#and then i took an hour and a half long nap way too late | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

daengtokki · 1 year ago

Text

𝒮𝑒𝒸𝑜𝓃𝒹 𝒟𝒶𝓉𝑒

Kim Seungmin/Female Reader

wc: 7.1k

rating: Mature, NON-explicit (part 2)

→ PART ONE

Part 2 of 4

The sun is coming through the trees and leaving freckles of light over Seungmin’s face and chest. His eyes are closed, hands propping him up as he leans back and stares up at the sky.

You’ve been meaning to ask the question bouncing around in your head for several minutes, but you can’t stop staring at him like this. You reach out and gently shake his foot until he looks at you.

“Hey, sorry…I didn’t mean to get quiet.”

- Seungmin is tired.

Car rides are his worst enemy if he’s trying to stay awake, especially if he ends up in the backseat. His head keeps swaying side to side. The ride is far too smooth, and he feels like a baby being lulled to sleep.

The car turns left, then right, then right again. He doesn’t need to feel it come to a stop to know he’s home.

As happy as he is to finally be done with traveling—for now, he doesn’t think he has the energy to get himself back on two feet.

He hits his neatly made bed immediately. No unpacking, no snack, no checking text messages. There is zero time between thinking about sleep and passing out; there is only a deep dreamless sleep.

____

It’s dark and warm in his room when he wakes up. His eyes stay closed tight, but he can feel how late it is. He knows he’s been sleeping far too long. Nobody bothered waking him for dinner or checking up on him, because that would have been useless. He doesn’t even mind that he missed the Giants game.

He feels much better now, until he looks down at his phone to check the time. The first problem is it’s already past midnight. The second problem is he has 43 notifications to open.

Seungmin scans over them to see if he missed anything important. Most of them look deletable, but a few he duly notes, and definitely needs to answer in the morning.

He opens the text from Choonhee, though.

Are you here for the long weekend?

He doesn’t mind texting her this late. He sends back a quick response without much thought: “I’m here until Wednesday!

Time to shower and eat.

Seungmin stands in the shower for a good fifteen minutes—clearing his mind, easing the tension he always holds in his shoulders— before finally, somewhere in the back of his memory, the part where he puts things and never ever remembers them…he remembers something.

“Oh…” he cups his face in his hands and scrubs at his cheeks, “shit.”

He takes his time getting out. An extra half an hour accidentally ignoring you isn’t going to make much of a difference now. Hair gets dried; fresh clothes thrown on. He clicks the fan in his bedroom so it pushes the warm air around. The cool night air is at least trying to find it’s way in.

Now he notices how hungry he is. Might as well find something in the kitchen before getting into a conversation. One that goes well, hopefully.

A bowl of oi-muchim, a beer, and his phone in hand, Seungmin makes himself comfortable on the couch. He pulls up Choonhee’s text messages again and hopes she still awake…

“Is it too late to text her? Do you think she’s up?”

He sends it off and tries not to watch his phone for her reply. He clicks the tv on and eats, but before his second bite, his phone goes off.

She won’t mind if it’s you

Seungmin hopes Choonhee’s right. And hopes you’ll still actually want to speak after two months of accidental silence.

Now he puts his food down, drinks some of his beer, and thinks…”what am I supposed to say at one in the morning?” He mumbles it to himself. But he starts typing anyway, letting his thumbs and his heart do the work. If he thinks too much, nothing will ever come out.

“Hey, I’m sorry I’m texting you so late. And also sorry for not getting back to you sooner. I hope you can forgive me. I’m in town for a few days if you’re interested in seeing each other.”

He reads it and rereads it. Then sends it away. It’s the best he can do.

The rest of the night is nothing but a long wait. The nap he took served perfectly as a good nights sleep, so the next few hours are spent catching up on baseball highlights, finishing a drama, and then silently obsessing over whether or not he’ll get a text back while a new show plays out in front of him .

At 7:30, Seungmin’s phone buzzes in his hand. He’s sound asleep, but still holding onto it. It wakes him right away, but it takes a moment before he can remember where he is, and what he’s doing there. Too much sleep makes his head fuzzy, and yesterday and this morning must have been a combined eleven hours.

He looks at the notification and remembers. Only the name on the screen registers in his mind before he unlocks his phone and sits up. He shakes the sleep from his head and rubs his eyes before reading…

I would love to see you

A sigh of relief. You’re not mad. Seungmin’s heartbeat picks up in his chest as he types.

“Tonight? Or today. Any time is good.”

This reply takes a little longer. He gets up to change just in case he has to run out the door to meet you. Your reply comes a few minutes later. Seungmin reads it as he’s jumping into his shorts.

I’m free all day. Do you want to come over for breakfast?

“Come over for breakfast? Are you going to make me breakfast?” he thinks out loud. He’s hoping that’s what you mean.

“I’ll be there in an hour”

____

Your internal alarm hates you. At precisely 7:25, you’re awake. Even on the weekends, you can’t sleep in. It takes a couple of minutes before you can even think about moving, but the warmth in the room and the sun peeking in eventually forces you up. You can only take so much.

Your phone, charging on the nightstand, buzzes softly. Probably an email. It buzzes again. You thought you put it on sleep mode last night, but maybe not. It’s a miracle nothing woke you up. You grab it and unplug it…

Email Spam email Work email you never opened or cleared Instagram

Text from Seungmin

“Seungmin,” you say his name out loud in case you’re still a little bit asleep. Seungmin, who you haven’t had a text from in months; who has probably been very busy and very tired when he isn’t busy, sent you a text at one in the morning.

You open it quickly, butterflies in your stomach, and read. You read it a few times. His texts are always a little longer, never one or two words. And you always read him in his voice. You’ve listened to him singing and speaking enough now that you hear it in your sleep. You don’t have to think much about your reply.

“I would love to see you”

____

There’s little time to pick up the apartment and figure out what you’re going to make for him. You do your best with what little time you have. Shower, hair, makeup…outfit. You probably should have given yourself a little more time. Too late now, he’ll be on his way soon.

It’s been nearly seven months since your blind date, but it doesn’t feel like it’s been that long. The time between his last text and today somehow felt longer. You feel like it’s going to be a first impression all over again, so you really want to give him your best. Maybe even better than last time, now that you know what you’re getting into.

In the kitchen, you start pulling things out to make, and you’re relieved to find you have something to cook for him.

You hope he likes American breakfast. You do know he likes coffee. Just a few days ago a care package came from your parents; coffee, snacks…things you miss from home. You pull out the bag of beans and start grinding.

Minutes later, or at least it feels like minutes, (the full hour, plus 20 extra minutes, has passed) you hear you phone buzz. Before you can get to it, the intercom buzzes. You grab your phone and run to the door.

“Hi I’m here”

You smile at his message and let him into the lobby before texting back, “543.” You’re surprised and a little flattered that he remembered where your building was and was confident enough to come without even confirming.

He sends a smiling emoji in reply.

Your back is against the door, eyes closed. Your picturing him walking to the elevator, pushing the button, waiting…

The elevator here is pretty slow…

He gets on and hits the 5th floor button. It comes straight up without stopping, considering the early hour. Everyone else in this building is definitely sleeping in. He turns right and walks, maybe a little hesitantly, toward your apartment, looks at the number on the door, then at your text.

He knocks gently. Three soft little knocks. You take in a deep breath; you’re more nervous than you thought you’d be. The deadbolt clicks.

When you crack the door he’s smiling down at you. You pull it open the rest of the way and stand there awkwardly for a moment. You feel like one of your eight-year-olds trying to find the right words in English. You stupidly breath out a wow and desperately hope he didn’t hear it

He stands there with one hand in the pocket of his shorts. The other hand is holding a paper bag. He swings it a little as he takes a careful step over your threshold.

“Morning.” You finally manage to say.

“Good morning,” he closes the door behind him, and his smile grows as he moves closer to you.

His face looks a little different. It’s been long enough that you’re thinking his braces have changed his smile, or maybe he’s just gotten older. The spring sun has turned his skin a few shades darker compared to October. His hair is dark and straight across his forehead; different then the last time you saw him. You’ve also gotten used to seeing him only in videos and photos. None of that does him justice. In front of you, he’s better—and you forgot how much better.

“Are you okay?” Seungmin reaches his hand toward you as if he’s going to touch your cheek, but he stops just short of you, and his hand falls slowly.

“Yeah, yeah…sorry,” you set your hand on your face where his hand should have been. “I uhhm,” you still can’t seem to find the right words. So much for a new first impression. Now what?

You put your other hand around his waist and pull yourself to him. You’re relieved when he reciprocates the embrace. He holds onto you for a while, not letting up on his grip.

“I’m sorry I didn’t keep in touch.”

Even though you had plenty of old texts to return to; to re-convince yourself that Seungmin liked you and wanted to see you again, you still needed this physical reassurance. The last two months were a lot more lonely than you care to admit, and part of you was starting to let go.

“It’s okay, I know you’re busy.”

“Still a bad excuse.” He loosens his hold on you, but doesn’t let go completely. The bag he’s holding shakes a little in his hand. “I brought this for you.”

“Another gift? You’re making me look bad.” You slide away from his grip (very reluctantly) and head toward the kitchen.

“Well, you did make me coffee. It smells good.”

Seungmin follows closely behind. The kitchen is a little bit of a mess, but cooking and cleaning at the same time is not one of your strong suits. You grab a few things and toss them in the trash, the sink, the dishwasher. You don’t even realize he’s right behind you until you turn again to grab two clean glasses.

“I can bring you your coffee. It’s a mess in here, you don’t need to see this.”

“Oh I don’t mind. You are definitely a messy cook, though. You should clean as you go!”

“Believe me, I try.” You pour the cooled coffee into a glass over ice. “I hope you like this…have you ever had Kona coffee?”

Seungmin shakes his head and smiles. You briefly wonder if he realizes how cute it is, then you pour some for yourself, “I’m sure you’ll like it.” He takes it from you and follows as you lead him out of the kitchen and into the living room.

You sit. He sits, and sips his coffee, then adjusts so he’s a little closer to you.

“How long have you been in town?” You bring your knees up to your chest and turn your body to him.

“I got in yesterday afternoon, but I fell asleep and woke up very late.”

“Oh, that explains the late text.”

“Yes, hopefully it didn’t wake you. Choonhee told me you wouldn’t mind if I texted you so late.”

“It didn’t wake me up. It was a nice surprise this morning.”

He’s bouncing his legs up and down; knees are moving together, then apart, then together again. A nervous tick, maybe. All you do know is that the movement of his thighs is distracting. You tear your eyes away, and when you do, he’s looking at you.

“How have you been?” He asks, and he’s not just making conversation. The way he speaks is sincere. “Anymore blind dates?” He whispers the last part.

“Oh, no…no,” you stare into your coffee and shake your head. “Nothing special, not since our date.”

He smiles, but says nothing.

“I did keep up with you. I caught a few of your lives, checked YouTube for new videos…”

Seungmin laughs and lays his head back against the couch, “next time we don’t see each other for a while, I will call, and we can have a real live.”

“Is that a promise?”

He thinks for a moment, “yes, promise. I’ll be a better texter…also.” He adjusts and moves himself a little closer to you.

“I’ll take either.”

“I think I just…don’t know what to say sometimes. I don’t want to say something stupid, so I don’t say anything at all. And then I forget.”

“I don’t mind if you say something stupid.” You reach out and move a piece of hair out of Seungmin’s eyes. “I’d prefer it, actually. Then I can say something stupid back.”

He tilts his head and his hair falls back over his eyes. “Good to know.”

“Are you hungry?” You move his hair again.

He looks at you without answering for a very long moment. His eyes are impossibly big and dark; bottom lip a little bit red from biting down on it. Your eyes jump from the beauty mark on his cheek (you’re also thinking about how nice it is to finally see him again without makeup), to his eyes, his nose, his lips. His hair swings back down in front of his eyes.

He brings his hand up and attempts to fix his hair, but he just shakes his head again and smiles, “yes, I am. Very hungry.”

“I guess you can help me finish up,” you reach for his hand, which he happily takes, and lead him back to the kitchen. You prepped everything, but wanted it to be fresh when you sat down to eat.

“What are we having?” He looks at the counter. Four thick slices of bread and a bowl of something milky, eggs. “Oh these I can do,” Seungmin picks up an egg and holds it next to his face. “I can fry a good egg.”

“Okay, that’s your job.” You freshen his coffee while he examines the half dozen eggs in front of him. “Make however many you want.”

“Can I make all of them?”

“Yeah,” you laugh, “I have more if that’s not enough.”

“French toast?” He examines the milky batter next to the slices of bread. “I’ve had it before, but not for a very long time.”

“Is that okay? I can always make something else.” You turn the burner on low and let the pan get warm.

“No, I want to try your french toast.”

You reach for the butter, taking great care to reach around him by placing your hand on the belt of his shorts. He watches you closely as you dip each slice of bread into the batter, and when the butter melts completely, place them neatly in the pan.

“Nice sizzle,” he whispers. And then he laughs when you laugh. “Oh, I’m doing the eggs…” He turns his burner on low, butters his pan, and cracks four of the six eggs.

Seungmin looks at you, “I don’t want to crowd them.” He nods his head at two intact eggs. “They can wait.”

“You’re the expert.”

“They will be good, I promise.”

“Even if they’re bad, I’m sure I’ll love them.”

You hear him laugh as you tend to the French toast, shaking on the cinnamon, flipping them when they’re just crispy and brown. Seungmin ooohs at them as he seasons his eggs.

“Do you prefer maple syrup or…honey?”

“Hm?” He flips the eggs carefully and takes them off the heat before turning to the selection of toppings you’re setting out.

“Can you turn my burner off?”

He clicks it off, and Seungmin finds his way to the cupboard to get a plate. He gently sets his finished eggs onto it and cracks the remaining ones into the warm pan.

“Do you like maple syrup, or do you want honey?”

“Oh…maple syrup! And strawberries.”

“And whipped cream?”

“Dessert for breakfast…” he takes one of the strawberries and bites into it.

____

You have one dining table in your tiny apartment. It has two chairs, and it’s right next to the large picture window that sits just between the kitchen and the living room. Outside is a limited view of the city. It’s nice, though. And you can afford it.

Seungmin is watching the city slowly start to move, chin resting in the palm of his hand. He has a smile on his face–it’s very subtle on his lips, but not in his eyes. You made him sit while you got the rest of the food ready, and eventually, he listened.

“Is this enough strawberries?”

He looks at you first and smiles, then at his plate. “Yes, thank you,” he waits for you to sit before whispering jal meokgetseumnida and when you pick up your fork, he follows. Seungmin opted for maple syrup, strawberries, whipped cream. He goes for the whipped cream first, eating a forkful by itself.

“Did you make this, too?” He takes another bite of it, this time with a big piece of strawberry.

You nod.

“It’s very good, it’s not too sweet.” He cuts into his French toast now, getting a bite of all three at once.

“If everything is too sweet, it ruins it.”

“Sometimes…” he says in a singsong voice, almost a whisper.

You sneak glances at him between your own bites. He’s a quiet eater this morning, but you’re comfortable sitting there with him in the silence.

“How has work been?”

“Kind of crazy.” He takes a drink of his coffee, “we will be in Japan in two weeks, and then to the US after that.” Seungmin nods to himself and divides the four eggs between you.

They do look perfect and exactly how you usually make them. Over-easy. “That’s exciting…but I’m sure it’s very exhausting.”

He picks one up and shoves the entire thing in his mouth. You can tell he wants to speak as soon as he does it, but he chews patiently. “I wouldn’t want to do anything else, but some days it is a lot. And very tiring.”

He rests his face in his hands again. He finished his food. Now he’s looking at you with the same tired eyes he’s given you before.

“Thank you for making time for me.” You say.

He sits back in his seat, smiles, shakes his head a little.

You look at him questioningly. His mannerism are cute, but you’re not quite sure how to interpret them sometimes. “What is it?”

“I’m happy to be here.”

“You are?” When you stand to clean off the table, he stands with you to help. You let him.

“Yes,” he bites into another strawberry when he gets to kitchen sink with his dishes. “I like you. You're...you're relaxing to be around. I don't feel any pressure here."

You look at him and smile, unsure of how to respond at first. "Thank you." It's not enough of a reply, you know that, but you're a little lost for words.

"Is that a weird thing to say?"

"No! Not at all. It might be the sweetest complement a date has ever given me."

Seungmin follows you wordlessly to the living room, and sits when you sit. You move a little closer to him and relax, hoping he continues to mimic you. And he does.

“Can I ask you something…um,” he purses his lips as he thinks, covers his cheeks with his hands. “Something personal I guess. Kind of. Maybe not really personal but-”

“Yes, of course you can.” You take one of his hands away from his face and hold it in yours. It’s starting to feel like the first date, except now he seems a little different than last time. Maybe he’s worn out from performing. Maybe it’s just an off day.

He’s looking down at his hand clasped in yours, “do you ever feel like, um…I guess it’s hard to put into English.”

“That’s okay, we can use whatever words feel best for you.”

Seungmin can’t help but smile at that, and a tiny laugh escapes. “I almost forgot, you teach kids. You do sound like a teacher.”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I mean…whichever language.” You pull his hand closer to you and put your other hand over it. “I’m sure between us we can figure it out.”

“You’re so sweet.”

“What’s bothering you?” You squeeze his hands even harder.

“I don’t know if you will, but if you ever meet my friends…the other members.” He stops for a moment to look at you.

You nod at him, but at the same time you’re completely unprepared for that statement. Meeting his friends? It's a big jump from where you're at right now.

“I guess I’m worried you might like them more than you like me.” His head falls back on the couch and he covers his eyes with his free hand. He sighs loudly.

“Why would you think that?” You pull him closer and shake him a little, “Seungmin…Seungmin, what do they call you when they don’t call you Seungmin?”

You get him to laugh, at least.

“Minnie,” he looks at you through his fingers. He says it again under his breath. “Min…puppy.”

“Puppy?” you scoot even closer to him, until you can almost set your chin on his shoulder. "Puppy."

He closes the gap a little.

Your forehead is almost touching his. You hold his eyes there. Then you kiss the bridge of his nose.

He leans forward and sets his head in the space between your neck and shoulder. His hair is tickling your ear, and his lips are brushing against your skin. You’re certain he can hear your blood pumping through your veins.

He lets out a long sigh. You don’t really want to say anything, you’d prefer it if the two of you could just stay like this for a little bit longer. And suddenly thinking of him leaving again (for another six months, maybe) gives you a horrible sinking feeling in your stomach.

But you need to talk to him.

“Why do you think that?”

He’s quiet for a few seconds as he searches for the right words. “There are eight of us…and sometimes I end up feeling, uhm…”

There's a long pause while you both think. He's searching for the words; you're searching his mind and his face.

”Do you feel like you're stuck behind everyone sometimes?” You think that’s what he’s getting at. You can see it in his eyes.

”Yes, I guess so. I mean, I know I am not as popular.”

It’s a hard comment for you to respond to, but the sad smile on his face makes you a little angry. Not at him, just at every single person outside of your apartment.

“Well, you’re my favorite.”

A hesitant smile appears.

Your hands close around either side of his face, and you graze your fingertips over his ears, “I’m sure the others are great, and I’m sure I could be friends with them someday...but they’re not you, and I already told you we wouldn’t make very good friends.”

You’re not sure why him being vulnerable and honest is suddenly, making you so bold, but you’re not going to question it. He’s quiet and calm as you speak, so you must be doing something right.

“I wouldn’t want anyone else here with me.” You hope he believes you, but you also aren’t a stranger to the hesitant feelings he’s obviously processing. “And I wish you could stay.”

“I can stay today!”

____

Seungmin falls asleep on your couch again. This time, though, he’s lying comfortably with his face shoved into one of your pillows and his curled up legs are almost on your lap. It’s a small couch.

You put a movie on, but he didn’t last more than a half an hour. It’s been two hours now, and you really don’t want to wake him. You’re certain he’ll get up on his own soon.

The kitchen is clean, the movie is over. You’re a little tired yourself, honestly, but you don’t think you could fall asleep while he’s here and almost in your lap. He’s a quiet sleeper, and he’s hardly moved, but you can hear his big sighs every few times he exhales.

He shifts a little when your hand touches his leg, but he settles back down immediately, and is out again. Even when your palm slides over his skin, he doesn’t move.

The soft buzz of his phone doesn’t wake him, either. But it’s going off again, and it’s the third time. You’re wondering if it’s important, but you don’t want to pry.

You run your hand over his leg again. Still nothing. It goes off again—this time it’s ringing. You can see the name on the screen without looking very hard.

“Seungmin…” You whisper. This time you gently drag your fingertips across his skin. “Seungmin?”

A little groan. His leg stretches out across your thigh. You squeeze his calf a bit and he seems to react, but not enough, so you gently move him and get up.

“Seungmin?” You kneel down until you’re face to face with him. He looks so peaceful and content, and while you hate to disturb him, you’re kind of looking forward to him slowly waking up. Saying his name isn’t getting through, though, so you place the tip of your finger at his temple and lightly trace a line down the side of his face.

A raspy mmm is all you get in return.

You bury your fingers in his hair and comb through it, kneading into his scalp a little. “Minnie?” You move down toward his neck, knead a little more, this time into a soft part of his shoulder.

His eyes open slowly, eyelashes fluttering a bit as they readjust to the sunlight in the room. He looks around before his gaze settles on you, and for the briefest moment he seems lost. But then he remembers where he is, and he smiles at you.

“Hi,” his voice is sleepy and raspy, like he hasn’t used it in a long time. He closes his eyes again.

“No no, eyes open.”

“I’m awake,” he mumbles.

“Look at me,” you lean toward his face until your noses are almost touching.

Eyes open again and he blinks a few times. “Are you gonna kiss me?” He asks, and the sleepiness in his voice is unbearable.

Yes, if he wants you to, you will kiss him. You lick your lips. But first, “your mom is calling you.”

“Oh, she’s probably wondering why she hasn’t seen me since I got home.”

“Do you want me to call and tell her you’re busy?”

Seungmin laughs and finally seems to be fully awake. He shakes his head and slowly sits himself up. “Do I have bedhead?” He rubs his eyes and runs his hands through his hair.

“A little bit.” You comb a hand through it and fix his part, “it’s cute, though.”

“Nooo it’s not,” he flattens it more and lays back against the couch. “I’m sorry I fell asleep.”

“You apologize too much.”

“Do I?”

You nod and sit down next to him, “I’m glad you were comfortable enough here to fall asleep.”

“Did I snore?” He looks a little embarrassed.

“No, you were pretty quiet. You kicked a few times, though.”

He almost apologizes, but stops himself and picks up his phone. He reads through his messages and eventually types a reply to one of them. Then he turns to you, “what should we do now that I’m well rested? Are you tired?” He throws his phone down and turns the rest of his body to you, “did you sleep at all?”

“I didn’t sleep, but I’m fine.”

“Maybe you should rest,” he smiles and tilts his head. “I can leave for a while and come back, if you’d like.”

“No, I don’t want you to leave.”

He nods, “We can try another movie,” Seungmin relaxes on the couch, pillow at his side, and extends an arm. “And if you fall asleep, we’ll be even.”

You stare at him for a long moment. It’s not until he beckons you with his hand that you realize it’s an invitation to cuddle up to him. And you take it without another moment of hesitation.

Your cheek settles against his chest, open hand spread out over his stomach. He wraps an arm around your shoulder and pulls you in a little tighter.

“Are you comfortable?” He grazes his fingertips over your forearm, very slowly, as if he’s still testing the limit of touch between you.

“I am.” You feel the goosebumps jump up on your skin, and Seungmin runs his fingers over you again, like he notices.

He does notice. You hear a breathy little laugh come from him. “Good.”

Now you think you could definitely fall asleep. He’s warm, but a good warm; not like the summer heat moving around the room. You push your face further into the space under his arm and inhale.

“What should we try to watch? Maybe something funny.”

He browses through Netflix. Meanwhile, you can feel yourself slowly slipping into sleep. But you don’t want to fall asleep. Sleeping now would just be wasted time with Seungmin, so you adjust yourself and sit up a little more.

He sits up, too. His eyes are big and a little worried.

“I don’t want to fall asleep.”

“Okay, how can we keep you awake then?”

You stare at him thoughtlessly for a few seconds. Then you feel like maybe you’re blushing because he probably (probably?) isn’t thinking the same thing your sexually frustrated mind is thinking. Now you can’t get the thought out of your head. You try not to breath out like you’ve just been holding your breath for too long.

He grins a little, so you think the thought may have crossed his mind after he said it. But he stays quiet.

“Maybe we can…go for a walk,” you say it as you exhale and then take a steady breath in. At the same time, your brain is slowly unbuckling his belt and lifting his shirt. “We should go for a walk.”

“Okay, that sounds nice.”

____

It’s warm out, but not enough to be uncomfortable.

You changed into something to show a little more skin, because you might as well try to get his mind where yours is. He may not even be interested in going there.

“So, are you allowed to date yet?” It comes out before you even decide if it’s a good thing to bring up.

Seungmin giggles. You look at him and see him covering his mouth with his hand, but the smile in his eyes is obvious.

“Sorry, that came out of nowhere…”

“It’s alright. You can ask me anything you want,” he shoves his hands in his pockets and slows his walk a bit.

“Okay, I’ll just throw questions at you as I think of them.”

“Good,” he stops and bounces on the balls of his feet, “ we should get some boba.”

You were already concerned about Seungmin being recognized on your walk, and going into a boba place seems like the most obvious way for him to be seen. But you’re not going to tell him no.

“Maybe I should go in and get us both something, it seems a little busy in there.”

“If that makes you feel better, yes.”

“It doesn’t. I just don’t want you to get any unwanted attention.”

“I think I’ll be okay,” He brushes his hand against your arm and leads you across the street. “I’m not as popular or recognizable as you might think.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“If nobody expects to see me, they’ll miss me,” he hops up on the curb like a kid. It feels like he becomes more and more relaxed as the day goes on. “But…” he pulls a black face mask from his back pocket and loops it around his ears. “I’ll be much happier if you’re more comfortable.”

____

The sun is coming through the trees and leaving freckles of light over Seungmin’s face and chest. His eyes are closed, hands propping him up as he leans back and stares up at the sky.

“Hey, sorry…I didn’t mean to get quiet.”

“I have a question.”

He sits up fully and smiles, “oh I never answered you before. No dating. Openly. Technically.” He says it like he’s not sure if he’s using his English words correctly. “Maybe that wasn’t the question.”

“It wasn’t, but I did want to know that, too.” You sip your drink and think about your question again. You had it ready to go, but Seungmin said the word openly and you lost it. “Do you know that I’m older than you?”

“No, I didn’t know. But I don’t mind.” He gets on his hands and knees and crawls closer to you. “If you don’t mind that I’m younger.”

A breeze picks up and his hair is swept across his forehead. He tousles it a little until his bangs fall back in front of his eyes.

You shake your head. “No, I don’t,” the question starts forming in your head again. “Would you ever consider dating, uhm, me? I mean, let’s say you weren’t who you are and we still somehow met. Is that something you’d…consider?

Seungmin looks at you, and his eyes have certainly never been this big before. His ears and cheeks are slowly turning red. And he’s quiet. His mouth opens a bit, but no words come out. You’re afraid you asked the stupidest question you could have possibly thought of.

You made it weird.

“You don’t have to answer. I’m sorry. Please pretend I never said that.” You lift your knees to your chest and bury your face in the space there. You whimper a little to yourself and hope he doesn’t hear it.

“That’s a tough one.”

You can’t see his face, but you can imagine it.

In reality, he’s thinking and playing with his straw. Still blushing, still smiling. If you’d just lift your head and look at him, you’d see that he’s unable to contain his smirk.

“Let’s go back to you looking up at the sky and me not talking.” You relax as much as possible and your back gently hits the grass. You spread yourself out, hoping to sink into the ground.

“No,” he sips his drink and leans back on one hand. “You asked, now it’s out there forever.”

You peek up at him briefly and see his face in the sun again; eyes closed but smirk still tugging at his lips. Quiet and thoughtful.

“Seungmin?”

No answer. You look back at the sky, but you can hear him moving and getting closer. His shadow blocks the sun from your eyes, so you open them.

“Yeah?”

“It’s okay if you wouldn’t.”

Still no answer. Your eyes close again, and then he lays down next to you. It’s a nice moment, or it would be. The birds are singing and there’s the sound of the wind through the trees. The only other people around are far enough away that you can barely hear them.

You feel like you could cry.

Maybe he just isn’t very good at letting people down. He can’t find the right words to tell you it would never work, and that’s understandable, really. He’s sweet and thoughtful and kind. He doesn’t want to hurt you. He just wants to be friends.

You cover you eyes with both hands and sigh as quietly as possible.

“I would, but…I don’t know…” he hmmms and uumms a few times. “Nobody has ever asked me out before.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“You don’t believe much.”

"If that's true, it's because you're intimidating."

"Me?" He's trying not to laugh. "I'm not intimidating! Am I? Is it my face? Do I look angry?"

"Okay, wrong word to use. You're too handsome to approach, I mean. I would have never, on my own, started a conversation with you had I seen you at that coffee shop by yourself."

Now you sit up and shade him from the sun. There’s a stray eyelash on his cheek, so you lean forward to gently blow it off.

His eyes flutter open. "I am not too handsome to approach." He whispers and lets himself laugh out loud.

“Okay fine…so I’m your first.”

“So you’re not taking it back?”

“You mentioned meeting your friends earlier. Did I interpret that wrong?”

He shakes his head.

“Then no, I guess I’m not taking it back.”

----

The trip back is not awkward. You expected him to keep his distance, physically and mentally, but he walks almost shoulder to shoulder with you the entire time. He hasn’t given you any type of answer yet, but you’re not worried about it. Part of you still wants to take it back and let things flow at a slower pace. This is, after all, only your second date. The other part of you is already on fire. It’s a tough line to walk.

Inside the apartment it’s gotten much warmer, and you regret not starting the AC before leaving. It’ll take forever to cool down now. You close the windows, lower the shades, and pull the curtains closed. Then you head to the couch and collapse onto it.

Seungmin makes himself at home by heading to the bathroom, then finding himself (and you) something cold to drink. You’re too distracted to even care that he’s digging around in your messy fridge.

“I forgot about this,” he grabs the bag from the side table and dangles it in front of his face. “Your gift.”

You sit up against the arm rest and smile at him, “thank you, Seungmin.” Inside is a small yellow dog plush. “Oh, it’s you!” You squeeze him and adjust the hoodie he’s wearing before bringing him up to your face. “Was he yours?”

“Yeah, he was mine.”

“He smells like you.”

“Is that a good thing?” He sits down by your folded legs and sets a hand just above your knee.

He’s touchy today...almost as much as you. And for never being properly asked out (now you wonder what else he hasn’t experienced), he knows just what to do to make you squirm.

You sit up a little more, bumping his hand off of you by mistake. He pulls it back a little, so you reach out and take it in yours. “Yeah, it is.”

He squeezes your hand and pulls you closer so he can place a kiss on your lips. You kiss back, but your brain takes a second to catch up with your mouth. When it finally does, you kiss hard enough to force him back against the couch.

Seungmin is better in action than he is with words today.

He doesn’t struggle against you or ease up, but pushes on with just as much enthusiasm.

You don’t know what to do with your hands, though. You have a lot of options. Through the hair? No. Neck? Maybe, but you don’t want to be too rough at this angle, and he might not be into that. Face? It’s a good option, and his cheeks are soft and nice to touch. And it's not too much.

Before you can decide, he takes your other hand and pulls until you have no choice but to swing a leg over his lap. And then his hands are on either side of your thighs.

You pull back and look at him.

He stares back, catching his breath. “I’m sorry I’m so bad at answering your questions.”

“You don’t have to.” You let your hands wander over his chest and down his sides. He squirms just a little; probably ticklish. When your hands settle on his belt, you lean in to kiss him again. On his lips, over his cheek. “I shouldn’t have put that on you.”

“I’m glad you did,” he looks down at your hands. “It was nice to be thought of like that. It felt good.”

“If I can see you again, that’s enough for me.”

“Is it?”

It really isn’t, but you decided on the walk back that anything with Seungmin would be okay. “If it’s what you can give me, yeah.”

Your needy, clingy heart feels like it’s crumbling, but you do your best to keep it from showing on your face.

“I can’t promise much, but I can try.”

You kiss him again, and without thinking it through properly; without thinking at all, really, you slide your fingers down and over the zipper of his shorts and feel the significant bulge that you somehow didn’t notice before.

Seungmin’s tiny oh and his hand wrapping around the offending wrist makes your stomach sink. His eyes are wide and fixed on you.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” you gently push yourself away from him and sit against the opposite side of the couch, hands covering your red face. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking…”

“It’s okay,” he giggles and adjusts himself, and you watch from behind one hand as he runs a palm between his thighs. “Please don’t be upset, you didn’t do anything wrong.” His voice softens as he speaks, and the last part is a barely audible whisper, “it was my fault.” But the grin on his face only sharpens. He’s looking down at his hands as they nervously fidget with the hem of his shorts.

“Was that uh, a first, too?” You regret asking it as soon as it leaves your mouth.

He doesn’t answer right away. You’re worried he feels embarrassed about it. And you feel weird for bringing it up. The urge to get closer to him is kept under control for now.

“It’s no big deal, Minnie…if it was.”

Using his nickname breaks him from his trance, and he looks at you, blinks, nods. “Yeah, it was.”

“Did you want that? I mean, when you pulled me on top of you.” Now you scoot a little closer. “You can give me boundaries.”

“I got caught up in the moment.” He starts, thinking and picking his words carefully. “But I did want to kiss you like that.”

“Got it,” closer still, until your knee is brushing against his thigh. “You can always stop me if I go overboard. Sometimes I can be too much.”

“Is that bad? Too much is sometimes nice.”

“I guess it depends…”

You lean forward until your forehead can lay on his shoulder. His cheek rests on your head. You stay that way until you feel yourself relaxing and drifting into a half-sleep.

“I think it’s time to rest.” You don’t move, but Seungmin lifts his head.

“That’s a good idea,” He grabs the pillow to his right and puts it on your side of the couch. “Do you want me to stay?”

You lay back on the couch and sigh. “Yeah, I do. If you want to.”

“I do…move over.”

#kim seungmin #skz fluff #skz seungmin #skz x you #kim seungmin x reader #kim seungmin x y/n #seungmin x you #seungmin x reader #seungmin x y/n #stray kids fluff #kim seungmin fluff #kim seungmin x you #skz x reader #skz smut

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joesheistyy · 2 years ago

Text

Family Barbecue

anon this was such a cute request, i love it and i hope y’all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!! <3

——

It was your favorite time of year, the summer time. Time to spend with family and friends and especially some drinks. Every July, the Burrow family would host a family-wide barbecue. You had been attending for years, and Joe’s parents made sure that their planning always worked with your schedule and Joe’s schedule.

Ever since Joe brought you to the first family barbecue after being together for 5 months, his family knew that you were the one for him. You always offered to help cook, clean, entertain the kids, or do anything else they needed. They all saw how Joe looked at you too, with pride in his eyes.

This was year 5 of going to the family Barbecue, and Joe’s family kept poking fun at him about how he hasn’t popped the marriage question yet. They wanted it just as bad as you did.

“Joey, are you ready to go?” You yelled up the stairs from the kitchen. Joe took just as long as a girl getting ready some days.

“Yes baby, I’ll be down in a sec,” he responded back as you heard frantic footsteps up the stairs. You were a planner, and Joe was not. You had a timeline of what needed to be done when, and Joe just went with the flow until he got distracted and needed to be directed back to what needed to be done.

You headed out the garage door, loading your cooler of drinks into the backseat of Joe’s car. The snack bag you had packed followed the drinks. Your overnight bags were packed last. Since his parents lived an hour and a half away and there would be drinks consumed, his parents offered up their extra bedroom for the two of you.

After double checking your list that was stationed on the island, Joe finally came down the stairs, looking as handsome as ever. He was wearing just a basic pair of gym shorts, a bengals tshirt, and his white Nike athletic shoes. Of course, the dork had his shirt tucked in. That was something you always messed with him about.

“Cmon babe, we gotta go or we’re gonna be way late,” you said, leading the way to the garage to finally leave. An hour and a half drive still ahead of you.

Joe grabbed a bottle of water from the garage fridge and got in the car. You settled yourself in the passenger seat with your Nintendo Switch Lite with Animal Crossing ready to go. While you didn’t hardcore game, some Animal Crossing and Minecraft here and there were sometimes what you did to entertain yourself.

After hitting the road, Joe played his music and hummed along as you were focused on your game. His hand rested on your thigh as he drove along. Eventually, you got tired of playing your game, so you decided to take a short nap. You leaned your seat back a bit and propped up your pillow between your shoulder and the window.

"Can you let me know when we're like half an hour away?" you asked, Joe replied, "Of course babe, you gonna put on your makeup then?" he questioned, glancing over at you for a second. You replied with a hum and curled to a semi-comfortable place to nap.

pat pat pat

Joe patted you awake, you stirred and lifted the back of your seat up.

"We're half an hour away honey," he said, smiling in your direction as you rubbed the sleep out of your eyes.

"Thanks Joey, now don't brake check anyone," you joked with him, poking at his arm. You pulled your makeup bag out of your car bag, opting for just some eyebrow filling and mascara, and of course highlight. That was your favorite step of your makeup routine.

As you pulled into Joe's parent's neighborhood, you collected your things in your bag and freshened up your outfit. You chose to wear your favorite pair of jean shorts and a cute flowy tank top.

Pulling into the driveway, Joe's parents came to greet you. The 3pm air was hot but with a breeze. Hugs were given and passed, and as you approached the house, Joe's nephew Jordan came running up to you.

"Y/n!" he cheered with his little 3 year old voice. That alone melted your heart.

"Hi Jordan! How's my big guy doing?" you asked and picked him up, resting him on your hip.

"Good! Let's go play!" He squirmed, wanting to be put down to go run around. You could tell he was fresh from his nap that was taken earlier. If only naps for adults were that rejuvenating.

"We can play here in a minute, but could you use your big, strong muscles to help us?" you tickled his stomach. He pretended to flex. He ran out to the car where Joe and his parents were, clinging to Joe's leg. Joe picked him up and gave him a little fist bump.

"Y/n said I can use my big muscles to help!" Jordan said with a smile on his face. Joe set him down and handed him the smallest bag. You grabbed your overnight bag and the cooler and headed inside with Jordan leading the way.

After placing your things in the guest room, you followed Jordan outside to go say hi to Joe's siblings and their partners. You cracked open your first drink of the night while Jim worked on grilling up some hamburgers and hot dogs.

Jordan pulled you over to the swing set, you set him in the swing that looked like a little car, pulling him toward you to get the momentum going. You continued to push Jordan in the swing as he laughed the cutest little laugh.

Joe was admiring from afar with a beer in hand. He was standing with his dad while he grilled, watching you play with Jordan, a smile spread along his face. You two had talked about kids before, but a ring needed to come first.

The next thing that Jordan wanted to do was race you and Joe. Of course, Joe said yes, setting his beer down to race.

"Okay, Jordan count us down," you say, lining up to begin to run.

"Okay y/n, 3...2..." and Jordan was off before the count of 1. You and Joe giggled, but eventually ran and tried to catch up to him. Jordan had passed the established finish line before you and Joe could get there. He jumped in excitement.

"I'm not letting you beat me, y/n" Joe huffed out as he began to run up to you, tackling you to the ground.

"Burrow, you're a quarterback, not a defensive end, my god," you groaned after hitting the ground, allowing laughs to escape your mouth. Jordan came over and giggled, climbing on top of Joe who was still on top of you.

"Uncle Joe sandwich!" you cheered and grabbed for Jordan's hand. You all giggled and eventually, Joe wormed his way out of being between you and Jordan. He outstretched a hand to you, helping you up.

Eventually, dinner was served and everyone gathered in the screened in porch to eat. Jordan insisted on sitting between you and Joe. Jordan's mom plopped his booster seat down in the chair between you and Joe. Jordan dug into his food as soon as it was set in front of him, ketchup ending up all over his hands, face, and clothes. As you ate, you would use your napkin to dab off Jordan's face, causing your napkin to turn red from the mess he had made.

Joe looked at you admirably, adoring how good you were with kids. You secretly hoped that Joe would see how good you were with kids and want to hurry up and propose already.

After dinner, Jordan helped you clean up the dining space by taking the empty paper plates to the trashcan and leading you to the paper towels so he could help you wipe down. You lifted him up to grab the roll off the island inside, carrying him like Buzz Lightyear back out to the patio, giggles filling the air.

The rest of the family had gone to sit out by the fire pit, insisting that you not do any cleaning up. But you couldn't just not help, it wasn't like you. And you could maneuver Jordan into doing anything with you, which also gave his parents a break.

Out at the fire pit, you could see the rest of the family laughing and joking. You admired Joe from the screened in porch while you waited on Jordan to run in and take the dirty paper towels to the trash can. Jordan ran out, tugging at your arm to go join the rest of the family.

You and Jordan joined the rest of the family, sitting down on the outdoor blanket. You sat criss cross applesauce and Jordan sat in your lap and played with your fingers while letting out yawns.

After a few more drinks, Jordan was asleep in your lap. His parents seemed ready to go, so you offered to help Jordan into his car seat.

You headed out to their car, carrying Jordan with his head resting on your shoulder.

"Thanks for playing with him and taking care of him today, y/n. It was a really nice break for us, he's a wild one," Joe's brother said.

"It's really no problem, I had so much fun with this little ball of energy," you chuckled as you set Jordan in his car seat, buckling him in.

"One of these days, I want y'all to give him a cousin," Joe's brother laughed out. You hugged and went your separate ways.

Joe and his parents had transitioned to inside the house, working to clean up the kitchen.

"How can I help?" you asked as you walked in on them all doing different cleaning activities.

"Babe you helped plenty today, go take a shower or relax. We got this," Joe said as he brought you into his embrace. There really wasn't much left to clean up.

After things had been cleaned up, everyone moved to the couch to sit and relax a bit before bed. It was about 9:30 and the exhaustion from the day was hitting you. You let out a soft yawn as Joe pulled you to lean into his shoulder.

"I think we're gonna head to bed. It's been a long day," Joe announces to his parents as he stands up off the couch. You follow.

When getting to your room for the night, you headed straight for the shower. Playing with Jordan all day got you sweaty and stinky, not to mention the July heat.

"Babe I loved watching you play with Jordan today. I can't wait for us to have our own kids one day. A little Joe and y/n stumbling around," Joe said, leaning down to kiss your forehead.

"Me too Joey, me too," you sighed as you stepped into the warm shower.

After such a long day, a shower and some snuggles were great.

You and Joe were cuddled up into bed when he blurted out, "I love you, y/n and I want to marry you some day. I promise it'll be soon,"

"I love you too Joey, and I can't wait for that day. It'll be the best day of our lives," you smile as you close your eyes, drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

The next morning, you woke up alone. That's not normally how things went when you and Joe stayed with his parents. He'd wait for you so you could leave the bedroom together.

You slid on your slippers and headed for the kitchen, following the smell of bacon. When you began to approach the entrance to the kitchen, you heard conversation. Sometimes, you loved to eavesdrop, but you also hated to butt in during conversation, so you stood by the doorway, out of sight of Joe and his parents.

"So when are you finally gonna pop the question?" his dad nudged at him.

"Soon, I swear. I've got the ring picked out and everything, I just need to send it to my jeweler," Joe said as he set out silverware.

"We love her and it's about time she became part of the family for real," his mom spoke out, walking up to Joe to lovingly rub his back. His family had been pestering him for a while to propose, but he wanted to do it on his own time, which you understood.

"It'll be soon, I promised that to her and I promise that to you all. Cause after seeing her with Jordan yesterday, I know she is who I'm meant to marry. Not that I didn't have those thoughts before, it just really proved to me that it's about time I asked her to marry me," Joe responded in a soft voice, trying not to allow his voice to carry.

You stood in the doorway for a minute more just to make sure the conversation was over. Soon, you approached Joe and pulled him into a side hug. He held onto you for a minute before leading you both to fill your plates with breakfast food.

You had a peaceful morning with Joe and his parents. You loved his family and couldn't wait to officially join it.

#joe burrow #joe burrow imagine #joe burrow fic #joe burrow x reader #joe burrow asks #joe burrow oneshot #bengals quarterback #cincinnati bengals #bengals #nfl imagine #nfl #imagine #x reader #fanfic #football #joe sheisty

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somethingsomethingwords · 7 months ago

Text

Hello everybody. Long time no see, but it's been one of those months, you know. This was something I've been thinking about for a while, but I only finished it because of @nico-di-genova. So this is for you honey.

As always thanks to everyone for reading. Enjoy 💜

Everything was going great. Fernando was at a party, where people were drinking and having fun. All around him, the younger drivers were finally decompressing, enjoying the alcohol, the food and the company.

At the center of the sea of people, there was the brightest star of the night.

Lance had finally won a race, and he was celebrating as loudly as he could, sandwiched between Esteban and Mick.

He envied the joy written all over their faces, and how close they were.

He loved the sport, even after his fake retirement, even after all those years, but there was something about maiden wins that still no other win could recreate.

Jóder, soy tan viejo was thinking Nando, when someone tapped his shoulder.

"I think it's late enough, no?" asked Pierre, and it really was getting late, and the trio seemed to be losing energy.

"Yeah, sounds about right. How about we split them? I'm taking Mick, and you take your teammates?" said Lewis, already stepping towards the boys.

Pierre started following him, muttering some curses that would have made blush a sailor. Nando snorted at the scene, and looked as the Brit took the German, while the French men started bickering.

The Canadian was looking around, confused after losing his partners in crime, but then he turned towards Fernando and smiled, slowly making his way towards the Spanish.

"Hola Lancito. Want to go?" asked Nando, seeing the younger man swinging slightly on his feet.

"I lost Estie and Mickie. Où sont-ils?"

Half drunk out of his mind, and he was still worried about his friends. Lance's loyalty really knew no bounds.

"They're ok, with Lewis and Pierre. I will take you home." and with that, he placed his hand on the younger's lower back.

The reaction was immediate. Lance's whole body shivered and pressed against his side, lowering his head on the shorter man's shoulder.

"Too loud. Je veux du silence"

"Oui mon amour. Let's go somewhere quiet" his French was heavily accented, but Lance seemed satisfied enough.

Nando guided the other man to his car, and drove them to their shared hotel, while Lance napped with his face against the window and his neck in a weird position.

When they arrived, Fernando struggled a little to wake the other enough to put him vertically in the elevator and walk to his room. At the door, Lance refused to lean against the doorframe, and settled only when he was hugging Fernando. "Warm" was the only word he said.

"Lance, I need the key" Fernando spoke softly.

"Poche" just answered the taller man, with no visible intention to loosen the embrace.

Fernando tried to be respectful, and to not feel the solid curve pressed against his hand. He soon found the key in his back pocket, and opened the door.

Once they were both in, he quickly realised that Lance would not move further, so he just put him on the bed, and went to take a glass and fill it with water.

Returning to the bedroom, he found Lance half naked.

"Where are your pants?" he asked, voice an octave too high, almost dropping the glass, before setting it on a nightstand.

"Lost them. Too hot" he shrugged.

Then, even more bafflingly, he started giggling.

"What is now?" he asked, fondly looking as Lance tried to take off his shirt without opening a single button. He succeeded, but his hair was now a fluffy mess.

"You remind me of Nano"

The use of his nickname surprised Fernando. The younger man refused using it, always sticking with his full name. Then the absurdity of it all hit him, and he started giggling as well.

"Ah, sì? How so?"

He was getting curious, sue him.

"It's your voice. It's soft and warm. Would listen for hours"

Fernando wasn't expecting this answer, but it melted his heart anyway.

"Mhhh. Then want a bedtime story?"

Any more time spent with Lance was a gift and a surprise wrapped in wonder. He was not going to deny himself this experience, even only for blackmail reasons. Jokingly, he was done with mind games and tricks. He would never do them again, especially not against Lance.

"Nah. A secret"

"A secret, mh? Let's trade. You tell me, I tell you" if Fernando was going to indulge him, at least it was going to be funny.

"Ça va...Ah, oui, daccord, j'en ai un. I like him so much" and then started giggling again.

Fernando felt like all of his body had gone stone cold, and couldn't move a muscle. He couldn't believe what the other told him. But before he could say anything, Lance nestled in the sheets, and softly said while closing his eyes:

"I like him soooooo much, even if he doesn't feel the same. It's ok, don't think I'd deserve him. What we have, it's special. It is enough"

And with this, he was done for the day.

And he wasn't the only one. Fernando felt like he was going to explode, too many thoughts in his head and words on his tongue, with no one to talk to. He could feel his hair turning gray.

But a single look to that peaceful face, and his heart stopped beating erratically. Everything was going to be alright. They could face this together.

This and more, hopefully.

They were going to solve this tangled mess, but first they both needed to rest.

So he left a note for Lance, simply writing "Call me in the morning. -FA" on a piece of paper and leaving it on top of Lance's phone, where he was sure the other man would see it, and then he left the room, dreaming of his own bed and a restful night of sleep.

---

He was never going to win another GP ever again, if the results were the pounding headache and the rancid taste in his mouth.

He slowly opened his eyes, careful of the half opened blinds, and looked around.

Thanks to some sort of divine intervention, he had made it to the hotel safe and sound.

He got up and went to the bathroom, peeing, washing his face and brushing his teeth.

When he came back to the bedroom, he started looking for his phone. He almost missed it, but then noticed it was just half covered by a yellow post-it. It simply said "Call me in the morning. -FA".

Ok, so he probably would have to thank Fernando for making it to his bed unscathed. He tried to think about the night before, especially trying to remember his interaction with the Spanish driver.

At first, he couldn't remember anything out of the ordinary, then it hit him.

An echo of his own giggle, soft brown eyes, the whisper of a "like him so much".

Oh, no.

Oh no.

He had done it. He confessed, and now Fernando was going to be overly amused about it. Or overly nice, and Lance didn't know what was worse.

Rejection was always a bitch, but basically having to live with your unrequited crush for 24 week-ends? That was going to be a nightmare to go through for all parts involved.

Or maybe just for Lance, with his stupid feelings and his too-hopeful heart.

Ugh, Lance just didn't know what to do.

On one hand, he wanted to call Fernando and be done with all of this. On the other, he wanted to pretend nothing happened, and everything was fine and normal and good.

He sighed, because deep down he knew he was going to have to talk with Fernando, if he liked it or not.

Ok, let's analyze. He knows I like him, and still wants to talk to me. So, he is going to reject me kindly, at least. Ok, we can totally take it like champs. Basic rule still applied: no tears in front of him. It should be quick and painless. Ok, we can do this.

So he took his time in the shower, and ordered a healthy if slightly generous breakfast.

When he was done, he brushed his teeth, wore his comfort hoodie and left his room in a controlled chaos.

One mess at a time: first his love life, then his room.

He knew that Fernando's room was the one across from his, so he didn't even bother calling. He simply knocked.

When the door opened, Lance was sure he had hit his head badly the night before. Maybe the possible concussion and heavy hepatic failure led him to an early grave.

But if death meant he could get to see a still semi-wet Nando, covered just by a tiny towel low on his hips, well, he lived a rich and full life, if a little short.

He could feel himself staring, but also couldn't take his eyes off the view.

He just waited for the self-combustion to take him.

Then he heard a light chuckle, and a hand gently gripped his sleeve, pulling him inside.

When the subject of his awe turned his back on him, walking to the adjacent kitchenette, his brain seemed to be back online.

He shook his head and closed the door behind himself like a particularly stupid rabbit that voluntarily enters the den of a particularly fascinating fox.

Fernando must have known how nervous he was feeling, because he gave him a glass of water and led him to the couch.

"Wait here, I'll be right back" said the Spanish man, leaving Lance alone, stunned and with the glass still in his hand.

You're being ridiculous, grow a pair and just talk like the adult you supposedly are, a voice in his head that sounded like his sister's gently scolded him.

He drank the water while waiting, and felt slightly better.

When Fernando re-entered the room, calm and collected and clothed, Lance waited until he was seated before looking him in the eyes and starting speaking.

"Thank you for last night. For bringing me here safely, I mean"

Not the smoother transition ever, but Fernando had to be used to how stilted he sounded, and would appreciate it anyway.

"No need to. We are friends, no?" he asked with something in his eyes that Lance couldn't describe, but that made him want to talk more.

"About that... I also wanted to say sorry if I said something weird yesterday"

See Chloe? He was actually talking about things that embarrassed him instead of forever avoiding them. Well, not really being super specific, but small progress was still progress.

"Hmm... And what are you referring to?"

The bastard was actually going to make him say the words. Well, in for a penny...

"That I like you"

Lance could feel his cheeks heating up and could no longer stand Fernando's gaze, so he moved his eyes until he was watching a particularly boring patch of carpet.

"Lance, look at me"

It only took those four words, spoken in a tone so gentle and warm to bring Lance's eyes back to Fernando's.

"Why are you apologizing? Did you lie?" he asked softly.

"No" he half shouted, and then flinched because of the reaction. "No, I do like you" he said, exhaling.

"Then what are you apologizing for?"

Fernando could be soft when he wanted, but that didn't stop him from being stubborn.

"I didn't want to offend you" and also didn't want you to really know, because it's embarrassing and you deserve better and I can't be normal about this nor you.

He didn't say the words, but Fernando must have been able to hear them anyway, because he responded firmly.

"You didn't"

That lifted a huge weight from Lance's shoulders. Maybe this partnership could still be saved.

"Ok. Good, I'm glad" he was being awkward and subtly twisting his fingers. But nothing escaped Fernando's attention.

Seeing how the younger man was spiralling in his own thoughts, he didn't hesitate, reaching out to him and taking a hold of his hands.

"There is no need to be nervous. Just tell me again, tell me properly"

Lance could see in his eyes the want and the patience and something else.

They were in this together, he suddenly realised.

You are not alone anymore, said his mental Chloe.

He inhaled as much air as he could, held it and then exhaled. He found the strength he needed in a pair of brown eyes that were already looking in his own.

"I've been wanting to tell you for so long. I like you. I like how you drive, how you give feedback on the car and how you are always, no matter what, the best. But that's just racing stuff. I like how you compliment me, how you never made me feel less than, or just a spoiled kid, how you make me feel. But those are selfish reasons. I like how kind you are with kids, how ready you are to help any of the other drivers. But most importantly, I like you, Fernando Alonso, two times world champion, menace on and off track, mentor and teammate and friend and so much more. I like you, Nando"

He barely finished talking that there was a pair of lips on his own, soft and warm and gentle.

He realised he closed his eyes only when he opened them, and in front was Fernando, bright and shining and perfect in every way that mattered. To Lance, at least.

"You made me wait a long time, no? Let's not waste anymore" he said before diving in a second kiss that was hot and passionate and demanding.

Fernando broke the kiss and stood up, starting to walk, and Lance could only follow the man leading him towards his bed, and towards a life together.

#strollonso #fernando alonso #lance stroll #grumpy cat boy x besotted old man #some love for lance #because he deserves it #insecure lance is insecure but nando gets him so...

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nobedofroses · 26 days ago

Text

October 14th

pairing: Pero Tovar x fem!reader

warnings: reader has given birth in the last few months, mentions of nursing

words: 743

a/n: Hmm I don't know that I can count the word "cottage" as a prompt from @illfoandillfie since I had to come up with everything else (lmao ily). Little bit of missing Pero, little bit of reuniting

Directory, Day 13

🎃🎃🎃

A year after your last autumnal visit to the market, Pero was there selling another horse and you were not. You had wanted to go and he had so wanted you to go, but your tiny baby girl, Alma, was too little to travel yet. With tears in your eyes and an oblivious three month old in your arms, you bid Pero goodbye with a sweet, loving kiss that you kind of hoped would be enough to keep him there. It sadly didn’t work, but he did look back several times as he rode away.

Pero was only going to be gone one night since he wasn’t going to be spending extra time with you in the market and had even offered to make the trip in one day, but you didn’t want him traveling that late or for that long.

It was surprising all the ways you missed him for just one day. The way he always got up earlier than you so he could build up the fire and bring your housecoat from where you left it by the washbasin like you always did. How he would scoop up Alma after she was done nursing to burp and take care of her so you could rest and relax. The way he spoke to her as he patted her back, telling her about what the plan was for the day with the horses and asking what she was planning to do with her day.

Thinking about all of this when you fed Alma after he left made you a little misty-eyed as you took care of her by yourself, more out of absolute love for Pero than being sad that he was gone for a day, but it was pretty close.

You ate your meals with William and Charlotte in the inn so you could have some adult company and because it was strange to cook for one. Plus they loved every second they had with their niece.

That night, when you were getting ready for bed, you had to build up the fire a little extra. The nights were getting colder and colder and you wouldn’t have Pero to keep you warm.

In the morning, you went through your normal routine, pointedly trying not to think about the differences you had anticipated yesterday, and instead focused on the fact that Pero would be back in a couple hours. And with him would be goods for not only your home, but some medicines and things for whoever wanted to buy or trade for them in the village. You also knew there would probably be a book or two and something for Alma, which was exciting.

At lunch, Charlotte half-jokingly offered to take Alma until dinner so the two of you could have a proper reunion. You laughed but said that Pero would want to see Alma as soon as he got home. And he’d have to unpack. And take care of his horse, Fred. Then she suggested taking her after dinner until you came and got her for her last feeding and bed and you readily agreed.

Pero came back within an hour after lunch. Alma was napping in her bassinet, so you rushed outside to be able to embrace him as soon as he got off his horse. Possibly you had been watching out the window for him.

His strong arms were around you in an instant. You buried your face where his neck met his shoulder and said, “Pero, oh darling, I missed you so much.”

“A mi también, querida. So much.”

You loved being enveloped in him like this, but you knew Fred should be unburdened and you shouldn’t leave Alma alone for much longer.

“Alma’s napping, but I’ll bring her out to you if she wakes up before you’re done,” you told Pero, knowing he’d want to see her as soon as possible.

“Yes, perfect. I’ll be in as soon as I can,” Pero said before bringing you in for a deep kiss that you weren’t expecting.

When he released you, you stood there for a second, dazed, until Pero grabbed your shoulders and bodily turned you back to the cottage. You walked back, a little wobbly, and when you got to the door and turned back to look at Pero, he was watching you with a grin.

You felt your cheeks flush with heat but wondered if maybe you should’ve taken Charlotte up on her first offer.

🎃🎃🎃

#pero tovar #pero tovar x reader #pero tovar x you #blurb #fluff #tiny bit of #angst #nobedofroses #spooky fluff 24

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eleni-cherie · 4 months ago

Text

a thief's origin✨ || bts • kth - chapter 0.4

"you're afraid I won't wait." "I'm afraid you will."

a criminal and a doctor should be as different as the sun and the moon - but unexpected things happened every day. like him finding his safe haven in her.

»»»

masterlist: here

— genre: thief au, gangster comedy, adventure, romcom, humour, angst, fluff, sexual tensiON, slowburn, mutual pining, strangers to friends to lovers s2f2l

ALTERNATIVE UNIVERSE. CHARACTERS NOT NECESSARILY LIKE THE REAL PERSONS. ALSO VERY UNREALISTIC PLOT LOL - JUST PRETEND READING A MANGA/COMIC OR WATCHING A FILM, REALLY.

SUGGESTIVE THEMES. MENTIONS OF VIOLENCE & BLOOD (BUT NOTHING TOO GRAPHIC, IT'S STILL A COMEDY!)

»»»

age 26 // 2nd year - assistant physician

13th August

Macau, China

"One, two - check, check. Can you hear me?"

Taehyung rolled his eyes hearing Jimin's dramatics in the in-ear as he was easing his way to the back of the extravagant casino. He walked behind a group of intoxicated men - who judging by their suits and platin watches were business men having come there to gamble a few hundred thousands just for fun - to cover himself from the cameras.

Reaching one of the secured doors leading to the back area, he smoothly placed a small button-like device behind the security scanner in the matter of a second while passing by.

"Yeah, I do," he eventually responded to his pestering friend with a grin. Earning an annoyed groan on the other line.

"Took you long enough!"

"Guys, don't start again," Yoongi piped up in a bored, yet warning tone. And Taehyung snickered under his breath.

Without showing any suspicion, he continued walking among the drunks until reaching the card tables. Creating eye-contact with Yoongi who gave him a brief glance from the dimly lit bar, focusing back on the whiskey in front of him. The two pretending not knowing the other.

"Bug is set," he announced in a hush, approaching one of the empty seats at the Blackjack table. "Gonna start the distraction now."

"Joining in ten."

"Good. I'm counting on you guys."

»»»

21st August

Barcelona, Spain

Despite the evening hour, a drenching warmth laid around him. Taehyung was in fact internally dying.

After arriving from the layover in Doha, another unbearably warm place, he took a nap at their hideout outside the city first - feeling more drowsy than anything. Only then deciding to go check out his friend's apartment, out of boredom but also because he had genuinely missed her. However, she wasn't there, which in eighty percent of the time meant one thing: she was at work.

So half an hour later, he found himself at the back of the hospital, lingering around the emergency entrance out of habit.

The late shift would finish soon he assumed - if she didn't have a double one, which he hoped wasn't the case. Eager for her to see the small succulent he had secured as a redemption for the one he'd accidentally knocked off the last time there.

It had been months ever since, but he still felt bad about it knowing how much her plants meant to her.

After awhile he got tired of walking around the sparsely illuminated area though and instead settled at the wall next to the entrance. Propping himself against it and stretching his neck as he watched people come and go.

He exhaled deeply when the automatic door slid open once again. Only this time he could hear raised voices nearing him.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Pretty sure my shift's over and Dr M warned us not to exceed our hours, remember?"

Taehyung's ears perked up at this. He instantly recognised the second voice despite the annoyed undertone. He didn't recognise the other one though. His foot setting to the ground and he straightened himself while listening intently.

"You know exactly what I mean. Don't act dumb, doll."

Cassandra turned around at this, crossing her arms as she faced her colleague with a raised brow.

"What did you just call me? Doll? Since when are we on that level?" she laughed, but Taehyung could tell she was surpressing an upset scoff.

And it certainly didn't go unnoticed by Pavlo, one of the bigmouths in the hospital, either. "Since you humiliated me in front of the fcking chief physician. Seriously, what's wrong with you?"

The way he raised his voice and accusing her of things that were his own fault, only made her temper bubble right underneath the surface. Trying her best to give him a blank stare instead of a nasty eye.

She never liked Pavlo. She found him somewhat attractive in the right angle, but couldn't say anything positive about him otherwise. Frankly, she hated him. And no, not in a hot 'enemies-to-lovers' way. Rather in a 'the-world-would-be-a-better-place-without-him' way.

"I wasn't the one humiliating you. I only corrected you by stating facts," she spoke up, surprised by her own calmness, "The one humiliating you was your big ego. Who'd ever think to use activated vitamine C to treat a septic patient with such low thrombocytes? Everyone knows it'd cause brain heaemorage. Well, -" Pausing, she folded her lips. Failing to balance out the mocking judgement in her tone. ".. everyone but you, apparently."

Her male colleague clenched his jaw and she could swear seeing a vein popping up on his neck.

He couldn't care less about anyone hearing him, everyone knew to better not get on bad terms with him. So the fact she dared provoking him after always staying in line just like the rest, didn't sit right with him.

"Look, smartass," he said through gritted teeth and stepped forward.

Cassandra instinctively taking a step back at this. Trying not to flinch and keep a stern face instead when internally she was beginning to shake.

There was a part of her fearing that she was pushing him too hard. She didn't know him well enough to know how he'd react to that.

She had heard rumours, unsettling ones, though which only added to her dislike towards him. And she wouldn't be surprised if they were true to some extent. But there was also another part of her clenching her fists and standing firm.

"I don't have time for this, my shift ended five minutes ago."

She was ready to walk away when she felt a firm grip on her arm. Preventing her from leaving the spot.

"I'm talking to you though."

Her breath hinched and she looked down at his large hand, then back at him with what was probably the angriest glare Pavlo had ever witnessed on her. And that coming from a usually quiet and harmless person like Cassandra did take him off-guard for a second. Although he quickly found his demeanor again.

"Let go of me," she said, threateningly slowly. Voice low but only because she was trying her best not to jump him right there.

"No, first you -"

"I think she said to let go."

Both their heads abrubtly snapped towards the unexpected third voice. Seeing Taehyung appearing from behind the wall, stepping behind her.

The waves of chocolate brown, straight and and silky , was the first thing she noticed about him as she studied his face. She was startled to see him there.

Taehyung was arching a brow, staring blankly at Pavlo. His piercing glare neither mad nor threatening, rather judgy while staring straight into Pavlo's hazel eyes. Not even blinking once, which made the assistant physician gulp in irritation over the tall stranger. His grip around Cassandra's arm loosening.

"I don't know what you two were arguing about," Taehyung began then, pretending he hadn't eavesdropped the whole conversation. He glanced down at Cassandra before redirecting his glare to the male doctor, "But trust me, you don't want to upset her." And all of a sudden he cracked a grin. Taking them both aback. "Seriously, she looks innocent but she's got a mean upper-cut. And her kick..." He dragged out a whistle. "You don't wanna experience that."

Cassandra stifled a laugh at his acting, quickly understanding what he was trying to do. So she puffed out her chest and threw Pavlo a sinister look instead to play along with Taehyung's white lies.

"Listen to him. He knows what he's talking about," she smirked widely, leaning towards him to add, "From experience."

Pavlo immediately yanked his hand away and let go of her completely. His eyes alternating between Cassandra and Taehyung, shifting bewilderedly.

At one point his lips parted, as if he wanted to retort something, but shut just as fast again. Giving up, not seeing a point anymore.

And without further ado, he trotted back inside. Muttering something incoherent under his breath, clearly embarrassed and upset about the humiliating blow his ego had taken.

Cassandra and Taehyung immediately broke into a fit of laughter as soon as he disappeared.

"Who was that idiot?" The thief huffed then, glancing down at her with a scowl.

She sighed, shaking her head. "Dr. Pavlo Romero Diaz. First class jerk. Low class doctor."

He snorted at this, his irises lingering on the door her colleague had disappeared to before falling back to her. "You okay? Did he hurt you?"

"Nah, I'm fine." She waved him off. However, his eyes caught the clear red mark Pavlo's grip had left on her bare skin and something inside him boiled. Suddenly feeling the urge to go inside and find Pavlo, when her voice interrupted his train of thoughts.

"Huh, what?"

He saw her smiling at his confused face, clearly not having heard anything she'd just said. "I said thanks for the support."

"Oh, that.." he shrugged nonchalantly, shoving his hands into his pockets. "You didn't seem like needing my help anyway."

She wanted to argue, but then again she appreciated how he didn't let her appear as a weakling. "Still, thank you. I might've ended up doing something irrational like kicking him in the balls," she giggled, half-embarrassed about her confession.

He huffed out a chuckle, knowing she'd have probably done it if that jerk wouldn't have let go of her. Giving her a nod then. "S'alright, don't mention it. You know I got your back."

Her cheeks blushed all of a sudden. It was a nice feeling, to know that someone backed her up.

They shared a small smile before Taehyung went behind the wall only to reappearing with the small plant. And he observed her brown eyes widening, a small squeak leaving her lips.

"A jade plant!" She instantly rushed to grab it from his hands, beaming with joy like a child getting a bag of candy.

"Ah, this is what it's called. So you like it?" he asked, amused about how gleeful someone could be over a small plant.

"Yeah, of course! Why wouldn't I?" she grinned, marveling over the random gift. Her eyes then narrowing on him. "Why did you buy me a jade plant though?"

He shrugged as they made their way out of the emergency area and into the parking lot. Catching her tripping over a protruding stone and almost dropping the plant, quickly composing herself. And he tried not to laugh not wanting to embarrass her. "Didn't want to appear with empty hands and besides.. I felt sorry for last time. You know.."

She giggled when recalling the accident of him knocking off one of her succulents, nodding understandingly then. "You didn't have to, but thank you."

The plant had survived back then, but it'd never been the same ever since. Something she still felt sad about it since she really tried taking great care of her plants. However, when the incident had happened, she hadn't said anything because of his apologetic expression. He hadn't done it on purpose after all.

Peeking at him, she couldn't help but smile. She was glad he was there. Not only because of the scene with Pavlo, which who knew how it'd have ended without Taehyung intervening - worst case would've been her indeed punching Pavlo's smug face and getting fired. Taehyung's lie wasn't a complete lie after all.

But she had also genuinely missed his charming grin. More than she liked to admit.

»»»

"So, why are you here?" Cautiously, she put the plant aside not to distress it, making space for the drinks he brought.

Taehyung hadn't promised too much. Inconspicuous from the outside, the door at the narrow alley hid a cool tapas bar in its basement. Cool both, in the colloquial and literal way. A needed escape from the lingering heat outside. The atmosphere still needing several hours to warm down.

He shrugged, taking a tentative sip from his red wine to hide his bashful smile. "It was the furthest away from Macau."

"Huh, so can I expect a postcard from there, too?"

"Of course," he nodded firmly, "Already on its way."

She grinned, still admiring the small plant set in front of her. "What did you do there?" she curiously asked then and folded her hands on the table top to lean in closer. Looking at all sides, seeing themselves getting accustumed to going there whenever he was in town. Whispering excitedly and with a lot of mischief then: "Was it for a heist?"

Her unapologetic curiosity for his profession amused but also worried him. And breathed out before chuckling. "A curious cat as always, Doc," he smirked, "But you know I won't feed into it."

His response made her groan in frustration and she sat back. Giving him a sulky pout. "Oh, c'mon, cool guy. Give me something. You know I like stories of you and the guys robbing filthy rich people. It's entertaining and fun."

The reason he tried avoiding telling her too many infos was so she wouldn't get dragged into this world. Even if, for some absurd reason, she didn't mind his workfield and even held some kind of adoration for it, Cassandra was still a normal person, an overall good person. So he'd keep trying his best to keep her away from this other part of his life. Even if she herself would probably not even mind it, he did. Because selfishly enough, he also did it for that illusion he lived when being with her.

Besides, his main concern remained that by visiting her, she'd sooner or later get in interpol's sight. So it was better when she knew as little as possible.

Yet, when those big brown bambi eyes were sparkling so inquiringly at his direction, he rarely could resist. He exhaled deeply, setting the glass of wine down.

"All I'm gonna say is that Macau is known for its casinos."

Her brows rose at this, her excitement returning. "Please tell me you robbed a casino like in Ocean's Eleven."

"It wasn't like this," he rolled his eyes, "Seriously, you need to stop with these films."

Cassandra, however, simply dismissed him with a beaming face. "You didn't deny robbing one though.."

Pursing his lips, he grabbed his glass again and took a sip. Making her grin only wider.

"Wow.. how did you do it?"

"Surely won't tell you."

The pout found its way back onto her lips and he laughed under his breath. A whole medical doctor, ready to fight her colleague but now sitting there in front of him pouting like a child. She was something.

"Fine," she sighed then, giving up. Her eyes catching the guests at another table playing a boardsgame then. An idea popping up in her mind. She got up and before Taehyung could ask her where she was heading to, she walked to the bar. Returning a minute later with a pleased smile and a stack of playing cards.

Taehyung looking at her with suspicion.

"Let's play a game," she announced then as she started shuffling the cards in her hands and he stifled a laugh at the way she did it. Shoving one half into another and almost dropping some in the procedure. She was struggling a little, it was obvious. There were way too many cards for her smaller hands and she didn't have much practice either. It was cute. So he played along.

"Okay. What game?"

"Whatever you want, I know many."

His eyebrows arched. "Is that so?"

"Mhm," she smiled as she continued her painful looking shuffling. "But have in mind, whoever loses the round has to truthfully answer the winner's questions."

Of course, he snorted, it was a trick to get more details from him. He pitied her though, after all he was good in card games. That was how they robbed casinos after all, by playing and cheating. Although, he didn't think he'd even need to cheat this time.

"Are you sure? I'm pretty good."

"So am I."

His lips folded and he bit down on them. It was adorable how certain she seemed to be, believing she'd have any chance against him. So full of herself. However, he knew not to insult her pride so he decided to go with it.

"Alright. You know how to play Blackjack?"

Quite to his surprise, she nodded virgoriously. Placing the stack down in front of him. "Cut."

He did so, deviding the stack into two. Cassandra taking the one that was underneath, beginning dealing the first open card to him and herself. Then she dealt another open one only to him.

Six and a queen. Sixteen in total. Against her ten.

He looked at his cards, then at her. Determination was set on her soft features and he had to confess, he liked that look on her.

If she drew a six, it'd be a draw. If she drew a seven, eight, nine, ten or an ace, she'd win.

He tapped his fingers on the table top, signaling he wanted another one.

"You sure?"

"I am."

A three. Nineteen in total.

A smug smirk growing on his features as he began playing with his necklace. "Try beating that."

Cassandra's lips moved from side to side, glancing up to see him smile at her with a pitiful look. She huffed. She knew only a ten, face card or ace could save her, but she knew there had to be one in the following cards. Her fingers laid on the deck dramatically before in a swift move, she revealed the top card.

And the corners of her lips curled up.

"King of hearts. I win, cool guy."

He clicked his tongue. "Beginner's luck," he said unimpressed and reached over to shuffle the cards this time. "But fine, a deal's a deal. What do you wanna know?"

"You know what."

Dragging out a sigh, he cut the stack in two to skillfully merge the cards. "While me and Yoongi distracted security by winning constantly and very obviously in the front, Jimin followed the staff bringing the money from the tables to the safes in the back."

Her eyes widened in awe. "That sounds so cool."

"It's not, it's very bad," he chuckled, eyeing her with a wink. "You forget I'm one of the bad guys."

Cassandra only smiled at this though, looking at him fondly before reaching for her own drink and averting her eyes from him.

"You aren't a bad guy, Tae, even if you tried."

He dealt them each one card, before giving her another one.

She had two sevens against his jack of spades.

She tapped her cards and he slid another one to her, but before he could open it, she grabbed his wrist. Giving him an amused smirk.

"What will you give me if I get another seven?"

Taehyung pursed his lips before shaking his head amused about her confidence of getting a Blackjack that quickly. "Don't try pulling a Bugs Bunny on me, there's no way."

Rising one of her brows, she accepted the unspoken dare and let go of his hand. Gesturing for him to open the dealt card. And he did. Observing how surprise drained off any smugness from his face.

A third seven staring back at him.

"Blackjack."

His brows furrowed and he blinked, trying to process what just happened. Eventually nodding then with folded lips. Trying keeping his cool. It was a mere coincidence, surely. "Fine, go ahead. What else do you wanna know?"

"Your necklace.." she said then, catching a glimpse of the golden chain peeking above his collar, "Is there a special reason it's a tiger?"

His eyes went round, following her gaze when his lips tucked into a faint smile. "Ah," he said then, while reminiscing the past for a moment. His eyes finding hers again. "When I was a kid my grandparents used to call me 'little tiger', or something like that. I don't remember exactly anymore, it's been twenty years after all."

"And you're wearing it ever since?"

He nodded, fumbling with the necklace shyly.

"That's sweet." Her voice quieter then she intended, "It must mean a lot to you."

".. yeah, I guess it does."

And she gave him a soft smile, understanding the sentiment behind it now and why he always wore it. Reaching over to get the stack of cards then.

Thirteen rounds and another round of wine later, they set the cards aside.

There were significantly more people around them now as an hour ago.

But Taehyung only had eyes for the young woman who was happily humming another victory tune. Not even trying hiding her joyous grinning anymore.

And he stared at her in admiration but also with a new found respect, feeling much more humbled than before. "How.. how did you do that?"

"Do what?" Cassandra innocently asked as she chunked down the last bit of her second glass of sangria.

She felt the alcohol beginning to kick in as she'd been mindlessly drinking too quickly, once again getting fooled by the sweet taste. She had to be careful if she didn't want to fall asleep or blurt out her deepest secrets. She'd already had to spill some embarrassing things tonight. Like her writing a love letter to her crush in middle school or almost getting caught cheating in a French test, also in middle school.

Taehyung scoffed as they left the table and walked out the bar. A pleasant fresh breeze brushing past their flushed cheeks the moment they exited. "You know what. You won ten out of fifteen rounds."

"Beginner's luck," she shrugged with a teasing grin, making him wet his dry lips before chewing on it musing.

It wasn't like she had persistent on hearing more details of the heist. Despite her liking the stories, as undetailed as he usually kept them, and as much as it was entertaining her to tease him, she respected the fact he didn't like or wanted to talk about them. Instead, she'd asked about other things, more general. Like his first crush or which one was his favorite place they'd been to. And he appreciated it. Hence why he wasn't mad that she beat him in most rounds. More the opposite, he found her beaming face cute whenever she did. He was rather astonished.

"Again, how did you do it?"

Cassandra, holding the small plant securely in her hands, only folded her lips to suppress a sassy remark. Instead she only hummed, pretending being clueless.

They walked down the street towards the beach. The streets glowing under warm lights of lamps and shops surrounding them. Loud laughs erupting from a group at one of the tables of a restaurant they passed by.

"C'mon, tell me," Taehyung pouted then, nudging her arm. His almost whiny tone making her giggle.

"Well, you shouldn't underastimate me next time," she said in a sing-song voice then. And he observed her for a moment with a fond smile.

This girl was full of surprises and perhaps not as pure as he made her out to be after all, he realised.

"I really shouldn't, you're right. So what's your secret, Doc? Are you a secret gambler?"

"Hm.. remember I told you growing up with my grandparents?"

He nodded.

"My grandpa was and still is a highly gifted card player," she explained then, "That's how we mostly passed our time together, so he showed me a thing or two. And as fate willed, we always play Blackjack on New Year's. So Taehyung, I don't wanna hurt your pride, but your skills are nothing compared to my grandpa's."

A nostalgic smile crossed her face as memories of endless summer nights spent playing cards with her grandparents flooded her mind.

He laughed out at this. "To be honest, I'm relieved. Thought you'd tell me you got these skills from one of your films."

She puffed out a breath at his anew teasing of her love for the crime genre. "Oh please. I don't need films for that. My grandpa's the only person I've never beaten in any of these games unless he let me. So really, it wasn't hard to beat you."

"But Blackjack is pure luck, you can't win all the time unless you count cards."

"Was that what you guys did in Macau?" she smirked.

"No, I'm not good at it. I used a-" He abruptly cut himself mid-sentence. Grinning back at her. "Nice try."

She simply shrugged though. "I didn't count cards. I don't even know how to do that."

"Then how -"

"There are some other tricks which help giving you better chances."

"Like what?"

"Family secret."

And he rolled his eyes. "So your family's full of gambling geniuses?"

"No. Just my grandpa."

Cassandra was a book with many chapters, each one of them more thrilling and surprising than the other ones and he began to see her in a slightly different light.

She was still the kindhearted, smart, fun friend he knew. But there was more to her. Way more. He always knew there was more to her, but he couldn't say what. Now he found out one new facette of hers.

"You tricked me," he plainly stated then, making her laugh out.

"How so?"

"You never said you're a card playing mastermind. I feel betrayed."

She faked pity. "Aw. Can I somehow make it up to you?"

"I'll think of something and let you know."

Their gazes met, holding each other's with soft smiles.

Usually, he didn't have an issue looking someone directly in the eyes. In his job, he had to be able doing that without batting an eyelash. However, when it came to her and her gentle eyes, something inside him twitched.

"Well," she slowly began then, letting her eyes wander to the water in the distance. The Mediterranean sea peeking between the building. "Think quickly. When you leave there's no way for me to make it up to you anymore. You'd have to wait till randomly visiting me again.."

Her tone was teasing but he could see a flicker of something more in her eyes before blinking it away. A secret she didn't want to speak out loud. Like the fact it was a pity and sad she couldn't stay in touch with him when he wasn't around.

She knew it wasn't possible. They didn't use phones except if necessary and even then, it was burner phones - untracable for interpol. And yet, she couldn't help but find it an undeniable pity. And he agreed with that.

"I'll hurry up, promise."

»»»

29th August

A week had passed by since Taehyung had stopped by and Cassandra was getting ready for her shift at the hospital. Getting mentally prepared to see Pavlo again after having been spared of his presence for two days. She was tying her shoes when her phone on the side table next to the entrance door lit up. A new text notification appearing on the screen.

[message request]: finally came up with smth :P

»»»

next chapter: 0.5 here

Don't forget to like, reblog & leave feedback!♡ It motivates me to keep writing :)

taglist: @lilanyxta @naoolammao345 @memna234 @tetehion @myblacklilame @nanakamami

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slxsherwriter · 7 months ago

Note

chase harper x reader please ? 🥺

Evening, anon. Thanks for sending in something. I had a few different ideas for this, but Chase just feels like such a good character for fluff, especially compared to some of the other Costas characters. So, I hope you like this! Sometimes, we all need a little fluff and someone there to take care of us when we get too caught up.

Long days as an editor were typical. The sort of territory that just came with the job. But at the twenty hour mark, even you were beginning to struggle. It didn't help, but it had been days of this, all in a row. A heavy deadline loomed and missing it was not an option. Everyone else had opted to go home or get in a nap. Too tired and too mentally fried to properly do the work. Not you. Though, at the moment, you were just starting to regret that decision. Your eyes felt gritty enough that they could have classified as sandpaper while your vision was beginning to double. It was a dangerous incident when you were editing footage for a movie. Coffee. You needed more coffee. Caffeine and a lot of it was the only thing that was going to get you through the rest of this process.

Pausing where you were at, it was an effort to pick yourself up and not fall over. Simultaneously, your limbs felt like lead weights and noodles. Groaning, there was a conscious effort that had to go into each and every movement. The coffee station wasn't all that far from the room that you were in, but with the current level of exhaustion, it might as well have been a one hundred mile walk.

Coffee, sugar, creamer. A simple order of things. Stir it, blow, sip. Thankfully, muscle memory guided you through the process. It took about half the cup for it to really kick in. It wasn't in the suddenly you felt far more lively and awake sort of deal. It was more of a you didn't feel like falling over or passing out standing up sort of deals.

Standing at the station like a gremlin, cup cradled between two hands, you weren't entirely keen on moving. No, let it sink in before you even thought about going back to the tiny room you had been crammed into for far longer than the human psyche could really handle. But that was the way it went with this industry. Work to exhaustion, have little praise or recognition for the work, start the cycle all over again. Even so, you loved it, which was why you stuck with it.

Your cup was just about empty when you were startled out of your moment of peace. A warm arm wrapped around your waist and pulled you back against a broad chest. A nasty comment was sitting on the tip of your tongue when a familiar voice spoke right against your ear.

“Have you been here the whole time?” A glance at the clock confirmed that it was time for others to start leaking back to the studio. Chase Harper was a producer who was hardly ever late to work. And that track record seemed to be holding. You had been at the studio for nearly a full day by now, if the time on the clock was right.

“Yeah. I think this is the first time I've left the room in….six hours?”

“Christ. When was the last time you ate?” Having him worry about you created a warmth in your chest. It was early enough that no one was going to walk in and see the affection traded between the two of you so you felt comfortable turning around in his arms.

“I guess this is the part where I say I don't know, and you aren't thrilled with that answer…” The unimpressed look that he gave told you everything. “It was at some point yesterday. I lost track of time.” He shook his head.

“Come on, you are coming to my office. You're gonna eat and get a little shut eye before finishing whatever it is that needs your attention.” There wasn't any room for negotiating there.

“Your office?”

“Just come on,” he huffed with a small roll of his eyes, though there was a hint of a smile on his lips. His arm slid from your waist, but contact was kept when his hand wrapped around yours.

The two of you had been dating for the better part of three months. Early on, it had been agreed upon to keep the relationship quiet and under wraps. For your sake and his, it was just the easier way to handle things. He had just finished up with a rather vicious divorce. And you? Well, it just seemed easier to let things settle before dealing with all the shit that came with dating a producer. Being seen coming out of his office while you two were likely the only ones here may seem a little obvious. But you were not about to argue because a small nap and a bit of food sounded perfect.

The walk to his office felt like a bit of a blur. You hadn't even realized that he had ordered some breakfast, set to arrive in twenty minutes. Led to the couch, you collapsed and reached up to rub your eyes. The caffeine had given a little boost, but it was quickly fading.

“You just gotta stay awake long enough to be able to eat, okay? Then I’ll wake you up after a short nap.” He settled down beside you and settled an arm around you.

“You stay that close, and you're gonna lull me to sleep instead of keeping me awake.” The soft laugh that rumbled from his chest was felt as you rested your head against his shoulder.

“I can think of a few different ways to keep you awake.” Fingers pressed under your chin gently, so you were forced to tip your head upwards. “Starting with this.” His lips pressed to yours. That was one way to be able to keep you awake. At least until the food arrived. The kiss was slow but not lazy enough that you could fade out into it. Just on the right side of demanding that it forced you to participate and succumb to whatever it was that he had in mind.

Before anything could get too heated, however, his phone rang. He groaned softly but pulled away to grab it. Apparently, the food had arrived, and it was sitting at the front desk.

“I'll be right back.” You nodded as he slipped away and moved out the door. Now that he had started to relax you, it was incredibly difficult to keep your eyes open. Your body swayed a little, and a few times, your head jerked as you started to fall asleep before nearly toppling over and waking up. Standing up, you decided moving was the best bet for you, simply walking around the rather spacious office in a circle.

Chase was back in a flash, holding breakfast for the both of you, with a coffee for himself and a juice for you.

“Here ya go. It isn't gourmet, but it's better than nothing.” You smiled.

“It's perfect. Thank you.” There seemed to be some expectation about how things were perceived with him. But really, you couldn’t have cared less. You certainly weren't dating him because he made good money. You would have dated him if he didn't have a dime to his name. So, you always made sure that he didn’t feel self-conscious about things like this. Quick, cheap meals were always a good way to go when you were running on such little sleep.

Once the food was gone, Chase had directed to lay out on the couch. Apparently, most of the work that he had to do today could be done from his office. At least that was what he said. It could have just been an excuse he used to get you to get a quick nap in. Either way, you weren't going to argue. Sleep was ready to overtake you whether you wanted it to or not. Curled up on the couch, you missed the footsteps that brought Chase over, but the warmth of his jacket that he laid over you as a makeshift blanket was not missed. It smelled heavily of his cologne and caused you to smile, even in your sleepy state.

“Get some sleep, sweetheart,” he murmured. You swore you heard him cancel some meeting this morning as you drifted off, but it was hardly a problem for the present. Nor did you really notice him lifting your head and resting it in his lap, fingers moving through your hair.

#costas mandylor characters #primal doubt #primal doubt fic #chase harper x reader #chase harper x you #chase harper fic #writing requests

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skzoologist · 1 year ago

Text

Unfamiliarity [four]

word count: ~13, 2k

genre: Hybrid AU, no pairings

warnings: panic attacks, heavy signs of PTSD, even heavier hints of being experimented at, past abuse, occasional curse words, hurt/comfort, the inability to recognise and process emotions well, fear of doctors and needles

summary: Bae was making good progress at healing, but then the others decided to house another trauma-magnet.

a/n: Hey-ho! I SO BADLY wanted to post it on Han day, because he finally appears in it, but I was late like, 8 minutes. I am devastated. But at least it still makes sense to read on Felix day, because he channels his babygirl energy in this chapter dangerously well. As promised, here is an even longer chapter, as compensation for disappearing last time, I hope you'll enjoy. At this rate I won't even hit 10 chapters, the story will end because I keep posting over 10k word long chapters...

Please let me know if I left a warning or anything out, I will add it in! Reblogs, likes and feedback are greatly appreciated!

!This is just fiction, my interpretation of Stray Kids. By no means is this how they are and how they behave in real life!

previous II masterlist II next

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“Aagh, the female lead is so stupid! How can she not see he loves her?! It’s painfully obvious!”

I nodded at the raging feline next to me, my arm stolen to be held by him as usual, the motion not even surprising me anymore. Although I did hush him a bit, not wanting to wake anyone up with our late-night program. We usually did it after the human had gone into their room, so I could safely come out of my den without running into them.

Originally, everyone sat together on this sofa, but as the night kept going on and it became later and later, they left one by one, leaving only me and Jin sitting here. Neither of us had a normal sleeping routine, so it wasn’t unusual, really. There were times when the others woke up, only to find us still watching the TV, Jin ranting about something that happened and me silently nodding along, commenting occasionally.

Today seemed to be like that as well, the room slowly brightening around us, our faces not illuminated only by the artificial light of the TV anymore.

It was Lino who joined us first; he usually woke up early to prepare a few things in the kitchen so he could use them to cook breakfast and later lunch with. It never took him too long, his form draped over ours not long after. Being a feline, this usually meant we were his pillows as well; he liked taking short naps throughout the day wherever he deemed it comfortable to do so.

Binnie was usually the next to wake, but only because he went out to train. He would not return for an hour or so, his sweat-drenched form usually disappearing down the halls quickly for a shower.

That was why Channie joined us before him most of the time, Lixie snoring away in one of the rooms peacefully still. Sometimes, they switched up the orders they arrived in; rarely Channie even stayed up with me and Jin when his insomnia acted up. But no matter when, the wolf would always worm his way between my and the felines’ cuddling form. A lot of the time it meant picking someone up and plopping them in his lap; today it was Lino’s turn it seemed.

Lixie’s footsteps reached my ears right as Binnie closed the bathroom door, my attention from Jin’s rant stolen.

“The male lead is just as stupid as the female lead, it’s like they were made for each other. How can she not see the sacred dagger is with him? And how can he not see she is the reincarnation he had been searching for?!” - the agitated leopard half-shouted, making wild gestures with his free hand and tail. “Good mornin’. Another all-nighter?” - Lixie’s even deeper morning voice greeted us and we confirmed his suspicion after greeting him back.

The sleepy snow leopard didn’t even need an invitation to join us, he immediately circled around the sofa and plopped next to the animatedly talking feline. Soon after the little pika sat with us as well, making the pack complete and content; his fresh citrus scent mixing with the bountiful forest’s, calming my nerves slightly, something I appreciated.

Because for the past episode or two, Channie and Lino had been stealing glances at me, their forms strangely tense.

I knew why, of course I did.

It was around the time I would go back to my den, to avoid running into the last inhabitant of the house.

I simply ignored their gazes, my eyes focused on the TV and Jin’s hold on my arm. Lino had his feet draped over my lap too and I gently squeezed one of his calves, hoping it would ease his mind just a bit.

It didn’t take long for the others to catch on too, all except Jin, who was way too engrossed in his TV show. Glances were thrown back and forth, bodies agitatedly shifting around in place. The notion did nothing to help with my own nerves, causing me to gently push Lino’s feet away and drag the drama-loving leopard into my lap. He didn’t protest much, just a surprised little sound leaving his lips before settling into my hold, quiet purrs reverberating in his chest soon after. I nuzzled into his neck, the scent of charcoal and paint familiar and soothing; that underlying cleanness almost non-existent by now.

I could feel his calm pulse, the blood leisurely pumping through his veins. It had a nice rhythm to it; the vein throbbing thrice, no, twice every second.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

One.

Two.

Three.

Stop.

The newly appeared footsteps halted, their owner frozen behind the couch somewhere.

Then they picked up again, softer, quieter.

I gently squeezed the now still feline in my arms, eyes slowly opening to look up from his shoulder, only to be met with the gaze of the human. I nodded at them, gaining a nod back in return. The atmosphere warmed up instantly, everyone around us heaving out a silent breath, as if they forgot how to breathe previously. I simply flicked one of my ears, not fully understanding the reason for their behaviour.

“Ah, good morning, Jisoo-ya. Sleep well?” - Channie’s voice broke the veil of silence, pushing the attention onto the human alone. “Mh, yes, thank you. What about you guys?” - the human answered back, his voice on the deeper side of the spectrum compared to the average human. “We did, except these two idiots -Lino pointed at us-. You’re off to work, right? Breakfast is on the table, eat well before leaving.” - the cat answered him, voice stern as the human just airily laughed and scratched at his neck.

The human thanked Lino and left for the kitchen, his lanky form leaving us to pay attention to the TV show once more.

It was quiet between us.

The male in the kitchen didn’t seem threatening at first glance, really. He had relatively short brown hair that turned golden under the sun, dark pools for eyes that seemed suspiciously warm, and a tall stature, but he always stood in a way to not seem threatening; his form was always open, never guarded. His scent was weird too, just like everything else about him: freshly cut grass with an underlying hint of sweetness.

He didn’t look at me weirdly either after the initial surprise and shock of seeing me still here, he simply acknowledged my presence and talked to the others. No side-glances in my direction, or pitying looks, nothing. He looked at me the way he looked at everyone else, and that scared me to my marrow.

Because he looked at them with so much adoration and love, it hurt.

I nuzzled into Jin’s neck instead, feeling that calming rhythm once more instead. He curled his tail stronger around my right leg in response, body completely lax in my hold. It drew out an elated growl from my throat, only for it to collide with his own happy purrs. Or should I say two separate purring sounds? Because Lixie decided to join in too, his body completely pressed into my side. I pressed my nose into his neck too, cavity-inducing sweetness flooding my senses immediately. He craned his neck further to the side, granting me better access as I nuzzled into him even more.

A kick to my leg on the other side interrupted me.

“Yah, get a room you three, jesus.” - Lino shouted, a playful smirk sitting on his lips.

I merely glared back at him, until I realised what his words meant. My ears and cheeks instantly gained a red colour, embarrassment flooding my veins as I released Jin from my hold, leaning back from the felines as much as I could.

W-we didn’t-...I wasn’t–

“Minho, you interrupted their bonding time, you menace!” - Channie laughed as he playfully slapped the sly cat, who was laughing so hard he almost fell off the couch altogether. “B-but the look on his f-face, haha. It was worth it, oh my god. Even you can’t deny that, Chan hyung.” “Ah, well… Cough Of course we know you guys weren’t doing…that… Sigh I swear to god Lee Know, if you traumatised Bae with this so much he will never try to bond with us ever again, you will change rooms with Felix and bunk with me.” “NooooOOOoooO, anything but that! Let me gooo, you old man!”

“What’s happening here?” - Binnie suddenly asked, his form standing in front of the couch, observing the wrestling duo on the floor.

We merely shrugged, my eyes wandering away as I was still completely embarrassed.

“So you don’t know why you’re so red then, hmm, Bae hyung?” - he sang in a higher pitched voice, merely causing my blush to deepen. “Minho hyung teased him, saying we needed to ‘get a room’ for ourselves. Now he won’t look at us, or even touch us, look.” - Lixie explained, his hand nearing mine, but I hastily pulled it towards my chest, whole body scooting away from them -as much as it could with Jin still in my lap-. “Tch, he’s just jealous, don’t listen to him.” “I’m not! Yah, sToP–” “Yes he is. Now come here.”

With that, the little pika plopped right next to me, cornering me in with the two felines. Channie and Lino were still tangled up on the floor, the wolf having that menace of a cat in his hold. I simply froze up, not seeing any way I could escape from this.

Binnie just laid his head on my shoulder, careful to not put his entire weight on top of me.

“Oh yea, Changbinnie hyung, where were you?” - Lixie asked, his hands finding one of mine and gingerly massaging it, no matter how much I tried to wiggle out of his hold. “Ah, since you all were too busy, I said bye to Jisoo-ya. Helped him with his bags too.” - he casually replied, never once taking his head off of my shoulder. “What! He left already?! I wanted to say bye too…” “Ah, me too…” - Jin commented, worming his way back into my lap properly. “Well, we can all greet him when he gets home, how about that instead?” - butted in Channie, having finally finished wrestling with the sly cat.

I just silently watched as they happily made plans, their love for this human apparent. How could they trust him so easily? It made no sense to me, at all.

“Alright, let’s go and eat breakfast now, otherwise none of you will get lunch later. No, don’t look at me like that Hyunjin, off you go now. That episode of your drama can wait for you after you get back.” - Lino sternly said, ushering us away from the couch towards the kitchen.

While we all sat down around the table, he took out bowls from the fridge and some the microwave -its sound still unpleasant- and placed them in the middle of the table. Their contents all differed, so you could pick and choose from the ones you liked. I gathered some meat and rice with my sticks, not in the mood for vegetables at the moment.

Although the second I took my eyes off my plate, pieces of food appeared on it: some egg, steamed vegetables, things like that. When I looked to my left and right, the obvious culprits just giggled and continued stuffing their faces with the contents of their own bowls. As if their tails weren’t contently swaying behind them, these dummies.

They did this a lot, actually, placing food pieces on my plate. With the others, they bickered over it, stealing each others’ food as if their life depended on it, but with me, it was the total opposite. And when I tried to give them back, they shot me down so fast, I could only blink in response. So with a silent sigh, I ate everything on my plate, even as the portion nearly doubled in size.

“Alright, who wants to play some Monopoly?” - Lixie asked after we all finished, used bowls and sticks now clean and drying.

The others immediately perked up, fighting spirit burning in their eyes. The snow leopard raced to get the mentioned game, the others bounding over towards the couch, pushing things around so we could all sit at the table in the middle comfortably. I sat down with them, the game now being unboxed on the table.

“I wanna be the boot.” - I muttered while snatching the aforementioned figure, excited to play the game after many years.

“Huh?”

I looked up, only to be met with confused gazes. I tilted my head at them, ears flopping around with the motion.

“Don’t you need to choose one to play? I always liked this one. Ah, you wanted it?” - I asked, offering the metal figure to them.

Silence greeted me back, making my eyebrows only draw closer towards each other.

“Ah, uh, no, baby, you can have the boot. Then, everyone knows how to play I assume? Bae, Hyunjin?” - Channie finally answered with a pointed stare at the others, me and Jin nodding at the question directed towards us.

And thus, the long and arduous journey of us playing Monopoly started.

By the end, there was money thrown everywhere, the board was flipped upside down -courtesy of Lixie, who was crying on the floor under the table-. Lino was minutes away from murdering a very boastful Hyunjin -who had somehow won, even though he almost went bankrupt several times-, had a very tired looking Channie not held the cat back. Changbin simply gave up playing halfway, pouting and stuffing his face with snacks while watching us from the couch. And I was just a silent spectator of it all, because I was in jail 90% of the game.

Or, you know, some regular, fun Monopoly times.

I sighed in amusement, silently picking up the thrown away game pieces from the floor -some of them were even near the stairs and the kitchen, impressive-. The figures and little house pieces went into one hand, the paper money and cards into the other. Once my hands were full, I crawled back towards where I originally sat and placed everything down, turning around to gather more. This cycle needed to be done a few times before I collected them all, then I started assorting the money and cards out. Same coloured ones went into the same pile, and soon enough, I was done and ready to put them all away into the box.

By the time the others stopped their shenanigans, I was done packing up the game completely, now sitting next to a sulking Lixie and caressing his forehead. He hit his head on the table when he tried to sit up, the spot slightly red and angry. With how many times this had happened, you would think he did something unforgivable against these pieces of wood.

“Lix, look here.” - the wolf said, his fingers swiftly putting a bandaid onto the leopard’s forehead. “Be more careful mate, I’m afraid you’ll get permanent brain damage at this rate.” “Oi, it ain’t that bad.” “Felix, last week you hit your head so hard, there was a bump on it for several days.” - Binnie commented, earning a glare from the injured feline. “Oh come on…” “Hey, at least you can join Bae in the clumsy club.” - it was Lino this time, earning both of our glares as a reward.

Had Jin not stopped me from getting up, I would have pounced on that kitty cat.

Realising how late it had gotten, Lino went to make lunch, everyone else piling on top of the couch, Channie joining them after putting away the board game. I sat with them as well, although a bit further away this time, having had enough physical contact for a while.

“Wait, Bae hyung, you’re not helping Minho hyung this time?” - Lixie sweetly asked from Binnie’s hold.

I merely shook my head in response, still not over the cat’s teasing comment.

“Hang on, baby, are you pouting?” “No.” - I said but as I looked away, my eyes locked with the working feline’s in the kitchen, a wide grin spreading across his face. “Oh he definitely is!” - he shouted, making my ears burn in embarrassment.

I could only cover my face with my hands to hide, pulling my tail up to it as well for maximum coverage.

What was with them and making me absolutely and completely flustered lately?

Channie only giggled at my reaction, saying something along the lines of ‘shy baby’, Lixie and Binnie joining him. Jin wasn’t far behind, quickly realising he liked seeing me like this as well, much to my demise.

Weighing my choices, I immediately realised staying in the living room was to my disadvantage, so I hastily stood up -wobbling and almost hitting the arm of the couch on my way- and went into the kitchen. Dealing with one sly cat was still easier than dealing with four teasing hybrids.

"Look who showed up." - he greeted me, mischief flashing in his eyes.

I only glanced in his direction as a response, too tired to do anything else. As if sensing it, he stopped with the comments and teasing, peacefully telling me what to do in the kitchen.

We started gaining a certain rhythm the past few weeks, one we easily fell back into.

Thanks to it, the food was done in no time, the table ready and made. We quickly called the others to eat, lunch going much like how breakfast did. Maybe there was a bit more bickering than usual, everyone still feeling the effects of that Monopoly game, but nothing too tragic happened.

Soon enough we were on that sofa again, a sappy romance movie playing on the TV, like it usually did. I swear, if it wasn't Jin's series, then it was some kind of random, romance movie. Nothing else.

Its story was bland, not too bad, but not that good either. My interest quickly diminished, not helping the sudden feeling of exhaustion that swept over me. Not having slept for the night finally caught up to me, pulling my eyelids closed even as I fought against it.

But I couldn't win, sleep taking over me, head lolling onto the back of the couch.

-.-

Soft murmurs woke me up, the voices hushed and soft around me.

“Hyung, you knew this was coming sooner or later, we have to tell him.” “I know, I know, but…” “Chan hyung, it’s gonna be alright. He’s not as fragile as you think.”

The wolf merely sighed, as if the weight of the world sat upon his shoulders. I raised an arm to rub at my eyes before opening them, seeing everyone gathered together a small distance away from me. A quick stretch later I gazed up at them with a tilted head, not understanding, nor liking how tense they all seemed as they slowly approached me.

“Baby, you know how you’re part of our pack, right?” - Channie asked, his hands gingerly taking mine into their hold.

I nodded back with uncertainty, because even though I had a hard time wrapping my head around it, they always made sure I knew. I had no idea why they decided to accept me, the concept foreign to me, but every single time I thought about it, warmth spread through my veins.

It still felt like a lie to me.

“And because you are, we value your opinion too. So… how would you feel about a potential new pack member?”

A new… what now?

I glanced at Jin, the latest addition to the pack. It felt natural to have him around by now, his presence soothing, if not chaotic at times with his dramatic personality.

But it wasn’t always like that.

It pained me to remember the days we avoided the other, how he flinched whenever our gazes met. The way my body tensed up even against my will whenever I caught a whiff of his scent, how it reminded me of times I wished I could forget.

What if the other hybrid would react like that as well?

As if sensing my spiralling thoughts, the wolf gently squeezed my hands.

“Jisoo-ssi met a hybrid in the rehabilitation centre. We already met him one by one, but we don’t want to continue with things until we know you’re fine with it. He’s a sweet little squirrel hybrid, timid for sure, but he would never judge you, if that’s what you’re afraid of.” “Mhm, you don’t have to be scared of that, Bae hyung. He doesn’t care about how you look like, or what you smell like. Right, Hyunjinnie?” - Lixie added in as he sat down on my other side, the taller leopard humming in response. “He likes to eat and he’s not afraid of this house cat. What more proof do you need?” “What’s that supposed to mean, you little pika?” “Nothing!” “Guys, not now.”

The two immediately shut up at the wolf’s warning, only continuing to glare at each other.

“Will…you guys come too?” - my voice was quiet, unsure if I had the right to ask this of them. “Of course we will! As a matter of fact, we were thinking that we could visit him right now, if ya wanted to. Jisoo-ssi’s already there, waiting for our answer.” - Channie enthusiastically answered, his hand ruffling my hair aggressively.

Everyone started excitedly rushing around the place, each going to their rooms to get ready as fast as they could. I followed their example, walking up towards my room to change into a different set of loose pants and a hoodie. Maybe I could wear that red one? Or maybe that black one, with the thumb holes?

After a few minutes of thinking, I settled on the comforting black hoodie that now draped over my tall form, ready to depart.

Arriving back at the living room, mostly everyone was there, except Jin, who was still unable to decide between two shirts. Lixie just rolled his eyes and went to help him, the pair arriving back not even a minute later. Soon we were walking towards the car after getting our shoes on -such an uncomfortable thing, really-, and off we went towards that centre thing, sadly only after the wolf put that dreaded collar on me.

-.-

Fitted with a hat and a mask once more, I stepped out of the vehicle, only to have my arm immediately snatched by Lino. He didn’t even spare me a glance, just started walking towards the entrance of the building once everyone was ready to go.

And holy shit, there were a lot of people inside.

Everything hit me at once: the cacophony of smells, the rushing form of humans and hybrids, the sounds that bled together in disharmony.

It was all too much, my body already protesting and begging me to turn around and run away; to just shut down silently in a corner, surrounded by walls.

“Come on, this way baby.” - rang Channie’s soothing voice through my ears over the chaos, grounding my overwhelmed self.

His warm hand gently pushed on my rigid back, urging me forward along with the two hybrids holding my hands; they led me through the sea of people, their human now standing before us in a much less crowded space.

“Everyone okay, nothing happened while coming here?” - the tall human said -he was taller than even Hyunjin, i noticed-, worried eyes sweeping over all our forms. “No, no, we’re okay, no need to worry.” - the wolf replied, his hand still resting between my shoulder blades. “You’re always such a worrywart, Chan hyung has driven a lot of times before, have some faith in him.” - Lixie butted in, swinging our conjoined hands quite happily. “Yea, besides, we’re not children!” - at Changbin’s comment, the human levelled at him a stare so cold, the words froze into his shrinking form.

They all just laughed at his misery, some even doubling over and wheezing for air.

“Now that you all laughed yourselves out, kids, let’s go before we grow old just standing here. Wouldn’t wanna worry our little squirrel either, now would we?” - the human sent a wide smile at us and walked away, his steps seemingly confident in their path.

The walls along our journey were colourful, vibrant, hand-painted symbols and figures cluttering their forms. The overhead lights were warm, not too bright, but not too dim either; my eyes quickly adjusted to them without the need to squint or blink excessively. The air was fresh, a slight breeze pushing past our walking forms, carrying along the confusing mess of scents.

I… didn’t expect this.

Where was the white, the dull walls, the blindingly bright cold light, the stuffy, clean air? The quiet, neverending halls, the thick doors?

Where was it all?

“...ople can enter, 4 of you will have to stay behind, sorry.” - a different human’s voice slowly registered in my mind, body immediately going fully rigid once more.

When did this one appear?

“Oh, it’s alright, I’ll stay behind with Hyunjin, Felix and Changbin hyung. You three can go in, how about that?” - their human answered, his gaze landing on us.

Channie and Minho responded, a squeeze on my hand and a little push on my back was all I got before I was ushered into a small room, the only occupant already up and walking around nervously. Lino squeezed my hand once more before letting go and joining the unknown hybrid, the two interacting as if they were long lost friends. My presence was momentarily forgotten by the duo, something I used to my advantage in observing this new place and hybrid.

The air was filled with the salty smell of the ocean, as if it was trying to drag me down and drown me in its depths. I didn’t need to take a deeper breath to feel it, my sensitive nose able to feel it even with the smallest intake of air; just the thought alone made my stomach roll violently. The source of the smell was the jumpy little squirrel; small little ears peeking from his mop of dark brown hair, a bushy tail curled up behind him. They all shared light colours, like grey and white, immediately tickling me strangely.

Usually squirrels were some type of brown or red coloured, maybe even black. But he had a different colour scheme, one that for some reason didn’t sit well with me. One that was slightly familiar, but not fully? It was weird, really weird.

Before I could dwell on it more, the wolf -who i had forgotten about in all honesty- led me to a chair, wordlessly telling me to sit down. I abided, even though we were closer to the two conversing hybrids now as a result, causing my body to shudder. I wasn’t paying attention to their conversation, but a whisper of ‘Is he okay?’ hit my ears, causing my brows to furrow. Was the squirrel talking about me?

“Baby, I’ll get you some water, stay here, I’ll be right back.” “N-no, don’t–” - I tried to say, but why did my voice waver and shake so much?

Oh… my whole body was shaking.

“Jisung-ssi, can we move some of your things from a corner of the room? Preferably one that has the least of your scent.” “Y-yea, uh, l-lemme help, here.”

There was some shuffling and moving around as I desperately clung to Channie, his familiar scent my last line of defence before I completely gave up and emptied my stomach then and there. He held me close, hand rubbing little circles into my shoulder, providing me the minimum of comfort he could.

Why was this happening to me? Again?

Was I so weak that being in a new place caused me to crumble and become undone so easily? Was I really?

I hated this so much. So, so much.

“Alright baby, I’m gonna pick you up, is that alright?” - his gentle voice asked and I merely nodded, too busy trying to control my body and not appear any weaker in front of them, if that was even possible.

True to his words, he picked me up, my body gingerly placed in an empty corner of the room, the walls feeling nice and cool as I pressed into them for more. In that chase of the calming cold, I let my head fall back with closed eyes, no doubt messing up the hat that sat upon it. But I really did not care about that at the moment, not at all, that was the least of my worries.

Feeling that the walls had more or less warmed up thanks to my feverish skin, I let my head fall onto my knees that were pulled close to my chest, the position slightly helping me with my nausea.

“Bae, can you hear me?” - Lino’s voice reached my ears, a hum leaving my lips as a response.

“Baby, do you want to leave the room?” “Nno… outside worse… nausea” - I somehow gritted out and opened my eyes, not feeling the room spinning anymore.

Worried gazes and scents greeted me back, only causing my ears to push into my head under the hat even more in guilt.

“Sorry, am good now.”

“You don’t have to be sorry, baby, you did nothing wrong. Do you need anything to make you feel better?”

I merely shook my head as an answer, the guilt not dissipating in the slightest.

I felt like a burden, always needing some type of care and special attention. They couldn’t go out with me and not worry, someone always having to be by my side and literally hold my hand.

It was frustrating.

I was frustrated with myself.

“Y-you know, it always helps me to cuddle with a plushie after an episode. The bigger, fluffier, better smelling, the better. I would lend you one, but that would be uh… quite counterproductive, dontcha think?” - the squirrel quietly said, his far away sitting form almost in the middle of the room; his comment made a sweetly mellow smelling hoodie appear in my arms, my appendages gathering the fabric together in a ball and cuddling it.

“Counting my breathing and tapping to it also helps. Sometimes it gives nice ideas for songs too, heh.” - and he was right, silently following my breathing did smooth it out a bit.

Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath of the hoodie in my arms, I could feel my pulse calming and the knot in my stomach slightly unwinding. It wouldn’t become completely undone, no, not when I was not in my den, my home, but being in this room was still a much better choice than being out in that busy hallway.

Opening my eyes once more, I inhaled that comforting scent yet again and looked at the owner of the hoodie. His expression softened out, eyes slightly crinkling up in happiness. His scent sweetened, taking me to that flower field I loved so much.

And that field was surrounded by the vast forest, moss and other creatures abundant in it. It felt freeing, something I desperately needed in this closed off building. And Chan gave it to me, his dimples peeking out as a reward when I glanced at him.

My chest felt lighter, the room becoming brighter.

But through it all, the underlying smell of salt and wind and rain remained there.

Glancing at the last occupant of the room, my eyes met with the squirrel’s, his dark ones lighting up in response. He smiled, lips turning heart-shaped and I just didn’t understand.

Why was he so happy? Was it because I looked at him?

Why?

I could only tilt my head in confusion before nodding at him from behind the hoodie in my arms, thankful for his advice. He let out a breath he held, his form sagging as he laid down on the floor. The other two next to me lightly laughed at his reaction, their forms sagging a bit too and sitting down heavily on the floor from their crouched position.

I had no idea what was happening, but they smelled fine and they were laughing and smiling, so I guessed it was okay. Even though it made no sense to me.

“Bae, you sure ya don’t need anything?” - Chan asked once more, Lino looking at me as well.

I just shook my head, but then realised something.

“Go, calm the others down. They smell panicked. Worried.” - I grated out, my throat still clogged up and voice raspy.

I didn’t need to tell them twice, Chan was out the door in an instant, his surprise from my statement wearing off quickly. I could hear them through the wall, my worry proven to be right. As Chan was speaking, their scents slowly turned back to their normal state, becoming less sour and tainted.

It allowed me to let out a sigh of relief, my brows letting up a little.

“Bae, did you smell them?” - Lino’s soft voice cut through the silence, gathering my attention immediately. “Mhm.” “I’m always amazed by how impressive that nose of yours is. We couldn’t, not even Chan. And he’s the pack leader.”

Ah, so that was why the wolf looked so surprised initially. I nodded back at the cat back slowly, unsure what to make of this. But before I could think more on the matter, the smell of sand and sun picked up, the little squirrel in the centre of my attention.

“Ah, s-sorry, I just wanted to stand up and stretch a bit. I won’t go closer, promise!” - the herbivore quickly added in, his arms flailing around in panic.

I gently shook my head in response, silently telling him that it was fine. I could handle the smells for now, Lino’s hoodie strong enough to deter them until I could fight them off by myself. But if that skittish boy made himself panic even more, causing his smell to become the epitome of salt and storm, I would probably empty my stomach sooner rather than later.

So I looked next to me, at the sitting form of our cat, and I made sure to look into his eyes, then look back at the squirrel a few times. His eyebrows furrowed, mouthing an ‘Are you sure?’, but I nodded at him firmly.

With a last squeeze of my arm, he stood up and went to the squirrel, dragging him to the bed in a half-hug. They plopped onto it with a force, only thanks to Lino.

“E-eh? But, but the wolf, he-” “Will be fine, Han. He asked me to come to you. See? No need to be afraid. Told you he will like you.”

They whispered back and forth, probably thinking I couldn’t hear them. But I could, my ears flicking once or twice in response, messing up the hat even further. Their conversation went away from me quickly though, venturing into the territory of everyday topics and similar interests. I tuned them out soon after I realised that, not wanting to eavesdrop.

There was no need for that now.

The door opening stole my attention, my head craning to the side to see the wolf creeping in, quickly shutting the door gently after he squeezed himself through. His face lit up when he saw I was already watching him, those dimples of his apparent.

“Hiii baby, how’re you doin’?” - he sang out as he sat back next to me, the lush forest back with full force in my senses.

Before I could even hum in response, he playfully glared at me, making me huff.

“Fine.” - I replied instead vocally, not happy about the situation. “Good job baby. Brought you some water, in case you actually needed it.”

I thanked him quietly and took the offered bottle, my limbs aching from the sudden movement. The joints groaned and popped, my muscles tensed and relaxed. My position suddenly felt uncomfortable, everything ached and protested. Still, I took the bottle and with a satisfying pop, it was open, the contents downed in a matter of seconds.

Licking my lips to catch an escaping droplet, I wiped my face with the sleeve of my own hoodie and put down the now empty bottle onto the ground. I felt fine enough, my stomach not rolling in waves of nausea, so I gently stood up and watched the two on the bed cuddle and talk.

“You can join them, ya kno’.” - Chan’s whisper entered my ears, his form next to me as he gently grabbed my shoulders.

I glanced at him, then back at the two.

“Or ya can stay here. It’s fine.”

With a squeeze, he finished what he wanted to say and grabbed the empty water bottle, going to the little trash can on the other side of the room to dispose of it.

But I stayed in my spot.

The two hybrids seemed to be absorbed in their own world, their scents happy and content. Their eyes shined in the other’s presence, their smiles just a bit brighter.

When they caught me staring, they directed those smiles at me, the squirrel even shyly waving in my direction. My eyes widened in surprise, but I tried to wave back, my hand half-raised and stiff. They both laughed at that, but no malice was in it. No, the sound was light as it rang through the air, as if we were home in our den, the pack together and having fun.

A knock broke the serene atmosphere.

Their human peeked his head in, searching for Chan and looking at him with an apologetic expression as he whispered a ‘We need to go, sorry.’ to him. The wolf nodded back, then the door closed again and we were alone in the heavy atmosphere.

I watched as Lino said goodbye to the little herbivore, the latter looking really sad. But the cat ruffled his hair and promised him that he would come back soon, improving the mood a little.

The wolf was next, playfully tousling the squirrel’s hair as well, promising him the same thing. With a final hug, they were done, all eyes set on me.

I waved at the little hybrid, slightly dreading going out to the hallways again. He waved back with a small smile, something sad hidden on his face.

The other two hybrids walked to the door, looking at me expectantly to join them.

And yet, I didn’t.

No, I looked back at the sad little boy on the bed and walked up to him, fidgeting slightly in my spot once I reached him. He looked up at me, eyes wide and glistening.

“Can I… Can I ask for something of yours?” - my voice was so quiet, it was a miracle he heard it at all. “Oh uh, of course, what would you like?” - he quickly answered after he got over his surprise, expression brightening.

“Just. Just something that has your scent on it.” - I muttered out, embarrassed of my request.

His whole face lit up after a few seconds, quickly standing up and scrambling around for something to give me. Eventually he settled on a big plushie, just the right size for cuddling. He shyly extended it towards me, and I took it, equally embarrassed. I was sure my cheeks were gradually heating up with every second, and gosh did I not want the others to see it. I wouldn’t be able to escape their teasing…

Hugging it to my chest in my arms, the smell of sunshine and salt hit me, along with the scent of mellow flowers. Only then did I realise I was still clutching onto Lino’s hoodie as if it was my lifeline, my knuckles white from the force. I quickly relaxed my hold, nodding in thanks to the little herbivore and taking a last glance at his now much brighter expression as he waved at us.

The door closed and the chaotic arrangement of smells was back, making me lean down and bury my nose into Lino’s hoodie that was draped partly over the plushie. Looking up afterwards, I was met with the playful look on Lino and Chan’s faces, and the surprised and somehow betrayed look on everyone else’s.

I tilted my head at that, not sure why they looked at me like that. Their human merely chuckled, pushing Lix into my direction. That broke the boy out of his stupor, quickly coming up to me and looking into my eyes with his own sparkling ones.

“Is that Jisung’s? Is that plushie Jisung’s, Hyung? Is it?” - he rambled out and I lightly nodded at that, holding it out for him to take if he wanted to.

The boy snatched it quickly, looking at it and back up at me in disbelief.

“Channie hyung, are ya sure Bae hyung is fine? He didn’t hit his head or… he didn’t get any permanent side effects or anything…?” “I can assure you Lixie, that is the Bae you’ve known from the beginning.” - the wolf answered back, a playful lilt in his voice.

Lix looked at the cat next, disbelief still evident on his face. But Lino merely nodded, amused by the whole shenanigans in front of him. A hand was suddenly on my forehead, my out of place hat not helping in blocking it.

“You don’t feel hot either. That can only mean one thing: Hyung, you betrayed us! You like him more than us!” - there went Jin with his theatrics, looking hurt.

I quickly learned that he was just faking it, his scent easily betraying his true mood. And he was just mildly annoyed, if at all. But behind his tall form was a pouting little pika, his arms crossed in front of his chest and his lower lip jutting out. He was half turned away from me, his usually fresh scent a bit too sour.

Was he… was he actually hurt by my actions?

He kept glancing at me and away, but as he saw my expression he suddenly walked in front of me and hugged me, his face smushed into my chest.

“Stupid Bae hyung, I’m not actually angry at you. But I do require cuddles from you when we get home! As payback!” - his voice was loud, even muffled. “Hey, me too!” - Lix butted in, quickly catching up to the situation. “Me three!” - Jin shouted in as well, making me start to dread going home. “Yah, don’t leave us out! Right, Minho?” - Chan said as he giggled, Lino sighing because he knew he couldn’t back out of this one.

And that cat enjoyed it anyway, he just denied it. I could tell.

Glancing over their forms, my eyes reached their human’s, his expression gentle and warm. When he noticed I was watching him, his smile widened a tad bit before he looked away, telling the others that it was time to go home. They whined a bit, but eventually started following the human, Lix taking his hand and swinging it around happily. This drew a laugh out of the human, but his grip only tightened on the feline’s small hand. The excited feline’s scent sweetened impossibly, his happiness apparent to everyone around them.

Changbin went to the other side of the human, chatting with the two, a big smile on his face. He hooked his little pinky together with the human’s, the latter quickly accepting it without hesitation. The herbivore’s scent was the freshest I had ever felt, the citrus mixing with the candy and happily wafting through the air.

That was when I’d truly realised just how important that human was to them.

My eyes drifted to that familiar hand holding mine, the motion feeling a bit wrong now. Would they leave me if I disliked their human? Would they force me out, just because of that? What would they do if I accidentally attacked him when I wasn’t myself? When the terrors of my past choked the life out of me?

What would they do then?

As if sensing my thoughts, I felt a small squeeze on my hand. Looking up, I saw that he wasn’t looking at me, no, he was invested in talking with the other three in front of us, but the way his grip subtly tightened felt good. It felt comforting, as if I was needed.

Looking to my other side, where my other arm was clutched at, I saw Jin. His hold was gentle, careful to not twist the hoodie out of my hold against my chest. He occasionally ran his thumb over my arm, going back and forth in a soothing motion. Maybe he did it unconsciously, or maybe he didn’t, but I appreciated it nonetheless.

Glancing slightly behind me, I was met with Chan, the plushie I got from the little squirrel under one of his arms -why and how it ended up with him, i had no idea-. He smiled at me brightly, his dimples fully on display. It eased the knot in my chest, his expression softening. His hand reached towards my head, fixing my hat and brushing a few stray strands of hair out of my face. His eyes roamed over my form and with a satisfied hum, he turned towards the others and told them we were ready to go.

When did we stop and for how long had we been standing there, I had not the slightest idea.

I only blinked at them as I was tugged away by my arms, soon sitting in that hateful car and speeding off towards home.

-.-.-

The next few days after our visit to the little squirrel went by uneventfully. Mostly.

I spent my days in the presence of others, like I usually did. I watched his shows with Jin, providing him company. I cooked with Lino, even though he teased me and for some reason seemed really interested in my bottom. Changbin and Felix usually stole me away from the others for cuddles, sometimes even at night. And Chan…

Well, Chan felt stressed.

His scent was off, the forest drowning in rain and the roots rotting. I could feel it immediately, the smell hitting me after he disappeared to talk with the human. And I suspected he knew it too, because he had been avoiding me as much as he could. No more was the cuddly, giggly wolf, there was only an awkward, colder version in its place.

I hated it.

So the next time I caught a glance of the human -because Channie shut himself in a room-, I decided to take action. Carefully extracting the sleeping snow leopard off my form, I hastily strode towards the kitchen where my target resided. He was getting himself a cup of water, but he must not have heard me, because as he turned around, he almost immediately dropped it.

“Jesus christ, you fucking scared me.” - he whispered out, a hand clutching his chest in panic.

I apologised, my ears lowering towards my head in guilt. It was never my intention to scare him, I just wanted to talk, nothing else.

“Don’t worry, I’m just a scaredy cat. The others like to tease me for it actually.” - he chuckled out, waving his hand in the air in a dismissive manner, causing me to relax a bit.

“So, what brings you here?”

I looked at him as he was watching me, sipping on his drink and waiting for my reply patiently. He didn’t seem annoyed or angry, his faint scent still the same, giving me enough courage to actually ask him what I had wanted to.

“3 days ago, what did you talk about with Chan?”

He lowered his cup, his expression dimming immediately. His eyes had a sad glint in them, even though his lips were slightly curled up.

“So you noticed, huh? Agh, Channie hyung, you always make stupid decisions when trying to protect others. Come, I’ll tell you.” - he grunted out, a hand messing up his hair in stress.

I raised an eyebrow, not understanding why we needed to change rooms, but followed him nonetheless.

His smaller form led the way into one of the boys’ rooms, hand still messing with his hair, all the while muttering light profanities at the wolf and the situation. It was a bit amusing, to be quite honest, because he wasn’t truly angry. No, he still smelled like cut grass next to a candy shop, even if it was a bit sour now, as if the shop closed for the day.

“ Sigh The reason why he’s avoiding you is because some problems came up… regarding you. No, no, not with you, just about you! Don’t look like a kicked puppy, please!” - he said as he leaned against the door, arms frantically flailing around at the end.

Before I really had any chance to think about what he said and start thinking how they might be planning on getting rid of me, he continued.

“Remember when you were out clothes shopping with the boys? Apparently you caught the eye of a few people, desperate to learn more about you and your species. They’ve gone so far as to approach me about buying you when we went to visit Ji. The fucking gall of those people. Had Hyune and the others not been there, I would have punched them in the face straight up. That’s what we’ve been working on, just me and Chan. But they’re really persistent, no matter what we do, they keep making a scene on the internet. It’s giving me a headache, in all honesty. Chan’s avoiding you because he didn’t want you to know, to worry and potentially have an attack. You already have enough on your plate, he didn’t want to add more onto it.”

The human, no, Jisoo rambled on, massaging his head in frustration and exhaustion. Now that I paid more attention, there were dark circles under his eyes, his skin was even paler than usual and his voice quiet, borderline whispering.

I felt…conflicted, weird.

He… he’s been protecting me this whole time, and I was afraid he was planning on doing the exact opposite of that. Just the thought made me push my ears into my head, tail lifeless and between my legs. My lips curved slightly downwards, my chest feeling heavy with emotions.

He did all that, even though…

“Bae hyung?”

Even though he probably knew what I had done. What I had been running from all this time.

“Hey, do you need me to call one of them here for you? Just sit down, please.”

It hurt.

“You knew all this time, didn’t you?” - my voice whispered out, eyes cast downwards and hands clutching my hoodie. “Knew what?” - he asked back, voice now impossibly soft. “You never asked questions. Not about my species, my presence in this house, your house, and not about my previous owners. Even though you must have gotten access to my files after the checkup.”

His legs entered my downcast vision, a hand slowly reaching towards mine. I could have stepped away at any given chance, but… I didn’t. No, I simply stood there, letting him take one of my hands into his, allowing him to gently cradle it.

“I do.”

He didn’t say anything more. No, he just stood there in silence, holding my hand and drawing shapes in it as my vision blurred and lower lip wobbled.

Jisoo said nothing as he allowed me, a murderer, to silently cry in the room, giving me comfort I didn’t deserve.

-.-

After that fateful day, Jisoo must have told Chan about what happened, because the wolf just stopped avoiding me completely. He greeted me with an apologetic smile, allowing me to wrestle him into my lap with a huff.

Fucking idiot, worrying me and the others.

Because while they knew about the situation, what he’s been dealing with, they were still incredibly worried and wanted to help. Help, that finally wasn’t rejected by him, lightening up the atmosphere immediately.

So as we were just sitting on the living room’s couch, Channie in my lap as I completely engulfed his giggling form, he and the others were talking about possible solutions for the thorn in their side. I didn’t understand a lot of it, only some computer-related words making sense to me.

“What if we just dox them?” “Felix, we can’t just do that!” - Chan immediately shot down the idea, causing the others to groan in protest.

I just sighed and buried my head into his neck, unwanted wisps of past conversations and scenarios popping into my head. Back when I wasn’t like this, when I had a stable job and a clear future.

“Just let them be.”

Getting no response, I looked up from my hiding place and was met with surprised and confused expressions.

“Baby, we can’t just do that. It’s your life on the line.” “Yeah, what makes you say that?” - Felix asked me, his brows furrowed and lips slightly jutted out in a pout.

I sighed out at what the two said, tired of this already.

“My face and ears were hidden, right? Then it’s fine, they can’t recognise me. Besides, if you really won’t sell me, they’ll give up eventually, just keep rejecting them.” - I replied, head laying on Channie’s shoulder as a wave of exhaustion hit me. “Oh my god, I’ve never heard him speak so much.” - Lino added in, a genuine shocked expression sitting on his face along with the others’.

I furrowed my brows at that, rolling my eyes in response. First I didn’t speak enough, then I spoke too much.

“Good job baby, I’m so proud of ya!” - the wolf giggled out as he wriggled in my hold, reversing it even against my protests.

Eventually I accepted my fate, laying in his arms as he cooed at me. Although that proved to be the wrong decision, as the others came to their senses and piled on top of me. Even that menace of a cat, only to slap my bottom and earn a strangled sound out of me. I couldn’t retaliate or stop him even if I wanted to, Channie and the others basically held me down as they snuggled into me, as if they wanted to crawl into my skin.

Needless to say, the felines started purring immediately in the cuddle pile, while Channie let out elated growls and Binnie just happily absorbed it all, occasionally giving out his own short, high-pitched chirps. Their scents enveloped me, allowing me to take a moment and walk in my favourite place and relax.

My eyes crinkled as I saw the trees were now enveloped in sunlight, the rot in their roots now nowhere to be found. Even though the wind sometimes picked up, it was quickly balanced out by the scent of sugar and citrus it carried along. They danced around in the air as I ran, following a path that I took so many times that I knew it by heart, just to arrive in that flower field with an easel in the middle. The flowers were still mellow, their colour faint and pastel. But they were constantly there, livening up the place with their presence. The easel had a canvas on it, paint tubes sitting on the little shelf at the bottom. The white fabric had splotches of colour, all different, yet harmonising perfectly.

It was my safe haven.

The thought wasn’t scary anymore, I was happy that I had a place I could call my own. To call people my own.

No, I wasn’t afraid of that, not anymore. Only the thought of what I would sacrifice for them froze the blood in my veins.

Because deep down, I already knew the answer.

-.-

When I awoke, I found myself on the couch, a blanket draped over my form. The room was plunged into darkness, only the soft light of the moon illuminating the furniture.

I was alone, the warmth of the others having lost disappeared, yet the blanket still smelled strongly of them.

Slowly sitting up, my joints cracked and popped, making a satisfied sigh leave my form. I draped the blanket over my shoulders, its scent giving me a sense of comfort. As I silently padded over to the kitchen -my throat was absolutely parched-, I thought over what to do.

Sleep eluded me the moment I opened my eyes, having slept over most of the afternoon, so that was out of the question. Watching something on the TV was also in a similar situation, because I was afraid it would wake someone up accidentally. And also because they still wouldn’t let me use the remote by myself. I had no idea why.

But then a ray of moonlight caught my eye, its faint, bluish shine drawing my gaze to its source. The moon looked alluring, its form full and radiant.

Not even a minute later I found myself on the patio, sitting down on the small stairs that led to the lush grass and laying against the railing next to me.

It was peaceful, something I never really had the chance to just… admire. To take a moment, sit down and relax, enjoy what was around me.

Living on the streets was stressful.

But now, I didn’t have to worry about that anymore, something still hard to believe. The others worked hard everyday to drill it into my head, so it wasn’t a foreign concept anymore, but still.

I could just sit down and gaze at the moon whenever I wanted to, not needing to look over my shoulder every second. So I did exactly that, letting my mind wander around from topic to topic, creating new worlds and stories.

I didn’t even know how long I had been sitting there, until the scent of charcoal and paint caught my attention, the sound of footsteps soon following. My ears flicked in response, my body still relaxed, knowing it was just Jin and I was safe.

He soundlessly sat down onto a chair behind me, granting me a silent companion for the night. I didn’t mind, his presence soothing on the cold night, thankful that he didn’t cuddle up to me. I hit my limit for the day with that last one.

As I was connecting the stars in my mind, creating different shapes, the sound of graphite on paper hit my ears, soft strokes leaving a trail on the paper. It wasn’t hard to guess that Jin was the source, probably sketching something out as inspiration hit him.

His scent was strong, as if he himself was turning into a work of art, an obvious sign of his elated mood. It drew a small smile on my face, my tail swishing a few times lazily on the wooden boards.

That was how we spent our time, me, silently gazing at the sky and the slowly rising sun, him, silently sketching. We existed in each other’s presence, taking a break from the chaos that the group usually brought with itself.

But even the most tranquil of times had to be broken, as the sun had completely risen and woken the others up, based on the soft taps of socked feet I started hearing.

“Come on Dal hyung, let’s go greet the others.” - Jin suggested, making me stand up and follow him out, his little dimples peeking out as he smiled at me brightly.

I didn’t even question the name he used, his smile was way too cute to possibly ruin.

“Oh, good morning. How was your night?” - surprisingly Jisoo asked, surprised at our forms coming in from the backyard. “Morning! It was good, we were stargazing the whole night.” - Jin answered for us as I just nodded in response. “Sounds good boys. Little reminder that we’ll be picking up Ji to foster today, so don’t be late please. And Bae hyung, don’t forget your appointment. Bring anything comforting with you for it, but the doc needs to check if your injuries are properly healed. Have fun, I’ll see you guys later.” - with a headpat for Jin and a smile for me, he dashed out the door, seemingly in a hurry.

The others heard it and hurried to say goodbye to him, either in the form of a hug or a headpat. Felix even almost fell down, he was so determined to get that hug in. I almost laughed at him, almost.

Knowing that I couldn’t escape that visit because of the doctor, I headed up to my den and gathered a few things up. First was the squirrel’s plushie, placed away on the table, so it wouldn’t have any other scent sticking to it too much. I didn’t want to bring it with me, but I needed to smell it, so I wouldn’t get immediately overwhelmed by the herbivore himself. But that was why I asked for the plushie in the first place, to get used to his scent and not have an accident like with Jin. And it worked, the salt and sun wasn’t tainted by the smell of rotting seaweed and fish. It was very faint, so I was satisfied.

Secondly, I laid out my comfort hoodie that was stashed away in a box. I put it there because it was scented by everyone and I was afraid it would disappear if I left it with my other clothes. But the more I thought about that visit, the more nervous I became, so I opted to just put the clothing on instead, letting its big form engulf me.

It only took one sniff for my shoulders to start relaxing, my thoughts straying away from those darker places.

Grabbing the round plushie -it was a white rabbit, extremely soft and plush-, I went out of my room to join the others, knowing it was time for breakfast soon and Lino would barge into my den no problem.

The moment they saw me, everyone greeted me, Lix waddling up to me and making grabby hands, eyes still full of sleep and dreams. I sighed lightly, a small smile on my face as I knew what this meant already, witnessing him doing it to the others plenty of times. He just never asked me of this.

I threw the plushie onto the couch, my arms now empty and already lifting up the feline, placing him onto my hips. His limbs instantly latched onto me, purrs erupting from his chest as he nuzzled into my neck. I pat his back a few times, going to join the others as I greeted them with a little nod.

“Damn, I’m jealous.”

Bin?

“Yah, me too.”

Channie??

“Me three.”

Jin???

“We can eat snow leopard steak tonight.”

Lino?!???!

I couldn’t help, but step back and shield the already sleeping boy in my arms, horrified eyes fixated on the feline brandishing a knife. He quickly put it down, striding towards me with raised and open hands.

“I was joking, just joking, jagi. Go and sit at the table with the others, breakfast will be done soon, okay?” - he apologetically whispered out, tucking a strand of hair away from my face.

I nodded, cheeks heated as I silently took my seat with the little feline in my hold.

“Lix, hey, Lixie, wake up.” - I tried to gently nudge him awake, but he only groaned and buried his face deeper into my chest, earning a sigh from me.

I knew how he got in the early morning, I witnessed it a few times already after all. He was basically stuck to you, as if you were his personal radiator.

So I simply wrestled his limbs off of me -with great force, even though he was still half asleep- and turned him around in my lap, so he was facing the table as well.

The others just gaped at us, mainly me, as the boy in my lap just widely blinked up at me before a bright smile broke out on his freckled cheeks.

“Okay so you just need to make grabby hands at him. Now we know the strategy.” - the wolf said, as if it was the most normal thing to blurt out. “Didn’t think it would be this easy, but here we are. I wanna be the next.” “That’s unfair, Hyunjin, I wanted to be!” - Binnie shouted out, making me slightly startle from the volume. “You were too slow, get fucked.” “Hey! Language!” “Oh come on Chan, just shut up and eat. You two as well.” - Lino exclaimed with a pointed look, having finished with bringing out the food.

I was already busy with filling up my plate, all with things that Lix liked and made his eyes sparkle. It drew a little chuckle out of me, because I basically had to feed him, seeing as he refused to eat on his own. Every bite earned a delighted hum from him, his tail happily curling around in the air.

Being so absorbed in feeding him and watching his reactions, I had forgotten to eat, thus I found myself face-to-face with a piece of food. It was Lino, something that didn’t surprise me, because he did this a lot. It was his silent way of taking care of the other, so I accepted the food with no complaints. His scent sweetened, earning a little hum from me.

“Look, Dal hyung’s tail is wagging so much. I’ve never seen it like that before.” - Bin whispered to Channie, the two’s eyes trained on my form.

I instantly looked behind and sure enough, he was right. Blood rushed to my cheeks, my tail stilling as I willed it to do so and fed Lixie the last of his food. He leaned against me, content purrs never stopping leaving his chest. I slightly tightened my hold on his waist, my other arm collecting food for myself. Even though Lino fed me -and the others a bit too, even though they were jealous-, I was still hungry.

“Babyyy, why did you stop? It was sooo cute!” - Channie whined, deepening the blush on my cheeks. “You’re going to turn him into a tomato at this rate, Chan hyung.” - Jin butted in, snickering. “Oh as if you aren’t part of this!” “You’re damn right I am.” “Lix, you can borrow that sweater I never let you have if you let me have your place.” - Binnie took the chance while the other two bickered. “Deal.”

That was how I found myself with a pika stuck to me on the couch after we all finished eating, the small herbivore not letting me go even when I went to get some water from the kitchen. No, he was just like Lixie, while Channie and Jin pouted on the other end of the couch. Lino just watched it with amusement in his eyes, taking some pictures for future blackmail against all of us.

I just let it happen at that point, ready to accept that I would not be left alone for the rest of the day.

And I was right, because when I went to help Lino in the kitchen with lunch, I had to do so with a pika stuck to my torso. I managed, but thanks to that I couldn’t dodge all of Lino’s slaps, his satisfied chuckles still ringing in my ears.

They would be the death of me, I was certain.

I was only let go when it was time to go, my mind having forgotten about that due to all the shenanigans that had happened. My pulse immediately picked up slightly, only rising while I went and changed my pants into something else that I could wear outside.

The collar I had to wear didn’t help.

-.-

Once again I found myself standing before that hybrid rehabilitation centre, fitted with a mask and a hat, one of my hands held by Lino.

In we went as a group, the young ones leading the way, while Chan brought up the back. It was the usual setup, me in the centre somewhere, supported and comforted by everyone’s presence. My stomach was rolling from the presence of people and all the smell, the thought of what was going to happen soon not helping the slightest.

But I followed them silently, obediently. I had no choice, but to.

“Did anything happen while I was away?” - Jisoo asked, his eyes looking over our forms critically and meticulously. “Dal hyung cheated on me!” - I could only stare with wide eyes at Jin, caught by surprise, while the human just laughed. “And how did that happen, Hyunjin hyung?” “First of all, if you call me so formally once more, I will have revenge. Second of all, he cuddled AND fed Felix! Then he cuddled Changbin! Can you believe that??” “Sorry, sorry, it just feels wrong to not call you guys like this. Forgive me Hyune.” - Jisoo laughed, bending over to gasp for air as the others laughed with him, Jin’s theatrics amusing them.

Not me though, I would have ran away and dug myself a grave had Lino not been holding my hand so tight, his knuckles were turning white.

After everyone calmed down and teased me until I swore my ears were red under my hat, the human asked me something weird.

“And Bae hyung, how do you like the name Hyune came up with?” - his eyes were warm and held no malice, only some teasing lights could be seen shining in them.

Ah, so Jin really did give it to me.

I merely smiled, eyes turning into crescents as I looked at the floor, not giving them a verbal response. But they knew, they could tell what my answer was. I felt it.

“Alright, I’ll get the papers done then. Let’s go, before they usher us out for lazing around and being in the way.” - Jisoo instructed lightheartedly, leading the way down a hallway.

We took different turns than last time, but the place remained the same; colourful walls illuminated by warm lights, fresh air being let in by huge windows littered on them. It allowed me to stay relaxed just enough to not bolt, my shoulders hunched as I squeezed Lino’s hand for reassurance. He responded every single time, not late even by a second.

“Baby, do you want someone to go in with you?” - Channie asked, his voice low and soothing.

I instantly nodded, hesitantly grabbing onto his shirt. He smiled, taking that hand in his and rubbing over my knuckles gently. He talked to the others for a bit, but I zoned out as I was focusing on my breathing, trying to not let my body shake and panic consume me.

It would be fine, it was just a quick checkup, nothing more.

“Ah, Bae-ssi, there you are. I assume you arrived fine?” - the doctor greeted me enthusiastically, but his eyes drifted towards my companion as the question left his lips. “We did, don’t worry, doctor. Thank you for accepting us.” - the wolf replied, bowing. “Oh come on Chan-ssi, I keep telling you not to be so uptight, but you’re so stubborn. I’m just doing my job, nothing special. This treatment should be the norm, so shush. Now, Bae-ssi, please sit down with your back facing me and pull up your hoodie.”

I did as the human instructed, Channie’s form in front of me as my eyes were cast down towards the floor, his hands massaging my shoulders. I felt some light touches along my back and heard the human hum sometimes, but nothing else happened. Then he asked me to face him, his hands now hovering near my head.

Thankfully he only touched me if it was purely necessary, the wolf behind me helping him with getting my hair out the way most of the time. I was grateful for that, the knot in my stomach not tightening more thanks to his actions.

“Alright, I can happily announce that you’re completely healed, only the faintest of scars remaining in some places. You wouldn’t even notice them if you didn’t know they were there. Really, Bae-ssi, your healing factor is amazing. Now, any discomfort, pain or anything that I should know about? Have you been alright?” - the human said in a cheerful voice, his chair rolling along the floor as he was searching around for something on his desk.

I hummed in denial, after all, I felt completely fine. Even my throat seemed to have recovered, speech not painful anymore. I still preferred non-verbal communication, much to the dismay of the others.

The human hummed in reply, accepting my answer. But then my vision directed upwards, my eyes staring into Channie’s. He smiled at me, his eyes warm nebulas I could get lost in and I almost did as his thumbs gently went back and forth on my skin.

I heard the wheels on the human’s chair squeak as he rolled back over, but the wolf didn’t let go of my head to let me look. Not even as my sleeve was rolled up, no, his hold on me was firm as he changed position and came to my other side in front of me, pushing my head into his abdomen.

That left a weird feeling in my chest, my heart starting to hammer in its little cage.

And then I felt a stinging sensation in my arm.

My body immediately tensed up, hands flying towards him, desperately trying to push him away by gripping onto his hoodie, even as he tightened his grip on me. But I couldn’t win against him, not when one of my hands was held in place, another sting following the previous one.

My mind was spiralling, taking me back to places I didn’t want to ever go back to.

The fabric on my back was suddenly too thin, as if nothing was there, leaving me feeling vulnerable and exposed. Feeling the clean air on my skin always meant one thing, the thing I despised the most. I desperately wanted to get out, to push my back against the wall or run away, but they always caught me.

Not my back, please, anything but–

“ –by, baby, you’re okay. It’s over, you’re here with me. Take deep breaths with me, just like I taught you. In, then out. Yes, like that, good job! In, and then, out.” - Channie’s voice entered my ears, drowning out the screams I had heard in my head.

His scent was strong, the dirt and moss overpowering my senses as the picture of white walls and cold lights disintegrated, replaced by darkness as my face was still smushed into his hoodie. A hand was gently carding through my hair, his lips murmuring comforting nothings into my ears. I flicked them in response, my tail swishing once.

I was alright.

In a few short seconds we were out, Channie thanking the human, the latter only smiling and waving at us. I didn’t do much, I only remembered holding the wolf’s hand, following him out the door and towards the others, who smelled a bit worried seeing us.

“What happened?” - it was their human, Jisoo, who asked what was on all their minds. “What we feared was true… The doctor gave him a slight dose of something to help him relax, that’s why he’s a bit out of it now.” - Channie’s hand never left mine, his thumb only stroking gently over my knuckles.

Immediately the others surrounded me, worry oozing out of their every pore. It saddened me, how their scents were sour, the flowers trampled over and the easel knocked over. With every inhale I felt it, my heart cracking in response.

My body finally responded to my calls, letting out a low growl and a whine, letting them know it was okay. They responded within the same heartbeat, chirps and growls entering my ears. Their scents let up a bit, satisfied for now after hearing me.

And I was fine, until I remembered my back was still wide open, the thought itching me wrong.

Thus I walked in front of Jin and picked him up on my back, a surprised yelp leaving his lips in response. He latched onto me, confused, but letting me do my own thing. The others were similar, but they let it go with a small laugh.

I felt safer this way, something primal inside me satisfied for now.

“Alright, we’re here. Let’s take Ji home, even if only for a few weeks, shall we?” - Jisoo said, a smile as he looked at us before opening the door.

The scent of the ocean hit me, my eyes greeted with an excited little squirrel. He bounded over to us, the clothes on him a bit too big for his stature as they practically consumed him alive. His lips were in that heart-shaped smile, his hand waving excitedly as he went over to hug practically everyone. When he was coming towards me, Jin hopped off my back quickly, making me confused and a bit hurt.

“Woah, are you okay? Your pupils are wide open.” - the squirrel rambled out, his eyes wide as they stared into mine.

I blinked and looked away, nodding as I turned towards Jin, wanting an explanation. Instead I felt a weight hit my back, my arms quickly flying up to support the little herbivore that practically flew onto my back. The others panicked, ready to catch him in case I threw him off or anything, but…

I didn’t.

His presence was fine, surprisingly familiar. There was a connection between us, one that reminded me of Jin.

And as he leaned onto my shoulder, our cheeks touching, I finally realised why.

He had that extremely faint smell of clean and antiseptic, making me realise why his colours struck me weirdly. He was like me and Jin, well, like one of us, making my lips curve downwards.

I was hoping I was wrong. I was so, so hopeful…

And yet, here we were, walking through colourful hallways as I was carrying him on my back, silently listening to him and the others converse. They chatted as if it was normal, as if somehow this little squirrel had been the part of the pack all along. They immediately clicked, like puzzle pieces of the same picture.

“How can you guys not be on him all the time? He smells like hot cocoa you drink on a snowy winter day in front of a fireplace, all cosy and bundled up.” “That’s the thing, we are. You just need to use your puppy eyes on Bae and you’ve already won.” - Binnie answered the squirrel’s question, making me whip my head towards him.

They were talking about me AND outing me right under my nose??

“Hey, look, we’re right.” “No more snacks for you.” - I answered the pika, making him whine and fruitlessly beg me to change my mind.

Amidst all that, I smelled a human rushing towards us, its footsteps echoing down the hall. I let out a growl, my stance wide and ready in case of anything. The others immediately quieted down, standing next to or behind me, alert.

Just as it was about to touch Jisoo, I growled once more, the sound frightening the poor thing.

“Uh, s-sorry, but Jisoo-yah, I’ve been looking for you. I know you already have like six hybrids and you just took one in to foster, but I am BEGGING you, take this one puppy with you. He’s constantly causing trouble, pranking us and I’m losing my mind!”

Sorry, what now?

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supernaturalgirl20 · 2 years ago

Text

Awkwardness

Pairings: Marcus Pike x f!reader

Warnings: Morning wood, angst, anger, cursing, mentions of infertility, mentions of trying to get pregnant, pining, mentions of sex, Marcus being a little insensitive.

Chapter summary: you’ve arrived at the Pikes for Christmas, which means you have to sleep in the same bed, cuddle, kiss and pretend that you’re a happily married couple. What could possibly go wrong? Especially when a certain mother-in-law gets suspicious.

Series Masterlist

Comments and reblogs really appreciated 🥰

The air was forced from your lungs as the whole of the Pike family took turns in greeting you with a tight hug. His mother had been the last and when she pulled away, her eyes studied your face as if searching for something. Did she know?

With a low hum, she retracted her hands from your arms and turned her gaze towards Marcus who was smiling down at his niece. If your heart hadn’t been broken before, it was now.

He looked so happy at that moment, like all the problems in the world could be solved just by holding her in his arms. His lips peppered kisses along her chubby cheeks and a soft giggle erupted from her little mouth. It was like a punch to the gut. Like someone had stabbed you and twisted the knife for good measure.

“It’s so good to see you both,” Mary says, pulling you from your thoughts and drawing your gaze back to her. “How long will you be here?” She questions Marcus, whose eyes flicker in your direction briefly before smiling over at his mom.

Mary had left your side and was walking around the island back towards the stove, where she had left a pot simmering. “Just until after New Year, then I gotta get back to work.” Marcus had finally released his niece Emily and was hovering over the open pot breathing in the aroma that wafted from it.

“Hmm, it smells so good. God, I miss your cooking mom.” Mary’s gaze drifts towards you and you try hard to cover the hurt look on your face with a smile. “I’m sure Y/N’s cooking is just as good,” she says with a wink in your direction.

“When she’s bothered to cook,” Marcus mutters under his breath but you hear it nonetheless. The room suddenly feels small. Suffocating. And the need to get away from your husband becomes too great that you begin to back out of the kitchen. “I’m just…I’m just gonna go unpack. Won’t be long.”

Turning, you quickly dart from the room and rush upstairs, bags in hand. At least you’d bought yourself a half hour.

***

Mary stops stirring and with her hand on her hip, raises her eyebrow in question at Marcus. “Alright, what’s going on?” She asks, her tone accusatory.

“What do you mean? Nothing is going on, mom.” He stammers, his eyes darting around the room, anything to avoid making eye contact. “You could cut the tension between you with a knife. Did you have a row?” Her voice has softened slightly as she reaches out her hand to squeeze Marcus’s arm.

A nervousness courses through him as he finally meets his mother's gaze. Of course, she would pick up on it. “No,” he says, clearing his throat. “We’re just tired.” He sighs as he runs a hand down along his face. “It was a long trip and we’ve both been working hard lately.”

“If you’re sure?” she says, her voice soft. “How about you two take a quick nap before the party tonight.”

“Party? What party?” Marcus questions.

“Didn’t I tell you? I must have forgotten. I'm having the whole family over tonight for a little get-together. Nothing special, but I want you both to look your best.” Mary turns away from Marcus then and continues prepping the food, completely ignoring him.

He knew this meant she was done with the conversation and so decided to make his way up to his old room. To you. And to the inevitable fight that was waiting for him. With a deep sigh, he trudged his way upstairs, mentally preparing himself for what was to come.

***

The room was empty when he slowly opened the door, his eyes darting around trying to catch a glimpse of you. The sound of the water running in the shower quickly alerted him to your whereabouts.

A smile works its way onto his face as he takes in his childhood bedroom. It hasn’t changed, Marcus thinks to himself. His old artwork still hangs on the walls from the days he thought he would be the next Picasso and his trophies from swimming still littered his bookcase.

Mom never did like throwing anything out. He’s startled from his thoughts by the sound of your voice, “oh…I didn’t think you'd be here,” you say bashfully as you pull the towel around you a little tighter.

Marcus’s gaze drifts down along your body, taking in the curve of your hips as you stand there practically naked. The water drips down over the skin of your shoulder forming a trail along your chest that disappears into the curve of your breasts.

His skin heats and a fire begins to burn within him, his cock stirring to life beneath his jeans. Fuck, you were beautiful.

He shakes his head, ridding himself of the inappropriate thoughts that were beginning to form. “We uh…we have to dress up for tonight,” he manages to say, his voice slightly strained as he turns his gaze away from you. “Moms having a few people over for a party so wear something nice. We have an impression to make.” His tone is curt as he grabs his wash bag and brushes past you into the en-suite, closing the door with a bang.

The sound echoes around the room making you flinch. Was he repulsed by you now?

***

The day passes slowly as you both mingle with his family. Something you note you both do separately. How are we supposed to convince anyone we’re ok if he can’t even look me in the eye, you think to yourself as you sit watching Emily play with her toys.

She was beautiful. Her hair was thick and curly and the same shade as Marcus’s. She even had the same eye colour and you wondered if this is how your child would look. A mini version of your husband. If you’d had one, that is.

Suddenly your throat hurts and your eyes begin to well with tears. Why couldn’t you have had a baby? You both tried for over a year and nothing. The constant testing and trips to the doctors had put a strain on your relationship and then the fighting had started.

Maybe you had put too much pressure on yourself to get pregnant. Constantly tracking your period and ovulation days. Sex had turned from an intimate experience full of pleasure into something you considered a chore.

A hand comes to gently rest on your shoulder pulling you from your thoughts. “Hey,” Marcus says softly, a hint of tenderness in his voice.

“We should probably get ready.” His eyes flicker between you and Emily and then he looks at you with something akin to pity. You don’t want his fucking pity. Standing abruptly, you shrug him off and rush upstairs to get ready for the night.

***

“Since when are we having a party?” John, Marcus’s father asks Mary as she stands in the doorway watching her son and daughter-in-law. “Hush,” she chastises. “They’ll hear you.”

He rolls his eyes at his wife before coming to stand behind her. “What are you up to?” He whispers, his lips brushing against her ear. “Haven’t you noticed they’ve been distant towards each other since they arrived? They’ve barely spoken a word. It’s not like them.”

“Now you ain’t going to go meddling are ya? You need to let them figure it out themselves. Besides, you don’t even know if something is wrong.” He pulls away from her and starts for the drink’s cabinet, pouring himself a glass of whiskey.

Mary turns to face him with a sly smile on her face. “Oh no, whatever your thinkin’ of doing, don’t,” John says with a shake of his head as he mutters under his breath.

“I’ve got a great plan,” she says beaming at him. John downs the drink in his hand before placing the empty glass on the counter. “I ain’t havin’ any part in this.”

***

As you stare at the mirror, your eyes trailing along the black dress that hugs your curves, you try to remember the last time you felt like this. Beautiful.

It’s certainly been a long time since Marcus has made you feel like you were. Maybe that was part of the problem. Maybe he didn’t find you attractive anymore. Speaking of your husband, you haven't seen him since you left him in the sitting room and you wonder briefly where he's gotten to.

The door pushes open and your question is answered when Marcus walks in, head down as he closes it gently behind him. “Sorry I got caught up talking to Jake and I…..” He stammers, faltering in his step as he takes you in. His eyes slowly roam your figure, staring just a second too long at your breasts.

He shakes his head as if trying to rid himself of his thoughts before clearing his throat and striding towards you. His hand reaches out to push a strand of hair behind your ears, his thumb rubbing softly against the skin of your neck before his eyes meet yours.

There’s tension in the room and for the first time in months, it's not an angry one. You haven’t been this close to him in so long that you’ve forgotten that he has small freckles along his nose, barely visible but there nonetheless. Or that he has a slight amber tint to the colour of his eyes, it almost reminds you of whiskey.

His eyes flick down to your lips, his tongue running along the seam of his own before he meets your gaze again. “You look…beautiful,” he whispers so softly that if you weren’t standing right in front of him, you’d have missed it.

You become suddenly aware of his hand on your neck, his other now resting on your hips and your skin begins to heat. You both stand like this for what feels like ages until a knock sounds at the door shattering the moment. Marcus pulls his hands away from you as if he’d been burned and then without another glance in your direction, he grabs his clothes and rushes into the bathroom.

“Hey,” Sarah, Marcus’s sister says as you open the door. “Would you mind helping me finish off setting up the kitchen? It’s just mom asked me to and I’m so behind and if I ....”

“Sure,” you say with a smile, happy to be getting away from the awkward tension that had now settled between you and Marcus. “You look gorgeous by the way,” she says as her eyes take in the black dress.

“Thanks, you too.”

***

The house is brimming with people and the sound of music and laughter has a warm fuzzy feeling settling in the pit of your stomach. You always loved the ‘Pike parties’ that Mary hosted. Something that had taken a little getting used to in the beginning considering you came from a small family.

You were currently in a conversation with one of Marcus’s uncles, Christopher. He’d approached you - cornered you really - and had proceeded to talk about his new cows on the ranch and as much as you loved him, you prayed for someone to save you.

You gasp when an arm wraps around your waist pulling you into a warm solid form and when you glance upwards you’re met with the smiling face of your husband.

“Uncle Chris. Long time no see. Heard you got some new cows?” Oh lord, why did he bring up the damn cows? As Marcus conversed with his uncle you let your eyes drift to the people littered around the room. Everyone was having a great time and seeing everyone so happy has a sadness settling upon you. You wish you could be happy too. That the show Marcus is putting on wasn’t just that, a show.

A hushed whisper catches your attention and you're drawn to the voice of John whispering something to Mary. “See, they're just fine. I won’t say I told ya so.”

She gently swats his arm before meeting your gaze and smiling brightly before wandering off.

“Baby, some of my old college buddies are here. I think we should go say hello,” Marcus says, voice clear and full of determination as he stares down at you. You stare back at him stunned into silence at the use of his pet name for you. How you longed to hear it again.

You shake the thoughts from your head and smile back at him. “We better,” you say as you place your hand on his chest. “Or we’d never hear the end of it. It was lovely chatting with you Christopher.”

Before he can even take a breath, Marcus laces his fingers with yours and manoeuvres you both through the small crowd. Your heart almost beats out of your chest at the intimate touch and you silently wish that things could go back to how they were before. That this sudden display of affection wasn’t an act.

He leads you out onto the deck and closes the patio doors behind him before taking a deep breath. You look at him slightly confused as to why you're both here. “I thought your college friends were here?”

“Oh, no I just said that to get away from him. I mean how much more could you listen to him talk about those god-forsaken cows.” He winks at you as he leans against the railing, head tilted up at the sky. “I know. God, I’m an awful person but the whole time he was talking I just wanted to get away from him.”

Marcus laughs, turning his gaze towards you. “And miss the chance to hear about how beautiful Betsy is with her brown and white spots?”

“Oh don’t be so mean,” you say playfully as you swat his arm. A cool breeze washes over you causing your skin to pimple and you rub your hands along your arms trying to shake the chill. Marcus steps forward and begins to shrug off his blazer. “What are you doing?”

“Being a gentleman and giving you my jacket. You’re shivering a little.” He moves towards you but you shake your head in protest. “I’m fine, honestly. It’s not even that cold.”

“Please don’t be stubborn and just take it,” he pleads as he holds it up in his arms. With a nod, you silently agree and he drapes it around your shoulders. “There. Now was that so hard?”

You know he’s just teasing by the smile on his face and you thank him as you wrap it a little tighter around you. His scent hits you immediately. Cinnamon and apples and you smile to yourself as you remember the first time he let you wear his clothes. You always loved how he smelled. Like home.

“We should probably get back or mom is gonna throw a fit,” he says softly, the tiniest hint of hesitation in his voice. “Yeah, I guess so.”

You move to take his jacket off but he shakes his head, “no keep it. It always looked better on you anyway.”

“Thanks,” you say bashfully before he places his hand on your lower back guiding you back inside. The night continues much the same as you both mingle. Marcus keeps up the show of being the perfect in-love couple with small touches and the odd kiss on the cheek. It’s enough to drive you insane.

His proximity mixed with the buzz from the alcohol has you burning with desire for your husband and you’re not sure how much longer you can take all this.

“I think we should call it a night,” he says as he says his goodbyes and places his hand on your lower back once more, leading you up the stairs towards his old room.

Once inside he quickly removes his hand and begins to undress and you suddenly don’t know where to look. “No need to be shy, you’ve seen it all before.”

You huff as you remove his jacket from your shoulders. “Haven’t in a while though.”

As soon as the words leave your mouth you regret them. You didn’t mean for it to come across as you being bitchy. It was just a fact. “And whose fault is that?” He snipes back, muttering under his breath as he pulls up his clean boxers.

“Please,” you plead. “Can we not turn this into another fight? Tonight was the first time we’ve gotten along in ages. I didn’t mean for it to sound so bitchy but you know I’m right. We haven’t had sex in months, hell you haven’t even tried to touch me intimately. I miss how it used to be. I remember a time when you couldn’t get enough of me.”

“That was before you made it feel like a chore. There was always a damn schedule. We only fucked when you thought you’d get pregnant, we didn’t do it just to do it. For pleasure and nothing else. And then you’d cry so hard when you got your period every month it broke my heart. I couldn’t touch you like that knowing I couldn’t give you what you wanted.”

“I only ever wanted you,” you say as a strangled sob escapes your lips. You quickly grab your pyjamas and make your way into the bathroom to change. You’d hoped that you could both come back from this but you're starting to think you never would.

***

When you finally emerge from the bathroom, Marcus is lying on the floor with the extra blankets and pillows. “You don’t have to sleep on the floor. We can share the bed.”

He turns his head to gaze up at you, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Oh come on, Marcus. We’re married, we’ve shared a bed for the last eight years, and one more week isn't gonna kill you. Besides, you've got a bad back now, sleeping on the floor will kill you.”

Marcus rolls his eyes at you before sitting up, “don’t be so dramatic. My back’s not that bad.”

You stand staring down at him with an incredulous look on your face. He stares up at you with a serious expression on his face. “Honestly I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Fine, whatever,” you snap before making your way around to the other side of the bed and sliding in under the covers. Reaching over to the lamp you turn out the lights. “Night.”

“Night.”

***

You sit up with a jolt as a loud banging noise startles you awake. You stare around the room slightly groggy from the interrupted sleep.

“I’ve brought you both breakfast,” Mary says cheerfully from behind the door. Shit, you think to yourself as you move towards the end of the bed.

“Marcus,” you call in a hushed voice but he doesn’t budge. Fuck sake. Grabbing a pillow you throw it at him and he snorts loudly as he jolts awake.

“What time is it?” He says tiredly as he squints up at you.

“Can I come in? Are you both decent?”

Realisation dawns on him as he meets your gaze. “Fuck.”

“Yeah, fuck. Get up here now.” You move back into a sitting position on the bed, pulling the covers open for Marcus as he scrambles to gather his makeshift bed. He quickly jumps onto the bed and pulls the covers over you both and pulls you into a cuddle. His cock. His very hard cock presses up against your ass and you can’t help but wiggle it a little.

“I…fuck,” he groans into your shoulder. God you’ve missed the feel of him like this. Your cunt is aching for him, to feel him deep inside and you keep moving your ass until he grips your hip tight. “Stop,” he says, his voice a little stern. “You need to stop….I can’t….shit,” he breathes out raggedly before creating a little distance between you both. “Don’t start something you’re not gonna finish.”

Mary knocks again, clearly becoming impatient and with a deep sigh, Marcus turns towards the door. “Yeah, come in mom”. She opens the door and carries in a tray of pancakes and bacon with two cups of coffee, placing it on the nightstand beside Marcus.

“I didn’t interrupt anything did I?” She asks with a wiggle of her eyebrows, a hint of hope in her voice. “Jesus mom. I am not talking about that with you. Ever.”

“It’s perfectly natural for a man and woman to have sex, especially a husband and wife.” You peak over at Marcus to find him blushing furiously and you can’t help but smile. “Besides, if you two ever thought you were quiet, you weren’t. Your father and I have heard it all.”

You curl into Marcus’s side with embarrassment and he quickly ushers her out. “I’ll never be able to look your father in the eye again.”

“You’ll be fine. Dad doesn’t pass many remarks on things like that.”

A voice sounds from the door, “oh and don’t take too long, I’ve loads of things planned.” You both let out a deep sigh before meeting each other's gaze. After a few seconds of staring at one another, you both burst out laughing.

“Right,” Marcus says as he rubs his hands together. “Let’s tuck in.”

Part 3

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