#also my x-01 chest piece is coming along nice

[liberty-spiked]

time to do some sunday morning paper craftimg <3

[imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl]

Unexpected Places (Pt. 02 of 11)

Pairing: Ivar the Boneless X Reader/Bjorn X Reader

Word count: 3 K

Summary: As a princess, you've lived in a golden cage all your life, always a piece on someone else's game. But everything changed when the Norsemen came crushing down on Wessex, like waves in a violent storm. Their king spared your life and decided to take you with him to his kingdom, in what felt more like a rescue than a kidnapping. There, you were not only confronted with a completely different culture and lifestyle, but also with two of his sons. The oldest one has his eyes set on you, but it's the youngest one, Ivar, who gets who claimed your attention since the first sight. And he seems to have an unnamed interest in you. Of course you hoped whatever that was would pass, but when unexpected feelings start to flow a different way, things begin to change.

<- Previous part 01

Next part (03)->

{Vikings Masterlist}

×

A Christian Among Vikings

It takes two days to share your entire life with the Queen of Kattegat, but she did seem interested after you started. Mostly on the parts where you give voice to everything you couldn't stand. The lies and hypocrisy. That, Aslaug loves, and you have no trouble telling her that. It feels good to say all these things without the fear of being caught.

So, since today you'll finally go to the feast they're still having for the third night on a roll to celebrate this year's raid, you relax in the tub, the warm water slowly getting colder, a sign that you'll have to leave soon.

You're stretching your legs, watching the water drops rolling from your ankle to your knee, before falling back into the water. “Aslaug, where's the–” The voice makes you turn your head at the door, pulling your legs down to the safety of the water. Ragnar stands there, wide eyes and mouth half-open. “I thought this was my wife.”

“Well, it isn't so go away.” Thanks to the distance, you know he can't see anything, but even so, it makes you uncomfortable.

“I live here, do you know that?” He snaps back and you roll your eyes.

“I don't care. I'm not your wife so get out.”

“This is my–”

“Get out!” You raise your voice, throwing water at him. “Or I'll scream for help.” You're not scared of Ragnar, and you don't think he'll try anything. But you know him enough to know he's a teaser, and he loves putting people in uncomfortable positions.

He raises an eyebrow, shrugging his shoulders. “Then do it.”

Squinting your eyes, you move closer to the edge, making sure he won't be able to see anything. “Help!” You shout, trying not to laugh. The situation is quite funny, and, if he wanted to try anything, he'd already moved. So you decide to play along. “Somebody help me!” When you hear footsteps, you smirk victoriously. But, when another man comes in, the smile fades, and out of instinct, you cross your arms over your chest.

“What's going on here?” The guy asks, confused as hell, furrowing his eyebrows at you and then at Ragnar.

“Princess, this is Hvitserk, my son, who so bravely came to your rescue.” Ragnar starts, pacing around to the other edge of the room. “Hvitserk, this is (Y/N). Aslaug has been keeping her in here I have no idea why.” He sounds a little pissed, but you don't mind him in the back, your eyes focused on his son.

“Hi.”

“Would the two of you just leave?” Now you're annoyed, running a hand through your soaked hair. Relieve washes over you when Aslaug comes through the door, her eyes quickly finding her husband.

“What's going on here?” She mutters, and through the corner of your eye, you see Ragnar already moving.

“Just came to take this.” He answers, showing her something you can't see, right before leaving, grabbing his son's arm and pulling him along.

“Your husband is a complete idiot.” You say, relaxing once again.

“I noticed.” She gestures at the dress she brought you, laying on a chair. “Get dressed. I'll do your hair like a Viking woman and you'll join the feast tonight.”

Doing as she says, you put on the dress, which is different from everything you ever wore. The fabric is strong, yet beautiful, in a wonderful shade of blue with golden details that look like flowers. Aslaug braids your hair, way too patiently, and when she's done, you do look like a Viking. She even teaches you how to paint your eyes, and you wonder why she changed so much in these two days. As you wait for her to get ready, with the aid of her slaves, you decide to ask.

“Why are you being so nice to me now?” Playing with the tip of one of the many braids, you rest your back against the chair you're seated on. “When I got here I thought I'd end up living with that Lagertha.”

“Because it's more than rare to find a Christian I don't find stupid.” Dismissing the girls, she stands up. You're not entirely sure that was a compliment, but you decide to take it. “And I have the feeling, mostly after everything you told me, that this was most of a rescue than a kidnapping.”

She has a point. “It certainly does.”

“Now, come. Today I want to introduce you to the town.”

“Introduce me?” Following her, you wonder what that's about.

Aslaug doesn't answer, and it doesn't take much until you start hearing the feast. How long do these things last? Is the third day and it doesn't seem like anyone is tired. The moment the Queen enters, some heads turns, and, as she stands right before her chair, a silence starts to fall. You stat in the back, waiting to see what's going on when she gestures for you to come. Taking a deep breath, you move to stand next to her.

Many eyes lie on you. Probably all of them. You can identify hate, curiosity, disgust, indifference... And other things you can't quite place. At least you look like one of them... It must be of some help.

“People of Kattegat, this is Princess (Y/N), daughter of King Ecbert of Wessex,” Aslaug speaks, loud and clear. “She was brought here by my husband, and now will live among us.” That gets some people talking. They're not particularly excited about a Christian among them... You can't blame them. Your people kill them, and they kill your people back. They're like natural enemies. “I'm aware of the fact that you have no affection for her kind, and neither do I. So that's why she will tell you what she told me.”

A breath gets caught on your throat, and for a moment you feel like you're back home, forced to admit your sins, even though you haven't committed any. You've been in situations like this, but now, it's different. You can speak. You can let out the very thoughts that once had you imprisoned, confined to your chambers for days no end. Maybe they'll understand, unlike people in Wessex. Aslaug did. “Tell what?” You ask because you did speak great too many things with her. You have no idea where to begin.

“Tell them about your relationship with your faith.” She seems so secure, unbothered by how some men and women look so angry at this whole thing.

Taking a deep breath, you look ahead, eyes scanning through the room for any kind face... But it takes a long time until you find that Ragnar son who went to your rescue, Hvitserk. He doesn't look like he hates you, so you focus on him. “I have no love for the Catholic faith.” You start, stepping forward. “Since I was little, they've been telling me you worship false gods, made of stone, wood, iron, and silver. But they do the same.” Hvitserk furrows his eyebrows as if asking something. “My father himself spent hours repeating prayers for a cross made of gold. They accuse you of doing the same things they do.” If your older brother heard this, you'd be whipped, probably. “They're all hypocrites, punishing and condemning people for the same sins they commit, over and over again, and that I could never accept.” Chuckling, you move your eyes from Hvitserk, noticing how some angry faces are now... Inquisitive. “I was told you're all murderers, but so are they. So what if you come home covered by the blood of your enemies? Isn't that what a battle is? If it was me on the battlefield, I'd rather kill a hundred men than die by their hands.” The hall erupts on yells and shouts, hands being raised. It takes you by surprise, and for a moment, you're scared they heard enough, and decided to end your life right here and now. But the yells are from... Praising, approval. “And, as Ragnar Lothbrok as my witness, I'd rather face death than go back into the life I had there. If I can even call that a life.”

“That's true.” Bjorn raises his voice, coming from behind some men. “The moment she learned her father was dead, he stood before my father, ready to face her fate. I've never seen a Christian girl do that.”

“Don't forget about how she stood in the pouring rain with that idiot over there,” Ragnar says, pointing out his hand at Floki, who's standing on a chair or something, at the very back, watching the commotion.

Floki giggles, tilting his head at Ragnar. “Even though she can't swim. And don't get me wrong, I'd still rather she fell off to the mighty waves than have her here with us.”

“Don't say that Floki,” Aslaug warns, moving to sit on her chair. “I plan to make a Viking out of (Y/N) since she's more than eager to leave behind everything she once knew.”

“No doubt.” You mutter, wondering if this is it, if you can go sit down somewhere.

“What about that man, Edward?” Bjorn asks, coming to stand before you. He's so damn tall. You don't think you ever met a man this tall before. “You said something about a marriage.”

“Oh, that.” Rolling your eyes, you shrug your shoulders. “My father would have me dragged down the aisle in chains if it was necessary since the political implications of the union were... Delicate. But you guys decided to show up and ruin his plans. Thankfully.”

“Was he that bad?”

“The most disgusting man I've ever met in my life, so, as the Queen said herself a few moments earlier...” Turning at the people once again, you sigh. You don't expect to be accepted by everyone here, you just hope they won't hate you. Not so much, at least. “This was more like a rescue than a kidnapping.”

“Well, now that you know our new resident, I must make something very clear,” Aslaug speaks up, her voice rising above everyone else's. “(Y/N) is a free woman.” She takes a cup from the small table set next to her chair, spinning it in her hand, not bothering to look up from it. “Whoever touches her loses the balls, the hands, and the tongue... As a start.”

You giggle, thinking she's joking, but by the way, the silence persists for quite a long time, you understand that was no joke. And that's very good. That will surely keep them away from you.

“Well, let's celebrate!” Ragnar shouts, and everyone sets in motion again.

You're not sure where to go, so you find a table that's half-empty to sit down, taking a cup and filling it. Being isolated for two days with Aslaug didn't really help you being sociable, and it does feel like you're from two different worlds now. Because that's the truth, even though you're dressed like them. There's an invisible barrier keeping everyone distant, and not only for what Aslaug just said.

“Hey there.” Someone says as they settle down by your side. Hvitserk glances at you, kindly smiling. “Sorry about earlier. Heard a girl screaming, thought something bad was happening.”

“Well, something bad was happening. Your father was annoying me to death.” Taking a few sips from your drink, your eyes find that man again, Ivar. He's seated on Ragnar's chair, chatting with his mother. As if being called, he stares straight at you, suddenly angry.

“I see you already met my little brother,” Hvitserk mutters, and only then do you notice he had followed your gaze.

Clearing your throat, you look away. “Not really. But by the looks of it, he hates me.”

“I wouldn't say he hates you. Ivar is just... Not really fond of the idea of–”

“Of a Christian girl among us.” The voice comes from the head of the table, and when you raise your eyes, you see the man himself. But this time, you don't let his eyes pull you. Somehow, you manage to distract yourself. “You know you're only here because my mother wants to turn you into a Viking.”

“I'm not interested in being anything else than myself.” Drinking what is left on your cup, you sigh. “Haven't had the chance since I was born.”

“Do you really expect anyone here to believe you didn't like being a princess?” His tone is mocking you, a fake pity expression on his face.

“Being a princess in England might be fun if you just do as everyone says, no questions asked.” For some reason, you're pissed. Ivar pushed some button that got you suddenly annoyed, so you stand up, bending over the table to get the jar and refill your cup. But before you can reach it, Ivar takes the thing, drinking straight from it, some of the liquid dripping on his chin. Sighing, you squint your eyes at him, a humorless laugh escaping your lips.

“Here.” The voice gets your attention, and when you turn at him, you see Bjorn filling your cup again. “This one's better anyway.”

“Thanks.” Sitting back down, you give Ivar one last glance before taking long sips.

“Are you going to live here?” Bjorn asks. “Or are you going to live with my mother after all?”

“I'm staying.” Nodding, you look at him. His mother is the most famous shieldmaiden in the world, a skillful fighter. Also Ragnar's ex-wife, reason why Aslaug can't stand her. “The Queen already helped me settle on my chambers.”

“That's good.” He smiles, and a man pushes his shoulder quite violently. Bjorn turns to face him, cursing, but soon enough bursting into laughter.

Ignoring the two men, you look down at your cup, now almost empty again. Music starts playing suddenly, and it doesn't take much for people to start dancing. It gets louder as the minutes go by, and Ragnar and Floki stand on your table, moving around and laughing, kicking everything out. Your eyes follow the whole commotion, standing up and stepping away from the table when they get a little too close. But you don't mind. You've never seen people acting so... Crazy. So happy. And you can't stop smiling, seeing as other people join them.

“I bet you never saw anything like that,” Hvitserk says, raising his voice a little to make himself heard. “I know how boring the feats are in England.”

“This is so much better.” Ragnar jumps to the ground, but one of his legs get caught in between the bench and the table, making him fall. But on the next second, he's up again, a smile on his lips. “My brother would have a heart attack if he ever saw this.”

“Aethelwulf?”

“Yeah.” Someone bumps on your back, making you almost fall. But Hvitserk holds you up, and he seems quite confused to find you laughing. “What? It's alright, I like it. At least this chaos is real, people aren't faking it.” As your eyes move through the hall, you find Ragnar, behind this weird curtain made of leather. You didn't even know he left. “What's that weirdo doing over there?”

“He's observing.” Hvitserk answers, leaning closer and lowering his voice. “From back there, he can see who's sleeping with who. Who's not sleeping with who anymore, who may be plotting something to put him in a dangerous position.”

“Smart guy.” Nodding to yourself, your attention is stolen by the crowd, that starts moving outside, shouting something you can't really understand. “What's going on?”

“Someone's gonna fight. Come watch.” Hvitserk helps you walk among the people, all the way to the beach. Torches came out of nowhere, illuminating the night. Everyone seems oddly happy for this to be about a fight, but Hvitserck wasn't wrong. On the sand, the two men pace around each other, shouting, cursing.

“What's this about?” It happened out of nowhere, and you're not sure how serious this is. The warriors are clearly pissed at each other, but the public is cheerful. This is when you feel how new and different this culture is. Something like this would never happen back at Wessex, and it will take a while for you to get used and understand how things work here. It's a shock, a sudden impact.

“They're both in love with the same woman. She claims she loves both, but they won't share.” Hvitserk explains, as someone passes him a torch, which he holds up high. “The one who survives gets to be with her.”

“Damn.” You mutter as the two men start attacking each other. You've never seen an actual fight. Girls aren't allowed on the battlefield, mostly not a princess. The only glimpses you had were from soldiers training, and it was nothing compared to this. This is violent, powerful, and you can't help but be impressed by their skills. Of course they're good. They're Vikings, a freaking force of nature, they had told you back in England. It's impressive how they keep getting back up, even after so many wounds. Cuts, punches, everything.

A particular loud shout coming from the crowd gets your attention. It's Ivar, seated on the sand, eyes shining and a bright smile on his lips. He's enjoying this. Everyone is, actually. And once again, as if you called his name out loud, he turns to look at you. And somehow you know exactly what he's looking for. Fear, desperation. He wants to see if you're scared.

But... You're not.

Every single person here is joyfully yelling, and those two men choose their fates. They're not being forced to it, it was their decision, as it was yours to stand up, neck exposed, ready for the ax Ragnar was holding. They're choosing to face death, fearlessly.

Then, your eyes aren't on Ivar anymore, but following the men's every move. It doesn't take much for you to gasp and yelp when one or the other successes to throw a blow. You feel like a savage, laughing at the thought of what your father and brother would say if they saw you now.

When the tallest man, with long dark hair, falls dead, the crowd goes insane. The victorious raises both his hands, still holding an ax. A woman comes from the crowd, hugging and kissing him. “That's insane.” You chuckle, running a hand through your braided hair. “Teach me.” The request comes out suddenly, and you don't even give it much thought.

“Are you sure about it?” He asks, looking down at you. Hvitserk is being nice to you, and that's a surprise.

“I mean, I could never be a shieldmaiden but... I'd like to know how to defend myself.”

“Well, I've got nothing to do tomorrow, so I guess we could start.”

Furrowing your eyebrows, you smile. “Thanks. You're the quickest and... Probably the most real friend I've ever made.”

“Yeah, you'll need someone to help you out around here until you get the hang of things. Ragnar gave me this task.”

“Oh...” Looking down, you start walking back to the hall, following Hvitserk's pace. Maybe it was a little stupid to expect him to be so nice to you. “You don't have to. I will get used to things on my own.”

“I didn't mean it like that.” He quickly responds, leaving the torch on some post along the way. “You're pretty cool, actually. For a Christian. You've been a good friend so far.” He gives you a glance and a smirk. “And I don't have to obey my father, you know.”

Blushing a little, you giggle. “Thanks again, then.”

“Now, get a good night sleep and get ready for tomorrow, I mean...” Hvitserk takes a look over his shoulder, a little too dramatic for your taste. “If my older brother doesn't mind it.”

“What do you mean?” Following his gaze, you find Bjorn staring. He doesn't seem angry, but he's not happy either.

“I think Bjorn likes you.”

“And? If it wasn't for you I wouldn't have watched the fight.” Shrugging your shoulders, you stop at the entrance of the hall, waiting as the crowd moves inside. “You've done more for me than he did tonight.”

“So you enjoyed the fight?”

“I have no idea why, or how, but I did.” Nodding, you smile again. “Now, friend, let's drink some more, and maybe I'll consider dancing.” Gesturing at the hall, you both walk in.

The warmth is welcome, and you soon find your way back to the table. But, as you sit down, you see Ivar again, crawling. He moves fast, talking to a man. As he moves past your table, he gives you a stare. It's different from before, but you can't read it. His eyes, like magnets, attract you in a way you didn't even know was possible. You think about waving, or smiling, but then he looks away and disappears inside the house.

“Don't mind Ivar,” Hvitserk says, and you look down at your cup. “He'll get used to your presence.”

“Let's hope he will.���

×

@multific @revolution-starter @crackhead1-800 @youbloodymadgenius @clown-boyyy @kitten0394 @castielsangelx-blog @goldlion07 @midnightmystic @readsalot73 @xvxcarolinexvx @momowhoo @fangfoxy @msrawog @walkingonshunshine @alytavzla

[extremelyblackandwhite]

timeless - 01

PAIRING: medieval!james “bucky” barnes x reader

WARNINGS: sexual content (18+)

A/N: hello! today i’m on a roll, having so much fun writing. thank you so much for the support for the first prelude, hope you enjoy the first chapter xx

NEXT CHAPTER

The noble man is not shy about their situation and as he pulls her slip up to her  shoulders, draping it right under her chin as he slide his hands in the back of her thighs, pushing her knees to fold to her chest making her whimper and beg with breathless and quiet cries of pleasure. The Grand Duke had barely touched her and the touches he had given were much too soft for her to find herself  already hot with her wetness spreading throughout her lower body.

Opening her mouth to speak, she tried to say something, ask something even but before she could do as such he slowly caressed her bottom lip, making her gasp against it and at his cold touch. Her tongue wrapped around his thumb slowly and eagerly as he pushed it forward and into her mouth allowing her to suck on it.

She caught a glimpse of his sly grin as he lodged himself in between her spread out legs, her warm skin rubbing sinfully against his while his hands slide up and down her legs before closing them behind his back, locking them vigorously to which she responded with a slight yelp when his large cock snaps into her. As it stretched her walls, she felt her whole body shake and shiver almost as she’d been lacking this experience for years. With his hands on either side of her body, he started rocking at a steady pace with his arms tangled around her torso, pulling and pushing her in ways that made her think only animals could mate like this. His hips snapped back and forth, in and out of her, making her scream loudly in both pain and pleasure which engulfed her entire being.

She felt her back lift from the mattress as his cold lips slide along her neck and chest, nipping and nibbling at every bit of skin they encountered and sucking until they were his to claim from sight and sight alone. The red and purple tones looked so real - they felt so real too, everything felt so real.

And when he pulled at the back of her head, with an arm firmly pressed against her back and his naked hips flushed against hers, Y/N knew, she knew fully well, that it was far beyond any dream she had.

She woke up with the sun shining in the direction of her eyes, however the sun was still rather low on the horizon. She groggily moved er legs to the side, noticing how her slip was still on. Her hand brushed the side of her neck, somewhat still feeling the ghost of the dream Grand Duke’s lips there. Curiously, she grabbed a mirror from her night stand, holding it up to her face but there were no marks, her neck was untouched. What a vivid dream. 

A sudden knock on the door wakes her from her transe and she found that she’s still sweaty and, now, even warmer and wetter in between her smooth legs. She shout out she was improper at the moment, that she could not receive or see any visitors right away and that whoever who was at the door should wait until she was proper, and the knocks on the door stop. She grabbed her used dress from the ground, throwing it on before rushing over to the door, one hand on he handle and another one against the wood of the door, opening it ever so slightly.

     - Oh, Eliza, are you alright? - she asked, adjusting her hat.

     - The princess and the prince went out for a town visit and me and the girls were wondering if you’d like to join us for a walk in the gardens? It’s a lovely day out. 

     - I would love to.

     - Great, we’ll wait for you outside the door then. - Y/N nodded before closing the door and walking to the still packed trunk to grab something proper for a garden walk. She settled with a lace ivory dress and a parasol, meeting up with the other ladies once she was ready to go.

From what she had gathered, they were mostly ladies of Genoa’s other noble families who had been personally summoned by the Queen to be part of court. Although all of them were nice and polished ladies, Y/N preferred Eliza’s company over the other women as she seemed to share a rather cut throat view of her situation and economic position much different from everyone else. She was also rather a fan of gossip which Y/N had to admit was entertaining. 

As the women walked down the foot paths, Y/N couldn’t help but be enchanted by the beauty of the flora and fauna present in the royal gardens. The palace might’ve looked old and scary but the gardens seemed to hold a child like spirit blooming in several types of flowers, mostly lilies and daffodils with the most wondrous scent. Her eyes lingered on the flowers as their dainty heels hit the little pebbles of the pathway, stopping to smell the yellow daffodils illuminated by the cloudy skies. She closed her eyes to feel the scent hit all her senses until a different scent made her open her eyes once again. Roses. She could almost see them just from the scent alone, white roses with perfectly shaped drops of dew in a long garden. However, there were no roses in the garden, no sight of roses anywhere. As she looked up, she noticed that not a bit further was the same man who had visited her dreams just a few hours ago. It was now her turn to stare at him, watching eagerly as he stood next to the King dressed in lighter clothing, hair loose yet still using the dark leathered gloves.

The Grand Duke seemed to notice he was being watched as he turned his attention towards the lady in waiting which led her to place her parasol in front of her face, turning his back to him.

    - I know. - Eliza gave her an understanding look. - He’s like the sun. You know he’ll burn you but you can’t help but look when it shines.

    - What is he doing at court? - she questioned. Grand Duke was quite a high up status considering Addia had never had a King or Queen meaning the noble family ruled. 

    - Genoa and Addia have the oldest alliance in the world. The King brings him in whenever any of his children are engaged to foreign nobility. He seems to have a keen eye for people born for power, he knows a gold digger from an economic proposition. 

    - Do you really think he killed his wife? - she hid her face from his with her parasol. 

    - A couple screaming during a fire and only one comes out? The answer is right there. 

    - Why would he do that?

    - Who knows. - she shrugged. - He’s not one to dally around with other women. Some people think he did it to escape a forced marriage but I personally believe he’s a sadist. If you go by his bedroom at night you can always hear screaming.

    - Shame, I would personally warm his bed if he allowed me. - one of the ladies smirked, waving coquettishly at him. 

   - Let me know when to attend your funeral, Anne. - Eliza rolled her eyes, pulling the two girls away from the area. - I’m sure you’ll look lovely with death gracing your features.

   - Don’t be worried, Eliza, he seems to be rather ... busy. - Anne opened her fan, fanning it ever so flirtingly, eyes quickly moving over to Grand Duke Barnes who was speaking with the King but at the same time keeping an eye on the lady in waiting’s back, almost unaware that everyone who passed by could see it. - Why don’t we go for tea?

   - I really should wait for my princess. 

   - She’ll be fine, Y/N. - Eliza wrapped her arm around hers, guiding her towards one of their bedrooms where they would have tea. While most ladies decided to change into a different set of clothing, Y/N decided to go set down her umbrella instead of changing her clothings.

As she climbed down the stairs she found herself somewhere unknown. The portraits on the walls were different from the ones from last night and as she delved into the dark walls barely lit due to the harsh black out burgundy curtains covering each window, she realised she was much further away from where she wanted to be. Nevertheless she continued to walk down the halls, expecting that at some point she would reach her bedroom, exit or at least a wall. However, before she could continue with her walk into the palace upstairs, she noticed a slightly open door with dim lights coming from it. Her curiosity got the best of her and, after looking around to see if someone was near, she carefully padded towards the door. 

She walked into the room, noticing the lack of decoration except for a few shelves with old dusty books. Y/N’s fingers danced on the top of the books, most being classical pieces any noble man of high education would have read, however as she kept looking, behind some books she found a few loose papers which caught her attention. She pulled them out noticing the titles “Critique of Pure Reason” and “Discourse on Inequality”.

     - Do you read, milady? - she gasped out of surprise, dropping the papers on the floor as the man they had just been discussing stood a few feet away from her. - I didn’t intend to frighten you, my deepest apologies.

     - These texts are banned in Genoa. - was the only thing she could manage to say before dropping to the floor to collect the papers, extending them towards him with shaky arms and hands. 

     - Genoa has always been very behind in scholarly matters. - he took the papers back, placing them back in its original spot, slowly passing by her side causing a waft of the same rose scent to pass by. Maybe it was just his cologne, she reasoned. - They belong to my wife, she was always one to be interested in new philosophies.

    - Do you mind if I borrow them? There’s not a lot of enlightenment texts in Arendelle and my mother thinks it’s a dangerous philosophy. - she wondered if she should be asking someone believed to have ended his partner’s life for his partner’s texts but her curiosity took the best over her judgement.

    - You can borrow whatever you’d like, milady. - she was about to thank him before the door hit the wall, calling for her and his attention. 

    - Y/N! - her mother burst through the room as if she was a child misbehaving and maybe she was as she was fraternising with someone all the people she met believed was nothing but good news. - Y/N, my darling, you were supposed to come and see your poor mother today. 

    - I got distracted. - she observed her shoes for a while before her eyes quickly gazed onto the Duke who had his lips tightly pressed. - Mother, this is Grand Duke James Barnes. Grand Duke, this is my mother Lady Catherine Bouvaire. 

   - Pleasure. - he remained stiff like a statue, hands behind his back. - I must return. Take whatever you’d like, milady. Good day. 

The man left in a hurry, closing the door behind him rather harshly which made Y/N jump quite a bit before her mother placed herself in front of her sight, hands on her waist. 

   - You were supposed to have come visit me yesterday, Y/N. Have you already forgotten about your mother?

   - No, mother. I am so sorry, I just ... I really have no excuse. - Y/N scratched the side of her wrist. - I returned to my chambers rather late.

   - I hope Duke Barnes wasn’t the reason you were late. I don’t want you speaking with that man, he’s dangerous. 

   - Don’t you think it’s all gossip? There surely should be circumstances if he ... terminated someone’s life.

   - Aw, darling ... - she pulled a fly away of hair behind her ear, hand caressing her skin from ear to chin. - You know why I worry, you’re too good but he’s a bad man, Y/N. Seeing you standing next to men like him always worries me they could hurt you. 

    - I’m sorry, mother.

   - Why don’t you let me brush your hair, it always calms me down. 

   - Yes, mother. 

tag list: @lookiamtrying​ @kmuir1​ @anxiousdreamersworld​ @tinymalscoffee​@navegandoaciegas​

[nymphigeon]

From me, to you || 02

♤ Pairing: Taehyung x Reader

♤ Genre: fluff, angst, romance, hybrid au, hybrid!Taehyung, detective!reader

♤ Words: 2.4k

♤ Rating: PG-13

♤ Warnings (for this chapter): swearing, crime, a sex club, mentions of murder, blood, mentions of hybrid abuse.

♤ A/N: Due to some complications I had to reupload it, sorry!

Synopsis: A story in which he has never known love, so you'll give it to him.

Series masterlist

01 02 03

After looking through the room for quite a while and bombarding Blair with more questions I decide to leave and get some air. A metallic smell, which was already present when I first arrived, had doubled it’s noticeability over time. That room became impossible to breathe in as a result. I’m not one to leave my work unfinished, but if I don’t get out I’ll die of blood poisoning, if that’s even a thing.

Looking out through the door of the club, it’s not hard to see that is has stopped raining. The blurriness the raindrops caused has completely disappeared along with all the flashing that was going on earlier. The reporters must have been told to get the fuck out or get arrested. I’m lucky, this gives me chance to step outside. To be completely honest, I would be lying if I said that it’s just to clear my head. For work related reasons it’s a good idea to always look around the crime scene as well, so that’s what I’m doing. Killing two birds with one stone.

I nod to the officers as I pass by and climb under the barricade tape to the outside. The smell of rain fills my nostrils as I walk in and out of alleyways around the area. Nothing interesting is found. No knife in a trash can, no paw prints of a shifted hybrid, nothing. How long has it stopped raining? If any traces were left outside the rain will have probably washed them away. I sigh as I give up on finding anything. I should just focus on finding them with the information I have now. We can always send out a sketch of the guy from what the employees told us.

The walkie talkie on my hip buzzes, indicating that different officers are trying to communicate with each other. It bothers me. Nothing of importance to me is said, but if I turn it off just to miss something I should know, my supervisor will kill me. She isn’t someone you’d want to mess with. Her authority has grown to her head, she’ll do whatever it takes to get her way.

A can standing right up on the sidewalk grabs my attention. The way it’s neatly placed at the side annoys me, someone deliberately left it there, ignoring the trash can standing right across the street. I pick it up and cross the street, standing a few feet away from the bin to practice my aim. Might as well use the opportunity right?

The can hitting the metal inside of the bin resonates through the silent and empty street. Even before the sound has had a chance to die down, a loud whimper replaces it, followed by hurried footsteps running away from me. Not so empty as I thought.

“Hello?” I give whoever is still close some time to reply. They don’t. Guessing the direction the sound came from proves difficult, but somewhere I made a right turn. Ending up behind a closed playground I didn’t even notice was in the vicinity, I pry myself through a hole in the fence protecting it. There isn’t much the fence is protecting as it looks like this place has been abandoned for a while. Broken slides and worn down ropes hanging from metal bars is basically all this old playground consist of.

The crunching of my shoes on sand elicits another pained whimper from the creature. Not wanting to scare them, I try to talk them out of their hiding place first. “Are you okay? Did someone hurt you?” No response. “I just want to help you.” Again, no response.

Having no other choice, I decide to search for them instead. I can’t though, not when they sound so desperate. As soon as I step a bit further into the sand a frantic voice stops me. “No, no, please…” Immediately backing up two steps, I almost crash into the fence behind me. “Okay, okay I won’t come closer.”

Not wanting to sit on the wet sand, I to squat down, sitting on my heels. “Whenever you’re ready you can come out okay? I won’t hurt you.” Remembering the walkie talkie on my hip, I turn it off. If there’s a good reason for me missing something important, they won’t get angry right? Thinking about the worst case scenario isn’t a good idea at this moment.

15 minutes pass. So far neither of us have moved. Now and then I’ll slightly adjust my position to let them know I’m still here waiting. At some point they must have started to get a teensy more comfortable, as a pair of eyes unexpectantly make themselves known from behind one of the play towers. His dark yellow coloured eyes almost hide themselves under the bangs hanging from his head. Two big striped cat shaped ears lay flat on top. A tiger hybrid. Extremely rare and thus extremely valuable. There is absolutely no way someone just left a gold mine here like that.

I slowly bring up my hand to wave at the scared, but curious pair of eyes. They look me up and down a few times, probably trying to figure out if I’m really trustworthy. “Police?” The boy almost whispers. Or well, definitely an adult actually. I suddenly remember about the uniform I’m wearing. I smile at him and nod. “Yeah, something like that. Look..” With careful movements I point to the badge on my top. Not exactly that one of a police officer, close enough.

The hybrid stares for a few seconds before revealing his entire head. Part of his striped tail briefly comes into view when he does. “That way..” He points in a direction somewhere behind him. I follow his finger, but don’t find anything there. The fence at the other side limits my vision of the other side.

Sensing my confusion the tiger does his best to elaborate. “He went that way… Bad guy.” He brings his hand back to his chest, feeling too exposed having it point out. Something in my head clicks. The hybrid is wearing a hoodie. “Wait, you’re the hybrid? The one he was going to sell?” Hoping he won’t dash as soon as I move, I stand up. I’m in shape, nevertheless squatting for a long time still hurts. The hybrid nods hesitantly. “New owner.. also not nice” He whispers as he curls in on himself more.

“Will you let me come closer?” The hybrid shakes his head. “No, no, I didn't do anything... I didn't do anything..” He's absolutely terrified. Having witnessed two murders I can't blame him. Perhaps he thinks it's partly his fault. Did he attack them? “I know sweetheart, nobody is accusing you of anything. We just want to help, you won't go back to him anymore.”

When I was younger I worked with kids a lot. Trying the same technique as that I used at that time to calm them down appears to work. The hybrid stays quiet for a while, before lifting his hand, just sticking his pinkie out. “Promise?” Cute. I can't help the smile forming on my lips. Mimicking him I lift both my hands, interlocking my little fingers together. “Promise.”

A promise was all he needed, as the hybrid reluctantly reveals himself from behind the tower. I won’t gasp, I shouldn’t be surprised, yet I am. Wrapped around his neck like it’s trying to suffocate him, a dark, old looking collar is situated. A torn leash dangles from the black, belt-like item. Clearly, it’s evident a struggle has occurred.

What’s most worrying is the blood that’s decorating his left hand. His clothes are drenched in a liquid I can’t identify from simply looking at it, instead it’s better to use my nose. The familiar metallic smell radiating of the cloths is not a clue to be ignored. The red substance has already mostly dried on his hand, pieces flaking off as he rubs his hands together.

“Oh dear are you hurt?” I ask, concern evident in my voice. I get ready to grab my phone, if he has a gash underneath I need to call an ambulance whether he likes it or not. Shaking his head, he takes a few steps forward. “Not mine.” I visibly relax at his answer, nodding. I don't ask any further. There will be time for that later.

“I'm Y/F/N Y/L/N. You can call me whatever feels comfortable for you.” Earning his trust is my priority for now. This could be a breakthrough in the investigation. “Taehyung.” The hybrid boy gives me a name, progress. Understanding that he will want to keep his distance I move through the fence first, move away a bit, and then wait for him to come through.

The walkie talkie vibrates as it turns on. I can’t have anyone disturbing the peace, quickly letting my colleagues know I’ll be busy and will explain why eventually. Not giving anyone time to react, I turn the device back off. As expected, Taehyung wants to know where we’re going.

“Do you want to meet the other people I’m working with?” He looks pale, weak and tired. The last meal he has eaten most likely isn’t in the timespan of ‘recently’. The last time he had a good full night of sleep? I wonder if he even knows what that means.

Taehyung has his arms securely wrapped around himself, protecting himself from any potential danger. There is none, but if you’ve been treated like a pile of dirt everything looks like it’ll hurt you. I know I can’t do anything aside from give him time. I wish it wasn’t like that.

“No..” That’s what I thought. Giving him a once over I determine that it’s best to get a professional to take a look at him first. “You know how I said I want to help you?” He nods. “I want to bring you to someone who will make sure you’re healthy. You can trust them, they won’t do anything you don’t like.” I cross my fingers behind my back. Not because I am lying, but because I’m hoping he agrees to the idea.

He’s doubtful about it at first, neither refusing or agreeing to go with me. “I promised.” By showing him the smallest finger on my hand, I’m hoping to convince him. Taehyung takes a few steps forward. Usually if a wild cat hybrid comes at you, you should probably run if you don’t want to end up as their lunch. Yes, there are reported cases of wild hybrids eating humans as disgusting as it sounds. I don’t though, I don’t move an inch. He lifts his hand and gently locks his pinkie around mine, checking my face to gauge my reaction. Smiling seems to give him reassurance, as he gives me a small smile back and nods. “Okay.”

I eventually convince Taehyung to wait by the fence so I can go get my car. There is no way he won’t panic with all the officers around. As I near my car, Blair calls out my name and runs over. “What happened? Did you find anything?” She mentions to what I said over the walkie talkie earlier.

I answer her quickly as I open and enter my car, not yet closing the door. “Found a scared, abused hybrid who witnessed, or maybe even committed, two murders and almost got sold an hour ago.” Blair’s eyes widen as she takes in the information. “You found the hybrid? Why? How? Where is it?”

My insides cringe at her calling Taehyung ‘it’, but I don’t have time to call her out now. Using my hand, I wave her off. Go do something more useful. “I’ll explain everything later.” Is all I say before I slam my door closed and drive off to the hybrid.

Taehyung is still standing where I left him a few minutes ago. I park my car in front of him and get out. The moment I step out he comes running over. “Doing okay?” He nods and smiles. I open the door to the passenger side for him and only close it when he sits comfortably. Once I’m in the other side of the car I google for the nearest hybrid friendly hospital.

There is one 20 minutes away, outside of town. Making sure Taehyung is okay one last time, I offer him a fruit bar I had laying in my bag. He tilts his head and point at himself. “For me?” His confusion startles me. “There is no one else here yes?” He takes the bar from me and stares at it, turning it around a few times. Inspecting the wrapper, sniffing it a bit, weighing the bar in his hands.

“I can eat this?” He asks again. “Yeah you must be hungry right? Please, eat it. I’ll get you something better later.” I take the bar from his hands to open the wrapper. While discarding the wrapper in my pocket I make a mental note to throw it away later. I give the bar back to the hybrid who doesn’t seem to understand it’s for him. “I can really eat this? Just like that?”

I notice a small smile making its way on his face after he has sniffed the bar a few more times. “Enjoy it.” He takes a small bite and looks at me. Once he is sure the action didn’t anger me he takes a bigger bite. “Thank you, I like it.” Following me allowing myself to watch him eat a bit longer, I start the car and make my way to the hospital.

You know, it’s a sentence I have heard often, ‘Without the dark there is no light’. Or maybe you’d rather use ‘Without sour there is no sweet’. What exactly are you trying to tell me? Should I be hurt just so that I can be happy? Does that mean it’s a good thing I’ve never known love? Surviving of the scraps the abusers feed me, so that I can reach the end of the tunnel. It’s a lie, there is no end for me.

I don’t deserve the praise because I’ll never learn how not to behave. Obviously the way to learn is to be broken beyond repair. We can’t have anything nice, I’ll never know how to appreciate it anyway.

Leave me alone, I still need to figure out how to feel content on my own. Don’t come closer, I still need to find a way to be delighted with distance between us. Stop talking, I still need to discover how to be joyful while silence surrounds me. Oh, how you’d wish I would comply.

I’ll stab a sword in your heart so I can grasp the concept of adoring you. I’ll make you scream so I can master treasuring your laugh. I’ll kill you so I can perceive how to value your life.

Taglist

@suhappysuho​ @intellectualxprincess​

[shreddedparchment]

Colocataire Pt.01

The Push and Pull

06/26/2019

Pairing: Thor x Reader x Steve          Word Count: 7,653

Prompt: Colocataire - Roommate

Masterpost     Warnings: Polyamory, sexual tension, fluff, smidge of angst, language, violence

A/N: This is the first of a two part series for @cametobuyplums ‘s writing challenge. I had initially intended for it to be a one shot but as always, these challenges are always demanding more attention. I hope you all like it. I had a lot of fun writing this first bit and it’ll only get better. If you happen to reblog, thanks so much for helping me spread my work! xoxo

Edit: I can’t believe I completely forgot to credit the amazing @youngmoneymilla for reading the beginning innards of this piece for me and giving me some great input.

Several thoughts float through your mind as your apartment door shuts behind you.

The hairs on the back of your neck stand on end and your grandma’s old warning echoes around in your brain.

“Don’t trust anyone and always be aware of your surroundings. The world is out to get you, sweetheart. Never forget it.”

You reach for your pepper spray but before you can plunge your hand into the depths of your purse, your living room light flares on.

You blink hard against the brightness, distraught. You draw in a deep breath and prepare to scream when a calming female voice interrupts you.

“Don’t yell. Calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.” She says.

You recognize that voice, but you’ve only ever heard it over the phone.

The first time you'd heard it you’d been a kid. Almost a baby still, only four years old, when this oddly husky voice had been slightly reedier.

She’d been young too. Older than you but still young. Malleable.

“N-Natasha?” You stutter, too startled to do more than croak at her.

“Hey, Y/N. Long time no see.” She says, a smile in her voice.

As your eyes focus, you see her clearly. She’s wearing a pair of plain light blue jeans. A light blue tank top underneath a form fitting gray leather jacket. It’s all topped with the same licorice red hair you remember her having as a child.

How it is that she can walk so silently in her sneakers when your own have a tendency to squeak against your dark chocolate wooden floor, you cannot comprehend.

“Why are you here?” You ask, forgetting your manners. “I mean, no. That’s not what I mean. Sorry, I’m just-”

“Surprised to see me?” She offers.

“Yeah.” You half-laugh. “Yes. Very. How’ve you been?”

You relax, peel off your own black jacket and hang it by the door before dropping your purse off on the small table nearby.

“Oh, you know. Living the life.” She grins, hands shoved into her pockets as she looks away from you to walk back towards the seat on your sofa she’d chosen and risen from when you walked in.

“You’re still with the Avengers.” You say, as if she doesn’t know that herself.

“I am.” She watches you with green apple eyes as you move to take a seat on the opposite end of the couch. You kick your shoes off and stretch your toes.

Wearing heels sucks but you work in a pretty nice office.

“And you’re-?”

“Still working nine to five.” You smile at her. “Boring as ever."

“Good.” And she does look happy for you.

She turns herself sideways, hiking up her knee onto the cushion while resting her right arm across the back.

Neither of you says anything for a minute and you look down at your feet, stretch out your legs and lean down to massage the red welts where your shoes had dug into the sides of your feet.

“So, what do you need? You never visit.” You’re not angry or hurt. Just knowing.

Nat had reached out one day several years ago. Checking up on the kid who’d escaped the Red Room Academy.

No ballet for you. No blood on your hands either. You’d been plucked by an angel and saved from enrollment.

Lucky.

“Sorry I didn’t message you this month.” She leans towards you, placing her hand on the center cushion.

You smile and then chuckle, amused.

“I figured you were just busy. I don’t mean to sound offended if that’s what I sounded like. I just…what do you need Nat?” The two of you had grown close over time so she doesn’t take offense with your tone.

“I’m that transparent, huh?”

“No. Not transparent, you’ve just never come to visit. Never mind letting yourself in.” You point out, glancing at the locks on your door.

If she can get in, who else can? You suddenly have the need to upgrade your locks.

“I do need a favor.” She sits back, relaxing into the arm of your sofa as you bring your attention back to her.

“Will this require a long explanation? I’m starving.”

“No, but please, make yourself some dinner. Don’t mind me.” She nods towards your kitchen, hands shoved between her knees as she lifts the other leg up onto the sofa.

“Okay.” You give her a smile then reach over to give her knee a squeeze before kicking your shoes aside.

You pull down on the zipper of your skirt and step out of it as you step into your room.

“So, what’s this favor?” You probe, slipping into a pair of ripped gray sweats.

Pulling on a simple red tank to go with it, you wander back into the living room where Nat is now laying on the sofa staring up at your ceiling. You follow her gaze and smile, stopping at the edge of the sofa by her head with your hands on your hips.

She points up at the ceiling and smiles at you, upside down.

“When’d you do that?” She asks, and you shrug your shoulders.

“Almost as soon as I moved in? They’re in every room of the house. Even the bathroom.” You admire the non-illuminated stars.

There are small ones and medium and great big ones carefully spread out along the ceiling. They’re not in any particular constellations or formations. You just filled it up until it looked like the night sky.

“I like it.” She states, gazing fondly at the plastic glow-in-the-dark stars.

“What’s the favor?” You ask, chuckling lightly as you gather your hair up at the top of your head in a messy bun.

“You’re not gonna like it.”

You freeze with your hand on the fridge door and frown at her from across the room.

“It’s work related?” Her work, of course. Not yours.

“Yes. But don’t worry, you won’t need to go out into the field or anything. I just need to borrow your place, if you’ll let us use it?” She wonders, propping herself up onto her elbows to look at you.

“Us?” Nat and Clint maybe? You’d met Clint. “Why do you need my apartment?”

Nat had sent him to check up on you when you hadn’t messaged her back, but you’d only broken your phone and procrastinated on getting a new one. He’d been nice.

Hot. Married. Damn it.

“It’ll only be for a few months. There’s—well, I can’t tell you too much without breaking confidentiality but someone’s making bombs and using them all over town.” Nat begins.

“The Late-Night Bomber?!” You ask, very interested.

You’ve been terrified of being out at night thanks to this crazy idiot. Regular bombs are scary enough, but this jerk is using alien tech.

“The one all over the news?” You continue.

“Yeah.” Nat nods, getting to her feet then stretching her arms over her head.

You observe her lithe form and wish you had the dedication to make your body look like hers.

“Why here?” You wonder.

“The bombs are originating from somewhere in this neighborhood. But we don’t know exactly where.” She smacks the right corner of her lips, a look of disappointment overtaking her beautiful face.

“What?!” You squeak, even more afraid than you were before.

“Yeah. That’s why I was wondering if we could-”

“Yes!” You cut her off, charging towards her with a spatula smeared in tomato sauce. “Yes. Come! Please!”

“Okay.” Nat chuckles, finding amusement in your fear. “Great. Thanks.”

If the Late-Night Bomber is in your neighborhood, having Nat and Clint around is a must.

The heavy knock on your door startles you.

You’ve been on edge since Nat came over and told you about that psycho living in your neighborhood.

Chewing on your lower lip, pulling at the small chapped skin on the left, you put your book down and with a small gulp, move for the door.

You’re still wearing your ratty gray sweats. A white fitted tee on top.

Nat knows what you look like in those sweats and Clint is married so…you’re not trying to impress anyone.

Then you open your front door and your heart nearly hammers itself out of your chest.

You have never, in your life, had your jaw drop. You have never, in your life, felt like your heart was both exploding and burning. You have never, in your life, coveted anyone the way you are suddenly coveting the tall, wide, long haired blonde standing before you.

His wide shoulders are what you see because he’s turned around, talking to another tall blonde. This one has short hair. A neat cut. Clean shaven face.

His storm blue eyes do things to you that you have also never felt before.

Woah. Is all you can think because this much good-looking should not be in one room all at one time.

If you were more dramatic. You might have fainted.

The golden blonde with the shorter hair nudges the slightly taller dirtier blonde with his elbow and he turns.

“Hi.” The shorter blonde says. “You must be Y/N. I’m-”

“C-Captain America.” You stutter. Not cool, loser. “I mean, Steve. Rogers, right?”

“Yeah.” He says, then he gives you a stupidly cute smile. “Nice to meet you.”

You smile back, unable to help yourself. “Hi.”

Then you look up at the taller blonde but he’s staring at you with his mouth open and you’re suddenly wondering why.

You look down at yourself and feel your cheeks burn as you realize that you’re WAY underdressed to meet guys this hot.

Shit.

“Oh-I…excuse me.” You turn and hurry towards the hallway.

“Wait!” Captain America says but you don’t stop.

You move fast, rushing to be out of their sight while also grabbing your cell as you pass the chair you’d been sitting in.

Once you’re in your room, you pull open your drawers and search them one handed while you dial Natasha’s number with the other.

You sandwich the device with your left shoulder and ear while simultaneously sliding out of your ratty sweats.

Ring, ring. Ring, ring.

“Come on, Nat. Pick up the damn phone.” You grumble.

Finally managing to step out of your pants, you kick them away towards your hamper as the phone clicks.

“Hey, hold on. I’ll call you back.” Nat says, the sound of gunfire in the background.

“No, Nat!” You shout but she hangs up. You grab the phone in both hands and squeeze it, trembling hands of fury as you mentally strangle her. “Fffffffuck!”

“Hey, is everything alright?” Captain America’s voice drifts in muffled through your door.

It startles you and you jump again.

“Oh, uh, yes! Yes. Everything’s fine. Just…have a seat. Make your-yourselves at home. I’ll be right out.” You turn back towards your drawers, drop your phone on top, then pull out a pair of wrinkled old jeans and slide those on.

“Okay.” Cap replies, sounding unconvinced.

Buzz! Buzz-buzz!

Your phone moves a half an inch towards you as it vibrates, and you yank it up to your ear.

“Nat!” You whisper-shout, quick glance towards your bedroom door.

“Hey. Sorry about that. You kinda caught me mid-heist. What’s up? Everything okay?” There’s still the distant sound of gunshots from her end of the line and for one moment you consider hanging up. “Y/N?”

“Why aren’t you here?” You demand as quietly as possible while you reach down to do up your zipper and button.

“Oh.” She laughs. She laughs?! “I guess the guys are there.”

“Nat, when you told me that you needed to use the apartment, you said it would be you and Clint.” You move to the edge of your bed and plop yourself down, left hand nervously gripping your knee.

“No, I didn’t.” She says, amusement still turning her voice.

“Yes. You did.”

“No. Shit. Hold on.” Four gunshots, loud. Close. A grunt. Then a deep sigh. “I never said that me and Clint were the two that would be staying.”

“Oh my God, Nat. You said, us and us has always been you and Clint.” You explain passionately.

“Us. The Avengers. That’s what I meant. I’m sorry if you misunderstood. What’s the problem? Are they being rude?” The way she asks, she makes it sound as if she’ll scold them.

“No.” You assure her, uncomfortable. Shifting from side to side on the mattress. “No. They’re not being rude. They—they haven’t even been able to speak much yet.”

“Then?” Nat waits. When a minute passes you hear her exasperated sigh. “Y/N? What’s the problem?”

“I just—I thought it was going to be you and Clint so I just kinda opened the door.” You sweep your hand as if you’re pulling the door open again. “In my sweats. My hair all…I look like…”

Nat is suddenly laughing on the other end.

“Nat.” You growl, embarrassed.

“Don’t worry, Y/N. Steve and Thor are not there to date. They’ll stay out of your way. You stay out of theirs. It’ll be like they’re not even there. Besides, I don’t think you’re exactly their type.”

You don’t know why but this offends you. Is she calling you ugly? You’re not…you know what you look like, but Nat had always seemed so open.

“Oh.” Your insecurity seeps through to your tone and she picks up on it quickly.

“No, Y/N. That’s not what I meant. You’re just very normal. Thor dated an astrophysicist. Steve dated an ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and current C.I.A. operative. You’re just a little…?”

“Unimpressive?” You supply.

Nat sighs. “They’d be lucky to have someone like you. But as I said, they’re not there to date. They’re professionals, Y/N. They wouldn’t do that. I promise.”

Nat had been right of course. Steve and Thor were professionals.

When they were on watch.

When they weren’t, they were eating your fridge clean. Leaving their clothes all over the place. And taking up space on your couch.

“Who made coffee and didn’t clean the pot? There’s mold in here now.” You growl.

“I’m sorry. That was me. I’ll wash it now.” Thor rises to his feet, but you shoot him a glare.

“Don’t bother. I’m already doing it.” You pile the pot beside the other dirty dishes and then move towards your favorite armchair.

“Thor, is this your shirt?” Thor, who had casually laid himself back down on the sofa, looks up over the edge of the Rubik’s Cube he’s been fiddling with all week.

It’s halfway solved but he keeps messing it up.

“No. That’s Cap’s.”

“Oh.” You fold it and try not to like how soft it is or the smell of light crisp fragrance that wafts up towards you from it.

God, they both smell so damn good.

Thor’s wearing normal clothes here. You have yet to see him in his uniform since he arrived. Almost a month and he’s still wearing mostly hoodies, t-shirts, and jeans.

And he looks good. All the time.

“Why do you call him Cap? Do you always call him that?” He laughs at you, big goofy smile as his electric sapphire eyes sparkle.

“What? Of course not. I know his name. We’re friends.” He says.

“So, what is it?”

“What’s what?” He goes back to his Rubik’s cube, brow knit, smile still plastered over his ridiculous pink lips.

They peek out from his scruffy beard, begging for kisses but you shove that thought away too.

They’re your roommates for all intents and purposes and they treat you like…well, you’re not exactly sure what they treat you like. Not like someone they’re interested in. Steve hardly pays you any mind.

“His name, Thor. What’s Cap’s name?” You clarify, holding Steve’s shirt against your chest as Thor stares up at your plastic stars.

“They’re out here too?” He asks, sitting up suddenly, tossing the Rubik’s Cube aside.

“Huh?”

“The stars.” He points at them and he’s so tall he can reach up and trace one of them when you’d had to balance on a chair on your tiptoes to place them.

“Oh. Yeah.” You watch him admire the sight before he races for the light switch and turns them all off.

He then hurries to all the windows and pulls down the blinds plunging the both of you into darkness.

“Thor!” You complain, unable to see almost anything.

As your eyes adjust, you see the vague black shadow of your furniture and a much larger mass moving around the room towards you. The shadow is looking up.

You move your eyes upwards and see what he sees. Your apartment’s ceiling is suddenly the night sky and your breath catches in your throat.

It’s not real. You know it isn’t. You sometimes forget that they’re there though and when you see them again after letting them slip from your mind, they take your breath away.

“They’re beautiful. I stare up at the ones in my room before I go to sleep every night.” Thor tells you from somewhere in the darkness to your left.

You walk towards the sound of his voice but bump into the TV stand.

“Ow.”

“Careful.” He tells you from where the sofa should be. “Come over here.”

“This would be easier if the lights were on.” You mutter.

“But then we wouldn’t see the stars.” The yearning in his voice is real and you wonder what must have put it there.

“Well, I can’t see. It’s dark. I don’t have your eyes.” You complain.

“My eyes? What do my eyes have to do with anything?” His deep confusion is ridiculous. Stupid God.

“Oh, I don’t know. Can you see? Do those Godly peepers of yours let you see in the dark?”

“Peepers?” He asks, confused for a moment by the slang. “Sort of.”

“Well, I can’t see jack shit.” Dummy.

He chuckles. It’s deep and it rumbles out from his chest. You like it.

“What are you laughing at?” You whine.

“You’ll hurt yourself if you keep moving that way. Here. Follow my voice.” He coaxes you, soft and gentle.

“Can’t we just turn on the lights?” You sigh, moving towards the last spot you’d heard his deep timber.

“No. I like the stars.” And his voice is close. You adjust a little to your left.

“Watch it, the coffee table is there. Here, a little to your right. You can walk between your armchair and the table.” He says.

“This way?” You ask, looking up at the stars on the ceiling and wishing you’d laid them out in constellations so that you’d know them like a real map of the stars.

You reach out, holding your hand in front of you to see if you might hit something first but instead hot fingers intertwine with your own.

Freezing, you stop walking but try to memorize the way Thor’s fingers feel around yours. It’s not like he’s guiding you. He’s seriously just holding your hand.

Fingers laced through yours.

The tension in the room becomes so thick you could cut it. What kind of tension?

You blink, swallow, nervously as more heat finds your chest.

“I’ve got you.” He whispers, and his breath wafts down on you.

You could lean up. You know where his lips would be.

“Come.” He says, and his hand pulls you down.

You can hear him shifting and shuffling in front of you, then his hands are on your hips and you’re breathless.

“Thor?”

“Lay down with me. Let’s watch the stars.” He begs. His fingers shift over the soft, cotton dress you’d put on this morning to meet a friend from the office for lunch.

“I can’t see.” You whisper, nerves on edge and burning.

His large hands trace your hips down along the outside of your thighs until they find your knees and he pulls them towards himself.

The sensation of falling is terrifying in the pitch black, but he catches you. His arms are wrapped around you, underneath your own arms, and very slowly he lowers you until your knees are on the ground.

He’s already sitting, you realize. You shift to his left and sit down too.

“Wait.” He says, a rush of his scent washes over you, fresh rain, wet soil, clean spring air, with a bite of bitter ozone, numbing your senses to everything but him. “Here.”

He places his hands on your shoulders and very slowly leads you down onto the floor. He’s only guiding you, so you don’t get too excited.

When your head hits a pillow, you laugh. “Thanks.”

How considerate.

“You’re welcome.” You can hear the smile in his voice as he settles in beside you to your right. Your sofa on your left.

“You really like my stars that much?” You wonder, staring up at the pretty patterns.

“I do. They remind me of home. Before it was destroyed. Cap told me that they are made of plastic? With bio-luminescent paint?” He wonders, his breath wafting towards you again.

He’s so close you can feel his arm grazing against yours, his fingers probably within reach.

“Something like that. I’ve never been curious enough to really find out what they’re made of.” You look towards where his head should be. “So, are you ever going to answer my question?”

“What question?” He asks, and his hot breath is on your lips and you might just go ahead and faint.

Thor is so close that he’s whispering and still sounds as loud and clear as when he greets you everyday with a cheerful good morning despite the bird’s nest on your head and the grumpy scowl you wear until you have your coffee and breakfast.

“What’s Cap’s name?” You whisper back.

“Oh. That. Uh…well, of course, because he and I are such close friends—Stefan. Of course, I know that.” He brags so uncertain that he must know he’s wrong.

It makes you smile, and you grin up at him despite not being able to see him.

“Stefan? Are you sure you don’t mean Steven?” You ask.

“That, yes. That’s what I said.” He assures you.

“No one calls him Steven.” You whisper, desperately wanting to laugh.

“Of course not. They call him Steve.” Well, color you impressed. “Steve Dodgers.”

“What?!” You exclaim, already laughing.

“What? Is that not it?” He asks, laughing now too. It’s a low chuckle, rising in pitch at the end that tickles your belly with flutters. “Lodgers?”

You laugh harder. It makes your knees fold up as you clutch at your stomach with your left arm.

Suddenly, your right hand is wrapped in warmth and those large fingers are interlacing with yours again.

It startles your heart into a fast thrum, but your laugh dies into a chuckle as you let your fingers curl around Thor’s too.

“I’ll help you with the dishes.” He says, and that nearly makes you twist towards him. It makes you want to mount him, but you lean up towards the breath he’s breathing towards you.

“Okay.” You reply, excited and scared but oh, so eager. “Can we do it in a little bit? The dishes I mean?”

When he speaks, his voice is so close, he might as well just be speaking into your mouth. “Your wish is my command…my princess.”

Oh, God, you’re going to pounce him. He’s a goner.

As the two of you lean towards each other, the rattling of keys and the door pry the two of you apart.

You sit up, surprised by the intrusion. You’re on your feet and just before the lights flare on, you quickly shake your hand out of Thor’s.

Steve freezes with his hand still on the switch as he watches you and the awkward way you move to the side in quick small steps, back towards the armchair where you’d dropped his folded shirt.

“You’re back.” You gasp.

“Uh…yeah.” Steve says, picking up on that tense thick atmosphere you’d noticed when the lights were shut off.

“Did you find anything?” Thor asks, still sitting on the floor but leaning on top of the coffee table.

“No.” Steve sighs and shuts the door. He moves toward the kitchen counter and drops off a large brown paper bag you hadn’t noticed he was holding. “I got some stuff for dinner though. Steaks sound good?”

“Oh, Odin, bless him. He’s got meat.” Thor rattles as he gets to his feet and moves towards the kitchen.

“You just ate.” You remind him, remembering the four sandwiches he’d devoured not an hour ago.

He turns and shrugs at you, a lopsided smile on those lips that you’d nearly kissed. Fuck, that timing.

“Well, I can’t cook for shit, so unless you want blackened steaks, I suggest someone else take over.” Steve says, knowing himself well enough.

“I can-” You begin but Thor cuts you off.

“I’ve got this. You have never had steak until you have had it made by a true Asgardian chef.” Thor brags, clapping his hands and removing his hoodie.

It pulls up on his t-shirt and you see the golden glimpse of his tight back before he’s pulling his dark blue t-shirt down.

“Thor, you burned the grilled cheese.” You remind him.

He doesn’t look at you.

“Well, that was merely a mistake. I promise you, my p-” He looks up at Steve who’s staring deep into the paper bag as he pulls the groceries out, to see if he’s hearing this slip as it happens but Steve seems unaware. “-panicky friend. That will not happen again. I was distracted last time.”

Thor saves himself but your heart is pounding, and you don’t know why he’s not willing to say that again in front of Steve. Maybe because it isn’t supposed to be happening?

This sucks.

“I don’t know that I’m hungry.” You tell him, the shift of melancholy in your voice.

He notices and he turns to look at you, his blue eyes full of bright reassurance. Whether it’s for his cooking or what just happened in the dark, you’re not sure.

What you are sure of is that falling for one of these sudden roommates wasn’t something you’d been expecting.

As Thor turns back towards the counter, Steve turns to look at you. He gives you a small sheepish smile. It raises goosebumps on your skin and the flutter in your stomach from Thor’s hand rushes up to make your heart tumble.

Falling for both of your roommates? Odin help you.

“Steve, you don’t have to do that. I can manage.” The awkwardness of trying to keep your distance as he snakes your drain is palpable.

Gross. What if he pulls out a massive wad of your hair?

You wring your hands, tapping the toe of your sneaker against the light cream-colored tile of your bathroom floor.

“Steve…” You worry.

“Hold on. I’ve almost…” A grunt. “Got it.”

Okay. That’s enough. “Seriously, you should stop. I’ve been snaking my own drain for years now. I’m an expert.”

You move towards him, shoving yourself between him and the wall that he’s got his arm propped against. Your tub sits at an angle in the back corner of your bathroom and he has to lean in to get to the drain in the back center.

You reach for the snaking tool with your right hand as he adjusts his hold on the wall with his left.

“Wait, Y/N. Don’t.” He looks worried as you lean in. “It’s wet, let me just get up.”

“I got it. Just let me do it.”

“Hold on.” He says sternly.

“Steve…” You protest.

Then your hand slips against the bottom of the tub and your body falls down towards the painful ceramic.

You don’t even scream as your body is flung. You shut your eyes tight and wait for the painful stab of the tub’s edge against your ribs but instead find your chest pressed against a harder muscled one.

Arms curled in against your own, you keep your eyes closed, knowing very well that you’ve managed to damsel in distress your way into Steve’s stupidly strong embrace.

“You okay?” He asks, worry thick. “I told you to wait. Why didn’t you just wait?”

You don’t speak. You’re too embarrassed.

“Y/N?” Steve asks, more worry seeping through. “Did you hit yourself somewhere?”

“No.” You utter.

“Wha-then, are you okay?” He asks again.

“No.” You groan.

“What’s the matter?” He pulls you up, somehow getting you both on level footing again with his sheer upper body strength.

Opening your eyes, you try not to look down at the wide expanse of his chest and shoulders. They stretch the heather gray fabric of his t-shirt and you’re already battling with the urge to run your hands up along his strong pectorals on a daily basis.

“Nothing. I’m just a klutz.” You sigh.

Steve sighs too. With relief? “Oh.”

There’s a small huff of hot air. He’s laughing at you.

“I mean, I could have told you that after the first week of staying here with you. Didn’t think it would take three months being around a Super Soldier to make you realize it.” He sounds assuredly cocky, despite his usual straight-cut demeanor.

“You’re teasing me?” You demand, surprised, but pleasantly so.

“No.” He promises, shaking his head. “No. I’m just—okay, maybe I am teasing you a little.” He laughs, a real laugh.

“Jerk.” You reach out and push him, hand lingering just a bit too long against the left side of his chest.

“Sorry.” He chuckles, reaching up to take hold of your hand.

Something like electricity charges the air as his hand closes around yours, cupping the back of it when you leave it there.

“Are you?” It doesn’t sound like he’s sorry. He sounds like he’s having fun.

He shakes his head. “Not really.” And laughs again.

You renew the push to his shoulder, and he trails his hand down your forearm to your elbow, the pressure bending it so that it brings you closer.

The two of you go silent again. You stare into his storm blue gaze, trying to understand the blue-fire within them.

“You’ve been kind of on a fixing kick with all the little broken things in the apartment.” First the light in the dining room.

Then the doorbell. The window that doesn’t open in the living room. One of the coffee table legs. Testing the smoke alarms. Waxing the wooden floors. Repairing some tile on your bathroom floor and the guest bathroom. Snaking both drains. Polishing all the fixtures. What’s he doing?

“Your landlord doesn’t come by often enough.” Steve’s right too.

You’ve never once seen your landlord to fix things in the few years you’ve lived here.

“I usually do them myself.” You tell him.

“I don’t doubt that you can. I just wanted to help. I live here too, you know?” He says, tenor voice burrowing its way into your chest hollow.

“I hadn’t noticed, what with you being gone so much this month.” You’ve missed him. His presence around the apartment.

Thor has also been gone a lot this month and after that incident two months ago with your stars, Thor hasn’t shone any kind of interest. No more my princess and you’re desperate to hear it again.

Clearly whatever had happened that night had been a one-time thing. Caught up in the stars maybe because he’s shown no sign of interest since.

“I know.” Steve says, pulling you out of your thoughts of Thor. “Sorry. We’ve been tracing the bomber upstate. Then back down and back up. He’s moving but we’re not sure why.”

You don’t want to talk about the Late-Night Bomber. He’s killed so many people and the thought of him in your building or the next building or the building across the street, it drives you up the wall with worry.

Feeling safe with Steve and Thor has become somewhat of a habit and now that they’ve been spending so much time out of your apartment, your fear has rushed back to the forefront.

“What if he shows up one day?” Your intention is not to pull any sort of reaction from Steve. It’s a genuine question. “And you’re not here?”

You’re truly afraid. Helpless in a way that you’d never thought would matter.

“That won’t happen.” Steve insists, suddenly yanking you closer. His hand curves around your waist, fingers digging deep into the tissues of your back.

“You can’t be sure.” You tell him.

“Y/N…” He starts, but you don’t want to talk about the bomber!

“So, listen,” You press on, intent on forgetting the danger. “Since you’re in a handyman type of mood, do you think you could come back into my room?”

“Why?” He asks, curious but his hand gets tighter. You gasp, so quiet that no one but Steve can hear it.

He’ll probably be able to hear the pounding of your heart too. Is it giving you away?

“Do you have something in there that needs tending to?” The meaning of his words is laced with double entendre and you blink your eyes shut to focus.

You’re suddenly aching and pooling in all the right and wrong places. Damn this man and the other one too.

RING! RING-RING!

Both of you jump and Steve drops his arm. You race around him towards your bathroom counter and stare with muted aggression at the name on the screen. With a swipe of your finger, you answer the phone and press it to your ear.

“Hey, Nat.” You turn around and hop up onto the counter, crossing your legs tight and shoving your fisted hand over the crotch of your pants.

There’s nothing to see there, but you’re very aware of what’s underneath.

Steve crosses into your eye line and you stare at him as he moves to stand beside you, washing his hands in the sink. Slowly.

He’s watching you. His storm blue eyes curious and penetrating.

“Hey. You okay? You sound weird.” Stupid spy.

“Yes. I’m fine.” You assure her.

“Good. Everything going okay with tweedledee and tweedledum?”  Her voice is knowing but not in the way you’re expecting.

She sounds like she’s asking you about two mischievous boys. Young ones. Brothers. Not these two Adonis men walking around your apartment.

“Yeah. We’re good. Steve’s actually helping me out around the apartment as we speak. He just snaked my drain.” You say, fully aware of the way it sounds.

Steve’s eyebrows slowly shoot up on his forehead, hand washing forgotten.

All you can do is stare at him.

“That’s good! They’re actually helping? We can’t get them to do anything back on the compound.”

“Yeah. I’ll have to thank him for being so good to me.” You say, lowering your tone.

You’d be lying if you said that despite Thor’s reservations since the almost kiss, you and Steve haven’t been sharing lingering looks. The shy boy is endearing but it’s those long stares he gives you across the dining table or when you look up from your book while you sit in your favorite armchair and meet his eye from where he sits on the couch.

It’s inquisitive and probing. Never explicitly full of desire but sometimes there’s a lick to his lips and you have to look away or leave the room because your neck suddenly burns like lava.

Living with Steve is not easy. Living with Thor feels more and more like torture.

They’re so good to you now. They clean up after themselves when they see you come home exhausted. Thor makes breakfast almost every day. Steve brings you new books and Thor asks you endless questions about nothing and everything.

Your favorite nights—the ones that hurt but also feel so good—are the ones when you shut off the living room lights and while Steve runs his surveillance of the neighborhood through a small crack in the blinds, you lay on your sofa, Thor lays on the floor beside you. And all three of you talk and gaze at your indoor stars.

Today is much harder than any other day because as you tell Nat that you’ll have to thank your roomie, he places his hand on the inside of your left knee.

Your mouth parts, a small soundless gasp escaping as he trails that hand up along the inside of your thigh.

Where is this coming from but also, why hasn’t it happened already?!

Nat had said you weren’t their type. Maybe not Thor’s now, since he’s backed off, but Steve?

“Who are you talking to?” Clint’s voice is immediately recognizable and maybe you would have jumped at the chance to tell him hi, but right now, you’re too distracted.

Steve’s fingers tickle the exposed flesh of your leg. His tips slowly press into the bottom hem of your jean shorts.

“Y/N. Anyway,-”

“Tell her I said, hi.” Clint says.

“I’m sure she can hear you, dummy.” Nat replies.

“Hi, Y/N!”

“Hi, Clint.” You manage as Steve’s fingers push up high underneath that left short leg.

“Anyway, I gotta go. I’ll be by next month to check up on you and make sure those boys aren’t driving you crazy. Okay?”

“O-okay.” You stutter.

“Bye!” Nat finally releases you and you mumble something that sounds like ‘bye’ but then you’re putting the phone on the counter beside you.

You reach out and grab hold of Steve’s t-shirt by the neck and make to pull him towards you as his hand claws into your skin when you hear the sound of the front door.

“Hello?” Thor booms, still in the living room. “I’m home. Anyone here?”

You have a terrible, horrible, no good life.

“Yeah.” Steve says, pulling his hand back. “We’re in the bathroom.”

He moves back towards the tub and doesn’t spare you another glance as you’re left to writhe and wonder why your luck seems to run out right at this very moment.

Both damn times.

“In here?” Thor asks, as he enters your bedroom then makes for your bathroom.

When he sees you perched on the counter, he smiles, blue eyes twinkling. “Hello.”

“Hey.” You reply, wishing your heart would make up its mind.

Steve or Thor, stupid. Can’t be both.

Thor moves towards you and places both hands on the counter by your legs on either side.

He leans in and kisses your cheek, leaving a searing burn as he pulls back to look at Steve.

“What are you doing?” He asks, curious as he goes to join him.

“Snaking the drain.”

“Whating the what?” He asks, and Steve smiles.

“Snaking the drain. Here, I’ll show you.”

Left to sit on the counter, stewing in your Steve created arousal and Thor heartache, you can’t help but wonder, why not both?

“What exactly is the point of this game?” Thor wonders, setting his pair of deuces aside.

“The point is to get rid of all of your cards first. The last person to lose all of their cards loses the game.” You explain for what feels like the tenth time.

“You got any fours?” Steve asks Thor, sparing a glance out the window to his left.

Always on the watch, your Captain. Wait. My Captain?

“No.” Thor says, fiddling with his card order.

“No, Thor!” You whine, leaning over towards him with your cards held close to your chest.

“Oh, right. Sorry. Go fishing." He says it like he’s insulting Steve and it makes you chuckle.

You plop yourself down on the table, pleasantly exasperated, as Thor watches you and smiles. It’s so flirty and sweet that your heart gives a little ache.

It’s been four months since the incident in the dark and he still hasn’t done anything other than give you an occasional chaste kiss on the cheek.

“What? That’s what I say, right?” He asks, looking at Steve.

Steve is also smiling, eyes trained on his cards.

“It’s ‘go fish' not ‘go fishing'.” He explains and as you straighten up, Thor gives a small somber pout.

“Oh. Then go fish. I have no fours.” He looks up at you and smiles again, soft subtle curve to those bristling pink lips. “Do you have any threes?”

Does his beard tickle when it’s kissed?

His smile widens as he watches you stare.

Your ears burn but you smile back at him bashfully. Being caught staring at his lips is nothing new.

“Go fish.” You chuckle, bite your bottom lip then turn your eyes on Steve.

You find him watching the two of you with a small pucker between his eyes.

The look wipes away all the flirtatious flutters Thor just gave you, filling your tummy up with knots.

“Um…do you have any eights?” You ask him and Steve just stares.

When the silence becomes unbearable--Thor's eyes are glued to his cards the entire time—you breathe in slowly.

“Steve?” And release it in a nervous huff.

He opens his mouth to reply, when a loud piercing explosion shakes the room.

BOOM!

You scream, cards flying up in the air as you clamp your hands over your ears.

You’re still frozen while Steve and Thor push their chairs back away from the table, cards forgotten as Steve races for his shield by your desk. Thor holds out his hand and his axe flies towards him.

As it makes contact with his skin, his body is engulfed by harmless—to you—sizzling electricity that stands the small hairs on the back of your neck on end and bathes you in soothing heat.

“Your gun, Y/N.” Steve says sternly as he heads towards the front door. “Stay in your room.”

Despite his order, you’re still not moving. A million things could have happened to cause that explosion but something tells you that what you’ve been fearing would happen has finally happened.

The Late-Night Bomber is done with this neighborhood and is making an example of it. Maybe he caught onto Thor and Steve’s scent?

Thor’s large hand closes around your bicep and he pulls you out of your seat. He’s gentle but firm. The urgency in his movements scares you.

“Go, my princess,” He whispers, so low that Steve won’t hear him. “Find your weapon and stay out of harm’s way. We will return for you shortly. Go.”

As he pushes you towards the hallway you turn to watch him disappear through your front door behind Steve. His words had woken you back up and now more than ever you hate to see him and Steve go.

You do as you’re told.

You hurry into your bedroom and shove your hands into the space between your mattress and the box spring until they find sleek cold metal.

The gun is a small nine-millimeter Beretta and Steve chose it specifically for you because of its small size and low recoil. He’d show up one day with it nestled in a small silver metal case, kissed your head, and told you to keep it close.

“Stay safe.” He always says when he leaves. Today he forgot to say it.

Settling into the faded baby blue armchair in the corner of your room, you sit with your feet propped up on the seat. You use your knees to aim your gun at the door and urge your hands to still.

Waiting sucks. Waiting for something to happen. Anything. Waiting for your boys to come back.

Nat had sounded sisterly when she spoke of them. You see them as much more than that. Even if nothing has happened…

Please, let me get out of this so that something can happen.

If they don’t want to make the first move. You’ll have to. But who?

Your ears go into overdrive, trying to catch the sounds of the building around you.

There’s screaming, children crying. The sounds of running. You hear rumbles of thunder in the distance but you’re not sure where Thor might be. He sounds like he’s far away.

If Thor isn’t nearby, is Steve?

The sounds of sirens get closer and closer, grating your fearful nerves.

Something like acid begins to burn in your gut.

Half an hour passes and the longer you’re away from Steve and Thor, the worse this feeling gets.

An instinct pulls at you from the center of your chest. As the sounds of the world go eerily silent, no more screaming, no more sirens, no sounds of Thor, you let that instinct lead you towards the bathroom. You climb into your tub and sit yourself on the far end, facing the door with your gun once again aimed at the entrance.

The smaller confined space gives you some comfort. Not much. Some.

The floor around you begins to shake. The quaking moves the small glass jars of Q-tips and cotton swabs on your counter. Your compact slides along the surface as it rattles then falls and the mirror shatters as it pops open. The small pictures you’d had hung up in your room, the one of you Thor and Steve casually sitting on your sofa beside each other but deliberately not touching probably falls and breaks along with the others.

This mist be what a mild earthquake feels like.

The rumbling stops.

Your breathing grows ragged as your fear reaches up to choke you as that bitter instinct warns you that it’s not over.

You’re about to scream when your restroom explodes around you.

BOOM!

Everything is dust and particles, flying debris, crumbling structure, flying broken tile, smoke, and heat more terrifying than anything you’ve ever felt.

You don’t wanna die.

The ash polluted air keeps you from drawing in more than a ragged, rattling breath. The oxygen burns out of your lungs and then something heavy falls over you. You flatten yourself into your tub as best you can, but your arm is caught, and you desperately pull the memory of two pairs of eyes.

Electric and Storm blue eyes are the last thing you see as your world turns black.

Support me on Ko-fi

Forever Tag List @jessieray98 @crist1216 @rainbowkisses31 @xxloki81xx @the-wayward-robot @quokkatrash @tiffanynguyen03 @basementcafe @kind-sober-fullydressed @moli1497 @badassbaker @awkwardfangirl2014 @shield-agent78 @supernaturaldean67 @sea040561 @jewelofwinter @this-side-of-midnight5 @sebbystanlover-vk @just4muggles @death-unbecomes-you @lilulo-12 @whosmarisaaarw @hiddles-rose @pandazlazykid @alagalaska @theonelittleone @xlittlestarling @moonlessnight14 @natura1phenomenon @pineapplebooboo @spaghettirogers @dsakita @sincerelytlh @booklover2929 @lovefreylove @just-trying-to-survive-marvel @vulpecula-minor @the-real-mary-jane @babytrollgirl @wildefire @fairislesheets @mother-of-fire-snakes @xrosegoldwolfx

Steve Taglist @patzammit

[mood-swings-for-days]

Thunderstorm Ι Ch. 3 Ι JJK

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

Genre: Angst, Fluff, Smut, Werewolf!au

Word count: 6, 829

Warnings: Characters in a less than healthy state of mind, violence, slight body horror, an addicted to cigarettes Jungkook (don’t do drugs, kids!)

Summary: An accidental encounter triggers a series of events that shatter your monotonous life. A new relationship starts to develop, following the stages of a thunderstorm.

Note: Written under the influence of beautiful music

1   2   3   4

Chapter 3: Drizzle

      Propping the old umbrella on your shoulder, you struggled to lock the driver side door of your truck. Raindrops were falling heavily on the hood of your car and covering your face in a fine misting of rainwater. You were scowling in frustration, straining the key in futile efforts to make it fulfil its purpose. Water pooled around your feet and seeped into your sneakers, egging your irritation even further. With the fading sunlight, cueing you were already late for your shift, you couldn’t help but think that this was the worst possible time for the old lock to start acting up. Abruptly, you turned the key in the opposite direction and back again, repeating the movement several times before the lock finally reacted. With additional effort to turn the thing all the way, you were finally rewarded with a resounding click. A relieved sigh tore itself from your lungs as your hand flopped down to hang beside you. With throbbing fingers, although victorious, you headed up the street toward the store.

      The bell above the door and your wet, squelching shoes notified of your arrival before you could do that yourself. Your coworker was leaning against the counter, already changed out of his work uniform.

        “I’m late, I’m sorry!” You decided to forego a proper greeting in favor of trying to explain yourself. “Yoongi, my car was acting up and I-”

      “Spare me.” The hostile tone he cut you off with immediately struck you as odd. He had opted to work a 12 hour shift today and was going to be absent for the next week so you could only assume he was tired and cranky and wanting to leave already. That being said, the look in his narrowed eyes went far beyond mild irritation from a tiring day. Yoongi looked mad; his eyes were quite literally burning your soul. You stood unmoving under his glare, blinking up at him owlishly and wondering what you did to piss him off to that extent. He couldn’t have gotten angry because you didn’t show up on time as he was notorious for coming to work late. With a quick glance toward his crossed arms, you noticed he was squeezing his fists so hard, his knuckles were turning white. You carefully swallowed the saliva, built up in your mouth and his eyes immediately snapped to your throat. The tiny movement seemed to finally set him off. He pushed off the counter and headed straight for you, staring you down. You tensed up and held your breath until he brushed past you. A cloud of his natural scent hit you in the face and, as if on autopilot, you mumbled:

        “Have a nice evening, Yoongi.”

        His reply came in the form of the store’s front door slamming behind you. The little bell shook for several moments after his departure and when the shop was finally silent again, that’s when you snapped out of your initial shock. Sheepishly, you walked behind the counter and signed your name into the evening protocol. The rest of your shift went by quietly and with minimal human interaction.

      On your way back home your thoughts flip-flopped between the botched lock on your car and Yoongi’s unusually hostile behavior earlier. No amount of pondering could help you figure out either one of the two problems. On the flip side, there was another question whirling around in your head for a while now and it wore the name of Jeon Jungkook. For over two weeks he was nowhere to be seen. He didn’t show up for lectures, you didn’t see him frequenting his usual spots and he never came around to your store ever since you two exchanged numbers. Lately you found yourself sitting in bed, looking at the piece of cardboard, carrying his name and wondering if it would be ok to call him.

       Your throbbing heart quickly became forgotten when an acute howl broke the silence of the night. Chills immediately made your stand on high alert and blood ran cold. In your peripheral you could see shadows moving at the edge of the woods. Ever since you rented a house near the forest, you started to develop this irrationally vast fear of wolves and other nocturnal animals, and sounds like this one freaked you out to no end. With a shrunken heart you gripped the steering wheel tighter and prayed that nothing would jump out on the road in front of you. You started shaking when you looked in your rear view mirror and saw reflective eyes keeping pace with the back of your car.

        “Oh-nononono. Please go away!” You whined pathetically

      In your mind you imagined some rabid creature jumping in the trunk of your old pickup and charging at you through the back window. You imagined sharp teeth and claws, broken glass and copious amounts of blood spilling everywhere. You suddenly remembered the pain of something tearing into your throat in your dreams and tears started pricking at the corners of your eyes.

      You were quickly approaching the intersection that lead to your house and this time you were sure as hell not going to take that thing straight to where you lived. Instead of continuing straight when you entered the intersection, you took an abrupt turn left, in the opposite direction of the woods. The street lights were more and closer together here and you quickly lost your pursuer as the light seemed to scare it off. Still, you drove a few blocks further until you parked your car under a street light to try and calm down. You released the steering wheel and curled in on yourself. The light rain was tapping against the windows of your car, but other than that there were no other sounds. The street lamp above you provided soothing yellow light, but in that moment you felt so very alone. You stayed like that for a minute until a voice you certainly wouldn’t mind hearing crept into your head and clenched around your heart. You shakily reached for your bag and pulled out your phone along with a small slip of cardboard that had been recently taped to the back of the device.

      23:01 said the screen. You wondered if it’d be ok to call. You punched in the numbers and your finger hovered over the green button. With a thumping heart and a lump in your throat you figured it was now or never. Once the first ring sounded, you put the phone on loudspeaker and stared intently, breathlessly anticipating the 0:00 to appear on screen. Across the street from you, Jungkook’s hand was hovering over his buzzing phone. The screen showed a number he had positively memorized by now and adrenaline was spiking high in his system. With a deep sigh and a clenched jaw, he picked the device up, pressed a button on the side and made the buzzing cease. Back in your car, you felt worse with every passing second you kept hearing the monotone dial tone. Finally, the zeroes you so desperately wanted to see flashed on screen.

      “Hey, Jungkook here. I probably can’t talk right now, but I’ll listen to your message, if you decide to leave one.” Came the generic message he had recorded who knows how long ago. For a moment you panicked, wanting to hang up as quick as possible, but the adult in you knew you needed to explain why you called so late in the first place.

      Beep. You coughed dryly “Hey, uh, it’s y/n. Sorry to bother you, but I accidentally dialed your number… That’s all. Good night.” You lied through your teeth and hurriedly hung up. Somehow, you felt completely humiliated once the silence surrounded you again. You threw your phone on the passenger seat and kicked your truck into high gear, heading straight home.

      Jungkook watched his phone until the screen faded to black, seconds later the “Missed call” notification appeared and under it there was another one, signaling he had voice mail. He heard your engine roar to life outside and waited until he could no longer hear it. At this point guilt and curiosity were eating him alive and he lunged for his phone.

      “Hey, uh, it’s y/n.” your voice sounded weak and shaky “Sorry to bother you, but I accidentally dialed your number…” a sniffle “That’s all. Good night.”

      Jungkook dropped the device next to him and laid back on his bed, covering his face. He felt like a jackass. His heart was throbbing heavily in his chest and every fiber of his being screamed at him to go out and run after you. Instead he lay motionless, allowing himself to get swarmed by remorse and frantic worry until he fell unconscious for the night.

      Your sleep wasn’t any more peaceful either. All night you kept tossing and turning, your clothes drenched in cold sweat and face contorted into a pained expression. Your dreams turning into full-blown nightmares as you ran through the woods, nearly naked and completely barefoot. The wind savagely tore into your exposed flesh, but the pain from the cold was nothing compared to the agonizing feeling you had in your legs. The souls of your feet were all sorts of cut up and bleeding profusely, every other step you took granted you with another nick or tear. Your bare calves and thighs were also cut up from the bushes and branches you kept running into in your frantic dash to escape whatever had given chase after you. Your muscles were aching, begging for mercy and making your knees rattle helplessly, but you couldn’t stop.  No matter what, you couldn’t stop running. Deep in your gut you knew that if you stopped, you would be no more. An ancient primal instinct to survive at all costs was pulling you forward, forcing your legs to move and lungs to breathe despite the burning pain. Behind you, heavy footsteps were quickly gaining on you. Whatever was chasing after you, sounded as if it were walking on two legs. It was big and fast, and, judging by the sound of it crashing through the bush, it possessed immense strength as it snapped the branches in its way like toothpicks. If it weren’t for the low growling, coming from the thing, you would have assumed it was human, but the sounds it was making forced you into a desperate prayer that you wouldn’t have to find out what it was. It was snarling, sniffing the air and panting and you could feel hot rivets of tears staining your face. You tried to scream out, but your voice was long gone. And, God, the forest was endless; thousands of tall pines looming over you, but doing nothing to stop your pursuer. Dark and heavy rainclouds covered the sky and suffocated the moonlight. The wind was slamming into your front and seemingly trying to slow you down, howling in your ears and disorienting you.

      You felt so alone and scared, as if nature itself was out to get you. In that very moment you thought of your family and every pet you’ve ever had, you thought of your professors and classmates, you thought of Yoongi and your store manager, you thought about your roommate and about Yara, and finally about Jungkook. In that very moment you knew you would give anything in the world to at least be able to share another conversation with them. Suddenly, your life seemed much more valuable than it did the previous days and you deeply regretted depriving yourself of a happier life for all these years.

      Incoherent wheezing tumbled from your mouth, your chest being rattled by loud sobbing. With all you might you tried to form words. Your throat was dry and painful and your lungs couldn’t swallow enough oxygen, but you still pushed. Heavy coughs scratched at your insides.

      “Pl-p” followed by a broken inhale “Plea…ease” you managed quietly “Please, please, I’m begging you!” your cries steadily grew in volume. You couldn’t even recognize your own voice. Words mindlessly poured out of your mouth and all you knew is that this was your last chance to survive.

      “I don’t want to die!” you knew it sounded stupid as the sentence echoed in the night. You weren’t thinking straight and the heavy footsteps behind you showed no signs of stopping. You were growing desperate.

      “Please! Somebody, help me!” you started screaming out random names that came to mind. “Yara! Jungkook, please! Jun-” Just like it would play out in a bad horror movie, your foot got caught in some raised roots and you plummeted to the ground. You fell heavily on your shoulder and heard an audible crack. Burning pain slithered down your arm, across your chest and up your throat. As much as you tried, you couldn’t push yourself up. Your heart was positively about to burst both from fright and complete exhaustion. The huge lungfuls of freezing air you were swallowing were making you lightheaded. Just behind you the bushes rustled and the last thing you saw before you fell unconscious was a pair of reflective eyes about 6 feet off the ground.

      You sat up in bed. Your heart was still thumping wildly, but you were relieved. Tears were streaming freely down your face and sweat rolled off your temples. “It was just a nightmare” you chanted repeatedly, but dull pain was still throbbing in your left clavicle and feet. Your room was dark and quiet. No light slipped through your blinds so you could only assume it was still too early for the sun to have risen. You brought your knees to your chest and wrapped your arms around your cold legs protectively. Sheer will power wasn’t enough to stop you from shaking like a leaf. Even if it was a dream, why was your body still aching? It couldn’t have been the force of memory. If that was the case, the pain would have faded in the ten minutes you sat curled into a ball.

      Jungkook too was tossing in his bed all night. He hadn’t bothered to change out of his jeans and t-shirt when he fell asleep and in the earliest hours of the day he found himself tangled in the bedsheets, covered in sweat and with a heavy chest. In his dreams he could smell blood all around, he was running like a madman and his instincts were kicking into high gear. Everything was a blur and he wasn’t sure where he was headed, he didn’t remember, but adrenaline was pumping inside him at the thought of reaching it. A woman’s voice and then something resembling his name reached him. He needed to run faster, he had to know what was calling him. He felt like he was coming in and out of consciousness, noises becoming very loud and then completely muffled. His body moved purely on muscle memory. Before he could come to his senses, he heard a crash and then abruptly stopped. That’s when he woke up with the image of your tear-stained face on his mind. His chest felt tight and he pounded his fist into it a couple of times to make the feeling go away. He sat up in bed and leaned back against the headboard. Reaching for the pack of cigarettes on his nightstand, he planned to finish the whole thing until sunrise.

      When morning came, you finally willed yourself to unravel from the fetal position. You tugged some jeans and a sweater over your chilled body and headed for the bathroom. In no time you found yourself seated at the back of the hall, alone and waiting for the lecture to start. Yara had called in sick earlier this morning. You didn’t really speak to any of your other classmates, your friend was the one who did most of the talking anyway. At this point you had stopped hoping Jungkook would show up either. You didn’t even know if he attended this class. You were barely holding your face up with the palm of your hand, your eyelids heavy and head pounding with a migraine. You were zoning out, staring at the fluorescent lights on the ceiling when someone bumped into the back of your chair.

      “Oh, sorry!” a sweet male voice apologized and for a moment you couldn’t comprehend what had just happened. You turned to look at the someone in question with a dumb expression. There stood a guy of average height with fluffy brown hair and a warm and smiling face. Absentmindedly you stared at the single long earring that dangled from his left ear.

      “Did I make you mad? I didn’t mean to.” The guy explained with a humorous smile and just then you realize he was talking to you.

      “I’m not mad.” You mumbled and the guy giggled at the dull way you said it.

      “Haha, I’m relieved” he laughed and began walking away “See you around?” He waved and when you reciprocated the gesture a sweet smile stretched his face, finally turning his back to you. You watched him walk down to the front of the room and sit down. He had a nice posture and carried himself with confidence, but that earring still captured your attention until you lost sight of it.

      Your lectures came and went one after the other and after that you went straight to work. Nothing particularly spectacular happened that evening and you went home only to be terrorized by your ambiguous and repetitive dreams all night long. That’s how the next couple of days played out too. Yara was still sick as a mutt and every now and then you would email her the notes you had halfheartedly taken during the lectures you two shared.

      Today however was your day off of work and honestly you felt kind of lost after your lectures ended. You didn’t want to go home, because you knew you would fall asleep and have nightmares again. Taking a walk was out of the question as it was pouring rain and you didn’t really want to waste gas on driving. You would have gone to visit Yara, but becoming sick on top of your by now chronical exhaustion wasn’t something you wanted to go through.

      That’s how you found yourself sitting alone on a table for two at your local coffee shop. Your hot cup of bitter black coffee was keeping you company as you watched customers come in and out of the café. A shiny new psychology textbook lay open on the table in front of you and every now and then you forced yourself to read a paragraph or two. Yawns tumbled out of your mouth lazily as you read some article about mental illness. ‘Symptoms of depression include, but are not limited to: isolation from friends and family, inability to concentrate, reliance on alcohol or sedatives, feeling unhappy, guilty or overwhelmed, irritability, headaches and muscle pain, exhaust- ‘Before you could try and self-diagnose yourself someone interrupted you.

      “Hey, is this seat taken?” You looked up from your textbook to see a familiar face. The guy from a few days ago smiled down at you warmly. You looked around the nearly empty café and wondered why he decided to come over to you.

      “Sure?”

      Once he was seated across form you, he extended his hand and politely introduced himself “I’m Park Jimin. We have psychology together.” You completed the handshake, but didn’t know what to say to him. He mistook your awkward silence for confusion and explained further

      “I’m the ass that bumped into you a couple days ago.” That managed to pull a laugh from you and he seemed pleased.

      “Yeah, I remember you. I was just wondering why you decided to sit with me.” You clarified

      His smile turned sheepish “Because you’re cute and looked like you needed some company?” You weren’t expecting that answer and just stared at him dumbfounded.

      “I may or may not need some help with psychology, too.”

      “Oh, so there’s the catch.” You remarked sarcastically.

      “Not at all. Everything I said is true. I do think you’re really cute and do really suck at psychology.” That sneaky smile made its way on his face again. “In all fairness, I didn’t come here to ask you to tutor me… I just happen to see you alone all around campus lately and today fate brought us together. Will you at least tell me your name?”

      “I’m y/l/n y/n. We have psychology together and the chair your ass bumped into was mine.” You imitated with a grin that Jimin seemed to take a liking to. He was very confident and also unexpectedly flirty. The next hour or two you got lost in his jokes and remarks as you two got to know each other. You talked about so many things, but in hind sight you couldn’t gather much personal information about him. All you learned was that he was born in Busan and moved to your small town with his family. He refrained from sharing more, which was fair enough, you thought.

      When the sun started to set, Jimin offered you a ride home which you politely declined. When it was time to leave, he paid for your coffee without asking and silenced your protests with a dazzling smile. Outside the shop he unexpectedly wrapped his arms around your middle and pressed your body into his in a gentle hug. Out of instinct your arms quickly made their way around his shoulders. After a moment he pulled back, but didn’t let go of your body completely. His warm palms rested on your waist as he looked fondly into your eyes.

      “Thank you for sharing this afternoon with me.” He mumbled and for the first time since you spoke to him you noticed his pointed canine teeth. His plump lips formed every syllable with care. You were staring at his mouth which was at your eye level. He quickly caught on to what you were doing and moved to lean in for a kiss. You flinched, suddenly realizing the situation you had gotten yourself into. Your heart sank and you were quick to push your hands against his chest. Jimin didn’t insist further and immediately withdrew. You were expecting to see bitterness when you went you look into his eyes, but instead he chuckled, baring his teeth.

      “Ah, sorry. I got a little carried away.” And there they were, his canines, just slightly sharper than the average man’s. His hands dropped from your body and he took a step back. A darker smile now played on his lips. Jimin didn’t look angry in the slightest, perhaps amused would be the correct word.

      “I’m sorry if I-” you started but he cut you off

      “You didn’t do anything, dear.” He pronounced the pet name slowly, deliberately “I just got the wrong impression. Perhaps it was wishful thinking.”

      You looked like a deer in headlights. Your heart was drumming loudly in your chest. Jimin smirked at you, standing tall with his hands in his pockets and you felt like you were expected say something. Your mind went blank, try as you might you couldn’t come up with an answer. A few seconds passed like that until Jimin finally released his hold on you with a deep sigh of his own. His familiar sweet smile plastered on his face as he cocked his head to the side.

      “Well, thank you again for allowing me to keep you company. Don’t be shy and come say hi next time you see me, ok?”

      You nodded.

      “Before I leave, would you like me to walk you to your car?” he offered, but you declined. “Good night then. I’ll see you around? I mean it.” He emphasized the last part with a quirk of his brow and you managed to crack one last smile for him before waving goodbye.

      The next few days your accidental encounters with Jimin around campus became a little too frequent for you to chalk it up to chance. It was becoming blatantly obvious that he was deliberately seeking you out. One day you would be walking out of class and he would be leaning against the wall, offering to walk you to wherever it was you were going. The next day you would be climbing out of your truck, hurrying to enter the university and escape the cold, when you would hear him jogging behind you, calling your name.

      “Good morning!” he would greet happily and ask about your schedule for the day. Without fail, every chance he got he would ask “So, do you want to hang out again sometime? I really enjoyed your company last time!” And your chest would tighten upon hearing his confession.

      At first glance Jimin was the embodiment of a perfect man. He was fit and very attractive, had a great fashion sense and knew exactly what to say in every situation. He was always the perfect gentleman as well, never once getting hostile after you rejected his advances on multiple occasions. He was so polite, always watching his mouth in your presence and you truly enjoyed his company. There was something about him however that didn’t quite sit right with you. Jimin was incredibly persistent when it came to taking you out. The first few times you declined his offer you truly were busy, but as time went by you started to notice that his determination wasn’t faltering in the slightest. In your previous experiences, guys became discouraged after several failed attempts, but Jimin was different. You couldn’t shake off the nagging feeling that it was so bizarre that he could go for any other girl on campus with great success, but instead he was stuck trying to get to you. He had made it undoubtedly clear that he was interested in you, sneaking compliments into casual conversations. The look he gave you after you pushed him away at the café still lingered in the back of your mind. Jimin had accepted the challenge you had unknowingly thrown at him. In that sense he resembled a predator, determined to snatch you up, the prey he had laid his eyes on and immediately knew he wanted. That realization had you keeping your distance as much as possible. There was also the heaviness you carried in your chest every time you caught him following the curve of your body or every time his compliments came sounding an octave lower than usual. There was a darkness hiding under the surface of Park Jimin’s friendly smile.

      Deep in the pit of your heart a dull pain buzzed every time Jimin pushed his hair back or crinkled his eyes with laughter, small gestures that reminded you of a different guy you were still yearning to see. Today marked the fifteenth day since you last saw Jeon Jungkook and you secretly hated yourself for counting. Yara was back from her brief vacation under the weather and she wasted no time and started pulling information out of your mouth.

      “What’s up with you and random hot guys when I’m not around, huh?” She gasped “Am I cock-blocking you?!”

      You couldn’t help the giggle that tumbled form your mouth. “Now that I think about it, you might be!”

      “That’s it, I’m leaving! Don’t contact me until you get laid!” Yara scrambled, pretending to gather her things and at that point you were full on cackling. “I’m serious, if that’s really the case, I will gladly let a beautiful boy take my place as your faithful companion in life!”

      You wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in for a side hug. “Nuuu!” You whined and both of you bursted into a cheerful fit of laughter. Yara was slapping your knee, gasping for air and losing her shit after hearing your occasional involuntary snort. It was so good to have her back. Tears were beading in the corners of your eyes until you felt a warm caress on the back of your neck. You quickly whipped your head around to see who it was, your arm falling off of Yara’s back in the process. Towering over your seated frame was none other than Park Jimin. He cocked his head to the side and grinned down at you, his hand comfortably resting on the junction between your neck and shoulder. You gulped when you felt his thumb stroking the cloumn your throat.

      “Speak of the devil…” Yara slipped up and you coughed awkwardly

      “Jimin? I thought you didn’t take this class.”

      His smile widened to show his teeth and he hummed “I don’t, but I heard sweet laughter while passing by and decided to check it out.” Your heart dropped when you saw him lick his lips. You probably had the same look on your face as when he tried to kiss you, because his eyes were locked onto yours, dark and sinister. “When will you let me take you out again, hm?”

      A beat of silence and then you tried to speak, but someone cleared his throat behind Jimin. Your adrenaline spiked when you saw messy dark hair peeking a good two inches’ over Jimin’s head. He abruptly turned around, revealing Jungkook’s larger frame. The moment you laid eyes on him, it felt like you had been missing him for months. He looked so good, wearing ripped blue jeans and a black hoodie, his hair had also grown longer in the time he’d been away. You immediately caught the faint scent of cigarette smoke, wafting from his body and warmth filled your chest. His face was taut, dark eyes staring into Jimin who was standing no more than a foot away. The latter was wearing a broad smile, but some other emotion played behind it.

      “Jungkook-ah, it’s been a while. How have you been?” Jimin spoke first, smooth and steady.

      “I’m fine. What are you up to, hyung?” Hearing his voice for the first time made you straighten in your seat.

      “Oh, you know I’m always busy.” Jimin chuckled “Actually, I’m in the middle of something right now.”

      “I don’t think so.”

      “Oh?” Jimin’s eyebrows shot up in feigned surprise “But I was just talking to lovely y/n here. I don’t think you know-”

      Jungkook cut in with a clenched jaw “I do know her.” Chills rattled your spine when you managed to catch the rumble of irritation in his chest. You weren’t the only one to notice, however.

      “Jungkook-ah, is something wrong? You seem awfully tense?” Jimin cocked his head “Am I doing something wrong?” When the younger didn’t answer, he smirked darkly. Jimin was fully aware of Jungkook’s hostile aura toward him. His shoulders relaxed as he pressed his hand to the back of your neck again.

      “I don’t think she’s off limits, or am I wrong?” It was a subtle challenge, intended to jab at Jungkook’s unfavorable position. Even though the exchange revolved around you, you subconsciously knew you had no say in it. You watched Jungkook intently, waiting for his response. He sighed, shoulders pulling back and spine straightening. His lips tugged into a smirk of his own and your heart leaped.

      “Hyung, I’m afraid that’s not for you do decide.”

      Your pulse skyrocketed as your gaze jumped form one man to the other. Jimin wasn’t smiling anymore when the feeling his touch left your skin. He shoved his hands in his pockets, eyes coldly staring into Jungkook’s.

      “Anyway, y/n my offer still stands if you’re up for it.” Still, he didn’t look at you “I’m heading out now, but I’ll definitely see you around.” You weren’t sure who he was talking to at this point as he turned on his heel and simply walked away. Surprisingly, the brief exchange hadn’t attracted much attention from your classmates and you were thankful. You turned to look at his retreating figure in bewilderment. What was this all about?

      Cold fingers gently pressed to the underside of your chin and turned your head. You were surprised to find Jungkook’s soft brown eyes giving you all of his attention for the first time in a while.

      “Can I sit with you?” when his hand retreated from your face you could feel it heating up rapidly. You scrambled to move to the next chair over to make room for him. Yara quickly did the same and you reminded yourself to thank her for keeping her mouth shut throughout the whole ordeal.

      That’s how you stayed for the next hour and a half for the duration of the lecture. Jungkook’s shoulder lightly brushed yours every time he moved and you found yourself unable to focus on the professor’s words anymore. The scuffle with Jimin from earlier plus the fact that you were finally close to Jungkook again had your suddenly overwhelmed. Every once in a while you would steal sideways glances at him and sometimes he would catch you doing it. His response immediately came in the form a soft smile that warmed you from the inside.

      Classes ended quickly and painlessly today with Jungkook by your side. Somewhere along the way Yara had excused herself with a pat to your back and lots of questions and remarks burning on the tip of her tongue. Jungkook too remained mostly silent, following close behind you and occasionally brushing his hand delicately down the curve of your back. After all of your lectures were finished, you found yourself mindlessly walking around campus. The air was crisp and humid from the rain that had poured in the morning. The dull slapping of your wet shoes this time was accompanied by another pair. Jungkook strode beside you with his hands in his jean pockets and messy hair covered by his large hood. You somehow managed to think about everything and nothing all at the same time, and the overwhelming desire to voice all of your thoughts got stuck in your throat. You didn’t know where your boundaries with Jungkook stood exactly and you were afraid to scare him away with questions he might find intrusive. Now that you finally had him within an arm’s reach, suppressed emotion threatened to spill through the cracks of your crumbling walls. Instead of opening your mouth, you bit your tongue and trudged forward wordlessly. Heart throbbing wildly had you short of breath and, as much as you tried to disguise it, Jungkook quickly caught on.

      “Are you okay?” He stopped abruptly and peeked down at you under the edge of his hood.

      Pink dusted your frozen cheeks “Yeah, I just seem to tire out easily lately.”

      Jungkook stared at you for a few moments longer, face neutral and unreadable. He hooked his arm around your shoulders and made a beeline for the nearby benches, surrounding the small fountain that could be found in every stereotypical college campus. Everything was wet, but Jungkook seemed unbothered as he wiped the water off of the top of the backrest with his palm and quickly stepped on the seat and sat down. You followed suit, grimacing slightly when the remaining droplets melted into the butt of your jeans. Jungkook was quick to wrap his arm back around you and pull you into his side. His warmth wasn’t something you knew your craved until it started seeping into your skin. The faint breath of cigarette smoke complimented his natural clean scent and almost compelled you to relax into him. You both stared at the old fountain that had been out of order for years. From your spot on top of the bench you could see copper coins lining the bottom like a mosaic and it made you think of all the unspoken wishes that plopped into the cold water and sank to the bottom. While you stared at the water, Jungkook watched you from the corner of his eye.

      “What have you been up to lately?” You finally spoke up when the pounding in your ears became unbearable. Seconds of silence dripped between the two of you and your body became rigid with anxiousness. You stared at his profile from the corner of your eye, breathless your heart was pounding even harder than before. Silent still, Jungkook’s arm started slipping off of your shoulders. Losing his comforting warmth made your chest constrict uncomfortably. A lump immediately lodged itself into your throat at the thought that you had crossed a line, no matter how innocent and unassuming your question had sounded in your head. Your face was burning. Shit, you dove head first into the exact situation you were trying to avoid.

      Jungkook reached into his back pocket and the snap of his lighter brought your attention back to him. You watched as he took a drag from his cigarette, the crackling of tobacco sounding obnoxiously loud in your deprived mind. He blew a puff of smoke and the wind carried it straight into your face, making your eyes sting with tears. You squeezed them shut, trying to avoid embarrassing yourself on top of everything. Inhale, hold, exhale, you listened to his breathing pattern for a few more drags until he sighed heavily.

      “Nothing worth mentioning.” Your shriveled heart lurched back into life upon hearing him finally answer the god-forsaken question. “I went out of town for a while. How have you been?”

      “Same as always…” your voice cracked and Jungkook pretended not to notice, staring straight ahead. At this point you were desperate to keep some sort of conversation going. “There’s not too much going on around here.”

      “I didn’t know you knew Park.” Jungkook suddenly blurted out.

      “Jimin?”

      Jungkook took a particularly deep drag from his cigarette, making the ash break off the end and fall between his parted thighs.

      “We have psychology together and went out for coffee once.” You felt embraced admitting to the last part, face heating up when you heard Jungkook exhale sharply through his nose.

      “He took you out on a date?”

      “Well, not exactly.” You were squirming against the undisguised hostility, radiating off of him “We just ran into each other at the café. I was alone and he just said he wanted to keep me company. That’s all.” You decided to cut the hug and attempted kiss out, because you felt like that would only make Jungkook angrier.

      In the ensuing minutes of uncomfortable silence, a realization suddenly hit you. Why were you suddenly compelled to spill your guts in front of him? Especially when you didn’t want to invade his privacy with your much simpler question earlier. Was it really his place to chew you out after disappearing for two whole weeks? You swallowed down your initial embarrassment and hit him with a question of your own.

      “What’s the deal with you two anyway?”

      Jungkook’s eyebrows shot up in surprise and, for the first time in what felt like forever, he turned to look at you. You stubbornly stared back at him with a tiny scowl as wonderment and now mild irritation swirled in his deep brown irises. His face softened almost immediately and he leaned in toward you.

      “I like that expression on you, you know?” As he spoke, smoke spilled from his mouth. Because of his close proximity, you managed to involuntarily inhale every last bit of it. It made you choke and sputter as the taste burned your throat. When you looked back up, Jungkook had retreated back to his original spot and wore a soft smirk. Your face was red hot and soft coughs still rattled your chest.

      “That was the weirdest shotgun kiss I’ve ever had.” Jungkook remarked lightly

      “What?”

      Your flustered state was all too entertaining for Jungkook and he couldn’t disguise his tender laughter. “Haven’t you heard of a shotgun kiss?”

      You remained silent, looking at him like he’d just grown a second head. He was having the time of his life, taking in every detail of your bewilderment.

      “That’s when you blow smoke into another person’s mouth, it’s called a shotgun kiss.” He explained and pulled his bottom lip in between his teeth. You were immediately drawn to the motion and unconsciously mimicked it. Slowly, you began to shift your eyes over his face, caressing his porcelain features with careful attention. You could almost feel his gaze gliding along your skin in a similar manner.

      “Fuck!”

      You were suddenly startled when Jungkook jerked his arm in the air with a yell. The cigarette butt flew from his hand and by the way he sucked on the side of his forefinger you could safely assume it had burnt him. Try as you might, you couldn’t suppress the chuckle that slipped past your lips.

      “That damn thing was cursed from the start.” Upon hearing your remark, Jungkook cracked a smile of his own.

      The atmosphere was back to normal between the two of you and, as weird as the sudden mood swings were, you didn’t want to ponder over it right now.

[afewmarvelousthoughts]

Only For A Moment Ch. 33

Master List: @afewmarvelousthoughtsadmin

Pairing: Bucky X Reader

Summary: For most of your life you’d been able to keep your abilities a secret, that is until Hydra got wind of you. After years of being in their clutches, you break out when The Avengers expose SHIELD/Hydra. Since then, you’ve been on the run. Things are going as well as you could hope when you see a familiar face… Could the Winter Soldier really be in Bucharest too?

Warnings: Feels, angst. 

A/N: Well... look... all I’m going to say is don’t @ me. I know. Trust me I KNOW but also... Just... I’m sorry. 

And seriously, from the bottom of my cold heart, THANK YOU ALL FOR GOING ON THIS JOURNEY SO FAR WITH ME! OFAM is my first baby and I have learned a lot working through this story and I’m sure I’ll learn more as this winding road continues (I know where it’s ending but we aren’t there yet). I can’t say enough about all the amazing people who read this and tell me what they like and reblog, and just love on me in general. Y’ALL ARE THE BEST! 

Tags are open!

Bucky’s mind has been in overload since the flashback so it’s nice to be on the bike, to lose himself in the feeling of the wind on his face and the sound of it. One thing keeps slipping into his thoughts though. Louder than the bike, sweeter than the wind sliding over his skin. The look on your face this morning. 

He’d been terrified to give that key to you. Unsure what you may think of it or if you’d even want to share a space with him after… But the way your eyes filled, the way you smiled, how you cuddled into his chest like it was the only place you wanted to be. It was better than any reaction he imagined. 

About an hour outside of the city he begins to feel a bit guilty. Lying to you wasn’t something he was fond of but he knew if he had explained what he was really doing you’d protest. Plus, it wasn’t entirely a lie. He did do day labor here and there and he intended to do some labor today. 

He pulls off the main road onto a dirt track. The open fields to either side were both peaceful and unnerving. No cover here. If someone were to- No, he wasn’t going to go down that dark train of thought. He has a plan, he’s going to see it through. 

A small outcrop of trees rise to the right and he veers down the barely visible driveway. 

This was where he first hid out when he made it to Romania. Finding it felt a little like luck. No one had lived here for years but the old house was still sound. There wasn’t electricity or running water but he had done without those things in the past. Trees grew around most of the property providing plenty of cover. The best part was the solitude; there weren’t people around for miles. He needed that for the first couple of months, and would still retreat here when things in the city or in his head overwhelmed him. 

Pulling the bike up to the side of the house he hops off, shifting the rucksack to his left shoulder. He avoids the trip wires and various traps as he makes his way to the back door. Setting the overstuffed bag down he unlocks the door and disables the trip wire it automatically set off, more than a little pleased he doesn’t have to replace the battery just yet. 

In the old kitchen, he sets the bag on the table with a thud and begins unloading it. He pulls out some cured meats, crackers, protein bars, canned vegetables, dry pasta, and an unholy amount of coffee.

Nervously, he runs his hands through his hair. Maybe he should have brought some nicer things. Wine? Did you even like wine? 

He laughs a little at himself, the sound somewhat startling in the quiet place. This wasn’t some romantic getaway. Romance… wasn’t even on the table. This was about sustenance and there was enough to keep you both comfortable for a couple of days, plus he’d bring more tomorrow. 

There’s still some wood by the stove, and likely plenty in the barn out back. Bucky walks through the small one bedroom house pulling sheets off the ramshackle furniture, making sure no water got in anywhere, disarming the window trip wires to slide them open and let fresh air into the stuffy space. With the house sorted he heads out back for the real work. 

The corral is a good size for what he needs and the bushes surrounding it are almost his height providing a bit of extra coverage. It is, however, sporting a miniature forest. He heads to the barn and gears up with some of the old tools and gloves. 

Hours later he’s got the coral cleared of any overgrowth and debris. The area is tilled leaving the ground soft. Perfect for a sparring area. On one side he’s set up some makeshift targets with slats from the partially destroyed fence. He’d need to bring something to mark them with tomorrow. 

Back in the barn, he heads into one of the two stalls slipping his finger into a knot in one of the floorboards. Half the floor lifts to reveal a large metal locker. He opens it just a crack to disarm the trip wires that would set off the bombs inside the box before opening it. 

After finding this safe house getting armed was all he focused on. The small arsenal had been easy enough to come by, well, easy for someone like him. He triple checks the ammo and knives. Plenty of different kinds for you to practice with. Sighing he grabs a knife and sits back leaning against the wall of the stall. Absentmindedly he flips the blade in his right hand, skillfully spinning it and twirling it. 

You were going to fight him every step of the way on this. If he was being honest with himself he’s not too thrilled about it either, the risk of hurting you is high. But he’d trained others in the past, as the soldier, and not injured them too badly. That he remembered… he remembered almost everything about being the soldier. It was almost the ultimate cruelty he thought. Leaving him with the monster, making him fight to find the man. 

With a swoosh and a thud, the six-inch blade buries itself into the opposite wall. He stares at the quivering handle for a second. 

“What the hell are you doing, Barnes?” He asks aloud. His left-hand drags across his face, smooth metal fingers scratching at the scruff of his beard. 

Some other part of him, the part that isn’t quite Bucky but isn’t exactly the monster either, once again whispers that he shouldn’t try this, should let you go. He stares down at his metal palm curling it in. Hydra’s fist. 

They took everything from you when you’d already suffered and fought enough in your short life. What right did he have to even think of touching you with hands that had shaped the century for them? Hands that helped make their destruction of your life, of your family, possible. None. He had no right. 

He promises himself right then, after he knows you can defend yourself against anything, even him, he’ll go. It was the good thing to do. Not like it would even begin to wipe away the bad but… it was better than what he wanted. And what he wanted… he couldn’t have. 

His eyes burn. Clearing his throat he pushes the emotion away. He plucks the knife from the wall and replaces it, rearming the locker and putting the floor hatch back. Back in the house he resets all the security trips and locks up. 

The sunset is colorless to him on the ride back. His jaw so tense it hurts. The selfish boy in him doesn’t like this choice he’s made. No part of him likes that he won’t tell you this last piece of his plan. That’s ok though. It’s what’s best. 

In the elevator, he thinks that maybe you just won’t be there. Just maybe you’d have come to your senses and flew the coop while he was gone. It would hurt worse than that fucking chair he knew but… 

As the doors slide open he hears music spilling from the apartment. He tries to tamp down the smile on his face but can’t seem to manage it. Hating himself a little at how happy he is that you’re still here. 

For a moment he stands outside the door just listening to you sing along to some song about a killer queen. It sounds ridiculous but he kind of likes it. Or maybe he just likes the joy he can hear in your voice. 

He knocks loudly so he doesn’t startle you, “It’s me.” He opens the door and steps in. 

Inside he’s hit not only with the level of the music but a smell that slams into his brain like a bullet. Apple pie. It literally knocks him off kilter. He leans against the wall, holding his face in his left hand, wrapping his right arm across his chest. 

So many images flood his mind. His hands, but smaller, both flesh and bone, working the pie dough in the kitchen while his Ma sang some old Irish song. She was pregnant with… Mary maybe? He and Steve running to their place after a fight when they were still just kids. Ma cleaning their cuts and giving them each a slice before his Pa got back. His Ma giving him a pie wrapped in one of her good linen towels, tears in her bloodshot blue eyes… his eyes… to give to Steve’s Ma after his Pa passed. On and on and on. 

He doesn’t even notice that the music has stopped. Can barely feel your gentle touch on his right forearm, the caress of your delicate fingers on the back of his metal hand. A hand that…Thank god his Ma never… He realizes he’s… crying. 

“Bucky?” Your voice makes the images slow. 

He swallows a sob as he moves his left hand. You’re hovering just a bit so your face is level with his own. Those gorgeous eyes, big with worry. Your bottom lip caught in your teeth as you try to suss out what may have happened. Tenderly you move some stray strands of hair from his face and wipe at the tears. 

He takes both your hands in his own, “I’m ok, doll… sorry.”

You shake your head, “You don’t have to apologize.” Your tone is so sincere so… kind, “And you don’t have to be ok.”

A smile softly curls his lips, “I know. But,” he clears his throat, his emotions settling, “I really am.” His lips graze your palm, a part of him wincing, remembering his promise, his plan. That’s not right now though. Right now you’re here and he’s home. 

@bluegirlusa1 @l0kisbitch @tazzi-baby @disagreetoagree @woodyandbuzz20-01 @mooniightbucky @souless-and-sarcastic @saundrasays  @breezy1415 @alyssaj23 @mywinterwolf @wonderlandmind4 @fairislesheets  @anamcg317 @buckaroo-barnes @jazztherebel  @peachthatdrinkslemonade @regulusirius  @auskitty @babyimp1967 @katecolleen @handplucked @piensa-bonito @darkdragonphoenix @issanitydead  @thestorydetective @buckysstar @wintersoldierswhore @greyeyedsmile14 @watchoutforfrostbite @for-the-love-of-the-fandom @meg-asaur @jewelofwinter @siriuslycloudy2

[sage-nebula]

I choose Alan!

First impression:

I first became aware of Alan because someone posted a screencap of the end of one of the Ash and Alan episodes where the narrator was like, “but little did they know that the world is slowly sliding toward destruction” and the person captioned it with, “Not again, Alan” and I was like, “what do you mean ‘again’?!” So my first impression of him was that he had somehow ended the world at some previous point, and that made me go watch all the TSME episodes. (Of course, he didn’t, but this wouldn’t be the PokéAni fandom if it didn’t unjustly blame him for everything.)

Impression now:

HE’S MY VALIANT DRAGON SON AND I’LL DEFEND HIM ‘TIL MY DYING DAY.

Favorite moment:

Part of me wants to say the moment where he finally finds his voice and is able to stand up to Lysandre, given that Lysandre was his abuser and that was such a powerful moment for him.

But the more indulgent side of me says that it was the moment where he spent all of .01 seconds before he threw himself out of an aircraft, swinging down by rope in a piece of stunning animation, to go out on the ice and save Lizardon in TSME 3. Good god that was incredible.

Idea for a story:

Let’s see … in my Works in Progress folder I currently have:

- The sixth chapter of To Devour the Sun (he’s not actually in that chapter, but the story focuses on him primarily, and he’s mentioned a lot).

- Lizardon’s origin story, which is from Alan’s point-of-view and details how he found and hatched Lizardon’s egg.

- A fic where Alan, age eleven, gives a presentation at the annual League funding science conference (it has a more official name than that, I don’t remember) because Sycamore is too sick to do so, and if they don’t attend and do a good job at the conference, the lab will lose its funding. Note that Sycamore does not send Alan; Alan sends himself by enlisting Gabrielle (Sycamore’s garchomp) to cut the cord to Sycamore’s alarm clock.

- A fic where Alan, having newly become Champion, gives a speech / answers questions at his induction ceremony pertaining to what happened in the Flare arc and what his plans are for the future, showing how far he’s come in his recovery.

- A fic in my Immortality AU where Alan and Ash time travel thanks to Celebi shenanigans and interact with Sycamore during XY(&Z). Or at least, this used to be in my WIPs folder, but it was lost when my folder was mysteriously deleted a while ago, RIP. Anyway, I still have a bit of it saved in a draft, so you can have a snippet of it since all the rest was deleted:

“Alan, you can have Lizardon fly you down, can’t you?” Augustine asked, and he smiled as Alan looked over at him, eyes wide. “I saw on television that he had evolved. He should be able to carry you—maybe both of you, depending?”

Alan bit his lip, holding Augustine’s gaze for just a moment before he shook his head and turned away, facing the waterfall’s edge again. “No. I can’t call on Lizardon right now.”

Augustine frowned, his heart skipping an unpleasant beat in his chest. “Why not? Steven said he had healed after the incident in Hoenn. Was he wrong?”

“Steven?” Alan looked back, his brow scrunched in confusion, but before Augustine could answer the confusion cleared and he shook his head. “Oh, yeah—no, he was right. Lizardon recovered from that just fine.”

“Then why can’t he carry you?” Augustine asked. Alan didn’t answer, and instead shoved his hands into his coat pockets and started walking along the edge of the waterfall, down the slope that led along the bank. Ash cast a frown Augustine’s way before he turned and started to follow Alan. Augustine stared after the pair of them for a second—since when had Alan ever just walked away in the middle of a conversation like that?—before he started after himself, a knot of stress building in his chest. “Alan, what’s wrong with Lizardon?”

“Nothing’s wrong with Lizardon,” Alan said, and though he raised his voice to be heard, he didn’t look back. “Come on, there should be another path down over here.”

- A much longer fic involving an organization named Panacea that wants to take over the world, and is doing so by challenging each region’s Champion—and, further, is doing so by challenging them with people who have specifically trained to challenge them. In particular the starting fic had Alan’s antagonist, a woman named Florence, showing up in Isolé Village (where he lived the first five miserable years of his life), and Alan has to go there to chase her out. He encounters the villagers who “raised” him for the first time in seventeen years, and it goes … mmh. It goes.

And probably others, but I can’t remember them right now.

Unpopular opinion:

Oh boy, where do I begin.

- Alan deserved to win the League, full stop. I love Ash, but had Greninja beaten Lizardon it would have been the strongest show of plot armor imaginable. Mega Charizard X outclasses Battle Bond Greninja in every way, especially when ‘Zard X has Thunder Punch which, no, cannot be blocked by Water Shuriken, that is nonsense.

- Alan was not remotely responsible for what happened to Hari-san. Hari-san was able to wander off and become comatose due to Manon’s negligence as a trainer. That was in no way his fault and the fact that no one took the time to tell him that he doesn’t have to blame himself for everything is a crime.

- For that matter, Alan had every single right in the world to decide not to travel with Manon anymore, especially since she never asked to come with him in the first place, and instead just kept stalking him and ignoring his “no” until he gave in. Manon continuously ran roughshod over Alan’s boundaries, ignored his consent, argued with him when he explained his feelings in a way that completely ignored those feelings, and ultimately just had no respect for him as a person, instead only thinking about herself and what she got from their partnership (i.e. talking about how much she can learn and grow, saying she’ll get through danger as long as he protects her, et cetera). Frankly, the fact that it took so long for Alan to actually yell at her just goes to show how nice of a person he is. If it were me, I would have yelled like that back in TSME 1 (instead of just calling her annoying and continuously ditching her like he did).

- To that end, I think that Alan and Manon’s relationship as it is at the end of the series is pretty unhealthy, since Manon never once apologized or learned from any of her behavior (thus she stayed pretty static / will no doubt keep making the same mistakes again and again), and Alan now feels as if he can’t do anything that will upset her because that will make him a Horrible Awful Person Who’s Ruining Her Life. And I mean, we kind of already see this happen; in XYZ045, Alan does try to tell her that he doesn’t want to dance (and he looks seriously panicked and uncomfortable about it), but everyone, including Sycamore in a move that really disappointed me, pressures him to do it anyway. And what ends up happening? He gives in, and he’s not smiling during the dance scene, either. Honestly, that scene triggered me really badly because it brought up memories of times when my own boundaries and consent were completely railroaded—where I was explicitly told that what I wanted didn’t matter—and the resulting panic attack was so bad I got sick and had to bring it up with my therapist. Anyway, while I prefer to write their relationship post-canon as being healthy (at least with regards to Alan not giving into all of Manon’s whims), as it is in canon it has the potential to be so bad, and we’ve already seen that. It’s gross.

- To that end, imagining them romantically is also gross. I think it speaks to the heteronormativity of this fandom that they look at a fifteen-year-old boy and a ten-year-old girl (particularly one who acts like she’s eight) and think, “Hm, yes, this is true romantic love.” The maturity gap between them is palpable. Manon huffs and throws tantrums like a little kid. Alan has to watch over and take care of and protect her. Setting aside that their behavior is much more similar to that of siblings, the fact remains that they met at a stage in their lives where Manon looks to Alan for guidance and protection and Alan, however reluctantly, offers that. This sets the stage for how their relationship will continue to grow and develop. Speaking from experience, Alan’s not going to look at her one day and see a romantic interest. He’s going to still think of her as a kid. And again, I’m speaking from experience here; I know that my nephew is now almost eighteen years old, but when I think of him, I still imagine him as he was when he was a small child. I have step-cousins who are not blood related to me at all that I’ve known since they were small children, and it always blows my mind when I’m reminded that they’re now graduating high school and going off to college. I still think of them as kids, and Alan would be the same way with Manon. And even if one wanted to argue that wouldn’t stop Manon from having a precocious crush on Alan—and I agree, it wouldn’t—that doesn’t mean that Alan would (or should!) return her feelings. Again, she acts like (and in-universe is often compared to) Bonnie. She’s less mature than Ash, Serena, and Clemont, who are supposed to be her age contemporaries. Thinking that Alan would view her romantically makes him out to be really very gross, and I find it extraordinarily insulting to his character. (And again, in this case, even if you age them up it won’t work, because they met at a time when Alan had to be a caretaker for Manon. That makes it squicky.)

And before anyone comes at me — age gaps are NOT inherently bad. My own parents have a sixteen year age difference between them, so believe me, I’m NOT against age gaps as a whole. But when and how you meet (as in the context of your meeting) is important. My parents met when one was forty-six and the other was thirty. They were both adults, they had both been married and divorced before, they met on equal footing. Alan and Manon have not met at an equal footing, and they’ve met at very important developmental stages in their lives. Again, maturity is a HUGE part of it, because it’s the maturity gap that’s squickier than the age gap. If Manon had the maturity of, say, Ash I could see arguing for it, but as it stands she acts far more like Bonnie, and it’s squicky. This ship is a NOTP for me for so many reasons (including the above mentioned how Manon continuously ignores Alan’s consent and runs over his boundaries), and this is certainly one of them.

And last but not least: I know this is all blunt and harsh. I know this. But listen: In the past, when I’ve tiptoed around my feelings (either by writing very vague tags in a blank post that did not mention either Manon OR the ship by name), I’ve received hate for it. I’ve had people vagueblog me, I’ve had people send me rude messages, and I’ve had people yell at and block me for daring to politely voice my own opinions on my own posts when they brought the subject up (i.e. I made the post about something different entirely, they brought up Manon, I tried to state my opinion politely, they got mad and blocked me). So if tiptoeing around the situation and being diplomatic gets me hate anyway, why bother? I’ll be honest about how I feel, and how I feel is that I hate this ship, I think Manon should have been made to take responsibility for her behavior in canon, and her stans have made it incredibly hard for me to like her at all considering how they vilify Alan (or else just reduce him to her trophy boyfriend), constantly excuse everything she does, and resort to vagueblogging, rude messages, and yelling when they encounter anyone who doesn’t like her, no matter how polite or diplomatic they are about it. I still treat her fairly in the fics I write (i.e. I don’t vilify her, I write her as being successful in the future, et cetera), but at this point I’m done pretending outside of fic that this fandom hasn’t ruined her for me, because they absolutely have.

- I don’t think he should have immediately left on a journey again at the end of the series. I think he should have stayed at the lab instead, especially since Sycamore said that Alan was needed there. Alan should have stayed at the lab to rest, heal, and recover, and then later he should have taken the Champion challenge. That he was sent out on a journey again was super lazy writing.

- I also think that he should have been able to keep the Mega Stone and Key Stone, but repurposed into pendants by Sycamore, to give Alan a true fresh start and remove any taint that might have been on them. But that’s less important than all of the above.

Favorite relationship:

It’s a very close tie between his relationships with Lizardon and Sycamore, and an honorary mention to his relationship with Ash.

Alan and Lizardon are platonic soulmates and I love everything about their relationship. I love how Alan moves closer to Lizardon whenever he’s feeling nervous or anxious. I love how they talk to each other, and how Alan perfectly understands what Lizardon’s saying even when they just exchange looks. I love how Alan was willing to risk his life to protect Lizardon without a single thought. I love how Lizardon similarly shielded Alan during the Flare crisis to prevent him from getting hurt. I love how they respect each other so much, to the point where, in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scene, Alan extends his hand toward Lizardon but waits until Lizardon moves in for petting and cuddling right after they win the League. Alan doesn’t just pet Lizardon, he waits for permission before he pets and cuddles Lizardon. Alan respects consent and boundaries, and doesn’t consider himself entitled to Lizardon cuddles just because he’s Lizardon’s trainer (sorry, partner). 

Alan and Sycamore also so incredibly sweet, and it’s a shame we didn’t get to see more of them in canon. Sycamore is Alan’s dad in everything but blood, and there’s so much in the show to point to this … and yet somehow, not enough. But I love how supportive Sycamore is of Alan, how understanding and loving he is, and likewise how Alan will do anything to protect Sycamore, given how Sycamore saved him when he was young. They’re precious.

Finally, honorable mention is to Alan and Ash, because they helped each other so much during Kalos and I honestly love the relationship they had. So many people are tied up in the “rivalry” that was hardly that, and it saddens me so much because they’re missing such quality content. Ash managed to make Alan smile, laugh, and feel excitement and happiness at a time when he was so critically depressed that he couldn’t. Post-canon, he gave Alan a reason to keep living, which Alan says himself saved him. (He also is the one who inspired Alan to fight back at the start of the Flare crisis, on Prism Tower.) Meanwhile, Alan was someone it was okay for Ash to lose against. Ash was put on such a pedestal throughout Kalos that losing was practically deemed unacceptable, and gave him a whole damn crisis around the Snowbelle City time. But Alan and Ash met when Alan and Lizardon were a pair of Big Damn Heroes (the light of the dawn behind them and everything) saving Pikachu from Team Rocket (and protecting Ash from their attacks!). From the get-go it was acknowledged that Alan was so strong that, if Ash lost against him, it was fine. It wasn’t seen as “shocking” like when Ash lost to Shouta. Alan was someone that Ash could just have fun battling against, without something serious riding on it. They have a natural comfort around each other, familiarity like you’d expect best friends to have. I really love their relationship, too.

Favorite headcanon:

Pretty much everything in all of my post-canon fics, haha, but I’m really attached to the matching pendants I gave Alan and Lizardon for their Key Stone and Mega Stone, respectively. (Or rather, that I had Sycamore give Alan and Lizardon, haha. But same thing, really.)

[jihoonscafe]

❧ p.cy | cherry

college! chanyeol x reader 

word count : 1774 words. genre : fluff (for once) synopsis : who knew a bar of chocolate could lead to a cute boy with blue hair and a sunlit smile? definitely not you. also cherry lip gloss.

✐ sfjjksdahfjaskdhf this one is revenge !!!! dedicated entirely to @fluffyyeollie who is the best person ever :^)))) !!! n who deserves some fluff so even tho ur girl be whipping out that angst like it was her money on svt albums ,,,, she be writing some fluff bcuz if ur angst is hurting me h o n e y , imma pull out the big guns of fluff ! :^))  ,, enjoy n suffer my beautiful stars. also gay bby fuckboy bestfriend! baek is probably my fav character i have ever written bye.

[2017/30/09] 9.01 pm .: new message from byun kid

⇒ oh my god where are you?

⇐ at the party duh

[ read 9.01 pm ]

[2017/30/09] 9.07 .:

⇐ why the hell aren’t you answering bacon?

⇒ sorry i just FACEPALMED for 6 minutes there.

⇐ oh shut up you piece of shit, come by the kitchen, i am trying to steal some of minseok’s chocolate.

⇒ could you have not told me that before? i am coming, give me like a minute.

[ read 9.08 pm ]

Sighing, you put your phone down, knowing that your best friend would probably get here in half an hour than the minute he promised because of something he probably found more delicious than pizza rolls, like a boy’s lips. Problems of befriending the fuckboy, you supposed. A really gay one at that, like that boy could be some good use for spotting hot boys in a crowd but when he left none for you, it didn’t help.

You had come in the full mood to party but the allure of chocolate, something Minseok always kept hidden in his kitchen during parties, was way too much for your empty stomach to not enjoy before you got yourself hooked to the music, dancing away the night which would probably end with a drunk trip to Taco Bell.

As you waited for the chocolate to silently heat up in microwave (so you dont break your teeth trying to bite into it completely frozen), you sat yourself onto the main counter of the kitchenette, helping yourself to some "punch" which you knew was probably the slightest of fruit juice drowned in vodka, all to keep the people "well hydrated".

Your legs crossed over each other, your dress pulling up in the slightest and while you didn’t notice or care at first, the second the first creep of the night showed up in the kitchen, leering too close to you, staring at your thighs like you were a full course meal, you were wholly up out of there, getting off the counter, grabbing your chocolate and nope-ing your way out of there, like nope you ain’t getting ogled by some sexually deprived creep.

It became worse though as the guy began to follow you and you couldn’t help but grow increasingly annoyed, all you wanted was to eat your bloody chocolate in peace but this asshole wouldn’t leave you alone, so you turned as to confront him, maybe reject him so badly he would just leave the party and not go prey on some other poor soul.

That guy, with his way too overgrown beard to be sexy because he looked more like Gandalf than Leonardo Di Caprio, and his beady eyes which made him seem like a perv right from the beginning, along with his shabby clothing and lust-filled eyes, made him the very definition of "stay the hell away from me" types of men.

As he continued to eye you up, even with you straight up looking at him, he made bile rise in your throat, your face twisting into an uncomfortable shell, as you slowly pushed yourself away from him, dropping and losing the chocolate somewhere along the way (which made you incredibly upset), fingers itching to just grab some random boy and pull him into a kiss as to scare the creep away.

So that is what you did, spotting a really tall boy with his bright shaded blue hair amongst the crowd and screaming a loud "Babe!" at his direction before walking to him, his eyes widening as you silently pleaded him to play along with the little roleplay you had suddenly thrusted upon him, eyes shifting to the guy following you, as to indicate the situation.

"Please, that creep has been following me for the whole evening", you whispered, hoping to convince him and he nods before responding with a bright smile, as if you had told him some extremely amazing joke, which had caused that beautiful grin to appear.

"Oh darling, you always know how to make me smile! My precious little baby!", he cooed, leaning down slightly as the creep continued to approach, seemingly unconvinced before the boy’s calloused, probably from a string instrument as your friend Joshua would tell you, hands were cupping your cheeks, and his lips were on yours, every bit as plump as they looked, bringing a natural pink to your cheeks as he gently caressed the side of your face with the pad of his thumb, his tongue slipping between the closures of your lips, before you two were kissing so deeply, it felt as if both of you had forgotten about the creep (who had long left the scene unsatisfied) and had become too lost in each other.

As you broke away from his embrace, not quite slipping out of his grip on your waist, which he shyly removed straight after he realised, you smiled gently, still slightly breathless from that incredible kiss. Damn, if kissing was an art, than this man in front of you was the master.

Clearing your throat, you built up enough confidence to talk with him, as if you both hadn’t just kissed the life out of each other, and soon your awkward conversation led to you both sitting on the floor of the kitchen, chewing on your respective chocolate bars (and some cake which you found in the fridge which you somehow missed during your first haul), talking about the probablity of aliens and your favourite Johnlock fanfictions.

You find him oh so incredibly cute, from his ruffled dyed hair which he and his friends apparently change every month from a huge colour wheel they got in his aunt’s garage sale once upon a time and loved enough to bring to their new college dorms, all the way to his loud laughter when you tell him a joke or when he can’t even cohesively speak his own from laughing too much, with tears falling out of his eyes and his long arms hitting the ground in excitement.

He is like looking at the sun during the day, a whole bright being who shines with everything he does or says, and you for one loved to be in his soft light, which burned away your reluctance to make friends quicker than you could list the names of your favourite band’s members.

Both of you could talk about anything and by the end of the night, you both had been joined by two bottles of vodka, enough to get you tipsy but not puking your guts out on the backyard like usual when you and Baek came to parties, and had shifted into the comfortable position of you slumping against his chest, practically sitting between his long legs.

Your phone pings somewhere deep in your pockets and you shift from his warm embrace enough to pull it out and open its screen, before seeing the messages waiting for you to read them.

Relaxing back into him as he curiously looked over your shoulder to see what was happening, you opened your messages to see two messages from Baekhyun, who by now you had completely forgotten about and who was probably drunk off his ass, sitting on some poor (or not poor, the boy did have a nice ass) boy’s lap.

[2017/01/10] 1.10 pm .: two new messages from byun kid

⇒ bi5ch4 ge t su MM  !

⇐ hey y/n, get your ass here and save me, baek is drunk and he wants to go to the roof and keeps saying something about singing "hit me baby", come quick to the top floor staricase before i push him off the nearest balcony and get rid of his body. - soo

"Oh for fuck sake", you curse, scrambling out of Chanyeol’s embrace, your body almost physically hurting because of the sudden cold which hit you and he chuckled as you whine about how your friends are such horrible pieces of shit and how you kinda wanted Baekhyun to fall into the pool already so he would sober the hell up.

But as Chanyeol pushes you towards the stairs, telling you your friend needed you to help him and how he should probably get going anyways, since he had a class at 7 and he hadn’t realised the time until looking at your phone.

You wave him a goodbye, but realise that even though you had talked your tongues off, you had forgotten to ask him his name. So, you ran behind his not-that-hard-to-find figure, pushing a making out couple on the way as you leaped for him, catching his hand and turning him around.

"Hey, what is your name?"

"Chanyeol, Park Chanyeol", he says smiling widely at you as you continue to hold his hand, your skin heating up as you realised you practically jumped at him from where you were and you retract your hand.

"I-I am Y/N", you say, and he says it once, tasting it on his tongue as if it was his favourite cnady and you almost died when he said it was as sweet as your lips which made you blush all thirty shades of pink.

"If you ever want to taste again, y-you are welcome to see if they are really that sweet or if it was just the lipgloss?", you say, new confidence surging at his compliment, enough to flirt with the absolutely ravishing boy who only smirked before biting at his lip.

"Only after the first date sweetheart.", he said winking as you got out your phone once again, unlocking it and handing it to him, wordlessly as your eyes filled with confidence rather than anxiety.

"Text me the details"

You state, smirk lining your lips still as he punched in his number into your phone and saved it, before typing yours into his own phone, which you noticed had a Pokemon phone cover, this nerd.

He waves you goodbye and you smile at him, a hint of adoration slipping into it, as you realise you scored a date with the cutest boy you had ever met, and you were friends with bloody Do Kyungsoo.

As he opens the door to the frat house, you watch him shift until he turns and with a wink says the one thing that had you blushing beyond belief for the rest of the night, even as you hauled a drunk Baekhyun to his dorm with his poor roommate Jongin, who was way too sober to deal with this shit.

"Hey darling, wear another flavour when you come for the date, cherry got spoiled too quick"

[silkhyung]

MESSAGE DELIVERED | pt.2

→ Pairing: Jungkook x Reader / Namjoon x Reader → Genre: fluff, smut, angst, humor → Words: 3,182 → Rated: NC-17 → Warnings: none in this part

→ Summary: A text message sent to the wrong number turns into a long lasting affair between two people completely opposite one another. 

→ Note: So, yeah… here’s the now official part 2! I’m really sorry for the delay, but I hope you’ll like it! :)

Parts: 01 : interim : 02 : 03 : coming soon

cr.

━ 12:03pm It must be because I’m very tired But ur still hilarious Night lol

With a heavy sigh, you lean back in your seat, a blush creeping up your cheeks at the realization you probably crossed a line or something with those messages you sent to him on Saturday night. You’d prayed throughout the whole day after you’d get a reply, and when that didn’t happen you’d checked your phone every twenty minutes on Monday and today every time your phone buzzed. It’s kinda lame.

Really, you have no actual reason to be this upset about it.

“Joonie asked me about you today in class”, Jeongyeon says when your professor seems to still be too busy shuffling through his papers to give a damn about what’s going on in his class.

Your stomach flips uncomfortably and you quickly push your phone in under a notebook, giving your friend a curious look. “Joonie?”

She completely ignores that and continues on. “He asked why you rushed out of the show so quickly on Friday and also mentioned that he was kind of disappointed you never got to hear when they performed the song he wrote about y… Yoongi.”

After forcing the most fake smile you’ve ever seen her sport onto her lips, she turns to her phone and just starts scrolling.

“I already told you it was because of an emergency meeting”, you sigh. “Mark had some stuff to go over with me.”

You don’t mention your boss also told you to stop being so nice in your reviews and take your writing to the next level or he’d have to let you go, which led to you almost having a panic attack when you finally made it to the elevators because you really need the money.

“Yeah, but Joon- Namjoon doesn’t know that.” She gives you a pointed glare and you just want to kick her.

“Why does he care anyway?” you mumble, crossing your arms over your chest while leaning back in your seat further.

You hadn’t expected an answer, but you still hear Jeongyeon mumble something along the lines of; “several dumb reasons”. Ignoring that, you begin writing down whatever nonsense it is your professor is currently going through. No offense to Mr. Lee, but he really does have a tendency to space off and go way off topic.

The rest of the class is spent in silent annoyance on your part, first of all wondering what’s up with Namjoon constantly demanding your time and attention and then about your stupid JK not replying to your messages. He’s left your ballsy and stupid little confession unanswered for three whole days soon and it really shouldn’t bother you, but it so obviously, embarrassingly does.

He’d been like a small, kind of silly escape from reality in a way, and you miss that. You miss texting him because he seemed to be able to help keep your mind off of the stressful things in life, like school, your job, your pretty doomed future and so on.

Maybe he’s just unusually busy?

Maybe you should be thinking about more important things rather than a stranger in your phone?

Just then your phone starts buzzing incessantly under your notebook, and you eagerly fish it out, only for the excitement to wash off of your face as soon as you see the name displayed on your screen.

━ Kim Namjoon 4:22pm Hey what’s happening tonight? Wanna hit up Yoko’s with me and Hoseok? I kinda feel like you owe us for ditching us last time And you can give him his cap back

You try not to roll your eyes, typing out a quick lie in the hopes of it making him not continue asking. Of course, such luck only exists in fairytales.

━ 4:22pm I’ll be in a meeting

━ Kim Namjoon 4:22pm I didn’t give you a specific time

This time you do roll your eyes.

━ 4:23pm Then specify the time

━ Kim Namjoon 4:23pm How about 6:30?

Just as you hover over the send button, about to give him a big, fat no, you realize that you really are just being an unreasonable brat, like Jeongyeon told you several times over the phone during the weekend. The guy has never actually done anything but be nice and understanding towards you. He even showed up to Jeongyeon’s 70’s themed charity run when you couldn’t make it.

Biting into your lip with a sigh, you type out a new text, and you tell yourself it’s mostly because Hoseok probably desperately wants his favorite cap back.

━ 4:24pm Fine but jeongie joins us

━ Kim Namjoon 4:24pm Yeah that’ll be great! See you then!

“Hey”, you say, nudging Jeongyeon with your elbow. “Namjoon just texted me.”

You see her eyes narrow slightly, but you don’t understand why so you just brush it off. “Oh?”

“Yeah, we’re meeting up with him and Hobi for noodles at Yoko’s later.”

“Great.”

You’re not sure, but it kind of sounds like she doesn’t entirely think that that’s great, but you brush that off as well. Sometimes, Jeongie just has a tendency to get in bad moods for reasons she keeps to herself until she feels bad about it.

When she doesn’t say much else but only tells you she’ll meet you at Yoko’s, you gather your stuff with a heavy sigh at the end of the lecture, feeling like this day won’t ever just end.

A little more than an hour later, you’re standing outside of Mark’s office, fiddling with the hem of your shirt before gathering enough courage to push the door open. You’re greeted by a sickeningly sweet smell reminding you of donuts, and you instantly find the source inside a small box resting on his desk.

It is indeed donuts.

“Ah, Y/N!” your boss smiles wide, motioning for you to sit down as he sits himself down in his plush office chair. “I’m sorry for calling in for a meeting on such short notice, and before you start freaking out, I’m not going to fire you.”

With a nod and a tight smile, you lean back in your seat, trying to look comfortable when in reality you feel like a wooden board placed in a chair.

“I just need you to go to a certain mini festival kind of thing at the end of this week.” He grabs his laptop and angles it for you to see better. “This band’s playing. They’re pretty new and they’re quickly getting popular. I think they’re called F8X9 but nobody knows what it actually stands for. That’s rock for ya, I guess.”

Like Bath Time Sucks, you think to yourself with a small smile.

“You’re gonna go, make sure you watch these girls play, somehow get in backstage and talk to them, get an unofficial interview or something, and then you’re gonna write about them. And if you do good on that review, I’ll let you stay.”

You nod along to all he says, but pause abruptly at that last part.

“Wait, what?” you ask, lifting an eyebrow quizzically. “I thought you said you weren’t going to fire me?”

“Didn’t you listen, kid?” Mark smiles and leans back in his chair. “Your writing has been lacking lately, so I’m giving you a last chance to spice it up since you very obviously didn’t take my advice into consideration the last time I called you here.”

“But, wait, what?” you mumble again. “You just said I wasn’t going to get fired?”

With a smile that’s almost a little unsettling, your boss sighs. “Kid, you’re great and I like you, but you never listen. I’m not firing you today. I’m just giving you a project that will either lead to you getting fired or staying. It’s not the same thing.”

“I don’t understand-”

“You don’t need to understand, Y/N”, Mark grins, grabbing a donut from the box. “You just need to do what I ask of you. I’ll have JB email the tickets to you. You can bring a friend because I’m just nice like that.”

When you don’t say anything but just sit there and stare at your boss, mouth slightly agape because you’re for the first time in a good while at a loss for words, he takes a bite out of his donut and waves you towards the door.

“You can go now”, he smiles, donut pieces sticking grossly to his teeth. “The mini fest is this Saturday. Be there.”

And then he’s back to writing emails and what other crap it is he does on his computer, and it’s like you’ve already left the room. Feeling somewhat like you’d just been walked all over, you slowly get up from your seat and walk out of his office. You offer a weak smile to the colleagues you never really meet since you’re not an actual employee, and get in the elevator, hitting the buttons a little too harshly.

It’s when you’re outside the building that your bring out your phone and do something that leaves your cheeks burning hot pink.

━ 5:33pm I know how you felt cuz I wanna punch everyone

Letting your thumb hover over the send button, you stare at your message for a few seconds before gasping at your own stupidity when you realize you’d already sent it.

The words message delivered stare back at you, almost tauntingly, and when you check the contact info, it clearly spells out JK, and you instantly feel like melting through the ground. 

Why would you reach out to him now, after three days of complete silence, after he left your messages of admitting you enjoyed talking to him hang in the air awkwardly?

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

If he thought you were being weirdly clingy before, he’s never going to want to speak to you again now.

You’re just shoving your phone down into your coat to walk the whole hour it’ll take you to get to Yoko’s when you receive yet another text. Thinking it is Hoseok once again, asking for the hundredth time if you’ve remembered his precious cap, you whip it out with a scowl.

━ JK 5:35pm I volunteer to be punched if it will make you feel better

Blinking at your screen, you almost press your nose to the home button as you stare at the received text. 

He’s back?

You stay there for a long while, typing out several messages - some with too many exclamation marks and some with all caps on throughout - until you finally decide to just leave him hanging the way he left you.

It’s petty, and you wish you could be less so, but you really can’t and that’s that.

So that’s why you spend the next hour ignoring the occasional plinging of your phone, hoping it isn’t JK asking for your attention now that you’d accidentally given him yours as you make your way to Yoko’s.

It isn’t until you’re outside the place that you check your phone again, two unread messages from him lighting up your screen in what’s become a welcomed familiarity.

━ JK 5:59pm So which beatle was the oldest?

━ JK 6:33pm i kinda think ur ignoring m

You wanna tell him that yes, you are ignoring him because he ignored you for three whole days and that’s not cool, but then you remember you’re not in any place to demand. You’re just strangers. A fact you seem to have to remind yourself of more frequently than you should.

With a sigh, lips still grazed by a small smile anyway, you type out a response.

━ 6:34pm Lol poor u Again with the quizzes? It’s Ringo

It takes him barely a second to answer, and it kind of catches you off guard.

━ JK 6:34pm I knew I could count on my genius! I knew u were cool :)

You try - you really do - to not let your heart skip at the use of the word “my”, but as with everything in your life lately, you fail fairly miserably.

━ 6:35pm Still haven’t gotten into joys pants I take it?

You wait for his response for two minutes, and when no notification pops up on your screen, you decide to head inside since it’s freezing outside.

You’re instantly met with the smell of freshly boiled noodles and broths in every flavor you can imagine, and when you turn to walk further inside to find your friends, you instantly get approached by Jinyoung, the owner of the place.

“Hey, Jeongyeon ordered for you and I just finsihed it”, he smiles, nodding towards the bowl on the tray in his hands. “I can still bring it to your table if you’d like.”

“Oh, no, it’s okay”, you grin, happy at the sight of a steaming bowl of noodles prepared for you. It’s no secret you enjoy spending your afternoons at Yoko’s when you have the time and money. “Thank you, Jinyoung. It’s miso noodles, right?”

“What else would it be?”

You give him a huge smile, cheeks tinged pink because the whole staff knows you so embarrassingly well by now.

You’re just about to turn around and head back to your table when a stranger’s elbow knocks into you as they pass you by. While you gasp at the tiny amount of broth spilled on the floor, the guy just shoots you a nasty glare over his shoulder while continuing walking.

“Watch where you’re going, dammit”, he snaps at you darkly before continuing towards the exit, nose glued to the phone as he texts away.

Your gaze follows him for a few seconds, exasperated both at his jerkass attitude but also at the fact that he of course had to look like a damn Abercrombie model. Everyone knows you’re weak for muscle pigs with midnight black hair, and it sucks that it’s always the good looking ones that are the absolute assholes.

With a few exceptions, of course. Namely Jung Hoseok.

“Like you’re one to talk”, you huff with a small scowl as his broad back disappears behind the closing doors, and you turn around to Jinyoung to apologize for spilling on his floor.

He waves you away with a fond, “It’s okay, I’ll take care of it” and before you can say much else he’s already down there wiping up the tiny splotch of broth you left on the floor behind you.

After thanking and apologizing to him once more, you head over to where you see Hoseok waving at you, probably excited to get his cap back, finally. You slow in your tracks for a moment when you spot several heads you don’t recognize next to your friends.

“Hey, guys”, you smile sheepishly when you reach the table, for a second ignoring the unfamiliar faces. “Sorry I’m late. Hobi, here’s your cap”, you say as you pull it off your own head and hand it to an excited Hoseok. “And hi”, you add in while giving a smile to the other guys at the table. “I’m Y/N.”

Your phone plings in your pocket as Hoseok makes space for you to slide in the booth next to him.

“Hey”, the guy with the pink hair says. “I’m Jimin. This is Taehyung, who’s in the band with me, our producer Yoongi and manager Seokjin.”

Everyone mentioned gives a nod in acknowledgement, but continue to devour their food without sparing you another glance. Jimin rolls his eyes at them and you decide you like him the most out of all of them.

“These are the guys I write songs for”, Namjoon says proudly, for the first time in a long while actually smiling at you. You don’t know why it makes you feel funny. “We bumped into them on our way inside so they joined.”

“I hope that’s okay”, Jimin smiles apologetically.

“Yeah, yeah, of course”, you grin. “So, you guys are the famous BTS, huh?”

Namjoon nods proudly, but you interrupt him before he can say anything.

“Wait, aren’t you guys a trio?” you ask, pointing between the guys named Jimin and Taehyung with your chopsticks. “Where’s the third guy?”

“Oh, he got a text from someone and had to leave”, Taehyung mumbles through his noodles. “I’m surprised you didn’t bump into him. He left just a little while ago. Said he needed to talk to someone important or something.”

“You don’t think he’s going to meet up with that tramp again, do you?” Jimin asks, looking between his friends with a flare of panicked jealousy, and you get a feeling he’s into this missing third of their band.

He sort of has that vibe about him.

While the rest of the table dives into a conversation about hookups and whatnot, you turn to your phone to see if your Beatles stranger had replied, and you’re greeted by a few more messages than you imagined.

━ JK 6:37pm No cuz I don’t want to Too much work for nothing lol What’s cooking good looking?

━ JK 6:39pm wait are u busy? I just left my friends so im p bored You have to entertain me with your bad sexual innuendos lolol

━ JK 6:41pm No but srsly are u busy? I don’t wanna bother you

Smiling at his odd goofiness, you bite into your lip and lean back so Hoseok won’t be able to see your screen as clearly.

━ 6:45pm Lol you can chill I’m just having dinner with some friends

━ JK 6:51pm So I’m stealing your attention from your friends huh? nice

━ 6:51pm Don’t flatter yourself amateur

“Hey, what are you so smiley about?” Hoseok asks all of a sudden, peering over your shoulder to see what you’re up to.

“Nothing, really, it’s just-”

“Who’re you texting?”

“It’s just about school!” Pressing your phone to your chest tightly to keep it away from Hoseok’s curious eyes, you lock the screen for extra security measures and glare at him.

“Ew, school”, he mumbles, downing the last of his drink.

“Exactly.” Your eyes catch Jeongyeon blushing over one of the band members, so you quickly mention that to distract him. “What you should be asking is why Jeongyeon’s acting like a little schoolgirl.”

Just as Hoseok dives into your bait and starts embarrassing your best friend by interrogating her over her flushed cheeks in front of everyone, your phone plings again.

━ JK 6:53pm And here i thought you enjoyed talking to me Or were you really just sleepy?

━ 6:53pm Asshole

━ JK 6:53pm Kidding I really enjoy talking to you too :)

Your stomach does another of those soft dips or flips or whatever the hell it is, and you calm the tingling in your hands by fishing up a scallion with a chopstick, smiling triumphantly when you succeed.

━ 6:54pm Good to know

━ JK 6:54pm So the textbook ninjas let you have a night off? Since you’re not fighting ninja wars in the library i mean

Your gaze falls to Jeongyeon as she lets out an annoyed grunt, and you feel a little bad about throwing her under the bus, but at the same time you kind of need this. It gets a little easier to ignore your worries of your job with each pling coming from your phone.

And silly as it may be, you’ve missed texting him.

━ 6:55pm I gave up Too much moving around for my liking so I’m resigning It’s only going to be ninja movies from now on

━ JK 6:55pm I get that But pls tell me it’s the good ones

Thinking for a second, you realize there’s no point in lying. You know little to nothing of ninja movies and it’d be stupid to pretend just to impress.

━ 6:55pm I might’ve lied There’s gonna be more ACTION movies

━ JK 6:55pm Again Pls tell me it’s the good ones

━ 6:56pm Idk does iron man count as a good one? It has to otherwise ur dumb

It takes a moment for him to answer that, but when he finally does, you smile bigger than you have in days.

━ JK 6:57pm It’s like we’re made for eachother

next part

[just-come-baek]

Falling Playbook 1

Subtitle: Sealing the Deal

Pairings: Jeon Jungkook x Reader (Seol)

Themes: smut | college!au | friends with benefits!au

Word count: 11.3k

Summary: After a night spent together, Jungkook wants to be friends with benefits with me.

Masterlist | 01 | 02 | ...

“You should have some fun; you just sit at home and watch the TV series.” My friend, Hoseok, spoke, as he nudged my shoulder. “You’re in goddamn college; when was the last party you’ve attended to, huh?”

“Last weekend,” I replied quickly. “There were music and booze; I had such a great time.” I retorted, and folded my arms across my chest. I wasn’t necessarily fond of huge club parties, but I liked hanging out with my friends at somebody’s place or in a pub in a friendly atmosphere. “We actually emptied a whole bottle of vodka by just the two of us.”

“Still,” Hoseok carried on, and I just rolled my eyes, “you really should go with me to that party. Everybody is gonna be there. It’s the event of the month! It’s the international women’s day! Besides, you look like you’re in a need of hookup.”

I sighed, slowly giving into that idea of his. Even though I didn’t want to admit it, it’d been a lot of time since the last time I had sex. One night stands had been never my thing, and relationships hadn’t been, either. Right now, I’d rather find myself a friend who I could fulfill all desires with, and at this point, a hookup seemed like a good start.

“I’m being serious here. You either attend that party with me, or I’m signing you up on Tinder. Your call,” he challenged, and I raised an eyebrow at him, wondering if he really meant his words. Knowing Hoseok, he’d let me go if I kept rejecting his offer. For me, both solutions to my ‘problem’ were equally terrible. I despised the dull and monotonic beat of the club music which blasted through the speakers for the entire night, which you could only dance to when batshit drunk. Finding a date or a hookup online through a mobile app didn’t seem right, either. Call me old-fashioned, but I had always preferred meeting people in person.

“Why are you my friend again?” I asked, as I really didn’t want to choose. However, the real question was how the hell Hoseok obtained the authority to make such important decisions regarding my schedule? He was my friend, and he had no right to boss me around like that. He had always been a little bit persuasive, but right now, it was getting out of hand. I’d only go to that party if I wanted, and I didn’t. Wild horses wouldn’t drag me there. Perhaps, it was about time I should try to reason with him and prove him the world didn’t revolve around him and many meaningless lewd hookups.

“Which one is it?” Hoseok asked again, completely ignoring my previous statement, and I could only roll my eyes at him. This guy was incredible! “You have to live, get out of your comfort zone, get laid–whatever you call it!”

“Clubs are not my style.” I announced as if he didn’t know that already. I always repeated it, yet his simple mind didn’t seem to ever catch that. Sighing, I looked at him. He was smiling at me, as if he was hoping for me to agree to this idiotic escapade. I really wanted to turn him down, I really did. Unfortunately, no matter how strong-willed I thought I was, I’d never be able to reject his wide and gleeful smile. “Ugh, fine. I’ll go, but I’m coming back home if I don’t like it. Are we clear?”

“Crystal.”

***

The party was held the next day. It was definitely too soon. I didn’t have any time to mentally prepare myself for it. Hoseok made sure I didn’t chicken out, either.

Hoseok came to my apartment about two hours prior to the party. We agreed he’d help me find the best outfit and drink a glass of wine or two before the event just to get in the mood and, in my case, loosen up a bit.

“I didn’t know you had so many dresses in your closet. Why aren’t you wearing them?” Hoseok asked, as he threw a few dresses on the chair beside him. “These are sexy! You really should put them on more often.” He added, as he scrutinized his eyes, trying to picture me dressed in the skimpy piece of clothing he was holding in his hands.

“I’d love to, but in case you didn’t notice, it’s still winter.” I answered him, as I took a gulp of my rosé. Although it was March, and the weather was rather nice, I hoped he’d buy my excuse. “Besides, I hate the attention. Especially when I receive it only from whom I have zero interest in.” I added matter-of-factly, focusing my eyes on the computer’s screen.

“This piece of art will make everyone turn their heads toward you. I guarantee you that.” Hoseok spoke, throwing a skimpy dress at my head. I had a hunch he would choose this one. It was short and tight, emphasizing every single curve of my body. Moreover, its flowery pattern made me look more chic than slutty; and subtle cleavage was leaving enough space for imagination.

“And that’s the exact opposite of what I want,” I retorted, and tossed the dress on the bed beside me, as I focused on the website I was browsing. “Don’t get me wrong, but I don’t really fancy strangers rubbing their dicks against my ass to get my attention in the middle of the dance floor. That’s disgusting, and it’s the preeminent reason why I hate clubbing so much. Even if I tell them to fuck off, another one will approach me.” I groaned in hope he understood me.

Hoseok was speechless. He must’ve had nothing to say to prove me wrong. God, how much I loved being right. Satisfaction filled me, and I grinned, taking another sip of the wine.

“What about we buy another bottle of this, and stay at home, huh?” I proposed, but Hoseok wasn’t really enthusiastic about my idea. He must’ve really looked forward to going to that party; I almost forgot he was down to that party to get laid, too. He wasn’t dating anyone at the moment, so he must’ve seen this party as his opportunity to find someone to ease his sexual frustration with. He obviously wouldn’t be getting anything from me, so maybe I could’ve given this idea the second thoughts. It could be fun; I could be his wingman of some sort.

“Come on, don’t be like this.” Hoseok whined, as he approached me with a pout upon his face. “I rarely ask you to do things for me. Just go, it’s gonna be fun, and if it’s really going to be that terrible, I’ll make it up to you. I promise.”

“Of course it’s gonna be terrible! It’s not my first, and thanks to you, definitely not last.” I started, trying not to look at his now bright and gleeful face. At this point, I couldn’t really turn him down. He was a human being with needs, and I couldn’t bail out on him, no matter how tempting it was. He was my friend, and I’d go to this awful party to make him feel a little better. It’d put me under some discomfort, but with some alcohol in my system, I’d endure it. Or at least, it’s what I’m thinking right now due to the wine I’ve already drunk. “Fine, I’ll go. I’ve already promised that, haven’t I?”

“Cool,” Hoseok spoke, and smiled brightly at me, obviously overjoyed by the fact I was actually going to that stupid party. “Now get dressed, I don’t want to be late.”

I sighed, and rolled my eyes before I sat up, grabbed the dress, and headed to the bathroom.

It took me slightly over thirty minutes to get dressed, do my hair, pick accessories and put the make-up on. By the time I was finished, Hoseok was on his phone, chatting with his friends. I knew them, and we got along, but I only hung out with them when Hoseok was around. The same applied to my friends and Hoseok; they had never met up when I was absent.

When Hoseok noticed my presence, he stared at me from head to toe. I looked definitely better than normally, since I didn’t doll myself up every day, and Hoseok must’ve really been impressed. He didn’t say anything until I cleared my throat, wanting to get a comment from him. Knowing Hoseok, he wouldn’t let me go out unless my outfit was approved by him.

“I should definitely change my major; fashion is running in my veins.” Hoseok commented, as if I was attractive only because of his input. “You look fabulous,” he started, waving his hands a lot, trying to express himself better. “We still have some time left, and no more wine. Do you want to hit the bar before we go to the club?”

“God, yes,” I spoke with relief. There was definitely too little alcohol in my system to endure the party. I didn’t want to be a wet blanket and ruined Hoseok all the fun. Attending the party with him was the least I could do.

***

When we arrived, some people were already partying; even the ones in the queue didn't seem to mind the chilly wind outside, as they tapped their feet in the silent rhythm of the music, and smoked cigarettes.

As expected, they also had hit a bar before; nowadays people my age wouldn't be able to hold a decent conversation with an opposite sex without a drink or two; sadly, myself included. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as everyone tends to be more honest when spiced up with some booze. It was fair, actually; there was a chance that men and women, for once, were on the same page; seeking for an easy way to release their sexual needs.

Hoseok and I were standing in the line. I was sighing, staring at my shoes, while he was looking around, trying to find some friends who would probably help us nonchalantly cut in the line. Although I was fine with waiting for our turn, Hoseok seemed really impatient; he was tapping his foot and looking at his wrist watch every thirty seconds.

"Calm down, we'll eventually get in there." I chipped in, sending Hoseok a smile. It was fun to see him all eager for whatever he was going to do once we were inside. It had to be stopped, though. The girls would interpret his impatience as desperation, and only a psycho would be turned on by that. I had to cool him down if he wanted to pick up somebody to hook up with.

"Jin texted me that he and Namjoon are already inside." Hoseok said matter-of-factly before he hid his phone back into the pocket.

"So...?" I asked dully, raising my eyebrow at him. "We're the cool kids, and cool kids always come fashionably late." I added, nudging his shoulder.

"I guess you're right." Hoseok shrugged, and smiled at me sheepishly. "Shall we go through the rules?" He proposed, and I couldn't believe he just said that. I wasn't a baby, and it wasn't my first time partying with him. I knew the procedure, I didn't have to be reminded of it every single time we went out. Was he serious? Hoseok was my friend, and he truly cared about me, but I used to think I had proven myself to be responsible.

"You're ridiculous." I commented, and shook my head, hoping I misheard him. He had made me recite the rules so many times, I'd be able to list them even when woken up in the middle of a night. "I really don't understand how come we're friends." I carried on, but Hoseok continued giving me the look. I knew he wouldn't let the topic slide until I cooperated. "Ugh," I groaned, and licked my lips, hoping no one was going to overhear me. "Always keep an eye on your drink. Never leave the club without informing your friends about it. Always use protection. Never do drugs. Hoseok, for fuck's sake, was it really necessary?" I yelled at him, the embarrassment showing upon my cheeks.

"Absolutely!" He answered quickly, as he placed his hand on the small of my back, as the line finally moved a little.

We showed our student ID cards to the doormen, and after a few seconds he returned them to us, and stepped aside, granting the entrance.

As fast as it was possible, I took off my coat and headed to the cloakroom, Hoseok following just behind me.

"Namjoon says they're waiting for us by the bar." He mused, and with a smile lead me to their meeting point.

"Good, another drink is definitely going to be useful." I retorted, observing my surroundings.

The club was packed with people. A lot of girls created smaller groups where they sipped on their drinks, probably gossiping about other women who had decided to dress a bit more slutty than they thought it was adequate. I was guilty, too. I immediately judged the girl whose shirt was so short, everybody could see her thong when she straddled a man in the corner. I understood the lust, but they could've at least some decency to go somewhere private. Men, on the other hand, if they already didn't have their eyes set on a particular girl, occupied the bar nonchalantly lurking for their prey.

Hoseok quickly found Namjoon and Jin. Squeezing between dancing people, we reached the bar, and I sat on the stool which they had managed to reserve. Right now, I was the only girl in the group, and it only seemed right. Unlike the feminism activists who were pretty damn annoying these days, I had never minded having some privileges.

"Where the fuck have you been? We were waiting for like thirty minutes already!" Namjoon screamed, since otherwise we wouldn't be able to hear him. The music was awful and way too loud for my own liking, but since they kept me company so far, I hoped I'd focus on the conversation instead of the monotonous beats.

"Blame her," Hoseok pointed at me, "she was taking too long when dressing up!" Hoseok yelled into Namjoon's ear, the both of them staring at me.

"In that case, I don't really mind! She looks even prettier than usual." Jin shouted, and smiled at me.

I leaned in a little and thanked him. People rarely complimented my looks, and it was really nice to hear it from time to time. Besides, if I interpreted Jin's words correctly, I was always pretty, but today I outdid myself. Moreover, such words coming out of someone as beautiful as Jin himself was incredibly rewarding.

"We should order something." I suggested, and reached for the menu, staring at over-priced drinks. Hoseok looked over my shoulder, but I knew he was going to go with beer. The drinks were always diluted, and consisted of way too much sugar. Not to mention the three fourth of the drink being just ice. No matter how ridiculous it sounded, he knew he'd get wasted sooner if he remained faithful to his beloved beer.

"This round is on me." Jin hollered just when I was about to pull out my money.

Normally, I'd feel bad about it, well... maybe 'indebted' was the proper word, but since I knew such an expanse wouldn't be a bothersome for him, I agreed. I wasn't going to use his generosity, though. He was nice, and one drink was enough.

As I predicted, Hoseok went with beer, and I ordered Mojito, while Jin and Namjoon both opted for whisky with coke.

When our drinks arrived, we sipped on them, and chatted. Actually, they did most of the talking. They were gossiping about people I didn't know, so I was just drinking my alcohol, nodding my head from time to time. I didn't really pay attention; instead I tried to find my other friends. Hoseok had said it was the party of the month, so finding some familiar faces was bound to happen. So far, I only saw two other girls from my major. Unfortunately, they weren't really my friends; just some people I knew but didn't talk to.

My companions finished their drinks rather quickly, but being the gentlemen they were, they waited for me. Although they didn't pressure me into doing anything, I gulped down my drink, so we could finally hit the dance floor.

Once we were in the middle of the crowd, we started to dance. Hoseok, being the one who wielded the dancing kind title was in the center of attention. His moves were amazing, and it took a lot of self-restraint to not gawk at him. He danced flawlessly, and in comparison, everyone looked like they just learned how to walk. Namjoon, on the other hand, was a complete opposite; he danced as if he was trying to dodge bullets which were targeted at his legs. Jin and I were mediocre; we could feel the rhythm, as we swayed our hips from side to side in the right tempo, but it was evident we weren't pros like Hoseok, especially when he started to show off some complicated dance moves.

When the beat dropped, everyone began jumping up and down with their hands thrown in the air. It was actually fun, given all the alcohol I had consumed. I ran my hands through my hair, pushing them off my face. Suddenly, I felt like closing my eyes, losing myself completely in the melody. It was really fun, at least until I felt somebody hands on my sides, pulling me closer against one's chest. I quickly turned my head, and looked at the stranger. He was smiling as if he already knew I was going to leave the club with him and fuck him till the sun peeking through the blinds very early in the morning.

"What's your name?" The man whispered into my ear, while I tried my best not to show him how much I wanted to cringe.

"Sorry, I came here with my boyfriend." I replied, and pulled the man who was the closest to me. Thankfully, it was Hoseok, and he immediately caught my unspoken message. He could sense I wasn't comfortable with that man, so he quickly wrapped his arm around my shoulders protectively and pulled me away from him. Hoseok led me somewhere, and before I noticed, I was standing on a platform with him, where everybody was able to stare at us. Much to my dissatisfaction, Hoseok rescue mission appeared to be an out of the frying pan into the fire kind of help.

"I'm glad you're having fun." Hoseok shouted into my ears, and on cue, we started to jump again as the beat dropped.

I danced with him for like two more songs before I needed a break. Unfortunately, I wasn't as athletic as Hoseok.

Rather clumsily, I made my way toward the bar where I sneaked into a vacant stool. Thankfully, the bartender was currently busy, so I had time to catch my breath and decide on my next drink. The music was starting to sound shitty in my ears again, and I needed some poison to immunize myself with.

"I must say I couldn't take my eyes off of you." A handsome man spoke when he approached me, and propped his body on his elbow, leaning against the bar. I scoffed at his words, staring at his face. He was good-looking, perhaps out-of-my-league kind of good-looking. His eyes were as black as his hair, his ear piercings reflecting the club lights. He was wearing a simple black T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. A thin silver necklace hung around his neck, making me focus on his beautiful collarbones. "What's your name?" He asked, and I panicked for a brief moment; Jin and Namjoon disappeared somewhere and Hoseok was still dancing on the platform.

"Hwajeong." I spoke the first name that came to my mind. "Yours?" I inquired, trying to make him do all the talking. I always hated breaking the ice, so if he could keep me interested for more than five minutes and try not to immediately get into my pants, I wouldn't blow him off. He was attractive, so I didn't see a problem in giving him a chance if he played his cards right.

"Jungkook." He casually replied, and smiled at me. "Will you have a drink with me?" He whispered into my ear, each syllable tickling my skin.

"Sure," I smiled back, and he raised his hand to obtain the bartender's attention.

"What do want, Hwajeong?"

"I think we should do shots." I suggested, and Jungkook seemed positively surprised. He mustn't have expected me to go with such strong alcohol. Actually, I'd have ordered a fancy drink, but knowing how little alcohol and how much sugar the drinks had, shots were a safe bet. "I recommend you the ones with red bull. They kick, but they're sweet at the same time!" I shouted, staring at the menu.

"What can I get you?" The bartender asked, as soon as he approached us. Jungkook leaned forward, and ordered us the shots I proposed.

"What brings you here, Hwajeong?" Jungkook asked, emphasizing my name, as if repeating it wouldn't make him forget it. He had to be one of the men who felt wrong when they didn't remember the name of the girl they had spent the night with.

"I'm my friend's wingman, and I think I did an amazing job." I spoke proudly, turning around in my seat, pointing at Hoseok who was still dancing on the platform, but this time, he had two girls accompanying him.

"Whoa, I'm impressed. Can I hire you for my roommate? He didn't want to go with me to that party, while he obviously needs to get laid. He's helpless, but with such a talented wingman, he would be able to find someone." Jungkook jested, and quickly turned to the bartender to pay for our shots.

"I'm not sure he can afford my services. My friend is always going to be indebted to me." I retorted, and accepted three shot glasses which Jungkook slid toward me. Jungkook must've had some serious plans for me if he wanted to get me drunk this badly. Perhaps, I should've noticed the red flags around him, but I ignored them. We were still in the club, and if he suddenly became odd, Hoseok or Jin or Namjoon would come to my rescue.

"He's gonna be doomed without you, but fine. It's his loss he didn't want to come." Jungkook shrugged, and raised the glass, ready to make a toast. "To you who didn't blow me off the second I approached you." He spoke, and clinked the glass with me before we drunk it in one go.

"What about you? What has brought you here?" I asked, placing my right leg over the left one. My dress slightly rolled up, and Jungkook's eyes immediately noticed it. He didn't even try to be discreet about it.

"Dancing." He simply answered.

"I don't see you dance, though." I teased and smirked while running my forefinger across the brim of my shot glass.

"I'm waiting for you to teach me your moves." Jungkook talked back, and I smiled, starting to lose my hope of ever out-talking him.

"I'm impressed, you seem to know what to say what every woman wants to hear." I blurted, wishing that Jungkook could comprehend my incoherent blabber. "Even if it usually works, I prefer honesty. We both know why the majority of people are here; are we any different?" I asked, cocking my eyebrow at him, while Jungkook tried to figure out if I really meant my words.

"To honesty, then!" He hollered, and raised another shot glass, encouraging me to have another round with him. I knew he must've done this to omit answering my question. Unfortunately, I was aware that he, like the ninety percent of people in the club, was down to fuck. Even if I hadn't tried it myself, I understood how it worked.

"But seriously, honesty is the best policy." I continued, sensing that Jungkook didn't like the direction this conversation was headed. "Even if you think this will ruin the sweet illusion you tried to create, it won't. It won't with me, at least. Besides, it takes a pair of balls to be frank."

"Okay," Jungkook hesitantly said, slowly rethinking my proposition. "I really want to kiss you." He confessed, staring down at my red lips.

"Right now?" I asked for clarification, my mind clouded with the strong vodka. Jungkook nodded and I smiled. "Don't, I'd push you away. I wouldn't walk out on you, though. How easy do you think I am?" I jested, and Jungkook smirked at me, sensing that I was teasing him. "Just relax, we're having fun."

"God, you really are something, Hwajeong." Jungkook spoke, and emptied his third shot, while staring directly at me. His eyes felt as if they were drilling in mine, but I could only focus on his Adam's apple when he swallowed the liquor. Such a simple gesture made me wonder why, on Earth, I was playing hard to get. He was obviously in the club to find somebody to fuck, and he chose me. I found him attractive, so if he wasn't going to insist on banging him, I'd leave the party with him. I had never done this one-night-stand thing, and Jungkook seemed like an ideal candidate.

"Let's dance." I quickly said before I drank my shot and slammed the glass against the counter, pulling Jungkook to the dance floor a moment later. His hands were big and dry, but his grip was rather gentle, so overall it felt nice. I stopped just a second before the beat was going to drop. I sent Jungkook a faint smirk before I and everyone around me started to jump.

Smiling at me, Jungkook danced with me. Although he had stated he wanted to learn from me, his moves were better than mine. He was almost as good as Hoseok. Shaking my head at his poor lie, I brushed it off, and just focused on the music which surprisingly didn't sound like crap. I threw my arms into the air, trying to lose myself in the rhythm, but it was difficult with Jungkook's eyes undressing me. It wasn't bad, though. I was glad that he respected me enough to not turn me around and rub his sex against my bottom.

"Liar," I whispered into his ear when he was really close to me.

"I'm a fast learner," he replied, and smiled at me. Unconsciously, I mirrored his actions, his playful smirk ruining my defence against him. I just couldn't keep my straight face and pretend his facial expression didn't affect me at all. I was giving in, and he, without any doubt, could sense that.

Dancing with Jungkook was great; he wasn't too bold, and he respected my personal space. He must've applied my previous advice; he danced for the sake of dancing, not of showing me he wanted to fuck me. Very few people would be able to do that, and I was impressed.

In the middle of the second song, I needed a break. Due to the shots and all the jumping, I felt really dizzy, almost as if I was going to collapse in the middle of the dance floor. Having noticed my state, Jungkook approached me and rested his hands on my sides, pulling me toward him. "Everything alright?" He asked, and I nodded my head. I was fine, I just had to sit for a minute or two. "Are you sure? Do you want to go outside?"

It was very sweet of him to care so much. It was really endearing.

"Meet me out front in ten, okay?"

***

Having used the bathroom and lied to Jin that I was taking a taxi back home, I collected my coat, put it on, and exited the club. Perhaps, it took me more than I had promised to Jungkook, but thankfully, he didn't ditch me for another girl. He was leaned against a brick wall, his hands in his jeans pockets. He looked very nonchalant, the leather jacket thrown loosely around his shoulders.

As soon as he noticed me, he smiled, and pushed himself off the wall with his foot.

We met halfway.

"My place, or yours?" He asked bluntly, and I started to laugh hysterically at him. If other girls would give in, I didn't plan on going easy. We were complete strangers, and I wouldn't come over to his flat knowing so little about him. His name and the fact that he has a roommate wouldn't suffice.

"Neither." I replied when my laughter died down a little. Normally, it wouldn't be so funny, but given the alcohol I had consumed, I'd giggle at almost everything. "Come on, at least I have to pretend I'm not easy." I jested, and nudged his shoulder with my elbow. "It's barely past midnight. We still have a whole night ahead of us. Let's do something fun."

I knew I said it only because I was afraid. It was going to be my first one-night-stand, and I must've unconsciously tried to stop myself before I reached the point of no return. Jungkook was hot, and he'd make a perfect person to have meaningless sex with. It was still new to me, and I was scared. Unfortunately, the alcohol didn't seem to help me with this kind of fear.

"We can—"

Jungkook wanted to propose something, but before he managed to finish his sentence, I grabbed him by the jacket and pulled him down to kiss him. At first, I just pressed my lips against his, but the second his shock died down, he started to move his mouth against mine. The kiss was messy and passionate with a lot of tongue and our teeth clicking. It was amazing, and I couldn't remember the last time I was kissed like that.

Instinctively, his hands rested on my sides, pulling me closer to him.

It felt good but wrong at the same time. For Jungkook it must've seemed odd, too. One second, I had told him to take it easy, yet a moment later, I had pulled him into a heated kiss. I still had mixed feelings about the one-night-stand concept, but now, having tasted him, I thought I was willing to try.

I was pressed tightly against Jungkook's firm body, as he continued kissing me. He was sucking on my tongue, biting on my lips, while I miserably attempted to dominate the kiss. He was in charge, and he showed it quite emphatically. We wouldn't be having it any other way.

"Whoa, that was nice," I spoke as soon as I pulled away. The kiss was amazing. We couldn't carry on there, though. I had always hated couples making out publicly, and I wasn't a hypocrite to do exactly what I truly despised. "I'd eat something." I said out of the blue, looking at him.

"There's a fast-food diner on the way to my place. I think it's still open." Jungkook answered, and smiled at me. The kiss we shared was a promise; he knew I wasn't wasting his time. My heart was beating heavily in my chest, and at this point, I didn't know whether it was because of the stress, or the chemistry I felt for him. Although we only kissed, I was sure he would take good care of me, even if it was going to last just until morning.

"Thank God, I've barely eaten today, and I'm starving. Lead the way!" I replied enthusiastically.

"This way." He spoke, showing me the direction.

Since he said it's gonna take us about five minutes by foot, we walked. I didn't really mind. The cold wind would help me clear my mind and hopefully put my racing heart at ease. It wouldn't be anything to brag about if I did or said something embarrassing which would make him completely lose his interest in me. The silence we were engulfed in wasn't a good sign, either, and although it took two people, I felt as if it was my fault we couldn't hold a decent conversation. Didn't he feel uncomfortable? I did, and it was barely bearable.

"So..." I dragged on, "what's your favorite movie?" I asked simply, hoping it'd break the ice and make him speak.

"What?" He inquired, as if he didn't hear me. "Favorite movie? Hmm... 'Iron Man', I guess." He answered with a shrug, staring at me. "Yours?"

It was going to be a long night.

"I guess it was alright." I replied with the exact interest he showed which was really close to nothing. "But I think I could name at least one hundred better films. Don't get me wrong, but it didn't really stand up. Just one of a bunch of Marvel movies."

"So which film did stand up, huh?" He asked, sounding almost offended. I had no idea I could pull a nerve with such a simple question, but right now, I was genuinely interested how it might've turned.

"It's really difficult to pick one, actually." I started, as I stared at my shoes, as I strolled slowly beside him, cold wind kissing my cheeks. "I don't have a favorite one, but I like 'White Chicks' and 'Shrek 2' regardless my humor. They always crack me up and make me feel better." I could hear him snort, but I decided to let it slide. Getting into a fight before sex wouldn't put me in the mood.

***

In the restaurant, he was a complete gentleman. He opened the door for me, bought me food, and even glared at an old man in mid-forties who was staring at me inappropriately. Although he didn't put a lot of effort, I was glad. I wasn't being treated like a princess, but he still was one of the nicest guys I had ever met.

Whatever tension or stress I had felt, it was gone when we were seated in a booth. We conversed casually, no one would be able to tell that we met each other an hour ago. Unfortunately, due to my alcohol intoxication, I couldn't really catch what he was saying. I could hear him, but I didn't listen. I felt like a goldfish—I couldn't even tell the topic we were discussing when he jumped to another one. On top of that, somewhere along the way, I forgot his name. It was embarrassing, but remembering names of people I just met had never been my forte.

When we finished eating, him, binging on his portion and two third of mine, I offered him a spearmint chewing gum and he accepted.

"You really have a beautiful smile." He said as we exited the diner. I didn't even know I was smiling, to be honest. I must've had a really fun time with him. Slowly, I started to regret that I was going to part ways with him before the dawn.

"Thank you." I replied, trying not to giggle. He was going to be a one night adventure, and nothing more. I shouldn't have raised my hopes, especially when I didn't seek for a relationship at the moment. It was ironic, meeting a great guy when wanting to focus on self-development. "How far is your apartment? My shoes are killing me."

"Why? Do you want me to carry you?" He asked, as he stood in front of me, bending a little almost as if wanting to grab me and throw me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. It was ridiculous, so I took a step back, trying to signalize I wasn't comfortable with such treatment. Thankfully, he understood the message. "We're almost there. Two more minutes."

He didn't lie. He wasn't honest, either. His flat was located on the fourth floor, and it was a real deal breaker. Especially, when the lift was out of order.

"What about your roommates? Won't they be pissed that you bring a girl over?" I asked, when he was fighting with the lock.

"Don't worry about it. Jimin is still at that party, and Yoongi is a heavy sleeper. No matter how loud you're gonna scream, you won't wake him up."

"Wow!" I voiced, as I couldn't believe what I just heard. He was surely confident; hopefully, it wasn't just hot air. "Now, you better live up to my expectations because you set the bar really high."

"You won't be complaining." He answered cheekily, pushing the doors open for me to enter first. Quickly, he followed me inside and turned the lights on. "Do you want something to drink, Hwajeong? Beer? Coke? Coffee?" He asked, as he kicked off his shoes, and hung his jacket on the rack in the corner.

"Anything from the fridge would be alright." I replied and took off my shoes and coat.

Whilst he was in the small kitchenette, I took a chance to study the interior. They kept it simple; a couch and two armchairs in front of a decent flat screen TV. It seemed quite spacious with an open kitchen and a kitchen island being probably their dining room. Behind me there were four doors; three rooms and a bathroom. I was slightly envious; this flat must've been really expensive to rent, but at least they didn't live with their parents, like I did.

"I didn't know which one you'd want, so I got you both." He said, as he set both beverages on the coffee table.

"I think I've had enough alcohol tonight." I answered, and reached for a can of coke, trying to remember how much I had drunk in the last few hours; a rosé back at home, a mojito with the guys, and shots with him. It was way too much for me, but due to all the dancing, I didn't feel any discomfort.

I sat on the couch, and he took a seat beside me, his muscular thigh brushing against me.

"It's such a nice place," I started, complimenting his apartment.

"Yeah, it is. Only when Jimin's out. I swear I'd kick him out if I could." He spoke, hopefully joking. I heard a lot of stories about annoying roommates from my friends, and I hoped that he wasn't living a nightmare with that Jimin. "We really should take an advantage of him not being here." He added, and I wanted to question him what he meant by that, but before I opened my mouth, his lips were already on mine, gently nipping them.

He tasted like a mint and beer, and I felt intoxicated almost in an instant.

I let out a soft whimper, and he used it to slide his tongue into my mouth. He kissed me slowly, and I placed my hands on his jaw, pulling him closer. At first his hands were running in my hair, but as we lost in the heat, they wandered down to my sides, hauling me onto his lap. I straddled him, and he leaned backward, leaning against the backrest.

Eagerly, I pulled my hips down on his crotch, the fire burning within me already. I was excited as never before. With just a little bit of his touch, I was set ablaze with passion. He squeezed my bottom, encouraging me to rub myself against him, and I couldn't refuse. I completely lost my mind for him, as I only cared about him and how we were going to please each other.

"You're so hot, Hwajeong." He moaned, when I pressed my sex against his boner. With the hard-on, his pants seemed way too tight, so I undid the button and pulled the zipper down to bring him some relief. "Shit," he cursed, when I didn't touch him. I leaned forward and sucked on his bottom lip. "Please... touch me." He spoke, but I wanted to tease him a bit more. It was just a one time thing, and I had to make sure he'd remember me.

I didn't fulfill his ask, but he didn't make a fuss about it. His hands slid under my dress, and pulled it up to my belly button. His fingers dug in my ass cheeks, forcing me onto his throbbing cock. I'd lie if I told this didn't turn me on. I was already dripping wet for him. He looked perfect, almost as if sculptured, and he wanted me.

"God, you're driving me crazy, Hwajeong." He confessed, raising his hips, rubbing himself against me, desperate to find any kind of friction. I stopped my actions and smirked at him when I heard his words. Slowly, I sat on his lap, and stared into his eyes, as I grabbed the hem of my dress and pulled it over my head, tossing it onto the floor. "You're... beautiful." He mused, gawking at me with admiration. "I need you, Hwajeong."

"I need you, too." I replied, and crushed my lips against his into another passionate kiss.

He was losing all his patience, and I almost didn't have any, too. Everything about him, the way he kissed and touched me was making me crazy, and I couldn't wait any longer. I needed him as much as he needed me.

When he realized I wasn't going to make it easy for him, he knew he had to dominate me. He had let me tease him, and I was taking too much time he was willing to offer. With me still straddling him, he slid his right hand under me and tugged my panties to the side, rubbing his thumb across my sex. He barely touched me, but the pressure was enough to get me moan.

"Nope, I can't wait." He spoke, and before I managed to react, he hoisted me up, and I squeezed my legs around him instinctively. Rather quickly he approached the entrance of his room. "You got me too worked up." He commented, as he gently put me on his bed, instantly hovering over me, my thighs caressing his sides.

"What can I say? I couldn't help myself." I answered cheekily, and pulled him down by his T-shirt to kiss him. He reciprocated immediately, swirling his tongue around mine. My arms touched his tensed shoulders before they slid down his chest right to the hem of his shirt. I was only in my underwear, while he was fully clothed—something was definitely wrong. "Strip." I ordered him, and he glared at me. It meant no harm, but I knew he didn't like taking orders. "What? Hurry! You didn't get me scream yet."

"Don't worry about it, Hwajeong. You'll be moaning my name so loud you'll lose your voice." He said, and I cursed under my breath.

Fuck.

Although I tried my best to disguise my mistake, he could sense that something was off. It was dark, only street lights, giving some light into his room, yet I still could see that he raised his eyebrow at me in a questioning manner.

"What's the matter?" He asked, halting his actions. With his cock pressed against my folds, he stared at me, waiting for a response.

"Nothing. Everything is alright. Let's fuck." I quickly blabbered, pulling him down again.

He pulled away instantly, and scrutinized my face, as if trying to see through my lame lie. "Oh my God! You totally forgot my name!" He yelled, both offended and amused. It must've been the first time it happened to him. "Oh my God! I can't believe it!" He hollered, and dropped his head, so I couldn't see his expression because of his fringe. Slowly, I wanted to start to panic. It was so embarrassing, but it looked like he was more red-faced. "Wow! You are really something, Hwajeong."

"Sorry, I'm not really good with names. It's nothing personal. It's all on me." I began to blabber again, but I stopped when I heard his laughter.

"This is ridiculous." He shook his head, staring at me, being propped on his elbows. "It's Jeon Jungkook, and don't you dare ever forget that." Jungkook said, sounding a little threatening. Of course, he wouldn't do anything to me, I didn't want, but he'd be pissed beyond words if his name slipped my mind again. "I'm really tempted to punish you now."

"Oh, trust me. I'm gonna make it up to you." I announced, as I smirked at him, my hands sliding beneath the waistband of his boxers. He thrust his hips when he felt my cold fingers gently running across his skin, striving my touch. Slowly, I wrapped my digits around his length, giving him a few light strokes. I could tell he wanted me to go harder, but he had to be patient.

"Just suck it. I bet your mouth's damn amazing." Jungkook urged me, and although I didn't really like his bossy tone, it turned me on even more. He didn't even wait for my consent; he must've sensed I wanted him so much I'd probably do anything to please him. Rather eagerly, he lay on his back, and entwined his fingers behind his head, waiting for me to take care of his pulsating dick.

Licking my lips, I threw my legs over his hips, straddling him. "God, I can't believe I'm doing this." I confessed, as I pulled his jeans and boxers down to his knees, staring at his erection. He was impressive; long, thick and throbbing for my attention. He was definitely bigger than any of my exes.

"You're not a virgin, are you?" Jungkook asked, and I totally understood his suspicion.

"No, it's not like that. It's just my first time with a complete stranger." I explained, and sent him a reassuring smile that everything was fine. More than fine, actually. At this point, I didn't even know how to voice my excitement. Although I had many doubts about it, it was amazing. "I should've tried it sooner. I can't believe what I was missing out on."

Jungkook smiled. He must've really liked the fact I enjoyed his company so much.

"Oh, you have no idea. The best is yet to come. I'm gonna fuck you right." He spoke, and sent me a mischievous smirk.

"I hope so. You've promoted yourself so vividly." I said slowly, each word rolling off my tongue. My hands were on his shoulders, leisurely splaying across his toned chest, as I placed delicate kisses all over him—his neck, collarbones, abs, and crotch. Yearning for my touch, Jungkook kicked his jeans off his legs, and forced his hips against my hand. He was impatient, and I couldn't blame him.

I gently squeezed my hand around the base of his cock, making him hiss. He sounded heavenly, and I wanted to discover all sounds which could escape his mouth. Slowly, I was stroking his length, staring at his face. His eyes were closed, he was smiling, his chest moving up and down as he breathed. Jungkook was handsome, but right now, completely bare under me, he was perfect. Not even a single flaw. Even his little scar on the cheek was gorgeous, making him look even manlier.

Spitting on my hand, I rubbed my saliva in his cock, using it as a lube. He let out a quiet whimper, and bit on his bottom lip when I began pumping my fist up and down his cock faster. He didn't even do anything, and I was already throbbing for him.

A little bit of precum oozed, and I quickly smeared it across his length.

"Use your mouth, scatterbrain." Jungkook groaned, and I let out a sigh at the nickname. Of course, it wouldn't let it slide, the label nailed to me, remaining until my departure. "I know you want it." He added, and I looked away. He was so confident and straightforward to the point I felt intimidated.

Staring at his cock and muscular thighs, I gnawed my bottom lip before I ducked my head, and gently licked the tip, sliding my tongue down to the base.

Jungkook tensed up due to my touch, and I smirked, looking up at him. He was staring at me, as if he couldn't wait any longer to see his cock disappear in my mouth, as I swallowed him.

"Yeah, just like that." Jungkook encouraged me with his low voice, as I started to suck on the tip. With hollowed cheeks, I took more of him at a time, my left hand holding the base, the right one squeezing and massaging his balls. "Look at me when you suck me off." Jungkook spoke in an authoritative tone, as his hand sneaked to touch my chin and tilt my head, forcing him to look at me. He urged me to maintain eye contact with him, but at the same time, he was gentle, delicately caressing my skin with his thumb.

My head bobbed up and down his length, as I swallowed him as much as I could. It wasn't enough for him, though. His right hand slid across my cheek to my hair, as he grabbed a handful, and forced me onto his cock to deep throat him. A single tear formed in my eye, but strangely, I wanted him to continue. I felt dizzy, and I couldn't wait to get fucked, just as he had promised.

"God," I moaned, as I pulled away with a loud pop. "Jungkook, please, fuck me already." I begged, staring into his eyes, hoping the way his name rolled off my tongue would convince him. He looked at me, smirking, as if planning something sinister. I was tired of playing games, he had to stop teasing me.

"How bad do you want me?" Jungkook asked, as he raised his thighs, making me fall onto his chest. I was lying on top of him, trying to prop myself on my elbows, and Jungkook only smiled at me. "Come on, coyness aside, admit how much you want my cock." He whispered into my ear, nipping the shell. Admittedly, his low voice did send shivers down my spine.

"Ah, you have no idea, Jungkook." I moaned quietly, hoping my voice would excite him at least half as much his voice excited me. "I'm all wet for your cock. Please, don't make me wait." I purred, grabbing his earlobe between my teeth, tugging at it playfully.

"Jesus Christ," Jungkook panted before he jerked up, turning us around. "You're so damn hard to resist, you know that, right?" He said, and ducked his head down to suck on my neck. I didn't want him to leave a hickey, but once his lips were on my skin, it felt too good to push him away.

Jungkook hand slid under my bra, as he cupped and squeezed my left breast. "Ah..." I moaned, and unconsciously pushed my hips, seeking for any friction as he deliberately refused to touch me. I rubbed myself against his erection, while pulling his head against my neck. "Jungkook, please." I cried out, but Jungkook was taking his time slowly unclasping my bra, tossing it onto the floor, the same leisurely movements when he took off my panties.

"You know nothing about patience, do you?" He asked, even though he already knew the answer. What did he want to prove with that? I thought we had already established how needy I became, striving for his touch.

"Ah..." I bit back a moan, when Jungkook lowered his hand to my sex, rubbing my folds with his long fingers. Instantly, I replied to him, lifting my hips up to grind against his palm, seeking more friction. "Jungkook..." I breathed out, pressing my cheek against his pillow, my eyes shut close.

"Yeah, that's more like it." He spoke, as he pushed his forefinger inside of me, and I immediately responded, trying to ride his hand. "You like that, don't you?" He asked, and with his free hand, he made me look at him, at his eyes burning with desire. "You're so beautiful whimpering beneath me." He confessed before he leaned down to attack my lips, while he added another finger, pumping it in and out mercilessly.

"J-Jungkook, please, fuck me. I need more." I panted, as he started placing moist kisses across my jaw and neck.

"God, you're so tight." He gasped, as my words must've really urged him to go further. "You barely fit around my fingers, are you sure?" He asked, and I nodded. I was dripping, and I knew I could handle his thick cock without any more stretching. "Fuck," he cursed, withdrawing his hand to reach into his nightstand in search for a condom.

"Let me," I said, as I snatched the small package from him, wanting to roll the condom down his erection.

The tip of his cock poked against my entrance, and I couldn't help but let out an excited moan. This was really happening, and I was ready like never before. This was amazing, and if Jungkook kept going like that, I was sure it was going to be the best sex of my life.

He pushed his hips forward, filling me completely with his throbbing cock. At first, he slowly slammed his length as far as he could, but gradually he picked up his pace, setting for faster rhythm. I no longer cared to keep it down; with each thrust I moaned and whimpered under him, encouraging him to pound his cock harder. My breasts were bouncing as he rocked his hips, my fingernails digging into his biceps.

"Oh, God. Just like that! Fuck, Jungkook!" I screamed, but he kissed me, trying to muffle me. His tongue sucked mine, and I completely gave into the kiss. His hips thrust with the exact speed, and I was so close to reaching my orgasm. "Can I ride you, Jungkook?" I breathed out, as he pulled away only to slam his lips against mine again.

Instead of giving my a verbal response, Jungkook stopped moving, and gave me a gentle peck, as he pulled out and lay on his back, waiting for me to climb on top of him. I quickly threw my leg over his thighs, straddling him. "Did I tell you how beautiful you are?" He asked, as his hand reached out to my breast, fondling it gently.

Smiling at his compliment, I grabbed his cock, and positioned myself to sit on it. He slid right in, and I couldn't help but moan when he filled me, throbbing. Gently, I placed my hands on his muscular shoulders before I started to ride him. I moved my hips back and forth swiftly, instantly setting a fast rhythm.

Although I wanted to be in charge for a while, Jungkook wouldn't let me, as he began thrusting from beneath me. My breasts bounce in our pace, and Jungkook couldn't tear his eyes away from the view in front of him. I couldn't blame him, I was staring as his tensed abs and thighs.

Almost as if he heard my inner thoughts, his hand ran down to my sex and started to rub my clit.

"Ah... fuck, fuck!" I shouted, a heat of pleasure hitting me, the sign of my approaching orgasm.

"Yeah, come on my cock." Jungkook moaned, his hand massaging my clit.

"Ah... Jungkook!" I cried out, my nails digging into his skin, as I felt closer and closer to my high. "Come with me, p-p-please." I moaned, feeling my walls slowly clenching around him. Millions of tiny explosions erupted in my heat, waves of pleasure running to every cell in my body, as I finally reached my orgasm. I threw my head back, my eyes tightly closed, as I continued to ride him, knowing he was close, too. "J-Jungkook!" I screamed on top of my voice, a freeing sensation ripping me into pieces.

"Fuck!" He hollered, as he tensed, filling the condom with his sperm, as he came. "Ah... Hwajeong. You're fucking amazing." He moaned, while panting as the orgasm overwhelmed him. He looked heavenly handsome with his pleased face. Especially when I knew I made him that way. It was so damn rewarding!

When my orgasm started to fade away, I joined him on the bed, breathing heavily.

"Fuck, that was incredible." I panted, as I closed my eyes, savoring every second of my high. I had never been fucked this way before, my exes hadn't felt even half as good as Jungkook did.

"I kept my word." Jungkook simply said, and although I had my eyes shut, I could feel he was smiling. "Though, I am not sure if it felt so good without your input. Girl, you're fucking amazing." He confessed genuinely, and I smiled. It felt nice being appreciated. "Give me ten minutes. I am so into round two."

I hummed in consent, as I snuggled closer to the pillow, the last bits of my orgasm still perceptive. Jungkook was panting beside me, and the sound of him lulled me to sleep. I didn't even realize when I gave into the embrace of the night.

***

I woke up, when I felt his body shift beside me. It had always taken me a lot of time to accommodate to a new environment, so when I fell asleep, I was hyper aware of his presence. Even the slightest movement would stir me awake. Although I had no idea for how long I was sleeping, it couldn't be long. Long enough for Jungkook to doze off too, but definitely not longer.

He was close to me, his arm thrown over me. Carefully, hoping I wouldn't wake him up, I sneaked out of the bed, searching for my clothes which must've been scattered all over the floor. Without any major trouble, I found my underwear and quickly put it on. Unfortunately, I couldn't locate my dress. At first, I looked under the bed, thinking it got there somehow, but then it occurred to me that we started off on the couch, and the missing article of clothing must've still been there.

I really didn't want to bump at any of his roommates, especially wearing only a pair of panties and a bra, so I checked the time. According to Jungkook's clock, it was 4:30 a.m.

The apartment was silent, I could only hear Jungkook breathing. Assuming, no one would walk on me being half naked, I twisted the knob, and exited the room, carefully closing the doors.

The lights were turned off, so either someone had been awake when Jungkook and I had been having sex, or Jungkook had switched them off when I had been sleeping. Personally, I'd prefer if the second option was true, but unfortunately, it didn't change the fact that I didn't know where the light switch was, and I didn't want to wake up anyone at this unholy hour.

I could see the outline of everything, so I carefully moved toward the couch. Thankfully, despite my clumsiness, I didn't trip.

The dress was sitting right under the coffee table. Sighing in relief, I picked it up, and put it on.

I had no idea what to do next. I couldn't really come back home in the middle of the night; especially when I couldn't check the bus timetable. It was still late, and if I walked out of the apartment, I would wait for one for at least half an hour. I didn't have enough money to take a taxi, either.

Besides, it would be rude of him if I left Jungkook without saying goodbye. The sex was great, and that was the least I could do.

I looked around the apartment, and I noticed frosted glass doors slightly open. Without any doubt, I could assume it must've been the bathroom. Quickly, I made my way toward it, switched the lights on inside, and closed the doors behind me.

I saw my reflection, and shook my head disapprovingly. My makeup was ruined; the red lipstick gone, the mascara and eyeliner smeared around my eyes, the fluid almost completely wiped off. My hair was a total mess, too. Swiftly, I twisted the faucet, and took some soap on my hands. I'd rather show myself without any makeup than having it all flaking. Moreover, if I had to take my first walk of shame, I'd try to look the most presentable I could. Hopefully, people would assume I'm going to work, not going home after amazing sex with a stranger I met in the club.

Having washed my face and combed my hair, I walked out of the bathroom. The digital clock on the cooker showed 4:49 a.m. I didn't really want longer than necessary, but waking him up didn't seem right, either. I really had no idea how to kill some time, so I just sat down on the couch and heaved a sigh. Not knowing what enticed me, I reached for a remote, and turned on the TV, instantly reducing the volume.

I flicked through channels, but nothing interesting was aired at such hour. After a while, I settled for a 'Family Guy' rerun, and placed the remote on the coffee table. I had already seen that episode, but it was fine, since it was an exceptionally funny one. Unfortunately, I only managed to watch five minutes of it before it ended.

My stomach started to growl, demanding food, and although I didn't want to, I walked to the kitchenette and opened the refrigerator.

Suddenly, I heard someone fighting with the lock by the entrance doors. I panicked, and quickly shut the fridge close, before whoever tried to get in managed to catch me red-handed. Not knowing what to do, I just leaned against the cooker, and stared at the intruder who switched the lights on.

He immediately noticed me, and I smiled at him sheepishly.

"Hello, you. Yoongi or Jungkook?" He greeted me and asked, as he kicked off his shoes and threw his jacket on the couch. I answered him truthfully, and he smiled as if he could figure it out himself. "I'm Jimin." He introduced himself, as he approached the doors of Jungkook's room, and slammed his fist against it a couple of times. "Jungkook! Wake the fuck up!"

I couldn't believe in what Jimin just did. I had tried my best to be considerate and quiet, yet he just barged in, yelling at the top of his voice.

Although I didn't say anything, Jimin turned to me, and sent me a smirk, tilting his head toward the refrigerator. "Top shelf, suit yourself." He spoke, and winked at me before he disappeared into his room.

When Jungkook didn't leave his room within two minutes, I assumed that Jimin didn't manage to wake him up, so I quickly opened the fridge to look around. I examined the top shelf, it was almost empty; a can of whipped cream, a half cube of butter, a jar of blueberry jam, and a few slices of cheese.

Sighing, I reached for the whipped cream, and took a mouthful straight from the can.

I snapped my head when I heard a noise; it was Jungkook, coming out of his room, wearing only a pair of grey boxers and a white T-shirt. His hair was a mess, yet it looked hot when he ran his hand through it. "What the fuck do you want, Jimin?" He asked, his eyes were still closed, so he couldn't see that Jimin was back in his room, and I was rummaging through his food stocks. "Oh, Hwajeong, it's just you." He said, staring at me, his eyes slowly focusing on the can I was holding.

"I've overstayed my welcome, haven't I?" I asked, when I swallowed the whipped cream, gawking back at him.

"You think?" Jungkook asked rhetorically, as he raised his eyebrow at me.

"Sorry," I smiled sheepishly, "I just wanted to properly say goodbye. Besides, I don't know what time my bus leaves." I explained, while he walked toward me, sitting on the top of the kitchen island, as if waiting for me to continue. "If I appear clingy to you, please know I am really not. I didn't mean to."

"You can act however you wish if we get to repeat the previous night." Jungkook confessed casually, and I didn't think I understood him correctly.

"What?"

Jungkook smiled. What did he mean? It was just a one time thing, and the vital point of it was that it happened only once. Besides, I really didn't want to date anyone at the moment. It was fun when it lasted, but it was over now. We both had got what we wanted, and now it was time to part ways.

"Back in the club, you said that honesty is the best policy." Jungkook started, and I nodded, being willing to hear whatever he had to say. "We really don't know each other, so I don't think we have a lot to lose. I'll be frank with you, Hwajeong. The last night was amazing, I think it's the best sex I've ever had, and I'd like to repeat it sometimes. I'm not really good at dating, but I guess, we could try something else."

"Something else as in friends with benefits?" I asked, making sure I followed his reasoning. Jungkook looked me in the eyes, and nodded. "Well... the problem is, we aren't friends, Jungkook." I pinpointed, and he didn't know how to answer me. My argument was pretty critical to that arrangement.

"But we can be." Jungkook fought back, but I wasn't having his argument.

"Yeah, but we may not click. We might be compatible in sex, but we can be complete opposites in other aspects." I spoke, enjoying the conversation with him. I really liked to argue with people, especially when the argument itself didn't necessarily hurt any of the parties. Moreover, it would be really fun if Jungkook and I continued what we were doing. Unfortunately, I was afraid we really weren't made for each other to be friends. I didn't know him, and I had no idea how good of a friend he'd be.

"I'm willing to try; how about you?" He asked, and I wanted to smack him for playing with my feelings, pressuring me to do something I didn't want. He was like a terrorist right now, pushing all the blame on me. Ugh.

"Yeah, I guess." I answered meekly, not sharing his enthusiasm about it. "We could hang out for a week to see if we can be friends, and if everything goes smoothly, we could try this whole friends with benefits thing." I carried on, and he nodded in consent, complying with my proposition. Frankly, he didn't have any other option, since he was the one who wanted us to keep seeing each other. "And my real name is Kim Seol, sorry for lying to you." If we really decided to be friends, he couldn't keep calling me Hwajeong.

"Wow!" Jungkook exclaimed, looking rather confused. "Is that all? Are there any other lies?" He inquired, and I shook my head. We couldn't build a friendship on lies, and I'd come clean with everything, but there wasn't any. "Should we seal the deal with a kiss, then?" Jungkook said in his low morning voice, as he jumped off the kitchen island to approach me. He leaned forward and closed his eyes, but I only raised my hand with the can of whipped cream, and sprayed it into his mouth, laughing.

***

[taetaeby]

Acaronar | I.

(v.) to tenderly pull or draw someone closer - to hold, as for affection, comfort, or warmth; to fondle, to caress; to embrace, to protect

01. | 02.

Pairing: Taehyung x Reader

Genre: Best friend!AU, angst, fluff and light smut (no actual smut).

Warning(s): rated +17 for containing light mature content

Word count: 3560

Description: Letting go of someone was hard. Especially when this person was your best friend from childhood, but it was your fault for this. No one was to blame but you. You just had to build up feelings towards him in a different way, a way no relationship between friends should be.

A/N: Story based off the wonderful world that is my mind and some inspiration is taken from a book I’m currently reading.

We should’ve stayed the way we were, not changing a single thing about our relationship. It could’ve all been the same. We would’ve been still best friends, still would spend time as much as we used to, still, would have a connection no one understood. I guess life choose this path for us. This is what was going to happen and eventually happened. But, I don’t blame you. It wasn’t your fault for sure. This is all because of me, and only me. I couldn’t hold my feelings inside, I had to say them. I couldn’t try to erase them, they just grew bigger and stronger. And you, you didn’t help them at all. Why did you have to be so loving and kind towards me, that’s something I’ll never understand. No one is to blame besides me. Now, I shall live this life I never thought I’ll live alone. With you no longer by my side. I won’t lie, it hurts. It hurt the time we went separate ways. It hurt when we went on with life and didn’t spend time with each other anymore. It will hurt in the future, every time I remember how it didn’t have to turn out this way.

Here I am now, living my life as if nothing happened, or at least I try. The weather is so nice today. The Sun is shining bright, the sky is as blue as the ocean, everything is at peace.

On my way to work I can’t forget the time we used to go down this exact street admiring these sky high buildings, picturing us working in there later in our lives. We always were the type to want to have something of our own, our own business. At some point, we agreed to work together on our silly dream. Just the thought about it makes me sad again, the second time this day.

It was clear that this dream of ours, which I so desperately hoped would become real, died as soon as we split ways. That day surely will always be stuck in my head, repeating over and over again. I can’t seem to let it all die. How could I, when I’m still madly in love with the person I hadn't seen for so long. To be exact, it’s going to be 6 years on the 14th of February, on Valentine’s Day. Yes, I count the days since then.

I remember it clearly. I woke up to the same feeling I had every time when I thought about him. About his eyes that glistened with every look he gave me. Even if it was impossible, they mirrored the starts perfectly. The one thing that always made my day better, was to look in them and get lost in my own thoughts about the existence of such perfection right in front of me. It didn’t help that every time we spoke, he had this thing where he wanted to be as close to the person he is talking to. Or maybe it was my illusion? Anyway, as he did that I went out of breath, blushing like he just complimented me. Heart beating at the speed of light, slightly feeling dizzy in the head. But none the less, I loved every second of it.

About his smile, oh my god his smile was everything. With that, he could make everyone happy, brighten everyone's day. I think that he didn’t even know what power he was playing with. Seriously, he could save a life with that smile. And he saved one, mine.

Now, I would lie if I didn’t mention his lips, that piece of heaven he had. They looked soft, pink, just the right size for his face. I bet they were still as soft as a baby's bottom, at least that’s how I remember them when we were kids. Yes, I had the pleasure to feel those lips of his. It happened this one time, and never again. The cause being our curiosity, wanting to know how you felt like after seeing a young couple kissing in the park. And actually, he was the one who wanted to try it out and asked me first. I also wanted it but didn’t have the courage to request it. So, it was a relief that he asked me first. I still remember him being excited and nervous at the same time. “So…” It was so unlike him, being this nervous in front of anyone. He never showed weakness, especially in front of the female gender. But, I liked this side of him. The side that showed just how of a human he is, being nervous of making a mistake. “Should I lean in first, or you?” I was blushing just from the thought of him kissing me, of him wanting to try this with me even though he had other good female friends. How could he not have when he was one of the most popular guys in school.

Me being my shy self was blushing the whole time, not having the courage to look him in the eyes as I knew what we were about to do. “I- I think y- you should l- lean in…” My voice was a little louder than a whisper, enough for him to hear me. The way he scooted closer to my side, taking my cheek in his palm and bringing it slowly towards his face. Leaving me no chance to look away anymore. So, I focused on the only thing I could look at. His lips, and so did he. After so time, he finally leaned into me, connecting our lips in a warm kiss. He tasted like heaven, a mixture of sweet and fresh from his gum that he still had in his mouth. We stayed still for a couple of seconds before he pulled away. The blush was obvious on his face, coating his cheeks a lite pink. But it didn’t end there, he wanted to go even further. “C- can I try something else?” He really wanted to have the whole experience with such an inexperienced person. To you he seemed like he was practicing this all along, maybe he secretly looked it up on the internet because he sure knew better what he was doing then you.

“O- okay…” With that, he leaned again into me, connecting our lips in a more pleasuring way than before. Slowly, he started moving his lips against mine. But me being uncomfortable about this whole idea, even though I wanted it too, I was stiff and didn’t dare to move. He noticed that and moved his lips away from mine, feeling embarrassed, as I concluded from his flushed face, at his own actions. “I- I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-” I didn’t give him the chance to apologize. “I- it’s o- okay… I- I think I- need to get h- home. I- it’s pretty late…” I couldn’t even glance at him from the fear of him looking at me. “S- sure. Want me to go with y- you?” It was cute how he was still concerned about me. “N- no… It’s fine.” With that, I went home to register what actually happened.

When I finally made it to my office, the only thing I wanted to do was rest. Seohyun, my one-year-old daughter, kept me and Hoseok awake all night. I don’t know what’s been going on with her, the past week it was the same. In the middle of the night, she would just start crying like she was going through the worst pain in the world. But I don’t blame her, that’s normal for her age. We were all kids, we all went through the same pain she is facing right now. None the less, it still breaks my heart to see and hear her being in pain, and not be able to make it go away.

Just like last week, yesterday was also one of those nights. I was in lying in bed trying so desperately to make my headache go away because apparently overworking yourself was exactly what caused you that. So you came home at 8:30 pm, earlier than you normally would, took a shower, put Seohyun to bed and eventually went to bed myself. Hoseok wouldn’t be home until 9:30 pm which gave me time to relaxed. I wanted to have some time for myself because I knew that as soon as Hoseok comes home, there would be no relaxing.

After, what seemed like 10 minutes to me, I could hear faint footsteps coming into the room. He must’ve seen me lying on the bed to which he didn’t turn on the bedroom light and went straight to the bathroom to take a quick shower. Ten minutes later, I felt the bed sink in from behind me, a pair of hands sneaking around my waist, pulling me back until I felt his exposed chest and body warmth on me. “Baby, are you already asleep?” He whispered as to not wake me if I actually was asleep, to which I just hummed. He placed a kiss on my shoulder, indicating what he wanted but to his unfortunate, I wasn't in the mood for any of this right now.

“Hobie…” I whispered back at him but in a whiny tone. “I’m too tired for this right now.” Which was the truth? I was exhausted from work, coming home with a headache and to a whiny Seohyun. At that moment I would’ve given anything for the pain to be gone, but he obviously wasn’t drained from work and still wanted to be close to his wife. Which is understandable, cause he was pleading me for the past month to make a little sister or brother for Seohyun, and I wanted to make him happy but was none the less hesitant to actually do it because of work. That’s why I haven’t told him that I’m still on the pill and let him think that he could make me pregnant by ‘making love to me’, that’s how he said it, for the past month.

I felt bad for lying to him like that, giving him false hope that things would work out. I tried telling him multiple times that it’s not the right time for another baby. We couldn’t even spend much time with our only child, let alone have another one. But his love for children was too strong to make him believe that. “Come on baby. You don’t have to do anything, I’ll do the work.” He whispered in my ear before gently turning me so that my back was flat on the bed and he was hovering over me. “I’ll be quick, I promise,” I swear those lips of his were sin right there in front of me. When he pleaded so much, I couldn’t decline him, so I let him have his fun. And I would lie if I said I wasn’t wanting it too.

He started to place kisses all over my face, on my temple, my cheeks, my chin, and lastly, he connected our lips in a sweet kiss that made me feel butterflies in the pit of my stomach. As we kissed in a slow pace, he bit my lover lip asking for entrance, licking the bite mark before he slides his tongue inside my mouth. I could taste a mixture of wine and steak on his tongue, which meant that he went to dinner with some business partners, as he moved it in sync with mine. It felt amazing, like every night we spent together.

Things got heated pretty quickly, resulting in him wanting to feel more, skin to skin. His hand made it’s way down my side to my hips, going behind it to squeeze my ass cheek. I let a moan escape my lips that it was caught in him mouth resulting him doing the same thing. Then he brought his hand between your inner thighs, slowly parting them to make room for him. You obeyed, spreading your legs, making him lay right on you with his half hard member pressed right at your entrance. Just as he was about to move, the air was filled with the sound of our baby daughter.

We sighed almost at the same time with him moving away from me and out of bed. “I’ll get her.” He made his way down the hallway to her room, bringing her crying figure on the bed beside me. “Oh, what’s wrong mommy’s angel.” I coyed to her while kissing her forehead. Not long after Hoseok joined us two, trapping Seohyun in the middle of our bodies. “Are you having cramps again?” I felt so bad for my little one having to go through such pain. If I could, I would take the pain away from her and bear it myself. It was heartbreaking seeing her like this.

“Shhh, baby, daddy’s gonna make the pain go away.” He whispered into her ear, massaging her belly in slow circular motions, putting just the right amount of pressure to make it less hard for her. After just two minutes, she calmed down going back to dreamland. Her face was all puffy and her cheeks were coated in light pink from all the crying. “Well, that was quick,” I said smiling in relief at Hoseok who mirrored my action. That didn’t end there. About five more minutes, after Hoseok was sure Seohyun was asleep, he moved his hand away and that was a mistake. She started crying again, and from that point, I knew that this was going to be a long night for the three of us.

Unfortunately for me, resting wasn’t on the schedule. But a meeting was, which I found out just seconds after I made it to my office. “Mrs. Jung, I’m sorry to bother you this early. I know you said you didn’t want to be bothered right when you come to the office-” Hwasa was really a sweetheart and she could never bother me. She was one of the first people I met when I started working in this company. And with time, we became such good friends that share everything with each other.

“It’s okay, you don’t bother me.” I cut her off, taking a deep breath. “As you are already here, we can go through today's schedule.” I smiled weakly at her, to which she went out of my office to get her planning book. She carried every information in that little piece of a book. I admired her for that. She seemed like she truly liked, or more like loved, this job with all her heart. She was hard working, organized, smart and always on time with current projects. She was made for this type of job and she knew that.

“Is everything okay, Y/N?” Her concern was audible in the way she spoke those words. How can she not be concerned when she was the only person that knew all about my life. It amazed me sometimes how much she could read about people just by looking at their face. “You look like you went to hell and back.” It was true. The bags under my eyes were probably the darkest shade of black there was, and it didn’t help that I forgot to put concealer on this morning. It was so hectic. I needed to wake up Hoseok because he had a business trip early in the morning and it was very important for his company. My mom came in earlier than usual to take Seohyun for the day because I didn’t want her in anyone else's arms when she was this upset. And who could possibly know how to handle such situations better than a mother of three? I’ll tell you who. No one.

“I couldn’t get any sleep last night. Hoseok wanted to be intimate and Seohyun didn’t have any of that.” I took another deep breath to calm down a bit. Being angry from the lack of sleep wasn’t on your schedule. “Those cramps just won't go away, and I don’t know what to do anymore. I’m so thankful for Hobie. He is doing his father role really good, to be exact, better than expected. How would’ve thought that party animal Hoseok would be such a good family person.” That was true. As you met and started to date him, his life was all about parties and some college if he had time for it. But that’s not what made me fall for him. I hate to admit it but, he somehow reminded me of Taehyung. The way he acted was so similar to him that I felt like it was actually him. That always tricked me, so now here I am. Not with him but with someone that reminds me of him, and even have a baby with this person.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Hobie. I really do, but… No one can replace Tae. Deep in my heart I know I’ll never be able to love Hobi the way I loved and still love Tae. I know I’ll never be able to let go of him because I still have hope to meet him again, one day. I know that this type of relationship isn’t healthy, that with this I’m making someone believe that I truly love them, that my heart and soul are all theirs. And I hate myself for that, but life doesn’t always turn out the way we want it to and there are reasons for that. Reasons that are still not clear to me.

“I really think you should take at least a week off work. Working isn’t everything in life. You should go and just rest for a week. It will do you good.” She was right. I should rest and not overwork things. Maybe it’ll help me clear my mind. “Maybe take a trip with your family or go explore the nature. That’s what I and Wonho do every once in a while.” A trip with my family really sounds appealing. I should consider this.

“We’ll see. But enough of this small talk, what is on today's plan?” I hope I didn’t seem rude just now. Time is money as many business people like to say, there’s no time for talking other than business.

“Today, in about 10 minutes, we have to attend a last minute meeting with the company that was wanting to make new deals with us. They sent one of their CEOs to present their work to us. You’ll have to be in the meeting because Mr. Park wants that.” Mr. Park? Lately, he wants me in every meeting he has to attend. I hope that means some kind of upgrade in my position.

“Okay.” Without waiting any longer, I got up and headed straight to the door. “Let’s get this over with then.” With that, Hwasa followed me out and we made our way to the meeting room.

As always Mr. Park, also known as the owner of the company I’m working at, was already waiting for me in front of the entrance to the meeting room. He looked good, almost too perfect in his all black suit. He really knew how to catch someone's attention. I never thought anything about him. Sure he was my boss, but from the day I started working at his company he was treating me differently? He was so nice to me, even when I made a mistake, he never thought of scolding me for it. It was like he favorited me for some reason. I saw that as him being nice because I was new to all this, fresh from college.

As he turned his head to the side, he saw us approaching which made his face all light up. Maybe I should ask him why he’s acting so different towards me, or I should just go with it. I don’t really know if I want to know it honestly. He was young, only 6 years older than you. Handsome was his second name, to be honest.

He slowly left the conversation with an employee, coming our way. “Mrs. Jung, I’m glad you could make it.” He chippered happily giving you one of his famous eye smiles. I would lie to myself if I hadn’t thought of him in a different way sometimes. The way he simply walked made me have fantasies about him. What are you saying, you have a husband and a child. You shouldn’t be fantasizing about other men like this. Not even Taehyung, but I can’t help myself.

And, as the one man, I hoped not to see in my life anymore appeared in the distance, dressed in a suit that suited him so well, I can't seem to take my eyes away from the figure I've been longing for in so long. The person that trapped my heart from a young age, the one that my eyes could only see, the one that used to be my everything. He was in the same building as me, most likely attending the meeting too.

Without controlling my actions, the words that I spoke in my head came out as a whisper, but loud enough for Jimin and Hwasa to hear them. "W- who is t- that?"

To be continued...

[hannahindie]

The Letter

Overview: Bobby takes a moment to think about Karen.

Characters: Bobby Singer x Karen Singer

Warnings: Alcohol use, little bit of angst, language

Word Count: 3,428

The study was dark, dimly lit by the fire crackling behind Bobby. He was toying with a glass half filled with cheap whiskey, swirling it so that the amber liquid caught the sparking light. He studied it intently, watching the ice spin and clink against the glass as it rolled in his hand. With a sigh, he tilted it to his mouth and drank it in one burning swallow. He grimaced, but relished the fire as it ran down his throat and warmed his belly. He glanced at the clock: 12:01 a.m. He stood slowly, groaning slightly as he straightened, then grabbed the bottle of whiskey from his desk and walked outside.

The South Dakota sky was clear and he stood on the porch for a moment, leaning against the post and staring up at the bright stars. He never tired of the view, especially on quiet clear nights like this, and it had been one of the reasons he and Karen had picked this house to start with. He slowly made his way across the yard and stopped in front of a worn-out swing. He sat down as he took a swig from the bottle and stared across the yard. An old garden, overgrown by weeds, was still visible. Worn stakes and rusty chicken wire were still standing after all these years, the only remnants of a once lovingly tended garden that had been filled with carefully planted vegetables.

As Bobby stared across the darkened yard at the ravished patch of land, the scene changed into a beautiful, sunny day. Karen was kneeling in front of the tomatoes as she tied them up to the stakes to keep them from falling. There was a stripe of dirt across her nose, and she looked over then and smiled, as if she was looking at him. He raised his hand to wave at her, but the scene faded back to where he was now, dark and grown up, and his hand dropped. He sighed, took another drink from the bottle, and sat it on the ground at his feet.

Bobby slowly reached into his shirt pocket and pulled a yellowed, folded piece of paper. He looked at it for a moment, his fingers sliding along the worn edges, then carefully unfolded it. The words on the page were faded, whether by time or perhaps the amount of times he traced them with his finger, and the creases were so worn they were beginning to tear in places. He stared at the neat, flowing script, the handwriting so familiar that he could close his eyes and still trace it without looking. It wasn’t a long letter, short and sweet and to the point, but it said everything.

“Not much for words, were ya Karen? Certainly didn’t say it unless it was worth sayin’ and when ya did…it packed a helluva punch,” he muttered to himself.

 My sweet Bobby,

I have considered myself lucky since the moment that I met you. You’ve given me more than I could have ever asked for, ever since the day you literally ran into me at the hardware shop….

Bobby remembered that day. He had gone into town to get a few parts he was missing and some odds and ends and had ended up at the hardware store. As per usual he couldn’t find what he was wanting and had turned the corner faster than he should, grumbling and cursing under his breath. Instead of heading towards the counter like he had intended, he slammed straight into someone and nearly fell. Already in a foul mood, he griped, “Watch where ya goin’, ya idjit,” before noticing that the person he had so enthusiastically run into was a beautiful woman. She sat in the floor where he had knocked her down, shopping basket in her lap and a look of surprise on her face. “Aw, hell, I’m sorry,” he muttered, putting a hand out to help her up. She smiled and took his hand.

“It’s alright, I was in a bit of hurry myself,” she wiped herself off and held out her hand again. “My name is Karen.” Bobby slowly took her hand and grinned.

“Nice to meet ya, Karen. Name’s Bobby.” She smiled back, and Bobby thought it might just be the prettiest smile he’d ever seen.

We’ve both grown so much over the years. You’re still grumpy and gruff, but you’re also compassionate and kind. It’s such a beautiful and wonderful combination…you keep my feet on the ground when I need it, but you never stop me from dreaming. You’ve taught me so much, not just practical things, but how to see the world…even if you didn’t realize it. The only thing I could love more than the two of us together, would be to start a little family of our own…

Bobby felt the familiar ache in his chest as he read the line he had read so many times before. It had been the last conversation that they had had before she had been taken from him. It had been their anniversary, and when he’d come home with a bunch of wildflowers he had found in the little meadow outside the church where they’d been married in his hand, he’d noticed that most of the lights were off.

“Karen, baby? Where are ya?” he called softly as he walked through the living room and towards the staircase.

“I’m up here, sweetheart!” Her voice was cheerful, and he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. He climbed the stairs and pushed the bedroom door open. Karen sat on the bed in a lacy nightgown, the candles on the nightstand making her hair shimmer in the otherwise dark room. A bottle of wine and two filled glasses also sat on the nightstand. “Happy anniversary, Bobby,” she said quietly, a smile playing on her lips. Bobby couldn’t help by smile back, and he stepped forward to hand her the flowers. He leaned into her and kissed her gently, lingering for a moment so that he could take in the scent of her and how she felt against him. He pulled back and placed a calloused hand on her cheek.

“Happy anniversary to you too, Karen.” He sat down next to her and took her hand. “Ya didn’t have to do all this, ya know. I’da been perfectly happy just sittin’ on the swing with you, watchin’ the stars come out.”

“I know,” she said quietly as she squeezed his hand, “but there’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about. But first, can you hand me one of those glasses, please?” Bobby did as she asked, and she took a sip of the dark red liquid before continuing. “This is our fifth anniversary, and I honestly can’t believe that much time has passed. It seems like just yesterday that you were knocking my ass down in the hardware store,” she laughed. Bobby laughed with her, the memory of the day his life had changed a welcome one. She grew serious and took his hand in hers. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something, Bobby.”

“Anything, sweetheart.” She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand.

“I think it’s time we start a family, Bobby.” He stared at Karen with wide eyes, unsure of what to say. She looked at him expectantly, but as the seconds went by, her hope was replaced by worry. “Bobby…say something…”

He sighed, “Karen, honey, I…I don’t know. I haven’t really given it all that much thought. I don’t know that I’d make a very good dad.”

She tilted her head in confusion, “Why would you say that, Bobby? You’d make a wonderful father.” Bobby had a flash of his father raising his hand to him and his mother, and the subsequent action he had taken against his own father, and grimaced.

“I don’t think…you don’t know that. I don’t know what being a good daddy even looks like, it ain’t something I grew up knowin’. I promised myself that I wouldn’t be that way, and I can’t…I don’t know that I could stop it from happenin’.”

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand…”

Bobby sighed again, “I break everythin’ I touch. I’m no good, Karen. I ain’t…I ain’t cut out to be anybody’s daddy. I don’t want to put any kids through that. I just…I just don’t want any.” Karen stood abruptly, grabbed her robe from the end of the bed, and quickly wrapped herself in it. She had begun to cry, and when Bobby tried to put his hand on her arm, she jerked away. One of the glasses of wine fell from the end table and shattered.

“I can't believe you. I hate you. Everything's a lie. Our whole life, our vows... everything. You knew I wanted kids. Why didn't you just sit me down and say... I don't understand! You're a good man. You'd be a good dad. What does that even mean, you break everything you touch?! What kind of excuse is that?!” Bobby was taken aback by her sudden outburst. He had figured she’d be upset when they finally had this conversation, but he didn’t expect this.

“Baby, listen, I can explain-“ Karen smacked him across the face, hard. She looked at him, horrified at what she’d just done.

“No. Just don’t.” She tried to walk away, but stepped on the broken glass and cried out in pain. She sat on the bed and Bobby could see the blood pouring from her foot. He tried to reach out to her, but she shoved him away. “Just stay away from me! You broke my heart, Bobby! You happy? Just go away!”

As the memory faded, Bobby felt tears rolling down his cheek. He gruffly wiped them away and looked up at the sky again. “You’d love my boys, Karen. Oh, honey, you’d love ‘em. They’re a hard-headed coupl’a idjits, don’t know damn well when to quit, and the most selfless sons of bitches I ever met. If we’d ever had any boys, I would’ve wanted them to be like Sam and Dean. I wish you coulda met ‘em. They would have loved ya too.” He looked back down at the letter.

Bobby, no matter what happens, I will always love and be with you. Don’t ever think for one minute that anything could ever change that. Happy anniversary, sweetheart.

Love, Karen

Bobby stared at the last line, just like he did every other time he’d read this letter, and wanted more than anything to go back and change that last conversation. She had refused to speak to him for days, and before he had a chance to apologize to her and explain to her why he felt the way he’d felt, she’d been gone. He realized something was wrong when he’d come downstairs for breakfast before going out to work. He hadn’t expected Karen to be in the kitchen, she’d been avoiding him for three days, so when he got close and heard her humming as she cooked, he was surprised. He stood in the door way and watched her as she shimmied around the kitchen, humming way off pitch. As she turned to put biscuits in the oven, she let out a little shriek when she saw Bobby standing against the doorframe.

“Bobby Singer! You could let a girl know when you decide to pop up out of nowhere, for goodness sakes.” She slid the tray into the oven, and wiped her hands off on a towel. Bobby looked at her, confused.

She smiled, “I’m doing fine, how are you doing this morning?”

He shrugged, “I’m doin’ alright. Are we…are we okay?”

Karen leaned back against the counter, her arms crossed, “I suppose that depends upon your definition of ‘okay’.” She uncrossed her arms and started walking towards him. “If by okay you mean destroyed by my husband’s failure to address my needs and wants then yes, we are okay.” Bobby stumbled backwards away from her, uncertain as to what to do or who was standing in front of him. It was Karen, it was unmistakably Karen, but at the same time it wasn’t.

“Karen, baby, I’m sorry, I know that that was important to you-“

“Important?!” she screeched, her face contorting into an almost unrecognizable mask. “You knew from the beginning this is what I wanted! I told you.” She slammed her fists into Bobby’s chest, and he fell back against the door frame. She was strong, she’d always been strong, but this…this was different. “We have been together for years and not once did you think to tell me you didn’t want this? Fuck you.” She shoved him hard and he stumbled over his feet and hit the ground. Bobby sat shocked. He had heard Karen say all sorts of things, she could peel the paint off the wall if she was in the right mood, but never in the years that he’d been with her had those words been directed at him. She glared at him for a moment, then spun and made her way back to the counter. He watched as she slowly pulled a knife out of the butcher block and turned back to face him.

“Karen, what are you doing?”

She laughed, and gave him a cold smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes, “What I should have done a long time ago. You were right, Bobby. You aren’t fit to be anybody’s daddy. You aren’t fit to be anyone’s anything.”

Bobby shuffled himself backward and tried to pull himself out of the floor, “Karen, please, I didn’t mean to hurt you, we can talk about this…” Karen yelled. She didn’t yell anything in particular, just a low, guttural shout that shook Bobby to his core.

“I am done talking.” He managed to scramble out of the floor but she had rushed him and now had him pinned against the staircase. The knife was pointed dangerously close to his throat, and as he stared into her eyes, they turned black.

“You aren’t Karen,” he breathed, fighting the urge to shove her backwards.

She laughed, “Oh, I’m Karen. I’m new and improved Karen. All these words, they’re hers. She just didn’t have the courage to say them. You’re a coward, Bobby. She would never have told you that, but you’re a damn coward. You were right about one thing though; you aren’t fit to be anyone’s father. Your father was an alcoholic piece of shit that beat his wife and son, and you’re one cheap glass of whiskey from being the same way. I may as well do the world a favor and put you out of your misery.” Tears filled Bobby’s eyes as she went on. He knew it wasn’t really her, but just watching the words fall out of her mouth was enough to almost kill him.

“Karen, honey, that ain’t you,” he choked out, “Baby, can you hear me?” Karen backhanded him hard across the mouth.

“Shut up,” she snarled. She pulled back for a moment and stared at him. Before he could move, she came at him with knife and it took everything he had to hold her back. She managed to cut him with a couple of well-aimed blows, and for a moment he didn’t think he’d be able to stop her from doing more damage. She was so strong; whatever was going on, it wasn’t his Karen, and he tried to remember that as he grabbed the knife and somehow managed to wrestle it away from her. She screamed again and lunged for his neck. Without thinking, he swung out with the knife and his eyes widened as the knife sunk into her chest with a sickening sound. She stumbled backwards, looked down at the freely bleeding wound, and glared at Bobby.

“Really? And this was such a nice meat suit, you just had to go and ruin it. That knife isn’t going to hurt me.” She came at him again, but this time he was ready and he drove forward and swung the knife downward again, this time hitting right where her heart should be. They fell into a heap on the floor and Karen rolled away from him and back on her feet. Bobby was kneeling, and as she sized him up again, he sprung from his position on the floor, knocked her back into the wall, and began stabbing her over and over.

“Get outta my wife! I dunno what you are, but you sure as hell ain’t Karen and I ain’t gonna let you ride her around like a puppet.” She began laughing.

“Oh Bobby, that little pig sticker isn’t going to help you.” He had tired himself out, and Karen noticed. She managed to wrestle the knife back away from him and shoved him backwards. He fell to the floor, sobbing, and looked up at his disheveled, bloody wife.

“Karen…please, sweetheart…” Just as she raised the knife to finish him off, the front door flew open with a bang.

“Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus…” Karen snarled and looked over. A man that looked to be about Bobby’s age was coming through the door, a shotgun in hand.

“How dare you…” she growled. The man smiled dangerously at her, but did not stop whatever it was he was reciting.

“…omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii,

    omnis legio, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica…” Karen began writhing, her eyes flashing between black and her beautiful blue ones. Her grip on the knife had loosened, and she was just barely hanging on to it. Bobby shoved himself back into the corner and watched with wide, scared eyes.

“Ergo, draco maledicte…”

“Don’t you dare, Rufus. Even if you do this, I will find you. I will find you and tear you apart piece by piece. I will drag your soul to hell and make sure your torment never ends. I will end you.”

Rufus laughed, “Honey, my torment hasn’t ended for quite some time. So why don’t you do both of us a favor and shut the hell up?” He turned to look at Bobby and smiled sadly. “I’m awful sorry ‘bout this, man.  Ecclesiam tuam securi tibi facias libertate servire, te rogamus, audi nos.” With a screech, Karen’s head tilted back and a stream of choking, black smoke came out of her mouth. As soon as it was gone, she collapsed to the floor and was silent. Bobby crawled over to her.

“No, no, no…baby, wake up, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” He cradled her gently against his chest. Her eyes fluttered open for a moment and met his. She smiled, but before he could say anything to her, her eyes slipped shut and she was gone. “No…Karen, please. I’m sorry, I didn’t…I didn’t know what to do.” He gently brushed her hair away from her face, and looked up at the man who had saved him. “What…what happened?”

Rufus sighed, “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner, man. I’d been chasin’ that thing since Alabama. It should have been an easy job, he was one sly mother-“

Bobby interrupted him, “What was that thing?” Rufus looked at him for a moment, debating on whether to tell him the truth. He’d seen enough, so lying to him now probably wouldn’t have helped. Rufus decided to go with the truth.

“It was a demon.”

 Bobby stared at the letter for a moment longer, then carefully refolded it and slipped it back into his pocket. The air had become chilly and he’d begun to wish he’d worn his coat, but as he swung back and forth, the coldness almost felt good against the flush he felt from the alcohol. He bent down and retrieved the bottle he’d brought with him and gulped down one last, burning sip. It was getting late, and the boys would be getting in early in the morning. Their hunt had brought them close by, and he knew from experience that instead of resting, they would drive through the night and come stumbling in the house half asleep and bickering with each other. It seemed like they might be case free this time, and Bobby was glad. He was getting tired.

He looked back at the garden again, and the vision of Karen returned. She smiled at him, and although he knew it was only a daydream, he smiled back. He stood slowly, his body sore from sitting in the old swing for so long, and looked up at the sky again.

“Happy anniversary, darlin’.”

Tags: @trexrambling @wheresthekillswitch @pinknerdpanda @emptywithout @hiimaprofessionalfangirl

[bloojayoolie]

Anaconda, Children, and Click: at acc waiting ter love Ferdinand 18480-10 months young,56 Ibs LOOKInG FOR HIS FOREUER- Gorgeous young, friendly, sweet, playful Youre so Cool Happy,nice leash walker -Just a pup, will need basic training and lots of Loue & Patience **** TO BE KILLED 1/26/2018 **** PUPPY ALERT FOR FERDINAND - YOUNG, HANDSOME AND SUPER SWEET <3 A volunteer writes: Puppy playful and affectionate, brindlicious Ferdinand is ready to go go go. He's sleek and gorgeous in his gleaming coat, tail wagging in friendship to all, and wanting to meet everyone we pass on our walk. He seems to be housetrained, is puppy zig zaggy on leash, and sometimes startles at loud noises on the street as trucks go by on busy First Avenue. It's off leash in the yard where both his super playful and very affectionate personality comes out as he zooms around the yard happily playing with toys, giving stand up hugs and kisses, and hopping up on the bench to explore my lap! Perhaps named after the movie about a bull with a big heart, it actually does capture our 10 mos. old Ferdi (we're on a nickname basis now), as Ferdi is puppy-oblivious to his size as he romps in play, and totally, completely, 100% affectionate. He's smart, loves treats, and with positive reinforcement training (aka lots of good treats), he'll learn appropriate manners befitting a rock star grown-up dog. If you're ready to enjoy life with a playful, fun, and affectionate young boy, ask to meet Ferdi when you visit, and do it today. FERDINAND@MANHATTAN ACC Ferdinand - Animal ID: 18480 Sex: Male Age Months: 10 Is Vaccinated: Yes Primary Color: Brown Brindle Secondary Color: None Weight: 56 lbs. Intake Date: 01-17-2018 Spayed / NeuteredNo My health has been checked My vaccinations are up to date My worming is up to date I have been microchipped Please take note of the Animal ID before contacting shelter Details on my behavior are… Behavior Condition: 1. Green Date of intake:: 1/16/2018 Spay/Neuter status:: No Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Stray Date of assessment:: 1/18/2018 Look:: 2. Dog pulls out of Assessor’s hands each time without settling during three repetitions. Sensitivity:: 2. Dog displays high energy and movement, but it is directed toward getting closer to the Assessor. Body is soft, likely panting, may jump up between attempts to lick Assessor. Tag:: 1. Dog assumes play position and joins the game. Or dog indicates play with huffing, soft ‘popping’ of the body, etc. Dog might jump on Assessor once play begins. Paw squeeze 1:: 2. Dog quickly pulls back. Paw squeeze 2:: 2. Dog gently places open mouth over the Assessor’s hand without applying pressure. Flank squeeze 1:: Item not conducted Flank squeeze 2:: Item not conducted Toy:: 1. Dog settles close, keeps a firm grip and is loose and wiggly. Dog does not place his/her body between you and the toy. Summary:: Ferdinand quickly approached the assessor in the assessment room and jumped up in a social manner. He was very mouthy during the assessment and displayed a very high level of activity and movement, being in constant motion. He jumped up hard a lot throughout the assessment. He remained social throughout and allowed all holding. Summary:: DOG-DOG INTERACTION ASSESSMENT: The behavior department feels that Ferdinand may be most compatible with dogs who are social and playful. In the care center, he has engaged in running play with male and female dogs. Summary (1):: 1/18: When introduced off leash to the female greeter dog, Ferdinand is soft and polite when greeting. Summary (2):: 1/21: Ferdinand is polite and playful when introduced to a spayed female dog. When introduced to an intact female, Ferdinand follows after and repeatedly attempts to mount. Summary (3):: 1/22-24: Ferdinand engages in running play with male and female dogs. Date of intake:: 1/16/2018 Summary:: Ferdinand was very friendly upon intake, and allowed all handling. Date of initial:: 1/16/2018 Summary:: Ferdinand was very tense. ENERGY LEVEL:: We have no history on Fedinand so we cannot be certain of his behavior in a home environment. He may have a low threshold for arousal and needs guidance to learn how to appropriately channel that energy when he becomes overstimulated. He will need daily mental and physical stimulation and exercise, and a force-free, positive reinforcement-based training class may help him to learn impulse control and to train desirable behaviors that can be rewarded. BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: EXPERIENCE (suitable for an adopter with some previous dog experience, especially with the behaviors outlined below) Behavior Asilomar: TM – Treatable-Manageable Recommendations:: No young children (under 5) Recommendations comments:: No young children: Due to the high level of jumping and mouthing seen at the care center, we recommend a home without young children. Older children who are comfortable around large, jumpy dogs should have an in-depth interaction prior to adoption. Potential challenges: : Basic manners/poor impulse control,Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition Potential challenges comments:: Basic manners/poor impulse control: It is recommended that default behaviors such as “Leave it”, “Sit/Stay”, “Down” are reinforced to substitute any frustration and teach him to control his impulses instead of simply reacting; proper management is also advised. Force-free, reward based training only is recommended. Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition: While she applies only light pressure, Ferdinand was mouthy throughout the assessment and is quick to put his teeth on skin. This is likely an attention-seeking behavior, but it should be replaced with an alternative behavior as it can frighten people. We recommend never playing with bare hands – always with a toy – and ending play or attention whenever Ferdinand puts teeth on skin. He should be rewarded with attention and treats when he stops and/or when he is seeking attention in alternate ways. Scooby was very friendly upon intake, and allowed all handling. Was slightly skittish while putting on his ID collar, but allowed it. My medical notes are… Weight: 56 lbs 17/01/2018 BARH scan negative male intact very nervous, tense appx 2 yrs old mild tartar clean EEN wound on left hind limb cleaned with novalson rashes on chest due to harness clean coat BCS 5/9 NOSF 17/01/2018 [DVM Intake] DVM Intake Exam Estimated age:10-12m Microchip noted on Intake?n Microchip Number (If Applicable): History :stray Subjective:laceration right stifle with purulent dc, minor abrasion on ventral thighs. cllean with chlorhex Observed Behavior -bar, playful, wags tail Evidence of Cruelty seen -n Evidence of Trauma seen -y Objective T = P =60 R =wnl BCS 5/9 EENT: Eyes clear, ears clean, no nasal or ocular discharge noted Oral Exam:clean teeth PLN: No enlargements noted H/L: NSR, NMA, CRT < 2, Lungs clear, eupnic ABD: Non painful, no masses palpated U/G:intact male testes MSI: Ambulatory x 4, skin free of parasites, no masses noted, healthy hair coat CNS: Mentation appropriate – no signs of neurologic abnormalities Assessment wound right stifle Prognosis:good Plan:clavamox 250mg bid x10d SURGERY: Okay for surgery 22/01/2018 Recheck wound on R stifle noted on intake, placed on 10 days of clavamox; also reportedly had piece of leather in stool on 1/20, no concerns noted since then S/O -BAR, very energetic and friendly, loose body language but seems head shy when leashing -no nasal discharge, sneezing or coughing noted or reported -eupnic -AU: severe erythema and mild to moderate inflammation along pinna and extending to ear canals -eupnic -soft abdomen -RH: 3/4 inch healing partial thickness skin laceration on medial aspect of stifle with mild to moderate, non painful, edematous swelling around wound; granulation tissue forming along wound with mild fibrinous discharge along margins; no associated lameness or discomfort on palpation A 1. Wound, healing appropriately by second intention 2. Otitis externa, suspect underlying allergies P -gentizol AU SID x 7 days -continue clavamox 24/01/2018 S/O -BAR, energetic and friendly -sneezing, serous nasal discharge -mild cough -appears eupnic A 1. CIRDC P -move to isolation -doxycycline 250 mg PO SID x 14 days -cerenia 60 mg PO SID x 4 days *** TO FOSTER OR ADOPT *** If you would like to adopt a dog on our “To Be Killed” list, and you CAN get to the shelter in person to complete the adoption process **within 48 hours of reserve**, you can reserve the dog online until noon on the day they are scheduled to die. We have provided the Brooklyn, Staten Island and Manhattan information below. Adoption hours at these facilities is Noon – 8:00 p.m. (6:30 on weekends) HOW TO RESERVE A “TO BE KILLED” DOG ONLINE (only for those who can get to the shelter IN PERSON to complete the adoption process, and only for the dogs on the list NOT marked New Hope Rescue Only). Follow our Step by Step directions below! **PLEASE NOTE – YOU MUST USE A PC OR TABLET – PHONE RESERVES WILL NOT WORK! *** STEP 1: CLICK ON THIS RESERVE LINK: https://newhope.shelterbuddy.com/Animal/List Step 2: Go to the red menu button on the top right corner, click register and fill in your info. Step 3: Go to your email and verify account Step 4: Go back to the website, click the menu button and view available dogs. It should read, "reserve in progress". That is YOUR reserve. Step 5: Scroll to the animal you are interested and click reserve STEP 6 ( MOST IMPORTANT STEP ): GO TO THE MENU AGAIN AND VIEW YOUR CART. THE ANIMAL SHOULD NOW BE IN YOUR CART! Step 7: Fill in your credit card info and complete transaction Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC) nycacc.org HOW TO FOSTER OR ADOPT IF YOU **CANNOT** GET TO THE SHELTER IN PERSON, OR IF THE DOG IS NEW HOPE RESCUE ONLY! You must live within 3 – 4 hours of NY, NJ, PA, CT, RI, DE, MD, MA, NH, VT, ME or Norther VA. Please PM our page for assistance. You will need to fill out applications with a New Hope Rescue Partner to foster or adopt a dog on the To Be Killed list, including those labelled Rescue Only. Hurry please, time is short, and the Rescues need time to process the applications.

[bloojayoolie]

Anaconda, Children, and Click: at acc waiting ter love Ferdinand 18480-10 months young,56 Ibs LOOKInG FOR HIS FOREUER- Gorgeous young, friendly, sweet, playful Youre so Cool Happy,nice leash walker -Just a pup, will need basic training and lots of Loue & Patience **** TO BE KILLED - 1/25/2018 **** PUPPY ALERT FOR FERDINAND - YOUNG, HANDSOME AND SUPER SWEET <3 A volunteer writes: Puppy playful and affectionate, brindlicious Ferdinand is ready to go go go. He's sleek and gorgeous in his gleaming coat, tail wagging in friendship to all, and wanting to meet everyone we pass on our walk. He seems to be housetrained, is puppy zig zaggy on leash, and sometimes startles at loud noises on the street as trucks go by on busy First Avenue. It's off leash in the yard where both his super playful and very affectionate personality comes out as he zooms around the yard happily playing with toys, giving stand up hugs and kisses, and hopping up on the bench to explore my lap! Perhaps named after the movie about a bull with a big heart, it actually does capture our 10 mos. old Ferdi (we're on a nickname basis now), as Ferdi is puppy-oblivious to his size as he romps in play, and totally, completely, 100% affectionate. He's smart, loves treats, and with positive reinforcement training (aka lots of good treats), he'll learn appropriate manners befitting a rock star grown-up dog. If you're ready to enjoy life with a playful, fun, and affectionate young boy, ask to meet Ferdi when you visit, and do it today. FERDINAND@MANHATTAN ACC Ferdinand - Animal ID: 18480 Sex: Male Age Months: 10 Is Vaccinated: Yes Primary Color: Brown Brindle Secondary Color: None Weight: 56 lbs. Intake Date: 01-17-2018 Spayed / NeuteredNo My health has been checked My vaccinations are up to date My worming is up to date I have been microchipped Please take note of the Animal ID before contacting shelter Details on my behavior are… Behavior Condition: 1. Green Date of intake:: 1/16/2018 Spay/Neuter status:: No Means of surrender (length of time in previous home):: Stray Date of assessment:: 1/18/2018 Look:: 2. Dog pulls out of Assessor’s hands each time without settling during three repetitions. Sensitivity:: 2. Dog displays high energy and movement, but it is directed toward getting closer to the Assessor. Body is soft, likely panting, may jump up between attempts to lick Assessor. Tag:: 1. Dog assumes play position and joins the game. Or dog indicates play with huffing, soft ‘popping’ of the body, etc. Dog might jump on Assessor once play begins. Paw squeeze 1:: 2. Dog quickly pulls back. Paw squeeze 2:: 2. Dog gently places open mouth over the Assessor’s hand without applying pressure. Flank squeeze 1:: Item not conducted Flank squeeze 2:: Item not conducted Toy:: 1. Dog settles close, keeps a firm grip and is loose and wiggly. Dog does not place his/her body between you and the toy. Summary:: Ferdinand quickly approached the assessor in the assessment room and jumped up in a social manner. He was very mouthy during the assessment and displayed a very high level of activity and movement, being in constant motion. He jumped up hard a lot throughout the assessment. He remained social throughout and allowed all holding. Summary:: DOG-DOG INTERACTION ASSESSMENT: The behavior department feels that Ferdinand may be most compatible with dogs who are social and playful. In the care center, he has engaged in running play with male and female dogs. Summary (1):: 1/18: When introduced off leash to the female greeter dog, Ferdinand is soft and polite when greeting. Summary (2):: 1/21: Ferdinand is polite and playful when introduced to a spayed female dog. When introduced to an intact female, Ferdinand follows after and repeatedly attempts to mount. Summary (3):: 1/22-24: Ferdinand engages in running play with male and female dogs. Date of intake:: 1/16/2018 Summary:: Ferdinand was very friendly upon intake, and allowed all handling. Date of initial:: 1/16/2018 Summary:: Ferdinand was very tense. ENERGY LEVEL:: We have no history on Fedinand so we cannot be certain of his behavior in a home environment. He may have a low threshold for arousal and needs guidance to learn how to appropriately channel that energy when he becomes overstimulated. He will need daily mental and physical stimulation and exercise, and a force-free, positive reinforcement-based training class may help him to learn impulse control and to train desirable behaviors that can be rewarded. BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION:: EXPERIENCE (suitable for an adopter with some previous dog experience, especially with the behaviors outlined below) Behavior Asilomar: TM – Treatable-Manageable Recommendations:: No young children (under 5) Recommendations comments:: No young children: Due to the high level of jumping and mouthing seen at the care center, we recommend a home without young children. Older children who are comfortable around large, jumpy dogs should have an in-depth interaction prior to adoption. Potential challenges: : Basic manners/poor impulse control,Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition Potential challenges comments:: Basic manners/poor impulse control: It is recommended that default behaviors such as “Leave it”, “Sit/Stay”, “Down” are reinforced to substitute any frustration and teach him to control his impulses instead of simply reacting; proper management is also advised. Force-free, reward based training only is recommended. Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition: While she applies only light pressure, Ferdinand was mouthy throughout the assessment and is quick to put his teeth on skin. This is likely an attention-seeking behavior, but it should be replaced with an alternative behavior as it can frighten people. We recommend never playing with bare hands – always with a toy – and ending play or attention whenever Ferdinand puts teeth on skin. He should be rewarded with attention and treats when he stops and/or when he is seeking attention in alternate ways. Scooby was very friendly upon intake, and allowed all handling. Was slightly skittish while putting on his ID collar, but allowed it. My medical notes are… Weight: 56 lbs 17/01/2018 BARH scan negative male intact very nervous, tense appx 2 yrs old mild tartar clean EEN wound on left hind limb cleaned with novalson rashes on chest due to harness clean coat BCS 5/9 NOSF 17/01/2018 [DVM Intake] DVM Intake Exam Estimated age:10-12m Microchip noted on Intake?n Microchip Number (If Applicable): History :stray Subjective:laceration right stifle with purulent dc, minor abrasion on ventral thighs. cllean with chlorhex Observed Behavior -bar, playful, wags tail Evidence of Cruelty seen -n Evidence of Trauma seen -y Objective T = P =60 R =wnl BCS 5/9 EENT: Eyes clear, ears clean, no nasal or ocular discharge noted Oral Exam:clean teeth PLN: No enlargements noted H/L: NSR, NMA, CRT < 2, Lungs clear, eupnic ABD: Non painful, no masses palpated U/G:intact male testes MSI: Ambulatory x 4, skin free of parasites, no masses noted, healthy hair coat CNS: Mentation appropriate – no signs of neurologic abnormalities Assessment wound right stifle Prognosis:good Plan:clavamox 250mg bid x10d SURGERY: Okay for surgery 22/01/2018 Recheck wound on R stifle noted on intake, placed on 10 days of clavamox; also reportedly had piece of leather in stool on 1/20, no concerns noted since then S/O -BAR, very energetic and friendly, loose body language but seems head shy when leashing -no nasal discharge, sneezing or coughing noted or reported -eupnic -AU: severe erythema and mild to moderate inflammation along pinna and extending to ear canals -eupnic -soft abdomen -RH: 3/4 inch healing partial thickness skin laceration on medial aspect of stifle with mild to moderate, non painful, edematous swelling around wound; granulation tissue forming along wound with mild fibrinous discharge along margins; no associated lameness or discomfort on palpation A 1. Wound, healing appropriately by second intention 2. Otitis externa, suspect underlying allergies P -gentizol AU SID x 7 days -continue clavamox 24/01/2018 S/O -BAR, energetic and friendly -sneezing, serous nasal discharge -mild cough -appears eupnic A 1. CIRDC P -move to isolation -doxycycline 250 mg PO SID x 14 days -cerenia 60 mg PO SID x 4 days *** TO FOSTER OR ADOPT *** If you would like to adopt a dog on our “To Be Killed” list, and you CAN get to the shelter in person to complete the adoption process **within 48 hours of reserve**, you can reserve the dog online until noon on the day they are scheduled to die. We have provided the Brooklyn, Staten Island and Manhattan information below. Adoption hours at these facilities is Noon – 8:00 p.m. (6:30 on weekends) HOW TO RESERVE A “TO BE KILLED” DOG ONLINE (only for those who can get to the shelter IN PERSON to complete the adoption process, and only for the dogs on the list NOT marked New Hope Rescue Only). Follow our Step by Step directions below! **PLEASE NOTE – YOU MUST USE A PC OR TABLET – PHONE RESERVES WILL NOT WORK! *** STEP 1: CLICK ON THIS RESERVE LINK: https://newhope.shelterbuddy.com/Animal/List Step 2: Go to the red menu button on the top right corner, click register and fill in your info. Step 3: Go to your email and verify account Step 4: Go back to the website, click the menu button and view available dogs. It should read, "reserve in progress". That is YOUR reserve. Step 5: Scroll to the animal you are interested and click reserve STEP 6 ( MOST IMPORTANT STEP ): GO TO THE MENU AGAIN AND VIEW YOUR CART. THE ANIMAL SHOULD NOW BE IN YOUR CART! Step 7: Fill in your credit card info and complete transaction Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC) nycacc.org HOW TO FOSTER OR ADOPT IF YOU **CANNOT** GET TO THE SHELTER IN PERSON, OR IF THE DOG IS NEW HOPE RESCUE ONLY! You must live within 3 – 4 hours of NY, NJ, PA, CT, RI, DE, MD, MA, NH, VT, ME or Norther VA. Please PM our page for assistance. You will need to fill out applications with a New Hope Rescue Partner to foster or adopt a dog on the To Be Killed list, including those labelled Rescue Only. Hurry please, time is short, and the Rescues need time to process the applications.