#also a kid said to me today that i was in college almost as long as he's been alive

[bigmpregnm]

Secret Family Ties - Part 4: Next Steps

[Story Collection] | [Part 3] [●] [Epilogue🔜]

Mark and Kyle were sprawled on the couch in the living room of their house, their heavily pregnant bodies making any position impossible to maintain for long. Three weeks had passed since the day they told George the truth about their pregnancies, meaning they were two weeks overdue. They had spent the holidays and the New Year with George, and when they had to return to college, they had decided to stay and forget about school. They had priorities; their unborn babies and George were on top of the list. Mike had agreed with them dropping out of college, aware that the twins had more important things to worry about.

The twins shifted on the couch, only with their underwear on, as anything else felt constricting and unbearable. Their bodies had swelled even more during the last few weeks, making them feel ready to burst. Their bellies, filled with quintuplets, were now so large that they seemed to defy gravity, stretching their skin taut and showcasing every movement of the babies inside. Their hips had widened even more, and their asses had grown a lot more. Their tits, swollen with milk, jostled with every breath, now more pronounced and heavy.

Kyle groaned, shifting his position slightly to alleviate some of the pressure on his back. “I can’t take this anymore,” he muttered, one hand rubbing his massive belly while the other caressed one of his tits.

Mark, equally uncomfortable, nodded in agreement. “Tell me about it. These babies are getting too big, and they kick so hard,” he said, caressing the sides of his belly and groaning when one of the babies decided to stretch and push against the walls of his overpacked womb.

Mike walked into the living room, his enormous belly leading the way. Clad in only panties that barely covered his ass and a massive maternity bra that struggled to contain his gigantic tits, he looked every bit as uncomfortable and ready to burst as his sons. Mike’s belly had grown significantly in the last three weeks, looking like a taut, skin-colored exercise ball attached to his torso. The octuplets within him had run out of space, but they continued constantly kicking their fertile daddy. His hips had also widened a lot more, and his ass now looked like beach balls behind him. His tits had almost outgrown his biggest maternity bras, and the constant pressure within them was unbearable.

Mike stood before his sons, cradling his belly with both hands. “How are you holding up, boys?” he asked, his voice strained but filled with concern.

“We’re desperate, Dad,” Kyle said, his voice laced with frustration. “Two weeks overdue with huge quintuplets is no joke.”

“We need to go into labor soon. We can’t take much more of this,” Mark added, groaning as one of the babies kicked him hard.

“Well, you might be overdue, but you’re not nearly as big as I am, so... I’m sure you’ll survive,” Mike said, moving one of his hands to rest atop his belly while the other moved to his lower back. “I’m due today, and I hope these babies won’t stay for long inside me.”

The front door opened suddenly, and George walked in, carrying several bags filled with baby supplies. His face lit up with a warm smile as he saw Mike and the twins together. He set the bags down and approached Kyle first, leaning in to gently kiss the pregnant guy’s lips. George’s hand caressed Kyle’s enormous belly, feeling the movements of the babies inside.

“How are you today, handsome?” George asked, his voice soft and caring.

“Barely hanging in there, big stud,” Kyle responded, grinning and caressing George’s face as they kissed.

“Well, you look fantastic to me,” George said, moving away from Kyle and approaching Mark. “And you, beauty? You look incredible,” he said, leaning in to kiss Mark’s lips.

“I’m desperate. Your kids don’t want to come out. This is all your fault,” Mark playfully said, reaching down to caress George’s bulge.

“I don’t regret it, and I’d do it all over again. I’ll actually do it again once these babies are born,” George said, moving away from Mark and standing by Mike’s side. “And my big man? How are you feeling, Mr. Harlow?” George kissed Mike’s lips and squeezed his massive, fat ass.

“Ready to pop, George. I’m due today, so it’s any minute now,” Mike said, gasping with George’s touch on his ass.

George smiled, his eyes filled with lust and desire. “Well, I think I might know how to help you trigger labor,” he said playfully. “It’s nothing we haven’t done already, but I’ve been... gentle, and this needs to be hard,” he added, and the trio saw George’s massive dick hardening in his pants, immediately revealing his plan.

“If you mean what I think you mean, I’m in,” Mark said, slowly starting the struggle to lift himself up from the couch, making George quickly run to him to help. “If your big dick got us into this situation, it better get us out of it,” he added, panting as he stood on his feet.

“And if it doesn’t work on the first try, we can try over and over again until you make us pop,” Kyle added, reaching for George’s hand for support to stand up. “You’re not getting out of this house until you’ve fucked these babies out of us,” he added once he was on his feet, reaching for George’s big bulge to rub it.

“I think we all fit in my bed; let’s get upstairs,” Mike said, eager for George to fuck him into labor.

They slowly began the arduous journey to Mike’s room with George’s help. George supported each of them, helping them navigate the house, holding their hands, and carefully guiding them while frequently rubbing their bellies, pecs, or asses. They slowly waddled and took several breaks to enjoy George’s touch.

Once in Mike’s room, George helped Mike and the twins get comfortable on the large bed. Kyle and Mark lay on either side of their dad, their massive bellies making it hard to find a comfortable position. George grinned while he observed the three pregnant men in bed, ready and eager for him to fuck them. He undressed and gave his 14-inch-long dick a stroke before jumping into bed with his needy pregnant men.

George began with Kyle, his hands carefully and firmly moving over his swollen belly. Kyle gasped, and a soft moan escaped his lips as George’s hands moved up to his milk-filled tits. George applied some pressure around Kyle’s nipples, and a steady stream of milk started leaking out. Kyle sighed in relief, his body visibly relaxing under George’s touch. George leaned forward and kissed Kyle’s lips, then moved lower to kiss his pecs and finally gave the massive belly several kisses.

George then moved to Mark, his hands carefully cruising over the taut skin of his belly, slightly easing the tension. Mark closed his eyes, his breathing deepening, soft moans of relief escaping his lips. George repeated the procedure and gave Mark’s tits a firm massage, teasing his nipples and causing a strong flow of milk to come out. George grinned and passionately kissed Mark’s lips while his hands reached below the massive pregnant belly to squeeze his bulge. Mark moaned louder while George’s hands teased his crotch. Then, with a quick and strong movement, George ripped Mark’s underwear off and removed the shreds to have full access to Mark’s butt.

“We’ll start with Mark, then we’ll move back to Kyle, and we’ll finish with our big man. Do you think you can wait, Mr. Harlow?” George said, reaching to briefly rub Mike’s belly.

Mike and Kyle nodded, and George lifted Mark’s legs while lining his massive dick with the pregnant guy’s hole. Mark groaned in discomfort in that position, but when he felt George’s dick touching his hole, moans of pleasure replaced the groans. George pushed his whole dick deep into Mark in one move, and the young man moaned loudly, his eyes rolling inside his head. Mark’s tits heaved up and down since his breathing shortened, overwhelmed by pleasure. The stream of milk coming out of his tits hadn’t stopped, so Mark looked like a hot mess while George’s hips started bucking.

George mischievously grinned as he fucked Mark hard and passionately. They had done it a few times during the last three weeks, but George had been more gentle; now, he was focused on fucking Mark as hard as possible. Mark was out of his mind as the fucking intensified, and he felt the babies kicking up a storm inside him. Mark felt an intense pressure starting on his lower abdomen and slowly taking over his massive belly, causing the babies to move even more. He rubbed his belly while George fucked him, and he could only long for more. The 14-inch-long dick felt fantastic, and George’s tennis-ball-sized balls hitting against his ass felt incredible.

Then, Mark felt a sudden, sharp pain taking over his belly and hips, making him scream while George’s dick stretched his hole. Mark groaned as the pain intensified, and the babies shifted violently. He took deep breaths, struggling with the pain but not willing for George to stop. However, another sharp pain made him scream even louder, making George stop the pounding and pull his dick out.

“Ugghh… I think it worked. Fuck, this hurts,” Mark said, clutching his belly with both hands while gritting his teeth. Suddenly, he groaned, and the four of them heard a loud pop sound, followed by a rush of water coming out of his hole and drenching the sheets and the mattress. “You did it... You and your massive dick did it,” he added, grinning even though he was in pain.

“My turn! Come here, big stud,” Kyle said, spreading his legs to give George access to his hole.

George grinned broadly and positioned himself between Kyle’s legs. “One down, two to go,” he said, quickly ripping Kyle’s underwear off and getting in position to fuck him.

George pushed his dick into Kyle’s eager hole and immediately started pounding hard. Kyle couldn’t help but moan while the father of his children fucked him hard. George looked down and saw Kyle’s tits also leaking milk, and it seemed like the stimulation was only making them leak even more. George focused on thrusting as hard as possible, making Kyle lose his mind due to pleasure.

Meanwhile, Mark rubbed his contracting belly and took slow, deep breaths. Mike caressed his son’s belly to ease up some of the pressure, trying to help Mark feel better through the pain. Mike knew Mark was in pain, but his mind was filled with emotions. He was happy about the coming babies—the idea of becoming a granddad was lovely—but what excited him the most was the idea of giving birth to his own babies and letting George knock him up again.

George thrust hard into a blank-minded Kyle, who only moaned in pleasure while holding his belly. The babies were very active, and the harder George fucked him, the closer he felt to finally pop. Just like Mark had experienced, Kyle felt an intense pressure on his lower belly, quickly spreading to the rest of his abdomen. He groaned in discomfort, and George pounded even harder and faster.

“Oh, here it comes. It hurts,” Kyle mumbled when the pressure grew more intense and turned into pain.

Kyle’s words made George stop, quickly pulling his dick out. A rush of liquid came out of Kyle immediately, making him groan in relief and pain. His breathing shortened as the babies inside him shifted and turned, leaving him breathless while real contractions started building up in his lower abdomen.

“Two down, one more to go!” George said, leaning forward to kiss Kyle’s belly and then moving to Mike. “Are you ready?” He asked, and Mike nodded.

Since Mike’s belly and tits were so huge, fucking him on his back was somewhat uncomfortable. George carefully helped the massive pregnant man turn in bed and get on his knees to find a better position. Mike’s belly rested on the mattress, and he leaned forward against the headboard as much as his massive belly and tits allowed him to. George removed Mike’s bra and ripped off his panties, revealing his enormous tits and gigantic ass in full glory.

George positioned himself behind Mike and helped him spread his knees to access his hole. Mike looked fantastic in that position, and George didn’t hesitate to bury his dick between the massive, fat asscheeks. Mike moaned louder than ever and immediately started panting while George’s hips bucked.

George reached for Mike’s tits from behind and firmly grabbed at them while fucking him hard. The firm touch and the fucking made Mike shiver uncontrollably, and his moans grew louder. George firmly squeezed Mike’s tits and pinched at his engorged nipples to tease him, causing a geyser-like stream of milk to come out of the nipples, coating the headboard and drenching the mattress with milk. The sensation was fantastic. 

Mike was lost in pleasure, and his body craved more. His hands caressed his belly because the babies rolled and turned constantly. His breathing was short, and his eyes were blank while George’s dick stretched his hole. His abdomen tightened, and his hips ached. Mike groaned as he felt something shifting violently inside him. He knew George’s plan was working. 22 years had passed since the last time he experienced labor, but he still remembered the signs, even though this time was a lot different in size than before.

Mike groaned loudly as his dick started shooting cum below his belly, overwhelming his mind and leaving him breathless. Immediately, a sharp pain coursed through his belly and made him grit his teeth. George pulled his dick out, and a loud pop sound announced Mike’s water breaking. He groaned as what seemed to be gallons of liquid rushed out of his hole, signaling the impending birth of the octuplets.

“Just like when I got you pregnant, I nailed three out of three,” George said, grinning and slapping Mike’s fat ass. “Time to go to the hospital. You guys have a lot of work to do, and... remember, next time, I’ll get you even bigger,” he added, looking at Kyle and Mark, who were dealing with contractions but smiled back at their big stud.

****

The trip to the hospital was an arduous journey filled with groans of discomfort as they dealt with contractions. When they arrived at the hospital, Mike, Mark, and Kyle, ready to give birth, were settled into a delivery room prepared for the monumental task. The hospital staff, doctors, and male nurses were all struck with awe at the sight of the massively pregnant men. Their bellies were huge, and considering they were about to give birth to 18 babies, the hospital needed to make several accommodations. The nurses tried to put gowns on them, but their bellies were too big, so the doctors allowed them to stay naked.

Mike, Kyle, and Mark were placed side by side on three delivery beds in the same room. Their enormous bellies dominated their frames, their enormous milky pecs only accentuating their fertile shapes. One doctor was assigned to each of them, with three nurses caring for each of the twins, while four were on Mike’s team since he was carrying the most babies. The doctors checked on their dilation, confirming they were ready to start pushing. George’s thick dick had stretched them enough to speed up the process.

The air was filled with the rhythmic beeping of monitors, the rustling of medical equipment, and the murmured conversations of the medical team. George stood by the side of the men carrying his babies. His presence provided comfort and strength for them. He moved between them, offering kisses and gentle belly rubs.

“You’re doing great, Mark,” George whispered, kissing Mark’s lips while he pushed.

“This hurts! And it’s all your fault!” Mark responded, his face and belly covered in sweat but enjoying George’s lips.

George smiled and moved to Kyle, who was gripping the sides of the bed. “You can do this,” he said, kissing Kyle’s lips.

“Ugghh, your babies are so big,” Kyle responded, groaning as he continued pushing.

George then turned to Mike, whose face was flushed with the strain of labor. “And you, my big man... Push these kids out of you, and you’ll see how this belly will get even bigger very soon,” he whispered into Mike’s ears, who groaned loudly and nodded.

The doctors nodded to each other, still marveling at the scene before their eyes. “Okay, on the count of three, I want you to push as hard as you can,” Mark’s doctor instructed. “One, two, three, push!”

The room was filled with the sounds of their efforts. Mike, Kyle, and Mark all bore down, their bodies straining against the immense task of bringing their babies into the world. The size of the babies, which they blamed on George’s genes, made the process more challenging, and each push was a battle against the limits. George alternated between them, holding their hands and caressing their sweaty bellies, assuring them that they could do it.

The three men initially progressed slowly, but as the babies were crowning, the process slightly sped up. Mike, Mark, and Kyle screamed in pain, feeling their holes on fire as the heads slowly emerged simultaneously. Their bodies were working in perfect synchrony to bring their first babies into the world. The doctors positioned themselves, ready to receive the first three babies at once.

“Okay, one more big push,” Kyle’s doctor said. “You can do it. On three. One, two, three, push!”

Mark, Kyle, and Mark pushed with all their might, and the room erupted with a symphony of cries as the first babies slid out of their bodies. The doctors and nurses moved quickly, carefully handling the newborns while the three pregnant men caught their breaths.

“Three big boys, congratulations,” Mike’s doctor said, looking at the baby in his hands and glancing at the other two in the other doctors’ hands. “They look just like their dad,” he added, looking at George, whose eyes were filled with pride and love.

George passionately kissed Mike while rubbing his belly, then he moved to Kyle and repeated the process, and finally did the same with Mark. Then, George’s attention was momentarily captured by a slim, young male nurse assisting one of the doctors. Their eyes met, and a spark of connection passed between them. George smiled warmly at the nurse, who blushed and smiled back, captivated by George’s charm and amazed at the remarkable scene before him. The nurse was clearly impressed and somewhat awed by the fact that George had gotten the three men so pregnant.

***

Hours later, Mike, Kyle, and Mark were in their beds, each cradling their babies. George stood at the door, watching the tender scene with a smile. The sight of the twins and Mike breastfeeding the 18 babies, two at a time, was heartwarming. The three men looked tired, but as they placed their babies on their chests to feed them, the broad smiles on their faces showed their happiness and excitement. Their bellies were still somewhat swollen but a lot smaller now that all the babies were out. However, their pecs looked fuller than ever since they had to fulfill the high demand for milk.

George smiled and took a deep breath, proud of the three men who had just given him 18 sons. Now he was the proud father of 20 babies, soon to be 24, considering the quadruplets in Stacey’s belly, and he wasn’t planning on stopping because he was willing to get the three men pregnant as soon as possible. However, there was something else he was willing to do before that.

George quietly excused himself, leaving the room with his neighbors and their many babies. Slipping down the hallway, he sneaked into the janitor’s closet, where the young male nurse from earlier was waiting. The nurse’s eyes lit up as George approached, and they quickly embraced each other in a passionate kiss. George’s hands roamed over the nurse’s body, giving his flat abdomen and chest some attention.

“Are you really the father of the 18 babies?” he asked, still surprised at George’s virility.

“I am. And I have twins at home, with a set of quadruplets coming soon,” George said, intensifying their making out and moving one of his hands to squeeze the nurse’s ass. His 14-inch-long dick instantly reached full mast. “I think you would look so good with a huge belly full of my babies,”

The breathless nurse blushed but smiled, the thought clearly exciting him. “I’d love that,” he whispered, his voice filled with need and lust. He had witnessed the three men giving birth to 18 of George’s big babies, and he deeply longed to carry George’s babies.

“You already saw what I can do. Quintuplets, octuplets, and believe me, you’ll carry even more,” George said, passionately kissing the nurse and imagining his slim body changing dramatically like the twins’. He couldn’t help but think about Mike, Mark, and Kyle and decided to fill them up with even more kids as soon as he finished with the nurse. He wanted a big family, and he knew they were all willing to be part of it.

...

[eclectickss]

Taste the Tango

Wanda x Fem!Reader

Warnings: SoftTop(switch if you squint)!Reader, age gap (reader is of age), reader's best friend is Wanda's son, Tommy is graduating high school? (a choice that I don't think I've seen before, so let me know if you like?), Wanda is reader's former teacher, slight alcohol use, smut (fingering, oral)... I think that's everything?

Summary: You are in your hometown the summer before your senior year of college hanging out with your best friend. Unexpectedly, you also get some quality with his mom (and your former teacher).

WC: 10,350 words?!?! (a record for me)

╔══《✧》══╗

"Hey Y/N!" Your gaze shot up from the pavement to the open door ahead, smiling as you saw your best friend standing in the frame.

"Hey Tommy!" You jogged up to hug him, seeing as he and his twin brother just returned from a week long beach trip. You normally wouldn't be this excited to see him, but with complicated summer schedules and school across the country, it had been almost 6 months since the two of you had spent time together.

"This is crazy, I missed you so much!" He backs up and you immediately spot the sparkle in his eye that is easily recognized in the rest of his family.

"I know, me too!" You shook his shoulders and hugged him one more time. "So, you said you had something planned for today?" The two of you walked into the house and towards the kitchen. Your eyes secretly darted around the space for a certain someone, but you are slightly disappointed when you don't see the person you're looking for.

You feel guilty for hoping she would be there, since you were there to spend time with her son, but you couldn't silence your thoughts, no matter how hard you tried.

"Well I know it's kind of silly, but I picked up some rocks we could paint?" He scrunched up his face. "I don't know, I just wanted something mindless we could do while we caught up."

"Are you kidding, that sounds great!" You smiled.

"Alright, awesome! I've gotta head out by six so I can meet Ruby for dinner, but we have plenty of time," he said as you followed him back to his room. Ruby was his girlfriend of six months, so it prided you to know that hanging out with you was his priority.

The two of you made it to his room and he encouraged you to sit down as he left to get art supplies. Just before you were able to sit though, a voice reached into the depths of your mind.

"I knew I heard a familiar voice!" You turned around and there she was, as breathtaking as ever. Wanda Maximoff. The way her soft eyes met yours and her red wavy hair sat just above her shoulders made you melt. You prayed the moment would last forever, but the passing seconds were inevitable.

"Hi!" You excitedly walked over to your former teacher to give her a hug, painfully ignoring all other emotions you were feeling.

"How are you, Y/N?" She moved out of the hug, cheeks grazing, making you briefly look away.

"I'm absolutely wonderful, how about you?"

"I'm alright," she spoke as she softly smiled. "Are you excited for your last year of college?" She leaned up against the doorframe.

"I guess so? I love California, but I can hardly wait until I'm done with school already so that I can come home. Are you ready to become an empty nester?"

Billy and Tommy were three years younger than you, so they were just about to begin their college journey as you were ready to bring yours to a close. Tommy was only going to university an hour away and Billy five hours, but you imagined it would still be a lot for both boys to be leaving the house at once.

"Oh hush, dear." Ms. Maximoff playfully shoved your shoulder, a gesture you struggled to not linger on. "I don't wanna hear that talk. Let me soak in my boys being home while I can. And you being here while I can." She smiled with a small glint in her eye, but you knew she was dreading the boys' absence.

"Oh well, two more semesters and you won't be able to get rid of me."

"Perhaps it's selfish to say that we can't wait to have you back either, but I know you'll accomplish wonderful things in your last year there." She placed a hand on your shoulder and instinctively you placed your own on top of hers.

You internally panicked, worried that you were being too affectionate for a teacher/student/best friend's mother relationship, but she just moved to gently caress your cheek and proceeded to walk away.

You could hardly process your thoughts as your brain replayed the previous moment over and over, but this torturous habit is nothing you weren't unfamiliar with.

Every day that went by with Ms. Maximoff in your presence was a day to strenuously remember. You mentally recorded her words, her movements and her reactions. Time slowed with her around as you soaked in every detail about her possible.

Every day that went by without her was filled with daydreaming and guilt. You always wondered how she would react to something, or how she would respond in a private conversation. You tried to picture her thoughts and envision her smile before you. You hated how much you thought about her, yet craved to dream of her.

She was your high school english teacher, your best friend's mother, and your go-to mentor in any sticky situation.

She has already given you so much, and you despised the fact that you wanted more. You knew it was wrong, but she was your addiction.

"Earth to Y/N," A hand waved in front of your face and you quickly realized that Tommy had returned with the rocks and art supplies.

"Oh, hey Tommy!" You rubbed your eyes in shock.

"Where'd you go there?" He laughed and sat down on the floor.

"I uhh... can't remember." You lied, joining him on the floor, not letting him see the guilty emotions written across your face.

---

Hours pass as the two of you work on your rocks and talk.

You tell him all about your travels while he fills you in on everything that happened at the beach and on his trips prior.

You love listening to all his little stories, especially those where his mom is involved. One of your favorite stories was when he talked about her affliction with the terrible kitchen at the beach house. She wouldn't stop complaining about the quality of the stove, which you ended up finding rather funny.

You asked him if she even actually used the stove, and he said no, which made you laugh out loud. Supposedly she apologized at the end of the trip for making such a big deal out of it.

He thought it was stupid, but you found it cute.

Of course that was something that she would do.

"What else crazy did she do on the trip?" You couldn't stop yourself from inquiring about her. Tommy never caught onto your special interest as he laughed it off and launched into the next story.

"So it was movie time, right?" He starts and you nod. "Well mom and I were advocating for She's Funny That Way since we're both madly in love with Kathryn Hahn."

You cackle and quickly agree with their side. "Of course."

"But Billy and Auntie Nat wanted to watch Knives Out!"

"I thought you liked that movie..."

"Ok yes, but Kathryn Hahn or Chris Evans?"

You thought about it for a moment. "Fair Enough." This made you wonder though about Ms. Maximoff's interest in Kathryn Hahn. There's no way she's.... attracted to her, right?

If Ms. Maximoff actually liked women, the hole you've dug for yourself would become infinitely deeper.

"Anyways, so mom, out of nowhere, says, 'You wanna watch Knives Out? Well guess what, Chris Evans is the villain and Ana de Armas gets the estate and money,' and Nat and Billy were furious."

"Oh my gosh!" You laughed with your hand over your mouth in disbelief. "So did you guys end up watching She's Funny That Way?"

"Well mom and I did. Billy and Nat went off to watch something else."

"Wow! That was vile!"

"It really was intense." He laughed and the conversation paused as both of you returned your attention to your rocks. Right before your paintbrush hit the surface though, his phone alarm went off.

"Aw, shoot. That's my timer for Ruby. We gotta clean up."

"That's alright." You gave him a soft smile. "We do have the last two weeks to hang out before I go, and I understand I'm not the only important person in your life."

He looked at you and smiled. "I love you, you know?"

"I love you too, you dork. Now let's clean these brushes and get these rocks outside to dry."

The two of you were cutting it real close to six once everything was cleaned, but before you knew it, you were saying goodbye to Tommy in the driveway just as Ruby had pulled in to pick him up.

"Alright, Y/N, we'll hang out soon!" He hugged you and stepped back.

"Oh you know it."

He followed you to your car, but you quickly realized you had left your keys inside.

"You know, I think I left my keys on your floor, but don't bother waiting for me to drive away. Go have fun with Ruby."

"Alright. My mom will let you in if it's locked." He hugged you one more time and joined his girlfriend in her car. You released a breath of air and headed back to the house, happy to see that the kitchen door was still unlocked.

Ms. Maximoff was standing in the room though when you walked in.

"Oh, hey Y/N/N! Did you forget something?" She looked up from the cutting board and veggies on the counter.

"Yeah. My keys are somewhere in Tommy's room," you said as you headed in that direction.

"Oh, so you're not back because you forgot to say 'goodbye' to me?" She teased.

"You read my mind!" You yelled from down the hall, embarrassed by how quickly you turned red.

Your keys were rather easy to find, but you took a bit longer to collect yourself before exiting Tommy's room.

"So," she said as you re-entered the kitchen. "What are you doing with your last two weeks before heading back to California?"

You were caught off guard with her conversation starter, but you were overjoyed that she wanted to talk. You leaned back onto the counter to face her.

"Well, it's all just trying to hang out with friends, even though most of them are off doing internships or traveling. I'm honestly just hanging around home a bunch," you shrugged.

"What, you didn't want to travel or anything?" She said as she continued to work on the cutting board at her fingertips.

"You know me, Ms. Maximoff, I love home just a little too much." You smiled and looked at your feet.

"Wanda, dear." She stopped her chopping and looked directly at you. "I was Ms. Maximoff to you because I was your teacher, but we've been over this, darling. Wanda, please."

You sighed. "It just... feels weird!"

"Ok, well you know what we do when things feel weird, Y/N?"

You looked at her questioningly.

"We practice, dear." She stepped around the kitchen island to lean on the counter across from you, and your thoughts started to get louder. "Say it. Say my name." She openly challenged you, so you had to accept.

"W- Wanda?" Your insides were burning.

"With confidence, dear."

You took a breath. "Wanda." You exclaimed, meeting her gaze from a few feet away.

"Good girl. Now use it in a sentence."

You blushed, knowing she saw it, but hoping she assumed it was from your discomfort. "Like... what?"

"Well, I don't know! A compliment, a question, a simple statement? I don't care, just say something. Anything." She commanded as your heart was pounding in your chest.

"I think your eyes are gorgeous, Wanda." Fuck. That wasn't supposed to come out. The woman across from you seemed to freeze briefly. "I mean- your eyes, Tommy and Billy's eyes... you all have the same eyes. I think... I think they're pretty. Wanda." FUCK.

Wanda still hadn't moved, her gaze digging into your soul. She finally took a breath, leaving a long pause in the conversation.

"What do you think of me, Y/N?"

"What?" Disbelief dripping from your reply as the intonation behind her question became lost on you.

"How do you process my image? My persona?" Wanda playfully smirked. "It must at least be slightly askew since I was your teacher, but what role do I play in your life?" She moved some cooking items away from the edge of the counter, proving to you that you had her full attention.

"Do you want me to be honest or uncomfortably honest?"

"I want to know why you chose me. Why you always turned in my homework but nobody else's. Why you wrote me thank you notes and asked me to write your college recommendation letters... why you confide in me and why you respect me so much..."

You stood in shock, feeling your body start to shake from the nerves. Your shoes all of a sudden became really interesting.

"Uncomfortably honest it is, then." You gave a long sigh and glanced back up to see her eyebrows raise in anticipation.

"It was one of the first lectures you gave me in 11th grade. I had started to realize that I was more introverted than I wanted to be, so I challenged myself to break out of that shell. I started doing that by speaking up in class. You had asked a question about our summer reading, and because I already knew you through Tommy, I felt comfortable to answer.

"To my surprise, you started a debate with me... and I didn't back down... and then you applauded me for standing up for something I believed in. That made me want to pay a lot more attention to you." You paused to take a breath, making sure the other woman was still paying attention. Wanda nodded in acknowledgement, but stayed silent to let you continue. "I started to listen to every word that came out of your mouth. I memorized every piece of information you shared, I watched what candy you picked out of the bag first, I payed attention to what music you were listening to, what books you were reading." You paused. "And so I started to notice things.

"You work to understand every single story in the room. You want to help as many people as possible, and you don't let their faults get in your way. You have a passion for what you teach and you want to share it with the world. You have good and bad days just like the rest of us, and you allowed me to see that. You are kind, empathetic, beautiful, and I have a great deal of respect for the way you carry yourself, Wanda."

Your heart raced as the two of you stared at each other for what felt like minutes. You had just poured your heart out to the one person who was never supposed to know anything. Wanda was speechless, which made you nervous. You continued to ramble.

"And- and its tricky because Tommy is genuinely my best friend and I don't know what I'd do without him... but if you're wondering what I think of you, I don't know what I'd do without you either. This family has made me who I am today. And it's all very complicated and confusing and difficult to navigate."

Wanda's eyes still stood stagnant, but you couldn't bear the silence anymore.

"Why do you ask?" You quietly gulped, praying some sound would exit her mouth.

"Would you like to stay for dinner? Billy is with friends tonight and Tommy is with Ruby, as you know, so I fear I have nobody to eat with." Wanda returned her attention to the preparations. The change of subject caught you off guard, but the opportunity to spend time with her was never something you wanted to turn down.

"Uh... sure! Let me just tell my mom I won't be home for our frozen pizza dinner." You made a goofy face that Wanda found hilarious after you commented on your other dinner option.

"Wonderful." A beautiful smile spread across her face as she pulled another plate out of the cupboard and set it on the dining table. "Would you care for a glass of wine?" The offer felt odd coming from the older woman, but it's easy to forget that you're legally allowed to accept alcoholic beverages now.

"That would be nice." You gave her a soft smile.

"I can't believe you're old enough to drink now... better for me so I won't be drinking alone," You both laughed. "Red or white, darling?"

"Whatever you're having." Wanda practically waltzed around the kitchen. "Is there anything I can do to help you prepare?" You asked as she handed you a glass of red.

Wanda paused her movements and looked at you with a silly yet impressed smile. "Well... have you ever made paprikash darling?" She asked and you shook your head. "Would you like to learn?"

"Absolutley." You grinned and Wanda took a sip of her wine.

"Wonderful." She held out her hand for you to join her at the cutting board. "We've got to dice two onions, one tomato and one pepper, as well as mince two cloves of garlic." She placed the kitchen knife in front of you. "I like to use four cloves of garlic though," she nearly whispered in your ear.

"Do you know your way around a cutting board?"

"Uhh... not really?"

"A teaching opportunity then! You can never get away from me, can you?" Wanda's words were spinning in your head even though you knew they were not intended to be. The older woman stepped behind you, moving the knife to your left hand.

"How did you know I was left handed?"

"I pay attention, dear." She casually replied. "Now curl your fingers on your right hand like this-" She placed her palm on top of the back of your hand. "And hold the knife like..." She adjusted the positioning of your thumb and pointer finger. "Good. This is the best way to avoid chopping an extremity off." Your eyes widened, thankful Wanda couldn't see the fear written on your face.

"All that's left to do is slice." She grabbed the readied onion and placed it in the center of the board. Before you knew it, she was guiding your hand through the vegetable while pressing you into the counter from behind. "Wonderful!" She exclaimed as the slice of onion fell onto the board. "Now you keep going!" She stepped out behind you and you tried your hardest to not sulk at her absence.

You missed Wanda's warmth, but nevertheless, you continued slicing and she continued watching.

"Good girl." She spoke the words again, nearly making you loose focus with a dangerous object in your hand. "Now you cut in the opposite direction. I was never good with onions so as long as the pieces look somewhat like cubes, you will have done a wonderful job." That made you laugh and you continued working.

"So tell me more about college! I love having you here but we never get one-on-one time like this. How is your degree path, your teachers, friends? Are you seeing anyone?" The last question was delivered in a goofy, sultry manner as Wanda pulled raw chicken out of the fridge.

You giggled and rolled your eyes. "To get the most pressing question out of the way, I am not seeing anyone. I was slightly interested in a graduate student but we decided it would be better to stay friends. Plus, who gets lucky enough to date a graduate student?"

"A graduate student, eh? How did the two of y'all meet anyways?"

"Well she used to live in the rental where I am now, so I received some old mail of hers. Who woulda thought that the nearly outdated postal service of America almost brought two women together?"

Your joke made Wanda cackle as she turned on the stove to heat the pot.

"Well, at least you have the opportunity to date women on campus, dear. That would have been so much more complicated in my day." She stirred the melting butter in the pan.

"Oh Wanda, don't say 'in my day', that makes you sound like a dinosaur!" You laughed.

"Well, honey, I am a dinosaur!"

"Oh shut up, no you're not. I am shocked every day that there aren't sad little high school boys making rude comments to your face or handsome men on your tail." The room oddly fell silent and you immediately started reflecting on what you had said. You put down the knife even though you were nearly done with the tomato. "When you made the comment about back in your day... - did you... do you wish you had the opportunity to date women?"

An all-telling silence came from Wanda.

"You'd rather have beautiful women on your tail? Is that it?" You smiled at her a little bit, just to make sure she knew that you understood.

"Well... I guess so. The whole 'men' thing only did me one good and that is my boys. Their dad, Vision, was just a good friend and it took me a really long time to realize that."

"That makes perfect sense Wanda." You almost hesitate with your next question, but it feels natural to ask. "Is there any woman that you've ever been particularly curious about?"

Immediately, you could tell Wanda had an answer, but her various facial expressions made it difficult to decipher if she was going to tell you or not. Finally, a glimmer of playfulness lit in her eye.

"Yes, but you have to promise not to tell anyone. Not even Tommy."

"So we both know this person then! She must be from school!" You exclaimed, getting excited.

"SHHH!" She looked at you seriously. "I always wondered how I really felt about Carol but she got herself a partner back in May."

It took you a moment to figure out who Wanda was talking about. "Wait- Carol as in Ms. Danvers Carol Danvers?!?" Wanda sheepishly nodded and you smiled wide. "Wanda, I can't blame you at all. Carol was hot at hell." You returned to your tomato, smirking.

"Excuse me!" Wanda was shocked at your remark.

"Oh, c'mon, Wanda. You must know that students talk about a few teachers. Mostly the boys... but they still talk. Danvers was a popular topic in my graduating class! Even I added a comment occaisonally..." You mumbled as you watched Wanda return her eyes to the stove with a scoff.

"Unbelievable." Fake disgust dripped from Wanda's voice as you held back your laugh. She pulled the chicken out of the pot and grabbed the onions from your board, tossing them into the oil. "You said a few teachers..." She whipped back around. "Who else was on the hot commodity list?"

You playfully scoffed. "Well there was coach Wilson amongst the girls and also Ms. Hill with the guys."

"Interesting."

"Oh, and of course we can't forget you."

"EXCUSE ME?"

You let out an outrageous burst of laughter. "What?! All of the students fangirl over how nice you are if they aren't upset with their grades in your class! The boys love how mysterious and alluring you are and the girls think you're extremely personable, which is true."

Wanda let a brief silence fall on the conversation. "And you?"

You paused. "I already told you what I think of you Wanda." You smiled and handed her the rest of the chopped veggies. "Here you go." A comfortable silence fell over the two of you as Wanda continued to work, claiming there was nothing else for you to do at the moment. Eventually, she covered the pot she had been focusing on and turned the kitchen timer on.

"We've got about thirty minutes of waiting before there will be anything else to do," she spoke as she finally poured more wine into the both of your empty glasses. "I hope you liked this red, darling. I don't know how experienced you are with alcohol yet... although i'm assuming it's more so than you should be for your age."

You giggled. "I have maybe had my fair share of underage drinking, just like any decent college kid might," you replied as you accepted the glass from Wanda and followed her to the nearby couch. You both got comfortable and you watched as the older woman pulled a blanket across her thighs. The absence of conversation began to feel a little overwhelming, but you weren't expecting Wanda to break it with the next sentence she spoke.

"You're actually the first person i've told about liking women," she began. You raised your eyebrows in shock. Not that she hasn't told anyone before, just that the first person she wants to confide in is you.

"Wow." You began. "I don't know if I'm the most appropriate person to offer this, but do you have any questions? I am comfortable answering anything as long as you are comfortable asking." You stared at Wanda as you sipped your wine, watching the gears turn in her head.

"Yes I-" Her hesitations finally diminished. "Have you ever dated a man?" You were not expecting that.

"Yes, I tried. I was in a similar situation where he was my best friend. This was in 9th grade, that is, but I still knew that I was supposed to feel more."

"How is it different?"

"Than women?" You watched as Wanda nodded. "Well there is an objective answer and a personal answer. The objective one goes to say that it comes down to the person and how you connect with them. How your life experiences tie together and whatnot. Objectively, I can't say that much because every individual is unique. Personally though, women are infinitely better."

This made Wanda laugh, which you were quickly realizing you would give anything to hear more and more of.

"They better understand your life experiences and how to navigate emotional situations, especially the mature ones. The way they display affection is usually more personable and caring, too. They also are more attentive to details, both mentally and physically."

"How so?"

You could feel the alcohol beginning to stir, making it harder for some thoughts and words to stay away from your brain. "Well mentally, women tend to catch onto social cues faster, like when their partner needs a break or needs to eat or needs cuddles or space. Physically, they pay more attention to how your lips move and how you like to be kissed, not just where." You noticed Wanda's eyes following the path of your lips and jawline, making you stammer for a moment.

"What else?"

You gulped, beginning to realize you had no idea how far this conversation would go. "Well, The body parts that they work to please are also the same parts they touch in their free time. They know how moving on something feels different than something moving on it... and so on."

Wanda tried to verbally confirm that she understood but you could tell she was a little lost in her head. She took a big sip of wine. And another.

"I was reading something the other day..." Wanda drew out and took a big breath. "Her tongue was on the...- and she had two fingers in-" Wanda stared at her hands, oblivious to the glaze over your eyes as your listened to your former teacher talk about fucking another woman. "Is that even possible?"

"Uh- um- yea- yes. It is. It takes a little bit of practice to figure out how to do it comfortably but - yes."

It was now your turn to take a big sip of wine.

"Oh I see."

"Do you have any other questions?" You know you shouldn't, but you wanted her to say yes. Your heart was racing and you could feel a velvety slick form in your pants.

"How are your classes going?" Her tone changed but she was still focused on her hands.

You let out a big gust of air from the tension you were feeling, semi relieved that the conversation had changed but also slightly confused. "Uh, classes are good. I've got most of the hard ones out of the way, so it's really just the fun ones left."

"Like what?"

"Well I have a science elective left so I'm taking intro to geology which is supposed to be wonderful. I've also signed up for a Shakespeare lecture that should be phenomenal too. It's being taught by my favorite professor, so I can't wait to have her again."

Wanda's eyes glanced up at that. "Again?"

"Yeah, I had her for my ethics class in freshman year and she was excellent. One of those teachers whose work I actually enjoyed doing. She really understood the students and designed her class structure to fit our interests."

Wanda didn't want to address the confusion that she was experiencing... almost jealousy, but the next question did not hesitate to fall from her lips.

"Do you have a picture?"

This caught you off guard. "Uh, yeah, I bet I could find her Linked-In or something." You pulled out your phone for a quick internet search. "Here she is on the school website."

You moved your phone in front of Wanda, not realizing until now how similar the two of them looked. Wanda also took notice.

"Was she on the list?" Wanda asked. "The list of teachers that students would talk about?"

"Oh, ha, no she wasn't." This line of questioning was risky, but you continued producing a response. "She was only part time and besides, that's more of a hormonal high school thing."

A brief pause entered the conversation. "Well, would she have been?" Wanda was speaking softly.

"Well, you were in high school once. What do you think?"

"Me?" Wanda's eyes widened and you nodded. "I think she would have been," the older woman drew out.

"I think you're right, Ms. Maximoff." You smirked as you took your phone back.

The two of you spent the rest of the half hour dancing around dangerous conversation, the mood lightening a little bit. You gained some insight into how the high school was holding up, and even heard some gossip about the faculty which made you really excited. You told Wanda more about what you were studying and what your plans were for after university, as well as how your summer was.

When dinner was finally ready, Wanda topped off the wine and the two of you sat down together to eat. The food was phenomenal and the company even better. The two of you went back and forth sharing memories from high school, true feelings about teachers and students being poured out. Wanda also got to know you more as you shared what books you had been reading and shows you had been watching.

Eventually, the room had quieted down as the two of you were focused on finishing the rest of your food.

"The food was astounding, thank you so much Wanda." You smiled as you set down your utensils and the older woman took her last bite.

"Mhm..." She swallowed, covering her mouth. "I would say 'you're welcome' but you helped me cook, dear, so I should really be saying thank you."

Your eyes met as the two of you stared, an odd silence threatening the conversation.

"So, clean up! What can I do to help?" You asked, standing up from the table with your plate.

"Oh, no, dear, please let me take care of it!" Before you knew it, Wanda had snatched your plate out of your hands.

"Are you-"

"Yes, yes, just sit down honey." She smiled at you as she moved around the kitchen, swiftly cleaning the mess from dinner. "So what has been your favorite class so far?" She asked as she worked. "Besides- besides that class with that teacher you like." The comment unintentionally sounded bitter, and the idea of Wanda being jealous entertained you.

"Well, besides ethics, I actually really liked my required fitness class. The semester I dedicated to the credit was a popular fitness semester, so finding an open section was hard, but I was able to get a seat in ballroom dance."

"Interesting! I didn't take you for much of a dancer." Wanda looked up at you from the sink, smiling.

"Neither did I, Wanda." You heard her lovely laugh again. "And I was not the star student in the class either, but I think I liked it the most."

"Oh yeah? What was your favorite dance?"

"The tango," you replied as you smiled, some bout of confidence overcoming you. "Would you like to learn?"

Wanda paused what she was doing then looked up at you with a smile. "Bold of you to assume to I don't already know it, but you would also be right. I would be open to it." She replied and you giggled, pulling out your phone for some music.

"Oh, now?!" Wanda watched as you stood up. "Honey, I-"

"No better time like the present!" You held out your hand for her to join you, the alcohol adding to your charm and boldness.

"Ok..." Wanda mumbled, wiping her hands off on the closest rag. She joined you in the open space, placing her hand in yours and you guiding it into place.

"Now the tango is a walking dance, so it is perfect to take it slow and steady. There are 5 basic steps, but i'll keep it simple and teach you two." Wanda nodded as you pressed play on your phone. "Now, screw traditional roles, but for the sake of simplicity, I will be the man and you the woman." You locked eyes with Wanda as she smiled, but you could see the looming intimacy behind her eyes. You could feel it too, standing this close to her body as you placed your hand on her back.

Teaching the first step was easy - Wanda was more inclined to the movements than you thought she would be. All you two were doing was striding in a circle, but every step you took became lighter and relaxing into each other was easier. Her nose tilted further towards you and yours towards hers - and for a moment, nothing else existed in the world.

Wanda was staring into yours eyes and you could barely breathe. Staring back was difficult - you kept averting your gaze to the floor or elsewhere in the house, desperately trying to comprehend the situation. But it was magical. Once you discovered though, that Wanda's piercing green eyes were the most relaxing thing to focus on, you were stuck.

And then you stepped on her toe.

"Fuck!" You exclaimed, tripping as Wanda struggled to keep you from falling.

"Are you alright?" She asked as you composed yourself.

"I should be asking you that! I'm sorry."

Wanda laughed. "I'm perfectly alright darling. Now what's this about a second step?"

You blushed, Wanda essentially admitting she was enjoying this and wanted to continue. This was bizarre.

"Uh, it's pretty much the same for me. You get to shake it up a little bit."

"Oh?" She smiled and held her hands back out, awaiting the comfort of your return. You stepped into her grasp. "I can't wait," She winked.

This woman was going to be the death of you.

"Uh-m... - good!" You swallowed. "This is essentially the same as the last one, except now you're pivoting into me instead of pacing." You returned your hands to their proper placements.

"Like this?" She attempted a few steps with you.

"Almost. You don't need so much power to twist. Try again?" The two of you resumed stepping together.

"How's this?"

She almost had it, her knees just weren't getting the proper guidance. You dropped your hands down to her hips.

"Oh-" You froze. "May I?" Your hands were softly touching her jeans. You found Wanda staring, eventually returning a nod. Gently, you applied more pressure onto her joints and resumed stepping. Now, you could easily move her hips, and she quickly picked up the proper motion. "There you go." You looked back up at her eyes. "You're doing so well, Wanda."

She was speechless as you moved your hands back up to their proper position, rarely letting your fingertips leave her surface. It was easy to assume that a lot was going on behind her eyes... the step became mindless to her as she continuously scanned over your facial features.

"Wanda?"

She snapped out of it and ended the dance just as the song ended. "Thank you for teaching me, darling." She smiled softly. "That was wonderful." She returned to the kitchen in silence, leaving you alone.

"You were able to pick it up rather quickly. I was surprised." You said, following her to the kitchen and leaning against a counter. You could tell though that there were still gears turning in her head, so you let her be the one to talk next.

This allowed for a moment of quiet as you watched her finish cleaning the pot from dinner. Her back was to you as she washed and rinsed, softly humming the song from the tango.

When she was done, she still hesitated to turn around.

"Y/N?" She finally spoke, still away from you.

"Yes?"

"When I asked you what you thought of me, you said...- you said you thought I was beautiful."

You quietly laughed. "Out of all that I said, that's what you took away?"

"Darling, I-" she hesitated again. "Did you mean it?"

You did not wait to conjure up a response. "I meant every word of what I said. I mean... I have practiced telling you all of that nonsense for so long even though I never thought it would happen. I just want you to know that... that I care about you. And I do think you're beautiful, Wanda Maximoff. Without a doubt."

"You think I'm beautiful?" She tried not to choke on her words.

You took a deep breath, having done all possible damage already. "Yes, yes I do." You hesitated before speaking again. "I think that you are beautiful. Inside and out."

Wanda finally turned around, and her response was something you couldn't have predicted in a million years.

"I... I think that you are beautiful too."

You stared at her in disbelief.

"You do?"

"In every single way, you are beautiful." She paused. "The way that you carry yourself... the way you smile, the way you laugh. The moments you hold onto and the memories you make. The way your eyes shine when you're proud of something... all of it is beautiful."

She pushed off the counter and walked towards you as a tear formed in your eye. Her hand reached up to brush it away as it rolled down your cheek, but instead of placing it back at her side, her hand stayed cradling the side of your face. Your eyes raced as you traced every line and mark on her skin, noticing how her green glazed stare wouldn't look away.

The two of you stayed like that, simply staring at each other, hearts racing.

"Y/N?" Her eyes didn't leave yours.

"Yes?"

"I'm going to do something really stupid."

"Ok."

For the first time in what felt like hours, her eyes left yours, and instead went to your lips. She met your gaze one more time before slowly leaning in, closing the distance between you.

You couldn't believe what was happening as everything in your body burned. She used her hand to tilt your lips in her direction, and before you knew it, her mouth was on yours.

You initially didn't return the kiss, but before long, her sensation became addicting and you needed to know what more felt like.

Your lips were now pushing back on hers with curiosity and interest, slowly working through the feelings coursing through your entire body. Her mouth only briefly left yours before you were returning to another delicate kiss, delighted to see that it was being reciprocated with the small swipe of a tongue.

You let her into your mouth, eager to know what it felt like.

And whatever she was doing... well... it rocked your world. You caught yourself about to moan, which quickly brought you to your senses as you pushed her away.

"Oh my god." You took a deep breath and stared at the floor.

"What?" 

"You kissed me." You looked up and found her gaze full of lust; dark eyes roaming your body unapologetically. You couldn't believe that look was real, but the excitement consumed you.

"You kissed me back." She said, finding your stare again. The only thing worse than her intense gaze was the fact that she was right.

You were finding it very difficult not to pull her back on top of you. "Shit."

"Did you- were you ok with that?" Wanda asked nervously. She seems as nervous as you were, almost as if she couldn't believe what was happening either. Neither of you knew that you wanted this, but everything feels right now that it's there.

"Fuck, yes." You rubbed your face in frustration, struggling to function in the current situation. The nerves, heat and alcohol were all mixing together and before you knew it, the real uncomfortable truth slipped out.

"I'm fucking obsessed with you, Ms. Maximoff." You held your breath after messing up on her name, but instead of correcting you, her jaw slightly dropped at your desperation.

Out of some bout of confidence, you stepped into her space, backed her into the counter and dismissed every reason why the two of you should not happen. Her eyes stared you down with anticipation and desire. You brought your hands up to her head and wove your fingers into her hair, craving to feel her again.

"It's my turn to do something really stupid now, ok?"

She nodded slowly, afraid to avert her gaze.

As you leaned in towards her mouth, she took a deep breath and shuttered. Her hands moved to hold your hips just before your lips met, and this time, it was her turn to freeze once your mouth touched hers. You immediately began to panic, but just as you pulled away, she pulled your hips into hers and met your mouth with haste.

Immediately melting into her touch, a soft moan quickly escaped your lips as you tugged on her fiery locks. She gasped in return, giving you the chance to slide your tongue into her mouth and elicit a sound off of her shaky breath.

After all of your longing and pining and secrecy and wishful thinking, she was yours. Right now, as her fingertips were feeling your body for the first time and her sensation was consuming, you were struggling to believe that everything was real.

But the warm skin touching your side was undeniable. The wet tongue that was gently exploring your mouth was unquestionable, and the moans that were escaping the woman in front of you were unlike anything you could conjure in a dream.

One of your hands shakily released its grasp on Wanda's hair and made its way around her neck, giving it a gentle squeeze. When your action resulted in a smooth moan from the other woman, you smirked, not expecting that in a million years. You brought that hand down to her waist so you could hold her body as close as possible.

"You liked that, Ms. Maximoff?" You breathed into her mouth, knowing she could sense your heated grin.

"Shut up and do it again."

You lightly laughed at her begging, but you were desperate to please her. Leaning in to kiss her again, you pushed your hand on her waist from her belly button back up to her neck, this time squeezing harder. She threw her head back from the pleasuring pain, which you saw as an opportunity to turn your mouth's attention to her neck. As your warm lips met her skin and your hands went to roam her curves, she audibly gasped, and you were soaking up every reaction that you could drag out of her.

Wanda's hands found the back of your head as she encouraged your sucking and biting, careless of how aggressive you were being. Your own fingertips began to entertain the rim of her jeans, testing the waters as you caressed her lower back. You were itching to move lower, but every aspect of the current situation was territory that you never imagined you would be in before.

"Where can I touch you?" You whispered under her ear.

She laughed, followed by a soft moan as you bit her lobe. "Oh, detka, we've moved way past that line of consent," She replied as she grabbed one of your hands and moved it to her ass. "I want to feel you. All of you."

"Yes ma'am," You smirked and returned your kisses to her neck, placing both hands on her ass and pulling her hips into you. A groan reached your ears as your tongue met the base of her collar bone.

With your mouth now at the top of her shirt, your hands traced her sides as you bent your knees to meet her clothed belly button. Grasping and lifting the bottom of her shirt with your fingers, you began to stand back up, slowly kissing and licking a straight line up her front to where her bra connected in the center.

"Wait," She said as you were about to teethe the fabric, immediately dropping the shirt and standing all the way back up. Your heart was racing, unable to predict what she was about to say. She looked as if she was genuinely questioning the situation, and you were terrified. "Bedroom. Now."

Before you could process the sense of relief that washed over your body, Wanda was dragging you towards the hallway that led to her room. Even though you'd been in her space several times, the idea of fucking her in her own bed was driving you mad.

Before either of you could make it two steps into the room, you shut the door and placed her up against the wood. For a moment, all you could do was stare into her eyes, and all she could do was stare back. This was crazy. Her hand twitched on your back, and you lost control.

You immediately pressed your lips back onto hers, lifting her wrists up and holding them against the door. She groaned as your tongue explored her mouth, your hands eventually finding their way back to the rim of her shirt. Now wasting no time, you lifted the article of clothing off of her body as she gladly held her arms above her head.

After tossing the shirt aside, you found yourself taken aback by her body. Her simple, red bra complimented her soft skin, hugging her gently. The stretch marks that remained from her pregnancy were like highlights of the moon reflecting off of the ocean, and the way her breasts moved with her heavy breathing had you in a trance.

"Holy shit," you whispered, slowly moving your mouth towards her sternum, beginning to place soft kisses in a line.

"What?" Wanda asked.

"You're breathtaking."

"Well, I'm not what I used to be."

Your hands roamed her back as you continued your delicate kisses on her breasts.

"I don't want what you used to be, Wanda. I think you're perfect the way you are now." You said as you unclipped her bra, slipping the straps off of her shoulders. The two of you locked eyes as you slid the article down her arms. Her swollen lips and wondrous gaze were stuck on your being as your lungs seemed to be missing air.

To your surprise, Wanda's next move was to lunge at you, forcing you to walk backwards as her tongue explored your mouth and her hands worked to remove your shirt. You jumped when the backs of your knees met the bed, but Wanda didn't seem to notice as she pushed you back and climbed on top. Distracted by the feeling of being in her bed and her tongue beginning to explore your chest, you tangled your fingers into her hair and tugged.

"Fuck," She moaned, looking up at you, and you froze. A pair of of desperate green eyes and wet, swollen lips were staring up at you, and your english teacher had just moaned a curse word. You felt like you were on another planet.

"Shit, you're attractive." You mumbled and the older woman blushed. "Tugging hair, choking... this is only the beginning, Wanda." You smirked at her from under her body, and her only response was kissing you deeply.

You used this moment as an opportunity to push her on her back, quickly mounting her before she could protest, although you don't think she would have. You took the moment to drag your fingertips down her front and run each nipple over with your thumbs.

"Oh, Fuck, babygirl, you're driving me-" You eagerly latched your mouth onto a breast, receiving a heavy gasp from the woman below you. You continued on with your work, playing with the free nipple in one hand and stroking a thigh with the other. Her fingers were dancing across your back, eventually making their way to unclasp your bra.

The moment you felt the relief, you gently bit down on her delicate nipple, causing Wanda to arch upwards and rake her nails down your back. The pain caught you by surprise as you leaned into her and moaned into her ear. You could feel her smirk against your skin.

"Shut up." You groaned.

"Make me." She replied, trying to tug your bra down your arms.

You sat up to fully remove the article of clothing, entertained by the hands that were running up your side to cup your breasts. You rested for a moment, enjoying the feeling of Wanda's massaging.

"Is this what you wanted from me, detka? Is this what you picture when you think of me?"

"To be honest, I never let myself consider it. But I always wondered what it would be like..." You smirked and placed your hands on her stomach. "Why? Is this something you've fantasized about? Having me on top of you, topless and moaning?" You leaned back over her body, your hands moving to massage her breasts and your breath teasing her other nipple.

"Oh honey," She laughed and moved her touches to and down your back. "I've thought about all of this. What your mouth on my tits would be like, how your fingers would feel inside of me..." Your movements stopped as you stared at her. "How hard would you fuck me and with how many fingers and how much tongue. How much would you edge me and make me crazy. What you would look like in-between my legs with my cum dripping from your lips? I'm simply curious, darling." Her hands cupped your ass as you worked up a response.

"Well aren't you lucky, Ms. Maximoff," You began with a shakey voice, one hand holding you up and the other teasing her stomach. "Cause you get to find out." You moved your fingers to the top her jeans and you popped the button open. "Have you ever pictured me rubbing out your cunt?" Wanda simply stared. "Well, we should probably start there." You slid your hands into her jeans and started making circles over her clothed pussy, watching as she took a deep breath and opened her mouth. You could feel her slickness in the fabric.

"Fuck, Wanda, you're already drenched." You groaned as you finally placed your lips on her other breast. Her wet cunt was already coating your fingers and you realized that you were so close to tasting her. "You're so wet for me, I've hardly done anything."

"Darling, you've done more for me than anyone else ever has." She groaned.

"Do you want me to do more?"

"Baby, please."

You immediately took your hand out of her jeans and turned your attention to taking them off entirely. You could hardly contain yourself as she lifted her hips and helped you slide the denim off of her skin, her now drenched panties completely visible.

"Wow," You whispered, crawling back on top of her body, bringing your face up to hers so your noses could meet again.

"Hi," She smiled sheepishly, and you gave her a loving kiss.

"Gods, you're stunning. I can't wait to be inside you." You kissed her again.

"I want to touch you too, babygirl." Wanda whispered and you smiled.

"Touch anything you'd like, Ms. Maximoff."

Wanda's eyes scanned your body. "I also want these off." She pulled at the hem of your pants then dragged her fingernails up and down your sides.

Shivering, you dismounted Wanda and stood up, putting on a show of you taking off your pants.

"You mean these old things?" You bent over so Wanda could see the fabric sliding down your ass, taking your time even though it was painful.

"Detka, you're killing me." Wanda sat up to watch as the hem dragged down your legs, revealing your most flattering panties. The attention she was giving you was lighting you on fire. You heard her audibly gasp when you started to pull at the final piece of clothing, but you instead let go of your panties and turned back around, smirking.

"Now, Ms. Maximoff, I can't do all of the work for you." You waltzed back over to the bed, remounting the older woman. You watched as her eyes followed the dark spot on your only remaining article. Grinning, you leaned into her ear. "Ill touch yours if you touch mine."

"Please, baby." She whispered. You sat up so she could see all of you again, this time reaching a hand down to where your panties covered your pussy. Making sure she was watching, you pulled the fabric aside.

"Go on, Wanda, it's all yours."

She slowly reached a hand to your slickness, and the moment you finally felt contact, you took a deep breath. At first, she just held one finger there, but eventually, small movements began to circle your clit. You moaned. "Good job, M- Ms. Maxi- mo--" She slipped a finger into you. "FUCK. You feel so good. You're doing so good." You noticed Wanda's eyes were glued to her finger moving in and out of you, trying to fill in the picture that was still hidden by the thin fabric.

You opened your eyes just in time to see her pull out her finger and bring it up to her lips, sensually sucking you off and whining at your taste. Excitedly, you let go of your panties and leaned down to taste yourself on her tongue.

"How did that feel, Wanda?" You smirk, coming out of the deep kiss and pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. 

"God- babygirl... you- you're driving me crazy." Her hips softly rolled under you as she pulled your head back down for another aching kiss. You ran the hand that wasn't supporting your weight over her breasts and down her body, scratching at the skin below her belly button. "Please, honey... I..." She mumbled in-between kisses, you hardly giving her a chance to speak. When you finally pulled away a few inches, no more words were leaving her lips as her chest heaved for air. 

"What is it, Ms. Maximoff?" You smirked, playing with the elastic around her waist. 

"I need you to touch me." 

"Yes ma'am." You watched her facial expressions as your hand finally dove into her panties, the moisture immediately apparent. Her eyes widened when your pointer finger found the velvety slick and you immediately knew you would do anything in your power to make sure she knew how good another woman could make her feel. Your digit slowly started exploring the rest of the area, soft moans escaping the older woman as you glazed over her clit and entrance. 

"Have you ever been touched like this, Wanda?" You whispered into her ear, making a few nips at her lobe.

"N-no..." She sighed as you began intentionally circling her clit. 

"Nobody to notice what you like... what you want. This wet, pretty pussy wasted on cheap condoms and a quick fuck."

A sinful moan left her body as your lips once again returned to her neck, you quickly learning where her sensitive spots were. "Shit, baby." Her nails were digging into your shoulder blades. 

"Nobody to know how warm and soft you are," You said, shoving a finger into her entrance, groaning as she gasped. "And it's a damn shame, cause you feel so perfect, Ms. Maximoff." You met her eyes when you could see the surprise on her face at your last statement. Your finger started moving slowly in and out, trying to map out every dip and line you could feel. "So perfect." 

You once again reattached your lips to hers, feeling the vibrations from her moans on your tongue. You could stay like this forever, you felt. But Wanda did not. 

"Detka, I need more. Please." Her slight accent slipping through, reaching down to your core. 

You pulled your finger out of her and she whined, fearing her pleading made you step back. Little did she know, but she would be getting exactly what she asked for. 

"I would love to give you more, but these are gonna need to come off." You dragged your soaked finger down her stomach to grab at her panties and she frantically nodded.

"Yeh- yes please. I want to feel all of you." 

You smirked, moving back to finally drag the rest of the fabric down her legs. When you finally brought yourself to look at the painting between her legs though, you could hardly breathe. Her folds were swollen and soaked with her wetness, slightly moving with her body as her chest rose and fell. You felt so divided, debating consuming her immediately or taking your time to work her up. 

You realized while the first option was so tempting, the second would give her the full experience. You slowly reached your fingertips to graze over her thigh, small whimpers coming from the older woman. 

"Oh, Wanda, you are divine." You muttered, now dragging both palms up her waist and down the sides of her ass as you repositioned yourself closer to her core. Eyes dragging up and down her person when you spotted the wetness that you had left on her stomach earlier. You leaned down to clean it all up, finally getting to taste her tanginess on your tongue. You moaned into her skin.

"Detka..." She gasped as you moved your mouth down to her inner thighs and you hands to grip her waist. Her smell was driving you crazy as her taste lingered in your throat. You began to slowly suck at the warm soft terrain, finding it easy to pull the skin between your teeth. A hand was placed on your head, pulling on your hair in a desperate attempt to get you closer to her core. You simply laughed, leaving red spots everywhere in-between her thighs.

Despite your grip on her hips, she still found some movements, directing your attention to the quiet sticky sounds coming from her pussy. You watched in a daze as her small twitches pushed around the slick, begging to be touched again.

You couldn't take it anymore, fully embracing her wetness with a torturous lick up her core. The groan that escaped Wanda was heavenly as she tried to tug you back onto her. You complied, picking up a slow routine of collecting her mess into your mouth. You dug your fingers deeper into her sides, addicted to her pain response. 

"Oh, good girl, baby. That, wow." She said as you began to suckle on her clit, striving for every reaction you could get out of her. "Holy fuck."

You smirked, finally sliding a finger back into her dripping hole and continuing to work on her clit with your mouth. You knew this pace you were making would not be enough, but you wanted the older woman to beg for it. You could tell she already wanted to as your hair only got tugged harder and finger nails started scratching at your arms. 

After only a short time, you decided to amp up the teasing with another finger into her entrance, but you would not change your pace. You took breaks on her clit when you felt she was building up too many knots, paying attention to her audible sighs as if she was taking a cold plunge and making sure her lungs were still working. 

"Darling, please... oh-"

You blew on her clit as you watched how your fingers slid in and out of her, collecting up her slick.

"Baby please make me cum. You feel s-so good but you're destroying me Y/N/N."

"You want me that bad, Ms. Maximoff?" You grinned. 

"Darling, its not a want. It's a need. Now. Please."

"Ok, as long as you look at me as I fuck you clean. I want you to know what good love feels and looks like." You smirked as she pulled a pillow under your head, elated when she gasped at the image before her... your chin soaked, eyes hungry and smile cruel. You kept eye contact with her as you sunk back down to her core, living in the light of her stare. You began to continue the licks and pumps, but she let her eyes roll back, which you hadn't told her to do. 

"Eyes on me, Ms. Maximoff. I'm in charge right now." You couldn't believe those words had just rolled off of your tongue, but clearly she hadn't either as your gazes reconnected. 

"You little sl-" She went speechless as you started a more aggressive pace, ensuring her green glare was on you. Once you had decided she would stay like that, you moved all of your attention to her pussy, finally tying all the knots together in her core. Her moans and whimpers were everything to you, even when you noticed her upper body was becoming too weak. You decided to let her finish, knowing she more than deserved it. 

"Detka, I think I'm gonna cum- I" 

"The stage is yours" You mumbled into her, internally grinning. You pumped a few more times and the next thing you know, Wanda has thrown her head down and arched off the bed. You could feel her cum as you watched the sight before you, the older woman unable to control her high. 

You stared in awe as your fingers worked her off her high, chest heaving and hands rubbing her eyes. You slowly pulled your fingers out of her twitchy hole, making sure her eyes were back on you as you raised your digits to your lips. 

"Wow, babygirl, that was... amazing." She pulled you over for a kiss, adjusting to her taste on your tongue. "Thank you."

You giggled. "You know, Wanda, another nice thing about women is that they have the stamina to make you cum more than once in a night... if you're interested." You smirked.

Her jaw slightly dropped. "More than once?"

╚══《✧》══╝

Thanks for reading!

[be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie]

FIRST OF ALL, ur a gem and my favorite person alive. SECOND, bold of you to think Neteyam has free time. thIRD, I was thinking of our discussion today about Neteyam's inability to let anything go and his need to fix things at work today. This little girl came up to me and my coworker where we were chatting with a 3rd grade boy and she went "I fell and banged my knee," and my coworker was like "Oh no, do you need an ice pack?" And the girl went "No," and just turned around and walked away. The 3rd grade boy with us says "What was that? Why would she even tell you, she's just complaining?" So I said "You know Quinton, sometimes people just want you to listen. They don't need you to try to fix everything. They just want you to listen."

This kid was dISGUSTED, I tell you. He made the rudest face ever, and he said "That's so stupid," and walked away. I thought of Neteyam. This is what he thinks as well.

also NEYTIRI BEING LIKE JAKE'S CAREGIVER IS MY FAV MODERN AU HEADCANON OKAY. BECAUSE I LOVE LOVE THE IDEA OF THEM TRAVELING THE WORLD TO DO EVERYTHING THEY CAN JUST TO PROVE TO JAKE THAT HE CAN. JEYTIRI JOCKS ARE LITERALLY ALWAYS DOING SOMETHING CRAZY AND NEYTIRI IS IN THE BACK HIGHLY TRAINED TO HANDLE IT.

Consider this, twins Lo'ak and Kiri always make wheelchair jokes at Jake on a foster kids first night, and Jake pretends to be extremely over the top offended. This is their way to haze the new foster, and they do it for like a whole day until Neteyam or Neytiri catch them.

Neteyam babytalking Spider has to be a kink for one of them, this is terrible what you've done here. You need to stop saying things in fic that result in me accusing you of giving a character a kink. First Spider's praise kink now this.

I'll reblog and try to add more to the fast food au if I can think of anything, but ooh boy, I feel like I just kNOW exactly what parts of it will feature. The couch part is rIGHT up your angsty and gay little alley.

Work up today feeling Blegh so instead of actually writing or drawing or painting I will be teasing Crop Circles with a list of Modern Au Nocorro HC’s enjoy

- this one has been in my head forever. Spider has a septum piercing, 100%. He does all his piercings by himself in someone’s basement with the most unhygienic needles known to man and it’s a miracle and a testament to his rock hard immune system that his ears haven’t fallen off. He and Neteyam begin to bond when Neteyam (who has to try to break out of perfect first son mold) asks him to pierce his nose

- projecting here, but Neteyam is a pottery guy. He’s on the debate team and quite frankly he’s insufferable and stupid smart, but in his downtime he goes to the local ceramics studio and goes on the wheel and makes things.

- spider’s a foster kid, which inherently comes with so much trauma and problems but one of his biggest unseen ones is he’s always living life with one foot out the door

- Neteyam’s damage is absolutely his insane, balls off the wall self-management and the expectations he has for himself. He’s incredibly uptight but not in a good way, he’s just incapable of relaxing. A chronic fixer, always looking for solutions to every single persons problem

- in this AU, Neytiri is gods gift to mankind. She met Jake before he become paralyzed, and stuck through with him and practically got a second degree in nursing (her first was geophysics, our educated queen) while learning how to help

- the Sully’s begin fostering when Lo’ak and Kiri turn seven (yes, they are twins again. You can pry twins Lo’ak and Kiri out of my cold dead hands) and stop for a while after Tuk is born. They see many different sorts of children and Neytiri, who works from home, becomes AMAZING at reading kids

- Jake is the Dad ever. He’s so good. There’s something inherently soothing about his presence, and he’s a tiny bit gruff sometimes, but only on bad pain days. Otherwise, he’s instrumental to showing a bunch of kids that fathers and men could be good people. He plays with little kids and teenager fosters alike, and he religiously talks with Neytiri to find out what each kid needs

- once neteyam hits 15, he starts helping out with the younger fosters as well, as a big brother figure. Tuk teaches him a lot, so he’s able to tune in to the soft and mushy gushy part of himself to hang out with children

- he tries to employ some of these techniques with Spider, since he forgets to turn that part of himself off, and Spider thinks he’s literally insane

- Like Neteyam will slip into like baby-talk while Spider’s in the room and they make horrible, split second eye contact

- They know each other from school, and Spider used to be a grade above until he failed a year and had to repeat a year. He n Neteyam are seniors at the local high school, but run in drastically different circles

- spider is a massive loner, with like a diehard bestie who’s probably a bit of an addict or a fellow foster kid and Neteyam’s got fake friends galore, in the most stereotypical high school way. They had one project together in some English class way back when and it’s Neteyam’s only memory of Spider, but they were like 12 and Spider is drastically different now, and Neteyam can’t really reconcile with that

- go read @be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie ‘s fast food AU HC list a BUNCH of shit will pop up in this modern au

[giddlygoat]

laughter and shared smiles came so easily between them. from where ford lay on his side on the bed, he had the perfect view: a giggling fiddleford sprawled out lazily beside him, absentmindedly twirling a lock of beard with one pinky finger. it was downright adorable - almost like a snapshot from a bygone era - and ford treasured the sight. 

a kind of soberness suddenly washed over fiddleford, and his eyes became wide. “i jus’ remembered,” he said, barely, looking down. ford somewhat fixed his lax position on the bed in the hopes of expressing his undivided attention. 

fiddleford smiled sadly. “you’d pet my back when i laid facin’ you. it relaxed you.” 

ford felt his face get warm, as if he were the same awkward college kid and not 58 years too old for that. “…yes. it did.” he said dumbly. 

“what did i do when i needed to relax?” fiddleford asked, and his cadence was just too casual for a question like that. like it wasn’t all that important. ford felt something sour curl deep within him. 

“you’d… well, i… i’m not sure. you were always anxious about something.” ford wished more than anything that he had any skill at all in saying the right things at the right times. regretfully, all he could be in this moment was honest. “you fidgeted with your hair often. and mine,” he tacked on, suddenly remembering that detail of their nightly rituals. 

“i think it soothes you when you’re stressed. i see you stroke your beard a lot these days.” ford couldn’t help but smile at the endearing little habit. 

“can’t deny it,” fiddleford said, adjusting his head to get more comfortable in the pillows. then he reached out a slender arm, scratching softly in one of ford’s sideburns. the gesture brought that sour curling in ford’s gut back, but it also brought an overwhelming endearment. he stared at the content expression on fiddleford’s smiling face and greedily committed it to memory. 

“why’re you so down in th’ dumps today?” fiddleford asked, his smile not fading but a genuine concern evident in his eyes. 

“you mean more so than usual?” ford joked, meaning it earnestly.

fiddleford pulled himself up on his elbows, incidentally bringing their faces closer together. “i can… i can smell it all over y’ like the stench of death clingin’ to roadkill. nothin’ escapes me.” 

ford frowned. 

“well, ‘cept fer most o’ my memories, i suppose!” fiddleford giggled. ford frowned harder. 

after a beat of silence, fiddleford realized that ford really didn’t intend to respond. he sighed sadly, slowly leaning back against the headboard. “i know bein’ around me is hard fer you, stanferd. i may be ruined but i ain’t so clueless-” 

“no. no, you misunderstand.” ford corrected him immediately, looking quite fierce. “i feel empty without you,” he said clumsily, unable to properly parse his thoughts in time. 

“but ya also feel empty with me, dontcha?” fiddleford looked genuinely pleading for the first time in a while, and ford’s insides curdled at the vivid pain on his face. “i’m not- things’ll never be the way they oughta, and the both of us is just two sorry suckers, right?” 

“i’m sorry-“ 

“don’t.” fiddleford interrupted sternly, and ford worried that he would start shaking from the effort of holding his outstretched finger still. “don’t go apologizin’ again, or i’m gon’ta… i’ll jus’ tear my beard out.” all the conviction left him, and he stared defeatedly somewhere below ford’s eyes. 

“i’m-“ ford swallowed. “i won’t.” 

a long pause. ford internally scrambled for the right thing to say, eager to put fiddleford’s every worry to rest, but he just wasn’t equipped for that. he had no clue where to even start. what in the world was he supposed to be if not sorry? 

“do ya think y’ could be happy with me, th’ way things are?” fiddleford asked it quietly, his normally shrill voice sounding more weary than anything. 

ford’s chest tightened. if there were one thing in this world he could be absolutely sure of, it’s that he could never leave fiddleford’s side again. “yes. i’ve never been more certain of anything.” he said, emphasizing each word in the hopes of conveying his complete and utter seriousness. 

fiddleford sighed, still searching ford’s face. then he offered the smallest smile, the uncertainty slowly trickling away from his heart. “don’t run off.” he said, turning on his side to face ford. 

“i won’t,” ford promised. he reached over and laid a hand on fiddleford’s spiny back, stroking it soothingly. “i won’t.” 

[hyunfilms]

this time around (lee felix) | one shot.

—summary: life decides it's finally the right time.

—pairing: lee felix x f. reader

—genre: (18+) exes to lovers | fluff, smut

—word count: 3.9k

—content/warnings: blue haired felix 😮‍💨, cussing/mature language, alcohol consumption, unprotected sex - but not super descriptive!!, lots of kisses and intimate/sweet moments, use of pet names: baby/angel/love, oc’s friend also uses ‘baby’ in a platonic way, quickly edited so pls excuse any mistakes!!

—INSPIRED BY: LOVE ME AGAIN - V

It’s funny how life works.

Especially when you’re sitting at this wedding, sipping on another glass of rosé— staring at the one man who, at one point, meant the entire universe to you. 

Then, it’s also funny how life works; when life decides that this is your person, just not the right time.

“Girl, can you go and do something? He keeps looking at you. And don’t tell me he isn’t because I can see that blue head from miles away.” One of your bestfriends since college said. He nudges your arm, making you almost choke on the sip you just took.

“No, Reggie!” You almost whine, turning towards him. “It’s been so long, I don’t even know what I’d say to him.”

“Okay, but baby, he looks like he’s dying to talk to you. Poor Felix. Y/N always playing her goddamn games.”

“Quit it.” You nudge him back and he snorts.

“I’m kidding. But seriously, he looks like he wants to talk to you. Who cares if it’s been so long? I’m sure the conversation will flow perfectly. Give it a chance.” He takes a sip of his own cocktail. “Besides, if I remember correctly, you were head over heels for that man just as he was for you.” You sigh, setting your glass down— quickly reminiscing about the past.

You might have been young, and you may not have experienced everything life had to offer yet; but to say Felix was the love of your life would be an understatement.

He was everything to you.

Love, adoration, fun. 

Sweetness.

He was also sadness, anger, hurt. 

Pain.

Everything that entails love; being so, so in love.

And it’s just unfortunate that it wasn’t the right time because Felix was someone you pictured your life with. Everything about the relationship was right, and equally balanced. He showed you just how much he loved you and how much he adored you. You had more good times than bad with him. He taught you how to communicate better, to express your needs and wants, to enjoy life and live in the present moment.

He taught you so much that he really is part of the reason why you’re the person you are today.

After the three years of dating, Felix was graduating college and you were going into your senior year. Understandably, you felt like you needed to experience your last year by yourself, and you felt like Felix needed to figure out his plans moving forward. As much as you loved the way he factored you into every decision, you felt like it was wrong for him to do so— for him to feel like his life revolved solely around you. And of course, you loved him. This would’ve worked. But, it wouldn’t have felt right.

You needed to find yourself without Felix, and vice versa. 

Breaking up with Felix was probably the hardest thing you’ve ever had to do, but he understood. And because he loved you, he let you go. There was no bad blood, no hint of hate or anger; Felix had only left with more love and hope, praying that you’ll be okay.

Maybe one day, you’ll find your way back to each other.

It’s funny how life works.

“I’m not going to force it. I’ll let it happen if it happens.” You look at Reggie, taking another big sip of your rosé; eyes quickly glancing over to Felix from over the glass. He’s still conversing with a few mutual friends, eyes meeting yours from a distance. His eyes are soft, facial expression slightly unreadable. 

Pressed, crisp black button down with the sleeves rolled halfway up his arms. Silver watch adorning the left wrist, slacks sitting nicely on his frame.

You’re sure of the butterflies you feel. It’s crazy how Felix still has this effect on you. 

You clear your throat and revert your attention back to Reggie with a: “Can we go dance?”

“Now you’re talking.” Reggie laughs, grabbing your hand and leading you to the dance floor for a dance with other friends. The majority of the time you’re on the dance floor, you’ve temporarily pushed your thoughts and feelings away to enjoy being around friends you haven’t been able to hang out with or see in quite some time. You’re enjoying yourself, singing and dancing along to the music blasting in the venue. At one point, you don’t realize that Felix and his friends have joined in, creating one huge crowd in the middle of the dance floor that’s become the life of the party. 

“Hey, I’m gonna go to the bathroom and get some air. I’ll be back in a few.” You say in Reggie’s ear. He nods, throwing up the ‘okay’ sign to acknowledge that he understood you through the loud music.

“You need me to come babysit your ass?” He leans near your ear to quickly ask.

“I’ll be fine!” You laugh, rushing off to the bathroom to relieve yourself from all that rosé. You take a couple of moments to freshen up and pat away at your makeup, hoping to keep it together for the remainder of the night. You fluff your hair a bit before giving yourself one last look before walking out and heading towards the back end of the hotel.

It’s a beautiful night tonight— one where the stars are twinkling brightly above, dotted throughout the night sky and circling around the full moon. There’s a faint breeze that feels awfully good on your skin right now, the waves crashing against the surface just right below the hill where the hotel sits. 

“Hey.” A familiar, deep voice comes from behind you. You fiddle with your fingers a bit, bottom lip tucked underneath your teeth as you turn and come face to face with Felix— eyes completely fixed on the one man whom you’ve always loved; the one man who, at one point, meant the entire universe to you. “I’m sorry, I just came outside to make sure you were okay. But, I guess I should’ve figured it was since Reggie was still—” Felix shakes his head and lets out an embarrassed chuckle. “Nevermind. Sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. Thank you for checking. I—” You lazily point at the sky. “I just needed some air. Was getting really hot in there.”

“Yeah it was.” He laughs a bit. “You sure you’re doing okay? Do you need me to get you water or anything?” Typical Felix, you think. He’s still the same. Everything about him has remained unchanged.

“I’m okay, Felix. Thank you.” You respond softly. “It’s nice to see you.” He digs his hands into his pockets, head tilting to the side.

“It’s nice to see you, too. It’s been so long.” He smiles. He’s the first to step forward and envelope you in a hug, taking in his scent as you hug him back. Oddly enough, everything feels the same. Felix’s hugs have always been the best, and part of you hates having to part once the moment is over. “You look amazing, Y/N.”

“You do, too.” You point at his hair. “Though, I have to say the blue hair was a surprise?” He laughs and nods.

“Uh yeah, was kinda a bet with some of my friends.”

“It looks good though, you pull it off well.” 

“Thank you.” He licks his lips before nodding towards the bench further down the path. “Do you wanna catch up?” He pauses. “I-I mean it’s fine if you wanna get back to the party, totally understand. I just thought we could kill two birds with one stone and–”

“I’d love to.” You cut him off with a sweet smile, letting Felix lead the way to the bench. 

And so here you are, sitting side by side with Felix— enjoying the night while the music continues to play in the background. You start by telling Felix what you’ve been up to all these years, how your parents have been, living life in the city. Felix says he’s been in and out of the city, traveling back and forth between Australia to hang out with family in between work. You share lots of laughs when you update each other about family and their whereabouts, reminiscing about the times when your families would have lots of fun together. The both of you also talk about how it’s been awhile since everyone’s been under the same roof, but it’s a nice occasion to be together. Then, somehow, the conversation shifts to love and dating. You awkwardly tell Felix that you haven’t really been in a serious relationship since graduation. You’ve dated around, but nothing felt right.

Nothing felt equally balanced, or like it was meant to be.

But, it’s okay. You reassure him you’ve been okay focusing on you and doing your own thing. In time, you’ll welcome whatever is meant to be in your life. And Felix tells you he’s glad to hear that— that he’s also dated around but things just didn’t feel right, either.

“Y/N.” He calls for you as he looks out, then shifts his attention back to you. “Are you happy?” He looks at you, really looks at you, and he doesn’t take his eyes off of you. Almost like he’s doing his best to read you, to find the answer deep within your orbs, your body language.

“I guess so, yeah.” You softly smile at him before looking at the view. “Are you?” He shrugs a bit.

“Yeah. Think so.” He licks his lips and lets out a small breath. “As long as you’re happy, then that’s all that matters to me.”

“Thanks, Lix.” There’s a comfortable silence that falls between you two after that conversation. But, something shifts in the air; shifts enough to the point where you feel Felix’s eyes rest back on you from your peripherals. The sudden tension could be felt from miles away, but you’re not sure how to act on it. The simplest thing you could do is—

“I’m sorry, is there something on my face?” You break the silence and ask, a bit confused as to why Felix just keeps looking at you, staring; fixed. He lets out a small laugh before shaking his head.

“No, there isn’t. I just—” He pauses. “You’re so beautiful, Y/N. Always been. I can’t help it.” He says, eyes softening again as he settles on your features. He gently brushes the hair away from your face, thumb trailing down to your cheek to caress the surface. You lean into his touch a little more, having to pull away when you realize the reality of this all.

It’s funny how life works.

“You know.. I think I’m gonna call it a night.” You shyly chuckle and look down at your lap, hands awkwardly rubbing away at the fabric of your dress as you let the excuse linger in the air for a second. “I didn’t realize how exhausted I was after all that dancing and singing.” Felix chuckles. He feels a little embarrassed, but he also dug himself into this one. He shouldn’t have reached out so quickly. He couldn’t help it.

“Do you need me to drive you anywhere?”

“No, I rented out a room for the night solely for this reason.” You stand with Felix following suit.

“Let me walk you to your room then?”

“Oh, you really don’t have to Lix. I’ll be okay.” He smiles hearing the nickname roll off your tongue.

“I want to.” You look at him with a small smile and nod.

“Okay. I just need to grab my things.” He follows behind, keeping a safe distance just to keep you comfortable– not knowing that you’d rather have him close than far away.

Inside, everyone is still keeping up the energy except for a few that have either left, or decided to sit down for the remainder of the night. Reggie is drinking water at your table, and he can’t help but throw a certain look your way when he sees you walking in with Felix following right behind you. You catch on though, and you simply shrug while Felix returns to his friends to let them know he’s heading out.

“Okay so.. what exactly is happening here? Miss ‘It’s been so long, I don’t even know what I’d say to him.’” You roll your eyes and grab your things.

“I’m heading up to my room. Felix is just walking me there.”

“Walking you all the way up to the second floor? Goodness me.” You laugh and shake your head. 

“You should get to yours soon, too.”

“Mhm, I want a progress report tomorrow morning.” He puckers his lips before eyeing you up and down. 

“Stop it.” You glare at him. “I love you, goodnight.” You simply tell him before turning on your heel to bid your other friends goodbye, along with the bride and groom.

“Get it girl, I love you too!” You hear him respond just as you continue your goodbye’s until you’re near the entrance, with Felix waiting right outside the doors in the hallway. 

“Hope you’re ready for a good long trip up to the second floor.” Felix laughs.

“Yeah, sounds pretty exhausting, honestly. It’s been a night.”

“It has, but I had lots of fun.”

“I did too.” He steps inside the elevator after you, leaning back against the railing. He eyes your figure, the way the dress hugs your curves nicely, heels strapped around your ankles. You’ve always been so beautiful; everything about you, inside and out. You can see the way Felix is focused on you through his reflection on the elevator doors in front of you, and it makes your heart do flips.

Because he does that thing he always does— when he tilts his head at a certain angle just to see you, read you, perfectly. Knowing you’ll meet his eyes at some point just for him to pull you in closer.

To plant a kiss on your lips,

Down to your jaw,

Collarbone—

“Y/N, is this not your floor?” Felix asks, breaking you out of your thoughts when you realize he’s holding the elevator doors open.

“Oh, right. Yeah, sorry. Just zoned out for a bit.” He lets out a tiny laugh as he watches you walk down the hallway, turning right at the end to get to the second door. You tap your hotel key against the reader, hand twisting the handle to unlock the door. Before you can open it fully, you turn back to Felix— seeing him quietly standing there with his hands dug into his pockets. “This is me. Thanks for walking me to my room, Lix.”

“Course. I guess I’ll let you be.” He smiles toothlessly at you. Your inner dialogue is conflicted right now, wondering if you should just let him be and let this end right where it is—

While the other half is yearning to keep him around, to have his company, to just be with him even after all these years.

“Have a good night, pretty girl.” He continues, hoping that he really doesn’t have to part with you right now. He’s not gonna force it though, and he’s not gonna say anything else— even though he feels like he has a lot more to say to you tonight. Maybe this is how it was meant to be after all, which Felix will have to learn to put to rest if it truly ends this way.

But, before he can turn on his heel to walk away, you follow up with:

“Actually, do you wanna just stay and hang out a bit more?”

“If it’s not a bother.”

“Never. Sorry, I should’ve asked earlier. I just didn’t want to make it awkward or whatever.”

“Could never be that way with you, Y/N.” You chuckle, stepping in and letting Felix follow you in. You set your clutchbag onto the side table at the corner of the room, undoing your heels and setting them aside. 

“God, that feels amazing.” Felix laughs as he sits on the edge of your bed, watching as you get comfortable. “I can’t wait to get comfortable. You have a room here, right?”

“Mhm.”

“Do you wanna change and just come back here? I feel bad that I’ll be the only one getting comfortable.” He laughs a bit and shakes his head.

“I’m good for now. I promise.” He watches as you undo your necklace. “Need help with your dress?” You look at him through the mirror as you set your necklace down onto the drawer and silently nod. “I got you.” He says, getting behind you to help you unzip your dress. It’s something small, but so intimate and sweet.

And with Felix, it feels perfectly right. Even if years have passed. You never feel out of place with him, and he only feels like home to you.

He slowly unzips your dress, eyes trailing down as his hand falls down to the small of your back. You feel his breath tickle the back of your neck, body only inches away from yours as he keeps his position there.

“Felix.” You softly call his name, and he can tell. He just knows. He looks at you through the mirror, hand slowly wrapping around your waist.

“Is it weird to say that I’ve really missed you?” He says lowly as his eyes trail down your neck this time, fixed on the weak spot that he remembers so, so well.

“No. I’ve missed you, too.”

“I mean it.” His fingers are fiddling with the strap of your dress. “When I saw you tonight, you were all I could think about. Not that anything’s changed, but—“ He lazily slips the strap down, letting it fall to the side as his finger traces a line up your arm; to the curve of your shoulder. “I just couldn’t believe that I was finally seeing you again.”

“Lix.” The way you breathily release his name from your lips tells him everything he needs to know. You’ve missed him too, you’ve really, really missed him, too. And of course he feels the same way you do— absolutely. If it wasn’t for shit falling into place at the wrong time, Felix was sure that he’d still be loving you the way he was before.

No question.

Nothing has changed. The love he’s had for you will always mean more to him than anything in this world.

Felix still feels like love, adoration, fun.

Sweetness.

And if you let him, he would also feel like sadness, anger, hurt.

Pain.

Because Felix is love, and everything that love entails. 

“Missed everything about you.” He says, planting a feathery kiss on your shoulders. “Missed the way you laugh.” Another kiss on your shoulder. “The way you smile.” Another near the base of your neck. “Just you.” He says near your ear, reading your expression. You bite onto your bottom lip and finally turn to face him, his hand coming back up to rest on your cheek. “Always been you, love.” His thumb is caressing the surface, giving you leverage to plant a kiss on the palm of his hand.

“Always been.” You mutter back, allowing Felix to fully take you—all of you— in this moment. 

Sooner or later, your dress is on the floor while you continue to keep your lips pressed against Felix’s in the heat of the moment; afraid to break the kiss and create distance. You don’t ever want Felix away from you again, no. You want him close— with you, for you, by you. 

Just you.

He takes his time with you, letting his hands roam across every inch of your body while he takes you in and settles in between your thighs; pressing his pink, plump lips across your body like he’s soothing you, making up for the years that you’ve lost. 

You’re tangled up in him, but you find that there’s no other place that you’d rather be than here; giving Felix the freedom to love you, love on you, however he chooses to tonight. You trust him to take care of you because he always has, and he always will.

It’s not long before your hands are gripping the sheets, repeatedly calling Felix’s name like a mantra. He praises you as he picks up the pace, pounding relentlessly to show his need for you. His lips graze the surface of your neck, collarbone, chest, whispering sweet nothings into your skin:

Missed everything about you.

So perfect for me, love.

So beautiful, so pretty.

Always been you.

All about you.

He continues, and continues— holding you close to his body while he tries to go slower, deeper; hitting all the right places that you like so much just to hear you, see you, writhe underneath him. 

You.

Let me be yours.

“Fuck, Lix. I’m close—“ Is the only thing that you’re able to say as you feel the coil within you threatening to unravel. And he must feel it too with the way that his hips begin to stutter, teeth digging into his bottom lip as he tries to hold on. He feels your walls completely tighten around him, pulsating as your face contorts in pleasure and a silent moan leaves your lips. 

“Baby, where do you want me— fuck— I’m—“ Felix barely lets out. You reassure him that he’s okay to let go inside of you, and not a second passes before he’s painting your walls. His forehead falls onto yours just as the both of you come back down from your highs, focusing on regulating your breathing after the intense pleasure that washed over you. “Are you okay, angel? You’re not hurt, are you?” He asks, close to a whisper. He kisses you lightly on the tip of your nose, before he seals one off on your lips. He holds it there for awhile before pulling back, realizing you still have yet to respond to him.

“I’m okay. Not hurt.” He nods.

“Let’s get you cleaned up, yeah?” Felix takes his time cleaning you up and soothing you, helping you get washed up and ready for bed just before he leaves to do the same.

For a moment, you feel like everything is over. That maybe, that was the closure you needed to finally close off that chapter in your book. That maybe, that was it to Felix and you’d return to being [somewhat] strangers again. It makes you a little scared, a little anxious.

But, it all blows away when Felix comes back, dressed for bed just as he had said. He shuts off your lights and slips into the bed next to you, pulling the sheets up so that you’re comfortable.

“For a second, I didn’t think you were actually going to come back.” He lets out a small, breathy laugh as he wraps his arm around you and pulls you flush to his body.

“What, why not? I’m here to stay, love. Not going anywhere.”

“Even when tomorrow comes?”

“Even when tomorrow comes.” He kisses the back of your head. “Unless, you have other plans already?”

“No. Just you.” He chuckles.

“Sounds like a plan to me.” You snuggle closer to him, allowing his warmth to completely envelope your body. Before you know it, you’ve fallen into a deep sleep in Felix’s arms, and he does too. Even when the morning comes, you still find yourself wrapped around Felix and snuggled against his body, light kisses being pressed against your head when you wiggle in his arms.

It’s funny how life works.

Because this time around, Felix is here, lying beside you; making things feel right, connected. Balanced. You shift in your position to look at him because this time around, you’re staring at the one man who, up until now, still means the entire universe to you. 

Then, it’s also funny how life works; when life decides that this is your person, and this is finally the right time.

This time around. 

—perm taglist: @ppiri-bahng @jihanlovic @meloncremesoda @sweetlikecherry @asjkdk @hanji-cafe

[gguk-n]

Alternate Universe (Daniel Riccardo x Reader)

Summary- You're in college when there's an invasion. You and your friend try to find a route to safety but end up being the chosen one to fix this problem. What if you try to find a solution but end up in a different world and don't know how to come back?

{Reader's POV}

I was a simple college student who was trying to get her Masters Degree and be done with this college once and for all. Honestly, I hated the college I went to and I had to settle for it due to my family wanting me to be closer to them instead of going to another one that was in another city since this one was in the city I grew up. I had conceded and right now I hated my college with a burning passion. The only good thing that came out of joining this college was the friend I made along the way.

I was a poor judge of character is what I realised soon after I joined. I had made friends with people who laughed at my expense and the moment someone or this friend in particular stood up for me; all hell broke lose and now I felt like I was in high-school all over again and surrounded by kids who fought about the pettiest of things. That's how me and Rhea became friends. Quite the unusual situation but hey, if I get a life long friend out of it, so be it.

Now today, was just another day. I had texted Rhea whether she would be coming to class or not and since she said she would, I left for college too. What I didn't expect was that in the middle of the day when we were about to head out for lunch the whole college went into lockdown. It was so sudden, we barely had anytime to react. All the students were ushered into the main building and the Principal was stood there with a microphone.

"Students I have gathered you here today to announce that there has been an outbreak of some sort. People are going crazy and harming their friends and family and any one near them. We've been saved since we were all inside, if you go out you will also be harmed and end up contaminated. I advice you all to stay put until we figure something out."

I immediately called my parents and they said that they had safely gotten home and everyone was at home and safe. I informed them that we were in lockdown in the college and that I was perfectly fine, for now.

There was mass pandemonium and hysteria and everyone was screaming. The principal and the college authority were able to settle everyone down eventually and food was rationed out. Me and Rhea found a place for ourselves in the college halls near the classes. We spent the next few hours just chatting away until there was a large alarm that was sounded. We were informed to evacuate the building since people inside were also affected and told to leave. Since the college was shut we were stuck. We saw people killing people and it was unbelievable. I felt like I was in my own sci-fi movie. Me and Rhea started running while actively trying to avoid the swarms of people that were trying to kill anyone and everyone. We found stuff along the way that would help us like knifes and sticks.

After running around for a while, we found a tightly shut room in the next building. We had never been there and it would usually be locked but not this time. We opened the door to an almost empty room and locked it behind us. A few feet away from the door was a latched door. We opened it and decided to climb out of this windowless room. Maybe this would lead to safety. After some time, we ended up running into an old man in the tunnels. Both of us screamed and almost hit the aged man. He was quite short maybe only 4 feet with a hunched back and a stick for support. His beard was long and covered half his body, wearing a grey clock.

"You are just in time" the old man crocked. "Who are you?" we asked calming ourselves down. "I'm here to help you." he said. "We just want to get out of here. We wanna go home" I said. "You are the chosen ones" he whispered. "We are not, we are dumb college students that wanna go home. This isn't fucking dora the explorer or the purge" Rhea huffed. "Children, you must understand, the world is in danger and you can save it. There are somethings you must collect and make your journey forward. There will be a door and it will help you solve the problem at hand. You will need a peacock feather, ash of precious rock, hair of a fair rabbit and last but not the least a stone from the house of the keeper" he announced. "Ok, sir, I don't know anything about this. This sounds straight out of Final Fantasy. We wanna go home" I cried. "You can once you find all this, the first 3 things are close by for the last you will have to travel far and wide from the door ahead. Collect everything and I hope to see you here in an hour" he said pushing us back to where we came from.

"That man is unbelievable. This is real life not fantasy. Let's leave from the main gate, we'll just jump it." I said. Rhea nodded her head in agreement. At the main door we were swarmed with hungry people after our flesh. We quickly ran back to the animal shelter on campus. That's where we found a fair rabbit sleeping. Rhea saw the rabbit and said, "Maybe it is our destiny to save the world." She slowly found a shaver and shaved the rabbit off and put his hair and put it in a zip lock bag. I was ready to go along to anything as long as I had Rhea by my side so then we went to the storage where we found the peacock feather in a box. We then headed to the chemistry lab which had coal; a precious rock which burnt to an ash. We burnt the coal and collected it's ash in a bag.

We threaded the area carefully to end up back in the tunnel where the old man had disappeared. "This was a hoax, I told you. Let's go" I said skeptical. "No, let's go ahead. If there's a door we'll follow his advice, if not, we'll head out" Rhea reasoned. After much deliberation, I agreed. We walked forward and after a long while, I saw the door the old man had talked about. Rhea looked at me, "Let's get the last item" she said and opened the door. I expected to be out of the college campus, maybe on the road. The tunnel ahead lead me to some sub-burbs. An area I had never seen before. I'd grown up in this city, I've seen it expand and grow with me; this area was new and foreign to me.

We walked around until I saw a big white house. It was gorgeous, the structure was tall with many floors and balconies, the porch was lined with many cars and you could see many people going about the house doing stuff. We looked a mess, from the chase that happened to threading an underground tunnel, we looked unkept and unruly. "Shooo, go away." the man at the entrance of the white house gate shooed us. "Ugh, these people, where do they come from?" he muttered. "They hear of our master's kindness and come seeking it" another mumbled. "Please, can you tell us where are we?" I asked. "Oldest trick in the book" the previous man sneered. He started pushing us away, "You'll dirty the place, you are disgusting looking" he said pinching his nose close. We fell from the hard push until a man with striking and approachable appearance crouched to our level. He had a warm smile that radiated friendliness and confidence, with a cheeky grin. His dark hair was tousled and slightly wavy, giving him a relaxed vibe. He had an athletic built. His brown eyes were so warm an inviting. He was wearing a casual outfits, a graphic tee paired with jeans and a leather jacket.

"Are you okay, darling?" he asked. "I'm fine" I muttered, brushing myself off until I felt a sting in my palm only to find them scrapped. The man who helped me stand saw it, "How many times I have I told you to behave? It was some one who needed help and we cannot be pushing the away like this" he reprimanded the man that pushed me. "I'm so sorry about him. Let's get you fixed up" he suggested. "I don't know who you are" I retreated towards Rhea. The man's eyes softened, "I'm Daniel, Daniel Riccardo. I'm the owner of this house" he said pointing at the white house. "I'm sorry about my staff. Let me make it up to you" he suggested. "Y/N, we don't know where we are. We don't know what we are supposed to do. Let's take his help" Rhea whispered. I sighed "If something happens I'm killing you first" I whispered back, she nodded. "Okay" I told Daniel. "Splendid." he announced leading us in.

He asked his staff to get us clothes and a room where we could freshen up. He had a doctor visit us and look at my scrape. We showered, got changed. I changed into a short white flowy dress. We walked out, "this place is huge and beautiful" I whispered. "I know right, the room he's having us stay at is like a 5 star hotel" Rhea whispered back. We were led to the dinner table which was lined with delicacies of various varieties. It was a spread of any and every kind of meal you could think of. "I didn't know what you would like to eat. So, I had them prepare everything" Daniel said. "That would be wasteful" I exclaimed. "Don't worry, there will be no wastage. I never got your names" he said now standing tall in front of me. "I'm Rhea and this is Y/N" Rhea replied. "What a beautiful name" Daniel mumbled taking my hand in his and kissing it. I pulled it back instantly. "What are you doing?" I asked. "Sorry for startling you, but you are very beautiful and I can not seem to take my eyes off you" he said. Daniel was a very attractive man and I would be lying if I said that it didn't affect me. "Shall we eat?" Rhea coughed. I quickly nodded and took a seat opposite to Daniel. I saw his eyes flicker for a moment but I wasn't sure what they wanted to say, so I dug right in. We'd been so hungry, since a lot of time had passed since our last meal and the weird events of the day.

"Thank you for the meal, Mr Riccardo" I thanked him. "Call me Daniel" he purred. "We'll be leaving soon" I stated. "No, please stay. Stay for as long as you need to" he suggested. "That would be over stepping. Thank you for the meal and clothes and for also doing our laundry. We greatly appreciate it" I said. "Why are you saying no to an attractive man that seems to be interested in you." Rhea whispered. "We're here on a mission. We should finish it and leave" I said. "Please do stay" Daniel insisted. "It's already dark" he said. I agreed to stay the night.

We couldn't fall asleep for whatever reason. So, the two of us started exploring the house. It was big and ornate and had paintings and expensive items littering the place. After walking around for a while, I saw something. It felt familiar but it wasn't, I had never seen this before. A stone in a glass case at the end of a long basement. I was about to touch it when, "What are you doing here?" a voice asked. I turned around to find Daniel. Rhea and I had split up a while back. "I got lost" I stammered. "Why are you out of bed so late?" he tsked and wrapped his hand around my shoulder leading me out. "Couldn't sleep" I mumbled. "I make really good camomile tea" he suggested. We walked in silence, back in the kitchen, his staff was cleaning up when we entered. "Continue your work" Daniel announced and asked me to sit on the chair in the corner. He got the kettle going. I could hear the staff whispering, "He doesn't make himself a cup of tea but he'll make her one." I felt small and awkward there. Daniel soon came back with 2 cups of camomile tea, "Let's enjoy this in the garden" he said leading me out. The garden was just as, if not even more beautiful than the main house. He handed me the cup and we sat there sipping in silence. The moon was big and bright, the sky littered with stars. "Where are you from? I've never seen you around and I know everyone here?" he asked. I started choking on the tea. Daniel started rubbing my back and took the cup from me. After I had settled down, "It's ok, you don't have to tell me now. Whenever you're ready. Just promise me you'll stay" he almost begged. I thought about it for a moment before nodding.

The next day, we sneaked out to find the way we came here but that place was no where to be seen. The small hill from which we had emerged had disappeared. We returned sadly to a very worried Daniel, "Where have you been?" he almost shouted. "We were walking around" I lied. "Don't scare me like that" he said and suddenly wrapped me in a hug. I pushed him away, "Daniel" I said. "Sorry, I was just worried. If you're okay then that's fine" he smiled slowly and went in. We had lunch together but the atmosphere was tense.

We'd been here for almost a month now. Daniel was a gracious host but his staff weren't. We could hear them whisper about how we were leeching off of Daniel. When in reality, if I was not in his vicinity he would freak out. I had yet to understand why that was. My friendship with Daniel had deepened. We would spend our sleepless nights walking the garden or hearing Daniel tell me about his adventures. We spent a lot of time together, even Rhea noticed and asked me about it. I wasn't sure what I felt but I knew it felt different.

"What's that stone in the basement?" I asked one day at our nightly stroll. "I have no clue, my family is supposed to guard it till it's rightful owners come" he replied. "Can I see it?" I asked, curiosity getting the best of me. Daniel agreed and led me back to the basement where the stone was and I held it in my hand. Some how, I felt it; like this was mine. I was the rightful owner. I placed the stone back and headed to sleep.

The next day, I spoke to Rhea. "I think the stone we are looking for is in the house's basement" I said. "How do you know?" Rhea asked. "Well, Daniel said that his family was supposed to guard a stone till it's rightful owner came and when I held it yesterday, it felt like it was ours. The stone from the house of the keeper. I believe Daniel is the keeper, I'll get it tonight and then we can leave" I said. Rhea looked elated.

At nightfall I asked to see the stone again. We were standing in the basement when, "You can keep it for now, I know you will keep it safe" he said. "How do you know that?" I laughed. He shrugged, "Even if you don't, I don't care" he said. "I just want you to be happy. I just want you to stay with me. I love you Y/N. I think I fell for you the moment I saw you and that's why I wanted to have you stay. I don't care where you came from or what you do. I just know that I need you" he said. I gulped hard, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to say. "You don't have to say anything, take your time. I'm always here" Daniel explained and we headed back with the stone in my possession.

The next day we tried to find a way out but we were unsuccessful. The next few days, we kept the search up. The whispering among the staff had gotten louder, they said that I was using their master and I had probably cast a spell on him to make him fall for me. That was unbelievable. I couldn't wait to get out of here.

A few weeks later, we found it. A similar tunnel through which we had come. As I stood at it's entrance, I wasn't sure if I wanted to leave, just yet. "let's go" Rhea said, ready to leave. "No, let's wait for a few more days" I said. "What if it disappears?" Rhea sighed exasperated. "It won't" I hoped. I couldn't leave Daniel, I realised that night. As I stood in front of him, his brown eyes bore into mine. "I think I like you too, Daniel" I said abruptly. He looked elated, he cupped my cheeks and leaned in for a kiss. The kiss was warm and soft and familiar. I melted right into his hands.

After the love confession, Daniel was even more tender and loving if that was possible. Rhea wanted to leave, as soon as possible. "I don't think I can leave, I think I love Daniel" I said. "people are dying and we have to save them. We must" she reasoned. "You should leave. I'll stay here" I said. "Don't you miss your family. Won't you miss me?" she asked. "I do and I will but I love Daniel" I said. "I'll wait for you, let's wait for a few more days and then leave" Rhea stated.

We did wait, I only got closer to Daniel. He got me a ring, he showered me in gifts. It overwhelmed me, in a good way. I had never been loved like this. One night just before our nightly stroll, I escaped the house with Rhea. We went to the tunnel and opened the door. When we reached the other side; the old man stood there "Took you long enough" he stated. He took all the things we had collected and started working on it in a huge open field. As the potion simmered, a huge cloud of smoke rose and enveloped everyone and anyone. And then suddenly everything was okay. No more chaos, no more harm. Everything back to normal. "I know you gave what you love to save us, so thank you child" the old man told me. I cried.

Time hadn't passed since we had left. It was like it had stopped. I was able to reunite with my family and even went on to finish my Masters. But I could never forget Daniel. I left all the gifts he got me except the ring; I couldn't get myself to leave it.

One day, I was returning from work when I saw a man that looked an awful lot like Daniel. He was looking around and as our eyes met, he ran to me and hugged me; "I missed you" he whispered in my neck. "Why did you leave me?" he asked. I had tears running down my face. "I love you Daniel, I'm sorry. I had to" I tried to explain. "What happened?" he asked. "I wasn't from your world, I had come there to get the stone so I could save my people." I explained. "Did you?" he asked. "yes" I nodded. "I thought I would go mad when you didn't come to our nightly stroll or when I didn't find you or your belongings in your room" he explained. "I'm sorry" I apologised. "I love you so much, please be mine" he mumbled now crying himself. "I love you too and I'm forever yours" I said. He pressed a kiss against my lip, the feeling was so perfect, like everything just fell into place where it was supposed to be. I saw that old man from afar smiling as he watched Daniel hold me in his embrace.

[happybunny999]

A complete arsenal magical girl in Gotham

Part 2

(In this part of the story you will get to know readers best friend and older siblings and how your party was ruined by your enemies and how you caught the attention of the batfam and villains) (this chapter will be longer then the rest)

-

As the sun roses up I open my eyes and quickly get up with glee and timidly as today was my 18th birthday and I was going to have fun with my family and my best friend as I walk to my closet and grab something comfortable and cute as I open my door and walked to the bathroom to get ready for the day

After changing, brush my teeth,and doing my long pink hair I want back to my room and got my cloak and mask and made my was down stairs to the dining room and see my mother and father there eating/serving breakfast with a happy smile on their faces as they looked at me with a knowing smile that made me even more excited about to day

“Happy birthday sweetie “ my mother and father said in unison as my mother gives me a plate of food that looked delicious and testy

While I was eating my father told me that my brother and sister are coming back home to celebrate my birthday but still have to back to college when the party is over and that made me both happy to hear that my siblings are coming home to celebrate my special day

After that I left the house and headed to my friend’s apartment to hang out with him before we head out to Gotham carnival fair at night so while it was still daytime I wanted to spend time with Mikey at his apartment and play some video games. And as I walked down the street my mask hiding my face and cloak covering my hair and passing by some people who gave me weird looks that made me shy and caused me to walk a little faster

Once I arrived at Mikey’s apartment I went to the room door try to ignore the stares and whispers of people who looked at me and was talking among each other about me but each glare and comment made me timid but soon I found Mikey’s room number and knocked on the door gently and called out to him with a soft voice.

Mikey and me have been friends since we were kids and Mikey has had a troubled childhood living on the streets of Gotham since his parents were addicted to drugs and were killed by some gang members when his was little and would have next if I hadn’t saved him while I was fighting a monster to collect another relic Mikey has never my face at all and has only seen strings of my pink hair so at first he was weary of me and we weren’t friends for awhile until finally he decided to be my friend after a long time of being alone and forced to be independent in the streets of Gotham

“Mikey, it’s me reader are you there” I spoke with a calm and nervous but also a happy tone and stepped back and waited for him to answer

The door open slightly before being swung open completely which frightened me a little to reveal Mikey on the other side of the door. Shirtless and with a happy but tired expression on his face

“Hay reader! Happy birthday!” Mikey said happily as he pulled me into a big hug as I felt his warm chest against mine but was too shy and naive to realized the blush on his face when he was so close to me

After that me and Mikey were in his living room playing video games until it was evening and then I got a call from my mother saying that it’s almost time for my party so I told Mikey that it’s time for the carnival fair in downtown Gotham so Mikey got dressed in casual clothes and we left his apartment and walking down the road the bright lights of the city always felt beautiful to me despite the always chaotic atmosphere of Gotham.

Mikey walked closer to me at we past by some gang members along the way ready to get his hands dirty if anyone try to do something to which it completely confused me since Mikey knows of my power and many abilities so if anything happens I would be able to know right away and try to prevent it if possible but I prefer to talk things out instead of fighting since I wanted to make Gotham a better place.

-

Soon we made it to the carnival fair and once there we saw people having fun and it made me happy to see people enjoying themselves and not being afraid of the city of Gotham

Finally we found my parents and siblings in our reserved tables placing down decorations and my birthday cake and presents from them to me and I felt really happy at that moment but I couldn’t help but feel like something is going to happen really soon.

But regardless of that everything was going well as the night dragged on as we talked, laughter,eating, and playing games and as it was almost time for the birthday cake I thought to myself “this is going so great, nothing as ruin it so far”

But I would soon regret that thought very soon.

A scream was heard followed by destruction and people running all of a sudden which confused me even more but I soon found out why when I sensed a powerful “defeatist” and one of the dark soul lords in the area close to us and where people are running from.

“What the hell is going on “ Mikey yelled confused

My mother looked at me with a knowing look and I nodded as she whispered for my father and siblings to run back home with her since she knows I would be fine

As they left I quickly told Mikey through my mask that it was the dark soul lords and a defeatist that was causing this and he nodded as I ran behind a food stand and transformed.

“Precure magical time!”

-

As I followed the trail of destruction to the center of the carnival fair I saw a horrible scene the fair was almost destroyed and the “defeatist” was cornering a small crowd of people and the people I was hoping I didn’t have to fight right now….was Bella hyena , Chris Berg, and Phantom malice. But I was kinda glad it was them and not their other dark lords from the defeatist world.

As soon as I got close they turned to look at me with a dark smile on their faces that made my stomach churn since I was five years old I have been fighting these three for a very long time when I had unlocked my powers and when my mother told me about them and how it was now my job to defeat them and the others just like them

As I got ready to face them Bella and Chris teleport away and only phantom stayed behind to fight me but he just commanded the defeatist to attack me and as I battled the monster I didn’t realized that there was a reporter and cameraman recording and talking about the situation to the whole world and about the weirdly bright and colorful girl fighting against a scary monster

-

“Bruce are you seeing this right now” Dick said while on the rooftop of a building watching the scene as he talks to Bruce over the mic

“Yes I am on my way to the scene now” Batman told nightwing as he rode down the road to the fair at fast speed

Bruce had pressed a button on his arm to alert the others to come to the scene as well

-

I’m a hideout where all the villains come to meet they were all looking at the TV showing the strange monster, the dark soul lord, and the beautiful, gorgeous woman in pink fight against them

“Look puddin! It’s the girl I was talking about!” Harley yelled out in pure joy as she blushes and jumps around making the other’s look at her with annoyance but they too also blush at how pretty the woman looked

“My my Harley!” The joker said with a huge smile “looks like we got a new face in Gotham to meet!” He smiled crazily with a laugh as the other villains smiled as well

-

“Father do you see this” Talia says looking at the the tv then at her father who was in his chair

“Yes, I do” he says with narrowed eyes and a slight smile on his lips “we need her she will be a great asset to us “



-

I groan a little as I get up from the crater I had created after the defeatist threw me into the ground my outfit has tears in some places and I am completely covered in small cuts and bruises as I stand up ready to continue fighting

“Still won’t give I see “ phantom said with a grin as the defeatist charges at me but I was reader and dodged the the attack by jumping into the air and landing a hard kick to the defeatist making it faceplate on the ground causing the street floor to collapse and break

I quickly landed on the ground and prepared a strong attack at the monster tried to get up

“Mega sparkle attack!” I yelled out as I swing my hands forward at pink and blue come blasting out my hands and to the defeatist making it vanish as a relic is left in its place

“Sights… you just don’t know when to quit do you warrior “ phantom says with irritation in his voice as he crosses his arms

“Why are you, Bella, and Chris doing this now. You just hurt innocent people and ruined a birthday party too” I replied with a calm and sincere voice as I was not mad but disappointed that people were hurt in this battlefield I really didn’t mind that my party was destroyed I was more worried by the people around us.

“Do you really think we care if people get hurt. Are you really that naive that we wouldn’t crash this place because we knew you would be here” phantom told me with a stoic face.

“Well see you later “cure Pinkney” this won’t be the last time you hear from us” as he said this dark shadows circle around him as he vanished away leaving me alone as I crumble to the floor out of exhaustion and from the pain from the small scratches and bruises on my arms and legs.

I look down and saw how my uniform had small holes and tears in it.

I look around and stand up and walk towards the relic and pick it up and putting it in my magical purse as I turned I caught sight of the crowd of people looking at me in shock

“Um hi don’t worry your safe now” I say nervously as I just stand there with a red face and started to slowly move back and begin to walk away until I hear a gruff and stern voice call out to me

“Stop” a stern and gruff voice said from being me from a distance

Slowly turn to see the one and only Batman standing there with a scowl on his face that made me scared and shake a little

“Um hi Mr Batman nice to m-meet y-you” I stuttered shyly as the crowd looked on

“Who are you” he said walking closer to me to which I step back a tiny bit out of fear I could feel my powers start to glow from my hands and mostly on my right hand as I was holding my weapon tightly

“I-I sorry but I can’t t-tell you that information” I replied meekly and as he step closer. Out of fear, instincts and purely accidentally I Raised up my hands to say “wait” then just like that pink light blasted from my hands and hitting the Batman and knocking him to the ground with a loud thud as the crowd of people looked at me in shock

As I stood there unable to move from my spot after what I just down I yelled out a loud sorry to the Batman who was trying to get up from the ground with a groan

At the corner of my eye I see Mikey running towards me with concern and realization in his eyes when he got close to me and saw the Batman on the ground

Mikey quickly broke me out of my thoughts and told me we need to go and I pick he up and fly away after giving him one last sorry before leaving the now ruined carnival fair

Not realizing that the cameraman’s camera was still recording the whole scene

So the whole world had seen what has happened today.





[pagelets]

this what slow dancing feels like- K.T: part 1

Synopsis: Kang Taehyun had always dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer, but his conservative father never allowed him. On his 20th birthday, his mother gifts him with a flight ticket to Paris so he can pursue his dream of joining the Académie Internationale de Danse. Getting into the academy is already a challenge. Surviving in it is even harder. In an attempt to be cast in his favorite ballet production, Taehyun decides to bet all his chips on a rigid, and experienced ballerina— you. On a journey of self growth, not only as a dancer but also as a person, can Taehyun count on you? Or will his big chance slip through his fingers?

Disclaimer: sfw, toxic relationship (feat. Hwang Hyunjin), insecurities/ trauma, conservative way of thinking, i think that's all

Word count: 10.2k

Note: I was supposed to post it tomorrow but it's Tyun's bday in Korea already and I'm too excited to wait!

This fic is in celebration of Tyun's bday. I hope he is happy, healthy and enjoying his day cause he deserves it. I wanted to write in one shot but well, you know... college (cries in universitarian ㅠ_ㅠ). Anyway, part 2 will be coming till the end of the month (spoiler: will be nsfw 🤭). Also, if you're a ballet pro pls don't kill me I don't know anything about ballet, I just enjoy watching. And for those who don't know about ballet at all, I'm going to explain better the meaning of Giselle in the next part.

If Taehyun closed his eyes, he could see the long legged ballerina spinning on the stage like a beautiful fairy covered in a white dress and brightening under the soft blue lights of the stage. He was 8 when his mother took him to a ballet performance for the first and only time in his life. His big eyes shined whenever the dancers moved as gracefully as a feather. The precision of their steps, jumps and  pirouettes mesmerized the little Taehyun. He had made up his mind— he was going to be one of them when he grew up. His mother smiled at him when he told her, “If you become as talented as the dancers we saw today, I’ll be very proud of you”, she said as they headed home.

Since that day, Taehyun walked around the house on his tiptoes, spinning with his arm in an ‘o’ shape over his head. He could picture his old self flying on a big stage. The joy he felt during his daydreams disappeared the day his father came home from work earlier and caught him practicing ballet positions in the living room. “What are you doing?” “Practicing ballet, daddy” “Ballet?!” “Yes! I want to be a ballet dancer when I grow up”, Taehyun answered with all of his innocence, unaware of the impact his words would have on his old man. “You are a man! Dancing ballet is for girls. If I ever caught you even thinking about becoming a ballet dancer again I’ll put you in a military school! Was I clear?” “But daddy I…” “Was I clear!?”, little Taehyun looked inside of his dad’s eyes, all the sparkles he carried in his bright eyes were replaced by fear. He nodded, holding back the tears and ran to his room as his father told him to do with a rough voice. 

“He’s just a kid”, his mother said to his father, “He’s a man! My son will not wear tights and pointy shoes! What do you think he's, Peter Pan!? I can even believe you approve it!”. As Taehyun overheard the voices muffled by the door,  warm tears rolled down his face, the pain of his dreams being crushed felt almost excruciating. He never went to another ballet performance again.

It was 12 years ago. He’s 20 now and he’s not a ballet dancer. In fact, he works in his family bakery with his mother and his older cousin. It wasn’t the plan— he was supposed to go to Seoul University 2 springs ago to pursue a law degree, but his father passed away when he was 17 and he couldn’t let his mother take care of the family business by herself. So he put aside another dream and did what he had to do. 

Not that he dislikes working at the bakery, he loves the smell of freshly baked goods rosing through his nostrils, bringing him nostalgia from the time his parents took him to the shop when he was just a kid. He also loves to put all of himself in the cakes, pies, and pastries. “Everything can be fixed with a little bit of love and joy”, is his motto. 

Now, he’s sitting on the edge of his bed, lazily postponing the start of the day, with his bare feet getting colder on the cool tile. Hobak roams between his legs, making him chuckle, “Good morning, princess”, he says, leaning to stroke the cat’s fur gently. “Are you hungry? I’m too”. Finally, Taehyun stands up, and makes his way to the kitchen. He rubs his tired eyes, then spots a basket of blueberry muffins on the counter with a letter standing on its side. He grabs the paper, recognizing the handwriting of his mother. It’s clear who left the gift there: 

‘To my Ray of Sunshine. Happy 20th birthday! I love you more than anything’.

He chuckles, ‘Ray of Sunshine’, that’s how Taehyun’s mother always called him. He opens the letter, feeling bad for ruining the beautiful envelope:

‘My dear, Taehyunnie

Hi, it’s mom. You’re such a good son, always helping everyone, and making places lighter with your presence. 

But I also know that deep down, you carry sorrow in your heart. Yes, I’m talking about your dream, not your dream of becoming a lawyer, but the dream of becoming a ballet dancer. Your father didn’t approve the idea, but I want you to be happy too.

Under the basket you’ll find another envelope, your gift is in there. Take a look ;)

I love you

– Mom’

Taehyun tilts his head as he reads the letter, the feeling of butterflies growing slowly in his stomach, unaware of what to expect. Hesitantly, he lifts the basket of muffins and quickly opens the other envelope to find a large amount of money and a flight ticket inside of it. Tears fill his eyes as he reads the destination: Paris, France. He hears footsteps approaching from behind and turns to see his mother, “Mom…”, his voice falters, “W- what’s this about?”. The older woman walks toward her son, the tears also filling her eyes, “My Ray of Sunshine”, she cups his cheeks, drying the tears rolling down his face. “Go to Paris, pursue your own dreams” “But you need me here. The bakery, the house, I… can’t just abandon you, mom” “You’ll not abandon me, Taehyunnie. Your uncle will take your place at the bakery. Don’t worry about me” “But dad…” “It’s been 3 years already, son. He will always be alive in our hearts, but we must move on, don’t you think?”.

He nods, trying to control the tears, “You’re not taking no as an answer are you?” “No”, she chuckles, “I won’t let you waste your life working at this small bakery” “I like working at the bakery” “Oh, come on, we both know your place isn’t mixing dough, it’s standing on ballet shoes” “Pointe shoes, mom” “See? That’s what I’m talking about”. He chuckles, pulling his mother for a tight hug, “Thanks, mom. I love you”, he mumbles against her hair, “I love you too, Sunshine”. He can’t believe it— his dream is finally going to come true.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

3 years later:

“5, 6, 7, 8!”, the teacher’s voice resonates over the classical music, her instructions making the piano sound seem distant, “Come on ladies, Arabesque! 1, keep your spine aligned. 2, shift your weight forward. 3, lift your leg. Good! 4, hold still. Like that!”. She walks around the room, scanning each student, catching every single mistake— a bent leg, a misaligned hip, an over lifted arm, she’d catch them all. “Don’t let the shoulders drop! That’s better!”, she tells one of the dancers. “Now, everyone, take your partners by the waist at 1. Keep them close to your torso at 2. Now move one hand to the right thigh at 3, and lift!”. She looks at the male dancers, their focus transparenting on their faces as all their strength channels into their arms holding their partner’s above their heads. “Hold at 4! Good, good”, she murmurs, satisfied with the execution. 

Then, her eyes spot a sudden movement at the back of the room. Seo Soojin is stretched on the floor, while Kang Taehyun is trying to help her to get up. She sighs deeply, clearly frustrated, “Alright, alright! Let’s take a break”. The music stops and the other dancers disperse around the studio. The teacher approaches the pair, a frown growls on her forehead,  “What happened here?”. “It was my fault”, Taehyun starts, finally helping Soojin to get up on her feet. “I knocked her down” “Are you alright, Soojin?” “Yes, I’m fine”, she tried to play it cool through the discomfort, “Go put some ice on that bruised knee of yours while I talk to Taehyun”. Soojin hesitates at first, but she does what the teacher says, “Sure”. Soojin whispers ‘Good luck’ to Taehyun before she leaves.“This isn’t the first time I've seen Soojin on the floor when she’s dancing with you. Can you explain what’s going on?”.

Taehyun lowers his head, too embarrassed to look at the teacher, “I’m just… struggling” “You are… struggling?” “Yes, with the…”, he cleans his throat, saying the following words as low as a whisper, “....with the Pas de Deux moves”. She raises an eyebrow, not completely convinced, “Hum, I see. I know you’re a beginner in duet dancing, but if you are not ready yet, we can always step back and work on your foundation first” “No!”, he says quickly, “I’m ready. I worked really hard to get here. I’m not going backward now”.

The teacher nods, “Then act accordingly, Taehyun” “Yes, madam” “Good!”. She turns back to the rest of the room, “Again! From the top, everyone”. The music starts again, so as the teachers instructions, “5, 6, 7, 8!”. 

Taehyun returns to his position, he’s nervous. His stomach turns, his heart beats fast and the palms of his hands are sweaty as he prepares for the lift.  Dancing at the “Academie Internationale de Danse”, one of the most prestigious ballet academies of Paris, was always his dream. Despite his father’s prohibition, he never stopped watching ballet videos on Youtube or searching about it. But now that he’s there, things seem to be even tougher than before. Every single thing he does wrong, is noticed—- not only by the teachers, but also from the other dancers, seniors or not. He’s always under pressure. And to make things even worse, he can’t dance with a partner.

After practice, he grabs his bag and slings it over his shoulder. He’s walking out the door when Soojin joins him, “Soojin!”, he bows, “I’m so sorry to drop you. Again” “It’s fine, I’m okay. I also used to struggle a lot when I first started duets. I was a complete mess”. He nods at her, “Why don’t we just go and have a caramel macchiato to relax? My treat” “Can I also have a pain au chocolat?” “Sure” “Alright. Thank you”. They share a comfortable silence as they walk down the hall, till a familiar sound catches Taehyun's attention. The acute, melancholic sound of violins, in short and spaced notes, fills his ears. He could recognize this melody from miles away, “Soojin, you can go. I’ll catch up in a minute” “Alright, see you”. 

After she leaves, he follows the melody, its melancholy building up more and more, until he finds the room from where the music’s coming. It’s a girl—- you— dancing a scene of his favorite ballet: Giselle. This’s the ballet performance he first saw when he was a child, it was Giselle which made him fall in love with ballet— where everything started. His eyes can’t leave you, you’re dancing The Mad Scene, in which Giselle dances frantically till she dies after finding out about her lover’s betrayal— such an intense scene. His eyes shine as he watches you move your body along the music, as if both the melody and you would soon reach the edge. 

“She’s good, isn’t she?”, he turns back, completely caught off guard, “Shit! You startled me”. It’s Ni-ki, one of the best dancers of the academy, “Sorry”, he says laughing. “Who’s she?” “She? She’s Yn” “Yn”, your name fumbles on his tongue, “Why is she dancing Giselle?” “She’s practicing for an audition” “Will they be producing Giselle!?” “Yes, you didn’t know?” “No…”. Taehyun looks at you again, then back to Ni-ki, “Are you auditioning too?” “Nah. I’m not into Giselle” “Do you know, by any chance, if students from the intermediate level can audition too?” “Well, technically yes, everyone can. But I've been here for 7 years already and I only saw advanced dancers get the main roles” “Oh!”, his voice shows his disappointment. “But, hey, it’s nice to play dancing trees too”, Ni-ki tries to lighten the mood.

As if a light bulb popped on above his head, Taehyun looks at Ni-ki with hope flooding from his eyes, “I’ll be the first, then”. Ni-ki looks at him with a smirk on his lips, “You’re very optimistic aren't you?” “Somebody has to be” “I like that about you. Good luck, my man”, Ni-ki gives him a high five and goes away leaving him alone, daydreaming about the spectacle.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

The next day, Taehyun approaches the teacher gently to ask for help preparing for the audition. He was going to practice alone, but Soojin yelled at him and called him crazy. And since Ni-ki doesn’t like Giselle, the teacher is his one and only option. “Excuse me, madam” “Oh! Hello, Taehyun. How’s everything going?” “Good, good, I… I’m interested in auditioning for Giselle” “Really?” “Yes. I’d like to know if you could tutor me, please” “Oh! I’m sorry, but my schedule doesn’t allow me to tutor students”. He hangs his head, “Oh! I understand” “But I can recommend an advanced level dancer to mentor you” “Really?” “Yes, of course. Do you know Yn?” “Yes! Yes, I do” “She’s the right person to tutor you. She’s one of our best dancers, and she’s been dancing ballet for 12 years now” “Wow!” “Yeah, impressive, right? Let’s go, I’ll introduce you to her”.

They walk together toward the advanced class studio. Taehyun is so excited— you danced with so much passion yesterday, it would be an honor to learn from you.“Yn! Can you please join us?” “Hi, madam” “Yn, this is Kang Taehyun”. You look at him, all the emotion he saw while you danced seems to have vanished from your eyes, “Nice to meet you, Taehyun”

“Nice to meet you too” “He’s looking forward to auditioning for Giselle. I think you are too, right?” “You’re right. I am” “Great. So, you can mentor Taehyun, right?” “Mentor him?”

“Teach him techniques, choreography, everything” “But madam, I…” “Is there any reason for you to say no?” “Well, no, I just…” “So, you can start tomorrow, right?”. You swallow your arguments, “I think so” “Good. See you in class, Taehyun”.

The teacher turns to leave, but you follow her, “Madam, wait! I don’t think I can take responsibility for him” “Why not?” “I should be focusing on my own performance”

“Don’t you think this is a bit selfish of you? I think ballet is also about teamwork, don’t you?”. Why do adults always like making young people feel guilty? You look at your feet, then nod, “I… I’ll do my best to help him” “That’s the spirit”. You turn to go back to the room when you bump into Taehyun, “Thanks for agreeing to…”. You cut him off, there are no emotions in your voice tone, “Stay here tomorrow after lunch. 2 PM, not before, not after” “But…”. But you had already left, leaving Taehyun alone. It doesn’t matter— now he has the chance to prove that he can perform in Giselle. Nothing could ruin this moment.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

It’s tomorrow and Taehyun runs like his life depends on it. He’s late for the first practice with you and he heard rumors that you hate lateness. He opens the door and you’re there, hands on your hips, clearly in a bad mood, “It’s 2:06 PM” “I’m sorry” “I told you to not be late” “I’m 6 minutes late” “I don’t care. Be late again and I will not do this anymore” “Okay. Not being late anymore, I promise” “Keep your promises to yourself. Shall we begin?” “Sure” "First, which role do you want?”, you ask him, arms crossed. “Albrecht," Taehyun says, no hesitation, “You’ll need to do a lot of jumps, then. Show me what you can do”. Taehyun nods, taking a deep breath as he prepares to perform. 

He positions himself in the center of the room and starts executing a few jumps. First, a Saut de Chat— his legs lift correctly, but he feels stiff, as if his movements are more forced than fluid. Then, he does a Changement, but his landing isn’t soft, he puts more pressure than necessary in it. His last jump is a Jete, but his legs are not open enough, ruining the majesty of the movement. As the music stops, he looks at you in silence, waiting for a reaction. But you give him nothing. Not a single applause or smile, you just watch him with a closed expression, “Look, your execution needs more control. Your Saut de Chat is not delicate enough, the Changement is too quick and the Jete, you didn’t open your legs like you should have. And I’m not even going to say anything about your feet” “What’s wrong with my feet?”, he asks you, wiping sweat from his furrowed forehead, the frustration completely transparent on his face. “Your landing is too rough, you need to land softer, you’re dancing ballet, not tap dance. The point is, if you want to dance as Albrecht, you must not only dominate and understand the technique of every single movement but also feel it. You’re too stiff, too mechanical”. Taehyun gulps, feeling every inch of his optimism melting in frustration, “I see we’ll have a lot of work to do here”, you add.

He bites his bottom lip, and clenches his jaw, “How can she be so cold and impassive?”, he thinks. “I thought I was good enough already…” “You’re going to get better, but you must work hard for it. Keeping this mentality that you’re already good enough will not take you anywhere”. Taehyun remains silent, trying to digest your rough, but truthful, words. “You’re right, it’s not good enough. I’m going to work harder”, he looks at you, the frustration flooding from his eyes, “Tell me how to get better”. You uncross your arms, “First, don’t think about just jumping. Albrecht is not defined by jumps and lifts— he’s in pain, he feels guilty, anxious. The jumps don’t show it, the movements and its suavity show it. Your jumps should reflect the emotions he carries, not his strength” “How do I do it?”. You sigh heavily, already impatient, “At first place, you need to correct your posture and feet position. Your feet are completely misaligned and your torso bends forward. Seems like you’re more focused on reaching high instead of maintaining your posture”.

Taehyun tries again, focusing on keeping his posture aligned and his landing softer, he feels the movement less forced as he places both feet on the wooden floor. “This was better”, you compliment him, “Now we’ll work on making your technique solid enough before we integrate the moves to the choreography”. You position yourself in the middle of the room, staring at Taehyun in the mirror, “Let’s start from the third position and build on the jumps from there”. He nods at you, relieved from your small compliment, and joins you. Maybe you’re difficult to satisfy, but he’s going to give everything he has to do that.

The next practices with you are even tougher. You make Taehyun do strengthening exercises, such as planks, squats and weight lifting. You also work on correcting his posture by putting him to stand against the wall, and walk around the studio holding a backpack with a 10 kg (22 lb) weight inside of it. It’s hard, he has to admit it, his whole body feels sore at the end of the day but he sees improvement, his jumps are now softer and precise— not too high and not too mechanical. He feels as if he had loosened up along the week. 

You also loosen up too— your behavior, not your physical— you’re still exigent but the compliments become more recurrent. “Maybe you’re not that bad afterall”, you tell him when he did an almost perfect Jete, “Do you think so?” “Yes. But don't think that means you can relax from now on” “Under your guard, never”. He laughs and he could swear he sees a glimpse of a small smile on your lips. “I think it’s enough for today. Let’s wrap up and I'll see you tomorrow. Don’t be late” “I won’t be””.  

As he heads home, a silly smile can’t leave his lips, he knows you’re a tough teacher but in each session you had together, he could see your love for ballet. The amount of knowledgement you have, your technique— you know everything, you notice every single detail. He respects you, even admires you. Even under the tough exterior you’ve built, he sees your delicacy, he sees you.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

You're in the studio stretching, while waiting for Taehyun. You look at the clock, he still has time. After that first time, he has never been late again. Sometimes he even arrives earlier than you just to practice his jumps a little more. He’s still sloppy, but you see how dedicated he's been and you respect him for that. 

The small smile that had formed on your lips, as you thought about Taehyun, fades away as you see a figure approaching. A familiar and very unwelcome figure— your ex-boyfriend Hwang Hyunjin. You stand from the floor and cross your arms, your body language making it clear he’s not welcomed there. But, as always, it has no effect on him. He smirks, reaching a hand out to touch your face. You step back, “What are you doing here?”. He grins at you, “When you talk like that, it almost feels like you’re not happy to see me”. This fucking idiot. “I’m not happy to see you”.

His smile disappears and his brows furrow, “Stop talking nonsense, babygirl” “I mean it” “How can you not be happy seeing your boyfriend?” “Ex-boyfriend. Did you forget? I broke up with you”. He steps closer until your back presses against the stretching bar, “Why do you keep bringing that up? You know I don’t like talking about it”. You swallow hard, “Again, what’re you doing here?” “I came here to see if you finally realized you can’t live without me”. You roll your eyes, “Get lost, man. I don’t miss you. Or your lies”. He places a hand on the wall behind you and leans closer.

 At that moment, Taehyun arrives, stopping in the doorway, completely paralyzed by the scene— should he intervene? When Hyunjin starts to speak, he decides to hide, but never taking his eyes off you in case things get out of control. “Why act hard to get, huh? I want you, you want me, so why not stop these games and give in already?”  “Hyunjin, wake up, dude. I don’t want you, and you never really wanted me. Now get out, I’m busy, alright?”. His gaze darkens, “You know you’ll never be good enough, so why keep trying, huh? Why not go out with me instead of staying here training to be something you’ll never be?”. His words hit you, they hurt, he knows this is a sensitive spot, but still, he pokes at your insecurities.

But you keep your voice and posture steady, refusing to let him see the power his spiteful words have over you, “Leave now, or I’ll scream. You don’t want a scene, do you?”. 

He laughs, what a psychopath. “I’ll leave, but you won’t get rid of me so easily next time”.

He pulls away from the wall, giving you space to breathe, and walks to the door, “See you later, love” “Go fuck yourself”. He walks out with his head held high and a smirk on his lips, not even noticing Taehyun pressed against the wall beside him.  

As soon as Hyunjin walks away, Taehyun enters the room. You’re with your back turned, your breath is heavy as you try with all your strength not to cry. You glance over your shoulder when you hear his footsteps, “You’re late again” “I didn’t want to interrupt the conversation… Are you okay? That guy seemed annoying” “I’m perfectly fine”. 

You move to the center of the room, “Now let’s begin the practice, cause you obviously need to practice”. Taehyun clenches his jaw, you’re not the most amicable person ever but today  you are even moodier. He places his bag on the floor, the best thing to do would just leave you alone and go on with the practice but the way that guy talked to you, makes his blood boil, “Who’s that guy?”. You just ignore him, positioning yourself, “It’s none of your business” “If he was annoying you, I think it is of my business”. You roll your eyes, and look at him in the mirror, “Did you come here to gossip or to dance?” “What is the matter with you?! You've been attacking me since I first stepped into the room!” “Look, you’re clearly wasting my time. You can’t even jump properly and still there you are, wasting both your and my precious time. So shut your mouth and get into first position!”. Taehyun's jaw clenches even tighter, “So that 's it, Yn? You’re really going to take it out on me?” “First position!”, you repeat, the irritation on your tone echoing through the room. 

Taehyun takes a deep breath, then joins you, positioning by your side. You lift your leg and start to count as the music plays. Taehyun tries to keep up with your pace, but you're going too fast, making his body tense up and causing him to mess up, resulting in a sloppy and weak jump. “Put more strength into your push”, you start counting again, repeating the jump. Taehyun tries to follow along again but fails another time, “You have no control over your landing” “Of course I don't! You're acting like I was one of the dancers of your level!”. You stop the music and cross your arms, “Do you want to dance as Albrecht or not?” “I’m trying to” “It doesn't look like you are”. He closes his fist tight, the rest of his patience shatters at your last sentence, “Why do you hate me so much!? I'm here every day, doing my best. I follow all your instructions and yet, all you do is spit criticism at me! What do you gain by putting me down, huh!?”, his voice is loud, almost a yell, and his face is red with anger. “I’m just being realistic” “No, you’re being unnecessarily cruel. Why!?”. Your body tenses like his words hit you physically, and suddenly, your eyes fill with tears, your chin shakes and your breath becomes shorter. You try to speak, but your voice breaks, “I…”, you close your eyes. Taehyun’s expression and tone of voice soften, as if the tension and anger had never been there, “Yn?”. 

You open your eyes, feeling the tears run down your face, “I’m tired of feeling like…”, you pauses to sob, avoiding Taehyu’s eyes, “... like I'm not enough. Like everything I do is wrong. Like I'm inadequate and can't fit in anywhere, no matter how hard I try”. Taehyun tilts his head, he never thought he’d ever see you like that— fragile, vulnerable. “Yn…” “Hyunjin was my boyfriend. Being around him was a constant reminder that I'm not good enough. That other girls are more beautiful and interesting than me. That other dancers have more technique and talent than I do. That my dreams are shallow and that I will never achieve them. He flirted with other people, he diminished and stepped on me. When I danced with other guys, he would have jealous explosions. So I decided to break up, but he continues to haunt me, just to turn my life into a nightmare. I... I can’t bear this feeling anymore”.

Taehyun approaches you, his heart aching to see you like that, “Did he ever hurt you?” “Not physically. But actions and words can hurt even more sometimes”. He nods, “If he bothers you again, you can call me, I’ll make him regret” “You, Mr. Sunshine, will make Hyunjin regret it?!” “Yes. You can mock me as much as you want, but I practiced boxing when I was younger and I can knock that guy down if I have to”. You sniff, “Why do you even care?” “I care about you. I can protect you, if you let me”, he grabs your hands, “You don’t have to go through this all by yourself”. You look at him, he carries so much joy and love in his big brown eyes, that it’s almost… contagious. You get rid of his hands and step back, crossing your arms again, “I’m sorry. For taking things out on you” “It’s okay” “I also think… you’re improving a lot” “For real!?” “Yes. But don’t think about settling down just because of it” “I won’t. Thank you” “No, thank you. For… you know, listening”. And then, you open a smile. There’s the smile he waited 2 long weeks to see— your beautiful, grateful smile. He smiles too before you ruin the moment and tell him to get into the first position again.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

Taehyun's a bag of nerves, his knuckles are almost white from gripping hard on the shoulder strap of his bag as he makes his way to the dancing room. His stomach feels like it's going to explode from anxiety. He always feels like this whenever he knows he’ll have to dance with another person. And today he’ll dance with you. The fact that you're far more experienced— and that you don’t know about his block— only makes everything worse.

He steps in the room, you are already there as usual, stretching your legs on the barre. When you see him, you… get excited? Taehyun blinks his eyes in disbelief. You are smiling at him, you’re stepping away from the bars and bouncing with excitement. He’s unsure if it’s actually you.

“Taehyun, finally!” “Someone is excited today” “Of course I’m! I love Pas de Deux. Don't you?”. He freezes. Should he tell you the truth or should he just play it cool and avoid ruining your good mood? Well, you’re going to find out eventually. And when it happens, your mood is going to be ruined anyway, so why not postpone it a little?”. He approaches you, faking enthusiasm, “Sure. Who doesn't, right?” “Right?”. You walk toward the speaker and press play, “Ok. Let 's start simple, with the lifts from the first act” “Got it”. As the music plays, you dance gracefully, your body and the melody blending into one— you’re not just playing Giselle, you’re Giselle. Just like the first time he saw you dancing a month ago, just like the ballerinas from that amphitheater in Seoul, 15 years ago. 

As the tempo builds up, you prepare for the first lift. He feels like his heart will jump out of his chest. He tries to calm himself down, but it’s not enough to push the anxiety aside. “Come on, Taehyun, you can do it. It's just a simple, straight lift. Just grab her waist and then… lift”, he tells himself. He looks at you, it's time, you jump into his arms, completely surrender to the performance “1”. He straightens his posture, applying all the knowledge you have  passed to him over the past weeks. “2”, he grabs your waist and lifts you high, your waistline aligning with the top of his head. “3. Hold still”, his arms burn and his legs tremble, but keeping his back aligned helps him be stable enough. “Good, you can put me down”, he gently lowers you to the ground, trying to hide his relief. Even though the execution was good, he felt stiff. You might not have noticed, lost in the music, but he did— it was almost like a statue was holding you. “Your posture was good, but you trembled a lot” “I know, sorry” “We can fix that later. Let's try the press lift from the second act now” “Shit”, he curses in his mind. 

You position yourself in front of him, standing on one leg and raising the other up high. “Let's just work on your foundation first. Then we’ll incorporate it into the choreo”. He nods, placing one of his shaky hands on your waist and the other on your raised thigh, then he lifts you. Your eyes watch him in the mirror, he's struggling too much— there's no delicacy, no stability. His posture is off, the lift is uneven, the self consciousness takes control over his body. “Put your shoulders back, align your back”, he tries to do what you say, but his muscles are too tense from the anxiety, “Taehyun, focus! Engage your core”. He feels your body shaking above his head. There's no synchrony between you two, “That's enough, put me down”. 

He lowers you down, but he lets go of you too soon, not giving you time enough to balance on the ballet shoe. He just takes his hands of you and steps back as quickly as possible.

Without his support, you lose balance and collapse on the floor. Taehyun turns around and runs to you as the sound of your fall hits his ears, “Yn! Oh my god. Shit! I’m so sorry”. He’s consumed by guilt. He should have told you from the start that his specialty is not dancing with the ballerinas— it’s dropping them. You sit down, reaching for your ankle, “Are you okay?” “My ankle hurts”. You look at Taehyun, he's clearly panicking, trying to figure out what he can do to fix the whole mess he created. You try to stand, but he stops you, “Lemme do it”. He slips your arm over his neck, lifts you by the thighs and carries you to the bench at the edge of the room. “Stay here. I’ll grab some ice”. You want to yell at him and tell him to go away. You want to say you can take care of yourself, that you don’t need him. But the look on his face—  as if he wouldn't even be able to sleep tonight if you don't let him help—- convinces you to just nod and accept it.

A few minutes later, he comes back with a bag of ice and a bottle of water. “Here, I didn't know what you like to drink so I just got water”. Your fingers brush against his as you grab the bottle, and a small wave of electricity runs through your chest. What is this that he makes you feel? He kneels in front of you and gently presses the ice bag on your ankle. “I’m sorry again. I know that water and… frozen water don’t fix anything, so let me make it up to you. A coffee, a croissant, whatever you like”. You look at him, gripping on the bottle of water tightly, thinking about what to do. Your entire life has been dedicated to ballet. You never had many friends and you never went out too much. So an invitation like that, as simple and ordinary it seemed to be, feels strange to you. 

Deep down, you like Taehyun. He’s sweet, he has a beautiful soul, and looks genuinely worried about you. So, hesitantly, you nod, “Sure. Let's grab something to drink”. His face lights up, “Really?” “Yes” “Okay! You can jump on my back, I’ll carry you”. You giggle, ”You don't have to do that” “Yes, I do” “I can walk” “Please. Let me take care of you” “Fine. But I’m walking home on my own” “Deal”.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

You and Taehyun are sitting on stuffed chairs at a café by the riverbank of the Seine River. It’s late afternoon, and although the sky is beautiful there are rain clouds scattered across the entire city. You ordered your favorite hot drink, and Taehyun got his usual iced caramel macchiato and pain au chocolat, "How’s your ankle?" "Well, I think. I’ll survive", he nods, "Good". You change the subject, "Hey, Taehyun, can I try that?" "Sure”. You take a bite of the pastry, the taste of the dark chocolate pleasing your tongue. "Hum! Delicious. The chocolate isn’t too sweet" "This place It’s my favorite in the city. It reminds me of the ones I used to make back in Korea" "Do you know how to bake?" "Yes, my parents have a small bakery in Gangnam" "Really? And did you work there?" "I worked there for 3 years" "Wow. Are you that kind of family that passes down the business to their children for like 10 generations?".

He laughs, "Not really. My grandfather owned the bakery, but my parents never expected me to work with them. I was supposed to study law in college" "What made you change your mind?" "My dad suffered a car accident and passed away. So I started working there, you know, to help my mom”. Your jaw drops slightly, "I’m sorry" "It’s okay. It’s been 6 years already. I’m not grieving anymore" "Good. And how did you go from law to ballet?" "I always wanted to be a ballet dancer. Since I was… 8? I guess, and I watched Giselle with my mom for the first time" "Oh! That’s why you really want to be in the production" "Yes. But my father said it wasn’t something men should do". You choke on your drink, "Ugh, that’s sexist" "He just… grew up in a conservative family. I know it doesn't justify but... it was what he was taught, you know? He was a good man, a good father. He taught me how to be reliable, to take care of my family, and to treat a woman right. He went to every soccer match of mine and cheered like we were the national team. He loved me, and I loved him”. Taehyun pauses, “I love him. But emotions? He taught me how to hide my emotions, to never be vulnerable in front of others" "That’s why you can’t connect? Both with a dance partner and the dance itself?". He nods, "Look, you will never be able to perform if you don’t feel things while dancing"

"I know" "But I’ll help you" "How?" "I’ll think about something. But you’re going to dance as Albrecht. This is my commitment to you, Kang Taehyun" "Alright". 

You both drink your coffee in silence for a few moments, till he breaks it, "How about you?" "Me?" "Yes, what’s your story?" "Nah, I’m boring" "I don’t think you are” "I’m just an only child from a couple of divorce lawyers who are divorced. I don’t have any friends, and I spent my whole life in dance studios” "When did you start dancing?" "I was 12. My mom thought it would be good for me to make new friends. But it did exactly the opposite. Inside the academies, the competition was so intense that it was almost impossible to make real friends. And outside of the dancing academies, I used to have some friends, but I spent so many hours in the studio that I almost couldn’t see them. And when we did, it felt like parts were missing. I felt like I didn’t belong to the group. I missed the heartbreaks, the college approvals, a new puppy… small but important things like that. So we grew apart with time".

You pause, taking a deep breath before continuing, "Ballet, it’s the only thing I feel like I have control in my life. The only place where I felt like I ever belonged. It even had the power to reunite my parents like two civilized people at my recitals. In ballet, I only depend on myself to make things work. Now, Hyunjin was the first person I grew close to in the past 10 years, and I also ruined it. So that’s me, a lonely girl who’s obsessed with ballet and control". Taehyun stares at you, choosing the following words carefully, "You didn’t ruin your relationship with Hyunjin. He ruined it. You just had enough courage to choose yourself over him and walk away" "Do you think it was courageous?" "Yes" "Thank you" "But you need to have more fun. And spend time with other people. Staying at the studio practicing alone will not be good for you” "Yeah, I know" "You will help me with my dancing, so I’ll help you to have more fun" "So, we’re like friends now?" "Yes. We’re friends now". 

You smile, "Okay. So, tell me, my friend. What’s your favorite thing to do in Paris?" "Well, my friend, I like watching the sunset at the Trocadéro Square" "Oh! That sounds nice. Shall we do it now, Tae?". His lips part in disbelief, "Did you just give me a nickname?" "I guess so..." "So can I start calling you Ynninie from now on?" "Don’t you dare call me that".  He laughs, squeezing his eyes shut, looking even more cute like that, "Let’s go. If we hurry, we can watch the sunset”.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

The sun begins to set in Paris as you and Taehyun stand side by side, your shoulders lightly touching. The large orange and yellow Sun sinks into the sky towards the horizon, filling your eyes with a strong, warm light, “Wow. You were right, it’s beautiful” “I’m always right” .You look at him and roll your eyes, “Cocky” “Realistic”. You turn to him, about to say something when the LED lights around you suddenly turn on in a bright flash. 

You look around, the illuminated marble floor makes it feel like a school dance. “Wow, it looks like a dance floor”. Taehyun also looks around, and when he looks back at you, his face is lighting up as if he just had the best idea in the world. “Ynninie, you’re a genius!”  

“What?”  “Let’s dance. I’ll try to feel the music, and you’ll try to have fun” .

He pulls out his phone and starts scrolling. You shift uncomfortably, the idea gets you on your nerves. “You want to dance… here?”  “Yeah” “But there are people around. They’ll stare” “So what?”. He places his phone on the ground, and Eternally starts playing through the speaker.  

‘제발 멈춰

매일 밤 꾸는 이 악몽’

“That’s just great! How exactly do you expect me to have fun with such a sentimental song?” “Trust me”. Taehyun steps closer, taking one of your hands in his while the other rests gently on your back, pulling you in. He looks even more handsome up close. Even though his natural scent stands out, of course, you trained all afternoon, you can still smell his cologne. You take a deep breath, savoring the woody fragrance with sandalwood hints coming from him—you silently hope the scent clings on your clothes.  

“Wait, what are you doing?” “It’s a slow song, so we’re slow dancing”. You both start moving slowly, stepping on each other’s feet, which is driving you crazy. “Come on, your body is still stiff. Loosen up, technique doesn’t matter here”. His voice is full of energy and encouragement, but something is off—he doesn’t look you in the eyes. “Taehyun,” you call,

“Yeah?” “Look at me”. He chuckles, making his dimples show, “I am looking at you” “No. Look me in the eyes”. He shifts his gaze to the horizon, “I can’t”. You gently place a hand on his cheek, softening your voice, “Trust me”.

He takes a deep breath and gives it a chance. The moment his bright brown eyes meet yours, something… changes—for the first time, he’s not just seeing you. He's feeling you. He feels your uncertain steps trying to follow his lead, your tense body, your mind clouded with self-conscious thoughts— everything.

‘Don’t go breaking my heart  

Don’t go’  

He spins you, but your arms get tangled with his. You laugh, “Ah! This is a mess” “That’s how I like it”. You open your mouth to argue, but then, the song shifts abruptly.  

‘I want to end this world’

Taehyun grins, suddenly stepping away from you to move his body in random, frantic motions, completely immersed in the melody—each note becoming one with him. You stay frozen in the place he left you, watching him without knowing what to do. “What the hell is happening?” “I told you to trust me. Don’t just stand there, move, have fun. C’mon!”. You watch his body shake in chaotic movements, not caring if people are watching or if he looks silly. You smile, first nodding your head shyly, then moving your arms back and forth, and soon, you get carried away completely. Before you even realize it, you’re jumping, kicking, spinning on the marble floor of the Trocadero Square, stumbling over your own feet, not worrying about posture or execution—you’re just… dancing for fun.  

Taehyun watches you and smiles. You look so yourself, and he thinks he loves this version of you. Once again, the music shifts suddenly, and the sound of the guitar drags Taehyun's body toward yours again.

‘추억의 미로 속 잠긴 내 마음  

구해줘 날’

He takes the waltz position again, and your feet continue to move carelessly across the black and white floor. You laugh, “What just happened?” “You had fun” “That was insanity”  

“I’m proud of you”. Your eyes meet his, he’s still looking at you, but this time, he seems different— he’s vulnerable, he’s present. “I’m proud of you too”. 

Suddenly, the sound of thunder echoes above your heads, and the rain begins to fall. For a moment, nothing else exists, your wet clothes, the Parisians going home from work, the Eiffel Tower, even the dark clouds above the French capital fade away—it’s just you and him.  

The music continues, shifting between calm and chaos, until it finally ends, but Taehyun doesn’t let go of you, almost as if you were stuck on each other’s bodies like a tattoo. Both of you are soaked and breathless but he still manages to laugh, and you can’t help but do the same. “I haven’t had this much fun in years. Thank you” “No. Thank you” “What are you thanking me for?” “For letting me see you. Or better yet, for letting me feel you. I felt everything, thanks to you”.

You hold his gaze—there’s nothing left to say, your eyes say it all. Your hearts refuse to beat at a normal pace, adrenaline still running through your veins. He wets his lips, those you can’t stop staring at, and you realize— are you two about to… kiss? No, no. This can’t happen, it would be too much for one day. So you clear your throat and take a step back, “We should go before one of us catches a cold. Besides, it’s getting dark”. Taehyun runs a hand through his wet hair, clearly frustrated that you killed the mood, and looks up. The pink and orange sky from earlier is now a mix of dark blue and gray. He hadn't noticed the sky changing— time truly seemed to stop while you were dancing together.  

“Yeah, you’re right. Are you heading to the train station?” “I am” “I’ll walk you there, if that’s okay” “Of course”. You both share his umbrella, walking in a comfortable silence, your fingers occasionally brushing against his, until you finally part ways at the entrance of the station.  For the rest of the evening, you both carry a silly smile on your lips— what a great day to be in the city of love.  

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

The auditions are just a week away. Now your focus is making sure Taehyun can do the lifts correctly and safely. You’re back in the dance studio. He stands in the center of the room while you stand at one end, ready to jump into his arms for a lift. "Remember, the most important thing isn’t showing strength, it’s showing connection and grace” "Got it” "Alright, let’s go”. You press play on the speaker and skip softly toward him. Taehyun fixes his posture, takes a deep breath, then grabs your waist and lifts you. The movement is light, steady, and well done. He gently lowers you back to the floor. You turn to him and hold up your hands for a high five, “That was great, Tae. Now let’s try the next one” "Okay”. 

You do a soft arabesque, lifting one leg high, and spin to face him, "If you feel like you can’t hold me, just put me down gently”. He nods and places his hands on your waist, "Like this?". You adjust his hands a little higher, he swallows hard at your touch, "Hold a bit tighter” "Okay” "Now place your other hand on my left thigh” "Got it. Let’s do this”. He does a small plié to boost the movement and lifts you for a few seconds before setting you down gently. "That was way better than yesterday. At least it wasn’t shaky. Let’s try again, but use your core more” "Alright”.  You repeat the steps from before. His hands find your waist again. He’s sweating, not because of the effort, but because you’re so close. He can feel your body warmth, smell your hair gel, the natural scent of your skin— you’re so close that it’s almost dizzying. He takes a breath in, tightens his core, and lifts you again. This time, he holds you up longer, more steady, "Wow! You improved a lot. And really quick. Let’s do it once more”  

The two of you repeat the lift once. Then again, and again. Each time, he gets better. "Okay, now let’s add the turn. Watch your feet while doing it”. He nods and lifts you smoothly, rotating slightly as you float above his head in the air. When he puts you down, you pull him into a tight hug, tighter than you’ve ever hugged anyone before. "Ah, my little pupil. You’re my best creation”. He laughs and hugs you back, "So now I’m an invention?" "Something like that”. You step back and take a sip of water, "Should we call it a day? I’m so tired, and my right foot is killing me” "Yeah, let’s wrap it up”.

You sit on the floor and start untying your right ballet shoe. But Taehyun kneels down and stops you, looking you in the eyes, "Let me do it”. Your lips part slightly, surprised with the sudden proposal, "Your foot hurts from practicing so much because of me. So, let me help”. Your cheeks get warm. Why does he always make you feel like you’re on fire? "...Alright". His hands replace yours, warm against your cold fingers. He carefully unties the ribbons around your ankle, "Does it still hurt?" "Not really. It’s like nothing happened” "Good”. He smiles as his fingers lightly brush over your foot. His touch is so soft and gentle, almost… intimate. You close your eyes, focusing on fully feeling his touch. When he finally removes your shoe, he pauses. He knew ballet shoes can be painful, but seeing your swollen, bruised foot up close makes his chest tighten, "Does it always look like this?" "I’ve had worse days”. He nods, "I see”.

His hands run over your foot, sending a small shiver through your body. Then, his thumbs press gently into the arch, moving in slow circles, "Is this okay?". You nod, enjoying the massage.  He moves his thumbs to the ball of your foot, pressing softly. "You’re really good at this” "Thanks. I used to massage my mom’s feet when she came home exhausted from work” "Did she make you do it?" "No. I just wanted to. She worked so hard to take care of me. So I wanted to do something for her too”. You smile, "You’re such a sweetheart. You know that, right?" "Yeah, I know”. He keeps massaging for a few more moments before gently placing your foot back on the wooden floor. “Thanks, that helped a lot” "It was nothing. Are you heading to the train station today?" "Yeah” "Wanna get some madeleines on the way? It’s on me” "Of course”. His face lights up, "Okay! Let me grab my bag, then we can go” "Alright”. You wonder as you watch him jog to get his bag. A guy who massages your feet, buys you madeleines, and walks you to the train station—even though he lives in the opposite direction— without you even having to ask…. Is he even real?  

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

Taehyun is convinced he must have a flower full of nectar blooming in his stomach because the butterflies don't leave him alone. The big day is finally here, and he couldn’t be more anxious. He walks back and forth, snapping his fingers as he murmurs the choreography sequence to himself. He’s driving Soojin crazy. “Dude, what do you have on your feet? A motor?” “I think I’m gonna throw up” “Man, relax. You and Yn practiced so much, it’s gonna be fine” “You think so?”. “Are you doubting my teaching skills, Kang Taehyun?”. It’s your voice. He turns around and sees you standing there, holding a cup of coffee with a straw. Immediately, he feels his body relax, “No, never”. You grin, “Here”, you extend the cup to him, “Drink this. Try to relax”  

“You really wanna give him coffee?”, Soojin joins in the conversation. Taehyun looks at her, then at the cup in your hand, “She’s right. I’ll just get even more anxious” “It’s an iced caramel macchiato. Your favorite, isn’t it?”. He tilts his head— there’s no way you actually remembered that. He takes the cup from your hands, still a little suspicious, and takes a sip. The delicious mix of sweet from the caramel and bitter from the coffee makes an explosion of taste in his mouth, “So refreshing. Thank you”. You clear your throat and say almost like a whisper, “There’s a note” “Huh?” “There’s a note… on the back”. He turns the cup around and sees a small, but meaningful, message written in permanent marker:  

‘I’d wish you luck, but you don’t need it. Your talent and effort have already guaranteed you the role. Do your best, and if that’s not enough, at least have fun.  

— Your friend, Yn’ 

He looks at you, with his heart warm, and smiles, “This is really sweet. Thank you”. He steps forward and gives you a side hug. You tense up at his touch but when he pulls away, you miss the warmth of his body against yours. “Okay, okay. But don’t get used to it” “Too late. I’m already spoiled” “Well, that’s not my problem”. He rolls his eyes and takes another sip of his beverage. That cup is definitely going to end up as a souvenir in his room. “I’m gonna rush to the bathroom real quick before my turn”, you say. “I’ll go too,” Soojin adds, “Alright. Oh, and Yn, don’t take too long. My turn’s coming soon” “I wouldn’t miss it for the world”. He looks into your eyes and smiles. You smile back, and for a moment, it’s like you’ve both been transported back to Trocadero Square—  when the rest of the world disappeared as you danced together. It had to be Soojin to grab your shoulders and drag you to the bathroom.  

What neither of you noticed is that a pair of eyes had been watching you and Taehyun from distance. Hyunjin saw everything—the coffee, the note, your nervous reaction to Taehyun’s hug, the way you locked eyes, how you had to be literally pulled away from him—absolutely everything. And, of course, he didn’t like it. Obviously, he is willing to do whatever it takes to make sure you and Taehyun won’t dance together.  

Inside the bathroom, you stare at yourself in the mirror after washing your hands. You may not have shown it in front of Taehyun, but you’re nervous too. Despite all the training and hours of repetition, the competition is fierce, and any mistake can be decisive.  “Take a deep breath”, Soojin’s voice pulls you out of your thoughts. “I’m trying” “You’re good. Probably the best I’ve ever seen in this academy. It’s gonna be okay”. She places her hand over yours, and you nod, “Thanks, Soojin” “You and Taehyun are friends now, right?” Yes, we are” “Well, good for you, you got a special offer” “An offer?” “Yeah, we're like a special offer, make one friend, get another for free”. You smile and pull her into a hug, “I’m glad I can count on you guys” “Me too”. She pulls away and shakes the water bottle, “I’m gonna go fill this up for Taehyun” “Okay, go ahead”. She leaves the bathroom, and you glance at yourself in the mirror one last time. You take a deep breath and murmur to yourself, “You got this, Yn”. You loosen your shoulders and walk toward the bathroom door, but when you grab the handle, you realize—it’s locked.  

You turn the knob multiple times, trying to force it open, but nothing works. You loudly knock on the door and call for help when you hear footsteps approaching,“Soojin? Are you there?”  

“Almost”. You take a step back, suddenly feeling dizzy, you recognize that voice. “The ‘jin’ at the end is right” “Hyunjin?!” “Bingo”. You sigh, hating the fact you’re going to have to beg for his help. But he’s your only option, so you swallow your pride and ask, “Can you help me with the door? It doesn’t open, and I need to get to the audition!”. He leans against the door, “I could help you, but…” “But what?! Didn’t you hear me? I’ll miss my audition if you don’t get me out of here now!” “That’s exactly why I can’t let you out”. You furrow your brows, trying to understand what the hell he means, then—it all makes sense. “You! You did this?!”  “Yes, I did”. You grab the handle and shake it desperately, “Hyunjin, you psycho! Get me out of here now!” “Not happening, sweetheart”. He can’t see your face, but it’s red like a tomato, “Sweetheart?! I am not your sweetheart, you freak. Open this door now, or I’ll scream!”  

“Go ahead. There’s no one around to hear you”.

You rest your forehead against the door, there’s a defeat tone in your voice, “Why?” “What was that?” “Why are you locking me in here? What do you get out of this?” “You, Yn, whether you want to admit it or not, you’re mine. And I’m not gonna let you be the Giselle to someone else’s Albrecht” “What?! You’re doing this because you’re jealous of Taehyun?” “I like that you’re smart, it saves me from having to explain things”. You decide to tease on him, “So you know he’s better than you, huh? You’re scared of him being Albrecht because you know he’s good”. Hyunjin clenches his jaw, “I was going to let you out after the auditions, but you know what? I don’t want to anymore”. He pulls away from the door, and you hear him walking away.  You punch the door, imagining it’s his face, and scream furiously, “Ah! Hyunjin, you stupid asshole! I swear, I’ll kill you when I get out of here!”. Your knuckles start to bleed from how hard you’re hitting it. So, you stop. This is it. No one’s coming to save you this time. You lean against the door and silently pray that Taehyun gets the role, even without your support from the backstage.  

Hyunjin smirks to himself as he walks back to the auditorium. His plan had worked— no one is taking you from him, not even some nosy newbie. But he didn’t count on Soojin, who had been hiding in the staircase the whole time, listening to everything. She peeks out into the hallway, watching Hyunjin walk away. Once he’s far enough, she rushes toward the bathroom, “Shit! Yn, you're still there?”. You lift your head, hope shining in your eyes, “Soojin?!” “Yeah, it’s me!” “You have to help me! Hyunjin locked me in here!” “I heard everything. Relax, girl, I got your back” “Do you have the key?” “No, but I have a hairpin”. She kneels down and pushes it into the lock, “Do you know how to do that?” “Well, I saw it in movies, so it must be easy”. She wiggles the pin around, but nothing happens. Then, she tries to pull the pin from the lock, “Shit” “What?” “Let’s just say… the pin is kinda…” “Kinda what, Soojin?” “Stuck in the lock” "Stuck?!" "I'm so sorry, Yn. But don't worry, I'll get help. Just stay there" "Seriously?" "My bad, I spoke without thinking” “Just go” “I'm going, I'm going!". You pinch the bridge of your nose and let out a deep sigh as you hear Soojin’s footsteps fading away.

Meanwhile, Taehyun stands at the entrance to the stage, tapping his fingers nervously on the plastic cup. "Where are those two?", he mutters to himself. Then,  he spots Soojin running down the hallway toward him, "Taehyun!". She practically throws herself into his arms, completely out of breath, "Are you okay, Soojin?"  "I'm fine… but Yn isn’t". Taehyun’s face goes pale, "What happened to Yn?". His voice is full of fear, “Did she get hurt? "No, no. Hyunjin locked her in the bathroom” "What?! Why?" "So she’d miss the audition" "No way…” "I tried to help, but I think I just made it worse. You need to get her out of there" "Yeah, but… is there still time?". The answer is no. As soon as he finishes his sentence, the assistant director calls his name, "Next up is Kang Taehyun". Soojin swallows hard, "What now, Tyun?". 

Taehyun looks ahead to the stage—he’s one step closer to his dream. Then, he looks back to the hallway—he’s one step further from the girl of his dreams.

End of part 1.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒𓂃⠀⠀˖

Don't miss part 2, that's where all the action will be! Lemme know if you want to be tagged.

Tags: @xylatox, @hyunruhi

Masterlist

Playlist

[missmielyhoran]

Long Live

Harry does his first ever tiktok live...

90sRockstar!Harry × Model!Reader

A/N- i- just read this...I cried thinking about this

(It's 2023, Harry and Reader are in their early 50s, Jackson and Sophie- 19)

Masterlist // Series Masterlist

*****

"Angel do I look good?" Harry asks you as he props his phone on the stand Jackson setup before he went to the studio.

"You always do Baby" You chuckled from the loveseat watching your husband fix his graying hair for millionth time.

It's been a long time since Harry and band stopped performing. The last album they released was almost five years ago and today was band's 25th birthday. So, Harry's management asked him to do a live stream.

He obviously didn't how amything worked considering the old man he was which you always told he wasn't seeing as people your age were still having kids while yours were about to go to college.

He felt old.

He noticed the whole time he was live as multiple comments rolled in. He thought tiktok was fun, Sophie even got him to make some with him which he thought was silly but again very fun.

"Hi I'm Harry" He introduced himself as if everyone already didn't know who he was. You shook your head amused.

"Oh there are so many people. How do I talk to them? Is it like face time?" He asked you but you were just as confused.

"I think you read the comments and reply to them babe" You guessed as you saw multiple people asking different questions and some sending weird emojis.

"Oh" He read the comments and laughed, "They want to see you Angel" He said and pulled you from the loveseat to beside him and wrapped his arms around your frame.

"Hi" You said laughing.

"As you all know it's my band's 25th anniversary so I decided to this live thingy my kids taught me the other day. I can't perform anymore any of us can't especially Mitch and his old man bones" he said teasingly knowing his best friend will see this.

"My kids are so smart cause if it was upto me I would've never been able to do this" He said as he read people finding it funny and sweet that he didn't know how to use tiktok.

As if on queue Sophie walked into the living room typing away on her phone.

"Sweety come here and say hi. I'm live on tiktok" Harry said eagerly. Sophie laughed and slid beside her dad putting her head on his shoulder.

"Do you guys know she got into Harvard? All by herself." Harry said proudly, "I don't even know where she got it from none of us are smart"

"Hey, I'm smarter than you" You said slapping his chest.

"I'm dumb as fuck Angel, Evie is smarter than me" He said laughing which turned into a cackle when Evie meowed from her bed half asleep across the room.

Harry decided to read some more comments and you decided to get onto preparing lunch. Sophie sat on the sofa letting her dad do her thing but also be there if he needed something.

"Hey, sweetie what does b and 4 means?" Harry asked quizzical to his daughter.

"It means before dad, like b and four" She explained, Harry's face morphed into a 'ohh' expression.

"That's smart" He said nodding his head. He read some more comments when someone put sunglasses on his face.

"Someone put sunglasses on me" He laughed and posed as if he was wearing real sunglasses, "This is fun"

He saw someone say 'brb gotta cry' and he felt bad, "I don't know who brb is but please don't cry" He said his lips turning into a soft frown.

Sophie laughed from her seat and explained to her dad that it didn't mean someone was literally crying which made him feel embarrassed flushing his face a bit.

Harry was having fun with this new technology nonetheless and Sophie was having fun watching her dad experience new things. She knew this will be added to the plathora of Harry Styles compilations there are on YouTube (which he very much enjoys watching).

She was lost in thought of maybe teching him how to use instagram and maybe doing a live there also when he spoke up again.

*****

"Why are so many people here calling me dilf? what's a dilf?" He asked confused and Sophie decided that she is not letting him do live again.

Idk where this came from I was listening to Long live by Tay. also by sweating I meant this emoji 🥵

Taglist- @tenaciousperfectionunknown @that-daydream-look @harryspirate @tiaamberxx @lomlhstyles @vmpellie @sunshinemoonsposts @jayde515 @yeehawbrothers @sleutherclaw @ikea2-0 @thechaoticjoy @astridcommings @grapejuicebluesrry @gxbiqs

Like, Comment and Reblog cause it really helps me🩷

If you liked it please tell me here♡ and I love you guysssss

[shaunamilfman]

It’s been so long since I’ve sent an ask in, i fear the kids will think we’re in a divorce. So today I came to offer up a situation I believe in 1000%.

Jackie Taylor in college not knowing how to flirt with women, so whenever she meets you for the first time she doesn’t know how to talk to you. She ends up buying those stupid men’s pickup artist CDs, the like late 2000s type. She believes it completely and thinks that this is how you get girls and buys like the whole box set. It comes with douche clothes, a small notebook of pickup lines and a huge textbook along with like 10 CDs. Literally any normal person would know these lines and tactics would absolutely not work, but she’s convinced herself. So she tries approaching you in a bar and when you don’t follow the script that the pickup artist said you’d respond with, she gets nervous. She pulls out and skims through the pages of a huge book that in VERY bold letters on the front reads, ‘HOW TO GET WOMEN’

She eventually gives up on the textbook after she sees the weird look you gave her upon seeing it. Just ends up taking a bar napkin and writing “Do you like me?” With 2 options below that read “Yes” and “YES”. She’s looking at you like she’s so proud of herself that you cant help but circle the option in all caps. (She thinks that means you’re dating, immediately)

excellent ask as always bro. feels like we haven't spoken in soooo long. waiting by the window for my husband to come home from war. checking the post office every day for one mere letter from the front lines 😔

the way that little book is the only thing jackie's taking notes on before she got to college. she bombed her first exam and is like "omg how do you study in college???" and then looked at her 10 pages of notes from "chicks 101" and a lightbulb lit up

jackie has the best pickup lines written down and her phone and keeps checking the notes app as shes walking towards you (walks into a pole). forgets them immediately the second she starts talking to you (you talked first and she forgot what she crammed) but refuses to admit it and tries it anyways. completely flips the line around. like "you're the only ten i see, are you from tennessee?" and immediately winces.

screams into her pillow atleast once a week. did not realize that flirting with girls would be so fucking hard. no one tells you this thing. she almost misses when she thought she was straight. the shit was soooo easy. she's so good at flirting with boys that she's still pulling them without even trying.

also jackie for fucking sure memorizes how she wants conversations to go in general when she's nervous about something i feel and the second someone goes off script she's like "hold on now". has to schedule a doctors appointment for the first time and they ask her a question she didn't have written down and she hangs up (they needed her middle name. she makes shauna call them from rhode island lmaoo.).

peering over jackie's shoulder and she's got 20 tabs open all along the lines of "how to kiss", "how to tell her i like her", "how to flirt with women when you look straight", "how to be her friend in a gay way", "lesbian. girl pretty. help"

jackie does NOT believe in situationships. what do you mean you're not in love with her??? you went on three dates?? she secretly sprayed her perfume on your pillow when you were in the bathroom and everything. yahoo answers swore it would make you fall in love with her

side note jackie immediately hard launches you after one date. queen. writing mrs jackie taylor in all her notebooks for sure. calling shauna up like "i found the one" and shaunas like "...where is she from?". "unimportant. anyways so on our date..."

you see a no faintly written under a shit ton of eraser marks before she changed her mind and wrote another yes. (was nervous about giving you the option lmaooo)

[hellfiremunsonn]

Stuck With Me. Eddie Munson x Reader

AN: At the end of each chapter will be a picture of ‘your’ Journal. Photos, and writing of a little bit from each chapter. 

(THIS IS A REUPLOAD ALL CHAPTERS WILL BE RE UPLOADED ONE BY ONE)

I do not allow my writing to be republished anywhere other than my own blog without my consent.

WARNINGS: Nothing serious I don’t think in this first chapter.

WORDCOUNT: 2k

Chapter 1: I Made Pasta

It’s 6:35pm when you finally make it through the threshold of your shared apartment with your best friend Robin. After a terribly long shift at a coffee shop just down the road you could barely make it three steps before dropping all of your belongings and laying flat on your back on the cold hardwood floor.

Soft music from the radio in the living room echoed around and you could smell something with garlic cooking. Bare feet thumping loudly down the hallway; stopping only a few millimetres from your head. You opened one eye, squinting the other while looking up and an upside down robin. Her hair a curtain around her face. 

“You didn’t even make it to the carpet today” She said, voice soft with sympathy. 

You groaned and closed your eyes again, pushing out your bottom lip in a hefty pout. 

“I’m making pasta, do you want any?” she asked, her footsteps retreating into the kitchen.

“Please?” you said finally sitting up off the floor. You hated complaining about working at the coffee shop because if you were being honest to anyone other than yourself, you were really lucky to have it, and really lucky to actually like the people you worked with. The past retail jobs you had with snotty coworkers, and middle-aged women forming cliques; the coffee shop was a breath of fresh air in comparison. It was just always hard. Being too nice for your own good and often got taken advantage of which leads you to constantly be overworking, and so sometimes, coming home and laying on the floor is the only thing you can manage for about twenty minutes. Ten if robins cooked something. 

You and Robin have lived together for about two years now, but you’ve known her for three. You met at some shitty bar with a bunch of college kids you didn’t know and ending up sticking together and getting high in the girls bathroom. You fell in love with who she was instantly. The way she talked so quickly and passionately, her thoughts tumbling out her mouth before she could even process them. The insane amount of knowledge her brain could hold, constantly blurting facts about almost anything, being able to keep them all within relevance of the conversation was something you almost envied. She had this really good friend Steve. Steve Harrington; they had apparently gone to school together but when they showed you old pictures of them you would have never imagined them ending up as friends. They became close after working together at some ice cream shop in a mall back in their old town that apparently burnt down, and they kind of trauma bonded from that. 

Steve was funny and quick witted, often called you out on your own bullshit before you even saw it. He was a delight to be around honestly and if you and Robin had an extra room you know he’d stay here. His parents are rich apparently, but he was quite adamant about paying for his own shitty apartment instead of having his parents rent out one of the nicer ones down town. He stayed down there most days. 

There was another kid who came around every once in a while; Dustin… something. You could never remember his last name, but Steve looked after him like he was his younger brother. Dustin was also from Hawkins along with the other two, and it was sweet knowing they all kept in touch as often as they did seeing as they were so far from their home town, and all grown up. 

You was jealous sometimes. Jealous of the life they had before, and the friendships they kept. You never had the opportunity to stay anywhere for very long. You lived with your aunt Jean, and money was hard for her. She adopted you after your mom died when you were six, even though she already had four kids of her own that she was raising. It was hard raising us as a single parent, and her kids didn’t exactly like you.

So with Jean often unable to pay rent, you moved from place to place every couple years. It gets tiring being the new kid, so when you turned eighteen you moved out here you decided to stay as long as you could; and every year you’ve been here since Robin has made it worth it. (Although you would never hold it against her, you do miss her when she goes back to Hawkins for the holidays to visit her parents) 

Those first couple of years on your own were terrible until you met that chatter box of a woman named Robin. 

Finally lifting yourself off of the floor you walked towards your room, putting your things away and ridding yourself of your old work clothes. Dropping them to the floor you searched through your dresser pulling out a pair of pyjama pants and an old baggy Metallica shirt. You never wore it out in public because their music wasn’t exactly your thing, but Robin had given it to you; saying it was an old friends and she didn’t want to keep it but felt guilty if she threw it away or donated it. So naturally you took it in happily. It was too comfy to throw away, so it became a regular sleep shirt. 

Sliding your way back into the kitchen Robin was placing two bowls of pasta onto the counter. Grabbing both you brought them over to your little rounded kitchen table that you stuck in the corner. It was a tight squeeze but you made it work. “Have I ever told you that I love you?” you said to her with a mouthful of noodles. 

She laughed and slid into the seat across from you, placing two graciously full glasses of white wine. “Once or twice, usually not through a mouthful of food, but still meaningful nonetheless” she quipped. “I am a really good cook though” She admitted. 

“You are, I don’t know why Steve is always so shocked about it" 

“Because I could barely make toast without setting something on fire when I was in high school" 

"I just find that so hard to believe” You said. “I always picture you as this person” you gesture towards her. “Just maybe a little smaller, and maybe more shy”

“Oh I’m still shy” she pointed at you with her fork; half a noodle dangling from it.

“I know, I’ve seen the way you talk to women remember?” You laughed. “You’ve gotten better though, and you’re back together with vickie right? That’s gotta be good for something”

“Yeah I guess” Sighing she poked around her bowl.

“Trouble in paradise?” You ask while raising an eyebrow. 

She rolled her eyes at the cliche phrase. “I don’t know, I think I’m just worried that maybe the break wasn’t enough for her and that she’ll realize I’m not that great and she can do better, even though I personally think were perfect for each other, I mean we literally fit together like a puzzle piece, and I don’t know how or why but we do and I-’

"Robin” You say cutting her off. “Sometimes taking a break is really beneficial for bother parties you know? Distance makes the heart grow fonder or some shit; whatever that saying is, anyways” You said swirling your hand in the air. “If vickie doesn’t see how fucking incredible you are, even now after the break, or even when she locked eyes on you for the first time, then she isn’t worth it…” You paused. “I know it’s not exactly what you want to hear, but you are more and you deserve more”

She looked up at you, eyes  bleary with tears. Smiling she wiped at her eyes, a small chuckle escaping her. “You really are the best of best friends a girl could ask for” Her eyes widened at her words. “Don’t tell Steve I said that, he might have a mental breakdown”

“Oh I’m absolutely telling Steve you just said I was the bestest of best friends. I need to rub it in that little twerps face” You said grinning. 

“Oh!” She exclaimed. “I told Steve we would go back with him to Hawkins on Friday for the week, because I know you’re off work, and I can take my work with me anywhere really, and Steve said that the gang really wanted to get together for the Corroded Coffin show at the bar, and I couldn’t exactly say no so” she stopped to take a deep breath. “You’re gunna see the lovely little shit hole that is Hawkins Indiana” She smiled brightly in anticipation. 

You really didn’t want to spend two hours in a car to go visit a town you had never been to, to see a band you had never heard of, but you couldn’t deny the curiosity you had to finally being able to see Robins home town.

“Friday?” You asked and she nodded. 

“But that’s tomorrow" 

She bit her lip and gave you a pleading smile. And when your best friend gives you that ‘please do this for me I need you there and I made you noodles’ look. You just can’t say no.

"Fine” you groan. “But we’re taking my car, Steve can drive himself, I’m not getting stuck in the backseat with you and your stinky feet again" 

"That was one time!” she argued. 

“One time too many if you ask me” you fake annoyance.

“Also thank you, I really appreciate you coming… I didn’t want to see Vickie for the first time since the break alone, and Steve isn’t the best wingman”

“I’d kill a man for you” you said taking another mouthful of noodles. “Just give me the word baby”

“God no wonder Steve always thinks we’re secretly dating with the amount of flirting we do” she said shaking her head. 

“Hey if you don’t flirt with your best friend then what’s the point in even having a best friend?”

“I don’t flirt with Steve” She pointed.

“Yeah cause you’re a lesbian Robin”

She shrugged in agreement and you both went back to eating your pasta. 

Around 9pm you decided to head into your room to start packing your small suitcase. Robin said to pack something for every possible scenario, including the bad ones. Whatever that means.

It was mid July so you decided on half the clothes being okay for hot weather, and half of them being for cold weather, with a few extra cozy options for good measure. You threw an all too new looking copy of The Lord Of The Rings, on top (Something you had been meaning to read for a while) and then fumbled around for toiletries. 

“Hair brush, hair ties, headband?” You questioned looking back at your dresser. It was covered in all types of jewelry and hair accessories mixed in with the endless amount of paint supplies. “Nah no headband” You decided. “toothbrush and toothpaste? I’m sure Robins parents have toothpaste…” You bit your lip. What if they were the type of people that just didn’t share toothpaste? “Whatever” You rolled your eyes.

Robin knocked lightly on the doorframe of your room. 

You give her a quick glance while continuing to move around your room. She crept in and sat with her legs crossed on your bed. “You’re talking out loud again” she said reaching over to grab one of your stuffed animals, cuddling it to her chest.

“Shit” you mumbled. “I really gotta stop doing that” An embarrassing habit when you were nervous. You even used to have to grit your teeth together to stop myself from looking like a crazy person when you were out in public, but at home, it didn’t really matter all too much if Robin heard you. After a few more minutes of shoving things into your suitcase you stood back to look at it, hands on your hips. “Do you think your parents will like me?” You say abruptly looking up at Robin. 

She raised a brow “Yeah probably, why?”

“I don’t know, I just don’t want them to think you’re living with some weirdo roommate" 

She laughed. "They already know who you are, they don’t think you’re weird. They have me as a daughter, their perception of weird is much different than any ‘normal’ humans”

“Yeah I guess you are a big weirdo huh?” You tease. 

“The best in the bizz” She said with a yawn. “Alright I’m gunna try to sleep, I’ll wake you up in the morning” Skipping out of your room and to her own she yelled a “Goodnight!” Before closing her door. 

You sighed looking at the time. Not feeling tired enough to sleep yet so you decided to journal a little bit to pass the time. Scribbling doodles and words all over the pages, adding as many stickers as you saw fit. It was one of your favourite pastimes because not only did you have your own words to look back on, to remember fond moments, you always slapped a couple of Polaroids onto the pages for extra nostalgia. The process of it all was calming, and often soothed any anxieties from the day whenever you got to sit down, and glue, and tape a bunch of stuff onto the lined paper. 

Finally deciding to crawl into bed before your week of 'vacation’ started. Wrapping your blanket tightly around you, shutting off all the lights except for one and closing your eyes. Naturally sleeping didn’t come easy, and you tossed and turned all night until around 12:30 am. You fell asleep sometime soon after that, adding another page to your journal in the process.

[newtthetranswriter]

Dayquil, Curses, and Soulmates

Paring: Toge inumaki x gn! reader

Summary: In a world where soulmates are real, you get a bond that is quite annoying per say, you feel each other's pain, and your soulmate happens to be the one guy in the world that has a lifetime supply of throat medicine.

Word count: 1698 

Warnings: talk of explosion, talk of medicine, talk of pain, putting these just in case cause you never know

A/n: thought this was a fun idea, let me know how you like it, and big thanks to @just-jordie-things​ for the bit about bumping into each other buying cough medicine. Also if you catch my reference you get a cookie. please ignore any typos, i might come back and fix it later. If I mention school I mean college.  MINORS AND AGELESS BLOGS DO NOT INTERACT

 For as long as i could remember i have always got random pain in my throat. I couldn’t explain it but I would describe it as if I swallowed sandpaper. When I was younger it used to happen all of the time. One moment I was fine and being a happy kid and the next I was coughing like I hadn't had water in days. Around the age of five though my parents took me to the doctor to see if they could figure it out. Turns out that out of all the soulmate connections I could have, I’m stuck sharing pain with my soulmate. I couldn’t help but wonder what my soulmate was doing at such a young age to cause such pain so often.

 At around the age of ten or so it stopped happening as often, but when it happened it sucked. I got used to always carrying around a bottle of cough medicine for when it happened so I could at least talk with less pain. I still have no clue as to what my soulmate does to give us such terrible sore throats but I'm at least glad they slowed down a bit. 

  Today was a normal Saturday which means going out to check the shops for any cool trinkets I might want and get some snacks. Even though I was going out to get fun things, my first stop was the corner store to pick up some more cough medicine as I ran out last week and forgot to get more. 

  I swear when I meet my soulmate they are paying me back for all this cough medicine I have to buy. I thought to myself as I entered the store I have been a regular at for the past two years since starting school. I waved at the shop keeper as I walked off to the medicine aisle to grab my usual travel bottle of cough syrup and an extra just in case. As I reached for the medicine my hand bumped into someone else who seemed to be reaching for the same thing as me. 

  “Oh, I’m sorry you were here first; you can go ahead.” I said looking up at the stranger. Looking at them I would guess that they were a boy about my age with fluffy white hair and beautiful purple eyes. I also noticed he was wearing a school uniform with what looked like an extra-long collar covering the lower half of his face. Even though I was confused by it, I tried not to stare at the handsome stranger in front of me.

  He looked almost shocked when I spoke to him. He gave me a small nod, grabbed the medicine and walked away. I couldn’t help but wonder why he hadn’t said anything but brushed it off as him being shy. After he reached the register, I finally snapped out of my trance and grabbed my own bottles of cough medicine and headed to the front.

   “Hey, there Y/n. Soulmate causing trouble again?” asked Ukai, the owner of the small business who is used to me coming in every couple week.

   “Yeah, I wonder what they keep doing to cause this cause it's so annoying not being able to talk for an hour because of the pain.” I responded not noticing the stranger from earlier freezing up for a second before leaving the store.

  “Well kiddo, I hope you find them soon so you get some answers.” He responded as he handed me my bag. “Have a good day and good luck with the soulmate.”

     After waving goodbye to the man behind the counter who was always kind to me I made my way towards the shops for the day. I was ready to just enjoy my time alone with my thoughts, mostly plotting revenge on my soulmate for this pain, but also just enjoying the fresh air.

  After a few hours I noticed it starting to get dark and decided it was probably best to head home before my parents get concerned. I also don’t really enjoy being out when it gets dark. I don't know how to explain it but other than the annoying soulmate connection, ever since I was kid I could see these weird creatures. As I got older I started ignoring them but whenever I go out at night it seems like there's a lot more, and they give me the creeps.

  As I was passing an alleyway I heard rustling and paused to look and see if it was an animal or something, boy was I wrong. As I looked down the alleyway towards the sound one of the creatures, that I feel like only I can see, lunged towards me. Long dark claws stretched out towards me, right as it was about to sink its claws into my arm I heard what sounded like someone running up from the side, and a voice yelling to move. I’m not sure what came over me, it was like my feet had a mind of their own and I jumped out of the way.

 “EXPLODE” was the next thing I heard the voice say before the creature did just that. It exploded in a large cloud of smoke. Almost immediately after that thing exploded, I was thrown into my own terrible coughing fits, but what was even weirder was I could make out the sound of someone else coughing as well. I reached for the cough medicine I bought earlier and drank half of the first bottle, as large amounts were the only thing that helped.

  “What the hell was that?” I rasped out as best I could waiting for the medicine to start working. The person who had saved me looked up at me with a look of shock on his face. It was at that moment I recognized that it was the same guy from earlier. I could tell it was him from his white hair and uniform jacket that now had the collar unzipped, with the collar no longer hiding the lower half of his face. I could make out what looked like strange tattoos on either side of his mouth. 

  I probably also had a look of shock on my face as I pieced everything together. One this guy could see the weird creatures as well, two he somehow made me move and that thing explode with just words. Last and most important, this guy is my soulmate, it just makes sense it can’t be a coincidence that my soulmate would get a throat pain right as this guy saves me, causing his own coughing fit. I was sure of it and judging by the look on his face he figured it out as well.

  I waited for a moment as I watched him scramble for something in his pocket, and he let out a sound of triumph as he pulled out his phone and walked closer to me while typing out a message. He motioned for me to look at the screen. Sorry for making you spend so much on cough medicine, It's part of my job kinda. I looked at him slightly confused as he started typing again.

  “Why do you keep typing, why not voice what's up instead?” I asked, not understanding fully why this guy who just made something explode with his voice is now refusing to talk. I watched as he shook his head at me and pointed to his phone again. My throat is still messed up, but I also can’t talk like you do. I could explain more over dinner tomorrow if that's ok with you? He asked me using his phone's note app. I looked at him skeptically for a second, but the agreed and gave him my phone number to text me the details.

  “I’m Y/n, by the way, if we’re soulmates I figure we should probably know each other's names” I said as he started typing again. It's nice to meet you Y/n, I’m Toge Inumaki, but you can just call me Toge. After I finished reading the message on his phone I looked up into his kind purple eyes and knew that this was the start of something great. “I can’t wait to go out tomorrow, and also find out whats up with that thing that you blew up.” I said with a chuckle 

  “Salmon” I heard the boy next to me rasp out, his voice sounding more messed up than mine did when I first spoke a minute ago. I looked at him confused for a second before I felt my phone go off in my pocket. I pulled it out to see a message from an unknown number. Hey, it's me, your soulmate, what I mean by salmon is I can't wait for tomorrow either. I also promise to explain everything, I bet this is all kinda weird :)  I read the message and smiled back at him as his face lit up with one of the brightest smiles I had ever seen. 

  “Well it's getting late, I should be getting home. I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye Toge.” I said waving to him as I walked off hearing a small “salmon” and catching him waving before zipping his collar and walking the opposite direction.

   I was a few blocks away and almost home when my phone went off again: get homesafe, if you need me text please. Have a goodnight.  I smiled at the message and responded with an ok, you too. After the small text exchange I finally made it home, I went up stairs and went to bed happy with how the day went. I may have been almost attacked by a weird creature that most people apparently can’t see, but I finally met my soulmate. I can’t wait to get to know him and maybe find out why i was saying salmon so much but hey that's a problem for tomorrow.

  I drifted off to sleep with the thoughts of my soulmate and some slight planning on how to get revenge for the non stop sore throats without causing pain, cause that would be counterproductive.

[desiresiwant]

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐦-𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫

word count: 4k~

warnings: strong language, eventual violence, a pretty much tamed 1st chapter…for now

a/n: this is the 1st chapter of my au longfic based off the The Originals (what if the child was a teenager/YA throughout the show duration and not at season 5?). If there’s a warning I skipped let me know.

MASTERLIST | NEXT ->

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗢𝗻𝗲 | 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗢𝗿𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀

𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐒.

It wasn't how Deena imagined it to be the moment she stepped off the smelly bus onto the gravel sidewalk, with a packed bag hung across her shoulder and an old black suitcase covered in band stickers she used to listen to years ago.

She came a long way from Le Havre, France. Spent about seventeen hours on a plane and another two hours riding two buses to get here, stuck next to an annoying older woman spilling her lifelong secrets.

The sunny sky was touched with a gloom and many buildings looked as if they came out of the 1700s in American films with a modern touch to fit today's society. There were many interesting stores that had caught Deena's eye as she traveled down the sidewalk with no plan in mind. She enjoyed the urban touch of the city through the people and how together they were which was much different back home. Also, it was very much diverse compared to the small area she lived in.

She felt comfortable. At home.

Off the side of a group of friends passing through, Deena pulled out a picture of her beautiful mother in the arms of a man that's to be her father—Klaus Mikaelson.

Her mother was happy in this picture. They both were. In a black shirt hanging off her shoulders, ripped tights under a pair of shorts, smiling at the camera with a drink in her hand and her curly hair almost taking up half the photo. The man—her father, Klaus—sat leaned into her mother, kissing her ear with an arm thrown around her waist. He wore a basic leather jacket with dark blue jeans. Dirty blond hair, dark blue-greenish eyes, and a killer smile. The table in front of them covered in empty red cups and half-filled liquor bottles. They were both young, in college, and in love.

"I want to find him," Deena said to herself in a soft voice. "I need to find Klaus Mikaelson."

But the problem was if Deena ever found her father, she didn't know what she would tell him. She practiced what to say when meeting him, but it was all gibberish and uncompleted sentences that made no sense. She feared a lot of things about her father; him being married with kids and she would come into his perfect life and ruin the happiness he made for himself, no knowledge of his other child he had created across the globe. Or he was a dead-beat with nothing going for his life. Or he has long passed away.

But whatever truth lies in his life, she just wanted to see him. From afar, if needed. To see how he lived. And if he cared enough to know that the woman he met in this very city before she moved to France years ago, was now dead. But she selfishly wanted him to know that she existed.

...if she knew where he was. Or where to start.

The city was so big, nevertheless the state and because Deena wasn't from around—this was her second time ever in America—it was difficult for her to navigate or read the English signs she never learned. But she grew hungry and entered the nearest restaurant.

"Hey, welcome in! Take a seat anywhere," Greeted the waiter, passing by with both hands filled.

Most tables were filled as Deena searched for an empty spot.

Sensing the panicked teenager, the waiter stood before Deena after she finished serving a table. "Must be your first time here, so welcome. Just join a table with someone, anyone, but choose wisely; some people can talk more than they chew." She was picking at the older customer sitting at the counter who obviously heard what she said and sent her a squinted look with pursed lips. "That's the motto of the restaurant; To Meet A Stranger Along The Way. Eating alone doesn't mean you have to be alone. So sit anywhere and I or another waiter will be with you soon."

Deena sent the nice lady a smile. "I understand, thank you."

She pulled along her suitcase looking for a place to sit down. Most tables were occupied and many shared engaging conversations of their own that Deena didn't want to intrude, until she noticed a brunette sitting alone with a book in her hand reading quietly.

"Can I sit here?"

The girl looked up from her book and gestured towards the empty chair. "Go for it," she went back to reading.

She took off her backpack and placed it in the empty seat next to her before sitting down. The girl was young, or at least she appeared to be. Had to be around the same age, and she was very pretty.

That part Deena will keep to herself.

As if the girl felt Deena's complimenting stare, she tore away her gaze as the girl lifted her head from the book, but it was already too late since she was caught. "Have you read it?" She started. "Romeo and Juliet?"

"Who hasn't?"

"I know right? It's for some stupid class, so the teacher's forcing us to read up to five chapters and come back to a pop quiz. Which, I know I will fail."

Both girls shared a short laughter.

"I'm Deena.” She introduced. “I'm new around here."

The waiter then came to take Deena's order while also setting down a grilled turkey sandwich with extra avocado and a side of fries for the girl. She finally placed down her book, giving thanks to the waiter before digging into her food.

The mouth-watering scent made Deena's stomach grumble. I’m so damn hungry.

"Davina," while washing down her fries with lemonade. "Not new here. But I noticed the accent. Where are you from?"

"France. More specifically, Le Havre." Deena replied. "You?"

"Born and raised. Also, don't hate me but the only place I know of France is Paris, but I'm sure Le Havre is a fun place to visit and live at."

Deena shrugged showing no offense to Davina's knowledge of France. She didn’t blame the girl since she knew nothing of the US besides New York, California, Florida, and Texas. They were normally the most talked about and the most used location in films. Also, it seemed a lot always happened in those states.

"It's cool. I actually didn't know Louisiana existed until a few days ago." Deena admitted.

"But here you are!"

She gave a small smile, agreeing. "Here I am."

Some moments later, the waiter delivered Deena's food; half cut Cuban sandwich with extra pickles and a sweet tea. She dug in without question.

Davina was a cool person to chat with. Easy-going, funny, and there was something about her energy Deena felt oddly connected to. Davina also felt an odd connection to Deena but brushed it off as she stuffed her mouth full.

There was a long list prepared for the day, but realized it was quite small and she had no starting point. I came here on a whim. With little to no planning, and childish hope.

But remembered Davina was from New Orleans. There's a possibility she might've ran into her father or seen him around somewhere. Or visited a store he owned. Or attended school with one of his kids. Or visited his grave.

"So, I was wondering since you're from around if you knew this man?" Deena wiped the oils from her fingers before reaching into her front backpack's pocket. Pulling out the photo of her mother and Klaus, she held it in front of Davina to inspect.

Davina noticeably froze upon viewing the photo. She had blinked a few times to make sure the man she saw wasn't just some random person she's misjudging but a man who was famously known throughout the streets and the supernatural world.

She pulled back from the table and picked at the grilled bread. "What do you want with him?" suddenly, she got hostile with Deena despite her pure intentions.

She knew him.

Deena sighed with relief. Davina obviously knew her father, but the cold tone she used when responding made her nervous. He must be married. With kids. Or nothing but a dead-beat. Or worse. Dead.

Deena returned the photo back into her backpack pocket with a shrug. "So you know him?"

"Yea, Klaus Mikaelson. Anyone who's done him bad or crossed his path on accident knows of him and his notorious siblings—"

"He has siblings?" Deena interjected.

"—oh yeah. Elijah and Rebekah Mikaelson and whoever comes back to life occasionally." She continued, slightly confusing Deena but she was happy to hear there's more than her father alive. "Terrorizing the city and the people who live within. Any person with a sense of mind would tell you to stay the hell away. You don't want anything to do with that psychotic man and his troubling siblings. His family is a curse to this city, to the communities, and they care for no one else but themselves. I'm sure the woman in that photo was killed by the hands of Klaus Mikaelson himself." She sneered.

Deena, not knowing this man nor his siblings personally, felt offended by Davina's harsh words because they were her family. And even worse, she accused her father murdering her mother. A beautiful soul who raised Deena with everything she could give her, found locked in her car with a letter admitting how unhappy she was with her life.

The smile on Deena’s face faltered to a deadpan glare as Davina bad-mouthed the family she had ties to. She noticed the change of her expression, but she thought nothing of it since she assumed she was doing good by scaring the curious French girl away from Klaus and far away from this cursed city.

Deena abruptly stood from her seat already gathering her belongings.

"W-where are you going? You haven't finished your— "

"The woman standing next to Klaus is my mother. And the man next to her, Klaus Mikaelson, is my father. And she wasn't murdered by him, she hated her life and everyone within it so she did the job herself." Deena vividly watched Davina grow with shock upon hearing Klaus was her father and was filled with sudden guilt from all she had said about her parents before. "But you are right about one thing; we are troubling. At least it keeps people away. So thanks for nothing. I'll find him my own damn self."

She wasn't sure how much the meal cost altogether and because the currency was slightly different, she left a big amount on the table which included a tip. She was out the restaurant in no time. Her head felt dizzy and she was hot all over heaving out steam, suddenly impacted by the overwhelming emotions she thought she had pushed back.

A month ago, Deena's mother passed away.

Her death made no sense. She was a cheerful woman who often hid away in her art studio painting and sketching for hours until it was time to pick Deena up from school. Students were often jealous because while other parents nagged on their child's grades and permitted curfews, Deena's mother never hovered over her shoulder about her grades and trusted Deena enough to be home within a reasonable time. And while other parents came dressed in their finest most classiest clothing for teacher conference nights or the school performances Deena was a part of, her mother came dressed straight out of a Fruits Magazine.

She was stressless, free, a kindred spirit, and an amazing mother. Sometimes Deena would forget her mother wasn't a close friend or an older sister despite having her at a young age. She was vocal about her problems and told Deena since a young age that "anger should never be placed into a bottle. Let the world hear you even if they say you scream too loud. They don't like Black girls expressing themselves in any manner if not with their heads down, so you must do it for the next little Black girl who's taking notes.".

But still, it made no sense.

The morning before she died, Deena's mother showed no signs of distress. She made banana pancakes, sent Deena off to school, and when she came home, her mother was working on a late piece for an art exhibition a friend in town invited her work to. She then left after dinner and was never seen for two days until Deena received a call from the police station. But it was questionable and she didn't understand it.

Why was she unhappy with life when she expected so much out of it? Why would she leave when she promised me the world? Why wasn’t she vocal with her depression in the same way she taught me to be vocal?

"Deena, wait!" Davina called out after placing down her half of the pay and rushed out the doors. She knew she was wrong for what she said and she felt terrible. "Look, I'm sorry! I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to offend you or bring your mother into this; I was only speaking from a personal experience which is no excuse at all. Next time, I should watch what I say. But..."

Deena kept walking. She struggled to drag her suitcase with her speed. The old wheels looked as if they were about to break off at any second, but she somehow managed to keep going.

Davina huffed annoyingly. "But I know where he is, Klaus Mikaelson," Deena halted her steps, facing the girl. "And I know where you can find him."

As Deena studied her face to find any spec of bluff hidden in her tone or written amongst her face, she saw she was telling the truth. She knew where her father currently hung around or lived, and of course, she wasn't going to question why or how she knew that kind of information.

"Where is he?" Asked Deena.

"The Abattoir. I can take you there since you might get lost. Also, you might want a travel buddy traveling in that particular area."

Deena sized the girl down. "Why? Will Klaus murder me too?"

"Again, I'm sorry about that." With her eyes narrowed, Davina apologized again. Deena still felt offended by what she said but since she genuinely felt sorry for it, about her mother at least, she decided to cut her some slack. She doesn't need an enemy on her first day in New Orleans. "Look, you're not from around and I'm sure you don't know about..."

Taking in Deena's blank stare, Davina then shook off the conversation and reached down for her suitcase. "Never mind, let's go."

Deena's hand was still on the handle, able to hold her grip from slipping it out her fingers and asked, "I don’t need your help. I can carry it myself." She tried pulling back but Davina somehow had the suitcase fully in her hands.

"It's about to break, I'm practically doing you a favor." She noticed the band stickers on her suitcase and claimed to have listened to some of them when she was thirteen.

Deena allowed her guard down and quickly followed behind Davina across the street before the main light turned green. She continued on about the particular bands she knew and who she used to stan and asked Deena about the bands she was unfamiliar with.

Somewhere during the conversation, "Thanks," it was soft but Davina caught it

She offered a soft smile. "You shouldn't thank me. I might not particularly like Klaus, but if he truly is your father, I wouldn’t live with myself by keeping you away from knowing him. At least then, hopefully, you might run away once you do."

"Is he really that bad of a man?"

Davina was quiet at her question. To her, Klaus wasn't just a bad man, he was terrible, and he almost killed her multiple times if it wasn't for Marcel having to save her. She wished she could tell Deena these things in hopes she would stay away, but no one wants to hear the bad of a man you've never met. Especially when he was your father. Family. It also wasn't her place to kill the image she might have of him.

Then she shrugged. "I will let you be the judge of that."

━━━━━━ ━━━━━━

𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇 𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍𝐀𝐆𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐓 𝐀 𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐆𝐄 𝐎𝐋𝐃-𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐄. It was well kept for the most part but it was obvious this house had been through hell, Deena definitely thought Klaus was a deadbeat. This wasn't a family home, but it was a pretty big property. Maybe a rich deadbeat?

Together they stood staring up at the white doors ready to be knocked upon. Davina stared at the door with fear. Every witch sense coursing through her blood told her to turn away and run.

She knew she wasn't allowed here—that witches weren't allowed here, but she came to protect Deena.

Deena wasn't aware of the supernatural world or the fact that her father was a ruthless millennium-old psychotic hybrid, and what lies within the compound was an 'army' of hungry blood-sucking vampires who were already aware of their presence. Vampires who were too scared to leave Klaus if not slaughtered after the gruesome war against Marcel's army and enemies, and whoever they could rally up if Marcel hadn't got to them first.

Nevertheless, Davina watched her new friend lift her hand to knock on the door. Sucking in a deep breath, her knuckles were seconds away from alerting the vampires before something churned in her stomach. She quickly lowered her hand and hurried away.

"I can't do this." Deena panicked.

Davina lingered a bit longer at the door before rushing after her. "Where are you going? He's right inside." She shouted, dragging along the suitcase.

"I can't do it." She breathed heavily. "I-I don't know why I came here in the first place. And I hate myself for being curious, but I don't think I can do it. I should go home with the money I have left."

There was so much roaming through Deena's brain all at once. She thought she was ready to meet with him, but she wasn't, or at least she was convincing herself that she's not. But after losing the only family she had, Deena had grown lonely and desperate for someone to care about her and love her as much as her mother did. That's why she went through her mother's things. She trashed her mother's room, the kitchen, the attic, even her own room in the process. She didn't know what she was searching for until she discovered the letter.

It was meant to be given on her 18th birthday, a couple of months early.

But now that she was here, she didn't feel as pumped as before. Maybe she should've thought a bit longer on the idea before hopping on the next plane to New Orleans? Maybe she was getting too ahead of herself? Maybe this wasn't the right thing for her to do?

Davina grabbed Deena just as she was about to cross the street and tugged on her arm so that she was facing her. "Just breathe." She attempted to calm her down.

Deena rolled her eyes. "I am breathing."

"No, you're not. You look like you're about to pass out." Despite her annoyance, Deena forced herself to calm down. Once seeing she had, Davina narrowed her gaze before speaking. "I have no words to comfort you. Hell, I can't even comfort myself, but I can tell you, that you will regret not meeting him and him not knowing you. You have a chance that many kids don't have; I don't even know whether my dad is alive or not, but you do. And you should take it."

"I feel like I'm gonna ruin his life." Deena admitted.

Davina scoffed with a dragged 'please'.

"I'm serious. How would you feel living a life of your own for however many years and suddenly a seventeen-year-old kid comes knocking at your front door claiming to be your daughter? I would close the door in her face and continue my show!"

"If I was Klaus Mikaelson, I would be pretty damn blessed to have a kid with my blood in their veins at my doorstep. You never know."

"He must be a pretty famous man the way you speak of him."

She shrugged. "You can say that. But look," She took hold of Deena's hand. "Go meet him. Let him know who you are. And if you regret it, you can take the first plane back to Le..."

"Le Havre," she completed.

"Right. Le Havre. And I will be right here supporting you."

Davina was right. At least she had a chance to get to know her father while many don't and she shouldn't let the opportunity pass by. She sucked in a deep breath and began making her way to the white doors, but just as soon as she took her first step, she was stopped by Davina's stretched arm hitting her chest. She appeared focused, waiting for something to come.

She pushed away Davina's arm from deep within her chest, but she stopped her again.

Deena rolled her eyes with a huff. "You give me some go-for-it-speech and now you don't want me to seize the moment while I'm ready?"

"Something isn't right," Davina eased out with worry.

Deena would've guessed the brunette was another spiderman from an alternate universe the way she peered around her surroundings like a guard dog. Or spidey senses, she'd call it. She didn't see nor feel what Davina was and there was no one within their proximity when glancing around to catch what she caught, so she wasn't sure what had her on edge.

"You are right," Both girls jumped at the deep voice of a brown-skinned woman who spoke with a slight thick accent. She wore a green tank-top with dark blue jeans and she had to be around thirty years old, and she was looking at Deena as she came forward. "Something isn't right."

Despite the weird look, at least Deena knew she wasn't a stranger judging by Davina's calm expression and her tensed shoulders releasing.

She removed her arm from Deena's chest with a sigh. "Zoeè? What are you doing on this side of town?"

"I could ask you the same, harvest girl?"

Davina doesn't respond.

"I sensed someone—" Her brown eyes flickered to Deena. "—special entered the city and came runnin' soon as I could. And now that the cloaking spell has worn off and the prophecy is clear, all that I need to seal the deal is standing right in front of me."

Davina stepped in front of Deena in a protective manner once putting together two and two. "I don't know what this is about but let's not do it here. You and I both aren’t safe in this area—" merely glancing back. "—and she has nothing to do with this. This is between me and you."

Deena was clearly confused. "I'm sorry but who is this?"

"Don't matter who I am. What matters is what you gone do to our kind once the Mikaelsons find out you're alive."

Whatever happened, happen so fast that Deena was unable to process absolutely nothing. After Davina screamed out, she pushed her back and lifted her hands in a wizard-like manner before she was thrown against the building wall with no effort.

Deena followed the invisible force to the woman, Zoeè who's smiling back at her and scattered away. She would have ran after Davina, but her first instinct was to get herself to safety first and take a moment to digest what the hell just happened.

"Solem," With a flick of a wrist, Deena failed to cross the road before she found darkness and the cold ground.

𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔

𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆

If you like what you read and wish to read more of this fic, you can read here

[kabillieu]

Long post about my big kid under the break.

We pulled our big kid out of his public middle school almost two weeks ago. In the month before we unenrolled him, he had missed at least one day a week due to school refusal. Mornings were nightmares of me trying to coax him out of bed. Most evenings he experienced (sometimes hours-long) meltdowns over homework. From his first day of school until his last, he did not have one good day. Many days were awful. Maybe most days were. The day where I decided he wasn't going back, he got into my car at pickup and he was distraught and stressed out and angry and despondent. He hadn't been allowed to go to the bathroom during his last class because of some sort of construction happening in the hallways, and when I asked him about homework for that class he said he didn't know because he'd spent all of his energy just trying not to pee himself.

I had known for a while that we were almost certainly going to end up homeschooling him, and I began to feel that I was sending him to a place that he found torturous just to satisfy my own sense that we had tried hard enough, that I had advocated enough for him. At his age, homeschooling is usually a permanent choice because it can be difficult to get homeschooled kids back into public middle and high schools.

But for whatever reason, that day was the day I just finally had had enough. I don't want to send my child to a place where he is lonely and agitated and angry and in pain. My child has level 2 autism, and while he has no intellectual disabilities, I have come to accept that he has different needs than other children and that this particular public school at this point in his life was harming him. He can't thrive there.

So we pulled him out.

We're doing something called de-schooling through the holidays. I have a loose schedule of a few things I ask him to do on school days, but most of his time is free so that he can decompress and begin to heal from the extreme amount of stress and pressure he's been feeling. At the beginning of January he'll start an online curriculum that he can navigate at his own pace. We will probably need to find him a math tutor. I'm sure there will be ups and downs.

Right now I'm trying very hard to help him make some social connections with other children near his age. He was in fight/flight/freeze mode the entire time he was at school and because of that he couldn't make any friends there. He'd also begun to experience some light bullying.

I found a micro school startup in my area that has a STEAM club. It's teeny tiny (just 2 or 3 kids) but he started that last week. Next week we have a meetup with another kid his age who is also autistic. I'm in several homeschooling Facebook groups now, and I found this kid's mom through one of those. In January he'll be starting an online D&D group for kids that is moderated by an adult.

And today he's playing Roblox with another ADHD/autistic kid via video chat. When we lived in Montgomery 7 years before, we happened to move onto the same street as a woman Dominic and I went to college with. A has a son who's about a year and a half older than our big kid, and he has a lot of the same issues + giftedness, which is also under the neurodiversity umbrella. My big kid and this kid were pretty good friends that year, but he and his family moved to Vermont a few years ago. When I realized I was probably going to have to homeschool my big kid, I reached out to A because she'd homeschooled her child too, and she pointed me to a lot of resources, which is great. I also helped my kid get back into contact with A's son, and they coordinated a time to play Roblox together.

I can hear them now from the other room, and my kid is obviously having a great time. He's socializing with another kid. He's making a friend.

I don't know what's going to happen with his schooling, with his future, with any of our futures. Dominic and I are very much rule followers, so to take our kid outside of the traditional education route and try this different path is--I cannot overstate it--beyond scary. But I do know that I couldn't continue to force my child to go to a school that was making him miserable. And right now I'm listening to him play with another kid and he's laughing and having a blast.

He's smart. I think he'll be able to, for the most part, follow a curriculum independently, as long as he's allowed to go at his own pace. We will add enriching activities alongside the curriculum and continue to help him make social connections.

I just want to do right by him. I'm just doing my best.

[staryscorner]

Sick pt1

Paring: Hayato x Reader

Your dream has always been to be a teacher. You never cared for the hours you were going to spend grading papers and the low pay. All you wanted to do was help them learn and also help them in any way you could. Then you met the Yuzuki family.

You guys were neighbors. Although they were living there way before your family moved to the neighborhood. You haven't interacted with them much but you knew they were a happy family. Well until a few months ago. The mother and father got into an accident leaving 4 sons behind 3 of them still being children. You knew the eldest Hayato Yuzuki. You both went to the same college and also worked at the same school. The most interaction that you had was a casual greeting every now and then but not much after that. After hearing the news about their parents passing. You wanted to ask if he needed help with his brothers but you didn't have the courage to after all it seemed like they were planets away. After many failed attempts of you walking up to their house and never ringing the doorbell the best you could do is watch from afar.

After that you would often watch Hayato from afar in his classes since you almost had the same classes. He would often sleep in the cafeteria after lunch or even in some of his classes, but he always had dark circles under his eyes …

You both soon graduated college and somehow got a teaching job at the same school. He looked even more tired since he started working. His youngest brother started school and his other 2 brothers were already in school. You were actually Minato’s homeroom teacher. The 2nd youngest. He was a really energetic kid, always laughing with his friends or causing trouble. At least you could keep an eye on 2 of the brothers. 

One day Minato came to school with a serious expression. He just had his head down all morning. You wanted to ask him but hesitated to say something to him. After your morning classes you went to the teachers office to get some grading done before your other classes in the afternoon, but then you saw that Hayato wasn't at his desk you asked another one of the other teachers if he was here today they told me that he didn't show up today you got a little more worried not knowing if that was the reason that Minato was upset. You would also often see the 3rd youngest brother Mikoto in the halls or even coming by the class to drop things off for Minato if he forgot them at home, but today you didn't see him either. You knew you had to ask Minato what was going on after afternoon class was over and it was time to go home. You pulled Minato over once all the other kids left.

“Hey Minato, are you ok?” you asked in a worried tone.

…

“Does this have to do with Hayato and Mikoto not being here today.” You question waiting for a reaction.

He slightly jumped.

“You can tell me, I'm your teacher and neighbor so I want to help with anything I can” You said in a calm voice.

He finally spoke

“Hayato is sick! Mikoto and Gakuto stayed home to take care of him and they said I should just go to school.” he frowned in frustration.

“Hey don't worry, how about I come over and check up on him if that's fine with you.” You said, patting his head while smiling. 

He nodded 

Good thing it was already the last class you asked Minato if he wanted to ride with you in your car to stop by the pharmacy to grab some medicine for Hayato he agreed. After going to the pharmacy to pick up medicine, cooling patches, and jelly you drove Minato and you over to his house once entering the home Minato took the jelly out your hands to put in the fridge while Mikoto took you to his brothers room there you saw Hayato under his covers wheezing due to how sick he was.

“Mikoto, how long has he had a fever?" You asked him in a rush

 “For about two days now.” he said, worried. 

You looked at him with a panicked face 

“Ok you guys have to listen to me. I'm going to take Hayato to the hospital and you guys are coming along since I can't have you alone here.”

You came out of his room and saw the 3 brothers in the seats outside all with a worried expression even the youngest Gokuto was worried.

“The doctor said that your brother’s going to be fine, but he’s going to have to stay in the hospital for about 2 days since his fever was so high.”  you said.

They looked at you not saying a single word

“But don't worry I spoke with your big brother while he was a bit awake and he said that I would be in charge of all 3 of you for the next 2 days as he gets better.” you said in a calm voice.

They hesitated for a bit and then they all just shook their heads. What other choice do they have? They have no other family they are close to. The car ride was silent. It stayed like that the whole car ride. You did make a quick stop by your house since you had to get some of your things and also let your family know about the situation. You parked the car outside their home and when you all went inside the boys just went up to their room. You were thinking of ways to cheer them up so that’s when you thought about asking them to help make dinner. It might be a way to connect with them and to also have some fun in the kitchen.

“Mikoto, Minato, Gokuto! You guys want to help me make dinner. We can even bake a cake!” You said in a cheery voice trying to make the house less gloomy.

They all began to head down to the kitchen one by one.

“I know you guys might be feeling a bit down but let make something that can cheer us all up!” you said with excitement

This is going to be two busy days but the good thing is you were able to call you and Hayato out of work for a week. So that he could get some time off work.

A/n: alright had the spark of energy late at night so decided to just write. Hope you all like it since I don't see many fics about the Yuzuki family's four sons so I wrote one! There will be a pt 2 coming soon so you can just check the pinned list!

[ruth-writes]

What's My Age Again?

Overview

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Chapter 8: Alex

“You look excited,” Jamie said as we sat in the car. The fact that it was said with genuine interest, not the resentment it would have been a few weeks ago, only made me smile even more. “Are you gonna ask Aaliyah out today?”

He’d also become a little too interested in my love life since he’d decided he was okay with me having one. “I don’t know yet, okay?” I replied. “Stop badgering me.”

Jamie smirked. “I’m just wondering. Aren’t you worried she’s gonna meet someone else by the time you finally pull yourself together?”

I was a little worried about that, but I wasn’t gonna let Jamie know that. “Okay, I am not taking dating advice from a fourteen-year-old,” I said, instead of answering.

“Hey, this fourteen-year-old has been in more relationships than you,” Jamie reminded me. I really wished he hadn’t.

After a few minutes of excruciating small talk with Jamie’s new friend’s mom (I commented on how nice her house was, and she said how it was nice of me to drop Jamie off), I parked across from a two-story house with a porch covered in flower pots. Aaliyah was sitting on it with two people who I assumed were her parents, and she quickly ran over when she saw me.

“Prepare yourself for a shit ton of small talk,” she warned me. “Blink twice if you need me to save you.”

I ended up only blinking a normal amount, because all they did was ask me what I was studying and offered me some of their homemade cookies. That was apparently already too much for Aaliyah, who dragged me away from them and apologized profusely as we went down the basement stairs.

“I don’t mind,” I assured her. “They seem really nice.”

She chuckled. “Yeah, right. You can be honest, you know.”

“I am being honest!” I protested, not entirely understanding what her problem was.

“Okay, whatever.” She clearly didn’t believe me.

I didn’t dwell on it once we got to her room, which was huge. “Wow, this is all yours?” I asked, almost incredulously. It looked like she had the entire basement to herself.

“Um, yeah,” she said uncomfortably, ducking into her walk-in-closet. I immediately felt like I’d said something wrong.

“It’s nice,” I said to make up for it. “Are these pictures of you?” I gestured to a row of photos of a little girl at various dance recitals, getting older as the pictures went on.

She looked over her shoulder. “Oh, yeah. It’s all the recitals I’ve had since I started dance.”

“You’ve been there for a really long time.” She looked to be about five in the earliest pictures, taped on the wall over a small dresser in the corner.

“Yeah, I started in first grade. I only got serious about it around the time I started middle school, though.” She emerged from her closet triumphantly, holding a projector. “Can you help me stack these books? I don’t have a stand.”

We set up nine hardcovers in front of her bed and delicately placed the projector so it was facing her only bare wall.

“So when did you decide you wanted to teach?” I asked, sitting down on the corner of her bed.

“I don’t know exactly,” she admitted, expertly snaking the cord around the furniture. “Billie and I always talked about having our own studio, but it obviously wasn’t a serious plan when we were kids. Then it kind of just worked out, you know? Neither of us wanted to go to college, and then we realized how cool it would be to have a place in town that belonged to us. It’s not just about the studio, we want to have a kind of communal space. Like, the only queer spaces that exist in this town are bars, which sucked when I was underage.”

I frowned. “How old are you?”

“Twenty-one. How old are you?” She eyed me curiously.

“Nineteen,” I admitted, my cheeks heating.

Aaliyah didn’t seem to think anything of it. “Well, I was a grade above Billie and Riley in school, so I’m the oldest,” she explained.

“Did you meet through dance, then?” I asked.

“Billie, yeah. I met Riley through her.” Finished with the projector, she sat down on the bed next to me, placing her hand so that our pinkies were just barely brushing against each other. She turned to face me and I pointedly looked over her shoulder at the wall, my heart pounding.

“Shouldn’t the others be here by now?” I asked nervously, trying to keep my voice level.

“No, they’re always at least twenty minutes late,” she explained. “We still have some time to ourselves.” She adjusted her pinky so it was resting on top of mine.

Was she saying what I thought she was saying? I forced myself to look at her and jerked a little in surprise when I realized she was close enough for me to count the sparkles she’d decorated her eyelids with today. Did she want me to kiss her? How would I even do that?

“Hey, how’s Jamie been getting along in class?” I asked, effectively breaking the moment.

She blinked in surprise, then pulled away and said in a voice that was much higher than usual, “Oh, he’s great!” She leaned back awkwardly, looking slightly embarrassed. The realization that I’d just sabotaged the only chance I was probably ever gonna get with her punched me in the gut. “Yeah, he’s already found his footing perfectly. I think he hit it off with Omar, they’ve been talking about hanging out.”

I nodded. “Yeah, that’s who’s house he’s at right now.”

“Really? That’s great,” she said, then an awkward silence fell over us.

I studied her bookshelf, painfully aware that she was watching me. There was an impressive amount of what looked to be theoretical texts, though I only recognized the name Marx. “Can I borrow this?” I asked, reaching for the thinnest book on the shelf. “I’ve always wanted to read it.”

Unfortunately, she didn’t seem as impressed as I’d envisioned, but at least she didn’t call my bluff. “Sure. Just be careful with it, it’s kind of falling apart.”

“Sure thing.” I carefully took Animal Farm by George Orwell off the shelf and placed it in my bag. We kept up the awkward small talk until Riley poked their head through the door, Billie right behind them. They’d both brought an abysmal amount of snacks that we started munching on straight away, only kind of making sure the crumbs didn’t get all over Aaliyah’s bed. I ended up squished between Aaliyah and Riley as the movie started.

I’d never given much thought to how I would die.

“Is that Anna Kendrick?” I asked when we got to the school scene. I was the only one who’d never seen it before.

“Yeah,” Billie said. “She looks like she’s being held hostage, doesn’t she?”

I thought all of the actors looked that way, but I didn’t say anything else until the Cullens were introduced. “Is that buff guy holding a sack of hard-boiled eggs?”

“Oh, there’s a backstory to that!” Billie said again, reaching over to pause the movie excitedly. “The eggs weren’t in the script. They were the actor’s actual lunch and Catherine Hardwicke thought it was so funny she made him carry them in the scene.”

I had to assume that Catherine Hardwicke was the director.

The rest of the movie went similarly, with Billie interrupting the most. “I just think it’s so dumb that they didn’t make Bella a half-vampire or something. They set it up with the her smelling blood thing, but instead she’s just a Mary Sue who has perfect vampire powers. It would have tied the whole series in such a perfect knot.”

“You know humans can smell blood though, right?” Riley pointed out. I’d been thinking the same thing.

“That’s not the point,” Billie said. “In the Twilight universe they can’t.”

Later she gave us gems like, “Did you know that Stephanie Meyer’s mother-in-law is named Victoria, and Jacob is one of her brothers? Because Jacob was only supposed to be like a little brother figure, but her editor said a love triangle would be better.”

And, “The Cullens are such white supremacist assholes. They settle on native land and refuse to leave, not giving a fuck that they’re traumatizing literal kids my making them turn into werewolves?”

“I didn’t know you were such a Twilight fan,” I said at one point, making Riley and Aaliyah share a look and Billie gear up for another speech.

“I wouldn’t say I’m a fan, exactly,” she explained. “I think it’s garbage, but it’s garbage in such a funny way. You know there’s a specific genre of fanfic that’s Twilight written by people who hate it, and it’s some of the best stuff ever written, because all the characters and the story have so much potential, Meyer just wasn’t a good enough writer to do her ideas justice.”

“Really? You’ll have to show me sometime.” I was genuinely curious. I’d rarely seen a person speak so passionately about a subject.

Billie beamed. “I can send you my favorite, it’s called The Movement of the Earth. I got it printed and bound as an actual book.”

Now that was commitment. I made a mental note to read the apparent masterpiece as thoroughly as I could.

Aaliyah moved a pile of snacks from her lap and said, “If you’re already pausing the movie, I’m gonna go to the bathroom.”

As soon as she was gone, I noticed a shift in the atmosphere as Riley and Billie both gave me the same amount of interest Billie had been giving the movie a few moments ago. They glanced at each other, then Billie cleared her throat and said in barely more than a whisper, “You know, you and Aaliyah have been spending a lot of time together.”

Now I understood what was going on. These people were dying for some gossip.

“Yeah, I guess,” was all I said.

“Is there anything like, going on?” Billie prodded.

I felt my face flush. “Why? Did she say something?”

They both groaned. “She won’t tell us anything,” Riley complained.

“But you think she likes me?” I asked. No matter how embarrassed I was, getting confirmation on the matter from her best friends couldn’t hurt.

Billie’s eyes gleamed. “So you do like her!”

“That’s not an answer,” I pointed out.

“Neither is yours,” Riley shot back, and Billie giggled.

“I mean, yeah. Everyone in a ten-mile radius can see that you like each other,” she informed me. “You should totally shoot your shot.”

I swallowed. “I don’t know. I think I might’ve messed things up a little earlier,” I admitted.

Billie raised her eyebrows. “Well-” she started, then stopped when we heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Aaliyah took her place beside me again, throwing her legs over mine. Eventually her head ended up tucked under my chin, which meant I spent the rest of the movie focused on the nice smell of her hair. What scent was her shampoo? Peach? Roses? Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Billie and Riley grinning at us, but I realized I didn’t mind as I absentmindedly traced along her arm, making her smile and look up at me from time to time.

When the movie was over, they both left suspiciously soon. Even Aaliyah seemed confused.

“Do you guys have something to do?” she asked as she hugged them goodbye.

“Yeah, we’re planning your birthday party,” Riley told her.

She accepted the obvious lie. As soon as they were gone, I got a text from Billie.

Billie: I don’t know what happened, but TRY AGAIN

I glanced at Aaliyah, who had her back turned to me as she put the rest of the books away.

Alex: How??? I’m not good at this stuff

I watched my phone anxiously as Billie typed, hoping she’d answer before Aaliyah noticed something was up.

Billie: Just ask her if she’s free whenever you’re free

“Hey, Aaliyah?” I asked.

“Yeah?” She didn’t turn around. It occurred to me that I could be helping her with the heavy books, but that seemed awkward now.

“Are you free on Friday?”

That got her attention. She looked at me. “Yeah, why?”

My heart pounded like I’d just chugged five Red Bulls, I said, “I thought maybe we could go out and do something.”

She smiled. “You mean like a date?”

“Yeah, like a date,” I confirmed.

“Sure.”

We stood there awkwardly until I decided it was time to leave. She hugged me goodbye in the basement, I suspected because she didn’t want to do it in front of her parents.

“You look happy,” Jamie said as he got in the car.

I grinned. “Do I?”

“You did it, didn’t you?” he pressed, leaning over to look at me.

I didn’t indulge him. “Buckle your seatbelt.”

“Alex! Just tell me.” He tapped his feet like a kid waiting excitedly for Santa.

“Okay, maybe I did.” I had to give him something, otherwise we’d never get going.

He squealed, then buckled his seatbelt after a look from me. I pulled out of my parking spot.

“You look happy, too,” I noted. “How were things with Omar?”

“Good. He’s really nice. So is his mom. She said she’d help me with my Spanish if I came over more often.”

“That’s nice of her.” Spanish was one of the many subjects Jamie was failing.

“Yeah,” Jamie said, disconnecting my phone from the car and to plug his in instead.

“Hey!” I said, not taking my eyes off the road.

“I only have 5 percent,” he argued. “I’ll put on our blended playlist, okay?”

I sighed. “Fine.” Sometimes you had to pick your battles.

--------------------

I saw Aaliyah the moment I walked in the café, but had to stop and pause for a moment. She was always pretty, but she’d clearly spent some extra time in front of the mirror preparing for our date, and the result was pretty breathtaking. Her braids were swept up in a ponytail, making her gold dangly earrings stand out. As I got closer, I realized they made the golden flecks in her eyes stand out, which were accentuated by her eyeliner.

She got up when she saw me and we greeted each other with a hug. “Hey!” I said. “You look great.” Billie had told me something about making my compliments specific, so I added, “I love your earrings.”

“Thanks!” she replied brightly. “My grandma gave them to me. You look good, too.”

I shifted uncomfortably, wondering if she was only saying that out of politeness. I was wearing a pale blue button-down that I considered to be my nicest shirt and jeans without holes in them that I’d bought specifically for the occasion.

“Thanks,” I echoed, sitting down across from her. She’d already set a pile of games on the table.

“I picked out some that I like, but you can look around too, if you want,” she told me.

My eyes flitted around the café. Every nook and cranny was filled to the brim with so many games that I wouldn’t know where to start. “I don’t really play games that often,” I explained.

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Really?”

I shook my head. “I mean, we had a few we used to play when I was little, but I never really got into it.” I hadn’t even known board game cafés were a thing until Aaliyah had suggested it. I gestured to the pile. “Do you have a favorite?”

She bit her lip, then said, “Okay, you can’t laugh, but it’s Settler’s of Catan.”

I frowned. “Why would I laugh?” I’d definitely played it before.

She looked at me sheepishly. “I don’t know, no one ever wants to play it with me. Billie and Riley say it’s a game for ten-year-olds.”

To be fair, it had been a while since I’d played, and I wasn’t sure I was remembering it correctly. Wasn’t it the game that was kind of like Monopoly but with wheat and ore instead of money? “Really? I don’t mind it, we can play if you want.”

She smiled and excitedly started unpacking the box. While we were setting up, a waitress came over and we both ordered a hot chocolate.

“Do you come her a lot?” I asked Aaliyah after the waitress had gone.

She shrugged. “From time to time. I wouldn’t say I’m a regular. I’ve definitely never had a date here before.”

My cheeks heated, the word date reminding me exactly why we were here. “Where do you usually go on dates, then?” I asked, hoping to figure out if she had any kind of active dating life.

“I don’t know, it depends. I don’t think I go on enough dates to have a ritual.” That was good to hear. She finished placing her settlements, spending much more time considering their location than I had, before throwing the question back at me. “What about you?”

There wasn’t any point in lying. “To be completely honest, I’ve never actually been on a date before,” I admitted awkwardly, praying she wouldn’t find it too weird.

She didn’t even seem surprised, just confused, which made it even more embarrassing. “Wait, really? Never? Not even like, an awkward thing when you were a teenager that never led anywhere?”

I technically still was a teenager, but I decided not to remind her of that. I shook my head. “Nope.”

To my relief, she smiled and said, “Wow, so I’m your first. I’m honored.”

I tried to look her right in the eyes as I replied, “Well, yeah. I wasn’t gonna go on my first date with just anyone.”

Her smile widened, but she didn’t answer, just looked at the board awkwardly as I rolled. Had I made her flustered? I hadn’t thought that was possible with her.

She swore when I rolled a seven and gleefully moved the robber over to her side of the board. “Damn it.” She took the dice from me before asking, “Did you think about what you wanted this to be, then?”

I blanched, my carefree mask slipping. I’d been so focused on being excited over spending more alone time with Aaliyah, I hadn’t even considered specifics. I’d fantasized about cuddling with her while we watched a movie none of us was paying attention to, talking until we fell asleep. Waking up next to her, seeing her first thing in the morning and feeling safe and content. Did that mean I wanted her to be my girlfriend?

“You don’t have to have a definitive answer or anything,” Aaliyah quickly assured me when I didn’t answer. “I was just wondering if you’d thought about it at all.”

“I haven’t really,” I admitted finally. “To be honest, I just want to spend time with you.” The admission made my anxiety spike, making me feel my thumping heart in my entire body.

Was she blushing? She definitely looked happy, so I must have said something right. “Yeah, I mean, we can just keep dating for a bit. I like spending time with you, too.”

It was my turn to blush, and I couldn’t help but think how dorky we both must look. Much too soon, it was time for her to go to work. Our knuckles brushed as I walked her to her car, and in the spur of the moment, I grabbed her hand, grinning ecstatically when she accepted it and linked our fingers together.

She stopped in front of a dark green Kia. I liked cars that had pretty colors. Nowadays, they all seemed to be exclusively in different shades of gray. “I had a really nice time. Thanks for playing Catan with me.”

I smiled down at her, still holding her hand. “I really liked it. We should go there again sometime.”

“I’d love to,” she agreed

I was just thinking that on account of our height difference, I’d probably have to make some sort of move when it came to kissing, when she surprised me by getting up on her tippy toes and pressing a kiss to my cheek. Before I’d fully registered what had happened, she was saying goodbye and walking over to the driver’s side of her car. I stared after her, and she caught my eye one last time before getting in.

“Are you okay?” she asked teasingly.

“I’m great!” I said, a bit too enthusiastically, and she laughed.

“We’ll text, okay?” And with that, she pulled out of her parking spot in one of the smoothest maneuvers I’d ever seen and was gone.

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