#I wrote this instead of working on the bake off au and I regret nothing

[firstelevens]

hi zainab!!

taylor swift prompt #15 + sambucky? (bc lord knows i've thought about writing a you belong with me inspired sambucky fic too many times)

15. a smile that could light up this whole town

Reading the room is one of Sam’s greatest skills as a teacher. It’s turned around any number of bad days, resolved countless conflicts, and prevented dozens of failed tests or quizzes.

It’s instinctive enough that when he dismisses his Honors American Literature class right as the bell rings, he’s not remotely surprised when the best student in his class joins the cluster of students around his desk, asking about test corrections and extra credit.

Once he’s sent the rest of them off with the answers they’re looking for, Sam turns to Cindy Moon, who’s fidgeting with the cuffs of her sweater and won’t quite look at him.

“Mr. Wilson, do you think you could write me a pass to stay here during study hall?” she asks, her voice shaking a little. “I know we don’t have anything in the works for philanthropy club, but maybe I could do some planning? Or some research, or something?”

Part of Sam wants to say no, because he had very specific plans for his end-of-the-school-day planning period, and having a student in the room will mean that he has to be in vigilant teacher mode for the next hour and a half instead.

The other part of Sam has not missed the fact that Cindy used to constantly be surrounded by a group of her fellow cheerleaders and an ever-present boyfriend—a senior from the football team, Sam thinks, but not one he’s ever taught—and now she’s always on her own, sitting at the opposite end of the classroom to the group she was inseparable from just two weeks ago.

It has to be worse today of all days: between singing candy grams and carnation deliveries and heart shaped helium balloons everywhere, Valentine’s Day has hit Excelsior Academy hard. He can’t blame her for wanting to escape.

Sam is already reaching for the stack of blank passes before he speaks. “I could use some help organizing the classroom library, if you’re up for it? I had freshmen searching for books to write their reviews on, and they basically destroyed it.”

Cindy agrees, her voice still tremulous, and runs the pass down the hall to Rhodey in the physics lab. She comes back in as Sam is erasing the board, slinging her backpack onto a desk before moving towards the bookshelves that line the back wall of the classroom. 

Sam’s class library is his pride and joy, nearly two hundred books that he painstakingly chose and catalogued over the years. The freshmen were enthusiastic in searching for books, but less so in putting them back. Sam had taught them the last period of the day yesterday, and there had been an English department meeting—useless, but then most meetings were, under John Walker’s tenure as department head—so he only had time to throw them onto the shelf and rush over to the other side of the school.

Clearly, Cindy is aware of this on some level, because when he looks back at her, she’s got the first shelf’s worth of books separated across five different desks, one for each genre. He’s about to thank her for taking this so seriously when there’s a knock on the doorframe.

Standing just outside the classroom is Bucky, a handful of students peering around him.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Barnes?” asks Sam, capping his dry erase marker and waving the group into the room.

“They finally got someone in to fix the leak in the AC vent,” says Bucky, “but it means the room is unusable for the rest of the day. Can the yearbook kids and I camp out in here?”

“Of course,” says Sam. He turns to the kids. “I recommend the desks by the bulletin board, if you need to plug in laptops.”

Peter and Ned and Kamala head over to the desks nearest the outlets. MJ and Miles come in carrying a large posterboard, and behind them, America is carrying a stack of shoeboxes.

“Is it okay if we push some desks together?” asks Miles. “We’ll put them back before we leave.”

His question is underscored by the sound of both girls shifting desks and chairs behind him to make a larger work surface, and Miles winces. Sam laughs a little and tells him that it’s fine, and the three of them open up the boxes and start placing paper cutouts on the poster board.

“Testing layouts,” says America, when she sees him looking. “Sometimes it helps to do it physically instead of onscreen.”

“Mr. Barnes suggested it,” explains Miles, just in time for Bucky to reappear in the doorway.

“I’m only taking credit if it works,” Bucky says, turning sideways so he can get through the door with the two overstuffed tote bags over one shoulder and a backpack over the other.

“You see that?’ Sam asks, crossing the classroom to take one of the bags. “You haven’t even started and he’s already abandoning ship. Some captain, huh?”

“I’m a navigator at best,” says Bucky. “MJ’s captain; she’s the one at the top of the masthead.”

Across the room, Peter grins at MJ and gives her a little salute. Sam catches a smile crossing her face before she bites it back.

“Mr. Barnes is a pretty good navigator, though. He brought us cookies today.”

“Oh, shit,” Bucky says, and the kids seem unfazed the mild expletive. “Where’d I put the cookies?”

Sam looks into the bag that he’s holding and pulls out two boxes of pink frosted sugar cookies, complete with sprinkles and little candy hearts pressed into each one.

“Valentine’s themed and everything,” he says, grinning at Bucky. “Mr. Barnes, who knew you felt so strongly about the holiday?”

“He doesn’t,” says Ned. “Or, well, he does, but the other way.”

“Oh?’ asks Sam, as Bucky sets the box of cookies on an empty desk and sets a box of tissues beside them, his back to Sam. “And what way is that?”

“He said it was a consumerist holiday that doesn’t have anything to do with the history of all the different Saints Valentine. And then he taught us about Captain Cook attempting to kidnap people and getting killed for it.” Kamala finally looks up from her laptop. “That part was really interesting, actually.”

“Thanks,” Bucky says drily, opening the second box of cookies. “And I don’t want to see you all making a mess of Mr. Wilson’s room with these cookies, okay? We’re guests here and we’re going to clean up after ourselves.”

The yearbook kids murmur in assent. Sam glances over at Cindy, who’s still quietly sorting the bookshelves. He’s about to tell her to join them when Bucky beats him to it.

“Cindy, you’re welcome to have some, too,” he says. “And if you want any help organizing, you can absolutely conscript Ned and Peter and Kamala, because Michelle didn’t even give them an assignment for today, so I know they’re not actually working on anything for the yearbook right now.”

She hesitates for a moment, then sets down the stack of books and walks to Sam’s desk to use the hand sanitizer. “I like those flowers, Mr. Wilson,” she says, gesturing to the arrangement that had been waiting on Sam’s desk when he got in this morning. “They’re really pretty.”

Sam can’t help but smile when he looks over at the flowers. “Thanks, Cindy,” he says. Then, to the rest of the classroom: “I think Valentine’s Day is nice. We could all use a reminder to tell the people we care about that we’re thinking of them, even if that reminder is the day that a guy died for being kind to people.”

“There’s nothing wrong with celebrating Valentine’s Day,” says Bucky. “I just thought it was worth the reminder that our cultural traditions aren’t universal.”

“And also that colonizers getting taken out is a net gain, as far as the universe is concerned,” adds MJ, and Bucky’s lips twitch with a bitten-back smile.

“That, I can agree with,” says Sam. “So am I allowed to have one of these not-actually-for-Valentine’s-Day Valentine’s Day cookies?”

Before he can even step towards the box, Bucky is holding one out to him. Sam takes it with a smile and settles back in at his desk, scooting over to make room for Bucky to join him if he wants.

He does, after a moment, pulling over one of the chairs that MJ and America moved.

“Thanks for letting us hang out in here,” he says, pulling out a stack of tests to grade. “If you’d said no, I don’t know who would have let us in.”

“You mean you don’t know who would have let you get a bunch of teenagers hopped up on sugar in their classroom,” says Sam, holding out a red pen. He nods over to where the kids are now sitting on top of the desks, work abandoned in favor of comparing the messages on their conversation hearts. Cindy, he notes with some relief, has joined them.

Bucky takes the pen and waves his free hand. “Minor detail at best. And you got something out of it, too, didn’t you?”

Sam looks back down at the cookie in his hand and shrugs. “I mean, I’d have preferred homemade,” he says, trying not to grin, “but I guess this works.”

Laughing, Bucky elbows him gently and turns back to grading.

— —

That evening, when Sam’s doorbell rings, he answers it and leans against the doorway, blocking the entrance.

“What are you doing here?” he asks. “I thought Valentine’s Day was a consumerist holiday with no historical merit.”

“Peter and Michelle saw us together at that Italian place last weekend!” says Bucky. “I had to throw them off the scent!”

“Uh-huh,” says Sam, arms crossed and unmoving.

“Did you like the flowers, at least?”

Sam glances over at the vase that he brought home from school, now sitting on the mantelpiece. “Maybe.”

“I love you?”

“Is that a question now?”

Bucky huffs. “I brought you wine from that one tiny vineyard you love, and I have The Princess Bride and The Shop Around the Corner, and there’s no one I’d rather spend the day with, and I love you, Sammy. Happy Valentine’s Day.”

For a moment, Sam considers him. Then, he steps aside and waves Bucky in, shaking his head at the triumphant grin that spreads across his face.

“Fine, but only because I want to know what wine you picked,” he says, and immediately disproves it by leaving the bottle on the credenza and hauling Bucky in for a kiss.

[korijime]

— apaixonar

(verb.) to fall in love with someone or something, the act of falling in love

shigaraki tomura, boku no hero academia

fluff, modern!college!au, social anxiety, slightly sexual jokes, swearing

wc ; one thousand six hundred and fifty nine words

dt ; @t-amajiki

riyuu says ; ahh, i don’t know what to say here. i started this last night, but i got the idea a really long time ago in one of our conversations. i was really scared about getting his character right and i hope i did it some justice. big thank you to @tokyoghoose for proof-reading!! i’d have cried if the mistakes you pointed out weren’t fixed sbdubdidjd

this is kinda a part of a series..i guess? there’s two more fics coming, so i guess it’s 1/3 of the fics i wrote for gere and 1/6 of all the gifts i made for them in total.

so yes, happy birthday, gere. i love you to the moon and back and i’d do damn near anything for you. i hope you like your gifts. ♡

“oi, crusty, look over there.”

the ‘crusty’ in question, a pale-faced young man, cast an annoyed glance in the direction of his partner’s finger. he never once listened to what dabi had to say, yet he knew from the tone in his voice that it would be something that had to do with you. and so he looked, and he didn’t regret listening.

he looked past the window of the chemistry lab, past the other annoyances, and towards you, sitting in the grass with your green-haired friend. he looked at you, sitting in the grass with the late morning sunlight engulfing most of your form, casting a makeshift halo over your head. a well-deserved one, at that. subconsciously resting his face onto his gloved hand, he turned completely towards the window, towards you, his experiment long forgotten.

“okay, jesus christ, stop it. you look like a creep.”

and there goes the moment.

his once ‘softened’ eyes and good mood vanished as soon as dabi spoke up again, his form hunching and his face contorting into annoyance once again.

“no, i don’t. you’re the creep.”

“sure, i was the one who sighed when they smiled for the camera, right?”

“shut up. you’re the creep, i’m right.”

of course that bastard was looking at him while he, in dabi’s words, ‘fawned’ over you.

he didn’t. he just knew how to appreciate good things. it didn’t really matter whether or not his cheeks and ears became heaters whenever you’d look at him, it happens to everyone.

right?

“not right. factually incorrect. you’re a dumbass, go ask them out.”

“i’m the dumbass when you’re the one who blew up our project not even two minutes ago? i’m not a mirror, you easy-bake oven.”

and so on and so forth, until the bell finally rang to signal the end of their day.

tomura shigaraki, never one to listen to anything his ‘best friend’ says, never one to hang around anyone except dabi and a few others, was seen moving methodically and quite swiftly through the halls of u.a academy, heading straight towards the small group of third-years standing at the far end of the corridor.

they’d known him for three years, they knew his mannerisms and the way his mind worked. it was only natural that both toga and twice had to fish out five dollars each to hand to a very smug-looking dabi, who only watched with a shit-eating grin as tomura went up to you.

he could feel his friends’ eyes on his back, but it didn’t register in his mind which was currently screaming at him to get the hell out of this situation what were you thinking because now not only you and your friends but a couple of other students and even teachers in the corridor were gawking at the infamous anti-social boy who was looking at his shoes like they were the love of his life and not you.

his stomach twisted and churned painfully, the nausea he felt was nothing compared to the embarrassment and humiliation he felt, the same embarrassment which was painted bright on his face.

maybe he could just pretend he wanted your notes and call it a day and go home and cry—

“aye, you crusty fuck! don’t chicken out now or you’re doing my homework for the next week!”

fuck that fucking blue haired porcupine ass smug-looking son of a bit-

“ne, shigaraki-kun, did you need something?”

he sent his prayers to whatever god was above for sending an actual angel to be standing in front of him and pull him out of his formerly very quickly approaching spiral.

“are you..areyoufreeafterclasses?”

you furrowed your brows and stepped closer to him, ignoring the way tsuyu tried to pull you back. tomura was your friend, or at the very least, your acquaintance, she had no reason to be so wary.

“what was that? i didn’t catch that.”

the construction of the academy and the location of the institute was quite unfortunate, it would have been better suited in one of the islands near florida so that the bermuda triangle could’ve just swallowed it up so he wouldn’t have to be in this situation where he wanted nothing more than to evaporate into fucking water vapour why are you looking at him like THAT-

“are..you free after classes? i need your help with something.”

“oh! yeah, sure! what do you need help with?”

and apparently that was the director’s cue for everyone to go back to minding their own business. the students’ chatters started up again and the ones that had stopped to watch realised they had better things to do than gawk at the college loner asking the pretty one for help. even your friend group stepped back to let the two of you have some semblance of privacy, and tomura had never felt more relieved.

“you’re, uh, in fine arts, right? i have a project on that and i need to know more about it.”

he made the effort to finally look up and he was glad he did. like really, really glad. because the way you were looking at him with the same smile you’d given the camera, your hands clasped together as you leaned towards him, really just made all the embarrassment and humiliation worth it.

“sure! just let me say bye to my friends and we can get going, i know a good cafe near the campus.”

he only nodded and turned at the same time you did, heading towards the shitheads while you headed for your friends.

“would you look at that, crusty-no-balls finally grew some.”

“nice one, tomura! make sure to get their number!”

“toga-chan, they will be studying together, i doubt they’ll have time for that.”

and the rest was tuned out as he leaned on his locker, looking out towards the gates and back at you. he really did that, didn’t he? worked up the guts to ask you out, even if it was under the guise of a study session. which wasn’t a complete lie, what the hell did ‘fine arts’ mean, anyway?

“visual arts! stuff like painting and architecture and theatre, alongside others. i’m pretty sure poetry and prose are on there too.”

“wait, so you’re taking all of that? how.”

it was late afternoon now, around three or four when he had last checked. time wasn’t really important right now, not when he managed to kill two birds with one stone.

he was getting to spend time with you and do his project, added with you talking about your passions as a bonus.

he stopped typing and reached for his drink, which he did not choose because you told him to, thank you very much and fuck off, dabi.

looking back towards the screen, he realised he was almost done with his project, which was a surprise as he was sure he was paying zero attention to the project itself and hundred percent attention to you instead.

could anyone blame him? no.

no, they couldn’t.

they couldn’t blame him for having his attention on you when you went into the fine details of prose and theatre, using hand gestures to try and get across the point which you couldn’t do so with words. apparently you thought he knew sign language. which he did. it was an option, seemed interesting, nothing more nothing less.

is what he told dabi when he asked. but no, the real reason was the one you knew, which was the fact that the shelter he volunteers at has some people who prefer to use sign language, whatever the reason may be. he knew how it felt to be forced into doing something even though you’re comfortable with something else, but you can’t do that something else because it’s not convenient for others.

so yeah, sign language.

he was pretty sure it earned him some brownie points with you, for which he wasn’t complaining.

what he was complaining about, though, was the fact that you thought it’d be a good idea to steal a bite of his pastry while he was lost in thought.

“hey! thief. stop that.”

“no, it looked tasty.”

“okay, and so do you. you don’t see me biting you.”

..the fuck?

what the FUCK did he just-

run.

take your laptop, and your phone, and your bag, and get the hell out.

his mind kept chanting that over and over, and he was listening to it, his clammy hands reaching to close his laptop as he got up but then. stopped.

you were laughing. at him. you were laughing at his major fuck-up.

“ne, ne, tomura-kun. i had no idea you were into that.”

yes, yes, he knows. he knows it’s weird and that it’s a weird thing to say to someone who he has a crush on and-

“honestly, the last time i made a joke like that, deku combusted and iida looked constipated.”

“wh-what was the joke?”

“i’ll show you later!”

he choked.

“show me!?”

“you sure sound excited, tomura-kun.”

the grin on your face did nothing to calm the hundred-mile marathon that both his heart and mind had been running ever since he said that.

what was even happening anymore.

that was the question which kept running through his mind even as he walked you home, thanking you for your help.

“no worries! i’d love to spend more time with you.”

what was happening.

“oh and, i also have an assignment due, do you think you could help me with it?”

“yeah, sure. same cafe?”

“sounds good! i’ll see you friday, then!”

“mhm.”

what the fuck was happening.

he’d like to say he didn’t care nor did he think about it, but the way you hugged him goodbye with a promise to see him again left the smallest of smiles on his face which didn’t go away for a while.

tagged ; @t-amajiki @tokyoghoose @kei7ime @inarizsunarin @tsukkiboii @spicyfoodboi @kakiwrites @lcaita @lnarizakis @kuro0luvr @himichii

[some-kindofgnome]

august slipped away

i. ii.

Otherwise known as the Thanksgiving fic.

characters: mirio x f!reader

wc: 2.6k

warnings: smut (18+ please!), quirkless AU, angst, Thanksgiving long-distance woes, mirio’s very ugly little subaru

notes: Happy Birthday @drapetomaniac​! I’m so glad I was able to get this finished on time. I’m so grateful to have met you on this lil site, so consider this my birthday gift to you! 💖  This serves as a part ii to my Kinktober fic “with autumn closing in.” It got ANGSTY. I hope you love it.

on the prompt: “It’s November – the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep, sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind-songs in the pines.” This beautiful line was written by Lucy Maud Montgomery, a wonderful Canadian writer, in her novel Anne of the Island, published in 1915.

MASTERLIST

Mini Prompt Event!

It’s November – the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep, sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind-songs in the pines.

Despite the traffic, the drive into your hometown’s been remarkably quiet. You’ve hitched a ride with a friend, and with Starbucks in your cupholders and weeks worth of laundry piled into her trunk, you ride back in near-silence.

She knows what’s on your mind as she pulls off the exit, the all-too-familiar sign that marks your hometown sending a rush of anxiety straight to your gut.

You’re not looking forward to this weekend as much as you should be. You miss your family- your parents, your dog, your bedroom- but there’s another gaping question mark that fills the rest of the weekend, too harrowing to ignore.

Mirio.

After a very tearful goodbye at the end of the summer, things were good between you. You texted all the time and called him whenever you could. You even wrote letters back and forth in the first month of the semester. Mirio’s were never decked out in stickers or lavish penmanship like yours were, but they teared you up all the same.

But college is difficult. And you’re both starting this year, so it’s been a lot for both of you to adjust to. You and Mirio always kind of sailed through high school without too much extra studying, so the amount of work it takes to do well in college has been a massive wake-up call.

It’s putting a strain on your relationship with him. Slowly, at first.

You were too busy with papers and assignments to call during the week, but he was too busy with practices and games and training to call on the weekends. The letters dwindled in frequency and then ceased altogether. Now you’ll go days without hearing from each other at all.

There’s never been a doubt in your mind that long-distance was going to be difficult. But you’re pretty sure it’s not supposed to feel like this.

Your friend drops you off in the driveway and squeezes your tight shoulder. She promises you that it’s going to work out, one way or the other. Then she pulls away to continue to her own city and you climb up the front steps with two garbage bags of laundry in your hands.

You’re attacked by your ecstatic dog at the door, and your mother doesn’t follow far behind. The house is already fragrant with the spiced aroma of baking pumpkin pies, and your mother cries as she hugs you tightly. So do you.

A few minutes later, with your first load of laundry spinning away, you flop onto the couch. To your delight, there’s a text from Mirio. You’re kind of hoping to see him tonight, but you’re not sure what time he was planning on getting into town. Still, a text from him seems promising.

Home yet? It reads.

You’re trying not to let it show that you’re brimming with happiness.

Just got in, you text breezily, curling your knees to your chest with a little smile tugging at your lips. It feels so good to talk to him again here, knowing you’ve got nothing but time to spend with him this weekend.

You text back and forth a little bit, soft little messages about how good it feels to be home and how glad you are that he got home safe. The last message you type out feels indulgent but so good, and you send it with every expectation of an immediate response.

Wanna come over?

Read 7:12 pm

Dull silence persists from your phone. One hour goes by. Two hours. The temptation to send him another message is overwhelming. You’ve been well past the point of avoiding double texts for as long as you can remember.

But this feels… different. Like you shouldn’t bother him. Like, somehow, that’ll only make the silence worse.

So you don’t. Fair enough.

The next day, you’re up to your elbows helping your family get ready for dinner. Your mom has an unfortunate habit of pulling out the stops, but the meal turns out fantastic. Dealing with your extended family is as draining as always, but you’re texting Mirio every so often under the table and he seems happy enough to respond.

You think about bringing up his sudden disappearance last night, but figure he’d been preoccupied with his family. Tonight, his texts are in good spirits.

It’s not until you’re curled up in bed with a belly full of turkey that you try again.

Wanna do something tomorrow? I have brunch in the morning, but I could meet you after.

Read 10:36 pm

Nothing.

Fool me once, you don’t want to let yourself think. But Mirio’s pretty good at putting his phone down when it’s time for bed, so you tell yourself he’s just gone to sleep. He’s gone to sleep and in the morning you’re going to wake up to a sweet little text from him with fresh plans from the afternoon.

Unfortunately, the trend continues. You catch and hold his attention for a few messages a time every day, but every time you mention meeting up in person, you get radio silence. It’s gotten to the point where you know it’s on purpose, and yet every time you fail to confront him, your embarrassment deepens.

Mirio doesn’t play games with you. It feels wrong, to have him jerking your heart around like this. But you give him the benefit of the doubt all weekend.

Finally, it’s Sunday. Your washed, folded laundry is packed neatly in the hallway. You’re finishing up dinner and your family knows, at this point, to keep quiet about Mirio.

You’ve given up on seeing him entirely.

As your family cleans up, you try one more time. You know you shouldn’t. You have every expectation of being treated the same way you have all weekend- why should this time work out any differently?

But you do it anyway.

Hey… I know you might be busy with family stuff, but we’re both going back tomorrow so tonight’s kinda the last chance I can see you…

To your surprise, just a few minutes later, you get a reply,

Want me to pick you up?

Within half an hour, his familiar little Subaru is waiting for you in the dark. Your heart clenches tightly, watching him parked in the driveway. You haven’t seen him in months.

You’d expected a happier reunion.

Still, there’s a sort of lightness that tugs at your heart as you pick your way down the front steps. You tug open the passenger’s side door- the inside of the car is toasty from the rattling little heater that’s always smelled just a little bit burnt.

Mirio has a sad sort of tired smile on his lips, but you can see the relief in his gaze. You’ve almost forgotten what he looks like in real-time like this.

“Hi,” you gasp, almost shyly. You tug the door shut and he shifts the car into gear. You can’t help the little clench of anticipation you get when he puts a hand on the back of your seat to glance over his shoulder.

When he looks back at you, he looks a little brighter.

“Wanna get some coffee?”

He takes you through the Starbucks drive-thru and buys you both iced coffees. The ice rattles cold and sweet inside the cups as he drives you out of town, taking you up the winding road to the point. Neither of you says a thing. You haven’t planned a thing, but you don’t need to.

As you draw closer to the familiar little lookout, your stomach tightens.

Something feels very wrong about the way he’s treating you. By the time he pulls off the road and rolls along the battered gravel path, you’re almost in tears.

You should’ve seen this coming the first time he left you on read. Mirio’s never left you on read before.

“Well,” you mumble, your heart pounding in your throat. You know you’re going to regret this, but it’s killing you to sit in silence. You reach into the centre console and grab your coffee, shaking it weakly in front of him.

“At least you bought me a coffee before breaking up with me.”

Mirio reacts visibly in the dark next to you.

“What?” He looks over, dark eyes shining with betrayal. His blonde brow is firm and set, but there’s genuine surprise in his expression.

“Break up with you?” His voice is trembling. “W-why would I-“

Now you feel even stupider. The tears come, hot and fast and unrelenting. Your next words come in a pinched sob.

“Why wouldn’t you?” You’ve cried like this in front of him before, but this is the first time it’s ever seemed embarrassing.

“I tried to see you all weekend, all I wanted was to see you.” You’re sniffling wildly, and you knee open the glove box because you know he always keeps tissues there. “I missed you so much and-and you wouldn’t even talk to me.”

He whimpers your name, quiet as a prayer. He’s tearing up, too, gripping the steering wheel tightly with his face screwed up in pain.

“I’m sorry,” he croaks. “I was… I thought…”

He’s pausing like you’re going to interrupt him, but you don’t. He bows his head, continuing.

“I was afraid to see you,” he confesses, “because I thought you wanted to break up with me.”

The relief you expect doesn’t come. Instead, a deeper, sicker pain wraps itself around your heart.

“Why would you think that?”

“Because you don’t talk to me anymore,” he ejects. “Not in the same way. I… I know you’re busy, and I know I’m busy, but… things just felt different. Ever since Homecoming, I-I just…”

Homecoming was the one weekend that Mirio had been to visit you since the summer. That was a reunion that felt as good as it was supposed to. You’ll never forget bounding out of your residence hall to find him there, leaning against the edge of his little car like it was a souped-up Harley Davidsen. You’ll never forget the way he laughed when you launched yourself into his arms.

But that was where the bliss had stopped.

Homecoming was a bad weekend for him to visit. You should have seen that coming. You were busy with your brand new friendships, hopping from party to party. And though you were both all smiles when he was climbing into his car again on Sunday night, you’d known he left feeling a little neglected.

“Mirio,” you sob, reaching for him. You pull his eyes to yours with a hand under his jaw- a little unshaven, scratchy- and his cheeks are wet with fresh tears of his own. “I missed you like hell. I love you. I mean that every single time I say it. And I-“

You hate this kind of thing with him. Neither of you takes conflict very well. And though there have always been fights, this is the largest reckoning you’ve ever had.

“I had so many plans for us this weekend,” you admit, and the hurt takes over. Because no matter how you resolve this, that’s time that you can never get back. “And now I have to go back tomorrow and so do you and this is all we’re gonna have.”

“I know,” he sniffles right back. His voice is weak. Trembling. You haven’t seen him like this since his dog died, right after you graduated high school. “God, I-I… I’m so sorry.”

He’s reaching for you now, winding his arms awkwardly over the centre console to pull you close. You have to lean way over but you do, burying your face into the chest of his jacket.

You both sob openly, for nobody but yourselves.

“I don’t want it to be like this,” you plead. “I don’t want to be fighting for things to feel right. I can’t take four more years of this, Mirio, I can’t.”

He’s stroking a palm down the back of your head now, burying his nose into your hair.

“It won’t be,” he promises. “I’m gonna try harder. I’m gonna- I promise.”

“It’s both of us,” you reply. Your voice drops as you start to, slowly, regain control. “It’s me too. I need to try harder, too. I don’t want it to end like this.”

You nose your way to the surface, peering up at him. You both look ridiculous, faces pinched and teary. But none of that matters when you’re leaning up and he’s leaning down and he’s kissing you, all soft and loving in that way that used to make you melt.

It still does.

You let it grow heated, let yourself grab him by the cheeks and pour all of the desperate longing you’ve been doing into this kiss. It becomes very clear to you that you’re not going to be getting out of this car a single woman. And relief spreads warm and gooey through your gut.

“I wanna,” you whisper, pulling back with your eyelashes fluttering. Mirio cups your cheeks and warmly swipes the last of your drying tears away. He leans in and nuzzles the chilled tip of your nose with his.

“You sure?”

You bite your lower lip and shoot him a quiet, sly little nod.

This time, when you climb into the backseat together, no blankets or pillows are waiting for you. But you don’t care. You let him splay you across the narrow back seat, hitching one knee up over the backrest and stretching the other one out alongside him.

It’s a good deal colder this time around. And you can’t wait to get to each other. Your clothes are barely shoved out of the way by the time he’s nudging his stiff tip against your folds. You’re pushing the long hem of his sweatshirt out of the way for him, and he looks down at you with such determined adoration that you wonder why you ever doubted his love in the first place.

He eases into you slow and gentle, just like the first time. Very unlike the second time, harried and rushed under the covers of your rickety dorm bed.

You drag his lips to yours while he bottoms out inside you, wrapping that free leg around his hips and keeping him buried tight.

He fucks you just like that, in deep, tiny little strokes that nudge the tenderest parts of your belly and send pleasure trickling right down your spine each time. He kisses every part of your skin that he can reach, whispering his devotion to you over and over and over again until his voice breaks. Until all he can do is grunt and sigh and shake above you as he pours his climax into you, bringing you to a quiet little peak beneath him.

You stay tangled for a long time, despite the cramps quickly developing in your forcibly angled limbs. He lays between your thighs, listening to your heartbeat as your lazy fingers drift through the sweat-damped strands of his golden hair.

“Hey,” he murmurs warmly, lifting his chin to find your eyes. “I wanna drive you back to school tomorrow, okay?”

“What?” You frown. “Mirio, that’s two hours in the opposite direction for you. Don’t-“

“Please,” he insists, and something in his tone makes you stop. He slides his hands up your sides. “I want to. I didn’t… I should’ve seen you more this weekend. Let me. Please?”

You give a breathy little laugh, laying your head back against the edge of the seat. Your heart throbs with that all-too-familiar warmth.

“My mom’ll be pissed,” you tease, and you feel him grin against your chest.

You’re going to be okay.

[7wanderingpaws]

Simply, yours (12)

Pairing: Baekhyun x reader

Genre: family AU, hapkido teacher AU, PhD AU

Word count: 3.5K

Warnings: mentions of death, cursing

A/N: a moodboard! Yay! Finally some face to the story ^^ in my head baek looks like on the pics in this one hihi. Couple of more interesting things will happen! Aaaand this series will finish by 15th chapter. Or less. I will see how much time I will have. :( Anyway, thank you all sososososooo much for the support and comments, it means THE WORLD! ❤

tags:  @milky-baek @itsbaekhyunsbutt @luvhtears @shesdreaminginoverdose @cynthbee @jummyjammy @junmyeonnoona @littleflowercrown13 @sebootyforlife​ (if you want to be tagged/untagged please let me know!)

MASTERLIST

1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7 . 8 . 9 . 10 . 11 . 12

Baekhyun was stressed. That much you could tell.

The competition between the universities was in couple of days and he-

“Chanyeol, I can't hang out! I still didn't hand in my paper on the sports psychology thing and I have to head to uni in a couple for the training!”

You were in the kitchen, trying to bake some muffins since you were craving like a mad man, and you could hear him pacing around the bedroom where he bunked the whole day to finish off the mentioned paper. He had been a bit distant since the past three-four days, and you gave him his space, knowing he wasn't taking any silly things from anyone right now. He was full on focused and, well, quite biting to whomever tried to help.

He sighed again. “Listen, I know we still have time to hand it in, but I am so busy with the university team that I need to finish it earlier. Fuck, the assistant master is also breathing on my neck. You need to understa-”

He went quiet when Chanyeol interrupted him, and you silently continued separating the dough to the empty holes on the baking pan.

It had now been two weeks since the Korean New Year and another check-up at the clinic, after which you started to attend pilates classes for the expecting women. You had classes two times per week in the evening hours and one of them clashed with Baekhyun's hapkido class at the university, so you weren't accompanying him that often anymore, which was also a small relief for you. As much as your presence there didn't change matters, you felt like a bothersome girlfriend that needed to keep an eye on him, which was not true. Let alone Jiyoung, although had not necessarily done anything, still made you uneasy with her straight-forward behaviour with Baekhyun. You trusted him, though. After the Korean New Year, you got rid of the whole jealousy nonsense and focused solely on yourself and your own peace of mind. After all, it was literally a matter of a few months and your life would become loud, tiring and just overall turnt upside down.

“And you know I've got other stuff to get taken care of.” Silence. “You know what I'm talking about.” You giggled to yourself, liking how Baekhyun was losing his cool with his best friend, not paying attention to the meaning of his words.

You placed the baking pan in the oven and set up the temperature and timer, finally standing up properly, and hissing at the pain in your lower back. 

These days, whenever you looked in the mirror at your tummy and the dark stretch marks, you couldn't help but wonder how was this humanly possible; to bear three kids in your own body, in that little place under your heart. It blew your mind, and usually you would end up talking about this with Baekhyun just before sleeping when the lights were out and you were curled up at his side.

“Just proves how fucking amazing you are, my love,” he would murmur in your ear.

You smiled to yourself, your heart fluttering at the recollection and you sat down, checking your phone. A new customer who was buying your knitted clothings, was supposed to come by any minute now, so you might as well rest till she arrived, and let Baekhyun deal with his own issues.

You found a message from the lady waiting for you, so you opened it quickly, thinking she might have cancelled on you.

Hello! I was supposed to pick up the ordered knits today, but I can't make it unfortunately, so my husband will come at the promised time instead! Thank you!

Okay, at least she didn't cancel. You didn't care who would come for them as long as they were taken and paid for.

“Okay, Chanyeol, I will meet you tomorrow,” Baekhyun finally ended the call after more discussion and then you heard another heavy sigh. It caused pain for you too, knowing you couldn't help and you also didn't have a constant, stable pay so that you could ease it up for him just a little bit. Great at uselessne- no. You wouldn't allow yourself those thoughts anymore.

“Babe, you good?” you shouted.

“Yeah.”

“Doesn't sound very convincing,” you muttered to yourself, just when the doorbell rang. You struggled up to your feet and headed for the intercom, letting the person in.

“That's the customer, right?” asked Baekhyun from the bedroom.

You made your way to the door, the little bag with necessary clothes prepared, as you shouted back a yes before sliding the door open and waiting for the person to leave the elevator.

You were excited to earn money like this, even if it was just a little bit. You could shop groceries with it and Korea did have expensive fruit and veggies, unfortunately, so this came extremely handy to you.

Quickly shooting a look behind you, you double-checked if everything looked decent and clean in the apartment before turning back just to get the biggest shock.

Without even thinking, you had the urge to slam the door shut in his face before he could properly orient himself on the new floor of apartments, but you didn't do it. Instead, you ran your tongue over your teeth, preparing for a painful smile.

He turned and he spotted you - he just looked at your stomach - standing in the doorway, ready to walk to you resolutely before he actually brought his eyes up to yours. And he momentarily froze, stopping on the spot.

Silence overtook the cold corridor, and you felt the stress creeping up in your stomach, except you had nothing to fear this time. It was him who wanted something. And Baekhyun was right in the apartment in case anything happened.

“I believe you came to pick up the knits?” Your voice was almost foreign to you, it was strained so much.

His eyes fell lower, seeing just how pregnant you were; your body a far cry from when he last saw you. Clearing his throat, he replied: “Yes, I am.”

Slowly, he walked over and you pushed your hand with the bag out for him to take, wanting him to just leave. “Here. That will be 120.000 won, please.”

Your ex-boss stared at you, not taking the bag for a couple of heartbeats. He monitored your face before his eyes looked behind you at the humble apartment. Only after that, he took it while with his other hand he reached behind taking out his wallet probably from the pockets of his trousers. “Yes, I have the exact amount.”

“Good.”

He snapped his eyes back to you, as he took out the necessary cash before handing it to you. “How are you?”

Oh, dear lord. Not the small talk, please.

“I mean, are you doing well and healthy?”

You stared at him, hoping the negative emotions didn't mirror in your eyes too much, as you didnt want to become someone like him. “I'm fine and healthy, thank you for asking.”

“That's a relief.”

Suppressing a scoff, you were about to put an end to this fruitless conversation when you heard shuffling from behind, and Baekhyun's voice. “Is everything alright?” And he appeared.

He walked to your side, shock evident on his face. “You?”

You felt a protective hand around your waist, your boyfriend pushing you further inside the house, not liking an inch your evil boss being near your vicinity.

Your boss, Mr Kim, gave him a tight lipped smile. “Hello, Mr Byun. My wife is the one buying the knits from your wif- girlfriend.”

“Really?”

You nodded. “She wrote me just a couple of minutes ago that her husband would pick them up instead of her,” you explained to Baekhyun, who didn't even look at you, his strict gaze focused on your boss, “and it turns out to be Mr Kim. There are too many Kims in this country, for sure.”

“Well, we hope your wife will enjoy them,” said Baekhyun coldly. “Have a good evening.”

He was about to push both of you back inside to close the door, but your boss surprised you. Again. “I just wanted to… wish you all the best. I hope you will continue having a safe pregnancy and birth.”

You frowned, but nodded nonetheless. “Thank you.”

“And… I apologise.”

Baekhyun's grip on you tightened. “For what exactly?”

Mr Kim looked in your eyes as he seemed to think over his words. “I was acting unprofessional and it was not acceptable. Me sacking you due to your state was not justifiable, and I realize that I probably created even bigger financial difficulties for you. You always mentioned how money comes in handy and yet…” he shook his head, scrunching his eyebrows, “it was all a terrible mistake. I was insensitive. I apologise.”

You took in a shaky breath, your palms sweaty with anxiety as you let his words properly sink in. He actually uttered those words. Those apologetic words. The words you never imagined he would say, because you believed he was incapable of feeling anything close to regret and sorrow.

Sensing your hesitation, Baekhyun spoke up. “I think it's too late for that. But thank you. I bet my girlfriend appreciates your realizations.”

“Why suddenly?” You asked before Baekhyun could push you further inside the apartment. “I worked so hard for you. I always tried to please you yet I received hate.”

Something flashed in his eyes, something you couldn’t quite name. Was it hurt? Was it sorrow? Pain? “I don’t expect you to forgive me. I was ruthless, but just know that I am sorry.” He looked at Baekhyun now. “I deserved the punch.” With a sad smile, he raised and dangled the bag in front of him as he took a step back. “I’m sure my grandchildren will love this. And my wife too. All the best,” he said and turned around, not letting you and Baekhyun speak.

And you wouldn’t even be able to, because Baekhyun closed the door right after muttering: “Get home safely.”

“What was that?” You asked, shell-shocked at the sudden turn of events. “Did this really happen?”

You were still squeezing the bank notes in your sweaty palms and you moved to put them on the dining table, Baekhyun hot on your heels. “He is crazy. One moment he is shouting at you, calling you all kinds of things and the next he is sorry and acts like…whatever” he trailed off, in the heat of a moment unable to think of a proper word.

You shot him a look, amused. “I know. But at least he realized his mistake.”

Baekhyun pursed his lips, not fully convinced with your words but eventually he murmured: “At least if some other employee gets pregnant he won’t throw her out.”

You smiled, satisfied with his way of thinking. “Exactly.”

“And you earned yourself some money,” he reciprocated the smile and he came to you to give you a kiss on the cheek. “Well done.”

“I’ve been earning money through this for some time now,” you reminded him.

“I know but it’s his money.”

“Oh.”

“Exactly.”

-

Once the muffins were out of the oven, you decided to call Sukyeong. Baekhyun retrieved to your shared bedroom to continue his studying. He needed the peace anyway, and you really wanted to chat to your good friend because you had way too many thoughts and questions about your ex-boss’s well being. The way he acted was so unlike him.

Sukyeong thankfully picked up after the third ring and she squealed into the phone upon seeing your name. “Finally! I thought you would never call! We saw each other two weeks ago, don't tell me you got suddenly busy!”

You let out a breathy laugh. “No, I became lazy and almost immobile by now, thank you for the concerns.”

“I think I will have to drop by more often,” she thought out loud. “Besides, I also want to talk about something!”

“Eh? What is it?”

“Nah, this needs to be told face to face.”

Since your topic seemed to be just a little bit more intriguing than Sukyeong’s secretiveness, you decided to go with it and spill the beans. You quickly explained to her what just happened, feeling more encouraged by her gasps.

“Well, there is something that happened actually,” she said after a bit of silence. After you left your job, you and Sukyeong rarely ever talked about the workplace, Sukyeong only complaining about the workload and whatnot. She was such a kind-hearted, considerate friend to you; she knew by default the last person you want to talk about was your screwed up boss. “I just didn't know if I should tell you or not, since it doesn't really include you anymore and also…” she trailed off, “it might scare you.”

You frowned, fingering the little whole in the pillow you were hugging to yourself. “Scare me? What are you talking about?” you let out a doubtful laugh.

Sukyeon sighed and you imagined her playing with her fringe to ease up the nerves. “You know his son is married, right?”

“Mhm.” You rarely paid attention to your boss's private life but you were aware of that fact.

“So, anyway, Mr Kim's daughter-in-law was pregnant and she was supposed to give birth just one month after you left,” she continued on, her words still not bearing an ounce of confidence.

You interrupted her, though. “Oh, really? So why didn't he fire his daughter-in-law, huh?! How dare she be pregnant?! God, that man is ridiculous, I swear. Poor daughter-in-law! How difficult it must be for her to live with him!”

“Erm,” Sukyeong gently called out your name, trying to get your attention, which she did but you wished she didn't as her next words gave you the nausea you had been dreading to have your entire pregnancy. “She died giving birth.”

You went completely silent at that, your mind empty and busy all at the same time. His daughter-in-law died giving birth to his grandchild. She died. Giving birth. “How did that happen?” you breathed out.

“Complications during birth. Unexpected high blood pressure, high sugar levels and many other factors,” she replied, her voice sad.

“Jesus,” you breathed out again, “I had no clue.”

“You couldn't have known, dear.”

Tears burned in your eyes at the thought of how tragic the whole story is. So this was why he was apologetic. “But still… I'm so sorry. To her, and even to him - Mr Kim.”

Sukyeong heaved out a heavy sigh. “Don't cry, I cannot comfort you over the phone like this. You wouldn't know!”

“What if I will die?”

“You won't,” she snapped right away. “You are a healthy woman.”

“You know my blood-pressure is also dangerously high at times.”

“But that doesn't change the fact that you are healthy. You don't have problems with your sugar levels, nor is your entire pregnancy problematic.” She paused, before she continued. “Listen, this is why I was reluctant to tell you. I didn't want to trigger any fear in you. Just don't think about it.”

You felt your chin quiver, but you pushed it down. Sukyeong was right. Plus, Baekhyun really didn't need this kind of stress when he already had too much on his plate right now. Having to suck it up and be brave for your own self for once was something you should have started doing a while ago. You always knew pregnancy was a risk. But you wanted to show everyone that not having enough money and still bearing three healthy babies and eventually giving them birth was something more valuable than any monetary aspect of this world.

“You are right, Sukyeonga. I won't. But you owe me a hot chocolate.”

-

It was around 1am. You were lying on your side, naked back facing Baekhyun as he absentmindedly traced his fingertips over the imprints on your back, left there by your bra. He was shuffling around more, until he resolved to skinship in hopes to ease his mind.

“What's on your mind?” you asked quietly out of nowhere, startling him for a second. He thought you would be asleep by now.

You turned around to your other side, curling up against his chest and he gladly opened his arms for you, missing your presence. It was common that you two would naturally shift apart during the night, both of you deep in sleep, but because of your pregnancy you also felt many times boiling hot which resulted in you scooting as far away from his body heat as the mattress allowed. This time though, the night was exceptionally cold and you knew he needed you.

“Baby, you should be resting,” he rasped quietly.

You held his cheek gently, looking up at him, although he couldn't see you properly in the darkness. “There is something bothering my man,” you whispered, “and I can't sleep when I know you are this troubled.”

He sighed, and you could feel the heaviness of it, the worries somehow too difficult to bear. “It's just a lot on my plate,” he admitted, though very reluctantly. “I want our team to win or at least make it very far but I'm worried I am asking for too much.” His hand was caressing your back, enjoying the hot skin covering it.

“What makes you think that?”

He went silent, contemplating your question and his answer to it. The truth was, Baekhyun's head was very chaotic which rarely happened. Him, who always had a goal clearly set in his mind, never got this worried. “I don't even know. It's the PhD stuff together with this Universiad competition… both require my full attention and even though I am doing my best, I feel like I could still do better.”

It meant a lot that he was this outspoken. He shared his daily issues with you, however only the heavy ones he would let pile up and mull over them until he couldn't bear it anymore.

“My perfectionist boy,” you cooed. “Everything is created in your mind, darling. Everything is still the same as before - you are a student and as your side job you teach kids. Your team was always doing well and that's why you got this opportunity. In fact, you don't need to change anything. You have addition of Jiyoung and her team, that's true, but that still doesn't change the fact that what you did until now is enough. It is all valuable. You're not asking for too much, Baekhyun.”

A couple of heartbeats later you heard him sigh again as he squeezed your body to his, your tummy pressing to his side. “Thank you,” he murmured into your hair.

“Don't keep it in. I know it's difficult. I know, honey.”

“I just want to do well, you know? Do well in my professional life. And I want to do everything in my power to make you and our kids live comfortably.”

You felt stinging behind your eyes, touched and overwhelmed with emotions. “You are doing more than enough, Baekhyun. I'm comfortable and happy because I have you. Out of our entire village, you are the superstar. You are the one who made it. Don't doubt yourself for one second, because I will love you no matter what. You are doing already more than enough, so relax.”

He chuckled lowly. “What would I do without you, hm?” he whispered and he moved to bury his face in your neck, slowly kissing down to your chest where he rested his head under your collarbones. His arm around you was now caressing the bump, his thumb running over the stretched out belly. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

“Don't thank me.That's what I'm here for. For you. In good and in bad,” you replied as you played with his messy hair.

“Already doing the wedding vows?”

You grew hot, the sudden images of a wedding ceremony with Baekhyun warming your heart. “Not yet.”

He hummed. “But soon.”

“After the kids are born.”

“Where do you want to leave them for our honeymoon? They would be always tied to your boobs. That way I can't have them just for myself.”

That made you laugh out loud, and you pulled on his hair gently, making him chuckle. He raised his head and you felt his breath on your smiling lips. “Then you better enjoy them until you can.”

He kissed you slowly, languidly, humming in the process while dragging his hand over your bump and chest until he was cupping your cheek. “I should, huh,” he murmured into your open mouth. “Though I beg for priority. I was the first to claim them.”

You laughed again and Baekhyun felt extremely satisfied, his worries settled for now. He brought you in for another sensual kiss until both of your eyes were droopy enough to pull to sleep.

[pepperonijem]

I. Plus One || Count on Me

I. Plus One → Count on Me masterlist

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Warnings: none, this is just fluff I guess. Or, pre-fluff??? 

Word Count: 1.6k

Summary: .The beginning of it all. What else is there to say? (College AU)

A/N: I wrote this for @sebbbystaaan​‘s 500 writing challenge! Thanks for letting me participate in this! :) My prompt was “Hey, we do what we do best. We improvise, all right?” from Fast and Furious 6. This is part one of a mini series!

“Alright, I’ll see you guys in two weeks,” the professor shouted over the cacophony of laptops being shut and backpacks opening. “Enjoy your spring break everyone!” 

Peter let out a sigh of relief, thankful that this was he didn’t have to worry about calculus for the next week. He packed up his notebook and followed the exodus into the halls of the building. Peter paused by the small couch by the elevators, deciding to sit down and wait for the crowd to diminish rather than fight for a spot in the overcrowded elevator. 

Unlike most of his classmates, Peter was in no rush to get out of the building. He had no plans to go back home over the week-long break. Happy and Aunt May were on a small vacation of their own and with Ned’s spring break not being until a few weeks later, Peter had made the decision to just stay on campus for the week. Peter’s big plans for the week mostly consisted of seeing how quickly he can learn to solve a Rubiks cube, and then maybe trying out the game he just bought, something about farming? 

He passively scanned the bulletin board behind him, trying to pass the time as more people flooded the hall. Guitar classes, babysitting gigs, research studies, the usual. His eyes passed over each flyer but stopped on a sheet of notebook paper, hastily handwritten, with accents of neon highlighters around a phone number.

FAKE DATE NEEDED FOR A WEDDING. RSVP 555-0120. I’LL PAY YOU $50 AND YOU GET A FREE MEAL. SERIES INQUIRIES ONLY!! 

Peter let out a chuckle and noticed that the date was this Friday. Figuring he had nothing better to do anyway, he pulled out his phone and began typing in the number, not realizing it was already in his phone. 

(Y/N) from class

His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to remember what class he had you in, until a silly memory of a conversation the two of you had about trying to insert as many Spongebob references into your presentation as possible. Oh right, he recalled. She was in that French class I took last year. Your professor had assigned you to project groups at the beginning of the semester based on who you were sitting with, and it just so happened that you were the only two people who sat at the front row. 

The first project you and Peter had together was an oral presentation in which you had to have a conversation in front of the whole class. The morning of the presentation, you and Peter noticed everyone else rehearsing and carrying out extensive scenes, whereas the two of you had agreed to wing it, not thinking seriously about the project at all. Funny enough, your presentation went smoothly, scoring high marks for the both of you.  By the end of the semester, you two had become somewhat friendly with each other in class, but unfortunately, because you two were in different majors, it was the last class you had together. 

Although Peter would never admit it, he was disappointed in himself for not ever asking you to hang out outside of the class. But now, he finally had a chance to do something about it. 

Once he got back to his dorm, Peter dropped his backpack on the floor and flopped on his bed. He pulled out his phone and typed out a message, analyzing every word to make it sound as casual as possible. 

Hey (Y/N), it’s Peter! We had French together last year. Um, I saw your flyer outside of my class, about the wedding. Do you still need a date? I don’t have any plans this break so uh, I thought why not?

Before he could think too hard about his wording, he hit send and set his phone face down in a terrible attempt to not freak out over a reply, but the thoughts flooded his brain anyway. Oh god, oh god what if she doesn’t remember me? Or worse what if she did remember me and now she thinks I’m a creep? “So I thought why not?” Come on Parker, you sound like you don’t care. Maybe she didn’t even--

A loud ding came from the other side of his mattress and he scrambled to flip over his phone. 

4 new messages from (Y/N) from class

Peter unlocked his phone and checked the messages.

Yeah, I remember you! We did that Spongebob presentation! Also, yeah I definitely am in need of that date TBH I’m glad it’s you asking me because I was scared I was gonna get some weird messages. Anyway, if you’re not in class or anything can you meet me at the cafe in 10 minutes?

Peter replied a quick yes before slipping back out of his dorm room and headed towards the campus cafe, trying to let out his jitters before he saw you. Come on Parker, you’ve fought space aliens and literally saved the world, you can do this. He hyped himself up, and let out a deep breath before opening the door. The smell of fresh baked croissants and strong coffee enveloped him in a warm hug as he walked through and he immediately felt a wave of calmness wash over him as he walked over to where you were seated at a table in the back, tucked away from the chatter and sounds of the rest of the cafe.

“Hey,” you looked up from your laptop and smiled at Peter as he slid into the opposite side of the booth and slid his backpack off. “I got us a couple of cookies, but I don’t know if you like coffee or not so I didn’t get you a drink.”

“Oh don’t worry about it,” he waved it off. “Thank you for the cookies though, these are my favorite,” he said as he reached for one of the snickerdoodles. “So, why the fake date?” He asked.

“Right,” you began, taking a deep breath. “So funny story, my cousin is getting married next week, and one day when I was home I mentioned that I was working on a project with a guy, and somehow they assumed that I was talking about my boyfriend, and everyone was so excited so I didn’t have the heart to tell them no, and so blah blah a year later, they’re using this whole wedding to try to meet my… nonexistent… boyfriend. Which is where you come in!” 

You grinned sheepishly as you stared at a wide-eyed Peter. Somewhere in your head, there was a voice saying that this was not a good idea, coming to a crescendo until Peter finally let out a laugh. You laughed with him, unsure of what he would say.

“I’m in,” Peter said with an excited smile.

The next couple of hours went by in a blur as you and Peter worked on the details of your fake relationship. From your first date, your anniversary, how Peter asked you out, what he got you for Christmas, for your birthday, you tried to cover as much as you can.

“Okay, well what happens if someone asks us something we forget to cover?” Peter asked nervously. “Or, or, what happens if I say the wrong thing, or we get our stories mixed up--”

“Hey,” you interrupted, flashing Peter a calming smile. “We do what we do best. We improvise, all right?”

Peter nodded, setting his pencil down and grabbed the last cookie.

“The trick is to base everything on as much truth as possible,” you taught him. “The more truth we tell, the less lies we have to remember.” You leaned back, somehow more relaxed than you probably should be in this situation. “We’re gonna do great, okay, Pete?”

With a full mouth, Peter returned your smile. Although he was extremely nervous, he had to admit, he was also excited. It was evident from your days in French class and the last few hours that the two of you had a pretty solid chemistry, as it was incredibly simple and fun to bounce ideas off each other. No idea was a bad idea between the two of you. Just silly ideas and good ideas, but nearly everything ended in laughter. 

By the time you had finally finished planning, the sun was long gone. The two of you packed up your stuff and Peter walked with you back to the dorms, still not wanting the evening to end. He was hooked on your company, and the regret he felt from not pursuing your friendship sooner left him with the gnawing desire to have more than just this one fake date with you, to have this arrangement blossom into a real friendship, that goes beyond a classroom.

Once you finally arrived at your door, your conversation came to a slow stop. “This is me,” you sighed. “Thanks for walking me back, and uh, thanks for agreeing to help me with this crazy scheme.”

“It’s no problem at all,” Peter smiled at you. “This is gonna be fun, I can feel it.” Peter felt butterflies in his stomach, and he wasn’t sure if it was because of you or because of his anxiety, but he was excited nonetheless.

You let out a small chuckle. “I’ll see you on Thursday, for the rehearsal dinner?” you asked, still beaming at him.

Peter nodded and extended his hand for you to shake, as you rolled your eyes and gave him a quick hug instead. Oh they’re definitely because of her, he thought.

 “It’s a date.”

[loading99percent]

Exclusive 2/3

Pairing: LYJ x OC (Melanie/Li Xiangjun) || CXK x OC (Serena/Jiang Yingyue) Genre: slice of life, college!au, fluff Word Count: 4,901 Summary: Lin Yanjun openly flirts with Melanie, yet she’s tired of his games and can’t take him seriously. Cai Xukun and Serena chill on a daily, but there’s gotta be more than that between them. Eventually enough, the boys just want the girls exclusively to themselves.

part one.part two.part three

Warning: matured content as in college related stuff. swear words. NOT MOBILE FRIENDLY! not sure why, but it has all the breaks and stuff while on a desktop. (teach me if mobile is different and it can be done!)

Part 2! Not sure if you guys enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it, but hey it is what it is. Sorry if you guys get confused with the usage of names here and there. I wrote it and am too lazy to go back and like change them and so it is what it is. LOL Anyways, so yeah, this is part 2 of 3 and happy reading! kthxbai, Admin Lia~

After helping Xukun complete practically almost everything on his list, Serena finally entered her second class of the day. She waited for the rest of her group mates to join her, but none of them showed up as the rest of the class filed in. Serena wondered if there was a memo about something and she missed it as everyone was gathered in their respective group.

The professor finally arrived and began recapping their last session two days ago shortly afterwards. Serena anxiously looked about her hoping that at least one of them would show up. After telling the class to continue with their group work, the professor went through his files before calling out Serena's name. Serena became alert and slowly made her way towards the front of class.

"Yes, Mr. Hung?" Serena asked once she was besides his desk.

"I'm sure you have noticed that your group members aren't here, correct?" Mr. Hung stated as Serena nodded. "Well, Miss Jiang, I'm sorry to inform you that Mr. Song Shuijiao, Mr. Wang Youchen, Mr. Zhang Jinming, Mr. Jiang Dahe, and Mr. Liang Hi have all been expelled from Langfang since yesterday."

Serena's eyes widened with disbelief at the fact that five of her group mates were expelled and would no longer be attending school.

Mr. Hung continue on. "As for Mr. Li Xinyan, he has been dismissed due to serious medical reasons." He shot Serena a sympathetic look. "I know that it wasn't easy being paired up with a group of males, but I knew you handled it well. It's just the concern that you're the only member of your group now."

"So, what's going to happen to my grade then? Do I continue it solo?" Serena asked a moment later.

"No, Miss Jiang. I have decided for you to team up with my other class where another group is also doing the same topic. You'll work with them to receive your final grade for your last group assignment for my course."

"Does that mean I'll have to attend that class instead of this one?"

"Yes, you will. I know we're already in the second semester of the school term year, but it's the only way you'll pass this class for attendance. It's a Tuesdays and Thursdays class and it's at two-forty. Will that clash with the rest of your schedule?" Mr. Hung asked as Serena tried to recall her weekly school schedule and shook her head afterwards. "No and it's fine. Thank you, Mr. Hung."

He smiled at her. "No problem, Miss Jiang. Anyways, I'll see you tomorrow instead."

"Yeah, tomorrow. Bye."

Serena bid the professor goodbye before returning to her seat to gathered her things and left the classroom soon after. She was planning on returning back to the Nu Chi Phi house to take a nap, but she felt the vibration of her phone and answerd the call after looking at the caller ID.

"Hey, BinBin?" Serena answered her friend, Zheng Ruibin.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class instead of answering my call?" Ruibin questioned instead.

"I was, but something happened." She answered while walking off in a random direction. "What do you want?"

"Well, NaNa, I have a favor or two to ask of you."

"Is it for the stupid scavenger hunt that I-P-T is doing?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I just do. So what's the favors?"

"Well, we wanna use you in our photos."

"We as in...?"

"Jeffrey and I."

"Go figure." Serena rolled her eyes despite making her way towards a familiar direction. "I'll meet you guys at the basketball court at the park then."

"Thank you, NaNa!" Jeffrey thanked her from the background as Serena chuckled. "You're welcome. See ya."

"See you in a bit." Ruibin said before hanging up.

"Why am I being so nice today and it's not even noon yet?" Serena mumbled to herself after letting out a tired sigh as she headed towards Xinfan Park.

Melanie had just sat down in her seat when she was surrounded on both sides by her two friends, Qin Fen and Han Mubo.

"Guys, I just sat down. Can you give me a minute?"

"No." The duo answered as Melanie groaned. "You guys are so annoying. What do you want?"

"You already know what I want." Qin Fen answered with a smug look while wriggling his eyebrows as Melanie cast him a disgusted look. "Gosh you sound greasy and I knew you were secretly a little pervet. Don't do that again."

"If you give me what I want, then I'll leave you alone."

"Dude, you can practically ask any other girl to do what you're asking me to do. So go do it."

"It's not the same. They're expecting a date or something afterwards. You don't think of that of me."

"I wonder why, but that's not my problem. Besides, there are other Nu Chi Phi members who aren't like that. Hell, you could've asked Junyi, Zixuan, or Qiuyan to help you guys out instead of me."

"Qiuyan already helped me with three and both Junyi and Zixuan each helped me with two. All three said they wouldn't help me anymore than that." Mubo informed as Melanie rolled her eyes. "You guys seriously need to go find some more female friends. It wouldn't be that hard since you guys have quite a bunch of fangirls."

"Like I mentioned earlier in case you forgot-"

Melanie interrupted Qin Fen. "I didn't forget."

Qin Fen continued like he didn't get interrupted. "They don't want to be just friends, Jun." Qin Fen clarified as he cast her a look. "How many times do we have to keep reminding you this?"

"When you guys stop bothering me about stupid shit."

"That was uncalled for." Mubo stated with a look as Melanie shrugged while casting them an annoyed look. "It's whatever. I'll only help you guys two times, but that's it because I've done so much for you guys last time and I regret it." She glared at Qin Fen. "And you better have bought me a new bra already. Like forreals, Fen."

"I got you, JunJun. I got you." Qin Fen beamed as he set a white rectangular box onto the table. "You're welcome."

Melanie's eyes lit up as she inspected the present while slowly opening the gift. Melanie went to check the tag, but frown upon seeing the incorrect size while shutting the box and passing it back to her friend.

"What's wrong? You don't like the color?" Qin Fen asked worriedly as Melanie shot him a look. "The color's fine, but it's the wrong size, Fen."

"How can that be? I double checked."

"It's the same size as the one that you tried to give me that wasn't even mine. You're hopeless."

"Haha, I knew it." Mubo laughed while pointing a finger at Qin Fen. "I told you that wasn't her size."

"Shut up." He blankly stared at the box. "What should I do with it?"

"Give it to one of your fangirls." Melanie mused as Qin Fen elbowed her with a sheepish look. "Stop."

Jeffrey was currently serenading to Serena as they held hands, but her other free hand was slightly shielding her face from the camera's view. When it was over Serena quickly removed her hand from Jeffrey's and glared over at Ruibin who pulled Jeffrey's phone down to look at Serena amusingly.

"Are we done now?"

"Depends. Do you want to continue?" Ruibin smiled at her as Serena shook her head with a frown. "No. I basically did like fifteen of those on the list and even doubled them for the both of you. Took like two hours for some dumb reasons on your guys' part." She then placed a hand on her stomach while making a cute pout unconsciously. "Plus, I'm hungry and it's way passed lunch time."

"Then let's go get some late lunch then since our precious NaNa is hungry." Jeffrey suggested as he swung an arm around her shoulders with a playful smile as Serena slightly nudged him. "Didn't you want to try that 99 °C Bakery Cafe a block from here?"

"OMG, yes, Jeffy, but you're buying as the favor you owed me." Serena grinned as she looked at Ruibin. "And the favor from you, BinBin, is that you can owe me is getting that Totoro bedroom set."

"You live in a dorm room. You sure you want it?" Ruibin asked unsure as Serena nodded. "It's for my room back home. I ain't using that here."

"I mean, Jeffrey's richer than me, are you sure you don't want him to get that for you and I pay for lunch?"

"Oh, you right, you right." Serena nodded. "Jeffy pays Totoro and BinBin pays for lunch. Set and done. Let's go."

The trio began heading towards the bake shop.

"Off topic, but about NiNi," Jeffrey began, "How is she and Yanjun?"

"Nothing since NiNi just hates being involved with his dumb shit."

"Well, NaNa, a little birdie told us that Yanjun had NiNi become his pretend girlfriend again so that one of his crazy stalker fangirl could back off a few weeks ago." Ruibin explained with a small smile while placing a hand upon Serena's lower back to steer her out of the other people's way as they crossed the cross-walk.

"By little birdie, you mean your girlfriend, also known as Qi Yandi, also known as one of Nu Chi Phi's member gossiper, right?" Serena chuckled as Ruibin shyly laughed and nodded. "Yeah, something like that."

"Also, Ziyi told me that NiNi almost beat Yanjun up, but he prevented her from doing so." Jeffrey added upon remembering it.

"Yeah, she almost did. Actually, she's still pissed about it all because she was used three times for Yanjun's selfishness, but mainly she's just done with the other girls who were involved and wants to put out a restraining order on them."

"Dang, what did they do? Do you guys need protection?" Ruibin asked and offered as Serena shook her head. "Thanks. I'll ask her about it. But anyways, the girls keeps calling her names and what not, but when NiNi is about to confront them and shit, they run off scared."

"We can talk to Yanjun about it." Jeffrey offered. "Since we know him and he's definitey trying to stop using NiNi in those situations."

"I mean you could, but who knows how that will go since NiNi said she'll slap the shit out of Yanjun if he did it again. Anyways, these girls just talk a lot of shit, but won't do nothing. NiNi can handle that bit."

"I'm pretty sure it has to do with you guys being a part of Nu Chi Phi." Rubin stated with a knowing smile as Serena laughed. "Somewhat, but they're also part of Epsilon Nu Sigma."

"Ah, E-N-S, the crazy and party-goers sorority house." Jeffrey recalled as he affectionately patted her head. "Don't worry. They're all bark and no bite."

"I know. I've dealt with a lot of them without embarrassing my house, too."

"It's because you're a low-key N-C-P member and they don't know it." Ruibin remarked nudging her as she nudged him back. "It's because I do enough to stay under the radar from the public, but enough to get noticed by the sorority house to stay a member."

Serena then locked arms with her friends and hurried them along. "Anyways, guys, let's forget that. Let's get food instead because I'm hungry and I have a tutoring session in like an hour."

After bidding her two friends goodbye once they finally got what they wanted on the list, Melanie casually made her way to her next class. She settled herself towards the back of the classroom. She brought out her materials to review for the practice test on Monday. If she did super well on the test, then the teacher would allow for the practice test to help bump up their grades to replace a previous test that they scored poorly on.

Too focused on the reading material, Melanie didn't notice Zhangjing joining her and placing a dual boba cup near her. It wasn't until she felt a poke to her side and slowly turned to look at a smiling Zhangjing.

"I'm not talking to you." She stated while returning back to reading again as Zhangjing rolled his eyes. "Don't be so dramatic. My peace offering is your favorite drink."

Zhangjing pushed the drink closer to her and Melanie automatically took a hold of it to drink both flavors before putting it down again. "I'm still not gonna forgive you for your stupid antic with Yanjun this morning."

Before he could defend himself, Melanie shot him a look. "And don't try to say you couldn't come, because I saw your fast ass run off."

"You knew I was there?"

"Of course. Your broad back is so obvious."

"Wow, Xiangjun. Thanks for attacking my figure. You're a great friend."

"I never said we were friends, You. Zhang. Jing."

"Seriously, you're so rude, dude. I even pay for you whenever we eat hotpot together." Zhangjing scoffed as he angrily sipped on his own boba drink.

"Psh, it's because we made an agreement." Melanie reminded him while sipping on her own. "You pay for hotpot night and I pay for dinner hangout night." She then shot him a look. "Besides, Zhangjing, we do hotpot like three to five times a month while we do dinner hangout once or twice a every so well. Now think about that."

"Okay, fine. You win. My bad and I'm sorry."

"Gosh, you're such a little brat, I swear." Melanie commented with a smile as Zhangjing playfully stuck his tongue out at her.

The duo were later joined by Yanjun and another friend, Lin Chaoze, to who Melanie greeted the latter happily.

"Chaoze! Hi." She stood up to the hug the male as he returned the gesture and taking the seat on her other side. "Hi, Xiangjun. How are you today?"

"I'm good. You?" Melanie totally ignored Yanjun when he opened his arms ready for a hug from her, but she sat back down causing the male to slightly glare at her behavior towards him while he sat on the other side of Zhangjing.

"Lin Yanjun, zero. Li Xiangjun, nine thousand and one." Zhangjing muttered mischievously as Yanjun mocked laughed at him before glaring and reminding him of his little threat. "One eye open tonight, Zhangjing."

Zhangjing turned away to finish his boba. Yanjun glanced at Melanie to see that she was too busy talking to Chaoze about the upcoming test so he focused his attention on to the teacher who entered at that moment.

The tutoring sessions were being held on the first floor of the school's library in its own designated area. Today, along with two other tutors, Serena was tutoring seven of her fellow schoolmates in various topics.

"You write this word like this. That way the sentence flows better." Serena spoke in Thai to Huang Shuhao who was a Thai transfer student.

"Ah, okay. Thank you." Shuhao smiled at her as he erased his previous answer and replaced it with what Serena had told him.

"I mean, you can work with Sunnee a lot better since she's more fluent in Thai than I am."

"Oh, it's okay. I also don't want to disturb her."

Serena chuckled and patted him on the back. "I'm sure she would rather helped you with than deal with math right now. I'll go get her for you, Shuhao."

'Okay, thank you, Yingyue."

"You're welcome. Just wait a moment."

Serena made her way over to Sunnee who was teaching Sun Fanjie and Huang Ruohan an algebraic formula with no luck. The two girls switched places with Sunnee mouthing a quick 'thank you' before rushing to help Shuhao. Serena chuckled with a shake of her head before asking the two boys what they were exactly having issues with.

Once she helped them out she made her way over to Zhu Yiwen who beckoned her over.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Ying Zhiyue needs help with his academic schedule next year," Yiwen began to explain, "And since you've worked with him the most throughout our tutor sessions, you think you could help him sort it out for the next school term?"

"Oh, yeah that's fine with me." Serena agreed while looking around for Zhiyue, but didn't spot him. "Did he already go down to registration?"

"Yeah. He just left to go talk with an advisor. I'm not sure when he'll return, but I'll let him know you'll agree to help him."

"Okay, cool, Yiwen. I should be free Friday afternoon if he's available."

"Got it. I'll keep you posted, Yingyue."

Just then, Serena felt her phone vibrated. She ignored it at first since it was only a text message, but when it vibrated several more times she went on ahead to check it out. She received several messages from her sorority's president, Qiang Dongyue, and upon scanning the last one it was telling Serena to report to her right now.

Class was about to end in less than half an hour when Melanie received a message from Dongyue. Contemplating if she should leave now or wait a few more minutes when she realized that she had friends in the class and that they could fill her in later. Melanie patted Chaoze and Zhangjing on the shoulders while asking them to message her later if she missed something as she gathered up her things.

Yanjun held out a hand for a high-five him which Melanie high-fived him unconsciously after passing by him causing Yanjun to grin at her in satisfaction. Melanie rolled her eyes at him, but quickly left the classroom and made her way towards the Nu Chi Phi house.

When Melanie neared the house she ran into Serena as the two looked at one another curiously while pointing at one another.

"Don't you have tutoring right now?"

"Aren't you supposed to be in class at this time?"

"Dongyue messaged me." They chorused at the same time while entering the house and making their way to the conference room.

"Hello, ladies." Dongyue greeted them with a smile as she motioned for them to sit as the duo did so with the rest of the sorority council. "We apologized in advance if you're missing on anything academic-releated."

"Take a breath and slowly exhale. It's nothing bad or serious, so don't stress about that." Kimberley, the vice-president, chuckled as the treasurer, Lucia, smiled. "Yeah, it's only to discuss about attendance for the social gatherings this school term and we're doing it by roommates."

Both Serena and Melanie relaxed and looked at their fellow sisters calmly awaiting permission to speak when prompted to.

"Anyways, Melanie," The secretary, Yamy, began with a grin, "You've done well in attending all the events that Nu Chi Phi has hosted thus far and have been invited to as well. And for that, we're awarding you this set for doing an outstanding job."

Dongyue stood, walked around the table, placed the small box in front of Melanie, congratulated her, and then returned back to her seat. Melanie then opened the small box and her face lit up upon seeing the new bracelet and necklace insignia set of Nu Chi Phi's symbols for this year.

"Thank you!" Melanie beamed as she closed the gift and put it into her bag.

"Now, Serena," Yamy began with a gentle look in Serena's direction, "We know you wanna be low- key and we're okay with that."

"Yeah, like super low-key under the radar type." Kimberley added with a laugh before speaking again, "But we would appreciate it more if you attended one more event before the school term's over."

Lucia nodded in agreement. "We acknowledged the fact that you do do your part as a fellw sister of Nu Chi Phi and haven't caused us any scandals or embarrassment since being with us." She then cast a look at her fellow council members. "Still..." She trailed off as Dongyue continued instead.

"As president of Nu Chi Phi, I'm ordering you to attend one more social event as per socializing with those around you not in Nu Chi Phi. Plus, you will actually need to stay for more than an hour. Not just make appearances to several attendees and leave soon afterwards." Dongyue smiled as Serena made a face causing everyone else in the room to laugh. "You don't have to mingle much, just chill or relax and eat the good food. Just stay for a bit passed an hour and you're set."

Serena nodded. "Alright, will do, Dongyue."

"Think of it this way, Serena, by joining a sorority you're committing yourself to a lifetime of network connections." Melanie nudged her friend as Serena nudged her back. "I know. You've been telling me this since you made me pledged Nu Chi Phi."

The others laughed before dismissing the girls as the two roommates headed up to their shared room to relax since they didn't have any other classes to attend for the rest of today. Serena had dozed off and so missed the calls and text messages due to her phone being on vibrate. Melanie had just returned from the bathroom when she saw her phone light up and went to answer it.

"Yo, wassup, bro?" She answered coolly causing the other person on the other line to laugh. "Sup, Melanie. You and Serena busy?"

"Well, Ziyi, Serena just fell asleep, but I can wake her up if you want me to."

"Do it!" Melanie heard another voice yelled through the phone. "Is that Xiao Gui with you?"

"Yeah." Ziyi confirmed. "Anyways, I mean if you don't mind. Xiao Gui and I are on our way to the I See Darling amusement park if you guys are down."

"Hell yeah. Just the two of you?"

"Mhmm. Xiao Gui basically forced me."

"I did not!" Xiao Gui yelled through the phone again. "But come join us, Xiangjun, and bring Yingyue along, too!"

"Alright. We'll see you guys in a bit." Melanie agreed. "Just let me convince Serena to come."

"Gotcha. Just message me." Ziyi told her with a chuckle.

"Will do. Bye."

"Bye."

Serena found herself sitting in-between Xiao Gui and Ziyi on the viking ride so that she couldn't escape with Melanie sitting on Ziyi's other side. The quartet held onto one another for dear life as the ride went back and forth. Of course, Serena had wanted for them to sit on the edge since it would make the ride more thrilling, but Ziyi refused and they ended up in the center of the ride instead. Once the viking came to an end, they all got off of it with Xiao Gui holing onto Serena's shirt.

"Ugh, Xiao Gui, I'm not gonna run away." Serena stated for the nth time today. "You don't gotta worry."

"I dunno." Xiao Gui answered a bit wary. "I remember the last time you said that to me, you also ditched me to ride alone on the roller coaster."

"Because I had to pee."

"Yeah, that's what you said, but you came back with a big ass corn dog and didn't share it with me."

Serena rolled her eyes. "Because you weren't hungry."

"I was lying." Xiao Gui admitted as Serena shook her head. "Gosh, you're hopeless."

"Anyways, what do you guys wanna do now?" Ziyi asked trying to direct the conversation somewhere else.

"Let's eat. I'm hungry." Melanie suggested as she pointed to one of the food stalls. "A corn dog sounds really good right now."

"Xiao Gui's paying since his bitch ass forced us to come here." Serena declared with a laugh as Xiao Gui shot her a weird look. "Dafaq? You think I'm made of money or what, Yingyue?"

"Guys, I'll pay if it gets you two to stop fighting." Ziyi intervened as Serena shook her head vigorously. "Nah, bro. Don't do that. Make Xiao Gui pay for our meal for once since he's always freeloading and shit."

"This bitch. Fight me, Ying." Xiao Gui said as he annoyingly bumped his chest against Serena's side as she pushed him away with a roll of her eyes. "Ain't gonna fight you, dipshit. Calm down."

"Hey!" Melanie snapped her fingers together while clicking her tongue. "Stop fighting like little kids. Sheesh, can't take you two anywhere."

"Psh, I didn't want to come in the first place." Serena reminded her. "I wanted to sleep instead."

"Bro, you sleep like all the time. Be more productive, lazy ass." Xiao Gui stated as Serena elbowed him. "Get outta here before I throw your ass into the gold fish pool, you big-mouthed frog."

"These two." Ziyi shook his head at his friends' bickering while smiling as Melanie sighed beside him a bit annoyed. "Och, I swear these two act like they grew up together when they only met like last year."

Ziyi placed an arm around her shoulders as he led them towards one of the food stall. "Let them fight, Melanie. I'll buy you that corn dog."

"Oh, please and thank you. I only ate oatmeal and a grilled chicken sandwich today."

"Then I'ma buy you a whole meal. Can't let my home girl starve."

"Thanks. I'll get you next time, Ziyi."

Both Melanie and Serena were given piggy back rides from Ziyi and Xiao Gui, respectively, on their way back to their sorority house down Greek row.

"So why are we doing this again?" Serena asked as she wanted to walk on her own while feeling uncomfortable with stares from the others.

"For the scavenger hunt, dummy." Melanie answered reminding her friend. "Weren't you listening before we agreed to do this."

"No."

"What else is new?" Xiao Gui snorted with a laugh as Serena tightened her hold around his neck causing Xiao Gui to choke out his words. "Ack, loosen up your hold, girl."

"Stop talking shit then."

"I'll stop when you start being nicer to me."

"Isn't allowing you to piggy back me, nice enough, brat?"

"Are you two done arguing over there?" Ziyi asked the two as the duo replied in-synced in a playful manner. "No."

"You guys are so childish." Melanie stated with a laugh as both Xiao Gui and Serena blew her each a raspberry.

When they neared the Nu Chi Phi house that was when the girls got off of the boys' back.

"OMG, about time. It was starting to ache." Xiao Gui held his back making a face as Serena rolled her eyes and playfully pushed him away. "Shut up or I'll get Bu Fan to hit you in my place."

"Don't you dare, Yingyue." Xiao Gui's eyes became alert as he cautiously looked around him. "I've dealt with him too much today. I don't need more."

"Mmhmm."

"Seriously, you guys fight like siblings." Ziyi remarked with a chuckle. "You sure you guys weren't separated at birth?"

"Nah, bro." Melanie dismissed the topic. "Don't bring that up or they'll start arguing again."

"Ugh, whatever." Serena threw a hand in the air to dismiss the whole situation. "Forget y'all. I'ma sleep now. Bye."

Before she could actually make her escape, Ziyi took the hem of her shirt to prevent her from leaving.

"Just let me go." She whined as everyone laughed while Ziyi pulled her closer and locked her under his embrace. "Just hang out for a bit more."

"Why? You guys already got enough stuff for your list from me."

"It's about attending another event." Melanie informed Serena as Serena looked at her warily before shifting it to the two males. "What about it?"

"Saturday night we got a little karaoke thing going. You down?" Xiao Gui asked with a smirk. "Or nah?"

"Hell nah. I ain't down."

"Don't be like that. You'll get to witness me and Ziyi have a rap battle."

"And so?"

"Don't be so stubborn." Ziyi told her while squeezing Serena a bit as she made a face at him. "I feel like it's a trap."

"You think everything is a trap." Melanie remarked with a roll of her eyes as Serena glared at her. "Because it usually is whenever you're involved and it's not Dongyue or the others doing when it's concerning the sorority. For you it's plain entertainment of my misery."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Melanie feigned aloofness as Serena scoffed. "Sure you don't, but fine, whatever. I'll go. Just let me go, Ziyi."

Ziyi smiled as he playfully held onto her longer while squeezing her causing Serena to squirm within his grasp before letting her go.

"Ugh. I hate when you do that." Serena huffed as she fixed her shirt.

Ziyi smirked while ruffling her hair. "Don't lie. I know you secretly like it."

Serena stuck her tongue out at him in response.

"Anyways, just make sure to bring a plush doll on Saturday night for karaoke." Xiao Gui reminded the two females.

"Why?" Melanie asked with a questioning brow.

He shrugged. "Something about a raffle or something. I don't remember. Gotta ask Zhou Tengyang about that."

"Well, we gotta go." Ziyi informed them. "We still got stuff to do before the scavenger hunt ends in a few hours."

The quartet bid one another goodbye with the girls entering their house and the boys walking back in the direction to their house of Iota Phi Theta.

[seriouslyhooked]

Wedded Bliss and Asterisks (A Modern CS AU) Part 3/?

Emma Swan is an enemy of love who just happens to be an up and coming wedding dress designer. She’s convinced that a fairytale kind of romance is nowhere in her future but when she meets Killian Jones, whose magazine is covering the opening of her new boutique, things change. Suddenly Emma finds herself drawing up new plans for her life, ones that seem to all be leading towards her own form of wedded bliss. Rated M.

Part One Here, Part Two Here.  Also on FF Here.

A/N: Alright all, good news on two fronts. Number one we have both POVs this week. I know, crazy! But more than that this is the chapter where circumstances align and Emma and Killian finally introduce themselves so take that, slow-burn! Just kidding the slow-burn is still real, nevertheless, expect cute awkwardness and my usual overwhelming fluff. Thank you all for reading and let me know what you think!

While Emma would never wish for less success in her work, she had to admit after a few days of off-hours that she was beginning to feel the strain of launching a new business. The past few days had been so busy that she’d not only had to stay late every evening, but go in early as well. It was exhausting for obvious reasons, but Emma knew she might have been able to bear the work load better if she didn’t have a sense of missing out.

Three days away from her normal routine meant three days of not seeing the man on the train, and as sad as it was to admit, that lack of his presence actually affected her mood. Emma would never confess that out loud (because it was embarrassing to say the least), but her largest grievance wasn’t the constant things needing her attention or the inability to walk away from the store at a decent hour, it was that she was being denied her chance to see him.

Today, however, Emma successfully managed to fend off early meetings and she was riding her usual train. All morning she’d been bubbling with excitement despite how foolish that was, but it couldn’t be helped. It felt like this big wonderful thing and Emma decided to let herself have this. If hot guy was going to relieve some of the tension she’d found at work, so be it. Everyone had their vices, right?

There was only one problem: the train this morning was absolutely packed with very little standing room. Worst of all, Emma was surrounded by abnormally tall people. This made it impossible to see much of anything and made the already existent stuffiness of the car that much worse. Emma barely breathed the entire length of her trip (thanks to the stale odor of must, cologne, and cigarette smoke that hung about), but her real moment of ‘are you freaking kidding me right now?’ came when her stop for work finally arrived and the callous businessman beside her knocked her portfolio to the ground, sending her sketches flying everywhere.

Emma cursed as she hustled to grab everything, barely evading the other entering and exiting passengers, but she grabbed all her sketches just in time to get out before the doors closed. As she did she caught sight of someone out of the corner of her eye. Her heart picked up in that moment, but she wasn’t entirely certain it was him, and before she could see one way or the other the doors closed and the train moved on leaving a flustered and now disappointed Emma staring after it.

But unfortunately New York waited for no one, and Emma was forced thanks to the less than stellar ambiance that clung to the subway platform and the other people who were now staring at her to ascend the steps and head to work. She wove through the bustling crowds of people a little slower than usual, feeling that lingering bit of regret for having missed him, but eventually Emma resolved to get over it. She had too much going for her and too much on the line to be in this kind of funk. Besides, there was always tonight, at least if she could use this emotion for good and be productive enough to leave on time.

“There you are, and at such a more reasonable hour. How did it feel not to wake up before the sun today?” Ruby’s words were pitched Emma’s way before the door had even closed behind her but Emma couldn’t fend off her smile.

“Let’s just say I can enjoy my coffee the old fashioned way instead of injecting it like I have all week.”

Ruby grinned and waved Emma with her towards Elsa’s bakery citing the need for a team meeting, but Emma knew ‘team meeting’ was likely code for gossip and breakfast. Not that Emma minded. Both sounded like pretty good remedies to the lackluster start of her morning, and as soon as she caught sight of Elsa’s famous chocolate chip muffins Emma knew at the very least she’d get a necessary chocolate fix.  

“Okay, so as you all know we have had a fantastic first week -,” Ruby’s words were quickly interrupted by Mary Margaret.

“But we’re not jinxing anything!” Ruby smirked and clarified.

“Right. For the superstitious ones among us we are happy for this turn of events but still working hard. There’s a lot to do, but I think I’ve found a way to keep the momentum going for a bit.”

“Oh let me guess! Skywriting?” Emma asked as Elsa giggled from behind the bakery counter and posed a ridiculous idea of her own.

“A blimp?” Ruby shook her head and countered with her own lunacy.

“No, I actually found a dozen people to get the store logo tattooed on their chests and then do an interpretive dance through Times Square.” A beat past before all four friends laughed at the excessive silliness. This was typical for them; trying to out-weird the other with crazy situations that would never come to pass.

“But on the off chance those dancers fall through…” Mary Margaret prompted and Ruby regained her composure.

“In that marginal slice of possibility, my friend Belle who works at Citizen NY reached out. She’s thinking of doing a feature piece on us.”

“Citizen NY?” Emma asked, more excited than she probably should be and all her friends looked her way.

“Yeah. Is that a problem?” Ruby asked.

Emma schooled her features even though she was actually really excited. Who knew? Maybe her stranger on the train would see the article and recognize her. The idea was intriguing and too exciting given the situation. She should not be subjecting herself to interviews for the sake of a man she’d never even spoken to. No, any decisions like this needed to be about the business. Hot guy couldn’t factor in.

“No problem. I just read it.”

“You – Emma Swan – read a non-fashion oriented magazine?” Ruby posed the question as if this were the single most unbelievable thing she had ever heard, but Emma merely rolled her eyes making Ruby laugh. “Anyway, yes, Belle works for them and I guess some stories didn’t pan out last minute so they’re hoping to get us in for the issue on stands the week after next.”

“Wow, that quickly?” Mary Margaret asked and Ruby nodded as Elsa jumped in with her thoughts.

“Sounds great! Any idea what kind of cake she likes? We probably want to butter up the reporters right? I made the most to die for hazelnut cream at home last night when I couldn’t sleep. I mean seriously no one could turn it down. Unless she’s allergic. Is she allergic?” Ruby and Elsa had some animated back and forth about menu planning as Emma let her more cynical tendencies rise to the surface.

“So what is she going to write about? I mean what’s the angle, other than the boutique?”

Emma knew there had to be an angle. There was no way Citizen NY was going to just come here and do a fluff piece. Everything that they wrote and published told a story, and as much as Emma loved the shop and was proud of what they were doing, outlining the basics of their vision wasn’t as captivating as the other pieces she’d read in that magazine. There needed to be something more enticing and more applicable to more people.

“We are.”

“Us?” Emma, Elsa, and Mary Margaret all parroted back.

“Yup. Picture this -,” Ruby used her hands as if she was framing the shot of a movie and let her dramatic flair take over. “We pan in on Columbia University freshman orientation. Four girls from four corners of the country, all scared and feigning otherwise, meet on the first day of move-in and realize they have three soul-sisters they never even knew about.”

Everyone laughed at that and Emma waved away the continued narrative. They all knew the story of how they’d found each other after all. It had been one of the best days of her life. She arrived at school on a scholarship she’d worked her ass off for completely ready for four more years of people not actually caring about her one way or another. Instead she found lifelong friends on the very first day and now ten years later they were all of them closer than ever. This was truly Emma’s family and she knew all of her friends felt the same way.

“So how intimate are we talking here?” Elsa asked and Emma knew that she had reasons to be somewhat wary in spite of her earlier enthusiasm.

Elsa had a high profile family, all of whom were fantastically lovely and supportive (despite the fact that Elsa, who was essentially an heiress) decided to bake cakes for a living. Even with their support, however, Elsa never wanted to reflect badly and if this was the kind of piece that would get too personal Elsa would never feel comfortable and neither would Emma though for very different reasons. Emma didn’t have a family home (okay, more like palace) in Newport to visit on holidays. She wanted nothing to do with any of the foster families she’d ever been a part of or even any of the group homes, but she also had no desire to dredge up past pains for the sake of a story.

“Belle’s cool guys. She won’t push. We have a lot of control here, control we wouldn’t have in another situation.”

Ruby looked to Emma and silently promised that this would be okay, and there was no one Emma trusted more to give her the truth than Ruby and no one who would fight harder to keep their good names protected than her friend. Emma nodded her agreement, knowing the others would follow as soon as she did. When they were all on the same page Ruby clapped excitedly and told them that interviews would happen early next week before getting called away on some store business. Mary Margaret followed close behind, but Emma lingered, wanting to savor the last of her coffee and her final five minutes of freedom before her day got hectic.

“So…?” Emma glanced up at an expectant Elsa and furrowed her brow.

“So what?”

“Did you see him this morning?” Emma willed herself not to blush and since Elsa’s smile didn’t get any wider she had to believe she was successful.

“No I didn’t.” It was impossible to miss the remorse in her voice and Elsa frowned, her hand finding her hip and a look that said she was trying to solve this problem appearing on her face.

“Well I’m sure he was just busy. There’s always tonight right?”

Emma sighed. Was there always tonight, though? Or was she coasting through her life assuming this guy would always be there? He wasn’t a sure thing, and the thought that he wasn’t permanent left this subtle ache in Emma’s chest even if it was totally mental. But for right now, Emma needed to vent her bit of regret without facing any judgment and Elsa always knew exactly how to handle those moments.

“I should have invited him to Graham’s.” Elsa looked surprised and Emma continued on. “Ruby suggested it on Monday night. She was joking, but all week I’ve been wishing that I did or that I at least said something.”

“So why haven’t you?” Emma waved her hand around in an anxious gesture.

“I don’t know, I guess I’m just…” She trailed off, hating how weak it made her sound to admit that she was terrified of putting herself out there.

“Scared?” Emma nodded.

“What if I’ve built this all up in my head, Els? What if to him I’m just some crazy woman riding the same train as him who let her imagination run away with her?”

Elsa considered that for a moment and Emma appreciated the genuine thought Elsa put into this little conference. There was no instinctive reaction. If she asked Mary Margaret, her friend would cite the need for hope and belief in love. It was a reflex for their pixie-haired friend, just like how Ruby’s reflex was to be assertive and go for it all the time. Emma didn’t work that way though. Having walls around herself purposely installed to keep people away made the idea of putting herself out there so much worse. She’d been rejected her whole childhood. The last thing she wanted was to face that again. But she couldn’t stop the little voice in her head saying she was wrong to keep away. This guy was important – this guy mattered.

“You know what I think? I think you’re never going to know unless you try, and I think life only waits so long for us to make our move. If you let fear guide you, if you hide away because the risk is too great, you could miss out on everything.”

“You’re right. Besides, it’s New York and if he ends up being terrible I never have to see him again.” Elsa laughed and agreed. Sure, Emma would have to change her train habits, but that was so doable and the past few days were the proof.

“He won’t be terrible, though.” Emma tilted her head curiously.

“How do you know that?” Elsa shrugged.

“Because I trust your gut and your gut has been talking up a storm about this guy.”

That comment helped more than Emma could say because she too had long believed in the power of her instincts. She thanked Elsa and managed to get out of there with only three muffins in hand (which when it came to Elsa and her constant need to feed people, was a rousing success). As she moved back to her showroom and into her office though, Emma realized that something was missing. Her sketch – the one of the fairytale dress. It was gone.

“Ah, crap!” Tiana looked up at Emma with concern. “Sorry I just think I lost one of my sketches on the train. You know the one I made our first day?”

“The one that would bring the coldest heart to tears?” Tiana asked and Emma gave a half smile and then nodded, prompting a sigh from Tiana. “Was it a douchebag banker or an angsty teen?”

Emma’s attempt at a smile grew to an all out grin. She loved that despite the unfortunate nature of the situation, Tiana knew the struggles of train commutes well enough to guess what had happened. She also appreciated how her friend was always able to rein things back in when other people might consider the situation a crisis.

“Banker. Definitely banker.” Tiana sighed and linked their arms.

“Well boss there’s only one thing to do.”

“Cry?” Emma offered sarcastically.

“Nope. Keep on hustling until you make another dress just as magical.” Emma laughed, knowing it would never be that easy but that Tiana was right. There were so many more things on their plate left to do. She didn’t have time to be sad, just keep moving and hoping that somehow that dress would come back to her in some form or other.

…………….

E. Swan.

Killian traced the same signature scrawled in the corner of her sketch for what was likely the hundredth time today. It was all of five letters written in script that spoke to the same artistry of the dress above it, but these ones in particular had yet to leave his mind in the span of his whole day. Hours past and it felt like every minute was filled with musings on what the E could stand for, or if a woman as graceful and beautiful as her could truly bear a last name as fitting and as perfect.

This was of course unfortunate from a strictly professional standpoint. There were a million things to do, deadlines to be met for next week’s issue to go to print, but more and more the woman on the train moved back to the forefront of his mind. Killian should have been focused on the hiring process for his necessary new writers or the upcoming party to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the magazine in a month, but just as he would make headway in any area thoughts of her returned and he found himself opening his drawer to pull out the sketch once more.

This morning had been rough, the commute was less than optimal, and it wasn’t until the very last second when his stranger was about to move off the car that he caught a glimpse of her. It was a bittersweet situation, for one second she’d been looking lovely if a little disappointed as she glanced around the train, and the next she was jostled by a careless passerby, sending her sketches into disarray. She gathered them all quickly, too soon for him to make his way across the car to help as he’d attempted to do, but as she slipped out he noticed one last drawing left behind.

Before any less-enthusiastically invested riders could trample or pick up the sketch for themselves, Killian retrieved it, finding himself amazed by the sheer volume of talent that jumped off the page. The lines were delicate but decided and Killian wasn’t exceptionally well versed in fashion, but he knew the way these sketches looked was out of the ordinary. It wasn’t dramatized like a bit of animation, but detailed. The figure and the dress itself were more true-to-life and it spoke not only to an amazing mind for dress creation, but for art as well.

So she’s beautiful and brilliant, Killian had thought to himself on first inspection and the sentiment remained all through the day anytime he let himself indulge in looking at her work.

Clearly the lady was entirely out of his league, but this circumstance of fate made Killian feel like the stars were aligning. Finally he had his in, a way to interact with her without seeming like an insane person, and he’d been anxiously awaiting the moment when the work day ended and he could rush back to the train and see her. It wouldn’t be long now but Killian was a mess to say the least. He was a bundle of nerves parading as a functioning human being, but Killian couldn’t recall ever feeling more alive than he did with this newfound hope.

After their last encounter Killian had been ready to make his move and introduce himself. Thanks to the insistence of that couple on the train and the continued outcry from his heart, he was truly determined to push past his reservations and go for it. But then she’d been missing. Three days past and Killian didn’t catch a glimpse of her. It felt like the cruelest trick of fate. Finally he was man enough to say something but the chance had slipped away. Never again. The Universe had made itself clear enough to him – there were only so many moments that could possibly be seized and he was claiming one and claiming it soon.

“Oi, Boss Man!” Killian glanced up to his doorway and found Will leaning against the door jam with his arms crossed, an amused look on his face.

“What do you want, Scarlet?” Will’s grin widened as he sauntered into the room, coming in to take a seat.

“Well aren’t you just a ray of bloody sunshine?” Killian mumbled something about his friend being a smug bastard as Will chuckled. “I’ve just come to see if you’re all right.”

“I’m fine,” Killian replied too quickly. He almost groaned aloud at the mistake. His lack of cool was going to elongate this conversation, which was the last thing he needed.

“Really? Because you’ve been – and remember as your best mate I can say this to you – a bit of a downer all week. Then this morning you’re up in the clouds. Is it a plane? A blimp? No, it’s Killian Jones, walking into interns and forgetting basic rules of shipping things to print!”

“I didn’t run into any…”

The words died on his lips as Killian recalled that he actually had. When he was walking in this morning elated from finding the picture from his mystery woman, he’d nearly trampled one of the young lads here through school. He apologized of course but as a man who prided himself on always being aware and alert, it was a dead giveaway that something was up. If that weren’t bad enough he’d also gotten mixed up on the most basic of scheduling items for the printers and Will and Tink had born witness to it. Killian’s jaw ticked as he tried to brainstorm a way to get himself out of this situation but nothing came to him.

“So are you going to tell me what’s happening or am I going to be left to assume?  You know I love a good story. Here let’s think of one right now -,”

“All right, all right. Mercy.” Killian looked up to the doorway confirming that the door was closed and then looked back to Will.

“I met someone.” Well technically that wasn’t true. He’d seen someone rather a lot and tonight he was going to meet her, or at least he hoped.

“One of Liam’s girls?” Killian immediately glanced up at his friend who seemed truly curious.

“No! And how did you know about that?” Will shrugged. “Liam told you. Of course he did. He’s bloody insane.”

“He’s uh… involved.”

Killian looked at Will and the two of them both chuckled after a moment at the understatement. Since they were boys Liam had been asserting his role as elder brother firmly, and when they lost their mother too soon that inclination only grew. He moved from brother almost to father in many ways, and that meant meddling, an awful lot of meddling.

“Well no. Despite Liam’s original wishes I’ve no need for matchmaking.”

“Because you’ve met someone,” Will countered easily.

“Aye.” Will considered for a second in silence and then understanding seemed to dawn on him.

“Is this why you’ve been riding the bloody train all the time? For a woman?!” Killian kept his face as neutral as he could though his instinct was to wince.

“I told you it’s about -,”

“Your carbon footprint. Yeah, yeah I heard you. I just didn’t believe you, mate. But a woman… well that makes so much more sense, doesn’t it?”

“You would know.” Instead of trying to deny Will sighed.

“That I would, mate.” Killian felt sorry for his friend in that moment. There was a level of defeat in his usually happy appearance that made Killian uneasy. He wished he had a way to fix this for Will.

“You realize we don’t have a rule against fraternizing, right? Technically you could see Belle and there wouldn’t be any repercussions.” Will barked out a pained laugh.

“Right, until the moment I ask and she’s mortified because I’m her boss and she’s not interested.”

“What makes you think she’s not interested?” Killian couldn’t claim that Belle was helplessly and irrevocably in love with Will, but there was certainly something there, a bond of some sort that he wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out to be more than mere friendship.

“What makes you think she is?”

“Tink would know. Tink knows everything. All I have to do is -,” Killian was raising his hand to press the intercom button as Will jumped from his chair.

“No!” Killian grinned. “I mean not now. There’s a lot going on. Too much to be starting something.”

Killian might have agreed with Will on that before. He’d often felt the same way, but recently it had been made clear to him that waiting wasn’t the answer. Sometimes a man just had to bite the bullet and go for it, even if the prospect of rejection was a bloody nightmare.

“We only have so many tomorrows, Will. Remember that.” Will stood up and nodded, clearly ready to take his leave.

“Thanks for that, mate. You’re a regular fortune cookie. Oh and you better hurry or you’ll miss the girl.”

Killian looked up and realized Will was right. He was later than expected thanks to this little visit and he had to get a move on. He didn’t delay anymore, wishing the people he saw on his way out a goodnight, but not tarrying any longer to discuss weekend plans or last minute details for the printers. Instead he made record time to the station and hopped on the train, his hands shaking from the adrenaline.

This is it. This is the moment. Killian thought to himself as her stop arrived but when she boarded the train he was struck a little speechless. He’d been denied the chance to truly see her in all her glory this morning, congested as the commute had been, but now he was left mesmerized, caught in the rapture of his own thoughts when he could be actually talking to her. When he realized that, Killian’s feet took a step closer and then another until he was just beside her.

“Excuse me, miss?”

The woman jumped at his words and her hand immediately flew to her chest. He could see the strain in her neck that came from being surprised, her heart rate jumping as he’d made himself known. Killian hated to think he scared her, but when her eyes caught his and he was able to see the real intricacy in those jade-colored pools those thoughts flew from his mind. All that was left was this feeling like he’d seen light for the first time in forever.

“Oh sorry. You just – I mean – uh, hi.”

The stammering from anyone else might have caused Killian to wonder what was wrong, but he could see the mirrored emotions playing across her face that he felt in his chest. Perhaps it was merely wishful thinking, but Killian swore he saw the faintest trance of a blush on her cheeks and a look like she was just as frazzled with sensation as he was. When he realized he’d been staring at her full lips and the way she got those words out for a beat too long, Killian cleared his throat and glanced back up at her eyes once more. Their impact hadn’t lessened, and it felt like a miracle he was able to get any words out at all.

“I believe you dropped this earlier.”

Killian handed her the drawing but it took her a second to tear her gaze away from him. In that moment he knew for a fact that this connection wasn’t simply one sided and his chest filled with pride. This woman saw something in him, something attractive, something worthwhile. She was guarded, a bit cool on the surface when he’d seen her from afar, but he could feel the tension between them. It promised something too delicious to describe and he was remiss when her eyes looked away until he caught on to how happy his returning the sketch would make her. Never in his life had something felt as powerful as her smile. He was consumed by it and wanted nothing more than to see her always just as joyous.

“You found it! Oh my god you are my hero, you don’t even know.”

Her fingers grazed against his as she took the picture and it was lightening to the touch. But as the car swayed a little harsher than normal around a bend, she moved forward, her hand resting on his arm to steady herself and he was done for. She blushed again and after a moment of holding onto him she apologized. Why she would ever do that, though, he couldn’t be sure. Unless of course he wasn’t as transparent as he felt and she couldn’t tell that this was the highlight of… well very possibly his entire life.

Killian knew without a doubt that the world lacked words to describe this feeling. He knew it was merely a turn of phrase, her calling him her hero, but the look of sheer relief and the happy smile on her face that lingered even after her slight embarrassment about falling into him sealed something inside of Killian. He’d long known that she was different, that there was something out of the ordinary about this beautiful stranger, but it went so far past everything he’d thought it could ever be. He was lost already, and they’d hardly said a word.

“Forgive me, love. A real hero wouldn’t solicit a favor after a good deed but I was hoping you might repay me with your name.”

The woman blinked up at him, clearly a little dazed until a humorous smirk played at her full lips. He’d never felt the urge to kiss somebody so profoundly in his life, but she was temptation in its most elevated form. Still he held back, needing her reply more than the chance to steal the press of her lips on his. No, when a kiss came, Killian decided, she would be the one to instigate it. Then, and only then, would he let his heart move as it pleased.

“Anyone ever tell you that you might be just a touch too charming?” Killian laughed at that and noticed the way her features softened when he did. She extended her hand as a means of greeting. “I’m Emma.”

“Emma Swan?” Emma looked surprised and then Killian countered. “I may have glanced at the signature there once or twice.”

“Oh, right.”  She smiled again and Killian stood there like a fool, falling into the way it illuminated her whole person. She was already arguably too gorgeous for him to handle, but like this, and with her attentions aimed at him, Emma was a force of nature.

“So are you going to tell me your name or…”

“Oh shit – right, yeah – it’s Killian. Killian Jones.”

“So not Chad?” Killian felt his brow rise at the peculiar question.

“Not to my knowledge, no. I’m relatively certain this has always been my name.” Emma laughed and the sound filled the whole car and his whole world in the process.

“Sorry. That was a weird thing to ask. It’s kind of a long story.”

Killian couldn’t help himself from raising his hand in that moment and tucking back a strand of blonde hair that had fallen from her hair tie. He watched as her eyes widened as he did it, but she never pulled away. Actually Emma inched a bit closer when his hand eventually moved away back to his side. It made retreating that much harder, but he had to be a gentleman. The last thing he wanted was to come on too strong and scare her away.

“I’ve a feeling any story of yours is worth the wait, Emma.”

Her eyes filled with something in that moment, something Killian couldn’t exactly read but there was a force behind it. Whatever Emma was feeling, it was intense, maybe even as strong as the pull that he felt to her right now. Killian wanted nothing more than to ask her what she was thinking or even to lay out all of his thoughts for her, to show her that whatever was on her mind was safe with him, but at that moment he caught the tail end of the automated voice announcing the next station.

“Maybe another time. This is kind of my stop, which means…”

“That I missed mine. Bloody hell!”

Emma laughed again as she stepped out of the train and Killian followed her. He wasn’t actually frustrated though, and he couldn’t regret that he’d messed up his usual commute, not when he’d had this chance to get to know Emma, to get to finally see her and talk to her, and to confirm what he already knew – that she was someone worth knowing and worth letting in.

“Well, thank you again for finding this,” Emma offered as she slipped the sketch inside her portfolio and Killian assumed it was her way of putting distance between them. She was ready to say goodbye even if he never would be.

“My pleasure, Swan.”

Her eyes sparkled at his use of her last name and she smiled before waving and turning away. He watched her go, wondering what a woman as intriguing as Emma might be doing for the weekend, when she turned around and offered him a final question.

“See you Monday?” Killian felt his heart skip at the prospect and the idea that Emma would be looking forward to seeing him again.

“Aye, love. I’ll be here.”

“Good.”

With that Emma turned up the steps and headed out into the world, leaving Killian standing there with a grin on his face he didn’t bother trying to conceal. The truth was he couldn’t pinpoint a happier moment in the whole of his life (even if he hadn’t asked her to dinner as he originally intended), and though it might feel like an eternity between now and Monday he was hopeful, knowing that in just a few days time he’d get the chance at seeing more of Emma and maybe getting to convince her that they might be more than strangers on a train.

That thought alone was enough to fill him with a boundless sort of energy, and Killian decided not to wait for another train but to walk the three blocks back to his apartment. And all the while his world was filled with Emma Swan and the belief that he’d finally found the person he’d been unknowingly searching for for years, a person who made his heart feel whole and the whole world seem new.

Post-Note: So there we have it. The scene has been set, the first words have been spoken, and I am surrounded by feels. It’s becoming clear to me that I needed a new story because this early phase of sketching out where to go from here and reaching all the first milestones is fantastic. I really hope that you guys enjoyed and that you can all bear with me on this slow-burn. Let me know what you think, and as always thanks so much for reading!