#and a whole coffee shop/college au i want to write for too

[buckys-wintersoldier]

Summer of love | B.B

Just before summer break you think you will spend all day in front of the television with lot of ice cream and even more romantic movies to dream about. Little do you know that your ex-boyfriend’s rival will turn your summer into a dream itself.

Pairing: College!Bucky Barnes x College!Fem!Reader

Wordcount: 11.106 Words

Warnings: college au, football captain Bucky, ex-boyfriend’s rival!Bucky, break up (not Bucky), fluff, love, bit angst, Bucky being emotional, love confession, more fluff, so much more fluff, did I mention: fluff!

Authors Note: The biggest thank you to @thevillainswhore for the title, for helping to decide pictures and proofreading. I’m so grateful and I love you!❤️❤️

Events: Writing Challenge | College Au; saying ‘I love you’ for the first time | @elixirfromthestars

Bucky Barnes Bingo | B023 | Y2 | AU: Sports | @buckybarnesbingo | Seasonal Delights Bingo: Types of love | G5 | unlikely friendship | @seasonaldelightsbingo | Multifandom Flash Bingo: Compliments | Row One-Three | I’ll take that as a compliment | @multifandom-flash

Masterlist | Bucky Barnes Masterlist

Your world broke down when you looked at your phone and saw the message your boyfriend — now ex-boyfriend — sent you. It was just after the last lesson of the day — summer break had started.

You were sure as hell that he was going to fuck every girl that had an interest in him, which were a lot considering he was the captain of one of the college’s football teams.. He was handsome and well trained but his character? Well, that was something you would prefer not to talk about.

John was a nice, gentle boy when the two of you were alone. He took care of you and made you feel loved — most of the time at least. But whenever he was around his friends or anywhere the two of you could be seen together, he kept his distance. He didn’t bother to hold your hand or kiss you in public. When you had dates outside your dorms, it was mostly in small coffee shops or the next town where no one would see you together.

When you repeatedly asked him if he was ashamed,  he would just shake his head and tell you that you overreacted, that he just has to keep his image, he couldn’t  just date anybody. You tried to tell him that other boys show off their girls too but he still kept your relationship as much a secret as possible.

Even though people heard the rumor that the two of you were dating — some of them having seen you —he never made it clear that you belong to him. So you often had the bitchy girls who laughed at you, gave you side eyes or commented on your relationship with John. ‘How fake it was’ — and maybe they were right.

However, while John was probably using his whole summer to have fun and fuck around — having the best time ever — you would probably sit in your room and cry until your eyes burned. He hadn’t treated you as perfect as you wished for, like men do in your romantic books or movies, but he still ripped your heart out and shattered it into tiny little pieces. So, chocolate and lots of ice cream would become your best friends during your summer break, giving you the comfort you so desperately sought. You were sure you wouldn’t find a man who  would love you.

Maybe it wasn't even  that he broke up with you that hurt you so much, but the way he did it — through a message. He didn’t even have enough balls to tell you personally that he was done with you. No, he sent it as a message — two messages in fact, which now that you thought about it, made you want to punch him in his face. Hard.

You figured that was the reason why he hadn’t told you face to face. Because he didn’t want the backlash of your reaction. You may have been angry, but you would never lay a hand on him — even if he did deserve it. He may have broken your heart but you weren’t a monster. But for now, you were still sitting in school, staring at the message to try and find a little hint that it all was a joke. Your eyes were teary and your vision blurry when you re-read the message over and over again. There had to be a hint that it was a joke. He wouldn’t break up with you, right?

The feeling that John really meant those words settled heavily into your stomach. You inhaled deeply to try and stop your body from shaking. He couldn’t  mean it — he just couldn’t. The two of you were together for two years already and he threw it away like it meant nothing to him. Or maybe the reason he mentioned in his messages is true and he just wanted to have a summer break.

Your eyes roamed over your phone once again. The screen was blurred by your tears but you could still read it. Over and over again but it didn’t change a thing, it only made your thoughts run faster and  louder, but nothing else.

John: Hi, I’ll make it short. Things between us became boring and I know you wouldn’t allow me to have sex with anyone. Even though there wouldn’t be any feelings, I have to break up with you.

John: It’s neither your nor my fault, we just remind me of old people. We’re always doing the same things and I need action. So if you give me the summer break, we can date after the summer again.

He was your first real boyfriend but you didn't want to be second best. That’s exactly what you would be if you went back to him after summer break. He broke your heart, and he hurt you a lot — but that didn’t  mean you were a naive, little fucktoy for him to use becuase it was easy to date you. You never complained much and he always had you when he didn't feel well or frustrated.

And John may have been right that things between the two of you became boring, but he never had time for you in the first place. Everything else was more important and when he did have time for you, it was mostly sex or he came over really late. The dates became very rare, and you just wished he would have had more time for you but you didn’t want to push him or force him either.

You lowered your phone and inhaled deeply. With one hand you wiped the tears off your face, trying to calm down before you felt ready to go home. They all were right, he played with you, or at least he was ashamed to be with you and you never noticed — or just ignored it.

“Whatcha doin’ here?” A rough voice came from next to you and you immediately tilted your head to look at the young man who took a place next to you on a chair. His brown, long hair was tied to a bun, just a few strands fell into his handsome face and framed it. He smiled softly at you, leaning on the table with his head still turned toward you. “Who’s causing those tears?”

His smile slowly faded when he noticed your red eyes and the traces of tears over your cheek. Almost instinctively, he brought one of his hands to your cheeks, cupping it softly. His thumb caressed your cheek, removing the tears. The brown haired man was gentle, his ocean blue eyes pierced into yours and when you finally offered him a soft smile, he grinned at you, again.

“So, who caused this pretty girl to cry at the beginning of summer break,” he asked, his voice rough but so soft. You almost melted into his touch, his warmth sending shivers through your body and you needed a moment to gather your thoughts before you spoke.

“I— my boyfriend or now ex-boyfriend. He sent me a message that he wants to have the summer for himself and after we could date again,” you answered, smiling softly at the man in front of you. He shook his head, knowing that the smile on your lips was nothing but fake, and as much as he loved to see you smile, he didn’t  want you to force one onto your lips to play your hurt off. “What are you doing here still, James?”

James’ eyes widened when his name slipped past your lips. Before he could stop himself, he grinned even wider at you. “Ya know my name, huh, babydoll? I had something to clear up with the coach.”

“Of course, I do. You're one of the most famous boys in college,” you said and he nodded. You weren’t  wrong. Even students who didn’t follow football knew of him too. On the other hand, your ex-boyfriend was James' rival. “You're the captain of the football team, or the captain of one of them. The other is John…”

James nodded again, then he cleared his throat and tilted your head up with his hand that still captured your cheek. “Yeah…” he trailed off slightly. “So, can we get back to ya statement, that he sent ya a message to break up with ya. Ya know that’s how little school boys do it.”

You chuckled softly, nodding. You definitely knew that it wasn’t a nice way to break up with someone you used to love but you couldn’t change it. You let your eyes trail over James' handsome face for a moment, taking in every small detail of his pretty face. You had never been this close to him before and he looked even more stunning up close.

“Ya droolin’, babydoll,” James pointed out and used his pointer finger to close your mouth. Your eyes widened and you wiped over your mouth, growling at him when you didn't feel the saliva. “Jus’ wanted to warn ya before ya make a fool out of ya'self.”

You nodded, glaring at him for a moment longer before you finally found the courage and the words to tell him what was on your mind since he mentioned that John's behavior was kind of childish. You inhaled deeply, letting your eyes wander back to his beautiful blue ones. Your tongue poked out, wetting your lips and you noticed with a giggle that James eyes immediately darted down to your lips.

“It's not the only shitty thing he did,” you mumbled. James' eyes widened in curiosity. He didn’t  want to push you to tell him, but he would have loved to hear what his rival was like when he had such a pretty girl like you by his side. “He said we became boring, and that's neither mine nor his fault. Maybe he is right, but he never had time, it was mostly about sex, or nights together but otherwise he was always busy.”

You weren’t even sure why you told James about that but he was the only one who seemed curious and you just hoped he wouldn't use it against you. If anything, he would probably only use it against John.

James nodded, his eyes narrowed and he looked away for a moment. His hand never left your cheek and it gave you more comfort than you thought it would. But you were glad he sat down next to you and used his time to let you talk about John, offering you the comfort you were seeking so badly. When he looked back at you, his eyes glistened with something you had never seen before but it made you feel warm and safe with him.

“What a shame, with such a pretty girl by his side too…” he mumbled more to himself. “Did he at least introduce ya to his friends and family? The two of ya were together for over two years, right?”

You nodded slightly, definitely surprised by James' knowledge of your and John's relationship. “Yes but he didn't introduce me to his family. I know his friends but not really, he always tried to meet up when no one else was around.”

“So….” James trailed off, he already knew the answer but he wanted to hear it again — he wanted to hear that John was a dick who couldn't treat his girlfriend like a man but like a school boy. His ocean blue eyes were piercing into yours again, his lips were slightly curled up. “He didn't show you off — neither to his family, nor to his friends, when possible — not to the world?”

You shook your head. “N-No, not once… his friends saw us together maybe once or twice but we never went to their birthdays together. I-I was invited too, but John said I wouldn't like it there so he already told them I wasn’t interested in coming to their parties.”

“Dickhead,” James mumbled under his breath. His eyes never left yours and he inhaled deeply. “He's an idiot.”

You shrugged, smiling softly. But as much as you tried to hide the pain, it didn’t work with Bucky looking at you so intensely like he could read your soul. His fingers still caressed your cheek, two of them moving to your jaw and wandering along to your chin and back to your ear. “It's not that much of a big deal…”

James huffed with an amused expression on his face, shaking his head slightly. The few strands that hung in his face moved with his head from side to side. You wanted to wrap them around your fingers and play with his brown strands. “Oh, ya don't know how much of a big deal that is when a boy doesn't show off his girl by his side. If ya were mine, I would show you off to everyone — would make sure everyone knows you belong to me. I would even kiss ya in public, so everyone would know that this pretty girl is mine — would show ya off to everyone! Whatever ya ask for, wish for, it would be yours so ya know how much I care about ya.”

“What if—“ you thought for a moment before speaking your thoughts out loud. “If I would ask for the world, or for the stars? You can’t give them to me.” You chuckled softly, your heart beat faster when you heard his words. But at the same time you knew that he couldn’t give you everything. As much as a person loves someone, no one can give one the world, or the stars right?

“Trust me, babydoll, if you asked me for the world, I would get it for you. You want the stars? Oh, babydoll, you would get even those. A man has to carry his princess in his hands or else he isn’t worth her attention and love,” James said, he let his hand travel from your cheek to your chin. He tilted your head up with his hand underneath your chin, getting all of your attention. “How about that… ya put your stuff into ya bag. And then I invite ya to get ice cream with me.”

James pulled your stuff closer and waited patiently for you to put it into your bag. He leaned back in his seat, his ocean blue eyes roaming over your body, mostly over your face. You put your things into your bag, his offer is too good to say no. With one smooth movement you closed the zipper of your bag.

You got off, and swung the bag to carry it over your shoulder but James grasped it with one hand and took it out of your hand. With a smirk he got up as well and walked towards the door of the classroom, waiting for you to follow him.

“Whatcha looking like that? Ya comin’ or want to stay there all day?” He grinned at you. With his free hand, he tucked a strand of his long, brown hair behind his ear. “Told ya, a man has to carry his girl in his hands, now get ya pretty ass over here or I’m gonna eat all the ice cream by myself.”

Your mouth dropped open at his words, clearly to his amusement. You walked toward him, closing your mouth slowly before you reached for your bag but James turned to the side and trapped it between him and the door. He smirked at you, holding his hand into the direction he wanted you to walk. James' slightly raised eyebrow gave you no room to argue with him.

“You don’t know if my ass is pretty, maybe you don’t like it,” you said with a shrug. James waited a moment before he followed you, his eyes roaming down your back to your swinging hips and your ass. He had to hold back a moan as a response to your beauty and the way your hips swayed from one side to the other.

He then walked through the hallway, following you until he walked next to you. “Ya have the most beautiful ass I’ve ever seen. But I couldn't have imagined it otherwise, ya’re the prettiest girl.”

It wasn’t like he had checked out a lot of girls, almost none since he had a crush on someone. James couldn’t look at another girl the same anymore after he fell in love, it felt like he had cheated and he didn’t like the feeling, even though the girl didn’t even know he was in love with her.

“Do you have a girlfriend, James? I mean, you're a football captain, handsome, nice. You should go to her instead of getting ice cream with your rival's ex-girlfriend,” you asked, curious about the captain's answer. You didn’t know much about him, he wasn’t a playboy — that was for sure. You had only seen him fielding once with a girl, maybe it was just talking to her.

“No girlfriend. Have a crush on someone but she doesn’t know about it,” he said with a shrug and opened the front door to let you walk outside first. You thanked him, feeling butterflies in your stomach about such a small but meaningful gesture. “Ya can call me Bucky. Most of my friends call me Bucky.”

“Okay, then, Bucky, who don’t you tell her?” A groan left his plump lips and you giggled softly. That was the topic every guy tried to avoid when he talked to girls. But since it was just you and him, he would maybe tell you more about her. “You look good but don’t talk to girls, that’s definitely a good thing when it comes to girls.”

Bucky nodded. He knew what girls liked and what they didn’t like — mostly because of his friends in the team who had girlfriends. He was not just once in the middle of an argument where he had to assure the girl that the team went out without other girls.

“I know, but ya know. Don’t think she even noticed me.” Bucky said, leading you to his car. His big hand had found its way to the small of your back after you had left the building with him. His hand was warm and comforting.

“How can someone not notice you? You’re the captain of the football team.” You were almost shocked about his statement. Everyone who wasn’t completely new in school knew about the captains of the teams — mostly even knew about the other members of the team. They were all pretty handsome and the typical guy girls read in books when they tried to make their perfect boyfriend in their minds.

“Because not everyone likes football? Some people ignore us too,” Bucky said. He opened his car, letting you sit before he shut the door and walked around the car, getting into it as well. He had a dark blue Jeep, it was clean and you were surprised that it was really that clean.

Bucky was a college boy, a football college boy. So you thought he would have a messy car, but instead it was even cleaner than yours would probably be.

“You really love that car?” You earned a nod, followed by a chuckle. Bucky's cheeks heated up and he wanted to hit his head against the steering wheel, he made a fool out of himself with you being so close to him.

“Yeah, don’t like it messy. Ya, don’t look at me like that, I know whatcha wanted to say!” Bucky laughed, starting the car to drive the two of you to his favorite ice shop. “You will love the ice there, they have more flavors than you can imagine.”

The two of you stayed silent for a moment, both stuck in your minds and thoughts. Your eyes were focused on Bucky while he was focused on the street. Even though he didn’t turn his head, he watched you out of the corner of his eye, smirking to himself when he noticed that you stared at him once again.

After a few minutes you cleared your throat, getting him to turn his face for a moment toward you. Bucky offered you a soft smile before his eyes darted back to the street, but he was still letting you know that he listens to you with a hum.

“Why are you doing this for me? I mean, you don’t know me and I’m just the pathetic ex-girlfriend of your rival,” you asked, smacking yourself mentally for even asking that. But you didn’t want him to do that for you because he felt pity.

“I will tell ya at the end of the summer break,” he said, his eyes finding yours once again. He could see the way you were looking at him, that there was more behind the question than just curiosity. “You’re not a burden and I don’t do it because I feel pity for you, so get those thoughts out of your pretty mind immediately, babydoll.”

You chuckled, eyes still remaining on Bucky while he drove the two of you to the ice cream shop he loved so much. Little did you know, it was also your favorite one, only when you arrived did your eyes widen and you stared at Bucky with an excited glisten in your eyes. He grinned at you, getting out of the car to almost run around so he could open the door for you, while you stared at the shop with a huge grin on your face.

“My lady,” Bucky smirked and offered you his hand to take. He helped you get out of the car, his lips curled even further up when he noticed that you couldn’t take your eyes off the ice cream shop. “Like that?”

“I—” you trailed off, letting your eyes wander to meet Bucky's ocean blue ones. You smirked at him, raising an eyebrow before clearing your throat to hide the excitement. Even though you were pretty sure Bucky knew how excited you were already. “I don't just like it… I LOVE IT. That's my favorite ice cream shop!”

You had always wanted to go here with John, but he would just shake his head and tell you that the one closer to your apartment was just as good or that this one was too expensive for just ice cream. He wasn't wrong, it wasn’t as cheap as other smaller ones. But the others didn’t have that amount of different ice creams and they didn’t taste as good as they did in your favorite ice cream shop.

Bucky nodded, taking your hand into his and interlacing your fingers. His grip was firm but so comforting that you didn’t even think about removing your hand from his. The two of you walked then slowly to the entrance of the little building. It wasn’t as full as you thought it would be, even a few tables were free and you already looked around to find the best place before you had even decided which ice cream you wanted.

“You already know what you want?” Bucky asked and got your attention back. He had already pulled you toward the counter, greeting the woman behind it. The brown haired man didn’t offer her the smile he showed you, she only got a small grin which didn't even reach his sparkling eyes. The moment his eyes landed on you, his eyes were even softer and his smile bigger, lighting up the blue in his eyes. “You can have as many as you want.”

“I know I'm gonna pay for my ice cream myself.” You mumbled and looked at all the different ones to decide which ones you wanted. Bucky grunted, he would definitely pay for the ice cream, he wouldn't have asked you if he let you pay for it yourself. He nodded slowly, glaring at the woman behind the counter, letting her know that he would pay. You looked up at her, smiling softly. “I—”

You stuttered when you tried to decide if you really wanted those flavors or different but then you let her finally know which you wanted. Your eyes wandered to Bucky, who had a mischievous grin on his face and you rolled your eyes, letting your head fall against his shoulder and looked up at him.

“You won't let me pay for my ice cream, right?” He shook his head, looking down at you with the most intense but softest expression you had ever seen on someone's face. You were not sure what there was between you and him but it gave you the comfort you were always looking for — you didnt really know him but it felt like you had known him forever already.

“I asked you out, so I'm gonna pay. No discussion, just get your ice cream and get us a table,” Bucky said and leaned his head against yours for a moment until the woman behind the counter gave you your ice cream and you did as you were told after mumbling a soft ‘thank you’ into Bucky's shoulder.

— —

The first few days of summer break you spent in your apartment, wrapped into a blanket and watching a lot of movies while eating even more ice cream. But instead of crying your eyes out, you had company from your — now — best friend. After your ice cream date with Bucky the two of you walked through the park until the sun went down and even then you two had so much more to talk about — so you offered to meet him the next day. And that's exactly what the two of you did, since then you met every day.

Bucky always brought you small presents and gave you a lot of compliments. You could stand in front of him in a dress or in your pajamas with messy hair — he always told you how beautiful and stunning you were. You first didn't believe him, thinking it was just a joke but whenever you looked into his ocean blue eyes, there was nothing but the truth and love visible.

Today he asked you to go out with him again. He had a surprise and who were you to say no to such a sweet and gentle man? Bucky didn’t just help you to forget about John, but he also showed you what love and affection really meant. He wasn’t afraid to show you off to the world, even though you were not his girl, yet.

“Babydoll, are ya ready?” he asked, peeking through the door of your bedroom with a smirk. Bucky knew that you were at least dressed, otherwise he wouldn't look without permission. When his eyes met yours you blushed softly but shook your head.

Bucky's eyes widened, he then narrowed them and took a step into your bedroom. You looked so perfect in your outfit — just like always, so why weren’t you ready? He noticed the slight struggle in your eyes when he let his roam over your body. Without a word he understood what was stopping you from being ready for your date with him.

Bucky walked closer, his arms reaching out and pulling you toward him. He snook his arms around your waist, pressing his broad chest against your back before he turned the two of you around so you were looking at the two of you in the mirror. “You're beautiful, look at ya. Ya’re the most beautiful and I'm honored that you allow me to take ya out. Don't ya think you look pretty?”

You swallowed thickly. Bucky looked stunning, always so perfectly fine and every girl was staring at him. He could have anyone and the feelings you developed slowly for him didn’t 

 help your running thoughts — they only made it worse. Especially because John had never asked you out like that, he never wanted to show you off to anyone. But Bucky acted like you were the only girl in the world — little did you know, in his world you were the only one.

“Y-You're so pretty…” You mumbled, causing Bucky to chuckle into your neck. He had his head placed on your shoulder, staring at you in his arms through the mirror with a smile. He wouldn’t leave the room, not until he’s sure it was what you wanted too — otherwise he would just carry you into the living room and cuddle with you all night. “You're so perfect, stunning. Every girl is always staring at you, and you could have them all… And I am just me.”

“Ya don't understand, do ya? I don't care who is looking at me, they can look all they want,” Bucky said into your neck, trying to hold himself back so he wouldn’t confess everything. “Do ya remember the day where we went the first time to the ice cream shop? Ya said it ya’self, that I'm not a playboy. Let them look, they aren't out with me, are they? Plus the thing I’ve planned for the two of us is just ya and me.”

He wanted to say so much more, but he just couldn’t. At least not right now, it wasn’t that he didn’t mean it or is scared, but he wanted to prove it all to you, before he made the next step. Bucky wanted you to see that he meant everything he said and then — then he would do the next step with you.

You nodded softly, letting Bucky lead you out of the bedroom. His arms were still around your waist, his chest pressed against your back while the two of you walked through the floor toward your living room to pick up your phone and his bag.

“Do you trust me, babydoll?” With a soft smirk you turned your head to face Bucky, nodding slightly once again. “Then trust me that you're stunning and you are you but that's the point, that's what makes you special. You make yourself special.”

Bucky’s expression was soft but serious. You didn’t have words, knowing that he meant every single word he said without doubt.

“T-thank you,” you mumbled, sending a shiver through Bucky’s body. He adored the way you reacted whenever he made a compliment, so shy and just cute.

He led you to his car, still being such a gentleman and when you first thought it was just to impress you, you were now pretty sure that Bucky was always like that around someone he likes. He didn’t promise you too much when he said that a man had to carry his girl in his hands — you may not have been his girl but he did it anyway.

As much as you tried to find out where the two of you were going, he didn't tell you. Bucky was good at changing topics when it came to a surprise and you didn't get the tiniest of information out of him.

Bucky kept his soft smile the whole time while he drove the car through the streets of the town, you were pretty sure you sometimes drove in circles so he could confuse you because everything looked alike. When he stopped the car in a quiet, almost empty parking space.

“So, ya can either close ya eyes and promise me to keep them close, or I’m gonna use that pretty scarf to cover ya eyes until we’re there.” He held a soft, fluffy scarf in front of him and you trusted him enough that he wouldn’t let you run against something. You knew you would try to sneak, so you had to decide that Bucky should use the scarf to cover your eyes.

“I- maybe… I won’t sneak?” You giggled, it didn't sound serious enough for Bucky so he just wrapped the soft fabric around your head and tied it together. You felt his warm breath against your cheek, your breath hitched and you dug your fingers into your thighs, trying to calm the butterflies in your stomach.

“So, how many fingers do you see?” Bucky chuckled, leaning back to hold his hands in front of your face. Instead of fingers he made a heart with his hands, smirking at you.

Your chuckle brought him back to reality, his eyes shot from your lips back to your covered eyes and he waited for an answer. “Mhm…. Three?” You giggled, not seeing anything because of the scarf in front of your eyes.

“Guess again,” he smirked, letting his hand fall down before he got out of the car. Bucky walked around, opening the door for you to help you out as well. He took care that you didn’t hit your head somewhere. “We are walking a bit but it’s not far, and I promise I won’t let you run into something.”

With that he wrapped his arms around your waist from behind, pulling you tight against his chest to make sure he had control where to go and that you wouldn’t fall or hurt yourself somewhere.

You had never trusted someone before that much that you would have let them cover your eyes and lead you somewhere. But with Bucky it felt different, you knew that — you felt it — that he would never do anything where you could be in danger or hurt yourself. You trusted him with everything, and you used every opportunity to show him just that.

Bucky led you a bit, holding you firmly pressed against him. His fingers played with the fabric of your dress, tickling you softly. “Don’t squirm, babydoll.”

“Then don’t tickle me,” you giggled, trying to get away from his tickles. Bucky laughed, pulling you even closer but stopped tickling you.

“Can’t keep my hands to myself when it causes such sweet noises from you,” he mumbled into your neck. The two of you walked a bit further and when you inhaled deeply you smelt some flowers but also water. You didn’t know where you were, but it had to be pretty because Bucky told you that he had never brought people there with him before.

When Bucky stopped he took a step backwards, one of his hands remaining on you, while he untied the scarf around your head. The soft fabric fell down your face and you caught one side of it with your hands, the other was stuck in Bucky’s big hand.

You needed a moment to get used to the sun but when you opened your eyes and looked around your mouth drops open. Bucky had brought a blanket and food there. In front of you was also a small lake surrounded by trees and some floors in front of it. It was the most beautiful place you had ever seen.

“B-Bucky…” you said quietly, turning your head to face Bucky. He grinned at you, his eyes shining beautiful in the light of the sun combined with the way he smiled at you. He was proud of himself for making you happy and impressed with such a small gesture. “This is… it’s amazing. I love it, it’s so beautiful.”

He let go of you to take a step away, taking out his phone. He opeed the camera and turned around, pulling you in front of him, his arm wrapping protectively around your waist as he snapped a photo of the two of you. Only when he showed you the photo did you notice why he took a step to the side — it now showed everything, the trees, the flowers, the lake, the blanket with the food and the two of you with a huge smile across your faces.

“Ya know, it’s my new background now,” Bucky explained as he made it his new background. Now you were smiling at him every time he turned his phone on. And everyone knew you were his.

You smiled, already decided that you were going to use that or a picture you would take of him or him and you as background as well. It was such a sweet idea and you would love to look at him whenever you looked at your phone.

“Now sit down. I made the cake myself!” Bucky said with a proud smirk on his face as he pointed at the cake. It was your favorite one, you told him about it and you already noticed that it just looked like the description you gave him.

“You’re the best.” With a giggle you sat down, Bucky did the same, taking a seat next to you and offering you some food and drinks.

The cake was perfect, just like you described it and you wouldn’t have know better, you would have guessed he bought it from a baker. You suggested that Bucky could become a baker, he would be rich in no time. But he just chuckled and shook his head.

His eyes roamed over your face before he looked into your eyes once again. He was the first person you didn’t mind staring into one another’s eyes for hours. “I’m only baking for my best girl.”

Your cheeks heated up and you had to look away. You were still not used to all his compliments and sweet words. And Bucky used every opportunity to make you blush, loving the way you smiled shyly at him before you had to look away for a moment. But then, you couldn’t even look away for long, and he adored the effect he had on you, he could spend all day just watching you giggle and blushing. Bucky wouldn’t mind listening to you all day either, as long as it was you who was around.

The two of you sat there, talking about everything and nothing. You had never laughed that much with someone like you did with Bucky. He knew all your weaknesses and strengths, the two of you hadn’t even talked for over two weeks but he was your best friend already. The only one you knew you could be completely honest and open around, he could read you like a book anyway.

When the sun went down, you were sitting between Bucky's legs, your back pressed against his chest. He drew small circles on your stomach while you watched the sunset. It was the most beautiful yellow followed by red until it was only the clouds that were still painted in a slight pink before it became dark around you.

You shivered lightly in Bucky arms, pressing yourself further against him. With a smirk he removed his hands from you, grasping his bag. “I have a present for ya,” he told you before he placed his bag in front of you. “Open it.”

Your slightly shaking hands opened the zipper of his backpack and your eyes narrowed when you saw just some fabric inside until you noticed what it was. Your eyes widened when you tilted your head slightly and took it out of the bag. In your hands you held a hoodie, and it wasn’t just one. It was Bucky’s football hoodie, where his number and his name were big on the back. You pulled it closer, burying your face in his hoodie and inhaling his scent. Bucky chuckled, he looked at you like a puppy in love — and he was exactly that. “Y-You give me your hoodie?”

Bucky leaned his head on your shoulder, nodding. “If ya want to. Ya can also have another one or just for yet so ya won't freeze. But actually I thought I would love the sight of my name on ya back.”

Sometime at the start of the summer break, the two of you made that unwritten plan to spend all the time together. You never asked him if you could spend some more time, neither did he. He just took you out, making sure you wanted to but slowly he had the feeling you could have moved into his apartment with him. He knew he hugged you all the time, made sure you’re happy and the urge to tell you about his true feelings got bigger with every day.

But as much as he wanted to tell you — he didn’t want to do it just yet. He wanted to give you the whole summer break to see that he didn’t have the intention to get into bed with you. Bucky wanted you to see that you were worth so much more than what John was willing to give you. Bucky wanted to show you what real love meant, he wanted you to crave him just as much as he craved you.

This night Bucky spent at your apartment, he made pudding for the two of you. The two of you were wrapped in a blanket together and he held you as close as possible. You had the best sleep in years, knowing that Bucky would be still there in the morning when you woke up. And you were right, he had you pulled onto him, your head resting on his chest and you listened to his steady heartbeat. His heartbeat and his scent had such a calming effect on you, and you used every opportunity to be as close to him as possible. His arms, his embrace felt like home.

His morning voice was the hottest you could imagine, it was slightly rougher than his usual and it sent shivers down your spine every time. Bucky almost moved into your apartment with time, he brought most of his stuff like clothes so he could spend all day and all night with you. And even though he allowed you to take his clothes if you wanted, he didn't realise he would have to wash them so often because you stopped wearing yours. So you both wore Bucky clothes — you offered him to wear yours and he once tried a dress of yours.

You took a picture of him, making it your new background. Or it was more a picture of the thick, muscular football captain in a red dress of yours, while you wore the hoodie with his name and number on his back. The two of you stood in front of the table, your chest pressed against Buckys, while he held the phone and took the picture.

As much as you loved to go out with Bucky, you also loved the times when it was just the two of you. Bucky was a perfect cook and baker. So he either cooked for the two of you or you did it together, same went for baking.

The two of you ended up as snowmen one time, it started with you accidentally blowing the flour at Bucky. He then took way too much flour and let it fall down over your head with a huge grin across his face. Little did he know that you would grab the whole bowl and throw it at him. His reaction was to run away and into the wall by accident so he was trapped between the wall and the fridge.

It was a lot to clean, especially because Bucky hugged you and was smearing all the flour he had on his clothes on yours. You were sure you could have baked a whole cake with the amount of flour the two of you used for our little snowman action.

But the most special moment for you was two weeks before school started again. Your best friend has asked you out so often, you made trips together and spent every minute together. But when he asked you to come to Steve's birthday your mouth dropped open and you didn’t know how to respond. Of course, you would have loved to but John never wanted to have you around his friends — around his team. And Steve was one of Bucky's football team members, so there would be a lot of other people too. With a lot of assurance from Bucky you agreed and there you were now.

Bucky stood with his big hand on the small of your back next to you, looking down. The two of you were in front of Steve's house and you knew that you could still say no and Bucky would have immediately drove you back home. “I-I… Are you sure you want to be seen with me, Bucky?”

His eyes widened and he narrowed them. His hand wandered up to your shoulders to turn you toward him. His other hand settled itself on your chin and made you look directly into his intense blue eyes. “I'm more than sure that I want everyone to see us together. Babydoll, I’m not ashamed of ya, but if ya don't feel comfortable we can go home and watch movies.”

Home. You could go home. Yours, Buckys. It was more than just your apartment now, it was everything because even Bucky called it home.

“N-No, I think I can do that,” you mumbled nodding with a soft smile. You inhaled deeply, feeling Bucky's big hand take yours and interlacing your fingers with his. He then leaned down and kissed your cheek softly. You felt a shiver run down your spine, you were so in love with him but too shy to tell him — it would maybe ruin your friendship so you just enjoyed him being so close to you.

“If ya want to go home, ya gonna tell me,” Bucky said, his voice soft but leaving no room for discussion. So you nodded once again. Bucky smirked at you, knocking at the door which swung open almost immediately. The man grinning at the two of you was just as big as Bucky, his hair was way shorter and blond. His eyes were as blue as Buckys and you looked him up and down for a moment.

“Thought you won’t like to come in,” Steve said with a chuckle, letting both of you walk into his house. His eyes roamed over his friend, then over you until he noticed your interlaced fingers. Bucky squeezed your hand even more, pulling slightly  you closer to him with a raised eyebrow at Steve.

They both have a moment of silent communication. Steve knew what was going on, he knew who you were. Not because you were John's ex-girlfriend. He knew you because of Bucky, who just couldn’t stop looking at you. The two men had a lot of talks, where Bucky just needed to tell him about you, that he had to have you and that he was so fucking in love with you.

“Happy Birthday,” you said after a moment, getting both men's attention. Steve smiled at you nodding.

“Thank you. Now get inside, the others can't wait to get to know ya girl, Buck,” Steve said and walked in front of the two of you. He knew that Bucky was going to mention that you were not his girl — at least not yet — but you were his best friend. To Steve's surprise the statement never came, and Bucky just grinned down at you, his eyes shining when he led you through the hallway to the living room where the others were.

“Ya don’t mind him calling ya my girl, do ya?” Bucky asked, knowing that you didnt mind it. None of the two of you had ever said those three words yet, but he knew you felt the same for him. Bucky had seen you shivering and giggling enough whenever someone mentioned that you and Bucky were a couple. But he also noticed the soft, sad flash across your face when someone did, knowing that you were scared to fully give in to your feelings without having any voices in your mind that told you you were not worth it.

You just didn’t understand that you were everything for Bucky. You always were, you always would be. But you were sometimes stuck in your mind, thinking about all the girls who looked better than you — all the ones he could have. And then you didn’t notice that he didn’t m care about a single one of them, for Bucky it was just you. You were his one and you Would always  be his one — he would spend his lifetime to make sure you understood that there could be everyone but he only wanted you.

“I don't mind that,” you giggled, following Steve further into the living room. ‘I actually love it when people notice that I belong to you’.

Every pair of eyes was on you and Bucky when you walked into the room. Some of them were curious, some of them had an expression on their faces like ‘knew it, pal’. Through the whole evening and night Bucky introduced you to everyone with a proud smile. His hands were always somewhere on you, either around your waist or holding your hand.

His teammates were really nice, they were interested in you. And you had a lot of fun with them all, no one was mean and even the girls — mostly girlfriends of the other boys — were nice. They never looked at you with judgeful expression but they talked and laughed with you. No jealousy, no hate — just fun and a bunch of new friends.

You never would have thought it would feel amazing to be shown off by a man who owned your heart. But with Bucky it felt just perfect.

After the party you spent a few more nights with Bucky and the others, they became your friends and everyone knew that the two of you really needed to confess your love for one another. Most of the time Bucky was either hugging you from behind or you were sitting on his lap. There was no just you or just Bucky — it was always you and Bucky.

The weekend before college started again Bucky had to go to his apartment again. He called you every night, sleeping with you on the phone or he just watched you half of the night because he still couldn't keep his eyes off of you. Heeas addicted to you, you were like his air — he needed you to live.

So while he had some talks with the team and the coach and also organized all of his school stuff, you did the same. Most of the time you wrote him messages and waited for his response. Until the sunday before school, where you felt like your heart was ripped out of your chest.

John: Hey, I'm sorry I broke up with you. It was a shit decision and I couldn’t stop thinking about you all summer break. I love you.

John: I know you love me too. You know there is no one who loves you, they all just play with you. You're pretty but they only want to fuck you, come back to me and let me make it better this time.

Sobs and tears wrecked your body, you couldn’t  believe him. He hadn’t  tried to talk to you the whole summer break and suddenly he wanted you back. And maybe he was right, no one else showed any interest in you, only John. But now you had Bucky, who spent all summer break with you, he showed you what it meant to be loved even though he was ‘just’ your best friend. Bucky could have asked to have sex with you the whole time but he never did, he just wanted to cuddle, to see you happy, so maybe John was wrong and there was someone who loved you without just wanting to have sex.

Bucky wrote you a few — a lot of messages — and tried to call you but you didn’t answer him. Maybe he wanted to tell you that he had enough of you, that he was going to be happier with someone else. You didn’t want him to hear your broken voice and you didn’t want him to see your tears because of John's messages.

You didn’t love him anymore, but the voices in your mind — the ones John could control so perfectly — screamed at you, that he was right. So you just wrapped yourself into a blanket and watched all the movies Bucky loved, making your heart ache even more, especially when his scent came into your nose whenever you moved because of the hoodie you were wearing – his hoodie.

Bucky told you that he would be busy all day with the coach and the team but it didn't stop him from sending one after another message, calling you every hour until he started to speak messages on your voicemail.

Bucky: Hi, babydoll. How are you? Just checking after you before the next meeting starts, would prefer to be cuddled up with you.

Bucky: Are you okay? Do you need anything?

Bucky: I asked the coach to make it short so I can come over but he has a lot more shit for us to do, I'm sorry.

Bucky: Fuck, are you alright?

Bucky: Please, answer me. I come over!

You read the messages but never opened the chat. Tears streamed down your cheeks while you stared at your background and the incoming messages. 10 missed calls: Bucky. You just couldn’t bring yourself to answer him, to tell him what was going on and you knew you couldn't find an excuse to tell Bucky.

Around half an hour later Bucky knocked at your door, calling out your name. He called out your name. Bucky always used your pet name, the one he gave you but right now he called you by your name. His voice was broken, Bucky sounded worried but you didn’t want to move, your body felt way too heavy.

After a moment you heard the familiar sound of the key in your door. You gave Bucky your keys a while ago so he could come home whenever he wanted. He stormed into your apartment, shrugging off his shoes and jacket before he literally ran to you into the living room. His heart broke at the sight of you laying there, crying and wrapped into his hoodie and a blanket.

“Babydoll!” He said, crouching down next to you. Bucky eyes roamed over your body, trying to find something that could have hurt you but when he didn’t notice anything he narrowed his eyes. He brought one of his big hands to your cheeks, wiping away the tears and a few strands out of your face. “Look at me please, what's going on?”

You hadn’t even noticed that you closed your eyes until he asked you to look at him. You inhaled deeply, your body shaking as you slowly opened your eyes. His blue eyes pierced into yours immediately, he looked worried. You had never seen him like that, almost broken. More tears fell down your cheeks as you looked at him, noticing the love and care that's mirroring in the eyes you fell in love with.

You shook your head slightly, you didn’t want him to hear your broken voice. Bucky got up, wrapping his arms around you to lift you and sit down with you on his lap. Your head fell down against his shoulder and you inhaled his scent, feeling the warmth of him against you. Bucky wrapped his arms tightly around you, pulling you as close as possible.

“You came…” you mumbled into his shoulder.

“You didn't answer,” he replied, leaning his head against yours. You felt a bit of wetness against the side of your forehead, noticing that Bucky was finally relaxing since he had you safe in his arms. You never thought he would cry because he was worried about you, but he did — maybe even relieved that you're fine.

“But the meetings. He could throw you out of the team,” you said, leaning back slightly. You looked into Bucky's face, seeing the soft smile on his face but also his red eyes. Slight trails of tears slid down his cheeks and you captured his face to wipe them away. Bucky tilted his head slightly, leaning more into your soft touch.

“It doesn't matter. Nothing matters when it comes to you, babydoll.” You inhaled deeply, leaning your forehead against his. “But I told him that my girl needs me and that I will win every fucking game this season when you're at the side in my jersey. You will watch the games, right?”

You chuckled softly, nodding. Bucky just came because he was worried, he didn't mind that he could be thrown out of the team — he came because he was worried. And you planned to go to his games anyway, but now it made your heart beat even faster. His girl. His jersey.

“Are you going to tell me what happened? You won't just ignore my messages and calls,” Bucky asked, his voice soft. His breath was warm against your lips and you closed your eyes for a moment.

“John wrote me…” you mumbled, feeling Bucky tensing. Without him asking you knew what he wanted to ask ‘What did he say? Did he hurt you?’ “He said… he said that he wants me back and that no other guy wants me anyway. Unless it's about sex, so you know…”

Bucky nodded, leaning back on the couch. He brought some distance between the two of you to look into your eyes. “Do you want to go back to him? Whatever your answer is, I…” Bucky trailed off, closing his eyes to take a shaky breath before he looked at you again. Something in his eyes switched and you squirmed slightly. “Whatever your answer is, I want you to know that you're really loved by me. And I want you for more than just sex. If you want to go back to John I will accept that, but I just— I want you to know that I love you, forever already and it will never change.”

Bucky's confession caused your jaw to drop open. You thought about a lot that he could say but hearing him confess his feelings for you wasn't one of them. It was the most obvious but you felt so insecure, so scared that it wasn't what you thought.

“I— You love me but you would let me go back to John?” You asked, you had so many thoughts but that was the first that came past your lips. Bucky nodded, a sad smile flashing over his face.

“I don't say I would like it. But I don’t want to be the barrier that stops you from being happy. When you love someone, you're willing to break yourself to see them happy,” Bucky said, another tear rolling down his face. He was scared to say those words, he was scared you would go back to John but he knew he had to accept whatever you thought was best for you. “I'm willing to give everything for you because I love you.”

You smiled softly, the urge to punch him grew about his words. You were never more happy than the weeks of summer break with Bucky. So how could he even think about breaking himself for you? “You're an idiot.”

“At least I'm your idiot,” he smiled softly, shurgging. You stared into his eyes, nodding while he brought your hand to his chest, pressing it down just above his heart. You could feel the steady rhythm of his heart against your hand and you sighed softly.

“I can’t give ya the whole world… not the one ya think at least. But I can give ya my world — our world. I can make everything shine for ya like I took every star and gave it to ya,” he mumbled, reminding you of what he said before summer break. “But I can tell ya, I'm so in love with ya. My heart, it's beating for you — only for ya. You're my world, everything for me.

You leaned closer to him, until there is barely an inch between the two of you. You smiled softly, his words and gesture making your heart beat faster and a warmth spreading inside of you. “When you're willing to break yourself for me because you think I would ever be happier with someone who isn’t you, then I have bad news. There is no one who makes me happier than you. And I'm willing to fix everything that broke when the thought that someone could be better than you crossed your mind.”

“Can I kiss you now, or do you want to tell me you love me in another way than you just did?” He asked, chuckling softly. You didn’t say those three words but you didn’t  have to. You told him that you loved him with so many more words but in the most perfect way he could have ever imagined.

You leaned even closer, allowing him to finally press his soft, plump lips against yours. You could taste both of your tears while he deepened the kiss softly. Bucky pulled you even closer, your hands wrapped around his neck and you played with his bun, making him growl playfully into the kiss.

After a moment you pulled away, panting softly. Both of you had heated cheeks and you leaned your forehead against Bucky's shoulder to hide your growing smirk. “I know that ya smiling,” Bucky said, his accent back and you melted into his embrace, giggling softly. Neither of you had to say anything about the kiss — it was indescribably perfect. “How long have you been in love with me already?” you asked, turning your head, still resting it against his shoulder. Bucky drew small circles on your back, a low chuckle escaped his lips.

“Forever…” he said. “I'm not sure, but it's like forever. And then before summer break, my heart broke when I saw you there so sad. I could have told you I love you, fucked you and could have helped you to get over John but I wanted to show you what love means before i confess my feelings. I could have told you at the beginning of summer break but I wanted you to know how it feels to be loved and cared for, how to treat the girl you love right. I wanted you to be just as much in love with me as I am with you.”

“Then congratulations, you made me fall in love harder than I thought I could ever fall in love. And I don't love John anymore, long ago I did but I don't, I just…” you trailed off, letting your fingers wander over Bucky's neck, admiring the goosebumps. “His words, they just hurt.”

Bucky grinned, having already a perfect idea for the next day. “Babydoll, i don't want you to feel that i just use you to make you jealous, because I really fucking love you, but…”

“I love you too, but what?” You giggled, wrapping your arms tighter around Bucky's neck. You kissed your way along his jaw, pulling him in another kiss before you listened to his plan.

— —

The next day — the first day of school you were walking next to Bucky from his car toward the building. He held your hand tightly and you felt a lot of people staring at you, maybe it was because of the man next to you, but maybe it could have also been because of…

“Y/N!” John shouted behind you and when you turned around his face was pale. He thought you were wearing the hoodie with Bucky's number and name on your back to make him jealous but when he saw the thick man next to you, holding your hand, his eyes narrowed. “Why are you wearing his name, why are you holding his hand?”

You didn't plan to have that conversation in front of everyone but you didn't mind it either. Bucky gave you a strength you never thought you had. With a soft smile and a look at Bucky you inhaled deeply before looking at John, smile fading away.

“I wear his name on my back because it belongs there. I hold his hand because he’s my boyfriend. And instead of being ashamed and hiding our relationship like you did, he likes to let everyone know that I belong to him. Bucky doesn't mind, that everyone sees us together.”

“I actually do love to let everyone know that this pretty girl is mine. She is mine and she will be forever. And ya, Walker, can fuck off. Ya didn't know how to treat her right but don't worry, I love her enough to make ya shit up to her,” Bucky growled before he grasped your chin.

It wasn’t part of the plan, you knew what he was going to do but you didn't care about the plan to just wear Bucky's hoodie to show John that you were with Bucky now. Bucky turned your head toward him, pressing his lips to yours and you sighed softly, wrapping your arms around his waist and pulling him even closer.

The people around you clapped and screamed about this news. Who watched Bucky knew that he had the biggest crush on you. Even Bucky's whole football team jumped and shouted like they just won a game. You heard John muttering ‘but he is my rival, and so are you now’ but you couldn't have cared less.

Bucky smirked against your lips. “Mine, all mine, babydoll. You belong to me, just like I belong to you, I know.” He chuckled and pulled you into another kiss, letting you know that everything he said was true. He loved you with his whole heart, his soul.

You could feel his heart against your chest, feeling it beating the same rhythm yours was beating. His words from the day before where he confessed his love echoed through your mind. And suddenly everything made sense, everything lit up — no fear, no doubt. Bucky loved you — he really loved you. This was different, it was more than you ever had with John, more than you ever felt for the other one. Buckys and your heart beated in the same rhythm, they were connected — you were connected. He had used his whole summer break to prove that he loved you, to let you see how much worth you had, how much you meant to him. And finally, he was able to let his girl know, to show you his real feelings. This man — your man, your Bucky — he belonged to you, just like you belonged to him. You would take care of one another, love one another like nobody else ever did. He showed you the whole summer break that you were his one and now the two of you had the rest of your lives to be just happy with one another. Your journey, your life together had just started — in the most perfect way ever.

Taglist -> @kandis-mom @sergeantbarnessdoll @identity2212 @km-ffluv @lunaalovesyouu @armystay89 @suz7days @etherealdisneyvillainness @pono-pura-vida @somnorvos @meowmeowyoongles @randomawesomeperson102 @rogersbarber @sebastianstanisahotmf @loki-laufeyson68 @winterschildren8 @bxtchboy69 @jeremyrennermakesmesmile @im-alestan @felicitylemon @cjand10 @bookishtheaterlover7 @lives-in-midgard @casa-boiardi @futurequeen2018-blog @flstrawberry @nervouseden @jiyascepter @princesscore-angel @mrs-katelyn-barnes @sasha-writing @blackhawkfanatic @fanfictionreaderfan @multiversefanfics @angelbabyyy99 @looking1016 @aphrodite-xoxo @fanfictionreaderfan @iris-xoxo-juhu @holylulusworld @bucks-babe @whatever-lmaoo

[adainesfroggieboggy]

i want to do a consistent week of posts the week of valentine’s day and i think this has lived entirely in my own head too long. because i have like three things and i’d need to write four more. which wouldn’t be hard if it wasn’t me making myself an assignment.

[rosemaeridream]

lecturer!aeri x reader (M)

Mature content (18+)

lec!aeri masterlist

warnings: college au, lecturer!aeri, student!reader, fingering, mentions of strap, light smut, dom!aeri, slight power imbalance, technical age gap but no references to it

A/N: DO FUCKING NOT START RELATIONSHIPS WITH YOUR EDUCATORS. I DO NOT CONDONE IT IN ANY WAY. for context, i'm not american so when i say lecturer, you say professor, i was never gonna post this because 1. don't sleep with someone who could fuck up your education, 2. i have more and more thoughts about this every day so i can't find a place to stop it at, 3. i'm pregnant with lecturer!aeri's baby, she makes me genuinely crazy 4. i was considering making this a long form-piece but oh well look where we are now

word count: 2.3k

Tell me why I wanna write lecturer!Aeri x student!reader, like imagine Aeri pulling you aside before you can walk out of the auditorium to 'talk about' the email you had sent her the night before - something about your further readings and extended material, blah blah blah -and her gaze keeps dropping to your body or your lips, and she's smiling the whole time - happy to talk to you more about the subject because it's her profession, it's definitely nothing to do with imagining you pushed up in the stairwell 20 metres away with her hands down your pants.

She's been watching you from a distance, noting your schedule and when you’re on campus, ‘accidentally’ bumping into you at coffee shops or in the library when you’re studying. she always gives you tips, “oh, you should add a second critical study here” or “read this, it’s much better than the shit they assign you”. In the back of your mind, you know she’s interested in you - she downright looks like she wants to fuck you every time you’re alone - making eye contact with you when you sit down the front of the lecture theatre, gives extra praise when you answer questions, even going as far to say ‘good girl’ in front of the entire lecture after you offer your opinion on a more complex topic. (literally gagged myself thinking about that)

Then she starts pulling you aside more often, still under the guise of helping you with your coursework, but it’s all so intimate - sometimes you show her parts of your assessment on your phone, and she’ll slide her hand up your arm to steady it so she can read, or she’ll practically back hug you, looking over your shoulder, her breaths on the shell of your ear. Her eye contact is on 100%, 100% of the time, making you flush red whenever you talk to her. Eventually, she asks for your number, saying that your emails get lost in her inbox due to being the coordinator of her subject, “if you need anything from me, just text me”

You end up using her number this one time after you’re panicking over an assessment, and no one else you’ve asked has had the answers to. You’re sure she’s busy, the previous lecture she had mentioned to everyone that she’ll be unable to take questions this week due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’. But she texts you back almost immediately, answering so precisely that it’s almost as if she was waiting for that specific question. It turns into a back and forth that just doesn’t sort of end, mostly about the curriculum, but sometimes parts of her life, or your own get sprinkled in there - she’s visiting japan next weekend to see her parents, your favourite artist just released a new album that you like to listen to while you study, ect, ect.

Then there’s this one question that’s ‘too complicated to answer over text so she asks to meet you at the library. She sits in a secluded part where no one really goes - you never question it, just thinking that she chose this spot because it's quiet, or that you shouldn’t be seen getting extra help from the person who will no doubt be overseeing the marking of this assessment. 

For the first 10-20 minutes, you actually work on the material together, the essay word count growing slowly. Then Aeri reaches over to take a paper from the other side of you, and her  face is like a breath away from yours, and your mind goes fucking blank. Unable to do anything else, you act on impulse and straight up kiss her. I mean- when someone that hot is that close, the only natural response is gonna be to start making out with them, right???

She's sorta stiff for the first two seconds, while you’re still processing what you’ve just done, but then her hand is on your jaw, pulling you closer and parting her lips to lick into your mouth. And oh my god. Oh my god. You’re a changed person, she’s literally ruined the thought of everyone else for you.

After a minute or two you go back to your work, Aeri sort of just laughs it off, but it’s clear that you’re not paying attention the rest of the study period - you get like another 100 words into your essay but its such a struggle when Aeri’s reading over your words and all your thoughts are on panic mode - her breath yet again tickling your ear whenever she suggests edits.

She doesn’t bring up the kiss, so nor do you, pushing the thought away and pretending it never happened. Except when you’re watching a pre-recorded lecture of hers, and you’ve just woken up and you’re hot and bothered and fuck, Aeri’s voice and the way her glasses sit on her nose as she talks and makes extended eyecontact with the camera, forces you to shove a hand down your pants and fuck your leaking cunt while imagining that it was her fingers instead. The thought of Aeri’s mouth on yours and everywhere else makes you cum hard, your laptop sliding off your bed as you recover, forgetting about the lecture and falling back asleep. 

Unbeknown to you, Aeri’s pretty much been doing the same thing for the past couple months, getting off on the thought of your innocent eyes widening as she pounds her strap into you. Sometimes it makes her feel so dirty, that she’s fantasising about someone she’s meant to just grade their work and offer feedback, but my god, whenever she catches you staring at her, or biting the end of your pen, deep in thought, she just can’t help herself.

You’re at a bar one night, your uni acquaintances having sorta ditched you alone, drunk, not at all mentally there, so the bartender asks if they could ring someone for you - and the first responsible person in your mind isn’t your best friend or your mother, it’s straight up Aeri. She arrives in a bustle, worry pinching at her brows as she sweeps you away to her car… asks for your address multiple times, but you’re so out of it and half asleep that she does the most realistic thing and just takes you to her own home. Literally takes all of her restraint not to do something with you, let it be letting you grind one out on her thighs or to just kiss you senseless. Even though she’s 100% sure that you’d like it, given the way you’d just kissed her randomly a couple weeks ago, you’re still her student, not some conquest. However she does allow herself to sleep in the same bed as you, perfectly happy to take advantage of your drunk cuddliness, pleased when you curl into her side, head mushed into her chest.

You wake up disoriented and embarrassed, until you see that you’re in bed with Aeri and suddenly everything is so much worse and you’re panicking - why are you in bed with your lecturer??!?! Then Aeri wakes up and she's so much more welcoming than you'd ever think she could be, rubbing your back and explaining the situation until you calm down. After that you fall into this sort of odd routine where she makes you breakfast, and discusses your courses, slowly leading into your other interests and hobbies. For some reason, in her own home, the knowledge that she’s your lecturer starts to fade until you’re both just chatting and learning about each other like you’re close friends.

And on the inside, Aeri is definitely not fantasising about yanking your pants off and eating you out on the kitchen counter. Making you whine and scrabble for something to hold while she mercilessly holds you down.

After that instance, you text her a lot more often, coming to her for life advice as well as help with coursework. Aeri’s beyond happy to help, always texting you back within 10 minutes of your question, which you never think is strange, even when you’re sure she’s giving a lecture to another class right now. 

You start having lunch with her when you’re on campus at the same time. She’s adamant that you don’t eat together in cafe’s though, making sure to take you to quiet spots where no one else finds the both of you. At this point, you know she’s doing it on purpose, waiting for you to show any kind of sign that you want her. It’s always you, you, you. In lectures she’s always meeting eyes with you, always choosing you to answer, to the point where some of your friends in the course have started to notice, joking that you’re the teacher’s pet, or that she has a crush on you.

And Aeri refuses to make the first move. If she’s going to have you, you have to show her. Her touches don’t go past your mid thighs, hands always stopping at your hips if she’s resting them on your body. It’s making you crazy - the brush of her fingertips against the side of your breasts when she grasps your arm, or when she forcefully turns your head back to your work by gripping your chin when you’re getting distracted.

Finally you break, you’re in a small rooftop garden that barely anyone knows exists, talking to her animatedly about one of your hobbies, while she just smiles at you happily, prompting you with questions to keep you talking, when she reaches out to brush a crumb off your lips, no doubt from the cake she bought you. She’s been subtly flirting with you the whole time, eyes flicking to your lips or your body as they always do, and her slight touches on your wrist or arm whenever she’s explaining something. So when her thumb rests on your lip for a second longer than it should, your instincts tell you to wrap your mouth around it, flicking your tongue against the tip. You guess it makes her crazy too because the next moment you’re in her lap, gasping into her mouth and pawing at her jacket to try and get it off. 

Aeri doesn’t even have the patience to get you naked, pushing your pants halfway down your thighs and almost ripping your panties at the lack of constraint that she has. She doesn’t even react when she feels your soaked pussy, just sliding her fingers through your folds and licking further into your mouth. There’s a moment of silence, then the wet squelch of her fingers inside your hole makes you groan, cutting off the kiss.

If there were anyone else near the rooftop, they’d for sure hear your moans and fucks and Aeri(s) and pleading, but you’re lucky that she’s thought this all out. Your hips stutter in her grip and she’s already calling you ‘good girl’ and ‘pretty princess’ and praising how your ‘tiny pink pussy took her fingers so well’. 

And shit. You’re gone.

University is so much harder now that all your study periods are taken up by Aeri and her fingers and her mouth, sitting down next to you while you have your laptop out and slowly pulling your attention away from your work. You know it’s bad, but who fucking cares when you know Aeri will make up for it later, whether that be via letting you suck off her strap, then having you sink down till you meet her pelvis, fingers threading through your hair as you try not to cum straight away, or promising to edit your essay before you hand it up. 

You’ve got all the storage and soundproof study rooms mapped out in your mind whenever she’s around. Your parents have noticed that you’re out a lot more, but they just assume that you’ve found some good friends at uni and you’re making the most of your early 20s, not that you’re getting pounded in a storage room or cockwarming a strap while sleeping over at your lecturer’s place.

Sometimes you ask her to wear her glasses while she’s fucking you, loving that her sweaty bangs get caught up in the frame and that they fog up after awhile, even going as far as pushing them back up her nose for her while she’s slamming her strap into your soaked hole.

She’s never gone as far to ask you to call her Ma’am or Ms or Professor, but sometimes Aeri likes to play up the whole dynamic, calling you a slut and mocking you for whoring yourself out for a grade even though it's anything but at this point. She knows it gets to you too - your pussy tightening around her fingers whenever she does it, reassuring her that it’s within your limits.

Aeri is altogether pleased about having you all to herself. She’s always thinking about you, buying/giving you clothes to wear, smiling to herself when you’re halfway up the lecture theatre in her hoodie, gifting you a coffee whenever you meet up on campus, taking you on trips far away from the uni so that you can spend time together like a real couple - kissing in public, letting her hold your hand, feeding you at restaurants, etc. 

Your instagram page is literally filled with pictures she's taken of you - sometimes your friends ask you who your photographer is to hook them up, and you stumble your way through a conversation trying so hard not to reveal who it is. Her’s often has pictures of you, but never enough to fully identify you. A picture of her hand holding someone else’s, the top of your head in a city skyline shot or your fingers in the background of her lunch. 

You find yourself with her more often than not, at her apartment, sneaking into her office at the university, eating with her, showering with her, sleeping with her (in more ways than one). You’re practically living with her at this point. Honestly, Aeri just accepts your neediness, fully prepared to let you officially move in whenever you decide to.

And the way she fucks? Well, you wouldn’t have it any other way.

i am begging someone to tell me to post more about lecturer!aeri because i am so incredibly down bad

[maximoffcarter]

Your type.

Pairings: Casey Novak x Alex Cabot.

Summary: Alexandra Cabot was known as the top of her class and the good girl of Law School. Casey Novak was known as the famous softball player and the tomboy of Law School. Both meeting each other at a coffee shop, both in different stages of their lives. Would it work?

A/n: I needed to do some kind of college au for our babies. I thought it was cute, so here is my creation of it hahaha. I dunnp if it's any good or not, but I enjoyed writing this, it's been a while since I've done a college au, they used to be my favorites before haha. Hope you guys enjoy this, leave comments, hearts, whatever you like and reblog so this gets some love🫶🏻

*not my gif*

Alexandra Cabot was top of her class. Many selfish and jealous people thought that she was the best just because she was a known person because of her last name. But the truth was that Alex was dedicated to school, she had always been, since she can remember; she spent her free days with books, she loved them. It wasn’t entirely a lie that her family had influenced her in getting into law school, but she was happy with her decision, and she was going to do anything to get to her goals, meaning, she wouldn’t let anything distract her from getting what she wanted. She was probably the only person in her class that didn’t go to parties or gatherings with her classmates, she didn’t go to the games the school held, she just focused on her studies. Did she regret it? Maybe. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to have a social life, she had her friend, but she knew that university was not about parties.

For two whole years it stayed that way, nothing had changed her mind, and she was still very much focused on her studies; that was until her eyes landed on a redhead. One of her classes had gotten canceled, meaning she had 2 hrs free to do whatever she wanted; so she decided to finish homework she had. She had thought about going to the library, but she decided she’d go for a coffee near her building, and she’d spend the two hours there. This was a coffee shop that she normally visited every now and then when she wanted to be at the library, the coffee, and the food in there was really good, and the environment was actually calm, and it helped her concentrate on the things she had to do. But as she sat down in her usual spot and looked around, she noticed a redhead taking an order. She had never seen her here, clearly, because she’d remember that beautiful smile. For a moment she was too stunned by how beautiful she was, she had stared way too longer that she didn’t notice her friend sitting right in front of her.

“Alex?”

Alex snapped out of her thoughts and stared at her friend. “H-Hi! Sorry. I uh…when did you get here?”

Erin chuckled. “I’ve been here for like 3 minutes. How long have you been staring at the redhead?” She grinned as she got her notebook and book out of her bag.

“I- what do you mean?” Alex chuckled nervously. “I was not staring at anyone, just…a bit lost. Thinking what I’m ordering.”

“Uhuh…as if you never order the same, Cabot.” Erin chuckled. “But okay, I’ll believe you. What are you ordering?” She raised her brow.

Alex sighed as she grinned. “Black coffee and a chocolate croissant.”

Erin laughed. “See? Why is it wrong that I caught you staring at the redhead? She’s really pretty.”

Alex shrugged. “I have never seen her here before.”

“She hasn’t been here for long. I saw her the day I came to buy us coffee. I think I heard she’s a law student too.”

Alex raised her brow. “Law student?” She nodded. “I can actually see that.” She said almost in a whisper as she got her things out.

“Alexandra Cabot is getting interested in someone after two years.” Erin smirked.

Alex looked up and shook her head rapidly. “I- Erin no! I just- I was-“

“Hi ladies! My name is Casey, can I offer you anything to drink or eat?” Casey smiled at both of them and then her eyes landed on Alex’s.

Alex cleared her throat as she looked up at Casey, trying to talk but all of a sudden, she forgot how to do that. Erin wanted to laugh but cleared her throat too, getting Casey’s attention. “I’ll get an iced latte with sugar please. And to eat, I’ll just get a muffin.” She then looked at Alex. “Alex? What are you ordering?”

“I- uh…black coffee and a croissant, please.” Alex offered a shy smile.

Casey grinned as she nodded. “Comin’ right up.” She then walked away, but not before she turned to look at Alex again, offering a smile.

Erin laughed and threw her head back. “Oh my, I never thought I’d live to see the day of seeing Alexandra Cabot getting nervous for someone! So.” She looked back at Alex. “Is your type redheads?”

“Jesus, Erin, drop it.” Alex sighed as she covered her face, blushing. “Let’s just-“ she sighed as she looked back at Erin. “Let’s get this done, we have class, and we need to hurry.”

“Avoiding. It is true that you always learn something new from people.” Erin chuckled teasingly as she opened her book.

Alex bit her lip as she looked at Erin for a moment, and then she turned her head to look at Casey. She had come out to Erin just a year ago, admitting that she had always been attracted to girls, but she never said a thing because she didn’t think it was relevant, but when Erin asked if she wanted to go on a double date with some guys, Alex thought it would be good to let Erin know that she was not into guys. She was relieved when Erin accepted her and never judged her, it was the other way around, actually, she was pretty much trying to get a date for Alex in every possible chance, but Alex refused reminding her that she only cared about school and not some dumb romance in university. But now…she had to admit that maybe a little crush on someone wouldn’t hurt. She didn’t actually have a type, she didn’t know if she did. But until now, all she knew, is that Casey could be her type.

********************

Alex sighed as she tried to keep her mind concentrated in the book she had in front of her, she was studying for finals and Erin was supposed to meet her at the coffee shop so they could study together, but at the end plans had changed and now Alex sat at her same spot, trying to focus on her book and hoping to not get distracted with the redhead. She didn’t even know if she worked that day, but the last time she had been going to the coffee shop, Casey was right there, and even if there was someone else taking orders, Casey was always the one that took their order. What Alex had been trying to avoid had happened; she had accepted to herself that she had a crush on Casey. She had been trying to avoid it, she had been trying to not think about her, but it was impossible after learning that she was also a law student, she was in her first year, so it’s not like they’d ever have same classes, but she had caught her in the hallways every now and then.

How did she know about this? Because of course Erin was encouraging her crush. She teased her every possible chance she had. She had also found out that Casey was in the softball team of the university, and it honestly made sense with how beautiful her body was. Alex tried hard to not think about Casey and about the new information that Erin had provided her, but in the last 4 months, it was kind of impossible not to think about Casey. That smile, those eyes, that voice. Alex was now lost, and she knew it. There was no turning back from this, unless of course, she tried to get over it or she found out that Casey had a boyfriend or something, which could break her heart…break her heart was probably too much. But she would feel sad? She was confused to say the least. It was just a stupid crush. That was it. A crush.

“Alex!”

Alex looked up from her book and her heart stopped for a moment as she stared at Casey, who was smiling at her. “Casey…hi.”

“You remember my name!” Casey chuckled softly.

How could I not remember it? “Yes, I do.” Alex chuckled. “You’re not working today?”

“Oh, I worked earlier. But I have finals, so they let me leave early. I actually just finished my shift and was going to stay around to study.” Casey smiled as she looked at Alex’s book. “I take it that you’re also studying.”  

Alex looked down at her book and smiled. “Yes…I uh…I am.” She looked back at Casey. “I’m just reading again, I already studied.” She chuckled nervously.

“Well, I’ve heard that you’re top of your class, so I believe you’re more than ready for any exam.” Casey grinned.

“You’ve…heard about me.” Alex frowned as she smiled.

“A little, yes.” Casey smiled. “I’m sorry I don’t wanna take your time. I- oh! I brought you this.” Casey placed a coffee and a small bag beside it. “Some encouragement to study.” She grinned.

Alex looked at the coffee and the small bag and smiled. “Is that…”

“Black coffee and a chocolate croissant. You always order the same.” Casey smiled. “I’ll see you around?”

Alex nodded. “Hey…do you…maybe want some help with studying? You can sit with me if you want to.”

Casey smiled. “Really?”

Alex nodded again. “Sure.”

“I’d actually appreciate that.” Casey smiled as she placed her backpack on the floor and sat down in front of Alex.

Alex knew that this wouldn’t really help her crush, but at this point, who really cared about it? She was going down, bad, and she knew it. Casey had heard about her, she knew her name, she had even learned her order. And the funny thing was that the very first time she met Casey, she had brought her a plain croissant because Alex had not mentioned she wanted a chocolate one, but suddenly Casey started bringing her the right order, and now she learned it, and even if it seemed nothing, it was everything to Alex. But then her mind started playing tricks on her. Why would someone like Casey want to be with Alex? Even hang out with her? It was surprising enough that Erin was her friend, they were totally different but similar at the same time, but they were able to build a close friendship. But Casey, she was younger by two years, but why would she find any interest in Alex? She was probably just being friendly, maybe she just wanted to know people who were older to have some sort of help in school, but the reality was that Alex didn’t care. The thought of helping Casey and being able to spend time with her made her feel good. This was so wrong, but she didn’t care.

********************

“Where are we going?” Alex asked as she sighed, crossing her arms as she waited for Erin.

Erin smiled as she walked to Alex, closing her closet. “We’re going to a softball game.”

Alex frowned. “We never go to those, Erin.”

“Now we are.” Erin grinned as she handed Alex a shirt with the softball team logo.

Alex stared at it and then realized what Erin was doing. “Erin.” She looked up at her. “No.

“Alex. Yes.” Erin smirked as she threw Alex the shirt. “C’mon, we’re gonna be late.”

“You made me come all the way here so you can embarrass me and take me to a game. Casey’s game.” Alex grabbed the shirt from her shoulder, looking down at it.

“It’s just a game! You get to see Casey play. You’re gonna tell me you don’t wanna see her.” Erin smirked as she turned to grab the rest of her stuff.

Alex sighed as she took off her hoodie and put the shirt on. “You’re gonna pay for this.”

Erin laughed. “You’re gonna tell me you haven’t been spending more time at the coffee shop.” She turned to look at Alex. “Oh, wait. With Casey, actually.”

Alex frowned. “I…haven’t.”

“Oh, yes you have. I saw you two days in a row, sitting with her.”

“I was helping her study!”

“So you introduced yourself?” Erin raised her brows.

Alex cleared her throat as she looked down at her hoodie. “She heard about me and knew my name…” she whispered softly as she looked up at Erin.

Erin smirked. “Oh, someone’s got a crush on you.”

Alex rolled her eyes. “Can’t we just go? Please.”

Erin chuckled. “Fine, let’s go.”

As they got to the field, Erin tried to get them to good stands so they could get a perfect look of the game. Erin went crazy buying food and snacks, but Alex was truly nervous that she’d be seeing Casey playing. In one of their meetings, Casey had talked about her playing softball and the training she had, which meant that she barely had any time to do anything at all, between school, work and practice, her days were pretty busy. So the fact that she had stayed hours with Alex meant everything to her, even if they had been mostly studying the whole time. Alex looked around as she sat down, her eyes suddenly landing on the redhead who was stretching. Her breath hitched as she noticed the tight uniform and how it hugged her body perfectly; she wanted to give herself a slap as she was focusing on her body, which was definitely not right. Her eyes went back to Casey’s face, and to her luck, Casey was already staring at her, a smile on her face as she waved. Alex blushed slightly as she waved back, smiling back at her.

Eventually, the game finally started, everyone around them screaming and clapping for the team. She didn’t even know what was supposed to happen in the game, but she was willing to stay focused for Casey. Erin tried to instruct her what was happening, but even if she tried to listen to Erin, she really didn’t understand a thing. Finally, Casey put on her helmet and grabbed her bat, earning loud screams as she walked to her base. Alex’s eyes lit up as she looked at Casey, smiling as she positioned herself; she had seen some baseball games with her father before, and so far, she knew that Casey’s team was winning, and if she hit a…homerun? Something. They’d win the whole game. Or that’s what her mind made up. She couldn’t help but scream and stand up when Casey started running fast around all the bases, the whole crowd going insane screaming Casey’s name. Erin and Alex jumped and screamed together as Casey’s team surrounded to celebrate the win, everyone cheering for them and throwing food and water. Alex’s eyes focused on Casey for a moment, and her smile slowly faded as she noticed a girl hugging Casey and placing her hand on Casey’s cheek, leaning in to kiss her cheek. Alex cleared her throat and looked at Erin, offering a small smile as her heart sank.

Alex had asked Erin if they could already leave, not wanting to stay there anymore, even if it meant that they’d lose the celebration and the team. Erin had drunk a lot of soda and water, so Alex was waiting for her outside the restrooms, wrapping her hoodie around her waist and crossing her arms as she looked around. A bunch of people kept celebrating and screaming, running around, and jumping. Alex never understood sports, and she couldn’t believe that Erin had convinced her to come just to have her heart hurt at the sight of another girl kissing Casey. She sighed softly, rubbing her face, and groaning softly.

“Alex!”

Alex uncovered her face and her heart stopped for a second as she saw Casey running to her. “Hey.”

Casey smiled widely as she stood in front of Alex. “Hi. I’m so glad I caught you. I wanted to say hi since I saw you at the start of the game.”

Alex cleared her throat. “Oh. Uh. Well hi.” She smiled. “Congratulations, by the way. Good game.”

Casey chuckled as she looked at the ground for a moment. “Thanks.” She looked back at Alex. “I didn’t think Alex Cabot was a sports girl.”

Alex huffed a laugh. “I am not.” She shook her head. “But uh, my friend Erin, she dragged me here. I’m waiting for her so we can go.”

Casey nodded. “Oh, got it.” She smiled. “Hey, uh. So…later we’re throwing a small celebration party, since this was the last game of the season. I was wondering…if you wanted to come.”

Alex stared at Casey for a moment, thinking that maybe she had heard wrong. “Uh…a party?”

“Yes.” Casey smiled. “I mean I don’t normally go to these parties, but you know, we won, thought it could be fun for once. I don’t really have to work tomorrow so. And I was actually going to call you, you saved me a phone call.”

Alex smiled softly. “So…even if I didn’t come…you were going to invite me?”

Casey shrugged. “Why not?” She grinned.

Alex nodded. “I uh…well, I don’t normally go to any parties. I don’t…really get invited but uh-“

“We’re definitely going!” Erin said as she walked out of the restrooms, smiling at Alex and then at Casey. “That’s if I’m invited too? If not, I’ll drop of Alex.” She grinned.

“Of course! I mean, the team is inviting a lot of people so.” Casey chuckled. “So, yes?”

Alex looked back at Erin and then at Casey, smiling as she nodded. “Sure. Where?”

Casey’s smile widened. “Uh…Tina’s house. Back Bay area, there’s going to be a big sign outside the building, so you won’t miss it. I can call you later and tell you the right address.”

“Sounds good.” Alex smiled.

Casey nodded. “Alright, I’ll see you then. Bye Erin.” She smiled before she walked away.

Erin’s mouth opened in surprise as she turned to look at Alex. “Alexandra Cabot going to her very first university party! Oh my! We gotta find you a perfect dress!”

Alex rolled her eyes as she sighed, turning to look at Erin. “Don’t get too excited, Er. I think I saw a girl kissing Casey’s cheek.” She started to walk, trying to hide the excitement she felt.

Erin frowned. “Oh, c’mon, Alex.” She followed her. “That doesn’t mean anything! I kiss you on the cheek too, doesn’t mean we’re dating.”

“I know but…” Alex scoffed. “Why would Casey Novak be interested in someone like me? Like seriously. I’m older than her, I’m…literally a nerd.”

Erin raised her brow. “You do realize that it’s obvious that younger people are fascinated by people of our ages. Plus, it’s two years. And!” She jumped in front of Alex to stop her. “You’re not the only nerd. Casey is top of her class.” She grinned.

Alex frowned. “What?”

“Uhuh. Laura was telling me the other day. We go to the same hair salon, and she was talking about how Casey was the smartass in their class. So her asking you to help her study? Yeah, that was definitely just to spend time with you, Cabot.” Erin smirked.

Alex shook her head as she tried to hide her smile. “Okay…even if she wanted that. I still don’t think she’d be interested in me.” She shrugged. “So…this. The party? It’s just a party and that’s it.”

Erin rolled her eyes. “If you say so. But. We’re still gonna dress you nicely. Comfortable. But nicely. If Novak doesn’t lay eyes on you tonight, we’re getting you someone else. Maybe we can get another redhead.” She smirked.

“Fine.” Alex grinned as she rolled her eyes.

********************

“You’re not gonna leave me alone, are you?” Alex asked as they walked to the house, looking at Erin.

Erin looked back at Alex and smiled. “I believe you’ll leave me at some point. But no, and if you want to go, we can go. Promise I won’t drink much.” She chuckled.

Alex sighed as she nodded. They walked inside the house and Alex was pretty surprised to find a big crowd, the music was a bit loud and there was barely any lights. Erin took her hand so they wouldn’t get lost in the crowd, trying to get to the middle of the house or somewhere where they could actually move and hear each other. They finally got to what seemed to be the living room, people were dancing and drinking, some were playing with the cups, some were making out. So this is what a university party was like, Alex was really not missing anything, this was just a mess and they seemed horny teenagers. In every single part, there were about 2 or 3 couples just making out. She thought that she only saw this in movies but no, it was pretty much real, and she was sure more people were upstairs, and she did not want to figure out what they were doing up there.

As she looked around the room, she saw Casey’s team gathered around in a corner, laughing and with drinks in their hands, and then there was Casey right in the middle. She smiled softly but then her smile fainted again as she saw the girl from earlier right beside Casey, her arm wrapped around her shoulder. Alex knew she had no point in getting jealous, but she was. But then Casey’s eyes landed on her, and Alex swore her smile widened as she saw Alex; she didn’t know if she had imagined it or not, but Casey’s eyes traveled down her body, and she nibbled on her lip as she started walking to Alex; she was thankful that she had let Erin dress her, Alex normally liked wearing nice clothes, but the skirt and the blouse along with the long boots that Erin had picked for her, were showing a little too much, but if that was getting Casey’s attention, then she didn’t mind one bit.

Her breath hitched as Casey got closer to her, her eyes also traveling down Casey’s body; Erin had joked before about Alex being into girls that didn’t exactly dressed girly, she had now seen Casey wearing her softball uniform, she had seen her wearing a skirt with a blazer for a presentation, her work uniform, and casual Casey. Party Casey looked like those girls from movies who were the ones that ruled over people, with a leather jacket, jeans and boots, and Alex couldn’t skip the shirt she was wearing, that showed Casey’s cleavage.

“I thought I’d have to call you to make sure you were coming.” Casey grinned as she stood in front of Alex. “You look nice.” She whispered softly but enough for Alex to hear her.

Alex chuckled nervously as she blushed. “You look nice too.”

Erin cleared her throat as she smiled at both women. “I’ll see myself out for a bit.” She grinned as she walked away, going to Casey’s friends.

Casey chuckled. “Can I offer you a drink?”

“I uh…I actually don’t drink that much.” Alex bit her lip as she looked at Casey.

“Oh, such a good girl, Cabot.” She grinned. “They have nonalcoholic drinks too. We can go to the kitchen to check.” Before Alex could answer, she grabbed her hand and pulled her to the kitchen, walking through the crowd.

Alex tried to stay as calm as possible, and then thought that a drink wouldn’t hurt, it could actually help her calm her nerves. Once they got to the kitchen, she stood close to Casey and smiled. “Actually, a drink wouldn’t hurt.”

Casey turned to look at Alex and smiled. “I can mix some vodka with soda or juice so it’s not too strong.”

“Whatever you drinking.” Alex grinned.

Casey couldn’t help but stare into her eyes, grinning softly. “You look beautiful with or without glasses, you know?”

Alex’s breath hitched again as she stared into green eyes. “Your eyes are beautiful.” She smiled.

Casey bit her lip as she smiled. “Thanks.” She then cleared her throat as she grabbed the drinks she was going to mix and two cups.

Alex looked around trying not to stare too much at Casey, and noticed Erin staring at her, a smirk on her face. She shook her head, a quiet laugh leaving her lips. She returned her stare to Casey once she saw her raising the cup and handing it to her. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” Casey smiled as she grabbed her own drink and took a sip of it. “So, is this really your first party?” She leaned over the counter.

“You said it, I’m a good girl.” Alex smirked as she huffed a chuckle. “I uh…I focus a lot on school. I rather keep myself busy with studying or with books.” She shrugged. “I don’t know…I was just never an extrovert.”

Casey nodded. “I get that. I mean…these parties can get pretty crazy.” She chuckled. “I normally don’t come to these, and if I do, I literally leave early.”

Alex tilted her head. “I thought you were one of those athletic girls that liked to party and be a heartbreaker.” She grinned. “But I heard you’re also sort of a nerd.”

Casey blushed slightly as she looked at Alex. “I uh…I mean…yes, I just.” She huffed a chuckle. “Who told you?”

“Oh, a little bird.” Alex smirked. “So, you asking me for help…?” She raised her brow.

Casey shrugged. “Maybe I just…wanted to have an excuse to talk to you.” She grinned as she tilted her head, green eyes never leaving blue ones.

Alex knew she was probably blushing, but she couldn’t look away from Casey, she could stare at her for as long as she possibly could. “Nice excuse.” She simply said.

They stayed in the kitchen for a little longer than they expected, finding that it was the most quiet place in the whole house, and they just wanted to talk. They were talking about everything but nothing specific at the same time, just making each other smile and laugh. Even if Alex hated the fact that there were a lot of people surrounding them, she loved that she was with Casey, and that she was actually willing to stay with her. But then there was a moment where they literally dragged Casey away from Alex, and Casey made sure to tell her that she’d be back with her as soon as possible. Alex just watched her being dragged away and back into the living room, leaving her a bit sad but also understood that this was a party for them after all. Her eyes finally landed on Erin who was already walking to her, a smirk plastered on her face.

“I see you’re having a good conversation with Novak. Guess we won’t have to find you anyone else.” Erin smirked.

Alex rolled her eyes playfully. “We’re just talking, Er. Nothing more.”

“You’re seriously still in denial that she’s interested in you.” Erin chuckled. “You’re literally perfect, Alex. You’re top of your class, you’re beautiful, you’re nice. Damn, you’re a good girl, anyone would want to have you.”

Alex chuckled as she took a sip of her drink, trying to hide her smile behind her cup. “She did mention that.”

Erin raised her brow. “That you’re a good girl?” Alex nodded. “She does not lose time.” She chuckled softly.

“Well, I think I lost her for tonight. So, whatever was happening between us, is over.”

“Don’t lose hope, Cabot. She could come back any time soon. They’re just doing the typical winning ritual.”

Alex frowned as she looked back at Erin. “Ritual?”

“They take shots, depending on the score they made.”

Alex raised her brows. “Is that even safe?”

Erin shrugged. “Not sure, but don’t be too surprised if your little redhead comes back all drunk.” She chuckled as she took a sip of her drink.

Alex sighed. “I guess.”

“Everybody!” Tina got up on the table in the living room, getting everyone’s attention as they turned the music down. “Those who want to play the bottle, gather around! We got drinks and dares!”

Erin turned to look at Alex. “Let’s go play.”

Alex frowned. “No way. I don’t want to have the bad luck of having to kiss some drunk person.”

“And what if that drunk person turns out to be Casey?” Erin smirked as she grabbed Alex’s hand and pulled her to the living room. “Count us in!”

Alex sat beside Erin and sighed as she looked at the people that gathered around. She was sure that these people were either the ones that were way too drunk, or were somewhere in the middle, and the rest just decided to ignore it or were too into their own things. Her eyes landed on Casey for a moment who was in front of her and laughing with Tina as the people started to play. The first few rounds were stupid things like ‘take off your shirt’ ‘drink two shots’ ‘kiss this person on the cheek’, making Alex realize that these people were a bunch of teenagers and couldn’t believe that most of them -if not all- were law students. She couldn’t help but laugh the moment the bottle landed in Erin, and it so happened that the other side landed on one of Casey’s friends, who dared her to go to a room with her. Alex’s eyes widened as Erin agreed, telling her that they had to loosen up, and then followed the girl. She was too distracted as she saw in surprised how they disappeared, but her attention was brough back when she heard yelling and clapping, her eyes landing in the bottle who was pointing at her, and the other end happened to be on Casey.

“Cabot and Novak!” Alex’s lips parted as she tried to say something, but right away Tina spoke up again. “Since Alex doesn’t know what to say, I dare you two to seven minutes in heaven!” Everyone started cheering on.

“What?” Alex simply said, her eyes landing on Casey who was already standing up, chuckling, and telling Tina something. She shook her head and walked to Alex, extending her hand to help her get up.

“C’mon.” Casey offered a sweet smile.

Alex gulped but grabbed Casey’s hand, standing up and following her upstairs. She could hear everyone yelling and clapping, some of them screaming both Alex and Casey’s names as they went up the stairs. Before she knew it, she was being pulled into a room, and as she looked around, she was sure that this was Tina’s room. She cleared her throat as she turned to look at Casey who was closing and locking the door, leaning her back on it as she looked at Alex, smiling softly.

“Casey…”

“We don’t have to do anything.” Casey smiled.

“Are you- seriously?”

Casey chuckled. “Seriously. I sat down there for Tina, it’s just a stupid game.” She shook her head. “And…I hate having to force people into doing something they don’t want to.”

Alex cleared her throat. “What can you get done in seven min, anyway?” She chuckled.

Casey shrugged as she laughed. “I’ve never been in this situation. But I do know you can do something. Make out maybe.”

Alex stared at her for a moment, biting her lip softly. “And would you?”

Casey frowned. “Would I what?”

“Want to make out with me.” Alex snapped.

Casey wetted her lips, her lip lingering between her teeth as she stared at Alex. “I might be a little drunk but…definitely.” She walked to Alex slowly, stopping just in front of her. “Would you?” She whispered softly.

Alex’s breath hitched as she stared up at Casey. She knew she was tall, and probably the boots that Casey was wearing made her a little taller, and she herself was tall, but she loved the fact that she had to look up at Casey. She bit her lip for a moment as she thought about her answer; she knew she had to think fast, the seven minutes could end any time soon. She nodded softly as grinned, and suddenly Casey’s hands were on her waist, and she leaned down to close the gap between them. Alex’s hand went to Casey’s neck to pull her impossibly closer to her, their lips moving against each other’s just perfectly.

Before her mind could register what was happening, Casey was pulling her to her and turned her around to press Alex against the door, Alex moaning against Casey’s mouth which gave Casey’s tongue access to dive in. Alex’s hand got lost in Casey’s short her, pulling her impossibly closer. Casey’s hands rubbed Alex’s sides, accidentally making Alex’s blouse rise up and she took the chance to make contact with Alex’s skin. They finally broke from the kiss, both panted heavily, but as Alex opened her eyes to look at Casey, Casey’s lips landed on her jawline, throwing her head back against the door as a quiet moan left her lips. Casey trailed kisses down Alex’s jawline to her neck, kissing and nibbling softly, she then looked up again to kiss Alex again, and just as her hand traveled down Alex’s hip, a loud knock on the door made them part away from each other.

“Seven minutes are over guys! Get your clothes on!”

Alex panted heavily as she looked at the door for a moment and then her eyes returned to Casey. She couldn’t help but chuckle at herself as she figured she was now part of those horny teenagers she was judging when she got to the party. Casey ran her hand through her hair as she grinned, looking down at the floor as she tried to hide the redness on her cheeks.

“We should uh-“ Alex cleared her throat as she fixed her blouse. “We should probably…”

Casey nodded. “Yes.” She chuckled as she looked up at Alex. “We should go back.”

Alex nodded, offering a shy smile. As she turned to open the door, she felt Casey’s hand on her wrist, bringing her attention back to Casey. Casey’s hand went to Alex’s neck and pulled her close to her, kissing her lips slowly and tenderly, as if they had all the time in the world. Their lips once again met in a perfect rhythm, making Alex’s stomach turn in a good way. Casey then smiled against her lips, pecking them once more before she pulled away.

“Now we can leave.” Casey grinned.

Alex nodded. “Sure.” She breathed out as she smiled, accepting Casey’s hand in hers.

Alex felt everyone’s eyes on her as they walked down the stairs, but her eyes were only focused on Casey. Casey never let go of her hand, walking back to the kitchen, both quietly deciding that they didn’t want to be involved in the game anymore. Alex tried to find Erin for a moment before she brought her attention back to Casey, smiling softly.

“I’ll get you something to drink.” Casey smiled.

“Can I just get some water, please?” Alex smiled.

Casey nodded. “Sure. I need to sober up a little.” She chuckled as she kissed Alex’s hand before she went to find more cups.

Alex sighed happily as she watched Casey moving around the kitchen. The smile never leaving her smile as she leaned against the countertop, but her moment was interrupted as she felt a hand on her shoulder, making her turn thinking that it was maybe Erin. And then she frowned as she found the girl she had been previously jealous of right in front of her.

“Hi?” Alex offered a small smile.

“You really think you got Casey just because you got seven minutes in a room with her? You’re not Casey’s type. We know who you are, Cabot.”

Alex frowned as she shook her head. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“You’re daddy’s girl. I’m sure you’re in school just because of your last name, and if you think you’re gonna get Casey, you’re very wrong. I might’ve let Casey have her fun tonight, but she’s normally always with me. Casey belongs to me.”

“I can definitely tell. Because she’s been with you the whole party, huh?” Alex raised her brow, giving her a defying stare as she crossed her arms.

The girl laughed as she shook her head. “Just because your friend dressed you up for tonight and you got read of your glasses, doesn’t mean you can take Casey. Didn’t you hear? She was supposed to get your attention, a bet was made.”

Alex frowned. “What?”

“Oh, you really think Casey was interested in you? Please. Look at you and look at her. Gotta say that you left it pretty easy for her to win the bet. So congrats to you too. Maybe if Casey chooses, she’ll give you half of the money, but you don’t need it, do you?” The girl smirked as she walked away.

Alex suddenly felt lightheaded as the words played in her mind over and over; she had to be lying. Casey wouldn’t do that. All this time, all those meetings they had, Casey inviting her here, being so sweet and kind even if she’s not fully sober. Did she really do this for a bet? Was she just being nice to win some money? She had to be joking, this was definitely a lie. But…it also made sense at the same time. The sudden interest in Alex, wanting her help to study even if she didn’t need it, her inviting her to the party, and coincidentally the bottle landing in them while she was distracted. They had planned this. She had fallen in Casey’s game. The thought made her feel sick to her stomach.

“Alex?” Casey placed her hand on Alex’s shoulder to get her attention. “You okay?”

Alex took a deep breath as she looked back at Casey, her eyes getting teary. “How much?”

Casey frowned. “What?”

“How much…was the bet?” Alex snapped, trying to hold back her tears as she stared at Casey.

Casey shook her head as she looked at Alex, confused. “I don’t…what bet?”

Alex scoffed. “I knew it was too good to be truth.” She grinned. “You, suddenly taking interest in someone like me. You also believe I’m nothing more than my name, right? Was it fun, Casey? To drag me into your stupid high school game so you could get some money?”

Casey placed the cups on the counter and looked back at Alex. “Alex, what are you talking about? I don’t think that. I-“

“Save it, Casey. I knew this was way too good to be truth. But don’t worry, the bet ended the moment you took me to the room, right? So whatever this was, ends here. I don’t wanna see you again.” Alex gave her a cold look before she walked away from Casey.

Casey frowned as she tried to follow Alex. “Alex! Wait!”

Just as Alex was walking to the door, she ran into Erin who was just coming down from the stairs, her laugh died the moment she saw the look on Alex’s face. “Alex?”

“Let’s go. P-Please.” Alex cried out.

Erin’s heart sank as she turned and saw Casey trying to get to them. “Let’s go.” She placed her hand on Alex’s back and they both walked out of the house as fast as they could. Leaving behind a confused Casey.

The whole ride back to Alex’s apartment was quiet, Alex staring at the window as she quietly cried, her arms wrapped around herself. Erin kept checking on her but decided to save her words, she knew Alex needed a moment to process whatever had happened back there. There had only been one time that she had seen Alex this way, and she thought she would never see her like this again, so it broke her heart. As they made their way to Alex’s apartment, Alex let out a heavy sigh and opened the door, letting Erin walk in first, followed by Alex. She closed the door behind her and leaned her head against it, her whole body shaking as she cried once again. Erin dropped her bag and walked to Alex, wrapping her in a tight hug as Alex sobbed, turning to vanish in her arms.

“Lex, what happened?” Erin whispered softly.

“I-“ Alex sobbed as she shook her head. “I was an idiot.”

Erin pulled away enough to look at Alex. “Did Casey did something to you?”

Alex looked at Erin at the mention of Casey, feeling her heart breaking even more. “I was a bet.”

Erin frowned. “What?”

“That bitch…the one I saw Casey with…she told me that there was a bet, and that’s why the sudden interest in me. I knew it was too good to be truth, Erin. I just knew it.” Alex cried out, covering her face.

Erin sighed loudly. “Lex, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. I let myself fall.” Alex sobbed as she shook her head. “Why did this happen?” She whispered softly.

“I don’t know.” Erin kissed her head softly as she wrapped her in another hug.

********************

Alex walked through the hallway to get to her classroom, feeling like everyone was staring at her and were laughing at her. She was sure that half of the school already knew what had happened back there, and it now made sense why all of them were cheering for them to go upstairs. They were cheering for Casey to win the fucking bet and she was so proud of it. She played it so well that she was so ashamed of herself for not seeing it, focusing on how sweet, kind, and beautiful she was, it never crossed her mind that she could do this to Alex. After all, her assumption of Casey wasn’t entirely wrong. She was indeed a heartbreaker. Her trance was interrupted as she ran into someone, almost losing her balance and making her books fall to the floor.

“I’m sorry!”

Alex knelt to pick them up but the person in front of her got them before her, making her look up to find Casey in front of her. “It’s fine.” She snapped as she stood up, followed by Casey.

Casey handed her the books and nibbled on her lip for a moment. “Alex…”

“Save it.” Alex snapped as she looked at Casey for a moment before she walked away.

Casey sighed loudly as she kept walking. This was truly a nightmare for her. The fact that Alex really had believed everything that Rachel had dared to say hurt her and made her a bit upset, but she understood where Alex was coming from. The moment she laid eyes on Alex, she knew she was completely fucked, not being able to take her eyes away until she realized she was being a creep. For months she just stared at Alex and tried her best to always be the one taking their order. She cursed herself once she realized that she had gotten Alex’s order wrong the first time, so she learned it for her, and was happy whenever Alex showed up at the coffee shop. Taking a chance to talk to her had been a real challenge, thinking that Alex would completely push her away and ignore her, but was happy once she realized Alex might be interested in her too. But now, that was all gone.

Erin walked into the coffee shop and looked around, trying to find Casey who was behind the counter. She walked to her and leaned over the counter. “Can I talk to you?”

Casey looked up from her notebook and nodded. “I’m taking five!” She walked to the back door and walked to Erin, sitting with her at a table in the corner. “Erin-“

“What the fuck were you thinking? Are you seriously in middle school to make a fucking bet with my best friend?” Erin snapped, not giving Casey a chance to speak.

“Let me explain.” Casey sighed. “There was no bet. There never was.”

Erin frowned. “What?”

Casey bit her lip as she tried to hold back tears. “I never had the intention of hurting Alex. Everything I did, I did it because I wanted to. Because I had been looking at Alex for so long and I took my chance.” She shook her head as she looked at Erin. “I was never involved in any bet. Rachel was jealous when she found out I was into Alex. She’s-“ She scoffed. “She was fucking childish. I’m too old to do those fucking bets. I like Alex. I never meant to hurt her, or even take advantage of her.”

Erin sighed as she leaned back in the chair. “Well, shit.” She shook her head. “I knew Rachel was no good.”

Casey scoffed. “She thinks she can get whatever she wants.” She shook her head as she looked down at her hands. “And now Alex hates me.”

“She’s hurt, Casey.” Erin shrugged. “She really believed every word Rachel told her. Alex…she overthinks. She has anxiety. She couldn’t get in her head why you would be interested in her.”

Casey sighed. “But you believe me, right?” She looked back at Erin.

Erin offered a small smile. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone being so consistent with Alex. The way you two look at each other…nothing I had ever seen.” She shrugged. “I love Alex. But I believe you. And you gotta make this right, Casey.”

Casey nodded. “I know. But…she hasn’t been here in two weeks.”

“I can give you her address.” Erin shrugged. “She’ll probably kill me but…I hate seeing Alex so sad.”

Casey smiled. “I’d be forever thankful.”

Erin grinned. “And I thought this shit only happened in movies.” She got a piece of paper out of her bag along with a pen. “Our classes end at 4 pm. She should be home by 5 pm.” She handed it to Casey. “And you know better than to fuck this up, Casey.”

Casey nodded. “I know.”

********************

Alex groaned as she walked to the door. “Erin, I told you I wanted stay in today. I’m tired of you coming at this hour and trying-“ her voice died down as she opened the door and saw that it was not Erin.

“I’m…sorry. I just ended my shift, and I…couldn’t come earlier.” Casey offered a shy smile.

Alex shook her head. “What are you doing here?”

Casey sighed. “You’ve been avoiding me. And I want to talk to you.”

Alex scoffed. “Casey…seriously. We’re old enough to do this and-“

“And then you know I’m old enough to be doing some stupid things as getting involved in a high school bet.” Casey snapped.

Alex stared at her for a moment and sighed softly, stepping aside as she let Casey walk in. “Come on in.” She whispered softly.

“Thanks.” Casey said softly as she walked into the apartment. She turned to look at Alex and smiled a bit as she noticed she had never seen Alex dressing so comfortably.

Alex closed the door and turned to look at Casey, frowning. “What?”

Casey looked down at her hands as she smiled. “You uh…you look really cute.”

Alex tried to hide her smile as she crossed her arms. “Can I offer you a drink?”

“Are we switching roles now?” Casey grinned.

Alex couldn’t help but grin slightly. “Case…”

“I never meant to hurt you, Alex.” Casey said almost in a whisper. “There was never a bet.”

Alex sighed as she looked down at the floor. “Why should I believe you?” She then looked back up at Casey.

“Because I don’t lie.” Casey shook her head. “I know better than to lie. And I never once lied to you. I…” she scoffed. “Everything that Rachel said, it was all a lie. She was jealous. She hated the fact that I was falling for you, and that I was trying to get your attention, and I-“

“You’re falling for me?” Alex frowned.

Casey stared at Alex with wide eyes. “I- Alex. I uh-“ she cleared her throat. “I just-“

“Who’s nervous now?” Alex grinned.

Casey huffed a laugh. She looked at her hands for a moment and nibbled on her lip. “I really didn’t want to hurt you. I didn’t take you to the room because they were going to pay me.” She smiled shyly as she looked back at Alex. “Tina noticed you were distracted, everyone was drunk. I moved the bottle.”

Alex raised her brows, a smirk appeared on her face. “Makes sense.”

Casey laughed softly. “I was scared that you’d reject me. I didn’t want to take advantage of you. I just…really wanted to kiss you.” She smiled.

Alex tilted her head. “So no bet?”

Casey shook her head. “No bet. And yes…I am falling for you, since the first time I saw you, I knew I wanted to do anything in my power to get your attention.”

Alex smiled sadly, looking down again at the floor. “I really believed her.”

Casey walked slowly to Alex, her fingers going under her chin to make Alex look up at her, smiling softly as she fixed Alex’s glasses. “You look beautiful without glasses but…I really like to see you with them.”

Alex blushed slightly as she smiled. “You should be upset that I snapped at you, and that I didn’t believe you.”

“That’s childish. We’re both old enough for those games.” Casey grinned. “I’m sorry, Alex. I really am. But if you give me the chance…I want to make things right. I want to take you on a date.”

“You’re cheesy.” Alex smirked.

“And you like that, don’t you? It’s the type of thing you only see in movies.” Casey chuckled softly as she placed her hands on Alex’s neck.

“Yes. I want you to go on a date with you.” Alex smiled, placing her hands on Casey’s waist, and leaning in to kiss her lips softly.

Casey smiled for a moment against her lips, but brought their lips back together, the same butterflies as the first time showing up in her stomach.

…

“Cabot being the good girl and Novak being the tomboy.” Munch laughed along with Fin.

Alex rolled her eyes. “We stuck with our roles.” She smirked as she looked at Casey.

Casey shrugged. “And we made it work perfectly, even now after all these years.” She smiled as she leaned in and kissed Alex’s cheek, fixing her glasses. “Only took a date to have her wrapped around my finger.”

“Oh, says the one that was the cheesiest of the both of us. Bringing me chocolate croissants with my coffee, flowers almost every week, prepared unexpected dates.” Alex smirked.

“And you loved those. And still do.” Casey leaned in to peck her lips.

“Just get married already.” Elliot teased as he took a sip of his drink.

“This is really out of a movie, you two are too cliché.” Olivia chuckled as she looked at them.

“We wouldn’t want it any other way.” Alex grinned as she chuckled, rolling her eyes at the teasing.

[shurisneakers]

a writing challenge? in 2024? you bet

Hi! Hello! Hey!

I've been going through A Time and have chosen to cope by going back to the specific vibes of 2016 to 2018. That happens to include an incredible resurgence in my love for MCU fanfic, the community around it and all the love that goes into them. I've felt a bit distant from here for a while, but I still see so many of my old friends writing, ones who want to get back into it, and a whole lot of new writers I am dying to meet.

I've floated this idea vaguely on my blog and people seem to be interested so I figured it was worth a shot!

So yeah, welcome to Ari's Old School, Nostalgia Jam, Why-The-Hell-Not MCU Fic Writing Challenge 2024!

Prompts, rules and whatnot under the cut:

Requests:

If you could reblog this post to reach someone who might want to participate, I'd really appreciate it! No need to be following me, it's open for anyone.

Reader-inserts, OCs, solo character fics, character x character-- absolutely no limitations

Any and all MCU characters are allowed

Anything above 500 words should have a read-more/keep-reading tab. Series, multi-chapters, one-shots, drabbles, etc etc. The sky's the limit.

Please tag me in your fics (@shurisneakers) so I'm notified of them, and post them with the tag #arisoldschoolwritingchallenge . It may take me a while to get back to you due to the circumstances I find myself in currently, but I absolutely will. Please send me a DM if I haven't responded within 10 days.

Send me an ask with the prompt you would like. Feel free to pick up to 2 prompts

The only thing I request of you: no RPF and no dark fics. Smut is welcome, but non-con/dub-con/incest or anything along those veins is something I'd ask you not to submit for this challenge. Thank you for your understanding!

I know I've called it an MCU fic challenge as it's the community I've grown with, but if you feel like any of these prompts resonates with a character from another fandom, please go ahead and write it. This challenge really is just about the fun of writing fanfic and love for Your Little Guys

No submission cut-off date. Take all the time you need.

Prompts

I've tried to have a mix of classics and uncommon tropes/dynamics, so I hope everyone finds something they connect with!

Relationship Prompts

1. Enemies (taken by @theysaywhatasadsight)

2. Best friends/childhood friends

3. Coworkers (taken by @jaaneymann)

4. Internet friends

5. Neighbours/roommates (taken by @angrythingstarlight)

6. Fake dating (taken by @hungryforpowernotfood)

7. Commuters

Alternate Universe Prompts

1. Florist AU (taken by @hungryforpowernotfood)

2. Showmance AU (taken by @bombsonboard)

3. Social media/streaming/gaming AU (taken by @splintered-emotions)

4. Thieves/Heist Group AU

5. Time travel AU

6. Pirates AU

7. College AU (taken by @lovelybarnes)

8. Apocalypses/dystopia AU (taken by @targaryenvampireslayer)

9. Chef AU

10. Roadtrips AU

Some rarer miscellaneous ones for those who are so inclined!

1. Shipwrecked together on an island

2. Meet Ugly (opposite of Meet Cutes) (taken by @barnesandco

3. Both of you are ghosts but don't know the other is

4. Treasure hunters AU

5. Faking death

6. Professional cuddlers AU

7. Time loops/Groundhog Day (taken by @sxrensxngwrites)

8. Orpheus and Eurydice

9. Villain x hero

10. Hitchhiking

11. Carnival of Horrors

12. Robin Hood

13. Matchmakers AU

14. Insomniac x narcoleptic

15. Intergalactic Coffee Shop AU

16. Doomed By The Narrative

17. Enemies to Lovers to Enemies

18. Subversion of Classic Hallmark Movie Tropes

Dialogue prompts

You can tweak them as per requirements, but be sure to keep the underlying message!

Angst

1. "I should have trusted myself. I should have stayed far away from you." (taken by @waywardcrow)

2. "Has it occurred to you that how I feel matters too?" (taken by @jaaneymann)

3. "We failed. I would do it again."

4. "You do not deserve my forgiveness."

5. "You make me feel so alone." (taken by @reidishh)

6. "I'm not giving up on us." "I did. You should too." (taken by @targaryenvampireslayer)

Crack

1. "Ohhh, you wanna kiss me so bad it makes you look stupid." (taken by @pinkthick)

2. "I think you and I make the worst choices together." "Yeah, but it's always entertaining."

3. "I trusted you." "Terrible decision, really."

4. "I know I'm smiling but I want to push you off a very big cliff." (taken by @pepperonijem)

5. "I'm hilarious." "You're traumatised."

Fluff

1. "This is the only thing I look forward to everyday." (Taken by @bombsonboard)

2. "I think we should do that again. For the sake of the world and my sanity."

3. "You're all I think about." (taken by @waywardcrow)

4. "Don't go anywhere I can't follow." (taken by @iguess-theyre-mymess)

5. "Don't smile at me like that." "Like what?" "Like that." (Taken by @lovelybarnes)

Word Prompts:

Flesh

Strawberry

Bruised (taken by @juvenilearson)

Groovy

Jump

Sunflower (taken by @barnesandco)

Alchemist

Wayward

Offerings

Mischief (taken by @supraveng)

I hope you'll join in! Please do tag anyone you think would be interested, I'd love for this to have as wide an audience as possible.

Lots of love <3

-Ari

[coloredsolos]

hi :) i’d love situations #6 + fluff with jean please. love your writing!

MIRACLE ON 104th STREET

pairing: jean kirstein x reader

prompt: watching christmas movies

content: jeanboy surprises you for christmas, MODERN AU, not proofread

wc: 1.2k

a/n: sorry this took so long! the new semester started and since I’m a senior in college it’s gonna be a little crazy!! also, i'm sorry I kind of broke off from the prompt! find the list of prompts here

“Alone? For Christmas?” Jean asked you, his eyes wide as he did so. 

You shrugged. It’s not like you had chosen to be alone this holiday season, but with your father working all break, you figured you might as well stay in your small apartment. Besides, your roommate, Annie, would be visiting her father, so you would have the place to yourself.

“I don’t see the problem,” you admitted, the walk to Jean’s car seeming longer than ever. Despite your protesting, Jean was driving you home from the 4pm history class the two of you shared. Damn this winter weather.

“W-what?! You don’t see the-! You can’t be alone for Christmas!” Jean practically cried out, throwing his hands into the air in exasperation. 

The now exhausting conversation had started when Jean had begun telling you about his own Christmas plans. Mentioning how he would most likely go visit Sasha’s family again with Connie. It was their tradition, he would tell you. However, when asking about your plans, he did not like the answer he received.

“Jean it’s really ok. Annie will be out of town anyways. It’ll be nice not having to share the living quarters. Besides I’d much rather be alone at my place than sitting there at my dad’s. So can we please drop it?”

Jean sighed, but reluctantly nodded his head. 

There was a chill in the air on Christmas eve.  The snow that fell having no problem sticking to the ground, layering on top of one another until it was several inches thick. You had been bundled under a plethora of blankets while the heat in your apartment worked overtime. Jean has let all of your friends know about your Christmas plans, or lack there of, and now you were starting to regret declining Eren and Mikasa’s offer to come home with them. Especially since Carla made a mean Christmas dinner, or so you heard. The plate of place and bake Christmas cookies sat in front of you. 

They weren’t very good.

You only prayed that the copious amounts of sugar would knock you into a sugar coma that would last until the next day. Most places were closed, and probably would stay that way even a few days after Christmas due to the snow storm that was taking place outside. That being said, the lack of groceries at your place was starting to leave you feeling massively underprepared. Grocery shopping was not your forte. 

While debating if you wanted to pay the delivery fee in your favorite Chinese restaurant, your phone lit up from its place on your coffee table.

Jean: u awake?

You: do I ever sleep?

Jean: true

Jean: wyd

You: freezing to death

You: how’s Sasha’s?

You: did Connie sing the whole car ride there? rip to ur ears

Jean: I wouldn’t know, didn’t go

You were surprised to say the least. Why wouldn’t he go to Sasha’s? It was tradition wasn't it? 

Jean: coming over rn

Jean: damn there’s a shit ton of snow 

You knew there was no bother trying to stop the man from coming over. He was stubborn. Always had been. Instead your fingers hovered over the keyboard of your phone, unsure of what to say next.

Jean: do u want me to bring over groceries? connie bought way too much shit before he left fr 

You: yes pls ur a lifesaver

You: been eating christmas cookies all night 

You: also, please drive safe. I mean it. i’d be pissed at you if you died

Jean: <3

Deciding not to text the man while he was driving, you settled on making the living quarters look a little less like a tornado had ran through it, picking up and putting away any dirty dishes from earlier in the day.

Before too long, Jean was there. His arms draped with grocery bags, he wasn’t kidding when he said Connie may have gone a little crazy. However, you were more focused on how he looked. Jean had been dressed in what looked like a black turtleneck with a gray overcoat keeping him warm. How he always looked straight out of a fashion magazine amazed you. Meanwhile, you were wearing a pair of black sweats with mismatched cat socks on. And yes, they did have little ears on them. 

“Well are you gonna leave me in the hallway all night?” he joked, the smile evident on his face. 

Your face flushed as you realized you had zoned out. 

“Y-yeah, come in.” You stepped out of his way, ushering him inside. 

Jean immediately headed to your kitchen to put the groceries he had brought away. His familiarity with your apartment bringing a smile to your face. Jean shrugged off his overcoat, his muscles straining against the turtleneck that had been underneath. You couldn’t help but stare. It was no secret that your friend was a very attractive man. Not to mention he had the personality to match. His suave attitude, yet gentlemanly charm gaining the attention of many women whenever your friend group had their weekly outings.

“Helloooooo?” Jean waved his hand in front of you, bending slightly so he could meet your eyes. Snapping back to the present, you apologized quickly. 

“Sorry… what?”

“I asked if you’ve eaten? I can make something for us if you’d like.” Jean offered .

You nodded shyly, embarrassed you had been caught daydreaming again. “I’d like that…” 

Jean grinned, pushed up his sleeves and clapped. “Alrighty then!”

The two of you now sat on the maroon sectional located in the middle of your living room, your empty plates resting on the coffee table. 

“I just don’t understand how they forgot their kid at home!” You cried out, your legs tucked under yourself in an attempt to keep yourself warm. 

Jean let out a boisterous laugh, the sound music to your ears. “It’s just a movie! The whole point of Home Alone is being… ya know… home alone.”

You giggled, the harsh air providing the goosebumps on your arm a permanent residency. You shivered slightly despite the mountain of blankets you had been hoarding. 

“Come here.” Jean spoke softly.

“Huh?” 

“You’re cold.” He stated. “Just come here.”

Too cold to argue, you scooted over closer to Jean. His arm that had been resting on the back of the couch pulled you closer to him. You immediately felt relief, his body radiating enough heat for the both of you. You couldn’t help the sigh that fell from your mouth, nuzzling closer to the man without thinking. The tips of Jean’s ears turned a rosy shade of pink as you fell deeper into the man’s chest. 

You let the continuous stream of Christmas movies play lowly on the television. Neither you or Jean wanting to get up to find the remote and change it. Eventually, Jean felt your breath fall steady, the gentle sound of soft snores slipping from you as you slept soundly.

Without thinking, Jean shifted slowly, positioning himself in a more comfortable position, careful not to wake you as he did so. Finally comfortable Jean was able to follow suit, slipping into a warm, comfortable sleep. The soft sound of Christmas movies continued to play in the background for the rest of the night, counting down the hours until you and Jean would wake up and celebrate the holiday together. The first of many holidays together. And truthfully? Jean didn’t mind this being his new tradition. 

[cha-melodius]

Which fic are you most proud of and what inspired you to write it?

Hello and thanks so much for this lovely ask! I'm gonna give a slightly more complex answer than just "pick one", because I've talked a lot about the first fic (although that was mostly back when I had less than half the number of tumblr followers I have now, which is kind of crazy to think about), and the others are more recent.

So, the fic I'm most proud of remains Love is a Losing Game (napollya, E, 101k), which I wrote back in 2021! Hard to believe it's been that long. This is a whole-ass novel, and I still think it's my most original and well-developed work. It's a Cold War competitive chess AU, and was inspired by @eavos dropping the idea of a competitve chess AU in the tmfu discord chat one day because he'd watched The Queen's Gambit. Once I finally watched QG too, the concept completely took over my brain. It ultimately shares pretty much nothing with QG other than the competitive chess setting, but it turned out to be the perfect setting for these two. Also includes my favorite ever OC (Zaytsev). It's also a fic that is late in a fandom and is kind of a strange concept—college coffee shop AUs people jump on, but competitve chess? Definitely not going to draw people in as much. So it's certainly not my highest kudosed or most popular fic, but I've gotten some effusive comments that really show how much people who have read it loved it.

But that was also 2021, and I don't want to discount my more recent work. So, among those, I'm probably most proud of Please Don't Let Me Be So Understood (firstprince, E, 20k). This was a work that took it's basic concept from another fic I happened across in a different fandom that I'm not even part of lol. I thought it would make a great firstprince story, but writing it was very daunting because it's almost entirely a bunch of therapy. I've said it before but I'll say it again that this fic never would have gotten written without @celeritas2997, who gave me the confidence to pull it off and helped me make sure the therapy sessions were realistic and sensitive without losing our boys. This was maybe the most challenging fic I've ever written, even though it's not that long, and for that reason I'm very proud of it.

Honorable mentions to my spy novels Nova, Baby (firstprince, E, 66k) and A Good Man is Hard to Find (lokius, M, 81k). I absolutely love both of these stories and am super proud of how I built these stories and how they played out.

I've definitely yammered on long enough about this, but thank you again!

[renjunphile]

mixtape #17: track 1. with you, i'd dance in a storm | choi seungcheol / s.coups

word count ꕤ 4.6k pairing ꕤ seventeen's choi seungcheol / s.coups x female reader

tags and warnings ꕤ childhood friends to lovers!au, brother's best friend!au, just straight fluff, basically no plot just fluff

songspo ꕤ fearless [fearless taylor's version] synopsis ꕤ he's the typical boy next door; the one your mother would dream that you would end up with from the moment he helps you up after falling off the new bike you were yet to learn to ride. you wish you'd end up with him too, but you're separated by hundreds of miles for college and the first summer back will also be one of new experiences with a familiar face.

author's note ꕤ i'm so sorry it took me so long to get another part out :( i'm back at school and it's taking up so much of my time but i really want to keep writing, so i will try my best! this, however, is not my best work but i really just wanted to get something out. nonetheless, i hope you enjoy :)

hyung line masterlist | maknae line masterlist

ꕤ

You haven't been home in almost a whole year; expensive train tickets and your parents' desire to come to see you instead preventing you from returning even for the national holidays. At the end of your first year away at college, you had managed to take a leave from your coffee shop job in order to return home for an undefined amount of time before you returned for the fall.

Upon taking your first steps back on home soil, you noted the air smelled cleaner- something you and your lungs so dearly missed in the big city. You were excited to be back with all the memories of all your favourite activities to do in the town flooding your thoughts as you made your way to the exit. It was 8 PM now, but maybe tomorrow you would take a walk along the cliffs and down to the shore to feel the sea breeze on your skin again. Though expansive, the Han river could just not compare to the feeling of the wind and the sounds of the sea crashing onto the rocks.

"Welcome back," a familiar voice snaps you from the plans you were crafting in your head and you were left to face your twin brother. He takes your bags from your grip and opens the back of his truck.

"Jeonghan," you smiled softly. It had been a while since you felt the familiarity this town and the people in it gave you, "I thought Dad was going to pick me up."

"I was already out and about," he shrugged, wrapping you in a warm hug, "How was the trip?"

You clambered into his passenger seat and snort lightly at how the interior hasn't changed; peeling and always cluttered, "It was okay. Had someone sit next to me for half the journey so it was a little bit squished, but otherwise, it was quite quick. My bags were a pain to get on and off the train and around the station."

Jeonghan chuckled, "If I didn't know any better, I would have thought you were moving back. What did you even bring?"

"It's just my clothes and some shoes!" you defended, "To be honest, I might have overpacked."

"Might?" he gave you the side eye before starting the ignition, "Anyway, they're waiting for us to get home. Mom prepared a huge feast; I don't know how we're going to eat all of that!"

"More for us to eat tomorrow as leftovers," you shrugged and placed your head on the cold window, watching the streets that you grew up in. The problem with Seoul was that on most days, you didn't know where you were going. You'd always have to have directions up or look them up beforehand, but in this little town, you could probably navigate from one side to the other blindfolded, "How's your job?"

He sighed softly, "It's okay. A job's a job and at least I'm earning money. It's strange to live like an adult when just one or two years ago, I was running around all crazy. Now I have to think about my job. Like when I make plans, I have to consider that I have to wake up early the next day."

While Jeonghan was your twin brother, it didn't mean that he had to follow your path into Seoul to attend university. He was incredibly smart and was able to find a well-paying apprenticeship in the nearest city, which meant that he was able to come home often- almost every weekend or during the week if he felt particularly homesick.

"Well, it must be nice to have some money you know you worked hard for," you replied, "I know that each day at school is just more debt to my name for future me to clear just for a piece of paper. It's okay, I enjoy it and I've made good friends."

"You need to let me meet your friends!" Jeonghan reminded you of a promise you made a few months ago.

"But you're going to try and date them," you groaned, before noticing that you were already pulling up into your neighbourhood.

"Well, what's wrong with that?" Jeonghan whined, "I'd let you date my friends!"

"Jeonghan," you snapped warningly at him.

"What?" he said innocently, meeting your threatening eyes, "Fine. Fine. I'm sorry for bringing that up. Let's go inside before the food goes cold. I'll take out your suitcases later."

You hopped out of the truck and trudged ahead in front of Jeonghan. Luckily, the door was already open.

"Mom? Dad? I'm home!" you kicked off your shoes like normal, your brain failing to acknowledge the extra pairs of shoes.

"Ah, our favourite daughter," your dad cooed, entering the hallway from the kitchen to engulf you in a hug.

"Your only daughter," Jeonghan huffed behind you, "Your favourite son is also here."

"We see you every weekend, unfortunately," your mother takes you in after your father, "Besides, our other favourite son is here too and we haven't seen him in a year."

At that moment, you don't think your body has ever frozen and shut down like that ever before. You don't even think you blinked at all for a good minute.

Jeonghan's voice went low behind you, "What? What do you mean?"

"We invited the Choi's around!" your mother grinned, "Come and say hello. They've been waiting for you to get back so we can start eating!"

Jeonghan frowned, seeing you still frigid, and he wrapped an arm around your shoulders, gently guiding your feet in the direction of the kitchen, "It's okay. I'm sorry; I didn't know either."

You shook your head to snap yourself out of your trance, "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Aw, our Y/N!" Mrs. Choi rose from her seat and approached you to give you a hug and a kiss on the cheek, "Look at you! So gorgeous. What happened to you in the city? You've always been beautiful, don't get me wrong, but you look so grown up now!"

You giggled at her compliments, refusing to look past her figure, "I had to find an outlet to relieve my stress! I guess expensive beauty treatments and investing in good products became my retail therapy."

"You must have a boyfriend now, huh?" Mrs. Choi returned back to her seat and Mr. Choi gives you a happy wave.

You take your normal seat around the table, Jeonghan beside you, "No. Not found the right person yet."

You look up and Seungcheol is in front of you. It's weird seeing him again. The only way you can describe it is familiar- just like everything else in this town.

"Hi Y/N," he greeted softly. It's a tone you know too well and it's one just for you.

"Hi, Seungcheol."

"Well, let's eat?" Jeonghan sliced through the tension that never even developed between you and the man in front of you.

Dinner continued without a hitch. Your parents and the Choi's were incredibly talkative and somehow never ran out of topics to converse even after 2 decades of knowing each other and Jeonghan would fill in any gaps and divert any unwanted attention away from you. You spent the dinner looking mostly at your plate or your hands and only answered when you were directed to. It wasn't that Seungcheol's presence made you uncomfortable; it just surprised you. It was only your first day back and you were already being confronted by your previous grievances. Give a girl some time to breathe, would you?

"You children go do whatever," your mother shooed the three of you away once dessert was devoured, "We'll clean up here and crack open a bottle of wine."

"I'm going to get my bags from the trunk," you excused yourself without looking anyone in the eye.

You knew you couldn't make a quick escape as soon as you heard another chair scraping just as you crossed the threshold out of the kitchen. You didn't look back until you were at Jeonghan's truck, propping up the back.

"Let me," Seungcheol nudged your shoulder aside and snakes a grip around your suitcase handles.

"Thanks," you mumbled under your breath, hopefully, loud enough for him to hear.

"Anything for my favourite girl," you could hear a grin in his tone, but your breath hitched at the unexpected endearment, "How is my favourite girl, by the way?"

"I'm okay. School is school. The city is big," you answered reluctantly, "Am I still your favourite girl?"

"You'll always be my favourite girl," he replied nonchalantly, "Ever since you were 7 and stumbling off a bike."

"We're not all prodigies learning to ride a bike at 5 like you," you huffed, fighting the urge to smile at the fond memory.

"I was talented, wasn't I?" he chucked to himself while you shut the trunk door. He was lifting your two suitcases while you had managed to fight for custody over your duffle bag that he had also insisted he could carry.

While walking past your living room, you had noticed Jeonghan on the couch with a quirked eyebrow and you pieced together that he was once again scheming and probably made an executive decision not to follow Seungcheol out. You gave him a pointed stare and he pretended that the painting above the fireplace was the most interesting in the world and as if it hadn't been there his entire lifetime.

Seungcheol managed to wrestle your suitcases up the stairs and into your room which had been untouched for a year for the most part. All your mother did was dust the surfaces every month or so when the dust began to settle and form a coat.

"Ah, still the same," you muttered to yourself in reminiscing.

"The most Y/N place in this world," Seungcheol smiled, looking at all of your decorations on the walls. He had been in your room a few times before, less and less as the three of you grew up, but the picture of your room had begun to fade in his mind over time.

"You can just leave my bags there on the floor," you called over to him, "I'm a bit tired, so I might just unpack. You can catch up with Hannie downstairs if you want."

You're not dumb; you know that Seungcheol and Jeonghan have been in contact the past year that the three of you have been apart. However, you weren't at all prepared to see Seungcheol so soon and you were yet to gather your feelings and solidify an action plan on how to deal with him this summer.

He picked up on your tone, "Okay. It was good to see you again, Y/N. I'll talk to you soon?"

You gave him a tight-lipped smile, "Sure. You too, Seungcheol."

ꕤ

The next morning was a little strange for you. You had expected to wake up in your 14th-floor apartment bedroom, but instead, you were greeted with baby pink walls and posters of age-old boy bands plastering the walls. You should take those down soon, you note to yourself. Nonetheless, it's a nice feeling to wake up in your cozy bed and the bustle of your parents and brother downstairs making breakfast on a Sunday morning is a comforting presence.

You did your normal morning routine and changed into attire appropriate for long walks on the beach before emerging downstairs.

"How was your sleep, honey?" your mother placed a cup of coffee in front of you, just the way you liked it.

"It was good. Strange to wake up here again," you laughed, voice still groggy, "What are you doing up so early?"

"Cheol and I are going down to the pier," Jeonghan said, "Wanna join?"

"Nah, wouldn't want to interrupt your little date," you teased, "I'm going to go to the beach too."

"You're so annoying," he looked at your arm while rolling his eyes, "Do you wanna just catch a ride with us then in the truck? We can leave whenever you want; Cheol's on the porch."

"Why didn't you invite him in?"

"I was about to head out, but we can wait?" Jeonghan explained.

You pondered on the choice; would you rather sit in a car with Seungcheol for less than 5 minutes and save the walk down to the beach or curse yourself to walking all that way when all you were going to do on the stretch of coast was walk anyway?

"Okay, let me just finish my coffee," you nodded to your half-full mug, "Go wait outside."

He whined a little, telling you to hurry up, but following your order nonetheless as he slung his belt bag across his torso. Your mother hums a tune as she takes the seat across from you with a full breakfast spread in front of her. She let you steal a piece of bacon from her plate before she raised that mischievous eyebrow at you.

"What?" you squinted your eyes at her. 

"The summer fairground is up for a few more days. You and Seungcheol should go soon."

"Mother!" you wailed, "I know what you're doing!"

"I'm not doing anything," she smiled innocently, "You and Seungcheol have always loved going to the fairground. You haven't missed it your whole life and we've all been a few times, so make sure you invite him, okay? Otherwise, I'll tell him myself."

You just rolled your eyes and washed up your now-empty coffee cup, "I'll see you later. Should we be back for lunch?"

"My baby still wants her mother to make her food, aw," your mother cooed, dropping a kiss on your cheek as you stomped out, "But it's okay if you find other plans- if you know what I mean."

With another groan, you opened and slammed the door behind you, forgetting the two boys sat on the bench on the porch waiting for you.

"9 AM and already so grumpy?" Seungcheol chuckled from beside you, "Some things never change."

You had jumped from his sudden presence but began to relax as the sun bathed over your body as you walked out to the car, "I'm not grumpy. Maybe you're just too happy for 9 in the morning."

"What's wrong with that, sunshine?" he retorted, getting in the passenger seat of Jeonghan's truck. 

It felt nostalgic- the three of you in one car, with Jeonghan and Seungcheol bickering in the front and you in the back staring out of the window and lost in a daze. Ever since Seungcheol got his licence first, your favourite activities changed from bus hopping and cycling through the towns to road trips in the surrounding area. 

"What are you going to do at the beach?" Seunghceol's head was leaning against the window.

"Just walk around for a bit. Maybe get some ice cream. Haven't been here for a year so I miss it," you hummed.

"It misses you too."

"Dude," Jeonghan gave his best friend a puzzled look.

Seungcheol cleared his throat, "I was just saying the seafront businesses probably miss their economy booster back there."

"It's not my fault that the food there is amazing. We all know it!" the two of them hummed along with you in agreement. 

The rest of the short car ride was spent mainly in conversational silence, listening to the local news on the radio. Jeonghan quickly parked up and soon enough, you were parting ways with them.

Long walks on the beach left you a lot of time with your own thoughts, which were exceptionally busy the last day or so considering the return of certain people in your life. 

Choi Seungcheol had always and forever been your brother's best friend. They met in the sandbox in kindergarten and had been attached at the hip ever since. But if Jeonghan was an extension of you, and you of him, what should Choi Seungcheol have been to you? 

For a while, he felt like your brother too- protecting you from taunts and teases growing up in school and pushing you on your bike around the field when you were learning. Jeonghan had been your evil twin and Seungcheol had been your protective one. 

Your relationship with the boy next door probably started changing in high school. Boys, drama, school - it was all just a blur to you, but Choi Seungcheol was always a presence in your life. He chased away the boys that intended to break your heart and would walk you home in the winter months when it was dark by 3 pm and Jeonghan was training in every sport the school had to offer. It was Choi Seungcheol that would bring you snacks during your intense exam periods and he would sit and study with you and motivate you. At first, you thought he was just continuing his brotherly role, and maybe he was, but teenage you began to see it differently. It was the compliments, the umbrella sharing, the jacket-lending; your relationship had changed. 

And then the end of senior year came and he had smiled next to you, an arm around your shoulders as you posed in your gowns in front of your proud parents at graduation. And then he was miles and miles away from you, instead of being right next door. 

Before you know it, your legs had taken you to your favorite ice cream shop a considerable walk from where you were dropped off and you couldn't help but get your favourite flavour and wallow some more in your thoughts. The shop was pretty busy with tourists this time of year, but you were always glad to see the business booming. You had smiled gratefully at the cashier working today- a friend of yours named Chan- who gave you an extra scoop of ice cream. 

You had no idea what to do. You were going to be home for an extended amount of time. How could you be around Seungcheol while your heart tortured you?

ꕤ

"Sunshine," your window was wide open, the breeze flowing pleasantly into your room as you read on your bed, "Y/N!"

You wrestled the smile off your face as you poked your head out of the window, "You can just text, you know that right?"

"Where's the fun in that?" his smiling face was already sticking out of his window.

"What do you want?"

"What are you doing today? I'm bored already. Jeonghan's at work, right?"

"Yeah, he is. Maybe you should get a summer job, how about that?" you teased, "Anyway, I'm not doing anything. Just reading."

"I work all year at college; why would I make myself suffer here at home too?" he said, "Do you want to go to the fair? My mom said that it's getting taken down soon."

You glanced up at the sky, washed in a layer of light grey, "I don't know; it might rain, right?"

"Oh well. Summer rain is fun. We'll be quick, yeah? Maybe we'll miss it," his tone was practically pleading and it took everything in you to giggle at his adorable traits.

"Fine. I'll be out in like 20 minutes," you rolled your eyes playfully, secretly delighted that Seungcheol had been the one to ask you to go instead of the other way around. 

Less than half an hour later, the two of you were buying your tickets to get around the fairground and Seungcheol was basically brushing shoulders with you.

"I love the fairground," Seungcheol mumbled happily next to you, eyes scanning the rides.

"Should we do our usual plan? Bumper cars, Waltzer, swings, rollercoasters, and then Ferris wheel?" you recalled the route you usually took around the park.

"Of course. It's the best-devised plan and it always will be," Seungcheol's hand snakes around your wrist as he dragged you towards the bumper cars and you just have to pretend that it's not setting off the butterflies that have been caged away for a year, "Don't worry. I'll still hold your hand on the rollercoasters if you want."

The two of you are too busy with the adrenaline rush you're getting on the rides to even make substantial conversation about anything other than how fun or bad the ride you just went on was. You had stopped for some classic cotton candy, churros, and drinks, but even then, you were scoffing them down in order to get to the biggest rollercoaster before the rain hit the ground. 

"I think it's raining now," you sighed as you looked up at the darkened sky.

"It's okay, we're done with all the rides now, right? Just the Ferris wheel left and it's covered carriages, so that's good. Let's go," Seungcheol urged you toward the middle of the fair. The Ferris wheel was your favourite attraction- it gave you an amazing view of your seaside town and you could see for miles and miles out to sea from the top.

The line was fairly short, considering the weather, but Seugncheol had opened up an umbrella above the two of you. Clambering into the carriage, you found it strange how Seungcheol had opted to sit squished next to you instead of across from you. You found it even weirder when he pried your fingers apart to slot his own in between them.

"Cheol? This is not a rollercoaster," you murmured shyly as the wheel began turning slowly.

"I know," he was looking out of the window already, "It's just nice though, isn't it?"

Your heart melted and sank at the same time, "Cheol..."

"We don't have to talk about it," Seungcheol uttered, a sigh filling up the silence as he squeezed your hand in his.

Your heart was beating faster. Choi Seungcheol was holding your hand while bundled up together on the Ferris wheel and you had no idea how to react. The rain intensified slightly and you could now hear the pitter-patter on the glass. 

"We have to talk about it," you began quietly, "While we were away, I missed you so much. It would hurt more if you gave me even more of a reason to miss you."

He finally peeled his eyes away from the rising landscape and met yours with softness in his eyes, "Being apart for a whole year made me realise how much I need you in my life. It was practically torture to not talk to you, but I wanted to let you have the space to grow into yourself at college. You know how I feel about you, but if nothing else, I'd rather keep you in my life as my best friend than not have you in it at all."

You sighed, your memories taking you back to the night of graduation- you, Seungcheol, his car, and whispered confessions between the two of you. What you couldn't forget was the pain that came after the confession on the realisation that college was just around the corner and you couldn't head into an unknown territory with a newfound relationship. You trusted Seungcheol with your whole life- if someone had thrown you off a cliff, it would be Seungcheol you'd trust to figure out a way to stop time and catch you at the bottom- but you didn't know Seungcheol in a relationship and everything was too risky. 

You had a lot of regrets in your life. Maybe that night was one of them.

"You still feel that way?" you asked quietly. The Ferris wheel was on its descent and you didn't even have the chance to admire the view at the top.

"I knew my feelings wouldn't change. I've always felt this way," Seungcheol's palm in yours was beginning to get clammy, "Sunshine, just give me this summer. I'll prove to you that this is worth it. That we're worth fighting for."

You know that funny feeling in your stomach when you're dropping from height quite fast and then you feel a surge of adrenaline coursing through your veins as you raise back up? Looking into Seungcheol's hopeful eyes felt a bit like that. The leaping head first into this risk is the nerve-racking part- that stomach-dropping feeling on a roller coaster, but you know that Seungcheol is the only person in this world that could take you to greater heights than your eyes could fathom. 

ꕤ

It was Friday. You loved Fridays as intensely as you hated Sundays. 

Fridays could be described as full of excitement. Saturdays were filled with warmth. Sundays dripped in longing. 

There's a familiar and comforting grin on Seungcheol's face as he walks towards you. Even though it's raining pretty heavily and all you're protected by is this bus shelter, he would never let the weather ruin the mood of Fridays.

He takes you into his arms and you melt into his embrace as he hums into your ear, "How's my favourite girl?"

"Hanging in there," you plant your lips where his jaw meets his neck, "I missed you."

"I always miss you, Sunshine," his arms are still around you and the two of you are swaying slightly under the rain. Does this count as dancing in the rain?

There's no duffel bag strapped around Seungcheol these days when he gets off the bus or the train, only a small backpack. There's a drawer in your dorm room dedicated just for him, to make it easier when he came almost every other Friday. It's only fair since you have a drawer and a section in his bathroom cabinet for when you go to him the alternate Fridays. 

Friday was exciting because the two of you could feel each other again after the week without each other. Sure, it was a bit expensive to travel between the two cities, but both of you worked in the evenings during the week and you had been getting by. Sundays were the worst because the goodbyes never got any easier. 

"It's almost summer again soon. We'll be at home together," you sighed dreamily, as he slipped his fingers in between yours and began leading the way back to your dorm.

"And then it's almost our anniversary," Seungcheol reminded you as if you would ever forget when the man of your dreams finally became yours.

"The year's actually gone by so fast. We'll be graduating before you know it!" 

Seungcheol felt a smile take over his face, "Then we can both find a job in the city, get you an apartment with a balcony, and get that cat we've been talking about. We'll have breakfast in bed every Sunday morning and wrap up all cozy in blankets doing movie nights, and I'll try and cook for you, but I know it'll turn out bad and you'll have to order in. Our cat will claw up Jeonghan and you can have a little corner in the living room for your crochet supplies."

In everything he did, Seungcheol made it known that you were always in his future plans. You were his future. He couldn't imagine a life without you, and that made you so incredibly elated because you felt the same. 

There was no one that you would rather be walking in the rain with, hand in hand. 

Sure, saying yes to him that last summer when he asked for a chance was scary. You were putting yourself in a vulnerable situation with your heart open and practically giving itself away. Luckily, it was Choi Seungcheol that was entrusted to take care of it. He was the one man that made you feel like you were always enough, just the way you are. He was the one person that you would jump leaps and bounds for, no matter how scary they were.

You pulled on his sleeve to stop him in his tracks under a streetlight. The rain looked like crystals falling under the light and the ground seemed sparkling. Seungcheol seemed a bit confused as he turned to you, but you propped yourself up and connected your lips to his. You could never get enough of kissing him- you still got intense butterflies every time you did, just like the first time he kissed you in your favourite ice cream shop under the pretense of cleaning up the ice cream around your lips. 

"I'm glad it's you, Choi Seungcheol."

That was all the I love you's he could ever need. 

[justcourttee]

Dandelions-Prologue

A/N oh hey. it's been a while. care for a Dickinette AU?

Love at first sight always sounded so absurd to me.

An instant connection to someone you just met? The idea is so foolish that it sounds like some excuse a hopeless romantic made up to explain why they’ve never gone on a date before.

‘I just didn’t feel the sparks, you know?’

I, in fact, did not know. Nor did I bother to try and understand it. Love is fickle, the lines so blurry, so thin, that you never know where you’ll land until it’s too late to change your mind, much less your heart.

And while I couldn’t appreciate the concept when applied to relationships in reality, relationships in fiction were a whole other story. Watching two characters reach for the same piece of paper, eyes connecting while the rest of the world fades into the background, only leaving a longing to get to know this person right in front of them? It was something that never got old no matter how much time passed.

Rom-Coms, Shojo Manga, Soulmate AUs, Jane Austin.

From screen to paper, I’m obsessed, so much so that I began to write my own stories. But there’s one thing that’s been holding me back; I’ve never been in love.

Now I know how this sounds. Everyone tries to tell you that it’s not possible to never experience love, that there has to have been some unreachable crush, some first love, some friend that you loved much more than life itself, but I’m sorry to report that none of the above are true. Of course, I care for my brother and my best friends, but loving your friends doesn’t translate to the life-altering, reality-shattering love I want to write about.

I left college years ago, as the ever demanding job field insisted I needed higher education, I opted out for a couple of side jobs, using my free moments to sit in coffee shops and parks, anywhere I could watch love blossom and write down inspiration.

That’s how I met him. Dick Grayson.

Brew-tiful Day is one of my favorite spots to observe. The slightly overpriced coffee, the bumbling crowd of office workers, students, and hopeless romantics, the simple ambiance of it all just made for the perfect spot to write.

I was settling into my usual spot, my laptop booting up when the couch dipped so violently that I almost sent my fresh brew onto the three-day-old shirt I had dug out from the corner of my room. Scrambling to set down my cup, the weight beside me seemed to settle out, almost as if the person was trying to melt into the cushions.

The funny thing about watching romance movies play out is that when two characters unexpectedly sit on the same couch in the same coffee shop at the same time, I melt. When it happens in reality, I feel an intense sensation of existential dread.

The boy beside me must not share the sentiment, because as I go to move, trying to avoid any eye contact that may happen, he lets out the largest sigh humanely possible, so large that the pair of businessmen sitting nearby have resorted to glaring at us. Not him, Us. That’s all it takes for me to find my weight shifting back into the couch cushion. I can feel my brain scrambling at the speed of the words threatening to fall out of my mouth, unable to know where to go from here but desperate to fill the silence between us.

“What’s wrong?” It takes everything I have not to slap my hand over my own mouth. Word vomit. Usually, it’s only an impulsive thought that sits on the tip of my tongue, but not today.

His head lolls over in a manner that reminds me of a cat waking after a long nap, slow and lazy. He doesn’t appear to be appalled that I have spoken to him, but he doesn’t seem eager to spill it all either. If this was a movie-

I can feel the heat radiating off of my cheeks in waves. I just tried to drag this stranger into the rabbit hole of my obsession with love. The embarrassment of trying to recreate the moment that flashed through my head of two main characters having their first interaction together is crushing. For some reason, I feel the need to apologize and quickly.

“I’m sorry-”

“I’m in love with the woman I’m betrothed to.” His body remains frozen, his head still lolled in my direction, his arms still folded over his stomach, but one feature has become distinctly different. His lips have now moved only to find themselves pulled into a thin line that looks borderline painful.

The silence that followed was deafening. His eyes shifted over my face before fixing, sending an involuntary shiver down my spine. Unsettlingly deep blue seemed to stare past where my eyes were on my face, almost like they were looking for something that wasn’t present on the surface.

With a shaky breath, I can feel the words desperate to fill the space and reluctantly I let them.

“Is that a bad thing?”

Typically, this kind of meddling would be unheard of for me. When I go to Brew-tiful Day, it’s to sip mediocre coffee and observe. If someone were to even sit too close to me, I immediately would abandon ship in favor of a new seat or a new coffee shop altogether. Looking back on this day, if someone were to ask me to put into words how I was feeling, sharing a couch with this listless boy with unsettling eyes I don’t think a word existed for it in the English language.

All I knew was that I was inexplicably invested in any and everything he would be willing to tell me. Any and every look he would give me. Any and every sentiment that might follow.

He hums softly as if contemplating my question, but eventually decides it doesn't warrant an answer. Instead, he asks a question of his own, “What’s your name?”

“Marinette. And yours?”

“Dick. Dick Grayson.”

Dick never gave me an explanation. Instead, I watched as he slowly sat up, his spine unfurling one vertebra at a time, feeling as if the world was holding its breath for what came next.

“Marinette is such a long name. Can I call you Mari instead?”

[sinkingnotsoslowly]

A song about you

Pairing: Gender-neutral reader x Han Jisung

Warnings: angst, fluff, coffee shop au

DO NOT STEAL MY WORK. REBLOGS ARE APPRECIATED.

masterlist

Autumn's sighs- little soft thoughts about our favourite boys

It felt like he was running for ages. From his nightmares, the ones in his sleep and also the ones he could see with his eyes open. He was so tired now, ready to drop any moment.

It felt like a loop; waking up, going to the studio and sitting staring into space waiting for the ideas till the end of the day and then going back home at 4 a.m. without getting anything done. And then again, the same thing the next day. He kept listening to songs- depressing, cheerful, anything just to feel something. And yet he felt nothing except empty. Burnout? Depression? He wasn’t sure. He just wanted an out.

Even coming back home didn’t bring him relief. The people around him whom he considered home, didn’t give him any comfort either. The little café he had hunted down didn’t feel like his safe place anymore. But he couldn’t stop going there, it had become a part of his routine. Every other day he would go there, sit in a corner, staring outside, hoping something would catch his eye.

But what finally caught his eye was something inside the café. Specifically, someone’s laugh. A new part-timer, didn’t look much younger than him. Maybe a college student. You were laughing at something your co-worker had said. Usually, it would have been inaudible during the bustling hours but it was almost closing time. Only a few others like himself were still sitting, absorbed in their own world.

You were a sight to hold. Even though it was late and you looked tired, you seemed happy. Jisung wondered if something good had happened to you that day or if it was just your personality. His eyes kept following you till you left after your shift. Soon after Jisung went back to the studio. And for the first time in what seemed like forever, he started writing some lyrics, all the while thinking about you.   

Jisung wondered what was going on in your mind as you stared into space. Your shift had just started. There weren’t too many people today because of the rain. But obviously, Han Jisung was there, how could he not come back to you for more lyrics. He had his laptop opened in front of him, hoping something would come up in his mind. But he wasn’t even thinking about writing anything. He was lost staring at you staring into space. How alluring he thought.  He did write some more that day, only after returning to his studio. And just like that, he had made a whole song about you in four days.

Currently, he was standing outside the café debating if he should tell you about his stalker behaviour. Although he felt it was justified since it was for music. He wanted to see your reaction after hearing what he wrote about you. Do you ever think of yourself like that? Like someone’s safe haven? He couldn’t help but wonder if he would ever get the chance to be your haven, hold each other close even when the whole world was crashing down.

“Did you know you stare at me a whole lot?”, Jisung looked up to see you looking at him with an amused glint. “If I didn’t know any better, I would think you have a crush on me”, you said as you gave him back his card. “I actually do”, Jisung didn’t know what possessed him to say that. Maybe after all these days of only staring he was finally exasperated with himself. And he was thankful he said that because that gave him a sight of your pink-tinted cheeks. “So were you only planning to stare?”, Jisung grimaced. He was caught off-guard at your boldness even when you were flustered. A little embarrassed he decided to cut to the chase. “If you say yes to a date then maybe I can show you what else I did besides stare”.

[afaramir]

hiiii denethor anon here!! wow you’re really IN IT now (denethorposting). not to add more fuel to your anger but last week i saw someone say they hated denethor. and i just realised god they don’t get him even on tumblr do they. since then i’ve been silently fuming in rage. anyway… i am very Very Intrigued by both your faramir-goes-to-rivendell-au and denethor-thorongil relationship (if you ever want to write another 800 words about this, i am here for it 👀) and this line “each of them sharpens himself upon the whetstone of the other…” fuck. fucking insane actually.

unfortunately i won’t be replying for several days (i’ve had to keep my phone in another room to keep myself from getting distracted) . my exams have started AND i’m going through some shit irl :( it’s alright tho i’ll have more Faramir and Denethor Hours soon <- chanting this constantly haha. but i am with you when denethorposting IN SPIRIT okay. oh and can we please please please have denethor december? 🙏 bye will be here soon after my exams (that will be after the 23rd march i’m afraid)

hiii denethor anon <333 i am SO sorry this is so late truly attempting to figure out how to write AND see my friends AND do things like clean my apartment and go to the grocery store while working The Job...it has eaten my life. and this week my regular coffee shop switched their hours bc i live in my old college town and they are on spring break and it has sent me directly to hell. the death of My Routine…i have coped by INCESSANTLY denethorposting on tumblr dot com. i am somehow EVEN MORE in it than i was when you sent this ask. i hope you enjoy me being truly crazyinsane whenever you get a chance to look at all those posts lol. would love 2 hear your thoughts on them. but ANYWAY as always it is so lovely to see you, i'm sorry things have been tough but truly with my whole heart i bestow upon you the strength of denethor's sixty-year psychic war (with none of the associated madness) to make it through. looking at the date i hope you are free now.

here is the mandated readmore because i have never met brevity in my whole life. u said write another 800 words and i took that as a challenge um this post is like 2000 words. well...back on my bullshit

i mean this with all the love and joy in my heart but i laughed so much. no my dear friend they do not get him on tumblr. they have not gotten him on tumblr from the beginning. if you have been spared the incessant tomato jokes i truly…[crying] I Wish I Were You So Bad. this guy doesnt even know about the tumblr denethor slander (POSITIVE) (YEARNING). its the trenches out here for real. i just live in my little bubble with me and you and like four other mutuals/Denethor Understanders and that is it.

speaking of denethor and the rivendell au. i miss the days when i was working on the faramir-in-gondor scenes. emotionally it felt like dying but i kind of knew what was going on. now i am in rivendell taking and failing this history of middle earth exam. and i am so very….the next time we see denethor for real is in return of the king. now girl…how will i survive another 80k words. i miss my boy my dear darling my tortured victim of the narrative. and according to the paragraph i just wrote faramir does too but is Refusing to admit it to himself<3

im also RIDICULOUSLY torn on how i want to resolve his arc. now just between you and me. and anyone who bothers to click that read more. I DONT WANT TO KILL HIM I WANT HIM TO LIVE. GOD I WANT HIM TO LIVE. I WILL WRITE YOU A THOUSAND HAPPY ENDINGS. except its not a happy ending its a you are not allowed to die you are forced to contend with your choices you must keep living ending. because he will always be tragic no matter what. but its ALSO a you can rest now you can be at peace son of gondor you have won your war. all you sacrificed has been worth it. you have given your all when that's what duty asked you for and it has been enough. and that makes my poor heart weep.

like on one hand the idea of resolving his storyline with faramir.......the opportunity for some kind of reconciliation, some kind of understanding between them...god. delicious. i know in my heart that faramir comes home and IS the lord that denethor once dreamed of being. not playing at it...he is high and lordly and gentle and the world bends around his will and he knows exactly what to bow to and when to stand his ground and his powers are honed to a keen edge that he uses with the utmost care and. AUGH. he walks into the citadel the IMAGE of his father. it makes me feel FERAL. and how would denethor react to that. man.

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND HOW DO I END THE STORY. like. LOL. do u know what i mean. likelihood of me being able to just have a triumphant coronation and tie it all up with a bow is soooo small. the narrative contortions i would have to go through. to have denethor accept that and still be in character. Girl....no thank u <3 so we havent worked THAT out yet. like how much of the madness and despair do i want to put into the narrative. We Shall See. IM not politically savvy enough to get real into the weeds with it all so im kind of rotating just. a beautiful set of reunions with the fellowship. eowyn and faramir get engaged. boromir and faramir see all their dreams of a gondor restored come true. we skate over the political minefield and deeply navigate the beginnings of denethor and faramir's relationship in this new world. and among it all, within it all, is hope, and a new dawn. and curtain.

i got distracted but re: we are in rivendell. it IS kind of fun to think about the themes and narratives. i am pushing my Let Faramir (And Denethor) Be Numenorean + Let Numenoreans Be Weird agendas so so sooo hard and i am having the time of my life with that specifically. birds follow him around and pick up the tunes he sings. he hears the voices of the people he loves in his head. he falls into a river and after having a breakdown about it promptly decides that The River Is Testing Him And He Has Passed. he gets to rivendell and INSTANTLY knows that there is someone Very Like Him Here (its elrond. the elrond-elros-faramir connection has me FROTHING at the mouth. faramir looks at elrond and sees his father and sees every statue of elros in minas tirith and Knows that this here is the son of earendil, gil-estel, his brightest north star. elrond looks at faramir and sees his brother, his dear dead doomed brother, and every numenorean descended from him and all their sins and all their glories and yet, kind as summer, sees beauty and knowledge and a strange quiet man who carries all the weight of his country on his shoulders and yet knows him, knows the legends; perhaps the blood of numenor is not yet spent in the south)

i just think that Every Elf that meets faramir along the way is like woah...hold up. there's something up with THIS guy! men ARENT supposed to do that! not anymore anyway! galadriel is Lowkey Threatened by him. and isnt that beautiful. woman who could be queen of the earth sees god's special chosen boy and goes hang on a minute. Fuck. i think they work out their shit by the time the company leaves lothlorien but like...just thinking about how faramir lowkey blamed her for boromir's death in rotk! idk how their dynamic is exaclty gonna manifest but there's definitely some sort of similar mindreader2mindreader tension!

AND. um the idea of faramir travelling with the fellowship discovering that maybe...well. he has never wanted to be a warrior but he has been honed into a blade anyway. by his father and by necessity. and perhaps for the first time in his life...outside of gondor he does not need to be all that. he can be mithrandir's pupil without censure he can be scholarly and witty and cunning - he is all these things, in gondor. but there he has to be them, and now he can discover that yes, this is what he wants to be. and he has never let his father and the expectations of his position STOP him but there is always a weight, there is always the knowledge that your actions are disapproved of, and being away from that for a while is i just think. really good for him. see above re: he comes home the image of his father in a gentler time. keep honking im sitting in my car crying about denethor ii twenty sixth steward of gondor.jpg (<- my greatest creation PLEASE click the link lol)

ALSO IM THRILLED YOU LIKED THAT WHETSTONE LINE LOL i kind of blacked out when i typed it on the page. i think truly the crazy thing about denethor and faramir is that they SHOULD understand each other. they know so much about each other and yet are so incompetent at actually putting it to any good use towards, you know, improving their relationship. faramir is incredibly emotionally intelligent AND can read minds AND has taken so many of what he probably views as denethor's worst traits and turned them to gentler uses. (im talking about his powers but im ALSO talking about that thing he does when he encounters frodo and sam where he plays woe is me my brother is dead and i miss him sooo much to get on their good sides. yes of course he misses boromir more than anything else in the world. no he is not above using it to his advantage. and we see the SAME THING when gandalf and pippin come to minas tirith. hey isn't it crazy that both of them use boromir as a. manipulation chip. even after he's dead. hey thats kind of fucked up actually!) and denethor is…well denethor is denethor. ok im mostly messing around and thought that sentence was funny. i think he Knows most everything that goes on in faramir's head and yet Wilfully Chooses to interpret it in the worst ways because its just soo....very I Thought I Raised You Better Than That/I Honed You To Be My Blade Stop Defying Me. and despite all that the Problem is that they understand each other right up until they don't. they know how THEY feel about each other (incredible love that they can only express in the worst ways/think they're expressing only to be spurned by the other) but cannot POSSIBLY imagine that the other feels the same way.

ive gone on for SO SO LONG ALREADY LOL but. what do i have to say about denethor and thorongil. not enough and too much all at once. they're so toxic and awful for each other they're MADE for each other they're beautiful narrative parallels they're homoerotic besties they're bitter rivals they're pawns in a proxy war they're locked at all times in a psychic psychosexual situationship. um the enemy of my enemy is kissing me with tongue. idk i have more symbolism and actual analysis especially of the denethor-ecthelion-thorongil Issue. but we are just getting into it. so i will start with the situations bc i have two angles for this. on one hand i do think it is very fun if they constantly homoerotically circle each other for years and years and never do a THING about it. like...this is a stitching up wounds wiping blood off each others faces battle couple/situationship situation that THEN turns into a ridiculously high functioning political rival partnership bent together over books long into the night catching each others eye in council meetings using their very real disdain for each other for Manipulation Purposes and getting uh. SO hot over it. like.....Do You Know What I Mean. just. truly unresolved sexual tension THROUGH THE ROOF. it DELIGHTS me. they are always putting themselves in situations. and then NOT making out about it. AND THEY CAN READ EACH OTHERS MINDS!! THE WHOLE TIME!! SO THEY KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH THEY WANT EACH OTHER AND STILL ARENT DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT!!! like thats just really good. but on the other hand.......the idea of just an absolutely terrible beautiful toxic rivals with benefits codependent situationship. i hate you so much and you know what we DO need to make out about it. every time they fuck it is a power play and they are having SO much fun with it. they will both start arguments with each other (AND IN PUBLIC TOO) just so they can fight and make up. the mind reading...Oh You Know What I Mean. taylor swift voice we had this big white city all to ourselves we blocked the noise with the sound of i need you and for the first time i had something to lose! logically thorongil is not yet in his grubby ranger era but the idea of him being dirt smeared all the time and hanging out with prim proper polished denethor. in the fic (which does exist and DOES follow the second model) theres a scene where hes just chilling with his head in denethor's lap and denethor is actually rather delighted and devoting ALL of his copious braincells to pretending not to be. Man. well never say im not a slut for contrast. and now the rest of what i could say is simply straight up redacted for indecency so it is time for this post to be over. the last thing i have to say is that it absolutely ruins denethor's life forever when thorongil up and leaves. sometimes a situationship....anyway. MUCH LOVE TO YOU AS ALWAYS yes we will have denethor december i already have an url saved.

[nateslehky]

5, 6, and/or 18 for the writer ask meme -patrichornkissed

thanks for asking @patrichornkissed ! :)

5. What’s a fic idea you’ve had that you will never write?

i feel bad saying never cause who knows, maybe one day i will. to be honest, as soon as I get fic ideas i tend to start writing them right away, so it's more of a question of whether i'll ever finish certain ideas.

i have nearly 9k of a college au that at times (like currently) feels just impossible to complete. the ending just feels so far away that it's daunting to work on. i also really like the idea (first got it wayyy back in september lol) so i feel like i've put a lot of unnecessary pressure on myself to make it 'right' (whatever that means). i would love to finish it someday but i don't know if i will.

i also have like 3k of a coffee shop au that i actually really don't think i'll finish. it's just a whole mess and has absolutely zero direction, but it's fun lil sandbox to play around with and think about.

6. Are there any fics from others you reread all the time?

tons!! i'm a hugeeee rereader. basically all my bookmarks are fics that i either know i'll want to reread in the future or have reread a ton already. but i've definitely reread fics that aren't in my bookmarks too.

18. What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?

tbh, i'm really happy with a lot of the lines in the instacart au, but this one was one i added really last minute towards the end of revising:

“It felt weird to you?” asks Cale. “Imagine how I felt? I’ve been paying you this whole time—” A delayed realization washes over Cale and—“Oh God, I haven’t pavlov'd you into liking me cause I tip well, have I?”

and it still makes me smile. and people have told me it's made them laugh, which makes me smile even further.

i don't usually write with the specific intention of making people laugh, but the whole entire goal of instacart au was just for me to have fun writing it and hopefully for people to have fun reading it, so it's made me absurdly happy that people have found specific moments/lines as funny/cringe as i hoped lol.

ask me fic questions if you feel like it (please!)

[17020s]

i have so many thoughts on sae but hear me out

coffeeshop au sae.

he just works there because it’s an easy job and his friend recommended it to him. he’s a fine ass barista and you only come to the coffeeshop because of him. little does he know he absolutely SUCKS at making fancy coffee. every regular always asks for someone else to make their coffee so sae’s always doomed to register duty. but you show up when they’re understaffed one day and are immediately in love with sae, he makes your coffee, it tastes like shit, you are chewing on grounds, but you thank him with a smile and leave him a tip. next time you come back and there are more people working you specifically ask for him to make your coffee. sae doesn’t know why he’s trying so hard to make it perfect but he can’t help the flush that comes to his cheeks when you smile at the first sip and thank him. next time he leaves his number on the receipt and puts a heart on the cup next to your name.

COFFEE GROUNDS.

Sae Itoshi is a barista, and his coffee sucks ass. You don't mind, though. 0.8k words, fluff.

SAE ITOSHI was desperate for a job. He didn't have enough money to pay for his student loans, and his friend from college recommended him to work in a coffee shop. It's an easy job, just mix coffee and water, and let the customer pick how much sugar or stevia they want him to put inside their cup. Right?

Wrong, because somehow, Sae Itoshi manages to fuck up every coffee he makes. He blames it on the coffee machine, because how are there whole coffee beans in the coffee he makes? Even if customers asked for something other than coffee, he still found ways to make those drinks taste like hell. So, he was assigned to register duty.

It hurt his ego, but he quickly got over it. Customers were always asking for other baristas to make their drinks. He then realized, register duty was not bad. All he had to do was take orders, take the person's name and misspell it if he felt like it, and give the orders to someone else. Easy money.

Or so he thought, until one afternoon, the coffee shop was understaffed. His two other coworkers had break, and they left without him. Because he did not leave the best impression on them. If he had been nicer, he wouldn't have been in this position, and the coffee shop would have closed for lunch time and reopened once everyone had returned from their break.

That's when you came in. You saw there was only one employee, and he looked like he came straight out of a magazine. Cupid had hit you with his arrow, and you were falling in love. You approached the register and had asked him for a coffee. He didn't feel the need to ask for your name, as you were the only one in the coffee shop. You did get his name, though, as his apron had his own name tag. As he served you your coffee, he noticed how attractive you were. You had caught his attention.

Sae felt bad as he watched you drink your coffee from the register, because he knew you were doomed. You took a sip of the coffee he made, and you almost spit it out. It was horrible. The sugar didn't dissolve well, and you could feel the coffee grounds—it was too sweet and too bitter at the same time. Still, you remained calm as you chugged down the monstrosity that Sae Itoshi called coffee.

Once you were done, you smiled at him, thanking him for the coffee and saying your goodbye. Just then, Sae realized how much of an angel you were. He regretted not asking for your name, and he hoped that you would return, even if it was one time. He needed to know who you were.

He thought he was dreaming when he saw you return two days later. Sae was in disbelief when he heard you wanted him to make your coffee. He wondered if you had issues with your taste buds, or even your digestive system, because how could you enjoy his coffee? He asked for your name, writing it in a cup. Yn? It suits them, he thinks.

Truth was, you hated his coffee. It was absolute shit. But Sae was cute, so you let it slide. Besides, the confused look on his face as you drank his coffee was satisfying. If drinking a coffee that felt like muddy water meant that you would get to see Sae, then you'd spend your savings on that damn coffee shop.

Sae began to prepare your coffee, and he found himself putting in so much effort. He wants you to like it, or at least think it's decent. He was careful with the coffee grounds, he made sure the coffee was hot enough to add sugar to, so that everything melts together beautifully. His palms even began to sweat as he poured the cream into the cardboard cup, trying to make a simple design—a heart. Which ended up looking like a manta ray.

It's now or never, he thinks. He has a chance, and it's now. He will not make the same mistake he did last time. He takes a look at your name written on the cup, and decided that something is missing. Grabbing a pen, he draws a small heart next to your name. He kept the receipt, as you told him you didn't need it. He silently thanked you for that, as he scribbled down his number in the receipt.

Your coffee was ready, and when you took the coffee from his hands, he insisted you take the receipt with you. You smiled, thanking him and walking out. Noticing the number in the receipt, you registered the number on your phone.

His phone dinged, and he noticed it was from an unknown number. It was a picture of a coffee, and it was sent along with other messages.

(xxx) - xxx - xxxx Thanks for the coffee :) Tone it down on the sugar, though, you're sweet enough ♡

[mysticscorpia]

hi there! for the writing asks - 10, 19, 23, and 38! ❤️

Hi there back!! :D

Hehe they are some interesting ones!!

10) Top 3 Favourite fic Tropes

Oooooo OK...

Lemme grab the ol' fic list.

Well, slow burn comes up a lot, and mutual or one sided pining, and hmm... Forbidden lovers!

Well, these three are my favourite tropes. I could walk by a book and buy it if it had any one of these, or the ship store. 🤣 I got me a whole load full of these *bags the hood of the boat*

19) Share a snippet from a wip without context

☼︎

Something within purred, the voice too much, too full of something she didn’t need to see. She bit back the cry, the helpless noise that made it impossible to look at herself in the light of day. Like the innocent party.

There was a rustle and a hush as he leant closer, loosing the distance as the crush of people swarmed every cranny that wasn’t protected. Their dancing wasn’t real. Not this. The feeling that ran and trilled when his voice brushed against her neck, finding the shivers and teasing them out.

“Dance with me,”

“Can’t.”

The web of fingers that had placed itself against her waist strummed softly against the rouges, so thin against her back, barely moving, the line of the zipper centimeters away, scratching and not hard enough.

“Dance.” 

☼︎

23) Dialogue or description? Why is the other one so hard?

Gosh, well! I have to say, I find dialogue harder than description. Most of the time it's knowing how fluid it sounds, how to express the exact tone and being able to control that in the flick of a key, or to know how much you're saying with the right words! Everyone's imagination is different, but if you're setting the scene, whether mundane or fantasy, it's out of your hands what the person sees! But, with speech it has to convey emotion or (the lack thereof!), and also culture of that person, their very essence.. And well, I'm not the first to admit that knowing the way people speak is biased to what I've grown up around! So, if I want to write a character with a completely different lexicon and way of phrasing and communicating, that is a lot harder than creating the concept of magical fortress floating in the middle of the sea. 😂 How do you write a four year old child's accurate speak, compared to a wild Western Old man who has a lisp?

38) "This never happened" fix-it-fics or "This-happened-but" fix-it-fics?

AHHH! I actually have no idea 😭😭😭. I love them both so much. So long as I get me phix.

But, if I *had* to chooseee? Well, I feel like "this never happened" fics can be so much more variable, and well, be twisted into a lot of AUs. It's more of 'if it never happened' then it can be turned into an AU, Modern, or Pirate, or Coffee shop or college or somethin that recreates the experience without the OG angst, but with aLL the angst 😂 but I do admit, Voleé is the example of a fic that does both and that is my final reason why both. Both are good. 🥰

Thank you sooo much for the fun asks!!! 😊

[aurumalatus]

random yuuta headcanons that i need to write down before i sleep. takes place in a no curses college au. he is the best boy of all time.

- decently fast texter, but only for you. mostly because he knows when your classes end and such so he starts to expect the message before it comes.

- feels bad pirating movies/tv/etc. will pay for all the different streaming services and share them with you.

- has like one (1) emoji that he gets OBSESSED with for about a month (besides the basic 😭💀🙄 etc, ofc), then switches to the next. 🗿 and 😤 have both had a turn.

- likes collecting manga. just thinks it’s fun to see the shelf fill up plus he can sit and read through a whole series any time. doesn’t mind letting you read them and isn’t super strict about it, he thinks a bit of wear and tear adds character to the books.

- likes tea more than coffee. will buy sweet drinks whenever he goes to cafes or coffee shops because he knows you will want to taste.

- always loses his damn phone 😭 any time you guys are in the apartment alone together and you see him pacing around a bit awkwardly, you already know.

”yuuta, did you lose your phone again?”

”….no. why, have you seen it?”

- not into skipping class at all, unless it’s for a special occasion (date with you lol). he just gets too stressed thinking about the money he’s paying to attend school in the first place.

- doesn’t really like bowling/mini golf/etc because it makes him feel awkward when everyone watches him take his turn lol

- if you ever recommend him a show, he will live tweet his reactions to you no matter what. extra dramatic too because he knows you’ll think it’s funny. you know he’s starting a new episode when your phone starts going off like crazy.

- changes his alarm sound often because having the same one for a long time really bothers him lol. if he hears it in public he seizes up and everything

- good at most sports, and will play with you even if you’re not. has a special interest in skateboarding.

- the first time he said “i love you” was when he got his wisdom teeth taken out and you were in charge of bringing him home. he was loopy out of his goddamn mind and does not remember this occurring. please do not tell him, because he will die of embarrassment from how unromantic it was.

- cannot dance. he knows this, but will attempt to dance at parties to make you laugh. he doesn’t care lmao

- is actually really giggly. makes himself laugh all the time, then laughs harder at the sound of his own laugh. adorable.

- sometimes sits in on your big lectures with you when he has free time. doodles on the edge of your paper but doesn’t try to talk to you if you don’t talk to him first—doesn’t wanna be an annoying distraction to you when you’re focused on studying.

- leaves cringey comments under your instagram photos on purpose. makes you send him the photos first so he can think of a pun, and so he’ll be ready to be first comment once you post. it’s always very sweet though.

- is actually shy at heart but will take the heat for you when necessary. you could fart loud as hell in a silent room and he would claim it for you. true love.

- not particular about his clothes at all. likes oversized comfy things, no preference for brand. tends to wear more muted colors.

- worked at a mall arcade as a summer job in high school and got really fucking good at pacman. you still haven’t been able to beat him at it, but you win at pretty much everything else.

- still kisses you good morning and good night even when you’re arguing. still walks you home, still buys you food, still cares for you—he’ll NEVER use momentary anger as an excuse to neglect you

- calls you his everything/his angel and means it. i love him so much oh my god

[kkyaka]

The Chance To Change

Summary: When he coincidentally walks back into your life, he's determine to change the way things are

Pairing: Aomine Daiki x black!fem!reader

Word Count: 24, 909 😐🧍🏽‍♀️

Warnings: professional basketball player!aomine, bookstore!au kinda, lots of angst, lots of fluff, reader is oblivious, reader has trust issues at the beginning, aomine not knowing how to deal with his feelings, reader's on her period at one point, reader is scared of like horror rides (sorry if you aren't), lots and lots of kissing and making out, lots of intimacy, misunderstandings, smut: unprotected sex, fingering, multiple orgasms, lots and lots of confessions of love, aomine is very whipped for you, reader's best friend is an oc, and aomine's teammates are oc's, lots of going back and forth in time, all characters are 21+, if I missed anything please let me know, I know that there's gonna be typos in this and when it isn't 3 am, I'll get around to fixing them lol

A/N: Now. I can't even begin to explain how or why I was able to write all of this. I've been working on this fic for about a month, and I was finally able to finish it (thank God bc I have so much work to do lmao). I know some parts might seem kinda rushed, but I can't really bring myself to care bc I spent so much time on this and I'm just happy that's it's finished. Reblogs are greatly appreciated even though I know it might break your phone if you try to LMFAO, but if you read all this, I seriously appreciate it. And I definitely projected in this fic. This is also for @sintiva's #theclockisticking collab, and thank you so much for letting me join!

Running a bookstore is something you've always wanted to do. It seems silly to most people, but you've always found small, quaint bookstores to be really peaceful, and it was always somewhere you could go when the world was always too much. Whenever you stepped inside, it was like the outside disappeared, and you were only surrounded by paper bound together that told a million stories.

You actually read through the entire bookstore in your town, and you had become so close with the owner, that they gave it to you after you graduated college. You were surprised, to say the least, and a little worried, not knowing much about running anything, let alone a business, but the owner was more than helpful with getting you into the swing of things.

Now, it's like everything is second nature for you. Opening up the store and smelling that certain smell that books have that you've always loved. The small coffee shop you have in the corner is always a popular spot because it has a giant window that allows you to view the whole town. You've found yourself sitting in one of the comfortable chairs that are over there multiple times, watching the sunrise and seeing the city start to wake up.

Your co-worker/co-owner/best friend Mia always comes in about an hour after you do, always making a comment about how she doesn't understand how you manage to wake up so early. You always brush it off with a roll of your eyes as you hand her a cup of coffee that you know she'll need.

During the week, the place is usually quiet, a person every now and then, most of them coming in all of the time, so you know them by their schedules. You're sitting at the front desk, reading a book, one of your favorites, even though it's a cliché exes-to-lovers plotline, you always find yourself re-reading it whenever you have time.

Your peace, though, is rudely interrupted when someone yanks the door open, causing the bell to jingle violently, and you jump in your seat as you look at who just barged in. They have a hood on over their head as they look out the window like they're checking to make sure they're not being followed.

"Can I help you?" The figure turns towards you, and you feel your face fall at the same time a waterfall of emotions runs through you. "Aomine?"

He pulls the hood down from his head, and it's like you're frozen in your seat when he smiles at you. "Holy shit. It's you."

"Uh, yeah it is," you say, your voice hollow. He walks towards the counter, and you've never been more grateful for something being in between the two of you.

"Wow," he starts, his eyes running down your frame before he meets your eyes. "You look amazing."

"What are you doing here?" you ask, and you could've never prepared yourself for this.

"I'm here for some charity event, but the cameras were on my ass, so I found the closest place to get away from them."

Right. He's gone pro now. The last time you had seen him, he was leaving his freshman year of college and going to the NBA. He had told you all about it, and you were happy for him, truly. But you know all too well that things can be too good to be true.

You nod, but you don't say anything, and he's about to keep talking, but Mia walks up next to you. "Hey, I just finished--what in the actual fuck?" She's looking at Aomine, who frowns at her at first, but then recognition runs over it soon after.

"Wait, Mia?"

"What in the world are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be across the country?" She's just as floored as you, and you glance between the two of them, your eyes staying on Aomine when he starts talking.

"Charity event. And I'll be here for a while," he adds, making your eyebrows raise. "The team's doing some training here."

"How long is a while?" Mia questions and he tilts his head to the side as he tries to come up with a relative time frame.

"Dunno, month give or take." Mia scoffs as you find yourself staring at him in disbelief. You look at her as you curl your lips into your mouth. "And I since I found you, I wanted to ask--"

"I actually have to check inventory." You cut him off quickly, and Mia looks at you, confused.

"But I was gonna tell you that I--"

"I'm gonna go check inventory," you quip, turning to her sharply. "It'll probably take hours," you drawl as you start to walk away. "Like hours."

You don't even give him another look as you head towards the back of the store, taking a deep breath once you're out of earshot. You take another one, feeling the emotions you felt during that fatal night rising in you again. You run your hands over your face before you turn to look at the boxes stacked up against the wall. You know Mia already did it, but you can't bring yourself to go back out there.

Well, you always have a watch list that you could get started on. You grab your phone from your pocket, scrolling through your options for who knows how long until you ultimately end up picking something that you've already seen. You trust Mia's judgment, so you're not even going to try and do inventory, you just needed to find any excuse to get away from Aomine.

How it ended between you two is definitely different in your heads, but it's mostly your fault. You were young and naïve, you should've known that a guy like Aomine wouldn't actually fall for you. But you fell, and you fell hard. It still hurts to think about, but that's not saying that you've been hung up on Aomine. You've moved on, had boyfriends; you've grown from the girl you used to be, but seeing him again just opens up a wound that you're now realizing wasn't fully healed yet.

All of the signs back then were there when you think about it, but you didn't realize, just brushing it off, which makes the whole ordeal sting even more. You cringe as you shake your head, brushing away the memories that taint your mind. You look through the room before deciding to sit on the floor and watch your show.

You opt to watch about three episodes, hoping that he'll be gone by the time you re-emerge, but you accidentally end up watching about seven, getting too engrossed in the show. Mia comes in, telling you that she's got somewhere to be, and you nod, letting her leave since it's only about an hour until closing anyway. You finish the episode before you emerge from the room, starting the routine of shutting down the store.

You check through the whole building, making sure there's no one here, and you freeze in your spot when you see that Aomine is still here, sitting in one of the lounge chairs as he looks at his phone. You take a deep breath before you speak, taking half of a step closer. "We're closing now."

He looks up, giving you a smile as he stands. "That's cool, I'll just walk out with you."

"No, that's fine," you deny, shaking your head. "I've gotta finish closing anyway."

"I'll wait then." His response is quick, and you stop him before he can sit down.

"What are you doing here, Aomine?" He stops, giving you a playful look as he walks over to you.

"I already told you. Training."

"No, here. Why did you stay?" you clarify, and he shrugs as you try to guard yourself, still feeling all of those feelings from back then. "I'm not going to let you rope me back in just so you can fuck me and leave since you didn't get to do that in college."

"Woah, what?" His face looks like he's surprised at what you said, but there's nothing in you that believes him.

"Whatever. I'm not going through this again, so if you could leave, I'd really appreciate it."

"Wait, what are you talking about?" You scoff, putting some distance between the two of you.

"The fact that you don't know doesn't help your case." When he tries to speak again, you sigh, effectively cutting him off. "When you figure it out, come talk to me." You're frustrated at a lot of things. Aomine walking back into your life, revisiting all of those painful memories, the fact that you were caught off-guard. You can't do this right now, and you start to walk away. "The paparazzi should be long gone." It's the last thing you say to him as you leave, hoping he gets the hint to do the same.

FRESHMAN YEAR, BEGINNING OF FIRST SEMESTER

You've always enjoyed coming to the library, finding an area that doesn't get a lot of traffic, so you can always get a lot of work done without having to worry about any distractions. You bop your head to the music you're listening to softly as you switch to the next subject you need to work on. You nearly jump out of your seat when you feel someone tap on your shoulder.

You take your earbud out, your eyes landing on the hottest guy you've seen. You instantly recognize who he is, Daiki Aomine, a basketball star on the rise. He's all you ever hear about on campus. "You mind if I sit here?"

You frown as you shake your head, wondering why he even chose this seat in the first place when there were plenty of tables open. You put your earbud back in as he throws his backpack on the table and sits down next to you. You wish you had told him no because now you're hyper-focusing on him instead of your work.

You notice after a while that he hasn't opened his backpack, and you glance at him to find him looking at you. "What?"

"Do I know you?" Your frown deepens as your eyes scan over his face before you shake your head.

"I don't think so?" you say. You don't really know why he would know you, not ever having a single conversation with this man.

"Yeah, I do. You're in my psych lecture." You squint your eyes this time as your head tilts to the side. You've never seen him before, and you would've definitely known if you were in the same class as him.

"No. I think you have me mistaken for someone else," you state, and he nods his head.

"Yeah, you are. One-thirty with Johnson."

"Oh," you say, surprised. "I've never seen you though."

"Well, I sit all the way in the back." Well, that would explain it since you sit closer to the front of the room, mainly because it gives you a quick route to the door, wanting to leave as soon as possible to avoid the traffic.

He holds his hand out, introducing himself, and you give him a small smile as you take it, giving him your name. "So," he starts, saying your name. "You have a partner for the final project?"

You scoff, wondering why this whole interaction felt off. "Yes, I do. Sorry."

"C'mon, you can't make it a group of three?" he urges, and you smile as you shake your head.

"Nope, we already have most of it planned out anyway," you respond. You pick your phone up, seeing that you only have about fifteen minutes to get to your next class, and you start packing your stuff. "Hope you have fun studying your backpack," you say when you stand, poking fun at the fact that he didn't open it.

You slide the straps of your backpack onto your shoulders, and he watches you leave.

PRESENT DAY

As you open up the store, you can't help but wonder if Aomine will show up today. When you had gone back to the coffee shop area, he was gone, much to your relief, but it didn't make you any less anxious about what today might bring.

"Who would've thought that Aomine of all people would walk into the store," Mia says, sipping on her coffee as she sits next to you at the front desk.

"I know. It was like a slap in the face," you say, letting your head fall onto the wood. "I'm worried he's going to show up here again."

"I wonder if he's still the same asshole from back then," Mia hisses, and you huff as you look at her.

"He's probably even worse. The fame probably went to his head, fueling his ego even more." You both laugh as you roll your eyes. Mia is the only person that knows your "relationship" with Aomine and how it ended, and you could say that she was the one who helped you through it. "Oh, those books are supposed to be here today, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they should," she says with a nod. You get up, walking around the desk and towards the door to check. You groan when you see that they just left the stack of boxes outside the store, and you shake your head. You seriously need to get a new delivery person.

You squat down to lift one of the boxes, your eyes widening when you feel how heavy it is, and suddenly the weight is out of your arms. You look up, seeing the box that was previously occupying your arms is now in Aomine's arms.

He smirks at you, and you actually have the chance to look over him, noticing how big his arms are, remembering that he was big back then, but it seems like he's gotten bigger all while maintaining his sleek physique. "I can handle that," you say, snapping yourself out of it.

"I know, but there's no harm in helping." You give him a look before you sigh, turning around and holding the door open for him. Mia's eyebrows lower in suspicion, and you shrug as you walk behind him, letting him know where he can set the box.

"I should probably get the other boxes," you immediately say when he tries to speak to you.

"I'll get them." He's out of the door before you can even blink, and you give Mia an annoyed, tired look.

"Maybe if you let him say what he wants to say, then he'll get out of your hair," Mia offers, and you roll your eyes before you lift the box, setting it on the counter, and Mia takes it, disappearing into the inventory room. When you hear the door open again, you turn to see Aomine carrying both boxes stacked on top of each other, pushing the door open with his back.

"You can just set them right there." You point to where you want them, and you watch him set them down with a soft grunt. "Thanks." Your voice is clipped, and you stand there awkwardly when he doesn't make a move to leave.

"Did I do something?" You frown, not understanding his question. "It just seems like you hate me or something."

You wouldn't say that you hate him, it's more like you're mad at yourself for being so stupid back then, and his face just reminds you of what pain you had put yourself through. "I don't hate you..." You don't know what to say because it's very obvious that he still doesn't know what he did, and you would rather spare yourself the embarrassment again by explaining it to him.

"I'm missing something though, aren't I?"

"It's nothing," you try, but he seems to have gotten even more stubborn since when you first met him.

"No, there's definitely something I'm missing. And when I figure it out, I'll act accordingly." Your head can't even begin to wrap around this conversation, having trouble finding what to say.

"Don't you have something else you could be doing?" You hope your face isn't really showing how ridiculous you think this whole interaction is.

"Nope, absolutely nothing." Should you just ask him to leave? If you think about it, he really didn't do anything wrong, so there's no reason for you to be so indifferent towards him. He's just clueless about your dilemma.

"Well, since you're here, you can do some work." You both turn at the sound of Mia's voice, and you pointedly ignore the look she's giving you. "These books need to go on the top shelf," she says, patting the box. "Make yourself useful."

He surprisingly grabs the box without another word, and Mia tells him where they go as he walks off. You pull your lips into your mouth as you walk to the counter, taking a while to meet your best friend's eyes. "What the hell are you doing?" she asks once he's out of earshot.

"Nothing!" you defend quickly. "I'm not doing anything. I mean, it's not like he knows what happened back then."

"Well, he should."

"But, at the end of the day, I was stupid enough to think that he could be into me," you try.

"I told you to stop that shit. And I told you, he knew what he was doing." You shake your head, your body slumping a little as you look away. You don't want to have this conversation again. You've already been thrown off because Aomine suddenly walked back into your life, and he keeps doing it; the last thing you need is this.

"If you're worried about me "taking him back" or whatever, I'm not." Mia looks at you for a second before walking around the counter, wrapping an arm around your shoulders.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I know this is really touchy for you, but I don't want history to repeat itself."

You keep your eyes on her as you nod. "Yeah, I know. But it won't happen, I promise. I know better now. I'll be fine."

FRESHMAN YEAR, THREE WEEKS INTO FIRST SEMESTER

Aomine has started sitting with you in the library a lot more, which you find weird because it doesn't even seem like he's trying to get something out of you. You've changed where you usually sit, just in case he attracts a crowd, and you don't want the space to be overrun.

You didn't tell him, but he managed to find you anyway. "Why'd you move?"

You look up to see Aomine sitting down across from you, and you shrug, not really wanting to answer truthfully. "I just wanted to sit somewhere different today." You have the strong urge to ask him what his whole deal is, but you don't want to get caught in a situation that you can't get out of.

"What're you working on?"

You answer without looking up, keeping your head down. He doesn't say anything else, and your reflexes are fast enough to stop him from yanking your work away. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Let's go somewhere," he says, not letting go of your notebook, and you raise your eyebrow.

"I don't know if you can tell, but I'm studying," you counter, keeping a tight grip on your stuff until he lets go.

"How long have you been here?" he asks, finally letting you slide the book towards you. "You need a break."

"Where would we even go?" you prompt, and he shrugs, leaning back in his chair.

"I'll figure it out."

"You wanna go somewhere, but you don't even know where?" you deadpan, and he stands, walking to your side of the table. He grabs your arm softly, lifting you out of your seat as he packs your stuff up, and for some reason, you can't find it in you to stop him.

"Aomine," you start, and he throws your backpack over his other shoulder, pulling you away from the table by your arm.

~

"Isn't this better than being cooped up in the library?" he asks, and you scoff as you roll your eyes. You both ended up walking to one of the many large grass areas your campus has, and you will admit that it is a really pretty day.

"I mean, I guess," you muse, resting your back on your backpack and stretching your legs out. "How's the team doing?" you find yourself asking after a few moments of silence.

"Fine," he responds, but you can hear the attitude in his voice, prompting you to ask a different question.

"How are you doing?"

He huffs heavily as he rests his weight on his hands, leaning back. "It's definitely different."

"You don't sound too excited about it."

"I spent a while barely being able to lose, and I get here and it happens almost instantly," he says. "It's just a little unsettling, that's all."

You turn your head to him as you hum. "Do you wanna go pro?"

"That's the plan," he answers with a sigh.

"Well, I think you'll be fine. I've seen you play before, and you're really talented. I think you'll have no issue making it." He turns his head, a smug smile on his face.

"You think I'm talented?"

"Don't flatter yourself, Aomine," you say with a roll of your eyes. "I'm never saying it again." You both laugh, and you turn your attention up towards the sky, Aomine doing the same.

"Thanks."

"Of course."

PRESENT DAY

"I thought you were supposed to be doing some team training?" you ask one day when Aomine's helping you take the inventory boxes off the top shelf.

"Yes, but not right now," he says, handing you the box. "It's the off-season."

"Right," you start. "But what does that have to do with you coming back here?" You set the box down, turning around when you don't hear him respond, and you find him staring at you intently.

"Listen." You feel your heart start to race at the sound of your name coming from him as he steps closer to you. "I figured it--"

"Hey, there's someone on the phone for you," Mia says, peeking her head into the small room, and you swiftly make your exit, and Mia glares at Aomine with daggers in her eyes.

"What's your deal, Aomine?" she asks, stepping towards him, and he frowns at her.

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you still here? Because I know you're not here just to help out."

"She told me that when I figured it out, to talk to her, and I finally did, so--"

"Oh, you did?" she questions, cutting him off. "So, what? You think you'll tell her and everything will be all fine and dandy, huh?" He hesitates and it tells her all she needs to know. "Well, new flash, Aomine. It doesn't work like that. This isn't some cliché fantasy where it all just works out after a few days."

She would keep going because she is nowhere near done, but your voice interrupts her. "Hey, Mia, we need to work on the arrangements for this event." You're unaware of what's going on because Mia made sure to keep her voice down, and she gives Aomine one last look before walking out of the room with you.

And Aomine watches you go, sighing as he shoves his hands into his pockets.

"Were you threatening him?" you ask when you both get to the front desk.

"No, of course not," she responds quickly, and you cross your arms over your chest.

"Mia, seriously," you groan, and all she does is shrug.

"I don't trust him. We've got a lot of years unaccounted for. Trusting him right off the bat is dangerous."

She's right. Things are too good to be true, and you fell for that in college, and you were starting to do it again. You sigh heavily, closing your eyes. Every time you come to another reality check, you feel like shit.

You feel like it'd be the best option to just ask him to leave you alone, to never walk back into your life again. But there's a part of you that would feel almost defeated if you couldn't manage to stay strong.

You change the subject quickly, turning your attention to the plans that you and Mia are currently working on.

"Aomine, where have you been?" He's the first one on the court, rolling his eyes at the voice of his teammate.

"Nowhere," he responds, easily shooting the ball.

"Aomine actually showed up?" He grabs the ball when it bounces back to him, resting it on his hip as he looks over his shoulder. "What kept you away?" his other teammate, Matt, says, nudging him on the arm.

"Definitely a girl," Dylan speaks up. "There's no way he'd miss playing basketball for anything else."

"Are you sure?" Matt questions. "He usually has a line of girls, and he's always present."

"But this one might be different."

"Are you guys gonna play or what?" Aomine asks, annoyed, and they snicker as they sit down to change their shoes.

The gym he's in is one for the team to use if they wanted to play. Technically, they're on vacation, but Aomine is always willing to get reps in, but he hadn't been here lately because he's been helping you out. He was starting to get antsy because he hadn't touched a basketball in a while, but also because he's not getting anywhere with you.

When he first saw you, he wasn't really thinking about anything other than the fact that this could be his chance to finally say what he never thought he'd get to say. But then your reaction threw him off, and it took him way too long to realize why you were reacting the way you did.

And of course, when he finally puts the pieces together, there's no way for him to explain himself. With Mia right there beside you, he doesn't know if he'll ever be able to say what he wants. He's trying to fix it, but he doesn't blame you at all for being distant. But it sure is making it fucking difficult to convince you that things have changed.

"No, it's definitely a girl. He's zoning out." Matt's voice makes him realize that he hadn't done anything since they came in, and he huffs as he throws a random shot up, making it in easily. "So, who is it?" Matt prods. "High school sweetheart? Old flame?"

Aomine chuckles as he shakes his head. "It's nothing."

"It's definitely more than nothing, Daiki," Dylan denies. "Come on, what advice do you need?"

"What makes you think I need advice?"

"Because this genuinely seems to be bothering you." Aomine looks at Dylan, who actually sounds pretty serious considering he's the one always joking around.

He shakes his head. "It's nothing," he dismisses again after a while, and they both give each other a look. "What?"

"Nothing, man." Matt holds his hands up, and Aomine sighs, focusing his attention on the ball and the hoop.

"I'm starving," you groan, laying your top half on the counter, and you hear Mia agree. "Isn't your turn to get the food this time?"

"Are we really doing the turns thing?" she asks as you turn your head to face her.

"Uh, yes," you say. "Because I got food the last time, so it's your turn." She groans even louder this time, and just as she moves, the bell on the door rings. You look up to see Aomine with a couple of bags in his hand, and he sets one in front of both of you.

You and Mia look at each other as you sit up before looking back at Aomine. "What is this?"

"Lunch. I heard you guys talking about it, so I got some." You look at Mia again before you take the container out of the bag, seeing your usual order when you open it.

"Oh," you say quietly. "Thanks." He's handing you forks when you ask, "How much do I owe you?" Mia hits you on the arm, and you frown, confused as you look at her, mouthing 'what?'

"Don't worry about it," he says, waving you off, and just as Mia's about to open her container, she gasps loudly, nearly making you jump out of your seat.

"What day is it today?" she asks, her eyes wide as she checks her phone. "Shit, I was supposed to meet my mom for lunch." She quickly gathers her stuff, even sliding her food towards Aomine, saying that he can have it since she's not going to eat it.

"Have fun," you call out after her, and she gives you a quick wave before running out of the store. You laugh softly as you watch her go, and you start to eat, but then you slowly start to realize that you're now alone with Aomine. You don't say anything, keeping your head down.

"Do you mind?" You look up, seeing him pointing at the chair next to you, the one that Mia was just sitting in. You shake your head, but to your surprise, he just reaches over the counter, grabbing the chair and putting it on the other side.

He sits down across from you, and you're turning your attention to anywhere but him. The silence isn't really awkward, it's more like you're just waiting for him to ask you something that you're not ready to answer.

"That shirt looks really good on you." You look at your shirt before you scoff, looking at him with a lazy smile.

"Thanks." You can't help but laugh to yourself because the compliment reminds you of when and why you bought it. During one of your lower moments in college, you decided you wanted to change the way you'd dress, thinking that it would get you somewhere with Aomine.

To your absolute embarrassment, it didn't seem like it changed a thing, not getting a single compliment. You laugh at it now, but back then you were mortified. But you spent money on the damn clothes, so you were going to wear them. It's just hilarious to you that you got what you wanted after so long.

"I remember you wearing a shirt like that in college. Is it the same one?" Your brain screeches to a halt, the only thing you can manage is to blink slowly.

But then you feel your face growing warm as you answer. "Uh, yeah. It is." You laugh around your words, trying to laugh off how embarrassed you feel. For whatever reason, you feel like it's weird that you're still wearing the same shirt.

"I would've complimented you on it then, but I was too nervous." You immediately laugh at his words, shaking your head as you try to compose yourself.

"I know that's a lie," you say, but you stop suddenly when you see that he actually looks upset.

"That's what you think?" You frown before you give him a skeptical smile.

"You were nervous to compliment me?" He nods, and you really have to fight the urge to laugh again. "Why?"

"It isn't obvious?" You shake your head, your frown even deeper this time, and he sighs, deciding to eat instead of continuing the conversation. You feel like you're missing something with respect to his response, but you don't even know what to ask in order to get an explanation.

You do the same as him, eating your food as multiple thoughts run through your head.

FRESHMAN YEAR, TWO MONTHS INTO FIRST SEMESTER

The area you and Mia are sitting at is one that you both frequently go to, nearly occupying the same picnic table every time. This part of campus is pretty busy, the traffic usually picking up around lunchtime because the food is better on this side of campus.

"Midterms are kicking my ass," you groan, feeling like your eyes might fall out of your head if you continue to look at your laptop screen.

"We're almost done, girlfriend. Just hold on a little longer," Mia reassures, and you huff softly, smiling as you rest your face on your hand.

It's a nice day today, which is why you both opted to sit outside, and this kind of weather always relaxes you somehow when you manage to take a breath. "You're still not hungry?" you ask, closing your laptop, and Mia laughs.

"Yes. Did you skip breakfast or something?"

"No, I just didn't eat that much for breakfast," you say as you try to decide what you want to eat in your head.

"And that is why I brought you food." You turn your head to the familiar voice after you frown, seeing Aomine sitting down next to you. You glance at Mia, who's giving you a confused look before turning back to Aomine.

"You got me food?" you ask cautiously as he slides the bag over to you.

"Yeah. You said you really like this place, but you never go to it often because the line was always long." You open the bag, seeing that he's gotten the exact thing that you usually get. "So, I was passing by it and the line was pretty decent, so I got you some."

"Oh, thanks," you say slowly, your voice more on the softer side as you take in the information. "Oh, this is Mia, my best friend. Mia, is this Aomine. We have the same psych lecture." When you look at her, you barely shake your head, just enough that she can see it, but he can't. The look on your face tells her that you'll fill her in later.

He reaches over to shake her hand as you start to eat. "So, do you guys sit next to each other?" Mia asks after the conversation takes a silent break.

"No," you answer, and you can't help but chuckle. "We actually don't sit anywhere near each other."

Mia raises her eyebrows with a hum. "Really?"

"Yeah," you say slowly, barely looking at Aomine. "He sat next to me in the library." You chew your lip softly as you look at her. You hadn't had the chance to catch Mia up on anything because you thought this whole thing was a bluff, but Aomine is still sticking around. To say the least, it's confusing to you.

"She helps me with some of the other classes that I'm struggling in," Aomine buds in, and you slide your tray over to offer him some, but instead, he grabs your hand that's holding a fry, guiding it up to his mouth. You feel your face go warm as he takes it out of your fingers, your gaze quickly goes to the picnic table as you feel his hand squeeze yours before he lets it go.

You look at Mia for a split second, who has the smuggest look on her face, and you have to really fight the urge to kick her under the table. "Or more like he forces me to help him," you say, laughing quietly as you try to shake your nerves off.

"Please, you like helping me." You shake your head, finally looking at him, and you can't help but copy the smile he has on his face. "Did you see that we won the other day?"

"Yeah, I did. I watched the highlight reel," you answer with a nod. "I told you that you were good." You nudge him in the side, and you watch something come across his face as his smile falls, but then it's gone as soon as you see it.

"Yeah, yeah. I still got a lot of work to do." Mia eventually buds back into the conversation, diverting the topic to something else. Aomine ends up sitting with you both the whole time, claiming that he's got an exam later today and that you're the only person that can help him study.

You roll your eyes, but help him out anyway, occasionally looking at Mia when he's distracted. When you see her trying to angle her phone towards the two of you, you lunge at her, but she's faster, moving her phone to her chest as she leans out of your reach. She laughs, making you scowl at her as you sit back down.

"You're gonna be fine, Aomine. You know everything."

"You think? I just feel like I might be missing something," he says, looking down at his notes.

"Maybe you're just nervous," you offer. "Just treat it like you're about to play. Do you get nervous right before a game?"

He scoffs, lifting his head to look at you. "Of course not."

"Then do that. And it'll be over before you know it." You give him a reassuring smile, and he holds your stare for a split second before he packs his stuff up. "And thanks for the food," you add when he stands.

"It was nothing. Thanks." You return his wave before he walks away, and you slowly turn towards Mia.

"Do not say a word."

PRESENT DAY

When Aomine walks into the bookstore, he immediately notices that you're not sitting at the front desk and that you didn't come to see who had opened the door. Instead, Mia walks out, setting a stack of books on the front desk.

"I made her stay home," she tells him, knowing that he's looking for her. "She's been staying up for the past couple of nights stressing about the reading thing this weekend. I made her stay home so that she'd get a decent amount of sleep."

Aomine nods, trying and failing to hide his disappointment. She moves over to one of the aisles, looking through the books before putting them on their respective shelves. "I tried calling her earlier, but she didn't answer. I could try and swing by her place on my lunch break--"

"Let me do it." Mia raises an eyebrow as she gives him a look. "I don't know how to run the store," he argues, but she doesn't budge. "You can't just leave, and since I'm here, I can check on her."

She stares at him for a little bit longer before she sighs. "Fine, Aomine." She sets the books down, grabbing her keys. "This is the key to her place just in case she doesn't answer the door." He goes to reach for it, but she retracts her hand. "Nothing more."

He nods again, and she slowly hands him the key as she tells him your address, which he types in his phone, and then he's out the door.

~

He knocks on the door first when he gets there, waiting for about a minute before he does it again. He doesn't know why he's feeling so strung, ringing the doorbell almost instantly after knocking again. He would try and call you, but he doesn't have your number, so he sighs before using the key to unlock the door.

He enters quietly, making sure that he's not making too much noise, closing the door softly behind him. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. The thought runs through his head as he locks the door, feeling like he's breaking into your home. He makes his way through the hallway, feeling like this is definitely a bad idea as he walks through.

He doesn't hear any movement, so he assumes that you're still asleep, and he finds a door that's halfway open. He pushes it open slowly, and he sees you slumped over on your desk, your face smushed against the papers. He walks over to you, sighing a little when he sees that you're still breathing, and he shakes you gently.

He calls your name, but you barely move, and he leans down a little as he shakes you a little bit harder, saying your name a little louder. You still don't wake up, so he leans down even closer. You gasp when you wake up, but you end up jolting up, crashing the back of your head right into his chin.

You both groan in pain as Aomine moves back, holding his chin while you hold your head. You sigh, turning your head to see Aomine standing next to you. "Aomine? What are you doing here?"

"I was checking on you," he says around a wince as he rubs his chin.

You yawn as you stand up. "Are you okay?" You walk to him, and he lets his hand fall.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's my fault anyway, sorry for scaring you."

You yawn again as you shake your head, looking over your desk. "It's okay. What time is it?"

"Around noon," he answers, looking down at his phone. "I don't remember you sleeping that hard in college."

You scoff as you run your hand over your head before fixing the ponytail you had your hair in. "Yeah, but I've been up for the past twelve hours." His eyes widen at your statement as you frown. "Wait, how'd you get in?"

"Mia gave me her key," he tells you, holding it up in his hand. "She was worried about you, so I offered to go since she couldn't leave the store."

You hum as you let your arms fall down, stepping closer to him. "Are you okay?" you ask, and he feels his heart stop for a second when you reach up to touch his chin.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he says, and he definitely feels his heart stop when you give him a soft smile. He immediately misses your touch when you take your hand away, and you walk out of the room. He follows you a second after, shaking himself out of wanting to say what he wants to say to you.

"Well, thanks for checking on me," you say as he follows you into the kitchen.

"Sure." He stands on the other side of the island as you open the fridge. "Why were you up for twelve hours?"

"I've got a bunch of work to do, and the people that were supposed to come read to the kids on Saturday canceled, so now I have to find someone else to do it."

You pour yourself some water, speaking after you take a few sips. "I'm making it a bigger deal than it is. I'll figure it out."

"You always did stress way too much in college," he says, making you huff quietly.

"Yeah, I did. I guess old habits die hard." You lean back against the counter, and he looks at you for a second before calling your name. "Hm?" you say, looking at him expectantly, but then he brushes you off.

"Nothing." You raise an eyebrow but don't say anything. "Are you going to the store today?"

"I probably will later today just to grab some stuff," you say with a nod, finishing your water. "What about you? What are you gonna do?"

"Dunno, probably play it by ear."

"Just like college," you muse. He smiles when you do, and the words are on the tip of his tongue, but you seem to be under a lot of stress right now, and he doesn't want to make your situation worse. Most of your interactions and Mia's words prove that it probably would. "And I can give Mia her key back when I see her."

"Right," he says, and he finds himself hesitating to give it back. He feels like his time is running out like his opportunity is slipping away, but he hopes that he'll get another one as he hands it back to you.

FRESHMAN YEAR, TWO AND HALF MONTHS INTO FIRST SEMESTER

"Your boy toy carried the game last night, apparently," Mia says, and you don't look up from your phone as you talk to her.

"Yeah, I saw," you respond, purposefully ignoring her comment.

"Oh, you did?" she teases, and you look away from your phone, giving her a look.

"Yes, I did. You know that I like watching basketball." You've always been into the sport, but it's the last thing you would play. You tried that in middle school and instantly figured out that it wasn't for you.

"Speaking of him," she starts, and you follow her gaze, looking over your shoulder to see him walking with a girl on his arm. You roll your eyes as you look back down at your phone, scoffing quietly to yourself.

Since Aomine's been on fire recently, the girls on campus have started to take notice. The one that he's currently with is a new one though. That's not what bothers you though (well, maybe a little), it's the fact that they're with him all of the time. Even when he's hanging out with you. They're always all over him, and you would most definitely rather not see that, but it's like he encourages it, which makes it suck even more.

"And he's walking over here." You don't look up, shifting your gaze from your phone to the picnic table as you wait for the interaction to come. They haven't been the best in the past.

When he calls your name, you hesitate to look up, but you do, giving him a tight smile. "Who's this, Aomine?" Your smile immediately drops at the sound of the girl's voice and your patience runs out instantly.

He introduces you and Mia, but her eyes stay on you, scrunching up her nose a little, but keeping the smile on her face. "She's cute." You can't stop the smile that comes across your face, knowing exactly what that means. Mia's about to say something, but you stop her with a quick glance.

"That shirt is really pretty on you," you compliment, and of course, she eats it up. "And it was nice meeting you, but we have to get to class. You start to stand as you watch Aomine give you a confused look.

"I thought your class wasn't for another thirty minutes," he says.

"Well, we're going to study before it," you lie after you gather your stuff. You grab your smoothie, and right as you're about to walk away, you pretend to trip, spilling it all over her shirt.

She gasps as Aomine's eyes widen, and Mia turns around as she tries to stifle her laugh. "Oh, my God, I am so sorry," you say, dryly, giving a fake apologetic smile.

"You're a bitch," she spits, and you give her a wide smile.

"Thanks." You walk away, leaving Aomine in shock, and Mia laughs a little louder when you guys are finally out of earshot.

~

You're walking back to your dorm, deciding if you should get food or not when you hear a familiar voice call your name. You don't acknowledge it, continuing to walk until his hand lands on your shoulder.

"What the fuck was that?"

"What was what?" you ask cluelessly, and he sighs frustratedly.

"The smoothie."

"Oh, don't worry about that," you dismiss. "It wasn't that good anyway."

"That's not what I meant."

"What do you want me to say, Aomine?" you ask, and you're starting to get pissed. "It's not my fucking fault that every girl you have on your arm is a fucking bitch."

"What is your problem? You've been acting weird," he says, and you scoff, looking to the side.

"I don't have a problem, Aomine. I should be asking you that," you counter. "And the fact that you can't even tell that they're being absolutely disrespectful to me when I'm just sitting there is the start."

"What in the hell are you talking about?" he asks, and you grit your teeth before turning away.

"Forget it, Aomine." You turn to walk away, and he grabs your wrist, but you snatch it away. "I'm not having this fucking conversation with you. When you deal with that fucking problem come talk to me."

He lets you walk away this time, calling after you, but you keep walking, letting out a shaky sigh.

PRESENT DAY

"This is where you've been, Aomine?" Aomine turns towards the voice, almost dropping the book he was putting on the shelf.

"What the hell are you two doing here?" he groans, giving Matt and Dylan a plain but annoyed look.

"We wanted to see what was keeping you away from basketball. Although, it's a bit shocking that it's a bookstore," Dylan says, and Aomine rolls his eyes.

You walk up on the other side of him, ignoring the other two guys next to him. "Hey, the kids are going to be here soon, just a heads-up."

"Okay. I have one more box and then I'm done."

"Now, this makes more sense," Matt says to Dylan, gesturing to you, and the sentence makes you look at him.

"Oh, why are your teammates here?" you ask curiously, and Matt pushes Aomine to the side to step closer to you.

"I'm Matt and this is Dylan," he introduces, holding his hand out, and you laugh as you shake his hand.

"Yeah, I know. Dylan joined the team a couple of years ago, and you joined shortly after Aomine." They all give you a look, and your eyes dart between them.

Aomine steps forward, pushing his teammate back. "They were following me," he says, pointedly looking at the other two men.

"Sounds kinda familiar, doesn't it?" you joke.

"Okay, I stumbled in here by accident, alright?" Aomine argues.

"We just wanted to know what was keeping him from the court," Dylan says. "He's barely been at the gym." Aomine looks at him, and you watch, amused.

"Well, I'll let you guys get back to that," you say lightly. "I'm gonna go finish getting everything ready."

"Wait." You turn around when Aomine speaks up, and you tilt your head, waiting for what he's going to say. "They can help out, right?" he asks. "They just have to read to some kids, yeah?"

"Yeah. If they're free, then I'm okay with that." You walk away, and Dylan waits until you disappear to talk.

"What are we doing exactly?"

"She said that she was having people come in and read to the kids, but they canceled on her last minute," he explains. "And since you two losers are here bothering me, you can do it."

"Jeez, Aomine, who is this girl?" Matt asks, and he only responds by sighing and rolling his eyes.

"Are you gonna do it or not?"

"Okay, relax, we'll help out," Dylan agrees but not without nudging Matt in the side lightly, both of them finding this situation funny much to Aomine's dismay.

~

Every month, you host a small book reading for anyone that wants to bring their kids to read. You started it after reading to a couple of kids one day, and suddenly, you had a huge group of them. It had gotten so big, that you actually make arrangements for it to happen, only being able to do it once a month because of the demand.

You usually have some other people reading as well, reading other books to sort of break the kids up into groups. You finally have everything set up as the kids and their parents start to roll in, giving Aomine and his teammates the rundown before you send them off on their way.

You're standing off to the side since you have two more people to read, watching as the kids all settle down. Matt and Dylan are enthusiastic, engaging with the kids, and Aomine's doing the same. You're smiling because the kids look like their having fun so far, and you turn your attention back to Aomine when one of the kids in his group speaks up.

"You're supposed to do the voices, Mister." You use your hand to cover your laugh at Aomine's reaction, squinting his eyes as he eyes the kid.

"Does it make a difference?" he asks genuinely, and the kid nods quickly.

"You're telling a story," he drawls, like Aomine doesn't know that and you chuckle. "You have to do the voices."

You can tell he's fighting the urge to roll his eyes, but your amusement is cut short when he looks at you. "Well, I'm gonna need some help then, aren't I?" He smirks at you, and suddenly all of the attention is on you.

Some of the kids cheer quietly, recognizing you since some of them are regulars, and the next thing you know, you're being cheered on to go up there with Aomine, who already has a seat waiting for you. The kids all cheer when you walk up, sitting next to him, and you nudge him in the side when you sit down.

He actually does the voices, and so do you, reading when it's your line. There's one page where you have a decent amount of lines, and when you stop reading, waiting for Aomine to respond, he doesn't. You frown, looking up to see that he's staring at you. That apparently gets his attention because then he's looking back down to read again.

You find it weird, but he doesn't do it anymore, and you make it through the book, finding yourself smiling widely as the kids clap once you're done. Matt and Dylan have their own cheers once they finish, and the kids are so satisfied that they end up asking all of you for another story.

The men claim they have nothing else to do and would be more than happy too, so you let it happen. You're more than satisfied with how it went, the parents having to drag their kids away, saying that they've already taken up most of your time. Some of the parents thank you as they leave, and once everyone is out, you sit down behind the front desk.

"So, she's the one, huh?" Dylan says, noticing Aomine staring at you as you talk to Mia.

"Oh, definitely," Matt adds. "Pretty sure he had hearts in his eyes the whole time."

"Oh, fuck off," Aomine says, shoving at his friend.

"You were just reading for some kids, and now you're swearing?" They laugh as Aomine glares at them. "At least you're cool enough to not make a fool of yourself in front of her."

"Well, this might prove you wrong," Dylan says when he sees you walking up to him.

"Thank you for that, guys. You seriously saved me today."

"It was no problem," Matt says, resting his arm on Aomine's shoulder. "Anything for a friend of Aomine's." Dylan snickers and Aomine feels his face growing warm, pushing Matt once again. "We'd be happy to do it again if you need us to."

"Sounds like a plan," you say. "Thanks again." You give Aomine one last look before walking off.

"You guys can leave now." Aomine doesn't even let them get another word in, pushing them towards the door and out, sighing heavily as he pushes the door closed.

FRESHMAN YEAR, THREE MONTHS INTO FRESHMEN YEAR

You've successfully avoided Aomine for the past couple of weeks. After your argument, you were fuming. Against your will, you cried. You were just so frustrated at so many things. How he was acting, the girls, the fact that you were stupid enough to think that he could be into you.

You even changed your fucking wardrobe to see if you could get anything out of him. You feel pathetic, and every time you think about it, it ruins your mood all over again. You've found new places to study at on campus if you really don't want to stay in your dorm.

You're not sitting in any open spaces anymore in fear that you might run into him. You told Mia right after it happened, mostly because you're dorming with her, and she's just as angry. But you're confused that she's confused about the whole thing, and when you ask her about it, she just brushes you off.

You just try and move on or whatever, hoping that he might be too busy with basketball and some of the tournaments coming up to try and track you down. So far, you've been in the clear, but you always found yourself having mixed emotions when you don't see him on campus.

You've finally think it's safe enough to go back to your old spot in the library after you haven't run into Aomine. You've figured he's just moved on because you don't really mean that much to him, which makes you feel so much worse when you think about it. So, you just dive into your work, starting on some work that's not even due until next month.

When you're starting to focus more on something else other than your work, you decide to call it a day and pack up your stuff. You're thinking of stopping by the student union and getting a milkshake as a reward, and when you turn around, Aomine's standing in front of you.

You freeze, your brain stalling as you panic before you collect yourself. When you try to walk past him, he steps in front of you, and you look up at him. "I don't wanna hear it, Aomine."

"Please, just listen to me." You falter at your name coming from him, and your temporary pause gives him enough time to keep talking. "I'm sorry."

You scoff, and you actually manage to make it past him, but the way he softly catches your wrist makes you stop. "Of course, you're sorry now, Aomine." You screw your eyes shut, trying to find it in you to pull away, his fingers dancing over your skin like he's giving you an out, but you can't move. And he tightens his fingers around your wrist.

"Seriously, just hear me out." You don't turn around, only turning your head slightly so you can look at him out the corner of your eye. "I'm sorry," he repeats. "I know that's probably not helping, but I miss you."

Your breath hitches in your chest as your eyes widen. You feel like you could cry again as you look back down at the floor. "I need you, okay? You help me out all of the time, and I don't really give you much in return, but please. I'm sorry."

You finally turn to fully face him, and you wish you hadn't because you already feel yourself giving in. He doesn't let go of you, using your wrist to pull you towards him, and you go to him easily, like you're being drawn in.

"You're just saying that," you try, your voice soft, having a hard time looking away from his eyes.

"No, I'm not," he declares. "I really do need you. And I really do miss you." He pulls you closer to him, wrapping his arms around you as he cages you into his chest. "So, please," he begs again. "Don't leave me."

And that's what it takes for the final pieces of that wall to break down, your arms coming up to hug him back. You close your eyes as you breathe him in, noticing that you missed this.

"Okay."

PRESENT DAY

You're at the store by yourself today, Mia going to visit family for the day, so you close down the shop for a while to get lunch. You're walking back from the small café you usually get your food from, but as soon as you get to the door of the store, you're bombarded by a shit ton of people.

You jump backward as you look around, realizing that it's the paparazzi when the flash of the cameras starts to blind you, and you can't even get to the door. They're all asking you a bunch of different things, nearly screaming at you, and you can barely make out Aomine's name in the commotion.

You feel yourself being pulled in the opposite direction of the mob, and you almost fall down, being caught by someone. You turn to see Aomine, and that seems to make the crowd go even wilder, and he's pulling you away from them, and you trip over your feet as he starts to run towards his car. You quickly recover, following after him, and as soon as you get there, you run to the passenger side, getting in. He doesn't even wait for you to put your seatbelt on as he starts the car and drives off.

"Are you okay?" You're breathing heavy, still seeing the negative image of the flash in your eyes.

"I-I think so," you breathe, trying to take in what the fuck just happened.

"I'm so sorry. This is all my fault," he says, turning onto a side street before putting the car in park. "I should've been more careful."

"What are you talking about?"

"The parents must've said something or posted pictures about us reading to the kids." You take a deep breath as you relax against the seat. "I wasn't thinking about what might happen, I got careless."

"Daiki, relax," you say, reaching over to rest your hand on his. "It's not your fault." That doesn't seem to reassure him because he still looks ticked, but when he turns to you, his face softens.

"Are you sure you're okay? They didn't hurt you or anything?"

You nod. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little frazzled."

He sighs as he looks forward. "I don't know how long it'll be before they leave. I don't know how to get you back to the store."

"There's a back entrance we can use. They won't see us go in." Your phone dings and you lift yourself up in the seat to get it out of your back pocket. You unlock it, seeing a text from Mia. "Shit."

Aomine looks at you, but you're not looking at him, your gaze on the article that she sent you. It's a picture of you and Aomine reading the children's book, the title of the article claiming that Aomine has a new love interest.

"Fuck!" You know he's looked at it, and you sigh as you lock your phone. "I am so fucking sorry. I'll get someone to take it down."

You shake your head. "No, it's okay. It happens." If this keeps happening, you probably won't have much success getting into the store because they'll just outside, and eventually try to make their way inside. You groan softly as you rub a hand over your forehead. Your phone pings with another text from Mia.

>Is it as bad as I think it is?

Yeah. It is.

~

Aomine's team thought it was a good idea that you both stay away from the store and from each other for a while. Both of you being separated might help take some of the heat off of you, and you're getting multiple texts from him saying how sorry he is.

All of the articles were taken down, but it still doesn't change the number of people that now know who you are. You haven't left your house in a couple of days, Mia having to bring you stuff because you can't even go grocery shopping without being cornered.

You fall over onto the couch, curling up as you mindlessly watch the TV. Mia offered to run the store while you're trying to stay under the radar, but you didn't think it would change anything. The cameras would probably scare people off anyway, so you joked that she'd get a vacation, but she didn't really take the joke.

You don't even bother to pause the show when you hear a knock on your door, getting up and walking towards the door. You swing it open, gasping when you see Aomine standing on the other side.

"What are you doing here?" you ask, quickly moving to the side to let him in. "We're not supposed to be near each other."

"I know, I know," he says as you close the door, and he removes the hood from his head. "I just needed to talk to you."

"About what?"

He sighs, and even though it's been about a week, you can tell he's still frazzled. "Training's coming up, so the heat should be taken off of you soon, but I just wanted to tell you--"

"Aomine, I don't think this is the right time for this," you start, feeling like you know where this conversation's about to go, but he stops you, putting his hands on your shoulders.

"I know, but I need to say this, just in case I don't get the chance to." You feel like you might know what he's going to say, but there are so many options that you can't pinpoint what might say. "I'm sorry for what happened back then, and--"

The honking of the car stops him, and he groans but keeps talking. "I'm going to make it up to you, I swear. Just give me time, okay?" The car honks again, and he groans in frustration, and you raise your hands to try and calm him down, but you don't get the chance to. "I promise, okay?"

And then he's rushing out the door, leaving you speechless. You exhale loudly as you slump, resting against the counter as your mind starts to run.

Training is in full swing now, about three weeks since everything blew up, and even though he tries to not focus on it, it's all Aomine can think about. He had called you and he, Matt, and Dylan all apologized, and you once again said that it was okay. That none of you weren't expecting any of this.

But it doesn't make him feel any less like shit or frustrated. He finally thought he was in a good place with you, and he was finally going to do things right, but then it all when to shit. His whole team knows about what happened, but when they saw his demeanor when he first walked in the locker room, none of them dared to tease him about it.

He's been so off, that even his coach told him to call it in early. He throws his bag in frustration when he gets to the locker room, quickly showering before heading back to the hotel. He sends you a text when he gets to his room, constantly checking you since this whole thing is his fault.

He smiles and sighs in relief when you tell him that the paparazzi has died down, and you're slowly working your way back to opening back up. He's been talking to you whenever he can't sleep or whenever he gets sent back to the hotel early, and it makes him reminisce about college.

But then he thinks about what happened, and how he got into this situation in the first place and he gets irritated all over again. He's been replaying that night in his head ever since he stumbled into the bookstore, and he always thinks about how treated you that whole year.

He doesn't blame you for how you're acting towards him, but he's always been a little bit more on the selfish side, so he's determined to work for you, to make it better. He doesn't know if he can actually make up for what he did, but he's not going to stop trying until he knows he can't.

He stares at the goodnight text you sent him for a while, wondering what he could do about all of this in the meantime.

FRESHMAN YEAR, WINTER BREAK

"I'm not letting my guard down this time." You've spent the last month and a half trying to convince Mia that things are different with Aomine and that there's no reason for her to be worried because you know that you and Aomine aren't ever going to be a thing.

"I know you, though," she counters, and you glance to the side as you huff.

"Seriously, Mia. It won't happen again." You finally get her to drop the subject, talking about the whole thing still making you feel a range of emotions, and you don't like it. "And he's going back to Japan for the break anyway, so you have nothing to worry about."

You're being serious. He did tell you that he was going back to Japan for the break, and even though you felt your heart sink a little, you knew it was for the best. After realizing how strong your feelings were for him, and figuring out how he really feels about you, this is the best-case scenario.

It'll give you time to get your mind on the right track, and just focus on finishing out next semester and actually having fun during break. Your emotions have put you through the wringer, so a break sounds amazing right now.

"If he does some shit like that again--"

"Okay, Mia. Okay," you sigh, running a hand across your face. "Seriously. I can't do this right now."

She sighs, sitting down next to you on your bed and wrapping an arm around you. "I love you, that's all," she says. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

You smile softly, resting your head on her shoulder. "Yeah, I know, and I love you, too. But I won't happen again." She brings her other arm up, giving you a sideways hug that you return. And then you lift your head up to look at her. "So, how are we gonna start this break off?"

~

"How long are you going to be in Japan, Aomine?" his teammate asks as Aomine ties his shoes.

"For about a week, I'll be back in time for the tournaments though." He had already made the arrangements to make a quick trip back home, but he knew he couldn't stay for long. The topic, though, reminds him of the conversation he and you had during the last day of classes, and he finds himself smiling widely as he finishes tying his shoes.

He quickly drops it though, not wanting anyone to see him doing it before standing and grabbing his stuff. He wants to text you or something, but you've never given him your number and for some reason, he hasn't asked you for it.

The whole way back home, for whatever reason, you're all he can think about. He's been caught smiling like an idiot before, his teammates eagerly teasing him about it, and it always happens after you've been on his mind. He doesn't know what it is about you, but he feels like he can talk to you about anything.

It doesn't matter if it's about basketball or not, he always finds himself ecstatic when he sees you on campus after not talking to you after a while. He could talk to you forever if he could. He immediately thinks about bringing something back for you, and he mulls it over during the whole flight.

PRESENT DAY

You've been able to open the store back up, but you haven't decided to the readings again, waiting a little bit longer before that happens. You're getting ready to go, making sure you have everything before you leave, and when you open your front door, there's someone standing on the other side, their hand up like they're about to knock.

"Can I help you?" you ask, surprised as you look at the bouquet of flowers in their hands. They ask you if you're you, and when you say yes, they hand you the flowers.

"Have a nice day."

"You too," you respond slowly, watching them walk away before looking down at the flowers in your hand. They're your favorite, and you close the door, walking back into the kitchen. You set them on the counter, and you frown as you think about who could've sent them. You search through them to try and find a note, and you pull it out when you find it.

I know this isn't much, but please take this. -A

You huff as you read it, letting your hand fall as you look back at the flowers again. You take one between your fingers to smell it before you find yourself chuckling, and you change the flowers into a vase before making your way to work.

~

"You seriously didn't have to do that, Aomine." He smiles as sits down on the bench in the locker room, and he laughs softly.

"I know, but I just feel like shit about what happened."

"I told you not to worry about it. Everything's fine now. I'm actually in the store right now." He had called you to see if you had gotten flowers, getting to the locker room a little bit early so that he could talk to you. "We can't start up the reading yet though, but at least I'm back here."

"That's good," he says. "I'm sorry."

"If you say that one more time, I'm going to gut-punch you." He laughs loudly at that, resting his elbows on his thighs.

"Someone's talking to their girlfriend." Aomine's smile drops when he hears Matt's voice, Dylan in tow as they walk into the locker room. "Let us say hi."

He quickly gets up, but they're yelling loudly in the background, and he knows you hear them because you're laughing. "He spent like three hours looking for those flowers by the way!" Dylan yells, and Aomine groans as he shoves at him.

"I'll talk to you later, okay?" He's smiling again as he hangs up the phone, and Matt throws an arm around his shoulders.

"Look, Dylan. He's all flustered."

"Get off of me," Aomine grumbles, shaking his arm off as they laugh. "Why are you guys here anyway?"

"We wanted to get some more reps in, unlike you," Matt jabs. "What's the story with you guys, anyway?"

Aomine sighs before he goes quiet, looking down at the floor as he mentally shakes his head, reliving that awful night in his mind. "We went to college together, and she was in one of my classes." He smiles again when he thinks about all of the moments you spent together. "But then I fucked it up," he adds.

"What happened?" Dylan asks, and Aomine doesn't even know if he can say it. Technically, he didn't do anything wrong, but at the same time, he did. And he didn't realize until it was too late.

And he doesn't get the chance to answer because the rest of the team starts to pile into the locker room, signaling the beginning of practice for today.

~

"Mia," you say, dragging out her name when you put your phone down. "Why are staring holes into my head?"

"Are you sure you can really trust him? He hurt you." You chew on your lip as you look at the wood of the front desk. "I don't wanna give you any doubts," she says as they start to run through your head. "But I don't want it to happen again."

"I know, Mia. I don't want it to happen again either." You'll admit that sometimes you're a little worried that you're falling in that hole again, and it scares you. You don't feel like you've truly opened up, more like just accepted him as a friend. You don't think you'd be ready to do anything more than that. "But it's not what it looks like," you continue. "I'm keeping my guard up."

You hate that he's doing this to you, but for whatever reason, you can't find it in yourself to stop any of it. Probably because there's a part of you that is fully trusting him. A part of you truly believes that things will be different this time.

"Okay. If you think it's okay to keep going with this, then I'm here for it." You look at her, but the look in your eyes is distant when you look away. You sigh and hope that you're right.

Your cramps are literally kicking your ass, you're not even sure you can move. You groan as you pray for the medicine to kick in, and you groan even louder when you hear the doorbell ring. You debate on whether or not to open it, but when it rings again, you force yourself up. You wrap your fluffy blanket around yourself before walking to the door.

"Aomine?" you ask when you open the door. "What are you doing here?"

He lifts up a box that was resting on the ground, and you step to the side to let him in. He sets the box on the floor, and when he turns back to you, he frowns. "Are you okay?"

"I feel like shit," you deadpan, and he quickly moves over to you, resting the back of his hand on your forehead. "I'm not sick, dummy," you say, shaking his hand off. He seems to understand what you mean because there's a brief look of recognition that crosses his face. "What's in the box?"

He smiles as he gestures towards it. "See for yourself."

You squint your eyes at him but you move over to the box anyway, sitting down on the floor in front of it. "I swear if this is some sick joke," you warn, and he doesn't say anything, just urging you to open it.

You sigh as you start to pull it open, and your face falls when you see it's filled with a bunch of books. You give him a questioning look before you reach in and take one of them out, the book looking very familiar. In fact, you're very confident that it's the one that was on your wishlist.

"What?"

"You left your phone unlocked one day, and I know this sounds really weird, but I swear, all I looked at was the wishlist," he says, and you start to pull out more books, figuring out that all of them are the ones that have been in your wishlist. There are even some that have been on it for a while now.

"You bought all of them?" you question, and he looks proud as he nods. "Are you serious?" His face sort of falls as he takes in your reaction, not sure how to interpret it. "Aomine, I can't take this."

"Because they're not what you wanted?" You scoff at his words because he clearly doesn't see the issue.

"No, because this is a shit ton of books," you start, the box filled to the brim. "I know that these books all together weren't cheap."

"So? I have the money," he reasons, and you shake your head.

"That's not the point, Aomine. You could've spent this money on something else."

"Why would I do that?" You rub your hand over your face then over your hair, and you look at the books again.

"Aomine, I can't pay you back for this, I don't--"

"It's called a gift. You don't owe me anything," he says, and you don't know what to say, putting the books back in the box before crashing onto the couch. You're definitely not in the right mindset for this conversation, your hormones all over the place.

He's walking over to you once you do lay down, and then he's crouching down to your level. "Wait, why are you crying?" he asks, panicked, and you hadn't even realized that you were, and you quickly brush him off, wiping your face.

Your cramps were so bad that you couldn't even stand, which is why you were currently staying home, but now you're crying because you're so overwhelmed. "Do you need anything? What can I do?"

"Aomine, relax. I'm fine," you say softly, smiling at how frazzled he looks. You wince when another cramp hits you, and it definitely feels like someone is stabbing you in the side. "It's just my cramps. My heating pad cut out on me a while ago, but I took some painkillers so they should kick in eventually.

You yawn, feeling yourself getting tired. You didn't really get that much sleep because the pain had been so bad, and with how warm you feel right now with the blanket around you, you feel like you could knock any second. You feel your eyes starting to get heavy, barely catching Aomine in front of you.

"Don't move, okay? I'll be back."

You barely hear him, responding with a questioning hum, but then you hear the door opening and closing, and you don't have enough energy to try and figure out what's going on, letting sleep take over.

~

You lift your head up when you hear the door close, your eyes barely open as you look around, realizing you're in the living room. And then you start to remember how you got here, your eyes moving over to Aomine, who's walking towards with a bunch of stuff in his arms.

You sit up as he puts the stuff on the coffee table, and you glance at the clock to see that it's a little past two o'clock, and you blink a few times before you fully open your eyes, which grow wider when you see everything that's on the table.

"Aomine, what the hell?" You let the blanket fall off of you as you look through the bags.

"I got you another heating pad, some more medicine, and I wasn't sure if you were hungry, so I didn't get any food, but I did get some snacks." You're speechless, your eyes darting to look at everything. "If you do get hungry, I can order you something."

You run your hands down your face, letting them pull the skin down before you release them. You just sit there, staring at all of the stuff, your mind feeling like it's swirling but there's nothing running through it. "Thank you, Aomine."

"Of course," he says fondly. "Do you feel any better?"

You nod, wrapping the blanket back around you, but then it dawns on you. "Wait, I thought you were training?"

"Today's a rest day." You hum, grabbing one of the bags of snacks he got you before leaning back against the couch.

"So, you're just gonna play the day by ear I'm guessing?"

He smiles widely. "You know me so well."

You give him a small smile, and when you open the bag, you use it to give you a break before you say something else. "Well, you can stay here if you want," you offer.

His face falls slightly as he tenses. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. If you want," you say, nodding. You gesture to the couch, and he sits down, about half a cushion away from you. "You can relax, Aomine. I'm not gonna bite," you laugh when you see how tense he is.

"I know, I'm just nervous." Your face shows that you're amused and baffled, and you let your brows furrow as you tilt your head.

"Why are you nervous? It's just me."

"I know. That's why."

FRESHMAN YEAR, TWO AND A HALF WEEKS INTO SECOND SEMESTER

You're walking out of the dining hall when you hear your name, turning around to see Aomine running up to you. "Finally, I found you."

"Where you looking for me?" you question, playfully.

"Yes," he sighs, catching his breath. "I wanted to give you something." You frown, and he reaches into his pocket, pulling out a necklace.

"Is that for me?" you ask, and he nods quickly.

"I wanted to get you something from Japan, and I thought you would like this." You reach up, resting your fingers behind the necklace so you can look at it a little more closely. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it's really pretty, Aomine." His smile is big, and you can't help but smile too, and he turns you around so that he can put it on you. You glance around at your surroundings as you try to keep your heart rate down, waiting for him to finish with the clasp. You turn around when his hands fall down, and you look down at it before looking at him. "How does it look?"

"You look amazing."

"I said how does the necklace look," you clarify around a chuckle, and he does the same.

"Oh, um, it looks great." You tilt your head slightly at the sudden change in his demeanor, but then he's changing the subject.

You found yourself back in the same courtyard that he first brought you to when you first met as he tells you about his trip to Japan. It was only for a week, but Aomine didn't tell you that, hoping he could surprise you when he got back, but you were back home.

The necklace was practically burning a hole in his pocket, and he didn't know your schedule. To say the least, he was definitely running around campus looking for you, trying to remember what classes you said you were taking this semester.

It was probably a bad idea to sit outside since it's still pretty cold, but the sun is out and there are some clouds, so it could be worse. Aomine, though, feels like he could catch on fire any second now. He's sweating, and he's very aware of how close he's sitting next to you, trying to listen to you as you tell him about how your break went.

He makes the mistake of looking at you when you laugh, and he feels his heart do something weird. Your hair is down, and the tiny occasional breeze comes through, waving your hair around every now and then. And the sun makes you look even better, and he doesn't realize that he's zoned out while staring at you.

He suddenly comes to, finding that you're staring right at him, and he jumps back a bit. "Sorry, what did you say?"

You smile, and it only makes his heart race even more. "I said that it's freezing."

He's quick to move, shedding his hoodie and giving it to you. "Seriously, you can take it. I feel fine." He's not lying, but so far, he's the only one who knows how hot he actually is. You take it and slip it on, sighing at the warmth that it brings, and he feels like he needs to do something, so he lays down, resting his head on his backpack.

You do the same, putting your hands in the pockets of the hoodie, and he just watches you out of the corner of your eye. "Look at that cloud," you say out of the blue, and you point to your left, making him turn his head.

"What about it?"

"You don't think it looks like a plane?" you ask, and he shakes his head.

"I don't see it." You scoff, sitting up and moving closer to him. He feels his breathing stop when you get near his face, your upper half almost touching his. You point at the cloud again, trying to show him the wings and the tail of it. "I guess I see it," he says, and you roll your eyes.

You let your head fall on his chest, and he definitely starts panicking. "Okay, how about that cloud?" you ask, pointing to one above the both of you as you move in closer to him. He carefully wraps his arm around, feeling like it's just the right thing to do. Like this is normal for the two of you.

"I don't know, it looks like a cloud."

"Aomine," you groan, and you look at him, and then he really sees how close you are. "Use your imagination or something." He's more worried about you hearing how hard his heart is beating, not about the fucking clouds.

He doesn't even know what any of this means, and he doesn't even know why he's acting like this. But he does, maybe a little, like feeling like this. Finally being near you made him realize how much he missed it while you were away, and he listens to you ramble on about the clouds as he tightens the arm that's around you.

PRESENT DAY

"You're nervous because of me?" Aomine doesn't look at you as he nods, and you're in utter disbelief. There's no way he's serious. "Daiki Aomine. An NBA star, is nervous because of me?"

"Why do you keep repeating it?" he groans, and you can't help but scoff.

"Because there's no way--"

"There's no way for me to be nervous because I like you?" he cuts in, finally looking at you, and the comical look on your face drops instantly.

"What?" you whisper after a long beat of silence.

"I've liked you since college," he says, his voice just as low as yours. You haven't even touched the bag of chips you've opened since he sat down, and you set them on the coffee table.

"Aomine, please tell me this is a joke."

"I confess my feelings to you and you think I'm joking?" he asks, his voice more on the defensive side.

"But you can't feel that way because..." You trail off, realizing that you're about voice your insecurities right then and there. You never thought you had a chance with Aomine because you weren't like the other girls he would parade around with in college, and then that horrible night happened. So, you've just been brewing in self-doubt since then.

"Why?" you say after you go silent. "I thought you didn't see me that way."

"Listen, I just want to let you know now, that what I said that night wasn't about you." You bristle a little because you remember that night vividly. He sighs before moving closer to you. "I wasn't talking about you. The guy I was talking to was talking about you, and after I found out I would've decked him in the face, but I was focused on finding you."

You listen to him intently, your face neutral because you don't know what to say. "I could never say that about you. I'm--I'm pretty sure I was in love with you."

"Aomine," you start, looking away. "I can't do this right now."

"I know this isn't the best time, but I don't know when I'll get the chance to tell you this." You look at him again when he grabs your hand, and he's even closer to you now. "I didn't know what I was feeling back then, so I didn't say anything. All I know is that I loved being near you, and whenever I wasn't, I felt different." You just blink at him, feeling tears threatening to fall out of your eyes. "I'm sorry for how I treated you back then. I was a stupid fucking kid that didn't know how to handle what I was feeling.

"But I want you to know right now that I would never say anything like that about you. And I know that there's nothing I can do to make up for how I made you feel or how I treated you, but--"

"Okay, okay." You stop his rambling, wiping some of the tears that have finally fallen.

"I get it if you don't want anything to do with me, and I'll leave you alone if that's what you want. But I just wanted to clear that up." You don't know what to say, you don't think even think you can come up with any to say to what he just did.

You look down at his hand that's still holding yours, biting down on your lip to try and stop more tears from coming. "I'm scared," you admit quietly, not looking up at him. "I wanna be able to trust you again, Aomine."

"I know, I know. And I'm going to do everything I can to earn it. I can promise you now that I won't hurt you again." You finally meet his eyes, and he lifts his hand to wipe the tears from your face. "Take as much time as you need."

You let out a watery scoff, shaking your head. "Aomine, that's not fair to you."

"I don't care," he states. "You're the only one I want. You always have been." You've never heard him so sincere, and it almost makes you cry even more. "Can I hug you?"

You laugh softly, sniffling a little, and you give his hand a squeeze before you nod. His body is against yours in an instant, the force making you fall back, but he doesn't let go of you. You wrap your arms around his neck as you let your face fall into his neck.

"Thank you," he whispers against your skin, holding you tighter. "I won't make you regret it."

"I'm holding you to that."

You mostly blame your resistance with your relationship with Aomine on what happened back then. He's told you in probably a thousand ways that he was not talking about you that night, but the wound still runs deep. It's just the thought that he would actually think of you that way, and that's what really gets you. Mia had asked what happened because Aomine actually asked to borrow her key just so he could lock the door just in case he had to go get you something.

"Well, that sure is a lot that happened in thirty minutes," she muses once you tell her everything that happened.

"Yeah, it was." He spent a few more hours at your house after everything that was said, and you sometimes feel yourself really missing him. He doesn't come by the store anymore because he doesn't want to bring any more attention again, so that means you aren't seeing him as much.

He's not going to have another rest day for the remainder of the training, so you won't be able to see him as much, but he's still calling you once he gets back to his hotel almost every night. You tell him not to spend so much time talking to you because he has to rest, but he never listens, and you know this whenever you get that phone call.

"I guess I was wrong about him," Mia says and you shrug.

"Maybe. I think you were just worried about me, but right now we're kinda just testing the waters? I guess? Nothing's really official yet," you explain. "I'm still a little hesitant if I'm being honest."

"And that's totally okay," she reassures. "I'm glad that he's willing to stick with you through it," she says, and that makes you smile.

"Yeah, me too."

~

"So, what went down with your girlfriend, Aomine?"

"Yeah, it's pretty obvious that you went to go see her," Dylan adds, and Aomine just gives them a lazy eye roll, but it doesn't last long because he's smiling right after it. "I take it went well?"

"We're just testing the waters right now, but I told her how I felt, and I apologized."

"I'm happy for you, man," Dylan says, patting him on the shoulder.

"Look at our little Aomine. He's so grown up," Matt jests, and Aomine scoffs, shaking his head.

"I'm twenty-two years old," he returns. "Why am I even friends with you two anyway?"

"Because your personality is a little bit difficult to deal with," Dylan says.

"A little is an understatement," Matt whispers, but Aomine hears him, and he dodges Aomine when he moves closer to him. "Does this mean she's gonna replace us?" Matt asks, mock hurt on his face. "You're not gonna forget about us, are you?"

"I would love to do that, actually," Aomine laments, and he wrestles Matt off of him when he jumps on him, and Dylan just laughs, encouraging it. Their coach comes into the gym soon after, announcing that the training is about to start, and Aomine is finally relinquished of their teasing for now.

~

As soon as you set your phone down, it rings, and you scoff as you lift it up, already knowing who's name is going to be on the screen. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself," you say, laying down on your back. "You don't sound too happy," you comment, noticing how tight his voice sounds.

"Practice was rough today," he says, and you sigh quietly. "I just wanted to hear your voice."

You have a small smile on your face as you speak. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Not really," he groans, and you hear him shift, assuming that he's rolling over. "I guess I'm just having doubts again."

You frown. "About what?"

"I dunno," he whispers. "Some days I just don't feel like I'm where I should be, and the thought haunts me the whole time I'm playing." You feel your heart hurt a little that he's still feeling this way even after college.

"Where do you feel like you should be?" you ask, trying to see if you figure out the root of the issue.

"I don't know that either. I practice, and I just don't get the same feeling as I used to, so maybe it's because I'm not good enough."

You sit up when he says that, and you wonder how long he's been holding this in. "Daiki," you start. "You and I both know that's not the case. You are an amazing basketball player, you wouldn't be where you are if you weren't.

"I think you might be overwhelmed. You don't really get an off-season when you think about it, and I know you can't just stop practicing, but if you feel that way next time, just try dialing it back a bit. You're always pushing yourself too hard."

He doesn't respond, and you pull the phone away from your ear to see if he's still on the phone. "Aomine?"

"I really, really like you." You laugh a little when you hear him speak before you do.

"What does that have to do with anything?" you ask lightly.

"I just do," he says. "Sorry for keeping you up, I just needed to talk to you."

"It's totally okay. I'm here if you need me, okay?"

"Thanks. I'll talk to you later. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Daiki." You hang up the phone when you move it from your ear before plugging it back up to the charger.

You lay back down, trying to push down the giddiness you're feeling right now because you'll know it'll make it harder for you to go sleep.

FRESHMAN YEAR, TWO MONTHS INTO SECOND SEMESTER

"You're not going to class today." You blink at him when you try to get up from the table, his sentence stopping you in your tracks.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me," he says, standing. "The attendance for your class today isn’t mandatory, right?"

"I mean, yeah, but why am I not going to class?" He pulls you up by your hand, and you're still very much confused about what he's getting at.

"Because today is your birthday." You scoff in surprise, laughing as you follow him out of the library.

"Aomine, my birthday isn't for another couple of months."

"Not this year. I don't know if I'll be here for it, so we're celebrating it today," he says, holding the door open for you.

"Why this day specifically, though?"

"Just felt right," he answers with a shrug. You let him pull you away, following him wherever he's taking you. "So, what do you wanna do?"

"You're making me skip class, and you don't even have any plans?"

"Well, it is your birthday, so we're gonna do whatever you wanna do," he says, and you purse your lips as you think of something.

"The fair is supposed to be in town this week, right? We could do that," you offer, and he wraps an arm around your shoulders.

"Anything you want."

~

The college you go to is in downtown of the city, so whenever there are events happening, a lot of the students will attend, so the walk to it wasn't that far away. Aomine buys some tickets so that you can ride the rides they have and play some of the games even though you swear up and down that they're rigged.

"Don't tell me you're scared of the park rides, Aomine," you tease when he seems to hesitate when you choose the one that swings back and forth and spins.

He sucks his teeth. "Of course not," he says petulantly, and you pull him into the line. He actually caps you out on the rides because he doesn't know how much more he can take, and he offers to go on one of the horror rides.

"I'll protect you," he boasts when you show some hesitation this time. You both climb into the car, and you're already tense, these kinds of things are not your favorite thing to go through. "Relax. Most of this stuff is horribly fake anyway."

You jump as soon as you enter the building, the quick pressure of a fog machine getting you, and you curl yourself into him. "See, look how cheap that skeleton looks," he comments. "Someone definitely built that themselves."

You find yourself starting to relax the more you laugh at Aomine's comments, and there's even a few times when he gets scared which makes you feel better. By the time you've made your way through, you don't feel the least bit scared.

You get hungry after riding most of the rides, and you try to stop Aomine when he tries to buy your food. "It's your birthday, alright? This is my treat," is all he says, and you give in as he hands you the food. "Is there anything else you wanna do today?"

Your eyes go big as you swallow some of the funnel cake that's in your mouth. "You wanna do something after this?"

"It's your day today. We can do whatever you want to do." You think it over as you walk through the fairgrounds, and when Aomine sees a basketball booth, he's pulling you over to it. "Which one do you want?" he asks after he hands the person at the booth a ticket, gesturing to the various prizes hanging up all around it.

You look over all of them before your eyes land on a stuffed Labrador, pointing to it. "That one." He looks at it, giving you a confident smile before he starts playing. You step back to give him some room, and you watch as he absolutely crushes it, even shocking the person working and attracting a crowd at the same time.

He wins easily, and you're impressed as he hands you the prize you wanted. "You get another prize if you like," the worker tells him, and he ends up picking the same one that you did.

"Now, we can match," he tells you, and you chuckle as you walk away. Even though this was your idea, it seems like he's pulling you around more than you are him. He has you sit with him as you both get drawn as caricatures, and he even pulls you onto the Ferris wheel.

"Are you having fun?" he asks when you're at the very top of it. You nod quickly as you look over the town, feeling like you can see the whole thing from up here.

"Yeah, I am," you answer turning to him, and you notice there's a look on his face that you haven't seen before, but you don't get a chance to question it because the wheel starts moving again.

As the day starts to wind down, you decide that you want to go walking through downtown, finding it to be one of your favorite things to do. It gets really pretty once the sun is starting to go down, the lights throughout lighting the place up in a way that makes you really happy.

You both walk to campus right before it gets too dark, and you stop and turn in front of him. "Thanks, Aomine. This was really fun."

"Of course. Hope your not-birthday was good." You laugh softly, and you think about it for a second before you move towards him, wrapping your arms around him.

"It was awesome," you respond as he does the same.

PRESENT DAY

"You really decorated the whole place?" you ask, taking in the "Happy Birthday" banner hung in between two shelves and on the front desk.

"Of course, I did. It's a special occasion," Mia says, putting a happy birthday headband on your head. "Happy Birthday."

"Thank you," you say fondly, adjusting the headband. Every person that comes in tells you happy birthday, and you're almost tempted to take it off, having all of this attention on you a little bit tiring.

You look up when the bell on the door rings, seeing a person walk in with a white box. They walk over to you, saying that the cake is for you, and you shake your head as you take it before thanking them. "You seriously got me a cake, Mia?" you ask, raising your voice a little since she's in the office.

"What are you talking about?" You frown as you open the lid, and Mia walks out, standing next to you. "This wasn't me." You look at her before looking down at the cake again, and you can see in small letters written in icing,

From Aomine

"Should've known," Mia says, and you huff softly, your face hurting from how hard you're smiling. When lunch comes around, you and Mia eat the cake, and you put the rest in the fridge to take home later.

"Are you sure you don't wanna do like a small party or something?" she asks, and you shake your head, sliding the headband off your head.

"Nah, this was more than enough," you answer as you fix your hair. "Thank you, Mia."

"You're welcome." She gives you a hug before you guys start closing down the store.

~

You hadn't gotten a text from Aomine, and you just assumed that he went to sleep early, so you don't think too much about it. Your parents swung by your house earlier to give you a couple of birthday gifts and stayed for a good while. You're about to head to your room when someone knocks on the door.

You stop in your tracks, wondering who in the hell it could be, and you tiptoe towards the door, carefully looking through the peephole. "Jeez, Aomine, you scared me," you say when you open the door. "Why are you here?"

"It's your birthday, obviously," he says, and he lets himself in, and you roll your eyes as you close the door. "And since we can't go anywhere, I brought the party to you."

You see the takeout that he has, and you smile widely as you walk over to him. "You didn't have to do this," you tell him as he hands you a container and a soda.

"Stop saying that," he stresses. "I want to." He sits down next to you, opening up his takeout. "Sorry, it's not anything fancy. Not a lot is open this late."

"Don't worry about it. I appreciate it either way," you say with a shake of your head. You talk as you eat, sharing some more cake with Aomine after you finish the takeout.

"Do you still have the prize I got you?" You ended up finishing off the cake, still sitting at the island after.

"Yeah, I do," you say softly. "I couldn't bring myself to get rid of it," you admit honestly. "But I'm glad that I didn't," you add. "It was definitely one of the best not-birthday's I've had."

You both laugh softly between yourselves, and he offers to clean everything up. You stay in your seat as you watch him. "Aren't you supposed to get up early tomorrow?" you ask, noticing how late it is.

"Yeah, but this was worth it." You know he has to leave soon, but there's a part of you that really doesn't care about that, and you stand up when he's finally finished. "Happy Birthday," he tells you when he meets you halfway, and a fond smile appears on your face.

"Thank you." He rests his hands on your hips, stepping closer and minimizing the space between the two of you. "But don't blame me when you're off your game tomorrow."

He laughs quietly. "I'll be fine. I'll still be getting a decent amount of sleep."

There's a beat of silence, and you eventually break it, even though there's something telling you to say something other than what you're about to say. "Do you want me to walk you out?"

"Nah, it'd probably be better not to, just in case." You nod in understanding, and you give him one last smile.

"Well, goodnight, Daiki. Thanks again." He doesn't respond, giving you a nod as he smiles as well, and he lets his grip on your hips fall as you start to walk to your room.

But right as you turn around, he grabs your wrist, pulling you into him with enough force that you have to brace yourself against his chest. You look up at him to ask him what's wrong, but his lips beat you to it.

You're surprised at first, but you eventually fall into it. The kiss is short, chaste, but it's not even a split second before he kisses you again, deeper this time as he brings a hand up to cup your face, his other arm wrapping around your waist, pulling you impossibly closer.

One more kiss turns into five then into more, and you pull away to catch your breath. "Fuck, I've always wanted to do that," he whispers, resting his forehead against yours, and you huff softly. When you tilt your head back up, he's quickly covering the distance, and you wrap your arms around his neck.

"Are you sure you want me to leave?" he breathes, his eyes on yours as it feels like your heart is about to beat out of your chest.

"You can stay if you want," you start. "The couch is pretty comfortable." You laugh when he groans, and he squeezes at your hips.

"Are you serious?" he says lightly. "That's not good for my back."

"I do have an air mattress," you offer, making him laugh louder than you did. "It's up to you." He kisses you a couple more times before sighing.

"You're lucky you're a good kisser." You chuckle, taking that as a sign to go get it. He lets you slip out of his hold as you disappear to go get it, and you hold in your laugh as you hand it to him.

"Have fun," you tease before walking towards your room. You slide into bed, and you place your hands on your face, feeling how warm it is. You weren't expecting him to do that, but you're glad he did, and now you can't stop smiling. Or that might be because you can hear the pump of the air mattress.

You don't know how you're going to go to sleep after that, but you try anyway, rolling over and pulling the blanket up over your shoulder. Your mind is still running, but you suddenly realize that you don't hear the pump running anymore, and then you're hearing footsteps.

"Your mattress has a hole in it." You bite your lip to stifle your laugh when you hear the door open, pretending to be asleep since your back is facing the door. "Baby, I know you're not asleep." You don't move even when the steps get closer, and you hope he can't see your face.

You gasp loudly when you suddenly feel fingers at your side, and you try to roll over to get away from them, ultimately giving you away as you laugh. You try to pry his hands away from you to try and stop the tickling, but he only pushes against you. "Okay, okay!" you yelp around a laugh, and he hums as he stops.

"Scooch." You move over so that he can slide in, and he grabs your arm. "Not that much." You let him pull you towards him, letting your head fall on his chest as his arm wraps around you.

"This doesn't really seem like we're taking it slow," you jab.

"I think we are," he counters, and you lift your head up, squinting at him. "It could be worse," he says, and you raise an eyebrow.

"And how could it be worse?" He pulls you a little closer, giving him enough room to slide his lips against yours, moving your leg so that it's resting over him, and he rubs his hand up and down your thigh. "Or it could be better," he says after pulling away, and you shake your head.

"You're supposed to be going to sleep, Daiki," you chastise, and he gives you a playful smile.

"One more." You bump your forehead against his, but you oblige, and of course, it turns into more than one. "One more," he urges, when you pull away, and he doesn't even give you a chance to react before kissing you again.

"Go to sleep," you demand, letting your head fall down onto his shoulder.

"You're no fun," he whines, poking you in the side. "Goodnight," he whispers, and you curl into him a little more.

"Goodnight."

You roll over to turn your alarm clock off, groaning as you do so. When you start to wake up, you realize that you're alone, and, honestly, it was one of the reasons why you didn't want to sleep in the same bed as Aomine. You didn't want to wake up to the other side of the bed cold.

As you start to sit up, you notice that the house smells like someone's cooking. You frown, sliding out of bed and making your way to the kitchen after brushing your teeth. "What happened to training?" you ask when you see Aomine standing in your kitchen.

You discover that the cause of the smell is the pancakes that he's making. "It was optional today," he answers, looking at you over his shoulder when you walk over to where he's standing.

"How does everything always seem to work out for you?" you question, playfully, and he chuckles as he takes the pancakes off, stacking them onto a plate.

"Maybe it's fate talking," he responds, turning around to fully face you. He rests his hands on the counter on either side of you, trapping you between him and the counter. "Morning," he says softly, one of his arms making its way around your waist. You smile, barely getting the chance to say it back because he pulls you into him before meeting your lips.

You hum softly, bringing your hand up to rest on his face as you exchange a quick but deep kiss.

"Are you going to the store today?" he asks, keeping close to you.

"I had planned to," you admit honestly. "But the store usually isn't that busy today," you add. "So, I technically don't have to go in, if I give Mia a heads-up."

He gives you a smirk, his other hand splaying across your back as he kisses you again. Your other hand grabs at his t-shirt as he continues to mold his lips against yours. There's no space in between you two, your back bending back with every one of his kisses that seemingly have more passion than the one before it.

You moan softly when his tongue slips into your mouth, and he's groaning soon after, pulling away from you, both of you breathing raggedly. "Maybe you should go to the store today," he breathes, resting his head against yours.

"Why is that?"

"Because if you stay, then we won't be taking it slow anymore." You feel a shiver run down your spine at the look in his eyes, and granted, he'd said that you could it slow for your sake. But the more time you spend with him, the more you start giving in to him, and you're starting to feel like you would rather do anything else than take it slow.

You don't respond with words, deciding to kiss him again, your hands running up his torso, and then your arms loosely wrap around his neck. You shudder even more when lets his hands run under your shirt, and you feel yourself falling into his hands like putty.

"I actually have something planned, so if you don't go, you'll ruin the surprise." You raise an eyebrow, a playful smile on your face that he copies. "And no, don't ask what it is."

"Way to ruin the fun," you huff, but you agree anyway, finally getting around to eating breakfast. He cleans up everything while you go get ready, and he waits for you by the door. "Did you get me something?" you try, and he rolls his eyes.

"Stop guessing," he deflects lightly, and he cuts you off with a kiss when he knows you're about to guess again. "Don't miss me too much, alright?" he jests, and you scoff as you roll your eyes, trying to move out of his hold, but he tightens his grip on you. "I'll see you when you get home, okay?"

You nod, wrapping your arms around his neck to give him a hug, and you laugh when he covers your face with kisses, wrapping his arms around you when you try to move away. "Okay, 'Mine, I'm gonna be late," you chastise softly, and he gives you one last kiss before finally letting you go.

"Have a good day," he tells you, and you give him a fond smile before heading out the door.

~

"Yeah, because it definitely sounds like you guys are taking it slow," Mia says, and you roll your eyes.

"We are!" you argue with no heat behind it. "I mean, we're not rushing anything, you know? We're just letting things happen, and there's no pressure. It's really nice," you admire softly with a shrug.

"Jeez, if I didn't know better, I'd say you're in love with him." You don't respond, looking off to the side, and Mia stops what she's doing. "Wait, are you in love with him?"

"I think I've always felt that way, but I always tried to push it down, more so when all that shit went down," you admit. "But, I feel like I can really trust him this time, so I think I am." You turn to look at Mia. "What do you think?"

"I can't tell you what to think or how to feel," she says after a scoff. "But I think that with how everything's working out, it seems like you both could be meant to be. And he also isn't letting anything get in the way this time, so there's that."

You smile softly as you nod. "Yeah, he isn't. Things are just, I don't know, everything feels right."

"And that's good," Mia praises. "That's how love is supposed to feel. I'm happy for you," she says, and you feel a certain type of content with this whole thing like everything is where it's supposed to be. You know you keep repeating that, but it seems like it's the only thing you can say to describe exactly how you're feeling.

Mia lets you go early, with a bit of teasing of course, and when you get home, Aomine stops you as soon as you get through the door. "I'm not done yet."

"Well, can I at least get in the shower?" you ask, laughing softly.

"Not in your room."

"Then how am I gonna get dressed?" you question, chuckling softly.

"I'll bring you whatever you need." You wonder what he has planned, and every time you try to take the smile off your face, it always makes its way back. You knock on your door when you finish getting dressed, seeing that he only passed you clothes that you would wear around the house. You chuckle when he peeks his head out of the door, effectively blocking you from seeing anything inside.

"You have to close your eyes," he says, and you sigh loudly.

"Daiki--"

"I know, I know. You just have to trust me." You give him a look, but you close your eyes anyway. "No peeking." You raise your hands, telling him that you won't, and you hear the door open even more. You hear his footsteps walking around you, and then you feel his hands on your shoulders, and he carefully guides you into your room. You're not sure if he's rearranged the room or not, so you walk slowly with your hands out in front of you, and you can hear him laughing at you.

"Stop it, I can't see," you scold.

"I won't let you run into anything, I promise." Your knees hit your bed, so you crawl onto it carefully, moving where he tells you to, and now you really don't know what to expect. You hear him moving around some more, and the flick of the light switch before you feel the bed dip next to you. "Okay, you can open them now."

You slowly peel them open, and your hands come up over your mouth as you gasp, taking in what he's done. He's somehow managed to put two sheets over the bed, like a tent with lights all decorating the inside, and he's moved your TV and what it's resting on closer so that it can be inside as well. He's put more pillows and blankets on the bed, and then you notice that there are trays in front of you at the end of the bed with containers on them.

"Daiki, are you serious?" you ask in disbelief, still looking around.

"Do you like it?" he asks, and you can hear a bit of hesitation in his voice, and you look at him to see a little bit of it swimming in his eyes.

"I love it. This is amazing!" You can't stop looking at everything, and you point to the trays in front of you. "What's with the trays?"

"A friend a mine owns a restaurant, so I'd thought I'd get some fancier food than takeout," he explains before moving to open the containers. "But, I didn't really know what you would want, so I got almost everything on the menu."

Your mouth falls open as you watch him open all of them, having almost every option you could imagine, and you recognize the name of the restaurant on the containers; the place is extremely difficult to get a reservation at.

"You bought all of this food?"

"It's not as much as you think," he starts. "I didn't get very big portions, so we don't have to worry about wasting anything." He passes you a breadstick that you take, taking a bite out of it. "And there's a stack of movies that I haven't seen." He brings some movies over from his side of the bed, and you gasp when you see a bunch of classics that he hasn't seen.

"You can pick which one to start with." You go through the movies he has as he distributes the food between the two of you. He puts the movie in that you choose, and you both move back so that you're leaning against the pillows while you eat. "Is it good?" he asks, glancing at your plate, and you nod quickly, giving him some pasta to try.

"What's all this for anyway?" You both have eaten most of the food, Aomine putting the rest in the fridge. You're actually focused on watching the movies now, your head resting on his chest as he rubs a hand up and down your thigh.

You move your head back slightly so that you can look up to meet his eyes, and he looks at you for a second before answering. "Guess you could say this is me making up for what I did back then." You make a disapproving noise, but he keeps going. "I didn't mean it," he says. "I can't even remember who I was thinking about, but it wasn't you," he emphasizes. "I nearly--no, I definitely drove myself crazy trying to find you so that I could explain what happened, but I never did, and then I was leaving."

You let your thumb rub over his cheek as a soft look comes across your face. "I'm sorry for how I made you feel. I feel like shit every time I think about it."

"I know, but I believe you," you respond, taking a pause before you continue. "It just hurt really bad back then because I liked you so much."

"You liked me?" he grins, and you roll your eyes at what he chose to focus on.

"Yes, I did," you answer. "And you don't have to keep making it up to me, Daiki. All of this is more than enough."

"This also might be for the fact that I've never taken you on a real date," he continues, but it's not like he's ignoring what you said. "It just sucks that I can't take you anywhere."

"But I like this." You gesture around you, but you keep your eyes on him. "I prefer this any day, and you technically already took me out on a date." He frowns at you in response, so you keep talking. "My not-birthday? We just didn't know about each other's feelings," you explain. "So, if you think about it, there's not really a difference from then and now."

You both exchange a small smile, and he moves to slide his lips against yours. "Well, that's one difference," he says against your lips, and you can't help but laugh quietly. He kisses you again, longer and deeper than before, and you suddenly find yourself only aware of the two of you.

Everything around you disappears as he pulls you into him, his hand resting on your lower back before he moves under your shirt. He rolls more onto his back to that your body is on top of his, and you moan into his mouth when you feel his hand cup your breast.

You didn't really think twice about not having a bra on, but in this situation, you're glad you're not wearing one. You arch into him when he circles his finger around your nipple before his fingers tug at the hem of your shirt.

"Can I take this off?" he whispers, and you nod your head quickly, shifting so that he can take it off, both of you careful to not hit the sheets hanging above the bed. His shirt comes next, and he carefully tosses it to the side before rolling you onto your back.

He hovers over you, and he just stares. You try to shrink under his gaze, but when you move your hands, he catches them, intertwining his fingers with yours. "What?"

"I just can't believe it," he breathes. "I've always thought about this, and it's just hard to believe that it's actually happening."

"You've always thought about me?" you ask, your voice quietly.

He nods. "There was never a day that went by in college that I wasn't thinking about you," he says. "Even when I was playing on the other side of the country, you'd always pop back up in my mind."

He meets your lips again, and you wrap your arms around his neck as he fits himself between your legs. He breaks away from your lips, planting soft kisses down your cheek until he gets to your neck, continuing the trail. The only thing the two of you can focus on is yourselves, the sounds of everything around you fading away.

You spend the rest of the night exploring each other in more ways than one with nothing in between the two of you, making up for the time lost, and you can't help but find yourself content with happiness, so much of it that you feel like you could burst any second.

You both learn each other's tells, memorizing every sound you both make as your hands dance over each other's skin. You don't even go all the way, but it doesn't matter, the intimacy is still there either way, and you feel your love for him growing with every second.

You both always find your way back to each other's lips like it's home, falling into each other's arms like it's second nature like it's something you've always done.

"I love you." Hearing those words makes many things run through your body at once, and the one at the front is joy. Your smile can't be wiped off your face as you hold his gaze, rubbing your thumb over his cheek, knowing that this moment is something you'll remember for the rest of your life.

"I love you, too, Daiki." It's out there now, something that you've been thinking about for the longest, and something that you were realistically afraid to admit. But at this moment, you have no reason to be scared because you're in the arms of someone whose love for you is just as strong as your love for them.

And you couldn't imagine being anywhere else.

END OF FRESHMEN YEAR, SUMMER BEFORE SOPHMORE YEAR

This is probably the worst thing you have ever done. A party. You went to a party without Mia because she had something to do and because Aomine asked you to. You're literally out of your element, never stepping foot in a party or any general direction of one.

You have friends, but they aren't exactly the ones that are out at every party they can find. He had asked you to come, and here you are. You've been here for about ten minutes, and you already want to leave, but you felt like you should find Aomine before you do.

You maneuver through the people, and you decide that getting some fresh air sounds like the best idea in the world. You step outside, slumping in relief that you're not squished anymore and that you can breathe. You're about to take a step forward when you hear voices, one of them sounding familiar, and you follow the direction of them, recognizing one of the people as Aomine.

They have their backs to you, and they haven't heard you yet. You're relieved that you've finally found him so you can get out of here, but when you're about to move, you hear your name. Aomine doesn't respond, and the guy lightly taps him on the shoulder, saying your name again, and all Aomine does is hum, showing him that he heard him.

"Why're you always around her?" he asks, and you can't move, you're frozen in your spot as your heart beats rapidly in your ears. "She's the longest girl you've had around."

Aomine hasn't looked at him, but you don't want to look anywhere else. "Don't fucking worry about it," he spits. "She wouldn't get off my fucking back until I told her to fuck off."

You feel your heart drop, and you don't even know how to react, but what you do know is that you need to get out of here. The empty cup you had in your hand hits the floor as you turn around, making your way through the crowd and out the door.

You try to breathe, a poor attempt at composing yourself, but it doesn't work, the tears running down your face. You fucking knew it. You knew there was no way he'd feel the same, and he's probably been waiting for the longest time to tell you how he really feels.

You feel the necklace around your neck, and you quickly take it off, throwing it onto the ground as you try to keep your cries down before making your way home.

"Dude, she definitely heard us talking about her." The guy laughs, and Aomine frowns as he stops to look at him. He saw you walking away, and he tried to chase after you, but his words stop him.

"The fuck are you talking about?" he asks, walking back towards him.

"She just heard you say that you told her to fuck off." He's laughing a little harder now, and Aomine looks at him like he's crazy before it dawns on him. He wasn't talking about you; he was barely listening to this guy, but he doesn't know how he missed your name.

And then he realizes that you're probably walking away right now, and he quickly races through the crowd, but when he gets outside to the front yard, you're nowhere to be seen. He feels himself starting to panic because he doesn't know where you're staying and he doesn't have your number, and he's about to be across the country in a few days. He swears loudly, and when he looks down at the ground, he sees the necklace he got you.

He sighs heavily as he picks it up, and he doesn't even realize that he's crying until he feels the tears on his face.

PRESENT DAY

You're scrolling through channels as you sit on the couch, wondering if you should just go to sleep instead. It's pouring outside, so you and Mia closed the store early in order to avoid the storm, and sometimes they put you to sleep. It's dark outside, around eight-thirty, and you really don't have anything else to do.

You stop on a random channel as you look through your phone, and you frown when Mia calls you. "Is something wrong?" you ask quickly.

"What are you watching right now?" You look up, seeing you're watching some celebrity news show, something you could care less about. "Turn it off," she demands when you tell you, and you scoff softly.

"Mia, seriously, what is going on?" You're getting worried, and you keep looking at the TV as you listen to her talk.

"Just turn it off."

"Okay, okay," you say, grabbing the remote, but right as you go to turn it off, you hear Aomine's name. You look up, seeing his picture on the screen and you can't really hear what's being said because Mia's screaming in your ear. But the next picture that comes up explains why Mia's yelling. It's Aomine, but he's kissing someone else.

You don't know what to feel, and you fall back against the couch, and Mia calls your name when you get quiet. "Talk to me, what's wrong?" she asks, but she answers her own question soon after. "Fuck, you saw it, didn't you?"

There's nothing running through you. No anger, sadness. There's absolutely nothing. "Screw it, I'm coming over there right now--"

"No, no. You don't have to do that, I'm fine." You feel like your words are a lie, but there's really nothing wrong. But you can't stop staring at the screen. "Mia, you seriously do not have to come over here. I'm okay." You know she doesn't really believe you, but then you come to a sudden realization.

You hear a quick succession of knocks on your door, and you quickly make your way over, and you snatch the door open as soon as you look through the peephole. "Aomine, what the hell?" He's soaked, his clothes, his hair, everything. "Did you run here?" you ask incredulously as you hang up the phone.

"The place I was at wasn't far from here," he answers. "I can tell that you already saw the picture," he starts, and you shake your head, trying to speak, but he beats you to it. "But it's not what it looks like, I swear. I didn't do anything, she somehow got passed security and got to me. I didn't--I would never--"

"Okay, Daiki, relax," you say, pulling him into the house so you can close the door.

Aomine can't even begin to think, only one thing on his mind as he falls to his knees in front of you. "I can't lose you again, you have to believe me, okay? I swear, I wouldn't do that to you. Everything was happening so fast, and--" He cuts himself off, feeling like he can't breathe, and you move down to his level, cupping his face in your hands.

"Daiki, stop. You're making yourself go into a panic." He can't. He wants to but the idea that you could kick him out and end it all in a second scares him. "I believe you." He actually feels himself stop breathing as he freezes, his eyes wide as he looks at you. "I believe you, Daiki," you repeat, and he feels like he could cry.

"Are you serious?" he whispers, and you nod your head, and he can't control his body when he falls against you. "Thank fuck, I was so fucking scared." Now he actually is crying, but he's so overwhelmed, he doesn't know what else to do.

"Come on. You're freezing." He stands up when you do, and you guide him to the bathroom by your hand, and he realizes how cold he actually is. As you're running the water, he realizes how tired he actually is. After everything happened, he knew he had to get to you as soon as possible. Dylan offered to give him a ride, but he didn't even respond, he just took off.

"Daiki." He looks down to see you standing in front of him, and he helps you slip his shirt off, which is practically stuck to his skin, and he sheds the rest of his clothes as you turn the water off.

"You have to stay," he mumbles, and you chuckle softly.

"I'm not going anywhere, I'll be right back." You hang up his clothes so that they can dry before going to get some towels. He's resting his head against the lip of the tub when you come back, and his eyes are closed. You call his name softly, and he barely opens his eyes as he grabs your arm.

"You're supposed to be in here with me."

"Daiki, we can't fit," you laugh, but he doesn't want to hear it, pulling you closer to the tub. You give in easily, and when you finally get in, he holds you like you might leave any second.

"I'm sorry," he says against your skin.

"What are you apologizing for?"

"I shouldn't have let it happen, I didn't even kiss her back."

"Daiki, it's not your fault. Stop it, okay?" You rest your forehead against his, and he sighs heavily as he closes his eyes.

"I thought I was gonna lose you again. I didn't think you would wanna hear anything I had to say," he says, and you move back slightly to look him in the eyes. "There's no one else I want."

"I know, Daiki," you say, resting your hand on his neck. "I trust you." His eyes widen a little at your statement, and he straightens a little more. "You're the only one that I want."

He seems to sigh in relief, giving you a small smile as he lets his head fall back. "Are you feeling okay?" you ask softly, resting the back of your hand on his forehead. He doesn't seem to have a fever, and he's not shivering anymore, but you frown when he shakes his head. "What's wrong?"

He doesn't respond, and you're actually starting to get concerned, but then the smirk that he was trying to hold back appears on his face. You roll your eyes before leaning towards him and kissing him once. He doesn't let you break away for too long, bringing his hand to the back of your head so that he can meet your lips again.

You giggle softly when he smiles against your lips, and you pull away as you give him a feigned scolding look. "I feel better now."

"Mm-hm, of course, you do." You offer to wash his hair which he gladly lets you do, and you both have to do a lot of moving around, but you get it done anyway. You can tell he's tired, but you don't blame him, so you take him to your room once you guys dry off.

"Aren't you tired?" You can barely get the words out because he barely lets your lips leave his, and all he does is hum an answer. You feel shivers run up your spine when he trails his fingers down your back, the sensation making you arch into him, and he splays his hand across your back to keep you near him.

He grabs the back of your knee, moving your leg so that it's resting on him before his hand trails down to the crease of your thigh. "You're so beautiful, you know that?" You would respond, but his fingers dance through your folds before they circle at your clit.

He shifts so that you're on your back, and he holds himself up with his elbow, keeping his lips on yours. "Every part of you is," he mumbles as he lets his fingers slide into you. He kisses down your neck, continuing to rub at your clit with his thumb as he slides his fingers in and out of you.

He flicks his tongue over your nipple before closing his mouth around it, and he groans softly when you moan, his mouth still touching your skin as he moves to the other one. He uses his knee to gently hold your leg open, and he smirks when you grab at his wrist.

"Daiki," you gasp, your legs trembling with every press of his fingers on that sensitive spot inside of you. He lets his face hover over yours, that grin still on his face as he meets your lips for a sloppy kiss.

"What, baby?" he questions, speeding up the pace of his fingers. "You close?" You nod quickly, your eyes fluttering open and closed, and he kisses you as he rubs at both bundles of nerves, bringing you to that high.

He swallows your moans as you cum, your nails digging into his arm as your back arches off the bed. He pulls away so you can catch your breath, but he doesn't stop moving his fingers, only relenting when you whine softly. He rolls you both over after he licks his fingers clean, and you wince at the sensitivity of your core when he helps you put your leg over him.

He rubs his hands all over your body as he meets your lips once again like it's something that he can't help. He cups your ass in his palms when you grind against him, and you both moan into each other's mouth.

You pull away, lifting yourself up, and he holds onto your hips, his fingers digging into your skin when you grab his length, giving it a few strokes. "Are you sure?" he asks when you raise yourself up, positioning the tip at your hole.

You nod quickly, and he watches you sink down onto him, a guttural groan coming from his chest as your tight heat surrounds him. Your hips start out with a slow roll as you get used to the stretch, and he lets you take the lead as he watches every part of your body.

He grabs your hands so that he can pull you back down towards him as you continue to roll your hips. "You're so fucking beautiful."

He smiles against your lips when you chuckle softly. "You already said that."

"I know, and I'm gonna keep saying it," he murmurs, tilting his chin up slightly to slide his lips against yours lazily as he squeezes your hands. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too." He lets his hands run down your body before they grab at your hips again, molding to them as you move, your movements increasing the closer you reach that peak. He plants his feet on the bed, grabbing your hips before he fucks up into you, both of your moans echoing off the walls.

You kiss each other until you can't, too focused on your impending pleasure about to surface, and he holds you close to him, sweat coating your bodies. "I'm gonna cum, 'Mine," you warn, and he doesn't stop moving, only increasing his accuracy and ramming into that spongy spot inside of you.

"I know, baby," he breathes, his eyes on your face, wanting to watch you fall over that edge again. "Cum for me, baby. Please." It only takes a few more thrusts for that knot to snap, and you let your forehead fall against his as your orgasm runs through you.

He cums right after you do, your walls clamping around him the final straw, and he groans as he spills inside of you, rolling your hips with his hands as you ride out the high. You let your head fall into his neck as you both recover from the aftershocks, holding each other close.

He feels you slide off of him right as the fatigue starts to hit him, and he gives you one last kiss, pulling you into him. "I love you," he says again, his eyelids feeling terribly heavy.

"I love you, too, Daiki," you echo, and he smiles as he finally lets sleep take over.

When you wake up, you notice that you're being moved, and you crack your eyes open to see that Aomine's getting back in the bed. "Where'd you go?" you ask around a yawn, and he wraps his arm around you as you snuggle back into him.

"I went to get something." You look at him to see what he's talking about, and you lift your head up when you see him hold up a necklace with his name on it. "I was gonna give this to you a little while later, but after everything that happened last night..." He trails off, and you sit up on your elbow. "I thought it would be a good time to give it to you now."

You open your mouth to say something, but suddenly that realization you had last night comes into your mind, and it makes you hesitate. "Daiki," you start, and he gives you a questioning look. "You're gonna be leaving soon, right? You're gonna be on the other side of the country."

You forgot about that fact. You had been so caught up in everything that it didn't even hit you until last night, and so much has happened between you two, but it still makes you worried. "Yeah, I am," he says, and you look at the necklace. "But, not for much longer." You frown as your attention goes back to him. "I'm getting traded to the team here."

Your eyes widen. "Are you serious?" He nods. "But, Daiki, our team sucks," you say, and he chuckles as he shrugs.

"I don't care. It'll help the team for the draft anyway, so it was worth it." You don't say anything, and he has both of you sit up so he can put the necklace on you. "And sure I've made friends on my current team, but I can always do that again."

He knows you're having doubts about him going to a new team, so he's trying to make your feel better about it. He's not necessarily uprooting his whole life or anything because you're his whole life now. He wraps his arms around you, and you lean back against him as you grab at the necklace.

"Do you still have the one you gave me in college?" you ask after a few minutes of silence, and he smiles at you as he lifts his hand. You gasp softly, seeing it dangling from his hand.

"I found it outside of the party that night," he tells you before putting that necklace on you, and you hold it in between your fingers as you look at it, realizing how much you missed it. "The good thing about getting this one back is that I found out it came with a matching ring."

You freeze, and you look up to see his hand moving in front of you, a ring in between his fingers. "Aomine."

"Don't worry, it's just a promise ring," he clarifies. "You could say that I was being optimistic when I got it. Hoping that one day I would be able to see you again and apologize for everything." You look at it, at a loss for words, looking at Aomine when he starts talking again. "You don't have to take it, but it's a promise that I'll be a better man for you than I was before. And that I'll never make you feel like that again."

You take a deep breath, feeling tears about to form in your eyes, so you will them away. You hold your hand out, and he smiles widely as he slides the ring on your finger. Your laugh is loud in the room as he peppers kisses all over your face, making you fall back onto the bed and he follows.

"I love you so much," he says, giving you a firm kiss, and you give him a fond smile.

"I love you so much." And for the first time, in a long time, you feel like everything is how it's supposed to be.