#YOO THIS IS ACTUALLY A REALLY GOOD QUESTION

[mimorobo]

How would the TSUS bros react to seeing UT's Snowdin in your humble opinion, oh TSUS mutual?

I feel like they'd have some fun with it

Hehehe .... Yes yes, I think they'd have loads of fun!! For starters... SNOW???

Who wouldn't love that???

I also made a bunch of lil sketches too XD, it's a fun "what if"!

:D

[mygnolia]

to weave my love ⭒ n. riki

⭒ SYNOPSIS -› Riki is good at many things- dancing, making fun of his friends, playing it cool (debatable.), Hell- he’s even good at saving people from falling buildings without getting whiplash. But the things he’s bad at? Well, it’s asking you out to prom, and trying to balance the shared assignment he has with you…while being Spider-man.

⭒ PAIR -› spiderman!nishimura riki x fem-pres!reader

⭒ GENRE -› fluff, banter, action ⭒ TROPES -› classmates to lovers, idiots to lovers ⭒ WC -› 17k (i’m sorry idk why either.)

⭒ INCLUDES -› SPOILERS FOR GREAT GATSBY, cursing, non-graphic injuries (reader discretion advised), yes i made the patching up with first aid kit trope SUE ME!! takes place in a busy city similar to new york never specified, reader is rich, jake and heeseung are seniors and riki’s a junior, is riki stupid? yes… jake reveals stuff because he is also a little silly, reader wears a red dress!

⭒ GREAT GATSBY -› basically jay gatsby has this weird amt of money but no one rlly knows how he got it (nefarious reasons) and hes been in love with this girl daisy for five years but then she got married to tom buchanan but he gets rich so he can get the house across from her and wistfully watch her and he pines after her like CRAZY but he dies at the end

⭒ REN SAYS...special huge fat kiss to thena @sensitively-taken you will be in the will when im a millionaire THANK YOU for helping me with so much of this I WUV U AND I WLL BE WAITING FOR UR HUENING FIC!!! | LIBRARY

NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE FROM PRE-ADULTHOOD STRESS, IF THAT’S EVEN A THING.

What exactly does Riki have to worry about as a seventeen-year-old junior in high school? Right now, his most daunting responsibility is catching up on the chapters of The Great Gatsby because the only thing Riki’s actually read from the novel is that the main character shares a name with his best friend and senior, Park Jay. His second most daunting responsibility is handling the fact that with the new seating chart in his Literature class, it means he’s sitting next to the object of his very subtle affections, you. 

See, the problem with having a crush on you is that Nishimura Riki’s committed to thinking that you’re way out of his league, and unfortunately, the boy believes that almost too well. Not only are you minted beyond his wildest dreams (having seen your posts on social media), but you’re hardworking, helpful, and dedicated to your role as student body treasurer. He’s already understood that you’d never go for a guy like him. Maybe someone more like Park Sunghoon, whose parents’ salary matches yours. If Riki lived in a rural estate with generational wealth, handling the whole ‘Spider-Man’ thing might be a bit easier for him, considering he wouldn’t have to try so hard in school. It might even change the fact that Riki dealt with some alleyway criminals last night and is currently catching up on lost sleep, as your English Literature teacher goes on and on about a project on the book you’re reading. 

In class, and even sometimes outside of the classroom, your small tendency to not pay attention to your surroundings has landed you in some awkward situations—like now. 

“I don’t really tell anyone this, but I hate Daisy.” And instead of getting a response, you glance over to see Nishimura Riki slumped on the desk. Without trying to make preconceptions about what could land him in a situation like this, you poke his arm, stifling a smile at how his eyes widen when you’ve caught him rubbing the very obvious sleep from his eye. 

“Sorry,” he whispers, still fighting the post-nap grogginess, “Did I miss anything?” 

(Nope.)

Shaking your head, you return your attention to your teacher as he continues to answer questions. The second Mr. Yoo assigned a report, you wanted to die even more considering the work you had to do on top of the impending due dates. But for it to be partnered? And for you to get seated and paired with the one boy who's known for not caring about school? Maybe things are a little stacked against you, but there has to be a reason why Riki’s somehow still passing all his classes…right?

Considering it’s the last assignment about the book, you’re glad that you already read it so many times to know what you want to put into words. And in retrospect, answering a few open-ended questions about it can’t be that hard—the hardest part would be getting your partner to stay awake in class. 

A small tap at your side makes you turn to face Riki, who you see has frantically written a page full of notes about the project in the past three minutes and how he can succeed. “Can you go over the first part? Sorry…I was…y’know.” 

“It’s a partner project. And we’re partners.” You wince at the awkward wording. 

Great! Riki was caught sleeping and that was your first impression of him for your paired assignment? Riki feels so stupid in front of you right now—in front of your meticulous notes with annotations and proper highlighting. He wants to curl up into a ball when he sees you glance over at his haphazard attempt to look like he was paying attention when, in truth, he was trying to remember the dream he had just ten minutes prior. When you offer him a small smile and nod, leaning over with your notebook in hand, he sighs in relief, thanking whoever it was that let him get away with his naps without the consequence of irritating you afterwards. 

The bell rings when Mr. Yoo stops talking, and you pause, startled by the sound. Instead of leaving, however, you pack your bag and shuffle to his side of his desk, continuing to parrot details about your report in hopes that it all makes sense. You need to make sure he knows what he’s doing. 

“I think one of the questions he mentioned was like ‘Is Gatsby a good person?’ and do you remember how in Chapter Eight…” The rest gets zoned out and forgotten in the boy’s head, because he in fact does not know what happened in Chapter Eight. He doesn’t know what happened…in any part of the book. But he agrees anyway, pretending like he understands what scene you’re trying to explain. What he notices is how thorough and dedicated you are towards ensuring he comprehends what you’re explaining, and although it could be because you don’t want him to fail you both, he chooses to believe you’re doing it because you tolerate him. 

You’re so engrossed in covering all the little details and telling him random tidbits regarding the book that you don’t realize your feet have made it all the way to the cafeteria. “But here, let me get your number. I’ll totally explain more over text.” 

Riki is definitely not freaking out when he silently grabs his phone and hands it to you with the contact page, staring a little longer than necessary at the cute smiley face you added to your name. “Thanks,” he mumbles, forcibly tearing his eyes away from the ten digits of your number, “For helping me with this, too.”

“Of course! The Great Gatsby is a fun read for me. A little hard to read sometimes because of some of the characters, but still easy to understand.” And Nishimura RIki realizes that he has to do well. He’ll read the book five times over if it means gaining your approval. 

Jake notices something a little different about the tuft of black and blonde hair when his friend walks in. The first thing is that he’s actually here, and that you’re next to him, smiling. The boy rubs his eye to make sure he’s not dreaming somehow, but when he looks up again, you’re waving goodbye and joining your friends across the room. 

“Did you get hit with something while fighting a villain that makes you more bold? I feel like I just saw you and ____ talking,” Jake starts when Riki finally joins him with his lunch. 

Riki laughs, shoving Jake’s head out of embarrassment and opening his chips. “It’s just school. Got some project in English and she says we’re partnered.” He looks over at his friend chuckling, rolling his eyes at how Jake pokes at his side and wiggles his eyebrows. 

“I better hear you two are dating by next week.” 

“Who’s dating by next week?” Heeseung places his bag of food in front of them and takes a seat, opening the fast food he got last period and stuffing a fry in his mouth. 

“Riki and ____. Let me have one,” Jake answers, reaching inside the bag. 

Heeseung looks over at his junior curiously. “You asked her out?” And the two older students hear a groan from the boy in question. 

“Me and ____ aren’t anything, for your information.” He prods at the vegetables on his tray and takes a bite before a look of displeasure washes over his face. “You’re both way too excited for two guys who do not have girlfriends.” 

“Hey! You know the girl I’m always fighting with is the reason why I’m single. I have to focus on studying to do well in school to do better than her.” Heeseung’s whining falls on deaf ears as Riki smiles victoriously, seeing how defensive the former got. 

Jake offers him a shrug of defeat. “I got nothing.”

The three of them fall into normal conversation and Riki finally explains everything that happened during English.  “So you’re telling me your plan to ask ____ out went down from 18 months to 6?” And with a nod from the younger, they both groan once more. Heeseung exclaims, “We’re both going to graduate, dumbass. Make the plan go down to like…two months? Please?” 

Jake cuts in before Riki has a chance to respond. “Make it one and a half, so we can see you with a prom date before leaving forever.” 

“You act as if you’re going to die after graduation. It’s like you’re begging to be a super senior.” 

And they’re silenced immediately. 

“Do you think the guy I was with earlier hates me?” you ask on the other side of the room. Minjeong stares at you blankly, waiting for your explanation. “I don’t know if you saw when I walked in but I was talking to this really tall guy with blonde hair and black tips. He seemed really out of it, like he kept staring at me and nodding. I think I scared him off by talking about the book too much.” 

Sunghoon, who is also listening in, opens his neatly packed lunchbox and begins mixing his noodles. “I think you did scare him off, ____.”

“Not helping,” Minjeong interjects, “Just talk to him more and maybe he’ll warm up to you. You two sit together in class anyways, so hopefully he’ll talk more?” 

“I know him,” Sunghoon comments, “Well, sort of. I’m friends with Jake who’s friends with Riki, and it seems like all that boy does is sleep.” 

“Maybe he’s really good at subconscious in-class comprehension?” you try, taking a bite of your sandwich. “I just hope it doesn’t interfere too much with treasurer stuff.” 

NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE IF HE SWINGS INTO ANOTHER WALL AT 100MPH LIKE HOW HE ALMOST DID TONIGHT.

All he’s had on his mind since school ended till now is how he should probably text you, if he really discarded the slimy acid monster from last week properly, and when the prom theme is going to be released, but there’s something amiss that confuses his spidey-senses and makes Riki much more alert. 

He snaps out of whatever train of thought he had before, focusing on the situation at hand and looking around to follow his instinct. Riki cautiously plants himself on the side of a random apartment building to get a sense of what's going on. A tingle of some sort of in the air permeates the material of his suit and leaves him shivering from the cold. 

He doesn't like it one bit. 

Moving to the side of the building to the top, the boy finally catches a glimpse of something when he gets a decent view of the city and highway systems. Riki knows something’s wrong with the bridge the closer he gets. He zips from one side of the tall, metal tower to the other, crawling down on all fours making sure he isn’t caught. He feels the electric feeling once more, only amplified. It runs up his spine and he wants to slap it, almost like a frantic, summertime bug. The air around him is charged with something he has never recognized before. With a puzzled expression under his mask, Riki continues to investigate the surrounding area. 

Riki finds a lone figure with some sort of attachment to his left arm, like a long glove made out of metal. The bulkiness of it seems to have no impact on his body as the man fiddles with the contraption, and the boy watches with bated breath as the machine fizzes and spurts with electricity. It begins to glow as power concentrates on his plated palm and the superhero sees it for the first time. It’s like a fizz, like a match striking at fire only to produce a quick burst of friction, but it almost feels liquid when he watches the person play with the flickering blue ball of electricity. It dances in the dark in a hauntingly beautiful way, with bolts jutting out from the metal as it spurts and buzzes with a life-like manner. 

A spark. 

“Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doing?” The sound of Riki’s voice from the end of the bridge causes the stranger to look up with wide eyes. Although Riki fully expects it to simply enhance strength or block damage, the immediate strike of blue that flies straight towards him is anything but defensive. With a yelp, he jumps away, this time refusing to show himself. 

What the hell was that?

He knows he should go back down there to change things and get the person and the metal pieces away before it escalates, but when he goes back down to watch, it's ten times worse. The bright blue illuminates the scarred face of the villain as he’s picked up the metal arm–but this time, it’s no longer clunky and sparking, but fused into his arm. 

Riki’s face pales at the sudden change before his body acts on its own and he shoots out a web to stop the man. 

The villain is shocked by the intrusion, but quickly yanks free from the webbing and flicks another bolt of electricity, one that flies much faster now that the metal flows into the arm instead of simply resting on the skin. It’s unlike something Riki has ever seen, something that is so controlled in motion and yet so erratic in nature, and it instills a deathly fear when it grazes his arm he hisses in pain. The sharp feeling springs Riki into action as he jumps away. He’s lucky another bolt isn’t sent his way, seeing how the villain’s too busy marveling at the power of his new gadget.

“You know that fucking hurts, right?” He yells out, cupping his wound. “Maybe leave the gadgets to the kids!”

The man scoffs. “It better have hurt. I sacrificed half my body for this to work.”

“But why?” All Riki wants is answers. Some sort of explanation.

The man charges up yet another bolt, almost like a laser gun is built into the machine. “Less talking, more running, Spiderman.” 

That scared the shit out of him. 

The boy doesn’t have time to think as he jumps out from the dark tunnel to the bridge and up the metal towers—he hates having to fight with people right below. The villain follows in pursuit, almost crumbling the metal with his engineered arm as he hoists himself quickly. Riki continues to jump between the structure to avoid the flashes, trying to get out and apprehend the man as quickly as possible. When he reaches the top, however, he feels death is near as he glances down at the villain below who’s quickly gaining on him. He shoots out webs to slow him temporarily, letting himself fall and swing from the side of the tower to escape. 

What he doesn’t see on the way across the bridge is the flash that misses his cheek and hits his thigh instead. It burns, and mid-air, Riki gives the wound a quick assessment before he lands on the metal, immediately forcing his body to climb. While dealing with his wound, he fails to notice the villain swinging from the bridge support lines to meet him. 

He needs to end this fast before he becomes burnt toast.

Riki doesn’t often rely on instinct to carry him, but he can tell that the villain he’s facing isn’t just a criminal. 

“Land another hit, would you?” he tries to say, his voice strained from the pain in his arm and leg. It doesn’t do much to deter the man in front of him as the arm continues to destroy and bend the metal on the way up. “What are you going to do now, Sparky?”

The man says nothing, charging energy into his metal glove again before aiming and focusing on the target: him. 

Riki jumps off, not able to properly land his web in the right spot as he goes from one section of the bridge to the other. The man behind him looks enraged at the boy’s attempt to escape—so much so that he reaches out with his normal hand to try to grasp the suit when Spider-Man swings past him. Instead of the feeling of fabric, the villain feels sticky spider fluid on his fingers. Riki shoots out a web, one that curls around the villain’s wrist and drags him off the tower. Instead of being able to launch him into the surrounding waters, the man slips from the poorly shot-out webs and falls from mid air into the sea of frantic cars, including one semi truck that collides directly with his arm. In the air, the boy winces when he hears honks and shouts from the impact, hoping it’s the last time he’ll have to witness it.

With his gaze trained on the falling figure, the weakly attached web breaks, and Riki all of a sudden starts falling down as well. He curls up defensively before bracing for impact, curling into himself when he feels the metal dent and the truck driver scream from outside of the parked vehicle, the body of the villain right in front of it. 

Riki staggers, holding onto his arm and thigh the best he can before getting up. With wobbly steps and a small jump, he lands near the unconscious man, whose metal arm is cracked and fizzling—something that Riki knows is bound to leave more scars. 

“Call the police. I’ll get rid of the pieces.” Although Riki wants to figure out who the criminal is and make sure he’s properly apprehended, the gashes in the boy's limbs leave him winded and exhausted. With hot metal scraps bound together by webbing in his hands, Riki swings out and dumps it somewhere rural, trying his best to cover the pieces with the pounding headache that 

Riki revisits the secluded spot under the bridge, looking for clues to the man’s identity, and his expression falls when he notices a lanyard dangling near a trash can. 

His name, his position, and the company. FLiGHT Corp. The company name caught the boy’s eye, and he pockets the item before leaving. 

It seemed like he was a normal research scientist, but Riki’s recollection of the scars and tattered skin leaves him retracting his last thought. He heard something about the failure of a time travel machine at FLiGHT, and if the mass of the incident was anything to go by, he was in the center of it. 

No matter how many times Riki tries to get it out of his head, on the way home, all he can think about is the inexperience he displayed and the lack of response he gave Riki during the whole time. But Riki can’t bring himself to really take away someone’s life—and maybe for that, he’s a horrible superhero. 

He knows he should stop the man before it's too late, and especially with how many self-proclaimed villains there have been, it's not easy to see so many innocent people ruin their lives chasing a power that inevitably consumes them. He knows it’ll only get worse if he lets them run free.

And while the superhero has never been fully honest with himself, there are many times where Riki hates his role as Spider-Man, and wishes that he was just some teenage boy who didn't have the lives of others in his palm. He wishes he didn't have to sacrifice so much to stay behind a mask—and he wonders deep down if there’s anyone else who felt the same. 

His swings lead him across the city above hundreds of lives he has to protect, and he tries to find some semblance of peace. He thinks about how he has his homework due despite having just risked his life, he thinks about how your project is going—and about you. 

In the night under the stars, Nishimura Riki wishes for something just a bit normal. He wishes a good night for himself, but also for you, wherever you could be.

NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE FROM TRYING TO READ THIS BOOK IN ONE NIGHT.

The Great Gatsby is exactly like how you described it; a little hard to get through but fun with the plot’s eccentric characters. He’s pretty sure he could’ve just used a detailed SparkNotes explanation for the book, but having a crush can make someone do weird things. And in Nishimura Riki’s case, his infatuation has got him reading a novel about morally-skewed characters and rich society to impress you. 

When you come into class barely on time, Riki gives you a confused look when you sit down, but doesn’t comment on it any further. Instead, he takes out his book and tries to act like his eyes weren’t closing shut from exhaustion by the time Daisy was finally confessing how she loved Gatsby. 

The moment Mr. Yoo stops talking, however, Riki isn’t asleep—much to your surprise. He has his book out, pages filled with sticky notes and a whole section of his notebook dedicated to characters (written in bright red to keep him awake) and their traits. 

“I got it.” It’s the first thing he says when you two are left to do in-class work. It’s ominous, and maybe a little too enthusiastic in a high school literature class for a boy who doesn’t even care that much for school, but you’ll accept it with open arms if it means you get a helping hand on your project. 

“Continue,” you tell him slowly, leaning back in your chair to listen to him. And you don’t know why, but a small part of you thinks that the boy who sleeps every period the book was discussed wouldn’t have much to say or contribute to such an open-ended prompt, but life is full of surprises. 

What you fail to notice is how Riki is nervous and his stomach does at least twenty flips before he swallows dryly and starts rambling in hopes to impress you and redeem himself from his embarrassing slumber a few days ago. 

“So you know how our prompt is based on one character and basically all their actions?” he asks, and you nod, absentmindedly thumbing a sheet in your journal. “I’m thinking we should talk about Jay Gatsby because so much is revealed to us about him that we might as well use it to our advantage. Y’know, talking about how the theme of exploitation and secrets is veiled under Gatsby’s desire for Daisy.”

“You don’t think Gatsby’s a good character?” Riki wants to tell you that Gatsby is more relatable than good or bad, but he shakes his head. 

“I mean, not really.” He feels like with those four words, he’s completely changed the trajectory of his relationship with you from a positive slope to completely downhill—and a wave of panic washes over him. “Should I? I mean, I could see him as more redeemable if you gave me examp-“

You wave your hand to quell his worries. “To be honest, I don’t like him either. But he’s an interesting main character to write about, so I think we should go with your idea.” 

To win your approval feels like he’s won at least three fights against a villain in a row without getting any bad injuries—it feels good. And for the rest of the period, you are able to finish a detailed outline of your work for the next few weeks, mapping out sections for each other, and he even gets to see a part of prom planning on a word document you had open. He considers your shared productivity a win when he packs up and bids you goodbye before leaving for lunch. 

One wave doesn’t catch Riki’s attention from across the room. Not even two, or three calls of his name could get Nishimura Riki out of his thoughts, and Jake frowns before moving up in the lunch line. 

“Something’s caught your eye again.” Jake feigns innocence and sighs dramatically as he places the food down next to Riki’s plate. “Could it possibly be our school treasurer?” Jake laughs, leaning over to catch a glimpse of what’s got his friend so entranced and non-responsive.

Riki scrunches his nose, annoyed, but never breaking his gaze from where you’re sitting. “We talked in class–like, a lot,” is all he says, paying his friend no mind. “She’s genuinely so understanding.”

“God, I don’t think you can be any more down bad for her than you are right now.” Jake picks at his food, and despite his concentration directed towards the olives on his pizza, he’s able to dodge the flying loaded nacho that goes his way, even if he wasn’t the one with superpowers.

“Can you shut up?” Riki grumbles, laying his head on his arms as he notices you smile and point to something. “I just got pummeled into a semi truck last week. Let me have this before I die tomorrow.” 

“Very grim,” his friend notes, ruffling the younger’s hair, “I think this is exactly what all of those mental health assemblies that we get are for.” And Riki basically tunes him out, too tired to fight and too used to the teasing remarks to come up with anything useful in response. 

Riki sits up a bit, letting his head rest on his propped elbow as he looks at the school food and touches another nacho gingerly. “Y’know, I read the book for English so she wouldn’t think I’m an idiot.” 

His friend snickers, successfully pulling out yet another sliced olive from the cheese, much to the disgust of Riki. “She probably already thinks you’re an idiot.” 

The superhero debates throwing another cheesy nacho in Jake's face, before deciding to eat it instead. “Don’t say that asshole! You make it seem like I have no chance with her.” 

Jake shoots him an exasperated look that makes Riki break eye contact. “That’s because you don’t.” 

“I’ll prove to her that I’m worth her time.” Riki says somewhat wistfully, still stealing glances from a few tables away. “Maybe I’ll ask her out to prom, show up in my suit. Do that cheesy upside down kiss shit people say Spiderman does.” When his friend raises an eyebrow at him, Riki shrugs. “I will! Well-maybe not the Spider-Man thing, but prom definitely.” 

Jake continues to look at him unconvinced as he takes a bite out of a slice of pizza with mangled cheese. “You barely talk to her in class and you think you can ask her out to prom as Nishimura Riki?” And the younger grins, eyes still stuck on how your eyes crinkle and how your shoulders shake with laughter. 

“Yup.” And his fate is sealed, just like that.

“What’s your project about, anyways? Didn’t you tell me last night that she gave you her number? Must be pretty serious if she wants to text you.” Riki furrows his eyebrows and shakes his head. 

“It’s just tying the theme of the book to one character and writing about how they show it. So we did the theme of money and Gatsby, because it’s easy and mentioned so many times.” 

Jake gawks. “You must really like her,”

“I was planning to read it regardless of who I was partnered with.” 

“Okay- that’s debatable.” There goes another one of Riki’s nachos.

“Gross.” 

He thinks things are going pretty well for you two. The report is being written and your quotes are basically finding themselves, so Riki should give himself a pat on the back for pitching the initial idea for how to go about your assignment. Maybe reading the whole book offered him a few useful pointers, and he goes to sleep that night satisfied with your progress. Maybe Heeseung and Jake were right—maybe he could finally ask you out by prom. 

NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE TRYING TO SAVE THE CITY FROM YET ANOTHER MONSTER TERRORIZING THE STREETS.

He wakes up the next morning, not expecting his alarm to alert his senses to danger. It rings in his head and makes him feel delirious, trying to shake sleep off as he looks out the window for any visible sign of what's wrong. If he could hear the danger in his head then that meant someone could be hurt, and he could go to school without a few hours of sleep if he worked fast enough, right? 

Riki slips into his suit without much thought and goes to crack his window open, only to look back at his clock and read the horrific time of 6:23AM. 

Who the hell picks a fight with a teenager at this ungodly time? 

Then, he shoots from his wrists, once, twice, and suddenly, he's off, covering more ground through the air in just three seconds than he ever could while walking or running for minutes on end.

The source of his tingling spidey-sense is some large metal centipede creature that was setting off car alarms in a neighborhood near the market. Thankfully, no one was really awake to be caught in the crossfire, but he has to figure out how the hell he's going to catch that thing in...he checks his watch…twenty minutes? 

Hopefully, his instinct will help him win this time—again. 

The web he shoots out does nothing to stop the monster, and considering how it connected them both, the threads only drag the superhero to the edge of the building he was initially watching from. With some yelling and pulling, he finally detaches, and realizes that the odd sizzling feeling in his bonds must be from the same source as a few days ago; Spark. 

He had this gut feeling that a villain as strong as him wouldn’t have been destroyed so easily, but his wounds were so deep and the blood loss so bad from a few nights ago that he couldn’t have truly dumped him in the ocean without fainting or suffering something permanent, and although Riki hoped things in the universe would work itself out, the presence of the giant fifty foot insect alone is proof that things were not in his favor. 

He jumps off the building onto another, working quickly as he strings up a few webs between the houses as a wall for the monster, watching it slide and knock over cars in its wild pursuit. The monster spends a few seconds breaking down the wall of webbing and climbing over it, the many legs easily breaking through. As the superhero jumps across buildings and keeps track of the centipede’s movement, he has no idea why it isn’t going for him, and that makes his job much harder without the attention of the monster. One glance at the direction the centipede is headed in sets off another ding in Riki’s head—but this time, it finally clicks why the centipede is headed away from the boy. 

It’s attracted to the power plant. 

Riki immediately jumps and swings off of a lamp post, using the momentum of gravity and the force of his swing to propel him faster than the slithering creature. Squinting, he holds out his fist and points his pointer and pinky out, following the movement of the centipede as he aims. 

Bam. 

He sends clusters of silky white threads down precisely at the first pair of legs to pin it down. The webs stop the creature momentarily, and Riki doesn’t have time to watch how the body shrinks up and fizzes out with blue shocks as it tries to wiggle loose and malfunctions. This fight would be over soon, and the boy smiles when he jumps down to shoot more webs to apprehend the centipede. It wiggles and sends electricity out through parts of its body, trying to pry itself out. He expects it to simply be a robot of sorts following a mission considering its avoidant behavior, but as he approaches the tail, the monster suddenly swings at Riki, and its mass and speed is incomparable to the boy’s reaction speed. 

Riki lands into a tree and someone’s garage, feeling the crumbling wall falling all over him and the sudden pain blooming in his lower back. 

This fight will, in fact, not be over soon. 

With his superhuman abilities, Riki grabs onto the metal of the car beside him to hoist himself up, coughing from the dust, and jumping over the rubble to see how quickly the centipede creature can get out, without regard for his current state. The sound and rumble of the giant monster is all he needs to know that the traps are effective, but not at the previous capacity. 

The plan is simple: apprehend the legs and crush the head, where Riki assumes the decision-making and programming is taking place. But the monster’s angry and erratic actions throw a wrench in his plan. Its legs move faster, digging into the cement and leaving ruin in its wake as it continues down the road. While both the villain and superhero are fast, the distance between the power plant is finite—and only grows smaller and smaller.  

Although Riki can feel the bruises coming, he runs and swings, hearing the wind in his ears as he catches up to the centipede in no time. He tries the same tactics again–aim, shoot, stick, all the while keeping his distance. Although the monster’s body spans incredibly long, and should carry an immense amount of weight, the way it snaps at Riki’s flying body and sends shockwaves through his core leaves him shivering as his body slams into the ground, coughing. It hurts all over, and it feels like there’s weight on his eyes when he tries to open them and get up. His head is spinning as he staggers onto his knees, clutching his chest as he watches the centipede shrivel and crackle. 

It seems like the voltage produced is a double-ended sword, one that burns up the centipede body as much as it deals damage, and with the way the mutant creeps towards the electricity of the plant, Riki gets the feeling there’s a magnetic pull that forces the mutant to continue to crawl even against its instinct to stop. 

Despite his waning strength, however, Riki knows better than to half finish the job like last time. He creates a net from experience, weaving together the thickest and most durable threads to trap the entirety of the slowly approaching creature. It seems to crawl slowly up the makeshift barrier, knocking its head against the white and spreading the bright blue waves of its energy throughout. The boy watches as the thin white mass absorbs all of it and clings to the creature. It works, finally, after his attempts to nullify its movements, and he knows that despite the ache in his every step, the almost mummified centipede that hangs between several roofs for all the neighbors to gawk at is his sure sign of victory. 

All he remembers is hearing a familiar call of his hero name before his legs give out and his head hits Jake’s chest. 

Holy fucking shit is the first thing Riki thinks when he wakes up. 

He’s not out of his tattered suit and he feels grimy all over, but his body has done wonders in reducing the otherwise fatal injuries he got. No human body should be able to withstand two energy-filled blasts, but his suit and superhuman healing are of greater help than ever in alleviating the damage from his wounds. 

He knows why he’s in his bed with bandages thrown over his open wounds. He knows that every time something like this happens, it’s Jake who shoos away the concerned civilians, telling them he’s a medic. Jake is not a medic—rather, he’s a seventeen year-old boy who knows about his friend’s double life and with all the times he’s saved Riki, someone might as well dub him the greatest medic of all time. 

The clock on his bedside table has only served as a bearer of bad news. He looks over to see how it’s practically midday, and he’s missed yet another day of school from fighting crime. He’s in no condition to get up or get his bag, seeing how his hair is frizzy and his cheek has a cut that would warrant questioning. It seems only fair that he stays absent, and before he falls back asleep, he only prays you aren’t too mad at him for leaving the seat next to you empty.

But you aren’t mad, just worried. The soreness in his muscles doesn’t go away though, and he groans when he sits up in his bed, with bandages around his arms and an ice pack discarded next to him. 

He’s most definitely not coming to school like this. 

While you bore holes into the clock hanging off the wall, that doesn’t speed up the time. Two minutes pass, then another minute. As your classmates find their partners and begin discussing, you notice how the room gets louder with the due date looming near. It’s the first time you’re alone without the familiar boy beside you, and something hangs low in your chest when you put in a pair of earphones and open your laptop. 

Riki’s absence should have no effect on you. After all, you’re both just high school students who’ve talked once or twice, and yet you still look over at the empty chair. Staring doesn’t make Riki appear, though, and you return to your edits. It feels empty without his insight, or without him asking you to help him with a passage. Riki was your solution to all things boring. If he wasn’t doing his work, then you two were laughing at something on his phone. And if you agreed to both do something other than the report, then you could ask for an extra opinion when deciding prom details. There was something freeing about working with him that attracted you. Riki knew how to lighten the mood on days that weren’t so good for you, but he also worked hard and let loose at the same time. There was a perfect balance in Riki’s life that you aspired to have; it was a good mix of playful, dedicated, and fun all in the same vein. 

The words blend together on your screen. Jay Gatsby this, Tom Buchanan that, it all looks monotonous the more you keep trying to read and comprehend what exactly you’re talking about. 

Before class is dismissed, Mr. Yoo steps to the front of the classroom to gather everyone’s attention. He introduces your new novel for the next month, explaining yet another large assignment associated with the text. 

Truth be told, you don’t pay attention to any of it. 

The only thing you remember to do is to grab extra copies of the printed graphic organizers, as you get out of your seat and rush out when class ends in pursuit of one specific boy. 

“Sim Jaeyun!” The call of his name diverts Jake’s attention from his phone to your waving arm as you weave through the students and finally reach him. 

“You can just call me Jake,” he explains, “what’s up?” 

You begin to reach into your backpack, trying to feel for your folder, and pull out a few sheets. “These are for Riki.” 

Jake cheers internally for his friend who’s busy recovering at home. “What, you got a crush on him or something?” 

He tries to play it cool by teasing you, but the smile you bite back leaves the boy questioning if there really is anything going on. Jake knows better than to tell you anything about Riki’s feelings, and opts to instead grab the papers and to thank you for looking out for his friend. 

“Is Riki okay?” You have to know, just to make sure he’ll be here tomorrow to cure your boredom. 

What Jake says is much different than the nonchalant wave and half grin he gives you. “He’s just bedridden.” 

“That’s pretty serious! Did he come down with anything?” He seemed fine yesterday, so what’s the catch?

He blurts, “He just got badly hurt.” 

Immediately, Jake knows he’s fucked up. 

Your confusion and silence answers him far more than words ever could–he basically hears the gears turning slowly in your head.

Jake weakly defends, “His parents had a fight with him because he hit his head or something. He’ll be fine by tomorrow. Just bedridden from sadness, y’know?” 

The look you give him is unconvinced, but when Heeseung pats him on the shoulder and waves to you, the boy realizes that maybe staying quiet would’ve been the better decision. 

“I’ll see you later, ____.” And he’s off, waving half-heartedly and dragging a very confused Heeseung out of the cafeteria. 

NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE TRYING TO WAKE YOU UP AS GENTLY AS HE CAN.

Ever since March started and flowers began to bloom, your energy seemed to do the opposite, dwindling until Riki catches you mirroring his frequent in-class action: sleeping. And it worries him beyond belief, because you’re not the type to fall asleep like… ever. However, Riki does not have the heart to wake you up, even if it’s with a little nudge that you probably barely feel with how light he taps. It breaks his heart to have to ask you to review what he has done, because the bell is about to ring and the teacher might just send you to detention if he catches you off-task. 

The allergies always make Mr. Yoo irritable, and Riki knows not to get on his nerves. 

Your eyes flutter open to the pokes and prodding from none other than Nishimura Riki, who gazes at you softly when you adjust to the bright classroom setting once more. 

Panic settles in. “Wait- how long was I sleeping for?” 

He shrugs and scrunches his nose, not giving you an answer as he finishes scribbling something in his notebook. 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry.” Your hand squeezes into a fist at the frustration that you’ve let your partner down. 

And yet, Riki seems to be unfazed, frowning when he sees you stressing out. “Don’t ever sweat the little things, yeah? If there’s anything you ever need to talk about–trust me, I know what it’s like to have a lot of pressure on your shoulders.”

Smiling at him, you respond with, “Thank you, really.” 

Being treasurer is daunting in the spring. It’s full of requests, forms, and small tasks that leave you spent by the end of the day. “But,” you glance at the clock to see just how much time is left, “how’d you know?” 

He motions to your open computer with a now dark screen. “I saw your document pulled up. ____’s tasks or else she will be kicked out of student government,” he taunts, snickering when your eyes grow wide with embarrassment and you lightly nudge his shin with your foot in warning. 

“It’s not polite to snoop,” and although you say that, you catch something in your peripheral vision. It’s a few drawings of a figure and gadget drawn, shaded from rigid shapes with small descriptions pointing to different places. You weren’t sure what was more surprising; how good the drawings were, or the subject of his imagination. 

Weird. Inherently, there was nothing wrong with Riki drawing a villain, and you chalked it up to him being creative. Nothing more, nothing less. 

He puts his hands up in surrender at your last comment, his grin showing anything but. Just one look at the boy makes you realize that everything you’ve just thought about is foolish. 

There’s no way he’d have time to be a villain and a student. With one final thought, you let your raging thoughts rest and focus on the present; him. You’ve seen his hair messy, especially after his naps, but when Riki tries to style it like how he did today, you pay more attention to the streaks of blonde and how he often hides behind his bangs and scrunches his nose. It’s cute. He’s cute.

The truth is, you enjoy being around him like this, joking around and never worrying too much about your responsibilities and expectations. It’s refreshing. Being around Riki gives you the feeling that things will be okay in the end. 

You snap out of your thoughts to see that his desk is empty, while your’s hasn’t changed one bit.

“You’re going to sell prom tickets now, right?” He makes small talk before leaving for lunch, closing the notebook you were suspiciously eying before slipping it into his bag. 

“Yup,” you answer, popping the ‘p,’ “I’ll see you later,” and you two part ways.

All the long lines and constant distribution of change doesn’t allow much wiggle room for you to daydream. As time goes on, the ticket-selling line grows smaller and smaller, but the only thing you truly care about is eating the lunch your parents packed you. Your sandwich is probably sad and soggy now that there are only a few minutes of lunch left. When you finally sign off one last time after triple checking the forms are all correct, you let out a sigh, leaning back and finally getting a break. 

Then, it hits you that you’re not even sure if the boy you’re fawning over is attending the biggest event of the year, and you feel stupid for forgetting to ask. 

-

Yesterday was a rookie’s mistake–today, you’d make sure you get an answer from him.

“Are you going to prom, Riki?” is the first thing you ask when he sits down, grabbing his book and laptop with a little too much enthusiasm. 

“I’m thinking about it.” Yeah, whatever confidence he had when convincing himself he’d ask you out isn’t serving him well at this moment. Quite frankly, Riki feels lame as ever trying to be nonchalant around you. “You?” 

“I’d have to set up, so I would be there, yes. But whether or not I have a date is another story.” You smile to lighten the mood, but Riki watches you and nods, focusing back on signing into his laptop and getting his notes for the new book you’re reading. 

“Well, you’re not the only single one here.” And he wants to reprimand himself for saying something without thinking. “If someone asked, would you say yes?”

You think about it carefully, really because you don’t have anyone in mind when it comes to prom if Riki’s not planning on going. “It’d have to be someone I know—someone I talk to somewhat regularly. I’d be nice to be with someone who doesn’t make it awkward.”

Nishimura Riki might die from over-thinking if he keeps on wondering whether or not he fits that description to a tee.

RIKI'S TO-DO LIST BEFORE PROM

☐  talk to ____ regularly 

☐  don't make it awkward 

☐  be..cute? 

The boy decides that his superhuman responsibilities might be easier to complete than any of those three things. 

He switches the subject to stop his head from hurting too much. “Did you finish the report?” 

You still, and Riki’s question reminds you of the report looming over your head. In your defense, you two hadn’t brought it up much in the past week, and he didn’t seem to worry over how much of your time was spent emailing teachers or making spreadsheets. Although caught off guard, you’re quick to respond with, “What did we have to finish? I thought we were done since last week, but if there’s anything else-” 

“Sorry,” he rushes out, biting his lip, “I meant, if you finished reading it.” And the answer is no, you haven’t read it since your last edit on it three days ago. 

Within a few clicks, you find the document and scroll to the bottom, seeing the small note that Riki left that said ‘let me know how it looks.’ It’s sweet to know he thought about your input as much as you did his. 

“While some can agree that Gatsby’s rise into high society was sketchy, Gatsby still retains the same reserved character from years ago, and doesn’t manipulate others into success or use his money for nefarious purposes. It’s not like he changed after his wealth, and it could be argued Gatsby loved Daisy until his last breath and was willing to die as long as she was happy, emphasizing the theme of sacrifice. 

So, is Jay Gatsby a good person? The question targets the morality of a character who many can empathize with. Those who are charmed by his overwhelming love for Daisy would say that he’s committed textbook crimes, but focus more on the intent behind it. To pine after someone from a distance isn’t easy, but to pursue her after years of separation is even harder. It’s universally agreed, however, that love as a driving force doesn’t nullify what he’s done to others and the dirty schemes he’s enacted to gain the power he has. Therefore, Gatsby makes for an interesting main character, and highlights just how twisted a system around money can be.” 

The last page is–for the most part–his writing, and your admiration for him grows when you finish reading and scroll to hit your Works Cited page.

“It’s good,” you tell him wholeheartedly, “Didn’t think you had it in you.” 

Riki cracks a smile at your light teasing, soaking up your praise. 

“Now you know.” He shrugs. And he can only hope that you like him as much as you like his literary skills. 

NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE WHEN HE COMES TO THE REALIZATION THAT HE IS EXACTLY LIKE JAY GATSBY,JUST WITHOUT THE MONEY—DESPERATE FOR THE GIRL OF HIS DREAMS, DYING YOUNG, AND A FRAUD HIDING BEHIND SECRETS.

Nevermind the last one, he has to hide when he has an identity to protect as the city’s only superhero, but Riki feels his heart sink to his heels when he read a few weeks ago how much Gatsby simply adores Daisy. When Gatsby died, he scoffed, closing the book with a sudden disinterest. If he were the male lead, he wouldn’t have been laying in a pool for target practice. Maybe being a superhero teaches you how to avoid being easy bait for all your enemies, or maybe Gatsby was too carried away with love to think straight. 

Fighting crime gives you insurmountable experience with sneaking around, but it wasn’t something he could just teach to anyone. When he gets this horrible gut feeling that something’s happened to you, he just knew something was wrong. He might not be easy to catch, but for anyone else? Definitely.  

For everyone else, prom was a month away, but for you, it was three weeks of talking to your advisor and president, arguing with your other board members, and sitting behind that damn money box for another five days to sell tickets. For you, it was realizing that you were supposed to buy streamers and balloons yesterday on your way home from school. It was the thinly veiled disappointment in your board member’s texts when they told you they were at a loss for words. ‘I’m sorry, and I know you’re busy, but how could you forget? Prom is so important for all of us. What if they don’t have what you need anymore?’ It all repeated in your head as you bit your lip in frustration and slipped on the first pair of shoes you could find. Although it was dark and dangerous, you could care less if it meant avoiding the passive aggressive comments you’d get tomorrow during your meeting.

There it is again: that little tendency to not pay attention to your surroundings. 

You yelp when you feel someone grabbing your wrist and pulling you in, muffling your screams as he pulls you along. To see him on the news was worrying, but to see Spark in person with your life on the line is even worse. 

Tears spring to your eyes as you struggle against the metal to no avail, and you curse every previous moment you spent worrying about balloons rather than your safety.

Spark suddenly stops, shoving you against the wall before his hand grabs a brick with his metal arm, beginning to climb. “Don’t let go.” And you don’t think twice before holding on.

The city view would be beautiful if you weren’t hearing your heartbeat in your ears or if you weren’t dangling from the railing of some company building, trying to wiggle yourself free of the rope around your wrists. 

Spark speaks up, drumming his fingers on the railing next to you. “You wouldn’t happen to know where your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is, would you?” And you furrow your eyebrows, genuinely questioning for a moment if he really knew how the superhero operated. 

A voice from across the street puts a temporary hold on your thoughts, and you glance up to see a flash of blue and red soaring through the air, followed by a groan and a beam of light next to you. Seeing Spark’s powers right in front of you spurs you into action, yanking at the rope and trying to take tiny steps away from where they were fighting.

“From what I’m seeing, you wanted to hold someone hostage because you’re not feeling too good, huh?” Spider-Man shouts as he shoots out webs and blocks hits. You shake your head in partial disbelief of how unserious he is, but also how unbelievable all of this seems. “You tried to take a potion or something? I’m going to tell you this now, but these usually don’t work.” 

Riki’s assumption is right, and considering how Spark now has a leg and arm from metal instead of just the arm, the procedure for the additional limb couldn’t have been easy. The superhero still proceeds with caution, making sure to pay attention to anything new as he dodges and fights back. 

The villain immediately gets back up, stumbling for a moment before he regains his stance and runs towards the boy. You hear the clanging of fist hitting metal from their fight, and considering the difference in height and build, you’d expect Spider-Man to be easily flung to the side, but he holds his weight in battle. 

Riki aims for around the left shoulder, where an abundance of stitches cover the skin and fuse the metal into muscle. He lands a hit, and almost another one, before a punch to the side knocks him from his momentum. The boy wheezes when his back makes instant contact with the ground, rolling and getting up before Spark has time to shoot. 

He notices how quickly the gadget generates electricity now. Before, the beams took longer, and were easily predictable, but now, it glows bright for a moment before it fires directly in Riki’s path. The boy dodges the first, but the second one almost hits the top of his head before he ducks and creates distance. 

From the roof-top, Riki scans his surroundings before making the split-second decision to jump. 

He swings to the other side of the building, keeping you in his peripheral vision as he works on apprehending the villain in front of him. They spring into yet another fist fight, with Riki’s agility easily letting him avoid punches and land precise hits to make the previous injuries even worse. 

You think Spider-Man has the upper hand in this, seeing as how none of Spark’s punches seem to slow down the superhero, but you hear something loud before you can register it. 

You figure out what happened after Riki stumbles and suffers a blow to the stomach, sending him tumbling to the edge of the building. Spark knew that Spider-Man was avoiding his left arm—he knew that one wrong move paired with the tungsten material would have a lasting effect on the superhero’s fist. 

Riki coughs from the impact before his spidey-sense rings, pulling him back into battle as he runs as fast as his body can take him. 

You. He still needs to save you. 

With renewed vigor, he continues to avoid the flying sparks as he ducks between structures and uses the terrain to his advantage. He can tell, though, that the villain is slowing down. The shots are less accurate–a telltale sign that the enhancer Spark tried is working against him. 

Between all of the chaos, Riki finally lands a proper web, yanking as hard as he can to pull Spark to the ground. He stumbles, grasping at thin silk before Riki lets go on his side. The villain’s balance is off, giving the boy an advantage as he closes the distance, hopping over a thrown slab of metal and landing a solid kick into Spark’s ribcage. As he stays down, Riki continues to aim for muscle and flesh, his head spinning as he packs punch after punch to keep the villain apprehended. 

Spark’s body–curled into itself to absorb the hits the best that he can– hides the growing blue flash that he’s slowly charging up with his remaining power. The moment it escapes from under his abdomen, Riki directs his efforts towards avoiding the electric glimmer. The villain rolls over, his body tattered from the consistent injuries, and he fires what seems like an intense bullet of energy. It zips by the boy’s cheek, cutting the mask and leaving blood to run down in its wake. Time slows down as the superhero tries to process the unlocked speed of the burst, and Spark loses focus marveling at his new abilities. Never before had either of them seen power so concentrated, and it inflicts both fear and excitement. 

He lifts his arm, the other holding it up for support, and Spider-Man notices the fizzle of bright blue. Riki’s about to jump out of the way, preparing for yet another high-speed bullet, but before Spark fires, something clicks. The arm doesn’t directly point to Riki–but it skews off to the right.

Except, he’s no longer aiming for Riki in the split second that the boy blinks. He’s suddenly aiming at you, where your hands are tied to the railing and your feet are dangling from the bent metal that holds you precariously over the edge, leaving a fifty foot drop in its wake. When you see the blue energy in the villain’s palm growing slowly bigger, you pull at the rope desperately with zero regard to the tender rawness of your wrists. 

In your attempt to somehow break the rope, your cry of fear snaps Spider-Man into action. 

Riki pushes his sore body to jump as quick as he can, leaping across the rooftop to the building over. He easily avoids the metal railing, grabbing onto your arm as he yanks hard on the rope, the force of it separating a piece of metal from the railing. He immediately jumps, sending out a web to swing him back up. It all happens in a flash–first, you were bound to the edge about to fall to your death, and all of a sudden, you’re tightly pressed against Spider-Man’s chest with your bound wrists still attached to the metal. Shutting your eyes, you trust Spider-Man entirely, closing your eyes to avoid seeing just how far up you were. Wind rushes in your ears and leaves your stomach fluttering with butterflies until the superhero sets you down on a secluded rooftop. 

“Please,” he begs, “don’t leave. I’ll be right back.” 

You’d be a fool to do anything but wait. 

Riki checks on you one last time before diving down, springing himself back up with another web. The damage from the blasts is recognizable even from far away, and yet, he notices the reflective shine of a metal arm on the edge of the building before Spark lets go. 

To Riki, Spark is dead after dropping from a fall having taken that much damage, but he hears no impact. Making haste, the boy fails to find any figure no matter how hard he looks, but Spark’s laboratory has to be here somewhere. The badge from a week ago was stuck on Riki’s mind, and he could only imagine the reasons why he pursued this life. Was he recreating something? If he needs to power some sort of machine, then the heart of the city is a perfect place to harness the electricity for any large scale project. As much as he wants to dedicate the rest of the night to searching the city for some sort of clue, the fact that you’re still stranded on that rooftop after having just experienced a life-changing event blares like an alarm in his mind. 

He quickly leaves, returning to where you’re seated.

Without the fear of falling to your death from earlier, you were able to focus on undoing the knots from the rope. Red scratch marks and irritation bloom on your wrist, and the reality of it all happening still hasn’t settled in. Despite not being harmed once, the fear and incessant pounding of your heart overwhelms your senses, and it leaves you heaving with confusion. 

A pair of footsteps only become apparent as Riki walks closer, taking a seat beside you and letting out a large sigh. He stares at the stars silently as if he doesn’t have a cut on his cheek and bruises waiting to paint his skin purple–as if he isn’t hiding his true self under a facade. 

“You’re not hurt, are you?” You shake your head, grateful that Spider-Man was the reason you got away without a real injury.

“Thank you, really, for saving me. I don’t know how you manage to do it.” 

Riki chuckles under the mask. “Eh, you get used to it,” you hear Spider-Man say. “You fight a couple bad guys, get over a fear of heights and eventually you get the hang of things.” 

Scoffing, you gently rub at your wrists to ease the redness. “Easy for you to say. I haven’t been taught a crash course on how to avoid being supervillain bait just yet.” 

“Maybe you should learn it sometime,” Riki responds absentmindedly, “someone like you shouldn’t have been out so late doing whatever it could’ve been.” 

Sighing, your mind drifts off to think about the balloons and streamers that are not in your hand. “I had stuff for my upcoming events.” 

He knew about all of it when you’d explain your cryptic reminders and notes on your computer, but he still feigns curiosity. “What upcoming events?” 

“Just prom,” and he hears just how strained it makes you. 

Riki tilts his head in faux confusion. “What do you have to do for prom?” 

He notices how you immediately slump, as if the mere mention of prom deflates your happiness. “It’s only a few weeks away, and I was supposed to get decorations for our venue yesterday. I just wanted to slip out before my parents noticed.” 

Despite the fabric over his eyes, Riki’s expression shifts from surprise to pity when he understands your stakes. “You still need to be careful. Is your student council strict?” 

“Not strict necessarily, but judgemental–I ran for the position because I thought I could help my school raise funds and find more opportunities, but it just feels like no one truly wants to try anything new.” You wave it off as if it’s not that important, as if it isn’t the reason why you find yourself stressed so often. “I just don’t want to disappoint or give people something to talk about.” 

Despite not being involved with school the same way you are, the boy next to you resonates with the fear you currently face. The fear of letting people down was a large part of why Riki continued to put on that mask and step into the most dangerous situation of his life; he never wanted to sit down to hear the news that Spider-Man quit. 

So he keeps doing his job, even if some days are harder and some fights aren’t worth winning–just like what you do. 

“Yeah, I get that,” he tries to console, “You must be doing a lot for everyone around you, and I’m sure a lot of people appreciate what you’ve done. Don’t beat yourself up too much, yeah? You’ll always have me.” He smiles, but he knows you don’t see it. You’re looking at the stars, trying to calm your mind and return to your life before everything happened. 

You glance over at Spider-Man, wondering if he’ll truly be around for you when you need it. “If I need to talk to you, should I step out of my house past 8PM again?” 

Riki chuckles, watching clouds slowly dim the moon’s glow in their path. “If I’m not fighting crime, I’ll show up at a moment’s notice.” 

There’s no way he means it, but you grin, feeling a lot of the pressure and stress of earlier slowly wash away. After all, nothing happened to you–Spider-Man made sure of it. Maybe things really were going to be okay. 

“Let’s get you home, yeah? Don’t you have stuff to do anyways?” 

You shrug, nothing really coming to mind. As you get up, you remember having to run a plagiarism check on your work, and how Riki told you to text him when you got home after your student government meeting. 

Riki. Spark. Spider-Man. 

“Wait,” you tell Spider-Man, sitting back down on the cement, “I need to talk to you about something else, too.” 

“It’s not like my dinner’s getting cold,” the superhero mumbles quiet enough that you can’t hear. 

“There’s this guy,” you start, paying no mind to how dirty your clothes are getting when you cross your legs. 

Spider-Man scoffs, looking off into the distance, and it makes you believe he has to be your age or older. “You have a crush on him, or something?” And a whole tidal wave of deja vu hits you in the chest. 

‘He must be badly hurt’ isn’t just something people say. People don’t just draw insanely detailed drawings of Spark’s arm and machines without notes to follow unless they knew. People wouldn't just randomly miss school without any impending signs. You’re sure of it–the tired naps in class, the random drawings of superheroes and superhumans alike, or how awkward he could act–it all makes sense.

Your classmate, aka Nishimura Riki, aka the guy who you’ve questioned if you had a crush on for the past few days, might be a villain. 

The swirling feeling of trepidation in your stomach leaves three words running around your head. 

What. The. Fuck. 

Although you tried so hard to stop thinking about it, Jake’s comment from before rubbed you the wrong way. It was sometime last week where you couldn't get your mind off of the implications of his words, but that feeling was brushed underneath your responsibilities. 

Until now. 

“Yeah, there’s this guy,” you breathe, feeling your chest constrict, “Nishimura Riki. I think he’s Spark.” 

His blood runs cold. 

“You think this…why?” 

You take a deep breath, trying to organize all your thoughts. “Well, first, it was his friend, Jake. He said that Riki was badly hurt, and I was really confused at first, but tried to let it go.” 

Riki was going to strangle his best friend. 

“And then, I was looking at him in class, right? And keep in mind, he’s pretty cute, and we sit next to each other, so I just noticed how good his hair looked that day, but his notebook was out, and I saw all these drawings of Spark. Like, the arms, the metal things, even the projectiles! Who would know the ins and outs of that thing if it wasn’t Spark himself?”

He didn’t know what to think about first; the fact that you gushed about him for the first time, or if he should even tell you that Spider-Man would know those things, too. 

“And sometimes, I notice he’s a little awkward around me. I can’t explain it. It’s like he’s paying attention to me. That must’ve been why he captured me.” He wants to laugh at how damn close you are to figuring it out, but in reality, nothing is funny about the situation. 

Nishimura Riki is actually listening to this, right now, as Spider-Man–not Spark. The awkwardness, though? It was his crush on you, and was not superhuman related in the slightest.  

“I don’t know,” he attempts to divert, pretending to focus, “I saw a badge for FLiGHT. You know the company that’s been making time traveling machines? I saw a glimpse of his name and face. It’s not that guy you mentioned.” 

You raise an eyebrow. “And you haven’t gotten him caught?” 

“Villains aren’t easy to find, y’know. It’s not like playground hide and seek,” Riki defends, crossing his arms. 

You shrink in your spot, feeling sheepish for questioning a superhero so bluntly. 

“Plus,” he continues, “Spark has never had a hostage. Wouldn’t it be pretty mean of that friend of yours to kidnap a girl from his class?” 

“Yeah—that makes sense. Thank god,” you breathe, closing your eyes momentarily. “Then what do you suspect all that evidence leads to? Maybe he’s a secret agent?” 

“I think,” Riki continues to keep up his clueless facade, “Your friend might just be clumsy. Or creative. I mean, maybe he went through a break-up?” Nice one, Riki. 

You shake your head. “No, there’s no way he has a girlfriend. You’d think I like guys who are taken?” Scoffing lightly, you then remembered that Spider-Man really would have no idea who any of you are. 

He shrugs and stands up stretching before motioning for you to follow him. “I have no idea what you high school kids do. Come on, let’s get you home.” 

As you hug him tight, the cold air whips around your body and leaves goosebumps in their wake. You barely open your eyes from the fear of seeing yourself inches from hitting a building or up in the air. Spider-Man only yells his confirmation after asking how to get you home, finally placing you on the ground outside of your large gate. 

“Thank you for saving me tonight.”

“Anytime. Figure things out with that friend of yours, and don’t go out late, okay?” You nod and take his words to heart. 

“Goodnight, Spiderman.” 

—-

Nishimura might die. One, because he has this horrible guilty feeling in his stomach, and two, because of a villain. 

Yesterday, he ignored the salmon and rice bowl that waited for him back at home, choosing to follow the coordinates he saved on his phone after he took you home. It led him to a seemingly harmless auto-shop, with an arrow on his GPS pointing to a garage that was shut down completely with nails and blocked with boxes. The exterior pointed to it being abandoned, but Riki suddenly saw some light coming from a makeshift above.

The boy scaled the wall as quietly as possible, glancing into the source of the whirring. He caught small glimpses of something–metal, glowing, blue. 

Or at least, for a few seconds it was on until the power went out. 

The voice that complained from inside the room sounded identical to the man Riki fought. Spark grumbled, turning on a flashlight and quickly waving it around. Riki ducked from the window and held his breath, waiting for the man to suspect something. 

Nothing. 

One lightbulb slowly flickered back on, and then the other dingy light followed. The space was cramped with the metal equipment in the middle, resembling what Riki had seen in the news. 

He was right–it was the same time travel portal that was ruined from a few months ago. 

Spider-Man continued to observe the man as he worked and drilled, plugging certain wires or pausing momentarily to read from a journal. To anyone, it’d seem peaceful, like some sort of renovation project. But in reality, it was so much more than that. 

Riki searched for any sort of information about the machine, trying to see what exactly was left to do until his gaze landed on something. 

There was some sort of date on a bright pink sticky-note, and Riki’s eyes widened when he finally comprehends it. 

The machine was scheduled to be completed tomorrow. 

-

A street lamp next to Riki dies out—which was a clear sign that something was powering up. From the dark, he hears the metal from the same place as last night moving again, and he knows that Spark has left. His presence sends anyone down the street and immediately running, leaving the area for only them two. 

Riki finally sees the completed metal build. Half of his body is wrapped in or replaced with metal parts as he sets down the metal portal, beginning to push it in the direction of the power plant. 

A truck or car would make things much easier, but whatever.

Riki wants to cry from fear and run away. He wants to leave and pretend he never saw anything from last night. 

He’s going to die fighting Spark and he will quite literally a) never finish highschool and get that stupid diploma, b) finish explaining how Gatsby is not a good person and is naturally selfish, and c) he’s never going to tell you how he’s had a small crush on you ever since he saw your cute campaign video as to why you should vote y/n l/n for student body treasurer last spring. 

“You sure that thing works?” Riki asks, jumping into action as he sends webs to immobilize the machine. 

“You’re annoying, you know that?” Spark sends a projectile in the superhero’s direction, hitting the wall behind him instead as Riki jumps out of the way.

With another duck mid-air and the roof of a flying car dangerously close to his nose, Riki thanks the dance practice he does for his flexibility as he shoots another web and swings away. 

Spark is uncontrollable by now, sucking the light from street lamps and fizzing wires in his wake. He has no idea how he’s supposed to get in contact with the villain like before. The body of his suit fizzes with bright electricity that sizzles and pops. It illuminates Spark’s figure, making him easy to spot, but not so easy to defeat. It’s an overload of power, causing the voltage to escape between the joints and gaps of the metal pieces in his suit. And Riki can feel it; the air is heightened and so are the stakes of this fight—and with how the man that stands in front of him looks upgraded and menacing, he knows only one person can make it out of this fight alive. 

“You injected the city’s ‘Gas and Electric’ into your system or what?” Riki calls out, making light of the situation. If he’s being honest with himself, he’s scared out of his wits seeing the six foot figure with blue and white shooting from every crack, looking like a nightmare to touch.

Riki avoids a few more angrily thrown objects, using the momentum of his jump from the side of the building to zip from the top of a yellow fire hydrant to go from one side of the street to the other. “You’re slow!” He taunts, tucking in his legs to avoid a shot of electricity directed at him. 

The screech of metal from the nearby hydrant can be heard as the top flings off, making Riki lose his anchor/ Before he can process it, instead of smoothly landing on the building, he crashes into it faster than expected, groaning when his back makes contact with the glass and he tumbles into the living room of someone’s apartment. 

“Fuck,” he curses, fighting his aching limbs to get up once more. 

And the solution hits him. Literally. 

When he steps out and quickly attaches a web to the top of the building, he’s met on the way up with a splash of water from the hydrant to his face, and Riki splutters as he wipes his mask, regaining focus as he lands on the concrete and hides behind the ledge. 

Water. If he can get it in contact with Spark and pour enough water on the right spot, the excess of electricity blazing from his mechanical body should work against him. 

“Too scared? You should know better than to run away.” The superhero rolls his eyes, crawling away silently to avoid being seen by Spark. Riki does his best to look around for something, and finds a black flower pot in the corner, using a web to grab it before he scales the side of the building and runs away while Spark is distracted as the villain also climbs the wall to face him there. But when Spark climbs the ledge and scans the premise, Riki is nowhere to be seen. 

Instead, Riki swings across the street and fills the pot with water, heaving the extra weight as he shouts out from the sudden pain in his side. He stumbles on the pavement, crying out from the injury as the pot falls with his whole plan. 

Maybe this is where Spider-Man dies. 

He sucks in a deep breath before rolling from his back onto his knees, ignoring the wound to pick up the flower pot. The hydrant still shoots out water, and the superhero rushes towards it, causing Spark to follow. He narrowly avoids another shot from behind him, reaching the yellow hydrant before dropping the pot on the ground. Spark is th 

While Spark has always been intelligent, Riki could tell that the man didn’t fear the water, believing he’d be invincible to the elements now that his suit was perfected. There was something off, Riki could tell, and he would make sure to use it to his advantage. Spark was uncontrolled, and his powers drastically decreased the more he used them. There’s no way his body isn’t in overdrive with how recklessly he’s been letting himself get hurt. 

Riki uses a web to get himself on higher ground instead of fighting, waiting for the supervillain to follow. If he could get Spark off the edge and fall into the growing puddle of water, it should slow him down. 

Spark scoffs. “Run away, then. Like you always have.” Riki hears the wall crumbling under the villain as he climbs within seconds, immediately preparing to fight when he makes it onto the rooftop. But Spider-Man was also prepared, jumping from his crouched hiding position and attempting to catch Spark off guard. 

All he can focus on now is pushing him off. There’s no way it’d be easy, considering he had to focus on his touching any of the electricity off of his suit. Riki delivers a kick to Spark in the ribcage near his heart, where he’s fused metal into flesh. The villain coughs before taking a step back, his metal arm reaching for Riki’s outstretched leg. He grabs it, twisting with anger before the boy meets the ground in a violent throw. Not only is the slam greater because of the enhanced strength, but the power seeps into Riki’s skin, leaving it hot from the energy radiating off of his palm. 

The boy groans, flipping to his side to avoid a fatal hit to the chest. He reaches for Spark’s normal arm, swinging the villain’s body away with as force as he could to create distance between them. 

Riki has been in enough fights to simply know when to run, even if he doesn’t know what’s coming. He could feel the tingle of the charge as it powered up, and with its energy so unrestrained and its user so unstable, the large attempt to hit Riki sends the villain stumbling back from the force. The more Spark uses his powers, the more likely he’s going to end up dead. 

“Your skin can handle that anymore!” he shouts, getting ready to swing himself closer as a plan manifests itself in his head. “You’ll die like this!” 

Spark seems to know that too as he wipes his mouth and recovers from Riki’s attacks. 

“You think I care?” He shouts, desperately pressing his wounds to stop the bleeding. “You think I have anything else for myself?” The vulnerability of his character shines through as he clutches his bleeding wound without regenerative powers to help. “You think I didn’t know that when I did it to myself--what they did to me?” 

Riki doesn’t respond, grimacing as he continues hand-to-hand combat. Although he takes a solid punch to his jaw that’s forming a deep purple bruise, he manages to trip Spark onto the ground.

The man stumbles back from the head injury, the pounding from earlier not letting him to think straight. Riki doesn’t try to injure him anymore, but he instead blocks an incoming punch and tries to force Spark towards the edge. 

The villain barely notices how much space there is left, and the boy lunges with full force. They tackle each other into the ground, and Riki gets off after apprehending him once more. 

The city's a mess, and Spider-Man’s eyes want to shut down so badly, but he takes a few steps in Spark’s direction, pushing him off the side of the building as quickly as he can. Riki hears the thud before he peeks over the edge, seeing the water erode all of the engineering from the machinery. He slowly descends from the rooftop. 

“You were in the accident, huh?” Riki shouts on top of the plethora of sounds. Pain, buzzing electricity, splashes of water as he lands next to Spark; it all echoes in his ears as he pours the water from the pot on Spark’s body. “Why did you try it? Why did you want to go back so bad?”

“If I could go back,” Spark coughs, trying to get away from the large pool of water, “I could’ve prevented the accident from taking the lives of the people around me. I could’ve saved them.” 

Spider-Man understands loss, and he understands the regret that comes with failure. He understands how the man in front of him feels after having everything taken away from him, but his emotions could never justify his actions. 

“You know you can’t change things,” Riki responds, “You tried your best, Spark.” It’s the last thing Riki tells the villain before his body slumps and police sirens grow louder and louder. It’s the last thing that he continues to think about, even if the medic quickly assesses the severity of his wounds. 

“I’m fine- really,” he pushes away the hands of a concerned woman as she holds a roll of bandages. “There’s something else I need to do.” 

Riki knew he had to tell you about this–he couldn’t just let you confide in him about..well, him, without your knowledge. And Riki wasn’t morally perfect, but he knew an explanation would be the only way to fix things.

Your house looks different when jumping over the fence instead of standing in front of it. When he realizes he has no idea what room belongs to you, he racks his brain, suddenly remembering how yours was the only one with a gray balcony over the pool. And so he climbs, slipping from the exhaustion creeping into his body. 

You’ll understand after he explains everything, right? 

“____, a little help?” And what the fuck is Nishmura Riki doing outside of your door? You go to investigate the muffled sound, inching towards the curtains and pulling them back to expect him there. When you hear a half yelp and a hissing sound that follows right after, without a person anywhere in sight, your heart drops to its stomach. 

Do not say it’s true. 

“Riki, where the fuck are you?” you ask, traversing out when you don’t see him anywhere across the glass. 

“Down here.” You run in the direction of the voice, and your eyes grow comically large and you gasp, staring down at the sight before you. 

“Holy shit.” 

There Nishimura Riki is, with his mask half burned off his face and his blonde and black hair messy and matted to his forehead with sweat. The suit is ripped in multiple locations with gashes and purple replacing the healthy skin underneath. His face is in more of a grimace, as he holds onto the web with both hands and one foot planted on the stone of your balcony—read; the bottom of your balcony. 

“A little help?” And you see his sheepish emotion through the tattered fabric, embarrassed after you had to find him in such a compromising situation. “I’m a little worn out and I think my webs are getting weaker.”

You’re a little frustrated with him for being out so publicly, but more scared and worried for his condition. Your gaze narrows on the mask, tattered and covered with scratches, but clearly visible. It was Spider-Man’s mask. The material gives way to a familiar face, and your mind almost blocks you from putting the pieces together. It’s impossible, almost horrifying to think of the implications of what it means to wear the blue and red suit. 

Instead of being the villain, Riki is, in fact, the savior.

The harsh truth is that your classmate, who you spent the last month working on a project with and suspected was a villain, is the same superhero that went out and risked his life every night fighting crime. It’s jarring to see him like this, breathing heavy and straining against the stone of the balcony, and his cough snaps you out of it. “What the fuck do I do?” 

Riki tries to put his hand up in surrender and shuts his eyes at your harsh tone. “Okay, okay, I get-“ and he cuts himself off with a yelp as his footing slips. 

He holds out his hand, and you immediately bend over the smooth railing to grab it, leaning back on the heels of your feet to help him up the most that you can. You’re filled with confusion when the boy hobbles over the cool surface of the balcony and lets his head rest on the stone, not saying much as he catches his breath. You watch the rise and fall of his chest and how his right arm goes to nurse the left side of his ribcage, wincing and sucking in a pained breath as he assesses the smear of red on his fingers. 

Sitting there with your mouth agape, you’re not really sure what to think about first; to check if RIki’s alright, to think about how your city’s greatest superhero is your English project partner, to yell at him for going to your house instead of his house to fix himself up, or to think about how good his side profile looks in the moonlight. Maybe you should’ve just been relieved that the boy you started to like wasn’t a fear-inducing villain.

“Okay, first of all, we need to have a huge talk. But I’m not a medic Riki- I’m going into accounting for fuck’s sake.” He hears the amount of curses flying from your lips as you ramble, and sees how stressed you look watching him sit against your railing. 

“I don’t know how to help you. And also,” you lower your voice and scoot closer, looking around at the large property to really make sure no one’s listening. “you’re Spider-Man?” 

The information all hitting you at once is worse than when your history teacher told you your essay was horrible. At least then, in her office, you could process everything. But here? You’re about to faint. 

“I’m pretty cool, huh?” And of course Nishimura Riki says such a thing, taking deep breaths as he shallowly presses on the blossoming bruises on his skin and wipes the sweat from his brow. 

“Pretty fucking stupid is what it is, Riki.” You cross your arms and try to take a look at where he’s been hurt, hoping that at least he has some sort of regeneration ability that helps him heal much quicker—because there’s no way he could deal with all of this on top of school. 

“I have my reasons,” he says, his voice quiet. 

You pause. “For being Spider-Man?” 

“No,” he shakes his head. “For coming here.”

“What could possibly make you want to come over to my house instead of the nearest hospital? What’s that important to you?”

“I really want to ask you to prom.” 

You simply stare at him, surprised. 

“You came to my house, even though you’re like, a punch away from passing out, to ask me out? And you couldn’t have, I don’t know, asked me anytime during the classes we have together?”

Riki somehow finds it in himself to frown and shrink from your angry piercing gaze. “I can’t because talking to you makes me nervous–so yeah, I’m sorry I’m half conscious on your balcony in my suit instead of at your door with a poster.” 

You’re conflicted, your mind still reeling from the recent discovery and your flood of emotions. Ever since you questioned his identity on top of your feelings for him, you had a hard time really knowing if you could like Riki if he turned out to be a villain, so to know that he proved both of your theories wrong leaves you quiet as you think. If possible, the color in the boy’s face drains even more when you go back inside, but the door stays open, and he thinks he hasn’t ruined things after all. You emerge with a bottle of isopropyl alcohol, a bowl of warm water, and a pristine white towel. 

“I’m not mad about that, you idiot,” you reprimand him, setting everything down as you examine the cuts on his face. You squeeze the towel and start to dab at his skin, avoiding the cuts as you clean it. “Who does this for you if not me?” 

“Jake.” 

“Seems like a pretty good friend.” Riki nods in response. 

 “I’m sorry,” he sighs, sitting up to properly address you, even if you weren’t able to meet his gaze. 

“For what?”

“For putting this on you–all of it. Not just the whole Spider-Man thing.” He knew he’d have to tell you at some point, or else it’d eat him up inside to know he kept all of it from you. 

“Look at you, saving me mid-air and talking to me as if you didn’t know who I was.”

You notice a flash of regret through his wince as you clean up a cut with antiseptic. “I meant it when I told you I knew what it was like to have a lot of pressure.”

“Guess I wasn’t so far off, then. If we never talked, would you have told me?” Riki shakes his head, and the simple motion leaves you somehow disappointed. 

“How do you ever tell anyone you’re…y’know, Spider-Man?” Even if it’s a hypothetical, you shrug, not being able to answer.

“How’d Jake find out?” 

Riki chuckles and hisses at the same time before trying to remember. “I think I just kicked his window in after a nasty poison got hold of me. He was a little too excited to have Spider-Man on his bedroom floor, and less excited to know it was me. I’m not really supposed to tell anyone, though.”

“Then why’d you tell me? You could’ve just gone back to your friends.” 

“I felt guilty–I know, I know, it sounds stupid. I’d definitely get my identity revealed at this rate.” You shake your head. 

“Not stupid. Keep going.” 

“I didn’t care that you suspected me, or if anyone else did, because I knew it was never true. But I felt so bad knowing you were sharing to me how you felt without even knowing it was me who was listening–like I was holding something from you.” 

You admire his honesty, and when you look at his furrowed brows and his lip that he’s been gnawing from worry, you can’t even imagine what he’s had to hide and do for this. In a way, you look up to him more, for trying his best even if he’s gotten all odds stacked against him. Riki’s commendable in your eyes–he always had been, ever since you woke him up in class. 

“I like those things about you, Riki. That you’re honest with yourself and the people around you as much as you can be, and you try to help others when you can. I’m glad we got to know each other more this past month.” Talking to him feels different than talking to Spider-Man from a few days ago; it feels raw, like you’re not just confessing something to a brick wall anymore. If none of this ever happened, you doubt you’d get the chance to tell Riki any of this properly. 

The boy stays silent, taking deep breaths while processing what you’ve told him. “I’m glad I could help you out.” 

You furrow your eyebrows. “I hope you know I don’t like you because you help me out. I like you because you’re attractive, and because you’re genuine,” you blurt. 

Riki laughs despite his ribcage hurting everytime he does so. Riki nods and mumbles a ‘thank you,’ also glad to truly get to know you. While his crush was more of an infatuation with your hard work and amiability, the past few weeks really opened his eyes to who you were. You never wanted to disappoint, and even if your recklessness left you in some dire situations, Riki could see how much effort you really put into things. 

There wasn’t anything else he needed to tell you–you were smart enough to see how much he cared about you.    

You’re so close, your lips glossy with lip balm as you watch him carefully. You hear and see it all; the heavy, labored breathing from his body healing itself rapidly, and the way his hand is full of rough cuts and calluses as his fingers intertwine with yours. But your eyes catch a glimpse of his mask tossed to the side, the blue shining in the corner of your eyes as you’re reminded of who he is right now, and what role you play. You are still ____ ____, but he’s a superhero.

It makes you momentarily forget whose suit you're peeling away, whose skin you're cleaning. It reminds you that he’s just the boy in your English class that you fell for. “What does that make us?”

“Prom-goers,” he answers with a slight nod. 

You smile, wiping a cut before placing the towel back into the bowl for the last time and getting up. “We can be prom-goers, yeah.” 

You’re not sure if you’re ready for anything, and you’re thankful that he understands that, too. As much as it warmed your heart to see him again and hear his confessions, the blaring truth still hangs over your head. You grab his mask, finally looking at him before handing it back and grabbing your things. His secret identity wasn’t something you could just ignore. 

“Go home, Spider-Man,” you turn your back on him, and time slows when you falter before sparing him one more look. “I want you as Riki, not like this.” 

MAYBE NISHIMURA RIKI DOESN'T NEED TO DIE–OR ALMOST DIE–ANYMORE. 

He went home that night with his scars somewhat cleaned and his bruises miraculous healing on their own, and even if slipping through the window left him clutching his side in pain, Riki silently jumped up to celebrate his multiple victories before slipping out of his suit and finally getting some rest. 

Riki’s scared of how he’s affected your relationship. He’s worried you’ll avoid him in the halls, and he’s worried you’d never want to see him again after putting you through all of it. As much as he'd understand how upset you'd be towards him, he hopes he did the right thing by telling you.

But you see him on your way to English, and you call his name. His eyes search for yours in the crowds, and you two see each other before you crush him in a hug. 

Riki isn’t sure how to feel at first, but eventually wraps his arms around you as relief settles in his stomach. 

“Thank you for saving me, Spider-Man,” you whisper, loud enough for only him to hear. 

He smiles at you, ruffling your hair as you go to English together. “Anytime, ____.” 

NEVERMIND, NISHIMURA RIKI MIGHT DIE WHEN HE SEES YOU IN YOUR RED PROM DRESS.

But first, he has to try something out. 

He curses to himself when silently zipping from a tree outside your family property to the top of your house, staring past the ledge two and luxurious stories to your well decorated porch light and door. He just prays that Google Maps is  right about how secluded the area is, so no one can see him pacing around your rooftop, with flowers elegantly wrapped in his hand (courtesy of your mother’s sleek envelope from a few days ago). 

“Fuck it,” he says to himself, shooting a web and dangling himself down. Riki’s upside down figure watches swirled window frames and meticulously designed accents as he descends, and he wonders what kind of shady business your parents could’ve done to afford something so grand. 

He faces your door—hanging down instead of rightside up, but he’s still here on time like he promised. 

The door opens at 6:00PM like he instructed you to, but what he didn’t tell you what to do was shriek and slam the door. On his nose. With a loud yelp, Riki clutches his nose, rubbing the spot you hit and trying to apply pressure to alleviate the pain. 

When the door slowly creaks open again, you face with the image of Nishimura Riki, aka your boyfriend, aka your English partner, aka Spider-Man, curled upside down in the fetal position as he cradles the sore spot on his face and swings slightly from the breeze. 

“You scared me, dumbass! How was I supposed to know it was you? It was so hard to see!” 

Although muffled, Riki’s able to mumble, “You have a porch light for this reason, _____,” and a jab at his stomach from you follows his sarcastic remark. Finally, his nose feels better, and he straightens out to finally look at you. 

Pretty, pretty, pretty, and the boy wonders how you look even more stunning with a glittering red dress and perfectly done make-up. “I like the red,” he says, trying not to freak out over your beauty. “Reminds me of a certain neighborhood superhero.” 

“I have some blue spider earrings to match.” With a beautiful smile, you turn to show him the little accent, and it melts his heart. “Are you okay, though?”

“I’m fine. I should’ve probably put more thought into that.” 

You snicker, sliding into your heels and closing the door behind you. 

“One of us is better at romantic gestures, it seems.” It warrants a scoff, and Riki brings a gloved hand to poke at your forehead teasingly.

“Let me have a do-over, then?” And the way your lips curl up into a bright smile leaves him quiet and in awe. 

“What, were you going to kiss me? Very original, Spider-Man.” With the way the fabric shifts over his features, you can tell he’s pouting. 

“I thought girls liked this.” 

You shrug, pretending you aren’t swept off his feet by the effort he’s put in. Taking a step in his direction, your hands reach up to gently pull the mask over his chin, ears, and then his nose. 

Whispering quietly, you ask, “You’ve kissed other girls upside down?” 

Riki’s quick to shake his head. “You’re the only girl I’d withstand a head rush for.” And god, you just can’t stop yourself from grinning at his sweet, genuine words.

You lean in, placing a small kiss on his nose as a silent apology. Then, you close your eyes and lean into him once more, feeling his hands carefully holding the side of your head and his lips on yours. Your kiss with Riki is saccharine and slow, making you pull away when the urge to beam at him is too much. Your cheeks definitely hurt by how romantic he’s being, and you can’t resist kissing him once more.

“I’m not gonna lie,” he starts, finally letting himself down, “It feels weird.” 

“You ruined the moment.” And he really didn’t, but you enjoy his subtle reactions to your light digs at him. 

“Whatever.” Riki laughs. “Stay here, I’ll be right back.” 

You nod, sitting down on the porch and dragging a manicured nail over your lips with the ghost of his affections, thinking about how you literally just kissed Spider-Man. 

Riki comes back, dusting off his suit and smoothing out the wrinkles, with a large bouquet of red roses and one blue one snuck in there. Your lips stretch into a grin and you accept the bouquet, keeping a mental note to read the card in there.

“You never cease to amaze me, Riki.” It’s the last thing you mutter to the air before you loop your arms around his neck, urging him to lean down as you kiss him once more—this time rightside up, but still as sickly saccharine as the one before it. Your heart is fuzzy with fondness and your eyes glitter with adoration. 

“So, which kiss was better?” he asks when you pull away, a little breathless and dizzy.

You swat his arm and walk past the gates, seeing the sleek limo waiting by the curb. “I don’t know, Spider-Man. Maybe show up in your suit and we’ll try it again.” 

REBLOGS AND FEEDBACK ARE ALWAYS APPRECIATED AND ALWAYS READ!

RIKI FIC DONE!!!! ngl y/n u were right there how did u not know riki was spiderman but whatever idc she's a hard worker not smart LMFOAOAO. my first ever action fic so i hope you enjoy! also i hate the ‘oh he pined after her for 4 years she liked him for 2 months’ bs because I WAS IN IT. and it sucks so i tried to deviate from it :)

꣑ৎ permanent fic taglist (TAGGED IN TEASERS, FICS, HEADCANNONS, DRABBLES, ETC.): @dimplewonie @minleeeknow @heeheesang @mintpjzroll @llvrhee @firstclassjaylee @in-somnias-world @rairaiblog @suneng @mavlogist @sensitively-taken @sumzysworld @simpjay @moons-v @riksaes @txtari @jungwonscatcus @tya0 @sasfransisco @woorcve @shypen @pinkriki @rikisluv @saranghaohoshi @lilifiedeans @wonmyheart @k1ttyluvr @nikisgfff @ramenoil @laurradoesloveu @lvcky-g1rl-syndr0me @ikeulims @missychiefs1404 @qwonyoung23 @yangjungwonnie @onementally-unstabel-kid @microwvdstrawb3rri3s @blooqz @anormieee hi permies hope u enjoy! kith

[stewpidcheescatarinabluu]

Dummy

Synopsis: Y/N, a small-time streamer, has always dreamed of becoming famous, streaming to just 10-15 viewers. One day, their favorite streamer, Karina (aka KatarinaBluu), starts watching and interacting in the chat, eventually building a connection. As their friendship deepens, Karina confesses that Y/N has been her comfort streamer, and their bond turns into something more. The two grow closer, with Y/N eventually joining Karina's streams, nervously taking his first steps into the spotlight. Together, they navigate their blossoming relationship, becoming a team both on and off the stream.

Word Count: 2,404.

Ever since you were a kid, you dreamed of becoming a famous streamer. You worked hard—posting videos, streaming for hours on end—but life wasn’t always kind. Still, as you grew older, so did your determination. You kept streaming, often for even longer hours, though your audience never grew much—just about 10 to 15 viewers in total.

But it wasn’t really about the numbers. You streamed because it made you happy. It made you feel productive, like you were chasing the dream you’d held onto since childhood. And even if it was just 10 to 15 people watching, having the privilege to share your world with them was enough.

Of course, you had your fair share of favorite streamers. But one of your all-time favorites—if not the favorite—was a streamer named KatarinaBluu, or just Karina. She was a mix of everything: a gamer, lifestyle creator, and vlogger, with a following that skyrocketed to over 7 million in just three years. She wasn’t just popular—she was one of the biggest streamers today.

You’d wake up at 10 a.m. and stream until 10 p.m., grinding through hours of content, mostly RPGs—your favorite genre. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was your dream, and you lived it every day.

The thing is… your favorite streamer was watching you almost every time you went live.

You were in the middle of a Souls game, on your last sliver of health, about to beat a tough boss. One more hit and it would've been yours—but you failed. By a pixel.

Then you heard the notification sound.

A message popped up in chat.

CatrinaBlue: "Aww, nice try! You’ll get him this time!"

You stared at the message, a little stunned before breaking into a smile. It was always nice knowing people were actually watching—even better when it was her.

"Thanks, KatarinaBluu. I’ll get him this time—for you!"

You went in again, more focused than ever, and this time… you won.

You let out a cheer, leaning back with both relief and pride.

CatrinaBlue: "Good job! You deserved it."

[CatrinaBlue donated $5.00]

"Yoo! Thank you, Catarinablue, for the $5! You didn’t have to, you know?" You said, grinning ear to ear. It felt surreal, like this was your moment—your break. As time passed, the games kept coming and going, but there she was. "CatarinaBluu"—always in the chat.

Sometimes, you’d get 3 or 5 viewers, but most of the time, it was just her. Just CatarinaBluu, talking with you, engaging with you, and forming this unique connection between you both.

"Hi, Catarinablue! Welcome back! I’m playing another Souls game, and look—I made my name similar to yours." You typed with excitement.

She replied almost immediately in chat:

"Wow, you didn’t have to! But thanks! Are you planning to finish it today? If so, good luck!"

You grinned, fingers hovering over the keys.

"I’m planning to! Why? Will you stick around until the end of the game?"

Her response came quickly:

"Mhm, yes."

Time passed by, and eventually, you and Catarinablue started having more personal conversations—talking about how your day was going, what your plans for the future were, and sometimes just sharing random thoughts. One day, you even asked her if her name was inspired by KatarinaBlue, the famous streamer you admired. She chuckled at the question and told you it was just a coincidence.

"Funny thing," she typed one night. "I actually get asked that a lot. But nah, I just liked the name. It’s not inspired by anyone."

You laughed, relieved that it wasn’t some weird coincidence. The two of you started to get even closer, talking about your hopes, your struggles, and what it meant to chase dreams.

"Hey, Y/N," she texted one night, "What are you planning to do in the next five years?"

"I want to get better at streaming, keep growing, you know? Maybe even hit the big leagues someday."

"I believe in you. You’re gonna get there."

"Thanks, Catarinablue. You’ve been such a huge support."

"No problem. You’re doing the hard work. I’m just here cheering you on."

The conversations grew more frequent, and the connection between you two deepened. Eventually, you exchanged phone numbers, which felt like a huge step. Your small circle of viewers, mostly just her, was growing into something much more meaningful.

But then, one day, it all changed.

You defeated the final boss of your playthrough, heart pounding as the screen flashed with victory. You leaned back, exhaling a sigh of relief, and looked at your chat, eagerly waiting for Catarinablue to send her usual encouraging message.

But what you saw instead made your world freeze.

A verified username—KatarinaBluu—appeared in your chat, sending a simple message:

"Congrats, Y/N! I knew you’d do it!"

What? KatarinaBluu? In your chat? Knowing your name? Huh? How? What? Why? Your mind went into overdrive, a million questions swirling through your head. Was this a prank? Was it real?

On the other end, Karina—KatarinaBluu—was having a full-on panic attack. She hadn’t meant to message you from her main account. She’d been caught up in the moment, and now her personal account was connected to your stream. Her heart was racing as she watched your stream explode with activity.

Your viewer count, which had been around 5, jumped up to 45K active viewers in seconds. The chat went wild:

"Who is this?"

"Why is Karina messaging this guy?"

"Isn’t that THE Karina?"

"Is she collabing with him?"

"Wait, how does he know her?"

You stared at the chat, overwhelmed, but it was the message from Catarinablue that snapped you back to reality.

A private message popped up on your phone.

Catarinablue:

"Hey, Y/N. I know this is crazy, but it’s me—Karina. I didn’t mean for this to happen. I just wanted to congratulate you, but now everything’s a mess. I didn’t expect my personal account to pop up. Please don’t freak out, okay?"

You blinked, sitting back in your chair, staring at the message. Karina. THE Karina, the one you admired, had just messaged you. Your fingers hovered over the keys, unsure how to respond, the magnitude of it all sinking in.

You sat there in shock, your hands shaking as you read her message again. Karina. The Karina. KatarinaBluu. She wasn’t just some random viewer anymore. She had been following you, supporting you from the very beginning.

You clicked on her message, still unsure how to process everything that was happening, but then another message popped up from her.

"I know this is a lot, but I want to be honest with you. The truth is... I’ve been watching your streams for a while now. And I didn’t just watch because I thought you were entertaining, though you are. It’s because you’ve been my favorite comfort streamer."

Your heart skipped a beat. You read it again, slowly this time. Was this real? Was Karina really saying that? The person you had admired for so long, the one you’d always looked up to, was telling you that you were her comfort streamer?

"I’ve had a lot of tough days, and your streams... they’ve always been there for me. I loved how you kept pushing forward no matter what. I felt like I wasn’t alone when I tuned in to watch you, especially when everything around me felt like chaos. So... I guess I’ve been cheering for you longer than you know."

Your mind was racing, your fingers trembling as you typed your response.

"Wait, what? Really?"

Her reply came almost immediately.

"Yeah. Really. You don’t know how much it means to me that you’re still doing this, even when it feels like no one’s watching. I just... I just wanted you to know that I see you. And I care."

You sat there in stunned silence, the weight of her words sinking in. Karina, the one who had been your idol for so long, was telling you that you were important to her. That your streams—your journey—had helped her when she needed it the most.

You looked at the chat, now flooded with a mix of excitement and confusion from the 45K viewers. But the only thing that mattered to you at that moment was the private conversation between you and Karina.

"I... I had no idea, Karina. I just wanted to make people smile. And now, here you are, saying that... I don’t even know what to say."

"You don’t have to say anything. Just... keep doing what you’re doing. You’re exactly where you’re meant to be."

At that moment, everything felt different. The nervousness from the sudden surge of viewers was still there, but it didn’t matter anymore. You realized that, even if this moment was overwhelming, it was also the beginning of something new.

Things had changed in the best way possible. What started as a random stream chat between two people turned into something much more. You weren’t just her fellow streamer now; you were her constant companion—on screen and off.

A couple of months later!

Things had grown naturally between you and Karina. What started out as late-night gaming sessions and private chats turned into something deeper. She had become more than just a favorite streamer to you. Now, she was your girlfriend, and you were becoming a part of her world in a way you never thought possible. But today was different.

Today, you were finally going to join her on stream. It wasn’t anything big—just sitting with her during a casual playthrough. But for you, it felt like a big step. You were nervous, even though she reassured you a hundred times that it was okay.

“Alright, chat,” Karina said with a grin, adjusting her camera. “We’ve got a special guest today. Guess who it is.”

She glanced over at you, sitting just off-camera, already looking a little too shy for comfort. “Come on, don’t be shy. You’re gonna do great.”

You were just sitting there, practically invisible behind her, fiddling with your fingers. “U-um, hey, chat,” you said quietly, voice soft, unsure of how to act. It was your first time on her stream, and you weren’t used to the attention. You could feel your heart race as your name popped up in the chat.

“Y/N? Wait, is that really Y/N? OMG.”

“He’s here!!! I can't believe it!!”

The words flowed faster than you could process them. It was overwhelming but also flattering.

“Hey, Y/N,” Karina said, her voice playful yet encouraging, as she nudged you gently. “Say hi to everyone. They’re all really excited to see you.”

You smiled awkwardly, feeling a little overwhelmed by the sudden influx of attention, but you managed to wave at the camera. “Hi, uh… I’m Y/N. I don’t really stream anymore, so... yeah.”

The chat exploded.

“OMG, he’s adorable.”

“Y/N is shy, this is too cute.”

“Karina, you’re breaking the internet!”

Karina laughed softly, catching your nervousness. She reached out, resting a hand on your arm, her voice low so only you could hear. “You’re doing great. Just be yourself. They’re gonna love you.”

You nodded, trying to relax, but it was hard with so many eyes on you. Karina’s stream had a massive following. At the moment, you were just another part of the show. You had to get used to it, but it felt like a lot all at once.

She kept playing, and you just sat beside her, watching her play through the game. The comments kept coming in, and the pressure didn’t ease up. “I’ll let Y/N play in a bit, chat!” Karina teased, glancing at you with a raised eyebrow. “He’s just shy right now, but he’s gonna be awesome when he gets in there.”

You blinked. “M-me? Play?”

Karina smiled, the way she always did when she was trying to encourage you. “Yeah, you can do it. You’ve been practicing, right? I’ll help.”

You swallowed, glancing at the game. It didn’t seem so hard when you watched her play, but now that it was your turn, your palms started sweating. “I-I don’t know if I’m ready,” you muttered, feeling a little embarrassed.

Karina giggled softly, turning to you with a warm, reassuring smile. “It’s okay to be nervous. I’ll be right here with you. Just remember to breathe.”

You nodded, trying to steady your hands. The chat was filled with messages of encouragement.

“You’ve got this, Y/N!”

“Don’t worry, you’ll do great!”

“We’re all rooting for you!”

Finally, you took a deep breath, picked up the controller, and started playing. Your hands trembled slightly, but Karina’s presence beside you helped ground you. “Okay, here we go...”

You weren’t flawless, and it took you a few tries, but each time you failed, Karina was right there, supporting you, giving you advice, and even laughing at your silly mistakes. “It’s alright, you’ll get it next time,” she said, her tone light and encouraging.

“I’m sorry I’m messing up,” you said softly, your voice barely above a whisper.

“Don’t be sorry,” Karina reassured you, giving your arm a gentle squeeze. “Everyone messes up. You’re doing great.”

And just like that, the anxiety started to melt away, little by little. You focused on the game more than the camera. You focused on Karina’s calm, encouraging voice, and soon enough, you were making progress. The chat was buzzing with comments, but this time, it felt less like an overwhelming storm and more like a friendly buzz of excitement. “OMG, Y/N’s doing it! He’s gonna win!”

“I love how supportive Karina is, they’re a perfect team.”

When you finally beat the level, you couldn’t help but let out a triumphant laugh. “I did it! I actually did it!”

Karina leaned over, giving you a playful kiss on the cheek. “I knew you could do it,” she said, her voice warm and filled with pride. “See? I told you you were ready.”

You smiled shyly, still not used to the attention but feeling proud of yourself. “Thanks, Karina. I… I couldn’t have done it without you.”

The chat was still going wild, but you didn’t mind it anymore. You felt more at ease now, knowing that you had Karina beside you, making this moment something special.

“You’re doing so well, Y/N. I think you just earned your place in the stream world.” Karina smiled at you, squeezing your hand. “Next time, let’s do it together. I’ll be your backup.”

You smiled back, feeling a sense of accomplishment and contentment. “Yeah. Let’s do it. Together.”

And from that moment on, you knew that whether you were on stream or off, you’d always have her by your side.

[ssunfish]

/ORV SPOILERS/

one thing i cant pinpoint about Kim Dokja is his view on himself. Its either he full on hates himself.

or

he has the causal disinterest in himself. Where, yeah he doesn't /hate/ himself. (dislike maybe?) but if he could be someone else that would be better. if he was a better person. wouldn't he be more lovable that way? like that odd feeling where you look at others and think...if only i was that funny/that good looking/ that popular... like its not full on hate but if you think about yourself for too long your self disgust starts to show. and you get sad and 'im so unlovable' (thinking of where all of kimcom talk around the fire about the house.. and kdj starts to question if someone like him deserves it... -hmmm ill have to go back and reread that to make sure thats true.) "wouldn't it be better if I was someone else?/I want to be someone else." > 49% <

on my reread i noticed the decline of his thoughts towards himself really starts to show during in the Demon Realm arc. Where his "I am Yoo Joonghyuk." habit is fully revealed. Which is super fucking sad actually. To have so little confidence in yourselves to the point where you need to act like someone else to speak up for yourself

banging my head against a wall... Kim Dokja i love you. im sorry for threatening to put you in a blender. please live a good life..

[orphiclovers]

...Huh, I wonder what happened to 1865! Kim Namwoon

That's actually a really good question, I've never thought about it before.

I think he must have been swept up in the crowd with all the other people kimcom saved in the 1865th round. Like Lee Jihye's classmates, he became just another normal high schooler who survived the start of the apocalypse by crushing bugs.

Since he wasn't their companion in the only turn Kimcom knew, they didn't pay any special attention to him. The only one who knew that he was supposed to be a part of this all is Yoo Joonghyuk, and he probably decided to leave him alone for once.

Kimcom was already so united and isolated by their experience in the previous round, bring a 'stranger' into their fold for no reason would seem strange and unnecessary for them.

...It's sort of bittersweet. Kim Dokja's disregard is what saved him from the curse of being a protagonist in ORV. He is not stuck in the cycle like kimcom is, all because Kim Dokja decided not to save him.

Kim Namwoon is the only character that can be said to have truly and completely escaped the narrative.

[oldest49dream]

Batman and yoo joonghyuk are actually so alike you don't understand no one does

And not just in the way their entire arc is about fulfilling a mission and living on for a purpose

It's in the way they both are so good on surviving are so good on living ppl forget how suicidal they really are because does dying multiple times for a purpose and still going for it just to come back and do it all the same again

It's also in the way they're both stuck on the past "you are not a regressor because you regress"

they made a point of past define their identity, they'd be content if the fights they died on have saved if only a lil child, so good at surviving you forget how human they're, they take care of lil children, they're made out of love and they both question their identity multiple times.

Hyubruce my beloved

[crmlktty]

one last try

pairing: donatello x reader

show: rottmnt

tags: fem reader, jealous donnie, wingman leo, rowdy reader

warnings: cursing (once), y/n used once, maybe ooc idk 😞

word count: 1326

Your hair was bleach blonde before you met them. You were trying to settle on a color, but you just couldn’t make up your mind. You thought about dying it your favorite color, then decided not to because what if it didn’t compliment you? That would be the absolute END OF THE WORLD.

But! Your mind was made for you after you had gone on one of your wannabe superhero escapades and met some… strange boys.

You could fight decently, and when you first saw them you definitely thought they were some sort of evil monsters from another planet that you’d have to somehow defeat, however you were pleasantly surprised to find that they were just teenage mutant boys! They were your age, too.

You helped them out with the villain they were tailing and ended up making friends with them! They told you about this lair they lived in that was inside the sewers and that you should visit. You promised you would, though you looked…

Different.. When you arrived. Your blonde hair was now purple. Everyone knew immediately what was going on, especially after how you acted when they first met you. Well… everyone except the one you wanted to notice. Donatello.

He immediately piqued your interest after you had realized they weren’t evil space aliens there to kill you. He was smart, witty, and had this whole bad boy persona that made him oh so attractive. It’s like he was made to be your kryptonite.

Though he didn’t seem to feel that way about you. Actually, all of his brothers couldn’t help but adore you. You were this loud, rowdy girl who was also super fun to talk to. Those were all of the reasons Donnie didn’t like you.

You irritated him so much that his entire body flared up, angry heat spreading across his face. You went on and on about things that happened at school, or at home, or with this girl who told you that your sense of style was bad. You were invading his life all the time, and he was sick of it. Who were you to barge in and talk to him and try to be his friend? The audacity!

Yeah. He hated you. Sadly, that was the exact opposite of how you felt about him.

You tried for a few months to charm him or to generally befriend him, but he shot down every attempt. He showed absolutely zero interest in you, and you were going to accept that.

Until Leo had an idea, which is what led you to now.

You had just walked into the lair, a nervous smile plastered on your face. “Hey guys!”

The boys all perked up, looking over at the door. “Yoo!! Y/N!! It’s so good to see you–” Mikey got up and grinned before freezing.

Raphael was second to get up. “Did you get here saf–” He paused.

Donnie barely spared you a glance before he did a double take. “What did you do to your hair?”

Your normally purple hair was blue. Blue like..

“You look great!”

Leonardo.

“Thanks! I really like how the color turned out.” You didn’t acknowledge Donnie or his question, skipping over to Leo and sitting next to him.

“Blue really suits you.” He wore a shit-eating grin as he watched his twin from the corner of his eye.

Leo had always known that Donnie liked you. He saw the smiles that Donnie hid, and the way that he would just.. Look at you. Really look at you. That’s why he jumped to action the moment you told him you were going to try to move on. He prompted one last try. One last shot at winning Donnie over. He had tried to give Donnie time to process his feelings for you, but he just wasn’t getting it, and it was hurting you.

“D’aww, thank you.” You put a hand on his arm, mentally gagging. “Wanna hang out in your room?”

“Definitely!” He stood up, holding out a hand that you took as you both went on your way to his room.

…

Donnie was fuming. He had no idea why, but he was fuming. He had always passed off you and Leo’s friendship as an annoyance. Two loud mouths put together. Annoying, but bearable. But this… Were you dating? You ignored him. You just walked right up to Leo, then walked right into his room! His bedroom. It’s not like you two didn’t hangout there alone before, but it was just.. Just weird now!

Why was this bothering him so much? He shouldn’t care what you were doing. He shouldn’t care that you dyed your hair.

Then it dawned on him. It hit him like an anvil, this realization that he was not ready for.

He liked you.

All those times he brushed you off and you irritated him, he was really flustered. His face getting hot from anger was him blushing. You made him blush. You invaded his life because he let you. You invaded his brain because he likes you.

He didn’t know what to do with this newfound crush. You were very possibly dating his brother, and he didn’t want to ruin your relationship just because he figured out his feelings too late. He screwed it up.

But.. there was something that lingered inside him, telling him that he shouldn’t be so sure that you were dating Leo. He just hoped that little voice was right.

..

The next time you found yourself alone with Donnie was that night, in the kitchen. You had decided to sleepover since you genuinely did go over to hangout with everyone, not just Leo in an attempt to make Donnie jealous.

After Donnie had passed up watching movies with you guys in favor of working on a project, you hadn’t seen him. You and Leo’s plot didn’t seem like it worked. He was the exact same Donnie, just kind of.. Avoiding you?

You ran out of your drink during the second movie and excused yourself to the kitchen to refill it. To your surprise, you ran into Donnie, who had gone to get some water.

“Oh, hey.” You tilted your head a little when he tensed, slowly turning to you.

“Ah… Hey.” He swallowed, looking back to his cup.

You walked over to the fridge, grabbing a soda can. “What have you been up to?” Your usually energetic demeanor had disappeared, and you spoke with a soft voice.

It bothered him. “Just this.. Thing.”

“Ah.” You nodded, taking a sip from your cup. It was silent for a minute, and just as you were about to leave, Donnie spoke.

“..Are you dating Leonardo?”

“W– what?” You coughed on your drink, nearly forgetting all about you and Leo’s plan. “Oh.” You swallowed. “No, we’re not.”

Donnie visibly relaxed, enough that even you noticed. “Oh.”

The two of you were silent again. “..Why did you change your hair?”

You looked at the can before setting it down, rubbing the back of your neck. “I uh.. I guess I just didn’t think purple suited me.”

Donnie stared at you, looking for something in your eyes before he casually stepped closer to you. “I think it suits you.”

You looked up, blinking at him. “R–really?”

Donnie nodded. “And uh, I think purple would like to.. Apologize.. For not treating you well in the past, and not realizing how much he– I mean it, cared.” His cheeks heated up, and he glanced to the side.

You stared at him before you smiled softly, pink dusting your cheeks. You giggled. “Well, I hope purple knows that it’s okay, and I still like it.”

He looked at you again, his lips twitching up into a smile. “Really?”

You moved your hand down, taking his cautiously. “Really.”

+ extra

You and Donnie walked hand in hand into the living room, the both of you blushing brightly.

Leo looked over before whistling. “Called it!” 

a/n: would anyone want like a pt 2 of this at any point ??? lmk if soo... same w if u want a version of this with one of the other boys <3

[piratefalls]

welcome back to the latest edition of biweekly fic recs! as always, mind the tags, if you can't leave a nice comment don't leave one at all, and happy reading!

masterlist.

There's No Problem That San Diego Can't Solve by @historicallysam

Alex doesn’t even bother knocking; he simply twists the knob on the door and shoves it open. His eyes narrow as the door bangs against the wall and he sees Henry on the phone. Maybe (definitely) it’s rude but his blood is fucking boiling so he doesn’t really care.

All the Ocean was Sleeping by @sparklepocalypse

The worst part about being a siren in the modern era, Henry ponders as yet another ship flies past his cove at a speed that he knows will disturb the anemone gardens below, is the yacht bros. Between the sound of their vessels’ motors and the dissonant noise the humans call music, Henry’s singing has no chance of attracting anyone’s attention.

cause you're a classic, and i'm reckless by @firenati0n

“I've, actually, uh. I've never done this before.” At this, Henry stops short, takes a second as his gaze moves up and to the left, trying to recall something. “I've seen your films. You most certainly have done intimate scenes.” Alex clears his throat. He hopes his nerves aren't completely obvious, the slight waver in his voice about to give him away. “Yeah, well. Never with a man, so. Not at this scale, anyway.” “Would it help to, er, practice?" Henry winces a little as he says it, which does not inspire confidence. But Alex is shocked nonetheless. What the fuck?

Over Land and Sea by SatinBirds

Alex and Henry come from very different worlds, and still, they manage to find each other.

Clean Slate by smc_27

“Henry.” Pez comes over, puts both hands on Henry’s cheeks and looks him dead in the eye. “You are not a sad man who’s gotten dumped. You’re in the prime of your life, and I quite desperately need you to act like it.” “The prime of my life,” Henry scoffs, more incredulous than questioning. “I’ve just gotten out of a 15 year relationship, endured a divorce, am suffering an almost impressive case of writer’s block, and your hands are like bloody icicles.” Pez grins, doesn’t take his hands away. “Explain to me how this is my prime. Please.” Pez tilts his head, and sounds entirely serious when he says, “Literally anything can happen from here.”

in bloom by stutteringpeach

Yoo, can u hook me up with some flowers?? It's the busiest day of the year for florists. Alex texts Henry with a last minute request.

here is a map (with your name for a capital) by @alasse9

That day at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, Alex comes across the very same Prince Henry who just dismissed him having a panic attack in a bathroom. The choice Alex makes then has ripple effects neither of them could have ever expected. What's the story like, when they actually are friends all along? “So, you’re going back to England tonight, and you’ll spend the next three days pretending you two are the closest and best of friends until we can put this mess behind us.” And there are reasons he hasn’t told anybody this, good reasons, even though he’s sure June and Nora saw through him ages ago. Faced with his mom’s disappointment, though, and with the realization that the entire world apparently thinks he hates Henry and would willingly shove him into a fucking cake, he can’t stay quiet. “But we are friends,” he says, vehement and serious. “We have been for years. He’s—he’s probably my best friend, actually, along with Nora.”

thoughts of you consume by yrsonpurpose

Henry sees Alex appear on the red carpet in a blue suit that screams sex on legs and is ready to throw away all attempts at concealing their secret relationship in the name of dropping to his knees at the first available opportunity.

eyes on me by matherine

Alex’s hips buck back against Henry’s mouth the moment his tongue does more than tease, and Henry squeezes his hip in gentle consternation. But before he can say anything, Alex is already rambling. “Sorry, I’m — I’m sorry, I know you said not to move, and I’m trying, I — I’m trying to be good, I promise,” he blurts, voice shaking ever so slightly from something that certainly doesn’t sound like pleasure, resolutely refusing to turn his head so that he can meet Henry’s gaze from where he’s positioned behind him. Henry’s heart aches. “Alex — love, it’s alright. Where’s your mind?” Or: Sometimes, Alex needs a distraction. Something to take the edge off, to scrub away at the stress of the day. Some days, it works better than others. 

the evolution of intimacy by Poutini

There’s no spontaneity anymore. One might think this boring. That the novelty had worn off. The spark snuffed. Absolutely not

Want Me by OrchidScript

Henry had always been weak for a nice smile, but his was impossible to ignore. Blame it on summer heat and a fresh flush in his cheeks. Blame it on sunset painting the outdoor bar sweltering, romantic colors. Blame it on two healthy glasses of albariño thrumming in his bloodstream, or the good music floating on the air. Henry could blame it on anything liked if he thought long and hard about it, but that didn’t change much at the end. The core remained the same: he had been gone from the jump. -- Henry and Alex hook up on a vacation in Spain. Henry falls a bit deeper.

fill my lungs with sweetness by @priincebutt

Henry George Edward James Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor wakes up at 3 AM on his birthday to an empty bed. What could Alex possibly be getting up to at 3 AM the night before his birthday? The possibilities are endless.

got myself in quite a tangle by coffeecatsme

"It seems I've gotten myself in quite a tangle." "Tangle?" Henry's voice is hoarse, eyes darkened as they travel over Alex's body. They stop at his crotch, and Alex can see it even under the dim lights—Henry's growing hard too, a visible bulge pushing at his sweatpants. Alex's cock gives a desperate twitch. "Y'know, I was trying to put them around the tree," he starts, gesturing at the plain tree at the corner. It's clear he didn't even attempt to touch it. "And somehow I've managed to completely trap myself. Can't even move my hands." Henry makes a desperate noise at the back of his throat as his eyes snap up to Alex's face. Alex flashes him a suggestive grin, teeth biting down on his lip. "Seems I'm completely at your mercy."

The Forces of Chance and Coincidences by @stellarm

Bad weather leads to a late flight that leads to no one being where they wanted to be, but maybe everyone was where they needed to be.

I've never felt safer (than when I'm with you) by viciouslyqueer

Alex takes the bag and opens it slowly, careful not to rip it, and gasps quietly as he sees what’s inside. “H, you didn’t…” Strong arms wrap around his waist from behind, Henry’s chest warm against his back. “Do you like it?” Henry asks in a whisper, resting his chin on Alex’s shoulder. Alex doesn’t know what to say. Gingerly, like he might ruin it with even the smallest touch, he takes out the silky fabric and holds it up in front of them. It’s a gorgeous dress, fancy too, in a deep red color with thin straps and an open back. It’s long, almost touching the floor even as Alex holds it up and has a slit on the left side that would probably end a little above Alex’s knee.

An Amateur's Guide to Professional Gift-Giving by anincompletelist

Alex, a former-law-student-taking-some-time-off turned professional part-time gift giver, is tasked with finding a gift for the most high profile client he's ever worked with, both in and out of the world of law. It turns out finding the perfect gift for the Prince of Wales might be easier than he'd anticipated.

Love At First Bark by everwitch

“I still don’t know your name, do I?” Henry watches Alex where he’s crouched down in front of David and gently scratching David below his chin. David absolutely loves Alex. Henry can relate. “It’s David,” Henry supplies. “Cool,” Alex says. “And what’s the dog’s name?” Henry blinks at him. “... David?” “What?” Alex exclaims. He looks from David to Henry and then back at David again. “Wow, okay, that is a choice.” Henry wants to sink through the earth and never come back up again.

don't let me get drunk again by headabovethewater

Alex had never wanted to cancel plans as much as he had while watching Henry pull a pair of light wash, tight jeans over his stockinged legs and bare ass. Christ, he’s getting hard thinking about it now.

The Beginner's Guide to Floristry by clottedcreamfudge

As if there's anything romantic about it; as if it's not the most humiliating death Alex can imagine. This is why he doesn't do relationships. This is why he never will. The risk, as far as he fucking sees it, is too great. -- Hanahaki Disease is a fictional disease where the victim of unrequited or one-sided love begins to vomit or cough up the petals and flowers of a flowering plant growing in their lungs, which will eventually grow large enough to render breathing impossible.

Everything you take, you make it better. So go on, take forever by @hgejfmw-hgejhsf

It's 2024, and nobody knows they're engaged. But they will, just as soon as Alex can decide what to wear to his birthday dinner. Henry has an idea and a special gift to match.

false pretenses by rizcriz

Henry spins around, glaring at Alex. “For christs sake,” He hisses, holding a hand out between them. “Can we just not? I do not have the capacity to pretend to hate you today.” Alex splutters as Henry turns on his heel and starts to walk away. He stares after him helplessly. “Pretend?” After a beat, he starts to follow after him, “What the fuck do you mean pretend?” Three years of breathing down each others necks, fighting every time they come in contact with each other. And if Henry is saying every single thing on his end has been pretend, Alex Claremont-Diaz is going to have a fucking breakdown. Because he has been harboring this stupid fucking crush and burying it beneath false antagonism, meeting Henry where he’s at, for three years, and if Henry is implying that they’re both faking it— -- or, Alex learns better.

turn the desert to glass (you would be the one) by @taste-thewaste

Henry and Alex's domestic bliss has lead to some changes in Henry's body. Henry doesn't really mind being a little chubby, but he wonders if Alex does. Alex, it turns out, does not. Not one bit. He does not mind one bit, and he is more than eager to prove it.

coming on fast like good dreams do by cricketnationrise

When Henry recovers from his unexpected factory reset, he still can’t really breathe properly and somehow Alex is still standing in front of him with a hopeful and excited expression on his face. “Run that by me again?” he asks faintly. “I need your help.” “Right…” “I need you to edge me. Like a lot,” Alex says with a shrug. Nope, it’s not any clearer a second time around.

as always, let me know if you want to be tagged in future lists, whether you're a reader or writer!

tagging @starkfridays @stilesgivesmefeels @midnightsfp @sarahjswift @enablelove

[rixsjwb]

gojo x f!reader

summary: your a close friend of gojo that he recently introduced to his fans on stream, you have a thick French accent and can barely speak any good English but his fans love you, here's some interaction between you and gojo that's fans go crazy about.

note: just wrote did not reread sorry if it doesn't make sense make it make sense and enjoy✨️

𖣔 ──────────────────── 𖣔

𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 1:

gojos fans were quick to fill his chat with comments people often heard or seen him play duolingo learning French he'd often get asked 'why are you learning French?' or 'who's the special girl?' but gojo brushed it off very casually

"who am I learning French for? oh! just a close friend of mine; you want to see her? one day guys.. one day!"

gojo has talked to you before about joining his stream? infact you supported him by watching some of his streams on your free time.

you adjust your rimless glasses to better see gojo as he's talking to you in broken English, so you can better understand him? but its still a little hard to understand eventually he gives up pulling a translator out and translating what he has to say

est-ce que tu veux joindre mon stream?

you nod you head showing you don't mind joining him stream, su-sure you stutter out trying to pronounce the word in a more english way than in a french accent.

he's pretty much jumping in his seat saying 'merci!" in a terrible englishified way you can't help but stiffle a laugh.

when you first joined his stream you couldn't really understand what the chat was saying, but you watches as it passed by so fast. gojo often replied to people's questions while you just sat beside him with a soft smile on your face

"she's pretty! I know she's such a cutie."

shokir:"I love her glasses!."

toji_fuhsji:"yoo gojo can pull??? since when?"

megu:"who'd this?"

gojosecondballsack: "nevermind gojo give me that sexy thing beside him😊✨️"

he reads every comment smiling as he's glad his fans are welcoming you with open arms, he then hears a familiar sound ringing from his computer as he xs out the stream app he sees that the groupchat he's in is blowing up and that yuji started the call📞.

"YOO GOJO WHOS THAT BUEATIFUL WOMAN BESIDE YOU??" yuji screams in his mic making it sound bassboosted.

gojo can hear suguru's light chuckles in the back as he watches more of his close friends join the call while still on stream.

"she's my bestie/roomie! what chu hoes laughin at?" he says questioning them.

sukuna who rarely shows up decided to answer the question

" weve known ya for awhile now why's this the first time I'm s'eenin her?"

"facts she's actually adorable tho" shoko pipes up

"hi y/n bonjour salute!! comment ça va?"

shoko says you're almost shocked that one of gojos friends seem to know french you pipe up to speak back to her your velvety, soft voice responding back.

"ça va bien, tu peux parlé le française?"

you say, but your getting your answer as she doesn't seem to respond back "you speak french?"

you say your accent evident as you attempt to come out your comfort zone speaking english

"ahh she can speak? she sounds great to have just started learning it."

shoko says gojo pulls out the translator translating what shoko said so you could understand what she said, you've always let gojo know how self conscious you were of your accent but hearing that complement made you feel bashful you shake your hands one in front of the other waving them back and forth to show your denying that your English isn't very great.

gojo can't help but feel awe about how bashful you get when someone complements you.

☾︎ ──────────────────── ☽︎

𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 2 :

while gojo was gaming playing a scary game his fans recommend with suguru and sukuna. despite hie headphones being on and occasionally looking back at the cam to see if it's recording his face he notices movement of his slightly open door.

he watches as the door eventually gets wider showing you who seemingly just woke up from a nap, from your neck and up is cut of from the cam as you come closer to see what game he's playing.

you eventually lean over more to see more of the game he watches as the chat seems to move at nano seconds he's thinking it's moving fast because a monsters there or obviously because you showed up after dipping and not showing up on his streams for a good 2 weeks or so.

he then realizes it's because of how low cut your shirt is and how your pretty muching creating a invisible chair to sit on to get a better view of the computer he notices your cleavage is pretty much on full display and yoi don't seem to notice he feels almost bad that his fans were probably gonna say inappropriate stuff about you he's quick to speak up tho.

"yo yo hold on hold on.."

gojo tells suguru and megumi there characters in the game pausing to look back at him.

gojo was quick to find a spare chair in his room and even got you a shirt to pit over your chest to avoid the possible sexulization coming.

"put this shirt on.." gojo mutters to busy on seeing if he can pull your shirt more up to cover the cleavage but desided to just help your put on his shirt he gently pushes you down to sit on the spare chair he had, pulling the collar of the shirt over your head that popped out. and fixing it taking a good look at you to see if the white shirt he'd Givin you was see thought.

once confirmed he resumed playing.

" okay we back gang, sukuna move your fantasy character he's blocking my way!"

gojo says, minutes later sending a glance to you

making sure your fine.

later it was pretty much trending that he was looking out for you.

sugurughetto: yo jojo siwa your trending on tiwtter.

jojosiwa: I know I'm just that famous youk?😍

suukunatuna: shut your bitch ass up.

shokoloco🥳: I'm surprised usually you wouldn't give a shit bout girls but looks like this ones serious.

jojosiwa: it's not serious! we're just close guys YOU MAD YOU AINT TRENDING HOE.

jojosiwa:guys let's brainstorm streaming ideas😊

tojiskidmarks: I'm tryna see s'this bueaty in person.

chosokamotod4agon: play gta 6

to say he was praised for looking out for you.

────────────────────

𝐍𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 3:

you had a tattoo on your lower back and just right under your boob there small tattoos not to big not the small your lower back one doesn't tend to show but with the low rise flared out leggings you wore where low enough that if you bend over far enough it'd show a bit.

gojo was making a stream about opening gifts from fans and there was alot to open, sine yoi were curious about one small box you desided to open it but it was quite father away from you.

"gojo you pass, can you pass box?" you stretch out trying to make a accurate point to which box you specifically want you learn in further have to lean off your chair to reach, he stands up to pick up the box his lanky long legs taking just one big step to reach it as he turns back around to sit on the chair he notices writing in your back.

"woah what's that's on your back?" he motions. placing his hand on the exact area we saw the tattoo, you show the tattoo on your lower back causing gojo to be shocked as he never thought you'd have a tattoo.

"bro! that's fuckin crazy, yall look at the tattoo!" he says in shock grabing his camera and showing the tattoo much closer " do you have anymore?" he points at your back and trys to make a motion signifying 'more?' because you're intelligent you understood immediately, lifting your shirt to show your other tattoo.

"WOAHH THERE woah don't go flashing the fans now" he cackled knowing dam well you wouldn't even understand what he said.

you lift your shirt up careful to nor flash your boobs you watch as satoru zooms in to the tattoo, touching the tattoo like a curious child touches glass when looking at a toy that interest them. you pull down your shirt after feeling a arm snake around your waist.

"she's mine buddies you ain't stand in a chance." he says arrogantly , he eventually puts the camera back where it was, you open the small box seeing a bueatiful swan necklace with a note inside your soft gasp caught sayorus attention causing him to look over at you.

when he sees the necklace he's also surprised he takes the small note in it reading it aloud.

"this is for y/n! hope she enjoys and I've been a fan for so long gojo! you make my day!" the fan wrote.

gojo digs in his brain to find the right words in french to tell you the necklace is yours.

"pour toi!"

gojo says he can tell your very touched by the gift. as you mutter a thank you with a bright smile.

thank you for the support and critique on my french it will definitely benefit me in the future thank you🙏🙏🙏

[itsouttherenow]

Team Mom: Kali

It was another day at Beacon within the dorm room of team RWBY. Their first year of Beacon went off without a hitch, mostly. Fighting mechs, criminals and terrorists is not something that you can really just brush or mention casually. So what is a girl to do on a Friday afternoon. What possible exciting activity could these adventurous girls do?

“GUYS! Mom is coming!” Entering the scene is our resident cat, Blake Belladonna. 

Sitting up from their respected beds, the rest of the girls quickly started firing off questions.

“When is she coming?”

“Are dad and Ghira coming too?”

“Snuggles?”

The last question had eyes drawn at Weiss. 

“Hehe, just, you know, asking.” She replied sheepishly.

“Aside from Weiss touch starved condition (HEY!), she said that she be coming soon to visit us here at Beacon. Tai and my dad are staying in a hotel in Vale for the time being.”

“Cool, what time is she supposed to be coming then?”

“She said around 6.”

“It’s 6 already! Why didn’t you call us instead?”

“Forget about that, we need to hurry. QUCKLY! THROUGH THE WINDOW!”

“No Yang wait I c-“, before Ruby could say otherwise, Yang had leapt through the window of their dorms

“We can worry about her later when we’re outside. The bullhead could be arriving any minute now.”

Using her semblance, Ruby quickly took the girls to the bullhead landing pads, picking up, more accurately digging up, Yang from her earthly confinement. They eventually made it to landing pads 5 minutes late.

“Do you see her?”

“No I can’t, I’m too short.”

“Blake, what about you,?”

“No. Yang?”

“Negative captain.”

“Where could she b-“

“YOO HOO! Girls, I’m over here!”

With Weiss question answered by their target, the four girls quickly rushed to a woman with similar cat ears to their feline friend. The woman was quickly enveloped in a group hug from the girls.

“Oh oh my, eager aren’t we today?”

“Why wouldn’t we? It’s been a sooo long since we’ve last meet you in person.” Replied Yang.

During a break in they second year, the WBY of RWBY meet Kali and Ghira Belladonna, the mother and father of Blake. There, the three girls quickly took a liking to Kali, considering she was the first real motherly figure that they have had in a while. While the three may be her daughters by blood, she treats them as if they were her own.

“(giggles) That is true. And we have a whole week to spend together!”

“(gasping) A WHOLE WEEK!?” Exclaimed Ruby.

“A whole week? What’s the occasion?” Inquired Blake.

“Why the parent conference. They’re going to  discuss on how our little ones are doing and behaving.”

“Well, it is with great pleasure to say that we have all been model students.” Booster Weiss.

“We’ll see. Now, how about you girls give a quick tour of the area. I don’t want to be getting lost.”

“Alright Team RWBY, let’s lead the way!” Yelled Ruby as she jumped into Kali’s arms.

“Ruby” chasted Weiss, “get off her. You are not a child!”

“I don’t mind dear. I’m quite comfortable.” Said Kali she nuzzled Ruby who laughed.

“(Laughs) Hey, that tickles.”

“Are you sure? I can take Ruby.” Offered Yang.

“Yes, I’m quite sure. In fact, I quite like it when you girls jump into my arms. Reminds of when Blake was a little kitten.” Answered Kali.

“If it’s alright with you, then I guess she can stay.” Said Weiss.

“Good. Now let’s go and give mom the best tour of Beacon!” Exclaimed Ruby.

“I’m looking forward to this ‘awesome’ tour girls.”

(Like break.)

An hour into their tour, Ruby had fallen asleep in Kali arms so it was up to the rest of the girls to decide on where to take her next. Walking underneath an arc way of vines and growth, they enter the gardens.

“And here” Weiss gestured around, “is the Beacon Garden. Used by most to study but many can often be found eating and aswell as hanging out.”

“My, how gorgeous.” Awed Kali as tucked Ruby closer to her body.

“Gorgeous indeed. This garden is actually the newest addition to Beacon, having been made thirty-seven years ago. Furthermore, th- (BOOM)- What In Monty’s name was that?” 

The answer to Weiss’s question came in the familiar form of Beacons resident dork Knight, one Jaune Arc, who was coursing throw the air, straight into a tree. After face-planting into said tree, his limp form sliding down onto a branch. 

“Ow. Note to self, make sure that Nora does NOT help in the kitchen *ever* again. *EVER*.” muttered Jaune to himself.

“wa-wa-what’s going on?” Ask an awoken Ruby.

“Just Jaune flying into a tree. Nothing new.” Answered Yang.

“Jaune? Blake, isn’t he the boy you mentioned to me? The blonde?” Asked Kali to her daughter.

Smelling blood, Yang seized the opportunity to tease her partner. 

“Oh, keeping secrets are we now? And here I thought we were family. I’m hurt.” 

Blushing, Blake whined, “Mom. I thought I told you to keep it between us.”

“Oh my Gods so it IS true. You’ve Fall for that dolt.” Exclaimed Weiss

“Well I think it’s sweet.” Chimed Kali.

A second later, said boy fell off the branch.

“Oh, this is a perfect time to talk to him dear. HELLO dear.” Yelled Kali out to Jaune.

‘What? Who is that. I didn’t know Blake had a si-‘

Jaunes thought we’re immediately cut short when the branch he was on earlier fell on top of him.

“Oh no. That branch just killed Jaune!” Yelled Ruby.

“You bastard.” Followed by Yang.

“No you dolts. He’s just knocked out.” Explained Weiss.

“My oh my. What a shame. He needs to be tended to. And who better to wake up than you pretty face dear.” Said Kali.

“No mom, you don’t mean-“ Questioned Blake.

“Yup. Let’s take him to your room. He’s needs to be well rested on a nice comfy bed. Next to a beautiful lady.” Kali said as she picked up Jaune.

“Mom no.”

“Mom yes” 

Blake was then handed an unconscious Jaune.

“Come along girls. The day just getting started.”

Three of the four girls ran to catch up with Kali as Blake just stood in place dumbfounded.

Looking down a Jaune, she blushes abit.

“Well, I guess it would hurt to give it a try.” And then placed a kiss on Jaunes forehead and quickly caught up the others 

‘That’s my girl. Grand kittens here comes Grandma.’ 

[beemovieerotica]

Yoo, your post about the whole controversy around jk Rowling being something not that wide spread outside internet really reasonated with me. I'm openly trans at work + Jewish (and I assume you might know about the Harry Potter game controversy), and one colleague (who I get along well with enough to call my friend) really really loves Harry Potter and keep trying to excitedly talk about it with me... Despite me telling her I am not comfortable about that media. She keep insisting on removing the work from its author because it was her childhood and so important to her.

I just... How do you navigate it when it happens to you? I could really use some reference or perspective overall!

No pressure to answer, I realize it might be controversial subject that may bait I'll faith engagement so I totally understand if you don't respond

oh I'm happy to respond, no yeah when I posted about me blocking anons baiting for discourse I mean I frequently get single sentence asks like "do you support ______" and that's...someone not interested in actually talking to me, but instead doing a witchhunt "are you a Good Person or a Bad Person" to a stranger on the internet. like if someone asked "do you support jk rowling" no context no other discussion, it's weird, it's impersonal, it's not how I want to talk to people (and anyone who has followed me for any length of time would know the answer anyway?)

but yeah sorry getting to your question, that's really difficult to reverse out of that situation if you've already expressed past interest in it...with my coworkers who like hp I'll do a very obviously polite-but-not-part-of-the-group "oh that's fun!" when they talk about it e.g. dressing up as hp for halloween, and I guess I consistently give off enough of an impression of never having cared about it, which is WILD because yeah it used to be my life. so they don't try to get any deeper into it than surface level mentions with me.

but if you've already breached the whole topic of jkr herself...AND they're not responding to explicit requests to steer away the topic...? they fundamentally don't respect your boundaries regardless of the subject matter. like remove hp from the equation and if my coworker said they don't like talking about pirates of the caribbean for even the vaguest reason on earth and I continued to try to engage with them about it, through their discomfort, then it's not really about whether something can ever be redeemed as media or not, they just don't respect boundaries.

at that point that's really shitty if she's in your workspace but she's a kind enough person about everything else to be considered a friend...but if she IS a friend, then you should be able to literally say "sorry I need to step away, this isn't a topic I want to get into" when she brings it up and then. physically step away. like make the boundary an actual physical thing that gets enforced if she doesn't respect your wishes. it SHOULD start to click for her then, because maybe at this point she's learned subconsciously "oh, my friend will talk about my favorite thing with me if I ease them into it, and I can make them get over their discomfort, because they're still here talking to me, aren't they?"

be polite, verbalize the boundary, and physically walk away to enforce the boundary and do something else. you don't have to burn bridges that you don't want to burn, AND you don't have to put up with behavior you don't like!

[summonedfrommyhands]

“Um,” he started, rapidly trying to clear the grogginess and sudden headache, “good morning?”

No one answered him, so he averted his eyes in embarrassment. He sat up, leaning back into the pillows. He tried recalling the past few days for something they could be upset about, but nothing came up.

… They have to speak soon, right? Or blink? The hawk - eyed stares he was getting were setting off his Fear Resistance.

He looked at each of them to see who would answer first, but gave up when their blank stares started turning into something else.

I really want to scold them, he thought, but they all really do seem worried about something…

A smooth hand on his face made him flinch. He turned to the person, a question on his lips when he saw the blank eyed look of his younger brother. He reached up to hold that hand, his question to that of a comfort.

“Yoohyunie,"

The silence continued as a small flicker formed in his brother's eyes, trembling before fully engulfing him a hug.

"Hyung." 

That's when the room erupted.

Everyone began speaking at once, their shouts and jumbled words making him wince and hold Yoohyun tighter.

Noticing this, Yoohyun sent a glare across the room, but it didn't break the chaotic atmosphere. 

"You - !" Bak Yerim yelled, moving from Moon Hyuna's side to punch the guild leader in the face. 

"We're all worried here, Han Yoohyun," Hyuna said, catching Yerim by her collar, effectively cutting her off from attacking.

Yoohyun decided to ignore her and hug his brother tighter. 

He watched as Yerim seethed, but didn't struggle from Hyuna's hold. Song Taiwan stood next to them, simply observing. 

"So," he asked, patting his brother into letting him breathe, "can I ask - "

"What's with the noise? Is he awake? Is Yoojin awake?" Yoo Meyongwoo opened the door, shouldering his way through the crowded room, Peace trailing behind him.

Peace jumped onto the bed, keeping his stare trained on him as he tried kicking Yoohyun to have a comfortable space on Yoojin to lay on. 

Of course, an angry Yoohyun pushed back, avoiding the swatting paws of the flame horned lion.

Myeongwoo had also brought breakfast into the room. He couldn’t see what he carried, but the smell made Yoojin realize how hungry he was.

"Yoohyunie, Peace," he said, tapping both of them lightly, "let go, I wanna eat."

"I'll feed you," Yoohyun tried to grab the plate, but Myeongwoo side stepped him. He tried again, and got side stepped again.

Myeongwoo waited until Yoojin pushed his brother away to hold the plate. Peace then bowled into Yoohyun, taking them both to the floor while Yerim and Hyuna cheered. For what, Yoojin didn't know, but the food as always, was delicious. 

"Are you alright, Yoojin?" His friend asked, worry clear on his face. Still confused by the situation, he replied when he was done chewing.

"I'm fine, but I don't know what's happening. Why is everyone in my room?" Feeling the room tense, Yoojin only asked again, seeing as no one gave an immediate response.

"... You had disappeared," Song Taiwan was the one to answer. "The only notice we had was Han Yoohyun causing stress to his guild. Bak Yerim then notified everyone."

Yoojin's face filled with confusion. He hadn’t gone anywhere - he went to sleep in his bed last night. He would have remembered going anywhere, right?

His confusion caused the room to chill, his Fear Resistance popping up amidst his racing mind.

"How long was I gone then? It didn't reach any news, right?"

"All night. And no, the situation caused a stir but nothing had been revealed to the public," Song Taiwan answered. "You also only reappeared less than four hours ago."

This froze Yoojin in his tracks, unsure of the information. His headache remained dull, but he felt that something was deeply wrong.

"You hadn't even mentioned the most interesting part in all of this," Sung Hyunjae peeked into the room, his smile and eyes looking the same as always.

Radiant bastard.

"Hey, hold on now, we don't know if it's actually connected to him," Hyuna said, long ago letting go of Yerim, who stood by Myeongwoo as he gave her snacks.

Yoojin stared at them, waiting for an answer. At some point, Yoohyun and Peace had returned to his side, fighting for who knows what.

"But isn't it strange that it also appeared four hours ago? After our dear Han Yoojin reappeared? And that there's no visible time limit, or the fact that no one can enter it?" 

That dull headache returned, rising from dull to annoying. 

I, he thought, I want to see it

"Hyung,"

I need to see it, a light tap on his face brought his attention back to those in the room.

The sudden thought scared him, but it wasn’t exactly concerning. A gate others can't touch and is possibly connected to him is something he needed to involve himself in.

"Can I go see it?" He asked, waiting for someone to answer. While they could deny him seeing it now, they all knew he'd sneak out later.

"Only when you're feeling better," Hyuna said, "whatever you disappeared to seems to have left you quite feverish."

Yoojin instinctively touched his face, concerned if he did have a fever. He felt fine, then noticed the sleeves he had on.

He didn't go to sleep wearing sleeves.

"... your clothes were dirty," his brother mumbled when he caught sight of Yoojin's stare.

… Having Yoohyun change his clothes didn’t feel right.

In fact, why didn't he just leave him in the dirty clothes? He could have just changed himself when he woke up.

"Yoohyun, Peace, off," he gently pushed the two off, turning to the others in the room.

"Please take me to the gate, I need to see it," Taiwan nodded, leaving the room to seemingly prepare.

"Are you sure?" Hyuna asked, "well, we're coming with you anyway. Nothing should be dangerous." He thanked her as she left as well, not giving Yoohyun a chance to decline on his behalf. Yerim and Myeongwoo followed her out.

"This should be very fun. I didn’t know that missing more than a night's work could be so rewarding. I'll see you outside," Hyunjae smiled, crescents for both his eyes and mouth.

Instead of retorting back, Yoojin just sighed and shooed everyone else out.

[z-nightshade]

For Kim Dokja centered stuff

He and Vivi wouldn't get along very well I don't think. Kim Dokja thinks she's too naive and she thinks he's too uncaring. Their personalities clash uncomfortably is what I'm trying to say. It especially annoys Dokja when the running gag of the Strawhats coming across something dangerous and Vivi saying "oh, I should've told you earlier but..." Especially with that sacred catfish thingy...

This isn't to say that they don't like anything about each other. Vivi finds him too very reliable. And Kim Dokja, despite his dislike of her naivete admires how much hope she has. He also thinks that she'd be a great ya heroine.

Ace is a breath of fresh air. He isn't a child, he's very polite and respectful. A good role-model for Luffy (and Cass).

And then Dokja leads that Ace is on a one-man manhunt against his former brother who killed another one of his brothers. And his target is coincidentally the guy who absolutely trashed Drum Island. And with the way Cass is acting... Kim Dokja is oblivious, not stupid.

So when he does go on a deep dive of informing himself on who tf Marshall Teach even is, he falls down the rabbit hole of being the most informed about the world they're in.

He can understand having only one continent, but how the fuck do the Calm Belts even work? Why do the winds just stop? How does the planet regulate temperature between the Blues? Why the hell is the Red Line so tall?

And that's only the geographical stuff.

Like what the fuck do mean that the World Nobles own slaves?? What do you mean there is racism against fish people. And don't get him started on the whole "learning a(n ancient) language is illegal".

On the bright side, he now knows what an Emperor is and why specifically a betrayal against Whitebeard is straight up moronic.

Kim Dokja has some serious questions for this Blackbeard guy.

(Cass definitely reads through his notes and even helps with them to find a solution for Ace's death)

Kim Dokja thinks of Crocodile as a Scooby-Doo-esque villain. His plan would've worked if it wasn't for the trio and their meddling kids. He also voices that opinion, which definitely doesn't earn sympathy points from Vivi. Kim Dokja doesn't care all that much though. Kim Dokja was also one of those bullied for not being sentimental at Vivi remaining at Arabasta.

He likes Paulie... Until he calls Nami an immoral woman for wearing a skirt. And as for CP9... He's acutely aware. And they're not lying about the boat But hey, not his circus not his monkeys.

As for Franky, he doesn't hate or dislike him at first, even with the Usopp situation. Kim Dokja is acutely aware that it isn't personal and Franky really doesn't know about their situation. Later on when he actually meets Franky, he can't help but respect the guy who found a job and home for everyone who needed one, a guy who when faced with rock bottom, started climbing back up instead of digging deeper like Dokja did himself.

Sorry this took so long to answer. I was out and mobile wouldn't let me

Vivi and Dokja are on, like, the opposite sides of the empathy spectrum. And while I do believe the two would clash, I think Vivi would probably remind Dokja of Yoo Sangah on some level

The "I probably should have mentioned this..." things would be hella annoying

Ace is nice, though I'd be much more interested in Yoo Joonghyuk's reaction to meeting Ace given his opinion on what Cass is doing

This is also around the time he'd meet Sabo too!

Also, I cannot stress this enough. Cass is being so fucking obvious that something is going down with Ace. Frankly, if they could outright say Ace was going to die, they would. Just not in front of Luffy

One Piece is wack and Kim Dokja finally gets a taste of that. He and Cass can bond over plans and how batshit everything is

I would like to say, Cass takes advantage of their own emotional distress when Luffy gets dragged back into the desert to hug Dokja. He tries to pawn them off to Yoo Joonghyuk but they are insistent on hugging him in particular

Waters 7, Usopp crashout over the Merry and Ennis Lobby are going to be wild, especially with Cass and the disaster trio thrown in the mix

Also love Dokja's complete lack of care for anything that doesn't affect him

Mild spoilers for Waters 7 in An Oracle's Odyssey below the cut

So, Cass definitely tries to defuse the situation only to get lashed out at in turn

I won't say what Usopp says to them but it does cause them to shut down pretty much completely. And I mean that

(I will say what Usopp says has something to do with their knowledge and ability to do anything)

I can only imagine how Joonghyuk will take his children fighting or how the other two will deal with the emotional fallout

[unreleasedwrites]

drabbling about multiple lookism characters as a dad

pov: spending time together and activities between your toddler and him, changing his/her diaper

character(s) included: multiple; Daniel Park, Vasco, Zack Lee, Warren Chae, Jace Park, Jake Kim, Sinu Han, Jay Hong, Eli Jang, Kwak Brothers, Johan Seong, Gun Park, Logan Lee, Samuel Seo, Goo Kim, Vin Jin, Cheon Taejin, Yujin Yoo, Baek Hangyeol, DG

cw: some LOOKISM SPOILERS, my opinion, purposely repeated some characters, lowkey messy 😭

unwrapped on: Saturday Night, August 19 2023

wrapped up on: Sunday Afternoon, August 20 2023

published on: Sunday Afternoon, August 20 2023 (at around 4 PM)

time spent together + activities

Is more than PERFECT when it comes to spending time with your guys’ toddler. He has the most simple yet enjoyable ideas for activities that he spends time on preparing for the family. Practically inseparable from your guys’ toddler, he just can’t ever get enough. Managing time is his thing, he always makes sure he won’t be gone for too long so that his kid wouldn’t have to miss him. Isn’t usually the type to do so for no valid reason, but once he fell in love, he quickly got accustomed to this kind of “curfew.” One time, he said he was just going on a walk, but came back with a huge lego set & spent the entire night assembling it along with your guys’ toddler.

Daniel Park, VASCO, Zack Lee, Warren Chae, Jace Park, Jake Kim, Sinu Han, Kwak Jichang ( He has 2 lil brothers so I do feel like he is quite experienced), JAY HONG (Makes SURE that toddler won’t go through what he did), (& maybe Eli Jang if he wasn’t doing yk)

Is GENUINELY trying his best, but is quite clueless the more you think about it. He doesn’t really have much experience but is learning more & more throughout your toddler’s growth. He’s doing everything he can to ensure you & the toddler are happy. He be doing that good research across reliable and good sites online. Likes to teach your guys’ toddler lessons and skills. This guy is definitely the type to make sure you’re toddler has many skills despite his age. They spend a good amount of time with the family and the best activities they can offer is playing with your kid, whether there’s a good lesson involved or they’re just spending time with one another.

Kwak Jibeom, Kwak Jihan, Johan Seong

Is beyond QUESTIONABLE when it comes to just spending time your guys’ toddler. He isn’t sure what the hell he’s even supposed to do with the weird looking kid. Activities? What activities? He’ll be back home at any time of day he’d like, or not, one or the other. Doesn’t even understand how the hell he got to be a dad in the first place. He is the father, you’re both sure of it, but he is no figure. 💀💀 He’s a lost cause, and he wasn’t planning on starting a family any time soon. Well, your both still young and he’s got other shit planned, which is also why he only sees them as little gremlins that needs to stay as far away as possible from him. Maybe, just MAYBE, with time, he’ll grow closer to your little family and improve.

GUN PARK, Logan Lee💀, Johan Seong ( sorry but hes just a baby himself 😇 ), Samuel Seo, Goo Kim (i love him, but this mf is not gon settle🔥not rn at least), Vin Jin, Cheon Taejin, Yujin Yoo, Baek Hangyeol, DG, a lot of lookism characters actually🔥

diaper changing

He literally offered to be the FIRST to ever change your kid’s diaper. They were pretty hesitant to actually do it at first, but they did some researching in advance so that they could nail it and impress you. You guys usually alternate, and he’s already become an expert at changing diapers.

Daniel Park, Kwak Jichang, Eli Jang ( only bc hes had Yenna )

He would love to help you or to even learn, and he has tried by watching from afar. But by merely watching, he already thinks he should stay away from doing this the best he possibly can do so. You got him to help you out once— PURPOSELY leaves or makes some lame excuse just to get out of doing it ever since.

Kwak Jihan, Goo Kim, Jace Park, Warren Chae, Zack Lee, DG, Johan Seong

He really wants to be a big help, which is why he keeps trying again and again. Carefully watches how you learned to do it and tries his very best to do the EXACT thing you taught him. Sadly, he keeps failing or just straight up making an even bigger mess. Despite this, he keeps trying his best to help in doing so.

Vasco, Kwak Jibeom, Warren Chae, Sinu Han, Jake Kim, all of big deal ngl, Jay Hong, Johan Seong (?)

Help? What Help? There is NO way this man would agree to do such a thing or worse, volunteer to do so😹😹There’s gotta be something so extremely special about you and your kid for him to even consider it 😭 But other than that, this man will not be changing a single diaper, their ego is too high for that 🤗

Gun Park, Logan Lee, Samuel Seo, Goo Kim, Vin Jin, DG (theres no f ing way💯), Cheon Taejin (this man may be hot but he can’t even dress himself 💀), Yujin Yoo (he might try to get Mandeok to do it but I don’t think he gon be able to even do it some what properly considering the size of his hands💀)

Why do i feel like this LUNATIC would actually do it? Tbh I think he’d kill y’all’s kid and experiment on it cs hes psychotic

BAEK HANGYEOL.

notes: This is the second thing ive ever finished writing but I do have a draft of smth else i started but didn’t finish cs it wasn’t getting any where.. I js got bored which is why i decided to make this

- With or without proper credits, please don’t try to steal or claim any of my works as your own

I genuinely appreciate opinions, feedback, likes, and reblogs, as this is my second ever post on this blog.

Once again, I hope this isn’t too bad for my second work, and i’ll probably be doing more characters in lookism 🫶🫶

[shyvien]

Here are 100 random quotes from Asmodeus!

Sourced from the OM! Wiki, chats, devilgram, screenshots I found, etc. I made this list to help with studying to write the characters in character. (Not really proofread, sorry if there are mistakes. Also, there may be spoilers. If so, they're minor spoilers)

✧༺⚜️༻✧

“Oh, my ♡ MC, you little minx! Are you trying to show off my lovely legs to the entire Devildom?”

“But the question is whether you really mean what you say. Maybe if I reach in, pull out your heart, tear it open, and have a look inside I'd know for sure?”

“Then let's stay like this. Mm... Your neck feels soft, MC…”

“I can't believe you would actually imply I was a pervert! I only wanted to give MC something pleasant to look at.”

“Anyway MC, why don't you go ahead and take off your clothes so the two of us can enjoy a nice bath together.”

“Asmo's special cutie-pie kiss! Mwah ♡”

“But now I feel alive again, sitting in here with you drinking nice, warm cocoa.”

“Yoo-hoo, little ghosties ♡ Go on, feast your eyes upon me..!”

“Ugh, it's so dark in here! I can't take it... It's just so EXCITING!”

“You must be curious to know just how wonderful a punishment can be...”

“I'd have to say I'm most afraid of... me!”

“Since you're so adorable, I'll lock you up in my own little love jail so you'll be all mine ♡ So, don't be shy. Come here, Darling.”

“Oh, be careful around my ankles, would you? Too much pressure will ruin my perfect legs.”

“I'm hopeless at this kind of stuff since I've never lifted anything heavier than a facial massager.”

“To be honest, I was hoping to drive you mad with desire! That was my eventual goal, at least...”

“Hehe. Can't move? Aww, look how good you're being! Now, you stay just like that, okay...”

“In other words, I want you to be my plaything from now on, so I'm never bored ♡”

“Ugh, I'm so dizzy..! MC’s the only one who can save frail little Princess Asmo!”

“Oh, while we're at it why not take a video? For your exclusive viewing pleasure, of course ♡”

“I mean, I suppose I could put on a little show for you...but it won't be cheap.”

“..What? Are you stupid? Is your eyesight just that bad? Do those eyes of yours even work, or are they just there for decoration?”

“You want to do whatever you can to make me happy, because I'm worth it.”

“Hehe, now look what I've done. I got so excited that I pushed you down onto your back! Sorry!”

“Help, MC! There's a demon staring at me like he's gonna eat me!”

“And that means something coming from someone as ridiculously beautiful as me. I don't really say it to anyone other than you, you know?”

“I mean, I'm adorable. Doesn't it just tickle your protective instincts?”

“You're so cute. When I look at you, I can tell what's going through your head, even if you don't actually say it. That's right.”

“I'm sorry for being so beautiful that even confinement suits me! Then again, I always knew I was fated to be the captive damsel in distress...”

“Like, first I imagine a beautiful man and a beautiful woman. And then I picture us doing ALL sorts of naughty things to each other!”

“And then they had to do the walk of shame! ♡”

“Oh, you might be right! The runny makeup look can be kind of sexy!”

“I'll go ahead and watch you. Just in case you have any trouble changing clothes.”

“Hmmm? Like what? Mammon, you'd better get your mind out of the gutter ♡”

“I mean, here I am, right next to you, still wet from my bath. You really don't feel anything?”

“I guess that means I'M GOING TO HAVE TO KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU...!”

“Ugh, I'm ready to die of boredom! So, come on! Dance for me. I can't wait to see what you can do!”

“That's our sexy Solomon ♡ See, I knew you could do it if you tried!”

“Really, you're just flowers. Listen to you bragging about how beautiful you are...it's kind of embarrassing.”

“Ooh, are you trying to figure out where WE should go on a romantic getaway?! Aw, muffin! You don't need to beat around the bush for that kind of thing! You can be honest!”

“Huh? You're my little dove from earlier, aren't you? MC, was it?”

“That's probably my pheromones ♡”

“You're the best, MC! Your dazzling smile has the power to woo every demon in the Devildom ♡”

“Whaaat, you're still alive? Well that's boring...”

“But first, I want you to know exactly what it is that threatens to rend a delicate heart such as mine to ribbons. So be sure to pay attention, love. Nothing makes me angrier than being ignored. Truly.”

“All of the eyes are on me, I charmed all of them! Just look at me! It's a sin to be this perfect!”

“Mmmfm… gonna take everyone prisoner… mm...”

“When I first heard that we'd be shooting each other with squirt guns and getting wet, I found the whole thing kind of stupid. But it also involved coming up with plans to drive your opponents into a corner and anticipating their moves... which I found pretty enjoyable.”

“If I were like Lord Diavolo, I could have any demon or human I wanted.”

“Aaaah, this is where I belong. Sitting on a throne!”

“Surely, tempting humans is what demons are all about?”

“And next time, you're welcome to be even bolder. I want your scent all over my clothes.”

“Oh my gosh! Even from behind, I am such a snack!”

“Ooh, I know exactly what you mean! It's like, you can't help but want to lie down together on a bed or a sofa and do all sorts of naughty things-“

“Butlers, you see...their services extend into the night, as well.”

“Aaah, I've never tried rope play before, but I think I like it ♡”

“That's a rather...traditional approach. I would've just seduced him.”

“There's just something nice about being completely overpowered and brought to submission like that, you know?!”

“Right now, I'm totally hooked on this exercise where I blow up balloons to strengthen my facial muscles. Do you wanna give it a try?”

“Filth? You should know that eroticism is a valid form of art.”

“I mean, I wrapped him in chains like you said, but l've got such soft, beautiful, tender hands. They aren't suited for such a rough job. Really, you should've known that…”

“Hehe. Lies are like accessories, hun.”

“But, I'd sure feel better if you came and comforted me. I mean, I'm aaaaall alone in my room right now. If you don't come over, I'll probably start crying on account of how lonely I am.”

“Let's meet in my room when the party is over. We can have our very own Valentine's Day afterparty, just the two of us ♡”

“I'm in desperate need of stimulation to my senses!”

“To think that even Mister Stiff and Serious Angel here is feeling his heart skip a beat...I love it! ♡”

“What the movie lacks is sexiness! Shall we add more revealing scenes, like me in a swimsuit?”

“...Ummm, is this some sort of joke? You look like a chicken in heat.”

“Oh, but with you it's different, MC! I only want to do your nails as an excuse to flirt ♡”

“Oh, how exciting! Better get back snug under the covers and wait for my impending arousal ♡”

“Yes, I do. I love butts!”

“It would be ideal if we were both au naturel, honestly...”

“Ahh, I feel so graceful when i'm shooting ♡”

“I left a dying message with lipstick, so you better catch the culprit!”

“Guess I'll just have to come over and shake things up for you ♪”

“See, I just knew you'd say that! Because we're obviously an extra-compatible super couple!”

“I'd love to. I'll make you look so good, you'll be drooling over yourself.”

“..No one will know if I take a single muffin, right? I'll just grab one while they're not looking. Yoink! ♡”

“Oh yeah, Satan is totally the type to start with the tongue first!”

“Look out, or I'll tear you to bits with my sharp claws!”

“Apologize? Me? I'm sorry, but I'm not quite sure why you'd want me to do that. I mean, true, I suppose an entire country was destroyed in the end, but how could I have known that would happen, hm?”

“Drastic times call for drastic measures. Step aside, boys my sexy dance is about to begin...!”

“Hehe. Trying to butter me up, are you? Tell me, what are you hoping will happen when you succeed?”

“I'm the life of the party. The eye candy, the one who makes everyone else feel better. I need to work hard, too...for the sake of my brothers!”

“Now, now, I may not be as quick to anger as the Lord of Fools, but still. If you don't do what I say, I might have to punish you…”

“By the way, your costume was really cute, MC. Just thinking about it makes my heart go pitter-patter!”

“And now I'm a demon. Which means I could charm any sorcerer, no matter how evil! I'll have him dancing in the palm of my hand!”

“Oh Solomon, THANK YOU! You're so amazing I think I'm going to swoon! I love you..!”

“A scolding? Ooh, I wouldn't mind being scolded by you, sweetie ♡”

“FYI: It's super obvious what's running through your dirty little mind right now, Mammon…”

“Brother dearest ♡ I'm sooooo thirsty! Could you get me some blood, please and thanks? ♡”

“My charm is the greatest weapon of all! I'll steal your hearts right where you stand ♡”

“Ooh, MC, are you on Devilgram and Fab Snap? Because we totally need to friend each other!”

“I mean, I suppose I could put on a little show for you… but it won't be cheap, you know? Also, I charge extra for pictures and touching.”

“Nuh-uh. I'll be the one to win that right! Prepare to be slain in style, everyone ♡”

“I'm actually quite exhausted. So, I was thinking you could hold me in your arms for a little while so I can recharge ♡”

“If you want to experience this exfoliating paradise with me, don't hesitate to join in ♪ You know I always have an open-door policy in effect for you, love ♡”

“If both of us are charging, there's going to be sparks”

“I need you to put some cream on my back for me ♡ Yes, a backrub and nothing more. If you, on the other hand, are looking for a happy ending, I'm more than ready, my dear ♡”

“Oh, is my little MC scared? Come cling to my bosom, darling. I'll make you feel aaaall better ♡”

“I'm actually going out soon, and this fastener is giving me so much trouble. I can't get it up by myself. It could really use a good tug ♪ I should mention that my back is extremely sensitive. The slightest touch, and...well let's just say it will be hard to hold back. So sorry if I get you too excited ♡”

✧༺⚜️༻✧

Number 100 is my favourite, literally makes me blush

I will be doing a part 2 for Asmo, he is just so chaotic and lovely!

𝑀𝒶𝓈𝓉𝑒𝓇𝓁𝒾𝓈𝓉

𝒮𝒽𝓎 𝒲𝓇𝒾𝓉𝑒𝓇 ༝༚༝༚

[trashlie]

hello there! I recently read I Love Yoo for the first time and first off, wow what a series. as I've been diving into the fandom I found your blog (your analysis posts are absolutely amazing) and since you've been around the fandom a long time I was hoping you could help clarify a few things for me. obviously there's seven years of fandom and meta context I'm missing out on, but I keep seeing references to two planned time skips and seasons that I'm a little confused about. everything that's out now I think is still the first season? but I'm wondering what exactly the author has shared over the years of the planned timeline, time skips, etc. thank you in advance for any clarification you can provide! very excited to dive into more of your analysis in the future

Oh wow! I feel like getting to jump in and just binge ILY from this point is SO amazing - having this much of the story already out, so many episodes and being able to see how those threads connect and where they go! 🤩 The dream! (Also thank you!!!! I really appreciate that! Esp since I haven't made any ILY posts lately; they're in my head, I just haven't gotten around to finishing typing them out lol)

But to answer your question, quimchee has told us there will be two timeskips. The first is a short timeskip that will bring us to graduation, and the second is a much bigger timeskip of around 4 years or so. 👀 I have a little write up in the ILY Discord server about this that I should finally add to my blog today after work about how I think the timeskips coincide with Yujing's article - that is, I think she's likely working on two articles.

Now, this part is speculation and not from quimchee - she's only told us when the timeskips are and how long they'll jump us. But Nol's sentence is 120 days (less if he's good, as Yujing noted) and 120 days takes us to April. What else is in April? Shinae's birthday! Timing-wise, it depends on if quimchee is using a Korean calendar for school; after all, she did use the college entrance exams that Korean school systems utilize. In this case, graduation happens in February, but given that ILY doesn't strictly add to Korean or U.S. culture rules (quimchee refers to the setting as The United States of Asia lol) we might see this budged to adhere to a more U.S.-centric graduation era where Nol's release times up with Shinae's birthday (no way are we skipping over that!) and graduation. This is likely when Yujing will drop her first article about Nol, possibly exposing that he was framed for a crime he didn't take, made to take the fall, and most certainly exposing that he's the true legitimate heir of the Hirahara family by Mukoyoshi law. Yujing noted that Nol pleading guilty actually helps them/their case, and I think this is so because it isn't the first time he's taken the fall for someone else because he's the "other son"; it's heavily implied that the altercation that occurred between him and Kousuke was not Nol's fault/doing.

Now, the other timeskip will likely see our cast reuniting after Shinae finishes college. I think she will end up taking Yui's offer - whether because she's backed into a corner or because makes the choice we're yet to see - and I think we might actually see her come back as Kousuke's assistant to finish off her contract (or perhaps as part of the Yui trap). Nol will likely go to college abroad and Kousuke... well. I think we can see where he's headed 😭 This is also when I think Yujjng will REALLY go after Yui and Gun, what all those articles she was researching are leafing to.

Something quimchee mentioned on a patreon stream is that during the timeskip (and it wasn't specified which), she'd like to show the passage of time by showing the characters keeping in touch via letters, emails, texts, etc which I'm REALLY looking forward to!

In the past, we were told ILY would be divided into 2 seasons, and that season 2 would start after the big timeskip, but quimchee has said before that's not going to happen? However, sometimes a lot of us still refer to season 2 as "post-big-time-skip" for brevity lol. Maybe we'll still see it as s2 in the future but last I heard it won't be broken up into seasons.

I know this was more than what you asked but I always get so excited talking about the timeskips, I can't wait for them!!! I know the first one is SO close! I think quimchee was trying her best to get to it before her birth so she could do a little break before the first timeskip but alas. But we are SO close, I can almost taste it, AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!

I'm so glad you found ILY and are enjoying it!!! It really is not what it first appears and the way it subverts those expectations will always be one of my favorite aspects of this series. Seeing nre readers find it at this time, when there's so much of the series to consume and feed on is so exciting! 🥺 Happy reading! Please let me know if you have more questions!