#another team cannot possibly appreciate him like we do

[empyrean11]

I say this will complete and utter affection... Danny Jansen, you are a weirdo.

[fullfriendnerdclutch]

Halloween is Around the Corner

This is why I hate Halloween with the common people. They cannot appreciate how I'm not only dressing up as a firefighter, I'm WEARING a firefighter, a studly one at that.

Yeah he is a firefighter in real life so taking out this costume is real easy because this is literally his uniform, but c'mon now, the folks simply don't understand how difficult it was for me to acquire this costume. It was real brutal and I almost failed to jab the syringe to that thick neck of his, but I managed to did it by the end of the day, hence here I am standing here ready for an early Halloween celebration by testing out my costume.

Now, what do you think if rather than mixing with the common crowd, we have a Halloween party with all the TF enthusiast out there instead? I know some of yall have stash of interesting person to wear, possess, puppet around or whatever, but let's do something fresh for this year. Consider this an early Christmas unboxing, an early New Year resolution, go for that new body and let's appreciate each other's story on how we managed to really up the bar for Halloween this year.

Already heard some plan about some of you dressing as the classics; police officers, sporting team coaches or even leather daddy, which sounds solid.

Some of yall also informed me that yall planned to dress up as stereotype like failed-star-turned-OF-influencer, douchebag frat bros or deadbeat blue-collar worker, which might be a bit touche and God forbid yall got affected by their mindset and found yourself struggling to get out of such personas after the party, but hey, I trust that you know what you're doing so that's should be okay.

But my ears perked up when I heard that one of you slid inside a loving, health-conscious, family man with 3 kids and planned to make him do some lewd act a responsible member of society like him will never do.

That's as bad as sleeping with a girl you have a crush on by possessing her boyfriend, that's not nice bro, that's manipulation, but hey, who am I to judge?

I mean I'm literally turning a respectable, hard-working firefighter just to fulfill my hedonistic desire for a one night party, so please, you do you. Just inform me how do you want to come to the party and how many people will you bring so I can properly prepare to welcome any of you. Just don't be a giant or some kind of gory type of cosplay, okay? Let's not complicate a night filled with bunch of people not really looking like themselves with possible crime or property destruction. Oh yeah, almost forgot. If you found this invite at the very last minute and have no costume yet, I have some suits of my crew from the firehouse if you want to borrow them. I figured that why not just spiked the entire firehouse since I'm inside their captain anyway, my associates are using them now for cover but on the 31st, they'll be in another bodies and these are available for you to borrow. First come, first serve though, you cannot ask me to keep it for ya.

So, see you later folks, better dress up well

[bengiyo]

Wandee Goodday Ep 3 Stray Thoughts

Last week, Wandee wasn't feeling great after he was forced to call out Ter for trying to gaslight him about his feelings. Yoryak happened to see that and later rescued Wandee from Rain's (LITA) kidnapper and taking him home. Yoryak is managing his own sting at being rejected by Taem, but learned from her perspective to help Wandee. Our leads began their FWB arrangement and got to have fun with costumes (and some help from Kao) and rimming jokes. They set some rules that I expect Wandee to violate immediately. Cher and Oyei continued to be a great team.

Finally, after ten years of this, we finally acknowledge the most reliable act that two gay men can engage in with each other. They were having fun and joking with it! My Stand In, have several seats.

Curious about Yoryak's parents. Seems like there's a tragedy there.

Love that all the friends clocked the necklace on both ends and immediately called it out. Yoryak got roasted by his brother and not-in-law and I laughed so hard.

Kao does not believe the lies Wandee is telling himself.

Why are we spending time on hetero nonsense?

Not these two dancing around how much they're into each other.

I really love the team that Oyei and Cher have become before we met them. I love that Cher is helping Oyei balance these burdens he's taken on and is able to navigate his pride.

I think it's really important that the show gave us time with Wandee doing total care for a sick child and his mom, giving both of them what they needed in a serious situation.

Truly, someone please explain to these. Headed that Ter ain't gonna fuck them either!

Kao! Lie better! It really be your own hoes letting you down.

I'm interested in this boxing-based homophobia Yak has to manage and I wonder if Oyei being with Cher is the reason we haven't seen their dad.

I really love the way Oyei respects the physical limits of his boxers while being real with them about the obstacles they're facing and why they're pushing.

The fact that Yoryak hasn't taken the necklace back even though he's frustrated with Wandee says a lot. The show is using that detail well.

See, this is good writing. We used the seriousness of Oyei and Cher's relationship and their real worries about the gym to make this play from Wandee land properly. They also know that Wandee is the guy he's seeing so they're probably less concerned since they can supervise.

I'm so amped about this fight. I had hoped we'd have an excuse for Yoryak and Oyei to fight. We even get Cher holding his phone in the gayest way possible.

Oyei said he was not letting Cher go home and kicked his brother's ass.

Look at Wandee playing these fucking games. I am obsessed.

I love the no kiss rule and how badly Yoryak wants to break it. In another show I might be feeling things about the closet, but the fact that Yak has wanted to kiss for two episodes makes me trust the show.

I appreciate that despite how desperate he is, Wandee stopped when he reached a hard no.

Wandee completely misunderstood that Yoryak is a simp. All he had to do was be genuinely pathetic and he folded instantly. That's worked in literally episode.

I really hope Wandee appreciates that Yoryak is coming out to help him.

Thinking about that pasta they made in I Only Want to See You.

"You already experienced a bigger bite."

Okay, I love them ending on some soft affection before they fuck off screen.

Cannot overstate how important it is to me that we ended the last episode on Wandee telling Yoryak he needed to pay more attention to his dick and then opening on an enthusiastic 69. This episode was excellent, and I loved how well all of the moments worked with the major issue of the episode. I really love when episodic media feels episodic and I am eating good with this show. I love that for three episodes these two progress any time Wandee is sober and honest with Yoryak.

[missameliep]

WIP Wednesday

Thanks for the tag @lorirwritesfanfic 😊🩷

I haven't participated in a WIP Wednesday in soooo long!

I actually have some snippets to share; I'm going through my drafts and planing to post all of those fics that are near ready.

Under the cut are snippets for: Bonds of Sea and Fire - Part 4 (Blades of Light and Shadow); Once Upon a Summer (Desire & Decorum AU); Second Chances - Chapter 25 (Desire & Decorum AU) and The one who got away (Ride or Die).

Bonds of Sea and Fire - Part 4 (Blades of Light and Shadow)

“You cannot...” he paused, searching for the proper word, “...charm your way out of a confrontation.”  “Do you want to bet?”  Tyril scowled at the suggestion.   “I'm in!” Mal joined the conversation, jumping from the wooden crate and landing with a loud thump on the deck. “5 golden coins you can’t!”  “Do you even have that kind of money?”  “Won’t you like to find out?” He wriggled his eyebrows and smiled at her.  With a shake of their hands, the challenge was accepted. 

2. Once upon a summer - Part 1 (Desire and Decorum AU)

Amusing some of his teammates and the group of girls, Hamid was in the middle of telling a story, when someone knocked over a heavy object near the entrance. Hamid’s eyes flicked to where the noise came from and to the influx of another group of students coming inside to fill the stands, amongst them a very beautiful girl he’s never seen in school and instantly caught his eye.   Turquoise backpack hanging on one shoulder, she moved slowly, and her long curly hair bounced around her face. It was a chocolate brown hair with golden shades that seemed like the sun itself had kissed, or maybe had just been following her for the dramatic purpose of stealing teenage boy’s breaths away. Whatever it was, her beauty was so enthralling he couldn’t look away, appreciating the long hair and shapely lips and bright eyes. If this was one of the rom-coms his sisters love, there would be a bubbly pop song playing in the background while the girl glided in slow motion, and when the camera turned in his direction to do a closeup, he would be looking dazzled with mouth slightly parted while trying to catch his breath. Nevertheless, no camera could ever capture the way his heart skipped a beat at the sight of her.  “So, what happened then? Did his father notice you two were gone?” Theresa Sutton’s questions ringed after what seemed like a dramatic pause in the narrative but turned into a play’s intermission.  Stunned, Hamid blinked a few times and failed to remember what he was telling them. Offering a wide grin, he clapped his hands, “Well, this will have to wait. Now I have someplace else to go and a record to beat!”  “That’s cruel, Hamid,” Donna Bowman protested with a pout, but it didn’t deter him.   Bending, he picked up the ball at his feet, and sprinted to where Yusuf Konevi, his dearest and oldest friend in England, was doing warm-ups with some of their teammates, without tearing his gaze from the beautiful girl, who was glancing everywhere from the benches at the side of the court to the stands, possibly searching for someone, and not once looked his way. Thank goodness, he was confident enough to not let this hurt his pride, and persistent enough to change that game.  Throwing an arm over Yusuf’s shoulder, he threw himself at him in a playful way.   “Hey!”  “Glad to see our star is finally joining us!”  “We’re all stars here,” Hamid said, flashing a grin, “we shine brighter together.”  The other laughed. “Smooth. I bet they’ll make you team captain soon.”   Looking over his shoulder Hamid located his target, standing alone by the stands, and asked in a conspiratorial tone, “Who’s that girl? I haven’t seen her before...”   “Which one?” the other asked before discreetly peeking at the direction he tilted his head.   “The one who looks like an angel recently fallen from heaven…” 

3. Second Chances - Chapter 25 (Desire & Decorum AU)

While her body reluctantly woke up and her brain regained consciousness, she was confronted by confusion and immense discomfort all at once, reminders of the insane amount of alcohol she ingested last night.   Her head ached as if samba percussionists were beating repeatedly their instruments out of cadence to punish her. The parchedness in her mouth seemed like she had wandered the desert for days. Trying to alleviate it, her lips parted, but her mouth had dried out and it was difficult to swallow and get rid of the disgusting taste sitting on her tongue.   The buzzing sound echoed again, attacking her ears, and she realized it was probably the mobile vibrating with incoming messages over the nightstand. Even though she wondered what time it was, the identity of the caller or texter and their reasons to be trying to reach her in what she assumed was the middle of the night didn’t pique her interest at all, if anything it riled her up for disturbing her rest. Mustering the strength to reach the nightstand to turn off the phone, she tried to roll over, but something blocked her path and restrained her motion. Not something, but someone.  In the dark she couldn’t rely on her sight, but her other senses worked perfectly, collecting information of quiet sounds of breathing behind her, the light pressure of a body against her back, and the arm she finally noticed dangling over her waist underneath the covers. And lastly, the fragrance that reached her nostrils was unmistakable. 

4. The one who got away (Ride or Die)

Once upon a time in what seems like another life, no one would spare a second glance at the shy teenager with untamed curly hair and oversized sweatshirts walking down the fancy prep school’s hallways with the nose stuck in a book. Back then she was just Ellie, the sheltered daughter of an LAPD detective with a single goal in life: get into Langston.  But then a bad boy – that was not so bad after all – waltzed into her life and introduced her to a forbidden world of illegal races, crime and betrayal. A world she was not supposed to know about, let alone desire to take part in...   Then love was added to the equation.   She fell in love, but not with this bad boy.  The thrill made her heart race faster than all those tuned cars. Every discovery about her abilities fueled the fire within and added to her confidence.   The process of unveiling these parts of herself drew her closer and closer to another bad boy – one dangerous enough to doom her entire existence. One she’d loved wholeheartedly and would’ve followed to the ends of the world if given the choice…  

Tagging a few of you who might want to share your WIPs with us: @princess-geek @rosesnink @lilyoffandoms @aallotarenunelma @jerzwriter @peonierose

Also tagging @choicesficwriterscreations

[humbledragon669]

S1E1 – In The Beginning Write Up P3

– Five Years Later (allegedly) and The Present Day

Alright so let’s address the elephant in the room here shall we? The signpost tells us, in no uncertain terms, that the story line has moved on by five years. I have a serious issue with that assertion, and it’s not just because this is in direct contradiction to the storyline in the book. It goes a little something like this:

I cannot believe that Aziraphale and Crowley have left the Antichrist alone for the first five years of his life.

Even if we’re generous here and say that Crowley steps in to replace a nanny that has been present for Warlock’s early years, it simply doesn’t make any sense that they would have sat back and let him develop on his merry way for the most influential years of his life (sorry Neil, but I will die on this hill). The book’s timeline here makes a lot more sense – that both Aziraphale and Crowley are inserted into Warlock’s life within a week of his birth, Aziraphale as the gardener and Crowley as the nanny. At the age of five, they both leave and return immediately as tutors for him, ensuring that they are both present for his entire childhood. With that in mind, I’m going to do something potentially controversial and adopt the book timeline as fact. It just makes more sense. Also that will make my fanfic ideas not only possible but genuinely really feasible. Honestly, I don’t know why the timeline deviates from the book here – this matter aside, the series is a truly excellent adaptation of the book (judged by the fact that I never said “that’s not how it happened in the book” for the whole of series 1. There are a lot of media writers that could learn a lot from Neil on this point – I’m looking at you Discovery of Witches series 2 creative team).

There are two things I find interesting about the short scene that follows (no, one of them is not how well David carries off a skirt, though I do really appreciate the Mary Poppins reference with that costume). Firstly, the positioning of Aziraphale as a gardener. I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised that the idea of a garden is brought up again, but I can’t quite make the connection myself. Perhaps there isn’t meant to be one. That said, I would have thought, given his character, Aziraphale might have been more suitable as something like a butler (it would even give him the opportunity to steal food!), which would likely give him more opportunity to interact with Warlock throughout his childhood, so I do feel like there’s something here.

On a tangential (and impossible-to-be-related) note, I saw Nye a few days ago (a play about the founder of the NHS, starring Michael, for those who don’t know what this is) and there was a line in it about Nye and his wife believing their love to be like a garden – he planted the love and she tended to it. It was truly beautiful and touching. I felt like I had a sort of light bulb moment about gardens in GO and then realised that the two productions have nothing to do with one another!

The second thing I noted about this sequence is more something of note than something that has meaning. Having discussed the music/soundtrack for this series in a previous write up, it should come as no surprise that there is a cute little parallel here: the melody Crowley uses for the lullaby he sings to Warlock is the same as the melody for the second motif in the theme tune. It’s slowed down quite considerably, but still recognisable.

Original theme:

Lullaby:

I have to say, I’m a little disappointed we don’t get to hear the rendition of “Three Little Pigs” that we’re treated to in the book. I am not ashamed to say that I laughed very long and very hard when I read it – I have a pretty dark sense of humour. Perhaps this was a little too much for the good ol’ BBC?

Quick item of note from the next scene at Heaven/Hell HQ – this series has escalators instead of an elevator. I had originally assumed that this was the same building as we see being used in series 2 to gain access to Heaven but looking at the background when Crowley and Aziraphale enter the building, it’s clear that it’s a completely different building, which just makes me wonder where exactly the HQ entrance is. There’s a really clever piece of editing at use here too, one which I actually didn’t spot until I was doing this write up.

I hadn’t noticed previously that the duplicate image of the escalator on the floor of the lobby ISN’T a reflection of the physical escalators. On the left, we can see Crowley’s image on a set of escalators going down, whilst we see no reflection of Aziraphale. We even get to see Crowley approach the escalator in the “reflection” after he disappears through the floor, whilst Aziraphale’s reflection disappears from the floor as he approaches the stairs, and both of these things happen as they walk across an area that ripples like water under their feet. I don’t think there’s any hidden meaning in this, I just think it’s a really cool piece of film.

When we see the angel and demon giving their reports to their respective head offices, it’s made clear to us that neither authority has any awareness of their collaboration. In fact, Aziraphale is still held in high esteem by Gabriel and Michael (though perhaps not Uriel and Sandalphon – those two always look like someone just pissed on their nice suits) and is even given permission to continue on his apparently futile mission. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Crowley, but as Liggur said earlier in the episode, it would be a funny thing if demons could trust one another anyway.

It’s nice to see that Heaven isn’t so busy that it can’t produce a newspaper for its earthbound agents, complete with weak headlines, worthy of any local rag:

I do not think it a coincidence that the newspaper has been given the title of “Observer” – after all, it’s pretty much all they do up there isn’t it? Watch people? Other than planning Armageddon I mean…

The short scene on the bus also shows us a little more of the dynamic between Crowley and Aziraphale when it comes to planning. It’s clear that the angel is relying on the demon to lead the way and he looks really worried when it’s made apparent that Crowley doesn’t have a plan for a potential emergency situation.

Quick note about the Hell Hound – he’s being housed in a room with a number on it – 2549. Does this mean there have been 2548 Hell Hounds before him? Hastur certainly indicates that he isn’t the only Hell Hound they have (but he is the biggest). Where are the rest of them?

The conversation (which takes place in the grounds of Crystal Palace Dinosaur Park - the repeated reference to dinosaurs being a big joke in this scene is not lost on me) on the park bench is the first time we hear Crowley call Aziraphale by the name “Angel”. Neil has confirmed (here and here) that this isn’t anything other than a factual name to use but I can’t help but feel like it’s affectionate. It’s certainly very familiar and it’s interesting to see that Aziraphale doesn’t repay the favour; perhaps this is to do with the meaning of the words – after all, calling someone “demon” doesn’t feel very polite, does it? Or perhaps it’s just that “Aziraphale” is a bit of a mouthful to say. This is also the first time we are let in to the secret of them having their own side:

AZIRAPHALE: And if he does name it? CROWLEY: Then you and I have lost.

The conversation around the potential murder of an 11-year-old boy presents an interesting side of the relationship between the pair. I don’t think I’m alone in thinking that the suggestion that Aziraphale is capable of killing an innocent child (even if he is the Antichrist) is nothing short of laughable, and Crowley would know this. This suggestion is shared with a rare occurrence of Crowley communicating “secretly” with Aziraphale where the angel doesn’t get the message, and the irony is that Crowley isn’t even being that subtle about it. There’s no doubt that Aziraphale really doesn’t get the drift though:

It’s painful to watch Aziraphale’s thought process here. He knows that Crowley’s logic actually makes sense but he can’t tally that with his own moral compass – it’s a struggle that I think the vast majority of us would go through if put in the same position. Sadly, it’s not like Crowley has much other choice than to suggest Aziraphale does the deed – if he were to do it himself, the repercussions for him would be unthinkable. It’s clear that this is the first time he has raised this idea in the eleven years they’ve been doing this job together and he can’t even say it without his voice breaking (see “one life against the universe”), and once it’s clear that Aziraphale isn’t open to the idea he doesn’t push him or lose his temper. He watches Aziraphale carefully for the whole exchange, without changing his expression, which I take to mean he’s watching for any signs that he’s pushing him too far.  All of this tells me he’s only done it because they’re getting desperate.

Alright, it’s time to move on to the little “magic” routine. I find this whole sequence adorable - can we say 1941 vibes? I do find it interesting just how quickly Aziraphale’s mood changes with the idea of him being able to perform some magic again – he’s gone from the contemplation of the ethics of an actual trolley problem (see here if you don’t know what that is) to a smiling, bubbly angel complaining that his companion is “no fun” in mere seconds. For someone who lives their life in eons of centuries instead of years or decades, he’s a remarkably fickle being! It’s pretty blurry in this shot, but just look how happy this angel is:

The hidden communication thread is resumed at normal operation here as Crowley knows exactly what Aziraphale means when he says he could “entertain” – he knows exactly what he means by this and is not amused by the implications.

I also find Crowley’s use of the word “demeaning” an interesting choice here. Usually we might say embarrassing; in fact the dictionary definition of demeaning is to lower the character of somebody, or to make them feel less respected. Whilst I can fully understand why Crowley might be embarrassed by Aziraphale’s pathetic attempts at illusionary magic, I am less clear on why he would find it demeaning. UNLESS. Unless my suppositions about the state of their relationship are correct, in which case they would have already been together (romantically) for almost eleven years at this point. Then it makes a weird sort of sense.

The comic little squabble that follows also makes perfect sense in this context. This couple are in no mood to compromise on this matter; Aziraphale will not be told that he’s a shit magician because he has too much fun doing it (this despite the fact that we know he and Crowley agreed he shouldn’t do magic anymore, but unlike in 1941, there’s no risk of anybody getting hurt if he drops a coin on the floor) and Crowley will not concede that he’s being a killjoy (which goes quite against his character). The spat concludes with Crowley delivering a passive-aggressive threat to Aziraphale, which you can see he instantly reconsiders with a head tilt - probably wise considering how unimpressed the angel is with it.

Side note: the watch that Crowley is wearing (seen at Warlock’s birthday party) appears to be a Devon Tread 1 A, coming in at a cool 18.5K (dollars). The book does make mention of his watch being fucking fashionably expensive but it was custom made for him, with an extra time zone for “Another Place” where the time is always “Too Late”.

Another side note: how many dens did you make as a child? A fair few I’d bet if you were anything like me. Did they ever look as cool as the one that The Them has? Me neither. I mean, just look at all those guns and skeletons used for decoration:

Once we’re back at the book shop, I find it interesting that Aziraphale is intending to imbibe (we don’t actually see him drink any of it) whatever spirit he’s given to Crowley. I’ve no doubt it’s good quality, it’s just unusual to see him drinking hard liquor – perhaps this is simply due to the seriousness of the situation he finds himself in. Their conversation about lying in memos to head office also suggests that Crowley might not be the only one lying to his bosses:

CROWLEY: Everyone stretches the truth a bit in memos to head office, you know that.

Is it me, or is there a sense of “I told you so” to Aziraphale’s lack of sympathy towards Crowley’s despair? Some might say it’s reminiscent of the way a stereotypical nagging wife speaks to their long-suffering husband when he’s done something wrong…

In amongst the dark threat of impending Armageddon, we’re still treated to a little comedy (and perhaps another Clue as to the current status of the relationship between the angel and demon). Crowley’s snappy, and ill-considered, outburst in response to Aziraphale’s almost apologetic confession that he’s wearing a new cologne is well worth a word or two. Let’s say for a second that this pair are not romantically involved at this point in time – is it not a bit strange to think that the person you’re with knows you so well that they would detect that you’re wearing a different perfume than usual? I would think you’d have to be spending a LOT of time in VERY close proximity to that person for that piece of information to be anywhere near their radar. And what’s with the angel’s apologetic tone? Why would you feel the need to be sorry about trying out a new cologne? Aziraphale doesn’t look particularly shocked when Crowley announces that he knows what he smells like, and Crowley’s tone and facial expression suggests he thinks this piece of knowledge is a pretty obvious one.

Here’s my last observation for this episode. Check out just how earnest Crowley is in this delivery:

Despite Aziraphale’s response that he thinks he obviously would, I don’t really feel like he believes this stance, and he’d do anything not to believe that what Crowley is saying is true.

And so concludes the first episode! If you’ve made it this far through my write-up(s) so far, I commend and thank you. I’ll start work on the next episode over the next few days, but in the meantime I’ll also write a master post that I’ll add to as I go along. As always, comments, questions, discussions and any other engagements are welcome.

[pumpkin-cake]

Midnight Rain

(part two of ???)

-part one-

-part three-

summary - your tutoring sessions with tyler are going well, but you already have something on your mind to prepare for the next day

tw - cursing

Slight spoilers for Wednesday?? Nothing big

Tutoring with the barista at the Weathervane was a lot more fun than you had been expecting. Of course, Tyler had to work. A lot of it was you bringing in your assignment, him giving you a quick rundown of things before having to go right back to work. On the bright side, neither of you had seen the rude woman from before! Tyler and some of his coworkers were very appreciative. It felt nice that something you did benefited others. Although you felt that was the only thing you had going for you.

You always caught people staring at you in your Nevermore Academy uniform. Like you were some sort of animal or creature. You didn’t have claws like the werewolves or fangs like vampires. What you were was known by hardly anyone. Your mom knew of course. And the staff. It’s not like it was a deep dark secret you couldn’t tell anyone. You weren’t a scary monster that slaughtered people. You just…never felt the need to tell anyone.

Surprisingly, Tyler had never asked. He sometimes asked questions about the school in general, but never really about anything deep or personal, which you appreciated. Probably due to the fact you two didn’t really know each other, but you didn’t exactly have much social experience. You figured he’d be bursting at the seams with questions, but he was more relaxed and laid-back. Never exactly in a rush. Liked to keep things at a steady pace. It made you feel at ease when he helped you with assignments. He wasn’t pressuring you to get the right answer as soon as possible. Told you to take your time.

“So…the four goes…here?” You asked apprehensively.

“Yeah!” He replied, grinning. “Just don’t forget to divide, but I think you’ll be alright.”

“Great!” Your pencil scribbled on the paper, taking a second to make some mental calculations before writing your answer and showing Tyler.

“You got it!”

“Yes! Thank you so much.” You smiled, packing up your stuff and getting out of the booth.

Tyler tilted his head and checked the time on his phone. “You’re usually not heading out until another like, half an hour. Something up?”

“Oh, did I not tell you? We have the Poe Cup tomorrow. I want to make sure everything’s ready.”

“The…Poe Cup?” He asked, clearly puzzled. You had not told him, apparently.

“It’s like- this canoe race. There are four teams, and we have to row to a nearby island, claim a flag from the island's crypt, and row back. The first one to reach the finish line without sinking wins.” You explained briefly. “But, there are no rules.”

“What?”

“Yeah, no rules. So things like sabotage is all fair game. The same team has been winning for like- several years.” You sighed, slinging your backpack over your shoulders and carrying your coffee cup and plate to the counter with Tyler following.

“That- cannot be safe. Do people get hurt?” He questioned.

“Not too much. People aren’t going around shanking people to win. It’s usually pushing over boats or getting holes in the boats. Although one kid did lose a finger last year.” You hummed, the comment causing Tyler’s eyes to widen.

“Geez. Well, be careful, okay?” He said, going back and taking care of the dishes you placed on the counter. “You’re our star customer, can’t have you losing fingers.”

“Star customer! Well, I am certainly honored.” You said jokingly, bowing dramatically.

“You should be!” He joked back with a smile. “Huge title.”

“I’ll be sure to put it on my resume.” You hummed, brushing off your uniform. “Well, I hope to see you tomorrow!”

“See you next time, (Y/n)!” He called out, and you gave him a wave as you left, the bell singing out as you did. You expected to just calmly get back to school, but not even five minutes into walking back did you crash into somebody, falling to the ground with a groan.

“Oh! (Y/n), I am so sorry!”

There stood your dorm mom, Ms. Thornhill. Her glasses had been knocked askew by the impact, but she quickly readjusted them and helped you up.

“Didn’t see you there, sweetheart! Must have been wrapped up in my own thoughts.” She chuckled, and you dusted off your uniform.

“No problem, Ms. Thornhill.” You waved your hand, a little peeved that you’d been quite literally knocked over, but it was an accident. “Where are you off to, if I may?”

“Oh, just Weathervane. Need my daily coffee.” She hummed. “I missed it this morning. Busy schedule!” She said with a hearty laugh, brushing some hair away from her face.

“Ah, I see.” You chuckled. “Well, I won’t keep you. Just was gonna go rest up for the cup tomorrow.”

“Oh, yes! I almost forgot about that!” She said with a grin. “I’m excited to watch! You’re participating right? With the Black Cats?”

“Yup. Enid’s under the weather so I think I’m co-captain next to Yoko.” You said, feeling a little bad as you remembered how sad Enid was that she couldn’t participate. “I hope I can win it for her.”

“Oh, that’s sweet of you.” She smiled kindly. “I’m glad Ophelia Hall has someone as caring as you, (Y/n).” She said, and you almost felt your face turn red. “I know your mother will be cheering you on, too.”

Ugh, of course. Your mother. She’d been stressing over and over how she desperately wanted Ophelia Hall to have a win this year. Like she did last year. And the year before that.

Oh, yeah, your mother just so happened to be the literal principal of the school.

Larissa Weems wasn’t necessarily a bad mother. Just an annoying one. She purposefully placed you in Ophelia Hall because ‘Oh, she was in Ophelia Hall! Wouldn’t it be so lovely if you were in it too?’

…sure, Mom.

You’d really wanted to be in the same dorm group as your friend, Bianca Barclay. You’d even specifically asked your mother to put you in that group, or at least Bianca in Ophelia Hall. But, nope. She just really wanted you to be an Ophelia Hall student.

You really couldn’t complain too much. The people were pretty nice, and you did get a room to yourself as the principal’s kid. A lot of students figured you were spoiled and privileged, and maybe it was a little true, but you liked to think you were a good person. Tried your best to help out and be kind to everyone. You’d get Bianca to go easy on Rowan during fencing, stuff like that. You usually just kept to yourself otherwise.

“…thanks, Miss Thornhill. I think I’m going to go now.” You offered a very fake smile and walked off without hearing a response from her. You took out your phone and put in earbuds, playing whatever music that popped up first.

The walk back to Nevermore was uneventful after that. Some people gave you odd stares, but you were used to that at this point. You really needed to stop wearing your uniform everywhere.

Once you got onto the grounds, you were almost immediately confronted by your mother. Standing tall at 6’3”, she placed her hands on her hips and raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Where have you been?” She asked, not very accusingly but more curious.

“Um…Jericho.” You said. “Just getting some coffee. Like I have been doing these past few days. Or maybe you were just too busy to notice.”

“(Y/n), you know I don’t appreciate it when you do this.” She sighed. “I just wanted to know what you’ve been up to is all. You seem to be so busy with your academics along with the Poe Cup.”

“I am. Any updates on Enid?” You said shortly, really just wanting to go to your room.

“Oh! I was just about to let you know. Miss Sinclair has made a recovery, so she will be participating tomorrow!” Weems grinned, clasping her hands together.

“Great. We might have a chance at winning.” You said, almost sarcastically. You had a lot of faith in Enid, and in this way you wouldn’t be in charge at all. “I guess I can just spectate then.”

“Oh, come now, there’s no need!” She said. “Of course you’re going to participate. I even came up with a plan for you all to have a chance!” She said with a gracious smile, like she was doing you a favor.

“Mom, seriously? I don’t think interference from the principal is allowed.”

“There are no rules, darling.” She hummed, reaching a hand out and holding your face.

“…why do I have to do this again?” You questioned with a glare. “I really don’t want to. I’m already trying hard enough to keep up with my grades.”

“You’re my child, sweetheart.” She responded like it was that easy. “I know you have what it takes. I was co-captain of my team when I went to school here. You aren’t even in a leading position anymore, so you can absolutely do that, can’t you?”

“…I suppose so.” You muttered, lightly swiping her hand away from her face. “But don’t think I’m gonna act like some try-hard to win this thing. Tell me what you want me to do and I’ll do only that.”

“Thank you, my sweet child.” She offered a relieved smile before walking off, heels clacking as she did so. She held her hand up, beckoning you to follow so she could explain the details of her plan.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~🛶~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Laying up awake at night nervous for this stupid cup absolutely wasn’t fun. Was your mother going to be royally pissed off if you let her down? Probably. She was a sweet woman when you were a little kid. What a normal mother should be. But when she realized you were like her, she instantly became this fanatic, trying to shape you into what she was but better.

You jumped whenever your phone buzzed from your nightstand. Who the hell? You reached over and took it, wincing as the brightness of the phone blinded you. You quickly turned it down and saw you had a message.

From Tyler.

Good luck during that weird race tmr!

You blinked, before smiling. He was thinking of you. He remembered the stupid cup. That was sweet. You quickly responded with a thank you, letting him know you were going to get some sleep. You turned your phone on silent and closed your eyes. It still took you a while, but eventually you got yourself to sleep, ready for the day ahead.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~🛶~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

tags 🏷 @justageek @peachycupotea

[ummick]

Mick Schumacher Fully Lives His Adventure At the 24 Hours of Le Mans With Alpine

Mick Schumacher is preparing to make his debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. For this 92nd edition of the Le Mans classic, he is driving the Alpine A424 #36 from Alpine Endurance Team entered in the Hypercar category. He shares his impressions at the start of this great adventure.

After having competed in single-seater championships, first and foremost the Formula 1 World Championship, Mick Schumacher (25 years old) entered endurance and therefore the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The German driver joined Alpine's hypercar program last winter. He pilots the A424 #36 alongside Nicolas Lapierre and Matthieu Vaxiviere. He approaches the biggest endurance race in the world after showing strong performances in the previous three rounds of the FIA ​​WEC World Endurance Championship. "When we arrive at Le Mans, it's always with the ambition to shine and do the best possible. Being with Alpine, which is a French brand, gives another dimension," recognizes the man who competed in 43 grands prix between 2021 and 2022. Schumacher experienced the previous rounds of the FIA ​​WEC as preparation for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. "Everything is new to me. What is obvious is that people come here because of their passion for car racing, and that's a real pleasure. On a more personal level, I can't wait to race, to see what it's like to be on the go for 24 hours, because I've never had this experience. There is always something happening here, there is constant traffic, so being in the wrong place at the wrong time can be costly. This is an additional challenge. You have to constantly have a strategy in mind to be sure you can finish your relay."

One of the many special features of the 24 Hours of Le Mans is night driving, a new experience for Schumacher and one that he appreciated last night during the second free practice session. "Frankly, I didn't find the exercise that difficult," he tempers. "During the tests we conducted in Jerez, it seemed much harder to me than here. To be honest, I really liked it. This gives different sensations. My teammates have experience of night driving and I'm going to learn a lot from them. The race is going to be exciting, that’s for sure." He can count on the valuable advice of Nicolas Lapierre, who has sixteen participations. "We spend a lot of time with Mick. With the other drivers, we talk about traffic or slow zones, which can be quite tricky. The point of alertness that I specifically pointed out to him is sunrise. I advised him to stay focused because, seeing the day dawn, you almost have the impression that the race is over, so much so that attention is relaxed and that's when we see a lot of errors occurring," explains the leader of the drivers of the brand with the A arrow.

Given his experience in Formula 1, Mick Schumacher cannot escape the comparison with endurance. He is categorical: "It's not comparable. I strive to separate the two, not to create a bridge in terms of driving style, to be 100% on one side or the other. A hypercar is heavier, but it's still fun to drive. The car is made for Le Mans, so every time I get behind the wheel it's a joy." Schumacher is therefore preparing to add a new string to his bow. Between technical challenges, adaptation to night driving and constant learning, this race promises to be a decisive step in the young pilot's career. Remember that his father, Michael, took part in the Le Mans classic in 1991 at the wheel of a Sauber Mercedes C11 which he shared with Karl Wendlinger and Fritz Kreutzpointner. This unique participation resulted in fifth place in the general classification and the best lap in the race. We bet that Mick would happily sign up for such an assessment next Sunday at 3 p.m.

[fallout4-reacts]

How about the fo4 companions (including DLC companions) reacting to a S.S. who was an Ex-Paladin for the BOS and had killed their team after being ordered to kill a synth child and went AWOL, taking the child under their care as a backstory?

I didn't do Ada or Longfellow because I didn't get to know them very well. We can imagine Ada didn't really give a shit and Longfellow just accepted it. He is old, he has wisdom... and he is probably drunk (for all I know of him)

Cait : "Bad-ass! I couldn't do better myself, kids not kids. But I take it's a warnin'. Dinnae violate yer morality by...not touchin' a child?"

Codsworth : "So this is what you were doing the entire time you were missing?"

"Yes. I was on the Capital side. I was completely disoriented after what happened to Nate/Nora. I had no idea what to do. And I couldn't bear seeing all I knew... altered in that way. I continued walking towards the capital without pausing. I couldn't find anything better on the road, so I decided to join the BoS. Seek out a place to live and some semblance of civilization. But they're all monsters in the end."

"Except for Danse..."

Sole tries to hide their smile, but they shake their heads and return to their solemnity.

"However, the reason I'm talking to you today is that my responsibilities as a General are taking up more and more of my time. I frequently put myself in dangerous situations. Also, the closer I go to the Institute, the more scared I am of never returning. I would not want my other child to be abandoned or without means."

"Do you still have him with you?"

"I hid him close to Sanctuary. I try to see him as much as possible, but it's becoming increasingly difficult. He requires a healthy environment, and Sanctuary has transformed into a haven of peace and tolerance..."

"Don't say anything else! I'd be delighted to look after this little one while you're away! We will always be at home to greet you back."

Sole expected nothing less from their butler, but seeing his joy warms their heart. The child does require a stable environment. Besides, having a location to return to and be welcomed back would be great for them.

Curie : "How dreadful. Betraying your vows by having to kill all of these individuals. Please be sure that I understand. But betraying a vow must be horrifying."

Sole sighs. Curie is only familiar with Hippocrates' oath. They are well aware that the synth cannot consider betraying it. But they appreciate how she handled the story. After all, these murders and betrayals have been weighing on them for a long time, and it feels nice to finally have someone to talk to.

Danse (Post BB) : "This story was told from time to time in the dorms. But I never imagined it was true, and I never suspected for a second that it was you. I now have a better understanding of your situation. But how is it that Maxson has never had a doubt? And why are you back?"

"It was another era, another time. They had not yet performed ADN testing, so how could they have known? And I needed the BoS to get into the Institute. But if you want a completely honest response, they are simply incredibly stupid."

"I recognize it now."

Deacon (romanced) : There were always moments. Sole vanished from his radar for a few days, then reappeared. They were impossible to trace. He now understands. Sole would never have allowed them to be followed in order to expose the location of this synth child's hiding place. And Deacon has more admiration than ever for this person to whom he has now dedicated his life.

Dogmeat : Love the child. Everything else is nonsense. It's a dog. He simply loves the child... and guards him like a mother wolf.

Elder Maxson (romanced) : Cade is formal. The soldier is the same. But how could it have taken him so long to identify them? How could his officer be so careless? He's not sure how to react now. To set an example, he must surely execute Sole immediately. But can he truly? He doesn't have a choice. As soon as Sole returns to the ship, he will arrest them and hand them over to a firing squad.

He doesn't have a choice...

But what if...

He makes an effort to think. He attempts to figure out who on his team could handle such a delicate mission for him. Then he finds out. Heylan, the scribe, came naturally in his mind. He is aware that she covered Danse. He had been aware of it, yet he accepted it since he himself was hesitant. Because a large part of him was hoping for a loophole in this tricky situation. Because he cared so much about Danse. And now, once again, a dossier in which his emotions and his responsibilities collide. Is this bad luck? When the scribe enters his quarters, he requests that she close the door behind her.

"This discussion never happened, and if you mention it, I will deny everything and you will face justice."

Haylen had not anticipated such a welcome. She was already worried about appearing before the Elder, her nerves had now reached new heights. But she nodded, waiting for what the leader of her organisation intended to do.

"You will return to the ground and follow Sole's trail, trying to find their allies and visiting their colonies. You must deliver a message from me: "I know, never come back."

Haylen cocks her head to the side, unsure, but she nods once more.

"Good, sir."

"Be really discreet. If you do not send this message before Sole returns to the airport, I will be forced to execute them. Do you realise the significance of what I'm asking?"

"Sir, yes. I completely understood."

"Danse trusted you, Sole trusted you, and so do I. Don't betray that trust."

"Never, sir."

And now all Maxson has to do is wait and hope. He did everything in his power. May fate now look after Sole.

Hancock : "Killing BoS? Help a child? And you were unwilling to brag about it?"

Sole frowns and shakes their head.

"There's more to it than that. I deserted my companions; I betrayed those who had placed their trust in me. They were under my command, and—

"You put your duties as they must be. This ends the debate. Is he all right, the kid?"

"Yes, yes, yes. He lives not far away. I hid him in... well, I hid him. I try to see him as frequently as possible."

Hancock's keen stare falls on them, becoming somber.

"Are you too afraid to tell me where he is?"

His friend, embarrassed, lowers their head.

"Understand! I… For so long, I've lived as a renegade, and I've kept our path hidden. It's difficult to put faith in anyone on this subject."

With a slight smile on his face, the mayor shakes his head.

"You've just pointed out your betrayal, your massacer, and its existence to me. It's odd that you paused right before asking me to send Fahrenheit to babysit."

"Pardon?" Sole and the bodyguard inquire.

"Yes, keeping him secure. So many sacrifices, why not give him a life worth saving?"

"Not in Goodneighbourhood! Never!"

"So what? Isn't this the town of outcasts and fugitives?"

Sole mulls on what Hancock has just said, but they sighs deeply.

"No. This is not the kind of life I want for him."

"So it's better to hide him?"

"I'm not sure, but your girlfriend doesn't appear to agree with your plans."

"Fah is my daughter, not my girlfriend."

Sole's eyes widen in disbelief. Hancock busts out laughing.

"A secret for a secret. Where do you plan on putting down roots, for the kid? I mean, seriously."

Gage : "What on earth does that have to do with conquering the Commonwealth?"

Sole grimace. That was something they should have expected. Gage is unconcerned about his last sock. The past is the past, the raiders are not children of the heart, and Gage's objectives are more essential than humans leaving by the side of the road. Sole does not and will never insist. But one day, like this, Gage returns to them, perplexed.

"You know, boss, I've been thinking about something. You betrayed your old patrol for a child who isn't even human. There may be children present when we invade the Commonwealth colonies. Are you sure you're not going to do it backwards?"

Sole's eyes widen in amazement. Then they softly shake their head and smile.

"No way, Gage, never."

But after that, their lieutenant was shot in the head the moment he turned his back.

MacCready : "Killing BoS and protecting a child synth. Yeah. You like risks, it’s twisted, but who am I to judge?"

He sighs and shrugs.

"Say, regarding the events in Vault 81... I hope you don't hold my view in the same regard, and that you're not planning to gut me in my sleep."

"Did you request that this child die? You were upset that I saved him, but you didn't ask for his death. That's not the same."

"No, I didn't... I didn't mind that you saved him! I'm disappointed that you didn't save yourself for whatever reason!"

MacCready is suddenly interested in his weapon, which he disassembles to lubricate the mechanism.

"However, I am not surprised. In fact, an imbecile capable of giving up healthcare in favor of a child's life may well debunk BoS without guilt in order to rescue one."

"It was my team..."

"That was the motto. The past is gone. Winlock and Barnes were both killed by me. You heard me; I don't pass judgement."

Nick Valentine (romanced) : He had a good time that evening. Conversations about the past, Sole in his arms, starry sky over their heads. But, for once, Sole didn't bring up the pre-war topic. They described this horrific event from their recent history nervously, almost fearfully.

"And the kid, what's he become?" The detective inquires flatly.

"Always safe and hidden. I try to pay him visits every few days. But I'm always worried that he'll be discovered."

Sole looks up to Nick, and he sees their anxiety. He strokes their cheek gently.

"Your secret is safe with me. I will never betray you. In the meanwhile, we'll consider where we can best place the child. Perhaps one of your settlements. I suppose he could be quiet at Sanctuary, and you could stop constantly glancing over your shoulder."

Sole's eyes are now bright with joy. They had already considered it, but because this secret had always been closely guarded, they frequently pondered if it was a poor idea without anybody else talking about it. The fact that Nick agrees with them gives them comfort. Yes, perhaps it's time for this poor child to resume his normal existence. And now that they're thinking about it, they're certain that Sanctuary would be the ideal location.

Piper : "Wow! What a tale! I'm not supporting genocide, but these Brotherhoods are viciously slaughtering anything that isn't like them."

"It was not a genocide."

"A slaughter? Don't try and tell me it wasn't a slaughter."

"Do you intend to write an article about this?"

"No! Absolutely not! I'm not stupid enough to put you and the boy in danger, and it could eventually lead to an open war with the Brotherhoods to expose to them that the Commonwealth Minutemen General is a former traitor to their organisation."

Sole gently shakes their head, a small smile on their lips. Piper's intelligence should never be underestimated. She comprehends things better than anybody else, and they were right to put their trust in her.

Preston : "But really, you had to kill these men back then?"

Sole sadly shakes their head.

"They refused to listen to reason. They'd track me down and kill me. I was his single chance to living a free and happy life. I had no choice."

The Colonel nodded slowly, his gaze fixed on the Prydwen.

"I see what you're saying. And I completely understand your distress at seeing this ship. Okay, if diplomatic visits are necessary, I will make them. Meanwhile, return this sad child to Sanctuary so he can have a decent home. It's a disgrace to keep him among the ruins, fearful, when we can give him a better future."

Sole can't keep a smile from appearing on their lips. They were completely right in telling Preston of everything.

Strong : “Boring. No need so much words. Protecting child. Good. Strong strong. Strong will protect child of human.”

Sole smiled slightly. It felt good to talk about it. And as usual, Strong’s simplistic philosophy reinforced their convictions. And now they have one more ally to protect their child.

X6-88 : Sole is sad now. They have since developed a trusting relationship with the Courser. They had placed their trust in his friendship. They assumed that X6 had progressed past certain phases of the Institute. That he had changed. So, they confided in him about everything. Their companion's reply did not take long. He demanded that Sole hand over the infant to the Institute. There have been relatively few synth children created, and they are extremely valuable for research advancement. Sole refused, as they had before refused to follow X6 in some "homework," but the Courser did not sweep the subject with the back of his hand this time. He made a threat against Sole. He threatened them, and everything about his demeanour indicated that he was serious. He stated thoroughly that it was the final straw. If Sole continued to refuse to behave in the Institute's best interests, they would be judged to have chosen to be an enemy. When Sole refused to cooperate, X6 opened fire, claiming that he didn't need Sole to find the child but couldn't afford to have them in his way. Sole is sad since they have to kill someone they thought a friend.

[dragonxjewels]

Hello!

I just want to say that you have really cool OCs here! They're really well-designed, and that a lot of thought has been put into them, especially in terms of personality and backstories :)

If you don't mind me asking, I was just wondering what Surge and Hyperfix's relationship with the rest of Team Prime are like. It'd be really neat to see a glimpse onto what their relationship and dynamic is like with the other 'bots.

Thank you in advance!

I cannot explain how happy this makes me- like seriously AAAAH 💕💕 when it comes to to characters I’ve posted, Surge and Hyperfix are the oldest, I’ve been playing with Surge for about 9 years and Hyperfix for about 7, and I have spent *so* much time daydreaming about them, so I’ll try to answer this as concisely as possible!!

Surge

Surge’s relationship to the rest of Team Prime was a bit strained when he first joined up, nobody really liked the fact that after being introduced, he immediately left back into space with Wheeljack, especially Fowler (who had been excited to have an advanced alien who knew tons of information about other organic life in the universe, for obvious government reasons).

When he returned with Wheeljack, that’s when the rest of the team really started developing sincere opinions about him, so I’ll go from there:

Optimus: He was curious about Surge the first time he was introduced, and didn’t really understand why he’d leave so soon, but being himself, he respected it without needing to understand. Upon Surge’s return, he saw how Magnus deeply trusted Surge, and consulted his trusted friend about it- thereby learning more of Surge’s past and forming a sincere appreciation for the strange mech.

Ratchet: He is easily frustrated by Surge, to say the least. He sees the mech as brilliant, and appreciates his wealth of knowledge on organic sciences, especially since they’re on Earth, but he thinks Surge is unpredictable and (in his opinion) undisciplined, and that Wheeljack makes that worse. He doesn’t completely dislike the mech though, he warms up at times.

Arcee: She can’t say she understands him- she held a bit of a grudge about him abandoning Earth right after being introduced- but was relieved to see him and Wheeljack again later on when they needed the help. She feels quietly thankful to have another mech around who sincerely cares for the humans’ wellbeing, especially someone who knows more about how their fragile bodies work. She won’t tell him that though.

Bee: He thinks Surge is interesting, and likes listening to him recount his travels during the war. He likes to peep on what Surge is doing in his lab sometimes (he’s less likely to be shooed away from Surge than Ratchet) and can occasionally tempt him to go racing- especially when Smokescreen is involved.

Bulkhead: He adores Surge. He sees the mech as someone who has only made their lives better, namely in how he’s brought security and comfort to his best friend. He appreciates that despite being “the sciencey type” Surge doesn’t hold his intellect over anyone’s head- Surge doesn’t leave him out of conversations simply because Bulkhead isn’t a scientist or engineer, in fact, he actively discusses things with him in ways that he can understand without a degree in biology, likewise, Bulkhead doesn’t pick on Surge for not being combat and strength-inclined. The two like each other plenty.

Wheeljack: The two are borderline inseparable. We all know that Wheeljack yearns for company, and isn’t ready to let go of his past *or* be tied down- and while Bulkhead couldn’t abandon Earth to go with him, Surge wasn’t ready to be stuck on Earth either, and their companionship ended up going places neither of them could have foreseen. The two generally like each other from the get-go, having good chemistry in their personalities- but as time goes by, they form a sort of codependency. They need each other to be stable- well, as stable as either of them really can be. They’re passionate, they’re deeply in love with each other as people, and at the core of it, they’re friends.

Ultra Magnus: He loves Surge in a way he often cannot express. He rescued the mech some time ago, shortly before he was tasked with commanding the Wreckers, and it was something that deeply impacted the way he commanded battle from there on. Surge was someone he saw sincere good in, despite being a Decepticon- he saw a mech with good intentions, who had seldom received any warmth from the world, but remained kind and idealistic. He saw a mech whose values were not tarnished by hardship, even upon being cast aside to die by the cause he had believed in. Magnus respected that, and helped Surge integrate into the Autobot ranks, scrubbing his past affiliations from the record. To this day, even if Surge’s impulsivity causes him stress, he still believes in Surge’s goodness- and remains protective of him.

Smokescreen: He thinks Surge is too boring- why stay in a lab tinkering with stuff when you’ve got a racer’s frame? He frequently tries to push Surge’s buttons to get him to go outside and play with him- and as much as he’s not a scientist- he’s gotten it down to a science. He loves to prod the mech until he hears “That’s it!!” Or “You know what? You’re on.” So they can go and tear up some asphalt.

Miko: She is a terror and a force to be reckoned with- and Surge loves that. He is more careful with her than Wheeljack is, which has definitely led to her being frustrated with him- but he still sees her as capable and fascinating- and as a person he can trust to always co-conspire on mischief with.

Raf: He likes the idea of Surge a little more than he likes directly working with him- much like Ratchet. He’s been fascinated by what Surge can teach him about his experiences as a scientist during wartime- especially about holoforms on organic planets, since that has a lot to do with computers- and Surge enjoys having someone to teach about the things he’s passionate for.

Jack: He doesn’t really know what to make of Surge. Jack usually finds himself out with the scouts rather than in the labs, listening to the scientific chatter. Likewise, Surge isn’t terribly interested in Jack, he’s not enthusiastic like Miko or yearning for knowledge like Raf.

June: She likes Surge! She thinks he’s a funny sort of guy, strange, but kind of sweet. They had a discussion at one point when things were kind of dire, he promised her that he had been learning about how to care for humans, and that he could treat them if anything happened- Ratchet was the medic, sure, but Surge *knows* organic life. She sincerely appreciated that. They often discuss things about her work, she likes that Surge both has a framework of understanding for their biology *and* is interested by it.

Fowler: This guy… he can’t be certain, but he’s pretty sure Surge found a way to give him the common cold after he told the mech he wasn’t allowed to go to the aquarium. Shortly after, Surge tinkered with the team’s holoforms to make them more convincing, and he was allowed to go where he pleased- but Fowler had his suspicions. He thinks Surge is *alright* but is endlessly frustrated that the mech won’t tell the US government everything he knows about other organic species in their galaxy- Surge maintains that it’s their place to become a spacefaring species and find out on their own (of course he still shares plenty with the others, just not documented for Fowler).

Hyperfix: He thinks Surge is as predictable as he is unpredictable- which is mildly stressful. On one hand, he trusts that Surge is a good mech at his spark- but on the other hand, Surge seems to like a little chaos- whether it’s sneaking out to do something eco-radical, or accompanying Wheeljack on some questionable side-quest, or even late night racing- the mech makes his head spin. On social terms they get along pretty well though. Surge is amused by Hyperfix’s demeanor, and finds him endearing, Hyperfix likes being around someone who sees his social differences as a delight rather than a chore.

Hyperfix

Hyperfix also had a somewhat strained relationship with many characters, largely because he was a Neutral- he wasn’t immediately trusted. How could someone go though four million years of war and not pick a side? Realistically, Hyperfix was more closely associated with the Autobots, but he made a conscious choice to never join either side because he says: “I want my patients to see me and not a badge- I never know who I’m going to treat, or how terrified they might be. I’ve treated non-cybertronians who were intensely frightened of soldiers, both Autobot and Decepticon. I’ll never wear a badge while I’m treating the victims of this war.”

After this explanation, most people seem to understand, even if they still wish he’d just join the Autobots instead.

Optimus: He thinks Hyperfix is endearing, and much to Hyoerfix’s surprise, he *actually understands and respects* the fact that he doesn’t want to be an official Autobot. He thinks his reasoning is perfectly sound, and frankly he enjoys having another medic around to lighten the stress on Ratchet’s shoulders.

Ratchet: He finds himself thinking “this mech….” quite often. Hyperfix is so incredibly blunt- well, he has a good bedside manner, but he’s *so* blunt. He appreciates having another medic around, it makes his life so much easier, but at first he found himself sighing and rolling his optics endlessly throughout the day. Eventually, he becomes accustomed to the mech’s quirks, and even finds them a bit charming- well, maybe more than a bit. He finds that he actually respects the straightforwardness.

*Eventually, Ratchet, Hyperfix, and another oc (not mine) wind up in a poly relationship- turns out, mechs who speak their minds rather than playing around with nuance are easier to get along with. Hyperfix is an attentive lover, he’s very dedicated to his partners’ wellbeing, physically and emotionally.

Arcee: As much as she cannot understand how Hyperfix remains technically neutral- she gets along with him surprisingly well! She likes that she can always trust that whatever comes out of Hyperfix’s mouth is point blank, and doesn’t require her to read between the lines. She also appreciates that they had similar struggles on Cybertron- what with being treated as somewhat less capable because of their small frames and altmodes, and having to work extra hard to be taken seriously.

Bee: He thinks Hyperfix is sweet, he likes how attentive he is to all the scouts- Hyperfix always gives them a good once-over after every mission to make sure they haven’t accumulated even minor injuries. Bee likes to feel attended to, and really likes all the gentle touch and care he receives after every mission (Hyperfix helps him with some long standing injuries because of his specialization in physical therapy, it makes Bee feel warm and fuzzy to be doted on).

Bulkhead: He is a little frightened of Hyperfix- and he knows it’s irrational- but Hyperfix’s compartments are full of medical supplies, including syringes and all sorts of needles. He’d rather take a big hit, punches on punches, than deal with tiny medical equipment prodding at him. However, during the times he’s needed to see Hyperfix for medical care, somehow the mech has been able to put him somewhat at ease. He’s still scared, but Hyperfix is so careful of his phobias it’s made things a little easier.

Wheeljack: He’s deeply amused by this little mech. He says exactly what’s on his mind, which he likes, and seems to cause Ratchet some serious flustering, which he *loves*. He picks on him for being too gentle with people, thinking it’s quite funny how doting he is with massive war hardened mechs like himself and Bulkhead- but he does appreciate it.

Ultra Magnus: He likes Hyperfix well enough… for a neutral. He disagrees with the sentiments behind remaining neutral, despite Optimus’ own understanding of the matter, though he still respects Hyperfix as a person and a good medic.

Smokescreen: He has similar sentiments to Bee, but considering he hasn’t gone through four million years of war, he doesn’t appreciate it the same way. However, he finds himself being a little overtly flirtatious with Hyperfix- he’s cute, attentive, and so sweet with everyone- Smokescreen almost feels a little guilty for his thoughts about the mech. Almost.

Miko: She thinks he’s easier to get along with than Ratchet for sure- but she also thinks he’s too calm natured to be any fun.

Raf: He likes Hyperfix! Sure, he isn’t savvy with technology like Ratchet, so that talking point is moot, but he knows that Bee is in good hands between the two medics, and that matters to him more than anything.

Jack: He ends up spending a little more time around Hyperfix than he would have expected, because of Arcee’s and his mom’s friendship with him. He thinks Hyperfix is a warm person.

June: She likes spending idle time with Hyperfix in the medbay. He’s more inclined to be talkative while he works than Ratchet is, and they will chat about fun hospital drama as well as commiserate about patient experiences.

Fowler: He isn’t sure what to make of Hyperfix- he doesn’t particularly like that he isn’t an Autobot, and had some trouble explaining that to his superiors. Hyperfix is confused by his exclamations and metaphors, and doesn’t realize Fowler’s nervous feelings about him.

Surge: He thinks Hyperfix is a complete sweetspark, odd and endearing. He likes to come pester him in the medbay, chatting about whatever he’s studying at the moment. Hyperfix has learned plenty of animal trivia because of Surge’s chattiness about his Earth studies, and Surge has learned a few things here and there about neutral Cybertronian colonies on organic worlds through Hyperfix that he wouldn’t have known about otherwise.

[petrichoraline]

✨MSP Episode 11 Thoughts✨

wheree do i even start

how about ALL OF YOU LIED TO ME?? i feel scammed!! i was led to believe through every single thing i encountered that tinn and gun would have a fallout of some sort OR their relationship would suffer somehow. apparently i experienced goncharov levels of conspiracy, all of bl tumblr teamed up to stress me out because what actually awaited me was tinngun being sweet supportive boyfriends for over an hour!

speaking of which, from all the people dropping hints and nudging me to watch it, precisely zero told me it was the length of a kdrama episode! i was predicting like a 50min long script, how was i supposed to know gmm had decided to cosplay as tvn for a day?

episode 11 being longer and still not containing the iconic couple conflict but leaving it for the very last episode is just another way to break the norm, it's what bad buddy did, it's just not how bad buddy did it. and i want to take a moment to appreciate that the series decided it is more important to properly end the hot wave arc and show tinn's mom figuring out this whole thing mostly by herself and with the help of her husband rather than lashing out at her son. there was enough time spent on these things so the events of episode 12 don't feel rushed and the characters' actions don't seem unmotivated.

what was going on with tiwpor though?? i knew these two would be as rushed as a sequel to a hit hollywood movie but goodness..yet somehow..it works? tiwpor having bbq. then tiwpor having dinner. two meals and those kids are practically planning how to move in with each other as soon as possible.

the man the myth the legend tiwson wasn't even with the gang for most of the episode (my theory is that had he been there for the big fight, there would be no other way for his character to react other than getting down on all fours by por's side and growling at everyone..so they had to cut him out entirely)

experiencing soundgun confirming their devotion and then attacking each other like wild hyenas thirty minutes later was one of the highlights but something i enjoyed even more was pat giving off "had a crush on my bestie but gave up on it cause we're too alike" vibes, i did not expect to get so much personality from either tiw or por but pat had my head spinning

tiwson in the first five minutes like "yall bout to break up? sucks mate. well, we had a good run!" ..i cannot believe i thought this man was about to break down and tell tinn about all that he's been enduring for him. man's only as invested as the task at hand gives promise of a bl drama plot unveiling before him. (also, how did he see his relationship with por developing in that scenario? "tinn and gun can do whatever, i'm going to bite that cute bbq chef and the holy chinzhilla can watch from the corner for all i care")

realising tinn could've not become a school president to help them win but then realising he had to do it for the guys anyways because they would have had to give up long before hot wave

this is on top of my head pretty much, i've got opinions on every second of this whole thing though

[thommi-tomate]

Philipp Lahm Column

The year begins sadly. Franz Beckenbauer has died. He gave more to German football than anyone else and embodied his country in the best possible way. With wit, charisma, expertise, charm and optimism. The world bows before this shining light.

Beckenbauer always instilled enormous confidence in Germans. First as a player, then as a coach and finally as the man behind the 2006 summer fairytale. It was always true: if Franz takes care of things, nothing can happen to us

I didn’t experience Franz Beckenbauer as a player; the last time he was on the pitch was shortly before I was born. But I did experience the reverence with which my father spoke of him. And when I later looked at the old recordings from the 60s and 70s, some still in black and white, I immediately noticed something: everything was much slower than it is today. The players took a long time to position the ball. They only passed it with their second or third touch. Except for one. Franz played the ball directly to where he wanted it. He played in a way that became common decades later. Like a man from the future.

I have a free-kick in my mind’s eye that he, in a Bayern shirt, flicked over the wall and into the corner of the goal with the outside of his foot after a straight run-up. This goal must have seemed like a miracle to those who witnessed it.

Beckenbauer embodied this progress, this technical innovation, with unprecedented ease. And he was not only more elegant than the others, he had a different idea of football and teamwork. He became a role model for a generation. Der Kaiser modernised football, accelerated it, made it more beautiful. I can’t think of anyone who changed the game in the same way.

When West Germany became world champions in 1990 under Beckenbauer, I was glued to the television as a six-year-old. I think I watched every game of that World Cup. I remember the penalty kick Andi Brehme scored to win the title. And the hairstyle of the team manager, who entertained the whole country with his jokes.

You saw a world champion coach who worked so hard that his mother worried about him “because Franz was so thin”. He knew how to address his players. “Geht’s raus und spielt’s Fußball.”: “Go out on to the pitch and play football.” He gave everyone courage, because one thing was always clear to everyone: nothing can go wrong with Franz.

In 2006, when the World Cup kicked off in Germany, I was on the pitch. The goal I scored in the opening game against Costa Rica is one of the highlights of my career. Being able to play a World Cup in your home country is a priceless gift. The connection with the crowd, the closeness to the fans, has always filled me with confidence. The 2006 experience carried me through my career. It also made me realise my responsibility as a footballer.

The World Cup transformed Germany. A nation that was used to looking at itself very critically suddenly recognised its beautiful teams. A free-playing Germany helped the country look itself in the mirror. Football helped Germany to recognise itself.

We all know mistakes were made around the 2006 World Cup. But in the case of Beckenbauer, something got out of balance. His life’s work for German football and his country cannot be overestimated. The Sommermärchen would not have been possible without the president of the organising committee.

Another tournament is due to be held in Germany this summer. Times have changed, the world is plagued by many crises. We have to adapt, strengthen our community and learn to appreciate Europe and all its achievements again. To do this, we need a new impetus

Europe can do this, its people are capable of it. And football as a cultural asset is part of European civil society. The game can create solidarity and unite people across borders. The many warm-hearted obituaries Franz Beckenbauer has received from all countries shows this.

Euro 2024 should strengthen our cohesion and the European idea. For sport to achieve this, it needs authentic personalities who radiate satisfaction, pride and optimism. Franz Beckenbauer always did that. That is his legacy.

[f1]

Canadian Grand Prix: Max Verstappen would like Fernando Alonso to win if he cannot

Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso have been on the podium together five times so far this season Venue: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal Dates: 16-18 June Coverage: Live text updates and radio commentary of all sessions on the BBC Sport website & app, with live commentary of the race on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds app from 19:00 BST on Sunday. Full details Max Verstappen says that if he cannot win any race this year, he would like to see Fernando Alonso win it instead. Verstappen's Red Bull team have won all seven races so far this year and he says it is possible they could win them all. But the Dutchman said: "If you ask me one driver who I would like to see win a race, it's him." Verstappen, who leads the drivers' championship by 53 points, said Alonso "deserves it - he is a real racer". Alonso, a two-time champion with Renault in 2005 and 2006, last won a race for Ferrari in 2013. He spent four uncompetitive years with McLaren from 2015-18, stepped away from Formula 1 for two years to compete in endurance racing and at Indianapolis, before returning with Alpine in 2021 and then moving to Aston Martin for 2023. He is third in the championship and has finished on the podium in all but two races so far this year. Verstappen said: "I like him. He never gave up and you can see he loves the sport. Sometimes, after so many years of only having a car that is capable of driving in the midfield, maybe you lose a bit of that love but he is a real racer. He is an animal." Alonso said he was optimistic that Aston Martin would be more competitive in Canada this weekend than they were at the last race in Spain, when they had their weakest performance of the season. "It should be a good weekend," said Alonso, who qualified his Alpine second on the grid in the rain in Montreal last year, with wet weather predicted again for Saturday. "But we also had expectations in Barcelona and we didn't perform that race. We have a couple of new parts. Hopefully we can be a little bit more competitive than Barcelona." Verstappen is hot favourite to win on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Sunday and a victory would be the 41st of his career, drawing him level with Ayrton Senna's total, with just Alain Prost, Sebastian Vettel, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton ahead. Verstappen said it was impossible to compare the two achievements. "People always have different kind of careers," he said. "Maybe some drivers get into a race-winning car sooner than others. Nowadays, we have more races than back in the day so I never really look at the number but as a kid I would never have imagined to be in that list. It is an amazing career for sure but you can't compare it." Verstappen said he understood why those watching F1 would be finding his domination of the sport a turn-off. "It is nice sometimes to have good competition," he sad. "For the sport in general, I understand of course if people get a bit bored if only one team is dominating. We have seen it also in the past with Mercedes and Ferrari and Red Bull. "For sure, I hope that more teams can get together. At least then, even if you have a little issue or whatever or you can't get the set-up fully at 100%, there is another team to win. "It is all about hard work. I appreciated what they were doing. It was super impressive at the time. I never really felt you had to stop that. It was all about trying to work harder and catch up. via BBC Sport - Formula 1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/

[crystalelemental]

Unit Teambuilding - Lodge Adaman

Adaman is also the Lodge unit this month, signaling the beginning of Master Fairs as Lodge units.  Most Master Fairs are alts, but this does open the door for Leon.  And...him.  But I prefer not to think about that.  I prefer to think about cool shit, like Adaman having another Eeveelution as part of Lodge.  Unfortunately, it's a Support, and you know how free supports go

General Overview Bad.  They go bad.

Lodge Adaman is an odd case.  Statistically, he's about on par with anyone else in the F2P support bin.  Mid-200s defenses and low to mid 600s HP.  Decent, not exceptional.  For clarity, he's about at Lodge Dawn's bulk level, maybe a bit above.  He's also a buff bot, who has X Def All with the possibility of Pep Rally depending on grid, and a trainer move that gives +2 special attack to the team, and +2 special defense only to himself.  It also applies Gradual Healing under Rain.  And thus begins the Tragedy of Adaman.

Vaporeon has Rain utility, and this sounds like it could be neat, but is functionally nightmarish given his charge.  Among the Rain setters - Winona, May, Eevee Lyra - all of them need more than Adaman provides.  Specifically, they really needed crit rate.  Which he doesn't boost at all.  Instead, he's a defensive support, who's a little selfish about it given no team Gradual Healing or special defense buffing, and is still reliant on Rain in a way that means either double support, or taking the non-offensive Rain setters like eggmons on as allies.  Which is a dangerous proposition, because he is a free unit, and thus has shit for bulk.  Oh sure, Rain Gear 2, but that's not exactly saving you.

To compound Adaman's woes, he is flanked by three major competitors.  On the one side, we have Roxanne, who also buffs four stats, but buffs all of them for the team, and compressed Sp Atk/Speed into one, which is way more valuable.  On the other, we have BP Morty, whose bulk buffing is far more reliable, and backed by Potions, making him an obscenely sturdy wall that Adaman cannot measure up to.  And on the final side, we have Lodge competition itself with the F2P God-Queen, Lodge Dawn, who can quite literally do everything Adaman does, but better, for less.

Lodge Adaman is a sync pair without a cause.  Until May gets a grid expansion and hopefully eases her self-setup, Adaman exists in the bizarre space of potentially being a decent wall by virtue of slightly higher stats, damage reduction, and Gradual Healing.  But the Rain reliance for two of those things, combined with not having anything to support most Rain options, is really rough.  It doesn't help that we now have THREE Rain setting supports, and they're all special offense buffers.  At least Mina had Team Sharp Entry.  Oh god, that's why he doesn't.  Goddammit Mina.

EX and Move Level? It’s a Lodge support with very little it supports, so can’t really recommend EX.  Move Level only if you have the 4* support candy for it, but I wouldn’t prioritize him over Dawn or Morty.  Or like.  Any of them.

Team 1: Lodge Adaman, Winona, Siebold/Barry/Lodge May Adaman works with allies who can cap their own crit.  Given this, Barry and Siebold are the obvious solutions to his dilemma, with Winona as an optimal third.  Adaman is particularly nice for Barry in a Gauntlet context, since Barry's Cakewalk can be challenging to set up, and Adaman has access to On a Roll 4 Bubblebeam.

Team 2: Lodge Adaman, Archie, Tech Blastoise/MU Pikachu If you needed to partner Roxanne with someone else, and feel confident in Adaman’s ability to keep Archie alive, this is probably his best use.  Extended Rain does wonders for his otherwise terrible bulk and survival skills, and Archie does appreciate the special attack boosting, even if it’s not a Hoenn partner.  Tech Blastoise is a Rain setter for longer matches, and covers the All Water thing that might be relevant next month, while MU Pikachu offers two critically important Gauntlet traits: paralysis in Thundershock, and Potion for Adaman’s survival.

Team 3: Lodge Adaman, Koga, Janine An alternate approach, outside of Rain.  Janine helps set up Poison and debuffing for Adaman to survive, while Koga’s able to cap his own crit rate.  Really anyone who caps crit and needs special attack theoretically uses his skills okay.

Team 4: Lodge Adaman, Irida, Ghetsis/MU Pikachu This one’s for all the Adaman/Irida shippers out there.  Their base forms may be at odds, but his Lodge form works decently well with Irida, supplying the missing +2 special attack she needs, and even providing defensive buffs.  Irida also provides the Gradual Healing he would otherwise miss out on.  Irida...might legitimately be a better tank than him, even while offensive, by the way.  Just throwing it out there.  As needed, you can go dual striker with Irida and Ghetsis, or you can bring in someone with healing potential to keep Adaman (or Irida) going.  I couldn’t think of a great Potion user, so I went with MU Pikachu so I could argue that the paralysis makes this a Gauntlet team.

Team 5: Lodge Adaman, Caitlin/Ghetsis, SS May/Irida/P!Dawn As an alternate approach, Adaman can forego the need for special attack buffing entirely, and focus almost exclusively on X Defense All and the inclusion of Pep Rally.  Adaman provides decent gauge control and physical bulk in the same move, which is almost as good as Skyla.  Almost.  The ability to give one boost to special attack, however, means he can top off options like Caitlin and Ghetsis, who are typically just short of maximum.  In the case of Caitlin, SS May is ideal, since she can cap her own crit rate, and potentially even take over the X Sp Atk concerns.  Otherwise, Bianca is fine if you’re not worried about it, or aiming for the Gradual Healing Bianca has easier access to.  Irida supports Ghetsis perfectly, and gives Gradual Healing to the party as well to keep Adaman running.  In absence of a field effect support, P!Dawn can function as a good debuffer for damage in special attack, or to attack to keep Adaman alive.

Final Thoughts I really want to impress that the last team structure should not be used to fool you into thinking Adaman has a niche.  Replace him with Lodge Dawn, and you’ve got a better comp.  Adaman is just so wildly bad it’s kinda funny.  I would love to know what they were thinking on this one.  Maybe it’s the consolation prize so Master Fairs don’t feel like they have to be pulled for a good extra free unit?  Maybe they just really hate Vaporeon given SS Misty’s kinda bad?  Maybe Water types are the Lodge designers’ least favorite type?  No one knows.  But this is...pretty not great and it makes me sad.

[ophelia-j]

I can't adequately convey how much I love this scene. It's a perfect example of how beautifully the Granada Holmes series brought ACD's stories to the screen:

- Lestrade's absolute sincerity in this moment. Yes, he sometimes finds Holmes irritating. Yes, in the past he has resented Holmes 'showing up' Scotland Yard. But there's none of that here. Just heartfelt gratitude that this extraordinary man has turned his prodigious intellect to Lestrade's line of work, and made it better. And, in this moment, still aware of all of the above, he wants Holmes to know.

He wants him to understand that, for all their differences in approach, he is genuinely and sincerely appreciated and admired. (They clearly cast Colin Jeavons because he's a good actor with an absolutely uncanny physical resemblance to ACD's descriptions of Lestrade, but he more than pays them back in scenes like this. He doesn't get this kind of thing often, but when he does he knocks it out of the damn park.)

- Watson's reaction isn't shown here, but it's lovely: genuine surprise at first that Lestrade has said something so complimentary to Holmes, then absolute delighted vindication that Holmes is finally getting some of the credit that - in Watson's eyes - he has long been due. (Edward Hardwicke, as ever, does simply beautiful work.)

- And Holmes. God. Where to start? Jeremy Brett's Holmes in this series is widely regarded as the definitive portrayal of ACD canon on screen, and it's scenes like this that show exactly why.

Holmes isn't ready for this moment at all. He's in his element, basking in the gratification of having just solved another case. But it's just another case. He's solved a lot. Many of them, with Lestrade. This is nothing out of the ordinary at all. So he dismisses Lestrade's first attempt at gratitude very lightly indeed. Lightly enough for Lestrade to be quite determined to put him right.

So when he carries on speaking, Holmes' eyes widen noticeably. First, in surprise that Lestrade is still speaking, but second, and most importantly, at Lestrade's choice of words.

"We're proud of you."

Up to this exact moment, in all of canon, Holmes has believed himself to be merely tolerated by the Yard. Tolerated, and given occasional leeway, because he is an instrument. Because he is useful. This is the first time he has learned that he is also valued. Respected. Admired.

Canonically, the relationship of Holmes and Mycroft to their parents, particularly their father, isn't noted as especially good. There's a strong possibility that Holmes hasn't heard 'I'm proud of you' since he was a child, and perhaps not at all. So to have someone speak in that way on behalf of an entire organisation, and one with whom Holmes works very closely, is hugely impactful.

And if Lestrade had left it there, and said nothing further, we would still have had one of canon's more moving moments. But he isn't done. Since a similar chance is unlikely to arise again, he wants to be absolutely sure that Holmes understands. So he emphasises his point.

This is not just me. You know I like you. But this is everyone else too. My boss, his boss, my team, their mates. This is everyone. We like you. We rate you. You make us look good, and we're grateful, and we want you to know.

And every word is another small blow to Holmes' composure, already well shaken by the previous revelation of their pride in him.

And so Lestrade accidentally succeeds in doing what even Watson rarely manages: bringing that great mind to a standstill.

There's a moment in the final gif here where Holmes is trying to do the socially acceptable next thing. He is aware that he should say something. Should reply to Lestrade. But he can't. That incredible brain that has earned all the foregoing praise simply cannot cope with the intrusion of his heart. And he is physically unable to speak.

If there were another gif, it would show him very quickly turning away, in Holmes's signature move of emotional discombobulation, to rearrange the oddities on the mantelpiece. Because he is about to give himself away, to show not only Watson, but Lestrade, of all people, that beneath the person he presents to the world is an intensely vulnerable, sensitive, and lonely man. To whom the genuine admiration of others is like water to his parched soul. But Holmes himself cannot look at that, and anyone else seeing it is unthinkable.

So the oddities are rearranged, and all our hearts break a little for him, even as we side firmly with Watson and Lestrade that this praise is wholly deserved, and he should be told, regularly and often, how dear he is to those that know him.

JEREMY BRETT & COLIN JEAVONS as SHERLOCK HOLMES & INSPECTOR LESTRADE in THE SIX NAPOLEONS (1986)

"“Thank you!” said Holmes. “Thank you!” and as he turned away it seemed to me that he was more nearly moved by the softer human emotions than I had ever seen him."

[noaltbruh]

Hi !! how are you?? I wanted to say that I loved what you wrote about poly!bruabba and I wanted to ask if you could do something similar for poly!fugonara or poly!giomis (what you prefer) if it's not a bother. I really like your posts. Thank you !!! <3

Writing Giomis 'cause I hate Fugonara 😎

And thank youuuu (´,,•ω•,,) I'm glad you enjoy my posts! ♡

Poly!Giomis Headcanons! 🐞💗🔫

You got yourself into...Quite a mess buddy, I gotta tell you. Now, Abbacchio and Bruno are undoubtedly very different from one another, but they're both mature people, whom when faced with adversity, clearly act as the points of reference and mature ones of the group.

Giorno and Mista...Not so much. Don't get the wrong idea, Giorno IS scarily extremely mature for his age, but gun boy...Is a bit more chaotic, I think we can all tell and agree on this.

But that just makes your relationship one complex, yet intriguing and beautiful mess! The three of you might give off complete different auras from one another, but it's your diversities that make your love unique and endearing.

you would live together in every possible scenario, make that canon post part 5, everyone lives au, or in the future. In one way or another, you will always end up sharing the same roof, which is great, right? Seeing each other is so much easier now!

...Yeah uh, don't count too much on that. Of course, living in the same villa does spare you some problems, but there are still others that need to be faced. After all, remember that Giorno is the Don, he's the one in the team with the least free time of all.

Mista would also be a very crucial figure in the organization, but thankfully, he gets more free time than Giorno does! He knows when to take breaks unlike some other members of the squad, so you can count on him to be around quite often.

There is a chance, however, that Giorno will try to work at home instead of his office as much as he can. He knows he can't give the two of you his full attention, but regardless, it's better than nothing. Seeing how hard he's always working, and much effort he puts into the organisation of Passione, Mista and you will probably step in to help him out as much as you can.

Considering that Golden boy is already probably exhausted, it won't take much to convince him. He will still guide the two of you as you take care of paperwork and such, he trusts you, but he just wants to make sure that important documents don't get screwed up. Mista isn't very good with that sort of thing, as for yourself...Well, only you can know.

This does sometimes lead to some cute shenanigans where you trick the Don into resting, claiming that you'll take care of what's left, only to surprise him instead, telling him that you've cooked one of his favorite meals together as a sign of appreciation for how much he does for everyone.

He may be a bit annoyed at first, since this means that there's still work that needs to be done, although a bite of octopus salad and some cuddles should definitely be enough to take his mind off his duties for a while.

If you decide to become part of the gang, Giorno does not approve in the slightest, but he ultimately knows that it's your decision, and he cannot stop you from joining. Mista also knows that it's dangerous, but in reality, the idea of working with you hypes him up a lot. He might actually train you without Giorno knowing about it, so that you can prove yourself to be trust-worthy and strong enough to help with running Passione.

If you do eventually not listen to the Don's warnings, he will try his best to always keep you and the other close to himself. You'll probably work as a secretary for him while stinky boy is his bodyguard, it is only in very extreme situations that Giorno will allow you to step on the battlefield.

You and the blonde are the only ones who can convince the other to take a goddamn shower, saying that you'll stay away from him until he doesn't listen to you. At first, he'd probably be like "Yeah right, like you'd ever do that" but five minutes later he's starting to sweat at the though of you actually maintaining your word lol.

I like to think that Giorno taught the two of you something about gardening, since he's really passionate about it and you can genuinely see how happy he is while describing a type of flower or plant.

Also, for special occasions, he gifts flowers to the two of you. There is always some deep meaning behind the ones he chose, perhaps they reminded him of you for a specific reason, who knows? :)

When the blonde is forced to be away for long, Mista might take some days off to take your mind off things and will start looking for a way to distract you while you wait for your other lover to return.

If he runs out of ideas (which rarely happens to be honest), he might just show you some cool tricks with his gun as to impress you.

Needless to say that GER and the Pistols love you too! While Gold experience requiem will create small animals or flowers for you, and act as someone mature you can rely on, much like its user, the Pistols are basically just a bunch of children whining for your attention, which you find adorable.

When it comes to dates, I think picnics would be perfect! After all, it is a quiet and calm outdoor activity, much to Giorno's happiness, and you get to eat a lot of delicious food, perfect for Mista. The two of you will probably also lightly tease the blonde for his excessive love for sweets, but you secretly think it's adorable.

When it comes to kids...I think it's mostly up to you. The two boys wouldn't mind having a kid with you (or adopting them, for all that matters) although they are not extremely enthusiastic about the matter either. You can guess that Giorno would be a bit more reluctant, since he'd be worried about not being able to be in the child's life enough, and he definitely doesn't want to make the same mistakes his mother did. The other, instead, simply never really thought himself as some who would make an amazing parent.

At the end of the day, however, if a little boy or a little girl becomes part of your lives, the three of you will give then everything you have to make sure that they'll grow in a happy environment, despite the uniqueness of your situation. Giorno will not repeat his parents' errors and will be willing to put any responsibility as a Don for his kid's well-being, while Mista realizes that he's always been a good father even since he's had the pistols.

Let's talk about the gang's reactions now!

Bruno would hug the three of you with a proud expression on his face, stating how much he's happy for you choice and that he will always support you through your relationship. If you ever feel doubtful about your love for one another, or don't how to make up after an argument, he will always have a word of comfort ready and will encourage you to work though your issues, while understanding that it may not be easy.

If you ever leave your child with him, he'll treat them with the same kindness you'd expect from a grandparent.

Abbacchio might not show much of a reaction at first, he will tell you guys that it's your life and it's not up to him to judge who you decide to spend it with, he might even roll his eyes to the sky if you get corny in public, but at the end of the day, he's secretly happy for the three of you and wishes you the best.

Now, Fugo might be a bit more reluctant when it comes to understand or approve the relationship as a whole, since he's used to Mista being a bit of a playboy and not the type to take this kind of thing seriously.

However, since he also deeply respects Giorno and believes he's responsible enough to know what he wants and what he's doing, his doubts will quickly be put aside and he will gladly express his support for your decision.

As I mentioned before, Narancia doesn't really get it at first, but unlike Bruno and Abbacchio, who make an effort to give him more of a concrete explanation, what he gets in this case is "So yeah, surprise, relationships between three people exist, cool right?"

He doesn't ask any further questions and is excited for this discovery. He's also the one that teases the three of you the most at any given chance, but you know he'd willingly stab anyone who dares questioning your love.

Trish would look at Mista, turn in your and Giorno's direction, and simply go "You could have done better"

No but seriously, after some light hearted bickering between them, she actually congratulates the three of you and genuinely believes that you perfectly balance each other's energy out. She is firmly convinced that with one another by your side, you'll manage to bring out the best in all of you.

She's also up for gossiping about them

[candlewaxandp0lar0ids]

I Don’t Like A Gold Rush || Jungkook

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader

Summary: Jungkook is the golden boy, an excellent student, the star of you college's football team. Rumor has it, there's simply nothing he can't do. The same cannot be said about you, but you've never had an issue with that. You're happy with your small group of friends and your lack of talent in sports. And then, Jin befriends Jungkook, and you find yourself spending a lot of time with him. Before you know it, you've taken an interest in him — and you're sure you shouldn't. There's no way this can end well for you... right?

Also available on Ao3.

Word count: 17.3k

Genre: College AU, strangers to lovers, slice of life, mostly fluff

Warnings & Tags: discussed insecurities, alcohol consumption, reader almost has a panic attack at some point, shy jungkook, jungkook is bad at Feelings, Reader is bad at feelings too, mutual pining kinda, Jungkook has long hair, sfw, New Year’s Day themed.

A/N: I don’t know how I would name my stories without Taylor Swift. Anyway, this is more or less centered around the New Year (it was supposed to be more and then... it didn’t happen), and I hope you’ll enjoy it! Happy New Year everyone!

The first time you hear Jungkook’s name, it’s in the sentence “Man, is there anything Jungkook can’t do?”. You look up at your friend Jin from the book you’re studying. You have no idea who Jungkook is, but that doesn’t mean anything. Jin is always complaining about how you don’t know anyone on the campus, which you think is quite unfair.

…but then you really don’t know that many people on the campus.

“What’s going on?” you ask him, because he sounds extremely annoyed, and he shows you his phone. On it, there is a score for a basketball game. You think.

Your college is famous for its basketball team… Right?

“Uh-uh,” you still say with a nod, trying to make it look like you have any idea what you’re talking about.

“This kid is crushing it at school, the girls love him, and now this!” Jin complains, a little too loud, and shushing noises come from a spot behind you. You turn around to give the group an apologetic look. “I really shouldn’t have bet against him.”

Ah, there you know what to say.

“You really need to stop making bets. You never win them.”

Jin glares at you.

“And you are a terrible friend. You’re supposed to comfort me!”

“I’ll comfort you when you stop making the worst choices imaginable,” you mutter, going back to your work. Jungkook’s name, his supposed excellence, and that basketball match — if it even is basketball — leave your mind as fast as they entered it, without leaving a trace behind.

“So the school’s won another basketball game, huh?”

You look up at Namjoon who’s just arriving to the table, holding his tray in his hands. You know he can’t possibly be talking to you about that, so you’re not surprised when Jin appears behind him. That doesn’t stop you from throwing Namjoon a disgusted look.

“Really, Joon? Sports?”

Namjoon shoots you an amused glance from behind his glasses. It’s notorious in your friends’ group that you despise conversations around that subject. You hate anything that involves objects flying around and anything that’s played in a team, and, apparently, those are the only sports that people care about. They could discuss athletics, or swimming, which you wouldn’t enjoy but you wouldn’t hate, but that never happens.

“You were right, Jin. That Jungkook guy really is impressive.”

You tune them out. You don’t care about basketball.

“You’re talking about yesterday’s game?” Yoongi asks, coming out of thin air, and you sigh. You had been hoping you would have at least one person to talk to during lunch.

“Jungkook’s friends with Hoseok,” Jin says, leaning forward conspiratorially, which does get your attention. If that’s true, then that Jungkook guy can’t be a completely terrible person. Hoseok is probably the nicest person you’ve ever met.

That being said, he might have very low standards for his friends. You know him enough to appreciate him, not to judge his tastes.

“So I’m going to become friends with him,” Jin announces triumphantly, only to be rewarded by a chorus of groans and protests.

“But why, Jin?” you ask. “Please don’t talk about popularity. This isn’t high school anymore.”

“And that stuff was already stupid back then,” Namjoon adds, and you nod. You can always count on Namjoon to support you.

“And I hate people,” Yoongi says.

“And Yoongi hates people!” Namjoon immediately picks up. “Do you really want to make him go through that?”

You grin at the question. Yoongi’s misanthropy always comes in handy. Jin, however, is not amused, but he just shakes his head disapprovingly. He’s used to the three of you teaming up against him by now. Usually, it’s on academical subjects, but he isn’t phased by it anymore regardless of that. Not that there’s much that can phase Jin anyway.

“First of all, I said I was going to be his friend, not you lowly peasants, and second, he seems like a nice guy! Do I need another reason to want to make friends?”

You tilt your head.

“He’s protesting too much,” you say.

“I agree,” Namjoon nods. “That’s suspicious.”

“Very suspicious.”

“Come on,” Jin rolls his eyes, “do you really think that little of me?”

“And now he’s trying to guilt-trip us. Joon, can’t you analyze that conversation and figure out what it all means?”

“You know that’s not how literary analysis works, right?” Jin asks you, but you ignore him.

“Actually, it is,” Namjoon says, pushing his glasses back on his nose. “I’d say you were right with your comment,” he adds, looking at you. “I’d say… this is about parties.”

“You’re not going to actually believe—”

“Thanks, Joon,” you say, and the two of you high-five without looking at each other. Yoongi lets out an appreciate whistle.

Even if Namjoon and you aren’t being serious about this, parties actually make sense. Jin… isn’t quite a social butterfly but, unlike the three of you, he does enjoy people’s company to some degree. You know first hand that he’s been to a few this year — you had accompanied him for moral support — but they were pretty tame, and you’re aware that he at least wants to try some more intense stuff. The problem was that those were harder to be invited to. Hoseok could probably do something about it, but he tends to avoid parties on campus.

“Okay, then you should go for it,” you nod.

Yoongi and Namjoon, sitting on either side of you, approve. Jin looks a little surprised at your reaction.

“That changed your mind?”

“You said you wanted ‘the full college experience’,” Namjoon explains with a shrug. “If you think that’s part of it, we wouldn’t want to hold you back.”

“We will judge you for it, though,” Yoongi warns without batting an eyelid, pokerface perfect, and you laugh. You won’t be mean about it, of course. You just might tease him a little.

“Thank you,” Jin says. “I’ll do it, then.”

Good. If you’re lucky, it will be out of his system next time you all have lunch together.

Lady luck had never been on your side, for as long as you could remember. It wasn’t like you got the worst of things either, but usually, things that could go wrong, did go wrong. Because of that, you tried your best to remove those things from your path. Sometimes, though, you just didn’t manage to identify them.

And that’s why, when you hear Jin’s voice and look up from your food, being the first at the table as always, you see he’s accompanied by two people.

One of them has fluffy, dark brown hair, falling on either side of his face and in his eyes. He’s talking and laughing, and there’s something that you can’t help but identify as mischievous in his smile. The other is slightly taller, with jet black hair held up in a bun. He’s quiet, mouth opening for silent laughs when his friend jokes. Between them, there’s Jin, and you think that they look good together. All handsome, all holding themselves with confidence.

You had realized before that Jin felt out of place in your group, from an outside point of view at least, but it’s never been as striking as it is now, as he’s walking with people he clearly belongs with.

It makes you really thankful that he’s your friend.

“Hey,” Jin says, smiling widely, “these are—”

“You’re untying your hair before eating?” you say, looking at the guy with the bun who just sat opposite from you and took off his hair tie with a sigh. He looks up at you with wide round eyes, like you just caught him red-handed — doing what, you’re not quite sure.

That is the first thing you ever say to Jeon Jungkook.

“Um. Yes?”

“Aren’t you afraid you’ll get hair in your food?”

You know people find you too blunt sometimes, think you come off as aggressive, but you almost never intend for that to happen. In that case, you just think the logic here is a bit surprising.

“That’s… a good point, actually.”

“(Y/N),” Jin sighs, “let me introduce you to Jungkook” (he points to the man who’s now tying his hair back up) “and Taehyung.” (he points to the other guy, who’s flashing you a smile.)

“Oh,” you say, looking back at Jungkook. “You play basketball.”

He lets out an awkward laugh and avoids your eyes. Instead, he grabs his fork and focuses on it, twirling it in his hand.

“Yeah, I do— I do that.”

Huh. It takes you a second to piece things together, and you think Namjoon will be of great help once he’ll be there, but for now, one conclusion comes to you.

Jungkook is shy.

“I play basketball too,” Taehyung says, leaning over the table, grinning at you, and you can tell that it’s his way of swooping in to save Jungkook. You can appreciate that.

“She hates basketball,” Jin warns.

“That’s a strong word,” you say, but only half-heartedly, because, well, you definitely don’t like it.

“I think it works.”

“You think what works?”

Jin’s face falls while you grin. If Taehyung is Jungkook’s savior, Namjoon is yours. Your friend sends you a questioning look as he sits next to you, facing Taehyung. He gives polite nods to the two basketball players, like they sit with you at lunch every week, but you notice that he doesn’t quite meet their eyes. Namjoon is not particularly shy, nor a misanthrope like Yoongi, he just isn’t too comfortable around people he’s just met.

You and Jin, well, you’re perhaps a little too comfortable. Not everyone likes it.

“He says I hate basketball.”

“But that would imply you care about basketball.”

“Exactly.”

“And you don’t.”

“I know.”

“Which means you don’t hate basketball. As always, you’re wrong, Jin.”

Jin looks extremely, extremely done with you, but when you and Namjoon high-five, Jungkook laughs quietly and Taehyung nods in appreciation — for the gesture, not the debate.

That is the moment when Yoongi drops his tray on the table and sends a weird glance towards Taehyung and Jungkook.

“What did I miss?” he asks. His tone is a bit dry, and you see Jin’s shoulders straightening. He knows Yoongi is going to be the most difficult one to win over. Not that you’ve been won over yet, but you’re not that difficult. Usually, people don’t like you, not the other way around. You don’t blame them. You’re not sure you’d like yourself very much if you were in their place.

“Oh,” Jungkook says spontaneously, “we had a class together last year! You’re majoring in engineering, right?”

Yoongi looks at him. His eyes are shining with suspicion, and you can practically see the gears turning in his head. Knowing him, he’s definitely wondering why Jungkook would even remember him.

“Right,” he finally confirms, slowly.

There’s a moment of silence, which Namjoon breaks.

“I’m a literature major, by the way.”

“That’s really cool,” Jungkook comments honestly, with the same spontaneity he displayed earlier.

“And I’m in mathematics,” you say.

“Wow. I thought you people existed only in legends,” Taehyung says while Jungkook avoids your eyes. You decide that, yeah, you like Kim Taehyung.

“Don’t say that, I like maths,” Jungkook protests, voice soft, much to your surprise — and, judging by his reaction, Taehyung’s.

You were right, you decide. Jungkook is not a completely terrible person.

You didn’t expect it to become a routine, for Jungkook and Taehyung to eat with you guys, but it does, and as time goes on, other people join your little table. You’re not sure you like that. It’s clear that those people are orbiting around Jungkook, which, good for them, but you don’t see why you need to be there for that.

You do see that Jungkook is not completely comfortable with all of it. He’s good at handling people, good at making jokes and at laughing at the right times, you notice, but there is a stiffness in his shoulders more often than not, and it looks like he’s well-trained at it rather than enjoying it. It kind of reminds you of Jin, except Jin is not as quiet the rest of the time. Taehyung obviously does his best not to let his friend deal with things alone, which is sweet, but he can’t do everything for him.

You barely exchange a word with Jungkook during that time period. You’re usually trying to be forgotten when the table is buzzing with noise, finding refuge in Namjoon and Yoongi’s company. You thought Yoongi would be an ally in reclaiming what’s always been your spot, but it quickly becomes obvious that he has a crush on Taehyung’s friend Jimin, so he never complains about the recent invasion of the table by strangers.

You hear a lot of basketball vocabulary. More than you care for, to be honest. That’s one of the few moments when Jungkook’s face lights up and he gets truly excited, with an almost childish happiness. His demeanor changes, from shy to confident, and the transformation never ceases to amaze you. As soon as the conversation ends, his shoulders fall, he smiles awkwardly, and focuses back on his food or his phone.

You’ve met his eyes a few times in those moments, because he often looks around him like he’s afraid someone’s noticed. He averts his very quickly, though, so you’ve never said anything about it.

So, really, there’s not much that changes. You still only speak to your three friends — you think Taehyung is a good person, and you don’t think he hates you, but you don’t have anything to say to each other —, and sure, you have a little less space when you eat and more noise around you, but aside from that, it’s pretty much the same. You think that’s a relief. You’re not too fond of change.

Usually, you’re pretty decent at spotting it coming. You did miss it when Jin said he was going to become Jungkook’s friend, but other than that you’re able to do your best to avoid it. You don’t see anything coming the day Taehyung calls out your name, though. You look up at him from the book Namjoon is showing you, surprised. He has an arm slung over Jungkook’s shoulders, and Jungkook isn’t looking at you, of course.

“Do you think you could explain a maths-thing to Jungkook?”

You blink at him.

“What’s the ‘maths-thing’?”

“Does it matter?”

You raise an eyebrow, and Jungkook groans. You get the feeling that he didn’t really want Taehyung to ask you about it. He sends an annoyed glance to his friend, who is still smiling brightly at you, while pushing a lock of hair out of his face. His hair is tied, but this one traitorous lock always escapes.

“I’m struggling a little with probabilities,” he admits, glancing at you for half a second. “But I’m sure I’ll be fine once I can get my head back into it, I’ve just been training a lot recently and—”

“I can help you, if you want,” you say. “I’m not the most fond of probabilities, but it should be okay.”

“Great!” Taehyung says, patting his friend’s shoulder before Jungkook can answer. “You should do that then.”

“You’re sure you don’t mind?” Jungkook asks, actually looking at you this time. You meet his eyes, notice that he looks worried about it. You can’t figure out why.

“I really don’t,” you shrug.

He smiles at you, a small, hesitant smile, but a smile nonetheless. Probably the first one he directs at you. It’s a nice sight, you decide, and you smile back.

Jin’s sentence “is there anything Jungkook can’t do” takes all its sense on the day you meet Jungkook at the library to study. You don’t know what you expected. You never thought Jungkook was dumb or anything, but since Taehyung asked you to help, you thought he would have some difficulties, at least. However, as it turns out, he either understands immediately when you explain something to him, or he’s already understood it. He asks for some clarifications here and there, but all in all, you feel kind of useless.

“You don’t need me at all,” you say after a little while, and Jungkook looks up from the book with the worried wide-eyed look you’ve gotten used to.

“No, no, you’re doing a great job,” he protests. “You’re really helping me out here.”

“No I’m not. It’s obvious that you could do that all on your own.”

He deflates a little at that, looks away from you.

“You help,” he mumbles. “I have a hard time focusing when I’m alone.”

Oh.

That makes a lot of sense to you, actually. You’re good at focusing all of your energy on one thing, perhaps even too good, to the point where you easily get obsessed and become unable to take care of anything else, but even you need the right conditions for that.

“Okay,” you say with a nod.

Jungkook gives you an anxious look.

“So you don’t mind helping me out?” he asks, and there’s something in his voice that catches you, but you can’t tell what it is exactly. Maybe it’s the hope, or maybe it’s the fear. You don’t understand what he’d be afraid of. Worst case scenario, you would say no. That wouldn’t be the end of the world.

“We can work together,” you offer. “You can ask me if you need help for anything and I’ll just work on some other stuff.”

He seems relieved, and again, you just don’t understand it. It’s not like you’re his only option. There are plenty of people out there who could help him. Plenty of people who would jump at the opportunity of helping him. You know that, because he’s always surrounded by those people, and everybody in school seems to know him. Even when you walked into the library with him earlier, before you got to the table you’re sitting at now, a few students greeted him. You don’t see why he would attach any importance to you, specifically, helping him. You barely know each other.

“Thanks,” he says, and he gives you a small smile. For some reason, that makes you drop the subject. Instead of asking about it — which, knowing yourself, you probably would have — you shrug it off and reply with a nod.

The silence that follows feels comfortable, to you at least. You’ve never minded silence. Jin hates it, though. You get to work, watching absent-mindedly as Jungkook goes through the lesson he was working on. He does ask you a couple of questions, but it’s probably to make you feel like you’re doing something rather than because he actually needs it. You still answer them, and watch him grin, satisfied with himself, when he turns out to be right every single time.

“Are you coming to Taehyung’s party this week-end?” he asks out of the blue after about an hour.

You look up, surprised. The two of you haven’t exchanged much, and certainly have not talked about anything other than— well, other than maths. His eyes are on his notebook, as usual, and you don’t get any insight as to why he asked the question.

“I don’t know. Is Jin coming?”

“Uh, I guess? Taehyung’s probably talked to him about it.”

“Then I’m probably going.”

Jungkook mulls over your answer for a few seconds, twirling his pencil between his fingers, and you feel like you have to clarify, which is not an urge you have often. Usually, you let people decipher for themselves what you meant. That works very well with Namjoon, sometimes with Yoongi, not so great with the rest of the world. Including Jin, though Jin compensates with his impressive ability to interpret everything you say in his favor.

“We always go to parties with Jin. For moral support.”

For all that you tease him, you genuinely care for him. You know he wants you to go with him, so you do. It’s as simple as that.

Jungkook doesn’t look at you, but he still smiles at what you say, and it’s— it’s interesting. There’s something about his behavior that makes you curious, like you are when you’re trying to solve a complicated equation.

“That’s nice,” he comments.

“So… you’ll be there?” you ask. It’s taken you a long time to come up with that simple question. It often takes you a long time to find things to say to keep a conversation going. You’re pretty bad at it.

“It’s at my fraternity,” Jungkook informs you, glancing at you briefly, and you smile. This is exactly the type of party Jin wanted to go to. He’s probably happy about it. “The entire basketball team should be there.”

Great. People.

“That’s nice,” you say, because you have no idea what to add at this point. Jungkook simply nods, and the conversation dies an awkward death.

It’s another half an hour until Jungkook looks at his watch and starts putting his stuff back in his bag.

“I have to go to practice,” he tells you, clearly in a hurry. “Can we— Would you mind if—”

“We can do this again. If that’s what you meant.”

He gives you a bright smile, and that actually surprises you. He looks relieved that you finished his sentence for him.

“Thank you,” he says sincerely.

And just like that, he’s gone, practically running out of the library. For someone who talks as little as he does, he sure leaves a void when he goes away, you think, looking at the empty chair.

But you quickly shrug it off. You’re used to being alone. You like being alone.

Jungkook isn’t going to change that.

You realize very quickly that, while accompanying Jin to parties was never something you particularly enjoyed, going to this one was downright a mistake.

You have this unspoken rule, with your friends, that you shouldn’t stick together the entire time. You’re supposed to wander off, find something to do for yourself, maybe talk to some people. Get that college experience. You’ve never had a problem to do that, even if you ended up quietly sipping soda in a corner more often than not.

Here, though, you simply cannot shake off the fact that you don’t belong here, that this is not your scene. The people here are loud, energetic, garish. They make you feel like a black and white picture, like a silent movie. You want to run away, but you can’t. You don’t want to leave Jin, Namjoon or Yoongi behind, even if you doubt they’re having the same kind of problems you do. You’re pretty sure you saw Yoongi talking with Jimin, and last time you saw Namjoon, you think a cheerleader was holding him by the hand and leading him out of the room. You don’t know what Jin’s doing, but you’re trusting that he’s okay.

You walk around aimlessly, find Jungkook and Taehyung playing beer-pong with some people. Maybe you should be happy to see people you know, but you’re not. If anything, it only drives the point home even more to see them so comfortable: you don’t belong here. Your chest tightens, and you turn around. You need a little peace and quiet. You need to get away.

“(Y/N)!”

You jump at the sound of your name. No one’s said it since you’ve entered the house. No one knows you here.

Except Jungkook, who’s right behind you.

He’s more confident than usual, and you guess, based on his slightly hazy eyes, that it has a lot to do with alcohol.

“Are you having fun? How long have you been here? It’s nice to see you!”

He’s speaking fast, excitedly, and as he does, he runs his fingers through his hair, which he’s let down. It looks good on him, you decide, even as you reply to him with a tense smile.

“Hey, you should join us, we’re—”

“Do you have a closet somewhere?”

Jungkook blinks.

“A closet?”

“Yeah.”

There are probably very few things that are less weird than asking a guy if he has a closet you can get into because you’re on the verge of having a panic attack and you can’t stay outside surrounded by people a second longer.

Jungkook doesn’t say anything about it, though. He just leads you through the house and opens the door to a closet for you. You get inside without giving it much more thought, and he looks at you, puzzled. He’s actually looking at you, which you decide confirms that he is drunk.

“Do you— Are you waiting for someone?”

“No,” you say. “I just need a little break.”

He thinks about your answer for a while, probably longer than needed, and nods.

And then, he gets into the closet with you and closes the door.

Inside, it’s dark, with only a ray of light coming in. You can’t see his face, which doesn’t help you understand why he just did that. The space is cramped, and you can smell alcohol coming from his breath, can feel the heat radiating from his body, but it doesn’t bother you that much. It’s still better in here than outside.

“Why did you do that?”

“I thought I would keep you company. Like you’re here to keep company to Jin, you know?”

He’s drunk, definitely, and yet you feel genuinely touched by his words. You shouldn’t, because you doubt they hold that much meaning, but you can’t help it. You don’t need company, but that’s besides the point. His intentions are what matters.

“Thank you,” you say.

“It’s not a problem. You’re helping me with my maths.”

Your first reaction is to laugh at that, because it feels completely unprompted, but then the logic of the reasoning kind of appears to you.

“I mean it!” Jungkook protests. “You haven’t talked about how I’m good at everything or how I’m the one who should help you.”

You frown.

“You shouldn’t help me. You’re good at maths, but I’m better than you.”

It’s Jungkook’s turn to laugh, and just like his earlier smile, it takes you completely by surprise. It’s not one of those quiet laughs that he usually has. It’s light and pleasant, and you briefly wonder what his face looks like when he laughs like that. You kind of want to see it.

“You’re a scary person,” he tells you when he’s stopped laughing. “You always say those things directly. It’s like you don’t even care.”

You’ve heard that before. Well, you haven’t been called scary until now, but people have said that you were intimidating. You, personally, believe you’re the least threatening person to have ever walked this Earth. You couldn’t hurt a fly if you wanted to.

Jungkook makes some sense here, though. Your filter is very limited, and there are a lot of things you say that feel acceptable to you, and that other people… don’t think are acceptable. You don’t mean to do it. It just happens.

“I think you’re good at a lot of things, though,” you say slowly.

Jungkook lets out a long sigh and then you hear him sliding down to the ground. You hesitate for about half a second before joining him down there. You fold your legs, holding your knees against your chest while you wait for him to say something.

“People are always saying that,” he finally mumbles. “But what if I’m not that good? What if I fail one day?”

It’s strange. You understand what he’s saying, understand the feeling of pressure, but you don’t understand the emotions that should come with it. In your case, you know that no one holds you to a higher standard than you do. It can be unhealthy, the way you can torture yourself if you don’t meet the standards you’ve set for yourself, but at least you’re the only one you have to answer to. Obviously, it’s not Jungkook’s case.

“Then you’ll try again,” you say, because that’s what you do when you fail. “Or, if you think it’s not that important, you won’t.”

“But what will they say?” he insists. “What if we lose the next game? Or the one after that? What if I fail a class? I can’t get anything done these days.”

“You’ll be fine,” you say soothingly, half-wondering how you ended up here, comforting the college’s golden boy in a closet after fighting off a panic attack. “It’s not like you’re the only one in your team. People will understand.”

You think they will. You hope they will. They should.

“You would understand.”

It’s true, but then, you really do not care for basketball, and it’s not like you have that sort of expectations for Jungkook. You wouldn’t think much of it, if he failed at something tomorrow. If it was the maths test you’ve helped him with, you would be surprised, but that’s because you saw him studying and it was obvious he had understood everything, not because you think he can inherently succeed at everything he does.

Which you guess might be the heart of the problem here.

You reach out to put your hand on his shoulder. It’s not that easy in the dark, and you wonder for a second if you’ve grabbed something else, until you feel hair tickling your skin. Yup, you were right.

“You have the right not to be good at something every once in a while,” you say softly. “No one can be on top of their game all of the time.”

You hear what sounds like a choked sob.

“I like that they’re counting on me, you know? I like that I’m helping them out by playing. I just— I don’t know what’s going to happen when I stop being as good.”

He said when, not if, and that breaks your heart.

Without thinking about it, you slide your hand down his arm and grab his hand. You squeeze it in yours, gently, and then you inch closer to put your head on his shoulder. You remember reading that physical touch was good for people who were in emotional pain. You hope it helps him.

“You locked yourself in here with me because you thought I needed company,” you whisper. “There’s so much more to you than just being good at sports or having good grades. And if people don’t see that, it’s their loss. Because you’re a great person.”

He hums, but the sound is quiet, and it’s then that you realize how tense he is.

Shit. You must have crossed a boundary. You start to remove your hand, but he closes his fingers around yours, keeping you in place. He’s still tense, you can feel it everywhere his body touches yours. But he doesn’t let go.

“You mean that,” he says. There are so many emotions in his voice that you can’t identify them all. Relief, happiness, amusement… You don’t know where to start.

“I usually mean what I say.”

“I’ve noticed,” he says, and you can hear the smile that’s dancing on his lips.

He’s still not letting go of your hand, but you don’t mind. Staying here, with Jungkook, in this small closet is as good a way of spending your evening as anything else you could do out there.

So you stay.

“Where did you all vanish Saturday?” Jin asks, and Namjoon, Yoongi and yourself immediately find your food a lot more interesting. You exchange panicked glances that mean ‘did none of you stay around? This was poorly coordinated’ before finally daring to look up.

“I talked to Jimin,” Yoongi says, face as inexpressive as always.

“I played some beer-pong with Taehyung,” Namjoon says.

That leaves only you.

“I talked to Jungkook,” you tell Jin. That is technically true. It omits the part where the two of you were together in a closet, but if you said that, there would be a lot of questions you don’t really want to answer to. Somehow, you think you would be more embarrassed to tell them that there was nothing going on there than if you told them you hooked up with him. You’re not sure why.

“Jungkook disappeared for a long time,” Jin says, narrowing his eyes at you.

You do your best to keep a straight face while you poke at your salad. You don’t want anyone here to have the wrong idea, and you finally manage to put your finger on what you’re afraid of. Humiliation. You’d feel humiliated at having to tell them that nothing happened and that there is nothing Jungkook could possibly see in you. They would be nice to you, of course they would, but you don’t want to see the look in their eyes.

“Did he? Maybe that was after I left. I didn’t stay that long.”

That’s a lie.

“Really?” Jin asks, clearly skeptical. “I think I saw you there pretty late.”

Maybe when you went down to get some snacks and drinks to bring back to the closet. Damn Jungkook and his stomach.

“Well, that depends what you mean by ‘late’ and ‘long’,” you say.

That’s you calling Namjoon for help, and he recognizes your SOS for what it is. From the way Jin’s face falls, so does he.

“She’s right,” Namjoon comments, so nonchalant you would almost believe he’s doing it naturally. “What is ‘late’, really? Isn’t it always—”

“Please stop,” Jin groans, burying his face in his hands. “Just because you’re a literature major doesn’t mean you’re the only one who understands words.”

“Actually it does,” you say with a nod. “That’s exactly what it means.”

You start lifting your hand for a high-five, relieved Jin’s attention is off you, but he sends the two of you a dark glare.

“You two are unbearable. Don’t do that.”

“We have to,” you protest. You would hate to miss a chance to high-five Namjoon.

“No you don’t, you—”

“Actually they do,” Yoongi says, and your jaw drops. Yoongi never intervenes, and you had always thought that if he did, it wouldn’t be in your favor. “That’s exactly how gravity works.”

Jin looks like his soul has left his body. He only comes back to himself after you, Yoongi and Namjoon have all exchanged high-fives.

“I hate you,” he says, sounding terribly tired. “I hate every single one of you.”

“Sorry Jin,” you smile warmly.

“No you’re not. You’re the worst.”

Except he sounds fond, affectionate, and you laugh before going back to your salad. You miss the quick glances your three friends exchange after that. They’ve all noticed you eluding and changing the subject. They don’t want to rush you, know you would hate it and that it’s better to drop it.

But they’ve noticed.

Working with Jungkook on Wednesday afternoons easily becomes a habit, so easily you don’t even notice it until it’s something you look forward to during the week. It adds to the time you already spend eating with him and Taehyung. Jungkook is, slowly, starting to become a part of your life. It’s a thought you refuse to dwell on, because it sounds so strange.

The Wednesdays afternoons are something special, though. You and Jungkook don’t really talk at lunch, even if he’s clearly more relaxed around you now, which you suspect is the reason why you’re ‘Taehyung-approved’. On Wednesdays, you— Well, you don’t talk much, either, but it’s different. It’s a time that only belongs to the two of you. You like that.

You slowly find out things about him, his family, his life. It’s never the main subject of conversation, but it makes you feel like you’re solving a puzzle.

“My father wanted me to focus on my classes and forget about basketball,” he comments once. “But I could do both.”

It makes you laugh, because he says it with obvious satisfaction, but it also makes you wonder if there’s more to it. Jungkook doesn’t add anything, though, and you don’t want to probe into his life, so you don’t ask. After that, small pieces of the puzzle keep falling into place.

“My high school coach told me I could train more if I didn’t work so hard for school.” But he could do both.

“My friends said I never hung out with them anymore and that I shouldn’t work so hard.” So he did both.

It’s always the same story. People telling him things, giving him opinions on what the should and shouldn’t do, and him stretching himself thinner and thinner. It’s almost a miracle he’s still doing as well as he is, honestly.

But his tone changes when he talks about his former relationships. He’s usually light and genuine, sharing with you just because. It’s clear that, as much as the stories make you frown, he doesn’t have an issue with them, and you guess that’s all that matters. The first time he says something about an ex-girlfriend of his, though, he’s guarded, almost careful. He sounds like he doesn’t want to tell you.

“My ex said I worked too much.”

He doesn’t add anything. Whatever it was she wanted, he couldn’t do it and work. Didn’t manage to do both. After that, he doesn’t look at you for the rest of the day, like he did when you first met.

You never get a name for the girlfriend. He talks about relationships again, but you don’t even know if he’s always talking about the same one. You doubt it, though, and it only makes things worse.

“My ex wanted me to attend fewer practices.”

“My ex said I didn’t care enough to make time for her.”

“My ex dumped me after I lost a game.”

That last one hurts you, because you remember him crying in the closet because of that exact fear. You want to take his hand again, but you can’t dare to.

“She’s stupid for that,” you say instead.

Jungkook looks surprised first, because you never comment on what he’s telling you, then a smile slowly forms on his lips.

“If the only reason she was with you was because you won a lot of games, you’re better off without her,” you add.

“That’s what Taehyung said.”

“Taehyung’s right.”

Jungkook goes quiet for a little while after that, to the point that you look up, worried that you might have offended him. When you do, he’s looking at you, something you can’t identify shining in his eyes.

“Everything okay?”

He blinks like he’d just woken up for a dream, then nods. He doesn’t tell you that he hadn’t believed what Taehyung said — until you said it and he looked at you and thought that yeah, maybe he was better off without her indeed.

You’re surprised to run into Jungkook late one night, as you’re walking back to your dorm. It shouldn’t shock you — you do go to the same college — but you’re so used to only ever seeing him in the library or the cafeteria that meeting him outside is almost confusing. At least he seems taken aback as well, if the way his already round eyes widen is anything to go by.

Then, his surprised face morphs into a smile, and a wave of warmth hits you without a warning. You don’t get any time to think about it before he waves at you. His shyness is not completely gone, and you see him waver, hesitate, even as he’s walking up to you. You’re quick to close the gap between you, meeting him in the middle. Just in case.

“Hey,” he says, voice a little raspy. He has what you identify as a sports bag, slung over his shoulder, and you wonder what he was doing out so late. You were working at the library until it closed, which is far from being rare for you, but that obviously wasn’t his case.

“Hey,” you reply, smiling back. “Were you— training?”

Amusement flashes in his eyes at the careful way you chose your words, afraid to get it wrong. As he grew more comfortable around you, he also started making fun of you for not knowing the first thing about basketball. Strangely, you don’t mind that much.

“I was at the gym,” he says. “Practice was earlier today.”

“Oh,” is all you can muster. You don’t know what you’re supposed to do. Should you ask what he was doing at the gym? The answer would only leave you with more questions, you’re sure.

You’re still debating it when Jungkook clears his throat. He reaches for his ponytail and undoes it, shaking his head so the hair fall back into place. The sight is— interesting. Pretty. You’re not sure why you’re so fascinated by it.

“Do you want me to walk you back to your dorm?” he asks, slight concern in his voice. “It’s late.”

“Is it on your way back?” you question, frowning. You would hate to be a bother.

“No, but—”

“I’m fine, then. I do that several times a week, I’ve never had a problem.”

That was, apparently, not the thing to say. Jungkook only looks more worried now.

“Several times a week? That’s really not careful.”

“I don’t see a problem, there’s no one around.”

“That’s exactly my p—” He stops and shakes his head, but gives a look you’ve seen before. A lot. It’s a look that says ‘I can’t believe someone as smart as you can also be so stupid’, in those exact terms. “Expected value,” he then says, and your eyes widen a little. Maths! Great. You can do maths. “Let’s say there’s a 99% chance nothing happens. Your gain is still minimal.”

Well, you get to study late and enjoy a walk home alone at night, but you’re willing to humor him.

“But in the one per-cent where something bad happens…”

He doesn’t have to finish his sentence. You know exactly where this is going, and you let out a sigh. He’s not wrong. On that aspect, at least.

“Fine.”

He grins widely.

“I just beat you at maths.”

“You didn’t beat me, I—”

“I just beat you at maths!”

You roll your eyes, choose to let him have that. It’s not going to change anything to your behavior after tonight, because the day has not come where you’ll let probabilities rule your life, but, after all, you don’t mind sharing your night walk with him.

Jungkook starts showing up to walk you home whenever he can. It’s not every time, which you’re kind of thankful for — you like his company, but you like being alone just as much, and you need a healthy dose of that every week —, but it does happen regularly. You find him sitting in front of the library, freezing cold, and you take pity on him, buying him a coffee from the vending machine inside, seconds before they lock the building.

That’s how you find out he likes his coffee tasting as little like coffee as possible.

Sometimes, he joins you later, and you hear him jogging to catch up with you. You don’t have the heart to tell him that that defeats the purpose of everything he’s doing, because it’s absolutely terrifying.

As the days turn into weeks, the air becomes colder, and you start seeing Christmas decorations appearing over the campus. You don’t know who is in charge of doing that, but they must be excited about it, because tinsel and few strings of fairy lights start appearing around the campus at the end of November. Jungkook is delighted by it, and you enjoy watching his reactions. You’re not big on Christmas, personally. You enjoy the tradition, the gift-giving, spending time with your family — you’re visiting them briefly this year — but you mostly see Christmas as an excuse for all of that. Jungkook loves it, though, and you decide that his excitement makes you like the season a little more.

“Hey, we should make a stop,” he tells you one night.

You look at him like he’s crazy. It’s the middle of December and it’s already half past nine. You’re cold, it’s dark outside, and you want to go home.

“A stop?” you repeat.

“Oh, c’mon,” he says, and he has that wide, childish grin that you’ve seen only a handful of times. You haven’t learned how to resist it yet. “C’mon!”

You sigh. But you follow.

As it turns out, he takes you just a little way off your usual trajectory. Behind a building you’ve never really paid attention to, Jungkook leads you to a small basketball court. You eye the place suspiciously. It’s empty, well lit, but you never know. A ball might come out of nowhere to hit you in the face, as they had a tendency to do when you were in high school and playing for a team that had picked you last.

By the time you turn around to tell Jungkook that, okay, you’ve seen it, let’s go home now, he’s taken off his coat and pulled a basketball out of his bag. You don’t even want to ask. His grin is even wider than earlier.

“C’mon,” he says.

“Absolutely not.”

“Let me show you, okay?”

You want to say no but— It can’t hurt, right? And Jungkook loves basketball, and you’re his— friend or something, so you should try to take some interest in it.

You take off your coat and let him lead you onto the court. There, you watch him as he dribbles in what you guess is an effective way (you can’t know for sure, you’re barely able to catch the ball after it’s bounced once so your standards are incredibly low), and then demonstrates his ability to score a handful of times. It’s not that you’re not impressed — again, you can’t do anything with this unpredictable, devilish round thing — but you also can’t say this is a quality you think much of.

You liked it a lot better when he convinced you to let him walk you home by talking about the expected value.

“You want to try?” he offers, holding the ball out for you.

You would rather die.

But you take the ball from his hand and eye the basket like it’s personally offended you. That makes Jungkook laugh.

“You can get closer than that,” he says.

You hold back a groan, aim and, of course, fail. It’s almost a relief. You can cross that off your list, again, just like you did as a kid first, then as a teenager. You’re bad at sports, always have been and, considering the effort you’re putting into it those days, always will be. That’s something you can count on.

Before you can say anything, Jungkook’s caught the ball and is running back towards you.

“Okay, let me show you.”

Is he going to— No, he’s just demonstrating it. You’re kind of disappointed not to get your typical ‘guy teaching girl anything sports related’ moment, disappointed that he doesn’t come to stand behind you to show you like they do in movies, but you can’t unpack that right now. You do watch with some degree of interest as he shows you how to position yourself.

“So you really aim for the line above the basket, not the basket, okay?”

“If you think that just because I aim for something I hit it…”

He chuckles, then gives the ball back to you, and you sigh. This. This is why you hate sports. It’s not the one-off failure, that would be fine on its own. It’s the constant humiliation whenever you even try it. You’re going to fail this attempt, and the next one, and the one after that. You’re a lost cause. You’re fine with it, too, but you don’t particularly want to go through that again.

You do your best, though. Not because you think it will change something, but because you kind of want to prove that this isn’t all you. That, even if you’re trying your hardest, there’s just something that refuses to let you score or do it right.

“Wait!” Jungkook walks over to you, puts his hand on your back, and you freeze. “You need to straighten yourself a little,” he says, placing his hand between your shoulder blades, and you nod. His hand is warm and large, you can feel it even over your sweatshirt. “There.”

He removes the hand, and you’re left a little off balance without him by your side. You shake your head quickly, shoot, and, without any surprise, miss.

Jungkook is on the ball just as fast as before, but you’re as quick as him to grab your coat and put it back on. You’re already feeling warm all over, though.

“You don’t want to try again?” he asks, sounding genuinely disappointed.

Of course, you take pity on him.

“Maybe next time,” you say.

He gives you a bright smile, so genuinely happy, and you know that you won’t be able to deny him next time either.

Jin is the reason you’re here, and that is the version you will stick with. No, you didn’t want to go see a basketball game, even if Jungkook is playing. No, you didn’t feel the slightest bit curious about it. No, you would not be there if Jin hadn’t asked. It’s Jin’s fault if you’re here on a Friday night instead of being, well, at your place, likely doing something equally as unproductive.

You don’t even understand what is going on in the field. There’s a lot of running and throwing the ball, that’s for sure, but then, you’ve just learned that scoring from different places in the field and at different moments will not earn the players the same amount of points.

You don’t think you’ve ever seen your friends look at you with such consternation as when they had to explain it to you.

In that situation, you can’t say that you get much from looking at the field. You definitely follow Jungkook with your eyes, cheer and clap when he scores, and let out cries of disappointment with the rest of the crowd when he doesn’t, but truly, the only way you have any idea what’s going on is by looking at the score board. And the truth is, that score is a little too close for comfort.

You hate that it has that much of an impact on you, but it stresses you out. Your leg bounces on the floor, an habit of yours Jin hates, but he’s too focused to notice, which is only more stressful. Jin always notices, and if it doesn’t, it must mean that the situation is dire.

The remaining seconds are slowly ticking down. Jungkook’s team is ahead by only one point, which means that if the other team scores, they will win. You think. You’re not entirely sure, but for your defense, you’ve just heard about it. Jungkook seems to be everywhere on the field. Taehyung is his shadow, perhaps not as noticeable or as spectacular in his actions, but certainly effective.

Again, you have no knowledge of basketball whatsoever.

Jin grabs your thigh, and only then do you realize that something’s happened. The action was so quick, so smooth, that you missed it entirely — but maybe you were also kind of thinking of something else.

Someone from the other team — you don’t even know your school’s team’s players, you’re not going to learn the other ones — just made a break for it. Based on what you can tell, Taehyung blocked his path, pushing him straight into Jungkook’s arms. In a movement you cannot begin to comprehend, Jungkook takes the ball from him, without ever stopping his run.

After that, he’s unstoppable.

He crosses the field, looking almost like he’s dancing in the way he avoids his opponents, and, of course, scores.

The time falls to zero. The crowd stands up like one man, screaming and shouting, and you yourself find yourself jumping up to hug Jin. He hugs you back, but the two of you quickly separate, patting each other’s backs awkwardly.

Jin starts talking with Namjoon and Yoongi, but you tune them out — it’s not like you understand what they’re saying anyway — to look at the field. The players have lifted Jungkook on their shoulders and he’s laughing, holding on to them so he doesn’t fall, and you grin.

“Come on,” Jin says, “let’s go congratulate him!”

That sounds like a terrible idea, you think. You won’t be the only ones, as the crowd has already invaded the field, and you doubt you’ll be able to get very close.

You still follow him. You alternate between clinging to his arm and to his shoulders so you don’t lose him, and trust him to elbow his way through the crowd. You hear him apologizing profusely in front of you, but he does not stop. Slowly, you make it down. Once you’re off the stairs, people are not as compactly gathered, and you can just walk between them. Jin grins at you, and you give him a thumbs up. Yeah, he did good here. You can give him that.

“Hey, Jungkook!” he calls out.

Jungkook was talking with some girls, but he looks up at the sound of his name, excuses himself, and jogs towards the two of you.

And it is then, in the few seconds it takes him to get to you, that it hits you. Like a ton of bricks.

You had known that Jungkook was objectively attractive, of course. There was no ignoring that. But Jin was objectively attractive, too, and that had never changed anything between the two of you. With Jungkook, right now, it does. His skin is glistening with sweat, and he wipes his chin with his shirt, and oh no, you can see his well-defined biceps and the line of his abs, and some hair is escaping from his ponytail, and he’s grinning with a happy, proud smile, and his eyes are shining and—

Jungkook is hot. That’s your realization. You had been aware of it, technically, but it’s like it only clicks for you at that exact moment.

“You came,” he tells you with a bright smile, and you can feel your entire face heating up. You pray that it’s not visible.

“Yeah,” you squeak out. “Great, um, great game?”

It sounds like an interrogation because you have no idea if it was one. It looked difficult, but maybe that was because they played terribly today. You don’t know that.

Jungkook’s smile widens a little, and you know that he has you all figured out. He knows you don’t understand the first thing about this whole thing.

“Thanks,” he still says.

His chest is still heaving quickly, and it draws your attention to his— his everything. The way he’s leaning towards you as he’s trying to catch his breath doesn’t help either. You wait for Jin to say something, to save you, but when you look around, you realize the traitor has abandoned you completely.

Okay, he hasn’t technically abandoned you, he’s just gone to congratulate Taehyung, but it’s the same difference.

You hear someone else calling Jungkook’s name before you’ve figured out what to say. He looks around, then gives you an apologetic look.

“Sorry, I—”

“No problem, you should— I have to go anyway.”

This is not like you. You’re an awkward person, and you struggle in social situations, but you don’t usually trip over your words like that. You kind of hate it.

“Okay, so, um, I’ll see you…?”

“Wednesday, yeah. Or— before. At lunch. If you’re there.”

This is terrible.

“Okay.” Jungkook gives you one last smile, and then he’s off, and you’re standing alone in the middle of a crowd. Your chest is heavy and it feels painful.

You hate this.

It’s only after that that you start realizing how big of a part Jungkook now plays in your life. He walks you home at night sometimes. You eat with him once or twice a week. You study together for an entire afternoon on Wednesdays. He’s just— everywhere. And it’s not that it’s a bad thing, because the feeling you get when you see him is a pleasant one, but it is disconcerting. It’s something that you have no control over whatsoever and that’s not— that’s not good for you.

You realize how much attention you were already paying to him, too, which is even more annoying. The signs were there. You should have understood this sooner. If you had, maybe you could have prevented it.

Because that’s the thing. You know the situation is ridiculous. You believe Jungkook sees you as a friend, and you’re happy with that, but there is no way he thinks of you as anything else. That is not an idea you should even begin to entertain. You can handle rejection, you’re used to it in so many aspects, though it’s rarely romantic, but you cannot take getting your hopes up only for them to be crushed.

The thing is, you can’t help it at this point, can’t force your feelings back in. There is so much to like about him. The way he plays with his hair, the quiet laughs when he’s in public, the loud ones when he’s walking you home, the sparkle in his eyes when he asks you a question in maths and it turns out he already had it right, the look on his face when he talks about basketball,… There’s so much.

You briefly consider avoiding him, but that’s not really an option. You like being his friend. You see your feelings as annoying, pesky little things that have no business being there in the first place. You don’t even hate the rush that goes through you when you see him, the way just looking at him brings a smile to your lips that you simply can’t hold back.

But you really, really hate the wishful thinking. The hope.

The feelings are fine, as long as you don’t think too hard about it. As long as he doesn’t have a girlfriend. Because that would break your heart.

And it’s only a matter of time before that happens.

You really considered declining when Jin asked you to come to this New Year’s party. Your last experience had effectively convinced you that those new parties he was getting invited to were not for you. That was fine, to each their own, but that did mean you didn’t really want to go. He clearly didn’t need you there anyway. You didn’t even know why he asked.

But he did, and he insisted, and he gave you his best puppy eyes, and that’s the thing about Jin: he’s very, very good at giving puppy eyes.

So that’s why you’re there, wearing a red dress that’s way too flashy for you, leaning against a wall and staring into the void. You feel empty and, though you’re not alone, lonely. You’re surrounded by strangers, and there are people everywhere in the house, but you don’t know them, and you can’t just start a conversation with them. It’s not something you do, it’s not even something you want.

You haven’t felt the urge to lock yourself inside a closet yet, though, so you guess that’s an improvement compared to last time.

Looking around, you can see Jimin, perched on the counter, listening to Yoongi talk with a smile on his face. Jin is somewhere else in the room and, though you can’t see him, you sometimes hear him, so you know he has his flirting voice on. Namjoon is nowhere to be seen, but that’s probably a good sign. He always get lucky at those parties. You don’t know how he does it. It’s impressive, honestly. Hoseok showed up earlier, and everyone greeted him like he was a star — which is kind of accurate, actually, at the campus’ scale.

You know, of course, that Jungkook and Taehyung, as inseparable as ever, are by the pool table. You also hate that you know it, because now your mind is constantly wondering if it’s weird that you haven’t been there yet, or if it would be weird to show up. Neither, probably, because exactly no one cares except for you, but you’re the master of torturing yourself with useless considerations.

God, you hate having a crush. It’s just so— unpractical. You also hate that you didn’t see that one coming, and that you didn’t do anything about it until it was too late. Usually, you’re pretty good at nipping those kinds of feelings in the bud. Now, you can only wait it out.

With a sigh, you push yourself away from the wall to wander aimlessly around the house. You promised Jin you’d stay until midnight, and you intend to keep that promise. It’s not like there’s anything for you to do, but still, that way you can look like you’re doing something and look a little less weird. Or maybe you don’t. It doesn’t really matter anyway.

Passing in front of the room with the pool table, you realize that Jungkook is gone. Taehyung is still there, playing with Hoseok, both looking pretty wasted, but Jungkook has vanished. That’s not good. You don’t want him to spring up on you out of nowhere like he did last time. You won’t know how to react if that happens, probably fumble for words, and it will be very unpleasant and very embarrassing for everyone.

You consider finding another closet, then decides against it. There’s just fifteen minutes left until midnight, anyway. That’s not too long. You can just wait it out.

You slowly make your way through the house. No sign of Jungkook anywhere. Maybe he left. Maybe he’s already back to the pool table and you missed him completely. Maybe he’s locked himself in a room with a girl and—

Oh you hate this. You hate feeling jealous. You hate that you have no control over it, you hate that it makes you sad, you hate that you have no right to feel like that. Jungkook isn’t yours. He’s probably even considered you for anything. You should consider yourself lucky you’re even friends with him in the first place.

You do your best to push everything out of your mind. Alcohol has never looked more tempting, but you don’t want the hangover with the morning, so you ignore the inviting bottles of beer and walk out.

It’s freezing — of course it’s freezing, it’s December you idiot, is there anything you can do right tonight — and you shiver, but you stay there. The cold is both numbing and soothing, and while you’re mentally complaining about it, you’re not thinking about anything else, so that’s good.

The door opens and closes behind you, and you guess someone is coming out to smoke. You move over to give them some space, but just as you do that, a jacket falls over your shoulders. You jump at first, and then the warmth makes you sigh in relief.

“You shouldn’t go out without a coat,” Jungkook says, because of course it’s him.

“I feel that you’ve been scolding me a lot recently,” you chuckle, glancing up at him.

He pouts, buries his hands in his pockets. He’s obviously cold as well, but at least his shirt covers his arms.

It also hugs his muscles real nice, but that’s besides the point.

“That’s because you make very poor decisions,” he mutters, looking at his feet. “You have to realize that.”

“You’re right. I could have taken my coat outside.”

“You know that walking back all alone in the middle of the night is way worse,” he protests, and then you laugh, because that’s exactly what you wanted, and he goes quiet for a second. “Don’t make fun of me,” he mumbles, looking away from you again.

“I’m not,” you say, and you take a step in his direction so you can bump your shoulder against his. “You shouldn’t worry that much, but I think it’s nice that you do. I was just trying to get a rise out of you.”

“That worked really well,” he says, and he sounds surprised about it. You wonder if it’s because he usually doesn’t get angry for stuff, but you can’t tell for sure. “Hey, you—”

People start shouting numbers inside, and you turn around to look at them.

“It’s midnight,” you say.

“Five!”

You look up at Jungkook. He’s significantly taller than you. Not as much as Namjoon, but still.

“Four!”

Jungkook looks back at you, smiles, and it takes your breath away. His hair looks very good like that, you think absent-mindedly, with the way it falls on either side of his face.

“Three!”

It’s too late to go back inside now. It would definitely be a weird thing to do. Which means you’re here, alone, with Jungkook.

“Two!”

Your eyes flicker to his lips. You wonder what it would be like to kiss them. You haven’t let yourself even consider it before, but right now your brain isn’t functioning all that well. Probably because of how loud your heart is beating in your chest.

“One!”

You look back up and his eyes are wide and focused on you. There’s that same tension in his shoulders as when you first met him, except, back then, he couldn’t look at you, and now it seems that he can’t look away.

“Happy new year!”

You decide you shouldn’t think about your next move. You get on your tiptoes to plant a kiss at the corner of his lips, right at the border between friends and something else, but he leans forward right at that moment, and his hands cup your face, and then he’s kissing you.

It’s like an explosion. You don’t know what you should focus on. How warm he is, how soft and large his hands are, how his lips move against yours, how he tastes, or simply the fact that he’s kissing you, Jungkook is kissing you!

The door slams open, and the two of you move away in a jump.

“Happy new year Jungkook!” Taehyung shouts, obviously drunk, soon joined by several other members of the basketball team. If he’s seen what happened, he doesn’t say anything, and you doubt Taehyung would have that kind of control over himself.

Soon, Jungkook is surrounded and they start to drag him back inside. He gives you a brief, apologetic look, then follows them, laughing. You remain there, frozen, unsure of what to do. You take a hesitant step towards the door, only to see a girl planting kisses on his cheeks while he blushes. What gets to you, though, is the arm he’s wrapped around her, the way he’s tracing circles on the naked skin of her shoulder. It makes the gesture look… intimate. Personal.

You let out a brief, bitter laugh, that there is fortunately no one to hear. You feel confused, but mostly, you feel stupid.

Fuck that.

It doesn’t take long for you to drop the jacket onto a chair and find your coat. You wish a happy new year to Namjoon, when you pass by him on your way out, and he looks a little surprised, like he hasn’t heard the shouting. You don’t want to know what he could have been up to.

You’ve kept your end of the bargain, you think as you leave. Jin won’t be able to complain to you. You feel some petty sort of satisfaction when you step outside and find yourself alone alone, finally. You like this. You like being alone. You’ve never asked for anything else.

You give one last look to the party, then vanish into the night. You’re better off on your own anyway.

“I don’t think I’ll be coming,” you say, nonchalantly, as everyone around the table is talking animatedly about a party for the next week-end.

You had hoped it would go unnoticed in the middle of the conversation, but, unfortunately, that doesn’t go as planned. Taehyung turns horrified eyes towards you, Jin, Namjoon and Yoongi all look surprised, and Jungkook… You don’t know how to read him. There’s that surprise, as well, but then he looks down before you can tell anything else. Not that that changes much. He’s barely looked at you today.

You haven’t talked to him since New Year’s Eve. You had other things on your mind, and then he didn’t show up at the library last Wednesday.

“What do you mean, you won’t be coming?” Jin asks. “You always come to parties.”

You shrug. You don’t miss the alarmed looks your friends are exchanging, and you’re sure Namjoon can see through you. Because it’s not like you to do something like that, whatever reason you may give.

“I don’t like them. They’re too loud, and I can’t say that I really enjoy standing alone for half the night.”

“You could stay with us,” Namjoon offers.

“And watch you pick up a girl every time? No thank you,” you reply with a disgusted shiver.

“You could stay with me,” Yoongi says.

You give him a look, and he grimaces, backing down immediately. Okay. He can see why you wouldn’t want that either. Plus he’s pretty sure that Jimin and him are about to get it on after weeks of flirting, so it’s probably not a great idea.

“What about me?” Jin asks. He doesn’t sound as energetic as usual, his voice almost quiet, and you realize that he probably feels bad because of what you said. He knows you come to those parties because of him, so knowing you don’t have fun at all when you’re attending — you understand that he might feel responsible.

“I think I would bore you very quickly,” you chuckle. “You’re not going to get the fun you want with me. But it’s fine, really. I tried it, and now I know it’s not for me. I can just—”

“No,” Taehyung says.

You blink.

“No?”

“I’m taking this personally,” he tells you, looking you dead in the eye. “You’re coming to this party and I’m going to make you enjoy yourself.”

You’ve never seen him so serious, and you can’t help it. You burst out laughing.

“Taehyung,” you say softly when you’re done. “I appreciate that, I do, but I don’t want to do that anymore.”

Taehyung opens his mouth, then winces and closes it. You’re not sure what happened there, but he gives Jungkook an offended look.

“I’m sorry,” you add. “I’m sure your parties can be great, but—”

“I get it,” he sighs. “But you owe me.”

You’re not sure why, but fine.

“And you can’t say anything bad about those parties, to anyone. Ever.” In that moment, he looks almost threatening, and you blink, confused. He can’t possibly take it that seriously, can he?

Then he yelps and rubs his leg. He gives Jungkook another annoyed look, but Jungkook doesn’t even look up from his food.

“Leave her alone,” he just mumbles.

Taehyung rolls his eyes, but doesn’t add anything. He does give you a long, pointed glance, though, before muttering under his breath something that sounds a lot like “I won’t let that slander stand,” and you think that’s hilarious too.

When you risk a glance at Jungkook, his arms are folded over his chest, and he looks deep in thought. He’s chewing on his bottom lip, eyes focused on his meal, though he’s not touching it. It’s stupid, but the image of a child that has just been scolded flashes in your mind.

“Jungkook? Is everything alright?”

He jumps at your question, looks at you like a deer caught in headlights. Your eyes meet, but it’s extremely brief, and your chest tightens. This sucks. You thought the two of you had gotten past that now, and you hate that you lost what you had. It’s not like it’s your fault. He kissed you, and then he bailed on you first chance he got. Why would he do that, why would he risk it, if he was going to react like that afterwards?

“I’m fine,” he says with a tense smile, and you doubt it’s true, but you don’t know what you should ask him to confront him about it. You don’t want to talk about the kiss ever again. You certainly don’t want to do it in front of your friends.

So you jump on the first chance you get to leave the table. You don’t ask yourself if it’s a weird thing to do. It probably is, but fuck it, you’re weird, and everyone else can deal with it. You refuse to subject yourself to something unpleasant longer than absolutely necessary.

Except the looks you get are mostly concerned ones, from Namjoon and Jin. Jungkook does look up as you walk away, eyes following you almost longingly, and then he lets out a long sigh that catches Taehyung’s attention. He doesn’t say anything, but he narrows his eyes at him.

God. He really has to get everything done here, doesn’t he?

At first, you think that this is it. Your— your whatever it was that you had with Jungkook is over. You’ll see him around every now and then, and maybe he’ll give you a polite nod, though it doesn’t look like he would even do that right now, but there won’t be anything else. You’ll go back to being basically strangers, and it will be fine, because really, nothing happened there, right? You had a crush on him, he kissed you once, and then nothing. It’s fine. You’ll be fine.

Sure, it makes you a little sad. Sure, you catch yourself looking at him while he’s surrounded by girls who are all so much better for him than you ever were, and it hurts a little. Sure, walking back home alone at night is a little more unpleasant than it used to be, but that’s the thing. It’s only a little. You would almost pat yourself on the back for it. Congrats, (Y/N). You made it out before you got too attached. You probably avoided a world of hurt.

Because you know. You know that if you had gotten in too deep, it would have hurt like hell to not have Jeon Jungkook. And sure, it hurts right now.

But only a little.

You’re good. You’re safe. You know that Namjoon and Yoongi would nod if you told them about it. They understand, in a way a lot of other people don’t. You don’t think that Jin would, for example. He would tell you to take the risk, not understanding that people like Jungkook used to pick you last for their teams when you were in high school, not understanding that as far as you’re concerned, you’ve handled more than enough rejection throughout your life. But Namjoon and Yoongi… They’re definitely more successful than you in matters of the heart, but they would still understand. Not that you’re going to tell them about it, because it’s a stupid story, because there never was anything there, and because you’d feel really dumb talking about how you thought, how you hoped that— You’re not going to tell them anything. At least everything’s okay now.

And then, Jungkook appears at your usual table at the library on a Wednesday afternoon. He drops his bag on the floor and takes a seat next to you. You’re surprised to see him when you look up, too focused on your studies to notice him approaching. He has big, wide doe eyes, and he watches your reaction carefully.

“You’re— This seat isn’t taken?”

You shake your head. No. People rarely come here, and you don’t really study with people. Well, didn’t, you suppose.

“Do you mind if I sit here?“

“The seat’s free. You can take it if you want.”

You don’t know what to do. You don’t know how to react. This wasn’t supposed to happen. You never considered that Jungkook would— That he would—

“I, um, I like studying with you. It helps me focus,” he says, eyes flickering away from you. “So, if you don’t mind I’ll— Can I come back here on Wednesdays?”

You want to tell him that you can’t stop him, that he can do whatever the hell he want, but even though it’s on the tip of your tongue, you don’t.

“Of course you can,” you say instead.

Jungkook looks up long enough to flash you a smile, and you know. This isn’t over, and you’re not going to be fine. You’re probably going to feel crushed, sooner than later, and you could have stopped it all right now.

You think about Yoongi and how not like him it is to be doing what he is with Jimin. How he’s taking a risk. How it could oh so easily not have paid off.

It’s going to, of course. You just need to look at Jimin’s eyes when he’s talking to Yoongi to know that. But Jungkook doesn’t look at you like that. Jungkook doesn’t look at you at all.

And yet here you are. Taking that exact same risk.

God. You can be so stupid some times.

Jungkook glances at you quickly while you’re deep in thought, tapping your pencil against your cheek, and a small smile forms on his lips. He’s quick to glance away, because he would hate it if you caught him, of course, but the smile doesn’t fade.

He couldn’t have forced it to do so if he tried.

“You have to come to the next game.”

“Taehyung, hey, nice to see you to, I’m doing fine, I—”

“I’m serious, (Y/N). I know you hate basketball and everything that breathes, but—”

“I don’t hate you.”

“—this is really important and— Wait, really? Thank you. I feel that means a lot coming from you.”

“Is that how you see me? I don’t hate everyone, Taehyung.”

“Can you give me a list of people you don’t hate?”

“Well, you, Jin, Yoongi, Namjoon…”

“Jungkook?”

“…Sure. Jungkook. Why do you want me to come to the next game?”

“Because we might lose.”

“And I’m supposed to change that how?”

“You owe me, remember?”

“I— Because of the parties? Seriously? I need to sit through hours of you guys running after a ball because I don’t like parties?”

“I would really appreciate it if you could avoid describing basketball as ‘guys running after a ball’.”

“I would really appreciate not having to go watch the game.”

“Don’t you want to support your friends on the team?”

“Ugh. Fine. I’ll be there. Just— stop that thing you’re doing with your eyebrows. Why are you even doing that?”

“You’re so slow. How are you so slow? I thought you were supposed to be smart!”

“Taehyung…”

“Just be there!”

“I will.”

“You better!”

“Or what, what will you— Taehyung! You can’t just run off like— Well. I guess he could.”

You hadn’t thought sitting through a basketball game could become a more painful experience to you than it already was. As it turns out, you were wrong. It was so much worse when the people you wanted to win were losing. Despite yourself, you found yourself getting invested, standing up and shouting encouragements along with Jin and Namjoon, and protesting loudly when things didn’t go your way.

You were not cut out for this. Not because you still didn’t understand half the rules — you could have by now if you had made the effort of memorizing them — but because of the stress. God, how did your friends handle that regularly? How did the players handle it? You kept looking at Jungkook. You could tell how unhappy he was with the situation, could see the disappointment settling in. He also seemed to get more nervous as time went by, which didn’t help his performance, and his words kept echoing in your mind.

”I don’t know what’s going to happen when I stop being as good.”

You’re half way through the game and things are not looking good when Taehyung waves you over. You run to the railway, straining to hear him, and when you finally understand what he’s saying, you regret making any effort at all.

“You can’t possibly be serious!”

But he is.

“You owe me, (Y/N)!”

“I’m already— What’s it even going to do?”

“Trust me on that one, okay?”

You glare at him, but he’s looking at you with his beautiful brown eyes, and there’s nothing you can do against that. You sigh deeply. Your heart is beating wildly in your chest just thinking about what he’s asking you to do. Maybe it’s not such a big deal for him, that sort of stuff, but for you— For you it’s downright insane to even consider.

“Kim Taehyung,” you hiss through gritted teeth, “if this goes bad, I’ll kill you and plant your head on a stick outside of my door to warn my enemies not to underestimate me.”

He has the audacity to shrug at that.

“It won’t go bad.”

You look up. Take a deep breath. And call Jungkook’s name.

The gym is insanely loud, and it takes both you and Taehyung’s efforts, as well as a lot of waving, for Jungkook to notice you. When he does, though, he runs towards you, worry obvious on his face. He’s looking directly at you for once, and the intensity of his stare almost makes you shiver.

“Is everything alright?” he asks when he gets there, eyes scanning you quickly to make sure that you’re okay.

“It’s fine, I just—”

“What are you doing here? You hate basketball. Did something happen?”

You shake your head. You don’t know how you’re supposed to do this, especially when he’s looking so puzzled and when he’s questioning your sanity for showing up at one of his games. You glance over at Taehyung who gives you a decided nod.

Ah. Fuck it.

Leaning over about as far as you can go, you cup Jungkook’s face, and as his expression turns to one of surprise, you kiss him. If people around notice or have a reaction, you can’t tell, because Jungkook pushes himself against you and buries his hand in your hair as he holds you. There’s not much space left for thinking in your mind, instead entirely consumed by thoughts of him. He’s completely sober this time, and you don’t taste alcohol on his tongue. He’s also not going as slow, almost desperately kissing you back, one strong hand supporting you so you don’t fall over, and you just melt.

It takes everything in you to push yourself away. When you do, you’re breathless, and he’s staring at you with eyes even wider than usual. You’re pretty sure Taehyung would want you to give an encouraging speech right now, but you don’t want to do that right now.

“I really don’t care if you’re winning or losing games,” you say instead. “If you’re sad, I’ll be sad with you, but it’s never going to change anything in how I see you. But I’ll be here encouraging you.”

He grabs your hand, squeezing it tight.

“Promise?” he asks, almost childishly.

You’re not sure which part he’s referring to, but they’re all true, so you nod.

“I promise.”

He smiles, and then both him and Taehyung are running back across the field and getting yelled at by their coach, but even from where you’re standing, you can see their smiles.

You guess that means you’re not going to murder Taehyung.

“This is actually insane. How is Jungkook even doing that?” Yoongi asks in disbelief after Jungkook scored extremely impressively yet again, and you fidget in your seat. You’re very happy to see that, though you don’t how you feel about the smug looks Taehyung is sending you, but you don’t want—

“It’s the power of love,” Jin says, nodding like he just gave an essential truth to the meaning of life.

—this. You, very specifically, don’t want this.

“Jin,” you sigh, “there’s no such thing as—”

“Actually,” Namjoon interrupts you, “I think he’s right. The power of love is a thing, and I think this is a perfect demonstration of it.”

You gape at him, in shock. He betrayed you?

“Did you just—”

“Namjoon’s right,” Yoongi nods. “This is how the power of love works. You take love, and you turn it into strength.”

And then, him, Jin and Namjoon high five, and you gasp. Traitors. All of them.

But after that, Jimin says off-handedly “Maybe you should come and kiss me before my next competition” and Yoongi’s brain visibly stops functioning, so you consider yourself avenged.

After the match, you wait for Jungkook outside of the locker room. Jin insisted you should go celebrate on the field, but you had declined. It felt like the situation required something a little more private, so now you’re here, leaning against the wall, looking at your phone so you’ll seem busy, even if there’s nothing on there to occupy yourself.

You’re not the only one there, and that doesn’t help soothing your nerves. There are a lot of girls, all pretty and smiling. It makes you feel like a groupie, and you don’t like it. You’re relieved for a second when the door opens and the team comes out, but it doesn’t last long, because the girls are soon surrounding them. You remain where you were standing, watching the whole thing happen. It takes a few moments before you notice Jungkook’s bun standing out of the group, and it makes you smile.

You catch Taehyung’s eye first, and, after you’ve sent him a glare that you hope was threatening, he pushes Jungkook out of the group. At first, he seems confused, before he finally finds you. You wave at him hesitantly. He blinks a few times, his eyes wide, then walks towards you.

“Hey,” he says when he joins you. He’s towering over you. Usually, you don’t like that, and you’ve complained about having to look up at Namjoon more than once, but you don’t necessarily mind right now.

“Hey,” you reply.

Silence stretches between the two of you as you try to think of something to say. You should have prepared a speech, you know that, but you’re pretty sure you wouldn’t have been able to say it either.

“Taehyung told me he told you to kiss me,” Jungkook blurts out after a while, looking away from you, and you give him a surprised glance. “So, you don’t have to—”

“No, I wanted to kiss you,” you interrupt him, a puzzled frown forming on your face.

Jungkook’s head whips back towards you, and you just stare at him in confusion.

“Do you really think I would have kissed you just because Taehyung asked me to?”

“Well you— you came to the game because he asked you to, right?”

“That’s not the same—”

“Jungkook!” someone from the team calls. “We’re going to grab a bite to celebrate, do you wanna come?”

Jungkook sighs, then gives you a sharp look.

“You wanted to kiss me,” he repeats.

You nod.

“Why?”

You bite your lower lip, and you’re not oblivious to the way his eyes fall to your mouth when you do.

“And I’m the blunt one,” you mumble.

“Sorry, I–”

“No, no, it’s fine, it’s just— I wanted to kiss you because I like you. Obviously.”

Jungkook swallows, and you can see his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. He looks over his shoulder at his friends.

“You can go without me!”

There are some protests, but he ignores them to give you his entire attention. It’s… not an unpleasant feeling.

“You disappeared after I kissed you the last time,” he says.

“You left,” you protest immediately. “You kissed me, and then the second your friends arrived, you acted like nothing happened and you left.”

“I didn’t want to— I just— They’re really annoying about that stuff, you know? I thought it would probably be better if I talked to you after— ‘m sorry. I didn’t— didn’t realize it—”

You look at Jungkook, watch him fumbling for words, and it hits you like a ton of bricks, how much you do like him. Those words really don’t do it justice, and maybe you’re not quite ready to talk about love just yet, but you like him so much, so much it makes your heart swell, so much you don’t think what what he’s trying to tell you would change anything to it, and yet what he’s trying to say is exactly what prompts your realization. He didn’t want to hurt you. Wanted this to be private, for just the two of you, wanted to see how you felt about it. And maybe he went the wrong way about it, but it means everything that he was trying.

“Walk me home?” you ask.

Jungkook finally stops his rambling.

“Are you sure?”

Of course, he has to ask that now, after weeks of trying to convince him to let you walk on your own. Still, you smile and nod, and when you start walking side by side, you grab his hand. He freezes temporarily before grinning and squeezing your hand, pulling it into his pocket so you won’t be too cold, because the air of January is chilling.

“Congratulations for the game,” you say after a long, comfortable silence. You had almost forgotten about it.

“Thanks,” he chuckles. “I had some help.”

And then, he winks at you, and your heart misses a beat. That’s when you understand something you hadn’t even considered before: if Jungkook stops being shy around you, you’re done for. You’ll be the one constantly flustered.

“So,” you say, slowly, trying to keep yourself composed, “why did you kiss me?”

“Um. Same as you?” Jungkook’s confidence disappears, and he returns to his awkward self, and you see that, as much as you like it, you want him to be comfortable around you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t tease him a little.

“What do you mean by that?” you ask innocently.

He gives you a horrified look that soon turns to an offended one when he notices you grinning widely.

“You’re so mean,” he says, but he’s smiling too, “you’re the meanest person I know.”

You’re laughing at that point, as you stop in front of your dorm.

“That’s not an answer.”

“Fine,” he sighs dramatically. “I kissed you because I like you.”

It’s funny. You knew that was what he was going to say, knew it was coming, and yet it gets to you all the same.

“With you, I don’t feel like I have to be the school’s star, you know? I can just be— Jungkook. You don’t expect me to be anything else.”

He’s right. You like Jungkook. With his insecurities and his flaws. You don’t want him to perform for you, and you don’t care what he’s doing right and wrong. Just studying maths in the library with him makes you happy.

He eyes your dorm and takes a deep breath.

“I should go,” he says.

You hum.

“Yes, it would be a really bad idea if you came up tonight.”

But you’re not letting go of his hand, and he’s close to you now, close enough that you can feel his breath catching in his throat. It makes you smile.

“You’re so mean,” he repeats.

This time, instead of laughing, you kiss him, and it’s completely different from the two previous times. There is no uncertainty in this kiss, no surprise, no pressure, no fear. It’s perfect. Jungkook’s hand comes to cup your cheek, his lips soft against your own. His long fingers gently stroke your jaw as he keeps the kiss chaste and sweet. It only makes you yearn for more and when he moves away, you can see in his eyes that he wants more as well.

You just don’t think he wants it now.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, then?” you ask.

“I’ll meet you for lunch,” he says solemnly, and it rings like a promise, which makes you smile.

When you move away, though, he doesn’t let go of you, and a pouty expression appears on his face before he releases you.

“I— Yeah. You should go.”

“You can come up if you want to, you know?”

He hesitates, rolls his lips together.

“I want to savor this,” he admits to you in a near whisper.

“Then I’ll go.”

“Yes. Good night.”

“Good night.”

You feel light and giddy as you walk through the door. It’s a nice and strange feeling, like you could just start floating any second.

You already can’t wait for the next day.

People are definitely weirded out by your relationship with Jungkook. Or, rather, by Jungkook’s relationship with you. You’re pretty sure most of the people who give you weird looks when you sit next to him and he wraps his arm around you, or when you walk hand in hand, wouldn’t pay attention to you if you went to class naked. But they all know who Jungkook is, and you guess it is weird to see you in conjunction with him.

They could ignore it and consider you mere part of the scenery when he ate with you, you suppose, but it is harder to do now. You’re not too fond of being the center of attention, to be honest. You don’t know how Jungkook does it.

What takes you by surprise the most is people being nice to you. That confuses you to no end, because you know for a fact they don’t care about you, not really, and you cannot fathom what they think they’re going to get out of this. You’re pretty sure there are a girl or two who are doing that to get closer to Jungkook, and some, you think, have decided to be nice to you because they think that if Jungkook likes you, you can’t be a total lost cause.

You don’t like that feeling. Not at all. You don’t like it when you’re going to class, you don’t like it during lunch, and you definitely, definitely do not like it when people rush towards you the second you get to a party.

Yeah, you’re giving Taehyung what he wanted, in the end. He said that both you and Jungkook owed him, because without him you wouldn’t be together, and you eventually gave in.

You thought it would be fine, now that you have someone to spend time with, but you understand with horror that your status has changed now. You’re not invisible anymore. You’re Jungkook’s girlfriendTM. Because of that, you spend much longer in the entrance making small talk than you would have wished to, and you’re stopped a couple of times while you’re desperately looking for your boyfriend to save you from this hell on earth.

You’re not surprised at all to find him playing beer pong with Taehyung and other guys from the team. He hasn’t gotten time to get drunk yet, so he’s quite impressive, but then again, they all are. That’s why they usually end up wasted.

The second he sees you, though, he abandons the game completely, and the smile on his face threatens to make your heart explode in your chest. Some of the guys turn around to look at you, give you a wave or a smile. Taehyung shouts a greeting.

“Hey,” Jungkook says, leaning in to press a quick kiss on your lips. He doesn’t like PDA all that much, but he never misses a chance to kiss you, and the thought makes you all giddy.

“Hey. Are you, um, having fun there?”

He shrugs.

“It’s not that bad. Wanna play?” He waits for your expression to turn to one of horror as you try to refuse politely before laughing. “Just kidding. Don’t worry about it.”

You let out a relieved breath. You know you and Jungkook are very different people, and you’re doing your best to take an interest in the things he likes. You’ve been learning the rules of basketball, for example, and though you still don’t believe you get the point, you like the way his eyes shine when you say something right about a game.

But you don’t take part in any of that stuff. Okay, you stop at that field that’s on your way home from the library every now and again, but that doesn’t count. It’s just you and him then, and you feel good and relaxed. You’ve even scored a couple of times now.

“Come on, I want to grab a drink,” Jungkook said, taking your hand in his, and you follow without protesting.

It’s probably your second mistake of the night: not realizing that getting a drink with and without Jungkook are two very different ordeals. On your way there, you get roped into several conversations. Those are fine. You can’t say you enjoy them, but they’re fine, and it’s not like those people are actually talking to you anyway.

What you genuinely dislike is that, when you’re by the table with the drinks, a girl starts openly flirting with your boyfriend. It’s not subtle, either, with the way she keeps touching his arm and how she laughs at his every word.

For a while, you just stare in disbelief. You know Jungkook is oblivious to that sort of things — probably one more reason why he likes how blunt you are — but you can’t believe her. You wouldn’t necessarily blame the girl for trying, either, if she didn’t know about you. Jungkook’s quite the catch after all, and you understand liking him better than anyone else.

No, it’s the fact that she’s doing it right in front of you, while Jungkook is holding your hand. It feels so— dismissive. So insulting. She’s not exactly saying to your face that she doesn’t take you seriously, but she might as well.

You watch incredulously when she puts her hand on his arm one more time. You don’t know how you’re supposed to handle that, so you just tug on Jungkook’s hand a little awkwardly. You’re pleased by how quickly his attention snaps to you, even while the girl is in the middle of her sentence. It’s a petty sentiment, for sure, but you can’t help it.

“Everything okay?” he asks. “Is it too loud in here?”

“Kind of, but—”

“Let’s find you a quieter place.”

He forgets about the drink he wanted to get, forgets about the girl, who he abandons there unceremoniously, gently pulling you through the room. Next thing you know, he’s carefully closing the doors of the closet he’s found for the two of you behind you.

“There,” he says, sounding satisfied with himself. “Better?”

You chuckle at that and, guessing for him in the half-light, you pull him towards you for a kiss. You press your body against his, pushing him against the back of the closet, and a groan forms in his throat. His hands tighten around you, sending shivers through your entire being, and you only lean into him more. You run your fingers over his chest, just to feel him tremble under your touch and he does, hissing with pleasure at the contact.

“Fuck,” he mumbles into your mouth. “Was that— was that what you had in mind?”

You shake your head, and he’s close enough to feel it.

“That girl was flirting with you,” you tell him.

“Oh. Are you sure?”

You are.

“So… are you jealous? Because that’s kind of hot.”

You laugh softly. Truth is, you really, really don’t want to be the jealous girlfriend, but Jungkook actually sounds happy about the idea.

“You really didn’t notice?”

There’s a moment of silence.

“I didn’t. Does that— Did it bother you, that she was doing that?”

“Kind of,” you shrug. “What about you? You’re— cool with that?”

“If it bothers you I don’t like it,” he replies simply, one of his hand leaving your waist to grab yours and squeeze it gently. “I’m sorry I didn’t notice.”

That makes you chuckle.

“How didn’t you? She would have made it barely more obvious if she had started undressing herself.”

Jungkook has an awkward laugh, and you can feel his breath on your face. He starts fidgeting, but then you press a kiss right at the corner of his lips, and he calms down, if just a little.

“It’s— You have to promise you won’t make fun of me.”

“I won’t.”

He hesitates a second longer, as though he’s trying to judge your sincerity by looking at you — except, of course, he can barely see a thing in here. You kiss him again, following his jaw, and he finally gives in when you start making your way down his neck.

“When I’m with you, it’s like my vision narrows on you,” he says, voice low. “I know everything and everyone else is still there, but I just think about you. Sorry, it’s really stupid.”

“It’s not,” you say, shaking your head, wondering if he can feel your heart beating stupidly fast in your chest, all because his words make you feel like nothing else ever has before. “But I’m— I’m kind of boring. That can’t be fun.”

“You’re not boring,” he protests. “You listen to people, even when you don’t look like it. You always look like you have a thousand things on your mind but you always make time for your friends, and when you’re studying here, you play with your hair.” He twirls a lock of your hair around one of his fingers before releasing it, as if to demonstrate. “You’re a very, very interesting person to look at.”

The only thing you can do is stay there, frozen in his arms, after he’s said that. You may be blunt, but Jungkook is honest. Devastatingly so. His vulnerability always shatters the walls that you’ve built around yourself, and you still don’t know how to react when that happens.

So you push yourself on your tiptoes to kiss him again, except this time it’s slow and gentle and you’re trying to put everything he means to you into it. The tip of your fingers are on his cheeks, your mouth barely moving against his, soft noises filling the closet. Jungkook remains still, letting you in complete control, like he’s afraid he could break you if he moved.

“Thank you,” you whisper when you pull away from him.

“For what?” he asks, breathless.

“For being here with me tonight, and for coming with me at that first party.”

“Of course. Any time.”

He lets himself fall to the floor, taking you down with him and keeping you into his lap once he’s done that. You rest your head against his chest. You hear the noises of the party still going on outside, but Jungkook is your island of peace in the middle of the chaos.

“I think I’m going to stop basketball,” Jungkook blurts out without a warning, and you look at him, surprised.

“Really?” you ask.

“Yeah. Really. I just— I don’t want to be doing that anymore.”

You think about it for a few seconds, then nod.

“You probably should stop, in that case.”

“People are… not going to be happy about it.”

“I’m sure Taehyung won’t be mad at you. Well, not for too long.”

He laughs softly, but his hold on you doesn’t relax, and you know that this was hard for him to even consider. You know it’s a terrifying decision to take, too.

“Thank you,” he says. “For being here with me tonight, too.”

“Any time.”

The truth is, you wouldn’t give that moment away for anything in the world, and something tells you Jungkook wouldn’t either. It’s not ideal, it’s not perfect, but you don’t believe there is such a thing, and you’re happy to satisfy yourself with the imperfect.

But any moment you can spend in Jungkook is as close to perfect as can be.

“I love you,” he whispers in your ear, and you think that he might feels the same way, which almost makes you burst with happiness.

“And I love you,” you whisper back.

Not perfect, perhaps. But close enough.