#Oops I spot a couple mistakes. ...Oh well. I like it anyway. :)

[artsy-n-smartsy]

Tried out a different style than usual. I like it :)

I love loadout.tf <3

[bonny-kookoo]

Jungkook

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐎𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫 | Mistakes

Jungkook knew from the first look at your eyes, that you'd be the biggest mistake he'll ever make.

Tags/Warnings: Aged up!Jungkook, Younger!Reader, Age Gap (9 years, JK is mentioned to be 34/35), Angst, Mature romance, Smut, car sex, protected sex, no strings attached, big dick!Jungkook, implied size kink, very mild Dom!Kook undertones, oral (m. receiving), sugar daddy!Jungkook vibes but only in a joking manner

Length: 7k words (oops)

There is no taglist for this fic.

-> Masterlist

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Jeon Jungkook doesn't really attend parties- typically.

But this time, for this occasion, he can't really pull himself out- he's got to at least show up for a moment, be there and present, before he can call it a night and go home. It's not like he hates his coworkers or employees most of all- he's just not that good at socializing, and never really was.

He's learned to be alone, and now he's too good at it.

A lot of the people in the hall, he doesn't know. That's probably because he's allowed people to bring a plus-one, so most of the people here are couples, which makes the whole situation just so much worse. "You could at least try and appear like you're having fun, you know?" Taehyung laughs, standing closer to his coworker now, a drink in hand. "It's not that bad." He tries to lighten the mood, but Jungkook just rolls his eyes.

"It's not even been an hour and I already want to go." He sighs.

"Why not leave then?" Tae wonders, sipping his non-alcoholic drink, since he's gonna have to drive home later, his wife currently conversing with other coworkers. "Oh, right, because Namjoon-"

"God don't remind me." Jungkook mumbles, shaking his head as he sips his whiskey. "I can't believe I lost that bet." He growls to himself, watching how someone seems to struggle with choosing the right food at the buffet, plate still empty even after several minutes. You look young, or maybe you're just short- he's not sure, but what he is sure about is that you do not work for him or his company- at least not in the same building. He would've noticed you, just like he does right now.

"I think she's Yoongi's plus-one? Or at least he drove here with her together.." Taehyung mumbles, having spotted his friend watching you.

"She looks young." Jungkook mumbles. "And I thought Yoongi was seeing the secretary we hired a few months ago?" He wonders, finally letting his eyes leave you alone, form-fitting dress very complimenting to your body, not too revealing, but still somewhat teasing.

Taunting him, almost.

"Oh, he does! Namjoon caught them making out in Yoongi's office last week." Taehyung laughs. "She's probably just a friend." He shrugs.

A friend, huh?

"Maybe something for you though?" Taehyung jokes. "I mean, I think I saw her drinking earlier, so she's at least of legal age." He laughs, making Jungkook cringe at him. He doesn't really find this whole joke funny- not at all, but Taehyung is right when it comes to Jungkook having a.. severe lack of company these past few years. Only occasionally does he have some sex without any strings attached- never brings anybody home however, refuses to cling to someone.

He's divorced anyways. Most women don't really find that very appealing.

Maybe he can have some simple company this time as well, nothing serious at all- it's been a while, after all, and everyone's an adult here, no matter the age difference. As long as he communicates it properly, there's no reason not to at least converse with you.

So he does indeed approach you, finding you still at the buffet, barely anything on your plate at all.

"Too much to choose from?" He wonders next to you, and he realizes the huge mistake he's made when approaching you the second you lift your head to look at him.

The lights reflect in your eyes like mirrors, minimal makeup perfectly enhancing your features, lips shiny with the most sinful shade of lipgloss this world probably has to offer. He's a goner, right away, lost in the sight of you, as if he's been thrown into the deep end of a pool so cold that it freezes his muscles, making him sink down to the bottom like a stone.

"Oh, no.." You answer, looking back at all the foods. "I have a shellfish allergy, so I'm not sure what I can eat.." You mumble, one hand having reached up to play with the sparkling pink gemstone hanging around your neck.

His mouth feels dry for a second, before he catches himself.

"Here." He mentions, pointing at some small numbers near the names of the foods on the small cards. "Those small numbers, the three right there is for shellfish." He offers, pointing towards a different card close by where the numbers are explained.

"Oh! Thank you so much, I hate contact lenses!" You laugh to yourself. "I usually wear glasses, but I wanted to look pretty.." You giggle, putting some food onto your plate now.

"I'm sure nothing can ruin a face like that." He flirts without truly thinking about it- making you visibly blush, trying to contain a smile.

"I appreciate the compliment…?" You wonder, and Jungkook knows, he's probably about to make another, grave mistake.

"Jungkook. Jeon Jungkook." He introduces himself, and you tell him your name in return, smiling oh-so devastatingly beautiful.

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His plan was absolutely not to explore what might be beneath that pretty dress of yours- and it seems like that might stay that way despite his length inside you.

You're moving your hips in ways that makes him dizzy, mind clouded with lust as you bounce up and down, hands on your back the only thing helping you avoid accidentally hitting the steering wheel. He's pushed the seat back as far as it goes, but you can never be too sure- he wouldn't want you to honk and draw attention to the surely shaking vehicle in the darkened parking lot.

The condom had been pure luck- he's not a fan of pulling out, so if it hadn't been there in the glove box of his car, he probably would've had to awkwardly call it quits before anything really happened at all. It's not like you both instantly were at each other's throats the moment you left the gathering- he simply offered to drive you home instead of Yoongi, who'd wanted to stay a little longer, while you complained about feeling tired. And in his car, you'd talked- casually so, something clicking, as he's now got you on his lap, bouncing on his dick like he's not experienced in quite some time now.

He feels a bit bad. Despite making sure that you know this is nothing but a casual fuck, it still feels a little odd to him. He doesn't like things like these- it feels like he's using you, and he's not a fan of such situations.

Though he can't deny that you feel absolutely divine.

The rain is heavy outside, pushing against the car's windows from all sides, drowning out the otherwise rather obscene sounds coming from between your bodies. Your hands are on his shoulders, fingers gripping his muscles beneath the fabric of his formal button-up. He refuses to kiss you, can't find it in him to do it, and you accept it, instead treating it as detached as you can, simply chasing your high as you fuck yourself on his twitching length.

He feels good. Thick, able to reach far inside you, but not enough to hurt.

The way he holds you is nice too- not too strong of a grip, only enough to guide you, keep you moving, keep you going. He's not big on dirty talk, isn't over the top with anything, and it almost feels like he's treating you like a woman, and not some chick he's met at a party. There's a certain sense of respect he's offering you that gives you confidence, makes you feel powerful for once even though he's clearly setting the pace.

This is something you don't usually get to have. Someone taking you seriously.

"You close?" He asks out of breath, avoiding your eyes, rather looking at your lips, though never moving into action. A limit he's set, and a limit he follows, he's clearly a man that doesn't wildly change his mind on the fly. Though, considering who he is, and where he is in life, he probably has had enough time to be untamed and wild already. You faintly wonder if he's ever been in a long-term relationship. Yoongi hasn't really talked about him much.

Neither have you asked. You've seen him, once or twice- but a man like that is out of range for you.

You nod when he grips your behind, reminding you quietly of his question, hips stuttering as he takes over, helping you move to chase his own orgasm right after yours. You're a bit overly sensitive, but you push through it just to see him clench his jaw, eyes closing as he groans out in relief, cum spurting into the condom inside you.

It's suddenly over, and not even your evening breaths can mask the slight awkwardness that's filling the car.

One of his hands keeps you close, though you have to lean against him a bit as to not move your hips too much as he reaches for something from the glovebox, plastic wrap of the small pack of tissues making a distinctive sound. "You okay?" He asks you, and you nod, now having switched places apparently as you avoid his face entirely.

You rather move a bit weirdly to accept the tissue offered, lifting your hips to awkwardly wipe yourself down, before pulling up your underwear and climbing back into the passenger seat, where you clean the inside of your thighs while he discards the condom from his length with a slight hiss of sensitivity.

You never really know what to say. You don't actually do this often- this is only the second time you've ever hooked up with anyone like this, and it's just as weird as the first time.

"Thank you, by the way." He offers, taking the challenge away from you as he puts the tied up condom in the tissue to discard it at home later. "Let me drive a bit closer to the building, just so you don't get too wet." He says, pulling his seat back into proper position before he starts the car.

Such a gentleman- You're a little disappointed. But only mildly so. Will you even stay in his mind?

Probably not.

You're way too young for a man like him, who most likely wants a proper woman in his life instead of a.. instead of you. You're not even sure where you are at in life- neither a woman nor a girl, somewhere in between, floating, unsure, neither and both. You know however for a fact that you'll remember him- probably for quite a while, before the memory will fade into nothing but a glimpse.

"There we go." Jungkook says, stopping the car very much in front of your apartment building, sideways so that you can run right into the main hall. "Please remember to text Yoongi, okay?" He reminds you. "He might be worried otherwise." He smiles kindly, and you nod, a bit forced, grabbing your light coat and your handbag. "And.. I enjoyed it. Very much so." He makes sure to tell you, making you nod a bit shy.

"I.. uhm, I'm glad." You nod, awkwardly, causing him to chuckle.

"Now go hurry inside before the rain starts again." He urges, making you nod dumbly once more before you open the car door, running inside the apartment building after closing the door.

And he drives off, back home, where nothing waits for him but the humming fridge and a cold, empty bed.

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Daehyun can be a little spoiled, but other than that, he's a well behaved kid for his age.

He loves staying at your place, though his questions on when you'll be getting another dog after your first passed away a year ago are sometimes a bit stinging to your heart. He's a child, obviously- he doesn't understand the hurt that can settle in your soul after losing such an important piece of your life, so you can't blame him for moving on a lot quicker than you.

He's too young to understand that yet.

"Uncle Yoongi has a cat now!" Daehyun tells you as he builds the lego set with you, his small hands having some difficulty here and there, but he's a quick learner, and a good improviser. "But he said I can't play with her, because she's a girl-cat, and girl-cats don't like playing." He explains, pouting a bit as he uses all his strength to pull two pieces apart again.

"Well, I think she's just be a little nervous still." You reassure the boy. "You know, she just moved into a new home. Things might be a little scary to her." You explain, and Daehyun nods.

"I only pet her a bit." Daehyun tells you. "Appa said we're gonna get a dog soon though!" He says with excitement, making you smile.

"That's nice." You agree, helping him pull some bricks apart. You like having the little boy over at your place- it makes you feel both like a grown person, and also like a child at the same time. Daehyun doesn't judge your vast collections of stuffed animals and lego sets- he only sees you as the nice aunt, a big sister, a friend of his dad where he stays over at often whenever work gets in the way and takes away most of Taehyung's attention. Just like this weekend- Taehyung having needed someone to look after the boy, Dae's mother constantly equally without any time. You're not sure how long that marriage is gonna last with her refusing to step back at least a little to properly take care of her own child, and with Taehyung's growing frustration over the situation.

You hope the poor boy won't get caught up in the crossfire. That would just be awful.

Hours later, all the toys put away, your doorbell rings, giving you the clue that someone must be now here to pick the young boy up. Probably either Jimin or Yoongi- but when you open the door, it's neither of them, but a casually dressed Jungkook, hands in his slacks as your gaze gets caught on the slightly unbuttered shirt that's tucked into the pants, LY-labeled belt buckle accentuating his rather slim waist.

What the fuck.

"Oh- uh, come inside." You offer, stepping aside to let him in, Daehyun quickly running up to Jungkook, who mirrors the excitement of the young boy as he squats down to hug him. You let them both have their moment, instead walking around to collect all of Dae's things, checking twice to make sure he didn't forget anything, as you text Taehyung to make sure the man is really supposed to take the boy with him.

He is, which makes you a bit upset. Taehyung could've told you before.

When you walk back inside the living room area, Dae is currently busy showing Jungkook a stuffed animal- a gift from Jimin a year ago, modeled after your dog as a keepsake. "He was suuuper big, and really nice!" Dae beams up at the man. "He always ate ice cubes, but-" the small boy inspects the stuffed animal a little, lips pouting. "-Noona said he was really old, so he went to sleep." He offers, and Jungkook seems to realize what the stuffed toy might actually be.

"Let's put him back on the table then, yeah?" He offers, a hand with faint ink taking the toy from the smaller hands of the boy to place it back next to the picture frame of your dog and the collar on the tiny table near the door where he used to sleep. "So he can sleep well." He explains, making Dae nod. When you make your presence finally known, Jungkook removes the hand, heavy watch on his wrist faintly hitting the edge of the table for a second, as he watches how you help the small boy into his jacket.

You're a little confusing.

"Alright." You say after successfully getting Daehyun to put on his shoes. "Theres- uhm, there's a, wait, I'll show you.." You say, moving to pull a little folder out of one of the bags packed. "This one, please make sure Taehyung sees this. It's Daehyun's homework, and he really needs to do them this time." You emphasize. "Just make sure he actually looks inside at least once.." You sigh, putting the bright red folder back into the bag.

"I'll make sure." Jungkook accepts, taking the bag from you. "Anything else?" he wonders, and you refuse any eye contact, instead shaking your head to hug Daehyun goodbye as you bring him and Jungkook to your front door.

"Noona, you gotta hug Jungkookie too!" Dae says, surprising you with his lack of formality when addressing his father's friend- but you don't question it.

And admittedly, Jungkook is fairly surprised when you do in fact reach out to hug him goodbye, though very formal. It's still.. oddly nice, you don't seem to wear perfume but rather rely on your scented bodywash, which smells very good to him. This is weird. Why is he getting such feelings of comfort for a simple hug with nothing attached to it?

And why is he kind of disappointed when it ends far too quickly?

But it gets worse in the car, because Daehyun has clearly gotten the wrong message entirely. "Noona doesn't have a boyfriend." He says from the backseat where Jungkook has placed the booster seat he's gotten from Taehyung in cases like these where he has to pick up the young boy. "And appa said you don't have a girlfriend." He says, making Jungkook nod and hum a reply. "Noona is really pretty." He giggles. Jungkook cant help but chuckle along.

"She is." He agrees, because he won't lie about that. You are very pretty in his opinion, though he can only really judge you mostly by looks alone. "Did you have fun? I heard you were there the whole weekend." He tries to steer the conversation away, but the young boy clearly doesn't get the message.

"Noona can cook really well!" He praises. "She always makes me my favorite, and then we watch tv in our 'jamas." He says, and Jungkook has to imagine you both probably bundled up in blankets on the small couch you have, watching kid's shows until the poor boy falls asleep.

Domestic. Do you like children? Want your own in the future, maybe?

"Jungkookie?" Dae asks, and Jungkook hums a reply, telling the kid he's listening. "Do you like Noona?" He wonders.

"I don't know her that much, dae. But she seems nice." He offers instead, trying to evade the interrogation of the small boy.

"Do you like drinking?" Dae wonders. "Like, the stuff appa says I can't have?" He asks, and Jungkook grows a bit weary. Why exactly would the young boy ask something like that?

"Sometimes. Why do you ask?" He asks the boy, who seems to deflate now.

"Then you can't be friends with Noona." He complains.

"Why not?" Jungkook wonders.

"Because, the guy noona liked for a while always got mean when he was drinking that stuff." Dae complains, looking out the window. "I was never allowed to play at noona's house when he was there. He really liked that stuff that smells bad, but it made noona upset." He says.

Jungkook tenses up a bit. "Was he ever-, how was he mean to you?" Jungkook wonders.

"He always told noona to do things for him, and never let her play with me." He huffs. "And Yogi didn't like him too, because he always had to stay in his bed." He complains. Jungkook assumes the boy is probably talking about the dog.

Jungkook doesn't know how to ask what he wants to ask. It doesn't concern him at all- after all, it seems like you're no longer together with that guy, so he shouldn't pry. But something makes him worry- deep down, he's awfully wary, since he now realizes you did indeed not even touch any alcohol at the party at all- the drink Taehyung had seen you hold non-alcoholic. How bad must the relationship have been? You might not have a fear of men, but you're clearly affected by the past, it seems like.

"Did.." no. He shouldn't be asking that. It's none of his business.

"Do you get mean too when you drink?" Dae wants to know. "Appa only gets really sleepy." He giggles. Jungkook laughs along. Taehyung truly does only get horribly tired whenever he drinks- and he knows for a fact that he never gets drunk when he has to take care of the boy alone, so he's not at all alarmed by those words.

"No, I don't get mean." Jungkook answers. "I don't really drink a lot of it, so it only makes me feel a bit silly." He offers as an explanation, and Dae nods.

"Then, maybe Noona won't mind." He says, causing Jungkook to chuckle, shaking his head.

"Why do you want Noona to like me so much?" He wonders, and at that, Taehyung's son becomes excited.

"Because, then my favorite people like each other!" He exclaims. "And that's really cool. Then we can have sleepovers together, and you can help me get a new dog for noona!" He says. "She's really sad that Yogi sleeps now. I think she's lonely." He whines.

"We can have sleepovers anyways, dae." He laughs.

"But, appa told eomma, that you need someone you like." He huffs. Jungkook reminds himself to scold his friend at a later date. "Because you're not happy now, and you're lonely. And noona's lonely too." He offers.

Luckily, Jungkook escapes any further questioning as he finally reaches Taehyung's apartment, ready to drop the young boy off.

The whole conversation not leaving him at all the entire rest of the day, as he realizes he forgot to show Taehyung the folder.

Crap. This is your fault.

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It's been weeks- and apart from rubbing one out to the remaining memories of you in his car, he's not really thought much about you at all.

He's seen you on occasion here and there at the grocery store or a coffee shop, which made him realize that you've always been right under his nose but he just never knew who you were, but you two don't really have had any actual conversations anymore.

There's no reason for it.

He now knows that you're actually the part-time nanny Taehyung used to have a few years back, when you apparently had just been fighting to find a new job to keep your apartment and not get kicked out for not being able to pay rent. Back then, Taehyung and his wife had been living separated for a bit after a pretty bad fight- so the father had needed someone to take some weight off his shoulders, and help with the small child who couldn't even talk yet. You helped raise Daehyun basically, more or less- and, according to Taehyung, it shows.

The young boy has a strong sense of justice, and shares everything he has happily- something that he's learned from you. It makes some odd things make sense now to Jungkook as well- how Dae has some habits that seem very unique, but also too specific to have been developing all on their own. The child holds the front of his shirt a lot- something Jungkook noticed you do in a similar way as well, whenever you think of something.

Today, it's Daehyun's birthday. And Jungkook is sure, that the young boy probably demanded that both jungkook and you had to be there.

And he's right.

The minute he enters Taehyung's penthouse, he spots you sitting on the floor with the child, who's currently trying to read his own birthday card to you, before he spots him in the doorway. You look pretty, yet again. No makeup it seems like, and he can't say that you need it. You obviously don't, eyes still sparkling dangerously, smile still as lethal as ever as you wave a little bit before getting up.

You're dressed comfortably. He likes the sight of it- the casual dress you wear not too short to be scandalous, but short enough to tease him with the skin of your legs, hidden beneath a sheer pantyhose. Or?

No. There's an upper hem of lace- those are just stockings.

"Jungkookie, appa said you'll drive noona home today?" Dae says, now held up on Jungkook's hip, as he looks at Taehyung who laughs.

"Dae, I said I'm gonna ask him if he can drive her home!" He scolds gently. "Hey- sorry, he just runs with whatever he hears." The father tells him, and Jungkook just smiles, shaking his head.

"I can drive her home, no worries." He simply affirms. "It's no problem."

"Taehyung I told you I can go home by myself!" You whine, and Jungkook is intrigued by this seemingly new side of you. He knows you as a little shy, soft spoken, polite. You always greet him when you see him, and you've talked a little bit in his car weeks back- but then again, you only know each other on a very surface level.

He wonders what you're really like.

"And I said you're not driving alone when you're sick." Taehyung threatens, dad-voice coming through as he attempts to push through your clearly stubborn behavior, and Jungkook can't help but watch intently as your eyes roll around, attitude clear as you don't take your friend seriously at all.

"Noona is gonna be a mommy!" Daehyun blurts out to Jungkook, and for a split second, his entire body freezes, blood cooling down to the negatives, bones filling with fear.

He wore a condom- but what if something happened? What if it leaked? Was that even possible? He's not against becoming a father, absolutely not- but he'd like to have a proper relationship for that, a stable one, not something like this.

"Daehyun!" You scold with red cheeks, and Taehyung runs a hand over his face. "Appa just asked me if I was, I'm not!" You whine embarrassed, sighing. "Oh god, guys, please! I'm an adult woman, I'm not sick, I can go home by myself." You complain, walking into the kitchen, presumably to escape the pressuring situation.

"She threw up earlier, that's why I asked her. Dae must've heard me." Taehyung says, after averting his son's attention back to the TV in the living room, where his favorite show plays. "She refuses to see a doctor for it. But you look like you've seen a ghost-" Taehyung teases, before his eyes sharpen. "…could it be that the mention of her becoming a mommy made you worry?" He pokes, and Jungkook furrows his brows, averts eye contact. "Holy shit, you two!?" He hisses, and Jungkook groans.

"Shut up, it was nothing." He simply says, while Taehyung's eyes widen in a scandalized manner.

"Nothing?! Jungkook, where is that nothing?" He argues, surprisingly sternly. "I'll drive her home."

"You're acting like I forced myself onto her-" Jungkook sighs, but Taehyung shakes his head. "Taehyung, you heard her. She's an adult woman, she can decide things herself." Jungkook defends you. "I'll drive her home, and I'll text you once she's dropped off." He says, before he walks into the kitchen where you're filling up a glass with water.

"Oh god that was embarrassing." You whine into your hands, before you shake your head. "He acts as if I'm dying any second whenever something's up." You mumble, drinking from your glass. He can see you're a bit less energetic- hand a bit shaky as you drink.

"He worries." Jungkook offers, leaning against the counter next to the fridge, across from you. "And you should go see a doctor if you don't feel well." He scolds, and yet again, you roll your eyes.

"And you should try and work on your facial expressions, mister." You huff. "I could see the panic a mile away when Dae said I'm pregnant." You bite, making him tilt his head a little "Either way, I'm fine. I can't afford to call in sick right now or my landlord will kick me out the minute my rent is late again." You laugh a little bitterly, finishing your water before you rinse the glass in the sink.

"Do you not get paid a regular salary each month?" He wonders. You shake your head.

"I do, but it's the monthly bonus that keeps me afloat." You explain. "And I only get that one if I'm not sick and bring appropriate numbers to the table." You sigh. "My landlord just searches for a reason to kick me out, I'm sure." You mumble as you dry your hands.

"How come?" Jungkook asks.

"I didn't want to go out with the guy." You shrug, not looking at him. "I like older men, but sixty? No thanks.." You huff, turning around to look at a smug looking Jungkook, his arms crossed.

"Would've never guessed." He tells you in a cocky manner, and you cross your arms to mirror his position in an exagerated manner.

"I would've probably let you screw me if you were younger too." You respond.

"Oh?" He raises his brows. This is oddly fun. "Were you that needy?" He teases, and suddenly, your eyes soften quite a bit, scaring him.

"No." You shake your head. "Guess you were just that charming." You shrug.

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"If your job pays that awful, why not change it?" Jungkook wonders as he maneuvers out the parking lot, leaving Taehyung's home behind after Daehyun had gone to bed.

You shrug.

"I'm lucky I got accepted in this one." You say. You're tired- it's obvious to him. "I dropped out of school too early. Now I'm facing the consequences- and honestly, it's not that bad either. I get by, and it's a quiet life I'm living, which is nice." You offer.

"Do you not have any ambitions?" He asks, relaxed now that he knows you're not one to be overly sensitive when it comes to more personal topics like that. You don't try to read between the lines where there's most of the time nothing at all to find.

"Its not like I don't have any ambitions." You respond, neither denying nor confirming. "It's more that I realized some of those ambitions were.. unrealistic. So I instead pursued what was." You shrug. "Nothing too deep. It's.. part of growing up, I guess." You explain.

Growing up. Talking to you, right now, truly does remind him of that. Almost two hands between you both in years, but you're awfully matured in the way you think at its core. You just have a softer shell around it, your opinions can still move, your mind still has some sort of wiggle room.

His doesn't. He makes decisions and sticks by them, most of the time. He doesn't like change, he enjoys his routine, keeps everything in order most of the time- until now.

Because you're definitely a decision he keeps bending around.

"How much is your rent?" Jungkook asks, and you look at him from where you're leaning against the car's window, an amused expression on your face.

"Why? You wanna be my sugar-daddy?" You joke, and he shrugs, much to your surprise.

"I don't care what you call it." He simply says. "But if it get's you to take some time and take care of your health, I can take care of a month's rent." He offers.

"I don't like that." You respond.

"I know." He laughs. "I've come to learn that you don't like accepting help. But it's something you can't avoid at times." He explains to you. "I'm just offering help. Whether or not you take it, is up to you." He shrugs.

"Why would you do that?" You wonder, suspicious.

"Because Taehyung worries about you. And Daehyun would be terribly upset if something was to happen to you." He admits. "I don't know you well enough to say that I'm doing this for you- so I'll be honest. I do this mostly for them." He says.

You nod. You like this- that he's actually telling the truth, instead of trying to woo you into something.

"Alright." You sigh, tired. "I'll.. text you?" You wonder, and he nods.

"I have your number from Taehyung already." He chuckles. "I just didn't have a reason to reach out yet." He admits.

You just nod, eyes falling shut for longer he notices.

You must be working hard if you're this exhausted. He really hopes you'll take care of yourself after he helps you sort everything out.

Hopefully his help is enough.

⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅ ── ⋅ ⋅

He's lost control over the situation. How can this happen a second time?

He's been texting you these past few days, especially after you've finally took some time off of work to sort out your doctor's visits, having received some medication to finally help you resolve your issues.

He's not sure why he keeps coming back to you. And he's especially not sure how the hell he managed to get himself caught up in a situation like this twice, especially after Taehyung had been clearly upset about the first time.

There's something about you he can't really pin-point. It's both scary, and exciting.

You're kneeling on a small heart-shaped pillow from your small couch, hands occupied and slicked up with your own spit as you caress his length, head of it warm inside your mouth as you lick and suck. You've offered, and he assumed it to be a joke- but the moment you got down between his legs, all of his usual control over things went out the window. He might appear to be the one in charge, right in this moment, but he's truly at your mercy.

It makes him anxious. This shouldn't be happening.

But he can't deny the appeal of you taking care of him so well- it feels scarily intimate to have you between his legs like this, eyes closed as you seem to enjoy yourself, mostly due to his own hand reaching out to run his fingers through your hair, brushing it out of your face and taking the chance to offer some form of affection before he collects your hair in his fist for a second, long sigh escaping him as he feels the tip of your tongue push against the head of his cock, dipping into the small point, before you adjust your legs, letting go of him for just a second to lick from the base to the very tip once more.

You're a succubus, hidden behind a pretty face and sinful body.

He's not sure what your motivation is, hasn't really figured it out for the first time either. There's this little devil on his shoulder constantly urging him to accept your advances and let himself go, but the angel is louder, and keeps on feeding him doubts about the whole thing. He's consumed by his work, he doesn't have time for you, he can't offer you what you might want from a relationship. He doesn't even know if he himself is ready for something like that- he knows he should be, considering how long ago his divorce had been finished, but it's still odd to think about it. He's scarred by what went down, and doesn't want to go through this again.

He can handle being hated by one person he used to love. He wouldn't be able to have two doing the same.

It made him wonder if he's even someone worthy of having a relationship. Does he have enough to offer you that's not physical or monetary? No. He doesn't have time, he's awkward as hell, he doesn't like parties and rather enjoys laid back vacations somewhere no one knows him- if he even takes one at all. He wants a quiet life-

A quiet life?

'it's a quiet life I'm living, which is nice.'

Maybe it's your hands on his cock, the back of your tongue over his tip, or the way your fingers suddenly move to massage his balls just right- but he's facing this horribly ironic moment of both pleasure and realization at the same time as his cum shoots into your mouth, lips sealed over the head to suck him for all he's got. His hand keeps pushing your head, fingers digging into your hair, and you moan quietly at the faint sting of it.

His head rests back on your couch. His hand loosens, letting you go, while his eyes stay closed, breath deep and uneven as he tries to calm himself. He doesn't even realize how you tuck him back into his underwear as he softens, though you leave the fly and belt untouched, instead moving to wipe your mouth with the back of your hand.

You wait. For what? You're not sure.

"I.." He starts, taking in a deep breath, a hand through his hair trying to sort him out again. "..you.."

"Was it good?" You wonder almost innocently, watching him amused.

He nods. "Very." He simply answers, brain dumb. He hates this.

"Nice." You smile, before you move to put the little pillow back on the couch. "Do you wanna.. leave right now? Or stay for coffee?" You wonder, treating this all way more casual than he is. He's not sure what to do. But he knows you need to talk about this.

"Can you come here for a second?" He asks, and you nod, putting down the mug you got out of the pantry, making your way over to him to sit on the couch next to him. "I hope you know this isn't.. needed. I honestly just wanted to help you out with rent." He urges, and you nod.

"I know." You say, making him feel a bit lighter. "Was that.. not something you wanted?" You worry, but he shakes his head.

"I'm.. I'll have to be honest here." He sighs, having closed his pants and adjusted himself prior already, not leaning forwards with his elbows on his knees. He can't look at you- not if he wants to be honest and straight forward. "I'm not sure." He offers. "I think it's clear that there's an attraction going on- but I don't know how far this can go."

"I'm not in love with you or anything." You defend yourself. "Neither do I have a crush. I just like you." You shrug.

"That's good." He nods to himself. "It's good that you know that. That you... can distinguish it."

"I think your problem might have something to do with.. my age?" You wonder, and Jungkook turns his head towards you, eyes staying on your knees however. "Yoongi mentioned something once. That he has a friend who has some sort of mid-life crisis right now and thinks he's too old for everything." You giggle.

"And how do you know that would be me?" He calls you out a little offended.

"Because it just fits." You laugh. "You play around with Dae all the time, but the second someone watches you, you become all awkward. It's kinda sad." You admit.

"How so?" He wants to know.

"Because it's dumb." You say, leaning back against your couch.

"Maybe for you. But when you're my age-" He starts, and you suddenly start to laugh, cutting him off.

"See! That's how I know you're the one with the crisis!" You joke, hand hitting his shoulder playfully, and without any intention to hurt. "I'm not a kid. I can make my decisions just fine." You say.

"And your decision is?" He wonders, now looking at you.

"That I want to get to know you." You tell him. "I want to.. see where it goes." You offer.

"What if it goes nowhere?" He argues. "I can't promise you some fairytale love-story." He denies. "I'm divorced, I want children at some point, I don't like parties, I work long hours-"

"But that's stuff that we can work out, no?" You wonder. "Time is what you're scared of, right? Then how about this-" You say, suddenly sitting on your knees, body facing his. "Every day you're not trying is a day you could be spending in a more productive way. For example, by getting to know me. Trying out if your idea of a relationship aligns with mine, if your work schedule is too packed, all of that." You offer. "Right now, we could already be talking about more interesting things than the 'what-if'. Or, in your big-man-terms:" You joke, leaning closer to him. "You're wasting time."

"Have you ever considered a career in communication-training?" He chuckles, shaking his head. "You're awfully great at this." He praises, making you giggle.

"Nah, I like my normal nine-to-five." You say. "Even if it barely pays enough."

"Well I heard someone's taking care of rent at the moment." he offers, reaching out to tuck some hair behind your ear.

"Well, only for a month, so that's a bummer." You shrug, leaning into his hand now holding your cheek.

"..I'm not used to being in a relationship." He sighs.

"We can start just being friends." You respond.

"I think we're a little past the general boundaries of friendship." He chuckles.

"Then friends who occasionally have sex." You roll your eyes.

"That's not very romantic." He argues.

"You can fuck me with music in the background?" You joke, and he shakes his head, laughing.

You're truly far more than he thought you are, and he's not sure if he's worth your time. But he wants to be. Looking at you, right now, he wants to be worth it. He wants to put the effort into it, even if it doesn't work out in the end. He wants to try- so that even if you don't fit, you at least had some good memories together that were worth the time spent.

He wants to try.

Even if it's a mistake.

[thewritingginger]

It’s the middle of the week so heres an overdue post for your Wednesday.

I just quickly wrote this so mind any mistakes :)

Fandom: Attack on Titan Pairing: Levi Ackerman x GN! Reader Word count: 1.1k+ words Warnings: Modern AU, Business man Levi, Age gap, Fluffy & cheesy, Kinda shitty oops 

Enjoy ~

Erwin was a long time family friend that you’d known since you were little but had lost touch when you went off to college. Though when the news of you moving back reached him he asked you to meet up with him and a few of his coworkers, that’s when you met a man they called Levi Ackerman.

You sat across the table from him, mostly spent admiring him from the corner of your eye as you pretended to listen to the others' conversations. He was older than you, like the others, but you couldn’t help but be attracted to him. Although he was short in stature he possessed this energy that you couldn’t quite place and being a man of few words only added to the mystery that was around him.

Since then, joining their group on outings has become a regular thing. Each time you tried getting the stone faced man’s attention and when you captured it for a few words you found yourself a bit stunned under his steely gaze. His voice was low with a rasp that vibrated through you. Soon enough you two found yourselves in eachothers company, away from the others, and after a few times talking he asked you out on a date.

~~~

It’s Saturday afternoon and you’re meeting Levi at a little tea shop you mentioned when he shared his liking for tea. The street that the shop is on is full of people working and window shopping. You see the sign that hangs above the door up ahead and then through the crowd you spot the raven hair of your date waiting for you. Picking up the pace he turns and you’re greeted with a warm smile, it was small but it still managed to make the butterflies in your belly flutter.

“Hey.” You smile back, giving him a quick greeting hug. “Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“It’s no problem, just glad you made it.” He says, holding the door open for you. You sigh in relief of the warmth and inviting smell of spices and baked goods on the inside.

Finding a table in the back of the small shop you sit across from each other.

“So- how’s work been?” You ask, not knowing where to start. This is the first time you’ve been truly alone with him and you’re a bit nervous to say the least.

“It’s been good. However, instead of talking about my boring job, I was hoping  to learn more about you, Y/n.” His low voice, rich and mellow, melts over you making you flustered.

“Oh, well there isn’t much to say. As you know I’m a college student and I just recently moved back to finish up my degree at home. But I guess something you don’t know is-.”

You continue to talk back and forth for the next couple hours. After ordering some tea and a few treats you swapped stories and tidbits of information about each other's lives. Laughing and smiling with moments of just looking at each other from across the table over the rims of your cups, it’s safe to say this date is making your stomach do somersaults in the best way.

Wrapping up the date, Levi insisted on paying even though you tried to fight it. Now outside the shop you were about to start saying your goodbyes.

“Let me walk you to your car.” He offers.

“Oh no, that’s okay. I took the bus anyway.”

“Then let me drive you home, I want to make sure you get there safely.” You think about his offer and decide to accept it. You’ve met him a handful of times and Erwin trusts him so you felt safe enough to take him up on it.

“Great. I’m parked in a lot a few blocks down.”

Following him, side by side your hands brush against each other a few times before he tentatively wraps his larger hand around yours. Smiling to yourself you’re about to break the comfortable silence between you till you feel a few drops of water hit your face. Looking up you see it’s beginning to rain and it didn’t take long for it to begin pouring.

The two of you make a mad dash to his car. You laugh at Levi as you see him hike the back of his jacket over his head to attempt shielding himself from the downpour but it’s no use, your hood is already soaked through.

Pulling his keys out he unlocks his car and opens your door for you to duck into. When he shuts his door you’re still laughing.

“You look like a wet dog.”

“You’re one to talk.” He retorts back with a toothy grin, you admire him a moment as he combs his wet hair back. Even completely soaked from head to toe he still managed to look so handsome and distinguished.

“Sorry for getting your seats wet.” You say, warming your hands in front of the vents he turned on.

“Don’t worry about it. Here, put this on.” He reaches back and pulls out a coat he had in the back.

“Now where was this when you needed it?” You tease.

“Well, to be fair, I didn’t think I’d need it.” He puts the car in drive and begins down the street.

Doing as he said, you stripped yourself of your wet jacket and shouldered on the dry one he gave you. Pulling the collar up to warm your nose you can’t help but breathe in, letting the smell of his cologne and natural musk fill your senses. You relax further into the leather seats as you give directions to your home.

The car ride was comfortable and it’s safe to say you really like Levi and you hope he does too.

Pulling to stop, the engine still running, Levi unbuckles his seat belt as you do. You watch him walk around the front of the car to your door and open it for you again. The rain has let up a bit but is still coming down. Taking the hand he extended to you he helps you out and walks you up the steps to your front door.

“Thanks again.” “Like I said, it was no problem.” He smiles.

“Oh! Your jacket.” You go to take it off but he stops you. “Keep it. It looks good on you and besides it’ll give me a reason to see you again.”

“I’d like that.” You smile, lightly biting your lower lip with schoolgirl happiness.

As you were saying your final goodbyes you stop him before he can take the first step off your porch.

“Levi-.” He turns just when you cup his face and place a small kiss on his cheek. “I had a lot of fun today.” If you weren’t mistakened you’d think that you might have seen a slight blush dust across the short man’s face.

“I did too.”

This was really short and maybe a bit rushed but I hope you liked it anyway 

Feedback and interaction is always appreciated :3

💛 ~

~ Valentine’s Masterlist ~ ~ Masterlist ~

[bastillewolf]

Shinigami Eyes (II)

Pairing: Corpse Husband / Reader

Summary: After you distastefully kill Corpse in a game of Among Us, he wants you to make it up to him and invites you to come over for the week.

Notes: Thank you so much for the love on the previous chapter, I’ve never gotten this many notes before. I hope you enjoy, and maybe leave an ask if you want to? I can’t promise I have time to do them, but I’ll pick out a couple.

Also, I might rewrite this. I kinda rushed it because I wanted to finish it by tonight, but there will be a final and third chapter to this afterwards. Please do let me know what you think.

Tag list CLOSED!

Shinigami Eyes - Pt. II

5… 4… 3… 2… 1…

Impostor

You were teamed up with Sean.

Your fist violently slammed down on the desk. “Goddammit! I don’t want to be impostor anymore! This game has no compassion for my poor nerves.” It was the third time in a row now, and you were really craving to do normal tasks now without all the scheming. “Fuck it, I don’t care if they kill me. I’m just gonna do my thing without thinking about it.”

You decide to follow Toast for a bit to watch him do some task. You kill him in Laboratory. You vent back to Launchpad and take your time walking towards MedBay while the kill button restores. You meet up with Corpse, and follow him while pretending to do wires in the Y-hallway. You watched the green bar go up, and continued. Sabotaging and then fixing lights, you made sure your place with Corpse was settled. Then the body of Lily was reported.

As you expected, Corpse easily vouched for you as he’d seen you do a task. The round was skipped, though Rae was sussed for ‘chasing’ Sean, by his own words.

“Corpse, you’ve grown weak,” you muttered to chat.

You were in Greenhouse, and decided it would be best to kill him there and sabotage Reactor. “Sorry baby, but I can’t keep following you around.” You quickly set off Reactor and murdered him in front of the plants. “Your blood shall keep the plants hydrated.” You did an evil laugh. “Pretty sure that’s not how it works, though.”

You vented down to MedBay and as you walked out you met up with Rae. She’d be the vouch who would confirm you weren’t anywhere near Greenhouse. “I’ll just have to fix my own sabotage so they’ll never suspect me.” You helped her with the handprint, and noted Sykkuno and Felix being there. Sean sabotaged lights, you killed Sykkuno, and ran out to follow Lily into Laboratory. Felix reported the body.

“Holy shit,” Rae gasped. So far, five people had died. You only needed to kill one more person. “It was Felix!”

“Wait, what?” the man in question asked. “I was fixing Reactor!”

She mentioned that only you, Sykkuno, Felix and herself had been there and that you’d helped her do handprint. “Sykkuno must have fixed it, and then you killed him!”

Sean asked if you’d seen anything.

“No, the lights were out. I followed Rae into Laboratory after the scan.” Your voice didn’t tremble or raise, a tactic you’d taken up from the best lair in the group. Well, the one who was now dead. Oops. “I haven’t seen Felix this entire game, though.”

He was evidently at a loss for words, so the group was quick to vote for him.

Pewds was ejected.

Victory.

You thanked Sean for a good game who was laughing his ass off. “I can’t believe you did Corpse like that! Poor guy!”

“I deadass thought you were innocent,” Corpse replied, “I’m hurt.”

“Why do you still sound dark and menacing when you say something like that?!”

You agreed with Sean heartily, “He’s just salty I’ve bested him at his own game.”

“Hey now, no need to actually insult me.”

The group laughed. You decided to call it for the night, right before Corpse did the same.”

 ***

He was calling you again. “What is it this time, you salty?”

“Salty? Nah, never,” he said, but you weren’t convinced.

“Then why you calling?”

“What, I can’t call my friends after playing a nice round of Among Us?”

“Not when you lost the game and you call the person who you lost to. Kinda sus, dude.”

“Alright, maybe a little salty.” You smirked.

“Aw, you need me to make it up to you?”

He laughed. “What did you have in mind?”

A bunch of thoughts, most not rated PG-13, crossed your mind. You were suddenly starting to feel uncomfortable. This was probably just something innocent, which got twisted in your fucked-up mind. You shrugged, “Uh… I don’t know.”

“I got an idea.”

“What is it?”

“Come over this week. You said you needed a break, right?”

“That sounds more like you’re doing me a favour instead of me making it up to you.”

“I don’t have any friends. You’d be making it up to me by being the first physical person here in years. I usually don’t invite people over.”

“Wow, I’m flattered. So, you don’t consider me to be your friend after all?”

“You know that’s not what I meant,” he chuckled.

“Sure, sure. Tell me that again when my presence suddenly brightens your life making you not want to get rid of me, ever.”

“I’ll keep it in mind.”

 ***

You walk through the gates following a hoard of people, all the while still feeling drowsy from not getting any sleep during your flight. At least you didn’t have any turbulence and landed safely. Glancing around here and there with no result, you figured Corpse would be waiting outside, until you spotted a figure clad in black a little ends away by the escalator. You were glad you were still awake enough to have found him, because he appeared to silently linger halfway behind a fern.

At least, you hoped it was him. The only indications were his clothes, mask and dark hair. You saw him run a hand through it, and identified the chipped black nail polish and familiar rings. Oh yea, that was him alright.

He seemed to be paying more attention to the floor until he saw two feet appear in his line of sight. “Hey,” you awkwardly greeted. A bit taken a back, he replied, “Oh, wow. Hey.” A mask was covering the bottom of his face, but as far as you could see his eyes were a very dark shade.

“Wow?” you repeated. He chuckled, scratching the back of his head. “Yea, sorry. It’s a compliment.” You held your elbow out in a safe-distance gestured hello, but he shrugged you off. “You’re gonna be staying with me anyways.” Suddenly in a daze, you felt him wrap his arms around your waist and instantly hugged him back. His baggy sweater felt warm and soft to the touch, and strands of hair tickled your face. You very much tried to repress your smile and blush, but how could you? Hugging someone wasn’t supposed to feel this good. When he pulled back he reached down to take your suitcase from you. “I don’t own a car, is it okay if we take a cab?”

“Y-Yeah, of course,” you stuttered, “But it’s on me. Same with food and stuff.” “Don’t worry about it,” he chuckled. “No, you’re letting me stay with you and a hotel would’ve been a lot more expensive than this. It’s my treat.” “Yeah, we’ll see.” He gave you a look and even with the mask you could tell he was smirking underneath it.

It’s about half an hour drive to his apartment complex, and it’s rather nice. “All that YouTube money paying off, huh?” you asked in amusement. “You’d know,” he replied. You insisted on carrying your suitcase up the stairs yourself, which he silently shook his head at, until after a few flights he noticed you struggling and settled on carrying the thing in between the two of you. “How many clothes did you bring?” “Oh, it’s mostly filled with bricks I might need to throw at your head.” He laughed at that.

His apartment was simple, but cosy. “Home sweet home,” he said, almost sarcastically. You furrowed your brow at him. “I’m sure you could’ve had it a lot worse.” He reluctantly agreed.

He helped you set down your luggage in what appeared to be his bedroom, where the curtains were still closed and the black bedsheets fresh. He had a few pieces of fanart up on his wall, and some on his closet. You turned to him and gave him a look. “You’re not sleeping on the couch.”

He quickly shook his head, “You’re not sleeping there. If you won’t let me sleep on the couch I’ll sleep on the floor.”

“If you’re sleeping on the floor, I’m sleeping on the floor.”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that,” he murmured. “What?” “Nothing.”

He suggested playing video games as you were both too tired to do anything else. You’d landed quite late yet were still confused about what time it actually was. Flying is weird. You hopped onto his couch and grabbed a controller.

He sat down next to you, but suddenly seemed tenser than before.

“You okay? You can just go to sleep if you want to.”

He shook his head, “Nah, I don’t sleep a lot. It’s fine.”

You didn’t stop looking at him, though. He was still wearing that mask. “You don’t have to take it off, if you don’t want to. I understand if it makes you uncomfortable.”

“It’s not that, I just…” He took a deep breath. You hadn’t expected him to take it off then and there. You stared at him, your mouth slightly agape, controller barely held by your numb hands.

“Disappointed?”

It was as if he was expecting you to make a face or something, but you didn’t give him anything, except for a blatant “Nope” and an “Are we gonna play now or what?”

“You don’t have anything else to say?”

You shrugged, and looked him up and down again. “You’re kind of what I imagined you to be.”

“What’s that?”

“Handsome.”

Neither of you could stop smiling for the rest of the night.

You eventually forced him to sleep in his own bed, even going as far as to shove him into the room and keep your weight against the door so he couldn’t get out, so he eventually relented. “Inviting you here was a mistake.” “How come? All I’ve done so far is look after you!” “You’re a nightmare.”

You mostly stayed in for the week, which you didn’t mind at all. Being in such a closed-off environment with someone you got along with was nice. He attempted to get you to lift the weights in his room and succeeded for around fifteen minutes until you nearly dropped a dumbbell on your foot. You ordered take-out from his favourite restaurant, watched horror movies until you adapted to his sleeping schedule because you were too scared to close your eyes now, and even streamed a bit together with your friends.

“Wait, is Corpse with you?” Rae had asked.

“No, I’m at Corpse’s. He’s sitting across from me so I can’t see his screen but we’re gonna have to share the Discord unless you want to hear an echo.”

“Ah, man! You got to see his face, too?” Sykkuno whined.

“Stop simping, Sykkuno. You get enough attention from him already.”

“Don’t worry, I still love you,” Corpse said.

“Huh?”

It was probably a good thing that you got teamed up again, because you could indeed start to see his hands shaking right as the word ‘impostor’ appeared on the screen. You reached over and stroked it with your thumb. He smiled gratefully back at you.

“Just please,” he pleaded later that day, “Sleep in the bed. If only for one night.”

“No. I’ve heard about and now seen your sleeping habits. If you take the couch you’re never going to get any sleep.” You made a real effort to show him how comfortable you were – even though your back had started to hurt already after the first night – by crawling underneath your blanket and rubbing your head into the soft pillow. He snorted.

Next thing, you feel yourself being lifted by an arm underneath your knees and one around your back. “Corpse! Put me the fuck down!” you shrieked. You knew he lifted weights, but how the hell did he still have the energy as an insomniac? He ungracefully dropped you onto the matrass and turned the lights off. “Good night.”

You quickly got hold of the back of his hoodie before he could leave and pulled. He fell down next to you with a low huff. “Fine, I’ll sleep in the bed. But only if you sleep here too.”

“I snore.”

“Don’t care.”

For some reason, there wasn’t any tension or awkwardness. You were comfortable, and the soft rhythm of his breathing seemed to soothe you. He called out your name, to see if you were still awake.

“Hm?”

“…Thanks for coming over.”

“Any time.”

This was how you would spend the rest of the nights, and whenever either of you woke up suddenly curled up around the other, you didn’t mention it or move away from it. It was the first time in years Corpse got a few nights of complete rest.

[heyitsyn]

Keeping Up With Seijoh Pt. 10

a/n: based on this post uwu

okayokayokayyeyyy

LOOOK I LOVE THIS SCENE LIKE I CAN GO ON A RANT OF HOW IMPORTANT THIS SCENE IS LIKE SKDJSLDKKSSM

okay so

yuhhhhhh

the way this is set up is basically seijoh simping for you

also they have their own separate gc just for them bc they dont want you to see them just simping for you

even tho oiks ltr does that everyday

but hes not ready for that conversation

there was a few times that you were kinda curious as to what was in the chat

but they would click off and they would blush before diverting you to a different conversation

this might sound hella weird and creepy

idk bout yall but i think its cute that they take random pictures of you doing the sinplest things

this all started bc of one picture

from baby aki-kun

so basically you stayed behind with kunimi during monday to just study and you sat in front of him while sharing his desk

babie took a pic of you just studying and he sent it to the gc with no context

its a known fact that seijoh doesnt practice during mondays so they were all doing something out of school

but they were all missing you so seeing you with kunimi fueled jealousy in everyone

even kyo

oikawa blew up in the chat and was keyboard smashing

the others were just teasing him like hes lucky youre with him

but behind the screen, they were blushing and red and envious and AAAAA

thus spurred on some sort of competition

like they would send the chat pictures of you like 'hA TAKE THAT SHES WITH ME'

unbeknowst to you, these boys have folders of just cute candid pics of you

oikawas insta is filled of you and his snap is full of you in his story and his tiktok is full of screaming simp rants about you

the tiktok comments are all like, 

‘IS SHE YOUR GIRLFRIEND?!’

‘OIKAWA-SAN SHES ADORABLE’

‘BACK🤺OFF🤺OIKAWA🤺I🤺CALLED🤺DIBS🤺ON🤺HER🤺FIRST🤺‘

random ones like him doing a day in my life type of vids and you appearing and everyone can just see the small blush on his face and the bashful yet happy smile on his lips

its really adorable

but the real ones know that shes been appearing in his insta since day 1

moilk.bread.1

thats practically your account now 

welll,,,

its more of a fan account for you and a lot of people from aoba johsai follow that account since you dont have an official one yet so they all simp for you there

the pictures were all from everyone like the boyz group chat was a haven for your candids

you did think it was strange that the boys would constantly ask to take pictures with you and everyone was just trying to get a pic to have aesthetic couple pics w you

and they would put it as their wallpaper or lockscreen

IMAGINE THE BLUSH THEY WOULD GET WHEN COMPLETE STRANGERS WOULD ASK THEM IF THATS THEIR GIRLFRIEND

oooo i mentioned this in the post too that iwa and you went to the gym and you guys took a mirror pic

after, you didnt really like the gym bc its just hard yanno?

iwa went back and while he was setting up his weights and equipments, his gym buddy noticed his phone light up causing your picture to show up

'oh? is that your girlfriend, iwaizumi?'

duh he doesnt have a girlfriend so he was like 🤨 until he saw his phone

the lockscreen was blaringly bright and your 'couple pic' was showing with the notifications

totally not oikawa blowing up their group chat bc he was with you

ofc babie hajime got all flustered and he blushed before shaking his head

'n-no'

he mumbled and his buddy laughed before clapping his back

'well, you obviously like her so do somethinf about it before someone does'

dont you think he doesnt know that?

also with mattsun!

this mans works in a cute cafe that this old granny owns and this thought has been living in my head rent free

and he was working during the weekend at the cafe

there were other people there but granny loves him bc hes been working there sibce he was like 15 and she took care of him a lot

he was like a grandson

so while he was serving, this granny was manning the cashier and checking people out

issei's phone was there on the table behind the counter and it started glowing at the indication of the messages being received

'have a nice day-oh!'

she noticed it right there and she saw the picture on his lockscreen

you were probably being carried by him due to your levelness with his height and you were kissing his cheek while issei smiled brightly

that was a picture you both took during an outing at the mall and the sunset behind you was just perfect to take a picture in

poor granny was like 'oop dont look at the messages' so she turned it over to not go to his privacy

there again you were

it was a polaroid of you two and he was backhugging you at school

hint? 👀

askldfjlsdkf

she knew issei was a very handsome young man so there shouldnt have been a surprise that he would be dating someone

can we name this granny?

granny inko lol

okay so granny inko saw issei coming over to rest the serving board thing and she beckoned him over

mattsun nodded and leaned over the counter to see what she wanted only to be greeted with a flick to the forehead

‘oW what was that for?’

he whined while holding the spot

granny inko tutted disapprovingly before crossing her arms

‘youve been working all week this week when you could’ve taken time off to spend it with your pretty lady. is this how men are nowadays? didn’t i teach you right to treat women properly?’

duh baby mattsun was confused like O_O

‘wha?’

his dumb question made her grab the phone and place it on the counter in front of him

‘your girlfriend, child. women need attention constantly and as much as you want that money, is it worth losing that smile full of happiness?’

okay stop it granny im getting emotional

more like disagreeing bc that wouldnt put food on the table BUT ANYWAYS

baby issei was surprisingly embarassed and scratched his neck

‘um,, baa-chan,,,,, she’s not my girlfriend’

he flustered and gave her an awkward smile

granny inko shot him a confused look and tapped the phone

‘well, she looks like she is. and if not, better hurry your move, boy. girls that make men happy like that only comes as rare as a good scratch ticket’

LMAO 

i do not encourage gambling so please save your money kids

you know what

these boys do that just to actually feel like it

okay thats confusing so imma explain it in greater detail

whenever someone mistakes you as their girlfriend, it makes them feel like you are for that split second and its just an addicting feeling

its like what if you were their girlfriend?

i mean, youre already the whole team’s girlfriend but theyre greedy brats and just want you for themselves

ohohohohoh

kyo!!

kyo def has a selfie of you both with the doggie filter but it was actually you who took it while he was just staring at you in the background

that was his lockscreen for like the rest of his high school career

lol

anyways!!

he was actually in a fight and during it, his phone fell off to the ground and conveniently oikawa messaged causing it to light up

one of the thugs had their hands gripping kyo’s collar and was pushing him against the wall while the others were surrounding them

they saw the phone flash and kyo cursed at the terrible timing and he made a mental note on killing oikawa later

a guy picked it up and he smirked, seeing the pretty smile of a pretty girl

‘heh? whats this?’

kyotani pushed the guy who was holding him but other two surged towards him and held him tighter

their leader snatched the device and chuckled

‘oh. its that bitch from his school. what is it’

he snaps his fingers as he tries to remember before stopping

‘aha! l/n y/n!’

kyo growled

‘shut up!’

the guy grinned at him and tapped the phone against kyo’s chin

‘oh yea. i heard shes a cutie. most people here know her, kid. now we know shes connected to you and guess what. you cross us again, she’ll take your place as you are right now. orrrr, we can,,, use her as our pet. thats how she is in your team, right? so let us have a turn. maybe we can send you a pic, hm?’

yea no that wasnt happening

kyotani easily beat those people up after because even just saying that unleashes power he didnt know he had

‘bastard. youre lucky this is just a warning. you touch her and i will kill you’

he landed one last kick on the guy’s face before taking the phone and leaving

now he has to figure out how to hide the bruises

you fussed later and he didnt tell you the reason instead just saying they said something that made him angry

nah

you were a person he didnt want to disappoint and he knows how much it hurts you to see him in that state

that was one of the things he hated but loved at the same time

you were such an empath that you would treat him and wince as if you were the one feeling the pain instead of him

and it made him feel special

you were one of the few things he holds close and he would be damned if anything happened to you because of him

the group chat was actually just blowing up with more screaming and the third years yelling at each other with the first years just casually reading the texts

they were used to the arguments within the team and you would remain so naive with the whole thing

kunimi is the type to keep silent and he didnt really care about anyone getting angry if you were spending time with him

but he does get annoyed if you were with kindaichi because you three were a package lol

like when kindaichi and you were at the arcade, this kid walked all the way there just because he didnt want kindaichi to hog you to himself

duh you thought this was adorable and endearing bc they wanted to hang out w you

no LUV theyre greedy brats who gets jealous over yOU

OH

so like i mentioned before that you and makki would walk over to the bakery and you guys would buy food there and such

and its also canon in here that makki only shares his food with you and no one else lol

why?

because when you eat the puffs, you put one in each cheek and it makes you look so adorable like a squirrel

sorry but squirrels are so cute like AAAAA

makki takes so many pictures of you and a lot are surprise shots where your eyes would be wide with cheeks full of food

aaaaa so cute

like you and makki sat down on a bench in the park across the bakery and you excitedly dug in to your own treat

makki chuckled at your excitement but he placed his hand on you arm to stop you

‘y/n-chan. say aaa’

you lit up and let him put the puff in your mouth and thought he was done but was surprised when there were two

you happily chewed it and went back to looking at your treats

but makki interrupted you again by calling you out

‘princess~’

the nickname made your eyes widen with red painting your cheeks and the shutter of the camera made you realize what he did

‘makki-senpai!’

you whined and he laughed

makki had a lovestruck smile on his face and he wiped the bit of creme on the corner of your lip

‘gotta take care of my princess~’

STOPPPPP MY HEART? GONE MY SOUL? GONE HOTEL? TRIVAGO

OH MY GOD IM IN SUCH A MAKKI AND MATTSUN AND IWA AND OIKAWA AND THIRD YEARS IN GENERAL BRAIN ROT PLEASE HELP

but we gotta give love to the second years :’)

ive mentioned that watari is the only person to ever go into your house right?

well, he comes over to cook and such so you guys spend time making food for the team 

watari takes this opportunity to take pictures of you cooking and the group chat cries bc its so domestic and they all start having the same thoughts

they really said seijoh braincells

it was like seeing a glimpse of a possible future for them

you, wearing an apron, cooking on the stove with your hair thrown in whatever with baggy clothes

gosh

thats like you someday being their wife and waking up one morning to see you there cooking in the kitchen

oikawa swears he had a dream that night because of that picture and he continuously thanks watari for YEARS because of that picture

okay are you curious about the dream?

yuhhh

oikawa woke up in an unfamiliar bed in a foreign room 

he felt his bones crack when he stretched and his hand extended out to a side that was still quite warm

hm

somebody must be sleeping next to him

then he stood up, catching his reflection in the mirror in front of the bed

;)

why would there be a mirror there hmmmm????

ANYWAYS

he noticed he had a bigger build and his hair was longer

then came the itch of the facial hair that he swore wasnt there a minute ago

this guy even checked out his butt and to his surprise, wow

obviously he was confused and a part of him thought this was the future

tooru walked to the door to go into the hallway and concluded, yep, this was not his house

then he heard music being played somewhere and a mixture of voices coming from a room

sounded like a woman and children

he stops at the top of the stairs, suddenly hit of the thought that this voice was so familiar

‘hm?’

tooru walked downstairs and stopped when down the hallway in front of the steps led to the kitchen where the voices seemed to lead to

‘mama! mama! mama! toast! i wan toast!’

‘in a bit, darling. just let me finish flipping the pancake’

the song was lo-fi with the volume being turned low enough to hear the voices fine

tooru wandered down the hallway and he stopped, finally seeing the owners of those voices

there was a handsome little boy sitting on the chair by the island and his brown hair was a mess of wild curls

there was a woman with h/c hair swaying to the tune and a beautiful little girl curled up in her arms while sitting on her hip

‘hey’

oikawa spoke out and caught everyone’s attention

‘papa’s awake!’

‘pa!’

‘hello tooru’

tooru froze

that was you

he knows it’s you

‘y/n-chan’

he whispered and you looked back at him from the pan

‘yes? if youre looking for coffee, we ran out apparently’

that was not what he was talking about

he hastily walked over to the boy and he blinked rapidly

‘you look like me’

he mumbled and the child grinned

‘eung! papa  and yozo look the same! mama and nana say so!’

yozo?

feeling like all the attention was on him, the little girl whined and her hands made grabby motions to him

‘pa pa’

she whined and tooru just felt something in him that screamed to hold the kid

you shushed the little girl

‘dont worry, looney loon. papa’s right there’

loon?

tooru stayed frozen at his spot and you raised an eyebrow at him

‘tooru? luna wants you’

oh

luna

that snapped him out of his trance and he held the little girl in his arms where she smiled at him and then he felt tears welling up in his eyes

then he woke up

okay sorry that was a long dream

so this dragged on for so long already okay

this was only meant to be small but aaaaa i couldnt help itt!!!!

but anyways!

the boys are just simps for you and theyre creeps that take pictures of you and they think about you all the time pls accept their love

also a mild continuation of the dream:

oikawa was holding luna and she was happily laying there when another figure emerged from the hallway

‘iwa-chan?’

he asked, surprised

what was he doing here?

iwa heard his name and grunted before going to a beeline for you

you smiled at him and he leaned in to give you a kiss to which oikawa froze in

iwa noticed his best friend holding his daughter and luna saw her father there

‘daddy!’

she shrieked and tooru blanched

‘uh, what?’

iwa extended his hands out to hold the girl but tooru held her tightly and leaned back

haji narrowed his eyes

‘um, give me my daughter, oikawa’

he grumbled and tooru shook his head

‘no! shes my daughter!’

you blinked

‘your god daughter, yes. but she’s half of your best friend, tooru’

half of his-

god? daughter?

‘so that means-’

‘piece it together, oikawa. did ya get brain damage or something? babe, call the doctor’

oikawa screamed

a/n: lol look WHO ROSE FROM THE GRAVEEEEEEE :) anyways. i really want to deeply apologize to everyone for taking an unexpected break and i shouldve told you guys and im really sorry :( everythings just chaotic lmao and im just like taking a breath for a second uwu and im so AMAZED at how many people still follow me even tho ive been gone for so long like bls yall are real ones :’) i love you all and the req box is still closed at this time as i need to finish the ones i have first soo thankyou for reading thiss and hopefully ill update soonerr!!! :)))

also not me completely messing up my kuws and missing 8 and 9 in my masterlist and having a mindblowing realization that i have 10 keeping up with seijoh fics

[alphakuriboh]

Well I’m awake early. Grudgingly. Stupid door bell.

Anyway, Johto is less of an offender than Kanto overall on the “kinda boring” scale, and has some real hits. It’s not really the Pokémon that has me so overall eh on the gen.

@crystalelemental I will fight you for Snubbull

S Tier - Chikorita is baby. One of my top 3 favorite starters as a starter itself. Furret is one of the best rat lines, agreed. I love the Togepi line. Mega Amphy - look at that FABULOUS hair, you go funky dragon mega. Only good gen 2 mega. Espeon was my favorite Pokémon for the first three gens I played, and is still second overall. Dunsparce is great, it’s so dopey. I have a build a bear Snubbull cause I got attached leading up to the Detective Pikachu movie. Skarmory is in my bird bias. Blissey, my girl. I like stall tactics in the regular game (throwback to scaring the hell out of Pixelmon players with a team of six fully EV trained Blisseys). I like Entei most of the beasts. Lugia is great (I’m gonna be generous to a lot of legendaries oops). Onion fairy my beloved.

A Tier - The rest of the Chiko line and the Cynda line are really good. Sentret is good just not evolved. Noctowl line is cool. Pichu and Cleffa are some of the most successful pre-evo additions to me. The non-Mega Ampharos set is great. Umbreon isn’t Espeon but it’s still an Eeveelution. I love pufferfish so Qwilfish gets a pass despite I know it was considered much more forgettable prior to Hisui. Don’t fuckle with Shuckle. Corsola is a little demon. Delibird is funny. Porygon2 is so round. Miltank has REALLY grown on me the last couple years for various reasons. The other two beasts in the trio.

B Rank - Okay Crobat I could have put you higher, but here you are. You have absolved Golbat’s sins but you’re still not cute. Rest of tier is mainly “yeah I like you”. Ho-oh is. Fine. I don’t have the nostalgia for it that a lot of people do.

C Tier - Meh. Stuff that’s fine but I don’t really care that much? The one mistake is I should’ve put Sunkern higher cause I have a soft spot for it, but I auto-piloted it. Whoops. Also T-Tar isn’t really that great sorry thems the breaks.

D Tier - Why? Either boring design or weird evolutions.

E Tier - I never liked Quagsire line or Heracross. Tyrogue is an awful design, Smoochum is an unnecessary addition to a line that should’ve been forgotten. Why are so many of the Gen 2 Megas so ugly?

Fuck You - Aipom is a little bitch. Haunted me in early games, absolute nightmare fuel in Detective Pikachu. Probably my least favorite Pokémon period.

Overall feels a lot like a step up from Kanto, if still a lot in the average range. Maybe not as bad because there’s 51 less filler ‘mons, lol.

[jishyucks]

Eight Count ‣ lmh

‣ genre: fluff, enemies-to-lovers, hogwarts!au, I think it's a slow burn

‣ wc: 10.8k

‣ summary: "There's honestly no way Minho would like me. And me of all people would know that." ; in which fate decides to be an ass and make you and Minho dance partners

‣ an: I'm sosososo sorry @ whoever requested this bc of how long it took. I didn't mean for it to be so long but it kept going and uni is to blame bc all of the work :(( but anyways enjoy !!

i.

You feel the beat of your heart quicken as you maneuver through the maze of corridors that you had begun to approach. Time was ticking. The first classes of the day had already started about half an hour ago, and here you were, racing down the stone hallways, tardy and a bit dazed.

It had only been a mere five minutes since you had woken up in the dormitories in pure panic, the realization that everyone had left and you were still cuddled up against one of the pillows in your bed driving you to act quick. You could accuse your housemates of not even bothering to check if you were alive, but you soon decided to place the blame on your body's restlessness and inability to go to sleep when you wished. You wouldn't call it insomnia, but your sleeping patterns weren't normal either.

Approaching the dance room with a quiet sigh of relief, you tug at the wooden door and peek in, hoping that you weren't barging in at such a humiliating time.

Scattered around the rather room, students were paired in twos. Each couple's bodies had been facing each other, hands sitting awkwardly in the other's while their faces were turned towards the dance instructors, Professor Shin and Professor Na. By the look on Professor Shin's face, it was evident that she was about to continue speaking, but the door swinging open had caught her attention.

"Ahh Y/N, nice of you to finally join us," she clasped her hands in genuine excitement, passion towards dance obviously bubbling up inside of her.

You grinned crudely and bowed your head, "W-what should I do, Professor?" Spotting your best friend Felix within the group of students, he tried his best to send you a look of 'we were supposed to be partners'. You shot him an apologetic expression back before turning your attention back to both professors.

After a brief pause in thought, Professor Na's face lit up, "Ah yes! Lee Minho lacks a partner as of now!" Following the eyes of your teacher, they brought your line of sight to the far corner of the room where Minho had been sitting. At the mention of his name, he raised his head to see that everyone had been gaping back at him in what seemed like total silence.

A sharp intake of air through your nose had replicated a gasp, eyes growing wide, "P-pardon?" Out of all the boys in the class, an amount you couldn't keep track of with your fingers, you had to end up with Lee Minho? The human embodiment of a wet sock?

Minho was… unbearable, to say the least. It wasn't that he had done something for you to hate him, which made you seem like a bad person, but in all honesty, your guys' personalities didn't seem to match. He was too arrogant, in your opinion. He has this energy that he carries that really didn't sit well with you, and by the looks of it, the feeling was mutual. It was as if you both ended up on the opposite bc end of everything.

It really doesn't help that you're a Hufflepuff, and he's a Slytherin. For some unknown reason, they always loved teasing the people from your house, though Hufflepuffs chose not to return their actions.

"Mr. Lee is the only student remaining with no partner."

You gulped and slowly approached him, only because your professors had motioned you over to him. If you could protest, you would, but what was holding you back was the attention given by the entire class and the teacher's who seemed too excited for their own good.

Minho pressed his tongue against his inner cheek, eyes lighting up in wrongly-fueled happiness. He hopped from the upper bench and down across from you. You blinked back at him dryly, maintaining calm yet trying to speak to him with your eyes.

Crossing his arms, he leaned forward and smirked, "Why the bitter face? You should relish in your luck for ending up with me."

"Stop talking, dead cells are coming out of your mouth… Luck my as–"

"Now! That everyone has a partner, I'd like you all to stick with these individuals until these classes are finished," Professor Shin had announced. It was quickly followed by groans and whining from many of your classmates. Though you hated your partner and wished you had arrived earlier and paired with Felix, you stood quiet, isolating the anger within your chest.

"And before we begin once again," Professor Na added, "I'd like to point out that this is still a class. We will be holding a class particularly focused on evaluation and your grade will be heavily based on participation over the length of this course." Once again, a chorus of grumbles had flooded the room.

You hear Minho curse under his breath, only because he was now two steps too far into your bubble, "This is utter bullshit."

This time it was your turn to taunt, "Why? Are you scared or something? Can't dance? Can't keep up with everyone?"

Narrowing his eyes, he scoffs, "Oh, shut your mouth, bumblebee. Just wait and see."

ii.

"Get up!" Felix tugged at your arm, voice sounding louder than it actually was. When you hadn't shifted at all in your bed, he sighed and tugged once more, "Y/N!"

"Wha– Felix you're not allowed in here!" You kicked at your blanket and sat up.

"We need to get to dance class," he clicked his tongue, "Let's go~"

"I really don't want to go," you whined, "I'd rather fail a class than hold hands with Lee Minho for an hour and a half." Felix dragged you out of your bed to see that you were already dressed in your robe, only your yellow and black tie had been carelessly tied.

"Wait, did you not change out your clothes from yesterday?" Felix jumped back in exaggeration, alarmed and slightly grossed out. His nose scrunched while he judged you through his eyes.

You glared at him and scoff, "Of course I did, you idiot. And don't act like you haven't done that." You take this as your victory as it was true, Felix had gone two days without changing, and it was a bit nasty considering all the places he's gone to in a day.

This time it was his turn to glare at you, "You shut your mouth! Now let's leave before Snape sees us roaming the halls once class starts."

Minho winced slightly, trying not to let your feet ruin the simple waltz routine that the class had finally run through, "If you step on my foot one more time, I'm shoving yours up your arse." His teeth were gritted in frustration, looking down at you with narrowed eyes.

"Then stop stepping on my feet," you muttered back, hoping that no one else, especially the professors, were hearing you two bicker.

It had only been about two lessons into the class and that amount of times that Minho had purposefully disrupted the routine… as if it were good, to begin with.

The two of you found it difficult to fall in sync with each other. It was always either going too fast or too slow, someone making an 'accidental' mistake, and Minho's favourite, holding your hand and hip with a tight and stubborn grip. It wasn't evident whether he was doing it on purpose, either, but you had pointed it out plenty of times, and he never seemed to loosen them.

"I'm not stepping on them," he pushed you back a little too early in the dance, causing you to stumble on your own feet. This caught the attention of those around you, though they carried on almost immediately after.

"Tell that to my bruised toe," you argued back.

As if you were being blessed, the music had finally come to an end. You promptly retracting your arms and to your body and taking a step back from Minho. He had done the same, going an extra mile to turn away from you and to the professors.

"Perfect! Perfect!" Professor Na's face lit up from excitement, "Now that we have learned this simple routine, next class we are moving on to one of the actual dances done in the Yule Ball as tradition. I hope you all are excited as I am!" Very few students had taken time to let out a "whoop" while everyone else, including you, chose to retrieve their books at the seats.

Felix approached you with a pitiful smile. He already knew what you were going to say, patting your back gently, "So how was it?"

Exhausted, you just shook your head and shrugged. Being partners with Minho honestly had been completely draining for you, mentally and physically, which was unusual as you could often live through such situations without feeling the need to scream.

"What else do you think?"

Felix nodded apologetically and puffed out his cheeks, "Is it as bad as the potions exam we had in fourth year?" He shuddered subtly and led you out of the classroom. Just thinking about that exam made Felix want to claw at his brain. If there was a way to take a particular memory and make it disappear from the chamber of long term memories, he would. Maybe then he'd be able to get a few more hours of sleep.

"Yes," you replied simply. The test was equally as horrible for you, but a test didn't force you to 'create chemistry' with a certain Slytherin.

"You're lying… can't be that bad," Felix laughed lightly.

"Easy for you to say," you sighed.

From behind, you feel someone bump your shoulder and pass by you, "Oops," he snickered, walking backwards to watch your reaction. The only thing he was missing was popcorn.

You turned to see Minho and rolled your eyes, "Ha-Ha, you're so funny, Lee Minho." Such a childish joke and you guys were almost leaving Hogwarts.

Though your reply had been dripping in sarcasm, Minho's wit had dodged it entirely, "Well thank you very much," he bowed, more like a manly curtsy, before he ran off, leaving Felix slightly puzzled at what just happened.

"Don't you see how much of a dingbat he is? He constantly chooses to pick on me just to get a reaction out of me," you utter, "He should be glad I was raised to be patient, if not I'd be hexing him like the world was near its end."

"I see a pattern," Felix hummed. The expression on his face looked as if he had come to an incredible epiphany.

Making a face, you click your tongue, "What do you even mean by that?" What pattern? Green, white, green, white? Minho and his constant need to be the crow to your crops?

Felix patted your head, "You're slow sometimes, you know that right?" He puffed his cheeks up and raised his brows as he looked down at you as if you were a kid.

"Can you just spit it out?" you narrowed your eyes at him before you physically pried his hand off your head.

"Minho does all of that just to get a reaction out of you," Felix presses his lips into a thin line, slowly forming a smile.

Finally arriving at the next classroom, you groaned, "You basically repeated what I said earlier…"

"If you didn't know this already, boys love getting attention from someone they are attracted to," Felix plopped into his seat. You followed right after, "I should know… I'm a boy."

You almost laugh at the tone of his voice. The confidence and the look he gave you to emphasize his statement; was all too funny, "So what you're saying is… Lee Minho has a – and god forbid– crush on me?" Felix nods like a young child, with eyes wide and a tight-lipped smile.

"Bollocks," You burst out laughing, "Felix, I love you, don't get me wrong, but you've never said anything more rubbish in the years I've known you."

"The chances are never zero," Felix put his index finger as if he were saying it in 'a matter of fact'.

You lean forward and sit your chin at your folded forearms. You eyed the teacher as she made her way into the room, "You're right there, Lix, but there's honestly no way Minho would like me. And me of all people would know that." You locked that statement in, feeling your words and emotions contradict.

Right?

iii.

"And then Y/N had the audacity to step on my foot," Minho kicked at the bench across from him, frustration released after what seemed to Seungmin was years of ranting. He didn't mind though, in years of being in the same house as him, he learned how to block him out yet still know what was going on when Minho asked for some sort of reply.

Minho tapped the end of his pencil against his textbook, eyes drifting off elsewhere in the grand hall. Students were clumped at their respective tables, studying for whatever class they had. Minho was trying to do the same, but his state of mind was not in the mood. But he was trying, he was pushing himself, that's what mattered in his opinion.

Turning his attention to Seungmin, who was seated next to him, he jumped, seeing that Seungmin's eyes were wide and directed at him, "What the hell!?"

"What?" Seungmin shifted back forward, facing his own books. In a sense, the scene was hysterical. He acted as if he hadn't done anything wrong or out of the ordinary, but Minho still tried to push an explanation out of him through looks.

"What do you mean what? Why were you looking at me like that?" Minho put his pencil down and closed his book on it.

"I was trying to see something," the boy shrugged and got back to his own work.

Again, Minho furrowed his brows at Seungmin's lack of detail in his response. What in the world was he even trying to do? "Trying to see what? If you don't answer me properly–"

"Okay! Okay!" Seungmin exclaimed a little too loudly, earning looks from other wizards in the room, "You know that saying that if you're in love, you start to glow?"

"No? What type of nonsense are you saying?" Minho scoffed, "Love? Are you sick or something?" Roughly, Minho brought the back of his hand to Seungmin's forehead, which Seungmin had thrown off almost right away.

"You've been talking about Y/N this entire period, you haven't stopped until moments ago," wiggling his eyebrows, Seungmin whispered his reply to Minho, making sure no one would be able to hear him this time.

Minho's face had contorted into one of disgust and confusion, "And?" Where was Seungmin even going with this? He was just relieving stress. It's not that deep.

"My point is that they're the only thing you've been talking about lately," Seungmin scribbles his pen at the top of his paper to get it to work, "Even if I start the conversation, it somehow just shifts to Y/N. Normally I'd be mad, but since you're in love, I'll let it pass."

"In love?" Minho's jaw dropped, a mixture of emotions swimming around inside of him, "In love!?" Trying to find words to perfectly reflect what he was saying, he fails, shoving Seungmin off the bench. Actions spoke louder than words, right?

Seungmin smirked and chuckled, unfazed, "What? Cat got your tongue?" He gets up, dusting his robe off before sitting back down, "It's because I'm right, aren't I?"

Minho gulps, "Will you quit it? You're…"

"I'm…?"

"You're confusing me. Quit it," Minho huffs, gathering all his things as he was planning to return to the dormitories. This was a different way of playing with emotions. There was a zero per cent chance that he liked you, or worse, loved you. That word was way too strong, dangerous like amortentia.

"I take that as a yes!" Seungmin stood his ground, just letting out a genuine laugh.

Minho held a finger up at Seungmin, who still laughed, unbothered. He didn't like you. And if he did, it wasn't wrong to do so. It was an ordinary mortal thing to have feelings. But that didn't matter right now because he didn't like you, not even a tiny crush.

But that slight state of unfamiliar panic in his heart says otherwise.

iv.

The muscles in your arm were aching from the horrible fact that Minho had been purposefully letting his arm go limp while he was holding your hand, which somehow led to you holding up his arm with your arm. You frowned at him, tempted to let your arm fall in the middle of the routine.

"Can you actually put in some effort?" you whispered through gritted teeth. Squeezing Minnho's hand, you directed a look of annoyance that only returned with an amused look. Underneath his robe, you could tell he had been intentionally dragging his feet, causing the both of you to slowly hold those partnerships behind you up.

"I'm not wasting energy on this," he shrugs quietly, "It's ridiculous."

"What don't you find ridiculous?" you rolled your eyes, "You Slytherins and the lack of interest in anything but yourselves. Where's the excitement in that?" No, you didn't want to generalize the entire Slytherin population, especially since you had family members from that house, but you knew exactly how to rev up Minho's engine. Just by the way his face twisted, you knew damn well you hit the right spot.

"Shut your mouth before I spin you a little too hard…" he said a little bit louder, "I don't find it ridiculous, I just find that us being partners is ridiculous… who in this entire school would want to be partners with you?" Before you could even reply, he had caught you, "That's not from your house."

"Jokes on you, I know plenty of people who would be partners with me," you scoffed, and it was true. There was Jisung who had somehow been sorted into Gryffindor, Hyunjin and their seniors, Bang Chan and Changbin. And there was Jeongin, who was a Ravenclaw. You could list a handful more, but that's beside the point.

"Silence is deadly," he stifled a laugh which had driven you to 'accidentally' stumble over your own feet. This caused him to stumble himself, only he wasn't prepared for it, "I'm blaming you for ending up being my partner. I was hoping someone else would've entered the room. But no, it had to be you."

"You're blaming me? For this?" You shake your head out of disbelief, not noticing that your voice had gone louder. You were catching the attention of those around you and the professors at the front of the room, "You could have found a partner you wanted in the first place but you probably decided to stay back and wait for someone to go up to you. No one wanted to be partners with you, which is why you ended up alone in the first place."

Minho's eyebrows furrowed, eyes almost on fire at what you had just said, "You know what?!"

Before he had been able to continue the banter, Professor Shin had cleared her throat. The glares that they both were sending your way had caused the both of you to stop with the squabbling, "Y/N, Minho, I know we've never talked to the two of you about your constant bickering, but it is simply interrupting the atmosphere of my classroom."

Taken aback, the both of you had stumbled over each other's feet, falling to the ground and causing a domino effect among the rest of the students.

Flustered, you turn to Minho, "That was all your fault, Lee Minho." You huffed and attempted to get up, failing once you noticed that Minho was practically lying on your leg.

"Oh be quiet," he rolled his eyes and dusted himself off, "That was all you! You and your two left feet." The rest of the room was silent, regardless of the incident. All ears and eyes were on the 'love birds,' not entirely sure whether or not they should blame you both on what had just happened.

Sliding out from underneath him, you scoffed, "Don't speak so highly of yourself, Minho."

Minho cackled, "Highly? Of myself?!"

"Stop this instant!" Professor Na had finally mustered up the courage to intervene, anger bubbling in his stomach, "Enough!" The two professors began helping the students up, scolding both of you as they did.

"Five points deducted from your respective houses," Professor Shin said sharply, "And you both are now in charge of polishing the floor every Friday for the following three weeks."

"But professor–"

Minho was cut off, "That, or ten points off for your houses…" And without another word, you both chose to polish the floors after all classes were done for the day.

Day one of polishing the floors was practically the most difficult. Not only did the professors restrict using magic to finish the chore, but the overall idea of doing something alongside Minho aggravated you, which was why you hated dancing with him so much. The comments he'd make, the taunting looks he'd give you, the jokes that were obviously uncalled for, they all were honestly bringing you to the point of near insanity.

At first, both of you had decided to start off on the same side, almost the same corner. But the moment you noticed Minho constantly glancing your way in the corner of your eye, you decided against it, "How about I start at that end."

"Whatever floats your boat," he mumbles, "I don't care."

The tone in his voice hadn't matched yours, which you assumed was polite enough not to spark some type of that energy in him, but it did.

"Whatever," you make your way to the other end, sliding your robe off on the way. You let it hang off one of the benches, making sure it wasn't touching the floor. You rolled up your sleeves and started polishing the further end of the room, a bit relieved that Minho wasn't hovering anywhere within your line of sight. It was better that way.

The second day, you were hoping that you could get through a period of cleaning without hearing Minho's ungodly voice. He had been moving back and forth from one corner to the other, feet squeaking seemingly endlessly against the floor. You wished that the volume of the music could be turned up louder.

"I'm doing more than you are," Minho pointed out. You turned to find that he was standing in the middle of the room, hair messy and beads of sweat lining his hairline. His collar was out of place, and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows just as yours were. Did he, for some reason, look attractive, or was it the lack of light in the room? Probably the latter.

"What do you mean you're doing more than I am?" you feel your eyebrows knit together in confusion, "I'm doing the same amount of work as you." And you were, but you were working just a bit slower than he was. He had probably sped through his area with the idea that the sooner you both finished, the sooner you were able to leave.

"Just hurry up," he groaned. Minho dragged his feet over to a lone stool, pushing it against the wall before plopping into it. The music continued to play, drowning out the shuffle noises of his feet.

"No," you replied, keeping your speed consistent. It wasn't like you wanted to stay longer. It was the fact that Minho couldn't leave until you were finished that was making you act this way. Maybe if he did his job well, he wouldn't be sitting around doing nothing.

Tile by tile, you continued to carry out the chore given to you, not paying mind to the pair of eyes that were burning holes into your back. You ensured that the areas you had worked on were basically spotless, reflection or not, you assumed that shiny meant clean.

Minho had been humming along to the somewhat catchy tune, foot tapping to pass the precious time he believed you were wasting. Nonetheless, he leaned back and sighed, hoping you could finish in time, so he had time to nap before dinner.

"Why do they even need classes for dancing?" He sighed out. At first, you weren't quite sure if he was speaking to you or if he was just thinking out loud, "I feel like we'd be fine either way…" You turn to look at him, seeing that he was already staring at you down.

"I mean it's going to look nice at the Yule Ball,"

You replied.

"Yeah but not everyone's going… it's a waste of time," Minho had a point, yet you still found it somewhat amusing that the school would want to organize such things.

"I don't see why you don't just skip class if you find it a waste of time," you moved onto another spot and sighed, "No one's stopping you."

"Yeah but who'd be your partner then?"

Not knowing how to react to his question, you keep quiet. Minho decided not to follow up on the problem, thinking that he had said something out of the ordinary.

The sun had reached the horizon when you finished your portion of the room. You stood up to stretch, hearing the joints of your knees and back pop out of exhaustion. It was satisfying to see the difference between the used, scruffy floor and the clean, polished floor.

"Okay Lee Minho I'm finished," without taking a glance at the boy, you made your way over to the record player. You lifted the needle off and picked the record up, slipping it into its sleeve. It didn't occur to you that Minho hadn't shifted in the past thirty minutes, silence filling the room because you turned the music off.

"Minho?" Finally turning to him, you found him sleeping with his head sat back against the wall. His mouth was wide open, practically becoming a makeshift trap for bugs that happened to be flying around. The rest of his body was limp, legs spread out beneath him. It was surprising that he hadn't fallen off yet.

You walked up to his sleeping figure and laughed lightly, wishing you had a camera to capture this moment. It would've been great blackmail. Maybe then he'd start being nice to you. Naturally, your eyes followed the slope of his nose, then to the two front teeth that stuck out from underneath his top lip.

He had bunny-like features, and you didn't mean that in a wrong way. His face was still sculpted nonetheless. Anyone with eyes would have to admit that he was attractive.

"Done staring at me yet?"

You screamed and jumped back, pressing your hand up to your chest as if to calm you down. Looking back at Minho, you find that his eyes were still closed, yet a smirk had replaced his gaping mouth. The number of curse words that threatened to leave your mouth was countless, the embarrassment creeping up to your cheeks. He finally lifted his head to look at you, eyes still a bit droopy from his nap.

"I-I wasn't staring at you," you denied, shaking your head a bit too aggressively, "Well I was… but because I was laughing at how foolish you just looked."

An offended look surfaced Minho's face, scowling at you as he stood, "I have this feeling that you're lying, bumblebee… Anyways, this is where I leave. Finally, after years." He shook his rolled-up sleeves so that the cuffs slid back to his wrists. You let him leave without another word from the two of you, still in a bit of shock at what just happened. You knew he was never going to let you forget that.

You slumped next to Felix as dinner was being served, an expression almost as heavy as your posture. He looked down at you, debating whether or not he should interrupt the mini montage you were probably playing through your head.

"I want to ask you how the cleaning today was but I think I already know just by looking at you," he stated, sliding a piece of roasted chicken your way, "Unless you do want to speak about it. Just eat and the day's over."

You gave him a grateful smile and gestured for him to eat too, eyes lighting up slightly, "I'm actually not tired from cleaning that stupid dance room, but it's just… this thing that happened. It was beyond embarrassing."

Felix snorts and stuffs his cheeks with food. His words came out muffled as he still chose to reply with a full mouth, "What happened this time?"

You glanced towards the Slytherin table, eyes scanning it quickly to get one quick look at Minho before you whispered, "Minho fell asleep waiting for me to finish cleaning. He looked idiotic as he did so I sorta just—how do I say this— stared at him? But it wasn't like I was admiring him, it was more like I didn't want that stupid look on his face to go away. It was amusing."

"And?"

"In the middle of that he went, 'are you done staring yet?' It was like he had a sixth sense or something," you muttered, "Now I feel like he's making fun of me."

"Doesn't he always make fun of you," Felix had yet again stuffed his mouth, so his words were still muffled, "Why does it matter this time?"

"It's different. It's not some useless situation… it was genuinely embarrassing," you poke the food before taking a bite of your own, "He's going to it against me, I already know."

"Don't worry, I'm pretty sure he'll forget it sooner than you will."

"Hey remember when I caught you staring at me?" Minho's voice echoed faintly throughout the room. He stood up to stretch before he crouched back down.

"I never stared at you," you sneered, "And why are you talking about that as if it happened years ago. That was literally last week."

"That's long enough in my book," he retorted, "Good times." A small reminiscing type smile appearing on his lips.

"Can you not start? I sorta want today to be stress-free and you're literally ruining it," you roll your eyes and move onto the next tile on your side. Minho had decided to choose a different record to play today, one the professors had never played in class. It had been hidden behind all the other records being used, and it took Minho a good five minutes to rake through all of them just to get to it.

The songs were more upbeat than the waltz music you were forced to listen to, which was actually much more perfect for cleaning to. It made it a bit more bearable than the last two times you had to clean.

Minho didn't reply, though you didn't see how he switched glances between you and the mechanical polisher in hand. The track had shifted into a faster song, something that was easy to dance to. From where he stood, he could see your knitted eyebrows, eyes dropping from the slight fatigue blanketing over you after a long school day.

Upon awareness that his shoulders were slumped, he straightened himself and sighed. This week had indeed been a long week, and it was evident in some way in both of you. This was the last of the week's labour before he could go and relax while mindlessly saving his homework for Sunday.

The music had been tempting to let go earlier than he should for the week, the steady beat and the catchy melody filling the room.

Putting the polisher and the rag down, he took a few steps towards you, still contemplating whether he should do what he was thinking or not. He was unsure whether it was bizarre for him to pull such a thing. But you did say you wanted a stress-free day, so he thought he should switch up a bit.

He started moving his body to the rhythm of the music, head bobbing as it took over him naturally. It was easier dancing alone than with a partner, that's for sure, but he wanted to invite you.

"Y/N!" He was freestyling, arms flailing and legs bringing him across the room with a swift movement.

You sighed, "What now?" Turning to Minho, you find him in the middle of the dance room, doing what the room was made for. He had a foreign smile on his face, not the usual smirk you'd find him sporting.

"What the–"

"Join me!"

You went through several different emotions in seconds, confusion, amusement, joy, contemplation… how were you supposed to react to a goofy Minho?

"Join me!" He repeated. This time he approached you, hands out in invitation, "C'mon it's fun!"

"Minho, we have to finish this so we can leave, remember?" You tried to keep a stern look on your face, yet you couldn't hold back the smile that had been forcing itself out. Minho suited this look; It was happier and carefree. You didn't know that his eyes would light up when he smiled a somewhat gummy smile.

"I know, but let's take a break," being the impatient boy he was, he took hold of your hands and pulled you up. He led you in a dance that probably wasn't considered a partner dance. He just pushed your arms back and forth like those scenes in the movies.

"Minho!" You finally let out a laugh, feet unable to keep up with his. He was sidestepping left, then sidestepping right, then back and forth, all unplanned. You stumbled, letting out joyful laughter that was rare around Minho. He laughed along with you, eyes disappearing the bigger his smile got.

When your legs had gotten worn out from constant movement, you tripped over one of them, sending you and your dance partner to the ground. Instead of erupting anger that would have usually washed over you, fits of laughter fell in its place, echoing throughout the room.

Before you could ask if he was okay, you hear footsteps enter the room, a confused Professor Shin staring the both of you down, "What are you two doing?! This is not polishing the floors!" The exasperation changed the normal hue of her skin into a shade of crimson.

Quickly apologizing, you get up and return to your so-called 'stations,' not being able to say another word about what had just happened to each other.

You wouldn't admit it out loud, not in front of Minho at least… but that was the most fun you've had in weeks.

Little did you know, Minho felt the same way.

v.

There was a part of you who had gotten used to Minho's horrible dancing after two weeks of dancing classes. After what happened last week, there was a tiny sliver of toleration that had surfaced from both of you. It was mutual. But obviously, neither of you were going to admit it.

Though Minho was starting to get somewhat bearable, there were still days when he'd begin to act up, smirk pinned tightly on his lips while he mischievously pranced about in the dance room. Today was one of those days.

When Professor had slipped the record onto the play, dropping the needle onto the very edge and starting it, Minho had chosen to let his body go heavy, relying on you to haul him around like a giant, weighted ragdoll. You knew he wasn't tired, just judging by the look in his eyes.

"Give it up," you tugged him roughly in one direction, then again towards another, feet hardly following the steps the class was taught the past few weeks. If Minho let his body grow just a bit limper than it already was, his head would have fallen directly onto your shoulder. If you were being honest, you didn't want any attention from anyone else in the room, "Lee Minho, I'm not in the mood for this today, okay?"

Minho's ears perked at the foreign tone that had slipped from your lips, sensing that you were being serious. You would tell him to quit it most days, but never with that tone; It was no fun if you weren't fighting back. Sighing quietly, he had picked his body up and started to follow the eight-count that Professor Shin was practically yelling out.

This minor change didn't go unnoticed by you, feeling his body grow lighter just moments after you'd ask him to quit it. Did he just…?

Other students in the room were surprised that you two were going more than thirty seconds without arguing like a married couple. Many sets of eyes didn't bother leaving the both of you, watching what would happen next in the twist of events.

Minho's feet carried his body swiftly; for the first time, he was guiding you like he was supposed to, but his eyes were glued to his feet, not wanting it to become weird if he were to make accidental eye contact with you. He didn't like how quiet it was between the both of you. The music didn't even do its purpose by filling the silence.

"Are you going to the Yule Ball?" Minho asked awkwardly. He twirled you as part of the dance. He recognized that look on your face which was basically a wordless reply, "That was probably a dumb question." Shaking his head, Minho mentally slapped himself. Never in his life did he fail with words.

"Of course I'm going," you replied rather expressionless, "Why would I not?" You were almost as confused as earlier. Minho trying to make a civilized conversation. Who the fuck was this? It wasn't Minho.

He shrugs, "I don't know… I guess you have a date…?" Minho, what the fuck. He squeezed his eyes shut as if the stone floor would swallow him wholly to take him away from this situation.

As puzzled as you were, you still decided to keep the conversation as it was, "Nope… I think I'm just going with Felix for fun." You tried to keep your tone calm when really you were freaking out. The only thing was you had no idea why you were freaking out, "Y-you?" Facepalm.

"No one."

None of you chose to speak after, not knowing where the conversation was going. The song was slowly reaching the end, which you had wished came sooner. Minho's hands were growing sweaty, and you wanted nothing more than to wipe your hand off. It was getting hot in the room too. Your collar was growing tight, throat itching for water.

Minho's heart was beating a bit too fast for his liking, but it was probably because he was growing tired from the moving. He wondered if you could feel how sweaty his hands were getting. Embarrassing.

"Final counts!" Professor Na called out before the static of the record player replaced the music. The two of the professors had clapped in adoration, overlooking all the students in the room.

Professor Shin had a broad smile on her face, "Beautiful! Gorgeous! Best one so far!" She twirled in place, "Thank you everyone! The Yule ball is in two weeks so I am very pleased with the effort you all are putting into this class! Remember we still have the final class in which you are graded, which I'm sure you all will ace."

"I couldn't care less," Minho mumbled, only so you could hear.

You turn to him, squinting your eyes and tilting your head to express your slight frustration, "You know I'm your partner right?"

"Oh no~ really?," he stuffed his hands into his pockets, "And?"

"And? I don't want to fail this class, even though I'm forced to dance with you," you stated, "So don't you fucking dare fail us both." That tone in your voice was evident once again, catching Minho off guard. The only reason that it had this effect on him was that he was so used to you choosing to fight back. It was like some sort of reminder that everyone around him was getting old, and soon all those around him were expected to be serious.

Nevertheless, Minho shrugs to annoy you, "Whatever."

Instead of answering, you eyed him once more. Your dancing just a few moments ago says otherwise.

You had practically sighed out the total capacity of your lungs as you hung onto Felix's arms on the way out the door.

"What are you sighing about?" He chuckled.

"You already know," you elbowed him.

Felix rolled his eyes and sang, "I saw you guys dancing earlier~."

You pushed him away gently, shock littering your face and posture, "What the bloody hell are you on about now, Lee?"

"You guys actually look cute together when you aren't babbling and all," he grinned innocently. Your heart had the audacity to skip a beat, startling you just as much as Felix did.

"Cute?" You scoffed, "First you said you think he liked me, now this? Are you his wingman or something? Are you trying to get me to like him?"

Felix skipped in his step, "I don't even talk to Minho, Y/N, don't be ridiculous… wait… did you basically just say you're starting to like him?" He gasped, hand slapping over his mouth, which had fallen in shock.

"No," you say flatly.

"Liar," Felix poked at your rib, "Liar. At least confess that you find him less bad."

"Sure, whatever makes you happy, Felix."

When you had fallen out of Felix's line of sight, you let the corner of your mouths turn up slightly. He said we looked cute, you think, only followed by you flicking yourself in the temple.

-

"I thought you were staying here until it closed?" you frown at Felix, who started gathering his stuff. You both had planned on cramming everything in for a test the next day, but plans didn't go as planned when Felix was eager to go back to the dormitories to sleep until the morning.

"My eyes are going to fall out of their sockets if I don't go and sleep, Y/N," he pats your head as if he were talking to a young child, "You can stay if you want. I know how much you hate studying in the common room." He double-checks his area to ensure he hadn't forgotten any of his belongings before patting your head once more. He grins and turns towards the door of the library, leaving you sitting alone at the table.

"Felix ~" You called out quietly, only for him to wave with his back facing you. You sighed and slumped back in your chair, resting your arms on the handles. Libraries were so much better when you had company.

The words in the textbook were starting to turn into blobs of ink, and for a second, you were thinking about following in Felix's footsteps. After moments of consideration, you shook your head and sat up. You'll stay, even if it was against the will of your fatigue self that had been prompting you to leave. This was all your fault anyway. Procrastination was a cruel thing.

Hunching forward, you let your eyes trace over the words, trying to process the information. You rewrote the info you wished to remember carelessly. Your notes resembled chicken scratch, but at this point, you didn't care because it was simply supplementary to your studying. The sun was close to its horizon, and the library was close to empty. It was somewhat more motivating.

Slowly the information had started to get more interesting. It was easier to run through the key terms and ideas listed in the textbook, and you could feel the exhaustion simply leaving your body. I'll finish this one last chapter and then save the rest for lunch tomorrow.

Your focus on the book had hindered your peripheral vision that the presence of another wizard floating over your shoulder went unnoticed. It was only until they had sat down next to you when you finally noticed.

You jumped in your seat, eyes growing wide. You had luckily suppressed your scream with your hand, which you had, out of defense, swung forward, slapping the person in the chest.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"You don't sneak up on people like that, Minho," you rolled your eyes at the Slytherin, shifting away from him before turning your attention back towards the textbook. He scooches closer with intentions of irritating you, pushing his face towards your book, "What are you doing?"

You push him away and stick one of the thicker books between you both, "What does it look like?"

"Studying?"

"You're smarter than I thought, Lee Minho," sarcasm dripped from your voice as you glared at him. Attempting to continue with the final chapter, you miserably fail when Minho interrupts your concentration by tapping his fingers loudly against the wooden table.

"Don't you have anything better to do?" you say numbly, voice muffled by your robe, "I was literally just sitting here and you decide to do this."

Minho shrugs and uses his arms as a makeshift pillow, "I was bored, saw you, here I am, I'm here to stay."

Your eyebrows furrowed at the fact that Minho decided to 'spend time with you upon seeing you. You had no idea whether to feel flattered or irritated, but you knew you were confused. He could've just gone back to the Slytherin dungeons to sit with his housemates, but he saw you and decided to sit with you.

Staring blankly at the bookshelves across from you, you huffed out the corner of your mouth, blowing a stray strand of hair by your cheek. You did say you wanted company. You just weren't sure if it was Minho's company that you wanted. Glancing down briefly at him, and looked back up to the bookshelves.

"Fine," you say after pondering about the idea.

Minho's ears perked up, raising his brows, "Fine?"

"Just don't be loud."

Minho's head tilts in confusion, though he still complies, sitting next to you patiently. You continued to read through the final chapter, which you had underestimated in length. The chapter was a good half a centimetre in thickness. Though it didn't seem as much at first glance, the pages were practically dipped in ink, words covering it from one corner to the other.

You could feel your eyes grow heavy as you delve deeper into the chapter. Your bed was calling for you, but there was no way you were going to give. Not until this chapter was finished.

The library had been silent except for the occasional click of the pen from the librarian's desk. You had been mentally counting down the number of pages left to skim over, eager to feel that feeling of satisfaction you usually get once you finish a task. It was the same feeling as crossing or checking off a chore on a to-do list.

Minho had settled his eyes on the centre of your book, keeping them steady even as you flipped the pages. He felt the lids of eyes gradually get heavier as each page went by, and by the time you shut the book in delight, he had fallen asleep.

"Again?" You furrowed your eyebrows, remembering the last time he had fallen asleep in your presence. You darted your eyes away from his dormant figure, not making that same mistake twice, "Minho, wake up."

He stirs right away, head rising from his arms. This time he says nothing, pushing himself off of the library's chair before stumbling over his own feet as he makes his way to your side. He looked like a toddler, and it was admittedly adorable.

"Why didn't you just go straight to the dorms if you were tired," you snorted at his dumbassery. Some students still littered the halls even if curfew was nearing. Instead of parting from your side at the library's entrance, Minho stuck by your side.

"I wanted to spend time with you outside of class," he grumbles. He blinks at the long corridor in front of you two, eyes barely staying open from exhaustion.

Feeling your heart skip a beat, you tried to pick out if he was joking or not, but his tone screamed, 'I'm tired.' Any other emotion was hard to comb out, so you sighed and shook your head, pressing your lips into a smile, "Sleep that cheesiness off, Lee Minho."

Minho continued to walk next to you, silent and confused about what you just had said. It wasn't like he was drunk. He was well aware of what he just said. Nonetheless, he subtly walked you to the kitchen corridor, parting ways with you with an uttered 'goodbye.'

vi.

Sitting against the stone wall, you watched the rest of the class carry out the dance routine, formation changes and all. You ran through it with them, only mentally as your partner was nowhere to be found, and the class was halfway done.

There were barely any classes left before the final graded run through, and Minho really thought it'd be funny to skip? You would have let it pass if you guys weren't the worst duo in the room, but you guys are the worst duo in the room, which made the situation different.

"Professor Na," You asked quietly, "Has Lee Minho been excused from today's class. Is he ill?" You didn't want to jump to conclusions, keeping in mind that people did have their own reasons. Maybe he had caught a cold or was doing a missed exam that was far more important than dancing.

"No word from Minho, Y/N," the professor hummed back.

You frowned and thanked him, turning back to the main dance floor, students moving in sync. Where was he?

Just as you had finished your train of thought, the door had swung open just like it probably did on the first day of class. Minho stumbled in, hair a mess and a rather sheepish smile stamped on his lips.

"I apologize Professors," he bowed deeply, following the perimeter of the room. He bowed again as he reached the two instructors at the front of the room.

Professor Shin stopped her counting, "No need to apologize to us, apologize to your partner." She gestured towards you, already looking back. Minho nodded and approached you, though when he did reach you, he didn't apologize.

"And?"

"And what?" Minho ridiculed.

"Aren't you going to apologize like what the Professor asked?" You tried not to laugh at how Minho had been acting.

Minho let out a cackle, “No? Why should I? Can you stand up so we can start dancing or something?" His hand was itching to reach out for yours, feeling like he should pull you towards him, but he hindered himself from doing so, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

Instead of pushing the apology out of him, you decided against it, not wanting to waste any of your time, "Why are you even late?"

The two of you followed the crowd, joining in at the perfect time. Minho smirked, "Worried about me or something? I know I'm in your head twenty-four seven, but I didn't expect you to be so obvious about it."

Tightening your grip around his hand, you gritted your teeth, "I wasn't worried about you, nitwit."

"Then why are you asking?"

"Because you made me sit, doing nothing for nearly forty-five minutes?" You reply as if you were pointing out the obvious, "So why are you late and coming to class looking like a mountain troll?"

"Wow, ouch," he sighed, "I slept in. Am I going to hell for doing so? Because I can recall you did the same the first day and got us into this mess."

"This is about you, not me," you applied pressure onto his hands, causing him to stumble back slightly, ruining the rhythm he had built up. He furrowed his brows at you and did the same, only you were somehow ready for it.

"Oh please," Minho rolls his eyes, "You've done the same so you shouldn't even be mad at me."

"I'm only frustrated, not mad, there's a difference," you point out, "And I'm frustrated because we have that graded dance next week. If we fail, it's going to be your fault."

"It takes two to tango," he quoted, "And you already know where I stand on that. I don't ca-"

"Shut up, the professors are looking," you warned, flashbacks to the three weeks you had to polish the floors.

Minho laughed slightly, letting air blow out of his nose. He let his eyes drift down at you, keeping them there for a little too long.

"What?"

"Nothing," he shrugged, spinning you along with the other students, "You just looked way too terrified." The next move had the two of you closer than the initial space between you.

"I don't want to be spending an extra three hours with you after classes polishing the floor," you retort sharply. Instead of holding eye contact with him, you stared at the Slytherin crest on his uniform.

"I know you liked spending time with me, don't lie," he rolled his eyes teasingly.

"I'm not lying."

"You staring at me says otherwise."

"Oh hush about that already, I literally told you that I wasn't staring at you," Inwardly cringing, you felt relief once the music had stopped. You stepped back and eyed down the boy in front of you, "Why do keep bringing that up?"

Before Minho could give reasoning, Professor Na had spoken up from across the room, reminding everyone that the next class was the graded class. Though they wouldn't be strict with grading, he still wanted to see the students' effort 'flowing'. After a chorus of groans, class ended, allowing you to avoid Minho and find your way to Felix.

-

Someone tapping your shoulder had woken you up, head jolting up as if you were frightened.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," Chaeryeong gasped sheepishly. She was hovering over you slightly, eyes wide. She was changed into her nightwear.

You sat up, only now realizing you had fallen asleep in the common room, "It's alright. What time is it?" You didn't even remember how you fell asleep, but you sure did have a good sleep.

"It's almost midnight," she replied, "I needed to grab water from the kitchen, then I saw you here and figured it'd be more comfortable for you to go to sleep in your own bed rather than this tiny couch."

You grinned, "Thanks Chae… I'll probably get something from the kitchen as well."

She nods and mumbles out a quick goodnight before disappearing to the girls' dorms. You return her farewell before standing up, eyes drawn to the wrinkles your nap had made on your robe. Attempting to straighten the robe and yourself out, you stumbled towards the Hufflepuff house entrance, exiting promptly.

The fireplace had been lit, a few house elves roaming about and carrying out their own duties. They paid no mind to you, as midnight snacks weren't out of the ordinary for Hufflepuffs.

You asked for what you needed, then was given it with no delay, "Thank you." The house elf nods before turning away with a grunt.

You sit at one of the tables, zoning out as you stared at the blazing fire across from you. School was getting a bit more stressful than it usually has, which was probably the reason why you had fallen asleep without knowing. You remember coming back from a long library visit. Maybe you collapsed on the couch once you did.

You made mental notes on the work still yet to be done before the following week, spontaneously creating a headache. Standing up, you figured it was best for you to go back to sleep. Slipping the dish into the sink, you started making your way back to the dorms.

You rubbed your temples and shook your head as you closed your eyes. It probably hadn't been a good idea to be wandering with your eyes closed as you had immediately bumped into something firm.

"Y/N?"

Looking up, you came face to face with Lee Minho, who was just as shocked as you were. He had been dressed down in a knitted Slytherin sweater and pyjama pants.

"Minho? What in the world?"

He backs up after noticing how close you were to each other, "Could say the same 'bout you."

"My dorms are right there," you point just down the corridor, "While yours is in the dungeon…"

Minho blinks before he tries to move around you, eyes avoiding yours.

"What are you doing here?" you grab his wrist, eager to find out why he was roaming the halls. It wasn't unusual for students to be breaking the rules, especially Minho, who loved living up to the stereotypes of a Slytherin. He smirks at the skinship, which prompts you to let go of him, heat rising up to your cheeks without warning. You're suddenly glad it's dim around the two of you.

"I was… taking a walk," he successfully pushes past you and into the kitchen, a glass of water already there for him. He thanks the house elf, leaving the glass, before turning back to you. By the looks of it, it seems like he's been doing this before, like a routine.

Rolling your eyes, you scoffed, "Taking a walk? You're painfully awful at lying." And the pause in his speaking gave that away. You followed behind him, expecting an honest answer as if you deserved to know.

"Weren't you just leaving?"

"But my question is unanswered," you shrugged.

"I answered you, I was taking a walk," he pushed the answer. Putting the cup down, he turned to you, "I have… sleeping problems."

"You just lied again," you nonchalantly, "Just tell me the truth. No judgment. A Hufflepuff's promise." You weren't usually one to push an answer out of someone, but this situation was different.

"You say no judgment but I already know how you're going to react to the truth," he takes another sip of water.

"So you were lying!" You raised your brows, "I knew it!"

"You don't deserve the truth," he sighs. Finishing the cup of water, he starts to make his way out, not even turning to look back.

"Lee Minho!" You groaned. Maybe it was your fatigue self or the fact this felt like some sort of game, but you weren't holding yourself back, "When I said I wouldn't judge, I won't. My mind's open to whatever you're going to say."

Minho spins around to face you, stumbling backward a few more steps before he halts, "I was practicing the dance steps."

No judgment.

The flat expression on Minho's face indicated that he had no intentions of lying this time. He had his hands hiding behind his back, eyeing you just to see if you would live up to your promise. Instead of his expected reaction, he finds you smiling, something he'd only see when you were around your friends.

"Wipe that smile off of your face, bumblebee," he mutters.

"Didn't you say you didn't care about that class?" you quoted, a smirk slowly replacing your smile, "Why are you practicing the steps?"

Minho licked his lips. He was at a loss of words, nothing but the truth occupying his mind… Why the hell not?

"Because you care."

You blinked back at him, lips parting and meeting several times as you tried to find the right words to say. The silence was deafening. "What?"

"Because you care," Minho repeated. He kept his expression still, eyeing you, trying to figure out how you were taking this in.

How would he further explain it? He didn't know. All he knew was that ever since that specific moment between the both of you the other day, he took it upon himself to better his partner dancing. He didn't want anyone else knowing, not you, and especially not his housemates, which was why he chose to stay up late to do this; it was the real reason why he had shown up late to class.

You weren't sure if it was because it was quiet, but you could easily hear your heartbeat as it quickened. You try to cover up the fact that you wanted to freak out, "I don't know whether I should laugh or–"

"Yeah, whatever, shouldn't have told you in the first place," he mumbles. For some reason, he felt his heart lub-dub in a way that it shouldn't. He frowned and sighed, "Just forget it."

"Wait, Minho," you call quietly. He stopped in his tracks and turned, partially facing the wall and facing you. He stared back at you with a vacant look, waiting for you to say something. If you weren't going to be saying something nice, he didn't want to hear it after exposing himself like that.

"'Because you care?'" you frowned, "You can't just say that and leave." You already made up a possible answer to the countless questions through your mind, but it was still unclear whether or not that was it.

"What else do you want me to say?" Minho stuffs his hands into his pockets.

"I just want you to explain it," you reply quietly.

Minho glanced out the window sitting by you both before sitting down on its pane, "Remember that other day… when I told you I didn't care?" You nod and move closer to where he sat, unsure whether or not you should sit next to him or not, "I don't know… you were really serious back then… I guess I wasn't used to that. So I figured…"

There was a quick moment of silence before he huffs, almost sounding defeated.

"Did you know that I genuinely don't dislike you as much as you think I do?" He says out of the blue, throwing you off. You wanted to tell him to sleep it off again—why did moments like this always happen at night?

"I don't either," you say back, "At first I did… but I matured."

"I only ever argued with you out of amusement. You're the only person outside of Slytherin that could out-talk me and it bothered me for some reason," he laughed as if he recalled a memory.

"Me intimidating a Slytherin? Just wait til the others hear about this," you joke. He glanced towards your direction and saw a clever glint in your eye.

"Don't you dare," he holds back a smile before standing up to face you directly, "Or…"

"Or what?" You challenged, "Imagine how Seungmin would react! Donghyuck and Renjun? What about Yeosang and Wooyoung?" You start listing the other well-known Slytherins off of the top of your head, holding back a laugh as you watch Minho's face crumble into an expression that looks far too close to fear.

Minho recollects himself and shakes some sense into himself, "Or I'll make you go to the Yule Ball with me." He hadn't planned on asking you today, but the timing was perfect. It fit with the situation. If you were to react unfavourably, then he could just joke about it.

His question shut you up. Your eyes widened at him as you processed what he had used as a threat, "What if I want to go to the Yule Ball with you?"

Minho takes a step towards you, a smirk appearing on his lips. His confidence was skyrocketing, and you can tell, "Then I guess it's a date?"

Rolling your eyes, you let a smile grace softly onto your lips, nodding, "It's a date."

Bonus:

"I told you to wear something with gold," you whined jokingly as you were greeted with Minho, who had completely dodged your request. Instead of the black and gold look you were going for, he decided to wear a black suit that had traces of emerald. As much you wanted to match with your date, you had to admit that he still looked as handsome as ever in the attire. He looked like a prince.

"And look like a Hufflepuff? No thanks," he scoffed teasingly. He pulls out a corsage, one that matches the clothes he wore, tying it gently around your wrist, "You look very beautiful."

"Well, you look very handsome."

Minho laughed as he sticks out his forearm, a brow raised in your direction. Music being played by the live band had been spilling out of the ballroom; the voices of everyone attending gave the ball more life. It was exciting.

"Minho!" Seungmin had called. Felix, who had slipped from your side the moment Minho approached you, was standing by Seungmin, smiling brightly. He had been hyping you up the entire night, telling you that there should be nothing to worry about.

He was right.

"Shall we?" Minho asked. It was cheesy, but it worked.

"We shall."

Hope you enjoyed it! A like would be appreciated <3

[shortprince-cos]

Patton Angst Fic Because I Can't Stop

Summary: Patton decides to run...a little experiment.

Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort.

Ship: Platonic or Romantic LAMP, your choice.

Warnings: Suicidal thoughts, exhaustion, crying, not eating, breaking down a door, loneliness. Tell me if I need to add anything else!

~~~~~

Patton was tired.

That was more of an understatement. He woke up at 6:00 every morning to make breakfast for all of the sides. Most of them ate a little differently, so it required a lot of work to get all of the meals perfect.

Everyone took their meals back to their rooms to eat. An occasional thanks was given, but most meals were lonely, with only Patton eating at the dinner table.

Patton didn't mind.

After eating breakfast, Patton would clean the house. He did this every day. He probably didn't need to clean the whole house every day, but he wanted to. He wanted it to be perfect.

He would take a 'break' at noon, just in time for lunch. Making all the sides different lunches every day took a lot of work, but it was worth his family being happy.

...They never thanked him. Or sat with him during lunch.

But they appreciated him! They just didn't show it very often!

Patton didn't mind.

Believe it or not, Patton did take breaks. He went to check on everyone during the day, just wondering if they needed anything. Sometimes they would ask for water, or some kind of help, but more often than not, they dismissed Patton, saying they were 'too busy for distractions'.

Patton didn't mind.

He returned to cleaning after lunch. That usually lasted until 5:00. Patton would spend at least an hour working on the perfect dinner, one that everyone would enjoy! Dinner was usually the time when the whole family could get together and just talk about their day, or whatever they wanted really! It was when everyone was done with their work, and they could just spend time together!

...More recently, no one even came to get food. Patton wasted an hour making perfect meals, only to eat a fraction, and have to throw the rest away when it goes bad.

Patton...did mind. But he always acted like he didn't.

Patton stressed cleaned and cooked every day. No one knew that it was because of stress, but they never talked to him anyway, so it wasn't their fault.

Sometimes things got too overwhelming. The amount of work he had to do for Thomas, even though it was very little, it weighed heavily on him. Trying to fix everyone else's problems, but ignoring his own.

It was better to ignore those problems anyway, it's not like he had anyone to help him with them. Not like he helped the others.

Constantly worrying about the right decisions. Not just his decisions, everyone else's too. All of these things were torture, but they were worth it.

Were they worth it? No one thanked him. They barely even talked to him. It almost seemed like they were ignoring him after the last video. They only talked if they needed something, or they were in a video. Movie nights were long forgotten, the last one probably before the courtroom. After that, everyone was on edge, and started spending more time alone.

Patton lay in his bed, thinking about all of this. He rarely even fell asleep in his bed, most of his sleep was on the couch, when he couldn't keep his eyes open at 3:00 in the morning. He only went to his bed if he needed to think, and boy was he thinking.

'Was any of this worth it? They must acknowledge some of the things I do. Right?'

Patton was finally breaking down from the pressure. Actually realizing what was happening to his family- to him.

'Maybe I should test it. If they notice, I'll come right back, no harm done. If they don't notice...maybe I wouldn't be in the way anymore.'

Patton decided to run an experiment. He would stay in his room until someone noticed he wasn't there. He was sick and tired of being left alone, so he'll finally see if they actually cared or not.

Hopefully they would notice immediately. If they didn't notice in the first week...Patton wasn't sure if he would be around for the second.

---

Logan woke up at 8:00am precisely, as he always does. He quickly got up, showered, got dressed, brushed his teeth and hair, and tied his tie before going downstairs.

Logan didn't see any breakfast today, or any Patton for that matter. It was...odd, but Logan didn't think too much of it.

'He must have taken a day off. Usually he would tell us, but he must have forgotten.' Logan thought. Oh well, that meant Logan wouldn't have many distractions today.

Logan started brewing some coffee. Should he have breakfast? Of course it's 'The most important meal of the day!' as Patton would say. Was Logan going to have it? No. He usually wasn't hungry in the morning anyway, and he only ate it for Patton.

"Coffee instead of Crofter's? Who are you, and what have you done with Logan?" Logan turned to see Virgil coming down the stairs in his pajamas with his hoodie on top. His sarcastic joke making Logan chuckle a bit.

"Well, Patton left me with an option today." Logan explained while pouring his coffee into a mug that said '#1 Teacher!'.

"Patton isn't making us eat breakfast today? We can have whatever?" Virgil's face widened with a bit of surprise, but he looked more excited than anything.

"It seems he has taken a day off. Coffee?" Logan offered Virgil his mug, Virgil quickly accepted and drank it black.

"Patton took a day off? I'm shocked. Like, actually shocked. That never happens."

"I am 'shook' as well."

"Never say that again."

"Did I say it wrong? Is that not the meaning?"

"No, it was right, but it was super embarrassing and cringy. I have no idea why we taught you these things, it was obviously a mistake."

---

Logan's day went by normally- well almost. Patton never knocked on his door, and Logan never heard the vacuum running. He...missed it? He had no idea if that statement was correct, but he knew that working was a little harder without the white noise of the vacuum running from downstairs.

Why Patton vacuumed the entire house every day was a mystery to Logan. He certainly didn't need to. But the noise in the background was always comforting for some reason.

Logan didn't take any breaks today. He forgot to eat lunch, and by the time he was done with his work, it was 9:48pm. Oops. Guess he should probably eat something.

Logan made his way downstairs, surprised when Patton wasn't there. Logan also didn't understand why Patton slept on the couch most of the time, but whatever figuratively floats his boat, Logan supposed. It was odd not seeing him all day though.

Logan only ate Crofter's on some toast for dinner before going back upstairs at 10:13pm to go to bed.

He got to his bedroom door and hesitated. He glanced to Patton's door, debating something in his mind.

'Should I see if he's alright?' Logan thought. 'No, I'm just overreacting. All he did was take a day off, there's no need to worry.'

No need to worry.

---

It was two days later, and Virgil was worrying a bit. He hadn't seen Patton for awhile, and while he was happy he wasn't being helicopter-parented, he couldn't help but wonder where he was.

Despite being upset with him for accepting Jan-Deceit, Virgil wanted to just break into his room and find out what was happening, but as always, his anxiety stopped him.

"Logan?" He decided to ask Logan if he was being irrational or not.

"Yes Virgil?" Logan responded, not looking up from his book or moving from his spot on the couch.

"It may be just me, but, I'm worried about Patton." That got Logan's attention.

"Well, it certainly isn't just you. I have to admit I am a bit troubled for him as well. However, it has only been three days, I don't think we should jump to any conclusions. Besides, if Patton wanted to see us, he would. He might just want some time alone right now, especially after the last video we did." Logan explained. This calmed Virgil down a bit.

"Right." Virgil cringed, remembering the events of the episode he missed. "Ok, thanks Logan."

"No problem, Virgil." Logan smiled at Virgil before returning to his book.

Virgil sighed and plopped down next to Logan on the couch. He didn't really want to go back to his anxiety-inducing room after he just calmed down.

The two sat in silence the rest of the day.

---

Roman had just gotten back from his adventure in the imagination. He had been gone since...the video, but now he was ready to face everyone again! Saving an imaginary town full of imaginary people sure does boost your confidence!

But it was time to actually confront his problems. Like Patton and De-Janus. It still felt weird to say his actual name.

Roman emerged from his room for the first time in at least a week. The halls were empty. That's not normal. But were any of them 'normal' after the newest video? Not really.

Roman cautiously made his way down the steps to find Logan sitting at the table, and Virgil sitting on top of the couch.

They both kind of looked awful. Logan had bags under his unconcentrated eyes, his mind clearly wandering from his book while he fidgeted with his necktie.

Virgil...looked like Virgil, except he looked really tense and his brows were furrowed with worry.

"Well, I'd certainly hoped for a more enthusiastic response to my late arrival." Roman called attention to himself at the bottom of the stairs.

"Roman!" Virgil immediately shot up from the couch and ran over to hug Roman, which was...strange.

"Roman, where have you been?! You've been gone for three weeks!" Logan scolded while walking over to Virgil and Roman.

"Jeez, L. I just got back and I'm already getting yelled at?" Roman complained. "Wait, three weeks? No, that- that can't be right. I've only been gone a couple days."

"Well, clearly your calculations are wrong."

Virgil suddenly pulled away from Roman, choosing to shove him instead.

"Hey- what-?!"

"Do you have any idea how worried I was about you and Patton?! You've been gone for so long, I thought something had happened, but Logan told me not to worry, but then I started worrying more because what if we should have been worried and something did happen to you and we didn't know because we weren't worr-"

"Virgil!" Roman grabbed Virgil's shoulders to get his attention. "Calm down time, I'm fine. But, why are you worried about Patton? Where is he?"

"We assume he's in his room, but we haven't seen him for about seven days, three hours, fifteen minutes, and thirty-three seconds." Logan explained casually.

"And you haven't checked on him, why?"

"Logan says he's probably just taken the week off, or something..." Virgil quietly mumbled.

"Ok...that is very weird though. I mean, has Patton ever taken time off? Like, since we've known him?" Roman questioned Logan.

"Well, no. But I suspect Deceit has told him that he should take some time off, given the point of the last episode." Logan explained while Roman cringed at the thought of the last time he saw Patton.

Virgil groaned as well.

"Something wrong, Roman? Virgil?"

"Nothing..." The two quietly moaned in unison.

"Very well, if you two are so bothered by Patton's absence, I suppose we could go check on him." Logan offered while gesturing upstairs.

"Logan, you've been fidgeting with your tie throughout this entire conversation, and you expect us to believe you aren't worried?" Virgil accused while Logan very clearly stopped toying with his necktie.

Logan cleared his throat, his face turning slightly pinker. "Well- uh- lets just go."

And so the three of them journeyed up to Patton's light blue door, hoping to find their friend perfectly fine.

"Should we knock?" Virgil asked.

"Yes, if he doesn't respond, then we'll go in." Logan said in his 'I don't have feelings, but I'll comfort you anyway' voice.

Roman knocked three times and awaited an answer.

Nothing.

Roman knocked louder this time.

Nothing.

"Patton?" Roman tried opening the door, but alas, it's locked.

"Should we-" Virgil started before Roman kicked the door in surprisingly fast.

"ROMAN, YOU SHOULD HAVE WARNED ME FIRST!" Virgil exclaimed before looking into Patton's room.

"Empty." Logan stated the obvious.

Everyone slowly walked into the lifeless room.

"Wait." Virgil said quietly.

Well, almost lifeless.

Virgil slowly walked over to Patton's bed, which now everyone could see had a small figure hiding under the covers.

"Patton?" Virgil whispers as he kneels down next to the bed.

Suddenly a little Patton face comes out from under the comforter. "Yeah?" He asks in a small, meek voice.

"We were worried about you, are you alright?" Logan questioned as he walked over to where Patton was on the bed.

"Oh, so now you're worried." Patton replied with an attitude that he never had before.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Virgil tried his best to not let anger seep through his voice.

"Nothing, apparently." Patton buried himself in the blanket again, leaving the other sides confused.

"Yikes, he really has been spending too much time with Janus." Roman stated, which made something in Patton snap.

Patton immediately pulled the covers off and sat up angrily. "No! No, I haven't, because he's afraid you guys will hate him even more if he talks to me! And none of you guys ever come out of your rooms anymore because you're all mad at me! No one ever even acknowledges me anymore! I'm just so-so a-alone!" At this point Patton had hot tears rolling down his face while he gasped for more air.

"I-I know you guys need t-time, but...I can't do it anymore, I just c-can't."

"P-Patton-" Virgil started before Patton started laughing- wait, laughing?

"Its funny, right? How-how I can take all the time in the world to work through my issues, but the moment you guys need time..." Patton slumped in exhaustion. "God, I'm so selfish. I can't even last two weeks without you guys."

"Maybe, but we shouldn't have ignored you. We should have talked about it instead of ignoring it." Virgil said. "Instead of ignoring you."

"N-No. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm j-just overreacting, is all." Patton wiped away his tears even though new ones kept forming. "I-I'm fine."

"You're clearly not fine, Patton." Logan put his hands on Patton's. "You've apparently been sulking in your room all week. When did you even intend on coming out?"

"But Logan," Patton's face lit up. Oh no. "We came out years ago!"

Three different groans rang out in the bedroom.

"Patton, you know very well what I meant." Patton's face fell quicker than it rose.

"I-I know...Roman, when did you get back?"

Roman's face got a little happier. "Just today-"

"Patton." Logan interrupted, squeezing Patton's hand a little more. "You didn't answer my question."

Patton looked between the three of them before looking towards the floor and mumbling something indecipherable.

"Uh- what was that, Pat?" Virgil asked cautiously.

Patton quickly looked back up to meet Virgil's eyes. "I wasn't going to!" He exclaimed.

Everyone's faces were quickly filled with shock and disbelief.

Roman moved to sit next to Patton as well. "W-What? You were just going to stay in your room forever?" Patton only shook his head. "Then, what-?"

"No." Virgil suddenly interrupted, the shock never leaving his face. "Patton, tell me you weren't going to-" Virgil raised his hand to cover his mouth.

"Spit it out, Virge!" Roman exclaimed.

"It seems Patton was going to d-" Logan stopped in disbelief. "excuse me- duck out. R-Right?"

Roman gasped. "Patton, that's not true is it? It can't be true."

Patton started sobbing. Well, there was his answer.

Virgil shot up from where he was kneeling and quickly pounced on Patton, giving him a giant hug that was probably long overdue.

Logan and Roman looked at each other before joining the hug pile too.

Eventually they had to stop, considering Patton had to breathe sometime, so they all climbed off of each other.

Patton still had a few tears streaming down his face. "I'm-I'm sor-"

"Don't you dare apologize for feeling like that. Just don't." Virgil scolded quickly.

"Well, then you guys can't apologize either!" Patton claimed.

"Yes we can!" All three said in unison, which made Patton giggle a bit.

"Well, that's not fair." Patton complained with a small smile on his face.

"Alright, alright." Logan attracted everyone's attention. "Now that we have that sorted, maybe we should relax and try to de-stress for awhile, hm?"

"Sounds super!" Roman exclaimed before picking up a giggling Patton in a bridal style hold.

As Logan and Virgil exited the room, Roman leaned down and whispered to Patton.

"I'm sorry about the video. I shouldn't have overreacted like that. I know you're trying your best."

"Well, I'm sorry too-"

"Ah bupbupbup!" Roman booped Patton's nose playfully. "I thought we said you couldn't apologize anymore today!"

Patton only giggled more in response.

Soon enough all four of them were on the couch watching an array of Disney movies, the earlier events drifting from their minds.

~~~~~

Y'all wanted a stupid title, so there ya go! This fic was super self indulgent, so that's why it is the way it is.

If you ever feel alone or like life isn't worth it anymore, I highly suggest getting some help from a professional. Please don't shut yourself in away from people who care about you, because that will only make things worse. Remember, if you're gone, there's always someone who will miss you, even if it doesn't feel like there is.

General Taglist: @decadentscissorsapricotdeputy @resident-trash-goblin @thefingergunsgirl @theantisocialghost @foreverfangirlalways @emo--nightmaree @moxy--sanders101 @quinnthequeer @gattonero17 @trashno0dle @tranquil-space-ninja @wellhellothere09 @lugooble @sander-crossing @disney-princess-patton @obsessedalli @hi-its-tutty Ask if you would like to be added or removed!

Reblogs are appreciated! 💖

[zestyquetzalcoatl]

Luck is petty.

Like everything else about his luck, Gladstone hates this and loves it in equal turns, often both at once.

It’s pettiness means he always knows that people’s minds are their own (or at least not influenced by him). Once someone has decided he is insufferable and deserving of only a kick in the pants, it cannot make them give him things or put up with him anyway (ignoring the odd encounters he’s had with a chicken in a bright pink cape.*1 He’s pretty certain something entirely different then luck was at play there, though he has no idea what), which is why he mostly gets given free stuff by strangers instead of people who have met him before. It can influence the physical world, and that alone.

He loves this about it because it means he can exert some level of control over it, want and hate and whittle down its options until it’s forced to give him what he actually wants. He loves it because he is terrified of what it could do if it wasn’t petty. How far it could go, how much it could effect, how badly it would twist the world around it, while he would have no control or hope of containing it.

He hates it because petty luck is petty. It cares about riches, wining bets, getting free things, and curtailing talent and hard work. It can’t (and doesn’t) win him friends or happiness or love. It protects his physical health but doesn’t give a damn about his mental, content to let him be abused and taken advantage of (especially if that gives it another chance to win a prize), so long as he isn’t hungry, isn’t homeless, and isn’t injured. (Liu Hai’s was not the first gilded cage he’d been trapped in, just one that was unusually hard to escape.)

Luck is petty but Gladstone is not.

Sometimes (when the chips are down and the stakes are high) this means that his luck has to play by Gladstone’s rules.

———————————————O0—0—0O————————————————

Gladstone had run into Fethry by complete chance earlier in the day, and he’d spent the last several hours cheerfully walking and chatting with his red-hatted cousin as they meandered their way across town. Gladstone’s luck had been in full effect as they walked, guiding their route via construction sites that had blocked roads, flying $20 bills and interesting butterflies that tempted them down back alleys and side streets, and a very memorable dumpster that gave Gladstone a bad jump scare by falling over and releasing about twenty cats into the general area. The path they’d taken had been dictated largely by whatever looked like the least hassle, and had eventually ended up with them down by the docks, getting lost amongst the warehouses and shipping containers of the many trading companies that had operations in Duckburg Harbor.

Gladstone didn’t mind being utterly lost, he never had. His luck meant they’d get where they ought to go without being late, so he was content to simply wander at random while he enjoyed his cousin’s enthusiastic rambling.

Popping out of a particularly out-of-the-way alley, he realized that he and Fethry had ended up at the main road, less then twenty yards from the beginning of the pier. What was more, he could see Donald’s car.

It was pulled just off of the asphalt and onto the concrete, and parked behind a pile of boxes large enough that it likely couldn’t be spotted from anywhere except the small alley they’d just exited. The 313 was old, and in even worse repair then normal, with one of its mirrors duct taped on, and a couple of its fender skirts boasting decently sized dents. Slumped in the driver’s seat was Donald, with blood on his beak.

For a moment Gladstone felt like he had been plunged underwater.

He had seen his unlucky cousin injured before, many times even. Donald, Della, and Scrooge were always finding a way to get themselves into life-or-death danger, and even when they weren’t trouble managed to find Donald anyway. He’d seen his cousin thrown through walls, struck by lightning, almost crushed by falling boulders, and passed out in all sorts of places weirder then his own oddly parked car. But for all that, he’s rarely, if ever, seen his cousin bleed, so he thinks it’s probably the blood that makes everything about his just scream wrong.

The underwater-feeling, the feeling of wrongness, is intense, blurring the edges of the world and muffling all sound. He can just barely hear himself shout through the veil of unreality that, for one long moment, seems to drown him.

“Donald?!”

Beside him Fethry stops talking, then the underwater-feeling shatters to make way for the electrocuting feeling of ice-cold terror, and the next moment he and Fethry are both sprinting for the car.

Donald wakes up when they reach the car, both of them somewhat crashing into it in their panic. The more important thing, is that there are bloody petals in Donald’s lap. Gladstone suddenly feels like there’s something caught in his own throat that he has to force words out past, because he knows what bloody petals mean, but no no No NO—

“Donald, Donald what, w-who—“

Any doubt is swept away when Donald goes to respond and starts choking instead, coughing up not just bloody petals but entire flower heads. Red, Blue, Green, Pink, Gold, and White, all different shapes and kinds. Gladstone feels like every emotion he has has been flicked on at once, a white-hot intensity that burns through him just waiting to explode outward. The world around him is in crystalline clarity, all his senses turned up to eleven and recording in overwhelming detail, and he’s feeling everything at once. He knows what hanahaki is but he doesn’t know his flowers, can’t decipher what’s before him. Can’t know and can’t guess and can’t let Donald die.

Donald finishes hacking up a morbid bouquet and starts trying to tell him and Fethry, voice garbled even worse then normal, about having several hours left and wanting to be next to the ocean. Fethry is listening to Donald. Gladstone is doing anything but.

He hasn’t been Cloverleaf in years, and it’s been just as long since he actively controlled his luck. Focusing in the draining way it takes to Curse or Bless is not something he does outside of the mask, instead just letting Gladstone Gander be blown wherever his luck wishes to take him.

But by god he does it now, pouring everything he can into Blessing Donald more intensely then he’s ever done before, wanting and pushing, making bets against himself with devastating consequences if Donald dies. Deciding, with no hesitation or room for chance, what he’ll do —do to himself— if this goes wrong. Gladstone will never be okay again if Donald dies, making his luck agree is just a matter of making sure it knows that he means physically too.

He stifles and kills the urge to Curse whoever hurt his cousin, because that won’t help Donald now. But eyes are burning red with roiling anger, fear and worry adding fuel to the fire, the temper he shares with Donald on the few occasions he’s well and truly ticked on full display. And he will not release his death grip on his cousin’s arm.

And Gladstone doesn’t know it, but Paperinik has seen Cloverleaf Curse and Bless before, and can very much recognize the light static electricity jumping between his cousin’s feathers and the look of vicious concentration on his cousin’s face, even if he wasn’t expecting it at all.

Several miles across town in McDuck Mansion, six people discover they abruptly need Donald for something all at once. The worry that begins to break out when they can’t find him anywhere bubbles over into full blown panic as one of them trips into a trashcan, and a bunch of bloody petals are flung out as it goes flying.

———————————————O0—0—0O————————————————

Well! That wasn’t how I was expecting to loose my day. @bamboozledeagle this is your fault, I woke up to your Hanahaki post sitting at the top of my Tumblr dash, and spent the whole rest of the day writing it on-and-off. Then when I went to post it the WiFi crashed :/ so I had to wait a day.

This is completely unedited, so sorry about any glaring mistakes. I probably change style several times and I think I even changed tense once on accident. Oops. Also sorry about the formatting, I wrote it on notepad and then just copy-pasted to here, and only bothered fixing the italics.

The Gladstone/Cloverleaf on display here is my own version that I started playing around with after reading this post by @adamarinayu: https://adamarinayu.tumblr.com/post/176467180262/hey-yall asking for a competent version of Cloverleaf, but haven’t actually written anything with prior to this.

Blessing and Cursing is just what he calls manipulating his luck to make good things or bad things happen to other people. It also has the added bonus of helping protect his identity by making Cloverleaf seem magical instead of lucky.

Oh and Bam, the chicken in a pink cape line is also your fault by the way: *1 https://bamboozledeagle.tumblr.com/post/617956657118511104/i-love-how-in-your-and-other-peoples-aus

Sorry if the links don’t work on mobile.

[d-is-humming]

Who you’re goin’ to call sweetheart this evening

It’s one of many nights at the speakeasy. The room is full of people drinking at the tables and listening to the singer and the pianist on the stage. Nicky Valentino is sitting in his special booth separated from the other people, a million dollar smile on his face while he fondly watches his companion sit beside him.

They are beautiful and in love while you are standing at the opposite side of the room, smiling softly on the stage at the end of the last song you performed, a sweet cheerful love ballad for young lovers like them. The pianist nods at you, letting you the time to drink something and allowing himself to fire another cigarette, and then he starts playing again. You hear the first notes and already know what you’re going to sing. Oh, that one seems written for you. You take a plastic pose, one side raised, arms bent and hands held high, and start with a long held note

Who

You lower your eyes and lightly tilt the head

You’re goin’ to call sweetheart this evening?

You look at the customers sitting around the stage and give them a soft smile

Who you’re goin’ to kiss goodnight?

As drunk as those people might be, that song always get their eyes and ears to you – or maybe is the way you sing it, you don’t really care. You turn your head and close your eyes, putting a hand on your chest

It’s not me, not my eyes The one thing that makes you smile

As drunk as they might be, they all always turn to you. All of them. Just one person in the room isn’t listening, he probably doesn’t even hear you, too enchanted by the pair of eyes of the one sitting in front of him. He’s not listening, he stopped doin’ it some time after you got the job

It’s not me, not my mouth

You watch the crowd again, still with a sweet suffering smile, avoiding one precise spot of the room

The one you’re goin’ to kiss tonight

You bring a hand to your face, theatrically, repeating again the verses of the song, with growing bitterness in your voice. You should have known better than getting a crush on him, but happy endings happen in films and when you stepped in it – because you stepped in without a doubt that it would have been your film – you thought that he was the one.

If you knew What would you knew?

You start the last part of the song, glancing at his private booth. He gave you a job when you had nothing but the clothes on your back. He was nicer to you then a lot of people you had known for longer. He was a kind man while you, on the other hand, were in love.

If you knew Well I wouldn’t be anyway The one you’re kissing tonight

You avert your eyes from the couple in the booth and lean on the back of the piano, striking a dramatic pose for the last verse. This time Murray was wrong, it’s not your role the main one, the lovebird, the place in the protagonist couple.

It’s not my role the loved one, so Who

You manage to laugh a heartbroken laugh while you end the song as it started

Who you’re goin’ to call sweetheart tonight?

Silence fills the room while the last piano notes are played. Nicky and his lover have already left. Among the customers, you see some stray tears and misty eyes. Well, you’re probably not the only heartbroken one in 1920s New York.

--

Hello there, it’s D. talking. It’s been at least six years since I last wrote a fanfiction, so I might be a bit rusty and this is my first attempt at writing something like this in english. I hope there are no major mistakes in the text. This fanfic is quite sad, I know, but I also know we all like some tears (I do, oops).

I really hope you enjoyed it, kisses, D.

[kiarcheo]

Meowsunderstandings 1 / 2

'Oh.’ If Cathy could dig a hole in the floor and disappear, she would. ‘Ignore me, I swear that I’m usually not this much of an idiot.’

‘We know.’ Jane reassures her.

‘And even if you were, we wouldn’t mind...I mean, we love Anne anyway, don’t we?’

This has been in my WIPs folder for at least 6 months if not more, but I decided it was time to dust it off because I didn't have the greatest week and I needed some levity. Should have the second part ready and post it next weekend.

Can read on Ao3 here

Part 2

                                 ——————————————–

In Cathy’s defence, it was a totally understandable mistake. And she had not been alone in that. But, of course, as the one dating the subject of the misunderstanding, she is the one teased about it.

It all started at university, in class, where Cathy had ended up paired with Anna. It turned out that they actually got along quite well and became friends outside of lessons too. Which led to meeting Anna’s girlfriend, Jane, and then a relatively new friend of Jane’s, Catalina. And, because it’s a small world, to discover that they were old family friends. Catalina had recognised the surname and asked if she was a relative of Maud Green. Apparently Catalina had met Cathy when she was a baby…which obviously Cathy didn’t have any recollection of.

Anyway, they all hit it off.

As new friends, one of the first topics to be covered had been housing. Between complaints about housemates, landlords, buildings and neighbours, it always guarantees plenty of fodder for conversation.

And when Catalina, whom Jane called Lina and had shrugged when asked if they could call her that too, said, ‘I have a housemate, my Kat’, with a warm smile, well, forgive Cathy for thinking she was talking about an actual cat. Especially when the topic of pets came up and Lina said ‘Does my Kat count?’ with a laugh. ‘I mean, she is independent, obviously, but-’

Cathy remembers Jane and Anna sharing her own slightly confused expression because of course cats are pets, why should it not count??

It didn’t help that Lina would say stuff like:

‘Rain check? Kat is sick, has been throwing up all day so I want to keep an eye on her.’

or

send a voice message on the group chat that ended with ‘Sorry, have to go. I have a Kat on the table and I don’t know why.’

And then there was the time she was distracted and then admitted that she was worried because she didn’t remember if she had locked the door and she didn’t want anything to happen to her cat.

Or she would talk about cleaning and how often she has to vacuum. Because two girls in a house mean lots of hair too. And you know what? Cats can shed hair too! And Catalina would not be the first person to refer to pets as you would do to a person (or treat them as such)!

And she literally replied to the question ‘How did you get your cat?’ with ‘Well, she was living with…someone I knew. When she had to move, taking her along…was not really worth the trouble, all the documents and stuff. Especially since she would be coming back anyway. And it just made sense…we already knew each other and got along well. We could keep each other company. And me and Anne might have our disagreements, but she knows she can trust me with her Kitty.’

Or should Cathy talk about the texts? Despite what people might assume, Lina uses lots of emojis. So when texts such as ‘Movie night’ or ‘Girls’ day’ were paired with others like ‘Snuggling with 🐱’ or ‘Day in with 🐱’ … Well, forgive Cathy for thinking that Lina talking about her Kat was talking about an actual cat, as in an animal.

---

‘Where is your cat? Hiding?’

Jane asks, looking around. It’s the first time Lina is having them over at her house – them being Anna, Cathy and herself – as usually it’s more convenient and easier for everyone to meet at places around or close to the campus.

‘She went out, but she should be back soon.’ Lina chuckles at the way they all seem eager to meet her. ‘You’ll meet her, don’t worry.’

They fell into an easy conversation, the topic forgotten until...

‘Cathy? Cathy?’ Catalina calls out. The girl in question has her cup half-way to her mouth – a couple of degrees more and she would be spilling the tea all over herself – and her eyes fixated towards the door.

Everyone turns around to see what is capturing Cathy’s attention.

‘Did Anne die?’ Catalina tilts her head as if to look for something behind a girl in basketball shorts and a sport bra, high ponytail with pink tips.

‘Almost.’ Another girl drags herself in. She drops on the floor. ‘Was it your plan all along?’ She wheezes out. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’

‘I thought you knew…have you seen her?’ Catalina gestures to the girl still standing there, barely out of breath. ‘She is fit!’

‘I thought it was metabolism…I have a good one too.’

‘Good metabolism doesn’t give you abs like that.’

Cathy’s attempt to avoid looking at the exposed skin glistening with sweat fails completely when Lina mentions them. If the humming coming from the other girls is any indication, she is not the only one.

‘Come on, I’ll let you shower first.’

Anne moans, reaching up with grabby hands.

‘What? You want me to carry you?’

‘Are you saying you can’t?

‘Is it a challenge?’

‘If that’s what it takes…’ Anne shrugs from her spot on the floor, unrepentant.

The girl sighs but crouches down. It doesn’t seem to take too much effort for her to lift Anne in her arms and start walking, her hold confident and comfortable as if it had happened many times before.

‘Kat.’

‘Yeah?’ The girl turns around.

‘You can use my shower if you don’t want to wait.’

‘Thanks Cata, you’re the best!’ she smiles brightly at her before leaving the room, Anne in her arms.

‘That’s your Kat?’  

Cathy hears Anna asking but after that, she honestly has no idea what the others talks about or even what she is thinking until the girls returns, Anne once again carried in Kat’s arms.

Kat gently puts her down on the armchair before leaving the room again. ‘Need anything from the kitchen?’

‘No, thanks!’ Catalina calls back, before addressing Anne. ‘You know, they say you should keep moving, this is only going to make the pain worse later on.’

‘That’s a problem for future me.’

‘I would apologize saying that she isn’t normally like this, but I’d be lying.’ Catalina turns towards her friends.

‘Hey!’ Anne protests as Kat comes back, sitting on her armchair’s armrest and passing her a glass of juice.

‘Thanks Kitty.’

Catalina is going through presentations when Cathy suddenly comes back to earth. ‘Wait, you’re Lina’s cat??’

‘Possibly?’ Kat replies, hesitant confusion in her voice, while Anna, Jane and Lina look at their friend weirdly. They probably already went over it. Oops!

‘I mean, it’s Katherine.’ The girl continues.

‘Me too!’ More odd looks.

‘But most people call me Kat. Or Kitty.’

‘I better be the only one calling you Kitty.’

‘And the overprotective one is Anne,’ Kat slings an arm around the other girl, ‘if she didn’t present herself.’

---

‘Cathy? You alright?’ Jane asks as they walk towards the bus stop after leaving Catalina’s home. ‘You’ve been spacing out.'

‘Yeah.’ She nods. She hesitates, before blurting out. ‘Do you think they are dating?’

‘Who? Kat and Lina?’ Jane laughs.

‘No! Anne and Kat!’

‘I’m sorry, but am I the only one who thought that when Lina talked about her Kat she was talking about a cat, like, actual animal cat, meow?’ Anna interrupts them.

The look exchanged between Jane and Cathy gives her the answer. ‘So it wasn’t just me.’ Anna nods to herself, relieved.

‘Some things make more sense now,’ Cathy muses aloud, ‘like Lina not having her scarf because she gave it to her Kat.’

‘And some things don’t.’ Jane points out. ‘Kat on the table, anyone??’

‘The cat is on the table.’ Anna laughs. ‘Sorry.’ She can see her friends don’t understand why it’s funny to her. ‘When you learn English as a second language, that’s often one of the first sentences you learn.’

---

‘How did you meet?’

They are all back at Catalina’s house, this time Anne and Kat joining them from the start.

‘We were frenemies.’

‘Oh?’

Anne’s answer doesn’t really explain much.

‘We dated the same guy.’ Catalina expands on it.

‘Henrat.’ Anne mutters darkly, before adding, ‘Not on purpose.’

‘Certainly not.’ Catalina scoffs.

‘He told me he was going to break up with her. That it was taking some time because they had been together for years and it was hard. And well, naïve mistake of thinking myself different or better…Spoiler alert, if someone cheats on someone with you for months, chances are they will cheat on you too, sooner or later.’

‘Oh.’ That was not the story Jane was expecting when she had asked.

‘Yep. So…soon after we officially get together, Henry is out every night, just sleeping around, like what the hell?!’ Anne looks around, as if seeking support from her audience. ‘So I thought if that's how it's gonna be, maybe I'll flirt with a guy or three just to make him jel. Henry finds out and he goes mental. He screams and shouts, like so judgemental.’ She rolls her eyes.  ‘We were at a party and he was like "you damned witch”, which wow, talk about outdated, but anyway, I go “mate, just shut up, I wouldn't be such a bitch, if you could get it up”.’

‘It rhymed!’ Kat points out like she does every time Anne tells the story.

 ‘Is that what you said?’ Anna sounds impressed.

‘Yep. Everyone heard that too. He’s been wanting my head since.’ Anne shrugs. She didn’t regret it a bit. ‘And not in the sexy way.’

‘So it’s a “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” situation?’ Jane looks like she is trying to wrap her head around it. She isn’t sure she would be willing to be friend with someone she got cheated on with, doesn’t matter if they are not together anymore.

‘Not really. I didn’t want anything to do with her…or Henry. Until I saw him harassing a girl. Well, flirting according to him, but she looked so uncomfortable and so young. Especially compared to him.’

‘Yeah, I was 16.’ Kat pipes up.

‘So I shooed him away. Comfort the girl, who was pretty shaken. Have her call someone and wait with her…and who shows up?’

‘Me!’

‘Anne.’ Jane guesses correctly at the same time.

‘And that would have been the end, but Kat wanted to thank me and keep in touch and…it’s really hard to say no to her.’

‘Yeah. Especially when she gives you the KHoward look.’ Anne nods solemnly. It’s a patented weapon she has fallen victim of many many times.

‘Uhm? The what?’

‘Do it, Kitty.’

‘It’s not a party trick.’ Kat protests. But everyone is looking at her expectantly. She lets out a sigh. And she obliges the request.

‘AWW.’ Jane coos, while Anna nods. ‘I get it.’  

Cathy is just speechless.

‘Yeah. And suddenly that scene in Shrek made sense.’ Catalina adds.

‘It didn’t before??’ Anne looks almost offended.

‘Well, I never had a cat before, how was I supposed to know?’ Catalina defends herself.

‘Wait!’ Cathy suddenly exclaims. ‘K?’

‘Yeah? Katherine, you know?’

'Oh.’ If Cathy could dig a hole in the floor and disappear, she would. ‘Ignore me, I swear that I’m usually not this much of an idiot.’

‘We know.’ Jane reassures her.

‘And even if you were, we wouldn’t mind...I mean, we love Anne anyway, don’t we?’

A betrayed gasp. ‘Catalina! You turned my Kitty against me??

Catalina is laughing so hard that she is crying. 'My Kat, I love you so much!’ She finally wheezes out.

Cathy is smart. She is! But apparently she turns into a complete simpleton in the presence of pretty girls...or more specifically of one pretty girl called Katherine Howard. Sure, she had fumbled in front of girls before, but never to this degree. An absolute and utter disaster.

‘Anyway,’ Catalina starts again after regaining her breath, ‘long story short, we kept in touch. It was not Kat’s fault what Anne did, anyway. And they were living together and when Anne had to move, it made sense for Kat to come and live with me.’

‘But now you’re back?’ Cathy’s question is completely disinterested, of course.

‘Soon permanently.’ Anne smiles at Kat, nudging her.

‘Where are you going to live?’ Anna asks the younger girl. ‘Are you going to move out or stay here?’

‘Oh, she is trying to win her back.’ Catalina nods towards Anne.

‘I never lost her.’ Anne retorts.

‘I’m not a prize to be won.’

‘I’d argue about that.’ Cathy mutters, getting an amused look from Anna, the only one who heard her.

Kat heaves a sigh. ‘I would suggest we could all live together, but I don’t think I can deal with this on a daily basis.’

---

They hang out. It’s quite difficult to get everyone together, between classes and jobs and other commitments, but in smaller groups it’s easier and more common. That’s how Cathy finds herself at the pub with Anna and Anne, her and Anna celebrating having finished a big assignment and Anne joining because Kat and Catalina don’t particularly like going out drinking and she misses doing it.

Cathy has mixed feelings about Anne. Is she pretty? Yes. Is she smart? Yes. Is she funny? Yes. Does she hate her a little bit? Also yes. Is she going to get drunk while trying to keep up with her (and Anna, but her Teutonic constitution puts her on a whole other level)? Again, yes.

She pretty much checks out, lost in thoughts, until a shrill ‘Kitty’ brings her back to the present...and to Anne hanging from Kat’s neck, nuzzling into her. ‘You came!’

‘Of course, I did. You called.’ Kat says as if there has never been any other option.

Did Cathy mention that she hates Anne a bit?

‘Time to go home?’ Kat asks, while rubbing Anne’s back.

Anna raises an eyebrow at Anne, still wrapped around the newcomer, and then chances a look at Cathy, slumped on the table. ‘I think we better.’

‘Do you have a car?’

Anna shakes her head. ‘No, I planned to drink so...’

‘Good.’ Kat smiles at her. She is happy to play chauffeur if it means her friends are being safe and responsible. ‘Let’s get you all home.’

Anna helps Cathy to Kat’s car while the younger girl helps Anne.

‘Cathy, where-’ Kat looks at the rear-view mirror only to see that the girl is asleep. ‘Do you know where she lives?’ She asks Anna, the only one still awake.

‘I know she lives in a hall on campus, I might even remember which one, but no idea about the room, sorry.’

‘That’s okay. I’ll just take her home with us, then.’

‘Are you sure?’ Anna looks to the backseat, both girls dead to the world.

‘Yeah. I can carry Anne, I’m sure she won’t be much of a problem either.’

Kat drops off Anna and then drives home. Once she parks, she texts Catalina to open the door for her.

She picks up Anne and carries her home. ‘Can you stay at the door and keep an eye on the car?’ she asks Catalina before manoeuvring inside, careful not to bump into anything lest Anne wakes up. Few minutes later she comes back, goes to the car, and picks up Cathy.

‘Ahnghh.’

‘What?’ Catalina takes the car key Kat is holding with her teeth. ‘Say that again?’

‘I said hand because I wanted to drop the key in it.’ She adjusts her hold of Cathy. Not that she is heavier than Anne, but she has no qualms grabbing and holding Anne, and if she grazes her butt or her boobs, so be it. Cathy is a relatively new friend, and she is more conscious of any touch, no matter how accidental, that could make her uncomfortable (well, if she was awake to realise it, anyway). ‘Lock up for me, please?’

                               ——————————————–

Storytime: I was 2000 words deep into this when an atrocious doubt came to me…was Kat actually pronounced the same as cat?? English is a weird language and not my native one so I started to worry…did I just base my story on something that made no sense? Also (perhaps more important), had I butchered people’s names for years without knowing? As someone whose name is often mispronounced (well, in the UK at least, since it’s Italian), I felt really bad about that. So I asked a native-speaker friend and he said it sounds the same. So if he trolled me (he told me he wasn’t, but who knows) and Kat doesn’t sound as cat…I hope you enjoyed the story anyway (and let me know so I can get back at him!)

[trashyswitch]

One Simple Mistake

It has long been decided one rule: NEVER leave the coffee grinds can out on the counter. One day though, someone forgets to put the coffee grinds away and suffers the DRASTIC consequences...

This is LATE! But, it's still relevant. Therefore:

Tickletober Day 23: Asking For It

It had started off like any other morning. The coffee-drinking sides had gotten their coffee, and put them back in the usual hiding spot. This was to prevent certain people from getting tempted into overdosing themselves on caffeine. It was always known that certain sides shouldn’t touch coffee grinds. Not even with a 10 foot pole! Cause they’ll find a way to get the coffee grinds into their system and go insane from an overdose. To prevent such overdoses, the coffee-drinking sides made a rule: after using the coffee grinds, always put the coffee away or hope you have the energy to handle the consequences…

But this morning, someone had accidentally left the can of coffee grinds out on the counter. It was one simple mistake...One tiny mistake…but even a simple mistake like that, had DIRE consequences:

“Mmmm! That’s that GOOD! SHIT!” someone reacted in the kitchen.

“ACID, BEER, COCAINE, AND DICK!” someone else shouted loudly.

“HAHAHAHA! You’re worse than Remus!” the 1st person laughed.

Logan groaned from tiredness and put his glasses on before walking out of his room. The people in the kitchen were gonna wake up the whole imagination at this rate! Logan was already awake. Did anyone else wake up yet?

“Logan?” someone asked beside him. Logan looked to his left, and smiled when he recognized the slightly blurry kitten onesie. “Was that you shouting profanities?” Patton asked.

Logan scoffed. “Oh please...I would say no such thing.” Logan replied.

“Then...who is?” Patton asked.

“I would suggest it was Remus, but...the last loud statement had proven me otherwise.” Logan told him.

“I FEEL AMAZING! LIKE I COULD KILL A PERSON!” Roman shouted.

Virgil bursted out laughing. “A KILLING SPREE: REMUS! VS. ROMAN!” Virgil joked and continued to laugh hysterically.

Patton dropped his jaw. “ROMAN?!” He shouted. He looked beside him and blinked in surprise. “AND VIRGIL?!” Patton shouted at him as well.

Virgil turned around and gulped. “Oops…” He thought aloud.

“QUICK VIRGIL! ATTAAAAACK!” ” Roman shouted, grabbing his hand and sprinting towards Patton.

“What the- OHGODNO!” Patton did a full 180 and took off screaming in horror! Roman was shouting a war cry and chasing Patton, while Virgil was screaming from being pulled absolutely everywhere. Logan, realizing he wasn’t enjoying being pulled, grabbed onto Virgil’s waist and pulled him out or Roman’s hand. Thankfully, Roman didn’t complain about losing Virgil and just continued to chase the screaming Patton.

“You okay, Virgil?” Logan asked.

“Ihihi...Ihi’m fine...I think.” Virgil replied. “I don’t think the coffee has kicked in yet. I had a couple cups of coffee a few minutes ago, so...I just have to wait.” Virgil admitted.

Logan looked at him. “H-...How did you find the coffee can?” Logan asked.

Virgil shrugged his shoulders. “I dunno. It was out on the counter this morning. Thought a cup wouldn’t hurt. But then one cup became 2.” Virgil explained, before lifting up his mostly empty cup to finish his coffee.

Logan pointed at the mug. “What number was that?” Logan asked.

Virgil lowered the mug, revealing his slight coffee mustache. He looked at Logan and blinked. “Number 4.” he replied before putting some tap water into his mug.

Logan sighed and rubbed his nose. “...And how many cups has Roman had?” Logan asked.

Virgil made an ‘I don’t know’ humming sound before dumping the slightly coffee-colored water down the drain. Logan walked up to the can of coffee and placed it in the secret hiding spot. “Oooooh...So that’s where it’s been?” Virgil muttered out loud.

Logan turned around and pointed his index finger at him. “Don’t tell Roman.��� Logan warned.

Virgil smiled. “Okay.” He replied.

[An Hour Later]

“COME ON AND SLAM! AND WELCOME TO THE JAM! COME ON AND SLAM! IF YOU WANNA JAM!” Roman shouted, pretending to play basketball.

Virgil was giggling and laughing at the man. “Got any other songs you remember?” Virgil asked.

Roman gasped and snapped his fingers at Virgil. “THERE’S A HUNDRED AND FOUR DAYS OF SUMMER VACATION, AND SCHOOL COMES ALONG JUST TO END IIIT!” Roman shouted.

“AND THE ANNUAL PROBLEM, FOR OUR GENERATION IS FINDING A GOOD WAY TO SPEEEND IIIT…” Virgil continued.

“LIKE MAYBE!”

“BUILDING A ROCKET,” Roman shouted.

“OR FIGHTING A MUMMY,” Virgil continued.

“OR CLIMBING UP THE EIFFEL TOWER!” Roman continued, while Virgil conducted the ‘trumpet band’.

“DISCOVERING SOMETHING THAT DOESN’T EXIST-” Virgil shouted and pointed to Roman.

“MY GIRLFRIEND!” Roman shouted back.

Virgil bursted out laughing! “HAHA! OHOR GIVING A MONKEY A SHOWER!” Virgil continued.

“BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! SURFING TITLE WAVES,” Roman shouted.

“CREATING NANO BOTS, OR-”

Roman joined Virgil. “LOCATING FRANKENSTEIN’S BRAIN!”

“IT’S OVER HERE!” Virgil added. “FINDING A DODO BIRD,”

“CREATING A COTTON LAYER, AND-”

Virgil joined Roman. “DRIVING OUR SISTER INSAAANE!” They shouted.

“PhInEaS!” Roman screamed in a mock girly voice.

“AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE’S A WHOLE LOT OF StUFF TO DO BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS THIS FALL,” Virgil sang.

Roman pointed to Patton. “COME ON, PERRY!” Roman shouted.

“SO STICK WITH US CAUSE PHINEAS AND FERB ARE GONNA, DO IIIT, AAAALLLL!” Roman sang.

Virgil pretended to rock the electric guitar while they both started screaming the last part: “SO STICK WITH US CAUSE PHINEAS AND FERB ARE GONNA, DO IIIT AAAAALL.”

To end it all off, Roman ran up to Logan and started waving and puppeteering the man’s arms. “MoOom! PhInEaS aNd FeRb ArE MaKiNg A tItLe SeQuEnCe!” Roman said in his mock girly voice. Roman put Logan’s hands down as Virgil strummed the last loud guitar note.

Patton giggled and clapped his hands. “That was great, you two!” Patton cheered.

Virgil got back up and snuggle-hugged him. “Thank you Pat.” he replied happily.

Roman was just laughing and pointing at Logan. “Good job playing Candace, by the way!” Roman complimented.

“I had no choice.” Logan reminded him.

“That’s besides the point.” Roman muttered as he lightly punched his shoulder.

Patton was squeaking and giggling at the affection he was getting. “Yohou’re so affectionate like this!” Patton reacted.

Virgil smiled at this and playfully shook his hair right into the side of Patton’s neck. Patton squeaked in surprise and let out some giggles! “HEHehehe! Vihihirgihihil! Thahahat tihihihicklehes!” Patton giggled up a storm.

Virgil brought his head back. “Awww! Ticklish, Pat?” Virgil asked with a smirk. Patton giggled more and nodded. “Perfect!” Virgil declared as he tickled Patton’s belly.

Patton doubled over and guffawed. “HAHAHA! WAHAHAHAIT! LOHOHO HEHEHELP!” Patton shouted.

Logan walked up to help him, but was stopped by a prince with a shit-eating grin on his face. “One single step forward...and I’ll tickle you till you lose all touch with reality.” Roman warned.

Logan lifted an eyebrow as he took a step forward. “Sounds like attempted murder to me.” Logan added.

Roman tripped Logan from behind and laid him down. “Not if it’s screams of laughter!” Roman declared. Roman started skittering his fingers on Logan’s ribs and sides. Logan jolted in surprise and tried to hold his laughter in. “Ooooh! Gonna hold out on me, huh? Tell me: how many times have you simply laughed on the Sanders Sides channel?” Roman asked as he paused his tickling.

Logan let out his breath and breathed somewhat heavily. Then, he tried to think. But the truth was, Roman was right: He has never truly laughed on screen! The one laugh he DID let out, was simply a half-assed ‘Ha’. And knowing Roman, that won’t count.

“That’s right! A big, flat, none! Therefore: LAUGH FOR ME!” Roman shouted before immediately blowing a raspberry right onto his core!

“GAHAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA! AAAHAHAHAHEHEHEHEHEHE!” Logan bursted out loudly.

Roman gasped and only continued to tickle him with his fingers. “YAY! AFTER ALL THIS TIME, YOU HAVE A LAUGH! VIRGIL! LOGAN HAS A LAUGH!” Roman shouted happily.

“I can hear that!” Virgil reacted. “And so does Patton!” Virgil added as he blew a raspberry on Patton’s neck.

“EEEEEEHEHEHEHEHEhehehe!” Patton laughed, curling his neck in.

To get Patton on the ground, Virgil gently tripped him and laid him down right beside the laughing Logan! But seeing Logan laughing like this, only made Patton wanna tickle him too!

But Virgil decided to squeeze his hips anyway. “Coochy coochy coo, Patty!” Virgil teased.

“WAHAHAHA-WAHAHAHAIT! IHIHIHI WAHAHAHANNAAAA-HEHEHEHELP!” Patton shouted to Virgil.

Virgil lifted an eyebrow in confusion. “Help? With what?” Virgil asked, pausing his tickling for a moment.

As Patton breathed heavily to regain his oxygen, Patton gave Logan’s closest side a squeeze. Logan squeaked! “AAAAHAHAAA!” Logan turned himself onto his left side. PAHAHAHAHAT!” Logan yelled.

“Whahat? Can’t handle another tihickle monster?” Patton asked, still slightly giggly himself.

“NOHOHOHOHOHO! TOHOHOHO MAHAHAHANY!!” Logan shouted.

Patton, Virgil and Roman all attacked Logan from all angles! It was now 3 to 1, (a completely unfair fight), and Logan felt like he was gonna die laughing! And yet...He was loving it! Something about laughing really hard after not laughing for years, seemed to feel amazing to the nerd. Maybe...psychological based? Logan may have to review the psychology theories again to come up with a more specific answer.

“THEHEHE MOHOHORE YOHOHOU GUYS TIHIHICKLEHE MEHEHE, THEHEHE MOHOHORE REHEHEVEHEHENGE IHI’LL DIHISH OHOHOUT! IHIHI HOHOPE YOHOHOHOU KNOHOHOW THAHAHAHAT!” Logan warned.

“Oh No! I’m So ScArEd!” Roman teased.

“YoU pOoR bAbY! pOoR lOgEy Is TiCkLiSh!” Patton teased.

“It's a shame that EvErYoNe is taking advantage.” Virgil added.

Everyone continued to destroy Logan with tickles just about everywhere on his body. Logan was LITERALLY GOING INSANE! YES! MORE TICKLES! If this is what it’s like having Roman and Virgil on caffeine highs, Logan needs to leave the coffee out a lot more!

Suddenly though, all the tickling stopped! And a bunch of yelps and shouts of surprise filled the room for a few seconds! Logan opened his eyes little by little and adjusted his glasses. What...happened?

Logan’s eyes widened when he noticed the 3 sides being held up against the wall by octopus arms! “I KNEW this would happen! No one can truly handle the GREAT, POWERFUL ROMAN on CAFFEINE!” Someone shouted in front of him. Logan sighed as he recognized the manic voice.

Remus.

“REMUS! LET GO!” Roman shouted at him.

Remus gasped and placed a hand on his chest in offense. “Such anger running through your veins! I must change that as soon as I can.” Remus declared as he summoned some floating green feathers.

Roman shrieked in horror and watched nervously as the feathers fluttered around his body and leaned in closer to his ticklish spots. Roman couldn’t stop the wobbly smile from forming on his face.

Remus giggled evilly and summoned more feathers to surround the two other sides. “Any last words before your ticklish fantasies finally come true?” Remus asked the three of them.

Patton gulped as the feathers neared his feet and belly. Those spots were the ILLEGAL spots!

Virgil tried to glare at the dark side, but his glare was quickly turned into a wobbly smile due to the feathers fluttering right over his neck and belly button.

And Roman’s whimpers faded into giggles as his ears were touched only the slightest bit.

“Would you like to help, Logan?” Remus offered.

Logan stood up and watched as all 3 of his friends were overcome by laughs and giggles, thanks to the many fluttering feathers. Logan had the mental sense to save them. But when Logan thought about it more, he realized his 3 best friends were also the 3 lers in the group, who were just asking to be destroyed! So:

“Okay.” Logan replied.

Logan happily helped Remus and the feathers with the tickles, and reduced his friends into wholesome messes of laughter all in the name of revenge. Logan knew the boys were gonna get it eventually. What Logan DIDN’T expect, was Remus’s eventual involvement.

But to be honest: He couldn’t have it any other way.

[jungshookz]

Idea- Jin patrols your campus parking lot and you keep parking in a no parking zone so he keeps giving you tickets but you just pay them and then continue to park in the zone. Jin gets sick of this and waits at your car so he can give you a piece of his mind but you come out and he thinks your really adorable and he just kinda stands there tongue tied

➺ pairing; kim seokjin x reader 

➺ genre; crckhed hrz let’s be real 

➺ wordcount: 2k 

➺ what to expect; “to the asswipe who owns this mini cooper - do you know how to read signs? this is a no-parking zone. no. parking. zone. that means you are not allowed to park in this zone. DO NOT park here.”

➺ note; i’m pretty sure this was sent in a year ago because the messages this far back are all about mechanic!yoongi oOps! there is an obscene lack of jin drabbles on my masterlist and i am in a jin mood so if u have any drabble ideas lemme know and i might get back to you in one yEAR i hate myself   

                                       »»————-　🚗　————-««

for the most part, jin can say that he loves his job as campus patrol officer

it’s pretty easy because all he has to do is check and make sure if anyone’s staying longer than they’re supposed to oR if someone’s parked where they definitely do not belong

like, a no-parking zone, for example!

he thinks it’s relatively easy to follow the law

it’s not hard to park in a no-parking zone

because it literally says no-parking

no-parking = no pARKING

but he is really, reaLLy being tested right now because this is probably the tenth or twelfth or HUNDREDTH time he’s written up a ticket for this stupid mini cooper

he just doesn’t understand how one doesn’t understand that a no parking zone means a no parking zone

it’s literally so self-explanatory!!!!!

and he can’t call the tow truck company to come and take it away because according to his boss jin has pulled the ‘the boy who cried tow truck’ act onE too many times and his privilege to make that call has been revoked

so all he can do is slap a ticket on the window and call it a day

at this point he’s convinced that the owner of this dumb mini cooper is is probably just repeating the same mistake juSt to get on his nerves

he doesn’t know what he’s done to deserve this!!

also

who drives mini coopers nowadays

why would someone want to drive such a dinky little car?????

just as he’s about to slip the ticket behind the windshield wiper he pauses

no

you know what

he has to switch things up

he can’t just keep giving you the same exact ticket each time because it’s obviously not scaring you

the law is supposed to be threatening and you appear to not give a heCK about his tickets (which is another reason why he’s so upset with you is because you’re not taking him seriously and he takes himself very seriously when he’s in patrol officer mode!!!)

he slips the ticket behind the windshield wiper and gives the hood of the car two firm pats

that should do it

jin lets out a breath of relief before moving on to his next victim

hopefully he’ll never see the mini cooper ever again

“oh my g- you know what, don’t even get me staRted on how much i pulled that essay out of my ass-“ you snort as you pull your car keys out of your backpack

“so do you think you did well on it?” hoseok hums over the phone

“i mean, i don’t think i did well but i also don’t think it was thAt bad-“ you have your phone sandwiched in between your ear and your shoulder as you dig through your bag

why is it that when you need to pull something out of your bag it suddenly becomes an endless mary poppins-esque style knapsack

aH

your eyes light up in excitement when you feel it and you pull your keys out with a jingle

and just when you’re about to unlock your car (affectionately named cooper) you notice the familiar looking slip of paper on your window

oh come on

not aGAIN

“son of a bitch!” cooper chirps happily as you unlock him and you open the front door a little toO aggressively

“what’s wrong?”

“i got another friggin’ parking ticket.” you grumble as you take it before getting in the driver’s seat

you toss your bag next to you before setting your phone on the dashboard and hitting the speaker button

“maybe you should take this tenth parking ticket as a sign to stop parking in the no parking-“

“oh my god, i can’t believe this! hold on, let me reaD you what this person wrote!” you clear your throat before raising the note to the light “to the asswipe who owns this mini cooper - do you know how to read signs? this is a no parking zone. no. parking. zone. that means you are not allowed to park in this zone. DO NOT park here.” you let out a scoff of disbelief

how ruDE!

“again, maybe you should take this as a sign to stop parking in the no parking-“

“one more word out of you and i’ll send you riGht back to the world of commuting, hoseok.”

that effectively shuts him right up

you read the note one more time

somewhere out there there’s an officer who is too passionate about this no parking zone business

you lean over to glance up at the sign that very clearly states you shouldn’t park here and you give a little shrug

it’s not that you’re being an asshole and just ignoring the literal law

it’s just that this is a reaLLy good spot to park in

you used to have to park all the way in the back of the lot which resulted in you having to sprint to your classes

and you don’t wanna be huffing and puffing as you step into the lecture hall okay

plus it’s not like you’re hurting anyone or getting in anyone’s way!!!!!!

it’s not a big deal

you have no problem with paying off a couple of parking tickets as long as it means you don’t have to spRINt to your classes  

you shrug before opening up your glove compartment and shoving the ticket inside

anywayS

jin whistles a happy tune to himself as he makes his way down the sidewalk at a leisurely pace

he had a pretty good today

had a good breakfast

got a free donut from the lunch ladies because not only is he a lady’s man, he’s also a lunch lady’s man

also

on a completely unrelated note

he doesn’t know why he has to wear this obnoxiously orange traffic vest

well obviously he knows it’s part of the job but like

out of all the colours in the world why did it have to be bright orange

why not like a muted purple or a navy blue??? those would be loveLy to wear

maybe not peach

he looks gross in anything peachy

anyways he-

“oH MY fuCKIGN-“ jin gasps as he rushes over to the MINI COOPER

IT’S BACK

HE’S CURSED

HOW-

“are you KIDDING me?!” jin groans loudly and ignores the odd glances he receives from the people walking past him

you know what

that’s it

this is the last straw

he’s just going to wait here til the owner of the car comes and then he’s going to give them a PIECE of his mind because they are making his job significantly harder

first his tickets are ignored and noW his threatening note has also been ignored?????

but seriouSLY

what kind of moron continues to park in a no parking zone???

jesus christ

he’s gonna need another donut after this

heck

he’s going to need like teN donuts after this

“good afternoon, officer! is there a problem?”

oh you BET there’s a problem

“as a matter of fact-“ jin whips around to finally face the culprit of this continuous heinous crime of parking in the no parking zone

he’s finally going to be face to face with his faceless mortal enemy and he’s going to give you a piece of his goddAMN MIND-

jin’s mind goes blank the moment he settles his eyes on you

oh

o

oh my god

woWie you’re cute

he usually says he doesn’t have a type but he suddenly has a type and that type is whatever you are  

you and your pretty eyes and pouty lips and veRy soft looking hair

a slight breeze blows in his general direction and he catches a whiff of your perfume

oh woW

he could swim in that scent all day

on top of that you’re wearing the cosiest looking sweater and for a brief second he wonders what you’d look like wearing one of his sweaters

“you- uh,..,.,.“ jin clears his throat and taps his pen against his notepad

what was he going to say again

something something car something donut something parking something something

you smile sweetly at him and tilt your head

“see, the thing is…”

you reach up to push your reading glasses up so they sit on the top of your head and you blink owlishly at jin “yes?”

the only thing in jin’s head is the sound of a fax machine beeping but make it as chaotic as possible

“oh my g- oh, i am so sorry!!!! i parked in the no-parking zone again, i am so sorry!” you let out a little groan as you rush over to unlock cooper

you never thought you’d be caught by an actual patrol officer so you don’t really have a plan of action

right now you’re just pulling the whole oblivious act and hopefully he’ll let you gO because you’re pretty good at convincing people that you only have two and a half braincells

one time you dumbed yourself out of doing your share of a group project and you still left that class with an A

:’)

…you’re a tinY bit of an asshole sometimes but that’s not the point

in the time that you’ve thrown your bag in the trunk and filled the silence with profuse apologies jin has managed to snap ouT of his trance

he’s not lady’s man jin right now

he has to be patrol officer kim

“you’ve actually-“ his voice cracks and jin clears his throat quickly “you’ve actually parked in this specific spot several times, despite me leaving you many parking tickets and-“

“were you the one who left that note on my car yesterday?” you interrupt him before narrowing your eyes suspiciously

wha-

why is hE suddenly the one being grilled

you’re the one who’s in trouble!!! 

…why is hE swEATING????

“well, i-“

“you called me an asswipe!” you gasp in offence and jin feels his face flush

o god

“you know what, uh, i was just frustrated because-“

“eh, it’s fine, i’ll forgive you. i guess i deserve it.” you let out a sigh and shake your head “tell you what, officer-“ you lean forward a little to look at his name tag “officer… asswipe.”

jin’s jaw drops slightly and now it’s his turn to let out a scoff of disbelief

you are opENLy disrespecting an officer of the law!!!!!

“it’s actually pronounced seokjin, i really don’t know how you messed up that badly-“  

“i promise i won’t park in this spot again-“

“oh, thank god-“

“if you give me your number.”

wait what

jin blinks

“so- i’m sorry, what?”

“this glorious parking spot in exchange for your number.” the corner of your lips raise in a smirk as you shake your phone at him 

wow

confident!

…he’s into that

usually he’s the one asking for numbers but obviously not in this case

also he has to admit that was pretty smooth

what’s the opposite of a lady’s man

…a man’s lady?

that don’t sound right

(jin gets a text from you later that night telling him you’ll pick him up tomorrow afternoon at 3 - and that you’ll wait for him in the no-parking zone.)

help me help you make your wishes come tru (aka send me a request)

requested drabbles masterlist

[starlocked01]

Beautiful Mistakes

AO3 @tsshipmonth2020

Masterpost- Previous- Next

Summary-  Remy can't think before he has his coffee and that causes problems for him and his soulmate.

A/N- Slightly altered so that the marks disappear a few minutes after they’ve been received.

Day 9 Remile- Whatever you draw on your skin shows up on your soulmate

Emile could feel the slight itch on his cheek that indicated a message from his soulmate had appeared. He flushed with embarrassment but kept his composure. He quickly scrawled on his wrist.

Not now, Rem. I'm with a client.

He turned back to his patients with a smile and his wrist itched as Remy replied.

Oops

"Doc, you okay?"

"My apologies, my soulmate likes to send messages when he wakes up. Except he works… at night," Emile sighed, affectionately yet exasperated.

"Well the flags look cute, I guess as long as you're okay with your patients knowing..." Dot smiled and nodded encouragingly.

Emile paled, "he didn't…"

"I think he did," Larry replied.

Emile put a hand to his cheek, "it's a pride flag isn't it?"

"Oh don't worry, Doc! It's so cute! Larry, isn't it cute?"

"He's going to be rather upset with me. I can't check it, and he's not out at work yet… but enough about me, back to Dorry! Or if you prefer, Larrydot?? " Emile grinned despite the looks of confusion the couple were giving him. His cheek and wrist continued to itch but he insisted on staying focused on the session.

By the time Larry and Dot were leaving, the itching had crawled up his forearm. Remy must be rather upset.

He checked his watch. The next appointment was in 20 minutes. He could take 5 to read through the tirade and would still be able to review notes for the next couple. He rolled up his sleeve to see a block of text that grew more frantic the farther it got up his arm.

Babe check out the drawing!

I worked hard on that girl pls appreciate me

Em i have work in an hour

Look. At. Your. Cheek.

This isn't funny!

Okay it was supposed to be funny but i can't have a gay flag on my face at work they will kill me!!!!

Bitch

Bitch

You don't love me im gonna die because you don't love me

No one is gonna believe me if i have to lie about this

Please????

>:[

Emile chuckled and wrote back quickly.

This is your fault for drawing on your cheek. You know I work and can't check messages right away.

He checked the time again and pulled out his phone, opening the camera app. He admired the little gay flag crossed with a pan flag. He took a quick selfie to preserve the drawing on his phone. It really was sweet, if unfortunately timed. Luckily, most of his clients would be fairly understanding. Remy's coworkers on the other hand would not.

The tirade on his arm had faded and  been replaced with a new line from Remy.

Don't judge me I didn't have my coffee yet girl

Emile chuckled and pulled his sleeve back down, finding the file and notes he had for the next couple's session.

Remy sat in his car, obsessively checking the mirror until the flags on his cheek faded away. The last thing he needed was to get outed by a soul mark. He was usually late anyway because of the line at Starbucks, what harm would one more day do?

A lot of harm, apparently.

His boss was waiting by the loading dock, impatiently tapping his foot as Remy strolled up.

"'Sup? What are we-"

"Don't even bother clocking in. You don't do shit here and this is the fifth time you've been late this month. You're done."

Remy sputtered, "this is homophobic!"

His boss stared hard at him, eyes narrowing, "You're lazy and you're gay? You're FIRED!"

"Whatever! Your loss, you prick!" Remy turned and flipped the man off as he walked back to his car. He got in and locked the doors, taking some deep breaths. He considered writing to Emile, but decided this was probably an in-person topic.

He restarted the car and drove home, mentally preparing for a lot of explaining.

Emile was surprised to see Remy's car in the driveway when he got home and more than a little concerned. He parked and hurried inside. He found his soulmate sitting in the dark, sipping coffee, and scrolling instagram.

"Remy? Are you okay?"

"Got fired."

"Oh my stars! What happened?"

Remy gave an exasperated sigh, "he didn't like me being late. He also blamed me being gay so idk maybe there's a lawsuit there."

"Was it because of the flags? I tried to check as soon as possible…"

"No… I'm usually late anyway," Remy sank deeper into the couch and Emile moved to sit down next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe it was time for a career change. You can find somewhere more accepting with less crazy hours."

"Maybe I'll become a stripper. They make good money right?" Remy mused, leaning into Emile’s side. The other man wrapped him in a one armed hug.

"While I am sure you'd be a natural, I'd be very concerned for your safety as a sex worker, dear. What about something you're passionate about?" Emile tried to be encouraging, numbers running through his head calculating exactly how long they could live off a single salary.

The outlook was not super promising.

"Don't worry, babe, I'll do some research tonight and fill out some applications. Promise," Remy gave Emile a smile that was skin deep, "what do you want for dinner? I'm starving."

After a week of Remy submitting applications and hearing nothing back, Emile was about ready to suggest the exotic dancer route himself. It wasn't that they were under financial stress (yet), moreso that Remy was a lot more rambunctious being cooped at home during the night. He kept waking Emile up too early and the loss of sleep was starting to affect his clients.

"Hey Doc? You're kinda unusually quiet today…"

Emile shook himself back to alertness, "sorry about that Elliott, where were we?"

"Um," they tapped their fingers together while thinking, "I think I was talking about how my soulmate never writes back. They check every message but I never get any from them. It doesn't… feel good."

"Remember what we've said before, Elliott, your worth isn't based on your soulmate. Whatever reason they choose not to write back, the fact of the matter is that you're still an amazing and powerful person in your own right."

Emile was interrupted by an itching on his wrist. Remy would usually still be asleep by now it was late enough in the morning.

He resisted the urge to check the mark as he spoke with Elliott and he could feel the itch crawling up his arm.

After the session, Emile quickly pulled up his sleeve, praying for good news.

I GOT IT!!!

Finally got an interview for tomorrow!!

<3 <3 <3

There were several more hearts and Emile allowed himself a small smile of relief. He doodled back a heart or two for Remy before returning his focus back to work.

They could celebrate when that interview turned into a position.

He greeted the next couple with a broader smile and a tad more exuberance, much to their dismay.

Remy was nervous. This job sounded too good to be true and they'd practically hired him on the spot. He wasn't about to let his soulmate down though.

He followed the man down the hall, sipping his tea for comfort.

"Honestly just don't let anyone eat anything inedible or hit each other and you'll do great," the man smiled, showing Remy into a room with a dozen kids and two other frazzled looking adults.

Piece of cake right?

Emile was in the middle of a session when he felt the itch on his cheek. He tried to smile through it, but then he felt more itches on his legs and arms and nose. His clients were too preoccupied actually talking through their issue with each other so Emile checked his arm to find a rainbow of scribbles that kept growing.

He put a hand to his face to cover his nose and cheek. What had Remy gotten himself into?

Pretty soon his clients were used to seeing Emile with colorful marks all over his face. He explained that his soulmate worked with kids and almost everyone nodded knowingly. He did ask that if they ever saw an inappropriate drawing they let him know so he could check it right away.

Some days he would draw little cartoons for the kids to fill in. They loved that and he always sent them little hearts back when they did a good job (they always did a good job).

And most importantly, Remy was having a great time with his job and got to be home at nights, so they saw each other a lot more often. They both enjoyed that.

[hockeytrashgoblin]

Ice Cold~ Part 18

A/N: YOU GUYS I’M SO SORRY. Between a pregnancy scare, a breakup, a friend getting back into hard drugs, work, and the endless pit of despair I have fallen into for the past month writing kind of went to the back burner for a bit. But I am here with another part. It’s getting kind of juicy. I am aiming to be done by 30 parts. I have 19 already in the works and I should be posting more regularly again. 

With all that said, I hope you enjoy.

"Mitch come look at this!" I called out to the mostly empty house. Everyone was out doing their own thing today except me and Mitch.

I was sitting on the ground outside of the house. I spent a lot of time out here. Especially since I became pregnant a few months ago. We were going on 17 weeks. Or maybe it was especially since I turned. I had always loved nature and felt connected to it but especially so now. I had been practicing a lot with the leaves. I hadn't shown anyone yet. I had finally gotten to a point that I wanted to share.

"What's up?" Mitch asked in front of me in probably a second since I called. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah for sure! I want to show you something cool I've been practicing."

"Well damn okay let's see it."

"Okay hang on, I have to concentrate a little." 

I took a deep breath and raised my hands. The leaves lifted from the ground like magic and danced all around where my fingers moved. I had shocked Mitch into complete silence. Something that didn't happen often. I decided to push myself a little bit more and try to move them around. I got them to go to the side and up a little before they fell.

"I still need to practice."

"What the fuck just happened?! How have you kept this from me?" He asked in shock.

"You've been so wrapped up in your little Auston world that you haven't been in my head much I guess. What do you think though?"

"It's super cool. Can you move anything else?"

"No me and Tessa tried. I don't think it's moving the object. Like look, when I lift just one it doesn't just levitate up right?" I showed him the leaf fluttering up. "I think it has to do with the wind. Or the air I guess."

"I guess it's possible."

"I can feel the wind Mitchy. William said that's not normal and that I couldn't possibly but I do. It feels like vibration in my veins."

"Maybe you can control the elements." He teased, laughing afterwards.

"You know what.." I whispered getting up.

"(Y/n) I was joking." He said following behind me.

"Well maybe there's something to that! You never know unless you try right?"

"This is crazy!" He yelled running after me.

"I don't care."

"Where are we going?"

"I'm going to some water!" We ran until we found a little creek.

"What now genius? It took you so long to do the leaf thing by the thoughts of it I see."

"I don't know I'm just going to try some stuff." I shrugged and sat beside the water. I felt the buzzing again and stuck my hand in the water. When I brought it out the water was sticking to my hand in columns of still water from my fingertips.

"What the fuck?"

"This was much easier than the leaves." I said dropping the water. I concentrated really hard on one spot in the water trying to displace it. All I could do was make small waves though.

"Maybe not so easy."

"Maybe not. I'll have to practice that too. Oh well I have plenty of time for that."

"Have you told Will yet? He'd love this. He already thinks you're the most talented person. He might be jealous though, his gift isn't that great he doesn't think."

"Well it saved my life so I can't say I feel the same. Maybe I'll tell him later, he's kind of mad at me right now." I tried to create ripples in the water again as we talked.

"Because you want to put people in danger."

"No one is in danger Mitchell. I've been back to work and I've been fine. I got overwhelmed the first day but I just didn't breathe and was fine. You've seen. Heard. Whatever. You know how I've been downtown. I'm not going to hurt anybody."

"There's always a chance (y/n). I made mistakes all the time when I was new that I never expected to make. It caught everyone off guard."

"It's not like I'm going alone! William will be there. If he gets even a tiny bit worried he'll stop me. I can't just ditch my best friend forever I've been making excuses for months."

"I understand, we're just worried that you're going to have an accident and hurt them. What would you do if you accidentally killed your bestfriend or their boyfriend?"

"I'll never have to know because nothing will happen!" I exclaimed in frustration throwing my hands down aggressively. When I did the water splashed out as if a rock had been thrown in. "Oops."

"So anger is a trigger..good to know. We should uh, start heading back."

"Yeah probably. William will be back anytime now."

When we got back to the house William was waiting in the car. I could tell he was cranky but I just couldn't bring myself to care. I waved bye to Mitch and got in the car. Without a word we started driving. It was a completely silent ride. We went upstairs to the apartment and met up with Kappy.

"How's my favourite couple?" He joked.

"Just dandy." William said sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and brought the groceries to the kitchen, dropping them a little too loud on the counter.

"Okay a fight has happened?" He asked William in the living room 

"Not yet." Will said.

"If you'd stop acting like a fucking child and my dad at the same time we'd be fine!" I yelled.

"There it is." He sighed.

"No. No 'there it is' as if you haven't been an ass the past few days and don't deserve the anger." I said stomping into the room. "No 'there it is' as if I'm just a crazy person. No. Because I'm not."

"Alright (y/n) calm down, what's the problem?" Kasperi asked softly.

"He's been mad for the past 3 days because of this night. Because I want to see my best friend."

"You see her."

"Yeah at work! That's not the same!"

"You see her almost every day."

"Yeah and it hasn't been a problem yet."

"And you want it to be?"

"It won't be!" I yelled throwing my arms up.

"You don't know that."

"William I do!"

"Hun, you might think so but you never know." Kasperi said already sick of this fight.

"How many people have I been near? How much human blood around me constantly for work? And I've never once even considered hurting someone. I know you guys asked Mitch so you know that. It has never crossed my mind to attack anyone. I'm around thousands of humans every day and I've never even considered hurting one and you're going to sit here pissy with me because I want to have my best friends over for dinner? Fucking bite me William."

"He already did." Kasperi said snickering. I shot him a look and he stopped fast though.

"You want to know what I think?"

"Not really but I'm sure you're going to tell me."

"Stop being such a fucking bitch." I yelled at him incredulously.

"You first."

"I think you're mad that I'm not having a harder time with this."

"What?"

"I think that you're upset that this is easy for me. I think you all are a little peaved to some extent but Will I think you're down right mad about it."

"You think I'm mad that you haven't killed someone?"

"Yes I absolutely do. I'm not talking about this anymore though. I have a dinner to make. If you can't have a pleasant fucking attitude you can make yourself scarce."

"And leave you alone with people? That's not fucking happening. You're not having humans over with no supervision."

"I'm around people constantly, I'm fine."

"But we're almost always there!"

"Oh for fucks sake William what would you do anyway? If I was to hurt someone while you're on the ice. If I did have a split second decision to hurt someone. How would any of you fucking stop me? You're going to go at superhuman speed off the ice in front of 40 thousand fans and camera men to come get me? Who the fuck is that going to help, you? Me? The person that I've attacked?"

"We never should've let you go back to work."

"You guys are so fucking daft. I can handle it William! Just because you couldn't.." I trailed off leaving the room.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean? He boomed.

"Exactly what it sounded like."

"You know what fine. Fine! You have it your way like always. Me and Kappy will leave."

"Good! Now maybe I can actually have fun tonight!" 

"Don't call us when you kill your friends. We aren't cleaning up your senseless messes."

"I wouldn't call you right now for anything to be quite honest." I said in a calm voice. "You could just go back to Mo's tonight for all I care."

"And what leave you here? You have no blood (y/n). That's really setting you up for disaster."

"Man you really don't have any fucking confidence in me at all do you?" He was just silent and I sighed swallowing tears. "Noted."

"(Y/n) come on-"

"Just leave William. Don't worry about me, I'm more than capable of taking care of myself."

"No you're not."

"I was doing just fine before you came into the picture."

"Fine. Whatever. Whenever you decide you're done acting like a child, figure out your own way to Morgan's place."

"Whenever you decide to stop treating me like a fucking child, I will."

He stared at me for a minute before turning and leaving the apartment. Kasperi didn't know what to do. He just looked between the door and me in the kitchen.

"Kappy go be with your friend. I'll be fine."

"You're my friend too."

"Yeah but he's the one that needs his best friend right now. Mine will be here any minute. I'll be okay."

"I know you will. Willy might not have any confidence in you but I know you aren't going to hurt your friends."

"Thank you Kas, now go please. It was nice seeing you."

"Yeah you too." He left the apartment and went down the stairs to catch up to William.

I just focused on making dinner. I was frustrated of course but I wasn't about to let it ruin my night. I was just putting the finishing touches on dinner when the doorbell rang. I ran to the door and opened it to find Amy and Mitchell smiling.

"Hey! I missed you so much." I said hugging them. "It's been forever since we've hung out like this."

"We brought wine!" Mitchell exclaimed.

"Classic. It'll go great with dinner, I'll get some glasses."

"Where's William?" Amy asked coming into the kitchen.

"Off somewhere being an ass. We got into a pretty big fight."

"Oh shit, about what?"

"Money." I said thinking quick on my feet.

"What about it?" Mitchell asked as we joined him at the table. 

"Well he's been rich his whole life. I'm just kinda coming into that kind of lifestyle. He's worried I'm going to do something to accidentally hurt people I really care about because he did before. I kind of threw it back in his face."

"Well you wouldn't hurt anybody. Even if there was no other option I don't think you'd hurt anyone." Mitchell said.

"Right?! Thank you! That's what I've been trying to tell him for the past 3 days! Never once have I thought about breaking people's trust or hurting anyone. As if my anxiety would ever even kind of allow me to let someone down."

"I really think that this is just a misunderstanding."

"I know but it really feels like he's almost disappointed that I haven't fucked up yet. It just feels bad. I can't help it."

"Your feelings are valid (y/n)."

"Thank you Mitchell."

The rest of the meal passed by with much more pleasant conversation. Mitchell had gotten a promotion at work, they had adopted a kitten named noodle, and they had moved into a place all their own without roommates. I was truly so happy for them. I hadn't told them my news yet. I didn't really feel comfortable telling Amy in front of other press people. William and I decided to not tell anyone until the half way mark. But when it was brought up how strange it was that I wasn't drinking I knew it was the perfect time to tell them.

"There was actually a reason I wanted to see you guys tonight. I have some exciting news myself."

"Oh shit, must be important to not tell me at work."

"It is. I was hoping William would be here for it but I'm not keeping it from you guys anymore."

"For god's sake tell us!" Mitchell exclaimed with a big smile.

"I'm pregnant."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Oh my God (y/n)!" Amy yelled and came to hug me. "Can I touch?"

"Yeah of course." I lifted my sweater to show my bumb that had just started to pop.

"Oh my God look at your little bump!"

"I knoooow!"

"How far along are you?" Mitchell asked giving me a hug.

"I'll be 17 weeks in a couple days."

"That's almost half way!"

"I know Amy."

"How could you keep this a secret so long?"

"Willy wanted to wait until the halfway point. But I'm mad and sick of waiting and so excited. I know you guys aren't going to leak it either so I just had to tell you early."

"I can't believe there's a little baby in there." Amy said touching my belly again.

"I know, me neither."

"You're going to be the best mommy in the world."

"Stop you're making me cry!" I laughed wiping my eyes.

The rest of the night was spent talking all things nerdy and baby. We had a lot of fun and they even spent the night. I woke up in the early morning hours to noise on the balcony. It took one breath to realize it was Auston.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed closing the door behind me.

"Hey don't get bitchy with me, I was just told to come here. I'd much rather be in bed with Mitch."

"Then go Auston."

"I wish I could."

"Did Morgan make you come here?"

"No it was Will. Don't get it mixed up he's the one with doubts not Mo."

"I said some fucked up things to him Aus."

"Like what?"

"What like you care?"

"No I'm curious though. He was really mad. He doesn't usually lose his cool like that."

"I told him I think he's mad that I'm not having a harder time with the transition. That I haven't hurt someone yet."

"Do you believe that?"

"I absolutely do. I think everyone's kinda pissed about it except Mo."

"Well I wouldn't say pissed. Everyone is glad that you haven't hurt anyone. Yes even me don't give me that look. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that that kind of thing would absolutely destroy you. I don't want that. No one does. I'd say everyone is more in disbelief or jealous."

"That could be. I never thought of it like that."

"I know you're annoyed but it's just really not fair how easy things come to you."

"Auston things don't always come easy. It seems like it because I only do things I'm good at. I get too frustrated if I can't do something and just give up on it. I'm an anxious mess all the time. Things are hard for me every day. The reason I haven't hurt anyone is because I am so paralyzingly scared of letting everyone down and breaking someone's trust in me by hurting them. That keeps me in line more than anything. The unbearable weight of not ever wanting to let people down."

"That actually sounds pretty shitty."

"It is. And then just to have the people you're trying so hard to please and do good for not trust you even a little bit fucking sucks dude. I can handle shit. I'm going to prove it too."

"How are you going to do that?"

"I'm going to stay here."

"(Y/n) come on that's not a good idea."

"Yes it is. You guys don't think I can fucking do it. I'm going to prove it to everyone, except Morgan who believes in me, that I can stay here and take care of myself as a vampire without hurting a soul."

"Hey man, I'm not going to stop you. I just didn't think it was a good idea based on everyone being so close. As if Willy is ever going to let that happen. I personally think you can do it and should."

"Thank you."

"At least if you do it we'll know where you stand. If someone gets hurt we'll know, if they don't, we'll also know. Being in the presence of millions of people around is going to be like the best test."

"See thank you that's what I think. I'm going to stay here for a week. That's my goal."

"That's a long time."

"It really isn't."

"You're just going to stay by yourself for a week?"

"I don't care if you guys drop by or whatever, I just dont want help or constant supervision. Plus Amy's around and I'll be working. It won't be that bad."

"What about hunting?"

"Auston let me handle that."

"You shouldn't go hunting for animals yet on your own, or at all really. Get the taste of blood before possibly getting yourself sick."

"Auston I don't care. I want to do this. I want to prove to you guys I can. I want you to trust me."

"Well good luck then I guess."

"Thank you."

"I'll get out of your hair. Have fun." He was ready to jump into the alley below but he stopped. "You can always come back if it gets too hard. I know I give you a rough time but I really don't want to see you struggling."

"Thanks Aus, that means a lot." He gave me a small smile and dropped.

I could do this. I was going to prove to William and everyone else that I was strong and in control of myself and my blood urges, if you could even call them that.

[nerdzzone]

Light After Dark: Chapter Eleven

Summary: Brooke Harris was trying her best to be grateful. As the world tackled the COVID-19 pandemic, she was healthy and safe and so was the rest of her family, but her dreams had very quickly been crushed by the economic fallout. Trapped on the quaint island of Jersey with nothing, but free time to wallow in her mistakes, Brooke’s mental health was taking a hit, but when she collides with a handsome stranger she starts to realize that the future might not be so bleak and there might still be a light at the end of the tunnel.

Pairing: Henry Cavill x OFC

______________

June. 14. 2020

Henry: Are you busy this evening?

Me: I'm never busy these days

Henry: That's not true. Sometimes you have plans with your family

Me: Fair point, but only because I never have a better offer 😉

Henry: Well, would you be interested in joining me for dinner tonight?

Me: Absolutely 😊

Henry: Great, I'll pick you up at six!

A quick glance at the clock told me that it was almost four now so I dragged myself off the couch and headed to the bathroom to shower and get myself date ready.

****

I walked into the kitchen at about quarter to six where Molly was doing some homework and Cassie was starting on dinner.

"Where are mum and dad?"

Cassie glanced up from the pot she was stirring.

"Just at the shop, picking up a few things we're low on," She informed me. "You look nice, any plans?"

The children took no time at all to rat us out at the party. It took less than fifteen minutes for one of them to spill the beans and force us into an awkward explanation in front of the group. The general consensus was that everyone was pleased for us though and it was nice to not have to hide anything.

"I'm going for dinner with Henry," I admitted. "He's picking me up in a few minutes."

"Ooh, very nice," She grinned. "Where are you going?"

"I don't know. Hopefully not a restaurant, I don't really feel comfortable with that yet even though I'm sure they're all taking precautions. I'll probably suggest we get takeaway and eat in the car or something."

"In the car?" Cassie laughed. "Surely on an island like this you could find somewhere more romantic than his car!"

"That's true," I smiled. "Anyway, I don't know what he has planned so we'll have to wait and see."

"Well, I'm very happy for you, Brooke."

I wrinkled my nose despite the smile on my face.

"Not necessarily much to be happy for at the moment, we're just....friends that kiss."

"Oh please," She rolled her eyes. "You're a couple. He's your boyfriend. You two just don't want to admit it."

I was about to argue, but my phone buzzed in my hand and a quick glance told me that it was Henry and he was outside.

"I have to go," I told her. "But he's not my boyfriend so don't go spreading any rumours."

"Oops, I already called TMZ."

I stuck out my tongue as she laughed at her own joke before grabbing my purse and heading for the door.

As soon as I got outside, my jaw dropped. The car sitting in our driveway probably cost more than my parent's house or at least came pretty close. He had the window rolled down and resting his elbow on the frame, leaning out with his sunglasses on in a way that was effortlessly sexy.

"Is this your car?!" I asked, still shocked by the sight.

"No, I stole it," He smirked. "Of course it's mine."

"Oh hush," I rolled my eyes. "It could belong to your dad or something."

"To be honest, it may as well. I can't take it off Jersey so he drives it more than I do."

A sly grin onto my face.

"Can I drive it?"

Henry chuckled, but shook his head.

"Nice try, but no."

"Why not?"

"Do you even have a license?"

I scoffed indignantly.

"Of course I do," I informed him. "I'm a great driver."

"I'm sure you are," He smirked. "But this isn't just any car."

I rolled my eyes, but relented.

"Alright, fine. If I'm not special enough to drive your car then I understand."

I pouted dramatically, but again, Henry just chuckled.

"Get in," He nodded his head to the passenger side. "And maybe I'll let you drive on the way home."

"Yay!" I squealed, clapping my hands as I hurried around the front of the car and got in. "Does it go really fast?"

Henry shot me a look as he reversed off the driveway.

"Questions like that will turn that maybe into a firm no."

"Fine, fine," I held up my hands in defeat. "I'll be careful. It is a great car though."

"I bought it with my first big pay cheque," He grinned proudly. "I was looking at something a little more reasonable, but my dad thought I should splash out and treat myself."

"He probably knew he'd be the one driving it most of the time," I smiled, earning a chuckle and a nod from Henry.

"You are probably right," He admitted. "So, would you like to know the plan for the evening?"

"Absolutely," I shifted slightly in my seat so I was facing him a bit more. "We're not going to a restaurant, are we? I don't want to ruin your plans, but I don't feel super comfortable with that yet."

"No, no restaurant," Henry assured me. "We're having a picnic."

"A picnic?" I smiled. "That's so romantic."

Henry glanced over quickly to shoot me a wink before turning his eyes back to the road.

"I do my best."

****

He drove us through the small little city down towards a beach, but not the same as the one we were at before. Most of the beach dwellers had gone home for the day as it was now getting into the evening so even though it was still warm and sunny, the beach wasn't at all crowded. Henry grabbed an authentic picnic basket and blanket from the boot of the car and slipped his hand in mine before leading us towards the sand. Once we'd found a nice little spot, he laid out the blanket and gestured for me to sit down.

"This is so cute," I gushed. "What a great idea!"

"I thought you might like it," He smiled, settling down next to me on the blanket. "It's safer than going out to eat and gives us more privacy than using either of our gardens."

"Oh god," I rolled my eyes. "My family would be spying out the window the entire time. Cassie and my mum have barely stopped talking about us since your family left the other day."

Henry laughed, shaking his head.

"My family have been a bit more subtle," He informed me. "But I did get a call from Charlie this morning asking about you so the news has obviously made it's way around already."

"And what did you tell him?"

I wasn't going to press the issue and make him tell me the details of a private conversation, but curiosity got the best of me and I couldn't help but ask.

"Oh, you know," Henry shrugged. "I told him that you're a baker and you make me delicious things to eat so I'm letting you hang around for now. And, of course, that you're hot so that's a bonus too."

I pulled a face and swatted his leg.

"You're so rude!"

"I'm kidding," He chuckled despite the pout that slid onto my face. "I told him that you're talented, smart, funny and gorgeous and that you've been a wonderful ray of sunshine to brighten my little lockdown life."

“Wow," I smiled, my cheeks burning from the unexpected compliments. "That's actually really sweet."

I could have sworn Henry's own cheeks looked a shade redder, but he simply shrugged.

"It's all true."

"Well, I don't want to get too cheesy, but I feel the same," I admitted. "I was feeling pretty hopeless when I first got here, but you've made my time here much more enjoyable than I anticipated it would be."

"I'm glad I could help," He smiled as I leaned against his shoulder.

He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me close, using his hand to gently tilt my face towards his before pressing his lips against mine. It was a soft, sweet kiss and despite the fact that it still seemed very surreal that our relationship reached this point, my heart was ready to burst out of my chest.  He was so tender for such a big, tough looking man and I appreciated the care and gentleness he showed in every romantic moment we'd shared so far.

I reluctantly pulled away as Henry's stomach growled rather loudly.

"Hungry, are you?" I giggled. "What did you make for dinner?"

"I didn't make it," He admitted, looking a little sheepish. "I picked it up from a local restaurant. I got a couple of sandwiches, crisps and fruit salad for dessert. They had cakes, but I thought it might ruin the mood if they're not up to your standard."

I leaned back, laughing as he unpacked the meal.

"It wouldn't have ruined the mood, I'm not a snob," I assured him. "It's nice to eat other people's baking sometimes, getting to reap the benefits without doing all the work."

"I'll remember that for next time," He smiled. "But I didn't want to chance it on our first date."

An ear to ear grin slid onto my face at that comment.

"Is that what this is? Our first date?"

"Was that not clear?" Henry smirked at me and I shrugged as he handed me a can. "How about a toast to honour the occasion?"

I glanced down at the can and saw it was wine as he pulled out a beer for himself.

"To us," I smiled, cracking open the can. "To light growing in dark places."

"Very poetic," Henry teased, gently knocking his can against mine. "To us."

I sipped my drink before investigating the can a bit closer.

"Were they sold out of champagne?"

Henry chuckled as he passed me one of the sandwiches and a napkin.

"No, but I didn't want to get too carried away since I'll have to drive us home," He informed me. "Why? Do most of your first dates start with champagne?"

"Oh yes, definitely. In fact, I normally insist on it," I laughed, my words filled with sarcasm. Henry playfully rolled his eyes as I took a bite of my sandwich, swallowing before I elaborated. "I'm just kidding. Honestly, I haven't really dated in a long time."

Henry raised an eyebrow, looking unconvinced.

"No? I'm surprised you're not fighting men off left and right."

"Definitely not," I smiled, shaking my head. "But I don't really put myself out there to give them the chance. My last relationship ended a few years ago and I dated a little after that, but I find the whole process quite tedious."

"Well, I hope you haven't found it tedious with me!"

"No, no, of course not," I rushed to assure him. "But it was different with us. We met and just enjoyed spending time together until it became more. After my ex and I broke up a couple of years ago, I realized that these days it's mostly dating apps and going out with someone you've only seen a picture of and I just can't be bothered with that. It seems so awkward."

"Fair enough," Henry nodded. "Why did you and your ex break up? If you don't mind me asking."

"No, not at all," I smiled. "He's gay. He was raised in a super religious family so it took him a long time to come to terms with it so we were together for almost two years before he finally decided he couldn't hide it anymore."

"That must have been a shock.."

"It was," I admitted. "It was a pretty hard time, but we're still good friends now and I'm glad he's comfortable being who he really is. I was upset at the time, but after I calmed down I realized how hard it was for him. Besides, it wasn't like he didn't love me, he just loved me in a different way."

"That's very understanding of you," Henry observed. "A lot of people would probably be more resentful."

"Probably," I shrugged. "But he can't change who he is so there's no point in holding a grudge. What about you? Any vengeful exes I should be aware of?"

"No, none of them are vengeful," He laughed. "Most of my break-ups were pretty amicable. I actually worked with my most recent ex, Lucy, on the Witcher. She's a stunt woman so our paths have crossed a few times and there's no bad blood there."

"That's good," I smiled. "I think it's nice when people still get along after a split. Obviously you cared for that person at one point so I always think it's such a shame when relationships deteriorate to the point where you can't even stand to be in the same room as the other person."

"I agree," Henry nodded. "Fortunately, most people I've dated have shared that outlook. I wouldn't say that I'm friends with any of them, but I don't think many would cross the street to avoid me."

"Good," I sipped my wine. "I find men who leave a trail of broken hearts behind them very off putting. I'm too old to chase around after a player."

"A player?" Henry chuckled. "That sounds like something I no longer have the energy to be so we're on the same page there."

I was already fairly certain that was true. I hadn't seen much evidence of Henry playing games or stringing me along as was so common in dating these days from both men and woman, but it was always good to have a bit of reassurance. While some people shied away from discussing their previous relationships, I'd always found being open and honest about it prevented any conflict or surprises later on.

****

We continued talking chatting as we ate our dinner and had just settled on Henry's life growing up on the island as we finished.

"So," I started, turning to face him. "If we were here and none of this virus stuff was happening, what would be your favourite places that you would have to show me?"

"Hmm, that's a good question," Henry pondered. "I definitely would have taken you to that look out point we went to, but I also would have made sure we visited Durrell Zoo."

"Oh, is that the one you do charity work for?"

Henry smirked, shaking his head.

"You need to stop googling me."

"Hey!" I protested. "You told me that yourself!"

"Did I?" He didn't seem convinced, but it was the truth. "Well, yes, it is. They're a great organization, but I also have fond memories of going there when I was a boy so it's nice to share it with other people."

"That's really sweet," I smiled. "Is it your favourite place on the island?"

"It's definitely one of them," He nodded. "But I'd also take you there if it was open."

He pointed into the distance and I followed his finger with my gaze.

"Is that a castle?" I asked, shielding my eyes from the sun to get a better look.

"It is," He smiled. "Gorey Castle or lé Vièr Châté. It was built in 1212 and was used for the defence of the island. It's really interesting, there's lots of little towers and secret rooms. And just thinking that it's been there for over eight hundred years makes it quite an experience."

"That's really cool," I agreed. "So many people must have wandered through there over the years, even before it was just used as a historical monument."

"Exactly," Henry nodded. "It's fascinating! The stories those walls could tell if they could speak would be enthralling."

Henry's eyes shined with intrigue at the thought and I couldn't help, but smile at the sight.

"You like history, don't you?"

"I do," He admitted, looking somewhat sheepish. "I find it really interesting just thinking about everything that's happened and how it's created and shaped the world we know today."

"It is interesting," I agreed. "You must have loved working on the Tudors."

"I did!" Henry smiled. "I would love to do more period pieces if the opportunity arose. There's plenty of people whose stories deserve to be told."

"It's really cool that you're so passionate about it," I mused. "Not to be rude, but I don't think many people expect someone who looks like you to be interested in things that are sometimes considered to be nerdy or uncool. It's refreshing."

"People tell me that a lot," He chuckled. "But I am who I am. I love video games, fantasy novels and history. Just because I also enjoy staying in shape and exercising and because I have to look a certain way for some roles, that doesn't change."

"And it shouldn't," I insisted. "I think that people just always need to fit everyone into one specific box, but that isn't realistic. Nerds can be hot too."

Henry tossed his head back laughing before nodding in agreement.

"Yes, yes they can," He grinned, filling me with a kind of pride at being the one to make him look so happy. "Speaking of staying in shape, was yoga something that came naturally to you or have you just become more flexible over time?"

I tilted my head questioningly, wondering where his query came from until he pointed at my legs. At some point in our conversation I'd crossed my legs and then pulled my feet up on top of my knees. The stretch felt nice and I hadn't even thought that to some people it was an unusual way to sit.

"Oh, I definitely became more flexible over time," I informed him. "I was so stiff when I first started, I couldn't even touch my toes. It's amazing how fast your body adjusts though. Now the stretches that used to be quite a strain are just naturally comfortable."

"I really should try it," Henry sighed. "I may be strong, but I am not flexible."

My face lit up as I got an idea.

"Do you want to try it? I'm not a teacher or anything, but I could show you a few moves!"

Henry hesitated at first, but then nodded.

"Alright, yeah," He agreed. "Let's give it a go."

"Great!" I smiled, pushing myself up to my feet. "Why don't you watch me the first time and then do it with me after?"

"Sure," Henry agreed, looking amused by my enthusiasm.

"Okay, I'll keep it super simple."

I moved off the blanket and onto the sand, standing so he got a sideways view. I reached my arms up above my head, enjoying the stretch before slowly bringing my hands down to the sand in front of me letting my weight fall forward to stretch my back. After pausing there for a moment, I stretched back up once more before leaning back down and planting my hands in the sand. I stepped my feet back until I was in downward facing dog.

"Following along so far?"

I turned my head to the side as I rocked my feet back and forth a bit to see Henry's reaction.

"I am," He nodded with a smirk. "But I think I'd appreciate a different angle..."

I stuck my tongue out despite my cheeks reddening at his flirty observation and turned my attention back to what I was demonstrating.

I lifted my left leg up behind me before bringing it under my body and planting my foot between my hands. Once I had my balance, I raised up and lifted my hands above my head, holding for a moment before lowering down and repeating it on the other side. After that, I lowered from downward dog into plank and hopped my feet forward before standing.

"Ta-da!"

"Well done," Henry clapped, standing up. "You'll have to direct me as we go, I don't think I can remember it all."

"That's fine," I smiled as he came to stand next to me. "So start by stretching your arms up..."

I led him through the first part, only glancing over at him once we were in downward dog. I giggled at the sight.

"Your hamstrings are tight," I observed. "Ideally, your heels should be flat on the ground."

Henry looked down between his arms towards his feet.

"They're not that far off," He protested. "But what's next?"

I guided him through the rest of it which he, unsurprisingly, handled with ease. He smiled proudly as we landed back on our feet and my heart melted at the sight.

"Good job!" I praised. "Now, do you want to see my favourite part of a yoga practice?"

He eyed me suspiciously.

"Is it some super tricky move that I'll never be able to do?"

"No," I giggled. "It's probably the easiest."

I moved back to the blanket, lowered myself to the ground and laid flat on my back with my hands by my side. Henry watched for a moment.

"Is that it?"

"It is," I confirmed with a smile. "It's called Shavasana."

My eyes were closed, but I felt Henry lay down next to me and he slid his hand into mine as he did. I bit back a smile, relaxing as we stayed like that for at least a few minutes.

"It's very calming," Henry commented. "But I can think of a position that I would find more enjoyable..."

"You can?"

As soon as the question came out of my mouth, his hand slipped out of mine and I felt his body move until it was hovering over me. I let my eyes drift open then to see his smiling face just inches above my own. I sighed happily as I moved my hands from the blanket to wrap my arms around his broad shoulders.

"This is a better position..."

Henry simply smirked before lowering his head until our lips collided. My mind went blank in the most blissful way, it was like the world around us disappeared. The weight of his strong body above me was a new sensation and one that added to the thickening atmosphere around us. The way his back muscles tensed as my hands roamed over them, tracing them through his shirt as they fought to keep him steady above me and the way he moaned just slightly as I lightly nipped at his bottom lip was almost too much for me to handle. I let my hands weave into his hair as our tongues clashed, but as I lifted my leg, hooking it around his hip in a desperate attempt to get us even closer together, he pulled away, resting his forehead against mine.

"I'm sorry," He sighed, breathing heavily. "We have to stop."

I let my foot fall back against the blanket, my cheeks reddening as I realized how carried away I'd gotten and how it would look to anyone else on the beach.

"Sorry," I mumbled shyly. "I got a bit lost in the moment."

Henry chuckled and bent his head to peck my lips again before rolling over and sitting next to me.

"You don't need to be sorry," He assured me. "I thoroughly enjoyed every second, perhaps a bit too much, but if we kept going I'm not sure I'd have the willpower to stop and getting caught having sex on the beach would not be a good look for Superman..."

I couldn't help, but laugh at that as I sat up next to him.

"No, I imagine it wouldn't be," I agreed. "It wouldn't be a great look for me either really even though I'm sure no one would blame me for being powerless to resist you."

"I think it would be the other way around," He argued. "You're the irresistible one here."

"Hardly," I playfully rolled my eyes. "I've read the comments on your Instagram, they're much more juicy than the ones on mine."

"That's a good thing," Henry smiled. "Or I'd have to make some big romantic post about you to stake my claim."

"You have a claim, do you?" I raised an eyebrow. "I know you like history, but you don't need to go all caveman on me."

"Is that caveman behaviour? It's probably more something a knight would do."

"No, if you were a knight you would joust for me," I teased. "And that is something I wouldn't mind seeing."

"Well, I do have some skill on horseback," Henry admitted. "But jousting is a bit dangerous for my taste."

"Do you actually?" I asked, suddenly intrigued. "Know how to ride a horse, I mean."

"Of course!" Henry looked at me like I was crazy. "I rode one in the Witcher, did I not?"

"Sure," I shrugged. "But not for very long. I assumed they stuck you on a really tame one for just long enough to get the shot."

He laughed at that suggestion, but shook his head.

"No, I spent a lot of time bonding with that horse and I can ride very well," He insisted. "I can take you sometime if you're interested? I know the owner of one of the stables on the island quite well."

Excitement buzzed in my stomach at the thought. I'd always loved horses, but riding lessons were expensive and not in our budget when I was a child.

"That would be great!" I grinned. "I'd love to!"

"Perfect," Henry nodded. "I'll call them and see what I can sort out, but for now, I should get you home before you freeze."

I was hoping Henry hadn't notice the shivers that had been running through me since the loss of his body heat, but as the sun was starting to set my thin long sleeved shirt and shorts weren't cutting it. I reluctantly nodded and he rose to his feet before holding out his hand for me. Once the blanket was folded, he took my hand and we started off towards the car when I remembered what he'd said at the start of our date.

"Do I get to drive us home?!"

Henry looked nervous as his eyes flicked over to me.

"Do you promise to drive slowly and not scrape anything?"

"Of course," I smiled. "I promise to drive more carefully than ever before."

He gave it another moment of thought before sighing and handing me the keys. I cheered and practically dragged him back to the car as I ran towards it eagerly, thinking that this was probably the best date that I had ever been on.

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