, pulling his flight suit off.

Somehow, the conversations lately always turn back to you. Ever since the flight crew found out Jake’s been seeing someone and it wasn’t a casual hook up, they’ve bugged him about it ever since. It had come up one night at the Hard Deck, when Coyote suggested to a perky blonde, who had been hitting on him, to focus her attention on the southern boy who was playing pool. She eyed Jake up, pleased with what was in her gaze and moved in on him.

Some of the boys gathered around to watch the cocky pilot work his magic. Coyote figured he was doing the pilot a favor since he hadn’t been seen with a girl on his arm in a while. Imagine their surprise when Jake took a step away from the grasp on his bicep.

“What’s he doing?” Payback questions, looking appalled.

“Is he sick?” Phoenix asked as she finished her beer.

Jake had smiled politely and rejected all advances the girl made, sending her away and going straight to his pool game again.

By the time Rooster came around with a fresh drink, the group scrambled to fill him in on the alien sight they just witnessed.

“He sent her away.” Phoenix said with a slack jaw.

“Like a poor puppy.” Coyote joked.

Rooster took a swig of his beer, then shrugged like they were idiots. “Yeah, he already has a girl.”

“What?!” They all exclaimed.

Ever since that night a week ago, Jake was being grilled on it.

As he takes out a fresh shirt to slip on, Jake shakes his head. “Coyote is getting married, and y’all are icing me for having commitment?”

Payback nods. “Well that’s because we knew of his fiancée, you have been hiding this girl like a dirty little secret.”

“I think him and Bradshaw are pulling our leg.” Coyote pipes in. “I think he made her up just to fuck with us.”

Jake laughs out loud. “You are just being ridiculous now.”

Bob, who has been quiet the entire time, ‘lurking’ as the crew likes to say, finally uses his smug voice. “Look, Seresin, I get it. I had a fake girlfriend too one time in high school, it’s embarrassing to admit, buddy.” His words make the guys laugh, and Jake shuts his locker with a loud clank. “She’s not fake! She just doesn’t really like hanging out with dick heads like you guys. She’s real shy.” He glares.

“Well, I’ll believe it when I see it.” Fanboy states. “Yeah, we want to meet her. You bring her to the Hard Deck on Friday night if she’s real, or else we will never stop bugging you about it.” He says, giving Jake a harsh choice.

His hand runs down his face. “I’ll talk to her about it.”

“He’ll talk to her about it, he says.” Coyote scoffs. “Okay Seresin, go talk to your fake girlfriend about it.”

“She’s not fake!”

~~~~~~~

“Baby?” He calls, walking through your front door. Moving to set his small duffle bag on the counter, he toes off his boots, trying to place where you were in the sea side house. It was oddly quiet, maybe you had your head phones in, oblivious to the world outside.

Down the hall he goes, pushing open your cracked bedroom door. Your scrubs were tossed in the corner, almost making it into the laundry hamper. You lay sprawled in bed, hair out of your braid, asleep in one of Jake’s t shirts he left at your house and some boxer shorts.

Slowly, he creeps to your side, sitting on the edge of the bed as he strokes your hair. You slowly start to stir, opening your bright eyes to him. A smile creeps up your pink lips, you take a deep breath in and twist to sit up.

“Hi.” You grin, happy he’s here.

“You alright? It’s only five, you look tired.” His voice was calm, sweet to you as he stroked the under side of your chin with his finger.

You rubbed your eyes. “Long day.” You breathe. “Mr. Johnson passed this morning.”

Jake’s eyes grow heavy with sorrow for you. He knew that this was normal for you because you were an at home nurse and a lot of the time the elderly patients pass. “I’m sorry, honey.” He says, leaning to kiss your forehead.

You lean into his touch. “It’s alright, I should be used to it by now but…I don’t know, Mr. Johnson was a sweet man, I actually adored his company.” You softly laugh. “But, that’s life, I’ll be fine.”

Pushing the covers further off of you, you lean forward and sweetly kiss the man that’s been in your life for five months. Despite the somewhat short time period, you couldn’t imagine life being any different than what it is. Your mother and sister called you crazy for being with an aviator, reminding you that he won’t stay in town forever, that he is quite literally owned by the government and will be wherever he is assigned to. The thought was scary, getting so attached to someone just for him leave when his ship comes in. It made your anxiety tick higher when you thought about it for too long. But, you don’t think you’ve ever been this in love. You’ll be the first to admit that you’ve never been a social butterfly, you were stuck in a shell, hardly bothering to get close to new people. Your handful of friends knew this about you, so it was a surprise when they met Jake and all of his infectious attitude. Somehow, Jake had a way of prying that shell open, his strong hands took you off the shelf and he learned that there’s a light hearted, good time, girl under all the shy innocence. He loved you for both versions, and it made you love him even more.

You declared that if you could, you’d follow him anywhere.

As he takes a shower, probably using your shampoo, you move to figure out what it is that you wanted to make for dinner.

You turn on some music, cracking a beer open and taking a drink. Soon, the kitchen is full of a delicious scent that Jake smells all the way from the bedroom. He follows the waft, sweatpants low on his hips and a casual tank top over his upper half. Finding you stirring some vegetables, he kisses the side of your head, then snatches the half drank bottle from your hand. This is usually the routine, you can never finish the drink you intend to, so he’s there to finish it for you.

“I want to…ask you something.” He says, leaning back against the counter.

You hum in question, and he loves the little look you toss him from over your shoulder.

“You wanna go out on Friday night?” He asks, making you smile. “Sure, where do you want to go?” You ask, unsure why he seems off.

“Well, I think since I’ve met your friends, you should meet mine. Let’s go to the Hard Deck with them, honey.”

You immediately stop your movements, anxiety sweeping over you. “Jake…I don’t know…a bar…”

“I met you in a bar.” He reminds with a smug look.

“That was different.” You turn to face him. “I was dragged there for my sister’s twenty first birthday and you know I hated it the whole time.”

He smiles at your pointed look. “Yes, I know but this will be different. Look, we’ll go, say hi, prove you actually exist, then come home and have sex on the couch.”

Your eyes widen. “Jake!” You gasp at his bluntness.

“Fine, we’ll do it in the shower.”

“Just stop talking.” You shake your head, hiding your smile. “The crew really doesn’t think I exist?”

He comes to grips with your waist. “They think I’ve made you up, like some sad Freshman geek…like i’m Bob or something.”

“Who’s Bob?” You ask with confusion.

His head dips to your neck. “Come to the bar and you’ll figure it out.” He mumbles, inhaling your scent before nipping at your skin. It makes you laugh, desperate to push him away but his strong arms have you locked in.

Something about him could make you forget anything. Sadness, anxiety, tiredness…the veggies that are burning in the skillet.

As his mouth moves up your throat, he’s engulfing you like a starved man. You try to speak before he’s inhaling you deeply, pulling you impossibly closer with his mouth on yours, searing you with a kiss that makes your knees weak.

“Jake- baby- mm.” You battle. “Okay, I’ll go with you. Jake- vegetables are charring.”

He finally lets go of you, grinning at your laugh and the way you stumble slightly as he lets you go.

~~

Clammy hands run down your jeans, once, twice, three times before Jake pulls you towards the entrance.

“They’re not gonna like me.” You stress.

“They’ll love you.” He states, wrapping an arm around your waist.

“They’ll be bored of me in two seconds.” You continue.

“No they won’t, just breathe, honey.”

You’re submerged into a room full of talk and music, some rowdy college kids are being thrown out and you’re sure you stepped in a puddle of spilled margarita. Your eyes are wide, and you shift closer into the larger body beside you. Jake leans down to whisper in your ear that it’s calmer in the back.

By the pool table, a group is gathered there and you immediately assume this is the infamous crew.

Phoenix is the first to notice, she smacks Payback and Fanboy, motioning for them to look alive.

“Well well, here he is, the man himself.” Coyote says smugly, setting his pool stick down.

A shorter pilot approaches you. “How much did he pay you to be here?” He asks, confusing you.

“What?”

“Just joking, I’m Reuben, but everyone calls me Payback, and you’re gorgeous.” He takes your hand in greeting, making your face heat with surprise and embarrassment.

Payback is pushed aside, and replaced by another. “I’m Fanboy, his back seater which means he’d be shit outa luck if he didn’t have me saving his ass.”

You shake his hand too, unsure of what to say.

“So, what’s your name? Wait, what was the last one, Jake? Abbi? Alison? Sorry, he has a thing for A names. Your name start with an A?” His tone is teasing, but he’s so straightforward, it makes things awkward.

Jake’s grip tightens on you. “Cut it out, Garcia.” He slowly said with a warning look.

Fanboy puts his hands up in defense. “Just trying to get to know this mystery girl you hid from us, Hangman.” He claims, then goes back to your gaze. “What’s your name?”

“Y/N, it’s nice to meet you.” You say softly, brushing him off.

You’re introduced to more guys, all who make some sort of snide comment about your relationship with Jake, well, except for Bob who was utterly polite. To your surprise, you’re introduced to Natasha greets you with a hug.

“Well, you’re real and not crazy so that’s a plus.” She jokes, making you chuckle. “You want something to drink?” She asks.

“You’re sweet, thank you. I’ll just take a beer, I’m not picky.” You say in a grateful tone, she nods, saying she’ll be right back.

Moving in from outside, Rooster makes his appearance.

“I missed the meet and greet? Damn.” He says, making you turn with a grin.

“Bradley, hi!” You greet, stepping away from Jake’s embrace momentarily. Rooster hugs you politely. “Hey girly, how are you?”

The crew grows a sour look.

“You two already know each other?” Coyote asks.

Rooster nods. “I was there when her and Hangman met.” He says so casually.

“Bradley and Ashley come over for lunch sometimes.” You add, making the group look at each other.

“Does no one tell us anything anymore or…” Bob trails off.

The night continues with chatter and worthless bets on pool shots. At no point does your hand leave Jake, whether it’s intertwined with his or on his arm, his back, your finger hooked on his belt loop, anything. It might make you look needy, but it’s something that eases your nerves.

When you do pull away from him with intention of finding the bathroom, he immediately turns when your warmth is gone.

“Where you goin’?” He questions.

“The ladies room, a place you can’t follow me in to.” You tease, starting to walk away.

He’s eyes scan the room, then watch you closely. He doesn’t miss the amount of guys that turn to watch you, scanning you up and down, definitely making comments about how good you fit in your jeans.

His paranoia gets the better of him, he marches across the bar to the hallway where the restrooms are. Back leaned against the wall, he waits, standing guard, in his mind, but the pilots call him a puppy.

“Mystery girl went and made him a golden retriever.” Payback laughs.

Fanboy nods. “We’ve lost him for good. What’s he gonna do when he leaves next month for Po-dunk, Texas- or wherever he’s from?”

They all watch as you and Jake slowly start to walk back to the group. Rooster, who finishes his beer, simply shrugs and leans to line his pool stick up. “He says he’s gonna take her with him and marry her.”

“What?!”

[nerdycheol]

Love, On Air || Choi Seungcheol (valentine's special)

♡ Pairing: choi seungcheol x f!reader

♡ Genre: best friends to lovers, romance, fluff, slice of life

♡ Word Count: 7.8k

note: Happy Valentine’s Day! 💖 This is a special Valentine’s edition based on the poll results(so if you voted—congrats, you manifested this 👀). A massive shoutout to @facethesunflower for proofreading and making sure this didn’t turn into a total disaster. 😆 Hope you enjoy this fluffy, slightly dramatic, finally-they-confess moment.

Remember: if your best friend is acting suspiciously like Cherry… maybe it’s time to connect the dots. 👀💕

The clock hits 9 PM. You take a deep breath, adjusting the headphones on your ears as the familiar hum of the radio booth wraps around you. The room is small, dimly lit by the soft glow of the equipment and the neon sign flashing LIVE on the wall. 

"Alright, we’re live in 3... 2... 1..."

Your hand hovers over the soundboard as you smile into the mic. 

"Good evening, lovely listeners, and welcome back to The Heartbeat Hour, your go-to late-night show where we talk all things love, relationships, and everything in between," you say, your voice smooth and warm, like a cozy blanket on a cold night. "I’m your host, __ , and tonight is extra special because we’re in the heart of Valentine’s week. So, buckle up, folks—this week’s all about confessions, crushes, and, of course, giving you some advice to help you sort through your feelings."

You press the button for the first song request, the soft strains of a romantic ballad filling the room. As the music plays in the background, your eyes scan the requests that have been flooding in. The chat box is constantly ticking with messages—listeners asking for advice, sharing their love stories, or seeking songs that speak to their hearts. You feel that rush, the adrenaline of knowing you’re connected to so many people in real time.

"Now, I’ve got a message here from a listener who needs a little help," you say, pulling up the request. "This one’s from 'Cherry,' who writes in: ‘I’ve been crushing on someone for a while, but I’m not sure how to confess. Any advice?’"

You let out a small breath, your fingers tapping rhythmically on the desk as you think. This one’s a classic. You've seen it all before, but every confession still feels fresh. You smile softly into the mic.

"Ah, 'Cherry,' I get it. Confessing your feelings can be scary, but it’s also one of the most real things you can do. Here’s my advice: Keep it simple. No need for grand gestures, no elaborate speeches. Sometimes, the best way to let someone know how you feel is through a small, sincere gesture. Maybe write a note or give them a little gift that shows you’ve been thinking about them. And when you tell them how you feel, just be honest—there’s no such thing as a perfect confession. Just be you."

You pause, feeling the warmth of the words settle into your heart. The music swells in the background, adding to the ambiance of the moment.

"Remember, 'Cherry,' it’s not about getting it perfect—it’s about being brave enough to say it. And hey, the worst that can happen is they don’t feel the same way. But you know what? You’ve still won because you were true to yourself. So take a deep breath and go for it. You got this.”

You let the silence linger for a moment, Cherry’s words still hanging in the air. Then, with a small smile, you reached for the controls.

"Alright, Cherry, and everyone out there holding onto feelings they haven’t found the words for—this one’s for you. Maybe it’ll give you the courage to say what’s in your heart, or at the very least, remind you that you’re not alone."

With a soft click, the studio filled with the delicate, wistful melody of "From the start" by Laufey—a song that is the ultimate friends to lovers song for all delusional daydreams.

Leaning back in your chair, you glanced out at the city lights reflecting against the glass. Somewhere, maybe Cherry was listening, hesitating over a letter they weren’t sure they’d ever send. Or maybe, just maybe, they had already begun writing.

After an hour of song requests, confessions, and quiet laughter shared through the airwaves, the LIVE sign dims. You take off your headphones, stretching your neck as the studio falls into silence. Another night, another show wrapped up.

Gathering your notes, you stack them neatly before grabbing your now-lukewarm latte from the desk. The faint chatter of coworkers drifts through the halls—other RJs wrapping up, producers discussing schedules.

"Great show tonight, ___," someone calls out in passing.

"Thanks! See you tomorrow!" you reply with a small smile, pulling on your coat.

Near the exit, your producer glances up. "Don’t forget—tomorrow’s segment is longer for the Valentine’s special. Get some rest!"

"Got it. Night, everyone!"

Pushing open the station doors, you step into the cool night air. The city hums in the distance, but here, it’s quiet—still. You take a slow sip of your latte, savoring the warmth against the crisp breeze.

And then, just a few steps away, you see him.

Leaning against his car, hands tucked into his coat pockets, Seungcheol watches you. The street lamp casts a soft glow over him, catching the faint curve of his lips.

You stop in front of Seungcheol, raising an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"

He tilts his head, acting like it’s the most casual thing in the world. "I was just passing through."

You narrow your eyes. "Passing through? Your workplace is nowhere near here."

"Okay, fine," he chuckles, pushing himself off the car. "I thought I’d pick you up. It’s been a while since we had dinner together."

"Ah, I see. You missed me." You smirk, taking another sip of your latte.

"Don’t flatter yourself, " he scoffs, but the amusement in his eyes gives him away.

You let out a laugh, shaking your head before walking around the car. "Alright, alright. Let’s go before you start crying about how I never have time for you."

He pulls open the passenger door for you with a teasing bow. "Your chariot awaits, my lady."

Rolling your eyes at his theatrics, you slip inside, and he shuts the door before making his way to the driver’s seat.

As he starts the engine, Seungcheol glances at you. "Nice show today."

You blink. "Oh? What’s up, Choiseung? You’re complimenting me?" You raise an eyebrow, grinning.

He scoffs, shaking his head. "Forget it. Should’ve just let you believe no one listens to your rambling at night."

"Too late. I’m taking this to heart forever," you joke, leaning back in your seat.

A few minutes into the drive, Seungcheol reaches into his coat pocket and hands you a neatly folded envelope.

"Here."

You glance at it, then at him. "What’s this?"

"Just open it."

Curious, you unfold the letter inside. His familiar handwriting stretches across the page, carefully written, filled with warmth. It’s a simple note—thanking you for being in his life, for always listening, for just being you.

Your heart softens as you read.

"Ohh, Cheol... this is so sweet. Thank you so much, friend." You smile, touched by the gesture.

The moment the word leaves your lips, he freezes—just for a second.

Then, with a short nod, he looks away, gripping the steering wheel a little tighter.

"Yeah… friend." His voice is light, but something about it feels off.

You don’t notice. Or maybe, you just don’t understand.

"Hm? Did you say something?"

"Nothing," he clears his throat, turning into a street. "We should hurry before the restaurant gets packed."

You let it go, tucking the letter safely into your bag as the city lights blur past.

Dinner is simple—warm bowls of stew and easy conversation. You catch up on each other’s lives, laugh over childhood memories, and argue over who should pay the bill (which Seungcheol wins, as always). It’s comfortable, familiar—just like it’s always been.

But every now and then, Seungcheol watches you with something unreadable in his gaze. Something just beneath the surface.

Later, he pulls up in front of your place.

"Thanks for dinner, Choiseung." You grin, unbuckling your seatbelt.

"Yeah, yeah. You can pay next time."

"I’ll believe that when it happens." You laugh, stepping out of the car. "Goodnight!"

He waits until you disappear inside, only driving off once your lights flicker on.

And then he waits.

Seated in his car, he watches as your silhouette moves around the room. It’s only when your lights finally turn off that he exhales, rubbing the back of his neck before driving away into the quiet night.

The next day passes in a blur of work, coffee, and the usual routine. You go through meetings, reply to emails, and try not to fall asleep at your desk. It’s just another regular day—until night falls, and you’re back in the studio, headphones on, mic live, slipping into the comfort of your show.

"And that was 'Moonlight' to set the mood for tonight," you say, adjusting the volume on the console. "Now, let’s see what’s on your mind, listeners. Late-night confessions, random thoughts, love letters—I'm here for it all."

A familiar name pops up in the chat, and you smile.

"Ah, a message from ‘Cherry’ again," you muse, skimming through it.

"So, Cherry says: ‘I wrote them my feelings, but I feel like they didn't get the hint. Any advice?’”

You lean back, thoughtful.

"Confessions are tricky, aren’t they? But if words feel too heavy, why not try something else?"

You pause, then smile.

"Here’s an idea—make a playlist. Fill it with songs that subtly express your feelings, and share it with them. You can name it something meaningful, like ‘For You’ or ‘Songs That Remind Me of You.’ Maybe they’ll get the hint, maybe they won’t, but either way… music has a way of saying what we can’t."

A soft melody plays as you set up the next song, your voice lowering.

"Speaking of confessions… Cherry, this one’s for you."

___

After the show, you gather your things, stretching as the familiar hum of the studio fades into the quiet of the night. Stepping outside, the cool air brushes against your skin—and there he is, leaning against his car, arms crossed, waiting.

"You again?" You arch a brow, teasing.

Seungcheol smirks. "What can I say? Madam needs her personal chauffeur." He pushes off the car, opening the door for you with a playful grin.

You scoff, rolling your eyes as you slide in. "More like my chauffeur needs his daily dose of validation."

He chuckles, shutting the door before rounding the car. "Can you blame me? Gotta make sure my most important passenger gets home safe."

You shake your head, biting back a smile as he starts the engine. The familiar warmth of routine settles between you, comfortable and unspoken.

As you drive, soft music fills the space—a melody unfamiliar yet strangely intimate. You pause, listening. It’s not his usual sound. Gone are the heavy beats and sharp rhythms he prefers. Instead, the speakers hum with gentle tunes, lyrics drenched in longing.

You glance at him, amusement flickering in your gaze. "Since when did your taste in music change this much?"

His fingers flex over the steering wheel, eyes fixed on the road. "Dunno. Just felt like switching things up."

You hum along absentmindedly, letting the melody wrap around you, comforting in ways you don’t fully understand.

Seungcheol exhales quietly, gripping the wheel a little tighter, sneaking a glance your way. Because this playlist isn’t just a mix of songs—it’s a confession. One he can only hope you’ll hear.

As Seungcheol pulls up in front of your place, he shifts the car into park but doesn’t make a move to unlock the doors just yet. Instead, he drums his fingers against the steering wheel, stealing a glance your way.

"__, since tomorrow’s the weekend... you wanna hang out?" His voice is casual, but there’s something just a little hesitant in the way he says it.

You turn to him, brows raised. "Sure. Where?"

Seungcheol clears his throat, rubbing the back of his neck as he looks away. "Nothing much… just the amusement park. Maybe a café after, y’know."

You blink before breaking into a small smile. "Huh, it’s been a while since we’ve gone there."

He nods, still avoiding your eyes. "Yeah. Thought it might be fun."

You tilt your head, watching him for a second before nudging his arm. "Well, if you’re paying, I’m definitely in."

He scoffs, rolling his eyes but grinning nonetheless. "Yeah, yeah. Just don’t go overboard with the snacks."

You laugh, reaching for the door handle. "No promises. See you tomorrow, Choiseung."

As you step out, he waits, watching until your lights flicker on inside. Only then does he drive off, the soft hum of the playlist still playing in the background.

The next day, the weekend air carries a hint of excitement as you step outside, spotting Seungcheol waiting by his car. Dressed casually in a hoodie and jeans, he looks effortlessly relaxed—except for the way he keeps checking his phone, as if trying to act nonchalant.

"Wow, you’re actually on time today," you tease, walking up to him.

He scoffs, sliding his phone into his pocket. "Please, I was born punctual."

You snort. "Sure, if 'punctual' means making me wait at least ten minutes every time."

Seungcheol rolls his eyes but opens the car door for you anyway, his usual playful smirk tugging at his lips. "Just get in, before I make you walk to the amusement park."

You laugh, sliding in as he rounds the car. Soon, you're both on the road, the soft hum of music playing in the background.

"So, what’s the plan, tour guide?" you ask, glancing at him.

He shrugs, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. "Nothing fancy. Just rides, food, and you trying not to chicken out on the roller coasters."

You gasp dramatically. "Excuse you, I do not chicken out—"

"You literally backed out last time," he deadpans, making you groan in protest.

The banter continues, filling the car with laughter as the amusement park comes into view, the vibrant lights and distant screams of thrill-seekers setting the perfect scene for the day ahead.

As Seungcheol parks the car, you glance at the towering rides ahead, the excited chatter of parkgoers filling the air.

"Alright, where to first?" he asks, stretching as he steps out of the car.

You scan the park, lips pursed in thought before pointing towards the roller coasters with a challenging grin. "Since you’re so confident, let’s start with that."

His eyes widen for a split second before he huffs. "I wasn’t the one who backed out last time, remember?"

You laugh, linking your arm with his and pulling him along. "Exactly. Time to redeem myself."

The line moves faster than expected, and soon, you're seated, the bar locking in place. You grip the handles tightly, sneaking a glance at Seungcheol. He looks relaxed, but the way he exhales deeply before the ride starts doesn’t go unnoticed.

The moment the coaster shoots forward, your screams mix with laughter, adrenaline rushing through your veins as you grip the bar for dear life. When it finally slows, you glance at Seungcheol, only to see him looking at you instead of the ride’s descent.

"What?" you ask, breathless.

He shakes his head, a small, fond smile on his lips. "Nothing. Just glad you didn’t chicken out this time."

You roll your eyes, nudging him playfully as you both step off the ride, your legs slightly wobbly from the rush.

The day continues with more rides, playful bets on who can win the most arcade games (he cheats, you swear), and an unnecessary but hilarious attempt at a claw machine.

"Face it, I'm just naturally gifted," he boasts, tossing you a small stuffed bear.

"Naturally full of it, maybe," you grumble, but take the bear anyway, hugging it to your chest.

Finally, as the night settles, you both find yourselves on the Ferris wheel, the gentle hum of the ride filling the comfortable silence. The city sprawls below, glowing under the streetlights, and in the distance, fireworks begin to bloom in the sky.

"Didn’t think today would be this fun," you admit, leaning back against the seat, the cool glass behind you a contrast to the warmth in your chest.

Seungcheol glances at you, something unreadable in his expression. He exhales softly, his fingers tapping against his knee.

"Yeah... I, uh—" He hesitates, licking his lips, his voice quieter now. "There's actually something I—"

But before he can finish, a particularly loud firework crackles in the sky, painting the cabin in flickering colors. You turn quickly, eyes lighting up as you take in the view.

"Oh, look at that one! It’s so pretty" you say, completely missing the way Seungcheol sighs, his half-spoken words swallowed by the moment.

He leans back, running a hand through his hair, a wry smile tugging at his lips.

"Yeah," he murmurs, gaze lingering on you instead of the fireworks. "It is pretty."

Eventually, you both find yourselves at a cozy café just outside the park, the scent of coffee and pastries filling the air.

After placing your order, Seungcheol suddenly pushes back his chair. “Be right back,” he says, flashing a quick smile before heading toward the counter.

You don’t think much of it, scrolling through your phone until the waiter returns with your drinks. As they set your cup down, you notice the delicate heart design floating atop the foam.

You tilt your head, stirring it slightly with your spoon. “Oh? Is this some kind of Valentine’s special?” you ask, amused. “Did you get one too?”

Seungcheol, who’s just returned to his seat, glances at his own plain coffee and shrugs. “Yeah… no.”

You raise a brow. “Huh. Guess they just like me more.”

He chuckles, taking a sip of his drink, but you don’t notice the way he hides his small, satisfied smile. Because the truth is, he had asked for that heart—just for you.

//

The next evening, the soft glow of the studio lights casts a warm hue as you settle into your seat, adjusting your headphones. Outside, the city hums with life, but a sudden downpour has turned the streets into shimmering reflections of neon signs.

"Looks like we’re in for an unexpected downpour tonight," you say, adjusting your headphones with a small chuckle. "So if you're heading home, grab an umbrella—or better yet, find someone who’ll share theirs with you—if not, maybe this is your chance for a classic movie moment. You know, the whole ‘one umbrella, two people’ thing."

With a quick tap, you queue up a slow, dreamy melody.

"Wherever you are tonight—rushing through the rain or just watching it fall—I hope this keeps you warm. Stay safe out there." As the song plays, you sit back, stretching your arms with a sigh. 

As the show wraps up, you take off your headphones, letting out a small sigh as the last song fades into silence. The studio, once filled with the hum of voices and music, now feels still. Gathering your things, you push open the door, stepping into the quiet hallway.

Outside, the rain still falls in soft sheets, blurring the glow of streetlights. You pause near the entrance, rummaging through your bag. No umbrella. Right. You meant to bring one this morning, but in the rush, it completely slipped your mind.

 You pause at the entrance, contemplating making a run for it, when a familiar voice calls out.

"Figured you’d forget yours."

You blink as Seungcheol steps forward, holding out an umbrella, his usual smirk in place. His hair is slightly damp, his coat dusted with droplets, like he had hurried here without much thought.

A small flutter, barely noticeable, stirs in your chest. You shake it off with a teasing smile. "What, no chauffeur duty today?"

He chuckles, tucking a hand into his pocket. "Uhh, not tonight. I have to stay late for that project."

You tilt your head, a little surprised. "So you came all the way here just to give me this?" You motion toward the umbrella in your hand.

"Yeah," he says simply, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

Before you can say anything else, his phone buzzes. He glances at the screen, sighs, then looks back at you. "I gotta go. Text me when you get home, okay?"

You nod, watching as he jogs toward his car, the red taillights fading into the rain.

For a moment, you just stand there, gripping the umbrella a little tighter. You don’t know why, but the weight of it in your hands feels different.

Then, shaking off the thought, you open it and step into the rain, heading home.

//

As morning arrives, the first thing that comes to mind is Seungcheol. You blink at your phone, thumb hovering over his contact.

Texting him isn’t anything new—you’ve done it countless times before. But for some reason, tonight, it feels… different. Maybe it’s your coworker’s words still echoing in your head, or maybe it’s the way he’s been occupying your thoughts more than usual.

Before you can overthink it, you start typing.

You: Did you get home okay?

A second passes. Then another. You bite your lip, debating whether to add something else.

You: And did you even sleep well? Don’t tell me you stayed up all night working.

You press send before hesitation can creep in. Almost instantly, the dots appear.

Seungcheol: Wow, checking up on me? I must be special.

You roll your eyes, already imagining the smug grin on his face.

You: Forget I asked.

Seungcheol: Wait, wait— I did sleep. Kinda. Had a long day, but I’m home now.

You: Good. Don’t overwork yourself.

Your fingers hover over the screen for a beat before you add one last message.

This time, he takes a little longer to respond.

Seungcheol: You too.

You lock your phone, exhaling softly as you sink into your pillow.

Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe you’re just overthinking. But the warmth unfurling in your chest suggests otherwise.

At work, the usual hum of chatter fills the office. You’re halfway through your emails when a coworker slides into the seat beside you, a teasing grin already in place.

"I saw you yesterday," they start, leaning in slightly. "With a guy. Was he your boyfriend?"

Your fingers freeze over the keyboard.

"What? No!" The denial is immediate, instinctive. Too quick. You clear your throat, forcing a casual shrug. "Just a friend."

Your coworker chuckles, clearly amused. "Mmm, sure. You should’ve seen your face just now."

You scoff, shaking your head. "Oh, please. It’s not like that."

They raise an eyebrow, smirking as they lean against your desk. "Right. Just a friend, huh?"

You roll your eyes, waving them off, but as they walk away, their words linger.

Just a friend. 

You’ve said it a hundred times before. So why does it feel different now?

The soft glow of the studio lights wraps around you like a familiar embrace as you settle in for another night on air. The playlist hums in the background, filling the quiet spaces between your thoughts as you scroll through messages from listeners.

One catches your eye.

“I think I’ve fallen for my best friend. It wasn’t sudden—more like a slow, creeping realization. One day, I caught myself smiling at my phone just because they texted me. I don’t know if they feel the same, and I’m scared to lose what we have. What do I do?"

You hesitate for a moment, the words settling heavier than they should. There’s a flicker of something familiar in them, something that makes you sit up a little straighter.

You take a breath and lean toward the mic. “That’s… complicated,” you begin, your voice even, steady. “Falling for a best friend is tricky. It sneaks up on you when you least expect it. One day, they’re just… them. The same person they’ve always been. And then suddenly, everything feels different.”

Your breath catches slightly. A part of you wants to laugh at the timing, but instead, you clear your throat and lean into the mic.

You exhale softly, fingers absentmindedly tracing the edge of your notes. "I think the scariest part isn’t even confessing—it’s the thought of what happens after. What if they don’t feel the same? What if things change? But… at the same time, isn’t it worth knowing? Isn’t it better than wondering ‘what if’ forever?"

The words come naturally, maybe a little too naturally, and you catch yourself mid-sentence, blinking at the realization. Your fingers tighten slightly around the papers in front of you.

You shake it off with a light laugh. "Anyway, I’m not a love expert. But if you’re listening… maybe ask yourself this—would you rather take the risk or live with the regret?"

As the segment transitions, you queue up the next song, the soft melody of Can't Help Falling in Love by Kina Grannis filling the airwaves. A bittersweet smile tugs at your lips as you lean back in your chair, staring at the ceiling.

//

The idea of a team dinner had been floating around the office for weeks, but it wasn’t until today that your producer finally put his foot down.

“We’re going,” he declared, arms crossed as he leaned against your desk. “No more excuses, no more ‘let’s do it next week.’ Tonight, we eat.”

Your coworker snickered, spinning lazily in their chair. “You just don’t want to go home and cook.”

“Exactly,” he admitted shamelessly. “Besides, it’s been a while since we all hung out outside of work. You in?”

You hesitated for a beat, glancing at your screen before sighing. It wasn’t like you had anything better to do. “Yeah, I’m in.”

And that was that. A few hours later, you found yourself walking toward the restaurant with the rest of your team, the air buzzing with conversation. Your producer was still arguing about food, insisting that this place was “decent at best” while another team member defended it with an almost personal level of passion.

You laughed at their banter, falling into step behind them—until something made you slow down.

A familiar figure stood just outside the restaurant, hands tucked into his coat pockets. Even before he turned, you knew who it was.

Seungcheol.

Your brows lifted slightly in amusement. “Are you a stalker?” you teased as you approached. “You’re literally everywhere I go.”

He turned toward you, chuckling under his breath. “No, I’m here with someone. My cli—”

“Shall we go?”

The voice belonged to a woman who stepped up beside him, her posture poised, her tone polite. She looked… elegant. The kind of effortless elegance that didn’t even need to try.

Your gaze flickered between them, something unreadable tightening in your chest before you smoothed your expression. “Who…”

The woman met your eyes and smiled. “Oh, I’m Lee Hana. I’m working with Seungcheol on a project.”

You nodded, lips curving into something light, something easy, even as something else tugged inside you. “Right. Nice to meet you.”

Seungcheol’s gaze lingered on you for a second longer than it should. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh,” you blinked, shifting slightly. “Our team is having dinner.” You motioned toward the restaurant behind you. “You know, bonding and all that.”

He nodded, but before he could say anything else, Hana touched his arm lightly. “Shall we?”

There was a pause—brief, barely there—before he cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah.” Then he glanced at you again. “Bye, then. Have fun.”

And then he was gone, walking away with her at his side.

You watched them leave, something unspoken pressing against your ribs. It’s not jealousy, you told yourself. Not really. But the feeling stayed anyway.

A voice broke through your thoughts. “Oh, isn’t he the umbrella guy?”

You turned to see your coworker standing beside you, glancing after Seungcheol with mild curiosity before their gaze shifted back to you. “Did he come here with a woman?”

You said nothing, but that seemed to be enough of an answer.

They hummed knowingly. “You really must be just friends.” And with that, they walked inside.

You stayed there a second longer, staring at the spot where Seungcheol had just been, before shaking yourself out of it and following them in.

The night air is crisp as you walk back home, the sounds of the city buzzing softly in the background. Your team dinner had ended a while ago, but instead of feeling full and satisfied, there’s a strange heaviness in your chest—a weight you don’t quite understand.  

As you turn the corner to your apartment complex, you slow down, your steps faltering.  

There, leaning against his car with his arms crossed, is Seungcheol.  

Your brows knit together. “What are you doing here?”  

At your voice, he straightens, slipping his hands into his pockets. “You didn’t look well back at the restaurant,” he says, his tone light but laced with something else—concern, maybe. “So, I thought I’d check on you.”  

You blink at him. “You drove all the way here for that?”  

He shrugs. “It’s not far.”  

Liar. His office is nowhere near your place.  

There’s a brief pause. The usual banter is on the tip of your tongue, but for some reason, the words don’t come out as easily tonight. Maybe it’s because he actually showed up. Maybe it’s because you don’t know what to do with the way your heart stutters at the sight of him standing there, waiting for you.  

You shift your weight. “Do you… want to come in for coffee?”  

At that, he chuckles, shaking his head. “Coffee? At this time?” He tilts his head at you, amused. “You must really hate me if you don’t want me to sleep tonight.”  

You scoff, rolling your eyes. “Then I’ll give you plain water. Just come in.”  

His lips twitch into a smirk before he pushes himself off the car. “If you insist.”  

And just like that, he follows you inside.  

The door clicks shut behind you as you step inside, flipping on the lights. The familiar warmth of your home settles around you, but with Seungcheol standing in your living room, it suddenly feels… different.

“You can sit,” you say, gesturing vaguely to the couch as you move toward the kitchen.

He hums in response, wandering over but not immediately sitting down. Instead, he looks around, eyes flickering to the small details of your space—the stack of books on the coffee table, the blanket draped lazily over the couch, the half-full cup on the counter from this morning.

“By the way,” you start, keeping your voice casual as you pour warm milk, “who was that woman earlier?”

Seungcheol hums in acknowledgment, but when he answers, it’s after a slight pause. “Just a client. I’m handling a project for her company.”

“Ah.” You nod, stirring the coffee a little too forcefully. “Looked like you guys were close.”

He lets out a small laugh. “Are you interrogating me right now?”

You scoff, bringing the mugs over to the table and handing him one. “No. Just making conversation.”

You drop onto the couch beside him, curling your legs under you. He’s been here so many times before, and yet tonight, the usual comfort feels a little different—like you’re hyper-aware of the way he leans back, his long legs stretched out in front of him, the way he watches you over the rim of his mug.

“You seemed off earlier,” he says after a beat. “Something wrong?”

“No,” you lie, but even you don’t sound convinced.

Seungcheol doesn’t press, just tilts his head slightly, studying you like he’s figuring out a puzzle. “If you say so.”

After a while, he stretches, glancing at the time. “I should go.”

You nod, following him to the door. He lingers for a second, hands shoved in his pockets.

“Text me when you wake up, yeah?”

You frown. “Why?”

He shrugs. “Just ‘cause.”

You roll your eyes, but something about the way he’s looking at you makes your chest tighten. “Fine.”

He smirks. “Good.”

And then, with a small wave, he’s gone.

You stand there for a second, staring at the closed door, fingers curling tightly around your cup.

The theater is dim, the soft glow from the screen casting flickering lights across Seungcheol’s face. The film has barely begun, but the hum of quiet conversations and the rustling of popcorn bags fill the space around you.

You’re not sure who suggested this movie. Maybe he did. Maybe you did. Maybe it was just one of those things—where he casually texted, "Movie?" and you didn’t even think before replying, "Sure."

The movie plays, but your focus wavers. You’re aware of him. Of the way his shoulder is just barely brushing yours. The way his fingers drum lazily against his knee. The way he shifts slightly every now and then, getting comfortable.

And then, his hand moves to the popcorn bag between you.

Your fingers accidentally graze his. Just for a second.

You don’t think much of it—until it happens again.

The second time, neither of you pull away immediately. It’s not intentional, not deliberate. Just… a pause. A moment that lingers for a beat too long before he finally retracts his hand.

Your pulse stutters, but you keep your expression neutral.

A few more scenes pass. You’re getting lost in the film when suddenly—

A jump scare.

It’s sudden enough that your breath catches, and before you can stop yourself, your hand darts out, grasping the closest thing—his arm.

Seungcheol doesn’t move. He doesn’t flinch, doesn’t say a word. Just glances down at your fingers curled around his sleeve.

You realize what you’ve done a second too late. Heat creeps up your neck as you start to pull away.

But then—

His arm shifts just slightly, just enough that your hand slides from his sleeve to his wrist, fingertips brushing against his skin.

You don’t move. Neither does he.

The moment stretches, unspoken, unacknowledged. Not quite intentional. But not exactly not intentional, either.

And suddenly, the movie is the least interesting thing in the room.

The movie ends, and the crowd slowly shuffles toward the exits. You stretch your arms as you step out of the dimly lit theater, the cool night air greeting you.

"That wasn’t as scary as I thought," you say, glancing at Seungcheol.

He scoffs, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Sure. That explains why you nearly ripped my sleeve off."

You roll your eyes, nudging him lightly with your elbow. "That was one time."

He smirks. "Uh-huh. And what about the other time? And the time after that?"

You narrow your eyes at him, but there’s no real bite behind it. He’s enjoying this way too much.

"Okay, whatever. Where are we eating?" You change the subject swiftly, and Seungcheol hums, pretending to think.

"Ramen?" he suggests.

Your stomach growls at the mention of food, and you nod. "Sounds good."

It’s a short walk to the small ramen shop tucked away on a quieter street. The place is cozy, warm, and familiar—one of those late-night spots you’ve both ended up in more times than you can count. The moment you step inside, the comforting aroma of broth and spices fills the air.

Seungcheol orders for both of you, as he always does, rattling off your usual without even asking. The cashier doesn’t even blink, already used to it by now.

You shake your head with a small smile. "One day, I’m going to switch things up just to mess with you."

He leans against the counter, grinning. "No, you won’t."

He’s right, and you hate that he knows it.

The two of you settle into a booth, the conversation flowing easily between bites of food. Seungcheol steals a piece of your fish cake without asking. You retaliate by swiping a sip of his drink. It's effortless, familiar.

By the time you step back outside, the streets are quieter. The late hour drapes the city in a peaceful hush, the occasional headlights casting long shadows on the pavement.

Neither of you say much as you walk, but it isn’t an awkward silence. Just the kind that lingers when words aren’t needed.

At some point, Seungcheol slows his pace, falling into step beside you instead of slightly ahead.

The street lights flicker above, the air crisp but not too cold. You rub your hands together out of habit.

A beat passes before Seungcheol exhales through his nose and, without a word, reaches out.

His hand brushes yours, just barely.

You think it might be an accident until he does it again.

This time, he doesn’t move away.

And neither do you.

The apartment is quiet when you step inside, the familiar space wrapping around you like a well-worn blanket. You toe off your shoes, set your bag down, and exhale, as if the night still clings to your skin. The soft hum of the refrigerator is the only sound filling the air, but your mind is anything but quiet.

You wander into the kitchen on autopilot, reaching for a glass, but your fingers hesitate over the cabinet handle. The thought slips in, uninvited.

What if he already knows?

The question lingers, settling into the corners of your mind like an echo. You shake your head as if that alone could shove it away, but it doesn’t work.

Maybe it’s the way he laughed tonight—soft, genuine, like the sound itself belonged to you. Or the way he leaned in closer, just enough that his warmth almost touched you. Maybe it’s nothing at all, just the way he exists around you—familiar, steady, yet suddenly… different.

You close your eyes for a moment, trying to chase the feeling away, but it’s stubborn. Because now that you’ve noticed it, you can’t unsee it. Every teasing remark, every lingering glance, every small, meaningless moment—it’s all been leading to this.

And the worst part?

You don’t even know when it started.

You sink onto the couch, pressing the cool glass against your palm, grounding yourself. You try to convince yourself it’s nothing. You’ve always been close. He’s always been there.

But tonight, when his hand brushed yours and he didn’t pull away… when he said goodnight like he meant something else…

Your heart had stuttered.

You bite your lip, staring at the ceiling, willing your heartbeat to settle.

...What if he already knows?

//

The studio is quiet except for the soft hum of the equipment. The city lights flicker through the window, casting faint shadows against the booth. You scroll through the messages, eyes landing on a familiar name.

Cherry.

“I tried everything you said—gave them a letter, took them out, spent so much time together. And honestly? I swear they like me too. But… nothing. What do I do?"

You let out a breath, tapping your fingers lightly against the desk.

"Okay, first of all—don’t give up. I know it’s frustrating when someone doesn’t read between the lines, but sometimes, people need things to be said plainly. No metaphors, no subtlety. Just… real words."

You lean back slightly, eyes flickering toward the dim window of the booth, where the city blurs in the distance.

"Because here’s the thing—what if they do feel the same way? What if they’re just as scared as you are? Wouldn’t you rather know than spend your days wondering?"

The words come easily, almost too easily, and for a split second, you wonder if you’re really just talking to Cherry anymore.

You exhale and push forward.

"So here’s my advice, Cherry. Tell them. No hints, no half-confessions. Just look them in the eyes and say, ‘I like you.’ And if they don’t feel the same? At least you’ll know. At least you won’t have to live with ‘what if.’"

Your hand hovers over the controls for a moment longer than necessary before finally pressing the next song cue.

The melody flows through the studio, soft and steady. And yet, your heart is thudding slightly faster than it should.

The night air is cool against your skin as you step out of the building, the faint hum of the city filling the quiet. Work is done for the day, your coworkers already heading their separate ways after a few lingering goodbyes.

You stretch your arms slightly, exhaling as you adjust the strap of your bag—only to freeze mid-motion.

He’s there.

Standing just outside the entrance, hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket—except for one, which lingers behind his back, hiding something.

Your heart stirs, something instinctive. “Seungcheol?”

His lips twitch in a small, almost nervous smile. “Hey.”

“You’re waiting for me?” You shift your bag on your shoulder, stepping toward him.

“Yeah.” A soft exhale. “I had to.”

You tilt your head slightly. “Why?”

Seungcheol hesitates, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Then, with a slow exhale, he pulls his hand from behind his back—revealing a bouquet of flowers, delicate and vibrant under the streetlights.

Your breath catches.

Your fingers brush against his as you take it, the warmth of his skin seeping into yours.

“Seungcheol…” Your voice is softer now, unsure. The gesture feels too deliberate, too thoughtful. It makes your heart ache in a way you don’t fully understand.

He watches you for a second before exhaling, running a hand through his hair. “I should’ve said this sooner. A long time ago, actually.” His voice drops slightly. “I think—no, I know—I’ve liked you for a while now.”

Your breath catches.

He holds it out to you, a faint chuckle escaping his lips. “I know it’s kind of cheesy, but... I saw this and thought of you.”

Your fingers brush against his as you take it, the warmth of his skin seeping into yours.

“Seungcheol…” Your voice is softer now, unsure. The gesture feels too deliberate, too thoughtful. It makes your heart ache in a way you don’t fully understand.

He watches you for a second before exhaling, running a hand through his hair. “I should’ve said this sooner. A long time ago, actually.” His voice drops slightly. “I think—no, I know—I’ve liked you for a while now.”

The world feels like it slows down.

His eyes flicker with something—uncertainty, vulnerability, an honesty so raw it makes your chest tighten.

“I tried not to,” he continues, voice steadier now. “I thought maybe it would pass, that maybe we were just friends and I was misreading things. But then you started showing up in my thoughts at the most random times. I’d hear a song and think of you. I’d pass a café and wonder if you’d like their coffee. And no matter how much I tried to ignore it… it was always you.”

Your fingers tighten around the flower.

“So I’m done pretending.” His voice is quiet but firm. “I like you. I’ve liked you for a long time.”

You swallow, fingers tightening around the flower as your heart stumbles over itself. The weight of his words settles over you—not heavy, not suffocating, but something warm, something undeniable.

For a long moment, you don’t speak. You don’t know if you can.

Seungcheol watches you carefully, his usual confidence laced with something softer, something uncertain. You can tell he’s waiting, bracing himself for whatever comes next.

So you inhale slowly, steadying yourself.

“You—” Your voice falters slightly before you clear your throat. “You’ve liked me for a long time?”

He nods, lips curving into a self-deprecating smile. “Yeah.” A beat. “I thought you knew.”

Your breath catches.

Did you?

You think back—to the lingering glances, the easy laughter, the way he’s always been there, steady and constant. The way he looks at you when he thinks you don’t notice. The way your heart has been shifting, your feelings unraveling into something you weren’t ready to name.

“I…” You pause, lips parting, your heart beating so fast it’s dizzying. And then you laugh, a little breathless, shaking your head. “God, I feel so stupid.”

Seungcheol blinks, caught off guard. “Huh?”

You meet his eyes, and this time, there’s no doubt, no hesitation.

“I like you too, you idiot.”

For a second, everything is still.

Then Seungcheol lets out a sharp breath—a laugh, almost disbelieving—and suddenly, that teasing smile you know so well is back, but there’s something else in his expression now. Something real. Something unshakable.

“Yeah?” His voice is quieter, laced with something warm.

You nod, lips pressing together. “Yeah.”

And then, he pulls you in—his hand resting at the back of your head, fingers threading into your hair.

His lips press against yours, gentle at first, then firmer, like he’s been holding this in for too long. His other hand stays over yours, the bouquet still between you, petals brushing against your skin.

The city buzzes in the background, but all you can hear is the quiet rush of your own heartbeat. And in that moment, with his warmth, his touch, his everything—

It just feels right.

You pull away just enough to look at him, breathless, your forehead still resting against his. His hands remain on your waist, warm and grounding, as if neither of you wants to let go just yet.

And honestly? You don’t think you ever want to.

A soft laugh escapes you, light and airy. “You know… a listener of mine also loves their best friend,” you murmur, tilting your head slightly. “They tried everything—subtle hints, letters, taking them out—but their best friend was too dense to get it.”

Seungcheol chuckles, his thumb brushing over your wrist. “Sounds familiar.”

“Right?” You sigh dramatically. “So, I told them to just confess. No hints, no half-confessions, just… real words.”

He hums, nodding thoughtfully. “Good advice.”

“Yeah,” you grin, looking up at him. “I wonder how it went for them.”

Seungcheol pauses for a second, then leans in just a little, his voice playful yet quiet. “I’d say pretty well.”

You blink. “Huh?”

His lips quirk up, and suddenly, the way he’s looking at you feels a little too knowing.

And then, before you can process it, he says it—just two words, but they hit you like a ton of bricks.

“I know.”

You stare. “What?”

He grins, tapping a finger against your forehead lightly. “Your listener. Cherry.”

Your brows furrow. The pieces are there, but your brain refuses to connect them. “What about them?”

He hesitates, as if savoring the moment, before finally confessing, “It’s me.”

Silence.

You tilt your head, processing his words. “...You’re Cherry?”

Seungcheol nods, clearly holding back a laugh at your expression.

For a second, you just stand there, staring at him.

Then, with a dramatic gasp, you lightly smack him with the bouquet in your hands.

“Ow—hey!” He feigns pain, stumbling back slightly, but the wide grin on his face betrays him.

“You idiot!” You hit him again, though there’s no real force behind it. “You made me give love advice for your own confession?”

He catches your wrist, still laughing. “Hey, it worked, didn’t it?”

You narrow your eyes at him, but before you can retaliate, he tugs you forward, pulling you into another hug.

This time, it feels different.

Familiar, warm, but with something new. Something neither of you have to question anymore.

You sigh against his shoulder, shaking your head. “I can’t believe you.”

He grins. “Believe it, Baby.”

[classyrbf]

WE'RE JUST FRIENDS! — SHOKO IEIRI

SYNOPSIS...since high school you and shoko have been known to be two peas in a pod, the bestest of friends but only you two know what happens behind closed doors

INFO...shoko x fem!reader, top!shoko, phone sex(?), vibrators, fingering, oral (reader!receiving), hidden relationship, praise, sweet ending, not proofread

OTHER...likes and reblogs are appreciated

Since high school you and Shoko were always known as the two girls around jujutsu high. Dare I say, you were the female version of Gojo and Geto. You and Shoko instantly clicked, always joking and laughing, messing around with Geto and Gojo just for the fun of it. Sometimes, you two would sneak around behind the school to share a cigarette. It wasn’t until both of you graduated that you ended up finding her attractive. She grew her hair out longer, started embracing her role in the jujutsu society and you’d always steal glances from her.

The accidental hand touching as she breezed past you, the little smirks she’d give you across the room when a higher up was yapping her ear off. It was until about 4 years of yearning that both of you finally caught the hint. Well, you caught the hint. Shoko always had a thing for you, at least that’s what you found out when she was knuckles deep in your pussy.

“I’ve always liked you, y/n.” She smiled against your skin, pressing a kiss to your cheek. Her fingers massaged your g-spot as she whispered in your ear. “I was starting to think that maybe you didn’t like me back, you know? But now look at you,” she chuckled, turning her gaze toward your sopping pussy.

One hookup led to two and then another and then another. You and Shoko became absolutely addicted to each other. It got to the point where you couldn’t even make yourself cum if you weren’t thinking about her. Sometimes you’d even call her late hours in the night just to hear her voice, asking her to help you cum.

“You’re so close aren’t you, baby?” She cooed. “You need my help, huh? Yeah?” She smiled to herself as she heard you whimper out her name. “Facetime me, I wanna watch.” In just mere second you were facetiming her while she sat at her desk going over some stupid paper work that she couldn’t care less about right now. “Look at how fucking wet you are because of me. Go ahead and keep rubbing your clit. Get right on the fucking edge.”

Each time, you came so hard just because of her. You wanted more and more each time, wanted to show her how much you needed her right there with you.

Each time you, her, Geto, and Gojo hung out, it was almost like nothing ever happened. The boys never became suspicious of anything because you and Shoko kept treating each other like you have all those past years. Like friends. Talking about the latest fashion, that new movie with the controversial actor, complaining about your job, things that friends would normally talk about.

But later on, you’d drive to the middle of an empty field, too eager to make it back to the house, her mouth around your nipples, licking, sucking and biting while you moaned and whimpered like a bitch in heat. “You looked so pretty in this skirt today.” She smile up at you, pecking your lips.

“I wore it for you,” you muttered between moans.

“Yeah? How thoughtful of you to give me easy access to this pretty pussy.” She sloppily kissed between your breasts and down your stomach while her fingertips pulled at the hem of your panties.

“Sho, what if someone catches us out—mmmph—here!” You sit up on your elbows, breathing heavily as she tosses your panties on the car floor and pushes your skirt up. She completely ignores your question, laying her tongue flat on your clit. “Oh fuckkk.” And suddenly all your worries went away.

Recently, all the jujustu sorcerers and anyone involved in the jujustu society were invited to a party. Of course you had to go and everyone else as well despite you lacking the energy to stand around and talk to people you didn’t know all day.

When you arrived, you hung out with your usual group. People you went to high school with. Geto, Gojo, Nanami, Haibara, Utahime, and of course Shoko. You damn near choked on your drink when she walked through the doors. Her makeup looked like it prepared by the gods and her dress hugged her figure so good it felt like your eyes were about to pop out of your head if your stared too long.

Shoko could say the same about you, the color you were wearing complimented your skin tone perfectly and gloss that made your lips shine under the light had her wanting to kiss and bite them right then and there. “Hey guys!” She simply greeted.

Hours went by already, boredom plaguing your mind as you watched Geto and Gojo act a fool on the dance floor, drunk out of there minds. Nanami had snuck out early, which you can’t blame him for. Haibara was chatting it up with Utahime in a corner for seemed like an hour now and that only left you and Shoko.

“Having fun?” She leaned towards you, sipping from her glass.

“No. My feet are killing me and this dress is too damn tight.” You shifted in the fabric, gripping your champagne glass tighter. You could feel her eyes rake over your entire body, but dare didn’t turn in her direction.

“Your ass looks great by the way. Maybe I’ll help you get out that dress later tonight?” She raised a brow, waiting for a response.

“Shoko, hush!” You looked around the room to see if anyone had heard which made her laugh.

“Who gives a fuck if anyone hears. Two girls fucking, so what? People need to get with the times.” She shook her head. “They’re missing out.” A sigh left her lips.

“What are you saying?” A smirked tugged at the corner of your lips as you leaned against the bar.

“I’m saying, you’re great in bed, hot stuff. We’ve been having sex for what…? 2 years now?” She reached into her clutch, pulling out a cigarette and a lighter. “Wanna smoke?” She nodded her head in the direction of the balcony.

“Fuck it.” You two both walked outside, the music playing over the speakers began fading, replaced with the annoying sounds of crickets and the occasional owl hooting somewhere in the trees. She lit the cigarette, taking the first drag before handing it over to you.

“So how long are we gonna keep up this ‘just friends’ act, huh?” She asked, watching you blow out the excess smoke. “We’re nearly together every day, fucking every week, if not every day.” She grabs the cigarette from between your fingers.

“Are you saying you wanna date me, Ieri Shoko?” You tease, smiling at her. “The Ieiri Shoko wants to date someone? I thought you didn’t like labels?”

“Oh fuck off,” she laughed, waving her hand at you. “Yeah, yeah, I said what I said, but can a girl not change her mind?” She turned to look at you, her eyes boring into yours as she put out the cigarette, tossing it. You looked away nervously, smiling down at the floor. “How about we say fuck this party and go back to mine, huh? Maybe it’ll help you think of an answer.”

As soon as you and Shoko made it to her apartment, you couldn’t keep your hands off each other. She messily kissed you, hastily pulling down the straps of your dress while kicking her heels off and tossing her clutch to the floor. “I want you so fucking bad, all of the time,” she said between kisses.

Within minutes you were on her bed, sitting between her legs as she had a vibrator pressed to your pussy, her other hand twisting and pulling at your hard nipples. “Fuckkk, Shoko!” You gasped, legs twitching as the waves of pleasure shooting through your body. “I’m gonna fucking cum!” You moan.

She rubbed the vibrator up and down your clit, massaging it into your poor, sensitive pussy. “Getting desperate, baby?” She craned her neck down, her lips connecting with yours, kissing you with such fervor. You grinded your hips into the vibrator, moaning into her mouth as you felt your orgasm approaching quickly. She pulled away from the kiss, spit connecting to both of your lips as she stared into your eyes with such lust and desire. “You cumming? Yeah? Yeah, there you go let it out. Yes!” She smiled, lifting her head to watch how your body writhed above her and your heavenly moans bounced off the walls of her bedroom.

She turned off the vibrator, tossing it to the side. Her fingers grazed over your pussy, tapping it lightly, hearing your wetness as you begged to be fucked. “God, you’re so fucking beautiful.” She kissed down your neck, teasing your entrance with her fingers, pushing them in and out slowly.

“You’re such a fucking tease,” you breathy chuckle.

“Oh, yeah? I can show you a tease.” She began reaching into her beside drawer.

“No, no! I was kidding!” You laugh, pulling her arm back. “Come here.” You gather strength to sit upright, facing towards her. Her cheeks are tinted pink and her skin was glowing under the light. “I think you’re beautiful too.” You cup her face in your hands.

“Getting all sappy on me now?” She pulled you onto her lap so you were straddling her.

“Shut up.” You roll your eyes, smiling as you leaned into the kiss. This time it wasn’t rushed or sloppy. You felt every moment, every movement, and every thought. Shoko deepened the kiss, pulling you closer against her chest, hugging you tighter. Your tongues moved against each other slowly, biting and sucking on her bottom lip before pulling away. “I like doing this with you.”

“Yeah?” She asked, you nod in return. “Does that mean what I think it means?” She dragged her index finger along your jaw.

“If we’re talking about the same thing, then yes—mmph!” She kissed you again with so much force, your back hit the plush comforter beneath you.

“I’m even more turned on knowing you’re mine now. Fuck me,” she said in disbelief.

“Well who said we had to stop?” You bite your lip, sitting up on your elbows. Shoko stared at you for few seconds and without saying a word, her hands gravitated to your thighs, spreading them apart, wasting zero time in putting her face in your pussy. A small gasp escapes your throat when she gently kisses your clit, the tip of her tongue rolling it in circles. “God, Sho!” You fall back on the bed, stuck in the blissful headspace.

The flat of her tongue works its way through your soppy folds, licking up your juices and tasting them on her tongue. She watches the way your face contorts in pleasure, your hands reaching up to play with your tits, pulling at your taut nipples. She sucks on your clit for little, earning a high pitched moan from you, smirking at your reaction. She knows how sensitive it still must be.

“Pussy tastes so good, baby. Mmm,” she moans, slurping on your clit and your folds, spitting directly onto your cunt before licking it back up again.

“Yes, yes, just like that!” You nod, biting down on your lip as you watch the way she eats your pussy like a pro. “Feels so fucking good.” Your toes curl as you hook your hands under your legs, pulling them back farther. “Yes, fuck!” Your eyes roll back when she pulls back the hood your clit, exposing it which made all the more difference.

“Play with those pretty tits for me, baby.” She lifts her head to catch her breath, her lips and chin coated in your slick. She looks so fucking good it makes you even more wet. You reach your hand up once more, cupping your breast and pulling at your nipple while she watches with a smile. “Good girl.” He her hot tongue swirls around your swollen clit once more, messily eating your pussy cause that’s how she knows you like it.

“I’m so close, baby, right fucking there, Sho.” Your jaw drops open, your hand finding home in her hair, pushing her face in deeper. “Shit, shit! Yes, I’m so fucking close!” You gasp, rutting your hips against her face like a bitch in heat. Shoko hums in amusement, looking up at you, making direct eye contact, wanting to watch you cum on her tongue. “I’m cumming! I’m cumming!” Your legs shake uncontrollably, grabbing a fistful of her hair tighter as you come undone. Your back into the mattress, still coming down from your orgasm. “Oh fuck,” you breathe.

Shoko finally lifts her head, pleased with herself, the biggest smile on her face. “You still alive, hot stuff?” She hovers over you.

“Barely.” You murmur, looking at her through your hazy state. “How do you always make me cum that hard?” You groaned, chest heaving up and down.

“Um, I have my ways.” She jokes, falling beside you. She softly kisses your shoulder. “Need some water or something?” She asks softly.

“Not right now. I can’t even think straight.” You flip over, facing her.

“I made you cum so hard I rewired your brain? That’s new.” She said with a hint of sarcasm. You playfully shoved her shoulder. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” She pulled you in close to her. “So does this mean—”

“That we get to tell Geto and Gojo. Yes. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were also dating each other.” You furrowed your brows at the thought of it.

“You’re oddly right. Gojo was damn near twerking on Geto earlier.” Shoko stared up at the ceiling, running her fingers over your skin.

“Wait, really?!” You asked with sudden surprise.

“You didn’t see? Geto got real close behind Gojo. One inch more and boom! Contact.” Shoko nodded, trying to hold in her laugh.

You couldn’t help but burst into laughter at the thought of Gojo twerking especially on Geto. “Oh my gosh! Just imagine Gojo throwing it back for Geto!” You cackled, Shoko laughing in return.

“Oh no! Do not put that image in my mind!” She cringed, clenching her eyes shut.

“Maybe Geto slips him a twenty for a lap dance. You never know,” you roll over laughing, barely able to breathe.

“Oh my goodness! Shut up!” Shoko covers her mouth, pushing you away from her. “Stop! I can’t!”

“Okay, okay,” you breathe heavily, scooting closer to her again. “I’ll stop.” You rest your head on her shoulder again.

She kisses the top of your head. “I love this. I’ll never get tired of it. The laughs, the sex, your warmth, your smile. You.”You sit up to look at her with a complex expression. “What?”

“Since when did you get all poetic with your words? I guess the sex must’ve rewired your brain too—” Shoko rolls her eyes at your words, covering your mouth with her hand.

“I try to be all lovey dovey and this is what I get? Sickening.”

[sistertotheknowitall]

Danny is Some Guy with a not so secret admirer.

Part four? Post #four? I don’t know, none of these are exactly in order. Post one, post two, post three.

——

By the time Tim opened the door, Danny had his coffee made and handed to Mia at the register. He resolutely ignored her smug face and went back to making the other orders.

Tim had been a regular long before Danny had started at the coffee shop but it was three days into Danny’s third week when Tim had stumbled in at eight a.m. and did a double take upon seeing Danny. A very obvious double take followed by intense staring before Mia had cleared her throat. The blush that lit up Tim’s face was only rivaled by the one on Danny’s.

He had never had anyone openly stare at him before.

Mia had been insufferable ever since.

It also didn’t help that shortly after their first meeting Tim had started taking his breaks at the little coffee shop. It’s been three weeks, nearly a month and Wayne Enterprise’s CEO went from a bi-weekly regular to an everyday one. (Danny wondered if he should be concerned for the man’s caffeine intake but he only had the one cup every time so probably not.)

Originally, Danny had no plans to talk to Tim. It seemed obvious the guy had a crush on Danny if the constant looks over his laptop were anything to go by and Danny didn’t want to encourage it. Danny barely had time to make new friends let alone start a relationship.

There was also the added problem of what was quickly becoming his bat stalkers. How do you explain to someone that you were being watched by Gotham’s vigilante’s for no reason? (Or worse because he had made a poorly timed sleep-deprived comment.) Danny didn’t think you could without seeming suspicious.

Incidentally though, Danny’s plan went out the window when on a slow afternoon as he was cleaning tables and passed behind Tim. Once he saw the article the other man was reading he snorted.

Bruce Wayne and The Batman? Could This Be A New Romance For Gothams Most Beloved Billionaire?

It was one of those gossip rags that printed things like: Elvis: alive and well and Superman: a mild mannered farm boy? It was all nonsense.

Danny asked Tim why he bothered with the site and Tim responded that he found it amusing to read and that his family had a group chat where they sent the articles to each other.

“Okay. But Batman? Really? Your dad could do so much better.”

“You don’t like Batman?” Tim asked. Danny had slid into the chair next to him and shrugged. “I respect what he does but for as intimidating as he is, he also seems a little silly.”

Tim had given him an incredulous look and Danny hadn’t given him time to ask for an explanation, “and his kids can be just as rude. Like that flying monkey one.” Tim choked on air and Danny politely waited for him to calm down. “Kids? Wait - flying monkey one? Which one -?”

“The one always doing back flips with the blue bird symbol. He’s also a dick that gives hypocritical lectures about fighting.” Danny wouldn’t say he hated the guy but he wasn’t sure how many more lectures he could endure before going ghost and fighting him.

Tim had turned to Danny completely and was watching him with a look of disbelief, “you mean Nightwing?”

“Is that his name? Imma call him Dickwing.”

Tim had started choking again, this time Danny patted his back hoping to help. Yet it was all for not once he kept talking, “I think I’ve only had positive interactions with the one who looks like a walking red flag.”

“Red flag? Do you men hood-?”

“No, although he is definitely a red flag, I mean the other Red one. I’m sorry, I don’t know all these peoples names yet.”

“Danny!” Mia called.

Danny stood and patted Tim, who looked a little shell-shocked, on the shoulder. “Well work calls, see you later Mr. Drake-Wayne.” As he walked away he heard Tim mutter “it’s just Tim.”

(Tim for his part, placed his head in his hands and thought, well at least I have his name now.)

After that first interaction Tim stopped playing the lurker and started to actually talk to Danny and vise versa. Danny never asked if he still had a crush on him, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

Unfortunately, their growing friendship had only encoraged Mia as she happily sang “your boyfriend’s here!”

Danny, very maturely, did not stick his tongue out at her. He did however flip her off under the counter like an adult.

[giannaln4]

GIANNA'S KINKTOBER '24 SEASON

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ⇢ ˗ˏˋ Kinktober day thirdteen.

Ass or Tits? (1.4k words)

summary: Who would’ve thought? Lando Norris is a tits guy.

warnings: NSFW, +18, smut, MDNI, unprotected sex.

You wouldn’t say it was a known fact that Lando was an ass guy, but some people knew this about him for some reason. That’s also what you thought when you first started dating, or the first few times you had sex, he would always pay special attention to your ass. 

That was until one hot summer day you were wearing a dress that left very little to the imagination, resting so low on your cleavage that it nearly showed everything you had. You didn’t think it was doing your boobs a favour, but you had to admit they looked great, and your boyfriend agreed.

Since you came out of your room that morning wearing that dress, you caught him slightly eying your chest, which led him to be way more interested in your boobs, not only for the rest of the day, but any time he had a chance; nothing too obvious, but you could tell he was constantly thinking about it. You didn’t want to acknowledge it, wanting to save him from embarrassment, but you decided to tease him one day, “Hey, my eyes are up here.”

His eyes widened and his face turned red right away “I wasn’t looking." He said, shaking his head and making you laugh.

But you now knew how much he loved them, since it became a common occurrence that any time you had sex, his hands would constantly land there. Now, instead of grabbing and squeezing your ass, he would give all his attention to your boobs; staring when they bounced on top of him, playing with one as the other one had a mouth wrapped around it; it was anything, really, so from that moment you decided to take it further, not in an evident way but just enough for him to notice. 

It started with tank tops when it was too hot outside, and you would purposefully lean over in front of him or cross your arms to show a little more. At first he didn’t know what you were doing; he was honestly enjoying the view, but as soon as the weather started to change and you were still wearing low-cut shirts and dresses, he started to get suspicious.

He kept it to himself though, not wanting to make an accusation like that until he was completely sure. Until one day his suspicions were confirmed when, while you were cuddling in his hotel room, you pulled him closer to you, making him rest closer to where your chest was.

He smirked and finally said, “I know what you’re doing." He sat up and turned to look at you with accusatory eyes.

“What do you mean?” You replied innocently, shrugging your shoulders and looking at him expectantly.

“You don’t know what I’m talking about?” He asked in a lower voice, weirdly making you get a little excited.

You shook your head and kept your innocent gaze, but you knew exactly where this was going.

“Why don’t you tell me how cold it’s outside?" Lando pulled you up and guided your body to his lap, hands caressing your thighs once you were comfortably sitting on him. “Mhm?” He hummed when he got no response.

You looked out of the window and were met with a cloudy sky. The sun was long gone, and the dark day threatened with rain instead. “It looks warm to me.” 

“Really? Cause I think it’s too cold for you to be wearing these tiny dresses, and yet here you  are." His hands were running up and down your body, squeezing your sides every now and then. “Wanna tell me why?”

“I’m not cold,” you responded, not giving in. His smirk grew bigger at the game you were playing. It was only a matter of time until he caught up to your intentions. Usually, you would be wearing many layers at the smallest hint of a cold day, which hasn’t been the case since your little discovery.

He looked down at your breasts and quickly looked back at you. “So these have nothing to do with your outfit choices?” You shook your head once again, this time biting your lip as you waited for him to do something.

“Why? Are you getting distracted?” 

“Do you want me to? Is that what you have been trying to do all this time?” He questioned, his hands travelling closer and closer to your heat. “Is this what you want?”

You let out a shaky breath, grabbing a handful of his shirt. He repeated the question, and this time, you were quick to nod, growing a little desperate.

“Turn around,” he demanded. You happily complied, quickly getting up from his lap and collapsing back on it, with your back now pressing against his strong chest, giving him full access to your boobs. “Poor baby, putting up with the cold weather just to show off your boobs.”

He was whispering next to your ear, his hands now finding your desperate breasts. He slowly started to take off your dress, your hot skin making him hard by the second. You allowed him to undress you and slightly started to move your hips, creating a little friction, but he made you stop.

“Not so fast." He was taking his time, kissing your shoulder while one of his hands played with your boobs and the other with your clothed clit. At this point, you were a whimpering mess, but God, you needed more, so when Lando finally lifted you up a little to pull down his own pants and underwear, you let out an excited but desperate moan.

He didn’t even bother to get rid of your panties, just moving them to the side enough to slide his cock into you. You both let out a loud moan, not even considering keeping it down so the people next to your room wouldn’t hear you.

You quickly set the perfect pace; you were sinking into him while he grabbed both of your boobs, slightly squeezing them as his fingers played with your nipples from time to time, and you loved it. “Is this what you wanted?” He asked, his voice low and raspy from the pleasure he was feeling, and you frantically nodded.

One of your hands was holding onto his forearm for dear life as your other one travelled down your body to rub soft circles on your clit; you knew you wouldn’t last long, suddenly feeling hyperaware of where his hands were resting.

You tried to chase your orgasm by increasing the pace, but your legs were getting so tired that you were struggling. He noticed this, so he decided to help you; his hips stated thrusting up in you to meet you half way as his hands used his hold on your boobs to guide your movements, the added pressure making you moan.

“I didn’t know your boobs enjoyed the attention this much, my love. Do you like it when I hold you like this?” He asked, biting your shoulder. You nodded in response, your moans becoming louder the closer you got. “Come on, sweetheart. I know you are close.”

Your bouncing became sloppier as you felt your orgasm coming, walls squeezing him with every snap of your skin. “I’m- so close.” You mumbled, making him thrust into you harder.

It only took a flicker of your nipple to push you over the edge, your body shaking in pleasure against him as he chased his own orgasm. Both your hands were now holding onto him as your head fell on his shoulder, feeling his cock hit your g-spot over and over again; it felt like too much.

After a few more thrusts, you could feel the hot liquid spill inside your pussy, his head falling back in pure ecstasy as his movements came to a stop.

Lando collapsed back on the bed, pulling you with him so you relaxed against his chest. Both of you stayed there trying to catch your breath, his now softening cock still buried in you as his hands carresed your naked torso.

“Who would’ve thought? Lando Norris is a tits guy.” You whispered after a few minutes of silence.

He couldn’t contain his laugh, your words making him go back to get a hold of your boobs again. “Can’t help it, baby. Have you seen these?” He said as he gave them a squeeze, your lips setting into a subtle smirk. “Now, why don’t you ride me so I can get a full view of your pretty tits? Mhm?”

↺ back to navigation — Kinktober masterlist

[reignpage]

Frat Boy!Gojo

Madri Lager: drunk words

Contents: cursing, just a little conversation between them to set the mood and provide a backdrop for the next fic, not proofread

No fucking way. 

There’s just no fucking way. 

“Why the hell are you here?” You hiss. 

Gojo fucking Satoru strolled into your lecture hall, smug grin on his fuck ugly face, arms folded behind his head and swinging his legs like a maniac. From the doors at the front, he immediately spotted you all the way at the back, sat by your lonesome and you could see his shit-eating grin widen. The whites of his teeth blind you almost as much as his impossibly white hair.

Then, the freak had the audacity to climb the stairs, ignoring the whispering and the pointing, and sat next to you. Well, a seat down because you refused to move your bag, even fought with him a little when he tried to lift it. 

He shrugs, slinging an arm around the back of the chair between you, fingertips way too close to your shoulder, and black sunglasses hanging low on his nose bridge. “Was feeling bored so here I am.”

Counting to ten, you tried to put on a patient voice, like you’re berating a child, which you pretty much are, and you grit out, “Bored people take up hobbies. Bored people do things like puzzles and cooking and knitting. Bored people don’t crash lectures and bother other people.”

“I love when you lecture me on common knowledge, wifey. It really warms my heart.” To emphasise his stupid point, he presses a hand to his chest and fans his face with the other. “You’re just so smart.”

You slap his hand away when he tries to boop your nose. People are staring, turning their heads like owls as they strained to listen to your conversations. Some people are taking pictures, no doubt sending it to The Bulletin or whatever, because people have nothing better to do than gossip. You hate this attention; the pointing and whispering because of your appearance you’ve learnt to tolerate, but this? 

This is just irritating on a different level.

At least once a day, a cheerful stranger comes up to you and asks in bewilderment if you’re Gojo’s fiancee. In fact, they ask if you’re really, actually the future wife of Gojo Satoru like he’s some mythical being and you’re a frumpy little worm. Fuck them. And fuck him. 

“Go away, Gojo,” you roll your eyes, typing as much of the lecturer’s notes as you can, a little distracted by the peering eyes around you and the ones running over your clothes . 

He sighs and lifts the lace from your dress, rounding the neckline. You feel it tickle your neck, and you fight the urge to shudder. In disgust. With a forced melodramatic tone, he complains, “I’m bored. Entertain me.”

“Are you fucking twelve? Go watch a movie like a normal person.”

“Movies are boring,” he retorts as if it’s fact. 

You roll your eyes. “And what? I’m so much more interesting?” 

What a stupid question. You really shouldn’t have asked that because the serious expression on his face as he lifts one shoulder in a lazy shrug makes you blush. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. 

“Did you meet Suguru on the course or was he your piercer first?”

Still typing, you throw him a side glance, feeling suspicious of the sudden change in conversation. But it’s welcomed. “We met on the course. First year. We were in the same class. He’s a good guy.”

Gojo huffs as if he didn’t like your answer. 

The piercer’s actually a decent person; he was friendly, smart, and kind. He made long, boring classes feel shorter with his interesting insights and opinions, and he had such a great way of expressing them — he was the most eloquent male you’ve ever met. However, there was always something off about him, like an inner turmoil that neither you nor he could ever quite understand. 

It was when he absentmindedly said he was thinking of dropping out that you felt you knew him a little better. You both shared a long talk at the back of the Life Sciences building where your little stroll took you, him smoking and you listening to his mutterings. He spoke of this feeling of being out of place, which you understood better than anyone else, and how the traditional path didn’t suit him. He disappeared for a while, a couple months, and you thought your response might have spooked him. After all, no one ever really comes to you for advice. But when he reached out to offer you a free piercing as his first ever client at his newly opened studio, you realised maybe you are capable of dropping an odd pearl here and there. 

“Well, Suguru’s my bestie, so back off,” Gojo pouts.

From your peripheral, you see him eye the big lecture hall and you don’t really know what he’s thinking. It’s an odd realisation to think that Geto, the guy you’ve always kind of admired, is actually friends with this loser – the suggestion that there’s a redeeming quality to the frat guy is one that doesn’t suit you. 

Most times he’s easy to read; he wants fun and excitement and thrill. He does whatever’s convenient or interesting, a totally impulsive guy. But there are rare moments, emphasis on rare, where you think there might be something more going on in that huge head of his. Maybe there’s something deeper to him. A maturity and wisdom he’s yet to show. 

“Fuck, marry or kill,” he lifts three fingers, “Marx, Satre or Aristotle.”

Yeah, unlikely. 

“Gojo, seriously, go away,” you sigh, exasperated. Just five minutes with the guy and you’re already drained. And somehow, you’re expected to live a lifetime with the weirdo?

Satan strike you down. 

“Me personally, Satre’s cute but something about big, bushy beards really gets me going. So, it’ll have to be: kill Aristotle, no offence dude, fuck Satre, and marry Marx.”

Two girls in the row in front of you giggle. Your lips turn down in repulsion. 

“I’m not sure Marx would like either of us, Gojo,” you give him a pointed look. 

He laughs. It’s loud and sudden and he has to say sorry to the entire lecture when it echoes around the hall. Some people laugh at him, or with him, and the lecturer can only shake his head and carry on. This lecturer is strict and merciless when it comes to interruptions, but of course he doesn’t say a thing against the interloper. How could he when there’s a huge placard over the double doors of this building titled ‘From the Loving Hearts of The Gojo Charitable Foundation’?

A couple minutes pass in relative silence, just the tapping of fingers against keyboards and the droning of the professor filling the space, and you think maybe he’s fallen asleep or maybe he’s so bored that he’s actually thinking of leaving. 

Of course, neither of those things happen because the universe hates you. 

Gojo pokes your side with a pen. You writhe with a blush. 

“Oh, ticklish, are we? Very interesting.” He wiggles his brows like an idiot, and you fight the urge to land a punch there. “Our wedding night’s gonna be fun.”

“We’re not going to have one if you had it your way, remember?”

Leaning back in his seat, he taps the pen —where the hell did even get that? He wasn’t carrying a bag— against his chin, considering his words carefully. He shrugs again. “Well, seeing as everyone’s so set on it, I’ve decided to, you could say, open myself to the idea.”

You try to quell the spark of hope there, that maybe your family could be saved, that you’ll be saved. It’s not wise to let that spark fester into something more. 

Gojo’s impulsive. Fact. 

Gojo’s a thrill-seeker. Fact. 

Gojo is an unserious guy set in his bachelor ways. He cannot be relied upon. He cannot be trusted to keep his word.

All facts. 

It’s easy for him to be able to have the option to be ‘open’ to an idea, whereas it’s thrusted upon you without much say. He can wake up and make decisions solely based on his urges, but you have to be mindful of the family’s reputation, your father’s bad habits, your mother’s social conservative ways, and the fact that this is all your fault. 

“Gojo,” you turn, fixing him with a solemn expression, “don’t do that. Don’t lead me on. I may not want to marry you, but I do want to marry. I must. It’s important to me, so please don’t wave it around like it’s some pretty flag.”

There must be something in your eyes, a graveness or a sombre quality that makes his smile disappear. His brows furrow like he’s trying to understand, trying to piece things together but you’re turning away before he could see. 

Clearing his throat, he pokes you again. “Alright. How about this?”

You throw him a doubtful look, worried about what dumbassery is going to leave his mouth. 

“Go on a date with me.”

“No.”

“Hey! You said that way too quickly.”

Resuming your typing, you’re already trying to drown him out, focused on the history of pragmatic ethics instead of his humoured tone. He’s suggesting something ridiculous again. As if you’d go on a date with him. Him. The guy who’s been getting in the way, the one who’s been making your life difficult and family dinners awkward, and the one you certainly cannot trust to not set up some trap to humiliate you like in the movies. 

“I’m being serious. Let’s go on a date.” Seeing you open your mouth to argue back, he hurriedly adds, “This isn’t fair on me either, y’know? I’m supposed to marry a stranger, one who wears all black and looks like she’d haunt me — not a bad thing, I’m actually kinda into it, question mark? �� but my point is, we don’t really know each other. So why don’t we go on a date? It’s a pretty brilliant idea, if I do say so myself.”

Biting the inside of your cheek, you mull it over. Sure, it makes sense, it would be good to get to know the freak you’re marrying or supposed to marry. This is how it should have been in the first place. Plus, your mother would certainly approve; she’d think this is a golden opportunity to secure him, to make him fall for you or whatever Mrs. Bennet thing she’s thinking of. 

However, as good as that idea is, you can’t just eagerly agree; there’s no guarantee this isn’t a trap. 

“You’re thinking this is a trap, aren’t you?” Your eyes meet his. He’s grinning ear to ear like he’s proud he guessed correctly. “Why don’t you plan the date, then? Set the time and place, that way there’s no way I could have rigged the environment with explosives or something.”

“No pig blood?”

Gojo smiles even brighter, and you have to squint to prevent losing your vision permanently. 

“No pig blood.”

[meleeyz]

┈﹒ ꒰ 𝗠𝗘𝗧𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗘𝗧𝗔𝗟𝗦 ꒱

ekko 𝒙 fem!reader

୨୧ English is not my first language, so I regret in advance if something reads weird or is misspelled

୨୧ Thank you so much for the support on the first oneshot, this is mostly fluff because I have to heal the wounds in my heart that arc two left behind.

୨୧ I'm still learning how to use masterlists and stuff (😿) but you can send me requests if you want! For now I'm only going to write about Ekko (or until I learn how to use tumblr) then I'll post the list of characters I could write for.

୨୧ Inspired by some headcanons of @blllllllllllllllllllue

₊˚ ✧ ‿︵‿୨୧‿︵‿ ✧ ₊˚

The Firelights’ hideout always felt alive, even in its quietest moments, but your little corner was a chaos. It was where you crafted, creating not just the masks that symbolized your rebellion but tiny pieces of identity for your comrades.

"Something like this?" you asked, holding up a rough sketch for the recruit seated across from you. He was new to the team and still shy around most people, but with you, he seemed to relax, likely due to your welcoming demeanor.

“Yeah, that’s cool,” he said, leaning in to inspect it. "But, uh, could you make the eyes a little bigger? I want it to look more… intense."

“Intense. Got it.” You jotted down the adjustment in the margins, smiling as you worked. “Anything else?”

The recruit hesitated for a moment before glancing at you sheepishly. “So, uh, are you Ekko’s girl? Like… his girlfriend?”

The question caught you so off guard that the pencil slipped from your fingers. Heat bloomed in your cheeks, and you scrambled to compose yourself.

“Oh! Uh, yeah. I mean—yes. I am.”

The recruit grinned.

“Thought so. He talks about you all the time.”

Your heart did a funny little flip, equal parts warmth and embarrassment.

“He does?”

“Yeah. Like, a lot. You’d think you hung the moon or something”

The boy’s teasing tone made you flush deeper. Before you could decide whether to be mortified or flattered, another voice broke through.

“Hey! Ekko’s looking for you!” A little boy poked his head in the door, oblivious to the conversation he was interrupting. “Said it’s important.”

“Oh, okay. Thanks.” You turned back to the recruit, already rising to your feet. “I’ve got everything I need for your mask. I’ll start on it soon.”

“Take your time,” he replied, giving you a knowing look as you walked out.

He nodded, and with a small wave, you left the workshop and made your way to Ekko’s space.

The closer you got to Ekko’s workshop, the quieter the base became, the energy from the rest of the Firelights retreating into the distance. You pushed the door open cautiously, only to find the room eerily calm. The usual clatter of tools and the whir of machinery were absent.

When you stepped inside the workshop, the quiet was almost eerie. Tools and half-built gadgets lay scattered across Ekko’s workbench, but there was no sign of him.

“Ekko?” you called, glancing around.

No answer.

A small knot of worry tightened in your chest.

“If this is a joke, it’s not funny—”

Before you could finish, arms wrapped around you from behind, lifting you off the ground. You let out a startled yelp as you were spun around, your voice mixing with laughter that bubbled up despite yourself.

“Ekko!” you cried, trying to sound indignant, but failing miserably as he set you down, his grin impossibly wide. “You scared the life out of me, you jerk!”

“Couldn’t resist,” he admitted, still chuckling. His voice carried that familiar mix of playfulness and warmth that always made your heart skip a beat. He leaned in and planted a quick kiss on your cheek. “You’re cute when you’re mad.”

You swatted at his arm, trying to suppress a smile.

“What did you need me for, anyway? And don’t say it was just to scare me.”

“Relax, Firefly,” he teased, stepping back. “I’ve got something for you. Close your eyes.”

You narrowed your eyes suspiciously.

“If this is another prank—”

“It’s not,” he said quickly, raising his hands in mock surrender. “Promise. Just trust me.”

After a brief hesitation, you sighed and shut your eyes.

“Okay, but if you throw something at me—”

“Shh. No peeking.”

You heard him moving around, the soft clang of metal and the scrape of something being picked up. Your curiosity burned, but you kept your eyes closed, hands fidgeting nervously at your sides.

“Alright,” Ekko said finally. “Open.”

When you did, your breath caught. In his hands was a bouquet of flowers, but not just any flowers—each one was intricately crafted from scrap metal, their petals shaped and welded together with incredible precision. They shimmered faintly in the light, their edges polished to a soft gleam.

“I made these for you,” Ekko said, his voice quieter now, as if he wasn’t sure how you’d react. His smile, though, was radiant, the little gap in his front teeth only adding to its charm. “You like them?”

“Like them?” you echoed, reaching out to take the bouquet. “Ekko, they’re beautiful. You made these?”

He scratched the back of his neck, looking both proud and bashful.

“Yeah. Thought you’d appreciate something… different. Real flowers don’t last long down here”

You turned the bouquet in your hands, marveling at the craftsmanship. Each flower was unique, and the care he’d put into them was evident in every detail. Your chest felt tight with emotion as you looked back at him.

“Why, though? What’s the occasion?”

Ekko’s grin returned, mischievous but endearing.

“The right way to ask my girlfriend out on a date. Tonight.”

Your lips parted in surprise.

“A date?”

“Yeah. Thought it was time we did something just for us. No missions. Just you and me.” He stepped closer, his gaze locked on yours. “So, what do you say?”

A warm, fuzzy silence hung between you, the weight of his words and the sincerity in his eyes tying your tongue. Your gaze flicked to his lips, the same thought clearly mirrored in his mind as he leaned closer.

The moment stretched as the world outside seemed to blur and fade. Just as your lips were about to meet—

“Oh, uh, sorry!”

Both you and Ekko jumped apart as the recruit from earlier barged in, a sheepish look on his face.

“I just—uh—I had another idea for the mask and thought—”

Ekko sighed loudly, his previous grumpiness overtaking his usual charm.

“Seriously?”

“I’ll just—uh—leave” the recruit stammered, already retreating back through the door.

You chuckled softly, brushing a strand of hair behind your ear.

“It’s fine,” you told him. “We can talk about it later.”

You couldn’t help but laugh, the tension melting away as you stepped back.

“Guess we’ll have to finish this later, huh?”

Ekko’s pout was almost comical.

“You owe me, Firefly.”

As you turned to leave, you blew him a playful kiss. Ekko grinned, pretending to catch it in midair and press it to his chest.

“See you later.”

₊˚ ✧ ‿︵‿୨୧‿︵‿ ✧ ₊˚

[lehguru]

THINK YOU NEED SOMEONE YOUNGER + ONE PIECE MEN

they start to realize they might be a little too old for you ft. crocodile, mihawk, smoker, shanks, doflamingo, corazon

info: will do this for other fandoms too i think, angsty on some; not proofread

crocodile never felt insecure, at least when it came to your relationship. after he left impel down and came to look for you, things got a little... weird. he was avoiding you. you knew it wasn't because he didn't want to bring you into his business (he did it more than once), it was something you didn't really understand. before you could even confront him about it, he said out of nowhere one day: "did you... get with anyone while i was away?" he looked at you with a hard stare. "someone... younger?" you almost laughed at his question, but you held yourself back. your arms circled his waist and you rested your chin on his chest. 'i don't know anyone younger that is as attractive as you, sir.' he grinned, holding the back of your head with his hand. "good."

mihawk noticed how you and zoro interacted during his time at the island. he wasn't suspicious that something was happening, he knew you would never cheat on him or break his trust; but... a thought started to spread in his mind like poison. once zoro and perona left, and you two finally managed to carry on with your married life alone, he asked you one day while you drank tea together. "how do you feel about me being... older?" you looked at him with raised eyebrows and 'the only thing that matters to me is you. i fell in love with your personality and the way you treat me, not your age.' he hummed, a deep sound that you know reverberated on his chest. even if it was faint, you could see a soft pink dusting his cheeks.

smoker didn't think about your age gap until he overheard some of the new recruits talking about you two. captain smoker having a younger partner is a little weird isn't it, was what they said. when he was back home and you were resting against his chest, softly playing with the hair on the area, he told you about it. you looked up, your eyes shining, 'old pan makes good food'. the laughter that left his lips was one that he always reserved for you, his most sincere and genuine laugh; he pressed his lips on the top of your head, murmuring praises and love confessions against your hair.

shanks really didn't care about it, not as much as other members of his crew did – with how well they knew their captain, the man would be destroyed if you decided to leave him. 'she might go for a younger guy, when your thing doesn't get up anymore.' they usually voiced their concerns in the form of jokes, so they wouldn't be too harsh on their captain, but it was effective. those comments made him start to realize what you two were – lovers. one day, without telling you, he and the crew left. simply left the island, leaving you behind with only an note written "don't look for me." in a messy manner.

one thing about doflamingo is that he gets whatever he wants whenever he wants. and since the moment he laid eyes on you, you were his. the people that tried to comment on your age gap always "mysteriously" disappeared, even if they were from inside his organization. no one could talk about him and his partner like that. if he ever brought up the topic, it was only to test if you were seeing anyone or wanted someone younger (he knows you don't. he knows everything); your praises towards him and your love always left him pleased – he would give you the same in return.

corazon is frequently insecure about your relationship. he wonders if you really love him, if he's good enough for you, if he's being a good boyfriend, if he missed any important date that he should've remembered – your age gap (made worse by your height gap too) is only another one of those concerns. no matter what you say, he often asks you if you wouldn't want to be with someone younger and with a better family than him. one day, after he asked that for the millionth time, you answered: "we can have a family of our own, rosi. you deserve happiness. you said once i made you happy, so i will stay. the only way you're going to get rid of me is if one of us is gone." he chuckled and smiled widely, as he often did around you and law, hugging you tightly against his body. 'i adore you. with all my heart and soul, i love you.'

2023 © content belongs to lehguru, but the characters used in them belong to their respective creators!!

[figthoughts]

How do u think Dean proposes?

oh bae, lots of thoughts on this,, loverboy!dean is back .ᐟ

okay so call me cliché, but i fully believe dean is a very sentimental guy. i just know he’d be so giddy throughout the whole proposal process. before choosing a ring, i think he’d probably snoop through your jewellery to get an idea of what you like—maybe even going as far as asking your friends what they think you’d like for an engagement ring.

and dean’s definitely getting sam or cas to go with him to the jeweller’s when he’s finally decided. he’d be standing at the glass cabinets in front of the clerk, grinning and rambling about you like a bumbling idiot, clearly so head over heels for his ‘fiancée’ (yeah, he’s already calling you that to people before he’s even proposed).

and when he’s finally picked out your ring, he takes the next few days to plan out the perfect proposal. he knows he doesn’t want to do something over the top or too cheesy.

so he settles on something he knows you’d like. something that just seems so quintessentially you and dean.

dean picks you up in the impala, dressed to impress—but not suspiciously so—and flicks on your favourite love songs from the mixtape you made together a few years ago.

you both hum along, and he taps his hand on the steering wheel as he drives, trying to not let the proud grin show on his face at the fact he got your friends to help you pick out an appropriate outfit and a fresh new set of nails for the occasion. he knows you’ll thank him for that later. dean makes casual small talk, trying to appear as normal as possible, like this was any other regular date.

eventually he pulls the impala up at a familiar place—the place where he asked you to be his girlfriend. dean debated and contemplated between here, the cliff overlooking the lake not far from the bunker, or the little italian restaurant he took you to on your first date. he figured a more private setting would be better suited for his plans.

so as you joke about the sweet memories of this place, dean laughs, hoping you’re not catching on quite yet. you pull out the picnic blanket and lay it across the hood of the impala. you and dean take a seat on top of it and unpack the basket he’d packed for your afternoon picnic. he pulls out the sandwiches he’d sam made and the cherry pie, along with the attempted charcuterie board—keyword ‘attempted’. you compliment it nonetheless, and the efforts he’s gone to, even if the spread looks a little messy. you can tell it’s all been made with love, and that’s what’s important.

as the time with you passes, dean’s chest gets heavier and heavier with anxiety. his eyes flicker over your face and god, it hits him; he’s so in love with you. his heart races as the sun begins to set over the pair of you, colouring you both in warm amber hues. the sun reflects off the lake as the water ripples, and all dean can think is ‘please, let her say yes.’

dean just manages to keep up his nonchalant act, disguising his inner turmoil. he tries to keep everything seemingly lighthearted and normal, despite the doubt and fear plaguing his thoughts. the sun eventually dips down under the horizon, and he smiles at you, “wait here just a sec, baby. i left something in the car.”

he grabs some tealight candles and a piece of paper from the glove compartment and returns back to his place next to you on the hood.

he places the few candles between you, lighting them as you laugh and ask what’s going on, though by this point you’re beginning to put two and two together. dean looks up at you and lets out a nervous huff, plastering a smile on his face to cover the anxiety clenching at his chest.

“let just me just—” he says, fumbling with the paper in his hands. dean meets your gaze and studies you silently for a moment, taking in your beauty and how you seem to be giving him an almost encouraging expression. he nods and begins reading off his paper.

dean reads his scribbled words, his hands shaking as he holds the crumpled note, recounting all the memories you’ve made together and how he yearns to have a lifetime of more with you. he tells you how you’ve bettered him as a man and how he’d be nothing without you. he tells you how important you are to him and how much he strives to be as good and as kind as you one day. he tells you he can’t imagine a world where he’s not by your side.

dean finishes his speech by telling you why he loves you, and it’s not just superficial things. it’s things that make you feel seen and heard; things that only someone like him would notice and internalise. by the end of it, dean’s trying to swallow the lump in his throat that grew when he noticed your teary eyes looking back at him.

he sets down the paper and lets out a breath, trying to steel himself for the question he’s about to ask. he pulls out the ring box and holds it up in front of you in his shaking hands.

“will you marry me?”

A/N: okay so this was meant to be like quick headcanoning points but here’s a story for u LOL this makes sense in my head for dean. i don’t think he’d do anything outrageously over the top, like propose in front of a crowd or anything,, but anyways i hope this was sweet anon!!!

✩ taglist bc yolo: @chevroletdean @fitxgrld @jasvtsc @bluestrd @1-imbroglio @titsout4jackles @faithfulsofi @tortureddarkstar @abellmunsonmovie @legalmente-loca @theoneandonlystonedspiderman420 @manicjk @aileenunfiltered @minettacreekk @winchester-whiskey @emeraldcrs @freyabear @floralscented @cosmopolitan-thedrink @jwritestuff @suhnisideup @spookyysinsanity @kimxwinchester @bleuatlas @deansbbyx @angelicjackles @deansbeer @artemys-ackles @bluemerakis @misatxox @star-yawnznn @ambiguous-avery @starzify @whisperingdaze @deanswidow @psychicnatural @ghostlyaccurate @k-slla

↑ comment to be added!

[yanderedrabbles]

Hi, I love your drabbles. May I ask how would the yanderes react if the reader tries to escape or leave them?

'Til Death Do Us Part - yandere boys when you try and leave them

Yandere! Soldier is high strung and suspicious of everything. It just comes with the job. He isn't cruel, and he doesn't like hurting you, but if you make a run for it he won't hold back. Calloused hand crushing your windpipe as he drags you back, he'll remind you that nowhere in this godforsaken city is safer than with him. If he has to keep your hands tied for a few days, he will. Even if the ropes rub your skin raw. If your promise to behave, maybe he'll kiss it better.

Yandere! Cowboy is careful to always keep an eye on you. He ain't a fool - he knows that he frightens you. He knows you deserve a better man than him. But he's too selfish to let you go. He'll grab you jaw and glare at you with those coyote eyes. Whiskey and cigarettes on his breath as he pulls you up onto your tip toes and let's his lips just hover over yours. "Come hell or judgement, you ain't ever leavin' me. You got that sugar?"

Yandere! Boyfriend does not take it well when you tell him you want to take a break, that you need some space. He looks you dead in the eye and simply says, "No." He's the type to stand in front of the door and demand a detailed list of reasons you want to break up. And if he doesn't agree with them- and he never does - he simply will not accept things are over. If you insist on it and nothing he says can sway you, then you'll find out just how cozy he's made the basement.

Yandere! Cop's stalker persona is the exact thing he'll use to get you back into his arms. He knows the way you think, he knows the addresses of all your friends and family, he can track your bank purchases and card swipes. And on top of that, people are more than willing to talk to a cop about a poor, missing girl. And when he catches you, he'll make sure you're so terrified of your stalker that you'll never leave him, ever again.

Yandere! Gangster is helpless to stop you if you want to go anywhere without him. You're his boss afterall, and you'll put a bullet in his head the second he steps out of line. That doesn't stop him from begging to come with you. He's practically on his knees for you and looking every bit the kicked puppy. "Fine," you sigh, running your hands through his hair and letting your nails scrape against his neck, "But only if you promise to behave."

Yandere! Incubus feels his composure slipping the second you ask the abbot to let you leave for another abbey. He'll grab your arm and struggle to hide his claws, trying to reason with you. You're needed here, he'll remind you, and if the Holy Spirit guided you to this place, who are you to go against it? At night, he'll slip into your bed and trace his claws across your belly. He'll nip at your ear with his sharp, sharp teeth and hiss, "Whetever you go, I will always follow."

Yandere! Desert Bandit is the son of the dunes and sand. He knows every oasis, every well, every hidden mountain path. Even if you could make it out of his arms and past his men, the desert itself will lead him to you. He'll laugh when he finds you and boast to his men that his woman is smarter than them all, to have made it this far on her own. But when night comes, you'll find his grip tighter than ever before.

Yandere! Apocalypse Survivor knows you'll never leave him. The infected are terrifying and the other survivors are even worse. Still, he always keeps a close eye on you when you visit trading settlements - just because you won't leave, it doesn't mean someone else won't try and steal you for themselves.