#I'm sorry it took so long school and stress has been kicking my ass

[comics-and-fanworks]

Idea for you class salt after the class is out of school and in the real world.

Marinette's phone gets broken so badly she needs a new number. She only tells a few her new number no one from her old class has it.

Some of her old class goes to bakery to ask why she hasn't called them back when they called her. They get told her phone got broken and all that.

The class member goes okay tell her to call me when it gets fixed or replaced it is important.

Only her parents forget and when said class member comes back later is told that but is also told Marinette has a new phone now. But not a new number.

Classmate rushes out to call her so she can fix their problems like always only it goes to voicemail as the person whom has her old number is like I don't know this person calling me. It goes on and on till it gets bad and the person with the new number goes to the police with worry over the threats they are getting.

Should I be worried for myself or the person they are trying to reach

It comes to a head when alya talks max into hacking the location of the phone and they go to have a talk with Marinette only it's not her

Thank you so much for the request! It's my first one so I went a bit overboard and wrote a lot! So sorry it took me so long to get to this! I'm taking organic chemistry over the winter so that has been kicking my ass. The first draft was deleted, so hopefully, this is a better version! Thank you for your patience with me!

TW: swearing, minor threats of violence

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"Well shit," Marinette's day was already bad, but this was just throwing salt into the wound. She had started her day with her phone blowing up with requests from her (former) classmates and friends. Ever since she returned from College they had gotten right back to their usual B.S. "Mari I need a new dress for a meeting with Prince Ali," "Marinette! I told my team you'd design some sick jackets for us and you'd have them done by our next swim meet!" "Girl! I need three new outfits! Adrien and Lila are taking me with them to a fashion show and this is my chance to interview some top designers! Oh sorry, you're not invited." She was up to her neck in demands and requests, to the point she was seriously considering closing her commissions, not like her former friends paid her anyways. THEN Hawkmoth decided that she hadn't suffered enough, she had to deal with Volpina, Frozer, AND Prime Queen and it was not even lunchtime. Volpina was easy enough to take down, why Lila was akumatized is anyone's guess. Frozer was a bit trickier, and since Chat had no plans of showing up she had to bring in Ryuko and Viperion. The trio ended up fighting Prime Queen, who was convinced that LadyNoir would still happen and the Cat Hero's absence was due to a lover's quarrel. Marinette was finally able to return to the alleyway she had transformed in... only to find her shattered phone. It must've fallen out of her suit's pocket (she had redesigned her costume since returning to Paris, she wanted a more mature, fashionable look) when she was rushing to get to the battle.

"Great! Just Perfect! This is just what I need now!" She sighed picking up the shattered phone. There was no way this was salvageable, the impact of hitting the ground had practically broken the thing in half. Tikki knew her chosen was stressed, between being Ladybug, being the Guardian of the Miraculous, building a blossoming fashion empire from scratch, and having to deal with her former friends' constant demands it was only a matter of time before she lost Marinette to Hawkmoth's akumatization. The goddess recognized that this was just the opportunity she needed to help her chosen, and she would start by helping Marinette cut off the people hurting her most. "Marinette! I have an idea! Why don't you get two phones? One can be your work phone, and the other can be your personal one. That way you won't have to worry about your work stuff getting lost in your personal stuff. You can get new numbers for both too!" Marinette looked at the Kwamii with some confusion, "Why would I need to change my number?" Tikki sighed, "Marinette, they haven't been very good friends to you, they haven't even been your friends for a while now. Think about it, your former classmates don't talk to you unless they want something, they expect you to use your connections to benefit them but won't return the favor, and they promise you and your time to other people without your consent.  That isn't right babybug, friends don't treat friends like that. They don't even pay you for your time, effort, and the cost of materials!" Marinette knew that Tikki was right, but she was still hesitant, "But..." "Would Kagami text you expecting you to make her something and refuse to pay? Would Luka text you telling you that he promised another musician you'd make their wardrobe by their next concert? Would Kagami and Luka use your work to get ahead, and then refuse to extend the favor? No, they wouldn't! Those are healthy friends babybug, you can give them your new number, I know they'll understand!" Marinette thought about it for a moment and decided that Tikki was right. With a renewed conviction she made her way to the nearest tech store to begin to take control of her life again.

Adrien was frustrated, he had been texting and calling Marinette all afternoon but she wasn't answering! That wasn't like his princess, so something had to be going on, but there wasn't an Akuma on the news, Ladybug, Viperion, and Ryuko defeated the three earlier today. He did feel a little guilty that he didn't go to help, but he was busy! He had modeling shoots all morning and then joined Lila and Alya for lunch discussing their upcoming trip. The topic eventually turned to the Wayne Gala that was approaching as well, with both models confirming they had been invited. Well, Lila had only been invited because she was an official Gabriel representative, but she didn't need to know that. The brunette was currently making a big show of bringing Alya as her plus one, which brings Adrien back to his current predicament. When he arrived home, his father told him that he had to invite Marinette Dupain-cheng as his plus one no matter what. Both Agrestes had been shocked when she had rejected Gabriel's offer to join his company, but her answer had been reassuring, "I greatly appreciate your offer but cannot accept it in good conscious. Adrien has been my friend for years and I would hate to potentially harm his, the company's, and my reputation by accepting. I am worried it could be misconstrued as me gaining the position, not by my own talent, skill, or merit but because I had a connection to someone with considerable sway." His father didn't seem to pick up that the last bit was about Lila, but seemed content. In fact, Gabriel had complimented Marinette's business savvy and remarked how good it would be if she followed in his footsteps by building a fashion house from scratch. He had mused that it would be even better to have the two great fashion houses merging together instead of just taking Marinette in as a designer. Now that Miracle Design Clothing (MDC) has risen to compete with the likes of Gabriel and Style Queen, his father had decided now was the time to begin winning Marinette over.

Adrien would never admit it to his father, but he had his own motivations for being so on board with the plan to invite Marinette to the Wayne Gala. They were now in their mid-20s, and everyone in Paris wanted to know everything about the Agreste Heir's love life. Lila had hinted multiple times that Adrien was dating her, so much so that the media was beginning to spin her narrative. However, Adrien wasn't entirely out of the running yet. He knew that the Wayne Galas were always a media frenzy so if he, a fashion empire heir, showed up to the Gala with Marinette, a rising star in the fashion world, on his arm the media would quickly assume they were dating. It was a brilliant plan, Marinette was charming, beautiful, intelligent, and incredibly talented. His father held her in high regard, and he knew that if Gabriel approved of him dating anyone, it would be Marinette. Besides Adrien had a trick up his sleeve, he knew Marinette was in love with him, or at least that was what Alya had told him. She told him about Marinette's crush right before the ravenette left for college, hoping to embarrass her former best friend. Their old class still believed what Lila had said about Marinette being a bully. In their get-togethers they would often mock the designer's success, reassuring Lila that the only reason they talked to her was to get stuff from Marinette. While it upset him a little to know Marinette was being taken advantage of, a larger part of him felt like she deserved it since she didn't listen to his advice about Lila. Oh well, it was her own fault. Adrien was brought out of his thoughts by Alya's shriek.

"OH MY GOSH! The Waynes just announced the Designer they got their Gala outfits from, and it's Marinette!" Adrien choked down a laugh at the sour expression Lila wore, as Alya continued to read, "The article says that Marinette and Timothy Drake Wayne met while they were in college, and he thought her designs were so incredible that he referred her to Bruce Wayne himself! She's considered a family friend and received their order along with an invitation to the Gala! Why didn't she tell me any of this??" 'Maybe because you only talk to her when you want something' Adrien thought as their former classmates began to text. Alya was trying to call Marinette, most likely to scream at her for not letting Alya in on such a big story, but she couldn't get through. "Ugh! Marinette is ignoring me! Who does that stupid bitch think she is?" Lila's eyes sparkled as she saw a chance to jump in and control the narrative, "I know right? You'd think she'd be more grateful after I introduced her to Timmy- oh I've said too much," She batted her eyelashes and made a show of covering her mouth. "YOU introduced Marinette to the Waynes? Girl you've gotta give me the details!" "Well, Marinette was going to college in Milan, and I happened to be there for a modeling shoot," That part was actually true, Adrien was sick and couldn't make that shoot, "We happened to bump into each other at a cafè, and Marinette apologized to me for how awful she was to me in our youth. She told me that the only reason she did what she did was that she was jealous and felt threatened by me, you were right Alya." That was how Lila worked, she mixed a little bit of the truth with what someone wanted to hear, which caused the lies she told to pass by noticed. "Anyways we had lunch and caught up, she was showing me some of her amazing designs," as much as it pained Lila to admit it, Marinette was truly talented. In fact one thing she regretted was not working harder to deceive Marinette back when they were still in school, if she had known Marinette would be so successful she would've fought like hell to take the spot of Marinette's Best Friend away from Alya. She would've been MDC's top model, instead of having a stagnating career as just another practically nameless model for Gabriel. "I remembered my dear friend Timmy, we met when my mother was stationed in Gotham, he had told me that the Wayne family needed suits and dresses for their upcoming Gala and that Gabriel was too busy." Another partial truth, Lila didn't know any Wayne, but she knew Gabriel was too busy being Hawkmoth to make their outfits. "I gave him Marinette's number as an olive branch because I had thought she changed, but I guess she was lying. Oh and Alya? Adrien? Please don't mention my friendship with the Waynes, I don't want people thinking they can get to them through me." Lila smirked as both Adrien and Alya promised her they wouldn't say anything.

When Marinette told them she was cutting off her former friends for good, Tom and Sabine were over the moon. They knew about the Lila situation and all its complexities after the faux fox tried to infiltrate the bakery and convince them their daughter had stolen her necklace. They almost fell for it, until Tom remembered that Marinette had been helping him in the bakery during the time Lila said their daughter took the necklace. He had sternly told Lila that there was no way Marinette could have done it, and even offered to show her security footage that proved Marinette was not the thief. Instead, the brunette stormed out of the bakery, and Tom and Sabine knew they had to talk to their daughter. After a bit of gentle prodding, Marinette broke down and told them everything. She told them about Lila, her classmates, and Adrien, and she told them about everything they were putting her through. They were horrified, and that feeling was solidified after Lila got Marinette expelled. After their daughter's name was cleared, that useless principal was trying to dodge removing it from her record, until Sabine threatened to contact the school board about how their daughter was expelled without an investigation. They did everything they could, but it seemed Lila had everyone else in her pocket, and it seemed to stay that way once Marinette returned from college. She had swung by the bakery and explained that her phone had been shattered while she avoided the akumas, and she was taking this opportunity to change her number and cut those leeches off. Sabine and Tom promised that they would say nothing because it was only a matter of time before her former friends wound up at the bakery because of the radio silence from Marinette.

The chiming of the doorbell confirmed their fears. In stormed Marinette's old class, with her former friend Alya leading the pack. They could see Lila hiding in the back, and decided it would be better to say nothing. "Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng! We have a problem and thought you could help us. We've been trying to get in contact with Marinette all day, but we can't reach her and we wanted to make sure she was okay." Sabine smiled as she tried to hold in her rage. They weren't here because they were concerned, those brats wanted something. It would appear that Alya and co didn't know that Marinette's parents knew Lila was lying or what they did, so Tom decided to answer in a way Lila couldn't twist. "Oh, she came by earlier today and let us know that her phone was broken. She dropped it during one of the Akuma attacks, and it was pretty smashed up. She told us to let you know if you came by since she would be off the grid until it was fixed. It might be a while though, it was almost as bad as the time it got caught in the bread mixer!" His answer seemed to calm the group down, typical clumsy Marinette strikes again. "Ok, well can you please let her know to reach out to us once her phone's fixed?" The two nodded and promised they would, and watched as the group of adults left. Sabine turned to the freezer, "They're gone! You can come out now!" The two chuckled as their daughter slowly poked her head out of the walk-in freezer, ready to dash back in at a moment's notice. Yeah, they're glad Marinette was finally cutting those people off and the bright glow in their girl's eyes confirmed it.

The Gala was in a few weeks, and Marinette was STILL radio silent. Adrien was pacing back and forth in his room, trying to figure out what to do. Her social media was most likely controlled by an assistant like his was so he couldn't message her there, he couldn't get into her studio without an invitation or employee badge, and he realized he had no idea where she lived so he couldn't even pay her a visit or send a letter! "I don't know what to do! No one has heard from Marinette and her parents promised they'd talk to her about it!" "Maybe she finally got tired of your bullshit and decided to cut you and the rest of those users off," Plagg snapped from somewhere in his room. After The Paint Incident, Plagg's attitude towards him seemed to change. He snapped at Adrien more, called Adrien out on his behavior, and started giving Adrien harsh (and desperately needed) advice. Other than that, Plagg was getting on his case about slacking off on his duties as Chat Noir, claiming that his behavior was a disgrace to the legacy of the Cat Miraculous. Adrien was getting fed up with him, hadn't the stupid cat heard the saying 'if you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all?' "Marinette wouldn't do that! We're her friends!" "Some friends. And some friend YOU are. You knew Lila was lying and let her wreck Marinette's school life, get her expelled, and continue to lie to everyone. You told Marinette to shut up and take it, news flash kid, the high road does not mean stay quite and let people hurt you! YOU currently know that YOUR friends only care about what they can get from her and that Lila is planning to pull some bullshit at the Gala, but all you're concerned about is making sure karma doesn't bite you in the ass!" Plagg roared. It was hard to argue with the little god without sounding like a hypocrite, but Adrien was going to try. "Well... When Marinette agrees to go to the Gala with me I can fix everything! She likes me, so we can get together, and I can get Lila to apologize! Once everyone knows they're on good terms things will go back to how they should be!" Plagg was paying more attention to the cheese he was juggling, but he did glance back at Adrien, "One, IF she decides to go with you. Two, she may not even feel that way it's been years. Three, How are you going to get a narcissist to admit to wrongdoing? Four, How does Lila apologizing change how your ex-class treat Mari when that's how they treated her before Lila showed up?" Adrien chose to ignore Plagg and tried calling Marinette again.

Alya was STRESSED. The Gala was coming up and she needed a new dress that would wow everyone and make her stand out from other reporters. She had already secured her Press Pass, and because she was Lila's plus one she could actually get into the Gala. The only other reporters with that privilege were Clark Kent and Lois Lane, close friends of the Wayne Family. Lila offered to get her a Gabriel Original but she turned it down, both girls shared a sentiment that Gabriel's designs had really been declining. "I think it was the loss of his wife. She was his greatest inspiration, and especially with Hawkmoth on the loose, I can understand not wanting to leave your house. Maybe he's just out of touch," Lila had told her, and Alya agreed. What she needed was a Marinette Original, something to show she was in with both designers. She was thinking of something fox-inspired, to pay homage to her time as Rena Rouge. She'd talked to the other girls about why Marinette had never told her she would be designing for the Waynes, and they reassured her, "Well, maybe she thought you wouldn't be interested or were too busy?" Rose offered. "You didn't really report on fashion until Adrien and Lila took you to that fashion show. Maybe she thought you wouldn't be interested." Juleka suggested. "Als, you're overthinking it! Mari didn't tell you because she couldn't! A family like the Waynes has wicked good lawyers, they probably made her sign an NDA." Alix concluded. They were probably right, Marinette would have told her if she could have, and Alya needed that dress. So there she was at Tom and Sabine's bakery again, asking about Marinette. "Oh, she just called this morning! The damage was too severe, so she had to get a new phone." Sabine told the young reporter, who thanked her lucky stars. As she left the bakery, she sent a text 'Mari's back!'

Adrien nearly dropped his phone when he got the text from Alya, before excusing himself to run upstairs and call Marinette. The phone rang, and rang, and rang, before the call was answered, "Hello? Who is this?" A woman's voice answered, but certainly was not Marinette. Adrien was floored, he was sure he dialed the correct number. "Um hi. I'm looking for Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I'm a friend of hers and was calling to speak to her." "Oh really? Well if you're her friend maybe you can explain to me why the second I had this number activated my phone was bombarded with calls and texts demanding things from dresses, to invitations to some Gala, and all kinds of other demands." Wait, had Marinette changed her number? No, she wouldn't have. "Listen, lady, I don't know if you find this funny but I KNOW Marinette wouldn't change her number. If you're her assistant you better give the phone to Marinette NOW or I'll see to it personally that you're fired!" Marinette should really have taken care to not hire such incompetent people. It was unfitting of an eventually-to-be Agreste. "I don't know who you think you are but I will make one thing clear: I DO NOT KNOW A MARINETTE DUPAIN-CHENG!" The line went dead. Adrien pressed the redial button, and felt his stomach drop as the call didn't go through, he had been blocked. From the way the group chat was blowing up, he could guess the others were getting the same response. Lila was going on and on about how Marinette was abandoning them in their time of need, and adding fuel to the fire. Adrien decided he was going to do damage control. He had thought a bit about what Plagg had said and realized that he needed to show Marinette that he was still on her side, besides it would be tougher to get everyone to make up if they were mad at her for something her crappy assistant did. He sent the chat a message, 'Guys relax. The woman on the phone wasn't Marinette but has her number, so she's probably a new assistant! Miracle Design Clothing has really exploded since the Waynes announced she made their outfits for the Gala so Marinette probably hired some help and the lady didn't know who we were. We can try again later.'

Lea Dubois was having the roughest week in all of her fourty-three years. She had gotten a new phone, since she her old one was stolen, and decided to get a new number with it. Not even a couple of minutes after activating her phone it began blowing up with calls and demands for a Marinette Dupain-Cheng. After a particularly snobby boy threatened to get her fired from a job she didn't even have, Lea decided to do some snooping and figure out who this Marinette Dupain-Cheng was. Googling the girl's name directed her to a Miracle Design Clothing website, and after scrolling through she found a tab labeled, "Founder." Clicking on it, she saw a picture of a smiling young woman with shiny black (almost blue) hair and sapphires for her eyes. She was a truly gorgeous woman, and from what Lea read very talented. That explained the demand for clothing. She decided to check social media next, and quickly found articles about how the rising star had been personally invited to the Wayne Charity Gala! That explained all the calls from people claiming to be Marinette's friends and demanding to be taken to the Gala, to that one girl who demanded an interview and a dress for the Gala. Lea went through the messages that quickly went from demanding to insulting and toxic, and thought to herself, 'I see why that girl changed her number, I hope she knows these people aren't her friends.' She decided to look up the people who had called her, and see what she could find out about them. A girl named Alix and a boy named Kim were both athletes, although both played for the minor leagues of their respective sports, but it did explain the requests for jersey designs. A boy named Ivan and two girls named Juleka and Rose had been calling about outfits for their next concert, apparently they were in a band called Kitty Section. Lea vaguely remembered that it was a popular group, before their lead guitarist was kicked out and went solo. Two girls named Sabrina and Mylene had asked her to create costumes for a production in the Théâtre du Châtelet, a boy named Max called asking for a suit for his new tech reveal, and another boy named Nino asked her to design a couple of album covers!

A few other people called, but they seemed to be genuine friends. One standout was a boy named Nathaniel who had called twice, once to congratulate Marinette on her work with the Waynes and invite her to an event for his comic. The second time was to apologize to Lea when he found out Marinette had changed her number. He had also apologized for the harassment his (and apparently Marinette's) former friends had been throwing at her. He explained that when they were younger, Marinette didn't know how to stand up for herself, and was pressured by her teacher to constantly put her needs on the back burner to help her classmates. Nathaniel told her it had gotten better when Marinette left for college, but now that she was back in Paris, things had gone back to the way they were. Instead of their teacher, the role of pressuring her had fallen to three people, Lila Rossi, Alya Césaire, and Adrien Agreste. That last name caught her attention, could that have been the bratty boy who threatened to fire her? "Sweetie I hate to do this to you, but if you have time could you meet me in person? We have a lot to discuss, and I'm beginning to worry for Marinette." Nathaniel had agreed and had said he was bringing a couple of Marinette's friends, her real friends. "They've been harassing us too, maybe we can look into getting a restraining order or something." And that was how she ended up in a cafe sitting at a table with some of the most impressive people she'd ever met. There were Nathaniel Kurtzberg and Marc Anciel, the power couple of comics. She hadn't read comics since she was a little girl, but her nephews talked nonstop about the Ladybug comic the two had started in collège. Olympian fencer Kagami Tsurugi, and hit rock artist Luka Couffaine. There was academy award winner Zoé Lee and fortune 500 company founder Chloé Bourgeois.

The group exchanged pleasantries and got right to business, "So we heard from Nathaniel that you got Marinette's old number and that your phone has been blowing up with all the shit she used to get," Luka said. Lea nodded, "Yes. They refused to believe that she'd changed her number and one man even threatened to get me fired! I don't know what job he thinks I have that he can influence, but I digress. " "Ugh. That sounds like Adrien alright. I swear it was like a switch flipped in his head during Collége, he's acting like I used to," Chloé had come to terms with the kind of person she was, and had taken the steps to apologize and change for the better. A part of that was she swore never to touch a Miraculous again, she had become aware enough to realize that when given that much power she would be tempted to fall back into her old ways. "It's telling that their first reaction to being cut off is to harass an innocent person instead of reflecting on their actions and what lead them to that point," Kagami said, "I think we owe you an explanation since you have unfortunately been dragged into this." Lea nodded, that sounded good. "They weren't always this bad, well they weren't always this blatant about it. For a long time, Marinette was happy and popular, hell even when I bullied her she didn't seem bothered. Then Lila Rossi transferred. That girl is the type to convince people that two plus two equals five, you know what I mean," Lea nodded, her ex had been like that. "Well anyways, Marinette saw through her bullshit and called her out for it, so Lila declared war. Before anyone could process what happened, Lila had convinced the class that Marinette was the Devil's spawn. She even managed to get Marinette falsely expelled, and while that was reversed, it was the moment Marinette realized she couldn't rely on her classmates. Alya was an up-and-coming journalist and her best friend, but if she couldn't bring herself to fact-check this girl's stories..." Chloé paused to take a sip of her drink, and Lea thought of something, "Maybe Alya did fact-check and knew Lila was lying. I did some research before I came here, and I know that Alya ran the Ladyblog. I also know that her videos featuring Lila are her most viewed videos, but when I looked at the comments I noticed that a ton had been deleted. Maybe she knew but saw how much attention her blog was getting, and chose to ignore Lila's lies, or maybe she believes them, I don't know." The group continued to chat about their situation and were snapped out of it when the door to the cafe was flung open.

Alya was gonna kill Marinette when she found her. How dare she hire someone and not tell them who she was?! How dare she do that to her friends?! Doesn't she realize they need her? It didn't take much to convince the others, specifically Max, to ping the location off of Marinette's number and track it down. If she was going to be bitchy and ignore their calls and messages and hire some dumb assistant to annoy them, they were gonna make her pay! They had tracked her location to a cafe in the fashion district and were waiting for the last of the group to arrive. "I don't understand why she's being so petty," Lila whimpered, fighting back tears, "You all have been nothing but kind to her even when she's been such a nasty person!" "I don't understand it either," Sabrina said, "It's like a switch flipped in collège or something." Well whatever it was, they weren't gonna let her get out of this! Once Kitty Section had arrived, the group stormed into the cafe ready to give Marinette a piece of their minds! To their surprise, Marinette wasn't there. Their old friends turned enemies were there and sitting with them was a middle-aged woman, was she the one who had been answering from Marinette's number. "Where's Marinette?" Alya demanded. Chloé and Kagami lept to their feet. "She isn't here, and unless someone is dying you are not getting in contact with her!" Chloé was a lot less polite about it, "Wow, I'm surprised none of you got the memo. You've been cut off!" The older woman turned to face them, and Adrien snapped at her, "You! Are you Marinette's assistant or something? Get her here now!" Oh, that was it, Lea walked right up to him, ready for war. "I will do no such thing because I am not her assistant! I did not even know who Marinette was until you people began blowing up my phone with demands! I have never met more selfish people! And you," she pointed at Lila, "I've heard all about you and what you've done to that poor girl!" Lila began to sob, wailing about how she didn't do anything, and that she had been trying to mend bridges with Marinette by introducing her to the Waynes.

"Woah, Woah, hold on! You did NOT introduce her to the Wayne Family," Luka stood up and walked over, Lea noticed how Kitty Section seemed to shrink under his gaze. "Marinette met the Waynes at a fashion show in Gotham that Jagged Stone took us to. She met Selina and the two hit it off like a house on fire," Luka pulled out his phone and showed off pictures of a much younger Marinette with a woman who could have passed for her mother. "Notice the date? She was in high school when she met them. Here she is at Selina and Bruce's wedding. Know why she's there? She designed Selina's dress." The dress was a stunning white with elegant black lace. The top resembled the head of a cat, and if you looked close enough you could see little cats and bats hidden within the lace. "Marinette's been the Wayne Family's go-to designer for YEARS. Hell, the Waynes were at her graduation party, and the opening of Miracle Design Clothes Studio, and have been to every major life event she's had since she met them." Luka showed them More photos of Marinette and the Wayne family. "I don't know how you could introduce her to people she's known for years," Luka said, "Not to mention Stephanie tells me they're desperate to either adopt her into the family or have her marry into it," Marc added. All eyes were on Lila now, she had told them all that she'd introduced Marinette to Timothy Drake Wayne and that was how Marinette got the job, but with all this evidence it was clear her lie was dead in the water. Lea turned back to the group, watching as the realization crossed their faces that Lila had lied, and had most likely lied about various other things. Turning back to the people she had met she said, "It was very nice meeting you all. Please pass on my concerns to Marinette, and let her know if she ever needs friendly advice, she knows what number to call,"

The Wayne Gala was very... Awkward for Adrien. After their failed attempt to confront Marinette, Lila got exposed, and in the excitement, it came out that he knew about what she had been doing. Simply put he was excommunicated from the group. They figured that if they cut him, Lila, and Alya (who had doubled down on Marinette being the problem until it came out she knew Lila lied and had said nothing to protect her views) out that they could apologize to Marinette and she'd take them back. Their pleas on social media brought attention to the situation, and Marinette's friends and parents were more than happy to tell the world what happened to their favorite designer. When he, Lila, and Alya walked into the Wayne Gala, they turned heads but not for the reasons any of them had hoped for. People were polite to their faces and when speaking to them, but Adrien could hear them whispering behind his back. He needed to talk to Marinette, if he could smooth things over with her then maybe, just maybe this could be salvaged. However, the Wayne Family seemed to personally take offense to his plan, because whenever he saw Marinette (and she stood out in an absolutely jaw-dropping sparkling red mermaid cut dress) she was whisked away before he could say anything. First, it was Selina, who lead her over to some of his father's former clients and proudly told them the story of how she met the young designer. Then it was Bruce Wayne himself who came to introduce her to the Kents, who much to Alya's dismay didn't even glance her way. Finally, it was the Wayne Kids who were determined to dance with Marinette all night, Adrien swears Jason was smirking at him. Eventually, she broke off from the main party with Tim and the two were chatting on the balcony. This was as close of a chance as he would get.

Marinette was having an amazing night! She met so many amazing people and made so many new contacts! She even set up an interview with Lois Lane! She could feel Alya fuming on the other side of the room, and tried her best not to think about it. She knew Adrien, Lila, and Alya were at the Gala, and she knew what had happened a few weeks before. While she was happy Lila was finally exposed, she had moved on. She got to dance with each of the Wayne siblings, but her favorite dance had to be with Tim. When Selina had introduced her to him, their reaction to each other was to freak out. Tim was over the moon to meet the designer he'd followed for years, and Marinette was ecstatic to meet the young Wayne CEO (whom she may have had a bit of a crush on). The two had exchanged numbers and talked constantly, building up a close friendship. As time went on her crush on him grew as well, but she was too nervous to risk their friendship and say anything. Eventually, when she thought her feet were going to fall off, Tim led her over to the balcony. There they talked quietly about anything and everything when a cough interrupted them. There was Adrien, with a charming smile, but Marinette had learned not to be fooled. "Hello, Adrien. Enjoying the Gala?" Marinette asked, she knew he was up to something, and from the way Tim looked at him, he could sense it too. Marinette decided to take control of the conversation, "I heard what happened. With Lea Dubois and the phone number and everything. To put it lightly that certainly wasn't your best moment." "Well, I... I never thought you would change your number, so it kinda threw me for a loop. Anyways, I wanted to apologize for the part I played in all of this. I really dropped the ball and it lead to you getting hurt I never intended for that to happen," "Yet you continued to let Marinette's former friends use her for free things?" Tim butted in, holding up his phone and showing various text messages between Adrien and his friends. Adrien's face darkened, "How the hell did you get those?!" Tim just threw his head back and laughed. "I'm a tech prodigy. Finding texts is a piece of cake. I started looking after Nathaniel told me about what happened in the cafe. I also found the texts between you and your father, and no I won't let you use my girlfriend as a publicity stunt. We were gonna announce our relationship tonight-" Adrien turned around and stomped off before Tim could finish his sentence. Marinette sighed, he really hadn't changed. Turning back to Tim she asked, "Since when are we in a relationship?" The raven-haired boy blushed a little, "Well Unofficially since your graduation party, but neither of us knew it at the time. Officially now... If you want. If not that's cool and we can just pretend this never happened. Damn Adrien! I had a plan for this but he had to show up and ruin it!" Marinette chuckled and brought Tim's hand up to her cheek, smiling up at him fondly, "Officially now is fine with me."

[books-and-dragons]

I'm so sorry, I'm kinda drunk and dropping another idea, do with it whatever ye will.

Yknow how in the beginning of the game, Sojiro tells Ren he won't take care of him when he gets sick?

Consider: he's not used to city germs/being that closely shoved against other people on the train. He DOES start to get sick around Kamoshida's Palace, powers through it, and then is SUPER sick just after it's over.

He plans on sucking it up and hiding it, but Futaba hears his hacking coughs over her bug even when he's upstairs, followed by wheezing, maybe even a little weeping. He's constantly in and out of the bathroom, and he's starting to run out of tissues.

Futaba nervously texts Sojiro that the kid they took in sounds awful. Sojiro is gruff at first and says he's not a baby, he can take care of himself. She responds by sending him the audio and suddenly Dad Instincts kick in

y/n

obviously it's a YES, our brainrots continue because early-game ren and sojiro dynamics break my heart every time how dare you get me so invested in this idea, this post got too long so it's going under a read more

listen listen look i love sojiro and the coffee family okay, but early-game?? sojiro could catch these hands

ren has already been though so much by the time he arrives in tokyo, to then be put into a dusty old attic like a spare part would absolutely fit in with ren's own perception of himself at that stage. it would be almost too easy for him to put his own health on the backburner kinda like he's already used to it

very used to not taking up space, 'not being a bother', and then sojiro really reinforces this message when ren first gets to leblanc- so when ren inevitably gets ill a month into his probation, it's already doomed for maladaption

tokyo would be such a breeding ground for sickness compared to the countryside, and ren just doesn't have the consitution to deal with it. the dusty attic and poor eating habits don't help matters, and then we have the stress of kamoshida and the metaverse?? ren is not having a Good Time™

at first it's something he thinks he can shrug off, and is adamant that ignoring it is the way to go. a cold, it's nothing, he can handle this alone, no need to bother anyone else with it.

inevitably, he gets worse, because that's what happens when you don't rest and let yourself recover. a tickly cough becomes a tightness in his chest, mild congestion shifts into an attack on his senses and blurriness- but maybe that's the dizziness. he's not really sleeping, either.

it's something that's becoming increasingly difficult to brush off and hide, he even relented to finally getting some medicine (nothing as strong as he needs by this point, that would eat too much into his limited funds, but some painkillers to take the edge off). once or twice he's tempted to stay off school, at morgana's insistence, or a too close call where he definitely blacked out for a minute, but then sojiro's voice will ring in his head 'i won't be the one looking after you if you get sick', 'your parents got rid of you for being a pain in the ass', and all his worst insecurities come rushing back and he's resolved to deal with it on his own

meanwhile, futaba's been making use of her hidden audio bugs- normally they're a comfort for her in the daytime, but since the new kid- ren- has been staying at the cafe (part-timer her ass, how gullible does sojiro think she is?!), she's been listening more frequently. when ren gets sick, she figures it out quickly.

time goes on, he's not getting better- he's actually getting worse- and futaba starts to wonder if she's the only one who knows

(there's something in his sharp contrasts- the quiet kid who shuffles through the cafe and takes sojiro's scolding, to the coughing kid who cries into the silence of night when he thinks there's nobody there to see it- that stabs through her numbness. it feels like a companion to her own ghost)

one night she swears the kid gets up to be sick, and there's hardly any sound heard from the attic all night. if nobody's gonna help ren, then she will (futaba used to like helping, once upon a time).

she texts sojiro the next day, when ren doesn't say anything again, and goes off to school with what she bets is a fake assurance on his face

and you're so right, sojiro dismisses her concern really easily, claims the kid can 'take care of himself' and he won't 'baby' the part-timer. insists ren needs to learn some disipline, then maybe he'll stay out of trouble

frustration wells in futaba- if she was less fixated on what was going on with ren, she'd register it's one of the first changes of mood she's had for months- and she responds with nothing but an audio clip, an attached explanation that this is just from the past few days- it's been going on for weeks, then she waits, and hears the distant sound of her compilation through one of the bugs, a hitched breath from sojiro, curse words under his breath-

for all his earlier postulating about not helping ren if he gets sick, sojiro is immeditely struck with a pang of concern- it sounded bad, and if futaba's words were anything to go by, this had been going on for a while. the kid's at school now (at school, being as ill as that and he was still going to class-), so sojiro will talk to him when he gets back. there's a chance he goes a bit too over the top, between the variation of medicines he purchases, supplies he grabbed from home- if you accused him for over-compensating after maybe being too harsh on the kid in the beginning, you'd be right

and you just know ren would be so resistent at first to help, or even just the offer of staying off school. in his sickness-induced fugue, ren's filter-less in rattling off how he can't stay off, what will the students and teachers think, and he has work that afternoon, and a test soon, and he doesn't want to get in the way-

sojiro's heart just shatters

this kid, whose been silently carring the weight of the world and has apparently been falling to pieces for weeks now and sojiro didn't even notice?

(a part of it reminds him too much of the other kid he's got at home, the countless ways he's already failed futaba, and now ren too? he feels useless)

sojiro focuses on what he can do, and that's making the kid rest. work will understand, school can wait, ren isn't an inconvenience, he guides the kid to bed, calls takemi immediately (who rushes over, despite the fact she's technically closed at this hour, and refuses to take any payment),

even still, there's this stilted awkwardness between them when the quiet pushes on too long- they hardly know each other, afterall. sojiro is still figuring out the 'caring for kids' thing, and ren isn't familiar with any kind of parental affection, so some of sojiro's care veers a bit too close to clinical or mechanic, and ren still struggles to communicate what kind of help he needs, but it's enough for now.

for now, sojiro is there. he's trying, and at least ren's getting some colour back on his skin. for now, ren's willing to take a few days off and have some medicine, but he's over-apologetic and definitely tries to make up for his sickness once he's healed. it's gonna take them both a while yet, but luckily there's always their guardian hacker, ready and able to call them out when needed (and maybe some day she'll be able to keep an eye on ren and sojiro in person)

[tinywitchgoblin]

Hi!! I was wondering if I could get a ship?

I’m in my 20s finishing up school. I truly believe my one true love is the ocean lol. I love scuba diving and finding new areas to explore.

Im pretty scrawny and not very strong, even though Im in pretty good shape lol.

I have psychotic depression, and honestly that’s a little tricksy. I don’t have episodes often, but when they do happen it’s not pretty. I can get overwhelmed easily, especially by noise. That’s partly why I love the water so much, it’s so quiet there. It’s a lot less overwhelming than people think it is.

But despite that, my friends say I’m pretty charming. I’m sarcastic, but I also am quick to compliment, even flirt a little lol. I’m not the best with words, so I use small acts of physical affection to express my love for people (stuff like hugs, linking arms when I walk with people, resting my head on people’s shoulders, giving small taps on the shoulders).

I don’t know if that was enough information, but I don’t know really what else to say! Thank you!

Of course! Sorry it took so long to get to this; work has been Kicking My Ass

I ship you with...

Echo!

Growing up on a planet covered by one massive-ass ocean, Echo was never really a fan of large bodies of water, but when he met you, he fell in love- with you and the ocean. You showed him a whole new side to it, taking him scuba diving and teaching him all about different marine life. He always looks forward to going swimming with you; it helps him relax, especially if he's had a long and/or stressful day.

At first, Echo was a bit hesitant with you as far as physical touch was concerned, but it wasn't anything you'd done to him. He was still anxious about his cybernetics and didn't want to freak you out. However, you repeatedly reassured him that you loved him as he was, and that his body is beautiful and deserving of love. Eventually, he grew comfortable with the small touches and even began initiating them. You'd just be standing there doing something when Echo's arms snuck around your middle and leaned his head against your shoulder.

Whenever you'd have an episode, Echo would be there for you the whole way through. The first episode he was there for he wasn't really sure what to do, so he kinda just sat there next to yiu, providing company without overwhelming you. As time goes on, though, he figures out not only what you need most during episodes, but how to tell if an episode is on the way. He's very observant and attentive and does his best to keep you safe and happy.

-

Thanks for reading! If you want a ship request like this one, drop it in my ask box, and don't forget to reblog 💚 I'm a little backed up atm but I'll get to them all eventually! Just give me a bit of time. Thank you for understanding!

[authoratlas]

Flares

A short original work with some OCs. Whumpy fic about a pain flare. Partly because I've seen exactly one fic with a character who had costochondritis and I feel underrepresented.

First-person POV

Cw: pain, pain thoughts, mentions of past physical assault.

(Author's note: sorry to others who have costochondritis that don't like whump. Also, mentioned in the fic is "like the breaks that didn't heal quite right". This is a reference to character's backstory, but costochondritis affects the intercostal cartilage and is not supposed to directly involve bone.)

It hurt to move.

Sure, it usually did, but not quite so bad.

I knew the flare was coming; I'd gotten pretty good at spotting the triggers.

Stress was a big one. It was Spring Break of Senior Year. Graduation was coming up and then I'd start college. I didn't feel ready and neither did any of my friends.

Physical activity often played a role, and I had definitely done a lot of that by walking everywhere with the group. In my defense, it had been fun at the time.

Sleep was another factor; the more sleep I got, the less shitty I usually felt, but the nightmares had started up again. It wouldn't surprise me if the sleep-thrashing and fighting added to my pain as well.

Finally, of course, it's worth mentioning that Matt's Spring Break Parting Gift was a pretty solid punch to the chest. That's probably actually what did it.

Either way, I had known the flare was coming, but knowing was unhelpful; at best, I could take some Aleve and hope that it wouldn't last long. It was still morning, after all.

By noon, the Aleve either hadn't kicked in, or it had, but to little effect. I was still in bed, having taken my meds with one of the granola bars I keep in my room for days like that. I'd hoped getting up would be easy enough, since the group would be coming over tonight, but most movements were instant demotivators; even something like rolling onto my side, something that simple, scored about a 6.5, which was high enough to make me want to stay still and not move ever, ever again. The problem was that when I heard my phone chime, I completely forgot about that little detail, and rolled over to grab my phone. The thought of My People outweighed the threat of pain.

Pain that felt like fire, like the breaks that didn't heal quite right. I curled up, hoping it would make the pain stop. The movement only seemed to aggravate it. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to level out my breathing. Before long, the pain would fade, and it would suck less.

It took about a minute for me to be right; sure enough, the burn returned back to the dull ache that I knew would stick around for a while. I took the opportunity to grab my phone and read the message.

Nico: Shea, are you alright? You haven't said anything in the group chat yet today, and I know you're usually up by now.

Nico. I made Nico worry.

Shea: Yeah, I'm up, just distracted.

Nico: What's up? Is it because of yesterday?

Shea: You could say that. It's not entirely the case, but yeah.

Remember earlier, when I mentioned Matt's "Spring Break Parting Gift"? Well, that was yesterday. Matt is this guy from school that hates my guts over drama from 8th grade, of all things. The funny thing is that the thing he hates me for didn't even affect him, but rather a friend of his. He's just the one that hits the hardest.

Nico: What's going on, Shea? I mean, you trust me enough to fill me in, right?

Shea: Of course I do, but I don't want you to go do something stupid.

Nico: Of course not, silly, why would I do something stupid? I'm not going to walk over to Matt's house, which is just down the street anyway, and kick his ass on your behalf or anything.

Nico: Why would I do that?

Nico: Fuck him and his stupid-ass friends.

Nico: I'm going to kill him with my bare hands.

Shea: Nico, stop it. Matt has never been worth it. He didn't cause the flare anyway, I'm pretty sure.

Nico: You're in the middle of a flare right now?

In theory, of course, I shouldn't have said that. But I wasn't thinking when I sent the reply, and who knows what would come of that?

Shea: I am, but it's not from that

It was a lie, but it was one that could keep Nico out of trouble. In theory.

Nico: How do you know?

Nico: How could you possibly know that for sure?

Nico: Because as far as I recall, you weren't flaring yesterday, and he punched you, and today you're flaring. Sounds to me like he fucking caused it.

Shea: I just don't want you to do something stupid because of it. He's an idiot and he's not worth it. And you going over there and starting shit isn't going to make the rest of the school year easier for me.

Nico: He's not about to just fuck with my boyfriend and get away with it, and I'm tired of him thinking it's okay.

Shea: Okay, you're not friends with him anymore, so here's how that's gonna go:

Shea: Option 1 is you go over there and fight him and he kicks your ass.

Shea: Option 2 is you go over there and fight him and you kick his ass, and then next week, when school starts again, he beats me half to death in a broom closet and leaves me there.

Shea: So tell me again how worth it this is?

There was a knock at the front door; it couldn't have been Mom, because she, of course, had a key. Slowly, cautiously, I got up and walked to the living room and looked through the window next to the front door.

"Come on, dude, let me in."

I opened the door, closing and locking it again behind Nico. "Why...?"

"I had to do something, and you didn't want me at Matt's house, so..."

I sat on the couch, motioning for him to do the same. "Okay, fair I guess."

"Can I ask you a question?" He'd rushed it out almost immediately after I finished talking.

"Uh... Yeah? Anytime?"

"Did that actually happen to you?"

I frowned. "What?"

"The broom closet thing. Did that actually happen to you?"

A flash of memory came through, of falling backward onto a pile of brooms, breathless and bleeding. Of being sure no one would find me until I got myself up and out of there. "Not exactly?"

"It was too specific to be completely made up."

"It wasn't. It just wasn't Matt."

Nico made eye contact for a moment before having a staring contest with the living room rug. "Can you explain?"

It wasn't an order or a request so much as a genuine question, which was something I loved about him. He understood how hard some memories can be.

I nodded. "Yeah. Uh, it was back in 10th grade, and Matt and Ross were out of town."

"So it couldn't have been any of the main 3. Jesse was already expelled by that point."

"It was Patrick and Seth. They swore they needed to do something to 'keep me in line', whatever that means. I'd woken up to a pain flare, too, so I had stabs of pain from my left shoulderblade to about here," I said, gesturing to a part of my back. "It was, uh, the broom closet I got ice-bucketed with, too. Insult to injury, y'know? Patrick locked Seth and me inside and I had pretty much given up by then. How can you run when you're literally locked in there with the dude that wants to beat your ass?"

"Fucking cowa--..." He stopped himself halfway through the word, and it took me a moment to process why.

"No, I agree, they were cowards about it. You can say it, it's fine. I went non-speaking for part of the day after that. Almost had my mom take me to the hospital. Then she decided we were going anyway. It was... a lot of bruising and inflammation. Nothing else. But... I wouldn't put it past Matt to talk to them and do the same thing. And I also don't trust Matt not to, um..."

Not to actually kill me.

"Yeah, I know. I get why you want to leave it alone. But it's hard for me to just accept it. We both know I haven't been going through this with you nearly as long as Jamie or Oliver have."

"We graduate in about two months. Then I don't have to deal with them. And neither do you."

Nico didn't have to deal with the worst parts of them. Not the same way I did. But he had to deal with the aftermath, now, and he had to see me hurt because of them. If I was honest, I'd stopped caring about the pain around the same time my body decided to work against me, but it hurt to see my friends worry. It hurt to feel like my existence made theirs heavier. I knew the trauma would weigh on me long after I was out of school, but I had a good therapist and a great support system. Eventually, I could heal.

All I needed was to make it two more months.

[ask-miss-akira-blog]

✎✎✎ pretty please?~AskFemAkechi

send me a “✎” and ill draw your muse

[nakachuchu]

10:36 PM | Okkotsu Yuuta

SYNOPSIS: Modern AU - You and a hot stranger get trapped in an elevator.

READER: female

WORDS: 1170

WRITTEN: 05/24/2021

NOTES: Thank you for requesting from my time event!

You had just gotten off of work and you were exhausted. It was 10:36 PM—way too late for you to be arriving at your apartment.

You blamed your tyrant of a boss. He left everything to you, often overworking you. Tonight was one of those nights.

All you wanted was to go back to your apartment, take a shower, and sleep. You were hungry, but you didn't even have the energy to eat.

But of course, the elevator just had to get stuck tonight. You would have preferred it to get stuck after you got a good night's sleep.

You groaned. "This is bullshit."

The man next to you chuckled nervously. "Has this happened before?"

You looked at him and noticed you had never seen him in the apartment complex before. He was attractive and had an awkward, boyish smile on his face.

"Are you new?" you asked.

He nodded. "Is it that easy to tell?"

"I know just about everyone," you said. "I've lived here for a while. No, this has never happened before."

You pressed the emergency button, calling out for the night guard on duty. There was static, making you stress a bit.

"Itadori, can you send help?" you called out.

There was no answer, so you let go of the button and sighed. The stranger looked around the dim elevator and cleared his throat.

"I'm Okkotsu Yuuta."

"L/N F/N. You can just call me Y/N. Sorry, I look like this," you said, gesturing to your ruffled outfit.

You were a bit disheveled. As soon as you got off from work, you undid the first few buttons to your blouse and unbuttoned the outer layer of your jacket.

You cleared your throat after realizing Okkotsu was able to see your cleavage. He quickly looked away after seeing where you were looking.

"Sorry," he said. "I wasn't looking or anything. Well, I was, but it was an accident—I swear."

The corner of your lips twitched into a lopsided smile. It was cute how innocent and bashful he seemed. Maybe there was a good thing about being trapped in an elevator. At least, you got to spend your time with an attractive man.

"At least, we're not alone. How horrible would it be if we got trapped alone?" you questioned.

"I'd probably sit in the corner."

"That's unsanitary, Okkotsu."

"I'm sorry."

You snorted. "There was no need to apologize."

There was a brief, awkward silence. You raked your head of things you could talk about. You didn't know, but he was doing the same.

"How was work?" he asked, mentally kicking himself in the ass.

"Horrible," you muttered. "Sorry, I don't want to rant and have you listen to all of it. You were just being polite."

"No, I want to hear about your day. I don't work in an office, so it sounds interesting to hear about. You work in an office, right? I assumed from your briefcase..."

"I do, and I gotta tell you; don't do it. Well, you're a man so maybe if you decide to work in an office setting, you'll be better off than me," you said.

He cringed. "That bad?"

You nodded. "That bad. How old are you?"

"Twenty-four!" he exclaimed with a twinkle in his eyes. "I just celebrated my birthday last week with my friends. I hadn't seen them in a while so it was nice to see them again."

"Oh, to be young again," you said with a sigh.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-five," you said. "The office life is bad on my skin, so I'm sure I look older than I really am."

"N-No, you look really young," he replied. "I was a bit shocked when you walked into the elevator."

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. He didn't think he would be admitting this to you, but you seemed like a fairly open and understanding person.

"Thank you. You look really young too. You look like you could be a high schooler."

"I still get carded at clubs and bars," he revealed. "But that's okay because I usually prefer staying at home with my cat, Rika."

"I like staying home too, especially with a good meal and a movie."

As soon as you said that, your stomach rumbled. You looked down and hugged yourself around the stomach in embarrassment.

"Uh—I hope—I hope this isn't too forward but, when we get out of here, do you wanna come over for dinner sometime? We could watch a movie too?" he suggested.

You looked at him and blinked. You didn't think someone as attractive as him would ask you out, especially while the two of you were trapped in an elevator with dim lighting.

"Y-Yeah, I'd love to."

You hadn't been on a date since college. The date never even went anywhere. It ended with that first date and you didn't go out of your way to date anyone anymore.

Okkotsu was similar. He had gotten love letters in high school and college, but he never reciprocated those feelings. He didn't want to date someone he didn't like, so he never had a girlfriend before.

His best friend, Inumaki, was the one who had many girlfriends in his lifetime. The two of them were the heartthrobs of the school, but Inumaki was the only one who gave the girls a chance.

"First thing would be getting out of here though," you retorted.

"The fire station is probably on their way already."

You sighed. "How long will it take though?"

Okkotsu reached into his jacket's pocket and took out a granola bar. He held it out for you and you blinked down at it.

"Why do you have a granola bar?"

"I get hungry," he defended. "Here. Take it."

"Are you sure? Aren't you hungry?" you asked.

He shook his head. "You need it more than me. I heard the way your stomach rumbled."

You narrowed your eyes at him. "And here I thought you just didn't hear it."

He chuckled. "It was very noticeable. Take it."

You took the granola bar from his hand and unraveled it to take a bite from it. You sighed peacefully through your nose.

"You're a lifesaver," you mumbled.

"No problem. I'll make sure to cook a lot for our date."

The way he said it made you tingle. He didn't mean for it to sound so cocky and straightforward, but he meant what he said. He wanted to cook you a nice, homemade dinner.

"I'd like that," you responded with a soft smile.

He smiled back at you and opened his mouth to say something when a sudden clank surprised the two of you.

"Hello?" someone called out. "We're from the fire department and we're going to get you out, all right?"

"Yes, thank you!" you exclaimed.

"Looks like we're finally getting out of here," Okkotsu said.

You nodded and smiled at him as the elevator doors opened. "I'm in apartment 120. Knock when you're ready for that date."

[oikawaplssteponme]

PART 4 | previously: part 3 | masterlist

pairing: Katsuki Bakugou x fem! reader

ratings/warnings: swearing, mention of violence but there isn’t any

synopsis: When UA’s hot heads, Katsuki Bakugou and you, are forced to put your hatred for each other aside and plan the third year Prom, things end up getting a little heated...

a/n: hi friends!! okay so this part is a little longer but it’s important for what’s to come ;) because i just couldn’t help myself, there’s a little song reference in there, hopefully you catch it,, maybe it’s important *wink wink* anyways, taglist is open so just lmk if you’d like to be added 🖤 enjoy xx

•

Four: it’s what’s on the inside that counts

It’s been over 2 weeks since your fight with Bakugou. The two of you haven’t spoken since, leaving your classmates a bit nervous. You were stubborn and so was he. The only problem was, neither of you really remembered why you were fighting in the first place. You two fought often, that was obvious, but something about this last fight felt different. As if you and Bakugou genuinely wanted to hurt each other. In the past, it was mainly for your own satisfaction just to fight someone. You and Bakugou had disliked each other for so long that you couldn’t even think of a solid reason for why you hated him. You soon came to realize that you barely knew anything about Katsuki Bakugou...and that bothered you.

~

“LISTEN UP! Prom tickets will be on sale after school today in the common area. You can also buy them at the door but just know they’ll cost more. So I recommend you have your money ready and get in line early because I only have a certain amount for presale. Thank you that’s all!” You announced to your class. “Oh and pass this information onto the other classes please!”

You hopped down from the desk where you were standing and brushed your skirt down.

“Do you need help setting up?” asked Deku. You looked over at Bakugou, who was supposed to be helping you but since the two of you weren’t on speaking terms, that wasn’t really an option.

“Uh sure that’d be great,” you said.

“I’ll lend a hand as well,” chimed in Iida. You laughed.

“Guys all I need help with is moving a table and a few boxes,” you explained.

“We are happy to help!”

You, Deku, and Iida set up the ticket selling table. You placed the poster of the dance in front of the table. Izuku grabbed the box of tickets and looked through them.

“Y/N did you make these?” He asked. Your face got warm.

“Uh yeah, it’s not a big deal though,” you insisted.

“It’s excellent artistic work Y/N! You should be proud!” smiled Iida.

“Yeah it’s super cool!”

“Thanks guys,” you gushed. You sat down at the table and pulled out your notebook and pen.

“Alright! Who wants the honor of buying the first ticket?”

“You should, after all you planned the dance,” said Deku. You smiled.

“I guess you’re right.” You picked up the first ticket, wrote your name next to the #1 spot in your notebook, and put your money in the cash box.

“Okay. Who’s next?”

~

The line of people never seemed to end. You got in the groove of writing down their name, number, and putting away the money pretty quickly.

“Hey Momo! Uh you’re number 35,” you said to your classmate.

“Thanks, here you go!” She smiled, handing you the money.

“Y/N!!” cheered Mina, “wait is this the theme?” Mina pointed to the design on the tickets.

“Uh yeah it is,” you smiled.

“‘My Emotions Feel Like Explosions When You’re Around’,” read aloud Deku.

“I LOVE IT!! It’s super cute and honestly I would expect nothing less from you and Bakugou!”

Right. Bakugou.

“Uh yeah. I'm excited to see how it turns out once we get all the decorations.”

“Do any of you have dates yet?” asked Denki as he paid.

“Wow Denki is that your only concern?” laughed Jirou.

“I haven’t even thought about that,” said Iida.

“Planning on asking anyone?” You asked aloud.

“I am…” mumbled Deku.

“Wow Izuku wonder who?” said Kirishima sarcastically.

“Who are you gonna ask, Deku?” You asked. No one said anything. You turned around and saw all your friends staring at you.

“What…it was just a question…”

“Wait, you're like genuinely asking?” laughed Denki, “I thought it was obvious.” Deku hit Denki’s arm.

“It’s fine, it will be better if it’s a surprise anyway,” said Deku.

“Do you want someone to ask you, Y/N?” asked Sero, handing you his money. You put the cash in a box.

“I honestly don’t care. I wasn’t even planning on going to Prom before Aizawa forced me to plan it,” you admitted.

“Well we are all glad you’ll be there,” smiled Iida.

~

Your friends had all gone back to their dorms after a bit. There were still about 20 people in line for tickets and you were exhausted.

“Cafeteria closes soon dumbass,” said someone. You whipped around. You groaned.

“Well Katsuki, I’m kinda busy if you can’t tell,” you huffed.

“Go eat. I’ll finish up here,” he said. Your eyes grew.

“Wait what-”

“Go on, you only have 15 minutes before they close dinner. I've got this,” he insisted. You got up from your chair.

“Do you know what you’re doing?”

“It can’t be that hard if you figured it out.”

You rolled your eyes

“Whatever. Just pick up when you’re done.” You began to walk down to the cafeteria.

Two weeks of not talking to me and that’s all he has to say?

“Grabbing some dinner?” called Iida behind you. You smiled.

“Yeah , Bakugou is finishing up the ticket sale.”

“Nice. I’ll join you.”

“Thanks Iida.”

~

“Cold soba?” questioned Iida, “You never get your soba cold.” You looked down at your tray of food.

“I guess Todoroki converted me,” you joked. Iida raised a brow.

“Alright Y/N, what is it? We both know you hate cold food,” he said. You picked at your soba.

“I’m fine honestly,” you mumbled.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with Bakugou, would it?” You whipped your head to look at Iida.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?”

“That’s more like it!” He smiled. You chuckled.

“Well would it?” He asked. You shrugged.

“I guess this whole dance is stressing me out. Bakugou and I haven’t been very productive lately ,” you admitted. Iida sighed.

“Well this might be a stretch but you could try to make peace with him.” You groaned.

“I’m not making peace with that angry pomeranian until he apologizes.”

“Why can’t you just apologize?”

“BECAUSE I-I, I don’t know. My own stupid pride I guess.”

“You two need to overcome your differences eventually. Who knows, you guys might have more in common than you think,” smiled Iida.

“You’re the worst, you know that,” you joked.

“Wait really?”

“Iida…”

~

After dinner, you laid in your dorm room, staring up at the ceiling. You knew you should get some of the planning done but you also would rather just forget about the stupid dance. After about 10 minutes of contemplating, you headed down to the basement.

As you walked down the stairs, you remembered that Bakugou still had your notebook. You went down anyway, hoping to get some work done on your laptop instead. Much to your surprise, the door was propped open. You took a deep breath and prepared yourself for what could be behind the door.

“Hey Bakugou…” your voice trailed off as you saw that no one else was in the room.

He must’ve left the door open so I wouldn’t ask him for the keys.

You set down your things and sat down on one of the tables. You pulled out your laptop.

“I figured I’d find you here,” A raspy voice said. You looked up to see none other than Katsuki Bakugou, holding your notebook.

“Oh hi. I just thought I’d get some work done,” you explained.

“How’d you get in?”

“Uh you left the door open,” you explained. Bakugou huffed. He took a seat at the same table as you, setting down your notebook.

“Here dumbass.” Bakugou threw something on you and it landed on your head.

“What the-” You grabbed the soft material off of your head. Your eyes grew.

“Katsuki-”

“You said I owed you a new shirt, so here it is,” he said. You looked at the brand new t-shirt, a smile on your face.

“Yeah well I didn’t think you’d actually buy me one…”

“I mean I did rip your other shirt pretty badly. I-uh-I’m sorry about that.” Your eyes widened.

“Did you just say you’re sorry?”

“Yeah and I’m not saying it again.” he huffed.

“Bakugou I’m sorry too,” you said. Bakugou tilted his head.

“What are you sorry for?”

“I guess for everything. Well, maybe not everything because I don’t regret kicking your ass for 3 years one bit but I am sorry for that fight the other day. I almost killed you,” you explained nervously.

“Key word ‘almost’. I guess I almost did too,” he joked. You let out a nervous chuckle.

“Here’s the thing Bakugou, I don’t know anything about you yet I hate you with every ounce of my body. I guess I want to hate you for a reason.”

“What the hell does that mean, nerd?” He questioned. Your face got warm.

“You know how they say, ‘it’s what’s on the inside that counts’? Well,I want to hate you for what’s on the inside,” you laughed. Bakugou raised a brow.

“And what about you? The only thing I know about you is that you’ve got a short temper and your shirts rip easily. I barely know you either…”

He was right. Probably the only person who knew anything remotely deep about you was Iida, and even that was still somewhat surface level. You didn’t pick UA to get too comfortable with your classmates, even if you were friends, since in the real world you would be competing for the number one Hero spot. Maybe that’s why most of them were intimidated by you.

You patted on the top of the table, hinting for Bakugou to sit with you. He groaned and joined you on the table.

“This is stupid,” he mumbled. You rolled your eyes.

“Come on just try. And just to clarify, we are doing this for research purposes only. I’m convinced by the end of this I’ll still want to rip your head off 24/7,” you said. Bakugou nodded.

“Yeah I mean not like that could change.”

“Exactly. Okay so you first. What is it that makes Katsuki Bakugou a horrible pain in my ass?” You smiled sarcastically. Bakugou chuckled quietly.

“What do you want to know, dumbass?”

•

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[btsrmono]

Trial & Error | chapter 6

Main Pairing: (jimin): student/idol x (main): foreign student

Side Pairs: main x taehyung,, main x (nct) jaehyun

PART 5

You and Jimin did start hanging out a little more often after that Sunday. Your relationship grew and you could see the way he would attempt to make you a part of his plans every here and there and not to get you wrong, it wasn't much but it was a start. Not to mention an upgrade from how he used to treat you, which wasn't the worst, looking back at it, but for some reason, you just wanted his attention and he never really gave it to you so you guess you could say you grew bitter feelings towards him because of it.

As for Taehyung, you hadn't seen or heard from him in a couple days which made you worry about what happened. You really wished that he wasn't in trouble because of you. Whenever you asked Jimin about him, he would just tell you not stress over it and that he's okay but that was about it. But Taehyung was your best friend, you just needed to see if he was alright for yourself.

So after school on Friday, you decided you should make your way to their dorm. You had never been there before but you knew their address because Jimin gave it to you to come over a day prior.

When you got to the apartment, you almost didn't want to knock so you just stood at the front door, debating like a weirdo when someone suddenly opened the door.

It was Jungkook. You noticed him from school. You two occasionally talked but you knew very little about him. He never really showed up to school and when he did, he didn't necessarily associate with anybody who wasn't already his friend. But around his members, he seemed really outspoken and loud.

"Hyung, I told you it was her!" he shouted over his shoulder, banana milk in his right hand, slightly smirking at you.

You shyly smiled back, hoping he wouldn't see how nervous you were. Jungkook was one of the most popular boys at your school and in BTS in general. You swear, like, everyone had a crush on this man. And you couldn't blame them to be honest. He was hot.

"We have CCTV," he explained. "Saw you on the camera."

You swiftly nodded your head in understanding. "Ohhh, gotcha." You then looked away awkwardly, finding it hard to look him in the eyes with the way he was smiling at you in a cocky manner.

Just then, Jimin came up. "Yah, stop flirting with her like that," he teased Jungkook, making him laugh as he walked away. Jimin turned to you. "Hey, I didn't know you were coming today, come in."

You did as told and as he locked the door behind you, you took a moment to scan their living room. It was quite cramped and messy, which honestly didn't surprise you but still, something needed to be done about it.

"Jimin, this place is a pigsty," you said in disgust.

Jimin put his hands on his hips and stared at you. "Well, maybe if you told someone you were coming over, miss."

You cocked your head, disapprovingly. "So you mean to tell me you only clean up when you have company?"

He laughed. "What? No. Pfftt--"

"Yes he does," a voice spoke. You turned your head to see where it was coming from only to find a semi tall boy with black hair and tan skin, coming out of one of the rooms. He was wearing red boxers and a white T-shirt. "He never cleans. If and only if someone is coming over and he half asses that too," he continued as he walked to the kitchen.

You started laughing. He looked like he was annoyed at just the thought of it. "I believe it," you said back to him.

Jimin sucked his teeth. "Wow, so you guys are just gonna gang up on me, huh? I see how it is."

You and the boy both laughed before he looked at you fully. "I'm Hoseok," he finally introduced himself.

"I'm y/n," you replied, slightly bowing in his direction. "It's nice to meet you."

"Y/n," Hoseok repeated, slowly scanning over Jimin, grinning. "I see, I see." He looked back at you. "Well, it's nice to meet you too." He then turned around and went to the fridge.

Jimin rolled his eyes. "Let's go to my room," he said before grabbing your arm and pulling you into his room with him. It was small with two bunk beds, stuffed animals scattered around on almost every one.

"Well, wait," you spoke, making him turn around and look at you. "I actually came here to check on Taehyung. Do you know if he's around?"

Jimin's eyebrows raised in realization. "Oh... Taehyungie.. I-I told you he's fine, you don't need to worry about him." He shook his head and sat on his bed.

"I know you said that," you replied, sitting down next to him. "I just want him to know that I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"Getting him in this mess. He'd be okay if it weren't for me."

Jimin sighed. "It's not your fault, y/n. Or his. You guys didn't do anything wrong. It's just some fans... they... I don't know. But you didn't do anything and he's not mad at you."

You thought about it and he was right. You had no reason to feel guilty but for some reason, you did. "I just want to see him," you whispered, looking down.

You could feel Jimin staring at you as you both sat there in silence for a while. It had to be at least a minute or two before he spoke up again. "He's out right now and I don't know when he's coming back but I can tell him to give you a call."

You shook your head, knowing that there really wasn't any other option.

"And it's okay," he reassured. "We're not even that famous, this will die down in a few days," he laughed. "I honestly am surprised there were people that cared in the first place."

Honestly, this made you feel a little better about the situation. "Hey, don't say that," you chuckled. "You guys will be big one day, I just know it."

"Ha, yeah, right," he said, rolling his eyes and laying back comfortably. "Have you even looked us up? Like at all?"

Your eyes widened as you tried not to burst out laughing. You truly hadn't look them up and you never really thought to until he mentioned it. You suddenly felt like a horrible friend and you guess the fact that you, in fact, hadn't was present on your face because Jimin rose back up and got closer to you, examining your face. "Wow," he said. "You haven't looked us up, have you?" he shook his head in disbelief. "You're a fraud."

You felt like sinking. "I'm sorry?" you attempted to apologize. Eyes closed, he shook his head no. You grunted. "I'll do my research when I get home later. I promise!"

He opened his eyes. "And you have to take me out for ice cream. Maybe then I'll accept this apology."

You sighed at the pettiness but agreed anyway.

After leaving, you went straight home, took a shower, ate, studied, then did your research on the boys like you said you would.

If you were being truthful, you never looked them up, not because you weren’t interested but because you wanted to continue looking at the boys as friends rather than K-pop idols. But alas, you knew the day would come where you would have to see their work someday.

You took a look at the only three music videos it appeared they had. You liked them. Honestly. They were so talented, it left you in shock. You saw some dance videos their company uploaded and was even more in awe. How come they never bragged about their talents? And Jimin's doubting that they're gonna be big? Not a chance in this world, not with that kind of talent.

You also decided to take the time out to listen to their albums. You pretty much watched and listened to them all night long, eventually falling asleep to their music. You now saw why the little amount of fans they had went as hard as they did for the boys. Can't say you could blame them. They were different from other groups and it showed. You knew that with time, they could really be something huge.

~~

The next day at school, you excused yourself to use the bathroom and while heading towards your destination, you saw a familiar face walk by, stopping you in your tracks. He glanced black at you but continued to walk away. Did he really just walk pass me? you thought. You scratched your head in confusion.

"Taehyung," you called, turning around.

He stopped walking and just stood for a while, looking down at the ground. You repeated his name. He turned, an extremely annoyed look on his face. "What?" he asked blandly.

You flinched at his tone. It was much different from the one you were used to hearing from him. "Are you mad at me?" You knew Jimin said he wasn't but you just had to ask because with the way he was acting, it sure seemed like he was.

He sighed.

"You haven't been answering your phone or coming to school," you continued. "I tried to talk to you yesterday but you weren't home... Jimin said he'd tell you to call me."

"He did," he said sternly. "What about it?"

You started to feel sad, as if you were about to cry or something. Your eyes were definitely teary, at most. Taehyung was such a good friend to you, you had never seen him be like that before.

"Tae... What's wrong with you? Why are you acting this way?" you sulked, looking down at the floor.

"I'm not acting any way, y/n. Just leave me alone, alright?"

"What?" You looked back up, your heart beating a bit faster than before. What did he mean leave me alone? "Tae, come on. You don't mean that--"

"I do."

You were at a loss for words. This wasn't like Taehyung at all. He would never be so harsh and he was someone that truly valued every single type of relationship he had, no matter who it was with. This was way too out of his character and that's what caused a tear to drop.

You then heard a tsk as he rolled his eyes and looked slightly away from you, clearly feeling a tad bit guilty. 

"Taehyung, I don't want to lose our friendship over something so dumb," you stated. You had no idea how serious this was and some part of you actually did believe that he wasn't mad at you at some point. But you were wrong. He was mad at you, as you thought the first time. Before Jimin made you believe otherwise.

"It's not dumb, Y/n. My career is in jeopardy. And we're still rookies, it's not too late for them to kick me out--Jesus, why am I even explaining to you?" He scrunched his eyebrows before rolling his eyes once again. "It’s not even like you would get it. I'm leaving. And don't even think about contacting me again. It's best that we both keep our distance so that these rumors clear."

He turned and was ready to walk away before he stopped and turned around one last time. "Oh and that also means staying away from Jimin," he added.

You couldn't believe the attitude from him. It was so usual. What got him so upset? You understood about his career but the way he spoke to you was just so uncalled for. Maybe if it came from someone else's mouth you would have been okay but hearing it from Taehyung's was another story. Feeling hurt, you proceeded to head to the ladies room where you locked yourself in a stall and cried it out in private.

It only last about 30 seconds before you got it together and got out the stall to fix your appearance in the mirror. Your eyes were still puffy and red but at this point, you had been out of class long enough to stall any longer so you made your way back. You re-entered the class just as Mrs. Lim was putting in a movie.

Walking back to your seat, you passed Jimin who was leaning on his desk as if he were about to fall sleep. Until he saw you, that is. He peeped his head up, staring and looking back at you as you sat. His assigned seat was two rows up and one seat left of yours.

You looked at him, looking at you. "What's wrong?" he mouthed, seeming concerned.

You shook your head. "Allergies," you lied. You didn't want him to know. Not only was it embarrassing but you didn't want him and Tae to argue. So you decided to keep things quiet.

A few minutes passed. The lights were out and the movie was now on. Out of nowhere, balled up paper landed on your desk. You already knew it was Jimin.

"Pizza after?" it read. You semi smiled, looking up to a cheeky Jimin. You nodded your head as a ‘yes’, then put the note away and focused on your work for the rest of the class, although it was kind of hard to.

You was honestly just worried about how you and Taehyung would end up after this. You didn't want to stop being friends with him or at least make sure that it didn't end of the way that it did. You felt the two of you still needed to talk regardless, you just needed a plan on how.

A/N: Sigh, poor Y/N. that was a different side of taehyung huh. will they makeup though? stay tuned <3

PART 7

[ethereals-angel]

Ethereal

/ — extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world. /

《 Ethereal (I) 》 《 Ethereal (II) 》 《 Ethereal (III) 》

You confidently walked down the halls, your chin up as a smirk played on your scarlet tinted plump lips, highlighting your outstanding features. Your long raven black hair easily flowed behind your back. Your ego boosted with every whispers about how beautiful you looked today, or about how you aced the exam when most of the school's population misserably, failed.

The thought reminding you that everyone are dying to be you, dying to be with you made you smile.

How cute.

You opened the door of room 88, a room only you and your friends are allowed to enter, the dim lighting welcomed you as the sound of their chatter stopped once they noticed your thrilling presence, "hey, missed me?"

The sound of their 'nope's','nah's', and 'not really's' flowed, making you roll your eyes, liars.

You plopped down on the comfortable sofa, resting your feet on the table as you leaned against Minseok. You reached out for a grape, popping it inside your mouth, "any news?"

"Sehun and his minions are causing trouble, again. Isn't he like... in love with you? Can you talk to that dumbass? He's getting into my nerves." Junmyeon, the 2nd in rank as you were the 1st, though, he's responsible in handling this kind of stressful, pointless situations because you have zero patience in dealing with it.

"No way I'm talking to that loser."

"Your dad said so himself, he wants no trouble." Ria said as she took a shot of liquor.

Strolling with a frown on your face, you managed to scare people blocking your way. You glared your way through, the annoyance and impatience evident on your face.

You stood in front of the football field, your arms folded against your chest with Ria and Joy behind your back, either playing with their hair or checking the look of their nails.

You rolled your eyes as people cheared for him. That dumbass has been playing quite hard since you step foot the field, sending you glances accompanied by smirks and winks which made you want to go sparring with his face as the target.

After the awfully long game, he approached you with a smirk as you faked a smile for him. Once he reaches you, he immediately planted a hand on your waist. You wanted to kick him so badly, but you decided not to, Dad wants no trouble.

You lifted your hand and played with the collar of his shirt in a quite sultry way, hiding the fact that you find his closeness pretty irritating, "so, when will you stop being a pain in the ass?" You said as you offered him a genuine-looking smile.

"I don't know, when will you be mine?" He countered as he was about to close the distance.

You placed your hand to his chest, stopping him from moving any closer, "do something I don't want you to, I'm going to break your neck." You smiled one last time before pushing him off you and stepping back.

You felt his eyes burning holes on your back as you walked away with a scowl plastered on your face.

You got out of that place with an exasperating sigh. "Where are we going?" Joy asked as she pulled out a small hand mirror out of her hand back.

"The library."

Ria pulled out a book and read, meanwhile Joy started answering her homework as your eyes wandered around for you have finished everything you had to do earlier today.

Your head titled as a boy wearing a pair of glasses and unstyled soft hair, lying delicately against his forehead caught your attention, he bit his thumb as his confused eyes stared at the book placed on the table in front of him. He's alone as he sat there with confusing invisible math equations floated around him.

"Do you know who that guy is?" You asked as a small smile formed on your lips as you continued on staring.

They followed your line of vision, Ria hummed, "Ooh, I know him. He's from my class, I think his name is Baekhyun or something like that, why?"

"He's cute."

"What? Are you into nerds now?" Joy snickered as she raised her eyebrow at you. You giggled as you continued on oggling.

Baekhyun, huh.

After some time, you abruptly stood up, shocking both Joy and Ria. You walked straight to the guy's table and sat down in front of him. A smirk appeared on your face when he raised his head to look at you, bewilderment written all over his cute features.

"H.. hi.." he stammered, pushing up his glasses that was drooping lowly on his nose, his smooth voice invading your senses, "is there anything wrong?"

"Oh," you smiled, "no. I just wanted to be acquainted with you." You reached your hand out as you introduced yourself.

"I... I know who you are." He said as he reached for your hand, his hands are a little shaky as it held yours, making you smile. "I'm Baekhyun."

"You know who I am?"

He nodded his head, his face filled with innocence, making you lick your lips. You have the sudden urge to touch him but you've just met and you didn't want to scare the poor boy.

Not yet, though.

There's a lot going on with your family's business, the illegal one, just to be clear. You're one of the higher ranks overall, as you were blessed with wits and talent in physical combat and not just because you're the daughter of the founder. Your friends are daughters and sons of your father's friends and partners which are one of the most powerful and important people in the world like your father. The younger ones are expected to take over the business soon enough.

Each and one of the gang have different specialties, for you, you're quite familiar with knives and the sharpest things you could ever think of. Joy specializes guns and other lethal weapons and devices, as for Ria, she likes using her hands, let's say, she wants it raw and bare.

Sehun is the son of your father's rival gang. Which makes him more unbearable for you. Though, it isn't anything serious as long as no one starts anything. The funny things is, they wanted you and Sehun to marry to merge the two most powerful gangs, fortunately, your father declined. You couldn't be more thankful.

Sehun isn't so bad, it's just you couldn't stand him, he thinks he owns everything and it annoys you because you own everything. And no, you don't like sharing.

All that, and you can't get the cute boy in the library off your mind. Days have passed by quickly and his little cute innocent face still lingered. You didn't know what it was but oh, don't you just want to taint him?

As if on cue, you saw him walk towards where his locker is located, you smiled, there he is. You carefully walked to him, leaning against the wall.

He was surprised when he saw you there right after he closed the door of his locker, you caught him gripping the books he's holding in his hands as he gulped, "h... hi.."

"Hey, Baekhyun. How have you been doing?" You said as you smiled sweetly at him, earning glances from the students around you, the thing is, you didn't care. He's finally in front of you after those painful days you thought of him despite only having one interaction with him.

"I'm... I've been well."

You licked your lips, "would you like some coffee after class?"

His eyes widened a bit, you wanted coo at him but you kept it in, "really?" His eyes blinked rapidly, his mouth slightly agape. His smooth voice turning up the fire inside your chest, you smiled at him as you nodded your head. "O.. okay.."

"Then, I'll wait for you here."

He nodded, he tore his eyes off you and looked down the floor, quickly darting out of your way. Your amused gaze followed him as he entered his classroom, smirking to yourself. Not ignoring the fact that he smells like fucking flowers. You sighed, what a cutiepie.

"You're really going for it, huh."

You laughed as you turned around to face Junmyeon, he has an accusing look on his face, silently asking you to tell him everything. "Well, can't get him off my mind, why? Are you jealous?"

Your friendship with Junmyeon has been filled with teasing, in any way anyone could tease. He's the closest male friend you have since you two have always been partnered up in missions. He's willing to catch bullets for you and you are to him. Well, literally since it happened once or twice. You've tried getting into a relationship once but it didn't work out, deciding it's better to stick to being friends for the better but that doesn't mean you didn't love each other until now. You love him and he loves you.

"Oh, come on, I thought we're already past that, missy."

You rolled your eyes, pointing a scolding finger at him, "don't call me that, I don't like nicknames."

He laughed as he puts his arm around your shoulder, leading you to room 88.

You leaned against the wall, your hand playing with the tips of your hair as you waited patiently. The door finally opened, catching your attention. Bunch of students got out, shocked by the fact that you're standing there, obviously waiting for someone. You raised your brow at them, making them almost run off your sight, you smirked.

Your eyes drifted from them to the nervous boy in front of you, his eyes shook as he looked at yours. You offered him a half smile, you nodded your head, signalling that he should follow you so he did.

You walked, bothered by the fact that he was behind you as he fidgeted, having so much space between you. You halted, making Baekhyun stop before he hit your back, his eyes widened by the action, "why are you so far away? Shouldn't we be walking together?"

He breathed, "I'm sorry..."

Your face softened, he looks so pure. You silently scolded yourself for scaring him, "don't worry about it. But walk with me, okay?"

He looked at you with soft eyes as he nodded. You continued walking and as he was asked to, he tried keeping up with you. You spotted the café few blocks from the school, going straight inside. You looked at him, he looked back at you with wide eyes, "what would you like to order?"

"No... I'll pay for mine," he countered as he shook his hands.

You raised you brow, smirking at him, "oh, no, I'll pay for this one."

He was about to say something but you gave him a stern look, immediately shutting him up. He nodded, "okay, then, you... you can decide for me." His voice soft and gentle, warming your heart.

What you felt made you nervous, you've never felt something like this for a long time. And you're feeling it for someone you just met? You groaned, "go, find a seat for us."

He quickly disappeared from your sight as he did so, you silently laughed to yourself, finding his behavior amusing and... interesting.

You placed the tray on the table, giving him his drink as you pulled out a chair in front of him for you to sit on.

As you settled down, you stared at this cute boy you couldn't get off your mind. You honestly didn't know what to say, this is the first time this ever happened. Oh well, I guess there's a first time for everything.

You sat and drank there quietly, choosing not to say anything until he cleared his throat. You gave him your undivided attention as you waited for him to say something. "Why... why are you doing this?"

"What do you mean?"

"Bringing me here... talking to me.." you squinted your eyes, trying to process what he meant, "I... I know who you are... I've heard about you.."

Your heart pounded, you knew you had a bad reputation, about your attitude, personality, name, that's why all of them are afraid of you, you and your friends. And you're completely fine with that, but somehow, you were nervous about Baekhyun finding you bad, even if you really are, you don't want him to think of you like that.

"What did you hear about me?" You tried talking straight, to come off as confident in his eyes. But inside, you're wishing that it isn't that bad. You wanted him to like you.

He looked down on his drink, avoiding your eyes, "that... that you were trouble. That I shouldn't be talking to you..."

That's when you felt bad. You didn't know why but you did. Is he going to stop talking to me, now?

Baekhyun looked up, panicking at the sight of you with a frown, he continued, "but... but, don't worry, I don't really believe them. You've been really nice since you helped me with my homework that day at the library... and now, you're doing this..." he blinked, soft eyes boring into yours, "I'm... I'm sorry for upsetting you..." he gulped, pushing up his glasses as he waited for your response.

"I really want to get to know you, Baekhyun. You're... something."

A smirk formed on your lips as he looked down, his cheeks blushing. You swore, he's the cutest thing you've ever seen in your life.

"I guess, we're done." You said as you removed the tight leather gloves clad on your hands, eyeing the different firearms and explosive in front of you.

You had to inspect these to make sure nothing's wrong before delivering it to your clients, with the help of your father's men. Though, they're not really needed because you have Junmyeon and Joy with you. The rest are enjoying their pingpong and arcade games.

"Why are you such in a hurry again?" Joy knitted her brows at you, smirking.

Junmyeon snorted, "oh, you know. Her cute nerd's waiting for her."

You shook your head, a smile playing on your lips, "I should go."

You drove as fast as you can, you cannot be bothered by the sound of horns, the shout of people around you, clearly complaining about you giving no fucks about rules, because you practically own this place. You didn't want him to wait for you any longer too, your cute boy doesn't deserve that.

You halted in front of the gate of your school, you saw him there. He stood with his hands holding the strap of his backpack, his eyes set on his foot playing on the floor. You honked the horn of your car, opening the window of the passengers seat to catch his attention.

He lifted his head, locking his eyes with yours. A smile slowly grew on his face, excitedly opening the door and sat beside you. You watched him fasten his seatbelt. Once he's done, he turned his head to you, chirping "hi, Raven!"

"Raven?" You asked as you raised a brow at him, finding the name he called you amusing.

"It's because of your hair..." he looked down on his fidgeting fingers, "I thought of the name because your hair is really... really pretty..." he raised his head, his soft eyes worried as it looked at yours, "don't you like it? I'm sorry-"

"No. No, don't worry. I like it."

You felt warmness fill your system as his face brightened up, finding his eye smile enchanting. He's like... the sun. He reminds you so much of flowers and the sun. How cheesy is that?

"So, what do you have in mind for today?"

He tilted his head, "I saw this movie trailer earlier! I think we should watch it!"

"So, movies." You hummed, "okay."

You drove off with your usual speed, you didn't really pay attention to anything until you heard him calling out your name. You turned your head to look at him for a moment, you hummed and waited for him to say what he wanted to say, "c.. can you slow down a little..." his scared tone made you smirk, "please..."

You decided to tease, speeding up a little more, you heard him yelp. You chuckled, "okay, okay. Calm down, pup."

Once you arrived at the cinemas, you were suprised by the fact that he held your hands and dragged you the ticketing booth. No one has ever dared to hold your hands. Damn, not even Junmyeon. Because you never let them, but here you are, willingly letting him intertwine his hand with yours.

What was happening to you?

You squinted your eyes at the sight of the movie poster he bought two tickets for. It's a colorful one, with the male and female lead stars, you assumed. So this is going to be romantic? You inwardly groaned. This will be painful, you thought.

You sat there with Baekhyun as you waited for your turn to watch. It is supposed to be over because people started coming out of the door, you heard him clap his hands, making you turn to him, "I'm so excited." He told you, his eyes shining as he held his hands together. You smiled, maybe you can get through this.

You can't.

This movie is so fucking cringey. You wanted to leave and slam the door as you do so. You bit your lower lip as the stars did some lovey-dovey shit you couldn't even look at. You decided to turn to Baekhyun instead since he's got such a lovely face, you wouldn't mind staring for the whole day.

Your half-lidded dark eyes glistened as it stared at the sight of him focused on that stupid movie, it felt like butterflies and sparkles are flying around him as he grinned beautifully. You got lost at the sight, how can a man be this beautiful? You tilted your head to see more of him, his facial features are so soft, you thought. His eyes, his lips, his cheeks, oh don't you just want to kiss him and ruin him all over?

You smirked, "soon."

"Did you enjoy the movie?"

You hummed, offering Baekhyun a smile, "nope, the movie, not at all. I quite enjoyed some other things."

He giggled, "I knew you wouldn't..." he cleared his throat, "thank you for sticking with me, Raven." He said as he looked down the floor.

You hummed and patted his head, messing up his hair a little bit as you do so, "but we're going to watch another, though."

You were smirking at the sight of the serial killer doing what serial killers often do, you chuckled at the sound of people around you giving off sudden gasps and little surprised yells as they watched.

You turned your head to look at what Baekhyun's been doing, your eyes softened at the sight of him looking so frightened, slightly covering his face with the box of. popcorn he's holding. When he felt your eyes on him, he swiftly turned and looked at you, his puppy-like eyes glistening with light tears, his soft lips in a pout-like frown. You cooed, lifting up the barrier between the both of you and opened your arms widely, inviting him in. He immediately shifted, placing the popcorn aside and hurriedly leaned against you, his beautiful hands clutching the shirt you're wearing. You wrapped your arms around him, rubbing his back to comfort him as he burried his head onto your neck, slightly tilting his head so he could still watch the movie.

You sighed deeply, taking in his scent you've grown to crave, when did you become this soft?

You've been spending more time with him, lately. You didn't know why but there's something about him that pulls you. He's different from what you're used to. He makes you feel peace, calmness whenever he's around. There's nothing special, really, when others look at it. But for you, everything about him is special. Every simple action he does just gets you, whenever his glasses fall lowly on his cute button nose, maybe the way he runs his hand through his hair, not caring about how it would look but lies perfectly on his forehead anyway, or maybe you liked the way he focuses on something, his love for stars and flowers, his love for reading books, his love for the Avengers.

You just met him for a couple of weeks, but everything about him makes you want more. You knew you yearned for him even if you shouldn't be. He's too pure and innocent for you. Do you care? You would say yes because surprisingly, you care so much for him. But, apparently you knew you were nothing like him, you're out of his league. You knew you're too dangerous to be associated with an angel but the want you're feeling for him gets the best of you.

"What's your favorite flower?"

"Sunflower!"

You rolled your eyes, "of course, you like sunflowers," as if you're not the sun and a flower, you thought as you lit up a cigarette.

You lightly squint your eyes because of the smoke as you took in a puff, you noticed him eyeing you with his pretty eyes. You tilted your head, heart hammering inside your chest, what if he doesn't like someone who smokes?

"What is it?"

He shook his head, as if he was getting off a trance, "nothing..." his head dropped down to his fidgeting fingers, "you just looked... good... when you did that."

You raised your eyebrow, head dancing in amusement by the sight of his soft cheeks covered with light red, making him look even beautiful in your eyes, "are you calling me hot?"

He abruptedly raised his head, cheeks noticeably got even redder, his eyes widened, "I... it's not.." he eventually gave up, pouting as he nodded his head.

You smirked, dark eyes boring into his soft innocent ones, "oh, am I now, my sweet little flower?" You took a step closer, his face inches away from yours. You stared at him and took all his features in, your eyes dropping from his eyes to his soft plump pink lips. You lifted your hand, placing it onto the back of his head and played the ends of his hair, fingers sliding into his nape. You felt lightheaded by his reaction alone, his lips quivering, giving off light pants, you smiled.

You were about to close the distance when you heard your phone ringing. Annoyed, you pulled away from him, puffing on your cigar one time before throwing it away, you answered the call, "what?" You snapped, impatience clear in your tone.

"Boss, we have a problem."

"What do you mean you don't know?" You yelled, hands slamming against the table, "we checked! Are you doubting my work?"

Your fucking clients are claiming that the weapons and explosives you sent are defective, asking for their money back. You snorted, as if you're going to do that. The worst part is they have beaten up three of your men and are trying to taint your name in the black market. Few of your other important clients called asking about the issue, Junmyeon have talked to them already and reassured them whilst you are nothing but pissed. If this reached your father and your godparents, you're going to lose it.

"Calm down." Junmyeon massaged your shoulders as he was behind you, kissing your temple.

You rolled your eyes, deciding to listen to him.

"So, what are we going to do?" Chanyeol asked as he folded his arms against his chest.

You picked up your favorite knife, it was the sharpest yet the smallest you have ever owned, flipping and circling it in your hand, "shall we pay them a visit?"

"Mr. Jung." You said, eyeing him as he was sitting by a table with your four former clients, not surprisingly the ones who complained with him. A smile appeared on your red tinted lips. You walked forward, your hand ran through your hair, glimpsing your friends behind your back. You watched Junmyeon walking towards you, he wrapped his arm around your shoulder, "can we have a word with you?"

"Y... you..."

They looked pathetically scared, though, their men started appearing behind them as they stood up. You smirked, "we were here to talk." You tilted your head in amusement, "But I guess you want it the hard way."

"Bring that five motherfuckers in our base, dad's there." You said, clutching the wound you gained, the other hand wiping off the blood on your face.

Of course, you won. They had more people with them but with you and your gang together, they wouldn't stand a chance. All of you trained your whole life for situations like this, it isn't so shocking that you took down 60 more men with only you and 12 of your friends: Junmyeon, Ria, Joy, Minseok, Chanyeol, Yerin, Yixing, Jongin, Yeri, Ash, Hope, and Luck. Though, it didn't go that well because those men started using weapons against you, your own weapons, for fuck's sake, those were the one that got you bleeding right now, "defective, huh?" You chuckled, earning Junmyeon's slap against your back.

"You're all bloody and shit and you're still laughing."

You eyed him, he looked wrecked as well, blood running down his head, lips busted. You laughed even harder, making him laugh with you, "dumbass."

You puffed on your cigar, watching your father talk to the five men you've captured. Five gunshots were heard, it ended with the five of them lying flush against the floor, bathing in their own bloods.

The blood flowed up until your shoes, you smirked darkly, walking up to your father, "Dad."

He turned to you, a smile appearing on his face, "my favorite daughter."

You chuckled, "I'm your only daughter."

He lifted his hands, bringing them up your head, "don't you want to get treated?" Pointing towards your family's personal doctors, treating your injured friends.

You shook your head, "I'm fine. I'll just visit someone."

You knocked on his door, patiently waiting. You looked around, fortunately, there was no one here. It'll be very inconvinient to walk around with dried blood all over you. The door opened, catching your attention, revealing your adorable Baekhyun. His eyes widened in shock, he eyed you with concern, mouth silently opened as he pulled you inside his room.

"Ooh, easy there, angel."

He made you sit down, quickly pacing around the room, looking for something. Your dark gaze following him as he did so. You stared at his ass looking so plump and cute inside his sweatpants, you smirked, eye glinting in interest.

He sat down in front of you, holding a box you assumed a first-aid kit. You looked at him in amusement as he did his best in cleaning your wounds. His soft eyes glistened with light tears as he inspected your form, his lips in a frown.

"Baek..." you whispered, trying to gain his attention. He lifted his head, his brows furrowed as his eyes met yours.

"Does it hurt?" He asked, his voice sounding so sensitive and fragile as he caressed your broken skin.

"I'm fine, baby boy. Don't get so worried." You lowly laughed, lifting your hand to wipe off the tear that escaped his eye. He was shaking as his lips formed into a pout, holding your hand that held his face.

You leaned in, you nose brushing his, "Raven..." he breathed, you closed your eyes as his scent filled your system, feeling dizzy. You opened your eyes once more, catching his eyes glimpsing your lips in a daze. You chuckled, placing your lips on his.

You felt like you were going crazy when you heard him moan, catching his lower lip between yours, lightly biting on it. Your other hand grazed his jaw, you felt him clutch your shirt, pulling you closer you thought it was impossible.

You pulled him, using your strength to make him sit on your lap. Your tongue licked his lips until he opened them for you to ravage. Your hand slid into his shirt, caressing his sides. You felt him pull your hair, moaning against your mouth as he eagerly, desperately grinded on you.

You pulled away for air, chuckling at the sight of his face all red, he bit his lip as he leaned against you, wrapping his arms around your neck. He burried his head into your hair, licking and sucking your neck, continuously grinding his noticeable hard-on onto your clothed heat. You heard him mewl against your neck, biting your exposed shoulder to shut himself up. You tilted your head to kiss his temple, reaching out to his body, "come on, baby. Make yourself cum like this." You whispered against his ear, sucking and biting his earlobe.

He listened and grinded down even harder, cirling his hips, moaning wantonly against your hair, mewling your name desperately, "please, please..." he slid his hand inside your shirt, touching you in need, he groped your breasts. He burried his head into your mounds, licking and sucking your nipples making you groan.

His moans got even louder, his movement got even rougher, almost like a wild animal. He threw his head back, screaming your name as he came inside his sweats. You felt the wetness against your skin, making you laugh. He slumped his body against yours, panting.

You rubbed his back, calming him. After a while, you lightly pushed him off you, making him face you. You smiled at his flushed appearance, his face glowing as he smiled shyly at you. You pushed his hair back, away from his forehead, wiping off his sweat, "didn't know you were a wild one."

He whined, pout appearing on his lips. You chuckled, placing a tender kiss on his forehead.

A/N: i wanted this to be a oneshot but here we are: new series yay

[overwatch-imagines-hub]

I currently have 16 days left of school and I'm very stressed out to the point, where I'm vomiting. Anyways, could you possibly write a very fluffy scenario with either 76 or Jesse and them trying to calm and relax their s/o?? Thank you so much sugar!! 🌸

I’m SO sorry this is a few days late!! I’ve been hella stressed myself and finally caught up on my classwork from being sick with a cold. I hope you feel better really soon and I hope that this helps make you feel a little better! I send lots of love and hugs and support and positivity spells your way!

So, how about 76 AND Jesse? :0

~~~

Jesse McCree

“Jesse, usually, when your romantic partner is stressed, your job as their romantic partner is help them chill out, not kick them out of their home for hours!” You pressed your thumb and forefinger against the bridge of your nose and you waited for your boyfriend to reply on the other end of the receiver. You sat in a large squishy armchair in some random study cafe, waiting for your dear, dorky significant other to allow you to come home.

“I’m sorry, darlin’, I really am!” McCree exclaimed over the droning chatter that went on in the background on his end. “Just promise me you won’t head home until I tell ya to. I’m planning something fun fer us. It’ll help calm ya down, I promise.”

You sighed softly but a small smile graced your lips anyways. He was going overboard but at least he was trying his best.

“Fine,” you replied. “Just don’t take forever.”

You settled down in your big leather armchair and occupied yourself with casual mobile games and the occasional drink refill until, more than a couple hours later, Jesse shot a text your way: “Mosey on home lil darllin’, I got a surprise 4 you” ending with a smiling cowboy emoji. With a snicker, you paid and made your way home.

“Cowman?” you hollered as you made your way into your house. Your boyfriend was nowhere to be found but you could hear rattling in the backyard.

As if to confirm your suspicions, Jesse hollered from the backyard patio, “Out here, sweet pea! I’m just finishing setting up!”

“This better be good, cowman!” You snorted and tossed your jacket in the entryway closet before making your way through the small house and out to the backyard, where you stopped and gasped.

The patio had been transformed into a gazebo of sorts, with dark blue and cream-colored sheets hanging off the roof’s overhang and draped over the railings. Dim, white leftover Christmas lights decorated the stair rail leading into the yard, as well as the patio swing and he back door. A nest of sleeping bags and blankets covered the side adjacent to the patio swing, bordered by several TV dinner trays holding snacks and a portable holographic DVD player.

Beyond the patio, the backyard was surrounded by black night, though more dim lights seemed to flit around in the bushes of your garden, matching the stars that twinkled in the sky. The picnic table that was usually hidden along one side of the house, due to lack of company, had been moved to the yard’s center, cleaned up, and covered with a thick blanket. Sitting on the edge of the table was McCree, wearing his best faded plaid shirt and jeans, holding his arms out wide and sporting a cocky, welcoming grin.

“Whadd’ya think?”

“Christ, McCree,” you murmured, stepping off the last step into into the yard, “I was expecting dinner or a musical or something, not all this.”

“You were having an especially rough time, so I created an especially great night fer us.” The cowboy slipped off the table and strolled over to you, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you close. He kissed your forehead before turning you around to have your back against his chest and facing the backyard scenery once again. Resting his chin on your shoulder and pressing his lips against your ear, he continued in a low, slow voice, “So, ‘ere’s my plan. First, we’ll lay out here on the picnic table and stargaze for a bit. Just talk and stuff. Then, after it gets cold, we’ll migrate to the fort where we’ll cozy up, pig out, and watch an awesome collection of old Westerns and cheesy musicals until we fall doze off. How’s that sound?”

“Absolutely amazing, Jesse.” You placed your hands over his where they lightly rubbed your waist and turned your head to kiss his scruffy jaw. “Thank you so much.”

“Nothing’s too much for you, sweetheart,” your favorite cowman replied. He returned the kiss before releasing you, then placing a hand in yours to lead you tothe blanket-clad picnic table to start your cozy nightly adventure.

(Soldier 76 under the cut)

Soldier 76

Soldier 76 knew when you were stressed probably before you even did, so he always made it his mission to help you relax. He helped you with your work, took you out on little dates, brought you snacks and drinks when needed, did your half of the chores for you, and made sure you got enough rest. Unfortunately, sometimes even these didn’t work. This was proven especially when he found you whimpering with your head in your hand at your desk or laying in your shared bed screaming into a pillow.

Hell, Jack definitely understood the struggles of copious amounts of stress. This also caused him to understand the risks of letting it control you as much as you allowed it to. So, he took special precautions and decided to bring out the big guns. 

Which ultimately caused you end up in the passenger seat of his truck, blindfolded while the white-haired man drove for hours on bumpy-ass roads.

“You know,” you started after a while of silence, “this feels a lot less relaxing and a lot more like kidnapping.”

You could hear the older man snort in response before replying, “We’re almost there, I promise.”

“And what is the there you’re taking to me exactly?” You shifted in your seat from having your head leaning against the window to your back leaning against it with your legs stretched out enough to rest on your partner’s lap. Crossing your arms over your chest, you continued, “I do have work to finish and I’m sure you do too. By the way, if this ends up being a slaughterhouse situation, shame on you.”

“I’m not kidnapping you, for Christ’s sake,” Jack huffed. The truck turned before you felt it finally come to a slow, then a stop. “You need one hell of a break and so do I, so I brought you somewhere that I think will do us both a little good.” He cut the engine, then gently slid your feet off his lap before exiting the truck.

You moved to open your own door, only to have it opened for you. Then Jack grasped your hand and carefully helped you out of the truck, where you were greeting with a warm breeze and the smell of grass and flowers with only faint fragrances.

After a moment, you couldn’t help but ask, “Did you actually take me to a slaughterhouse?”

Your boyfriend grumbled briefly before removing the small towel hiding your vision, revealing to you a decently sized ranch house surrounded by rolling grassy hills.

You looked around curiously before finally settling your sights on Jack, who was now moving to the bed of his truck to get the bags he brought along.

“A ranch house?”

“It was a family inheritance,” Jack explained as he lowered the two suitcases onto the dusty dirt path. “I kept it for relaxation and reminiscence’s sake. Thought it might be nice for us to get away from crazy work lives and do something simple and calm for a change.” He retracted the bags’ extendable handles and began walking up to the house, bags in tow.

“Is it clean?” you asked, purely out of your growing curiosity. “I mean, how long has it been since you’ve last been here?”

“I have someone come by every so often to make sure things are tidy.”

-----

Some time later, after a house tour and unpacking the clothes (both yours and Jack’s) that Jack had brought along, the two of you settled down in the rustic living room.  76 had started a fire in the fireplace, warning that the house got a little chilly at night, while you’d set up the couch with blankets and pillows at his request.

You both sat on opposite ends of the couch now, each of you wrapped in a fuzzy blanket and holding a hand of cards with the rest of the stack and a bowl of pretzels sitting between you.

“Do you have any sixes?” Jack questioned, foggy blue eyes glancing at you almost accusingly.

Returning his gaze with a scowl of mock grumpiness, you pulled a six of clubs from your hand and flicked it at him before grabbing a pretzel and tossing it in your mouth. “Got any threes?”

“Go fish.”

“Goddammit, why are you good at this stupid game!”

Jack chuckled as you drew a card, then caught your hand. Before you could question him, he tugged you closer and met you the rest of way to press kiss to your lips.

“I really hope you’re enjoying this as much as I am,” he hummed, placing his hand of cards face-down on the couch to brush his fingers through your hair. “I hope you’re not just pretending to make me feel happy.”

You sighed contently and closed your eyes, soaking up the warmth of the fire as well as the touch of your sweetheart.

“Morrison,” you addressed him after a moment, opening your eyes, “this has been fantastic. I haven’t worried about anything other than how you make grilled cheese sandwiches taste so good and how to beat you at this god forsaken game since we’ve stepped foot in this house.” You leaned forward again to kiss his cheek--

--and attempted to sneak a peek at his hand before he caught your hand in the act.

“Got any eights?” he asked, smirking with a childish arrogance.

“I hate you,” you replied while handing him your eights.