#Not everything needs to be perfect. remember this

[maskedbyghost]

part 2 to Simon marrying another woman. there will be one more part.

That dreadful day, you didn’t stay for the reception. You couldn’t.

The sight of Simon’s lips pressing against hers, his hands on her waist, was more than you could bear. The weight of it settled in your chest, as you pushed through the church doors and into the biting cold. You told yourself you just needed air, but you kept walking, your heels clicking against the pavement as the world blurred past you.

It’s been seven months since he married her.

Seven months since you watched the love of your life vow to cherish someone else for the rest of his days.

Not you like he promised.

Her.

You tried moving on—tried dating, tried sleeping with other men. But no matter how hard you tried, no one compared. They didn’t know how you liked your coffee after a mission, or the songs you hummed when you thought no one was listening.

They weren’t him.

The team had noticed, of course. How could they not? Soap was the first to say something, pulling you aside after a particularly grueling mission.

“You alright?” he asked, his voice low enough that no one else could hear.

You lied, of course. “I’m fine.”

But Soap wasn’t buying it. “Fine, my arse. You’ve been off for months now. We’re worried about you.”

We.

The word stung more than it should have. You knew they all meant well—Price, Gaz, Soap—they were your family in every way that mattered. But the one person you wanted to notice, the one person who had always been able to read you like an open book, wasn’t yours anymore.

Simon barely looked at you these days. He kept things professional, as though the years you’d spent breaking down each other’s walls had never happened.

You hated him for it. You hated her for taking him from you. But more than anything, you hated yourself—for still loving him despite it all.

Why wouldn’t you? You and Simon were perfect for each other. Everyone saw it. The team had long accepted that you and Simon were a package deal, even when neither had put a label on it.

Everything was great—until she arrived.

She was an old friend of Simon’s, someone he’d known long before the Task Force. You remember the day she was introduced to the team, handpicked for her unique skillset, and vouched for by Simon himself.

Captain Price welcomed her without hesitation, and the rest of the team quickly followed. She was smart, capable, and annoyingly charming.

You wanted to like her. You really did. But something about her never sat right with you.

At first, her friendliness seemed genuine, and her interest in Simon was understandable given their history. She would tell stories about him from the past. You noticed how he seemed to soften around her, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips as he listened. It stung, but you told yourself it was harmless.

Then the games began.

She found ways to insert herself into moments that were once yours and Simon’s alone. If you were paired with him during training drills, she’d casually request to swap partners, laughing it off as wanting to “catch up with an old friend.” On missions, she’d position herself as his backup, leaving you to work with others.

Her manipulation was well calculated. When she slipped into Simon’s good graces, it was so gradual that even he didn’t see it happening.

During a team meeting, she’d mention how Simon had always been the one to “clean up after reckless partners” in the past, glancing at you just long enough to make her point. Or she’d joke about how “some people” needed constant saving in the field, her tone light but her eyes sharp as they flicked in your direction.

Simon rarely reacted to that. But you could see the doubt creeping into his expression, the seeds she was planting beginning to take root.

It wasn’t just her words, either. She had a thing for orchestrating situations that made you look bad without ever appearing to do so intentionally. During one mission, she “accidentally” overlooked a key piece of intel you’d flagged, leading to a delay in the operation. When Simon asked what happened, she apologized but subtly implied that your instructions had been unclear.

Another time, she volunteered to handle a critical piece of equipment, only to claim later that she thought you had already taken care of it. It was small things—barely noticeable—but they added up, each one chipping away at the trust you and Simon had built.

What hurt the most was how easily she slipped into Simon’s world. She knew how to talk to him in a way that made him feel understood, playing on their shared history to create a bond you couldn’t touch. She’d bring up memories from their past, reminding him of a time when life was simpler, safer.

And slowly, Simon began to change.

He second-guessed your decisions in the field. When you tried to talk to him about it, he brushed it off, saying you were overthinking things.

The worst part was that she always made sure to maintain her image as the perfect teammate—loyal, competent, and supportive. To everyone else, she was a godsend, a valuable asset to the team.

But you knew the truth. You saw through her façade, the way she manipulated situations to her advantage, the way she slowly turned Simon against you. And no matter how hard you tried to hold on, to remind Simon of the bond you shared, she was always there, pulling him further away.

And by the time Simon announced his engagement to her, you barely recognized the man you’d fallen in love with. The man who once held you with such tenderness now looked at you as though you were a stranger.

You started to fight with Simon often, because he was a dumb, stupid man who didn’t realize he was being manipulated. You tried to make him see it—the way she twisted things, the way she subtly undermined you—but he wouldn’t listen.

“She’s my friend,” he said once, his jaw tight. “You’re overreacting.”

You hated the way he said it, as if you were imagining things. The man you knew better than anyone, was slipping through your fingers, and there was nothing you could do to stop it.

The fights grew worse, spilling over from arguments in private to tense exchanges on missions. The team noticed, of course, but no one said anything. They kept their heads down, unwilling to get involved in whatever was happening between the two of you.

Then, one night, while you were on leave, Simon came home to the apartment you shared and started packing his things. You didn’t understand at first, standing frozen in the doorway as he folded his clothes and stuffed them into a duffel bag.

“What are you doing?” you asked, your voice trembling.

He didn’t look at you. “Leaving.”

“Why?” You stepped closer, trying to put yourself between him and the door. “Simon, please. Just tell me why.”

But he wouldn’t. He kept his gaze fixed on the floor.

You begged him to stay, tears streaming down your face as you pleaded for an explanation, for anything that could make sense of the sudden shift. But Simon—your Simon—had already made up his mind.

A month later, you saw the photos—Simon and her, sitting side by side at a café, her hand resting on his arm like she’d always belonged there. The smile on his face was small, but it was there, and it broke something inside you.

A few months after that, they were engaged. The wedding followed soon after.

“They want to have a small ceremony,” Soap said. He hadn’t looked at you when he spoke, as if he couldn’t bear to see your reaction.

And now here you were, seven months later, still trying to piece yourself back together while Simon lived a life you were supposed to share with him.

One night, during a late briefing, you caught Simon looking at you. It was just a flicker, his gaze lingering a moment too long, his expression unreadable.

For a second, you thought you saw something—regret, maybe even sorrow—but it was gone before you could be sure. You told yourself you imagined it, that your mind was playing tricks on you, desperate for any sign that he might still care. But the look stayed with you, in your memory next to the happy moments with him.

And so, you wanted to continue living your life normally, and tried to move on, but it was hard. You kept telling yourself it would get easier with time, but time seemed to stand still.

The memories of Simon lingered everywhere—his voice in your head, the way he used to call you “love,” the small habits he’d left behind in your shared life.

You threw yourself into your work, drowning in the chaos of missions and training. But even in the most hectic moments, there was always an ache in the back of your mind, serving like a fucking reminder of the man you’d loved and lost.

You tried dating, fleeting distractions that always ended the same way—with you staring at the ceiling, wondering why no one could make you feel the way Simon did.

But then, one day, something happened.

Price called you to Simon’s office. His tone over the comm was urgent and it made your stomach twist. He didn’t explain, only told you to come immediately.

You hurried down the corridor, your mind racing. Something about Price’s voice told you this wasn’t about a mission or a routine debriefing.

Something was wrong.

When you reached the door, you hesitated for just a moment, hand hovering over the handle. You took a deep breath, steadying yourself, and pushed it open.

The sight inside made your heart drop.

The office was in ruins—papers scattered across the floor, the desk overturned, a chair broken and lying in pieces. A crack ran through the mirror on the wall, distorting your reflection.

And there, amidst the chaos, was Simon.

He was sitting on the floor, his back against the wall, knees drawn up slightly. His mask was gone, revealing a face filled with exhaustion and pain. His eyes were fixed on the ground, as he muttered the same words over and over, barely audible.

“She ruined my life… she ruined my life…”

Price stood near the door, arms crossed tightly as he watched Simon. When he saw you, his shoulders relaxed slightly, as though he’d been waiting for you.

“Please,” he said quietly. “Talk to him. You’re the only one he might listen to.”

Your throat tightened as you stepped closer, every movement feeling heavy. You knelt a few feet away, your voice soft, almost trembling.

“Simon…”

He looked up at the sound of your voice, his gaze locking with yours. He managed a weak, bitter smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“Sorry, love,” he murmured, the words barely more than a whisper.

And then, before you could react, he raised the gun to his head.

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

yup. this is a perfect place to stop. gonna go hide now hehe

(sorry if you didn't want to be tagged)

@daydreamerwoah @postm0rt3m @blacpiink @nightunite @surprisinglydreaming @shybasementtree @foxwitch666 @snaaaaaaaaaked @somethingsaladsomething @massivescissorsthingperson @abbeyskeff @a66-1 @mortem-writes @jupitersmoon167 @blankk3 @yxfairyrx @balletbiscuit @pickyourpoisonandevolve @emilia527 @midgalaxysparkle @0bonnie-bunny0 @kittygonap @babybimbo777 @johnnyshoe @probably--possessed

[bunchacrunchcake]

Perfect!

Humans are absolute shit at understanding scale.

Person A) Lives a nearly zero waste life to the point of being incredibly stressed and constantly overthinking every behavior they do

Person B) Drives a pickup truck, eats mainly red meat, smokes, drinks and orders from Amazon constantly, leaves the AC and heater on high when they're out of the house so it's a nice temperature when they get home.

Person C) Flies private jets weekly, has catered food and multiple servants per house they own which need to be kept clean, temperature controlled, and monitored by private security. They have a private driver with an Escalade.

Person A's consumption is incredibly low, heroically low. There are a lot of these people but nowhere close to be a majority of people.

Person B without thinking or trying is consuming about 10x of person A.

Person C without thinking or trying is consuming closer to 1,000,000 (one million) of person A.

On top of that, if Amazon ran an all electric vehicle fleet, used biodegradable packaging, payed fair wages, didn't force consumption through aggressive ad tactics, etc, you'd cut about 1-2x out of person B. Same with installing more efficient heating and cooling, building public transit, making cars electric only, etc. Person B would be mad most likely due to political opinions, but largely their life would not be much different.

But... If you just taxed person C like 50% it would severely cut their ability to consume so much. Don't even get me started on yachts and cruise ships. They're globally some of the top polluters.

Anyways, when you're saving some plastic bag so it can get used again, or making sure you wash all your recycling (which actually does not always get recycled even if it gets to the facility). Remember that it's so useless it's basically just virtue signaling. And that real change is made by forcing companies and governments and billionaires to stop completely fucking everything.

Before you say I'm a plant, I'm not. I would much rather you spend less energy composting your dinner when you're to exhausted to keep it up and more energy making sure your city has a composting program, less energy biking in shitty weather you hate being out in and more energy flaming your mayor on Twitter for not having bike lanes and free buses. On and on. Pick bigger targets, make activist friends. Make companies and billionaires pay to clean up the messes they make. Make our country beautiful and worth living in again.

Oh and also there's so much bullshit inflation going on right now, if we did this stuff would be cheaper. Renewables are cheaper than gas. Heat pumps are cheaper than old heating systems. Actual good public transit is more relaxing and safer than driving and cheaper and faster for everyone.

discussions about sustainability largely have to be in the realm of production, not consumption. while curbing wasteful consumption habits is important, issues of unsustainable goods can only be solved by literally producing less of them. this approach immediately resolves most issues with individualist, moral 'consumer activism' - for instance, it doesn't matter if you personally eat meat or not, but, factually, we need to significantly reduce the size of the animal agriculture industry if we want the earth to remain habitable. whenever you discuss this, a million scratched satisfascists start acting as though we intend to just take away their treats and replace them with nothing - as if the removal of personal automobiles doesn't go hand in hand with the redesigning of cities around walking and public transit, as if the removal of one method of production doesn't mean its replacement by another. the two main errors here, of the treatlerites, and of those who forget that socialism is supported by the people only because it improves their real conditions, should both be avoided.

[thedensworld]

Reality Love Winner | K.Mg

Genre: fluff, angst, suggestive, exes to lovers au!

Summary: Mingyu needs money, as well as you. So joining a reality dating show for money wouldn't hurt anybody right?

Hello everybody! First fic in 2025 and i hope you enjoy this lil fluffy fluffity fluff of Mingoo🥰

What he remembered about you the most?

A three-month relationship felt like a whirlwind—a fleeting moment of bliss before reality forced you both apart. It wasn’t that the love was absent; it was just overshadowed by the weight of your individual ambitions.

But even with its brevity, your time together left a searing mark on Mingyu. What stood out the most wasn’t the laughter, the conversations, or the shared dreams—it was the intimacy. He vividly recalled the nights when the two of you were tangled in his sheets, naked and desperate to escape the stress of your demanding lives. Heated kisses that turned into frenzied passion. Sloppy thrusts that silenced the chaos of the outside world.

Every encounter felt like an unspoken agreement to forget your struggles by losing yourselves in each other. Mingyu knew your favorite position by heart, learning your body as if it were a masterpiece he’d been tasked to perfect. He was meticulous, deliberate, obsessed. And every time, he was grateful for his early mornings at the gym, pumping iron and building strength—not just to look good, but to keep up with you.

On the wall, on the table, on the bed, or sprawled across the floor—Mingyu was always ready. Sitting, lying down, or standing, he gave you everything he had. It wasn’t just sex; it was an act of devotion, a way to show you how much he craved you, admired you, worshiped you.

What haunted him most wasn’t just the absence of those moments, but the fire you left behind. You were a storm he couldn’t forget, a fever that lingered in his veins long after you’d gone. He didn’t just remember you; he felt you, like a phantom touch, long after you’d both walked away.

For Mingyu, obsession wasn’t even the right word—it was something deeper, something primal. You were the one indulgence he never wanted to give up, the addiction he never thought he’d have to quit.

"Let's break up."

The words fell from your lips with a quiet finality, and he knew—this was it. The end. He had always known it would come to this, hadn’t he? Even from the beginning, there had been an unspoken truth lingering between the two of you.

You were too devoted to your work, pouring your heart and soul into a career that demanded every ounce of your time and energy. And Mingyu? He had his own empire to build, a business that consumed him in ways even he didn’t anticipate.

There was no space for you and him in the cracks of your busy lives, no room to nurture what little love you had managed to build. Every moment together felt like stealing time from a ticking clock, and the pressure of it all had slowly worn you both down.

Calling it quits was the better option, the logical one. Yet as he looked at you, standing there with that familiar fire in your eyes dimmed by sadness, he couldn’t help but wonder if logic was enough to soothe the ache in his chest. The ache of knowing that what could have been would never be.

He didn’t argue. He didn’t try to change your mind. He simply nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat as the weight of reality settled over him. Because deep down, Mingyu knew that loving you had always been a beautiful impossibility.

However, Mingyu heard the news about you through Seungkwan, the friend who had introduced the two of you in the first place.

“She got involved with a senior and was manipulated. It wasn’t fair, but you know how companies work,” Seungkwan explained, his tone laced with disappointment.

Mingyu felt a rush of anger surge through him as the words sank in. You had worked your ass off, pouring everything you had into your career, only to be cast aside like that? It wasn’t just unfair—it was cruel.

As he stewed in frustration, an idea began to form in his mind. Maybe, just maybe, there was a way to turn your current misfortune into an opportunity for both of you. He’d recently heard about Reality Show Love, a dating show still in the process of casting couples. The prize money was massive—enough to breathe life back into his struggling business and possibly even give you a fresh start.

All you had to do was agree.

When he called you one night to pitch the idea, your voice was sharp and unyielding. “I’m not doing it!”

“Come on, Y/n!” Mingyu countered, his tone pleading yet persuasive. “It’s not like we’re going to actually be a real couple. We just have to act a little, play the part, and scam the audience. Easy money!”

He quickly rattled off the prize amount, letting the number hang in the air. The silence on the other end of the line told him everything he needed to know—you were considering it.

“What do you think?” he pressed, the edge of excitement creeping into his voice. “We split it 50:50. Half for me, half for you.”

You exhaled, your hesitation audible, before finally muttering, “Alright. Deal.”

And just like that, the wheels were set in motion. The two of you now stood alongside three other couples in a luxurious villa meticulously prepared by the production crew. In the narrative crafted for the show, you were cast as a one-year-old couple—a boss and their assistant—an angle the casting team found intriguing enough to secure your spot.

“I think it’ll be more interesting if we have opposite charms,” Mingyu had suggested during one of your brainstorming sessions to make your ‘relationship’ believable. “Like a golden retriever and a black cat dynamic?”

You raised an eyebrow, skepticism etched across your face. “I don’t want to be the dog. That sounds exhausting.”

Mingyu huffed dramatically, crossing his arms. “Fine, I’ll take the golden retriever role. I’ve been a dog all my life, anyway. You can be the black cat—it suits your real personality.” His tone turned teasing as a sly grin spread across his face.

Your eyes narrowed. “Watch it, Kim Mingyu. You’re not exactly a ray of sunshine yourself.”

The banter was light, but it was also necessary. Every detail of your fabricated relationship had to be convincing—not just to the production team, but to the millions of viewers who would be scrutinizing every interaction.

Once the introductions were complete, the couples were assigned their respective rooms, though there was a twist: men and women would be separated. It was part of the show’s strategy to create tension and test bonds. The host announced the premise of the competition. Over ten episodes, the couples would face various missions designed to showcase their dynamics and challenge their chemistry. Only one couple would make it to the end to claim the grand prize.

“Sounds pretty easy, right?” Mingyu whispered as the rules were being explained, leaning closer to you with a glint of mischief in his eyes. “As long as we keep working together.”

You glanced at him, catching the rare blend of excitement and determination on his face. “Easy for you to say,” you murmured back. “Just don’t forget your lines, golden retriever.”

Mingyu smirked, the confidence in his expression unshakable. “Don’t worry, black cat. I’ve got this.”

And as the cameras rolled, capturing every calculated glance and practiced smile, the real game began.

*

As two episodes aired, the reaction to you and Mingyu was massive. No one had expected a couple that looked like they walked straight off the pages of a magazine to join a reality dating show—and with such surprising charm, no less.

Viewers were captivated, fully buying into the backstory crafted for your relationship: a boss who had fallen in love with his assistant after working tirelessly together to build a business from the ground up. The narrative felt heartfelt and relatable, leaving audiences touched and rooting for you both.

Mingyu’s likeable persona quickly became a hot topic on the internet. His name trended on search engines for two weeks straight, with fans gushing over his effortless charisma and warm personality. A particular clip of him cooking breakfast for all the contestants went viral, drawing millions of views and flooding comment sections with admiration.

“Boyfriend material!”

“Kim Mingyu is the blueprint.”

“How can someone be this handsome and good at cooking?!”

The buzz surrounding him was electric, turning him into an overnight sensation. Meanwhile, your poised yet subtly feisty demeanor perfectly balanced his golden retriever energy, solidifying the two of you as fan favorites.

With each new episode, it became increasingly clear—you and Mingyu weren’t just playing the game. You were stealing the show.

To keep up with the growing tension and maintain the audience's interest, you and Mingyu had a private meeting to brainstorm new strategies to market your relationship as even more likeable.

“Should we make you anxious about all the attention I’ve gotten these past two episodes?” Mingyu suggested, a teasing glint in his eyes. You chuckled, feeling a flicker of hesitation. You had never lived a life filled with worry, so the idea felt a little foreign to you.

“Should I try, Y/n?” he pressed, raising an eyebrow as if daring you to bite. Mingyu still couldn’t wrap his head around how someone could live so carefree, with no worries to weigh them down.

You considered it, then threw out another idea. “Or maybe we could stress the point that you’re completely obsessed with me because I’m so pretty?”

Mingyu groaned, clearly not impressed. “Please, Y/n. You’re not helping your case.” He rolled his eyes dramatically, the playful frustration in his voice making you smirk.

“Or you could act jealous,” you continued, clearly enjoying the banter. “I could flirt with one of the other cast members. Get some real drama going.”

Mingyu’s eyes widened in mock horror, then lit up with excitement. “Brilliant!” he exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear. “People love watching someone else get jealous. It’s perfect.”

You couldn’t help but laugh. As ridiculous as it was, you knew one thing for sure: the next few episodes were going to be a whole lot more interesting.

As the next few episodes aired, you followed through with the plan—interacting more with the other male cast members, engaging in lighthearted conversations, laughing a little too easily, and making sure the cameras were capturing every moment. You could feel Mingyu's eyes on you, though he pretended to stay calm. But it didn’t take long for his frustration to show. The subtle way his jaw tightened when you spoke to the others, the barely noticeable sighs, and the way his gaze lingered on you longer than usual—it was all too obvious.

And, of course, the cameras were quick to catch it. The production team loved the drama, and it didn’t take long for the clips to go viral. The viewers ate it up, with fans speculating whether Mingyu’s frustration was real or just another part of the act. Was he truly jealous? Was the "golden retriever" becoming possessive over his "black cat"?

Behind the scenes, the tension was palpable. The other women started to notice too, their glances sharp as you exchanged playful remarks with the other men. The whispers began to spread, and soon it was clear: they weren’t just jealous of your interactions with the men—they were envious of the attention you were getting from everyone.

“Did you see how Y/n was acting with him?” one of the women muttered, her voice low but full of disdain. “She doesn’t even care about Mingyu. It’s like she’s trying to make him jealous on purpose.”

“Exactly,” another woman added, eyeing you from across the room. “It’s disrespectful. If she really cared about him, she wouldn’t be all over everyone else.”

You could feel their eyes burning into your back, but you played it cool, smiling and continuing your act. After all, it was all part of the game. But the other women’s comments only made the drama more intense. The cameras were always watching, capturing every move, every subtle exchange, making sure the growing animosity was on full display for the viewers.

Meanwhile, Mingyu’s behavior was becoming more and more erratic. He'd snap at the smallest things, acting like every interaction you had with the other men was a betrayal. His reactions—though exaggerated—were feeding into the narrative the producers wanted: a couple on the brink of imploding.

“You’re making it hard for me to stay calm, Y/n,” Mingyu muttered one evening, when the two of you were alone, as the cameras rolled. “Everyone’s watching, and you’re just giving them what they want.”

You raised an eyebrow, playing along. “What do you mean? I’m just being friendly.”

But you could see the struggle in his eyes. It wasn’t easy for him to pretend it didn’t bother him.

The drama between the two of you was escalating, and with it, the show’s viewership skyrocketed. Fans were torn between rooting for your playful chemistry and wondering just how far Mingyu’s jealousy would go before everything exploded. The producers were thrilled, and for the first time in the show’s history, the audience was completely invested in your “relationship.”

By the time the fifth episode aired, the tension had reached a boiling point. The producers, eager to keep the drama flowing, decided to bring up something that would really shake things up: the couples' pasts. The production team had asked each couple to submit stories from their past, their struggles, and moments from their present lives to add depth to their on-screen personas. You and Mingyu, caught up in the whirlwind of the show, had submitted a mixture of made-up tales and, honestly, a few true stories—mostly because you couldn’t be bothered to fabricate everything.

But the producers, ever the masterminds of manipulation, weren’t content with just the surface-level drama. They chose to highlight certain moments—stories that you didn’t expect to come to light. One of those stories was about your three-year relationship with your ex.

You sat there, feeling a lump form in your throat as the host casually brought it up.

“So, in your past, Y/n, you had a significant relationship that lasted three years,” the host began, looking at you with a knowing smile. “Can you tell us about that?”

Your heart skipped a beat, and you could feel the room shift. Mingyu shot you a concerned glance, but he quickly masked it with his usual carefree smile, trying to play along with the show’s narrative.

You hesitated, the words stuck in your throat. It wasn’t just another story—it was your story. The pain, the memories of that time, resurfaced like a wave crashing over you. You had tried so hard to bury it, to move forward with Mingyu and keep your focus on the present, but here it was, dragged out into the light.

“I… it was a complicated time,” you began, your voice shaky, trying to maintain your composure. "We were in different places in life. It ended because of... differences in what we wanted, what we valued."

The host nodded, prompting you to continue. "It’s just hard to let go of someone you spent so much time with, especially when the future felt uncertain. But I thought I had moved on… until now."

The words hit harder than you expected, and your mind raced with all the unresolved emotions tied to that past. You had moved on from your ex, yes, but the scars it left were deeper than you had allowed yourself to acknowledge.

As the story played out on-screen, you could see Mingyu's eyes flicker with a mix of concern and something else—something that felt too close to discomfort for comfort. The producers, with their expert timing, had turned a lighthearted conversation into something raw, something personal.

“And how does Mingyu feel about you sharing this part of your past?” the host asked, turning the spotlight onto him.

Mingyu’s smile faltered for a second, the weight of your past suddenly making him uneasy. He leaned forward, looking directly at you, trying to keep the mood light despite the tension rising. "It’s just a part of her story," he said with a slight chuckle. "I’m not worried about it. I trust her."

But you could tell it wasn’t as simple as that. The air between the two of you shifted, just for a moment, and the playful, teasing dynamic you had spent episodes building seemed to falter.

The room grew quiet, and the cameras were rolling, capturing every inch of your discomfort. Mingyu, ever the showman, quickly recovered, but his earlier comment about trusting you sounded more like a plea than a statement of confidence.

The host pushed on, sensing the discomfort. “So, Y/n, do you think you’ve fully healed from that relationship? And how does it affect your relationship with Mingyu now?”

You took a breath, trying to regain control of the situation. You didn’t want to seem vulnerable—not on national TV, not when you had built a persona of the confident, carefree woman. But the question hit you in a way you hadn’t anticipated.

“I... I thought I had,” you said softly, eyes dropping to the table for a moment. "But sometimes, things from the past come up, and you realize there are still things you need to process. It’s not always easy."

The silence that followed was thick with unspoken tension, the cameras capturing the moment for the world to see. You could almost feel Mingyu’s gaze on you, but you didn’t look up. He didn’t need to know how much that relationship still affected you. You were here now. You had him now.

But the damage was done. The audience, the cast, and even Mingyu were left to stew in the emotions that had been stirred up. The past was never truly gone—it was just waiting for the right moment to resurface, and now everyone could see the cracks in your carefully constructed armor.

As the episode ended, you couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a turning point. Mingyu had already taken the role of the jealous, possessive partner in this show, but this revelation might be more than he could handle. You couldn’t tell if it was the game or real feelings on his part, but something about this challenge had just gotten a lot more complicated.

*

Mingyu drove you home in silence, the weight of the day hanging heavy in the air. He hadn’t expected your real story to be exposed on national TV. It wasn’t just part of the game anymore—it was raw, unfiltered, and it had clearly shaken you. He parked his car in the basement of your apartment building, and without saying much, he helped you carry the bags and equipment from the shoot to your unit.

"Thanks," you said softly, your voice still a little strained, though you tried to mask it.

He nodded, but his eyes lingered on you for a moment, noticing how your mood had completely shifted since the shoot. The lightness you had carried with you before seemed to vanish, replaced by a palpable weight.

"Hey... You okay?" Mingyu finally asked, his tone careful, as though testing the waters.

You nodded, though it felt mechanical. "Yeah... just tired."

He watched you for a moment, but the tightness around your eyes and the way you held yourself told a different story. Something was off. Mingyu tightened the line of his lips, unsure of what to say next, but his instincts told him to push just a little more.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" he said, his voice low but earnest.

You shook your head slowly, your palm instinctively rising to cover your face. The sob that escaped was uncontrollable, the emotion you had kept bottled up for so long suddenly breaking free. You hadn't realized how much of it had been building inside you until that moment.

Mingyu’s eyes softened, his heart sinking as he saw the vulnerability in you that you usually kept hidden. He immediately stepped forward, closing the distance between you, and pulled you into his arms.

"Oh... Y/n... it’s okay," he whispered, his hand gently rubbing your back as he held you. He didn’t say much more—there was no need for words. His embrace, steady and comforting, was all you needed in that moment.

He didn’t push you to explain. He simply held you as the tension in your body began to release, feeling the weight of everything you’d been carrying.

Mingyu held you tightly, his embrace warm and steady. The sound of your sobs was muffled against his chest, and for a moment, neither of you spoke. The world outside your small apartment felt miles away as you allowed yourself to break down, to release everything that had been building up inside of you.

He gently stroked your hair, his fingers moving in soothing circles as he waited. His chest tightened, heart aching at the rawness of the pain you were carrying. He wanted to ask you what had happened, why the past hurt so much. But he knew better than to push too hard, too fast.

"You don’t have to talk if you’re not ready," Mingyu whispered, his voice soft but filled with concern. "I’m here. Whenever you’re ready, I’ll listen."

You pulled back slightly, your face still hidden behind your hand as you wiped your tears. It was a small, fragile moment, the kind of thing you didn’t allow anyone to see. You had built walls around your emotions, convinced that vulnerability only made you weak. But in that instant, with Mingyu, the walls began to crumble.

"I didn’t want them to know," you said, your voice breaking. "Not like that. Not on national TV. It feels like... like I have no control anymore."

Mingyu’s expression softened, and he reached up to gently lower your hand from your face. He looked at you with those warm, steady eyes of his—eyes that had seen your strength but never pressured you to be perfect.

"You don’t have to control everything," he said quietly. "It’s okay to let go sometimes. It’s okay to not have everything figured out."

You stared at him, feeling a mix of gratitude and confusion. You had always prided yourself on being independent, not needing anyone. But now, in this vulnerable moment, Mingyu’s words pierced through the walls you had built around your heart.

"I’m so sorry," you whispered, your voice barely audible. "I didn’t mean to bring this into the show. I didn’t mean to drag you into it."

Mingyu shook his head gently, his thumb brushing over the back of your hand in a gesture of comfort. "You don’t need to apologize to me. You’re not dragging me into anything. I chose to be here, with you." His voice grew steadier, more certain. "And I’m not going anywhere."

The sincerity in his words settled around you like a blanket, comforting and warm. You had always admired Mingyu’s ability to stay calm under pressure, but now, seeing him so open with you, a part of you finally let go.

For the first time in a long time, you allowed yourself to lean into the comfort of someone else, to let your guard down without fearing rejection or disappointment. Mingyu didn’t look at you like you were broken. He didn’t judge you for your past, for the messiness of your emotions. He simply accepted you for who you were in that moment.

As the silence stretched on, you took a deep breath, your tears slowing. It wasn’t that everything was fixed—it was far from that—but for the first time, you felt a small flicker of hope. Maybe things didn’t have to be perfect. Maybe, just maybe, you didn’t have to do it all alone.

Mingyu’s arms were still around you, his presence a quiet reassurance that you weren’t as alone as you thought. And for the first time in what felt like forever, you allowed yourself to believe it.

*

It was a collaborative game, and the tension was palpable. Blindfolded, Mingyu had to follow your instructions to retrieve an item. The more valuable the item, the more points you and Mingyu would earn. You both managed to snag a teddy bear, worth 75 points—second only to a ring box, which was worth 100. The competition was heating up.

The next game was a chase. You and the other female contestants would chase after your partners and try to rip off their sticker. The energy was high, and it was clear that both you and Mingyu were in it to win. Mingyu had always been competitive; winning was almost a reflex for him. And you? You were determined to do anything it took to secure the victory. It made for the perfect dynamic between the two of you.

You sprinted after Minho, Suji’s partner, moving with precision, waiting for the perfect moment to slyly rip the sticker from his back. Meanwhile, Suji, who was supposed to be focusing on Mingyu, couldn’t help but get distracted by the sight of you in full chase mode.

With a triumphant grin, you tore the sticker off Minho’s back and bolted toward Mingyu. You threw your arms around him in celebration, his smile wide as the buzzer signaled the end of the round. His sticker had remained intact, and your victory was assured.

As everyone gathered for a well-deserved break in the gazebo, refreshments were passed around, and Mingyu handed you a glass of orange juice and some sweets with a thoughtful smile. You couldn't help but think that his gesture was more for the audience's benefit—especially since all the other women were stealing glances at the two of you. The chemistry between you and Mingyu was undeniable, and it wasn’t lost on the others.

Teasingly, you reached up and softly rubbed his cheek, your fingers grazing his skin as you leaned in closer. "Good job, baby," you murmured with a grin.

Mingyu froze for a moment, genuinely surprised. The blush creeping onto his cheeks was almost impossible to hide, his ears tinged with the faintest shade of red. He turned quickly to grab his own drink, still flustered, trying to compose himself. The effortless chemistry between the two of you was apparent, and though the cameras caught it all, neither of you seemed to mind.

As the cast mingled around the gazebo, you noticed Mingyu standing nearby, fidgeting slightly while sipping his drink. His earlier blush hadn’t completely faded, and it made you smile to yourself. Stepping closer, you nudged him gently, making sure the cameras had a clear view.

"Hey," you said softly, your tone full of warmth. "Are you okay? You didn’t hurt yourself during the game, did you?"

Mingyu turned to you, his expression softening immediately. He set his drink down, leaning slightly toward you as if to close the gap. "Me? Hurt? Come on, babe, you know me better than that," he replied with a playful smirk.

You crossed your arms, feigning a skeptical look. "Oh, really? I saw how Suji almost tackled you earlier. It looked intense."

He chuckled, his hand instinctively reaching out to rest on your arm, a small but noticeable gesture caught by the cameras. "She tried, but you know I wasn’t going to let anyone mess with my sticker. Besides," he added, his voice lowering, "you were the one I was worried about. Did Minho give you a hard time?"

"Not even close," you replied with a grin, brushing a loose strand of hair behind your ear. "He underestimated me, and I had him cornered in no time. But honestly, you didn’t have to worry about me."

Mingyu tilted his head, his gaze lingering on you for a moment longer than necessary. "Of course I worry about you. You’re my girlfriend. It’s kind of my job, you know."

You laughed lightly, but his words and the gentle way he looked at you made your cheeks heat up. Playing along for the cameras, you reached out to adjust the collar of his shirt, letting your hand linger just a bit. "Well, if it’s your job, you’re doing pretty well so far," you teased.

His ears turned a little pink at the affectionate gesture, but he recovered quickly, placing his hand over yours. "And you? You were incredible out there. Honestly, I couldn’t have done it without you."

"Stop," you said with a playful shove, though your smile was genuine.

Mingyu caught your hand before you could pull away, intertwining his fingers with yours just enough to make it look natural but undeniably intimate. "I’m serious," he said, his tone softer now. "You’re the reason we’re killing it out here."

The subtle touch, the way his voice dipped just enough to make it personal, and the little glances exchanged were all perfectly timed for the cameras. From the outside, it looked like a real moment of connection—and for a fleeting second, even you weren’t sure how much of it was just an act.

The night air was cool, but the crackling fireplace in the center of the group cast a warm glow, creating a cozy atmosphere. Everyone sat in a loose circle, bundled in blankets, sipping warm drinks, and buzzing with energy. The production team had introduced a truth-or-dare session as part of the episode, and it didn’t take long for things to heat up.

Each couple was put on the spot, tasked with either revealing secrets or proving their chemistry through daring challenges. You and Mingyu were relentless, using every opportunity to push the other couples to their limits.

"Truth or dare?" Mingyu grinned devilishly at Suji and Minho, leaning forward slightly.

Minho sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Dare," he finally said, clearly regretting it the moment Mingyu’s eyes lit up.

"Alright," you jumped in, smirking as you exchanged a look with Mingyu. "Minho, we dare you to serenade Suji. Let’s see if you can melt her heart with your voice."

The group erupted in laughter as Minho reluctantly grabbed a nearby guitar. Suji’s amused but skeptical look was priceless, and the whole scene played out perfectly for the cameras.

But soon, it was your turn.

"Truth or dare, Y/n and Mingyu?" Minho asked, his earlier payback evident in his mischievous tone.

You glanced at Mingyu, who shrugged, his grin challenging. "Dare," you both said in unison.

Minho leaned back, his smile spreading. "We dare you two… to make out. Right here, right now, in front of everyone."

The group collectively gasped, the dare sending waves of anticipation through the circle. The cameras zoomed in, catching every reaction.

You turned to Mingyu, raising an eyebrow. "You game?"

Mingyu chuckled, the corners of his lips twitching into a smirk. "It’s just for the cameras, right?" he whispered, leaning a little closer to you.

The atmosphere was heavy with anticipation, the fire casting flickering shadows across everyone’s faces. All eyes were on the two of you, waiting. Mingyu reached for your hand, his palm warm and steady against your own. The simple touch sent a ripple through you, the intimacy of the moment amplified by the crowd and the rolling cameras.

He tugged you closer, his tall frame leaning down slightly to meet you. His free hand found its way to your waist, the pressure gentle but grounding, like he was anchoring you to him amidst the tension that seemed to thicken the air.

"Alright," he murmured, his voice a husky whisper meant only for you. His breath brushed your ear, sending a shiver down your spine. "Let’s give them a show."

You swallowed, your pulse quickening. Mingyu’s gaze held yours for a fraction of a second longer than necessary, a flicker of something unspoken in his deep brown eyes. Was it amusement? Confidence? Or something softer, more genuine? You couldn’t tell, and it only made your heart race more.

As you leaned in, the world around you seemed to blur. Your lips met his, soft at first, a tentative touch that betrayed the scripted nature of the dare. But then, something shifted. Mingyu’s grip on your waist tightened slightly, pulling you closer, and the kiss deepened.

His lips moved against yours with a rhythm that felt almost too natural, too real. The crackle of the fire and the murmurs from the others faded away entirely. For a moment, it felt like it was just the two of you, wrapped in a bubble that no one else could penetrate.

Your hands instinctively found their way to his shoulders, fingers curling slightly against the fabric of his shirt. The warmth of his touch seeped through you, mingling with the fire’s heat and the faint scent of woodsmoke in the air.

Mingyu tilted his head, adjusting the angle, and the kiss grew more deliberate. His thumb brushed your waist in a subtle, almost comforting gesture. Was he trying to reassure you? Or was he just as caught up in the moment as you were?

Your emotions were a whirlwind. There was the rush of performing for the cameras, the thrill of the audience’s attention, but also something deeper—something unexpected. The kiss felt too perfect, too seamless, as though it wasn’t just an act.

When you finally pulled away, the spell broke. The group erupted into cheers and whistles, their energy breaking the tension like a dam giving way. Mingyu didn’t let go immediately. His hand lingered at your waist, and his lips, now curved into a satisfied smile, glistened slightly in the firelight.

His gaze met yours, and for a second, the world seemed to slow again. There was a flicker of something behind his playful smirk—a softness, a warmth that made your chest tighten.

"Not bad," he said quietly, his voice teasing but layered with something else, something almost unreadable.

You tried to steady your breath, forcing a grin to match his. "Not bad yourself."

As you turned back to the group, the cheers and teasing chatter filled the air, but your mind lingered on the kiss. You couldn’t quite shake the feeling that something about it had felt undeniably real—and by the way Mingyu’s hand brushed against yours as he moved to grab a drink, you wondered if he might have felt the same.

*

The shoot for the next episode had wrapped up, but the atmosphere off-camera was far from celebratory. A lingering tension buzzed in the air, and it all traced back to a bombshell dropped by Woorin, one of the female cast members, during a game.

“Are you two really a couple?” Woorin’s voice had cut through the lively chatter like a knife, her words laced with suspicion.

The question wasn’t lighthearted. Her tone carried weight, and the shift in the room was immediate. The other cast members exchanged glances, while the production crew subtly stopped what they were doing, their attention now laser-focused on you and Mingyu.

You exchanged a fleeting look with Mingyu, your heart pounding. You both knew this question might come up eventually, but not like this. Mingyu was the first to speak, his voice steady despite the pressure.

“Of course, we are,” he said with a confident smile, wrapping an arm around your shoulders for good measure. “Why would we fake something like that?”

But Woorin wasn’t convinced. “Really?” she said, her eyes narrowing. “Because I heard something… interesting.”

Your stomach dropped as Woorin leaned forward, her demeanor more like a detective than a reality show cast member.

"You know,” Woorin said, her voice calm but calculated as she glanced between you and Mingyu. “This whole act of yours? It’s really convincing. Almost too convincing. Especially considering… you two are exes.”

Her words hung in the air like a storm cloud. The other cast members froze, their eyes darting between you and Mingyu. The production crew exchanged worried glances, unsure whether to keep filming or intervene.

You felt the blood drain from your face. Your heart pounded in your chest as you looked at Mingyu, who seemed equally caught off guard.

“What are you talking about?” Mingyu asked, his tone attempting nonchalance, though his jaw tightened.

Woorin smirked, clearly enjoying the drama. “Oh, come on,” she said. “It wasn’t that hard to figure out. A little digging, a chat with some mutual acquaintances… and voilà. You two used to date, didn’t you?”

The silence that followed was deafening. The cast members leaned in, their curiosity piqued. Even the cameras seemed to loom closer, capturing every flicker of emotion on your faces.

Finally, you found your voice. “That’s none of your business,” you said firmly, trying to regain control of the situation.

“But it is everyone’s business, isn’t it?” Woorin countered, raising an eyebrow. “You’ve been parading around as this perfect couple for the cameras. Don’t you think the audience deserves to know the truth?”

The director immediately called for a break, and the cameras were turned off. The producer stormed onto the set, pulling you and Mingyu aside for an emergency meeting.

Inside a quiet room, the producer’s expression was a mix of frustration and concern. “Is it true?” they asked, their voice low but intense. “Were you two in a relationship before this show?”

You hesitated, your gaze darting to Mingyu. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck before nodding. “Yes,” he admitted. “We dated. But it was a long time ago.”

“How long ago?” the producer pressed.

“A year ago,” you said quietly. “It ended on good terms. We’re just… friends now.”

The producer let out a deep breath, pacing the room. “This is a nightmare,” they muttered. “If this gets out, it’ll overshadow the entire show. The audience will think everything’s staged.”

Mingyu stepped forward, his voice steady. “We didn’t plan this to deceive anyone. We’ve been doing our best to play our roles and keep things professional.”

The producer stopped pacing, their gaze sharp. “Professional? You call this professional? Woorin just uncovered your past in front of everyone. How are we supposed to recover from this?”

“We’ll handle it,” you said, your voice stronger now. “We’ll find a way to address it without ruining the show.”

The producer shook their head but finally relented. “Fine. But we’re going to need a strategy. You two need to be on the same page, and no more surprises.”

As the meeting ended, you and Mingyu were left alone in the room, the weight of the revelation pressing down on both of you.

Mingyu finally spoke, his voice soft. “I didn’t think Woorin would dig that deep.”

“Neither did I,” you admitted, leaning against the wall. “But now that it’s out, we have to figure out what to do.”

Mingyu looked at you, his expression serious. “We’ve been convincing so far. Maybe we can still turn this around.”

You nodded, though your mind was racing. “We don’t have a choice,” you said. “We either control the narrative or let it control us.”

Mingyu smiled faintly, a flicker of determination in his eyes. “Then let’s give them a story they’ll never forget."

*

Mingyu decided to stay at your place after the chaotic shoot, both of you desperate to pitch a salvageable story to the production team. The stakes were high, and the tension between you two was palpable, though you masked it with humor and exhaustion.

“He threatened to kick us off the show, Y/n! What about our money?” Mingyu groaned dramatically, flopping onto the couch beside you like a deflated balloon.

You rubbed your face, equally frustrated. “Min Woorin must be insanely jealous to dig that deep into our past. I mean, I didn’t even talk to her boyfriend. It’s not my fault he’s the one trying to be overly friendly with me!”

Mingyu nodded vehemently, his annoyance bubbling to the surface. “Exactly! That Juyoung bastard couldn’t stop staring at your butt the entire time. I swear, I’ll kick him in the face the next time he even glances your way!”

A moment of silence settled between you, both of you letting out a deep sigh in unison, the absurdity of the situation hitting you like a wave.

“What should we do, Mingyu?” you asked, your voice softer now, tinged with worry.

Mingyu raked his fingers through his hair in frustration. “I don’t know,” he muttered. “This wasn’t part of the plan, Y/n. Getting caught? That wasn’t in the cards.”

You leaned into his shoulder, seeking some sort of comfort. “Neither was this for me,” you murmured.

After a beat, you spoke again, your voice laced with hesitation. “Should we just… be honest about our story? I mean, if the audience reacts well, I’m pretty sure the producers will let us stay.”

Mingyu sighed deeply, his arm instinctively draping over your shoulders. “And what exactly is so interesting about our past story, huh?”

You tilted your head to look at him, a mischievous glint in your eyes. “The fact that you were completely obsessed with me?”

Mingyu snorted, his lips twitching into a smirk. “And you, who kept disappearing on me for a job that eventually fired you? Real romantic, Y/n.”

You jolted upright, indignantly slapping his arm. “Hey! That was not my fault!”

Mingyu chuckled, shaking his head as you settled back into your spot, leaning against him again. His teasing tone softened. “I’m kidding, Y/n. Relax.”

A quiet stillness filled the room as both of you let the exhaustion seep in. “Let’s sleep on it,” Mingyu finally said, his voice low and steady. “We’ll figure out what to say to the producer tomorrow.”

Before you could respond, he wrapped his arm tighter around you, pressing a soft kiss to your temple. It was so natural, so instinctive, that neither of you questioned it.

The weight of the day melted away as you both closed your eyes, the warmth of his presence lulling you to sleep. Without even realizing it, the two of you fell asleep together on the couch, tangled in a quiet understanding and comfort that only the two of you could share.

The next morning, you and Mingyu were summoned to an emergency meeting with the production team. Both of you arrived feeling uneasy, expecting the worst after the events of the previous day. However, to your immense relief, the team had come up with a new, more thrilling storyline to salvage the situation.

“We’ve decided to take a different approach,” the producer began, glancing between the two of you. “We’re going to reveal that you and Mingyu aren’t actually a couple. Instead, you’ve been part of an undercover mission to test the other couples’ loyalty.”

You exchanged a quick glance with Mingyu, the tension in your shoulders easing as the producer continued.

“This means that from the very start, there were only three real couples,” the producer explained, leaning forward with an air of excitement. “Your role will now be to challenge the loyalty and trust between the cast members and their partners, adding a layer of drama and intrigue to the show.”

Mingyu raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “And what happens if none of them survive the tests?”

The producer’s lips curled into a sly smile. “If no couple manages to stay together by the end, the two of you will win the prize money.”

You couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh at the audacity of the new twist. “So, we’re basically the villains now?” you asked, tilting your head as you tried to process the sudden shift.

“Not villains,” the producer clarified, though their tone suggested otherwise. “Think of yourselves as catalysts for truth. You’re here to reveal the cracks in their relationships—or prove their strength, if they can survive.”

You groaned in frustration as Mingyu drove the two of you home. The sound startled him, and he jolted slightly in his seat.

“What’s wrong? You’re scaring me!” Mingyu exclaimed, glancing at you with wide eyes.

“Won’t we look like villains?” you blurted out, the weight of your earlier decision sinking in. “We’re going to break somebody’s relationship, Mingyu!” You slapped his arm lightly in protest, and Mingyu winced dramatically.

“Think about the prize, Y/n,” he countered, his voice calm yet persuasive. “You said it yourself—you need the money to start your design studio. This is our chance!”

You slumped back in your seat, letting out a defeated sigh. “You’re right,” you muttered, though the guilt still gnawed at the edges of your resolve.

“But it’s still so wrong, Gyu!!” you exclaimed, throwing your hands up.

Mingyu smirked, his eyes glinting with amusement as he processed what you had just called him. “Wait, did you just call me 'Gyu'?”

You rolled your eyes. “It’s your name. Kim Min Gyu. What else would I call you?”

He let out a hearty laugh, his tone tinged with nostalgia. “But you haven’t called me 'Gyu' since we broke up. No one ever says it the way you do—so affectionately.”

You huffed, crossing your arms over your chest. “I know, right? I’m just so naturally affectionate,” you quipped, your sarcasm barely masking the flicker of emotion in your voice.

Mingyu chuckled, clearly amused by your reaction. Without thinking, he reached over and pinched your cheek gently. “You’re so dramatic sometimes,” he teased, though there was a softness in his tone that made your chest tighten.

For a moment, silence filled the car, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was heavy with unspoken words, memories bubbling to the surface.

“Sometimes, I wonder why we broke up,” Mingyu murmured, his voice quieter now, tinged with regret.

You turned to look at him, your expression unreadable, before letting your gaze drift out the window. “Hm…” you hummed softly, as if lost in thought.

The air between you thickened with a mix of nostalgia, unresolved feelings, and the undeniable bond you shared. Neither of you said another word, but the weight of his question lingered in the car, refusing to be ignored.

As the car rolled to a stop outside your apartment building, you stayed quiet, your mind racing. Mingyu's words echoed in your head.

“Sometimes, I wonder why we broke up.”

It was such a simple sentence, yet it carried so much weight. You had been so sure you’d moved past what you and Mingyu had—so sure your relationship was part of a chapter you’d closed. But sitting beside him now, feeling the warmth of his presence and hearing the softness in his voice, you couldn’t ignore the way your heart stirred.

You glanced at him from the corner of your eye. He was humming under his breath, his fingers lightly drumming on the steering wheel. The casualness of it all—the ease in which he fit into your life, even after everything—confused you.

Why does it still feel so natural?

“Y/n?” Mingyu’s voice broke through your thoughts. You blinked, realizing he had already turned off the car and was looking at you with concern. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” you said quickly, forcing a small smile. But the truth was, you weren’t sure if you were okay. Not with the way your feelings were starting to shift.

Inside your apartment, the atmosphere was quieter, but your mind wasn’t. Mingyu helped you unpack the stuff from the shoot, his usual playful banter filling the space. He teased you about the way you had tripped during the game, mocked your competitive streak, and even reenacted how he "heroically" protected his sticker during the chase.

You laughed, but the sound felt hollow to you. Because as he moved around your living room, so comfortably as if he had never left, you felt your chest tighten again.

You hadn’t let yourself think about Mingyu this way in a long time. After the breakup, you buried the memories of him deep, convincing yourself it was better that way. But now, those memories were resurfacing—his laugh, his protectiveness, the way his eyes lit up when he talked about something he cared about.

And the way he had looked at you earlier in the car—like he still saw the world in you.

“Hey, Y/n,” Mingyu called, snapping his fingers in front of your face. You hadn’t realized you were staring at him.

“Huh?”

“You’ve been spacing out all evening,” he said, sitting beside you on the couch. He leaned closer, his face just inches from yours. “What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?”

Your heart skipped. He always knew how to read you too well, and that was terrifying.

“Nothing,” you lied, breaking eye contact. “Just tired.”

But as Mingyu leaned back, a soft chuckle escaping his lips, you knew it wasn’t nothing. Not anymore.

Because the feelings you thought you’d buried were resurfacing, blooming into something unfamiliar—something you weren’t sure you wanted to name yet. And sitting there beside Mingyu, you realized that no matter how much you tried to deny it, he was starting to become more than just your ex.

*

It was late afternoon, and Mingyu sat in a quiet corner of a chic café, laptop open as he skimmed through his emails. His attempt to juggle his business responsibilities with the chaos of the reality show had been taxing, but today’s meeting was a necessary step in keeping his plans on track.

The café door chimed, and Mingyu glanced up. A man entered, exuding quiet confidence. He was dressed sharply, his every movement composed and deliberate. Mingyu recognized him immediately—Wonwoo, the ex you had mentioned during the shoot, the one who had left a lasting impression on you.

Mingyu’s jaw tightened as Wonwoo approached. Of all the people he could have had a business meeting with, it had to be him.

“Kim Mingyu,” Wonwoo greeted as he extended a hand, his tone polite but distant.

Mingyu stood, shaking Wonwoo’s hand. “Jeon Wonwoo. Thanks for making the time.”

The two men settled into their seats, the conversation starting off professionally. Mingyu kept his tone measured, his questions direct, but he couldn’t help the nagging thoughts that crept in.

This was the man who had been with you for three years. The man you couldn’t fully let go of, even when Mingyu had been in your life. Mingyu hated how easily those thoughts consumed him now.

As their discussion moved forward, Mingyu noticed something about Wonwoo that made him uneasy. The man was calm, composed, and had a way of speaking that drew people in—traits that Mingyu knew had probably captivated you once.

Toward the end of the meeting, Wonwoo leaned back, his gaze steady on Mingyu. “So,” he started casually, “you’re working with Y/n on this reality show, right?”

Mingyu stiffened, his hand tightening slightly on his coffee cup. “Yeah. What about it?”

A small smile tugged at the corner of Wonwoo’s lips. “Just curious how she’s doing. It’s been a while since we talked.”

Mingyu’s eyes narrowed. “She’s fine. Doing great, actually.”

Wonwoo nodded, his expression unreadable. “Good to hear. She always had a way of pushing through tough situations. Guess that’s why she stuck with me for as long as she did.”

The words were light, but they hit Mingyu like a punch. He forced himself to stay composed, but his frustration bubbled beneath the surface.

“Y/n’s strong, no thanks to anyone else,” Mingyu replied, his tone sharper than intended.

Wonwoo raised an eyebrow, but instead of responding, he simply smiled. “Interesting.”

As Mingyu sat in his car after the meeting with Wonwoo, the weight of unspoken emotions pressed heavily on his chest. The encounter had been professional on the surface, but beneath the veneer of polite conversation, a storm brewed within him.

Mingyu had always prided himself on being confident—bold even. But something about seeing Wonwoo, the man who had been such a significant part of your life, unraveled him in ways he hadn’t anticipated.

He couldn’t shake the image of Wonwoo’s calm demeanor, the way he carried himself with an air of assurance. It made Mingyu feel... small. He hated it. The jealousy gnawed at him, an unfamiliar and bitter taste he couldn’t ignore.

"He’s the kind of guy people don’t forget," Mingyu thought bitterly, gripping the steering wheel tighter. The words Wonwoo had said about you—how strong you were, how you’d stuck with him—echoed in his mind, fueling an insecurity he didn’t want to admit existed.

"Did you love him more than me?"

The question haunted him, the one he asked during the last time you were together. It wasn’t just about love—it was about lasting impact. Mingyu couldn’t bear the idea that, even after all this time, Wonwoo might still hold a place in your heart.

The drive home was silent, save for the sound of his uneven breathing. His mind raced through memories of your relationship—your laughter, the way you used to look at him like he was your entire world. Somewhere along the way, he had lost that, hadn’t he? He had let you slip through his fingers, and now he was left grappling with the fear that maybe, just maybe, someone else had filled the void he’d left behind.

Somehow he found himself in your way into your apartment and saw you sitting there, looking up at him with surprise, the storm inside him reached its peak. He hadn’t planned to confront you, but the words spilled out before he could stop them.

“Do you still think about Wonwoo?”

The question hung in the air, raw and unfiltered. Mingyu’s heart pounded as he watched your reaction. The way your eyes widened told him you hadn’t expected this—hadn’t expected him to be so vulnerable, so shaken.

But he couldn’t hold it back anymore. The encounter with Wonwoo had forced him to face something he’d been avoiding: his growing feelings for you. They weren’t the same as they’d been before, during your relationship. This time, they were deeper, more desperate, tinged with the fear of losing you again.

“It matters to me,” he said, his voice unsteady. “Because I don’t know where I stand with you. And seeing him—hearing about your history—it made me realize how much I hate the idea of not being enough.”

He felt exposed, like he’d just ripped open his chest and laid his heart bare. Mingyu had never been good at admitting his insecurities, but with you, it was different. You had always been different.

As you reassured him, your words sinking into his heart like a balm, Mingyu felt the tension begin to ease. But even as relief washed over him, there was still a lingering ache—a reminder of how much he wanted to prove himself to you. Not just as someone you had loved before, but as the person you could love again.

For Mingyu, it wasn’t just about rekindling what you’d had. It was about building something stronger, something unshakable. And in that moment, as he looked into your eyes, he silently vowed to do whatever it took to earn that place in your heart again.

*

The memory played vividly in Mingyu's mind as he sat in silence, staring blankly at his reflection in the car window. It was a conversation from a year ago, back when the cracks in your relationship had just begun to show—back when he still didn’t understand the weight you carried.

The words he’d overheard echoed in his mind, carving a painful clarity he hadn’t been prepared for. The reason behind your relentless work ethic—the late nights, the unwavering drive—had never made sense to him before. But now, as the pieces fell into place, the weight of it all hit him like a punch to the gut.

It was because of Wonwoo.

You had loved him enough to change yourself, to push yourself beyond limits, all in the hope of becoming what his family deemed "worthy." The thought of you, the bright, fierce person he knew, bending under the weight of someone else’s expectations was enough to make Mingyu’s chest tighten. He hated it—hated the idea of you sacrificing so much only to be rejected.

The mention of your broken engagement felt like a dagger twisting in his heart. An engagement. He hadn’t known things had been that serious between you and Wonwoo. It wasn’t just a fleeting romance or a long-term relationship—it was a promise of forever, one that had been shattered by people who had no right to decide your worth.

Mingyu’s hands clenched into fists on his lap as he recalled the times he’d teased you about your workaholic tendencies. He’d never realized there was a deeper pain driving you, a history that had left invisible scars. Now, knowing the truth, he felt an ache in his chest—part anger at Wonwoo and his family, part regret for not understanding you sooner.

When he saw you later that evening, sitting at your desk with your laptop open, he couldn’t hold it in any longer.

"Y/n," he called softly, his voice unusually subdued.

You glanced up, surprised by the seriousness in his tone. "What is it?"

Mingyu hesitated for a moment, his gaze searching yours. He saw the weariness in your eyes, the traces of a past you rarely talked about. Taking a deep breath, he moved closer and crouched beside your chair.

"I heard about... Wonwoo," he said quietly, watching your expression carefully.

Your eyes widened, and for a moment, he saw the walls go up, the instinctive way you guarded yourself when the past came up. "Who told you?" you asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

"It doesn’t matter," Mingyu replied, his hand resting lightly on your knee. "What matters is that I know now. And I’m sorry."

You frowned, confusion flickering across your face. "Sorry for what?"

"For not understanding sooner," he said, his voice tinged with frustration—at himself, at the situation. "For not realizing why you work so hard. I thought it was just ambition, but it’s more than that, isn’t it? You were trying to prove yourself to someone who didn’t deserve you."

Your lips parted as if to argue, but the emotion in Mingyu’s gaze stopped you. He shook his head slightly.

"Don’t defend him," Mingyu said softly. "Don’t defend a man who let his family’s opinion dictate his love for you. You deserve better than that, Y/n. You always have."

Mingyu felt a lump form in his throat as he watched you, the pain in your eyes piercing through him. He reached out, hesitating for a moment before placing a hand on yours.

"Y/n," he said softly, his voice steady despite the emotions threatening to overwhelm him. "You didn’t have to change yourself for anyone. Not for him, not for his family. They were blind if they couldn’t see how amazing you are."

You turned to him, your gaze searching his, and for a moment, Mingyu thought he saw a flicker of hope in your eyes. But then, you smiled—a sad, resigned smile.

"Maybe," you said quietly. "But it doesn’t change the fact that I wasn’t enough for him."

Mingyu opened his mouth to argue, to tell you that you were more than enough, that Wonwoo’s loss was his greatest mistake. But the words caught in his throat, because deep down, he wondered if he was any different.

He squeezed your hand gently, his heart aching as he whispered, "You’re enough for me."

You didn’t respond right away, your eyes dropping to where his hand rested on yours. And though you didn’t pull away, Mingyu couldn’t shake the feeling that you were already slipping through his fingers.

It was a moment he would replay over and over in his mind, long after the breakup—wondering if he could have done more, said more, to keep you from walking away.

*

The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife as you stood by the refreshment table, filling your glass with water. Mingyu was off to the side, chatting with one of the cast members, but his eyes flicked over to you every few seconds, always keeping an eye on you.

That’s when you heard the sharp click of heels against the tiled floor. You turned just in time to see Woorin storming toward you, her face a mix of anger and hurt.

"Y/n!" she snapped, her voice loud enough to make heads turn. Before you could respond, she raised her hand, and the sound of the slap echoed in the room.

You staggered back, your hand flying to your cheek in shock. Gasps erupted from the surrounding cast and crew as everyone froze, unsure of what to do.

"What the hell, Woorin?!" Mingyu's voice roared across the room as he rushed to your side, placing himself between you and Woorin. His protective stance was immediate, his broad shoulders shielding you from her.

"She deserves it!" Woorin spat, her voice trembling with rage. "Do you think I don’t know? Juyoung’s been flirting with her—my boyfriend—and she just stands there like she’s innocent!"

Mingyu’s jaw tightened, his eyes darkened with fury. "Don’t you dare blame her for your boyfriend’s behavior," he growled. "If he’s flirting with someone else, that’s on him—not her."

Before Woorin could reply, Juyoung stepped forward, his face pale but determined. "Woorin, stop this," he said firmly, his voice cutting through the tension. "You’re overreacting."

"Overreacting?" Woorin turned on him, her voice breaking. "You’ve been flirting with her since day one, Juyoung! Don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you look at her!"

Juyoung sighed, his frustration evident. "I haven’t been flirting with anyone! You’re making something out of nothing."

"Nothing?!" Woorin’s voice rose again. "How about the way you kept standing near her during the games, or how you laugh at everything she says? Even your friend said you couldn’t stop talking about her before the show started!"

Juyoung groaned, running a hand through his hair. "You’re twisting things, Woorin. I’m just being polite and friendly. It’s a competition—we’re supposed to interact with everyone!"

Woorin’s tears spilled over as she pointed an accusing finger at him. "Polite? Friendly? You’ve ignored me for days and acted like I don’t exist, but you have time to chat with her?!"

"Enough!" Mingyu barked, his voice sharp and commanding. "This isn’t the time or place for your relationship issues. Don’t drag Y/n into this."

Juyoung raised his hands defensively, his eyes darting between Mingyu and Woorin. "I didn’t mean for this to happen. I’m not interested in Y/Nln that way—she’s not even my type!"

The words stung, though you weren’t sure why. You held your tongue, your cheek still throbbing from the slap, as Woorin scoffed. "Oh, now you’re backpedaling. How convenient!"

Mingyu stepped closer to Juyoung, his presence looming. "You’ve said enough," he said coldly. "If you’re not interested in her, make that clear to Woorin and leave Y/n out of your mess."

Juyoung nodded hesitantly, his gaze dropping to the floor. "Fine. Woorin, can we talk about this privately?"

Woorin hesitated, her anger simmering but waning. She cast one last glare in your direction before turning on her heel and storming out, with Juyoung reluctantly following her.

The room buzzed with whispered conversations as Mingyu turned back to you, his expression softening as he reached out to gently touch your arms. "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice low and filled with concern.

You nodded, though your cheek still stung. "I’m fine," you murmured, but your voice betrayed the slight tremble in your chest.

Mingyu frowned, his hand moving to cup your face as he examined the red mark. "She had no right to do that," he said, his tone still simmering with anger.

"I know," you replied, your eyes meeting his. "But I can’t blame her for feeling hurt. Juyoung—"

"Juyoung’s an idiot," Mingyu interrupted, his voice firm. "And so is anyone else who can’t see how incredible you are without needing to blame you for their problems."

His words struck something deep inside you, and for a moment, you couldn’t look away. Mingyu’s thumb brushed gently over your cheek, as if he could erase the sting of Woorin’s slap with his touch.

As the evening wore on, the atmosphere in the studio remained tense, with everyone still recovering from the incident with Woorin and Juyoung. But it seemed like there was no end to the drama. You noticed Suji walking over to Mingyu, her movements deliberate, her laughter just a little too loud. She stood a bit too close, touching his arm as she spoke, her eyes lingering on him in a way that didn’t sit well with you. You shifted in your seat, feeling an uncomfortable knot form in your stomach.

From the corner of your eye, you saw Minho standing off to the side, his gaze fixed on the pair. His posture was rigid, his eyes narrowed, clearly irritated by what he was seeing.

He didn't wait long before he made his way toward you, his expression serious. When he reached you, he didn't mince words. "Y/n," Minho started, his voice low but urgent. "I need to talk to you about Mingyu."

You raised an eyebrow, confused. "What about him?" you asked, glancing at Mingyu, who was still talking to Suji. His body language seemed polite, but there was a stiffness in it that made you wonder.

Minho hesitated, his eyes briefly flickering over to the pair again. "Suji," he said, his voice almost a warning. "She’s been trying to get his attention for a while now. She’s… impulsive, and honestly, I don’t think Mingyu understands how far she’ll go to get it."

You frowned, the realization hitting you like a ton of bricks. Suji was Minho’s girlfriend. "You think Suji’s flirting with Mingyu?" you asked, feeling a mixture of concern and confusion.

Minho nodded, his voice dropping lower as he stepped closer. "She doesn’t know when to stop, and she’s not as innocent as she looks. I’m telling you this because I care about both of you, and I know Suji can be manipulative when she wants something. She’s been acting like this for a while now, and I don’t want Mingyu getting caught up in it."

You glanced at Mingyu again. Suji was still leaning in, laughing a bit too much, her fingers lingering on his arm. You couldn’t deny the tightness that curled in your chest. Was she really pushing him in that direction? Was Mingyu even aware of what was going on?

"What do you want me to do?" you asked, your voice uncertain. Minho’s warning was ringing in your head, but you weren’t sure how to handle it.

"I think you should talk to him," Minho said, his eyes filled with concern. "Suji won’t back off easily. I just don’t want Mingyu to get blindsided, especially with everything else going on."

You nodded slowly, trying to process everything Minho had just said. "I’ll talk to him. Thanks for the heads-up, Minho."

Minho gave you a brief nod, his expression softening. "Just look out for him, Y/n. I know it’s complicated, but you’re the one who can get through to him. Just… make sure he doesn’t fall for her games."

You watched him walk away, but your attention immediately went back to Mingyu and Suji. There was no denying the way Suji was behaving, and you could feel that knot tightening in your chest. You knew you had to talk to Mingyu about it, but would he listen? Would he see the situation the same way?

With a deep breath, you made up your mind. You had to have this conversation with him before it spiraled any further.

*

The drive to Mingyu's house was quiet, the usual hum of conversation replaced by the low rumble of the car's engine. The tension from the day’s events still hung in the air, and it wasn’t lost on either of you. Mingyu’s grip on the wheel tightened, his eyes focused on the road ahead.

As you approached his house, you couldn’t shake the conversation with Minho from your mind. You needed to talk to Mingyu about what had happened, especially considering how closely he and Suji had been interacting. But how could you bring it up without it sounding like you were overreacting?

Finally, as he pulled into the driveway, you broke the silence. "Mingyu," you began carefully, watching him glance at you briefly. "There’s something I need to tell you about Suji."

He raised an eyebrow as he turned off the engine, but he didn’t look entirely surprised. "What about her?" he asked, his voice casual but with an undercurrent of curiosity.

You sighed, feeling the weight of Minho’s warning pressing down on you. "Minho talked to me earlier. He said Suji’s been acting a bit too… familiar with you. Like, she’s been trying to get your attention, and he’s worried she might be more manipulative than she seems."

Mingyu’s expression shifted, though it wasn’t one of defensiveness. It was more like he was processing the information. After a moment, he finally spoke, his voice a little quieter than usual. "I’ve noticed it too," he admitted. "Suji’s been a little too clingy recently. But I don’t think she means anything by it. She’s just… been really forward. I’m trying to keep things respectful, but it’s hard when she doesn’t back off."

You felt a mix of relief and frustration. On one hand, you were glad Mingyu didn’t seem completely oblivious to the situation. On the other, you didn’t want him to brush it off too easily. "I just want to make sure you’re not caught off guard, Gyu," you said, using the nickname almost instinctively. "Suji can be pretty impulsive, and she’s done this before, according to Minho. She won’t stop until she gets what she wants."

Mingyu let out a deep breath, his fingers tightening on the steering wheel. "I get it, Y/n. I’ll keep my distance. It’s just… hard when she’s constantly around, and I don’t want to make things awkward, you know?"

You nodded, appreciating his understanding. "Just be careful. You don’t owe her anything, and I don’t want to see you get dragged into her games."

He gave you a small smile. "Thanks for looking out for me. I promise I’ll handle it."

With that, you both stepped out of the car, walking toward the door of Mingyu’s house. As you entered, you quickly gathered the few things that had ended up in his luggage after the last shoot. You could feel Mingyu’s eyes on you, and the silence between you seemed heavier now, like there was more to be said but neither of you was quite ready to speak it.

Once you were done, you followed him into the living room where he sat on the couch, clearly still processing everything from the day. It felt like everything was slowly unraveling — the complexities with the cast, the personal dynamics, and the ever-present tension that seemed to follow you both. Mingyu’s gaze was distant, his mind clearly still processing everything. Then, without thinking, you spoke again, breaking the silence that had comfortably enveloped you.

"You know, Gyu," you started, your voice quieter than before, "I haven’t thought about Wonwoo in a long time."

Mingyu's head snapped toward you, eyes widening slightly. The mention of his name had been unexpected, a slip of your tongue. You could see the surprise in Mingyu’s face, but there was also a flicker of something else — curiosity, maybe, or perhaps something deeper.

"I mean," you continued, trying to gather your thoughts, "I know it sounds strange, but after everything… after all the mess with our past, I just realized I haven't really thought about him in a while. Like, I don't dwell on what happened anymore."

Mingyu didn’t immediately respond, his eyes focused on you now, studying your face carefully. You could tell he was trying to process this, the idea that you were finally letting go of the past.

"That’s... different," Mingyu finally said, his voice tentative. He shifted slightly on the couch, his arm brushing against yours.

"His shadow was constantly over me, even when I was with you. But now... I guess I just don’t feel it anymore. I can’t even imagine going back to him."

Mingyu didn’t speak right away, his gaze steady as if he was carefully choosing his words. His hand moved slowly, then rested on the space between you both, his fingers brushing against yours.

"I’m glad you feel that way," he said softly, his voice carrying a mix of relief and something else, something unspoken. "I think... I think I’m glad you’ve come to this point. I can’t change your past, Y/n, and I won’t try to. But I want you to know that I’m here. I’m here for you — no matter what happened with Wonwoo or anyone else."

The sincerity in his words wrapped around you like a warm embrace. It was clear, though, that Mingyu had always been there, but this was different — more honest, more grounded.

"You’ve been so patient with me, Gyu," you said, your voice catching slightly, the emotions you had been keeping at bay bubbling up. "I don’t know what I did to deserve that."

Mingyu smiled softly, his thumb gently brushing against your hand. "You don’t need to do anything, Y/n. I’m not doing this because I feel obligated or anything. I’m here because I want to be." His eyes met yours with an intensity that made your heart skip a beat.

It was a shift in the air — a change that neither of you had expected. What had started as a complicated relationship, tangled with unresolved feelings and past wounds, now felt different. The emotional weight was still there, but there was a new layer to it — something that felt like it could build into something else, something neither of you had anticipated.

The quiet lingered, and the air between you both seemed to crackle with unspoken emotions. You could feel the weight of his gaze, the steady rhythm of his breath, as if he was waiting for something. It was almost as if the universe had conspired for this moment, and you both could no longer ignore it.

Mingyu slowly leaned in, his fingers still lightly brushing against yours, and you could feel his warmth draw closer. There was an uncertainty in the way he moved, but it wasn’t hesitation. It was as if he, too, was giving you space to decide, to let you know if you were ready for this next step.

Your heart raced, and for a moment, you wondered if you should pull back, but something inside you urged you to stay. Mingyu had always been someone you could rely on, someone who, even through the ups and downs, had never wavered in his support for you. And now, in the stillness of the moment, there was only one thing you could do — let him in.

You didn’t pull away as his face inched closer, his lips just a breath away from yours. His eyes flickered to yours, searching, asking without words if you were ready. The tension between you both seemed to thicken with each passing second.

And then, as if he couldn’t wait any longer, Mingyu closed the gap, his lips pressing gently against yours. The kiss was soft at first, slow and tender, as if he were asking for permission to dive deeper into the connection between you two. His hand moved to the back of your neck, fingers tangling in your hair as he deepened the kiss.

The world seemed to melt away, leaving just the two of you. Every touch, every brush of his lips against yours, felt more intense than the last. His kiss was a mixture of everything — of comfort, of longing, of a deep connection that neither of you had expected but were now willing to explore.

As the kiss deepened, you felt yourself respond instinctively, your body leaning into his, your hands resting on his chest. The warmth between you both was undeniable, and for the first time, you let go of everything else — your past, your insecurities, your doubts. In this moment, it was just Mingyu and you.

When you finally pulled away, both of you were breathless, your hearts racing in sync. Mingyu rested his forehead against yours, his hands still holding you close as if he never wanted to let go.

"Y/n..." he whispered, his voice low and filled with emotion. "I’ve never stopped caring about you, you know that, right?"

You nodded, your fingers still resting on his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart. "I know, Gyu," you whispered back.

The air between you two thickened, the energy palpable as Mingyu’s lips returned to yours with renewed urgency. The softness that once lingered turned into something more desperate, as if all the tension between you both was finally being released in that moment. His hands slid down your sides, pulling you closer to him, and you felt every inch of his body pressing against yours.

The kiss grew heated, the warmth of his lips and the feel of his body against you making your pulse quicken. His hand rested at the small of your back, pressing you even further into him as he deepened the kiss, his lips moving against yours with a fervor that left you breathless.

Mingyu’s body hovered above yours, the weight of him both comforting and thrilling. His hands roamed, tracing the curve of your waist, his thumb brushing the sensitive skin just beneath your ribcage. You gasped slightly at the touch, the sensation sending a ripple of warmth through you, and you instinctively arched into him, eager for more.

He broke away from the kiss, his breath ragged as he looked down at you, eyes darkened with desire. His gaze flickered to your lips, and then to your eyes, searching for some kind of sign — a sign that you were okay, that you were still with him in this moment.

Mingyu’s lips found yours again, but this time the kiss was deeper, more intense, filled with an intensity neither of you had expected. His hands moved to your hips, lifting you just enough for him to settle closer, his body now pressing firmly against yours. The heat between you two grew, and it was impossible to deny how much you wanted him.

His lips trailed down to your neck, his kisses burning against your skin. You shivered beneath him, your hands gripping his shoulders as the heat between you two escalated. Every touch, every movement, every shared breath seemed to make everything else fade away, leaving only the two of you in that moment, completely consumed by each other.

Mingyu pulled off his t-shirt in one fluid motion, and your hands instinctively reached for him, your fingers brushing against the familiar warmth of his skin. His toned muscles tensed under your touch, and for a brief moment, he paused, his darkened eyes locking with yours as though he were savoring the moment.

His hands worked with practiced ease, sliding your top over your head and unclasping your bra with the kind of confidence that only came from familiarity. His fingers brushed against your bare skin as he traced the contours of your body, a reverence in his touch that sent shivers cascading down your spine.

Leaning down, his lips brushed over your collarbone, trailing a line of slow, deliberate kisses to the swell of your chest. You gasped softly as his mouth made contact, the heat of his touch igniting something deep within you.

"You’re so beautiful," he murmured against your skin, his voice filled with awe and a sense of rediscovery. "You’ve always been beautiful."

With an almost effortless motion, his hands moved to unbutton your pants, sliding them down your legs in one smooth gesture, leaving only the delicate fabric of your underwear between you. His hands lingered, as though memorizing every inch of you, his gaze sweeping over you with a mix of desire and admiration.

Before you could fully process the moment, Mingyu’s strong arms scooped you up, lifting you off the couch as though you weighed nothing. The ease with which he carried you was both thrilling and grounding, his grip firm yet gentle. He held you close to his chest, his heartbeat pounding in rhythm with yours as he walked toward his bedroom.

When he reached the bed, he laid you down with care, his eyes never leaving yours. His lips claimed yours again, this time with an intensity that left no room for hesitation. His kisses grew deeper, more urgent, as his hand slipped beneath the waistband of your underwear.

The sensation of his touch against your most sensitive skin drew a soft moan from your lips, the sound muffled by his kiss. Every movement felt like a promise, every touch a reminder of the connection you once shared and the emotions that still lingered between you.

Mingyu pulled back just enough to look at you, his face filled with longing and tenderness. His thumb brushed against your cheek as he whispered, "Tell me if it’s too much. I need you to feel safe with me."

Your breath hitched, overwhelmed by the mix of his words and the fire igniting between you. "I trust you," you whispered, the words carrying more weight than you realized.

His lips captured yours again, his touch growing bolder yet remaining respectful of your boundaries, as though rediscovering the delicate balance between passion and care that only he seemed to know how to navigate.

As Mingyu pulled back slightly, his forehead resting gently against yours, the space between you both felt charged with a quiet intensity. His breath came in shallow bursts, and for a moment, everything was still— except for the rhythmic beat of your heart. He looked at you with micture of reverance and affection, the weight of the moment settling between you both.

"Are you sure?" He whispered, his voice soft, laced with the same desired that had filled the air. His hands were gentle, as though he was waiting forya signal from, for any hesitation or doubt.

You nodded, a silent reassurance in your gaze. There was trust there, a bond that ran deeper than anywof the words or touched that had passed between you. In that moment, you knew he would never push you further than you were ready to go.

With that he found yours once more, tender and slow, as though savoring every second of the shared intimacy. The world outside seemed to disappear, leaving only the two of you— silent connected and united in that moment.

*

After the show ended, you and Mingyu returned to the real world, not as winners of the grand prize but as something far more valuable — partners in both love and ambition. The cameras stopped rolling, the bright lights faded, but the bond you’d forged under their glare remained steady.

Life didn’t slow down for either of you. The buzz from the show brought a wave of attention. Companies, producers, and directors sent offers for TV appearances, brand deals, and interviews. It was tempting to ride the wave of fame, but both of you had bigger dreams.

You decided it was finally time to build the dream you’d put off for too long — your own advertising studio. With the influx of opportunities, you knew you had the leverage to pitch your ideas to major companies. Your days were filled with back-to-back meetings, portfolio revisions, and late nights spent sketching out concepts. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was yours. Every deal you closed felt like a victory. Every successful pitch fueled your belief that you were on the right path.

Mingyu’s path was equally ambitious. The show gave him visibility beyond the restaurant scene, branding him as more than just a chef or businessman — now, he was a figure people admired for his charisma and strategic mind. Invitations poured in for him to speak at business forums, guest on entrepreneurial podcasts, and even lead masterclasses for young entrepreneurs. At first, he hesitated. "I'm just a guy who wanted to make good food," he told you one night. But you reminded him, "And now you’re a guy teaching others how to dream bigger."

His growth was undeniable. His brand expanded, his restaurant saw more foot traffic than ever, and he even started mentoring up-and-coming chefs and small business owners. Seeing him lead discussions and inspire others only made you fall for him harder. He wasn’t just chasing success — he was building a legacy.

But success came with its own weight. Long hours apart, sleepless nights spent working on deadlines, and the occasional clash of schedules tested your relationship. Some nights, you’d find yourself sitting on the couch at midnight, laptop balanced on your knees, while Mingyu’s side of the bed remained empty until the early hours of the morning.

"Hey," he'd call softly from the doorway when he finally returned. He’d sit next to you, still smelling faintly of the kitchen or the cologne he wore for his TV appearance. “You should sleep.”

“Not yet,” you’d reply, eyes still on the screen.

“Then I’m staying up with you,” he’d say, wrapping an arm around you and resting his head on your shoulder. It didn’t matter how tired he was. He stayed.

You didn’t win the show’s prize, but you won each other. And in the grand scheme of things, that felt like the ultimate victory.

The second chance you gave each other wasn’t just about romance — it was about believing in your potential and supporting each other’s growth. Mingyu often joked that you were like his "favorite investment." You’d laugh, rolling your eyes, but deep down, you knew it was true.

On your one-year anniversary after the show, Mingyu surprised you by renting out a small art gallery to showcase the work of local artists — but at the center of it was a display dedicated to your journey together. Photos, clippings from interviews, and even a mock advertisement with the words “The Greatest Partnership” were displayed on a wall.

"Cheesy, right?" he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

“Cheesy,” you admitted, eyes welling up. “But it’s perfect.”

Second chances don’t come often, but when they do, they change everything.

"Y/n, Mingyu," Jiyeon started, tilting her head with a grin. "You two are probably one of the most talked-about duos from the show. Not just for your chemistry but for what you did after. Advertising studio, business empire — it's impressive, really. But I have to ask, did either of you see this coming?"

The interviewer, a sharp-witted woman named Jiyeon, sat across from you with a notepad resting on her knee, a pen twirling between her fingers. Her smile was relaxed but knowing, like she already had her headline written.

You glanced at Mingyu, letting out a soft breath that turned into a laugh. He tilted his head toward you, his eyes narrowing playfully. "Honestly, no. We went on that show thinking, 'Okay, let's win some money, maybe get a little publicity.' But life doesn’t always work out the way you plan."

You glanced at Mingyu, eyes crinkling with affection. "Sometimes, it works out better."

“Better, huh?” Mingyu teased, nudging your arm. "She’s just being nice. We were a mess on that show."

The room filled with light laughter from the crew.

Jiyeon leaned in, her eyes bright with curiosity. "Come on, tell me the truth. The whole world saw the way you two bickered. Was it strategy, or were there… feelings?" Her gaze was pointed but playful.

You raised an eyebrow, giving her a knowing smile. "Let’s just say it wasn’t strategy."

Mingyu let out a low laugh, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. "There were feelings. A lot of them. I think at one point, I didn’t know if I wanted to win the challenge or just win an argument with her." He glanced at you, his grin softening. "Turns out, I wanted both."

Your eyes flicked to him, heart squeezing in your chest. The air around you grew a little quieter, more intimate, and Jiyeon caught it instantly.

“Power couple energy,” she said, grinning as she scribbled something in her notes. "But speaking of power, I have to say, you two are the definition of 'fake it till you make it.' Advertising studio, business brand, guest speaking gigs — you’ve built something big. What’s the secret?"

Mingyu scratched the back of his neck, his classic "I'm about to sound wise" move. “For me, it’s realizing that everyone’s faking it,” he said, his voice casual but firm. "No one has it all figured out, and once I accepted that, I stopped stressing so much about looking like I did. I just acted like I belonged, kept showing up, and one day, I realized — oh, I actually do belong here now."

The crew murmured their approval, a few heads nodding.

You nodded along with them, picking up where he left off. “For me, 'faking it' meant trusting that my ideas were good, even if I wasn’t sure. I pitched my first concept to a company with zero experience behind me, but I talked like I’d done it a hundred times. It’s scary, but sometimes, you have to believe in yourself before anyone else will.”

"That’s good," Jiyeon said, pointing at both of you with her pen. "I’m stealing that for the headline. Alright, last question before we wrap this up." She flipped through her notes, eyes scanning until she found something. Her gaze lifted with a spark of mischief. "Actually, I lied. I have one more thing before we finish."

You glanced at Mingyu, suspicious. "What do you mean, 'one more thing'?"

Jiyeon smiled like she’d been sitting on a secret all day. "Well, Mingyu told our team earlier that he had a little surprise planned for you."

Your eyes darted to him, your brow furrowed. "A surprise?"

Mingyu leaned back against the couch, arms stretched along the backrest, looking far too calm for someone who was clearly up to something. “Yeah,” he said, lips twitching like he was holding back a grin. "Figured now’s a good time."

You stared at him, heart starting to pick up its pace. "Kim Mingyu, if you’re about to prank me in front of all these people—"

He shook his head, grinning like an idiot now. "Nah, not a prank. I promise."

Then, casually — too casually — he reached into the inside pocket of his blazer. Your eyes tracked his hand, and for a second, you didn’t register what you were seeing. A small, velvet box.

Your breath hitched.

“No way,” you muttered, eyes widening as your hands shot up to cover your face.

The entire room gasped, someone behind the camera whispering, “Oh my God.”

Mingyu shifted forward, already on one knee, and suddenly, the world became a soft hum around you. It felt like the lights dimmed, the cameras faded away, and the only thing you could focus on was him.

He looked up at you, his grin now gone, replaced by something raw and steady. His fingers flipped the box open, revealing a simple but breathtaking ring.

“Y/n,” he started, voice low but clear. His eyes didn’t waver once from yours. “I’ve done a lot of big things in my life — joined a show, started a business, made decisions I wasn’t sure about. But you…” He exhaled, his smile small but full of certainty. "You’re the only decision I’ve never doubted. You make everything feel possible. You make me feel possible."

Tears gathered in your eyes, one slipping down your cheek before you could stop it. You didn’t care.

“I’m not gonna do the whole ‘I can’t live without you’ speech,” he went on, eyes crinkling as he fought back his own grin. "Because I can live without you. I just really, really, really don’t want to." His voice broke just a little, and he cleared his throat.

Your chest tightened, and your hands covered your face again.

“So, I’m done waiting,” he said, eyes locked on yours with all the love in the world. “Marry me, Y/n. Be my partner for real this time.”

Silence. You could hear the click of a camera.

But none of that mattered.

You nodded, pulling your hands away from your face as tears spilled freely. "Yes," you choked out, voice trembling as a laugh escaped with it. "Yes, absolutely yes."

He let out a breath of relief, a wide, boyish grin spreading across his face as he slipped the ring onto your finger. It fit perfectly, like it had always been meant to be there.

When he stood, you barely had time to think before you threw your arms around him. His arms wrapped around you instantly, his hand cradling the back of your head as he laughed into your shoulder.

“You didn’t cry this much when we lost the show,” he teased, his voice rough but filled with affection.

“Shut up,” you mumbled into his neck, grinning so hard your cheeks hurt.

The crew erupted into cheers, the sound of applause and whistles filling the room. Cameras flashed as photographers captured every second, but you didn’t care about the cameras. You pulled back just enough to look at him, still teary-eyed but grinning like a fool.

“Power couple, huh?” you said, sniffling as you wiped your cheeks.

Mingyu smiled, leaning his forehead against yours. "Yeah," he whispered, brushing his thumb across your cheek. “Power couple forever.”

Jiyeon sniffled loudly, wiping under her eyes with her sleeve. "Okay, I did not come here to cry at work," she muttered, waving at the camera crew to cut the recording. "But you two are officially my favorite couple ever."

“Thank you,” you said, voice still wobbly but full of joy.

Mingyu kissed your temple, his arm never once letting you go.

No cash prize, no reality show win, but somehow, you’d still won everything.

[ghostlyferrettarot]

/)/)

( . .)

( づ❤️ Pick a Picture:˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ Channeled messages and energy check from your Future Spouse˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

•Pile 1 •Pile 2 •Pile 3

❗️This is a collective reading, take what resonates and leave the rest❗️

✨️Paid Services ✨️ (Natal charts and tarot readings) Open!

🩵If you like my work you can support me through Ko-fi. Thank you!🩵

🩰Masterlist🩰

/)/)

( . .)

( づ♡ Pile 1:

❤️Energy of the person:

Your future spouse has a calm and wise energy. He/she is someone who has been through many life experiences, which has allowed him/her to develop great understanding and maturity. He/she is not hasty, but rather firmly believes that everything comes in its perfect time. This person is self-confident and seeks a deep love, based on mutual trust and shared growth. He/she knows what he/she wants and is willing to wait for what he/she deserves.

❤️Channel messages:

"Our love will be a calm and deep connection, as if everything in the universe had prepared us for this"

"Even though you don't see it now, destiny is slowly leading us toward the moment when our lives will cross."

"Sometimes, what we fear most is what we need most, and your personal transformation is what is bringing us closer."

"When I find you, it won't be a fleeting encounter. It will be the beginning of a stage full of peace, growth, and connection."

"My love for you will be constant, even before I meet you, because I already feel you in my soul."

"Trust your intuition, it already knows that our story is written, you just have to allow yourself to live it."

"No matter what you're going through now, everything is aligning for us to be together. The wait will be worth it."

"Remember, the self-love you've given yourself has prepared you to receive a love like mine. You're ready for us."

/)/)

( . .)

( づ♡Pile 2:

❤️Energy of the person:

Your future husband/wife has a vibrant and passionate energy. He/she is a person full of life, enthusiastic, and with a great desire to connect deeply. Although he/she may be somewhat impatient, he/she knows that everything worthwhile takes time. His/her heart is fiery and generous, and his/her love will be unconditional. You are looking for a connection that challenges you, makes you grow, and above all, fills you with excitement and passion every day.

❤️Channel messages:

"I've been waiting for you, even if you don't know it, my thoughts are already full of you, of what we will share."

"The excitement I feel for you is like a fire that never goes out, every day I get closer to you."

"I know we've gone down different paths, but each step has brought us closer to our destiny together."

"When we finally meet, it will be as if everything in the world has made sense. The love we will share will be intense and pure."

"My dreams are full of you, and even though we haven't crossed paths yet, I already feel your presence in my life."

"I admire you more than you can imagine. What I most desire is to be by your side, to grow together and share every moment."

"Patience will be key, because even though it seems like the wait is long, what we have is greater than what you now see."

"The love I have for you will be so sincere that you will have no doubt that I have waited for you all my life."

/)/)

( . .)

( づ♡Pile 3:

❤️Energy of the person:

Your future husband/wife has a deep, serene, and spiritual energy. He/she is someone who is guided by his/her intuition and has a very strong connection with his/her inner self and the universe. He/she is not one to rush, preferring to wait for what he/she knows is right. This person has a great sense of peace and knows that everything in life happens for a reason. The love he/she has for you will be unconditional and full of deep understanding, and he/she hopes that you both grow spiritually together.

❤️ Channel messages:

"Your soul and mine already know each other, and even though we are distant, we are already united on a deeper level."

"Do not fear time, because everything comes when it should come, and I am waiting for the perfect moment to meet."

"What you are experiencing now is part of your process, a preparation for the love and life we ​​are going to share."

"When the day comes, I will make sure you feel that everything you've been through, everything you've overcome, has led you to this love."

"My heart already knows you, even if my body doesn't yet. The connection we'll feel will be something so familiar that you won't doubt that we're meant for each other."

"No matter the distance, time, or circumstances, everything will align so that our paths cross at the exact moment."

"Our love will be a serene light that will bring you peace and stability, something you may have been searching for without knowing it."

"Remember, everything you've learned, everything you've lived, has been to prepare you for this love I'm offering you."

❤️🐰Thanks for reading and tell me if it resonated 🐰❤️

[oceanicwriting]

drink.

summary: for months theodore nott has been waking up on the shores of the black lake, disoriented and unable to remember how he got there. you thought he would never discover your secret, but one night everything changes irreparably and secrets of darkness meet the light of his eyes.

pairing(s): theodore nott x vampire!fem!reader

a/n: this story has a lot of context! i got really inspired in the first half because i love the whole vampire-obsessed-with-theodore-nott thing and i couldn't help myself hehe. i hope you like it. any phrase in cursive without dash are theodore's thoughts.

+18 smut, mention of blood, violence, public sex, blow job, standing, missionary, masturbation (mostly m!receiving), cursing

ㅤㅤㅤ if you had to describe theodore nott in one word, that would be perfect. his features that resemble those of a greek god are overwhelming, making you lose any sense of reason when he is paralyzed in front of you. anyone would believe that this is the interest of any human about him, but you are a nocturnal monster, and there were other things that interested you more.

ㅤㅤㅤ you breathe heavily, feeling the liquid you suck being transported to every part of your insatiable body. your head is spinning from the sensation that silences the hunger you had controlled during the week, weakening your power over his dormant mind. some lucid part of your brain forces you to separate, disappearing into the shadow of the trees and cleaning the remains of blood that have fallen on your chin.

ㅤㅤㅤ from your position, you can see how the strong frost hits the boy's bare chest, messing up his hair and tensing every exposed muscle. his lips have turned purple from the lack of a coat, the same color that the tips of his fingers and his bare knees adopt. maybe you should have dressed him before taking him there.

ㅤㅤㅤ where am i? what...? you try to keep listening to his thoughts, but it is a practice that you do not master and you can not hear beyond that. what you have no doubt about is the labored breathing you hear from your spot, accompanied by the accelerated gallop of his heartbeat and moans of pain originating in his arm. the simple smell of his blood turns your stomach upside-down.

ㅤㅤㅤ when he has gotten up, he steps on the mud, careful not to slip. his blue gaze scans everything around him, but nothing catches his attention, setting off for the comfort of the castle.

ㅤㅤㅤ as he disappear among the dark shadows of the night, you let your body fall against the ground, savoring the metallic taste that his blood always leaves in your mouth. that begins to feed the hunger that accumulates at the bottom of your stomach, and all that remains is to wait for your human characteristics to return back to normal.

ㅤㅤㅤ —theodore is fucking a hogsmade vampire. —draco malfoy’s voice, one of your most frequent food friends, rises over the professor’s voice—. and he doesn’t want to tell any details.

ㅤㅤㅤ your heart starts to pound in panic, going over the past few weeks and all the ones before, assuring to your anxiety that you always did everything perfectly. if he knows something, it's because someone else told him, but who would? no one has seen you or even listened.

ㅤㅤㅤ —why should i tell you? —theodore replies. his voice comes out much louder, as if you have a filter to hear him more clearly than anyone else—. do you guys need stories to jerk off to when you’re alone? because of course i’m fucking a vampire.

ㅤㅤㅤ you frown, knowing he was lying. any bad liar would start to show a racing pulse, and you could hear his without a problem.

ㅤㅤㅤ —look —he says, forcing you to turn over your shoulder to see how he shows the mark of your fangs on his forearm—. what else could it be?

ㅤㅤㅤ you try to read his thoughts. however, you can’t. his body language shows that he is as confused as he is fascinated by the unmistakable mark of a vampire on his pale skin. his friends are shocked by the revelation and make dirty jokes about theodore’s fake sexual experiences. so stupid.

ㅤㅤㅤ —and what is his name?

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore, turning his head to look at his friends, locks eyes with you. so cute and naive.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you will never know.

ㅤㅤㅤ and neither do you, you think.

ㅤㅤㅤ your vampire lineage dates back thousands of years, being one of the most famous and well-known in the entire magical world. although no one really knows your true nature, because your father was banned from all stories, diaries, or writings after falling hopelessly in love with a human witch. before turning her into one like him, wanting to leave the decision of being a full vampire to his children, they had four beautiful half-vampire creatures.

ㅤㅤㅤ beings of your kind have always been classified as an inferior race to full vampires, but your father had taken it upon himself to teach you how to handle your abilities since you were little. of course, you weren't as good as him, who at your age could read the thoughts of any living being, change shape, manipulate minds, and more.

ㅤㅤㅤ —hey, where are you going?

ㅤㅤㅤ you turn, watching your roommate light the candle on her nightstand. you clap loudly, drawing his attention and, in the blink of an eye, your eyes turn bright red like a ruby.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you think you saw me, but you didn’t. now you’re going to go get a glass of water from the bathroom, go back to bed, and sleep until the next morning —you say, your demanding voice clashing with every part of the room.

ㅤㅤㅤ whenever your skill accomplished its goal, you felt a tingle at the tip of your fingers, and this time was no exception.

ㅤㅤㅤ when you reach theodore’s room, and even meters before you arrive, you can feel the calm beat of his heart. it’s so slow that you can’t help the smile that appears on your lips as you imagine him sleeping so peacefully. you close your eyes and focus your energy on awakening his mind, but not his dream.

ㅤㅤㅤ —come to me.

ㅤㅤㅤ in less than a second the door emits a soft click that reveals the tall figure of the boy. you don't have time to stop and contemplate him, controlling his walk to the exit and looking over your shoulder every now and then.

ㅤㅤㅤ arriving at the foot of the black lake, protected by the full moon night, you stop to look at theodore nott. his pale skin shining against the reflection of the stars in the water, messy hair that moves with the wind, a slightly swollen face and eyelashes resting on the highest points of his defined cheekbones. he looked so appetizing that the idea of ​​drinking all his blood was tempting.

ㅤㅤㅤ you force him to lie down on a thin layer of grass, and you settle with your legs on either side of his waist. you take two deep breaths, feeling your fangs lengthen to bury themselves in the same wound as always. the delight of his blood filling your mouth makes you close your eyes to fully enjoy his refined taste. you were so enraptured by the sensations of his blood in your mouth that you can't understand how theodore wakes up and pushes you against the ground.

ㅤㅤㅤ —don't move. —you look at him, feeling his body imprison yours and gently push a wooden stake into your chest—. you...? what the fuck?

ㅤㅤㅤ although his frown shows how angry he is, his pulse only indicates that he is as scared as you are dismayed.

ㅤㅤㅤ —theo... —you try to deny what he has seen, but the drop of blood running down your cheek was as real as the color of your reddened gaze.

ㅤㅤㅤ —since when do you do this? —he asks. you try to answer, but the scent of his blood only awakens an animal that theodore would never be able to control—. answer me.

ㅤㅤㅤ you could have gotten into his mind to force him to sleep in less than a second, but there was a mystical force that prevented you from getting back into his head.

ㅤㅤㅤ ��i’m sorry. i’m so sorry.

ㅤㅤㅤ you can hear theodore’s heart skip a couple of beats, taking advantage of that moment of doubt to hit the stake and push him. your hands intertwine to form a fist that hits the back of the boy’s neck, who falls unconscious at your feet. now, what would you do?

ㅤㅤㅤ since that night, you haven't been able to stop thinking about theodore. he had found a way to break your power with an enchanted stone hidden in the pocket of his pajama shorts. your father would have told you that you should look for another food to prevent something like that from happening again. however, forgetting the brown-haired boy's blood was an impossible task.

ㅤㅤㅤ during the two weeks that you were away, drinking animal blood at night, theodore hadn't said anything. you had seen each other in classes, meals, the common room, and the library, but he didn't seem to register you beyond the normal. will he not question you again?

ㅤㅤㅤ it's likely that if you had listened to your father's inner voice instead of your starving heart you wouldn't be battling with the shadow of the boy who had just poisoned you with a garlic potion. yes, you went to look for him once again. and yes, theodore nott had just made you fall unconscious in front of him.

ㅤㅤㅤ when you wake up, the first thing you feel is a cold breeze hitting your face. your limbs still feel paralyzed by the effect of the potion, disappearing minutes later.

ㅤㅤㅤ —it took you a while to come back. —it's his voice, strong and clear. as you sit up, you can see him with the stake pointing straight at your heart and another swig of potion in his free hand—. i even thought you had gotten bored. i don't want you to move, okay? i have no intentions of killing you, if that worries you.

ㅤㅤㅤ you knew he wouldn't do it because of his weak grip on the stake. didn't he know you could stand up, take the wood from his hands, and kill him to avoid trouble? you had a thousand ideas of how to do that, but you don't move.

ㅤㅤㅤ —at least, not if you don't give me reasons.

ㅤㅤㅤ does that sound intimidating enough? you look at him, noticing that he hadn’t said anything else since his last sentence. were you perhaps listening to his thoughts?

ㅤㅤㅤ —doesn’t this look familiar to you? —he asks, circling you as if you were the one with the lowest chance of survival—. sure, you’re a lot more subtle about getting me here, but i still haven’t mastered the psychic techniques of magic.

ㅤㅤㅤ you were hungry. you were so eager to taste some blood that hearing theodore’s veins pump makes your head hurt. if there was a quick way to end all this to feed yourself, you would do it.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you want to know what happened, right? —he shows a small ring on his finger—. i have to assume, because you didn’t take it from me last time, that you don’t know a memory stone when you see one. even though you took away the one that prevented you from entering my mind, you didn't realize that i had this one right here.

ㅤㅤㅤ it was such a small stone that it seemed incredible to you how images could be reproduced there. theodore didn't remember it, but that small transparent stone had everything that had happened that night printed on it, and those marks on his arm were enough proof to understand the whole situation.

ㅤㅤㅤ you wish you had something to say, but you had your mouth completely closed for fear of saying the wrong thing. you search for something that can calm your anguish, and when you hear his heart pumping calmly, something lights up inside you.

ㅤㅤㅤ —why my blood?

ㅤㅤㅤ you weren't going to lie. you could do it and find a way to escape, but the bravery of facing you with such serenity dangerously attracts you to him.

ㅤㅤㅤ —your blood is... delicious. you have disgusting habits, smoking and drinking every weekend don't do your body any good. but that liquid is always as intact as can be.

ㅤㅤㅤ she's cute.

ㅤㅤㅤ —have you done this to anyone else?

ㅤㅤㅤ you can notice that his grip on the stake is weakening a little and you take the opportunity to get up, making the boy alert. your body moves on its own, now understanding what had just awakened inside you. ㅤㅤ

ㅤㅤㅤ —why do you ask? jealous? —you ask, laughing softly. his laugh is precious too—. after all, it seems that nott is the only one in hogwarts who is fucking a hogsmade vampire.

ㅤㅤㅤ all the sounds that reach your ears fade into the background when you hear his heartbeat again. hunger has begun to ache throughout your body, and you could assure that you would become a monster if you did not feed yourself right then and there.

ㅤㅤㅤ —did you hear that...

ㅤㅤㅤ —i have other powers, besides manipulating people. —you take his hand, effortlessly lowering the stake. you could hear the string of thoughts exploding in his head so clearly that it was impossible not to smile—. there is no one in this place with the blood i want. maybe that's why i drink yours or...

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore had heard all kinds of stories about vampires. he knew they were ruthless, callous, and murderous beings of darkness. he knew they would use any means to achieve their goal, but when he sees you, he can't make that connection. how can such a beauty be so bad?

ㅤㅤㅤ —have you ever thought that i might like you? —you say, looking at him tenderly and caressing his arm—. what should i do to get you to let me drink you, theodore?

ㅤㅤㅤ nothing. fuck me. no, that would be too much to ask. his thoughts are heard loud and clear, making your skin crawl from the mixture they have with his lust-tinged eyes. at that moment, you can hear his heart beat faster, pumping blood to hidden parts of his body and feeding your desire to drink.

ㅤㅤㅤ —do you want to drink my blood?

ㅤㅤㅤ the question has you nodding frantically, lighting a fire that’s stoked by those sea-blue eyes. that’s so hot.

ㅤㅤㅤ —maybe we can make a deal —you say, squeezing his arm and forcing him to crash into a tree—. you let me feed whenever i wants and you... you can brag about how you’re sleeping with a vampire. and this time, you wouldn’t be lying like a brazen man.

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore grabs your neck, twisting to slam your back against the tree with a force that makes you gasp. you hadn’t seen that coming.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you think it’s that easy?

ㅤㅤㅤ you laugh, running your hands down his chest and saying—: i can smell your desire. you don’t have to play hard to get with me.

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore breathes heavily, and you can hear the blood running through his jugular, throbbing. can she really? you know his brain is filled with questions, fear, and a desire that builds up in his member. you had to play along.

ㅤㅤㅤ —come on. aren't you a little curious about what a vampire can do in sex?

ㅤㅤㅤ yeah, of course i'm. theodore can't say anything, because his thoughts are taking over his answers.

ㅤㅤㅤ —are you afraid to find out? —your hands travel to his pants, unbuttoning them and letting them fall—. tell me, theodore, do you want to try what a vampire really does?

ㅤㅤㅤ —isn't that obvious? —he answers scathingly, smiling so close to your face that your hands must cup his cheeks—. why do you keep playing if you know the answer?

ㅤㅤㅤ his lips stick to yours as if they had waited their whole lives to touch you. both of you felt so desperate, needy, and eager that it was impossible not to battle back and forth. so sweet that it's impressive. a smile slides down your face, tasting the exquisiteness of his mouth with such impatience that theodore must calm his own internal fire.

ㅤㅤㅤ you pull away, noticing theodore is pushing himself to reach you, but you cover his mouth. your hands descend with you from his shoulders to his waist, looking into his eyes from your new kneeling position. one of his large hands caresses your face roughly, pressing one of his fingers to your lips. shit.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you're so fucking hot.

ㅤㅤㅤ your hands pull down his underwear, stealing a heavy sigh from you as you realize how big and thick he is. one of your hands grabs his cock to hold it in front of your mouth, being embraced by your hot tongue that elicits a hoarse growl from the boy. then you begin to put him in your mouth slowly, unable to take it all and having to use your hand to cover what's missing.

ㅤㅤㅤ at first, you have a hard time adjusting to the feeling of his thick member scraping against the walls of your mouth, but when you begin to take it in slow and easy, everything becomes simpler.

ㅤㅤㅤ fuck, so soft. theodore rests his hand on the tree, enjoying the way your mouth sucks and kisses his cock. he was fascinated with the way your tongue moved over his member when it was buried deep in you mouth. he liked the way your hand moved when your lips weren’t hugging it. what he adored the most, always stealing a soft moan from him, was when you watched him while licking his glans with a devilish eroticism

ㅤㅤㅤ —so good —you say, choking soon after when you take his cock again.

ㅤㅤㅤ this time, your mouth moves quickly, listening to theodore sigh, moan, and grunt. your tongue works magic to embrace his length as best it can, bringing a perfect movement that not only causes shameless sounds in him but in you.

ㅤㅤㅤ —ah... so perfect. s-so cute. —theodore's hand caresses your face that moves against him—. i won't feel bad at all for doing this to you.

ㅤㅤㅤ then his hand tangles in your hair, holding your head to begin thrusting his hips. the simple collision of the tip of his hardened cock with your throat makes your eyes fill with tears, gasping and losing balance.

ㅤㅤㅤ you had to admit that the way he sinks, deeper and faster, was exciting. your hands must tighten on his legs to support the back and forth that theodore has established. he moves with incredible dominance, trembling with pleasure and rumbling from the heat of your mouth.

ㅤㅤㅤ —just like that. a-a little more. you're doing so well.

ㅤㅤㅤ it's pathetic to think that hearing him speak turns you on, but it does and you strive to help his pleasure by using your hand at the base of his cock. so close. theodore sighs, then you feel it, a tremor that mixes with your cry muffled by the semen that hits your walls.

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore tries to get out of your mouth, but your hands hold him still, unloading all his semen inside your mouth. the smile that draws on his face is so magnificent that it lightens a little the suffocation that the viscous substance causes.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you taste good —you whisper, getting up from the floor.

ㅤㅤㅤ —i bet you're not just talking about my semen.

ㅤㅤㅤ a mischievous smile escapes your lips and you feel the boy's hands tighten on your hip. he looked so cute after the orgasm as if a glow had passed over his face to highlight every bit of his beauty.

ㅤㅤㅤ —when are you going to fuck me? —you ask, gently removing his clothes from his torso—. i want you to fuck me. i want you to sink into me, theodore. i can’t wait any longer.

ㅤㅤㅤ it’s a request he doesn’t plan to refuse, rushing his hands to grab the articles of clothing you wear in between kisses filled with laughter. not before long you’re half-dressed, pressed against the tree and burning to be touched. it’s so perfect that it hurts.

ㅤㅤㅤ —have you ever fucked a vampire? —you ask, over the soft movement of his lips against yours.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you’ll be my first —he answers with a smile that widens when you jump to wrap your legs around his waist, feeling his member getting harder between you—. proud of that?

ㅤㅤㅤ you nod, moving your hips against him.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you have no idea.

ㅤㅤㅤ you could get addicted to the way he kisses you. he had this thing about biting your lips just enough to pull you against him. yes, you wanted to kiss him every day, just as much as you wanted to feed off of him.

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore adjusts himself to support your weight on his arms and lowers his free hand to the growing wetness of your panties. so perfect, wet and ready for anything.

ㅤㅤㅤ —i need to be inside you —he whispers, his voice heavy with desire. he drops one of your legs onto the floor—. now.

ㅤㅤㅤ a stifled gasp escapes your lips when you hear the sound of your underwear tearing into a simple rag that falls to the floor. your hands tangle in his hair, as he adjusts himself to push the tip of his cock against your tight entrance without warning. it’s so slow and perfect that it feels like pleasurable torture.

ㅤㅤㅤ —ah, theo —you sigh, pulling at the end of his hair at the pain that crosses the line into pleasure soon after.

ㅤㅤㅤ —just a little, angel. r-relax a little more.

ㅤㅤㅤ it feels so good. the last portion of his member pushes inside you with a searing, arousing heat that travels throughout your throbbing body. he was so big that you can feel your muscles contract. then, theodore begins to move with soft shallow thrusts that tickle throughout your body.

ㅤㅤㅤ when his movements have sped up, making you whimper because of the wood scraping your back and the crash of his pelvis against you, a deadly sensation runs through you. deeper, harder, needy, and hungry. all that and the mixture of your juices has created a constant sound that clouds your senses.

ㅤㅤㅤ there are so many stimuli that it is impossible not to enjoy it. constant blows from the boy, wind crashing against your nakedness, heart beating desperately and sexual sound of his member pushing to the possible limit. how could all this be more perfect? ​​

ㅤㅤㅤ —theo, m-more.

ㅤㅤㅤ he looks at you, capturing your lips, while his free hand goes down to your clitoris. at the slightest contact of his cold fingers, massaging and pressing, you feel a wave that tickles to the depths of your being. the moans that merge with the contact of his lips is so pleasurable for theodore that he can feel his cock tremble. it can't be now, it can't be so fast.

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore grabs your leg, still moving, this time more gently. you smile, playing with his hair as he lifts and lays you down on the wet grass.

ㅤㅤㅤ —you look gorgeous.

ㅤㅤㅤ and mouthwatering. the thought manages to get stuck at the back of your mind, igniting something much stronger than your pleasure. it was hunger. a desire to bury your teeth in the throbbing vein of his neck and drain every last drop of his blood takes over you. you pull his arm, pressing your lips together until a small wound brings blood to your mouth.

ㅤㅤㅤ —i can't take it anymore. theodore, please —you plead, him tasting his own red liquid as he sucks the pain from his lip. you feel the little drop change everything inside you, and you can see theodore's gaze widen—. p-please.

ㅤㅤㅤ for fuck's sake, she'll be the end of me. his lips trail down your chest, beginning to move his hips again and chuckling softly at the way your chest bounces.

ㅤㅤㅤ —why the rush? are you that hungry, little vampire?

ㅤㅤㅤ the repeated movement of his hips colliding with yours quickens your breathing, and you gasp at theodore's wet attack on your chest.

ㅤㅤㅤ —just keep waiting for your prize.

ㅤㅤㅤ you look at him, knowing he means to drink his blood, but your fangs had already grown seconds ago.

ㅤㅤㅤ —who said i was going to keep waiting?

ㅤㅤㅤ damn. theodore moans at the pain of your teeth, piercing his flesh, feeling the blood gush into your mouth from the way you suck effortlessly. the mere taste makes your eyes turn bright red, and you can hear the boy's breath hitch. for a moment, he's completely still, panting, but soon he moves carefully again.

ㅤㅤㅤ the sensations mix inside you in a hellish way. his deep thrusts have intensified their power inside you from the pleasure of his blood running down your throat and the boy's soft moans. that mix was enough to clench your muscles tightly.

ㅤㅤㅤ —so pretty.

ㅤㅤㅤ your legs hug his hips, helping you find his rhythm in the air. theodore moans at the feeling of your mouth drinking, while your interior embraces his cock tighter and tighter. and it happens. you feel it like a wave charged with joy, but when he touches that same spot again, it is impossible to control the cry that arches your back.

ㅤㅤㅤ —r-right there. that's it... —he doesn't waste time pushing himself once more to that same spot as if he knew exactly what to do to touch it.

ㅤㅤㅤ what a sight. you try to take his arm again in the middle of your muffled moans, but theodore doesn't allow it. his mouth curves into a smile that you can't enjoy too much because his lips find yours in a messy kiss, panting and full of a lust that neither of you had felt. when he pulls away, he tastes his own blood as if he can understand what it does to your wet core.

ㅤㅤㅤ —shit...

ㅤㅤㅤ and it's enough because your entire body convulses under his power, while theodore moves about two more times to leave a line of semen on your abdomen. you both look at each other, catching your breath before you can feel his blood hit your nose.

ㅤㅤㅤ —i need to feed —you say, stopping your instincts from taking over—. please.

ㅤㅤㅤ theodore drops down beside you and extends his arm, giving you free rein to drink as much as you want. the thing is that you now found something even more addictive than his blood and you don't know what will happen with it.

[siri-ike]

Stepping out of the plane was a breath of fresh air. Literally, Gothams air was discusting. His stay there hadn't exactly been the relaxing getaway it was meant to, but he was still refreshed by it.

The ride home was unusually peaceful, too. His parents just talked to each other the whole time. Kind of odd that they barely said a word to him after almost 3 months apart. But that just gave him more time to text Steph and Tim in one chat and Sam and Tucker in another. He must have looked too happy or something because right when they got home, his parents felt the need to ruin everything.

"A private school!?"

"It's a high-end academy. They have a very low exeptance rate."

"What, so, 3 months without me wasn't enough? You have to immediately send me away again!?"

"Sweetheart, this is a wonderful opportunity.  It could set you up for careers in almost anything."

"DO YOU JUST NOT LIKE HAVING ME AROUND? Is that it?!" Danny had to storm upstairs so no one would see the tears welling up in his eyes. Unfortunately, he left his bag downstairs, and there is no way he's going back for it. He'll just explain away the batarang if they snoop.

Danny throws himself dramatically onto his bed. It's a show for no one but himself. Amorpho would be proud.

*knock-knock*

"I DON'T wanna talk!" He yelled, mostly into his pillow.

"Heard the news then." Jazz's voice couldn't have been more welcome.

"They can't even let me be home for a full week before sending me away again." He wasn't crying. You're crying.

"It was Vlads idea."

"So I looked into it. On the surface, Hive looks legit."

"But?"

"Would a normal upstanding school call itself "Hive"? Or be recommended by Vlad? I couldn't find any information about the staff.  Since it was established 3 years ago, no one has graduated. They don't have a website. The only way to get in is through scholarship, and the scholarships are always by a random rich guy or some shady organization. And the students? Identities are kept completely seacret. The only one I was able to find was that Lex Luther supposedly sent his son there, who, by the way, has no prior record of existing." She had deffinetly been waiting to get that out.

Danny sat up in his bed, intrigued. "What about Vlads angle. What's he get out of this?"

"That's what bothers me. Does he just want you out of Amity? Or is it something else? Like some kind of... evil... brainwashing, uh, clone school," that last part got away from her. "What if you show up and it's just more Danny Phantom clones, all ready to learn how to be Danny Phantom?!"

"Jazz, he wasn't even able to make one stable clone." Danny mocked his enemy. "If I go and there are a bunch more of me, then they'd probably be robots or something. Rich people love robots." He 'reassured'.

The two went on, and their theories got wilder and less serious as the hours passed. Until they went to Nasty Burger to meet Sam and Tucker. Danny claimed to want a taste of home, but the others didn't particularly care for a burger so early in the morning. Of course, they had to throw their theories into the ring, haunted boarding school full of Pointdexter knockoffs. Zombies, alternate dimensions, walkers prison brought to the human realm, but soon they got lost in other topics.

Hours turned to days, and before they knew, it was time to say goodbye again.

Getting to the school was a blur. He literally could not remember how he got there, no matter how much he tried. It was a big purple building in the shape of an H. Anything that purple has to be evil. And what's the deal with putting it in the middle of the water? Trying to keep him in or something?

It was even worse inside. The walls, floors, ceilings, everything was yellow broken up into hexagons with thin black lines. Well, they're wrong if they think he'll be distracted by the beauty of nature's most perfect shape... anything this yellow has to be evil.

In the entrance hall stood a polite looking boy, maybe 17 or 18 years old. He wore a suit, no, not just a suit. Tails. The only time Danny had even seen a jacket like that was in cartoons.

"Good morning. Are you Danny?" Oh no, he was here for him.

"Good morning," Danny avoided eye contact. "Yes, I'm Danny."

"Great!" He's so cheerful. "I'm Blacksun, but you can call me Ethan."

"Ok, Ethan. Why are you dressed for the opera?" Danny snided.

Ethan looks down at his clothes. "It is a tailcoat. Appropriate for the most formal events. Such as important celebrations, and what's a greater celebration than starting a new semester of the finest educational institution?" He recited proudly. "Come now. The training hall awaits. This is your chance to show the panel your talents. We can drop off your luggage with Horace. He'll take it to your room. Is that what you wear in battle, or do you need to change?"

Oh-oh. Was he supposed to be prepared for something. Battle?! "I need to change." He panicked, rushing into the room Ethan pointed towards with nothing but the one duffel that he and his friends packed last minute like a bunch of morons.

He dumped the contents onto a large table in the middle of the locker room.

Cutesy of Jazz: two sets of extra clothes, a hazmat suit (each wrapped up for efficient use of storage), some fentonworks shower gels and cleaning chemicals, and a printed out article on how to make friends.

Tucker: a laptop (clearly assembled himself), somehow warm beef jerkey and ducktape.

From Sam: so many seed packets, a compact watering can, and a switchblade.

That's OK. He can work with this.

Danny walked out into a large, wide open room. Looking up, he could see a crowd of people watching him. Suffering spooks. That's what he is right now. Best case scenario, he gets expelled. Worst case, he gets exposed. And there's not exactly a lot of middle ground.

There was an announcer. A male voice saying something over the speakers. It was probably important. As soon as it stopped, the obvious trap door that Danny had been staring at opened up. Through it rose a robot on a platform, roughly twice Danny's height.

It swung at him, and Danny immediately hit the floor running as fast as he could. The good news is it was slower than him. He discreetly reached into his shoulder and retreated some seed packets. Opening them up and letting them fall on the ground wherever he stands. The audience laughs. By the time he's spilled his 5th packet, Danny has covered the distance back to the door where he entered. Now, all he has to do is somehow get to the other side of a giant hostile robot trying to kill him.

5. Danny stares it down. He had built precious seconds worth of distance. He got to a running position. 4. He grabbed Fenton weed killer out of his thigh. 3. He ran towards the bot. 2,1. The robot throws a punch, but Danny dodges, and it hists the ground instead. He climbs up its arm, onto its back, and jumps down. All in one fell swoop. He runs again, this time spraying the seed pods with the concoction. The smell is so nauseating that he has to cover his mouth and nose. The robot is able to run past the first patch before they sprout into their monstrous ghost forms, but the second slowes it down. Then, the third manages to break off an arm. It gets stuck in the fourth.

He had made it well past the fifth patch and would have kept running, were it not for the sound of cheering.

Maybe Danny Fenton can be a baddie, too.

guess which show I binged while sick…(can’t fucking watch anything without thinking up a dp au for it)

danny phantom teen titans crossover au idea

 Vlad tricks the Fentons into sending danny to Hive Academy (so he can learn to be his evil apprentice/son or some shit). maybe by saying that its a super prestigious school that anyone would kill to attend, or like, its a school that specializes in helping troubled youth and setting them up on the path to successes (yeah successful super villains), or some other vapid nonsense.  either way Jack and Maddie fall for it and decide to send Danny there.

Danny probably doesn’t know exactly what Hive Academy(H.A.) is about, but he knows enough to understand that he doesn’t want anything to do with the place. maybe cause Vlad said something to him, or he overheard Vlad talking to someone about him attending. but he doesn’t get a choose about going, cause Jack and Maddie think it’ll fix danny’s school problem.(it won’t, its just replacing 1 set of problems for another)

from there, there would be a lot of danny+sam+tucker freaking out about danny not being there to protect the town from ghosts(maybe Jazz and Valerie too) And them trying everything they can think of to get danny out of it. nothing works but they still try.

after that Im not really sure about the specific stuff. Danny would probably do really well at H.A. cause the whole point of the place is to teach super powered kids how to use those powers (even if the reason completely clashes with danny’s morals) And then maybe Danny meets another kid there that doesn’t want to be a villain so the 2 of them team up to… idk,  rat the school out to the heroes and shit happens from there.

[bunny-jpeg]

wolves & lambs

toto wolff

tags: smut/pwp, mob au, mob boss!toto, age gap (20s/50s), tattoos, established relationship/marriage, missionary position, intimacy & love

a/n: happy birthday toto wolff - sexy for fifty-three beautiful years <3

"i'm curious." christian horner leaned further up against the bar and eyed you up and down, "members of the wolff family all have a similiar wolf tattoo. but, not you? but, yet you came in tonight with the head boss himself..."

you looked over at him, you wished you weren't speaking to him right now. you looked at the fresh tattoo on your arm, it was of a lamb. you replied, "there are many things you don't know about the family, mister horner..." your voice tense as you went back to your sweet alcoholic drink. you had no time for men like him.

"liebling." you looked over and saw toto approaching. he stood a good head over most. he noticed you were next to horner. he raised his eyebrows and got himself next to you. he draped an arm around your waist. he said flatly, "horner."

"curious little girl you got there. what is she, a call girl for the weekend?" horner laughed before the took a sip of his drink.

"no, christian." toto replied, "that's my wife."

toto did his best to keep you out of his line of work. he didn't need his wife getting her hands dirty. most didn't even know that you and toto had gotten married over the holidays. with everyone busy at the end of the year, it was the perfect time for him to take you back to his home country and have a private ceremony.

the wolf of monaco was a dangerous man, and maybe it would've been smarter to have run away when you found out about his line of work. but it was the money or the power that drew you in. you fondly remember when you went on your first date with him. and when he came to pick you up from your tiny apartment, he had brought you yellow flowers.

"they are not sunflowers, sadly they are out of season. but i did the best i could." he chuckled as he placed a hand on your thigh when you got into the luxury car, "but i will make sure when we get married, you'll get your sunflowers." and that left your stomach in knots. talking about marriage during a first date was a no-no at best, but yet. you liked it.

no wonder you were married within a year of dating. everything he owned was now yours. you were mrs. toto wolff. which meant you had to get the family's tattoo. a black wolf inked across your skin. but, before you could get it on your skin. toto had other plans.

thus, you ended up with a sweet lamb on your skin. he simply told you, "something gentle, for the most gentle woman i have ever met." he said as he kissed your hand before you sat in the tattooing chair.

back home from the bar, toto's lips grazed your neck as he took your jacket off your shoulders, "i'm sorry that horner was bothering you." he patted your cheek lovingly, "a yapping terrier like him needs to not bother my wife." he then kissed you on the lips.

toto was an assertive man, he didn't mince his words. straight-forward and near clinical. but, when it came to you. he was all sweet words and gentle caresses. he was your husband first and a mafia boss second. it was your world and he was just living in it.

flowers on special occasions, he held open doors for you and pulled out chairs. he even hung up your coat before he took you by the small of your back and led you through your lavish home. you padded through it with bare feet with your heels at the door.

you were his little lamb and instead of having your neck between his teeth. he was delicate with you, not letting your fleece grow stained with blood. protected little lamb, saved by the wolf. and with his hands on the back of your dress as he unzipped it, you felt more protected than ever.

he kissed you gently as the dress began to be taken off your body. you felt a shiver of excitement race through you as his hands dragged across your warmed skin. you felt the sexual want course through you. he sighed close to you, "my lamb. no one else has captured my heart the way you have. you have no idea what you do to me, how you have changed me. you make me feel more man than monster." he kissed across your jaw and neck, he crowded your space. you felt your stomach do flips as he held you by the small of you back with his much larger hand.

your protective husband, the man you loved. you kissed him on the lips once more before you stepped out of the dress on the floor. your hands the found his button up shirt and started to carefully undo the buttons. your core felt wet as he tended to you so delicately. he made you feel well loved and respected. admired in a way that made your heart sing as you got his belt off. he kissed you once more before he worked the rest of his clothes off.

soon you were both in bed, naked and eager to explore each other's bodies. you moaned against his kiss before you ended up straddling his waist. your hands roamed his body, you touched the dark hair across his chest as you admired his dark eyes. you rubbed your needy sex up against him for a moment.

this was the scariest man of monaco, the wolf. he was just a cute puppy. the thought made you giggle and toto raised his eyebrows at you. you just smiled at him, "don't worry. it's not bad." before you kissed him once more.

he smiled against the kiss and said when it soon broke, "your laugh pulls me in like a siren song. i remember when i first heard it. i knew i had to speak to you soon after. i wanted to hear it again and again." he captured your lips for another kiss and you two moved against one another before he properly laid you out on your shared bed.

"toto."

"my angel." he said lowly as he splayed a hand across your stomach for a moment, "my little lamb." he chuckled lightly, "every day i think you're becoming less like a lamb and more like a wolf."

you felt more heat rise in your face, "i guess you have that kind of effect on me." and let out a small yelp as he pressed his achy cock up against you. you held onto the covers and propped yourself up a little. you tensed for a moment but toto captured your lips into a heated kiss as he sank his cock into you.

even with all the money he had, all that power at his fingertips. there was nothing quite like making love to his wife. sweeter than any pastry, more luxurious than the finest wine, and all belonging to toto. you were his wife, symbolized by the tattoo on your skin and the ring on your finger. everything he did, he did for you.

it was only fair, you were the one who made him feel human. something he felt like he lost a long time ago. you let out a sweet moan and it was music to toto's ears. you had this way with him, your sweet core. the fiber of your being, so compassionate and kind. you left a cold, old man like toto feel renewed like flowers bloom after a cold winter. when he kissed you he felt alive, when he got to be in your space, he felt like a good man. despite everything he had done and what he was capable of. you were the angel who stayed by his side.

you were good with george and kimi, almost like a second mother to the younger man. maybe that was why toto was so protective of you, shuffle you out of harm's way. he needed to protect his lamb. his wife.

he planted his hands on either side of you and moved against you. you remained rested on your elbows while the two of you kissed deeply. the angle didn't allow for him to go as deep as he'd like. but he'd take anything if it meant being close to you. close in a way that only he could be.

the way a husband and wife are close. wrapped up in one another as the two of you heavily kissed. the pleasure moved through body of you, the sounds from your moans got more needy just as his breathing grew heavy.

he felt a slight pain in his hip, but brushed it off. when he was fucking you, any minor aches and pains could be ignored. he had to make you feel good and he wasn't going to let the wear and tear from years of the business ruin his evening. you reached out fro him and draped your arms over his shoulders. you were chest to chest in your intimate position.

he could almost feel your rabid heartbeat. he would say it was like feeling the wings of a hummingbird as he rutted against you. the pace he kept was consistent, his movements short but powerful. he was so much larger than you, and up close it only became more apparent. you were so small, no wonder you were known as his lamb. but toto wasn't that kind of wolf to you. he wasn't going to devour you, but rather protect as you stood on shaky legs. love you with every inch of his heart and every ounce of blood that pumped through it.

you held onto him as he moved against you. his hands on your hips as he eyed you. you could see so much in those dark eyes, they lured you in like a forest in the nighttime. you knew your husband inside and out, you knew the story to every scar, every line in his face and every piece of ink on his skin. everything he had done, while it was dangerous, you loved him.

he gazed into your eyes with more than just lust. his want for you was below surface level. it would be easy to find a young woman of the evening to sink his cock into. but toto wanted you, only you. he wouldn't have made such a commitment to you had he wanted simple sex.

"fuck." you whined as you held him a little tighter. and even with such love for one another, the sex was still enthusiastic and left toto with a wife who could only finish thanks to him. you laid fully out on the bed, your back on the mattress. toto used it as leverage to hike your hips up and move against your quicker. you let out a sharp noise as the pleasure really picked up in your body.

your hands grasped the covers, but soon toto loomed over you further and clutched your hands in his own. he kept you pinned to the bed while his hips worked against you. despite the pain and despite his age, he could keep up with you.

so it was no surprise that soon your noises got higher in pitch and your heart hammered in your chest. your squeezed your eyes shut as you came around his cock. toto kept his pace up as you climaxed. you squirmed under him in the height of your pleasure.

"honey."

"i've got you, little lamb. you look beautiful." he purred as he could taste the pleasure on his tongue. he wasn't going to last much longer not while you were under him, beautiful as ever. he captured your lips once more and you near melted into his touch. you held onto one another as toto gave it a few more thrusts before he finished inside of you.

you whimpered and toto shuddered from the pleasure. you continued to rock against one another until the energy left your body and you were both pleased yet tired. he made sure to lie next to you so he didn't squish his precious lamb under him.

you got under the covers as a slight chill on your sweaty skin made your nipples hard. toto joined you and happily took you in his arms. he kissed you once more, this time less heated.

he rubbed your arm gently as you laid in his embrace. his kisses along your warm skin made your core warm. you felt comfortable in his hold.

"honey."

"yes, my treasure." he said lovingly.

"i think it's time that i make an addition to my tattoo... i want to add a wolf."

toto looked at you for a moment before he broke into a smile, "of course. but you'll still be my lamb?"

you held his face and rubbed your thumb across his cheek. you replied with a smile, "of course, i'll always be your little lamb." <3

[makelemonade]

Would you fall in love with me again?

It’s been four years.

Four years since Diluc kissed you goodbye in the very living room you’re currently sitting in.

Four years since you begged him with tears in your eyes to stay.

Four years since Diluc abandoned you

You hated this house, this stupid, huge, lovely house. Every room, every step you took, just reminded you of him. Every maid, every carve in the walls or the untouched wine cellar was all a reminder of him.

It was your own fault either way, for choosing to stay in the dawn winery, because even though everything reminded you of him, that was it, it reminded you of him.

Forgetting him was something you promised yourself each day not to do, because you loved him too much, and even trying just made you want to slap yourself because how could you ever think like that?

But also, how could you ever think like that? Forcing yourself to stay in this home, to remember the man you loved because you don’t know if he’ll ever come back, and because you couldn’t bear the thought of losing him in your heart.

Even though you had lost him, and you were alone.

Aside from the maids, Kaeya would sometimes come and spend the night in an old room of his, and you didn’t know if it was because he just chose to or he also thought of his brother often. You hoped it was the latter- so you weren’t alone in these self depreciating thoughts of yours.

He had even brought a vase, an ugly one which completely clashed with the colours, but what was inside that mattered. The vision. His vision. The one he threw at Eroch before coming home to you, then leaving it all behind.

So the Vase sat on its own pedestal by the stairs, just a few feet away from the door. If anyone were to walk in they’d notice it, maybe even comment on it, whether choosing to lie and compliment it or berate you on it.

But all that mattered is that you knew the truth about it. That’s all you cared about.

It was your last hope that maybe he’d return, yet why couldn’t you think in a way that he would return for you instead of his vision.

Eventually, your questions were answered.

It was a rainy, stormy night. You found yourself laying on the couch in front of the fireplace, book open and snuggled into your blankets. You tried to ignore the lingering touch of his arms, because it wasn’t perfect. You were starting to forget how he felt.

With the noise of thunder came a muffled sound of a knock. You assumed it was Kaeya- maybe coming to shelter from the storm after a mission and didn’t want to make the full trek back to the city.

And yet there you were, standing and staring wide-eyed into the fiery eyes of your past lover- or current? He was drenched, and his hair had grown just a bit longer from when you last saw him. It was messy and uneven.

His breath was shaky, and you didn’t know if you should let him in or just stare at him shocked.

“You’re back.” You breathed out, your voice a mix of all the emotions you could feel; Happiness, disbelief, and anger

“That I am.” His voice almost made you shudder- maybe it sent you some shivers though. It was so rough- it had been so long since you heard it, but it brought you a warm feeling in this cold air. “But I’m not the man you once knew.”

“Wh- what are you talking about? Don’t be so ridiculous…Diluc.” Even saying his name was foreign.

“I left a trail of blood in my wake,” he admitted, his voice raw. “After my father died, I abandoned everything I once held dear, including you, and I hunted down the people responsible. It was the Fatui… I hunted them down one by one. I didn’t stop. I became a weapon of vengeance. I became a monster…I killed without hesitation, showing absolutely no mercy. And when I had nothing left to destroy, I realized I lost myself just for vengeance, and in doing so, I lost everything, including you.”

He paused, letting out a shaky breath. “I needed to come back to you.”

You laughed in disbelief, but you too, just wanted him back. “How could you say this? It’s been four years. You- you think you can just come back into my life?! Do you even understand what you’re saying.”

Tears mixed in with the rain running down his face. “I know. I know I’m unworthy, undeserving of your life after everything. I just needed to try, even if you cannot forgive me, or if you don’t love me anymo-“

“Don’t.” You immediately cut him off. “Don’t you dare.”

“Then…would you fall in love with me again? Even if I am no longer the man you once knew, now that you know what I’ve done.”

Each word sent cracks to your heart if it hasn’t already dropped and shattered. The man you looked at was scarred, traumatized and hurt. Yet under it all, it was your man. The man who was so deeply in love with you, just like you were in love with him.

“If that’s true, then do me a favour.” You walked back, finally letting him come in and shelter from the rain.

You pointed to the vase, and he didn’t dare comment on what the hell it was and why it was in his home. “That vase. Get rid of it, take it far away- destroy it.”

He blinked, confused. “It’s just a vase?”

“No.” You shook your head, grabbing it and bringing it to him. “Kaeya brought it a while after you left. He told me there was something you left in here.”

His breath hitched, and taking a glimpse in from his angle, he could see his vision glowing. “My vision.” His voice trembled.

“It sat here forgotten and abandoned. Just like me.”

He looked away. “I-I can’t. I had to leave it behind. It just reminded me of everything I failed to protect.

”Only the love of my life knew that. So I guess it makes him you.”

Diluc froze, his eyes moving back to yours from the vase. Multiple emotions flickered through as he was in disbelief, but also felt hopez

“Me?” he whispered, his voice barely audible. His hands were trembling, and his attempts to calm down were not working. “After everything I’ve told you, everything I’ve done, you still see me? You still love me?”

You smiled, finally letting the tears fall. “I will fall in love with you continuously. I don’t care how, where or when. It doesn’t matter how long it’s been or who you are, because you will always be mine. Do not tell me you have changed, because you will always be the love of my life.”

He couldn’t control himself before immediately wrapping his arms around you as you both uncontrollably sobbed in each others arms, the two of you falling to the ground. The way you held onto him was as if you were so scared he’d leave you again, and the way he held onto you was a reminder that he was still him.

He was yours, and you were his.

“I’ll fall in love with you everyday, Diluc.” You whispered, before your lips met his.

Inspired by “Would You Fall in Love With Me Again” from Epic: The Musical

[mylovesstuffs]

Vernon is THAT type of boyfriend !

This is my personal opinion and perspective. It may not accurately reflect their real-life personalities or behaviors.

Vernon is so chill as a boyfriend, but it’s the kind of chill that makes you feel completely at ease. He’s like a human comfort zone—low-key, calm, and always giving you space to just be. But don’t mistake that for indifference; he cares deeply, he’s just not one for grand, dramatic gestures.

He’s a naturally observant boyfriend, noticing the little things about you without even trying. You change your hairstyle slightly? He clocks it immediately but doesn’t make a big fuss, just smiles like, yeah, I see you. He’s also surprisingly good at remembering random details about you—like your favorite niche snack or that song you casually mentioned once... SEVENTEEN will never believe or agree with this tho—

He doesn’t always know how to express his feelings with words, but he shows his love in the most Vernon-esque ways: sharing his playlist, tagging you in the weirdest memes, or randomly sending you blurry photos of something that made him think of you. His love language is so subtle, but once you get it, it’s everything.

Vernon isn’t one for PDA as much as others—subtle, but in private, he’s a whole different story. Oh god, that side of him. He’s the type to quietly pull you closer, resting his chin on your shoulder or tucking you against his chest while you’re watching something together. It’s so casual yet so intimate, you can’t help but melt.

He has this offbeat sense of humor that constantly catches you off guard. One moment he’s saying something incredibly profound, and the next he’s referencing the most random thing in pop culture. You’re either laughing uncontrollably or just staring at him like, how does his brain even work?

He’s super laid-back when it comes to arguments or disagreements. Vernon doesn’t raise his voice or get overly emotional; instead, he calmly listens, nods, and takes his time to process. It’s almost infuriating how logical and level-headed he is, but it’s also why fights with him don’t spiral out of control.

There’s a quiet intensity to him that makes him so intriguing. He doesn’t say a lot, but when he does, it’s meaningful. And when he looks at you—like, really looks at you—you can feel your heart skip a beat because holy hell, it’s like he’s seeing into your soul TT.

Vernon isn’t overly romantic in the traditional sense, but he’s full of unexpected gestures that hit you right in the feels. He’d casually buy you something you mentioned wanting weeks ago or show up at your door with your favorite drink because he thought you’d need it after a long day.

He’s the ultimate vibe-setter in your relationship. Late-night drives with his playlist? Yes. Chilling in comfortable silence while doing your own thing? Also yes. But when the mood shifts, oh boy. There’s something about the way he lingers in close proximity, his hand brushing against yours, that makes your heart race. Like, please HELP.

If you ever surprise him with affection, he gets this slightly flustered, awkward smile that makes you want to kiss him on the spot. He’s so effortlessly adorable, yet so unaware of it, and you’re just sitting there like, he’s so cute. (omg I can’t.)

He’s not the overly protective type, but he does have this quiet way of looking out for you. It’s in the way he makes sure you’re comfortable or checks in with you after a tough day. He might not say much, but his actions always speak volumes.

Vernon is surprisingly suggestive in his own low-key way. A fleeting touch here, a smirk there—it’s all so subtle but incredibly effective. And don’t get me started on how casually confident he can be when he’s teasing you, like, sir, where did this come from??

Being with Vernon feels like being with your best friend and your biggest crush rolled into one. He’s so down-to-earth and genuine, yet there’s this quiet magnetism about him that keeps you hooked. It’s the perfect mix of comfort and excitement, and honestly, you’re just obsessed.

[musings-by-certified-bi]

Zuko of course ends up being permanently shuffled along to where ever the kids are. The women of course would not have let this group of strangers (especially armed, controlling men) near their children anyways, but Zuko acts as a perfect deterrent, since even if you like kids you probably don't want to hang out with the shouty walking teenage angst that is Zuko. The men never realize that keeping him with the kids is the perfect excuse to keep him out of any meetings, and away from any actual questions of how he got there. After all it's not like the men are inclined to include him in the hero fantasy they believe of themselves.

So he's elbowed into being called something else and is waved away as a child from another village they took in. Pakku doesn't even seem to notice how he resembles the exact missing boy Iroh asked the white lotus to keep an eye out for, because he's too busy giving Kanna reasons to finally snap and end him. His attempts at reconciliation are not going well, especially not after he told of her grand kids without masking his annoyance at Sokka's... everything.

Most of the men stay in the rebuilt walls of wolf cove, with a few stragglers leaving to reach out to the other tribes. When the men arrive, the women are well into prepping for winter and while men means more hunters, it also means more mouths making comments on the food. More clothes that need repair (and wearers with no respect for the labor that takes). More interruptions when the storyteller is speaking and not the curious interruptions of the children (including more recently a certain teen) nor the rude interruptions of an indignant prince who somehow chafed less because for all his disrespect he never laughed at them for being silly little girls who couldn't get the details right to simple tales, never mind this is the version their tribe had told for generations and held dear. It means more than a few of the married women without kids get rudely hit on, with the excuse being the lack of betrothal necklaces, followed up by snide comments at their husbands' ability to provide... the same husbands that actually went to fight in the war for their tribe's future.

In little and big ways autonomy from the women was taken away bit by bit. And the children kept asking why. Why not fight back, demand respect? After all the oldest among them know that their fathers didn't act like this, all of them remember Sokka, and even the prince treated them like people (he just happened to be an ass to a lot of people). How do you tell children for all the talk of sister tribes, that this was nothing more than an occupation? Sure one with seemingly good intentions on the surface, but doesn't that just make it worse?

During all this Zuko is sitting in his corner doing chores, with at least one child hanging off him. He of course is baffled at why the same women who had no trouble putting him in his place aren't doing the same now. Until finally one of the women simply asks (after the children are in bed) how that would work. The men are better armed, more trained, not inclined to listen, and it's not like they can leave their home just as winter hits. And suddenly Zuko is reminded of all the times he was told to pick his battles. Every insult Uncle took, every slight at his mother, every time his sister laughed at someone doubting her. Of course he still isn't any good at keeping his mouth shut, and he doesn't agree but he gets it the point she's making. He also is less inclined to try and start arguments once winter hits and Agni is barely present. He learns the hard way how one determines when the day starts during months of dark. The answer is being pushed out of bed by a surprisingly strong old lady, as to not be in Kanna's hut when Pakku swings by.

Eventually Agni returns and Pakku and some of the men leave. The women are unimpressed when no one says why. Clearly something is happening given he got mail before hand. Zuko mentions the comet and a few realizations occur. The most pressing is that this probably means some sort of escalation of the war (hopefully the end of it, but that's a hope that's been shrinking for decades). The other realization is that their fire hazard is going to be extra fiery and despite the amount of times men have walked in on Zuko heating water or giving of steam, somehow they haven't noticed he can fire bend and it's probably best to keep it that way. Which starts the debate of where to put him. Quite a few different suggestions are made but eventually it's decided they'll just leave him in Kanna's hut since Pakku isn't around to try and swing by. There are several close calls during this, but the children come through. They aren't willing to loose their personal heater. Zuko is not apart of the debate and doesn't realize his bending is a secret. Just his origin.

As spring truly arrives the tension finally burst. Hakoda arrives home with his children, his crew and (ugh) Pakku, to find the new wall has had a chunk fire bended out of it, at least 3 northerners knocked out, a water bender dueling a fire bending teen (he assumed the teen Pakku mentioned was... a water tribe teenager and not a clearly trained fire bender) with the children lobbing snow balls and rocks at the fight.. and surprisingly not aiming at the fire bender. He finally gets the fight broken up, asking what in the world is going on. To which Kanna replies that the fire prince was kindly letting their northern guests know that their welcome had worn itself out.

Hi ! prompt idea : What if Zuko was armed during the first episode and was stranded with the water tribe while the avatar left with Katara and Sokka, Iroh on his trail for white lotus reasons.

Oh we are going to have us some FUN with "stranded with the water tribe", say no more.

---

Zuko was dripping, and steaming, and staring down two dozen women and their gaggle of small children, plus that old not-the-Avatar crone from earlier. They were all cowering away from him. Which was--

Good. It was good. If they were cowering, then they hadn’t noticed how steam was not flames. He wasn’t sure he could make flames, not after the arctic water he’d landed in, with that last sight of the Avatar glowing; not after surfacing under the ice pack, after swimming, after kicking slamming breaking through and his ship was gone and there was only ocean all around and

and he’d made it back to this pathetic little camp of the Southern Water Tribe, because that was the only place he knew for sure would have shelter, and he wasn’t going to die just because they were all staring at him, even if felt like he would.

Even if the old not-the-Avatar woman could probably take him, right now. But she didn’t know that.

Zuko pulled himself up, taller than her by at least a few inches, and blew steam from his nose.

“I am commandeering one of your huts,” he said. And added, because Uncle said even a prince should be gracious: “You may choose which one.”

---

She choose her own.

...The only one without children that flames might scar, or younger women to catch a soldier’s interests.

Zuko sat by her fire and determinedly started struggling out of his wet clothes and she was still in here with him--

Zuko pulled one of her animal pelts over himself, and finished fighting off his clothes. When he stuck his head back out, cheeks still reddened from what was obviously the cold, she dropped a parka on his head.

“Dry clothes, Your Highness,” she said.

The parka was much bigger than he was. He fell asleep hoping that the camp’s men were on a long, long hunting trip.

---

He woke up again. Kanna tucked her favorite ulu knife away, newly sharpened, and stopped contemplating the alternative.

---

“I am commandeering a ship,” he said.

The crone led him across the village, all twenty paces of it, to a row of canoes.

“Take whichever one you want,” she said. “Will you need help getting it to the water?”

Zuko looked at the canoes. Looked at the ocean. Watched a leopard seal, easily the size of the largest canoe, dozing just past the ice his own ship had broken through the day before. It was frozen again, a great icy arrow pointing from the waves to the village, snow already starting to cover it over.

Beyond was blue sky and gray ocean and white ice, floating in blocks like stepping stones, like boulders, like cliffsides.

There wasn’t even a hint of gray steel, or smoke. Or any land, besides what they were standing on.

He looked down at the canoes again. Somehow, they seemed even smaller.

“I, uh,” Zuko cleared his throat. “I’ll require supplies. Before I go.”

---

They... did not have supplies. Not extra ones. This didn’t stop them from trying to give him supplies, food and blankets and anything else he could think to ask for. But each blanket was a pelt hunted by someone’s grandfather, had been inked with images and stories by someone’s mother, was the favorite of someone’s husband or brother or uncle or cousin--

They couldn’t go to the nearest market to replace things, here.

And when they talked about food, about what they could spare, they kept sneaking glances to their children, who were sneaking glances at Zuko from the huts, sticking their heads just over the snowy ledges like their fur-trimmed hoods would hide them. Their mothers and aunts shooed them away, and they crept back, like barnacle-crabs. Zuko glared, and they disappeared.

“When are your men coming back?” he asked. “They’re hunting, aren’t they?”

Oh. So that was what they looked like, when they weren’t trying to hide their hate.

---

Zuko wrapped himself up in the same blanket that night. It was printed inside with fine lines and images, telling a story he didn’t know. He wondered whose favorite it was.

---

Kanna wondered how quickly he’d wake—if he’d wake—if she built the fire up with wet driftwood and tundra grass, if she had one of the younger girls boost up a child to plug the air hole, if she let the smoke draw its own blanket down over this fire child.

---

It was hard to know when to wake up, because the sun never set. So everyone was up before him, and they all had spears and clubs and—and nets, and trap lines, and snow googles with their single slat to protect the eyes from snow blindness. Zuko had seen those once, at the Ember Island Museum of Ethnography, where they’d gone when it was too rainy for anything more exciting.

Oh. They were going hunting.

“Give me that,” Zuko said, and took a spear.

The women looked at him. One of them adjusted her googles.

“I can hunt,” he scowled.

He did not, in fact, know how to hunt.

---

“Give me that,” the Fire Prince said, and Kanna almost, almost gave him her ulu. Humans, like most animals, had an artery in their legs that would bleed them quick enough.

She kept skinning the rabbit-mink one of the women had snared.

“I can help,” he said, with less grace than most of their toddlers. Likely with the skinning skills of a toddler, too. She wasn’t going to let their unwanted visitor ruin a perfectly good pelt.

“Chop the meat,” she said, and gave him a different knife. “It’s dinner.”

“...This is really sharp,” he said a moment later, looking at the knife with some surprise.

“Is it,” said Kanna.

---

Things the Fire Prince was convinced he could do: hunt (until he realized he couldn’t tell the tracks of a rabbit-mink from a leopard-rabbit apart); spear fish (at least he could dry himself); pack snow for an igloo (frustrated princes ran hot); ice fish (the prince was a problem that kept coming close to solving itself).

Things the Fire Prince could actually do: mince meat, increasingly finely; gather berries and herbs, once he stopped trying to crush them; dig roots, under toddler supervision; mend nets, after the intermediary step of learning to braid hair loopies.

“Can’t I take him ice fishing again?” asked one of the women, as she watched Prince Zuko put as much apparent concentration into braiding her daughter’s hair as his people had into exterminating hers.

“Wait,” said another woman, sitting up straight. “Wait wait wait. I just had an idea.”

---

Three words: Infinite. Hot. Water.

---

Summer was coming to an end. The sun actually set, now, and the night was getting longer, and colder. The salmon-otter nets were mended and ready. The smoking racks were still full of cod-lemmings. The children were all a little older, the women all a little more used to doing both halves of their tribes’ chores; a little more used to not watching the horizon, waiting for help to come.

The Fire Prince was staring at the canoes again.

“Are you actually going to try leaving in one of those?” Kanna asked.

“...No.”

“Come on, then; someone needs to watch the kids while the women are hunting.”

She didn’t leave him alone with them, of course. But she could have.

---

Elsewhere, the war continued.

The moon turned red, for a moment none could sleep through; they did not learn why.

The comet came and went, leaving their castaway prince laying on the beach, his breath fogging up into the night sky above him, as the energy crashed from his system as quickly as it had come. Above, lights began to dance in the sky; Zuko pulled his hood up, so none of those spirits—children, dead too soon—got any ideas about kicking his head off to be their ball.

The war had ended. The world didn’t feel any different; no one in the south would know until spring came again.

---

Suffice it to say, Sokka and Katara were not prepared for this particular homecoming.

[cherrysolo]

omg since you`re doing minifics inspired on taylor's songs, can u do you belong with me? its my favorite song <3

you belong with me

omg I love this idea and this song <3 it’s such a classic taylor song that reminds me of my childhood :( this is going to be sooo fluffy and predictable but idc these are fun to write!

warnings: none! just fluff

you and luigi were best friends ever since childhood, now in college together. he was always your person, he knew you better than anyone else. as you had gotten older, you’d began to realize you had feelings to be more than just friends. you had always kept your feeling to yourself though, never expecting him to reciprocate.

“You're on the phone with your girlfriend, she's upset

She's going off about something that you said

'Cause she doesn't get your humor like I do

I'm in my room, it's a typical Tuesday night

I'm listening to the kind of music she doesn't like”

“baby, I can’t right now I’m studying with y/n,” he mumbles into his phone one late february night. you try not to listen to his conversations with his girlfriend but it doesn’t help that she’s blowing up his phone.

“you know that y/n and I are friends, nothing more. we’re just studying that’s all,” he quickly glances to you, you return a small smile.

he sighs as he hangs up the phone, you can feel the tension in the air.

“you can go be with her lu, you know, if she needs you or something,” you begin packing up your things to leave,

“no, I’d prefer to be with you instead,” and his smile is what makes you stay. moments like these made you wonder if he’d want you in that way,

“ ‘Cause she wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts

She's Cheer Captain and I'm on the bleachers

Dreaming 'bout the day when you wake up and find

That what you're looking for has been here the whole time”

a couple weeks later, while sitting at a cafe on campus studying, you see luigi and his girlfriend walk by. he looks amazing, he’s laughing, his skin is glowing, and of course she was on his arm. she wore heeled boots, a navy knit sweater, a mini black skirt, and her blonde hair cascaded down her back. she was the leader of the alpha phi sorority, how could she have anything in common with lu? you sat there with envy, deep down you knew that you knew him better than anyone else, he was indeed your best friend. seeing her laugh at his jokes, ones that you had probably heard before. instead of going back to studying, you sat there daydreaming 'bout the day when he wake up and find that what he’s looking for has been here the whole time.

“Oh, I remember you driving to my house

In the middle of the night

I'm the one who makes you laugh

When you know you're 'bout to cry

I know your favorite songs

And you tell me 'bout your dreams

Think I know where you belong

Think I know it's with me”

you heard erratic knocking at your door,

“y/n, open up, it’s lu,” you unlock the door and see him standing there, his eyes bloodshot red.

“lu, what happened? are you okay?” he rushes in for a hug, gripping onto your sweater and breathing in your scent, it’s so comforting to him. “she cheated on me,” he sniffles.

“I caught her with another frat member,” he releases from your arms.

“I’m so sorry lu,” you try to console him before he interrupts you,

“is it weird I’m kind of relieved? I don’t even know why I’m crying,” he chuckles, which his confession is full of truth because you had only seen him cry twice before.

you both sit down on your bed, placing your hand on his forearm, rubbing back and forth.

“do you think love her?” you blurt out. luigi’s eyes meet yours, thinking for a moment.

“I don’t even think I liked her half the time,” which makes you chuckle.

“oh cmon, she is the definition of perfect though,” which you can confess, because she is everything you aren’t. luigi places his hand where yours lies upon his arm still, he slightly squeezes it. “well now I can spend more time with you, anyways could you hug me again? I think I need it,” he looks at you with pleading eyes. oh you were so far gone.

“If you could see that I'm the one who understands you

Been here all along, so why can't you see?

You belong with me

Standing by and waiting at your back door

All this time, how could you not know, baby?

You belong with me, you belong with me”

by the time spring formal comes around, your feelings have expanded times a thousand. you and luigi had been spending every waking moment together, your friendship had reached new heights. tonight you would be luigi’s date to upenn’s spring formal, even though you were technically only going as friends, you had never been so nervous.

you weren’t one for dressing up but for this night you went all out, a short navy blue silk slip dress with a twist front, and a pair of white kitten heels with a bow. you’d even spent hours on your hair, wanting to look your best. finalizing your look with lip gloss, you heard a knock at your door. you open your door and see luigi standing there, your breath got caught in your throat looking at him, he looked perfect. dressed up in a full suit and tie, with his tie colour matching your dress. you were both looking at each other up and down, not even sure what to say. you’d never seen him this silent.

“let me just grab my purse, you look great by the way,” trying breaking the awkward tension, you wanted this night to go perfectly.

as the night progresses, you grow more urgent to confess your feelings to luigi. a battle in your mind that you wish you weren’t having on a night like this, but his hand grazing your lower back and his wandering eyes were making you a lost cause. was ruining a friendship worth coming clean with your feelings?

you were both tipsy and walking back to luigi’s dorm, finally alone together. your heart starts to beat faster than it ever has before, maybe it was just the tequila. “lu, i have something to tell you, I’ve been thinking about you a lot lately,” you blurt out, almost not understanding what you were doing. you stop in your tracks and he looks back at you, up and down.

“can you picture it? you and I?” his eyebrow furrows, eyes dotting between yours and your lips. “i-i guess, but you liked […]” you step back almost in shock that he is imagining the same thing as you.

“I don’t like […], she’s not you. I’ve known you since… forever. you’re basically home to me, I can’t imagine being with anyone else,” he steps forward and pushes back a piece of hair behind your ear. “but wouldn’t us being together ruin our friendship?”

“we can’t be friends anymore though, I’ll always see you as something else. I only want you,” he confesses, “we should try this, don’t you think?” he steps closer placing a hand to your cheek, leaning in, you nod up and down to give him permission, because you’re far too nauseous to speak. his lips softy melting into yours, then pulling back to look at you. you both quickly go back in for another passionate kiss, his tongue prods at the seam of your lips and you open up for him. you both moan into each others mouths then pull apart, realizing you are both still outside. you both start laughing, luigi pulls you to his side and you begin walking. “you know, my family has been placing bets on when we would start dating,” he chuckles. “what? no they didn’t,”

“actually they starting saying that in high school we would,”you walk back to luigis dorm wrapped around each other. you two always belonged together.

[maskedbyghost]

"… do you take Mr. Riley as your lawfully wedded husband?"

Who could possibly say no to that?

Who could say no to a man marked by battle scars yet capable of holding you with hands so soft, so tender, that they seemed untouched by the world’s cruelty? The hands that had become your favorite place to rest.

His eyes, his hair, the way it fell messily yet perfectly, every detail of him felt like home.

Who could say no to the person who proved that life still held something worth fighting for? The man who became your light in the darkest corners, your beacon of hope.

Your gaze traced Simon’s form, memorizing every line and shadow of the man you knew better than yourself. To you, he wasn’t just handsome—he was the most beautiful man to ever walk this earth.

The love of your life.

You met Simon when you joined the Task Force as the newest member. Captain Price had heard enough about your work to know you were the perfect fit. At first, the brooding Lieutenant kept his distance, wary of your sunshine persona. But it didn’t take long for you to slip past his walls.

It was your smile that caught him first—before he even knew it. It crept under his skin in ways he couldn’t explain. It got to the point where if he didn’t see you smile at least once a day, he’d grow restless, snappish, his mood souring without realizing why.

You remembered the first mission where things nearly went wrong—pinned down, backs to the wall, with no clear escape. Simon had shielded you without hesitation, his voice steady even when bullets rained around you. That was the moment you realized his silence wasn’t coldness—it was protection. And when you patched him up later, his quiet gratitude spoke louder than words ever could.

Nights spent in faraway places, sharing quiet conversations under starless skies, confiding in each other when sleep refused to come. You learned about the weight Simon carried, the ghosts that followed him, and still, he let you in. Slowly, carefully, piece by piece.

You thought back to a night colder than most, deep in enemy territory. The mission had gone longer than expected, supplies were running low, and exhaustion hung over the team like a thick fog. The others had turned in for the night, but you and Simon remained by the dwindling campfire, its glow casting soft shadows on his mask.

Without a word, he had shrugged off his heavy jacket and draped it over your shoulders, the same way he always did when he thought you wouldn’t argue. You caught him watching you, gaze softer than usual, the crackling fire reflecting in his eyes.

When you leaned your head against his shoulder, he didn’t flinch or pull away. He simply adjusted his stance so you could rest more comfortably, his hand resting lightly over yours. No words were needed. His presence, solid and warm, spoke everything. In that fragile stillness, you realized how deeply you had come to trust him—not just as a soldier, but as a man who had quietly made a home in your heart.

It was in these quiet moments, away from the chaos, that you both found something neither of you thought you’d ever have: peace.

You remembered your first kiss with Simon on a quiet evening at his flat. The team had gone home hours ago, but neither of you wanted the night to end. You sat side by side on his couch, half-watching a movie, half-teasing him about his terrible film choices.

At some point, the laughter faded, and you caught him staring.

Without a word, he leaned in, and his lips met yours in a kiss that was gentle. No rush, no hesitation—just the realization that this was always meant to happen.

When he pulled back, he simply let you lean into him, pulling the blanket around you both, as if nothing had changed.

But everything had.

One afternoon, after a long stretch of missions, you found yourselves sitting on the couch in Simon’s apartment, the sound of rain softly tapping against the windows. Neither of you had said much, both still adjusting to the stillness after the chaos. Simon, usually so guarded, had finally let his guard down just enough to let you in.

You leaned against him, your head resting on his shoulder, and he absentmindedly ran his fingers through your hair. It wasn’t rushed—just a quiet gesture of comfort, as if that small touch was enough to ground you both.

The world outside felt distant in that moment, and there was a peace in the stillness, a feeling that, for once, you were exactly where you were supposed to be.

You recalled a day after a particularly grueling mission, when the weight of everything seemed to linger in the air. The team gathered around the mess hall; each person exhausted but silently supportive of one another. You and Simon sat side by side, as you always did now, that bond between you both felt by everyone in the room.

It wasn’t until a quiet moment passed, with the team easing into a comfortable silence, that you noticed it. The way they looked at you—there was pride in their eyes, not just for your work, but for your relationship with Simon. It wasn’t said aloud, but the approving glances, the slight smiles, and the soft nods said more than words ever could. They respected the way you’d found something genuine amid the chaos, something that gave both of you strength. It was their way of showing that they saw you as more than just a teammate—they saw the love that had grown between you, and they were proud of it.

Everyone had always believed you and Simon were endgame. The way you complemented each other, the quiet moments, the way he looked at you when he thought no one was watching—it all pointed to something inevitable. Your bond felt like it had been written in the stars, as if you were always meant to find each other amidst the chaos.

So, as you sat there, watching Simon at the altar, the truth settled into your bones. You had imagined this day a thousand times, but never like this. His eyes, once so full of warmth when they met yours, were now focused on the woman beside him. The woman in the white dress who wasn’t you.

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

The words “I do” hung in the air, and you realized, with a sickening twist in your gut, that Simon was married to someone else.

PART 2

lets cry together.

@daydreamerwoah @blackhawkfanatic @spicyspicyliving

[peterm4rker]

from the rooftops || m.l

twenty four. mark fucking lee

🕸🕷✮⋆˙ wc. 0.7k w. curse words ! ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ

sometimes in life things just click.

like when you hear a part of a gossip you were missing and everything suddenly makes sense, or when you remember the name of something hours after thinking about it.

or when you hear spiderman answer your question in a way that no one but mark lee would.

it was november 13th, the day was beautiful with clear and sunny skies. kids ran around the park and laughter filled the air. everything was absolutely perfect.

you had everything ready to take action on your little detective plan as you both sat on your usual spot on the ground of the park, where was telling you one of his many stories for the new article. you noticed the stiffness of his body almost immediately after he got there, when he greeted you with the most awkward handshake you had ever been a part of. he completely lacked his usual relaxed and fun demeanor, and it was making your job harder and easier at the same time. maybe he was trying hard to hide who he was now that he knew he had fumbled a couple days prior, or maybe he had just woken up in a bad mood. whatever it was, it would end up playing an enormous part on the pieces of the puzzle moving slowly into place, preparing a picture of a face you had grown to know a little too well. 

you did everything you could to make him feel more comfortable so he could let himself go, just so he could give you something, anything that would help you finally figure out what you so desperately wanted to know.

it wasn’t that you wanted to know for any evil reasons like you were sure that many did, but you needed to know if the boy you were madly in love with was putting his life in danger every single day.

you asked questions and said funny comments, looking to elicit some type of reaction from him. slowly, he let his walls down as he always ended up doing around you. his hands began to move around as he articulated his words, his voice got more excited and giggles started to allow themselves to escape out of his lips.

and then it happened, the moment where everything clicked.

“and after that i went to go get ice cream to the parlor close to the river” he commented as he ended his story, letting out a small chuckle.

“ouh, fire?” you asked, without even realizing that you had just set yourself up for success.

“flames” he answered casually, almost out of instinct, causing your eyes to widen slightly.

no.

fucking.

way.

“i’m glad, i’ll have to go get some there. i’ve never had it.” you said quickly, trying your hardest to hide the emotion in your voice.

“it’s so good, also pretty cheap, but they give it to me for free because i once stopped a guy from setting the store on fire” he commented with a small laugh, and you felt utterly stupid.

how had you not realized after all this time? how could you not hear the voice that clouded your dreams behind that (now very obvious) voice changer? how had you not noticed that his laugh was way too beautiful to belong to anyone but mark? how had you not connected the dots earlier? every time he said one of the silly things he could come up with, every time he made the hand gestures you had seen him do so many times without the mask on. every time that he had made your heart flutter like only one person had ever done.

mark fucking lee.

“you okay there, yn?” the too robotic sounding voice asked as the man in front of you, mark, tilted his head in curiosity.

“yeah, sorry, i zoned out” you chuckled “but go on, i’m paying attention now” you urged. you had never thanked your mother so much for making you take those drama classes when you were younger more than in that moment.

“don’t worry, i was just saying that the chocolate ice cream there is bomb…” he continued talking, immersed in his own world to notice the way your lips quivered upwards as you watched him.

click.

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[curlysfist]

any thoughts on yandere curly? loved your husband curly fic by the way!

Yandere Curly Headcanons

Synopsis: Headcanons broadly brushing over a very obsessed and abusive Curly. Adjacent to the wifebeater fic I wrote of him. (tw: abuse, manipulation, coercion, the yandere rigamarole. minors DNI. No crash AU + Anya was never SA'd. Unedited)

Word Count: 0.8k

Notes: Thoughts? Nonnie, I have a whole dissertation for you!

Curly would be incredibly not self aware in terms of his manipulation and incredibly abusive. Physically.

Very big on the idea of discipline so you remember what not to do. Especially if you open up about abuse you went through under that context, he'd be confused why you're so upset about it. It just adds to his infantilized version of you in his head that you just don't know what's good for you.

Having chronically been a leader for most of his career and personal life, he would never see you as a lifelong partner but more so a beautiful responsibility to carry. Something more dignified than a pet but not entirely human. You flail, cry, and speak without complete understanding of the world around you and it's just so cute!

He'd trap you in some way in his house. Not explicitly kidnapping with chains and shit but is not above baby-trapping you and/or putting in a bad word or two about you at work (as I imagine he met you through a job post Pony Express/during Pony Express), have you fired, and pressure you to bum out in his house.

Molds you to be a perfect housewife. Since you're not working, you can clean and cook, right? If you don't know how, he can teach you! But jeez, how did you take care of yourself before? Before him?

He is incredibly deluded to the idea that you might be distressed for a meaningful reason. He loves you sincerely, and that's where a lot of arguments start and end: of course he has to beat you, how else will those lessons be learned without emulated consequence? Of course he keeps you home, do you know what people do to women outside the safety of owned property? Have you seen the rape and murder statistics? And what do you even need from outside? Just go to the backyard with him or order stuff online with his card.

Admittedly a very good gaslighter. Not even intentional. His brain lives in a reality and perceives the things he does as entirely fair and you're drawn into it too. I mean, he has propped himself as an absolute authority. Whether you like it or not, his word is law.

While ironically he for the most part does respect your consent when it comes to physical intimacy. Kisses and hugs/cuddling are excluded.

Does not humor any desire for personal space in bed when it's time to sleep. Will hold you. No questions asked. Any attempt to pry away is met with a flex of his arms as he holds you tighter.

And does expect kisses before work and after work, and whenever he initiates or he will be grumpy and a tad bit colder. Just a tad.

Should've mentioned that he would've married you at some point. Isn't above eloping and coercing you to sign the right paperwork and delivering it by himself to make it official if he can't trust you in the marriage offices despite his supervision.

Does reward you for good behavior though! Expensive physical goods or the rare trip outside if you're being very cooperative. Or just asks what you'd like.

Once he feels very secure in everything, he'd introduce you to Jimmy, who at this point has been VERY curious about you since Curly has pretty much been MIA except for texts or the occasional calls.

Curly does NOT bring him around ever again though because he now recognizes how shameless Jimmy is with eyeing women. Or you in particular. Especially since you're a forbidden good.

If you, in any way, reciprocate with Jimmy's subtle comments, Curly WILL have a few things to say to you. Privately. And subsequently punished. Because you were acting like a whore in heat.

Speaking of, his punishments will always be beating because of his philosophy of punishment and immediate physical consequence. He will not starve you or isolate you or do anything that might have consequences out of his control. If he can't guide you through it, he won't do it.

Often uses the belt. Slapping if you're talking back.

Does coo at you and coddles you after a beating and after you cried it out. He gets antsy and rushes in too soon though, and it really does fuck up your brain, him soothing you after these events.

And it really is a cycle of using his authority, inducing anxiety and beating you when you make a mistake that really does fuck you up. And being that he's literally the only person in your life now and you feel as though it's too late to reach out to someone on your heavily monitored devices, Stockholm syndrome kicks in sooner than later and now, it's like you see what he sees, and it's so much more romantic and warmer.

You come to love him, though never as much as he loves you.

[angstywaifu]

Fourth Wing Boys Head Cannons - Accidental/Unplanned Pregnancy

These are based around the battle at the end of Iron Flame. So if you have not read Iron Flame, the below will contain spoilers for some of our boys.

Masterlist | Support Me

Garrick

He would be as still as a statue. You aren’t even sure he’s even breathing as he looks down at you wide eyed. You were both on the tonic, but clearly there must have been a faulty batch. The healers were adamant. You were pregnant.

After a few moments he’d snap out of it, brow furrowing as he thinks everything over in his head. “Are you sure? Did you get-“ you cut him off with a nod, which is all he needs to shut his mouth and nod.

You could tell what he was thinking. This was no time to be having a child. Not in the midst of a rebellion. Not a rebellion you both had prominent parts in. Not when Xaden needed him.

After a few tense moments of Garrick being stoney faced and reserved, a small smile would start to pull at the corners of his mouth. Which honestly surprised you. Before you Garrick wasn’t really the relationship kind of guy. You even falling into that category a few times till another rider had showed interest after you were both sent to Samara.

“Really picked the perfect time to fall pregnant didn’t you?” He teases before to swat his arm, his usual booming laugh breaking through the tension that was now nowhere to be seen.

Despite the teasing joke you could tell he was nervous, worried and unsure. Especially as he pulls you against him, resting his head atop yours as it rests against his chest. His heart beating erratically underneath, a start contrast to calm demeanour he was trying to output.

Bodhi

He drops whatever he was holding, staring at you with shock as he goes utterly still. Wide eyed, mouth open as he just looks at you.

He goes to talk multiple times but keeps shutting his mouth, clearly unsure what to say. Eventually starting to pace back and forth till you grasp his hand.

His eyes snap to yours, some of the panic dissipating ever so slightly as he relaxes at your touch, the small circles you rub onto the back of his hand with your thumb grounding him.

His free hand comes up to run through his black wavy hair. “You’re sure? Like 100% sure?” He asks nervously.

You nod up at him, his eyes going wide again, but you note the corners of his mouth pulling up. You know the nervousness and panic comes from the rebellion. It’s not ideal timing. But now there’s not much you can do.

Panic flares again in Bodhi’s eyes, his hand tightening around yours. “Xaden’s going to kill me”

Xaden

it’s not often you see Xaden caught out or surprised. In fact you can’t remember ever seeing him like that. And yet here he is, staring at you, still as a statue. Not a single emotion or reaction detectable on his face. Almost like he was expecting the news.

“Fuck.” He finally says before walking over to you, his eyes glued on your stomach which currently shows no signs of the baby inside.

You can see him thinking over everything in his head. Every possibility and scenario playing out.

“You have to promise to not be reckless anymore. I can’t risk loosing you two. Ok?” His words coming out almost like a command, but there’s that slight hint of worry that softens his words. You know he just wants to protect you, and that you’ll definitely be tacking a back seat going forward.

Brennan

He pinches the bridge of his nose, pacing back and forth as he mutters to himself. It reminds you so much of Violet and how she recites facts to calm herself and focus.

Back and forth, back and forth, you’re sure he’s going to wear a track in the floor at this rate. You reach out and grab his hand to stop him.

His amber eyes instantly soften as he looks at you. “I was doing the thing, wasn’t I?” He asks as he purses his lips, knowing he slipped into planning mode. You nod at him and smile. “Yeah, you kinda did.”

He smiles down at you, and instantly you feel like everything is going to be ok. Is it good timing? Gods no. Especially with the Venin advancing on Navarre. And especially now they know Brennan is alive.

“We’ll make it work. We always do.” He tells you softly, reaching up and caressing your cheek.

Dain

This man is in denial. How could this happen? You were both on the tonic. And that tonic has never failed. Every logical situation runs through his head. There’s no way this could have happened. Unless….

“Did you stop taking the tonic?” He asks, tones almost accusing as he walks up to you, a hand raised towards your face. He lowers it wicking when he sees the anger on your face, answering his question immediately.

He would be spiraling. In a matter of weeks he’s gone from being the golden child, helping to get rid of the marked ones. And now here he was in Aretia, fighting against everything he’s always known, and now you’re pregnant.

He reaches out and takes your hands, grasping them in his as he lets out a shaky breath. “Really took disappointing my dad to a whole new level didn’t I?”

Sawyer

He would be shocked, looking at you like he doesn’t believe you. Like the words didn’t just leave your lips. But they did. You were pregnant with his child.

Despite the seriousness of the situation you were all in he would embrace you immediately.

“You’re not mad?” You ask him as he pulls away. “Gods no. Is it terrible timing? Probably, but we’ll make it work.”

Which feels like it won’t as you sit next to his bed, his leg now missing as you grip onto his hand like a lifeline. Everyone else had gone, leaving just you with him. None of them aware of what was looming over you.

He lightly squeezes your hand, your eyes snapping to his as he lazily smiles at you. You engulf him in a hug, completely forgetting about his injury. You start sobbing all the thoughts tumbling around your head. Sawyer just embraces you tighter, whispering you’ll make it work. It has to. Especially with the ring he wears on a chain around his neck. Waiting for the perfect moment.

Ridoc

He literally thinks you’re joking, trying to pull some prank on him like he does to literally everyone else. But once he sees the way you’re looking at him he goes silent. Ridoc who is never silent. And yet here you are taking the words right out of his mouth.

“Holy shit you’re not joking are you?” He finally asks you. When you shake your head at him he gets so excited.

It might not be the best time with everything going on, but he’s too excited to care right now.

He runs out the door to find Sawyer screaming “I’m going to be a dad!”

So much for keeping that quiet. The whole of Aretia knows with how louds he’s yelling and screaming.

[bapeach]

My nerd - part 2

This is the second and last part of "My nerd"! You can find part 1 here. It's my longest story yet so I hope you guys like it. Also i really appreciate all the support on the first part! Special thanks to the person who asked for a second part, you made my day :D Once again sorry for any possible mistakes. Let me know what you guys think and enjoy!

Pairing(s): Nika Mühl x female!reader Word count: 4.9k+ Summary: You finally get to take Nika on a date and do your best to impress her. (Spoiler alert: it works) ------------

Waking up the following day, you had a grin on your face. Nika was lying on top of you, fully wrapped in your arms, snoring away. You smirked a little. The brunette’s snoring was the perfect teasing material, something you could quip back with when she inevitably brought up your nerdiness.

Looking over at your alarm clock, you see that it’s still pretty early. The Croatian girl probably wouldn’t be awake for another hour or so, which was just fine by you. You took this time to fully take her in. Her hair was a bit of a mess, most of it sticking out of her ponytail. You could still see some leftover mascara on her eyelashes, some having flaked off onto her cheeks. You were glad she let you take most of her makeup off before bed, knowing she hated falling asleep with it still on. Your eyes trail further down to her lips. You can’t believe you stopped her from kissing you yesterday. Her lips looking so soft and kissable. But you were also glad you did, not wanting her to regret anything and knowing that she was too drunk to properly consent.

You hold the smaller girl close, tracing shapes on her back. You really hoped she remembered everything that had happened the night before. You really wanted to take her out on that promised date, already having some ideas on what you wanted to do. You wouldn’t even mind her remembering the teasing and the way you looked with glasses and sleepy eyes. She’d probably poke some more fun at you with that stupidly hot smirk of hers, laughing to herself like she’s the funniest person in the world. You’d roll your eyes and act annoyed, but secretly you’d love it because her laugh is your favorite sound in the world.

You cuddle Nika for a while, thinking of all the things you had to do to get ready for your date (assuming she still wanted to go, that is.), before begrudgingly getting up. While staying in bed with your crush for the rest of the day sounded amazing, you had stuff to do. You make sure she’s tucked in and comfortable before giving her a kiss on the forehead and walking over to the bathroom. After grabbing her some painkillers for the headache she’ll no doubt have and a bottle of water from your fridge, you place them on your nightstand. You take a piece of paper, writing, “Good morning! Take these for your headache :) I’m in the kitchen making breakfast. X Y/N”, just in case she woke up before you returned. You get ready as quietly as you can, trying not to disturb the sleeping girl.

In the kitchen, you silently start grabbing everything you need to make the perfect hangover cure: avocado toast and a dippy egg. You’d partied with the team enough to know what each of them liked after a long night out, so you made sure to add a few strawberries, some of Nika’s favorite hangover fruits. Every so often, you’d pause, listening to your quiet dorm to make sure you didn’t accidentally wake her up. Knowing she’d wake up in your room, surrounded by your geeky stuff, you figured you’d go all out. You grabbed the egg cup in the shape of a Tardis out of your cupboard with a smirk, knowing Nika will have a field day with it.

Once you finish getting the avocado toast and the soft-boiled egg ready, you go over to the sink to start cleaning the fruit. As you’re almost done washing the red treats, you feel arms snake around your waist. You jump a little, not having heard the brunette as you were too busy trying to decide which flowers to buy for your date. Nika leans her forehead between your shoulder blades and groans a little before muttering a “G’morning”. You grin, her adorable accent prominent in her sleepy voice. You dry your hands on a towel before sliding them over her arms and settling them on hers. “Good morning, Niks. Did you sleep well?” you say softly, not wanting to hurt her head even more. “Mhm,” she hums. “Your head feeling alright?” you ask, smiling at how domestic all of this feels. “I could definitely get used to this,” you thought to yourself. “Ugh, I’m never getting drunk again,” she complains, but you both know she’ll be drinking like there’s no tomorrow the next time your team goes out again.

You turn around when she loosens her grip, sending her a smirk. You glide past her to put the rest of breakfast on the table, pulling out a chair for her. You sit down in front of her, grabbing your own plate before eating in a comfortable silence, waiting for Nika’s headache to pass. Noticing the nerdy egg cup, she laughs a little, shaking her head in amusement. You beam at her, sending her a mischievous wink. You don’t bring up yesterday’s flirting and teasing, slightly nervous, wondering if she remembers it and if she meant all of it. Looking up from your toast, you see that the Croatian is already looking at you with that cute smile of hers, eyes twinkling. You raise an eyebrow at her with a smile of your own present on your face.

“So,” she starts, “the best date of my life, ey?”. “Yes, ma’am,” you grin. She rolls her eyes at the title. “Okay, so, where are we going?” she questions, leaning forward a little. “Can’t say,” you smirk, “it’s a surprise.” She groans, leaning her head back in playful exasperation. You chuckle at her reaction but don’t give in. “So, are you free tonight?” you ask, excitement starting to bubble up in your chest. She looks back at you, tilting her head and scratching her chin with a smile, pretending to weigh her options. “Hm, I guess I could clear my schedule for you,” the girl says as she starts smiling widely, not being able to keep a straight face. You could see she was excited, though, not being able to sit still anymore.

“Good,” you stated. “I’ll pick you up at 6:30.”. Nika looks at you with her nose scrunched. “You’re really not gonna tell me, are you?”. You send her another wink before getting up to start putting away the dishes. “Can I at least know what I’m supposed to wear?” she challenges. You think for a moment before replying, “Nothing too fancy, something comfortable and casual… oh, and bring something warm.”. “Hmmm,” she hums, racking her brain about what you could have planned. You only look at her with a twinkle in your eyes, stretching your arms above your head as you get ready to part ways with the brunette until tonight. Your old shirt rides up a bit as you do, making a sliver of your stomach show. Nika’s eyes immediately dart to the exposed skin, your slight V-line on display. She swallows thickly, flicking her eyes back at the table before looking at you. You look at her smugly, letting her know you caught her staring. 

Pursing her lips in playful annoyance, she gets up and starts walking towards your bedroom to get her stuff. You let her go, smiling in amusement. You quickly wash the dirty dishes before meeting Nika near the door. You grab her in a tight hug, your arms around her lower back as she wraps hers around your neck. “I’ll see you tonight,” she mumbles against your chest. You loosen your grip and reply with a grin, “See you tonight, princess.”. She flicks your head with an eyeroll at the term of endearment. The brunette starts walking away into the hallway and disappears around a corner with one last smile and wave. 

Alright, it’s go time.

The first thing you do is grab your phone to call the nearest flower shop. While you knew red roses were classic date flowers, you had something else in mind. You remembered a conversation between Azzi and Nika you overheard a while back where they were talking about their birth flowers. You recall hearing Nika say she thought hers were cute, so you ask the lady on the phone to make you a beautiful bouquet of white daisies. 

Once you’ve ordered the flowers, you hang up and walk back to your room. You already knew where you wanted to take her and what you wanted to wear, so there wasn’t really that much you could do until then. Since time always feels extremely slow when you’re excited for something, you figure you should do something useful with your time. You get dressed in some comfortable clothes before grabbing your keys and walking to your car. Before driving to the flower shop, you stop by the bank to make sure you have enough money on you for the date. Having collected the flowers, you drive back to your dorm, putting them in a nice vase for tonight.

Looking around and seeing there’s not much else you can do, you grab your laptop to finish off some homework you had ignored yesterday. You weren’t exactly in the mood to do it right now either, but you needed some kind of distraction, knowing you’d just be pacing around in your room all day otherwise.

Before you knew it, it was time to get ready. You grabbed your nicest black shirt (which was a little tight around your biceps. You hoped you’d be able to catch Nika staring again), as well as your black pants and belt. Putting on your favorite chain and spraying your nicest perfume, you look into the mirror. You smirk a little. Damn, you look good. You walk over to the door, putting on your new sneakers before grabbing the bouquet as well as your wallet, keys, and treasured leather jacket. You walk towards Nika’s dorm, hands slightly clammy with a heart that feels like it’s about to beat out of your chest. Reaching her door, you breathe in deeply, rolling your shoulders back and standing up a little straighter.

Knock knock.

The door opens as Paige appears with an amused smirk. “Well, well, well, look who we have here,” she grins. You roll your eyes with a smile of your own at her goofiness. Stepping aside, she lets you in before walking in front of you again and crossing her arms. She puts on a fake serious face and questions, “What are your intentions with my twin?”. You want to keep a straight face and play along, but you can’t, your lips curling into a smile.

“Leave my date alone, P.” you hear from behind you as Nika and Azzi walk out of the bathroom. You turn around, your mouth dropping open as you feel your heart skip a beat. Wow… Of course the Croatian always looked beautiful, but she looked like an actual goddess right now. She wore her army green crop top, her toned stomach on display. A new belly button piercing glinting in the light. A pair of black cargo parachute pants fitting her just right. You can see she’s wearing her signature number 10 necklace as well as a few dainty rings.

“You okay over there, L/N?” the brunette says with a smirk, but you can see a blush covering her cheeks as she looks you up and down. You close your mouth before clearing your throat and smiling softly at her. “You look beautiful, Niks,” you say, stepping forward to hand her the flowers. She takes them, her eyes crinkling with how much she’s smiling. “Thank you,” she breathes, taking a step closer to give you a hug. You wrap your arms around her waist, breathing in her perfume, warmth spreading in your chest. You two stand there until you hear Paige playfully clearing her throat. You let the smaller girl go before looking over to see Azzi give the blonde a playful push as she shakes her head. Nika walks over to Azzi, giving her the bouquet to put in a vase before you two say your goodbyes and start walking to the car.

Making quiet conversation, you reach the car, opening the passenger door with a grin. “M’lady,” you say, making the brunette laugh. “Oh my God, you nerd,” she says, her eyes twinkling in amusement. Once you get in the car, you start driving to your destination, letting Nika control the music. As the soft melodies start coming through the radio, she turns to you. “Okay, we’re on the way to our date spot now. Does that mean you’ll finally tell me where we’re going?”. You take your eyes off of the road to cast a quick glance at her. You smile, opening your mouth to reply as you see her lean a bit closer, eager for you to end the suspense. “Nice try,” you grin, looking back at the road. She groans, “Oh come onnn, please?”. You don’t look at her, knowing you couldn’t say no to her when she had that adorable, small pout on her face. You chuckle at how cute she’s being before replying, “You’ll see in about 30 minutes.”. 

You spent the next half hour talking about everything and nothing, relaxing the longer you were driving. Because you’re with Nika. The first girl to approach you when you joined UConn, a smirk on her face as she started teasing you right away. The same girl who always fell asleep on your shoulder on bus rides, drooling a little. She was your best friend, so it was only natural you felt calm in her presence. 

As you came to your destination, you looked over at Nika, who had yet to realize you had parked the car. You continue listening to her rambling, looking at the way she’s waving her hands around to emphasize her point. Feeling your staring, she looks over at you, her cheeks becoming a beautiful pink at the look of adoration in your eyes and the realization that she’s been babbling non-stop. She looks away a little embarrassed before whipping her head back to you, eyes wide as she beams at you. “The fair?”. 

You smiled at her before getting out of the car, walking over to her side to open the door for her. You’d been wanting to go to the fair with her for ages and knew this was the perfect date idea. Nika had always been competitive and loved challenging people, so what better place to take her to than a fair full of games? While you knew a lot of the games were rigged to make people keep playing without gaining a lot, you had your own tricks up your sleeve. Being a nerd has its advantages.

You two enter the fair, looking around at the beautiful lights as you smell the sweet treats being made. You stroll around a bit at first, not touching but walking close enough to feel each other's body heat. Finally deciding to play some games, you walk up to all the different booths. There’s not a single moment where you’re not smiling. Grinning whenever the confident girl cockily told you she’d win a game and smirking whenever you won. You were teasing each other nonstop, and that’s exactly how you liked it. Loving to see the playful side of the shorter girl instead of the fierce side you usually saw on the court. 

Nika stopped talking in the middle of her sentence, making you look at her in confusion. Seeing her with a wide smile on her face, you follow her line of sight to a booth with a basketball game. You look back at her with a smirk, noticing her sporting one of her own. “Oh, you’re going down L/N.” “In your dreams, Mühl.”

You two quickly walk over to the bored-looking worker, handing him some money, before turning to each other. “So… it’s finally time to see who’s the better basketball player,” you muse. “We already know who the better player is, Y/N; let me show you how it’s done,” she grins before turning towards the hoop, trying to get as many points as she can in the time she was given. You gotta admit, it was very attractive seeing her shoot hoop after hoop, not missing a beat. After the timer went off, she looked back at you with a smirk, patting your chest as she walked past you, “Good luck.”. You try to shake off the slight haze you’re in, feeling extremely attracted to how confident the girl is. You roll your shoulders back, cracking your neck. You nod towards the worker, who looks slightly more interested now that he saw that you two knew what you were doing, letting him know you were ready. 

Swish. Swish. Swish.

You score point after point, feeling a little smug as you start reaching the end of the timer, knowing you could beat Nika by a few points if you kept this up. You slow down slightly. While you know the brunette will become almost unbearable if she wins, never letting you forget who the better player is, you realize that doesn’t sound so bad. Besides, you’d do anything to see the point guard smile.

The clock buzzes, showing that you have 1 point less than Nika. You turn around slowly, preparing yourself for the teasing. “Oooh yeah, take that, baby!” she cheers, throwing her arms in the air. You roll your eyes playfully and mutter, “Yeah, yeah, whatever,” but your pulse quickens hearing her call you baby.

After accepting your prizes, you continue to walk around the fair, stopping for food when you two get hungry. You stumble across a few claw machines, walking up to them when you see Nika eye the plushies inside. “You do realize those are super rigged, right?” she mumbles, peering over your shoulder as you crouch down slightly to insert money into the machine. You feel a blush creep up your neck as the brunette leans against you, her chin placed in the crook of your neck. “Oh yeah?” you mutter as you push the buttons, successfully grabbing a fluffy, little elephant teddy. You grin at her, pushing the soft bear in her arms. 

Her cheeks reddening, she asks, “How the hell did you do that?”. You shrug slightly, “I’m a nerd, remember? I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve.”. You continue wandering around, stopping every now and then for another game or to win Nika another prize. As you’re walking, your hand brushes the brunette’s before she grabs yours, interlacing your fingers. You look down at her with a loving smile as she starts softly swinging your intertwined hands between you two. 

After a while, your arms are full of the teddy bears you’ve won for Nika, making her giggle every time she looks at you, given that she can barely see your face in the pile. “Okay, I think that’s enough stuff,” she snickers. While you’d love to keep impressing her, you agree, as your arms are becoming heavier. (Well… you were gonna agree). You halt in your step, seeing a plushie that you just had to have. 

“Would it be very inappropriate if I won someone else a prize on our date?” you question, eyeing the teddy bear. “Depends,” she smirks.  “Is it for your side hoe?”. You look at her with a mischievous look in your eyes, “Yeah… Paige is gonna love it.”. She snorts a little before replying, “I guess it’s fine then.” Nika didn’t know why you so desperately needed that specific stuffed animal, but she decided to roll with it. You see, the Croatian had her own reasons for agreeing to let you try to win it. The booth you were walking up to had mostly men around it, all trying to assert dominance and showing how manly they are. To win a prize, you had to hang onto a bar for 100 seconds. Of course, everyone knew the game was rigged, but many men still thought they could make the exception and win. 

After paying the worker to play the game, you walk back to where Nika is standing a few feet away from the metal structure. You both watch a few men that were before you try and fail, hearing them huff about how it was unfair and how the workers had messed with the equipment. Once it’s your turn, you hand the girl next to you her prizes and your jacket before sending her a grin and a wink. As you step up to the platform, you hear a few guys laughing at how you, a girl, thought you could do it. They didn’t seem to care how tall and buff you looked, scoffing at your relaxed posture. You crack your knuckles, grabbing onto the bar before giving the booth operator the go-ahead to start the timer. As you hang your weight on the bar, you look over at your date. While you learned how these types of games worked years ago, you were still a tiny bit nervous. Failing wasn’t really an option. Not only would you prove to the arrogant men around you that you couldn’t do it, you’d also look like an idiot in front of Nika, and you really didn’t want that. 

You try not to stress too much, trying to enjoy the way the brunette is looking at you. Her eyes linger on your arms as your muscles are flexed (Thank God you wore that tight shirt). You see her bite her lip before looking back in your eyes with a grin. Even though you’re hanging uncomfortably from a cold metal bar, you can only focus on the beautiful girl in front of you. As the time ticks by, a crowd starts forming around you. You see a few teen girls tapping their friends on the shoulder and pointing towards you in awe. The boys around you quieted down the longer you hung there, slowly beating all of their records. You can tell you’re not the only one that noticed, hearing the booth worker next to you chuckle while you see Nika shaking her head with a grin. You simply grin back, sending her a wink.

Buzzz

The buzzer goes off as the girls around you start cheering. You see a few men with their dates grinning at you with a nod of respect. The men that were so sure you’d lose the challenge start stomping away in annoyance as you let the bar go with one arm to fake a yawn. You put both arms back on the bar, pulling yourself up into a pull-up before letting go of the bar and crossing your arms in satisfaction. You don’t show that your arms feel like jello and like they’re about to fall off. 

You turn to the fair worker as you hear a few girls fawn over you from in the crowd. As you tell the man the prize you want, he looks at you a little confused. “Are you sure that’s what you want?” he questions. “Yup,” you grin. Handing you the toy, he gives you a pat on the shoulder before getting the timer ready for the next challenger. You walk over to Nika, smiling so wide that your eyes crinkle. You hold the stuffed animal in front of her and wiggle it a little. A crocodile on a skateboard. 

She doesn’t question why you just had to get Paige that plushie, so you figure last night’s mumbling from the blonde wasn’t the first time she talked about it. You check your watch, seeing as the sky is now fully dark. While Nika still looks very smiley and excited, you can tell she’s becoming a little tired, so you grab the prizes she was holding again and start walking to your final destination. 

While the brunette beside you pretends she doesn’t really care about all the cliché romantic stuff, you know her well enough to know that she does. She’d been eyeing the big ferris wheel all evening when she thought you weren’t looking. You guide the way towards the queue as you see her face light up. “Really?” she asks, looking up at you, her eyes wide. You feel warmth spread through your chest at the adorable look she’s giving you. “What? You didn’t think we’d miss the ferris wheel, did you?” you say, playfully knocking your arm against hers. 

As you’re waiting in line, you see her shiver a little. While you were always on the hotter side, you knew she got cold easily. That’s why you told her to bring something warm. You also knew she’d forget, which is why you brought your leather jacket, the one the shorter girl always jokes about stealing. You shrug off the jacket, wrapping it around her shoulders. You immediately see a blush spread across her face as she looks up at you with the widest smile you’ve ever seen. You return the gesture, your cheeks hurting from how much you’ve been smiling all day. You brush your hand against her cheek as you push a few strands of hair behind her ear. You take a mental picture of her, wanting to remember this moment forever. Red-cheeked, slightly drowning in your big jacket. The fact that this was only your first of hopefully many dates made your heart swell.

Once you reach the front of the line, you pay the operator the fee before setting down all the prizes somewhere the worker could keep an eye on them. You grab Nika’s hand, helping her get into the carriage, before sliding down next to her. You admire the beautiful view next to you as you go up. Sure, the whole fair area looked pretty around you, but who could pay attention to that when they had The Nika Mühl next to them? Once you reach the top, her eyes meet yours, sparkling from the charming lights and her own happiness. When the carriage comes to a halt, you grab her hand. She’s already grinning at you before you get the chance to say a word.

“Nika?” you say her name softly. “I-”. You don’t get to say much else before she interrupts you with a beaming smile, “Yes.”. You chuckle, “I haven’t even said anything yet.”. “Well hurry up, you dork,” she teases. You playfully roll your eyes at her before starting over. “Listen, I’ve liked you for a really long time now. When I first saw you, I felt my heart stop for a second. You are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen, and I knew back then that I was a goner. I started falling for you on day 1 and haven’t stopped since.”

Her smile softens, becoming less teasing and more gentle. You can tell the words are hitting her hard as she squeezes your hand. “You’re extremely funny, smart, caring, and fierce. I’ve never felt like this for anyone else before, and I hope I never do. You complete me in a way no one ever has before. Will you do me the honor of becoming my girlfriend?” 

She doesn’t reply at first, choosing to let her actions speak for her instead. She surges forward, grabbing your face as she kisses you hard yet gently at the same time. After a few seconds, she pulls back, still staying close enough that you can hear her whisper over the shrieking from the people on other rides below you. “Yes, you idiot.” 

You grin, leaning back in to kiss her as the ride jolts into motion again. When you step out of the ride, you grab your prizes, letting Nika also hold a few so you can sling an arm around her. Being happy with how everything went, you both agree to make your way back home. When you reach the car you put the pile of stuffed animals in the back, before opening the door for Nika. After putting on your seatbelt, you look over and see the brunette’s tired, yet happy expression and the tiny elephant plushie in her arms. You feel like your heart is overflowing with the love you have for her. 

On the ride home, you guys don’t talk too much, letting the car fill with a comfortable silence. Reaching the campus, you walk her to her dorm with sleepy smiles on your faces. When you arrive at her door, you two pause for a moment, not wanting the day to end just yet. The smaller girl looks up at you, grabbing your face to pull you in for another kiss. You drop everything you’re holding, your hands gripping her waist. You kiss her, pushing her against the door. You feel her gasp against your mouth as you squeeze her hips. After a few seconds, you pull away, pressing your forehead against hers as you pant a little. 

You reluctantly take a step back, Nika following you slightly before pulling back and opening her eyes. You raise your right hand towards her left, which is still holding your face. You grab it, pulling it towards your mouth as you give her palm a feathery kiss. She smiles, letting her arms fall back to her sides. You bend down to grab the toys you’d dropped as she unlocks her front door. Once the door is open, you hand them to her as you wiggle your eyebrows. She chuckles softly, shaking her head.

“Good night, princess,” you grin. “Good night, nerd,” she smiles back.