#This will definitely be in multiple parts

[soaraes]

thinking about gooner!art / hypersexual!art,,

mdni — ageless blogs included.

💬 warning: holy shit, he’s DISGUSTING and a LOSER. but that’s the point.

genuinely became a problem once he reached college.

no parents around, GOD FORBID he has an apartment style dorm + some money on him.

he’s going to town A LOT (obviously). but more than he would if he had a roomate for sure.

since it’s the early 2000s, he doesn’t use the internet to get off sometimes.

classic magazines, not a playboy kinda guy though.

definitely whimpers n’ whines, gets kinda shaky when he’s about to cum.

often fantasizes about getting dominated since he genuinely believes he doesn’t stand a chance with the lack of confidence he has in bagging some of his favorite girls.

YES, he has favorite girls.

jerk off rate per day? on average? probably like five-six times.

one when he wakes up, one before he falls asleep (him cumming usually causes him to go to sleep because he’s just tuckered out for the most part), one after practice (if he feels like it), and always after an exam. (he’s stressed), and pretty much any other time he might randomly get hard.

even if that’s just his shorts coming up a bit too much, moving his dick through his underwear a bit too much.

he mostly does when he “can’t sleep”. (which is most nights.)

goes multiple rounds if he can.

a pillow humper!! sometimes he gets really tired of using his hand so sometimes he’ll just use his pillow and rub his dick on it over and over. (he uses a towel, sometimes multiple to cover up where he MIGHT cum.)

has definitely done the walk of shame to the laundry room a few times just because he accidentally came on his sheets.

he has definitely had a fantasy about some of his favorite professors from time to time.

he’s a good student, so whenever he gets praise from them, he often gets a hard on and then has to either get one off when he gets to the dorm or in the nearest bathroom.

sometimes he pees a little after he cums because he’s just trying to drain his balls and sometimes does a little too much but he kinda likes it so he keeps doing it.

when the internet starts to become a bit more functional and people start making porn sites, it’s actually over.

getting off daily, FOR SURE.

favorite category? probably into creampies or breeding. facefucking lover + loves facial finishes.

he also finds his favorite girls on the internet too.

likes to sometimes watch those videos where the couples are like passionate with it because it makes him feel some sense of love in his life because he’s just such a degenerate.

whenever he goes home for a weekend, it’s actually torture. he tries not to do it once he’s there in his bedroom, but most times it’s just fucking impossible.

loves cam girls to death once he finds out they exist.

it’s like endless goonery for him, it’s great.

like i said earlier, god forbid he has money. — getting sex toys + donating to said cam girls for special requests.

LOVESSSS it whenever the cam girls say his name because it feels like he’s actually receiving the touch of a woman.

loves phrases like “your cock is so deep” and “your dick is so big”

post nut clarity? absolutely deadly and dreadful.

knows he won’t ever be successful with a woman in bed because porn + cam girls have rotted his brain and ruined his reception of sex for a while, probably.

premature cummer when he actually gets inside of a woman in his sophmore year.

it’s like his dick gets absolutely freaked out at the warm and wetness of it all because it’s just so overstimulating to his cock.

so used to the hand and the toy that when he experiences the real thing, it’s absolutely foreign to him.

first blowjob? same thing. extremely nervous.

shakes when overstimulated. (when he’s with an actual woman, it’s like 10x worse.)

jerks off to the thought of some attractive women he sees on campus that he’ll never see again because of his disgusting imagination with some depraved part of his brain.

imagines how they look naked and what it be like to fuck them, even if it was just five minutes of what he likes describe as pure heaven.

loves getting off in his car, has a fantasy about getting caught by someone and them joining him (because of his porn rotted brain).

too pussy to actually park it somewhere where there’s a risk that some people might actually see him.

tells himself that he’ll eventually stop jerking off so much. (he won’t because he has no self-control. <3)

has cum so hard that he’s cried a few times and then just kept going because it felt so so good to be at the peak and to feel so euphoric for so so long.

hisses a little whenever he sticks his cock in his fleshlight after not using it for a while. his favorite nonexistent pussy in the world.

“ffffuck. god, i’ve missed you, sweetheart.”

yes, he talks to his toys like they’re actually women. let a man dream, yeah?

gooner!art with his first girlfriend.

moodboard !

enjoy you filthy people ! okay bye. <3

[yes-no-maybe-soo]

I KNEW I RECOGNIZED THE BACKGROUND OMG

He brought her back to their valley, didn't he?

And wait... wait... If so... then does that mean what my angsty brain thinks it does?

Ok so hear me out. If this is indeed their valley, then the dragon skeleton can really only belong to one individual.

And I'm not talking about Sylus.

His bones dissolved leaving nothing behind for sorceress!MC to bury. Thus, the skeleton cannot be his.

But there was another dragon who most definitely would go back to this place to die.

Sorceress!MC.

This place was more significant to her than any other, and I am positive that when her time came, she went to pass on in the same place as her beloved. But alone.

If this theory is correct, then that means two things.

1) Sylus is literally showing MC a part of herself that she lost.

2) Remember how Dragon bones get covered in flower petals when they die?

Well...

Then this just became a whole lot more significant and bittersweet, didn't it?

I now view him kissing the petals as Sylus kissing Sorceress!MC. Both as an expression of undying love but maybe also of regret for not being able to be there with her when she passed, like she were for him?

That being said (and I mention this because some believe/worry that Sylus treasures Sorceress!MC more than present MC) he also kisses present MC. Multiple times. And on the lips. And more prolonged. I interpret that as his way of stating that his love for present MC is as strong as for her past self.

This whole card is a masterpiece tbh. Might be my all time favorite.

[bangtanintotheroom]

The Look (M)

You gon' give me that look, look, look, look-look

You don't have to tell me that it's mine

When you give me that look, look, look, look-look

You said everything with just your eyes

🔊 the look - ali gatie, kehlani (spotify | soundcloud) 🔊

• Pairing: Seonghwa x (F)Reader

• Genre: Non-Idol!AU, Friends to Lovers, Angst, Fluff, Smut

• Rating: 18+

• Words: 16.1k

• Summary: You’ve been perfectly normal since sleeping with Seonghwa that one night. You haven’t been thinking about him more than necessary. And you definitely haven’t been fighting the urge to voice these dangerous thoughts inside your head. You were perfectly fine…

• Warnings/themes: pining, acknowledging feelings, a very necessary discussion, drinking, swearing, jealousy, crying, OC is struggling, Hwa is just… 🫠💕, making out, grinding, oral (m. and f. receiving), face-fucking, c*me swallowing, face-sitting, squirting, fingering, dirty talk, multiple orgasms, praise, body worship, unprotected sex, creampie, multiple positions, cuddles, aftercare

• Notes: C'mon guys; did you really think I was gonna just leave these two alone after what went down in part 1? 😏 And I am SO sorry for how long this took to come out, writing doesn't come to me as easily nowadays, so I have to take it slow and steady. I at least hope this was worth the wait 💕 and shoutout to @sweetinsaniiity for the beta! 🥰

• Taglist: @minttangerines @minisugakoobies @kiestrokes @hyunjinsjeans @chngbnwf @syubseokie @marsstarxhwa @trivia-134340 @suluhwa @prodsh00ky @potatomountain @am3thyst-rose @tea4sykes @fancypeacepersona @ashlv @miksancheese

Make Me Water | The Look

You couldn’t step outside any sooner.

As soon as the glass door behind you slid closed and muffled the music and voices inside, you took a large gulp of air.

When you entered the party over two hours ago, you didn’t expect to be feeling like your emotions had been going through the wringer.

Jongho sent a group text out late last week, asking if everyone was up for a get-together Saturday night. The catch was that he planned to invite more than usual, a mix of familiar faces and strangers. No one objected, looking forward to the break from the usual small gatherings.

You took a rideshare with Sakura to Jongho’s place, Ningning already there since early that morning. This info only fueled you and your friend’s speculation on the drive, wondering whether there was something going on between the two.

Just as you pulled up outside, you spotted a familiar car parked ahead– one that opened its doors and revealed just who was occupying it. But it wasn’t all of the four men stepping out that froze you from getting out.

No, it was the one coming from the passenger side, clad in a black leather jacket and jeans that emphasized his long, slender legs.

You knew from the jump that Seonghwa was coming to the party, but every time you saw him or even thought of him, your stupid heart flipped in on itself. This had been happening ever since the two of you conducted the ‘experiment’ at his place last month. While the immediate results were successful, what occurred afterwards was not ideal.

Something was wrong. But when did it happen, was what you had been asking yourself.

It wasn’t when you decided to spend the night at his place after the deed was done, feeling too tired to drive home, nor was it when you helped him change his sheets, flopping on playfully after taking a shower. Did it happen while you used the last bit of your energy to watch your friend pull the weeds around his village?

No.

Those were all normal occurrences between the two of you. Nothing different.

Even waking up in the morning to the smell of Seonghwa making breakfast was nothing new. If it was your place instead, the roles would be reversed. You trudging out to see him bent over a cutting board didn’t hit you with a sense of unfamiliarity. Everything seemed fine at the moment.

But looking back now, maybe it wasn’t all simple.

You remembered pausing in your stride when Seonghwa’s voice greeted you, still raspy from sleep. The gravel was a reminder of what was whispered into your ears the previous night. Even though you shook the warm feeling off and continued approaching him, it returned when you helped with prep. Every time your fingers or shoulders brushed, tingles would travel down your spine. It got to the point where you nearly sliced your finger off when cutting up some fruit, prompting Seonghwa to lightly scold you and ask you to sit and leave the work to him.

All you could do was watch from the table, head spinning at whatever the fuck was going on with you that morning. But you figured it was a temporary slip that would get better after a few days.

Oh, how you were so wrong.

Every moment you spent around Seonghwa, whether it be one on one or with your group, all you could think about was him.

It wasn’t just limited to inappropriate thoughts, like picturing his head between your legs or his lean body above you, fucking you nice and slow. It would also be more modest daydreams, like holding his hands as you walk down the street or cuddling in bed.

Either way, they were messing you up. Badly.

It didn’t help that the two of you had to play it cool in front of the others, unaware of what went down. To them, nothing had changed between you guys and it was imperative that they still kept that view. God knows what kind of chaos could ensue if any of them found out. Especially Wooyoung.

But your stupid emotions just kept causing problems.

Sleeping with him unleashed something that you tried to shove deep down for a while.

A feeling that started…well, you’re not quite sure when. All you know is that you found yourself asking if there was a chance.

A chance of something more than what the two of you currently had.

Or were you just being delusional? Sex alone didn’t always equal romantic feelings; you knew this, able to have physical relationships without that issue. But that was with anyone…and this wasn’t just any regular person.

This was Seonghwa.

He was…someone special.

Someone who you could see yourself being with, no hesitation. But did he feel the same way?

Probably not.

Especially with how many options he had in partners; why bother with you when he could chase after anyone else?

A lump started to form in your throat as you stared out into the faint city lights.

There was already one person here tonight that was interested in pursuing him and it was shaping up to be a success, much to your dismay.

Sakura had brought her roommate, Karina, as her plus one, introducing her to everyone with enthusiastic flourish.

You could see why, the woman being striking with her long, raven hair, full lips that easily stretched into a smile and the mole beneath said cushions. You swore that a couple of the other partygoers stumbled over their hellos, Mingi included as he tried not to spill his overflowing drink as they shook hands. The playful pinch and coo you gave him was followed by a grumble before he stomped away with reddened ears.

Karina blended into the festivities easily, eventually ending up on one of the loveseats with you, Sakura and a tipsy Ningning that decided to plop on your lap.

“Okay, I take back what I said this morning.”

“Oh? What was it exactly that you said?” teased Sakura.

Karina rolled her eyes at her roommate’s purposefully dense tone. “That you were going to be dragging me to a boring party when I could be at home watching my cooking shows.”

Sakura grinned like a devil, leaning into her and wiggling. “See?! I make good decisions sometimes!”

“Sometimes, being the key word, “ your quip was followed by a hand coming up to bat at your nose, yelping with laughter as you leaned back from the offender.

“Aish, Sakura, you almost made me fall!” whined Ningning as she tightened her arms around your shoulders.

“Girl, that’s your own fault. There’s plenty of room on the couch, sit!”

“No—” Her petulant rebuttal came with a press of her burning cheek to yours. “—Y/N is comfier.”

You chuckled, giving her upper back a gentle rub. “I appreciate the compliment, Ning, even if my legs are starting to fall asleep.”

The subtle comment seemed to go completely over the inebriated girl’s head as she simply beamed and snuggled into you further. While the four of you continued to converse, you noticed how Karina kept looking off in a certain direction every so often, lingering for a few seconds before returning to the group. This action didn’t escape Sakura, squinting her eyes as she poked her friend.

“And just what has your eyes wandering off like that, missy?”

Karina’s shoulders straightened as she now donned a sheepish smile.

“Oh…just looking around.”

“Uh huh…”

Clearly, Sakura didn’t believe her as she started putting two and two together while staring off wherever the other was looking. This prompted you and Ningning to look as well with curiosity, landing on a small group of men hanging out by the entrance to the kitchen.

“Mm, looks like someone is taking in her options tonight.”

“Oh?”

Sakura’s observation seemed to be on point as Karina became even more timid.

“And just who are we looking at?” You playfully interrogate.

There were four candidates talking and laughing on the other side of the room; Wooyoung, Mingi, his roommate Jisung and Seonghwa. All good options.

“Well…it’s…um, shoot.”

“What?”

“I forgot his name.”

“Hm?”

Ningning leaned forward and pointed towards the group. “Which one?”

Sakura smacked her hand down in panic. “Pabo, don’t point, you’ll make it obvious!”

“Ow! Abuse!”

Shaking your head, you patted Ningning’s back to calm her down before giving Karina an apologetic grin.

“Please excuse her, she’s a silly drunk. Just narrow it down and we’ll tell you his name.”

The woman gave you an appreciative look before peeking at the group again. “The tall, slender one in the leather jacket. With the short black hair.”

All three of you became quiet, glancing at each other with astonished expressions, especially you. She was eyeing up—

“Seonghwa?”

Karina nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Mhm.”

You continued to watch her, feeling a hint of…something. Not sure what it was, you push it aside and gaze at the object of your own affections, lips twitching as he threw his head back and laughed at whatever madness Wooyoung said.

“Okay, Karina, I see you!” teased Sakura as she slyly elbowed her roommate, resulting in a push from her.

“Don’t tease me, Sakura!”

“Hey, hey, no teasing on my end, for once.”

“Seriously—” Ningning smiled encouragingly. “—you have good taste! Ah, not like the others aren’t good choices too!”

The flub made all four of you laugh and you forgot about the odd sensation that was brewing in favor of the sudden humor.

“He’s gorgeous, can you blame me?”

A small smile graced your face as you replied, “No, not at all.”

You weren’t bothered by Karina looking Seonghwa over, really. It was human nature to take in the appearance of someone as stunning as him, whether you wanted to or not. You did something of the sort the first time you had met your friend, often doing glances out of the corner of your eye as your brain tried to comprehend how a man like him existed in real life.

It still stumped you, to this day.

Thinking that the gossip was over, you brought your cup up to sip before coming up with another topic to speak on.

“He’s not seeing anyone, is he?”

Until that question made you halt suddenly, spilling some of the liquid onto your chin.

“Or maybe—” Karina gazed at all three of you individually. “—he’s spoken for by one of you?”

Sakura was swift to scrunch her nose and shake her head, her blonde waves smacking her cheeks.

“God no, that’d be like dating my brother!”

Ningning responded to the look with her own rejection, peach-colored lips in a large pout.

“Nope. I’ve…got my eye on someone else.”

And then there was you.

You had to remain calm while staring into Karina’s dark eyes, but it was suddenly difficult. It was like she had thrown ice water on you with that inquiry. It woke you up to the truth of just what your standing was with Seonghwa.

Well…he wasn’t yours.

The two of you may have pleasured each other and whispered lustful words that one night, but after you left his place, it was back to just being friends. No acknowledgment of what occurred. No requests to have a repeat. Just platonic affection. Just…back to normal.

He was not yours.

You had to spend the last month acting like you never played the encounter in your head on repeat both around him and when you were alone. You kept your cool and remained nonchalant as his fingers flew over his controller, despite wanting to feel them all over your body again. And you smiled and pretended to be happy for him when he had a couple of dates, having to swallow your guilt at the happiness you felt when they didn’t work out and you had to reassure him that he’d be successful one day.

Successful with someone that wasn’t you.

He was not fucking yours.

Trying not to let the sudden wave of sadness drown you, you replied smoothly, “He’s a free agent.”

Karina seemed to take this as a green light, watching Seonghwa with a sharper eye.

“I see…”

After that, you tuned out the encouragement Sakura and Ningning were giving her, not really wanting to participate in fake behavior. You were ready to chug the rest of your drink, only to find nothing but a few drops scattered inside the plastic.

Dammit. You needed another one. Now.

“Excuse me, Ning.”

Your gentle push of your friend made her scoot off your lap, allowing you to stand up. Giving your slightly numb legs a moment to recover, you were quick to make your way to the kitchen, inevitably passing the group hanging out nearby. You tried not to make eye contact with Seonghwa, knowing he’d catch on to your mood change and ask what was going on. Luckily, he was deep into a conversation with Jisung, only noticing you were walking by at the last second before he was approached by another partygoer.

The kitchen became your safe zone for a moment, letting out a breath you didn’t even realize you were holding.

“Y/N, buddy!”

A thick arm wrapped around your shoulders before you were face to face with a ruddy-cheeked Jongho.

“Welcome to the kitchen!”

His slurred yet endearing words managed to crack a tiny smile from you, giving his head a pat in acknowledgment.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome! Oh, is Ningning still over there?”

Before he even finished, he looked through the half-window to eagerly search for said girl through the small crowd.

“She sure is. Why don’t you go get her? I think my legs will need to be amputated if she continues to sit on them.”

Like the fourth of July, the younger man’s face lit up. “Oh no, we can’t have that! I’ll go take over and be her personal cushion!”

Jongho released you and speed-walked out of the room, leaving you to blink rapidly at the brief encounter. Something about those two raised flags for you, but you were a little too in your feelings tonight to investigate.

You schooled your face into a neutral expression as you approached Wooyoung, mixing some kind of brew in a large punch bowl.

“Woo.”

He glanced up from his concoction to grace you with a cheeky grin. “Hey you! Having fun?”

The time of your fucking life.

“Mhm. What’s that?”

Wooyoung hummed playfully as he continued stirring, “Just playing chemist right now. The last time I made this, everyone who drank it got wild!”

“Wild, huh?” You muttered as you watched the liquid swirl around.

It might be just what you needed right now.

Holding out your empty cup, you answered his surprised expression with a firm, “Fill me up.”

The shock was quick to turn into giddiness.

“Ohoho, someone’s being adventurous tonight! Coming right up!”

As he used the ladle to pour, you had a sneaking suspicion that you would regret this in the morning.

Right now though?

This was your temporary savior.

You couldn’t decide whether Wooyoung needed to stay away from bartending or keep up at it as you were only halfway through your drink and feeling a hard buzz.

Even though buzz was putting it lightly.

Your entire body was on the verge of overheating, eyelids heavy and fingers and toes vibrating as you stumbled through the apartment. At least you weren’t the only one suffering the effects, having heard retching as you passed by the closed bathroom door.

But the upside of this was that right now, you couldn’t give a single fuck.

You only focused on going wherever your feet led you, shooting smiles to familiar faces, even if some of them looked a little blurry. There was a gaggle of dancing going on by the TV, the occupants moving to the song blaring out of the Bluetooth speaker. The alcohol gave you the strength to join them, hoping it would keep you from falling asleep.

Except a warm, strong hand wrapped around your bicep, halting your stride.

With a frown, your head whipped to the side (ooh, too fast), vision fuzzy for a second as you landed on whoever grabbed you.

…oh crap.

“Y/N, are you okay?”

Seonghwa’s voice was calm yet concerned, his eyes looking you over with scrutiny. He could probably tell how far gone you were right now.

“Of course I am. I’m at a party. I’m having fun.”

Your drawl didn’t mean to come out like that, internally wincing at the taken aback reaction he had to your sarcasm.

“Wooyoung said you had some of his rum punch…you do know how strong that stuff is, don’t you?”

God, why did he have to be so caring? It made you want to kiss him silly, but push him away at the same time.

Clicking your tongue, you went for the latter, albeit gently. “I do, which is why I had it. Why aren’t you drinking it?”

Your brain didn’t realize until it was too late that you poked his nose, receiving a humored scrunch.

“Because I want to make it home in one piece. Just promise me you’ll drink some water soon, okay?” stated Seonghwa.

“Yes mother.”

With that, you continued on your journey to the makeshift dance floor, unaware of the gaze still on your figure.

As soon as you approached them, Ningning was quick to spot you and pull you in by your hand, sandwiching your body between her and Sakura.

“Has Hell frozen over? You’ve actually come to dance?”

You laughed at your friend’s stunned yet giddy declaration, leaning back onto her. “Yup! Come on, show me what you can do!”

With that, the next few moments had you in a daze, the alcohol warming your veins and clouding your mind as you writhed against the group of bodies. It was mainly you and the girls dancing on each other, occasionally joined by a sloshed Mingi or a whooping Wooyoung, resulting in you nearly pissing yourself laughing.

This was what you deserved.

To not think about your jumbled emotions and the source of them. It was going to be a problem for another day.

But then you looked up and froze as you realized that you were being watched closely.

By Seonghwa, of all people.

He was leaning against a wall on the other side of the room, laser-focused on the way you grinded on Sakura. It was hard to tell what he was thinking about the scene, face impassive as he had one hand in his jacket pocket and the other holding a drink.

You were going to shake it off and return to dancing until you studied him closer and realized just how he was looking at you.

The way his eyes were fixated on you brought you back to that fateful night in his bed. How he gazed at you whenever his fingers were deep inside or his cock was pounding away at you. The clear memory of it brought a pang of arousal to your lower half, but it was only made worse by what Seonghwa did next.

That motherfucker ran that sinful tongue of his over his plush lips. Slowly. While staring into your eyes.

Godammit.

Needing to escape before you did something you might regret, you sped off towards the hallway, quickly throwing a ‘be right back’ to your dancing companions. Thank goodness the bathroom door was open this time, allowing you to jump inside and shut it behind you. Leaning against the wood and closing your eyes, your head spun as you realized how much that simple look affected you.

Your heart hammered beneath your ribcage and your chest rose and fell rapidly while you tried to calm down. You were drunk. You were drunk and yet you still let him get to you.

You were a mess.

At some point, a knock sounded on the door before you heard a voice asking to hurry up so they could relieve themselves. You were sitting on the plush bathtub rug as you tried to get your bearings, not realizing how long you had been in here. Swallowing hard, you pulled yourself up on unsteady legs. Exiting the bathroom and shooting the waiting person an apologetic smile, you made your way back into the festivities.

The dancing crew seemed to break up a bit by now, spotting a few of them gathered around the coffee table with Uno cards scattered. Judging by the scowls on Wooyoung and Sakura’s flushed faces as they yapped at each other, the game was starting to get intense.

You took advantage of this large view to wander around the room with your eyes, only stopping when they landed on two specific people.

Seonghwa stood with Karina in the kitchen smiling and conversing, visible through the partial window.

The sight alone made your stomach turn a little, but what you saw next almost made your dinner come back up.

The woman placed her hand on the arm of his leather jacket, leaning up to whisper something into his ear. Something that made Seonghwa’s eyes widen before he shot her a bashful smile.

Of course.

She’s making her move.

Like you told her, he was a free agent. Meaning you had no right to get upset over watching them flirt.

But you were. You were upset and it hurt to see someone taking an opportunity that you wanted for yourself.

You couldn’t watch this anymore.

And so you were out on this balcony alone, trying to hold yourself together over a man you had no claim on…and failing miserably.

The more you went back on it, the larger the lump got and the blurrier your vision became. And it wasn’t from the liquor.

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

You were so fucking screwed.

The sound of the sliding door opening from behind made you straighten up and whip your head around, only for your heart to both swell and sink at who it was.

“There you are!”

Seonghwa closed the door as he stepped out, the onslaught of laughter from indoors being silenced again.

“I didn’t see you around for a moment and got worried.”

Clearing your throat, you asked, “Did you think I left?”

He shrugged, standing next to you now. “No, just wanted to make sure you were alright.”

Despite your conflicted emotions, you couldn’t hold back from smiling shakily at his concern. “Thanks. I’m fine, I just…wanted some fresh air.”

Seonghwa nodded in understanding, mirroring your previous position and resting his chin on one of his fists.

“Understandable. I think Sakura and Wooyoung are getting a little too into Uno.”

Remembering how the duo started swapping insults over a stacked draw four made you shake your head.

“Well, if there’s blood when we go back in, we know what happened.”

After he gave a hum, it was quiet, save for the sounds of cars passing by on the street and the occasional pedestrian. It was funny, really. How his presence could calm yet stir you up, trying to keep your composure steady.

Your warring thoughts were interrupted when you felt a nudge to your shoulder, looking down to see Seonghwa pushing his head into you.

“Y/N~”

His drawn out call of your name couldn’t help but make you giggle a bit.

“Someone’s feeling good.”

“Sure am,” Seonghwa smiled playfully, giving you another nudge.

Receiving an endearing grin only lowered your guard even further. “Seonghwa, did you drink something else?”

“Mhm, Karina grabbed me another.”

And just like that, the walls were back up.

“Oh…”

Your flat reply preceded you turning your head to look out again, remembering just why you came out here in the first place.

“…are you alright?” Seonghwa asked.

Not at all.

“I am. Just…that rum punch is getting to me a little.”

You hoped that would be the end of it, but no. His hand came up to gently rub your upper back, sending a torrent of sensations through you.

“Do you want some water?”

“No, no, I’ll be fine. Thank you, Hwa,” you shook your head, rejecting his offer.

A short period of silence occurred before long fingers came up to cradle your chin and turn your head in his direction, giving you an expression that was a complete 180 from before.

“If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Nothing but sheer sincerity was in his dark eyes. It was a familiar sight.

But then your alcohol-influenced brain remembered that those same eyes had gazed at you with such hunger that one night.

Godammit.

The reminder made you shiver visibly, causing Seonghwa to straighten his posture, immediately removing his leather jacket and draping it over your shoulders. He must have thought you were cold.

Too sweet.

“Thank you...” you smiled tightly.

“Mhm,” he nodded. “It is getting a bit chilly out here. Maybe we should go back inside.”

A bolt of panic shot through you. Going back in would mean allowing him to run into Karina again. Who knows what will happen this time?

The way you should’ve reacted was to calmly divert him from that, encouraging him to spend some more one on one time with you.

Not grab his damn wrist like a loon.

The sudden action had Seonghwa’s eyes widening in bewilderment, not used to this sort of reaction from you. Realizing your misstep, you swiftly released him, cradling your hands to your chest with mortification.

“I-I’m sorry…”

You couldn’t look at his face right now. The crack on the floor of the balcony seemed a lot more intriguing instead.

“Y/N…are you feeling alright?” Seonghwa frowned.

Great, now he sounded worried. Idiot, Y/N, idiot!

“I am…I am,” you stuttered.

That didn’t come out as nonchalant as you expected, a wobble in your tone as you tried to compose yourself. Looking through the glass door, the bright lights and liveliness of the party seemed to be more appealing than the current awkward situation.

Adopting a chipper inflection, you turned towards the festivities and offered, “You’re right, why don’t we go back inside? The temperature is starting to drop.”

But just as you were about to reach for the handle, long fingers wrapped around your own with a bit of force.

The action startled you, glancing up to see Seonghwa scrutinizing you…hard.

“Wh-What is it?” You stammered, avoiding eye contact.

“Something’s bothering you.”

His blunt response had your hackles raising as alarm bells began ringing in your head. Your friend wasn’t wrong, at all, but this was not a topic you wanted to discuss with him right now. Especially on the balcony of a house party.

“No, there’s not.”

Your defensive reply only made his thick brows knit, clearly not believing you.

“Y/N.”

The firmness in your name made your stomach turn a bit, the feeling that he wouldn’t let this go so easily was starting to take a hold. Shaking your hand from his, you made a start for the door again, only to have his lean figure stand in your way. A curse of frustration left your lips lowly at his action.

Damn his stubborn, pretty ass!

“Seonghwa, let me—“

“No.”

Now you could hear and see the irritation, your heart skipping as his expression turned into a borderline scowl before he crossed his arms.

“If you think I’m going to allow you to go back in there like this, you’re out of your mind. I’m not letting you in until you tell me what’s wrong.”

You tried, tried to protest again, but your words died the longer he stared you down. He meant it; no way in hell were you going inside without airing your grievances. If the two of you were staying on this balcony all night long, then so be it.

The realization made you sigh heavily, bringing your hands up to hold your face as you tried to keep your cool. For a moment, nothing was said until Seonghwa’s now softer voice came out.

“Is everything alright?”

You moved your hands so he could hear you. “No, it’s not.”

You uncovered your face, revealing an expression that projected the troubles that had been plaguing you for the last month. Strong enough to make Seonghwa’s stare diminish.

“I don’t know what to do, Seonghwa. Ever since we…had sex, I feel like something changed,” you admitted.

He looked somewhat confused as he asked, “In…in what way?”

The wryest of smiles graced your lips. “Depends on how you look at it.”

The other bit his bottom lip, looking even more concerned now. “I…just talk to me, Y/N.”

Something told you that your friend was ready to listen close, so you mustered up every millimeter of courage to begin.

“It’s like…every time I’m around you, I’m feeling conflicted.” You directed your gaze to his neck, not having the guts to look into his eyes just yet. “Whether we’re with friends or one on one, I…I get distracted.”

“How so?”

You swallowed the pebble sitting in your throat. “I, well…I keep thinking about that night.”

Seonghwa made a humming sound, crossing his arms. “When we…”

You finished his sentence with a ‘yeah’.

“What exactly do you think about?”

He wasn’t going to make this easy for you, was he?

Fighting the urge to jump off the balcony, you forced yourself to make eye contact with him now.

“…everything.”

When your friend raises a brow in question, you continue, “How…how you managed to prove me wrong. How you took care of me. How…good you made me feel.”

That last part made something in his expression shift, but it was only for a split second. “Is it bothering you?”

“It…is, but not in the way you think…”

With the look of confusion on his face, the dam was released and you just…spilled.

“You know, I’ve always felt…something towards you. But I didn’t want to pursue it. I was always terrified that it would fuck up whatever we already had going on.”

The slight tic in Seonghwa’s face was missed as you peered down at your shoes.

“But then you came to me with that offer and I couldn’t resist…I thought it would be okay to indulge. I can do this with no strings attached, right?” Your nervous laughter quickly dissolved into a stressful sigh. “I guess I bit off more than I could chew.”

Understatement of the century right there.

“Do you regret it?”

His question came out cautiously, almost as if he was afraid of your answer.

“That’s the thing…I don’t.”

Something seemed to shift in the night air when you said that…or maybe you were just imagining things. But you continued to express your thoughts without missing a beat.

“If I went back to that night when I asked you to show me what you know, I wouldn’t take it back. I—”

You clasped your hands and watched your fingers twiddle as you murmured, “—I had such an amazing time.”

“But that’s not the main problem, is it?”

Seonghwa’s directness caused you to wince, shaking your head while still looking down.

“You’re right. I wouldn’t be even out here on this stupid balcony if it was as simple as that,” you admitted with a bite to your tone. All of a sudden, a small but strong wave of frustration overcame, making you stomp your foot and let out a disgruntled curse.

“Godammit. It was just supposed to be sex, that’s all! A fun night together! So why…”

And as quickly as it came, the flames died down into cold ashes, leaving you in a state of despair as you lamented, “Why can’t I stop thinking about you?”

If Seonghwa had anything to say at that moment, you wouldn’t let him as everything began to spill out once again.

“I can’t even say it was just the sex, it’s way past that at this point. Do you know how hard it is to hold myself back when you’re around? I keep wanting to hold your hand or kiss you or…well, have a repeat of that night.”

Now you had to get to the crux of what pushed you to get some space outside.

“But then I kept seeing Karina with you tonight and it reminded me that we’re just friends and nothing more. Who am I to stop you from seeing other women, right?”

A bitter laugh came out.

“Even though we were hanging out most of the time, I tried to convince myself that she wouldn’t be a good match for you. That’s how bad I have it for you, Hwa; I’m making up things that aren’t true about this girl who’s been nothing but nice to me the whole night.”

“Y/N.”

“And it’s so stupid because she doesn’t deserve that and you’re single and allowed to see whoever you want, but every time I looked over, I got so upset and wanted to tell her to get away from you.”

“Y/N.”

“Even getting borderline drunk didn’t help, I couldn’t stop thinking about it until I came out here. Maybe I should have just gone home, this is all too much for me to—”

“Y/N!”

A small shout of your name was what broke your string of words, finally whipping your head up to take notice of Seonghwa.

Specifically the guilt-ridden expression he donned.

“You...this is what’s been bothering you?”

All you could manage was an unsteady nod, lips pursed and trembling.

“Shit. Come here.”

His gentle invitation came in the form of his arms opening, waiting for you to step into them. You wasted no time in doing so, pressing your face into his shoulder, inhaling his signature scent mixed with laundry detergent. Seonghwa’s arms wrapped around you in a tight embrace, a hand coming up to rub your back in comfort. The motion alone caused the back of your eyes to begin burning.

“Y/N…I’m so sorry that you’ve been feeling this way. I didn’t think it was going to affect you that much.”

You felt his nose press into your temple before he whispered, “I wish you told me earlier.”

Swallowing around the lump in your throat, you stammered, “I…I couldn’t. It was too embarrassing.”

With a sigh, he stroked your hair immediately.

“Don’t ever be embarrassed. If something like this is bothering you, I want you to let me know, no matter how insignificant you think it is, okay?”

The wordless nod you gave didn’t seem to be enough for him as he tightened his grip and repeated firmly, “Okay?”

“O-Okay,” you croaked out.

Seonghwa hummed in approval, the noise vibrating against your chest and nearly drowning out the rapid pace of your heartbeat. That was all you could hear as he continued to hold you in silence, taking a moment to let your confession sink in. When he decided to return to the conversation, you were blindsided by what he said.

“Actually, I’m…I’m glad you said something about it.”

His words came out hesitant and timid, bringing confusion.

“You…you are?”

“Yes. Now—” A low exhale interrupted his mid-sentence. “—now I can tell you everything that’s been on my mind.”

Everything on his mind? Was there something bothering him as well? Whatever it was, you remained quiet to give him the floor to speak.

“You know…after I said what I said to you in the kitchen that time, I wanted to kick myself. ‘Why did I say that, she must think I’m a pervert!’.”

His recollection made your lips twitch for a moment.

“But then you accepted…I couldn’t believe it.”

The awe in his voice eased your troubles momentarily, flattered at his recollection to your response.

“I kept thinking that maybe I heard you wrong…but when you showed up on my doorstep, I realized that it was really happening.”

“Were you…excited?” You inquired curiously with a small smile.

Seonghwa chuckled next to your ear, the heat making a thrill shoot down your spine. “Excited. Nervous. Ready to run out the second you saw me naked.”

For the first time in over an hour, you giggled, picturing the possibility of him jetting out while nude.

“But I was ultimately happy that you trusted me enough to do that with you, because…”

His sentence trailed off, making you frown as he seemed to be holding back now. Refusing to let him, you stepped out of the embrace and gave him a taste of his own medicine by grabbing his shoulders and staring into his eyes with stern encouragement.

“Because?”

Seonghwa realized what you were doing and chewed on his lower lip for a moment. The lighting out here wasn’t the strongest, but even with that, you could see his cheeks and ears begin to flush red. With a deep breath, he admitted, “Would you be mad if…if I said I always wanted to touch you?”

Your jaw dropped and your eyes nearly popped out of your skull at the stunning revelation.

He always…what?

“Hwa…a-are you just saying this to ease my mind?”

Your friend vehemently shook his head, still keeping his deep brown eyes locked on yours as he placed his hands on your shoulders.

“Not at all. I wouldn’t lie to you, not about that.”

“And…how did you feel, getting to touch me?”

You swore there was a twinkle in his eyes as his lips peeled back. “I was fucking ecstatic.”

His behavior that night supported his confession, yes, but—

“But I’m sure once you got your fill, that was enough.”

Your pessimistic words made the smile on his face fall, realizing too late that you said the wrong thing. When you were about to open your mouth and take it back, Seonghwa interrupted with an irked tone.

“I’m almost offended to hear that.”

Now his eyes narrowed, making you swallow hard at the fire starting to burn in them. “You really think I don’t want to touch you again?”

You tried to explain your faux pas again, only for it to get lodged in your throat when long fingers began running up the side of your neck.

“Every time I’m near you, that’s all I can think about.”

“Seonghwa…” you trailed off.

A thumb started rubbing underneath your jawline, directly over your pounding pulse.“But I held back because I didn’t want to push my luck. I had an excuse the first time, but any time after that—“

He pursed his lips in dissatisfaction. “—I was worried I’d scare you off.”

You were convinced it wasn’t the liquor making your head spin now, his mere touch and words doing the job instead. It took a minute to properly process what he said before you carefully asked, “And right now?”

Seonghwa took in a long breath in order to let it out as a low chuckle.

“Right now, I want to make you forget all those silly thoughts you’re having.”

God. That reaction alone transported you back to being underneath his bare and sweat-slick body as he gave you pleasure that felt too good to be real.

“S-Seonghwa, you…”

Just as quickly as that desire came, it went away in favor of something more delicate.

“But it’s not just your body that I want,” he clarified, something shining in his eyes that you couldn’t pinpoint. “I’d like to be able to hold you and kiss you as well, not needing an excuse to do so. If I could have gotten the nerve to make a move ages ago, I would have…just to prevent you from going through this stress.”

The confession was easing your troubles and bringing out something more positive instead. All of your worries melted away as Seonghwa continued, reaching for your hands to hold them tight and give a grounding squeeze.

With pure affection in his irises, he inquired, “I want to be able to call you mine. Would that be too much to ask?”

You’re not sure when you decided to answer, merely standing there stunned and reeling. All this lamenting was pointless. If you had said something earlier, even before the two of you had sex, this could have been completely avoided. A combination of joy, exasperation and tenderness caused your eyes to well up, blurring your view of him. When you could speak without croaking, you gave your answer.

“I…no, it’s not too much.”

And then you let out a laugh of relief.

“Not at all.”

You could honestly cry right now.

Which was what your laughter morphed into as everything really sank in, leading to Seonghwa gently wiping your eyes with his thumbs.

“Hey, no tears.”

“I’m sorry, Hwa. They’re happy tears, promise.”

Chuckling at the reassurance, he held your cheeks as he rested his forehead on yours, gazing directly into your eyes.

“Good, that’s the only kind I’ll allow.”

A glowing grin graced your face from his humored reply, leaning into the contact. The harsh tension from earlier completely dissipated now, replaced with something warmer. An atmosphere that continued to heat up the longer you two focused on each other. Your stare kept flicking down to his full lips more than once, the urge to revisit how they feel growing more and more urgent.

“What is it?”

Seonghwa’s low query made you bite down on your bottom lip, noticing the way his eyes darted to the action.

“You said you wanted to be able to kiss me whenever…right?”

Your soft suggestion immediately had one of his brows raising, nodding casually. But rather than go straight for it like you expected, he seemed to hold off.

“I did…are you…are you sure? I know you’ve been drinking…”

Oh. That expressed his hesitation. You appreciated his consideration as always, but this was one of the rare times that you wanted it to jump off the balcony and onto the street.

“Hwa, I’ve only had two drinks and that was over an hour ago.”

Returning the favor, you looked his face over, seeing a bit of a flush still under his sun-kissed skin. “Are you good?”

Seonghwa was just as guaranteed in his nod. “Yes, I promise. Drunk or not, I want this just as bad.”

And that right there was all you needed.

Cradling his face with your hands, you pulled him down and let his mouth land on top of yours.

Oh, how you dreamed of this for weeks.

Now that it was happening, you didn’t want to part, even if your oxygen was running out and you were on the verge of going unconscious. Seonghwa seemed to be on the same page, the pressure of his lips increasing each second. The soft sounds of kissing was like music to your ears while the feel of his hands moving down to hold your waist grounded you.

Although, whatever chasteness was there disappeared the second you dared to poke your tongue against his mouth.

A rumble vibrated against you before his grip tightened and his own tongue came out to run along your own. With each stroke, you could taste the top layer of his drink of choice earlier, but it soon faded until all you could take in was him.

A flavor that was unique and addictive.

You’re not sure when it happened amidst the kissing, but Seonghwa eventually had you backed up into the wall less than a foot from the sliding door. If anyone had become nosy and looked hard enough, they could see part of his back before becoming curious and stepping out to see what was happening. But that was the last thing on your mind at the moment.

All you could think of was the way he was making your body heat up with every drag of his hands and swirl of his tongue. Teeth made an appearance, often nipping and pulling at your lips. Heavy breaths washed over your mouth, growing ragged and peppered with moans.

But then you felt his thigh insert itself between your legs, forcing them to part. And then he went and pressed it up, making you gasp sharply as it came into contact with your clothed core. The unexpected move made you finally pull away from the kiss, panting hard as you gawked at the hungry look on Seonghwa’s face.

“Seonghwa…”

“I’m sorry…I’ve been waiting to do this for a while.”

You let out an incredulous sound. “You don’t have to apologize, believe me.”

He laughed gravelly, shaking his head. “No, I do. I don’t think we should stay here any longer.”

Your face twisted in confusion, your lust-addled brain not picking up on what he meant right away. That is, until he pushed his hips closer and everything became clear.

“We have to leave—” A slow grind of his erection into your right thigh. “—before I end up fucking you on this balcony.”

Just the mere thought of him having the urge to do that to you, despite the riskiness, had you audibly moaning.

“Then…let’s go. To my place. I-It’s closer—”

Seonghwa didn’t even wait for you to finish before nodding swiftly, reluctantly pulling himself away from you. While he adjusted himself, you blindly wiped off whatever lipstick smudged out of bounds and fixed your skirt back down to its proper place.

The two of you headed back inside, the brightness and noise sobering. Everyone seemed to be preoccupied still, not looking in your direction out of curiosity. In fact, the Uno game from the earlier was still ongoing, Sakura looking more joyful and Wooyoung with a deep scowl as he stared at his large array of cards.

Glad that no one questioned the disappearance of you and Seonghwa, you motioned him to follow as you walked to the beginning of the hallway where Ningning and Jongho stood. The two were in a bit of a precarious position, minimal space between their bodies as she giggled uncontrollably about something while the other watched her with nothing but affection in his eyes.

If you weren’t so horny right now, you’d drag your friend off and interrogate. Instead, you cleared your throat to catch her attention.

“Oh! Hey you! Where’d you go?” questioned Ningning.

“I just needed some fresh air, that’s all. Actually, Seonghwa and I are gonna head out.”

Ningning’s brows lifted as she straightened her posture a bit, Jongho mirroring the act. “Is everything alright?”

You give your friend a placating smile. “Yeah, I’m just feeling a little tired and he doesn’t want me to go out by myself this late.”

Seonghwa butted in, “And being under the influence of Wooyoung’s concoctions is asking for trouble.”

The two of your friends agreed with a laugh, looking less concerned now.

“You’ve got a point. Hwa, if you want to come back, I can still drive you home later,” offered Jongho.

Seonghwa shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll either stay with Y/N or Uber home.”

You couldn’t help but think that the former choice was more likely, watching as the men gave each other a parting hug.

“Alright, then be safe.”

Jongho gave you one as well before Ningning wrapped her arms tight around you.

“Please drink some water when you get home. And eat some bread!”

You chuckle and give her an appreciative squeeze. “Of course, Ning. Same for you.”

“Will do!”

When she finally decided to release you and give Seonghwa a tight hug as well, the two of you started to head out, waving goodbye to anyone that passed by. As soon as the apartment door shut behind, you looked up at the other, sharing a knowing smile.

“Shall we?”

You wondered if the driver could feel the mountain of tension in the backseat right now.

From the moment you and Seonghwa entered the car, nothing but a greeting was exchanged. The two of you sat in your respective seats, a gap between your bodies. But less than thirty seconds after the vehicle began moving, you felt long, warm fingers caress your hand. Looking away from the blurred street lamps, you peered over to see your fellow rider watching you with something akin to affection.

The demure smile he gave when you intertwined with him only made the desire to reach your apartment worse.

As soon as the car stopped, your goodbyes were said and the two of you stood in silence as the car drove off and around the corner. Once Seonghwa’s hand held yours again, it was like your body went on autopilot. You began leading him inside and up to your unit, fumbling in your purse for your keys with your free hand. The metal brushed against your fingertips a couple of times, but missed thanks to a combination of tipsiness and the sensation of a thumb rubbing the back of your other hand.

Finally, you pulled them out, unlocking your front door and pulling your companion in with you. With little care of where they would land, you tossed your purse and keys aside before grabbing Seonghwa’s shoulders to pull him into a passionate kiss. The rumble against your lips was instant, feeling warm palms land on your waist now. But before you could get too into the contact, he parted to humorously say, “Shouldn’t we take our shoes off first?”

Ah. Kudos to him for that. You hated tracking dirt in your house.

Nodding swiftly, you started to bend down until he held a hand up.

“Let me.”

His soft yet direct words made your posture straighten, watching as he got down on one knee. He took one of your feet and rested it on his bent leg before working on undoing the strap of your heel. The thoughtful act made your stomach flip, desire piling up as you watched him take his time removing your footwear. Something about the way he did this with no hesitation made you want to just pounce and have him on the hardwood floor.

But you had a little decorum still.

Decorum that dwindled even further when he finished and placed a gentle kiss on your knee before standing to remove his own shoes. As soon as he was done, you jumped.

Lips locked, tongues tangled and hands roamed as the both of you fumbled down the hall and into your bedroom, not even bothering to close the door. You walked him backwards until he was forced to sit on your bed, breaking the kiss. But you wasted no time in climbing onto his lap, returning your lips to their rightful place.

You’re not giving him much of a chance to lead, pressing harder and grinding your hips down enough to have denim scraping uncomfortably into your inner thighs. When you rolled hard enough to feel his mouth vibrate against your own, Seonghwa pulled back to give you the heaviest of looks.

“Did you miss me that much?”

The low tone paired with the hands sneaking up your skirt brought a thrill down your spine.

“Yes.”

No shame littered your response, thighs spreading the further you felt his touch wander.

“Good—“ A fingertip ran along the edge of your slowly soddening panties. “—I missed you too.”

His admission only motivated you to pull him back into a lip lock. While that continued, his fingers slid over your clothed mound to rub gentle circles on your clit. The move made you whimper into his mouth, losing coordination the longer it went on.

He wasn’t even touching your skin directly and you were already losing focus. If he kept this up, you wouldn’t be able to carry out your goal. So you brought a hand down to gently hold his wrist, stopping him from stimulating you further. Seonghwa pulled his lips off to look at you with bewilderment.

“What is it?”

“I…” You swallowed down the bit of apprehension that lingered in order to finish. “I want to make you feel good.”

Seonghwa’s bold brows lifted in surprise at your request. “Y/N…do you not want me to touch you first?”

It wasn’t that you weren’t willing to be touched; far from it. But after everything he had done for you, you wanted him to sit back and enjoy whatever you planned to give.

“It’s not that. I love when you touch me, I just—” You made sure to gaze directly into his deep brown eyes. “—I just need to show you how I feel.”

His orbs softened from your words, free hand coming up to hold your chin carefully.

“Are you sure?”

You didn’t mean for a whine to leave your lips before pleading, “Seonghwa, I’ll let you do whatever you want to me later, just— Please.”

But it worked as he finally eased up, moving his hand away from your face.

“Okay…okay, baby.” Now he rested his palms on the bed with a smile. “I’m all yours.”

The double meaning behind those words had your heart swelling impossibly. You leaned in to capture him in a kiss again, a little slower now. You didn’t linger too long before trailing pecks away from his mouth and down to his jawline. Your lips dotted each inch of it, nose brushing against his earlobes on both sides when you reached.

When you moved further south to land on the long column of Seonghwa’s neck, you could hear his breathing quicken. Holding back a smile, you started exploring this new area, listening close for any tells. Landing on his Adam’s apple forced a hitch out of the other, making you repeatedly plant kisses on that area. The most he gave you was a reserved groan, pushing you to want to increase the volume.

And so you carefully sunk your teeth in.

“Shit, Y/N—”

That was more like it.

Your smile didn’t hold back this time as you pulled back to look at what you did. Judging by the red splotch on his sun-kissed skin, you wouldn’t be surprised if it evolved into a mark in the morning. Seonghwa caught your appreciative stare and chuckled gruffly.

“Are you marking me up?”

“Maybe…”

Mischief littered your tone as you trailed off, leaning in to give said spot a gentle kiss.

“I want you to remember this night somehow.”

You could feel your lover shiver underneath you. “Nothing could make me forget this.”

When your heart expanded uncomfortably at his words, you had to find a way to use your sudden burst of energy. You’re quick to reach for the hem of his t-shirt and tug it off, wasting none of your precious time in running your hands along his heated skin. Muscle memory kicked in to help stimulate hot spots, drinking in every moan and whisper of praise he let out.

Only now did you move from your station on his lap, determined to move down to giving another area attention. You stood up between Seonghwa’s spread legs, head leaning in to lay kisses all over his toned chest. Rotating between using your lips, tongue and teeth, you gauged his enjoyment by the sounds he made.

Sinking your teeth in further whenever he grunted.

Sucking harder if a hint of a whine was heard.

Running the tip of your tongue over his hardened nipples, thighs rubbing at the shallow gasp he would give with each stroke.

Tiring of that place, you moved down his torso to give attention to his abs, loving how stiff they became under your lips. When you latched onto the skin under his belly button, Seonghwa grunted out a ‘please’, forcing you to realize just how close you were to his crotch.

His jeans did little to conceal how affected he was from your ministrations. You rested a hand on the bulge, giving the most careful of squeezes that forced Seonghwa to buck his hips.

“Y/N—“

Looking up, you saw him completely lying on his back now, fists grabbing onto your sheets. The view only pushed you to repeat the move, biting your lip at the louder groan received.

“More…please.”

Your need to get rid of the constricting fabric rose immensely, leading your hands to begin working at his fly immediately. You didn’t even bother removing his bottoms, shoving them down until they pooled around his ankles. An eagerness washed over as you scooted in as close as possible, coming face to face with Seonghwa’s cock. Before he could sit up, your fingers wrapped around it, forcing an intake of breath from him.

“I wish I got to touch you more last time.”

Your hushed admittance didn’t escape his ears, judging by the way he pushed himself up with his arms and gazed down at you with an unreadable emotion.

“You do?”

A nod was given before you leaned close to let a glob of spit drip onto him, hearing a curse from above as you started stroking lazily.

“Yeah. But I wanted you to fuck me so badly, I had to suck it up and move on. If I knew we were going to do this again, I would’ve continued.”

Seonghwa’s eyes only seemed to darken more as you spoke with little hesitation. Your mouth could be incredibly loose when under the influence.

“I wouldn’t have said no if you asked.”

Your mouth curled into the fondest of smiles at that. Now that things were out in the open, you wouldn’t hold back this time; he was going to see just what you would have done with the extra time.

Keeping your gazes locked, you pressed the flat of your tongue to the underside, dragging it up with little speed. The lightest of moans left as his taste brought back memories of that night. Reaching the tip had you drawing circles around the flushed skin, savoring the hiss Seonghwa gave.

“That’s it…”

His encouragement only made you latch your lips around it, giving the gentlest of sucks before popping off, the noticeable sound making his hips jerk in response.

“Do that again, baby—”

You granted his wish, repeating the motion enough that your lover watched you like a hawk, tongue slipping out to run over his parted lips.

“So fucking good.”

If you weren’t careful, you’d end up with an inflated ego due to his praise. But that was a problem for another time as you were ready to go further now.

Your head came close enough to start sliding his dick into your mouth, eyes still steady on his own as you sunk down. Wrapping your hand around whatever didn’t fit, you started moving on both ends, lips meeting your fingers each time. Seonghwa groaned louder than ever, lithe fingers gripping onto your bedsheets as an anchor.

“God, I missed this—”

You had to wonder how often he replayed you pleasuring him in his mind. Probably as much as you did the same for him. From now on, he wouldn’t have to strictly rely on memory; you’d do this as much as he wanted.

This time around, you felt less conscious of how you conducted yourself, letting drool leak out and over your fingers while making obscene noises from the suction. All you cared about was making the man above you feel as good as possible.

Seonghwa’s hips trembled visibly underneath you as you went on, the influence of his earlier drinks causing him to react more than the first time. His head would often fall back before struggling to come back up, only to fail when the pleasure got to be too much. Watching his chest heave with strained breaths was almost hypnotic. But the more you looked, the more a daring idea came into your mind.

It wasn’t something you granted often to your previous lovers, but for him…

Sliding off of him, you eased his moan of withdrawal with a soothing gaze before pushing your voice to come out.

“You wanna fuck my mouth, baby?”

As if you poured ice water on him, his entire body froze. It took a moment for him to process your words before a harsh groan was followed by a desperate, “Please…”

You couldn’t hold back a smirk, taking him back in again, only going down enough to give him room to move. Seonghwa propped himself up on his arms, one coming forward to rest a hand gently on the back of your head. With a look of encouragement from you, his hips pulled back in the slightest, only to snap forward.

And again.

And again.

And again.

“Fuck, Y/N.”

Something about the gravelly way he spoke your name made a visible shiver go down your spine. That and the way he kept sliding in and out with ease, thanks to the spit from before. Your eyes dared to connect with his, seeing his dark and lidded ones giving you nothing but sheer heat.

“So good for me…so pretty like this—”

A moan vibrated around him from the praise, only driving his hips faster now.

“Always thought you’d take me so well—”

He was going to be the death of you if he kept talking.

But somehow you managed to stay in control as he continued fucking your mouth, only letting your hands roam his stomach and thighs and wherever you could reach (you dared to graze against his balls and the guttural reaction you received was oh so worth it).

This went on for a while, but you were in too much of a trance to even think of how much time went by, only noticing how close he was when a strained noise came out.

“Baby, I’m gonna come—“

Something of a thrill went through you at his words before curiosity starts to take a hold.

You could have just pulled off and let him finish on your hand or his stomach, but there was a part of you that wanted to go a step further and see just what he tasted like.

A hand went up to lay on the one holding the back of your head while staring directly into his eyes. Once Seonghwa understood your silent communication, he groaned brokenly. His gruff swearing preceded the faster movement of his hips, becoming frantic and off-beat. It only felt like a short moment before he froze suddenly to let out a choked gasp, shaking and twitching as heat started to coat your tongue.

The somewhat bitter taste mixed with the lingering alcohol, making you moan in satisfaction as you watched your newfound lover lose control. You didn’t release him until the last of the tremors left his body, an audible pop sounding while he slumped back onto the bed. Wiping your mouth free of spit and a bit of his come, you took in the sight of Seonghwa catching his bearings, his torso already covered with a light sheen of sweat.

“Shit…I’m sorry.”

You didn’t catch his ragged apology immediately, processing it after a few seconds of blinking. A giggle broke before you pulled yourself up to plant your palms next to his head.

“Why sorry? Did you miss me that much?” You teased.

His ears only grew redder, groaning as he threw an arm over his eyes to hide his embarrassment. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not—” You pressed a kiss to said arm. “—it’s flattering.”

Seonghwa removed his arm to shoot you a pout, only for it to break into a smile the more you looked at each other. He interrupted the staring when he reached up to pull you on top of him, wrapping you into a tight hug. You could hear his rapid heartbeat this way, remaining in the welcome embrace for a while.

“Just wait until I get my bearings.”

“Mm?”

Your head lifted to look at him, only to see a more serious expression on his face now.

“Best believe I’m returning the favor.”

Your core clenched at the expression he gave and the tone of his voice, looking forward to whatever ‘favor’ he had in store.

“I’m scared and excited.” Your honest words made Seonghwa give a velvety laugh.

“Good. I plan to make you into a mess as well.”

There was no way he didn’t feel how you shuddered at that, judging by the crooked tilt of his lips.

It only took another minute before he started sitting up, forcing you to stand once again. He released your body to reach down and pull his bottoms off his feet, tossing them to the side. Before they even landed, his hands shot out to hold your hips and pull you back onto his lap, your legs wrapping around his slender waist.

Both hands came up to cup your jaw and pull you into a passionate kiss, the contact making you melt into him in an instant. While you were distracted by his quickly emerging tongue, Seonghwa went to slide the hem of your shirt up your torso, forcing the kiss to break so he could slip it off and let it join his own clothes on the floor. Before you could capture his lips again, he reached for your upper back, making quick work in undoing the clasp of your bra. As soon as the fabric loosened and dropped, his mouth immediately went to latching on.

Hot kisses were planted all over your bare chest, leaving no space untouched. They only made the heat in your body rise higher and higher, squirming in your lover’s lap. It became worse when you witnessed his full lips wrap around one of your nipples to suck lightly. His deep brown eyes looked up, keeping contact with yours as he kept this up. The heat lingering in his orbs were peppered with something else that made a low moan escape you.

He hummed against you for a second before releasing the bud, only to flick his tongue rapidly over it, making your body jolt in his lap. A velvety chuckle came from Seonghwa, moving to the other side to repeat the motion.

“Hwa—”

Pulling off, he brought his head up to hover in front of yours. His eyes were lidded as he husked, “Keep saying my name like that.”

You didn’t even get the chance to nod and show him you were on board before he dove back down to keep showering your breasts with attention. Finding your posture becoming unstable, you wrapped an arm around his shoulders and tangled your fingers into his short, dark locks. For that, you received a groan and a nip to one of your buds.

The sharpness had you hissing his name quietly, although it sounded loud in this room.

Seonghwa continued, getting his fill of your breathy voice until he decided he had enough, releasing your nipple with a grunt.

“Y/N.”

“Mm?”

He sat up straight, bringing himself face to face with you now. “Can you do me a favor?”

You nodded swiftly without even fully processing his words. “Sit on my face.”

…what?

“H-Huh?”

He merely smirked.

“You said I could do whatever I want to you, yes? So come sit on my face.”

You’re reeling from his offer, but quick to nod and spring into action after a moment and stand up. Your fingers fumble a bit in removing your skirt, though you’re successful at getting the constricting fabric off your legs. But just as you’re about to do the same for your underwear, Seonghwa takes a hold of your hands and gives you a look of impatience.

“Just come up here already.”

His urgency sent a shock down your spine, not used to seeing him like this. But you granted his wish, waiting until he laid back, his head just below your pillows. You cautiously climbed on and up to hover your hips above his face.

Were you too high? You didn’t know; you had never done this before!

But Seonghwa didn’t allow you the chance to overthink more, hooking a finger into the crotch of your panties (and causing a jolt at the brush against your skin) and pulling them to the side. A curse left at the sight of your arousal before he grabbed your hips.

“I love how wet you get for me.”

With zero hesitation, he pulled you down onto his lips and got to work.

Maybe your brain was playing tricks on you, but it felt even better than the first time.

Perhaps he wasn’t exaggerating when he said he constantly thought about being intimate again when he was with you. It seemed like he remembered what pleased you and was using every detail to his advantage.

Either way, you were enjoying this greatly.

Whenever there was a break in your moans, you could hear the obscene sound of Seonghwa’s tongue lapping and flicking between your legs.

“So fucking sweet—“

The sudden rumble from below made you tremble visibly, drawn out from the slow and thorough way he was tasting you. Your fingers were quick to grip onto the headboard for support as you fought the urge to push down onto his face; it was just too early in the game for that.

But your sense of modesty was evaporating with each stroke of his tongue and suction with his lips.

The rum from earlier pushed you to eventually start rolling your hips, feeling a moan vibrate from him. Hands guided you even further in your desires, gaining more friction that had your breath hitching. When Seonghwa stopped, you took over, continuing to take what you wanted, receiving an even louder groan.

“God…yes, ride my face like that—“

The grab and jiggle to your ass only encouraged you to go on and on.

How could you have never done this before in your entire life? You could sit up here forever.

But your control started to slip when you felt something a little more solid start to brush against the bundle of nerves. The sudden feeling made you jolt, looking down to see what was going on.

…fuck. He was using his nose.

The nose that you greatly admired on his gorgeous face.

And just like that, you stopped giving a fuck.

Tightening your hold, you began rubbing against him harder, increasing the pleasure tenfold. Something of an elated laugh came from Seonghwa at your loosened inhibitions, only encouraging you further. Time was a pointless concept for the two of you as you got your fill of each other, only coming to a halt when you felt a sharp and familiar pang in your gut.

Hissing as the pressure started to become too much, you whimpered, “Seonghwa…”

Yet if he heard you, he chose to ignore, continuing to let his tongue flick at your throbbing clit.

God, if he kept that up, things were going to get messy.

“I-I’m gonna come so hard— Let me off!”

Seonghwa heeded your request, but psyched you out when he grunted, “No. Don’t hold back.”

Your eyes darted down to gawk at him with doubt before he shot a crooked grin.

“Come on my face, pretty girl.”

Jaw dropping at his approval, he gave you no chance to second guess as he dove back in, giving you everything he had. And when it got to be too much, the knot inside snapped.

Your back arched and you cried out sharply as you shook and expressed your pleasure in a way that hadn’t happened since that fateful night with him.

When the tremors started to subside, you rested your damp forehead on the headboard for a moment, using that and Seonghwa’s soothing hands on your hips as an anchor.

“So good for me, baby.”

His praise made you exhale in relief, finding yourself coming back to Earth after a couple of minutes. Scooting back to hover above his chest, you peered down to see the damage you did.

Oh. Holy shit.

You fucking drenched him, enough for droplets to slide down the side of his face and dark spots to show on the pillowcase. But Seonghwa looked unperturbed, gazing up at you without an ounce of shame.

“Jesus. Seonghwa, I-I’m sorry, I didn’t think I’d—“

The rest of your apology died out when a hand came up to wipe his wet mouth, only to then bring fingers to his bangs to push them off his forehead.

“Don’t be. That was too fucking hot.”

And then you were rendered speechless when his tongue snaked out to run over his glistening lips. “Love when you squirt for me.”

God…he was going to be the end of you.

With shaking legs, you dismounted and sat next to him, wiping a bead of sweat off your forehead. “You need to stop being so good at that.”

Seonghwa grinned devilishly. “I think not. You seem to enjoy it a lot.”

Your eyes narrowed out of annoyance and modesty, poking his bare chest before rebutting, “Your mind is playing tricks on you.”

“No way. I saw the look on your face when you moved back. You looked like you were about to smother me again.”

“Seonghwa!”

Your shriek brought a laugh from the other, growing louder when you started laying light punches on his torso. He was quick to grab your hands and pull you down, pinning them between both of your bodies.

“Easy there, baby.”

His interruption of your assault only made your lower lip stick out. Seonghwa leaned up to press his own, making it retract when he gave you a nip with his teeth.

“Keep doing that and I’ll have to wipe that pout off.”

The low promise did it for you anyways, biting down on your lip in response.

“How so?”

Your little challenge brought the cheekiest of smiles from him before you found your vision blurring as your world spun. Now you found yourself pinned down to your bed, gawking up at the other.

“Let me show you.”

Seonghwa laid a palm on your heaving chest, slowly yet purposefully dragging it down your torso until it rested below your belly button. For a moment, he pressed down a bit before sliding his thumb downwards, giving your still sensitive clit a few circles. The pressure on your stomach unexpectedly amplified the pleasure, making your eyes flutter shut as you let it spread through you in waves.

He gave you some time to enjoy this simple attention before you felt something prodding your entrance. You tensed up for a second until you realized it was his fingers, his hand now removed from your stomach and focused between your legs. As soon as he felt you relax, Seonghwa slid inside, the two digits causing a pleasant friction against your walls. Like it was muscle memory, you could feel them curl and hook onto that swollen spot, pushing the air out of your lungs as your eyes flew open.

“Can you give it to me again, sweetheart?”

Unable to form words, your widened eyes met his before bobbing your head frantically. You didn’t realize how worked up you were until he began touching you and now you wanted more.

Seonghwa realized this as well, his grin adopting a tinge of feral energy.

“That’s my girl.”

His approval was followed by slow, thorough movements, in and out as he stroked your inner walls. The lewd noise from it was like music to your ears.

“Still so wet…” Seonghwa’s muttered comment made your cheeks flame, giving him a mock pout.

“Your fault.” Your petulant reply had him chuckling, leaning down to give your lips a peck.

“I’ll take the blame. It’s good to know I’m not the only one affected.”

“What, did you think you were just lucky the first time?”

Humming, he continued, “A little…but I can see that’s not the case.”

You groaned at a specific rub before chuckling hoarsely. “You sound happy about that.”

“I am, especially after the torture of this last month.”

Seonghwa’s fingers pulled back a bit. “Couldn’t think straight sometimes when we were alone together.”

A plunge into that spongy spot.

“I kept thinking about that night and how good you looked in my bed.”

Your hips couldn’t help but jerk. “Y-Yeah?”

“Mhm. All laid out on the sheets bare and willing to let me please you.”

A thumbing of your clit.

“It was like a dream come true.”

No, this was a dream come true.

Starting the night off as a sensitive wreck and ending it under the warm comfort of the man you admired almost felt like you could wake up any second. But the fingers sending bolts of bliss up your spine said otherwise.

“Y/N—” hissed Seonghwa. “—you keep squeezing me…still tight as ever.”

His words had you clenching again, feeling the pressure inside rise further.

“Hwa…keep talking to me like that.”

“Mm?”

You gazed directly into his eyes, licking your swollen lips.

“It…really gets to me.”

Your admission had shock passing over his face for a moment before he nodded firmly, bracing his body above yours with a hand planted next to your head. His bangs had become a bit loose from the styling he had done, casting a shadow around his dark brown eyes, smudged with liner.

“Good. I want you to know how fucking amazing you feel.”

A tremble of your hips as he sped up a bit.

“Ngh…yes, like that—”

Seonghwa bit back a groan, trying to remain somewhat composed as he worked on taking you to the peak. “The sounds you make are still one of my favorites.”

Same to you.

“I really wish you said something earlier…who knows how many times we could have done this again?”

So many times.

“Can’t wait to feel this wrapped around my cock.”

You couldn’t wait either.

It didn’t take much longer for a new coil to begin forming, your hips twitching and jerking often as the sounds from the fingers fucking you grew louder. After another suggestive compliment was whispered in your ear, the coil snapped and brought a sharp keen from your lips. You weren’t fully aware of what came out of your mouth during your orgasm, only focusing on the way you coated Seonghwa’s hand with your release.

“Fuck, there we go—“

He refused to stop until you reached down to grab his wrist, hints of overstimulation starting to wash over you. Once your muscles calmed a bit, you peered at the man above you with glassy eyes. A short laugh came out when you took notice of the sizeable wet spot sitting under your bottom right now.

“You’re gonna drain me, Hwa.”

With little modesty, Seonghwa grinned and explained, “Then I’ll just fill you back up again.”

You forgot how dangerous his confidence could be when it was through the roof.

Humming lowly, you brought trembling hands up to rest on his bare chest, noting the way his heart pounded beneath your right palm.

“And just how are you going to do that?”

Your lover’s brow lifted at your query, especially when you decided to start rubbing at his skin.

“With your tongue?”

Seonghwa’s mouth parted to respond, only for a hitched exhale to release when you slid up to his shoulders.

“Your fingers again?”

The back-to-back orgasms were making your tongue loose, running your fingertips along the nape of his neck as you leaned up to practically kiss his ear.

“Or maybe…your cock?”

Your velvety whisper brought a visible shiver out of Seonghwa, feeling a little triumphant at getting him to react to your unexpected words. But then a hand came up to grasp your chin, pulling you back so you could get a clear view of the sheer hunger in his deep brown eyes. With the fingers that were still slick with your come, he wrapped them around his length (now hard again) and stroked slowly.

“If I don’t get inside you in the next minute, I’m going to lose my mind.”

Well, there was your answer.

With a swift nod, the two of you worked on maneuvering your bodies to a more comfortable position, your head laying underneath your array of throw pillows while Seonghwa laid his lean body between your spread legs. His arousal pressed insistently against your sensitive folds, only increasing your need for him. Your hand reached down to align him properly, gazing up with thinly-veiled impatience. It didn’t take long for him to give in, pushing his hips forward to begin filling you up.

God. You don’t remember it feeling this good last time.

Every inch and vein bumped along the ridges of your walls, causing your desire to increase to an unbearable point. So unbearable that you lost your patience when he was halfway in, grabbing his slender hips to tug and finish the job, pulling a sharp sound out of the both of you.

Seonghwa trembled visibly for a moment to regain some control as he bottomed out, eyes watching you with astonishment. Eventually, something between a groan and a heavy laugh left him, forehead dropping to rest on yours. His bangs tickled your face as he rasped, “God, I missed this.”

A similar expression came from you, your hands taking place on his waist to run up and down the heated and damp skin.

“Me too.”

For a while, you and your newfound lover just watched each other in silence, ragged breathing as background noise. It was like you were both processing the end of ‘what if’s and stressful pining. After tonight, no one was going to be confused about feelings.

The only issue at this point was figuring out how many times was going to be enough to satisfy both of your needs.

Ready to have a repeat of that one night, you crossed your ankles over Seonghwa’s lower back and gave a light push. With that motion, he was quick to begin moving his hips, bringing about a friction that was scratching that itch you had had for the last month.

“Baby, stop holding back,” you gently chided.

Seonghwa’s breath hitched audibly at that, eyes looking into yours for any hesitation present. When you gave none, he clenched his jaw and proceeded to put more force into his thrusts, beginning to relieve that bothersome tickle inside.

“Mm, just like that—”

Your praise only encouraged the other, leaving little restraint as he moved in and out of you. His head was quick to drop down and trail small kisses and bites all over your jaw and neck, often pausing to whisper coarse words into your ear.

“Do you know how many times I wanted to just drag you away from the others and have you like this again?”

You tightened around him for a moment before hissing, “No, not at all.”

Seonghwa chuckled heavily, tugging your earlobe with his teeth.

“Too fucking often.”

Sliding a hand up his sweat-slick back, the contracting muscles distracted you for a second before you ended up tangling your fingers in his hair.

“If only I knew then…we could have made some excuses up.”

Seonghwa laughed again, only for a groan to interrupt it. “Fuck— You’re just full of surprises, aren’t you?”

You smirked and pressed your lips to his temple before husking, “That’s only one of them.”

Something shifted in his eyes, hips stilling before he pulled out, leaving you feel hollow. Groaning in frustration, you started, “Seonghwa, don’t—“

“Hands and knees, now.”

His sultry command killed whatever backlash you were ready to give, quickly maneuvering your body into the requested position. As soon as your palms touched the bed, Seonghwa realigned himself and slowly went back in, the new angle making your fingers clutch the sheets.

“Goddamn, you look good from here,” he grunted as he fully filled you up again.

Within a couple of seconds, your lover grabbed your hips and began pulling you back as he thrust forward, each contact causing an audible smack to occur. It was soon joined by a short cry or moan from your mouth, the position causing his cock to drag in just the right places. Feeling his balls consistently slap against your throbbing clit didn’t help matters either, jolts of pleasure shooting out to your fingers and toes.

“Oh— Oh my God—”

The most unabashed of moans left you, coming deep from the pit of your belly as Seonghwa continued to pound into you from behind. You could feel his hands roaming over the entirety of your body. From grasping your shoulders to caressing your breasts to gripping the curve of your ass, he left little areas untouched. There’s less restraint in his moves tonight. He’s not trying to find out what makes you tic and what turns you off.

No, he's taking all of that knowledge from before to turn you into an absolute mess right now.

“Is this good, baby?” he rasped.

Good didn’t even come close to how you were feeling.

“U-Uh huh!”

A tweak of your nipple had you borderline whining.

“What was that?”

His provocation pushed you to try and answer him with actual words this time, “So good! You feel so good inside me, Hwa—!”

Seonghwa swore before you felt his other hand slide down the front of your torso, eventually landing between your hips to work your clit over.

Your limbs became unstable all of a sudden, forcing you to land on your front, face buried in the sheets while you were being fucked senseless. It didn’t matter to him as an audible grunt came out before you felt his lips planting between your shoulder blades repeatedly.

“You take me so fucking well, it’s amazing—“

At this point, you couldn’t even respond, giving in to the bliss consuming your senses. You were in an entire other headspace until a sudden impact to your bottom snapped you back to reality. Bewilderment came about as you tried to figure out what that was until it happened again, realizing that Seonghwa’s hand was the culprit.

He just spanked you!

You were truly experiencing a new side of him tonight and you loved it.

“Tell me it’s mine.”

Another smack followed, prompting you to cry out, “It’s yours, Seonghwa, all yours!”

After this repeated brazen act, your second orgasm was approaching quickly. Surely he could feel it with how frequently you were squeezing his dick, which was why you were stunned when he withdrew out of nowhere. But then you felt his mouth land on your pussy, licking and sucking like his life depended on it.

The shock of the new maneuver ultimately pushed you to your limit, fisting the sheets as you shouted. Seonghwa’s tongue didn’t let up as you trembled violently, pushing your body until it squirted its pleasure down your thighs.

“I love making a mess out of you,“ you heard Seonghwa mumble while continuing to lap at your dripping folds.

When you didn’t have any more to give, you became a pile of mush, flattening your body on the bed as you tried to come back down. While you were recovering, hands carefully maneuvered you until you were on your back again. Your lover immediately placed himself between your thighs again, his dick nudging against you before sliding in, making your legs shake at the overstimulation. But then he remained still once his hips touched yours, panting raggedly as he looked down at you.

Strands of ebony hair plastered to his sweat-beaded face, swollen lips parted as he caught his breath and dark eyes lidded, yet laser-focused on you.

He was…beautiful like this.

His brows raised in surprise all of a sudden, leaving you confused as to why he made that face until you realized that you said it out loud instead. The blunder made your cheeks burn as you grinned sheepishly.

“Sorry.”

Seonghwa relaxed his expression into an affectionate smile and shook his head, leaning down to peck your lips.

“Don’t be. Although, I think that word suits you more than me.”

His deflection of your praise made you pout (even if you were highly flattered), giving his cheek a pinch in retaliation.

“I would argue with you about that, but I think we have something more important to worry about right now.”

A small shift of your hips was enough of a reminder, Seonghwa looking more focused now. As soon as you relaxed against the bed, he began to move again, bringing back sheer pleasure.

All you could focus on was him, watching every change in his expression and listening to every sound or word that came out of his mouth. Every inch of his skin that brushed against or stuck to yours only increased your desire for him.

It didn’t feel like enough to only have part of his body on yours, hands swiftly grasping his shoulders and tugging him down to lay flat on you, his lightly defined chest squishing down your breasts. This action prompted him to increase the power in his thrusts, hitting you in the deepest parts that you were unaware of before tonight.

In short, he was fucking you good.

When you clung harder to him and whimpered, he kissed your temple and whispered in your ear, “I know, baby. I’ve got you.”

And he kept his word.

Seonghwa often placed his lips wherever he could reach, although he favored your lips the most. His arms wrapped tight around your quivering body, keeping you steady as he rutted into you over and over. You felt safe and secure like this. Nothing else seemed to matter at this point, especially the conflict from earlier.

This was truly different than the first time.

No music. No expectations. No nerves. Just you and the man you had been slowly falling for for God knows how long.

When your walls began fluttering wildly, you knew the end was coming close. And so did Seonghwa when his deep voice vibrated against your ear, asking, “You’re gonna come?”

The heavy way he said that nearly drove you over the edge right then and there, but you swallowed the spit gathering in your mouth to pant, “Y-Yes— Are you—?“

The strained ‘yes’ he gave was paired with a strong twitch inside you, prompting you to frantically move your hips up to meet his, hoping to help. Both of your movements were uncoordinated yet effective, the tightening in your gut becoming unbearable until it snapped.

Your nails dug hard into his shoulder blades, an explosive cry of his name echoing in the heady air, quickly followed by Seonghwa bottoming out, only to groan audibly as he hit his peak also. Every spurt of his release that filled you up made you feel complete; something that you now had the privilege to experience as much as you wanted.

It felt like ages until the both of you decided to untangle from each other, Seonghwa barely lifting himself off as he withdrew and flopped next to your sweaty body. He didn’t let you stay apart from him for long, bringing you close to lay your head above his rapidly beating heart. A soft sigh escaped as you rested your hand on the other side of his chest, eyes heavy with bliss and exhaustion.

“That…I think that made up for the last month.”

Seonghwa’s weary remark made you giggle faintly, “It definitely did.”

You felt his chest vibrate under you before a kiss landed on the top of your head.

“Thank you for being honest with me earlier. Again, I’m sorry I put you through this,” he apologized.

Forcing your head to lift, you rested your chin on him as you looked into his eyes with no nonsense.

“Hwa, you couldn’t have known, don’t beat yourself up about it.”

Seonghwa seemed like he was about to protest, but the steel in your gaze killed it, prompting him to sigh instead.

“Okay…but I will be trying to make it up to you.”

His promise intrigued you, giving him a curious look. “How so?”

“Hm…first things first, I need to take you out on a proper date.”

That made you chuckle and tease, “I think you’re supposed to go on a date before fucking someone’s brains out.”

Seonghwa clicked his tongue and snarked, “It’s the twenty-first century, I don’t think going in order is important anymore.”

Unable to fight with that, you decided to mess with him and suggest, “If that’s the case, then I expect the whole nine yards on our date.”

“Like what?”

“Walking up to my front door with a dozen roses, opening the car door for me, pulling out my chair at dinner, a moonlit walk by the river…”

Your exaggerated list made your lover laugh incredulously, griping with humor, “Wow, it’s only been a few hours and already my girlfriend is giving me a hard time.”

…oh! Girlfriend?

The label made your body feel warm and light, not expecting him to call you that so soon. But you played it cool and hummed, “Mm, am I your girlfriend now?”

“I would like to think that you are.”

His matter-of-fact statement made your ears burn, already enjoying the sound of the new title. You gave his nose a poke as you pestered him in jest, “Good. I got wasted off of rum punch and cried over you, I think it’s the least I deserve.”

All your boyfriend did was chuckle, eyes warm as he brought your hand up to place a long kiss on the back of it.

“That and everything more.”

For a moment, you thought your alarm was going off; sometimes you forgot to turn it off when you didn’t have work. But the music continued on for close to a minute, prompting you to pry your eyes open, wincing at the faint sunlight coming through your window.

You blindly reached a hand out to fumble around on the nightstand until you touched your phone, ready to hit snooze until you realized that someone was calling you.

Specifically, Ningning.

Attempting to clear the sleep out of your throat, you hit the answer button and brought the device up to your ear, croaking, “Hello?”

“Good morning, sunshine!” chirped your friend.

The chipper voice on the other end had you glancing at your alarm clock in bewilderment.

“Ning, you’re up already?”

“I know, I know, shocker. I woke up for a second and wanted to check up on you. How are you feeling?”

Touched at your friend’s concern, you relaxed under your comforter, rubbing your feet as you responded, “Good, thanks for asking. Sorry we left early.”

Ningning clicked her tongue before scolding, “No, don’t apologize. I wasn’t going to force you to stay if you weren’t feeling well.”

You heard some shuffling on the other end before she continued, “I’m guessing Seonghwa spent the night at your place?”

Your eyes glanced to the side at said man laying close to you, curled up on his side and snoring softly, a bit of drool on his parted lips. A tired smile graced your face as you reached out to gently wipe it away with your thumb.

“He did. I bet he’s still out cold,” you lied, acting as if he was in his usual spot on the couch and not in your bed.

Ningning giggled, “Not surprised, Jongho is still fast asleep too.”

That detail piqued your interest, raising a brow at how she would know that.

“Jongho?” you asked suspiciously.

Your friend became silent for a second before she spoke again, “Oh, uh, I texted him to let him know he left his sweater behind, but he didn’t answer. You know how much of an early bird he is.”

Even though her rushed tone and words sounded like an excuse, you didn’t have the energy to grill her. Next time.

“Right, right.”

A pause came about, making you lean towards saying goodbye to your friend so you could sleep in some more. That is, until Ningning sounded more serious as she probed, “You promise you’re okay, Y/N?”

You frowned at the shift in tone, replying, “I am. What’s wrong?”

“I just…last night you seemed, I don’t know, a bit troubled at one point. And I was shocked to see you get drunk and dance with us, but I didn’t want to pry too much.”

Oops. Guess you weren’t as candid as you thought. At least you could give her an honest answer now.

“Ning…I was feeling a little off last night, I’m not going to lie. It’s just some stuff that’s been piling up that got to me, but…it’s all good now. I got everything out of my system from letting loose and I promise I’m okay.”

You heard nothing for a moment before Ningning’s voice returned, sounding less cautious now, “So you’re feeling better now? Completely?”

When she asked that, you looked over at Seonghwa again.

Just being able to watch him sleep so peacefully close to you gave you a sense of calm. This was what you desired. What you had been waiting so long for.

With a glowing smile, you replied blissfully, “Yes, much better.”

©bangtanintotheroom, 2025. Crossposted to AO3. Do not repost to other sites or copy without permission.

[chiakiakito]

All of this is 100000% true and I feel like it's a cultural issue, not just people being assholes or any particular game's fault.

My first 5 years or so of ttrpg experience were in an extended friend group (so like I played with different people at different points but we all learned to play the same way). And playing d&d or pathfinder or vtm or whatever else was just players coming to the table with the lovingly-crafted blorbo they made at home and the gm coming to the table with a binder's worth of worldbuilding players were barely privy to.

Writing multiple page backstories was encouraged. Reception of those backstories on part of the gm (even when they requested it) was... Mixed.

I remember one campaign where my random stat rolls in Pathfinder were abysmal so we agreed with the GM I could play an Azlanti (basically OP Atlanteans who were supposed to be extinct at the time of the game and got a +2 to every stat) provided I could justify why an Azlanti was still alive. So I wrote a whole Thing delving deep into the lore of Golarion (official PF setting) and... He just went "okay jsyk I'm throwing most of that in the trash" and made up a whole different Thing. Why make me waste my time and effort if you were just going to trash it anyways?

And. Same guy, different game. We played Dungeon World*, session zero and everything, we make up an Attack on Titan-style walled city with fucked up internal politics and everything. Almost everyone chooses custom playbooks based on political/social moves. And he just. Session 1, we're stuck outside the wall, never see the inside of the city again.

* it would be more accurate to say we were playing d&d with dungeon world dice, because boy did that group not understand a Single Thing about how PBTA work the way they do or what playstyle is best suited for them. This is why I say it's a play culture thing and not a system thing, because you can put any system in the hands of a player with a certain mindset and they will still make the same mistakes if not encouraged to change their approach.

I brought up two times where the GM was the one dealing badly with other people's contributions, because that's what I feel it's like-- a culture where everyone does homework in isolation and then comes to the table to show it off regardless of other players' ideas is not going to be functional at roleplay, no matter who's in the driver's seat. Dysfunction can come from any role at the table, and it's an unfortunate situation that a lot of the time the GM gets blamed for it. I don't know that framing it as poor GM vs entitled players is a solution, but there definitely is an issue there.

While I rail against the idea of GM prep being like "preparing a nice story for your players that their characters can be slotted into and also as a GM it's your duty to integrate the characters' backstories into your prep or else you're a bad GM" because it often results in linear narratives with very little room for player agency but also it's an unhealthy dynamic to expect a GM to weave together a coherent narrative out of the ideas provided by multiple people who might have completely different ideas about what the game should even look like. But there's also more to the practical angle than "it's hard to prep:"

If a player whose character is deeply integrated into the narrative of the campaign suddenly needs to leave the campaign you've left yourself with a narrative void and unlike in Hollywood you can't just go recasting that shit. No one's gonna buy into this new Goblin Steve, his new player can't even do his voice properly.

By prepping games like this you're really setting your whole campaign up for failure in most cases. How about: the story isn't something the players write for homework before the campaign, right? The NPCs that matter are not authored connections your players gave you as assigned reading before the game even started. The story is whatever happens during sessions and the connections that matter are those that characters build during play.

There is of course some nuance to this but like: we see so much talk about GMs being expected to integrate player character backstories into their prep (and then their players not being engaged anyway because they felt the GM did it "wrong") and about how GMs are burning out and it's a thankless job and like. Could there perhaps be a solution?

[tgmsunmontue]

A picture is worth 1000 words - 17/?

Hangster post-TGM events, Jake and Bradley becoming friends on Instagram through increasingly competitive thirst traps.

ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINE TEN ELEVEN TWELVE THIRTEEN FOURTEEN FIFTEEN SIXTEEN

PART SEVENTEEN

                Bradley looks at the empty fridge in vaguely disguised horror before remembering abruptly that Jake definitely cooks. That he probably eats all his meals with his family when he’s home, breakfast yesterday morning clear evidence of that. There is however plenty of hot drink options, multiple different types of hot chocolate coupled with a variety of mugs with cartoon characters on him. Months ago the idea of Hangman having these in his kitchen would have been preposterous, now though it is so very Jake. It doesn’t surprise him anymore.

                “Hey… morning. Brought you coffee.”

                “Mmm… I could get used to this.”

                “Yeah?”

                “Definitely.”

                Jake’s watching him, eyes intent but there’s a spark of mischievousness and Bradley sets both mugs on the side table, well out of the way and then he crawls onto the bed, pinning the sheet and blanket over Jake’s legs, grins as he places kisses up over his chest, feeling ridiculously happy and he needs to get over the fact that it carries a twinge of guilt for some reason. He squashes it. He’s allowed to be happy.

                “Proper morning kiss…”

                “Mmm. Could get used to that too.”

                “Good. Going to be a regular occurrence.”

                “Bold of you to assume I’m not going to kick you out…”

                “Haha,” Bradley says, rolling his eyes, because he knows Jake is trying to annoy him now; they’d talked plenty last night about starting something serious and he suspects Jake’s in as deep as he is. It’s a little bit terrifying but also equally exciting. Hell. He’s here staying with Jake’s family.

                “I’m sure you can convince me otherwise.”

                “You mean the coffee wasn’t enough?”

                “It was a good start.”

                “You drive a hard bargain. How do you feel about blowjobs?”

                He doesn’t let Jake answer, covers his mouth with his own, feels Jake’s hands travel over the bare skin of his stomach and sides, grip at his ass through the borrowed sweatpants.

                “Mmm…” Jake hums. “Smart man.”

                “Yeah?”

                “Knew you’d figure out all my weaknesses.”

                Bradley laughs, nips one of Jake’s earlobes playfully.

                “Already?”

                “I’m an open book…”

                “You are not,” Bradley mutters, because seeing Jake at home like this is all new.

                “I’m an open book at home. I’m more professional at work.”

                “Professional? Is that what you’re calling it?”

                “We’re all competitive and a little arrogant at work…”

                “A little?”

                “I think you like it…”

                Bradley opens his mouth to disagree then closes it again. Jake is smirking at him, like he knows what his attitude and cockiness does to Bradley and he shakes his head, bends his head down for another kiss.

[mydollsaregay]

new ag historical releases, let's go!!!!

nanea

nanea's volunteer outfit is $36 and her care kit accessories are $40.

nanea got an outfit that is both cute and story-relevant (according to some other folks, i haven't gotten to her books yet)! that's pretty hype, man! this is a pretty cute fit - it comes in multiple parts (shirt, skirt with suspenders, and tie), which is a bonus, too. it's not 100% my style, but i'll definitely be picking it up at some point (i'll likely wait for a sale, though). the only thing i actively dislike is her bow barette. it's not that i think it's historically inaccurate or anything (i don't think it's inaccurate, but idk), i just am personally not a fan of plastic bows. that's fine though, i'll just replace it with a ribbon.

now, nanea's accessories on the other hand are OUTSTANDING. all the little items are so incredibly cute. my only wish would be for less plastic, and real leather instead of faux leather, but that ain't happening in this era of ag. i love all the little items, and i love that the flashlight really works! i'll definitely be picking this up.

maryellen

maryellen's 2-in-1 outfit is $36, her dinner accessories are $36, and her stove is $125.

maryellen received a new playsuit outfit, finally!!! i'm so excited to have more clothes for her that it looks like she can actually play in! it's really cute, too. it's not my favorite color scheme for her, unfortunately, but i can work with it. i still think her originally vacation playsuit and her strawberry outfit are superior (and suit her coloring better), but this is plenty cute.

her accessories and stove are cute enough, but just not for me. i don't really have anything else to say about them.

melody

melody's salon outfit is $36, her salon accessories are $40, and her salon chair set is $150.

melody's got pants! i love a historical outfit with pants, and this is no exception. once again, the color scheme isn't my most favorite, but it's still super cute. i'll definitely be getting it when i have a chance. i'm also just. so relieved that the poor girl isn't getting cubed. i was worried, with the lack of releases, but this makes me very happy to see.

her salon accessories are bit steep for having no complex pieces, imo. i'd be interested in having them for my melody, but if i don't get the chance to pick them up, it'll be fine. i don't do a lot of different haristyles on my dolls, so i'm not really the target audience here. i do love that the instruction booklet for the hairstyles is made to look like it's from the 60's as well. if this set goes on a major sale, i'll pick it up then.

i'm shocked and pleased that our girl melody got a major play set! it's a pretty cool set. those magazines are awesome, though it's a shame they're gated behind such a big ticket item. the hot comb is so fun. idk how this set will do, but i'm glad ag though melody was worth it. (kinda sad when that's surprising to me but. these are the times we live in.)

overall

i am very happy with this release! i think there's a lot here to please both kids and collectors. i can see myself picking up all of the outfits and most of the accessories at some point, given sales, reward points, gift certificates, etc. I'm not interested in the big ticket items or maryellen's cooking accessories, but that's fine. they aren't meant for me.

while i think all of the outfits are cute, they do follow the color scheme of recent ag releases: they all look a bit like they got run through a "pastel-izer" machine. i get that pastels are fun and cute, (and they likely sell well considering ag keeps doing em), but i'd love a bit more variety. i'm hoping it's a "springtime release" thing, and we might get some more saturated/deeper/darker colors on a historical release this fall or winter. honestly, im also just hoping we get ANY historical release this fall or winter.

things had been pretty quiet with historicals for quite some time before this drop, and tariffs are going to start kicking in sometime soon, so i am going to continue to expect the worst while hoping for the best.

in the end, this release is pretty great!

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

I know that Malleus is a sensitive topic here. Even though, he has his weaknesses (which is made very apparent in the canon material); he also has his strengths. One of the things I could immediately think of revolves around his familial attitude towards his family (Lilia, Silver, Sebek). Malleus cherishes his family very much. After all, his fears of losing Lilia was so immense that it ultimately lead him to the overblot. At the core of his character, I see him as someone who is fundamentally familial at heart. Most of his actions in Book 7 are rooted in this aspect of his character. This contrasts his tendency towards self-isolation and enriches his story.

Hey, I want to clarify that Malleus is only a sensitive topic if an ask's tone is aggressive or pushy to begin with. For example, I've previously been spammed with demands to explain why I dislike him + reasons why I should change my mind, told I was "hate criming" him (gross misuse of the term, by the way) for expressing those opinions (I would link to the post, but I actually never publicly responded to this ask or really talked about this publicly), and accused of "[wanting and expecting]" the worst out of him". It's a loud minority that has made me wary when Malleus is brought up. I can't help it, it's sort of gut reflex at this point/j But I'm generally fine with people wanting to discuss him, gush about him, critique him, whatever, so long as things stay civil and open-minded.

I also want to make it clear that even if someone personally dislikes a character, that is not the same as them disregarding the character's positive traits or claiming that the character has no positive traits to begin with. Malleus is certainly no exception to this. (I have a post going over some of the things I enjoy about him, although please keep in mind that it's not meant to be an exhaustive list of his good points.) Personally disliking a character also doesn't mean that you're automatically flagging a character as flat or poorly written. A character could be the best written thing in the entire world or the most complex character ever and people could still dislike them for any reason. Design, vibes, whatever.

That being said, I don't think "familial" is an adjective I've ever personally associated with Malleus? I definitely get those vibes when I browse romantic Malleus fandom works (it's very common to see him being portrayed as a loving, protective father and husband), but not that much with canon content. That's not me claiming Malleus feels nothing toward his Diasomnia members (he definitely DOES care for them), but I don't get the sense that he views them as family or that he’s overtly warm towards them??? At best, I see him perhaps viewing Lilia as a guardian or father figure, especially since it was the fear of losing Lilia that kicked off the major conflict in book 7 + his grandmother seemed too busy with royal duties to raise him. Furthermore, we see that Malleus hatched because of Lilia's magic and how excited he is to see Lilia in multiple flashbacks to Malleus's childhood. He clearly respects Lilia a lot and associates him with the few genuinely happy parts of his childhood. However, I don't see him breaching professional boundaries with Sebek and Silver and skirting into familial territory. (I discuss this more in detail in an older post, so I'd suggest taking a look if you're interested!) Lilia does refer Diasomnia as “not related by blood [but] we are still family", and I believe even their VAs referred to Lilia as a father and Malleus and Silver as brothers. Problem is, I don’t see this reflected in Malleus himself and how he behaves.

It's obvious that Malleus seeks companionship, but that he doesn't realize this about himself without outside help (he couldn't even identify that he was lonely until Yuu pointed it out to him early in book 7). He's so enabled he has become used to the isolation that comes with being at the top and never really thought to question it. This comes through in many of his behaviors: he becomes upset at being left out or uninvited to ceremonies and meetings, when his grandmother (his only living relative) fails to spend time with him despite promising to, and constantly faces struggles connecting with his peers (he tries to, but usually fails in these attempts). And because he fears being left behind, he tries to stop everyone from leaving him. Malleus is also pretty emotionally stunted and awkward due to his growing up alone. This could be a matter of our individual POVs differing, but I think Malleus's loneliness and longing to be with others--despite being raised in relative isolation--is being conflated with being familial?? I genuinely do not recall any standout moments in which Malleus acts familial towards Silver or Sebek, or even towards other peers (though if you can think of any, please share). The only thing that comes to my mind is when Malleus helped Lilia with raising baby!Silver... but even then, I sort of wonder how much of that was intentionally arranged by Lilia to expose Malleus to humans + combat the bigoted worldview he might otherwise develop. Their current day relationship dynamics just don't read as familial to me.

But also 💦 “familial” is a pretty vague term and could mean different things to different people. I think it assumes that families have amicable dynamics within themselves, and I don’t think that’s always the case. Maybe our definitions are entirely different and that’s also contributing to our conclusions looking nothing alike.

[candlelightceremony]

I actually do agree with you and regret that I wrote this out in a very half-thought-out way. I emphasized the wrong part of my thought.

I think Darcy was certainly just being an asshole, but I think he would have said it about anyone. Elizabeth just ends up in the line of fire.

My beef with how people characterize the line, is how they use it to mischaracterize Elizabeth. I keep running across posts where people talk about Elizabeth as though this line is how /we the reader/ are supposed to see her. I essentially just don’t think the line is supposed to be about how we see her, but about how we see him. Which is someone who is so above his company that, basic manners failing, literally no woman on earth is attractive enough to get him to act decent and socially participate- which in his pride he happily admits.

I definitely phrased it more generously than he deserves lol but I really am just tired of “it’s unrealistic he would propose to someone average AND poor” takes when like…we know Elizabeth is objectively pretty from multiple sources in the novel. His line here, while memorable, is about showing off his dour behavior to the “thems” of Meryton.

I personally feel that Darcy’s “Not handsome enough to tempt me” line is grossly mischaracterized. People seem to read it as him calling Elizabeth too unattractive to be worthy of his interest, but I actually think the subtext was probably more like “no woman is hot enough to tempt me into dancing with a stranger - the thing I find the most awkward of all about meeting new people - nor is anyone hot enough to make me enjoy this party when I Do Not Want To Be Here”

Which, sure, definitely rude to say within earshot of the person you��re specifically talking about, but “she’s good looking but not hot enough to make me have fun at this party I hate” seems more like a kinda regrettable loser take within the moment and less like a personal attack against Lizzy

[ihaveforgortoomany]

Theorising 2.8: Paradise Regrained with new info from the PV and livestream

And the Wheel is the Key Theory

(CN spoilers for 2.6, 2.7 in bound! Not Global Friendly)

This part will focus on main story lore and implications - I will look at the playables later.

Ok: new Manus Apostle Im assuming speaking to Ms Grace, wonder who is the traitor she seems to be referring to. Right now, we know there is a Foundation spy in the Manus, and a Manus spy in the Foundation. And currently alot of speculation surrouding Ms Grace is that she is Moth working for the Foundation, so maybe the Apostle is referring to Ms Grace herself and asking why would you serve the Foundation still after everything, or making a grand statement about the Manus mole, or even referring to the Zeno traitors under Igor?

We know form 2.4 Ms Grace when she's in power carries a level of confidence and smirking, however I think this shot alone shows she is potentially below or serves under this lady .

It seems this is the "next time" Sophia refers to back in 1.9, the showdown between her and Sonetto. Her question about her "purpose" then: referring to how she blindly follows the Foundation or blindly follows Vertin without any second thought. My hope is that this patch will drive into Sonetto's unwavering loyalty and begin to completely break it down, either way I would love to see these two finally face off in a battle (maybe another Sophia boss battle?)

Alr briefly talking about the playables here. So it seems at some point the Zeno traitors managed to kidnapp Ulrich at some point, Im assuming the person holding Ulrich is Poltemy, note the brown coat and black gloves. In the next shot shes just holding his head, in the same helicopter and now accompanied by Buddy Fairchild whose not in frame for this screenshot - does this seem she bretrays Igor early on in the patch and teams up with Ulrich and Buddy? Im interested in what role both her and the Zeno soliders with Igor will play in the revival ritual.

Wondering why exactly Ulrich is the one being kidnapped? Is it related to his experiments and project he was doing in 2.4?

Next bit: Seems to be either a member of Naukita's team being taken by whatever Manus influence is present on the continent, or this is a Zeno member being taken. Why Zeno? Moldir's I2 reminds me of this outfit so I speculate this is a Zeno member - then again hard to say.

Ok onto the good shit.

This is definitely Vertin screaming, full on panic "shits gone down" screaming. Reminder that Vertin is the most expressive when someone she cares about is in real danger so I predict either one or multiple of these things:

Screaming because Arcana is getting revived and someone is being used as a sacrificed

Either this is Urd/ Dores or Sonetto in serious danger

Or a Third Thing I will theorise in a bit in this post.

This must be some serious shit for Vertin to be screaming, like there has not been an insistence prior to this has she ever screamed like this before.

Oh my god this animation was FIRE. The way the disciples are sacrificing themselves into this pit, the water, the rising and then this haunting shot DAMNNN.

This is way better than her intial introduction all the way back from the game teasers holy.

Back to Urd, first shot the hand shes holding is moving, I would like to think this is Vertin finally seeing Urd for the first time and maybe finally getting the chance to speak, and communicating through touch since Urd can't see. Alternatively this might be a flashblack since the clothes Urd is having is not the same from the trailer, overall hard to pinpoint where or when this is happening.

The last shot - theory time!

The Wheel is the Key

This final shot shows a giant hand (maybe this hand and the face behind the Apostle is the "Mother Spirit" Naukita refers to?) and in front is a woman next to a spinning wheel. What wheel you say?

OUR wheel. Yet in the shot and in the chapter poster the wheel is broken and the golden thread tied to it is broken and on the floor. Notably the woman next to it, I believe is Urd, not Ms Grace or Arcana. Not Ms Grace since she's not wearing the bonnet, not Arcana because as we saw she already was putting the head spike on, and if you look closely the woman has the two hair bangs in front and the colour tinge Vertin's hair has ; and that when the pv ends Vertin says "mum" (not "mother", but "mum": its also softer, maybe this is the moment they meet?).

Ok theory time - The wheel from our suitcase that enables us to summon characters through the lake is the wheel used for summoning Arcana potentially. This is likely separate from the final object the Manus need for the ritual so for now I will treat them separately.

Going back to Arcana's revival animation, note that she emerges from a lake first - all our playable characters emerge from the lake as well, if we remember how Sonetto was summoned by the wheel in the Prologue.

Alright onto the three thing I think Vertin is screaming about - the suitcase potentially being invaded and the wheel being forcibly removed from the suitcase - also wouldn't it be cool if after that scene, our ability to summon characters become blocked until we clear the next stage?

Maybe this is the aftermath of summoning Arcana, the wheel is broken and Urd stands alone at the sight of the wheel.

Theory summary: The wheel is a key component to summoning Arcana, our ability to summon characters regardless of era will enable the Manus to summon her into a much stronger form.

[sturnboos]

KIDNAPPED BY CHRIS PART FIVE

CURRENT WARNINGS: sadistic!triplets, blood, gun fight, injury, manipulation. delilah gets emotional. read at your OWN risk

STARING: Sturniolo triplets x Delilah

A/N: posting this early cause @chrisissos3xy begged😉 so everyone say “thankyou evelyn”

My eyes open to the day light shining in the windows. The house is quiet. I sit up slowly and looks around. I don't think anyone's home. Why would they do that? Leave someone that they kidnapped here? I stand up. They're probably in there rooms I quietly walk to the door. now is my chance. I open it and look out. I step out then quickly run into the woods.

"She's leaving" I hear nick shout and glance back seeing them in the 2nd story window… watching. "I know" Chris whispers. I run faster this time. then I hear gunshots ahead of me and gunshots coming from the house In retaliation. This scares me.

"Matt! They're shooting at her!!" Chris shouts, Matt pulls his gun out and starts to shoot at them, Nick does too shooting out of his bedroom window. "This will definitely scare her" Matt chuckled. (unknown to Delilah the men shooting at her were the triplets rivals) Chris ran out of the house. Matt does too as they shoot the men who were trying to kill me.

"Stay here, Matt back up" Chris yelled.

Chris ran as fast as he can. which is risking his own life for me. He felt a bullet hit his arm he winced but keep running. he heard someone behind him so he turned and hit them in the face with his gun then kick them in the stomach hard. and finally shot them. he shoot of few more of the rival men in the distance. Then runs to me.

Matt and Nick have got most of all the men trying to kill me and Chris. Chris grabs my arm. I scream, "Delilah, shhh" he whispered and pulled me into him. another gunshot causes me to flinch and grip onto Chris’s t shirt. the men seem to be gone now.

"I'm sorry" i cry and wrap my arms around his neck but he just pushed me off him, pulled his t shirt off and wrapped it around where he got shot.

"Can you tie this, tight" chris asked. I take his arm and make a knott with the shirt, then tighten it around his arm. Chris winced at the pain. I tighten it more, i finish the knott and looks up at him.

"Run" Chris states and start running towards the house dragging me along by the hand. a gun shot is heard again then the bullet hits me straight in arm. "Ahh owww!"

"Fuck" Chris says standing and shooting the person.

I looked down at my arm. Blood begins to pour out. I put my hand on it trying to stop it. Chris walks over and pulls my hoodie off quickly. He wraps it around my arm and picks me up onto my feet. "Run to Matt and Nick" he whispers.

Although I wanted to escape this was life or death right now so I obey and take off towards the house ignoring the sound of multiple gun shots. when i gets onto the porch Matt grabs the back of my shirt and pushed me inside. I sat on the couch.

It's been an hour, I haven't moved. Chris and the others are in there rooms. I hear footsteps. I look over at Nick and he's holding bandage. He walks into the kitchen and fills a bowl with water and grabs a cloth. He walks over and sits down next to me. He begins to remove my hoodie from my arm. He drops the blood stained hoodie to the floor and daps a wet cloth on my wound. I wince in pain and try to pull my arm away.

"You have to cooperate otherwise you'll loose a lot of fucking blood" Nick sighs. I let him clean the wound. Once he's finished he grabs the bandage and begins to wrap it around my arm.

then I hear more footsteps and chris emerged from the hallway as soon as he noticed me all bandaged no, nick beside me cleaning up his supplies, Chris storms over angrily and he punches my arm. I wince again and in retaliation I turn around and slap him in the face, he grabs my hand and shoved me off the couch and down to the floor. So he's hovering over me. "You have a lot of fucking gut" he says angrily.

"What are you gonna do, hit me?" I sass. He grabs my other arm and begins to slowly bend it back. I wince, I breath heavily as I try to show no emotion. He pushes it back once more, "ok stop! Stop!!" he let's go of me and sits down on the couch.

"Wheres the bathroom?" I ask.

"Second door to the right" Chris answers.

I stand and walk down the hallway.. I open the bathroom door and close it quickly just wanting to escape my current situation I needed a minute of peace. I lock the door and look at myself in the mirror. I look tired but I always look tired so it's fine. I sink down against the door till I'm sitting on the bathroom floor. I open Vanity draws and look through them, all they had was condoms and aftershave. "oh of course" I say to myself rolling my eyes.

then I hear a knock on the door. "It's been 15 minutes Delilah, what are you doing" Chris's  voice says.

"Nothing?" I say.

"If you're doing nothing then you can come out" Chris says.

I unlock the door and walk out.

TAGLIST: @mattsfavho @sturniolobananas1 @courta13 @the alexisa78 @chrisissos3xy @sturnobessed @mattschelseaa @sturniolos67 @norahsturns @blushsturns @blahbel668 @riasturns @iloveduckssm @cl1tlover3000 @emmaweasley @chrissbxby @sturnobessed @kayskreativeideas comment here to be added

[pink-apollo]

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZPR7kY5vU/

Image big bunny könig? Came we get hcs?

Ooooo this is interesting👀

I apologize for I missed the BIG part. I might do a part 2 but in general, bunny könig? PETTY LIL THING. I LOVE IT. Ugh omg. Will just turn around and ignore you until you get his favorite blankey out and snacks then he might, just MIGHT accept your apology. Such attitude for a little guy

Bunny!König

Definitely stomps his feet when he’s angry because you’re not paying attention to him or picking him up when you simply walk around the house🙄🙄 He likes to be with you at all times!!

König bunny who likes to snoop through your things and runs away when he’s caught, a sock or whatever garment he caught in his mouth with little nibble marks in it

You know that thing that thumper does? Yeah he does that with his foot every time you scratch behind his ears or just wants attention😅

This man thumps at everything though.More water? Thump. Not enough attention? Thump. No kisses? Thump. Major attitude so be forewarned.

But these aren’t just little thumps. Nae nae. These are loud and echoing thumps to get your attention and fix the matter immediately. You must pick him up and coddle him! Pet him, adore him, tell him he’s the most handsomest bunny ever

Follows you everywhere you go. He must always travel with you and at this point has a crate that’s just for him for road adventures or if your staying somewhere for a few days

If though you cannot take him with you, könig gets extremely upset and will ignore you for a few days. Very petty bunny.

Until….that is you offer snuggle time and lots of kisses. He tries to be petty but really can’t help but to succumb to you and forget that you left him. Nothing a few scritches and treats can’t fix

Don’t touch his tail….its very…sensitive.

Bed time is his favorite! Must lay on the pillow next to you with his bunny feet sticking out and nose pressed right up against yours. Which then leads him to snuggle right on top of you because being on the pillow NEXT to you simply isn’t enough

Tends to nibble on your hand or leg when he’s feeling content. A mischievous act if you will but an adoring one nonetheless, it’s his way of giving kisses

Has been caught multiple times taking an interest in your…clothes. You may decide what clothes….. Has hopped in your laundry basket before and threw a fit when you had to take him out.

Just loves your scent so much and that’s where he tends to go if you leave for a little bit

Loves when you massage his ears. Just does something to him that makes him just chill out and be still for as long as you do it

Did I mention he doesn’t like it if other people get near you? For the most part he’s neutral until the person gets too close, for that is when he attacks! Has chased quite a few people….he is not for the faint of heart or to be trifled with

His spot is in your lap. No other may be there but him for that is his throne

[alicelillianshaw]

What dress?

There was something so wildly charming about that— Jack blurting out the question, then immediately silencing himself after.

'Don’t answer that. I want it to be a surprise, actually.'

It let her know Jack was curious. It let her know that Jack was already fucking trying to envision the dress.

And as much as she wants to show Jack the dress— or maybe describe it, so he could attempt to picture it— she knows he's right.

It's better to let the unknown of it all grow.

Better to let Jack imagine until they were dancing together.

It would make it all the more sweet.

And besides.

There was the Yankees game as well— maybe Alice would require the hand-holding — and the two of them braving the apple muesum.

Holding hands, standing before those soft wizened dolls.

Maybe more would be required.

Yeah. Definitely more.

Alice could comfort Jack very thoroughly.

She almost explains as much, but, like all perfect things, they have an ending— Jack's mother was expecting a call.

Jack's mother threatened to appear if he didn't.

Jack had been ignoring her, and apparently most everyone else, ever since Alice had arrived. There's something swooping in her chest; the sensation of falling from a great height and not being able to catch yourself.

Never catching yourself.

Never recovering.

She absorbs Jack's apologetic smile, watches as he rises from the pool, water dripping onto warm concrete.

The best day he'd had in a very long time. Jack, who could experience so much, who had access to everything— Alice, holding his hand at the waterfall, singing to him, clasping his hand while they danced— she'd helped make it that way.

"It was a perfect day," she murmurs, watching him with a tight chest and itching, needy hands. Hands that she wanted to sink into his hair and pull his head to her chest so he could hear how loudly her heart beat. "And I hope I'll be able to pay you back in New York for it."

She hopes she's able to pay it back multiple times— in multiple locations, in a myriad of ways.

Her lip twitches.

"Go call your mother."

Go call your mother before I do something drastic and crazy. Before I slip into the pool and shorten the distance between us and this dress is clinging to my body and I'm staring at you in a way I can't control.

Alice watches Jack's form retreat towards the house, illuminated by warm light, but just as she resigns herself to watching him grow smaller and smaller, Jack turns.

Jack turns and looks at her and she feels like a chill has just passed over her body. He looks like he belongs in a painting. Captured in some modern impressionist piece, smears of light and shadow blurring together to make something perfect.

'Sweet dreams, Alice."

The parting gift he left her with.

Alice smiles at him from the glow of the pool, chest hollowed out and so very full all at once. "Sweet dreams, Jack."

"You don't have to hold me to anything. I already know what dress I'm gonna wear for dancing."

Oh. She knew what dress she’d be wearing. Jack tried imagining it, but before he could get too far, his mouth blurted out:

“What dress?”

He’d asked the question before the words had even formed in his brain. It had been a selfish, impulsive thing, and he regretted it as soon as he’d asked.

Jack snapped his mouth shut, as if to make a point that he’d spoken before thinking. He offered a sheepish smile, before thinking about his words a little more cautiously.

“Don’t answer that. I want it to be a surprise, actually.”

It would be torture. Who knows when they’d go dancing? With Alice’s schedule, and Jack set to return to D.C. in the next few weeks for a (likely) disciplinary or investigative hearing. He’d do whatever it took, though. Spend the thousands of dollars just to fly to New York. Just to dance for one night.

Just to see her in that dress, whatever it looked like.

It would definitely be a date, Jack thought. He would make sure to clarify as well, the closer the time came. Or, well, he’d ask. Surely he wasn’t reading this whole thing wrong.

For some reason, the realization that Jack and Alice were both aware of where this was heading was … exciting. A little embarrassing, but in a sweet way? Maybe embarrassing wasn’t the right word for it though. It felt very … innocent at times. The exciting part of meeting someone new and realizing that the feelings go both ways.

If Jack had any doubt, well, Alice had put those fears to rest by suggesting that maybe they hold hands.

“Oh, one hundred percent. It’s probably worse than plastic surgery and the dentist. I really don’t know if hand holding will be enough, but we can give it a try.”

What else could there be?

The promise of a kiss, maybe?

Jack didn’t want to push it though. It was late, and talking about kissing Alice would only make him wade through the water until he was staring up at her, silently pleading for her mouth.

His phone buzzed again. Jack sighed. It was his mother. Was that the third or fourth text of the day?

“You have no idea how badly I want to stay out here and keep spending time with you, but I promised my mom that I’d call her tonight.”

Jack realized how … stupid that sounded. And childish. He felt the need to offer up an explanation.

“I’ve kind of been ghosting her. Everyone, really, since you’ve been here, but before that, too.”

Jack was sure that she could guess why. Things hadn’t been good, but they felt so much better now. At least, in that moment they did. Jack was on a high that no one could bring down. Maybe he’d even make plans to see his mother the weekend after Alice left. That would make her happy.

“She threatened to drive up tomorrow if I didn’t. So.”

Jack offered an apologetic smile. He felt like it was a good place to end the night, though. The promise of seeing each other after the week was over. Already, Jack felt a bit of relief that he’d see her again. He’d see her in that dress, in that Yankees hat — or even a Yankees t-shirt… but maybe that was pushing it.

“I had a really nice day with you though.”

Jack smiled. He really meant it. Enjoying coffee together, swimming, the trip to the falls, dinner. Getting to learn about Alice’s family and their little traditions. Her parents dancing in the living room. And Alice’s voice. Her beautiful, perfect voice that he was certain he’d dream about.

“One of the best I’ve had in … a really long time.”

God. It was really good that there was a body of water between them. Jack wanted to kiss her goodnight.

“It was really perfect, actually.”

Okay. Okay, he could stop talking now. The more that he hung around, the more difficult it would be to leave. The more he talked, the more he'd be tempted to ask about the dress again. Jack didn't want to spoil anything.

“Alright. If I don’t leave now … anyway.”

Jack stood, legs dripping from the water. He scooped up his shoes with one hand. He paused for a second, and his mouth almost did that thing again. There was almost an offer to walk her up to her bedroom, but ... that wouldn't have lead anywhere good. Jack was glad he managed to regain some self control (but not really, because he still turned around).

One last look. He smiled at Alice, very softly.

Isn't this what had turned Lot's wife into a pillar of salt? Or what had condemned Eurydice back to the underworld?

Jack was glad that there was no biblical punishment for this. And, even if there was ... fuck it.

"Sweet dreams, Alice."

[l3ominor]

Shot in the Dark

AO3

Word Count: 4279

An exploration into the depths goes horribly wrong, and everyone decides that the buddy system might actually be helpful.

tags: Captain having a hard time, Captain hates arrows, Whump, Angst, anxiety attack, Near Death Experience, Gloom Poisoning, fluff/comfort(at the end), Multiple POV's

Link walked quietly behind the others, the thick darkness seeming to press down on the gentle glow surrounding their group. Wild and Twilight moved quietly up ahead, occasionally tossing a brightbloom seed ahead to light their path. Time stayed close to Link, his head swiveling back and forth, long ears flicking every time a boot scuffed against the ashy ground. Link smiled faintly, nodding in approval. Good to see Sprite’s senses were still sharp.

He sighed, straightening his shoulders slightly in an attempt to ease the tension across his back. He couldn’t wait to get back to the surface… where the darkness didn’t weigh anything and the back of his neck didn’t prickle constantly with the feeling of being watched. 

They continued through the dark, until tall ruins rose out of the dark in front of them. A mine. Wild quickly skittered away, making happy humming noises as he dropped down a large hole, probably looking for some materials to mine. Twilight stopped near the edge of the mine, his mismatched eyes narrowed as he scanned the darkness. Time trotted off, pulling out several brightblooms to light up the area. 

“Try not to wander off too far,” Link cautioned.

“Yes, Captain,” Time called over his shoulder, disappearing behind a large, aged stone pillar. 

Link pulled a few of the glowing seeds out of his pouch as well, making his way around the opposite side of the mine. He continued with his routine, taking several steps between each tossed seed as he followed some massive, petrified ruin. Chief had called them conveyor belts, and said they could be used to transport large amounts of materials quickly between places. Sky had also confirmed this.

I should have Legend do a sketch of these, he thought idly, tossing another seed ahead of him. So I can take it to Zelda when we find a way home. These would be useful for trade… he reached for another seed, only to find there were none left in his pouch. He’d thought he’d had more… apparently not. He turned and began making his way back to the others. He could get more from Wild, though after this excursion, they’d have to spend some time in the surface caves, getting more of the seeds.

He carefully stepped down a series of small ledges, following the trail of lights he’d made back towards the mine. Though… It was taking him a while to get back. Surely he hadn’t wandered this far away from the others. His brow furrowed slightly, and he paused, glancing around. He didn’t remember climbing up any ledges… but he must have, because the brightblooms had gone up there. He looked ahead again. Yes… There was the trail of lights. He must have been really distracted while he was walking.

Forging ahead, he started paying more attention. With each small hill he reached the top of, he was sure he’d see the mine on the other side, only he didn’t. Just more darkness, and a trail of lights vanishing into it. He looked over his shoulder, a slight shiver running through him. He must have passed the mine… gone too far back. He wasn’t lost… he couldn’t be, they hadn’t explored this part of the depths before. He glanced down the trail again, then turned and began walking back the way he’d come. 

The darkness seemed to press down harder on the small patches of light, and he quickened his pace, battling the shivers of anxiety that were starting to creep into him.

He was alone… alone in the dark… and lost.

At that thought, he started jogging, leaping over pits in the ground as he looked around frantically. On the trail went, until he skidded to a stop. Patches of gloom were starting to appear. They’d definitely not passed any gloom on their way to the mine. This was wrong.

Had he somehow stumbled across someone else’s path? He knew they weren’t the only ones exploring the depths, but surely they would have seen this earlier… unless…

His sense of anxiety doubled, as well as the prickling at the back of his neck. Alarm bells chimed in the back of his mind, each one ringing out danger. His fingers gripped the hilt of his sword, and he subtly shifted into a defensive stance. The darkness overhead was definitely thicker, almost smothering. Too close. 

He had to fight to keep his breath steady as he edged backwards, his free hand reaching back to his pouch for his warp ring. It wasn’t there. Stolen. And this path of seeds… that had been stolen as well. He’d been led away from the others on purpose. He was alone, in the dark, in the silence- to be alone was death. 

Surely the others would be looking for him at this point. He’d been gone from them for too long. He didn’t know how long, just that it was too long. They’d be looking for him… Twilight could track him- or they’d find the false trail of lights- then they’d find him. They’d find him. He just had to stay put. Stay on alert, ready for anything. He wouldn’t be safe until he was reunited with the others, and back up on the surface. 

Unless… the others had been led away and lost too… they’d split up at the mine… Sprite-

He slowly drew his sword, glancing around as a fragmented prayer floated through his mind. Goddesses Farore, Nayru, Din… keep my brothers safe- let them find each other and me- please- he let out a shuddering breath, trying to force himself to stay steady. They… would be fine. He had to believe that… he would believe that until he saw otherwise. They’d be fine.

He glanced around again, trying to find a wall he could put his back to. That would at least slim the chances of him being snuck up on. There was nothing. Just a plain of darkness that seemed to flicker and swim with distant patches of gloom, and the trail of brightblooms behind him.

He turned in a slow circle, looking for any hints of yellow or white, any sign of movement. The patches of gloom seemed to jump at him in the corners of his vision, ripples of faint red appearing to creep across the ground at him, then retreat as soon as he saw them clearly. Each time it happened, his heart almost stuttered, and he’d hold his breath, staring wide-eyed until he was sure nothing was there. His hands were shaking uncontrollably, and he could feel the darkness, prickling on his skin, tugging at strands of his hair, breathing down his neck- he whirled around, coming face to face with nothing.

He let out a short breath, almost a panicked laugh. There was nothing. Nothing. He stepped back slightly, almost crushing his brightbloom. He was fine, there was nothing there. Light of the Triforce, the fact that there was nothing was almost worse than if there was something. He could fight something. He couldn’t do anything against nothing.

He started slowly turning again, eyes flitting across the darkness, his heart thundering in his chest.

Wait- he froze again, staring into the wall of black with wide eyes. The silence was broken by a faint scuffing, something walking through the darkness. Multiple somethings. He shifted his grip on his sword, wishing desperately that he had a shield. He stared hard into the darkness, until he saw something distant and pale. The distant scuffing halted, and the pale thing stopped moving.

Then the thing started racing towards him, the scuffing turned to the thundering of hooves. Monsters. 

He dove out of the way just as the first stalhorse shot past, brittle hooves trampling his brightbloom into the stone ground. A second nearly crashed into him, and he was sent reeling. He stumbled, tripping slightly before he regained his footing, and sprinted blindly into the darkness. His thoughts were reduced to a single, screeching note of panic, and he’d lost his sword somewhere- he crashed into something- it felt like a tree, and he was sent stumbling again. He could vaguely see pale shapes darting around him, the sharp crack of their hooves on the stone muffled by the rushing in his ears. He spun, darting off in another direction, away from them- a sharp hissing was the only indication that arrows were being fired. It narrowly missed his ear. They can see in the dark- he was blind and his enemy wasn’t- he was on foot and they were on horses- they were armed, he only had armor- he was alone- outnumbered- 

I’m going to die- it was pounding in his head, just as loudly as the screeching was. Veins of fire shot up his leg as an arrow punched through his boot and into his calf. He cried out, stumbling before crashing to the ground hard. His vision flashed white, then sensation began slowly fading back into him. Throbbing agony pulsing through his leg, and a dull ache in the side of his head and behind his eyes. Chittering noises filtered in overhead, as well as the whispery snorting of the skeletal horses.

Don’t move. Don’t do anything. Play dead. The thought drifted through his foggy mind. That… he could do that. Safest option. He couldn’t run, his enemy was right on top of him- he just had to hope that they thought he was dead and left him.

Trying not to move was hard. The ground under his cheek felt hot and sticky, and his face was starting to burn, tingles racing through him. He’d fallen on gloom. A sick feeling began to settle in his gut, and he had to fight the urge to shift. He could feel the gloom sticking to him, all over. Had he run onto a patch without noticing?

The creek of a bow snapped him out of his thoughts, and before he could react, something slammed down through his hand, pinning it to the ground. He jerked, biting back a scream. Play dead- play dead- Goddesses help me- he could feel the gloom creeping into him, invading the area the arrow had pierced through. 

The chittering above him sounded almost like laughter, then, mercifully, the creatures turned and began riding away. He forced himself to wait until the clattering of hooves faded to nothing, his face scrunched as tears began to slide down his cheeks. The sickness was feeling worse, as was the burning, all pulsing in time with the arrows in his hand and leg. 

Even after silence fell, he lay there for several long seconds, waiting to see if the monsters would return. There was nothing. Time to move. He shoved himself up, wincing and shaking, then snapped off the shaft of the arrow pinning his hand. Without giving himself time to think, he pulled his hand off the broken shaft. Despite his best efforts, he couldn’t hold back the thin whine as he held his hand close. He had to… had to stop the bleeding. He could feel it, soaking through his glove and down under his armguard. Bandages… he didn’t have any. He blinked hard, shaking his head to try and get rid of the dizziness. He… had to get off the gloom. The sickness had turned to pain, a deep, wrenching, twisting sensation in his gut.

He quickly wrapped his injured hand in his cloak, then looked around, trying to find the lights. It seemed the stalhorses had trampled more of the blooms, and the only sign of them was a faint glow behind a small slope. He took a deep breath, then struggled to get to his feet. After two tries, he gave up, resorting to crawling. His bad leg dragged behind him, and he held his injured hand close to his chest as he slowly dragged himself across the sticky, gloomy ground. 

Sharp pain jolted through his body, and he paused, wheezing and panting before continuing to struggle forwards, looking only at that faint light beyond the hill. Keep going. Just keep going. Get off the gloom. Get away from here. His thoughts were coming more slowly. He was shaking, breathing hard. Another flash of agony burst through him, and he lurched forwards, retching. 

Just breathe- keep breathing- keep going- he was shaking so badly, and he could see the gloom clinging to him, tendrils of it snaking up his arm and across his shoulder. His wounded hand was practically glowing a bloody red. He dragged in another gasp of air, then pulled himself forwards along the ground. Streams of hot tears ran down his face, hissing as they fell onto the gloom. 

A third wave of pain surged through him, nauseating and more intense than before. He collapsed onto his side, dry heaving and shivering uncontrollably. The red light under him swam across his vision, gloom reaching up to take him. But he couldn't bring himself to move anymore. It hurt too much… he could feel his life being sapped away. Physically feel it being ripped from him, consumed by the bloody mass he couldn't escape. 

Another wave of agony washed over him, and everything faded to white briefly. When he returned to himself, he was curled up in a ball, sobbing. This is it.

“Goddesses above…” he whispered. It wasn't a proper prayer. There wasn't time for a proper prayer. “Goddesses please-” he cut off, twisting fire coursing through him and sending him flailing. 

“I don't want to die-” it came out a strangled yell. He didn't want to die- he was scared- he was alone- helpless- 

A flicker of light faded into his vision, gentle blue. He heard a voice, but it was distant. 

“Shifting sands- Link, get over here!” A woman's voice? Calling him? More light poured into his eyes, there was… someone leaning over him. Pale skin and hair, a deep red cloak…

“H-Hero?” He managed, straining to focus. The person leaning over him froze, then vanished out of his line of sight.

“Stay with him. I'll bring the others here. Try and preserve him as best as you can.” A voice said.

“Okay- go hurry! He's not going to last much longer-” there was the woman's voice again. She sounded like…

“Zelda?” He whispered, then hot agony crashed through him again and everything faded.

******************************************************

Link shot through the darkness, a trail of pale flame flickering in his wake. He paused at the top of a ledge, where he and Almajara had last seen the group. They were still down there, slowly making their way through the darkness, tossing lights ahead of them. His eyes narrowed slightly, and his sword and shield appeared in hand, then he darted down the cliff, blazing across the ground before crashing into the dark shadow that had replaced Captain. The illusion around it shattered, and it screeched, vanishing like smoke. The other three whirled, eyes widening.

“Hero- what-” Twilight stuttered. Link held up a hand to stop him.

“No time, Captain is in trouble. Follow me,” he said, then he darted off again, leaving behind a trail of spirit fire for them to follow. Within minutes, he was back with Almajara and Captain. She was attempting to pull him out of the gloom, somehow managing to drag him a few inches before slipping through him. Not good.

“Hey- help me out-” she said, waving him over. He knelt down next to them, watching the gloom retreat from his light. He slid his arms under Captain, trying to ignore the fact that he could touch the younger man. He wasn’t dead yet. He managed to drag him closer to the edge of the gloom before the others arrived. They skidded to a halt at the edge of the lake of gloom, each one looking different shades of horrified. They talked amongst each other for a moment, before Wild sprinted out onto the gloom, skidding to a stop next to Captain. Link and Almajara scooted back as Wild pulled Captain up over his shoulders. Then the pair vanished into long strands of blue light.

A glance over his shoulder confirmed that the other two had vanished as well, all of them headed up to the surface. Thank the Goddess…

“Are they… going to be okay?” Almajara asked softly, stepping up behind him. Link was quiet for a long moment.

“I hope so…”

*********************************************************

Link blinked at the sudden evening light hitting his eyes. He stumbled away from the shrine, carrying Captain with him. They made it to a small patch of trees, and Wild carefully laid Captain down at the base of the closest one. Dear Hylia… he looked awful…

His skin was ashy and gray, and deep black veins spread across the skin of his face and hands. The hand he’d had wrapped in his cloak was caked with blackened blood, still shimmering faintly with gloom. The arrow in his leg was in a similar state, though the gloom was worse there, faint tendrils of it melting away under the sunlight.

He quickly checked Captains pulse, breathing a quiet sigh of relief when he found it. It was faint, but still there. He could still be saved. If Hero hadn’t shown up when he did… Captain would have been dead, and they wouldn’t have known the Dark had infiltrated their group. It might have managed to kill one of them…

He began quickly pulling off Captains scarf and armor, trying to expose him to the sun more. That would help deal with the gloom while he cleaned up the wounds. He had to keep Captain stable until Twilight and Time arrived with the rest of the group. 

Since he’d traded his slate for Twilight's ring, he didn’t have access to any of his inventory. He should have grabbed some things before running off, but then again… he hadn’t known if Captain was even alive. He pulled off Captains gloves, wincing at the hole through the center of his left palm. Probably caused by an arrow… he didn’t have any water. 

He straightened, looking around, his ears pricked. If he recalled correctly… There was a clean pond nearby, up on the hill. He glanced at Captain one more time before hopping to his feet and racing away through the tall grass. 

It took him a few minutes to reach the pond, then a few more to find a round stone the right shape to carry water. He scooped the water up, then started making his way back down the hill towards where he’d left Captain. He only spilled a few drops, but that was fine. He carefully set the stone bowl down in the grass, then used his sword to cut a strip out of the bottom of his shirt. Zelda was going to have a fit about repairing that… oh well.

He soaked the cloth, then began carefully washing away the cursed blood from the wound in Captain’s hand. It looked like most of the gloom in the wound had burned away from the sunlight, but once he’d gotten his slate back, he’d definitely be making some sundelion food. He’d also make sure both Zelda and Sun worked some healing on him. Goddess only knew how much he’d need it.

He worked carefully until he was sure the hole was clean, then he cut another strip from his shirt, wrapping it tightly around Captain's hand. Now for the arrow wound in his leg. He’d need more water…

After another few minutes, he was kneeling next to Captain again, with clean water. The arrow had gone through Captains boot and into his calf which… from the shape of the hole in the leather, the arrow was barbed. It would have to be cut out, which Link would prefer one of the more experienced medics take care of. 

He looked at the mess for a long moment before taking his sword, stepping several feet away, and shattering the blade on a stone. He took a medium sized shard, then used it as a small knife to carefully slice away Captains boot and pant leg. Then he ripped a third strip of cloth from the bottom of his shirt and began to gently wash around the arrow, trying to clean it up as best as he could. There was less blood, as the arrow was still in his leg, but it was still messy.

Just as he was finishing, Captain stirred slightly, his face scrunching as he made a faint whimpering sound. Link hummed worriedly, scooting up and gently resting his hand on the other man’s shoulder. He’d fallen still again, and when Link checked his pulse, it had grown stronger and steadier. He was looking healthier as well, the grayness fading and the black veins retreating.

He heard a sudden burst of sound at that moment, and he glanced up to see the rest of the group appearing in front of the shrine. Several of them caught sight of him and Captain, and sprinted over, Time arriving first.

“How is he? Is he okay? How-” Time paused, glancing down at Captain for a moment. “How bad is it?”

Link scooted back, allowing Sky to take his place, then started signing for Time.

He’s recovering. I cleaned his wounds as best as I could, and the sunlight is helping clear the gloom. Sun and Flower should heal him though. I don’t know how long he was in the gloom, but it almost killed him. The others winced.

“You did a good job taking care of him… I’ll handle the rest,” Sky said, patting Link’s shoulder before moving to work on the arrow. Link nodded, hopping to his feet and trotting off to find Flower. 

*********************************************************

Link quietly made his way through the camp, the last light of the sunset fading behind the mountains to the west. He carried two bowls of dinner, one for himself, and one for Captain. 

Captain had woken up a little while ago, and had been able to take a potion. He was healed, but still weak from the gloom poisoning. Guilt twinged through Link’s gut, and he fought to stop a wince from crossing his face. 

He sat down next to his and Captain’s bedroll, setting his bowl down on his knee and offering the other to Captain.

“Oh… thank you, Twilight,” Captain said, his voice hoarse. He sat up slowly, taking the bowl and scouring the sundelion porridge.

Link picked up his own bowl, staring at the contents. He… wasn’t hungry. Everything inside felt so awful and twisted up… he wouldn’t be surprised if Captain could smell the guilt on him. He should have known… should have seen that something was off… 

“Twilight? Are you… alright?” Captain asked after a moment, and Twilight glanced up, briefly making eye contact before looking away again.

“I’m… fine,” he said, picking at the grass.

“No you’re not. You have the look of someone who’s guilty for something that’s not their fault,” Captain said softly. Link winced. 

“Grabbing the goat by the horns tonight, I see,” he sighed, slumping a little.

“You do know that it wasn’t your fault… right?” Captain said, brushing his hand against Link’s arm. His hand felt cold.

“I… know it wasn’t… my fault,” Link managed, “but still. I should have… noticed something was wrong. I’m usually more perspective than that…”

“The shadow took my place?” Captain asked. Link grimaced, nodding slowly.

“I see… I had suspected as much. I believe it was the shadow that led me away as well. It stole my bightblooms and warp ring. When I realized, I tried to find my way back, but I’d already strayed too far away.” Captain explained. 

Link rubbed his temples, frustration battling with the guilt in his chest. He should have known… 

“We won’t be able to have anyone alone in the depths… not until the shadow is dealt with. It’s gotten too good at mimicking us. I couldn’t even smell a difference,” he grumbled.

“Yes… groups of three or more is safest… Wild and Legend won’t be too happy about that…” Captain muttered, his tone exhausted. Link glanced up at him, concerned. He was looking… worn. He needed rest.

“Yes, well, we can worry about that all tomorrow. You should rest now,” Link said, scooting closer and taking Captain’s mostly empty bowl. He set the bowl aside, then started fluffing up their shared pillows, ignoring the amused glance Captain shot at him.

“I doubt the pillows are going to fight back tonight, not after the beating you’re giving them,” Captain said after a moment, his tone teasing. Link flushed slightly, setting down the last pillow and ‘glaring’ back at Captain.

“Don’t poke fun, I’m just trying to help you sleep comfortably tonight,” he retorted. Captain raised an eyebrow at him.

“You know what would help me sleep the best?” he asked. Link blinked at him, frowning slightly. Captain scooted closer, gently pushing Link onto the pile of pillows he’d just made, then laying down next to him, his head on Link’s shoulder.

“I would sleep best if you stayed here with me,” he said softly, wrapping an arm around Link’s torso.

Link hesitated, then smiled softly, nodding. Some warmth filled his chest, pushing back the guilt somewhat.

“I can do that,” he said, putting his arm around Captain’s shoulders, and relaxing a bit. Captain smiled, his eyes fluttering closed, and he sighed.

“One last thing,” he muttered, “Do try to actually sleep. Don’t stay up worrying or beating yourself up.”

“Alright, I’ll try,” Link replied. He couldn’t truly promise that he’d sleep tonight… sleep never came easily to him. But… he’d do his best.

[i-suc-at-art]

Im fucking out of money

Putting Jazz and Danny into my life because I can and I need some sort of therapy

Danny decided he was going to go to college, a university in fact. He’d managed to scrape by with a 3.2 gpa, and was accepted into the university one town over, a 30 minute drive at most to get back home, the prefect distance that his parents wouldn’t just show up, but close enough that he could go home whenever he needed to.

Vlad had been giving him and Jazz both about $1000 for Christmas and birthdays for pretty much his whole life. He had enough saved up for the first year of college, and part of him knew that. Then the other part didn’t want to think about it, neither did his parents. However he didn’t know that when going to school. Now it’s two weeks before the end of the semester and he’s looking at his bank account. $2000. two thousand. Now that was still a lot of money, but it was a far cry from the $19,000 that he had in high school. And it definitely wasn’t enough to pay for college tuition and housing for the next year.

So now he’s hear on the verge of tears talking to his parents who were distracted by their ghosts hunting equipment.

Danny sniffled “I’m actually pretty annoyed that you’re helping Jazz with college. And i’m out of fucking money.” He said anger boiling in his chest

“Well honey we didn’t realize your tuition isn’t covered. We thought your grant covered more..” His mother started

Danny sees red at this point “I told you multiple times that my grant only covers $2000 a semester for two years.” He said almost laughing as they both look at him glancing at each other with worried frowns. “How much are you guys giving Jazz for school?”

His father hesitated “We were helping her with $1000 dollars a month.” he said his usual boisterous voice now quiet and sheepish. “Listen Danno we didn’t realize you needed help. You should have reached out.”

Danny blinks at his father “That’s not my job!” He wants to shout but all he can do is cry

“I guess I just buried my head in the sand and hoped it would figure itself out” His mother said with a sigh

Danny nodded, grabbing his phone to scroll through jobs for the summer.. $14000 in 3 months.. How the hell was he going to do that?

[splorfstuffss]

as a huge meowrails lover this is like one of my favourite reads of their dynamic

coz like they aren’t successful moirails, if they were then they would still be alive. but they’re still probably the most compatible moirails in the comic because they are both so willing to stand by each other even if their views don’t align or it gets frustrating sometimes

i do think that though that they still kept that compatibility during murderstuck and perhaps they even developed a closer relationship by that point. they became less critical of each other and equius, as a result of him growing and becoming less hateful, even indulges in her interests with her, seemingly just for the sake of making her happy. i don’t think i’d even say he got over his anger issues by that point because there’s still destroyed robot parts littered about the place, kind of insinuating that he’s been beating the crap out of them still. he just couldn’t direct that anger towards gamzee coz he’s a little freak /pos

they’re absolutely a flawed couple tho. like nepeta never opened up to equius about her feelings. she only ever spoke to jaspers/jasprose about her insecurities and love life and i’m gonna guess the meowrails feelings jams were mostly for equius since she’s the only one of the two asking the other if they need it. i don’t think that is because equius doesn’t care about nepeta’s feelings, i think if he didn’t then he wouldn’t go out of his way to try connecting to her through roleplay. equius does appear to be very repressed emotionally with how it takes him spending time in sburb to get him to start indulging in his interests fully, him not understanding that trying to control aradia was a bad thing, arquius repressing his guilt and how he tells nepeta that “there’s only so long a man can talk about his feelings”. so low-key i don’t even think it would cross his mind to check if she needs a feelings jam. maybe murderstuck equius might but we don’t see him offering one

so yeah they’re not perfect and not exactly even able to properly communicate their feelings to each other but i think had they been given more time they could have worked on this. but their failings didn’t allow for that. equius couldn’t ignore his fetish tendencies and so failed to stop gamzee while nepeta didn’t listen to equius and left her hiding spot. i don’t think that makes them any less of moirails though. they’re kids and they make mistakes in relationships like all their other friends do

though weirdly i think i would still say the “soulmates” part of moirelagence still kind of applies to them. not in the being perfect for each other sense but by the fact they always seem to find each other. obvs there’s nepeta and equius but then darkleer and the disciple were thought to have pale feelings too. horuss and meulin are definitely the meowrail’s toxic counterpart but they are still a pair because of nep and equius’ good compatibility. we don’t know if the dead versions of them from [s] roxy: sleepwalk ever spoke but yet again they’re in proximity of each other despite possibly being from two entirely separate timelines. they find each other again as fefeta and arquius where we get possibly the first real showing of pure stressful emotion from equius when he realises he’s going to have to grapple with how he failed nepeta. multiple other ghost versions of them are seen together over the course of different pages (fr besties in every universe like damn). and then there’s davepeta and arquius. one of the first things nepetasprite asks is how equius and karkat are doing and then once she becomes davesprite they almost immediately decide to go find arquius after figuring out their new identity. the two have such a sweet conversation when they meet, it’s genuinely so precious how both they have both come by that point that they are able to actually open up to each other in a way where equius/arquius can admit the faults in his views and nepeta/davepeta can loudly be the silliest they’ve ever been around him. it’s tragic that they don’t really get to hang out after their brohug but i would argue that if we go by the epilogue’s idea of davepeta dragging lord english into the black hole then they ended up together once again by the end. i hope the lil sliver of equius in lord english was happy to get to see his moirail again one last time

anyway lol i love a good critical look at the meowrails. they’re so precious and good for each other but also the thing that gets each other killed and it’s so tragic but perfect for their story

(also if we’re throwing in alternate ships for them, then i offer u equius x roxy or nepeta x rose)

Would love to hear your thought on meowrails break up and who they end up with?! Especially interested in Hal <> Nepeta!

Ok! Just a disclaimer before anything: this is not at all saying you shouldnt ship the meowrails, this is just a canon discussion blog and I have noticed... some stuff... but ship whatever you want, I literally don't care, all HCs are valid, etc. etc.

"Everyone has an important job to do." This is a phrase that gets repeated in Hivebent a few times, which makes it important, as Homestuck often uses repetition to build up an "internal lexicon" and deliberately highlight when situations have similar connotations (Hussie discusses this on their Formspring). So what's the context for this specific phrase? Well, it shows up three times, and for at least two of those times, it's associated with failed moirallegiances.

GA: But It Just Means Theres Got To Be Someone Around To Keep An Eye On Them GA: And If Not Me Then Who GA: Everyone Has An Important Job To Do AG: Ok, so you're spying on me. Kind of creepy! Man, m8y8e you should get a l8fe.

And

CC: I will need to connect after my goofball moirail does so I can keep my goggles on )(is nefarious escapades. CC: Its a toug)( job but its important! Everyone )(as an important job to do.

So, okay, apparently the context of this phrase is "this person is in a moirallegiance that will NOT work out"... well, here's the third time it pops up (though it's the first time chronologically):

Your best pal of all is A LITTLE BOSSY, and people wonder why you even bother with him. But someone has to keep him pacified. If not you, then who? Everyone has an important job to do.

So... hm. This isn't the only thing I have to say about meowrails breakup, but it is the most prominent one, and maybe the most damning, depending on how much weight you put into Homestuck's oft-deliberate use of parallels.

Maybe something a bit more damning is the way Hussie speaks about them in the book commentary? Pretty much every time they turn up, he has some comment to make about how Equius doesn't really "need" Nepeta, and about how he tends to talk over her and usurp her agency, like so many shitty boyfriends IRL.

We don't know much about Equius yet, but we get an awful lot of info about him with this excerpt. He's racist, a huge snob, doesn't like swearing, is stern and controlling, has a patronizing fondness for Nepeta, and thinks archery is cool because of its association with nobility. Combine this with the snapshot of his room we'll see soon, and suddenly we have an extensive character portrait. This was all important to establish quickly, because it helps us understand in record time that Equius is in fact one of the greatest characters ever created.

Equius says he appreciates that Nepeta's angry. I guess meaning that he respects an angry disposition, like his own. Especially early on in his characterization, it's suggested he has anger issues (like him taking his rage out on robot dummy combatants). But I'm not sure this trait holds up. Over time, he seems to show a lot more passion about his weird stuff, his passion for archery and muscular horse men, his submissive obsessions, his deference toward those higher on the hemospectrum and fetish-like indulgence in depraved attraction toward those lower. Ultimately he comes off more as a ridiculous nerd, with a soft spot for a lot of silly and creepy shit. My view on this is, it's not that the text lost track of the fact that he was supposed to be angry. It's more that this was his initial state of mind early on, and the more he started blowing off steam with his various indulgences (Aradiabot, etc.) the less he had to be mad about. We just meet him at a really high-strung point in his life. I think it's more accurate to say his "anger" is a form of hyperintense focus on being stern, aloof, proper, and averse to nonsense, which is a facade serving to cover up his inner personality, which is barely in control at all. Like Nepeta suggests, deep down he wants to play the kinds of silly games she plays. He wants to let go completely, and indulge every ludicrous and depraved whim he has. His arc tends to be more about caving to these indulgences, and all the mixed consequences that follow, than resisting them.

Here's [S] Equius: Seek the highbl00d, another playable RPG game. [...] But Christ, why am I talking about that garbage when we are about to review some truly choice material focusing exclusively on your favorite meowrails. It is a great illustration of their tragic dynamic; deeply committed and caring partners in the diamonds quadrant, and yet compromised by Equius and his stubborn class-driven faults, his pathological reverence for his superiors, his forced and probably not genuinely felt sense of disdain for lower bloods like Nepeta, and ultimately his failure to rise above these flaws when presented with a real test of character and friendship. A test imposed, of course, by a boorish murderclown, who from this point onward just ruins fucking everything, constantly.

Hussie is an unreliable narrator (of the "he's deliberately playing a character who's biased, opinionated, and sometimes wrong, because a major theme of Homestuck is that you have to question who's telling the story and if they can be trusted" variety), so it's difficult to parse exactly what he's saying is salient, especially since he talks so damn much. But even so, he constantly goes out of his way to highlight how the meowrails DON'T work out - which is even pretty canon in the comic.

In Hivebent, the two are established as working along this dynamic: Nepeta soothes Equius's anger issues, while Equius keeps Nepeta from recklessly endangering herself (for example, prohibiting her from LARPing). But as Hussie says, Equius's anger problems become basically nonexistent by the time Murderstuck rolls around, and his actual problem is his overindulgence in his fetishes; meanwhile, his bossy, controlling attitude to Nepeta was always kind of suspect, but it actively becomes a source of frustration to her that she can't wait to shirk (he bans her from talking to the humans, and she goes behind his back to do it anyways - even celebrates when Karkat gives her express permission).

In the end, they die for their failures as a moirallegiance - despite being fresh off a feelings jam in a pile, and so, supposedly at their least likely to hurt themselves or others, Equius's horny gets him killed (Hussie has always maintained across multiple platforms that Equius could've easily overpowered Gamzee, he just chose not to because Hot), and Nepeta doesn't listen to his orders to stay put. In later conversations with ARquiussprite, Equius is always framed as the one here who was wrong - who failed to keep Nepeta safe and has something to apologize for. I think it's also pretty important to notice that in the bubbles, Equius is never seen doing so - but IS seen being really weird to Aradias - fully implying that he's actually been avoiding taking accountability to Nepeta in favor of indulging in his fetish shit, out of shame and guilt.

As Hussie says, the meowrails are an important relationship, and when I say they don't work out, I don't mean they shouldn't have been together in the first place. On the contrary; I think they actually were good for each other, way back on Alternia. Nepeta DID keep Equius's frustrations in check, and Equius DID keep Nepeta out of trouble. But as time went on, Equius just got really comfortable with treating Nepeta like an object he owned - something convenient, which he can use when he's feeling sad, and ignore otherwise - and Nepeta started growing frustrated with his increasingly petty control. They grew as people, their needs changed, and they stopped being good for each other, but they stayed together - out of inertia and sunk cost fallacy on Nepeta's end, and on Equius's end, because it was convenient and pleasant (for him) and useful (for him) so why would he throw it away?

While this is something I think could potentially be worked out with relationship therapy, the thing with Homestuck is that it's big into the idea of soulmates, especially in the pale quadrant (which is described with that exact term). Its ultimate thesis on romance is that, while you have to do a lot of personal work in order to be the kind of person who can BE in a soul mates relationship, ultimately a relationship SHOULD have an element of just... easy compatability, idiosyncracies clicking together in just the right way to bring out the best in both parties. It's idealized, and there's criticism to be made about that, but that's still ultimately how romance kind of functions in Homestuck. The perfect match is out there for you, and while you have some growing to do in order to be ready for it, it's supposed to be easy once you get there. Consider how Eridan can calm Karkat down literally just by talking to him normally, or how Sollux regularly outright professes that Feferi's just fucking amazing - these are relationships where the involved parties don't need to tell themselves "everyone has an important job to do" with grit teeth to justify keeping the relationship going.

Meowrails lacks that inherent compatability, according to the evidence, but of course, that brings up the question of who they SHOULD date in pale instead. Hey, did you ever notice that Dirk (and by extension, Hal) are EXTREMELY Equius-coded?

So here's the thing. Hal's favorite alpha kid is Roxy, who is also pretty Nepeta-themed, being a cat-associated Rogue. They regularly flirtLARP with each other, but when we get a glimpse of this so called flirtLARPing, it's actually Roxy almost, but not quite, getting Hal to admit that he's actually not really that into Jake, he just feels obligated, as an extension of Dirk, to make DirkJake happen. They almost, but not quite, have a feelings jam.

Meanwhile, Hal outright calls his conversation with Dirk, as Dirk grapples with whether or not he should kill Hal, a "feelings jam", and Dirk also has a convo with Caliborn about how maybe he should consider the merits of selfcest.

What these interactions hint at, to me, is Nepeta <> Hal, and Equius <> Dirk... and I think if you consider it from the standpoint of their personalities, it works, too?

Nepeta is pretty consistently shown to have a knack for knowing how other people actually feel. Her shipping charts are incorrect in terms of compatability, but she's got a scary knack for reading intentions and desires - as befits a non-destructive Heart player. She's able to pinpoint that Eridan's advances on her are insincere, but he's not that bad a guy; she notices that Karkat is a big softie who loves his friends so much; she correctly reads that Equius is a big ol' goofball who loves to play games. Hal, as a Mind player, and even more as originally being a Dirk splinter and an AI, is deeply distressed by his lack of "self"-hood; it's Roxy who calls out first and most blatantly that he's clearly his own guy with his own real feelings, which seems to be why he gravitates toward her. Nepeta would do this even harder, since it's kind of her entire Thing, and I think Hal would really appreciate that, since Hal is at his worst when he thinks he's acting in someone else's best interest (Sylph lol).

Meanwhile, what Nepeta really needs IS an enabler. She's a rebellious soul with radical ideas about how the hemospectrum is stupid and dumb, and she's RIGHT and she should SAY IT. Hal's amazing at giving people what they "want", pulling strings to ensure DirkJake happens, while also framing it as something that Jake would want - this bombastic, action hero kiss-in-front-of-a-volcano. Nepeta's clearly attracted to characters with Equius-esque qualities, but after spending so long with Equius, who does nothing but push her down with a patronizing "hush, greenblood, it's for your own good," I think she would do well with an insane partner in crime who instead goes "fuck yeah girl, let's make this shit happen." Especially since her personal insecurities are that other people will find her dumb and silly (an impression that Equius certainly didn't HELP with...) - having Hal in her corner going "uhhh you're literally my favorite and I will engineer situations to fall directly in your favor?" would be a huge help to her.

I'm actually not entirely sold on equius <> dirk - they're maybe too similar? - i have in my notes here john <> dirk and equius <> jake. idk. the shipping web starts to get complicated

[magicluckystars]

would i date my ikemen favourites in real life?

I saw a post a WHILE ago that talked about the idea of their favorite characters meeting their parents, and I was procrastinating on work really bored so I decided to do a spin-off of that!! why not?

CW: crack, spoilers for: kenshin's route, ikerev prologue, and some of jonah's route, long post,

I am still a beginner writer so characters may be inaccurate/ooc! constructive feedback and reblogs help <3

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Chevalier (Ikemen Prince)

-I would have to tell him to tone down the ice prince behaviour. how are you almost 30 and still calling yourself "the brutal beast" 😭

-he's really smart so we won't have an issue with that

-we don't have a lot of common interests though

-the "show me your worth" and "when someone is no longer of use, that's that" is a major turn-off

-he's so tall?? +1 for that

final rating: 3.5/10 okay guy with questionable morals, i wouldn't date him

William (Ikemen Villians)

-again, really tall

-we won't have many issues, this man knows how to talk to people

-he can play piano too?! +2

-decent guy overall, so higher than chev

-final rating: 6/10 we could be friends, but he's not my type

Harrison (Ikemen Villians)

-I don't even have to mention the height, do I...

-the "am i lying or am I telling the truth?" thing would probably get old fast

-but he is the most normal (i mean, as normal as you can get in ikevil) out of all the boys

-he is pretty fun so the lying part doesn't matter

-final rating: 8/10 good partner

Vincent (Ikemen vampire)

-he deserves the world.

-I love sunflowers and you're telling me you PAINT THEM??

-he's friendly and a good person so we would get along fine

-that said he also doesn't have many strong opinions so that would be a bit frustrating and I also cant draw for the life of me

-brush is now my child. no he doesn't get a say in this.

-vincent can be mischevious sometimes though iirc so that's good

-final rating: 5/10 could be friends, but not really good friends

Kenshin (Ikemen Sengoku)

-i'm starting to notice a pattern in this list with the blondies with lore...

-i don't know how we'd even get close in the first place, considering I don't like conflict (and this man loves fighting)

-but he's considerate of MC's emotions in several routes so that's good

-YOU HAVE BUNNIES?? MULTIPLE OF THEM?? marry me rn /j

-he also doesn't seem like the person to like loud people but then again he lives with Yuki and Shingen (and they're chaotic in and of themselves)

-one thing i would definitely have an issue with is when he tries to keep the MC "all to himself" by KIDNAPPING HER. oh absolutely not.

-final rating: 3/10 potentially friends, but would NOT date him

Hideyoshi (Ikemen Sengoku)

-don't like the hostility towards MC in the beginning stages but he gets better towards her so it's fine

-i don't know how i feel about his many female admirers

-he's really kind though and pays attention to details (which I do not) so that's a plus

-i can respect his dedication to nobunaga

-the fact he has a MONKEY as a pet is adorable.

-he's also very justice-aligned, so thats also a plus

-don't really have much to say other than he's a good guy 👍

-final rating 6/10 we could be friends :)

Jonah (Ikemen Revolution)

-i'm sorry trying to arrest the MC as soon as she falls into Cradle is a big no

-he can be super nice but at the same time super insensitive to other people and I don't think I can get past that

-also not a big fan of expensive gifts, especially when we just met

-he likes sweets though and so do I so he at least has one redeeming quality

-not much other things to say here.

-final rating 2/10 i don't see how we would even click in the first place

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gonna end it off here cause i wanna get it out of my drafts and also to avoid it getting too long

but anyways thanks for reading! if you decide to try this please tag me I wanna read it!

bye for now and see you later <33