#and if anyone asks who gets to be the worst heel this year replacing solo....

[selamat-linting]

super heartwarming that solo sikoa was awarded as most hated, worst heel, worst guy ever in south korean wrestling forum but now he's awarded with best heel and most improved. everyone says i love you solo!

[suchdan-veryphil]

Two Worlds Collide - Dan Howell Imagine Part 14

Word Count: 2,872

Trigger Warnings: Drinking, almost sex, second hand embarrassment, swearing

A/N: I think it was time for this, don’t ya think? (DD means designated driver idk if that’s an American thing or what but guess what? It’s in the story now.) 

Part 13

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

One Year Ago...

“You never come out, Y/N. It’s time. You work hard, you go to your classes like a good girl. You deserve a to have a good time.” Cora told me as I sat on my bed with my chem books laid out around me.

“I just don’t think I would have fun. You’re meeting up with Eric and I’m gonna be third wheeling.” I explained as I crossed my arms. Cora and Eric had been dating since middle school and they were madly in love. It was disgusting, especially when I became the third wheel and had to listen to them go on and on about how much they loved one another. Disgusting.

Cora had been trying to convince me to go to a party for the last 3 weekends and each one, I denied. I wasn’t a partier, and I wasn’t very social. The last party I went to was a birthday party in 11th grade and I didn’t have any fun. At all. Being 20 years old, I had a job and school to worry about at the moment and if I wasted my night at a party, that’s time I could have been using to study.

“Just an hour.” She begged and sat on one of my books, lacing her fingers and pouting her lip slightly. Cora tilted her head to the side to give me the ultimate puppy eyes that I knew I couldn’t say no to. She did this all the time, and she knew exactly what she was doing. 

I flung the blanket off of my body and sighed. “Fine. But you’re the DD tonight.” I smirked and pulled my loose band shirt off to replace it with a simple black v neck, paired with a pair of ripped jeans and my favorite maroon Vans. I didn’t like to drink just for the sake of drinking, I don’t know why anyone would casually have a glass of wine or a beer with dinner. Alcohol was gross, but tonight I planned on drinking until I either passed out or couldn’t stand. It was my only way of not being completely annoyed at the fact that literally everyone else around me was drunk and I was soberly picking up after them. 

“I’m ready whenever you are,” I stated as I ran my fingers through my hair to get it in its proper place. 

“That’s it?”

“Yea, your point?” 

“Y/N, darling. What if you meet the love of your life tonight? You don’t want to look like some kid who just got back from the black parade.” Cora told me as she took my hair into her hands and started to maneuver it a little. 

“These are my clothes, I don’t know what to tell ya.” 

“Put some heels on, do your makeup. Wear a dress. Like I said, you could meet someone.” 

“First of all, I don’t own a dress. Second of all, do you know me? And third of all...” I paused to get a good look at my best friend. “The love of my life is not at this party. I wouldn’t let myself end up with some washed up frat boy who hasn’t read a book since middle school.” I told her matter-of-factly as I slid some deodorant over my underarms and sprayed myself with some of the little body spray I had left. 

Cora rolled her eyes and looked in the mirror to check her makeup before she ran her hands over her pants to straighten them out. She was wearing a similar outfit to me, black jeans, a tank top, leather jacket and a pair of heeled boots. She had her face all made up and she looked amazing. Cora always looked amazing. She didn’t have anyone to impress but that’s exactly what she did on the daily. I don’t think she knew or even intended to wow anyone, she was just always so beautiful. 

“I’ll drive there since you’re driving back.” I teased as I grabbed my bag and my keys and headed toward the door. 

Cora gave me the worst instructions ever, and it took us 45 minutes to get to the next town over. At that point, I was ready to just say fuck it and go back, but once I heard the music, I knew we were there. 

“Oh, fun! Let’s go! I see Eric!” Cora squealed as she hopped out of the passenger’s seat before I even turned off the car. Once I got out of the car, I looked over at Eric and gave him a wave. 

“Watch her! She’s driving tonight.” I warned him as I poked Cora gently in the shoulder. Eric gave her a quizzical look and she just rolled her eyes. “That’s what you get when you force me out of my apartment, thank you very much.” 

“Whatever! Grab me something to drink while you’re in there!” Cora yelled out as I walked through the door and looked around for a sign of a kitchen. There was a line directly into a room off to the side, and people were wandering out with solo cups in their hands and a glazed look over their eyes. That’s the one.

I made my way over and once I finally got up to the makeshift bar, I didn’t know how to serve myself. I poured fruit juice with probably way too much vodka in one cup and Sprite in the other cup. Both cups in my hands, I sighed and headed towards the door. My tiny frame made it easy to squeeze through people usually, but there were so many bodies that I had to use my elbows to get people to actually scoot. The number of times I said, “excuse me” would have sent my grandma soaring but nobody was moving. I took it upon myself to just go for it and push everyone out of my way until I made it to a clearing. 

Finally, out in the open of the living room, I started to rush towards the front door where I left my best friends. It took a total of three seconds for someone to ram into me, causing a giant spill of the contents of my cups. 

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry!” I immediately began to apologize for the giant wet red mark on the front of his grey shirt. I looked up, way up, to meet his gaze. 

“Oh dear, no it’s okay. God what was in that cup?” he asked and held his shirt out to observe the giant red stain with a bit of a laugh. 

I could feel myself blushing, not only because he was teasing me, but because the man was gorgeous. “If I’m being honest, I’m not quite sure. I just put liquids in a cup and hoped for the best.” I admitted and looked up at his brown eyes. Brown eyes usually were just that - brown eyes. But this man held something else in his eyes when I looked at them. Quickly looking away and around for some paper towel, I could feel my heart racing and my face heating up. We both leaned down to pick up the cups, and he tossed them into an opened trash bag. I spotted paper towels back towards what looked like it would be a dining room if it weren’t infested with solo cups and empty bottles. 

The stranger cleared his throat, catching my attention, and stretched his hand out to me. “Daniel- well you can call me Dan.” 

I could feel my cheeks tighten as I smiled and shook his hand. “Y/N. That’s it, that’s my name.” I mentally smacked myself in the face for even thinking of something so stupid. Dan seemed to like it though because he smiled and squeezed my hand a little before he pulled away. 

“Well, it’s been interesting meeting you but I have to go clean off my shirt before it starts to stick or stain,” he said and smiled at me a little before he started to step away.��

“Wait! Let me help. It’s the least I can do since I’m the one who ran into you with two cups of cold drink.” I offered and bit my lip gently. 

“You don’t have to-” 

“If you don’t want the juice to stain, I would suggest you find baking soda and laundry detergent,” I told him and headed toward the paper towels and grabbed the roll. I laid them over the large puddle on the hardwood floor, letting the liquid get soaked up before putting the soiled material in the same trash bag as the cups. 

“Well, seeing as this is my friend Chris’ house, I happen to know exactly where to find both of those items,” Daniel told me with a bit of a smirk as he began to wander off. 

“Ah, so you know the host?” I asked as we walked with confidence up the stairs and stopped in front of a linen closet. He opened the door and began to look around for the desired items. 

“You could say that. I’ve known him for years and we had a bit of a falling out, but now it’s like we never stopped talking.” He explained to me as he grabbed the liquid detergent and rummaged around for the baking soda. 

“That’s nice. That’s how you know it’s a true friendship. Anything else would have fizzled and died right there.” 

Dan gave me a slight side eye and a smirk as he continued to rummage. “You’re absolutely right.” He pulled the small box of baking soda off of the top shelf and closed the closet door before he started to walk down the hallway again. 

“I suggest a room with a tub,” I said before I rolled my eyes at myself. 

“Oh like a bathroom, perhaps?” Daniel asked teasingly and opened the last door on our right. 

“If it has a tub, it’ll work.” I tried to sound cool, suave even. It was not working. 

“Wonderful. Fill it with water, I presume?” 

He was definitely teasing me. 

“Do you want a clean shirt or to sit here and make fun of me for 20 minutes Daniel?” I asked, crossing my arms and raising an eyebrow. 

He held his hands up in surrender and laughed. “Point taken. Warm, hot or cold water?” 

“Warm. Pour a capful of detergent under the running water, too.” I instructed as I pulled my hair back into a loose and messy bun while Dan followed my instruction. 

“Now what?” I looked at him and bit my lip momentarily. 

“Unless you’d like to submerge yourself in the tub, you need to take it off.” I then began to open the medicine cabinet in search of hydrogen peroxide. When I found the unopened bottle, I proceeded to tear the cap off and say, “Lay it on the ground or the top of the toilet seat and sprinkle the baking soda on top of the wet spot.” 

I closed the cabinet and turned to see Dan laying the shirt on the ground flat and holding the box of baking soda. He wasn’t ripped, but he wasn’t unhealthy. He had a few freckles down his back and arms and I couldn’t help but stare as he put the baking soda down. 

“Finished. Now, what boss?” I was brought back from my thoughts and looked back into his eyes. When it registered that he called me boss, I couldn’t help but laugh a little. 

“Well, now we’re gonna pour the peroxide on it so that it bubbles up and lifts the stain,” I explained as I demonstrated. When the bubbles began to rise, I could see Dan become bewildered at the sight in front of him. “Science is pretty cool, huh?” 

“Yea, this is awesome. Now what?” 

I chuckled and picked up the shirt to rinse it under the flow of the tub water. A lot of the color came off, but I decided to soak it under the water anyways. I turned the water off and began to wring out his shirt in the bubbles. 

“You may want to ask your friend for a shirt because this isn’t going to dry in an hour, especially considering we’re gonna have to let this soak for like half an hour,” I admitted teasingly as I bumped his shoulder with mine. 

“You’re right. I’m sure he won’t mind if I just grabbed one. Let’s go!” He took my hand and pulled me up quickly. He peeked around the hallway and made a dash towards the room at the end of the hallway. Laughing, I ran behind him, gripping his hand tighter so that I wouldn’t fall behind. He closed the door behind us once we got in and I couldn’t help laughing louder. 

“What is so funny?” 

“The last thing I thought I would be doing tonight is laundry,” I admitted and sat on a neatly made bed as Dan opened a closet on the far end of the room. 

“Yea, well the last thing I thought I’d be doing tonight is wearing one of Chris’ shirts.” 

I chuckled and sat with my legs crossed as I watched him pick out a shirt. “I say go for that bright pink one on the way right.” 

“Yea it really compliments my eyes, huh?” 

We both laughed lightly and smiled at one another. Eventually, he chose a plain white shirt and sat on the bed beside me. 

“So, what brings you to a party like this on a Saturday night, Y/N?” He asked and leaned back on his elbows. 

“More like who... My best friend Cora insisted that I study too much and needed a night to myself.” I informed him. 

“Ah, do you want a night to yourself? I can leave you here to nap and wake you up when it’s time to dry my shirt.” 

I could tell he didn’t really intend to leave, but he was trying to be nice. “I’m okay. I quite enjoy your company, if I’m being honest. Besides, I’m not a party girl.” 

“Is that why you had a cup half vodka half fruit punch?” Dan snickered and bit his lip. 

I gently pushed his arm and shook my head. “For someone I’ve just met, you sure have a lot of jokes to make about me.” I teased back. 

“I’m sorry if they’re mean. I feel like I can joke with you, though. I’ll stop if it’s bothering you.” 

“I never said that.” I glanced over at him and leaned back the same way he was. 

“Oh. Okay... good then.” He paused and looked at me. “I don’t like parties either. I think it was actually a blessing in disguise that you ran into me. If you hadn’t I’d probably have to be socializing. Gross, right?” 

I couldn’t help but smile and bite my lip as he made his point. “Yea, blessing. That’s what that was.”  

We laughed it off a bit before we sat and stared at each other for a moment in silence. I felt like he was trying to read me, trying to see my inner thoughts and deepest secrets before he whispered, “Y/N, have you had too much to drink tonight?” 

I swallowed the lump in my throat and shook my head. “No.” Daniel leaned in a bit and glanced at my lips, then back into my eyes. 

“Can I kiss you?” 

I just nodded and leaned in to meet him halfway. I don’t know what happened, but my stomach suddenly weighed a ton but my chest felt like it was full of air. The longer the kiss went on, the closer we got and the more effort and passion we poured into the kiss. 

Just as I was about to get handsy, the door opened and a boy with hair remarkably like Justin Bieber’s from 2010 began to speak. “Daniel, why is your-” he stopped when he noticed what was taking place. Dan and I separated immediately and I put my fingertips over my swollen lips, not making a lick of eye contact. 

“On my bed, Dan?! Literally two guest rooms and you choose my bed?” the man paused and I could hear Dan laughing. 

“Trust me that wasn’t what we came in here with the intentions of doing,” Dan spoke through his laughter. “Now what were you saying?” 

“Your t-shirt is in my tub and I was curious as to why but I really don’t care anymore. I’ll just burn it with my sheets.” Chris announced and walked away without closing the door. 

I giggled a little and I could feel my cheeks heating up. 

“Well, that was sure as hell the most awkward thing I’ve ever had happen to me,” Dan said and took my hand into his. 

“If you want, we can go to my place and actually be alone. We don’t have to be physical or anything but I would definitely like to talk to you.” He picked up our hands and placed a kiss on the back of my hand. 

“Yea, let’s go. Although, being physical isn’t out of the question.” I kissed his cheek by his jawline once and stood up with him. 

[revengeworld]

Let the Past die. XV

Zombie Apocalypse AU

Kylo x Reader (+ Solo siblings)

Words: +2.200

Warnings: HORRIBLE written Fluff, Angst

AN: I think this is one of the worst written Chapters yet. :’D I hope you guys still enjoy it.I just had a huuuuuge writing block while working on this chapter. Let me know what you guys think!

MY MASTERLIST

REQUESTS

Previous Chapter - Burning Love

Chapter 15 - Home

Later then originally planned, the two of them were inside the snow covered mall. It looked extremly beautyfull but creepy at the same time when they thought about all the people that would normally stroll through here.

“The roof collapsed. We should be careful.” she whispered and Kylo nodded, looking around this abandoned place.

“So since we don´t really need to be worrying about biters in this cold. What do you want to do first?” Kylo had the widest gin on his face and already stomped through the snow to a distorted floor plan.

It was obvious that Kylo enjoyed to be on the road again, not being locked up in the hut.

“You know what? I let you decide.” she smiled, while kissing his cheek. Seeing him so excited warmed her heart even in this cold winter day.

Thinking silently for a moment it seemed like he had a sudden idea.

“Come on!” pulling her onto the snowy escalator, they carefully climbed the metal stairs.

“So what is your plan?” she asked while looking around the upper floor.

“Play pretend! Ready for Prom?” he grinned wide and she could only shake her head with a smile.

The first hours the both of them just walked around, looking into the windows and explored the shops while stealing kisses from each other.

Pulling her into a clothing shop, Y/N first thought they would just look for new clothes, especially for Ben, but when they were passing all the regular clothes she got suspicious.

“Uhm Kylo?”

“Just a little more.” he promised and soon they were surrounded by fancy clothes.

“We pick your prom dress!” he suddenly announced and twirled her around. Starting to giggle, she looked at all the fancy dresses in front of her.

“Are you serious?” she asked, letting her fingers run over the soft fabric of a red satin dress.

“Why not? Today is our Date, so why shouldn´t it be our Prom as well?” Kylo asked and pressed a gentle kiss against her temple.

“Today is our day. Let´s enjoy it.” he whispered into her ear and she could only grin.

“Let´s party!”

Grabbing everything they could carry, the soon wrecked the dressing rooms, trying on the weirdest combinations while laughing their heads off.

“God you look hideous.” Y/N tried to contain her laughter when she saw her boyfriend with a top hat.

“Look who is walking, Miss Mermaid!” he stalked around her and looked at the enormous gown.

“Did you pick anything yet?” he asked while unbuttoning a black shirt.

“Actually yes.” proudly holding up a simple black dress he smirked. She did fit it to his liking he knew that, but as long as she liked it too he was fine with it.

“You will look gorgeous! Take it,  and let´s look around a bit more, the had some good warm clothes up front. Maybe we can find something from the Wishlist.” he mumbled while pulling over his shirt and big flanel jacket.

“Sounds good to me. How about the Toystore on the corner.” she nodded and shouldered her backpack.

“And the CD Shop on the other side.” he added.

While they looked through the normal clothes, Y/N couldn´t hinder a sighed leaving her lungs. All these fashion clothes just a waste. The y weren´t even usable in anyway, even if they would try and make something new out of it.

Everything that could be slightly usable wandered into empty bags, and Y/N and Kylo were more then satisfied with the bigger clothes for Ben. There weren´t much with space prints but dinosaurs should be just as good.

When they slandered through the Music Store, it was like a flashback from an earlier life. Normally she would have hung out with her friends here, while trying to get the newest CD of their favourite Artists. But now this store was empty, filled with dust and things that would probably never been touched again by anyone when they would leave.

“What do you think of this one?” turning around to Kylo, who had called out to her, she saw him hold up a black new acoustic guitar.

“I think it´s a good replacement for your old one.” hugging him tightly she knew how much he missed his old one, which sadly got damaged.

Looking at his open big, she noticed the at least 20 CD cases. “Geez Kylo what are all those?” she giggled and wanted to reach out for one but he stopped her.

“Just… music….” he mumbled and quickly walked around her. Shrugging her shoulders she followed.

Exploring every store they could get into they soon noticed that it was already getting dark.

“Well at least we found the clothes we needed already.” she looked at the bags on the cargo bed of the truck and then back to the sky.

“Okay, then let´s look into this thing and then we go back for now.” Kylo swung a crowbar before returning inside the mall and up the escalator. Y/N followed slowly, watching Kylo turn a corner before she stopped in her tracks. Maybe it was just her imagination, but she thought she heard a scratching sound nearby.

When she wanted to call out to Kylo, he already came sliding around the corner. “RUN!”

For a moment she wasn´t sure if she believed her eyes, when she saw a bunch of dogs running after him. “Oh Fuck!!” turning on her heels the both of them were running as fast as they could.

“The escalators!” Kylo screamed before Y/N jumped on the middle part to slide it down, falling into the snow, she quickly jumped up before Kylo crashed right beside her, the dogs still on their heels.

“Get to the Truck quick!!” breaking through the doors she suddenly felt Kylos hand grabbing the back of her jeans before he tossed her onto their vehicle, landing next to her seconds after.

Catching their breaths, both of them soon started to laugh while the dogs circled the car. Not hearing anyone of them growl but more whimper they carefully looked over the edge.

“I think they are just hungry. We could spare some...” she suggested to Kylo who ruffled through her hair before he nodded.

Throwing the dogs the snacks the had kept for themselves, Kylo rummaged through his backpack to reveal another polaroid camera. Taking a few shots of the dogs and how Y/N feed them. Soon all of them left as a big group, jumping and playing around in the snow.

Looking at herself in the mirror, she almost didn´t recognize herself, even with the fancy, black long dress on. Half a year ago she probably would have tried to curl her hair and put nice make up on, but now the only thing she could to was to put up her hair with the pins she wound in a drug store and a bit of eyeliner.

“Can I come out now? Why did I even need to put it on now?” she sighed, disappointed that she couldn´t be prettier even if she wanted to.

Opening the bathroom door, Kylo grinned and looked her up and down.

“God you look so fucking hot...” he mumbled and it quickly put a smile back to her lips. “Even though I prefer your biter slayer look.” gently hitting him against his shoulder he slowly pulled her into the living room.

“Wow...” she could only breath while looking around. He had barricaded all the windows so that the light from the at least 50 candles wouldn´t be noticed from outside, while soft music was echoing through the room.

“It´s not ideal, I know. But it´s … some kind of prom?” nervous he scratched his neck while he looked on the floor.

“I love it...” she whispered while cuddling up against his chest. “Thank you.”

“When did you came up with this?” taking her hands he only shrugged with his shoulders.

“I don´t know, it just came to my head.” starting to slowly sway to the music she gently laid her arms around his neck.

Pulling her closer, the two of them slowly danced to the quiet music in the background.

Laying her head against his chest, Y/N closed her eyes, just enjoying this normal moment, before a weird pop song started to play.

“Oh my God, I didn´t know that they were such horrible fucking songs on this fucking CD.” Kylo quickly apologized and changed the music.

“I don´t care which music is playing just come here!” stretching out her arms, he soon returned to her before pressing light kisses against her lips.

Stretching under the warm blanket, Y/N wrapped her arms around Kylos large Torso before opening her Eyes.

“Kylo?” sighing she tried to take a look out the window but he was holding her down.

Growling he tried to bury her again under the blanket, but she was having none of it this time. Since about three days they had all the stuff they needed and normally they would have returned already, but somehow Kylo managed to persuade her to stay a little longer.

“I go take a shower and after that, we should plan, okay?” she whispered and showered him with little kisses all over his face.

“Yeah… sure, whatever.” Kylo pulled his pillow closer and pressed his face in it.

Shaking her head with a smile, Y/N searched for clean clothes before retreating into the bathroom.

Suddenly hearing screams, Kylo opened his eyes again, had he dozed off before the faint scream became more prominent and his head snapped up.

“Y/N?!” calling for her he didn´t got an answer. Stumbling onto his feet, the screams became louder and louder by the second.

“Y/N answer!” he screamed through the House and hasty looked into every room before he came to the locked bathroom door, the screams now so loud that they were ringing in his ears.

“Y/N are you okay?!” rattling at the door, panic was rising in his chest when she didn´t answer. “Open the damn door!! Come one sweetheart!!” his heart started to race and the screams became more and more painful. Not being able to see another way, Kylo started to punch the wooden door until a gaping hole had formed, on the other side was Y/N looking shocked at him.

“Are you okay? I...I heard you screaming ...” he suddenly mumbled until he noticed her scared look. His eyes suddenly widening in realisation. She hadn´t screamed and she wasn´t in any danger.

Closing his Eyes he pushed the hair, that had falling in his face, back. It was all in his imagination. The moment he woke up and she wasn´t around his mind had instantly switched to the night were this bastard was dragging her away, being forced to listen to her screams while he couldn´t help her, they were burned into his mind.

Catching her breath, Y/N was watching Kylo closely while pulling back on her sweatshirt, before opening the destroyed door.

Cupping his face, she looked in to his eyes which were focused on the floor in horror.

“It´s okay...” she whispered, realising that he probably had a panic attack.

“Kylo look at me!” sternly lifting his chin, his eyes which were filling up with tears met hers. “You need to breath, come on.” taking a deep breath herself, he soon joined her, even though his were extremely shaky.

But soon both of them took deep and long breaths together and he seemed to calm down.

“We are fine Kylo. Nobody is hurting us anymore.” Y/N tried to reassure him and could hear him repeat her words quietly.

Smiling at him she carefully left small kisses on his cheek before pressing a final long one on his lips.

“How about you join me in the bathtub? Then you don´t have to be scared to loose me.”

Feeling his hand on her neck, Y/N let him pull her into another kiss before he slowly nodded.

“Y/N I ...” laying a finger on his lips, she leaned her forehead against his. “It´s okay.” Hugging his Torso tightly the two of them just stood there a few moments while embracing each other.

Leaning against his bare chest, Y/N was staring down at there connected hands.

“We really should go home.” feeling Kylo push his head against the back of her shoulder she sighed.

“I know you rather would stay a little longer, but you are worried otherwise you wouldn´t just had that panic attack. And I´m worried too.”

He knew she was right, even though he didn´t want to admit it.

“I know...” he finally agreed and hugged her tighter.

“Besides, Ben will hate us if we don´t show up with his stuff soon” hearing his soft chuckle, Y/N looked over her shoulder and pressed a long kiss on his cheek.

“You know what?” she suddenly asked and turned around in the bathtub. “Maybe you should get a white beard, you could be Santa.” she giggled while putting foam on his beard and hair.

“You little...” grabbing her by her hip, he started to tickle her while she tried to fend of his hands with a laugh.

At the end both of them were totally covered in foam, laughing at each other at how ridiculous they looked, before Kylo was wiping her face clean, gently stroking over her cheek.

“Yeah, let´s go home.”

Tags: @karma-jolie @hungrymango @sdavid09 @attorneyl @celestiaelisia @zoemonster200 @marveloussirens11 @plethora-of-things @ayatimascd @ghostslikemydoubts

[afjakwritesarchive]

NWC #12

Posting this late but here y’all go!! <3 

Pairing: USUK  Words: 4,163 Rating: T AU: Human/soulmate AU Genre: Romance/drama Summary: Years ago, Arthur Kirkland ran from his soulmate just after their watches fell off. In the present day, he’s a successful businessman who has recently hired a new PA—his soulmate, Alfred Jones.  (Alt. summary b/c I was trying to make that one kind of like a normal book summary but I wanted to add more details, so here’s a non-”professional” one: Arthur Kirkland runs away from his soulmate without letting him see his face, however he has seen his soulmate. Years later, Francis hires a new PA for him, which turns out to be his soulmate.) A/N: This is a bit of a longer one! Was trying to do something different! Kinda sucks but oh well. 

Arthur glanced around the small park from his seat at the fountain, looking around impatiently. His foot, clad in a pair of freshly tailed oxfords, tapped impatiently against the pavement and he pulled the sleeve of his suit jacket back in order to get a look at his wrist. As always, the small electronic device embedded in his wrist read the same: August 1st, 2014, 3:23 PM. He sighed and looked to his other wrist, upon which was a watch displaying the actual time: 3:21 PM.

Arthur hoped for a moment that perhaps his soulmate would be late—or perhaps not even show up at all—and scoffed at himself for such ridiculous thoughts. Unfortunately for him, it was simply impossible for that to happen. A soulmate was never late, nor was it possible for them not to show up. To his disappointment, someone would most certainly arrive with the next two minutes, most likely expecting Arthur to eagerly jump into his waiting arms.

Arthur felt sorry for whoever the bloke was. He didn't want to hurt anyone, really; it was only that he had much more important things on his mind than soulmates, and he couldn't be bothered to try and keep up a relationship with someone at the present—not if he wanted to be the CEO of his own company before his thirtieth birthday. A soulmate was a distraction. A heartwarming, dreamy, romantic distraction, but a distraction nonetheless. And Arthur couldn't afford to make room for any distractions in his life. There were far more important things than love.

Ah, shit. That made him sound awful. He cringed at himself for even thinking such a harsh thought. He wasn't insensitive, truly; selfish, maybe, but he always tried to address his selfishness and make it as easy on everyone else as he possibly could. Of course, there was no right way to tell the man you were meant to be with that you didn't want to be with him—or that you were only on vacation in America and would be leaving in two days to an undisclosed location, and that he would most likely never see you again.

Arthur sighed heavily and ran a pale hand through his equally pale hair, his heart beating faster as the minute changed on his watch.

A man strolled down a path toward the fountain from the opposite edge of the park. He was too far for Arthur to see his face, but he appeared to be tall, and he was dressed in a pair of loose-fitting jeans and a t-shirt. He was staring at his phone, his thumbs moving rapidly as he walked.

Arthur looked around once more. No one else was anywhere near him; certainly not close enough to make it to him before 3:23 struck. Arthur's heart began to beat wildly and he pulled the morning's paper from his pocket, pulling it up to cover his face. From behind the paper, green eyes watched as the figure rapidly approached.

The man was so close now. Arthur's face was heating up. He stood, still using the paper to obscure his face, and watched the man lower his phone and look around.

God, he was gorgeous. Up close, Arthur could clearly see every beautiful inch of his face; gorgeous suntanned skin, thick, plush, delightfully pink lips, silky hair that shone as if it were made of gold... And god, those eyes. They were the most brilliant, breathtaking blue Arthur had ever seen in his life. Then, the man's eyes caught on him. Arthur watched as the brightest smile he'd ever had the pleasure of viewing stretched across that unbelievably handsome face of his and, gasping, pulled the paper up to cover his entire face.

"Hey!" The man called. His voice was like music to Arthur's ears. "Hey, I—Woah!" The man let out a laugh as the small device previously embedded in his wrist clattered to the pavement. Arthur's did the same, and he watched it roll in the man's direction for a moment before gulping.

"I'm—I'm sorry!" Arthur cried.

Then, shocking himself, he turned on his heel and ran.

"H-Hey!" The man called behind him. He heard running footsteps behind him. "Hey, wait! I'm your soulmate!"

Arthur ignored him, running as fast as his legs would carry him. He rushed out of the park and onto the street.

"Wait! W-Wait, I'm Alfred! Alfred Jones! Don't go!" The voice called, sounding somewhat far away.

Arthur risked a glance behind him and noticed to his relief that Alfred had been held up by a line of bikers passing suddenly in front of him on the sidewalk. He was looking at Arthur with the most heartbroken expression the Brit had ever seen anyone wear. It made him want to run to Alfred's aide, apologize, and throw himself at the man.

No. He couldn't fall for this—couldn't fall for him. He couldn't let all his hard work be for nothing. He couldn't let love distract him from his dreams.

Arthur ignored the tears stinging at his eyes, turned before Alfred could get a good look at him, and fled.

"Mr. Kirkland?" Came the secretary's voice from Arthur's doorway.

The Brit looked up from his morning paper and raised one impressively thick eyebrow at the woman standing in the doorway. "Yes?"

"Your new assistant is here."

"Ah, the 'surprise hire' Francis picked out for me? Send them in; I'll humor the frog for a moment. He's been raving about my mystery employee all week."

"I'm still surprised you agreed to let him pick out a PA for you, sir." Said his secretary in return, a humored smile set upon her face.

Arthur returned the expression, an evil glint in his eye. "Yes, well, I'm sure this person will be the worst assistant I've ever had, and then I'll have an excuse to mock Francis for his terrible taste in everything."

"Do you really need an excuse, sir?" She asked.

"No; but it's much more fun that way, don't you think?" Arthur said, chuckling a bit.

She smiled in return and then stepped out of the room while Arthur looked back down to his paper.

"Mr. Kirkland?" Came a voice from the doorway once more.

Arthur jolted, jerking his head up. At the sight of the man in the doorway, he nearly fainted.

"Woah, sorry, didn't mean to scare you!" Said the man as he took a step into the office, grinning brightly at Arthur. "I'm Alfred, the PA Francis hired for you."

Arthur stared in absolute shock at the man. Alfred. Christ, the Alfred. His Alfred!

Those big, beautiful blue eyes—the eyes forever burned into Arthur's memory, the eyes he'd never thought he'd have the pleasure of seeing again—blinked curiously at him. That all-too gorgeous mouth of his curled into a frown born of confusion.

"Um, Mr. Kirkland...?" Alfred tried once more, looking somewhat concerned.

"Ah! Yes, yes, sorry, I was just—erm, I was startled. I-I expected you to be... different." Arthur said, and cleared his throat as he stood up and made his way around his desk, holding a hand out to the man. "In any case, it's quite nice to meet you, Alfred."

Alfred beamed brightly once more and took Arthur's smaller hand into his large, strong, unbelievably warm one. Arthur felt a jolt of electricity run up his arm when they made contact, and he struggled to keep a red flush from his cheeks.

"Nice to meet you too! Francis said you would have some interview questions for me?"

"Ah, yes. Please, have a seat there. They're just some questions to learn a bit more about you." Said Arthur, struggling to keep his voice calm as his mind whirred.

Alfred plopped into one of the seats across from Arthur and waited patiently for the Brit to sit down and extract a piece of paper from a folder left underneath his paper.

"H-How old are you, Alfred?" He stuttered and cursed himself, trying to calm his racing heart.

"Twenty-three," replied the American in question, leaning back in his chair with a polite smile set upon his face.

Arthur nodded and looked down, jotting the age down. "Alright. And what brings you to England?" He asked.

"I was looking for a change is all. Francis told me I should come out here and live."

Arthur frowned, jealousy flaring up with no warning. He chastised himself in his head; Alfred wasn't his. He'd abandoned the man, for God's sake. Alfred was free to choose whatever partner he wanted.

"Oh, we're not together, sir!" Alfred exclaimed hurriedly, seeming to notice Arthur's distaste. "He's been a close friend for a while, but nothing else."

"I see. Ah, well, that actually brings me to my next question—are you bonded, and if so, do you have children?" Arthur questioned, his throat constricting painfully.

Alfred's smile fell for a moment, but he quickly replaced it and shook his head. "No, neither. I'm still solo." He replied.

"I see." Arthur said, and pretended not to notice the way Alfred tugged at his shirtsleeves in order to make sure they covered his wrists.

From there, the interview continued rather normally. Alfred was enthusiastic and sweet, with an abundance of corny jokes and an unrelentingly happy demeanor. Despite his best efforts to resist it, Arthur was quickly overtaken by Alfred's charm, and couldn't help but to like the man by the time they'd concluded the interview. Artuur gave Alfred the job and explained the basics of his position, talking of training the next day.

They fell into a routine easily after that. Every day, Alfred arrived twenty minutes before Arthur and made sure everything was in order before preparing him a cup of tea in the break room. He answered calls and met with clients on Arthur's behalf, and did side work for some of his coworkers. By the time a month had passed Alfred was a favorite of the tenth floor office, well-liked by everyone he worked with.

And especially well-liked by his boss.

Despite Arthur's numerous and valiant attempts to remain impervious to affection, even he hadn't been resistant to Alfred's likability.

God, how couldn't Arthur like him? He was perfectly punctual every day, and showed up ready and eager to work. He completed all of Arthur's tasks without complaint, and took the condescending comments Arthur made with a grain of salt. Not only did he disregard them, he actually laughed at Arthur's rude commentary, and always had a snarky reply to throw back. He seemed to see straight through his boss' jaded exterior. It was both maddening and comforting, and despite himself, Arthur found that the tumultuous concoction of emotions Alfred had stirred up in him only made Arthur like him more.

Alfred drove him crazy. He all of Arthur's likes and dislikes rolled into one, a walking contradiction. He was ditzy and witty, cute and sexy, stupid and smart, arrogant and modest and lovely. He was everything Arthur had never known he'd wanted.

He was what Arthur had always doubted—the missing piece of his puzzle. His other half. The perfect complement.

His soulmate.

It killed Arthur. How did one deal with the knowledge that they'd run out on their soulmate—that they'd deemed the most wonderful person they'd ever known a distraction from true success? Gazing at Alfred day after day, seeing the smile on his face, hearing that wonderful voice throw teasing insults his way, made Arthur realize that he'd cheated himself out of true success.

Mr. Kirkland?" Came Alfred's voice.

Arthur looked up, smiling at the sight of Alfred peeking his head in the doorway to his office. "Yes, come in."

"Thanks," said Alfred, and stepped inside. He swung his arms back and forth, a nervous habit of the American's Arthur had become accustomed to over the months they'd worked together.

"What did you need, Alfred?" Arthur questioned in a soft tone, perplexed by the American's unease.

"Um, I wanted to request next Tuesday off." Said Alfred, biting at his bottom lip.

Arthur frowned. "May I ask why?"

"It's—" Alfred paused, then took a deep breath and abruptly blurted—"Mr. Kirkland, my soulmate left me."

Arthur started, green eyes going wide in surprise. His mouth fell open, too shocked to respond.

"He ran away right after our watches fell off. Which was, um, three years ago next Tuesday." He explained, tone sad.

The Brit's face fell, noting the terrible pain in Alfred's expression. His eyes were glossy with the beginnings of tears, his mouth set in a thin line.

"I... see. Of course, Alfred. Take as much time as you'd like." Arthur said, and immediately felt like hitting himself.

How much more horrible could he possibly get? It was clear now that he'd broken Alfred's heart, and it made his own ache. If he were a good man, he'd step forward and explain everything. He'd ease Alfred's pain by explaining just what a fool he'd been, how it had been foolish and wrong and so, so awful. But instead, he merely nodded when his PA left the room, gulping as the door to his office shut behind his soulmate.

On Tuesday, Arthur took a half day, hoping to cheer himself up. Since Alfred had brought the anniversary of his abandonment up, it had weighed heavily on his mind, and he hadn't been able to do any work whatsoever. Instead, he'd run over every single detail of that day in his mind a thousand times, each time dropping further and further into intense self-loathing.

He decided to treat himself to lunch at a small cafe he was rather fond of, which had several booths overlooking a small lake. It was a perfectly enchanting spot to sit and people watch, a hobby of Arthur's.

However, luck was not on his side, as per usual. He'd barely stepped into the cafe when he noted the very reason he'd left work sitting alone in a booth by the counter, resting his head against the glass and looking out at the water with sadness in his eyes. His hand was cupped around a coffee cup, of which he ran his fingers along the rim of.

When Arthur stepped inside, Alfred looked up and gaped at the sight of his boss. After a moment, he stood, quickly making his way toward his boss.

"Mr. Kirkland, I swear I'm not skipping out on work just for fun!" He said quickly, looking worried. "I really needed to get out of the house."

Arthur shook his head. "That's alright, Alfred. I understand entirely. Besides, there'd be no work for you to do if you had come in; after all, I'm not there."

Alfred let a small smile grace his lips at that. "Thanks." He said gently, and looked around. "Um... Do you wanna sit down?"

"I'd hate to bother you—" Arthur began, only to be interrupted by the American.

"No, I could use the company. Seriously. I mean, obviously I don't expect you to but if you want to, you're more than welcome."

Arthur glanced toward Alfred's booth and then back to the American. After a moment, he nodded. "Alright," he said with a smile.

Alfred walked him back to their booth and the pair sat down. After having his order taken by their waiter, Arthur looked to Alfred.

"How are you feeling?" Arthur asked tentatively, worried.

Alfred shrugged. "I'm okay," he murmured. "The first year was the hardest, but it's still hard. Eventually I'll be fine to work and stuff, I just... Y'know. It takes time. For years I would look down at my wrist and dream of today, of meeting them, and all the anniversary parties we'd have after. And now... Well, there's certainly no reason to throw a party." He said with a sad smile.

Arthur nodded, looking down at his teacup. His distorted reflection stared back at him in his tea. "I'm sorry." He said.

Alfred shook his head. "It's not your fault."

The elder winced at that, gripping his cup a bit tighter.

"What's your soulmate like, Arthur?" Alfred questioned.

Arthur looked up from his tea, surprised. "Mine?" He asked.

"Yeah. What're they like?"

"Well, he's..." Arthur looked into Alfred's eyes and sighed dreamily. "He's wonderful, honestly. Everything I've ever wanted and more. He's got the brightest eyes, the sweetest smile, the most gorgeous laugh, the kindest heart. I don't deserve him."

Alfred frowned. "Don't say that. Everyone deserves a soulmate!" He protested, comforting the man.

"I wish you were right." Replied Arthur. "I'm afraid I ruined things between us. I let my work get in the way of us. We're not together." He explained.

Alfred's brows furrowed and he nodded, seeming to understand Arthur. "I'm sorry." He said.

Then it was Arthur's turn to smile sadly. "It's not your fault." He told the American, repeating him.

Alfred let out a small laugh and turned toward the window. "Sometimes I wonder why he left. I didn't even get to see his face. God, I bet he was perfect. I bet he was the most gorgeous guy in the whole world." Alfred said, smiling gently.

"Perhaps," Arthur said. "But I doubt there's someone more lovely than you."

Alfred's eyes flitted toward the man, cheeks reddening. "Geez. I didn't know you could flirt, Mr. Kirkland." He said, laughing.

"I'll have you know that I can be extremely charming when I want to be! I was quite the charmer at one point."

"Oh?" Alfred said, grinning. "How charming?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Arthur teased, his eyes twinkling.

Alfred leaned closer, resting his elbows atop the table. "C'mon, Mr. Kirkland. I wanna see the charm you Brits are so famous for."

Arthur ft a sudden surge of bravery overtake him and he reached forward, fiddling with Alfred's fingers. He looked up at the younger through his thick eyelashes and plastered a coy smile onto his face. "I'm not sure you could handle it, love." He purred.

Alfred was getting out of his chair now. "Let's go somewhere else." He suggested.

"Where?" Arthur asked, surprised.

"Your apartment." Alfred replied.

Arthur woke to his alarm clock and turned groggily on his side, slamming his hand down on top of it. Once it had stopped blaring loudly into his ear, he sat up in bed and looked around, frowning.

Alfred, along with all of his things, had vanished. Arthur was sure he'd fallen asleep wrapped around the American, but it was clear he'd snuck out at some point.

Arthur glanced at the time and got out of bed, a terrible pain in his heart. Alfred had left? God, what could he have possibly done wrong? Was he bad in bed? Arthur asked himself as he got dressed and made himself a cup of tea, agonizing over the American's possible answers.

He had to summon all of his courage to make it into work, only to be greeted immediately by Alfred standing outside his door.

"I need to talk to you," Alfred said.

"Alright." Arthur said curtly, stepping into his office. Alfred followed him in and closed the door.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Kirkland, but I have to quit. Effective immediately." Alfred said.

Arthur's jaw dropped. "What? Alfred, why—"

"Listen, Mr. Kirkland. I'm gonna be totally honest with you, because you deserve to know. You're a great boss and even greater person, and I really don't want to go, but I can't stay any more. I'm falling in love with you, Arthur." Alfred said bluntly, holding the Brit's gaze.

Arthur's green eyes went wide, fire immediately sweeping over him. He felt himself being set aflame from head to toe, completely overjoyed by the American's words. "S-So your quitting because of the policy about coworkers dating?" He asked, trying to keep the smile from his face.

Alfred looked guiltily to the floor and Arthur's heart dropped. "I'm quitting because I cant't fall in love with you when my soulmate's still out there. I'll be out of the country before the week is out. I'm so sorry, Arthur. I just—If there's even a chance he's still out there... I just have to wait for him."

Tears we're forming in Arthur's eyes. "B-But what if he was here? Your soulmate?"

"I don't think he's in England." Alfred answered gently.

"He is." Arthur said in return.

"What?" Alfred asked.

"You were set to meet your soulmate on August first, 2014, at 3:23PM." Arthur said, heart beating madly.

"H-How did you—"

"You were in a park in Pennsylvania when you were supposed to meet him. He was sitting by a fountain and he was hiding his face behind a newspaper."

Alfred standing stock-still, frozen. "Arthur," he gasped, his voice barely audible.

"Alfred, I—God, I'm so, so sorry. I had no idea what I was running from back then. Had I known how wonderful you are, how much I would come to adore you, that never would have happened. I was a fool. I was caught up in material success and I was too stupid to realize that none of it matters at all without you beside me. You're the only person who's managed to steal every single coherent thought from my head. Every tine you look at me, I forget every single idiotic reason I didn't want you. You're all I want."

Alfred shook his head, no longer bothering to restrain himself. Tears were falling freely from his eyes and down his cheeks as he stared at Arthur. "Why didn't you tell me when you saw me? Wh-Why did you let me stay here for almost a fucking year before you decided to come to me with some bullshit about how you made a mistake?!" He asked, his voice growing progressively louder until he was shouting at the Brit.

"It's not bullshit! I was an idiot, Alfred! I was selfish and stupid and I'm so sorry. I have never deserved you, but I love you. I know it's not enough anymore."

"Of course it's not enough! You broke my fucking heart! I've been looking for you for three years! I've been driving myself crazy and all this time you were here! I've been working for you for six months and you never said anything! You—You slept with me on the anniversary of you fucking running away and leaving me!" Alfred yelled, fuming. His handsome face was contorted with anger, his blue eyes alight with fire.

"Alfred, please—" Arthur began, trying to calm him down.

"N-No! Fuck you! You just sat there yesterday and listened while I told you all about how much it hurt and you didn't say anything! Y-You just let me suffer! You left me alone for three fucking years! How could you?!" Alfred sobbed, burying his face in his hands.

Arthur came forward, gently laying a hand on his shoulder. Then, slowly, he tugged Alfred into him. The American's head dropped onto his shoulder and Arthur stroked his hair as the American cried.

They stood that way a moment, Arthur patiently waiting for Alfred to stop panting. Once his breathing had evened out, Alfred slowly raised his head and wiped at his eyes.

"I'm so happy it's you," Alfred said after a moment. "Even if you piss me off."

"Does that mean you forgive me?" Arthur asked hopefully.

"Don't push your luck. You have a lot of shit to make up for. But I'll consider forgiving you for a raise." He joked.

"That's completely unethical!" Arthur scolded, fighting a smile himself.

"I love you," Alfred said, smiling gently. Then, with more seriousness in his tone, "But you know it's gonna take me a while to warm up to this, okay? You hurt me a lot."

Arthur nodded. "Love, I'd wait forever if it meant I could be with you."