#SO. OKAY I ACCIDENTALLY POSTED THE WRONG VERSION

[allphatauri]

half-full abandonment (repost)

[dotster001]

Meeting Their Future Kids With You

Summary: Vil/Idia/Crewel/Crowley/Malleus/Rook x gn! Reader. A child suddenly appears. And it seems to have a connection to you? Requested by @stygianoir

A/N: It's in my pinned post, and I've mentioned this in a couple posts, but if this is the first of my stuff you've read, I view NRC as an actual college, so reader here is 18+. If it makes you more comfy, imagine it as grad school age.

CW: spreading my asexual Malleus agenda, especially now that I've been spoiled for the fact that the dragon lays an egg and all it needs is love to hatch. ASEXUAL MALLEUS CAN NOW BE CANON Y'ALL!!!! Anyways...his kid is the only one with physical descriptors, so do with that what you will 😅

3k followers masterlist

Something was wrong. There was a presence at Ramshackle that shouldn't be there. Could it be? Could someone be trying to steal you from him? No! He had only just started courting you! It wasn't fair. 

He poofed into your sitting room and froze. 

You were snuggling what looked like…a small version of him?

You looked up and your jaw dropped.

"Wait, I thought this was you!" You looked back down at the kid who giggled and made grabby hands at Malleus.

"Daddy!"

Ah! Yes, he understood now. Draconia genes were strong. This child clearly was barely old enough to even hold a human form, it was not out of the realm of possibility that it had accidentally used a time travel spell. Perhaps that was even the child's unique magic.

He walked over to the child in your arms, scooped it up, and gave it a soft kiss between the two tiny horns emerging from their head.

"It's wonderful to see you, but it's time to go home, little one."

The child nodded sagely and vanished in a puff of green smoke. You looked at him in complete confusion, but he simply laughed, repeating his kiss, but this time to your forehead.

He knew you were his soulmate.

He knew with a single glance. The familiarity the twin girls before him held in their gazes, the way they carried themselves, the hats on their heads. Everything screamed his influence.

And though that didn't make any sense, Rook knew his eye and his instincts were never wrong.

But there was something about the girls that was distinctly…..

"Rook! Hi- aw shit, please tell me you didn't kidnap some kids!"

So distinctly you.

The two girls shared what, to anyone but Rook, would seem like an unsettling smile as you approached the silent scene.

"Non non, they are just passing through, oui, petites fleur's?"

"Oui," they said simultaneously, grinning at you, their eyes taking in your every facial twitch.

"Uh, okay? Relatives of yours?"

"One could say that."

All three of them laughed, leaving you confused and a little frightened.

It was a normal day like any other. Searching for Epel who had once again fled his lessons.

And he had found him in the worst possible place. A mud pile with an already very muddy teenage girl.

Epel splashed the girl with a childish giggle, and she laughed hysterically.

"Papa was right, you were crazy!" She giggled making a mud ball and throwing it at him.

He dodged and it hit Vil.

"Ah shit," she whispered under her breath. But after a second of reflection, she grinned. "Wait, why am I scared? You're not the boss of me."

Vil glared, and she suddenly looked apologetic again.

Both Epel and the girl stared at the ground, completely avoiding eye contact.

"What school are you from?" Vil snapped at the girl.

She snickered but said nothing.

"Who do I report you to?"

She laughed louder. "Nah, I don't have to tell you shit."

"Language," he snapped, and tears filled her eyes.

"It was all uncle Epel's fault. I told him I didn't want to play in the mud, but he made me do it!"

"You absolute rat!" Epel shouted, picking up some mud and preparing to throw it.

Vil cast a quick spell, freezing both of you in place. He stormed over and snatched each of your wrists, preparing to storm off with the two trouble makers in tow, when he saw the shimmering gold bracelet on your wrist. Engraved on it was L/N-Schoenheit.

He stared for a moment, then groaned.

"Epel, remind me to never let you around my future child."

"He's my godfather," the girl grinned impishly, and Vil felt a part of himself die.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for my dad. You look like you could be related to him."

Idia knew he shouldn't have left his room today. All he wanted was a snack, and to maybe see you if you happened to not be in a class right now, and now this extroverted teenager was asking about his dad.

What the absolute fuck?

He quickly pulled out his ipad, typing something about how anyone related to him wasn't worth finding, when the twerp yanked the iPad out of his hands.

"Nevermind, I figured it out," the kid snorted. "Hi dad!"

Idia started stuttering. Not only was this twerp an extroverted teen who stole his iPad, he was also insane.

"Nah, nah, not today, not today…" Idia started muttering under his breath.

The kid rolled his eyes.  

"Forgot about this part. Guess they really did change you for the better," he started typing something on his watch, and a hologram popped up, showing the kid, you, and Idia…? Your and Idia's faces were a bit more lined than they were right now but….it was definitely you.

He stared at the hologram, his hair turning a bright red. 

"Oh! Hey Idia!" Your voice called from behind him.

He turned and waved to you shyly, then turned back to the teen. But he was gone.

And the damn boy stole his iPad.

If his hair wasn't already dyed, those two freshmen would have given him gray hair by now.

Once again, they'd made a potion explode in his classroom. And once again, the fallout would be a pain to clean up.

Where you had once sat was a small child. A small child who was looking at him expectantly.

"Well?" She asked.

At first he had assumed this small child was your child form. But no. She looked nothing like you. Though, she did have a similar glint in her eye.

"Who are you?" He asked softly, not wishing to scare the child with the rage that was building up inside him. He'd told you again and again that your friends were trouble, and now look where it got you.

Wait. Where exactly were you?

Before the girl could speak, a red smoke filled the room, and a him with a few more wrinkles appeared, dragging you by the wrist. Your face was covered in a vicious pout.

"I already told them," future Crewel said, eying the freshmen with a vicious glare. "No need to repeat it."

He opened his arms in front of the little girl, a warm smile taking over his features, as the girl climbed into his arms, snuggling into him. He pointed at you and the freshman one more time, said, "Behave." And vanished into red smoke.

Present day Crewel pinched the bridge of his nose, and pointed at you.

"He already said it," you snapped,punching Ace in the shoulder for good measure.

"Morning dad."

"Morning," Crowley muttered tiredly as he sipped his coffee.

Then he choked on it. There should be no one in his office right now. And there should be no one calling him dad.

He looked over and saw a kid who was somewhere between the age of 10 and 13 sorting through his stack of paperwork.

"Pardon me, but do you mind explaining what you're doing?"

The kid looked up and raised a brow in confusion.

"Um, morning paperwork?" He laughed nervously. "Wait did you forget that….uh, nevermind, I'll just go then."

The kid hastily made the papers into a pile, grabbed a backpack, and started to hustle out of the office. Only to be stopped when he bumped into you as you were storming into the office.

"Crowley! You promised you'd fix my goddamn roof!"

"Dad said I wasn't grounded anymore!"

Both of you shouted over the top of each other, and then stared in confusion.

The kid sprinted out of the office, knocking you over in the process.

Dire, meanwhile, released a delighted giggle, his face feeling warm as he grinned at you with a lovesick grin. Only to be annoyed as you brought up your roof again.

"If you excuse me, I have other things to attend to. I assure you that child will only cause trouble."

He ran out of his own office, no intention of actually finding his future son, only intending to hide from you.

Too bad you could always see through him, and were right on his tail.

[slitsfordan]

DanandPhilCrafts + Fucked Up Queer Devotion + Christian Homophobia: An Essay

We’ve all been talking about the willingness of Dan and Phil to perform the ritual, we’ve all been talking about the intimacy of carving out your lover’s heart, but I have not heard anyone talk about the fucked up side of Dan and Phil’s (fictional) relationship with each other, and with Him, so here goes.

On the craft channel, Dan and Phil act overwhelmingly positive, like satanic children’s show hosts, but this is clearly a farce. We see them drop their smiles quite a few times during the crafting- most notably in Glitter Faces when Dan’s craft turns out wrong, and when Phil cuts Dan’s hand. “Don’t cry, craft” is directed towards the audience, but it seems Dan and Phil are following their own advice. Cults, after all, prey on vulnerable people. While they do seem scared of doing the ritual, and their involvement with Him, they are, however, definitely willing. In

The blood on Dan after he kills Phil is interesting; The handprint on his shirt isn’t a sign of a struggle, but rather Phil just grabbing his shirt- that’s pretty intimate, honestly. The blood on his face could’ve been caused by a bunch of things: blood splatter he wiped at? wiping at his face (eyes?) with a bloody hand? or Phil holding his face? (I like the third option) The blood on his nose might totally have been accidental, and just a thing that happened, but it could also be an allusion to the cat whiskers, in the spirit of bringing things back to the beginning and whatnot.

After the ritual is complete, there’s the obvious tarot symbolism. @freckliedan has a great post about this, but I’ve got more to add, so bear with me. Yes, Dan and Phil are framed as the lovers, but that’s not all. While the sexual deviance associated with the devil card has clear connections to queerness, it’s main association is usually unhealthy relationships and dependence. From this, and the obvious devotion displayed in the video, the craft versions of Dan and Phil are implied to be unhealthily dependent on each other, and devoted to the point of obsession. While the relationship certainly isn’t abusive, this obsession just isn’t healthy.

Furthering the unhealthy relationship idea is when Phil calls Dan “Sampson”. In the Bible or whatever (I’m not Christian sue me) Sampson topples these pillars, killing both himself and his enemies, which has a clear parallel to Dan’s stacked ingredients falling over, but the use of “folly” is interesting, and suggests a further connection. Sampson had married a prostitute, and she sold him out, basically, leading to his enslavement and later death. In this story, this is the clearest and most obvious act of folly by Sampson: marrying someone who he shouldn’t have, someone who it was taboo for him to be with. Connected to Dan and Phil, it suggests that their relationship is dangerous due to the social taboo, but it’s also implied that Phil will betray Dan. Perhaps we’ll see that in a 5th crafts installment, or perhaps it’s simply a commentary on being in a relationship with someone considered unacceptable.

Speaking of unhealthy relationships, that’s sure what they’ve got with Him! Leading up to the ritual, Dan and Phil are shown to be scared of Him, even though they call Him their friend. Dan’s head shake when Phil says “crafting has improved my life in numerous ways” is very telling. At the end, Dan’s shoulders tense at His first footstep, however, when He actually touches Dan, he doesn’t seem scared at all- forgive me for this next point, but from the way he kinda leans into the touch and tilts his head back, it seems more like he’s going for “turned on” rather than “scared”.

“Okay, cool” you say, “but what does it mean?” Well, Dan and Phil’s relationship in this series is not just about homoerotic undertones- this is an allegory for toxic queer sexual relationships. Why would they make something about toxic relationships when they’re in a healthy relationship? With the toxicity, and the power imbalances, and the satanism, Dan and Phil’s (fictional) relationship is a representation of Christian fears of queerness, and the supposed immoral/corrupting/anti-Christian effects of being in a queer relationship. The fear Dan and Phil show throughout the series is representative of internalized homophobia. They’re scared to align themselves with Him because it means accepting their own queerness. Dan shows more fear than Phil throughout the series (like after his glitter face turns out to be a pentacle) which parallels his real world internalized homophobia that he’s experienced. By holding hands with the devil (or baphomet?) standing behind them, Dan and Phil have embodied every conservative fear about queerness, but have come out on top. Through their YouTube channel, we get to do the same.

[brehaaorgana]

ADHD money/budgeting system I'm currently using for my benefit is going well (I've been using it for like half a year now?), and I wanna recommend it.

You Need a Budget is EXCELLENT. 10/10 do recommend. Uhhh rambling about it and my generic disclaimers + gushing extensively under the cut but TL;DR I think it's great for ADHD ppl, I've used it for 6+ months now and I find it super SUPER helpful. also weirdly fun.

DISCLAIMERS:

Budgeting helps you understand/know your money, it can't make money appear where there is none.

Everyone should learn to budget even if you don't have much money (especially then)

This is NOT a magic trick solution. Just like everything else, it is an assistive tool. This is one of those adult things we can't simply opt out of without negative consequences, though.

My advice is based on something I am currently able to do. That is, I can spend an amount of money on this specific thing that works well for me. If you have no extra money to spend then previously I was tracking things in a notebook. So you can still do this.

I believe Dave Ramsey is a fundie fraud/hack and no one should listen to him about money.

DID YOU KNOW THEY CANCELLED MINT???

Okay? OKAY.

Ahem.

You Need a Budget is EXCELLENT.

It is called YNAB for short. The first 34 days are your free trial, and that is my referral link. If anyone uses it and then signs up for a subscription, we both get a month free. Also you can share a subscription with up to six people (account owner can see everything but individuals can pick and choose what they share amongst each other) so like...idk your whole polycule can be on one account. Or your kids. Whatever.

If you are a student, it's free for a year. If you aren't, a subscription is $99 for a year (paid all at once) or $14.99 monthly, which is equivalent to paying Amazon prime. Go cancel Prime and get this instead tbh.

They got a whole article just on ynab and ADHD. They also have like...a big variety of ways to access their info? They have a book, podcast episodes, YouTube videos, blog posts, q&A's, free live workshops you can join (you can request live captioning), emails they can send (if you want) a wiki, and so on. They got workshops on all kinds of topics!!

So whatever ends up working for your brain. It also has a matching app.

If you lost Mint this year they have a gajillion things for moving from Mint.

Also they have a "got five minutes?" Page which has a slider so you can decide how much attention/time you have before going on lol:

They only have 4 rules of the budget, they're simple and practical, and it doesn't get judgey or like...mean about your spending.

1. Give every dollar a job 2. Embrace your true expenses 3. Roll with the punches 4. Age your money.

THEN THEY BREAK THESE DOWN INTO SMALL STEPS FOR YOU! They even have a printable! Also these rules are great because there's built in expectations that things WILL HAPPEN and it's NOT all or nothing with a fear of total collapse into failure. Reality and The Plan don't always align, especially if you have ADHD. So it's directing our energy towards the true expenses and not clinging to The Plan!! over reality.

You can automate a lot of shit (you can sync with your bank accounts just like mint, but also automate tagging the categories of regular expenses/transactions). And if for whatever reason you accidentally do something that makes the budget look weird or wrong:

A) you can usually fix it somehow OR b) they have like, a button you can press that gives you a clean slate and archives the previous version of the budget for you.

So if you forget for a few weeks or months, or accidentally input something wildly wrong, or just don't want to look at a really terrible month anymore and feel like you need a fresh start you can usually either fix it or start fresh which is really nice.

The app also (for whatever reason) scratches my itch to have things like...have incentives or little game-like goals in a way mint never did? I don't know why. Filling up the bars or putting money into the categories to cover my expenses is satisfying lmao. You can also make a big wish expense category for all the fun shit you want, and fund it whenever you can and then you can see the little bar go up and that's fun.

Anyways I've been using it for like 6+ months now and I think it's really helped me when I use it.

[epicbuddieficrecs]

Weekly Recap | June 3rd-23th 2024 ~ Fics

Sorry for skipping a two weeks! I had a work thing the weekend before before last and work is a bit busy at the moment so I couldn't get to it during the week. Hope you enjoy!

Complete

Take the Lead by Inell/ @inell (Getting Together, Post-S7 | 1,3K | Teen): Buck and Eddie finally have a conversation that they’ve needed to have for months, if not years.

take me out and take me home by bellabrady (Getting Together | 1,7K | Not Rated): Maddie has been texting him, asking him if he’s asked Buck yet and reassuring him that he’ll say yes, although after a few days, it seems her patience started to run out and the reassurance kind of turned into bullying. So he’s going to do it. He’s going to ask Buck out on a date, today. Partially because he wants to finally be with Buck and this will hopefully be the start of that and partially because he’s getting tired of Maddie texting him that he’s a coward — Or: Buck and Eddie finally go on a date.

thanks, babe! by bucksclipboard/ @excuseme-greentea (Getting Together | 1,8K | Teen): Eddie accidentally calls Buck babe and refuses to have a meltdown over it. It was just his subconscious betraying him because they were surrounded by couples, right? Right?!

hit the jackpot by coupe_de_foudre/ @panevanbuckley (Canon Divergent, 1x09: Trapped | 2K | General): “I’m your husband.” “You’re my husband? Holy shit!”

baby don't you know? (you're my golden hour) by ipretendtobesane/ @useramor (Post-S6 | Getting Together | 2K | General): Eddie will give him this: Chimney does wait months after Buck’s out of his coma and back by his side to bring it up. “How come you and Buck haven’t told anyone you’re together?”

I wish I could help by bucksclipboard/ @excuseme-greentea (Post-7x05: You Don't Know Me, PWP | 2K | Explicit): Eddie is so pent up he can barely focus on his job – and Buck is all too happy to help. That’s just what friends do.

the 'i' in ikea stands for 'i love you' by ipretendtobesane/ / @useramor (Getting Together, Didn't Know They Were Dating | 2,8K | Teen): buck has some life changing realizations in the curtain section of ikea. mainly, he's really, really in love with his best friend.

Chance Encounter by Inell / @inell (Canon Divergent, Shannon Lives, Divorced Eddie/Shannon, S4 | 3K | Teen): When Eddie and Buck go to the Hollywood Farmer’s Market, Eddie doesn’t expect to run into his ex-wife for the first time since moving to LA two years ago.

(for every question why) you were my because by thatbuddie (talktothesky) (Post-S7, Getting Together | 3K | Teen): “Being boyfriends and being friends is really different,” Buck says. “But if you’re so okay being friends with him,” Eddie explains, “It means there wasn’t anything he did wrong while being your boyfriend. So I don’t understand why you broke up with him.” “I didn’t break up with him because he did anything wrong.” Eddie opens his arms wide and then lets them drop down to hit the side of his thighs. “But then what happened? I just don’t understand. What happened?” “You! That’s what happened: You!” (or, Buck breaks up with Tommy but won’t talk about it, and Eddie just needs to know why.)

of bake sales and overdue realizations by brewrosemilk/ @gayhoediaz (Getting Together | 4,8K | Teen): Eddie doesn’t notice it until it becomes a thing that happens even when it’s just him and Buck, without Chris anywhere near them - but even then, he doesn’t find it strange, or give it much thought. Buck is the one who starts ending their phone calls with a quick ‘love you’ but it doesn't take long before Eddie does the same, often beating him to it.

one single static frame by signetsealed/ @gayeddieagenda (Post-S7, Pre-Buddie | 5K | General): Chris is gone and Buck and Eddie are called on for babysitting duty. Eddie has feelings about it.

some version of you that I might not have (but I did not lose) by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Coma Dream, Pre-Buddie | 5K | Teen): Either Eddie is dreaming and can't wake up, or he's losing his mind. He's not sure which one is more likely.

Baby Got Buck by bgonemydear, Chash/ @ponyregrets (Pre-canon to S7 | 5K | Mature): Five times Buck checked out a guy's ass before he figured out he was bi, and one time someone checked out his after.

sounding like the rest of my life by coupe_de_foudre/ @panevanbuckley (Canon Divergent, Getting Together | 6K | General): or, Eddie does a Ravi and swaps shifts for a bit, only everyone on B Shift is convinced that he and Buck are married. they might not be as wrong as Eddie initially thought.

buried deep, our love comes home by lookforanewangle (Post-3x15: Eddie Begins | 7K | Teen): “You care for him.” “Of course I do,” Buck says, gaze back on Eddie against his will. He squeezes Eddie’s hand again. “He’s my best friend.” “That’s not what I meant.” “I—I don’t—Bobby, it-it’s not like that—” or: After a traumatic few days, Buck and Eddie get their shit together.

i told my future by reading your lips by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (2x06: Dosed, Time Travel | 7K | Teen): In 2018, on their way to a call at a child beauty pageant, and feeling a little strange, Buck and Eddie are suddenly thrown into a fast-paced look at some key moments from their future. And, what they see? Well it can only lead to one logical conclusion.

oh, come when you're called by lesbianrobin/ @lesbianrobin (Post-S7 | 8K | Teen): Chris wants his dad. He wants his bed. But he can't have those yet, and he and Dad never really text because if Dad’s not working they’re usually together or one of them is too busy to text, so texting Dad feels weird, but Buck… He can text Buck.

🔥 Saints into the Sea by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Post-7x05: You Don't Know Me, Coming Out, Jealous Eddie | 8K | Teen): There's an itch between his shoulder blades when Buck talks about Tommy, when Buck asks Eddie if he wants to join the two of them for a drink after work, when Buck smiles at a text message and Eddie knows it's from Tommy. His stomach had been twisted in knots for half of Maddie and Chim's wedding, watching the two of them. There's only one awful, inevitable conclusion: Eddie isn't actually as comfortable with Buck's coming out as he thought he was. Which is, frankly, unacceptable.

If You Want It, You Can Have It by fruitsdoesnotknow/ @tayf-ghost (Post-S7, Halloween, Identity Porn | 9K | Mature): Buck just wants to enjoy a Halloween night out with the 118, drinking and dancing and making fun of Ravi's costume, all the while trying to handle his newfound feelings for Eddie. He thinks he's being smart, trying to get over his best friend, or at the very least, keep his secret under wraps. He ends up doing the exact opposite. It ends up yielding great results.

🔥 We're at an Impasse Here; Maybe We Should Compromise by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Post-S7 | 9K | Teen): "You cannot murder anyone," says Maddie. "Also, if you were going to murder your captain, it would be very stupid to write murder down as your top idea for how to deal with him." "It's on a dry erase board!" Chim protests. So far, all he's written on the board is Ways to Deal with Capt Gerrasshole, and then 1. Murder? below it. "And I put a question mark. So even if I didn't erase it, the jury would never convict. A question mark introduces reasonable doubt."

friends don't mean nothing to me (it's us) by Kwills91/ @kwills91 (Pre-S2, Canon Divergent | 15K | Teen): Buck and Eddie meet before he joins the 118, and it just might be the balm he needs to get over Abby. But when Eddie starts working at the station, Buck doesn't understand why Hen and Chim keep looking at them that way, or why Bobby seems to think they're dating.

🔥 when the longer days of sun appear, they'll be rising like an answered prayer by Chash/ @ponyregrets (Post-S7, Fake Relationship | 18K | Explicit): Eddie is generally worried when Tommy and Buck break up because Tommy's ex moved back to town, and even more worried when that leaves Buck without a date to a wedding. So, of course, Eddie's going to help him out with all of that.

🔥 like a bird stealing bread out from under your nose by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Post-S7, Fix-It | 21K | Mature): If you’d asked Eddie back in May what rock bottom looked like, it was his son leaving him. That felt like it; everything ruined so entirely that there was no way to ruin it further. There’s always more to lose.

🔥 some things fall when they're meant to fall by sibylsleaves/ @sibylsleaves (Post S7E5 | 25K | Teen): Eddie’s gaze drop to Buck’s lips—pink, like his birthmark. Eddie wants to taste those lips, and he wants it with a fierceness so sudden it shocks him. “I’m, uh,” Buck stammers. “Last night. When you saw me and Tommy…we—we were on a date.” Everything inside Eddie goes still. If his heart is a kite, then this is the moment it plummets back to earth. or, Buck tells Eddie some news. Eddie has a realization and breaks up with his girlfriend. Not necessarily in that order.

🔥 that magic feeling by woodchoc_magnum/ @woodchoc-magnum (S7 Fix-It | 42K | Explicit): An alternate ending to season 7, in which Eddie doesn't completely blow his life up, and he and Buck realise they're in love.

🔥 ripples all the way down by iriswests/ @fcntasmas (Getting Together, S4 | 52K | Mature): With some coercion, Buck allows Maddie to set him up on a date. Surprisingly, the date goes well — and it keeps his mind off the unnamable feelings he’s been studiously ignoring for his best friend. Until Christopher’s science report on gentoo penguins — no, seriously — sets off a series of events that has him somehow spending more time at the Diazes’ side, and he feels like he’s going just a little bit insane trying to juggle a burgeoning relationship, his jealousy over Eddie’s own new relationship with Ana, and his inability to move on from the place that’s been his for three years in the Diazes’ lives. Oh, and Eddie keeps looking at him like he has something to say — except he never says it. This is the tumultuous road to finding out what Buck truly wants, paved by pebbles. -- or; christopher partakes in some parent trapping

🔥 stuck now so long, we just got the start wrong by Daffi_990_ao3/ @daffi-990 (Canon Divergent, Different First Meeting | 85K | Not Rated): Probational Firefighters Evan “Buck” Buckley and Eddie Diaz meet on a call which ends with them at odds with each other. As the months roll by, they keep running into each other on the job, much to Eddie’s dismay and Buck’s delight. Can they put aside their first opinions and misunderstandings and allow the seeds of friendship, and possibly something more, to take root?

WIP

🔥 Steal My Sunshine by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Altered Memories | 7/9 | 24K | Mature): Memories hazy and unreliable, Eddie Diaz wakes up every morning in a house at the end of a cul de sac, goes to his office job at a petroleum engineering company, and comes home to his wife and son. But something is missing, and the more Eddie begins to put the pieces together, the stranger the predicament he finds himself in. 

🔥 If You Can Make the Music by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon Divergent, | 1/5 | 2K | Mature): Spin-off Sequel to Evan Buckley & the Coma-Verse of Madness - Chapter 5 (Seaside): A year after a whirlwind two week love affair with bartender Buck in Galveston, Texas, Eddie Diaz finds himself coincidentally relocating to the area. But when he attempts to reconnect with Buck, he's in for an unfortunate surprise. (Part 3 of Coma-Verse)

The Smutty Ones by Tizniz/ @tizniz (PWP | 55/? | 22K | Explicit): A collection of smutty Buddie drabbles.

🔥 Things We're All Too Young to Know by Daisies_and_Briar / @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon S1-S6, Divergent Post-S6 | 129/? | 405K | Mature): This is a love story. Even if it doesn’t always look like it. Even if it doesn’t always feel like it. A look back on Eddie and Buck's lives up to now, and what led them to each other, interpreted from the current 9-1-1 canon.

Kiss Me Once Cause You Know I Had A Long Night by I_still_dont_understand_13 / @sherlockcrossing (Prompt collection | 33/? | 21K | Teen): 100 kiss prompts.

Chapter 33. 19. "If we get caught kissing we're dead but let's risk it." 

🔥 Held Up a Lightning Rod (Wonder Why I'm Struck) by letmetellyouaboutmyfeels/ @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels (Not A Firefighter Eddie, Sugar Baby Buck | 4/22 | 18K | Explicit): When Eddie Diaz stumbles his way into money, he finds himself one of the most eligible bachelors in Los Angeles - to his dismay. He needs a way to get people off his back without confessing his messy marital situation, and Shannon's still not answering his calls, so he caves to a friend's suggestion: hire someone to pretend to be his partner. Enter Evan "Buck" Buckley: sugar baby, fire fighter, and the man about to turn Eddie's world upside down.

🔥 Any Other Way by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon Divergent, S2 | 13/19 | 67K | Mature): In a switcheroo alternate universe, Buck spends young adulthood in the military, while Eddie, who has no idea Christopher exists, spends his twenties messing around, finally enjoying freedom away from his family’s expectations. When they both end up in Los Angeles, at the 118, some things are different, and others will be the same in any universe.

Re-Read

the secrets we keep (the ones that spill out) by sparegarbage/ @babybucks (Getting Together | 4K | General): Or: Buck and Eddie comfort each other with cuddles, hugs, and kisses (platonically—or so they think).

Tear me to pieces and make me feel whole by justhockey (Getting Together | 2K | Not Rated): And that’s when it clicks. In the pasta aisle of the grocery store, at 10am on a Saturday morning. Buck is frowning as he tries to decide what to get - and Eddie is in love with him.

[riomsworld]

Okay , so I have seen that many people are talking about this picture:

Many people say that it is showing that the paper in Lloyd's hand is the reason that the two of them do not like each other anymore. And that is a fine theory don't get me wrong! But I have my own:

It is a known fact 'Indogo Park' is inspired by Disney and their parks, and I think so is this picture.

The Disney World ride "Mr Toads Wild Ride " was replaced in 1998 by "The Many Adventures of Winnie Pooh". But as an Easter egg , Imaginers put in a little nod to the old ride that was replaced: a picture of Mr Toad giving Owl the deed of the ride

It is locatet at the entrance of Owls hous , and it can be easily missed.

Now let's look at both pictures,aren't they similar?

But there is also another clue that the picture of Rambley and Lloyd is a refrence to this!

When the train crashes, and we have to go backstage to fix it we find this :

A sign to a ride called "Lloyd's Limos." But the park does not seem to have a ride with such a name , or at least the current version we visit. The ride probably existed once in the park , but it got remodelled and replaced by the train ride with Rambly.

((The name of the Lloyd ride probably had even the same nature as the ride with Rambly, the only difference beeing that the visitor rode a limo insted of a train , but tgat is just my theory))

And if you think I am lying and that this picture does not exist: here

So TLDR: The picture is a refrence to Disneyland, and not only a lore clue

(I am sorry for the spelling mistakes,I typed this quickly while I was in a train )

Edit: I got corrected in the comments that I accidentally switch around Disney World and Disney land in my post. I thought this happened in Disneyland, but it did actually at Disney World. I am sorry that i mixed those two up. Thanks to @micromys for pointing that one out. :3

[demonpiratehuntress]

that's not for you to decide

Roronoa Zoro x F!Reader

Summary - he thinks you deserve better, and decides to push you away. that just makes everything worse, but you ultimately forgive the big idiot.

Warnings - HEAVY angst in the beginning but turns to comfort, this can work for both versions of Zoro i think? REPOSTING BECAUSE I ACCIDENTALLY POSTED THE INCOMPLETE DRAFT

GIF by anime-aishiteru

GIF by suuho

You don't know how it came to this. You tried to replay everything you'd ever done, to figure out where it all went wrong. To figure out what you could have possibly gotten so wrong for this to happen. But you were drawing blanks, and it tugged on your heartstrings even more.

You sat there and watched the swordsman listen intently to the woman who spoke to him, a beautiful native of the island.

Your crew had stopped here to replenish your resources. It was supposed to have been just that, yet you ended up staying for far longer than you expected. The downside to having an overenthusiastic captain with a unquenchable thirst for adventure, you supposed. Luffy would never have just sailed away and left this small village to suffer at the hands of a not-so-mythical and super grumpy griffin.

But now here you were, pining after the one person you wanted most in the world - who only seemed to be pushing you away. It gnawed at your heart, and left you painfully overthinking everything you'd ever said to him, everything you'd ever done for him. A week earlier everything had been fine, and he was friendly with you. Then something changed, and he grew distant and cold. And now, it seemed, he was adding 'breaking your heart' to the list of things he was doing to you.

You looked down at your drink just in time to see a teardrop make contact with the alcoholic liquid, the collision sending ripples outwards in the small, circular shape of the glass. You had tried hard, really hard, to not cry right here, in front of everyone. But fate, it seemed, was working even harder to make sure you were heartbroken by the end of the night.

"(Name) are you okay?"

You barely heard Nami, your eyes drifting back towards Zoro and the woman who was chatting to him animatedly. He met your gaze, and for a moment something flickered in his eyes, before he turned his attention back to her and moved closer. He gave her his full attention, making sure to show that he was actually listening and not dozing off like he did whenever Nami was bothering him. Your heart sunk even lower in your chest, a dull aching beginning to grow. The tears fell faster, and you gripped your drink tighter as that familiar stinging in your throat came. You dropped your head again, before unintentionally letting out a loud sob.

All your crewmate's heads snapped in your direction.

"S-Sorry," you apologised, hastily putting your drink down before getting up. "I-I'm-" You stopped when you noticed only one of them hadn't even bothered to look in your direction.

"That idiot," you heard Nami and Sanji grumble in unison.

That was the last straw for you. Your heart crashed to the bottom of its cavern, shattering in the process. Tears filled your eyes faster than you could stop them, blurring your vision to the point you only saw a blob of green a few feet away. You swayed on your feet, stumbling a bit, the full weight of his rejection hitting you full force.

"(Name)!"

You jerked away from the hand that grabbed your arm, not knowing who it was. Only then did Zoro look at you, but that's because everyone else was looking at you as well. You turned and fled, your shaky legs doing their best to carry you as far away from the scene as possible.

You fled into the forest, an area known on this island for it's unimaginable horrors.

-

He only thought you deserved better. In his mind, he was doing you a favour by pushing you away. Because he wasn't good for you, and he didn't deserve you. You deserved a lot better than him. And this was what he thought was a reasonable justification for his behaviour.

His heart sunk at the sight of your tears. He was acting like he didn't see them, but he noticed each and every drop that fell and each one caused a painful pang to reverberate through his chest. He hated it when you were upset, and he despised when you cried. But now he was the cause of it. Part of him wanted to drop this act, run to you and beg for forgiveness.

But he stayed where he was.

He let you think he didn't care. That he was going to keep chatting up this mindless bimbo in front of him. Because that was better for you right? He was only doing this for your sake.

Someone's fist collided with his jaw, sending him stumbling back a bit.

"What the hell?!" He glared at the blonde cook, "You really wanna start a fight right here, waiter?"

Sanji was about to say something equally insulting, but was interrupted by a bloodcurdling scream erupting from within the forest's tall, gloomy trees.

Your bloodcurdling scream.

Zoro's blood ran cold. Every bone in his body stiffened for a millisecond, before he tore off towards the forest, sprinting faster than he ever had in his life. His heart was racing a million miles an hour, thundering in his chest like it would break out of his chest and beat him to you.

When he finally found you, his heart almost stopped.

You were on your back on the ground, lying in a pool of your own blood. Your shirt was ripped at your waist, which seemed to be where your wound was. Upon closer inspection, his panic increased tenfold. The gashes were deep, three long claw marks decorating your waist.

"(Name)!" He surged forward, shaking you roughly. His fear was getting the best of him, and he was starting to think the worst. "(NAME)!"

There was no response from you.

You didn't move.

He placed his ear on your chest, searching frantically for the sound of your heart. He almost gave up, when he heard it. It was very faint, scary faint, and dull. It was barely there.

What had done this to you? Whatever it was, it was incurring Zoro's wrath. He felt an unstable fury build up inside him, anger like nothing he'd felt before ready to consume him. He looked around, desperate to find the cause of your injury and kill it. That would maybe make him feel a bit better - and distract him from the fact that you were half-dead on the floor.

"Z-Zoro?"

Your weak voice caught his attention immediately, and he felt relieved. He turned to you, immediately scooping you up and dragging you onto his lap. He tried not to look at your wound as he removed his shirt, ripped it open and tied it around your waist to at least staunch the bleeding a little.

"Don't talk," was his response, his voice a little higher than it usually was. He was avoiding your gaze, unable to meet your eyes.

This was his fault.

He quietly rose to his feet, bringing your weakened - and, alarmingly, paling - body with him. He held you close, one arm hooked under your knees and the other under your back. He positioned your head on his shoulder, and ran all the way back to the village with you in his arms.

The crew met him halfway, Usopp fainting when he saw how much blood there was. Sanji was glowering at Zoro, absolutely furious that he let such a thing happen. Nami was asking a thousand questions at once, questions the swordsman didn't have the answer to. Luffy had gone quiet, not used to seeing his crew in such a panic, and definitely not used to seeing you drenched in so much red.

"Get her back to the ship," the captain finally spoke, surprisingly the only sane one at the moment.

"Excuse me," they were interrupted by the same woman who was talking to Zoro earlier, "We have a healer. It would be quicker to bring her there, and it looks like she needs immediate treatment. Besides, now we can properly thank you for helping us."

Zoro looked away, guilt ripping through him. She was partially the reason you ran off, him being the other part. He didn't want to make an already bad situation worse, but Luffy immediately nodded and told her to lead them to the healer, so Zoro had no choice. The woman offered him a sympathetic smile and tried to touch him, but he shrugged her off angrily. He was mostly angry with himself, for even daring to pull such a stunt.

-

If you had taken her to your ship, she would have succumbed to her injuries.

Those words played on repeat inside Zoro's head, making the swordsman feel helpless for the first time in his life. This evening had been full of firsts for him.

You were okay now, alive and resting. You were still gravely injured, and they were told those three claw marks would leave permanent scars. Zoro had flinched - you would now have a permanent reminder of the night he'd hurt you in the worst possible way. You'd live, but you needed lots of rest, and would probably need to limit your movements for the next few weeks.

"Sanji!"

The swordsman perked up when he hesrd your voice, indicating that you were finally awake, but his heart fell again when he heard you calling for the cook and not him. He supposed he deserved that, but it still stung quite a bit.

Swallowing his pride, he turned to where you were eagerly hugging Sanji, happy to be up on your feet again. Zoro slowly made his way over, guilt filling him again when he saw the way your smile dropped when you looked at him. Another painful sting.

"I'm going to go find Nami, Usopp and Luffy," you decided, looking away from Zoro. You still loved him, but it hurt to look at him right now after what he did.

"I'll help you, you shouldn't even be moving around like this," Sanji gently took hold of you and led you away.

Zoro wanted to protest, wanted to stop you and pull you into HIS arms is HE can guide you around, but you looked so heartbroken because of him he felt too ashamed to act on that thought.

"No, it's okay. Zoro can help me."

"Are you sure?" Sanji asked uncertainly.

"Yes."

He was stunned to hear you say that. His head snapped in your direction, to see you making your way over to him. He thought he might have passed out and was now dreaming when you wrapped your arms around his middle, leaning into him.

In one swift but gentle movement, you were in his arms.

"I'm sorry," his deep voice rumbled in your ears, "I'm so, so sorry." And for the first time ever, his eyes glossed over with tears. "Please forgive me. I don't deserve it, but I'll do anything to earn your forgiveness. Please."

His begging caught you off-guard, but you were too saddened by the way his voice cracked while he was speaking.

"I love you. I promise I'll show it. Please, please give me a chance."

You bit your lip, looking down at your lap and fiddling with the hem of your shirt, "Why did you do it?"

His grip on you tightened, and he let out a shaky breath, "I thought you deserved better than me. I tried to make you hate me so it would hurt less when you found someone else. Because you deserve someone much better than me, and I don't deserve you at all."

"That's not for you to decide," you said quietly.

"I know, I know," he mumbled, ashamed. He couldn't even meet your gaze anymore.

You sighed, making him look at you, "You are the biggest idiot I have ever met, you know. But despite that, I am still madly in love with you. And I forgive you." You kissed his cheek. "Now let's go find the others."

-

A week later, you were still hobbling around the ship like an old lady with a back problem. Much to Zoro's chagrin, as he kept insisting you stay in bed and he'll do whatever you needed to do. The rest of the crew agreed, all of them taking turns to do your chores or help with your duties while you just rested and recovered.

And you know damn well this green-haired man is going to pick you up and take you straight back to bed if he sees you up and about.

"I'm fine!" You protested, when he brought you dinner that night.

He glared at you, "Your blood is still soaking those bandages. You are not fine. Now stay."

You pouted, "I'm not a dog."

He sighed and gently pressed a kiss to your forehead, "Let me take care of you, alright? I have a lot to make up for, and this is just the start."

"No, you don't have anything to make up for," you smiled innocently, tugging him down next to you. "You didn't attack me."

"But I-"

You shut him up with a kiss, "Listen, it's pretty fucking impossible for me to hold a grudge against you, or to even stay mad at you for five seconds. Seeing the look of shame, guilt and regret on your face on the island was enough for me to know that you didn't want any of that to happen. And what's the point of being upset or angry over something that you didn't intend? It's a waste of emotions."

He stared at you in awe, your words striking him deep, "I'm still sorry."

You sighed. You had already long forgiven him, but he had not yet forgiven himself. It was going to take him a while.

-

"Here."

You glanced up from your bed as Zoro walked into the room, holding something out to you. Your eyes lit up when you saw what it was, eagerly taking the book from his hands and shifting into a more comfortable position.

"I figured since you're stuck here for a while, might as well keep you from being bored," he sat down next to you, slowly. "Do you...like it?"

Over the last few days, you had gotten a multitude of gifts from the green-haired swordsman. From handcrafted to store-bought, he had been surprising you almost every day with something new. He was also - very surprisingly - getting along with Sanji, after hearing you ask him to be nice to the cook. It seemed he was pretty serious about proving his love and erasing all trace of that horrible incident from your mind.

"Does it hurt??"

You snapped out of your thoughts when you heard Zoro's concerned voice, realising you had started crying. With a shaky laugh, you shook your head no and wiped your eyes - you got as far as two drops before he wiped the rest away.

"No, I'm just...I'm so grateful for you. You've been amazing these last few days, even more so than usual. I just don't know how to thank you, and I'm overwhelmed by how loved I feel right now. I love you. So, so much."

His concern melted away into shyness, the small blush coating his cheeks giving away his embarrassment. He tried to cough awkwardly and play it off, but you knew better. He loved being complimented, he was just too stubborn to show it.

"Love you too. Come here." He got into the bed next to you, pulling you close so you lay on his chest, letting you dive into the book while you rested on him comfortably.

-

His acts of service did not stop.

Even after you were able to walk around with no pain, Zoro was still lifting things out of your hand, carrying them to where they needed to be for you. He was still offering to take your night watch, or any watch, and he was still doing your chores.

Even...dare I say it...washing dishes.

"Here."

Sanji handed him another dish to wipe, just as you walked in. You giggled at the sight, a tiny pink apron draped over your boyfriend's body as he wiped the dishes dry and set them on the rack.

"I see you two are hard at work."

Zoro lit up at the sound of your voice, almost dropping the plate he was wiping. He turned to give you a rare, happy smile, greeting you with a loving gleam in his eyes. You returned the smile and sat at the table, watching them work and thinking about how much you absolutely adored this man.

"I can work now, you know."

"Let me think...no," both he and Sanji said in unison.

You laughed.

[monsterkin-culture-is]

Why So Serious? There's No Wrong Way To Be Kin.

- OtherKin Ramble 💫

Prenote: I've been thinking about how to word this for like a month now and I'm still not sure so don't treat this as like a proper essay, more of a thought-dump. This is not being said in a critical tone. ALSO a couple of you might've seen the accidental half-baked version anyway this is it finished.

This might be a HotTake™️ (I doubt it) but people take kinsidering way too seriously.

The main type of kinsider post I've seen is "Is X possible?" Usually in the form of: "Can I be kin of X?" "Can X trigger a kinshift?" etc etc etc. To the first question: Yes. The answer is yes. There are so few rules to being kin, there is no reason you cannot be kin of whatever. Conceptkin exists - kintypes don't even have to be living things or anything physical! To the second question: Kin is not a science. There is no ruleset to how it works. If something triggers a kinshift for you, it's a valid kinshift trigger.

Kinsidering is NOT the same as self-diagnosis. You do not need years of research. You do not need to treat labels with the upmost sensitivity. You DEFINITELY DO NOT have to be right the first time. Experimenting with labels is, in my opinion, the best way to know if they fit. Placeholder labels are also not only valid but common. And even then, you don't have to label anything if you're not ready.

The kin community fundamentally works on respect. Mutual respect. As long as you come in here with an open mind & an open heart & a genuine good-faith mindset, you're okay, you're valid and you're probably going to have a good time!

Anyway that's all for now, I'm sure I'll make a follow up. Feel free to continue the conversation yourselves/send feedback in the notes!

I really want to state that any harsh tone in this is not intentional, nor directed to new kins. If it's targeting anyone, it's the people that make newbies feel like they have to walk on eggshells.

To the new kin: If someone is sending you hate over honest mistakes and genuine questions - they're not someone whose opinion matters. Honestly this goes for topics outside kin too. If you're respectful and not purposely ignorant, then there's really no reason for hatred.

[umahumahumah]

How do you recreate the Hetalia artstyle so well

ok so.. .uhhhhhhhhhh honestly i dont even know how. which is why i am obviously qualified to make YOU, yes you, the person reading this, a tutorial

i psoted an incomplete tutorial on the hetalia art style some few months back and when i look back at it now, some things are just straight up wrong or need clarification (also its the same post where i accidentally sent multiple death threats to a random sex worker thinking they were just a porn bot oopsies) so if you guys still remember that, forget about it! all of it!!! this is a brand new, more accurate guide on how to draw himas style!

(quick warning though im just a weeb not a professional teacher by any means so dont take this as gospel and dont get mad if i got something wrong or something is confusing)

himastyle tutorial! (the better one) part 1

(link to part 2 here)

ok lets start off with the

HEADS

this is just the way i start drawing my heads personally. if i had to describe it, its basically a simplified stylized version of the loomis head method. proko has a good video on it! just give that a quick watch then take a look at my step by step guide

but besides this, there are some important things about the head that you should remember

the shape of the head is generally rectangular

compared to more typical ikemen styles, hetalia characters have a more rectangular head. HOWEVER their chins taper off to a very triangular shape. rarely do the chins flatten out like the guy on the left.

2. shorter face = younger/more feminine appearance

well... self explanatory. you can see in the diagram how changing the length of the face gives a character a more feminine/childish look.

if you feel that something looks kind of off, feel free to change it, but if it looks okay then lets move onto facial features!!!

NOSES:

ok so this might seem a little weird but i like drawing the nose first. its right in the middle of the face and is generally the easiest to get right. it also kind of acts as a divider between the eyes, especially useful when you're drawing in a 3/4 angle

which kind of look something like that i guess.....

or that if you want something less extreme

anyways while hetalia noses are kind of inconsistent they generally have the shape of these three lines. feminine/childlike characters have a smaller and subtler nose though

noses also never face fully straight ahead, so when drawing a front view, the nose slightly faces right or left (tbh himas characters rarely face the camera head on, so id refrain from drawing frontal views altogether but thats just me)

anyways lets move on to my second favorite part of the hetalia art style

EYES:

the eyes are the most important part of himas style. if all else fails, you can always recognize the style by the eyes. luckily for you, the eyes really arent complicated compared to other anime styles :D here is how i do it:

(feminine and childlike characters have bigger eyes)

you have probably noticed this but the pupils hima draws now has a more squiggly teary-eyed look compared to the pupils he drew then...

i subcounciously do a mixture of the two because i got used to drawing the old type, but if you wanna draw the new type of pupils just take note of their squigly shape and that they have one dominant highlight in the upper-middle area. uhhh.. or if youre like me just draw the old eyes as if you have parkinson's

anyways heres a step by step guide

and some fun eye variations!!! you can try using variants if youd like to give an oc a more unique look (you can also try making your own variants too but be careful of straying too far from the style)

so now about the eyebrow and the eyelid.... uhhh the eyelid doesnt really have a consistent length so just draw it however. feminine and childlike characters have thinner eyebrows but even then eyebrows should never be drawn as just a single line

we are close to finishing the face!!! now we can move onto

MOUTHS:

if you know how to draw a typical anime mouth, then hima mouths is easy peasy!

for closed mouths just draw a curved line with two dark blots for the corners of the mouth

i think that giving them a shaky look makes them look more expressive

open mouths are just random blobs, dont close off the bottom though, and theys till have those dark blots at the corner of the mouth

now then i'll move onto the

EARS + CHEEKS:

i decided to combine these two since these are probably the easiest parts of the face

hima's ears are pretty round and don't really vary in shape. inside the ears though....

it isnt very consistent, so don't think too hard about "getting them right". above are some ear variations i drew from one of the latest chapters of the manga

the cheeks are just a bunch of lines that can appear fully, or only on one cheek, or don't appear at all. i think it depends on level of detail, angle, or the character's emotion

these lines do not appear on rendered pieces

also if a character feels especially displeased they will gain heavy eyebags

so yay! we're pretty much done with the face!! look forward next time to where i cover hair, the body, and other stuff idk... i'll link the other parts to each other when i complete them

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

Hi, I had a random thought about Wylan Van Eck and it accidentally turned into a world building rant so enjoy… I guess?

Every so often I randomly remember that Wylan has canonically been to the races at Caryeva in Ravka and I just can’t help but wonder what the hell this situation was like. I don’t recall a lot of specific descriptions about Caryeva so correct me if I’m wrong but I believe it’s an environment quite similar to that of the Barrel and that boy was not thriving in the Barrel okay the stress of imagining young Wylan stuck with his father at the Caryeva races is so real. Like I’m not saying the entire place must be a hellhole but the key information we know about it (at least to my recollection and what I gathered about two minutes ago from the Grishaverse wiki) is that its main points of interest are gambling in horse races and producing alcohol, and we know that Vasily gathered a less than pleasant reputation whilst spending most of his time there gambling away what little fortune he had left. And also what the hell was Van Eck doing there in the first place? The version of Jan Van Eck we see him present to the other characters and therefore to us as the reader (since we don’t ever get his POV) would simply cease to exist at the impropriety of it all, he can’t get through a conversation about the Barrel without cringing and you’re telling me he went on a trip to Caryeva and took his presumably very young son with him? (I’m assuming this bc Wylan says he *used* to take him everywhere with him and Van Eck found out he couldn’t read when he was about eight). What was this situation???? Why was he there???? I wonder if this is another subtle hint towards the potential extent of less than savoury business Van Eck is involved in beyond Wylan’s knowledge, like when he suggests meeting on Vellgeluk (an island used mostly by smugglers and traffickers) and Inej is surprised he knows about it and Kaz responds something along the lines of “perhaps he’s not so much the upstanding merch he claims to be”.

The reference to Caryeva just always sticks out to me as slightly random in comparison to the other places Wylan lists his father as having taken him to - the Shu oil fields? Absolutely, this is a world (at least as I’ve understood it) currently moving towards its Industrial Revolution at top speed of course Van Eck of all people is looking to invest in oil futures he may be the worst but he is clever; the Ice Court? It’s a diplomatic event between the leaders of two countries, one desperately trying to maintain its neutrality to hold tightly to its place in the world economy as it very quickly develops (Kerch) and one desperately trying to impose itself as a greater world power than its being given credit for via violence and focusing its development on military-based progress like the tanks (Fjerda) (btw I think I’ve talked about this before in my worldbuilding posts but I have thoughts about the tanks and the general global development of the grishaverse so if anyone wants more theories/analyses on that let me know), so yes it absolutely makes sense especially since we’re starting to see (or at least I think we are but I’m not a historian I’m basing this on my understanding about how these things happened in our world and how they would develop in their world based on the distinctions between the two) the globalisation of the Grishaverse beginning; the Jurda farms in near Shriftport? We all know Van Eck has a vested interest in jurda and we also know it was a big part of his business long before parem came to the scene because it is a massively used stimulant throughout Kerch; Weddle? Absolutely, I don’t know if it’s been confirmed as the capital but if it isn’t it’s still a major city in Novyi Zem there are a thousand reasons Van Eck could’ve been there; Elling? Once again it’s entirely reasonable to imagine Fjerda having a vested interest in an alliance with Kerch to secure their place in the global economy and to manipulate what is almost definitely and imminent and unavoidable collapse of the country’s questionable neutrality; Elling makes sense because Van Eck probably visited Fjerda a lot and even if there wasn’t anything about alliances and military tactics and etc going on Elling is a port settlement and it makes plenty of sense to assume large amounts of trade take place here. (My theory about the military stuff if below, sorry the paragraph was too long to get it all in together)

(Ravka is in severe debt to the Kerch government and we know Fjerdan intelligence is well aware of this, especially since Matthias knew when he hadn’t been in the government for over a year and never worked anywhere near espionage, and Kerch is also a massive global power. Support for Fjerda from Kerch would mean support from the Southern Colonies and possibly even division in Novyi Zem, and whilst it would probably prevent the Fjerdans from any kind of alliance with the Shu due to the tension between Kerch and Shu Han being so high it would also probably not be necessary for them to make a deal with the Shu if the had the support of the Kerch. Ultimately, Fjerda and Shu Han are fighting for control of the same land, they just haven’t reached each other yet because they’re still stuck on opposite sides of Ravka. If either country gained control of the majority of Ravka’s land then it would lead to a fight with the other; Fjerda need global support if they have a chance of winning two wars immediately after each other and if Kerch are in fact going to have to lose their neutrality, as it seems they are being forced to do and definitely would have been forced to do if parem became a global resource (Van Eck even says himself on the matter that Kerch has enjoyed neutrality for too long), and already have high tensions with Shu Han and rising tensions with Novyi Zem (due to the assassination of the Zemeni ambassador, which I do believe was an attempt to start a war btw, that they blame the Kerch for and the Kerch suspect the Shu for) then they are the perfect target for Fjerda to form an alliance with. Kerch also has a very strong navy which Fjerda presumably lacks since their efforts have all been focused on Ravka, where they share a land border, so to enter a larger scale/global war they would need a navy on their side. Again, I want to emphasise I know very little about military tactics and history I am approaching this by imagining that it’s a logic puzzle, so you might be reading this and this and thinking that it makes no sense in realistic scenarios but this is just my theory)

But Caryeva???? Even if there weren’t standing for Van Eck and the Merchant Council to be plotting against Ravka, which I personally believe there is, it STILL WOULDN’T MAKE DIPLOMATIC OR BUSINESS SENSE TO GO TO CARYEVA. So in summary I think Van Eck was doing lots of messed up things that young Wylan didn’t understand because he was a small child so why would he, plus this was a time in his life when probably trusted his father, and I think that this is yet another of the very subtle ways Leigh Bardugo shows us that there is a lot more going on beneath the surface than we notice or that the characters have comprehended because it does!’t fit into the focus of the story. Whether or not Van Eck was planning on building his diplomacy towards Fjerda into an alliance or not (but I do want to add that the only other language he hired someone to teach his son was Fjerdan, so that may also be a hint), I definitely think that he was involved in something illegal to specifically be at the races in Caryeva. Like to vineyards or something for a trade deal, sure. But why, after going on and on about the questionable version of Ghezen he believes in and how the Barrel is a “den of filth” and calling gambling a “vice” and arguing with Kaz because he was offended when he said that speculating on the markets was a form of gambling, would Jan Van Eck be at Caryeva horse races?

Anyway I’ve been going on about this for way longer than I intended, hope this made some semblance of sense and thanks for reading

[pianokantzart]

Hi Piano! I love your posts and your comics! I loved the idea of ​​making a Luigi's mansion film, I even posted some ideas, do you have ideas for a Luigi mansion film?

Thank you! I have touched upon the idea a bit, with @keakruiser adding some thoughts of their own. But I do have more...

Mario and Luigi start off the movie having money issues despite the booming business. Maybe they accidentally caused some sort of serious damage that they need to pay for? Maybe there's a family emergency? Or maybe they've been too generous with free plumbing repairs to the point that the bills are catching up with them. Either way, I want all the gold and cash that Luigi vacuums up to have some sort of serious significance.

Luigi tries to talk to his father and uncles about the plumbing business at Sunday dinner, but they all speak over him in favor of talking to Mario. Mario tries to nudge the conversation in Luigi's direction, but Luigi eventually gives up and goes to the kitchen to help his mother with dishes. There he has a little heart to heart with his mom, similar to this scrapped scene from the SMB Movie concept art, but with Luigi instead of Mario:

Please please please make The Dark Moon an element! Establish that it isn't just Mario's life on the line, but an entire world at risk of being swarmed by angry ghosts under King Boo's control.

And of course we need to have Polterpup! Let's say that "animals are the among the few spirits who don't need to be soothed by the dark moon," but unfortunately that matters very little to Luigi, who has an established fear of dogs. So we go into why! Maybe he got attacked by a dog as a young child and needed Mario to save him? This would feed into both Luigi's sense of helplessness, and guilt about being so frightened while his brother is so brave and selfless.

As Luigi gets more victories under his belt, and as Polterpup follows him around and helps out, they start to form a bond. Eventually we get a Puss In Boots 2 esque scene where Luigi has an anxiety attack after loosing radio contact with E. Gadd, before Polterpup floats over and helps calm him down enough to keep moving.

Have Luigi's semi-canon mechanical prowess come into play! At some point, midway through a particularly grueling fight, the poltergust gets damaged. Between running for his life, hiding in various locations, and knocking things over to buy himself time, Luigi steadily fixes the damage enough to pull through the fight.

Luigi and Elvin Gadd bond over being two (vaguely autistic-coded) weirdos. Luigi is surprised that Elvin Gadd doesn't mind trusting him with his equipment, that he doesn't get annoyed with his fear, and doesn't mind walking him through every tiny step. Meanwhile Elvin Gadd is like "Patient with you??? I love walking you through things step by step! You're one of the few people who'll actually listen to my ramblings! And yeah, you're clearly scared, but you've stayed! That's way more than most."

I imagine the people trapped in paintings are able to speak and move around, but King Boo can set their painting to a sort of "stagnant mode" if the captive gets too rowdy or mouthy. Mario's picture is mostly kept in stagnant mode for obvious reasons.

King Boo's confidence visibly wavers the further along Luigi gets. King Boo goes from "Why should I be worried? E. Gadd's a decrepit fool and his new 'apprentice' is a sniveling coward!" to "Okay so Luigi can use the poltergust... he's no match for my forces!" to "What is wrong with all of you!? Why can't you catch a simple plumber!?" to "I'm going to tear this man's soul apart with my teeth!"

Bowser was heavy metal, so I want King Boo to be operatic with a Gothic/Baroque ballroom aesthetic. Of course we've got to have orchestral version of the Luigi's Mansion theme, but I also want a cinematic revamp of the SMBW "Night At Boo's Opera" song.

You know how Luigi broke down laughing and sobbing when he finally saved Mario in the original Luigi's Mansion? That. I want that, with an extra dose of Mario hugging Luigi and reassuring him that he's alright.

[wooawrites]

love or letter: woozi version

pairing: l. jihoon x fem! reader

summar: reader accidentally sends head producer jihoon into unwanted popularity, creating tension within their office.

word count: 12k+

genre: semi-enemies to lovers, office romance, fluff

playlist

love or letter series

“Hello and welcome back to… Boo!”

“...Seok!”

“...Soon!”

“Radio Show!”

Chorus of laughter could be heard from around the recording room as the three hosts finished the final portion of the introduction together. Papers could also be heard being shuffled as the hosts eased themselves out of their advertisement break and into their next segment.

“Thank you very much for the love and support you sent us on our official Instagram page during our short university break. I hope all of you enjoyed my takeover for that day—”

“Yeah, I’m sure everyone enjoyed the tiger room tour you gave to our poor listeners, Hoshi.” DK interrupted. A thump could be heard, along with DK yelping in pain for a split second. “Just so listeners know, Kwon Hoshi just hit me, his coworker/host.”

Hoshi could be heard yelling something at him in rushed sentences, though it sounded as if he were underwater from the quality of the mics. They only seemed to stop themselves when a tapping from glass could be heard. Both sounded to be settled back into their seats as they continued with their show.

“Right, onto everyone’s favorite segment: Love or Letter!” Hoshi said excitedly, though there seemed to be a lack for it’s usual excitement in the studio as weak claps could be heard instead. Hoshi seemed to have picked this up as he asked, “Huh? Is something wrong?”

“I know that most of you are here for our most recent Love or Letter, but this one is a little strange. It’s only about half a page long but it’s quite… A tell-all, that’s for sure.” Seungkwan commented, letting out an awkward cough as he shook at the letter in front of him. Scraping from chairs could be heard, which was followed up by laughter from the two other hosts. “Kwon Hoshi, you read it since this is your undoing.”

Laughter had yet to cease, the sound of what’s mixed between a snort and crying could only be heard from the studio. Seungkwan did not hesitate to yell out his fellow host’s name once more, only earning a winded “Okay, okay!” from the other man.

Hoshi cleared his throat, remnants of a laugh ready to slip from his lips as he spoke. “Okay… Dear BooSeokSoon, usually this kind of letter comes from cliche shows and I dearly hope this letter becomes buried amongst the many letters your Love or Letter Team receives on a daily basis, but this is not much of advice and more of a confession…"

Tapping from the glass could be heard once more, a little more panicked than last time. Hoshi let out a hum, as if ignoring whoever was tapping on the other side, continuing. "...to your producer, Jihoon. The moment I saw his picture on Hoshi's Instagram post, I couldn't help but fall for him. I understand if he won't accept my affections, but if he ever sees or hears this letter, please know that Kim Gi—"

"AHHH!" Someone interrupts. Seungkwan. "We read the letters, not expose their names and addresses."

"How could he? She put her name and number down for our PD Jihoon to take." DK says, laughing. The knocking turned more erratic, silencing anything else anyone had to say. DK coughed. “Well… Dear writer, I’m sorry to say this will be a Letter. Our PD Jihoon is pretty anti—”

“Caught up with work!” Hoshi interrupted. “Anyways, sorry to cut the segment so short, we’ve hit a bit of a little issue here at the radio station. Tune in tomorrow night for our other special segment, Paranormals With Peachy, and to hear our daily campus news! Thank you again for listening to BooSeokSoon Radio and have a good night everyone!”

A chorus of goodbye’s from the other hosts could be heard. A final awkward sigh could be heard before the radio cuts off—

[Name] wasn’t sure if she wanted to peel away from the glass just yet. She could feel him staring at the back of her head, which would’ve frightened her if she wasn’t so exhausted. Her palm stung from how hard she was hitting the glass to make the hosts stop talking.

How am I supposed to take tomorrow’s exam if my palm’s going to bruise up? She asked herself, eyes never leaving Seokmin, who offered her a passive smile as he, Soonyoung, and Seungkwan settled their headsets on their respective mic stands. They were deliberately slow this time, much to [Name]’s chagrin.

“You let one of those letters slip through.” His voice held no such emotion, like it usually does, but the emphasis could be heard even if it was verbal.

[Name] closed her eyes, mentally bringing her walls up as she turned around to look at Jihoon. “I swear I made sure to separate the piles properly.”

“Not properly enough.” Jihoon chastised. The hosts were sure to be quiet to shut the door as quietly as possible, though it didn’t stop Jihoon from snapping his head at them, eyes narrowing at the three men. “And why did you three just keep reading?”

[Name] was glad everyone else from their respective teams were kind enough to clear away from the room before the radio show ended. At least this way they wouldn’t have to hear four of the five members that drove the show to be chewed out.

“Because it was entertaining.” Soonyoung answered honestly, sending a teasing smile toward Jihoon, who only rolled his eyes. “C’mon, Jihoon, it was a little funny. Those confession letters honestly just come from pure intentions—”

“And somehow makes a fool out of me—” Jihoon snapped.

“—and cut [Name] some slack. She spent the whole week separating your confession letters from the actual confession letters, printed out apology notes to any of the addressed senders, and was the one to narrow down the possible stories for us to use. And that was on top of everything else she’s usually supposed to do.” Soonyoung explained, giving the younger woman an easy smile.

Seungkwan nodded. “I’m sure someone just mixed up the papers when it was brought over to us. [Name] would’ve spotted it if she was the one to physically take it over to us herself.”

Jihoon was only seething in silence, [Name] fighting off the urge to tear at her hair in frustration. Her eyes narrowed in on her hand, finding the bruise forming on her wrist more interesting than the conversation. Though if she were to be honest, any conversation could be better than this one.

Her mind replayed every single moment that happened up until she handed off the stacks to her assistants. Had she told the wrong person to bring it to Seokmin? Why hadn’t they double checked like she asked them to? Either way, she knew it was her fault some way or another and she wasn’t sure how long she’s going to keep her job after this.

“I’m sorry.” [Name] said finally, bowing deeply to Jihoon and the three other hosts. “I swear I separated them—”

“Yeah, I know.” Jihoon started, only stopping when [Name] sent him a look that only seemed befitting to his own special glare.

“At least let me finish?” [Name] suggested, voice quipped as if she were a school teacher talking to a child. “I should have double—no, triple checked those stacks of letters. If I had done that in the first place, the segment wouldn’t have to be cut short and we wouldn’t be here.”

Seokmin shook his head. “No it’s okay. I should’ve checked on the papers before the show started too instead of handing it over to the other two. Besides, this is just your first mistake. You haven’t made any since you were moved up from production assistant to head producer for the Love or Letter team.”

[Name] nodded, appreciating the hosts' understanding, though she wasn’t sure if Jihoon would accept her apology. She bowed again to Jihoon, muttering another quiet apology to the man.

“Just… Don’t do it again. And make sure to keep your team in check and I want you to be the one to physically bring it over to Seokmin so you can triple check you have the right story next time. Got it?” Jihoon asked. At [Name]’s nod, he turned for the door, stopping as he turned to take a good look at [Name]. “And next time, don’t stay up so late trying to separate those letters. You’ve got five other people on your team to help you with those.”

With those words, Jihoon exited, Soonyoung following shortly after. [Name] sat on the leather couch behind her, digging her head into her hands as she let out a tired sigh. The couch dipped, Seokmin’s hand patting her back. “Don’t sweat it. Everyone makes mistakes all the time.”

Sungkwan hummed in agreement. “And it’s not as if Jihoon’s picture perfect either. He made plenty of mistakes before he became the radio show’s producer.”

“That’s the thing: before he was a producer. I’m a producer now and I made a mistake even rookies were able to avoid.” [Name] grumbled, rubbing at her eyes.

Sungkwan and Seokmin let out noises of discontent at their friend. “Don’t be so hard on yourself; the school year’s just begun and you’re still adjusting. Jihoon’s pretty forgiving after he’s finished with his chastising; he’s too busy to stay too mad.”

[Name] rolled her eyes at the last notion. “Sure, sure. As if he hasn’t had it out for me the minute I stepped foot into the building to meet up with him this summer.”

She hadn’t been wrong; when she had just been a production assistant to Yeri a year prior, Lee Jihoon had been nice to her—or polite, at least. Always offered small bows of acknowledgement whenever she was trailing behind Yeri or was by herself in the small office space provided to the Love or Letter team.

Once Yeri had graduated, Mr. Yang had been the one to announce [Name]’s step up into the open position her mentor left behind, suddenly making Jihoon become colder for some reason toward her. 

The meet up she had with him and Mr. Yang had gone smoothly on the surface, but she could still feel the coldness behind Jihoon’s tone when narrowing down expectations needed once she became a producer. 

Regardless, she kept her temper from rising and did her best to keep her composure throughout the meeting, though that didn’t stop her from dropping certain comments at him afterward. Especially when she felt as if she wasn’t wrong or trying to amend her wrongdoings.

Maybe she was just overthinking, but she was sure Lee Jihoon had it out for her and she was more than ready to hold her ground. Except now, though. That blunder was definitely her fault.

“Don’t be like that.” Seokmin responded, nudging her shoulder. “You probably just need to get some more sleep; there’s been a lot of confession letters sent to Jihoon after Soonyoung posted a picture of him last year and it accumulated during the summer. He seemed to understand in the end anyways.”

“Right… Right…”

“You have been getting enough rest, right?” Seungkwan asked, though all three of them knew the answer already. “How have you been?”

[Name] sighed. “Fine, I guess.” Silence had never felt louder as she could feel her best friends eyeing her suspiciously. “I’m just… Here, okay? It’s better than the last time you guys asked me if it makes you feel better.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Seungkwan asked, standing up. “We can go get food and head back to my apartment.”

“No, I just wanna get my stuff and head home.” [Name] responded honestly, making sure to offer Seungkwan a kind smile. “Thank you for being concerned for me, though. I really mean that.”

Sungkwan nodded. “Any time.”

“We’re always here, you know.” Seokmin said, offering her a side hug before they stood up.

They all walked out together, separating when [Name] walked over to her office and the other two moving toward their own. “Don’t stay up all night!” Sungkwan said.

“I won’t!” [Name] responded, well aware she was most likely going to, in fact, stay up all night. Her bag had already been packed and her coat folded on top of her chair. With a quick swing at both items, [Name] walked out of her office, fishing for her headphones as she walked out.

Two familiar voices and her name could be heard at the other end of the hall, however, making [Name] stop under the assumption her name was being called. [Name] was ready to call back and ask what was needed before she registered what was being said.

“...some slack, already, man. Do you not see how exhausted the poor girl is?” Soonyoung asked. “And you can tell she’s definitely going to make up for it. I swear she would have broken the glass with how hard she was tapping the glass earlier. She’s really trying her best.”

Jihoon sighed. “Her best isn’t enough. I don’t understand why Yeri and Mr. Yang wanted her become a producer with only a year under her belt. She’s too young to work with that kind of role and it’s obvious.”

“Why are you so hard on her anyways? The Lover or Letter team liked her before and after she became a producer.”

“I’m not being hard on her; I just don’t like something I spent four years building up with you come crumbling down by some second year.”

[Name] held her breath. Did he really think she was that incapable? Enough to tear down a four year radio station? She was almost ready to jump out of her hiding spot, ready to tell Jihoon off and ask him if he thought of Seungkwan and Seokmin, who were also second years with higher positions at the radio station, that way as well.

She only halted when she heard Jihoon yelp. “Ow! You dick!”

“You’re the one being a dick.” Soonyoung admonished. “Like I said, cut her some slack. She’s definitely trying so give her a chance. It’s only the beginning of the school year, too, so let everyone adjust. Besides… I think something’s going on with her.”

Jihoon huffed. “Why?”

“I don't know. She just seems like she’s keeping herself busy from something and she wasn’t like this last year. Of course, you wouldn’t know because you never spoke to her.”

“Hey—”

“That being said, be nice to her. She really did work her ass off this week; I swear she practically lives here if she’s not in class…”

Their voices faded out and [Name] could only wonder to herself how much had she changed and how obvious was it to the point that even an acquaintance like Soonyoung noticed it. Her brain was too muddled to think of anything, though, exhaustion clinging to her tighter.

She put on her headphones, immediately allowing the sound of instrumental music to flood her senses. She walked with the intention of slumber, though her mind continued to replay the continued conversation in her head, fighting off the sting whenever she remembered Jihoon’s words.

Naturally, news made its way around campus about last week’s fiasco on Love or Letter. Everywhere [Name] went, she could hear someone talking or spreading word of what happened in Love or Letter. And she never felt more embarrassment in her life.

When she found herself at the office of BSS Radio, she was quick to speed off to the Love or Letter office. [Name] evaded any probing questions the other segment teams had for her. 

She wasn’t sure she was ready to explain her mistake and be the focus of ridicule just yet, though it seemed she had been the only one to view it that way. The segment’s events spread around like wildfire—interesting everyone and essentially inviting more people to listen to the radio station, Love or Letter in particular.

[Name] had expected some kind of termination request from Jihoon, especially after what she had heard from him from that night, but she hadn’t heard from him at all since the incident. She had wondered for the duration of the week as to why, though a quick call from the Love or Letter production manager, Colette, telling her to come to the station nearly sent her into a panic.

Like usual, [Name] speed walked to her office, more curious as to what exactly Colette needed from her if she was needed so desperately at the station. 

Maybe I’m getting fired and Colette was promoted…? [Name] had initially thought as she opened the door.

“[Name] wait—!” A voice called out, cutting off when [Name] let out a gasp as a pile of letters fell at her feet. Evelyn, one of the new production assistants, had made her presence known as she leaned over the remaining pile in front of the door to pick up the fallen letters. “Sorry, I should’ve moved them.”

[Name] leaned down to help her. From behind the girl sat Colette, who was opening letters and sorting them into bins. Her eyes only furrowed in confusion when their eyes locked, silently asking her what was happening. 

“Ever since word went out on what happened, more people have sent in letters.” Colette explained, waving a piece of paper around. “Those piles on your feet are unopened ones. Come in and help us sort it out.”

[Name] nodded, speechless at the information as she stepped over. From another side of the room stood the Love or Letter writers, Amelia, Eunwoo, and Jian. They offered a wordless nod as they filtered letters into more bins. “How many people sent letters?” She asked, a little afraid of what the number was.

“Almost three hundred—that’s twice as much as what we usually get on a usual basis.” Amelia informed, an excited smile on her face. “Almost all of them are actual letters instead of the ones we’ve been getting. Of course some of them are kind of useless, though—majority love confessions to Jihoon and others just writing crude things to see if they can get it on air—”

“Which we won’t.”Colette said. “Because all six of us are gonna sort this out together instead of leaving [Name] in the dust with this pile. And we won’t be giving the wrong files without checking over with everyone, will we?”

Everyone nodded in agreement and [Name] made use of their cooperation as she sat down on her desk and started working on sorting papers out with them.

“You should’ve seen the look on Jihoon’s face.” Evelyn said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him express anything past irritation until he came to the letter box today; he had to call every single one of us to help with moving these letters to this room. He looked like he was stuck in a daze!”

“Why did he call all of you and not me?” [Name] inquired, only earning a shrug from the younger girl. She shot Colette a look in confusion. “Does he not trust me anymore or something?”

Colette shook her head, eyeing her oddly. “Quite the opposite. He asked me where you were and I said you’re probably still asleep since you’re done with class. Told me to only call you unless it’s necessary.” She motioned for the piles of letters. “It’s kind of necessary right now so sorry if I woke you up.”

“You didn’t.” [Name] reassured, opening the letter in her hands, sorting through the papers as if it were second nature once she found herself moving.

Almost an hour had passed through their sorting and [Name] only listened to her team’s conversation, only passing in conversations with Colette every now and then. A knock on the door brought her back to reality. Leaning her head over the pile of letters in front of her, she spotted  Jihoon hovering at the doorway, red envelope in hand.

His eyes scanned the room, mouth ajar as he checked the space around them. "Uwah…" Was all he could manage out. "This is a lot."

"Yeah it is." [Name] agreed, watching as he tried to carefully step over the pile of envelopes at the doorway in amusement. He shuffled his way over to [Name], staring at her curiously.

"I thought you were supposed to be asleep."

"Couldn't." [Name] answered simply, seamlessly opening another envelope as she quickly filtered through it to decide on which pile to place it. Jihoon frowned at her words.

"Why?"

[Name] shot him a strange look. "I just couldn't. Why are you so concerned anyways?"

She bit back her tongue when she realized how sharp her tone was, though she had no means of apologizing. If he was more than willing to express his displeasure with her whenever he felt like it, she most definitely can do the same thing.

Her eyes were trained on his, noticing the slight twitch when she sent out her biting words toward him. She waited for him to respond to her in some sort of tone similar to her’s, half expecting him to mention that her job is still currently being evaluated for a clause of termination.

Instead, Jihoon only sighed, rubbing the back of his neck before moving his hand up to push back some of his hair. “Nothing. Here’s information for next week’s radio show.”

“Oh, okay. Thank you.” [Name] said half heartedly. She stood up, accepting the red envelope and setting it on her table. She returned her attention back to the letters right afterwards, though she could still see Jihoon hovering around longer than expected. “...do you need anything else, Jihoon?”

“Huh?” Jihoon asked, clearly in a bit of a daze. As much as he attempted to remain as stoic as possible, he was horrible at hiding his embarrassment. “Oh—uhm, no. Good luck with all of this. And, uh, don’t push yourself too hard this time. Wouldn’t want something like last week to happen.”

[Name] felt irritation bubble up in her chest, though she pushed it aside as she watched Jihoon awkwardly turn and walk out of her office. She waited for the door to shut before turning to make eye contact with Colette, who looked just as confused as she was.

Since when did Jihoon become so concerned? Or, even more shocking, when did Jihoon ever hold a conversation with her for more than five minutes when it’s not a staff meeting?

If there was anything [Name] hated more than anything, it was phone calls. She wasn’t sure why she was so irked by them; maybe it was because she was so used to speaking to people in person? Or it could be the fact she wasn’t able to gauge what people were actually able to feel if she can’t see their face.

Whatever reason it may be, [Name] hated them to the point she would avoid them if they weren’t work related. Though, recently she’s been needing to answer personal ones more frequently, much to her chagrin.

“Are you coming home this weekend? It’s your dad’s—”

“I’m well aware of what this weekend is, Mom.” [Name] interrupted, letting out an irritated groan when he hip knocked onto a stack of paperwork to the ground.

It was late into the afternoon and [Name] was already behind on whatever needed to be finished before she left today. She cursed herself for answering the phone and having to prepare herself for an argument with her mother.

“Well then are you coming? You hardly leave campus since you went back to school. Honestly it’s kind of selfish of you to leave like that.”

[Name] snorted out a laugh, temper rising at her mother’s backhanded comments. “So, are you trying to get me to come visit or just helping me find reasons to not come home?”

“That’s not what I meant. It’s just… You haven’t been home to help out like you promised.”

Seriously…? “Last time I checked, I was helping pay for the twins’ uniforms and cram school funds.” [Name] said, voice tense. “And I’m paying for their fees for their daily tutoring every week.”

A growing headache was blooming on the side of her head and [Name] was more than ready to hang up any minute to tend to it. She barely processed the swing of her office door, which revealed Jihoon walking in with courteous silence.

He rocked on the balls of his heels as he pointed at his watch, indicating the time for her to turn in one of her written proposals for next week’s segment. [Name] nodded, standing up with one hand on her phone as she rifled through the pile of papers she had all but forgotten on the floor.

“I mean, can you just be more present with us?”

“Honestly, with the way you talk to me, no.” [Name] said, anger almost bubbling over as she cast a glance at the still waiting Jihoon. Once she found the right papers, she double checked for a moment. “Mom, I have to go. I’ll call you later, bye.”

She hung up before she could hear whatever else her mother had to say stepping over the piles of papers to make her way over to Jihoon, who eyed her strangely.

“Everything alright..?” He asked.

[Name] only sighed. “I’d rather not talk about it.”

“Okay.” Jihoon replied, shrugging. For some reason, the simple response brought her shoulders to relax slightly, glad someone wasn’t going to press her for answers at the moment. “Anything you want changed for next week’s segment?”

“Not much. Evelyn mentioned something about Love or Letter needing a catchy tune now that the segment’s been spiking in popularity, though.” [Name] said, watching as Jihoon’s face morphed into slight disdain. She fought off a laugh, reminding herself to not question his obvious dislike if he wasn’t going to question her phone call.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Was all Jihoon said instead. “Though I would need someone from your team to work with so I can see what you all want.”

[Name] hummed, thinking back on who on her staff was available the following month. “Hmm… Colette is out of town for her internship and Evelyn is visiting her grandma for the next two weeks. And the writers are working on an upcoming event already but I think I can pull one of them out to help you.”

“What about you?”

“Huh?” [Name] asked, eyes that were once downcasted on her phone shooting back up to stare at Jihoon’s face.

He motioned to her. “What about you? Maybe you can just help me.”

“I’ve got a family obligation this weekend.” [Name] said, motioning to her phone as if to remind him about the conversation earlier.

Jihoon shrugged. “Just tell me when you come back and we can work on it together. It’s not as if you don’t practically live here anyways.”

“I don’t practically live here…”

“You have pajama pants to change into when it gets too late.”

[Name] shot him an odd look, not sure if she should question how he knew about her Hello Kitty printed pants that she thought she had hidden away in one of her desk drawers.

“Fine, fine. I don’t get why you’re so adamant that it has to be me, though.”

Jihoon rolled his eyes. “You’re the only producer for this team. Producers are supposed to work with each other, right?”

"Right… I just wasn't sure if—" [Name] bit her lip back, not wanting him to find out she overheard his conversation with Soonyoung. "I'll let you know once I get back on campus and we can work on it that day."

"Working the day you get back?" Jihoon questioned, earning a lackluster nod from [Name]. “Don’t you ever get sick of this place?”

“Not really; I kinda like my job.” [Name] said, though the tone in her voice was unconvincing.

It was true; [Name] did like her job, despite all the trouble she’s recently had to undo. Something about the process of turning an idea into reality fascinated her and being a producer provided that type of environment for her. 

[Name] had lost count of how many times she found herself pooled into her work to the point she’d have to get dragged out of the office by Seungkwan or Seokmin.

Right now, [Name] was more than tempted to see if she can go push her limits since she ended her phone call with her mother. She was sure this would also most likely cause Jihoon to not want to work with her if he ever saw her working conditions.

“If we’re done here, I need to head home now instead of later. I’ve got a few bags to pack right now.” [Name] said, clear with her intentions of wanting to end the conversation.

Jihoon stared at her, though what was going on in his mind, she hadn’t a clue. He only nodded once he let the words process through his brain. “Yeah, go ahead. I’ll see you when you come back; I’m working late so this is probably the last you’ll see of me.”

“Working late on a Friday? Aren’t you sick of this place?” [Name] asked, holding back a smile when she echoed his words. He only huffed out a laugh—a rare thing from him, honestly, [Name] should’ve recorded it to show Seungkwan and Seokmin—shaking his head as he moved aside to let [Name] out the door.

They didn’t bother greeting each other goodbye—a habit they both formed with one another due to the weird work tension they had. [Name] made sure to remind herself to change that once she came back now that some of that pressure had all but subsided.

Strange. That was the word Yeri had used when she mentioned her for the first time to Jihoon.

“She’s kind of strange, according to Professor Im. But talented. Super talented. He was practically begging me to take her under my wing so she can have a taste of production life early. Mr. Yang seemed impressed with her too. Just give her a shot this year, Jihoon, so you can see what they’re talking about.”

Jihoon had almost believed the upperclassman, expecting some kind of extraordinary freshman to be making waves at the radio station. Instead, he was met with a frantic looking girl always cowering behind Yeri whenever there were staff meetings.

Regardless, he was nice to [Name] during her first year, even taking in her recommendation of bringing Seungkwan and Seokmin in to be new possible hosts for the radio show after the previous two hosts graduated. 

He had thought whatever Yeri was spewing out previously had disenchanted her before she graduated, choosing a different employee to be her successor for the Love or Letter segment team. Yet, she had still chosen the cowering girl and irked him beyond a point.

His doubts only subsided slightly when Soonyoung had mentioned to him she was acting differently than she had the previous year. He hadn’t believed his friend, thinking Soonyoung had some sort of soft side on the girl for being younger than them, until he had admitted that, yes, [Name] was anything but that frightened girl now.

Honestly, if the circumstances would be different, Jihoon would be glad someone like her broke out of her shell. He wasn't, though. Something just felt off about her behavior—like it was forced. Regardless, the strange girl he remembered was still around, evident from watching her stare at herself in muted horror at the gym for a little too long.

And the strange girl definitely hadn't left as he heard a crash sound from the other side of her apartment door, making him jump at the sudden noise he wasn't able to see. A shriek that definitely didn't sound like [Name]'s rang through from the door.

"Kill it! Kill it!"

"I can't if you're running so much—you're scaring it away!"

Those two voices definitely sounded familiar, though.

A sudden thump! could be heard, followed with a soft, "You're going to get us kicked out before the lease ends, you know." [Name].

Footsteps could be heard making its way to the door and [Name] stood before Jihoon, a slipper with a thoroughly squished spider  in her left hand, still retracted as if ready to smack another one. Jihoon could only offer a stuttered, "He-eyy." in shock, eyeing the two figures behind her.

If they hadn't already been embarrassed, then Seokmin and Seungkwan definitely were with the way they made eye contact with Jihoon—who suddenly remembered he was their boss. [Name] hadn't seemed to care, however, setting the slipper down on the tiled floor of the entrance and stepping back.

"Oh, you weren't kidding when you said Jihoon was coming over." Seokmin said, gaping as the man walked in and took off his shoes (which was deliberately placed far away from [Name]'s spider'd slipper).

[Name] only offered a frown. "You didn't believe me?"

"No one would believe the idea of you and Jihoon working together, period." Seungkwan chimed in, also watching as [Name] and Jihoon exchanged awkward glances. "Why are you two working together?"

"Love or Letter jingle." Jihoon finally stated simply. He motioned toward the guitar strapped to his back. "We were supposed to meet a few days ago but—"

"I got a stay at home order from a certain someone." [Name] interrupted, giving Seungkwan a pointed look.

"You barely got home before you started spewing nonsense about going to the studio!" He countered back. “You’ll overwork yourself ag—”

Seungkwan bit back his words, sharing a knowing look with [Name], who only stared back at him blankly, as if attempting to stay unreadable. Seokmin shuffled his feet awkwardly, trying his best not to glance between his friends and Jihoon.

Jihoon could only raise an eyebrow. That was the first time he heard that. When they had been messaging each other back and forth, he had been under the impression that [Name] was already back home when in fact she was probably still with her family? He watched as [Name] shifted uncomfortably, as if not wanting to talk further about it.

He only sighed. "Workaholic lifestyles are hard to break." He said instead, offering [Name] a sympathetic glance. "Are we going to your room or staying out here?"

[Name] frowned at him for a moment, staying silent a little too long for his liking before she pointed toward a door. "My room. If we stay out here, Seokmin and Seungkwan might try giving unwanted input."

"Hey—" Seokmin started.

"Or squawk like a bunch of chickens if they see another spider."

"HEY!" Seungkwan countered this time, face bright red. 

[Name] ignored her fuming roommates, motioning for Jihoon to follow her. He didn't bother to think twice, finding her nonchalant behavior more amusing than offending.

When he entered the room, he hadn't expected it to be so… Was girly the right term? He eyed the heart shaped pencil sharpener and the various plants being held by Sanrio themed pots.

No, cute. He thought as he made eye contact with a Badtz-Maru pot. "Nice pots." He mused to [Name], who was cleaning up her space. She glanced at him, then the pot.

"He looks like you." She says instead, making him give her a strange look.

He pointed at a Gudetama shaped pot on her window. "And that looks like you."

[Name] glanced at it, offering a small laugh. "Yeah, it does. Doesn't it?"

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up for a moment, caught off hearing her laugh—genuine and not the little huff of air he usually hears from her when she’s trying to amuse someone. He shook it off, however, reminding himself why he was here.

They worked together a little too well. It almost scared Jihoon with how well they got along tonight. Though, he had been anticipating some arguments so maybe he was just stupid for making such presumptions. Hours had gone by and the only reason they had to stop was when Seungkwan knocked on the door, popping his head in after [Name] called his name out.

He motioned to something in his hand. “Take it.” He commanded, shaking the bottle of water in his hand.

[Name] rolled her eyes, glancing at the clock on her desk. “It’s not even 8PM yet.”

“You almost forgot to take them last night. It’s better to take them early.” The blond answered back dismissively.

“You worry more than me.” Jihoon heard her murmur under her breath as she pushed herself off her seat.

“What?” Seungkwan challenged, eyes sharp when he locked eyes with [Name]’s.

“Nothing, dad.” [Name] teased, holding her hand out. A set of capsules escaped from Seungkwan’s hands and spilled onto her. [Name] took them quickly, drawing the pills down with the water bottle Seungkwan handed over to her right after.

Seungkwan nodded in approval, casting a glance at Jihoon before saying, “Okay, back to work.”

“M’kay.” [Name] answered back dismissively, settling back down on her seat. She kept her eyes on the door until it was fully shut, letting out a sigh once she heard it click in place. She looked over at Jihoon, who was still silently watching. “Sorry… He gets worried too much.”

“He’s a good friend.” Jihoon complimented, pausing for a moment. “Or boyfriend..?”

[Name] huffed. “‘Stand in-parent' is a better term for him.” She countered, shaking her head. “I didn’t balance school and work properly last year and he’s worried it’ll happen again if I keep working—which, fine, I get but I kinda wanna not get behind on anything for the studio—”

She cut herself off, biting at her lip to keep her from saying anything further. [Name] shifted back into her seat, eyes nearly burning holes onto her computer screen.

For some reason, the hairs on the back of Jihoon’s neck stood up again. “It’s fine. I get it.” He offered her. She sent him a sparing glance—as if silently begging him to change the subject. Again, he nodded, setting his guitar back on his lap again, though not before adding something. “It’s okay to, y’know…Not hold up a persona around me. I don’t bite.”

He only offered an awkward smile as he noticed, again, she was giving him a long, hard stare.

“Let’s go back to the song.” She said.

Whether she took his words to heart or not, a weight seemed to have lifted off [Name]’s shoulders, sitting a lot more relaxed in her seat. A wave of relief washed over him when he noticed the strange girl from last year had come up just a little bit to the surface as he watched her for a moment before turning his attention to her computer screen.

Pacing. Jihoon noticed that was a tendency she had when she was overwhelmed. She'd move from one end of the room to another in such a short span of time, no matter how big the distance. Jihoon was impressed; in fact, he wasn't sure if he could even take his eyes off her from how quick she did it.

Was he trying to figure out how she moves so fast or was it because he just wants to stare at her? He couldn't figure it out; he was still trying to figure out a bigger problem: why was she pacing so much?

“You wanna calm down, you’re distracting me.” Jihoon said, watching as [Name] halted in her footsteps.

“I don’t know how everything else in your room doesn’t distract you.” She says, eyes looking around the constellation ceiling. 

They had gotten into a weird rhythm of going to each other’s apartments once a week to work on Love or Letter’s opening music. It was Jihoon’s turn to host, though he had a difficult time trying to think (let alone, play) anything with the amount of pacing his guest was doing.

“You act like you’ve never seen my room before.” He mumbles, glancing down at his music sheet, trying his best not to stare at the wandering girl. He couldn’t, however, after seeing her inch closer to his figurine shelves. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” [Name] responded, eyeing his Cardcaptor Sakura figurine intently. She cast a glance back at him. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to touch your prized possessions, Mr. Lee.”

[Name] laughed as she watched Jihoon roll his eyes at the nickname she gave him after showing him a love confession addressing him like that. He set his guitar down, leaning back in his chair as he turned himself to face her.

“You only pace when something’s wrong. Now, tell me what’s wrong so I don’t have to worry about having to clean up broken glass later.” He said, pushing the empty chair beside him out. [Name], albeit a little annoyed, made no move to argue as she sat down.

“I failed my exam today.”

Jihoon shot her a confused look. A part of him wanted to ask her if that was all, if that was really the reason why she was doing all this incessant pacing. The sullen look on her face was enough to tell him to do anything but that at the moment.

“Oh… That sucks.” He says, earning a hopeless look from [Name].

“You really suck with reassuring people, you know that?” She states. He only offered a silence of agreement to the statement, staring at her and waiting. “But, yeah it does suck; I studied just about everything and still managed to fail. Not really the best feeling.”

“So why the pacing?” Jihoon asked.

[Name]’s face morphed to one of embarrassment as she said, “I didn’t want to bother you with my life problems and pacing around helps me keep quiet… Clearly that didn’t work out.”

Jihoon smiled at the small joke. “Well, I’m in need of a break anyways. I lost track of time trying to figure this music out. Let’s just sit for a few minutes. Or pace.”

“Huh, Lee Jihoon admitting to a break? Didn’t think your little robot heart could do that.” [Name] said, earning a soft elbow to her side.

“You’re one to talk.” Jihoon responds, smile widening as he watches [Name] feign hurt when overdramatically rubbing her side. “I heard from Colette you barely even pay attention to time and just hold yourself up in the office. She’s also the one who told me about your Hello Kitty pajama pants.”

He nearly burst out into laughter when he heard [Name] whisper “Traitor” under her breath. Jihoon held himself back as he reminded himself that it might end up bringing one of his other roommates into his room, essentially bursting whatever safe bubble [Name] felt with him right now.

“You’re kinda funny if you try.” [Name] says, earning an odd look from Jihoon at the backhanded comment. “Almost made me forget about my failed exam.”

“Ahhhh, don’t think about it.” Jihoon said, waving a hand. “The more you dwell on it, the more you spiral. You shouldn’t try to think too much about a bad grade unless you want to go insane.”

A sigh was her only response and Jihoon watched as [Name] nodded at his words, shaking her head in frustration. “It’s just—I studied so hard but my mind was wandering so much that whole time and now I’m just wondering if I should even ask to re-take it or not.”

“Wandering?” Jihoon asked.

“College life would be so much easier if my family didn’t hound me every other day.” Was [Name]’s only response, making Jihoon hum. “They were asking me when I was going to visit them again, which by the way, I honestly loathe since it always ends up with me babysitting my idiot siblings.”

She shrugs, seemingly defeated as she was clearly thinking about her stressful family life. Jihoon could only watch on, thinking to himself if this was actually the girl he had butted heads with months ago. 

“She just seems like she’s keeping herself busy from something and she wasn’t like this last year. Of course, you wouldn’t know because you never spoke to her.”

He nearly kicked himself right then and there as Soonyoung’s words rang through his ears. Did it really take him this long to realize that was probably why she was always pooling over her work and school, barely getting any sleep to the point of mixing things up?

She was doing it to forget about her family problems. And he might not have been a big contributor to her stress, but he was a contributor nonetheless, remembering all the times [Name] did her best to not upset him. Guilt swamped him, making him question what he should do next.

“You should ask your professor for a re-take.” He says instead. [Name] offers him a confused look. “It doesn’t hurt to be a little honest with them, you know. I think if you tell them that you’re taking care of your brothers, they’ll let you do something to save your grade.”

“But that might get in the way of work—” [Name] motions to the computer.

“Don’t worry about it.” Jihoon says. “It can wait. I definitely can wait. Just focus on studying until you make up the grade.”

“Jihoon, are you sure?” [Name] asked softly, brows turned down in a frown.

Something in Jihoon’s stomach turned from the way she said his name but he ignored it as he nodded. “Yeah.”

“Thanks. For the talk, I mean, but obviously the time off working—” Jihoon snorted as he watched [Name] stumble over her words.

“It’s no problem.” He said, swiveling himself back to his seat. “Now let me take the rest of your work time before you leave me alone.”

"You again?" Jihoon asked, narrowing his eyes as he watched [Name] enter the Love or Letter office. "I told you to take a break."

"I am on a break. I brought offerings." [Name] countered, waving the cups of coffees in her hands. Jihoon rolled his eyes.

"More like a bribe to see the plans for Love or Letter." He responds, holding up a hand when [Name] opened her mouth to counter him. "Evelyn told me you stopped by yesterday when I was away and offered her money if she says what I had planned for this week."

[Name] chewed at her lip as Jihoon stared her down sternly before she shook the cup of coffee again. "Bribe or not, it's still an offering. You look like you need it anyways."

She held the cup out to him, eyes bright as she waited for him to take it. Some part of Jihoon wanted to refuse, saying caffeine might affect him later when he works out. He didn't, though. He couldn't. Especially with the look she was giving him.

Wide eyed and hopeful that he'd accept her "offering". He didn't try to look at her as he closed his fingers around the cup, not sure if he can handle the look on [Name]'s face and a little embarrassed when his fingers brushed at her's as they handed the drink off to one another.

“Why are you here?” Jihoon asked, not willing to let up on the fact [Name] was supposed to be on her break.

She chewed at her lip again, a habit she had whenever she tried to think about an answer. And something Jihoon wasn’t sure if he should have noticed or not. He moved his eyes from her lips (though, he wasn’t sure why he struggled so hard) to her eyes, glad she wasn’t staring at him, but at the stack of confession letters on his—or her, actually—desk.

Carefully, Jihoon pushed the notes protectively to his side, shaking his head at her. Even with no words being exchanged, he could definitely tell [Name] wanted to say something.

Instead, a pause only came for a moment until [Name] offered a nervous smile. “It was to bribe Evelyn, but she’s clearly not here… But then you’re here so not really a bad thing, right?”

For some reason, he fought off the turning in his stomach at that notion. “To give me coffee?”

“Exactly.” [Name] said, smiling wider. Again, fighting off the urge of his stomach turning. “You always look like you’re about to fall into a grave; it’s getting worse since you took some of my load. I kinda feel guilty…”

“It’s not a problem.” Jihoon said dismissively, making [Name] scoff.

“You’re starting to look like me when I haven’t slept in 48 hours.” She counters in response. “You’re in your last year of college, too, so I know you barely sleep from school work anyways. Have you gone outside yet at all?”

“Yeah. To walk to work.”

[Name] rolled her eyes. “Okay, smartass, I mean what about not work related? The leaves are changing.”

“Should that mean something to me?” Jihoon asked.

“It means you’re going on a walk. With me.” [Name] said, matter of factly.

Jihoon only blinked up at her, not sure how to react. “A walk?”

“Mhm.”

“With you?”

“Yep.”

“When?”

[Name] walked around the table, ignoring the way Jihoon nearly shot out of his seat but nonetheless let her look at the time displayed on the computer. “Right now.”

Jihoon shook his head. “No way. I’m—”

“Busy?” [Name] guessed, shaking her head as she grabbed his coat from the chair and threw it at him. “Don’t care. You look dead and I feel bad since you’re doing my work at the moment. I’m taking you out.”

Jihoon felt his face heat up. Why does she have to word things so weirdly? He hadn’t much time to think about it, however, as he felt himself being pulled away from the room. 

“Why?”

[Name] rolled her eyes. “So we can talk.”

“We spoke to each other on the phone yesterday. And you visit the studio when you’re not working on school.” Jihoon points out, which was all true.

Ever since he had offered to take over for [Name] while she was gone, a sort of camaraderie developed between them. They’d have conversations outside of work, though it was usually to gossip about Soonyoung’s sudden interest in a girl or [Name] telling him about Seungkwan and his rivalry with one of the other hosts for the radio station.

Not to mention, her little stints on trying to get back into the radio station to sneak in some information for weekly Love or Letter segments.

The first week, it was Jihoon who had caught her, dragging her out the building himself and telling her to study for her make-up exams (apparently, her professors loved a good sob story and it didn’t take much convincing to let her re-take them).

The second week, Soonyoung was with him when they caught sight of a blurry figure running into the Love or Letter room when no one else was there. This time, it was Soonyoung who dragged her out as [Name] and Jihoon argued on their way out the door.

It was currently the third week and Jihoon was more than surprised to see that she was the one trying to drag him out this time, though he might see why she did it; she seemed to have picked up on when someone wasn’t looking out of themselves.

“Well, we can talk more. Outside. In the fresh air.” [Name] comments and before he could think about anything else, he found himself on the side of the building, facing a population of trees.

“It’s great the radio station is near the forest, don’t you think?” [Name] said, eyes glancing up at the treeline. Jihoon only hummed, kicking at the leaves beneath their feet as they made their way toward a trail. They let themselves enjoy the environment around them, taking in the chirping birds and the cooling breeze for a while before trying to utter anything else.

Once they had reached a certain point to not see the building anymore, Jihoon finally spoke up. “You’re looking better.”

[Name] blinked at him. “You think so?” She asked, smiling.

She’s been doing that a lot. Jihoon thinks, noting how easily she offers her grins to him. Though, a lot of things have gradually changed in [Name] since she had gone on her break.

 Clothes became cohesive, her demeanor was slowly becoming more like last year’s (though he wasn’t sure the spitfire attitude she harbored this year is going to leave, not that he’s complaining though—he’d rather have a co-producer who can speak up more).

She had done her hair up this time instead of keeping it down or tying it away from her face, letting more of her face become visible. Yeah, she definitely looks better. Healthier.

“That’s what you should look like all the time.” He says, regretting it immediately as soon as the words came out of his mouth. “I mean, that’s what you should look like if you actually balance your school and work life better.”

“Uh-huh.” [Name] said, though the smile never disappeared. She walked a little further ahead before saying, “I’d say you’re looking better, too, but I’d be lying. I wouldn’t have dragged you on a walk with me like this if I didn’t see how dead you were when I walked in.”

“Reading love confessions gets a little exhausting. Especially if they’re just about me.” Jihoon responds, shivering as he remembered a few not so safe for work confessions regarding him and his unwanted fangirls. “Seriously, who even has the courage to say those things to a bunch of strangers.”

“Welcome to my world.” [Name] comments blandly. “Gotta hand it to them, though; some of them are kinda creative.”

“Okay, ew.” Jihoon starts, watching [Name] laugh at his disgust. “You just say anything that comes to mind, huh?”

“As if you don’t.” [Name] responds back, elbowing his side gently. “I’m just a little less shameless about it. You, however, act like you don’t do the same thing I do. We are one in the same, Lee Jihoon, just accept it.”

Jihoon stared at the back of her head, wondering just how true that statement was. From what he’s gathered since his time working with the Love or Letter team, apparently they weren’t any different from one another when it came to working.

“It’s like nothing’s changed.” Eunwoo commented to him last week. “[Name] always sits back there and sometimes doesn’t even talk the whole time she’s with us. Similar to you.”

“Yeah, keep talking like that until you get fired.” Jian comments to him, hitting his shoulder with a folder. He offered an apologetic look to Jihoon. “He just means you both get caught up in your work a lot. Eunwoo is right, though; you do both seem like the same person when you work. It’s a wonder how you two haven’t become friends yet.”

Friends. An odd term for Jihoon whenever he thinks of that and [Name] next to it. Still, he does wonder…

“Are we friends?” He asked [Name], making her turn around. Her eyes became a little distant. Jihoon wondered if he crossed a line for a moment before he heard her hum in thought.

“I’d say a few months ago we weren’t.” [Name] admitted. “And now? I think so. We talked a lot since I went on break. We text each other a lot more now, too. Do you not?”

It was a brief flicker in her emotions, but Jihoon was sure he saw a flash of worry cross her features. He was silent for a second, looking at the fallen leaves on the ground as he kicked them out from the path. Finally he spoke. “Yeah, I think we are. If that’s how you see it.”

“I do.” [Name] said, Jihoon was a little touched at her immediate response. “Hopefully we grow closer.”

Something in Jihoon’s stomach turned again at the notion. He felt his throat dry up as he let the words echo in his head until something finally clicked in him about something. His eyes glanced over at [Name] and the way she kept her eyes trained on the changing leaves. 

Well, shit. 

His brain almost felt like it was exploding. Just when he asked her if they were friends too, such great timing. He did his best to ignore the nervousness crawling up him, trying to find the right words.

“Yeah.” Was all he could offer, ready to give a big sigh as he realized how lame that sounded.

[Name] didn’t seem to mind the one worded answer, giving a satisfied nod as they continued to walk the trail. “Let’s walk for another 10 minutes and then you can go ba—”

“Oh, [Name]? Jihoon?” A voice interrupts, making the two look up to see Soonyoung’s towering figure jogging up to them from the other side of the trail. The blonde was clearly out for an afternoon jog, his blonde hair covered in a cap and wearing warmer clothes. He gave an excited wave once he found himself standing in front of them. “What are you guys doing here?”

“Dragged him out for a walk.” [Name] explains plainly, watching Soonyoung cautiously. Clearly, she was well aware of his tendency to get excited. 

Jihoon was the next one to speak up. “Why are you so excited?”

“Because you two are the last people I’d expect to see outside.” Soonyoung says. “Not to mention together. Alone. Not glaring at each other.”

“I’ll have you know we haven’t expressed wanting to strangle each other with our eyes in the past three weeks.” [Name] says, almost proud at the notion the two of them have had a normal interaction for so long.

Soonyoung let out a noise that could only be compared to a deflating balloon. “Sure.”

“Don’t believe us? Walk with us, then, and see.”

Just when Jihoon thought he could have some peace and quiet… Quietly, he muttered to himself, “Don’t say yes—”

“Okay! While we’re at it, let’s take a selfie…”

Working for a radio station had its perks. Due to receiving bigger funding for its popularity, the station let each segment team have their own office to work in, meaning distractions didn’t happen as often as possible.

[Name] was also allowed to work her own hours without question, meaning she could come in any time she wanted when they weren’t on air. Most times she spent her nights there, working on homework from classes and filing in any paperwork that was needed for Love or Letter.

She let out a groan as she finally pressed submit on her final comment on the discussion board, shutting off the music playing on her laptop before shuffling around to look for the papers she had to deliver to Soonyoung. 

Rubbing out the exhaustion in her eyes before leaving her office, she maneuvered around the office floor as fast as she could to the host’s space, the idea of sleep already grasping at her.

[Name] let out a soft knock, waiting for Soonyoung’s tired “Come in” to signal her to open the door. She let out a laugh mixed with shock and amusement when she opened the door to see two stacks of papers on his desk. “Geez, Soonyoung… Did you wait for paperwork to pile up again?”

Soonyoung only glared at her, though she sensed no type of malice behind it, only an exhaustion she was unfortunately familiar with. His eyes shifted over at the pile in her hand. “Don’t tell me that’s more paperwork I need to look at.”

“Yeah…” [Name] said, waving the thick wad of paper in her hand as she placed it onto the corner of her desk. Something tells her Soonyoung wasn’t going to be able to look at it for a while. “I feel a little behind on work even though Jihoon covered for me.”

“So that means you make me have more paperwork?” Soonyoung cried out, offering an exaggerated cry.

[Name] rolled her eyes. “Oh, relax. You just have to sign it.”

Still, she watched as Soonyoung let out a tired groan, collapsing his head onto his desk in annoyance. “Why did I wait to push all my work? I could’ve done so much more fun stuff on a Friday night…”

“What, like go on a date with a certain someone?” [Name] jibed, covering her mouth as she remembered Jihoon swore her to secrecy about Soonyoung’s love life.

Picking his head up, Soonyoung glared at her. “Where did you hear that?”

“Um…” [Name] started, shifting to get ready to leave.

She was more than glad to not come near it, however, as it swung open so fast, it made the both of them jump. Their heads snapped over to see a panicked looking intern, eyes wild with adrenaline. A piece of paper crumpled in his hand, he shook it in front of the two as he tried to catch his breath.

“Jihoon… Papers… Important… Sign!”

Soonyoung set his pen down, standing up to help the new worker onto his couch while [Name] took the paper in his hand to see it had been an approval request form that was due tomorrow morning.

She handed it off to Soonyung once he stood back up, eye straining to read the paper. “Damn, so much for trying to finish as much paperwork as possible. Why wasn’t this given to him when he was still here?”

“No one saw it until now.” The intern explained. “We tried calling and messaging him, but he won’t respond.”

Soonyoung hummed, as if knowing what he was going to say. “Yeah that sounds like him. Once he’s out of the office he doesn’t respond to work calls unless we find him personally.”

“Yikes.” [Name] muttered. “Well, we kinda need this approval form turned in, though. Any chance you know where he is?”

“Either eating somewhere or at the gym. I dragged him to lunch with me so I’m assuming he’s probably at the gym.” Soonyoung explained. He walked away with the paper. “I’ll just find him and give it to him to sign.”

[Name] watched as he heaved himself onto his seat, clearly too tired to even kick the intern out of the office. He leaned his head onto his hand, picking up where he left off, hardly letting himself breath as his eyes scanned through the papers faster than the last time.

She sighed, offering her hand out. “It’s fine. I can find him before I go home and have him sign the paper. I’ll take it back with me to the station since I come in tomorrow.”

She cast a concerned stare at the intern on the couch, then back to Soonyoung who waved a hand her way, as if to say he’ll take care of him. [Name] was more than happy to offer a nod, not wanting to take care of whatever might come from dealing with him.

By the time [Name] was out of the building, Soonyoung had already texted her the location of the gym with the words “don’t scare him” written right after it. [Name] could only wonder what possessed him to send the last comment but didn’t think much of it as she found the campus gym illuminating in the dark.

She offered a polite greeting to one of the student workers, ignoring the way they stared at her, mouths agape. She could only assume it was because of the way she was dressed—a long coat and a tote bag that looked ready to burst any minute, nothing near gym clothes—as she walked around to look for the producer.

Surprisingly, the gym was close to silent, despite the large population of students in attendance, the music faintly playing in the background as the clinking of metal was the only disruption. Still, she did her best to keep her head low as she peeked around large contraptions that she would have assumed were death traps if it was outside.

She nearly gave up until she spotted a familiar black hat and red watch. [Name] was quick in her steps, careful to not run into anyone as she made her way to Jihoon, who had his head leaning down on his phone.

[Name] opened her mouth, ready to call his name out but choked up when she caught sight of him. Usually he wore the same clothes he was wearing now: black shirt with black pants, and black shoes with the same black hat that covered his head. 

A clear indication he either came back from the gym or his intention was to go to the gym after he finished his tasks at the radio station. She was never close enough before but now she was seeing him and was he always built like some body builder? 

[Name]’s mind could only immediately go to a certain celebrity known for having the same build as she fought off the thought. Composing herself, she walked over machines, offering polite “excuse me’s” to anyone she passed by and giving polite smiles to anyone who looked at her.

It was clear he couldn’t hear her, his earbuds tucked and volume probably louder than she could bear to think of as he kept his head ducked down on his phone. He only looked up when his eyes made contact with her shoes.

Jihoon blinked up at [Name], almost frozen in his spot. “What are you doing here?” He asked, making [Name] snicker.

Straight to the point, like always. “I wanted to work out with you.” She jokes as she fishes out for the papers, taking note of the fluttering in her stomach when she heard the small huff he let out in amusement. “One of your interns barged into Soonyoung’s office saying you needed to sign this. I was on my way out and I told them I’d look for you to sign them.”

"You could’ve just waited, you know.” Jihoon informed, taking the papers to sign anyways. [Name]’s eyes widened as she made eye contact with his arm, which looked like the size of her head from the way he leaned down on it to sign the paperwork. Hercules. He looked like Hercules.

As if sensing her, Jihoon glanced up from the rim of his hat, only spotting the swivel of [Name]’s head to a random spot at the gym. 

Was she just…? Jihoon frowned for a moment, mouth opening slightly then closing it. How was someone supposed to ask their work enemy turned friend if they were checking him out? He wasn’t sure he needed to ask anything if his thinking was correct.

He leaned back down, signing the final page and coughing to catch [Name]’s attention. Jihoon offered [Name] an amused smile as he watched her turn back to him in cartoonish panic, seemingly doing her best to keep her eyes glued on the paper and not him.

“Thanks.” [Name] responds stiffly, stuffing the papers back into her bag before straightening up. She felt a sense of welcoming dread fall in her as she realized Jihoon had watched her haphazardly shoving papers into her bag.“Well, uh… Happy lifting?”

She gripped her bag, giving a bow so fast that she nearly fell over, waving Jihoon’s hands away when they reached out to steady her as she regained her balance. [Name] hadn’t made it far, only about three steps away when she felt a jolt shoot through her as Jihoon stopped her, hand reaching out to grab her wrist.

Jihoon felt something bubble in his stomach as [Name] looked over at him, eyes wide in confusion as he kept his hand on her wrist a little too long. He was quick to let go, doing his best to not focus on how doe eyed [Name] looked as she turned herself toward him.

“Are you heading home?” He asked, watching [Name] offer a slow nod. Jihoon didn’t need to hear anymore as he lifted himself off his seat. “I’ll walk you home.”

“You don’t have to—” [Name] started, only stopping when Jihoon interrupted her, taking off his hat and shaking out his messy hair. When was the last time she saw him not wearing a cap? Usually he keeps them on so his hair wouldn’t get in the way during work. She felt like she was seeing something scandalous, even if it was just his hair.

“I don’t feel comfortable knowing you’re walking home alone in the dark.” Jihoon said, essentially cutting off any argument she had ready. He logged 15 minutes into his watch, the other days indicating 60 or more, mocking him for not finishing his usual work out schedule. He was quick to exit, however, when [Name] shuffled herself a little closer to him as he made his way away from the machines. “I was already finishing my workout anyway. Just wait by the door while I get my stuff.”

He walked away to the locker rooms, ignoring the feeling of [Name]’s eyes on him. He packed quickly, only bothering to change into his sweatpants and shoving all his materials into his bag haphazardly before exiting.

[Name] had been standing by the door patiently, hands clasped in front of her as she rocked on the balls of her feet. Relief washed over Jihoon, glad that [Name] hadn't actually left like he initially thought she would.

Words didn't need to be spoken as they walked out the gym together, Jihoon opening the door for her to exit first, smiling slightly as he watched her face wrinkle at the biting wind. [Name] kept herself moving forward, leading the way to her home.

Jihoon listened intently to the crunch of the leaves underneath his feet while [Name] did her best to kick them away as they walked quietly along the sidewalk. A sense of nervousness bit at her, a little afraid why Jihoon was so quiet. 

Their newfound friendship was built on a basis of quiet understanding since the day she dragged him to go on a walk with her. Neither of them had to speak to one another during meetings to know what the other was thinking now. A single glance at each other gave them the ample opportunity to understand if something was a yes or no.

It seemed quite the opposite right now, however. An unexplainable paranoia followed her as she eyed Jihoon, who looked as if he wanted to say something but wouldn’t.

Sick of the awkward silence, [Name] decided to speak up. “Have you seen Soonyoung’s post?”

Jihoon groaned, rolling his eyes. “Don’t even remind me…”

She let out a quiet snicker, watching his ears burn red in embarrassment, [Name] recalling the post.

hosh_soonie: unexpected guests on my run!!!

His arms had been spread out in the picture, head thrown at the clouds as if screaming into the sky. [Name] and Jihoon right behind him and watching in amused judgment. Neither had thought nothing of it, assuming all the focus would be on their eccentric friend.

A quick look at the comments had proven otherwise, however.

dj_boo: two house cats and a hamster

imdeekay: best producers!

0_tkm_0: pd jihoon looks so good here

notjiyeul: JUST A MOMENT IF YOUR TIME SIR 🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️

.kimgi: his dimples omg

user087261846: who s the girk next to him?

[Name] had never brought it up, feeling a bit embarrassed herself as she read a few of the comments asking about her and hoping it had died down until someone had came up to her a few days ago in class.

“You know that guy you were standing next to in Hoshi’s picture?”

“Jihoon?”

“Yeah, do you know if he’s… Um, single?”

The people pleaser she was, [Name] had agreed to ask him next time she saw him, despite the sinking feeling in her stomach when she had agreed to pair them up together. She continued to ignore it as she spared a glance at him. “You seem like you’re getting popular again, though…”

Jihoon rolled his eyes. “Yeah, well I’m not too sure I like the attention.”

“Really?” She asked, elbowing his side gently. They had made it to the crosswalk that was leading to her apartment. A car slowly turned into the same street, making  Jihoon maneuver to her other side when they had crossed. “Some girls have been asking me if you’re single or not. Doesn’t that sound fun?”

“Sure, I guess.” Jihoon responds, ruffling his hair and looking lost in thought. “I’d rather have as much privacy as possible. I’d be more confident without a bunch of eyes on me.”

“Ah,” [Name] hums, a settled agreement coming between them. With such a popular segment like Love or Letter and dealing with the radio station as a whole, [Name] wouldn’t put it past Jihoon to want to have some semblance in his life. “Well, you’ve been doing great at work so if you’re feeling pressure there, don’t stress about it.”

“Well yeah.” Jihoon said, matter-of-factly, mouth gaping open for a moment as he let out an awkward cough. “It’d also be good to have more confidence so I could’ve asked you out sooner.”

Pause. [Name] felt like the wind was just knocked out of her as she registered his words, head whipping toward him. “Huh?”

“I, uh…” Jihoon faded off, eyes darting left and right as he stopped, facing [Name]. “Wanted to ask you out? Like on a date somewhere this weekend…” He analyzed her face, trying to understand her reaction as he continued to ramble on. “Or not? If you don’t see me that way. Or if its too awk—”

“Jihoon I’d like that.” [Name] suddenly scrambled out, unable to control herself when a smile settled on her face.

“Right.” Jihoon said, face burning as he looked at [Name], her face tinting a shade probably similar to his but he definitely didn’t look as cute. “Cool. I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

[Name] nodded, suddenly remembering they had been walking to her apartment. She turned to the stairs, ready to walk up as she said, “Yeah, tomorrow. And this weekend.”

Jihoon laughed, walking backwards as he watched [Name] make her way to her door. “Yeah, this weekend too.”

An urge suddenly seemed to stop her as she noticed him turn around, however, making [Name] go back down the stairs of her townhouse and jogged back up to him. “Jihoon, wait!”

“Yeah?” Jihoon asked, feeling [Name]’s hands reach for the side of his face and bring his lips to her’s. The suddenness of their closeness made Jihoon grab her waist to balance himself as he finally registered that they were kissing. It was short and [Name] was running out of breath from her jog, making her pull away too early for Jihoon’s liking.

“This weekend.” She breathes against his lips, Jihoon squeezing her waist as he feels her soft breath brush his cheek. He only nods, making [Name] pull away and run back to her apartment, scrambling to grab her items as she finally disappeared through her door, the last thing he commits to memory for the night the feeling of her smile against his as he walked home.

[mshroom1e]

Hi! Could i request Ortho finding out that Idia's online friend and eventually crush is the reader? And eventually he tries to matchmake them?

Hello!! Sorry for disappearing for a whole 2 weeks 💀 I've been busy with life and I ended up writing this fic way longer than I ppanned to. I hope you don't mind! Also, I got really stuck on some parts and wasn't sure which direction to go with the story. Apologies if it feels a little rushed.

Pr0ject Cupid | Idia x GN! Reader

type: fanfic

Summary: A pair of painfilly awkward people get set up by a member of the said pair's little brother.

5.8k words

tags: silly fluff, mutual crushing

Warning(s): very mild swearing

no way u acc saw me

bruh i couldve seen you with my eyes closed

you dumbass u just contradicted yourself

no shit

im gonna shave your eyebrows

...

Idia stifled a laugh and couldn't hide the cheesy grin that grew on his face as his eyes read over the pixelated letters on his monitor. About 3 weeks ago, he met you on a random server, and you instantly clicked. He wasn't one to form bonds with people so quickly, whether it was online or in person, but with you, how could he resist?

You got along like Q and W on a keyboard, plus you always reciprocated his nerdy comments and never got the wrong idea about any of his intentions. The only problem was, however, that you had no idea who each other were irl.

So, one day, Idia got curious about who you really were. He ended up searching for you on Magicam using the username he knew you by. There wasn't really much he was expecting as people usually used different names for their social media compared to the more nerdy online stuff.

Idia nearly fell out of his chair when a search result popped up, and a profile with quite a few posts showed up. It was you. There was no way it wasn't you.

His heart began beating faster than usual just at reading your captions, posts of your random thoughts, and the pictures you posted. You were definitely cute, maybe the prettiest person Idia had ever seen. Even though your facial features were pixelated, you somehow managed to make them look soft and warm, like an angelic version of yourself. There were also many pictures of foods you made in the Ramshackle Dorm, selfies with your friends, and a few pictures with Grim.

Okay, now Idia was panicking. He'd never felt the way he felt right now, but from the way his heart was running a marathon and he could feel warmth slowly creeping up his face, there was only one explanation. The description matched how the characters in dating sims would feel, and this was bad. He couldn't have a cru- no no no, a c-word. No way! He didn't even want to think of the word because it would only solidify his predicament in his head.

From his panic, his finger slipped and accidentally liked one of your posts. Idia's eyes widened as he saw the damage he'd already done as his brain went into full panick mode. There was no way to undo it, even if he un-liked the post. The notification must've already gotten to your phone and you would've noticed most likely and you'd block him, think he was a stalker and never speak to him again then he'd be become even more emo and-

He changed from his usual question mark posture in his chair to sitting in a fetal position in the corner of his room, hoping for the atoms in his body to slowly merge into the wall.

His phone in his pocket vibrated, and when Idia pulled out the device to see what the notification was, his heart nearly collapsed on itself. A flinch of his arm caused his phone to be launched across his room, and for some reason, he jumped to catch it, landing on a large, disorganised pile of manga with a loud crash. He hastily unlocked his phone to see what the alert was.

'Your EP has been restored!'

Damn.

There was a smooth sliding of the door to Idia's dorm room. Ortho stood? floated? levitated? at the entrance with a confused, yet worried expression in the visible part of his face.

"Idia? I heard a loud crash, and I was worried you got injured," Ortho floated closer to his brother.

"I'm f-fine!" Idia yelped.

'Hair tinted pink, increasing heart rate, flushed cheeks,'

Ortho's eyes drifted over to Idia's several monitors until he focused on a certain one.

"Yuu's Magicam profile?"

The little robot pieced two and two together before he said, "Oh, you like [Name], don't you?"

-

This was a really, really, really bad idea...

Idia's internal panick only escalated as he was dragged walking through campus with Ortho. Leaving his dorm room usually resulted in a one-sided fight for his life as every dialogue scene he had with another person besides his brother was set to hard mode by default.

Speaking with you in person was the best way to get to know each other better, Ortho would say. The problem was, Idia knew that you didn't know who he was, so it would probably be strange to suddenly have him speaking to you.

He was lost in his panicky thoughts when he felt someone bump into him, and he felt his body tipping back. (So unique and never seen before, I know.)

A hand quickly grabbed his wrist, hoisting him back upright. Ortho sent you a beaming smile with his eyes before quickly disappearing and leaving you alone with his brother, leaving the beanstalk to fend for himself.

Idia's heart nearly flipped in his stomach as he met your eyes. You let go of his wrist when he regained his balance, he almost fell over again.

"Careful," you smiled.

In his eyes, you looked like a panel from a manhwa where the love interest was introduced with flowers, sparkles, and glitter radiating around them.

"S-sorry," He managed to spit out, somehow sounding cohesive.

"It's okay, I just hope you didn't get hurt, I tend to grab onto stuff a little too tightly," you said with a sheepish chuckle.

Your laugh. Idia's ears felt blessed with such a delicate angelic sound. Like bells chiming in his ears, more harmonic than the songs from his favourite idol group's no.1 album. His heart was sent into overdrive, and he couldn't take it anymore and decided on the most rational option in his currently mushy brain.

To run.

So he ran.

You watched his retreating form with a fond look before you turned to face Ortho, who hid in a nearby bush and sent him a thumbs up.

This was progress, at least.

- A few days ago -

You had a crush on Idia. A huge one at that. There was no debate. You didn't even bother denying it.

You knew he rarely left his dorm room, so you barely saw him during the day. Seeing a flash of flamey blue hair dart around a corner just before you could fully get a look at the twitter logo-coloured candle always managed to make your heart squeeze and an undefeatable grin etch itself on your face.

Of course, a few days into talking to your new online friend, you already knew of his true identity but chose not to inform him of the fact. From what you'd seen on campus, he was the type of person to prefer engaging with others through the comfort of a screen rather than conversing face to face. And honestly, you couldn't blame him at all. It must've felt so stifling to always be conscious of the way you carried yourself, while choosing words carefully to not offend the person in front of you or make them think badly of you while simultaneously looking like a sane, functioning person.

So, you talked to him like an online friend would. After a few days of getting to know each other through public servers and direct messaging, you soon shared your interests and found common ground in a few of them. For example, you both were addicted to gacha games with diabolocal pity systems. He also started to open up to you, though you thought it was a little fast, but people tend to share a lot when speaking to someone through pixels on a screen as they felt more at home. He talked about his struggles when interacting with people and his constant anxiety about how people perceived him.

Being someone of minimal social intelligence, the most you could do was offer some general words of comfort about how everyone was different in their own way and some people are just more advantaged in certain aspects of life, social interaction being one of them.

As your feelings grew, you couldn't help but feel like your relationship was a little one-sided. You knew who exactly you were talking to, but as far as Idia knew, he was talking to and building a relationship with a person who could've been miles and miles away and he also barely knew who [Name] was.

Man, this really sucked.

- Yesterday -

Ortho was smart. It was only obvious since his mechanical brain had the efficency of a computer with infinite RAM. He knew his brother had met a new friend online, which explained his less gloomy aura and his anxious glances at his phone whenever they were in his room together.

It didn't take long for Ortho to learn that the person Idia was talking to also attended the same school. In his mind, he viewed finding out things about you as a way to further protect his older brother from harm.

Fast forward to later that day, Ortho cornered found you in the courtyard after you'd lost a bet with Grim and had to buy him a drink from a nearby vending machine.

He called out to you enthusiastically as he practically teleported to you, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

Long story short, Ortho figured out how you felt about Idia, and he was over the moon. His brother finally had someone who he could happily spend time with, and he couldn't be happier for him. He knew Idia better than anyone, and it was certain that getting close to Idia in face-to-face terms would take a lot for him to get used to and he decided it would be best to slowly ease your way into making conversations with him without being forceful or overwhelming him.

Thus began your joint conspiracy to rizz up get to know Idia better.

- Present -

It took about a day for you to come to the conclusion that you'd most likely never see Idia during school hours whether he was on campus or not. Your schedules were so unmatched that it was ridiculous. When you had a lesson in the alchemy labs, he'd be in a P.E lesson and when you were in the history of magic, he'd be in some classroom that might as well be at the other side of Sage's Island.

Luckily for you, Ortho informed you about Idia's current whereabouts. He was in the Board Game Club's classroom, probably playing- you guessed it- board games. It felt like some sort of secret stealth mission, plotting where to catch Idia with Ortho so sneakily. You just hoped that this silly plot would work.

Now that you were in front of the clubroom's door, you had no idea what to do. Your brain already left your body shortly after your heart that was beating a mile a minute and had long since jumped out of your chest to who knows where. You'd worked so hard to get to this point (not really) and now that you were here, what were you going to do?

Showing up at his clubroom unannounced totally sounded like stalker behaviour from some poorly written fanfic, and you definitely were not about that life. What if you just entered casually? Did you have a friend in the board game club? Probably not since you didn't even know the names of the people in your homeroom class, save for Adeuce and Grim.

Deciding to swallow your nerves and whatever other anxiety that was clogging your airways, you calmly slid open the door. Surprisingly, the club had quite a few members present, but it wasn't too densely populated. Your eyes immediately lit up when familiar floaty blue flames caught your attention. He was alone on a table next to one of the room's walls. His usual board gaming partner, Azul, was nowhere to be seen. It was safe to assume he was somewhere exploiting some poor unfortunate soul of all their mortal possessions with his buy-one-get-one-free pair of henchmen.

You approached Idia, more nervous than a turkey the day before Thanksgiving. He noticed you and almost jumped out of his own skin.

Was he dreaming? If not, why else would you show up at the board game club? Before he knew it, he started to sweat. Every step you took closer to him made his poor heart run laps. The confident (Idia's POV. This does not accurately reflect current events.) stride in your step, and the smile you gave him as you approached made his face heat up, and the tips of his hair grow warmer. His flight- please there is absolutely no fight- instinct almost took over as he considered running out of the room at full speed.

There was no Ortho to help him communicate if he ended up having to talk to you. He was all alone for this pop-up Pokemon battle.

A random board game caught your eye, and you picked it up, deciding to use it as a shield to not let your conversation get stabbed in the chest by the painful spear called awkwardness.

"Hi, Idia." You said casually with your usual grin. 'Great start'

You failed to catch Idia's mortified expression as it disappeared as suddenly as it arrived. He opened his mouth to speak, but he couldn't get any words out. To his surprise, you didn't seem to mind his silence and just sat down in the chair across from his.

"Sorry to bother you," you continued, "If you want me gone, just say the word." The second part was intended to be lighthearted as you let out a low chuckle after you were done talking.

He quickly scrambled into his bag and pulled out a slim, grey tablet, and began to type.

"I don't mind you being here at all, [Name]." A voice from the device's speakers that sounded too much like Idia's said. You weren't all too shocked since you'd seen him use it around school a few times and had even seen the thing floating around campus by itself. You'd just never have a conversation with "it".

"Woah, is that a voice program?Did you make it yourself? I've only seen it being used for vocaloids, and even those mess up a few times. Did you use a sample of your voice? Is everything prerecorded? If you-" You blurted out, quickly smacking a hand over your mouth to shut yourself up before you could ramble any further.

Great job, [Name].

Idia's eyes lit up with surprise at your words as he quickly started typing something on his screen. His features moulded into a proud smirk, "Yeah, it's made with a sample of my voice. I made it using a vocaloid as a reference."

"Really?!" You almost jumped out of your seat, eyes practically shining with stars. Gosh, he really was so cool.

He nodded frantically as the tips of his firey hair faded into a warmer hue. Students in his dorm had the same base interests as he did. However, he was almost always too nervous to initiate a conversation with any of them. But with you, the nervousness he felt didn't try to suffocate him for once and instead felt like a sweet, comfy flutter in his chest.

"I found this when I walked into the room, and it looked fun. Wanna play?" Your short exchange feuled you with a little more confidence as you built the courage to ask him to play a board game with you.

You hadn't even looked at the game's cover before picking it up. Imagine your surprise at finding out you'd picked up "Monopoly Bass Fishing Edition".

Great job.

Now, Idia probably saw you as some weird fish-obsessed kid (no offence to Octavinelle) who probably looked up how to make bass fishing bait in their spare time. The cover was hideous. A massive bass fish was in the middle, surrounded by loops of smaller bass fish all saying things in speech bubbles where the letters were modelled to look like bass fish. To top it all off, there was a massive glittery title in the colour of neon orange that said, "Monopoly: Bass Fishing Edition." Underneath in equally as eye tormenting sentence bordered off by a wiggly pink line that read "Get ready to be schooled!" Get it? Coz groups of fishes are called schools-

This was going to be painful.

You liked to think you knew all the rules of Monopoly by heart. Especially after seeing relationships crumble over the neverending board game.

Idia didn't seem phased, so you assumed he already knew the rules of the game, too.

You played for a bit, taking turns to roll a double to see who could start first. The first to roll a double was eventually Idia, so he took the first turn.

-

You knew Idia was competitive from the way he would obliterate the opposition during your online meet-ups in matches. What you didn't expect was to end up going bankrupt after only a few loops around the board. It took a while for you to accept defeat, but after seeing the small, triumphant smile that gently made its way onto Idia's face, any loss was worth it.

Now that you looked around the room, most of the board game club members had long since departed, and it was only you and your blue-haired friend left in the room. A blanket of quiet and slight awkwardness fell over the two of you as you both looked at anything but each other.

"We should uh, but the pieces away," you suggested.

He looked at you, a little surprised at your sudden breach of silence, before he quickly nodded. "R-Right."

After stiffly putting the pieces away, occasionally flinching when the tips of your fingers made contact as you passed some game pieces between yourselves, there wasn't much else for you to do despite twiddling your thumbs. From an outsider's point of view, the aftermath was painfully awkward as neither of you had anything to say. Sitting in silence wasn't always a bad thing, but come on.

Your brain frizzled as you tried to think of something, anything to say to start a conversation.

"Nice weather we're having today." So creative.

As if the universe was saying a big "f*ck you", there was a loud rumble of thunder outside the window before massive raindrops began to smack on to the grass and pavement outside, each with a louder 'plap!' than the previous one each time.

Idia giggled before trying to hold back a laugh, which eventually turned into even more giggles. You stared at him for a few seconds, stunned. You hadn't actually heard him laugh before as he always looked so terrified around you. Sure, he was laughing at your stupidity, but this was a start, right?

It didn't take long for you to join in, laughing at yourself too.

Maybe coming to his clubroom on impulse wasn't so bad after all.

-

"Sam's store is releasing this SSR-tier set of trading cards today, and I have to go get it," Idia muttered to himself as he scurried down a hallway of the Ignihyde dorm. "No one's gonna that early, especially since it's not gonna attract any normies-"

"But what if there's a whole mob of NPCs there? Worst case scenario is a few of them showing up to do some early morning shopping, so grabbing what I need and skidadling outta there is gonna be ez."

Ortho was most likely in his room resting at this hour, so Idia decided not to bother him. Besides, it was only a trip to the school store. He should be fine, right?

Wrong.

It was not ez peasy.

It just happened to be that the same day Idia's treasured ultra rare cards were released on the same day as Sam's new mystery drink that the whole school went crazy for. By the time Idia was about to leave the store after paying for what he came for, the whole area was packed, and it was almost impossible to move. Waves of students rushing to the till after grabbing a bottle of the new beverage washed over the store grounds.

People, people, people, and more people. Sweaty teenagers seemed to fight tooth and nail just to get their hands on a bottle. It was like the kids from the UK when Prime was launched. (iykyk) Everywhere he turned, he seemed to bump into another 3 people and get elbowed by another five. The sheer power of the crowd almost swept him off his feet, and he felt himself being dragged to the opposite direction from where he was headed. He reached his hand out to grab at something, while the other held his cards close to his chest, but there was nothing to hold onto for support. The only option was to become one with the crowd.

As he was about to give up and accept his fate, his outstretched hand was tugged on by a familiar, gentle yet firm grip, which felt like he was being pulled ashore after drifting off into the ocean. Idia's body was pulled upright and into a much less crowded space. A pleasant warmth spread across his chest as he saw the face of his saviour.

A part of him felt mortified while the other felt relieved. He was glad to have been pulled out of the sea of people, but he felt a little lame to have to have been saved by someone else, as if he couldn't handle himself. Another reason, the more obvious one, was because it was you. In his point of view, you always showed up at random times and ended up helping him without realising how much of an impact your actions held.

"I'm getting this feeling of deja vu," you smiled, leading Idia to a bench opposite the store.

"You helped me again-" Idia muttered, his eyes downcast.

You tilted your head, a little confused, "Hm?"

"N-No, it's not that I have a proble-" He cut himself off, "I, um-"

How did he manage to talk himself into a corner like this? Trying to talk to you felt like a puzzle with the myriad of emotions all rushing through his head at once, and he was bound to mess up somewhere.

"Don't sweat it," you responded. Your smile unwavering.

For whatever reason, Idia's anxious jumble of words never phased you. Your willingness to let him take his time when talking to you gave him a sort of confidence, and he could hope to speak with confidence that he didn't even know he was capable of.

A ray of reflected early morning sunlight that bounced off the shiny packaging of what Idia held securely in his hands and it caught your eye.

"Is that (insert game reference here)?!" Your voice cracked as you said the name of the franchise.

The mood was instantly lightened at your change in focus, and Idia felt himself get giddy. He was so happy to share a conversation with someone who wasn't a so-called "normie."

His excitement faded though, a bit, when he looked up to find that you looked slightly disappointed. You looked at Idia in confusion, but shrugged.

You sighed, looking away.

Why were you disappointed? Was it something he did? Oh no, what if you thought he was lame for getting trapped in a crowd like that, and you actually thought he was such a bother the whole time-

"I still haven't managed to get my hands in a copy," you frowned.

"Oh," He sounded stunned, which confused you. "Um, I-" He swallowed, fighting the urge to pull his hood over his head and hide.

"I mean-" Idia's eyes seemed to glance at everything and everywhere other than at you.

His breath caught in his throat, and the feeling multiplied by a gazillion when he saw Ortho watching him from behind a tree. He almost choked on whatever air he'd just managed to inhale into his trachea.

To make matters worse, Ortho held a cute but terrible made neon blue glittery banner that said, "Talk to them, Idia!!!"

Wasn't he resting?

The poor nerd (affectionate) wanted to evaporate on the spot.

"What were you about to say?" You asked, not seeing the silliness behind you.

Idia glanced back and forth between you and Ortho, wishing with every single bone in his body that the 50/50 gacha in front of him right now would go his way and you wouldn't turn around at all.

Imagine his horror when you followed his worryingly mortified gaze, and he saw our eyes widen a fraction, and you slapped a hand over your mouth.

"Ortho?"

He panicked for a good few seconds before he did what he did best and bolted away from you with a stubborn blush creeping up his neck.

"Huh?Wait up!" You called after him, but it was futile.

Ortho soon waved happily at you as he followed Idia back to what you assumed was the Ignihyde dorm.

-

"Where did you-" Idia began, speedwalking to the Hall of Mirrors with more agility than he knew his G-fuel filled body could possess.

"I did some research, and it showed that people your age have a 60% more chance at talking to someone they like when they're encouraged by someone else!" Ortho chirped with the certainty of the sun rising in the east.

"I'm not- It's not-" Idia couldn't find the words to use to retort at his younger brother. The way his sunny amber eyes shimmered with glee was enough to punch the words of protest that Idia could ever muster right down the drain. "J-Just tone it own a notch next time..." He finished with a small frown.

"Okay!" Ortho sang, floating into Ignihyde's mirror after the older Shroud.

Idia signed and pulled the strings of his hoodie tighter to conceal his face more. Now that you were somewhat aware of how he felt about you, he had no idea how to face you the next day.

-

It had been over a week, and you'd gotten no contact from Idia or Ortho. It was safe to assume that Idia probably didn't leave his room a single time in that time frame. A metaphorical banner was built between you as he had practically gone AWOL on everything you could use to contact him. So, you couldn't even talk to him with your online persona and try to understand how he felt by hoping he'd confide in his online bestie even a little. Not that you wanted to intrude on his privacy, but the fact that things seemed to be falling apart between you two before you properly even got to know each other hurt a lot more than th fact that you convinced yourself of- the fact that it looked like he didn't want to see you again. You sighed, closing your computer.

This was pointless. No doubt, he doesn't feel the same way towards you, and you really should start accepting it. Maybe he thought you were strange? Or it was creepy that you always seemed to be around when he was in trouble? Maybe he thought you were a stalker? He'd probably figured out your online identity and blocked you, hence the lack of activity on any of his accounts over the last week and a bit.

But you couldn't accept it. Not until you know more, and you don't think it'll help if you keep prying at the subject, especially since it won't do any good in the end. It was useless to keep trying. You grabbed your phone and checked the screen for any messages, but there were none. You put it back on the nightstand and turned on your side, burying your face in your pillow.

You lay there for what felt like forever and eventually fell asleep.

-

Morning soon arrived, and you woke up to a series of knocks at the main door of Ramshackle Dorm. The quick thuds of knuckles striking wood resounded throughout the whole bottom floor of the building, probably enough to alert your cat roommate out of his venture into Dream Land.

The perpetrator was definitely unexpected. It was a fine weekend, and you hadn't been expecting a visit from anyone at all, especially not the younger Shroud brother.

Rubbing your eyes and letting out a yawn as you opened the door, you had to squint to see something else other than a mop of flickering blue and a white block.

"Ortho?" You blinked. Your statement sounded more like a question to yourself than to the other party.

"Good morning!" Ortho said cheerfully, waving with one arm while balancing an assortment of books and various games under the other. He was carrying four plastic bags full of stuff, including a large bowl with some cereal, milk, eggs, toast, fruit, and orange juice inside it.

"Err..." you replied.

"We came to hang out!" Ortho cheered, which confused you even more.

"What? And who's 'we'??" You questioned all at once, not even knowing where to begin.

"Idia wants to apologise for running away from you for the past week. He said he's really sorry and did it because he was scared," he rambled on with his usual cheery tone and pointed to a nearby tree, "And we brought food!"

Behind said tree stood said Idia, holding onto the tree's bark with a grip for dear life while only the top half of his face peeked out.

What.

- Flashback to earlier -

"Now, what do I do? This is demon mode difficult- I'd rather fight Absolute Virtue from the original release of FF11 all over again for 16 hours straight than face them again... Can I get an F in the chat for this one..." Idia mumbled to himself in a string of incomprehensible gibberish as he sat in a fetal position at the corner of his room while his hood covered his entire head, and he rocked back and forth.

"This is the worst-"

"Cheer up, Idia!" Ortho handed him a charger, "You can always talk to them online if it helps!"

"At this point, they've probably forgotten about me. People's online friends get Men in Black'ed from their brains all the time. I'll just look like some weird guy that goes,'Hey kids!wanna to get free RAM for your computer?' or something-" his rampant thoughts only dug him further into his self-made pit of despair.

"Hmm," Ortho pondered, "Let's go see them!"

"Are you kidding?! No way!" He shook his head rapidly and started rocking himself even faster, "If they don't see me, maybe they'll even forget I exist and I can become one with the void..."

"Don't be ridiculous, Idia. We can go see them right now!" Ortho hovered around, gathering a bunch of gaming equipment and books, "Hanging out like friends will get rid of any tension in the air!"

"No!" Idia protested, but it was too late.

He'd already been picked up by a robotic arm, and off they went.

-

"That's pretty much what happened," Ortho recalled as you lead the pair the lounge.

"Right... But I still don't get how that means he's sorry..." You muttered.

"Why don't you tell them, Idia?" Ortho looked at his brother, "I'll leave you two to talk here while I make some snacks!"

The older Shroud twiddle his fingers and stared at the floor, his hood still covering his head.

It took a few seconds of silence before Idia began talking.

"Uh," he spoke quietly and cleared his throat twice before proceeding, "I was so stupid."

"Huh?" You said, gaping at Idia.

"I know I've done stupid things, but this was beyond stupid. Like, way too stupid! Noob at Subway Surfers level of stupid!" He babbled on, his voice cracking with uncharacteristic emotion.

He took a deep, shaky breath and closed his eyes, attempting to compose himself. His hair turning pink. "I kept telling myself it was okay for us to keep being friends online even though I found your Magicam page and accidentally liked one of your posts and knew who you were but you didn't know who I was and I felt guilty and then you suddenly showed up then I realised I l-l-like you and then that thing at the shop happened and you probably thought it was so cringe-"

Then it clicked. So he thought you thought he was weird? He didn't hate you.

It felt like a huge weight was lifted off your chest.

Then, you chuckled, snickered, giggled, then let out waves of laughter. Idia stared at you, dumbfounded.

"This whole time, haha, I thought I was the one who did something wrong."

"No! You didn't," He quickly jumped in.

"Wait, you just said that you like me...?" You pointed to yourself, and you felt your face grow warm.

Silence landed like a wall of pure steel between the two of you.

He gaped at you with wide eyes. Dang it! He seriously didn't mean to blurt that part out loud. Curse him and his tendency to blab everything he thought aloud as soon as he started talking!

Idia covered his reddened face with his hands.

"What a coincidence," you smiled, "Since I like you too."

You gently pulled his hands away from his face and gave him your brightest grin. He froze as soon as your skin made contact, and his breathing quickened, his hair turned a full, passionate pink.

"Ahahahaha...!" He stammered.

A sudden noise filled both the room, followed by a long silence, causing the both of you to turn towards the source. Your heads turned in sync to see Ortho standing at the door with a camera after it let out a painfully loud 'click!'

He gave the pair of you a huge smile with his eyes.

"For memories' sake!" He cheered.

-

Bonus

After you'd made breakfast together with the ingredients that the brothers brought, you, Idia and Ortho, sat in a triangle on the floor, while Grim watched lazily from the sofa. It was more of a joint interrogation performed against the little robot with Grim serving as an audience.

"So, Ortho, you knew Idia already knew who I was?" You raised an eyebrow, "And you knew about how he felt??"

"And you already knew that they liked me? And you knew they knew who I was and didn't tell me??" Idia squeaked, "And you told them to come to the store that day?!"

Ortho picked up a controller and was suddenly immersed in gameplay.

"Haha..." He sweatdropped.

[youling-the-ghost]

sfth incorrect quotes pt.7 because I haven't made these in *checks notes* ALMOST A WEEK?!?!

Sam: My hands are cold. Luke: Here, let me hold them. Sam: My lips are cold too. Luke: *covers Sam's mouth with his hand* Luke: I wasn’t that drunk. AJ: You colored my face with a highlighter because you said I was important. Luke: BECAUSE YOU ARE! Tom: Mint is just cold spicy. The Squad: ... Sam: What the actual fuck is wrong with you.

Tom: Do you think different paints have different tastes? Luke: They do. AJ: ...Why did you say that with such certainty? Luke: Don’t say a word. Sam: Fergalicious. Luke: Sam, I said no words. Sam: Oh, I see how it works. Two weeks ago, we’re playing Scrabble, it’s not a word, now suddenly it is a word because it’s convenient for you. Sam, to the Squad: The real secret to immortality? Not dying. You want to be immortal? Okay, that’s easy. Just don’t die. That’s it. Refuse to die. There you go. AJ: But how- Sam, ignoring him: "But how", you may ask. Well, easy. Just don’t do it. Refuse to. Say "no thanks". Luke: Am I a boy? Am I a girl? It doesn't matter. I'm going to burn your house down. (yes I'm continuing with the "Luke is an arsonist" bit) Sam: Look, Tom, it's the third time this week you had a mental breakdown and its Monday. Luke: Fight me! AJ: Ha, look at your size! What are you gonna do, kick my ankle? *Later* Tom: Why is AJ crying? Sam: Luke kicked him really hard on the ankle. Police Officer: You have the right to remain silent. AJ: I choose to waive that right! AJ: *screams* Tom: Dude, I will never forgive Craigslist for banning me after I wrote a post seeking a sworn nemesis. Whoever reported that is obviously my nemesis but I was so pissed. Sam: Hey! Tom: What do you want? Sam: Remember what we were talking about yesterday? Tom: Nope. Tom: Be kind. Everyone is fighting their own battles. Luke: Why would I be kind? I will be brutal and relentless and ride into battle by their side! AJ & Luke: *"accidentally" set the kitchen on fire* AJ: We need an adult! Luke: AJ, you are an adult! AJ: We need an adultier adult! Get Tom! Tom: Sam, keep an eye on Luke today. He's going to say something to the wrong person and get punched. Sam: Sure, I'd love to see Luke getting punched. Tom: Try again. Sam, sighing: I will try to stop Luke from getting punched. AJ: So are you gonna explain how the hell you crashed my car? Luke: Well we were driving and there was a deer in the road, so I said "Sam, deer!" AJ: ...And what did Sam do? Luke: ...He said "Yes, Honey?" (when gay chicken goes too far, but not in the way you were expecting) Sam: Why does my arm shake and turn bright red when I’m eating dirt? Tom: Tom: Why are you eating dirt? Sam: Did I ask you if I should eat dirt? No, so answer my question. Luke: I hate Sam. Tom: Don’t say hate. That is a mean word. Luke: Fine, I LOATHE Sam. ("Sam is full of shit." - Luke Manning, Discord Q&A, 2024) Sam: There is no i in happyness... Tom: There is if you fucking spell it right. Luke: watching their house burn down Luke: Luke: *starts filming* Waddup, guys, welcome to my vlog, today's topic: how to get away with accidentally committing arson because you forgot Spaghetti O's cans are metal and thus non-microwavable! Step one: deny everything. (I'm determined to make arsonist!Luke a reccuring joke) Tom: Go ahead, Sam. Let it out, cry. If you don't, your tear ducts will get blocked up, and then when you get old, you won't be able to cry. AJ: Just when we thought it was safe to let you back into the conversation. Sam: All right, AJ, that’s it, you’re grounded! I found a rap album hiding under your bed and it was the clean version. I didn’t raise you to be such a nerd! AJ: I’m not even your kid- ("I get my motherfricking baby back, baby back-") Sam: Let’s watch Sharkboy and Lavagirl. Luke: Okay. Sam: And make out during the scary parts. Luke: Th- Luke: The scary parts. Luke: Of Sharkboy and Lavagirl. Sam: You guys worried about Tom? AJ: Totally! Luke: Yeah, he called me in the middle of the night and just yelled, "what do I do, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do?" Sam: And what'd you say? Luke: "I dunno, I dunno, I dunno, I dunno." AJ: Sam: He's lucky to have you as a friend. Some guy, to Luke: Look at you! All cute and small! I could just eat you up! Luke: *proceeds to kick them in the shin and run away* Sam, walking past: Rule number 1, don't call Luke cute or small.

[tillthelandslide]

Same For You (13) : Take Me Higher

A/n: hi!!! i'm so sorry it took me so long to post this, to those tha saw the unfinished version i accidentally posted, sorry haha. Once again I need to thank @procrastinatinglikeapro for listening to my ideas on this one and helping me always :). I miss you all and hopefully soon can get to a more regular posting schedule. For now, I hope you enjoy (p.s i love this series hehe)

Series Masterlist

(12) June

warnings: 18+ MINORS DNI. Smut. p.s its a long one but trust me its worth it

She's stressed when she arrives at the studio, hands shaking with everything she does. The writing on the page is unsteady, fingers trembling against the strings of the guitar, making the music sound wobbly and flat. She doesn't have the band to fall back on, she can't ask Abbie to record her parts and she most definitely cannot escape the worried looks from the four men. Oh yeah, Jamie was sitting in on the session too. She wanted to impress him, but instead she feels like a mess. It's a nightmare.

George sits at the soundboard, thumb resting under his chin, fingers playing with his lip. He wants to ask if she's okay, but he also doesn't want to put more pressure on her. She sighs deeply, running a hand through her hair before throwing it up into a messy bun.

"Sorry one more time" she says, rolling back her shoulders and adjusting her grip on the guitar when it inevitably slips. Ross’ hand clamps around the arm of the chair, watching her, knowing how she was feeling, wanting to envelope her in his arms and take her worry away. 

It was hard seeing her like this, from the moment they met her there was an indescribable ease that radiated from her, like meeting someone who was already exactly who they were supposed to be. Music came naturally to her and seeing her like this was… unsettling. They all felt sympathy for her, knowing (without her having to mention) that something was seriously wrong. 

"We can take a break Y/n/n" George says, eyes finding hers through the glass as his fingertips press the button that allows her to hear him. Her eyes flick to Jamie's who smiles and nods, agreeing with George.

"No I'm good G, once more I swear" she says and he nods.

Matty’s hand hovers over George’s fingers, they don’t touch but when George sees his eyes flick to his, one look in his eyes and his finger stays put on the button for a moment, broadcasting Matty’s next words into the other room.

“This is it Y/n/n okay? You’ve got this” his words have her easing slightly, shoulders rolling back before she breathes in deeply, eyes shutting before they open again and she smiles, nodding at Matty.

She sees the red button light up, indicating that recording is in progress and her fingers move against the guitar again. She plays the guitar solo flawlessly, but all of the guys notice how her fingers buzz slightly. She finishes and sighs deeply, she still thinks she can do better.

"That was really good Y/n" Jamie says, smiling widely at her, putting his thumbs up, normally she’d tease him for it, call him an old man just to make him laugh, but she doesn’t… even he knows something is up then.

"Perfect" George says, and her eyes find him through the glass again, he knows she's going to ask to record it once more before she does and he speaks before she gets the chance.

"Don't ask to do it again Y/n/n, it was perfect... get outta that head of yours okay?" he asks and she nods with a sigh. George looks at the guys, leaving the microphone on so she can hear him.

"Going to go for a fag okay" he says and she nods mumbling a "be there in a minute, don't wait up" she says, nodding to both Ross and Matty. Jamie follows the man, phoning someone on his way.

Matty thinks about hanging back, but since his conversation with Ross he's apprehensive. It seems that ever since Ross told him to act the same, he’s been doing the opposite, he didn’t know why, but he felt a level of pressure now, although he knows that wasn’t the man's intention. But when Ross' hand finds his shoulder and he smiles, he knows it's okay.

"Hang back okay?" he says and Matty nods. When he enters the room, she's unplugging her guitar, placing it into its case. It's then that he realises she's using the light blue guitar, the first of two her brother had bought for her. 

"You alright love?" he asks, she doesn't speak but nods and he knows she's lying. He crosses his arms over his chest and looks at her, she stands from her spot, standing opposite him. She lasts three seconds before she sighs deeply, rolling her eyes and chuckling at him.

"That's not fair" she says, pointing at him. He shrugs and mumbles a "don't know what you're talking about darling" she sighs again. Her hands find her hair, letting it fall down her back from its place in a bun.

She finds it funny how quickly she breaks around him, walls falling down and colliding with his own, destroying them in the process.

"Liv called me this morning, apparently something happened at June's school, some bully pushed him over in the playground and he busted his lip... just shook me up a bit" she explains, hands resting against her forearms, almost to protect herself. She finds it a little ridiculous that she's shaking so much, but she wanted nothing more than to be there with June.

"Hey it's okay" Matty says, stepping forward, hands finding hers against her arms, running along them to calm her. She looks up at him with soft eyes, he smiles softly down at her and some of the tension eases from her.

"Is that what's gotten you so shaken up?" he asks and she nods, he pulls her in then, hugging her tightly.

"And why I'm messing up" she says, he pulls back slightly, shaking his head down at her.

"Don't do that... you're fine, we all get off days" he explains and she sighs.

"Mine had to be on a day when Jamie's here... wanted to impress him" she admits, despite thinking it sounded a little silly.

"He's impressed, trust me" he says, pulling her to his chest again.

"Do you know what's happening with him?" Matty asks and she nods again, mumbling her next words into his chest.

"He's in the emergency room at the moment, waiting to be seen" she explains and he nods.

"Want me to drive you there?" he asks and she shakes her head.

"No it's okay... He'd hate that" she says, laughing at the thought of an angry June. He hated fuss.

"Okay, but he'd forgive you... do you want to be with him?" Matty asks and she nods.

"I do... but it's fine... I'll wait until Liv calls me again" Matty nods and hugs her again. There’s a moment of silence before Matty speaks again. 

"Any reason you're using that guitar" he points to the open case and her eyes fall to it.

"Didn't feel right using the green one today... don't know why, just a feeling" she says and he nods, placing a haste kiss to her forehead before pulling away.

The pair leave the room after that, joining the other men downstairs, both who have finished their cigarettes now, Jamie still on the phone. She smiles at Ross who wraps an arm loosely around her shoulders. George begins talking to Matty but he doesn't really listen, too busy eavesdropping on what Ross says to her.

"Heard anything from Olivia yet?" he asks. Of course he already knew. Matty still appreciates the fact he encouraged him to talk to her. 

"Not yet..." she says. After Matty and her share a fag (mainly to save time) they return to the studio. She records some more for the track, less shaky this time. Half way through her recording some vocals, her phone rings by the sound desk. George pauses the track and speaks through the microphone again.

"Phone's ringing Y/n" he says, she rushes into the connecting room, taking the phone from the drummer's hand. "Girls" is the ringtone and they all smile.

"Sorry... Liv's favourite song" she says making them all chuckle before she's picking up.

"Hi" she answers, before her face is covered with panic. They can hear someone talking quickly on the other side of the phone.

"Okay, okay, okay" she says quickly "Liv! Breathe!" she says and they hear the phone go quiet. Her eyes flick between the guys and she speaks again "I've got an idea but just bare with me okay?". Liv mumbles a "okay" before Y/n removes the phone from her ear to speak to the guys.

"Okay... June's had stitches, but Liv's boss is being a dick and demanding she goes back to work but it's too short notice to get a babysitter and he can't go back to school" she explains and all the guys nod. George is slightly confused, but Jamie the most confused out of all of them for he didn't know who Liv or June was. Y/n and George had briefly spoken about the passing of her brother but hadn't spoken about his son or his girlfriend.

George shares a look with Ross, one in which reads "I'll catch you up later".

"I know it's a right pain in the arse and I understand you saying no... but could he come here for a few hours? Just until Liv can pick him up?" she asks.

"Of course love" Matty says and Ross smiles whilst Jamie nods, he doesn’t know who she’s talking about but he didn’t mind if it helped her out.

"Yeah... no problem at all" Ross says and then George nods too. She brings the phone to her ear again and continues talking to her sister in law.

"Bring him here okay? - Yeah the guys said it's fine... Yeah? I'll send you the address" they hear her say.

"Love, I can take you to pick him up," Matty says, drawing her attention to him. She shakes her head but smiles at him, mouthing a "thank you" as Olivia speaks.

"Okay... see you soon. Love you too" she says. She hangs up then sighs deeply.

"Sorry about that" she says, eyes finding George's then.

"You must be so confused" she says to George and Jamie, both who nod. She proceeds to tell him about June and Olivia whilst Matty and Ross clear up a little, having heard from her that her nephew was a bit of a menace and had already sustained an injury today and didn't need anymore.

20 minutes passes by and her phone buzzes with a text from Olivia, explaining that they were here. She leaves the guy's in the room, each working on something and not wanting to disturb them. She walks down the stairs, leading to outside. She finds them outside, June smiling widely at her and running and jumping into her eyes. He lands with an "omph" from her and it makes him giggle. 

"Careful Junebug, don't get any more injuries whilst I'm gone" Olivia says.

"Mum!" he complains "don't call me that" it makes Y/n laugh, pulling him gently back by his chin to look at his lip. He has a few stitches on his bottom lip and it's a little jutted out, making him look poutier than usual. He also has a small cut on his chin that’s clearly been cleaned but didn’t need stitches. 

"Ooo, look at you" she says and he laughs, pulling back and straightening up as if proud.

“Look cool huh?” he asks and it makes her laugh, eyes flicking to his mum who rolls his eyes.

“It was that Rory kid again” Olivia says, clearly angry at the fact. Rory was a child in June’s class who was a huge dick, he often made stupid jokes about how June didn’t have a dad and truly deserved to be shoved himself. She puts June down, placing a hand on the top of his head to keep his attention on her.

“Better have pushed him back June” she says and Olivia laughs when June’s eyes flash with mischief.

“Oh he did a bit more than that, didn’t you June?” Olivia says, the child's eyes flick up to Y/n and he nods proudly. 

“Punched him” June says matter-of-factly, the tone making her laugh.

“Good on you bud” she says, turning to her sister-in-law. She doesn't doubt that Olivia had to have the mandatory "we don't condone violence but well done for sticking up for yourself" talk which gave her plenty of space to be the proud auntie, congratulating him for giving a mean kid what he deserved. Problematic or not, she didn't care. 

"Thank you so much for this Y/n" Olivia says, pulling her into a brief hug and accepting the bag of his things.

"Happy to help... tell the boss to" she leans forward slightly so only Olivia can hear "fuck off" it makes her laugh. The door opens behind her and she turns, seeing Ross. She smiles at him and he smiles back. She's kind of happy that he'd be the first to meet her nephew.

"Sorry, was just checking you were okay" he says, stepping onto the street. It's very kind, a fact not going unnoticed by Olivia. 

"Ross this is Olivia... Oliva, this is Ross" she says and Ross smiles at her, offering her his hand to shake.

"Lovely to meet you" he says "Nice to meet you, heard a lot about you" Olivia says, making the man raise his eyebrows at Y/n who rolls her eyes at her sister in law. 

Ross' eyes then land on June and Y/n watches as he kneels down to greet the little man.

"You must be June" Ross says, each of the women chuckle when June grips onto Y/n's calf and hides from the man.

"The bassist" his words have the boy coming out from his hiding place, smiling widely at the bearded man.

"Nice to meet you, how about we go upstairs and you can have a go on my bass huh?" he asks and June nods happily, grabbing his hand in that completely uncaring way children did. Y/n stands mouth slightly agape at the sight, heart beating rapidly in her chest. Just when she thought she couldn't find him any more attractive.

"Thank you again" Olivia says, pulling her into a hug again, murmuring a "he's hot" before pulling away.

"I'll call you when I finish work" she says as she opens her car door.

"Junior" she says, drawing the child's attention from the man who he was talking excitedly too.

"Be good for auntie Y/n okay?" he nods before his mum shuts the door and carefully drives off.

"Ready for this bud?" she asks as June takes her hand again, one holding hers, the other holding Ross', he nods and the three of them walk him upstairs to the studio. Jamie meets them at the top of the stairs, introducing himself to the child. Maybe it's because Jamie is a father himself but June isn't shy around him, immediately talking his ear off and allowing him to take him into the studio.

The boy's eyes fill with childlike wonder when he enters the room, clinging to Y/n when he sees two tall men sitting in the room. One with curly hair like his, a guitar resting in his lap and the other tall man sitting behind a drum kit.

"Don't be shy June, they won't hurt you" she says with a laugh, one hand finding the back of his head and giving him a gentle nudge forward. Suddenly, the June she knows springs to life, straightening his shoulders and moving forward confidently.

"I’m Junior, but you can call me June" he announces and it makes her laugh loudly, her head thrown back. Ross smiles at the sight, his heart doing a harsh pitter-patter in his chest and skipping a beat. Matty puts his guitar down and walks up to the boy, leaning down and offering a hand to him.

"Hey mate, I'm Matthew, but you can call me Matty" he says and June accepts his hand, shaking it harshly.

"Matty" he repeats and the man smiles and nods. 

"Some grip you've got there mate" he says, eyes flicking up to her, the both of them smiling widely at each other.

"You've got hair like me" June says happily, flashing a toothy smile at the man, his dimples showing on his cheeks. Matty nods at the boy before he loses interest and walks over to George, staring up at him with his mouth open. Y/n watches with her finger in-between her lips, trying to hold in her laughter.

"I'm June!" he announces again.

"Hey mate, I'm George" he says, shaking his hand too.

"Just George?" June says, cocking his head to the side.

"George Daniel, but you can call me George or G" the man says and everyone begins to smile.

"George Daniel? Aren't they both first names? That's weird" they all laugh loudly at that, George cackling, eyebrows raised at her.

"He's got a point mate" Matty says and she laughs.

"He's cheeky" Ross says and Y/n nods "little Dylan" she says with a smile, June then runs up to them, clinging to her leg again.

"He sounds like Dad" the kid mumbles to her. The guys fall silent then, waiting to see what she says.

"Dylan had a really deep voice just like you G" Y/n says to the guys before she looks at June again. When she met June, Olivia asked for videos of Dylan so June could get to know his dad despite him not being able to meet him. She doesn't quite know what to say.

She's grateful when she feels a large hand rest against her back, before the man is speaking.

"Your dad used to play bass too, right?" Ross says and June nods.

"How about I show you some stuff?" Ross asks and June jumps excitedly, taking Ross' hand and dragging him towards his bass which rests in a stand. She finds Ross' eyes and mouths a "thank you" he just smiles at her. She watches as Ross takes the bass in his hands, playing the bassline to one of their songs, it makes June smile widely, raising his eyebrows at the man.

"Wanna try?" Ross says and the boy nods excitedly. He hadn't been learning for too long (a fact he tells Ross) as the bass was a big guitar and even now looked a little funny resting in the small boy's hands. Despite this Ross teaches him something simple, smiling impressively when he plays it easily.

"He's good, '' he says to Y/n who smiles and nods. Ross tries to teach him something a little more advanced, an original baseline he had written for the song they were recording today and she smiles when June gets frustrated because he can't quite reach the right strings.

It's like watching a splitting image of her brother, when he'd get frustrated at her for not getting things quite right. She walks over to the pair, sitting down opposite June, next to Ross.

"Try this" Ross says, adjusting the boy's hand slightly, this time when he tries his fingers reach the right strings and he cheers happily.

"Hey mate" George says as he joins the group, "that sounds good" June smiles up at him at that.

"Ross taught me it!" That makes her smile widely and she can't help but reach for her phone, snapping a quick picture of the child.

"Wanna record it? Be on your first record?" George suggests and June nods excitedly.

"Alright with you, auntie Y/n?" George says, his tongue peeking out at the corner of his mouth, making her laugh and roll her eyes at the man.

"Of course... going to be on your first record at the age of 6 bud" she says. Ross takes the bass from the child and he hugs Y/n tightly. Matty and Y/n set up everything ready for him, plugging in the bass.

"Okay mate, so this is how it works, see this" Matty says, pointing to a little red button to the left of where they stand, the boy nods.

"That will turn red when George clicks record" June nods again.

"And then you'll hear these little clicks in your ear phones" Matty says, nodding to George who clicks play briefly so June can hear what he's talking about. He then pauses the track to allow Matty to continue to explain.

"The metronome" everyone smiles at the boy's words, it also raises a few eyebrows, each of the guys impressed.

"That's right" Matty nods.

"Then you'll hear Y/n's beautiful voice okay?" June nods again and smiles at her. She rolls her eyes at the compliment but smiles at Matty.

"We can count you in and then you can play yeah?" June nods.

"What if I mess up?" June says.

"Don't worry about that mate, auntie Y/n messes up all the time" Matty says making her laugh loudly.

"Unfair" she says, eyes finding him, he sticks his tongue at her and it makes the child smile and laugh.

"Ready bud?" she asks and he nods. She shuffles back, allowing Matty to take over, the man counting the child in when needed. She watches proudly as he smashes it, getting the short baseline right on the first go. Ross steps in to take the bass from him and watches as the child pounces on Y/n excitedly, knocking her from her crouched position.

She cushions the child's fall with two hands on his back as he hugs her tightly. She laughs loudly and everyone smiles fondly at the sight.

"Smashed it kid!" she says, nuzzling her face into his neck and embarrassing him.

George does a quick edit of the new recording and then plays the track out loud. June sits up suddenly, clutching her hand tightly.

"You did that bud" George says through the microphone.

"Rockstar" Matty says, making him smile widely again.

By the end of the day, June is well and truly tired: having had a go on the drum kit (accompanied by George and making a load of racket), taught a simple guitar riff by Matty (after they spoke about their curly hair together, something y/n found ridiculously adorable) and having played Ross' bass again (crawling into the man's lap and working with him to reach the right strings, something yn snapped a few pictures of, immediately sending them to Olivia).

Now he's asleep in Y/n's arms on a sofa in the studio, with an inflated ego (having received a multitude of compliments by the bandmates), indented fingers and a happy smile resting on his busted lips.

"You're really good with him" Jamie says, sitting opposite her. The guys are working on this and that whilst laughing together.

"Thanks" she says, smiling down at the child as she smooths a hand through his curls.

"How old is he?"

"6"

"Ooo rough age that" Jamie says, making her laugh.

"Matty told me about your brother... Sorry to hear it" Jamie says.

"It's okay... been a while"

"6 years I'm guessing" Jamie says and she nods with a smile, eyes back on her nephew.

"You're really close with him huh?"

"Only known him for 4 years... but he's the most important person in my life" she says, eyes moving upwards and finding the boys. They were all sat at the sound desk, Matty's legs resting below the various buttons, arms hooked over his knees as he laughed with his head thrown back. George had a hand hooked behind his shoulders, laughing that bizarre cackling laugh he did that instantly made her smile. And Ross, sat next to Matty, eyes crinkled as he smiled widely, dimples showing and eyes sparkling, Ross’ chesty chuckle ringing around the room.

"One of the most important people" she corrects and Jamie looks behind them, where she's looking and smiles widely.

"They really care about you, you know" Jamie says and she nods.

"I know..."

"Think they would've been heartbroken if you guys hadn't signed the contract" he admits and she chuckles.

"Was always going to sign the contract Jamie" she admits and he nods.

"I know..." he pauses but she knows he has more to say, he hesitates but then speaks again "just want to make sure you're doing it for the right reasons" she knows what he's suggesting. That she was doing it because of them. She couldn't deny they nudged her in the right direction, made the decision an easier one, but it was always going to be the right thing to do. The offer was too good to refuse.

"I've wanted this since I was 6 Jamie... And we had plenty of opportunities but they were never... right? This feels right" she explains and he nods slowly.

"But does it feel right because of them?" he asks; it was a fair question. But she knew the answer. Her eyes find them again anyway and she smiles.

"It feels right because this is the first time we have worked with people who haven't shut down our ideas the first chance they get. It feels right because Abbie and Matty work well together, because Clara and Ross come up with dope basslines and because for the first time ever Jay doesn't fight against others' ideas, he rolls with them. It feels right because we've met people who are just like us, with a creative vision that they nourish instead of stomping out and a label who supports that. So yes it feels right because of them, but not just because of them" she explains and Jamie nods and smiles.

"Good" he says, reaching for her hand and squeezing gently before leaving her. Her phone begins to ring and the boy in her lap stirs gently, but not enough to wake up. She answers quietly.

"Hi" she says in a hushed voice.

"I'm downstairs"

"Okay... June's asleep..." she says.

"You got him?"

"yeah I've got him, be down in a second" she hangs up, hand drifting through the child's hair again.

"June my love... gotta wake up bud, Mum's here" she says and the child groans, stirring in her lap and nuzzling his head into her hand.

"Everything okay?" she hears, her eyes snap up and she sees Ross smiling down at her.

"Yeah just a stubborn child" she says, chuckling and attempting to wake the child again. When he doesn't wake she stands unsteadily, the child heavy in her arms. She begins walking with him but struggles.

"Can I?" Ross asks, gesturing to the child in her arms. She trusts him with her life and the offer is so sweet it has her stomach dipping and soaring. She nods with a smile and allows the man to carry the child, the two of them walking down the stairs. Matty watches him and smiles when their eyes meet.

"Hi!" Olivia says when she sees the pair, practically fawning over the man that's carrying her child.

"Thank you Ross, that's really sweet" she says, opening the back door of her car and allowing the man to slide him into the back seat carefully.

"No trouble" he says, smiling down at her.

"How was he?" Olivia directs her question to Y/n who smiles widely.

"He was an angel" Olivia raises her eyebrows at that.

"He played the bass with Ross and even recorded a bit for a track" she says, Olivia smiling at that.

"Oh that's amazing, thank you squish" Ross smirks at the name, reminding himself to ask about it later. "Forever going to be the best auntie, he's never going to shut up about his rock star aunt at school now. Thank you again... all of you" she says, directing the last of her words to Ross.

"Our pleasure truly... He's welcome anytime" it makes Y/n smile widely and Ross smile back at her. She knows Olivia is going to ask something a bit personal before she does but she doesn't have the chance to intercept it before it happens.

"Do you have kids Ross?" she knows he doesn't, Y/n had told her basically everything there was to know about the man. In fact, she was one of the only people that knew how confusing her thoughts about him and his friend were.

"No" he chuckles "my brother has a son... he means the world to me to be honest" he admits and it makes Y/n smile again.

"That's really sweet" Olivia says, eyes landing on Y/n and she smirks and raises her eyebrows again.

"Anyway... we should be going" Olivia says "thanks again", she steps forward, wrapping her sister-in-law in a tight hug.

"If you don't fuck that man I will kill you" she murmurs into her ear. Ross catches the gist of the words and it makes him smirk, turning his head so as to not look like he heard on purpose.

"You're so annoying" she murmurs back before pulling away, Y/n hands her June's bag and she then enters the car, stopping once she's nearly inside.

"Seriously do it, it will be good for you" Olivia says.

"Goodbye Olivia!" she says, rolling her eyes and shutting the woman's door. Y/n then turns to Ross, as Olivia begins driving off.

"Sorry about that" she says, awkwardly running a hand through her hair, hoping he didn't hear her words.

"Thank you for today... you were really good with him" she says, stepping forward slightly so they were closer.

"You're welcome... he's a good kid" Ross says, pulling her closer, hands closing around her waist. Someone drives past and beeps at them, Ross pulls away and takes her hand, taking them round the corner of the building for some more privacy. He pulls her towards him then, his back finding the wall of the building as he holds her flush to him.

"Care to explain what squish is?" he asks, one hand hooking under her chin, gently holding her face in his soft grasp.

"You caught that huh?" she chuckles and he nods. She laughs and rolls her eyes at the thought of having to explain this just because of Olivia.

"Promise not to take the piss out of me?" she asks, hands finding his chest, flattening against the covered flesh, smoothing against it and smiling at the sight.

"Me? Never" he says and it makes her laugh again.

"When I was younger... whenever people said things I didn't like, didn't agree with or things that made me uncomfortable, I would try to hide my opinion but without knowing it I would squish my face up... I showed videos of Dyl and I to June so he'd know his dad a little more y’know… Olivia has been calling me that ever since" she explains and Ross smiles.

"Well now I've just got to see that" he says, pushing forward slightly, nudging her body with his a little.

"Never" she says.

"Please" he begs, she shakes her head. He pulls her tighter towards him, nuzzling into her neck and mumbling another "please", drawing a "no" from her.

"I can be really persuasive" he mumbles into her ear before his lips find her neck, lightly moving against the skin. Her eyes flutter shut at the feeling and she sighs.

"Please" he mumbles against the skin, leaving a simple peck there before pulling back. She supposes it's because she knows he may reward her if she does it so her nose scrunches up, her eyes squint and her lips purse.

"That's simply adorable" he says, a jokey tone to his voice before he places a peck to her scrunched up nose. Her face falls back to normal and she shoves him lightly. He copies her previous face, scrunching his nose, lightly mocking her.

"You're mean" she says, hands pressing against his chest, sending him backwards against the wall again.

"And you're adorable" he says, leaning forward before he dips to the left, nuzzling back into her neck making her giggle, hands finding the back of his head, attempting to pull him away from her. Her hands grasp his bun, lightly tugging at it, he moves with it, pulling back from her neck, smiling down at her.

"Careful squish... might have to listen to Olivia if you do that again" he jokes but his words let her know that he did indeed hear her sister-in-law’s words earlier.

"Don't get cocky now MacDonald '' she raises with a huge smile. They fall silent for a second before her eyes flick to his mouth. It's a comfortable silence, undeniably sweet.

"You made his day today... thank you again" she says and he smiles down at her again, hands finding her chin again.

"It was nice... made me miss the little man though" he admits, referring to his own nephew.

"When do you get to see him again?" she asks.

"I'll arrange to visit them soon" she nods at that.

"Could come with me if you'd like... if you're not busy of course" he suggests and she nods.

"I'd love that" she doesn't think that it's perhaps too early for them, that it would be hard to explain to his brother what they were when they were asked, she didn't even think that she'd likely have to come up with an excuse as to why she wasn't available. She just agreed.

"Yeah?" he asks.

"Yeah" he smiles down at her, liking her answer.

"Besides" she says, tugging him forward slightly until their lips graze "you with kids? Hot." she admits making him smirk.

"Oh really?" he says with a raised eyebrow.

"Very" she says before pulling him the rest of the way, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss. 

Meanwhile in the studio, Matty is tidying up the space, putting things back into their original places. But when he goes to walk across the room, his foot hits something, kicking it slightly further across the floor. His eyes flick down, spotting the black notebook in which he's seen her scribble in a fair amount now. He leans down, grabbing the book and raising it up, but something slips from between the pages, landing folded at the tip of his boots.

He should've picked it up carefully, and gently placed it back in-between the pages. But Matty was just a man, a curious one who often did things against his better judgement. Things he knew would likely cause him more trouble than they’re worth.

But not this, not when he unfolds the paper, and reads the first line and knows this is definitely worth it. It’s a song scribbled out onto the page, the ink spills across the paper, the words almost completely linked, as if it was pouring out from her and she couldn't stop it. The title is directly in the middle, written untidily at the top of the page.

“Take Me Higher” it reads. A complete contrast to all the other writing of hers he’d ever seen. 

Let our passions ignite, bodies tangled in the night

Don't lie, don't deny, I set your souls alight

"Souls" he murmurs to himself, hearing George mutter a "hmm?" To which he quickly rushes out a "nothing don't worry" before he continues reading.

You're the fire, dark desire, come on now, feed the fire

Heat rising, bodies colliding, dripping sweat, tastes like sex

Rhythm pounding, hearts racing, together we're finding what's next

Matty feels his heartrate pick up, his chest constricts just slightly, the air expelled from his lungs in a sharp exhale, one which comes out shaky and broken. He reads over the last two lines of the verse “heat rising, bodies colliding, dripping sweat tastes like sex”. Images flash through his brain, all of her in compromising positions, her beautiful body lathered in sweat, glistening under the dark light of his room. He feels his body heat, cheeks flushing as his eyes darken. “Rhythm pounding, hearts racing, together we’re finding what’s next” he reads the line again, mind plagued with thoughts he shouldn’t be having. Like her lips wrapped around him, or pressed against his own, or him, in between her thighs, driving into her until all he knew was her name and all she knew was his. 

Her back is the one pressed against the concrete now, thighs spread, one leg hitched up, resting against his hip as his lips move quickly against hers, tongues fighting, saliva mixing until they don't know where one begins and where the other ends. She feels slightly exposed, the skirt she’s wearing hitching upwards the longer she holds her thigh up over his hip. The cool air meets her clothed core, her panties visibly soaked. Resisting him this long had been a difficult feat, but this, right now, was harder than any of those days combined. This is reckless though, she had been trying her hardest to hide this, but all it would take is for one of the others to come out and they'd be caught. Maybe it added to the thrill of it? Maybe it would be easier if they were caught?

Her back arches as he pushes forward more, she feels him against her core, hard and desperate. He pulls away when he realises what he’s done, not wanting to push her too far. But with a sigh she grabs his shoulder, hand drifting down his chest, down across his stomach, beginning to dip down until he’s breathless, curving back up at the last minute, landing on his hip.

“Tease” he mumbles against her lips making her chuckle against his mouth. 

“I'll show you a tease” she murmurs, teeth closing around his bottom lip and taking it with her as she pulls away a little, the hand against his hip pulls slightly, until his clothed member collides with her clothed core. She releases his lip from the attack of her teeth, letting it snap back to place before he pushes them back to hers, tongue pressing eagerly against hers. He grunts into her mouth, one large hand finding her thigh, his palm squeezes the flesh and her skirt slips slightly, revealing more skin to him. He rolls his hips forward experimentally.

“Fuck” they say in unison. This was the furthest they had gone, it wasn't much, but my oh my it was euphoric. 

Matty reads the words “touches” what seems like a thousand times, plural. His mind spirals at that, what was this about? Who was this about? He looks around the room, George sat with a pair of headphones on and of course Jamie is nowhere to be seen. Surprise surprise he thinks. He slides from the room then, escaping to the bathroom. He perches on the lid of the toilet, hand placed on his thigh, nails digging in when he reads the next words.

Now we're touching the sky

We are ready to fly

Take me higher, we'll soar and defy

I got the feeling that we're gonna -

He feels his blood rush south, imagining the way she’d sing this, voice breathy and high pitched, hitched in her throat as if she was about to… he imagines her again, sweaty body sprawled out on his bed, thrashing about amongst his bed sheets, back arching off his bed. She’d moan, a breathless sound, something akin to his name. His cock twitches under his jeans and his hand finds his hair, tugging harshly, other hand gripping the piece of paper so harshly it crinkles. He tries his hardest to resist the urge to please himself… tries. 

“Fuck” he says, what would it feel like if she tugged his hair? That image of her arching her back flashes through his mind again. Only this time he’s hovering above her. His hand moves back down from his hair, he shouldn’t - he knows he shouldn’t but he can’t help himself. His palm finds his aching member, pressing flat against the hardness, eyes fluttering shut as he imagines driving into her. The way she’d sigh, the way she’d moan his name, begging for more. 

Hit that level, strum that bass, flick that switch

Let's get sinful, baby, let me be your demon's itch

Craving your touches until we unleash hot rock and roll

“Ross” she says, hands moving from his back to his bun, tugging at the hair until he growls into her mouth. Well he definitely liked that, she thinks. His hips move against hers, rolling forward, hitting her clit with every rotation. 

He pulls back for a breather, eyes snapping south, accompanied by hers. He watches as he rolls his hips forward again. He sees his member bulging and straining against his jeans. Her eyes snap to the same thing he’s looking at, although it affects her much more. She caused that. Her, the one who had been shaky all day, messing up things that were supposed to be second nature to her. She did that to him, the man she had idolised since a teenager, loving the way his quiet nature fascinated her, the way his passion for music shone without him having to thrust it into people’s faces.

The man who belonged to her favourite band, the man who she had grown close to, the man she had begun to picture a life with, before hers had really begun.

She also can't help but notice how well endowed he was. She’s not surprised, the sight only confirming her suspicions, but it has one too many dirty thoughts bedevilling her mind, like how he’d feel inside her, how he’d likely reach places inside her that no one had ventured to before. She knew then, that she'd let him, and only him, paint those places with his cum.

He hears her moan his name again and his eyes snap to find hers again. Mouth falling open as he grunts, seeing her like this - back arching, chest pushed against his and she moans, eyes dark like the night - made him crazy.

He leans forward, lips finding her neck, kissing up to her ear, sucking the flesh behind her lobe. 

“Let me please you” he demands into her ear.

“You are” she says, pulling him back from her neck, not wanting him to leave a mark. He shakes his head as he looks at her. 

“That's not what I mean,” he says, lips pressed against the skin that's exposed at her chest, wandering downwards, over her covered skin, drifting south. 

“Oh fuck” she says, realising what he means. He's on his knees then, lips pressing against her skin, moving to the left until they’re grazing her inner thigh. Her head falls back against the wall as her hands weave their way through his hair, goosebumps rising across her flesh. 

We'll ride on passion's wave and lose all control

In your eyes, I discover lust burning inside

Matty’s hand dips below the waistband of his jeans and underwear, rolling his palm against his cock. 

“Fuck” he grunts, he hunches slightly, slipping down the toilet a little. When his head snaps backwards it lands against the china, it digs into his head but he truly doesn't care. Nothing could get her off his mind, the lyrics she had written plaguing his mind with dirty, filthy, devilish thoughts. He imagines the way her small hand would wrap around his cock, he copies the movements, hand finding himself aching and hard, his fist encloses around himself. Her hand would be softer. He'd still be warm in her hand just like he is his own, but he knows it would be better, because it was her. He gives himself an experimental stroke as his eyes snap open, finding her words and reading them again.

“Fucking hell” he says as his eyes scan over the page, his hand moves slowly, up and down, up and down. His eyes mirror the movement of his hand, but quicker, trying to decide which line to reread, which line is his favourite, which line would make him…

He moans, thumb running over the head of his cock, spreading the precum that's seeping from him down his shaft. His eyes land on a particular line again, and he mumbles it out loud, wanting to hear how it would sound, not in his head. 

"In your eyes, I discover lust burning inside" he reads out loud, doing his best to keep quiet. But then a moan is tearing from his throat and his hips are snapping up, thrusting into his own hand.

Explode like dynamite, carnal desire can't be denied

In this darkness, we'll do what we want, our secrets we won't hide

"Ross wait" she says, fingers finding his chin, tugging lightly at him sending him backwards, feeling the way his hair scratched her fingertips, making her think of heavenly it would feel in-between her thighs.

"Do you want to stop?" He asks with a rogue kiss to her inner thigh, tongue peeking out just so before he pulls away with a smirk. Her dark orbs find his: reflections of each other. She shakes her head with her mouth agape, the way he smirks has her core fluttering and her pulling her lip between her teeth.

He stands, fingertips pulling back her lip "don't bite that lip" he warns.

"Why? Wanna do it for me?" He grunts, pushing his mouth to hers, nibbling her lips before his tongue finds hers, fighting with each other, his winning in the end. 

"Do you want this?" He asks against her mouth, his voice is soft, letting her know that it truly was okay to stop, if she wanted. His hand finds her core as he poses the question, stroking against the wet fabric of her underwear, making her sigh against his mouth.

"I want this… just not here"   she allows him to weave his hand through hers, dragging her body with his willingly, giggles and laughter falling from them easily as they practically run back up the stairs. Her palm finds his mouth when they are near the top, silencing the laughter coming from him. His hand finds her waist, tugging her towards him, spinning them at the last instant until he's pressing her against the wall, trapping her against it with his lips. She moans into his mouth, her body working on its own accord, arching her back until her chest is flush against his. It was reckless, all it took for them to get caught was Jamie to come back from wherever he had disappeared to or for Matty or George to round the corner and see them in their current position. Which was getting more compromising with every second, because now, Ross is pushing his leg forward, her thighs separating and making way for the limb. She holds back the moan that attempts to tear from her throat when she feels the muscular flesh press against her in a way so heavenly her eyes flutter and the moan slips from her mouth into his.

“As much as I love those pretty little noises, you've got to be quiet” he says against her mouth. She gently shoves his shoulder, intertwining their hands again and pulling him further along the studio corridor, opening the first door she finds. The room is small, cold and dark, various cables and different pieces of equipment are placed on shelves which line the walls. She tugs him in the dark room and he quietly closes the door behind them, spinning them again until her back is pressed against the dark wood. 

His lips bruise themselves against her neck as her hands weave into his hair again, and she doesn’t stop herself from tugging at his hair time, she wants to know his reaction. And she's so glad she does, because when she tugs the strands, it sends him a little further away from her neck, he growls as he pushes forward again. That singular noise accompanied by a subtle bite of her neck has her raising her leg again, hooking it over his hip and behind him, her heel landing on his behind and pushing against it, loving the way he grunts again, one hand sprawling out to catch himself against the door. It forces his clothed member to rub against hers again and she loves how he isn't hesitant when he rolls his hips forward once more. The seam of his jeans rubs against her clit over her panties and she can't help but moan into his mouth, a little bit louder than before. 

His hand finds her thigh, pushing against the fabric that sits bunched there, pushing it further up until it rests against her hips, revealing herself to him. And what a sight, it has him salivating, panting, needing her - desperately needing her. But this wasn't about him, no this was about her. And god when he sees that little wet patch seeping through the fabric of her panties he so desperately wants to taste her. 

His lips find her ear at the same time his hand moves down to her centre, pausing at her inner thigh until he speaks “let me please you love, will you let me do that?” he murmurs into her ear, taking it into his mouth after he utters the sentence. She nods vigorously, his hand begins moving and she wishes he’d stop staring at her like that for she knew if he continued she wouldn't last long.

Her eyes fall down to his hand as it moves again, he watches too, slowly inching closer to where she needs him. She didn't want to miss a single second of this. His hand drifts across her thighs, upwards grazing against her core before he jumps over it with a smirk. Purposefully missing it and landing on her lower stomach. His large hand lays flat against her abdomen, practically covering the whole of it, slipping under the hem of her top. Two fingers find the little piece of jewellery attached to her belly button, ghosting over the metal before it disappears again, inching south, back to where she needs him. 

"You're such a tease" she says, making him look at her once more. He watches the way she bites her lip again and the way her eyes have darkened with lust for him.

"You're so beautiful" he says as his hand moves down again, fingers hooking under the top of her underwear and her breath hitches again. Two fingers toy with her folds making her sigh, pulling him forward until their mouths graze again. They don't kiss though, she simply pants into his open mouth as his fingers tease her, playing with her, searching her face, watching the pleasure appear.

"So wet for me" she swallows his words with her lips as he easily finds her clit, beginning to rub slow torturous circles against the bundle of nerves. Her back arches, her tits smearing against his chest. 

"Fuck Ross" he pulls away after she says it, mouth hanging open as his fingers still.

"Why'd you stop?" She says but then he's slowly inching a finger inside her, making her sigh, the loud moans she's been trying to suppress getting harder and harder to do so.

"I've been waiting to hear you like this for so long" he groans as he kisses her again. His moans fall into her mouth and she moans back, knowing he'd swallow it. His finger slips from inside with a whiny protest from her, but she immediately shuts up when he begins tugging the lace down. She watches the way he pockets the fabric with a smirk, she mirrors his expression, her tongue peeking out of her mouth and swiping against his bottom lip. 

He looks down at her again, without the barrier and he moans her name, pulling back completely away from her, her thigh nearly falling from his hip. His hands weave into his hair as he stares at her, eyes raking down her form, not knowing what to land on. 

“I knew you’d be perfect but jesus christ Y/n…” his words trail off but they're everything, the best collection of words she thinks she’s ever heard. Suddenly the words, I and knew and you and be and perfect and especially Y/n are her favourite sounds. And the way they fall effortlessly from his lips: they’re perfection. He is perfection. 

“Don’t make me wait any longer” he’s back in between her legs in a split second then, holding her thigh against his hip harshly. 

He mumbles a “keep that there, pretty girl” before he lets go of the flesh. Pretty girl. They were her favourite words now, definitely. 

His finger moves back down, faster than ever before, he slides one in, just one, feeling the way she convulses around it. He swears at the feeling, eyes trained on the way she takes it, so perfectly. She sighs and it's his favourite sound. He thinks he should record the noise, hide it in tracks for the world to hear, without the slightest inclination of how lucky they are. He pulls back his finger before pushing back in and curving and oh my it's heavenly.

"Ross" she moans again, gripping his shoulder harshly "more" her eyes find his and his hips move forward on their own. His body fails with a singular sigh of his name, the man never hearing it sound so perfect. Another finger joins the other, working in tandem.

His eyes fall down to see his fingers working inside her, curving slightly and snapping up to see her reaction. Nothing could've prepared him for it, a clench of her hand on his shoulder, her eyes fluttering shut before immediately snapping open, eyes bearing into his, glassy and glistening. Her back arches again and a pretty sigh of his name falls from her lips again. 

But what really gets him, what causes him to twitch in his jeans, his eyes to darken impossibly more and him feeling the hardest he had ever been in his life, was the way she clenches around his fingers. 

"Look at you…" he murmurs, eyes unwavering from her cunt now. "So fucking pretty, clenching around my fingers like that" her eyes fall to see what he's talking about, and she can't deny… it's hot. The way his thick fingers move in and out of her, the way her cunt looks wrapped around them and the sounds… the sounds might just be his favourite, that and the way she moans his name.

“Is this good for you?” he asks with a smirk, knowing the answer anyway. It's cocky, but it's hot. Really fucking hot. All she can manage is a quick nod, her mouth falling open and a moan beginning to slip. He quickly catches it with his mouth, not wanting to be heard by anyone else. 

“Rhythm pounding, hearts racing, together we're finding what's next” Matty reads those words again, and he’s unsure whether it is his imagination or whether he actually hears her moans, but he swears he hears them. His hand halts on his cock, and he steadies his breathing, focusing his attention on listening. It rings out again, barely there and oh so quiet but it’s something. His hips fail him again, rising on their own accord until his thrusting into his hand, once and then once more before he wills himself to stop again. 

And to focus… to listen.

Ross’s fingers curve again as his thumb finds her clit, applying euphoric figures of eight against the bundle of nerves. His pace accelerates and she really tries to hide the moans, hide her pleasure, but she fails… Miserably. Her back arches again and he fails to cover her mouth with his this time. He thinks the noise she lets out is beautiful, his new-found favourite melody, but he knew if they got caught they’d be screwed. And so his unoccupied hand snaps to her mouth. She giggles against it, a moan tearing from her half way through, muffled by his mouth.

“Shhhh” he says, laughing because she laughs. “You’ve got to be quiet love… we don't want to get caught” despite his words his movements don't falter. His hand loosens from her mouth, allowing her to reply. But it comes out high pitched, a mumble through her teeth, trying her hardest to remain quiet. 

“Stop being so good at this and maybe I’ll be able to” she says, eyes fluttering as her voice hitches again. Her words inflate his ego and he smears his mouth to hers, meeting her tongue with such an unfathomable force that her head clatters against the wood. He mumbles a “sorry” into her mouth but she doesn’t seem to care, clenching around his fingers again as her tongue fights against him.

Matty sits in the bathroom next to them, hearing little noises here and there, not able to stop his imagination from running wild, allowing his hand to set an unforgiving pace against his cock. He muffles his own moans with his fist, biting into the knuckles to silence himself. He knew this was wrong, getting off to her noises well aware that it was his best friend drawing those pretty noises from her. He feels conflicted when he doesn't feel jealous… it just turns him on further. Making his hips stutter upwards, pistoning up into his hand.

“Fuck” he moans. He wonders what it would be like to be there with them, he swears he'd deal with just being able to watch, if they’d let him. He wonders if Ross would let him touch her too, if he’d allow him to join in. He thinks… he would. If it's what she wanted. 

His pace quickens, the sound of skin colliding against his hardness filling the room. The paper has been discarded to the side, still in his line of vision and when he manages to keep his eyes open, they never leave it. He lowers his fist away from his hand for a second, opening his mouth and letting his spit fall, coating his cock just like he'd imagine she would. The sounds are wetter now and it feels better, so much better. 

It feels like she'd feel, wet around him, clenching him, ready to milk him for all his worth. He tightens his grip, hoping she'd be just as tight.  

“I want to taste you” Ross murmurs into her mouth, catching the oncoming moans with his own again. He wants to taste her, she loves that. “I need to taste you” he repeats. She loves that even more. She pulls away, lip tucked in between her teeth as she stares at him.

“Want that?” she nods, vigorously.

“You’ve got to stay quiet darling” he says and she nods again.

“I will” she won't. 

Her head falls slack against the door with a thump as he drifts down to his knees, he looks up at her through his eyelashes and if that didn’t do it for her there would be something seriously wrong with her.

“Careful sweetheart” sweetheart, she sighs. She giggles a school girlish noise that slips from her lips before she has the chance to stop it when she sees him smirk again. She was never one for pet names, but when they came from his mouth, she loved them. She was obsessed with them, never wanting him to say her name again, only sweetheart and darling and pretty girl.

He fucks up into his hand, continuing to bite into the flesh, although it doesn't silence his grunts as much as he wants it too. He grunts when hears a thud against the wall next to him. What were they up to? He didn't know. But he could imagine. And by god did he imagine.

He settles himself in between her thighs, one hand gripping the back of her calf, drifting up and down once as his eyes land on hers again, wanting to check once more that this was what she wanted. With a singular nod his tongue meets her skin, separating her folds, causing her back to arch again. Her hand snaps to her mouth, covering it completely, the moans falling freely into her palm, dulled out as she bites into the flesh. 

Her other hand falls into his hair and she smiles against her palm as his hand finds hers, manoeuvring it until his hair band is out and she can tug against the free strands. His fingers cover hers and he tenses them together, silently letting her know she could do what she wants.

So she does, tugging harshly and likely hurting him when his tongue swipes through her folds again. He moans into her and she moans into her hand. His beard scratches against her skin, a new feeling to her, but she likes it. The dull pain mixed with intense pleasure is a blissfully heady mixture that she’d never experienced before, her previous partners being subpar in comparison to him. 

He pulls back briefly to mutter a “taste so good love” before he dives back in, swiping through her folds and collecting her juices just to quench his thirst before he focuses on really giving her the pleasure she deserves.

He finds her clit again, sucking the bud and making her clench around his head. He couldn’t wait to do this without her hand swallowing her moans, to really hear her, hear the noises he was easily pulling from her. 

“Oh fuck that’s good” she says, hand slipping from her mouth momentarily before its back there again. He can do better, he knows it and she does too when he smirks up at her, fingers finding her puckered hole again. Two easily thrust in and he loves the way she instantly flutters around them, the pace he sets is unforgiving and it's not long until she’s on the edge. 

She pulls away slightly when he sucks at her clit again, tongue swiping through her folds in the next moment. His fingers leave her to grip her hips, holding him to his mouth but she doesn't care, because it's not long until they’re pushing back in. He has her reaching a high she knows she's never reached before. Safe to say he’s ruined her for anyone else, not that was even an option now. She had him now and was never, ever letting him go. 

His fingers curve, finding her g-spot and the way he caresses it, it has her shaking beneath him. The way his tongue moves against her is possessive and when she feels his tongue moving, in a very particular way that sure feels like his name, her eyes fall to him.

He's already looking up at her, and her hand falls from her mouth but it still hangs open. She’s his, he’s marking her from within, she’d feel him for days, she was convinced of it and the thought was a welcomed one.

Her mouth falls open and no noise comes from her but she spasms and shakes as his fingers pull from her before pushing back in and curving and hitting her g spot again and again, over and over.

“Fuck ross” she says, although her words are barely formed and end up sounding much more like nonsense.  Her fingertips envelope his chin, thumb smoothing over his beard, coated in her wetness. It's a sinful sight, one which a cold shower or two would definitely not fix. Her mouth falls open further and her back arches again. His fingers hook one last time, mouth completely closing round her clit and she breaks. She shakes and he sees her through it, fingers held inside her, caressing the bundle of nerves within her, as he kitten licks at her clit, finally pushing fully against the whole of her as she cums. 

“Ross” she moans, a quiet murmur of his name that might be his favourite yet. Accompanied by a shake of her body and the closing of her thighs. 

Her hand is still holding his chin gently and when the sensation becomes too much she lightly tugs against it. He obeys, pulling from her and licking his lips clean. She watches as he brings his fingers to his mouth too, cleaning them off with a smirk. Her hand grips his chin. It's her new favourite site.

“You’re good at that” her head falls against the door and she sighs, smiling to herself “really fucking good” her hand slips from his chin. He chuckles at her, standing from her thighs, hand enclosing around her waist. He wanted to kiss her but wasn’t sure she’d like that. But then she's pulling him to her, lips finding his, tongue finding his. He tastes like her and she moans, it's erotic but he loves it.

Her fingertips find his chin again as she pulls back, looking at his beard which was still slightly glistening with her, she chuckles at the site. 

“Made a bit of a mess” she laughs and he smiles. 

“Good” he murmurs, pressing his lips to hers again, a brief kiss. 

“Never gotten head from a guy with a beard before” she admits and he raises his eyebrows.

“Don't want to hear about your ex-boyfriends after I just made you come” he says and it has her raising her eyebrows too.

“Guess I won't tell you how shockingly bad they were in comparison then” she says, turning her head slightly, his lips find her jaw, pressing against it as he mumbles a “oh no… that I want to hear… tell me more” 

His hips thrust into his hand once, twice more, before they're sputtering upwards. His cock twitches in his hand, ropes of cum hitting his stomach, he groans a loud, drawn out noise into his bawled up fist. 

"Oh fuck…." He can't help but think how she'd take it if she was here, would she let him coat her chest? Would she beg for him to cum down her throat? He shakes the thoughts away, guilty grabbing handfuls of tissue and wiping himself clean.

"For God sake' he says, hastily removing the obscene amount of come from his stomach. He tucks himself back into his trousers, zipping them up, lifting the lid if the toilet and flushing the tissues. He washes his hands and takes in his reflection.

He shakes his head at himself "fuck off" he murmurs, talking to himself.

He shakes a hand through his hair, and splashes his face with water before he leaves the room, taking the paper, folding it up and placing it in his pocket. He sends a text to George explaining that he wasn't feeling too well and heads home.

Her hand drifts down his chest, but he encloses it before she gets the chance to touch him. Her eyes find his and she furrows her eyebrows.

"Your turn" she says and he smiles but shakes his head, placing a simple peck to her lips.

"That's not why I did that love… I wanted to please you" he explains.

"And you did, you really did" she smirks "now I want to return the favour" he pecks her mouth again after that.

"Another time I promise… we should get back" he says and she frowns. Did he not want her?

"Trust me love… I want to, I want you so badly, but if we're gone another minute I fear our little secret won't be so secretive anymore" he says, silencing her mind as if he could read it.

"Okay" she says and smiles at him. His fingertips envelope her chin lightly, bringing her lips to his for a sweet kiss, one which disabled her momentarily.

"Trust me love… I promise we will have another chance… I'd quite like to get between those pretty little thighs of yours again" he says, his voice dropping an octave. It makes her blush deeply.

"Okay" she says coyly, smiling a dopey smile up at him. 

"Let's get back, yeah?" She nods at his words leaning up to press another kiss to his lips. He smiles into it and suddenly everything feels different between them but at the same time it's as if nothing has changed at all.

George is somehow none the wiser when they return to the studio, too buried in work to realise how much time had passed. She asks where Matty is and George shrugs explaining that he left a while ago but he wasn't sure where he went. George lifts his phone and sees the message his curly haired friend sent reading it aloud to the pair. 

"Hope he's okay" Ross says and George nods, placing his phone down again.

"It's getting late, you should probably head home soon too" George says and both Ross and y/n nod.

"And you?" Yn asks and George smiles.

"I just want to finish this up and then I'll head… you guys go" George says with a smile. Yn smiles back and leans down to hug him and Ross' hand clasps around his before they're leaving.

It's dark outside the dark and a chill runs through her body but it's not long before Ross is wrapping an arm around her frame, warming her instantly.

"I'll walk you home if you like" the air around them feels different now, it's somehow both more comfortable and more exciting. She wants nothing more than to let him walk her home, invite him up to her room and let the night unfold. But Matty is on the forefront of her mind now and she's worried.

"I'd love that…" she hesitates and Ross frowns slightly at her, reading her facial expressions and somehow decoding what she's thinking. She half expects him to sigh, for him to step away from her frame, but her heart swells when he pulls her in tighter. She’s surprised once more at how he seemed to be able to read her mind. 

"You want to check on Matty…" his voice trails off and she nods, unsure on what his reaction would be.

"Is that okay?" She asks, one hand gently holding his face. She feels the way his cheeks shift, a smile tugging at the edges of his lips until the crinkles that she loves form. He nods at her. He knows now that on some level, she was his, and he'd do anything to keep her.

"Yeah love, text me when you're home though yeah?" She nods. She watches as an idea seems to pop into his mind, his face lighting up and his smile spreading.

"We have a day off tomorrow…." we have the day off tomorrow, she liked the sound of that. In fact she loved it. They were a we now, or at least in some way. 

"We do…." She smiles and he smiles back, just as wide.

"Let me take you on a date" he says.

"Hmm… what's in it for me?" She jokes.

"Oh absolutely nothing… I'm not worth the trouble really" he jokes back, stepping away from her briefly, as if to walk away. She’s quick to grab his arb and pull him back.

"Hey hey hey, where do you think you're going?" She asks, making him chuckle a short laugh.

"Yes I'd love to go on a date with you" she says through a giggle.

"We'll go on a date then…" he says.

"Good"

"Good" he confirms it with a brief kiss before pulling away, she watches as he scrunches his nose up, eyes crinkling at the edges as he does and his lips pursing.

"It's a date then squish" he says and she lightly shoves him, but before he goes too far both hands wrap around her small wrists and he tugs gently. She crashes into his hard chest with a little "oomph" and he looks down at her with a smirk and all thoughts and ideas of scolding him for it disappear.

"I'll make it worth your while" he says, his voice low, it makes her shiver. She blushes, her mouth opens and closes, at a loss for words. He chuckles, the kind of one that's just an exhale through his nostrils and his grip loosens around her wrists.

"Go check on Matthew, text me when you get home and I'll see you tomorrow, 10 work for you?" He asks and she nods. 

"Sounds perfect" she watches as he looks both ways down the street and then back over his shoulder and up to the studio, before he turns back to her. No one was around, the street dark and empty. So he leans down and captures her lips in his, in a kiss that completely blows her mind. His soft ones against hers, tongue folding over hers, blissful sighs falling from her and soft groans from him. In those few moments, all that exists is him and them, the world slowing around them like something out of a romance novel. 

He pulls back and all she can do is nod and she chases his lips with hers. It makes him laugh and she slowly opens her eyes to see him again.

"Wow… that was some kiss" 

"You should go… see if Healy is okay" Ross says and she nods, leaning up for one last kiss.

'Dream about me' he says against her mouth, their lips momentarily separated and she nods before his move against hers again.

"As long as you dream about me…" she says, pulling back until their lips just graze.

"I have every day since I met you" 

Taglist: @scooby-doodoo @thereisaplaceintheheart @promocodesorry75 @eaglestar31 @thefrontofmymind @fallingforel @partoftheairforce @procrastinatinglikeapro @poisonmedaddy13 @xthe1975 @all-things-fic @jstbeeingme @rossgirly @juliardk @you-muppet @moodyyyychickx @k4tie75 @insidemymind19 @zzzhealy @maybeiwouldlikeyou @at-her-very-foreign @not-alien-girl-v @sinarainbows @friedlandblog @momentum2023 @youlooklikeshitandyousmellabit @Inhalerbea (add yourself using the link in my bio 😊, those with a line through are the ones i couldn’t tag)

[milkytheholy1]

TMNT Masterlist

2003:

Leo:

Third base - Leo x Female Reader

Hey everyone, I currently have two requests left to do but I really want to get some stories that I personally came up with as well. I really want to try writing for different versions of the turts besides 2012 and Rise even if they are my fav versions. Sorry if the character interactions are a bit iffy in this one, I haven't seen much of the 2003 series I'm only up to season 2.

Donnie:

Drawn to you - Donnie x GN Reader

No, the tech-savvy turtle was drawn to you by your persistence, by the way you poured yourself into your work, how you understood the need to complete something no matter how long it took.

Mikey:

Turtle titan to the rescue! - Mikey x Female Reader

Okay so far warning, I haven’t really watched past season 3 of the 2003 series, I have been working my way through it though. So some characters might not sound or act like how they should from the show and I might end up getting some stuff wrong, so sorry in advance. This story will flip between 1st and 3rd person narrative.

2012:

All Turtles:

Turtle Power part 1

What if you included even more turtles in the hit tmnt movie, TMNT:Turtles Forever? This isn't an X Reader fic and takes places in the 2012 universe...well, for the start at least.

Leo:

Dear diary - Leo x GN Reader

Leo practicing how to ask them out with many many scripts for acting in front of a mirror:") or maybe they find out about his diary! You can pick

A confident strut - Leo x GN Reader

Went with the first one since it's been some time since I wrote for my 2012 boy! This is going to be set before the whole sister reveal, but I wanna make it clear that I do not ship Karai and Leo together cause that shit is gross. Enjoy!

I heard you - Leo x Female Reader

The reader,who has a crush on Leo, waits by Leo's side for him to wake up in the farm house and she is so relieved when he wakes up after months

Not traditional - Leo x Male Reader

The reader is giving Leo a whole sexuality crisis so Leo asks April if it's weird for a guy to like another guy and April reassures him that it's perfectly normal, and later that week Leo accidentally slips that he likes (y/n) and in a flash the have this little moment of understanding that they both like each other and want to be more than friends.

Goodbye Leonardo part 1 - Leo x Female Reader

I know what you're thinking, two stories in one night? This is somewhat based on the season four episode: Broken Foot. Also sorry it's so long but I had to fill in some blanks to get to the build-up of the story and sorry for the rushed ending it's currently past midnight where I'm from and I'm very tired.

Goodbye Leonardo part 2 - Leo x Female Reader

Okay, okay, you'll get your stinking part 2. This is probably one of the most requested fics I've ever done, the original intention was to leave it as a standalone fic. But, because you all seem eager for more I eventually broke and decided to do it. This is set a few years after the original and doesn't follow the episode 'Broken Foot' like the original oneshot. In my opinion, it's also waaay more angsty and it might actually be sadder than the first one. So I hope the wait was worth it, enjoy!

Donnie:

Wrong about me - Donnie x Female Reader

Donnie gets cheated on by April and (y/n) finds out and hurts April's feelings then comforts Donnie?

Hot - Donnie x Female Reader

Donnie was talking about some science stuff the last 20 minutes, but reader can't fully pay attention to what he's saying because they're just thinking about his voice, his gestures and everything. They think "don't you realize how hot you are?", but Donnie stops talking and reader realizes they just said that out loud and now they want to die.

Happy birthday - Donnie x GN Reader

it’s the reader’s birthday and the turtles just find out and they have to quickly set up a surprise birthday for the reader.

Well done science boy - Donnie x GN Reader

Had this idea in my head for a few days so thought I'd post it, I wanted to make it a shorter story than what I normally do but I got too lost in it and it ended up being just as long, oops. Hope you enjoy!

Hello nurse - Donnie x Female Reader

Literally did this so I could pull off one reference, that's all. Enjoy!

Raph:

Hots for you - Raph x Female Reader

Raph finds out that his girlfriend is bisexual?

Heard you from a mile away - Raph x GN Reader

not going to lie I had to search up what it meant, decided to do Raph since i've never written for him before in the 2012 version. So if this comes across as out of character, apologies. Anyway, enjoy!

2014/2016: Leo:

Red lips - Leo x Female Reader

“Don’t give me that face, it’s so cute I might not be able to hold back.”

Donnie:

Five years - Donnie x Female Reader

Donnie creates a portal that transports them to 2021.

Five years alt ending - Donnie x Female Reader

It’s weird how many people have asked me for them to have kids, but I guess if that’s what you guys want to see then here is a short version 2, if you will, of five years. Be sure to read the original or it won’t really make much sense, this is just the ending. Enjoy!

Life is a dream part 1 - Donnie x GN Reader

You felt the small vibrations of your phone in your pocket, pulling it out you saw Donnie was once again calling you crap, "H-hey Donnie, I promise I'm on Allen Street. I'm like less than a minute away." you panted into the device. You could hear his sigh through the speaker, "Don't worry about it, I'm just wasting valuable pop tart time." he joked, your laughter was his reward.

Part 2 - Donnie x GN Reader

Speaking of the brothers, Mikey was sat playing some video games while leaning over to slurp his coke, you could hear panting and the sounds of something being destroyed coming from the dojo Raph. Finally taking lighter steps into the lair, you could smell a sweet fragrance waft through the air Leo.

Part 3 - Donnie x GN Reader

"Do you remember that video where the cat plays chopsticks with the chopsticks?" Mikey asked, pushing aside Donnie and getting closer to your face. You flinched at his close proximity, your mind still trying to adjust to your bright surroundings. "Can we focus here?" Leo argued, pulling Mikey away from you, he securely wrapped his arm around his younger brother in case he felt the need to jump at you again.

Final part - Donnie x GN Reader

"What?" he asked, "Can I ask you something?" You pondered why you were willing to tell Raph some of your deep, dark thoughts and not someone like Donatello "It's a free country," he quipped going back to his knitting. "Right," you said, glancing down to avoid making eye contact "It's just that...do you think- feel like something is off?"

Mikey:

Parading in style - Mikey x Male Reader

So I don’t know much about pride parades in NYC but I can only imagine they’re triple the ones from where I’m from, I’m also not going to give you a description of Mikey’s human form as that can be up to you. I’ve learned from experience that everyone has a different view of these characters and it’s unfair to the reader to force them to take my view of what he could look like, so yeah he looks like whatever you want him to. Hope you enjoy!

Raph:

A cold night in new  - Raph x Female Reader

Reader's apartment building's heat went out during a really chilly spring day, so when raph comes over he's all like "why tf does she have the thermostat on 5 degrees", but then he finds her cuddled up with tons of blankets on the couch, watching tv. after turning down the volume, reader explains the situation with the heat while shivering and clutching the blankets. raph has a brilliant plan for this.

Begging - Raph x Female Reader

Bayverse Raph and his S.O get into a huge fight and he hurts her feelings and Raph found her on the rooftop crying and he asks for forgiveness

Seeing you - Raph x Female Reader

The reader feels invisible and lonely, so she confides in Raph and telling him how her current boyfriend is using and abusing her. Then later on Raph confesses his feelings for the reader but her abusive boyfriend catches the reader and raph together.

I promise - Raph x Female Reader

The reader has scars from her mother and she shows Raph while crying about them and Raph listens and comforts her.tumblr