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tldix · 1 month ago

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Do i wanna know?

summary: fleeing to college after catching your highschool sweetheart cheating, you find yourself right back in your home town 4 years later. your degree almost complete & your sanity slowly slipping, you find solace in the one place you know you shouldn’t. your dads best friend. Dean Winchester.

word count: idk something embarrassingly long probably🫣

warnings : mature 18+, dbf, AU, yearning AF, spn content, grumpy/sunshine ish?? idk (im trying to include most of the main characters from spn, again AU)

a/n: this is my 2nd ever fic so pls be nice 😔 (& lmk your thoughts, any ideas you may want added) i have every intention of making this a series, if you wanna be added to my tag list just comment 🫶🏼 with alllll this being said i hope you enjoy 🥲

The airport was alive with chaos—families reuniting, announcements echoing overhead, and the constant shuffle of luggage wheels against tiled floors. you adjusted the strap of your duffel bag & guitar case as you took a steadying breath as you followed the crowd toward baggage claim.

It had been months since you last came home, and even longer since you had really felt at home. College had consumed you, with its never-ending stream of exams, late-night study sessions, and endless cups of cheap coffee. Now, with your degree in psychology just a semester away, the weight of expectations pressed heavier on your shoulders.

you tugged her phone from your pocket and skimmed the last text from your dad.

| see you soon kid. we can stop at Bobby’s diner on the way home. i know he’d be over the moon to see you, bet you’re sick of all that tofu & books. don’t forget your still my daughter- not some Freud-loving brainiac”

you stifle a giggle as you head towards the parking lot, eyes skimming for the old green dodge your dad refuses to part with. you let your thoughts drift back to a time before you left for college. when you were waitressing at Bobby’s diner, when you were still with that jackass Colter. when the world felt as if it was falling apart. you quickly shake the thoughts from your head, moving your feet along the pavement out the double doors. your eyes fall on your dads truck, he jumps out with a 9 mile smile as he runs towards you.

“dad! oh my gosh i’ve missed you”

your dad picks you up, wrapping you in one of his signature bear hugs. you melted into his embrace, breathing in the scent of motor oil and aftershave.

“sticks, Look who’s back from the land of overpriced coffee and vegan muffins!”

“Dad, not everyone in college eats vegan muffins.” you laughed.

as your dad grabs your bags, he bombards you with questions. “how was school?” “didn’t meet another jackass like that one boy did you?” “i’m so glad you’re home now sticks, i was real tired of eating take out”

finally. this is what you were searching for. the peace feeling only your dad can seem to give you. the home feeling. you bite the inside of your cheek, feeling the warm smile trying to seep through the wedges in your teeth. you glance out the window, seeing all the familiar streets & shops. the Macleod bakery, Harvelles road house, the dentist your dad would fight tooth & nail to get you into. how was Garth now? you found yourself wondering. it’s been a long time since you were home, you couldn’t be happier. for the first time in years you felt as if you had absolutely no worries. none at all, well until your dad said

“i planned you a welcome home party, more like a bbq but dean was more than happy to let us use his grill. it’s saturday if that works for you sweetheart?”

Dean Winchester had been a part of your life for as long as you could remember, like an unofficial uncle who never missed a BBQ or a birthday. He and your dad, J.P., had been best friends since their teens, inseparable through thick and thin. Dean was brash, charming, and had a knack for pushing your buttons in the way only he could. you hadn’t seen him since Christmas, but the memory of his teasing smirk lingered in your mind.

“sweetheart? is that okay?”

you fumble over your words, trying to push them out & making them seem as nonchalant as possible.

“yeah uh that’s fine dad. can’t wait”

you glance up to see your dad pulling into his usual parking spot outside Bobby’s diner. Bobby was a good man, your dad’s parents weren’t around when you were born so Bobby was quick to claim you as his own granddaughter. blood or not, youre family. as you open the creaky door of your dads old truck, you find every peace of worry gone again. you practically skip to the door, tearing it open as you glance around. ‘that old man really doesn’t change shit’ you thought to yourself.

“sticks? is that really you?”

you thought you were fine, you really convinced yourself until you heard that deep baritone voice. now you felt the ache of tears pressing against your eyes. you whip your head around, eyes meeting the one & only Bobby Singer. the whole diners stopped eating & talking. honing in on the grumpy old man facade slipping from Bobby’s face. you find yourself jogging over to him, he drops the tray to the floor as he quickly envelopes you into a hug.

“Pops! it’s so good to see you”

your voice is muffled from the hold Bobby has on you, his own tears falling down his face into his flannel to mix with yours. you glance up meeting his eyes as he says

“damnit girl, i can’t believe you’re here. how was school? you back for good?”

you pull yourself away hesitantly

“i’m back for good pops. finishing out my last semester here, was hoping you still had that waitressing position open”

your eyebrows shoot up hopefully as a small smirk falls on your face, Bobby wraps his arm around your shoulder as he chuckles

“for you? of course.”

Bobby’s eyes finally meet your fathers, he pulls Jp into a tight hug

“hell boy why didn’t you tell me she was coming home. i’d have-“

jp chuckles as he cuts bobby off

“listen old man, you got enough going on. plus i figured a surprise would do you some good. especially a sticks shaped surprise”

hours passed as you sat & caught up with Bobby, his eyes never leaving yours. almost like he couldn’t believe you were really here. you talked about school, the waitressing job you had in California (but making sure to let Bobby know no place could compare to his). as you ate a smile never left your face, Jp & Bobby telling you stories about the 4 years you were gone. youre laughing, you’re crying. you didn’t know you could feel so many emotions just by coming home. you’re about to leave when Bobby pulls you aside. hugging you as he tells you

“sticks now listen. i know you don’t wanna hear what i’m bout to say but i also know if you hear it from anyone else you’ll lose it. Col-“

you pull away, locking eyes with Bobby

“pops please don’t-“

“wait just a second lemme finish. Colters getting married. got a baby on the way”

you felt the ground beneath your crumble. no, no, no. that couldn’t be happening. your highschool sweetheart. your first kiss, your first- well everything. sure he was mean, a tiny bit abusive but he was yours. or so you thought.

“what do you mean pops? he- he can’t be. there’s no way”

you stumble back but before you fall, bobby’s arms are around you.

“i know kiddo. i know. but hey, maybe it’s better this way huh?”

his hands are wiping the tears you didn’t realize were falling. you had so many questions, did he really love me? how could he move on? why did he never reach out? well maybe it’s because he was too busy out getting some skank pregnant. wait no you can’t think like that, she didn’t do anything to you. it wasn’t like this mystery woman was holding your heart in your hands, no that was that stupid prick Colter.

“who?”

“who what sticks?”

bobby’s eyes look too worrisome. you hate when he gives you those eyes.

“who is he marrying”

bobby sighs, suddenly finding the sticky old floorboards far more interesting than the expression that’s gunna cross your face.

“jo.”

oh that hurt, jo. jo harvelle. your childhood bestfriend. bobby’s grip tightened on you, holding you steady as you go through the waves crashing through you. anger. hurt. betrayal. your dad approaches, seeing the light leave your eyes. he glances at Bobby, sharing a knowing look with him. he wraps his arm around, letting you bid your farewells as he lead you to the truck. as he opened the door for you, you slung yourself into the seat.

“sticks i- i’m sorry”

you wipe the rest of the tears from your face, nodding as you glance around the truck. your eyes get stuck on the polaroid of you & jo. a picture you used to cherish so deeply, but now you’d rather see it cast into the pits of hell. your dad catches what you’re eyes are lingering on as he closes your door. he makes his way around to his side, quickly grabbing the polaroid & stashing it away. he knew when you got told the news things would be different, your pain would be different. Colter was one thing, your highschool sweetheart who never lived up to the ‘sweetheart’ part. the man who made you shed more tears than you ever should’ve, the man who left you alone wondering where he was most nights when he was shacking it up at Harvelles bar, who wouldn’t answer his phone. your dad knew all this, he was the one you called when you couldn’t take it anymore. he was the one who came & picked you up from Colters parents house the night you ended things. the night you found out he cheated. 2 weeks before you left for college. your dad also knew that after you left, there wasn’t a thing he could say or do to make you come back. Jo on the other hand, she was your best friend. practically your sister. there wasn’t a weekend where Jo wasn’t at his house, in his pool, watching you & him work on cars & when you got older the one who helped you sneak those cars out. the one you called when Colter wasn’t treating you right. the one who called you when she knew Colter was at her moms bar. it felt unreal to your father, he couldn’t imagine how you felt.

The hum of tires on asphalt filled the silence as you pulled into the driveway of your childhood home. The house looked the same—warm porch lights glowing, the familiar sight of your first car parked sideways on the side of the house. the garage open, showing the new muscle car your dad must be going nuts over. Jp killed the engine and exhaled deeply. After four years away at college, home felt both comforting and alien.

Inside, you found seemingly nothing changed. the recliner was still the same, the stacks of car manuals everywhere, the coffee cup sized rim indentions on your dads side table, the only different thing was a picture you & your dad took on the 4th of july hanging above the tv stand. you’re standing in a pair of old jean shorts, your red bikini top sneaking out the side of your old worn white t-shirt covered in motor oil. your dad has his signature blue dodgers cap on, his mechanic uniform still clinging to him. laughing right back with you as he holds his belly. Sam took the picture & you were so thankful he did. you carried yourself up to your childhood bedroom, the only thing that changed was the size of the bed. instead of the measly little twin you now were the proud owner of a queen. the sage green comforter looked like a cloud, a dream even.

you dig out a change of clothes, your toiletries & make your way to your bathroom. the peace sign poster you picked out with Jo staring menacingly at you through the reflection. you hesitate for a second before deciding to rip it down. you crumble it up, throwing it in the trash can as you run a hand through your hair. stupid. that’s how you felt. why did you think you’d come back & everything would be waiting for you like the day you left? your eyes longed for tears to fall, you glance up catching yourself in the reflection before you shake your shoulders & sigh. you rip the airport clothes off, turning on a hot shower as you slip in. you hum the tune of an AC/DC song as you lather the soap in your hands & through your hair. you’re back, regardless of how anyone else feels. your got your job back at Bobby’s, you’re finishing your degree this year. everything’s gunna work out. everything’s gunna be fine, but if that was the truth why did you feel as if something was missing?

you get out of the shower, quickly drying off as you throw on a old tank top & a pair of sweats. you towel dry your hair, glancing over to the fogged up mirror as you pull a brush through it. you throw your dirty clothes in your laundry basket as you slide on your slippers. you make your way back to your room, settling down on the bed as you open up your bag.

your dads footsteps tear you from your thoughts, you glance up as he’s carrying a beer. you take it thankfully as he settles beside you on the bed, glancing over at your guitar case.

“you still play sticks?”

you nod, as you take a swig of your beer

“i do. ain’t played as much as id like too with how busy things have been though”

your dad takes a swig of his own beer, he smiles as he says

“well after dinner i want you to play me something”

you smile & nod, you loved playing for your dad. he’s who taught you really, who gave you the guitar you lug around everywhere. you run your fingers absentmindedly across the label of the beer as you think back to the time he gave you the guitar. it was your 11th birthday, the smile he beamed down at you was something you’d never allow yourself to forget. that, that was probably your happiest memory. your dads voice interrupts your thoughts as he says

“well i’ll be out in the garage. we’ll have some company for dinner since i gotta work from home today. you need me you come find me okay sugar?”

you smile to yourself, boy was it great to have someone care so much for you. you were used to just being ignored, not making but 1 singular friend in your years of college. Ashley. she was like a girl you’d never met before, ambitious, smart, beautiful, funny. the sarcasm that girl carried was something unreal. your dad already loved her after meeting her the one singular time he flew out to visit. you plop down on your bed, pulling your phone out as you quickly press ashley’s number. she picks up after the 3rd sing yelling through the phone

“sticks! come back oh god i’ll never make it without you”

sticks? since when did ashley also call you that? what is with everyone wanting this nickname to stick? you roll your eyes at your unintentional pun

“well hello there ash i miss you too” you giggle into the phone

“but no seriously how is it? feel better being at home?”

you bite back the endless trials of emotions you went through today, choosing not to unload the disaster your life’s become in a measly 24 hours. you find yourself picking at the thread of your sweats as you offer small talk, informing her you got your job back at the diner until you graduate. her swearing she’s flying out the second the gets the chance. you giggle & talk as you glance at the clock, you realized you completely lost track of time & you were sure dinner was ready. you hang up, promising you’ll call her after your first day as you make your way downstairs, the scent of ordered in pizza catches your nose as you giggle to yourself. as your feet touch the bottom step your dad turns to you

“well there she is, cmon sticks say hello”

you walk around the doorframe as your heart catches in your throat. Dean. Winchester.

“hey Freud” he greeted, his voice low drawl “long time no see”

“Freud, really?” you arched any eyebrow, meeting his gaze. his green eyes sparkled with mischief, & that smirk — God that smirk — was firmly in place.

“Freud, Jung, whoever you kids are into these days” dean shot back, standing from his place on the couch.

your dad chuckles

“don’t mind him, he’s just mad he’s too old to understand what you’re studying”

you laugh as you shake your head

dean cuts in as he says

“oh i understand it just fine” he said as he walks up to you “it’s all about mommy issues, right?”

you snorted

“i’m studying psychology, not you dean”

your dad burst out laughing, deans smirk faltering for a moment. he gave you an exaggerated bow as he says “Touchè”

as your dad drags dean over to the table you let yourself study his features, he looked the same — rough around the edges but effortlessly put together. his hands calloused & stained in motor oil. the veins prominent as he grabs the pizza box, smiling at something your father said. you quickly averted your gaze, feeling an unwelcomed heat creep up your neck.

“so sticks you nervous bout being back?”

your dad asks

you hesitated unsure of how to answer especially after the whirlwind of emotions you had to overcome today.

“a little. it’s been awhile, you know? i’m used to being busy all the time. having my job back at Pops surely will help though”

“well you’re home now.” your dad said, his voice warm. “relax, eat something other than cafeteria food & maybe give some of your old man here some of that brainiac advice” he beams

“careful” dean adds smirking, “you might open a can of worms with that one if you ain’t careful ‘old man’ “

you rolled your eyes but couldn’t help the small smirk that fell on your face. it felt good to be back, banter, baggage & all.

—————————————

by the time you made it to the table you were trying to decide if you could just crawl up to your room or out the window, on the latter they would definitely know something was up. i mean your dad knew, he seen it first hand all day. but dean? no. he could not & would not see you crumble over something like that. it was hard enough to try to keep the actual relationship issues from dean when it happened, he definitely didn’t need the after effects.

you decided what’s the worst that could happen, you’re in your own home. with your father, & really you were just nervous. you did not expect to see dean today, not any day before saturday really. that’s why you find yourself turning to your dad & joking

“i’m surprised the houses still stands after how long i was gone”

“barely sticks” jp jokes as he grumbles “dean here only fixed the roof last week, don’t lean on the railing. it’s a death trap”

“hey that’s quality work” dean protests before taking a bite of his pizza

“quality work” you echoed, eyeing him. “remind me not to hire you when i get my own place.”

dean grins, leaning back in his chair as he wipes the pizza sauce from his lip

“don’t worry. i charge extra for smartasses”

your dad throws him a joking glare as he gets up to fetch some beers, leaving you both alone for the first moment since youve been home. you shift in your seat as you take a bite of your pizza.

“it’s good to see you sticks” dean said, his tone softer now as he catches your eye

you look up, startled by the sincerity in his voice. a small smile fights it way to your lips as you say “you too dean”

for a fleeting moment, you felt as if something electric, & impossible to ignore flashed between you. as quick as the moment appeared it dissolved when your dad breached the door with a huge grin

“beers here”

————————-

#dean winchester #dean winchester angst #dean winchester smut #dean winchester x female character #dean winchester x female!reader #dean winchester x you #dean winchester x reader #dean x reader #dean winchester imagine #jensen fucking ackles #jensen ackles #dean angst #dean fluff #dean winchester fluff #dbf!dean #do i wanna know master list

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binniebakery · 8 months ago

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🇫🇱🇴🇺🇷 🇫🇴🇷 🇲🇾 🇫🇱🇴🇼🇪🇷? ❀🥐

Non Idol AU Soobin x Fem!Reader, Fluff!

♡ Summary: For years, Soobin has had the biggest crush on the daughter of the town's local bakery and flower shop. Just when Soobin decides he's comfortable settling with being acquaintances, a misunderstanding drives him to reveal the feelings he's kept hidden for so long! ♡ Recipe Ingredients: tooth rotting fluff, featuring yeonjun as soobin's unofficial rival, soobin pining, slight cursing!, not proofread ♡ Recipe Notes: guess whos baccck!? woo its FINALLY out! I'm so sorry for the wait everyone! this is probably the only wip that i was continuously motivated to write for.. so i hope this wasn't too cheesy >< enjoy!

It all started the first day he ever laid eyes on you.

That charming smile that captivated his attention the second he walked through the door, your face lighting up at the sound of the bell chiming at his arrival.

“Welcome to Flowers and Flour! How may I help you?”

It was over for him the moment your warm voice hit his ears, the tenderness and soft notes that brought immense joy to his day whenever he walked in.

Soobin was the son of the town’s local catering service. If he wasn’t busy with school, he was helping his mother organize her clients and help deliver and pick up orders for her on that moped his father got him for Christmas years ago.

You were the daughter of the town’s local bakery and flower shop. It was an odd combination really, a bakery downstairs with a flower shop running in the back? It worked well though, Soobin had more than one reason to visit you. His mom needed extra cupcakes for a wedding? He was always the first one to run to your shop. His mom wanted some flower decorations for an event? Once again, Soobin ran through the double doors of your establishment.

For as long as Soobin could remember, he had the biggest crush on you. It was obvious to everyone else in town, except for you.

Though he never really was good at flirting was he? Soobin’s first delivery was almost a disaster, he was 13 when he started helping his mom with her catering. Luck wasn’t on his side that day as he proceeded to fall off his bike and drop the entire box of dozen glazed donuts he was supposed to bring to a child’s birthday party.

Of course, he was a quick thinker. So the first thing Soobin did was bike his way over to the small bakery and flower shop his mother always worked with, rushing in through the doors as he was covered in cuts and bruises. It didn’t matter, no pain could be worse than the scolding he would get from his mother if she found out.

There you were, freshly, first day on the job and your father had just taught you how to use the cash register. You twiddled your thumbs nervously as he worked relentlessly in the back to finish baking that afternoon's set of cupcakes.

So when you hear the familiar twinkle of bells ringing you feel the color melt off your face as you look up. This was your first day after all, what was the slogan your parents taught you to say to guests? Were you even supposed to take orders? You were only twelve!

“H- hi!.. Um.. welcome to flour and flower— no! Flowers with flour?...” You furrowed your eyebrows and look at the small napkin filled with your scribbled notes. “A- ah sorry! Um welcome to Flowers.. And Flour! H- how can I help you!?” Your voice shook as you sat straight up, giving your best (and awkwardest) smile.

You weren’t expecting there to be a boy with messy hair and cuts on his knees and a half-empty box of donuts standing in the doorway. The way his hoodie fit him slightly too big, something that he would grow into as he got older and taller.

Slight sweat formed around his forehead and neck from the summer heat. His denim shorts wore a slight tear on the hem from the fall he had from his small bike. His cute button nose scrunched up as the stinging sensation on his knees reminded him of why he was there in the first place.

And Soobin wasn’t expecting such a pretty girl his age to be working the cash register.

“Uh– yes! Um..” Soobin sheepishly scratches the back of his neck as he looks around the bakery to avoid your large innocent eyes staring at him curiously. He’d never been inside actually, the colors were bright, sweet, and pastel– and most of all welcoming, just like your smile.

You’re tilting your head at the way the boy’s worn-out sneakers shifted in his spot. What were you supposed to do when a customer didn’t answer you?

“C- C-an.. um I..” Soobin’s face is flushed red and your eyebrows furrow together even deeper. Just as you are about to turn and call for your father to come help, Soobin immediately reaches over the counter, dropping the crushed donut box, and covers your mouth.

“Shhh!! D- don’t tell anyone! If an adult finds out they’ll tell my mom! And m- my mom cannot know about this” the young boy rambles. Your large eyes flicker between the door behind you leading to the kitchen and back to Soobin. You nod your head in agreement to say silent.

“S- sorry..” Soobin mumbles as he pulls away, wiping his hands on his baggy shorts. He explains everything to you, from the birthday party to his failure to properly ride a bike. You couldn’t help but feel pity for the boy. It was your first day too after all so you would definitely feel the same way if you were in his shoes.

“I think I can.. Maybe give you some donuts?”

Now, looking back on this now as an adult, you would have charged the young man, or at least given him a discount. But.. as a young innocent pre-teen.. the thought didn’t cross your mind once.

After all, on your first day working you weren't expecting an odd, clumsy, and cute boy would pop up in the shop. So were you really going to be thinking rationally?

So you gave Soobin a fresh box of donuts right from the shelf. Even offered a muffin for his safe journey. All for free.

Of course, your father notices the missing pastries, one thing leads to another and both you and Soobin end up getting into a lot of trouble.

What you didn’t know is that later that evening Soobin found himself thinking about the cute girl with pigtails that was almost too short to reach over the counter. Even blushing at the thought of seeing you again and vowing to himself he would marry that sweet girl who looked past his awkward exterior and gave him that gentle sunrise of a smile.

Years later, Soobin’s promise to himself is looking less and less possible by the day.

You looked forward to Soobin’s visits. Although you two weren’t close, you’ve always considered him to be a friend. Throughout the years, you managed to form a small bond with him whenever you had the chance to see him. You both went to different schools and were simply too shy to ever ask to hang out outside of the shop, so your relationship stayed the same.

“Hey y/n.” Soobin gives you a shy smile as you finish setting up the display for the morning. Perfect, just like you were. And with the way you turn to him, hair pulled in a messy ponytail, face flushed from the physical work, and apron wrapped perfectly tight around your waist, you couldn’t have gotten any better in Soobin’s eyes.

“Hi Soobie! Here for those muffins?” You chirp as you lean over the counter to greet him. His heart flutters at the nickname. No matter how many times you’ve said it, you always manage to make his heart stop. Nothing was better than your voice calling out his name, especially the nickname you gave specifically to him.

“Mhm, large company party I think? I’m not too sure. Apparently, the guy’s been really pushing my mom’s buttons with his demands.” His laugh is airy and soft and you can’t help but feel your cheeks warm from the way his dimples dig deep into his cheeks. Of course, the boy fails to notice.

“Ah, I see. Give Mrs. Choi my hellos then.” You giggle, handing Soobin several large boxes. Said boxes were indeed quite heavy, your delicate fingers almost dropping them as you handed them over.

“Sure will. Oh, careful–! Gotcha!” Soobin is quick to place his hands under yours, helping you lift the boxes. You look up at him with eyes wide and mouth agape, heart pumping rapidly from the sudden contact. Soobin mirrors your expression and the two of you stay that way in silence for a few seconds.

The young man blinks and immediately flushes once more, face heating up more when he realizes he was touching your hand for too long. “S- sorry! U- um.. I’ll see you later yeah? Have a good rest of your day y/n!” Soobin fumbles as he quickly shuffles out the door to his moped.

You mentally kick yourself for letting the seconds pass without saying anything and Soobin gently plops his forehead on the handle of his vehicle, debating on just slamming his head on a brick wall for settling with the silence.

It was always like this, constant instances where he would get the perfect chance to confess but he always failed to let his feelings reach you. So after years of failed attempts, he settles with what you have. He’s just happy he gets to see you.

⋆｡°♡

It was Friday, the first day of your town's weekend summer festival. Soobin’s mother was as busy as ever, therefore so was he in trying to help her get things done.

“Soobin! Can you come here please? I need you to run an errand for me!” Mrs. Choi calls and Soobin comes shuffling in from his room, slightly groggy from the nap he just had.

“Yeah? What’s up?” He mumbles as he rubs his eyes, fluffy hair sticking out in all directions.

“Could you run down to the grocery store or the bakery? It doesn’t matter I just need you to buy me flour.” Mrs. Choi mumbles as she digs into multiple containers. “Mr. Phillips is running some baking event but he’s already at the fairgrounds so I’m doing this as a favor. Could you just bring it to him for me?”

Now, Soobin was content with his position in your life. He was just glad he was able to get to see you any chance he got, and that you were still single. He’s (not-so) casually questioned if you’ve had a boyfriend before, and with a strawberry-red face you mumbled about your failed love life.

Don’t get him wrong– Soobin would always support you as long as you were happy, but something inside him feels a sense of relief knowing that there’s somewhat of a chance for him.

So of course instead of going to the closest grocery store, he’s going to stop by your place all the way across town to pick up some flour.

Soobin speeds down the street as quickly as the law would allow him. His anxious fingers tapped the handle of his moped as he waited for the light to turn green.

The festival was on your side of town, so the streets were busy, therefore causing horrible traffic as a result. Soobin groans as he taps his foot impatiently, here’s to another day where he was the cause of his own downfall!

It takes 15 minutes to reach that familiar street he grew to love. The festival around the area begins to grow more lively and both the bakery and flower shop seem to be flooded with visitors.

Soobin feels himself tensing up as he approaches the glass double doors that lead inside the bakery.

The bell rings as he makes his way inside, but the loud buzz of people’s demands and your poor mother running around the floor delivering orders as you ring up the other customers distracts you from noticing the tall boy. Your father bursts through the door right after Soobin, boxes with vases waiting to be decorated and used for arrangements in his arms. Soobin nods a hello. “Hey there Soobin! Nice seeing you!” He shouts above the noise with a grin. “I’m a little busy right now so I’m afraid I can’t help you with anything! Y/n is right over there if you need something!” He nods towards your direction and rushes past the doors leading to the flower shop. Soobin’s face holds a puzzled smile and he glances towards the checkout counter you were currently standing at.

That’s when he sees the bane of his existence. Soobin’s worst nightmare. Choi Yeonjun.

Soobin didn’t speak to Yeonjun often, but he knew two very important things that were all he needed. That Yeonjun was interested in you, and him and Soobin went to the same school. (Soobin cringes at the possibility of Yeonjun ever going to the same school as you. He’s thankful.) Yeonjun would visit your dad’s flower shop often. Even going as far as hinting multiple times if you’d like to go on a date. Luckily for Soobin, you never got the hint– and unfortunately for Soobin, that just made Yeonjun want to try harder.

What made Soobin tick even more was that Yeonjun flirted with everyone he saw. It was just a part of his charm, and as much as Soobin hates to admit it he wishes he had that same ability Yeonjun had. To speak to you freely and smoothly hint towards a date instead of the casual and mundane conversations he settled for every time he saw you. He wanted to be cool and charming, wanted to be outgoing and good at everything he did, just like that Choi Yeonjun.

But Soobin knew he would never get to that point, he considered himself clumsy, unathletic, nerdy, and awkward. All of the things that Yeonjun wasn’t.

So when Soobin spots Yeonjun cracking yet another flirty joke just to see your cheeks flush and you shyly tucking your hair behind your ear he makes it his personal mission to intervene.

“Look at you slacking off. Should get back to work instead of talkin’ to me so much y/n.” Yeonjun teases you and you roll your eyes with a smile. You weren’t exactly close but he was friendly and often offered to help your dad anytime he needed it.

“Well Yeonjun, I’m trying! You keep distracting me..!” You nudge him as you loudly respond over the customers' chatter. “You’re lucky nobody needs me right now. What did you want anyways?” you inquire with a tilt of your head. Soobin sees this from afar and finds it endearing, and much to his dismay so does Yeonjun.

“Nothing today actually–” “What?!” “I said nothing today! I wanted to ask if you wanted to go to check out the festival with me?!” You furrow your eyebrows as your brain attempts to decipher Yeonjun’s words. “Check out what?!”

Yeonjun lets out a laugh. Soobin bites his lip as his body unconsciously moves closer to the checkout counter. “The festival! You’re about to close soon right? Let's go, you and me!” Yeonjun repeats. This time he’s leaning over the counter, lips dangerously close to your face, and Soobin is about to explode from the sight.

“Well, actually I-” “Y/n! Hi! You’re not busy right?” Soobin blurts out as he shoves himself between Yeonjun and the counter. Yeonjun shoots him a puzzled look.

“Oh! Hi Soobin!” You smile, sheepishly rubbing the back of your neck at witnessing the sudden interjection. “Um.. How can I help you?” Soobin’s adrenaline is bursting through his veins, sure he saved you from Yeonjun’s invitation, but now what?

Suddenly, two other customers walk into the store and the place seems to inconveniently become more lively by the second. Soobin feels his anxiety bubbling in his stomach as he stares at your face, how was he supposed to look at you with your hair softly tousled into a ponytail and your pretty lashes blinking against your cheeks? He wonders what you look like outside of uniform.

“Uh, Soobin? I kinda– Yes sir one moment!” You call out to an older gentleman requesting your attention. Soobin blinks and realizes he’s been standing awkwardly for too long, Yeonjun is currently watching the whole situation unfold with a lifted brow and arms crossed.

“Uh– My mom–!.. I want to tell you that I kind of– The festival–! Um..” Soobin grows more flustered by the second, unable to get anything out. He wants to tell you he needs flour, he wants to tell you he traveled all the way across town just to see you, he wants to tell you to ditch Yeonjun and go to the festival with him instead. But words seem to fail him in the moment.

“Soobin?.. Are you alrigh–”

It finally hits Soobin that if he wants to confess, he needs to do it now. He should have realistically done it sooner but the poor boy genuinely felt like your relationship would never get anywhere past “somewhat friends”. Now that Yeonjun is here though, he feels like if he doesn’t say anything now, he’ll be forever doomed to be second to Choi once again.

“Y/n… I um– L- like you! I need flour.. Too!”

Soobin’s words sound jumbled but it’s enough to get the point across. At least that’s what he thinks.

“What?! Sorry, I can’t hear you!” You shout over the bakery ambiance.

“Flour! Uh.. Flour! I just um.. I need that! Yes! That thing you sell! Ha…” Soobin wants to curl up and rot in a hole. Both of you miss the way Yeonjun’s lips curl up into a small smirk.

“A Flower?!” Your eyebrows furrow deeper. Why would Soobin need a singular flower? You wonder.

“Ah! What? Uh fl- flour! Y- yes!” Soobin stutters once more and you nod confusingly, turning to the shelf behind you. Soobin’s eyes flicker to Yeonjun, mentally high-fiving himself for stepping in at the perfect time. He feels slightly bad but in his defense, he had eyes on you first!

Before Soobin’s guilt settles in for thinking such selfish thoughts, you hand him a sunflower.

His eyes widen and he looks back at you. Did you end up hearing his confession after all?

“Sorry guys I can’t talk! Soobin I’m sorry but this is all I can offer on such short notice! Yeonjun, I’ll speak with you after my shift is done! Just give me 10 minutes!” You flash an apologetic smile and head over to the small line of customers waiting to pay.

Soobin’s mouth hangs open, did you just reject him? Were you so guilty you couldn’t reject him that you just gave him a gift in hopes he wouldn’t take it too harshly? Is that why you said it was all you could offer?

Soobin stands dumbfounded. Yeonjun sighs and grabs him by the arm, pulling him out of the store to allow the other customers to squeeze in their place.

“Hey–! I- I need to talk to y/n wait!” Soobin yanks his arm away from Yeonjun with a huff.

“Can you chill for a second?! God, seeing you stand there looking like a fish out of water is stressing me out, dude.” Yeonjun sighs and rubs his temples in frustration. Soobin swallows and looks down at the floor, twiddling with the sunflower you gave him between his fingers. “Look. I know what’s going on here man, you’ve got a crush on y/n don’t you?”

Soobin’s jaw drops once again and he feels his face grow impossibly red. “H- how do you know?!”

“You literally said it inside the store just a few seconds ago..not to mention your game is the worst I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“Right..” Soobin sighs and drops his shoulders in defeat. “Was it that bad?” Yeonjun grimaces, “Want me to tell you the truth?” Soobin groans, he already knows what’s coming. “Just say it already.”

“That was absolutely horrid to watch. Never seen a guy fumble that badly..” Yeonjun pinches the bridge of his nose and Soobin plops down on the bench next to them. He rests his head in his hands, maybe now would be a good time to just move cities. Forget today ever happened. Forget about the festival. Forget about you. Not to mention he’s even more embarrassed at the fact that Yeonjun was there to witness it all. The last person he wanted to see.

“Hey, hey. Look, there’s a bright side to this and I don’t think you realize– I don’t even think y/n realizes what just happened in there.”

Soobin’s head perks up, his face scrunched up in confusion. “What? Besides the fact that I just got horribly rejected– Oh God AND she doesn’t even give me the flour I needed! Y/n probably thought it would be awkward to keep talking to me and just sent me off with this.. pity gift!” Soobin exclaims as he waves the sunflower in his hand around.

Yeonjun slams his palm into his forehead and sighs, “No! Dude she misheard you completely, I’m almost certain y/n thought you wanted a flower from her, not flour.” It takes a few seconds for Soobin to properly register Yeonjun’s words. He replays the situation in his head, the way that none of you could possibly hear each other that well given how busy the bakery was in that moment.

It would make sense. Yeonjun was standing right next to Soobin so he was the only one that would be able to properly hear him.

“Oh.. shit..” Soobin slumps further into the bench. “Really?”

“Yeah, and frankly can I be honest?” Soobin nods. “I didn’t know you even liked y/n like that. You seem to sort of keep things plain with her when you guys talk.” Soobin pouts at the comment. “Well, I try!.. was kind of playing the long game… I don’t really have the type of charisma you have Mr. Festival Guy!” Soobin retorts and Yeonjun gasps dramatically.

“Hey! Don’t blame me for your incompetence man... Plus, even if I do sort of like her, I know when to back out if it’s just going to end up as a competition. I’m not a douchebag.”

Yeonjun chuckles at Soobin’s shocked face. He notes that Soobin seems to be very expressive despite not speaking about his emotions. It seems to explain a lot about Soobin. “Wait, seriously? You’re willing to give her up that easily?”

Yeonjun shrugs, “I mean don’t get me wrong she’s a cute girl, but I just wanted to get to know her more as a friend, what’s the harm in that?” Soobin bites his lower lip and looks away from Yeonjun. He feels awful now, assuming Yeonjun was the player type and you were just his next target. They never spoke at school but that was simply because while Soobin was shy and hung out with the nerdy and introverted students– Yeonjun was popular, and had many friends. Not to mention plenty of girls fought for his attention at school.

“Yeah.. guess you’re right.” Soobin mumbles. “Well… now what do I do?” Yeonjun taps his index finger on his chin. “I mean, she said she gets off work in a few minutes right? Why don’t you tell her what you really meant to say.”

Soobin scoffs as if Yeonjun’s idea is completely unrealistic and ridiculous. “Yeah right. You saw the way I get when I speak to her. I can’t even think properly..” Yeonjun sighs. “Well, you have to do it sometime dude.. Unless you want someone like me to scoop her up.” He teases.

Soobin’s eye twitches, he was definitely not going to give Yeonjun another chance to ask you out.

“Hey– okay, okay, fine I’ll talk to her.. I guess..” Soobin runs a hand through his hair. He honestly felt like the entire situation was a lost cause. “So just how am I going to confess to y/n?”

“Dude, I can’t help you with everything! Just speak from your heart.. Or whatever those cheesy romance movies say.” Yeonjun pats Soobin’s shoulder and stands up. “Look, you’ll figure something out. Tell her what comes to mind, that’s the way I roll at least.” Soobin stares at his feet in thought. He had so much to say, and quite frankly his feelings were so strong and complicated he was scared it would ruin the relationship you both currently had.

“All I’m gonna say is if you don’t do it tonight, I will. Get in there and grab what you originally came there for.” Yeonjun nods towards the sunflower resting in Soobin’s hand. ”And I’m not just talking about the flour either. Be yourself.” Soobin looks at Yeonjun for the last time and stands up.

“Right. I’ll uh.. See you then. Thanks.” Yeonjun pats his shoulder and Soobin almost winces at the pain. “No problem Choi. I’ll leave you to it. See you around.” Yeonjun winks and strolls off. Soobin cringes at how nonchalant the other male is, more so at the fact that he genuinely couldn’t tell if that wink was flirtatious or not.

Regardless, Yeonjun’s words were enough to boost his confidence slightly, and thus Soobin made his way back to the outside of the bakery.

20 minutes had passed and you finally were able to usher the last customer out of the store. Your father had already left to promote business at the festival grounds and your mother had offered to finish cleaning up so you could enjoy some time to yourself after a long day of work.

The summer heat hits your face as you open the heavy double glass doors, pouting as the fresh indoor air slips away. You let your hair down so you can arrange it into a neater ponytail, feeling at least feeling somewhat refreshed after quickly changing out of your work uniform into something more comfortable.

Soobin hears the familiar jingle of the bakery doors and he looks up, if he wasn’t nervous already he definitely was now. His face flushes as his eyes scan your figure, pretty face concentrated as you tie your hair up, thin summer shirt slightly lifting to show the slightest bit of skin as if you wearing those small denim shorts wasn’t enough to have him practically fainting at the sight.

You look up and the expression on your face changes to a warm smile upon seeing Soobin.

“Soobie, hi!” Oh! The nickname too! Soobin was doomed.

“H- hey, um y/n.. Before you lock up can we go inside? I need to speak with you..” You tilt your head and look around the area. “Sure? Oh but I think Yeonjun was waiting to talk to me too? Did you see him?” Soobin almost lets out a groan in discontent but hides it with a bite to his bottom lip. Why were you asking about Yeonjun? Was it because you were hoping he’d be waiting instead of Soobin?

“He uh.. Decided he had something to do– It wasn’t important anyways..” Soobin scratches the back of his neck with an awkward smile. “Ah, okay! Let’s go in then.” You smile and open the doors for him. Soobin fumbles to one of the glass doors and holds it for you with ears tinged pink, nodding as you thank him when you walk inside.

Soobin doesn’t even remember ever being this nervous before in his entire life, his first catering delivery, the handful of speeches he’s stuttered through when speaking in front of his classmates, or when he spilled juice on his mother’s most prestigious customer.

You prop yourself on the counter, your eyes now able to meet his without either of you adjusting your height. You swing your legs as you sit, oblivious to Soobin’s inner turmoil. “Sorry, I wasn’t about to talk with you outside in that heat. You must have been sweating so much out there!” You apologize with a light laugh, and the tall boy's heart soars, touched by your consistently kind and caring nature.

Soobin’s brain is currently in overdrive thinking about the way your delicate fingers twiddle in your lap waiting for his response. You notice that his breathing has grown quiet and slow, as he avoids your gaze while in deep thought.

“Is something wrong? Did something happen to Yeonjun or–?” You innocently question. Soobin can’t help but feel his jealousy peak. Why were asking about that guy when it was just you and him? Why couldn’t you ever focus on him instead?

“Soobie.. Tell me what happened, please?” You bring your hand up to rest on his arm, shooting jolts of electricity throughout his entire body from the small touch. It was light, but it was also the first time you’ve ever made an effort to touch Soobin in such a delicate manner. It may have meant nothing to you but to him, it was more than enough to send his mind reeling even further.

Soobin was a patient man. In case you couldn’t tell from the way he’s waited all these years for the perfect moment to confess. Yet, at this moment he feels his emotions bubbling up, his jealousy of Yeonjun, his overwhelming affection towards you that never ceased to stop growing over the years, and the overwhelming anxiety threatening to burst through his stomach.

Your eyes widen as Soobin places both of his arms on the counter, caging you in with his own body.

‘Be yourself Soobin. If she doesn’t like you for you then she’s not the one. If she likes Yeonjun then so be it.’ Soobin is chanting so many affirmations in his head and nothing seems to work. Seconds pass and he notices the heat spread across your face as you stare into his gentle brown orbs.

The bakery is silent, its ambiance a complete contrast to almost 30 minutes ago. Everything had been turned off, with the only source of lightning coming from the sunset peering over the horizon outside. The rays barely peeked through the partially closed blinds and the glass doors leading into the bakery.

“I- .. look I honestly h- have no idea how to go about this..” Soobin begins, his breathing now ragged and his body so close to yours that his scent begins to fill your senses. You’ve never been this close to Soobin and can’t help but take in the gentle light floral scent. It’s warm even, like a cotton shirt left out in the sun on a summer afternoon.

He presses his forehead against yours, his breath now gently tickling your features. “Y/n.. I’ve liked you f- for a really long time.. And I mean this more than a friend.” His eyes are screwed shut, almost as if he was afraid that if he opened them he’d be met with a look of disappointment from you. “I tried telling you earlier, I saw Yeonjun try to hit on you and I freaked out. Of course, shit hits the fan too because with my luck you didn’t hear me.”

“Soobin..” Your mouth opens before you can fully process what you want to say. “Y- you don’t have to respond y/n. If anything I know you probably have feelings for Yeonjun already– Just p- please.. I-” His voice is shaky, his intense fear of rejection pouring out of his body in a sweat.

Soobin’s eyes flash open when he feels both your hands gently holding both sides of his face. “Can I tell you something?” You smile warmly. Soobin’s heart feels like it's going to jump out of his chest. “I only keep working here so I can see you.”

Soobin’s face turns a bright red, his mouth agape. “Wh- what?”

“My parents tease me about it all the time. About the boy that I fell head over heels for since the day he first walked through those stupid glass doors. I don’t let them hire anyone else because I didn’t want anyone talking to you that wasn’t me!” You chuckle, recalling the slow days when you paced across the white bakery tiles, waiting for him to walk through those doors with a list of items he needed.

“I’ve liked you. I always have.” Your voice comes out in a whisper. Soobin’s ears barely pick up the sound as a group of children run by the shop, loud screeches and giggles as they pass.

“Wh- what?” Soobin stares into your eyes in complete disbelief. “I said I like you too, Choi Soobin.”

He’s silent, a car passes by and you almost jump from the sudden noise. Soobin doesn’t flinch, and for a moment your expression turns into one of fear– afraid that you said the wrong thing until Soobin lets out a series of soft chuckles.

“What is so funny!?” You pout, immediately removing your hands from his face in embarrassment. The audacity of this guy! To just laugh in front of your face after he himself nearly pissed himself from confessing to you.

“Y- you have no idea– no idea!” He begins, his forehead bumping into yours again from laughing. “Y/n, I’ve been going out of my way, doing the stupidest things just to get myself to tell you how I feel.”

You scoff and look down at your lap. “Well.. at least now everything is cleared up.. Right?”

Soobin’s head pulls away, his arms still trapping you in his presence. ‘O-oh um about that..”

“Earlier.. I was asking you for flour.. Y’know the stuff you bake with? .. You sort of misheard that too.” You cover your mouth with a gap. Soobin senses your guilt and immediately shakes his head.

Soobin finally pulls his arms away and you feel your tense body loosen up. It seems he had no clue of how close he was due to the adrenaline of his confession. “No no! Please don’t worry about it– it was seriously my fault, I couldn’t even get a word out and it was super loud and busy earlier!”

“L- let me get that for you! Gosh, I’m so so sorry!” You exclaim as you jump off the counter to run to the back room to retrieve the said bag. You find Soobin with his hands covering his face in embarrassment as you walk up to him. It seemed you two were more similar than you expected.

“Let's go deliver the flour then, together.” You smile shyly, attempting to lighten the mood. “Before we do though.. Let's make a trade.” You take the forgotten sunflower Soobin had been holding the entire time and hold it to your chest. “You can give me this, and I’ll give you your flour.”

Your voice is warm and oh-so-sweet to Soobin’s ears. He was so used to hearing you speak in your ‘customer service’ voice that being able to have you finally speak to him, and only him, in that gentle tone that made his legs turn to jelly and his heart thump ever so harder.

“Deal.” Soobin smiles and he takes the sunflower from your hand. He gently places the sunflower behind your ear, pushing back a strand of your hair at the same time and your eyes meet once again. His eyes were mesmerizing, almost as if they were pulling you closer. You didn’t even realize how close in proximity you two were now.

Soobin closes the gap between you both, your lips finally connecting for the first time. Your plush lips are soft against his and it’s everything Soobin could have imagined and more. The kiss isn’t perfect– with teeth slightly clashing every few seconds and you giggling in excitement. Both your lips were slightly chapped from the summer heat and the conversation you just had. It didn’t matter to either of you though.

It was summer when Soobin met you for the time, with cheeks flushed and shy lingering gazes. He smiles, dimples on full display at the thought as he stares up into the sinking sun in the distance as you both head towards the festival.

It’s also summer when the two of you confess and share your first kiss. Soobin comes to realize that summer might just be his favorite season. After all, over the years nothing has ever changed, besides the feelings he’s had all this time now growing ever stronger. And of course, breaking the curse of forever being just the clumsy boy who visited you.

#BakeryTreat♡#txt scenarios #txt imagines #txt x reader #txt fluff #soobin scenarios #soobin imagines #soobin x reader #soobin fluff #soobin x y/n #divider by lovwoung

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hungryistrying · 1 month ago

Text

santa, santa why do you hate me

summary:

So there he stood, severely out of breath with oil stains clinging to his shirt, sweat uncomfortably cooling his skin, and his socks soaked with melted snow. All that for a train that wasn’t riding anyway, for a Christmas party he didn’t really want to attend, and for one girl he’d been dying to see for months who would (allegedly) be there. If god gives his silliest battles to his funniest of clowns, then Ekko now considered himself the fucking court jester.

In which Ekko is down bad and Jinx doesn't really like Christmas parties.

rating: teen

word count: 7460

status: completed

crossposted to ao3

Tagalog Christmas music spills out from beneath the front door and onto the frosty pavement, where Ekko stands, waiting for someone to open up already. The music is so loud he can clearly make out the words even while outside (not that he understands any of it, all he knows is a few cusses Zeri uses so often even he's managed to pick them up).

The cheer of the holiday season affects even the deepest, grungiest levels of the undercity. Decorations linger outside nearly every row house on Zeri’s street, and fairy lights are strung up all over the lanes, the colors setting the snow-white streets aglow.

Even the weather must be in on the festivities, it started snowing three weeks ago and simply never stopped. This would be Ekko's first white Christmas in years. He might’ve appreciated the aesthetic, had he not been out in the snow for well over an hour by now.

Man, he hates the cold.

Heaving a tired sigh – his breath fogging in front of his face from the chill – he impatiently knocks on the door again, hoping somebody will open up already.

Feeling more and more restless, he taps his foot to the music while he waits, trying (and probably failing) to stop scowling. All things considered though, Ekko thinks he’s pretty justified in the fact that he’s pissed and exhausted now that he's finally made it to Zeri's party.

Luck was not on his side trying to get here. Then again, it never is so what's new? It hadn't started off too bad. After all, Benzo is a good guy and had been fine with letting Ekko leave the store early for the evening.

"It's colder than a polar bear's toenail outside," Benzo explained, inspecting a newly pawned antique for its value. "If you don't leave early, you might miss your bus."

But well, the holiday season was busy, even for a hole-in-the-wall shop such as Benzo's, and Ekko was pretty much his only employee (unofficially at that, but as long as he got paid he wasn't complaining). He couldn't just leave the old man to run the shop by himself on one of the busiest days of the year.

Plus, the money was good on Christmas Eve. Dumb Pilties always paid too much, but they were especially easy to overcharge when in a rush to buy a last-minute Christmas gift.

He checked his pocket watch for the time. Alright, he might not make it to Zeri's house on time by bus anymore, but he should’ve been faster if he took the train and then cut through the backstreets (and also much more likely to get stabbed with a shiv but fuck it, not the worst risk he’s taken).

But apparently, Santa just hated his guts. That's the only explanation for the series of unfortunate events that unfolded next.

The first incident was a rookie mistake. Ekko had been struggling to fix a broken pipe while simultaneously juggling a sudden rush of customers, so he'd tried to get the job done as quickly as possible to focus on all the incoming buyers.

But he'd done the job too quickly, sloppily even. He'd only just finished twisting the final cog into place when the pipe sprang, sending oil flying all over him in the process.

"Shit!" he'd cursed, frantically covering the burst pipe to keep the leak contained. It was about as effective as putting a bandaid on a gunshot wound.

"Ekko, what in the bloody hell happened?" Benzo demanded, stepping away from the cash register to assess the damage he'd done.

"My bad, Benzo." Ekko grimaced, reaching for all the paper towels he had on hand to cover the leak. "I'll have this fixed in no time, don't worry."

The old man sighed but nodded, "Alright, you just head out now after fixing this mess," before heading back to the counter to help the line of waiting customers.

Ekko eventually fixed the pipe and cleaned up the remaining mess. Too bad it had taken thirty more minutes than he had intended it to.

When he'd finally made it to the second floor of the shop, he looked down at himself with a grimace. His work overalls had saved his jeans from the damage, but his shirt had not been so lucky. Of course this had to fucking happen when he didn't have any more spare clothes left in the shop.

He looked down at his pocket watch again to calculate how much time he had left. The next train was coming in ten minutes, if he got there quickly he should be able to catch it.

"Alright, I'm out, Benzo," Ekko said, his attention caught between wrestling to properly zip up his jacket and not tripping down the stairs. "Merry Christmas!" he called over his shoulder as he exited the shop.

He wasn’t even sure if Benzo had replied with how fast he was out of the door. Ekko raced his way down the street, grimacing when snow slipped into the gaps of his beat-up sneakers, but he refused to slow down in the slightest.

All this for a Christmas party he actually intended to skip…

Christmas parties weren’t really Ekko’s thing– not when this was the one night of the year his parents were guaranteed to have time off. But Zeri had been harassing him to go for weeks now. He had dodged every invitation until she sent him one damning text message that changed his mind.

⚡️ Z BTW I invited your girlfriend You Who? Oh 😐 Jinx is not my girlfriend stop playing ⚡️ Z LOLOL but you still knew who I meant~ Ayy will you show up or not We’re gonna do karaoke you have to be there! You Alright sheesh Now get off my case already ⚡️ Z HAHAHAHA I KNEW YOUD SAY YES See you then 😁

Ekko couldn’t even find it in him to deny what Zeri was implying, embarrassing as it was. Because, yeah, that was all it took for him to skip out on spending Christmas Eve with his parents for the first time in his life. But he hadn’t seen Jinx in months so sue him, alright?

By the time Ekko made it to the station his lungs felt like they were on fire, sweat uncomfortably clinging to his skin beneath his padded parka. It was then that this evening went from mildly unlucky to absolute shit.

All the trains had been canceled due to bad weather conditions.

If god gives his silliest battles to his funniest of clowns, then Ekko now considered himself the fucking court jester.

So that was that then, no more trains were riding for the evening and the next bus wouldn’t arrive for another forty-five minutes.

Ekko heaved a tired sigh and looked at the snow-coated streets ahead of him. It would take an hour to walk to Zeri's house from here, but it'd still be faster than getting there by bus (assuming the bus wouldn't face delays too).

He was about to make the long trek when he realized the road below the station had been cleared for safety. Ekko reached for his skateboard, pressed between his back and backpack. If he stuck to the side of the road, he probably wouldn’t get hit by a car. After all, there’s no way his luck was that bad.

Good news: His luck was indeed not that bad, seeing as he didn’t get hit by any cars.

Bad news: It was still pretty damn bad because one of the wheels broke off his skateboard and he fell face-first onto the sidewalk. At least the snow broke his fall.

With a groan, he stood up, plucking his injured pride and broken skateboard off the ground. Fine, he could take a cosmic hint. He’d just fucking walk there.

And so, Ekko had no choice but to trek all the way to Zeri’s house on foot. At least going through the city’s back alleys had cut his time down from an hour and three minutes to just forty-nine minutes.

Plus, he didn’t get stabbed with a shiv this time, so that had to count for something.

The door swings open and Zeri stands before him, dressed appropriately for the season in what might possibly be the ugliest Christmas sweater he’s ever seen. The pine green monstrosity reads “I’m sexy and I snow it”, depicting a reindeer holding a blunt of all things. She’s even wearing a pair of fluffy antlers on her head to complete the look.

“Didn’t know this was an ugly sweater party,” he deadpans. He would laugh to show that he's just messing around, but unfortunately, he doesn’t quite have enough holiday cheer left for all that.

Her grin transforms into a scowl. “Yeah, Merry Christmas to you too, dude.” She greets him by smacking him across the back, much harder than necessary but he supposes that’s his own fault. “Honestly, I called you like five times! Thought you weren’t gonna show. ”

“Almost didn’t." He sighs, removing his gloves and shrugging off his backpack and coat before finding an empty hanger to leave them on, his broken skateboard leaned sadly against the wall. “Had to miss out on my ma’s Christmas roast this year to be here.”

“Aww man,” Zeri whines. “You should’ve gone anyway and shown up later with some leftovers for me.”

He rolls his eyes, sarcastically quipping, "My bad, you can always try leeching me for food next year."

"I'll hold you to that," she laughs, before pausing when she sees the state Ekko is in. She makes a face at his disheveled appearance. "Oi, what the hell happened to you? Did someone jump you?"

"Ironically enough, that's the one thing that hasn't happened to me today." He takes off his shoes with a grimace, his socks still soaked. "It's a long story. You happen to have anything I can borrow?”

Zeri sighs, patting his shoulder and gesturing for him to follow her up the staircase. “Come on then, I’m sure tatay has some clothes lying around that’ll fit you.”

After handing Ekko a sweater and a pair of clean socks, she leaves him to get changed in the bathroom. “Just come downstairs when you’re ready.”

Ekko doesn't hesitate to change his socks first, breathing a sigh of relief now that his feet are finally free from their gross, soggy prison. He then takes advantage of the hairdryer hanging on the wall to dry the insides of his poor sneakers.

When he finally gets a good look at the sweater Zeri's picked from, he can't help but cringe. The damn thing is bright red: a Rudolph sweater complete with a fluffy red nose sewn onto it. Tacky as hell, but at least now he knows it runs in the family.

Oh well, beggars can’t be choosers. He pulls his shirt over his head, tugging on the ugly (and itchy, great) sweater instead.

When he finally makes his way back downstairs, embarrassing Christmas sweater and all, he barely has time to set aside his shoes and stuff his things into his backpack, before he’s startled by an excited scream.

“Ekko!” He whips his head back to see Kay jogging over to him, excitedly waving her hands as if he would somehow miss her. It's harder not to notice Kay wherever she goes, she’s a walking ball of energy. “Finally made it, did ya? Shomi and I have been waiting for an hour already!”

“Good to see you, Kay.” He chuckles, allowing his friend to drag him further into the living room. Ekko blindly follows her, letting his eyes wander over the room.

The house is decked out with a dizzying array of ornaments. Reds, greens, and golds practically envelop the open kitchen and living room. And man, Zeri invited a lot of people. The living room and kitchen are packed with folks from all over their neighborhood, merrily chatting over the Christmas music playing in the background.

The one person Ekko is actually hoping to spot, however, doesn't seem to be among them.

He tries to mask his disappointment, but he must not be very successful since Shomi just raises a curious brow upon his approach and says, “What? Not happy to see us?”

“Of course I am,” he assures, extending his hand to dap them up. “Merry Christmas, Shomi.”

“I'd say it back, but something tells me it hasn't been very merry for you.” They squint at Ekko, before continuing, “Let me guess, you broke your board again?”

“...Maybe.”

“I knew it.” Shomi sighs. “Dude, you have got to start treating your board with more love.”

“What? I treat my board with plenty of love!” Ekko insists, affronted. “It's not my fault shit just happens to me.”

“Alright, we get it,” Kay interjects. “Your life is like a Looney Tunes episode and there’s nothing you can do about it. Onto more important matters, let me tell you guys about this awesome project I started working on!”

Ekko fondly rolls his eyes as Kay goes on her tangent. The trip to this party might've been awful, but maybe it's not all bad if he gets to see all his friends in one place again.

Between college classes and part-time work, it's becoming harder and harder for them all to spend time together like they used to. Their high school days are officially behind them, and with them, so are the days when they see each other constantly, just to hang out some more after school.

His heart twinges as he thinks about one particular person who that rings true for.

Then, like Santa has decided to bless him with one Christmas miracle in exchange for his suffering, he sees something from the corner of his eye. Something blue.

Ekko doesn't think he's ever turned his head so fast, his breath catching in his throat when he realizes that it’s not just a trick of the light. He’s really seeing Jinx.

She's buried herself as far back in the kitchen as she can, sitting slumped behind one of the counters with her eyes cast downward to the cup in her hands, playing with her straw.

Whenever someone gets in her vicinity, her head sharply snaps up, staring the person down until they back away, before she returns her attention to that cup. Ekko can't help but chuckle under his breath at the sight.

He doesn't know how long he's been staring, but it must’ve been too long since he nearly jumps out of his skin when he feels an arm – Zeri's, who he hadn't even noticed approaching – slinging over his shoulder.

“Ekko, pare,” Zeri sighs, nodding her head towards Jinx, “you ever gonna make a move, or will you just keep being a chicken about it?”

“Oh, give him a break,” Kay speaks up before he can even retort. “You know those two having to be apart for months is basically ignoring a ‘Do Not Separate’ warning. Like you and Seraphine!”

Zeri laughs along to Kay's words before she bristles at the last sentence. “What?! I don't even like Seraphine!”

“Oh,” Shomi starts, raising a skeptical eyebrow, “is that why you kept whining in the group chat when she said she couldn't come to this party?”

“I…I invited her to be polite, okay! If anything, I'm glad she picked her stupid recital over my party.”

Ekko has to clench his jaw to stifle the laughter that threatens to burst from him at the incredulous looks Kay and Shomi exchange at Zeri's paper-thin defense.

It's not enough to spare him from Zeri's wrath, however, since she spins her head in Ekko's direction anyway and demands, “What? You got something to say too?”

He holds his hands up in defense. “Hey, I'm staying out of this.” Unfortunately, his voice shakes in amusement, which isn't helping him sell his case.

Realizing it's three-against-one, Zeri switches tactics and starts pushing Ekko toward the kitchen– Shit, towards Jinx, he realizes.

“Doesn’t matter, I'm sick of having to deal with you being all sad and mopey so just go talk to her!” He nearly trips over his feet as he gets pushed deeper into the kitchen.

He freezes. Fuck, what should he even say? They haven't seen each other since graduation– When Jinx told him she was moving away to be with Vi again. Months have passed since and Ekko still hasn't been able to stop thinking about the look on her face when she told him.

That carefully neutral expression, like she has to hide and pretend to be something else in front of him of all people; the far-away look in her eyes as she told him in an eerily calm voice, her face momentarily shuttering when he questioned “To Piltover ?” before she slid that mask back on.

He couldn't understand. Ekko and Jinx made fun of topside together; they didn't make plans to start living there.

But he did understand how much Vi meant to Jinx (hell, Vi meant a lot to him too) and he could see how she started picking at the skin of her nails; how she refused to even look him in the eye from where they sat beside each other– tucked close together behind the bleachers, hidden away from the rest of the world.

So he hid his own apprehension for her sake and forced a smile on his face as he covered her hand with his and said, “I'm happy for you.”

She gripped his hand back. Tight. Then relaxed her grip when she finally looked at him, her eyes wide and nervous. “We'll…still meet up, alright?” Her voice strained as she joked, “You're not getting rid of me that easy, mister.”

How Ekko wishes that had been true. He tried not to hold it against her, tried not to overthink and wonder whether or not she did it on purpose. But resentment still ended up growing somewhere low in the pit of his stomach.

They texted, they called, they made plans that they ended up canceling– sometimes Jinx, sometimes Ekko, but mostly Jinx.

And now he’s here, attending the same Christmas party as her– Because of her. And though he really shouldn't be, because they're still best friends at the end of it all, he's nervous as hell.

He forces his legs to move, getting closer and closer to her. She doesn’t seem to notice, her gaze having trailed off into the distance. He follows it and realizes she's looking at…a mistletoe?

Ekko frowns. He hadn't even noticed there was one until now. It inconspicuously hangs near a window far back in the living room, yet Jinx is glaring daggers at it, as if the plant had spit in her face and set her house on fire.

Well, that seems as good of a conversation starter as any. He takes a deep breath, trying his best to keep his voice light and amused as he asks, “Are you gonna beat the shit out of that mistletoe?”

She flinches, wide-eyed as she whips her head around to look up at him. “Ekko?”

She shoots to her feet, and before Ekko realizes what's happening, she's closed the space between them, her arms wrapped around his middle and her head resting on his shoulder.

Hugging her back isn't so much a decision as it is instinct, his arms wrapping around her before he can think twice about it. Her cheek feels startlingly cold pressed against the exposed skin of his neck. The shock of it must be why his heart skips a beat and he ends up shivering.

He buries his head in the crook of her neck, breathing her in. She smells like lavender shampoo and grease oil, the combination strange, but so uniquely Jinx that it makes Ekko's heart squeeze in his chest.

Then, just as suddenly as she hugged him, she pulls away. Ekko blinks, struggling to reorient himself now that she’s no longer in his space. It’s stupid really, he's gone five months without her in his space, but just like that, he’d gone and forgotten already.

“Sheesh, you scared me,” she awkwardly laughs, picking her cup off the floor and putting it on the counter. She’s staring at that cup again, shutting him out the way she would anyone else. Ekko tries to ignore the twinge of hurt he feels at that.

“So,” she suddenly starts, hand jutting forward to flick at the Rudolph nose on his sweater, “what brings you here anyway?”

You did, he thinks. And she's finally looking at him again, smiling even, but something about it feels off– restrained compared to her usual unapologetic grins, or those softer smiles that slip out when she lets her guard down.

“Zeri invited me. Thought it'd be nice to see all my friends in one place again.” He shrugs, leaning against the counter with feigned indifference. “...What about you?”

She props her head up with her hands, eyes wandering over the living room before she responds, “This beats the stupid party Vi and her Piltie girl are throwing.”

Suddenly, she rolls her eyes and groans. Confused, Ekko looks over his shoulder to see the cause– And nearly groans himself when he catches Zeri whip her head around, pretending to be fascinated by the baubles in the Christmas tree.

“Well, it barely beats a stinkin’ Piltie party,” she continues.

He laughs. “That bad?”

“Please, Caitlyn is just…peak Piltie! The most condescending, stuck-up bitch I've ever met!” She spins to him, irritation pinching her face. “But then, every time I call her out on it, Vi goes all ‘You know she doesn't mean it like that, Pow’ or ‘Just try and get along for me, please’ and then I end up being the bad guy. Un-fucking-believable.”

She lets out a deep sigh, her anger seeming to drain from her with it, leaving only weariness in its wake. “I am trying...” She's picking at her cuticles. Ekko's not even sure she realizes. “It's the only reason I’m living topside and going to a stupid Piltie college.”

He covers her hand with his, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I know you are.”

The touch is meant to be comforting, but somehow the contact is electric. Their eyes meet again, and Ekko pulls away as if burned. At the same time, Jinx opens her mouth as if to speak, and he immediately regrets pulling away when she never does.

The silence that follows feels damning, impossible to break. Ekko hates it. Silences between him and Jinx are supposed to feel comfortable, not…awkward. When did things get awkward between them?

Jinx's attention is starting to wander, eyes darting around the room as she starts fiddling with that damn straw again. But Ekko didn't get this far after not seeing her for nearly half a year, just to fumble here.

His mind scrambles, searching for anything to latch onto to revive the conversation when he remembers “So what's with you and that mistletoe?”

For a moment, Jinx looks confused, as if she doesn’t know what he means. Then recognition lights her face before she scoffs and says, “Nothing. Zeri was just being annoying.”

“About a mistletoe?” Ekko frowns, puzzled but curious to learn how Zeri managed to get on her nerves this time.

Jinx doesn’t answer for a moment. And she looks like she’s…blushing? Unless it’s just a trick of the light. The red-green lights strung up around the house are making it hard to tell. Either way, now he’s very curious to know what Zeri did.

“...It doesn't matter, okay?” she eventually grumbles. “This party sucks anyway.”

It’s clear she’s done talking about this, so rather than push his luck, Ekko shrugs and attempts to lighten the mood. “At least there's karaoke.”

It doesn’t seem to be very effective. Jinx still looks like a grumpy, wet cat. “Hm, you don't say.” Then her eyes light up, the way they tend to when she has a mad idea. She turns to him with a mischievous grin. “And you're singing too?”

Ekko has a bad feeling about this, but nonetheless, he cautiously confirms “Yes?”

“Wanna do me a favor, boy savior?” He curiously hums so she'll continue. “Buy me some time by picking the longest song you can find.”

He gives her an unimpressed look, even though she’s clearly piqued his interest and they both know it. “Do I want to know what you’re planning?”

“Don’t worry your pretty little head over it, ‘kay?” She flicks the red nose on his sweater again, like she can’t help herself. “Just open the door for me when I drop you a text, I gotta run an errand real quick. Be back in fifteen minutes, give or take.”

Before he can so much as answer, she rushes off to the front door. She already has her coat on when she pauses, sprints back to him, and asks, “By the way – completely unrelated to this errand – the breaker box thingy is in the same spot as in your house, right?”

He squints, considering for a moment. “...For the sake of staying out of this, I’m not answering that question.”

She grins and snaps her fingers anyway. “I’ll take that as a yes, thank you very much! See you in a bit.” With that, she goes back to pulling on her boots and then she’s out the door.

Around thirty minutes later (not that Ekko’s surprised, Jinx has always had terrible time management skills) he gets a text from Jinx, asking him to open the door for her. He slips away as subtly as he can – which isn't much of a challenge since Kay and Shomi are too engrossed talking about potential board mods to notice his absence – to open the door for her.

She quickly scurries inside, her face is flushed from the cold but it doesn't seem to affect her mood at all. Jinx is grinning from ear to ear…and hiding her hands behind her back rather suspiciously.

As if on queue, Zeri’s voice rings from the living room, making them both whip their head in her direction. “Alright, who’s singing next?!” she shouts, while everyone encouragingly cheers on the person who just finished performing.

Jinx turns back to him with a conspiratorial grin. “So, wanna do me that favor?”

Ekko pretends to contemplate it for a moment, just to watch her squirm a little, before he sighs and answers, “I’m still staying out of this narrative, though.”

“Whatever you say, buster!” She ungracefully kicks off her boots, before shooting him a smile that makes his stomach do a funny flip. “But thanks, I owe ya one.”

Ekko shuffles over to the living room while Jinx runs off to do….whatever she’s planning to do. He taps Zeri on the shoulder, gesturing for the karaoke mic in her hand. “Mind if I give it a go?”

“Finally!” Zeri cheers, blissfully unaware that she’s talking to Jinx’s partner in (probable) crime. She leans away from the mic, and asks under her breath, “So you finally make a move or what?”

He just scowls at her. Ekko has a stinging suspicion he might know how Zeri annoyed Jinx after all. “Just give me the damn mic.”

She holds her hands up in defense but concedes and backs away after handing him the karaoke microphone.

Ekko scrolls down Zeri’s catalog of karaoke songs, keeping Jinx's words in mind as he does. All the songs range from two to four minutes until he spots the one: Some ten-minute rendition of a Taylor Swift song.

…He can already feel the headache forming. Jinx better make this worth his time ‘cause he's about to belt it out to White Girl McGee music just for her. Ekko doesn't even understand why Zeri of all people would put that song in here, but if he had to guess, he'd assume this was Seraphine's doing somehow.

He’s about halfway through the song – struggling to match the rhythm of the lyrics since he’s only ever heard this song involuntarily through pop radio stations – when he sees Jinx appear in the living room out of the corner of his eye, her coat still on.

She’s biting her lip, clearly trying not to laugh at him. Zeri and Shomi have long given up, the latter having pulled out their cell phone to film Ekko, no doubt to make fun of him until he’s in his grave. Ekko ignores them all and just focuses on performing the song as best he can.

…Just because he doesn’t like the song doesn’t mean he’s about to fumble his performance, okay?

The music comes to an abrupt halt when the power goes out and darkness falls over the room. No one reacts for a moment, and then quiet, confused murmurs fill the room.

Until a strange rippling sound suddenly cuts through it.

Someone turns on their phone flashlight, pointing it around the room to try and locate the strange sound. Ekko frowns – needing a moment to put down the microphone in the dark – before he turns his head to the source of the noise, now revealed by the flashlight.

There’s a living toad strung to the ceiling with a toy missile tied to its back.

Everyone just stares, flabbergasted.

Then the damn thing ribbits again and panic ensues, screams erupting all around the room.

Before Ekko can even react, he feels something– no, someone tug on his arm in the darkness. He turns his head to see Jinx shushing him and pulling away from all the noise – while Zeri frantically tries to prevent one of her aunties from trying to bat the poor toad with a broomstick.

“Where did you–” he starts as quietly as he can, before Jinx interrupts him by tossing his shoes at him.

“Not now, space boy,” she hisses, opening the front door once he’s finished lacing up his sneakers. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

Ekko races to zip up his parka and pull on his gloves against the stinging cold. He barely has time to grab his backpack before Jinx pulls him along by his hand and drags him out of the house.

He nearly trips over his own feet, before he catches himself and runs with her. Ekko’s not even sure why they’re running, but when she looks at him over her shoulder – face flushed and eyes shining brighter than any Christmas light in the world, with that stupid, shit-eating grin that makes him a little too weak-kneed for his own good – he finds he doesn’t really care anyway.

They finally slow to a stop when they’re six blocks away from Zeri’s street. Ekko’s lungs feel like they’re on fire and the laughter that bursts from him isn’t helping matters at all. It’s just that, when he stops to think about it, everything about this situation is so stupid and so…Jinx.

“A–” he gasps for air, finally coming down from his amusement long enough to string a sentence together. “A fucking frog?”

“A toad, actually. A missile toad, I’ll have you know,” she says matter-of-factly, still grinning much too proudly for such a cheesy prank.

Ekko has so many questions, but knowing Jinx, she won’t answer any of them. Still, he has to ask “How did you even have time to turn off the power while hanging that thing up?”

“A magician never reveals her secrets!” she predictably answers, before pausing and adding, “Also I slipped a kid ten dollars so they’d do it for me on queue.”

He shakes his head in disbelief. “You’re so ridiculous.”

“Yeah, ridiculously funny,” she corrects, playfully glaring at him.

“Yeah right.” He scoffs but there’s no heat behind it, instead, he’s smiling so wide that his cheeks are beginning to hurt. It’s been so long since he’s seen her, that he almost forgot that being around her makes him feel like this.

He squeezes her hand in his. The action is instinctual, a habit more than anything– he’s always reaching for her in some way, and so is she.

Except for this time, apparently, because she pulls her hand away as if burned and doesn’t look in his direction as she mutters, “We, uh, should keep walking…There’s some stupid Christmas market by the bridge we can check out.”

“Oh. Yeah. Sure.” Ekko tries to swallow his disappointment, but it’s not working, so he just keeps his eyes trained on the ground, watching their footsteps in the snow as he walks alongside Jinx.

The silence that falls over them feels as daunting as the physical space between them, but he doesn’t feel inclined to break it this time. How can they feel so far apart even when they’re walking right beside each other?

With his head downturned, it takes Ekko a moment to notice that Jinx has stopped walking, but eventually, he realizes her footsteps stop appearing beside his.

He blinks and turns around to see her standing frozen on the spot, hands tugging at the hem of her leather bomber as she frowns at him. He raises a curious eyebrow at the sight and is about to question what she’s doing when she finally speaks up.

“Alright,” she starts, marching to stand before him and crossing her arms, “what’s with your hot and cold attitude the whole evening?”

I could ask you the same thing, he thinks, instead he just frowns. “My what?”

“You heard me!” She scowls. “One moment you're happy to see me and then you're all mister Grumpy Pants. What gives?”

“Jinx.” He lets out a frustrated sigh and turns to look at her. She squirms under his gaze, and that just makes Ekko feel worse, but he’s tired of bottling this up. “Are we seriously just gonna pretend we both don't know exactly why that is?”

“I..” she trails off, worrying her lower lip between her teeth, “I'm not really sure?”

“Really?” Ekko asks, exasperated. “Were you not sure every time you blew me off either?”

“Wha– You blew me off too!” she argues.

“That's different! I actually couldn't go when I canceled.”

She scoffs. “And you think I didn't?!”

She looks so affronted that it shuts Ekko up, leaving him scratching the back of his head in frustration. He’s such an idiot, always letting his temper get the best of him. Now he’s gone and ruined things and doesn’t know what to say to fix this. Nothing makes him more uneasy than a problem he can’t solve.

It seems Jinx doesn't know what to say either, she just stares down at the ground, toeing shapes in the snow with the tip of her boot.

“I just…” she trails off with a sigh. “I don’t know.”

“Yeah,” he rasps, “me neither, I guess.”

“...Hey, do you–” She tentatively looks up at him. “Do you want to have a snowball fight?”

He blinks. Then he barks out a laugh, utterly taken aback by her suggestion. “A snowball fight?”

“Yeah…Yeah, why not?” Jinx looks a little more self-assured now, grabbing his arm and dragging him to a corner of the street where the snow is piled high, having remained untouched by passersby. “Come on, it’ll be fun!”

Something eases in his chest at her childlike giddiness, and he can’t help but huff an amused breath as he teases, “What? You gonna start crying again if I toss one at your head?”

She scowls at him again, but there’s no heat behind it this time. “Nope, definitely gonna laugh when you slip and fall on your ass again though.”

“Yeah, that’s not happening.”

He rushes to kneel down and scoop up a wad of snow after he sees Jinx do the same. She’s disgustingly fast, Ekko’s barely formed a ball by the time she’s already tossing one at his head, forcing him to dodge.

“We’ll see about that, mister!”

“Oh, it’s on!”

For a moment, it’s like they’re little kids again, sneaking out when Vander isn’t paying attention to play in the snow together. All their hurt and complications melt away just like the flecks of fallen snow on his face. Ekko wishes he could stop time so he could just enjoy this moment forever. Or that he could bottle up this happiness and keep it in his pocket for the rest of his life.

However, as it has all evening, the weather cares little for his plight. Cold and unforgiving, the snow keeps falling on them, until eventually, the chill is too biting for them to goof around any longer.

They’re giggling like children when they fall into step beside each other again, their arms brushing against each other with every step. Ekko feels so warm and giddy, he finds he doesn’t care all that much about the cold anymore.

From the corner of his eye, he catches Jinx cupping her hands close to her face, blowing air on them.

Ekko curiously frowns. “You don’t have gloves?”

“No,” she rubs the palms of her hands together in an attempt to warm them up, “I just did my nails. Wasn't about to ruin them with some stinky gloves.”

Ekko rolls his eyes, setting a hand on her shoulder to stop her in her tracks. “Here,” he removes one of his gloves, reaching for her hand so he can carefully slide it on, “you have tiny ass hands anyway, so these won’t ruin your precious manicure.”

She scoffs, “My hands are not tiny! Yours are just stupidly big.” He shakes his head with a chuckle at her ridiculous argument. “...But thanks," she finishes, bumping her shoulder against his own.

As they begin to walk again, he can’t help but glance down at their ungloved hands. And then he’s nervous all over again. Because Ekko honestly isn’t sure if his heart can take another hit, should she pull away from his touch again.

He hesitates for another moment, before deciding to bite the bullet anyway. Tentatively, Ekko reaches for her hand with his own now-ungloved hand, pulling both into his pocket.

When Jinx whips her head in his direction, his eyes flicker in her direction, but at her wide-eyed, confused expression, he quickly finds himself glancing away again.

He clears his throat and fights to remain straight-faced despite the building awkwardness, as he explains, “Just so our hands don’t get cold, you know?”

“Oh.” From the corner of his eye, he sees her sharply nod. “Right…That makes sense.”

Despite Ekko’s concerns – and both their refusal to look each other in the eye – neither of them let go. Her hand feels ice-cold in his but that only spurs him to hold her hand tighter, trying to give her as much of his warmth as he can.

It’s all he focuses on, even when they finally approach the bridge separating Zaun from Piltover. Just as Jinx said, a Christmas market is in full swing on the bridge. Stalls selling trinkets and treats are set up across the entire length of it.

But none of the ornaments and decorations are as pretty as Jinx’s smile as she curiously peers at them all; and no hot beverage could ever warm him the way her hand in his does, her fingers intertwined with his.

When Jinx finally tires of window-shopping (he honestly wasn’t paying attention, watching her was much more fascinating) he offers to buy them hot chocolate, while she goes to find them a seat ⁠— an empty bench beneath an overhang.

“Thanks,” she says, as he hands her the carton cup.

She tries to play it off, but Ekko can see the way she lights up with delight upon spotting the large dollop of whipped cream he requested the vendor put in her drink.

With an amused huff, he shrugs off his backpack and sets it down on the edge of the bench, before sitting down beside her. The bench is frigid beneath them, it urges him to slide closer to Jinx, just ever-so-slightly.

But it’s enough to press their thighs together, and Ekko needs a moment so he can focus on the heat radiating from the cup in his hands rather than that point of contact.

The hustle and bustle of the marketplace has started to die down as time drags on. Ekko feels restless as he watches everyone go their separate ways⁠ — families heading home with giggling children in tow, teenagers conspiring where they should go next, vendors working together to close up and disassemble their stands ⁠— while the snow continues to fall from the sky like powdered sugar, further blanketing the white streets.

“Jinx, I, uh,” Ekko starts, setting his untouched hot chocolate aside, “I just wanna say I’m sorry. You know, for what I said earlier.”

“Oh.” At the sound of her voice, he glances at her. She’s smiling at him, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “Were you still worrying about that?”

He attempts to laugh, but a humorless sigh is all he manages. “I’m trying to be serious here, you know.”

“I know.” The pad of her thumb idly traces the rim of her empty cup. “It’s just…You were kinda right–” She winces and stammers, “I mean– Shit– No, you weren’t right. I wasn’t ditching you on purpose, it was more like…”

“Like you just…gave up?” he fills in when she never continues.

She frowns, eyes flickering up to look at him. Ekko doesn’t think he could look away even if he tried. “Yeah. I guess I did.”

“Me too,” he confesses. “I think I let my frustration get to me, when really…I just missed you.”

She takes a sharp breath and Ekko’s eyes are drawn to the parting of her lips like a moth to a flame. He moves in closer, just ever-so-slightly, then Jinx suddenly looks away, startling him.

“Oh– Hold on, I just gotta…” She starts rummaging through her pockets, the sudden, frantic movement breaking whatever spell he’d been under. “There!” She triumphantly pulls out–

“A mistletoe?” he questions dumb-founded, eyeing the plant that Jinx apparently just had on her person the entire time.

“Well, yeah. Would be a waste to just throw it away.” She twirls the stem between her fingers, raising her arm so it hangs between them. Ekko thinks his heart might actually beat out of his chest. “I…don’t have to explain what this is, right?”

He can barely hear what she’s saying anymore, focusing on her mouth again; on the curve of her cupid’s bow, which he’s a little too familiar with; on her teeth, with that cute little gap, which traps the slight pout of her lower lip.

He swallows, his voice barely audible as he asks, “Are you sure?”

“Ekko?” His eyes flicker back up to hers, now crinkled in amusement, but there’s something softer there too ⁠— something that puts him at ease. “Just kiss me already.”

And that’s really all he needed to hear. He slowly leans in, waiting to see if she’ll change her mind, instead, she closes her eyes and meets him halfway.

The first press of her mouth is chaste, soft. Then she pulls away, but only for a moment, before she angles her head to lean in for another kiss.

She tastes sweet ⁠— like chocolate and cream and that plum lip balm she always wears ⁠— and Ekko finds himself desperate for more, feelings he’s held back for so long spilling out from him and into the kiss. He raises his hand to cup her cheek, her skin soft and cold beneath his palm, and gently tilts her head so he can deepen the kiss.

Then she suddenly pulls back from him, their lips parting with a wet smack. “Oh! Don’t tell Zeri about this. She’d never let me hear the end of it.”

Ekko blinks for a moment, processing her words, then he just groans, “Jinx, I could not give two fucks about Zeri right now.”

His words startle a bewildered laugh from her, and Ekko smothers the sound with his mouth when he leans back in to kiss her again, and again, and again.

She’s still smiling into the kiss as she wraps her arms around his neck, and Ekko’s pretty sure she just dropped the mistletoe on his head. He finds himself smiling back, and then they’re simply reduced to giggling like school kids while stealing kisses from one another.

#timebomb #ekkojinx #ekko #jinx #arcane #league of legends #writing #fanfiction #modern au #christmas fic #hungry posts

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boarloved-art · 29 days ago

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trust and believe the chaser gang's unofficial coworker christmas parties went crazy. qiren goes home after an hour, xichen immediately decides this is the perfect time to get hammered, guangyao is babysitting, wen qing is losing her mind a little bit, yu ziyuan is fighting between Wanting To Leave and Wanting To Outdrink Wuxian, huaisang and mingjue show up at some point and wuxian is too drunk to remember it - which he DOES weep about when wen qing tells him the next day. they have the worlds most british karaoke session. the buffet features mini sausage rolls, cocktail sausages, and a beautiful array of picky bits. mr brightside is playing for 50% of the event.

#british mdzs #mdzs #wei wuxian #wen qing #yu ziyuan #lan qiren #jin guangyao #lan xichen #mo dao zu shi #sketch #THEEEEEEEEEEEE most self indulgent and speedy doodle in the worlddddddd #yu ziyuan and wei wuxian have their usual beef except ziyuan is a lil chiller than canon. bc there isnt an impending war stressing her out.#and thus she has resolved to destroy him in petty shit like drinking competitions at work parties.#lan wangji also here but its unrelated to the au i just. wnated to redraw him as that tweet #guangyao watching wei wuxian be annoying and drunk: this is a surprise tool thatll help me later #qiren likes his coworkers in moderation like theyre fine. but he doesn't wanna see them in an informal setting where alcohol is present #and thus skedaddles the second hes been around for a polite amount of time #xichens private instagram story is a MESS #wangji taps through it the next day and sees wuxian slaying on the karaoke machine and has to take a walk to calm down.#hes down ATROCIOUS bless him.. a wuxian This Aint A Love Song karaoke insta story killed him.#btw the nies have very different reasons to show up. nmj is here bc hes gay. huaisang is here because he wants to see drunk messy drama #that'll inevitably occur when 3zun talk for more than 5 seconds

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boydepartment · 1 year ago

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@ iluvmygf - profiles: non twitter users losers

description: nishimura riki is a headache to his managers. as much as he loves being an idol and as much as he loves that he gets the freedom to travel. he hates that he can’t show you off. publicly… as himself… so he makes a twitter account called @ iluvmygf at first not a lot of people follow it. it goes unnoticed, for a few weeks. until it doesn’t. his account about you goes viral… and people are nosy as to who loves their gf so much to constantly post about her.

genre: romcom, crack, humor, something fun and lighthearted like a hallmark movie. it’s also set from november-february bc i said so and i want a christmas ark 😋🫶 this is an smau

warnings: cursing, most likely crude humor, probably kms jokes

THE GROUP OF 87- six people + riki who bonded over video games. y/n is someone they treasure. she gives them their little taste of normal… and they have to help y/n with her hw but that’s besides the point she ends up with a 70% anyways

y/n l/n’s instagram!

y/n is not an idol at all. she is only friends with idols now because she lost riki at a party one time. a party she wasn’t even supposed to be at but riki made her go. she is the most dorky and goofy person riki has ever met in his life. but she lets him actually be himself. y/n outside of her idol friends is very reserved, she is horrible at any kind of academic, but could tell you about the lore of every fnaf, chilla’s art, or creepypasta anything.

that’s kai and bahiyyih in the ghost costumes btw😋

soul’s(05) instagram account

soul was y/n’s first friend. he spilled his punch on her at the party where she got lost and he made the fnaf 2 jumpscare noise. y/n and soul instantly hit it off after getting into the lore of the whole five nights at freddy’s franchise… at the party…. in public…. talking about five nights at freddy’s

lily’s (02) instagram account

lily overheard y/n and soul talking about this game at the party and was instantly intrigued. she ended up introducing herself to them and then asking about it. let’s just say lily ended up binging all of matpat’s videos on the fnaf lore.

bahiyyih’s (04) instagram account

y/n and bahiyyih met after the party. soul and lily had to go to their respective groups. however, bahiyyih was all alone. and so was y/n. as any girl would do, y/n approached her. ever since they have been inseparable. both feeling like loners sometimes, they understand eachother. y/n and bahiyyih are best friends- platonic soulmates

kai’s (02) instagram account

y/n met huening kai after she met his sister the best person in the world. they hit it off pretty quickly after y/n was invited to the huening family dinner. kai started talking about how he didn’t understand why on earth anyone would pick link in mariokart and y/n started a WILD debate at the dinner table. it ended up with all the huening siblings + y/n laughing. making y/n an unofficial huening.

beomgyu’s (01) instagram account

y/n met beomgyu through kai. and it was on a day where she wasn’t expecting to meet anyone new, so her outfit consisted of a hoodie that said “i ❤️ monty” and mickey mouse christmas pants. beomgyu eyed her hoodie and went on a tangent about how monty is a sick sadistic freak who deserved to be put in a trash compactor like in monsters inc.

nishimura riki’s (05) instagram account

he BARELY uses his instagram ever. riki is a certified twitter user. however…….. y/n does not have twitter…… so he can’t hype up his gf unless he has instagram….

___

MASTERLIST

taglist- open :)

@yourmomscuntis2tighy @yannew @wzy3ka @stellarpsh @czlluvriki @im-yn-suckers @owotalks @filmofhybe @skepvids @ocyeanicc @amymyli @imsodazed @rikislady @j-wyoung @bangchansbangers @sassyfanlawyergarden @miko1ly @itsactuallylina @haewonluvr @entenen @cb97mylove @jxp1-t3r @ineedaherosavemeenow @str4wb3rizz

comment, dm, send an ask, or reblog to be added :) i try to keep up with tag lists however i get a ton of notifications everyday so please lmk if i forget you

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achaotichuman · 2 months ago

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We're officially in December and what better way to finish off the year than with a month straight of Tamcien content! Everyday for the rest of the year, I'll be posting a variety of Tamcien content, whether that be headcanons, moodboards, drabbles, oneshots or multichapter fics based on the prompt of that day.

"How is that different to your normal content-" Shshhhh it's festive, that's why.

Prompts List below the cut, please feel free to join in! Remember this is all unofficial, just a bit of fun for personal enjoyment. If you do make something (whether that be headcanons, moodboards, drabbles, fics or playlists), tag me so I can add it to my masterlist at the end of the month.

Edit: If you are posting fanfiction to AO3 please add them to the AO3 collection!

Happy Holidays and a (early) Merry Christmas everyone!

Thirty One Days of Tamcien

December 1st: Aftercare

December 2nd: Arranged Marriage AU

December 3rd: Truth or Dare

December 4th: Hanahaki AU

December 5th: First Time

December 6th: Assassin/Victim AU

December 7th: Coffee Shop AU

December 8th: Meeting the parents

December 9th: Mermaid AU

December 10th: The Wedding

December 11th: Flower Shop AU

December 12th: The Beach Episode

December 13th: Omegaverse AU

December 14th: Cuddling and snuggling

December 15th: Zombie Apocalypse AU

December 16th: Marriage of convenience AU

December 17th: One Night Stand

December 18th: Road Trip AU

December 19th: First Kiss

December 20th: Game Night

December 21st: Rivals to lovers

December 22nd: Stuck in an airport at 3am AU

December 23rd: Nightmares

December 24th: Only One Bed

December 25th: Mutual Unrequited Pining

December 26th: “This party’s boring, let’s sneak off together”

December 27th: Makeup Sex

December 30th: Dinner Date

December 31st: Under the mistletoe

Divider by @saradika

#acotar #tamcien #tamlin x lucien vanserra #lucien vanserra x tamlin #lucien vanserra #pro lucien vanserra #tamlin #pro tamlin #a court of thorns and roses #31DaysOfTamcien

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drawingpad-studios · 2 months ago

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I always had the idea of making some cards for Trivia Murder Party, because I really like the game despite me being bad at trivia. And today I finally made them an actual physical thing(for a Christmas gift to my brother). This is the Unofficial Trivia Murder Party Mutilations and Mutations Card Pack. (Possibly Volume 1, Idk)

Basically the idea is that before the game starts your group got to shuffle and deal out the cards randomly and you got to play Trivial Murder Party with whatever the card, that you received, gives you(like for blind you got to play without seeing the tv[or whatever the main part of the game is being shown on], or for Human Bank you got to go for the most money in the mini games and only awnser with money in the non-money mini games).

Might share the pages I made the cards out of somewhere, like Maybe my Ko-fi(but idk about my Kofi because I don't want to possibly get sued even though the cards don't mention Trivia Murder Party in them)

#trivia murder party #jackbox #cards #craft #fanmade cards #art #card pack

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agentnatesewell · 1 month ago

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Beloved Mar, I saw your tags on that post! is there any Suri lore you've been wanting to drop 👀

My dearest PD! Thank you for this ask and thinking of Suri!

As Christmas is right around the corner and it is the holiday season here, I’ve been thinking of Suri Christmas lore

Suri is not religious, and isn’t a follower of any religion (though exposed to several through her life and she appreciates them), Christmas is special to her and mainly for the sense of community and the celebration of it all

Before moving back to Wayhaven, when she lived in Paris, she spent so much time walking through the streets to appreciate the light displays and festivals and going to the Christmas Markets - depending on the year either alone or with a boyfriend or friends who were free

Back to Wayhaven, she reminisced on her childhood celebrations with the Andersons, how magical they made the season. It’s all changed since their passing, and since joining the PD, she and Tina would spend their holiday shifts together, usually around the Cornerstones to take a look at the lights (they’d rank them and assign an unofficial winner, and it wasn’t never Friedman)

However, usually in secret, she’ll walk to the church for the Christmas midnight service, and stand in the foyer. Looking in to observe, feel some sense of togetherness (even if at times she still feels like an outsider) - I imagine that one of these years, Adam witnesses this little excursion

But now! With Nate, and Unit Bravo, she’s going to help decorate a tree for the first time in a long time. And host a holiday party, with Nate. Suri is very excited about this. It will he the first time she’s celebrated with a family structure, at least from the last time she was with the Andersons

Bonus, she’ll get tipsy on eggnog which will be fun

Bonus Bonus, she always kissed someone at might on New Years, and she’s looking forward to kissing Nate every year 🎉

#oh dear this got long!#thank you so much pd! that means so much to me that you asked!#i have thought about this a lot as you can see #oc: surina batra

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collecting-stories · 1 year ago

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Sweet Nothings - Remus Lupin

Request: Remus lupin is so sweet nothing. Please I’m begging 🙏

Summary: Just Remus and the reader being cute and talking about reading aloud, eating toast, and having tea.

A/N: There's a whole paragraph about a backstory that I was going to expand on but then decided against it so now its just sitting there as backstory that goes nowhere lol.

TS Anthology Series | Harry Potter Masterlist

...all that you ever wanted from me was nothing...

Molly was still making the rounds, saying goodbye to everyone and making them each individually promise that, should any trouble arise, they would owl her and Arthur immediately. You were a tad too old for surrogate parents though you couldn't deny the warm feeling that always settled over you at the feeling of a too-tight hug and kiss on the head. Molly had a way of making you feel happy to be coddled instead of annoyed, as you so often found yourself with affection these days.

Everything felt forced and performative and overreaching, like every hug was just you trying to convince yourself that things outside of Grimmuald Place were not what they were. Kingsley passed you in the hallway on his way to the floo, nodding a goodbye as you ignored the staircase and walked into the dining room.

In fifth year you had dated a boy whose family was friends with the Blacks and you'd been to a Christmas party with him here, where you cowered awkwardly in the corner of a room until he snuck you off to the library to make out. At the time you were 15 and Voldemort was dead (or so they claimed) and you had very little exposure to that most noble house of Black and their relatives. Now, in your late twenties, working at the Ministry with Kingsley, you found yourself well-exposed to all the inner-workings of the family drama. Both the Blacks and the Order, and supremely familiar with 12 Grimmuald Place.

"You've got stuck washing up?" You took the short flight of steps down into the kitchen and walked to where Remus was standing over the sink (shirtsleeves rolled to his elbows and suds from the sponge clinging to his hands).

"So it seems," he replied, shutting off the faucet and reaching for the tea towel, wiping his hands dry so he could take a sip of tea from the mug he had sitting beside the sink, "has everyone left?"

"They were when I snuck out," you reached around him, taking the mug and stealing a sip from it, "had to come all the way back here to say goodnight to you."

"Is that what you're doing?" He questioned, taking the mug back.

"It's what I'm pretending to do," you replied.

Your new found familiarity with the Black Family home had everything to do with Remus, who had been staying with his best friend since Mad-Eye and Kingsley had determined the house to be the safest place for Sirius to outlive his fugitive status (and probably for a significant time before that too). The house had become an unofficial gathering for the business of Voldemort's return months prior to the Order's official reinstatement and you had, in all that time, gotten to know the house and it's occupants (Remus in particular) very well.

"It's no use," he held the tea towel out to you, a silent request to dry the dishes he washed, "Molly already knows. Which means everyone else does as well."

"What? How do you know she knows?" You asked. You knew you shouldn't be nearly as surprised as you were by the news, Molly mothered seven children after all. The woman had eyes (and ears) in the back of her head. "Also, why do you insist on washing up the muggle way?"

"It's relaxing." He shrugged, ignoring your other question for the moment.

"Dirty dishes relax you?" You laughed, "you're a very strange man."

"You must be quite strange then as well, seeing as you've chosen to share a bed with me." He said, voice dropping conspiratorially lower, as though he was sharing some kind of secret with you as he leaned in close.

You nudged him away with your elbow, hands full of a plate and the rag you were drying it with. "How did Molly know?"

He shrugged, "I haven't the slightest idea, she came up to me at the last meeting and told me she knew about us. Very accusatory, I might add, as though she had caught me in the act."

"Perhaps she did," you teased, "you're very handsy you know."

"I've never been accused of being handsy before in my life," he replied, "perhaps you're thinking of yourself."

"That must be it," you teased, pinching the bit of skin that appeared just above his slacks as he reached to place some dried plates back in the cupboard. He managed to swat at your hand with his, frowning at you as if you weren't in Sirius' kitchen but in fact back at Hogwarts, some teacher just around the corner waiting to nab you.

"I was going to set a pot for tea if you'd like some," Remus offered, setting the last of the now clean dishes back into their home before moving further down the counter to where the stove sat.

"Depends," you mused, taking the kettle off the stovetop for him and filling it with water.

"Depends," he echoed, "on what?"

"Will you be reading?" You asked.

Peace was hard to come by in a war, even when you were far from the actual fighting. When you'd first moved into Grimmuald Place you felt very much like you were suffocating in the morose silence of the home. There was no peace inside the walls. But then, by a stroke of luck and chronic insomnia, you'd come across Remus in the library, sitting by the fire reading and having a cup of tea. He'd happily made you one and then he read aloud to you and it was the first time since agreeing to help Kingsley and Dumbledore with the Order business (truly the first time since there'd been any inkling of Voldemort's return four years earlier) that you'd felt any semblance of peace.

"Naturally."

You passed off two mugs to him from the cupboard in the far corner. Sirius had 'therapeutically' broken every piece of china that his mother had perserved in the cabinet and replaced them with various (and often truly ridiculous) muggle kitchenware. The mugs you passed on to Remus now were a set that advertised muggle kings and queens of England.

"I read once that Mary Tudor was actually a witch, you know? Her mother apparently was from a pureblood family and it was rather scandalous that she married Henry. It was muggles then, I believe, that Mary was burning at the stake."

"Catherine of Aragon was a pureblood witch? I think you're making things up at this point," you replied, admiring the way the sleeves of his cardigan threatened to fall down over his hands as he worked.

"It's true, or at least the book I read claimed it to be. I've not given it the time to research properly. It also said she killed Arthur," he replied.

"Suppose it said Mary was a slytherin?" You teased.

"Could've been."

"Where's Sirius when I need him to tell you that you're full of shit," you laughed, "off the topic of English royalty though-"

"It's not so impossible to imagine that at least a small portion of the monarchy were witches or wizards." He cut in, insistent to make the point whether he was certain of its validity or not.

"Off the topic," you repeated, stressing the words as best you could, "I've bought you something. And you're talking such nonsense I nearly forgot to give it to you."

"You've bought me something?"

"Yes," you went back to the bag you'd brought that evening, sitting on the chair you'd once been occupying for the meeting, a few non-perishable groceries still sitting inside, and pulled out a container. "It's pumpkin butter, for your toast." You placed the small glass jar on the counter and pushed it toward him.

"Where did you get it?" He asked, lifting it and turning it over in his hands. There were no distinct markings on the outside, just a plain glass mason jar with a lid secured on.

"A market in Bathgate. Went over the weekend to see my mum...she's talking about leaving Scotland, think perhaps she means it this time." You mouth did something resembling a frown (or the beginning of one) before you forced a smile, "as it is, the seller informed me that she grows her own pumpkins and everything."

"Looks very intriguing."

"It's a bribe, so that you'll read more Silmarillion," you explained, leaning against the counter to be closer to him. In truth, he probably didn't need to be bribed to do anything you asked of him, he simply needed to be asked. And sometimes, not even. But he had claimed, after the last evening you spent reading together over a kettle of tea and plates of jammy toast, that he was going to quit reading to you if you didn't stop falling asleep.

"I was only teasing, before," Remus clarified, an especially soft look on his face, as though he believed that you had taken him seriously when he said he wouldn't read with you anymore, "I'm not really bothered that you fall asleep. I know you've been having trouble getting rest."

"Says you, when was the last time you had a good night's sleep?" You questioned, buttering a skillet to toast bread on, "the last time you fell asleep it was sitting up, trying to read the daily prophet over a bowl of porridge."

"Yes, I remember," Remus replied, thinking of the porridgy goop that had stuck to his elbow when he'd accidentally dropped his arm into his bowl.

"We both need sleep then," you replied. "Desperately it would seem."

"How do you suggest we go about getting it? Considering how busy you are during the day and how adverse I am to napping in the afternoon."

"We go to bed at a reasonable hour?" You offer, laughing on the end of the sentence. There hadn't been a night this week that hadn't been overtaken by a meeting. If not a meeting then simply someone (Mad-Eye or Kingsley or someone equally in a hurry) dropped in to give news or request assistance or speak in hushed tones to the three of you in the kitchen about the changing climate of the wizarding world. Even Grimmuald Place seemed unable to shelter you from the chaos that reigned outside.

"Splendid idea, are you suggesting we start tonight?" He asked, glancing quickly at his watch as if to remind you how late it was already.

"Seems a shame to waste perfectly goody slices of bread...and you've only just made tea," you replied. Despite your own suggestion you weren't the slightest bit tired and imagined you wouldn't even begin to be until you had finished off your toast and tea and were bundled in Remus' cardigan listening to him read aloud.

"Excellent point," Remus noted, not ready to fight with sleep either, "shall we head to the library?"

"We should light a fire this time," you suggested, and then, "oh god! You think that's how Molly knows?"

"What?"

"Do you think that's how Molly knows we're together?" You clarified, though not enough because Remus still looked somewhat confused.

"How? I don't know what you're referring to."

"When Arthur flooed in...to see about the incident near Buckingham and we were-"

"Ah," Remus cut you off, his cheeks going red at the reminder, as though he were not a man in his mid-thirties, perfectly allowed to do what he wanted (or who he wanted, in this case) without being shy about it. "I would say so yes."

"Well best to light a fire then, don't want to shock anyone else, even if Molly has put the word out."

"Are you expecting something to happen?" He asked, following you out into hallway, mugs of tea in hand.

"I have two very distinct reactions to you reading aloud Remus," you replied, "who's to say what tonight's will be."

"Merlin's beard."

#collecting stories imagine #remus lupin imagine #remus lupin fanfic #remus lupin fanfiction #remus lupin fluff #remus lupin drabble #remus lupin x reader #remus lupin x y/n #remus lupin x you #gender neutral reader #hp imagine #hp fanfic #hp fanfiction

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tixdixl · 1 month ago

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BEEB!

Holiday ask reciprocation!

What kind of traditions or little fun things tend to go on around your cast of OCs? You have such a wide arrangement of backgrounds, I'd legit love to hear about what you think TWST's different regions do to celebrate winter OvO

HELLO BEEB!!!

Aaaaaaaa thank you so much!! I really appreciate you asking!!

Oisín

So I have a personal headcanon that Briar Valley is more likely to celebrate Yule and the Winter Solstace rather than like... Christmas. While it may be difficult for the average person to see the differences due to real life synchrotism, I like to imagine Briar Valley celebrates a Yule without the influences of colonialism. So we might still see the fir trees and the lights in lanterns on the walkways. Feasts and stories by the fireplace are a must.

I imagine the way it translates in NRC too is that Oisín probably spends time with their Diasomnia family, being deliberate about doing Yuletide activities with them. As for the Ignihyde family, they probably offer for their clutch to join them in activities, with the understanding that no one is pressured to do anything.

Emil

So this is a fun one that I will have to offer a bit of explanation too. When designing Emil as a character, I was very deliberate in removing the anti-semitism from Gothel's depictions, in favor of actually leaning into the Jewishness of her character. When trying to figure out how much of Tangled I actually wanted to incorporate, I had the realization. Tangled has a holiday where they light lanterns... in hopes of bringing their lost princess home. Twisted Wonderland interprets the Disney animated films as mythos and folklore for their world, yeah? So I imagine the story of Rapunzel includes a holiday, where the people light lanterns in celebration of the lights that brought their Lost Princess back home and led her to freedom. The celebrations likely include dancing, singing, crafts and games, just like the festival in the film.

You know what that kind of not exactly sounds like? The Maccabees and the festivities of Chanukah. So I decided to lean into that and synchrotize certain elements, harmless nods of Chanukah into the Festival of Lights. Places that neatly overlap without any disrespect to the holiday that I personally celebrate, I opted to combine ideas. So... Emil and his hometown celebrate the Festival of Lights.

He's actually never heard of Yuletide or Christmas prior to coming to NRC. He tries to learn and be respectful of the traditions of his classmates and loved ones. And I do have a ficlet WIP that I hope to finish where Emil invites the unofficial cooking club to make latkes with him, to light a lantern, and to participate with him when he can't be at home.

René

The Black Swan is used to big holiday parties and social gatherings back home. So I like to imagine that René and the Octavinelle squad probably decorate the Lounge and put on a little celebration of their own.

René also gives gifts to the people they care about. At first, it's likely a superficial thing done for appearances. But as they grow and start actually developing and fostering relationships, they start to actually put effort into it. And sometimes those gifts arent even gifts, its quality time. Its acts of service.

Kingsley

This man is a Grinch LOL. Much like Briar Valley, the Cantrevs celebrate Yuletide and the Winter Solstace. It probably looks different for his home considering traditions tend to vary from region to region. And I tried to do research into Cymru, which is where the Chronicles of Prydain pulls its mythos and inspiration from. Again, keep in mind we have to do some imagining that its not been impacted by colonialism.

But when he's at NRC? He doesn't... get the festivities. If he has to under obligation, he'll participate. But he'll be pissed about it the entire time.

Xiáng

The Lunar New Year is definitely something I headcanon is celebrated in the Land of the Red Dragons. And I would say that all the food, clothing, games, dances, decorations... he actively participates in the festivities as much as he's permitted to.

I also had this fun idea that Xiáng goes to Kalim and asks if they can do a New Year's celebration. And Kalim sort of responds "I don't know anything about your Lunar New Year, but I LOVE a good party!!! Let's do it!!!" And Jamil walks into Scarabia SHOCKED that all the preparations were done behind his back, without his help, and the dorm isnt on fire.

Alphonse

Alphonse is also from Briar Valley. He likely celebrates Yule in a similar fashion to Oisín, but he is more likely to keep it to his close friends and loved ones. He is very intentional in giving Malleus, Xiáng, and Yuu gifts. And since he also spends a lot of his time between both Diasomnia and Ramshackle, he probably offers to help decorate Ramshackle too.... by doing it... without asking lol.

Sefu

So I'll be completely transparent. I know Christmas and Yule aren't really celebrated in many African countries. I know that the Sunset Savannah likely pulls some of its incluence from Kenyan culture, because of the influence on the Lion King. I ALSO know that Cloudcalling has caused people to debate if additional tribal influence can be found in their traditional garb. That said, I will own up in my ignorance that when I had the opportunity to hang out with my Kenyan colleagues, they didn't speak much on December holidays? Moreso focusing on the traditional holidays celebrated in April, May, and August. So outside of Western influence, I don't know if there are traditions that would be celebrated there. I also don't want to be that American who makes false approximations in their fiction and does a massive disrespect to the people who live there. That said, it IS something I want to learn more about, and not from a poluted Western lens.

As far as NRC goes, Sefu... doesn't really care about the school festivities? They kind of keep to themself and roll their eyes at the jolly gayness of it all.

Thanks again for the ask!!! It really means a lot!!

Tag list: @ramshacklerumble @the-trinket-witch @elenauaurs @rainesol @starry-night-rose

@inmateofthemind @cyanide-latte @winterweary @theleechyskrunkly @thehollowwriter

@twstinginthewind @twistedwonderlandshenanigans @lumdays @boopshoops

Lmk if you want added/removed

#twst #twst ocs #my ocs #seris talks #Oisín Anbás #Emil Lehr #René Lamar #Kingsley Tyr #Wén Xiáng #Alphonse Eos #Sefu Omari

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fluentmoviequoter · 1 year ago

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Christmas on the Clock

Day 12 of 12 Days of Ficmas

Summary: Deacon gets called into work on Christmas Eve, and you (his neighbor) watch his kids until he gets back with a special Christmas gift.

Warnings: fluff, canon typical danger and action, Annie's fate is up to you (I personally imagined the story as if she hadn't recovered in season 1 but I think divorce would work too)

Word Count: 3k+ words

A/N: I cannot believe it's the end of the 12 fics already! I hope you've enjoyed them and thank you for reading!! I've tried my hand at a few new characters this month and appreciate the feedback and encouragement more than you know. Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

(PS check out this post if you'd like to participate the in the unofficial after party!)

Matthew, Lila, and Samuel are Deacon’s pride and joy… and some of the cutest kids you’ve ever seen. As Christmas grows nearer, you’ve seen more of them around Deacon’s house, and they never fail to put a smile on your face. Deacon moved in next door to you a few years ago after some familial issues that you never pried about. Deacon has his kids with him most of the time, is a good dad and neighbor, and is certainly not hard to look at, so you have no complaints. Being so close puts you in the perfect position to offer to watch his kids if he ever had to leave suddenly, an occurrence which isn’t unusual in his line of work. It took some persuading, but Deacon eventually took you up on the offer, and you watch the kids occasionally and pick them up from school several times a month. Every time he comes to pick them up or you walk them home, he tries to pay you, not understanding that time in his presence and with his amazing family is the only compensation you will ever need.

As you exit your car, back from a Christmas shopping trip, you hear someone yell your name. Your smile appears when you see Lila racing across your front yard. She crashes against your torso, wrapping her arms tightly around you before tilting her head back to give you a gap-toothed smile.

“Hey, Lila,” you greet, happily returning her hug.

“Sorry about that,” Deacon apologizes as he approaches.

You shake your head at him and smile, a hand still resting on Lila’s back.

“What did you buy?” Lila asks, looking at the bags in your car.

“Just some boring Christmas stuff, nothing you’d be interested in.”

“Any toys, like trucks?” Matthew asks, appearing beside Deacon.

“Or Nerf guns?” Samuel adds.

“Hmm,” you hum, pretending to think. “I think there might be, but I can’t remember. I know I bought a turkey, and some new ornaments, some mistletoe… and, yes, I remember, I bought a few toys. But they have to be wrapped first, right?”

Deacon’s eyebrows raise at the word ‘mistletoe.' Though you notice, you keep your eyes on his kids to minimize the heat crawling up your neck at his attention.

“We should let you get back to that wrapping then. Right, kids?” Deacon interjects.

You nod at him, giving Lila one more hug before waving them off with wishes of a Merry Christmas and promising to bring them treats if you bake anything.

Looking over his shoulder, Deacon mouths, “Thank you.”

You smile, responding with a silent, “Anytime."

✯✯✯✯✯

Deacon’s phone ringing tears his attention away from his Christmas dance with Lila. He groans when he sees Hondo’s name on his phone.

“Sergeant Kay,” he answers, apologizing to Lila with furrowed brows.

“I’m so sorry to do this on Christmas, I know you’re with the kids, but we need you down here. Now,” Hondo explains. “There’s a hostage situation with kids in a mall.”

Looking at his own kids, Deacon nods. “I’ll be right there.”

He hangs up and grabs his keys. “I have to go to work for a little bit.”

“But it’s Christmas Eve,” Matthew says, setting his homemade Christmas ornament aside.

“I know, buddy. But I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay?” he asks, kneeling and brushing Matthew’s hair aside.

Matthew nods, and Samuel hugs Deacon.

“What about us?” Lila inquires.

“I’m going to ask you favorite neighbor to keep you company.”

Lila perks up at the idea of you coming over to spend time with her, if only slightly. Her dad is leaving on Christmas Eve, after all, and she’s distantly aware of the fact that he may not come home for Christmas or at all. That’s a lot for a little girl to think about so close to the happiest day of the year.

“Can we finish Rudolph when you get home?” Samuel asks.

“Absolutely. We’ll make hot chocolate, and we can all sit together to finish Rudolph,” Deacon assures. “It is Christmas.”

✯✯✯✯✯

You answer the phone after the second ring, slightly breathless from hanging garland.

“Hey,” Deacon greets. “I know it’s Christmas Eve but I just got called in and-“

You cut him off and say, “I’ll be right over.”

“Thank you,” he breathes out.

You hang up and grab the small bag you keep in your closet for times like this. After the first emergency call, you’d had to take the kids to your house while you gathered some things, unsure how long you’d be with them. Since then, you’ve narrowed it down to a few must-haves that fit in a small backpack. You’re always ready to run when Deacon calls.

Lila is standing in the doorway when you walk onto Deacon’s porch.

“Daddy has to go to work but he said he’ll be back to watch Rudolph with us,” she states.

You lock eyes with Deacon over her head and see his sadness and disappointment.

“Of course, he will,” you agree.

“Sometimes his work takes longer than he thinks. Christmas is tomorrow.”

You set your bag beside the door and kneel, eye-to-eye with Lila as you say, “But we have Christmas magic this time, right? Your dad will be home for Christmas, even if I have to go get him with my own sleigh.”

Lila smiles and grabs your hand, turning to hug Deacon before he leaves. She hears her brothers trying to pick a board game to play with you and releases both you and her dad to go help them. Deacon stops beside you, looking between you and his kids.

“Thank you,” he says again.

“It’s not a problem, Deacon. I’m always happy to do it.”

He nods and picks up his keys, but you place a hand on his bicep to stop him in the doorway.

“Be careful,” you whisper as he leaves.

He nods and smiles, his hand rising to rest over yours. “Always. Merry Christmas.”

✯✯✯✯✯

“There’s at least 50 hostages. A mall Santa, couple kids, parents, plus the few employees still there,” Hondo explains.

“I thought all stores closed early on Christmas Eve,” Street grumbles.

“Welcome to the age of greed and capitalism,” Luca states. When everyone turns to look at him, he asks, “A little too much like Buck, wasn’t it?”

Hondo shrugs and answers, “Stay liquid.”

When Black Betty reaches the side of the mall, Hondo and Deacon approach the first responders and check the thermal imaging they had captured to attempt a headcount.

“I’m getting everyone home for Christmas, but we’re breaching early,” Hondo announces.

His promise means something, even if it’s an impossible guarantee. Getting home for Christmas is the only thing on everyone’s mind.

“The hostages are gathered in the center of the mall, where Santa’s village is set up. We breach the south entry, come from the west and get our suspects down,” Hondo continues.

“Flashbang?” Luca asks.

Hondo gives an affirmative while Deacon looks at the layout.

“Hondo, I agree with approaching for the west, but I have an idea,” Deacon says.

“Let’s hear it.”

“What if we walk in the front door? It should be unlocked, they won’t expect it, and it’s far enough to the west they won’t see us or hear us.”

Hondo looks at the thermal blueprint and nods. “Change of plans. Enter west, travel east, flashbang and get our suspects on the ground before Santa can say ‘Ho, ho, ho’! Everyone clear?”

“Yes, sir!” 20 David agrees.

As they approach the main entry, the automatic doors slide open, not a sound from within audible. Hondo nods at Deacon before Street sends a tap from the back, signaling that the team is ready for entry. Deacon takes a deep breath and remembers his promise, home for Rudolph.

✯✯✯✯✯

The sun sets as you finish playing Candy Land with Lila and Matthew. Samuel has opted to be on a team with you, coloring until you ask for his help. As the night grows darker, Lila’s eyes keep going to the front door, waiting for her dad to return.

“Do you guys want to watch a movie?” you ask.

“We’re waiting to finish Rudolph with Dad,” Matthew answers.

“I see,” you reply with a nod. “Then what about a book? I have lots of Christmas books at my house.”

“Like what?” Samuel asks.

“Let’s see… How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Eloise at Christmastime, Frosty the Snowman, Olive the Other Reindeer.”

“Who’s Eloise?” Lila interjects.

“She’s a little girl, a lot like you actually, who spends Christmas in a grand hotel with her nanny, her turtle, her dog, and a lot of friends.”

“I like the Grinch,” Matthew adds.

“Maybe we could read both?” you offer.

The kids nod before yawning, and your heart sinks a little (but doesn’t shrink; you’re not to Grinch levels of despair just yet) as you realize Deacon won’t be home before they fall asleep. He always lets you know when he’s out of harm’s way and when he’s on the way home, but you haven’t gotten either of those texts yet. Matthew, Lila, and Samuel promise to stay where they are while you run across Deacon’s lawn and into your house, gathering the bag of gifts, a case of baking supplies, and the stack of Christmas books before returning.

“You look like Santa,” Samuel says, laughing as he points at the big bag tossed over your shoulder.

“It is Christmas,” you reply, smiling as Lila and Matthew join the laughter.

✯✯✯✯✯

No one expected the suspects to be patrolling the entrances, so when Hondo sees the first, 20 David falls back into a store to regroup.

“We’re flashbang-ing anyway, why not go early?” Luca poses.

“It’s not a terrible idea,” Hondo sighs.

“What if Street and I go around to the other side and we get ‘em from both sides?” Deacon suggests.

“That’s a better idea,” Hondo says. “Sorry, Luca. Radio when you’re in position.”

As Deacon and Street move silently through the empty, dark hallways of the mall, passing a toy store, Deacon thinks about all the presents his kids will be getting tomorrow and how they’ve never asked for more than they needed. He misses them, so he needs to stay focused and get the job done to go home to you and the kids. When he envisions getting home, it never involves you leaving to go back to your place next door. Thinking of home, you’re always there, and Deacon finally realizes why.

✯✯✯✯✯

“The end,” you finish quietly, closing the fourth finished book as the Kay children rest peacefully in their dad’s bed.

It was the only spot where they could all lie down to listen to the stories, so you hadn’t argued. Besides, Deacon could carry them to bed if he needed to. You’ve grown worried for him, checking your phone every few minutes to see if he’s provided an update. Closing the door gently behind you, you enter the kitchen and begin baking. Quiet Christmas music fills Deacon’s kitchen and living room as you arrange your gifts to the Kays beneath their tree and place cookie dough on a baking sheet. Your phone vibrates, and you practically dive for it, praying for a Christmas miracle.

✯✯✯✯✯

Street and Luca coordinate their flashbangs so both sides of the crowd are disoriented. Screams and threats tangle with each other in the smoke, but Tan, Chris, and Deacon get the three suspects to the ground and remove their weapons quickly. Deacon sees the children in Santa’s village as he hauls the handcuffed man to his feet.

“What kind of a monster does this on Christmas Eve?” he grumbles.

“It’s just another day, man,” the criminal in his hold argues.

“No, it’s not. Especially not to them,” Deacon snaps, gesturing toward the terrified children clinging to their parents.

As he passes the man off to another officer to be transported to his home for the holidays, county jail, a small hand tugs on Deacon’s pants. He looks toward the hand, surprised to see a girl not much younger than Lila looking up at him with wide eyes.

He bends his knees, squatting in before her as he removes his helmet. “Hi,” he says.

“Hi. Thank you for saving us,” she says quietly.

“Not a problem, it’s actually my job.”

“Like a superhero?”

“Sort of like a superhero.”

“I asked for a superhero costume for Christmas.”

Deacon looks over at the young couple watching the girl and nods at them. They return it, expressing their gratitude with hands joined over their hearts.

“Well, after seeing how brave you were today, I’m sure you’ll get one.”

“Merry Christmas,” the girl says before running to her parents.

“Merry Christmas,” he calls, standing.

“Get out of here, you have your own kids to wish merry Christmases to,” Hondo demands, slapping Deacon’s shoulder.

“Thanks. Merry Christmas, guys!” he tells his team, rushing outside to get home.

If he’s lucky, he’ll make it before midnight.

✯✯✯✯✯

The phone vibration was just a random notification. You’ve made two batches of cookies, rearranged the gifts, and paced the living room twelve times since then, waiting to hear something.

“I need to calm down,” you tell yourself, returning to the kitchen to frost some cookies.

✯✯✯✯✯

Deacon turns into his driveway, smiling when he sees you turned all his Christmas lights on. He's unsure whether or not it was because of his children nagging you. Grabbing a gift bag from the passenger seat, Deacon exits his car and walks into his house, met by Christmas music, the smell of cookies, and the sight of you in his kitchen. He decides that you fit perfectly, even if he’s not sure where.

You’re humming along to the music playing from your phone, oblivious to his entry. A gift bag lands on the counter before a pair of strong arms wrap around your waist.

You turn quickly, your eyes wide until you see the big brown eyes you’ve grown to love.

“You scared me,” you accuse quietly, setting the piping bag of icing to the side.

“Sorry.”

He doesn’t look or sound very sorry, but his arms are still around you, so don't care.

“I brought you something,” he says after looking at you for a moment.

“Oh, you didn’t have to get me anything.”

He looks pointedly at the pile of gifts under the tree that was not there when he left.

“Most of those are for Lila, Matthew, and Samuel,” you point out.

“Well then we’ll be even,” he says, passing you the bag.

You tear your eyes away from his as you pull a small snow globe from the bag. Inside is a replica of the park down the street.

“The place we met?” you ask, your voice low.

Deacon smiles. “It’s got a lot of good memories. There’s more.”

You carefully set the snow globe aside, looking at it until you feel the card in the bag. Deacon takes the empty bag, his arms returning to hold you as you read the note. It’s more of a list of occasions and things he likes about you or is thankful for.

“What is this?” you ask.

“An opening to tell you that I’m falling in love with you,” he whispers.

“Are you sure?”

His eyes widen as his smile grows. “This isn’t a spur of the moment decision; I ordered that snow globe a few weeks ago because I finally realized and am ready to admit it. It’s time to move on, and I want to do that with you. Only if you want that, too, of course.”

You turn away from him, feeling his grip on your waist falter as you set the card down. Turning back, you lean into his arms and wrap your arms around him.

“I want to be with you every day for the rest of my life, Deacon. I’m falling in love with you,” you whisper in his ear.

You pull back to say more, but his lips meet yours, and the words die on your tongue. You can show him instead, you suppose. He kisses you, and it feels like home. Everything that Christmas is supposed to be is in Deacon’s kiss, his hold on you, how you feel like you’re home in his arms. It’s perfect, and you want it to last forever, but no good things do.

Your phone timer buzzes, and you reluctantly pull away to turn it off. As you lean back in for more, Deacon chuckles.

“What was that for?” he asks.

“The other batch of frosting is ready to be used.”

He looks over at the cookies cooling by the oven. The human shapes represent his family: he is the bigger one, Samuel and Matthew are shorter, and Lila has a built-in skirt shape.

“Where’s your cookie?” he asks.

“I might have eaten it.”

He laughs again, and you press your face against his neck.

“I needed to make sure they turned out okay,” you argue halfheartedly, losing yourself in the feeling of his hands on your back.

"That's where the mistletoe went," he muses as he looks up.

"Couldn't leave it at my empty place," you point out.

"No, that wouldn't do," he agrees playfully before kissing you again.

✯✯✯✯✯

Christmas morning, as Lila, Matthew, and Samuel open their gifts with both you and their dad, they are happier than Whoville after Christmas is returned. Deacon tells you several times that you bought them too much stuff, and you disagree every time.

He leans in to give you another kiss as gratitude for his gifts. Lila sees and giggles, and you send her a quick wink, smiling as she walks to you, hugging you and thanking you for the great gifts. After all the presents have been opened, Deacon ends up at the bottom of a dogpile while Rudolph plays on the television screen. You’re tucked beside him, like part of the family, and he realizes where exactly you fit: in his house, life, and his arms.

You are the luckiest recipient of all the perfect gifts unwrapped because you got a happily ever after wrapped in an LAPD SWAT uniform.

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