#an knee way. i'm very excited for them >:) i also have a potential third planned but i didn't wanna be too obnoxious fjkdlsjfkl

[devilbrakers]

the two main ideas i have swimming around in the dome [x] [x]

[pointed-beetle]

Rotten Apple (Tom Riddle x Hufflepuff! Male Reader) Part 1 of 4

I had a weirdly hard time writing for Tom even though I suffer from brain rot for him so if this reads really weird I'm sorry! This is also going to be part of a series where each part is another House! Ravenclaw Part, Gryffindor Part

Word Count: 1930

Summary: It seems the usual 'aloof and unaware' Hufflepuff is a bruised apple when he's constantly seen in the company of Tom Riddle, fully aware that he's not the kind person that he consistently shows him.

Warnings: Head wound, mild bullying, threats from Tom to other students, Tom cursing another student, use of Y/N and L/N (Your Name and Last Name)

Getting to know Tom Marvolo Riddle was like biting into a crisp, fresh-looking apple only to bite a worm in half.

On the outside, how he wanted every to view him: he was the perfect student, a ladies man and someone far more capable of what his peers could do. When he showed potential in nonverbal spells was when Dumbledore began to worry, when Slughorn seemed the slightest bit more nervous around him. Tom was the student every professor wanted, a bright student with great potential and lacking the boisterous attitude to be loud about it. He was humble and feigned questions to not seem like a know-it-all. It was rare when the Slytherin asked for extra credit. Tom earned additional points with his outstanding Prefect duties anyway; he didn’t need anything more from classes.

On the inside, however, Tom Riddle was a murderer, a teenager who cornered others, threatening them to step behind him or get walked on. Gripping up their collars and tearing them down starting from their very core, hissing in their ear what he would do to them if they crossed him and stepped in his way.

After meeting Tom in your third year, you no longer had to sit on the train with strangers anymore, of course, you had friends, but their excitement had always been too much for you on the first day, Scotland was a lot colder than you were used to. It was always a bummer to go from mild gloominess to near-constant rain outside the Hogwarts castle.

He was a pleasant conversationalist. The long pauses in the discussion were comfortable for you both as you sat in the compartment with him, arms crossed over your chest and staring at the world moving past the window outside. “I’m impressed. We have many shared classes this year.” He hums, comparing your schedules and adjusting in his seat, his eyes flicking up to you, “I’m glad my tutoring didn’t go to waste.” He chides, handing you back the parchment with your classes before sighing and relaxing in the seat, furrowing his brows at you. The weighty look causes you to crack a smile, leaning forward a bit, pressing your crossed arms on top of your knees, and locking eyes with him. “Yes, mister Riddle? Can I help you?” You hum, holding one of your hands up and pressing your cheek into it, looking at his face while he ponders, sighing a bit at the lack of gel in his hair, making it look much softer than usual. “I am just hoping that you get into fewer fights this year. As amusing as it is seeing you catch people off guard, I have found it harder to pull you off of them as I enjoy watching you beat them. I have a reputation to uphold L/N, and having a soft spot for the Hufflepuff troublemaker will indeed cause a mark on what I’ve spent so long building up.” He chuckles a bit, reaching over and grabbing your cheeks between his fingers, squeezing them together and forcing your lips to pucker before shaking your head side to side. “What am I going to do with you, little badger.” He sighs before releasing you, standing up to lock the door and pull the privacy sheet down, leaning back in the cushioned seat and looking out the window, rain starting to lash against the windows.

You rode in a carriage with Tom along with two others across from you two, though you weren’t striking up any conversations, staring out at the rain with your eyebrows furrowed, thinking far too hard about Tom grabbing your face like he did on the train. His voice was soothing to you as you zoned out. He had started talking about his Prefect duties to a Ravenclaw Head Boy, getting him excited to follow in the Syltherin’s steps and have a clean record like he did, excitedly looking over to his friend as if getting the information from Tom was groundbreaking. Though his eyes constantly flicked over to you, wondering what you were thinking about as the carriages tugged them up the path.

The waxed halls passed by quickly as you followed behind Tom, gently touching his back before sitting at your Hufflepuff table, smiling at your friends and talking with them, catching up on the conversations they had on the train. You fix your hair so that it is tucked neatly under your cap as you all wait for the first years to come in from their traditional ride across the lake. You could feel Tom’s eyes on your back the whole ceremony, the heat making you rub at the back of your neck in embarrassment. Sighing lightly, you glance over your shoulder to glare at him, only earning a cheeky smile in return and finally a break from his eye line. Your friends teased you about it, poking fun at how the famous Tom Riddle had such a soft spot for a little aloof Hufflepuff. You didn’t mind it, though, as it was better than what you received from your Ravenclaw friends who were mildly berating and angry with care as they expressed how horrible and dangerous Tom was. Mrytle had died under his watch after all, and from the things he’s threatened to other people, it wouldn’t be surprising if he really went through with one of his threats.

Even though it felt horrible, slimy even, you couldn’t really find it in you to care if he did kill Mrytle, if the rumours that you never saw with your own eyes of who Tom was turned out to be accurate, that he really did curse kids and send them to the infirmary. You knew Tom wasn’t always the most excellent person, even if that minimises what he’s done to people, you weren’t stupid. You’ve angered Tom before, and you never dared to cross that line again, even if the fear had awakened something in you that you were not aware of before.

You weren’t sure what you were to Tom. He always touched you in intimate ways, pressing his hand to the back of your neck when you felt anxious and grabbing at your face, getting much closer to you than he did anyone else. Yet, he never initiated anything, and it was frustrating. You didn’t want to push what you had with him. What if he was just playing with you for a while like he did everyone else? You were anticipating it, though when it happened, it would still hurt like hell.

You felt like a mouse under his paw. However, it was hard to find it in you to run away, as he treated you so carefully, walking to class with you and tutoring you, making excuses for you when he accidentally talked to you past curfew and even showing you places in the castle that you were sure only the most curious students and Dumbledore were aware of.

You rub your palm against your forehead, agitated with your continuous thoughts as you wait for Tom outside his class, shaking your head and looking up at the ceiling, leaning against a pillar and letting yourself think of something that wasn’t your complicated feelings towards your best friend. Tom chuckles as he walks out of his class and sees you staring at nothing, lost in your thoughts as usual. He watches you for a moment before walking over and gently brushing his fingers against your neck, causing a heavy jolt as you slap his hands against your neck, glaring heavily. “Your fingers are frigid, Riddle.” You hiss, gripping his fingers and peeling them off your neck; even though it was your fault, they were pressed even more against your skin. “I know. I just wanted to snap you out of your overthinking.” He chuckles, running his fingers through your hair before pushing against the back of your head and leading you down the hall, the warm sunlight from the castle windows beaming down on you two as you walked, his hand still in the back of your hair.

You sigh, feeling his fingers eventually find the scar on the back of your head. He constantly felt it up to remind himself of his failure.

He watched the fight that caused it, and he was too infatuated in watching you snarl your teeth in a response back to the derogatory words that were being thrown at you that he hadn’t stepped in fast enough.

You were shoved back, unable to catch yourself on anything; your arms failed uselessly. A look of total terror crossed your features as you realised what was happening before your head cracked against the pillar, yielding a large gash in your head. Unlucky for you, the impact had not knocked you unconscious, your hands pathetically finding the stone bench beside you as you leaned against it, gasping for air and dripping blood down your neck and cheeks, shaking uncontrollably. It took a week for your vision to return, your sobbing painful on Tom as you gripped onto him, terrified as he cradled the back of your head, smearing your blood on his hands. His look was deadly towards the person that had pushed you. He was found with lacerations on his body, shaking and paperwhite, just sitting in the boys’ bathroom for hours.

“It stopped hurting a year ago. I don’t know why you still torture yourself over it. It was my fault anyway, Tom. I shouldn’t have provoked that stupid bloke. I know his reputation.” He shakes his head and gives you a slight smile. You’ve had this conversation many times before, and his opinion was not soon to change. He failed you, and he wouldn’t let it happen again.

“You’re dumb, Tom.” You chuckle, reaching up and touching at the back of his hand, tracing over his knuckles before leaning your whole body weight against him, earning an unpleasant sneer from him. “You are much too heavy to be doing this. Get off, or I’m letting you fall to the floor.” He hisses, holding you back by your shoulders as you lean more heavily into him, laughing and shaking your head, gripping onto his wrists before forcing him to back up against a wall, leaning up and pressing a kiss to his lips. “You’re a coward.” You mumble against his lips as he barks out a laugh, gripping your face in his hand and squeezing your cheeks like he had on the train. “I think it’s rather bold of you to assume I didn’t have a plan for you during Hogsmeade, but I should’ve known with how impatient you are.” He sighs, dragging his hand to your hair before tugging your head into his chest. “I think you should know what I did to Myrtle.” He whispers into the air around you, rubbing at your head and ear, tracing the rim of it before rubbing circles into the back of it. He refused to look at you as you both stayed like that. “I know you’re not a good person Tom….” You begin, gently gripping onto his robes and closing your eyes, sighing through your nose, “But I don’t think I am either.”

He grunts a bit, gripping your hair in his fist gently before craning your head back, his eyes staring at your closed eyes before he leans in for another kiss, eventually dropping your head back on his chest. “Good, because I expect what you learn about what I’ve done in my free time may change our future together.”

[fairyoftbz]

it's never too late... | b. jacob

🏀 pairing: crush! basketball player! jacob x fem!reader 🏀 genre: high school!au, fluff, (sort of) strangers/acquaintances-to-lovers 🏀 word count: 5.2k 🏀 tw: very cliché 😳 and it goes kinda fast lmaoo 🏀 a/n: lisa I'm sorry I took this long to do your request, but I hope you'll like it nonetheless!! ALSO: to my fellow Americans, here football = soccer!! 🏀 requested: yes! thank you lisa!! @skrtbabe

╰☆☆☆☆╮

You had waited for this time since the beginning of your academic journey there. Graduating from high school was two months away, and it felt just as exciting as weird.

It felt like you had started your first year last week, but the amount of work and time spent in those dull buildings makes you feel like you’ve been there for at least five years.

It was exhausting to attend classes and see the same people every single day of the year, with repetitive subjects, annoying or cool teachers depending on your luck and everything that followed. The homework, the assignments, the small -or not so small- fights between classes or groups of people, you were praying that university wouldn’t sound like that.

However, at the same time, you were almost starting to feel nostalgic for this time. The last years where you could remain a bit silly before entering the adult world, being in your last teen years with people that you appreciated and met there. You chose to do this before letting them go and live your own lives, memories that will disappear if you don’t cherish them enough.

So, with Soyeon, your best friend, you decided to enjoy the time that you had left to do things together while still studying and revising for the exams, which was sometimes not easy to do. Yes, you shared classes, but personal and private activities sometimes came in the way and prevented you from hanging out.

“It’s life after all,” she said one night over the phone as you shared your opinion on this topic, “it’s good that we can be together almost 24/7, but sometimes, things don’t allow us to be together. It might be for the best, we never know,” she said, trying to be positive no matter the situation she was in, but you knew her well. As much as she wants to appear strong, you had found her many times crying on her own. But it was her personality, and no matter how hard you tried to change her, what's bred in the bone comes out in the flesh.

Soyeon wasn’t your only friend, you were getting along well with most of your girl classmates, as well as the boys that weren’t suffocating under the number of pick-me-girls that were populating your school and your class.

Sadly for you, you’ve been eyeing the most popular (and prettiest) boy in your whole school since you crossed gaze with him at the very beginning of your first year there. Jacob, your crush, was also the star basketball player of your school, and constantly surrounded and attracting cheerleaders or rich, random, good-looking girls, which had a knack for getting on your nerves. He was always spending time together with his pals and teammates, but other people as well. Everyone wanted to be his friend because you know, he had a promising career ahead of him, so it was always nice to be friends with a potential future celebrity.

As defeated as you were, there was still a small voice in your head telling you to do something before he left to go back to his home country, South Korea, where he had a career already planned and traced out.

You were confused as it was almost impossible for you to get a chance with him since you were not one of those girls and you simply couldn’t compete against them, but Soyeon and her boyfriend Sunwoo were always there to praise you and reassure you about your potential chances of dating him. Never convinced by your friends’ words, you had tried many times to get him out of your head and focus on someone else, but it never worked. Everything came back to him. He was unique and oh so nice, everything reminded you of him, and it was sickening at this point.

“He won't get out of my head, it’s getting on my nerves,” you shared your thoughts to your best friend as you braced your head in your hands, slapping your cheeks as if it were going to change anything and help you throw Jacob out of your brain.

“Why do I keep this stupid boy in my head when I know I don’t stand a single chance against those girls,” you slapped your cheeks harder and whined as Soyeon’s hand landed on your wrist.

“Y/N, stop your nonsense. You are perfect, you don’t need to change anything for him!”

“It’s easier said than done, you pulled the football star player!” you exclaimed, and she rolled her eyes, shifting closer to whisper.

“He pulled me because he knew that I am pretty, and that wouldn’t change a single thing for him. If he’s not happy with who I am, he can leave,” she shrugs, signalling you to do the same if you dated Jacob.

Sunwoo was also among the popular boys, but your friend remained the same, not even trying to fit in with the popular girls. She claimed that Sunwoo fell in love with her for her true self, so she didn’t see the point of changing to please other people. And you wished you had her confidence and her strength, admiring her for not changing anything about herself to please others.

Back to the present.

You felt stuck, desperately in love with an unapproachable boy who was too popular and way out of your league to be lucky to have his eyes sparing you any sort of attention. Even if he was a sweet young man, he was always surrounded by popular people, who were trying to hook up or use him for his school fame and sharp features.

One day, while studying with your best friend at the library, Sunwoo and one of his friends, Hyunjae, the football captain, burst into the library and come not so quietly to your table.

“For the love of God, can you both be quiet for once?” Soyeon whispered-yelled but her voice got toned down by Sunwoo vividly pressing his lips on hers, an arm wrapping around her shoulders. Hyunjae laughed but quickly gagged as they didn’t stop the kiss as quickly as the captain wished.

“Gosh, please, get a room,” he mumbled before hugging you, your knee resting against his as his arms pressed you against his chest.

Your friendship with Hyunjae felt more like siblings, he was genuinely nice and caring with you, making sure that you were okay and that you had enough of everything before allowing you to go home. Despite all the teasing and a few rumours going around school, you were not dating and didn’t have any romantic feelings for each other. He simply checked that you had an older brother figure since you were the first-born child, and it felt relieving.

The thing you did not know was that Jacob and a few of his basketball teammates, Juyeon, Eric and Younghoon, were a few tables away from yours, your back facing them, the future star looking at you and Hyunjae from the corner of his eyes. He nodded at his friend at your table, who gave him a wink as an answer, Jacob’s eyes burning holes into your back as Hyunjae was close to you. Too close to you for the basketball player not to feel something churn in his stomach.

Two long, manicured fingers snapped in front of his eyes to get him out of his reverie, lazily looking at the girl that sat across from him, who he was supposed to get help from.

“Jacob please, pay attention to meeeeee,” she whined and pouted, giving him puppy eyes that he couldn’t give a single fuck about, too busy in his mind to hear what she had to say.

She had volunteered to help him study History, but she wasn’t any better, probably worse than he was. It was already the third time Juyeon corrected her basic knowledge without being an expert himself, not even caring about the death glares she kept sending him. It only made him smirk as he knew it irked her dearly yet amused the rest of the table a lot.

They all sighed as she finally took the hint and left their table, Jacob bitterly chuckling as Hyunjae rolled his eyes when she walked past your table, his demeanour making you laugh.

╰☆╮

“Bro, do you think I should ask Y/N for help? Isn’t that a bit… lame?” Jacob sat on one of the soccer balls, hands joined and panting as Sunwoo practised his dribbling skills before shooting the ball in the cages, aiming for the up-right corner. He trotted to his friend and collapsed on the grass next to him, the last rays of sunshine offering his skin a wonderful, honey glow. He ruffled his hair after plopping down, checking his phone for any message before answering.

“If you need help, you shouldn’t be afraid to ask her. I mean, she’s super smart in every subject, but she’s just the boss in History. Her presentations are always golden, and she explains things a lot better than some of the teachers.”

“I got Smith as a teacher,” the basketball player grimaced, his left hand holding his right wrist as his gaze wandered in the grass.

“We’ve got Antal, and I can tell you that she’s always mad when Y/N does a presentation because they honestly just sound better than her lessons,” Sunwoo chuckled as Jacob pondered his friend’s words, the gears of his mind working at full speed.

How is he going to be able to approach you and get to talk to you?

╰☆╮

“Bestie, no. I swear I saw that in the other book,” you said as you found yourself back in the library the following week, bending over the table to grab the book your best friend was resting hers on. You started flipping some pages when a loud, masculine chortle followed by some whispers of annoyance drawing your attention.

“Hi, babe! Hi Hyunj- Oh hi Jacob!” your neck almost snapped as you abruptly lifted your head up at the mention of your crush’s name, a small, embarrassed smile making its way on your mouth. You were a bit sad that your brother best friend was not here with Sunwoo, but you weren’t going to complain to have your crush instead.

“Can I sit here?” the basketball player asked in a soft voice while pointing at the empty spot next to you, making you quickly nod and gather your stuff to make him some space.

You resumed searching for the precious paragraph you were searching for your project as if it were nothing, trying to ignore your stammering heart in your chest and the couple eating each other's mouths. The only thing you hoped was that Jacob couldn’t hear the loud, irregular beats in your ribcage because it would give in your attraction to him.

“Hum, Y/N?” the voice next to you made you flinch, surprised that he knew your name and that he said it aloud.

“Y-Yes?” you said, cursing in your head as you stuttered.

“I heard that you were the Ace when it came to History,” Jacob started, and you couldn’t look at him in the eyes, fire spreading in your chest up to your face.

“I can’t really say that I’m the Ace, but I really love that subject, so yeah I have some… knowledge,” words tripped over your tongue, and your best friend pulled away from Sunwoo and scoffed.

“Some knowledge? Are you kidding?” she said, Sunwoo placing a hand on her mouth as she was louder than intended. She removed his palm and furrowed her brows at him, before turning her head back at you with the same angry expression.

“She knows so fucking much that Antal hates her because she feels humiliated compared to Y/N. So let me tell you one thing, Cobbie, if you need help, you’ve come to the right person. Y/N is just a living encyclopaedia,” your best friend proudly smirked as you glowered at her, Sunwoo chuckling at his girlfriend’s behaviour before immediately stopping.

“Wait, did you call him Cobbie? How come you call him like that when I get nothing other than babe or baby?” Sunwoo argued while pouting, and your best friend sighed, ruffling his hair before pressing her lips against his one more time, making you slightly grimace as envy flooded your veins.

You sighed and dared to look at Jacob, who was reading the beginning of your essay written on your computer, leaving Sunwoo and your best friend bicker like the cute couple they were.

“Do you have this project too?” you asked, and he shook his head, eyes remaining glued on the computer screen.

“It’s so interesting what you wrote, I like your way of writing and explaining stuff,” he offered a small smile as he looked at you, clearing his throat. For someone that was super popular and constantly surrounded by friends or people at parties, he behaved and sounded quite like an introvert.

“W-Well, thank you,” you said with a smile and turned your head to the side for a second, taking a deep breath before looking back at him, opening a new tab on your computer after he gestured to you that he was done reading.

“What do you need help with?”

╰☆╮

You were astonished at how quick-minded Jacob was. Behind his fit, muscular appearance and obsession with basketball, he had the soul of a thinker and grasped the knowledge of historical concepts quite easily and rapidly. He just wasn’t good with the way Smith was teaching, the method not suiting him.

“You retain things well for someone who hates History,” you joked, and he shyly smiled, scratching his neck. His smile looked gorgeous, and you were pleasantly surprised at how much of a genuine person he was.

“Well, History is not my cup of tea, but it might be a bit more thanks to you,” he said, and you tried to stifle a smile, thankful that your best friend was no longer sitting across from you because she wouldn’t have let you two live.

“It’s nothing. You can come back to me if you need help, I really don’t mind. I actually like explaining things,” you said, and he nodded, clicking your pen close before placing it in your pouch.

“Thank you, really. Sunwoo was actually the one that told me about you, so I have to thank him as well,” you stood up and slowly started to pack your stuff, shutting down your computer with a smile.

“I’m glad he did so, I just hope it was positive,” you giggled, and he quickly joined you, twirling his pen in between his fingers as he cleared his throat.

“You know, it’s Sunwoo. It can only be nice and positive,” you genuinely smiled at him and fall in silence, throwing glances at each other from time to time as the conversation was slowly starting to die down.

“And... How’s basketball going by the way? Is everything going well?” you asked, and his heart skipped a beat at your question as it took him off guard.

“I-It’s going pretty well, I’m excited to finish high school to be able to focus on basketball. I’m gonna have to take some of my last finals in South Korea because the season and the training start pretty early in Summer so…” his voice trailed as his eyes widened, a hand slapping his mouth as you both stood up.

“What?” you quizzed, confused by his sudden change of behaviour.

“I… was meant to keep this a secret,” his voice trailed, the end of his sentence falling in a whisper as he started panicking. “Can we pretend you didn’t hear what I said?” he asked as you placed your bag strap on your shoulder, taking your sweater before pushing the chair against the table.

“Said what?” you replied with a smile, and Jacob sighed in relief, somehow feeling like his secret was safe with you, even if you’ve talked to him for the first time at the beginning of the afternoon.

╰☆╮

The rest of the month rolled off smoothly, yet the stress and the revisions became more intense as the days went by. You didn’t hear anything back from Jacob, but you’ve caught him staring at you a few times, offering him an awkward wave and a smile as not to get noticed by some of his “fan girls”, as they called themselves.

You still had a whole month left before finals, and you felt blessed as summer decided to start a bit earlier this year. It was only the beginning of May, but you were already able to wear shorts and dresses. It felt good to see the blue sky and being surrounded by the warmth of the sun hitting your exposed skin after the cold, lonely winter and spring you’ve just got out of. Everything looked prettier and warmer, and it did nothing but make you happier and brighter, despite the stress of the finals piling up on your shoulders.

So, to get rid of this pressure, you decided to leave town with Hyunjae and let him drive to one of the lakes that surrounded your town, knowing that the beach and parks would get crowded in no time. It was a place that you used to go to with your parents when you were still a child, memories that you shared with your friend coming back flooding in your mind.

Hyunjae and his family tagged along to give you some company and take care of you as your parents were busy looking after your newborn twin sisters, Hyunjae and his younger brother acting like elder siblings to you.

After driving for a few dozens of minutes, you settled your stuff in the shade, right under a weeping willow that offered you freshness throughout the entire day. Your best friend napped almost the entire time you were there, hand lingering on his abs while the other plucked out some grass until he dozed off, trying to store as many hours of rest as possible before finals. By his side was you, reading a book and enjoying the chilly water to cool down from the hot temperatures of early Summer, playfully nudging the young man next to you each time he was starting to snore.

It’s near the middle of the afternoon that you heard another car pulling up near the lake, a bunch of excited teenagers coming out of a van. You didn’t pay much attention to them, only sighing as your peace was about to get ruined, their screams when they jumped in the water woke your best friend up.

He abruptly sat up next to you and rubbed his eyes, some sleeping marks lingering on his face, making you giggle. Being the short-sighted idiot that he was, he squinted to try and recognise some people, but he didn’t have to.

A young woman screamed and started jumping up and down, waving her arms above her head in your direction, hearing her scream something towards you.

You looked at each other with Hyunjae, confusion painted on your faces, hearing your phone buzz in your small bag hidden by your folded clothes.

“Hello?” you said as Hyunjae’s phone started vibrating too, picking up the call as well.

“Y/N, it’s us! We’re on the opposite side of the lake! Come and join us!” you heard your best friend yell in your ear, hearing her as well through Hyunjae’s phone, who picked up a call from her boyfriend.

“Okay, we’re coming!” you excitingly said as you hung up, waving at your best friend from your spot as you started packing your stuff to get back in the car and meet up with your friends.

Your best friend excitingly jumped in your arms as soon as you got out of the car,

“Tt’s crazy how we’re so connected! Did you also think that the beach would be crowded?” she asked, and you nodded with a smile, happy to see her this joyful to see you.

The inseparable duo was here, as well as Younghoon, Jacob, Eric, Juyeon and Sangyeon, the striker of the football team. They all engulfed you in a tight hug, Jacob staying in the background the entire time.

“Hi Jacob!” you brightly said and wrapped your arms around his neck, hugging him close. “Hi Y/N,” his answer vibrated in his chest and had repercussions in yours, sending your heart flying in your ribcage.

You looked so good being this carefree, it was thankfully a sight that he managed to imprint in his mind despite the shortness of the moment. Being surrounded by all your friends felt so good that you forgot to be awkward and worry about the stupidest things, and Jacob adored seeing you this natural and smiling in the company of your friends. He was a bit sad that he wasn’t fully the reason for your smile though, but he still managed to enjoy the rest of the day with you and your mutual friends, whether you were on the ground or in the water.

Sangyeon, Younghoon and Juyeon copied Hyunjae and joined him in a restoring nap, while Eric, Sunwoo, Jacob, Soyeon and you played different games in the water, improvising a volleyball match with an imaginary net and the ball Sunwoo took with him as the volleyball, but it did the job. It was just a bit hurtful for the liberos since it wasn’t as soft and bouncy as a volleyball, but the joy of the moment allowed any type of pain to become bearable.

The evening eventually started to settle in, and you all got out of the water, drying yourselves before deciding to spend a part of the night here. You helped Sangyeon build a bonfire in the safe area by bringing some different branches, the eldest placing them correctly before lighting them with his pocket lighter.

“Hyung! I didn’t know you were a boy-scout,” Sunwoo exclaimed and made everyone laughed as you all were sliding some marshmallows on a stick, Sangyeon smiling with modesty at everyone.

“Ya, don’t say this,” Sangyeon mumbled, and you smile, rubbing his upper back as he sat down next to you, thanking him when you handed him over his marshmallow stick.

“Oh no! Mine burnt,” Soyeon pouted when she retrieved her snack from the flames, and her boyfriend was quick to give her his sweets, Eric cooing at the gesture of affection.

“Give it to me, I like them burnt,” he mumbled as he bit in the fluffy texture, immediately regretting it as it was boiling. His girlfriend handed him water as he stood up, bouncing up and down to try and reduce what felt like flames in his mouth.

“Oh my, thanks babe,” he muttered with his mouth stuffed when he gulped down everything with a pained expression on his face. Eric’s eyes filled with boredom locked into yours and you both chuckled, your friend shaking his head.

“When is it gonna be my turn,” he huffed and Sunwoo hit him playfully in the back as you all laughed around the bonfire, relating to your friend.

“When you’ll stop being obsessed with football and mango juice,” Eric grunted and folded his arms over his chest as Sangyeon called him out, making you coo and playfully run to him, holding him against you as he fake-cried on your chest while everyone was laughing at him.

Except for Jacob, who only offered a weak smile, but you didn’t catch it, too busy having fun and being light-hearted with your friends.

After your stomachs were filled with sweets and soda, Sunwoo pulled out his guitar and strummed a soft melody until some became heavy-eyed or fell asleep against the other, his girlfriend succumbing to his musical talents first. Jacob looked exhausted as well but forced his eyes open, finding him even hotter with hooded eyelids and his hair slightly curling with the humidity of the air and the lake water.

When it was time to go home, Hyunjae, as well as Younghoon, Sunwoo, Soyeon and Eric decided to jump into Hyunjae’s car to go to the beach, feeling the urge and the thrill of going skinny-dipping. On the other hand, you and the rest of the boys were too exhausted and modest to do this, only wanting to go home and get some good rest.

Just like they had arrived, Sangyeon was behind the wheel while the rest was either next to him or in the back seat. And you didn’t know how it happened, but you got stuck between the window and Jacob, who was struggling to keep his eyes open.

“You good?” you asked, and he turned his head towards you before offering you a tired yet sweet smile, moving his head up and down.

“I'm just exhausted, tonight was simply amazing,” he mumbled, and you expressed your agreement by a happy hum and a nod, bringing your attention to your eldest friend.

“Are you sure you’re awake enough to drive?” you enquired on the current situation and Sangyeon looks at you through the inner rear-view mirror, eyes forming two crescent moons as he smiled.

“I just jumped in the water, I’m nothing but awake,” he clapped in his hands to motivate himself and started the engine, your best friend’s car already gone.

Jacob rested his head against the headrest and closed his eyes, his head rolling to the side each time Sangyeon took a turn. You settled yourself on the window and let the vibrations of the car lull you to sleep, the small talk that Sangyeon and Juyeon were having in the front seats acted like a background noise, which helped you dozing off.

However, when the car pulled up in front of your house, they didn’t expect you to have your head resting against Jacob’s shoulder, his hand on your knee. The two men smiled at each other before Sangyeon got out of the vehicle, drawing the door open. As he was about to carry you to your doorstep, Jacob’s arm was quick to wrap itself around your waist, keeping you close to him.

You woke up confused, blinking a few times as you saw the striker standing next to you with a wide smile on his face. He removed a limb around your body, and you felt someone groan under your right shoulder, noticing in dread that you snuggled up to Jacob for some warmth in your sleep.

“You gotta go before the beast wakes up,” Sangyeon joked and winked as he helped you get out of the car, closing the door behind you. It opened again a few seconds later, Jacob looking just as confused as you were.

“Come on, lovebirds, we don’t have the night.”

“Lovebirds?” Jacob and you asked in unison, the basketball player rubbing his eye with the back of his hand. He jumped out of the van and gestured to Sangyeon to get back in.

“You can go, I live just around the corner,” he drowsily said as he vaguely gestured behind him.

“You sure? Your house is on my way back home, I can drop you off,” Sangyeon suggested but he refused, offering a handshake to the striker before letting him go.

Being more awake now, you waved at your friends driving away before turning to your crush, who looked even more adorable as he was super sleepy and just woke up.

“Are you sure you’re gonna be okay? You look really tired,” you asked, voice still laced with sleep yet sounding caring, which made Jacob’s heartbeat fasten. He nodded and weakly smiled, taking a step closer to you. His attitude was a bolt from the blue as he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you to him, nuzzling his face in your neck.

“You felt so warm during the ride, it’s almost like I could get used to this,” he tiredly said with a smile, gently pulling away to stare at you, his fingers leaving your back to come and slide a wild piece of hair behind your ear. Your whole body stiffened at his words as he stared at you in the eyes, noticing a small, washed-out smirk plastered on his face.

“Don’t you think it’s a bit... late to start something with someone? I mean, we have finals and then y-you’re le-leaving for South Korea and-” you started stammering as his thumb gently stroked your cheek, loving watching you lose your composure at his display of affection.

“It’s never too late when you love someone,” he whispered, feeling his warm breath tickling your lips in such a delicious manner that you have to resist the urge to move forward and press your lips against his.

His words punched the air out of your lungs, leaving you breathless as he kissed your cheek, mouth slowly moving to the side until it reached your lips. The kiss was soft yet a bit on the rougher side as if he wanted you to understand every feeling he had for you. Instinctively, your arms wrapped around his shoulders, and you kissed him harder, deeper, his hands on your lower back pulling you flush against him.

You had dreamt, wondered about what it was like kissing Jacob, but it never felt as good as you were experiencing it now. Fireworks and butterflies were erupting in your stomach, leaving you dizzy with love and passion as one of his hands came and cupped your cheek, the pad of his thumb gently caressing the skin.

Once you pulled away for oxygen, you held onto his shoulders for your dear life and he chuckled, his mouth slowly travelling down to your neck.

“I-I think my… my- oh my god, my parents will worry,” you gently pushed him away and he stared at you with a smile before diving in to capture your lips in another soft kiss.

“I'm only letting you go if you're free tomorrow. Let's put that off to tomorrow, shall we?” he asked, and your eyes widened at his suggestion.

“We can go back to the lake if you want, but only if we’re alone,” he said, his hand caressing your cheek while the other was busy stroking your upper back up and down.

“I want to enjoy this with you and you only,” he added, mumbling against your mouth and this time, you’re the one pulling him for a kiss.

“Come and pick me up at 10, then,” you said as you pulled away.

“I’ll be there, I promise,” he answered and started walking towards your house, closing the front gate behind you, waving at him with a smile.

He sent you a flying kiss with a smile and you waved at him one last time before closing the main door of your house behind you, both sighing with a huge smile and warmth painted on your faces.

You peeled the clothes off your skin and went straight to the bathroom to take a shower, shaking your head left to right while chuckling as you recalled what just happened in your last month of high school.

Nothing was making sense, you didn’t know how you got there, but you were happy.

And that’s what mattered the most.

[curiousconch]

Chase You/Chase Me (Pt. 4)

Part 4: The truth will never lie to me

Catch up here: Series Masterlist

Chapter Summary: Trapped in a conference, Gabe and Alex bask in the afterglow of their interrupted moment by the lake. But before Alex can fully comprehend how she felt, she unravels a truth that may cease the chase altogether.

Book/Pairing: Choices - Laws of Attraction / Gabe Ricci x MC (Alex Keating)

Words: 1.8k+

Rating/Warnings: Mature (16+) / alcohol consumption, language, implied sexual content. Reader discretion advised.

Author's Notes: Surprise! Yep, it's an early release! I made revisions to fit the ongoing narrative and ended up breaking it down into two parts. Also, this series may span longer than I originally intended it to be, not wanting to rush things. It will probably extend until Part 7, depending on what happens at the finale. I do hope you'll still stick around. If not, I'll totally understand. 😉

Disclaimer: Most of the characters as well as some dialogue belong to Pixelberry. I am merely borrowing them.

Late night, Boston

Shoe laces, cool wind and the darkness of the forest enveloping them. His breath shuddering with how close her lips was. His throat running dry.

Wanting, longing.

Just a little taste to find out how intoxicatingly delicious those cherry lips would be in his mouth and to feel the heat of her body against his.

And then a splash.

Gabe blinked as he felt ice cold liquid pouring over his crisp white shirt. He wasn't sure if he was having déjà vu.

"Oh, sorry mate," a man standing nearby had bumped into him, making the glass of scotch he was drinking shake and spill into his impeccable suit. He forced down the tasteless curse words forming in his mouth, groaning in frustration at the dissipating sensations from what he had been imagining.

His mind was stuck in an endless loop, replaying the romantic encounter with Alex just the night before. But very much like after Beau's dive into the lake, his consciousness whipped achingly back to reality.

Gabe was leaning on the mobile bar, set in the middle of the conference reception. Did he just lose himself in a daydream like a fool? He wondered, murmuring through his madness.

The time alone with her provided him a glimpse of what could be between them. And oh how euphoric it had been to have her so near, to watch his body respond to her like no other.

It left him just craving for more.

He was lying to himself if he continued to deny that he has feelings for Alex, and how deep he was already in for her. But he knew it wasn't meant to be, at least until after he admits the truth. Until then, he had to pull away.

Easier said than done.

For now, he settled for a view of her, his eyes scoured the room for the subject of his fancy. When he found her, Gabe couldn't stop his smile and the fluttering of his heart, or the warmth growing between his legs.

There she was, in the far side of the room, shining brighter than any star that they had seen in the night sky. Her audience completely captivated as he was with her.

The sight of her in that blue dress swept Gabe back into his fantasies, and how infuriatingly near he was to giving into them. He had to clench his fist around his tumbler, suppressing any trace of his earlier wild thoughts.

Apparently sensing the weight of his gaze, Alex turned to him, their eyes meeting in silent conversation. He watched as she excused herself before making her way towards where he sat.

Half-smiling, Alex's confident expression as she approached him made him swallow hard.

Gabe summoned all his willpower to rein himself in as she got closer. He plastered his usual cocky smile, once again putting up a wall of professionalism. They were in a conference, he reasoned.

"Still watching your wards, old man?" Alex chuckled as she reached a seat beside him.

"Working the room like a pro like that? Very hard to ignore," Gabe interjected, shaking his head. "Had to say Alex, I'm impressed."

"Glad you noticed," she smiled, clearly enjoying the compliment.

"Frankly, you charming the top tier lawyers were hard to miss," he said, with lips quirking into a grin.

"Were you watching the whole time?" she asked.

"Difficult not to, seeing how you're the best-dressed lawyer in the room," he continued, savoring the easy conversation.

She scoffed before turning around, grabbing a napkin from a bartender. Alex offered it to him, pointing at the light stain on his clothes.

He finally muttered a curse, realizing he had been too distracted not to notice the result of the spillage from his own drink. This was one of my best suits.

Gabe almost jumped when Alex started to wipe the front of his suit.

His eyes narrowed, unable to process what was happening. On impulse, he reached out to her, encircling his palms around her wrist. Alex snapped her head up at the touch, the intensity of her gaze enchanting him.

It took all of his strength to break free from it. He cleared his throat and looked away, before grabbing the napkin from her grasp without warning.

It had always been like this. At first, there was this fluidity, a natural attraction between them while they interacted. Then another goddamn minute passes and it all becomes downright complicated.

Gabe wasn't having it.

He briefly shut his eyes closed and released the breath he was holding. When he opened them, he focused his attention on wiping the stain from his jacket, avoiding Alex's questioning gaze. He decided to divert the conversation, robbing her of any opportunity to re-capture him in a trance.

"Don't worry, I don't judge potential partners solely on congeniality. Though I can't speak for Sadie." He then turned and discarded the cloth on the bar. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll have to speak to a friend who I'm sure will be thrilled to know I'm now a partner."

He finally dared to look at Alex with almost apologetic eyes, before swiftly walking away towards a sea of unfamiliar faces.

Alex was left gaping at his hasty departure, uncertain how it all went south so quickly. She wanted to grab his arm and pull him to her so badly, to pick things up from where they left off last night. From that moment when his lips was inches away from taking hers, before they were interrupted.

Her body ached to be near him. Then again, that's not how she usually operates, so she let him be.

She had never thought her idol was such a tease. Or perhaps, traditional? Alex snickered. Oh how I'll make you beg, Gabriel Ricci. She exhaled, the sultry thought of the man on his knees in front of her suddenly hiking up the temperature in the room. Alex had to fan herself to cool down.

Along with the idea of finally spending some alone time together, conjuring the image of waking up beside Gabe excited her. Well, if ever this chase between them actually culminates to something.

But why was she following this trail of thought? In all her conquests, she had never stayed for what came after. She had that with Julian, and look how that ended. For her, it was always just for the fun. So why does she suddenly liked the notion with Gabe? She shuddered. Ugh, weird.

Maybe it's because it's taking the long game with him? Alex didn't want to know.

Leaving that for now, she resorted to ordering another shot of patron to drown the remnants of her heated thoughts. On her third glass, Alex heard a familiar voice ordering a shot of bourbon. She swiveled towards it and caught sight of Lina Reyes, the opposing lawyer from the Willow case.

"Fancy meeting you here," Alex smiled lazily, remembering how temptingly attractive she was. She also recalled the offer of a hook-up, which she politely declined out of courtesy.

But now, seems like she's getting another chance. And with Gabe being annoyingly hard to get, Alex had to have fun somewhere else. It's not like she and Gabe was committed, right?

Lina scooted closer to her, smelling of a heady mix of alcohol. "Speaking of fancy, damn. You look more incredible than I can remember, Alex," she teased, provocatively arching her brows at her.

Alex quickly picked up Lina's attempt to flirt, stoking her bruised ego. "Gotta be dressed to impress, right?" she waved her fingers as if in curtsy. "Enjoying the conference?"

"At this point, things tend to devolve quickly. But I do plan to have a nightcap back in my room," Lina smirked, Alex feeling the heel of velvet pumps brushing along her bare leg. "Maybe you could join me?"

The woman wasn't exactly subtle, though Alex had to give props to her for her confidence. She liked that in anyone. So Alex returned the gesture, letting her fingers hover an inch over her arm while batting her eyelashes. Two can play that game.

"I think we should stay here."

Wait, what? Did she just say no? Subconsciously? Did hell just freeze over? Or did her brain left her head?

Both women blinked, unable to determine who's more mortified between them. They were both quiet, until Lina broke the awkwardness by a chuckle.

"Had to try, didn't expect I'd be turned down twice," she said consuming the rest of her drink in one gulp. "Worth it though." she shrugged, ordering another round for herself.

Alex struggled to compose herself, brows furrowed in confusion by how that went down.

"Oh don't be so bothered, you're not my first rodeo." Lina poked at her jokingly, clearing up the air. Alex thanked her, and the conversation went smoothly from there.

Several more drinks in, the two women chatted on, venturing into a variety of topics in law and in love. It didn't take long before Lina started to slur in her words, to which Alex found amusing.

"Looks like someone didn't pace herself," she observed as she sipped her cocktail.

"Ah don't mind me, had to cleanse my palate after all the boring sessions earlier," Lina toasted her glass on hers, wobbling as she shifted to face her. "We are a rare breed, us fighters," she leaned towards Alex, lowering her voice to a whisper. "We like-minded women should just stick together, you know?"

Alex was relieved she turned her down the second time. Barely listening to her, she started to drift off as Lina continued rambling on, turning around to face the crowds as her eyes tried to locate that handsome man. Alex smirked when she found Gabe's sexy outline.

"Lot of ungrateful dipshits being freed from prison, even after we work our asses off proving they deserved an earlier release. Khan, Kozlowski, those celebrities involved with the Ivy League admission scandal? Hell, even small town criminal Cornell was released in the last five years alone!"

And with that last statement, Alex froze. "Say that again?"

Confused, Lina stuttered as if she can't remember what she was saying. To Alex's annoyance, she went silent, apparent that more humiliation was on the way. Lina abruptly stood, covering her mouth with her hand as she sprinted to the bathroom. Alex let her pass.

Assured that she'll be fine with her colleagues flanking her, Alex started to obsess over Lina's last sentence.

Was that just the patron? Or am I getting too drunk and starting to hear things? She asked herself, bewildered at how randomly Lina mentioned a Cornell.

With an exasperated sigh, she decided it wouldn't hurt to check. She pulled out her phone from her purse and fired up a search engine, where she typed in the godforsaken name. Alex tapped enter.

As soon as the results loaded, she felt the world crumble beneath her.

No, no, no, no, no. This fucking didn't happen.

She clicked on one of the articles from a local news outlet. The picture beneath the headline shoving her nightmares front and center. There it was, the title written in bold stated loud and clear: Cornell Son Gets Early Release.

Alex bit her lip as she fought to gather herself together, speed reading through the article. This was definitely a surprise, but what really got her reeling was the figure of a man walking behind Maximilian. She'd pick up who that was from anywhere within a mile radius.

Alex tried to keep herself rational, but the shock rippled through her, enough to shake off the alcohol in her system. And why did her stomach churned like she was punched in the gut a hundred times over? Why did she felt fucking betrayed?

Unexpectedly, she knew it wasn't discovering Cornell was now walking freely in the streets.

Deep down, Alex was aware it was because Gabe Ricci was involved. Either way, it looks like her high and mighty boss has some explaining to do.

Her blood boiled, a myriad of questions went through her mind. Resolute, she wanted those damn questions answered. Tonight.

She downed her drink and slammed the empty glass on the bar, sending a text to draw Gabe's attention.

She looked over where he stood, watching the frown in his face as he read her message. She clicked her head, beckoning him outside.

Even he can't fathom the fire storm that was about to come his way.

Author's Notes 2: Thank you for your continued reading! 💖 How do you think things will go down next? Let me see your reactions on your comments and reblogs!

Tag list: @adiehardfan @pixelnutrookie @starryjieun @latinagiraffe @sarcastic01lily @spookycolorpeanut @ophrookie @suitfer @thegreentwin @mkatschoicesblog @made-of-roses @lillijill

@choicesficwriterscreations

[solohux]

Random prompt, but we have so much about brothers Techie & Armitage—what about a third brother?? Kylo knows Techie, so when he hears that there is a third Hux (ffs) who is some sort of a gardener (but I'm thinking on a massive scale and potentially with some cutting edge genetic modification tech) in charge of supplying the FO, he thinks the guy will be like Techie, just w plants instead of tech. (1/2)

 (2/2) And then he meets Thomas 'would definitely transport cute garden critters on a planet and then blow it up' Hux. (Is Kylo smitten or horrified? I don't even know! But let's be real Thomas & Armitage are basically twins)

I switched up the dynamics of Hux and Kylo’s relationship because it felt easier for me to write. I hope that’s okay!

“You seem absent tonight.”

Kylo breaks his kiss with Hux to voice his concern aloud to his lover and finds the same distant, occupied with something else that doesn’t involve giving Kylo attention.

“Hm? Oh, I’m sorry, Ren,” Hux says, but Kylo has already climbed off of him and now lies beside him in their bed, propped up on his side.

“Something on your mind?” Kylo’s fingers graze over Hux’s bare tummy, hoping that he’ll become the something that clearly has all of Hux’s thoughts right now.

“My brother.”

Kylo scoffs, “You’re thinking of your brother whilst we were kissing?”

“No,” Hux rolls his eyes and gives his love a playful slap on the leg. “I’m worried about him.”

“What’s wrong with Techie?”

“You mean Tiarnán.”

“No. I mean Techie. You’re the only person who calls him by his actual name. He likes his nickname.”

“Irrelevant,” Hux shrugs. “I’m his older brother, I’ll call him by his name. But no, I’m not worried about Techie.”

“But,” the Knight frowns, “You said you were worried about your brother.”

“I am. Just…not that brother.”

“What?” Kylo sits up in bed, mouth open in shock. “You have another brother?”

“An older brother, yes” Hux pushes himself up and rests his back against the headboard, ruffling his hair anxiously. “I’m the middle child.”

“That explains so much,” Kylo mutters to himself so Hux doesn’t hear him. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“He doesn’t associate himself with the Hux name,” Hux explains. “So he likes to keep his relation to me a secret, but we look almost identical so he works off-ship on the base on Felucia.”

“What does he do?”

“He makes cutting edge bioweapons.”

“Shit. And why are you worried about him?”

“He’s coming to visit tomorrow to pick up some pollen samples we collected on our last away mission. And Techie doesn’t get along with him.”

Kylo frowns. He finds that hard to believe, seeing as Techie Hux is the opposite of his older brother in almost every way, including having an ability to make friends and a conscientious attitude to be kind to everyone.

“Why not?” Kylo asks, resting an elbow on his knee and putting his chin in his palm, intrigued. “Techie gets along with everyone.”

“Let’s just say that Thomas doesn’t like animals—”

“Thomas?”

“Oh. My brother.”

“Thomas? Huh.”

“What, Kylo?”

“Why does he have a boring name and you’re Armitage and Techie is Tiernán?”

Hux rolls his eyes, “Thomas isn’t his real name. It’s an alias. He doesn’t want the name that our father gave him so he took his own. Not a great choice, in my opinion but he likes it.”

“Right,” Kylo says, knowing more than anyone that shedding an old name can feel like a weight has been lifted from your shoulders. “So, he doesn’t like animals?”

Hux shakes his head, “And Techie loves them. On more than one occasion, Thomas—uh—disposed of Techie’s pets in front of him.”

“Fuck.”

“So,” Hux folds his arms across his chest. “You can see why I’m worried about Thomas’s visit tomorrow. He’s already said that he’s excited to see his two younger brothers after so many years but what if he upsets Techie? The poor lad has come so far out of his shell and I do not want Thomas to put him back down.”

“Maybe if you meet Thomas on his own first and tell him to be nice.”

“Amazing plan, Kylo,” Hux laughs. “No wonder you’re famous for your strategic advice.”

“I’m trying to help you and your dysfunctional family. If you don’t want him to be mean to Techie then don’t let him be mean to Techie. You’re Grand Marshal.”

“I’m also his younger brother.”

“So?”

“How can I order him around?”

“You do it to everyone else with no problem. Even me, and I’m your Supreme Leader.”

“You’re my Supreme pain in the arse.”

Kylo smirks before leaping on Hux and tackling him back to the bedsheets with a fervent kiss. This time, Hux seems more attentive, more focussed on Kylo; the Thomas issue doesn’t arise again for the rest of the night.

And the next thing that Kylo knows, he’s standing beside Hux in the hangar bay, watching a moss-covered Imperial shuttle come into landing. The Grand Marshal is tense; Kylo doesn’t need the Force to be able to sense it. It’s evident to anyone by the way that Hux’s shoulder are raised and the way he’s wearing his gold-embellished greatcoat—one that only comes out of the protective casing in his closet on very special occasions.

“Relax,” Kylo mutters. “He’s your brother.”

“You don’t know him like I do. He’s a little…intense. He has a love for killing things. And he has some abandonment issues.”

“So do you,” Kylo huffs, chuckling. “Hux. He sounds more like your twin than your older sibling—ow!”

Kylo’s toe pains where Hux has just stomped on it, and the former wears a satisfied smirk on his face but before Kylo can retaliate, the shuttle’s door lowers and outsteps a tall, lean man with perfectly-groomed brown hair. He’s dressed in standard First Order uniform, not a crease to be seen; he’d give Hux’s sense of neatness a good run for its money.

“Armitage,” Thomas greets, halting in front of his brother. Kylo glances from one to the other. Hux was right; other than the hair colour, Thomas and Hux are practically identical.

“Thomas,” Hux offers his hand. Thomas takes it, and formally shakes it. “You’re looking well.”

“So are you, Grand Marshal. I never congratulated you on the promotion.”

“A sore point, I’m sure,” Hux smiles. “I know how much you desire to be the top of your field.”

“And are you the top?” Thomas asks, turning his attention to Kylo.

“Excuse me?” Kylo can’t help but blush.

“I mean, are you Supreme Leader Ren? The man at the top.”

“I am,” Kylo says. “And your brother’s partner.”

“Charmed. Where’s Techie?”

“He’ll be meeting us later,” Hux says, showing Thomas the way to the labs. “We’ll get your ship cleaned in the meantime.”

“Yes,” Thomas raises an eyebrow. “Harrods could use a little bit of a clean-up but I quite like the effect of the moss.”

“Harrods?” Kylo asks.

Thomas smiles dreamily, “It’s the name of my ship.”