#I’m just now noticing this like that’s a grown ass man now 😭

[elevenenthusiast]

Puberty hit him like a mf truck 💀

[blue-jisungs]

PLSPLSPLS do the sleeping w plushies FOR SVT PREFORMANCE UNIT 🙏🙏🙏💕💕

you still sleep with plushies ♡

author's note. here u go! hope you like it <3

you can find vocal unit ver here, hhu here

┆彡 SOONYOUNG [ 순영 ]

im sorry but this man believes he’s a tiger and you’re not making a fuss about it…

so why would he mind your plushies?

actually, he thinks it’s so so cute and it was one of the first things that he noticed in your apartment

he often talks "through" them (?) like,, he’ll grab a plushie n be like

"sooyoungie told me he wants a kiss…"

cries.

anyways.

he won’t admit it but he loves the feeling of your warmth and your plushies surrounding him when u two fall asleep together

sometimes steals one or two when they’re about to go on tour

and actually makes it his life mission to bring you a new plushie (preferably tiger one) from each place you/they visit

in no time you’ll have to find a new storage because your bed started running out of place…

┆彡 JUNHUI [ 文俊辉 ]

i’m so sorry but he was very flabbergasted at first when you told him that one day

"plushies… like… plush animals? like, those for kids?" he repeated, frowning

no mf, rocks. of course plushies as in—

he noticed your mood got a little down by his reaction :(

and sure, he was surprised because he never stumbled upon a grown person still sleeping with plushies but it wasn’t like he minded?!

so he suddenly left your place, saying that he’ll buy some snacks

and he comes back with like,, a bag of plushies ☹️☹️☹️ and snacks too.

he apologizes n explains himself and you’re just so taken aback that he has to shake your arms <\\3

n then you two spend the rest of the evening naming the plushies he bought,, obviously falling asleep w them too

and… he’d rather die than admit it…. but he started to like this

n he started a small collection at home too… 🥹

┆彡 MINGHAO [ 徐明浩 ]

when you first started dating, you’d usually sleep over at his place (because it’s a mf villa u can do whatever u want there lmao)

but one day hao shot u a text that he’s gonna be over at yours in 10 with his pjs

so you texted him: "i have weird sleeping habits tho… i still sleep with plushies…"

and mans genuinely went "so?"

like, he couldn’t care less in a good way,, yk?

he’s been living with 12 guys for a couple of years now…. what is a bunch of stuffed animals to him?

ever since then you transferred some of your babies over to his place so they were there just in case hehe

and he loves that,, he’ll hug them if you’re not sleeping together :(

also will punch them occasionally,, like a cute aggression 😭 never tells u that tho….

┆彡 CHAN [ 찬 ]

honestly when chan saw your plushies for the first time his eyes went as wide as a kid’s eyes in a candy store

he genuinely thinks it’s so cool !!

"omg y/nnie those are all yours?! and this one is your childhood one? and this is from the arcade date?! huh— you named this one after me???” (and it’s an otter btw)

he’s so obsessed 🥹

will steal some of them n just carry em around, sometimes pulls a plushie out when practicing alone

because the guys laughed at him because of that… welp,, they did until you joined them for practice one day and there was a sad pout forming on your lips when mingyu teased chan about "how silly that plushie looks"

(then chan made them apologize to you and it may have been one of those moments when the maknae was scarier than the leader >:) )

chan also developed a habit of buying every plushie in sight that reminds him of you OR he thinks he’d like

especially if you have like an fav pokemon or tv show character,, literally whatever – he’ll buy it the second his eyes land upon it

anything to make his partner happy 🥹

(deffo bought this big ass teddy bear too and until this day it sits proudly in your bedroom <3 )

masterlist <3

taglist. @mirxzii ,, @primoppang ,, @l3visbby ,, @nicholasluvbot ,, @planetkiimchi ,, @weird-bookworm ,, @slytherinshua ,, @kazmura ,, @laylasbunbunny ,, @dazzlingligth ,, @eternalgyu ,, @rubywonu ,, @haecien ,, @mine-gyu

[evorlaah]

2SOON ; (OUT NOW!)

PAIRING: FEMALE READER, HEESEUNG.

Synopsis: since your breakup, Heeseungs life has been a downward spiral of parties and regret. One night, fate brings you back together outside a bar. You guys reconnect after a long time apart and share memories and emotions, finding closure and a chance for a fresh start.

Disc/ warnings⚠️: non!idolheeseung, female reader, angst, mentions of alcohol and smoking, strong language, toxic coping mechanisms, exs to ???.

Note 💌: hii guys it’s outtt! This was based off the song ‘2soon’ by keshi becuz I love keshi 😛! I just wanted to quickly add that I might be making a part 2 for the people that don’t want this ending and I’m quickly working on that now 😭. But I hope you enjoy xoxo

Every night was the same for Heeseung since your breakup in February. Parties, drinks, and the burn of cigarettes down his throat had become his only source of distraction. A desperate attempt to fill the void you left behind.

“Can you give me a shot of something? I don’t care what it is.” He muttered to the bartender, voice rough and tired.

Jake who was standing nearby noticed his behavior and placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to reel him back. “Heeseung, that’s enough. We need to go home.”

Heeseung shrugged him off with a glare on his face, his frustration bubbling over. “Just one more shot, Jake. It’s not the end of the fucking world. I’m a grown-ass man.”

He snapped, the words slicing through the haze of the music and chatter.

Jakes concern lingered, but Heeseung didn’t care. “Whatever man, you can’t keep doing this stupid shit. Call me when you’re ready to go.” Jake says before walking away. Heeseung watches him leave, his figure disappearing into the crowd. He scoffed, grabbing the drink his bartender slid his way. “Heres to fucking nothing.” He said bitterly before drowning it in one swift motion.

The burn spread through his chest but wasn’t enough to drown the ache in his heart. You.

His eyes scanned the room, blurry faces and empty laughter blending together. He hated this- he hated the noise, the fake smiles, and especially himself. A memory of you flashed in his mind, your laugh so vivid it almost felt real. Heeseung blinked hard, trying to shake it off, but it only made him aware of how lost he feels without you.

He stumbled outside, the cool night air hitting his face like a slap. Leaning against the wall, he lit a cigarette with shaky hands, staring up at the sky. The stars were the only constant in a life that felt like it was falling apart.

“Why do you still haunt me?” he whispered to no one, his voice cracking under the weight of the question.

“Heeseung?”

The sound of his name startled him, low and tentative, cutting through the haze of his thoughts. Heeseung turns his head.

It was you.

You stood a few feet away from him, wrapped in a leather jacket that was too big for you. It wasn’t yours. He blinked as he looked at the jacket and then back at your face unsure if he was hallucinating. “Y/n?”

You hesitated, shoving your hands into your pockets. “I..I thought it was you,” you said quietly. “Didn’t think I’d find you out here like this.”

Heeseung lets out a dry laugh, his lips curling into a bitter smirk. “Why wouldn’t I be? This is me now. I’m fucked up.”

Your eyebrow’s furrowed, the words cutting deeper than you wanted to admit, but you stayed silent.

“Nice jacket by the way.” He says before taking a cigarette from his pocket and flicking the lighter multiple times until a mini flame burns.

You glanced down at the oversized jacket that’s draped over your shoulder, your grip tightening the fabric. “It's not mine,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

Heeseung smirks faltered, replaced by something unreadable. He took another drag from his cigarette, the glow illuminating his face. “Figures,” he muttered, exhaling a cloud of smoke. “Guess you moved on quicker than I thought.”

Your heart sank at his words. “It’s not like that Heeseung,” you said softy stepping closer.

He turned his head away, avoiding your gaze. “Then what is it, huh? What the fuck it’s like your haunting me. My life’s been hell without you..”

You opened your mouth to respond, but no words came. The truth was, you didn’t know why you were there. Something about seeing him stumble out of the bar, looking so lost and broken, made it impossible to walk away.

“I just… I wanted to make sure you were okay,” you finally said, your voice trembling slightly.

Heeseung let out a bitter laugh, flicking the ash from his cigarette. “Yeah? Well, take a good look. This is me now. A fucking mess. You can go back and tell whoever gave you that jacket.”

His words stung, but you stood your ground. “Stop pushing people away, Heeseung. I know you’re hurting—”

“You don’t know shit Y/n!” he snapped, his voice rising as he threw the cigarette to the ground and crushed it under his shoe. “You don’t get to act like you care after you fucking left me!”

The silence that followed was deafening, broken only by the faint hum of traffic in the distance. Heeseung’s chest rose and fell rapidly, his hands trembling as he ran them through his hair.

“I never stopped caring,” you finally whispered, your voice barely audible tears forming.

His head shot up, his eyes locking onto yours. For a moment, the anger in his expression faltered, replaced by something softer—something vulnerable.

But before he could respond, you took a step back, wrapping the jacket tighter around yourself. “Take care of yourself, Heeseung,” you said, your voice steady now, though your heart felt anything but.

You turned to leave, your footsteps echoing in the empty alley, and for the first time in months, Heeseung felt the weight of regret press down on him like a vice.

Heeseung’s thumb paused as he scrolled through your Instagram feed. It wasn’t like him to obsess over every little detail of your life now that you were no longer together, but tonight felt different. Tonight, everything hurt a little more than usual, and he found himself drawn to the picture of you laughing with friends, the one where your eyes sparkled in a way he hadn’t seen in months.

He zoomed in on the photo, wishing he could go back to those days, to the moments when everything felt easy and right. His thumb lingered on the screen, unable to tear himself away, despite the growing ache in his chest.

You were smiling. You were happy. It almost made him angry—angry at himself for letting go of that happiness, angry at you for moving on.

But then he saw something else. It was a picture of you at the beach, wearing a new necklace he didn’t recognize, and for a second, he felt his heart sink. A hint of jealousy bubbled up in him. Was someone else making you smile now?

Heeseung tried to push the thought away, but it lingered, gnawing at him. He scrolled down further, looking for something—anything—that would make him feel better, but the more he saw, the more he realized how much he had lost.

It wasn’t just the pictures. It was the silence. The absence of you.

With a heavy sigh, Heeseung threw his phone onto the couch. He wanted to scream, to punch something, but instead, he just sat there in the stillness of the room, consumed by regret and the echo of your absence.

Heeseung didn’t even look up when Jake walked in. He could hear the suggestion in Jake’s voice, but it only made him more frustrated. The idea of hooking up with someone else felt like a temporary fix, a hollow distraction that would never fill the void you left.

Jake, on the other hand, seemed to think it was the answer to everything. He plopped down on the couch, grinning like he’d just solved a problem. “Seriously, man. You need to get laid. It’ll take your mind off her. I know this hot chick—”

Heeseung cut him off with a sharp glance, his eyes cold and tired. “I don’t want anyone else, Jake. I’m not interested in a ‘quick fix.’”

Jake raised an eyebrow, clearly taken aback. “I’m just trying to help you out, man. You’ve been in a funk for months. You need to stop fucking moping around and have some fun.”

Heeseung’s fingers curled into a fist, frustrated at how easily Jake seemed to move on. “I’m not ‘moping,’” he muttered, his voice tinged with bitterness. “I’m just… tired.”

You groan as a voice cuts through the fog of your exhaustion. Your eyes blink open, the light from the late afternoon creeping through your curtains, making everything feel too bright and too real.

“Y/n, get up. You’ve been bed rotting all day.” Kim’s voice is firm, and you can practically feel her hands on her hips, even though you don’t look up.

You bury your face in your pillow, groaning in protest. “I just need one more hour.”

But Kim’s having none of it. She pulls the blanket off you, exposing your tired, unkempt face. “No more excuses. You’ve been in here sulking all day, and I’m not going to let you waste another minute. Get up.”

You pull the pillow over your head in an attempt to block her out. You can’t muster the energy to fight it. Everything hurts, and you’d rather stay cocooned in your blanket, avoiding the reality that’s been too hard to face.

You stare down at your hands, the weight of everything pressing heavily on your chest. The room feels too small, too suffocating, as if the walls are closing in on you. You can hear Kim’s voice from beside you, but it doesn’t fully register.

“I just… it’s my fault.” The words slip out before you can stop them, quiet but sharp.

Kim’s brow furrows, and she turns to look at you. “What do you mean?”

You shake your head, the guilt swirling inside you like a storm you can’t escape. “Heeseung… I hurt him. I didn’t— I wasn’t there when he needed me, and now look at him. He’s a mess, and I… I just walked away.”

Kim’s expression softens, but she doesn’t immediately say anything. She knows this isn’t something easy to fix with a few words. But she also knows you’re not entirely to blame.

“Y/n, you can’t keep blaming yourself for everything that happened between you two. Relationships are complicated, and sometimes, things just fall apart. You’re not the one who broke him, even if it feels like that.”

You bite your lip, feeling the tears threaten to fall, but you push them back. “But I should’ve tried harder. I should’ve seen how much he was struggling. I just… let go.”

Kim gently places a hand on your shoulder, her voice firm but gentle.

Tears start to sting your eyes, and before you can stop them, they spill over. You squeeze your eyes shut, trying to will them away, but it only makes it worse. The quiet sobs shake your shoulders, and all the pain, all the guilt, comes crashing down all at once.

Kim doesn’t say anything. She just pulls you into a hug, and it’s exactly what you need. The warmth of her arms around you feels like a safe place, like maybe, just maybe, you’re not as lost as you think.

“It’s okay,” she whispers, her voice steady and comforting. “You’re allowed to feel this way. You’re allowed to cry. You’re human, Y/n. You don’t have to be perfect.”

You cling to her, letting the tears come. The ache in your chest doesn’t disappear, but for the first time in a long time, it feels a little lighter. You don’t have to carry it alone. You don’t have to have all the answers right now

You wipe your eyes, your voice cracking as you speak. “I saw him at the club last night. Kim, he looked like a fucking mess.” The words spill out like a confession, the image of Heeseung, lost in the crowd, still vivid in your mind.

Kim shifts, her expression darkening as she listens. “What do you mean a mess?”

You run a shaky hand through your hair, trying to steady your thoughts. “He was drinking like crazy, barely able to stand. His eyes… there was nothing in them, Kim. He wasn’t even really there.” You swallow hard, the weight of the guilt coming back full force. “I don’t know what happened to him, but it’s like he’s completely given up. And I… I just walked away from him when he needed me most.”

Kim watches you carefully, then sighs, her tone softer now. “Y/n, you know you can’t blame yourself for everything. You saw him like that because you care, but you can’t carry him on your back. Heeseung’s in a tough place, but that doesn’t mean you have to be the one to fix it.”

You shake your head, the lump in your throat tightening. “But I left. I should’ve stayed. I should’ve been there for him when he was going through whatever this is.”

The truth was, you still missed Heeseung. Even after everything—after the arguments, the silence, the way things ended—you still missed him.

There were moments, quiet ones, when you found yourself thinking of him. The way his laugh used to fill the room, how his smile always seemed to make everything feel okay. You missed the easy way things had been between the two of you, before the world got complicated and feelings got in the way.

Even now, after everything that’s happened, the ache in your chest wouldn’t go away. It was like an invisible weight, pressing down on you, no matter how hard you tried to ignore it.

You could lie to Kim, tell her that you were over it, that you were fine, but you couldn’t fool yourself.

Heeseung had left a mark on you. And no matter how much time passed, no matter how many nights you spent convincing yourself that you were better off without him, you still wanted him back. You wanted to hear his voice, feel his presence, and most of all, you wanted him to see that you never stopped caring.

You had tried to move on. You really did. There was that guy, someone who seemed to understand you in a way that felt right at the time, someone who gave you that sense of connection you thought you needed. But no matter how much you tried to focus on him, no matter how much you told yourself that this was your chance to leave the past behind, you couldn’t stop thinking of Heeseung.

It was a constant pull, like a magnetic force you couldn’t fight. Every conversation with the other guy felt like a hollow echo, like something was missing, like your mind kept drifting back to Heeseung’s face, his laugh, his voice. You couldn’t ignore it any longer.

So, you ended it. You let him go, even though you knew it wasn’t fair to him. You didn’t want to lead him on, especially when your heart and mind were somewhere else—somewhere you didn’t have control over.

The guilt weighed heavily on you as you explained things, but deep down, you knew this was the only way to be honest with yourself. You couldn’t move on while holding onto something you weren’t ready to let go of.

7 months earlier

Things were simpler. You could still see Heeseung’s eyes light up when he looked at you, the way his smile could make everything else fade away. But something was different now, and you could feel it.

It was late one night, the two of you sitting in his room, silence heavy between you. You had noticed the distance creeping in, the way he was pulling away from you, like he had a secret he couldn’t share. It was in the way he avoided your eyes, how his words didn’t reach you like they used to. And you couldn’t keep pretending everything was fine.

“Heeseung, you know you could just talk to me,” you said softly, your voice careful but firm, your hand reaching out to him.

He was sitting on the edge of his bed, staring at the floor, shoulders tense. You could feel the weight of everything unsaid between you. Heeseung didn’t look up.

“I’m fine,” he muttered, his tone dismissive, but you could hear the cracks in it. The usual confidence in his voice was gone, replaced by something you couldn’t quite place.

You took a deep breath, sitting next to him. “You don’t have to be fine all the time, Heeseung. You don’t have to push me away. I’m here for you.”

Heeseung’s gaze softened, but there was still a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes. The air between you two felt thick, and every word that hung between you seemed to weigh more than the last. You could see how much it was costing him to hold back, to not let everything spill over.

You took a deep breath, trying to steady yourself. “Heeseung, we need to have communication if we want a relationship. You can’t keep shutting me out like this.”

His shoulders tensed at your words, but he didn’t turn away. He just stood there, staring at the wall in front of him, clearly struggling with something inside. The silence stretched, and you wondered if he was trying to find the words to explain himself, or if he was just afraid to face what was really going on.

“Communication?” Heeseung’s voice was almost a whisper, but there was bitterness behind it. He let out a harsh laugh, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “How can we communicate if I don’t even know what’s going on with me?”

You felt a pang in your chest. Heeseung’s vulnerability was raw, and it hurt to see him like this—like he was crumbling under the weight of something he couldn’t share.

“I don’t need you to have all the answers, Heeseung,” you said quietly, standing up and moving closer to him. “I just need you to let me in. You don’t have to do this alone.”

For a moment, you thought he might open up, might let you in. But then, he shook his head and stepped back, his face contorting with frustration.

“You don’t get it,” he said, voice breaking. “I can’t let you in. I don’t want to drag you down with me.”

You sighed, feeling the weight of his words settle in your chest like a stone. You wanted to argue, to tell him that you could handle it, that you weren’t afraid to be there for him no matter what, but the truth was, he was right in a way. He had built up these walls around himself, and no matter how much you reached out, it felt like he was unwilling to let anyone break through.

“Hee I can’t keep living like this. How can I love you when I’ll never know what’s going on?”

His head shot up when you said that, his eyes wide with a mix of surprise and fear. It was like the weight of your words hit him harder than anything else you’d said. Heeseung’s gaze locked onto yours, his breath catching in his throat. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.

“You don’t get it, do you?” you continued, your voice trembling but firm. “I can’t keep living in this limbo, waiting for you to let me in. It’s tearing me apart, Heeseung. You’re tearing me apart.”

Heeseung stood there, his chest rising and falling with shallow breaths, his expression unreadable. The words you spoke seemed to hang in the air, echoing between the two of you. For a moment, it felt like the weight of everything—the months of confusion, the lack of communication, the growing distance—was crashing down on him.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” he muttered, his voice raw, like it physically hurt him to say it. His hands clenched at his sides, and he looked away briefly, as if he couldn’t bear to face the reality of what you were saying.

“You already are,” you whispered, your throat tight. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this, Heeseung. I love you, but I can’t keep fighting for something that feels like it’s slipping away. I can’t keep loving you when I’m standing here, completely in the dark about where we stand.”

His eyes met yours again, dark with regret, but also something softer—something vulnerable that had been buried under the walls he’d built up around himself.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, almost as if he was speaking to himself more than to you. “I didn’t mean to make you feel like that.”

You shook your head, the tears threatening to spill over but you kept them at bay. “It’s not just that, Heeseung. It’s the silence, the pushing me away, the way I’m always left wondering if you even care. I can’t keep pretending like everything’s fine when I don’t even know what’s going on in your head.”

He swallowed hard, guilt written all over his face. “I’ve been so messed up… I didn’t want to drag you down with me.”

“By pushing me away?” you said, your voice shaky but strong. “That’s how you think you’re protecting me?”

Heeseung looked at you, a flash of pain crossing his face. “I just thought if I kept you at a distance, maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much. But I didn’t realize… I didn’t realize I was pushing you too far away.”

The words lingered between you two, hanging in the charged air. Your heart ached as you looked at him—still the person you loved, but also the one who had been unknowingly tearing you apart. And yet, despite everything, there was a part of you that still wanted to hold on, wanted to believe that there was still something worth saving here.

“Do you even know what you want?” you asked quietly, your voice small, as you finally let the tears slip free. “Or is this just a mess you don’t know how to get out of?”

Heeseung’s eyes softened, the hard edge to his expression melting into something that mirrored the deep ache in your chest. He took a step closer to you, but you instinctively took a step back, the distance between you both painfully clear.

“I want you, Y/n,” he said, the words slipping out so quietly, like a confession he’d been holding in for too long. “But I don’t know how to fix all the shit I’ve done.”

You stared at him, the silence between you thick with everything you both had left unsaid.

“I can’t do this anymore,” you said, your voice a mixture of sorrow and finality. “I can’t keep waiting for you to decide if I’m worth it.”

His face fell, the weight of your words crushing him as the realization hit him full force.

“Y/n please.” Heeseung took a step forward, his voice trembling with desperation, but you held up your hand, stopping him in his tracks. The ache in your chest was overwhelming, but you knew this was the only way for both of you to move forward.

“No, Heeseung,” you said, your voice steady despite the storm of emotions inside you. “I’ve waited long enough. I can’t keep doing this to myself.”

Heeseung’s face twisted in pain as if your words were a physical blow. He ran a shaky hand through his hair, frustration and regret written all over him.

“Please, Y/n,” he repeated, stepping closer again, but you didn’t budge. “I never wanted to hurt you. I swear, I didn’t.”

“I know you didn’t,” you said softly, your heart breaking even more with every word. “But not knowing where we stand, not knowing if I even matter to you… I can’t keep living like that. I can’t keep holding onto something when you’re not even sure if you want it.”

Heeseung looked like he wanted to say something more, but the words seemed to get stuck in his throat. You could see it—the internal struggle, the guilt, the confusion—but none of it was enough. You had reached your limit.

“I need to let go, Heeseung,” you said quietly, your voice barely above a whisper now, the tears finally streaming down your face. “For my own sake. I can’t keep hanging on when you’re not even sure if you want me here.”

His eyes welled up with tears, the emotion in his expression raw and vulnerable. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.

“I’m sorry,” he finally managed, his voice breaking. “I’m so sorry, Y/n.”

You shook your head, wiping away your tears. “It’s not your fault, Heeseung,” you said, your voice filled with quiet resignation. “I think… I think we’ve both just lost each other.”

Heeseung stood there, looking utterly shattered, but there was nothing left to say. The distance between you both had grown too wide, and you could feel it—the finality of it all.

You took one last look at him, the person you loved so deeply, and turned away, the weight of the moment crashing down on you. As you walked away, the pain felt suffocating, but deep down, you knew it was the right choice

7 months later

“Heeseung, you should get out of the house, man,” Jake said, his tone firm but casual, as he sat across from him in their living room. Niki, who had been listening from the kitchen, walked over and leaned against the doorframe, nodding in agreement.

“Yeah, you’ve been cooped up in here for way too long,” Niki added, his usual laid-back attitude replaced with concern. “You need to get some fresh air, maybe have some fun. It’s been, what, seven months?”

Heeseung didn’t respond right away, the weight of their words hanging in the air. He had spent the last few months trying to shut out everything and everyone, sinking deeper into his own mind. But the more Jake and Niki mentioned it, the harder it was to ignore.

“Seriously, man,” Jake said, leaning forward. “We’re going out tonight. Jungwon and Niki invited us to eat, and it’s just a casual hangout. You don’t have to do anything. Just come and get out of your head for a bit.”

Heeseung stared at the empty space in front of him, feeling torn. He knew they were right. He had been wallowing in his own thoughts, trying to block out the world. But it was easier said than done.

“I don’t know…” Heeseung muttered, the thought of seeing people, of facing the world again, feeling almost too overwhelming.

“You don’t have to be on your own all the time,” Niki continued, pushing himself off the doorframe and walking closer. “We’re here, man. Just come out for a bit. No pressure.”

Heeseung looked up at both of them, their faces filled with concern, and sighed. He had tried to avoid the pain, the memories, but avoiding it wasn’t helping. Maybe they were right. Maybe it was time to stop hiding.

“Fine,” Heeseung finally said, standing up from the couch. “I’ll go. But don’t expect me to be all cheerful or whatever.”

Jake grinned, clapping him on the back. “That’s the spirit, man.”

Niki smiled too, giving Heeseung a knowing look. “It’s all about taking it one step at a time. Let’s get out of here.”

Heeseung took one last glance around the apartment before following his friends out, not entirely sure what he was expecting but knowing he needed to break free from the suffocating weight of his own mind. Maybe it was a small step, but it was a step forward.

The sound of your door creaking open was followed by Kim’s loud, cheerful voice. “Y/n! We’re not letting you rot in bed again. Get up!”

You groaned, burying your face deeper into your pillow. “Kim, I’m fine. I don’t need to go out.”

“You said that last week,” Chaewon chimed in, walking over to your closet and flipping through your clothes. “And the week before that. Enough is enough. You’re coming with us tonight.”

Yunjin sat on the edge of your bed, lightly tugging at your blanket. “Come on, it’ll be fun! We’re just going to grab dinner, nothing crazy. Plus, you need to eat something other than instant noodles.”

You peeked out from under the covers, your hair a mess, and your eyes narrowed. “Instant noodles are perfectly fine, thank you very much.”

Kim crossed her arms, smirking down at you. “Not when you’ve had them for three meals straight. Now, get up before we physically drag you out of here.”

Chaewon held up a cute but casual outfit, wiggling it in your direction. “This would look amazing on you. Trust me.”

You sighed dramatically, sitting up and running a hand through your hair. “You guys are relentless.”

“That’s because we love you,” Yunjin said with a grin, pulling you to your feet.

Kim pointed toward the bathroom. “Go freshen up. We’ll pick accessories while you get ready.”

“I don’t even want to know what you’re planning,” you muttered, shuffling toward the bathroom.

As you closed the door, their chatter filled the room.

“She’s going to look so good,” Chaewon said confidently.

“And she needs this,” Kim added. “It’s been way too long since she had fun.”

Yunjin grinned, tossing a pair of earrings onto the bed. “Operation Get Y/n Out of the House is officially a go.”

By the time you emerged, dressed and reluctantly ready, the three of them cheered like you’d just accomplished something monumental.

“You look amazing!” Chaewon said, beaming.

“Now, let’s go,” Kim said, grabbing your arm.

“Do I even have a choice?” you asked, rolling your eyes but smiling despite yourself.

“Nope,” Yunjin said, already pushing you out the door.

The restaurant buzzed with light chatter and the clinking of dishes as Heeseung, Jake, Niki, and Jungwon walked in. Heeseung stuffed his hands into his pockets, his gaze scanning the place out of habit rather than interest.

At a table near the window, a group of girls laughed, their voices cutting through the ambient noise. Heeseung froze for a moment when his eyes landed on you.

You were sitting with Kim, Chaewon, and Yunjin, your head tilted back as you laughed at something Kim said. The sight of you—smiling, carefree, and glowing under the dim lights—hit Heeseung like a sucker punch to the chest.

“Finally got Y/n out of the house,” Kim teased, nudging your shoulder playfully.

“Hey, I go out,” you replied, rolling your eyes but grinning. “It’s not my fault you guys drag me to the most random places.”

“Random or not, we’re here, and it’s fun,” Chaewon chimed in, her smile bright as she sipped her drink.

Heeseung’s heart sank as he watched you interact with them, his mind racing with memories of the times you had laughed like that with him. Jake noticed Heeseung’s gaze lingering and gently nudged his arm.

“You okay, man?” Jake asked quietly.

Heeseung blinked and tore his eyes away, trying to compose himself. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

But he wasn’t fine. Seeing you like this—happy, surrounded by friends, looking like you had moved on—made the ache in his chest grow deeper. It was everything he had wanted for you, yet it made him feel like he was drowning.

“Let’s sit over there,” Jungwon said, pointing to a table on the other side of the restaurant.

Heeseung nodded silently, following them but stealing one last glance in your direction. This wasn’t how he had imagined seeing you again. And as much as he tried to convince himself he was ready for it, the truth was, he wasn’t.

Heeseung sat down at the table with Jake, Jungwon, and Niki, his back half-turned toward your group. But no matter how much he tried to focus on the conversation his friends were having, his mind kept wandering back to you.

You looked so different yet so achingly familiar. The way your smile lit up the space around you, the way you leaned in to hear Kim better as the conversation grew louder—it all brought a flood of emotions he wasn’t ready to face.

Jake leaned closer to him. “You don’t have to keep staring, you know. She’s doing fine.”

“I wasn’t staring,” Heeseung muttered, gripping the edge of the table.

Jake raised a brow. “Right. You’ve been fine ever since we walked in here too, huh?”

Across the room, you were blissfully unaware of the turmoil unraveling at the other table. Kim was recounting a funny story about a professor who had accidentally emailed the entire class her grocery list.

“You’re kidding,” you said between laughs, shaking your head. “How do you even recover from something like that?”

“She played it off,” Kim said with a smirk. “Sent a follow-up email that said, ‘In case anyone’s wondering, yes, I bought the peanut butter.’”

The table erupted in laughter, your shoulders shaking as you tried to stifle your giggles. Heeseung heard the sound and felt it ripple through him like a bittersweet melody.

Niki leaned back in his chair, sipping his drink as he followed Heeseung’s gaze. “You’re torturing yourself, man. Either talk to her or stop looking.”

“Yeah, because barging into her life after everything would go so well,” Heeseung snapped quietly, his frustration seeping through.

Jungwon, ever the peacekeeper, spoke up. “Maybe it’s not about barging in. Just… say hi. She’s right there, and you’re not getting over her anytime soon if you keep bottling everything up.”

Heeseung didn’t respond, his jaw tightening. He wanted to talk to you more than anything, but seeing you so happy, so radiant, made him hesitate. What if his presence ruined the peace you had clearly found?

“Let’s just order,” Heeseung said, his voice low. But as the group began looking through their menus, his thoughts were miles away, stuck on you and the life you seemed to have rebuilt without him.

“I’m gonna go fill up my drink,” you said, standing up and grabbing your cup.

Kim looked up at you with a teasing grin. “Don’t take too long, or we’ll eat your fries.”

“Touch my food, and you’re walking home,” you shot back, a smirk tugging at your lips as you made your way toward the drink station.

As you filled your cup, the sound of the soda machine hummed around you, drowning out the restaurant’s chatter for a brief moment. You tapped your fingers against the counter, waiting for the foam to settle before topping off your drink.

When you turned to head back to your table, your eyes met someone else’s.

Heeseung.

He was standing by the table he shared with his friends, mid-conversation with Jungwon, but the second your gazes locked, it was like the rest of the room faded away.

For a moment, neither of you moved. His expression was unreadable—part shock, part longing, and entirely unsure.

You blinked, your heart stuttering in your chest. Out of all the places, out of all the nights, of course he would be here.

Kim’s voice carried over the noise, breaking the spell. “Y/n! Don’t tell me you’re socializing with strangers now!”

You rolled your eyes, breaking eye contact with Heeseung as you turned back toward your table. But even as you sat down, you could feel his gaze lingering, as if he was trying to decide whether to come over or let you walk away.

“Everything okay?” Chaewon asked, noticing the slight tension in your shoulders.

“Yeah,” you said, forcing a smile and taking a sip of your drink. “Just ran into someone I used to know.”

About thirty minutes later, you and the girls decided it was time to leave. The four of you stood outside the restaurant, laughing as you debated whether to call a rideshare or walk to the next spot on your night out.

Kim glanced at you, grinning. “That wasn’t so bad, right? You didn’t even look like you wanted to crawl under the table.”

“Shocking,” Chaewon added with a smirk.

You laughed, shaking your head. “Alright, I’ll admit it. I had fun.”

Just as you reached for your phone to order the ride, your hand froze mid-motion. Your heart dropped.

“Shit,” you muttered, patting your jacket and bag frantically.

“What?” Yunjin asked, her brows furrowing.

“My wallet—I think I left it inside.”

Kim groaned dramatically. “Y/n, you had one job.”

“I’ll be right back,” you said quickly, spinning on your heel and rushing back into the restaurant.

The warm air of the restaurant hit you as you stepped back inside, scanning the area where your group had been sitting. The table was empty now, the server clearing away plates, but your wallet wasn’t there.

“Y/n?”

The voice stopped you in your tracks, a mix of familiarity and uncertainty sending a jolt through your chest. Slowly, you turned around and found yourself face-to-face with Heeseung.

He stood a few feet away, holding your wallet in his hand. His expression was guarded, but there was a flicker of something in his eyes—relief, maybe? Or hesitation?

“I think this is yours,” he said, stepping closer and holding it out to you.

You blinked, the air between you feeling heavy. “Oh… yeah, it is. Thanks.”

As you reached out to take the wallet, your fingers brushed against his briefly, and the contact sent a shiver down your spine. You quickly pulled back, clutching it tightly.

Heeseung watched you carefully, his lips parting like he wanted to say something, but no words came out. The silence stretched, the weight of all the unsaid things between you threatening to crush the moment.

“You left it on the table,” he finally said, his voice softer now, almost hesitant.

“Yeah, I guess I wasn’t paying attention,” you replied, your voice quieter than usual.

He nodded, his gaze searching yours. “It’s… good to see you, Y/n.”

You froze, the sincerity in his tone catching you off guard. Before you could respond, Kim’s voice rang out from the doorway, breaking the moment.

“Y/n! Are you seriously taking this long?”

You glanced toward the door, then back at Heeseung. The look in his eyes was hard to read—part longing, part regret.

“I should go,” you said quickly, taking a step back.

“Right,” he murmured, stepping aside to let you pass.

With one last glance, you turned and walked away, clutching your wallet like it was the only thing keeping you grounded. You didn’t look back, but you could feel his eyes on you until you disappeared through the door.

Heeseung stood there, rooted to the spot, watching you leave. The weight of everything he wanted to say pressed against his chest, threatening to spill out, but the words never came.

He had so much to say.

He wanted to tell you how sorry he was, how much he missed you, how every moment without you felt like a hollow ache he couldn’t shake. He wanted to ask if you were happy, if the light in your eyes that he once adored was still as bright, even though it wasn’t his doing anymore.

But as he watched you walk away, all he could do was stand there, silent and frozen. His hand clenched into a fist at his side, the lingering warmth from where your fingers had briefly touched already fading.

“Coward,” he muttered to himself under his breath, frustration bubbling up.

Jake walked up behind him, having noticed the brief exchange. “Hee, man, you okay?”

Heeseung shook his head slightly, not tearing his eyes from the door you’d just walked through. “No, Jake. I’m not.”

Jake sighed, resting a hand on his shoulder. “You could’ve said something.”

“Yeah, I could’ve,” Heeseung murmured, his voice laced with regret. “But what good would it have done? She looked… she looked like she’s doing fine without me.”

Jake hesitated, then said, “Maybe. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want to hear it. You won’t know unless you try.”

Heeseung didn’t respond, his mind racing with everything he wished he’d said. But now, the moment was gone, and all he had left was the ache in his chest and the faint trace of your presence lingering in the air.

Kim’s voice jolted you from your thoughts as the two of you walked back to the car. Chaewon and Yunjin were a few steps ahead, chatting animatedly, but Kim had hung back with you, sensing something was on your mind.

“You saw Heeseung didn’t you?” she said, her tone laced with curiosity and concern.

You nodded slowly, still clutching your wallet tightly. “Yeah. He was in there with Jake and the others.”

Kim stopped walking and turned to face you, her brows furrowed. “Did you guys talk?”

“Barely,” you admitted, your voice quieter than usual. “It was… weird. He just handed me my wallet and said my name like he didn’t know what else to say.”

Kim sighed, crossing her arms. “And how did that make you feel?”

“Honestly?” You hesitated, looking at the pavement. “It felt like… like there was so much he wanted to say, but he didn’t. And I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”

Kim studied you for a moment before saying, “Do you still have feelings for him?”

The question made your chest tighten. You glanced away, unsure how to respond. “It’s not that simple, Kim. I don’t even know what I feel anymore.”

Kim placed a comforting hand on your shoulder. “Y/n, you don’t have to figure it out right now. But if seeing him stirred something up, maybe that’s a sign you guys still have unfinished business.”

“Unfinished business,” you echoed with a small, bitter laugh. “Isn’t that just a fancy way of saying we didn’t work out the first time?”

Kim gave you a knowing look. “Or it means there’s something worth figuring out. Just… don’t run from it, okay? If he tries to talk to you again, hear him out. You deserve closure—or whatever else this could lead to.”

You nodded reluctantly, her words sinking in. “I guess we’ll see.”

And with that, you both continued walking, but the thought of Heeseung lingered in your mind, no matter how hard you tried to push it away.

The ride home was quiet, the usual banter between you and your friends replaced by a heavy silence. Kim occasionally glanced at you from the driver’s seat, but she didn’t press further, giving you space to sort through your thoughts.

Chaewon and Yunjin had fallen into a conversation about something trivial—probably to fill the void—but their voices felt distant, like background noise. Your mind was still replaying the moment in the restaurant: the way Heeseung looked at you, like he wanted to say a million things but couldn’t bring himself to say even one.

“Are you okay?” Kim asked softly once the car was parked outside your apartment.

You nodded, though the truth was far more complicated. “Yeah. Thanks for tonight, Kim.”

“Anytime,” she said, her expression warm but tinged with worry. “Just… don’t bottle it all up, okay? If you need to talk, I’m here.”

As you stepped out of the car, Chaewon and Yunjin waved goodbye, their cheerful energy a stark contrast to the storm brewing inside you. You waved back half-heartedly before heading inside.

The quiet of your apartment was almost deafening. You dropped your wallet on the counter and sank onto the couch, Heeseung’s face flashing in your mind again. It wasn’t just the sight of him—it was the weight of everything left unsaid, the questions that had been haunting you for months.

You leaned back, staring at the ceiling, Kim’s words echoing in your head.

Maybe there was unfinished business. Maybe there wasn’t. But one thing was clear: seeing Heeseung tonight had reopened wounds you thought were healing.

Heeseung let out a frustrated groan, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and his hands tangled in his hair. “Fuck, I should’ve said more.”

Jake glanced at him from the couch, eyebrows raised. “You think?”

Heeseung shot him a glare but didn’t argue. “She was right there, Jake. I had the chance, and I just… froze. What kind of idiot does that?”

“The kind of idiot who’s still in love,” Jake said bluntly, shrugging. “You’re overthinking it, man. You saw her, you didn’t say enough—fine. But it’s not the end of the world. You’ll get another chance.”

Heeseung let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. “What if I don’t? What if that was it? She looked… happy, Jake. Like she didn’t even need me anymore.”

Jake leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees as he met Heeseung’s gaze. “You don’t know that. People can look happy on the outside and still be dealing with all kinds of stuff. And even if she is happy, that doesn’t mean she’s moved on completely. You’ve got history, Hee. That doesn’t just disappear.”

Heeseung leaned back in the chair, staring at the ceiling like it held the answers he couldn’t find. “I wanted to say so much. To tell her I’m sorry, that I’ve been trying to get my shit together. That I—”

“That you still love her?” Jake cut in, his voice soft.

Heeseung closed his eyes, the weight of the words settling over him. “Yeah,” he admitted quietly. “That I still love her.”

Jake sighed, standing up and clapping a hand on Heeseung’s shoulder. “Then stop beating yourself up and do something about it. You might not get a million chances, but you’ve got at least one more. Don’t waste it.”

Heeseung nodded slowly, the flicker of determination in his chest growing just a little brighter. “I won’t.”

But as the silence settled again, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d find the courage to follow through—or if he’d let fear hold him back once more.

Over the next few days, you couldn’t stop thinking about the encounter with Heeseung. It was like his face was etched into the corners of your mind, his voice echoing in your ears. The way he said your name—soft, hesitant, almost like a question—played on repeat in your head.

You hated it. Hated that he could still have this effect on you after everything. You’d worked so hard to move on, to rebuild yourself after the breakup. Yet, seeing him again had stirred up feelings you thought you’d buried for good.

“You’re distracted,” Kim said, snapping you out of your thoughts as she flopped onto your bed. “And I know why.”

You rolled your eyes but didn’t deny it. “I’m not distracted.”

Kim raised an eyebrow. “Sure you’re not. Is it the wallet? Or the boy who gave it to you?”

You groaned, burying your face in your hands. “I hate you.”

“No, you don’t,” she teased, nudging your shoulder. “But seriously, Y/n, it’s okay to feel stuff. You don’t have to pretend it didn’t mess with your head. Closure’s a myth, anyway. Everyone just carries their crap until they figure out what to do with it.”

Her words made you pause, and you glanced at her. “Since when are you the wise one?”

Kim grinned. “Since I’ve had to deal with you moping all week. Now, do us both a favor and figure out what you want to do about Heeseung, because this whole staring at the ceiling and sighing thing is killing me.”

You wanted to laugh, but instead, you found yourself thinking. What did you want to do about Heeseung?

The question lingered, following you like a shadow as the days stretched on. And no matter how much you tried to ignore it, the answer remained just out of reach.

“Does he even want me back? I fucking left him,” you muttered, the words heavy with guilt and frustration.

Kim sat up, her expression softening. “Y/n, you left because you had to. You weren’t happy. And if he didn’t want you back, why would he have looked at you like that?”

You sighed, shaking your head. “I don’t know, Kim. Maybe it was just shock. Maybe he wasn’t expecting to see me there.”

“Or maybe he’s still in love with you,” Kim countered, her tone firm. “Look, I get it. You’re scared. But don’t let that fear stop you from finding out the truth. If you’re still thinking about him, it’s because you care. And from the way he looked at you? He cares too.”

You bit your lip, the ache in your chest growing. “What if I reach out, and he doesn’t want to talk to me? What if he’s moved on?”

“Then at least you’ll know,” Kim said gently. “And you can move on too. But you won’t know unless you try. You owe it to yourself, Y/n.”

Her words lingered long after she left, the silence of your room pressing down on you. Did Heeseung still want you? Or were you chasing something that had already slipped through your fingers?

You reached for your phone, staring at his name in your contacts. Your thumb hovered over the screen, heart pounding.

Heeseung rubbed his eyes, still feeling the weight of his nap settling in. His head was foggy, but one thing was clear: Jake’s words had been ringing in his mind nonstop since they left the restaurant.

“You should go talk to her.”

It felt like a simple suggestion, but in reality, it was far from easy. After everything—how you left, the distance between you two—it felt like a mountain he wasn’t sure he was ready to climb. But the way you’d looked at him when he handed you your wallet, the way you barely said a word to him after all this time… it made him wonder if there was something more to this—if maybe it wasn’t too late.

He dragged himself out of bed, feeling a strange restlessness in his chest. There was a pit of guilt there, too, the nagging thought that he had hurt you more than he realized.

Taking his phone off the nightstand, he scrolled through his contacts, pausing when he landed on your name. His thumb hovered over the message icon. What would he even say? Could he even say something meaningful after everything? Was it too late for him to even try?

He let out a shaky breath, still unsure. Jake had been right. He had to do something.

After a long pause, he finally typed:

“Hey, Y/n. Can we talk? I think we need to. I know it’s been a while, but… I still think about everything that happened.”

He hesitated, staring at the message. It felt too simple, too vague, but it was the best he could do for now. He hit send before he could talk himself out of it.

And then he waited.

You glanced at your phone, noticing the notification as Kim stepped out of your room. She had been giving you space, letting you process everything on your own, but she knew you’d been on edge since the night at the restaurant.

You unlocked your phone, heart racing as you saw the message from Heeseung.

“Hey, Y/n. Can we talk? I think we need to. I know it’s been a while, but… I still think about everything that happened.”

Your fingers hovered over the screen, uncertainty creeping in. Kim’s words echoed in your mind—“Maybe there’s unfinished business.” But was it really unfinished? Or was it just something that needed to stay in the past?

Kim must’ve noticed the change in your expression, as she turned back toward you. “What’s up?” she asked, her voice soft but curious.

You didn’t reply right away, still staring at Heeseung’s message. You felt a mix of emotions—guilt, confusion, and an undeniable pull to respond. But part of you wanted to close the chapter, to move forward without looking back.

Kim raised an eyebrow. “Is it from Heeseung?”

You nodded slowly, taking in a breath before replying, “Yeah. He wants to talk.”

Kim’s expression softened, understanding the weight of the situation. “So… what are you going to do?”

You bit your lip, unsure. “I don’t know. Part of me wants to, but another part of me feels like… maybe it’s too late.”

Kim shrugged lightly. “You don’t have to make a decision right now. Just think about it. You deserve to figure out what you want.” She gave you a small, encouraging smile. “But don’t forget—whatever happens, you’ve got me, okay?”

You nodded, feeling the weight of the decision pressing down on you. The last thing you wanted was to make a mistake, but you couldn’t ignore the fact that Heeseung still had a piece of your heart, no matter how much you tried to convince yourself otherwise.

Taking a deep breath, you finally typed back:

“We can talk. When?”

As you hit send, your heart raced, knowing that this was only the beginning of whatever this conversation would bring.

Heeseung’s heart raced as he read your response, the weight lifting off his chest just a little bit. “We can talk. When?”

Before he could fully process it, Jake and Jungwon erupted with excitement, jumping up from their spots like they’d just won the lottery.

“Dude, she’s down! She wants to talk!” Jake shouted, clapping Heeseung on the shoulder. Jungwon grinned, his eyes shining with excitement.

“See? Told you it’d work out,” Jungwon said, giving Heeseung a thumbs-up.

Heeseung stared at the message, a nervous smile tugging at the corner of his lips. He hadn’t expected things to go this smoothly, but now that it had, he was filled with a mix of relief and anxiety.

“Now what?” Heeseung muttered to himself, rubbing the back of his neck as his friends continued celebrating.

Jake laughed, shaking his head. “You make the next move, man. Just figure out when and where. Don’t overthink it.”

Jungwon grinned. “Yeah, go talk to her, and just be honest. No more games.”

Heeseung nodded, finally feeling a sense of clarity. He pulled out his phone again, fingers hovering over the keyboard as he thought about what to say next. After a moment, he typed back:

“How about tomorrow afternoon? We can meet at that café we used to go to.”

He hesitated for a second before hitting send, then leaned back, exhaling slowly. It was out of his hands now.

Jake gave him a teasing grin. “Tomorrow, huh? You sure you’re ready for that?”

Heeseung couldn’t help but smirk, though his nerves were still on edge. “I don’t know, but I have to be.”

Jungwon slapped him on the back. “Well, good luck, man. Don’t mess this up.”

Heeseung nodded, a quiet determination setting in. Tomorrow, he’d finally get the chance to talk to you—really talk—and hopefully, things would start to make sense again.

You sighed in relief as you read Heeseung’s response, the weight on your chest finally starting to lift. “How about tomorrow afternoon? We can meet at that café we used to go to.”

It felt like a step in the right direction, but there was still a knot in your stomach. Talking to Heeseung meant confronting everything—what had happened before, the reasons you broke up, and whether or not things could truly work out this time.

You leaned back against your bed, staring at the ceiling, trying to calm your racing thoughts. Tomorrow. You would finally see him again. The anticipation was both exciting and terrifying.

Kim had been right—there was still something there, even if you hadn’t fully admitted it yet. Maybe, just maybe, this conversation would give you the answers you needed.

For the first time in days, you felt a flicker of hope, but you also knew that no matter how it went, things wouldn’t be the same as they once were. That was okay, though. You just needed to find out where this path would lead.

As you put your phone down, you glanced at the clock. Tomorrow would come soon enough. You just hoped you were ready for it.

Heeseung paced back and forth in his room, holding up different shirts in front of the mirror, clearly unsure. His nerves were getting the best of him. He couldn’t help but replay every single moment from the past few days, wondering if he was making the right choice by reaching out to you.

“Jake, help me out here,” he called out, holding up a plain black tee and then a slightly more buttoned-up shirt. “Which one looks less like I’m about to die of anxiety?”

Jake, who had been sitting at the desk, looking through his phone, sighed and rolled his eyes before getting up. “Man, you’re overthinking this. It’s just a conversation. Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable.”

“But—” Heeseung cut himself off with a groan, dropping the shirts on his bed. “What if I mess this up? I don’t even know what to say to her.”

“Seriously, dude,” Jake said, walking over and picking up the black tee, throwing it back onto Heeseung’s bed. “Just be honest with her. That’s all you need to do. You’ve been through so much already—there’s no point in pretending or trying to have some perfect line ready.”

Jungwon, who had been lounging lazily on Heeseung’s bed, barely glanced at them as he slouched further into the pillows. “Yeah, just don’t be an idiot. You’ve got to talk. No more avoiding the hard stuff.”

Heeseung let out a shaky breath, grabbing the black tee. “I guess… you’re right. I just don’t want to screw this up.”

“Trust me, you won’t,” Jake reassured him. “And if you do, we’ll never let you hear the end of it.”

Jungwon chuckled from the bed. “Especially me.”

“Great,” Heeseung muttered, though a small smile tugged at his lips. He quickly changed into the shirt and ran a hand through his hair. “Okay. I’m going. But what do I even say when I get there?”

“Start with ‘hey’ and go from there,” Jake joked.

Heeseung shot him a glare but laughed nervously. “Yeah, very helpful. Thanks.”

Jungwon sat up, finally taking his eyes off the TV. “Seriously, just go in and don’t overthink it. Y/n’s not going to bite your head off. Just talk. If you feel like you don’t know what to say, just be real with her.”

Heeseung nodded, feeling a little better but still overwhelmed. “Alright. Alright. I can do this.”

He turned toward the door, taking one last deep breath before stepping out. He didn’t know what would happen, but he had to take the chance. This was his shot to fix things. And even if it didn’t work out, at least he’d have the closure he needed.

“Good luck, man,” Jake called after him, offering a thumbs-up.

Jungwon just gave him a lazy wave. “Don’t screw it up asshole.”

Heeseung smiled faintly, feeling a little lighter as he left his room. The nervousness hadn’t disappeared, but maybe it didn’t have to. All he needed to do was show up and try.

Kim raised an eyebrow as she lounged on your bed, watching you scramble through your wardrobe. “Seriously, you’re overthinking this,” she said, crossing her arms. “You’re just meeting up with your ex, not going to a Met Gala.”

You huffed, holding up two options: a simple sweater and jeans or a more casual blouse and leggings. “I know, but I want to make a good impression, Kim. I don’t want to look like I don’t care.”

Kim let out an exaggerated sigh, then grabbed the sweater and jeans from your hands, tossing them onto the bed. “This one. It’s chill but still cute. Trust me, Heeseung’s not going to be judging you on your outfit, he’s going to be nervous as hell trying to figure out what to say.”

You smirked, running a hand through your hair. “Maybe, but I just don’t want to look like I rolled out of bed either.”

“Y/n,” Kim said with a grin, “you’re overthinking this. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in. Heeseung’s going to appreciate the fact that you’re even meeting up with him, no matter what you’re wearing.”

You took a deep breath, calming yourself. “Yeah, you’re right. I just��� haven’t seen him in a while. I don’t even know how this is going to go.”

Kim gave you a reassuring smile as she stood up from the bed. “It’ll be fine. You’ll do great. Just take it easy.”

You nodded, slipping into the outfit Kim had chosen for you. As you looked at yourself in the mirror, the nerves didn’t disappear, but they softened a little. Maybe this would be the start of something new—or maybe just a chance to get some answers. Either way, you were ready to take the first step.

Kim’s hand was on your back, practically shoving you out the door. “C’mon, goo,” she urged, her tone playful but firm as she nudged you toward the stairs. “You’ve got this. Don’t overthink it, alright?”

You shot her a nervous glance as you grabbed your jacket, trying to steady your breath. “Kim, I’m freaking out here,” you admitted, voice shaky.

She rolled her eyes but smirked. “You’re fine. You’ve been through worse. Just go meet him, talk, and whatever happens, happens.”

You gave a reluctant nod, feeling the weight of her encouragement sinking in. “Okay, okay. I got this.”

Kim gave you a quick pat on the back before pushing you toward the door. “That’s the spirit. Now, go. He’s waiting, and you’re gonna be great.”

You stood at the door for a moment, gathering your nerves, before you finally stepped outside into the cool air.

Heeseung sat in his car, parked just down the street from the café, staring out the window at the busy sidewalk. His fingers tapped nervously against the steering wheel, his heart racing as the minutes ticked by. He had arrived early, hoping to gather his thoughts before you showed up. But now, all he could think about was the fact that you were actually going to be there soon.

“Alright, just breathe,” he muttered to himself, but the words didn’t seem to help. His mind was a whirlpool of what-ifs and should-have-said’s, running through everything he wanted to say to you, yet not knowing how to begin.

He leaned back in his seat, sighing deeply. “This is insane,” he whispered. “I should’ve said more last time. Why didn’t I just say something?”

Jake’s words echoed in his head again: You’ve gotta go after it, Heeseung. Don’t let her slip away.

But it wasn’t that simple, was it? He had hurt you before. Could he fix that? Would you even want to hear him out?

His phone buzzed, pulling him out of his thoughts. It was a message from Jungwon: Don’t overthink it, bro. You got this.

He stared at the screen, taking a deep breath. “Yeah… I got this,” he muttered again, though it didn’t feel like he did. But for you, he would try.

You stepped into the café, the door chiming as you entered. Your nerves were a little frayed, but you tried to shake them off as you scanned the room. Your eyes landed on Heeseung almost immediately. He was sitting by the window, looking a little out of place as he fidgeted with his hands on the table. His usual confident demeanor seemed to have melted away, replaced by the same nervous energy that you were feeling.

Your heart skipped a beat at the sight of him. He was still… Heeseung. The same guy you had laughed with, fought with, and cared about. You hadn’t realized how much you missed him until now, when you saw him sitting there, just waiting.

You took a deep breath, adjusting your jacket, and made your way toward him. As you approached, Heeseung’s head shot up. His eyes met yours, and for a moment, neither of you said anything. You both stood there in silence, just taking in the moment of being in the same room again.

“Hey,” you said softly, offering a small, tentative smile.

Heeseung opened his mouth, but no words came out at first. He looked like he was struggling to find the right thing to say, his usual confidence nowhere to be found.

“Hey,” he finally managed, his voice quieter than usual. He stood up, his hands awkwardly shifting to his pockets. “You… You look good. It’s—uh—it’s been a while.”

You smiled at the awkwardness of the moment, but it felt good to see him again. “Yeah, it has,” you said, your voice steadier than you felt. “I didn’t think we’d end up here again.”

Heeseung nodded, his gaze dropping for a moment. “Me neither. I—uh, I’ve been thinking a lot about… everything.” He looked back up at you, his eyes searching yours. “And, I don’t know, I guess I never really got the chance to say the things I needed to say.”

You sat down across from him, trying to steady your breath. “Well, here’s your chance,” you said, the words coming out more lighthearted than you had intended.

Heeseung exhaled slowly, clearly gathering his thoughts before speaking. “I messed up, Y/n. I—when we broke up, I didn’t really know what I was doing. I didn’t know how to deal with everything. I hurt you, and I’m sorry for that. I should’ve communicated better, instead of… shutting you out.” He hesitated, watching you carefully. “I shouldn’t have let you go like that.”

You met his gaze, feeling the weight of everything he said. For a second, the world seemed to fall away. It wasn’t just the words; it was the sincerity in his voice. It made you want to believe that maybe this wasn’t all for nothing.

“I know I hurt you too,” you said, your voice quieter now. “I left because I didn’t feel like you were letting me in. I needed more than just being kept at arm’s length. I needed to know you were actually there.” You swallowed, glancing away for a moment. “I just— I didn’t know how much I could keep waiting for something that felt so uncertain.”

Heeseung nodded, his expression softening. “I get that. I should’ve been more open. But I was scared. And I—I thought if I pushed you away, you wouldn’t get hurt by the things I was going through.” He exhaled sharply, like it was all finally coming out. “But I was wrong.”

The weight of everything between you two hung in the air, thick and heavy, yet somehow lighter with each word he spoke. You both sat in silence for a moment, the tension easing just a little.

“So, what now?” you asked, breaking the quiet between you.

Heeseung paused, his eyes studying you carefully. “I don’t know. But I want to try again. If you’re willing to give me another chance.”

You stared at him, feeling the pull of everything you had once shared with him. The longing, the hurt, the connection. You weren’t sure what was going to happen, but for the first time in a long time, you felt like maybe—just maybe—there was a chance.

“I don’t know if we can just go back to how things were,” you said slowly, your heart pounding in your chest. “But I’m willing to see where this goes. If you really want to try, we can.”

Heeseung’s face softened, relief washing over him as he nodded. “I do. I really do.”

You and Heeseung had wandered for what felt like hours, the night air cool and refreshing as you strolled through the quiet streets. The conversation had ebbed and flowed, sometimes falling into comfortable silences, other times turning into spontaneous laughter over shared memories. Eventually, you both found yourselves at a park, the soft glow of the streetlights casting long shadows on the path ahead.

The park was peaceful, with a few scattered people walking dogs or sitting on benches, enjoying the calm evening. You both sat on a nearby bench, the weight of the conversation feeling less heavy now. Heeseung looked at you, his face thoughtful as he kicked at a pebble on the ground.

“Funny, right?” he said, breaking the silence. “How we both ended up here, after everything.”

You nodded, looking out at the moon reflecting off the small pond in front of you. “It feels a little surreal.”

Heeseung chuckled softly, glancing at you. “I guess life works in weird ways. I didn’t expect to be sitting here with you again, but… I’m glad I am.”

You looked at him then, your eyes meeting his, and for the first time in what felt like forever, the tension between you two didn’t seem so insurmountable. There was no rushing, no pressure to make things perfect. It felt like you could breathe again.

“I’m glad too,” you admitted, your voice quieter than usual. You paused, gathering your thoughts. “Heeseung, I’ve been thinking a lot. About us. About what happened.”

Heeseung’s gaze softened, and he nodded slowly. “Me too. I don’t want to just gloss over everything. I know we both made mistakes.”

You sighed, leaning back against the bench. “It’s hard to know where to even begin. I don’t want to keep pretending things are okay when we both know they weren’t.”

Heeseung let out a breath, running a hand through his hair. “I’ve been thinking about that too. I’ve missed you, Y/n. More than I realized.” His voice was quiet, but there was something genuine about it that made your chest tighten.

“I’ve missed you too,” you confessed, feeling the weight of the words. You hadn’t realized how much you had longed for this, for the connection you’d once had. “I just didn’t know how to make it right.”

Heeseung shifted closer, his eyes never leaving yours. “Maybe we don’t need to have all the answers right now. Maybe we just need to figure it out, together. Step by step.”

When you returned home later that evening, the house felt quieter than usual. The familiar hum of the world outside seemed distant as you walked through the door, your thoughts still lingering on the walk with Heeseung. You weren’t sure exactly what had shifted, but something in you felt lighter, less burdened.

Kim was sitting on the couch, scrolling through her phone, and glanced up when she heard the door close.

“You’re back late,” she said casually, but her eyes narrowed, a knowing look crossing her face. “So… how’d it go?”

You smiled a little, the edges of the anxiety from earlier starting to fade away. “It went okay. Better than okay, actually.”

Kim raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. “Better than okay, huh? What does that mean?”

You walked over to the couch, sitting down beside her. “We talked. A lot. And… it was different this time. Not all that awkward, not like the last time we tried.”

Kim’s expression softened as she put her phone down. “That’s good, Y/n. You deserve to be happy, you know?”

You sighed, feeling a sense of relief wash over you. “I don’t know what’s going to happen next. But I think I’m ready to take things one step at a time, see where it goes.”

Kim nodded, her smile small but genuine. “I’m proud of you. Whatever happens, I know you’ll be okay.”

You leaned back on the couch, allowing yourself a moment of quiet reflection. The night with Heeseung hadn’t fixed everything, but maybe that wasn’t the point. Maybe it was about the small steps forward, the willingness to try again, even if you didn’t have all the answers.

When Heeseung stepped inside, the familiar sound of the lock twisting echoed through the apartment. Jungwon and Jake immediately sprang from the couch, both of them eager to hear about his time with you.

“Well?” Jake asked, eyes bright with anticipation as he walked up to Heeseung.

Jungwon stretched lazily, his grin wide. “Did you two finally talk, or did you just walk in silence the whole time?”

Heeseung dropped his bag by the door, taking a deep breath before looking at his friends. “We talked. It wasn’t easy, but… we talked. It was better than I expected.”

Jake raised an eyebrow. “Better than expected? That’s some vague ass wording. Come on, details.”

Heeseung chuckled, running a hand through his hair. “It wasn’t like how it used to be, Jake. There was no fighting or tension… we just, I don’t know, really talked. Like adults, I guess.”

Jungwon leaned forward, intrigued. “What do you mean, ‘like adults’? Is this some new Heeseung we’re talking about?”

Heeseung smirked, glancing at Jungwon. “Maybe. But it felt different. I think we’re both trying to figure things out. I’m not sure what’s going to happen, but we’re not in the same place we were.”

Jake clapped Heeseung on the back, a grin spreading across his face. “Well, that’s progress, man. Don’t mess it up this time.”

Heeseung’s smile faltered slightly, but he nodded. “Yeah. I don’t plan on it.”

@evorlaah

[gerardpilled]

Yk u we’re so right on the post u made about how “frerard moments” are just interviews asking them inappropriate questions they DONT want to answer … like why would you fucking ask a grown ass man how another grown ass man lips feel?? 😭 and the interview where the guy asked frank if gerard sleeps naked like ummm ok now why would you ask that. like you can so obviously tell in pay interviews the DO NOT like answers questions like that, so why ask it? like imagine someone doing that to you? like that’s so fucking weird, like just because they are celebrities doesn’t mean they aren’t real people too, like these are real people with literal WIFES and CHILDREN… why are we asking them this kinda stuff?? ugh I could go on and on about how weird that shit is but like I said that post you made is soo right, all “frerard moments” are just them being harassed with weird questions by creepy ass interviewers

and if they didn’t answer or spoke out they probably were thinking about how they would be labeled as assholes!! They definitely leaned into the gay allegations at one point but that doesn’t give the reporters the right to ask weird ass questions. lol I’m not actually mad at interviews from 20 years ago, odds are half of them were conducted by college students or people at their first jobs who regret it nowadays. It’s not a crime to ask poorly conceived questions during an interview, I just wish more people in “fandom spaces” noticed that is what they were. If someone asked those questions to Shawn Mendes today there would be a whole Conversation. And rightfully so!

[heytetsu]

kuroko’s basketball is one of my favorite animes. ive been watching it since my freshmen year. and still plan on doing it through college. it’s just the best: I don’t know. I’d forever admit that it’s not like the greatest anime, of course not, and people complain it’s unrealistic .. but like yeah of course it is. 😭

and also it’s inconsistent— which yeah that’s true. ive read around that people don’t like kuroko? but i adore him and relate to him. I struggle with the feeling of invisibility. I felt unseen through my freshmen year. and then in my junior year. like j was hardly there.

now I’m a senior, and it feels like I’ve grown. I’ve become seen and made a mark on people— even if it’s mainly my teachers.

I didn’t feel like my presence was felt and that no one would notice a thing about me. but I’m a pain in the ass and my determination is wild.

I didn’t really care for friends during my junior year and focused so much on my schooo work. people just know me for how much I study and my grades. which ykw, fine. valid. bc I put in a lot of effort into school bc academic validation. I’m not the type to slack off.

I had my own Kuroko moment, with him getting back up off the bench during the rakuzan match and not giving up. but mine was in a more academic setting.

Aka ap physics. my personal hell 😍. A class where I didn’t understand a thing; where I felt like I was gonna fail and ruin my gpa. and that j was gonna fail the ap exam, therefore making me waste money bc man that shit is expensive.

but then thinbd changed. we took a mock exam for one of our final tests and yours truly got a 4. miraculously amirite. I worked my ass off.

and I didn’t give up even when I got burnt out. I always have one class I struggle with. and physics was my rakuzan. and me, me of all people managed to pass with a four.

when that surely seemed shocking because I was definitely not one of the smartest at all. but hey I defeated my own rakuzan.

[harlowsbby]

You just found out the man of your so called dreams has been sleeping with your best friend behind your back, even after you gave her a home to stay in after leaving her abusive and toxic ex I- Urban are you fuckin Fr? NOT WORTH BREAKIN UP?!?’ He CHEATIN on her with her “BEST FRIEND”Fake stupid hoe IN HER OWN HOUSE!! Ohh hell naw, FUCK HIM, FUCK HER & FUCK YOU!! FUCK ALL YALL MOTHAFUCKAS GOT ME ALLL THE WAY FUCKED TO THE UP!! HE LUCKY WE AINT WHOOPIN HIS ASS RN!! But he got what’s coming to him AND SO DOES THAT HOE!! 🖕🏽🖕🏽

Jack looked up at you in sorrow and defeat he knew he had just lost the best thing he ever had. Boyyy ain’t nobody got fuckin pity for your raggedy ass tf 🤨 at least you know YOU FUMBLED THE FUCKIN BAG!!

“Now you know I’d never say anything like that I just wanna make sure we’ll still have our time together.” No yo ass js don’t wanna get caught 😒

“Miya is a baddie that’s what and you get to see that fine piece of ass walking around your house for free. I’m very jealous of you.” I- are you fuckin dumb?? He’s gotta a girlfriend WHO HE IS ENGAGED TO!! Tf u mean you jealous?!? Urb you on my list, I’m whoop yo ass first to get yo WHACK WEAK ASS OUT THE WAY!!

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.” Jack knew thinking about the possibility of cheating on you was wrong but he’d be lying if it he said he didn’t glance at Miya’s chest or ass whenever she was around and now that he was thinking about it Miya did give him flirty eyes a few times ARE. YOU. MOTHAFUCKIN. KIDDING. ME?? THESE BITCH RLLY ARE MENTAL!! With they ass lookin like they eat mayonnaise straight outta the container. Lookin like near death experience’s give them a new meaning in life. Lookin like they throw up 🤙🏻 when they see a cute girl in the store. Like are y’all fuckin middle school boys OR GROWN ASS MEN?!? Cause I rlly cant fucking tell!!

“Yeah, I’ll see you later Jack but remember what I said! Two is better then one.” Urban snickered before leaving the house leaving a wondering Jack all alone in his thoughts. JACKMAN You rlly gon listen to the man WHO HAS NO BITCHES?!

and blushed when he noticed Miya laughing from behind you.😒😐🤨

“Oh hey Mia or I mean Miya yeah hey Miya.” He spoke nervously making her chuckle. This bitch has noooo fucking game! How the shit did he get away wit CHEATIN 🤨 and howwww the actual fuck did his ass bag YN?!

“You know I’m not stupid Jack, I know you want me just as bad as I want you.” She whispered in his ear and ran her tongue across his earlobe. YOU ARE A REAL DIRTY ASS FUCKIN BITCH!! And I just know yo pussy stank Fr 😷

“How about I show you where things can go for us.” Jack inhaled and watch Miya go to work he bit his lip and tried his best to hold in his moans and groans but it felt so good. I reallyyy fuckin hope, wish and pray yo damn dick fall off 😐 Lord forgive me but I said what I said 🤷🏽‍♀️

Part two comin 😭🤭

AHHHH ALL OF THE EMOTIONS 😭😭😭😭 I LITERALLY LOVEEEEEEEEE SEEING YOU IN MY INBOX AFTER READING MY STUFF

Girlllll Jack had the reader alllll the way fucked up in this one but in this other piece I’m working on it’s more like sad 😭 it’s based off a music video so I can’t wait to post it

Miya was a fake ass friend and so was Urban if we’re being honest especially since he pretty much sprung the idea onto Jack and Jack well we been knew he wasn’t gonna be shit and the fact that he cheated on her in their house smhhh 😭

[callmenaex3]

I LOVE my lash tech!! She hears all my crazy stories and life updates that I don’t tell my friends or family. We were just laughing about Unc trying to tell me I had “no stability.” Then had to reflect on everything I tricked off on this man for 😭 I had clearly bumped my head doing the most for someone who couldn’t do shit but give me good 🍆 I can’t even lie and say it was basura. It just wasn’t worth all the money I spent on him. It was giving very much buying his time. Yet he loved to “niggas got money” and never offered not a penny. No gas, no free bud, no money towards hotel rooms, no parking garage money, no paying for dinners. I was BIG MAMA frfr so I understand why these niggas brag about ever getting the chance to be in my presence. To the point their corny asses let that damn mask fall and say “I just can’t believe I’m with you” like now my eye WIDE TF open! What you mean by that? 😂🤣 I can laugh now, but it’s the way he thought I was so young and naive to not notice. Unc grown af acting worse than the men my age. Granted I had to give myself some grace, because whether he accompanied me or not I would’ve been in all of those places I took him. I just would’ve went solo as per usual.

In conclusion, no more unc (or anyone 10+ years older), no more baby daddy’s, no more men who can’t even put a DoorDash account in their name, no more men who have to drive rental cars (trading them every few weeks), no more homeless niggas!

[m1ckeyb3rry]

Yuki’s LN was actually a sob story omg THE DOG WAS SO CUTEEE omg I hope he adopts a dog someday in the future bro did NOT think that scuffle through but omg just shows how selfless he is…

LMAOO FR!! I mean if I really had to rank then yeah I TECHNICALLY have a fav but if you really asked me to choose between faves I probably wouldn’t be able to still even though some are technically ranked “higher” than others

No because Rin giving old vibes /hj in a different way than Aiku LMAOO wait I would pay to see Barou captain that’d be really funny “YOU DONKEYS GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER!!!!!!!”

Oh yeah I’ve not dipped my toes in AoT at all so that makes sense LOL

LMAOOOO OMG DO IT (imagine a double date but in the end y/n talks more to his sister and yuki than to him LMFAO)

No definitely as I went back and did the formal translation he was 6 and the sister should’ve been 9 by their description of her being 3 years older so?? Not even double digits (BRUH THE REO ONE IS DIABOLICAL??? WDYM A GROWN ASS ADULT WAS CONFESSING TO BASICALLY A LIKE 7 YEAR OLD HSHDSHSHSH)

GRAND AGE OF SIX AT 5K WORDS ok so if we do the math…. 2k at 4, 5k at 6, 3k word difference per 2 years, 1.5k words per year. Assuming this ends up at 20 year old Karasu that means we still have 14 years to go. 14 x 1.5k is 21k. Therefore, the new ballpark is now 21k /j (if this math is wrong um…no it isn’t!!! /j) im assuming we wouldn’t be seeing every single year in between so this is probably a bit overboard anyways LOL

No wait I love seeing childhood moments because they’re honestly so important for shaping who someone turns out to be?? OOHUU IM LOVING IT “I only see you as a child” angst progression

Nagi does NOT see the sun bro needs some vitamin d for his pasty ass…/j but FR I’m devouring these Karasu crumbs also I’ve noticed Otoya’s hair has been slightly more silver leaning! I’m pretty certain it’s still supposed to be relatively white, but typically in digital art using like pure white usually isn’t as great because it leaves less possibilities in terms of lighting and coloring so that might be why..? The version of him in the game also isn’t like pure white white so I’m wondering if that’s the case (also mixed with the sort of darker kinda color tone of s2) so I don’t think it’d be wrong to refer to it to white still! The (little) merch floating around of him also has his hair basically white so. No because not even a SLIVER of his hairline like yeah I know it’s my man’s chin but would it kill you to show his face?? No fr I was wondering why Otoya too….like I know that Karasu is more popular than him…and also Hiori too?? I’m hoping that just means we’re getting a cracked trailer with a full screen of Karasu’s face next time

The more I read the more I was like did they just craft the perfect man??? I loved the scene with the dog so much it was too cute like wdym his first practice buddy was a dog??? That was a rollercoaster and honestly probably one of my favorite LNs…I really like how they show the progression of his characters and actually kinda dig into his painful moments?? I think I need to reread everyone’s atp omg

-Karasu anon

I JUST FINISHED READING THE CHAPTERS YOU SENT IN OMG I’M BAWLING 😭 he’s so sweet fr…omg i hope he gets to retire and be happy one day with a dog and a family he truly deserves it

exactly like i have my top five but it’s always changing HAHAH there’s a couple mainstays but i’m so easily convinced to start liking new characters especially in shows like bllk which have such big casts that it’s inevitable you’ll be able to have a bunch of favs

aiku gives like uncle old vibes rin gives like cousin old vibes LMAOO that makes no sense but like aiku is just your weird uncle whereas rin is the cool cranky older cousin that you admire but all of the adult relatives hate because he has an attitude

aot is…something 😭 idk i was very very into it for a while and i really do appreciate and love the majority of it but i’m not a huge fan of how the ending was handled (not for the typical reasons people complain abt it i just think that some characters were let off too easily for what they did) and the fan base is INSANE. like peak no media literacy/critical thinking twelve year olds saying the craziest shit because they don’t realize that the actions of certain characters are meant to be condemned and not supported!! so i’ve drifted away from it now for the most part…a lot of the writing skills i have now i developed through trial and error with my aot fics though so i’ll always be grateful for that but i look back at it more as a fond memory/w nostalgia than anything

OKAYYY yayoyuki is now canon 🫡 (i named karasu’s sister yayoi hehe idk it just flowed well w tabito?? like yayoi and tabito sound like sibling names the same way seiko and eita do in my mind) actually lowkey i feel like that could kinda help the plot…the reader being like “wait why is your bf younger than you he’s literally your brother’s friend” and yayoi is like “bro it’s barely two years it’s not that deep” which makes reader be like “hmm…”

THE REO ONE IS INSANE. MY MAN IS A VICTIM AND NOBODY GAF?? ig it was supposed to show that people tend to value him for his money to the point that his teacher tried to get w him ostensibly because he’s a corporate heir…like narratively it makes sense but that should NOT have just been an egoist bible tidbit that was never expanded on?? iirc it’s not even mentioned in his light novel but that is so traumatic omg poor boy 😭

he’s still six and we’re at 6k words now if you want to adjust your estimate KDJISJ i am so scared of this fic i can just tell it’s going to be so long…we’re going to see karasu go from 4 to abt 20 and reader from 6 to abt 22 BYE why did i ever think i could fit all of that into “6-9k words” i’m not even going to bother w reestimating atp just going to go w the flow and see what happens…should i withhold the wc updates so you can be surprised when i finally post or do you want to be prepared going into it 🤔

pretty much all of the story is their “childhood” though ofc it progresses and they get older and older…icl i have no idea how to write kids so there’s going to have to be some suspension of disbelief going on 😭 YESS the angst and pining (from karasu naturally) are so real!! i think it makes sense on both ends because on the one hand yeah two years isn’t a huge deal esp once you’re older but on the other it’s like…karasu this girl has seen you throw tantrums because your sister wouldn’t play w you why WOULD she find you attractive 😩

ENOUGH LMAOOO no but that’s def the reason because he’s paler than every other character and for sure it’s because he doesn’t touch grass 😓 i think it’s definitely more silver compared to like nagi’s hair but still very light/almost white!! maybe more of a cool/gray toned white versus nagi’s which leans towards cream/straight up show white most of the time!! and yeah ik in animation pure black and pure white tend to fall flat which is why a lot of black haired characters end up having greenish hair when animated!!

YKW I WOULD’VE BEEN HAPPY W THE ICONIC SMIRK AHHH like it would’ve made him seem a little villainous if we only saw the lower half of his face and it’s just him smirking but those in the know realize it’s just the karasu signature 😔🙏🏻 sassy smirk + fuck ass hair WE NEEDED ONE OF THE TWO and wait omg i forgot abt hiori (and nanase) maybe they’re trying to keep the more relevant characters secret and just using characters anime-onlies would recognize in the trailer (so like igaguri’s irrelevant ass) still doesn’t explain why otoya and kurona made it instead of the bambi osaka boys but uh maybe they were just easier to animate?? or maybe they went w otoya because he’s very distinctive (aka doesn’t have dark hair and blue eyes) so he stood out more than karasu might (i bet some people would’ve been like “why did zantetsu take off his glasses” or smth abt karasu lowkey)

NO LITERALLY yukimiya invented being the ideal guy nobody in bllk can compare…actually let’s just go ahead and say nobody in shounen can compare 😫 he was truly meant to be a shoujo male lead more than any other bllk character 😭 i agree i think the ln did such a good job at showing his progress and why he is the way he is!! his backstory is also super realistic too 💔 like the whole medical trauma thing…i hope he and chigiri don’t get the boot from the main cast because of their health issues i love both of them sm 😓 i rlly liked this ln too!! especially compared to hiori’s and nagi’s which are the two i’ve reread the most for fic purposes the tone felt a bit more serious and mature (considering half of hiori’s is him stalking karasu and 99% of nagi’s is him slacking off in school this makes sense) i’m excited to see how barou’s is!! and also aryu’s lol maybe i’ll be more into him after reading his backstory or smth

[ohsomightypeaches]

I want you to know that I am crying into my morning coffee. I need to go run ERRANDS TODAY. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO GET ANYTHING DONE NOW. SUCH EMOTIONS. 😭😭😭😭

Your awakening is gentle, soft and blurry around the edges, as if you’re looking through the lens of a Polaroid camera, tinted in sepia. The morning hour creeps across the ceiling of Jack’s bedroom in equal parts light and shadow, the curtains having been left undrawn last night. A crack in the window lets in the faintest breeze, but mutes all the sounds you’ve grown used to seeking out first thing in the morning, when your eyelids are too heavy to lift.

Why is this not how i woke up this fine sunday morning? All i woke up to was a dog (my other beloved) demanding to be walked at 5am 🥲 RUDE. Also what a first sentence. 🔥

When the mattress dips behind you, sensation floods your veins like a shock to the system, flushing out the pins and needles in your limbs that you haven’t even noticed. Jack is warm and solid behind you, where he belongs. One leg nudged between yours, his sun-kissed arm across your waist, the only thing keeping you from tumbling off the edge. His breath whistles sweetly over the shell of your ear, and you smile. You don’t have to look over your shoulder to know that his mouth is parted in slumber.

*screeches* WHERE HE BELONGS 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Teak’s voice on the other line is clear as day even though he’s not on speaker. ‘Where are you, man?’

TEAK MY BOY WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS

Teak interrupts with a scoff. ‘Like her? She’s basically adopting you, sunshine!’

😭🙌 of course poppy has a food code

‘Look, I’ve been stallin’ them, but they’re fixin’ to break down her door. You lovebirds best get here quick!’

😃 and all they'll find is an empty ass room

Tossing away his phone without a goodbye, Jack drops a kiss to your forehead. ‘Listen, we don’t have to go anywhere, you stay here and I’ll make you - cereal in bed?’ He pauses with a wince. ‘Actually, I’m outta milk. And cereal.’

LMFAO tempting but 😃 sausage gravy pls

Plucking the gold-rimmed aviators from his tshirt, you slide them onto your face, winking at him through the tinted lens. ‘Nice shades. Gotta say, I didn’t peg you for such a snazzy dresser off the trail.’

Same girl same. i do like the fit he had for that music festival better than the suit i must say

He grins, all tidy teeth with a deliberately libertine edge, clearly enjoying the attention. Scooping you into his broad frame, he drawls, ‘Gotta look good for the ladies in town, y’know. They’re famished ‘cause you been hoardin’ me all week, darlin’.’

💀💀💀💀💀💀💀

He shrugs. ‘Keep ‘em. Gives you a reason to come back.

The way my heart just dropped

When you dream in the months to come, you will always smell pine, white cotton, and well-worn leather as the Silver Pony carries you home.

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 *high pitched scream only dogs can hear*

Hands that have made you feel safe, protected, wanted in turn over the past week.

😭😭😭😭😭😭🔥

There’s no fanfare, no declarations, as you watch Jack lace his fingers with yours, filling the gaps and the tips curling into the valleys between your knuckles. Palm to weathered palm, calloused from ropework and heavy lifting, you look up to meet his eyes. 

MY HEART

You came on this trip alone, with nothing but a broken relationship behind you, a suitcase full of anxieties and riding gear covered in years of dust and neglect. You said yes, perhaps recklessly, when offered the chance to spend a week alone in the mountains with a complete stranger and the glamour of sleeping bags and portable showers, when it would’ve been easier (and certainly more comfortable) to turn it down. 

YES GIRL. 👏👏👏👏👏

He arches an eyebrow and remarks, ‘Ain’t heard those cogs in your pretty head grind that loud since the first coupl'a days, darlin’.’

This man is ganna make me cry

‘You did real good for your first rodeo,’ he pauses, then flashes you a lascivious smirk. ‘You ain’t bad at ridin’ bareback either.’

I take that back 😭 JACK🔥

‘Mornin’,’ he addresses the silent table in an exaggerated southern drawl. ‘If y’all would be so kind to shut your mouths, you’re embarrassin’ me in front of my lady. Now, pass the coffee if you please, Teak.’

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌

Fittingly, it’s Champ who breaks the silence with a rip-roaring howl of laughter, palms hitting the table so hard you’re convinced everything on it jumps a foot from the surface, the ruckus sending Jameson scampering for cover. ‘Well, well, well! Butter my butt and call it a biscuit!’

SIR BUTTER YOUR WHAT?! 😭

Teak elbows you in the side. ‘Just so y’know, Poppy ain’t the type to make strawberry milkshake for just anybody.’ He salutes you with a crooked grin. ‘Welcome to the family, sweetheart.’ 

😭 IM CRYING

‘Well, y’all know what they say - ain’t a pot too crooked that a lid won’t fit!’ needles Teak.

TEQUILA WHY 🤣😭

Teak sasses back, ‘Fine, fine, how ‘bout - there ain’t a man that can’t be thrown, or a cowboy that can’t be rode -’

💀💀💀 TEQUILA. NO. Okay but the family banter sesh is so adorable 😭

The tape rewinds as you walk by the stables - you nip in quickly to say goodbye to Whiskey and Bourbon - past the main lodge, and the grazing field next to the parking lot.

🥺 but the tape rewinding is just 🤌🤌🤌🤌

Combing through his forelock, you coo at him, ‘I’m gonna miss you, boy. You behave with your rider next week, you hear me?’

🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 are you trying to make me cry?!

‘You’re flying Delta right?’ she asks. ‘I’ll call them up with instructions on how to heat up the food. It’ll be good as fresh off the barbeque.’

😭😭😭😭😭 YOU CAN DO THAT? YOURE LYING. THERES NO WAY. WHAT SORCERY IS THIS?!

She winks. ‘You’re welcome, honey. Come back soon, ok? There’s more where it came from!’

If shes trying to buy me with food its working.

‘It’s been an absolute pleasure, young lady. I’m sure we’ll see you again very soon,’ he winks. ‘And I’ll be in touch about the social media.’

The social media 😭🤣💀

‘I’m all out, sweetheart,’ he says, giving you a pat on the back. ‘’Cept, y’know, that cowboy’s been grinnin’ like a possum eatin’ a sweet ‘tater all week, and it’s damn annoyin’.’

Teak what language is this. A possum eating a sweet potato? They grin while eating a sweet potato? The sweet trash gremlins smile?!

‘Ready, darlin’?’

Im fucking emotional rn

‘Not long enough,’ you grumble, shuffling in close.

NOT LONG ENOUGH INDEED

‘I want to taste you one more time. Need to. Please.’

Girl I'd be unhindged too

His brown eyes snap open when you sneak between your bodies to palm his erection through his jeans, voice strained. ‘Darlin’, we ain’t got the time -’

🔥we WILL make time what do you ever mean. Pls

His plea is a hoarse mumble into the side of your neck. ‘Keep me in you, darlin’. Take me with you.’

*pterodactyl screech*

‘Ain’t seen you 'round town much lately, Jack,’ she says, affixing you with a none too subtle glare.

Shoo. Go away.

‘Let’s just say there ain’t enough of this ol’ cowboy to go ‘round for the ladies in town,’ he winks.

What does that mean jack. I want to hear that story.

Preening at the possessiveness in your tone, Jack ribs, ‘A tragedy, some might say.’

💀🤣

‘Let ‘em,’ he counters, prompting a gasp from you when he brazenly squeezes your ass through your dress. ‘I’m stakin’ my claim, darlin’.’

👀 yes🔥

‘But when?’ you wail, almost petulantly.

Im big sad

‘I know, but you’ll need time to plan all the things we’re gonna see,’ he jokes, recalling your fireside conversation. ‘You’re gonna take this country mouse to all the museums and art galleries and all kinds of big city adventures, ain’t that right?’

😭😭😭😭😭😭 stop

You give him a watery smile. ‘I stand by the sex and Thai takeaway in bed plan.’

I too agree

He swallows hard, wanting to be strong for you, but still, his voice wavers. ‘I’ll see you, darlin’. So soon.’

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

He chuckles good-naturedly. ‘You ain’t the first lovelorn cowboy I seen on this runway sayin’ ‘bye to his city girl.’

😭😭😭😭😭 I've never wanted to not be a city girl so badly. (I have literally never not been a city girl lol)

The sadness is helium in his chest, inflating between the gaps of his ribs, and he feels himself drift even with each footfall of his heavy boots on the concrete, while a dull ache ricochets in the hollow spaces of his skull.

BIG SAD. SUCH BIG SAD.

Okay but this quality description though

For I know, where you go my love goes

Even bigger sad.

Palomino has now been added to the playlist and its got that movie credits song feel to it as i was reading the last bit 😭😭😭 it fits the drive back on the bike so well 😭😭😭😭

Now im going to go cry as i drive off to run errands, very cowboy jack-less.

IX ║ Warmblood

Jack Daniels x f!reader

{ Part 8: Silver Pony | Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist }

Rating: E

Summary: The hardest goodbye you'll ever say.

Warnings: Mentions of food and cooking, angst, feelings, flirting, sexual innuendoes, semi-pubic sex, oral sex (F receiving), risky unprotected sex (wrap it up, kids!), dirty talk, language, no use of Y/N

Word count: 7.6k

Notes: Here we are, at the end of the longest packtrip ever, and we did it with only one (1) little meltdown last night 😜 More notes at the end, but I just want to say - this has been a once-in-a-lifetime story for me. If a fic can be a soulmate, Palomino is mine.

Thank you for coming on this journey with me, I love every single one of you ❤️ Last thing, I never do this, but I must insist that you play this song when you get there. You'll know when 🥹

Warmblood: An athletic, agile horse that is noted for its trainability and usually calm temperament, is commonly used in equestrian competition, and typically possesses Thoroughbred, Arabian, and draft horse bloodlines.

Your awakening is gentle, soft and blurry around the edges, as if you’re looking through the lens of a Polaroid camera, tinted in sepia. The morning hour creeps across the ceiling of Jack’s bedroom in equal parts light and shadow, the curtains having been left undrawn last night. A crack in the window lets in the faintest breeze, but mutes all the sounds you’ve grown used to seeking out first thing in the morning, when your eyelids are too heavy to lift.

The hum of flying things, feathered or otherwise, charting their flight paths in your head by the buzz of their wings. The brush of the wind like a hand combing through grass and meadow. Even the sun speaks in the morning, raw energy strumming between constantly shifting air particles.

This stillness comes off as almost - unnatural. Even when straddling the divide between sleep and wake, you feel yourself making tiny adjustments to the physicality of being indoors again. Regret stains the corners of your consciousness, knowing it won’t take you long to recalibrate. Your body will return to what it knows, shedding your once-upon-a-time existence in the mountains like a coat discarded at the turn of the season. 

When the mattress dips behind you, sensation floods your veins like a shock to the system, flushing out the pins and needles in your limbs that you haven’t even noticed. Jack is warm and solid behind you, where he belongs. One leg nudged between yours, his sun-kissed arm across your waist, the only thing keeping you from tumbling off the edge. His breath whistles sweetly over the shell of your ear, and you smile. You don’t have to look over your shoulder to know that his mouth is parted in slumber.

The next time you come to, it’s the rude buzz of metal on wood that jolts you out of sleep. You squeak when Jack follows, almost inadvertently shoving you off the bed as he startles awake. But thankfully, his instincts are fully intact, and he catches you squarely in the stomach, biceps flexing as he pulls you back into his chest with an easy strength.

‘Sorry, darlin’,’ he rasps groggily, burying his face in your neck in an apology. You uncoil in a languid stretch, opening up your throat to the rough scratch of his moustache, wanting to feel the burn.

‘Phone, cowboy,’ you gripe when the vibration doesn’t stop.

With a heave-ho, Jack reaches over you to grab it, before falling back onto the mattress so heavily that the bedframe shakes. Rubbing his thumb and index finger over his eyes, he grouses into the receiver, ‘What?’

Teak’s voice on the other line is clear as day even though he’s not on speaker. ‘Where are you, man?’

You burrow into Jack’s side, and the wide span of his palm on your hip holds you to him possessively. ‘Where do you think I am?’

‘Listen. Poppy made sausage gravy and buttermilk pancakes. Y’all know what that means.’

You venture a peek at Jack, whose lips are pursed thoughtfully. You prompt, ‘What does it mean?’

He smiles down at you. ‘She really likes you, darlin’.’

Teak interrupts with a scoff. ‘Like her? She’s basically adopting you, sunshine!’

Your lips wobble - if you soften any further, you might melt into the mattress.  ‘Oh, Poppy.’

‘Look, I’ve been stallin’ them, but they’re fixin’ to break down her door. You lovebirds best get here quick!’

Tossing away his phone without a goodbye, Jack drops a kiss to your forehead. ‘Listen, we don’t have to go anywhere, you stay here and I’ll make you - cereal in bed?’ He pauses with a wince. ‘Actually, I’m outta milk. And cereal.’

You chuckle, reaching up to run your fingers through his endearingly askew bed hair. ‘It’s ok, cowboy, we should go. I need to pack anyway.’

Your tummy takes the inopportune moment to rumble audibly, and he pins you with a knowing look. ‘And you want that sausage gravy, don’t you?’

‘Shut up,’ you laugh, pushing him off the bed.

When you step out of Jack’s bedroom in last night’s clothes after a quick refresh in his neat ensuite, he’s already outside, warming up the Silver Pony.

The house is even cosier in the morning. Facing east, daylight fills every corner of every room, bringing out the patterns in the wooden panels. Your gaze lingers where you can’t. You want to study the cracked spines of the paperbacks on his bookshelf one by one, you want to press your nose into the shirts hanging in his closet, you want to peer around the door to a second room that is temptingly ajar - 

‘Darlin’?’

You look up, and Christ on a cracker - it’s downright unfair that even after a week of spending every waking minute together, this damn cowboy can still make your heart skip a beat just by standing.

Jack is on the doorstep, in what you assume is his ‘off-duty’ uniform. Instead of a plaid shirt, he’s wearing a simple white tshirt with a round neck that is decidedly not sweat- nor dirt-friendly, tucked loosely into the waistband of dark jeans that look a bit more polished, and if you would believe it, even tighter than the pair he wears in the saddle. While it’s business as usual with the Stetson and work boots, something unfamiliar hangs from the neckline of his top.

Plucking the gold-rimmed aviators from his tshirt, you slide them onto your face, winking at him through the tinted lens. ‘Nice shades. Gotta say, I didn’t peg you for such a snazzy dresser off the trail.’

He grins, all tidy teeth with a deliberately libertine edge, clearly enjoying the attention. Scooping you into his broad frame, he drawls, ‘Gotta look good for the ladies in town, y’know. They’re famished ‘cause you been hoardin’ me all week, darlin’.’

With an exaggerated huff, you elbow past him. ‘I don’t know how you manage to zip your ego into those tightass pants, cowboy!’

‘With lots of practice,’ he retorts, smacking you firmly on the backside.

‘Do you need your sunnies?’ you ask as you climb onto the Silver Pony behind him, pushing the aviators a bit higher on your nose where they’ve slid down.

He shrugs. ‘Keep ‘em. Gives you a reason to come back.’

You smile into his broad shoulders, palms sliding to interlock over his soft belly. The bike revs, startling a flock of birds into flight from a nearby tree, and you realise those six little words are the first to breach the subject of what comes after - which will come to be in a matter of hours, with your flight in the early afternoon, a prospect suddenly so frighteningly real. 

But in the same breath, it becomes blindingly clear that you don’t even need to hear the words.

Because you know there is a space for you in his bed, tucked into his body, curled around you. A spot for you under his arm resting on the back of his couch in the living room, in front of a woodfire when it snows outside. A seat for you at the back of his motorcycle, where you are now, breezing effortlessly downhill towards the ranch, the white fences and red roofs winking at you between the gaps in the trees that line the winding country roads.

When you dream in the months to come, you will always smell pine, white cotton, and well-worn leather as the Silver Pony carries you home.

It’s a shorter drive than you remember. Jack’s watch reads just past half eight when you pull into the parking lot. He kills the engine as you dismount, passing him your star-spangled helmet to be returned to its place in the little cabinet for next time. You’ve turned on your heel towards the ranch when a hand on your wrist grounds you to the spot.

Hands that have made you feel safe, protected, wanted in turn over the past week.

There’s no fanfare, no declarations, as you watch Jack lace his fingers with yours, filling the gaps and the tips curling into the valleys between your knuckles. Palm to weathered palm, calloused from ropework and heavy lifting, you look up to meet his eyes. 

He peers at you, almost shyly, an incomprehensible notion after all that he’s done to you, and what you’ve done to him, across the expanse of the Wyoming wilderness. But there’s a chastity to this simple action, and you find your throat tight when he asks, ‘Is this ok, darlin’?’

Your heart swells, as if it’s going to grow claws and tear itself right out of your chest cavity. Bringing up your tangled hands, you brush a kiss across his knuckles, and his whole countenance lifts with the upward curl of his mouth. 

‘Yes, cowboy.’

The Statesman is putting on a show for your last morning. The sun is out, climbing high into the cloudless sky, with Jack’s aviators bearing the brunt of the harsh glare. It’s déjà vu when you retrace the path you took on the day of your arrival, the same crunch of gravel under your boots, the familiar scent of hay and horse on the breeze. 

The bird’s eye view of the ranch has your breath stuttering just like that first time you cast your gaze on the green pastures and the red roofs. And beyond, like a perfectly painted stage set piece, the Bighorns loom tall and majestic. You’ve seen the mountains in all their incarnations over the past week - they change colour as the sun and clouds move during the day, and sometimes, you swear they morph in shape too. 

It strikes you suddenly that just yesterday, you were but three specks moving across the vast landscape, the realisation almost bowling you over. 

Before all this, it wouldn’t have taken much to convince yourself that you don’t deserve it. That it was the horses doing all the legwork and Jack the navigating, that you haven’t really done anything but sit in the saddle. But something’s shifted, it’s been a baptism by long summer days and the great outdoors - and damn it all, you’re proud of yourself. 

You came on this trip alone, with nothing but a broken relationship behind you, a suitcase full of anxieties and riding gear covered in years of dust and neglect. You said yes, perhaps recklessly, when offered the chance to spend a week alone in the mountains with a complete stranger and the glamour of sleeping bags and portable showers, when it would’ve been easier (and certainly more comfortable) to turn it down. 

Somehow, you’ve come out the other end, long gallops over untouched grassland and starry campfire nights piecing you back together, only to fall so damn hard for this cowboy that you’re sure to break again when you get on that plane this afternoon -

An unexpected tug on your arm has you tumbling clumsily. ‘Jack!’

He arches an eyebrow and remarks, ‘Ain’t heard those cogs in your pretty head grind that loud since the first coupl'a days, darlin’.’

You shrug and, not wanting to sour the mood, deflect his attention with a lighthearted fib. ‘Just realised that I didn’t even come close to falling off once the entire week.’

When he chuckles, the thought comes to you that you’ll miss the way he laughs with his whole body. 

‘You did real good for your first rodeo,’ he pauses, then flashes you a lascivious smirk. ‘You ain’t bad at ridin’ bareback either.’

A rebuke of his crude quip is on the tip of your tongue, but then your nose picks up on the scent of bitter coffee and maple syrup, which is quickly followed by the sighting of the al fresco table set up not far from the grill last night, the singe of smoke and whiskey still hanging in the air.

From a distance, you can see Poppy and Champ engaged in what looks like a heated debate, both gesticulating wildly with fork and knife. On the opposite side of the table, an unbothered Teak mows down his breakfast as if he’s heard it all before, and Ginger is feeding Jameson pancakes under the table.

It’s the younger cowboy who spots you two first. He freezes, brows disappearing under the brim of his Stetson when his eyes flit downwards to your interlocked hands. A huge grin would’ve split his handsome face in two if his mouth wasn’t stuffed full of half-chewed pancakes. The beans are well and truly spilled when Jameson comes bounding over, barking his demands for morning cuddles.

Champ looks up, his argument with Poppy promptly dropped. ‘Aha! There she is! Howdy young lady, we were just wonderin’ where you -’ 

He halts mid-sentence, his head whipping towards his right where the guest lodges are situated beyond the stables, decidedly not the direction you’re coming from. The penny drops as he takes in your hand in Jack’s, eyes wide, and all the occupants of the table seem to inhale a collective breath that stops you in your tracks.

But not Jack. He ignores the gawking with a practised air of been there, done that, and ushers you into the empty seat next to Teak without skipping a beat. Planting a sweet peck on your cheek, he settles to your left and unfolds his starched napkin with a flourished flick of his wrist, which he tucks into the neckline of his tshirt.

‘Mornin’,’ he addresses the silent table in an exaggerated southern drawl. ‘If y’all would be so kind to shut your mouths, you’re embarrassin’ me in front of my lady. Now, pass the coffee if you please, Teak.’

Fittingly, it’s Champ who breaks the silence with a rip-roaring howl of laughter, palms hitting the table so hard you’re convinced everything on it jumps a foot from the surface, the ruckus sending Jameson scampering for cover. ‘Well, well, well! Butter my butt and call it a biscuit!’

Poppy leaps to her feet, halfway to the kitchen before shouting over her shoulder. ‘We’re celebrating! This calls for strawberry milkshake!’

Teak elbows you in the side. ‘Just so y’know, Poppy ain’t the type to make strawberry milkshake for just anybody.’ He salutes you with a crooked grin. ‘Welcome to the family, sweetheart.’ 

It’s a brand of chaos that is distinctly Statesman. Ginger and Champ are fighting each other to load up your plate with far too much food over your protests, Teak pours coffee into your glass and orange juice in the mug, and Jameson is probing your knees under the table for scraps. You meet Jack’s eyes, and he grins back at you with a wink over the rim of his cup.

There’s no reason why you should be this hungry after the barbeque last night, but you don’t stop until you’ve polished off the sausage gravy and biscuits, the welcome richness settling in the pit of your stomach and making you second guess if you have any room left for pancakes.

‘Young lady, I hope this means you forgive me for the strings I pulled to set you two up,’ pipes up Champ around a mouthful of bacon, washed down by black coffee.

‘You’ll hear no complaints from me, sir,’ you reassure him.

He raises a fist in a pantomime of indignation. ‘You wouldn’t believe the grief Jack and Ginger put me through for playin’ matchmaker! I demand a retraction from y’all!’

Ginger raises both hands in surrender. ‘Fine, I take it all back, even if it means you’ll be downright insufferable about it! But I’ll happily live with that!'

Jack slings an arm around your shoulder. ‘It kills me to say it, but you have damn good taste, boss.’

‘Well, y’all know what they say - ain’t a pot too crooked that a lid won’t fit!’ needles Teak.

‘Hey!’ You reach across to slap him on the arm as Jack chuckles behind you. ‘I don’t see you with a lid, you loud-mouthed kettle!’

Teak sasses back, ‘Fine, fine, how ‘bout - there ain’t a man that can’t be thrown, or a cowboy that can’t be rode -’

Right on cue, Poppy’s distant shout interrupts, ‘Tequila!’

Jumping onto his feet, the cowboy winks at you. ‘Hold that thought, sunshine - right away, ma’am!’

Unperturbed by the double entendres, Champ brings the conversation right back around. ‘Well, I do declare, this nosy old man gets it right -’

‘For once!’ heckles Ginger.

‘Joke’s on you, m’dear. I only need to be right once!’

There are oohs and ahhs when Poppy and Teak reappear with the decadent milkshakes in retro fountain glasses, topped with whipped cream and strawberry slices, distributed around the table.

‘So, what are we drinking to?’ asks Poppy.

You turn to Jack, holding up your milkshake. ‘To crooked pots.’

There are cheers and laughs up and down the table, and Jack clinks your glass with a grin as he adds, ‘And cowboys that can be rode.’

You think about the cassette tapes that you used to watch when you were young. How at the end of a film, the black tape is all rolled up in the right window, and you were always the one to press the rewind button on the VCR. You still remember the whirr of the film as it went backwards, round and round, right back to the beginning.

When the coffee has gone cold and the morning chores come calling, the breakfast table empties, and you hear the click of that button when Jack offers you his upturned palm to walk you back to your cabin.

The tape rewinds as you pack. The outfit you agonised over that first day or your introductory ride with the cowboy has been laundered, and you slowly fold up each piece - the jodhpurs, the plaid shirt, the socks - and put them into your open suitcase.

The tape rewinds as you close the door to the cabin, and Jack carries your luggage across the yard in one hand, yours nestled snugly in his other.

The tape rewinds as you walk by the stables - you nip in quickly to say goodbye to Whiskey and Bourbon - past the main lodge, and the grazing field next to the parking lot.

Putting your suitcase down, Jack whistles with his fingers, the sound carrying in the wind. You see a familiar golden head pop up from across the field, and your nose prickles with the threat of tears as you watch Scotch canter towards you, ears forward and tail swishing with an attitude you can spot from a mile away. Climbing onto the first rung of the fence, you throw your arms around his neck and bury your face into his snowy mane as he snoops around your pockets, always looking for treats.

You pull an apple out of your travel bag, neatly cut in two. Scotch nickers, his velvety nuzzle tickles as he carefully plucks each half from your palm.

Combing through his forelock, you coo at him, ‘I’m gonna miss you, boy. You behave with your rider next week, you hear me?’

The key is already in the ignition of your rental pickup when Champ puts your suitcase and tote bag on the backseat floor, while Teak and Jack load the Silver Pony onto the back. 

Your arm almost falls out of its socket when Poppy passes you the promised takeaway lunch, packed into a chiller bag. 

‘You’re flying Delta right?’ she asks. ‘I’ll call them up with instructions on how to heat up the food. It’ll be good as fresh off the barbeque.’

‘Thank you so, so much Poppy,’ you say as she pulls you into a warm hug. ‘I hope you know you’ve ruined food for me. Nothing will ever come close to being good enough.’

She winks. ‘You’re welcome, honey. Come back soon, ok? There’s more where it came from!’

Ginger is next, and emotion clutches at your chest as you squeeze her slender frame in a tight embrace. ‘Just so you know, I was furious that you wouldn’t give me a refund when I called you up all those months ago.’

‘What can I say? I’m a tough cookie,’ she giggles, and hangs onto you for just a moment longer. ‘I’m so glad you didn’t cancel on us.’

Champ surprises you, forgoing your outstretched hand and giving you a hug for the first time. His tweed suit is softer than expected under your cheek, and smells like pipeweed and leather. 

‘It’s been an absolute pleasure, young lady. I’m sure we’ll see you again very soon,’ he winks. ‘And I’ll be in touch about the social media.’

Three steps away, Teak is waiting with his arms crossed, and he pushes off the truck to bundle you into his embrace, the hug as big and as bear-like as him, which makes you chuckle.

‘Anything parting Southern wisdom for me?’ you quip.

‘I’m all out, sweetheart,’ he says, giving you a pat on the back. ‘’Cept, y’know, that cowboy’s been grinnin’ like a possum eatin’ a sweet ‘tater all week, and it’s damn annoyin’.’

Jack rolls his eyes, one palm on your back as he herds you towards the truck. ‘C’mon, darlin’, we should make a move.’

Saving himself for last, Jameson trots up to you with a bark, tail wagging. The grass is warm and tickles your bare knees when you crouch down to give him one last hug, giggling at the wet kiss he leaves on your cheek. 

The leather of the passenger seat is soft as you sink down into it, while Jack closes the door behind you and crosses to the driver’s side. Inhaling deeply as the engine starts with a rusty rumble, you look up when he gives your hand a grounding squeeze.

‘Ready, darlin’?’

You nod, though not entirely convincingly. ‘Let’s go, cowboy.’

The Statesman gets smaller and smaller behind you as the truck eases down the driveway, and the four figures waving in the rearview mirror blur into tiny shadows through the mist of your tears. The metal frame of the vehicle squeaks with the movement as it rolls over bumps on the long dirt track, at the end of which, Jack takes a right with a one-handed turn of the steering wheel onto the main road, and the ranch slips out of sight.

The midday sun streams through the windshield, hot on your skin. You’re glad you changed out of the jeans from last night into a lightweight dress, a slightly frivolous last-minute addition to your luggage that’s paid off. 

Staring out of the open window at the rolling landscape, it takes you right back to exactly eight days ago when you were driving down the dusty road - except this time, the Bighorn Mountains are behind you, and next to you is a cowboy instead of an empty seat. 

Unabashedly, you watch him drive. His right hand is woven in yours, disengaging only to shift gears every now and then. Under the brim of his hat, his eyes are on the road, occasionally darting sideways to find himself on the receiving end of your attention.

It’s certainly an adjustment to see him in the driver’s seat after a week in the saddle - Whiskey’s, then the Silver Pony’s. But it doesn’t matter, there’s no mistaking the competence behind his every movement, be it to ease his horse to a slower gait with the lightest closing of his fingers on the leather reins, or to redirect the truck with an effortless palm on the steering wheel -

‘Take a picture, it’ll last longer,’ he drawls, a crooked smile tugging at his lips.

‘Not long enough,’ you grumble, shuffling in close.

He half-turns, moustache brushing your temple as he murmurs, ‘Have I told you that you look beautiful in that dress?’

You press a secret smile into his shoulder. ‘You sure you don’t prefer me in jodhpurs?’

Untangling his fingers to slide blunt nails under the hem of your dress and up the inside of your leg, he replies diplomatically, ‘I can see pros and cons to both.’

Your breath hitches with a warning, but the instinctive parting of your thighs gives you away. ‘Cowboy -’

You startle at what sounds like a sudden crack of thunder, but it turns out to be an enormous interstate truck charging down the opposite lane. In a panic, your knees snap shut, trapping Jack’s wandering hand between the soft cushion of your legs. To your chagrin, he makes a point of waving to the driver as he passes by.

‘Jack, he definitely saw your hand up my dress!’ you chide.

He flashes you a knowing smirk, and you shudder when he digs into the meat of your thigh with a firm squeeze. ‘Somethin’ tells me you enjoyed that, darlin’.’

Your mouth opens, ready to object, but a familiar heat warms the back of your neck the same time your throat goes dry. It’s the same thrill from last night, in the cellar, not knowing if you’ll get caught bent over a whiskey cask, jeans pulled down just enough so that this cowboy could bury his cock deep inside you. 

Despite yourself, you shift in your seat, and Jack’s knuckles scrape the fast dampening seat of your panties. Choking on a strangled noise, he turns his wrist so that he can rub the outline of your folds through the thin fabric, his knuckles going white on the steering wheel. ‘Fuck. I feel that, darlin’.’

Another car comes down the opposite lane, a smaller sedan this time, and you’re bold enough to spread your thighs, letting him slip under your panties.

The car swerves sharply as hisses at the wetness he finds, fingertip gliding slickly between the lips of your pussy, smearing the mess all over as your hips rock into the contact. 

Through gritted teeth, Jack groans, ‘Darlin’, you’re soaked for me.’

‘Pull over. Now.’

He does - parking haphazardly behind a tree, barely a couple of yards off the main road before killing the ignition. 

You mount him immediately, throwing your right leg over his lap as if pulling yourself into the saddle, the pain an afterthought when your knee jams into the control panel on the door in your haste. Jack grunts as your hips slot flush against his, his usual composure nowhere to be found as he’s caught between undoing his seatbelt, pushing your dress up and scrabbling down the sides of the driver’s seat for the adjustment lever.

The sudden recline of the seatback pulls a squeak from you while knocking Jack’s hat clean off, and you follow to claim his lips in a messy kiss as he palms the swell of your ass.

‘Jesus Christ,’ he bites out, rocking up against your pussy, head thrown back. ‘You’re so fuckin’ sexy.’

He doesn't question you when you climb over him, taking the chance to scrape open-mouthed kisses down your neck instead - and when you sit back down on your haunches, his pupils blow wide at the sight of you wearing his hat and a flirtatious grin.

‘How about now, cowboy?’ you tease.

He swallows, Adam’s apple bobbing hard as his eyes darken. ‘You’ll look even better sittin’ on my face, darlin’.’

Your jaw goes slack. ‘Jack -’

‘I want to taste you one more time. Need to. Please.’

Something breaks loose inside you, unhinges, and you crawl over the length of his lean body to steal a bruising kiss that has him hot in pursuit when you pull back. The hem of the dress brushes his face when your knees make landing on the backseat, on either side of the headrest he’s lying on. Reaching for the grab handle above, you pull yourself upright, bracing the roof of the truck while you hover over his beautiful nose.

Calloused fingers bunch up your dress to the waist, and Jack hums at the display of your drenched panties, before hooking one thumb around the seams and pulling it unceremoniously to one side.

‘Look at that pussy,’ he groans brokenly. ‘Always fuckin’ soakin’ for me. Just beggin’ for me to taste it, hmm?’

‘Jaaaack,’ you whine on an exhale. Looking down at how he’s so wantonly eyeing you, your back arches with a confidence you didn’t know you have. Thighs splaying wider, you know he hears the slick parting of your folds when he stutters a pained moan.

‘C’mere and let me eat that pretty pussy, darlin’.’

From the moment his lips close around your clit in a sloppy suckle, you know this is a different beast from that first time he took you apart with his mouth, deep in the mountains, under the secret cloak of night. The afternoon sun casts shadows where his brow is creased in studious concentration, his keen gaze flitting from where he delicately holds you open with his fingertips, to your cleavage, to your face, and all the way down again. Every twitch of muscle, every whimper caught in the web of his determination to relish all of you.

In no mood to tease, each measured lick and curl of his tongue hits its mark, your physical reflexes compounded by this show of devastating competence. He draws desperate sounds that you don't even register as your own, your needy cunt leaking all over his face and chin.

‘Cowboy,’ you mewl, reaching down to coil your fingers into his hair, the strands beaded with sweat and sticking to his forehead as he doubles down. Your squirming only makes him tighten his grip on your hips to hold you still, the bite of his fingers bordering on painful. ‘I’m so close -’

The insides of your thighs are cool and slippery, a sensation you’re well used to now, his spit and your slick completely soaking through your panties. His three-day stubble rubs your sensitive skin raw, and the top of his Stetson bumps against the ceiling as you angle your hips to catch his puckered lips where you need him most, chasing friction.

‘Jack,’ you whimper when you feel the first spark of orgasm deep inside you, the spiral instant and relentless. ‘Jack, Jack, oh fuck, - I’m there, that’s it - I’m cumming, don’tstopdon’tstopdon’t -’

Somewhere on the fringes of your scattered mind, you’re aware that the windows are down, not that you can do anything about it now - you thrash and wail and sob his name, all the while he laps at the mouth of your throbbing cunt. The sounds are obscene as he slurps and wrings every last drop of you until you’re pushing him away, nerves firing blindly from overstimulation, choking hoarsely when you catch your breath.

Watching you in a drunken daze, Jack finally draws back with a lewd pop, wiping his thoroughly soaked chin on your knee, which narrowly misses his nose as a violent, full-body shudder ripples through you.

‘Relax, darlin’,’ he cooes. All your joints have capitulated, so Jack has to bodily rearrange you, dislodging your shaky knees from his shoulders down to his sides to pull you in for a kiss. You moan at the sticky release his moustache smears all over your face, the taste of yourself thick and heavy on his tongue.

His brown eyes snap open when you sneak between your bodies to palm his erection through his jeans, voice strained. ‘Darlin’, we ain’t got the time -’

Deftly undoing his belt, that damned flask-shaped buckle that looks as ridiculous as the first time you laid eyes on it, you assure him, ‘Don’t worry, it won’t take long.’

He arches an eyebrow, taking in your face shadowed by his cowboy hat, but stays put otherwise, almost docile as he lets you take the reins. ‘Is that so? And you’re so confident, how?’

Shoving down his boxers and jeans, his cock springs free, hard and ready. With a brazen grin, you sit up and line yourself up to the swollen tip, declaring, ‘Because I want you to cum inside me, cowboy.’

You’re not sure if it’s you sinking down on him, or him snapping his hips upwards. All you know is that by the time your head catches up, he’s driven to the hilt inside you.

‘What are you - fuck you’re so tight -’ he wheezes against your lips, giving you no pause as he ruts into you recklessly, the crude slap of skin on skin filling every space the truck. ‘Whatcha mean by cummin’ inside you?’

‘I don’t know how I can be more clear, cowboy,’ you sass, when a particularly deep thrust almost jolts you off his lap.

‘But you’re not on birth control, darlin’ -’ he tries to reason.

‘I’ll take the morning after pill as soon as I land,’ you promise, holding his unfocused gaze. ‘Do you trust me?’

The wind is knocked out of you when his strong arms pull you flush to his front, his answer immediate and irrevocable. ‘With everythin’.’

There’s too much going on. The coarse scratch of denim on the inside of your thighs, his nails scraping down your ass, the desperate whimpers he leaves in the secret place behind your ear. The air grows humid and thick as Jack feels himself slipping, your pussy gripping him so tightly that his eyes threaten to roll back into his skull.

He gasps in a breathless warning. ‘Darlin' -’

‘It’s ok, cowboy,’ you croon, fingers carding through his dark hair. ‘I want to feel you deep inside me. All of you.’

His bones rattle with a vicious shudder at your words. Snarling, he bucks into you at a pace so unrelenting that you cry out with each snap of his hips. 

‘Gonna stuff you so fuckin’ full,’ he vows in between slippery kisses. ‘Been wantin’ to since the first time. Gonna fill your pussy with my cum, darlin’, you’ll be drippin’ with me for days -’

‘Yes yes yes do it cowboy, please -’ you beg, voice cracking.

‘Look at me,’ he orders, nostrils flaring as you knock foreheads. ‘Look at me while I fuck you full, darlin’.’

Choking on a whine, you feel him swell inside you until he teeters right on the brink. The raw need in his eyes robs you of your breath, and you grow faint on empty lungs as you sway with him -

And then his neck strains, his hips jerk, and you feel his abdomen cave in on itself when he lets go with your name on his lips, and his on yours. A primal roar fills your ears as he pumps you full of him, spilling into you again and again until all you feel is his cum hot and deep inside you, flooding your cunt, his whole body spasming as he pants raggedly for air.

A carnal musk hangs ripe and sweltering in the confines of the truck. Floating on a lazy stupor, you draw soothing circles on his quickly rising and falling chest through the aftershocks, his tshirt clammy with sweat, heart pounding under your palm.

Jack reaches up to push off his hat so that he can see all of you before pulling you in for a lingering kiss. When he softens, his spend dribbling slow and hot out of you, two thick fingers nudge between your thighs, and your back arches when he tenderly pushes it back inside.

His plea is a hoarse mumble into the side of your neck. ‘Keep me in you, darlin’. Take me with you.’

You nod, and smile, ‘Always.’

The airport is tiny, and Jack seems to know everyone you cross paths with. From the security guard at the carpark (previously a groom at the Statesman) to the staffer at the car rental counter (Champ’s nephew), he’s busy tipping his hat and dispatching howdy’s left, right and centre.

‘Small town, huh?’ you quip.

He hums, ‘Welcome to cowboy country.’

And he definitely knows the brunette checking you in at the airline counter, all the while glowering at you over the top of your driving licence.

‘Ain’t seen you 'round town much lately, Jack,’ she says, affixing you with a none too subtle glare.

‘Y’know how it is in the summer, always busy,’ he replies a touch too politely. As soon as he drops your suitcase onto the baggage belt, he wraps one even less subtle arm around your waist and pulls you pointedly into his side.

You bite your lip as the woman’s eyes narrow and she aggressively punches your details into the computer system, surprised that the keyboard doesn’t break. Once your suitcase is on its merry way, Jack wastes no time spiriting you away from the counter without so much of a fare-thee-well.

You burst into laughter, elbowing him in the ribs. ‘Brrrrrr. That was cold!’

Jack pinches the bridge of his nose, admitting, ‘To be fair to her, she didn’t catch me at my finest moment.’

‘Do I want to know?’

‘Let’s just say there ain’t enough of this ol’ cowboy to go ‘round for the ladies in town,’ he winks.

‘Well, I hope they know there’s about to be even less of you going forward,’ you sniff primly.

Preening at the possessiveness in your tone, Jack ribs, ‘A tragedy, some might say.’

You huff, but can’t help a smile. ‘Well, aren’t I lucky to have roped you in, cowboy.’

‘And she can’t even lasso!’ he teases, leaning down to steal a kiss.

Feeling eyes on you, you duck your head, protesting, ‘Jack, people are looking.’

‘Let ‘em,’ he counters, prompting a gasp from you when he brazenly squeezes your ass through your dress. ‘I’m stakin’ my claim, darlin’.’

‘You already did in the truck, cowboy,’ you remind him, instinctively rubbing your thighs together, feeling the weight of his cum wet in your panties.

He hums, as if he knows, the sound deep and satisfied. His lips linger at the crown of your head, and he holds you close with his whole body, wrapping himself around your soul.

All too soon, the old-fashioned Solari board you’re sitting under whirrs into action. The retro split-flap display spins and flips with a mechanical staccato to spell out ‘final boarding call’ next to your flight number, one of five scheduled for that afternoon. 

Stubbornly, you turn your face into Jack’s shoulder, inhaling him. He smells like horses and dappled sun filtered through leaves in a tree - you wish you could distil it into a bottle and take it with you.

You’re in denial, that much you know. You’ve warded off the thought of leaving too well, compartmentalised it and pushed it down somewhere it wouldn't be able to resurface.

But that’s the irony - even if you can keep it buried, it doesn’t change the fact that your suitcase is in the belly of the plane parked on the runway, that you’re about to leave Wyoming behind and put thousands of miles between you and this cowboy, who has gone uncharacteristically quiet as the minutes tick down.

Eventually, he murmurs slowly into your hair, as if the words are physically weighing him down. ‘C’mon, darlin.’

Your feet are heavy, dragging, and Jack has to practically strong-arm you out of the airport terminal and onto the tarmac. He holds you as you loiter at the back of the queue, until the crowd disperses, and the stewardess at the top of the boarding stairs gives you both a knowing but firm look.

That’s when the tears spill over the seams of your lashes where they’ve been teetering, held back by sheer willpower and clenched teeth. Ugly sobs bubble out of your throat, and Jack pulls you into him, his own voice thick as he rocks you soothingly. ‘It’s ok, darlin’. I’ll see you before you know it.’

‘But when?’ you wail, almost petulantly.

He answers with no hesitation, and it’s obvious to you that he isn’t just thinking on his feet, that he’s been making plans, but kept it close to his chest. 

‘We have back-to-back pack trips the next three weeks, so I can’t get away. But next month, after the Kingsman’s rescheduled bookin’, I’ll take a whole week off.’

‘That’s an entire month away,’ you grumble into the soaked front of his tshirt.

‘I know, but you’ll need time to plan all the things we’re gonna see,’ he jokes, recalling your fireside conversation. ‘You’re gonna take this country mouse to all the museums and art galleries and all kinds of big city adventures, ain’t that right?’

You give him a watery smile. ‘I stand by the sex and Thai takeaway in bed plan.’

‘Even better,’ he answers, and you hold onto the way the crease of his smile lines bring out the soul in his eyes. ‘I’ll call you, darlin’, ok?’

Somehow, you muster the good humour to tease, ‘The cool kids FaceTime nowadays, and I hear your phone doesn’t have a working camera.’

He laughs, and you can’t quite tell if it’s tears clinging to his lashes, or if it’s a trick of the light. He thumbs away the wet streaks from your cheeks, nose brushing yours in a solemn promise. ‘I’ll get a new one.’

‘Just for me?’

And then he’s kissing you, plush lips slanting across yours, dragging slow like honey. When he pulls back, he breathes, ‘Anythin’ for you, darlin’.’

Jack has to physically unclench his fingers to let you step back. When your hand slides out of his, it takes him everything not to pull you back, or run after you up the stairs. He grasps the railing so hard his knuckles go bone-white as you turn back to him one last time at the aircraft door.

You blow him a kiss, your smile brave but wobbly. ‘Goodbye, cowboy.’

He swallows hard, wanting to be strong for you, but still, his voice wavers. ‘I’ll see you, darlin’. So soon.’

You nod, your tears catching the afternoon light as the stewardess ushers you into the cabin.

Then it hits him. 

You’re not going to be in his arms when he wakes up tomorrow. You’re not going to be there when he reaches around for you - your face, your neck, your voice.

You’re not going to be there.

Jack watches your tear-streaked face appear at one of the windows, and he tries to smile at you, wishing he’d insisted on one last kiss. The heat from the jet engines and the sun is bouncing off the tarmac, but he’s cold, so cold, that his fingers have gone stiff. Nothing feels real, as if he’s been wrapped in cling film and dunked underwater, and he almost doesn’t hear the voice to his left.

The air traffic controller says apologetically, ‘’Mfraid we gotta clear the runway, sir.’

He fumbles over his words. ‘’Course. Sorry.’

Pressing his index and middle fingers to his lips, he waves the kiss at you, which you catch with your palm against the glass. Determined not to miss one single second, he slowly walks backwards with the controller beside him as he waves the batons.

He says sympathetically, ‘It’s always hard, but it gets easier.’ 

Jack glances at him with a questioning look.

He chuckles good-naturedly. ‘You ain’t the first lovelorn cowboy I seen on this runway sayin’ ‘bye to his city girl.’

His lips quirk despite himself, eyes still on you even as the plane slowly taxis away. He says, ‘I sure hope you’re right, man.’

With one last wave, the plane pivots, and you disappear around the bend.

Empty. He feels empty.

The sadness is helium in his chest, inflating between the gaps of his ribs, and he feels himself drift even with each footfall of his heavy boots on the concrete, while a dull ache ricochets in the hollow spaces of his skull.

Grappling for an anchor, Jack forces himself to focus, one thing at a time. Key in the ignition, twist, the whirr of the engine. Switching on the radio, it cackles between the frequencies as he straps his Stetson to the backseat, then swings one leg over the saddle and puts on his helmet.

The static starts taking on shape, lyrics and guitar riffs cutting through the white noise and catching his attention just as he wraps his fingers around the rubber grip of the handlebars.

I want to ride off on a palomino

Feel the fire in my breath and the breeze in my hair as I go

Why the hell am I even looking back for?

For I know, where you go my love goes

For I know, where you go my love goes

He misses the ghost of your arms around his waist, the slope of your nose tucked into his nape. He misses you. He wants to see your face the minute you get off that plane on the other side of the country. He wants to hear your voice before he goes to bed tonight. He wants to tell you mornin’ first thing tomorrow when he gets up. 

As the 737 roars overhead, the shadow passing over him, he wonders if you can spot him from the clouds. 

He’d better crack on and get to the shop in town before it closes.

Steering smoothly out of the parking lot, Jack takes a left, the Silver Pony kicking up dust with a purr as she cruises down the country roads -

The same country roads that brought you to him.

Fin

More notes: I've been writing fanfiction on and off for the past 17 years. Corny as it sounds, it feels like everything I've ever written has been leading up to this fic. I put my heart and soul into Palomino, and it's repaid me tenfold. It gave me the chance to write about my love for horses, to fall in love not only with cowboy Jack, but with Darlin', Teak, the entire cast and the horses, this whole universe that I built in my head. And it gave me all of you - the most wonderful, supportive friends and readers I've had the pleasure of writing for.

I hope I will have the chance to revisit the Palomino universe one day. But for now, I'm ridiculously proud for finishing this series and for giving it the ending it deserves. I don't think I will ever write a fic that I love so deeply again. Palomino was it for me, and I'm forever grateful that I got to share this incredible journey with all of you.

There are some special people I need to thank, please forgive me if I leave anyone out, I appreciate each and everyone of you ❤️

LJ @prolix-yuy: The wonderful friend and writer who made me fall in love with cowboy Jack in first place with her epic Westworld Whiskey series, which is also coming to an end next week. I've said this many times and I'll never stop saying it - there would've been no Palomino if not for LJ. Thank you for being my inspiration bestie, you are the literal best.

Ash @mandoblowmybackout: My OG bestie and fellow cat mum, one of the first people I screeched about cowboy Jack to, I treasure our friendship so much, thank you for your support.

Maddie @imaswellkid: Maddie, thank you for being in my corner throughout Palomino and for holding my hand when I need it (which is often). Talking to you about Palomino in person - well, talking about anything and everything to you in person - was one of the most surreal moments of last year, and I'm hoping it won't be long before I see you again.

Sil @psychedelic-ink: Sil, light of my life, thank you for always being there for me, for listening and talking me down from the ledge many times. I'm so lucky to have you, and to have you love cowboy Jack as much as I do. Talking to you is always the highlight of my day!

Peaches @ohsomightypeaches: Screaming at you/being screamed at by you about anything cowboy Jack is always so much fun, and not just Jack, but also Teak, Champ, etc.. Your love for this series is beyond infectious, thank you for your support and for always making me smile!

Skye @iamskyereads: Skye my love, I believe I was admiring you from afar when you popped up in my notifs with a reblog of the first chapter, and I remember how excited I was! So grateful that Palomino brought you into my life.

Heidi @wildemaven: Thank you for gifting Palomino with not one beautiful video edit, but also a gorgeous moodboard! You are an angel!

Jules @julesonrecord: My fellow cowboy aficionado, your enthusiasm for s'mores and Jack always makes me smile. Thank you for your support, truly.

Jo @mvtthewmurdvck: Thank you for listening to me rant and rave and holding my hand during my meltdown. I'm so grateful for you!

Snowsuit anon: It's always a joy to hear from you, and I will hold you forever responsible for sparking the snowsuit craze (affectionate) 💙 Thank you for your support my lovely!

A special shoutout to my lovely readers who have followed Palomino from the very beginning. Thank you for sticking with me, I really feel like we went on this trip together, all of us: @lola-lola-lola, @harriedandharassed, @witchisenpai, @miss-mandalorian, @fireproofmarta, @dreamymyrrh, @inkededucatednnerdy, @toomanystoriessolittletime, @freakrenaissance, @axshadows, @damnyoupedro, @thosewickedlovelies, @peridotsparadox, @radiowallet, @sherala007, @shirks-all-responsibilities

And needless to say, thank you for every single one of you (I wish I could tag everyone but we'll be here all day!), every comment, reblog, ask, tag for Palomino. You have been an absolutely joy to write for, your love and encouragement kept me going, I really don't know how I've been so lucky, y'all have my heart forever ❤️

Last but not least, thank you @saradika for these adorable dividers!

[tacticalvalor]

«────── « HEADCANON » ──────»

A collection of things I've noticed and wanted to highlight during the airing of the final season. Put below a cut for potentially upsetting topics and S6 spoilers.

Okay so, organizing this by character—

Kim being terrified of talking to Jimmy when he calls her. Like. Actually scared of how egotistical he is and how much of a risk even listening to him puts her in.

Kim trying to live a genuinely normal life (partner, involved with neighbors, etc.)

See also: Said partner not being into their devil’s tango and just “yeup. yeup. yeup.” while banging Kim.

See also also: “ I don’t know what kind of life you’re living but it can’t be worth much ”

Kim returning to ABQ and the courthouse and offering to come forward.

KIM TELLING CHERYL EVERYTHING TO TURN HERSELF IN.

Kim sobbing on the bus… unable to hold it back and just breaking down… Oh my god I cried. She’s so traumatized from everything and now she has to relive it all.

The fact the way she served the divorce papers means that Kim has tried to petition for a divorce for months, if not years, and he literally danced circles around it until she came to his office in person to re-sign it and make him sign.

See also: Him interrupting her every question he asks to intimidate her and guilt her.

See also also: “ Have a nice life, Kim :) ” and, once again, jabbing at her to make her feel bad for an autonomous decision.

Jesse and Kim smoking outside of Saul’s office… Him asking about how good Saul is… Kim just “ When I knew him, he was. ”

LIFE PLUS 190 YEARS… Holy shit. And the offer?? 30 years??? That’s golden. AND THEN MANAGING TO GO EVEN FURTHER TO 85 TO 90 MONTHS?? TO 7.5 YEARS???

“Quantum mechanics? We’re discussing that now?? Stay in your lane!”

Kim’s dress and sneakers combo >>>

Kim volunteering at a legal counsel service 🥺😭 She wants to help people again…

Kim attending Saul’s trial as a part of the audience… Wanting to see one last time what he’s willing to do/if he can do the right thing.

KIM’S FACE WHEN HE ADMITS HIS FAULTS… JUST 😨 BECAUSE SHE’S NEVER HEARD HIM SO HONEST BEFORE

KIM REACTING TO SAUL ACTUALLY DEFENDING HER… THE FACT SHE’S SURPRISED OVER IT. A LOT TO UNPACK THERE.

The fact Kim conned her way into federal prison to visit his sorry ass.

When you,,, when,,,, visiting and the,, the cigarette,,,, sharing one last moment,,, Kim walking away for that last time and leaving him to face the consequences for God knows how many years

And then thinking about all of this in retrospect, the idea that Kim is so willing to do everything for Jimmy during the events in which everything happens (and how much she's grown to be able to pull off that last con of sneaking in before finally turning her back).

Like, thinking back to the apartment scene with Lalo, Jimmy (for several reasons summed up as his own cowardice and quick thinking) made her into a sacrificial lamb in the apartment scene.

He told Lalo that KIM was capable of murdering the target (re: Gus, most likely unknown to the duo given the limited extent of their interactions with Lalo). He convinced Lalo to let HER go carry out the hit, knowing that:

If he left Kim with Lalo, he could have killed her.

If he let Kim carry out the hit, she could die (presumably known but still a possibility considering what they do know about Lalo), go to the police, or run away entirely.

And, in the whim of the moment, he was right. Kim WAS capable of it because it gave her the possibility of saving Jimmy. Kim has literally said herself that she has and is willing to drop everything for this man:

“ Jimmy! I have been on your side since the day we met! Who comes running when you call? Who cleans up your messes? I have a job, but I drop everything for you. Every single time. You confess to a felony on tape, I’m there. You have a bar hearing, I represent you. Over and over again, if you need me, I’m there. ”

And it’s just… It’s amazing. It’s true! And I think a lot of her reasoning, aside from trying to see the good in everyone, is because she’s so used to this kind of stuff.

We don’t see a lot of her mother, but from the flashbacks we have, Mrs. Wexler and Jimmy (or rather, his sleazy persona, Saul) are effectively two sides of the same coin. She was raised by someone like Jimmy so, to an extent, there’s that internal justification of the things he does. It’s an illustrative case of how vital of a role parent modeling plays within the family dynamic.

Going to apply some of my own academics into this unintentional rambling, but I’ll try to keep it brief.

Modeling is the presentation and observation of behaviors, whether desired or undesired. Children often look to their parents most for what they should and should not do, and while not understanding the nuances of the behaviors, they are conscious enough to understand the responses to behaviors (e.g., punishment or reward).

A common phenomenon among parents is unintentionally modeling behaviors they do not want to see with their children, aka behaviors that are counterproductive to the desired family dynamic. This can happen for a number of reasons, but two common ones are:

Transmitting unremedied problems onto the children

Influencing them negatively through lifestyle practices, they can hardly help but pick up on (and uncritically follow)

Think of the expression “Do as I say, not as I do”. It’s an age-old expression parents use to justify their behaviors while attempting to dissuade their children from doing the same. Unfortunately, it’s about as effective as slapping a bandaid on a severed limb. This is mostly due to the fact people tend to pick up on nonverbal communication so much more than verbal communication. Simple gestures can change the meaning of conversations, after all.

And I think the relationship between Kim and her mother showcases that concept perfectly.

The flashback where Kim is caught stealing the earrings is a great example, though we do also get that verbal encouragement after the fact, as Mrs. Wexler used Kim as a distraction to steal the other set of earrings. We hear Mrs. Wexler chastise Kim in front of the store’s manager, saying how she’d be much better off in the hands of the police because she’s that mad. Yet her body language there is fairly relaxed. A trained eye, such as Kim’s (as she knows her mother best), can tell it’s a farce. And so even at that moment, Kim is observing that what she’s done is okay because her mother is affirming that physically.

And even though that’s just one instance, from what Kim recalls in brief conversations, that was commonplace. So throughout her peak developmental years, she was shown that these behaviors are okay so long as there is a benefit. As long as the reward outweighs the risk (which is a whole other topic I could lecture on). And, almost consistently, that’s been the case with Jimmy.

He alters legal documents (a serious felony charge), Chuck gets booted out of the firm and gets Kim back on her feet.

He gets involved with the cartel, Kim and him get enough money for whatever troubles they’re having.

He offhandedly proposes sabotaging Howard to get the settlement money, Kim affirms that and everything goes to plan (well, almost. RIP Howard).

But now, through the confrontation with Lalo and Howard’s death, there’s that realization that the risk is getting too high. That the reward isn’t going to be worth the effort. However, so much work has been put in (both in terms of the acts and the relationship with Jimmy) that I think this is being justified by Kim as something she’s put so much into. 

That, at this point, she will get the reward because the reward now is her life. Jimmy’s life. And that’s something that she’ll take (or would have taken) all avenues to protect.

Thinking about how… real Mike is when it comes to things. Thorough, too.

Like the whole thing with Matty’s death. How he deliberately made himself appear violently intoxicated to goad the other officers into attempting to kill him because he let on he knew the truth.

He pulled from as much experience as he could to perfect the act. He stumbled. He slurred. He uncovered an entire (presumably sealed) investigation and undid the work of an entire police department in the span of… what? A couple of days? A few weeks?

And on top of that, he gave them the slip. He unloaded their service weapons so that he would be the one to walk away. He knew how to stage the scene to keep the police off him for years. How to clean up after himself and leave hardly a trace.

And just in general. Just…

Thinking about his mindset of the justice system and how he believes it could be a good thing. But he sees it’s so corrupt at this point that he believes he’s hardly doing different work when working with the cartel. He knows corruption from first-hand experience. He’s seen how awful it can be. How it tears people apart.

RE: Mike saying that if he had the chance, he’d go back in time to the day he took his first bribe to avoid going down the corrupt cop path. (Which brings up the contrast between Mike’s mentality and Saul’s. Mike being so earnest and getting to see just who Saul is.)

I think my favorite quote of his is:

“ You know what happened. Question is, can you live with? ”

Because that’s just his whole mindset at the end of the day. Bad things happen. You do them; you see them. It’s up to you, and only you, what you do with that information. It’s how you use that information. Do you use it to your advantage? To do the right thing?

Idk… I just think that’s fucking neat. I think these characters are so fucking neat.

[stsgooo]

Idk if you’re taking requests but I’m gonna send you a little prompt 😈

“im going to fuck you until you forget that assholes name”

JEALOUSY, JEALOUSY. steve harrington

summary: after seeing a customer flirt with you, steve is less than confident. he decides to make sure you know what you two are.

content tags: SMUT 18+ MINORS DNI, dom!steve (for like five seconds. he's a sub at heart), hair pulling, spanking, semi-public sex, jealous!steve.

wc: 2,281k

a/n: ty for the request!! i totally misread the prompt but i hope this is okay too 😭🫂

You weren't sure exactly how it happened, but you're very aware of it now.

One minute you're checking out Footloose for a rather bothersome customer, exchanging polite smiles and telling him to have a nice day. The next you're pinned against the backroom table and Steve Harrington is fucking you like it's the end of the world.

He'd been so standoffish earlier. Watching you as you and the customer had a back and forth. You'd noticed his stare, you always did. It was usually so warm and welcoming, his lips spreading into that boyish smile that always captured your heart. Yet he was standing behind the front counter with that deep frown and dark unsettled eyes for an hour. Watching the stranger as his fingers brushed over your arm, asking softly (and dumbly), "so is Dirty Dancing really worth all that hype?" And you with your opinionated self, scoffed and would retort, "of course it is, are you crazy?" and the asshole laughed. You'd noticed the dangerous glare Steve sent him the moment his laugh filled the store and you had grown nervous.

Steve was like the sun, intoxicating and warm, and he made you feel wanted. He could get you to commit a murder if he asked- which, of course, he wouldn't. But you would if he asked. Steve was like your Achilles heel. One foul swoop and you'd be on your knees begging, crying for relief.

So when you saw how unhappy he was, you gravitated to him like a magnet. You wanted to attach to his hip and never let go. You gave the customer your kind smile, murmured a "have a nice day." Then turned your attention to Steve. The man was running a hand through his hair and huffing, puffing as he broke his eyes from the customer and to you.

Deep dark eyes settled on you like they belonged there. Their home was on you. Like the sun rays that kissed the skin on a nice summer day.

The moment the door's bell jingled, Steve's lips were on your own in an instant. A hungry needy want captured the both of you, his tongue invading your mouth and marking his territory. You only responded with a moan and placed your hands on either side of his face, his fingers tangled in your hair. He filled your senses. He smelt like that honey cologne he used religiously, his tongue soothed the skin of your lower lip after nipping on it, his soft moans reaching your ears, his cheeks were warm and if you opened your eyes, you know they'd be tinted red. He always grew a red hue whenever you two kissed.

One of his hands untangled from your hair and trailed to cup your ass, groaning as your hips pressed flush against his erection. Things seemed to click into place at that moment, you pulled away with wide eyes and blinked up at your boyfriend. Steve let out a soft whimper at the sudden lack of contact

You pulled away, eyes immediately pulling to Steve's plump lips. They were such a pretty hue of pink. You cupped his cheek, thumb running over his glimmering bottom lip as you met his eye. They were blown to hell, the blacks of his eyes seeming o swallow the brown. His chest heaved and his hands clutched at your hips desperately to keep contact against his clothed cock.

"Why are you acting like a horndog?" You smiled teasingly at him. Steve just huffed softly, pressing a kiss against your cheek and dragging his lips to your ear, nibbling softly. You ran a hand through his hair, admiring the blonde highlights that captured in the neon Family Video light. "What's going on?"

Steve paused, pulling back slightly to stare down at you with something unfamiliar. It was like he was calculating his next moves, assessing where you both were. He suddenly clenched his jaw and cradled your jaw with one hand.

Suddenly, he spoke, "I want to fuck you."

You blinked, staring up at him. "What?"

Steve, who is usually one to fumble with his words and blush, always quick to be the shy one, leaned down so his lips ghosted yours. "I've been wanting to bend you over this counter for the last hour. I just-I want to fuck you until you're crying to cum on me." His voice was husky. It was similar to how he spoke in the morning, arm wrapped around your waist and lips lazily pressing kisses against your neck.

A flush of ecstatic butterflies fluttered in your chest and you could feel the heat pick up, your core aching for the familiar touch. "Jesus, Steve," You whispered, blinking dumbly at him.

Steve's confidence briefly faltered, brows upwards and the familiar red on his cheeks. "I'm sorry was-was that-- it was too much wasn't it? I'm sorry, baby. I thought it would've been hot- Aw, fuck!"

You pushed him back against the counter, hand going between your bodies to stroke him through his jeans. His hands came back to your hips, fingers created indents on your skin as he grinded against your hand. Despite his cool exterior, you could feel his heart raging against his chest, his fingers twitching at your sides, and he completely leaned into your touch.

You placed a sloppy kiss against his jaw, listening to his breath hitch and felt him quiver. "Tell me what you want to do to me, baby. Please?" You pathetically begged him.

Steve closed his eyes, clenching his jaw as you placed a particular hard palm against the head of his cock. "Your dress is so fucking hot," he bunched up the floral fabric in his hands for emphasis, barely caring if your ass was exposed to whoever dared to walk in. "Been thinking about your pussy all day. Tasting you, feeling you wrapped around me while I fuck you so good- I want to fuck you until you forget your own name. 'Wanna to watch my cum drip out of you. Fuuuck, Y/n, I want you so bad."

Your tongue came out to wet your lip before you pulled back. He whined at the loss, opening his eyes with a heaving chest and quivering legs. You were half tempted to torture him a bit before leaving him a mess in his pants. It'd happened before and you'd been the lucky gal who got to lick it up, then return to work. However, you were too focused on the way your walls to even begin to devise a way for him to be pleading with you to cum.

You wanted to be the one quivering, whimpering, and aching once he was done with you.

Steve swore softly as he palmed his cock, closing his eyes and silently praying. He probably thought you were done- you two had only done it twice in the store and it'd only ever been slow nights. You both had sworn on avoiding getting caught by innocent children or a pervy Kieth. The mere thought was probably enough for Steve's boner to drop. But something about today had him wanting you right now. Almost wishing someone would walk in and see him fucking you.

That's why, when you reached for his hand and started to drag him towards the back room, he released a relieved and giddy laugh. Almost like a child on Christmas, he took long strides to the back with you. The door slamming as you were pressed against it.

And that's how you both ended up there, the desk rattling as Steve's harsh and quick thrusts met your hips. You were bent over the desk, panties pushed to the side and pussy making lewd sounds as Steve's cock pushed in and out of you. You were loud as Steve piston out of you, one hand wrapped in your hair and pulling as he sped up, the other cradled one of your cheeks. Your hands were splayed over the edge, gripping the weathered wood as the head of his cock brushed the spongy spot that made angels sing and your heart flutter.

"Fuck, you're so good," Steve breathed, tugging at your hair after you moaned in response. "You take my cock so well, baby. You just swallow me whole. 's like you're made for me. Just mine."

If you were surprised by the sudden change in Steve's demeanor today, you were surely surprised when he brought his free hand down on your ass. A resounding slap echoed in the small room, both of your moans accompanying it.

"Jesus, Steve," You cried, leaning back to meet his thrusts, trying to chase the tightening ball in your stomach. "Fuck, I-I'm so close."

Steve let out a breathy laugh, his hand soothing the red mark on your ass as he continued to fuck you from behind. He could feel the way your walls clenched around his cock that you were about to come undone. He licked his lips and let go of your hair to move to your hips in a grip that'd definitely leave bruises.

"You're mine, right?" Steve said through his teeth, landing a sharp thrust that hit you in the right spot. It left you dumbfounded, jaw hanging and eyes closed. You couldn't even begin to process what your boyfriend said. Rather focused on the fact that he was about to send you to heaven without dying. "Y/n?"

The softness of his tone was drastically different from his actions, but it still caught your attention. You did your best to glance over your shoulder, finding a terribly vulnerable look on your boyfriend's face. "Steve....?" You asked in a breathy moan.

He slowed his pace, panting but not completely letting go. "Say your mine." It wasn't a question anymore, but a demand.

It flushed over you, the tingling feeling. "I'm yours, Steve. Always have been, always will be." You reached back and grabbed his hand and squeezed.

Steve seemed to hesitate before he moved your hands, pinning it back to the desk and delivering a hard thrust. His other hand came to your clit and he rolled his fingers in time with his thrusts, pushing you closer to your edge before- "I'm yours too."

And you practically cried tears of joy when you came. Pure bliss grabbed ahold of your body. You gripped Steve's hand, unaware of his eyes twinkling in wonder at your face contorted into complete euphoria. You fell completely against the top of the desk, panting and whimpering as Steve tried to finish himself off. Your walls squeezing and releasing, so sensitive over his aching cock as his thrusts grew sloppy. He landed one last thrust before you heard him moan and cry as he came too. His cock twitched in you as it milked itself in your pussy, leaving traces of him deep in you.

It was a few moments of silence. Just panting breath and soothing thumb circling over your hand before Steve pulled out.

Both of you whimpered softly at the suddenly empty feeling. Steve paused to admire his work. Your ass was red from where he'd landed a slap, your pussy was pulsing and- jesus you were absolutely leaking with him cum dripping from you like you were a broken faucet. He tried to take his mind off of the sight of you overfilled with his cum before he got hard again. He stuffed himself back into his jeans, then collected a few tissues from the desk.

You laid there, closed eyes, and soft breaths as he gently wiped away his cum from your skin. You bit your lower lip at the sensitivity of that area, but turned you attention back to what Steve had asked you.

"Steve, did you fuck me in the middle of our shift because you were jealous?" Your question was blunt, but you figured you guys were far enough in your relationship to be such.

Steve faltered before he started to shyly return to his task. His wipes more timid as his face definitely heated up. "He was rubbing up against you and asking you stupid questions. I do that. You're supposed to laugh at my stupid questions, not his." You let out a breathy laugh as Steve came to a pause, looking up at you as you turned around. "It's stupid, isn't it? Over nothing. I'm sorry-"

You leaned down and kissed his lips. It was soft and tender, like a lover that was definitely trying to get their point across. It was different from earlier. No longer panicked and rushed. You pulled back and Steve's eyes remained closed as you stared at him with adoration twinkling in your eyes.

"It's a little stupid. I mean, c'mon, Harrington. You really think I'm gonna pass up on you just because a bimbo guy doesn't know Dirty Dancing?" Steve's eyes cracked open and his lips spread into a small smile. You couldn't help the way your heart gave a small pitter pat at the sight. He looked so pretty. But you saw that shadow of doubt in his eyes and your heart broke.

Your hands came to cradle his face, forcing him to stare at you head on. "I'm undoubtedly and incredibly in love with you, Steve. Nothing's going to change that." You pressed a kiss to the tip of his nose and stood.

Steve tilted his head. "Okay, but what if he comes back with Footloose and asks where Baby is?" He asked dumbly.

You laughed, eyes crinkled as you adjusted your dress. "Then I'll tell him he can ask my beautiful, intelligent, and very buff boyfriend about that, hm?"

"I can definitely get behind that."

[whyse7vn]

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS -

[ ot7 x reader ]

LOSERS 😟

8 participants - 8 online

———————————

y/n: ass or tits?

jk: tits.

y/n: oh?

jk: preferably yours

in my face

all the time

y/n: not all the time

jk: all

the

time.

jimin: is he dunk??

when have jungkook ever been that forward

yoongi: right.

anyways ass

namjoon: what happened to hello

how was your day?

miss you?

jin: tits

y/n: fair

tae: both

i say both

do i?

yes i do

or do i…

um

wait

nvm

okay both final answer

y/n: booo pick one

tae: come back to me

y/n: jimin?

jimin: ass 😌

jk: wrong the answer is tits right y/n?

hobi: is jungkook drunk omg

jimin: RIGHT I WAS SAYING

y/n: hoseok ur answer?

hobi: i have no answer because i’m a feminist 🙏🏻

tae: liar

because i am a REAL feminist i say ass #womenarethebest

y/n: ur all so predictable

thought i would be shocked and surprised

tae: are shocked and surprised not the same thing?

jimin: no?

jin: yes?

yoongi: who cares?

jk: i’m crying

hobi: LMAO

sorry i’m not laughing at you i’m laughing with you

jk: but i’m not laughing

i’m crying

namjoon: why are you crying??

jk: i think i’m drunk

jimin: i could of told you that

jin: who let the loser drink omg

tae: jungkook is borderline an alcoholic and we need to talk about it

yoongi: i prefer not to

let him suffer in silence

y/n: yoongi omg?!

yoongi: *yeah let’s help him 👍🏻

jk: i am nojt and alcoholick

tae: see now he can’t spell

look at the alcohol poisoning his mind the youth these days

namjoon: jungkook had been drinking a lot lately

jk: NO

ony

olly

onl

onlyyy

only every saturday

jin: it’s tuesday?

jk: what

yoongi: hes a grown man i say let him drink his life away

#freewill

jimin: rip bro

jk: rest easy i’ll miss you 💗😭

who died?

y/n: yikes!!!

jin: jungkook this is an invention

hobi: don’t you mean intervention??

jin: didn’t you fall at the grammys??

y/n: HELPOEODO

hobi: WHAT THE FUCK????

jk: what did you in

vvent jin?

jin: THIS IS AN INTERVENTION JUNGKOOK

put the alcohol down you are a light weight and a loser when you are drunk

jk: wJAHT

WHAT

NO

NO

NO

who told you i was dRunk

yoongi: i say this is a problem beyond us guys #letssleep

y/n: now i agree

#movingon

jimin: do you believe that jungkook is princess diana reincarnated?

tae: what is princess diana

y/n: i believe in the jungkook first life theory

jin: jungkook not british wtf

yoongi: no

jk: ipad

namjoon: what the fuck

jimin: i think jungkook isn’t real and we all made him up because we needed someone to bully

jk: i’m am a real

y/n: standing with the first life theory

jin: i stand with the not real theory

yoongi: he’s dead

hobi: robot boy built in space by tiny ants

jk: some times i thin k ants are iN my braiN

hobi: see

yoongi: who ate my pizza?

tae: who would do that omg 😭😭😭?

y/n: was tae

yoongi: figured

namjoon: i am genuinely concerned for all of you

y/n: namjoon is an ass guy

jimin: real

namjoon: ???

hobi: imagine we got jumped by all of nct and seventeen at the same time

y/n: hot

jk: 2 baddies 2 baddies

jin: why would they want to jump us

are we not their idols?

namjoon: you can’t just assume we are everyone’s idols jin

jin: why not?

tell me mr kim namjoon

…

right

stfu

don’t talk to me for the rest of they day

tae: imagine getting stomped on by all of them

y/n: i’m sick of pretending i’m okay with taehyungs freaky little foot fetish

yoongi: agreed

hobi: i say let’s kick him

namjoon lowkey got one too and no one talks about it

y/n: REAL

jimin: SO GLAD IM NOT THE ONLY ONE WHOS NOTICED

KICK THEM BOTH

jk: wwweowowowwwww

jin: omg forgot about jungkook

where even are you rn bff

namjoon: i do not have a foot fetish

jk: i with my otherR friends Butte dw im nottt replacing u guys

yoongi: he has other friends?

jk: yoongi my BIGGEST HATEFR LRTS TALK ABUTTT UIT

jimin: namjoon you literally post pictures of your feet on the internet for fun like

y/n: just like tae but make it aesthetic

jk: yoongi just saY ur in liove with y/n and go

jin: OMGhwhdhdhdhd

hobi: WOAHSHSHDHHSHDNDND

y/n: NO CUZ YOONGI ME PERSONALLY I WOULD HAVE ITTTT

tae: i have love i want to share

jin: this is not about you tae

omg yoongi typing

hobi: kinda nervous

namjoon: that does not mean i have a foot fetish wtf?

jin: someone tell namjoon to stfu we have bigger problems rn

hobi: namjoon jin said to stfu cuz we have bigger problems rn

yoongi: if i wanted her i could have her just saying

you should be thanking me tbh ur little crush isn’t that much of a secret

y/n: NEHHEHDBFBFBFBBF

hobi: I SCREAMEDDDDDDDDDDD

jimin: DAMNNSNDJ

jin: YOONGI ATE SORRY

tae: i have a crush

jin kicked tae from the gc

jin: he can come back after

jk: wjat I HAVVBBBB Njko nncrudhj

jimin: someone translate i beg im too invested

hobi: fight i say

to the death preferably

yoongi: going to bed

gn y/n

y/n: ur so evil omg

gn yoongi

jimin: NO CUZ JUNGKOOK GONNA CRY WHEN HE READ THIS WHEN HES SOBER

jin: YOONGI JUST DID JUNGKOOK SO FUCKING NASTY OMSHSHSH

hobi: YIKES LAMSKDKOD

namjoon: damn

jin: jungkook wya????

jimin: express your thoughts rn this is a safe place

jk: i canTttty sea

hobi: he’s so fucked up

jin added tae to the gc

tae: let’s run away together

forget all the drama bae just you and me against the world

jimin: omg ok 🥺

tae: ew not u wtf

was taking to y/n

jimin: EW???

tae: ew.

would rather kms

xoxoxox

y/n: you know you can just open a mcdonald’s if you have the money like that’s so crazy

jin: i don’t care for that type of food

they are serving you horseback and pig feet

hobi: did you not eat it yesterday?

jin: don’t let me get you again

hobi: this is a toxic friend group

namjoon: do you guys really think i have a foot fetish?

y/n: come on now…

jimin: 10000%

hobi: there is no doubt in my mind

jin: YEAH

tae: it’s okay bro

namjoon: you are the last person i want comfort from

tae: WTF???

last time i’m ever being nice

fuck you

kys how about that?

hobi: how you like that?

that that that that that that

y/n: where did jungkook go

jin: dead

jimin: crying

tae: idk

namjoon: he probably fell asleep it is like 2 am??

tae: namjoon kinda annoying guys

jin: someone had to say it!!

i agree

namjoon: sorry i am the only functional one in this group?

jin: look at him getting all defensive omg

tae: you cant even cut food right so how functional are you really?

jimin: no cuz remember when he was cutting that fucking carrot omg

namjoon: bye it’s late and u guys are annoying

tae: loser

y/n: cheer up joonie

jin: pussy

…

HELP i feel so bad cuz i was writing an individual one and i just couldn’t think of shit to say writing the gc ones are so much easier but i promise i’ll fix up and write more individual ones i just wanted to release something cuz i’ve been posting consistently lately and don’t want to break the streak so sorry if this one feels a bit rushed love you all comments reblogs and likes are always greatly appreciated and TY for being sosososo nice to me in my inbox entirely grateful love u xoxox

( also pls ignore any mistakes if there are any it is literally almost 2 am and i cant see straight will go fix it later love u )

[smartsxylacy]

"Im still here!"👦🏼

"We're hungry." 👨‍❤️‍👨 I MEAN 🧔

Puberty hit him like a mf truck 💀

[evorlaah]

2SOON; (TEASER.)

PARING: Female reader, Heeseung

Synopsis: Since your breakup, Heeseung’s life has been a downward spiral of parties and regret. One night, fate brings you back together outside a bar, reopening old wounds and unresolved feelings.

WARNINGS ⚠️ : non!idolheeseung, female reader, angst, angst, angst, angst, mentions of alcohol and smoking, strong language, toxic coping mechanisms (I think that’s it 😭?)

Every night was the same for Heeseung since your breakup in February. Parties, drinks, and the burn of cigarettes down his throat had become his only source of distraction. A desperate attempt to fill the void you left behind.

“Can you give me a shot of something? I don’t care what it is.” He muttered to the bartender, voice rough and tired.

Jake who was standing nearby noticed his behavior and placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to reel him back. “Heeseung, that’s enough. We need to go home.”

Heeseung shrugged him off with a glare on his face, his frustration bubbling over. “Just one more shot, Jake. It’s not the end of the fucking world. I’m a grown-ass man.”

He snapped, the words slicing through the haze of the music and chatter.

Jakes concern lingered, but Heeseung didn’t care. “Whatever man, you can’t keep doing this stupid shit. Call me when you’re ready to go.” Jake says before walking away. Heeseung watches him leave, his figure disappearing into the crowd. He scoffed, grabbing the drink his bartender slid his way. “Heres to fucking nothing.” He said bitterly before drowning it in one swift motion.

The burn spread through his chest but wasn’t enough to drown the ache in his heart. You.

His eyes scanned the room, blurry faces and empty laughter blending together. He hated this- he hated the noise, the fake smiles, and especially himself. A memory of you flashed in his mind, your laugh so vivid it almost felt real. Heeseung blinked hard, trying to shake it off, but it only made him aware of how lost he feels without you.

He stumbled outside, the cool night air hitting his face like a slap. Leaning against the wall, he lit a cigarette with shaky hands but his lighter didn’t budge, “fuck” he said before staring up at the sky. The stars were the only constant in a life that felt like it was falling apart.

“Why do you still haunt me?” he whispered to no one, his voice cracking under the weight of the question.

“Heeseung?”

The sound of his name startled him, low and tentative, cutting through the haze of his thoughts. Heeseung turns his head.

It was you.

You stood a few feet away from him, wrapped in a leather jacket that was too big for you. It wasn’t yours. He blinked as he looked at the jacket and then back at your face unsure if he was hallucinating. “Y/n?”

You hesitated, shoving your hands into your pockets. “I..I thought it was you,” you said quietly. “Didn’t think I’d find you out here like this.”

Heeseung lets out a dry laugh, his lips curling into a bitter smirk. “Why wouldn’t I be? This is me now. I’m fucked up.”

Your eyebrow’s furrowed, the words cutting deeper than you wanted to admit, but you stayed silent.

“Nice jacket by the way.” He says before taking a cigarette from his pocket and flicking the lighter multiple times until a mini flame burns.

You glanced down at the oversized jacket that’s draped over your shoulder, your grip tightening the fabric. “It's not mine,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

Heeseung smirks faltered, replaced by something unreadable. He took another drag from his cigarette, the glow illuminating his face. “Figures,” he muttered, exhaling a cloud of smoke. “Guess you moved on quicker than I thought.”

Your heart sank at his words. “It’s not like that Heeseung,” you said softy stepping closer.

He turned his head away, avoiding your gaze. “Then what is it, huh? What the fuck it’s like your haunting me. Why are you even here?.”

You opened your mouth to respond, but no words came. The truth was, you didn’t know why you were there. Something about seeing him stumble out of the bar, looking so lost and broken, made it impossible to walk away.

“I just… I wanted to make sure you were okay,” you finally said, your voice trembling slightly.

Heeseung let out a bitter laugh, flicking the ash from his cigarette. “Yeah? Well, take a good look. This is me now. A fucking mess. You can go back and tell whoever gave you that jacket.”

His words stung, but you stood your ground. “Stop pushing people away, Heeseung. I know you’re hurting—”

“You don’t know shit Y/n!” he snapped, his voice rising as he threw the cigarette to the ground and crushed it under his shoe. “You don’t get to act like you care after you fucking left me!”

The silence that followed was deafening, broken only by the faint hum of traffic in the distance. Heeseung’s chest rose and fell rapidly, his hands trembling as he ran them through his hair.

“I never stopped caring,” you finally whispered, your voice barely audible tears forming.

His head shot up, his eyes locking onto yours. For a moment, the anger in his expression faltered, replaced by something softer—something vulnerable.

But before he could respond, you took a step back, wrapping the jacket tighter around yourself. “Take care of yourself, Heeseung,” you said, your voice steady now, though your heart felt like it was in your ass.

You turned to leave, your footsteps echoing in the empty alley, and for the first time in months, Heeseung felt the weight of regret press down on him like a vice.

[rocknr0llz]

LMAO

Puberty hit him like a mf truck 💀