#and then at the end we find out that the breakup affects her so much she can't express how shes feeling

[vogelmeister]

me: i figured out how to open my play!

also me: researching brussels zuid/midi station intensively

[primofate]

Genshin Angst Headcanons - Why the two of you broke up

Note: Had an unexpected free day! I haven't written in a while, please excuse the mistakes, if any.

Disclaimer at the end of the post

Warning: Some are pretty predictable. Each of them have their own issues, lore wise, so some are lore heavy. You might not agree with some of them, but its how I see it, so to each their own. Let me know what you think! Some are quite angsty. Some scenes it's you breaking up with him and some are vice versa. Didn't feel like writing Razor, Venti and Xingqiu.

Characters: Aether, Albedo, Alhaitham, Ayato, Baizhu, Bennett, Chongyun, Cyno, Dainsleif, Diluc, Gorou, Heizou, Itto, Kaeya, Kaveh, Kazuha, Lyney, Neuvillette, Scaramouche, Tartaglia, Thoma, Tighnari, Xiao, Zhongli, gn!reader

Personal Favourites in this work: Lyney, Itto, Kazuha

Aether

Sister issues. Enough said.

He realized he didn't have enough time to spare romancing with someone.

Somewhere along the way he felt guilt that he was enjoying his time with you while his sister went through some sort of villain origin story that seemingly turned her bad.

Top off all the adventuring, searching, solving problems for other people that he did...Where did that leave you, exactly?

"...I'm sorry, Y/N... I just... I don't think this is the right time for me to be together with you,"

Albedo

Contrary to popular belief it wouldn't be his lack of time or extreme focus on his alchemical experiments that would break the two of you up. He knows how to manage his time.

It was the RESULTS of experiments and his research that would put him away from you.

The possibility that HE or his world, was way too dangerous for you.

How many "Albedos" did Rhinedottir really create? Was there more than three? Perhaps four, five? And what happens when you come face to face with another Albedo?

"I'm afraid...There are far too many dangers surrounding myself... There are answers that I can't find...and perhaps that's the reason why my answer is to part ways with you,"

Alhaitham

Too much of a nonchalant attitude.

He expressed some kind of interest in you...but it's like... once in a blue moon. 95% of the time you're not sure if he's really into you. It almost seems like he's more into that book he reads all the time.

Simply just not good at expressing himself. Like, at all. Hides behind a "whatever works" and "I don't care about what other people think of me" attitude, unfortunately that seems to include you.

Is so straightforward that sometimes it hurts, but he's really just telling the truth through logical analysis.

will act like the breakup didn't hurt nor affect him at all. In turn it hurts you instead.

"I see. So you've had enough of me... And you only spoke up now? Pointing it out earlier could've diverted us from this path...If that's how you feel already I suggest that we stop seeing each other,"

"That's it? You're not even going to try and work it out with me?"

"What's there to work out? You've made yourself clear. You're not satisfied with the way I treat you, and I'm afraid I'm not going to change the way I act just for your pleasure... It'd be more meaningful for you to find someone who fits your criterias,"

Ayato

entering a relationship with a noble was not as easy as one thought.

It's not just about being together forever and feeling lucky because Ayato is rich and your whole life is set, it's also the not fitting in, the etiquette, the whispers from townfolk that you were too ordinary for him, the work that you needed to do if you were to become his wife.

All that was not really a big problem for you, but Ayato seemed not to know of your struggles, he was extremely busy, and when he wasn't, he seemed to think that everything was well and fine, since you were getting all your basic needs met and even more.

"...So I'm sorry, Ayato. This is just... All too much for me. I'm sorry,"

"...I understand. Forgive me, it seems that I've overlooked a lot of things...Perhaps it is as you say, that it'd be better for us to grow apart rather than grow together,"

Baizhu

because he is a ticking time bomb, no matter which way he looked it's not going to end well for both of you.

He either dies early or lives forever. In both scenarios he anticipates that the two of you are just going to be in a world of hurt.

Besides, he didn't mean to get so attached to someone in the first place, he knew his quest for immortality was long and arduous. You didn't deserve to walk that difficult road too.

While breaking up, will conceal the fact that he's only thinking of you and will possibly hurt you in the process.

"I'm sorry, but it's for the best. I ask that you continue going forward without me, there's no space for you in my... ideal future,"

Bennett

We all know it...it's his bad luck. However, it wasn't YOU who had a problem with it, it was HIM.

You understood that his bad luck was just some extended part of him, plus it's not like it was always bad, there were a lot of good times too. Plenty!

But the guilt ate him up whenever the two of you were stuck in a seemingly impossible scenario and predicament, brought on by his luck. He just had enough of it one day.

"I...I can't keep doing this to you every day! It's not fair..."

will be on the brink of tears before he even starts.

"Maybe it's better if you find someone else to adventure with, Y/N, sorry...!"

runs away before you can even get a word in.

Chongyun

Thinks he's not good enough in every aspect. It's really, seriously not about you. He thinks he's lacking in everything. Strength, maturity, experience, confidence.

So badly wants to stay with you but feels like he's not good enough and thinks that you're better off with someone else.

"D-Don't misunderstand... It's not because I don't like you anymore... I just...Please find someone else!"

Cyno

his bad jokes and TCG addiction. just kidding, you're not that shallow.

A lot of people are intimidated by him being the General Mahamatra because he gives importance to justice. While you, who had seen a bit more of him than other people had, it seemed more of an obsession to uphold the Akademiya's law and integrity.

This was not a big problem to you, you liked how he was serious at work.

Until one day when you were accused of plagiarising one of your papers and Cyno was the one sent to give you a first offense warning. The Akademiya knew of your relationship, that's probably why they sent him, to make it harder on the two of you.

Cyno didn't listen to your explanations on how it was an honest mistake, he still gave you the warning that you "deserved"

From then on it had just been different between the two of you, so it was really a mutual breakup. Or so you thought.

"...After that, I just realized that maybe this isn't the right time for us... We're both working for the Akademiya, we both take our jobs seriously...Unfortunately that seems to just be getting in the way of us...I think it's best if we stop seeing each other,"

"...I see." he pauses for a minute, as if tossing your words in his mind. "I...agree. Parting ways would certainly make work easier for both of us...it's the professional thing to do,"

Dainsleif

Has not moved on from his past.

Sure, everyone has their own baggage to carry, their own history to live through...but Dainsleif has heavier things than that. He seemed to wake up every day thinking of Khaenri'ah and the days long past. Was it regret? Nostalgia? Loneliness? You didn't know. You just knew that he wasn't really completely THERE with you in the present. Part of him still lived in the past.

When you explained that you felt like the two of you were not moving forward together and that it seemed like he wanted to go back to the past instead, he got offended.

"...My past is something that I carry forever, you'd claimed that you understood that," he starts.

"I do! But carrying it with you and letting it drag you backwards are two different things!"

He falters for a moment, only to leave you with his last words before turning away from you forever: "You will never understand, the weight that I carry,"

Diluc

is too guarded. You'd been friends for a long, long, long, long time before he decided he could let you in enough and be more intimate with you.

Even then everything was going at a snail's pace, though you were extremely patient with him.

The biggest problem with Diluc was that the two of you would progress one day, take a step forward, and then the next day it was like the two of you took two steps back.

Example: The two of you went out for a simple stargazing excursion late one night, it was nice and he had been incredibly affectionate. The next day he had trouble even meeting your gaze, and disappeared to do his work. It was also a little awkward during dinnertime. This scenario had happened more than once.

Hint: the closer he got to you the more afraid he became, thinking that he would one day lose you too.

"I...I can't. I love you but I...I've waited far too long. I'm sorry. I'm tired of this endless chase for you!"

He couldn't even say a thing. He'd wanted to ask you to stay, to wait for him a little longer, but he already knew how incredibly selfish that would have been. Instead, he grimaced, and looked away from your gaze, trying to find something worthwhile to say. There was only silence for a few moments.

"Goodbye Diluc," that's when you turned away.

Gorou

worships Kokomi too much and your insecurities just kept circling around in your head.

You know its his job. You know he isn't like that but the problem was YOU and not him.

Simply said you let your insecurity eat up the relationship between the two of you.

You couldn't bring yourself to say that you were jealous of the way he admired Kokomi so you broke up with him with another reason in tow.

Unfortunately, you're not a very good liar face to face so you did a butthole move and actually broke up with him through a letter. You just couldn't face him and tell him why.

All you mentioned in the letter was that you needed time to think and be away from him, and told him not to worry because it was your problem, not his.

Poor Gorou reread that letter over and over, trying to understand what went wrong.

Heizou

is just a natural flirt. You're not sure if he's doing it on purpose or not and you're not sure if he's even aware he's like that.

Anyway you'd seen him getting overly friendly (just another word for flirting) with a few other people a couple of times. You didn't let it get to you the first, fourth or even eighth time but you realized that he KNOWS that you're watching him do that.

So you confront him about it, but he claims that it's just his way of gathering information from others. People like to hear good things and some people are more susceptible to flirtatious comments so he resorts to that for his investigation sometimes.

You didn't really completely buy it and even if you did, it's not like this was healthy for your relationship. You just couldn't make yourself comfortable with it.

*You just chalked it up to the two of you being incompatible.

"I'm just not comfortable with that...I don't think I have to say sorry for how I feel but...I'm sorry anyway because I know you're just doing your job... It's probably best if we part ways here..."

"Is there any way to change your mind?" he genuinely asks.

You only give a lopsided smile. "You're a detective, I think you already know the answer to that,"

Yet he didn't stop you from walking away.

Itto

Kept breaking promises because he was too airheaded or too occupied doing something "stupid" with the kids or with his gang.

Pretty soon it just felt like you were an afterthought while everyone else in his life took precedent.

Got a ramen date? Oops, sorry! Got caught up looking for a strong onikabuto in the forest!

Needed his help to move some things? Gah, he was vandalising the bulletin boards, so he's running a bit late!

What's more you didn't actually mind that carefree, airheaded side of him...but it really got to you when he couldn't even seem to make you a priority. Not once.

He only realized that when he came running, late again, and stood face to face with a crying you.

"Hey sorry Y/N, I was just--...Why are you crying?!" is completely dumbfounded and clueless, mostly because when he came late, you had always shrugged it off with a smile on your face, or so he thought. This time you had a completely different reaction.

"I hate you...*hic* I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!"

Shocked beyond belief. It wasn't like you to just blow up like that, but he couldn't do anything except watch you turn and run away from him after that exclamation.

Kaeya

Sometimes you're not sure if he takes you seriously.

Recently, he's not where he says he is, you don't know why he doesn't just tell you where he is.

He said he'd be working late, but then you find out he's at Angel's Share.

He said he'll be at Angel's Share, but then you catch word from Jean that he's out on a late mission.

He said he's escorting a caravan to Mondstadt but he's actually on assignment in Liyue.

It came to the point where you altogether just stopped looking for him cause half of the time you couldn't find him. It's like he's avoiding you or something, which, actually, seems just about right since he's been so busy with "work"

It reached a breaking point when, for a week, you were unable to bring him the lunch you prepared...because he was not where he said he was going to be. It was starting to get annoying.

"I don't understand why you're lying to me! Why do you have to tell me you'll be at Angel's Share this afternoon when you're not? Do you realize you make me walk all the way there only to come all the way back with nothing achieved?"

"I'm sorry snowflake, that wasn't my intention," though he still chuckles despite knowing full well that you were about to turn away.

"You know what, let me know when you're ready to stop making jokes. Until then, don't bother contacting me,"

He just didn't expect you to actually walk away from him.

Kaveh

Entertains everyone and anyone. Naturally kind at heart, will stop for anyone in trouble...even that flirtatious man/woman who is clearly just pining for his attention.

No he doesn't quite realize this.

The same person had asked for his help at least 4 times now and all 4 times he had been happy to offer a helping hand.

The last straw was when he was invited into the stranger's house, they had apparently needed someone to help them move and re-arrange furniture and he did, working till almost dinner time.

You'd caught him right by the person's door, because Kaveh was actually honest and told you he'd be helping them today, but the person was clearly eyeing Kaveh rather flirtatiously.

"Come again next time," you heard the person say rather happily. Kaveh only replies with "If I have nothing else to do, I suppose,"

"Kaveh, they're coming onto you and you keep letting it happen!"

"I'm not certain what you're talking about...They just needed some help around their house, nothing suspicious happened at all. Even if there was, I won't let anything happen between me and a stranger!"

"Then STOP helping them!"

"There isn't anything wrong with lending a hand...It was a quick move of things, that's all,"

"How would YOU feel if I just went into someone's house and kept helping them "move" things?"

"...I would think that's nice of you,"

You actually threw your hands up. "Oh, forget it! You know what, for someone who LOVES helping others, you're not doing such a great job of helping ME," then walked away and never came back. "Good riddance,"

Kazuha

He's a wandering samurai. You knew what you were getting into but you didn't expect dating him to be so hard.

He was gone for weeks on end, and you were not getting on that boat with him. In essence the two of you were just not ready to follow each other to the end's of the Earth, and that was fair. The two of you were young.

Kazuha kind of saw it coming, whenever he visited you, you seemed less spirited and he had an inkling as to why. The time apart was just too much for you.

It was a rather clean break actually. A real mutual breakup that the two of you agreed on.

"...You could say it's just not the right time for us," you even managed to laugh under your breath and he did the same, though it was barely audible.

"...Mm. There are matters that you need to attend to here...and there are things that I need to do out there," he slowly stood up from his sitting position next to you and still gazed at you rather lovingly. "...Perhaps, in another world, you and I are bound together,"

You gazed back forlornly, "...Just not in this one, it looks like,"

Lyney

because he will always choose his siblings over you. Always.

Though that's not a bad thing because you also think that family is important...somewhere along the way you realized that family is the ONLY thing he had and saw.

Example: Lynette and you had gotten ill at the same time one winter morning. Perhaps it was the cold that was passing around Fontaine. Lyney had been so worried about Lynette, that he seemed to have forgotten about you for the next few days. In fact, Lyney didn't even realize that you caught the cold too. You had only heard from Freminet, who you happened to cross paths with, that Lynette was also ill.

You thought that incident was the end of it, but really it seemed that whenever Lyney wanted to hang out with you, Lynette had to be there too. You tried to understand...after all there's still that mystery of disappearing women in Fontaine.

The breakup was induced when Lyney completely forgot about your birthday, because Freminet's was around the same time as yours. You helped Lyney prepare everything for Freminet, and said nothing about your own.

You realized that there was nothing wrong with choosing family over everything else...but the problem here was that Lyney didn't even have space for you in the first place.

So you left without saying anything. You figured he'd get over it quick. You had even gone so far as to move away from the main city of Fontaine and out into another island, because what would you say if he found you? That you were jealous of his siblings? You weren't going to ruin a family like that and it wasn't right to make him choose...so you just left without a word.

Neuvillette

Had a whole brainrot for this man:

Part 1

Part 2

Scaramouche

surprisingly it's not his anger issues.

It's the way he wouldn't acknowledge your relationship. You wonder how you even got into one with him.

There's no public show of affection, but even behind closed doors it rarely happened.

You knew that he was going to be like that, and so you didn't mind it all that much.

It was getting a bit much though when, out in public, he would walk further in front of you and refused to walk next to you. When he pretended like he didn't even know you. When he didn't stop to help you even when another man had shown interest in you, bordering on uncomfortable.

The more time passed the more you simply felt unloved...but for some reason you still blamed yourself.

"...I...don't know. Maybe you find me undesirable, or just...unappealing. Maybe you're embarrassed of me or...or..." maybe you just didn't care in the first place, you thought to yourself.

There was a long silence. Of you turning your gaze away, of him still piercing into yours. And then...

"Tsk...don't waste my time...Leave if you want to leave, door's open,"

Tartaglia

This one is simple. It's his obsession for fighting plus his complete disregard for himself. It's a constant heart attack for you. At some point the anxiety is just too much for you to handle.

Imagine living every day just wondering if he's safe at the same time knowing that he just loves to look for trouble.

The foul legacy that you know of, he uses it with disregard as well, despite knowing that it wasn't good for him.

And there are even days where you know he was heavily wounded but didn't go to you, in an attempt to shield you from worry.

It's a constant battle trying to stay sane and unworried, until one day it all just becomes too much.

"...Nothing I say will change anything, Tartaglia. This is who you are...This is who you need to be..." you whisper while bandaging his knuckles. He lets out a short hum.

It was silent all up until you finished with his hand, you squeeze it gently. "...I love you but...I can't keep doing this to myself, I'm tired...more so than I have ever been before,"

He lets your hand slip away from his knuckles, and that was the last he saw of you.

Thoma

This one is also simple. He was always taking care of others and running errands for others that he sometimes just couldn't catch a break.

Just a classic case of not enough time for you since he had a job to do for the Kamisato Clan.

He knows it, and feels awful about it. So he's the one who makes the move.

"It hurts that I can't give you what you deserve, Y/N. This isn't it... You deserve more than this but I can't give you that and I'm sorry. Please look for the love that you deserve,"

Tighnari

Remembers everything. Can be critical of things you've done, specially if he thinks there's a better way to do it.

Simply said you just feel stupid in front of him sometimes.

He doesn't mean to, but he sometimes forgets to appreciate or give praise to the things that you do well and even if he does, it tends to be short lived compared to his constructive criticisms.

Pretty soon you felt like he only looks at the bad things you do, and never the good. Though he was really only trying to teach and guide you as an equal.

He in fact feels that you are one of the few people who can keep up educational conversations with him.

The problem is he kind of forgets that you're his lover, and that you would enjoy his praise and affection from time to time.

"Do you... Do you ever have anything nice to say other than 'good work' or 'great observation'?" the words were out of your mouth before you could hold yourself back. Sometimes it was tiring to feel like you weren't good enough.

There's a flash of surprise that crosses Tighnari's expression for a split second, before he recovers. "...Had I not been praising your work enough lately? My apologies... It has a lot of merits, I just thought that you wanted my opinion on how to make it better,"

You opened your mouth to say something, but closed it again right after to ponder on his words. Somehow even that had managed to make you feel embarrassed. It was here you knew that the problem also lied within yourself.

"...Sorry, Tighnari...I think I'll need some time alone,"

He obliges quickly and asks. "That's reasonable. When would you like me to come back?"

"...Let me rephrase that... I need some time away. From us."

Xiao

Unfortunately there's a lot of things wrong here... his lack of affection. His aloof personality. His dedication to his yaksha duties. Despite that he does actually try to be gentlemanly or respectful of you.

The worst of it is that he didn't know how to be in a relationship, in other words he just wasn't ready for one, or perhaps he would never be ready for one.

He didn't understand that humans craved companionship and sometimes touch. He didn't understand that meant having to favour you over others, sometimes even putting you first over his yaksha duties.

Worst of it all was when he shut himself off from you, sometimes for days on end, when his karmic debt was too high. He only really did it to protect you, but never realized how isolated that made you feel.

When you confronted him about it, he felt attacked. Hiding away was the only way he knew how to cope...why couldn't you understand that?

"Let me help you, Xiao,"

"I don't need your help!" his tone would make you wince and just like that he disappears into a billow of smoke.

You never returned to Wangshu Inn after that. If he couldn't let you in, there was no use trying to knock on his heart. Xiao being Xiao, never sought you ought again either.

Zhongli

He had experienced so many things and you had listened to many a tales from him.

This is what caused you to realize that you hadn't even experienced life at all, and yet here you were willing to tie yourself down to him.

It just didn't feel like it added up. Here he was with all this knowledge of the world and here you were who had never even stepped outside of Liyue. By no means were you stupid, but you felt that you could be better not only for him, but for yourself if you learned more.

There was just such a huge gap in life experiences, and though you never expected to get to his level (he was a God who had lived for a long time, you would never catch up to him) you at least wanted to see what was out there with your own eyes instead of through his stories.

He understood that wholeheartedly, and had no qualms in letting you go.

"You will always have a place with me, Y/N. No amount of lifetimes will change that,"

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Disclaimer: Relationships will always have some sort of problem along the way, maybe big, maybe small but I just want to reiterate that breaking up is not always the solution. Communicating is very important. So to those of you who like taking fanfiction too seriously, let it be known that this is just a work of fiction. I don't actually suggest breaking up with someone as soon as there is the slight indication of a problem (Just saw someone commenting on a similar themed post for Haikyuu that this wouldn't happen in the real world if both parties were mature... I mean, sure, but, idk, you must be fun in parties... it's called fiction for a reason...)

[goldfades]

★ AND YOU SAY I ABANDONED THE SHIP / BUT I WAS GOING DOWN WITH IT / MY WHITE KNUCKLE DYING GRIP / SO HOW MUCH SAD DID YOU THINK I HAD, DID YOU THINK I HAD IN ME? / HOW MUCH TRAGEDY? / JUST HOW LOW DID YOU THINK I'D GO? ─── PB⁵ (part 1/2)

❪ requested -> paige and ex gf!reader that plays on iowa where theres a lot of tension on the court bc they ended on rough terms but u can see that they still care abt each other yet have to prioritize the game // hii could u write for paige x ex gf iowa!reader where they play against each other in the final four and everyone can tell theres sm tension on the court between them bc they ended on rough terms ? they still care abt each other a lot but r forced to put those feelings aside for the sake of the game (but they def had a talk afterwards) - u can make it so that iowa still won or uconn won i think either one would be interesting ! tysm ❫ part two!!!!!!!!!!

─ warnings | ANGSTTTTT!!!!!! mentions of transfers, fighting, paige being a BITCHHHH LIKE so mean (but its for the plot trust), banter at the end, mention of cc and kate martin, jealous!paige

─ ev's notes | tried a new format for the third little part thingy idk if yall like it but lmk (like the iowa game part)

⇨ missing out on updates? check out my wcbb masterlist!

JUNE 2022

Y/N L/N ANNOUNCES ENTERS THE TRANSFER PORTAL AFTER ALLEGED DISAGREEMENT OVER PLAYING TIME. In a surprising turn of events, UConn defensive star Y/N L/N has announced her decision to enter the transfer portal.

Despite the official narrative focusing on playing time, insiders report that L/N's decision is rooted in a desire to find a new environment where she can heal and focus on her game without the added stress of her recent breakup with Paige Bueckers, another star player for the Huskies. The emotional toll of the split has reportedly affected her performance and well-being, prompting her to make a fresh start at another school.

UConn’s coaching staff and teammates have expressed their support for L/N, acknowledging the challenges she has faced. "Y/N is an incredible athlete and person," said Coach Geno Auriemma. "We respect her decision and wish her nothing but the best in her future endeavors."

As L/N navigates this difficult period, she remains committed to her basketball career and is looking forward to finding a new team where she can continue to shine both on and off the court. While the specifics of her next move remained uncertain for a short time, it has now been confirmed that she will be transferring to Iowa.

Fans and fellow players have taken to social media to show their support for L/N, emphasizing the importance of mental health and personal well-being in the demanding world of collegiate sports. Iowa's coaching staff has expressed their excitement about welcoming L/N to the team. "We are thrilled to have Y/N join us," said Coach Lisa Bluder. "She brings exceptional talent and experience to our program, and we are committed to supporting her both on and off the court."

As Y/N L/N begins her new journey with the Iowa Hawkeyes, there is no doubt that she will continue to be a formidable presence in collegiate basketball. Her resilience and determination promise to make her time at Iowa just as remarkable as her tenure at UConn.

──

"So you're really doing it?" Paige's expression was unimpressed, bordering disgusted as she pushed herself between you and the door.

You sniffled, glaring at the blonde. "Get out of my way, Paige."

She crossed her arms, standing firm. "So that's it? You're just going to run away? Because of us?"

"It's not about that," you snapped, the weight of your duffel bag making your shoulder ache. "It's about me needing to be okay. And I can't do that here."

Paige's eyes softened for a moment, but she didn't budge. "Y/N, we're a team. You can't just leave us like this. Leave me like this."

You shook your head, frustration boiling over. "This isn't about the team. This is about us, Paige. I can't be around you every day, pretending like everything's fine when it's not. I'm not okay with being on the same team as you, do you get that, Paige?"

Paige's expression flickered with a mix of anger and something else — maybe hurt. "You think Iowa is going to magically fix everything? Running away doesn't solve anything, I promise you that."

You took a deep breath, trying to steady yourself. "This isn't running away. This is me choosing to put myself first for once. I have to do this."

"What happened to loyalty? As soon as things get hard, you're running away! How does that make sense?" Paige let out a bitter laugh as you bit your lip, trying your best not to blow up. "God, what is wrong with you?"

You couldn't hold it in anymore. "You shouldn't be talking about loyalty, Paige! You left me, remember? We've been through-"

"Don't you dare say it, Y/N." Paige's voice was sharp, but you pressed on, the dam of emotions breaking.

"We've been through so much together, and you just threw it all away! You can't expect me to stay here and pretend like everything's fine when it's not."

Paige's eyes blazed with anger. "Oh, don't turn this around on me! You think you're the only one who got hurt? You think it was easy for me to make that decision? You're such a selfish-"

"Selfish?" you interrupted, your voice rising, ringing throughout the locker room. "I'm selfish for wanting to protect my mental health? I'm selfish for needing to get away from the constant reminder of what we had and lost?"

"You're selfish for abandoning the team! For abandoning me!" Paige shouted, her voice cracking. "Do you have any idea what it's going to be like without you here?"

"You don't get to play the victim," you shot back, tears streaming down your face as you sniffled. "You're the one who ended things. You don't get to decide how I cope with that."

Paige took a step closer, her face contorted with rage. "Fine, go to Iowa. Run away like a little pussy. But don't you dare come back and expect everything to be okay. Don't you dare think you can just waltz back into our lives when it suits you."

"That's not what I'm doing," you retorted, your voice shaking as you averted your gaze. "I need this, Paige. I need to get away from you."

"Then go!" she yelled, her voice echoing in the empty locker room. "But don't expect me to forgive you for this. For leaving when things got tough. For being a pussy."

"Oh, really?" You laughed, anger filling your body. "Fuck you. I thought we could be mature, but apparently we can't."

Paige's eyes flashed with fury. "Mature? You're the one who's bailing when things get hard! That's not mature, that's cowardly."

You clenched your fists, trying to keep your composure. "You think this is easy for me? You think I want to leave? I'm doing this because I have to, not because I want to. I'm trying to survive, Paige!"

"Survive?" she scoffed, stepping closer. "What about me? What about the team? We need you, and you're just walking away."

"I'm not your crutch," you shot back. "You have no right to make me feel guilty for taking care of myself. This isn't just about you, Paige. This is about my sanity, my well-being."

Paige's face twisted with a mix of anger and hurt. "Fine, go ahead and leave. But don't expect me to be here waiting for you when you decide to come back."

"I don't expect anything from you anymore," you replied coldly. "I'm done expecting anything from you."

Paige's expression darkened further, and she took another step closer, her voice lowering to a venomous whisper. "You know what? Maybe it's good you're leaving. No one needs your drama and bullshit. You're not as important as you think you are."

The words stung, cutting deeper than you expected. But Paige wasn't finished. "And let's be real, Y/N, Iowa's not going to "fix" you. You're still going to be the same fucked-up person, running from your problems. Maybe if you weren't so broken, none of this would have happened."

You felt as though the air had been sucked out of the room. Her words were like a knife twisting in your gut. You blinked back tears, feeling your heart shatter into even smaller pieces. "You... you have no idea what I've been through," you whispered, your voice barely audible. "To get here, to prove myself to everyone."

"Clearly, I don't," Paige shot back, her voice full of disdain. "Because if I did, maybe I would've seen what a complete waste of time it was to care about you."

The finality of her words was like a slap in the face. You stood there, stunned, feeling the weight of her anger and your own heartbreak. Without another word, you turned and walked out of the locker room, each step feeling heavier than the last.

As you stepped outside, the cool evening air did little to soothe the burning pain in your chest. Iowa was waiting, but now it felt more like an escape from a nightmare than a fresh start. You knew you could never go back, not after what had been said. The bridge between you and Paige was not just burned — it was incinerated.

Driving away, tears blurred your vision. The future was uncertain, and the path ahead seemed daunting. But one thing was clear: you were done with Paige, done with the hold she had over you. It was time to find a place where you could heal, far away from the person who had just torn your heart apart.

──

NOVEMBER 2022

"Welcome, everyone, to what promises to be an exciting game tonight!" The commentator's voice boomed through the arena. "We have Iowa facing off against Ohio State, and all eyes are on Y/N L/N, the transfer from UConn. Let's see how she gels with her new teammates, especially standout stars Caitlin Clark and Kate Martin."

"Y/N L/N, the former UConn star who made headlines with her controversial transfer, had seamlessly integrated herself into the Iowa lineup. Her defensive prowess, combined with her sharp shooting skills, had brought a new dimension to the team's gameplay."

"And there she is, folks! Y/N L/N, number 89, making her presence felt on both ends of the court. She's been a force to be reckoned with tonight, shutting down opponents left and right while sinking those crucial shots when her team needs them most."

From the moment the game tipped off, Y/N was in her element. She moved with a grace and confidence that captivated the audience, her presence on the court undeniable. Within minutes, it was clear that she had found her rhythm with her new team.

"Clark passes the ball to L/N... she fakes, drives to the basket... and what a beautiful layup! L/N puts Iowa on the board first with an impressive move."

The crowd erupted in cheers, and Y/N's teammates swarmed her, sharing her excitement. Clark gave her an encouraging pat on the back as she jogged back on defense.

"That's the kind of play Iowa fans were hoping to see from L/N," the commentator continued. "She brings a fresh energy and versatility to this team."

As the game progressed, Y/N's synergy with her teammates became even more apparent. She seamlessly integrated into the flow of Iowa’s offense, making smart passes and setting effective screens.

"Clark with the ball now, looking for an opening... she finds L/N at the top of the key. L/N drives, kicks it out to Martin on the wing... and it's a three! Kate Martin nails the shot, and L/N gets the assist."

Kate Martin and Caitlin Clark were all smiles, high-fiving Y/N as they took a moment to savor the play. The three of them were quickly becoming a formidable trio on the court, their chemistry undeniable.

"Y/N L/N is not just playing well—she's thriving," the commentator observed. "Her ability to read the game and make those around her better is exactly what Iowa needed."

In the second half, Y/N continued to shine, her defensive efforts just as impressive as her offensive contributions. She hustled for rebounds, dove for loose balls, and her tenacity was infectious.

"Ohio State struggling to get past L/N's defense... and she steals it! L/N on the fast break now... passes to Clark, who finishes with a perfect layup! What a dynamic duo!"

As the final buzzer sounded, Iowa secured a decisive victory. The scoreboard read 82-67, and Y/N's performance was a significant part of that success.

"And that's the game! Iowa takes the win, and what a debut for Y/N L/N. She finishes with 12 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds. An all-around stellar performance."

"And there you have it, folks! A stunning performance from the Iowa Hawkeyes, led by the dynamic trio of L/N, Martin, and Clark. With players like these, the sky's the limit for this team, and the rest of the league better watch out!"

As Y/N waved to the cheering crowd, she couldn't help but smile. This was the fresh start she needed, and it was only the beginning.

──

"Great game tonight, ladies!" The reporter started, a broad smile on her face. "Y/N, this was your debut with Iowa, and you were nothing short of fantastic out there. How does it feel to be part of this team?"

You smiled, your eyes twinkling with a mix of relief and joy. "It feels incredible. The support from the coaching staff, my teammates, and the fans has been amazing. I couldn't have asked for a better start here at Iowa."

Caitlin, sitting to your right, nodded enthusiastically. "Y/N has been a fantastic addition. Her energy and skills have really brought a new dynamic to our team."

Kate Martin chimed in, a playful grin on her face. "Yeah, she fits right in. It's like she's been here all along, like seriously."

The reporter continued, "Y/N, you and Caitlin seemed to have an almost telepathic connection on the court tonight. Can you tell us a bit about how you've built such strong chemistry so quickly?"

You glanced at Caitlin, who gave you an encouraging nod. "Honestly, it's been pretty natural. Cait is such a smart player, and she makes it easy to connect and play off each other. We've been putting in a lot of extra time together, and it's really paying off."

Caitlin added, "Y/N is a hard worker, and her basketball IQ is off the charts. We clicked from day one, and it's only getting better."

Kate, not wanting to be left out, jumped in with a laugh. "Don't forget about me! The three of us have really gelled as a unit. We push each other to be better every day."

You put your arm around the blonde, earning a laugh from her. "Don't worry, Katie we wouldn't leave you out."

The reporter smiled, clearly enjoying the dynamic. "It's great to see such strong teamwork and friendship! What's next for this Iowa team? How are you planning to build on tonight's performance?"

You looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "We're just going to keep working hard, stay focused, and take it one game at a time. Tonight was a great win, but we know there's a lot of work ahead of us."

Caitlin nodded in agreement. "Absolutely. We have high expectations for ourselves, and we know we can achieve great things if we stick together and keep pushing."

Kate leaned in, her expression serious but with a hint of a smile. "We're aiming high. We want to make a deep run this season, and with Y/N on board, we feel like we can compete with anyone."

The interview wrapped up, and as the cameras turned off, the three players shared a group hug, your bond clear for everyone to see.

As they headed back to the locker room, Caitlin threw an arm around your shoulders. "You did great tonight. Welcome to the team, officially."

Kate added, "Yeah, we're glad to have you, Y/N. And this is just the beginning, trust."

──

"The fuck," Paige grumbled as she watched the post-game interview on TV, bitterness clear on her face. Nika and Aubrey exchanged amused glances as they watched Paige, who's eyes were glued on the screens.

Despite the fallout with Paige, you were still close with the rest of the team. You wouldn't let Paige get in between you and your old team, no matter the circumstances.

Paige's gaze finally averted from the screen, looking at the girls. "Does this shit not bother you guys like, not even a little bit?"

"Nah, P." Nika responded as she sighed, leaning back on the couch. "We're proud of her."

Aubrey continued, her tone gentle but firm. "I mean, you guys dated and shit. There's bound to be some bitter feelings, y'know."

Paige scoffed, crossing her arms tightly. "Yeah, well, it still sucks seeing her over there, acting like everything's fine."

Nika gave Paige a sympathetic look. "I get it, Paige. It's hard seeing someone you care about move on, especially after everything you two went through. But she's doing what's best for her. You have to respect that."

Aubrey nodded in agreement. "And honestly, she's killing it over there. Seeing her happy and thriving makes us happy, too. It's not about choosing sides—it's about supporting our friend."

"Did you hear her?" Their words went in one ear and out the other, her gaze turning back to the TV. "Oh Katie! We'd never leave you out. Like shut up," she mocked as Aubrey let out a laugh.

It was obvious she was jealous, it was a rare sight for the usually, confident blonde. Nika and Aubrey exchanged another glance, this time with knowing smiles. They could see right through Paige's facade.

"Wow, Paige, are you actually jealous?" Aubrey teased, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "Never thought I'd see the day."

Paige rolled her eyes but couldn't hide the blush creeping up her cheeks. "I'm not jealous," she protested, though her tone lacked conviction. "I just don't like seeing her act all buddy-buddy with them."

"Sure," Nika said, leaning back and stretching. "It's just because she's happy and thriving without you, right?"

Paige shot her a glare, but there was no real heat behind it. "Shut up, Nika."

Aubrey laughed again, patting Paige on the shoulder. "It's okay to admit you miss her, Paige. We all miss her. But she's doing what she needs to do, and we have to respect that."

"I do respect that." Paige interjected, her voice defensive. The three of them quieted down, continuing watching the TV. "I guess she has a thing for blondes," she mumbled under her breathe.

"Come on, Paige!" Nika groaned as Aubrey began to laugh uncontrollably. "Stop encouraging her, Aubrey."

Paige rolled her eyes, a faint smirk playing on her lips despite herself. "What? It's true. First me, now Kate. Seems like she has a type. Blonde, 6ft and hoopers, I mean..."

Aubrey wiped away a tear from laughing so hard. "Oh my god, Paige. You're insane."

Nika shook her head, trying to suppress her own laughter. "First, you are not 6ft. And maybe it's time to focus on your game and let Y/N do her thing. You can't keep dwelling on this."

"Yes, I am! With shoes, I am." Paige sighed, the humor fading from her expression. "And I know. It's just hard, you know? Seeing her so happy without me. Without us."

Aubrey softened, leaning in to give Paige a reassuring pat on the back. "You'll get there. It just takes time. And who knows, maybe this will be a good thing for both of you in the long run."

Paige nodded, her eyes drifting back to the screen where Y/N was still beaming in the post-game interview. "Yeah, maybe you're right."

Nika stood up, stretching her arms above her head. "Alright, enough of this. Let's hit the gym. We have a season to focus on, and we need you at your best, Paige."

Paige took a deep breath, standing up as well. "You're right. Let's go."

Aubrey joined them, a supportive smile on her face. "That's the spirit. And remember, we're here for you, no matter what."

↳ make sure to check out my navigation or masterlist if you enjoyed! any interaction is greatly appreciated !

↳ thank you for reading all the way through, as always ♡

[hoonvrs]

CHILD OF DIVORCE — l. heeseung

PAIRING heeseung × fmr

DESC. yours and heeseungs breakup through the eyes of nishimura riki

GENRE angst, 3rd party perspective

WARNING mutual breakup, mention of parental issues, riki has attachment issues, he’s also irrational but aren’t we all

W. COUNT 0.8k

S. NOTES why did i have so much fun writing this

to say riki considered you and heeseung his parents was an understatement.

he boy genuinely believed you were. so it's safe to say that when his heeseung hyung ( read: dad ) came home to their apartment late to their weekly boys' night and dropped the news, he was devastated.

“me and y/n broke up.“

riki could feel his whole world collapse, suddenly feeling ten again when his parents sat him down to tell him that his mum and dad were getting a divorce and dad was going to be moving back to his old city.

in hindsight, he should’ve consoled his hyung who didn’t look like he had just broken it off with his girlfriend of four years and the woman everyone believed he’d marry one day. he should've gone up to him like a good friend and given him a few words of comfort — maybe even a hug.

but instead, he felt anger. it was selfish, but he couldn’t realise his irrationality over the splitting feeling in his chest, and heeseung's reaction — or lack thereof — didn’t help but wedge a nail in the crack and hammer it down.

he couldn’t make out what the rest of their friends were saying, feeling all his senses suddenly muffle, giving his emotions nowhere to go but out, “what do you mean you broke up.”

the room suddenly felt colder. all their friends stopped talking and froze their gazes on him. seeing sunghoon from his peripheral, sending him a questioning look, but his vision tunnelled on the eldest, who was still standing near the entrance. “you can’t just break up, not now.”

confusion settled on the elder's face, overtly not expecting this reaction from him, “what do you mean i can't? it's my relationship, and we both ended it.”

riki was starting to feel antagonised, seeing faces look back and forth between him and the other, so he stood up in an attempt to size himself up, refusing to see the irrationality of his point. he felt like heeseung was being inconsiderate by breaking up something riki relied on without thinking of the others who'd be affected outside of the relationship.

everyone in their friend group was aware of his abnormal attachments, evident in the shirt he refuses to throw away because it was his father's, even if the fabric had more holes than not, or the two sizes too big shoes his sister gifted him, insisting he would ‘grow into them’ and now yours and heeseung's relationship.

healthy relationships weren't the norm in his life growing up, so by default, riki was hostile and withdrawn towards you the first few times heeseung introduced you as his new girlfriend. reminding himself constantly at the back of his mind that all relationships must come to an end and with every problem heeseung brought home, he was convinced it was near.

however, he must have underestimated you. one year became two, then four, and riki had become accustomed to his life with you. finding himself excited every time you’d come over whenever he was around because you had always seemed to favour him slightly, giving him the best meat cuts whenever you’d eat out together, or saving him the corner of the brownie because you knew it was his favourite part.

maybe it was silly to let you grow a home into the hole in his heart that was carved by his mother, seeking maternal comforts from you and allowing you to become a constant in his life.

but then again, all relationships have an end but riki wasn’t ready to let this one go. “so what? that’s it? you’re just going to end it here after everything?”

“look, it was a mutual breakup. we both just don't feel the same as we did before, so we broke it off like adults. i wish her all the best, just not with me.”

the split started to spread throughout his whole body, feeling his knees start to weaken under the weight of his emotions. when he started to feel his throat clog up and his eyes start to burn, he quickly made his escape, pushing past his hyung making sure to knock their shoulder on his way out to show he wasn't happy with the new change.

he could hear them discussing what happened after slamming his bedroom door, the thin walls leaving no word left unheard, drilling each question into his mind.

maybe then he should’ve left and apologised for his outburst, but grief is a funny feeling.

even though the relationship wasn’t his and never was to begin with, riki had gotten too comfortable living vicariously through you, and now he wanted someone to take responsibility for feelings only he could be blamed for.

but that’s another thing about grief. there’s always someone you want to pin the blame on. someone who caused this emotion to spiral and settle at the pit of his stomach without anywhere else to go leaving it to make itself home in his body.

and it wasn’t going to be him.

perm taglist @mesopret @whoschr ​@haknom @shinsou-rii @redm4ri @lacimolela @llama-lyna @boyfhee @lazysmushi @flwoie @kocokookie @kyexvly @seongclb @dammit-jjk @flwrshee @produmads ​@teddywonss @aleiouvre @dneltrise @aleiouvre @nyxvrse @yohanabanana @whois-alexis @sngvhs @tinyegg @sserafimez @satsuri3su @yuemvi @chirokookie @idk-tbh777 @s00buwu

[lecsainz]

I SHOULD’VE KNOWN

˒ ⌕ masterlist . . .

parings: charles leclerc x exgirlfriend!reader | carlos sainz x fem!reader

summary: the one where you’re charles girlfriend but he is in love with other girl and he chose her.

an: I didn’t review it, so if you have mistakes, forgive me

type: angst ✶

December had always held a special place in your heart, not for the snowfall or the festive Starbucks drinks, nor for the winter holidays. It was all about Christmas. Maybe you loved it too much.

And that was the problem. You used to love it, but not anymore.

Your affection for Christmas had dwindled the moment you discovered that your boyfriend wanted to end things to be with someone else. It shattered your heart into a million pieces.

The argument with Charles echoed relentlessly in your mind. It was a cold, frosty evening, the air tinged with the anticipation of the upcoming festivities. The holiday decorations around only added a cruel contrast to the turmoil within.

"You can't just throw away what we have!" Your voice echoed off the walls, sharp with desperation, as you confronted him.

Charles stood there, his expression hardened yet filled with an emotion you couldn't quite place. "It's not about throwing away, it's about moving on," he retorted, his tone laced with a sadness that cut deeper than any knife.

Tears welled up in your eyes. "With her? How could you?"

He looked away, unable to meet your gaze. "I'm sorry," he whispered, the words heavy with the weight of the impending breakup.

"Sorry doesn't fix this, Charles!" Your voice quivered with a mix of anger and hurt. "You're leaving me for someone else, for something that's not even guaranteed!"

"I have to try," he said, his voice barely audible. "I can't keep pretending."

The room felt smaller, suffocating even, as the reality of the situation settled in. You had built dreams together, made plans, and now, they were crumbling like a fragile house of cards.

"You're choosing her over everything we had!" Your voice broke as the tears streamed down your face, the pain raw and consuming. "I thought you loved me."

"I thought I did too," he admitted, his voice barely a whisper, a pained expression etched on his face. "But things change."

With a heart weighed down by anguish, you sprinted out of the apartment, struggling to catch your breath. Your world was crumbling, emotions tearing through you like a relentless storm. As you hurried down the hallway, your path abruptly intersected with Carlos, Charles' teammate.

Carlos, deeply infatuated with you, had always harbored feelings, though you remained unaware, despite Charles throwing hints your way.

"Hey, are you alright?" Carlos asked, concern etched in his voice as he reached out a hand to steady you.

Tears streamed down your face, your breaths coming in short, ragged gasps. You shook your head, unable to form coherent words amidst the tumult of emotions.

"Come on, let's get you some air," Carlos suggested gently, guiding you to a nearby bench. He offered you a tissue and sat beside you, his eyes reflecting genuine concern.

You leaned against him, your tears soaking his jacket as you struggled to calm your breathing. Carlos remained silent, providing comfort through his presence alone, his heart aching to alleviate your pain.

As you slowly regained composure, you looked up at him, gratitude mixed with confusion in your eyes. "Thank you," you managed to whisper.

He offered a sad smile, his own heart breaking for you. "Y/N you don't have to thank me. I hate seeing you like this."

Your moment was interrupted by the sound of footsteps approaching. Charles appeared, his expression a mixture of concern and regret as he witnessed the scene before him.

"Y/N, I..." Charles started, his voice faltering as he struggled to find the right words.

But you shook your head, your gaze piercing yet filled with an unexpected resolve. "No, Charles. You've made your choice. I need some time."

You stood up, brushing away the last of your tears, and without a backward glance, you walked away, leaving behind the shattered remains of a love that had once promised eternity.

Carlos watched you leave, his heart aching for your pain, a silent vow forming within to be there for you, regardless of his own feelings that remained buried deep within.

[jpmarvel90]

Always the Bridesmaid

Masterlist Scarlett Masterlist

Word Count: 7236

Relationship: Scarlett x ReaderPugh

Summary: Y/n and Scarlett have become close friends since they met whilst Y/n was working as her little sister's manager. Y/n has feelings for Scarlett but has firmly been friendzoned and has to watch on as Scarlett makes her way through endless men and women.

Y/n's POV:

I've known Scarlett for the last 4 years. I meet her through my little sister Florence, and we've been great friends since. After doing my business degree, I became Florence's manager. We didn't know if it would work, but Flo wanted someone that she could trust, and she knew that I would always do what was best for her.

It's ended up working out really well and we've got a great working relationship that doesn't affect our personal one. It was through Black Widow that I first met Scarlett and we hit it off really quickly and became best friends. Flo would always laugh, saying that if she couldn't find me on set, she would just need to look for Scarlett and we'd be together.

Spending so much time with Scar led to inevitable feelings to develop. She's naturally flirty and I forget that sometimes. Unfortunately, that just made the feelings grow quicker. Flo worked it out pretty early on and always tried to convince me to tell her. But just as I would work up the courage, she would be with someone else.

Scarlett is openly bi, so there was never a worry about her not liking women, but it seemed that it just meant there were more people for her to end up with. It never got in the press, but Scar liked to sleep around. If she wasn't in a relationship, she was having one night stands with people on nights out or after movie premieres. Something I had a front row seat too which made my heart ache.

The closer friends we became, the more times I was invited to be her plus one. Though I was never the person that was lucky enough to go home with her. 9 times out of ten, I would be making my own way home as Scarlett would have her driver take her and that night's conquest to her place.

Thankfully, Flo and I are in LA for a few weeks, meaning that I get a break from seeing Scarlett. Which actually is a double edged sword. I love spending time with her. Our friendship is one of the most important ones that I have. But it also is becoming quite painful to be around her. She's recently out of a relationship, which means her one night stands are increasing in number. So this time with my sister on a rare break has been nice.

"What are you thinking about?" Flo asks me from her sun lounger. We're currently sat by her pool. When we're in LA, I live with Flo. I have my own place in New York, but not being on the same money as Flo, means owning multiple properties isn't an option. But Flo is a great sister and instantly offered for me to live with her when we were both in LA. There's only two years between us and we get on really well. We're not just sisters, we're best friends.

"Not much, just what I need to get sorted for Dune. When we're back in New York, I need to finalise the contracts with the team." I respond, earning an eye roll from Flo. "You're always in work mood. Relax a little." She huffs, adjusting in her lounger to turn and look at me. "Besides, I was sure you were thinking of Scarlett, you always have the same look when you do." She teases me, poking at my cheek. I hit her hand away. "I do not!" I glare at her.

"You do! It's a mix between complete adoration and pain. You're like a brooding teen from a teen drama." She insists. "I do not brood." I bite back. "I still think you should tell her." She shares, turning to lie on her back, closing her eyes. "We've talked about this. She seems quite happy with the lifestyle she has at the moment." I respond and she nods in agreement. "She has taken this latest breakup harder than usual." She observes.

"I think what I actually need is to find someone for myself. Maybe you could help?" I admit, causing Flo to shoot up in her seat. "Really?" She asks, lifting her sunglasses onto her head. "Yeah, desperate times and all that." I joke. "Oh, I actually have the perfect person. I should set you up with Hailee." She thinks excitedly. I roll my eyes as she starts excitedly rambling. I might end up regretting this. "She's in Europe for a month but when she's back I'll talk to her." Flo eventually comes to a decision, and I agree, knowing that it'll be easier.

Flo and I have a nice few weeks off in LA, It was good to get some sun and relax, although she's right. I do struggle in switching off from work, so I did spend some time making sure everything was in order for her.

Our time in LA was ending with us attending the Antman and Wasp premiere. Flo was attending with Charlie whilst I had the pleasure of attending with Scarlett. She had asked me not long after her break up as she was meant to go with Colin. She didn't want to go alone and basically begged me to go with her. And me being a sucker for her puppy dog sad eyes, I agreed.

As she was just attending the premiere there was a lot less faff than there can be when it's a movie she's in. When I attended the Marriage Story premiere with her, we were getting ready hours before and being briefed so much by her team. I much prefer it like this. She'll pick me up and I can just hang back whilst she gets her picture taken and does a couple of interviews. The rest of the time we'll be together and get to enjoy the movie.

"Wow. Y/n, you're looking beautiful." Scarlett greets me as I make sure the house is locked up. I spin around and see her resting against the side of the car in the most incredible black suit. Her cleavage is on show, and it hugs her in all the right places. I gulp seeing her looking incredible. "I think you need to look in a mirror. You look sensational Scar." I tell her as I approach the car. "Thanks babe." She smiles at me, wrapping her arms around me. There goes my fluttering heart.

"Let's get going, shall we?" She asks, holding the door open for me. "Thank you, Johansson." I smirk at her, giving her a wink and letting my hand run along her bare arm. I'm sure I see her shudder under my touch. She's frozen a little, before she shakes her head and gets in the car the other side. "I missed you." She says, turning to pout at me. "I was only gone for three weeks." I laugh at her childlike face. "Three weeks too long without my bestie." She sighs. That causes a pang in my heart when I remember that's all she sees me as. Her friend.

"Seems like you had plenty of company to distract you." I point out, causing her to drop her gaze. "Yeah, I took the breakup a little harder than I thought and let myself go a little too far. I'm ready to focus on me for a bit." She says a little embarrassed. Feeling guilty for pointing it out, I reach over and take her hand. "It's ok to be hurt. You just need to find a healthy way to vent." I reassure her, giving her a warm smile when she finally looks up to me.

"What would I do without you Y/n?" She asks, a sadness in her eyes. "Suffer endlessly no doubt." I tease, making her laugh. "You're right there. You better not leave me." She lightly threatens. "Unfortunately, I think you're stuck with me." I chuckle. She lifts my hand to her lips and presses a kiss to my knuckles. "Good." She smiles.

The premiere goes well, and I really enjoy the movie. I'm a huge Marvel geek so I understand how lucky I am to get to see the movie at the world premiere. I watched on as Scarlett did everything she needed to. People were used to seeing me with her. Our friendship was well documented, but they knew it was a friendship and nothing more, so we didn't get inundated with rumours.

We make our way to the after party and we have a great time dancing and drinking. Flo and Charlie are in a world of their own and I smile seeing my sister so happy. Scarlett is quick to drag me to the dance floor and her hands find my hips, swaying us to the music. Her touches are extremely flirty as she dances close to me, her body pressed into mine.

After some time dancing, I feel a tap on my shoulder. "We're heading home" Flo tells me, as Charlie has his arms wrapped around her, placing kisses to her neck. "Stop." She laughs, playfully pushing him away. "Have fun. I'll see if I can crash at Scarlett's" I tell her, knowing it's the first time she's seen Charlie in a few weeks. "Thanks. I love you Y/n/n. Stay safe." She tells me, pulling me into a tight hug. "You too. Safe sex is good sex!" I shout after them, earning a middle finger from Flo.

I hear Scarlett laughing next to me. "You two have a great relationship." She observes and I nod. "Yeah, I'm pretty lucky she's my little sister." I smile. "I'm going to run to the loo and grab some more drinks. Do you want one?" I ask and she nods. "Please, I'll have whatever you're having." She responds. I nod and leave her to continue dancing whilst I make my way to the loo.

There's quite the queue at both the bathroom and the bar. But I eventually manage to grab us both a cosmo and turn around to rejoin Scarlett. I look around the dance floor and my heart drops when I see her lip locked with a red headed woman. I don't know why I'm surprised. This happens more often than not.

When she pulls away for air, she notices me, and I plaster on a fake smile. "Y/n/n! You're back. This is..." She greets me with a big smile, turning to the woman. "Kacey." The redhead introduces herself to me. "Oh, thanks for these. You're ok getting another right?" She asks, taking the drinks from my hand and passing one to Kacey. "Uh yeah. No worries." I respond, turning back to the bar knowing I've lost any attention from her for the rest of the night.

I go to the bar and order a shot of vodka, that I down pretty quickly, and then grab a beer. I don't know why I let this get to me so much. I know this is what she's like. I need to just move one. Hopefully when Hailee is back in the US something might go right for me.

"Y/n!" I hear my name being shouted. I turn around and see Scarlett with her lipstick smudged and a big smile on her face. Her hand tightly grasped around Kacey's. "We're heading home. You ok to getting back on your own?" She asks me with a drunk glaze to her eyes. "Yeah sure." I respond, downing the rest of my beer and leaving before anything else can be said. I'm done with this.

I head outside and order an uber before finding a hotel nearby that has a vacancy. Luckily there is one not too far away, though my bank balance isn't going to thank me! Whilst I'm waiting for my cab, I see Scarlett drag Kacey into the back of her car, laughing the whole time.

That night in the hotel, I started to re-evaluate my life. I need to either move on from this stupid crush or remove myself from the situation. It's a hard decision as I love my friendship with Scarlett, and I don't think that I want to lose that. But in my current state, I don't think I can keep seeing her like this. I come to the decision that I'm going to take a bit of time away from her. I can use work as an excuse and hopefully get the chance to meet Hailee and see where things go.

I have a difficult night and only manage to get a couple of hours sleep. But I don't rush home, wanting Flo to be able to have the most time with Charlie. I don't have to check out until 11, so I spend it chilling in the room. Not having a phone charger, my phone died during the night, and I sigh. I only have the dress I was wearing last night. I call down to reception and ask if they can book me a cab to take me home. I just want to wash the night off me.

Reception calls when the cab is here, and I make my way down as quickly as possible to avoid the stares I'm bound to get when I walk out with smudged makeup and a crinkled dress. I slip into the back of the cab and rest my head back against the headrest as the car rocks along the road.

When I pull up at Flo's I thank the driver and head to the front door. But before I can open it, it swings open, and a body collides with mine. "Y/n/n. Where the hell have you been?" I teary Flo asks me. "I thought you knew I wasn't coming home last night so you and Charlie could have the place to yourself." I reply, unsure why she's so upset. "Yeah, you said you'd crash at Scarlett's. I tried calling you to see if you wanted to join us for breakfast, but it went straight to voicemail. Then when I called Scarlett, she said that you didn't go home with her." She starts to panic again so I pull her into me. "Sorry. I stayed in a hotel last night and my phone died." I explain. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you." I tell her, guilt filling me. I should have messaged her last night to let her know.

"That's ok. I was just so worried when I couldn't get a hold of you. I thought something might have happened to you." She says a bit more calmly this time. She hugs me tightly again and we turn to head inside, but the harsh breaking of a car catches our attention. "Y/n! Thank God you're ok!" Scarlett says as she rushes out of the car, launching herself at me.

"When Flo called and said you hadn't come home and weren't answering your phone, I was so worried about you." She rambles out and I find it hard not to scoff. She had no concern about me getting home safely last night. "I'm fine." I respond a little too harshly and I see Flo raise an eyebrow at me. "Are you ok? Where were you?" She asks, taking my hands. The touch is making me uncomfortable, so I gently pull them away. "I stayed in a hotel. I had already agreed that Flo could have the house with Charlie as they hadn't seen each other in ages." I inform her. "Why didn't you tell me? You could have stayed with me." She says but I once again fight to hide the scoff.

"I was going to, but you were a bit distracted." I point out. "Oh." Scarlett says when the realisation hits. "Look, I'd really like to shower and get some sleep. I'm heading in now." I say, not wanting to be in this situation any longer. "Of course, Y/n/n. I'll make you some breakfast, you must be hungry." Flo smiles, sensing the tension. "I'll see you later Y/n/n." Scarlett calls after. I turn and give her a tight lipped smile as I continue to walk backwards. I see hurt flash across her face. But I brush it off, heading upstairs.

Once I'm showered and in some comfy clothes. I climb into bed, hoping to hide away for the day, but I don't get my wish as Flo appears at my door with a tray in her hands. She walks in and places the plate of fried goods in front of me. "You looked like you could do with something greasy!" She smiles, taking her seat next to me. "Thank Flossy." I smile, tucking in straight away.

"She did it again. Didn't she?" Flo asks giving me a sympathetic look. "Yeah, but it's not like it's a surprise." I reply, trying to play it down. "Seems odd after how she was talking about focusing on herself and taking a break from all that." She shares aloud. I just hum in response. "It's her life. She can do as she pleases Flo." I remind her. "But that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt you." She comforts me. "You're right. But today is the last time I'm going to let it affect me. I'm ready to move on from this. In fact, I was thinking that maybe I could stay here whilst you go back to New York. I can still work from here but it just gives me a bit of time to sort my head out." I suggest, hoping she agrees.

I watch her face to see what she's thinking. But I can't quite get a read on it. "Sure. Hailee will be back by then anyway so some time for you to get to know each other." She smiles, making me let out a sigh of relief.

We spend the rest of the day hanging out together with Charlie. They'll be flying out tomorrow to New York, so it's nice to have some time together before we're apart for a few weeks. Scarlett texts me a couple of times and I respond to be nice.

Scarly: So when do you get to New York? We should head for dinner to celebrate being reunited.

Y/n/n: I'm actually not flying back with Flo. I'm staying for some last minute work in LA for a few more weeks.

Scarly: Wait what? You didn't mention anything last night. We were meant to be reunited to take New York by storm.

Y/n: You were a little distracted last night. I'm sure you'll be fine until I get there next month.

My response is a little short and I feel bad. But I don't think I can keep up with the charade anymore. She's not too happy that I didn't tell her, but eventually stops complaining about it. She makes me promise to have a bestie weekend when I get home and I reluctantly agree. Hopefully by then, I'll be in a better place and can be a good friend to her without being hung up on her.

__________

The first few days in LA on my own were weird. I had always been around Flo and having this time working with her but from the other side of the country, is strange. But I soon get into a routine and start to focus on myself a bit more. I start going to the gym and eating better. I'm really starting to feel good about myself and the more days that pass the less I'm thinking of Scarlett.

Flo contacted me after being away for a week to inform me that Hailee is back in LA and would like to meet up. She shares my number with her, and I end up getting a text from her 5 minutes after hanging up from Flo. She works fast!

Over the next few weeks, I spend a lot of time with Hailee. She is so sweet and hilariously funny. I really enjoy spending time with her, and we've gone on some interesting dates. Flo is super excited as she gets the gossip from both sides and is even more excited when I tell her that Hailee will be coming to New York for a few weeks for work, so we arrange to all go out together.

Whilst Hailee and I are having lunch together at a local Italian, she looks up to me a little nervously. "Everything ok?" I ask her and she nods. "Yeah. I um. Just have a question for you." She stutters a little. I nod encouragingly, smiling to show her I'm listening. "Kevin Feige is setting up this charity gala in New York. There are loads of the cast from different Marvel movies attending. I was wondering if you would like to be my date?" She asks me through a wave of confidence.

"I would love to." I respond a little too quickly, but Hailee doesn't seem to care as her eyes go wide. "Really?!" She asks and I nod. "Yeah. I'd be stupid to say no to getting to turn up with a beautiful lady on my arm." I flirt, making her blush. "Amazing, I'll get my team to sort it all out." She says excitedly, reaching out to take my hand.

After extending my stay in LA for another week, I finally return to New York. I've kept in contact with Scarlett whilst I've been away, but she's been busy, helping me in creating the needed distance. I definitely feel like I'm in a better position to see her again. Although Hailee and I are only friends at the moment, she's brought a new happiness to my life and even if she's just a new friend, she's helped me more than she knows.

I'm only home for about 4 hours when there's a knock at my door. I know it's not Flo as she's out of town for a couple of days. But I'm also not surprised when I see Scarlett smiling excitedly, a bottle of wine in her hand. She instantly pulls me into a tight hug. "Thank God your home. You're never allowed to be gone for so long again." She tells me firmly, letting herself into my apartment, making her way into the kitchen and grabbing two glasses.

We spend the evening catching up and I can see how far I've come. Looking at Scarlett, I know there are some feelings still under the surface, but I know I'm on my way to getting over her. I actually enjoy myself, seeing that our friendship is intact and I hope that it continues that way.

"So, Y/n/n I was hoping you'd be my plus one for a charity Gala next week. I wanted to ask you earlier, but I also wanted to ask you face to face." She tells me with a smile, but it drops when she sees my frown. "Oh, I'm sorry. I'm actually already going with someone else." I tell her. "Oh, is Charlie not able to go with Flo?" She asks but I shake my head. "I'm actually going with Hailee." I tell her and I'm sure I see pain flash across her face.

"Steinfeld?" She asks and I nod. "Yeah, we've been getting to know each other in LA." I tell her. She gulps a little and forces a smile on her face. "Are you dating?" She questions. "Not really. Well, maybe kind of. We've just been spending time together. Flo introduced us." I explain. "Hmm. I'll be talking with her." She mumbles. I don't think she realises that she says that out loud, but I let it slide. "Well, at least I'll get to see you there." She says, forcing that fake smile again.

The rest of the night feels a little awkward. Is she unhappy that I'm unable to go with her. I mean, I'm only ever there for her until she finds the person that she wants to head home with. At least this time, I'll be with someone that wants me there with them entirely.

___________

The night of the gala comes around quickly. Hailee and I get ready together at my apartment as she doesn't have a property in New York. It's quite relaxed, even though there are about 10 strangers in my home, getting us, all made up for the night.

We meet with Flo and Charlie to go into the gala together. Hailee holds her arm out to me and I link with her. "Shall we." She smiles, scrunching up her nose at me. "After you Miss Steinfeld." I return. We take our time taking photos along the red carpet. It's strange being in the photos like this. Normally, I stand back as Scarlett has her photos taken. But Hailee has her arm tightly around me, only letting me go when her manager insists she needs solo photos.

As we reach the end of the carpet, I hear Scarlett's name being called and turn to see her walking down the red carpet on her own. She's killing it and the crowd are eating it up to see her going solo. I smile, seeing her doing so well, but turn back to Hailee, giving her my full attention.

When we get into the hall, we find our table and I see that Scarlett is sat next to me. Also on our table are Flo, Lizzie and Seb. As I'm pulling out Hailee's chair for her, I hear the familiar raspy voice from beside me. "Always the gentlewoman is Y/n." She smiles.

I turn and give her a hug in greeting. "You look lovely Scarlett." I tell her and she returns the compliment. "Have you met Hailee before?" I ask. "Very briefly, but it's lovely to see you again." She says, leaning down to give her a kiss on the cheek.

Dinner is actually really fun. There is live music through the night, an auction and a couple of speeches to talk about the cause they're supporting. We're having a good time on our table and the drinks are flowing. I notice that Scarlett is looking fiercely at Hailee and I. But each time I make eye contact, she smiles and lets the façade drop.

The last musical act of the night is Niall Horan. He's great but I see that Hailee becomes more uncomfortable. Then I remember that they broke up not too long ago. I lean into her and place my arm around her shoulder. "Are you ok?" I ask quietly and she nods. "Yeah. Just haven't seen him in a while." She admits. "Do you want a drink?" I ask and she nods. "Yeah, let's go." She smiles, taking my hand and leading me off to the bar. I can feel Scarlett's eyes on me as we walk away but I ignore it. Focusing on Hailee in this moment.

Whilst we're at the bar, I hear an Irish accent and Hailee freezes. She looks at me and I smile, taking an exaggerated breath which she copies. She then turns around and greets Niall. "This is Y/n." She introduces me after they have a short hug. "Pleasure to meet you." He smiles, holding his hand out to me. I take it and smile in return. "You too."

There is an awkward silence and I suddenly feel like I'm the odd one out. "Could we uh. Maybe talk?" Niall asks and Hailee stutters at the request, turning to look at me. "Go on, I'll take our drinks to the table." I tell her and she smiles gratefully. "Thanks Y/n." She replies, placing a kiss to my cheek and following Niall.

I return to the table and Flo looks at me with a confused look. "Where's Hailee?" She asks. "Uh. Niall wanted to talk to her." I inform her and she looks shocked. "Oh." Is all she says. "Yeah. Oh." I say back. There are clearly feelings still between them and I'm expecting the inevitable to happen.

"Where are the others?" I ask, not lingering on the subject of Hailee. "On the dance floor." She replies, pointing in their direction. Lizzie and Seb are dancing like idiots whilst Scarlett is dancing with a man I don't recognise. Probably her conquest for the night.

"Shall we join them?" She asks and I nod, downing my drink, wanting to dance with my sister. We join the others and Scarlett's eyes flick to me and then around us. I'm not sure what she's looking for, but whatever it is, makes her leave the arms of the mystery man to join us in a group dance.

I let myself go, not dwelling on the disaster that is my love life. In this moment, I'm having a great time dancing with everyone. It's nice actually having this time with Scarlett too. She's giving far more attention than she normally does. I wonder if Flo has told her the whole Hailee thing and she's feeling sorry for me.

My happiness doesn't last for long though when I feel a tap on my shoulder. I see Hailee with a guilty look on her face. She nods her head to the side of the dance floor, and I follow her. Feeling Flo and Scarlett's gaze on us. "I'm really sorry." Hailee rushes out but I stop her. "It's ok. You still have feelings for him." I answer for her. "H-how did you know?" She asks shocked. "I could see it. It's quite obvious." I chuckle. "Oh. I didn't mean for this to happen. I really do like you." She says but I can tell it's conflicted.

"It's really ok. We aren't together. It was nice being able to spend time with you." I reassure her, but it doesn't stop tears falling down her cheeks. "Why are you being so kind?" She asks. "There's nothing to be angry about. As long as you're happy, that's what matters." I respond, and she pulls me into a tight hug. "I'd love to still be friends with you. You've really brought some light to my life." She says, almost with a pleading look. "Friends it is." I smile, holding my hand out jokingly. She takes it and shakes it laughing. "Now go find your man." I instruct her.

She looks at me once more, almost like she's checking that I'm ok. When she sees what she's looking for, she turns around and I watch as she makes her way to Niall. Not feeling like staying around anymore, I head to find Flo, who's with Charlie on the dance floor.

When I reach her, she looks at me with a sympathetic look. "Well?" She asks, although I'm sure she already knows. "It seems like I'm never destined to be more than friends." I chuckle coldly. "Oh Y/n/n. You deserve so much more." She wraps her arms around me and holds me tight. "Maybe one day. But right now. I think I want to head home." I say and she nods. "Of course. We can come take you." She offers but I shake my head.

"No. Stay you're having fun. I can just grab a cab. I'll text you when I'm home" I reassure her. "Ok. If, you're sure. Please be careful." She says, placing a kiss to my cheek. I say goodbye to Charlie and Lizzie and ask Flo to tell Scarlett that I've headed home. Assuming that she's off with that guy from earlier.

Scarlett's POV:

Seeing Y/n hand in hand with Hailee was a pain I did not enjoy feeling. The jealousy built up within me, but I forced a fake smile on my face. When she told me she was going to be her plus one, it broke my heart. I love going to events like this with Y/n. She's so much fun and I feel like I can be completely myself around her.

I had developed feelings for her about a year ago, but I knew she was off limits being Flo's sister. Though seeing her tonight, I think I need a conversation with Flo. I don't think I can see Y/n date someone else. It would break me.

When she and Flo joined us on the dance floor, I looked around to see where Hailee was, but I couldn't see her which was odd. What I did notice was the change in demeanour from Y/n. I know her like the back of my hand, and I can tell when her feelings change. Has Hailee hurt her? If she has, I'm going to be having words.

When Hailee returns, I glare at her and watch intently as Y/n follows her off the dance floor. "Easy there you might kill her with that glare." Flo laughs at me. "You know, if you like her, you should just tell her. Stop fucking around with randoms and get your act together for her." She calls me out and I look at her shocked. "Come on, your feelings for her are pretty obvious. No matter how many people you sleep with, it won't change that. But you should know, you're going to lose her if you don't sort it out." Flo warns me.

"I uh. That's not what's going on. Besides, she's your sister." I try to defend weekly, and she just laughs loudly. "That doesn't bother me. As long as you're both happy that's all that matters. But I'm telling you now, if you decide to go there, you better not hurt her anymore. I won't take seeing her sad." She threatens lightly. "Wait, what do you mean anymore?" I question, which makes Flo's eyes go wide.

"Flo?" I question lowly but she just looks around her for an escape, which comes in the guise of Charlie, who she quickly pulls into her for a heated kiss. "Ok, wow. No need to eat his face. I don't need to see this." I say with a scrunched up face. I turn and make my way to the bathroom.

I splash some water on my face and try to psych myself up. "Come on Johansson. Just bite the bullet and tell her how you feel." I give myself a pep talk, looking at myself in the mirror. I need to do this before it's too late and her and Hailee are together.

With a wave of confidence, I make my way out of the bathroom on the hunt for Y/n. I catch the back of her and see her leaving. I run towards Flo in a panic. "Where's she going?" I ask her, worried I'm about to miss my opportunity. "She's heading home" Flo replies, a sad look on her face as she watches after her sister. "What about Hailee?" I ask but she simply points towards the bar where she's in the arms of Niall.

It makes my blood boil to know she's hurt her. It takes all of me to not head over there and give her a piece of my mind for hurting my best friend. "If you're quick, you might be able to catch her." Flo smirks at me. I don't think, instead, I rush off in pursuit of Y/n.

When I get outside, I see her propped against the wall, clearly waiting for a taxi. I take a deep breath and slowly walk over to her, resting on the wall next to her. "I'm sorry." I say, not really sure how to approach the situation. "It's ok. I'm used to leaving these sorts of things on my own." She chuckles dryly. "What's that supposed to mean?" I ask her. She's normally at these things with me.

"Oh, come on Scar. I'm normally getting a taxi after you've headed back home with whoever you've decided you want to sleep with that night." She responds with a bite to her tone. "Come on, that's not fair." I defend but she rolls her eyes. "When was the last time we left something like this together?" She asks me. My mouth just opens and closes as I try to find the answer, but it doesn't come to me.

"There's my cab, I better go." She says whilst I'm still lost in my head. But before she can walk away, I grab her arm and pull her into me. I don't even think, and I press my lips against hers. It takes her by shock and takes a moment before she starts to kiss me back. Her lips are soft, and I feel fireworks ignite in my stomach. But as she starts to sink into the kiss, she suddenly pulls away.

"NO!" She shouts as she pushes me away. "What?" I ask her shocked at her response. Oh God, have I totally misread this situation? I was sure she had feelings in return. "I will not be another notch on your bed post." She yells at me, her hands rising to her hair. "God, every time we come to these, I have to see you leave with some random person who you inevitably kick out and never see again. I force myself to come with you under the hope that maybe one day you might see that I'm here, right in front of you, and can give you what you've been looking for. But instead, I torture myself each time." She rants, angry at both me and herself.

She starts to pace, and I step in front of her to stop her. "Please stop pacing and listen to me." I try to get her attention. But she tries to walk around me towards the taxi. I manage to stop her and wave the taxi off, much to Y/n's annoyance. "Scarlett, that was my ride home." She exhales whilst glaring at me.

"Just stop and let me talk and I'll make sure you get home. Please." I practically beg her. She looks at me and sighs, nodding, indicating for me to go ahead. "You're right. I've been an ass, bringing you along and ditching you when I find someone to leave with. But you have to understand I only did that because I am madly in love with you and thought that you were out of reach." I admit.

She looks at me in complete shock. "No. This is some sort of joke." She tries to deny it, but I grip her arms a little tighter. "I didn't think that Flo would allow me to date you. So, I pushed my feelings down and tried to forget about you. But I never could." I share, embarrassed to admit that I chose to cope in this way.

"When I broke up with Colin, it hit me hard, not because I wasn't with him anymore. But because it became more obvious that I wasn't going to be able to avoid my feelings for you. So, I did what I do best and slept around so I could at least numb that feeling for a while." Tears start to build in my eyes as I admit my deepest feelings for Y/n.

I know that this is my only chance with her. I may miss any chance of being with her and may even ruin our friendship. I look at her, hoping to see any response or get an understanding for how she's feeling. But for the first time in a long time, I can't. Everything I've learnt about her, is wasted in this moment. "I was selfish. I didn't want to lose our friendship. Instead of being truthful, I dragged you along, pretending that I didn't know the pain it was causing you." I confess, ashamed of it.

"Please, just know that I do truly love you. I would do anything to have a chance to prove that to you. I don't think I can live this life without you in it. Please just tell me I have a chance." I plead, taking her hand in mine. She doesn't pull it away which gives me some comfort. "Scarlett, I don't know. I've tried so hard to move on from you." She says, pain lacing her voice. "That's why you stayed in LA?" I finally realise and she nods.

"It hurt when you would flirt with me and treat me like I was the only person in the room, to just ditch me at the first sign of someone else." She shares her feelings, and I can see how much damage I've caused. "I am so sorry that I made you feel like that. I wish I had just had the confidence to admit my feelings in the first place. I could have saved us both a lot of pain." I sigh.

"Y/n, please let me try to make this up to you. Even if it's just as friends. As much as that will hurt." I plead, hoping she'll give me a chance. She looks at me, her eyes darting between my own. She lets out a long sigh and shakes her head. "I'm going to regret this." She mumbles to herself, before lifting her head to look at me. "Ok, but we need to go slow. I want to know that you're 100% in this." She responds, making my heart sore.

"Of course, Y/n. I will do everything in my power to show you my true intention. We'll go at your pace, and I will make sure that I have clear communication with you. Thank you for giving me a chance. I won't waste it." I thank her, taking her other hand in mine, my smile growing with happy tears falling. "Can I start by taking you on a date?" I ask her nervously. "I'd like that." She responds shyly, which makes my heart flutter. She's so cute.

"Perfect, I'll pick you up at 7 tomorrow. Wear something comfy. I'm going to pamper you." I tell her through a big smile. "Someone's eager." She chuckles. "I've wasted too much time. I'm not wasting anymore." I tell her, our gaze locking on each other. I want nothing more than to kiss her, but I know I need to take this slow and do this right. Hopefully if the date tomorrow goes well, I'll get to kiss her then.

"Come on, I'll take you home." I tell her, directing her towards my driver. I hold the door open for her and she slides in. When I get in next to her, I take her hand in mine. The ride to her apartment is silent, but it's not awkward.

When we pull up outside her building, I get out to walk her to her door. "Thank you for giving me another chance Y/n. I promise I'll make this up to you." I thank her, feeling a relief that hopefully we're on the right track now. "Don't mess this up Johansson." She smiles at me, opening her door. "Oh, trust me. I don't plan to." I smirk, waving to her as she goes to shut the door. "See you tomorrow." She smiles, lingering for a moment. "See you tomorrow, Pugh." I grin, walking back towards the elevator.

As soon as the door shuts, my whole body relaxes. I can't believe she agreed. The smile is plastered on my face, with no plans on leaving anytime soon. As I make my way home, I think of how I can give her the perfect date. I want it to be everything that she deserves. Because I know that Y/n is it for me. There is no one else in this world that I want to spend the rest of my life with. I just need to prove that to her and this date will be the first step to doing that. 

[milswrites]

We can't be friends

Cassian X Reader

Summary: Cassian had been distant. While he was still physically present around you, it was easy to see his mind was elsewhere. When you learn of the reason why this rift has appeared between you, you must make the difficult decision to step away from the man you once loved.

Warnings: Angsttttt

Notes: We've had our Rhysand breakup angst, it’s now time for Cassian's!!! Anyone else had Ariana Grande’s new album on their mind like 24/7? Stole the name from her song lol.

Cassian’s mind was wandering again. You could see it. Able to tell that he wasn’t mentally present by his blank expression and misty absent-minded gaze. His usually bright hazel eyes bore a dull film, as if someone had draped a cloudy vail over them.

You needn’t ask him what he was thinking of. Who he was thinking of. It had been clear enough to you that his thoughts had been occupied by the eldest Acheron sister from the moment he had met her in the mortal realm.

He would deny it of course, every time you brought the topic up with him he would spit some venomous comment about her poor attitude and the lack of love she held for her younger sister.

But you needn’t be a seer to observe what was going on here. It was as through fate that you had been cruelly blessed with the ability to see the golden thread which tied him to the woman.

Whether Nesta was oblivious to the bond or was just opting to ignore it you did not know. But you were sure Cassian knew. In fact you had never been more positive of anything in your life.

What you couldn’t understand was why would Cassian go about his life as though the bond wasn’t there? Why, at the end of each night, would he come back to your chambers to warm your bed?

The male continuing to crawl into your sheets after a long days work, whispering sweet nothings into your ears as he cradled you to sleep, acting as though nothing was different. As though you couldn’t feel the grating presence of the bond.

Most nights you stayed awake as the man slept beside you. Your miserable eyes trailing along the length of the golden cord, following the string as it wound its way out of your room. No doubt if you followed it’s path you would end up right outside the door of Nesta’s flat.

So why was Cassian still drifting you along even though he had met his mate? And how much longer would you have to wait before the inevitable occurred?

These thoughts had plagued your mind for the past few weeks. Eating away at you as they slowly stole your happiness. Instead, an odd feeling of guilt wracked your body. The evil whisper of your conscience telling you that you were the third-wheel. The one thing stopping Cassian from being with his mate. That you should do the noble thing and end your relationship. That it was what he would want.

You defensively hiss back at your demons whenever they took a hold of your mind, reassuring yourself that Cassian loved you. That he still chose to warm your bed every night. Silently hoping that the only reason he hadn’t told you about the bond was because he didn’t want to worry you. That he didn’t want you to question the unwavering affection he held for you.

And yet you always found yourself back here.

In the company of the male whose mind was in another place. With another person. Finding yourself once more having a one sided conversation with yourself. Cassian only occasionally offering up a small grunt of acknowledgement.

His glazed eyes which stayed locked on your form, no doubt imagining a different view. A picture of the woman he was dreaming about. A woman that wasn’t you.

It began to feel like there was a ghost in your relationship. Only you couldn’t figure out whether it was you or Cassian.

Cassian who had become a shell of the man he had once been around you.

Or you, who now struggled to be both heard and seen by the man you had devoted the last three centuries of your life to.

The once overwhelming surge of radiating joy had dimmed. A candle, struggling to stay alight as it consumed the last dregs of fuel from the wick. The flame between the two of you now fading into a dull flicker.

Your heart no longer skipped a beat whenever you saw the male. Instead it weighed heavy in your chest, as if clamped by a strong metal hand, choking the last remnants of happiness from your soul, flooding your body with a terrible sense of dread.

This wasn’t the way you wanted to live.

You knew that much. You were smart enough to know that you didn’t want to be the second option. The afterthought, even though you had known the male longer, had loved him for longer.

Therefore you knew what had to be done. Yet after sharing three hundred joyous years with the male you couldn’t be blamed for struggling to find the strength to do it.

~~~~~

But you could feel it now. The strength seeping into your body, fighting to share the room alongside your agony and grief. Mourning your relationship before it has even come to a close.

It was hard to ignore the way your hands had begun to shake. Nor the drying of your throat as you blurted out the words before you could stop yourself and cowardly continue on with the relationship which had began to drain you of the last of your happiness.

“We need to talk.”

The words came out thick and heavy. The change in the tone of your voice from your monotonous dialogue to this statement being enough to capture Cassian’s attention. The absent clouds drifting from his eyes until your determined ones were met with his hazel orbs.

“I thought we were talking?”

The male gulped as he spoke, clearly feeling the unsettling aura which filled the room. All your years together being enough for Cassian to know the gravity of what you were about to say.

“Why are you still here Cas? With me?”

“W-what?” He stuttered in answer, your eyes searching his as you tried to distinguish whether he knew what it was you were talking about. Fear building in your chest at the realisation you were going to have to say it yourself before this conversation led to nothing.

“Nesta, Cassian. The bond.”

He didn’t know. All this time he had been unaware of your silent heartbreak. You saw the truth of it in the way his face dropped, the extinguishing of the spark in his eyes.

“How long?” He gulped, guilt crossing his expression as he forced the words out. His cheeks flushing in shame that he hadn’t been the one to tell you.

“Weeks? Months? Long enough to question why you’re still with me.”

Cassian didn’t know what to say. He started at you with a crushing remorse, the glint of love in his eyes doing nothing to reduce your pain.

“I’m not a fool Cas,” you smiled sadly at your own unfortunate situation, his name catching in your throat as you reached your hand forwards to lay atop of his, “you want to be with her, I know that.”

A pained look flashed across his face, his eyes burning with self-hatred failing to meet yours in his regret. You allowed him the time for his emotions to settle, sitting in silence as you continued to grip his hand.

Eventually, once his flood of shame subsided, Cassian found the words to speak, “All I’ve ever known is you. All I’ve ever loved. I’ve never known anything else.”

“I know Cas” you flinched at the earnesty which laced his words. Cassian had never given you any reason to believe he didn’t love you. Even now, when his heart was calling to another, you still felt the outpouring of love from his soul.

“It’s not fair,” he grit through his teeth angrily, “you’ve done nothing wrong. It’s me. I’m the one who can’t control my feelings, my thoughts which dream of another. You don’t deserve this.”

“I don’t” you said simply. Your face remaining blank as tears began to fall down the males cheeks. You have had months to cry about your lost love, there would be no more tears shed by you. Not now, not when your well had run dry.

“We can still be friends though right? You’ve been in my life for so long I can’t imagine it without you” he choked the words out as if he wasn’t the one who had already ended things between you. He never had to say the words to you, his actions and his heart did all the talking for him.

“No Cas,” you shake your head solemnly, “we can’t be friends.”

The male looked to you in shock, his eyes blowing wide as he took in the force of your words. What this would mean for the two of you, for your future together. Or lack thereof.

“It’s not fair Cas,” you reason, giving his hands a gentle squeeze, emotions still holding firm in the face of adversity, “not to me and not to Nesta. We both know what needs to be done. We both have for a while.”

“But I love you” he fights your calm demeanour, his watery eyes staring into yours with an intensity, begging you to take back the words you were saying.

“We can’t go back to being us Cas, it’s too late for that. The damage has been done,” you lift your free hand to settle against his cheek, thumb wiping away the downpour of tears, “but with Nesta, with your mate, you have a chance. You should go for it. Follow your heart.”

“I’ll never forget you” he stubbornly argues, adamant that he can have everything he wants. Nesta by his side and you in his life. His love blinding him, allowing his selfish wishes to be spoken aloud.

“I think for both our sakes forgetting each other may be our best option baby.”

You couldn’t help it, the silver tear which escaped your eye, betraying the cold emotions you were trying to display on the outside, your thumb still caressing his cheeks as your eyes flittered across his face. Taking in everything that was Cassian for what would be the last time.

“That’s what I’m going to do,” you cried, “I’m sorry Cas but it’s the only way. I have to forget.”

It was the acceptance that was the hardest part of all. The admission that while you weren’t Cassian’s once in a lifetime, he was yours. And it was your love for him that would allow you to let him go. Your will for him to be happy, outweighing the pain of seeing him in another woman’s arms.

[minniesmutt]

☾ ━━━━━━ 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮

☾ ━━━ PAIRING: SEUNGMIN X READER ☾ ━━━ PROMPTS: A9 "do i look like i moved on?" + N8 "i'll let you do anything if you just touch me right now." ☾ ━━━ CONTENT: RIGHT PERSON; WRONG TIME, MAKE-UP SEX, HAIR PULLING, HAND JOB, FINGERING, MARKING, PROTECTED SEX ☾ ━━━ WC: 1.9K ☾ ━━━ repost from old blog ☾ ━━━ 18+ work!! minors and ageless/blank blogs DNI! you will be blocked, put an indicator on your blog somewhere that you are 18+ before interacting with this work/blog

     Not everything worked out. That’s what Y/n kept telling herself. 

     She and Seungmin broke up six months ago. Life just wasn't kind to either of them during their time together. Work was a mess for her and him being an idol and touring, nothing was working out. But it was a hard six months. 

     Especially without talking until he reached out one day and asked if she wanted to talk. She thought everything was fine till she saw him. Shoved in a hoodie and a face mask to hide himself. Y/n giggled a bit at his appearance before walking to the booth he had taken in the corner of the coffee shop. Two drinks on the table. 

     “Hey,” Y/n said as he looked up from his phone.

     “Hey. Ordered you fav,” He said as she took a seat across from him

     “You still remember it?” Y/n half joked

     “Why wouldn’t I?” 

     That made her heart flutter. Six months of no contact and he still remembered things about her. 

     “How’s work?” Y/n asked him

     “Still busy. Getting ready for comeback,” Seungmin sighed, “How’s your work.”

     “Calmed down. Things are a bit easier and I got that promotion.”

     “I’m proud of you. You deserve it.”

     “Thanks. How have you been?”

     “Okay, I guess? I’ve had better days,” Seungmin pulled his mask down to sip his Americano

     “Have you moved on?” The words came out before she could stop them. Both of them just looked at each other for a moment. 

     “Do I look like I moved on?” He asked 

     “I haven’t either…”

     That hung in the air. Neither said anything as they finished their drinks. Only the occasional question about something random. Eventually, they got up to leave and Seungmin offered to walk her home.

     Wanting to spend as much time as he could with her. Selfishly so. Comeback right around the corner, it was busy, before and after. He wanted to try again, that’s why he reached out. He missed her. 

     They weren't perfect, no relationship was. But he knew when they first got together that he wanted her by his side, no matter what. Six months felt like years and he tried his best not to let it show how much the breakup was affecting him. He knew the guys knew it hurt him, but he didn't let anything get in the way of work. 

     He finally broke down and ended up ranting to the rest of his bandmates who were more than supportive of him reaching out and trying to see where she stood and if rekindling the relationship was possible. So he silently walked with her back to her apartment, trying to think of something— anything— to say. Feeling bad when they got to her door and he hadn’t said anything. He was the one who asked to talk to her and their conversation ended when they both established that they hadn’t moved on from each other. Six months later.

     “Do you wanna come in, Min?” Y/n offered

     “Yeah,” Seungmin smiled at her before they both went inside.

     He had been to her apartment so many times before but it felt so weird standing in her entryway. He slipped off the face mask and his hood, shaking his hair out and letting it fall back into place perfectly. Y/n looked at him the whole time. He still made her weak to her knees.

     They made it over to her couch and just sat there. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable but not comfortable fully. Y/n picked at one of her throw pillows, both trying to find something to say.

     “I’m sorry,” Seungmin finally said

     “It’s okay Min. We weren’t in a good place when we were together.” Y/n answered

     “I know, but… I don’t know.”

     “Why did you want to talk today?”

     Seungmin tilted his head back and looked at the ceiling before looking over at her. “I missed you. A lot. I could barely focus at work, wondering if you ate the day, got enough sleep, and if that co-worker you hated was still bothering you. The last six months felt like absolute hell without talking to you. I’m pretty sure there were a couple of times I woke up thinking you were next to me and when I realized you weren’t, I just kind of broke down…”

     Y/n felt her tears pricking her lash line. Sniffling a bit, “She is still bothering me,” Y/n laughed, “I missed you too, Min. The first week was hard for me. It was better for a bit but then I was still getting all the fan edits on social media and there wasn't any way I could let you go.”

     “I know we are having a moment and you're about to cry but you look really pretty and I wanna kiss you.” Leave it to Kim Seungmin to say randomly that made her heart flutter

     “I’ll let you do anything if you touch me right now,” Y/n blurted out

     “Anything?” Seungmin asked 

     Y/n nodded her head and Seungmin crashed his lips onto hers. She didn't even register him moving as he was slowly pushing her back on the couch. Y/n wrapped her arms around his neck as her lips moved in sync with his. Both were desperate to feel the other's lips after months of being apart. The kiss getting more and more desperate and heated. 

     “Min,” Y/n mumbled against his lips before he shoved her tongue down her throat. 

     Y/n moaned into his mouth as she tugged his hair. He didn't dare move away from her till he ran out of breath. Looking down at her, lips all puffy from kissing. “Tell me to stop, Y/n,” His lips attached to her neck, “Need you so fucking badly, in every sense of the word.”

     “I won’t,” Y/n told him as she pulled him up to look at her, “I need you too.”

     “Fuck,” Seungmin groaned, slamming his lips onto hers again. 

     Both moaning into the kiss and Seungmin grinding his hips into hers. Y/n could feel his erection through his jeans, pressing into her. “Fuck me Min. Please,” Y/n said between kisses

     “Take me back. Let me be a better boyfriend this time,” Seungmin said, pulling away from her lips, “Let me fuck my girlfriend and not my ex.”

     “Yes, the answer is always yes, Min.” Something about the way he said it had her pussy fluttering.

     Seungmin smiled and kissed her again. Hands grabbing her hips to hold her still as he grinded into her more. Y/n easily managed to coax him off the couch and drag him to her room. Seungmin stripped himself of his hoodie before pinning her down onto the bed. 

     Hands working in a frenzy to throw off all their clothing. Letting it land in random places in her room till they were fully exposed to each other. Their hands didn't stop once the clothing was off. Needing to feel each other in every way possible. 

     Y/n trailed one of her hands down his stomach and wrapped her fingers around his hard cock. Seungmin moaned into her neck where his lips were currently marking her skin. Y/n worked her hand up and down on him as his fingers made their way between her legs. Slowly rubbing circles into her clit. 

     Slowly his fingers moved down to her entrance and collected her slick before pushing inside. Slowly working her open for him as he pulled his lips away from her neck to look down between them. Y/n threaded her free hand into his hair. 

     His thumb rubbed across her clit as he kissed up her neck and landed on her lips again. Y/n moaned into his mouth as he pushed deeper into her. Both somehow falling into the same pace and stimulating the other.

     “Need to be in you,” Seungmin groaned as he pulled his fingers out of her and moves her hand away from his cock so he didn't blow. 

     “Min,” Y/n whined at the loss of stimulation as he grabbed a condom from the bedside drawer.

     “I’ve got months of making up to do bubs,” Seungmin tore open the wrapper and rolled the rubber on “I’ll make you come all night if that's what you want.”

     Seungmin spread her legs open and lined himself up at her entrance. He leaned over her as he slowly slid into her. Y/n grabbed on his arms as her walls parted making way for him. He took his time to sink into her, letting her warmth wrap around him till he was fully inside her. 

     Seungmin leaned down and kissed her again. Moving down to support himself on his forearms as she wrapped her arms and legs around him. Pulling him as close as possible, needing to be enveloped by him entirely. 

     Slowly he pulled back and pushed back in. Building up his pace as their lips moved together. The idol pushed his tongue into her mouth as his pace sped up. His hips slamming into hers as she moaned into his mouth. She was positive her eyes would’ve rolled into the back of her head if her eyes weren’t closed. 

     Sex was rare for them the first time they were together. Schedules made it difficult to even see each other but when they were together, Y/n was never unsatisfied. How could she be when the man above her always paid attention to her pleasure.

     Eventually pulling away from the kiss the catch their breath— seemingly more difficult for Y/n as Seungmin just knocked the air from her lungs with his dick. Her fingers gripping at his back. Seungmin moved up onto his hands, using the leverage to move quicker.

     “Min, more.” Y/n moaned

     “Whatever you want bubs.” Seungmin smiled as he moved one of his hands from the mattress and rubbed her clit again.

     Y/n arched towards him as her walls clenched around him. His grunts hit her ears like a masterpiece. Nights she had spent thinking of him when she couldn’t sleep couldn’t compare to the real Seungmin. The image in front of Seungmin couldn’t compare his own lonely nights. How did they ever think letting each other go was the best and only option they had months ago?

     “Fuck. Never gonna leave you again,” Seungmin groaned as he pressed harder into her clit

     “‘M close min,” Y/n moaned

     “Already? Gonna give me more later?”

     Y/n simply gave him another moan as a response as her hips jerked against him. Six months without being intimate took a toll on both of them; neither of them really knew. 

     Both their highs buildings and washing over them before they knew it. Y/n’s tumbled down first as she rocked against him. Seungmin let himself explode in the condom as she was coming down. Stilling inside and leaning over, thin layer of sweat on them.

     Seungmin slowly pulled out and took off the rubber, tying it and tossing it in the garbage as he went into her bathroom to grab a towel. Coming back and cleaning her up, being as gentle as possible before throwing the towel in her clothes hamper and cuddled up with her under her covers.

     “I love you. I hope you know that,” Seungmin told her

     “I love you too Min.” Y/n smiled

☾ ━━━━━━ M.LIST    TIP JAR

☾ ━━━ please support writers by reblogging and/or leaving feedback

© 2024 MINNIESMUTT. DO NOT COPY, REPUBLISH OR TRANSLATE MY WORK ANYWHERE

[awkward-walking-potato]

Hey can you maybe do a gambit x reader where gambit and the reader are best friends and always going on missions together and Remy is always saying your like his little sister but in reality the reader is in love with him but tries to meditate between gambit and rogue to keep them together cuz she thinks he's happy with her.

But then gambit gets in a fight with rogue and they break up, and the reader is like scrambling to get to apologize and Remy has to sit them down and explain he wasnt happy and then either the reader confesses to him or he confesses that he had always loved her but played it off.

Idk it sounded good in my head, sorry if it was too long but I love your work so keep it up!☺️

In the heart of the X-Mansion, the bond between you and Gambit was well-known. As best friends, you both were inseparable, frequently going on missions together and supporting each other through thick and thin. Remy often referred to you as his “little sister,” a term that made your heart flutter with an unspoken mix of affection and longing.

You had always been there for him, even helping to mediate between Gambit and Rogue when their relationship hit rough patches. Despite your feelings for Remy, you never let them show. You believed that if he was happy with Rogue, that was all that mattered.

However, as fate would have it, a recent argument between Gambit and Rogue had spiraled into a breakup. The tension in the mansion was palpable, and you could feel your heart breaking for both of them. You had hoped that they would work things out, but when it became clear that things were over, you found yourself in a whirlwind of emotions, trying to figure out how to handle the situation.

You hurried to find Gambit, feeling a mixture of urgency and dread. You reached his room, knocking lightly before pushing the door open. “Remy, can we talk?”

He looked up from where he was sitting on the edge of his bed, his expression a mix of frustration and sadness. “Hey, chérie. What’s goin’ on?”

“I—” you hesitated, taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry about everything. I didn’t mean for things to get so messed up with you and Rogue.”

Gambit stood up, his eyes softening as he looked at you. “It’s not your fault, mon amie. Things just didn’t work out.”

You took a step closer, your heart pounding. “But… if you’re hurting, I want to help. I care about you so much, and I just want to see you happy.”

Gambit’s gaze softened, and he took your hand gently, his touch sending a shiver through you. “I know you care, and I appreciate that. But there’s somethin’ you need to know.”

Before he could continue, the door swung open, and Rogue walked in, her eyes red from crying. “Remy, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for things to end like this.”

Gambit looked at Rogue, then at you, his expression conflicted. He sighed and motioned for both of you to sit down. “We need to talk about this properly.”

As you sat together, Gambit began to explain. “Look, I’ve been keepin’ things from you both. The truth is, I’ve been unhappy for a while now. I didn’t realize how much until things with Rogue fell apart.”

You felt a pang of hurt and confusion. “But why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you tell Rogue?”

Gambit turned to you, his eyes filled with a mixture of regret and something softer. “Because I didn’t want to hurt anyone. I tried to play it off, but the truth is, I’ve had feelings for you for a long time.”

You froze, your heart racing as the words sank in. “Me?”

Gambit nodded, a small, wistful smile on his face. “Yeah, you. I didn’t want to complicate things, so I kept it to myself. But the way things ended with Rogue made me realize that I’ve been tryin’ to hide my true feelings.”

Rogue looked between you and Gambit, her expression one of understanding. “Well, if you two have feelings for each other, then maybe it’s time for you both to figure that out. I wish you both the best.”

With that, Rogue gave a small, sad smile and left the room, giving you and Gambit the space to talk. You turned to him, your eyes brimming with emotion.

“I never thought… I mean, I’ve always loved you, but I thought it was just my feelings getting in the way,” you admitted, your voice trembling. “I didn’t want to ruin our friendship or force you into anything.”

Gambit reached out and took your hand, his touch gentle and reassuring. “You didn’t ruin anything. I’ve been waitin’ for the right moment to tell you how I feel. And now that it’s out in the open, I want to be honest with you.”

You took a deep breath, feeling a mix of relief and joy. “So, what do we do now?”

Gambit smiled, a genuine warmth in his eyes. “Now, we take it one step at a time. I want to be with you, if you’re willin’ to give us a chance.”

You smiled through your tears, feeling a weight lift off your shoulders. “I’d like that. I’ve always wanted to be with you.”

As you both embraced, you felt a sense of peace and hope. The road ahead might not be easy, but with Gambit by your side, you were ready to face it together. The love you had always felt for him was finally reciprocated, and you knew that despite the challenges, you had found something truly special.

[herejusttosufferalong]

Re: To the anon asking about Rory.

They’ve been close friends for AGES. He’s not going anywhere sadly.

I don’t really like his vibe

Hey, I’m the one who asked about Rory—thanks for replying. I know they’ve been besties forever, but what I meant was if Rory was a huge part of L’s life before HBS. I don’t remember seeing him much when L and J were together, except in a couple of stories and the singing vids. Also, are Tom and Charmaine married? I like them for some reason; they don’t give me the ick like Rory and his gang do.

Continuation of my earlier ask:

My BFF and I talked to two of our male friends, and they patiently listened. We just finished filling them in on the drama from yesterday and today. We’ve been chatting since 5 am lol. Here’s what they had to say:

Luke and Nic are in love: There’s a lot of eye-fucking to prove it. The tension suggests they haven’t acted on it, which is expected. The guys think Nic wouldn’t be okay with that, and Luke seems decent enough not to have crossed that line. However, they do believe they might have hooked up before Luke had his HBS. They could be reevaluating their relationship, using intimacy tools to see if it’s genuine affection or just heightened emotions and sexual tension from filming their season.

Luke’s friend group seems toxic: By friend group, they mean just Rory. The others seem fine. L dating a young girl soon after Rory did confirms Rory as the alpha of the group, and L as gullible since none of his other friends are doing the same. Maybe J dating someone young also influenced L dating A. It could be an ego thing, a guy thing, or both. L will probably cringe at this situation looking back. They said this whole relationship has nothing to do with Nic. This is Luke’s problem—a midlife crisis, even—and he needs to figure it out, which won’t happen as long as he’s with Rory and his gang.

A is super insecure: It doesn’t make sense because she’s the one who bagged the hot Netflix lead and goes on vacations with him. But her social media behavior reeks of insecurity and constantly seeking validation. This confirms that L isn’t invested in the relationship, which confirms to us he’s VERY much into Nic. So, think about this whenever A’s trolling upsets you. 😉

Nicola doesn’t care: The guys think L and N might have discussed their feelings, but Nic sees that L has issues to deal with—mainly himself. She’s hustling and thriving, not caring about his current relationship. Posting their pictures shows her character and work ethic. This only benefits her, and Luke should learn from it. They think L should make a final thank you post, even if people find it disingenuous. It’s better than nothing.

A needs to chill with the Hailey Bieber cosplay: The white outfit was an exact recreation of Hailey’s, and it’s weird. She keeps track of her comment section and allows comparisons to Hailey, which is embarrassing to say the least. The guys think A will stick around as long as she can. L seems to struggle with breakups, and now that A’s integrated into his friend group, it’ll take a lot of time to end things. She might be playing into his guilt, which is why he’s still liking her posts. She's young but smart enough to understand that. They think the only way out is for L to keep busy with work, but he doesn’t seem to have any now. Expect things to get worse before they get better. If he works, he can slowly distance himself from the relationship, and it will inevitably end. Either that or he’ll meet Nic, talk, realize they still have feelings, and that will give him the courage to end it with A. Even then, he has to make it up to Nic for all the shit he’s pulled.

Nic and Newts dating: Once they start dating, we won’t get a hard launch or pap pics. They might return to their old social media banter and comment and like each other’s posts.

So yeah, I’m really grateful to have my brother and these friends who indulge and listen to me. I think it’s safe to say they’re roped into the ship as well lol. Love to see what you guys think. Omg, also, I watched a TikTok of Luke singing as a teen, and the guy in the back looks like Rory. If it is, HE’S the one who glowed up, not L lol.

It is Rory in the background looking jealous AF

Thank you for sharing anon, love seeing the different perspectives

💜🥃

[wield-the-mighty-pen]

Am I the only one who doesn't think if/when Adrien finds out about everything (him being a senti, the wish, his father being Hawkmoth/Shadowmoth/Monarch (pick your poison)) that he'll break up with or even lash out at Marinette?

I know we've seen him get angry with Ladybug over secret keeping, from not telling him important information and keeping him out of the loop. But isn't this situation different?

For starters, in this scenario, Adrien has already been dating Marinette for a while, at least a few months, before finding out. While this might not seem that it changes much, as he was already close to and in love with Ladybug when they went through their rough patches, there are actually some key differences between these relationships.

For starters, Adrinette at this point is in a devoted and loving relationship. Adrien feels secure in his relationship with Marinette, which is something not always afforded to him with Ladybug. Finding out that she had been keeping big secrets from him might cause a disturbance to this, but being as how their relationship is on much more stable foundation from Adrien's perspective, they may be able to recover more easily.

Additionally, Adrien tends to experience love in an all-consuming manner. Being as how he is in a reciprocal relationship with Marinette, his feelings are allowed to flourish a lot more and are arguably more potently felt than with his stunted affections towards the unavailable Ladybug. He's not going to easily just let go of something that fills him up and makes him feel loved and content.

What's more so is that Adrien as a civilian, is a lot more insular in expressing his feelings than Chat Noir is. Meaning, while Chat Noir might blow up when feeling angry or hurt, Adrien is more likely to keep it inside and either internalize the hurt (by blaming himself) or give himself time to get through it.

Finally, we have seen Adrien's reaction to Marinette being hurt (and it doesn't end well for the person who hurt her). What is, in my opinion a far more likely outcome to an Adrinette fight/breakup, is Adrien seeing Marinette as a victim, because let's be clear here, she is a victim.

Marinette has been through a ton of trauma. And then after seeing it all, she was sworn to silence by a number of people who honestly have more of a responsibility for disclosure with Adrien than Marinette does. Is it not Felix's responsibility to tell him about being a senti? Is it not Nathalie's responsibility to tell him about the crimes his father committed with her as an accomplice? Is it not Plagg's responsibility to tell Adrien about the wish he had to grant?

It is not Marinette's fault that all of these things transpired, and yet, she has been burdened with the knowledge of all of it and will likely be the one saddled with having to relay it all to Adrien. Adrien, who is compassionate and loves her, would likely see the position she was put it and rather than lash out, he would probably want to comfort her.

Thereby putting two very traumatized kids in the position of having to help each other out of their guilt and grief.

[bachelor4choice]

Fans of Arcane! I'm here to bring theories!!!!

P.S.: Please, no spoilers. Especially regarding any leaks. Making theories is a big part of what makes a show fun for fans, so don’t ruin that. Good? Good.

Recently, I saw here on Tumblr a series of images about how the acts will be divided in this second season, and that gave me some clues about how Vi’s arc might unfold. Since they're focusing a lot on her, it's the "easiest" to deduce, but I have some guesses about other characters as well.

The image (not sure if it's official ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯) is this one:

HERE WE GO!

Act 1: It would pick up immediately after the final events of the first season. Vi immediately finds herself "forced" to join Caitlyn and the Enforcers. It’s a natural progression for the character, considering what happened. Vi values herself as someone who protects those she loves. She always has been this way, so when she feels like she failed Jinx, she moves on to protect Cait. I believe, for her, it’s also a way to protect Zaun, which must fall into chaos with the power vacuum left by Silco. In this act we’d see Vi and Caitlyn grow even closer, but with so many close calls that we would die a little, because neither of them is exactly what the other needs. Both Caitlyn and Vi, in the inside, are actualy drifting away from what they initially liked in each other. Yes, it’s going to be quite painful to watch, but hey! It’s going to get worse :)

I believe the end of this act will be a confrontation between Jinx and Vi. And here, my friends, we see the downfall, because I still believe Vi won’t be able to finish off Jinx, and this will be a double failure in Vi’s "protector" nature. This will lead her to distance herself from Cait and the Enforcers, but by this point, Vi has nowhere to return to, because Zaun no longer accepts her. She has become a traitor, remember? Enter Dark Vi! At the end of this act, there will be ANOTHER breakup between Vi and Cait (without them even having started dating yet! These lesbians) and this will also push Cait to take more drastic actions, alongside Mel’s mother.

Act 2: It would start with Vi at her lowest point (I’m not looking at her arms, you are!) I believe this is also when Jinx becomes a symbol of resistance, as a response to the increasing pressure applied by Caitlyn and Medarda. As things get politically terrible, Vi continues to lose her sense of self. That’s why she drinks so much and why the ex-enforcer takes her to those underground fights. She keeps hallucinating about Caitlyn because, again, she feels like she’s failed. She couldn’t help Caitlyn because she couldn’t stop protecting Jinx. For her, this whole situation is lose-lose. Seeing Caitlyn drift further from who she truly is also deeply affects Vi.

I’ve always admired Caitlyn’s character for her rationality and compassion. She’s smart, determined, focused, but sweet (like a Cupcake). Seeing someone you care about lose that side of themselves because of your own sister… Yeah, I’d be drinking too. This would explain why Vi hallucinates about the Caitlyn from the first season. At the same time, with Jinx being exalted as a symbol, Vi sees exactly what she’s lost: the sister who was supposed to grow up and help Zaun. Everyone viewing Jinx this way, when she definitely ISN’T like that anymore, is like rubbing salt in the wound.

I believe Vi’s downfall will take up an entire episode. Two things could happen to end Dark Vi. Jinx, as we see her watching the fights and even betting on Vi. (Same Symbol)

Yep, in the new images, Vi isn’t hallucinating about Jinx, only about Cait. Jinx is going to watch Vi spiraling and I think she’s going to HATE it. I do believe Jinx has changed, but I think she still prefers to see Vi distant but doing okay, rather than close and falling apart. I think this would be an interesting trait for Jinx. Now, throwing in a wild guess: I think Jinx herself is going to seek out Caitlyn. Cait, by the way, is likely spiraling too, but unlike Vi, she has other ways to self-destruct (work).

So, my theory for the end of Act 2 is that Jinx is going to show Cait the state Vi’s in and say, “Look at this disaster lesbian!” This will lead to a really sweet moment where Cait finally reconnects with her compassionate side—caring about others' pain, not just her own (get ready to cry here. If this really happens, I want ALL of it! From tending to Vi’s wounds and alcoholism to a heart-wrenching confession in the middle).

HOWEVER, I don’t think Cait’s return will be the only catalyst. Here’s where the battle with Warwick comes in! Wouldn’t it be tragic if Vander, once again, is responsible for making Vi rediscover her value as the protector of those she loves? Because I think that’s exactly what’s going to happen—fighting this version of Vander will be the final nail in the coffin for Dark Vi. Oh, Vander, helping Vi even now.

Act 3: We’ll finally have Vi and Cait on the same page (you know that sex scene? Probably here, and I think it’s going to lean more towards sweet than sexy. Something tasteful, definitely).

Vi will be an Enforcer, but not to hunt Jinx—rather, to help Zaun and protect everyone, including Piltover, from Empress Medarda’s grip. After all, with Cait no longer obsessed with taking down Jinx, Medarda’s influence over Caitlyn will come to an end. The only leverage Medarda has over Cait is her anger, and when that’s no longer in play, Cait’s rational side kicks back in. She’ll realize that for Medarda, it was never about justice—it was about Hextech. This realization will be what unites everyone: Zaun and Piltover will come together, fighting against Medarda.

Oil and Walter.

As for Cait, there are definitely some missing pieces. Just as Vi has Warwick, Cait is going to have something beyond Jinx/Vi. But since there’s so little information about the other characters, it’s hard to say who. There’s bound to be something more than just the power of love. What’s important is that during the third act, we’ll already have Cait and Vi as Piltover’s Finest! In those perfect black uniforms.

Well, that's basically it! See you in November, when Arcane becomes my entire personality!

[vizthedatum]

reflections on my polyamory

I feel so much lighter about my polyamory practice after so much reflection this year.

I didn't date that much this year - my only major relationship was with my ex-girlfriend (who is one of my best friends, and I love her so dearly. I am so thankful for her to be in my life).

I went on a couple of sporadic dates, made some really awesome friends, blocked some people who weren't good for me, was broken up after three dates with someone over the summer, and generally AGONIZED about finding someone. (I also agonized over not being able to get over someone from the past and was angry at my ex-spouse. (I think the anger has been good for me!)))

It's not that I'm not lonely anymore - I am. But I'm releasing (slowly) that pull to be with someone just for the sake of thinking that's where I should be right now.

I value connection and natural alignment more than brute-forcing myself into some sort of relationship. I want it all to happen way more naturally, and I no longer want to be afraid of how I feel. I want to tell people how I feel and see if we can work out something. I want to ask, "Hey, do you want to do something with me? A partnership? Being lovers? Friends? Something else we can both define? Or should we part ways because you don't feel the same way or don't want to make a commitment?"

I want to tell people I love them without fear, and I'm getting SO MUCH better at that.

--

I started dating someone new recently (only one date, a second date planned, and already a bunch of good conversations).

And... I realized:

I like this person very initially, but I don't want to force myself or them to fit into a relationship mold of any kind. It may not work out. It may be an amazing friendship. It could be something else! It's nice to not know... and just communicate enthusiastically.

It's not that I don't want definition in my relationships - I do. With time. With the evolving communication.

I feel secure with our conversation and admire their maturity - I already don't feel like I need to second-guess myself when I tell them stuff (and I hope that continues!)

I think I have fundamentally changed how I behave, to be honest - I ask for a lot of clarity, and I will continue to do so.

--

I feel more at peace with just enjoying and loving people as long as they're in my life. Yes, breaks or deviations from my expectations will still emotionally affect me, but they will not completely devastate me to the point of non-functioning. I don't think I could have said that before.

Even with my last friend-breakup, yes, I was so so hurt. I did say I was "devastated," but I wasn't non-functional. I wasn't ruminating constantly over it. And I understood that I didn't have or want control over how that ended up evolving. I have way too much respect for him, and I have way too much respect for myself.

My polyamory, as I've been saying really confidently all year, includes friendships (I think it always has... and when I've brought this up to people in the past, some people were like "well, I don't consent to being part of your polycule" and to that, I say: You don't have to be part of a polycule if you don't want to be - it's about your impact on me, our chosen responsibilities to each other, and our connection (in the group of connections of whoever we choose to interact with)... it's just how I define my love, energy, and commitment).

Defining my energy and commitment... helps me not burn out. I LOVE BEING IN CONNECTION WITH PEOPLE, but I cannot lose the connection with myself again.

And I also don't want to be connected with people who seek to control me in a relationship. I don't want there to be cheating within a relationship (and I think the "cheating" conversation should be had with people - it can include *personal* boundaries, but I do not think it should limit what people do, because if it does, then maybe the relationship should be scrutinized more - maybe it needs to be redefined.)

I still have feelings, obviously. I am my own person, and things affect me the way they affect me based on my unique life experience! If I have a partner I feel hurt by, I will tell them that, even if they didn't have that intention. If I think that someone is non-commital or isn't contributing to the relationship the way I need them to, I will talk to them about it (and we'll go from there).

My brand of polyamory isn't about shirking from responsibility. It's also about being true to myself. I don't want to hurt someone; if I am, I need to figure out how to repair that relationship with that person OR LEAVE. If someone repeatedly hurts me without any change, efforts to repair, or acknowledgment, then I need to leave.

And yeah... I think I still do want to nest with someone or someones from time to time. And I still want kids.

But I can have meaningful relationships (whether or not they include platonic, romantic, sexual, etc. elements), whether or not they include nesting or co-parenting, and I didn't think I could before.

[imagine-a-life-like-this]

Step 3 : Don't Spend Time Alone (L.MH)

Word Count : 4.5k

Warnings : swearing, food mention, brief mention of alcohol, mention of a breakup, y/n is an idiot

She stared at the table set for two in front of her, Minho’s words slowly processing in her mind. The candle burned slowly, the ice in the bucket holding the champagne began to melt, but they both just stood staring at each other.

            After months of her inviting other people to all the plans he made for just them two, he finally had her alone. He had to trick her, lie to her, to get her here alone, but he knew it would be worth it. He knew she would forgive him once she realized what this was.

            She had tried so hard not to feel the feelings bubbling in her chest. Tried to avoid the inevitable fall. Tried to change the trajectory of her life, of where her heart would land. Hoping that avoiding being with him alone would help her heart remember that he was her best friend, nothing more.

            But his affection still came in the form of gentle touches and heartfelt compliments whispered in her ear. Smiles meant just for her, his eyes following her every move. It gave her hope, hope she would crush with her own insecurities.

            She tried to brush it off as the heartbreak she was feeling in the form of a break up she never saw coming.

            “He broke up with me.” Her voice was tired and broken. Minho immediately took her into his arms, holding her as close as he could, telling her to let it all out. Whispering soft reminders to breathe when he could tell it was becoming too much. In between sobs, she explained what happened in broken sentences only Minho would understand. “No reason. Just bye.”

            Minho had trusted Seonghwa, befriended Seonghwa. He had introduced Seonghwa to his best friend, played wingman. He was in love with her, but he still set her up with someone else. Someone he trusted to care for her, to keep her heart safe. And now here she was, almost two years later, sobbing in his arms.

            Seonghwa had been acting off, he remembered her mentioning a week previous. But Minho chalked it up to him getting ready to propose, Seonghwa asking for his help in picking out the perfect ring.

            He had waited for the excited phone call from his best friend, the millions of pictures of the ring, but it never came. An apology text from Seonghwa came seconds before she burst into his apartment, leading them to where they are now; standing near the door, holding each other as if the other would disappear once they let go.

            He wondered what had Seonghwa changing his mind so drastically. From wanting to spend the rest of his life with her, to not wanting to be with her at all. But a part of him was happy. Not at the sight of his best friend’s tears, or the sound of her choked sobs and incoherent sentences. But at the second chance he was gifted.

            “Are we just going to stare at each other all night, or are we actually going to eat?” Minho had broken the silence, teasing her just like he always did. As if nothing had changed, as if fancy candlelit dinners were apart of their everyday life. “I know that I’m handsome, but I really am hungry.”

            She had to be going insane. Hallucinating or dreaming, she wasn’t sure. But this couldn’t be real. She spent so long avoiding this, finding comfort in their other friends, inviting them to every single outing she had with Minho. And still, she ends up alone with him, romance surrounding them, drowning them, suffocating her with the scent of the candle. And she dread the moment this would all be taken away with his words of friendship.

            “Please come with us!” She pleaded with Felix, giving him her best puppy dog eyes, hoping he was similar to Minho in the way he couldn’t say no when she pouted. Minho had planned a trip to Lotte World for the two of them, and she had quickly agreed to it, but as the day inched closer, she began to regret ever saying yes.

            He was her best friend, had been for as long as she could remember. Their childhood was spent attached to each other’s hip, barely seen without each other. They slowly drifted apart as they got older, but never for too long. New friends, new interests, significant others. They had been through it all together, life was ever changing, but the one constant was each other.

            That’s why when she realized her heart beat a little faster around Minho, realized she dressed a little better when they were hanging out, realizing she wanted him to see her in a different light, she tried to do everything she could to stop it. Minho was her lifelong friend, someone that has been by her side longer than anyone else and losing him would be like losing apart of herself.

            “I’m pretty sure he meant for the trip to just be the two of you, Y/n.” Felix sighed, removing her hands from his arms. He knew why she was acting like this, desperately trying not to spend time with Minho alone, but he also knew that Minho would get fed up quite quickly if their plans were always changed to group outings.

            “But who could say no to a group trip to Lotte World?!” It was hard to say no to Y/n, that was one thing al the boys quickly learned. They would tease Minho for giving into her so easily, but they all did it too. She made good points to bring you to her side, would look up at you with these eyes that just screamed adorable, and it had all eight of them giving in every single time.

            “You know he’s going to get fed up one of these days.”

            “He won’t. He loves hanging out with his friends.” Felix had wondered how she could be so blind to Minho’s feelings. He gave her the benefit of the doubt at first, seeing how smitten she was with her now ex boyfriend, but Seonghwa wasn’t around anymore. And Minho was still just as obvious.

            “Fine. But this is the last time. You’re going to have to talk to him eventually.” They both knew it wasn’t the last time. She asks them to jump, they all ask how high.

~

            “I figured a group trip would be more fun!” She exclaimed when their other friends met them at the entrance. The boys could see the clear disappointment on Minho’s face, but he just smile at her.

            “I was actually thinking about that. The more the merrier and all that.” Jisung had to hold back a laugh at the sad attempt Minho had made to make it seem like this is what he wanted the whole time. Hyunjin had quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, telling him to be quiet as they nine of them headed in.

            “We’ll try to sneak off and give you two some alone time.” Chan whispered into Minho’s ear, but Minho just shook his head.

            “If she wanted to be with me, she wouldn’t have invited you all out. So don’t worry about it.” Minho had the entire day planned. What ride to go on when, what food to get, taking pictures in matching headbands, and finally a confession.

            He stuffed his hands into his pockets, his fingers coming into contact with the rectangular box he was going to use for his confession. The necklace he had bought so long ago, the one that reminded him of her every single time he looked at it, lay inside, not to see the light of day. Again. Minho would just mark this as another failed confession.

            That same necklace was hidden away in its box that sat on the table. He had been trying for months to confess to her, planning elaborate dates he knew she always wanted to go on. Date ideas he had given Seonghwa while the two were together, but he had not used one.

            Lotte World, picnics, aquariums. He even took her on a weekend road trip and took her on a hike where they found a secluded waterfall. It would have been absolutely perfect had it not been for Changbin and Hyunjin tagging along. They took a separate car, leaving Minho alone with her for the drive, but she had spent the drive on facetime with Hyunjin so no one would miss out on anything.

            “There aren’t enough chairs for everyone.” She finally spoke, her voice a lot softer than she had intended. Minho would find her obliviousness annoying if she wasn’t so cute.

            “No one else is coming.” He admitted. “Please just sit down so we can eat. I worked really hard on this.” This was his final attempt. One last try before he gave up. A homecooked meal surrounded with romance. A candle lit in the center of the table, flower petals leading from the doorway to the table. He had debated adding a heart in flower petals on the floor around the table, but he thought that was too much, but now he’s thinking it might have been the one piece missing.

            “But you said-“

            “I lied! I lied so you wouldn’t invite them so I could finally get you alone. Don’t get me wrong, I adore our friends, but it’s been months since I’ve had you to myself and honestly, I’m going insane.” He took a deep breath before he continued. “If you don’t like me, just say that! You don’t need to invite our friends to all our outings as a way to soften the blow. I’m a big boy, I can handle rejection.”

            “What?” Minho looked up at her, his eyes softening when he saw the confusion in her eyes.

            “I’m in love with you and I’ve been trying to tell you for months.” She was stunned, her mouth going dry. She was sure now that this was a dream, convinced that this wasn’t happening, she wasn’t this lucky.

            “What?” Minho chuckled, shaking his head. She’s so cute, he thought to himself. How could one person be so cute?

            “I kept asking you out, but the group of dumbasses kept showing up.” He loved his friends, he did, and they knew he did, but they also knew Y/n wasn’t just a friend. She wasn’t just a best friend to him, and they knew he had been trying to tell her, but she’s so convincing when she wants to be.

            “So Lotte World-“

            “A date.”

            “The aquarium?”

            Minho was pacing at the entrance, his fingers fiddling with the box inside his pocket. He was going over what he was going to say in his mind, the words he wanted to say, the feelings he wanted to convey. And when he saw her approaching him, wearing a simple sundress, the most beautiful smile on her face, everything fell into place.

            He knew exactly what he was going to say, the words coming to him like the lyrics of his favourite song. In the tunnel, he was going to grab her hands, tell her everything he’s held back. The love he masked with friendship. “You look beautiful.” He was awestruck as he took in all of her.

            “Well thanks Minho. You don’t look too shabby yourself.” Record scratch. Glass shattering. He turned to see Jisung standing beside Y/n, a teasing smile on his face. Beside Jisung was Seungmin who looked like he was dragged here against his will.

            “I was with Jisung and Seungmin earlier so I figured I’d invite them. That’s okay with you, right?” She was in fact not with Jisung or Seungmin earlier that day. She had called Seungmin in a panic, talking a millions words a second as she went over thousands of excuses to cancel. Seungmin was with Jisung and they agreed to go with her if it made her feel more comfortable, despite both of them knowing Minho’s well thought out plan.

            Minho would just have to try again. “Of course.”

            “Date.”

            “All the picnics?”

            It almost became a tradition with how often he invited her out for a picnic on the nicest day of the week. The other ideas were draining his wallet, not that he minded. He would spend his last cent on her if it meant finally getting out of this limbo of friendship and relationship.

            The others kept showing up, having been invited each time by Y/n herself. But he thought that since they were popular spots of friends as well as couples she figured it was meant to be another group hang out. But picnics? Those were romantic. They screamed date. And yet, the others would still show up.

            But he kept trying, hoping she would get the hint. The way he only asked her, insinuating that it would be just the two of them. The way each picnic was filled with only her favourite foods, enough for only two.

            This would be the time, he thought to himself. She will show up alone and see how romantically he had set up this picnic, and he will finally confess, placing the necklace he’s been carrying around for months around her neck, where it belonged.

            He double checked the set up as it neared the time she was meant to show up. The blanket laid out under a tree, the basket in the center showcasing all her favourites. He splurged this time, buying her favourite cake on his way. And the necklace was in his sweater pocket that he only brought to let her wear when the slight breeze made her shiver. He would let her find the necklace herself and when she did, he would confess.

            It was perfect, he thought. Straight out of a romance novel, one that she read from time to time, swooning at how sweet the main character is to the girl. How she wished someone would go to the efforts he did for her. Today she would finally see that Minho would. He would do anything to make her happy.

            But then he heard the familiar laughter of the maknae and his heart sank. Was she actually this oblivious or was she trying to reject him? He would have to try again.

            “Dates.” He chuckled.

            “The road trip?”

            He had the entire weekend planned, knew exactly where to go after spending week after week looking for the perfect place when he finally stumbled upon a hiking trail leading to a secluded waterfall. Almost as if it was straight out of a fairytale. It would be the perfect place to confess.

            He waited outside her apartment in his car, smiling to himself as he thought of the fact that he finally had her to himself. All it took was a road trip to a destination only he knew, though she didn’t have to know it wasn’t spontaneous.

            When the door opened and he saw her struggling with her bags, he jumped into action, exiting the car, and rushing to her side. “We’re only leaving for the weekend, how much did you pack?” He teased, taking all the bags from her.

            “A lot can happen in one weekend, Minho.” She explained before sticking her tongue out at him. He knew a lot could happen, a lot could change. And he was hoping it would. Hoping they’d leave as friends but return as a couple.

            “Yeah.” He agreed with a small smile. A smile that quickly disappeared when a car pulled up behind his, two familiar faces greeting him as they stepped out.

            “Looks like we’re just on time.” Changin said at the same time Hyunjin spoke.

            “Did you pack your entire apartment?”

            “A lot can happen in one weekend, Hyunjin!” She called back, sticking her tongue out just as she did with Minho minutes previous. He truly was just a friend to her, he noticed. She didn’t treat him any differently than the others, and that hurt just a little.

            But he remembered that she treated Seonghwa as a friend despite harboring romantic feelings for him, hoping he wouldn’t catch on. Remembered she was just as oblivious to Seonghwa’s feelings as she was to his own. And it’s what kept him going.

            “Follow close so you don’t get lost.” Minho said as he closed the trunk after placing her bags with his. “Would be such a shame if you were to get lost.” Changbin and Hyunjin could hear the sarcasm, hear the way he emphasized the get lost, but Y/n was clueless, smiling as she got into the passenger seat of Minho’s car.

~

            They had been driving for hours, sunset was closing in, and Minho was getting more and more annoyed at the two boys trailing them. Changbin had really meant to get lost on purpose, taking a wrong turn, or missing a turn, giving Minho the alone time he so desired, but Y/n and Hyunjin were on facetime together, and every time Changbin would fuck up the directions, Y/n would make Minho pull over as she directed them to their location.

            Eventually they pulled into a parking lot for a motel, all agreeing it was time for a rest. Minho knew the trail was walking distance from this motel. He still had a chance to see the waterfall with her, confess to her, but he’d have to be sneaky about it.

            “I saw a hiking trail not too far back. We should walk it in the morning.” Changbin mentioned as they walked to the office. Minho just sighed as Y/n agreed with a smile, and Changbin could tell he fucked up by the defeated look on Minho’s face.

            “We should probably get two rooms.” Hyunjin said. “I’ll room with Changbin since I’m riding with him.” Maybe it wasn’t the romantic waterfall Minho wanted to confess by, but he’s sure he could figure something out and confess before morning. He had the necklace, which was the most important part of his confession.

            “I’ll talk to Hyunjin, and we can pretend to sleep in so you can take Y/n on the trail just the two of you.” Changbin whispered to Minho. But Minho shook his head, telling him it was fine. She would find a way to get the two to join them regardless, either by waking them up herself, or convincing Minho to wait for them. “You know it doesn’t have to be special, right? She’ll love it no matter what.”

            He’s right. Minho knows that he’s right. Knows that he could just spring it on her in the moment, speaking from the heart without stopping, and she would find that just as romantic as all his failed plans. But he wanted it to be a moment to remember. Something they’ll look back on years from now, a story to tell their kids. If she accepts. That wasn't guaranteed, but Minho was hopeful.

            “We should probably sleep early so we can be well rested for the hike tomorrow.” Y/n smiled as her and Minho entered their room. “I’ll take the couch.”

            “Y/n, we’ve shared beds before. Just sleep in the bed with me.” Before. Before she felt butterflies when he looked at her a little too long. Before she felt her heart speed up every time she was with him. Before she realized that the reason Seonghwa had broken up with her was because he knew she could never love him the way she loved Minho.

            But she agreed nonetheless, not wanting to explain to Minho that the thought of sharing a bed with him made her nervous. How was she to explain that all she wanted was to curl into him and kiss him goodnight before falling into dreamland?

~

            The next morning came quicker than Minho would have liked. Sometime within the night, Y/n had wrapped herself around him, her head in his chest, one of her legs draped across his body, and her hands pressed against his body. He was woken up by this action, his heart speeding up as he wrapped his arms around her, holding her as close as he could.

            And he wanted to stay like that a little longer. Wanted to feel her this close for as long as he could, scared it would be the last time he could hold her. But she had woken up, apologized for being so close, and rushed into the bathroom.

            Her heart was pounding so hard she had to splash cold water on her face just to calm down. She didn’t allow herself to think about how it was the best sleep she’s had in years. Or that Minho was already awake by the time she woke up, running his fingers through her hair as he studied her. If she thought too much about it, she’d delude herself into thinking that Minho was in love with her. And that would just break her heart.

~

            “Okay listen. There’s a waterfall at the end of this trail that I want to confess to her at. So I’m going to need you two to fall behind and take your fucking time.”

            “You got it, boss.”

            “Okay I got water for everyone. Remember to stay hydrated. It’s supposed to be a hot one today.” Y/n said as she handed a bottle to everyone. Minho smiled as he looked at her, Changbin and Hyunjin exchanged looks as they saw the complete 180 Minho did, and they just hoped his plan would work so the pining would stop.

~

            “We should wait for them to catch up.” Y/n said as they neared the end of the trail. They were so close yet so far, Minho thought to himself. Just a little further.

            “We can wait for them at the end. No point waiting here when they’ll just fall behind again.” She looked up at him before looking behind them, still not seeing either of the boys, so she agreed.

            Changbin and Hyunjin were hidden behind a tree as they waited for the two of them to continue ahead. They knew the end was close, so they agreed to just wait behind this tree for at least fifteen minutes before slowly making their way to the end, hoping that would leave Minho enough time to say his long awaited confession.

            “Why is he trying so hard anyway?” Hyunjin asked.

            “Because it’s Y/n.”

~

            “It’s so pretty!” Y/n exclaimed once they made it to the end. “Definitely worth the hike.” Minho looked at her, watching the way she stared at the waterfall, a wide smile on her face, eyes flitting across the view that had Minho thinking of her when he first saw it.

            “Breathtaking.” He whispered, his eyes not moving from her. She was his prettiest view after all. “Y/n, I have to tell you something.” She turned to face him, reassuring him he could tell her anything when she noticed he was nervous. His hand wrapped around the box in his pocket as he took a deep breath. “You know you’re my best friend but-“

            “Whew what a view!” Changbin exclaimed as him and Hyunjin approached the couple. And he knew immediately they fucked up by the look on Minho’s face. “We’re tired though, so we’re going to head back first.”

            “Let’s all head back. I’m getting hungry anyway.” Y/n said, glancing over to Minho. “You’re my best friend too, Min.” She told him softly before joining Hyunjin and Changbin, the latter of which gave Minho an apologetic look.

            “I’ll do it eventually.” Minho reassured Changbin with a clap on his back, and the four of them headed back down the trail, talking about what they should do for lunch.

            “I was going to confess at the waterfall.” Y/n’s face went red as she thought back on the past few months, all the plans Minho made with her that she invited other people on, not realizing he had been trying to ask her out this entire time. Too focused on trying not to let him realize her feelings, hiding them until she could get over them. “I figured the only way to get you alone was to lie to you.” He chuckled.

            She remembered the way he asked her to dinner the other day. Don’t worry, I already invited the boys. He had quickly added with a smirk on his face. It was telling now that she looked back at it. “I’m an idiot.” She giggled to herself, finally taking the seat across from Minho. “I’m in love with you too, by the way.”

            “Well that’s a relief. Otherwise this would have been a waste of money.” He slid the box containing the necklace over to her, watching as she hesitantly grabbed it and opened it. Her eyes widened as she realized what it was, tears welling up in her eyes at the memories this very necklace held.

            “What the fuck, Minho. Where did you find this?” When they were younger, still in elementary and clueless to what love was, Minho had gifted her a necklace. It was homemade with beads he made his mom get under the impression it was for a school project, but she quickly came to the realization that her son had a crush when she saw him diligently place the beads on the string.

            He picked out each bead, laying them next to the string so he could make changes if need be. It needed to be perfect, convey the feelings even he was confused by. He knew she would love it no matter what, she was a sucker for homemade gifts, but he wanted her to proudly wear it for years to come.

            And she did. Wore it everyday until it snapped in middle school, leaving her a sobbing mess as she tried to pick up all the beads as Minho consoled her, telling her it was fine, it was just a silly necklace he made for her years ago.

            “I had it custom made.” He answered. “I remember how upset you were when the one I made you broke. But this one is gold and should last forever.”

            “Put it on me?” She asked, and Minho happily obliged, standing from his seat, and carefully clasping the necklace on her neck. It was finally where it belonged after months of being hidden away.

            “You know I almost went out and bought beads to make you a new one the day it broke.” Minho confessed as he sat back down. “You just seemed so heartbroken when it broke and I wanted to make you happy again.”

            “You make it sound like you’ve been in love with me since then.” She giggled.

            “Because I have been.” He answered simply. “I didn’t know it then because I was a stupid boy, but looking back, I think I loved you the whole time.”

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[buccini555]

☆ . 𝐀𝐛𝐲𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 – 𝐊𝐚𝐤𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐨 𝐇𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐨 ♱𝆬

≡ 𝑺𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒚... After receiving threats from a member of a rival gang, for fear of someone ending up hurting you Kakucho ended up ending your relationship even though he continued to love you secretly, he hid the real reason for the breakup because he felt guilty about putting you in danger, so Kakucho preferred to just keep the lie that his feelings for you disappeare

♱𝆬 I m a g i n e s !

♱𝆬 𝑭𝒕. Kakucho Hitto and special participation by Izana Kurokawa

"I can't cry, I can't, I won't be able to abandon her like... like this... But this life I chose will never be good for the only one I love..." Before walking through the door, that was all he could think about, the guilt, or the pain of having to walk away from the only person he could love was hurting at him in the cruelest way possible, When he finally worked up the courage, Kakucho unlocked the door and the creaking of wood announced that he had arrived home, as soon as he saw you running to hug him, Kakucho just remained without reaction, unlike the affectionate way in which he always treated you.

"Baby! I was waiting for you, I'm so happy when you come home, I missed you so much!" Hugging him, your excitement was not left aside, you only realized that there was something wrong when the taller one pushed you away, disengaging himself from your love and affection .

"M-my princess, we have to talk, preferably right now." In a few words, he said, holding your hand, Kakucho's eyes continued to have the same shine, despite that, his words never seemed so discouraged, he definitely didn't seem the same, seeming to be controlling himself from being affectionate.

"Okay, let's talk, but first, come in, you must be tired, my love." He didn't even want to go in, that attitude definitely made you find Kakucho's behavior weird and you realized the matter was serious and probably wouldn't be something you wanted to hear.

"Baby, I-", he paused his speech with a sigh, "(name♡), I'm right here, please just listen to me." Upon hearing his speech, you remained silent, your heart was racing and some kind of anxiety took over you.

"My love, I-I'm so sorry, I hope you forgive me, my princess..." Not holding back, Kakucho hugged you again.

"I don't understand you, baby, what's wrong?" You replied, confused by so many apologies.

"Everything between us... our relationship... It ends here."

Silence took over that environment and all you could feel was your heart being shattered like glass that breaks in a fall, your eyes brimming with tears in an almost uncontrollable cry, without even understanding a reason or thinking about something.

"Why? N-no, don't do this, don't leave me alone, Kakucho, please." That was all you could say, questioning him and your why you and him were ending up in that unexpected way, you just wanted to make him stay, no matter what.

"Don't cry for me, I never wanted to see tears in those beautiful eyes, I don't deserve your love, you may not understand, but you can't live the life I live, princess..." Seeing your condition, Kakucho still remained there trying to comfort you, even if the reason for all your suffering at that moment was him. "You don't deserve this, my love, you never deserved someone like me... I'm so sorry again and again!" Kakucho honestly couldn't bear to see you in so much pain, even more so because he was leaving you against your own will.

"T-tell me, tell me the reason for all this, Kakucho? Please, why can't we be together anymore? Tell me!" While you were still crying, you begged to just know the reason for such a breakup, Kakucho couldn't even look at you anymore, seeming to feel guilty about what he was doing.

"...P-please, please let's get this over! I'm leaving..." The taller one turned to the door, wanting to get out of that place as soon as possible, hiding the tears that fell down his face, Kakucho said with a trembling voice, as did his hands, which trembled as he opened the doorknob to leave and this time do not return. "You were my dream come true, the love of my life..." He said Whispering, there was no pain worse than leaving the one you love behind.

"Tell me the reason, please, Kakucho." Hugging him from behind, you questioned him one last time, the exhaustion in his voice was noticeable, assimilating that was almost impossible. "What did I do wrong? Where was... Where did I go wrong?"

He remained silent, thinking about what to say, trying not to hurt your feelings even more.

"I just don't love you anymore..." In a low tone of voice, Kakucho answered the question that bothered you so much, in the midst of a hidden cry, he said what hurt you the most, you would never imagine that Kakucho would ever simply I would stop loving you after promise that he would marry you someday. "Everything has cooled down, my love" for you... It's over, you know?"

"Y-you don't love me anymore?" Releasing it in disbelief, you asked again, a pain took over your chest, making all the butterflies that previously lived in your stomach die tragically, you still couldn't and didn't want to believe that Kakucho was really being sincere in his words. "What the fuck are you saying? Do not lie to me!" you shouted, irritated by it all.

"No, I don't love you anymore! Is that what you fucking want to hear?" Opening the door, Kakucho said out loud, still trying to hide how much he was suffering from having to say those words to you, he noticed your silence, realizing that at that moment he had already lost you, even so, when he turned around again and looked into your eyes, realized that deep down your eyes begged him to stay by your side, for a moment, Kakucho thought about letting go of all that, gangs, crimes, confusion, but he simply couldn't, that was his life, the way in which he lived, giving up his greatest love was the greatest proof of love he could do, since he cared about you more than anyone else.

"Don't go, Kakucho, don't go away, I know you're hiding something from me... I-I can see the truth in you." Again, you spoke again, but Kakucho just seemed to ignore you.

"I'm so sorry to leave you alone." Turning his back and finally leaving through that door, his last speech was made. "Goodbye, be happy, that's all I wanted to do but I failed."

"I love you, please..." Sitting behind the door, you fall into tears, not understanding the reasons of the one you loved most in the world, remaining in denial for a long time, still nurturing the hope of Kakucho walking through that damn door again and tell you how much I loved you. "He won't come back... He won't..."

Every day after that damn day, he suffered the consequences of your absence and felt the pain of missing you, missing you was almost like torture, but, Kakucho was relieved to know that you were safe, and in fact, hoped you would be happy, even without him.

After some time, you ended up discovering the real reason for the breakup, Izana told you as soon as he found out, he couldn't stand seeing Kakucho depressed anymore so he did an investigation, Kakucho was being threatened the whole time and he just wanted to protect you, at that moment, all the hurt you felt disappears, going after Kakucho at the same moment.

"You just wanted to protect me, I know that." As soon as you walked through the door of one of the hiding places you knew Kakucho would be in, you said without hesitation.

"H-how did you find me? Baby, this is no place for you, I-" You interrupted him with a long, tight hug. "I know you were scared of someone hurting me... I'm not scared!" As soon as he heard you, Kakucho returned the hug.

"Izana told you that, didn't he? My sweet girl, I was a coward... But know that all of this was fear of losing you!" Again through tears, he said, apologizing for all that. "F-forgive me... Forgive me! I never wanted to be separated from you."

"I-I t's okay, don't cry, baby." You have definitely forgiven him, mistakes are made, but you know how much he loves you. "We're together now, we are together!"

"I love you so much..." Kakucho said, holding your face and kissing you, a slow kiss filled with love.

"Can you guys stop kissing in front of me?" Izana said, looking at you and Kakucho with pride in his eyes.

[eighthday]

Review first season "Vigil"

I can't get rid of some thoughts when watching season one. Ep 1. Let's continue that what is shown to us on the screen has a second bottom. I know how the story ends, so I can rethink its beginning a little. When Amy runs away, is it not only a system of physical and mental support, but also a way to get away from problems? She has all the time in the world for reconciliation, but she is busy with the usual. Her work brings her back to reality. She needs an event that will stop her usual course of action.

It seems that the boss knows something about the two of them. Just look at his upset look)

And then Amy shows hope, fear, and uncertainty for a few seconds. And it's so layered. I hope none of the pens were damaged during the filming of these seconds)

I'd like to see Kirsten's reaction when the boss hands over Amy's request. Pain? Anger? Hope? Definitely love. For her, it's not only a duty, but also a desire to help and protect, so when Kirsten asks to give up the assignment, he still cares about Amy. She saw different sides of Amy. And she didn't refuse, harboring feelings for Amy months after the breakup.

I won't say that Amy is a bad hostess for Cat, but what would have happened if Kirsten hadn't agreed to stay in Amy's apartment? I'm worried about cat) And we find out that this is not the first time Kirsten has stayed like this with a cat. It's happened before.

They went somewhere together, they were somewhere, maybe someone knows about them, or it's just a reference to colleagues. They just didn't show us.

How good is this scene. Looking around, they look at each other. They look at each other as equals. After a stressful trip, Kirsten says something that can be interpreted ambiguously. This is a phrase not only for Amy's assignment, but also to describe their relationship. And maybe that's all for Amy to try.

Kirsten says "not now", but not later. Kirsten knows how to wait. Let's skip the moment when Amy is wearing a red suit, when she begins her journey deep into not only the depths of the sea, but also herself, and Kirsten has a green color that goes so well with red hair. It doesn't remind me of anything, I swear)

(Added)

Diving into the past begins not only for Amy, but also for Kirsten. Even the color palette of the scene is painted blue. Blue is the color of loss, loss, grief and loneliness. For Kirsten, this is a chance to reevaluate what happened, go through this path again and maybe come to another exit. Because blue is also wisdom, trust and loyalty. For me, their memories that will be shown to us work for the two of them. One lives this past when he writes, the other remembers when he reads, and vice versa. The life and investigation of one and the other depend on each other, on their common past, trust and attention to each other. And it's also interesting that Kirsten came home to Amy without a bag. Either she gets it out of the car after she looks around the house, or she left some things with Amy after they broke up.

We see the past coming back. And this past affects not only mental health, but also the course of the investigation. I like the idea that Amy's return to life is about creating a common language with Kirsten. Jokes, music, books, tea on the roof, cat, morse code and much more. And this is what will help her cope, only in the first episode she doesn't know about it yet)

Amy's knees are on Kristen's legs, and Kirsten is holding Amy's ankle.❤️ _____________________

English is not my first language, so any mistakes are mine) I love Amy and Kirsten and I'm looking forward to the season 2.