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frost-queen · 6 months

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Love doesn't expire (Reader x Elijah Mikaelson)

Requested by: anon Forever tag:@missmelodramatic, @merlin-dahlia, @alex--awesome--22, @elllie-does-the-posts, @floatlosers, @merlieve, @queen-of-books, @glimmering-darling-dolly@denkisclown, @wildieflower, @meyocoko, @bubblybrianna, @justanothercoco, @subjecta13-thefangirl, @m-rae23, @harleyquinnswifeyfrfr, @swampthing07, @melsunshine, @panhoeofmanyfandoms, @venomsvl, @the-uncoordinated-house-cat, @rosecentury, @imagines-by-her, @evilcr0ne, @vviolynn

Summary: Elijah and you get married in the 18th century. One day when you get hurt, your husband can't control himself, caving for blood. Rather fascinated by him, you aren't scared at all. Once your husband explains what he is, you ask him to turn you as well. Wanting to stay with him forever. Elijah does so, feeling guilty afterwards, making him leave you. In modern times you befriend Elena till one day you encounter your long lost husband once more. Demanding an explination from him. [ Happy birthday to you anon ask!]

Elijah watched as girls were holding hands, dancing in a circle. Spring was arriving so there was a celebration for the season. Amongst them a girl with flowers in her hairs. Her smile so radiant it captured Elijah to the bone. Unable to keep his gaze away from her. From you. You let go of the girl’s hands, spinning around breathless. Your eyes fell upon him, smiling whilst catching your breath.

A girl bumped into you, making you stumble forwards. Elijah rushed over as you had just stumbled a bit forwards. You took a hold of his wrist, smiling mischievous. Before Elijah could react, you pulled him with you into the circle of dancers around the big rooted tree. Grabbing him, you joined him in the dance.

Hopping around the tree with a constant smile on your lips. Elijah felt a bit shy at first, knowing his siblings were watching from somewhere. But soon his shyness faded away when he only had eyes for you. The village girl with flowers in her hair.

You gasped soft when Elijah pressed you against the wall in some alleyway. Smiling before he kissed your lips tenderly. Then forcefully. It was as instant as spring came. The love you were feeling for Elijah and the love he had for you. Not a month later, he introduced you to his siblings. Shared with them that you were going to get married. Niklaus was at first opposed to it. Telling Elijah it was wrong to love you. Rebekah had always been supportive.

Seeing the love you had for each other. Despite Niklaus’s interference, Elijah and you got married. It was a blissful day. You came to live with Elijah in the manor. His siblings lived in an estate nearby. Close, but not close enough to invade your private life. Life was good, life was wonderous with your husband. A husband who didn’t hold any secrets from you… or did he?

Elijah was working in the garden, unrooting a stomp. He paused for a moment, wiping some sweat of his forehead. From a distance he saw you, tending to the roses. He smiled seeing how gentle you were with them. You turned your head to look back at him. Raising your hand with a bubbly smile. Elijah blew you a kiss from afar. You pretended to catch it and pressing it close to your heart. Elijah returned to his work. Nearly having unrooted the stomp.

It stood in the way of the beautiful garden. Elijah grunted, easing in his strength to not draw suspicion to you. Then his eyes widened. The strong scent of blood filling his nostrils at it alerted his brain. He couldn’t help it, but the dark veins around his eyes started to show. Sharp fangs coming out, needing blood. It has been almost months since he last tasted human blood. Keeping his identity secret to you. He looked away, panting loud to supress his hunger.

Looking over his shoulder, he saw you were holding your finger. Most likely you had pricked yourself on one of the thorns. Elijah tore his gaze away, fighting the primal instinct inside of him. His head pounded with desperation for blood, making him press his hands against it.

Unable to control himself any longer, he went over to you. You looked up, noticing your husband suddenly close. – “Oh, Elijah.” – you said as he knelt down beside you, drawing your bleeding finger closer to him. – “It is but a small sting.” – you told him that it was truly nothing. He didn’t need to worry for a little prick. Elijah took in a deep breath, taking in the smell of your blood. – “Allow me.” – he responded bringing your finger closer to him. You smiled expecting him to wrap a handkerchief around it. Instead he brought your finger to his lips, sucking on the blood.

It made you furrow your brows, feeling his tongue brush over your finger. Elijah’s eyes darkened as he kept licking your bleeding finger. The blood wasn’t enough but it satisfied him. You reached out with your other hand to his cheek, touching the area just beneath his eyes. Fascinated by the dark veins. Your touch made Elijah pull away, suddenly aware of what he was doing.

He got up, rubbing his lips and strode off. – “Elijah?” – you said confused to why your husband was suddenly gone. Getting up, you went after him. You knew exactly where to find him. In the library. His hands firmly on the desk, his back turned towards the door. You knocked gently, entering.

“Elijah…” – you started not sure if he wanted you present. – “Go…go away Y/n.” – Elijah responded breathless. You ignored his warning, drawing nearer. Touching his shoulders, Elijah eased in. He slowly turned towards you, seeing those gentle eyes of yours. He couldn’t resist those eyes. He’d do anything for them.

You reached for his cheek again, seeing that the veins had disappeared. Elijah took your hand before it could touch him. – “Y/n please…” – he begged, not wanting you to saddle with his torment. – “Enlighten me.” – you asked. Elijah sighed not able to resist saying no to you.

He cupped your cheeks, explaining everything. Explaining to you that he was a vampire. Requiring blood. Once you understood, you offered him your wrist. Elijah stared confused at you. – “You need it to survive do you not?” – you asked as he nodded. – “I am offering it to you.”

Elijah gently took your wrist. You smiled with a soft nod, letting him know it was alright. You gazed wonderous at him when his fangs appeared. You quietly yelped when they bit through your flesh. The weird sensation it left on you, was unfamiliar and fascinating at once. Elijah grabbed you tighter to get his grip firmer on you. Seeing him feast on you was something that strangely didn’t bother you. Elijah let go, gasping loud. Blood dripping down your wrist as you stared at the wound on your wrist.

Elijah pulled out a handkerchief wrapping it around your wrist to stop the bleeding. – “Can… can you make me like you?” – you asked, catching Elijah by surprise. – “Why would you?” – he replied confused. – “Can we not be together forever than?” – you questioned. Elijah nodded. – “Don’t… don’t you love me enough for that? Am I just an insignificant small memory in your long life?” – you started to doubt yourself. Knowing he would love a dozen more girls after you.

Elijah held his other hand on the handkerchief around your wrist. – “You are not insignificant. Not even close.” – he answered with caring eyes. He kissed your knuckles, never taking his gaze off you. – “Then love me forever.” – you told him. Elijah let his knuckles brush against your cheek. He removed the handkerchief from your wrist, now stained with blood. Your wrist was still bleeding as Elijah took a bite in his own wrist.

He offered you his wrist. – “It will help it heal.” – he told you. You took his wrist, moving it to your mouth. It was strange tasting his blood in your mouth. You kept sucking it, drinking his blood till he pulled away. Looking down at your wrist, you saw the wound disappear. In wonder you stared at your healed wrist, letting your fingers brush over it. That night you prepared yourself for bed. Your words echoing in Elijah’s head. Then love me forever. He couldn’t shake them off. His love for you beyond describing. – “Elijah are you coming to bed?” – you called out from the other room.

Elijah closed his eyes before joining you in the bedroom. You paused, getting in bed. Sheet lifted up as one leg was already in. – “Is everything alright darling?” – you asked as he seemed a bit off. Distant. An impulsive thought crossed Elijah’s mind and he couldn’t shake it off. He rushed over to you, standing before you in a second. His hands around your neck as he turned it, snapping your neck in a split second.

Your body fell weightless as he caught your falling body before hitting the matrass. Looking down at your body, he came to a sense of what he had just done. Your colour fading. He carefully laid you down, hoping you would wake up again. Knowing he had to live with the consequences of his impulsive thoughts.

You awoke many hours later, feeling an emptiness in your stomach. Elijah knew what it was. The first hunger. He offered you his blood, before you could fully process what was happening. Knowing he had finalized the process of turning. The following weeks, Elijah had turned silent. Crawling back in his shell as he watched you. Watched you juggle your normal life with your new life. This wasn’t what he imagined. Not even close. One day after a decade, he vanished.

A car pulled over. You got out, slamming the door shut behind you. You had been touring the world for the past decades now and found yourself in a godforsaken town in need of gas. Mystic falls. Car broken down before you could reach a gas station, you had to walk. Taking out a flask from your trunk, you started the long walk in search for gas. For miles there was nothing but woods. Finally you reached a bit of town as it made you roll your eyes.

Great one of those towns that got stuck in the 1800’s. – “Now for gas, let’s hope you have it.” – you sighed out, doubting if a time stuck town like this even had a gas station. You neared a bar, deciding to head in and ask before you searched every corner of this town. The mystic grill. All heads turned when you entered. You ignored them, knowing they probably weren’t used to outsiders.

Heading straight for the bar. – “What can I get you?” – the boy behind the bar asked, cleaning his hands on a towel. You set the flask on the counter. – “I need gas, do you have a station around?” – you answered. – “Car broke down?” – he responded. It made you roll your eyes. – “Yes, now do you have gas?”

A girl came nearer as you noticed her. – “Not for a long drive. Where is your car at?” – she asked. You sighed soft. – “By the sign.” – you told her. She mouthed a wow. – “That was a long walk.” – she said making you hum in response. – “Well I can always give you a ride?” – she suggested. – “Elena.” – the bartender said with warning eyes. Elena ignored him. – “We’ll fill up there and I’ll bring you back to your car. How does that sound?” – she asked.

“Well that sounds awfully nice Elena.” – you responded. Elena got up taking her purse. – “I’m Y/n by the way.” – you told her. Elena led you to her car. You got in at the passengers seat. On the way to the gas station, Elena and you got talking. Sharing some interest as it felt nice to talk to someone. You had always been alone on your rides. It can be lonely from time to time with no one to talk to in the car.

Elena rode up to the gas station. You got out as you got your gas. Returning to her car, she drove to where your car was parked. You were filling up your car as Elena leaned against your car. – “Are you staying long or passing through?” – she asked. – “Passing through.” – you answered finishing.

“You know… it’s getting late… you should probably eat.” – Elena spoke making you quirk your eyebrow up. – “Is that an invitation to stay?” – you answered intrigued. – “Maybe.” – Elena responded shy. You laughed coming up to her. – “Are you cooking?” – you asked. – “Only for you.” – she chuckled in return. You got in your car, riding behind Elena to her house. A night, turned into a day, into three days, into almost a week now. A week now you got stuck at Mystic falls. Not leaving just yet. Elena and you had become great friends.

“I know this great place.” – Elena said pulling at your arm to get you to follow her. – “Let me guess another founding father thing?” – you teased her with. Elena shook her head. – “Something more modern.” – she laughed out. – “Now you are talking.” – you responded moving along with her. Elena had her arm locked around yours as you walked over the town square.

You saw a small café pulling Elena to a stop. – “Quick bathroom stop.” – you told her, running inside. Elena waited outside. – “Elena Gilbert.” – she suddenly heard. Elena’s eyes widened briefly till she narrowed them bothered. – “Elijah.” – she responded annoyed.

Elijah chuckled moving one hand in his pocket. – “Where’s your lousy brother?” – she asked looking around. Elijah smiled. – “My brother isn’t here so no need for you to be so tense.” – Elijah responded, sensing how tense her muscles were. – “Then what do you want.” – she called out. – “Can’t a man just say hello?” – he answered innocently. – “It’s never that innocent with you originals.” – Elena fired back.

“Elena I’m ready.” – you said getting out of the café. Coming to a sudden stop at the sight of Elijah. Elijah’s eyes widened, removing his hand from his pocket. Elena looked confused between the two of you. – “Y/n…” – Elijah breathed out. The shock in your eyes turned to anger. You rushed over to Elijah, grabbing him firm by his throat. – “Where have you been love?” – you told him bitsy. Elijah choked under your grip. – “Tell me how many years have it been? Decades? A hundred years?” – you called out.

Puffing annoyed afterwards. – “Y/n.” – Elijah grunted trying to catch his breath. You squeezed harder. – “Didn’t think you would see me again when you left me for dead!” – you spitted out pushing him off. Elijah stumbled to the ground, rolling over. He coughed loud, touching his neck.

“You know him?” – Elena asked. – “You mean my dear husband who vanished!” – you replied angered, wanting to have another go at him. Elijah held his hand out, slowly getting up. – “Y/n… please…” – Elijah started. You puffed mockingly, crossing your arms. – “Where the hell were you!” – you shouted. – “I waited days, weeks, years for you to come back. Wondering why you left me. Wondering what I had done wrong to be left alone like this. Tell me husband what did I say for you to pull the earth from around me and make me fall into a dark pit!” – All those years of anger, bubbling back up.

Elijah rushed over to you, grabbing you firm by your shoulders. – “I… I…” – he started not coming out of his words. – “What!” – you snapped at him. – “I felt guilty!” – he yelled. – “I… I shouldn’t have turned you. I wanted you to live a normal life. I took that from you. I couldn’t bear the guilt. Constantly reminded of it when I saw you. It was eating me alive.” – he confessed.

He exhaled deep lowering his head a bit. – “I never stopped loving you Y/n. I just couldn’t stop blaming myself for what I did. I regretted leaving you for all those years. I came back to our house, but you weren’t there. It only made the guilt worse that I couldn’t find you anymore.”

You blinked softly, staring back at him with those gentle eyes he had missed for so long. It made Elijah exhale adoringly that he could see them again. You grabbed Elijah, pressing your lips onto him. Your anger vanished in a matter of seconds. Elena swallowed nervously, looking away at the heated kiss between Elijah and you. Lips desperately on one another.

Needing to fill that longing. Elena eventually cleared her throat as she thought you were going to eat each other with the way you were kissing each other. Elijah and you pulled away, panting. – “Plan on leaving me again in a decade?” – you asked teasingly. Elijah shook his head. – “You are stuck with me for always and forever.” – he responded.

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icyowl · 7 months

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Bluelock Cuddling headcanons

ft. Isagi, Chigiri, and Kunigami

Request: none

A/N: one of my racehorses won a race today so here’s a little gift to celebrate my good mood!

—————

Yoichi Isagi

the respectful kind

his favorite is half-cuddle — him on his back, you curled up into his side, head on his chest. Does his arm fall asleep? Absolutely. Will he stop? Never.

make his heart wobble any time you look up and about how much you like this — spending time with him, being close like this, knowing he cares about your opinion enough to ask so frequently for it.

Isagi is the kind that likes to cuddle the nights before a stressful thing. He gets to talk out his troubles and generally feel better about whatever anxieties he's got. Also, he genuinely seeks your life advice. He talks through his problems, that's who he is, and with you like this it feels like such a private time of vulnerability.

You habitually play with one another's fingers and hands. Usually it's sweet, but sometimes it devolves into thumb wars, arm wrestling, and even all out tickle battles. Sometimes he even lets you win

If he's lucky he can get you to fall asleep before he does. Reason? He likes watching you doze on him. Something about you falling asleep to the dip and rise of his chest makes him all giddy and humble at the same time.

Inevitably someone walks in on you two only to be greeted with the terror-inducing glare he pins them down with. Wake you up and they are not long for this world.

Hyoma Chigiri

the timid kind

go-to is the traditional spoon. It means you don't have to look at him and whatever embarrassment he's gotta be showing while being this close to you.

As time goes on, he starts to get almost too comfortable with it. On the phone? Playing a game? Fuckin' doing laundry? Doesn't matter. When he's lying on any bed or couch, there is a distinct bubble of space, and if you invade the bubble, you're within striking distance. His arms are nearly as fast as his legs. Chigiri will latch onto you, will pull you in, and will interrupt whatever it is you wanted to do so he can spoon you.

Rub his hand or intertwine fingers while he's got an arm draped over you and he is GONE

There have been times when he's pushed you away, and though it makes sense — he's always been the kind to close himself off, turn vile and harsh when he's hurting — it breaks you. When you're both ready to reconcile, somehow it ends with your back to his chest, his legs mixed with yours, and his warm hand holding you snug to his body.

Also likes this position because it lets him nuzzle in right on the wispy hairs at the bottom of your neck or the big vein on the side.

Turn the tables on him by flipping over in his grip and facing him head-on. It's also a nice way to get even closer to him when you've had a bad day. A kind of haven can be found in nestling under his chin. He's alright with this — it means you can't see his face and the obvious love-sick tint to his eyes.

Rensuke Kunigami

the kind that doesn't know his own strength

best likes the space-saver, aka, one person laying on top of the other. Boy doesn't care which of you is on top. He likes supporting your body or you supporting his — something about being the other person's strength makes the back of his head tingle.

first time he lays on you, he doesn't check his weight at all, just flops down. Immediately thinks he's broken you when you squeak. After that he's almost too wary about hurting you. Am I too heavy? Can you breathe okay? Do I need to get up? You can get on top if you want. Relax Kunigami, just don't fall from orbit and you'll be fine.

Icing on the cake is when you play with his hair. Dude could be angry as an ox, ready to rip someone in half, and two minutes of your fingers in his hair has him fighting to stay awake and spend time with you. What was he angry about again?

One time you fell asleep on his chest, all blissed out and comfy, only to wake up in a shiny puddle of your own drool. You were, understandably, mortified, but the embarrassment turns to affection when he casually disregards the whole thing: it's just a shirt, it'll dry.

You figured you repaid the favor when several weeks later he was one on top of you, head burrowed unceremoniously into your stomach, arms underneath your back, refusing to look up or speak. The reason revealed itself when he finally met your eyes.

Tears. Tiny sniffs too. Four words: I failed my team. That was all he said before digging his face back into your skin. It took time, and a lot of encouragement, but he did eventually snap out of the funk and even apologized for messing up your clothes. It'll dry, you said, and you shared a little snicker.

#isagi x reader #chigiri x reader #kunigami x reader #bluelock x reader #cuddling headcanons #fluff

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silent-sanctum · 5 months

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If you can, you do Jotaro x reader where the reader (gender neutral) is a very famous music celebrity and how Jotaro handles the being with someone who is famous with their daughter Jolyne in their life as well. Love your work and hope everything is good with you 🩷

Thank you anon! 💖 Kinda stressing out over paperwork over here but it's all good nonetheless! 🫡 You're request is heard and I hope I did your request justice with this short fic. Hope you enjoy! ♡

My Universe - Jotaro x Reader

word count: 2.2k

One of the perks of having your spouse be a famous global soloist, is having a kid with them and have said child be their number one fan if Jotaro wasn’t already.

Sure, he may not necessarily like all the discography you put out for your fans, but that’s normal for anyone. You did mostly pop with some R&B on the side, and he was more of a jazz man himself. But he did have his personal playlist of favorite tracks he’d listen to time to time on repeat.

But Jolyne was on a different level than he was- she adored you off-screen and on-screen. If you were at home or at least around her, she’d have a field trip being with her idol: She’d get her hands on every merchandise that’s yet to be released, listen to songs yet to be heard, and get special access to VIP areas only meant for artists.

How about the time spend with Jotaro?

Well, aside from musing your daughter with all the perks and love from a celebrity guardian, there were times you left Jolyne with her own bodyguard and babysitter, and used the free time to roam the city with your husband and do whatever they wanted to do.

Initially, your personal life was kept secret from the world, choosing to separate and not involve it with the life of stardom. And that was still the case back when you and Jotaro were still dating. You posted a lot on your social media, mostly pictures of your “selcas”, outfits-of-the-day, food items, behind-the-scenes special from your stages, nature shots, and pictures with fellow celebrity friends.

Once in a blue moon, your fans would blow up social media whenever you decided to be ballsy and post pictures of you with Jotaro, his face hidden thanks to his hat and mask. The content of the image was relatively tame and “neutral”, but given the context behind these pictures- the intimate proximity of the two, the matching color palette clothes, the rare posting of him in general- might as well made your fan base theorists.

“Boyfriend reveal when????”

“Bestie, please share the tea to the world”

“Hello? The couple fits?? The cute poses??? Call me delulu but-”

“All of you are being weirdos. Stop invading their privacy”

“Yeah the dude could be her cousin or brother or something”

“Girl they be dropping these lovey-dovey ass pics and still wonder why we’re this delusional”

“Uhm cousin?? Brother?? With those pictures? Weird but pop-off ig”

You’d receive many posts of similar flavor all over your timelines and you admitted to liking whenever your fans talk about the love of your life as if it’s a conspiracy theory and most of them coming from a supportive mindset. It irked Jotaro for a moment when said community managed to somehow track both his formal account used to document his research findings, and his private social media account where he posted pictures of scenery similar to yours.

But there were the rational handful who were able to veer them off his ass, dismissing their claims as false despite hitting the nail on the spot.

Eventually, once you shifted to a more flexible and lenient agency, you decided to reveal to the world that the popular music icon was engaged and to be married the next week all through a single image of your hand brandishing a ring on your ring finger with a bride emoji as its caption.

“GOOD MORNING???”

“MARRIAGE?!!”

“THEY IS GETTING MARRIED YALL”

“And yall called us crazy for saying they had a boyfriend all this time”

“We boutta get Papa Star amongst us”

The fans and the general public went wild and aside from the obsessive ones, most of your community sent their support.

Despite your relationship now public to everyone, Jotaro still wanted to keep himself mostly anonymous to the news. So whatever images were taken with him in it was blurred out with the default blur effect or an emoji sticker- a “star” one to be specific-covering his face whenever it was shared among fans.

The community erupted with loud awes and cheers when you announced to the world that you were going to have a baby girl in the family in one of your interviews.

“OMG???”

“Alright baby protectors, it’s our time to RISE”

“Much love to the little onee”

“I will defend this child with my life.”

“Shooters for baby girl where yall at?”

“Oh she bout to be the luckiest mfer with all the merch exclusives”

Years later, Jolyne grew up to be her parent’s number one fan, doing exactly what your fanbase had thought of when she’d grow older.

Going back to the present, you found yourself stuck knee-deep in your career doing a sold-out world tour, performing for thousands of cheering people in cities across the world. This wasn’t your first tour and you’ve found a decent routine to follow when doing so, but this year was a first for you.

You expressed both in social media posts and in interviews that burnout began to hit you full-time and a multitude of nagging negativity clouded your head as you kept up with all the schedules, production, and practice sessions for majority of the year. You’ve been so busy that time spent with your family this year was little to none. You constantly shared that hopefully sometime in the middle of promotions, you could return home to your family.

Jolyne felt it watching you through the screen. Jotaro felt it too.

All of them missed you and he wanted to do something about it for once.

By the time September came, your world tour came to a close with one last concert to be done in the Rose Bowl Stadium in California. Both him and Jolyne were never able to attend to any of your concerts due to work and school, but timing was in their favor for once and he made the most of the opportunity.

He got into contact with your manager, someone he became close acquaintances with, and notified of them coming over to watch your show. At first, Jotaro just wanted to be there with your daughter in tow, but the manager and a couple of the crew members in-charge of the set list had different plans.

He agreed to it.

With the VIP tickets secured and their booth ready for them, Jotaro and Jolyne flew across the States with eager anticipation and excitement, the latter mostly radiating off from the little girl.

Eventually, the day of the concert arrived and your daughter couldn’t contain herself from running about, unable to wait any longer for her to watch her other parent sing and dance live for the first time. During the day, rehearsals were done before the show proper and a handful of lucky fans were able to watch it.

Thanks to a streamer fan’s dedication and generosity, Jolyne was able to watch you walk about the stage in cozy casuals interacting with your community through a live stream in her phone. From time to time in the middle of preparing things needed for a concert, Jotaro would tune in as well, happy to see you even if it was from a live feed.

Hours later, he rented a car nearby and drove both of them to the beaming stadium, teemed with cheering crowds of fans falling in line either to enter the venue or to purchase on-site merchandise. On the lampposts and the walls were banners of you welcoming everyone to the event.

To avoid getting mobbed, both father and daughter kept themselves hidden from any passing person with a hat and mask as they walked across the area to the stadium’s entrance. To everyone else, they might as well be an ordinary dad-and-daughter duo who were also fans of their favorite artist.

Jotaro followed the instructions sent to him by your manager and headed off to a more discreet entrance where they didn’t have to worry about any lines or people complaining of why they get to enter first and not them. A guard stationed by waved them inside and led the family into their seats overlooking the brightly lit stage. Before the platform were thousands of light sticks waving in the dark, belonging to the fans singing to songs being played as they waited for you to start.

Beside him, Jolyne sang along with enthusiasm, shaking her own personalized light stick to the beat of the music. He would do the same in an alternate universe, but here it just wasn’t his thing.

After a few minutes, the music faded off into silence and the lights dimmed until the stage cast the whole venue in darkness. The crowds cheered and many miniature lights shook in the night. The speakers suddenly blared a remix of one of your title tracks and the jumbo screens flashed to show a VCR containing a mashup of you in a concept film, introducing your theme as a music artist to your audience.

Then as the dancers brought in the energy with their entrance, the stadium exploded with excited screams as you rose up from the below and walked to the front, passing by your back-up dancers until you stood in front of everyone. A second after you greeted the crowd, you switched demeanor and joined the others in choreography.

Jotaro couldn’t help but smile and clap by the time you finished your introductory performance, contrasted by his daughter’s loud screams. He watched wistfully at you speaking with the audience, sweating from all the dance and singing.

It truly was something different watching you live versus watching a live broadcast from home. You’re so near and yet so far from him.

And so far, the rest of the evening was spent like this with you; the beloved soloist performing many of their hit songs ranging from hard hitting beats with impressive dance routines to soothing ballads that had you simply sitting on a fancy stage prop all dolled-up to match the aesthetic of the songs.

Jolyne never pried her eyes away from her other parent, always focused on you and making sure she sung, danced, and responded to your every questions with the devotion of a true, hardcore fan.

By the time the concert was near its end, you were standing in front of the crowd in a cozy outfit akin to the aesthetics of a person living in a humble cabin in the woods. Supposedly, this segment was supposed to be for when you brought up a box of mixed Q&A and dares for you to do.

However, as you said that you were about to start with the bit, the screens beside you changed from showing an arcade-esque “Break Time with Y/N” to a simple “You have special guests watching you”.

Out of the blue, spotlights turned to Jotaro and Jolyne’s booth and there they were- clear as day on the jumbo screens. Everyone cheered yet again as their way of greeting their favorite artist’s family. And even as Jotaro froze on spot, tipping his hat over his eyes as he offered a small wave, his little girl beamed and waved her light stick at the camera.

“I’m here! Hello!”

Jotaro, from what he could see from under his hat, fixed his gaze on the other jumbo screen where it showed your reaction to the surprise- you were crouched on stage, one hand waving at your child, while the other covered your mouth as he saw tears well up in your eyes.

You didn’t expect them to be at your closing concert but seeing your family present was enough for you to break character and fixate on the loves of your life. “Ah really, you guys…”

In response to your happy tears, the crowd cried out a nearly-synchronized “don’t cry!” prompting you to let out a wet chuckle and sniffle.

It occurred to him that he could do something while the cameras were on them. He reached for his phone from his coat pockets and with a few taps, he showed the screen to everyone- a mobile digital message with the words scrolling across the black screen in neon yellow:

Congratulations on your successful world tour. We love you <3

“Ah! You’re gonna make me cry again!” You said, whining as you swiped your eyes free from the new batch of tears ready to fall. He chuckled back. “Everyone, that’s my husband and baby girl. I love them and the fact that they’re here makes me the happiest person right now.” The crowd cooed.

“Now that they’re here, I’m all the more charged up to perform for everyone!” You said and the stadium cheered in response. With one more long look at your family watching from their booth, you continued. “Hope you all enjoy the rest of this night as much as I am enjoying right now.”

With Jolyne’s suggestion via a whisper, Jotaro turned to his phone and changed the message one more time before the camera diverted away from them. This the message scrolled by in neon green saying:

Let’s celebrate! Let’s eat out later! Our daughter is starving.

Your fans expressed a mix of laughter and wholesome “aw’s”. In turn, you smiled and with both hands grasping your microphone, you replied back to them with a curt yet loving, “Of course. My treat.”

#jotaro x reader #jojos bizarre adventure #jjba #jotaro kujo #jolyne cujoh

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megalony · 1 year

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Hidden Truths

This is going to be a Jonah Hauer-King series because I loved the request so much and had so many ideas. Thank you @musicistheway and your lovely friend for this idea. Any requests and comments are always great to have.

Taglist: @lunaticspoem @butlegendsneverdie @langdonzvoid @jennyggggrrr @rogmeddows @radiob-l-a-hblah @rogertaylorsbitontheside @chlobo6 @rogertaylors-lipgloss @sj-thefan @omgitsearly @luckytrashgooprebel @scarsout @deaky-with-a-c @killer-queen-ofrhye @bluutac @vousmemanqueez-blog @jonesyaddiction @milanosaurus @httpfandxms @saint-hardy @7-seas-of-fat-bottomed-girls @mrsalwayswritex @rogerina-owns-me @hellsdragon @im-an-adult-ish @crazylittlethingg @allauraleigh @onceuponadetectivedemigod @ceres27 @avyannadawn @noonenuts @sleepylunarwolf @coverupps @justagirlthatlovedtoread

@jonahhauer-kingg @melaninjoys @luna2034 @mystiqueprincess @fangirl-tothemax

Masterlist

Part 2

Summary: Jonah's wife is a well kept secret from the rest of the world, they like their privacy and anonymity. Especially with a baby on the way. But their privacy is threatened when a stalker starts to invade Jonah's private life.

Enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tipping her head back against the top of the sofa, (Y/n) smiled up at Jonah, letting her eyes fall closed contently when she felt his lips dancing across her temple like feathers gliding over her skin. A hum vibrated at the back of her throat when she his hands reached down and gripped her shoulders as he stood leaning over the sofa.

(Y/n) knew just by his touch that he was getting ready to leave. His lingering fingertips that dived beneath the collar of her shirt and his longing lips on her temple told her as much. His touches always lasted longer when he was about to leave and if he had to go away for days or God forbid, weeks, (Y/n) was never sure he was actually going to let go of her. She wouldn't have it any other way.

"Are you going?"

Reaching up behind her, (Y/n) slowly dragged her fingers through his hair, earning a groan against her skin when she tugged at a few curls.

"Afraid so, shouldn't be too long though, just a couple of hours." He was only going to do a press interview, a nearby by one this time.

There were a lot of interviews arranged for the upcoming weeks, in advance of the movie release to hype things up and get the tension going until the premiere.

(Y/n) knew Jonah was excited for the movie premiere, it was written all over his face whenever it got brought up in conversation and she couldn't be prouder of him. It was already promised and set in stone that she would be watching the interviews on premiere night and then watching the movie too at the same time, as if she was there with Jonah when she would actually be at home.

The spotlight was where Jonah belonged, he thrived in his work and deserved all the glowing achievements he got from it. (Y/n), on the other hand, liked to watch from home. She was more than happy to support her husband and shower him with love and adoration when he came back, all buzzed on adrenaline and bouncing off the walls.

(Y/n) wasn't in the public eye, she wasn't anyone of interest and that was fine by both of them. It was always a silent agreement that Jonah would go out and celebrate at press events and then when he came home, (Y/n) would celebrate with him in private, away from cameras and journalists and crowding fans.

It was their dynamic ever since Jonah started his career, since he started to get his name out into the world.

"Do you want to take your daughter with you?" (Y/n) could feel his lips curving into a smile against her forehead before he leaned further over the edge of the sofa until she was sure he was going to fall on top of her.

His hands snaked down her arms until he was hovering over her hips and he tucked his face into the crook of her neck when (Y/n) leaned her head to the side. She brushed her nose against his hair, inhaling the smell of shampoo and cologne before she kissed the top of his cheekbone. His arms gave her a gentle squeeze like he was becoming a blanket, curling around her while his hands made quick work of rolling her shirt up over her curved stomach.

The feeling of Jonah's fingers tracing over her stomach tickled and made (Y/n) giggle, especially when she knew their baby could sense he was there too.

"I'd take her everywhere with me if I could, love." He whispered the words quietly into (Y/n)'s neck and continued to roam his hands across her stomach, desperately trying to feel some movement from her before he had to leave both his girls. He knew (Y/n) could feel the small huff he let out against her neck when their girl refused to move, it was like she knew he was in a hurry and wanted to play games. "Come on baby, please?"

His attempt to sweet-talk their daughter didn't seem to work. Both their eyes watched (Y/n)'s stomach intently but no such luck, she was either asleep or playing hard to get to tease Jonah.

"You'll have to sing to her later, she always moves when you sing."

It wasn't just (Y/n) who loved the sound of Jonah's voice. Every time he started to play, their girl would wake up and spark to life and she wouldn't stop moving, wriggling and kicking long after he'd finished. It was the best way for Jonah to feel her moving, he just had to sing and wake her up.

"Hmm, I think I will. Right, I have to go, love you both."

"We love you too."

(Y/n) was sure she heard him mumble 'be good while daddy's gone' before he stole a kiss and unravelled himself from around her. She listened to his footsteps retreating into the hall and subsequently traipse back to the living room again.

"Post," He whispered quietly, dropping a few letters onto the arm of the sofa and another kiss to (Y/n)'s forehead before he disappeared for good this time.

(Y/n) had half the heart and a big desire to call back out to Jonah just before he shut the door when she was sure she felt some kind of movement, but she stayed silent. It would only serve to make him late and she didn't want to see his face fall if he rushed back and the movement subsequently stopped again.

They were almost seven months along now, only a few more weeks and they would get to meet their daughter and Jonah would finally be able to hold her. He wouldn't have to continue playing the waiting game, diving on (Y/n) ecstatically when he could finally beat their daughter at her own game and feel her kicking for himself.

Glancing at the few letters Jonah had left there for her, (Y/n) slouched further into the sofa and grabbed the first letter. A reminder of their appointment at the hospital next week.

The second letter was addressed to Jonah, clearly he had just grabbed them all and gave them to (Y/n) so she placed it on the coffee table, he could read it when he got back.

The third one was addressed to (Y/n), but it was hand-written. She hadn't had a handwritten letter in a while, excluding the same one that always appears every month from the church round the corner. They always got invites to the church sermons and community days even though they didn't go. Everyone down the street got the same letters and most of them ended up in the bin.

This one wasn't from the church.

What are you doing with him?

(Y/n) wasn't sure she wanted to read the rest of whatever was scribbled rather neatly on the page. That wasn't a good opening line and this was clearly meant for her when her name and address was on the envelope.

You're a nobody. You shouldn't be with someone like Jonah and I don't think you realise how wrong it is. You need to leave him alone. We, his fans, his supporters, care about him. A lot. Why did he marry someone like you, are you afraid to ask that question too? I know who you are (Y/n). I know about the baby too.

Bile rose in the back of (Y/n)'s throat and her trembling hands dropped the letter on the floor.

Who on Earth would write this? Why would they do this now?

She had been married to Jonah since she was nineteen and he was twenty, she had known him since she was fourteen for God's sake. They had been together years and when Jonah started to rise to a new sense of stardom, they made sure to take precautions.

(Y/n) wasn't a singer or an actor, she wasn't in the spotlight or anyone of interest like he was and that was how she wanted things to stay and Jonah understood that.

Deep down, it was almost thrilling to Jonah to have something that was just his. A secret he could keep from the rest of the world, someone he could come home to and share his life with without the rest of the world having to know about her and how special she was to him. Jonah never talked about his private life when he was doing interviews or with people he didn't know. Only close friends knew he was married and knew that the ring on the end of the chain around his neck was actually his wedding ring. And of course his family, who had took (Y/n) in as one of their own from the very moment he brought her home to meet his parents.

Jonah never posted anything personal on social media and the only times (Y/n) did, she posted pictures of them holding hands or of her hugging someone with Jonah's face cropped out of the picture. Nothing personal ever went online and they both made sure friends didn't post pictures of them together unless it was an innocent group photo, that was it.

Exactly to avoid situations like these.

Just when (Y/n) went to rip up the envelope she was clutching in a death grip, she stopped when something inside caught her eye.

It was a photo. A photo that had to of been taken sometime last week because (Y/n) remembered the outfit Jonah was wearing. It showed him with his black trench coat, sunglasses and beanie that he went on in last week when they went for a scan at the hospital. Next to him in the photo was where (Y/n) was supposed to be but her face had been scratched out and the rest of her was painted over with red pen like she was some kind of bad omen.

What sick, twisted game was someone trying to play? This couldn't be someone (Y/n) knew. None of her friends would do something this malicious, not without expressing some distaste towards her in person.

Oh God, was she going to have to tell Jonah about this?

Technically, he wasn't going to know if she didn't say anything. She could keep him in the dark, happily oblivious to a shitty note like this. It wasn't a direct threat, they weren't threatening to come to the house and hurt her and the baby, although it was worrying that they knew her name and address and if they spread that across the internet, their years of privacy would end within a day.

It wouldn't be fair to worry him about this, not yet. It could be a prank, it might just be a fan getting upset and overcome by emotions, trying to scare (Y/n).

Reaching down for the letter, (Y/n) stuffed it crumpled back into the envelope and threw it on the coffee table. She couldn't bin it. If she got any more letters she was going to have to tell Jonah and he would want to see them. It was proof, evidence that someone was very upset.

But for now, it could live at the back of one of the drawers around the house and hopefully be forgotten for a long time. (Y/n) prayed nothing would come of this, but a twinge in her gut told her otherwise.

What kind of fans did Jonah have?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You know we have to leave in five minutes, right?” (Y/n) bit down on the corner of her lip to try and stop her lips from curving up into a smile. She rose her brows at Jonah who had yet to move from his position of pinning her against the bedroom wall. She could feel his teeth grazing against her neck like he was debating whether or not to bite down a leave a bruise or not and his hands had already slithered beneath her dress and hiked it up past her hips.

She was sure he had forgotten that they were supposed to be going to his parent's house in half an hour and it took just over twenty minutes to get there from their house. They needed to leave soon or Jonah would make them late, and (Y/n) hated being late for anything.

"Mmh, make it ten minutes sweetheart, pretty please?"

Biting her lip harder, (Y/n) hooked her arms around Jonah’s neck and leaned into him a bit more, as much as she could with her stomach creating a gap between them. She could see the surprise in his eyes, he had been expecting her to wriggle out of his arms and try to entice him to leave, not wrap herself around him like she was giving in. (Y/n) tucked her face into his neck and pressed a butterfly kiss to the soft skin behind his ear causing him to shiver against her. But the moment (Y/n) kissed him, she unravelled her arms from his neck and gave him a nudge away from her.

"I don't want your mum telling us off for being late or you getting a speeding ticket, we have to go."

(Y/n) knew he was a good driver but she didn’t fancy getting stopped or getting a ticket because he tried to get to his parent’s house on time.

“You’re a tease, you know that?” Jonah leaned closer so he could press his lips to her jaw before he turned on his heels with a smile and moved to grab a shirt. He didn’t want to annoy or upset his mother by turning up late.

(Y/n) smiled to herself before she moved over to stand in front of the mirror and looked at the state of her dress. It had been tidy and smart a few minutes ago, until Jonah came out of the bathroom and decided to mess it up. Now, the hem of her skirt was caught on her underwear and the neckline was skewed around her cleavage. Not to mention it was already snug around the waist from her bump and widened hips, curtesy of their daughter.

"Look what you've done to me, I looked lovely five minutes ago."

While she untucked her dress from her underwear and tried to sort out all the creases and loosened straps, (Y/n) dared to look up in the mirror and catch sight of her husband. She could see his lips curving into a wolfish grin as he did up the buttons on his shirt and winked at her.

"You still look lovely,"

"Oh really? I can go outside showing my knickers to the neighbours, can I?"

"I said lovely, not decent. Can't have you flashing anybody but me now, can we?"

(Y/n) could feel her stomach churning with adrenaline and suddenly she wished they had a few extra minutes to waste, just so she could wind him up and wipe that smirk off of his perfect lips.

"Put your pants on, Mr King." She tossed his trousers across to him before she sauntered out of their room, leaving to the sound of a wolf whistle that followed her down the stairs and made her giggle despite trying not to.

(Y/n) brushed her hair behind her ear as she reached the bottom step but her eyes caught on something ahead of her, more specifically, on the floor.

The post.

She had been walking on eggshells for the past week, wondering if another indecent, sinister letter was going to be addressed to her, but all week she had been wrong. There had been very little post for either of them and none of the letters had been like that last one, and Jonah didn't get any letters like that either. But then again, why would he? They were his fans, they were targeting (Y/n) for a reason, not Jonah.

There was no reason to be worried this time, just like the rest of the week there had been no cause for concern.

Bending down, (Y/n) scraped up the only letter on the floor but she could feel all the blood draining from her head and tingling down to her toes when she turned it over.

Her name, in handwritten italics, just like the last one.

Without even considering just throwing it in the bin, (Y/n) ripped it open with haste. She didn't want to bin it and imagine it had never arrived, her curiosity was too peaked to do that. She wanted to know what it said, what this pervert was thinking and know if she had to worry about them doing something drastic or if they were just trying to frighten her to get her reaction.

You don't love him!

Large, blue italics screamed at her from the page and it was as if (Y/n) could physically hear the writer shouting those four words in her ear like they were standing right next to her.

You shouldn't be with someone like him! What are you? You're not special, you're not an actress with a talent or a singer who could match his music. No one knows who you are, you have nothing no one will appreciate. You think tying him down with a baby will help his career or make him happy? Because it won't. You need to leave him. I can always find you and the baby if you don't.

There was another picture and (Y/n) dreaded to even dare looking at what this one would be and wonder when it was taken. Clearly whoever was sending these notes was taking the pictures too, there weren't any pictures of (Y/n) and Jonah in circulation online or in the press.

The picture was from four days ago, it was taken just down the street when they had been on their way back home. (Y/n) knew it was because of the way Jonah was holding her. If they were out in public they kept PDA to a bare minimum in case anyone took a photo and uploaded it somewhere, but down their own street where no one really knew who he was or made a fuss, they never had to worry. No one went round taking pictures of them in their own street- until now.

Jonah had his arm looped around the back of (Y/n)'s shoulders and his hand splayed out on her upper chest and he was kissing the back of her head, mostly obscuring his face from the picture.

(Y/n)'s face wasn't scratched out this time, but her stomach was. Her baby bump, which could just about be noticeable even with her coat on, was scratched out and highlighted in deep crimson.

Now this was a threat, and it wasn't aimed at (Y/n) so much as at her baby.

With the note and picture scrunched up in her tight fist, (Y/n) turned and stumbled down the hallway towards the kitchen. Her hand traced the wall, giving her momentum and keeping her from falling to her shaking knees as she tried to be quick.

She barely had chance to stuff the crumpled up pieces of paper into the back of the DIY drawer in the kitchen before she felt the bile creeping up the back of the throat. When the drawer slammed shut, (Y/n) clamped her shaking hands down on the sink to stop herself from sinking to her knees and threw up in the sink.

"Sweetheart are you ready? I'll admit that we're gonna be late now."

"No- I- I don't wanna go now." (Y/n) choked out the words through a broken sob before she arched her back out and pressed her forehead against the rim of the sink.

She was shaking, every muscle was jittering and she was feeling the rush of a cold sweat clinging to her skin and heat seemed to be clouding every inch of her. Her legs were going to give way and let her fall to the floor. Her stomach felt achy and heavy. Her heart was pounding so badly in her chest that the artery in her neck was throbbing like it was going to pop.

"What, why?" Jonah frowned as he tucked his shirt into the back of his trousers to look a bit smarter.

But when he walked into the kitchen, he stopped dead in his tracks when he set his sights on his wife.

"Sweetheart what's wrong?" Reaching out, Jonah rested one hand on (Y/n)'s lower back between her hips before gently holding onto her wrist. "Talk to me- woah, okay, let it out."

(Y/n) could feel him rubbing circles on her back when she lurched up and threw up into the sink again. His hand curled a little tighter around her wrist for some sense of comfort and support and when she stopped, he grabbed a glass and filled it with water.

"Have a drink,"

She gratefully took the glass from him, ignoring his frown when he saw she had the shakes, and swirled her mouth out. She felt a little better now the room had stopped spinning and her stomach was empty. Everything felt like it was settling back down, her stomach wasn't low and achy, her back didn't burn and the heat was starting to dwindle back down.

"Can you tell me what's happened?"

Jonah stumbled back a step when (Y/n) turned to face him before she buried her face in his chest and bound her arms around his torso. He curved an arm around her waist and tangled his other hand in her hair at the back of her head. With his lips pressed to the top of her head, he took a few seconds to breathe and inhale her scent, trying to work out if something had happened while he had been upstairs or if she was suddenly overcome with nausea.

"I- I just don't feel good, went all dizzy for a minute." It wasn't a complete lie, but (Y/n) didn't know how Jonah was going to react when she showed him the letters and he found out someone knew where they lived and was taking pictures of them.

His non-existent temper might just flare up from being threatened; from their daughter being threatened.

She knew she had to tell him, she was going to, but not right now. She didn't feel well enough to have this discussion and figure out what they were going to do now.

"Okay, I'll call mum and let her know, we can always pop round tomorrow instead."

"I'm sorry-"

"I don't want you apologising for being ill, we don't do that."

(Y/n) wasn't well, there was no need for an apology for being sick, they'd had talks like this before. Jonah didn't want her to feel like she had done something wrong or ruined anything. If she was ill they would stay home and he would take care of her, just like he always had and always would. This just meant he could get his own way and stay home with her, it wasn't a bad thing. Quite the opposite.

He tilted his head down, curiosity burning in his gaze when he felt (Y/n) reaching behind her to grab his hand and pull it away from her back. He thought for a moment she was going to pull out of his arms but she didn't. She moved his hand down to her lower stomach instead.

"Someone's awake,"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Baby…” Jonah tilted his head down so he could whisper against the shell of (Y/n)’s ear and he felt the way she shivered against him when his breath tickled her skin. He knew she was tired but the shiver told him she wasn’t quite asleep yet like he thought she would be.

His arms tightened around her waist and he slowly feathered his fingers up and down her exposed stomach. He liked it when she didn't wear a top late at night like this and just laid in her bra and shorts, it meant he could touch her stomach better and have more access without having to move any clothes out the way.

A smile curved on his face when (Y/n) wriggled in his arms like she was trying to get comfy. Jonah was laid in the middle of the bed, surrounded by pillows and he had (Y/n) laid comfortably between his legs, nestled up into his chest. Her head had fallen on his shoulder a while ago and her hands were lightly holding his arms as if to make sure that he didn't let her go just yet.

(Y/n) managed a small murmur but she could feel herself falling back to sleep. She didn't know how long they had been laid like this but she knew she didn't want to move yet. She was comfy, something which was a rare luxury these days, and she had Jonah wrapped around her like a blanket. It felt like they had been laid here hours, but that was only because she had been drifting in and out of sleep while Jonah watched a movie.

“Baby I have to go to the bathroom, I need to move you.” Jonah's lips tickled the shell of her ear and he chuckled when all he got in return was a quiet groan of disapproval.

He knew they were both comfy nestled down in bed, but he really had to go to the bathroom and they would need to try and sleep properly soon if they ever wanted to be up on time in the morning. Jonah sat up straighter before he carefully eased (Y/n) forward and scooted his leg behind her to get out.

Something tugged at his heart when he looked down fondly at his wife who was like a rag doll in his arms, half asleep and barely conscious. With little effort, Jonah leaned over and laid (Y/n) down against the nest of pillows so he could disappear for a minute.

(Y/n) whimpered at how uncomfortable she now felt after leaning against Jonah for however long they had been tangled up together. Now he wasn't here to keep her warm, even if he was only gone for a minute or so. She tried to find the energy to open her tired eyes when she felt her phone buzz beneath her. When she plucked up the will power to open her eyes, the dim light from the tv was far too bright for her tired eyes.

She didn’t bother to lift her head when she looked down at her phone, she simply brought the phone to her eyes and swiped across to open Instagram that had gone off.

It took a few seconds for the words to actually form in front of (Y/n)’s eyes and for her brain to make sense out of them but when she managed to read the short, anonymous message she'd received, her body went stiff.

(Y/n) felt like she couldn’t breathe, her lungs were shrivelling up into nothing and her heart started to bash and pulse against her ribs until every fibre and muscle in her body was beating out her heart’s erratic rhythm. Quickly locking her phone, (Y/n) pushed her phone until it fell with a thud onto the rug at the side of the bed. She didn’t want to look at it anymore, the message was already imprinted on her mind.

"I'm back sweetheart," Jonah's voice felt like an electric shock to (Y/n)'s system but his cold hands felt soothing against her suddenly burning skin.

She let herself go floppy so Jonah could effortlessly lift her up and climb back into his original position and melt back into the pillows that moulded around his frame. She desperately hoped he couldn’t hear or feel the way her heart was suffering palpitations from the anxiety dwelling in her stomach.

Turning her head, (Y/n) pressed a kiss to Jonah's exposed neck before she nestled her face into his shoulder and pulled his arm tighter until she could pin it to her chest, resting on her bump. Her fingers tangled into the grooves of his hand and she pushed back into his chest until they were almost melting together. He was moulded around her like a smothering blanket in a feeble attempt for (Y/n) to try and make herself feel calm and safe.

His other hand moved to her stomach and she could feel him writing something aimlessly on her skin with the pad of his finger. He was more than likely writing a message to the baby than to (Y/n), he did it a lot recently and it was as touching as it was calming.

But the more those words seemed to repeat in her mind, the more she wanted to curl up and disappear and she knew Jonah could tell because he kissed her temple in a way he always did to calm her down.

LEAVE HIM ALONE!

#jonah hauer king #jonah hauer king imagine #jonah x reader #jonah imagine #imagine #hidden truths #pregnant! reader #pregnancy

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burningtacozombie · 6 months

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I've vented about this before but I have to, again, because I genuinely don't think there's any hope left for fandom. people keep reaching new lows. every time you think this is the lowest... they find a way to get even lower, more awful, more cruel. there is no respect, no decency, no humanity to be found anymore.

this delusional cult cannot and does not want to hear that Dan and Tina are not an item, let alone accept it. they insult everyone who says anything against it, they throw temper tantrums like 5-year olds who don't get their will, they distort things said in interviews that were never meant that way so it fits into their little world, and don't get me started on the AI photos/videos and fanfictions they create and treat as if it was reality.

but now that Dan actually does have a new girlfriend it's the worst it's ever been since this whole mess started 5 years ago. they found her on social media and ever since analyze every inch of every post for clues where she is or if she's with him only to actually insult her, both of them really, in ways I'm not even going to repeat here. a couple days ago things went from worse to horrible when fake accounts on instagram started popping up, posting tons of AI nude photos of his girlfriend and tagging them both in all of it, and while Dan since then doesn't allow tagging at all anymore I've been wondering all this time how he manages to stay quiet and calm about it. until yesterday. yesterday he's finally had enough, he spoke up in his chat group. and it was loud!!!

I am very glad and so proud that he finally gave them a piece of his mind. but immediately after the cult went on and on how he has humiliated Tina with what he said, but they also blame him for not putting an end to it sooner, when he was asked about her on the radio interview a few weeks ago. (which, correct me if I'm wrong, would in their logic humiliate her even more publicly). however which way you spin it, they blame him, he's the bad guy. when he says nothing and is a gentleman who doesn't want to say anything bad it's his fault but when he eventually speaks up because he and his family are being tortured it's also his fault. the names he's been called the past 18 hours for simply wanting his privacy respected and to live his life are nothing short of inhumane, which also makes me think that if these people think like that about him, why would they even want him with her? what is the point here?

he only opens his chat group for everyone to write in for annoucements or special occasions and when tensions rose again last night, he wished everyone a good night via voice message and closed the group directly after so I wasn't fast enough to reply anymore but also didn't want to just leave it like that. I wanted him to know that not everyone out there is insane, that there are actual fans who love and support him so I texted him privately. which he saw, and liked.

and then came today, where pretty much every media outlet has picked up the "news" and keeps making it a big story. the man is literally begging for everyone to just leave him be, let him live and breathe but now even the mainstream media is like… "lol, no".

sure, we see behavior like this from both "fans" and the press all the time, many celebrities are treated like crap and if it were anyone else I wouldn't care so much. but it's not. and I do. how does this behavior seem normal to people, how does anyone think this is acceptable? if it were the fans' lives being invaded like this, how would they feel? but what, because someone is famous, they don't have a right to their own life, their privacy and to be with whoever it is they want to be with?

it is incredibly infuriating and from the bottom of my heart, I feel so so bad for Dan, his new girlfriend, and his family.

#not tagging this madness

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mysmorgasbordoffantabulosa · 2 years

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I have to disagree with you. Choosing to be in public doesn't mean anyone is allowed to record them. Why was Tae angry when he was photographed in the museum with Joann? Even though he chose to be in a public place, talking to a girl, he was angry fans took pictures and circulated. I don't know how you support someone making video of Taekook in their private time when clearly Tae doesn't like his privacy being invaded.

And besides BH has always asked fans not to make videos or take pictures of members during their off time.

If Tae wanted us to know, he would post or talk about it.

You can disagree if you want, that's your right. However, you have to understand that sometimes rules and laws around public areas and members of the public taking photos/videos are different than private land and spaces. Tae being a celebrity does not exclude him from this and will always run the risk of being photographed in a public area either deliberately or by accident. Tae chose to go to a public beach, Tae chose to take photos on said beach, as did allegedly the staff members that were with/near him. They could not stop someone from photographing them as they are all on public beaches.

Regarding Joanna, I believe it was more that people assumed he was dating her than the photos themselves. If he hates it then he would have said something about the time he went to an Art Gallery with Bogum, but he didn't

I don't think I ever said I support someone making a video of Taekook in their private time. so please stop misconstruing my words. I have said, if someone did take a video it's their choice to share it or not. However, as celebrities rightly or wrongly they always going to run the risk of being filmed without their knowledge. Most of the time Tae ignores them, except when they make false claims about his personal life then it's different.

Unfortunately, BigHit can ask fans to not do something, but some will anyway.

But the last part you're right, in the end if Tae wants us to know he would let us know. Like he has in the past.

#my asks #taekook #taehyung #yet to come busan

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witch-hazels-musings · 3 years

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zhongli, albedo, diluc and xiao with an s.o who is clingy, but also is closed off and has a hard time showing affection and just their emotions in general, and also isn’t generally well liked by their peers?

our affection is different

Warning -> SFW

Character X GN Reader | Anthology

Includes: Zhongli, Albedo, Diluc

Zhongli

For someone so reserved and universally liked, people find the contrast between his demeanor and your own clashing - while he is pleasant, greeting others with a steady bow, a kind expression, you look uncomfortable to even be there. You avoid all eye contact unless it comes from Zhongli, you turn your head, fiddle with your thumbs if they aren’t already holding onto the fabric of his jacket, and practice short, quick conversations

Most try not to talk to you for very long - which you don’t mind; small talk isn’t really your thing and it’s hard to connect with others when they are displaying the emotions that you find hard to grasp

You find comfort in the repetitious actions of your day. The few things that always come up and need attending to, there is no stress there and so you can get it done quickly. Luckily, your profession doesn’t give you many opportunities to communicate with others. You show up, do what you need to, and leave. It’s proficient, the work that you can accomplish so no one complains, other than to suggest you be a bit warmer (a comment which sets your bones on fire).

The benefit of your personality means that if anyone needs to hear the truth, you are the best person for the job. You state what needs to be said and move on, resolute like the mountain you tell people what you see. It's the way you’ve always been, and the way you always will be.

There is one person who perpetually seemed to appreciate your honesty, telling you stories and listening to your earnest reaction to them: Zhongli. His patience and interest in you was a shock to everyone, including yourself, and as he started to share his feelings for you - it took you a while to reciprocate them. Though, when you did he felt the happiest man in all of Teyvat.

It was hard for you to tell him how you felt, to ease his mind that you held feelings for him - so you found yourself getting closer to him. Standing at his side, holding onto his clothes, or resting your hand in his. Placing a hand against his arm - lingering longer than you would with anyone else and at times forgetting that you were doing it in the first place

He thought it was endearing, the way you hung around him. If he went on a walk, you were sure to be there, if he read a book, you were following close behind, if he was anywhere he knew you’d be there too - at this point, you were a fixture in his life - a fixture he would treasure for all eternity

Zhongli wandered through the streets of Liyue, a checklist in hand and yours in the other. You had found him earlier in the day and decided to tag along; even though you weren’t sure how much you could help other than carrying a few items for him. He had several things to collect for a funeral ceremony: incense, flowers, tapestries, and the like. It kept his whole afternoon busy, and, even though he was told to keep the expenses to a minimum, he was choosing rather costly options which he explained, “best suited the life which was to be celebrated.”

When he made it back to the parlor and settled all the items down in their proper place. He assists you with the ones in your hand.

“Your assistance today was invaluable.” He commented, reaching for the items and placing them on the table in front of him. When he finished, he leaned in and placed a kiss against your cheek and admired the way you reacted. Confused, unsure, and perhaps a bit embarrassed.

“It was nothing …” You mumble, for a person who already had a hard time finding the right words, he had a knack for making that skill fall to the bottom of the ocean.

It didn’t matter what others thought about you, Zhongli’s opinion was always the most important and he loved you, every day, every night, through all lifetime: he loved you

Albedo

There isn’t a day that goes by when you aren’t around, whatever is happening in the Knights of Favonius, out in the field, you’re there - ready to go

Even though most find it hard to talk with you, considering your natural facial expression is off-putting: the way your mouth turns into a frown when it’s at rest, the disinterested eyes and generally bored features as you go about your day - you still seem to offer support in whatever way you can, so they do their best to let you be

Shifting through the papers in front of you, your jaw moving as you focus gives the impression that you are upset to even be here. Still, you diligently organize the papers where they need to go, jot down notes and requests which still need to be fulfilled. You’ll probably hand those requests to Sucrose when you’re done, she seems to always be okay with your disposition and doesn’t get the wrong impression.

It’s warm, the summer sun is beating down onto the building and making the rooms get a bit toastier than normal. So, you run your hands over your neck and fan yourself to cool down which gives you a moment to look around. Though there is only one thing that catches your attention, and that’s the Chief Alchemist who is busy with his work in the corner. It’s the only spot he will gravitate back to, and if you could, you’d invade it every chance you could get.

Instead, to keep yourself together, you sigh and return to the work in front of you.

You loved Albedo, you had for so long that to be on the receiving end of his attention was stronger than the heat from the sun, more overwhelming than standing in a crowded room, and as rejuvenating as much needed sleep

It was the last thing that you imagined - him falling for you - because most people have a hard time conversing with you, so the fact that he was able to get to know you, the real you, was a miracle

Albedo never once looked at you with eyes other than compassion and kindness and he seems to know that your intense affections - when they do slip from your grasp - are stronger than the words that seem to come across as unclear

The day was coming to a close and even though most everyone had left, you stayed in the room. It was some of the only times you could have a moment alone with the alchemist, and since he was bound to continue working late into the evenings, it was the perfect opportunity.

Setting your items down onto the counter, you moved toward him. His hands moved quickly over the blackboard as he jotted down notes and drew small diagrams. Watching him as he drew was an activity you rather enjoyed, he was unbelievably talented in more ways than one.

Slowly, you slid your arms around his waist and rested your head on his back. He's short, but you don’t mind, he’s the perfect size to hold for you. You feel his hand move your own, his thumb slipping to rest against the inner side of your wrist. The only sound that fills the room is his scribbles as the chalk scrapes across the board in a steady rhythm.

He has never once pushed you away. This physical contact that you sometimes drown him in is always welcome, plus it’s gotten better and if it means he can continue to work while you get what you need, he’s onboard.

You hear him whisper to himself, mouthing out the words he’s just written and thinking out loud what the next steps will be. There is a lull in the movements of his writing, his arm hovers in front of the board and you shift to rest your head on his shoulder to watch what he is doing. When he finally figures out the answer, your head rocks as he continues his notation.

Diluc

The level of intimidation that seeped from the two of you as you walked through the streets was incredible - people already felt the disinterested and irritated eyes of the bachelor of Mondstadt was enough, but to add yours to the mix - archons …

Since both of you were naturally closed off, stunted in your ability to show affection, emotion, it was a wonder how you were able to come to terms with your feelings

Diluc started to notice how you were around more than before, how you would offer to help around the winery or the bar, and if it were possible, how you stood right at his side --- you started to notice how his touch lingered, when he thanked you with a pat on the shoulder but kept his hand there, or when he stepped behind you, resting his hand against your back to let you know that he was there and taking his time removing it when he was done

The two of you had it bad, even if you couldn’t see it - the rest of the town did

You were lost in thought, as you normally were. It had rained recently and the smell still lingered on the stones which passed under your feet. That subtle musky smell mixing with the flowers that climbed the building walls made you feel at home. Mondstadt became your home years ago, even if it took a while for others to accept you and the guards to leave you alone. Especially that Cavalry Captain, he seemed to be the most curious to your arrival but after seeing that your disposition had nothing to do with potential devious actions, he left you be.

Though, he still seemed to be around since most nights you found him at the bar of Angel’s Share. He explained how entertaining it was to have two unhappy-looking bartenders tend to his whims. His goal was to make you smile, to make you crack, and to see just what type of expression you could make. He’d have to wait a long time because the only person who could flip the corners of your mouth was the red-headed pyro user whose expression was a mirror of your own.

Citizens spread rumors about the moment under the streetlights where Diluc and Y/N smiled. They make jokes about how the action was so powerful it birthed a thousand stars in the sky. You sigh every time you hear these stories and continue as if it’s not happening.

Diluc was a private person, and so were you - so it was fortunate that the two of you shared your interest in one another by just being in the same space

Tied at the hip they would say, tethered by fate

You hated being away from him for longer than a few hours and he couldn’t stand the thought of not being at your side - so, for the most part, that’s where you two always were

It was a busy day, the patrons were more hectic than normal and it was likely due to the new drink Diluc developed a few days earlier. He didn’t expect it to be so popular, especially since it was a non-alcoholic beverage, but the sales spoke for themselves.

You made your way down the stairs and he tracked you. Placing a cup back on its wrung before turning his attention back to you. The way you dried your hands with your apron as you - with almost an irritated expression, though he knew you better than that - walked up to check on the rowdy party near the back. Luckily, their inebriated states distracted them from the movement of your hand to press the bridge of your nose. You’d been working for hours now and he was sure you were starting to get tired.

When you made your way behind the bar, you got to work on the drinks and he watched how diligently you worked. Setting the glasses on the counter, pouring the alcohol and mixers, the way the liquid made its way through the ice cubes and changed colors as they combined. You’d picked up this skill so quickly, he found it hard to believe that you had never done this before.

You dropped the drinks off at the table and returned, jotting down notes on the order sheet before closing it and slipping it inside your apron. Stopping on the other side of him, you leaned against the bar, your hand gripping onto the edge and eyes trailing up to the second floor.

Words didn’t need to be shared between the two of you. He knew ...you knew, it was the way you communicated and through your glances, your body language, your closeness, nothing was ever left unsaid. He took a few steps toward you and placed his hand over yours. The heat that spread over your skin eased the ache in your legs, relieved the weight on your eyes, and made your chest warm. You closed your eyes, sighed, and smiled slightly.

As the sounds from the patrons filled the bar, Diluc’s hand covered your own and for as long as time allowed, the two of you took a breath in each other's company.

---

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#genshin impact #genshin impact X reader #genshin impact headcanons #genshin impact musings #Zhongli X reader #zhongli #genshin zhongli #albedo x reader #albedo #genshin albedo #diluc X reader #genshin diluc #diluc

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itsamejin · 4 years

Text

it’s you || part 1 || taehyung angst/fluff || hanahaki au

Part 2

Summary: You’d rather live with thorns endlessly scratching the back of your throat than be devoid of the light that Taehyung brought into your life. Even if your love for him was slowly killing you, you didn’t mind as long as you could keep the warmth of his presence until the very end.

Warning: Mentions of throwing up, coughing up blood, death, some slight violence

Genre: Fluff, Angst, hanahaki!au, college!au, fuckboy!tae

Premise: Hanahaki Disease comes in different forms in this universe. The disease would eventually disappear if your love wasn’t that strong to begin with, but if you truly, deeply love someone, your flowers will rip at your throat. Throwing up flowers wasn’t a rare occurrence and for most people it disappeared after a few days. If Hanahaki persists, surgery is recommended, but it would severely dull the positive emotions of the person under surgery. Due to this, some choose to die with their unrequited love.

Commission Request: @guksflavor

Word Count: 8,313 words

—

Taehyung was obnoxiously handsome, too handsome to be a normal guy majoring in Psychology at one’s local university. Often mistaken for a celebrity, frequently breaking girl’s hearts, Taehyung was known as the campus “flower boy”.

It was never meant as a term of endearment. In fact, it offended Taehyung deeply when people would whisper about his private life as if he was incapable of hearing the slight jabs to his character. The nickname came from the notorious fact that Taehyung would cause several people to spit out flower petals from his mere presence alone.

It was the common case of “love at first sight”, a kind that never lasted very long after getting to know him.

Of course, throwing up petals was the first sign of the feared Hanahaki Disease, but it was never that serious when it came to Taehyung. The flowers would stop after a day or two and the girls who convinced themselves that Taehyung would be their future husband soon realized that their feelings never reached below the surface.

Their love was shallow, for no one really loved Taehyung outside of his good looks and he didn’t really mind.

Why should he when he hasn’t fallen in love either?

That’s why he was thankful for you and the rest of his close friends who scoffed at his blatant attempts at flirting. He was grateful for you helping him study or telling creepy girls off when they got a little too close to him at parties. He liked that you rejected his advances and that you cared deeply for him despite his tendency to annoy you. He appreciated having a friend that just... wanted to be a friend.

So why were you in the campus restroom stall, for the fifth time that week, spilling your guts out into the toilet? Why were you grasping at the wall, holding onto it for dear life, as you stared at a striking bundle of yellow flowers coated in toilet water? Why did you cry at the sight of beautiful and fully bloomed daffodils?

You swallowed back the incoming wave of discomfort but it kept coming. All because you couldn’t help but have your heart flutter when he put a hand on your shoulder. Your mind swam in thoughts of him and you weren’t quite sure if you could go on like this. If you could continue to want someone when it only brought you pain.

Why were you in love with Kim Taehyung when that was the last thing he wanted from you?

—

“Want to see something cool?” Taehyung asked, sprawled on your living room floor next to you. It was one of those lazy days you had with him, the kind that was only meant to be enjoyed by friends.

“No.”

Taehyung gave you a dirty look but sat up anyways.

“I’ve been working on my flexibility lately,” he chided. “I can touch my toes for 30 seconds now.”

You closed your eyes and gave him a fake smile.

“Good for you,” you sighed. Sometimes Taehyung had too much energy that you couldn’t match up with. You liked to humor him on days like this when he got extra pouty.

“So you’re not even gonna look?” he said, feigning sadness.

You rolled your eyes behind closed eyes and sat up to face him. You regret opening your eyes because his face was far too close to yours. You would have given him a flower shower right when your eyes locked.

“What was that?” he chuckled. “You looked like you saw a ghost or something. Am I that scary to look at?”

He squeezed your cheeks with both hands and you attempted to pull away from him, only to have him squeeze harder.

“Yes, you’re hideous,” you said through broke sentences. “A beast. You look like a half-eaten mango.”

Taehyung burst out in laughter and let go as he let himself collapse back on the floor. He was that confident in his looks to not mind your snide comments.

“That’s rich coming from you,” he cackled.

You glared at him and hit his stomach with your fist, earning a big ‘oof’ from the oversized child in front of you.

“Say one more word and I will never set you up on that date with my friend,” you threatened, hurt that you had to mention another girl for Taehyung to quit his laughing.

“I’m sorry my queen,” he said dramatically, pretending to kneel at your feet. “I have wronged you.”

You scoffed at his antics and pinched his ear as he wailed for you to stop.

“This is what you get for being stupid,” you said through his cries for help. You lifted his head up to your face and was met with a dazzling grin. Why did he have to smile like that towards you? Why did he lead you on in the most innocent way possible?

“You love when I’m stupid though,” he teased, attempting to tickle your sides.

‘I love you even when you’re not stupid,’ you yearned to say out loud, but the words never escaped your lips.

—

As the days passed it was getting harder and harder to speak. The thorns of some of the flowers made permanent etch marks in the back of your throat. You could muster yourself to sound normal on most days, but just earlier you had thrown up a dozen roses at a small social gathering and the embarrassment and pain had become unbearable.

You wished there was an easy explanation for your pain, but any time you tried to voice your thoughts out loud, you felt suffocated.

Your friends had noticed pretty early on that you had Hanahaki, but like everyone else, they thought it would disappear just as quickly as it came. Taehyung probably would have noticed if it weren’t for him being so desensitized to the disease that he never even bat an eye when you’d excuse yourself from the bathroom every time you two hung out.

He was the naive type, the one that needed to have it spelled out to him when an explanation was due. Maybe that’s why your heart would hurt so much at the thought of telling him about your condition. It would probably break him if he knew.

“[Y/N], at this point in time it’s imperative that you get surgery,” your doctor said sternly, twisting around in his chair. “It’s not safe to continue on without treatment.”

When the three month grace period passed, it was strongly recommended for you to get the surgery before your vocal cords were damaged beyond repair.

If you continued to suffer from Hanahaki, death would be awaiting any moment.

“I know,” you said softly. “I’m willing to take that risk.”

You had your reasons for not wanting surgery. It’s not like you wanted to die, but getting the procedure came with its consequences. Emotions would not come easily and there would be an absence of love in your life... not just for the person you have feelings for, but for everyone around you. So here you were, six months in and losing your voice more and more as the days went by. You were aware of what awaited you next.

You would know. Your mom went through the same procedure.

“You’re very young,” your doctor started, sighing at your stubbornness. “I know that this is a difficult situation, but getting this surgery will save your life. I can’t force you to change your mind, but I want you to weigh your options.”

You nodded at him but tuned out his words as to not be convinced. You couldn’t bear to see Taehyung as just another face, no longer finding the meaning behind his smile, no longer seeing the beauty in his movements. You would rather die a painful death than let go of the love you had developed for a man who didn’t feel the same for you.

“I’ll let you know if I decide differently,” you replied with a whisper. He looked at you with a tinge of disappointment.

“I can’t prescribe a higher dosage of painkillers,” your doctor said solemnly. “Any more and that would be killing you just as much.”

You looked down onto your knees and felt tears stream down your face. Whatever you choose to do, it would end with you in heartbreak anyways. You figured this was the least painful option.

—

Taehyung was always the type to mess around and flirt without thinking. You could count time and time again of him getting kicked out of bars or clubs from talking to other guy’s girlfriends and leaving Jungkook and you to clean up the mess.

The intense gaze his eyes would hold when he’d see someone he found attractive, the way he’d confidently saunter towards them without feeling nervous. You admired Taehyung because he was someone you could never be. So himself, so unafraid of what the world would think of him.

You took a shot of whiskey and swallowed harshly. Your throat was burning from the petals that had invaded it earlier in the day, but you needed to drown out your feelings of sorrow somehow. Taehyung had managed to sneak back into the club, now making his way onto the crowded dance floor looking for his next target.

“You feeling okay?” Jungkook asked, patting your back as you coughed a bit at the taste. Jungkook was your mutual best friend with Taehyung, the defining person that made you the Three Musketeers. He was your rock when times were tough.

“I feel like shit,” you sighed deeply, watching as Taehyung grabbed an unassuming girl by the hand and blew her a kiss. “It’s like the flowers get bigger each day.”

Jungkook knew about your disease. In fact, he was the number one supporter of you getting that life-changing surgery that would impair your emotions for Taehyung permanently. He wanted you to live more than anything, even if it meant costing you a semblance of your happiness.

“Why don’t you just confess to him?” Jungkook asked bitterly. “I mean it couldn’t hurt, right? You’re basically preparing to die at this point.”

You scoffed at his straightforwardness. He was obviously upset with your decision to refuse the surgery and he was showing it to you in a very Jungkook way by making petty comments in a shady club.

He’d never gotten Hanahaki so he would never understand, you thought.

“If I told Tae, wouldn’t you think he’d hate me?” you asked genuinely, tilting your head up at Jungkook. He stared down at you and you could tell he was holding back... because you knew the right answer to the question was yes. He’d have the same reaction as any other womanizer who couldn’t keep a relationship to save his life.

Taehyung would hate you if you loved him.

“He’ll probably ignore you for a bit, but that’s him being stupid,” Jungkook sighed, patting you on the head to comfort you a bit. “I mean, he’d probably try and force himself into falling in love with you if you told him about your... situation.”

You pursed your lips. You could see Taehyung do exactly just that. That was his classic way of ghosting the girls he messed around with, but Taehyung would never commit to those same tactics with you. He considered you like family and he’d probably blame himself until the end of time if he were to find out.

“See what I mean?” you avoided eye contact with Jungkook as you felt your eyes tear up a bit. “It would be all fake. He’d hate me and then pretend to love me and then I’d die either way. It would hurt a hell of a lot more if I let that happen.”

Jungkook furrowed his brows and glared at you.

“There’s always the possibility that he does fall in love with you, y’know?”

You shook your head and fiddled with your fingers.

“Taehyung doesn’t fall in love,” you muttered softly.

The two of you stayed silent, aware that the words you uttered were true. Even as he danced with beautiful women around him, you couldn’t help but keep your eyes solely on Taehyung. He would never let himself be so vulnerable as to fall in love with somebody, let alone a close friend like you.

So why did you let him worm into your heart so easily?

—

Six months ago...

“[Y/N], I’m asking you just this once,” Taehyung begged, puppy eyes activated. “I am begging you to give me her number.”

You scoffed and rolled your eyes. He always wanted to bother you when you worked your shift at the bookstore. Somehow, Taehyung still didn’t want to make himself useful by helping you put away books.

“Tae, we’re in the same class,” you sighed as you stacked up some magazines on top of each other and pushing a bunch of them into one of the higher shelves. “You could just ask her yourself.”

He whined and gave you that infamous pout known to make every girl on campus swoon. If it weren’t for your self-control you would have punched him right then and there for trying to act cute with you while at work.

“I can’t be too direct,” he replied with those pouty lips. “The other girl I'm trying to get with in that class will notice.”

You scrunched your nose. For someone who hated giving people Hanahaki, he couldn’t help but play around with girls as if it were a sport. He was practically an expert in making himself hated amongst his exs.

“You’re gonna regret being such a fuckboy one of these days,” you warned, but taking out your phone to pull up her number anyways. “Mark my words.”

He let out a cheer and hugged you from behind, squeezing you until the oxygen left your body. You tried to push him off of you, but he didn’t budge. It was better to just let him get his clinginess out of the way and then kick him in the shins later.

“I’ll treat you to dinner for this,” he said, grinning as you sent him her number through text message.

“Yeah, yeah,” you sighed. “Please let go of me I feel like I’m about to throw up.”

He laughed and kissed your cheek, a sound that resounded from the store so loudly that it made you wince.

“Love ya,” he smiled, rushing out of the store like a giddy teenage girl. You clenched your fists and touched the area he pecked. Somehow it made you angry at how excited he looked at the thought of another girl.

What did they have that you didn’t? Did you not exist to him at all?

You clutched onto your stomach as you felt something rumble. You felt an uncomfortable itch in the back of your throat and asked your boss if you could be excused. You tried making it to the bathroom in the back of the bookstore but you stumbled on a pile of books before you could reach your destination. You were on your knees, clutching your stomach as you hurled the contents inside of your stomach onto the wooden floors.

‘I’m so getting fired for this,’ you thought, as you kept your eyes clenched. When you decided to open them, you weren’t met with the soupy substance of the pizza you ate earlier that day, but with an array of pink peonies scattered across the floor. You shook your head out of disbelief.

No one throws up that many flowers on the first day of contracting Hanahaki. It was always one or two petals and it never came in full blooms of flowers. You had experienced this before with a boy back in middle school and it never turned out so... dangerously beautiful like this.

The sight in front of you was astonishing, the books stacked behind the scattered petals made for a picturesque view. Something about it didn’t sit quite right with you though, as if this signaled your demise.

You whisked through the flowers to see if anything abnormal was found in the flowers and there you saw it. Small specks of blood on the petals.

You realized then that you were screwed.

—

Present

The club continued to stay lively as Taehyung danced his heart out, simultaneously avoiding the bouncers that made their rounds around the club. He couldn’t risk getting kicked out again.

While you enjoyed seeing how much fun he was having, it made you sick to your stomach at how up close and personal he was with other girls. It made your blood boil at how easily it was for Taehyung to be so enamored with someone he could meet just five seconds ago, but feel nothing for you when you’d been friends for much longer. You held onto Jungkook’s arm to keep you steady as you felt another vomit session come up. You were starting to get dizzy and it wasn’t from the alcohol.

“You look like you’re about to faint any second now,” Jungkook said, worry etched all over his face. “Do you need me to take you home?”

You just laughed softly and grabbed onto the table in front of you instead of Jungkook. You weren’t leaving tonight knowing that Taehyung was still having the time of his life in front of you, even if it hurt to even stand. You just needed to take your mind off of him, that’s all.

“Jungkook, if you just randomly got amnesia one day and forgot everyone around you, how would you feel?” you asked him, pouring another round of whiskey into your glass to ease the headache.

“What does this have to do with you fainting?” he grumbled, stealing your shot and gulping it down for yourself. You scoffed at his blatant attempt to keep you from drinking.

“Just answer the question,” you said, now eyeing a girl Taehyung had his body pressed against. She looked about ready to pounce on him any second.

“I don’t know, I’d probably feel like shit,” he shrugged, motioning for you to pour him another drink. You obliged.

“Well that’s how getting that fucking surgery would feel like,” you said rather aggressively as now the girl was taking Taehyung to the back of the club, where the restroom stalls were. You felt the familiar feeling of choking occur but you muscled through it.

“You’re overreacting,” Jungkook said, rolling his eyes. He didn’t drink the shot yet and instead handed it to you. He noticed Taehyung getting dragged to the restroom too and felt like you needed it, even if your hands were shaking as you grabbed it from his hands. You clenched your fist as you swallowed the cold liquid. It had flushed down the flowers temporarily.

“Not overreacting. I’ve seen it first-hand myself,” you said.

He looked at you, surprise written all over his face, but didn’t press any further. That’s why you appreciated Jungkook so much. He never overstepped his boundaries, unlike Taehyung who practically invaded your personal space each time you saw him. The two were so different from each other and you were so different from them. You wondered how the three of you even became friends.

“I don’t want to turn out like an empty shell for the rest of my life,” you continued, still holding the empty shot glass to your lips. “I’d rather die doing everything I wanted to rather than live a meaningless life.”

He glanced at you, slightly impressed by how stubborn you truly were. Nothing would get to you and no amount of pleading would make you change your mind. You weren’t going to get that surgery.

“So are you gonna make like a bucket list or what?” he asked, taking the whiskey and chugging it straight from the bottle. You looked at him in disgust as he detached himself from the liquor. It seems like both of you were drinking to forget.

“I should, shouldn’t I?” you smiled, finally setting the glass down as you saw Taehyung exit the bathroom looking disgusted. “Might as well since I’m gonna die anyway.”

You two laughed at the morbidity of it all. It wasn’t a funny situation to be in, but you had to make the most of it. Would this be the last time you go clubbing with Jungkook and Taehyung? Would your life end before it even really started?

“That girl puked hydrangeas on my fucking shoes,” Taehyung yelled, rushing to the two of you. “We gotta leave, I am not having her follow me around after this.”

Jungkook and you scoffed at his silliness. This was better, you thought. The atmosphere between Jungkook and you earlier was so grim. Typical Taehyung brightening up the mood wherever he went.

Even as the feeling of thorns pricked against your throat, you couldn’t shake off the smile that was on your face. For Taehyung had made you happy and you couldn’t imagine not feeling any emotion other than love as he looked at you with such sincerity.

You couldn’t bear the idea of Taehyung not having an effect on you.

—

“Please, Jungkook,” Taehyung cried, shaking him back and forth as all three of you stood in the university hallways waiting for the lecture hall to open. “Just give me the notes, I’ll give them back I promise.”

Jungkook clicked his tongue and tried to pull his backpack away from Taehyung who was furiously trying to make a grab at it.

“Fuck off dude, you should’ve studied when you had the chance,” Jungkook sighed, searching for some assistance from you. “It’s not my fault you got wasted at the club last night.”

Taehyung whined at Jungkook’s reluctance to help him out. It wasn’t his fault he couldn’t cram any information that morning with that stupid hangover of his. Pretty soon, Taehyung was looking at you too, expectations written all over his face. You huffed out an annoyed breath and opened up your own bag.

“Tae, just use my notes,” you shook your head lightly, taking out the composition book tucked near the back of your bag. “Stop bothering Jungkook, he looks ready to start a fight with you any moment now.”

Taehyung’s eyes lit up in a way that made your heart stop, naturally gravitating towards your direction. He looked so pure and innocent in moments like these when he gets something he wants. You couldn’t help but feed off from his positive energy.

You handed him your notebook as he stared at it in awe.

“You are the only person who wants to see me succeed,” Taehyung said dramatically, kissing your notes as if it were the seventh wonder of the world. Jungkook scoffed and smacked Taehyung’s head.

“What are you gonna do without [Y/N] always covering you?” he rolled his eyes. Somehow his words stung a bit.

You didn’t think Jungkook really knew the weight of his own words, but you were thinking deeply about it. What would Taehyung do without you being there for him all the time?

Taehyung shrugged.

“Doesn’t matter, [Y/N]’s gonna be my guardian angel forever,” he teased and put an arm around you. You clenched your jaw and looked down a the floor. You could not let yourself yack some damn petals in that hallway during exam season.

"Do you not feel sorry for her one bit?” Jungkook scoffed, clearly done with Taehyung’s childish antics.

“Why should I?” Taehyung asked innocently, nuzzling into your hair as he held you tight. Somehow his touch felt suffocating, even though his arm was lightly placed on your shoulders.

“It’s not like she can live without me either,” he teased, booping your nose.

Jungkook and you exchanged glances and both simultaneously pulled on his ears.

‘If only he knew,’ you thought to yourselves.

—

After the quiz that Taehyung most likely failed, he invited Jungkook and you over to his place to eat some ramen.

“Sorry man, we actually have a life outside of you,” Jungkook said, declining his offer. “I’ve got extra shifts at work to cover anyways.”

You nodded at Jungkook’s excuse and proceeded with your own.

“I have some stuff to catch up on, so I can’t go,” you replied, trying to act nonchalantly. “Maybe next time, Tae?”

He shook his head at you two, feigning sadness.

“Both of you always act cold towards me, I’m starting to feel like this is a one-sided friendship,” he sighed, clenching his heart as if he was shot. It took everything in you to not step on his foot right then. He might not know about your condition, but the comments were unnecessary regardless if you had Hanahaki or not.

Jungkook and you simply stared at him and he awkwardly put his hand down when none of you showed a reaction.

“Fine, go do whatever,” he said, pompously. “I was gonna invite a girl over for dinner anyways.”

Jungkook rolled his eyes.

“Alright, bro. Have fun or whatever,” he said, trying to shoo Taehyung away. “I’ll walk [Y/N] to her dorm, you just leave.”

Taehyung clicked his tongue at him, but eventually left, leaving you to be with Jungkook alone.

“He’s the worst,” you sighed, and to that Jungkook nodded in agreement.

“You’re still choosing to die for him, though,” Jungkook muttered under his breath. You flinched at his words, saddened by Jungkook’s word choice. If he put it like that then you sounded like a weirdo.

An awkward silence fell between the two of you. You half-expected Taehyung to come back to you guys and interrupt your conversation to help lighten the mood, but he never came. Jungkook expected you to talk first since you were the one that asked to talk to him anyway, but it was clear his underhanded comment had made you uncomfortable.

“Why did you want to meet up with me anyway?” Jungkook asked, easing the tension just a bit.

You coughed awkwardly and looked up at him with a new sense of determination in your eyes that he hadn’t seen in a while. You seldom looked motivated these days.

“It’s about that bucket list thing you mentioned yesterday,” you started. “I want to do one of the things as soon as possible.”

He furrowed his brows in confusion.

“Why?”

You bit your bottom lip, not quite knowing how to phrase what you were about to say without making Jungkook upset. He’d probably nag at you like he usually does.

“I don’t have a lot of time left, Jungkook,” you said softly. “I just want to do as much as I can before I get stuck in a hospital bed.”

He stared down at you with sorrowful eyes. He wished there was some other way to help you, one that didn’t ultimately end in you dying.

“What do you need?” he asked kindly, surprisingly taking your words pretty well.

You smiled up at him and pulled out a piece of paper from your bag. Jungkook took it from your hands and was met with small sketches of flowers that you had presumably drawn. He studied the designs carefully, confused.

“Okay, how the hell am I supposed to know what this means?” he asked you, angling the paper in different ways to see if he was supposed to crack a code or something.

You shook your head in disappointment. You thought he’d get it by now, considering it was in his line of work.

“Tattoos,” you said simply. “I want a whole sleeve of flowers on my right arm and a bunch of small ones on like my thigh-”

“Stop stop stop,” Jungkook said, waving a hand in front of your face to shut you up. “You want a what now?”

You smiled brightly and spoke with more confidence.

“I want tattoos!”

He scoffed and handed back the paper to you.

“Are you only saying this because you’re gonna get discounted at the shop I work at?”

You shook your head rapidly, not amused by his assumptions.

“No, I’ve just always wanted them,” you said seriously. “I was always too scared with the needle but since I’ve got nothing to lose, I thought why not?”

Jungkook poked you with his index finger in the area between your eyebrows.

“You need to stop talking like that [Y/N],” he said seriously. “I hate when you get all negative.”

You smiled sadly at him.

“Give me the tattoos and I’ll stop talking,” you teased, but your words lacked genuine feeling.

Jungkook heaved out a sigh.

“Fine, but don’t come crying to me if you regret it,” he said, turning his back to you so he could make a call to his boss. Turns out he actually would be working that day.

—

The feeling of Jungkook’s needle on your skin didn’t hurt as much as you nearly thought it would, the pain only coming in dull waves.

After throwing up flowers consistently for the past few months, nothing could quite match up to the pain of thorns poking at your throat at random times of the day. To you, this was child’s play.

“You’re taking this pretty well for a beginner,” Jungkook complimented, still focusing on the light curves of the forget-me-nots he was etching onto your skin. A whole array of flowers would be drawn on your arm eventually.

“I’m good with my emotions unlike some people,” you said, clearly referencing how agitated Jungkook had been recently. He seemed to lash out every little thing and even made snide comments when he thought no one was listening. Jungkook was definitely taking your situation harder than you were at this point.

He only smiled at your words, not making any big movements as to not disrupt his work.

“I’m just shocked you’d want the stuff that’s gonna kill you to be on your body forever,” he replied back. Although he spoke too morbidly, he made a fair point.

“Well, the flowers mean more to me than just that,” you started, slightly wincing as Jungkook’s needled started drawing on a new patch of skin.

Jungkook noticed your discomfort and tried to ease your mind.

“Tell me about that,” he asked, hoping you didn’t feel even more uncomfortable with the question. He anticipated your reply as you coughed awkwardly.

“I’m actually doing this for my mom,” you said softly, avoiding eye contact with him. “She had Hanahaki too and it didn’t turn out well.”

He took a step back to get a good look at your sleeve. He had been working at this tattoo for two hours now and he only seemed to finish just one small section. ‘This would take several sessions of hard work,’ he thought to himself.

“You never talk about your mom,” he pointed out, lightly dabbing the bleeding parts of your skin to avoid infection on your skin.

“My mom got the surgery,” you said slowly, suddenly feeling a sting as the needle hit your skin again. “She found out my dad cheated on her after throwing up flowers for a couple of nights.”

He stopped his movements for a bit, shocked with your revelation. He knew you were hiding something, but he never expected it to be this big. He looked up at you and regretted seeing your sad expression so up close. It seemed you were about ready to cry.

“It literally broke her,” you continued. “She didn’t find joy in anything anymore. Like, she was a completely different person.”

Jungkook stopped his wrists from moving and pulled back a bit. He didn’t know how to comfort you. It was always Taehyug’s forte when it came to emotional stuff. What was he even supposed to say?

“Did you tell her?” Jungkook gulped, his words were shaky. “About not wanting the surgery.”

It was then that you started to break down and it wasn’t from the pain of getting a tattoo. It was the look of complete and utter worry from Jungkook that set you off into a fit of tears.

“Who is there to tell, Jungkook?” you whispered through the tears. “She’s dead.”

He looked at you in shock, not really registering your words. Obviously, your mother hadn’t died from Hanahaki, she already got the surgery. The reason, he knew, must’ve been much more sinister. He didn’t quite know how to approach you as you hiccuped through your tears. He patted your back in reassurance and repeated time and time again that it was okay, that Taehyung and him would be there for you.

“I’m sorry you had to see me like this,” you mumbled. “I’m a shitty friend.”

He shook his head and was about to reply when an unwelcomed guest came bursting through the tattoo parlor doors.

“Jungkooooook,” you heard a yodel, belonging only to a voice you two could recognize perfectly.

Taehyung.

You made swift movements to wipe away the tears from your face and Jungkook pretended as if he was in deep focus on drawing something on your skin. Taehyung entered Jungkook’s station, unassuming and bright as ever. He held a plastic bag with takeout boxes in his hand, presumably food.

“[Y/N]? You’re here too?” he asked in confusion, eyebrows slightly furrowed. "Getting a tattoo?”

You nodded hesitantly and he gave an even more worrisome look.

“Can someone explain what’s going on?” he asked slowly, trying to decipher what was really happening.

Jungkook coughed awkwardly.

“I think I’m gonna check out the other clients for a second,” he said, standing up and setting down his tools. “I’ll be right back, [Y/N].”

You looked at Jungkook pleadingly to stay, but he shook his head. He did not want to get involved in whatever discussion was about to go. You sighed and brushed the strands of your hair that was getting on your face. You just hoped your red eyes from crying went unnoticed.

“How come you didn’t tell me you were getting a tattoo?” he asked sadly, sitting on the stool Jungkook once occupied. “Is this what you meant when you said you were ‘catching up on things’?”

You pursed your lips, not quite knowing how to respond.

“It was a personal thing,” you whispered, massaging the back of your neck. You felt the flowers in your stomach once again.

“What, so you told Jungkook and not me?” Taehyung pouted, setting the food he brought on a nearby table. “I texted him if he was at work and he said yeah. I usually surprise him with Thai food. I didn’t think you were gonna be here too so I only bought enough for two.”

You smiled at him. Taehyung was still as considerate as ever.

He took a look at your tattoo, slightly confused with the realistic flower patterns. His fingers ghosted over them as if to make sure they were real.

“Why flowers?” he asked. He never thought of you as a flora type person. He’s probably never seen you hold a flower in his life.

“None of your business,” you scoffed trying to face away from him. You didn’t want him to see your flustered expression and the puffiness of your under-eyes. He pouted at your words and lack of eye contact.

“You’ve been so distant from me lately, [Y/N],” he said in a cutesy voice. “I feel like Jungkook and you have been hanging out with each other more than with me. I’m starting to feel really left out.”

You chuckled. You weren’t mad at him for barging in during your tattoo session, but you were frustrated with his naivety. There you were getting the most feared items on the world tattooed on your skin and he questioned very little of it? How dense was he really?

“We can hang out some other time, alright Tae?” you said, ruffling his hair lightly. “I just want this first session done and over with.”

He grinned up at you and squeezed your hand that was on his head.

“Then let me stay here to be your emotional support,” he teased, taking your hand into his. You nodded with a smile, but an uncomfortable feeling had erupted in your stomach.

“Will you excuse me for a second?” you asked urgently, pain laced in your voice. He nodded worriedly as he watched you rush off into the restroom. ‘You were having a lot of stomachaches lately,’ he thought to himself.

You covered your mouth with your palm as soon as you were out of Taehyung’s sight, making sure not to throw up anything on the tattoo parlor floor. Jungkook saw you escaping from his station and followed you into the unisex bathroom. He rushed over to you as you threw up into the toilet bowl, some excess flower petals hitting the floor instead. Tears welled up in your eyes as the flowers kept coming in several colors, all different sizes. They were all tulips, stained in blood and mucus, a truly disgusting sight to behold.

Jungkook patted your back gently and tried to ease you through the pain. Your mouth ached as the last petal left your lips and you desperately grabbed onto Jungkook’s thigh as you coughed out blood. Your lips were horribly stained with a deep rouge.

“Water, please,” you pleaded with your strained voice in between coughing fits.

Jungkook got you the water and while you tried to act like nothing happened when you came back to Taehyung who was playing Candy Crush on his phone, he couldn’t help but notice how raspy your voice had gotten since just a few moments earlier and how tired your eyes looked when you stared at him.

“Are you sure you wanna keep on going?” Jungkook whispered to you. “We can have another session tomorrow. I think it’s probably best you go home.”

You shook your head.

“I just want to be with him a bit more,” you said softly, glad that the boy of your affection was so deeply engrossed in his mobile game. “I didn’t lose that much blood.

Taehyung, at the corner of his eye, couldn’t help but see a small pink petal on your shoe with tinges of red splattered on it. He saw the way Jungkook would ask you every 30 seconds if you were feeling okay when he was never the type to talk while he tattoed.

He wondered if it was any of his business to ask.

—

Throughout the next two weeks, Jungkook had finished the various tattoos you wanted through grueling sessions with Taehyung bothering the two of you in the sidelines. Within those weeks, your health had massively deteriorated as well. The number of flowers you threw up increased by the day and the amount of blood that showed up was worrisome, to say the least. You knew your time was coming up, so it was only fair that you were to complete something you desired most before your eventual demise.

Go on a proper date with Taehyung.

Not like the one-on-one hangouts you had with him where you’d throw on whatever. No, you wanted to get dolled up and pretty this time, so you asked him if he wanted to go watch a movie with you and eat dinner after. You knew it wouldn’t change how Taehyung felt about you since he wouldn’t even consider your invitation as a date, but you still wanted to look your best regardless.

You got ready hours before he intended to come over to pick you up. You lathered on several layers of lipstick, not really knowing what you were expecting to happen anyways. When you finally made your way outside, you were satisfied the starstruck look in Taehyung’s eyes

“Wow you dressed up today,” he chided as he saw you exit your dormitory. “You have someone to impress or what?”

He winked at you and you only scoffed in response. It was obvious that he was staring intently at the new tattoos you had embedded into your skin. It was nice seeing him look at you in a way that you weren’t used to... like he actually found you attractive.

“Please, I look good for myself,” you said confidently. “Can’t say the same for you considering you wore that shirt yesterday.”

He clicked his tongue in your direction.

“Whatever, whatever,” he said, waving his hand in front of him. “I get to have you all to myself today. No Jungkook in sight. I could rub this in his face later.”

You laughed at his silliness. If you wanted to delude yourself, you’d have thought Taehyung was jealous. He was so cute, with his hands stuffed in his pockets as he looked at you with a flushed face. You only had to tolerate the fluttering feeling in your stomach for a few hours or so, how bad could it be? You just needed to endure it until Tehyung left and you were free to throw up all the petals you needed to.

“Let’s go to the movies?” you offered and he smiled, agreeing with your suggestion.

It was nice like this, walking by his side without a care in the world. It made you sad to think that this too would be taken away from you. That you’ll never get to hear him babble about dates gone awry or see how his smile would get wider when he saw his favorite food again. It would all be taken away from you eventually, one way or another. You clenched your fist, attempting to focus on his voice rather than the nausea that had overtaken your body.

It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair that you had to love him all alone.

“I don’t think I get to tell you enough how much I appreciate you,” Taehyung said, breaking the comfortable silence between you two. “You always look out for me even when you look like you aren’t.”

You smiled at his compliment.

“There’s no need for that,” you replied. “What kind of friend would I be if I just watched you suffer alone?”

You tried to swallow down the hypocrisy that came with your own words. He had no idea that you were lying through your teeth right then and there. You tensed at the sound of Taehyung chuckling at your comment.

“That’s what friends are for after all,” he said in agreement.

It happened almost suddenly. The first cough and then a second and then you couldn’t stop your knees from hitting the concrete of the city sidewalk.

“[Y/N],” Taehyung shouted, kneeling next to you on the crowded street. His voice was distorted among all the other sounds you were hearing. There were bells, whistles, the sound of an incoming storm. You started hyperventilating.

‘Not here, not here. Anywhere else but here,’ you screamed to yourself in your head.

You clenched your stomach and tried to hold back the impending contents that were soon to escape your lips. You shook your head as tears threatened to spill out of your eyes. You didn’t want Taehyung to see you like this.

“[Y/N], tell me what's wrong,” Taehyung pleaded. “I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong!”

You couldn’t help as the tears rolled down your face as the first petal left. And then another. By then, a crowd had formed around you two and someone was in the process of calling an ambulance. You couldn’t stop the bloody white roses that escaped your lips, slashing the inside of your throat as more of them came. All parts of your body ached, but your heart hurt the most. Taehyung’s face was in such distress and you were the reason for it.

You were the reason for his pain just as he was the reason for yours.

The last thing you heard before collapsing in his arms was Taehyung screaming your name, the blood mixed with lipstick on your mouth staining his shirt. He called for help and eventually, they did come. They came but it felt like he had already failed you somehow. Like he could’ve done more to protect you.

As the EMTs hauled you off into the ambulance truck, he took one last glance at the pile of flowers that stained the concrete.

It looked too similar to the flowers drawn near your shoulder.

—

Taehyung sat near your hospital bed, clenching his hands together and shutting his eyes to even out his breathing. ‘I’m a dumbass for not realizing earlier,’ he thought to himself.

The nurses had filled him in about your condition just a few moments earlier. He found out that you were six months into being diagnosed with Hanahaki and that you had no intention of getting surgery. It hurt his heart to think that you were suffering all alone, carrying the burden of a terminal illness all by yourself. He hated to think that the person you loved had no idea you were in such pain. Taehyung found himself hating the person you longed for, even if he didn’t know who that was.

He took a glance at your resting features.

You looked so pale in the dim hospital lights and the sound of your heart monitor made him apprehensive. You had Hanahaki and you never bothered to tell him? Was this another one of your secrets you were hiding from him lately? He sighed, burying his face into his palms.

"You don’t deserve this [Y/N],” he said solemnly, brushing away some strands of hair from your face. “Anyone would be lucky to have you be in love with them. That person doesn’t know what they’re missing out on.”

Taehyung went through a list of people in his head who could’ve been your possible unrequited love. It couldn’t be Namjoon, the guy that was helping you out all the time at the bookstore. You two barely talked. It wasn't Seokjin from lecture hall either, you said he wasn't your type. Was it Hoseok from the same department? Perhaps was it-?

He webbed his fingers through his hair out of frustration. Who could it possibly be?

Taehyung was disturbed from his thoughts from a slight knocking sound that continued on for a few seconds.

"Come in," he replied back cautiously.

To Taehyung’s surprise, Jungkook opened the door, a bouquet flowers in his hand as he walked through. Taehyung's body tensed at the sight of him. He had put two in two together and now he clenched his fists together, tightening his jaw.

It was him. It had to be him.

"I would've come earlier, but I wanted to get these for her when she wakes up," Jungkook said solemnly and set the flowers down near the hospital nightstand. "How's [Y/N] holding up?"

Taehyung stood up from the seat next to your bed, cracking his neck to the side to release some tension. He came close to Jungkook, glaring at him in a threatening stance. Taehyung grabbed at his collar.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing bring flowers to a patient with Hanahaki?"

Taehyung's voice didn't sound quite like he usually did. There was a growl akin to anger in the way he spoke. Jungkook pushed him off of him, confused as to why Taehyung was picking a fight with you when you were sleeping just a few meters away.

"It's just a nice gesture," Jungkook seethed. "Why are you being so fucking hostile when you didn't even know she had Hanahaki in the first place?"

Taehyung scoffed, shoving Jungkook by the chest.

"You knew?" he squinted his eyes at Jungkook. "You fucking knew and you didn't do anything about it?"

Jungkook took a look at your sleeping form. He was glad you weren't awake to be hearing this because he was ready to do something he'd regret. He didn’t mind getting kicked out of the hospital if it meant putting Taehyung in his place.

"Why should I do anything, huh?" Jungkook sighed. "I’ve been begging her to get the damn surgery. She won't fucking listen to me!"

Taehyung punched him right then. His wrists were bound to bruise by the impact of it all and Jungkook just stared at him in shock, clutching his cheek.

"It's your fault that she's dying," Taehyung started, tears welling up in his eyes. "You should have fucking tried harder to convince her. You could’ve stopped this."

Jungkook charged at him and pushed Taehyung against the wall. It was a miracle you hadn’t woken up from all the noise they were making. There was bound to be complaints from neighboring rooms for the ruckus the two boys were causing.

"Me?" Jungkook gritted his teeth, taking a good hard look at Taehyung. "You’re saying I'm the reason?"

Taehyung scoffed at his face and pushed him off.

"Who else then? Who else is fucking killing [Y/N]?!" Taehyung cried, his voice echoing in the hospital room.

Jungkook took a step back from him until he soon brought his fist back to hit Taehyung square in the jaw. He fell onto the floor and cringed at the pain.

“I know it’s not my business to say anything,” he mumbled, but loud enough for Taehyung to hear him. “And that it’s between [Y/N] and you but I’m really fucking sick and tired of seeing her break down over someone as incompetent and stupid as-”

“Can you just spit it out already, you piece of shit-”

Jungkook threw another punch at Taehyung when he made his way to stand. He had collapsed on the floor again, trying to readjust his jaw. Jungkook’s hand was bleeding at that point, but he didn’t care one bit. Taehyung deserved everything that was coming to him.

“It’s you,” Jungkook seethed. “You’re the reason why she’s fucking dying!”

Taehyung stared up at him in a state of shock as your body had started to wake up into consciousness. The two boys stared at each other, dripping in anger.

“What did you say?”

—

A/N: Another Taehyung fic up my sleeve! Sorry to leave it on a cliffhanger like that :P The second part will be a lot more intense. Special thanks to @guksflavor for commissioning this and also buying 2 coffees for me, I really appreciate it. It was a whole lot of fun writing this first part and I hope you guys enjoyed it. It’s my first time writing about Hanahaki Disease, so I wanted my interpretation to be slightly unique. I’m so glad I got a request like this from the get-go, since I love these kind of angsty stories. If y’all want to commission for stories or simply donate, my Kofi is linked on my blog. If not, that’s totally fine, I’m thankful for your support either way.

PS. Trash part two comes out at the end of this week, please anticipate it a lot!

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lemonsandstrawberries · 4 years

Text

Hashtag: RelationshipGoals

fandom: Stony (Steve x Tony)

summary: Steve is being forced into getting a Twitter accounts and logs into Tony’s for inspiration - one mistake later, he finds more than he asked for. Meaning, his boyfriend has a tickle kink and Steve has a lot of thinking to do.

length: 5 468

a/n: Happy Friday 13th! *throws confetti* To celebrate I am posting a fic that contains one of the biggest fears for people with tickle kink - someone finding out when you are not ready to tell them. It has a happy ending, promise! Hope you all will enjoy this fic, feedback, reblogs and likes are appreciated and needed! fic inspired by this prompt.

—————

Hashtag: RelationshipGoals

Long story short - Steve was getting a Twitter account.

Long story long...

It all started with a certain PR meeting held for the Avengers team, just this time, it was Steve vs the whole PR team. The problem was simple - Steve didn't like social media and didn't have an account on any of the numerous websites and apps. Fighting with aliens, planning new missions, schooling SHIELD agents - those were the zones he felt comfortable in. Some thought that the hidden reason behind the hostility towards social media was, that Steve, born in the 1920s, had a problem with using modern technology. Some called it endearing, some pathetic, the truth was, that Steve fairly quickly mastered each piece of technology he was given, skillfully using any given device. After all, he wasn't dense. Many apps were quite useful, some just plain entertaining, and it required a lot of navigating, but he managed to find some favorites. Just when it came to social media… Steve didn't feel like sharing his private life with unknown faces. Call him old-fashioned, but he liked having direct contact with people and as much as he liked to take a stop during his random walks in the city to talk with people who called themselves his fans, it quickly became too overwhelming. He wasn't good at such things and always thought he was too awkward and not what people expected. Steve didn't like that kind of pressure and didn't like the almost weekly notices from the PR team that he needed to make himself more 'accessible'. By no means, he was expected to stop and talk to everyone who ever called him or share mission details with strangers, but he needed to create a more public persona for Captain America and Steve Rogers.

Hence, Steve was encouraged to take a plunge into the world of social media.

And he really, really, really didn't want to do that.

One - it was pretty tedious to keep up with everything. Tony eagerly showed him all social accounts he had - Twitter, Instagram, Facebook profile, Youtube, and it all just gave him a headache as Tony chattered which media was good for what and gladly showed him his own Instagram page (mostly workshop photos and meals Steve had prepared for him, which was kinda sweet) and if Steve became slightly interested in that, his interest dropped after hearing about filters and tags. Too much work.

Second - he didn't have time to keep his theoretical accounts active and post new content regularly. Or more, he didn't want to make time, preferring to spend it on reading or training or hanging out with Tony or anything else, really. He had been gently suggested, that some celebrities (Steve's eyes widened a little after hearing that - was he a celebrity?) hire someone else to run their social media accounts. Steve shook his head at the proposition, knowing that none of his teammates did that and so he shouldn't either, not mentioning that everything posted wouldn't be sincere.

Third - Steve considered himself not an interesting person. He didn't have Tony's charisma, who, of course, had the biggest social media following ever, Thor's flair, which made his Youtube channel where he tasted food sent to him from all over the world by his viewers a huge success or Clint's humor, whose Internet activity limited to commenting on funny animal photos and home videos and people loved him. Even Bruce, seemingly even more awkward and distant when it came to dealing with a privacy-invading crowd, was doing great, kindling the interest of young kids in science with a series of easy to repeat experiments at home and railing about the importance of protecting and preserving the environment. Even Natasha didn't have a problem, her social media accounts full of useful self-defense tips for everyone who needed to feel safer. Steve just couldn't find anything in himself he would like to share with the world. He liked to keep his art private, his relationship private, and his whole life private.

It should be the ending statement.

It wasn't.

And so Steve, feeling scolded, got back to his and Tony's shared floor, planning to hide, except that he was assigned a very simple task for the week.

Get a Twitter account.

Steve sat heavily on the couch, putting elbows on his knees and palms around his cheeks, definitely not pouting. Why on Earth did he need a Twitter account? Wasn't it enough that from time to time he appeared on Tony's account, being the supportive boyfriend, and allowing Tony share the photos of their date nights or even the short movies from Steve's training when Tony was proudly showing off Steve's impressive physique and using those damn filters and making small stars and glitter swirl around him.

Speaking of Tony, he could use his boyfriend's advice... Steve checked his phone and knew that Tony was still stuck in a business meeting, and won't be back for an hour or so and as much as he wanted to not think about the Twitter issue it kept coming back to him. What was he supposed to write on Twitter? Something that wouldn't give too much about him, but would be safe and entertaining. He needed inspiration. Maybe a walk would clear his mind but as Steve was getting up, he noticed Tony's tablet laying at the edge of the coffee table.

Well... Tony wouldn't mind if he took a peak, right? Granted, he never used Tony's tablet before without his boyfriend’s permission. It felt too personal and barging on privacy and it was almost a silent agreement between them that Steve won't touch Tony's electronic devices and Tony won't look through Steve's sketchbooks without prior agreement. But it was different, right? Tony's Twitter account was out there, for everyone, so it didn't matter if Steve would install the app on his phone and check the account, or go to the source and look through Tony's account. It might even help him to understand better how the app was working.

Steve took the tablet and unlocked it, searching for the Twitter app. Letter T on a blue background. Steve pressed it and skimmed over the screen, looking at the design of the app. Huh, it looked very different from the account owner's point of view. He scrolled down the screen, seeing a lot of text, too much text because wasn't there a limit of signs per tweet? Further, into the app, Steve saw more of things he didn't recognize, didn't see any posts from other Avengers, instead of images and gifs and -

"Woah," Steve gaped, taking in what he was seeing. He quickly scrolled up, his face becoming heated, unsure what he just saw. For a minute, he turned the tablet in his hands, trying to decide if it really belonged to Tony and not someone else, but who else would have a hot red and gold cover, resembling the design of the Iron Man suit. It had to be Tony's tablet, which meant...

Those posts were Tony's. That account was Tony's. Tony had two Twitter accounts? Steve looked back, just now noticing that it wasn't Twitter after all. At the top of the screen on a background of dark blue in white letters was written Tumblr. Steve didn't hear of the app, it wasn't listed as one of the most popular ones for celebrities and that's probably why Tony used it for -

Steve wasn't exactly sure for what. For something secretive. Something he wanted to hide. Things he didn't admit even to Steve.

Cautiously, Steve scrolled down again, trying to keep an open mind and be more cautious. He wasn't a prude, he knew that people had different kinks and it was completely normal. Heck, he and Tony had a very healthy sex and intimate life and the sight of Tony tied down for their playtime always made Steve's blood boil with lust and desire and they did indulge in some kinks, Steve current favorite one included spanking Tony's bouncy ass and watch it jiggle and the skin turn red. Tony had no problems with sharing his kinky fantasies and Steve was always willing to give it a go, sometimes proposing things on his own, like wax play, which wasn't only sexy but also artistic - Tony's body colored with drips of different colored wax was a beautiful sight. This... This was something different, Steve didn't think to consider.

There were pictures, that without context seemed innocent, like an array of feathers on a pillow. Some were less subtle and showed a part of sucked in stomach, escaping from a coming closer feather duster. The gifs were the most intriguing - a tied up, blindfolded man, laughing and squirming, while a different man was...

Tickling him?

Steve's brow furrowed as he watched the gif, frame by frame. There was no doubt that it was tickling, fingers gliding over tied man's armpits and sides. Steve expected this to be a prelude, something more to follow, but it was all. Tickling was the main point. Steve blushed when he realized that if there were gifs, there had to be a video and who knew how long it was. How many minutes would it take to bring someone to the brink of hysterics, to make them crumble, but at the same time make it pleasurable? People were not forced into filming porn and following that principle, there were not forced into filming tickle kink videos.

And that being said...

"Huh..." Steve mused out, bits of information falling into one picture. They never discussed it, but in the back of his head, Steve had this thought that Tony enjoyed being tickled, or at least didn't mind terribly. The way he squirmed between Steve's tickling hands but didn't try to run away. How he laughed and screamed for mercy whenever Steve targeted a sensitive spot and always seemed a bit disappointed when the tickling ended but masked it with a smile and complaints of being assaulted. Sometimes, Steve just felt provoked into tickling his boyfriend, like that one time, Tony had taken his sketchbook and hid away, refusing to say where he hid it and Steve had to tickle the information out of him until Tony was absolutely incoherent from laughter and breathless.

That was cute. All those shared tickle moments were cute, but Steve never thought that they could be... hot. And intimate. He looked back at the gif, at the way the tickled man arched and bucked, but was not able to escape the ticklish strokes delivered over his skin. What if Tony was the one tied and spread in the chair and Steve was the one standing behind, dotting his fingertips over the bare torso, having that sense of power and control, enjoying the ticklish tremble of the bothered skin. It became a tempting image in his head.

'Guuuuys, I don't know what to do.'

Steve's eyes caught on some text among the images and gifs. A separate post.

'I still can't tell my bf that I like being tickled. I just can't! There is this block in my head -'

Steve read the text, feeling that he might know the author.

'I even did that thing you recommended with hiding his stuff away -'

Definitely knew the author. At the top of the post, he saw a name, probably the username and clicked on it. Blue background color, and image of feathers and the username in white bold font. The Spare Parts Man.

That was one major hint...

Steve scrolled down this page, seeing more text and images of people being tickled, some like, a gif that was of a zoomed in stomach, the belly button tickled by a tip of the feather, signed with a 'omg, goals', whatever that meant. Steve tried to search for the text he saw on the previous page, but couldn't find it anymore, instead saw more posts, where people seemed to be interacting with the author.

'Hi, SP! I was the one who sent you the asks with hiding your BF's stuff -'

'I am sure your BF will understand, from what you said, you are dating for a long time -'

'You still didn't tell him??? What are you waiting for, GO GO GO!'

Steve pursed his lips together, feeling upset that Tony was so willing to share with strangers, but not with him. This whole site seemed so secretive, and while Steve felt a bit betrayed, he started to think about things from Tony's perspective. Tickling wasn't a mainstream kink. Bondage, spanking, food play - all the things they had tried seemed to be more acceptable in the sex world while tickling... Some people enjoyed it, some hated it. Steve was somewhere in between. It could be a fun thing among loved ones, but could quickly become overwhelming and unbearable. Steve didn't think about it earlier, but he really liked tickling Tony. He loved the way his body twitched, the sound of his laughter, and the feeling of closeness and trust in the action. For Steve it was fun. For Tony, it had to run much deeper, forming stronger connections than it did for Steve.

'I don't want to lose him. What if he thinks I am a freak?'

No, Steve would never think that. Tony was the great love of his life and Steve accepted him on every level.

"Oh, babe..." Steve sighed softly, reading more posts, some screaming nervousness as Tony was pouring his heart out, feeling miserable with his inability to tell Steve the truth, some so heartwarming and oozing happiness when Tony was describing Steve's last tickle attacks and how incredibly good and completed it made Tony feel.

That. Steve wanted to make Tony feel like that every day. Satiated and fulfilled and safe.

No more secrets.

Carried on the moment, Steve pressed on an icon with a pencil and began to write.

***

Tony was bored. So, so bored. He caught a glimpse of Pepper sending him a scolding look and straightened up in his seat, pretending to pay attention. He just wanted to go back home and curl up next to Steve, feeling Steve's fingers stroking his hair and maybe, if he got lucky, Steve would rub his belly, using just enough pressure to make him smile and feel like melting. He started to smile at the thought and Pepper sent him a confused look. Uh oh. He better control himself. Tony grinned sheepishly at Pepper and set his face in a schooled, thoughtful look, trying to focus his attention on the meeting. Just half an hour more... It was all ending statements, so it was nothing bad if he decided to check his social media, right? Cautiously, Tony took out his phone and unlocked the screen, keeping the phone under the table. A new tasting video from Thor, with a package of sweets sent from the Netherlands. Tony made a mental note to drop later to Thor's floor and ask if he had any stroopwafels left to share because they were amazing with black coffee. Clint commenting on funny cats videos, Tony added it to his watch later list. As usual, his own social media were bursting with notifications, people raving over Iron Man and asking for more videos of Steve training routine, which, Tony couldn't blame them, the sight of his boyfriend working out was heaven. He even decided to check his Tumblr, curious if anyone sent him some more tips or maybe just left him a nice message -

Oh, that was weird. Usually, he had maybe two or three messages, some reblogs, and a few comments. This time, his app was bursting with notifications and Tony didn't post anything that could cause such a commotion in the last days.

'WHAT. WHAT????"

'Nooooooo... Please don't break up with him! He loves you so much!'

"The hell, dude! You invaded your bf's privacy like that?? You're the worst!"

Tony didn't understand anything. Maybe he clicked and shared something by accident. There was a slight possibility that his account was hacked. Maybe -

Maybe it was way, way worse.

There was a new text post on his main, one he didn't write.

'Hi, this is Spare Part Man's boyfriend. I found this account by accident and me and my boyfriend have a lot to talk about once I see him.'

No. No, no, no.

"Tony? Tony, are you okay?!"

Tony didn't realize he started to hyperventilate until Pepper's voice brought him back. Everyone was staring at him and Tony felt like vomiting.

"I am fine," Tony said, not meaning it, his voice coming out squeaky. "Can we - excuse me, I have to go," Tony rambled out, sending a sorry look in Pepper's direction and trying to walk out of the conference room as calmly as possible. It felt like the whole world was spinning around him, making him feel nauseous. Tony stumbled to the window and pressed his face against the cool glass, trying to soothe his heated skin and get his thoughts back in order.

It wasn't supposed to happen. Not like this. Maybe it was never supposed to happen, staying as his hidden fantasy and dark secret. What if he deleted the account, right here, right now, would he be able to convince Steve that it never existed?

No. Steve wouldn't fall for it. And Tony felt so stupid for creating that account in the first place, but he needed a place to vent. He didn't plan on socializing, sharing his life, just get the urges out and move on. He just... Wanted to feel accepted. Find people who thought the same as he did. Not feel so alone.

And he would end alone because Steve definitely was going to dump him.

***

"I am back!"

Tony was a genius. He had numerous diplomas to prove it. Yet, he decided that the best thing to do would be to march into his and Steve's shared floor, acting like nothing ever happened. Maybe if he managed to keep his cool he could put this whole Tumblr thing as a social study. Just a research on kinks. No biggie. He could do this.

"Tony, come to the bedroom for a second!"

Somehow hearing Steve's voice made this situation very real and not like Tony imagined it. He couldn't say anything from the tone of Steve's voice, it was neutral, not angry, but also wasn't the cheerful, loving one Steve had towards him. On usual days, Steve would come to him, resembling an excited puppy and lick his face - kiss, Tony meant kiss, and then they would sit on the couch and share their day. Their bedroom was a private, closed space and once Tony set his foot there, there was no way back.

Feeling a nervous twist in his stomach, Tony peeked into the bedroom, just to feel if the situation was as bad as he feared. Steve was on the bed, forehead creased in thought, and was looking at the space in front of him until he spotted Tony from the corner of his eyes.

"Tony - " Steve started, sitting up straight, pulling shoulders back.

"No, Steve, I - " Tony walked into the bedroom, trying to make his voice strong. Just remember what he had planned and it would be fine. "I want to talk first, okay?"

Steve blinked and frowned lightly, but kept his lips tight. Alright, if Tony insisted.

"Okay," Tony nodded, trying to give himself some courage and began to pace around the room. "I know you found my Tumblr account," he said the obvious, struggling to keep his voice firm. "And - and it was not true, you know that, right? I just - research - an experiment to - ahh," Tony quickly got lost in his words, noticing Steve's look changing to a confused one. "I - ah, fuck, fuck, fuck - " Tony couldn't get any coherent words out and stopped and hid his face in hands. He continued to quietly curse, not knowing how to get out of this mess and not lose everything.

"Babe..."

Tony almost jumped away, when Steve came closer and wrapped arms around him. After a moment of hesitation, Tony buried himself into his soldier's arms, his face pressed against Steve's neck. Probably the last hug he would receive from Steve. This whole thing won't make Avengers stuff awkward at all. What if Steve would quit the team? Tony couldn't imagine not being able to see Steve anymore. He needed him. He would change, he would do better. Steve couldn't break up with him.

"Of course that I am not breaking up with you," Steve said suddenly, and Tony winced, not realizing he said it out loud. "Is that what you thought?" Steve asked, sounding shocked. Reluctantly, Tony nodded. Somehow he was used to being rejected and walking away from problems was one of the things he did and expected the same happen to him.

"God, Tony," Steve said in an exasperated huff, not believing how quickly this whole thing could escalate in Tony's mind. Then again, he should know, because Tony did think too much and sometimes didn't stop his thoughts on time, letting them drag him deeper and deeper. "Tony, I am not breaking up with you," Steve said again, just to make sure the words sunk in his boyfriend's head. "And I am sorry," Steve gently put his thumb and forefinger under Tony's chin, encouraging him to eye contact. 'Sorry you turned out to be messed up in the head,' Tony finished in his mind, looking into Steve's blue eyes.

"I am sorry for barging into your space when you didn't feel ready to share yet," Steve said, closing the distance between them and leaning his forehead against Tony's.

What?

Tony didn't reply, just stared, his brown eyes widening. Steve was... apologizing to him? Not the other way around?

"I read some of your blog," Steve said and Tony panicked again, Steve holding him closer when he felt brunet's body tense, "and I understand how hard it is for you to talk about it and how important it is for you. I really do. If anything, I am... a bit disappointed you didn't tell me. Why didn't you?"

Tony's mouth twisted into a scowl. He was disappointed with himself too, but it was hard. Harder than admitting that he liked being pinned down by Steve, or spanked, as it all seemed... simpler. It was obvious why people who enjoyed it were turned on by it. Tickling wasn't easy to explain.

"I wanted to," Tony finally spoke, his voice coming out quiet, "I didn't know how," this wasn't a good answer. Tony closed his eyes, not able to look at Steve. "I was embarrassed, I guess."

"Hmmm," Steve hummed in understanding, waiting for Tony to continue, but he didn't say anything more. Tony had no problems with voicing out his needs on his site, but face to face with Steve, he was fumbling and struggling for words. Anonymity gave him a sense of control which was being stripped away from him, layer by layer. Maybe with time, Tony would open more, and it was on Steve's side to nurture that vulnerable mindset until Tony would feel strong enough and confident to voice out his true needs.

"Then... can you tell me why you like it?" Steve tried, sounding gentle and not judgmental. Keeping an open mind was the key here.

"I don't know," Tony said quickly, sounding defensive. He didn't mean to, but it was stranger than him. He didn't want Steve to judge him, to think less of him, but... It was Steve. Steve who was always so understanding and didn't laugh at him and did his best to keep Tony feel accepted. It won't work if Steve would be the only one willing to share. "I guess," Tony corrected himself, trying to be more open, "I like the trust in it. And closeness," he said, tugging on Steve's clothes and hiding more into his boyfriend, "and, uh, it feels good."

"Feels good?"

"Yeah," Tony admitted, burying his heated face deeper into Steve's neck. "Feels really good. Especially when you are the one ti - doing it."

"Oh," Steve said, carding his fingers through the short hair on the back of Tony's head. Tony shivered, just slightly, from the light touch, smiling against Steve's skin and Steve felt an urge to touch him all over. This time differently, more aware and more intimate, paying closer attention to the reactions. "So... you wanna do it?"

"Do what?"

"You know what."

Tony moved away from Steve, showing a confused face. That kinda felt like mocking him, but Steve's face was honest. And it would certainly change the mood and make Tony feel better about this whole day. "I don't know," Tony said, just to be safe, "do you want to do it?"

"Heck yeah."

"What? You do?" Tony asked, his mouth falling agape at the enthusiasm.

"Sure. You like it and I like tickling you too. It's a win-win, right?"

Tony started to smile in relief. It was really happening. Steve accepted one of Tony's darkest secrets and even wanted to take part in it. Tony could barely wrap his mind around it, already feeling excited and giddy.

"So?" Steve asked again, eyes sparkling, waiting for permission from his boyfriend.

"If you keep asking, it takes the surprise factor AWAAHHAHA!" Tony's newly found boost of confidence was efficiently cut off when Steve latched hands to his sides and squeezed repeatedly. Tony doubled over in laughter and squirmed away, watching with a pounding heart as Steve followed him, smiling beautifully mischievous. "No, no, no, wait, Steve! STEHEVE!" Tony screeched in laughter when Steve ran forward, pushing Tony on the bed, and falling with him. "ACK! STE - hahaha! Waaait!" Tony wailed when fingers were going up and down his body tickling intensely. When Tony became pink in the face and a little breathless, Steve stopped, leaning in and kissing Tony's smiling lips.

"I love you, babe," Steve whispered, looking at his lover.

"I love you too," Tony answered, his heart hammering from the ticklish rush and all love he had for Steve.

"Are we good?"

"We are good," Tony assured, still not believing that everything turned out so great.

"Good," Steve smiled, and just now Tony realized that somehow both of his wrists were in soldier's hold and Steve easily pinned his hands above his head, leaving his torso exposed. "Because now," Steve said, sitting on Tony's thighs and slowly sliding his free hand under Tony's shirt. "I want to test every ticklish spot on you."

"Oh fuhahahck - " Tony wriggled uselessly, his stomach sinking in when Steve gently ran fingertips over the soft skin. "Steve, Steve, pleaheehehehese!"

"This is just your tummy and you already are so ticklish. It is a very promising start."

"Ahhahaha!"

"Oh, is this rib ticklish? How about this one? And this one?"

"GAAA HAHAHA!"

"Oh look, the higher I go, the more you laugh. Sooo, this means that when I do this -"

"PFF HAHAHAHA!"

"That's one ticklish armpit you have, babe! Let's find out if the other one is as ticklish -"

Steve was grinning, watching Tony crumbling and laughing, coming apart under his fingers. Steve was right, it was a win-win for both of them.

***

"You should write on your Tumblr."

"Huh?"

"You should," Steve repeated, rolling on completely naked Tony and kissing his lips, "write on your," a kiss on the chin, "Tumblr," Steve finished, blowing a raspberry into Tony's neck.

"HAAHAHA! Stoooop," Tony tried to swat Steve away, feeling too blissful to move. Of course that a long, intimate tickle session changed into an amazing make out. It was incredible how the tickle foreplay increased their appetite and how wonderfully responsive Tony became.

Steve laughed and rolled on his side, looking at Tony with adoration. Laughing made Tony ten times more attractive in Steve's eyes, and Tony was off the scale to start with.

"I am serious, babe," Steve tried again, gently poking his finger all over Tony's bare belly, making him squeak funnily and curl up, "write on your Tumblr. Everyone has to be worried."

"Ah hahaha... Ohkahay!" Tony agreed, shielding his stomach with one hand and using the other one to reach for his phone. "Uhh... Should I update and delete it?" Tony asked. With everything working out so great, there was no reason for him to keep that account. No more secret lusting, when he had it all in real life.

"If you want to," Steve said truthfully, "or maybe you can keep it for a bit longer because I might need some inspiration on how to take you apart."

"Ahhh, not sure if I want to give you access to that sort of power," Tony teased, opening the app. "Huh, people kinda hate you."

Steve shrugged, understanding that what he wrote, did sound menacing, even if it wasn't his intention. "Just write that we are fine and your boyfriend plans on fulfilling your each and every one tickle fantasy."

"You do?" Tony asked, voice trembling with excitement.

"All of them, babe," Steve assured, smiling broadly. He had remembered some of the things he read and gifs he saw, and could easily imagine Tony on the receiving end.

Looking enthusiastic, Tony got to writing. Soon, Steve got up and leaned over Tony's shoulder, looking at the screen.

'Hi, guys. Sorry for the sudden silence but as you saw we had a situation here. It is all good now, me and BF talked, and he turned to be all sweet about it, not bragging, I just had my first tickle session and it was amazing! So, I just wanted to give you an update, that I am fine. More than fine. My BF said that I can keep this Tumblr if I want to and he will even use it as an inspiration, so aaaah, can't wait. Just don't give him any ideas! I am gonna talk to you all soon, but for now, I and my BF have plans. See you later!'

After the post got published, Tony and Steve didn't have to wait for a reaction.

'AAAAH! I AM SO GLAD EVERYTHING IS FINE! YOU BOYS HAVE FUN NOW!'

'Awesome, couple goals.'

'That's great, dude, but I hope your BF apologized.'

"That's the one that doesn't like me, right?" Steve squinted his eyes, pointing at the last comment. Tony laughed and nosed Steve's cheek playfully.

"It is okay, I like you," he smiled. "Do you want to have a nickname? That will make it much easier for me to write when you are involved."

"Um, sure," Steve said, not entirely sold on the idea, but not wanting to shot Tony's idea down. "You call yourself Spare Parts Man, right?" Steve asked and Tony nodded. "Soooo... How about you call me Iron Man?"

Tony's smile dropped in surprise, and he laughed mockingly. "Seriously, dude?"

"Hey, the darkest place is under the candle," Steve said, sounding defensive.

"Fine," Tony agreed, rolling his eyes dramatically. He reblogged the post and added an update.

'BF wants you to call him Iron Man. I know, lame.'

"Ack!" Tony almost dropped his phone when Steve scoldingly pinched his side. Soon the first comments came.

'Ah you sound like a superhero couple, how cute!'

'I am shipping you both. #relationshipgoals'

'Wow, your BF is not very creative, isn't he? But fine, let it be IRON MAN.'

"Write to this one that I don't like them either," Steve hissed, looking at the last comment.

Tony laughed and turned to Steve, pressing their lips together in a kiss. Long and sweet. The kind of kiss that was the perfect happy ending to a tickle kink coming out story.

"Oh, interesting!" Steve suddenly said, ending the kiss too soon and looking at one of the comments, smiling wickedly.

"What is int - noooooo!" Tony wailed, understanding the reason behind the smile. It was stronger than him and Tony started to panic. "It is a lie, Steve! Don't believe the lieeee no no aaah HELP!"

Steve laughed, wrestling Tony down and pinning his hands once again. If Tony was already getting this worked up, there was no way Steve would back up.

"No, please!" Tony giggled, kicking his legs, trying to wriggle away, as Steve's menacingly moving fingers were getting closer and closer. "I cahahahan't!"

Somehow, Steve didn't believe him. Instead, he believed the comment.

'Hey, this is for Iron Man - I am sure you know already, that SP's stomach is really ticklish, but did you try tickling his belly button specifically? From what SP writes it is a very ticklish outie. Have fun!'

When Steve pressed his finger over Tony's outie delicately and Tony burst into giggling, almost maniacal laughter, Steve was in heaven. It was settled, Tony was keeping his blog for further tips for Steve.

#stony #steve rogers #tony stark #superhusbands #stevetony #tickling #tickle kink #tickle fic #upperbody tickling #fanfic #fanfiction

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infinitecrime · 4 years

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I've never seen so many hate blogs related to Seb, like, I've never seen that with any other celebrity. They say it's not a hate blog it's accountability, but all there is hate and lies. It's so easy to leave a fandom, go find something makes you happy. I've already left so many fandoms, what do they expect Seb to do what they want? Make an apology to each one? These people need to see a psychologist or psychiatrist, they are psychos.

It's actually insane. Even celebrities that are legitimately problematic and even outright abusive/racist do not have anything like the number of completely obsessed hate (masquerading as gossip) blogs that he has. I hope to god he has no idea they exist because that kind of thing would completely destroy your mental health, something he has been open about struggling with anyway.

For me it's the fact that although he sometimes goes weeks to months without posting or doing an interview, they still talk about him. Every. Single. Day. If there's no 'content', they make some by making something up or invading the most private aspects of his life or speculating or crafting conspiracy theories that quickly turn into gossip blog 'fact'. I think if they actually tried to go a full 24 hours (or even 2 hours) without posting something defamatory or invasive or hateful about him they would have some kind of withdrawal symptoms. It's beyond an obsession at this point and there's no self awareness or understanding or boundaries, parasocial relationships, etc. I legitimately worry for their mental health with some of the shit that I've seen. It's unhinged, and only seems to be getting worse even though he's done the right thing by not addressing them or giving them the attention they crave at all. It also genuinely amuses me that they all drag lifeofs*bys and the other crazy Instagram stalkers without realising that they are EXACTLY the same, if not significantly worse.

Like if you don't like someone...don't spend 10 hours out of your day obsessing over their every move...stop talking about them and paying them attention...unfollow them on social media...don't watch their movies...it's literally that simple. Cut them out of your life and don't support them, then move on. There are plenty of celebrities and people in general I don't like or think are bad people. You won't see anything about them on this blog because obsessing about things you hate all day is deeply, deeply unhealthy.

#sebastian stan

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loving-villanelle · 4 years

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lmfaoo, they're all gone now. the people who leaked jodie's things got their accounts suspended, and the person who "compiled" the "receipts" on jodie's bf deactivated. probably played victim before doing so, too, cuz people sent them a lot of "oh nooo, take caaare, sorry this is happening to youuuu :(" shit. as if the fact that jodie's literal address got leaked is not a consequences of their actions, as if their actions didn't draw in the gossip bottom feeders who took it as a go ahead.

Her ADDRESS was leaked?! I hadn't heard about that. That is so insane and scary af to be honest. She is a HUMAN BEING and this is harassment plain and simple. She could probably press charges against these people for invasion of privacy and you know what, after what they've done to her, her family and her peace of mind, maybe she should! Y'all have more sympathy for these bottom feeders who went above and beyond to be cruel and spread false information than you do for the woman who was targeted by it. That's....wooooow. Jodie is a young woman just trying to live her life the best she can and figure it all out along the way just like the rest of us. Could you imagine having something like this happen to you? It'd be fucking awful. Now take that feeling and multiply it by about 1000 because not only did it happen to her, it was then put on display for the whole world to judge and comment on it. I'd be a wreck and honestly, I have been genuinely concerned about her well being since all of this started. Be better! Do better! Stop pretending that celebrities give up their rights to certain things or to any semblance of normalcy because of their profession. We are not entitled to a god damn thing when it comes to Jodie and her private life. Her personal life is not a part of her job. And we are even less entitled to make up our own truths about people that we don't even know! I'm sorry but anyone who claimed to be a fan of Jodie's but then was willing to believe the most horrible things about her from a bunch of Twitter trolls can fuck right off. We may not get to know Jodie 100%, but we've seen enough of her to know what kind of person she is, so for people to turn on her the way they did, to not allow her any of benefit of the doubt, to so easily believe all of the UNFOUNDED, UNPROVEN information that was put out there. You're not a fan. You're a sheep. The tide started turning against her and you went right with it. You didn't stop and question the authenticity of anything, you didn't bother to look into the sources of the information, you instead got swept up in the DRAMA of it all without really stopping to think about the actual human beings being affected on the other side. And now, the people who have already so viciously invaded her privacy have the gall to says that she OWES us an explanation and how her silence doesn't look good. FUCK OFF. She's the victim here! And instead of supporting her until we do have any actual proof of anything, people have the audacity to say that she needs to earn our support back by publicly dismissing these vague ass, unfounded theories as lies. An anon from earlier said it best...with fans like these, who needs enemies

#oh no I ranted #jodie comer

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geraniumsforinej · 4 years

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rps is bad

i’m not calling anyone specific out with this, but shipping people in real life who aren’t actually publicly together is not a good thing. i cannot support people who ship yizhan.

i’m not anti-lgbt+. it’s just not my place to speculate or analyze whether two people are together. even on the off chance that yibo and xiao zhan are together, if it’s not something they’re public about, then it’s not any of our places to speculate or analyze. other people’s sexualities are not up to our speculation, regardless of if they’re lgbt+ or not.

people’s private relationships are just that. private. they don’t have to let anyone know about their relationships, including their fans. celebrities have a right to privacy just like any of us do, and people shouldn’t be combing through their every interaction, analyzing if they’re together or not. doing that is incredibly invasive. celebrities are human beings too, and it’s so disrespectful to disregard their privacy like that.

plus, this shit has real world consequences. the chinese government is not open to homosexual relationships, and such prominent actors as yibo and xiao zhan would be punished if anything were to come up, true or not. we already saw this happen with ao3 being banned in china. yibo and xiao zhan already aren’t allowed to perform wuji together, or work together because of stuff like this.

yes there’s a difference between casually speculating about this privately and fetishizing mlm relationships. however, it’s a very fine line. even speculation can be harmful if the wrong people see it. i’ve seen edits of them getting married and even video edits where they’re kissing. that is not okay.

tl;dr: please be respectful of the people whose work you enjoy. don’t invade people’s privacy for the sake of a mlm ship.

#xiao zhan #wang yibo #yizhan #chen qing ling #cql #the untamed #iden rambles

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jq37 · 4 years

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The Royal Report– A Crown of Candy Ep 13 Family Ties

Regroup

Welcome back to Candia, y’all.

As the cast tries to get a handle on their giggles from whatever shenanigans happened off-screen between episodes, the PCs land back at the monastery of the Spinning Star. All the rescued civilians are grateful and the monks help to patch them up. The group is a little worried their enemies will follow them through the standing stones but only a high level Candian magic user would be able to do that so they’re probably fine. They also learn that all the weapons they stole are basically +1 to attack magical items--not useful to them but maybe for their allies.

Spearia tends to Joren (and we’re cursed with the phrase “wrist milk”) and then goes Full Mom Mode on Liam with a several minutes long hug. Theo joins the hug so he can ask Spearia if she knows any other Druids that could do that transportation (she doesn’t know of any in Buzzybrook but there could always be others she doesn’t know about) which turns into a discussion about the SPF. Ruby thinks the SPF is on their side but the others are more wary and Rina, as before, is specifically against her. She says the SPF gets her powers from the Bulb and the sharp division between the two is just a kind of distraction from the bigger issue. Ruby calls it a conspiracy theory (though Theo says Lazuli believed something similar) and stalks off. Amethar runs after her but, en route, stops to have a conversation with Joren.

He tells Joren that Rina is queen now and that he (as in both of them really) need to start doing the smart thing and not just the tough thing. Joren razzes him about the new attitude until Amethar says that Jet is dead which turns him sympathetic and basically gets him on board--it’s not the fight Liam was anticipating. He says that they’re gonna have to make a big show about recognizing Rina if this is gonna work and asks if they have any allies who can vouch. Amethar says the Dairy Islands are with them and they have a crazy plan that involves getting the Book of Leaves (St. Citrina’s Lasso of Truth book).

Theo runs to catch up with Joren and Amethar but, on the way there, catches Ruby and says they need to stick together. Then the three guys go and find Rina. They basically bend the knee to her and say they’re at her service. Rina is not as excited as you might think though. She accepts the endorsement while barely holding back tears, saying that she’s aware the support doesn’t come with enthusiasm but she appreciates it all the same. Then she goes with Gooey back to her contingent of followers to celebrate with them, not seeming like she’s in a celebratory mood at all.

Cumulus and Liam have gone to the library of the monastery to try and dig into the info they grabbed during the fight and Ruby goes to talk to Liam. She confides in him that she thinks this plan sucks because even if they are able to get Rina onto the throne, it still means they win on the terms of their enemies. They’re still working within the system and the people who killed Jet and killed Preston don’t pay for anything. Liam says he’s still super down for killing all of these people and he really doesn’t think the plan is gonna work. He thinks it’s going to end in war either way. They try to decipher the map but it’s hard and they recruit the monks to help work on it overnight.

Snicker-Snack talks to Cumulus and says--echoing his own thoughts--that Rina is crazy powerful and a possible heir to Lazuli’s title of Archmage. He wonders if they should swear themselves to her the way they were sworn to Lazuli. Cumulus thinks it might be a good idea and Snicker-Snack says that it’s Cumulus’s call since he’s the most senior monk.

Theo finds Rina again and asks if she thinks they’re in danger of getting ambushed by the SPF. Rina (after getting a head shake from Brennan) says no, not this night but she is worried that the SPF is working with the Bulb. She and her guys will be up all night keeping watch (and partying) so he can, “Go back to [his] family.”

Brain Food

In the morning, the monks have finished looking through all of the info the PCs stole last episode which means it’s time for a good old fashioned info dump. There’s a lot happening so I broke it into sections:

Military Movements

The south of Candia has been totally taken over by Calroy and his guys. He’s fully posted in Castle Candy and every state except for the Dairy Islands has recognized him as a legitimate ruler.

The only non-traitor Candian troops are basically all at the Great Stone Candy Mountains (bc they were on route to help Jawbreaker).

As in Ruby’s vision from Lazuli, the invasion of Castle Candy did fall apart due to discord. Specifically, it was a mix of Plumbeline’s troops and Bulbian troops and because the Pontifex held the position that there could be no Concord without all of the states of the OG Concord under the terms of the OG agreement (meaning including Candia) Plumbeline said, “Fine. If there’s no Concord, there’s no reason I have to help you,” and she withdrew her troops.

So, to be clear, Calroy did a coup. The Imperial soldiers that are there are not there to invade Candia. They’re there doing peacekeeping stuff. The non-Imperial bread soldiers are Ciabatta’s men--he went home post spy session with the girls and used the info he stole to assassinate all the obstacles between him and being dictator for life and then decided an invasion of Candia was a good way to keep the peoples’ approval. Candia was picked for no reason other than it was a sitting duck due to all the other insane stuff that’s going on (chief or which is loss of Concord protection). And the church is there cause...actually, let me start another heading for this because it’s a doozy.

The Bulbian Church

The Pontifex has decided that the Ramsian Doctrine is in full effect. The reason they’re in Candia is because they’ve called a crusade.

Kerradin has a fancy new title--Mace of the Faith--and is leading it.

She’s called open season on all Candians--not just soldiers, literally anybody. She’s calling for a full genocide. The church’s policy is, if you kill a Candian, your soul is saved. If you destroy Candian standing stones, your soul and your family’s souls are saved. It’s real chilling shit.

There’s been pushback from bishops and archbishops about the policy--obviously Candian ones but from other countries as well--saying that they can’t support this and please can she reconsider (they can’t really be more forceful than that without risking being killed themselves).

Calroy, sensing the way the wind is blowing, has sent out an official statement saying that he renounced his pagan ways and wants to be re-baptized into the Bulbian faith.

We learn that the reason the Pontifex is being difficult with Plumbeline about the technicalities of the Concord agreement and why it can’t just be back on is because she wants to stay in limbo for as long as possible so she has a chance to also call a crusade against the Meatlands--both for being so openly pagan and for the killing of Archbishop Raddica (mentioned in I think episode 3).

There was a lot of money that the crew ignored while looting last episode and that was money to be used to pay Meatlander mercenaries apparently.

Group Dynamics

So Calroy is kind of courting all three camps here. As I said before, he’s agreeing with the crusade and saying he wants to be baptized to court the church.

Cal is also saying to Ceresia that a crusade is needed to cleanse Candia and a new Concord could be formed if Ceresia were to conquer it and make it a part of Ceresia. Ciabatta in an intercepted letter says that Cal could possibly be governor of Candia as a province of Cersia--exactly what he wants.

Whenever Calroy talks about the new Concord, he mentions a Concordant *Empress* who could be anyone, which also gives Plumbeline what she wants. He’s basically like that Always Sunny clip about playing both sides so he always comes out on top.

Everyone is planning a meeting to talk about logistics and a new Concord and all that but Ciabatta doesn’t want to meet in Comida or Vegetania after the whole deal with his name being spoken and rejected by the Book of Leaves. Cal has opened Castle Candy as a meeting place.

The Pontifex is bringing Kerradin and guards to protect her and the Book of Leaves to make sure there’s no funny business happening (ie: Cal conspiring privately with Plumbeline or something).

And, to be clear, none of these people seem to like or trust each other. It’s all a matter of being able to use each other for mutual benefit. There’s lots of evidence of discord and resentment. [To that point, here is some very dope art.]

Misc.

The various baddies haven’t been able to figure out watersteel--it seems that Alfredi left something out of her notes and took the secret to her grave. They did figure out the bread constructs though as we saw last episode.

There are notes about the Sanctus Putris which is a church doctrine that runs counter to the Ramsian Doctrine and it says that to keep the Hungry One at bay, there has to be a certain level of rot in the world.

There is a letter between Onionpatch and the Sanctus Putris dudes saying that they have located the home of the SPF (the Ice Cream Temple) and will get there tomorrow (as in tmrw from their POV).

Finally, rumors of Rina are floating around and the policy is basically, “Who cares if she exists or if she’s legit or not? If you see her, kill her.” So Emily has gone from being a huge target to...being a huge target. That’s what happens when you play two heir apparents in a row.

And deep exhale. That was A Lot.

Gameplan

Joren thinks the best plan is to get all their armies together and publicly take the knee to Rina at Manylicks to help legitimize her. Ruby, again, is against this plan because it would mean, at least on paper, being on the same side as Ciabatta. Spearia gets where she’s coming from but says it’s just to get things settled and they can always leave the Concord again once they’re back in control.

Gooey brings up the meeting everyone is gonna be at and Liam suggests getting someone from the Meatlands there so they can force the Pontifex to say on the Book of Leaves that they’re her next target, winning them an ally. Rina pipes up that she has allies in the Meatlands so maybe she can help arrange that. Jawbreaker also wants to just spread the word that Rina exists to make things more politically complicated and give the Dairy Islands (and possibly the Meatlands) a legit reason to side with them/stop the Imperials since the Concord will be back on.

Rina, unprompted, says again that she doesn’t care about the throne, she’s just anti-Bulb and pro magic. Cara and Ruby kinda glance at each other while that is going on.

At this point, Jawbreaker is fully on board with her and toasts to her as queen. Liam warns her about the target on her back but she says she grew up abused by Bulbian nuns. She can handle herself. Cumulus also officially pledges the service of the Spinning Star monks to her. She’s just picking up allies left and right.

Anyway, Jawbreaker, Spearia, and the rescued townsfolk plan to go for Manylicks to rally the troops. Spearia asks for an escort so they send Jack and his sailors to protect them. Before they leave, Liam has a heart to heart with his dad about how war changes you and forcing yourself to be hard so others get to be soft in which Joren finally calls him the correct name.

Cumulus thinks that, if a crusade is happening, the monastery will be a big target so it makes sense for the monks to gather the artifacts and hang with Rina’s marauders for a bit. They also decide to disassemble the teleportation circle once they leave so they’re more secure.

Ruby and Amethar are up on the parapets of the monastery kinda doing that thing where you’re not fully talking but just being like, “*Huge Sigh*”/”Yeahhhhh” with someone you’re close to. Cara shows up and says she’s going with Jawbreaker and his people to Manylicks while the PCs go for the Ice Cream Temple. Ruby asks how long she’s known magic and Cara says Lazuli taught her. Ruby asks why she never taught them and Cara says she was going to when they matured but since they never did, she didn’t want to give them more tools to run away with. Ruby says maybe they wouldn’t have run away so much if she’d trusted them. Cara basically takes psychic damage from that and Rina, who is near enough that she can see what’s happening, catches her attention for some sympathetic eye contact because she knows what that feels like.

Amethar asks for a moment alone with Ruby and apologies for having been a bad dad. Ruby protests that he hasn’t been one but he insists that he has and says that he hasn’t known what to do to help her process Jet’s death. Ruby says it’s not his fault and there’s nothing he can do. The fact of the matter is she was never alone and now she’ll always be alone. Amethar says that’s not true. She won’t be alone because he’s there for her and Jet still is too, though in a different way. He can’t stand watching her push her friends away at every turn. He asks her to please, just be here with them. Ruby breaks down a little and says that she had to run away as the most important person in the world to her died and the only way she can even begin to live with that is by getting revenge. Oh don’t worry, Amethar says. They will be killing *all* of those people.

Sickly Sweet

The team to raid the Ice Cream Temple is comprised of the PCs plus Swifty, Jon Bon, and Gooey (who is having some mutually confusing dom/sub sexual tension with Theo which is a sentence I hate to type but posterity is the main goal here so I don’t have much of a choice now do I). They teleport as close as they can (the monks disassembling the teleportation mechanism once they get there) and then it’s still another 2-3 hours to get there. It’s very cold, like the Himalayas and everyone takes cold damage just by being there. Rina (Invisible) and Cumulus (tied to a rope held by Theo) are up front to try and keep everyone else from triggering traps as they walk up the steps.

They eventually come upon gates in front of an arch and a hallway with a huge locked doorway in front of it. And there is a symbol of a huge spoon in front of the door. Rina passes Winterscoop in front of it and it opens. They follow her down the hallway and Cumulus triggers a trap when he takes point but Rina, holding Winterscoop, learns that if she takes the lead, she auto-disarms the traps.

As they walk down the hall, Rina sees the eyes of the SPF and hears her voice in her head, “I can’t see you, but I know you’re here.” The SPF says the temple was made by those like her (Rina) but she (the SPF) is the only one who’s been there for quite some time and her pupils narrow to slits.

Amethar sees an image of Saphria who says, “Long way from home, brother,” before disappearing.

Because of how well lit the hallway is, Ruby currently has no shadow.

Liam, as they walk, smells a quick whiff of hot chocolate and cinnamon.

They get to the end of the hallway which branches off into three directions: there’s a staircase going up to a door (marked with the Sucrosi symbol for the SPF which Ruby recognizes because Laz shows up as a quick vision and tells her and Theo recognizes as having appeared in the sky before the battle that killed Laz--Rina also recognizes it and it is the SPF’s actual name, not one of her titles, so it seems possibly magically significant), to the right there’s some weird combo of illusion and conjuration magic which makes them think that there’s a combo of true things and tricks and like maybe some of the stuff they’ve been seeing out of the corners of their eyes as they’ve traveled would be there, and to the left there’s a locked door marked armory.

Ruby uses her thieves' tools and Mage Hand to get the armory door open and it turns out it’s actually a library (which everyone but Theo is disappointed about). Inside, they find a book in Bulbosi that’s filled with with ancient spirits of the other realms--the Jolly Giant, the Hamburger Helper, and (at Emily’s prompting) Wonder Bread. It’s basically a checklist of magical spirits from the other kingdoms that the church has destroyed and further proof that Candia isn’t more inherently magical than anyplace else. They’ve just fought to protect their magic.

On the last page, there’s again mention of the Dracoria Azucar with an inverted symbol of the SPF covered in spikes and surrounded by magic and then in the middle of the page a chocolate egg which Rina tells Liam is what they’re there for.

The book suddenly slams shut and flies away. Outside, they hear the door at the top of the stairs open. They get out and walk up the stairs into this chamber at the heart of the mountain. It's a massive room with huge icicles coming down, dim light, and a ton of mist. They're kind of on a platform suspended above a bunch of emptiness. In the middle, there's a tower of frozen ice cream scoops and at the center is a small opening. Surrounding it and floating around it are huge freezer burned ice cream cones and popsicles. At the top of the tower, frozen into it is a chocolate egg (a chocolate smear inside the ice indicating that it was incredibly hot).

The SPF appears in front of them in her cute glamour bearing the mended teacup, the note from Lapin, and the heartseed Liam left for Preston. She thanks them for coming and apologizes that she can’t bring Jet back but says now she can bring them to Jet. Ruby asks what that means and she suddenly sees figures in the mist--4 adult women with a younger adult woman along with a figure that looks like Amethar’s dad. There’s a brightly colored road made of illusory light going from where they are, down into the mist. The SPF says it’s a pure Candy-only place and she can take them there. The church means to burn everything sweet out of the world forever and this is the only way to keep them safe. She’s taken a lot of other spirits there already and everyone they’ve lost and love will be waiting for them and they’ll be together forever.

Amethar openly expresses suspicion at the SPF and the SPF says she’s only using the glamour to make them feel more comfortable. Rina says she’d like to see the SPF’s true form and the SPF says, “I bet you would,” seeming ticked off that she has Winterscoop. She compares Rina to Lazuli who wanted to take everything that made Candia special and let it get used and abused by the rabble (her opinion, not mine). Look how that turned out for the Jolly Giant and the Hamburger Helper.

Ruby, in Twinspeak, asks the misty figure of Jet, “Are you real?”

The Jet in the Mist (played by Emily who is on the spot drafted by Brennan to be Jet once again for this moment) says (with the knowledge to back it up), “It’s true, but I don’t know if it’s good.”

With that answer, Ruby gives the SPF a placid thanks but no. She’s grateful that she’s been protecting the magic of Candia but they need it now to keep Candia safe. The SPF says that that’s what she’s doing. If they go into the mist, they’ll be safe. No, says Ruby. If they go into the mist, they’ll be dead. The SPF doesn’t see a difference. Safe and dead? Safe and alive? To-may-to, To-mah-to.

“Are you mad at me?” the SPF asks, childlike.

“No,” Ruby says, evenly.

The SPF says she’s only ever tried to help. She sent Lapin to protect them even though she knew he’d die and they’d lose everything because she knew they wouldn’t come unless they lost everything.

Ruby pauses for a second that feels like ten minutes.

“Did you kill my sister?”

The SPF looks slightly sheepish. “Would you have come here if she was still alive?”

Ruby does the only thing she can do. She pulls her bow.

Looks like someone just jumped Ciabatta in her to-kill list everybody. See you next week!

Things I’m Concerned About

I mentioned this in an ask but I’m concerned Cara is about to pull a Cat’s in the Cradle--meaning, she keeps getting brushed off so I’m worried she’s gonna get really hurt and the PCs will suddenly care and it’ll be too late. This fear is based on nothing except what I would do to be mean to my players. I have a semi-similar fear about Rina but I’m gonna let that sit for a bit.

Ruby. Girl. I know what you’ve just been through but...girl. Please be smart here.

I never love a battle map you can fall off of. That always gives me anxiety--especially when your enemy can fly so it’s not equal footing so to speak.

I feel like “concerned” is a bit of a weak word to describe my feelings on a genocide but I named this section during episode 1 before I knew where things were going so yeah. Bad.

Everyone the group hates being in one place is hypothetically very good but also has the potential to be VERY bad depending on how it plays out.

I really wanna know what the Sanctus Putris is planning is to at the Temple. How aligned are they with the mainstream church? Their main tenant runs pretty counter to what they’re doing right now. Are they potential allies? Why would they be communicating with Onionpatch, known close confidant for the Pontifex? Were they trying to sway her with something there?

Five More Things

Woah! Oh man, that whole last scene with Ruby and the SPF? The music? The tension? The constant, calm No’s from Ruby until the SPF Said That and then the instant switch into Terminator mode? What a scene ender y’all! When I watched it again for this recap, I knew what was coming and it still bodied me. The immediacy with which Ruby/Siobhan grasped the, “This is death” thing was so impressive to me. I loved everything about that last 5 mins. So it seems like the SPF is the one who set up that letter. She might have been posing as Cara in that moment, or maybe it was a full illusion--that seems to be her school of magic. I knew this Fae was shady but man! Can you imagine the world where Lapin is still alive at this point? Would love to know his take on this.

There’s a bit I didn’t mention in the recap when they get back initially and Brennan tries to have the NPCs overrule the PCs on the cuteness levels of the corn monster from last ep that is so funny. Nothing like ganging up on the literal god of the universe you’re playing in. Also funny is him going, “No Zac, this is good,” when he starts listing out the other house spirits/brand names. Gotta love having a captive audience for your carefully constructed nonsense.

OK, so question. What exactly is Calroy’s plan with the church, huh? Because, you can get baptized all you want, you’re still cake my dude. Is he hoping they’ll let him, what? Die of old age while slaughtering his people? Yikes.

When Swifty opened his mouth the first time I was like, “Absolutely not,” but now I kind of love him?

So we learn in this ep that all other spirits get their powers from the Bulb or the Hungry One ultimately which is interesting conceptually. “Power is neutral except for how you use it,” is cool and also generally correct imo. Rina mentions the SPF, “Working with the Bulb” at some point and do you think she means the Bulb or the church? Because the Bulb is mindless but she doesn’t necessarily know that. And if she means the church that would also be wild considering what we learned this ep.

#dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #a crown of candy #a crown of candy spoilers #the royal report

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iamstartraveller776 · 4 years

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From a Distance 2/?

Summary: Star musician Killian Jones is a private man. He expertly dons a devil-may-care swagger for the public eye, keeping the real version of himself carefully locked away. As the lockdown for the pandemic drags on, however, he becomes desperate enough for human contact that he’s finally willing to do the Facebook Live Q&A his manager has been after him about. That simple decision turns into something far more complex than he expects. For how does one pursue a beautiful, mysterious lass during quarantine and social distancing—especially when she seems reluctant to have the sudden attention of a famous bad boy?

Rating: T

Previous chapter (Also on AO3)

A/N: I'm sorry that this has taken me a bit longer to get out than I planned, but here it is finally! Hopefully, it's worth the wait. (Side note: My addiction to the series "Songland" may or may not have bled through in this chapter...)

CHAPTER TWO Decisions, Decisions

There’s a rhythm to baking. The pulsing thrum of an electric mixer. The clank of pans against oven racks. The beep-beep of a timer. When Emma’s in the kitchen, everything else bleeds away as her world narrows to measuring cups and stainless steel mixing bowls. No more thoughts about being cooped up because of a pandemic, no more thoughts about getting caught on some celebrity’s live-stream video last weekend. (No memory of his crooked smile and raspy British timbre as he invited her to meet him again the next day.)

Emma curses under her breath and drops the piping bag on the kitchen counter. Thanks to Killian Jones rudely invading her thoughts, the frosting on her cupcake is a gloppy mess. She’ll have to scrape it off and start over—for the second time. At this rate, she won’t have anything worthy for Instagram today, and she needs to get something online.

Two months ago, she was getting up at the crack of dawn to fill a smattering of custom orders she’d gotten through her social media accounts before she had to run off to her job at Granny’s Diner. Between the two, she was barely making ends meet for her and her ten-year-old son. She desperately wanted a better life for Henry, but being a high school dropout with a record and a single mother, opportunities weren’t exactly falling into her lap.

Until one did.

Moving to New York to open a bakery with a childhood friend was a big, scary leap, but with Henry’s enthusiastic support, Emma jumped. She still didn’t know what she did to deserve that kid. David and Mary Margaret, too. The Nolans demanded she and Henry stay with them until they could find a place of their own.

Of course, no one was expecting a nationwide lockdown only a couple of weeks after The Swan and Dragon opened. Fresh baked artisan bread and one-of-a-kind confections don’t qualify as “essential.” Emma’s back to where she started, filling a handful of orders that the fledgling bakery receives online—this time from the kitchen of her adopted brother and his wife.

That is, if she can concentrate enough to frost a damn cupcake.

“Those look so good.” Mary Margaret settles at the breakfast counter, looking like her chipper self, if a bit tired this late afternoon.

Emma sets one of the rejects in front of her sister-in-law. The new flower petal design she attempted in the buttercream looked more like wilted blobs. “Have one.”

Mary Margaret raises a brow. “You don’t need it for an order?”

Emma wishes. Her inbox hasn’t churned up any today, and Lily thinks some new posts on social media might generate interest. “I need something more photogenic. That one didn’t make the cut.”

“Ah.” Mary Margaret examines it with a frown and shakes her head. “Looks pretty to me, but what do I know? I’m just quality control.” She peels back the liner and takes a bite, moaning in appreciation.

Emma laughs. When she met Mary Margaret a decade ago, she wasn’t sure they’d get along. David’s then-girlfriend seemed so sweet and pure—almost too perfect—the opposite of Emma. But now she’s near the top of a very short list of the most important people in Emma’s life.

“This is sooo gooood,” Mary Margaret says after another bite. “New recipe?”

“Kind of.” Emma picks up her latest failure and, with a spatula, clears the frosting off into a bowl. “I took one of Ruth’s and tweaked it.” Her voice only trembles a little bit when she says the name of David’s late mother.

Mary Margaret nods and blessedly doesn’t encourage Emma to expound further. It’s been years, but she still can’t bring herself to talk about her last foster parent—the only one who had actually wanted to become something more than another temporary way-stop for an angry, shut-down teen.

“Done with school?” she asks Mary Margaret as she squeezes the piping bag, letting the bit of drying frosting join the rest in the bowl.

“Yes, thank goodness.” Mary Margaret blows out a heavy sigh. “I answered so many emails from anxious parents, my vision started to get blurry. I feel like the bears’ house.”

Emma glances up at her sister-in-law, brows furrowed. “The bear’s house?”

“From Goldilocks and the Three Bears,” Mary Margaret says. “You know, ‘too hot, too cold’? Only I’m either giving too much work to their kids or too little.” She rests her chin in her hand, shoulders sagging. “I don’t want to think about it right now.”

Emma passes her another cupcake from the reject pile. She’s not good at the comfort thing, but she remembers Ruth explaining once that food can nourish both body and soul. Granny said something similar, but it was about getting to someone’s heart through their stomach.

“I’m going to gain twenty pounds because of you.” Mary Margaret accepts the cupcake anyway. “You never did tell me what happened last weekend—the morning you went upstairs to get some fresh air.”

Emma’s hand slips and her piping tip gouges a line through the careful design she’d nearly finished. She swallows back a litany of explicatives and drops the whole cupcake into the bowl of cast-off frosting.

Killian Freaking Jones is the gift that keeps on giving.

“Sorry,” Mary Margaret says. “I didn’t mean to—”

Emma waves her off. “No, it’s not your fault. It’s mine. I’m just…” Distracted by a pair of clear blue eyes and a devil-may-care smirk.

“Off your game?” Mary Margaret supplies helpfully. She scrunches her nose. “Did something bad happen? You’ve been a little, I don’t know, jumpy since that day.”

Emma leans back against the opposite counter, sucking in a deep breath. She wasn’t going to tell anyone about her chance encounter with music’s favorite bad boy, but as she looks at her doe-eyed sister-in-law, she knows that’s not going to happen. Mary Margaret has some kind of magical aura that has everyone confessing all their secrets. Probably because she’s the least judgmental person Emma’s ever met.

“So,” Emma says, unsure how to start, “I sort of ran into someone.”

“On the roof?” Mary Margaret, tips her head to the side, brows drawn together.

Emma shakes her head. “He was on a balcony on the building next door. I didn’t notice him at first because I was”—kill me now—“doing the ‘Single Ladies’ dance. A part of it ended up in the video he was live-streaming.”

Mary Margaret bites her lips like she’s trying to hold back laughter. “Okay, first,” she says after a beat, “that’s our dance. I’m a little bit offended you didn’t invite me to join you.”

“In my defense,” Emma returns with a grin, “you were spending a lot of time praying to the porcelain god that day.”

Mary Margaret makes a face. “Pregnancy is a blessing and a curse.” She swipes a dollop of frosting off her cupcake with a finger and samples it. “Second, I’m guessing there’s more to this story. Because as embarrassing as accidentally rocking Beyoncé moves on some stranger’s social media account can be, it’s not like you’ll ever cross paths with the guy again.”

“Who’s rocking Beyoncé moves?” David slides into the seat next to his wife, and Emma wants to groan. Of course this conversation is happening on one of his rare days off. He points to the discarded cupcake in the bowl. “May I?”

“Be my guest.” Emma pushes the bowl toward him.

“Emma was just telling me about ending up in someone’s live video when she went to the roof,” Mary Margaret says.

David frowns. “You can sue. Have them take it down.” He takes the role of protective big brother a little too seriously. Being a detective for the NYPD doesn’t help.

Emma rolls her eyes. “My face isn’t in the video.” Thank god.

“You found it? That’s lucky,” Mary Margaret says, but after studying Emma with a shrewd gaze, she adds, “But that’s not the problem.”

“Nope,” Emma agrees. “The problem is that he’s not just some random stranger. He’s Killian Jones.”

Both Mary Margaret and David stare back at her in stunned disbelief. Emma can’t blame them; she wouldn’t believe it if it hadn’t happened to her.

“I knew it! I knew he had to live around here!” Mary Margaret smacks David’s arm, ignoring his soft yelps. “Remember, after Christmas, when we were at Trader Joe’s and I pointed him out to you? I told you it was him!”

“You did.” David glances at Emma, expression steely. He’s in serious lawman mode now. “Exactly what happened between you and him? Don’t leave anything out.”

“There’s not much to tell,” Emma says, but she recounts the whole thing anyway, including catching the tail-end of Killian’s live stream.

“You didn’t go back the next day, right?” David asks when she finishes.

“No, of course not.” Emma gives him a flat look. Sometimes he forgets that she’s probably more street smart than he is. “Besides, I’m pretty sure he’s forgotten all about me by now.” Which is exactly what she wants. Absolutely. One hundred percent.

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” Mary Margaret interjects. She’s been strangely quiet the last couple of minutes, and now Emma sees why as she passes over her phone.

On it is one of Killian’s Facebook videos. The caption beneath reads, “To the Enigmatic Tiny Dancer Next Door.” Emma’s middle comes alive with a swirl of dread and something else she’d rather not name as she scrolls down to find more videos dedicated to her, one for each day since their encounter. She taps on the video labeled “To the Neighboring Dancing Queen,” and yes, he’s doing a slowed-down cover of the ABBA hit with an acoustic guitar, transforming it into something more indie folk with updated lyrics. For a heartbeat, she’s lost in the dips and peaks of his singing voice, and the way he closes his eyes, features pinching with an earnestness that the original version lacks. It’s really unfair that he’s so damn handsome, especially like this.

At the end of his performance, he looks into the camera. “Sorry I missed you again, love. I’ll look for you tomorrow.” He winks, and her cheeks heat in response.

“What the hell?” David grabs the phone and slides his thumb over the screen, mouth becoming a thin line. “This is harassment. I’m going to have a talk with him. I don’t care if he’s famous, that’s not okay. The building next door, right?”

“David, stop.” Mary Margaret puts her hand on his arm when he starts to rise. “It’s actually kind of sweet that Emma’s made an impression on him. But it doesn’t matter what you or I think. It matters what Emma wants.”

Emma shoots her sister-in-law a grateful look. As much as she’s glad to have David’s support, she hates when he gets overzealous. “Killian Jones is my problem, and I’ll take care of it.” Or she won’t. She runs a hand over her face. It’s stupid that she’s so conflicted over this. As much as she knows he’s bad news, her stomach is still fluttering over the fact that he hasn’t forgotten her.

“Mom? Are you okay?”

Emma’s eyes snap open. Henry stands at the threshold of the kitchen, looking far more grave than any ten-year-old has business being. She wishes he hasn’t had to grow up so fast, wishes she’d made better choices when she was younger—but then, as Mary Margaret reminds her, she wouldn’t have him. And he’s the best thing that’s ever happened to her.

“Yeah, kid. I’m fine.” She gives him a bright smile. “Do you need something?”

He studies her for a few seconds before answering. “Can I go on the laptop? I want to go on Prodigy.”

Emma purses her lips. Something feels off about his request, but she can’t put her finger on it. She knows he’s finished his schoolwork for the day, and the laptop has so many parental filters, it’d be practically impossible for him to end up in the dark alleys of the internet. It’s probably the fact that he wants to go on the computer to play math games, especially when David has an Xbox. But if it means helping him with his least favorite subject in school…

“Okay,” she says slowly. “Just until dinner.”

Henry barrels across the kitchen to give her a tight hug. “Thanks, Mom!”

David excuses himself after Henry leaves, saying something about catching up on Brooklynn 99, but Mary Margaret lingers. Emma grabs one of the cupcakes on the cooling rack and preps for another go at a frosting masterpiece. She’s getting a photo today come hell or high water.

“I think you should talk to him,” Mary Margaret says.

“Who? Henry?” Emma asks, only half-listening. She’s frowning at the piping tips scattered on the counter, wondering if maybe that’s the issue—that she needs a smaller one.

Mary Margaret breathes a soft laugh. “No, I meant Killian. What’s the worst that can happen? He turns out to be an arrogant jerk and you block him on Facebook?”

Emma blinks at her sister-in-law as her meaning sinks in. Oh, no. Mary Margaret is wrong. Emma has lived the worst thing that can happen with a sweet-talking rebel-without-a-cause. Neal not only knocked her up and crushed her heart, he left her to answer for his crimes. Hell, even clean-cut, boy-next-door Walsh had turned out to be another charming bastard, if a different breed.

Emma already finds Killian Jones attractive—his ridiculous looks, his flirty banter, his music, the whole damn package—and that’s more than enough reason to stay the hell away.

But Mary Margaret won’t get it. She found Prince Charming and got her fairy tale ending, and she’s naive enough to believe that romantic happily-ever-afters are meant for everyone.

Emma sighs. “I’ll think about it.”

“That’s all I ask.” Mary Margaret grins before tearing a chunk from her unfinished cupcake and popping it in her mouth.

Killian leans back in his leather office chair and laces his fingers behind his head. He’s been cooped up in the small studio in his flat for the last couple of hours, working with Elsa on one of her songs. He closes his eyes as she sings the revised record. The poor audio quality from his laptop is hardly amplified by his high-end headphones, but it does the job. He could listen to the woman sing bloody nursery rhymes, her voice is so glorious.

He wonders if Emma sings at all. Or does she croon endearingly off-key?

“What do you think?”

Bloody hell. He’s doing it again, letting his thoughts wander to the blond the next building over. It’s been five days, and he hasn’t seen hide nor hair of the lass. He knows he ought to let sleeping dogs lie, but he can’t seem to manage it.

“I think you’ve finally got a hook,” he says to Elsa, “though I still think you need space between the verses and the chorus.”

Elsa nods on his laptop screen, gaze dropping downward. He can’t see her fingers dancing across the electric keyboard she’s been using, but a melody comes through the video feed—one that’s going to be stuck in his head for the rest of the day thanks to this “quick” session. Elsa sings the last couple of lines of the first verse, and instead of barrelling straight into the chorus, she adds a few bars of music. The small adjustment adds tension, and the hook is a bigger payoff.

“Yes,” he says when she finishes. “You’ve got a bloody hit now.”

She smiles timidly back at him. The pop superstar is shy when she’s not performing. “Thanks for your help,” she says. “Oh! Before I forget, you know how my sister Anna is doing that youtube show?”

“Aye.” If he recalls correctly it’s about lifting spirits during the pandemic—shedding a light on all the good still happening in the world and all that.

“There’s a girl who’s just beat cancer that Anna wants to feature on her next episode,” Elsa explains, “and she’s a really big Killian Jones fan. Anna was wondering if you’d be willing to do a quick video chat with her. Maybe sing one of her favorite songs?”

Killian grins. This is the type of request that he has no trouble honoring. “Tell Anna she can count on me. Have her text me with the details.”

“I’ll tell her.” Elsa is positively beaming. “Thank you again! You’re the best.” She ends the video chat, and the screen goes dark.

The silence is short-lived, however, as his phone chimes. It’s a text from Tink.

Meeting. Now.

He grimaces when a link comes through for a Zoom conference. This is an ambush, otherwise she’d use Facetime. He grabs his laptop and heads to the kitchen. If he’s going to be yelled at, he’s going to get a damn drink first.

Tumbler of rum in hand, he settles on the couch, and with a few keystrokes, Tink and Regina pop up on his screen, both looking daggers at him.

“Have at it, then.” Killian gestures toward them with resignation. He can guess what this emergency conference might be about.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Regina says. “You were only supposed to log into your Facebook page to do the Q&A video, not turn it into some Bachelor knock-off where you sing emo songs, looking for your one true love.”

He grinds his teeth. Regina Mills is the best publicist in the business, but she’s hell to work with sometimes. She calls herself “no nonsense.” He’s got another word for it, and it’s far less generous. To his utter bewilderment, his best mate, Robin, is absolutely mad about the viper. To each their own, Killian supposes.

“It’s my bloody Facebook page,” he reminds Regina, “and I can do whatever I like with it.”

“No. You can’t.” Regina gives him a flat look. “That page is part of a carefully orchestrated campaign, and you’re treating it like a dating profile!”

“What Regina means,” Tink interrupts, “is that we’re concerned about you.”

Killian crosses his arms with a snort. Likely story. They’re upset that he’s gone off book. “I don’t see the problem. The fans aren’t complaining.” He doesn’t know if that’s true, actually. He hasn’t read any of the comments. His hope is that Emma will finally come to the rooftop after seeing one of the videos.

“Of course not!” Regina snaps. “You could post a video of you trashing a hotel room, and they’d make it viral. They think this is some modern day Cinderella story with you playing the lovestruck prince.”

Killian looks heavenward. That’s a bit much; he’s not lovestruck, merely intrigued.

“If you want to date, that’s fine,” Regina says. “We have a system in place for that. Use it.”

Yes, he knows all about the bloody system—the vetting process they drag every woman that he’s ever fancied in the slightest through, all in the name of discretion. Not that he’s had more than dalliances in recent years.

“And leave the Facebook page to my staff.” Regina abruptly ends her video feed.

He rolls his eyes. “Someone spit in her coffee today?”

Tink gives him a sardonic grin. “You’re not the only client misbehaving in quarantine,” she says. “But she does have a point. You’re not thinking this through.”

“Perhaps,” he concedes, though he’d never admit it to Regina. “But Emma’s become an itch I can’t scratch.”

“Killian—”

“I don’t bloody mean that way,” he says. “I only want to have a conversation with her like any normal human being.”

Tink winces. “I hate to break it to you, but you’re anything but normal.”

He wants to argue that he puts his bloody pants on one leg at a time just the same as everyone else, but he understands what she means. Like it or not, everything he does is fodder for public scrutiny.

None of that is going to stop him, though. His life is still his, no matter what others might think, and by the way Tink’s eyes narrow, she’s guessed his thoughts.

She heaves a sigh. “Just be careful.”

“Always, love.” He gives her a winning smile before her image disappears.

He closes the laptop and sets it on the coffee table. As interventions go, that was rather tame. He’s not keen on his fanbase dreaming up an epic romance for him out of this unusual situation, but it’s a far cry from the time he had surgery to remove his tonsils and the tabloids declared that he was secretly losing a battle with throat cancer.

His phone buzzes, and he almost doesn’t pick it up. It seems that everyone he knows is trying to make up for weeks of relative silence in a single day. Buzz-buzz. Oh, bloody hell. Even if he lets it go to voicemail, he’ll have to listen to it later. He can’t stand to let messages sit in his inbox.

He picks up the insistent device and frowns at the screen. It’s Ashley, one of Regina’s assistants. Usually the lass only calls to give him pertinent details about his various public appearances—what time the car will arrive or who Regina “suggests” (read: demands) he interact with at some industry event.

“Ashley,” he greets her.

“I’m sorry to bother you, Mr. Jones,” she says, “but I was moderating fan posts for your Facebook page, and there’s one I think you should see. If you log in, I can show you where to find it.”

He puts her on speaker, opens the app, and she guides him to the posts awaiting approval. Most of them are friendly, but one or two have his eyebrows climbing his forehead. He knows all about “thirsty” fans, thanks to that silly video he did with BuzzFeed last year, and these are on par with the tweets he was made to read aloud.

“Bloody hell,” he mutters after reading a particularly unsettling one. “She wants to cover my toes with chocolate syrup and suck on them?”

Ashley laughs softly. “Sorry, I haven’t had a chance to delete that one yet. The post you’re looking for is from an Emma Swan.”

His heart stumbles a beat at the name, and there it is suddenly on his screen. That’s her, the dancer from the rooftop, in the profile picture, head resting against a dark-haired lad who appears to be perhaps nine or ten years old. Pulse thrumming, he reads the message.

Hi. I think ur looking for my mom.

Killian frowns. Mom? He glances at the photo again. Was it the boy who made the post? That begs another question, one that Killian hasn’t been willing to entertain until now. His mystery dancer may not be available to chat with a lonely musician. Is that why she hasn’t returned to the rooftop? Tink was right; he hasn’t thought this through.

“Did you find it?” Ashley asks, pulling him out of his morose thoughts.

“Aye.” He clears his throat. “Does Regina know about this?”

“No.”

“Let’s keep it that way, shall we?”

“Of course,” she says. “Good luck, Mr. Jones.”

He thanks Ashley, and she rings off, leaving him to stare at the woman who has taken entirely too much space in his mind for the last several days.

It would be easy to sic Regina’s bloodhounds on her, to ferret out every detail of her life. Then he’d know for certain if she’s married or otherwise engaged—that she’s a mother isn’t necessarily a deterrent for him. But he doesn’t want to play the pampered celebrity with a curated social life. When was the last time his heart raced for something other than the stage?

No, he’s going to do this the old-fashioned way.

He logs out and logs into his personal Facebook. His verified page is connected to a dummy account as a way to keep his fans at a safe distance. He does a search for Emma Swan, and she’s the third one in the results. The cover photo on her profile has her among a group of people in front of a place called “The Swan and Dragon.” There’s a sign proclaiming a grand opening beneath the awning. His finger hovers over the messenger icon.

Regina’s and Tink’s voices shout in the back of his head, warning him against this impulsive gambit. There are any number of ways this could turn out poorly.

He taps the icon.

Emma can tell him to sod off, but until she does, he’s not giving up.

~TBC~

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