#and he was playing cicada days i think? and for some reason he ONLY started playing it at exactly 9:19 and didn’t even touch an instrument

[st-peculiar]

I’m officially losing it

[zaynsxsoul]

Honey sunbathed summer | Eddie Munson x Reader

summary: sleepy summer afternoon at the trailer park, ice cream debates, and sloppy kisses with Eddie ♡

warnings: 1k words, fluff, curse words, established relationship, play fighting, teasing, just a short cozy summer drabble

my masterlist

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

The heated rejoicing colors of purple, blue and coral red, light brightly the dozy sunday skies of Forest Hills Trailer park. The flushed summer sunset rises the glossy evening, which is only around two hours away until the moon begins its hike within the stars.

The four p.m. afternoon has a certain magical aura to it. The one when simpleness turns into mere worthy admiration. The start of summer at Hawkins usually has that effect.

Right in front of the limit that crosses the division between the quiet forest and the trailer park, lies a kiddy pool that’s being more than enjoyed by children whose voices reflect the excitement of the simpleness that water gives at any age.

A racing water slip slide is set right across Eddie’s trailer too. A hose sends the right amount of water and soap ratio for it to be slippery enough for the nine year olds who play some sort of made up secret coded game that only they understand. The watermist kisses the tip of your nose from time to time.

The thought of summer accompanied by fudgy banana splits, water, the smoky whiff of a deliciously glazed barbecue aroma coming from nearby, forest tree leaves transporting the warm heat, and the essence of freshly mowed lawn that vaporizes the smell of wet dirt and grass, never fails to spike a shot of serotonin.

And within the immortalized echo of the melody produced by the bustle from the neighbors, wind chimes, the evening honey whiff, water splashes and cicadas, your laughter fades into that chorus among Eddie’s voice.

Because although outside on his porch the heat is still unbearable, skin being sticky under your two piece playsuit, and every texture feeling fuzzy and icky, that doesn’t even come close to ruining spending time with him.

The smell of your coconut scented sunscreen feels like summer itself. Even more when you had applied it, –or more like bathed— Eddie’s reluctant scrunched face in it as well.

And how couldn’t you? after the awful experience of his almost burnt to shrimp-skin the other day at the pool. But as impossible as it seems, even with gooey sunscreen that draws a line from his cheeks and down his nose, he looks radiant, sitting just a few inches away from you.

With hair pulled back and a low pony from which some reluctant little hairs fall, he smiles. It’s hard not to think about how enchantingly adorable he is with that hairstyle. As adorable as you’d love to squish his little face and make him turn love sick out of kisses.

His torso is covered by a very thin black fabric shirt. Your bare leg brushes from time to time with his knee. And you can swear that his warmth adds even more heat to the afternoon. A certain type of heat that you probably don’t mind feeling.

He himself is in awe at the beautifully deified sight of your cheeks, plum red and glossy, at the way your legs sit crossed in front of his and move sporadically, how your shoulders shine and bathe golden under the toasty sun. And he can’t help but adore the way your eyebrows furrow, concentrating on the deck of twenty plus cards that you hold right below your face.

“You’ve had the worst luck today” He mocks. The cheshire cat-like grin teasing ever more when you���re taking your sweet time to pick a card.

“I can’t let you win again.” You pout, arms falling down as if you were mid-surrender. “It means you’d win over my Candy Center Crunch!” He chuckles boyishly, and you react with a mixture between an eye roll and a grin when you understand the reason why. “You’re being dirty”

“Funny Feet would be better though” The sight of his spread abdomen, glimmering with water and sweat when he leans back being supported by his hands is surely divine.

“Eddie! God, that sounds even worse” He can’t help but smile stupidly at the sight of your nose scrunch. “Do I honestly have to not just bear with you stealing my ice cream but also underestimating it for a Funny Feet popsicle?”

“Uh tut-tut, not stealing, winning, snippy” He reprimands playfully.

“Who even likes funny feet? I’d only let you undermine center crunch over a snoopy ice pop or choco taco”

“What?” And he sounds crushed. Like if you had said the most insultingly revolting thing ever. “The snoopy ice pop sucks, babe” He states mid chuckle. “It’s just fake marshmallow. Fuck, it’s not even an ice pop”

“It is an ice pop!”

“If there’s no fruit or water is not an ice pop” He states.“you only like it because it’s a dog” You shrug, playfully ticked.

“It’s not any dog, Eddie, it’s Snoopy” He pinches the doughy soft flesh of your thigh gently after the correction.

“Either way, I won”

By laying his last remaining card on the main deck, his victory is endured. Cheerful hands shake your shoulders back and forth in a celebratory motion until the palms also drum your legs gently.

And you still can't believe that he is walking over to the kitchen and taking your beloved crunchy ice cream out of the fridge, much less how he is mocking you by showing it and smiling like a child from where he stands.

“Fuck, this is so good”

Your eye almost twitches when he plops on the couch, and it doesn’t take more than a few seconds for you to follow and sit beside him. The coldness of the tin-like material is dripping water.

You’re staring deeply.

With the corner of his eye and a smile evoked from the edge of his lips, he looks at you in amusement while fidgeting with the crinkly bag. As if seeing you like this was the funniest thing he’d ever experienced.

And in the back of his mind, when the ice cream is already out of the wrapper, he actually feels bad by just the sight of the way your eyes reflect those of a puppy imploring for food.

“Here” He hands it over, although you don’t take it yet. “You can see it”

“Stop it!” His burlesque snort that mocks your plea turns into a gasp when you push his own hand when he leans for a bite.

The taste of revenge is sweet. Quite literally.

The expression on your face changes to a splendid smile, observing his vainilla covered cheek and reminiscing the way it landed there because of you.

“Give me a bite” You pout. mouth watering at the sight of his lips and teeth sinking into it

He nods. Unbothered by the cream that drips from his face. You wish you could seem more stern, but when he’s leaning near your face making a growling lion sound ready to bite into your cheek, It’s absurdly impossible to not break down to giggles.

“You know what I mean, Eds”

“No! you bet on this, you little cheater. Plus, look at what you just did” His finger points at his distressed cheek, as if you hadn’t noticed yet.

“I can fix that”

Your hand presses onto his thigh while scooting over. The tip of your tongue licks expertly the trace of the sweet chocolate iridescence that drips from his lip, right where the vainilla drop slides. His skin is soft against your tongue.

From the proximity he can feel the scent of your perfume, the reminiscences of wildflower shampoo mixed in with sunscreen, pool chlorine and your own aroma. It’s a bewilderment that makes him shiver even inside of the heat box that his trailer is.

And when your face leans a little closer, his own gesture drops once you’re swiftly biting into the ice cream very slightly. A cold bit of the peanut covered chocolate crust falls to his leg, instantly melting over his warmth.

“Stop it” He laughs. “Thief” But it’s pointless to make a fuss out of it when he has already surrendered.

“Whoops, sorry” You say, the tip of your tongue licking the trace of the chocolate on his leg. And shortly after, the trace that melts down his fingers and knuckles.

“You can’t do that” You raise your eyebrows innocently. “This! with the cute little face and big eyes.”

“Why not? Always seems to work” The silence of the stare is gratifying, and when he grins it feels like he’s trying to say ‘it really fucking does’.

“You know? It’s real sad you stole from me, cause’ I had something else for ya’”

With a covered face behind rebel brown locks of hair that escaped the pony, he looks over his shoulder and seems to stretch to grab something. Sparks rise when he’s pulling out a beautiful snoopy ice pop that crinkles like the sound of heavenly chants.

“You got it for me?” When your smile turns into a dazzling glare, and your eyes shoot flickering stars, he yearns for the magnificent instant to last a little longer.

“Of course I did, I said I despise the snoopy fake ice pop, or ice cream or whatever, but shit, how I love that smile of yours when you see it.”

Moved by burning excitement, your hand moves to grab it, but when he pulls it away, your face naturally lands near his. So taking advantage of the situation, the skin of your cheek purposely but flawlessly rests on his jaw.

“Not so fast. What am I getting in return?” The magical sound of his question ardently stirs the butterflies on your lower belly.

“A bite out of it?”

When his mouth puckers expectantly, the sweetness of your kiss mends the itch of his expecting lips. The chocolate taste that lingers on him is heavenly, dipped proudly, praising the feeling. Your mouth is cold from the ice cream. His is colder.

It’s gooey, and messy, and sticky. And that’s what makes it so special.

When you pull away, a love sick smile welcomes you back from the celestial trip. And with nothing more to say other than thinking ‘well deserved’, he hands over the ice pop.

“Thank you, Teddie” You coo, pulling the bag away to reveal snoopy’s cheeky smile.

He might adore the proximity of the defining moment once you sit on his lap more than anything else. The dear moment pains and soothes his heart in the most beautiful ways.

“You’re welcome, ice pop” His giggles come out like a mewl.

From honey sunbathed shoulders, Eddie pulls you in closer to his chest. Serenity steps into the moment when his jawline bobs with each bite lolling you towards tranquility, when his arms hug you close, when his proximity is intimately tender. And although you’re both sticky and sweaty, it couldn’t be more insignificant right about now.

The sun is finally fading. And the sky prepares to welcome the night, which you hope comes with faith of a cooler breeze. through the open front door and blowing curtains, you admire with heavy eyelids the way the golden evening glimmers his skin.

And when the warmth of his embrace makes you dizzy, the taste of vanilla takes a trip down your taste buds, and laughter and the conversations from not so far away make your heart swole, you think there’s nowhere in this world you’d aspire more to be, than here.

Because when summer makes it’s glorious entrance, it means afternoons being spent just like this in Eddie’s company. Which always makes it all better.

Even better than Snoopy Ice creams, Crunch Center, and Choco Tacos all merged into one.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

[teknikolor-walters]

The weight of the sawed-off shotgun (a nod that wasn't lost on Cicada) felt familiar in their shaking hands in a way that it shouldn't.

It was the night of his fourth challenge, and PR1ZE wasn't moving. They had been discussing this for what felt like hours and PR1ZE hadn't even gotten upset with him.

"GODDAMMIT, PR1ZE!" Cicada nearly screamed. "I'm pointing a goddamn gun at your face and you aren't doing anything. Do something! Anything! Fight back! Don't just let me kill you. Have some fucking decency."

Logically, Cicada knew that the people they and PR1ZE share an apartment with could hear them. Emotionally, however, they wanted to scream at him until their throat gave out.

PR1ZE didn't move. "Bug, please, calm down. I wouldn't want to be killed by anyone else. It... it would be an honor to have you be the one to kill me."

"Fuck you. I hate you. And if you lie down and die here I'm never going to forgive you."

He would forgive PR1ZE for anything.

"Cicada, listen to me, please, just do it. It'll all be okay. I love you Bug. You... you know that, right? I love you. It'll be okay." And then he was smiling, actually smiling, as he was about to die.

Cicada decided that this was worse than what happened with Matt. That was painful and bloody but at least Mikey (she...?) had a reason, however small, to fight back, back then. Now Cicada was gunning the man they loved down while he proclaimed his love for wing.

"I love you too, Fox. I'm... I'm sorry." The words caught in wing's throat and bird had to spit them out.

"Don't apologize. It's... it's for the best, isn't it? I was always gonna be on borrowed time. I'm lucky to have spent so much of it with you. My Bug."

They wanted to tell him to not call him that but they didn't have the heart.

There was a pause.

"Can I kiss you?" Asked PR1ZE, startling them both. "I don't think I could live with myself if I died without kissing you at least once."

Another pause.

"There's something fucked up about the two of us. I'm about to fucking kill you and you're asking me to kiss. And I'm saying you can." He wanted this just as much as PR1ZE did. God, he was selfish.

PR1ZE stepped forward. His hands were shaking almost as bad as Cicada's own but there was a confident look in his eyes that Cicada hadn't seen much. He grabbed Cicada's face, tracing his thumb across her jaw. They stood there like that for a second.

"Thank you." And then he kissed her.

If Cicada was going to be honest with birdwingself, and bird was, it was everything they had ever hoped for. For a second, they forgot WOE.BEGONE, and the fourth challenge, and the fact that they were holding a gun, and everything else. For a second, both Mikey and Eli were quiet.

Cicada found themself wanting to wrap their arms around him before remembering there was indeed a gun in their hands. They had a job to do. PR1ZE broke the kiss.

He seemed more relaxed than he had in days, months, even. Since Cicada had started playing for sure. He was still smiling. God.

PR1ZE tucked a strand of hair out of their face before stepping back again.

"I love you so fucking much. Thank you, again. I wish..." he shook his head. "Well, it doesn't matter now. I love you."

"Everything you say matters, PR1ZE, I wish you knew that." Cicada could hear his own voice getting softer. He was crying harder now. He didn't know when he had started crying, only that he was crying harder.

She was really going to have to do this. She raised the gun to his head again, and PR1ZE held it there. Still smiling.

There was fear in his eyes she couldn't ignore.

"I love you, Fox, I'm sorry."

Take a deep breath, Cicada. 3... 2... 1.

[thewritetofreespeech]

Little Red Corvette

Summary: taking the car from Mammon’s latest Devilgram story for a different kind of ‘ride’.

tags: sex in a car, heterosexual sex, blow jobs, fingering, cursing, spitters are quitters, female reader

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

After your private pool party, and finding a hotel near the coast like Mammon wanted, the two of you decide to enjoy your little red hot rod a little while longer and take a drive up the sea side. It had been beautiful during the day, but it was dazzling at night.

You pull off after a 20-30 minute drive from your hotel. Finding a little lookout point that overlooked the beach, and the sea, and the biggest brightest moon you had ever seen.

“It’s beautiful!” You gush after you park. The engine cutting off and giving way to just the distant silence of the waves and few cicadas.

“I’m glad ya like it. I wanted this to be a special trip for you.” Mammon said. Reaching across the console and taking your hand. “Because you’re special to me, [Y/N].”

You smile at Mammon and lean back over the console at him to give him a kiss. Which he gladly returned. Your kissing slowly becomes more passionate. If the windows & the top were up you would be fogging up the windows like any good 90's romcom. Then you feel his hand on your thigh.

"Do you want to go back to the hotel?" You ask when you break away. Feeling his fingers inch further up your leg to the hem of your cover up, and making no effort to stop him.

"Ugggghhh....I can't wait that long..." Mammon whined. Looking at you like he could feel his balls turning blue just thinking about it. Then his face broke out in a grin. "Let's do it here."

"Here??" You repeat. Your face turning red in the moonlight at the suggestion. "Someone might see us."

"No they won't. No one is around." He reasoned. "Come on," he urged as he leaned over the gear shaft to nuzzle and kiss your neck, "don't you wanna do it in this nice fancy car. It would be so hot."

You have to admit, it did sound hot. Having hot sex, with your hot boyfriend, in this hot fire engine red sports car, was a triple threat of hotness. When were you going to get this chance again? You couldn't say no.

You climb into the back with Mammon, who grins all the way behind you at getting his way.

Despite his remarks earlier, he is kind enough to pull the top up for some privacy. Making the space that much more intimate for you. "[Y/N]...." He moaned as you kissed freely now in the back. "I want ya so bad. Gods below, how can a human like you do this to me." You half except him to say 'The Great Mammon's but he seem genuinely mesmerized and almost in pain with how badly he wanted you.

Not that you could say much else. Since you said yes, your panties were wetter than ever. You wanted him badly too.

He kissed your cheek, then moved down toward your neck. You moan and squirm under him when he nipped playfully at your ear. You hear him moan in return when your hands slip under his Hawaiian shirt across the hard planes of his pecs and abs. Mapping out the lines with your finger tips like they were brail. Eventually making it down to his lower abs, and brushing over his erection standing up in his trunks. “Mmmm...[Y/N]....”

You shift around a little (not exactly easy in this sporty little car, but you manage) so that Mammon was on his back against the plush seats and laid out. This was the only way this was going to work with how tall he was. Plus, you wanted to try something.

“W-What are you doing?” Mammon asked. Voice shaky, but clearly aroused, as he watched you slither back to the farthest corner you could manage and undo his belt.

“Isn’t it obvious?” You ask with a smirk you hope he can see in the moonlight. Then you lean down and lick his cock.

The demon immediately arched and moaned against the simple touch. Mammon was always so expressive when you were together like this. He might deny his feelings, or play them off like no big deal or a joke, but his body can’t lie. He was already quivering and panting as you wrap your lips around him. “[Y/N]....that feels so good....”

You hum out something like a thank you around his cock; sending another shiver down Mammon. You suck him off the way he liked. Licking the shaft. Taking him all the way back for a moment before pulling back towards the tip. Fondling his balls. His cock tasted like the chlorine from the pool, and somehow still salt from the sea by being near the beach all day. It was an intoxicating flavor, mixed with his natural musk, that you start to squirm against his knee you had to prop yourself up on to make this position work.

“Ya feeling it too baby?” Mammon asked. His voice in harsh pants now as he was getting close. “Does sucking my cock turn you on?” You nod in between bobbing over his cock. Before you’d be embarrassed to admit it, but now? What was the point in hiding it. “Fuck, watching you blow me and get turned on by it is sending me into overdrive babe. I’m gonna cum soon. You gonna take it for me babe? Drink it down?” You moan around him as Mammon’s fingers played with your hair. Possibly in affirmative. Possibly just because it felt good. Either way, it was enough to send him over the edge and he was cumming erratically into your mouth.

You swallow it down in one big gulp. One because he seemed to want you to, and two, you didn’t want this fine luxury automobile stained. It does seem to turn him on as Mammon whimpered quietly when he saw your mouth come off his cock clean. Grabbing you by the shoulders and crushing you against him for a kiss like he hadn’t seen you in ages.

“Now it’s your turn.”

You let out a weak, open mouth moan, when Mammon slipped his fingers in past your bathing suit bottoms and into you. “Fuck baby. You’re so wet it feels like we’re still in the pool. Ah shit! We should have done it in the pool. Do you think we can get back in? Maybe break in? I can hold you up around my waist while we float around with my cock inside you.” You moan and buck against his fingers at the idea. When had he become such an exhibitionist?

His fingers tease your clit and hole for a little while longer, until you’re begging him to stop so he can fuck you. He’s more than happy to oblige. Cock still out from when you tended to it, and rehard, all he had to do was take his fingers out of you and move your suit bottoms to the side to be inside you.

You moan and arch your back at the feeling of his shaft inside you. Adjusting to it for a moment before you were rocking against Mammon. Somewhere in the back of your mind, you hear the car squeak in tandem with your thrusts. The shocks putting up their best effort to keep up with the ‘rocky course’ you’d set them on. There isn’t a lot of room, so Mammon has to let you do the work. He’s pinned, under your thighs and at mercy to your rolling hips, but he doesn’t seem to mind. His hands hold onto your hips for support as he watched you ride his cock in the dark, dim light of the moon still spilling in from the windshield. Your hands braced against his chest for additional support.

Soon enough, you’re cumming around him. Worked up by the erotic scenario and his fingers, it doesn’t take you long. Mammon, on the other hand, takes longer since he’d cum once before. He ‘takes care of himself’ in a way though, after you collapse against him in orgasmic bliss. Holding you tight and close as he thrust hard and fast into your over stimulated pussy. Nearly making you cum again.

After he was done, cumming in you again, he lifted up your head from his shoulder to give you a soft, lazy kiss. “Let’s get back babe.” He said, after you’ve both caught your breath and savored the moment for a while.

It’s less romantic trying to get back to the front of the car, and out of your tangled limbs. Apparently there is no way to do it gracefully. But, you manage, and Mammon started up the car and put the top back down. Letting the fresh air in and smell of sex out. You drive back along the coast towards your hotel. Enjoying the smell of sea air and bright night sky. With Mammon.

[amjustagirl]

Summary: She may mean the world to Iwaizumi Hajime but at the end of the day, Oikawa Tooru is his star. 

AO3 Link here

Sequel: Broken Compass

She used to think the universe intended for her to literally  crash into one Iwaizumi Hajime. 

One of her first assignments as a writer for one of the country’s top sports magazines was to cover the Japanese volleyball team’s season, and despite constant reminders from her editors  not  to screw this up because the men’s volleyball team is crazy popular these days, she manages to trip over her own feet and knock not just herself, but the newly minted team trainer to the ground. 

When she lifts her head from the ground, the first thing that hits her mind is -  goodness, he’s hot  -  he’s a veritable god among men, all sinewy muscles and sunkissed skin, and she can’t bring herself to speak as he carefully checks her once over for any signs of injury. ‘Are you alright?’ he asks her, and she nods dumbly as he pulls her to her feet and waves her off with a warm smile. The heat from his hands lingers on her skin long after she goes to bed that night. 

They meet again at the next match. He remembers her name, she gives him a friendly wave. Then at the next match, she cheekily asks for his comments and he huffs a laugh as he directs her to the team’s PR manager. By the end of the season, she works up the courage to ask him out for coffee, and he says yes . 

 Iwaizumi Hajime is everything she dreamt of in a partner - kind, caring, steady, his feet firmly planted on the ground. He always wraps his arm around her to pull her close when they walk along the edge of the road, and indulges her pleas for an extra cuddle – ‘ the last one, I promise! ’ - every morning when he leaves for work. They exchange long text messages late into the night when either of them are on the road, and nag each other for working too hard. When they lay in bed at night, he whispers promises filled with love against her skin, tells her he can trace the constellations in her eyes. 

It makes it so easy for her to close her eyes and believe that their love is written in the stars, so a year later when he asks her to marry him, she doesn’t hesitate to jump into his arms and say yes . The weight of the silver band he slips on her finger grounds her with his love, and her heart is full. 

She can’t stop feeling like a thief who’s snatched the sun from the sky. 

Oikawa Tooru is to be his best man of course. 

She knows who he is, she’s covered the sport long enough to have heard about him - the prodigious setter from Miyagi who never made it once to Nationals despite his obvious talent (an exquisitely crafted  katana  is, after all, no match for the brute force of a cannon), who spit in the face of fate and chased his dreams to sunnier lands. 

Iwaizumi has always been awfully fond of regaling her with stories of Oikawa, so much so that she thinks she can piece together their relationship - childhood friends turned longtime teammates, the long suffering ace and the monstrously brilliant setter. She watches his face soften uncharacteristically when he reads news about his old friend winning a match, and hardens when Oikawa whines loudly during their video calls about his bruises and sore knee. She can’t help but think Iwaizumi must have been like Jupiter, a god in his own right, drawn into orbit around Oikawa, a star burning over-bright. 

She knows they remain best friends despite their separation by whole continents, keeping in contact via video calls and text messages, playing hopscotch with the time difference. They certainly look like it when they greet each other at the airport, Oikawa trilling a playful ‘ Iwa-channn’ and Iwaizumi grunting at him to ‘shut up, they’re in public, dumbass!’, exchanging back slaps so loud it makes her wince. 

‘You must be the poor fiancee’, Oikawa gives her an exaggerated leer as he stands before her, hands on hips. ‘What did Iwa-chan drug you with to get you to marry him? Do you know he snores like a monster in his sleep? You know you can back out before the wedding right? Blink once if you’re ok, and twice if you’re not - and I’ll help you escape from him.’

Before she can respond to that frankly impertinent speech, Iwaizumi roars ‘Shut-up, Shittykawa’, tackling him into a headlock and wrestling him off into their car. She stifles a laugh as they spend the rest of the ride to Oikawa’s hotel room bickering back and forth. 

‘How did you manage to pack so much luggage for a two week stay, you vain piece of crap!’

‘I care about my looks and grooming - unlike some of us who skulk around in clothes they’ve worn since high school!’ 

 ‘Vainpot.’

 ‘Beast.’ 

 ‘Piece of shit’ 

 ‘Meanie’

Iwaizumi alternates between grunting and growling at Oikawa’s nonsense but his eyes are shining (so bright that she can see stars) and Oikawa’s retorts are punctuated with smiles that are impossibly wide. She thinks to herself it’ll be good for Iwaizumi to have Oikawa around.

Oikawa starts to call her ‘ Chibi-chan  ’ especially when Hajime is around to be annoyed by it – she admits she’s short, but not  that  short, it’s just that he spends most of his time surrounded by literal  giants  - and develops an irritating habit of ambushing her with quizzes about Hajime's likes and dislikes. 

'Favourite food?' 

'Agedashi tofu.' 

'Favourite movie?' 

 'Godzilla.’ 

After a few rounds of these pop quizzes, she looks at him like he's sprouted a second head. ‘Seriously, Oikawa-san, we're getting married in less than two weeks. Do you seriously think I wouldn't know the most obvious things about my own fiancé?'  

'Don't frown, Chibi-chan, you'll grow wrinkles and look old', he sing songs at her. 'I'm just making sure you're worthy of Iwa-chan's love!' 

'Stop bullying my fiancée, Shittykawa, or I'll beat you up so bad you can't move'. Iwaizumi rubs lazy circles against her back, and she leans against him comfortably. 

'Aww Iwa-chan, once a bone head, always a bone head’, Oikawa says, scrunching his face into a mock-sniff. ‘Say, Chibi-chan, do you know Iwa-chan would beat me up ‘til I let go all the cicadas we caught, but if they died, he would cry?' 

‘Are you calling me a crybaby, Shittykawa’, Iwaizumi growls dangerously, simmering down only when she coos at him, ‘that’s so cute, you must have been such a sweet child’. 

Then, sensing that her presence is probably stopping the boys from catching up fully, she shoos them out of the apartment on the premise that they should get some fresh air and cool off but really so they can get some much needed time together. ‘ And stop fighting’ , she calls after them, making good use of the quiet to busy herself with wedding preparations. 

When Iwaizumi finally returns home late that night, he finds her asleep on the couch, and with a soft smile he curls up around her. ‘Hajime?’ she breathes, nuzzling her nose into his neck, and he has to bite back the urge to cover her face with kisses, tightening his hold on her instead.  

‘I’m back’, he whispers, his breath warm against her neck. ‘Sorry I was out so long’. 

‘It’s fine’, she mumbles sleepily. ‘Did you guys have fun?’

‘Yeah - we went for dinner and then Oikawa dragged me to at least five different bakeries to find the perfect milk bread before he was willing to go for drinks’, he complains. ‘And he made me promise to go for drinks with Issei and Hanamaki tomorrow afternoon before we meet with the wedding coordinator’.

‘Mm’, she hums absently. ‘Oikawa seemed a little on edge earlier. I’m glad he calmed down and had fun with you’. 

Iwaizumi frowns into her hair, thinking back to Oikawa’s inexplicable needling of her earlier. ‘Sweetheart, if Oikawa is irritating you, I'll make him stop’. 

‘It’s fine’, she says, with a little more force than she intended, waving away the concerned look he gives her. ‘He’s your best friend, Hajime. I think he's just feeling a little insecure. You should spend more time with him while you still can’. 

He grins and kisses her warmly. ‘You’re too good to me. What did I do to deserve you?’ 

‘Because the universe willed that I love you’, she answers, as if it were the most obvious thing on earth. 

But Oikawa manages to find a way to wreck her well made plans.   

Iwaizumi finds her in the kitchen, back turned towards him, and the slam of the dishes on the counter makes him wince. ‘I’m sorry, sweetheart’, he tells her, wincing when she shrugs off his hand. 

'You skipped our appointment with our wedding coordinator', she hisses, whirling around to face him. ‘But that’s not the worst of it - do you know how scared I was when you didn’t pick up my calls? I thought you got  hurt  or heaven forbid - got run over by a car and died,  Hajime!’

‘I’m sorry’, he repeats, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly. 'I got engrossed in catching up with Hanamaki and Issei, and Oikawa stole my phone so I lost track of time. I kicked his ass for it, you could've heard him whining about it from outer space’. He slyly slides an arm around her waist, resisting her attempts to pull away as he buries his nose in her hair.  ‘I'll make it up to you, I promise'. 

'Make sure you do', she huffs, leaning into his warmth. ‘And what was Oikawa’s reason for stealing your phone?’ 

‘You know Shittykawa, he probably thought he was being cute. I’ll make him apologise,’ Hajime replies, pressing his nose into the crook of her neck. 

She relaxes a fraction, breathing in his familiar scent - fresh linen and pine and  home, but that doesn't ease the knot of something  -  she can't quite put her finger on what it is just yet - weighing down in her chest. 

True to his word, Iwaizumi drags Oikawa by his ear to lunch with them the next day, not letting go until he apologises to her with an appropriately chastened expression on his face. ‘I’m sorry, Chibi-chan, I shan’t do it again’, he tells her contritely, but when Iwaizumi’s back is turned, he shoots her a puckish grin brimming with mischief that makes her toes curl. 

She ignores him, and lets herself be drawn into the flow of their conversation - Oikawa complaining incessantly about Ushijima Wakatoshi and Kageyama Tobio whom she’s met many times in the past few months and he shoots her dirty looks when she archly tells him that she thinks they’re lovely men, Iwaizumi getting on Oikawa’s case again for not eating enough, for not sleeping enough, barely able to restrain himself from violence when Oikawa responds with a trilled ‘  Iwa-chan, you sound like my mother ’.  

The conversation meanders off to their Seijoh teammates she’s not terribly familiar with, so she’s caught off guard when Oikawa abruptly turns to her with shit-eating grin and asks innocently ‘Say, Chibi-chan, what about Iwa-chan caught your eye?’

‘Have you looked at him?’ she says, playfully nudging a blushing Iwaizumi with her elbow. ‘He’s built like a god.’

Oikawa’s smile turns sickly sweet, showing far too much teeth. ‘In that case, I’m surprised you didn’t go for one of the volleyball players instead. Or was Iwa-chan your last attempt? You’re twenty-five this year, after all.’ 

A glance in Iwaizumi’s direction shows her exactly what she expects - first, his mouth drops open in a wide-eyed, open mouthed gape, then fury burns white hot across his face, and she has to grab his hand before he causes a scene by throwing himself bodily across the table to strangle the smirk off Oikawa’s face. ‘I can fight my own battles’, she mouths at him, willing him to stay in his seat, her hand still pressed firmly against his.  

‘Well, you did ask me what first attracted me to Hajime, and I didn’t lie - I was really drawn by his looks’. 

 She inhales and lets herself be drawn back to the warmth of the memory of tumbling head first into Iwaizumi’s arms, and exhales to look squarely at Oikawa. ‘But then I fell for his kindness, his steadfastness, his patience - and when he told me he loved me, I felt as if the universe had handed me the sun, the moon and the stars’.    

Her answer must have touched Oikawa’s shrivelled little heart, she thinks to herself, because something  in his eyes shutters and a look of respect streaks across his face. ‘Well said, Chibi-chan, well said’, he says begrudgingly. ‘Iwa-chan is lucky to have you’. 

The rest of lunch passes without incident, and when she and Iwaizumi are finally back home, he corners her as she’s about to go to bed and asks quietly - ‘Sweetheart, did you really mean all of that?’  

‘Of course I do. I love you, Hajime. Do you need me to count the ways?’ 

‘Maybe’, he responds playfully, circling his arms around her as she pulls him to bed. She lies in his embrace, ear pressed to his chest and falls asleep to the steady thrum of his heartbeat, the ebb and flow of his breath, the rise and fall of his chest.

When Iwaizumi calls out that he’ll be gone to the bar down the street for an hour or two to vet Oikawa’s best man speech, she certainly did not expect him to burst back into their flat with Oikawa held bridal style in his arms. It would have been a comical sight - Oikawa’s bulky frame dwarfing even Iwaizumi, legs looking ludicrously long dangling over Iwaizumi’s arms - but for the frantic expression of Iwaizumi’s face and the desperate way Oikawa clings to Iwaizumi’s neck. 

‘Idiot bumped his knee while doing shots’, Iwaizumi explains to her distractedly, as he settles Oikawa onto their couch. ‘I don’t think it’s serious, but I’ll take him to the doctor in the morning to check him out just in case. Brought him to our place since it’s closer than his hotel room, and I can keep an eye on him overnight’. 

She hands him an ice pack. ‘Why don’t you two take our bed, and I’ll take the couch? He’ll be more comfortable that way, and you can watch over him at night.’

‘Are you sure?’ Iwaizumi frowns, and she nods, pushing him towards his friend while she turns to fetch a set of spare pyjamas for their unexpected guest. Iwaizumi lifts Oikawa to their bed and together, they strip him of his clothes and, mindful of his knee, gingerly slide him into clean clothes. 

‘Iwa-chan’, she hears the lanky setter whine as she makes to leave the room to bring an extra ice pack. Turning her head, she catches a glimpse of Hajime bending over Oikawa’s form. She’s not sure if it’s a trick of the light, but she  swears she saw Iwaizumi brush his fingers against Oikawa’s forehead with a quiet tenderness he’s only ever shown to her, tucking his hair behind his ears. For some reason, it makes her heart clench. 

She’s gathering the discarded clothes up from the floor whilst Iwaizumi’s in the shower, when Oikawa shoots his hand out to grab her wrist. ‘I’m sorry’, he tells her, a plaintive note in his voice.  ‘I tore it up – I should never have tried to tell him.’

‘What?’ She gives him a bewildered stare. ‘What are you talking about?’ 

‘Iwa-chan’, he slurs, and she can smell the alcohol on his breath as she moves closer to him to catch his words. ‘He got mad with me, madder than I’ve ever seen him before.’

‘You mean Hajime? Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he doesn’t stay mad with you, whatever it is you’ve done.’

He shakes his head. ‘I’m sorry’, he manages to say, and starts to cry. She flounders, unsure whether to comfort him herself or call for Hajime to deal with him (because she’s not stupid, it’s painfully obvious he resents her), but the look in his eyes is so heartbreakingly vulnerable that she can't bring herself to leave him alone even for a minute, so she sits next to him on the bed, rubbing a soothing hand against his back while he soaks her sleeve with hot tears. ‘You’re drunk and injured, Oikawa-san. You should rest’, she murmurs, easing him back against his pillow when his sobs cease and he seems to calm down. 

As she bends down again to pick up his clothes, he gives a cry of alarm and tries to grab her wrist again, almost flipping himself off the bed. Hearing the commotion, Iwaizumi rushes into the room, hair still wet from his shower, barking loudly ‘you idiot’, forcing Oikawa to lie back down onto the bed. She backs out of the room, leaving Hajime to comfort his sobbing friend. 

 She doesn’t think too much about Oikawa’s strange words, mentally writing it off as another one of his odd little quirks. But as she’s folding up his pants, a stack of torn papers falls out of its pocket, and she thinks she recognises the words ‘Iwa-chan’ scribbled all over it. Though she knows it’s wrong to invade his privacy – especially when he’s in no position to defend it, she can’t help but be curious, reasoning to herself that it must be his best man’s speech, she should at least vet through it once before the wedding. 

It isn’t hard to piece the scraps of paper together, the tears uneven, as if made in a fit of panic or rage. It is, as she thought, Oikawa’s best man speech, and it starts out as expected, with well wishes to Iwaizumi and her. But as she continues reading, running her finger over each word, etched so harshly into each page that the ink bleeds, it becomes evident that that isn’t the only thing Oikawa meant to say. 

‘I know it’s too late, but I love you, Iwa-chan’, she reads with growing horror on the very last page, a suspicious water stain next to these words. Mind whirling, unable to process what she’s just read, she sits at the kitchen table reading and re-reading his words until her vision starts to blur. 

 ‘There are times I wonder if I chose wrong, if I should have held fast to you, the other half of my soul rather than going off to fight in hopeless wars, because I should have known you won’t always be waiting for me to come home. But I will always love you - like the moon loves the sun, even if I can only watch you from afar, so full of light’. 

She should be  furious  – she should head straight to Oikawa and scream and shout and stamp her foot at him, because how dare he say these things  now  when he’s had  forever  to say them to Iwaizumi before she even came into the picture – how dare  he wait until she and Iwaizumi are less than ten days away from being wed. But she doesn’t, because deep inside her, she understands. 

How can she begrudge his love when they love the same man?  

‘Sweetheart’, she faintly hears Iwaizumi say, squinting in the light as he emerges from the dark bedroom. ‘Is everything alright?’ he asks, his voice heavy with concern when he catches sight of her tear stained face.

She wants to tell him that everything’s just fine – but his gaze shifts to the torn papers in her trembling hands and she knows immediately everything is not fine at all when he looks back at her with guilt and anguish branded on his face. 

‘Did you know?’ she asks, hating the way her voice starts to break. 

‘He told me just now’, he tells her heavily, dropping into the seat across her, his hands cradling his head. 

‘Do you love him?’ she demands, ignoring the sob that’s threatening to tear itself out of her chest. 

He looks up at her. There are tears in his eyes. 

‘Yes’, he admits. ‘I don’t want to, but I do’. 

His words knock the oxygen from her lungs, leaving her with a crater in her chest. He loves  Oikawa Tooru, this beautiful, brilliant, broken boy, incandescent with the light of a thousand stars. 

Where does that leave her? 

(Stranded in the dust, abandoned in the dark)  

She suddenly feels as if she’s trapped in her own skin, a vise that’s far, far too tight, burning with the need to turn herself inside out. ‘I need to go’, she manages to spit out, stumbling over her feet. He stands in alarm, reaching towards her but she slaps his hand away. ‘Don’t touch me’, she hisses, grabbing her wallet and phone through a haze of tears. 

‘Where are you going to go?’ he demands, barring the door with his large frame. ‘It’s late, it’s not safe.’

‘Anywhere that’s not here’, she snarls, trying to shoulder her way through. ‘Let me go, Hajime – I can’t stay here, please, let me go!’ She slams her fists against his chest, collapsing to the floor at his feet when she realises it’s impossible to break through the immovable force that is Iwaizumi Hajime. 

‘Let me go somewhere that isn’t here’, she begs him, hiccupping through her tears. ‘You’re hurting me more by making me stay here with him’. 

He sinks to his knees to cup her face in his hands. ‘I’m sorry’, he sobs. ‘I couldn’t bear it if I lose you too’. 

She doesn’t have the heart to tell him he already has ( because she can’t stay, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts), and when her stillness convinces him it’s safe to turn his back to her for a second, she slips through the door and disappears into the night. She hears him shout her name, hears the anguish in his voice, but she doesn’t stop running until she’s safely ensconced in a nearby hotel room.  

Her phone keeps buzzing through the night. ‘Iwaizumi Hajime ’, it reads,  ‘Iwaizumi Hajime’, flashes on her screen, again and again. She tries her best to ignore it, turning her phone on to silent mode, leaving it face down on the dresser but she can’t - her ears still echoing with the heart wrenching panic in his voice. So she rolls over to her phone and sends him a text – ‘ I’m fine, go to bed, you have a doctor’s appointment with Oikawa to worry about tomorrow morning’  – quickly switching it off before he can flood her inbox with desperate calls and texts. 

She tries her best to fall asleep, but she ends up lying awake, counting the cracks in the ceiling. The air in the room is far, far too still, and she feels like she’s suffocating, buried alive from the sand and dirt and earth pouring into the cavity in her chest. Against her better judgment, she uncorks the cheap spirits in the hotel minibar and pours herself shots, one after another, until she drops off to sleep with a single thought swirling around her head. 

The universe isn’t fair - because first it gave her Hajime, then it took him away. 

It is noon when she wakes, sunlight streaming mercilessly into the room. She sits up with a groan, rubbing a hand across her face. For a second, she wonders where she is, the monochrome sheets so different from the cheerful patterns she uses in their room, before reality  slams into her like a comet to her chest. 

Right. That happened .  

She can scream and cry and try to scratch the face of fate but it won’t change matters. Hiding away from the world isn’t going to make the cruel joke that is her love life go away, so she grits her teeth and steels herself, washing her face and paying the bill before heading home (though if she’s honest with herself, she’s not sure if it’ll be  home for much longer). 

She prays to god or whatever deity there is out there (not the universe, it has a funny way of throwing  shit her way) that Iwaizumi wouldn’t be home, but whatever it is, it’s definitely not listening because Iwaizumi opens the front door while she’s still struggling with her keys. It takes just one look at him for the pain in her chest to make its presence felt again.  

‘How’s Oikawa’s knee?’ she casually inquires, edging around him to slip into the flat. Oikawa doesn’t seem to be around, so she lets herself relax just an inch. 

‘It’s fine’, he responds, his eyes never leaving her face. ‘Just needs some rest’. 

‘That’s good’, she says absently, heading straight for the kitchen, ignoring him as he follows her steps. ‘Have you eaten?’ she asks, pulling leftover rice and dashi stock out of the fridge. He nods dumbly as she heats them both up to assemble two bowls of Ochazuke . Her heart may be broken, but her stomach certainly isn’t, and she’s not about to let herself wither away. He looks at her dumbly as she slides his bowl at him, and neither of them says a word until she leans back in her chair, satisfied with her meal. 

‘Are we going to talk?’ he asks her confusedly.  

‘About last night? What is there left to talk about?’ she replies, keeping her composure firm. ‘The wedding’s off obviously, so we need to inform all our vendors and guests as soon as possible. I think I should be the one to move out of the flat – ‘

He cuts her off frantically – ‘What? Why would we call off our wedding? I still love you, and you still love me, don’t you?’

She gapes at him incredulously. ‘Hajime, you told me last night that you love Oikawa. How is our marriage going to work if you love someone else?’ 

‘But I love you’, he says, his voice cracking. ‘Isn’t that enough?’ 

No it isn’t, and she’s shaking her head because it isn’t enough, it’s never going to be enough, because he may love her but he’s in love with him – has been since they were little boys with stars in their eyes. And his shoulders shake and it’s his turn to cry because  he loves her, he really does, he knows greed is a sin but he wants both him and her, and he wishes that it could be enough. 

 ‘I’ve seen the way you look at him, and I’ve seen the way he looks at you’, she tells him, eyes dry, but there’s a tremble in her voice that she can’t hide - because she’s so stupid, she should have figured this out long before she dug out her heart and handed it to him - but then again maybe she didn’t because she was blinded by staring too long at the sun. 

‘You will grow to resent me if I keep him from you and besides, how could  I possibly compare?’  

Because Oikawa Tooru, blessed with innate brilliance and cursed with a penchant for self-immolation, burns brighter than a thousand stars. 

‘I’m sorry’, he tells her, rounding the table to drop to his knees before her, the look in his eyes so heartbreakingly sad that she has to choke back a sob. ‘You meant the world to me’, he whispers brokenly as he buries his face in her lap. 

‘I know’, she answers him – and gods, her heart is screaming and it hurts - but she loves him so much she knows it’s only right to let him go. ‘But the world will move on, and you need to chase the stars while you still have them in your sight’. 

At this, he lets out a quiet cry, and this time she gives in and joins him, her tears soaking his hair. He wraps his arms around her as she presses kisses into his skin and they stay that way for a while, their limbs entwined, because it finally dawns on both of them that this is it  - it truly is the end of them.

The sun may set and the moon may rise, but the stars - they burn bright in the sky. 

Her love for him should die (from earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust) – but it doesn’t.  

She packs her life into cardboard boxes and shifts into her sister’s flat. Iwaizumi doesn’t allow her to pay for the cancellation of their wedding, takes all responsibility for informing their guests that the wedding’s off - he says it’s his fault after all, and she doesn’t resist, knowing it’s his way of trying to make amends.   

His face crumples and he tries to refuse her when she returns his ring, but she insists - because it doesn’t feel right, she can’t seem to smile when the silver band catches the sun's light. He doesn’t tell her he keeps it in a box beside his bed, and opens it from time to time.

Oikawa manages to weasel her sister’s address out of Iwaizumi and appears on her doorstep the day before he’s due to return to Argentina with a bushel of white lilies in his arms. 

‘Wait!’ he cries, catching the door with his foot as she tries to slam it into his face, cursing the reflexes of a professional athlete. ‘I won’t take too much of your time’, he promises, and she folds her arms, glaring at him expectantly. 

‘I’m sorry. I’ve treated you and Hajime terribly, haven’t I’, he asks her shamefacedly. 

‘You have’, she tells him coldly, because she desperately wants to blame him for everything bad that's come her way but when he hangs his head, she can’t help but soften her tone. ‘But I understand, Oikawa. How could I blame you when I love the same man?’ 

‘I don’t deserve your kindness’, he responds quietly, after a pause. 

‘But you have it’, she tells him. ‘So live and be happy, for his and my sake’. 

When he leaves, she closes the door and sinks to the floor, burying her nose in his offering of lilies. Its scent is cloying sweet, but she can only taste the bitterness of ash in her mouth.  

A year later, and she’s back covering the Japanese men’s volleyball season when she runs into one Iwaizumi Hajime again. 

He is the first to speak, asking her a genial ‘how are you’, to which she replies ‘fine’, though she really means - ‘I may be wounded, but I am still standing on my feet’. But Iwaizumi understands -  he always does , and they stay silent for a while. 

She picks up the courage to ask after Oikawa, and she knows he’s trying his best not to light up as he tells her that though he’s back in Argentina, they’re pursuing a long distance relationship. In turn, she tells him about her new boyfriend, ruefully mentioning that though she tried to stay clear of volleyball boys, Akaashi Keiji not only used to play volleyball in high school, but is the best friend (and former setter) of Bokuto Koutaro, national team player and self-proclaimed ace. He laughs at that - but she does not mention it is a relationship born out of the heartbreak reflected in both of their eyes.

‘Are you alright?’ he asks her before they part. It’s ironic because these are the first words he’s ever said to her, but she swallows the memory and this time she responds truthfully.

‘It’s a work in progress and I’m getting there, one day at a time’.  

They exchange bittersweet smiles.

It’s enough for now.

[ushijimas-koibito]

request no.3

kuroo, daichi, and ushijima with a s/o who's super clingy and affectionate and basically screams pastel, and then one day they get invited to a really fancy ball or something and s/o's basically the embodiment of "boss b**ch by doja cat" ??? - @why-am-i-here-please-help-me

i was so excited to see this. this is fantastic.

i’ll do my best.

this was my first time taking on a request of this size. i'm sorry it has taken so long. i apologize for any and all tense continuity errors.

please enjoy.

warnings: femme reader/fluff/suggestive content/some cursing

daichi sawamura- summer

the warm midday sun shone on your face. you closed your eyes and leaned your head back and your hair cascaded over your exposed shoulders and down your back tickling your skin. a warm breeze enveloped your skin and you smiled to yourself, enjoying this last summer day. your phone buzzes in your pocket, be there soon, beautiful. practice ran late. your boyfriend, daichi sawamura, was usually pretty punctual but this was the last morning practice of the summer. you could just imagine hinata and kageyama begging for five, ten, fifteen more minutes. you were impressed with their devotion and the team’s stamina.

you sat crosslegged on the low stone wall. you leaned back to soak up the sun. on the wind you could smell the scent of street food wafting toward you. you and daichi decided it might be fun to go to the outdoor market and then have a picnic in the park. you tilted your head to each side stretching your neck and leaning your hands back on the wall. you were so happy to have a relaxing summer day before the chaos of the fall begins. “hello there, beautiful.” you hear daichi’s warm voice ring out as he approaches you, sugawara and asahi in tow. “hey handsome!” he jogs up to you and you lean forward to give him a kiss. he brushes your wind-tousled hair away from your face and his hand drops to your waist to pull you forward. you giggle as he smiles against your lips. “you guys are so cute.” you hear suga say and you pull away to smile at your friends. daichi sighs, hating that the kiss ended so quickly, and pulls back.

daichi offers a hand to help you from the wall. “aw, thanks, suga!” daichi continues to hold your hand, “are you guys coming along with us?” you look between suga and asahi as daichi drapes his arm over your shoulders and kisses your temple. “ah, not this time,” asahi says looking away with a faint blush, “wouldn’t wanna impose..” sugawara laughs, “besides we’re just here to grab some things for tonight.” you look at daichi and then back to sugawara, “tonight? what’s tonight?” sugawara narrows his eyes at daichi, “you didn’t tell her?” daichi sighs, “ukai rented this place out for us tonight for an end of summer party.” he looks down and then up at you, “would you be interested in going?” you wrap your arm around his waist and smile, “sure! sounds fun!” sugawara smiles at you both, “see. i told you she’d want to come.” daichi chuckles, “i’m sorry i didn’t ask you before, but there won’t be many other girls there and i didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable.” you gave him a squeeze, “i got you.. is kiyoko going?” daichi nodded, “i think so, yachi too.” you look to the other guys, “are you guys going?” asahi and suga both nod, “then it should be fun!” daichi beams and gives you another kiss on the head. sugawara gives asahi’s shirt a tug and starts to walk off, “well, you kids enjoy your date and we will see you tonight!” you and daichi wave as asahi and sugawara walk toward the market. “see ya tonight!” he calls after them.

you turn to face daichi and he smiles sheepishly, “alright, what’s the real reason you didn’t ask me?” daichi laughs, “you just can’t be fooled can you,” he looks down at his feet before taking a big breath and saying, “it’s a dance party.” you cross your arms, “ok. and..?” he leans against the wall and pulls you closer to him to stand between his legs, “… and do you know how jealous i would be if you were the only girl there to dance with the whole team?” you laugh and place a hand on his chest, “daichi, come on, you know you’re the only one i wanna dance with and not one of those boys would be interested in dancing with me anyway,” he rolls his eyes, “now you know that’s not true,” he takes your hand and spins you around, “just look at you!” he pulls you close by the loops of your jean shorts and kisses your lips. he curls his middle finger through the loops on your hips and squeezes your hips between his palms, digging his fingertips into you. “daichi..” you say softly and turn your head to look around, he drops his head and chuckles, “sorry,” he says turning to look in the opposite direction, “what can i say, angel,” he looks up at you, “you carry me away.” you kiss his his forehead and then pull him up from the stone wall he was leaning against. “lead the way, i’m going to text the girls and see what we’re wearing,” daichi grabs your other hand and leads you toward the market as you type to the group chat:

perfect. you think as you piece the outfit together in your mind. daichi looks back at you, “uh oh…” he gives your hand a little squeeze, “whenever you get that look, it usually means i’m in trouble.” he raises an eyebrow. “i don’t know what you mean,” you say innocently. he laughs heartily and nudges you with his shoulder, “riiiight.”

you two walked through the market and gathered up some fruit, veggies, street snacks, and pastries for a picnic. you walked up to a flower stall and sniffed some huge blossoms. “aren’t these pretty, daichi?” he looked you over and his eyes lingered on your face, “beautiful.” he said softly, watching you with admiration. “we’ll take a bouquet, please.” he said to the stall keeper and gestured toward the flowers you were smelling. “aw, daichi, you don’t have to..” he waved his hand, “it’s my pleasure.” the shopkeeper wrapped a bouquet of big orange and red blooms into some newspaper, arranging them with other flowers and greenery, and tied it with twine. daichi paid for them and then handed them to you, “beautiful flowers for my beautiful girl.” he always knew exactly what to do and say to make you smile. “thank you, daichi.” he intertwined his fingers with yours, “of course.”

you two walk together with your haul of treats to the park and spread out a blanket near a tree. you set up the meal and take turns trying each others food and feeding each other. by the end of the meal you end up sprawling out next to each other on the blanket picking out shapes in the clouds, “i swear, (y/n), it looks like an elephant,” daichi points at a big fluffy cloud over head, “ok.. more like an animal cracker version of an elephant but an elephant nonetheless.” you giggle and roll on to your side. you prop yourself up on your elbow and take one of the blooms from your bouquet that loosed itself to trace the curves of daichi’s face. he smiles and closes his eyes, tilting his face toward the sun and allowing his hand to absentmindedly mimic your patterns with his fingertips against your thigh.

you watched as the petals delicately brushed his face. his high cheekbones, the delicate slope of his nose, the short, straight lines of his jaw; the soft and slightly tanned skin, his full pink lips.. daichi was sort of beautiful. he wasn’t an imposing beauty like a statue or a demigod, but he was beautiful in a homey sort of way. daichi was the physical embodiment of a feeling. he was honey in your tea, being taken care of when you’re sick, a homemade meal, the feeling of falling into bed after a long day, walking into an air-conditioned room when it’s sweltering outside, drinking ice cold water after working out, hot water on cold skin. daichi was stable, nurturing, and… good. he was the closest thing to pure good you’d ever known in this world. you were lucky to know him, let alone have the pleasure of loving him.

he opened his eyes and looked at you for a long moment, “i can’t tell you how many times i wished this day would last forever,” he rolled on his side and propped himself up on his arm and scooted so that he was nose to nose with you, “but then i remember there are so many days ahead of us, new things, days like today, and better, or worse, but i get them all, and i get them all with you.” he kissed the tip of your nose and played with the frayed cuffs of your jean shorts, “well, i must be the luckiest guy in the world.” he leans over and playfully pushes you back so that he’s hovering over you. there could be a million people staring at you in that park, but you wouldn’t notice. the whole world that existed in that moment lived in the 5 centimeters between your lips.

after some playful kisses, you cleaned up your mess and started the trek home. the sun was hanging low in the sky and you could hear the cicadas sing. every day was a good day with daichi, but this day made you feel so soft and warm. you were reminded of the simple joy of being in love and you felt full and content. you found yourself getting more and more excited for the party. and a dance party no less. the more the sun sank heavy in the sky and the day faded into a hot summer night, the closer you were to being able to let loose and get a little wild with the man of your dreams.

you and daichi were seen as the responsible, mom and dad type couple in your friend group. the team would be more likely to ask you to help with homework or build a budget before asking you to party. it was probably better that the kids didn’t know what went on behind closed doors. they all look up to daichi and see him as the reserved and respectable face of kurasano, but you knew a different side to him; a side you were looking forward to partying with tonight. it was the last night of summer, it was a night the entire team agreed to just let loose and have fun.

you rounded the corner of your street and daichi walked you to your door. “so i’ll be back here in a little while to pick you up, okay?” you nodded and daichi leaned in for a kiss. you playfully pulled away and leaned against the wall with a come-hither grin. daichi bit his lip and placed a hand against the wall just beside your head. he put his other hand on the side of your face and pushed your face gently to the side to expose your neck. he hovered a moment, just over your skin and you could hear him laugh softly before planting the lightest teasing kisses up your neck as he curled his fingers into your hair at the nape of your neck. he slowly pulled back and nibbled at his bottom lip with narrowed eyes, “i look forward to seeing what you’ll be wearing tonight.” his dark eyes had a glint of mischief in them. “i look forward to dancing with you tonight.” you said as you ran your hands from his chest to his hips and pulled him forward against you, “i’m sure it will be a lot of fun,” he said with a strained air of composure. he pressed his lips against yours; gently at first and then firmly before pulling away. “better go get ready or we’ll never leave,” you both laugh and share a few more kisses, “alright, alright,” you say fiddling with your house key, “see you in a bit, handsome.” he smiles and waits at the gate for you to unlock your door, “lookin’ forward to it, beautiful.” you wave at each other and watch as he walks up the lane to his house.

you dash inside to start your ritual. there is so much you need to get done before you go! you pop the flowers in some water and run to your bedroom. you pull the cute two-piece from your closet and hang it up next to your mirror, shoesssss.., you dig around in your closet and find some cute, strappy heels. the two piece set is made of a lovely silk blend. its a soft material that fades from a peachy orange to a bright red like a tropical sunset. the back of the top piece criss-crosses across your back with gold chains that highlight your strong shoulders and waist. the skirt is made of a matching material that is very short with a split up the side held together with criss-crossed chains. you pull out your makeup and other self-care supplies.

in the group chat, kiyoko and yachi are also going through their pre-party routine; discussing the virtues of flats versus heels, matte versus gloss, and how the heck yachi is going to get tadashi’s attention! you slap your phone on the charger and turn on some music. you shower, shave, brush teeth, and put on a face mask. you try to relax as you rub illuminating moisturizer on your legs. after your face mask, you pop on your makeup- brows, perfect eyeliner, highlighter, red lips, coral blush, even a lash. you look at your hair and opt for your natural texture. you flip your hair over to shake some volume in and part it on the side. you slide on your heels and before heading out you snip one of the big blooms and tuck it behind your ear. you look in the mirror and smile, i hope daichi likes it. and right on cue you hear him knock on the door.

you open the door and he turns to see you just as you open the door and meet his eyes. his eyes illuminate and his lips widen into a bright smile, “hello gorgeous,” he says as he steps toward you to give you a careful kiss, mindful not to ruin your makeup, “you look amazing,” he says as he holds out your arms to get a better look at you. you blush as his eyes hungrily take you in. “holy shit, girl!” you hear tanaka’s loud voice from the gate, “no freakin way that’s (y/n)!!!” nishinoya exclaims. “you look gooooooooood, for real, for real! daichi-man you been holdin out on us, captain??!!” tanaka whistles. you giggle as you can see daichi’s blood pressure raise. “it’s me!” you say and then give a little twirl, “you guys aren’t the only ones to clean up nice,” you wink and look at daichi who seems to be forever in awe of you when you interact with the rest of the team. he offers you his arm, “ready, gorgeous?” you take his arm and you all head out.

you meet up with a few others that live in the neighborhood and you all laugh and goof off all the way to the venue. it’s one of those moments that feels more like a movie than real life. you are so happy and your heart is so full. for a moment you lose yourself to the energy of the night when daichi stops you. the others walk on and he wraps you in his arms, “you are truly the most beautiful person i’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing, and i mean that. inside and out.” he pulls away to look you over once more and there in the heat of the night, music blaring in the distance, in this quiet moment, you feel it must be true.

kuroo tetsurō - winter

“good morning, sleepyhead,” you heard your boyfriend’s raspy voice as you opened your eyes. you looked toward the window and saw the sky was still very dark. you groaned softly and pulled a pillow over your face. tetsurou laughed and rolled over onto his side, propping himself up and pulling the pillow away from your face. he slipped his long fingers under his shirt you were wearing and stroked your waist, “c’mon, precious, it won’t be any easier if you continue to lay here.” his head lulled to the side to make sure he was making eye contact with you. his hazel eyes bright and alert. you smiled up at him and wrapped your arm around his waist and grabbed the pillow he pulled off your face and sweetly, sleepily said, “no.” you smashed the pillow against his face and buried your face into the one below underneath you. “alright,” he said through his smug smile. he tossed the pillow you smashed in his face onto the floor and straddled your waist, “if we don’t get up, we’ll miss it.” you looked up at the ever agile tetsu as he leaned his hands on the headboard. your eyes trailed from his low hanging pj pants, up his abdomen, his chest, his sly smile, and finally his eyes. you smiled and pulled him down on top of you, “weighted blanket. can’t go. too comfy.” you felt him laugh against you as you wrapped your arms tighter around his neck, pulling his torso against yours. “baby,” he began seriously, “who knows when we’ll get this chance again.” you loosened your hands so you could look at his face. tetsu looked at you with eyes yearning and burning into your own, “fine,” you whispered with a pout. tetsu rolled back onto his knees and offered his arm to help you up. you wrap your arms around his arm and hang for a moment with a little whine. he laughs, “what a sleepy girl,” he purrs, “i promise it will be worth it. now let’s get dressed and go get coffee!” he stands up and pulls you up to your feet. “…coffee?” you say after a pause looking up at him with hopeful eyes, “yes,” he says while patting the top of your head, “your morning dose of trimethylxanthine, my pet.” you giggle mischievously and bound toward the closet. he shakes his head and watches you pounce around getting dressed.

this morning was special because it was a solar eclipse. tetsu had planned on going to watch it with you since he heard there would be one. he always tried to watch heavenly phenomenon and since you started dating, he always wanted to watch them with you. he would excitedly talk about how it was his “once in a lifetime moment” with his “once in a lifetime girl” and how he “may never get another chance.” he would talk excitedly about how each eclipse was an opportunity to feel the weight of being and to take a moment to appreciate the incredible mysteries of being suspended on a rock in a far corner of a vast universe and that our significance on a universal, global, even national scale was insignificant, but within the minutia, the significance of our being in the moment we become aware, was as close to infinity as we will ever get. tetsu liked to be reminded of his mortality and the balance of his own existence; physically and metaphysically. you were always so impressed by how much he knows and he continues to learn all the time. you are continually inspired by the depth of his gratitude; although it is buried under a surface level of nihilism.

“hey babe,” you called from the bathroom curling your hair, “what’s the weather going to be today?” tetsu rounded the corner into the bathroom while reading his phone, “looks like it might snow later, so, bundle up and don’t forget to pack a jacket.” he plants a kiss on your shoulder and studies you in the mirror, “i don’t want you to get sick.” he walked back into the bedroom and pulled out your bags. that’s right, you thought, today isn’t just a quick trip to watch the solar eclipse. after you both get coffee and watch the solar eclipse, you were headed into the city to stay for the weekend. kuroo’s friend, tsukki and his girlfriend, had invited you both to a winter soiree at the planetarium that night. it was supposed to be a celebration of the new planetarium building and it’s new design features and exhibits. you both were looking forward to this since they invited you.

you shook out your curls and made your way over to the closet. tetsurō was carefully folding his clothes in his suitcase and checking off the list on his phone; tetsurō is calculated and organized. he looks up from his list and asks, “what color is your dress for tonight? i want to make sure my suit matches.” you grab the garment bag from your closet. you have been keeping this dress a surprise since you ordered it and the suspense was killing him. you hadn’t given him any details, as to not ruin it, but he always tried to work around the surprise. he hadn’t been successful until now, “dark blue,” you say with a sigh and he smiled blithely, “good to know,” he nods and thumbs through his suits. he pulls two- a soft cornflower blue day suit and a dark sapphire blue evening suit the exact color of your dress, “which of these is closer?” he tries to muster an innocent smile, “don’t look at me like that, i’m just trying to make sure i compliment you.” his smirk says otherwise. you roll your eyes and say, “the dark blue,” he hangs the light blue suit up, “you finally got a hint.” he nods, “yes, but i won’t be satisfied until i can see you in it.” he zips the dark blue suit into a garment bag with his undershirt, belt, and a small bag with cuff links, watch, and tie clip. tetsurō secretly loves to get dressed up, especially if he can do it with you.

you packed your bits and bobs and started to get dressed for the day. you stood in your underclothes in front of your closet and shifted back and forth, holding up a few sweaters. you turned to see tetsurō who stopped midway putting on his sweater to admire you. you blushed softly, “what?” you asked and he chuckled, pulling his soft black sweater over his head, “nothing,” he walks over to you and looks in the full length mirror, “i just like observing you,” he kisses the top of your head, “the white sweater is my favorite of the two,” he walks nonchalantly toward the bathroom, continuing packing his list. you hold up the white sweater again and look in the mirror. you decide to go with it. you pull on the form fitting white sweater, some high-waisted tight black trousers, and some tall black riding boots. you slip in some dainty earrings and go to put on your necklace. it was a necklace tetsurō gave you for your birthday. it was a silver pendant with a diamond that looked like the north star. you remember him giving it to you and when you asked why the north star he said, “because when i am with you i never worry about feeling lost; you always lead me home.” he was always very thoughtful in his gifts and gestures. he never put unnecessary weight or emphasis on things. everything he does is intentional and purposeful; for someone who sometimes feels as though nothing matters in the vast expanse of time and space, he sure added a lot of sentiment and meaning to life. that’s one of the many things you love about him.

you fiddled with your necklace while being lost in thought when you feel his hands gently stroke your hair to the side and take the clasp from your fingers. he quickly and deftly latches the necklace and kisses the top of your head. tetsurō gives your shoulders a squeeze and walks back over to the suitcase to pack his toiletries. you spritz your perfume and also pack your toiletry bag, “almost ready, my love?” tetsurō calls from the bathroom. “yeah! just need to throw my toothbrush in my bag and we’re good.” you gather your last bits and slip on your long, oversized gray peacoat and grab your big fluffy scarf. “i can’t believe you still have that thing,” he gestures to the scarf. you look down at the wide and well-worn nekoma scarf. you had it made back in the day, when you both were in high school. it was a blanket scarf that was dark red and had tetsurō's name and jersey number on it, “well, it’s still my favorite.” this still made him smile; after all this time, you held onto it. every year he razzes you for keeping it and every year you tell him it’s still your favorite. he walked up to you and wrapped it around you and pulled you in for a kiss, “glad to know i’m still your favorite.” he kisses your nose and playfully wraps the scarf around your head. you paw him away and fix your scarf with a huff. he laughs and pats his pockets making sure he had everything.

you put your bags in the car and head out. it was still dark out and very cold. you make your way to a cafe and you are thankful for the blast of warm air as you walk in. the girls behind the counter gawk at tetsu who is walking behind you and rubbing the tops of your arms to warm you up. you step in line and you each study the menu before stepping up to the register, “cafe au lait for me and—,” he looks down at you prompting you to place your order, “a peppermint mocha, please,” you say. after paying up you stand by the pick up window and wait for your drinks. tetsurō drapes an arm over your shoulders while scrolling through his phone. “we should arrive at the hill in prime time to see the eclipse,” he was visibly buzzing with excitement. whenever he experienced any wave of positive emotion he reached for you. you think he did this in hopes to boost your mood through osmosis.

your drinks arrived and tetsurō gathered them for you. he made sure your lid was on tight and handed it to you, “careful it’s extra hot.” you took it in both of your hands. tetsurō grabbed some extra napkins and tucked them in his pockets and went through his ritual of patting his pockets making sure everything was in order. he turned to you and adjusted your scarf for you, “ready, precious?” you nodded sipping your very hot peppermint mocha. the girls still swooning nearly caused themselves a pulmonary embolism as he opened the door for you. to be fair, you guys are pretty cute..

with an extra spring in his step, tetsu led the way to the hill where you’d watch the solar eclipse. it was in a park near the water and was perfect for this occasion. he looked up at the sky and his hazel eyes seemed to threaten the clotted clouds in the sky. they kept their distance as you made the trek to the apex of the hill. you both manage to find an empty bench. the park seemed to be more full than tetsurō anticipated. this was bittersweet as he had hoped to have a solitary, intimate moment with you, however, he was very excited that others were interested in this event. you cozied into his side and sipped on your mocha. he draped an arm across the back of the bench and you enjoyed the sunrise. the solar eclipse would be happening just shortly after. “this is pretty special because a total solar eclipse only happens every couple years.” tetsurō swirled his cup of coffee, “the longest solar eclipse can occur for almost 8 minutes. i wonder what the universe will give us today.” he stared out at the horizon as you studied his face. his sharp, defined jaw; his upturned nose, his fierce eyes, the slight depression of his dimple likely formed from his near constant smirk. the wind ruffled his messy bedhead that always seemed to be perfect, no matter how he complained about and fought with it.

the sun made its way over the horizon and just as it ignited the sky it began to disappear before your very eyes. the sun became completely consumed, “‘totality occurs when the moon completely obscures sun so only the solar corona is showing,’” tetsurō said with a holy reverence, his eyes glued to the sky and taking everything in. this was his sacred place; his church. you felt honored that he would want to share this with you. you slipped your hand into his and intertwined your fingers. he tightened his hand around yours and he was on the edge of his seat, he was so happy- this made you happy. after a few minutes, you watched the sun reveal itself. tetsurō watched with the adoration of a groom unveiling his bride. he pulled his eyes away just as the sun came back to light and illuminated your face, “thank you so much for sharing this with me, precious,” he leaned his head against the top of yours and loosed your hand to wrap you in an embrace. you began to understand, over the years the more he shared with you the more you would come to know. moments like this were so special and you would treasure them always.

after watching the sunrise, you and tetsurō made your road trip to the city, stopped for some food, and checked into your hotel. you spend some time in the room compiling lists of landmarks and shops you want to go in while you are visiting. the list consists of bookshops, the natural history museum, and a bar that has a rotating rooftop area with a skylit cieling. it was nice to get away for a few days and have some time to go exploring together and see what you can find. you both lounge in bed and eat some ice lollies you picked up from the convenience store. it might be snowing outside but that was a delicious moment of sadism you both loved to indulge in. it was an act of rebellion, a decadent protest to not be anchored to the proprietary demands of the seasons; tetsurō reveled in the idea of contributing to chaos and throwing of the supposed algorithm of fate. you just wanted to eat ice lollies and listen to him talk about physics. it was a win-win.

time passed and it was approaching time for the event. you grabbed your makeup bag and your garment bag and headed to the bathroom, “no peeking.” you said with a sharp look toward tetsu; who threw up his hands with a laugh, “wouldn’t dream of it, precious.” you locked the door just in case. you unzipped the bag to reveal the dress. it was a floor length sapphire blue silk dress with two slits over each leg that started at the hip. it had an overlay of a darker blue with star and moon embellishments made of swarovski crystals. the dress was cut low into a deep v-neck that nearly showed your belly button. the sleeves were off the shoulder and long to point to a v with loops that went over your middle fingers on each hand like a renaissance painting. you also had a silver and sapphire body chain that highlighted your breast and torso to wear under the dress as well as matching garters that clipped with embellished silver moon hosiery clips. your shoes were a sapphire velvet with a heel. you wore your hair in a low bun with loose curls that framed your face. you tucked pins in your hair with matching crystal stars. your makeup was fairly simple with a lovely pale wine lip, big soft lashes, and lots of glittery shimmer over your shoulders, chest, and cheekbones. you finished getting ready and put your long coat on to cover your dress. you wanted your big reveal to be at the planetarium. you walked out in your coat and scarf with a mischievous grin. “oh, come on, that’s just ridiculous.” tetsurō grimaced. he looked sharp in his fitted dark blue suit. “this is all part of my grand plan, tetsu, trust me.” he rolled his eyes with a smirk, “if you insist.” he kissed your forehead and you left for the planetarium.

when you got there you were welcomed by tsukki and his girlfriend, “thanks for coming,” he said as he greeted you and tetsurō, “of course, thanks for inviting us.” you walk in and wait for the coat check. tsukki and tetsurō were catching up as you and tsukki’s girlfriend chatted and waited together. “look kuroo,” tsukki pointed into the next room, “is that..?” they waved at another acquaintance. “tetsurō, give me your coat and go say hello, we’ll catch up in a sec.” he handed you his coat with a kiss and slipped away to go say hello. perfect, you thought. this would give you an opportunity for a grand reveal. tsukki’s girlfriend turned in her coat and walked away to catch up with the boys; per your request. you slipped off your coat and readied yourself for his reaction. the main exhibit area had an interactive ceiling that reflected the night’s sky giving a detailed look at star and planetary placement. the room was illuminated in a wash of blue light and you entered the room.

at that moment, tetsurō turned to see you enter. his jaw fell slack and his eyes sparkled. you walked up to him, “like it?” he gave you a twirl, “very much,” he pulled you in close to him looking you over and taking in every detail, “worth the wait?” you asked in a whisper. he nodded, speechless as he ran his finger beneath the chain of your jewelry on your chest, “you are absolutely stunning.” tetsu takes your hand and gives you another spin. he drapes an arm delicately across the small of your back leading you around the exhibit.

he is oddly quiet and you catch him staring at you for a long moment, “what is it?” you tilt your head and wait as he searches for the words. you both walk to a quiet corner as the main exhibit begins its premier, illuminating the ceiling. “i finally understand the depth of what carl sagan was saying, ‘the nitrogen in our dna, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars.’ it’s about so much more than our actual biology. there is a radiance of epic proportions that emanates from your soul,” he looks down at you and strokes your cheek, “‘the cosmos is within us. we are made of star-stuff. we are a way for the universe to know itself,’ and i am so fortunate that out of all the possibilities, of all the probabilities in this life, i found you and i get to keep you. this small infinity between us; full of potential. i have found my once in a lifetime girl and the once in a lifetime opportunity to make you infinitely happy.” you squeezed his hand as you shared a soft, tender kiss. a once in a lifetime man with his once in a lifetime girl; a cosmic, supernatural phenomenon all your own in your little shared infinity between two finite beings.

nature is beautiful.

ushijima wakatoshi- fall

“what do you mean you’ve never seen ‘blair witch’?” you turn to look at your boyfriend, ushijima wakatoshi, who is staring back at you with wide eyes, “pumpkin, you know i haven’t seen most movies, let alone most horror movies.” your mouth pops open in awe, “but it’s a classic.” he shrugs and goes back to filling the bowls with candy for trick-or-treaters. wakatoshi didn’t really have the opportunity to participate in most holidays like the average person because of his insane schedule, however, this halloween was on a saturday and he was dating you, the scream queen herself. you sat cross-legged in front of your dvd collection, your horror collection spread out in front of you. your apartment was decorated magnificently with tons of old school and DIY decorations you convinced ushijima to do with you. your marshmallow candles flickered and filled the room with the scent of s’mores and you looked over the coffee table set up with small pumpkins and carving supplies. it was a perfect halloween- spooky clouds, chilly breeze, and a whole day free with wakatoshi in your matching pajamas.

he plopped down on the couch with one of the candy bowls. you popped in the dvd and scrambled up beside him with a chunky knit blanket. “i think you’re really going to like it, toshi. this will get us in the mood for tonight for sure!” wakatoshi kept an eye on the tv while cutting the tops off your pumpkins. he handed you a spoon and you both dug in to start getting the seeds and guts out. “how are you going to decorate yours, toshi?” he looked for a long moment studying the surface of his pumpkin. you imagined this is the exact face michelangelo made looking up at the ceiling of the sistine chapel. he looked sideways at you, “it’s a surprise.” you chuckled and shook your head. he held his pumpkin and turned it over in his hands. he leaned into the couch and stretched his long legs out in front of him crossing his feet at the ankles. you smiled seeing he was wearing the fall pun socks you got for him, “i’m so corny” with little ears of corn all over them. you never thought of wakatoshi to be the type to enjoy goofy, simple things but he ate it up. he loved your silly puns, your makeshift decorations, and your spirit. anything that made you smile, he was down to try.

you paused your pumpkin carving to sip on the hot apple cider you both made. it was the first time either of you had made cider and it was an event. the easy part was wandering around the market, picking out the apples and spices, and walking home through the leaf ladened park. making the cider was a lot more difficult than you thought and you sort of regretted promising jugs of apple cider to your friends. however, the vision of wakatoshi using the cider press would linger deliciously in your mind for days to come. as you sipped your cider, you recalled his serious brow furrowing as he strained against the old-school press, open flannel shirt, and windblown hair; absolutely worth every bit of frustration. the memory made the flavor more decadent. “how is it?” he asked. “delightful,” you said with a soft smile.

you picked up your pumpkin once more. you had chosen a classic smiling jack-o-lantern face for your pumpkin. it was befitting the rest of your home’s motif. you peeked over at his and smiled seeing the silhouette of his favorite childhood character with it’s round body and puffy gloves. he was concentrating while also trying to pay attention to the movie. he would occasionally blow his hair out of his eyes and wipe his brow with the back of his hand; it was like you were kids again.

your phone buzzed next to you, it was from tendou.

“you excited for tonight?” you smiled

“absolutely! what are you going as?”

“i think i’m going to be pennywise! what about you and ushi?”

you tapped your finger against your chin before sending your message.

“it’s a surprise ;)”

you could feel his frustration through the phone.

“who’s that?” wakatoshi said as he nodded his head towards your phone. “tendou. he wants to know what our costumes are tonight.” ushijima sat up straight and looked at you very seriously, “you didn’t tell him did you?!” he exclaimed. you laughed softly, “no, no, i told him it was a surprise.” he relaxed, “excellent; i want them all to be surprised.” he smirked as he continued to whittle his pumpkin.

you and wakatoshi had planned an epic couples costume that was sure to shock everyone. the two of you were so wholesome and reserved that you really wanted to blow everyone’s socks off. you looked over your shoulder and admired your carefully curated costumes. you smiled to yourself knowing that everyone was probably expecting you to show up as something cutesy and sweet, but these costumes… THESE costumes… surprising.

after watching a few films, finishing your pumpkins, and eating your weight in pizza and candy; it was time to get dressed. wakatoshi eyed the skimpy material skeptically, “c’mon, toshi, it will be amazing! trust me!” you scamper off with your costume and get ready. you do your hair and your makeup following a tutorial entitled “victoria’s secret bombshell glow”. you felt like a glowing bombshell for sure. you fixed your top hat to your big curls and wrestled with the glitter and eyelashes and squeezed into the tiny gold spandex shorts and finally turned around… you started at your feet and the glittering, sky high booties, up to your fishnets, tiny gold shorts, exposed abs, the gold and black lingerie push up bra, little red silk jacket with black lapels and gold ornate designs, big bouncy curls and top hat with gold band and veil… you felt hooooot.

wakatoshi knocked on the door, “i think i need a little help, (y/n).” he opened the door and was wrestling with the arm bands of the singlet for his strongman costume. his exposed chest, abs and shoulders were oiled with body shimmer oil. he looked like adonis. his eyes fell on you. he was speechless in a whole new way. “(y/n)-..” he trailed off, his fake vintage mustache falling into your hands. “like it?” you asked twirling around in a cloud of glitter and hairspray. “y-yes.. very much.” he said quietly. he was entranced. “let’s take a picture, toshi!” you pushed his mustache to his upper lip and he caught you by the arm. your breath caught in your throat as you looked into his eyes. “t-toshi?” you said softly, blushing. “trick or teat, (y/n).” he pressed his lips firmly into yours and pulled you close. as you pulled away, his serious face melted and he started to laugh- his mustache had stuck to your upper lip. he grabbed his phone and said, “smile, pumpkin. it’s going to be a wild night.” you posed seductively as ushijima flexed for the photo and he sent it to the team. your phone started to blow up and you both laughed, reading the reactions of your friends.

[lemontwst]

nessun dorma | 00

⟶ 𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑦:  〝 He laughed.   My darling,   you will never be unloved by me. You are too well tangled in my soul. 〞

❥ 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔: harem x m/f!reader - the reader is gender neutral in this prologue. 

❥ 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑟𝑒: cyoa + smut

"Are we there yet—?"

You huff, your footsteps obnoxiously heavy as you walk through the grass. Crickets and ladybugs move out of the way, annoyed by your ungraceful waddling. A moth rests on your companion's back and you lazily swat it away.

Mira gives you an exasperated look from over his shoulder, his emerald eyes flickering like there's fire inside them, "It hasn't even been ten steps since the last time you asked." he turns his head away, ignoring you when you stick your tongue out at him.

You can't help being tired after trudging behind him barefoot for what feels like hours with absolutely no indication as to where you're going. Your feet hurt, the damp summer heat of the evening is starting to let up but you're still hot and sweaty and, now that you think about it, maybe a little bit peckish too.

"Mira…" 

He turns his head immediately, worried about how feeble you sound, and regards you with a stare most people would find intimidating.

His eyes are so peculiar. Like green gems that are constantly glowing. His pupils are slitted like a snake's and you've seen them shrink with displeasure and enlarge with curiosity and affection.

… His pupils are always large when he looks at you, even now as he patiently waits for your next complaint.

"I'm tired and my feet are starting to hurt… can't you at least tell me where we're going?"

This makes him stop in his tracks so abruptly you bump against his back.

"Oof—"

Before you can bring your hands up to your tender nose, Mira is cradling your face and tilting it up, clawed hands resting on your skin gently, like you're made of glass.

His face is a dispassionate mask as he checks on you, but you know him well enough to recognize the taut apprehension on his features. His thumb brushes against your cheek and your heart gives a little flutter.

"Why didn't you say something sooner?" he sighs, sounding like a parent scolding his reckless child.

He slowly lets go of your face, his fingers lingering for as long as they can like they always do whenever he touches you, as if pulling away is physically painful to him. Then he kneels in front of you like he's about to propose and grabs one of your feet, forcing you to balance on one leg like a flamingo.

He brushes away the green stains of grass from your skin with his thumb, checking for scratches and blisters, looking visibly relieved when he doesn't find any.

"You humans are so fragile."

You scoff at that. Not everyone can be as perfectly impassible as him. Seriously, you've been walking under the sun all evening and Mira still manages to look like he's ready for the royal ball. His raven hair falls perfectly around his boyish features, and his face is the color of marble and completely void of any sign of exhaustion unlike your sweaty, flushed one. 

… Damn his superior fae genes.

"You didn't answer my question! Again!" You pout and grab one of his horns, giving his head a little shake.

Mira chuckles—a low sound in the back of his throat—and swats your hand away, but when he looks up at you, a snarky reply on the tip of his tongue, his eyes widen and he freezes in place, starstruck.

…

"... Don't do that." He slowly stands up, and since he pretty much towers over you, your hand is naturally forced to let go of him. You completely miss the slight shiver that runs through him when your palm brushes hard against the smooth, black bone of his horn.

"What?" You tilt your head and blink as he avoids your eyes. Did you hurt him when you grabbed him? That's new, he usually doesn't mind—

"That face." He mutters, stubbornly keeping his eyes on the underbrush ahead.

…

Oh.

A faint smirk makes your lips quiver, but you swiftly adjust your expression. You cup his face much like he did a few seconds before and force him to look at you, suppressing a laugh at how utterly startled he looks.

"You mean this face?" Your long lashes flutter against your cheeks and your lips curve into a small pout.

Mira blinks once, twice—his features are lax like he's in a daze and that somehow makes him look even more handsome than usual, brow crinkled and lips parted slightly. His slitted pupils trace a slow path from your eyes to your lips. You make a kissy face at him and you think you see him blush, but you can't tell for certain because he hastily pulls your hands off him and turns away.

"You… you're tired, aren't you? I can carry you the rest of the way."

You can't help but chuckle at how awkward he sounds and how stiff his shoulders look, but you decide to have mercy on him and obediently climb onto his back when he leans down to give you easier access. He often carries you like this when you get tired from playing, lifting you like you weigh nothing in a way that makes you swoon. He used to do it princess style, but being carried like that was pretty damn embarrassing so you compromised by going with piggybacks instead.

“My hero.” you smile and nuzzle your cheek against his soft hair—you don’t need to see his face to know that he looks pleased.

…

...

“...So where are we going?”

“Deerlet—” Mira groans, still using his affectionate nickname for you even though you're really testing his patience today; you just laugh and kick your legs in response, profoundly amused by his discomfort. The silvery bells of your delighted voice join the varied sounds of the fairy woods; a small woodpecker flees from tree to tree right above you, startled by your giggles and you glance at it with an apologetic smile on your face.

Deerlet—it's what he called you the first time you met him, 'because you looked like a frightened baby deer'.

You believe him, considering how terrified you were after getting lost in this same forest all those years ago. You must have gone pale as a ghost when you saw him come out from behind a tree, dressed in black from head to toe with horns that looked like a demon's. He often forgets to mention that he looked just as surprised as you—you can't imagine he expected to find a human child so deep in the fairy forest.

Unbeknownst to you, in your panicked stumbling you had almost reached the thick wall of thorny vines that separates your village's side of the forest from the Valley of Thorns, somehow ending up on the opposite side of where you had wanted to go. 

You’d completely filled out your miracle bingo card by not only finding another person in the woods, but a fae who knew how to get you back to your village and who offered to help you without asking for anything in return.

There was no particular reason why he helped you, Mira had once told you as you laid on the grass together and looked at the stars—he just found you pitiful and had an inkling you would have pestered and chased him around until he actually agreed to show you the way home. He was right, of course. Scary fae or not, you would have risked being hurt by a weird-looking stranger rather than being left all alone in the woods any day of the week.

And you were glad you met him, as he became your closest confidant and best friend after that day, always waiting for you to join him at the edge of the forest but never coming out of the treeline. He was very adamant about never visiting your village, no matter how much you begged him to come play at your house. It seemed like he didn't particularly care for humans, with you as the only exception. He didn't wish to meet your parents nor your other friends (he actually got visibly upset if you mentioned being friends with people other than him, so you quickly learned not to bring that up).

Even though Mira makes you feel loved and cared for like no one ever did before, he still hides so many things from you—you don't even know his surname, for one. You think he might come from the Valley of Thorns but he never gives you a straight answer when you ask him about it, and sometimes he just… disappears for weeks without telling you, and you never find out where he went.

You've learned to deal with all his oddities over the years, so you didn't question him today when he told you he wanted to give you an early birthday present before dragging you this deep into the woods.

He warned you he wouldn't be able to celebrate your sixteenth birthday with you tomorrow, so you agreed to spend time with him today to make up for it.

Shaking yourself out of some oddly nostalgic thoughts, you nuzzle the top of his head again and sigh, mentally kicking yourself for thinking about his secrets and making yourself sad. You can't help but smile in his hair when his hands grip the back of your thighs a little harder, a gesture most people would consider too intimate to be just friendly, almost as if he sensed your doubts and wanted to push them away.

Despite everything, you still trust Mira with every fiber of your being. That's why the macabre words he speaks next don't bother you as they would had he been anyone else.

"We're going to a place where no one will ever find you…" He trails off, his voice going back to an arrogant monotone. He might act all cool and aloof but you know he's thinking about making you happy when he picks up the pace, his long legs carrying him much faster now that he doesn't have to worry about you keeping up with him.

"... so that I can kill you without anyone knowing."

You don't care enough about your surroundings to notice how the forest goes eerily quiet. Quiet, like a watercolor painting with the colors suddenly fading to grey. The birds stop singing, the woodpecker whose chirps accompanied your banter stops talking, and the cicadas stop crying.

There's just your soft breathing lingering in the air and the light sound of Mira's footsteps against the grass.

"Yeah okay, Tsunotaro," You stifle a yawn, briefly wondering if you'll be able to take a power nap before you get to wherever Mira is taking you, "You could have told me that before we left. I didn't even get the chance to write my will."

Mira chuckles and suddenly the forest is alive again. The gentle summer wind rustles the leaves above you and caresses your face, flycatchers and wood doves sing happy little tunes and fat bumblebees buzz from flower to flower blissfully. Nature is joyous and alive all around you and it makes you even more eager to find out what Mira has in store for you.

—

You arrive at a clearing in the woods just as the twilight starts giving way to the night. The edge of the sky is a brilliant orange that fades to purple and then to blue, a few diamond-like dots already freckling the sky like someone is skillfully placing them with the tip of a brush.

But you've seen this masterpiece of a sky before, it's what's below that makes your jaw drop as Mira slowly comes to a halt.

A bed of black roses stretches as far as your eyes can see, gently swaying in the breeze, petals and leaves twinkling with sparks of fairy dust. The view looks almost unreal, like a picture from a fairytale book and you strain your eyes trying to take it all in. You think you've been to this place with Mira before, but the roses definitely weren't there last time.

"Mira—!" You sound almost scandalized as you climb down his back as fast as your limbs allow you. "Did you—did you plant all of these?!" You take a few steps towards the flowers, the grass satisfyingly wet under your feet, then turn back to face Mira with eyes the size of plates.

…

You think you're seeing things when Mira smiles. It's a goddamn genuine, happy smile. You can count the times you've seen him grin like this on the fingers of one hand. His smiles are usually just… arrogant quirks of the lips, but this? You could stare at his face forever.

"Well, I don't know if you can technically consider it planting if it's done with magic, but yes, I did." 

Magic. Of course, Mira is stupidly good at magic (and pretty much everything else, you hate to admit), but this—you struggle to make a single flower grow, let alone bloom. You can't imagine that this was an easy task for a fairy as young as him.

"How long did this take you…?"

He actually seems to get a bit shy at that.

"... A couple of weeks. I could have done it faster but finding the time to come here was not… easy."

Two weeks. Your heart soars in your chest. He doesn't always have the time to play with you—he confessed to you he rarely has time for himself at all—and yet… and yet he still did all of this for you, on top of coming to see you as often as he could because he knew you were waiting for him. Two weeks. 

"Oh, Mira…" You close the distance between the two of you and throw your arms around his neck, giggling at how quickly he hugs back, lifting you off the ground with his strong arms around your waist.

"Thank you, I love you!" You place a quick kiss on his cheek, not thinking much about what you're saying because you're so excited. It's not like you don't mean it, but you are a naturally affectionate and bright person, and the words ‘I love you’ fall easily out of your mouth when you're talking to your friends and family. They all accept your feelings graciously, except for Mira who always seems to falter whenever you say it to him.

You hear his breath hitch and suddenly his hold on you is so much tighter—so tight it almost hurts, but being in his arms always makes you feel oddly safe, even when he straight up squeezes you.

"I love you too, I want you to be happy for all eternity." He lowers you so your feet touch the ground but keeps you pressed against him, face buried in your neck. 

"That's impossible, silly… but I am always happy when I'm with you." You run your fingers through his hair, then follow the line of a horn with your fingertips, making him shiver against you. 

"...Then it doesn't have to be impossible." Mira raises his head and you stop breathing. The tips of your noses almost touch, his impossibly green eyes burning into yours with so much determination you almost take a step back, overwhelmed by how much emotion he's showing. 

"Uhm...what?—" He's so close. His eyes suddenly dart to your lips and you think your heart might just collapse. But then he sighs, his warm breath hitting your lips, and pulls away, looking behind you at the vast bed of night-colored flowers.

"Nevermind. Let's go watch the stars."

You think you got whiplash by how fast he changed the subject

"Wait, what? You want to lay down on a bed of roses? Mira, those usually have thorns."

Mira ignores you in favor of stepping into the flowers. He picks one up in a fluid motion that makes you jealous at how graceful he always is, then hands it to you. You get closer to inspect the flower, and your eyebrows raise in a surprised arch when you realize the stem is completely smooth apart from a few leaves.

"I grew them without thorns," Mira suddenly glares at the flower like it's slighted him, "I couldn't have you pricking yourself on my gift. I would have to burn this entire meadow to cinders if that happened."

… You barely keep yourself from rolling your eyes. He’s such a mother hen. He probably worries about your safety more than your own mother!

…

But you have to admit it's also a little bit endearing, in a… 'play croquet with a helmet on and pillows tied to your limbs' kind of overprotective way.

"Right, let's hope I don't give myself a papercut with the leaves then."

Mira looks absolutely horrified.

"Mira no—"

—

Stargazing with him is always so relaxing. His voice is smooth and pleasant and you could listen to him talk about the constellations forever, his knowledge of the night sky as extensive as his magical prowess.

When you turn your head and see him lying there on a bed of roses, eyes to the sky as he gives you a long tirade about some promiscuous god turning his lover into a bear, you find him more beautiful than you've ever seen him.

… He's so clearly not human that it makes your chest tighten with longing.

He looks about the same age as you, but while your body has changed and developed these past few years, Mira hasn't changed a smidge since your first meeting. You know he's much older than you… but he’s never told you his exact age, so you've always quietly wondered. 

He turns to you when he notices you're not listening, and when he catches your forlorn expression the words die in his throat.

He stares at you for a long time, then turns his body towards you and lifts himself up on his elbow, looking down at you with blazing emerald eyes as he rests his head on one hand.

He smells like cherries and roses, it's a familiar smell that makes your chest feel all warm and fuzzy.

"... Can I ask you something?"

Your brow crinkles at that. He's usually too arrogant to ever be afraid to say what he wants to say, but now he looks almost… anxious? Insecure? It's an expression you've never seen on him and you find it hard to describe.

"If you… ceased to be human..." It might be because it's nighttime, but his eyes seem to be glowing like campfires.

"If—hypothetically speaking—you could live for centuries like me… would you..." He pauses, then looks away with a frown. It takes him a few seconds to collect himself, but when he finally speaks again he sounds much softer, almost vulnerable.

"(y/n)..." The way he says your name makes you shiver. You hear it so rarely from his lips since he usually prefers to call you Deerlet that every time he says it you find yourself unable to speak.

He cups your cheek and admires your features, slowly brushing his thumb against your soft skin.

You're so soft compared to him. The emotion in his eyes is something akin to devotion, but more intense.

So beautiful, so fleeting.

"Would you stay with me forever...?" he mutters softly. His bright eyes roam over you, seeming to drink you in, as if to assure himself that you’re actually there with him.

 ...

 You frown at the strange question.

Why does he look so sad…? Did something happen while he was away? Worry pools in your ribcage, your hands compelled to reach out and touch him as if he cast a spell on you.

… But you don't, because he's still waiting for an answer.

 —

❥ Would you choose to live forever if it meant staying with Mira for the rest of your eternity?

⟶ Yes. Of course you would. Mira is the most precious existence in your life. You often fantasize about being young forever with him, to never grow old, to be held gently in his arms until the end of time. Knowing that this will never happen is enough to break your heart in two.

⟶ No. It’s not like you don’t love Mira, but living forever would be too much. How could you stand to watch as everyone you love slowly leaves you behind? How could you survive that kind of cold, lonely life? You can’t depend on just one person alone forever. It’s time to go home now, your parents are waiting for you.

      vote here        |      what is this?

❥ taglist: @mirrorsandpacts @stormweaver13​ @bobaryn @justsomepersons @mokkeguts @maiieus​ @trashmomarcya @dat-bi-bitch @lem-thebeast @mythrule @hfhgjgji @zzz-sleeplessy-soft-xxx @anicious @kae-draws-sometimes @cogitover @sammy6667 @shrimp-heads @twistedmintcandy @gyghii @akelois @maknae-lenna @chiefcashgianthero @carasketch​ @mayorkoopbob @linseyz @gardenondreams @andromeda-gay @equus-meretrix @the-king-of-blue @spacebabesupernova @kagicannotsee @doraconia @hello-starlight @yandere-romanticaa @skyboo @uwu-dreams @kay8675 @meltyans @drawbud @msyaoigodkanna @roseinbloom02 @hoodiedevil @ikemenisruiningme @miiluka @hello-selene94 @moondustinhislungs @nosochek-3o @epher-posts @monoshii-wasu @rosavine @bitch-let-me-die @raychel @pumpkiethepie @hypmicluvbot @theallpowerfulrosami @mmquinno @mayunnaise21 @ruvelise

[clickbait-official]

mbc

from @artwitch28's headcannons

masterlist

tw: implied/referenced abuse, depressive themes, and transphobia

---

Endeavor was a stuck up little bitch.

Not that a lot of people knew.

Oh well. He’ll get his revenge one day.

Touya sighs, setting his keys on the counter.

“Keigo! I’m home!”

The house was big- airy, if that was a word. Birdboy hated closed spaces. Touya couldn’t blame him, either; he couldn’t stand anything that looked like his “training” room.

There was a thunk upstairs as Keigo ran down to greet him.

“How was work? How was Dad?” He asks.

“Dad”, Atsuhiro Sako, was Touya’s adopted dad. They worked together under their agency, the League of Heroes. The League of Heroes were made up of heroes who were told they were villains, or considered outcasts.

“It was alright, Big sis Magne started asking people if they wanted interns.” Touya responds to his fiance.

Keigo comes up behind him, hugging him and wrapping his wings around Touya.

“Hmmm. Did you look for an intern, dove? You could get your brother~”

“I didn’t think about it, no. But there’s Toga already. Did you?”

Touya can feel Keigo smile into his shoulder.

“There’s one with a bird quirk.”

“Oh, I see.” Touya smirks.

His stomach rumbles as he does.

“Aww, does my little birdie need some food?” Keigo says, a twinkle in his eye. “I’ll go get you some.”

He grabs his hand and leads him to the kitchen.

They look through the fridge, then the freezer.

“Chinken nuggets?” Keigo asks, after a beat of silence.

“You did not just reference that, again.”

And Keigo laughs, loud and clear. Touya thinks it’s the prettiest thing he’s ever heard.

God, he’s in deep, isn’t he?

They sit together at the counter while they wait for the food to cook. They don’t talk for a bit, just enjoying each other’s company.

“Speaking of Shoto, how’s the family? Rumi’s been talking ‘bout Fuyumi a lot.” Keigo says, taking the pan out of the oven.

“Oh my goodness- remember that crusty kid I was talking to you about? He’s dating Natsuo.” Touya deadpans, and Keigo bursts into giggles.

“God, he could do so much better! And he chose the crustiest kid on this side of Japan!” He rants, Keigo staring from across the table.

“Hana’ll kill you for that.”

Touya sighs again, knowing that he was right. “Yeah, I know. I still don’t know why Natsuo chose her crusty brother, but he’s happy. And it gets him out of the house, too.”

Keigo nods. “Away from Endeavor.”

“Away from Endeavor.”

They sit for a while in silence at that. Touya knows Keigo used to idolize Endeavor, and he knows why.

God, out of all people, couldn’t Keigo have a good childhood?

At least he’s not hurting now.

The sun has fallen, and they’re laying on their bed.

The moonlight filters through the curtains. Keigo’s been asleep for a while now.

The slightest breeze drifts into the room.

If we lived in a harsher world, we’d be so much more cruel.

Oh, what a beautiful night to be alive with you.

---

Touya brings Keigo into the agency. He’d been curious about how it worked- the League was unprecedented.

Touya hoped he’d want to join too. He wouldn’t mind his soon-to-be husband patrolling with him.

Hero work is a dangerous game to play, after all.

The League of Heroes’s building is not very intimidating. It’s survived thunderstorms, 52 mental breakdowns (not by the same person), and now the prank the entire League is in on.

It’s time for the hero charts.

Showtime.

It had taken so much bribing, from the poor intern that worked for one of the higher ups, to one of the higher ups themselves.

Touya could only hope it was worth it.

Oh, it was worth it.

On live television, in front of nearly the entire world, Enji Todoroki, known as Endeavor, had gotten massively pranked.

First, it was the glitter. Then, the water balloons and the rainbow slime. After that, it was the chicken and the three fire extinguishers.

And of course, copious amounts of cheese.

And it was all filmed. It was all broadcasted to a live audience.

Oh- and everyone knew who did it.

But there was no evidence.

God, Touya loved trashing Endeavwhore (and that’s an insult to sex workers).

It was the night after when Twice suggested something Touya had never thought of before.

The night was young, fireflies just beginning to come out. They were on the balcony, drinking and catching up like family would.

“Hey,” He said, “Why don’t you sue him? Get your bro outta that place and over here.”

Twice was a genius.

Twice was a goddamn genius.

Headlines were all over the place. “Endeavor gets sued?” “Enji Todoroki- an abusive piece of shit?” “Endeavor loses custody!”

God, the journalists were having a fucking field day with this. Touya can’t blame them, though.

The day was beautiful. Birds were singing, flowers were blooming, and little kids were running around outside. Keigo was sitting next to him, listening to his music. Touya finished up some paperwork to finally, finally get his siblings out from under Endeavor.

Thankfully, there was enough evidence to prove he was at least neglectful. People could finally see just how much of an asshole he was, and how high his civilian casualty and endangerment rates are.

There was one teeny, tiny, thing.

The Commission.

The only reason Endeavor was still in the top ten is because of that fucking Commission.

God, he hated the Commission. The things they did to Keigo, the scars that still remain on his psyche.

Fuck the Commission.

It just- It made him so angry. The way Toga and Spinner were treated, how Twice wasn’t able to get help until he became a hero- God, he hated it.

And he didn’t even know how bad it was! He was sheltered from Quirkist attitudes. Well, as sheltered as you can be, living with Endeavor as a dad.

He only knew a little bit of how much they had suffered under this system. He knew there was something more to how Twice always stayed in his hero costume, or how Magne avoided that one part of town. How Toga stared at that one schoolyard for a little too long before walking away.

And he hated it. So, so much.

Fuck the Commission.

---

It’s Touya’s first free day. The hecticness of moving all of his sibling’s stuff into their house was crazy. Who knew that keeping a house was so hard? Not him, that’s who.

So, like any rational person, he goes out to catch up with a close friend.

He had met her during his time at U.A. Her name was Hana Shimura. They bonded through their shitty parents. She was the older sister of the crusty fuck, Tenko.

Why did Natsuo decide to date him? He'll never know.

Somehow or another, the conversation went from how their days went to when Tenko got his quirk.

“Yeah, he decayed the dog! Thankfully he froze up after, so I got Mom. If he didn’t freeze up, I’d be dead.”

The way she had said it- so casually...She probably was terrified at the time.

“There was a UA student that helped him, too. Oboro? I think that was his name...Anyway, Oboro really helped him! He’s kinda a father to him, if I’m being honest.” She went on, telling Touya how proud of Tenko she was.

How he had become a search and rescue hero, which he already knew, and using his quirk he had helped so many people! Because he can decay the debris trapping civilians and rescue them!

They walk down the street, still talking about their siblings and generally how life was going.

They were gonna meet up with Twice. There was a new restaurant that he noticed during his patrols.

Touya heard it was pretty good from Fuyumi and Rumi.

It looked pretty nice, too. He’d walked by it a few times.

“So how is Twice, anyway? I don’t hear much from him these days.” Hana says, pushing open the door to the restaurant.

“Guess you’ll find out, huh?”

Twice is sitting at an empty table in a corner. He was smart enough to change out of his hero costume, just like Touya and Hana.

He lifts his head as they get closer to the table.

“Hey guys! How’ve you been!” He greets them as they sit down.

“Good, good. We were talking about my brother, Tenko.” Hana says. Touya nods in agreement.

“And also how he got to be a hero, too.”

“Did I ever tell ya how I got to be a hero?” Twice asks them, barely containing a smile.

He never told them, well, not Touya.

Turns out, when he was having trouble with his Quirk, one of his doubles went and got a hero license. At the time he was barely of the streets, so he became a hero, joining up with Mr. Compress and Magne to create the League of Heroes.

Because why not? It kept him off the streets and he could help people like him.

A win-win for Twice.

Touya hated how his weird uncle was treated before he became a hero.

Because he was a person, like anyone else. Just a person.

So why was he treated so differently? Why didn’t people help him when he needed it?

God, Touya was so tired.

---

It’s late one night. Touya is alone with his adopted father.

“Dad, why’d you decide to be a hero?” He asks out of the blue.

Atsuhiro’s eyes mist over, and Touya worries for him. Touya’s told him all about the horrific shit he’s gone through, and he can’t help but wonder if he had gone through something horrible too.

Atsuhiro takes out a silver locket, and gently pries it open. He points at the picture inside.

“Look! It’s them…My perfect little family... That’s them! There’s my little girl, and the most beautiful person to ever exist. There they are…”

It’s silent for a moment, the only thing one could hear were the cicadas far away from here.

Touya opens his mouth, “What...What happened to them?”

“A hero. He didn’t care for protocol. He killed- He killed them! And no one believed me…” Atsuhiro trails off, looking down at the floor.

Touya can’t help but feel sorrow, too. He could’ve had a mom, another sister...

He really needs to stop adopting people.

He can’t imagine the pain Mr. Compress must’ve been in. To lose a lover, a child? Oh, it must hurt- so, so much. To lose what was essentially a part of you?

Oh, it hurts to even imagine.

“...They’re really pretty, Dad.”

“They...were both so beautiful in this picture. Toga reminds me of her, y’know? They are both so pretty, so grown-up, and have that same sense of humor…”

Touya’s not sure to who he’s referring to, but nods anyway.

Who’s he to question grieving old men?

“And the days fly by so fast now, I can’t help but feel as though I’m supposed to be insulted by it. But I can’t bring myself to care anymore…It hurts, Touya, it hurts. Sometimes...I can hardly bring myself out of bed...I feel like a ghost…”

It’s silent for a moment, before Touya speaks.

“Dad, I think you need to get help. This isn’t normal. And…I think they’d want you to be happy too, Dad. Don’t you deserve to be happy, too?”

“...I don’t know.”

“You don’t...know?”

“I don’t think I am. But...I want you to be happy. And Tenko, and Hana, and Twice, and Magne...But it’s so tiring, being happy. And I don’t know what to do!”

His sobs seem to echo through the building.

“Come on, Dad. Let’s get you help. You can get some rest.”

He leads Sako back to his house, Atsuhiro being half-asleep by the time they get home.

Mr. Compress takes the spare bedroom, and falls asleep as soon as he hits the pillow. Keigo notices Touya, and walks over to him.

“Heya dove~ How was your day?”

“Worrying. Dad...Dad needs some help. He’s got some shit going on...He’s so tired, Kei. We need to get him therapy or something.”

“Oh, baby…” Keigo whispers, but Touya is too tired to hear.

He falls asleep in his fiance’s arms, safe and sound.

---

The house is abuzz with activity when Touya wakes up. Keigo’s laughter echoes around the place, filling the air with a sense of home.

What a beautiful way to wake up.

Touya gets dressed and walks downstairs. Keigo’s in the kitchen, talking amicably with his sister, Fuyumi. Dad was smiling fondly at the sight, picking at his food. Natsuo was talking on the phone with someone, blushing a little.

Keigo turns towards him, and oh, he was so handsome.

“Good morning, dovely~”

Unbelievable. It was too early for puns.

“Ugh, no. Don’t ever make puns this early. Dad, you doing okay?”

Atsuhiro looks over at him, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

“I’m doing just fine, sonny boy~”

“God, it’s too early for this shit. Keigo, get me some coffee, will you?”

“Language!” Fuyumi scolds.

Eventually the coffee is made, and tables cleaned. Breakfast is done.

Keigo helps set up an appointment with Fuyumi. She’s a part time therapist, part time substitute teacher.

Touya takes a deep breath. One day, Dad will be okay. He’ll be alright.

Time for work.

It’s a beautiful, sunny day when Touya goes on patrol again. This time with Magne and the new intern, Toga.

He already knew somewhat what the girls had gone through.

“Good morning, Magne, Toga.” He greeted them.

“Good morning!” Toga says, and then they go off.

Touya’s stuck in his thoughts as they walk to a coffee house while on break. He listens in as he reaches for the door.

“Yeah, my parents threw me out cause they didn’t think I was a girl.”

“My parents threw me out, too! I had to run away, they didn’t like my quirk very much...I got lucky, and Mom became my mom! That’s how I became a hero! How did you, big sis Magne?”

“Mr. Compress saved me from one of those fucking creeps. He let me stay with him for a while, and helped me get back on my feet. I decided to be a hero then, to help people like me.”

They sit down at one of the tables, still talking about their lives. Touya takes a bite of his muffin.

Ah, life was alright, if just for a little while.

--- requests & asks are open! (request em here) ---

@kirililbb

[mooshys]

tokyo day off

genre | gen, humor

characters | Itadori Yuuji, Fushiguro Megumi, Kugisaki Nobara, Zenin Maki, Inumaki Toge, Panda, Gojo Satoru, Character Cameo, Reader

summary | A summer outing in the city takes a wrong turn.

word count | 4.0k

author’s note | I don’t know what possessed me to write this. I really don’t. But anyway, this came to me like a fever dream and I feel like we need some comfort after everything Gege has been putting us through with the current arc. Here’s to enjoying a day with your favorite characters in the city!

The day started like any other at Jujutsu High.

Classes began in the morning, lunch, some training, and afterwards time to relax was granted. Summer afternoons in Tokyo were hot, but the weather today wasn’t all too dreadful. The scatter of white clouds offered shade from the harsh rays of the sun and the breeze from the mountains tickled your skin, coaxing you out of your room.

With nothing to do, you and the rest of the student body congregated together in the usual spot near the dorms. At the base of a tree next to the training grounds, you sat behind Nobara, playing with her hair to make a neat braid as she scrolled through her phone. On either side of you, Megumi and Maki had their backs against the trunk, both flipping through a book and scanning the words at their own pace. The others were lying right on the grass in the shade, enjoying the nap inducing weather. Panda acted as a pillow for Yuuji and Inumaki as both boys were drawn to the plush of his fur.

The moment was serene. Calm. Peaceful.

Too peaceful.

It almost felt wrong to be doing nothing.

For a while, there was silence between the group with only the sounds of cicadas chirping in the trees and the caws of a crow to be heard. Nobara crossed her arms in front of her chest and let out an agitated sigh.

“I’m so bored!” Nobara groaned aloud. “How’re we in Tokyo and we’re doing absolutely nothing?”

“Hey, sometimes doing nothing isn’t all too bad,” you said as your fingers combed through her hair to finish the braid you were making. “I mean, I’m pretty sure the quote ‘May you live in interesting times’ is a curse.”

“It is,” Megumi agreed. His eyes were still on his book, but he was focused on the conversation. “It’s better that nothing’s happening anyway.”

Nobara stuck her tongue out at Megumi. “Booooooring.”

“If you’re so bored then just leave,” he snapped. 

Nobara was about to bite back, but you stopped her from arguing as you tied her hair, finishing her braid. More interested in her new style than Megumi, Nobara grabbed the end of the tail and fished her phone out to take a picture. You laughed at how easy it was to appease her while Megumi merely shook his head at her attention span.

The sudden commotion between you three caught Maki’s attention and she set her book aside. 

“Oi, we know you’re bored too, Fushiguro,” Maki said, a teasing edge to her voice. The corners of Megumi’s lips quirked downward. He shut his book and looked up to pay attention to what his senior had to say. “That’s why you aren’t in your room right now and you’re sitting with us out here. Just admit it.”

“It was getting stuffy at the dorms,” was his quick reply.

At this, you and the others raised an eyebrow at him. Even Inumaki peeled himself off the comfort of Panda’s fur to get a good look. He said it too fast, like he had it rehearsed in the back of his mind if anyone asked.

“Lies,” Maki leaned in closer and inspected his face for any tells. She cackled when he broke eye contact and then turned to the rest of the group. “You know what? We should do something together instead of spending the afternoon here.”

Inumaki raised a hand in the air. “Tuna mayo.”

“Exactly,” Maki agreed, nodding her head. She stood up on her feet and pointed a finger at Megumi. “I think the last time we spent the day together as a group was—”

“Never!” Panda finished, excited as to where this conversation was leading.

Maki hit her fist into the palm of her other hand and smirked. The other upperclassmen got up to their feet and stretched their bodies to get ready for an outing. Nobara, the catalyst of all this, held a fist up into the air as she beamed, victory written all over her face.

“Tokyo day trip!” she cheered. Yuuji joined her side and started to mimic the comical poses she was making. “And here I thought we’d never get the chance to explore the city!”

Maki chuckled and made her way towards you, offering a hand to help you up. You took it without hesitation. An outing together would be a nice change in pace. After all, you could barely remember the last time you hung out with everyone. 

“Then,” she hooked her arm around your neck and snapped her fingers at Megumi, “let’s get ready to enjoy Tokyo!”

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───

After getting changed out of the Jujutsu High uniforms and into more fashionable summer attire, you and the rest of the gang made it to the heart of Tokyo on a short bus ride away from the suburbs. The city was packed. It seemed as if everyone was out and about today, the streets busy with locals and tourists alike.

The impromptu day trip started off on a high note. With summer came the sales, and Nobara was keen on hitting every shop to see what they had to offer. She dragged you and Maki with her to multiple boutiques to try on matching outfits and find certain pieces for her wardrobe. She wasn’t shy at all when it came to shopping. 

Meanwhile, as you and the girls shopped for clothes, the guys stuck nearby, either buying food from street stands or going into a different store to look around as they waited. They had significantly less bags on hand, but kept themselves busy with their snacks and drinks.

A bit tired from shopping nonstop, you decided to leave the boutique and join the guys outside after browsing the racks. Nobara was already paying and Maki was right behind her, so you made a quiet getaway.

When you left, you found Yuuji outside, holding onto a crepe decked out with numerous sliced fruits and a nice mountain of whipped cream. Panda, Megumi, and Inumaki were nowhere in sight.

“Itadori, where are the rest of the guys?” you asked, sitting down next to him on the bench. 

“Went to grab some drinks over there,” he pointed at the tea shop a couple stores down. “Fushiguro said it was getting too hot and he needed something to cool himself down.”

At his explanation, you nodded. Even though today was a lot cooler than others, the mix of asphalt and crowds caused the temperature to rise. A short  break was definitely needed. 

Conversation with Yuuji continue with him blabbering excitedly about dinner with the group. As he spoke, you eyed the crepe in his hands. It was meticulously decorated with glazed fruits, a mountain of cream, and cookie sticks jutting out at all angles, looking almost too pretty to eat. 

“Do you have a sweet tooth?” you asked, interrupting him. He didn’t seem to mind. 

“Kinda!” Yuuji scratched the back of his head with his freehand and grinned sheepishly.  “To be honest, the main reason why I got this was because the guy working the stand was so awesome.” He did a few action poses and chopped a hand into the air. “He was cutting and flipping the fruits into the cone like a ninja!”

Noticing your gaze focused on his crepe, he grabbed a small biscuit from the top and offered it to you. Surprised, you took it and thanked him as you bit into it. 

“Do you like sweets?” he asked this time, grabbing a biscuit for himself and chomping on it. “We can share this if you want!”

Before you got the chance to answer, Nobara and Maki promptly left the boutique and joined you two. Nobara let out a sigh of exhaustion as she fanned her face with her hand and plopped down beside you. In contrast, Maki scanned the area for the others.

“Itadori, the others—”

A cup of milk tea was held in front of Maki’s face, interrupting her question.

“Here,” Megumi said, holding up a drink carrier with several other cups. Inumaki stood beside him holding onto an extra drink of his own. He handed it off to you and you graciously took it. “We got drinks for everyone.”

“Wow, look at you guys!” Nobara applauded them. “Keep this up and you’ll be sure to find a date soon!”

Megumi momentarily scowled while Inumaki held up a peace sign. You took a sip from your drink and instantly found yourself relaxing into the seat. This moment of rest was definitely needed after walking around nonstop. Nobara and Yuuji seemed to think the same, a blissful expression painted on their faces as they enjoyed their treats.

“Where’s Panda?” Maki asked as she took a sip of her drink. Megumi’s face twisted in confusion.

“He’s right”—he turned around and was met with an empty space—“Panda?”

“Salmon!” Inumaki exclaimed, pointing further down the sidewalk.

In the direction Inumaki pointed towards, a giant crowd of tourists and locals alike were surrounding Panda. Hoards of people were trying to get a picture with him, mistaking him for a random street mascot. Cameras were shoved in his face and children cried to pet his fur which left him in a state of distress.

“Oi, Panda!” Maki yelled out. “Let’s go!”

He didn’t seem to hear her as he was more focused on the many phones being shoved in his face. Maki sucked on her teeth and set her bags down. She beckoned Inumaki to follow her.

“You four wait here. We’ll get Panda out.” She gave one last glance over her shoulder. “It won’t take too long!”

With that, she and Inumaki dove into the crowd to try and diffuse the situation. The two were pushed aside like rag dolls as they tried to get closer into the circle and shouts of “Wait your turn!” could be heard even from where you were standing. It looked like they were having a difficult time as the crowd only seemed to attract more people.

“Should we help?” you asked while surveying the entire scene. Panda was practically being mobbed at this point. “I think it might take some time for them to get him out.”

Megumi stared at the madness and took a short sip of his drink. “No, we shouldn’t.”

“Might as well sit down and relax until things get settled!” Nobara exclaimed. She let out a sigh of relief and stretched her arms to the sky. “There’s still tons we gotta see before it gets dark and I really—”

Nobara never got to finish what she was saying as Yuuji shushed her. She was about to curse him into the next decade, but Yuuji held a finger to his lips and then pointed at the other side of the street.

All eyes followed in the direction he was pointing towards.

There, standing on the opposite sidewalk, was Gojo. He was donned in casual attire, rocking a pair of jeans, a crisp white t-shirt, and dark sunnies to replace the Jujutsu Tech uniform he typically wore. His phone was pressed to his ear, completely oblivious to you all staring at him as he was more focused on whoever he was talking to.

“It’s Gojo…” Yuuji whispered.

Nobara jumped up from her seat and positioned herself right next to Yuuji. She held a hand above her eyes to block out the sun as she stared at him.

“He looks so out of place,” she said. “Something about him…”

“It’s the hair, right?” Yuuji commented.

“No, not the hair.”

“His clothes?”

“He just sticks out like a sore thumb,” Nobara said. “I don’t even know.”

“I think I get it. It’s like seeing a zoo animal out of its cage,” Yuuji added. He bit into his crepe and swallowed it in one bite. 

Megumi whipped his gaze away from his phone as soon as he heard Yuuji. “Excuse me?”

“You know, like seeing a giraffe walking in the city,” Yuuji elaborated, waving a hand in the air as he explained. “It’s hard to look away!”

Megumi cringed as he imagined a giraffe with a striking resemblance to Gojo. “Gross,” was all he could reply back.

“Shouldn’t we just leave him alone?” you asked, nervously shifting on your feet. Even though you guys were a comfortable distance away from Gojo, it still felt weird to spy on him. “I mean, it’s not like he’s even doing anything interesting…”

“It’s fine!” Nobara waved a hand at you as she kept her eyes trained on him. “He’ll never know!”

You were about to pull them away, but Megumi grabbed your wrist to stop you. He shook his head. 

“Stop trying to rationalize with them,” Megumi sighed out. “All your words will go in through one ear and out the other.”

“What’d you say, Fushiguro?” Nobara asked. She didn’t even look at him when talking. 

“See.”

“Something about this feels wrong,” you mumbled. “And what if he catches us—”

“He’s got a bouquet!” Nobara pointed out, interrupting you. “Looks pretty expensive too!”

At the mention of flowers, you and Megumi slowly inched towards Nobara and Yuuji to get a glance. Curiosity got the better of you two. True to her words, Gojo was holding a nice arrangement in his hands.

“There’s no way anyone sane would date him,” Megumi said, squinting his eyes to see if it was a hallucination. It wasn’t.

“It’s not like he’s bad looking,” you said.

“Yeah, but he’s insufferable.”

He was right about that. Still, you liked to look for the best in people. “True, but maybe there’s someone out there in the world who can look past that.”

Megumi shivered at your words. Poor soul, he thought. 

“I wanna see who that person is,” Nobara said and looked up at you. “Aren’t you interested in his date?”

“...No,” you lied through your teeth.

“Aw, c’mon! Just one look!” Yuuji wiggled his fingers in front of your face as he spoke, his words turning more animated. “What if he’s into cougars? Like a sugar mama.”

“Gojo does not need…” Megumi paused and let out an exasperated sigh. “A sugar mama.”

“You never know, Fushiguro! He might be into that kinda thing!”

“Do you even know what a sugar mama is?”

“I sure do!” Yuuji snapped his fingers at Megumi. “My gramps used to—”

“He’s moving!” Nobara shut the two up and grabbed onto your sleeve. “Let’s go!”

“Kugisaki!” you yelled out at being dragged against your will. Instead of letting go, she locked arms with you.

“You can’t expect me to be stuck with those two dummies for this,” she whispered to you. “Besides, I just wanna see who his date is, it probably won’t take too long. We’ll find out, come back, and after that we’ll go shopping for matching tracksuits!”

At her words, you peered over your shoulder. Megumi and Yuuji were following closely behind you two, still talking about Gojo and his supposed sugar mama preference. Yuuji clapped his hands as he laughed while Megumi spoke in a calm manner; even though he objected earlier to it, Megumi didn’t look like he minded the detour all too much.

“Fine… but we’re getting matching tracksuits right afterwards!”

Nobara grinned and then playfully nudged you with her elbow. You did the same back with a bounce in your steps.

Operation Follow Gojo And Find Out If He’s Really Into Sugar Mamas was a go.

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───

Hours passed and you four were still following Gojo through the city.

What seemed to be mischievous fun slowly morphed into a hellish nightmare. Your feet were throbbing in pain and the summer heat heavily weighed down on you, causing a light layer of sweat to coat your body. After an hour of tailing him, seeing Gojo’s date became a matter of pride. If you all threw in the towel now then it would have meant a loss of dignity from wasting the day following him.

“How long has it been?” you muttered, trying your best to not groan in exhaustion.

No one answered, too embarrassed to even say the number aloud.

The instigators of the group, Nobara and Yuuji, were the most heartbroken about this lost time. They walked through the city like zombies, their spirits crushed. While Yuuji was crestfallen, Nobara had a dark aura surrounding her body. You and Megumi maintained a safe distance from her.

The thing about Tokyo was that it was a large city. A metropolis with twists and turns and buildings stacked up right next to each other like rows of dominos; it had attractions built up into the sky and malls dug underground. You could walk around Tokyo for an entire day and still not cover a quarter of it. 

And yet, you were sure you explored the city twice over when tailing Gojo

He used every single back alleyway, rounding corner after corner, almost like he was walking around in circles. He would go into random stores and shop around for a bit only to walk out empty handed. Nothing he did in those few hours of surveillance made sense.

With the sun starting to set, all your motivation sank along with the light. Following Gojo really was the biggest waste of time you had ever indulged in. You checked your phone and saw Maki’s text about going back to the dorms with Inumaki and Panda. A sigh escaped your lips.

“Maybe we should give up,” you said. “Maki and the others already went back to Jujutsu Tech.”

Megumi, the only other one with a rational head on his shoulders, agreed with you. He stood up and rubbed the back of his neck to alleviate the built up tension. “If we leave now we can grab dinner here and then make it back on the last bus.”

Nobara and Yuuji seemed to be fighting an internal battle within themselves. Dinner in Tokyo would be a hell of a lot better than the food at Jujutsu Tech… but at the same time, what if Gojo met up with his date right as you all left? Both tightened their fists at the prospect.

Then a miracle happened. 

(Or so you thought.)

Yuuji was the first to notice. From the corner of his eye, he saw another figure approaching Gojo. He quickly hid himself behind a parked taxi, grabbing onto Megumi’s sleeve to avoid being seen. Nobara did the exact same with you. All four of you had your heads stacked upon one another while monitoring the situation: Yuuji at the bottom, Nobara, you, Megumi at the top.

Tall, blond, and well dressed, Gojo’s date approached him with an apathetic expression. Lips turned downward and brows furrowed together, his date was less than impressed. This didn’t faze him in the slightest. Gojo slid down his sunglasses and winked at his date, turning the charm meter up a notch.

Nobara let out a gasp while the rest of the group held their breath.

“They’re gay!” Nobara screamed, pointing towards Gojo and Nanami. 

Her sudden outburst garnered a few stares and the accused turned towards your direction. Gojo snickered into his hand while Nanami raised an eyebrow.

“Gay?” Nanami repeated, unamused. He turned his attention back at Gojo. “Explain.”

“I brought the kids along with me too,” Gojo jabbed his thumb over his shoulder at where you and the rest of the gang stood. “Hope you don’t mind.”

Upon hearing this, you deflated completely. The entire time following him was a complete waste. Gojo played you all like a puppet on a string.

“He knew…” Megumi muttered as he covered half of his face with his hand in shame. “He knew we were following him this whole time.”

Gojo practically skipped to where you all were standing, smiling like a cheshire cat. Upon seeing the dejected look on your faces, he let out a laugh, one loud enough to warrant people to look his way as he slapped a hand to his knee.

“This is a lesson,” Gojo began once he caught his breath. “Don’t stalk people in the city.”

“We weren’t stalking you!” Nobara and Yuuji objected at the same time. 

“Then what were you four doing?”

You all kept quiet, unable to answer his question. Because truthfully, you guys were stalking Gojo to get a peek at his “date” which turned out to be a giant ruse. Gojo merely cackled at the silence.

“That’s what I thought. Anyway,” he motioned a hand towards Nanami and looked over his shoulder. “Nanami, take care of the kids for a second.”

“Excuse me?” Nanami couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Is this what you called me here for?”

Again, Gojo laughed. Seems like he was going to screw over Nanami as well.

“Yup!” He waved and blew a kiss in the most grandiose manner. “I’ll see you guys in a little bit! Don’t go causing too much trouble for Nanami!”

Right after finishing what he wanted to say, Gojo disappeared in the next second, blending in with the city crowd. You blinked at how easy it was for him to fly off your radar. The others thought the same, keeping quiet.

Tokyo was a complete bust.

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───

EXTRA:

“See! The sushi comes to you on little bullet trains, Kugisaki!” Yuuji cheered as three plates of salmon nigiri arrived at the booth. He couldn’t stop grinning as he marveled the miniature replica. “Let’s make another order!”

After getting caught red handed and toyed with for the majority of the day by Gojo, he decided to treat you and the rest of the first years to a nearby kaiten sushi restaurant as a peace offering. Not because he felt bad, but rather he didn’t feel like going back to Jujutsu High so soon. You all accepted for the free meal and a ride back to the dorms.

Inside the cramped booth, Nobara and Yuuji were talking over one another while eating, trying to show off their Tokyo knowledge through random trivia found online. Megumi, the most mentally mature of the bunch, spoke up to correct them every now and then, earning either the stink eye from Nobara or finger guns from Yuuji. Their energy was infectious, causing you to laugh along.

With the night nearing its end, you decided to ask the million dollar question. After all, it was the reason why your day in Tokyo was wasted.

“Gojo, what were you doing with those flowers?” you asked as you passed a plate over to him. Since you never got to see his date after his disappearing act, you were curious with what he did with the bouquet.

Instead of stuffing the sushi into his mouth, Gojo set his chopsticks down for a second and paused. In a comedic manner, he closed his eyes and rubbed his chin, seemingly in deep thought.

“Ah, since you asked so nicely, I’ll tell you,” he said as he clicked his tongue and snatched the nigiri with his chopsticks. “I was giving them to a friend of mine. It’s been a while since I last saw him, so I decided to do something special.”

“A friend?” It was hard to imagine him with friends. He seemed to drive everyone within a five foot radius up the wall. “Really?”

“Yep,” Gojo replied. He popped another tuna nigiri into his mouth and savored the flavor for a moment before finishing what he had to say. “Flowers are a nice gift, right?”

“I think they are,” you answered truthfully. “Did he like them?”

He smiled. And it wasn’t one of his usual fake asshole smiles he did whenever he beat you guys to the dirt during a spar session, but rather a genuine one. A rarity. “I think he did. He better because that bouquet was expensive.”

“Maybe next time you should invite him with you,” you motioned to the entirety of the table, “to this.”

Gojo chuckled as he watched you all get along. Nobara had Yuuji in a chokehold while Megumi watched from the other side of the table with a stone cold visage. The corners of his lips threatened to twitch upward.

“I think he’d like that.”

[izumiyagami14]

overthinking

enlightenmonth // [day 9-12] past or future Summary: After receiving an offer for the job of her dreams, Hikari has too much on her mind. She needs to talk to someone to…

A dimly lit phone screen engulfed Hikari’s pale face as she let out a defeated sigh. The chirping from the crickets outside wasn’t the only thing keeping her up. For the first time in a long time, she had too much on her mind.

On her phone showed an email with the subject titled: “Kindergarten Teaching Position Offered!” Of course, at first she was excited to be offered her first job in the field she just graduated from, but now, all the different scenarios played in her head, causing her stomach to turn.

She needed to talk to someone.

She scrolled through her contacts, desperately trying to find someone, anyone to talk to.

Taichi? He’s alseep.

Takeru? He’s on a vacation with his brother before he starts his career.

Sora? She’s busy with her career.

Mimi? She probably wouldn’t understand her overthinking.

Who would understand what she is going through?

Hikari kept scrolling until she landed on a familiar name on her list. She hesitated for a second before pressing the dial button.

The phone rang twice before the call was picked up.

“Hello?”

She exhaled in relief. “Hey, Koushiro.”

“Everything alright?” His voice sounded tired but full of concern.

“Yeah, yeah. Everything is good... To be honest, I didn’t think you were going to pick up…”

“I’m always up at this time.” Concerned tone turned to defeated as a pause settled in. “Are you sure you’re okay, Hikari?”

She inhaled deeply. He always knew when something was up. “Actually, can you come over? I really need someone to talk to.”

Without hesitation, he responded, “I’ll be over in ten.”

In seven minutes, Hikari’s phone buzzed next to her pillow. A text filled the screen from the man she was waiting for with one word: Balcony. She replied with a simple okay and tiptoed to the balcony, careful not to wake her brother and her parents. She unlocked the door latch.

As she slowly opened the sliding screen door, the late summer breeze brushed her skin. She cautiously walked over to the edge of the balcony and looked down. Koushiro stood there hands in his pockets in the pale moonlight, giving Hikari a soft smile. She returned the smile and waved. “Give me a minute. I just need to plan my escape route,” she whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

“Roger that,” he nodded.

She quietly walked back inside, put on her shoes and grabbed the nearest throw blanket. As she made it to the front door, she hesitated on grabbing her hoodie from her room. She shook her head, deciding against it as she might wake someone up, grabbed her keys, and slowly closed the door behind her, careful not to make a sound.

Hikari ran down the stairs and walked over to Koushiro. “Thanks for coming,” she huffed, out of breath.

“Of course. Did you have any place in mind to talk?” Koushiro asked, looking down at her.

“We can just sit on the roof of the complex, if that’s okay with you,” she replied.

“That’s alright with me,” he agreed and the two started their route.

For it being 2:14 in the morning, the summer cicadas sang in the crisp night air, filling in the holes of silence casted between the two. As they made their way up the complex’s stairs to the rooftop, the evening night had a slight chill, causing Hikari to shiver for a brief second. Once at the top, she walked over to a clear spot and laid out the blanket for the two to sit on. She sat down with her legs stretched forward and patted the empty spot next to her, indicating for him to join.

“So,” Koushiro started as he sat down, knees up for his elbows to rest on them. “What is it you wanted to talk about?”

There was a lingering pause. She kept her head facing toward her feet in front of her, unable to answer his question. “How are you doing? Are you liking your new career job?”

Her answering his question with a question caught him off guard. “Uh, it’s going well… Besides working late every night and the occasional all-nighters, it’s going… great.” His tone said otherwise. “How about you? You just graduated from college, so are you looking for jobs right away?”

“Yeah, I might…” she stiffly responded, leaning backward on her hands and keeping her eyes away from his. She wanted to bring up her pending email, but couldn’t.

“Hikari, are you okay?” He asked, looking down at her. He always knew when something was up.

“Yeah, I’ve just been… thinking a lot,” she responded, gazing out into the distance and trying her best to dodge his eyes.

“What about, if I might ask?” He asked, studying the girl next to him as the gears turned in his head.

“Do you ever think about our childhood?”

He was taken a little aback by her next question, still positive that this isn’t the main topic in her mind. “All the time,” he eventually responded.

She smiled softly. “Even though we were the Digidestined-“

“And still are.” He lightly added.

She giggled and nodded at his response. She looked up at the night sky to gather her thoughts. “Yes, and still are. And even though we basically had the weight of the world on our shoulders, some of us never really realized it until later. We were only kids. Our only worries were about the small things. Like what to wear to school and who would we sit with at lunch.”

Koushiro continued to look at Hikari, determined to find the underlying meaning to their discussion. Even though he couldn’t really relate to where her part of the conversation was going because he always realized their overgrown, overwhelming responsibility, he continued to listen. “That is correct…”

She let out a sigh as she continued. “As we continue to grow older, our life choices are getting bigger… Our future is closely approaching.” And I’m terrified. “And sometimes… I wish it would slow down and go back to the way things were.”

Koushiro looked up and let out a similar sigh. “I understand that bit. I wish I had more time, too.”

Another breeze of chilly night air rushed through, causing chills to run through Hikari’s body. Before he realized what he was doing, Koushiro slowly took off his flannel jacket and lightly placed it on the girl’s shoulders.

“Thank you,” she whispered with a genuine smile.

“Anytime.”

They continued to sit on the blanket as a comfortable silence hovered over the two. Koushiro was busy analyzing her questions, actions, and nonverbal cues and trying to figure out the real reason she wanted to talk. She mentioned my career, changed the subject about her future, and bought up the past. What could it be?

There was a slight discomfort in Hikari’s breath when she finally asked, “Do you think-“

“All the time. I’m a great thinker, you know,” he joked, trying to lighten the mood.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it” she giggled and tried again. “Do you think-“

“Yes, I do.”

Hikari gave him a quick nudge with her shoulder, causing him to go a little off balance. “Will you quit that? I’m trying to ask you something serious, Koushiro.”

“My apologies. Ask away,” he replied once he fixed his posture.

“Thank you.”

“My pleasure.” He joked again.

“Do you think,” she started, but paused to figure out how to word the next part. “Do you think I’ll be a good teacher?”

Koushiro twisted his head at her in disbelief. “What makes you ask that?”

She continued to look down. “I don’t know. I’ve just been… thinking…”

Koushiro dropped his shoulders when the realization of her actions rang in his head. “Hikari, what was it you really wanted to talk about?”

She exhaled sharply, unable to move around the dilemma anymore. “I was just offered a job for teaching Kindergarten.”

He smiled, his mind guessing right. “That’s prodigious! Are you going to accept it?”

She nodded her head, looking off into the distance. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll probably take it.”

Koushiro sensed her uneasy aura from the hesitation from her voice. “Hikari, are you sure you’re okay?”

And just with those simple words, Hikari’s thoughts exploded inside of her and gushed out. “I’m just so worried I’m going to fail! I’ve wanted to do this my whole life! And now that it’s finally here, I’m terrified that it might not be what I was hoping it would! What if the kids hate me! What if I’m unable to manage the classroom! What if I can’t teach math! What if…-“

Koushiro’s eyes popped out of his head at her outbursts and instinctively reached out to her. The two were now entangled in one another, Hikari’s head on Koushiro’s chest with his arms securely around her.

They remained like that for a few long minutes before Koushiro gathered his thoughts to speak. “Hikari, it’s going to be fine. You can’t think like this. It’s going to consume you. It’s going to suffocate you.” He whispered to her, thinking about all the times he was alone like this. This can’t happen to her.

“I’m just so worried…” she breathed into his shirt with her face buried into his chest. His scent started to comfort her. “I’m sorry. I’m probably just overthinking everything. I don’t need to burden you with this.”

“You’re not being a burden. No one should go these thoughts alone…” Koushiro brought her head under his chin and thought about what to say next. He needed to choose his next words carefully. “The future is always uncertain, and that’s okay. One thing that is certain is that you will be a great teacher.”

Her sniffled and pulled away to meet his gaze. “You really think so?”

“I know so. The absolute best. Take the job, Hikari. It’ll be worth it in the end.”

After a couple minutes of calming her breath, she nodded and let out a shaky exhale “Okay, I will.” She placed her head on his shoulder. He placed his elbows back on his knees and resumed his previous spot.

The two continued to sit together under the moonlight and a comfortable silence. Koushiro could still hear the the gears turning in her head when she asked, “What if a student is having difficulty reading?”

“Then you’ll think of some strategies to help with that.”

“What if a student gets gets sick?”

“Then you’ll be able to take care of them.”

“What if a child gets sees a spider and freaks out so much that they run out of the classroom and out of the school and down the street..”

Koushiro laughed at her over exaggerating thoughts, continuing to stare off in the distance. “You’re starting to sound like me.”

“Let’s talk about it. What goes on through your mind?” She whispered, sending chills down his spine.

The dark blue and purple hues from the slowly rising sun started to send a warm welcome to the new day. He wanted to continue and talk to Hikari every day if he could, but now was not the time.

“We’ll talk about me another day. Let’s get you to bed. You need to rest.” Koushiro whispered back to her.

The two slowly stood up and Koushiro grabbed the blanket from underneath and handed it to Hikari. She started to take off his jacket, but he held a hand up to stop her. “I’ll come back tomorrow to pick it up.”

They walked down the stairs and stopped by the front door of the Yagami residence. The comfortable silence landed between the two again. Their evening talk was coming to an end, but neither of them wanted it to.

“Thank you again for coming,” Hikari admitted. “You didn’t have to come, you know...”

Koushiro shrugged. “I know, but I wanted to. If you ever need to talk, I’m always here to lend an ear.”

Hikari took a step toward him and placed a hand on his cheek. She felt him shiver at the touch, but didn’t know if it was from her hand or if it was from the cold, crisp evening air. “Same goes for you, too. You don’t have to do everything by yourself. We’ll talk about you another night.”

Even though she was struggling tonight with her thoughts and her future, she always had time to care for others. That’s how he knew she would be the greatest teacher ever.

He nodded and unknowingly leaned into her hand. “Let me know how your first day goes, okay?”

“I will,” she said with a smile and kissed him on the cheek.

He felt his face heat up and he froze in his place. Instead of saying what was going through his genius mind, he silently watched her turn around and locate her keys in her pockets. As she turned the key and slowly opened the front door, he started to turn toward home.

“Hey, Koushiro?” Her angelic voice stopped him dead in his tracks and he turned back to her.

“Hmm?”

She gave him a soft smile that made his heart flutter. “Take care of yourself.”

He returned the smile, hands in his pockets. “Same goes for you, too.”

[actuallysaiyan]

Love Of My Life(Kakashi Hatake x Ave)

Word count: 1,273 Pairings: Kakashi Hatake x Ave Warnings: Fluff, mentions of pregnancy Summary: It’s Ave and Kakashi’s ten year anniversary, and Ave has major news for Kakashi...it’s just too bad they keep getting interrupted! A/N: This is for @kingkonoha​, who is a wonderful writer and person! I hope you enjoy it!

You could feel yourself grow slightly impatient, but also a little nervous. It was your anniversary today, and of course, Kakashi was late. You would have thought that after all the years he spent scolding Obito, Kakashi would know better than to keep you waiting. But here you were, sitting in front of your TV and waiting for Kakashi to show up. You had made special reservations for your favorite restaurant, and you had also decided to put on your favorite little dress too.

There was a knock on the door which made you jump a little. Cursing under your breath, you stomp over to the door. You swing it wide open, and there is Kakashi with flowers in his hand.

“Hi Ave!” Kakashi beams and you roll your eyes.

“Don’t ‘Hey Ave’ me. You’re late!” You scold him, but he just shrugs.

“Sorry, sweetie. I didn’t mean to be late, but I got carried away with picking these flowers for you.” Kakashi explains as he hands them to you.

You can feel your heart melt a little when you hear those words. You take them from him, placing them beneath your nose. They smell amazing and they are such pretty colored flowers, you’re finding it so hard to stay angry at Kakashi.

As Kakashi waits for you at the door, you go looking for a vase to put the flowers in. You’re a little impressed that Kakashi is dressed up for your anniversary date; you know he usually just wears the same old stuff day in day out. But tonight, he’s dressed in black dress pants and a dark grey button-up shirt, along with his usual mask. You find yourself checking him out as you absent-mindedly put the flowers in the vase and place them on your counter.

“Ready, sweetie?” Kakashi asks from the door, and you nod at him.

You grab your purse, and you slip on your shoes and Kakashi takes your arm as you leave your apartment. You’re quick to lock up behind you, so happy to have the whole evening with your lover...if only he knew the happy news you had waiting for him.

At the restaurant, you and Kakashi have a wonderful time. You’re both reminiscing about old stories and how you both got together. It’s a romantic setting, with the restaurant being lit by dimmed lighting and candles. The food is mouth-watering and the music playing is adding to the atmosphere in the best way possible. You can help but laugh at all the jokes that Kakashi is making, even if you’ve heard some of them a million and one times.

The waiter returns and asks if you’d like to order some drinks, but you refuse. You know that the news you have for Kakashi has to do with the reason why you’re not getting wine with dinner, but Kakashi hardly bats an eyelash to this. He orders some wine for the both of you, and you try to refuse but the waiter has already left the table.

“Oh Kakashi, you didn’t have to order us any wine. The bill is already going to cost us a fortune,” you say, hoping to keep your surprise a secret for just a little while longer.

“Why not? It’s our anniversary, we deserve to celebrate a little, don’t we Ave?” Kakashi asks, and you just try to dismiss this with another story from when you were younger.

Eventually, the waiter arrives and he serves you both a glass of wine. When you don’t touch it for some time, Kakashi grows a little suspicious. He’s giving you a certain look that says ‘I know you’re hiding something.’ You can barely contain this news, so you decide to let it off your chest.

“I’ve got something to tell you, sweetie.” You start off, and Kakashi turns towards you. He’s listening to you attentively, and you know this is the best time.

“I was at the doctor’s office the other day...and well,” you start. You can feel your heart start to race as you think about how you’re going to continue this.

Just then, you hear a loud crash and a few yells. You and Kakashi both look over to find the source of the sound and neither of you are surprised to find Might Guy and Rock Lee coming towards your table, both of them have loads of gifts in their arms.

“Ahhh! Kakashi, my eternal rival! And Ave, the most youthful flower in all of Konoha! It’s your anniversary, and I wanted to personally give you my congratulations for being together this long!” Guy says as he starts handing you the gifts. Your arms are full as you watch him and Lee practically cry and gush over the two of you.

“Ave, Kakashi! Congrats! You are the most youthful and passionate couple!” Lee yells, bowing to both of you.

Kakashi laughs nervously as you both struggle to hold your gifts. Lee and Guy are both praising you, and the gifts seem endless. You just want to leave at this point, seeing as they are making a huge fuss, and you’re a little embarrassed...plus they totally stole your thunder as you were about to announce to Kakashi the special news.

“How about we bring these back to my place and take a walk?” You suggest to Kakashi, and he agrees.

He’s about to flag down the waiter, but Lee and Guy assure you both that they’ve got the bill covered. You’re so endeared by their actions and you give them both a kiss on the cheek to thank them.

Once outside the restaurant, you and Kakashi head back to your apartment. After dropping off all the gifts, Kakashi suggests you two go on a walk in the park. You love the idea, and you know the setting is going to be very romantic for your special news.

As you’re walking towards the park, you try to bring up the news in conversation with Kakashi. The whole time, you’re interrupted by Naruto, Sakura, and Yamato. It’s getting a little comical at this point, and you feel like you’re just going to burst out laughing while you tell Kakashi what’s going on.

Finally, you both find a romantic and private spot to hang out. Kakashi helps you down onto the grass, and you both cuddle underneath the moonlight. The night breeze feels very nice on your skin and you’re relishing in every moment right now. You can’t believe it’s been nearly ten years that you’ve been with Kakashi...you both were such different people back then. And now, you’re about to become parents.

“So, you had something to tell me? About the doctors?” Kakashi asks, and you blush slightly.

“Kakashi, I’m pregnant.” You finally blurt out, and you can feel your heart race a little as Kakashi processes the news.

“P-pregnant?” he asks, stumbling over his words. You nod dumbly, not sure how to reply.

Kakashi wraps his arms around you, hugging you tight to himself. He places kisses all over your face.  You feel so happy right now, your heart is swelling with joy.

“Oh, Ave! That’s amazing news! I can’t believe it!” Kakashi is ecstatic, but you can tell he’s a little nervous about being a father.

“I can’t believe it either...we’re going to start our own family.” You whisper as you lean against him.

“Our own family…” Kakashi hums in approval.

You both sit on the grass, leaning against each other and enjoying the nighttime sounds of the crickets and cicadas. Both of you are overjoyed by the idea of having a family of your own...

[inkweaver22-blr]

Here we are with chapter 6! This one chronologically takes place in between chapters 2 and 3, so keep that in mind. There hasn’t been a lot of Sandy in this fic yet so I felt like this was as good a spot as any to focus on him.

AO3 Link

<Previous | First | Next>

Scattered Cicadas - Chapter Six: Being There

Tang visits Sandy for some advice.

----------

Tang knocked on the door to the cabin on Sandy’s boat. He took a step back as he heard a loud thud followed by what sounded like a frantic conversation and more banging.

Soon, the river demon poked his head out from behind the door and glanced down at the scholar.

“Tang! It’s good to see you. What, uh, brings you here,” Sandy greeted with a strained smile.

Tang simply raised an eyebrow at the strange behavior.

“Is this a bad time?”

“Not at all,” Sandy said cheerfully, still not opening the door fully. “What can I do for you?”

“Well…” Tang hesitated, somewhat self conscious at what he was about to admit. “I was wondering if I could get your help with some things I’ve been having trouble with.”

“What kind of things?”

“The... emotional kind,” Tang said softly while rubbing his arm and staring downwards.

“Oh! Oh.” Sandy’s gaze immediately softened for a moment before glancing behind him back into the cabin. Seemingly satisfied with what he saw he opened the door all the way and gestured for Tang to enter. “Why don’t we talk about it over some tea?”

Tang looked around the cabin as he followed Sandy in. It didn’t look like anything was out of place.

Decorations and plants to promote relaxation dotted the space. A yoga mat and exercise equipment were neatly stacked next to the couch. The room was mostly tidy save for the few cat toys strewn about and the two half-drunk cups of tea on the coffee table.

Wait, two cups?

Tang took a closer look around and eventually spotted something.

Huntsman’s braid was poking out from above a high-up cabinet.

Ah. So that’s what the noise earlier was.

The unlikely friendship between the spider demon and Sandy had happened already once before so Tang decided to ignore it for now. He may not like having what he was about to say overheard, but the cycle would be ending soon and he really needed to have this conversation.

The scholar took the offered seat on the couch and thought about why he was here while his host prepared some fresh tea.

It had been a few days since the cursed meatball incident. If the timeline of events stayed the same in this cycle, that meant there was only about three days left before MK unlocked the use of the 72 Transformations, they went to the desert to train, and then would get attacked by Lady Bone Demon.

Tang shuddered involuntarily as he thought about the dangerous demon, and subsequently, her primary servant. He subconsciously rubbed his throat as the Mayor’s visage flashed in his mind.

Quickly shaking his head and taking a deep breath, Tang banished those images. He knew better than to meddle with major events now, and his friends had helped him through his trauma multiple times already.

He needed to focus on the actual reason for this visit.

“So what did you want to discuss,” Sandy asked while setting down a tea tray. The blue giant took one of the cups for himself and sat cross-legged on the floor across from Tang, his height allowing them to remain eye level to each other.

Tang took a fortifying sip of his own tea as he thought about how to begin.

“I know I can be a bit… full of myself sometimes,” Tang started. Sandy made no comment and simply waited for the scholar to continue. “But I really am not bragging when I say that I’m very good at noticing things.”

There was a small creaking noise from the cabinet hiding the spider demon. Both Tang and Sandy chose to ignore it.

“I’m just a naturally perceptive person I guess. I tend to notice patterns pretty quickly and I almost immediately pick up a change to a place I visit frequently.” Tang took another sip of his tea before staring seriously at Sandy.

“So I must apologize to you, Sandy, for taking so long to notice that you are quite possibly more perceptive than even I am.”

The river demon’s eyebrows rose in surprise at that.

“Uh, thanks? What do you mean by that?”

“Sure, I can pick out even the small details of the world around me,” Tang explained, waving his hand dismissively. “However, you notice something much more important than that. You can see how the people around you are feeling.

“Yes, I can tell when someone is acting strange or hiding something,” the scholar continued, not acknowledging the shocked look on Sandy’s face, “but you seem to be able to see so much deeper than that! You can tell why that person is upset. Or at least you’re able to make a very good guess.

“Even more impressive than that is how you always seem to know exactly how to react to that person’s distress.

“You know the right words to say that offer the most amount of reassurance. You know exactly when to push for details and when to back off. You never judge, only offering unconditional support.

“You're endlessly patient and kind and understanding and I’m-” Tang took a ragged breath as his emotions welled up inside of him. “-and I’m not.”

“Tang, you’re-”

“Please let me finish.” Tang took a few deep breaths as Sandy looked on in concern, not the slightest bit offended at being interrupted.

“I know I can be kind and supportive, I’m not saying that isn’t true. But I also know I’m somewhat egotistical and smug at times. And that causes me to miss things in others.” Tang began to shake as he was finally overwhelmed and tears began to fall.

“I-I don’t want to miss how the people I care about are hurting ever again. I just want to be there for him, like you’re there for all of us.” Tang looked pleadingly at Sandy. “But I’m not sure I know how.”

“Oh, Tang.” Sandy swiftly moved around the table and gently pulled the scholar into a hug. Tang eagerly leaned into the embrace as he continued to let his insecurities out.

“He- he’s been hurting for a while and I don’t know for how long because I didn’t notice and-” He gasped for breath as he cried into the river demon’s shoulder. “He tries to be strong and not let it show but that’s hurting him even more and I don’t know how to fix it and-!”

“Shhh, just breathe for me right now Tang,” Sandy soothed as he rubbed the scholar’s back. “It’ll be okay. You don’t have to do this alone. We can all help MK out together.”

Tang sobbed a bit harder because of course Sandy would know who he was talking about through his incoherent ramblings. Of course he’d know exactly what to say to get to the heart of the issue and address it. He’d be jealous and impressed if he wasn't currently bawling his eyes out.

After Tang eventually calmed down and had a few more cups of tea, he still expressed his desire to learn how to be more like the river demon. Sandy had simply agreed to his request and lent him some self-help psychology and therapy books he owned. They discussed going over the contents in more detail at later dates and ways to help MK as a group before Tang decided to take his leave.

“Remember that you aren’t alone in this,” Sandy gently reminded the scholar as he led him to the door. “You aren’t solely responsible for the mental well being of others and it’s okay to ask for help.”

“Thanks Sandy,” Tang said with a sincere smile. “I really appreciate the help.”

“That’s what I’m here for. I’ll see you later.”

“See you later.”

Tang, feeling much lighter than before, decided to play a bit of a prank. He smirked as he leaned around the river giant before calling back into the cabin.

“Bye Huntsman!”

There was a sudden bang followed by profuse amounts of swearing. Sandy broke out into loud guffaws as he waved goodbye to the retreating scholar.

In the end, Tang hadn’t been able to get through the books Sandy had lent him before the cycle reset. He made sure to visit Sandy earlier on in the next one and learned a lot from the gentle giant.

Sandy wasn’t the only one he took cues from.

He incorporated Pigsy's silent acts of compassion and Mei’s no-nonsense attitude into the way he helped the others. Even MK’s fierce openness made it into his techniques.

Tang also never forgot he wasn’t alone. He always asked for help when he felt overwhelmed. He made sure the others knew how to help out whenever one of them was hurting.

Tang was powerless to stop anything that would cause any of the hurt feelings in his friends, but he’d be damned if he simply stood by and did nothing to address them now that he knew what to look for.

He promised to always be there for them.

----------

Sandy, I feel, is the secret MVP of the Monkie Kid group. He may not be a licensed therapist, but he’s probably had enough experience with his own and read enough about it to pass a certification test with no problem.

Huh. With this I’ve now ended exactly half of the current chapters with Tang having some sort of emotional breakdown. I’m sure that ratio will only get bigger as we progress. :3c

The Sandy and Huntsman friendship/ship is one I enjoy a lot and it’s a shame there isn’t more content for it.

I'm playing a bit fast and loose with the timeline of events in canon, but meh. It's not that big a deal I think.

That’s it for now! Until next time!

[fandomsonrequests]

gummy bears and jellybeans

fandom: ATEEZ

characters: choi jongho; ATEEZ

reader: gender neutral

word count: 2.4k+

summary: Your friendship with the youngest was different though. It was more… intimate. You two told secrets no one else in the group knew and shared moments that were meant for just the both of you. It was nice, and honestly, you were scared.

a/n:  Ahhhh another songfic! This idea has been stuck in my head for a while. i’m sorry if its not so good ;^; its unedited so I apologize for any spelling errors

Based off on the songs: Waiting for You - The Aces; Teenage Blue - Dreamgirl; Prom - SZA

You scroll through the feed of your phone as you look over the various photos of your friends at the special night- specifically senior prom night.

You chuckle at your friends’ posts, seeing them pose in silly ways and “rip up the dancefloor” with their wild dancing. You were currently curled up on the lounge chair by the small pool in your backyard, the bonfire pit lit and keeping you warm in the chilly night. You tucked your legs into yourself and settle your chin onto your knees, sighing as you watch the surface of the pool water ripple in the night breeze.

There were two reasons you weren’t at prom: one- you were never really the type of person to join these kinds of social settings. You weren’t so fond of crowds. The second reason- no one asked you. It kind of bummed you out that no one really thought of you as worth their time. So to save you from any embarrassment, you decided not to go.

Besides, you didn’t go prom shopping so you had nothing to wear. You pick at the fluffy lint of the bear onesie your friend gave you. A small smile makes its way to your lips as you remember the person who gifted it to you.

Jongho and you have been friends since fourth school, ever since you moved into his town. Being friends with him meant that you were roped into his shenanigans along with his other friends. They were an energetic bunch and sometimes they drained all adrenaline from you but you’d always end up happy. Tired but happy.

Your friendship with the youngest was different though. It was more… intimate. You two told secrets no one else in the group knew and shared moments that were meant for just the both of you. It was nice, and honestly, you were scared.

You may or may not have caught feelings for the brunet. (You asked him why he dyed his hair back to brown from a bright red but he just replied with a nonchalant “because I can”). And you were afraid that it could mess up so many things between you. You didn’t want to lose what you had with him and if it meant having to be content with just his friendship- you’d take it.

You were pulled out of your thoughts when your mother called out to you. “_____,” She sang. “There’s a special guest for you~”

“Who?” You ask and sit up, turning to see no one other than your best friend. “Jongho?? What are you doing here? I thought you were at prom?”

The young man smiled one of his rare but soft smiles- one that he reserves just for you- and looked away bashfully. He looked absolutely breathtaking in his dark crisp suit, a white turtleneck under his jacket. The whole look was topped off with some dress shoes and the special pendant you got for him last Christmas. It was a metal caricature of iced coffee since the man would drink that day in and day out.

“Ahh, I was. I just wanted to check up on you, jellybean.” He replies after thanking your mother who slipped away to give you two some privacy.

He looked you over and smirked, hands in his pockets. “You actually wear that?”

You looked down at yourself and pouted, an embarrassed flush on your cheeks. “Yes? You gave it to me of course I’m gonna wear it. You’re wearing the pendant I gave you, gummy bear.”

“Touche.”

You scoot over on the lounge chair to give him some space, both your legs were extended over the side of the plastic chair. A comfortable silence washes over the two of you and you lean your head against his shoulder. Jongho automatically wraps an arm around your shoulder and pulls you closer to him, his head leaning on yours.

You two sit there like that for a while. Only the sounds of the gentle breeze tickling your nose or the cicadas calling to each other were heard. That was until you spoke up. “...am I not worth spending time with, Jongho?”

He pulls away at the sudden question- looking at you as if you committed the most heinous crime on earth. “Where is this coming from? Of course not, _____. Being with you is worth every millisecond.”

You pick at your fingers and look down at your hands, saying nothing. Jongho’s brows furrow together in concern. You usually didn’t bother too much with how others perceive you but something must be bothering you this much for you to think this way. His warmer and much larger hands take yours, thumbs running over your skin.

“Does this have anything to do with prom?” He whispers over to you. He sighs when you shake your head.

It hurt to see you so down in the dumps. The dynamic between the two of you was that he was the more chill one while you were the more enthusiastic one. So seeing you so lethargic tore at his heartstrings. He wanted you to be happy, he wanted to keep you smiling. Whenever you do he sees your eyes light up and see the world with wonder and excitement. It always lightened his mood whenever he sees you like that- its almost as if the world’s problems don’t exist whenever he’s with you.

He got up abruptly and pulled out his phone. You look up at him, confused at his sudden actions. “What are you doing?” You ask him and receive no response.

Jongho scrolls through his phone and clicks something. A few seconds later, a soft melody plays through the night air. He sets down the phone one a nearby table and holds out his hand to you. “Come on, get up.”

You look at him, still confused, but get up nonetheless. He laces your fingers with his and pulls you flush to his body. A furious blush covers your cheeks at the proximity between you two. Sure, you two had moments where you were up in each other’s faces but this time it was different. It felt more personal, more intimate.

His free arm snaked around your waist, successfully securing you to him. He started swaying you from side to side along with the melody, looking down at you with the softest of gazes. You were practically speechless at what was happening, your mind still trying to wrap around what was happening.

“Dude, what are you doing?” You chuckle nervously but let him guide you.

“I’m dancing with you, dummy.” He teases you. “Now hush. Just enjoy this moment.”

You couldn’t help but huff in amusement at that, shaking your head at his antics. Eventually, your frown melts into the tiniest of grins as you let the moment engulf you two. Despite the soft and tender moment happening on the outside, your insides felt different. Your heart was beating rapidly against your ribcage and your stomach was doing somersaults. This was it- this was the moment that solidified your thoughts on your best friend.

This was the moment you realized that you were so head over heels in love with Choi Jongho.

You tried not to think much of his actions- after all maybe to him it was just some platonic dancing and nothing more. Worry started to eat away at you again, causing you to hang your head and watch your feet. Jongho on the other hand wasn’t having it. He knew something was bothering you and he wanted to help clear it up for you.

He gently cupped your chin and tilted your head up to look at him. “What’s on your mind, jellybean?”

You blank at his question. You didn’t think you’d have to tell him how you felt right now- you weren’t ready. Not yet.

You could feel your throat close up with the pressure of telling him the truth. Your lips move like a fish gasping for air but no words come out- well, none the way you want it to. “I-” You stammer. The sting of unwanted tears glazes your eyes. You feel your chest tighten as pressure overwhelms you, weighing you down by the shoulders and crushing you to the ground.

“Hey, hey,” Jongho whispers to you, pulling you in a comforting embrace. He reached up to stroke the back of your head. He could feel how your hands desperately clutched at the fabric of his dress jacket, your warm tears soaking through it as they drop to his shoulder.

“It’s okay, _____,” He mumbles into your hair. “You don’t have to tell me if you’re not comfortable… But I have something I want to tell you.”

He gently peels away from you, cupping your cheeks in his warm palms, thumbs brushing over the apples of your cheeks. The way he looks at you makes your emotions stir with confusion. His gaze held so much love for you. It was tender and held so much emotion- so many things he wanted to say that were just about ready to tip over and spill out for you.

“_____,” He starts out softly as he brushes away your tears. “We’ve been friends for a long, long time. And honestly, I’m glad that you decided to give me a chance to be your friend despite accidentally smacking your face during recess.”

You both laughed at that, with you hiccuping through your tears. Nevertheless, Jongho’s speech never wavered and he continued for you.

“I’ve always wanted to talk to you the minute you moved into the neighborhood but I just didn’t know how. So imagine the horror I felt when I accidentally hit you. But despite that you still brushed it off and befriended me.

“Since then you’ve been a stable constant in my life. You helped me out of my shell and see things on a lighter note. You’ve been to every game I’m in, cheering me on whether I’m on the bench or not. You helped me discover my passion of singing and helped me pursue it. Let’s not forget every time you’ve caught every bug and saved me from it despite you showing it to me-”

“To be fair, gummy bear, they’re just harmless bugs.” You giggle to which he pouts at.

“They’re still insects. They’re monsters in tiny disguise; harmless my ass...” Jongho argues, successfully drawing a laugh from you. The corner of his lips twitch upward at the sound but he continues.

“Anyway moving on- my point is: having you in my life has changed it for the better. I don’t think I’d be the same person as I am today without you if you weren’t here for me. And over years- I’ve realized something that I should’ve done so earlier…”

Jongho tucked a stray strand of hair behind your ear, his hand resting on your cheek afterward. You could only look up to him in wonder- eyes searching his for what he was trying to say.

He took a deep breath and decided to throw all caution to the wind. It was now or never-. Whatever the outcome was- he was going to accept it. He lets out a shaky sigh and holds your gaze firmly, eyes sparkling with a sense of vulnerability.

“_____, I think I’m in love with you.”

Your eyes widen at his words. Was this real? Were you hallucinating? Did he actually just tell you the words you’ve been dying to hear?

“You- I- what?”

“I said I love you.” The brunet replied, desperation seeping into his voice. “I’ve always had. You’re always on my mind when I wake up in the morning and wave to you through the window and before I go to sleep after begging you to quit staying up for your studies.”

You take a few moments to process his words before a grin makes its way to your face. And before you knew it you were throwing your arms around him, catching him by surprise. He responds almost immediately after, hugging you to him as you laughed into his shoulder.

All your worries melted away so suddenly and the weight was finally lifted off your shoulders. “You had me worried there for a second,” You tell him as you pull your head away to look at him. “Because I feel the same way.”

“Is that why you were so nervous earlier?”

You only nod in response to his question, leaning your forehead against his. The music from his phone was still playing, making you sway to the soft rhythm. Jongho follows suit, his gaze flickering over to your lips as he allows this moment to engulf the two of you.

You don’t miss this motion and you couldn’t help but gravitate towards him. “Hey, Jongho- do you mind if I ask you something?” He hums, signalling for you to continue. “Is it okay if I kiss you?”

“It’s fine by me,”

You chuckle softly and cup his cheeks. You tease him a little by giving them a quick pinch, making him whine playfully, before standing on your toes to press your lips to his. Jongho sighs blissfully as he tilts his head against yours, deepening it further.

It was a bit of a silly sight from an outsider’s perspective- a guy in his prom suit kissing his childhood friend in their bear onesie. But it didn’t matter to either of you. You wouldn’t trade this moment for any of the riches in the world.

Smiles rest upon both your lips when the two of you pull away, too wrapped up in each other’s presence to notice your mother taking a picture of the two of you. The flash from her phone distracts you two and all color drains from your face when you realize what had happened.

“MOM!” You call out to her. She only laughs and scutters away to the living room, most likely telling your father or siblings what was happening outside.

You groan out in embarrassment at what just took place. “I’m never living this down.”

Jongho shook his head, pressing a quick kiss to your cheek. “Just think of it as memorabilia or something.”

You blush again for the umpteenth time that night when you feel his lips against your cheek. “Fine… but I’m getting that photo from her or she’ll hold it over our heads.”

The both of you lapse into silence again, the music from Jongho’s phone still playing in the night. “I love you so much, jellybean.” He whispers.

“I love you too, gummy bear.”

[qvid-pro-qvo]

a southern education

rafael barba x female!reader. a series of moments during cases leads barba to learn a common turn of phrase from you, a detective on the squad.

word count: 4559

rating: teen, for endless teasing and the kind of contempt only the south can offer (canon-typical mentions of rape and violence, but frankly a whole lot of fluff, too, as well as an additional warning for the author knowing nothing about how law work besides what law and order tells me). 

-

It was like a different world, when you and Rollins got to chatting.

It was the way your accents got thicker, the way your laughter seemed to echo. There was always an inside joke, always a tease before you got paired off with Fin and Rollins inevitably found Sonny once again, words dripping with something sugary sweet as the two of you parted ways. The others didn’t get it, what you two would get so riled up about, but with you and her, it was like two peas in a pod.

It was just the South in the two of you. And yes, the capital ‘S’ was justified.

The South. Muggy nights and wretched summers and air thick with humidity and the mosquitoes that didn’t even give you a chance. Cicadas yelling as soon as the sun set and sitting out on porches drinking your beer or tooth-achingly sweet tea. Tipping hats and holding doors open and taking your sweet time. It made New York feel that much smaller, just two Southern girls trying to make it.

There were the shitty parts, too. There were the parts that make you and Rollins come to New York in the first place – the realization that women would never make it like men do, the suffocation of trying to fit into a box not made for you. So New York was far from home, but for good reason, and sometimes all of the South you need was hearing Rollins say y’all just as much as you.

Like now, for instance.

The newest case was a weird one, for sure, but at the center of it all was a young boy in the crossfire. Caught between his adoptive parents and the criminal enterprises his biological father was involved with. The squad was waiting for some food, and you, Barba, Carisi, and Amanda were all sitting around the wooden table, using the chairs to move from section of evidence to section of evidence.

“Poor guy just wanted a good home,” you said, looking at one of the pictures of him. It was a sweet photo, and you sighed before pushing the folder away from you. You moved to stand from the table. “Bless his heart.”

It came out of you without thinking, your voice somber, solemn. Rollins just nodded, because she got the gist, but Carisi just turned to look at you like you just grew devil’s horns.

“What does that mean?”

You looked up from the picture and met Carisi’s eyes. His brows were furrowed, and there seemed to be something tense in his shoulders.

“What do you mean?” you asked, looking amongst them. Barba was raising his brow, but his gaze was fixated on his notepad, his pen in his fingers as he scribbled something. “It’s just a saying.”

“Well, because Amanda says it to me sometimes,” Carisi said, and there was a twist to his lips, one you wanted to chuckle at. He looked so… solemn. “And usually she’s being sarcastic. I just don’t think what they did to this little boy is funny, that’s all.”

You glanced back at Amanda, and the two of you shared a look, smiling in that way you shared. She was hiding it behind her hand, and you turned back to the two men, ready to placate.

“Neither do I.” When I was saying that, I meant… that’s really sad, for him, and… y’know. Poor thing. Poor guy.” You lifted your hands, pointing to the picture. “I wasn’t being sarcastic, this kid is… he’s in a shitty situation. It’s kind of a catch-all. It’s about the intention behind it.”

“It’s a Southern thing,” Amanda finished, shrugging a bit. “It just means what you want it to mean.”

That seemed to soothe Carisi’s troubled soul enough, and you smiled at him before lifting completely from your chair, moving to get some more coffee. You asked the table if they wanted anything, and the only response was Barba lifting with you, and the two of you walked towards the coffee maker.

You didn’t mind the lawyer. Sure, the ADA wasn’t always your thing – after all, working with him could feel like you just ran a marathon – but Barba was good at his job and treated you all well.

Plus, if you happened to know your favorite combination of suit, tie, and pocket square that he wore, that was between you and God.

“I could’ve just gotten you something if you wanted, Barba,” you told him. “I know you like your coffee, even the bad stuff here.”

His smile was small, but it felt real enough, and you gave him a returning one, trying to ignore the thrill you got from the way he looked at you.

“You always add too much sugar,” he admitted, and you just rolled your eyes, smirking.

“And you always add too little, so. Maybe one day we’ll meet in the middle.” His little chuckle was cute, and you leaned against the little bar, glancing out the breakroom to where Carisi and Rollins were. “Today I won’t touch it, how ‘bout that?”

“I appreciate it.” He too glanced over to the other room, and you watched as Amanda seemed to explain something to Sonny, her hands circling a little as Sonny just shook his head at her. “So, blessing your heart? A common thing?”

“Oh, you have no idea,” you laughed, pouring a couple of cups and sliding one over to him to do as he wished. He just picked it up and sipped at it, the monster, but you added three sugars and stirred it plenty. “Trust me, sympathy isn’t always its message, but like I said. It can mean a little bit of everything.”

Barba just laughed again, shaking his head. “It seems innocuous enough. You’re telling me old women can weaponize blessing someone?”

That made your mouth twitch up, and you finished stirring your coffee with a flick of the plastic straw. With a little smile at him, you reached forward, turning him, getting close. You narrowed your eyes, pursing your lips a little. A once-over, eyes calculating, and he just stared, wide-eyed and brows creeping towards his hairline as you let out a little sound, putting all the condescension into it. And if your accent was a bit strong, well. You let it play.

“Oh, bless your heart. You just don’t understand. The South doesn’t pull punches.”

Your eyes didn’t break from his for a moment, and then you let out a little snort, shaking your head, moving past him. He seemed more than a little confused, and when you looked back he was just watching you, watching the way you walked toward the roundtable once more. You chuckled a little again, gesturing with your head towards Amanda and Carisi. 

“Oh, Northerners. Come on, Mr. Barba. No more blessing hearts today. I have a feeling this’ll be continuing education.”

-

You stood in Liv’s office a few weeks later, the two interrogation rooms on either side of you. In one, the victim, the other, the perp. A classic he-said, she-said, and you found yourself lingering on the perp’s side, watching as Carisi and Fin interrogated him. Their voices came through a little staticky, but you caught every word, your mouth twisting into disgust as you watched him spin a tale of woe.

“I did not do it,” he cried out, and his entire being reeked privilege. It was so easy to watch him pull every card out of the book, and watch the two detectives stand by, unimpressed. If he thought his charm and his smile would woo them, he was sorely mistaken.

“Look, you wanna know the truth, kid?” Carisi said, leaning back in his seat as Fin leaned against the window. Almost as if he knew you were standing by, watching. “We don’t give a rat’s ass who your father is, we don’t give a damn about your GPA. All we care about is what happened that night. So tell us what really happened now, and we won’t have to drag you out of your classes with our lights going.”

You huffed out a laugh at Carisi’s statement, which earned you a fellow lurker. Barba, there next to you. He normally didn’t get the cases this early, but with something like this he liked to hear everything from the beginning.

“Anything of value from him?” he asked, and you shook your head, turning to face him, one eye still on the interrogation.

“Nah, he’s just spinning his wheels. He thinks Daddy’s money can get him out of this bind, like every other one. Hasn’t caught the memo that we’re not that easy.”

Barba smirked, shaking his head. He turned to you, and his gaze lingered on your face, making you straighten a bit as he glanced back to the glass. “We certainly aren’t, detective. You’ll let me know the details later?”

Your brow raised. “Yeah, I can come by, if this isn’t something you’re gonna pass off to Callier. Course, I can fill her in, too.” It’d become an unofficial part of your job description, relaying the updates of the investigations to the D.A.s office when needed, trading off with Carisi. Mainly because the two of you liked going to see the counselor the most, for… different reasons.

Barba’s nod was short, and then he started migrating to the other side, where Liv and Rollins were in talking with the girl.

Suddenly, the whiny voice of the perp caught your attention.

“You can’t do this! My father won’t stand for it, do you hear me?”

Your nose wrinkled, and your little scoff was sharp enough to make Barba turn back, stop in his tracks. “Oh, bless his heart. He just doesn’t get it, does he?”

There was a warm chuckle from the other side of the room that made it your turn to look over, and you watched as Rafael Barba ducked his head, a hand lifting to cover his mouth as he did his best to look innocent.

“What’s so funny, Barba?”

When he glanced your way, the hand on his mouth lifted in surrender, the other sliding into his pocket. “Nothing. I just… think this is part of that continuing education you were talking about, detective.”

Your previous conversation came back to you, all of a sudden, and you watched as he chuckled again and pushed towards the interview room to watch Amanda and Liv.

“Trust me, you haven’t heard the last of it, yet,” you told him, and when he glanced over his shoulder he was smirking.

“I hope not.”

It was your eyes on him now, and you found yourself grinning and ducking your head before it became full-on staring, a warm feeling on your cheeks as Carisi and Fin came back into Liv’s office. You found yourself chuckling to yourself for the rest of the day, thinking about the way he looked while he smiled, at the way he laughed.

You wouldn’t mind seeing that smile more often, you decided.

Wouldn’t mind one bit.

-

The SVU squad room didn’t always leave you with smiles, of course. It was a lot of heartbreak, a lot of pain that circulated through interrogation rooms and interview sessions. A lot of sorrow, sitting in courtrooms and watching strong, powerful victims testify against their assailants.

A lot of pain. But… friends were a bright spot.

And slowly, Barba was becoming that, too.

Your role as the inbetweener was essentially official. More often than not you were accompanying Liv to One Hogan Place, the two of you in his office and trying to talk him into something (and him usually trying to talk the two of you out). A lot of times, you went on your own, making it just you and him standing on either side of his desk, discussing what could and could not be done in the eyes of the law.

It was still work, at that point, too. Because you could give him the details without skipping the important facts, could give it to him straight without hemming and hawing. You could defend your fellow detectives without taking it personally, knowing when wrongs were wrong and when to push.

And if those conversations started stretching longer, and if you found yourself lingering in his offices more and more, well. Amanda had permission to tease you about it in private.

But only in private.

In public, she could only send sly looks, looks you stubbornly avoided by meeting others’ gazes or looking down at your laptop.

Like in that moment, when Barba’s gaze met yours in his office, and the little nod he offered seemed enough to make your heart pound. A glance at Amanda, with her laugh behind her hand and head shaking, told you all you needed to know about how gone you were.

“Detective?”

Your gaze shot back to Rafael. This time his gaze wasn’t one of equals, but one of concern, his head tilted almost a little. And in that moment, you realized that he was asking you a question, that he had been nodding at you to answer…

“Sorry, sorry,” you scrambled, blinking a few times, trying to ignore the way Amanda kicked you under the small round table. “What was the question?”

“You’re the one who visited Miss Stevens last,” he said, pushing from his desk to stand up tall, walk towards you and your friend. “What’s your take?”

The interaction with your witness came back to you, and you grimaced a little at the thought of her taking the stand.

“Bless her heart,” you said, on instinct, shaking your head as you thought about her answers to the simple questions you asked her.

“That bad, huh?” the blonde said with a wince, and you nodded, sighing.

“Unfortunately.”

“What?” Barba’s brow raised with his question, and you realized that while Amanda got the gist, you were leaving the counselor in the dust for once.

Well. How to explain… politely…

You bit your lower lip a moment before speaking. “Miss Stevens is very… kind,” you offered, shrugging, “but her attention span is not the… greatest. A little… naïve, is the word I’d use, I guess.”

After a moment, Barba looked to Amanda, who just smiled sweetly. “I think what Y/N is implying is that, after talking with her, she realized that… uh.”

Nothing from Barba, who just looked between the two of you.

“Is what?”

It wasn’t worth the games anymore, even though the confusion on Barba’s face was hilarious. You turned to nod at Amanda, before leaning back in your chair, sighing.

“She’s, frankly, as dumb as a doornail.” When Southern politeness didn’t work, the next step was brutal honesty. “Which shouldn’t matter, but you put her up there –”

“And any defense attorney worth their salt would have her saying whatever they wanted her to,” Amanda finished. You reached over to pat her hand in thanks, and she just grinned at you, the two of you turning to the lawyer simultaneously. He didn’t answer immediately, eyes flicking back and forth between the two of you. 

“If you prep her really well,” you offered to him, “there’s a chance. But it has to be… really well.” You and your fellow detective stood, and as she moved to the door you just shrugged at the attorney.

“And you have doubt in my abilities to prep well?” Barba shot back, and you grinned at him. For the moment, Amanda was gone, just you and him and some verbal flirting to finish off the day.

You lingered in the doorway, and ignored the sound of Amanda’s foot tapping on the carpet. “I have doubt in her abilities to listen well.”

He just chuckled, shaking his head and letting out a breath. Whatever it took to finish a case. “All right. Well. I’ll figure it out. Thank you, for the extra lesson today. Three ways to use a phrase is… more than I was expecting.”

You chuckled, shaking your head at him, before an idea sprung to mind that made you pause before you turned out of the room.  

“Want me to call her in tomorrow? Bring her down to the precinct?” When he seemed to hestitate, you pushed a little. “She might be more comfortable with me there, and she’s already been to the precinct in one of our interview rooms. Might be best to introduce you at someplace she’s… familiar?”

Maybe you were hallucinating, but Amanda might as well have been on Mars. Because the smile Barba gave? It had to be all for you.

The case ended up finishing strong. Or, almost finishing. The tail end of the case found the two of you jogging out of the courthouse into a rush of cool fall winds, your noses going numb at the feeling as the sun started to set over the skyline.

“She did well,” you praised, hunching your shoulders against the cold. “Should never have doubted you.”

“Couldn’t have done it without New York’s finest,” he admitted, and when you glanced at him the only way to describe it was… mirth.

“Damn straight, counselor.”

Your steps were in time. No other detectives, no other lawyers, just the two of you making your way down to the street and relishing in the feeling of a well-fought battle.

“All that’s left is the jury,” you hummed. “Waiting’s always the hardest part.” 

“We could go grab a drink,” he offered with a little shrug. “Kill some of that time?” 

It was sudden, out of the blue. A moment that you were sure you imagined. “What?” you asked, turning to face him. You expected him to be staring out to the street, or up at the sky, but he was just staring at you, smirk ever-present and adding some sweet seduction to the offer.

“A drink. You, and me.”  

You tried to ignore that butterflies that suddenly took roost in your stomach, and the way your hand hastily went to your hair to make sure the wind wasn’t messing with it too much. “The case isn’t over yet, Barba. Are you sure you want to risk it?”

After a glance around the front steps, he stepped closer to you, smiling. He was wearing that bronze-colored wool coat, and you resisted the urge to reach a hand out, brush off imaginary lint. When he smiled, it was like his eyes lit up, the browns in the coat making the greens shine bright. 

“Then after the case,” he amended. “Once it’s over. Nothing to risk.”

He was serious. He wanted a drink. With you. You had to blink a few times, ducking your gaze to laugh. Amanda would get a kick out of this. Would probably also say that she told you so. “Hope you didn’t just push our luck saying that out loud,” you teased, but his smile didn’t waver when you met his eyes once more. 

“I mean it.”

It was that moment, you supposed. That moment when you looked at him and realized the counselor was looking at you the same way you knew you looked at him.

He was looking at you, and he was smiling, and you couldn’t get enough.

When you nodded, it was short, a little shy, your head ducking again as you pulled your own coat tighter around yourself, your hand tucking your scarf in to keep out the chill.

“Yeah, counselor,” you said. “I’d like that a lot, actually.” 

Then, because you couldn’t help it, you reached forward anyway, let your hand brush something off of his shoulder, flattened out the collar and let your fingers catch on the material. Smiled, as you looked at him.

“It’s a date.” 

-

You loved watching your boyfriend in his element. Because before almost anything else, Rafael Barba was a lawyer. And a damn good one.

The victims, plural, shared some vicious horror stories when they came into the squad room, some stories that they were brave enough to repeat on the stand. Rafael walked them through it, led them to places where they could share all of the details, and prepped them well for the defense’s return volley.

And considering that it was Buchanan, the victory was all the sweeter, especially since the perp was a scumbag who hadn’t wiped the smug look off of his face the whole trial.

Until today, of course. Rafael did his job, and you got the joy of catching his wink as he moved back to his seat, the perp’s words fumbling in his throat as Rafael trapped him in one lie after another. It was like music to your ears, and the sight of Buchanan putting his head in one had was visually just as sweet. 

“It isn’t over yet,” Rafael told you, meeting you at the doors once the jurors filed away, but you just shook your head.

“Not like you to be humble,” you laughed. “Come on, handsome. You know it was a good day.”

You relished in the way his eyes scanned you, the sight of the smirk on his face, the relaxed set of his shoulders.

“Let’s not jinx it. Just. Enjoy it while it lasts.”

You just chuckled, offered a brush of your shoulders to tide the two of you over, and together you started moving out of the courtroom. Only to be stopped by Buchanan, of course, whose voice made your spine stiffen.

“Just a moment, counselor.”

The two of you turned in sync, Buchanan meeting up with you right outside before the hallway. As the three of you stepped out of court, the tension you always felt between the two lawyers seemed heightened. Buchanan’s usual relaxed attitude was gone, replaced by a furrowed brow hestitation as he stepped towards the representative of the people.

“Well, that was quick,” Rafael sighed, and you bit your lip to keep from laughing.

“I want to discuss your offer. Rape Three, on both counts.” 

Rafael’s scoff was sharp.

“After what happened in that courtroom, I think we both know the deal has changed,” Barba shot back, raising a brow at the man in front of him. You couldn’t help the smirk on your face, glancing down to your shoes as Rafael talked to him. “Both counts of Rape Two, served consecutively, and I’ll consider only adding sexual misconduct for the Queens cases if he pleads guilty.”

“You call that a deal?” Buchanan scoffed, and your man just shrugged. “That’s barely a discount.”

Rafael didn’t back down, though, glancing towards the empty pews. “It’s better than two counts of Rape One, which we both know that jury is going to heavily consider. You had your chance for a better deal. It’s my final offer.”

The aghast look on Buchanan’s face was priceless. “Kicking me while I’m down,” Buchanan sneered, and you glanced up in time to see him direct his words at you. “Can you believe this guy? Punishing me for having an off day once in a while.”

It made your skin crawl. You hated the way he looked at you, and you found yourself lifting your chin to meet his gaze head-on.

“Well, bless your heart, Mr. Buchanan,” you told him, oozing fake saccharine from every pore. “Lord knows we all have bad days.” Your smile was tight, and he had the gall to return it.

“Look at that, Barba,” Buchanan said, nodding at you like your words actually meant something. “I think you should take a lesson from the detective here. No one likes a sore winner. Show a little courtesy, for me and my client.”

“My offer is final. Take it or leave it.”

Buchanan’s smile was tight, and he shook his head at the A.D.A. before turning away. “We’ll discuss it later today.”

“Is that a yes?” Barba called after him, and Buchanan visibly sighed, dropping his chin.

“I need to confer with my client,” he called back, and he turned a corner, vanishing in the maze that was the courthouse.

You shivered as he turned the corner, hating that you even thought about smiling at him.

“Suddenly decide to play nice with defense attorneys, cariño?” Rafael asked, his tone light as he watched all of your hatred finally show. You could tell he was teasing, that he knew the taste of your tone as well as any other.

“That, darlin’, was a good ol’ Southern fuck you,” you ground out, and Rafael’s hand lifted to rest on your back, turning you towards the elevator. You glanced toward him, as the two of you walked, and there was something like admiration on his face, a little smile that nowadays made you warm because you knew it was all for you.

“I don’t think anyone else gets you this riled up,” he teased lightly, and your eyes rolled even as your chin lifted. The doors opened, and the two of you were the only ones who got on. “And believe it or not, I could tell just what sentiment you were trying to get across.” When the elevator door closed his hands went to your shoulders, squeezing a little, fingers rubbing into the junction at your neck to work the muscle there.

“But I don’t think Buchanan did,” you laughed, the tension Buchanan always put in your shoulders leaking away as he continued to touch you, pulling you close for a kiss on your cheek before the doors slid open again.

“Eres una bendición,” he whispered to you, walking behind you as the two of you got off, and you turned to smile at him, raising a brow when he used a word you didn’t recognize. He just shook his head, threw a wink your way. “Meet me at my office?”

You chuckled a little, waving your hand, already missing the feeling of his fingers on your skin. “After work, of course.”

“Of course, counselor.”

-

(The sign of a good education was always that the student could put the lessons into practice. And Rafael was nothing but a good student. So in the end, it was meant to happen, and you were just lucky enough to witness it.

A night late night in his office, different paperwork wars being waged. An occasional tease from his desk thrown to your position on his couch, where you had set up shop.

Eventually though, the night wound down as it always did. The two of you sharing the couch, shoes off and feet tangled in the middle as he scribbled where he needed you, and your fingers typed away on your laptop.

The exhaustion was starting to get to you both though, and after your eyes crossed and blurred for the third time, you had to click save and close your laptop.

“I think I’m tapping out,” you groaned, leaning back against the arm of the couch. “Any longer and I’ll go blind from the blue light.”

“Not even midnight, cariño. Don’t tell me you’re giving up now,” Rafael teased, and you kicked his calf at the comment, eyes closing as you settled in, feeling the warmth of him on your legs.

“Unlike someone, I was sitting in a car to watch an apartment at dawn, so I think I have a good excuse.”

“Well, bless your heart,” he returned with a little verve, and your eyes shot open. Widened, as you sat up to stare.

It didn’t sound right in his mouth. His own New Yorker tone, his quick lawyer beat, it made it feel all jumbled up. Not enough oomph to really get the point across. But even as painfully wrong as it was, he said it, and that was what made your mouth stretch into a grin, made you scoot a little closer to him as he flipped through his own file, your laptop set (perhaps a little precariously) on the arm.

“What did you just say, counselor?”

It hit him the moment after you asked. Confusion washing over his features, and then realization, followed by something that looked a little like astonishment.

Maybe horror, but you didn’t hold that against him.

“Rafael,” you laughed. “I think your lessons in the South have ended, and I am the best teacher.”)

[charmandhex]

For @halcyonhowl, because I am rather late and also finally came up with a Taakitz idea I liked for the prompt “forbidden kiss.” ~

In Taako’s defense, this is not the worst decision he’s ever made. It’s probably just a few scant steps from the top of that list, but it’s not at the very top.

Still. Taako might end up regretting this one.

Listen, it goes without saying that dating the boss’s kid is a bad idea. Everybody knows that.

Pluuuuuuuus, you don’t want to get involved with your coworkers, ‘cause that can fuck up your whole working environment. Really bad idea.

Not to mention. Making out with someone the night before you’re getting on a small boat with seven other people, of which they are one, and so you’ll be stuck in confined quarters with them… for two months. Now that’s a stupendously bad idea right there.

Kravitz, son of the head of the IPRE, junior medical officer reporting to Captain D. Davenport, and the talented bard whom Taako had been sitting directly next to for the day’s earlier press conference about the Starblaster mission to explore and research the outer reaches of the Prime Material Plane for a period of two months, meets all of the aforementioned criteria to make kissing him a spectacularly bad idea.

And yet when Taako draws back from a spectacularly good first kiss, still very pleased with himself for hustling some shoes and now for another reason entirely, it’s Kravitz he sees, looking as gorgeous as ever and gratifyingly stunned.

“Uh- um-” Kravitz coughs a few times to clear his throat. “That was…”

As Kravitz is clearly collecting his thoughts after being blown away by the experience that is kissing Taako Taaco, Taako himself glances around, only half concerned that someone else on the mission might have seen.

Lup, tied for most brilliant arcanist/amazing chef aboard the ship with Taako and also Taako’s beloved twin sister, nails yet another trick shot at the pool table, causing an uproar of groans from anyone who’d dared bet against her. She looks up, eyebrow arched and mouth smirking, immediately catching her brother’s eye. She looks from Taako to Kravitz and back again, and she winks.

Yeah. Not like he’d expected to be able to keep a secret from her. He’s gonna get so much shit for this later.

Captain Davenport, the only other person actually capable of giving Taako shit for this, seems to be heavily engrossed in conversation with resident nerd Barry Bluejeans, probably going over last-minute bond engine shit for tomorrow. Neither of them has noticed shit, thank fuck.

Though Taako doubts that one of their resident arcanists/chefs kissing their junior medical officer would be the thing to get their attention, considering that their twenty-year-old security officer built like a brick shithouse has managed to start a bar fight. Magnus Burnsides looks to be having the time of his life and utterly oblivious to everything else.

Their senior medical officer, Merle Highchurch, seems to be trying to placate a few seedy-looking ruffians and on his way to unintentionally starting a second bar fight, while occasionally popping up over the bar behind him to look around is their chronicler. Eh, if Lucretia has seen anything, she might write it down, but she’s too quiet to actually say anything.

“Uh. Taako?” Right. Hot boy alert. Taako turns back to the hot boy in front of him, now looking less stunned and a bit more awkward. Kravitz has reached up to scratch at his neck and is needling at his lip, still thinking of what to say. “Uh, should we- is this-” Someone’s beer bottle soars over their heads, exploding as it crashes into the wall behind them. The place is enough of a dive that Taako doubts the stain on the wall and the layer of broken glass on the floor will even be noticeable.

“Tell ya what, bones, why don’t we get out of here?” Taako asks with a dazzling smile.

“Um. Sure, but- bones?” Kravitz looks askance at Taako as they stand.

“Yeah, you know, like Fantasy Star Trek? The medical officer?”

Taako realizes his mistake as Kravitz’s face crinkles up into a smile, and he laughs. It’s a nice sound. Taako could get used to that. “I would have thought that was too nerdy for you.”

“Yeah, uh, yeah, it is. Doesn’t mean you don’t get the whole… nerd cultural osmosis when you live on a campus with a bunch of nerds. And besides, you got that reference once I explained it!”

“Yes, but I never professed to not be a nerd,” Kravitz says smugly.

“Yeah, because anybody who spends more than eight hours a day playing violin can’t exactly deny it.”

Kravitz opens his mouth to reply, but whatever retort he was going to make is cut off as they very suddenly have to move as a large purple Dragonborn sails backward through the air, crash landing squarely into their table and collapsing it. Taako grins at Kravitz, this one no dazzle, all humor. “So, about getting out of here?”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

It’s quieter, outside, far quieter than Taako would expect, with even the birds and cicadas seeming to hold their breath in anticipation of the summer storm to come. Dark, too, and darker than expected, with massive gray clouds hanging heavy in the sky, blocking out the sky and stars.

“Seems like bad luck,” Kravitz says, looking up at the sky. “Starting a voyage off with a storm.”

Taako shakes his head, the bells on his hat jingling. Even those seem muted. “Nah, bones. It’s just to make it easier to leave behind.”

“If you say so.”

Taako scoffs, throwing the hustled shoes over his shoulder. “Listen, I am an adult elf and over 100 years old.” Of course, that statement may be reliant on some considerable rounding, but no one needs to know that. “I know what I’m talking about.”

“I can’t imagine having that kind of lifetime.” Kravitz says, and Taako’s eyes are drawn to the bard’s very human-looking ears. Something twists, disquieted, in his stomach. Probably just those greasy bar snacks Lup had dared him to try.

“Yeah, well, play your cards right and not like that chucklefuck-” Taako jabs his thumb in the direction of the bar, and as if on cue, there’s a whoop from Magnus, “-and you might just see the other side of a century, my man.”

Kravitz laughs, and again, Taako is surprised by how much he likes the sound. “I guess we’ll see. Oh, and, uh, thanks, again, for…”

Taako’s mouth quirks into a grin, and he lets out a laugh of his own. “Saving your ass from getting hustled at pool? If Lup and I had known you were such an easy mark, you’d be barefoot right now, my dude.”

Kravitz feigns injury at that. “You wouldn’t.”

“Oh, I fuckin’ would. You should avoid gambling, bones.”

“But it’s fun!” Kravitz whines. “I like gambling, I like games and wits and wagers.”

“So you like losing too?”

Kravitz blows out a breath, defeated. “No.”

“Gotta say, I think I won on both counts though, what with the shoes and the boy,” Taako says, and Kravitz brightens up at that. Impulsively, Taako grabs Kravitz’s hand, ignoring the look of surprise and immediately being surprised himself. “Fuck, bones, your hands are cold.” Taako yelps.

“Ah, circulation issues,” Kravitz says, looking almost embarrassed. “Hereditary. You don’t have to… Taako, why are you holding my hand?”

Good point. Why did Taako actually grab their junior medical officer’s ice-cold hand? “Pfft, yeah, listen… listen, it’s dark as shit, and you humans can’t see in the dark. How else are you gonna get safely home if my magic eyes and I don’t escort you?” Taako pauses, doubt finally catching up to him. “But if it’s a problem…” Taako says, making to disentangle his hand from Kravitz’s.

“No!” Kravitz exclaims, just a little too loud. “No. By all means. Lead the way.”

Taako grins before raising Kravitz’s hand to kiss it. “Gladly.”

Sure, this might a bad idea, but at the end of the day, it’s two months, right? What could happen?

[longitudinalwaveme]

Nitpicking Articles About Flash Rogues

Here’s some mistakes I found in Internet articles about the Rogues.

Article #1: 

1. The Rogues did not make their first appearance in Flash #130. 

It’s an understandable mistake, given that five of them are on the cover, but really the only Rogue to do anything of note was the Mirror Master. The other Rogues’ appearances were just Mirror Master’s lawyer (whom he hypnotized) impersonating them. Their actual first appearance as a group was Flash #155.

2. This one is really minor, but it’s Heat Wave, not Heatwave. 

3. I think it’s a bit misleading to say that Captain Cold is the most powerful of the Rogues. He is powerful, no doubt, but Mirror Master and Weather Wizard have a considerably broader and more versatile range of powers than he does. Pied Piper and the Top are probably also more powerful than he is. 

4. This is another minor mistake, but the party in Flash Vol.2 #19 was celebrating Captain Cold’s release from the Suicide Squad, not really his retirement. 

Article #2: 

1. I wouldn’t describe the Rainbow Raider as the least powerful of the Rogues. He’s a bit of a doofus, but his ability to manipulate both light and emotions is quite impressive and would be an extremely potent weapon in the hands of someone other than Roy. By the logic this list is using, Weather Wizard should be much lower on the list than he is. While he uses his powers more effectively than Roy usually does, he doesn’t use his powers to nearly the extent that he could if he put more effort into them. 

2.  There is NO WAY that Roscoe should be listed as the second least powerful Rogue. He’s not just a master inventor who created an atomic bomb all by himself, he’s a telekinetic telepath with super speed who can also return from the dead via possession. Surely he should at least crack the top ten. 

3. Being a contortionist is impressive. Not sure how it makes Ragdoll more powerful than Roy or Roscoe, though. 

4. Golden Glider is confusing; I’d accept her being ranked fairly low in terms of raw power if we were just looking at her Pre-Flashpoint self. But since the picture of her is from the New 52, when she gained the power of astral projection. With that power, she seems like she should be a bit higher on the list than #17. 

5. “Still, she makes the list for being an iconic villain who, when partnered with her protective older brother, turned out to be fairly competent all things considered.” Lisa was competent all on her own, thank you very much. 

6. Considering Piper has canonically blown up a planet with his flute, #16 seems quite low. Even if we disregard that feat because it was from Countdown, he’s still pulled off some really impressive feats that makes me feel like he should be a lot further up the list. 

7. “His powers are pretty insane considering their potential for assassinations and surprise attacks, but he ranks fairly low on the list because he can’t really stay a villain long enough to be effective.” This list isn’t ranking the most dangerous villains, just the most powerful ones. Reforming doesn’t make him less powerful! 

8. I really like James, and his inventing prowess shouldn’t be understated. That being said, there is NO WAY he’s more powerful than post-Flashpoint Lisa, Hartley, or Roscoe. He’s probably not even as powerful as Roy! 

9. “After being tricked into helping the demon Neron and smooth talking his way out of hell, the Trickster fully succumbed to psychosis, becoming a goofy, rambling personality, accentuated by being brainwashed by the Top.” ????? When did this happen? What are you talking about, article? 

10. “After getting his nose broken three times in the course of a day by Batwoman, Deathstroke, and Batman, Trickster sacrificed himself to save Piper. And how did Piper thank him? By dragging his body through the desert before finally cutting the hand off his corpse.” What was Piper supposed to do? He was on the run from people who wanted to kill him and he almost died! 

11. #14 seems like an appropriate slot for Cicada, all things considered. I’m still pretty sure he’s not more powerful than Roscoe or Piper, though. 

12. Double Down should not be higher on the list than Roscoe or Roy or Piper (or Trickster or Lisa or Cicada, for that matter.) 

13. Capt. Boomerang is a talented, skilled fighter. That being said, he is not more powerful than Roscoe. Or Piper. Or Roy. Or even James and Lisa, really. 

14. Heat Wave as number 11 is fine. I still don’ t think he should be higher than Roscoe or Piper, though. 

15. “Wow, the character Heat Wave has not aged well. So much so that the CW’s Arrowverse has actively kept the character from having any perceivable depth because the little intrigue there is to mine from him is from a bygone era best left in the past.” ???? Stop being mean to Mick, article. He’s a great character! 

16. Magenta as #10 is fine. In fact, I would be okay with her being a little higher, all things considered. 

17. “Long after breaking up with Wally West, Frankie Kane developed her magnetic powers quite suddenly and accidentally killed her entire family as a result. Understandably confused and terrified, she was quickly folded into Cicada’s cult where she became a lieutenant with the moniker, Magenta.” Frances’ powers developed before she even started dating Wally, let alone before she broke up with him. Also, it wasn’t like she immediately joined Cicada’s cult after Wally’s broke up with her. There was like a decade that passed between those two events, and Frances made several appearances in the intervening years. She also didn’t get her code name from Cicada. 

18. WHY IS ABRA KADABRA ONLY AT #9????

19. “Originally debuting under the moniker of Mister Element, Albert Desmond adopted his better-known name after finding the legendary Philosopher’s Stone and gained the ability to transmute materials. The problem was that Albert Desmond wasn’t actually Doctor Alchemist and never was. Turns out the entire time he was a villain, it was as an alternate personality called Alvin Desmond, who is also his celestial, astral twin. And if the concept of a split-personality metahuman who can turn one substance into another with a fantastic macguffin sounds familiar, it’s because Doctor Alchemy is basically Firestorm except as a disheveled gremlin of a villain.Though that’s fairly impressive in its own right, but his true claim to fame actually comes from the CW Flash show, where he was played by Harry Potter’s Tom Felton and reimagined as psychic entity that remembered the Flashpoint timeline that Barry had accidentally created. His power was updated from simple transmutation to metaphysically crossing timestreams, allowing him to grant super human abilities to people who had them in Flashpoint, including the CW version of Wally West. Though he’s ultimately put down by a coalition of Flash’s crew, the ability to transcend time itself basically made him a veritable god. Pity only the CW could see the character’s potential for it.” No, article. Just no. First, CW Alchemy was considerably more boring than his comic counterpart. And he’s not Dr. Alchemist, he’s Dr. Alchemy! (That being said, Dr. Alchemy deserves to at least be at #8 on the list, so I don’t really have a problem with his ranking.) They also don’t describe the Albert/Alvin situation quite right, but that’s really confusing, so I can’t really blame them for that. 

20. “Well part of it is that his main goal hasn’t changed much since his first appearance: to devolve humanity back into apes, no doubt a novelty in the early '60s, but kinda boring today. The other reason? Turns out that Grodd has failed in this endeavor at least 18 times, a failing record among Flash’s villains.” How many comics with Grodd in them has the writer of this article actually read? Because I can think of at least four storylines off the top of my head where Grodd has a goal other than turning people into gorillas. Also, the fact that he’s failed in his attempts to do this doesn’t make him any less powerful; Joker and Lex Luthor also fail in most of their schemes. It’s what comes of being a comic book villains. That being said, Grodd being #7 on the list is appropriate (although I might personally rank him a bit higher.)

21. Captain Cold is cool. I like him a lot. But even if we give him his New 52 ice powers, does he really deserve to be #6 on the list? Also, there’s no way he’s more powerful than Abra Kadabra, Dr. Alchemy, or Grodd. Or the Top. 

22. No complaints with the Mirror Masters collectively sharing the #5 spot, or with Shade being at #4. 

23. Weather Wizard is really powerful; him being in the #3 slot isn’t too inappropriate. Though I’m not sure if he’s really more powerful than Abra Kadabra (who should really have been much higher than #9). 

24. Why is Godspeed specifically at #2? True, he’s a speedster, and speedsters are VERY powerful, but there are a number of other villains with super speed who I think are faster than he is. I also would argue that he might be less powerful than Abra Kadabra, Shade, the Weather Wizard, and the Mirror Masters, given that he’s not really all that experienced with his powers. 

25. Eobard Thawne is really, really, REALLY powerful. I would argue that Abra Kadabra might be more powerful than he is, but otherwise he definitely outclasses the other villains on this list. 

26. And where’s Hunter Zolomon, anyway? He should definitely be on this list, and no lower than #2.