#If I don’t have enough to buy something with my debit card I wait it out and don’t put my cash money in the bank to cover it

[theres-whump-in-that-nebula]

Day two of rapidly pounding down two to three cups of coffee in one sitting like a fucking maniac:

I did my dishes, disinfected and de-scaled my kitchen sink, swept the floors, rearranged the ingredients I have out on the counter, wiped down my microwave, the stove, and the countertops with vinegar water.

[blackleatherjacketz]

Lucky Guess

Max Burnett x Female Reader

Summary: Waiting on your date, you run into Max, a handsome stranger at the bar. Things turn out better than you ever could have imagined... or did they?

Warnings:18+ Only!, Explicit Smut, Emotional Manipulation, Con Men, Max Being Charming, Alcohol, Threats of Violence, Hand-Holding, Kissing, Biting, Face-Holding, Max Undressing You, Suggested Voyeurism, Vaginal Sex, Outercourse?, Hotel Sex, Woman On Top, Soft Dom/Sub Themes, Multiple Orgasms, Unprotected Sex

Word Count: 3.8K+

Tags: @bullet-prooflove​ @skittle479​

Read more of my stories HERE!

A jazz quartet plays a random selection of top forty hits in the corner of the hotel bar, the tunes barely recognizable as the drums and saxophone echo off the dark, sleek walls of the four star establishment. You look at your watch for the third time in ten minutes, stealing a glance toward the glass door of the restaurant’s entryway as you decide to settle into the bar stool that’s just a little too tall for your liking.

“A glass of moscato, please,” you tell the bartender as he makes his way over to you. You decide that you can at least stay a while and enjoy yourself even if your date has lost his chance to buy you dinner by showing up late.

“Sure thing, doll.” The bartender winks with a snap as he points at you, turning in the direction of the back room where all the chilled wine must be kept.

You fold the drink menu in on itself, pushing it away from you with a heavy sigh, wondering how this man who was so eager to ask you out last week could have possibly forgotten to meet you here. A younger version of yourself might linger on those thoughts a little longer, might over analyze every text message and phone call in between your first meeting and now, but you don’t have time for all that. You only have a select amount of nights to yourself, a few precious moments away from your kids and your job, a much needed break from the chaos that crowds your mind. You’ll be damned if you waste one of those highly coveted nights on someone who can’t respect you enough to prioritize your time.

“One glass of moscato!” The bartender returns from the back room, holding your glass of wine at the base before setting it in front of you. He points at you again before gesturing toward the cash register. “Keep it open?”

“Sure,” you nod, pulling out your card and sliding it over the countertop as he pushes the glass of wine toward you. “Why not?”

“You bet.” He grins, tossing a fresh towel over his shoulder as he palms your debit card. “Let me know if you need anything else.”

“Sure thing,” you smile, tracing the rim of the glass with your fingers before picking it up.

“How late is he?” The man who sits down next to you asks, chasing his question with a long draught of his cocktail as he adjusts his weight, turning in his stool to face you.

“Excuse me?” You look over as you take your first sip of wine, it’s tartness brushing over your taste buds as you notice just how attractive he is. His dark hair and chiseled features instantly send a trickle of butterflies into your stomach as the words ‘devilishly handsome’ come to mind. There’s something you can’t quite put your finger on, something about him that’s different, dangerous.

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help but notice you staring at your watch for the past fifteen minutes.” He swallows another mouthful of alcohol, bringing his glass down in front of him before setting it down on the counter. “A woman like you could only be waiting on one of three things.”

“A woman like me, huh?” You lead, raising an eyebrow. “And what would those be?” You find yourself subconsciously turning into him, eager to hear his theories about what could have possibly brought you here tonight.

“One,” he smiles wide when he notices you looking at him, blue eyes sparkling as he grasps onto his glass with a laugh. “You’re having an affair and you don’t want to be found out, that’s why you’re meeting him at a hotel bar instead of a restaurant. But he’s running late, and that window of opportunity before your husband comes home from that business trip is closing fast.” He brings his glass up to his lips, pointing at you with its rim.

You crack a smile with his unfounded prediction before taking a congratulatory sip of your wine, the carbonation wrinkling your nose as you try not to laugh. “And your next guess?”

“Alright.” He leans into you with a smirk, making a point to reach over your shoulder as he takes his time hovering over the bowl of cherries behind the counter. You try your best not to get lost in the scent of his cologne as it surrounds you; the deep, smoky notes of cedarwood drawing you in as he exposes his neck before finally grabbing the stem of the fruit that suits his fancy.

“Two,” he continues his speech, leaning back in his seat before dropping the cherry into his drink. “You’re not married, but you’re still meeting someone here. Nothing serious of course, just drinks. Maybe a first or second date, but he’s more than a little late, and you’re thinking he might even be standing you up.” He glances at the empty doorway before looking back at you, his eyes traveling up and down your figure before finally settling in on your lips.

“And the third option?” Another modest sip of your wine.

“You’re just thirsty.” He rolls his tongue along the inside of his cheek with a tilt of his head as a sudden heat rushes into your chest. “And you’re waiting to see how long it will take for a handsome stranger to come up and offer to buy you a drink.”

You hold his gaze as you tip the bottom of your wine glass into the air, swallowing a bigger swig of it before setting it down on the napkin between you. “A handsome stranger, huh?” You smirk, enjoying the rare feeling of being actively pursued as his eyes work together with the alcohol to warm you up from the inside. “Those are some pretty wild theories.”

“Hey!” A third party’s voice interrupts your back and forth, drawing your attention to the man who was supposed to meet you here over twenty minutes ago. He doesn’t look flushed or worried, not maimed or disheveled as he approaches the bar at a slow, unbothered pace. “I lost track of time, but I’m glad you’re still here.” He looks at your new friend for a split second before he begins unbuttoning his suit jacket.

“What are you doing?” You spin around to face him fully, your back now facing the bar.

“We have a date.” He unfastens his button as he looks at you. “I’m gonna order a drink.”

“We had a date, yeah,” you look down at your watch, noticing that your conversation with the stranger has made time pass by a little quicker than you thought. “That was at six o’clock. It’s now six thirty.” You cross your legs together in your stool, watching his face drop in disbelief.

“I told you, I lost track of time.” He looks over at the stranger, his hand still nervously holding onto his suit jacket before focusing back on you. “You’re not really going to be like this, are you?”

“Be like what?” You double down, keeping your tone as cold as possible. “Expect a courtesy call or text if you’re running late? A telegraph or smoke signal at the very least?”

“I told you, I lost track of time.”

“I didn’t hear an apology anywhere in there.” You look to your new friend who seems to be utterly rapt with your interaction. “Did you?”

“No.” He shakes his head without missing a beat, hiding a smirk behind his glass.

“Yeah, I’m sorry Josh, but you lost your window about twenty minutes ago.” You fold your arms across your chest as his features contort with anger.

“Who the hell’s this guy, then, anyways?” He points to the stranger, the veins in his neck bulging as he steps closer to the both of you. “You move on that quick? Huh? Whore?”

Before you’re even able to respond, the man sitting next to you steps out of his chair, towering over your would-be date in the most menacing stance you’ve ever seen before in your life. You allow him to take charge for a moment, your feeble attempts at cutting your interaction short failing to get the job done. “The lady made it pretty clear she wants you to leave.” His dark tone is practically unrecognizable from the light and airy conversation you were having before.

Your date stares at the stranger, slowly stepping backwards as his anger visibly morphs into fear. Droplets of sweat begin to form at his temples, racing down the sides of his face as he nods his head, almost as if there are some unspoken words between them to finally get the message across. He looks at you one more time, muttering the word ‘bitch’ or something like it before turning on his heel to make his hasty exit.

“You didn’t have to do that,” you tell him as he takes his seat back next to you, sighing in relief as he swivels in his stool.

“Yeah well, some men only respond to the presence of another man.” He runs a hand through his hair and tosses the rest of his drink back, motioning for the bartender to get him another. “You okay?”

“I think I’ll survive, thanks.” You follow suit and finish your glass of wine, smiling at his instinctive act of chivalry.

“So I was right,” he picks up your previous conversation, leaning his elbow against the bar to face you again as another glass of moscato appears in your peripheral vision. “It was number two.”

“Lucky guess.” You scoff, wrapping your fingers around the base as he attempts to lighten the mood.

“Well I figured it couldn’t be number one, there’s no ring on your finger.” He reaches out and touches your hand, loosening its grip on your glass as his fingertips begin massaging your palm. “Unless you’re just not wearing it tonight.” He bites his lower lip as his thumb brushes over your barren ring finger, his pupils expanding as he pulls you in a little closer.

“I’m not married, if that’s what you’re trying to ask.” You whisper as the space between you closes, his scent now swimming through your senses as he continues massaging your hand.

“That’s good.” He leans in to properly study your face as he squeezes your hand affectionately, his thumb exciting the tiny hairs on the back of your hand. “I’m not married, either.”

“That’s good.” You repeat back to him, wondering just how skilled the rest of his fingers might be.

“Yeah?” He lets go of your finger and leans back in his seat, those crystal blue eyes of his never leaving your face as he sighs to part his lips in a real, genuine smile. “Any chance that number three is still an option?”

————————-

The view from his hotel room is absolutely stunning, the street lamps and office buildings of New York City illuminating the night sky for miles in front of you as his hand gently squeezes the base of your neck. You hadn't done anything like this in years, hadn’t tossed your inhibitions to the wind in exchange for a night of attention and pleasure with a complete stranger. Your life was so structured, so compartmentalized that you had to meticulously schedule a night to be free, a night to feel anything at all, and he’s been generous enough to offer you an entire range of those feelings. You smile at your translucent reflection as his other hand finds its way onto your hip, pulling you back just enough to feel him flush against you, his lips just barely touching the shell of your ear.

“I can’t believe that guy was stupid enough to blow a chance with you.” He whispers, tracing his fingers down your spine to the zipper of your dress.

“Well, they can’t all be winners.” You shrug as he starts to unzip it, taking his time pulling the fabric apart as he breathes against your neck, forcing you to inhale quickly in response.

“No, they can’t.” He kisses a trail down your neck as a cascade of goose flesh follows, the zipper stopping just shy of your tailbone as he exposes your back. His kisses deepen into the nape of your neck as he removes his other hand from your hip, smoothing it up your back to push the straps off of your torso. You finally exhale as the black cloth leaves your body, silently falling onto the floor as his mouth moves onto your shoulders, his lips parting just enough to taste your skin as it shivers beneath his touch.

“These windows are so big, anybody walking by could see us.” Your insecurities rear their ugly head as he kisses his way down your shoulder blade and lower back, getting onto his knees for better access to the rest of your body.

“Then let them watch,” he mutters matter of factly against your bare ass, barely covered by the lace thong you're sporting as he pulls it down over your hips, playfully nipping at the skin just above your thigh.

You gasp at the intensity of his bite, relishing in the feeling of warmth his mouth and hands send into your core as his lips cover nearly every inch of your legs. You hold onto that breath, letting it expand in your chest as he slides your underwear over your knees, past your calves and onto the floor. He lets them drop without a word, his lips peppering slow, affectionate kisses onto your skin before squeezing his fingers against your ankles and into the arch of your foot. One by one, he lifts your feet up and out of your heels, watching you step over the crumpled fabric of your dress now pooled around them before running his hands up and down your legs as you turn around to face him.

The city lights cast such a beautiful hue on his handsome face, highlighting his cheekbones and darkening his eyes as they look up at you from his position on the floor. You reach out to touch him as his hands remain on your calves, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear as his eyelids close for a brief second. You can’t believe how lucky you are to have reached this moment with him, wondering how much your luck would have changed if your date had shown up on time.

“Matching lingerie,” his words interrupt your thoughts as his eyes open back up, locking onto yours. “It’s almost as if you wanted someone to see.” His lips curl into a smirk with his teasing tone, his breath warming a path up your body as he rises to his feet, just barely brushing his palms over your thighs and hips on his way back up.

“Well, you can never be too prepared,” you start to rationalize your wardrobe choices to him before his hands slide up your stomach and back, stopping once they find the hook of your bra.

“Oh, I’m not complaining.” He brings his lips closer to yours as he works to unfasten it, pulling the restrictive bodice down your arms and dropping it onto the floor with the rest of your clothes. “I’m just glad I’m the one who gets to see it.”

The phantom flavor of whiskey mixes in with the sweet aftertaste of wine as your lips part to welcome his, gasping as his hands graze over your newly exposed breasts. You can feel your nipples harden against his palms as they curve to cup around them, lightly squeezing before smoothing up your chest and neck to cradle your face and savor your kiss. He pulls back just enough to glance down at your lips again, pausing for what seems like an eternity before looking over at the armchair in the corner of the room. He kisses you again, this time a little deeper, a little longer before gently stroking your cheeks with his thumbs as he pulls his hands off of your face, reluctantly breaking contact.

“I’m Max, by the way.” He whispers his belated introduction, slowly turning away from you to head toward the chair as he begins unbuttoning his own dress shirt.

Jesus Christ, have you been that enamored by him that you really forgot to ask him that? His fucking NAME? You watch him pull the tails of his shirt out of his waistline, shrugging it off his shoulders to reveal a body just as chiseled as the features of his face. Goddamn it, you’re in trouble. You can feel a bit of moisture start to collect between your thighs as you stare at him, hearing your own voice instinctively recite your name out loud as he makes his way over to the chair, undoing his belt and pants.

“Now we’re no longer strangers,” he starts, winking as he pushes his pants and underwear down in one fell swoop. “Do you have any idea how gorgeous you are?” He kicks off his shoes and steps out of his clothes, backing up to sit down on the empty chair that faces you.

“Am I? Do I? Umm… thank you.” You stare at his naked silhouette, the sheer sight of him tying a knot into your stomach as he settles into the armchair, your whole body tensing in anticipation. “You look… good, you look umm…” you stammer as you watch him spit on his palm, slowly gripping himself in the darkness as he silently takes you in.

“Come here.” He interrupts your brain’s mad scramble for words as he beckons you with his opposite hand, patting his thigh. “Take a seat.”

Your eyebrows dart into your hairline as you gawk at him, unable to reply as your throat dries up and your thighs rub together to contain the arousal nearly dripping between them. You watch him stroke himself in a grateful mixture of both desire and disbelief, forcing your muscles to move your body forward as you eagerly make your way toward him.

The fabric of the chair bends beneath your knees, its plastic blend cracking and pinching into your skin as you straddle his thighs, his mouth falling slack as you grab onto his shoulders for support. His other hand snakes its way up the back of your neck, fingers gripping onto your hair just tightly enough to control your body and guide your movements. He lowers your hips down as you roll them toward him, looking up at you as he carefully glides the head of his cock in between your folds, spreading your juices up and down your length.

“Right here?” You tease, nudging against him at the most delicious angle as his grip on your hair tightens with a slight moan from his lips.

“Yeah,” he mutters, eyelids fluttering shut as he tries his best to control his breathing, careful not to enter you just yet. He continues to coat himself with your arousal, pressing his tip against your bud as he opens his eyes to watch the rhythmic movements of your body in complete and utter awe. “Right there, just like that.”

“Okay.” You suck your breath in through your teeth as he brushes over your clit, showering your senses with dozens of little bursts of pleasure, each upward motion of his tip quickly countered by a downward thrust of your hips until all of those pulses finally build up inside of you. That ecstasy you so rarely get to experience heats to a boil, rising up in your blood until you can feel it race through every inch of your body. Every time he rubs himself against you, that pleasure acts like a drug, traveling further through your blood vessels and up into your heart and lungs. It spreads like oxygen through your circulatory system as it pulses through your arteries, giving your brain and body the intense high that you’ve been craving, the high that you’ve been needing.

You moan against his forehead as that blissful delight suddenly takes over, pushing through your veins and capillaries, saturating the very tissue of your muscles as it makes you shiver uncontrollably. You cry out as it works its way through you with each beat of your heart, feeding every organ, vessel and nerve with a pulse of euphoria that violently rattles itself into your bones. You arch your back as your thighs quake against the chair’s armrest, pulling his head into your chest until there's nothing left to fuel your cells, nothing left to hold you up as your muscles momentarily fail, lowering your hips down onto his.

He groans as you sink down onto him, pushing himself up inside of your heat, feeling you shudder and spasm around his cock before he’s even lifted his hips up off the chair. He grins into the delicate skin of your chest, holding on tightly to the back of your head as he continues to bury himself deeper into you. All sense of restraint and control he’d practiced before seems to melt away with each consecutive thrust, his moans becoming more feral, more sporadic as he kisses his way up your neck and chin. He loses himself completely, kissing your lips with reckless abandon as he pulls your body down in one final blow, snapping his hips up against your thighs, suddenly spilling his release.

He grunts as he holds you close, each twitch and spasm of his pelvis coating your inner walls white as a trail of sweat runs down your chest and onto his. He grins as another wave of pleasure rolls through you, vibrating every cell in your body as it clenches your muscles around him, turning his grunt into a groan as he moans the extent of his orgasm into your lips. He kisses you harder as your fluids mix with his, the two of you moving together in a mesmerizing rhythm as he sucks your tongue into his mouth, scraping his teeth across your taste buds.

“You look so perfect when you come, you know that?” He whispers his praises into your mouth as his breathing slows, nipping at your bottom lip before kissing it again with a smirk.

“Uh huh.” You whine, barely able to put words together as your skin still tingles with the aftershock of your bliss. You hold his face in your hands as you kiss his lips, moving your mouth down to taste the sweaty skin of his jaw and neck before resting your head on his shoulder. “You do, too.”

“Yeah?” He holds himself inside you, running his hands up and down your back in an attempt to ease the process of coming down from the chemical high you both just shared. “I didn’t think it was possible for you to look any more beautiful than when I first saw you downstairs, but this…” he kisses your hair, inhaling your scent. “This is better.”

[brokenmusicboxwolfe]

Excuse the rambling below. Let it be a warning of the sort of posts that happen if you have no one to tell your day to…

The shopping is done, and I WILL be going to the con! Woo-hoo!

What a day, though.

Before I even got out of bed I had gotten myself locked out of my bank account. I hadn’t been awake, and had a headache, so maybe that’s why I typed my password wrong three damn times! So now I had to call them, only they don’t let you until after 8am and I’d gotten up extra early to try to get the shopping done before the rain.

Getting out of bed I knocked the machete off where I keep it. It used to be on the bookcase by my bed, but when I moved that it ended up on the storage container of clothes. And it quickly became a comedy routine with the risk of getting cut…

What? You are hung up wondering why I have a machete next to my bed? Well, it had to go somewhere! It’s kinda funny, but my family tends to have potentially “deadly weapons” within reach, but only kinda accidentally. Like, they are tools, especially something like machetes, and we stuff them wherever we have a space and won’t get lost. Not getting lost is the trick. You wouldn’t believe the things we find in between strata of our book mountains!

Anyway, I knocked it off, set it on the corner if the container but didn’t get the belt and rope attached to it on the container, and down it went again. I picked it up again, but by the sheath, and tiled. Out fell the blade. I tried to but the machete back in the sheath and had it the wrong way so it wouldn’t fit. I wale up enough to realize what I’m doing wrong, get it right, and set it back where it goes. Satisfied I start to walk off, only the end of the rope was around my foot and down it went again!

On with the morning where it was one thing after another, until I could call the bank.

Only THAT turned out to be a problem too. Some of the time the phone didn’t work. Sometimes they didn’t have the info at hand. “Account PIN”? i have my debit card PIN, but it’s not the same, and the automated voice (why did I have to wait until after 8 for an automated voice?) keeps saying “I’m sorry, we are having trouble verifying your account while I hunt for anything where it might be written. Or my account number, since who has that memorized?? I called six times before I got it so I could reset my password. And we all know I am going to put in the old password next time.

Then it’s looking at the bank account and going “YIKES, where did all those charges come from!?” Oh, it all made sense. The dog medicine. The kettle to replace the one that broke (we had that old one as long as I can remember**sniff**) The ant poison. But it took time.

Time. A crowded gas station. Lines in stores of people preparing for the storm. Repair work at a store that required me to walk to the other end of the store from where I parked. People that were super chatty…

Speaking of chatty, a woman working in Walmart got talking to me. She was telling me the trouble the storm will be for her. Her road floods all the time, and that could end up getting her fired if this storm is bad. She told me all the ins and outs of working at Walmart, how the laws in NC make things even worse for employees, that sort of thing. I felt for her. Companies don’t need to care about the folks barely, or not at all, making a living wage because there are always the desperate waiting to take their place. Hell, if my ankle could take the standing for hours retail in the US demands, it might me.

Recently someone was venting to me about a person they had been paying to help them work on a house, and then suddenly they said, “hey, can you paint?” Sure, I can paint walls! I’ve done it before. She says she’ll get me to help her and even pay me to do it. Okay, I’d lend a hand for free, but I can use the money so “Yes!”. Then they didn’t ask me. Because there is always someone else eager to be paid.

You’d be amazed how well I saved money, the things I didn’t buy. Oddly this month being meatless is bugging me less than not getting any nuts. Dang it, I’ve craved some nicely salty nuts for so long. I promised myself at least some store brand peanuts, but $3 is $3 I’ll be glad of later….

And then a Dollar Tree I bought a book! LOL I didn’t intend to, but I can’t stop myself from browsing books. They hardly have any so it only takes a few seconds. It isn’t even my sort of book, but I noticed a “signed copy” sticker on the cover. It’s only $1.25 and when am I going to stumble on signed copies of anything when I can’t even go to bookstores?

So, I can skip food and not books. Typical! LOL

UGH! My period started in the middle of shopping. So now I was stressing about blood, but at least it meant my headache was finally gone.

I only had to get the hog food and kerosene and….It poured!! If I hadn’t had to waste time with the bank stuff I would have gotten done before the rain hit. I got the stuff though. I held and umbrella over the kerosene cans while I pumped. The dang pump is always sooooo slowwww, which normally is irritating but this time made the risk of getting water in the kerosene worse. I did well to keep the cans dry while I hunched there with water cascading off me.

There was FINALLY a break in the rain…after I’d driven home and completely unloaded the car.

BTW, having the fridge on the back porch is only mildly annoying most of the time, but when it’s raining heavily and all the cats have taken shelter there, and you are trying to out away a groceries….VERY annoying! Guys, you won’t even want to eat most of this!!!

Of course, you can never tell with cats. Nony adores peanut butter. I used to have a cat, Fizzgig, who would devour popcorn (and not even buttered!) But no, darlin’, I am not sharing this….

Until I do. (See Nony…I swear he pulls a Puss in Boots on me all the time!)

While I was gone UPS had left my package. In the rain. On the ground. Where I park the car. GEEZ! It was the replacement kettle, so it couldn’t be hurt, but the delivery person didn’t know that!!

And then I did normal (by my standards) stuff. But I’ve already written too much and..

**poke**

You still awake???

Okay, well, all that was my losing track of what I was writing. I could have just said “I did the math and, barring some unforeseen disaster in the next few days, I get to go to the con!”

Which, I already did in the first sentence! LOL

[nickgerlich]

Nickel And Dimed

It’s funny and sad at the same time how sweeping changes can cause some people to come unhinged. I realize that change can be unsettling, and the older you get, the harder it can become to embrace the change around you. After all, you’ve spent your entire life figuring out what works for you, so why mess with it?

But you can’t stop this train we call Change, and for better or for worse, it takes us places we never considered before. Just like the old Taco Bell ads once proclaimed, “Change is good.” And I don’t think they were talking about coins jingling in our pockets.



Interestingly, it is that very change—the coins, not the abstract thought—that has some people in Amarillo upset right now. You see, the Sod Poodles, our Double-AA Minor League Baseball team, just announced they are going cashless this season, which is right around the corner.

Oh my, the empty threats from people never to go to a ballgame. I’m pretty sure they haven’t been to one at Hodgetown anyway, but why let that interfere with their ire?

The baseball team and new stadium have been bones of contention ever since words were whispered about them coming for the 2019 season. City leaders approved the use of hotel occupancy taxes to build the gorgeous new stadium downtown. Those monies can only be used in promotional kinds of ways for cities, and infrastructure is one of them.

And then there was the team naming contest. When the winner was announced, you could hear the booing and hissing all the way down to Austin. What is a Sod Poodle, my non-Panhandle readers might ask? Well, the story goes that it’s an early pioneer nickname for prairie dogs, those little varmints that tunnel through the pasture, leaving scores of holes in which your cow might break a leg. Yeah, they’re cute, but also rather destructive.



To make matters worse, it was just announced a few days ago that the City approved $4.5 million in debt to bring the new stadium up to new specs mandated by Major League Baseball. Those rules are out of local hands. Heck, we should be glad that Amarillo made the cut a couple of years ago when they trashed a bunch of minor league teams. We could have been left with an empty stadium.

So here we are now, and fans will only be able to use plastic to buy a beer, hot dog, peanuts, or souvenirs. “But what about people who don’t have a debit or credit card?” the critics wailed. Simple. They are even installing reverse ATMs at the park so people can trade in their fives, tens, and twenties for a Visa debit card.

And yet that is not enough. The latest move is surely another sign of the coming of antichrist, that dreadful future time in which…wait, we already talked about this earlier in the term. Now you are welcome to believe what you want to believe, subscribe to a religion or not, but I beseech everyone to please reach down and untwist their undergarments. I’m pretty sure that John the Revelator was not writing about baseball in Amarillo.

Furthermore, this is not something happening only in Amarillo. The vast majority of major league baseball as well as NFL stadiums have gone cashless, and if you Google the phenomenon, you’ll also find that many minor league stadiums are in the process of converting to this as well.

I suspect a lot of the resistance is age-related. Younger people have no problem with it, because they have grown up using plastic as well as Venmo and other payment options. The WT campus has been cashless for a couple of years now, and students are simply accustomed to using their Buff Gold Card or other plastic to buy everything from a book of stamps to coffee, lunch, or logo wear.

As for me, I’m all in favor of this. I still have five twenties crumpled up in my wallet that I have been carrying around for more than nine months. I do keep a small pouch of coins in my van in the rare event I need to pay to park, but even that has gone cashless in most places. For example, I used my Park Mobile app yesterday to park in Dallas. It’s a lot easier than digging for coins.

And in states with toll roads, they’ve eliminated pretty much every human at toll booths, and replaced them with cameras. You either have a transponder on your windshield, or you pay by plate when they send you the bill. The states can access either others’ DMV databases quite easily now.

In spite of all my rational talk, there will still be those who drink from the cup of irrationality. They swear this is all part of an evil plan to monitor us all, to know every last step of our activities, and how we spend our money. Pass the tin foil, please.

Maybe the Amarillo complainers need to get out of town a little more. This is how it is done in an increasing number of places. And those clear plastic purses you bellyached about last year? Yeah. Same on that, too. Welcome to the 2020s. It’s different here, and your only real alternative is to either get on the Change Train, or just stay home.

Dr “Your Ways Are Quaint“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

[heartkyeom]

honey jar

lee seokmin x gn!reader

word count: 5.6k

tag list: @maijunejuly @graykageyama @svthub @junkissed

warnings: mentions of violence, strangers to lovers

a/n: my svthub halloween fic is finally done!! thank you to june for beta reading part of this and to my fellow svthub members for being so supportive of this idea even though I kept it very close to my chest lol. it turned out a bit differently than I expected, but I truly hope you enjoy it! happy halloween! 💗

Seokmin has a nasty habit of being obsessive. It doesn’t pop up often, but when it does, his fixation can be quite hard to let go of.

It’s not his fault that you’re incredibly fascinating. Seokmin is a faithful patron of the local witchcraft shop where you work, he didn’t even need to go to the store as often as he does, but there’s just something about you.

As a witch, he could easily source his supplies for potions and spells from much less conspicuous places, but he’s grown accustomed to the way you pack each of his items carefully, whether it be a few crystals or heavy equipment. 

Soonyoung and Seungkwan always warned him to be wary of humans, to know that not everyone would react positively to his powers, but he couldn’t help it.

Even if his flings crashed and burned, he still liked the thought of taking care of someone whether his powers were involved or not.

Thus, he found himself at the witchcraft store for the 3rd time this week, picking up something he definitely did not need, just to see you.

You were never particularly fond of small talk or seemingly anything positive, but he tried to engage with you like always. 

Seokmin carefully set down a pile of crystals on the counter, much to your dismay. The store had been relatively empty since he came in, but he figured you could expect him to be there a few times a week now.

“How’s your day been so far?” He’s beaming.

You offer him a slight scowl before looking at the cashier's tablet to key in his items. You only give a short glance at the crystals before answering. “Uneventful,” you deadpan. 

“Why are you buying all these crystals, you were just here for crystals last week,” You don’t look up at him, instead shaking your head in disapproval at this lunatic who would likely end up buying out your entire stock of crystals by the end of the week.

“My friend’s birthday is coming up and they’re really into crystals,” He lies and examines his choices once again, nodding in confirmation at what he’s picked out for his hypothetical friend. 

These would just go on another shelf in his bedroom, adding to the massive collection of stones waiting to be used for a specific spell. He decided he could never have enough good energy with him, so maybe the trip wasn’t a complete waste.

You observe him as if you’re contemplating whether to believe his obvious lie. Your shoulders lower with a deep sigh, it seems like you’ve decided to leave things alone today. “Whatever, your total is $16.54.”

He digs through his wallet to give you the exact amount in cash, and despite having a perfectly functioning debit card, he liked indulging in the novelty of cash payments. It was a silly human invention that made him unreasonably happy for some reason, amongst other things.

“Can I have a reusable bag? I like the designs here,” He smiles again at the thought of the reusable bags the store offered. There are a few different designs that he’s admired for a while now, especially since they were made by local artists.

“You’re stealing my script,” You pout, “and shouldn’t you have your own reusable bag by now?” You reach below the counter to grab the tote bag, and to his surprise, it’s his favorite out of the local designs. The picture is quite simple, a watercolor drawing of fairies living within a flower garden. He thought it was sweet and nostalgic, it always made him happy to see it framed on the counter among the other tote bag designs. 

“You’re right, I left it at home,” He admits sheepishly, rubbing the back of his hair easily. He knew his crystals would just be put in a small paper bag, but he figured he could test his luck by asking for something bigger.

“You’re lucky that you spend so much money here,” You still don’t look at him as you put the crystals in the miniature paper bag and push it forward. 

“Or else I would’ve made you pay for this,” You hold out the tote bag for him to take. His eyes go slightly wide, but he catches himself and takes it with a smile.

He blushes. “I appreciate the kindness, thank you.”  

“I think this will be my last visit of the week,” he confirms. 

He really should ease up on coming to see you, whether he wanted to admit it or not. He didn’t necessarily have it in the budget to keep making this many visits to the shop. 

“Great,” You’re still unamused, but he’s still trying to fight the nerves building up in the pit of his stomach. 

“See you around,” He waves and exits the store before he can catch your reaction, he feels too overwhelmed to look back. 

He knew he was being pathetic, but what else could he do? 

The infatuation has already bloomed in his heart, now he had to figure out a way to deal with it.

—

Outside of work, you enjoyed exploring the neighborhood on your walks back home. You didn’t live very far from the shop, so you tried to utilize every moment to find something new to fawn over.

Recently, it’s been the houses in the hidden streets near your apartment. 

Whenever you left to get coffee or get groceries for the week, you didn’t stop yourself from turning down the corner of the road toward the glimpses of suburbia in the bustling city.

Most times, people weren’t outside of their homes, so you could observe the exterior of certain houses thoroughly without judgment.

Sometimes, there were kids playing outside or a couple would be talking on their porch. Things like seasonal decorations, school graduation pickets, and traces of colorful chalk on the pavement reminded you that people lived full vibrant lives in places you would never see. 

It always left you with a hopeful feeling.

Yet, there was one that always left you curious, one that always made you stop to admire it no matter what.

The sage green Victorian-style house stuck out like a sore thumb among the minimalist angular homes that took up a good portion of the block.

The two-story house contained a wrap-around porch, a steeply pitched roof, painted iron railings, and other ornate flourishes that drew your eye to it every time.

This time, you’re so lost in thought while looking at the roof that you barely notice someone walking outside the front door.

You avert your eyes to the sidewalk immediately. “Shit, I’m sorry for staring,” Your response is panic-stricken, and you don’t want to face whatever old person would be waiting to kick you off their lawn.

“It’s okay, you’re fine,” The voice is much younger than you envisioned, but also strangely familiar as well.

You look up to see a slightly tired Seokmin, lingering on the porch to get a better look at you.

He seems just as shocked as you are as if you’re both people that can only exist in one location in your mind. 

He’s also startlingly handsome for 6 pm on a Thursday, he’s only dressed in a plain sweatshirt and sweatpants but it’s enough to drive you slightly insane.

His fluffy black hair is now hidden by a baseball cap, spotlighting his facial features.

His smile is still just as kind as always, if not more when the initial shock of seeing you wears off. “Y/N, hi! Do you live near here?”

“Yeah, I live a few blocks from here,” You point behind you and offer him a small smile.

“Oh wow, you’re close to the store then!”

“Yeah, blessing and a curse,” You nod. “Wait, do you live here?” You bring yourself back to focus to ask him what’s on your mind.

“Oh, yeah, I do,” He replies excitedly. This brings up a flurry of questions in your mind.

“You have roommates, right? I mean there’s no way you live here alone,” You assess him offhandedly but realize your tone. “Shit, that was mean.”

He doesn’t seem offended by your assumption though. 

“It’s true, I definitely can’t afford to be here alone so I have two roommates.”

“That’s nice, at least,” You sigh at the thought of having nice roommates. A few bad encounters in college had sworn you off completely, at least for the time being.

“I work at the branch right near that bright pink thrift shop, so I’m also close to work,” He looks as if he’s given this exact reference too many times, so much so that he waits for your lightbulb moment that eventually comes a few seconds later.

“Yeah, of course! That reminds me, I haven’t renewed my library card,” You grab the side of your tote bag while thinking of your keys, remembering the tiny library card that hung on your keychain.

“You should come to see me at the library! I could do it for you,” He’s almost a little too eager to help you out. Everything about him is eager, his presence is almost puppylike and you’re not sure if you like that or not.

“I can just do it online, right?”

He pouts. “Then you can’t come to see me,” His voice is slightly petulant which makes your heart flutter for some reason. “I’ve seen you a million times, it’s time for you to catch up.”

“This implies that we’re friends, friends visit each other at work.”

“Do you not want to be friends?”

The question is innocent enough, but it stops you in your tracks.

Although his energy is almost sickeningly sweet, he leaves you curious. You’d like to know if he’s always been this way, what makes him nervous, what his roommates are like, and why he always looks so endearing without trying.

If you were being completely honest with yourself, you could benefit from having more friends.

“No, I do,” You let yourself smile just enough so that he’s content again.

His face immediately seems back at ease at your agreement. 

“Okay. Can I get your number so we can plan something?”

You can’t tell if he’s flirting or if he’s really just that excited to see you again, you opt for the latter by the way he keeps trying to hide his smile from you. 

You eventually nod with a closed-mouth smile, and you silently unlock your phone and hand it to him to input his number.

His eyes seem especially curious as he types in his contact information, wide and attentive at your phone. 

“Here you go,” He hands it back with a bright smile and you wonder how he hasn’t run out of energy just from smiling at you.

“I’ll go now, but it was nice to run into you,” You shift awkwardly away from him with a short wave, starting to turn around away from his view.

“You too,” His eyes are almost closed from how brightly he’s smiling. You turn away full before you can fixate on it. You decide to check his contact as you walk in the opposite direction you came from and you notice something.

His name isn’t just Seokmin.

It’s “seokmin!” with an exclamation point as if his sparkly energy is somehow radiating from your phone. It makes you let out air through your nose with a chuckle as you shove your phone back into your jacket pocket.

His energy is quite distinct, that’s for sure.

—

Library shifts were relatively slow, but Seokmin didn’t particularly mind. He was able to complete his work around the building without constant interruption, but he was always happy to help a patron out.

Most patrons were drawn to him anyways, likely from his dazzling smile and charming personality. He could convince anyone to check out at least one book, catering to visitors of any age. 

Yet, today, he was relegated to the circulation desk.

It was his fault for not spreading his tasks out further through the day, but that’s the problem with having powers, it makes you want to use them for everything. 

Who wouldn’t use magic to help you shelve books faster or sort through a pile of returned books?

It was the part of the afternoon when the library was practically abandoned beside a few patrons idly browsing on the computers, and Seokmin could get away with doing whatever he wanted, within reason.

Today, that meant flipping through the massive administrative binders without touching a single page, his fingers scanning the information to type into the computer before turning to the next page with a flick of his hand. 

He typically did this with eyes flitting between the door and the pages of the binder to ensure that no one noticed what he was doing.

His eyes went up at just the right moment to see you walk through the double doors, he fumbled his hands below the desk in an effort to avoid any confrontation. 

It’s been a few weeks since you were outside his house and barely any texts were exchanged between the two of you. 

Honestly, Seokmin thought he was doing something wrong, but clearly, you were still interested in seeing him.

You approach the desk with a tight smile and Seokmin feels his heart jump to his throat. 

You give him a once over and squint your eyes. “What were you doing?”

Shit, he’s been found out.

“Work,” He stutters in a quiet tone. He was charismatic and confident when you were outside his house, why is he suddenly so flustered?

You clear your throat and readjust the tote bag on your shoulder. “Right, well, I still wanted to renew my library card. Sorry, it took me so long to come by.”

“No worries,” His signature smile reappeared on his face as he turned his attention toward the computer, he thanked the universe that it was still logged in.

“Ok, what’s your library card number?” He glances up at you.

“It’ll probably just be easier to give you my card,” Your head is down and you’re focused on pulling out your wallet to retrieve the card. 

“Yeah, for sure,” He is admittedly staring quite hard at you, but he can’t help it. He likes that you’re wearing an oversized sweatshirt and the sleeves are practically covering your hands to the point where your fingers are practically gone by the time you hand him the card.

It never feels like this, he can usually type things out quite easily, but now the keyboard feels like an obstacle as he types out the number printed on the back of your card. 

He triple checks the number before he speaks up. “Is the address you previously added correct?”

“Yeah,” You nod without much emotion, rocking back and forth on the balls of your feet. 

You don’t care about much, it seems. Well, that’s what he gathers through your texts.

From his visits to the shop, you do seem to care about the color yellow. He noticed there would always be a hint of yellow somewhere in your outfit, whether it be earrings, a button on your shirt, or a yellow trinket on your keychain. 

He notices the tote bag on your shoulder is yellow too, and it makes his heart a bit warm.

“Great,” He forces himself to look over the other information and update your card’s status back to “active” before he lets any more of his nerves set in.

“Okay, you’re all set. You should be able to check out a book,” He hands the card back with an easy expression, he hopes that he’s disguising his uneasiness. 

“Great. I’ll text you,” You nod and turn away before Seokmin can wave goodbye. He watches you leave through the double doors before letting out a pent-up sigh that’s centered in his chest. 

That could’ve gone better. 

He could’ve told you some fragments of his feelings, how he’s wanted to hang out with you for the past few weeks but schedule conflicts kept getting in the way.

Seokmin channeled his frustration into the pen sitting on top of the open binder, gently outstretching his fingers so that the writing utensil began to levitate. 

This was a rudimentary skill to him now, but it was one of the first advanced principles that he learned as a child. The idea of holding control over objects of any weight without needing a wand signaled a step towards complete discipline as a witch, but now he simply needed it to feel any semblance of control when he couldn’t let out his anger. 

He didn’t think it had been that long since he had been sulking over office items, not until someone spoke up at him.

“Seokmin?”

He’s so frazzled that his brain can’t register who it is until he really looks at their face. 

It’s you. No, it’s definitely you. You’re carrying the same yellow tote bag, and the same oversized sweater as a few minutes before, but your face is now painted in shock. 

His hands react so frantically that the pen goes flying, slamming against the back wall near the break room. He turns back to you, clearly bewildered by his lack of composure.

“Your pen, it was,” You point a shaky hand toward him, the event is trying to unfold itself through your lips, but your brain simply can’t catch up. 

“Why did you come back?” He blinks at you.

“I left my keys,” You hold up the keychain before blinking rapidly, stuffing them into your pockets not even a minute later. 

The tension is unflinchingly thick between the two of you, he can hear the clicking of the keyboards from the patrons across the room.

“Why was your pen floating?” You break the silence again with a nervous voice. 

He’s trying to muster up the right words to tell you, it’s always a toss-up as to how humans would react to his powers. He’s seen horror, anger, sadness, happiness, and everything in between from revealing his secret, so nothing unnerves him anymore, but something about the way your assured and relaxed persona is now suspended in fear is unsettling.

He watches you attempt to piece together a coherent thought in your head. 

“Are you a witch?” 

Well, he didn’t expect you to figure it out that quickly. 

“Oh my god, you are. You’re not denying it,” Your voice is slightly panicked. 

Seokmin can feel the blush crawl up his cheeks and his heart rise up to his throat. 

“Look, I can explain,” He glances at the time on the desktop computer, “I’m off in ten minutes, I can tell you everything then, okay?” His eyes are pleading for you to understand. Your eyes haven’t relaxed at all, but you still nod. It’s enough to immediately switch his face into a reassuring grin. 

Seokmin is certain that he’s never clocked out faster in his entire life. 

—

“You’re not tired of my questions yet?”

“No, of course not,” He smirks and takes a short sip of his bubble tea after answering. He felt so bad after seeing your reaction that he insisted on buying you bubble tea as a consolation, something you happily agreed to. 

You were now sitting outside the shop on a nearby bench, filling the occasional silence of enjoying your drink with your barrage of questions for him. He was never frustrated, no matter how basic the question might seem. 

That was something you admire about him, his patience was far more bountiful than yours could ever be.

You weren’t even really mad at him about the whole situation, honestly. It felt unnecessary to feel upset at something he couldn’t control. If anything, you were surprised at how covert he managed to be after so long.

You knew his energy was particularly special, but knowing that he was a witch seemed to make his habits even more fascinating.

“So what you did at the library, you don’t need a wand or anything to perform spells?” You peer at him.

“No, I can use one, but it’s easier to use my hands,” He flexes his fingers before wrapping them around his cup to take another sip. 

“Is it hard to hide this? I mean, I think I’d be going fucking insane honestly,” You offer him nervous eyes and he lets out a short chuckle. 

“It got easier with time, it always does,” His maturity shows through his response, you figure that it’s the result of having to deal with so much bullshit.

Thus, you consider your words carefully before asking another question. “Seokmin?”

“Hmm?” He looks at you with those sweet eyes of his, it breaks your heart a little before you can get the words out. 

“Has anyone ever hurt you for it?” You try to lace it with as much compassion as possible. You still can’t say it out loud, that he’s a witch, you figure that you aren’t comfortable yet. 

He sighs. “Yeah, I’ve got this nice little keepsake,” He moves his shirt sleeve up to reveal a thick scar across his forearm. 

“Some guys burned me, luckily Soonyoung and Seungkwan beat their asses for me before it got much worse,” He laughs, but you’re unsettled at the idea of just how traumatic it must’ve been. It makes you wince just looking at it, you can only imagine how much it truly hurt him. 

“I’m glad they were there for you, that’s awful. I’m sorry,” You place your hand on his shoulder, gently rubbing the fabric of his sweater. He noticeably relaxes, something that encourages you to leave it there for a bit. 

“It’s okay. They’re the best friends I could ask for,” He nods at the ground with a fond smile, the thought of them seems to take over his mind. 

“It’s not okay. I hope wherever those guys are, they’re fucking miserable,” You grumble.

“Thanks.”

There’s a brief silence again before he speaks up.

“I don’t want to stop being a good person though. I know I’m too positive and cheerful sometimes, but I still want to give love because I know it’s what I’m here to do,” He responds assuredly. It almost knocks the wind out of you.

“Like your purpose?” You ask, slightly startled.

“Yeah. I think I’m full of love, I have love for every single piece of my life. I try to keep that intention in both spheres of my life,” He gives you a sincere look, it’s like he knows how deep the sentiment is hitting you in that moment.

How could anyone attack Seokmin?

Seokmin, the guy who smiles almost constantly, who holds gratitude for everything in his life, who is carefully considerate and sweet. It’s too cruel. 

“That’s beautiful. I don’t think I’ve ever felt that strongly about my life,” You furrow your brows at the thought of even trying to make something up to like about it.

You’ve just coasted through life, going to the next thing without much thought. Seokmin is definitely the most exciting thing that’s happened to you in recent memory, possibly ever.

“I don’t think you need some sort of grand purpose. You can just exist and that can be enough, you know?” Seokmin quips. You’re sure that he didn’t mean for it to sound so prophetic, but it is.

“Yeah, that’s true. I’ll figure it out,” You shake your head with a hard sigh.

“There’s no rush.”

You don’t know how long you spend outside on the bench talking to each other, but it’s definitely long enough for the sun to set. It feels natural talking to Seokmin, he wasn’t as complicated as you once thought. You exchange goodbyes, but you can’t stop yourself from giving him a hug before you go.

You don’t mean to startle him when you put your arms around him, but he immediately softens into your touch. “What’s all this?” His tone is slightly brighter than normal.

 “Thank you for everything you said,” You mumble. His laugh vibrates through your body and it’s more comforting than you expected.

“Don’t worry about it,” He tightens his grip on you slightly before pulling away to look at you. “I’ll see you later, okay?” 

“Okay,” You wave one last time and watch him walk away for a few moments before starting on your own path back home. You can’t help but notice the new warmth in your chest.

You actually believe him this time when he says he’ll see you again.

—

After the incident, it’s clear that you both can’t go very long without seeing each other. With every hangout, the lingering glances, the brushing of your hands against his, the way you open up to him, Seokmin’s feelings are starting to choke him from the inside out.

“You should just tell them.”

“No, absolutely not,” Seokmin furiously shakes his head and settles into his blanket. The couch seemed like a good place to deny your feelings, right?

“Don’t tell me you’re just gonna yearn for them until you’re dead, that’s so fucking boring,” Seungkwan sighs into his tea before taking a sip. Seokmin had finally decided to catch Seungkwan up to speed on the situation, but now he was starting to regret it. 

“Shut up, we’re going at a good pace!” Seokmin insists.

“I know you’ve been single for a while, but you cannot seriously think this is fast enough. They were practically eye fucking you the moment you brought them in here,” Seungkwan scoffs. Seokmin sits up at that thought. 

Had he really been missing so many cues?

You came to see the house a few days ago after your shift to meet his roommates, and you did seem a bit more attentive to Seokmin in hindsight. You just didn’t think it was strong enough for Seungkwan to notice, but honestly most things didn’t get past him. 

“I should do a spell then, right? Just force myself to feel the confidence I don’t have to tell them how I feel,” It makes sense when he says it out loud, but Seungkwan’s suspicious glance stops his train of thought.

“Well, I don’t think I can convince you either way. But Seokmin,” Seungkwan sets his cup on the coffee table, “You seem really happy with them. Don’t let yourself get in the way of this,” His arms latch onto Seokmin’s shoulders with a reassuring squeeze. 

“I won’t,” Seokmin gives him a gentle nod.

He decides at that moment to do it. He knew that he’d regret it if he didn’t try.

—

In Seokmin’s opinion, many love spells that he could recall were either too complicated or potent for what this situation requires. Seokmin didn’t want to wait for another full moon to take action, he knew that the longer he waited, the more he’d feel unsatisfied.

He spent a bit too long poring through the pages of his spell books just to find the most accessible love spell, but it’s when he's lying in bed that he remembers it.

The honey jar spell. 

It’s almost too simple, but it’s just the right push that he needed. It didn’t need many materials and it would only work to improve the relationship, not enact any questionable dynamics between the two of you.

He could easily recall the steps in his mind as he got up to find the materials.

Step 1: Write the name of the person you’d like to connect to three times on a piece of paper.

He found an unused journal in the bottom of his desk drawer and tore a sheet of paper out, proceeding to write your name out with his favorite pen.

Step 2: Write out your intention. 

Seokmin had to be perfectly clear with his words or else this could go wrong.

“I want to start a relationship with Y/N,” He whispers as he writes the words and it makes him blush. It felt so juvenile, but it was the truth.

Step 3: Fold the piece of paper three times to make it fit perfectly in a honey jar.

Seokmin kept a jar of honey on his shelf, thankfully it wasn't too full. He sat down at his desk again and slowly folded the paper three times, letting out a small breath as he dropped the paper into the jar.

Step 4: Take a tablespoon of honey from the jar and mix it into a cup of tea before replacing the top. While sipping your tea, repeat the following line to yourself: “As I drink this tea, you’ll become this delicious to me.” The spell will be cast once you finish the tea.

He stands up from his desk with the honey out to the kitchen. Thankfully, Soonyoung and Seungkwan were out of the house so he could make his tea in peace.

He grabbed his favorite mug, a white mug with an illustration of crossed swords surrounded by a wreath of flowers.

He could make a cup of tea in his sleep at this point, the sounds of the kettle and the image of his jar of loose tea leaves hidden in the back of the pantry were clear in his mind. 

His water was hot, he scooped the perfect amount of tea leaves into the mug, and the tablespoon of honey settled nicely into the mixture.

After stirring the tea a few times, he took a sip. It was perfectly sweet. “As I drink this tea, you’ll become this delicious to me,” He whispers to himself as he goes back for another sip. 

Once he made it back to his room with the mug, he decided to savor the tea as he cleaned his room, a task he’d been avoiding for a few days. As he muttered the phrase to himself between sips, he realized that you were already delicious to him.

Your presence was perfect as it was. 

Once the tea was finished, he remembered the final piece to the spell. 

Step 5: Bury the honey jar in a safe place, ideally near plants or flowers that are expanding. 

Soonyoung’s backyard garden came to mind. He always likes when there are new additions, so he wouldn’t care if it was for a spell. He went outside to the garden, honey jar in tow. It wasn’t dark out yet, so it wouldn’t look too suspicious to dig up a small hole. He didn’t remember what was out there until he saw a patch of marigolds. 

The yellow flowers stood out to him, as if it was a sign that you were meant to be there. 

There was a small patch of upended dirt behind the flowers, so he decided to bury it reasonably close to the patch of flowers before looking over his work. 

He lets the crisp fall air clear his mind of any worries of the spell as he walks back into the house, only thinking of you and how you’d be getting off of work soon.

—

Seokmin was nervous, you could tell the moment you saw him. He tried to hide it with his smile, but you could read him a bit better now. You’d spent the afternoon out at a bookstore and his energy was slightly more frantic than usual. Still, you had a nice time going through the aisles together and picking out a new book. He decides to drive you there and back, but once he pulls up to your apartment to drop you off, you decide to question what’s going on. 

“Seokmin, are you ok?”

“Yeah, why?” He’s already pouting slightly.

“I just, you seemed kinda nervous today? If I’m wrong, then tell me,” You shifted in your seat and turned your eyes toward the street. 

“No, you’re right, I am nervous,” You hear him sigh a bit too loudly.

“About what? You can tell me anything, I promise.” 

“I like you. I like you so much that I put a spell on myself to give myself the courage to tell you. I know you were nervous to give me a chance especially after the secret, but I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you,” He lets the words spill out until he can’t speak anymore and you’re blushing.

He likes you, the guy with the biggest heart in the world likes you and you couldn’t be happier.

“Seokmin, please, I like you too,” You seem to quiet his internal monologue the moment you put your hand on his cheek with an eager smile.

“A whole spell for me though, that’s a bit much,” You joke, tucking a stray hair behind his ear.

“I had to be sure,” His voice is almost too quiet, but he’s smiling through the embarrassment. 

“Can I kiss you?” You lean towards him, keeping your hand in the same position. His cheeks are noticeably pink.

“Of course,” He lets you close the gap between your lips and it’s heavenly, you immediately feel yourself pulled into his orbit. 

You decide it’s a well earned kiss when he slips his tongue into your mouth, earning a quiet moan from your lips. You indulge him for a few more moments before you give him one last peck, pulling away from his face with a grin. 

“You’re a really good kisser,” He whispers into your ear and you’re falling onto his shoulder with laughter. His relieved laugh echoes through your ear and you’re sure that you haven’t felt this happy in a long time. 

You’re not sure how it will feel to be let into every aspect of his life, but you’re certain that it will feel like coming home, unfolding a level of comfort that you’ve never felt before.

It’s enough to hold you over until you get to kiss him again, and you’re certain it won’t be very long until that happens. 

[renn-phrs]

[𝑩𝑼𝒀𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑻𝑯𝑰𝑵𝑮𝑺 𝑻𝑯𝑨𝑻 𝑹𝑬𝑴𝑰𝑵𝑫 𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑴 𝑶𝑭 𝒀𝑶𝑼]

ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ(s) : Kakucho Hitto, Haitani Rindou, Mitsuya Takashi

≣ Kakucho Hitto

"You looked stressed Kaku~” His eyes shifted from the aisle to the pink-haired man beside him, standing beside him with his arms leaning on the aisle shelves, smiling widely like such a creep. Kakucho sighed before turning around to leave the man alone. He just wanted to have a peaceful grocery shopping but this, this menace, why on earth how did he even get here? Kakucho felt a hand resting on his shoulder but he didn’t bother to turn around, knowing who is the owner of it, “Heyy, you know I can help you right?”

“Sanzu, If you want to help me, go away.” The man turns around to see his friend with an annoying grin from ear to ear. Sanzu on the other hand didn’t feel threatened by his friend's gaze. In fact, he just burst out laughing which made his friend confused, “What so funny about it?”

“You, oh you, The loyal servant, a goody-two-shoes, who knew you have a crush on (Name),” Sanzu's smile became wider when he saw his friend stopped in his tracks looking down before shooting him a shocked face. Kakucho pushes his shopping cart away before slamming his friend to the nearest wall. Pinning him with his hand wrapped around his neck making the man choke. Everyone in the aisle that sees this horrifying thing, runs away from the madman. “Ehh, heyy relax Kakucho. If you don’t, then you just say it. But perhaps my mind was right all along-”

“What the fuck did you want Sanzu?!” Kakucho whispered, loud enough for both of them to hear his words. Sanzu would be lying if his friend, the runner-up of the most patient after Takeomi, could be this mad for such a tiny problem, and didn't bring shivers down his spine. He put on his

“I just want to help, nothing else~” He shrugged looking directly at his friend’s eyes which still had a fire inside of them. Sanzu's hands sneak in between them signaling Kakucho to come closer, before whispering something to him that made the other man stunned

“How did you-?”

“That’s a secret I can’t tell," Sanzu shrugged, looking at his friend who put on a disbelieving face, "No, I didn’t stalk them. I'm not that big of a creep.”

Kakucho sighs, letting the man go before leaving his friend still leaning against the wall. Eyes still looking at him as Kakucho leaves the store due to the clash they had before. The man walks away from the store trying to get fresh air as a certain cake shop catches the corner of his eyes. Before something pops up inside of his mind. Today it's your birthday. He rushed to the shop to find the certain flavor that you liked.

"I've seen (Name)-san go to this cake shop to buy that one specific cake. So, buy them that one."

Kakucho secretly thanked Sanzu for the information he had. Don't know where he got it but he doesn't care about that either. The man speaks with the pastry, telling them to write the word he told them, and hands his debit card. Kakucho waited for 25 minutes for the cake to get ready. His eyes looked away from his phone when he heard his name was called. Kakucho nodded and bid goodbye to them as he leaves the shop in a hurry to bolt up to your house, hoping you were there.

Kakucho knocked on your house door. 1, 2, 3 times but nobody answers it. Panic started to rise on his chest before suddenly the door handle moved, revealing you standing there with your comfy clothes. Without thinking further, he grabbed both of your hands making you stumble forward, and put the cake box on top of it making you confused.

"Kaku-kun? what is this?" Your eyes shift back to back from the man to the box you were holding.

"Open the lid, I don't know you will like it or not but I hope you do since I'm real-"

"Kaku-" Kakucho stopped his word when he heard your name for the second time as you opened the lid. Your eyes shine like a kid who just got a new toy. The lovely cake sitting inside the box greets you with decorative writing that says 'Happy Birthday’. You looked at the man before bursting out laughing, making Kakucho confused.

"What? Don't you like the cake? I'm sorry I-I'll buy you another one I swear-"

"Kaku-Kun, my birthday is still 2 days later." You smiled at the man who is now looking away trying to hide the embarrassment he had. You placed your hand on his shoulder before starting to speak, "It's fine Kaku-Kun, Thank you for the lovely cake. What a coincidence this is also my favorite! Let's get inside and eat this together shall we?"

Kakucho looked up, feeling a smile suddenly appear on his face as he was dragged inside of your house.

≣ Haitani Rindou

"What's that for?" Rindou asks, questioning why on earth his brother dragged him out to multiple stores and ended up buying a lot of stuff out in a plushie store.

"Oh, these? These are for the one and only love of my life." Ran’s smile faded away as he hear Rindou gagged, cringed by the nickname he gave his partner. So cliche Rindou hates it, "What?? jealous that you don't have a nickname for (Name)?"

"Tch, of course, no. nicknames are for kids. grow up, dumbass." Ran only laughs at his brother's remarks knowing for sure his brother is jealous of him but his high ego will never admit it. What a loser. Ran thought looking at his brother whose eyes glance everywhere in the store.

"Okay, whatever you say so~" Ran shugged. As they were about to leave, a certain plushie caught the older Haitani’s eyes. He took the plushie as he inspect it closer. Something pops up in his mind before smiling and calling his brother to come closer.

"Oh Rin, look! it's (Name)!" Rindou turned around to see his brother infront of a plushie aisle, holding something that is too small to see. He get closer and looked at his brother who was holding a mini jinbei-san plush. Rindou raised his eyebrows not getting any of his brother's point, "(Name) is cute and sweet. just like a whale-"

Rindou snatches the plushie from his hand before sending him a death glare. "What do you mean huh?!"

“Whoa- slow down, Kratos. I’m just stating facts, aren’t I? I mean they are cute right?” Ran raises his eyebrows, an annoying smirk that Rindou hates the most formed on his brother's face. The younger Haitani felt like he wanted to kick his brother in the face when suddenly he snapped back and realized why he started to be very defensive over you. Rindou clicked his tongue before putting back the plushie, leaving his brother standing there mesmerized by his little brother's antics. Damn, that’s funny.

At home, Rindou couldn’t sleep. The whale plushie is haunting his mind all day long. So before he goes to sleep, he decided that he will go there and buy the plushie.

It was 6 in the morning, Rindou’s alarm went off as he began to take a shower and quickly leave the house before his brother sees him. But Rindou forgot one thing. His brother is a light sleeper, he’ll wake up just by the sound of someone's footstep. Well, Rindou being Rindou, he didn’t think of that and quickly rush down to the front door and take his bike resulting in his brother being awaked by his heavy footsteps. Ran opened his door calling his brother's name but there is no avail. So he checked every corner of the house but there is no signs of Rindou there. Ran scratches his neck as he yawned, still feeling tired. Where is that boy going now? Ran was about to go sleep again before something pops into the mind that made him quickly rush to find his brother.

Rindou parked his bike infront of the store. He was greeted by one of the staff but he didn’t seem to budge and quickly went to that specific aisle without greeting them back. Rindou searched for the plushie but he didn’t see it, he kept searching but still the same. Feeling frustrated he decided to look on the other side but there is no signs of the plushie. The earlier staff came to him and asked what is he looking for. Rindou told them that he is looking for a mini whale plush. His eyes widened hearing the word that came from the staff’s mouth. Turns out the plushie have been bought by a kid yesterday. Rindou felt his body go limp, feeling that he is failed to give you something. A smile formed on a person’s face as he looked at him across the window sipping his tea. Damn, what is this? A Korean drama?

“You know sir, there is another one-”

“Where? Give it to me?!” Rindou holds the staff's hand, eyes shining as he felt hope form in him.

“Well, the plushie is a bit big-”

“Give it. Now.” Rindou commanded, making the staffs and quickly went to the storage room to search for it. Rindou was called by one of the staff to take a look at the plushies before he suddenly look shocked. It wasn’t ‘a bit big’ it, was huge. Lifesize jinbei-san. Dammit, how am I going to carry this? Rindou thought before he shook his head. You know what. Fuck it. Rindou gave the cashier his debit card and quickly rushed to your house to give you this. Rindou himself doesn’t know why he needs to be in a hurry. Ah, his brother. Now he remembers. He must give you this plushie and go back home before his brother suspects him of something. Rindo jumped from his bike and quickly rushed to your front door before knocking. He waiter for a while before the door opened revealing you who looked confused why he is infront of your door at 12 in the morning.

“Rindou what’s wr-” Rindou pushes the paper bag in his hand to you.

“Opened it.” You nodded not wanting to ask more but what was inside of the bag was not like what you imagined. A lifesize Jinbei-san plushie greets you with it’s cute smile. You take the plushie from the bag before snuggling too it feeling happy that you got a plushie that is lifesized.

“Rindou this is so cute, How did you know I like jinbei-san?” You asked. Rindou's eyes widened, He didn't even know your favorite plushie. He only bought it since his brother's words the other day was true. Ran who eavesdropping on their conversation and tailing all along was hiding behind a wall, laugh, knowing well his brother couldn’t answer your question.

“I uhh, well, it’s- I’m ju-”

“So, Decided to buy the plushie for (Name)-san, huh?” The two of you looked at the source of the voice came from. Ran is standing there holding a popsicle and another plastic bag. He looked at both of you before smiling at his brother. Rindou smiled fading away when he saw his brother standing there looking innocently. what, when, where all of the 5w + 1h questions formed inside of his mind. Oh, shi-

“Ah! Ran-san, good morning!” You said waiving at his older brother. Panicked formed in him as he looked at his brother who is walking closer to both of you, “I don’t know you are a morning person.”

“Well, I’m a light sleeper, I heard some noises from the other side of the room. So I checked, turns out Rinrin is leaving and I decided to tail him off~” Ran smiled looking at his brother who looks defeated. “Nice plushie you got there, (Name)-san.”

“Rindou gave it to me, Isn’t it cute??” You smiled hugging the big plushie. Ran turned his head to his brother who looked away before an evil idea pops up in his mind. Rindou felt a pair of eyes looking at him like a hawk. He looks to his brother who has an evil smirk plastered on his face. There he knew, his sense was right all along.

“Well, I suggest it. Because he is a dumb person and won’t admit that he like you.”

“RAN!”

≣ Mitsuya Takashi

It's no surprise that Mitsuya, the president of the sewing club, could make such an amazing piece of clothing. It was his talent from the start. But his background is kind of surprising due to how he is a founding member of a gang. Nonetheless, he is still a good person at heart. No wonder everyone in his school got a crush on him, he is the embodiment of a perfect human being, set down by the god(s) as anangel in disguise. Many people chase him, trying their best to get win his heart, But there you are, the only person that could walk in easily, no obsticles were in your way. A clear path you walk that you might not even noticed. An ordinary person that made his heart melt every time you greet him that no other could have the same effect as you.

"Mitsuya-san, what is your favorite animal?" Your head tilted looking at the boy beside you. Mitsuya raises his eyebrow not expecting a random question that came out of your mouth.

"Hmm? I don't know. Probably a bear." He shrugged and continued to cut the access to the fabric he was sewing. You nodded feeling enough with his answer before he began to speak again, "Some people misunderstood them. claiming that they are pretentious animals. They may be big and scary but they are shy inside and have little desire to interact with humans."

Your eyes widened upon hearing his explanation, "What's your favorite animal (Name)?"

Mitsuya decided to bring the plushie home that he had been eyeing for a while. The cashier wrapped the plush nicely before handing it to the boy. 3 days prior to your birthday, Mitsuya didn't know what to give you. Well, it's more like 'will it be a good present or not?' So he settles with the most common gift, and that is a plushie. Not just an ordinary one, but your favorite animal. The boy went back home and began to inspect the plushie that he took out from the bag until an idea pops-up that made him smile wide.

"Happy birthday, (Last Name)-san." He smiled, handing you the paper bag in his hand. You were excited seeing a gift displayed for you on your birthday is a rare sight, since you rarely care about it.

"Ah! you don't really have to. But thank you, Mitsuya-san." You smiled, taking the paper bag from his hand and bowed to him.

"So? What are you waiting for? go open it." Mitsuya exclaimed, his shoes tapping on the ground. He cannot wait to see what your reaction would be. You nodded, pulling a big box that was inside the bag. The box was just a normal one, not decorated with sparkles or anything. Just a plain brown one.

The box lit falls to the ground together with you putting your hand on your mouth. You didn't expect anything like this in your mind. Your eyes shine lije a little kid who just got theor favorite toy for their birthday. The only thing that now you are thinking is how did he make it? when? Mitsuya scoffed at the feeling he won by making you surprised, it was the reaction he was chasing,

"I remember your favorite animal is, so I quickly rushed to the nearest toy store to get one and I got an idea to make a couple of clothes for them so you could dress it up. You could even ask me to make another piece of clothing if you want to-"

You abruptly hug Mitsuya tightly, making him stumble a bit. He smiled and returned the hug with a pat on your head.

"Thank you, Mitsuya-san. Thank you."

RETURN — ©Reblogs are highly appreciated.

[silhouetteofacedar]

Pearl, Ch. 4: Sea Legs on 7th

Previous Chapter - AO3 - MSR, rated E

It’s only a ten minute walk from the bureau to the courthouse, but Mulder is starting to regret not insisting they drive.

Scully’s having a rough day, if her sallow face and pursed lips are any indication. She’s uncomfortably quiet.

“You alright?” Mulder asks, hovering over her as they walk.

“M’fine,” she answers, because that’s all she ever says. “Just queasy today.”

“Let me know if you need to sit down for a minute,” he says, and she bristles.

“We have an appointment to make, Mulder,” she reminds him. “We’re almost there anyway.”

Mulder’s stomach is unsteady too; not from chemotherapy, but from nerves. They’re applying for their marriage license today.

It’s happening, it’s all happening, and all he can do is shorten his steps to match Scully’s pace as they walk. She senses this and starts walking faster in response. Scully has an incredible talent for pushing Mulder away in the smallest ways possible, telegraphing with her body that she doesn’t need his help or his pity or his accommodation.

And yet they’re heading to the DC Marriage Bureau. Funny, that.

Scully’s face is clammy by the time they enter the Moultrie Courthouse.

“Hey,” Mulder says softly, drawing her aside, “Scully, you don’t look too good.”

“Thanks,” she says stiffly, digging around in her purse and pressing a tissue to her lips.

“I mean… I-I think you should go home. We can do this another time.”

She shakes her head carefully, taking a deep breath. “We’d have to walk back to the office either way, Mulder. I’ll be fine. Do you have any gum or a mint, by the way? Something I can suck on. It… it helps with the nausea sometimes.”

Mulder rummages through his jacket pocket. “Just sunflower seeds,” he admits, “And… a nickel.”

Scully holds out a hand, and he places a few seeds into her palm.

“Thank you,” she says tightly, placing the seeds in her mouth.

In sickness and in health, Mulder thinks, giving her shoulder a squeeze. Her body feels rigid beneath his hand.

They file their license request without incident or fanfare, and Scully’s stride is clipped as they head back to the office.

Halfway up 7th Street, she stops walking abruptly and steadies herself with a hand against the rough brick of a building.

“Don’t ask me if I’m fine,” she whispers before he can say anything. “Just give me a moment.”

She takes a few slow, deep breaths. “Okay,” she says huskily.

“Shall we walk? If you need to lean on me, you can,” Mulder says gently.

“Despite how I feel right now, the world isn’t actually tilting sideways,” she replies. “I can walk on my own.”

He feels like a kicked puppy trailing after her, but dammit, she’s sick and being stubborn and his heart is turning to pulp beneath her low-heeled pumps and their names are next to each other on a piece of paper a quarter mile behind.

And Dana Scully, doctor and scientist and meticulous planner, manages make it all the way into the little basement bathroom before being sick.

Sometimes Mulder waits outside the restroom for her, to hand her a cup of water and make sure she’s alright; but today she’s spiky and tense and radiating that she doesn’t want him near. So he waits in their office, loitering by the filing cabinet, flicking through folders and pretending not to worry about her.

She walks into the room a few minutes later, and Mulder takes one look at her face before dropping the act.

“Scully,” he sighs. “Please. Go home.”

She looks up at him with watery eyes. “It’s just the chemo,” she rasps.

“Dana,” Mulder says, crossing the room and clasping her shoulders. “You need to rest. I can manage alone for the afternoon, I promise. You finished your report, our license application is in, things are stable.” He changes tack, infusing his words with forced levity. “Go sleep it off, have some tea, watch shitty TV. Play hooky for me, okay?”

She’s silent, then he feels her deflate under his palms. “Fine, I’ll go,” she says hoarsely. She clears her throat. “But I’m going make arrangements with an officiant when I get home, because-”

She abandons her sentence, and Mulder drops his hands to his sides. Because time is ticking, he thinks. He can read it on her wan, pinched face.

“I’ll stop in at a jewelry store on my way home, get us some rings,” he offers, wandering behind his desk and nudging his chair awkwardly with a knee.

Scully ducks her chin in an abridged nod. “I doubt we’ll have much need to wear them outside the ceremony, so they don’t have to be anything special. Plain bands are fine.”

Mulder nods. “I’m on it. What’s, uh, what's your ring size?”

She looks up at him, blinking. “I- I don’t know,” she admits. “I’ve never had occasion to find out.”

Mulder purses his lips in thought before leaning down and opening one of his desk draws. He digs through a clutter of office supplies before finding a ball of string. “C’mere,” he says, beckoning her over. “Give me your hand.”

She holds her left hand out, and he loops the end of the string around her ring finger, pinching the cord where it overlaps.

“Do me a favor and cut it right there,” he says.

She grabs a pair of scissors out of the pencil cup on the desk and snips the string, leaving him with a short piece the circumference of her finger.

“Good enough?” he asks.

“It’ll have to do,” she replies.

Mulder hadn’t put ‘shopping for wedding bands’ on his bingo card for 1997, and he’s admittedly out of his depth. The guy behind the counter at the little jewelry store on Prince Street in Alexandria isn’t helping his confidence.

“You want a wedding band?” he says, sizing Mulder up with a once-over. His eyes pause on Mulder’s tie for an uncomfortable two seconds too long, and his nostril flare with what could be disgust.

“Yeah, uh, one for me and one for my partner- fiancé,” Mulder stumbles, correcting himself unnecessarily. “Nothing flashy.”

Picking out his own ring is as easy as pointing at a plain gold band and slipping it on his finger. It fits well enough, and the jeweler packs it away into a tiny box.

Mulder feels somewhat ridiculous handing a jeweler a tiny piece of string and saying ‘this is how big my fiancé’s finger is’. The look the man gives him doesn’t ease the feeling.

“I can’t guarantee correct sizing with this,” the jeweler cautions, gingerly holding the string between two pinched fingers as though it’s a live, writhing worm.

Mulder shrugs. “I’m, uh, sorry, but that’s all I have to go on.”

The jeweler huffily wraps the string around a ring-sizing mandrel, and Mulder thinks he catches the man rolling his eyes. What a dick.

“Alright, so according to this highly sophisticated piece of string, she’s a size six,” the jeweler says flatly. “That’s the average size we carry for women. We can resize most ring styles for you later if it’s the wrong fit.”

“Right, thanks,” Mulder mumbles, scanning the glass case for a suitable ring.

His eyes wander over to slightly higher-end territory, and he immediately sees It.

It’s a simple ring, a thin gold band with a single pearl bracketed by a trio of tiny diamonds on each side.

He has a sudden vision of Scully tucking her hair behind one ear, wearing those delicate pearl stud earrings he secretly loves, and he feels a slosh behind his kneecaps at the image.

Fuck it. She deserves something pretty.

“I’d like that one,” Mulder says, pointing to the pearl ring in the case.

“That’s a promise ring,” the jeweler informs him. “A bit subdued for an engagement.”

“We’re a subdued couple,” Mulder replies, pulling out his wallet.

We.

Scully gave him no budget; and besides, this was his gift for her. That’s how tradition goes, right? Man buys woman ring. And from the sour look on the jeweler’s face, this ring isn’t even that expensive.

The man snaps the little velvet ring box shut and puts it into a crisp bag with the other box. “Will that be all?” he drones.

Mulder holds out his debit card. “I’ve done enough damage for one day.”

[tinyboxxtink]

"Not My Yacht" *Chapter 2*

Yes, for two days this is a semi short chapter, but I had another long today and have one more tomorrow and I wanted you to have SOMETHING. Weirdly though I had an entire different chapter written in my head, but when I started typing this came out instead. My original idea is still coming, this just added a fun little bonus getting there. I promise, tomorrow you will get a longer chapter.

Thank you loves for sticking by me through everything! I love you all.

Also, I'm finally using CHAPTER. I kept wanting to use it instead of PART but I just kept writing PART and was like WELP. But they're chapters, right?!

Ok I'll shut up.

Part 1 Here

Part 3

Tag List

@madamsnape921

@lolliepopsicle

@chasingeverybreakingwave

@milkshqke

@wanniiieeee

@word-scribbless

@gibbs274

@sassyada

@aprildecker-blog

@bookishfanfic

@stars-in-the-skies-world

@stars-trash-18

@omgsuperstarg

@objection-argumentative

And @storiesofsvu for Rita check. lol.

----------------------------------------

When five o’clock rolled around, Rita came walking out of her office with a stack of papers and her briefcase, balancing her purse on her barely free arm.

“Y/N, Why are you still here? Did I not unlock your chains?” She laughed.

“Haha….no, ma’am” You nervously laughed. “I um, I think I’m waiting for someone,”

“You think?” She raised a curious eyebrow. “If you’re waiting on Barba, you’re going to waiting a long time, sweetie,”

“Wha-? How--? Why, exactly?” You asked her totally flabbergasted by the insinuation that not only had Rafael asked you out, but was bailing already.

“He tends to get a little...involved, in his cases. Poor man is a workaholic,” She feigned pity for him.

“Right,” You nodded to her comically overflowing briefcase and papers. “Something you know nothing about,”

“Touché,” She winked. “I’d give him a call, make sure he hasn’t forgotten about you, dear. Before the cleaning staff shows up,” She laughed and sauntered out of her office, leaving you alone in the dark.

You glanced down at your phone. He hadn’t really specified a time, just-- “Tonight”. What did that even mean? Tonight. Like early evening dinner, or a midnight snack after he was done with his cases? You should probably text him. Or call him. Or text him.

TO BARBA: Heyyy….

Wait. Was three y’s too many? Wasn’t that a rule? You show affection by how many y’s you use? Is that a thing kids do these days? Wait, no you’re not a kid. And he certainly was NOT a kid. No. Be a grown up about this.

TO BARBA: Hi I’m just...checking in.

Checking in? What did that even mean? And why the ellipsis? There doesn’t need to be a pause in a text. That’s why it’s a text. You pause in your mind before typing. Idiot.

TO BARBA: What’s up?

Ok. Short and simple. To the point. No pressure, no demanding. Just... ‘checking in’. You hated yourself. Alright fine, good enough send it. SEND IT. HIT SEND NOW.

MESSAGE SENT.

Your phone shook in your trembling hand as you waited for the ellipsis of him writing back. That was too much, no no just put it back in your pocket and he’ll text you when he--

BARBA CALLING

Oh god, a phone call? Who calls people anymore? Grown ups, that’s who. Answer the phone like an adult.

“H-Hello?” You answered it as if he had the wrong number.

“Hey, Cinderella,” His smooth voice came through your earpiece. “I’m so sorry, I should have been more specific about the time,”

“Oh, yeah no-- no big deal, I’m just here at work….alone, in the dark…” You muttered the last words to yourself as you looked around the dark office.

“Right. Well, I’m kind of wrapped up in this case right now--” He started, making your heart drop. Well, Rita called it. He’s just married to his job, no time for women, let alone you. Time to just--

“....Would you hate me if I asked you to come help me?”

“...I’m sorry, what?” You blinked in confusion at your phone. So, was he actually asking you out or trying to snake you as an assistant from Rita? Is that what he meant by ‘dinner��? “Hey come bring me food and help me file these cases, because I’m so sexy and cocky and--”

“You know what, I’m so sorry I just heard how that sounded. You’ve been doing this all day, the last thing you wanna do is come--”

“Sure!” You cut him off a little loudly. What were you doing?! You’re just going to lay down and let him use your services for free? Well, when you put it that way it sounded pretty skeezy about yourself.

“....Are you sure? Because we can just have dinner another night--”

“....Yeah I have a feeling that will never happen,” You cut him off with a laugh.

“Wha--no, it will! I just--”

“Your wife comes first, I get it,” You cut him off again.

“My wife?”

“Yeah you’re married to your work,” You smirked into the phone.

“Wow, quippy Cinderella. Guess you’re more confident on the phone without my gorgeous face tripping you up now, aren’t you?”

“Do you want my help or not, Casanova?” He was totally right; without those green emeralds staring into your soul you were actually a pretty funny and smart person. Maybe it would be better to just have this date on the phone.

"Yes, absolutely," He sighed with a smile.

“Did you want me to bring food, or am I just supposed to eat paperclips and vending machine leftovers??”

“I’ll order some pizza, do you like pizza?”

“....I live in New York Barba. Obviously I like pizza,” You teased.

“Right,” He chuckled. “Well I’ll be here--”

“I know where your office is,” You cut him off for the third time.

“Oh, do you?” He asked in a sneaky tone, as if he thought you’d been googling him or something.

“Um, yeah,” Your voice fell an octave softer. “Actually I’ve been there several times, dropping off stuff from Rita for you,” Of course he wouldn’t remember that. Why would he remember that? You weren’t anything special.

“Shit,” He muttered as if chastising himself. “Y/N I’m so sorry, I--”

“It’s fine,” You assured him as you headed down to the subway. “I’m uh, I’m getting on the train so I’ll see you soon,” You hung before he could reply.

--------------

It wasn’t that far to Rafael’s office from Rita’s, just a few stops away. You quickly hurried up the stairs back into the Manhattan air as you swiftly walked through the sea of people leaving corporate America to go home to Suburbia. Finally you reached the building, went for the door and-- it was locked.

Well of course it was locked, nobody else in their right mind would be here this late-- so clearly you and Rafael were out of your minds. Shit. Should you call him? Was there a buzzer? Before you could think of another solution a pizza delivery man was walking up to you. Maybe ‘man’ was too generous, he was probably around 16 or 17.

“Delivery for Mr. Barba,” He handed you the pizza. Did you look like a “Mr. Barba” to him?!

“I um,” You stammered as the hot pizza burned the sides of your arms you were holding it on. “I’m not Mr. Barba,”

“Are you taking it to him?” He asked you with a slight attitude.

“I um,” You thought a moment. Well you were going to see him, so yes theoretically you would be taking the pizza with you to him. “...Yes,”

“That’ll be 46.57.” He whipped out a credit card scanner on his phone.

“E-Excuse me?” You were taken aback. Now Barba had you buying him dinner? And what kind of pizza costs basically 50 bucks?!

“2 Large pizzas, an order of cheesy bread, a dessert pizza and delivery fee,” The kid read off the receipt from his phone. “I only accept credit or debit cards, and please tip generously,”

“Yeah right,” You muttered with a roll of your eyes as you pulled out your credit card and swiped it across his phone. The light turned green and a receipt printed off an attachment to his phone. He ripped it off and handed it to you, then nonchalantly walked back down the stairs to wherever he was parked.

“Awesome,” You sighed. You still didn’t know how to get inside, and now you were carrying all this hot food. All of this for a pair of green eyes?!

To make matters worse, your phone started going off in your purse. You groaned and tried to put all of the boxes down softly, but the night wind blew them onto the pavement, HARD.

“Shit!” You groaned louder as you tried to salvage the food while pulling your phone from your purse. Of COURSE.

BARBA CALLING

“I can’t get in,” You simply stated as a greeting on the phone.

“What?”

“I can’t get in the building, Barba,” You grumbled, now on a 8 on the annoyance scale.

“Oh! Oh God,” The line went dead. Awesome.

After a few minutes while you were trying to rebalance all of the boxes in your arms, one of the big glass doors swung open right into you. The boxes all pressed against you, their hot, saucy, cheesy and chocolatey goodness smearing all over your work outfit.

“SHIT!!!!!!” You screamed in horror.

“Oh my god, Oh god Y/N I am SO--” Rafael started to apologize profusely, but you noticed he was trying his best not to burst out laughing.

“I’m sorry, do you think this is funny?!” You asked angrily while you peeled a pepperoni from your hair.

“No, not at all,” He shook his head vigorously, but kept giggling behind his eyes.

“You do!” You stomped your heel, causing marinara to roll down your legs. “You are absolutely laughing at me being covered in all of your stupid food that I had to pay for by the way--”

“Oh no, really?” He suddenly turned sincere.

“No, Rafael,” You scoffed as you tried pulling cheese from your skirt. “I just had sex with him in the parking lot and we called it square,”

“Really--?!”

“NO NOT REALLY!”

“Okay! Okay I’m sorry, really I am,” Rafael tried to show you sympathy, but you looked so damn cute covered in a tasty meal.

“Yeah I can see that, you’re grinning like a five year old,” You rolled your eyes.

“I’m sorry, Y/N I really am,” He gave up trying to hide a laugh. “But you have to admit it’s pretty funny--”

“I DON’T THINK--” You started to scream at him again, but his smile made these cute little crinkles in his eyes, and his laugh was like an angel’s chorus. You might have been covered in food, but you would be covered in manure if it made him laugh like that.

“For what it’s worth, you look delicious,” He teased you, pulling an actual full piece of pizza from your chest and biting it.

“Oh my god, you’re so gross,” You did your best not to laugh, you were still supposed to be angry.

“Yum, Y/N flavor, my favorite,” He laughed for a moment just as you both realized what he had said. “Uh, I mean--” He looked away in embarrassment, and you swear you saw his face flush red.

“Um no counselor,” You bit your lip with a smile. “I’m pretty sure I taste better than a mix of pizza sauce and chocolate,”

“I’m sure you do,” Rafael bravely retorted, now that he knew you were in the playing mood.

“....But seriously, now I have to go home and get this shit off--”

“I have a shower in my office,” He blurted out.

“....Excuse me?” You blinked, not believing you heard him right.

“I...I have a shower in my office,”

“Oh my god, Rafael Barba are you that addicted to work that you live here?”

“No!” He rolled his eyes. “It’s for emergencies,”

“Emergencies? Like what?”

“Like a beautiful woman covered in pizza toppings and chocolate,” He smirked. “Now come on, I don’t want anyone around here thinking I’m dating a crazy person,” He opened the glass doors again and escorted you into the lobby of the building.

Your mind didn’t know what to focus on first; the fact that he had this mysterious office shower, that he had offered for you to use said shower, or the fact that he just referred to you as a ‘woman he was dating’. You just followed him silently into his office with a smitten grin on your face.

He wasn’t lying when he was in the ‘middle’ of something. Papers were strewn all about his desk, a white board with bullet points for arguments and cross examinations scribbled on it. You finally got a good look at him without the anger of having food all over your judgement. He looked tired, not the usual smooth and pristine Rafael Barba you were used to. But when he looked back at you to show you where his shower was, his green eyes sparkled gazing into yours.

“So, I have some spare suits in a closet here, would you mind hanging out in one of my dress shirts while I wash...these?” He gestured to your dirty clothes. Wait, wash?

You suddenly realized he had led you into a secret room to the side of his office, behind a bookcase.

“Wha…” You looked around the room. There was a shower, a wardrobe, a washer/dryer combo, and a suit steamer. “Jesus Barba, are you sure you don’t live here?”

“No I promise I don’t,” He shook his head with a laugh. “...But I may have on occasion fallen asleep here enough to invest in this,”

“And what happens when this office is passed on to a new ADA?” You raised an eyebrow.

“Then I’m sealing this place off like a mausoleum,” He stated very seriously, causing you to giggle. He loved your giggle, it was so small and soft, just like you.

“Anyway,” He shook off his momentary daze at your giggle hoping you didn’t notice. “Like I said-- Shower, dress shirt. Just put your dirty clothes in the washer and we’ll pop them in the dryer later,”

“Right,” You nodded, definitely having noticed his dreamy stare at your giggle. How had you gone from completely under his radar to making him giddy like a school boy in two days?

“Right,” He nodded back. “I’ll just be out here...ordering another pizza,” He smirked. “By the way, I’ll totally reimburse you for the one you’re wearing,” He stuck his tongue out at you with a huge grin.

“Oh you better,” You gave him the same face back. “Or I’ll cover you in it,” You lightly pressed a marinara sauce covered finger into his perfectly white dress shirt. He glanced down at it in horror.

“Oh that was so--” He started to tickle and attack you, but realized that would only make his outfit dirtier. “This isn’t over,” He wagged a finger at you as he pointed you to the shower. You gave him one last cheeky smile as he walked out and shut the door to his secret room.

What was happening? Why were you getting to him so easily, so fast? How could he have not even remembered that he had ‘met’ you several times? Well, one thing was for sure. He was never going to forget this night.

[litteidiot]

Four Seasons With You

Volume one: Chapter 1- Spring

Easter Egg Hunt

Pairing: Victor x Mc

Summary: When an unexpected inconvenience gives you the opportunity to make this day unforgettable for him.

“I’ll see you later.” You chriped on a sunny morning. Basically hopping in front of him, you placed a gentle kiss on his lips before parting.

“So cheery today and the day barely started. Does a certain dummy has something in her mind?” Victor hooked his arm around your waist, giving you another kiss on the forehead. “Oh, it’s nothing, just springtime.” You smiled at him. “And it’s also Easter.” You added. He nod reminding himself about the holiday. Today he was supposed to be at home with you enjoying each other’s company. You made him promise you because he is on his day off he won’t look at any document nor report. He is yours only.

But last night in some ungodly hour, the management crew gave him a call, about some hiccups what occurred with the overseas department. The negotiation to collaborate with the new American company took a bad turn and they refused to do anything further if they can’t talk with the CEO of LFG. So it meant he has to go in for an impromptu meeting.

“I’ll make it up for you when I’ll get back.” He pulled you close again, hinting another soft kiss on your temple. It was still early in the morning. He tried to get up beside you without disturbing your sleep, but when you didn’t feel his warmth anymore, you woke up and followed him to the kitchen. You shook your head in refusal. “Don’t rush the meeting because you want to get back home earlier for me. Take your time I know you were in contact with this company for a long time. I’ll see you when you finished.” You smiled at him.

You know this deal can benefit LFG’s future in the overseas market. So of course you don’t want this to end badly because of some holiday. “Even though it means two batches of pudding.” The sweet smile on your makeup free face turned into a mischievous and greedy grin. “Such a dummy. Always thinking about her stomach.” He murmured pretending to be annoyed, but you knew this man long enough to know he will grant your wish. “When I get home I better not see chicklets, bunnies and an idiot running around the house.” With that he closed the door behind him and left.

While you made yourself a light breakfast, what only contained toast and eggs, your mind was furiously racing on how to spend the time while waiting for your boyfriend. As you kept musing on the possibilities on how to spend the day, you gradually remembered the little surprises you left in Victor’s office while you waited for him to finish his meeting a couple days back. A prankish smile tugged on your lips. Shoving down the remaining bites of your meal, and taking a few more sips of the coffee you hurried away to get dressed.

Walking in the step in closet you chose a casual wear for the day. Pushing and flipping the hanged up clothing articles you eventually found a nice beige colored dress among the many formal and ridiculously expensive clothings. When you became Victor’s partner and after the media acknowledged this information you got invitations to balls and fancier parties. It was a natural requirement you had to look high class just like him. Your boyfriend mercilessly spoiled you rotten with fancier and fancier dresses, personally tailored to your sizes by the finest taylors he could find. As the collection grew, it swallowed all your older clothes. The dress you posed with in front of the body sized mirror was like a scavenger hunt amongst the many night gowns and suit dresses.

Quickly putting on your chosen outfit, you left the penthouse in a hurry, barely being able to snatch your purse on the coat hanger. You were having an intense race with time. To not blow up your sudden Easter surprise you tried to do the shopping as quickly as possible. You don’t know when Victor comes home so it added another reason to make this fast.

***

“Goldman, the management team better have a good reason to call me in, because I have a better place to be today.” Victor’s stern voice echoed through his office the moment he stepped in. Several moments of keyboard clicking later Goldman began with his speach.

“The possible partner we are trying to convince suddenly got a more appealing offer from a different company. The deal was that the company will sponsor them PR commercials and advertisings, they can keep their position in the stock market and can have sixty percent of the income.” He said, flipping back and forth on the tablet.

“I see.— Victor rested his chin on his hands— “Remind me please about the deal LFG offered.” The assistant cleared his throat, opening the files what contained the agreement. “Comparing to the new proposal our offer is lacking. Because of their crash in the marketing area lately, you decided to not offer munch in case the collaboration would backfire.” After minutes of thinking, what felt like centuries Victor finally spoke up.

“Rewrite our proposal. Tell them LFG will ensure their stay in the stock market, and will back it up if any unpleasant problmes happens. Also mention they have a two months recovery time and we will give one hundred percent sponsorship with the possibility to function as an independent company like Kiseki Entertainment. This is the best deal they can get and they know it.”

From the very first moment, Kiseki Entertainment functioned independently. Under his guidance, you bloomed into a successful company in barely two years, becoming one of the most productive investments amongst the very few freelancers under LFG. “Arrange an online meeting in twenty minutes. During that, — he stood up, to make his way to one of the conference room— “collect informations about our opponent what can be used for LFG’s advantages.” Goldman nodded already holding his phone to his ear, summoning the staff needed for the conference.

“Anything else you want t— is that an Easter egg?” Goldman pointed at the bunch of tiny colorful eggs scattered around the coffee table. The more he looked the more he noticed. On the shelves, between Victor’s compture, on the coat hangers.

“Goldman who was the last person in my office?” He asked, walking around removing the candy eggs from their places.“Until this morning no one was in here. A few days ago only Ms. Mc stayed here, waiting for you to finish the meeting.”

Victor sighed.

Of course it was you.

***

You looked at the row of numbers at the screen, your purse, and then the ridiculous amount of Easter eggs piled up behind you. Maybe you carried away a little bit.

“Uh, excuse me for a second.” You kept digging in your purse in hope you will find your credit card. After minutes of unsuccessful searching you started to panic a little.

Your plan was to buy plenty of Eggs and hide them all around the mansion. You bought chocolate eggs and plastic eggs in all sizes and colors. Also a pink rabbit onesie because you couldn’t insist. You just didn’t expect the price what came with it.

“I’m sorry Miss, but you are keeping up the row. Do you wish to purchase these items?” The cashier lady asked what made you squeak and panic more. “Please debit these items on Victor Li’s account!” You blurted out. The cashier nodded typing away the informations. “Everything is settled, have a pleasant Easter.” The lady smiled handing you the bags. Thanking her and wishing for the same you made your way home. If you knew ypu will end up with multiple bags you will take the car.

“I’m back.” You opened the door of the house placing the bags on the floor. A small meow eachoed at the corner, a cat trotted towards you. “Hi Pudding, mommy is back.” You bent down to pick up the cat, a light huff leaving your lips. “Victor feeds you too well.” You giggle pocking at the fat at the cat’s belly. “I will bring some Easter spirit into this big house will you help me?” Like the animal just understood you, Pudding meowed and with a hop she escaped your embrace and walked away. Lazy cat.

Shrugging it off you unpacked and stared to hide all the eggs around the house. In the kitchen, the coffee table, the couch, hangers, in his suits. In other words you hide them everywhere you found it suitable. Now all you had to do is wait for his return.

***

Several hours passed, the sun was about to go down when he finally came home. Tossing away the book you were reading, you jogged to the entrance to greet him. “Welcome home!” You smiled at him, what left your face in a second. “Is everything alright at LFG?” You furrowed your eyebrows in conern when you saw his expression. “Sorry for keeping you waiting.” He said. “Nothing is wrong, my plans just takes a little more time to be accomplished.” Victor pulled you to his side, giving a kiss on the top of your head. “Let me make up for you with a dinner. It’s your call, I’ll make you anything.” He unbuttoned the sleeves of his shirt and rolled it up while walking in the kitchen.

“Pudding!” You smiled, Victor rolled his eyes at your remark. “Dummy, you want pudding for dinner?” He asked opening the fridge. “What is that?” He held a green chocolate egg in his hand. “Ah, I see. We are mischievous today.” A smile crept up on the corner of his lips, putting the sweet aside. “So I assume the plenty of chocolate in my office was your doing too.”

“I have no idea what are you talking about.” You shuffled away. “I didn’t do anything.” He chuckled. “Of course you didn’t, those eggs are from the Easter Bunny. So what do you like to eat?” He asked again getting the pots and pans ready. Without a word he put another handful of eggs aside, making it harder for you to comtain the fit of laughter what is about to erupt from your chest.

“Beef ribs would be fine.” You composed yourself. Victor nodded and began to prepare the dish. “So tell me, what were you doing all day?” He asked putting away another egg when he opened the cabinet where the seasonings were. “Aside from scattering sweets all over the kitchen.” A soft giggle left your lips. “Just the usual. I cleaned up, fed the cat. You knows, the things I usually do.” You chatted nonchalantly, like having Easter eggs around the house is ordinary.

“Why you are so clingy all off a sudden?” He lookes at you in confusion when he notices you are following his every step with your eyes. “What? No, I’m not!” You grinned, getting more eager every time he found an egg.

But what you didn’t know that the more he found the more annyed he got. He saw Easter eggs everywhere. On the kitchen counter, in the fridge, on the cabinets even in the cat bowl. But he didn’t have the heart to tell you. You waited for him all day so he can bear with your pranks a little longer.

He didn’t know what will coming.

“The ribs are almost ready.” He closed the oven after flipping them in the pan. “It’s smells so good.” You hummed, mouth already watering just from imagining how smoothly you knife will slide through the juicy ribs.

“I’ll go set the table.” You hopped down from the barstool and opened one of the cabinets to get the plates. While you clattered with the utensils, Victor opened his phone to check the notification he got from his bank during the meeting. The numbers he saw is what made him finally snap.

“What did you do?!” He exclaimed, looking at you, eyes wide as saucers. His sudden harsh tone startled you, almost making you drop the plates you balanced in your hands. “$150?! What did you buy?!” He questioned, his eyes shooting daggers at you. He sighed. “Don’t tell me all that were for chocolate eggs! Are you out of your mind?” He raised his voice at you, his eyes casting a frightening shade. The last time he looked at you this way when you barged in his office, demanding for funding. And that was many years ago. You flinched under his cold stare.

“I’m sorry.— you put everything in your hands down— “I-I’ll go clean that up.” With that you left the kitchen, and disappeared at the corner.

“Mc, wait.” He called after you, immediately regretting the way he spoke to you. A wave of guilt went over him when he caught up to you in the living room. Like you said, you obediently rummaged around to find the eggs. And it would be fine if you wouldn’t sniffling quietly, occasionally reaching up to wipe your eyes. And he hates it when you cry. And despise it if he’s the reason behind your tears. He didn’t mean to be this harsh with you. Or at all.

“Mc.” Victor called your name. Looking at the source of his voice you wiped off your tears in a quick motion. “Don’t bother, — you turned back, to hide your bloodshot eyes.— “I’ll get everything done. Go set up the dinner.” His heart ached, watching you turning away to hide your tears from him.

“No.” He walked up to you, folding you into a hug. “Today I almost lost the client I negotiated for weeks. They got a better offer and I had to change plans. The meeting was unplanned, I should’ve been at home with you.” He murmured into your ear. You stood there in sock while he kept talking.

“So I got frustrated. I shouldn’t have to release my anger on you. You just wanted to spend this day with me. I’m sorry.” He apologized. You on the other hand was shocked. Your boyfriend is a prideful person. And goddamn, he is also stubborn just as much like you are. The man you get to know almost never makes mistakes and if he does, the ground can crack, there’s no money in this world for him to make him admit it. He had to regret his actions very much to muster out an apology.

“It’s okay.” You turned to face him, knowing he meant it. Reaching up you scarping your fingers through his soft and well kept hair. “It was my fault after all. I went overboard with the sweets. And I scattered them all around the house.” You added. “Dummy.” He sighed, a relieved smile tugged at the corner of his lips when he saw you are hot angry at him. A soft giggle escaped your lips, remembering again how many chocolate eggs you hide in this big house.

“This looks better.” He pulled away, wiping the remaining tears from the corner of your eyes. “From now on just smile only. It looks better on you than the tears.” A pink color appeared on your face. When this stone cold man get so romantic?

“I’ll go pick up the eggs. Just keep making the dinner I’ll be fine.” You turned around and walked away.

***

“Almost got it!” You stretched further, balancing with a net in your hand while Victor had a firm grip on your hip. You were practically levitating above the pool to reach for the plastic egg at the bottom. Victor during that grew some gray hair.“I can’t believe you literally threw eggs in the pool. What if I’m not around? You straight up jump in?” You glared at him above your shoulders. “Hold me still or let me go. I can get them myself.” You puffed up your cheeks and reached further.

“Idiot, you can’t even swim.” He sighed. “Mc, stop wiggling you going to fall in!” And like this is what gravity waited for, you slipped on the wet tile, you fell in dragging Victor with yourself. With a swift motion, he scooped you up in his arms and brought you up in the surface. “I told you to hold me!” You screeched between coughs. “If you wouldn’t throw eggs in here like an idiot you are we wouldn’t be in this situation.” He fired back sitting you on the edge of the pool and then he climbed out himself.

“Dummy.” He sighed for the millionths time today, draping you in a towel. “Go get changed or you’ll catch a cold.” He helped you up. In that moment a little smirk appeared on your face, and it stretched wider. “What is it? Don’t tell me you still have eggs.” Victor sighed, a miserable look on his face. “Nothing.” You smiled and ran away.

“How many times I have to tell you? Don’t run by the pool!” He yelled after you but you were already outside. Grabbing the paperbag left on the bedroom you hurried away to the shower. After taking a shower you put on the pink, fuzzy bunny onsie you bought today. Stepping out your bringht pink color looked way too odd compared to the black and claret themed bedroom you two shared.

“What on earth are you wearing this time?” Victor looked at you from the bed. While waiting, he used the guests bathroom and changed into a black silk sleepwear. You giggled and hopped in next to him. “I didn’t remember keeping a rabbit at home.” He chuckled. “Childish.” He added. Rolling your eyes at his comment you laid down besides him. “Today is still Easter so I’m excused.”

“You have 5 more minutes to be like this.” He looked at the clock on the wall. “Then we are stretching it till tomorrow because I’m not changing.” You turned to face him.

Putting down his phone on the bedside table, Victor pulled you closer to his body. “I’ll make it up for you for being away. And for yelling at you.” He sighed, pressing his lips on the top of your head. As he moved closer to you something pierced into his side. Reaching to get it a small plastic egg was in his hand.

“Dummy.”

Your cheerful laugh echoed through the bedroom.

Still feeling tired? Grab some more story at Reading Corner

[crazy-mha-twitterau]

Mha Twitter AU Part 31

Sunday, April 12, 2246

Izuku picked at his nails, glancing down at his phone every few seconds, trying to look busy. He arrived at the movie theater fifteen minutes early. Izuku’s palms started to sweat. He knew exactly what he looked like: a friendless loser, just like what he was in middle school.

“Midoriya-kun!” Iida shouted from across the street, a broad smile across his face as he waved enthusiastically. He waited until he crossed the street to continue the conversation so he could talk at a normal volume. “I am pleased to see that you arrived here early. That is very becoming of a hero in training! Punctuality is a very important characteristic to have.”

Izuku breathed a sigh of relief. He knew his friends wouldn’t actually stand him up, but it was still nice to have the reassurance. It’s happened before. “Yeah, I just wanted to make sure we didn’t miss the movie.”

“In that case, I will buy us tickets,” Iida says, walking over to the ticket booth.

“You…you don’t have to!” Izuku said quickly, rushing to catch up with Iida. “Four movie tickets is kinda expensive and I can afford my own.”

“It’s quite alright, Midoriya-kun,” Iida said with a smile. “I have more than enough money to cover it. And I don’t want to put any undue financial strain on Uraraka-san and it also wouldn't be very considerate to draw attention to it either, so I’m buying tickets for all of us. I hope that’s alright.”

“Oh, yeah,” Izuku said slowly. “But Uraraka was the one who suggested we see a movie together. I don’t think she would have suggested it if she couldn’t afford it.” He felt his chest constrict at the thought of Iida paying for Uraraka’s ticket. He knew it was just Iida being a good friend and using his financial privilege for his friend’s benefit, but something about the gesture made him feel weird. He didn’t like it.

Iida handed his debit card to the cashier just as Uraraka and Tsu appeared behind them in line. “Hey, Deku-kun, Iida-kun!”

“Iida’s paying for all our tickets,” Izuku said, his voice strained. “It’s really nice of him, huh?”

“Oh,” Uraraka’s face flushed. “Thanks, Iida-kun.”

Izuku’s stomach churned. He still didn’t know why he was reacting this way. Iida was just being a good friend! Why was it making him so frustrated? Was he frustrated? It didn’t seem like the right word to describe how he was feeling.

“Shall we go inside?” Iida asked cheerfully. “The movie starts in five minutes.”

Izuku, Uraraka, and Tsu followed Iida into the building. The concession line was packed tightly and tantalizing smells of popcorn and nachos filled the air. Izuku followed Uraraka’s gaze to the tall glass popcorn machine behind the counter. He stepped forward towards the line.

“Midoriya, we’ll be late for the film if you get snacks,” Iida said, chopping his hand through the air.

“It’s fine,” Izuku said with a smile. “I’ll probably only miss the opening credits. I just really wanna get popcorn and drinks for all of us.”

Iida noticed the way Uraraka’s eyes widened in surprise and the way Midoriya was watching her. He smiled faintly, realizing what Midoriya was up to. “Very well. Try not to be too late.”

“Deku-kun,” Uraraka breathed, her face flushing as she turned to follow Iida and Tsu into the theater.

The line for concessions moved quicker than Izuku had anticipated. He managed to slip into the theater right when the movie started, albeit slightly out of breath from running with two large buckets of popcorn and four medium drinks. “I didn’t know what you all wanted so I got everyone lemonade. I hope that’s okay,” Izuku said breathlessly. He slid into the seat next to Uraraka.

Uraraka delicately took the drink from Izuku’s hand, blushing furiously as their hands touched for a moment. Izuku’s face also heated up slightly. He quickly shook his head and opted to continue passing the popcorn and drinks to his other two friends.

Uraraka couldn’t focus the whole movie because of Deku’s presence beside her. She didn’t know why he was occupying so much of her mind and why he kept distracting her. She felt a weird lightness in her chest that felt both freeing and suffocating at the same time, like she was choking on flavored air. It created this awkward tension between her and Deku that she wasn’t sure if Deku noticed or not.

She let out a breath of relief when the movie ended. She enjoyed spending time with Deku but being around him just felt so weird right now. She simultaneously wanted to be near him and run far away. It was frustrating.

A text from the Class 1A group chat pulled her out of her thoughts.

“Ah yes, Ashido-san’s ice cream gettogether is this evening,” Iida said looking up from his phone. “As much as I think preparing for the Sports Festival is important, it is just as important for us to bond as a class. Shall we head over to Ashido-san’s residence now?”

“Oh, yeah,” Deku said cheerfully. “I completely forgot about that! Thanks for reminding us, Iida.”

“I must admit it was Ashido-san’s text that reminded me,” Iida said sheepishly. “But not to worry! I would never miss such an important class bonding activity. It does start soon so we must head there at once so we won’t be late.”

“I wonder what ice cream Mina-chan will be serving, kero.”

Uraraka knew that she should go to Mina’s party but she wasn’t sure if she could be around Deku for much longer with all these weird feelings cropping up. But she also didn’t want to let her friends down and she didn’t want to be away from Deku either. “Looks like we’ve got a party to go to,” Uraraka said with a forced smile. “I hope she has mochi!”

“Oh, right,” Deku smiled, opting to walk by Uraraka’s side. “That’s your favorite, right?”

Uraraka flushed. How had he remembered that? She only mentioned it once when Kaminari had attempted to ask her out after the battle trial on the second day. Deku was paying that close attention to her? “Oh, um, yeah, it is.”

“We must walk quickly so we catch the train on time,” Iida called a few feet ahead of them. “We mustn't be late!”

“I know, Iida,” Uraraka chuckled as she picked up the pace. “Don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll make it there on time. Besides, being fashionably late is normal for things like this.”

“Fashionably late?” Iida choked. “Why would one ever consider being late fashionable? It’s quite rude to be late! It shows that you don’t value the host’s time!”

“You’re quite uptight, aren’t you, Iida-chan?” Tsu noted, putting a finger to her chin. “Have you ever been to a party before, kero?”

“I’ve been to social gatherings, yes,” Iida said stiffly. “Although I went to those while accompanied by my parents. I have never been invited to a party hosted by one of my peers.”

“That’s kinda sad,” Uraraka lamented. “I’m not trying to be rude, but did you have friends in middle school, Iida?”

“I had acquaintances, yes,” Iida admitted, a faint blush adorning his cheeks. “But I never indulged in the luxury of friendship. I focused on…other things.”

“Well, we’re your friends now,” Uraraka said, trying to brighten the mood. “You don’t have to be alone anymore. You can focus on school stuff and friend stuff at the same time!”

“I..thank you, Uraraka-san,” Iida said, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “I appreciate the gesture. I had always hoped I would find like-minded friends at UA and I suppose I have found them.” He spared at glance at Deku and Tsu as well. They swiped their metro passes and waited for the next train.

“I didn’t have any friends before UA either,” Deku admitted, averting his gaze to the ground. “I didn’t get my quirk until slightly before the entrance exam. I don’t want to talk about what triggered it to manifest so late but, um, well…everyone around me assumed I was quirkless. Nobody wanted to be friends with a quirkless loser.”

Uraraka bristled at the thought. “Why wouldn’t they want to be friends with someone as amazing as you? Just because they thought you were quirkless? They’re the biggest fucking idiots on the planet.”

Deku’s eyes widened as he met Uraraka’s gaze. “Uraraka-san…”

“Language,” Iida said absently, though most of his attention was now on Deku. “Midoriya-san, forgive me for my choice of words, but the people in your middle school are foolish jerks for not seeing what a great friend you are. Even if you didn’t have a quirk, you are incredibly kind and smart. I would be honored to call myself your friend, quirk or no quirk. Understand?”

Deku’s eyes welled up with tears. “Thank you, Iida-san.”

“Midoriya-chan, I’m sorry that your classmates in middle school treated you like that,” Tsu said, taking a step closer to Deku. “I faced similar social isolation in middle school, but not because of the status of my quirk. My parents worked a lot so I had to hurry home to take care of my younger siblings. I didn’t have any friends until my last year of middle school when I met Habuko-chan. If we had been at the same school, I’m sure we would’ve been friends in middle school as well, kero.”

“As–Tsu-chan,” Deku’s voice shook as he wiped the tears from his eyes with his sleeve. “Thank you all so much. I…I needed to hear that. Thank you.”

“There was a quirkless girl in my class in fourth grade,” Uraraka said, her hands molding into fists. “These girls would pick on her a lot but I never did anything because I didn’t know her. Then one day, a fifth grader came over and used his quirk on her. I wanted to help but it’s like my feet were frozen to the ground. I couldn’t move. She got really hurt and never came back to school. The teachers said she transferred somewhere else but…I don’t know. I always regretted not stepping in and doing something.”

“It’s not your fault, Uraraka-san,” Deku said softly. “You were a kid. The fifth grader was probably scary right? With a powerful quirk?”

Uraraka nodded, tugging at the hem of her skirt.

“It might’ve put you in danger if you had stepped in,” Deku said, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder. “You can’t blame yourself for that. I’m sure if something like that happened today, you would save her. Because you’re a hero now.”

“I still should’ve done something,” Uraraka muttered dejectedly. “I mean, that could’ve been you, Deku-kun! I’m not blind. I saw how Bakugou acted during the battle trial. He was that fifth grader to you, right?”

“I…yeah.” Deku’s shoulders sank. “But Kacchan wasn’t that bad. He stopped hurting me physically after the third grade for the most part. He mostly just said some mean things. But I think there was something else going on with him.”

“You shouldn’t make excuses for Bakugou’s behavior,” Tsu said, narrowing her eyes, looking off into the distance. “Regardless if he had something personal going on that made him act that way towards you, it doesn’t excuse his behavior. It’s just an explanation, kero.”

“I agree with Asu–Tsu on this one,” Iida said, pushing up his glasses. “Bakugou’s behavior is inexcusable. I sincerely apologize for not seeing his actions for what they were until now. I promise I will be a better friend from here on out!”

“I have a lot to think about,” Deku sighed. He turned his head to watch the train stop in front of them. “I guess we better head to Ashido’s party now. The train is here.”

Uraraka grabbed his arm. “Deku-kun, wait. Is Bakugou coming to the party?”

“I doubt it,” Deku chuckled, rubbing his neck. “Kacchan never really comes to events like these. He says it’s a waste of time. He’s probably training for the Sports Festival right now, actually.”

“Good.” Uraraka pulled Deku on the train, Iida and Tsu followed close behind them. “Now we can enjoy the party properly. I won’t let that Bakugou asshole hurt you anymore. That’s a promise.” A dark look came across Uraraka’s face as the train doors shut.

[soundofseventeen]

Miracle (Lee Jihoon)

Happy birthday @peachy-hoon​! A million thank yous will never suffice but I can always give you this! I’m sorry for any mistakes; I literally uploaded this as I finished. And you know, it’s not my best work, but alas.

Word count: 2645

Inspo

“And that’s a wrap!” Jihoon spoke into the mic to let Wonwoo know he was done for the day and without waiting for him to leave the recording studio, removed his headphones and stuffed his sweater and whatever he could fit into his backpack and ran out of Universe Factory, the door wide open and leaving his confused, but amused friend to tidy up the small room. In his rush he literally ran into Jeonghan, who ended up throwing all the papers in his hands, and Jihoon, although didn’t like running behind schedule, stayed to help pick up the mess he made.

“Where are you going in such a rush?” The older boy teased, checking the papers he had in his hand to make sure they were all in order and ready for presentation.

“Home.” Not bothering to check the pages, Jihoon handed them over and let Jeonghan sort them out.

“It’s still early, don’t you think? Soonyoung said he still has to go through the choreography and Seungcheol wanted everyone present for the meeting.” The impish smile had formed on Jeonghan’s face before he finished his sentence.

“Soonyoung said he’d record it for me and Seungcheol already told me everything I need to know.” Jihoon searched for his cellphone, groaning internally when he realized that he had left it in the practice room when he dropped the towels off for his clingy friend.

“Aren’t you gonna help me put these back in order?” Jeonghan asked when he saw him walking away.

“You have that handled well enough.”

“I’m missing the first page, and I had it before you knocked me over.” 

“Don't do this to me right now Jeonghan.” This time, the groan he let out was external. “I have plans that I can’t break.” Well, he could if he wanted to, but he wasn’t gonna.

“You’re not going anywhere until I find it.”

“It’s under your shoe. I’ll grab it for-move Jeonghan. I need all the time I can get.” Jihoon crouched to pick up the piece of paper.

“Why not just invite Y/N over so you stay a little longer and then you can leave together.” Jeonghan not so subtly moved his foot along with the paper so he wouldn’t take it so easily.

“I don’t think so.” He pushed his older friend, momentarily making him lose his balance and successfully retrieved the paper, squinting his eyes to read it and looking confused. “How is this our fault?”

“It’s not. The CEO is already talking to Jun about it and we’re supposed to see what measures we can take from happening again.”

“Then shouldn’t we talk to Yanan about it? I don’t know why they thought squawking every time their ringtones went off and unnecessarily texting each other throughout the day is our fault.” And both of them were messaging both groups, but he didn’t need to add that part. Instinctively, his hand went to his pockets, ready to make sure his phone stayed on silent, but he remembered he didn’t have it.

“If it gets the CEO off our backs, I don’t care what we have to do.” Jeonghan took out his own mobile device, shutting the noise off as a safety precaution. “I dreamt Yanan was part parrot twice already.” He shuddered at some memory.

“Okay, so I’ll see you tomorrow then. Bright and early and not a minute more. I have a song for you and Mingyu to go through.” He was ready to step past him when Jeonghan grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back slightly.

“Do you really have to go though? This hyung hasn’t eaten lunch and it’s your turn to buy.”

Woozi let out a deep sigh, took out his wallet, smiled briefly at the picture he had of you, and pulled out his debit card, along with the loose change he had. “You know my pin number and this is literally for anything else. ‘Bye.”

“Will Y/N be okay with you staying longer?” 

“Yes, but I won’t be.” He turned the other way to head over to the practice room, only instead of seeing Soonyoung, he found Chan in the middle of a choreo practice. “Sorry, I’m just here for my phone.”

Chan hit the pause button on the remote, and gratefully took the towel Jihoon provided. “Oh, uh, I haven’t seen it. Maybe Hoshi hyung took it when he left?”

“Okay, I’ll see you guys tomorrow then.” Although he wasn’t thrilled to be phoneless the rest of the day, he figured that no one important would try to get a hold of him and if he managed to convince you to turn it off, then it’d be foolproof. 

“Hyung, what are you today with Y/N that you’re not staying here with us?” Chan wadded up the towel and threw at him when Jihoon shook his head.

“Nothing, for real. I just wanna go home and take a nap on the couch.”

“I don’t believe you, but go ahead and leave us to suffer with our evil CEO and Joshua hyung.”

“I don’t know what you did but I’m glad you did it. Now Bumzu is in charge of getting the chorus done before you leave ton-stop looking at me like that. I’m not abandoning you.”

“You’re leaving us for Y/N.”

“I already had these plans.” And not even his best friends would hold him up. 

“Okay fine, don’t tell me what super fun, cool thing you’re gonna do while we just slave away here.”

Jihoon began walking away, backwards and slowly. However, he couldn’t hold back the smirk on his face. “We aren’t doing anything or going anywhere. I’d ask you guys to come over after work to see for yourself, but I don’t wanna.”

“Ever since you and Y/N started dating, you’ve changed.” The fake sniffle Chan let out almost sent Jihoon to the floor but he managed to reach the door and once he took a bow, walked out.

*

Jihoon let himself in quietly, just in case you were asleep or on the phone with someone important to you, but he was greeted with a Stray Kids song coming from the living room. He smiled while he watched “Back Door”, nodding to himself when he saw Bang Chan. He admired the leader, and respected his choices regarding his group, but if anything, it was how much you fawned over him that made him petty. (Not in the sense that whenever you argued, he’d tell you to be with him, but rather he thrived on the idea that if he was with you in public and you came across Chan, Jihoon could always be satisfied in knowing that you were on his arm, and bragging about him.) 

He did make a note to remind himself to tell the boys  that your friend wanted Seventeen to do the choreo and if he could just remember it one day, it’d be great. 

“Jagi?” He called out so he’d know where you were.

“I’m not home,” was your response and with that, followed the sound of your voice that led him into the kitchen. “You’re early.”

He placed a kiss on your hair and let you finish the dishes while he checked the mail you left on the table. Bills, spam, a few unknown addresses written to you and he could only assume you found more photocards and you’d show them to him later. “How was work?”

“They wanted me to stay a little longer but I told them I couldn’t.”

“So just about the same as me.” He tore up the junk mail, and threw it in the trash. “What’s that smell?” He asked, wrinkling his nose.

“I might have burned the first batch of cookies, while I was in the shower. But don’t worry, thes ones in the oven are almost done and they’ll be good for dinner.” You turned around to wave at him, but he stood up, opened a pack of peach gummies for you and fed you one. “Speaking of, what sounds good?”

He wrapped his arms around you, back hugging you while you resumed your chores. “I’m not hungry right now. How about you throw these in the dishwasher and we can just watch movies and we’ll make food later?”

“Vacuum the living room first and then I’ll go meet you there. I have to clean the bathroom after this and dust my shelves and-” you sighed, “-so much to do.”

“But you’re not working tomorrow. Can’t you do that?”

“I have plans tomorrow and I won’t be home until late.”

“Fine, I’ll help you do our chores so you can finish and then we’ll watch something that Wonwoo swore was good.” 

He kissed your cheek, only to jump slightly when you yelled out, “Ateez present!”, followed by, “Turn the TV up. I love this song!”

He nodded but didn’t say anything else, instead running around the apartment with the vacuum cleaner and you occasionally scolding him because you couldn’t hear your favorite songs, and after that, collecting all the trash to throw out so you wouldn’t have to go outside and lose whatever motivation you had. He liked when you had energy like that; it usually made him wonder what other things you had done, like the fact you changed the bedsheets this time, washed his clothes, and baked some dessert. You worked extra hard today and he couldn’t wait to have you sit next to him and watch something that you wouldn’t focus on, but you’d have a good night’s sleep if that happened. He wished he could do what you did in the short amount you’ve been home.

You somehow managed to finish at around the same time, but he could see you weren’t tired because you were teasing the cat with all its toys. (The cat he said he didn’t want when you bought the apartment, but for some reason couldn’t bear parting with the stray so now, he was an active member of the family, but he wasn’t complaining. The feline kept you company when he was gone and it strangely put Jihoon at ease.) “Haha, you’re too slow. Come grab it now.” You picked him up, trying not to wince when one of the claws came out. “Come on pretty boy. You’re gonna watch a movie with us tonight.”

Jihoon was already waiting for you, your favorite blanket ready to be claimed and the snacks ready to be eaten. “Come on Jagi. You don’t know how long I was waiting to do this with you.” He extended his arms wide enough for you to fall into them, and when you did, wrapped them around you, sighing contentedly. “You know I can stay like this forever, right?”

He kissed your forehead when you nodded, and you could feel the tiredness creeping in. He always made your long days a little better and you often wished you could be the beacon of energy he needed, and you tried really hard to be that. Your work’s complaints could wait for another day, but this couldn’t. “Thank you for coming home early.”

You could feel yourself falling asleep a little into the movie, not because you were bored, but because you were so warm and comfortable and you didn;t wanna break your little bubble. Jihoon played with your hair, further lulling you into a slumber and when he placed random kisses on you, you just silently asked for more. So it surprised you when the doorbell rang and you looked at him. “Did you order dinner?”

“No. Did you?” Then came the hard knocking and you recognized it immediately, and you let out a laugh.

“They didn’t,” Jihoon groaned. “I told them no. Just ignore them and they’ll go away.”

“Is that why you turned my phone off earlier?”

“Yes. I don’t always get this time with you.”

“Should I just let them in? You know they won’t stop until we open the door.” You didn’t know how long you stayed liked, but you reluctantly got off of Jihoon and opened the door, him muttering profanities and threatening to put them through hell the next time they were due to record.

“Y/N, you’re here!” Seungkwan pushed through everyone to hug you. “How come you don’t visit us? Don’t you love us anymore?”

“Dude, I’ve been so busy lately. I’m sorry.”

“WAIT!” Chan cried loud enough to wake your neighbors so you put a finger to your lips to quiet him down. “So Hyung was telling the truth when he said you weren;t doing anything?”

“We literally just cleaned the house and we were gonna watch a movie until bed.”

“Wow, you’re not fun.”

You counted all the heads, multiple times, frowning a little when you counted the 12. “I haven’t made dinner and we were just gonna have noodles.”

“Oh good! We’re starving.” Someone pushed Wonwoo and they all rushed inside, quickly making themselves at home. Jihoon shot you an apologetic look and you smiled at him. You enjoyed Seventeen’s company, but Jihoon shook his head, trying to look annoyed at their presence, but the smile he tried to hide was confirmation enough to have them here for a little. 

“Everyone is having ramen form the packet and if you don’t like it, then you can go and get your own food.” Your eyes widened when you saw the time on the stove. It felt so much later than it actually was.

“I just wanna know why you guys are here and not at home.”

“Hyung, you invited me earlier, remember? While I was working on the choreo and you were looking for your phone.”

“That reminds me. Catch Woozi!” Soonyoung fished the phone out of his pocket and threw it at his best friend, snickering when he failed to catch it.

“I didn’t invite you. I said I wish I could, but I don’t want to.”

“Well, we’re already here and Y/N said we could stay.”

“But please not so late; I’m working tomorrow. But later this weekend, you can go nuts.”

*

“I thought you weren’t working,” Jihoon asked after the unexpected guests left.

“I’m not, but like you said, we don’t always have time to do this.”

“You’re the best. Go play the movie; I can finish right here. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Not kicking them out. You could’ve done that.”

“They were already here.” You shrugged. “I guess you guys still need each other sometimes.”

“Still, I appreciate that.” He lightly pushed you to the living room, though you couldn’t actually sit down. There was a small mess you could’ve ignored, but you were already up and you didn’t know how long it’d be until Jihoon finished. Plus it wouldn’t take long, especially since your favorite boy was sound asleep on his tower after Jun and Vernon chased him around. 

And you also also had to change Netflix accounts so no one would be confused about anything. Luckily, no one touched your stuff, so you were able to find your spot fairly quickly and Jihoon came by just in time, with two of your cookies in his hand, and handed one to you.

“I love you, you know that?”

He nodded. “Let’s finish watching this, so we can go to sleep.” He flopped on the couch, once again extending his arms to you, where you met him with small pecks and flushed cheeks. 

You finally pressed play again, hoping for no more interruptions until the next day, quickly falling into your previous state of almost falling asleep right then and there. “I love you Jihoon,” you mumbled to him again.

He shut his eyes in his euphoric state, letting your words warm him up before he responded to you, quietly enough that not even your favorite boy could hear.

“You are my miracle.”

[brokenmusicboxwolfe]

FFS, I can’t believe I’ve screwed up this badly with my math!

Here I am, about to go do my once every two week shopping, and as usual I go check my bank account before getting out the cash.

Oh, that surprises you. Yeah, I use cash. I have a refillable debt card, but I reserve it for things I have to order or pay for online, and after trying to pay with a check at Walmart and being refused by their system because I “hadn’t written enough checks”, I’ve stuck with cash. It makes it easier not to screw up, having to keep a strict count while I shop, with no wiggle room, no space for impulsive “Why not?” It’s tough, but at least I don’t accidentally overspend….

Except I just found out I have!!!

It totally took me by surprise. My debit card it down to $12. I bet I forgot to count those new ankle braces I had to get, but the cause doesn’t matter right now. What matters is, if I get out my usual once every two weeks amount to buy the food for me and the animals I won’t have enough in my bank account to pay my $30 phone bill next week!

So here I am, kicking myself for every “luxury” (those blueberries) I bought and realizing I may not be able to buy the stuff I intended to get for the 4th. The 4th is my family “junk food” day, and I won’t have any more money until after!

I mean, I know it’s weird to complain about not getting to buy hot dogs, soda, and potato chips when you are already going “right, maybe you should skip meat and fresh fruit this time”. But darn it, I only buy junk food once a year! I look forward to it!

But the truth is fretting about food choices is distracting me from the real problem: The bills that might crop up before the 5th or 6th of July. The phone bill is the top of the list, but it is hardly the only thing.

Look, I’m used to being broke. Wear my parents’ old clothes, buy store brands, don’t drive anywhere you don’t absolutely have to, and that sort of thing. I STILL can’t drive the pickup because the next time I do it will hit empty and I haven’t been able to afford gas. It’s annoying, but I just shrugged and figured I’d get a few gallons with whatever cash I had left over after shopping. I’ve been saying that for two months now. But it hasn’t upset me too much. It’s just how poverty is.

But screwing up, doing my math wrong, buying a spare ankle brace because it was on special instead of the two new ones I needed right now, knowing my dumbness might mean I lose my already crappy phone service…..

I dunno. It’s not even the stress and anxiety of it, it’s the anger at myself over something I can’t fix that gets me. Like, “Oh good, I’ve driven off a cliff and all I can do is wait and see if I survive the crash.”

**sigh**

Well, someone sent me $5 through Kofi I still haven’t transfered to my bank account. That’s a start. Maybe I should go hunting for spare change in the parking lot. I won’t find $30, but every penny really does count…..

So if anyone likes my photos and/or sculpting feel free to tip or use my ko-fi once in a while. (If my tech cooperates I will add some fresh pics to my ko-fi page)

I hate to even write that, and I do NOT want anyone to feel pressured. As long as my tech holds on by it’s fingernails and I can keep my internet I will keep posting, and besides, I’ll figure something out or get lucky maybe. It’s all so humiliating.

But still, to remind folks:

Thanks for letting me vent.

[bluboothalassophile]

Hayley and Elijah wedding for the original fanfic?

Hello,

So I'm not 100% sure what you meant for this... the fic I have going, or Vixen & the Fox universe, or just a one shot, so I decided on just a one shot and I hope you enjoy! =)

Happy to Be Here...

Hayley Marshall was about two steps from Jackson when she bolted, she would never be able to say why she bolted, but everything in her rebelled at the wedding, not even the sight of their families was enough to have her staying. She had turned and ran as fast as she in her wedding dress, skirts in hand, and veil attached, she flew through the cathedral doors like a princess on a mission to escape, and it was the fastest she had ever run. She kept running too, she didn’t slow, not even when she got a taxi and booked it for JFK, and from there, bought a one way ticket to anywhere else.

She ended up sitting next to a stranger in the airport who merely raised a brow at her wedding dress attire, held in her arms from what she taken off to get through TSA. She was a sight; she knew that, and she was seriously contemplating buying one of those tourist trap shirts, unbreathable, uncomfortable leggings and slippers and stuffing this wedding gown into a trash can.

The stranger beside her was looking her over, a dubious expression obvious on his face as they looked at one another.

“What?” she finally asked as she combed her fingers through her hair.

“Nothing,” he shrugged.

“Bullshit,” she muttered as her head fell back. “You’re judging me.”

“I have no reason to.”

“I ran away from my wedding, two steps from the altar, I’m sure there’s a term for that.”

“I believe it would be OMG,” he quipped, she snorted and bit her lip as she tried to keep from laughing. She looked at him, and he had a sly smile on his lips then.

“OMG is a good one,” she mused.

“If it’s any consellation I’m on my way home after proving my girlfriend was cheating on me, with her sister’s boyfriend, I had planned to propose,” he informed her.

“Women suck,” she offered lamely and he laughed. It warmed her heart to hear him laugh.

“They can,” he mused.

“I’ll be right back, I need to stuff this dress in a trash can or something,” she muttered.

“Will you not need help getting out of it?” then he looked mortified at what he had just said.

“Most men offer to buy me dinner before taking off my clothes,” she teased.

“That was not what I meant!” he strangled out. “I’ve had two sisters, and they explained those dresses are notoriously difficult to get in and out of!”

“Shit, they are,” she muttered.

“I have a counter proposal, I will help you undo the dress, then provide a shirt which you can use as cover,” he said evenly. “You appear taller than my ex, but her leggings should work until you get to New Orleans.”

“So I’m going to New Orleans, and thanks,” she smiled tightly. It didn’t take them long before he pulled out clothes, he didn’t offer his ex’s shirt, instead he gave her one of his, and he helped her undo all the buttons and hooks. Once those were done, he handed her leggings and she ran into the women’s bathroom. Changing was easy and once that was done she went through her dress pockets; again happy she’d put her ID and debit card in there, and her phone. There were a hundred missed calls from Jackson and his family, but she turned off her phone as she walked out to the terminal again.

The man was waiting for her, he held out a hoodie for her, and she was grateful.

“Thank you,” she sighed.

“Of course, it is reassuring to know I can still be the knight in shining armor,” he mused. “I’m Elijah, Elijah Mikaelson.”

“Hayley Marshall,” she replied.

“So Hayley, what compels a girl to run on the happiest day of her life.”

“Well… we’d been having issues before, planning the wedding, and I just… I don’t know, we weren’t… in love? We’ve been together since we were children, high school sweethearts, college, careers; and our families more or less arranged it and I know he’s in love with someone else, but he wouldn’t cheat on me, but we aren’t happy. We were togetherfor our families, and it just… it really hit me how unfair it is to him and no matter what we do, I was never going to love him, and this was my last chance to get him to see that, so…”

“You ran,” he deduced.

“Yup, not as rough as your story but still, not a good move for women anywhere,” she groused as she rubbed the bridge of her nose and stared at the airport. “I bought a ticket to anywhere, and apparently thatll be New Orleans.”

“It isn’t that bad,” he promised.

“Well, gotta start over again,” she muttered. “But I think he’ll see we dodged a big bullet. Neither of us would’ve been happy in the long run, and he’s loyal enough to try to make it work until he resents me, so… I think I did the right thing.”

“You’ll find love one day,” Elijah promised softly.

~~~*~*~*~~~

She walked down the aisle to the man of her dreams, and she smiled. Wearing a dress she actually wanted to wear, walking to a man she actually wanted. As she neared the altar she knew he was a little worried, but she took his hand.

“Glad you could make it,” Elijah said softly.

“Happy to be here,” she smiled as she handed her bouquet to her new friends and felt her heart fluttering about in her chest. Today was perfect. And she was excited for this next part. He smiled, rather shy, and uncertain, and it was still refreshing, and endearing, and she wanted to kiss him now just to reassure him he was here, and so was she, and they were doing this despite how they started.

“You’re not supposed to kiss until the priest finishes blessing the vows!” Kol unhelpfully quipped.

“Shut up Kol!” Klaus ordered.

Elijah laughed, and she snickered as she looked at the priest.

[platypanthewriter]

The Devil Looks After His Own Ch.4

Chapters One | Two | Three

Little Steve Harrington is so lonely he tries summoning a demon with a ritual advertised on TV–but luckily, it doesn’t work, and a  buff, non-human nanny hired by his mom shows up minutes later.  Years  later, they’re best friends, and Steve still doesn’t know the truth.   For @magniloquent-raven​!

Since Steve’s mom and dad had basically stopped doing anything around the house, Steve helped Billy with things like scrubbing the bathroom, and doing laundry, and vacuuming. They listened to music very loud if Steve’s dad wasn’t working, and if he was, they played charades with each other as they worked. That meant Steve sometimes got the parmesan cheese when he wanted the Ajax cleanser, and Billy got Steve yelling and climbing up the furniture, looking for a huge cockroach rat hybrid, when all he wanted Steve to do was move so he could pick up the rug, but it was pretty funny.

“They are paying you, right,” Steve asked one day, as he and Billy laid on the floor of his room, exhausted from scrubbing the entire kitchen after Billy accidentally boiled a pan of chili over the whole stove and proceeded to drop it on the kitchen floor. Steve’s stomach growled—it’d actually smelled pretty good, for something Billy cooked, and he rolled to bury his face in Billy’s shoulder, groaning.

“...I don’t have a lot of use for money,” Billy said thoughtfully. “They’re giving me some, though, yeah.”

“Let’s order pizza,” Steve moaned, stretching. “I mean, if—can you get the money? Do you know how?”

“I have a bank account,” Billy muttered, but from the red his ears had turned, Steve suspected it hadn’t been that easy, at first.

“...do you have a card?” Steve asked, holding his fingers up in a rectangle, and Billy rolled onto his side to tickle him.

“Yes, you little jerk, I have a debit card, and I can get us pizza,” he told Steve, as he giggled and kicked the air.

“You should use it to do things you want,” Steve told him, relaxing into the hug, once he smacked Billy enough times that the tickling stopped. “Buy—things. Things you want. Or—or go somewhere.”

“Where would I wanna go without you?” Billy asked him, laughing, and Steve’s face heated.

He snaked his arms around more of Billy, and squeezed him, sighing contentedly. “...we could go together,” he mumbled. “To—to the, um, like, the water park. Or somewhere. They have slides.”

“Oooo,” Billy said, but it felt like he was laughing.

“They’re really cool,” Steve huffed, and Billy noogied his head.

“What about, like...Disneyland,” he whispered, and Steve’s heart thudded in his chest. “Or like...Hawaii? Is that a thing kids like? Go snorkeling?”

“Holy shit,” Steve muttered, because it seemed like the situation deserved a swear. “C-can you pay for that?! That’s—that’s a plane ticket, Billy—”

“Two of them,” Billy said, and Steve nodded, his heart pounding with excitement, because vacations would be completely different with Billy—Billy wouldn’t leave Steve in the hotel room all day, or expect him to just sit on a bench for hours at the mall.

“I-if you, um, if you want,” he squeaked, and Billy rolled on top of him, squishing him, and being annoying, and saying things like ‘Oh no, gross, did I roll onto a bug?’ “Get off!” Steve yelled, kicking and laughing.

“Too tired,” Billy groaned. “I’m just gonna lay here on this gross bug.”

“I’m not a bug!” Steve yelled back, cackling helplessly, until Billy finally took mercy, scooped him up, and let Steve order pizza with anything he wanted.

It turned out kinda gross, actually, because Steve had ordered everything he hadn’t tried before, but they picked off the fruit and the weird fish.  The fried eggs and sunflower seeds were actually pretty good.

“I didn’t know you were such a good cook,” Billy told him, and Steve kicked his leg, snorting a laugh, as Billy flipped through channels.

He paused on a news show, the news person holding the microphone out to a being that was mostly fire and horns. “What do you think of this talk of requiring a license from both sides to summon demons?”

“It’s ridiculous,” said the guttural voice in flames, and Billy shivered, his face weirdly blank, like he got at the beginning, when Steve ordered him around. “Expecting my people to agree not to tear anyone’s face off, or steal their soul, when they’ve been summoned and enslaved for millenia? Don’t make me laugh.”

Steve slid his hand into Billy’s as the news person interrupted. “Well, it’s supposed to end that—”

“My own son has been missing for nearly a year,” said the harsh voice, and Billy trembled again, lowering his slice of pizza to the plate. “Are you suggesting I report the summoner to the authorities, instead of punishing them for my son’s captivity myself? How would a slap on the wrist help us more?”

“...fuck,” Billy whispered, rubbing his face, and Steve squeezed his hand.

“It stands to reason that if there was oversight on who could summon demons—” the news person persisted, but the fire demon slammed a flaming appendage against the table, and ey jerked back.

“I will burn them from the bones out until their skin cracks off in lumps of char,” said the demon, “—and then I will reclaim my son,” and then the TV clicked off, and Billy was sweating and shaking, tears welling up in his eyes.

Steve dropped his pizza on his plate, sat it aside, and stood up to hug Billy, petting his hair like he was the neighbor’s cat as Billy laughed and shuddered against him. “Billy,” Steve whispered. “Are you a demon?”

“You think I’m like him?” Billy gasped out, his fists tight in Steve’s shirt. “You see him and you—you’re like—that’s Billy,” he choked off, crying, and Steve petted his hair some more, biting his lips, and trying to figure it out.

Before Billy, he’d never thought of teenagers as being just another kind of kid—they’d always seemed basically like grownups—but he was wondering more and more whether teenagers were just children who could drive. Steve wasn’t sure how he felt about that idea, it sounded kind of...bad.

“Do—did you used to summon demons,” he asked, cautiously. “Is—is that why you—is that why you’re magic—is—is—do you know a demon,” he tried, wondering what could have made Billy cry.

“Doesn’t matter,” Billy mumbled, and Steve raised his eyebrows.

“It matters,” he said, but then he felt Billy start to pull away, and hugged him tighter. “But, um. You—you don’t have to...tell me. Okay?”

“...are you serious,” Billy whispered, and Steve nodded, running his fingers through Billy’s curls. Billy sighed, squeezing him back.

“If, um, if you don’t...want to talk about it,” Steve told him, “—um, you—you don’t have to...tell me.”

“...sorry,” Billy sighed. He sounded exhausted. “I just...it’s, um. It’s sort of...safer. If you don’t know.”

“Okay,” Steve told him, wondering. Billy was right, he thought—even if he did have horns, the Billy that swung him around in the air, played LEGO, and bought him weird pizza was nothing like the fire demon that had threatened the news person, which he thought he should probably tell Billy. “You’re not like that,” he said quickly. “He was scary. He wanted to be scary. He wanted to hurt somebody. He...I know you’re not like that. I didn’t—I didn’t mean you were like that.”

Billy nodded, sighing. “I don’t want to be like that.”

“Who would,” Steve wondered, making a face. “What a jerk.”

“...yeah,” Billy said, laughing softly.

“Do you...know him...somehow?” Steve couldn’t help asking. “Is—is that why you yelled at me about demons? When you first came?”

“Demons are dangerous,” Billy bit out, “—and they will kill you. Don’t you fucking dare try that summoning shit again—”

“I wasn’t going to,” Steve said, shaking his head, and trying not to smile, because Billy’d turned to glower at him, wiping his eyes. “I mean it, I won’t—”

“You better not,” Billy growled, his mouth quirking as he slid his hand along the back of the couch to tickle Steve’s side, and Steve yelped.

“I won’t! I won’t, I promise, I won’t!” he yelled, squawking and giggling, and Billy yanked him in close for a hug.

“You’ll get eaten,” Billy said quietly, frowning like he was still worried, and Steve flicked his earring.

“I won’t do it,” he said again. “I won’t. I promise.”

“...okay,” Billy sighed, resting his face against Steve’s hair.

It started to get hot and uncomfortable in Billy’s arms—he was squeezing really tight, and they were both sweaty from cleaning, and Steve was hungry— but he waited, petting Billy’s hair until he let go on his own.

“I promise not to kidnap anyone and get eaten,” Steve muttered into Billy’s curls, sighing, and Billy started snickering, and blew a raspberry on his neck with a loud farty noise. Steve’s dad stomped out of his office and yelled at them to be quiet, and they snuck the pizza into Steve’s room, and had a picnic on the floor.

A couple weeks later, Steve and Billy were leaving the LEGO store at the mall—Steve with his head stuffed with ideas and his hands on the Jungle Raider vehicle he’d finally picked up for his Ninjago set, Billy with the new bonsai tree set, because he and Steve had decided to add it to his house—when they heard screams. Steve was still looking at the cover of the box when he registered Billy shoving him behind Billy’s back, and a woman ran by yelling “Run, get out of here, there’s a man with a gun!”

Steve froze, clutching his Ninjago set, and Billy scooped him up, and frowned back atinto the LEGO store, and then down the corridor of the mall. More people were running by, and some of them were making phone calls, which was good, Steve thought dazedly. He should have thought of that, calling 911, like in a movie.

“Kiddo,” Billy said softly, “—those sets you gave me. They really mine?”

“There’s a man with a gun,” Steve said shakily. “Billy.”

“Yeah,” Billy said, sitting him back down. “And I don’t know where he is, or what’s going on, but if you—” he bit his lip, thinking.

“Billy, can you help?” Steve hissed, wide-eyed. “Don’t get hurt—”

“Pick a set to really never play with again,” Billy said, glancing back into the mall. “You have to—to throw it away, or break it, so nobody can use it again. Can you do that?”

“I can’t break it from here,” Steve whimpered, starting to panic. “I can’t—this one’s too small and dumb, isn’t it, it was only ten dollars—” he held up the Jungle Raider vehicle, his eyes blurring with tears.

“That would work,” Billy said. “You’ve never even gotten to play with it. You can’t just buy it again, though.”

“O-okay,” Steve said, nodding. He lowered it slowly towards the ground, and then jumped and dropped it as they heard a gunshot. He stomped on it a few times. There was a crunch, he flinched, and Billy yanked him into a quick hug, kissing his cheek, and then went all... pretty.

He grew, it seemed like, even from the tall horned man he’d been when he’d come to work naked that first day, and he had muscles everywhere, and Steve tried not to giggle nervously, because Billy was naked again, and Steve could see everything.

“Go hide behind the counter, or in the back, as far back and low as you can get,” Billy told him, and Steve nodded, grabbing Billy’s hands.

“Don’t get hurt, Billy,” he whispered, trying to let go, but he’d started to cry, and he couldn’t make his fingers let go of Billy’s.

Billy yanked free to squeeze him close, but they heard another scream, and Steve pushed him away and ran into the store, trying to cry quietly. He found the nice counter person hiding behind the counter, and yanked them into the back like Billy had said, then crouched with his arms over his head like in an earthquake because he didn’t know what else to do.

The counter person had a glittery they/them pin that caught the light from the front of the store as they panted, staring over his shoulder, and Steve watched it, remembering how genius he’d thought it was back when they first started working. One of the centaur twins in his class used ey/em like their art teacher did, but the other one used fae/faer, and they were identical palominos—and Steve had been so grateful when one of them started painting faer hooves and he could get it right.

He hoped he got to see them again. He hoped Billy got to see them again, and started to cry harder, thinking about Billy dead somewhere, full of bullets. The counter person yelped as Steve started to crawl away, asking him where he was going, but Steve couldn’t help it, he scrambled out of the store, and hid under a bench in the corridor, listening.

There were a bunch of gunshots, at least five, and Steve shuddered, covering his mouth so he didn’t make a noise, but then everything went quiet. He waited, tears dripping down his cheeks, until Billy stumbled back around the corner of the corridor, leaning heavily against the wall.

There was blood, smoking as it dripped over his jewelry. Steve scrambled out with a yell and ran to him, gathering him into a hug as Billy slid down the wall to curl up with his head in Steve’s lap. “I-I’ll call 911,” Steve sobbed, wiping his tears away to try and see, and Billy shushed him.

“S’fine,” he mumbled. “S’okay, mmm...m’fixin’ it. Need...need you…”

“What,” Steve asked him, petting his flamey hair, and patting his horns nervously.

“Talk to me,” Billy breathed, with a noise like he had snot or tears in his throat, and Steve realized it was probably blood, the blood soaking into his jeans from Billy’s chest.

Steve bit his lips together to keep from making a noise as his lungs jerked with sobs. “Y-you’re gonna be okay,” he whined unconvincingly, then yelped as he realized Billy was smoking a little all over, and he felt a little smoky, too soft under Steve’s fingers on his shoulder, and not nearly heavy enough leaning against him.

“Tell me about the picture, that first night,” Billy whispered. “How’d it go. Dis-distract me.” He reached out and ran his finger through his blood on the floor, drawing some of a circle, and Steve pulled Billy’s hand back.

“Don’t move,” Billy growled, pretty certain that made things worse. He drew what he could remember—the castle, and the horse—trying not to think about the sticky chill of Billy’s blood on his fingers. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, and kept drawing, as Billy asked questions like ‘Wasn’t it in a circle?’ and ‘I thought there were symbols or something.’ Steve would have stopped, but it sounded like it was helping, as Billy got heavier.

His voice sounded stronger. “...what are you drawing?” he asked, sounding like he wanted to laugh, and Steve felt a strong temptation to do something annoying, like lick his ear.

“I don’t remember the symbols!” Steve hissed, guiltily, trying not to sob. “Hearts are good,” he sniffled. “I-it’s the Eu-Eurovision logo! And I love you.”

“...yeah,” Billy whispered, staring at the picture, as Steve added some clouds, trying not to think about how much of Billy’s blood there was on the ground to draw with. “...save me with the Eurovision logo, kiddo.”

Steve sniffled hard, wiping his nose again, and used his clean hand to stroke Billy’s hair at the base of his horns.

“Tell me why you drew that,” Billy whispered, and Steve hugged him, trying not to get snot in his pretty hair. “The—the first time. That first night.”

Steve could hear sirens. “W-wanted a friend,” he whispered, his lungs juddering so he kind of gasped it.

“Wanted me?” Billy asked, whispering, and Steve nodded, hugging him tighter, and drew another circle around the one Billy had started, and wrote some stuff in there, ‘I’ and a heart and ‘Billy’, and Billy snorted a laugh, relaxing into him. He felt more solid, less like Steve’s fingers were going to press through him, and Steve dropped a kiss on his shoulder, his tears coming even faster in relief. Billy’s wound was smoking still, but he pushed himself upright—as Steve waved his hands in panic—and took a deep, slow breath, and shrank a little back into grown-up nanny Billy, in a t-shirt and jeans, still clutching at his stomach. The blood on the ground was smoking away. Billy took another slow breath, closing his eyes, and the blood on his shirt smoked away too.

Steve reached over—gently—and tugged Billy’s shirt up to see smooth unbroken skin, and wondered whether it was real. “Is—is it gone? Or are you hiding it?” he asked, around the lump in his throat, and Billy leaned in to kiss his head.

“I’m okay,” he whispered, as the sounds of shouting got closer.

“How did you get hurt,” Steve asked, rubbing his eyes again as they spilled over. “You’re magic, how—how did you get hurt, Billy, you—you promised—”

“I didn’t promise I’d never get hurt,” Billy laughed, and Steve punched his shoulder, and Billy grunted, wincing.

Steve scrambled closer, patting at him more gently. “It’s still there,” he realized, crying harder. “You’re still hurt, Billy, you’re hurt— we have to go to the hospital—”

“No, no, kiddo,” Billy laughed, gritting his teeth. “I’ll be okay. I’m just...hungry.”

“How did you get hurt,” Steve breathed again, his brain stuck on the memory of blood on the floor, and on his fingers. He clenched them, clean now, but he could still feel the stickiness.

“Well, he was human,” Billy said slowly, trying to push himself to his feet, “—and I’m not, so I was trying not to hurt him.”

“He had a gun,” Steve squeaked, stumbling to his feet to try and help Billy heave himself to his feet. “He had a gun, Billy—”

“But he’s human,” Billy said softly, glancing up with the smile he put on when he didn’t want to smile. “Like you. I can’t go around hurting humans.”

“You can if they have a gun,” Steve growled, steadying Billy as he stood, finally, staggering.

“Naaah,” Billy said, hugging his head. “You might stop and think twice about being my friend, seeing me do something like that.”

“I would not,” Steve insisted, huffing. “Not if they’re shooting at you—”

As they walked out, around the EMTs and a man in cuffs, screaming about demons, Billy flinched. Steve turned on his heel to go yell, because Billy was nice, and pretty, and he’d gotten shot, but Billy grabbed him up around the waist and kept walking, telling everyone that stopped him that they hadn’t seen anything, and they were fine.

“I hope they put him in jail forever,” Steve muttered, squirming to get down, because he was starting to get why parents got mad when they were worried. He wanted to shake Billy for not understanding he was important. Steve couldn’t stop snapping at him, either, even when he tried to be nice, stopping for a milkshake on the way home—Billy asked what kind Steve wanted, and tried to suggest vanilla when Steve paused, and then Steve went and said strawberry, just to prove him wrong, and he didn’t even like strawberry. Billy’s knuckles were white on the steering wheel as he drove, and Steve tried not to cry over his gross strawberry milkshake, and the remembered feeling of Billy’s blood dripping between his fingers and soaking into his jeans.

“Okay, I’m gonna need you to keep quiet about this, okay?” Billy told him, and Steve laughed, wetly, because it wasn’t like he could tell anyone anyway. Steve’s parents would have questions if Steve told them Billy had been naked.

“I won’t tell,” Steve said thickly, and Billy grinned at him, like everything was fine.

It was weird, being really, really mad at Billy. Steve wasn’t used to being so angry at somebody he loved, and it spilled out, everywhere, at his parents, his teacher, at his friends—and particularly at Billy, who glared in confusion as Steve stomped past when he offered a hug, or ignored Billy saving him a seat in the cafeteria, or refused to eat the awful food Billy cooked for dinner.

It was worse that he couldn’t even tell anyone—there was nobody he trusted enough, except Billy. It seemed so obvious, now, that Billy could be hurt— everyone could, Steve told himself, and it had been stupid to think Billy couldn’t be hurt just because he could do magic.

He wanted to scream because Billy would hurt himself to save Steve, or that he almost died, and acted like that was normal, and he yelled into his pillow until he cried.

“Don’t be pissed,” Billy hissed, yanking Steve around the back of the gym during recess, after Steve had picked Tommy first for his soccer team. “You know I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”

“I know,” Steve muttered, his eyes stinging, because being angry all the time made him want to cry all the time, which made him angrier.

“You are fine,” Billy whispered, sighing, like Steve was being a brat.

Steve figured he probably was being a brat, if Billy thought so, and kind of wished he could just say thank you, but it stuck in his throat, and he shoved Billy away.

“I protected you, you’re fine, I’ll always protect you,” Billy groaned, like Steve was stupid, and Steve pushed him again.

“What about you,” he yelled back, too loud, and started to cry again. The shouting of three classes at recess pretty much drowned him out, but it was still embarrassing. “Y-you keep saying I’m fine, what about you?!”

“I’m fine too,” Billy told him, rolling his eyes. “I healed, I’m okay, Stevie.”

“Don’t call me Stevie,” Steve said, and Billy blinked, probably because Steve had always kind of liked having nicknames, just like normal kids.

“...Steve,” Billy corrected, watching his face, and Steve realized he’d given Billy an order, and felt worse.

“Y-you keep saying it’s fine and it’s not fine,” Steve shouted at him, and Billy frowned harder. “It’s not fine if you get hurt,” Steve tried to yell, but his throat closed, and he kind of choked it out.

“It’s okay if I’m helping you,” Billy said, smiling like Steve was being funny, and Steve wanted to hit him.

“No,” he rasped out, and Billy cocked his head. “If,” Steve started, not sure how he was going to finish, “—i-if—if you keep saying—if you keep saying you don’t matter,” he forced out, swallowing hard, “—I—I’ll—”

“You’ll what,” Billy laughed, raising his eyebrows, and Steve set his jaw.

“I’ll believe you,” he threatened, lying, and Billy went still. “I—I’ll believe you. That you don’t matter. L-losing you doesn’t matter. M-my best friend doesn’t matter. If I—” he sniffled hard, wiping his face, “—if I don’t like you anymore, it won’t be so scary—”

“No,” Billy interrupted, wide-eyed, grabbing Steve’s arm. “No, no, no— Steve —”

“It’s fine if s-some—if something...happens to you! R-right?!” Steve insisted, crying too hard to pretend he wasn’t, and pushing Billy, who staggered back. “If you’re just gonna die I—” he cut off as his lungs seized at the idea of Billy dead, Billy in a pool of blood, still on the floor, Billy gone. “I-if you’re gonna die,” he started again, miserably, “I don’t wanna be your friend, I—I can’t—”

“Fucking hell,” Billy muttered, his hands twitching towards Steve, and then flinching back. “I’m sorry, okay, I’m sorry, please—please don’t—”

“Wh-what if you die and it’s my fault,” Steve moaned, hiccuping sobs, and trying to wipe his face, and Billy stepped in close again, grimacing uncertainly, wiping Steve’s face with his sleeves. He smelled like smoke, a little, like he did when something scary was happening, and the laundry detergent from when Steve helped him out at the laundromat, and Billy had chased him around and tickled him on one of the dryers. “What if you’re gone,” Steve wailed.

“No, no, no, c’mon, no, no—” Billy muttered, pulling him into a hug. Steve tried to pull away again, but Billy held on, warm and strong, and Steve finally just bawled into his shoulder, sobbing so loud everybody came to look, two different teachers, and all three of the classes at recess. Steve buried his face in Billy’s shoulder, and Billy hugged his whole head as Steve’s new favorite teacher squeezed both their shoulders, and whispered that she was glad they’d made up, and then ushered everyone away, even Tommy, who looked torn between triumph and worry.

“I’m s-still mad at y-you,” Steve told Billy, gulping for air. “I-I’m so mad at you—I—I’m so mad—” he wheezed out, his breath gone from crying, and Billy squeezed him tighter.

“Sssh, ssh, ssh, I’m sorry, I was wrong, I was wrong,” he whispered, and Steve relaxed, a tiny bit, wondering if Billy got it, finally.

“You c-can’t do that again,” Steve told him, feeling a sick guilt for ordering Billy around, but pushing on, because it had to be okay to not let Billy get shot.

“I don’t think there’s probably gonna be that many shooters at the mall, kiddo,” Billy whispered back, laughing, and Steve stomped on his foot.

“You have to promise,” he hissed, and Billy laughed again, but when Steve shoved away to glare at him, Billy was crying too, his eyes red and wet. “...you promise?” Steve asked, softening a little, and reaching up to wipe Billy’s tears off his round, freckled cheeks. Billy nodded, smirking a little, and Steve frowned. “You can’t just—get hurt. Not for me.”

“Because I’m so important,” Billy said, his smile widening a little as his eyes spilled over again. “And you’d be super sad.”

“Yeah,” Steve told him, narrowing his eyes, because he wasn’t sure Billy was really getting it, yet. “I’d probably cry for— forever.”

Billy made a weird noise in his throat as he laughed, leaning in and kissing Steve on his cheek, and his ear, clumsily, and squeezing him tight again until his fingers hurt against Steve’s arms and sides, but Steve didn’t care, because he was hugging back just as hard. “I—I’ll be more...careful,” Billy mumbled, sniffling. “Since I’m...important. So you don’t have to get so scared.” He took a shaky breath, burying his face in Steve’s shoulder. “...just...because of me.”

“You’re the most important person I know,” Steve told him, his breath going shaky again. “Just—just you, you have to—you have to be okay—”

“I gotta make sure I’m okay so you’re okay,” Billy whispered, nodding a little, and Steve groaned, but it was close enough, he figured, so he sighed a ‘yeah’. “Because I’m important,” Billy said, laughing a little, like he didn’t believe it, and Steve growled into his neck.

“I’m not lying,” Steve growled.

“No, no, yeah, I know,” Billy told him, giggling, and Steve pulled back to stare at him. He was laughing and crying, pink-cheeked. “I-I know. I’m—I’m important.”

[wulfies-kpop-fanfics]

One Photo → Mark Lee [9] [END]

↳  Pairing: Mark Lee/Reader

↳  AU: Soulmate!AU - The first touch of two soulmates permanently scars their bodies.

↳  Warning: angst if you squint

↳  Word count: 2,857

↳  Chapters: Prelude | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | You Are Here!

⁙ Summary: For an end of the year photography project, you’re tasked with taking a photograph for your favourite group, NCT127, and coincidentally, discover your soulmate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TUESDAY - 9

Day by day, things got steadily worse. Your body was constantly giving out, you had trouble breathing, and whenever you ate something, you always managed to throw it back up. The weight loss and iron deficiency you had developed after the last periods you’ve had led to four clinic visits and one hospital scare. You tried to play it off to your boss, but enough was enough and you knew you were going to be let go.

It took a lot of thinking, but you had finally decided to do what you had to. So, there you stood, taping the last box closed. You had sold your final possession besides your bed and your oldest camera, handing the sealed box to the buyer who had been standing in your kitchen. “Thank you,” he said, smiling gently at you. “This is gonna make my daughter really happy. I…” he cleared his throat awkwardly; “I hope that you get better soon.” 

You nodded, holding your breath for a moment to avoid coughing in his direction. “Of course. I hope she uses that camera well, it helped me a lot when I started college.” 

After he left, you looked over the bare-boned atmosphere of your apartment. Your coffee table was gone, your bookshelf, your easel. Your little television, table and chair, and nearly all of your glassware and cutlery had been sold as well. Walking into your room, the only things that were left were your tote of movies with all of Mark’s cards and letters tucked inside, and a backpack with a second outfit, toiletries and your camera stuffed in it. Even your bed was stripped just to the bottom sheet, the summer hot enough and your fever high enough that you didn’t need blankets anyway. Today was finally the day you had finally procured enough money for a plane ticket, a one-way trip that hopefully would relieve the pain in your heart and the crushing pressure in your head. 

While you lay in your bed, waiting for the night to pass, your phone, one of the last things you had to keep with you, buzzed. Rhiannon: How are you doing

You: I can never tell anymore

Rhiannon: Johnny, Hyuckie and I are going to meet you at the airport tomorrow. Mark’s getting pretty bad

Worry filled your chest, and you frowned at your screen.

You: Is he going to be okay? Rhiannon: we don’t know. He’s completely bedridden, I just hope that you don’t end up that way before your flight. I’m worried that they might not even let you on. 

You: I have to try

Rhiannon: I know…  

Rhiannon: I’ll see you soon, okay? I miss you

You: I miss you too. 

At this point, getting onto your flight was the least of your worries. After putting down your phone, you mad managed to get about ten minutes of rest before you had to run to your bathroom to throw up the measly dinner you had put together with the small food budget you had set for yourself. Once you were sure your stomach had settled, you went back into your backpack and pulled out your toothbrush, returning to the bathroom to clean out your mouth.

Looking into the mirror above your sink, you noticed how bad you had really gotten. Your cheeks were hollow, your skin pale and underneath your sunken eyes were the works dark circles you’ve ever had. You brushed as slowly as you could, hoping that you wouldn’t start to feel nauseous again. After spitting and rinsing out the sink, you decided that maybe it would be better to just get up and go to the airport now. 

You left your house key for the landlord on your kitchen counter with a note about where the spare was, stepping outside and locking the house with the spare, hiding it under your doormat before heading toward the elevator and beginning your journey. 

Occasionally you’d lose your footing, your balance off and your legs weak. You would grab onto the wall to steady yourself, hoping that you wouldn’t pass out. About an hour of subway and streetcar riding, you finally made it to the airport. It was chilling to see so many eyes on you. You knew that coming in this condition would get you multiple looks and passing disgusted faces, but you felt like you were passed feeling embarrassed. The teller looked at you sympathetically when you asked for the Delta non-stop flight to Incheon.

“Soulmate?” She asked, tilting her head curiously when you slid her your ID and your debit card, all of the money you had from selling your things on it. Just enough to pay for your ticket. 

“Yeah. Almost two years since I’ve seen him.” “My God,” she gasped, typing away on her keyboard. “It’s good you’re going now, I could never survive being away from my soulmate for that long. I was away from mine for a month when he was on a business trip and I was hospitalized!” 

“I’m sorry to hear that,” you rasp, watching her smile sadly in your direction. “I hope things go well for you. Have a safe flight to South Korea.” She slid your ticket, debit card, ID and itinerary over her desk, watching you slowly reach out to grab it. “Get lots of rest when you land.” “Thank you, I’ll try.” Feeling a little more pleasant after being wished well, you continued on your way. Through customs, the security check and the passport check, you did your best to keep back any coughing and the creeping feeling of nausea that was beginning to overwhelm you. Finally, you arrived in the boarding area, taking a seat with your bag on the floor, in between your knees. It was still a while before your plane would even arrive, so you plugged in your phone and decided to watch a movie. 

Night crept over the lounge, the windows displaying a slowly setting sun. After your movie ended you kept yourself occupied by watching the planes come and go until the tarmac was lit up with guiding lights that looked like stars. 

‘Flight from Toronto to Incheon nonstop now boarding.’

Finally.

You stumbled along and waited in your line, looking at your seat number. It was near the back of the plane, which would be loud, but at least it was close to the bathroom. The boarding attendant gave you a look with squinted eyes, but he still scanned your ticket, looked at your passport and let you go through.

Down the hallway, your legs gave out and your body clattered to the floor. “Hey, are you alright!?” Someone behind you came running up, gently taking your arm and helping you off the floor. “Jeez, you just toppled over!” She observed you, holding you steady. “You’re nothing but skin and bones…” “Sorry,” you apologize, hoping that you’d stay upright when she let your arm go. “I haven’t been doing the best lately.” “That’s okay,” she assured you. “Don’t you worry one bit.” Cautiously, she began walking with you, holding out her hands as if she was expecting you to fall again. “Why are you here and not at home, resting?” 

“I, well... this is soulmate sickness,” you explain cautiously. “My soulmate is doing worse than I am, and I decided to sell everything I own to buy a one-way ticket. I’m going to see him.” 

“Man,” she breathed, “I can’t imagine what that’s like.”

You let out a small, hollow laugh. “I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy.” “What seat are you?” “39-A.” 

“Oh,” she smiled at you, just as the plane entrance was coming into view. “I’m 39-B! I’ll help you put your backpack up, okay?”

“Thank you,” 

She smiled at you. “My pleasure.”

The hostess greeted you both when your new friend helped you board, watching with stunned eyes as you passed her. You both made your way to the back of the plane. You slipped off your backpack and she put both hers and your carry on into the compartment above you. “Do you want the window seat, or will that make you nauseous?” She asked, tilting her head to the side with an empathetic smile. “Would you be okay with switching? I’m supposed to have the window, but..” 

“Yeah, I’m totally fine with it! Here, sit down with me.” Once you both were seated, she held your hand. “So, what’s your name?” 

“It’s (Y/N),” you answer slowly, giving her a smile when you feel her hand take yours. It had been so long since someone had given you any physical affection. “I’m Nia,” she grinned. “It’s nice to meet you!” 

“Nice to meet you, too.”

After the plane took off, Nia did everything she could for you. She made sure you had a blanket, water, and she even had wipes in her purse that she kept on your forehead to make sure your fever stayed down. Nia talked with you about her boyfriend, showing you part of her scar that was on the back of her neck. She told the story about the last time she was in Korea, lost and out of her depth. Wonseo, her soulmate, had bumped into her, not paying enough attention to avoid her when she stopped to try and read a street sign. She, in turn, had a scar on her back and on her scalp, while his, funnily enough, was on the top part of his chest and his nose.

When you told her about meeting Mark and your own scar, her happy grin only seemed to grow wider. “I’m a fan,” she admitted, “and I’m guessing you haven’t been keeping up with media because before he stopped his activities, he started wearing that Star Wars sweater everywhere. Everyone knew it was from you since the first time he ever had it with him was in Pearson two years ago. I knew I recognized you, but dang, girl. You look terrible compared to then.”��

You smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, I tend to stay away from it all now, it just stresses me out.” She nodded understandingly. “Have you thought about the Gold Ceremony? Wonseo and I are actually in the process of planning ours, and I’m on my way home from meeting a bridesmaid that still lives in Canada.” 

“I haven’t really thought about that yet,” you answer honestly. “It’s all so nerve-wracking, don’t you think?” 

Nia shrugged. “I suppose your situation is a little different from everyone else’s, so I understand the aversion. I love the romance of it all, you know? Gold coating your scars so that everyone can see it as a sign of your commitment? Ah, it’s so exciting!”

“Maybe one day I’ll have the courage to ask him,” you say quietly, smiling at Nia. 

“Only if you’re comfortable, girl. Having your entire chest exposed to everyone around you may be a little weird even if you are getting married, y’know?” 

You chuckle. “Yeah, that’s true.” 

You kept little conversations going, occasionally stopping to take small naps. The two of you also exchanged numbers, and you felt happy that you had made a new friend. Eventually, daylight began to peek through the windows of the plane, signalling the time change and that you would soon arrive in Korea. 

Truthfully, no matter what Nia did for you, you only felt worse. You smiled and held back your nausea, but you could feel that as every moment passed, you declined further and further into your sickness. When the flight landed, you were happy that the sense of vertigo was gone, but you weren’t sure how long you would last without passing out. “Want me to help you through customs?” Nia asked once the seatbelt sign was turned off. She helped you stand, taking down your backpack for you and securing it on your shoulders. “I don’t want to be a burden on you,” you said quickly, grasping the seats as you made your way up to exit the plane.

“You’re far from that,” Nia reassured. “I won’t be able to stay with you the whole time, I just want to make sure that you make it to the people waiting for you okay. You said three of your friends were coming to meet you?” “Yeah,” you nod, thanking the hostess quietly as you pass her. “Thank you, Nia.” “Anything for a friend.” Slowly but surely, Nia helped you through the check-in and declaration stations, leading you through each step. Once you both got your passports checked, she turned and smiled at you. “I have to go get my suitcase now. Be safe and keep in touch, okay?” Nia hugged you ever so gently, before waving and taking her lead in the opposite direction you were to go, making her way to grab her suitcase off the conveyer. 

“See you,” you called behind her, steeling your nerve. You could make it. While you could barely read the directions with your now blurring vision, you managed to make it to the meeting area. Just barely in your line of sight were Rhiannon, Donghyuck and Johnny, holding up a rainbow sign with your name on it. You felt your chest flare-up, and if it was due to your sickness or your happiness you couldn’t tell, but you still began making your way toward them, smiling and waving.

That was until your body finally gave in. ~ “(Y/N)!” Rhiannon immediately dropped the sign and made a beeline for you as you toppled to the ground, Johnny and Donghyuck not far behind. She grit her teeth, doing her best to turn you over and hold you.

Donghyuck reached into his pocket to pull out his phone, ready to call an emergency number if Rhiannon couldn’t determine that you were breathing. He sighed with relief, luckily the airport was mostly empty and nobody would crowd you. “Is she okay?” Johnny knelt down beside her, looking on with worry. Rhiannon quickly checked your pulse and held her hand above your mouth. “Seems like she just passed out, she’s still breathing.” She breathed a sigh of relief, placing a hand over her chest. 

Johnny breathed a sigh of relief. “We should get her home, then. I’ll carry her, you grab her backpack.” 

Rhiannon nodded and slowly took your backpack off while Johnny picked you up. “Let’s go.” 

~

Everyone was waiting in the living room for Johnny and Rhiannon to return with you, after hearing them explain what happened when Taeyong called to check-in. They knew they couldn’t tell Mark about what happened since his condition was not much better. He was in his room, nearly unaware of everyone sitting and waiting with bated breath. Yuta and Jungwoo stood up quickly when the door handle turned and opened, revealing Rhiannon and Donghuck. Johnny followed in close behind, you in his arms, barely conscious.

“Hi, everyone,” you rasped, smiling as best you could, with lidded eyes. 

“(Y/N),” Doyoung stood. “We’ve all missed you.” 

“Yeah,” Jungwoo agreed. “We’re glad you’re home.” 

“Thank you,” your words were soft, laboured. “Where’s Mark?” You looked up at Johnny tiredly. Johnny smiled gently, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “I’ll take you to him. Let’s go.” 

You did your best to stay awake, suddenly beginning to feel a little better. Soon you both came across a door, the door slightly ajar. Johnny pushed it open gently with his foot.

“Guess who’s here?” He called into the room, and as soon as you lay eyes on Mark, you felt both simultaneously happy and guilty. Mark was skin and bones like you were, hollow cheeks and dark circles under his eyes. He was shivering as he struggled to sit up, large and thick blankets slowly shifting as he moved. “(Y/N),” he said, his lips forming the most endearing smile. “(Y/N), you’re here,” 

“Yeah, I’m here.” Johnny carried you to Mark’s bed, gently placing you down next to him in the spot where he had just barely pulled back the blankets. You had your head laying on Mark’s chest as soon as Johnny put you down, Mark’s arm immediately wrapping around you. You both breathed in a deep sigh of relief, and you felt your nose beginning to clear up. “You could probably use some water. I’ll be back.” Johnny quietly left the room, and as soon as the door shut, you couldn’t think of anything to say. 

You felt life coming back to you, but the long flight and the months of hardship still weighed heavy on you. You knew that this was your condition because you were struggling, and you had just sacrificed everything to be here. Now, on top of being sick, you were dirt poor. But, at least you were with your soulmate, and at least you were with all of your friends. At least you finally felt like you weren’t dying. “You can sleep,” you hear Mark whisper as he moved his other arm to touch your face. “I can tell you’re tired.” 

You smiled weakly. “Okay, as long as you sleep too.” Mark laughed softly. “Agreed.”

Not long after, the door creaked open once again. Johnny had come back with a glass of water, followed by Rhiannon. Johnny placed the glass of water on the nightstand next to your bed, while Rhiannon watched you and Mark sleep for a moment, holding the small framed photo in her hands, the one that started it all. She placed it next to the glass of water, adjusting it so you would see it when you woke up.

“Sleep well.”

[dissident-vedder]

- the christmas miracle ( 𝐒.𝐆. )

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character a vows to do something nice for a stranger during christmas time. character b is that stranger.

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𝐌 𝐀 𝐒 𝐓 𝐄 𝐑 𝐋 𝐈 𝐒 𝐓

tears pricked at the back of your eyes. here you were, two weeks away from christmas, and still no presents, no decorations, and very little food to even last this week. nina, your six-year-old daughter, kept asking about why christmas hasn’t come yet to your house, but how were you gonna tell her that you were struggling to buy food alone? it seemed like everyone in your apartment building knew of your financial status. they eyed you sadly as you walked down the hallways, making your way to work your one of two jobs, dark undereye bags staining the once skin-toned flesh, nina constantly wondering why you were working and no longer spending time with her as much as you used to. 

“i’m here to pick up nina,” you told him. “i’m her mom, mrs. gossard takes care of her in the afternoons.” 

“oh!” he smiles at you, “you’re ms. [y/l/n], right?”

“yes, i am!” you smile back. 

“come in, she got tired and is taking a nap in the living room,” he opens the door, stepping aside to let you walk in, taking in the pastel pink walls and white wicker furniture. “i’m stone, by the way. i’m mary’s son.”

“you’re the one she always talks about!” you brightly smile at him, causing him to blush lightly, sheepishly bowing his head. “she’s really proud of you, you know.” 

“she’s always like that with her children,” stone laughs lightly, scratching the back of his neck. the pale color of his skin complimented his eyes, making them appear brighter in the white light of his mother’s living room. 

“mama?” nina’s soft voice called from the couch. her small fist rubbed roughly against her eyelids, rubbing the sleep out of them as she pushed her upper body up to a sitting position. “hi,” you replied tenderly, making your way to her, her arms stretching out to allow you to pick her up easily. she wraps her arms around your neck and her legs around your waist, burying her head into the side of your neck, sighing gingerly, taking in the scent of the perfume you always wore. you turned back to stone, “is your mom home?” you pulled a small wad of money from your pocket, wanting to pay her for taking care of nina for however long she has been taking care of her for. “i’d like to give her this.” you pushed it towards stone, who gently put his hand over yours, pushing it back towards you.

“my mom won’t take your money,” he smiled delicately. “she understands, don’t worry about it.” 

“but -”

“no buts,” he shook his head, making his way into the kitchen, picking up the platter from the counter. “she also wanted me to give you this, if you came over while she was at her doctor’s appointment.” 

“thank you,” you freed one of your hands from nina, planning to take the glassware from him. 

“no,” he puts it back down on the counter again, hands outstretched to take nina. “i’ll help you take it home.” he smiles softly again. swapping nina for the pie plate, moving towards the door, eyeing nina as she rested her head on stone’s shoulder. her faint snores restarted, causing the man’s heart to slowly turn to mush as he rested his cheek on her head. your heart swelled, opening the door to his mom’s apartment. nina’s estranged father was never in the picture, and seeing a strange man cuddle her softly to his chest as he helped you really brought both sadness and want into your heart. 

you wanted nina to experience what having a father was like, but you barely had time for her, let alone another person. you walk to your apartment in silence, fearful that nina would wake up from her nap if you were too loud for her liking; she was always a light sleeper, something she gained from her dad, who was always sleeping with one eye open. you always wondered why, seeing that the neighborhood the two of you lived in was relatively safe.

most of seattle was. 

taking your key and unlocking your door, you lead stone to nina’s room, the princess themed bedspread thrown haphazardly across her bed, a few barbies and kens laying about the floor in front of her dresser. he gingerly placed her down, unbuckling her jeans and pulling them down her legs before moving the bedspread to cover her up to her chin. you smiled at the sight before going to the kitchen, placing down the pie plate on the counter next to your stove. the sound of heavy steps alerted you of his presence, “i have to go, it’s almost the end of my mom’s appointment and i had to drive her down there.” 

“alright,” you told him. “thank you for helping me with nina, i appreciate it.” 

“no problem, it was a nice break from the music business,” he beams, chuckling a little. “well, hopefully i’ll see you later!” he waves at you before walking away, opening the door to your apartment. 

“hopefully,” you hugged your arms around yourself. 

you had noticed a piece of paper on nina’s nighttable, and upon closer inspection, you noticed that it was stone’s phone number with a messily scrawled, “call me :).” 

you did, the next day, and since then the two of you spoke and laughed at his jokes, him telling you stories of his childhood, his adventures across the world, the stress of being in a famous band. you feared telling him of your financial struggles and the struggle of trying to make enough money to get nina some presents. however, what you did not know, was that mary had told him of your problems and his plan to help you out with it. 

it was the night of christmas eve, and nina had fallen asleep after throwing a small crying fit, wondering how 1. santa was going to be able to come to your home since it was in an apartment building (this was an ongoing thing for the past three years) and 2. why the christmas tree still wasn’t up. “he’s not going to come here if he can’t see the tree!” she cried, letting you hold her close, rubbing the back of her head as you calmed her down.

sitting in your living room with a book on your lap, your heart continued to beat wildly against your chest. you bought her very few things, most of which were small and it would make her a little disappointed, and at the same time break you heart as she would go back to school and talk about how the other kids got bigger and better things. 

a small knock on your door caused you to freeze, eyes wide as you thought of what could happen. a burglar waiting for you to be dumb and open the door? mary coming over to bring some food? all bad thoughts crossed your mind until you heard, “it’s stone!” coming from the outside.

what was stone doing here at. . . you glanced at the clock in the kitchen, 4 in the morning? you put down the book, upside down as to keep your spot, and made your way to the door, still confused at why he was here. you unlocked the door and when you saw the christmas tree box - amongst other things - sitting at his feet, you gasped. “what is this, stone?” 

“it’s for you and nina,” he smiled. “now, come on, it’s cold.” the two of you laughed, taking the time to pick up the boxes and transferring them into the warmth of your apartment, and as each box came in, you noticed that a few were already wrapped and ready to be placed under the christmas tree, one of which was wrapped in a different paper than the others. stone noticed you looking at it. “it’s for you.” 

it took the two of you half an hour to put up the tree and place the presents underneath, and once it was done, you were able to fall asleep peacefully, you and stone passing out on the cushions of your sofa. “mama!” nina’s cries pierced through the thick veils of sleep and woke you and stone up. “santa came!” you peered at her through your eyelashes, seeing her angelic face brighten up as she saw the many presents placed at the bottom of the lit tree. 

“open them,” you insisted, trying to sit up with some difficulty, soon noticing stone’s head resting against your stomach, arms wrapped lazily around your middle. you haven’t seen her this happy, you noted, hand making its way into stone’s hair, gently rubbing his scalp. he hums softly, watching the girl tear through the first box, a high-pitched squeal leaving her lips as she realizes it’s the victorian purple barbie house she’s been pestering you for months and something you complained to stone about. 

“nina,” you caught her attention, “can you give me that box, please? it has my name on it.” you caught the neatly scrawled [y/n] on the top. she snatches up from the floor, running over to you, placing it in your outstretched hand before going back to her own. “what is this, stone?”

“open it,” he nods to it. 

you tear the paper, letting the pieces drop to the floor, seeing a flat velvet box come into view. written on top of it was ‘gucci’. opening it, an aged gold butterfly necklace stares back at you from the confines of the white cardboard interior, and peaking from behind it, a gold-colored debit card sat. “it currently has a few thousand dollars in it,” stone informs you. “and it’s attached to my bank acount, as well, so now you and nina are dependents.”

“stone, i can’t take this,” you begin to protest.

“why not?” he picked himself up from your stomach, glacing at you from above. “it’s my money and i get to choose what i want to do with it. and i want to help you and nina. there’s only one condition.”

“and what’s that?”

taking a short glance towards your daughter, who was too busy tearing open the last few of her presents, he lowers himself against you, face turning towards yours before he presses his lips softly on yours. “just be my girlfriend. that’s all i ask.”

you nod. “always.”

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