#as if its actually very puffy and curly

[blue-unifox]

Thought to experiment a bit! Top left model is Thando Hopa and I couldn't find the bottom right one's name unfortunately

[meowzfordayz]

analysis (; — hashira men

Author’s Note: took this not-actually-a-prompt and got carried away heh... 😌

analysis (; — hashira men

Himejima Gyomei x Reader, Iguro Obanai x Reader, Rengoku Kyojuro x Reader, Shinazugawa Sanemi x Reader, Tomioka Giyuu x Reader

Word Count: ~2,200

CW: 18+NSFW, degrading language, explicit language, Fem!Reader, oral, spit, squirting

Thirst Fulfilled: I NEED someone to settle an argument between me and a friend-

Do you think sanemi has a big [redacted]-

Because I KNOW he is packing a huge one.

Ps I’m sorry but I don’t know who else to ask 😭

~faqs~

Update as of 12 May 2023: A foreword that these headcanons are first and foremost indulgent !! 😌 They are not intended to be realistic. They’re supposed to be fun. Hot. 🥵 Within the realm of possibility, but not ~normal. 😉

Dick so big it has him blushing 🤭

—I mean, c’mon: Look at him 😳

That being said, it’s also very pretty — not monstrous or scary (besides its size heh)

A nice, rounded head that oozes precum throughout foreplay, sensitive and rosy pink as you flick your tongue across it, thick and heavy balls tightening at the breathy moan in your throat

A delicate vein curves from its base to the underside of the tip, thankfully not too pronounced, bc it’ll stretch you out enough regardless

Speaking of stretch…

Your fingers can barely wrap around its girth — it’s much easier to drool and lap at the shaft than commit to anything close to deep throating (unless your jaw stamina’s through the roof 👀)

Doesn’t exactly groom himself, but that isn’t too much of an issue since it’s not like his pubic hair’s getting in your way too often (re: dick too huge to regularly deepthroat) 

As for length, Gyomei’s in the ball park of ~reasonable (10 inches when erect), but it still requires a hell of a lot of prep before you’re fully seated on his cock, ass flush against his flexed thighs while large, sweaty hands grip your hips in a feeble attempt to restrain himself from immediately thrusting into your dimly throbbing cervix

“This okay?” he murmurs, thumbs pressing firmly into the softness of your skin, low groan caught in his chest at the suffocating heat of your pussy, your shaky, faintly pained breaths keeping his desire in check

“Take as much time as you need,” as you use his stomach to steady yourself, muscles rippling beneath your palms

“You feel wonderful,” whispered gently—patient as ever—even as he longs to raise your trembling body up and almost off of his cock, only to fuck the air out of your lungs w/ a single, smooth drop of your wanton weight, unsuspecting wail music to his ears as you convulse in orgasm at the overwhelming pressure of his cock stuffing your puffy walls

Obanai’s closer to average, but he isn’t small (at least, his dick isn’t 😆 #short king)

Def a grower, slim, veiny shaft elongating (to ~6 inches) as you stroke him w/ a practiced flick of your wrist

Not exactly related to his dick, but he also def growls during foreplay, needy and eager to melt into you and to ruin you — just depends on his mood, yanno?

His head is the kind of head that you almost wanna chomp 🤗, all squishy, bulbous, and fat, quickly reddening and weeping precum, making a mess of your fingers

Perfect lubrication for touching yourself while sucking him off, gleam in his eyes at how filthy you are

Typically can’t be bothered to trim his pubic hair, but it doesn’t get especially long anyway — more so coarse and curly

His shaft doesn’t stretch you out significantly, sliding easily into your slick heat, hovering above you as his hands keep your legs parted widely, “You like being splayed out for me, hm?” pinching lightly at your inner thigh, grinning smugly as you whimper contently, “My precious plaything.”

But it (his shaft) does have a wicked, upward curve, tip grinding firm and repetitive against the spongy bundle of nerves deep in your pussy

And its veins 🤤

What he lacks in girth, he makes up for in texture

Plus, Obanai 11/10 fucks aggressive and erratic, pubic bone flush to your clit, friction delicious and constant as he thrusts full force into your hole, sweat dripping from his brow onto your clavicle, his eyes narrowed in lust and passion, balls slapping sticky against your asshole, less concerned about hurting you since he’s aware that he isn’t ~the biggest guy on the block

Altho, if he’s tired, then he lowkey enjoys you on top, edging him w/ every slow and steady undulation of your hips, your tits pressed warm and hot to his chest as he clings to you and the squelch of your cunt

For whatever reason, my immediate thought was: Raging! Hard! On! 😂😍

Kyojuro’s absolutely packing, but still decently proportionate to his stature (177cm aka 5’10”)

—Bc, contrary to porn-pular belief, comically large dicks hurt 😒💀

8 inches erect, and a sizeable bulge when flaccid

—Never thought I’d use this term, bc (imo) it’s hot when I’m horny, but 🥴 when I’m ~sober 😆…

BREEDER BALLS

As much as Kyojuro loves worshiping your pussy, he might love when you worship his balls more 🤭

You kissing, sucking, licking his balls while he jerks himself off = 100% orgasm guarantee

Drooling on his shiny, reddening tip, your spit trickling down between his fingers, making a mess of your lips as you return to fondling his balls w/ your mouth?

110% orgasm guarantee

Prefers cumming on your tits, btw — will stave off his orgasm until you can get ~in position ☺️

Nothing like an even messier round two 😎

Bc, ofc, he is more than happy to reciprocate the pleasure 💞

W/ enough girth to warrant a gradual sinking (vs an abrupt thrust to the hilt), his shaft fills you breathless, its last couple of inches just barely fitting into your heat

“Can’t believe you’re already hard again,” you giggle delightedly, eyes hazy as he smears his cum across your nipple, throbbing head pressing deeper into your pussy, “You’re insatiable, I swear.”

A heady groan is his only response, gaze bright and attentive as always, reaching for your hand, dipping your thumb into his cum splatter, tasting himself on your skin as he maintains eye contact

“Fuck,” you gasp, pussy clenching at his nonchalance, tongue swiping subconsciously along your bottom lip

“Taste?” he offers, enthusiastic tone muted by the determined pressure of him lapping at your other nipple, his cum bitter and warm as he kisses you sloppy and needy, grip gentle on your jaw as he inhales your scent

And then you whisper Umai!

One word: brutal 😵‍💫

Not bc he’s ridiculously hung (i.e. Gyomei), but bc he’s ridiculously good (at using his dick)

—I actually headcanon Sanemi being a ~bashful virgin (sex can be intimate, and intimacy can be scary, but he loves you, so if that means being soft and scared w/ you… then he’s willing to go there 🥺🤍), buuut once he’s comfortable/well practiced?

—😈😈😈

Not much of a show-er when flaccid (and absolutely, positively shriveled when cold 😂), but an ideal 7 inches when erect w/ girth in between Gyomei and Kyojuro (slimmer than Gyo, thicker than Kyo)

His tip seems to get ~angrier the longer you tease him, going from an almost cute pink to an engorged, lustful red — def the hardest part about fitting him in your pussy, breath catching every time he finally slips into your dripping hole

Which, he has to get you dripping before attempting to penetrate, or at least use lube, bc rushed sex + his dick = not super enjoyable

Alternatively, he’ll facefuck you to get his dick wet enough for your pussy, 7 inches manageable, albeit veering on unpleasant, your nails digging into his flexed ass as he shoves himself languid and satisfied into your mouth, head twitching and leaking precum down the back of your throat whenever you gag on his length

“Watch your teeth,” he grunts lowly, tugging warningly at your hair, swallowing a moan as his cock muffles your whimper, eyes watering at his roughness, “Don’t make me gag and choke you,” calloused fingers brushing soothingly—promisingly—at your neck

In terms of pubic hair, he keeps it neatly trimmed, but not clean shaven: he likes hearing—seeing—the filthy mess of your saliva, tears, and precum as he fucks up and into your pussy

“Is this fast enough for you?” he snarls, your body balanced precariously atop his pelvis, grip nearly bruising on your hips as he smirks knowingly, “Obviously not,” pace frenzied as you moan raggedly, “If you’re still moaning like a whore, then it isn’t fast enough.”

Feet shifting beneath him in search of a different angle, grin triumphant and deadly as you shout silently, head tilted backward, tits bouncing in mesmerizing sync w/ his thrusts

“There we go,” he murmurs, balls tightening at your fucked out expression, “There’s my perfect cunt, squeezing all pathetic and hopeless around my cock,” stamina never ending, pussydrunk on the feeling of you, “Can’t wait for you to cum on my cock, gonna make this cunt so fucking sloppy.”

The prettiest dick 😭

—Ik I mentioned Gyomei’s dick being pretty too, but Giyuu takes pretty to another lvl 🥺

Aka Giyuu has the Goldilocks Cock™ 💀

Just shy of 7 inches, w/ thin veins that curl neat and yummy around his shaft — which, btw, is thick enough to have you pushing on his shoulders Slowly, p-please as the tip catches on your entrance, his eyes hooded and glassy as he ignores you in favor of thrusting in further Sorry not sorry at all You feel so g-good

A faint shudder trembles down his spine, pooling in his groin, traveling along his girth, head twitching in the viscous grip of your heat

Maintains a tidy patch of pubic hair, delicate happy trail tantalizing and subtle whenever he stretches 🥱

As for his balls… once again: Goldilocks Balls™ 🤤

Optimally sized for sucking into your mouth, hanging beautifully even, downy hairs tickling your nose as he cups the back of your head, quiet groans spilling from his cherry bitten lips as you glance toward his fluttering lashes, your vision obscured by the muscle of his tensed inner thigh

Giyuu’s fave position? 

—for these headcanons, at least 😆

Cowgirl 🤠 #yee #haw

Your pussy clings to his shaft like a greedy vice, creamy essence smearing from your swollen folds to his lower abdomen, tits presented as you arch backward, using his legs to steady yourself as you fuck yourself on his (perfect) cock

“Touch yourself,” he demands softly, spreading your asscheeks w/ surprisingly cool hands, easily supporting your weight, eyes closing at the satisfying smack of your skin bouncing against his

“Touch yourself till you cum,” his biceps hardly straining as you chase your orgasm, rhythm smooth and delectable, “I want to feel you fall apart,” murmured slick and gentle, in stark contrast to the lewd squish of his balls tapping your asshole

“C’mon sweetheart, fall apart for me, so gorgeous on my cock, love feeling you gush all over me.”

—I pondered long and hard about Tengen’s dick (both puns intended ����)

—Lemme organize my thoughts for a sec…

—Girth (from wide to slim): Gyomei, Tengen, Sanemi, Kyojuro, Giyuu, Obanai

—Length (from long to ~short): Gyomei, Tengen, Kyojuro, Sanemi, Giyuu, Obanai

In other words, as the second tallest, Tengen also happens to be the second biggest 🙃

—I initially considered putting him behind Kyo in terms of length, but 198cm aka 6’6” vs 177cm aka 5’10”... the math just wouldn’t have mathed 😆

Erect, Tengen measures a solid 9 inches, and if Obanai’s dick is veiny, then Tengen’s dick = veins GALORE 😵

“Even my dick is flashy! 😎” “It has ✨decor✨!”

His shaft bends slightly downward (blame gravity — his dick’s so fucking heavy 😌), so certain positions can be a bit tricky, but damn if he doesn’t rearrange your insides 🤪

Def enjoys being the center of attention, fucking slow and confident into your stretched out hole, dirty talk muffled by Makio’s thighs as he maintains a steady rhythm licking her folds, Hina’s index finger slim and practiced as she stimulates your clit, Suma’s tongue gliding wet and hot against Tengen’s taint

“What was that?” Makio coos, eyes twinkling as she grinds firmly onto Tengen’s mouth, “We can’t understand you dear,” squealing when he smacks her tits, “You seem a bit preoccupied, try speaking up.”

“S-shit,” you gasp, gripping Hina’s hand, pressure building as Tengen thrusts sharply into you, “D-don’t encourage him Makio,” whining as Hina latches onto your nipple, sucking lightly

“Why not?” Makio giggles, ass wiggling playfully, “Can’t take it?” knowing all too well that, ultimately, your pussy’s paying the price for her teasing

“Hm, you’re so messy babe,” Suma sighs contently, pausing her ministrations to kiss Tengen’s thigh, lips shiny w/ spit and your essence, “Seems like you want Makio to encourage him.”

Hina nods in agreement, eyes narrowed devilishly, twisting your other nipple, “Her clit’s throbbing,” spoken w/ unbearable casualness, “I think she’s going to cum.”

“Are you going to cum?” Tengen asks conversationally, finally taking a breath from Makio’s pussy, engorged tip twitching in your cunt, “I’ve hardly ruined you, and you’re already spasming on my cock.”

“T-tengen,” you whimper, clenching at his taunting tone, falling forward, cheek smooshed into Makio’s back, “So fucking d-deep,” stuttering as the new angle forces his fat head flush to the entrance of your cervix

“Think we can get her to squirt?” Tengen hums smugly, a hypothetical question, really, as you begin convulsing, pussy gushing messily onto his stomach, Hina’s hand glistening, ignoring your meek mewls of T-too much! as she continues rubbing your clit, Suma lapping at your cum as it coats Tengen’s balls, trickling between his asscheeks

[bettyfrommars]

Dr. Munson & The Monster

mad scientist!Eddie x The Monster x fem!Reader

Based on a sweet ask I got about how Reader's boyfriend cheats on us, and then we get revenge with his dad. I'm sure this was not what they had in mind 👀 my apologies. wc: 1.7k

18+Only, mature content, smut, cheating, mention of monster sex, unprotected p in v, oral (f receiving), creampie, breeding!kink, mention of being forced to live at the castle, mention of male impotence. Frankie and Reader are 25+, doctor!Eddie is 40+.

Things with you and your boyfriend Frankie were complicated.  When he first put you over his shoulder and carried you back to the castle, determined to be your mate, you wondered if it would work out.  But, you’d grown to love that zipper-neck lothario, and the enormous cock attached to him.  Munson’s Monster was famous by that time for being the first reanimated human, and he had so many women throwing their panties at him, it was intimidating for you at first.  

“Baby,  where are you going?” You called to him from the bed where you were in one of your sexiest nightgowns, draped perfectly to expose the curve of your hip that drove him bonkers.

“Out!” But he didn’t actually say it, he just grunted it, stomping off toward the balcony on stiff legs.  He liked to use the thick vines on the side of the building to climb down.

He flung the terrace doors wide open, and you watched him make his clumsy descent with a shake of your head.  “You’ll break your neck again one of these days, you know that baby? Just use the front door next time!”

He was too busy banking on his arm strength to hold his substantial weight to look up at you, but he did offer a growl and a grunt, and by the time he dropped to the ground in a crouch, there were tears glistening on your lash line.

The first few months together had been so rich with discovery and the promise of new  love. Frankie mated you from sunup to sundown, stretching you out and chasing his release with animalistic passion, the likes of which you’d never experienced before. After a few weeks, you were confessing your love; there was even talk of planning an October wedding.

But, the honeymoon phase was over, as they say, and word had made its way back to you that Frankie was getting in bed with every village woman within arms reach.  They all snickered and laughed behind your back when they saw you in town.

You watched him stumble into the night, and then you peeled yourself away from the balcony and wiped your eyes.  

You didn’t want to be alone again.  The only people who lived in the castle besides you and Frankie were Dr. Munson, his assistant Igor, and a housekeeper named Frau Blucher.  You put your silky robe on and brought a candelabra downstairs with you, following the golden glow of light coming from under the door of Dr. Munson’s library.

You knocked first, because he was a very private man, and you were paranoid that he hated you for whatever reason.  Maybe he didn’t think you were good enough for his creation?

“Enter,” a gruff voice bellowed from inside.

Edward Munson, brilliant surgeon and mad scientist, was hunched over his desk, fingers flying from inkwell to paper as he scribbled notes in his journal.  Long, dark curly hair wild around his shoulders, with a touch of gray at the sides, and fingertips stained black from the ink.

“What do you want?” He grumbled, never looking up from the paper.

He knew it was you.  He recognized the way your footsteps sounded on the floor above, the cadence of your knock, the way his heart jumped into his throat whenever you were near.

You shut the door behind you, pushing it until it clicked.  A cozy fire roared in the hearth, the air smelled of old books, pipe tobacco, and leather. You intertwined your fingers in front of you and went to take a seat by the fire.

Eddie finally glanced up, your silence making him curious.  That was when he saw your puffy face and the tears in your bloodshot eyes.  The horrible way his “son” treated you was no secret among the house, and sometimes his thoughts found their way to wondering how it would’ve worked out if he’d found you first, and not Frankie. 

With the pen still in his hand, he sat back in his seat.  “I’m sorry this keeps happening. You deserve much better than this.”

You snapped a look at him.  He was always so grumpy with you, this was the first time he’d ever offered you any semblance of comfort.

The nightgown under your robe was so tight to your skin that he could see the outline of your breasts and the way you weren’t wearing any undergarments.  He cast his eyes back down at his desk, ashamed for even allowing himself to dream.

Pausing in the middle of the room, on your way to the couch by the fire, you were struck with a sudden epiphany: Dr. Munson was attracted to you.  How had you never noticed it previously?   The way the light from the fire danced on his skin, making his dark eyes sparkle.

Driven by loneliness and a sudden, rabid burst of horny, you slinked over to the big oak desk, hitching your ample hip out to rest it at the edge.  The muscles in Eddie’s jaw flexed, eyes anchoring to yours, refusing to let them roam your body like they wanted to.

“What do you want from me?” His tone was tight, his cock twitching in his pants at how close you were.  “You should go back to your room.”

What you wanted was to get back at your neglectful, cheating boyfriend.  He got to have his fun several nights a week with whoever he wanted.  Why couldn’t you have the same?

You came around the desk to be closer, now your leg was touching his.  You let your hand graze up along your inner thigh over your nightgown, lips parted as you watched him from under hooded eyes.  “I want you to touch me, doctor.”

Dr. Munson hasn’t been with a woman intimately for years.  Mostly because he was a recluse who had no patience for the small talk required for getting to know someone, but also—he’d been harboring a secret crush on you since that first day Frankie brought you home.

His eyes flicked from the outline of your cunt to your face.  “Show me,” he told you, pushing the sleeves up on his shirt.

Eager to please him, you ran your hands up your thighs to shimmy the silky skirt up around your hips, giving him the perfect view of your kitten.  

Eddie’s mouth went dry at the sight, his brows knitting together.  He inched forward to brace one hand on your thigh while the other worked a finger along your slit, hissing at your wetness.  You yanked down the front of your nightgown to play with your nipples.

“Get on the desk,” he demanded, unbuttoning his shirt.

You had your knees bent, feet on his shoulders, quivering as his fingers spread you, his tongue seeking out the special nub that Frankie could never find.  The scientist that he was, he had studied a woman’s anatomy extensively, and wanted to use his gathered knowledge to please you.

“Your mouth feels so good, doctor,” you whimpered.   

He pulled away, chin dripping with a mix of saliva and your arousal, and then he worked a finger down, slipping in one, two, and then three.  You were all the way back on the desk now, knocking things over as you writhed, spilling the inkwell.  

He got to his feet, pushing his pants down to expose a generous pink length. You propped on your elbows to lick your lips and watch as he rubbed the tip along your slit with a groan, frowning in concentration.  

“Is this what you want?” He mumbled, pulling open your lips to watch how well you took his tip.

You sat up to meet his mouth, fingers clawing into his crazy hair as you forced his lips open with your tongue.  “I want you to give me a baby,” you begged. You found each other's eyes then, hovering on the implication of what was being asked. “Because we know Frankie can’t.”

It was true.  As much of a medical miracle and scientific treasure Frankie was, Dr. Munson suspected his sperm was no longer viable. Sometimes he blamed his skill as a surgeon for how Frankie had turned out, but he had to be gentle with himself—that brain Igor found for him was not the organ of an intellectual.  

Locking eyes with you, he sank all the way in, filling you to the base at first thrust, making you both cry out.  He cursed, bracing his hands on the desk for leverage to piston his hips against you.  You held his face between your hands and matched his need with your tongue.

His deft fingers moved from working your nipple to your clit, watching you unravel before his eyes.  It wasn’t until he felt your walls flutter around his cock and heard you whimper his name that he allowed his release.

He grunted, fingers digging into your soft hips. He hadn’t tended to himself in days, and so the potential for seeds to be planted deep in your womb was strong. 

 It took a while for him to finish pumping it all in, and then you stretched back on the huge desk, planting your feet, knees wide.  Maintaining eye contact with him, you used your fingers to push his cum deeper inside of you, tilting your hips up, holding it there, and then rubbing the excess up through your folds, before bringing them to your mouth to suck. 

He kissed your stomach and your breasts, up your throat, sticking his own fingers inside to keep any from leaking out.  “Stay like this until I say you can go,” he mumbled against your mouth.  “And when it starts to drip down your leg, I want you to remember who put it there.”

“Yes, doctor,” you whined, listening to the plop of the tiny ink droplets as they fell from the desk and collected in a puddle on the floor. 

[spookygingerr]

Tag Game Wednesday

this wednesday's tag game is hosted by yours truly, and we're talking hairrrr 👩🏻‍🦰

what is your current hair like?

i now have peachy ginger hair, maybe i need to change my name to spookypeachyy. it's not too long right now as i had a good chop but its reaches like halfway down the top of my arms. i've been doing a wavy hair method a lot recently which i love

what is your natural hair like?

i think a lot of people think i'm a natural ginger so i'm here to shatter that illusion. i actually have that 'dark blonde, light brown hair'. if i let is dry naturally it's mostly straight but kind of puffy with some waves at the back. i used to hate having such 'boring' in between hair but i love it now. it can easily be styled straight or wavy, it holds curls from a curly wand and it also holds colour really well. in other words it's versatile which i love because i like to play around with it a lot.

what’s you favourite hair style/colour you’ve had?

it would have to be what i currently have. i did have black box dye during university though and that is a very close second. it was very fun and made me very happy at the time.

what hair style/colour do you find most attractive on other people? (if you have a preference)

i love brunettes, i think super rich brown hair is so gorgeous!

what’s your biggest hair regret?

even though i just said that the black box dye was my second favourite hair, it's also my biggest hair regret because i had it when i worked at an american summer camp. i couldn't really do regular touch ups on my roots since i was staying in a bunk with campers but the pennsylvania sun turned my roots blonde which was not a good look for me with the black hair!

what’s the longest your hair as ever been?

my hair was sooo long in high school (waist length). i got over 11 inches off just before prom and donated it, kinda wish i waited a few weeks though and had my long hair at prom!

what’s the shortest your hair has ever been?

probably like collar bone length!

what’s your go to style when you’re due a hair wash?

i love a messy bun when my hair needs washing! or french braids with leave in conditioner in!

tags below the cut

@gallapiech @roryonic @em-harlsnow @transmurderbug @ian-galagher

@jrooc @creepkinginc @sleepyfacetoughguy @celestialmickey @mickittotheman

@mickeym4ndy @lee-ow @transmickey @transsexual-dandelions

@callivich @blue-disco-lights @thepupperino @sirrudo @burninface

@suzy-queued @doshiart @crossmydna @energievie @jademickian

@the-rat-wins @bawlbrayker @pookiebearmick @kandyzee @spacerockwriting

@vintagelacerosette @gallavichsuperfan @stocious @iandarling @darlingian

@sam-loves-seb @especially-fuk-u @fendeavor @kiennilove @wehangout

@tanktopgallavich @deedala @michellemisfit @mybrainismelted @sgtmickeyslaughter

@nozenfordaddy @deathclassic

[goforth-ladymidnight]

A Second Chance, Ch. 14

@praetorqueenreyna @thrumbolt @achaotichuman @taymartiart @northern-polaris @zivotzaruzi (Please let me know if you’d like to be tagged or untagged.)

Pairing: Tamlin x Lucien

Wordcount: 7.9k

Summary: Tamlin breaks some hearts (and no, I will not spoil it by saying whose), and Lucien and his brother learn more about their family's company audit

Read on AO3, or read here below the cut:

Click.

Tamlin lowered the camera with a sniff and tried to wiggle his numb nose. He’d been out in the cold for nearly an hour now, and he hadn’t seen anyone matching Vassa’s description, aside from the round, red-capped finches he was pretending to be so fascinated by.

He glanced over at the busy coffee cart on the other side of the park, with its jolly holly-green umbrella and bright red coffee cups. He sighed wistfully, and his breath was visible in the chilled air. Some hot coffee would be just the thing on a cold day like this. The sky promised more snow later, as if they didn’t already have enough.

As he trudged through the ankle-deep snow, he readjusted the strap of the camera bag bouncing uncomfortably against his frozen hip, and grumbled at himself for coming up with such a brilliant plan.

At least he had Lucien’s scarf to keep him from becoming a walking, talking snowman.

As he fell in line behind two young women, he lifted the scarf to his nose and gratefully breathed in the faint, orange-scented cologne. Now that his mouth and nose were beginning to thaw, he could start thinking clearly again.

He was doing this for Vassa, he reminded himself. Vassa was Lucien’s friend, and Jurian’s girlfriend, besides. No matter how much Jurian might try to deny it.

If the Scythian mafia was after her, no matter what their reasons were, it was reason enough to keep her out of their clutches. But was it worth the risk if it meant putting another redhead in harm’s way?

“Hi! Two peppermint lattes, please,” the young woman in front of him cheerily told the coffee cart attendant.

Tamlin glanced over the black chalkboard menu, at the options written in a curly white script. He usually got a black coffee, but would it be gay if he tried a peppermint latte for once?

He shook his head and scolded himself. So what if it was? Hadn’t he just had—as Lucien put it—hot gay sex, the night before?

Even the memory of it made him blush.

“What can I get you?” the attendant asked him.

Tamlin startled, then stepped forward. “Oh, yeah. Hi. Um… Two black coffees, please,” he said automatically, and was suddenly disappointed in himself. Why would anyone care about his order, anyway? He was the one drinking it, not them. When the attendant reached for two red coffee cups, Tamlin stopped him. “Actually, could you make them peppermint lattes, instead?” he asked shyly.

“Ooh, nice choice,” someone remarked.

He turned his head to see the same two young women standing nearby, sipping at their own peppermint drinks. They were dressed in blue and green puffy jackets and white leggings, complete with woolen legwarmers and stocking hats with fuzzy pom-poms on top. They made standing out in the cold look a lot more fun than it actually was.

“We don’t really see guys go for the so-called girly drinks,” her friend continued, and shrugged shyly. “It’s cute.”

“Well, you two inspired me,” he said, smiling. “It never hurts to try something new, right?”

“Right,” she said, while her friend nudged her. They both looked like they were trying very hard not to giggle. Had he said something funny?

“You’ll have to tell us what you think,” her friend said brightly, then gestured to the other and continued, “Cat usually goes for pumpkin spice, but it is almost Christmas, so…”

“‘Tis the season,” Tamlin agreed conversationally, as if they weren’t complete strangers. Still, it didn’t hurt to be friendly.

“Indeed,” she said with a smile.

As he returned her smile, he noticed that she had bright, teal blue eyes, and coppery red bangs peeking out beneath her stocking hat. If it weren’t for her freckles and pale skin, she could almost pass for Vassa…

“That’ll be ten,” the clerk said, bringing him back to the present.

“Oh, that much, huh?” Tamlin said with a shy laugh, and pulled out his wallet.

As he pulled out the correct number of bills, the redhead remarked, “They have some of the best coffee in town. It’s worth it, I promise.”

“I’m sure it is,” he said affably, then took the steaming cups in hand with a nod of thanks.

As he stepped aside to make way for the next customer, he tried to think of a tactful way to ask for her picture, but the talkative redhead didn’t give him the chance.

“So, what do you think?” she asked him.

“About what?”

She and her friend exchanged another one of their barely contained smiles. “Of the coffee?”

“Oh,” he said, and carefully managed a sip. As the warm brew slid down his throat, he licked his lips. “It’s uh… peppermint-y,” he remarked, unsure of how else to describe it. “But it’s not bad.”

“Not bad at all,” her companion—Cat—said, and took a sip herself.

The redhead glanced between them, looking thoughtful. “Do you have a girlfriend?”

Cat—with dark hair and equally bright blue eyes—nearly spat out her coffee. “Gwyn!” she chided, and smacked her arm.

The redhead—Gwyn—gave her an innocent shrug. “What? You were taking forever to ask him out, so…” She nodded at Tamlin, as if to say: I did you a favor; you can thank me later.

Tamlin’s lips twitched into a shy smile, and he found himself blushing. “Look, it’s not that I’m flattered, but…”

“You see?” Cat said quickly. “He has a girlfriend. I knew it. Can we go now, please?” Her cheeks were as pink as Tamlin’s felt, and not just from the cold.

“The thing is, I don’t have a girlfriend,” he tried to explain.

“Oh, you don’t?” Cat said, sounding somewhat hopeful.

Tamlin winced and sucked in a cold, sharp breath between his teeth. “I actually have a boyfriend. Sorry.”

Both girls groaned and exchanged sad, disappointed smiles.

“How come all the cute ones are gay?” Cat complained with a pouting lip, which only made Tamlin blush harder.

“Az isn’t gay,” Gwyn told her, sounding somewhat annoyed.

“Yeah, but he’s taken. By you.”

Gwyn turned to Tamlin with wide, hopeful eyes. “Do you have any brothers?”

Tamlin chuckled as Cat squawked in protest, and brushed a stray hair from his warm cheek with his wrist. “They’re married,” he said ruefully, but even if they weren’t, he wouldn’t wish them on anyone, straight or otherwise.

“Figures,” Cat muttered, then gave Tamlin a polite smile. “Thanks, anyway.”

“Anytime,” he said automatically, which made no sense, given the circumstances.

“Tam? Hey, Tam!” a familiar voice called out, and he turned in shock to see Lucien, of all people, trotting up to greet him.

“Lu?” Tamlin said with a surprised laugh. “What are you doing here?”

Lucien grinned, and his cheeks were flushed from jogging in the cold. He jerked his thumb over his shoulder and said, “I was just across the street and thought I’d get some coffee, and… well, here you are, getting coffee!”

“Yeah�� Wow…” Tamlin shook his head in amazement, then noticed the two girls watching them. “Oh, yeah. Lu. Let me introduce you to… um…” His mind went blank.

“I’m Gwyn, and this is my sister, Cat,” Gwyn offered kindly, and Cat silently saluted them with her coffee cup.

“Nice to meet you,” Lucien said, and introduced himself.

“Hi,” Cat said politely, but it was clear she had no interest in chatting. Tamlin didn’t blame her.

Gwyn wasn’t quite ready to leave, though, since she turned to Tamlin and said, “I don’t think I caught your name, actually.”

“Oh, it’s Tam. Tamlin.”

“Tamlin,” she repeated with a smile. “That’s a nice name. I think I heard it in a song once.”

Before Tamlin could say that’s where his mom had gotten it from, Lucien interrupted and gestured to the three of them.

“I’m confused… how exactly do you all know each other?”

“We just met, actually,” Tamlin said, shrugging shyly with the coffee cups. It wasn’t much of an explanation, but what else could he say that wouldn’t embarrass anyone?

Luckily Gwyn was there to fill what could have been an awkward silence. “We got the same coffee order,” she said simply, then turned the question around on him. “What about you? How long have you two known each other?”

“Oh, Tam and I go way back,” Lucien said, giving him a small, secret wink.

That wink made Tamlin feel brave. “Actually, we just started dating,” he told the girls, smiling shyly. “And, actually, he’s my boyfriend.”

Lucien’s eyebrows rose at this public admission, but before he could say anything, Cat nudged Gwyn with her elbow.

“I told you,” she muttered. “Cute. Gay.”

Lucien chuckled at this. “Uh, thanks. I think.”

Gwyn suddenly pointed at him. “You said your name was Lucien, right?” When he affirmed that he had, and that he was, she grinned and said, “You’re Eris’s brother, aren’t you.”

Lucien’s head jerked back in surprise. “Yeah! How’d you know?”

“He comes by the theater all the time,” Gwyn said brightly. As an aside to Cat, she explained, “He’s the one dating Nesta.”

“Oh.” Cat rolled her eyes. “Yeah. See? That just proves my point. If he’s cute, he’s either gay, or taken.”

Tamlin and Lucien let out awkward chuckles.

“Yeah, it’s usually the opposite for me,” Lucien said quietly, then turned his attention to Gwyn. “So, uh, how did you know Eris was dating Nesta?”

“We’re part of the same dance company,” Gwyn said brightly. “The Valkyries?”

“Oh,” Lucien said with an impressed nod. “Sure, I’ve heard of them.”

Tamlin hadn’t, so he let them talk and took another sip of his peppermint latte. Even though he wasn’t sure he would ever order it again, he was glad he’d tried it. Best of all, he didn’t feel any more or less gay for having done so. It was just a drink, after all.

“We’re performing Swan Lake this season,” Gwyn went on. “You two should come by and see us. It’s not as popular as The Nutcracker this time of year, but…”

“Sounds great,” Lucien said quickly, before Tamlin could say anything about the show they’d missed.

“Great!” Gwyn agreed. “Well, if you ever want to swing by, just tell the Ticket Office that Gwyn—and Cat—Berdara sent you,” she said, gesturing to her sister. “—and they’ll give you the Friends and Family discount.”

“Oh my god, please kill me now,” Cat muttered, covering her face with her free hand.

Lucien ignored her, or at least he pretended to. “Berdara,” he repeated, and Gwyn nodded, beaming. “I’ll remember that. Thanks.”

“Anytime.”

Cat tugged on Gwyn’s elbow before she could say more. “Come along, now, Gwyneth,” she said brightly, though her next sentence was said through gritted teeth. “Before I murder you.”

“What did I do?” Gwyn whined as her sister led her away, and Tamlin and Lucien chuckled.

“Well, that was an interesting conversation,” Lucien remarked, giving Tamlin an amused smile. “Let me guess, one of them tried to ask you out?”

Tamlin blushed. “How’d you know?”

“Lucky guess.” Lucien brushed a stray hair from his face. “But honestly, I’m not surprised. What woman wouldn’t want to take a bite out of a studmuffin like you?” He winked.

Tamlin blushed harder and breathed a laugh, then his smile faded. You must be beating off the girls with a stick, the dean once told him. He sighed, and it clouded the air. Would the nightmare of Amarantha ever stop haunting him?

“Hey,” Lucien said, tilting his head to catch his eye. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Tamlin said, shaking off the wisps of memory like fallen snow on his hair. “Just tired. I didn’t get that much sleep last night, as you well know.”

A slow smile grew on Lucien’s face, and his warm brown eyes sparkled. “I’d apologize, but I’m not that sorry,” he teased, then nodded at the cups in Tamlin’s hands. “Besides, that’s what coffee’s for.”

“Oh, right.” He’d almost forgotten about his order.

As Tamlin took a sip, Lucien asked, “So, what did you get?”

Tamlin swallowed. “Peppermint lattes,” he said with a shy smile, then held out the other cup. “You want one?”

“Oh… Sure,” Lucien said, accepting it with some surprise. “Who was it for?”

“Jurian, but I’m not sure he’d like it. He takes his coffee blacker than black, so…”

“So does Alex,” Lucien agreed, then lifted the bright red cup for a sip. “Mmm. It’s good. I prefer pumpkin spice myself, but… It’s good.” He licked the foam from his lips and smiled. “Thanks.”

The sight warmed Tamlin more than the coffee had, and he smiled back. “You’re welcome.”

Lucien gestured to the coffee line. “Do you mind keeping me company while I get something for Alex? Or do you need to get back to work?”

“Oh, no. It’s fine,” Tamlin said, waving dismissively with his now free hand. “Work can wait.”

“What kind of errand were you running anyway?” Lucien asked as they joined the back of the line. “If you don’t mind my asking.”

“Errand?”

“Yeah. Jurian said you were running an errand for him, so…”

“Oh.” Tamlin blinked, and thought quickly. “Uh… Coffee run,” he lied, smiling nervously all the while.

“Huh, okay,” Lucien said with an understanding smile, then slipped his gloved hand in Tamlin’s. “Is this okay?”

Tamlin glanced down at their joined hands, then gently squeezed. “It’s more than okay.”

Lucien smiled, and squeezed back. “Okay. Good.”

As the line moved forward, Tamlin thought back on his conversation with Jurian. He still felt like he was Bi instead of Gay, but it didn’t really matter anymore. Even though those two girls were clearly interested, he hadn’t tried to pretend he had a girlfriend instead. It hadn't occurred to him to try. Lucien was his boyfriend, and that’s all there was to it. So what if he had missed out on his chance to take Gwyn’s picture? He and Jurian would have to come up with something else to distract Koschei, which made him wonder…

“When did you see Jurian, anyway?” Tamlin asked.

“Oh, about ten minutes ago,” Lucien said, lifting his cup for another sip. “Alex is talking with him now. I wanted to give them some privacy.”

“Because of his wife?”

Lucien winced. “Yeah.”

Tamlin sighed. “Was I wrong to suggest that? For him to see Jurian, I mean.”

“Of course not,” Lucien assured him. “It’s better that he finds out sooner rather than later, especially before they start having kids.”

“Yikes.”

“You’re telling me.”

They moved forward another place in line.

“So, what’s with the camera bag?” Lucien asked, nudging him gently.

“Birdwatching,” Tamlin said automatically.

Lucien gave him a bemused smile. “Birdwatching,” he repeated. “I didn’t know you were into that… Did you see any good ones?”

“Not really,” Tamlin said dismissively. “It’s mostly just sparrows, and finches this time of year…” He gestured with his cup. “Hence, the coffee.”

“Huh,” Lucien said, then he shrugged. “Maybe you can take me birdwatching in the spring,” he offered. “Then you can show me all the good ones.”

“If you like,” Tamlin remarked, surprised. “It’s really not that interesting.”

Lucien’s head jerked back. “Then why do it?”

Realizing he had been caught in a lie, Tamlin’s face flushed. “I do it for Jurian’s sake,” he said quickly. “He’s the one with the checklist, and I’m the one with the camera, so…”

“Oh.” Lucien nodded thoughtfully, then he smiled. “We’ll find something to do that we both like, then.”

“Sure,” Tamlin agreed, relieved.

After Lucien had ordered two black coffees—for Alex and Jurian, he said—they turned back for the office. With their hands full, they couldn’t hold onto each other anymore, but they did match each other’s leisurely stride as they strolled through the park.

“I’m really glad I got to see you,” Lucien said, smiling warmly. “You were in such a hurry this morning, I didn’t get the chance to give you a proper goodbye.”

Tamlin couldn’t help his blush. “Yeah,” he said softly. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t be. It worked out better this way. Alex and Jurian get their time to talk, and now so do we.”

“Yeah,” Tamlin murmured, then took a deep breath. “So, where are you going after this? Back to work?”

“Nah,” Lucien said dismissively. “I’m taking the day off. Alex and I are going to lunch, though. I’m taking him to Annie’s, actually. You want to come along?”

“Oh.” Tamlin blinked in surprise. “I, uh, sure. I have to clear it with Jurian first, but…”

“There you are,” an annoyed voice said.

Tamlin and Lucien looked up to see Alex standing with Jurian in the parking lot.

Alex pushed himself away from the expensive-looking car he’d been leaning against. “I thought you got abducted, or something,” he told Lucien chidingly.

Lucien only rolled his eyes. “Will you relax,” he drawled, then held out the extra coffee cup. “I got you a black, two sugars.”

“Oh… Thanks,” Alex muttered, and begrudgingly accepted the peace offering.

Tamlin broke the awkward silence by offering Jurian the extra coffee he’d been carrying. “Dark roast,” he said. “No sugar.”

“Thanks, Tam,” Jurian said, accepting it gratefully. He’d been standing with Alex in his shirt sleeves; he probably hadn’t anticipated having to wait outside this long.

Not wanting to make the situation more awkward by apologizing, Tamlin took another sip. As did they all.

“So,” Jurian announced loudly, when they’d all drunk. “Tam. We have a new client. Who I’m sure you’ve already met.”

“Yeah,” Tam said, nodding at Alex. “Hi, again.”

“Hey,” Alex murmured, then sighed. “Look. I’m sorry…”

Tamlin waved him off. “No, it’s, uh… It’s okay… I didn’t realize you were out here waiting, so…”

“That was my fault, anyway,” Lucien interjected. “I ran into Tam across the street, and we got to talking…”

“Yeah,” Alex said quietly, then sighed again. “Well, Lucien and I should probably get going, so…” He stuck out his hand to Jurian, who shook it. “Thanks, again.”

“Sure,” Jurian said kindly. “I’ll be in touch.”

Alex nodded, then stuffed his hand into his pocket. “Keys.”

“Oh, right,” Lucien said quickly, and shoved his hand inside his own coat pocket.

While he dug, Alex turned his attention to Tamlin next. “In case I don’t see you for a while, good luck… with everything. I hope you get the help you need.”

Tamlin’s head jerked back in surprise. “Help?” he repeated. “Why would I need help?”

“Ah-ha-ha,” Lucien said quickly, and shoved the found keys at his brother. “Here you go,” he said in a sing-song voice that sounded a lot like Shut up now.

Alex fumbled with the keys and his coffee. “Hey—What? What are you doing?”

“Lunch. Car. Now,” Lucien said quickly, trying to herd him toward the driver’s side door.

Alex stepped back and looked at him askance, however. “You didn’t tell him, did you.”

“Tell me what?” Tamlin asked, looking between them.

Even though Lucien tried to shush him, Alex said, “About Eris? Taking on your case?”

Tamlin’s bemused smile faded. “What case?” he asked, looking to Lucien.

His boyfriend grimaced and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Fucking fuck,” he muttered, then took a deep breath. “I wasn’t going to say anything until I was sure…”

“Sure?” Tamlin echoed. “About what? What is he talking about?” His heart started to sink without quite knowing why.

Lucien took a moment to swallow. “Eris is a lawyer, you know? One of the best. Anyway, I… I sort of asked him to look into what happened to you… You know, seven years ago.”

Tamlin fell back a step, stunned. “You told him?”

Lucien spread his hands wide, at least, the hand that wasn’t holding his coffee. “I just wanted to know if there was a way for you to get your life back… To win a-a settlement, or something—”

“A settlement?” Tamlin echoed. His voice sounded hollow and far away. “You mean going to court? Against that witch? Are you fucking serious?”

Lucien flinched and turned pale. “Tam, I just wanted to help—”

“No. No,” Tamlin said, backing away. The awful memories came back in a rush. “I am not going through that again. You can’t make me.”

“Tam—”

Jurian stepped in. “I think you need to leave,” he told Lucien coolly. When he got like this, it was easy to imagine him in an official uniform and wielding a baton.

Lucien faltered, and tried to skirt around him to catch Tamlin’s eye. “But… But I—”

“Now.”

“Come on, Lu,” Alex said quietly. “We should go.”

Tamlin couldn’t look at them. Any of them. The pancakes he had made that morning threatened to make a reappearance, and he pressed a hand to his mouth.

Lucien sounded broken. “Tam, I’m… I’m so sorry…”

Jurian remained unmoved, however. “If he wants to talk, he’ll call you,” he said firmly, then over his shoulder, he told Tamlin quietly, “I’ll meet you inside.”

Tamlin managed a nod, then opened the door to the building without looking back. He made it just inside the lobby before he started shaking.

Not a minute later, Jurian followed, sans coffee cup, and pulled Tamlin into his arms and let him break down and cry like the frightened child he was.

* * *

“Look, I said I was sorry.”

Lucien glared out the passenger window as hot tears continued to roll down his cheeks. “That doesn’t bring back my boyfriend now, does it?” he said tightly.

Alex sighed as he made a turn down a residential lane. “I didn’t know you hadn’t told him,” he said sorrowfully. “I didn’t know he’d take it so hard. Besides, you were just trying to help—”

Lucien scoffed. “Obviously it didn’t work,” he muttered, and sniffed as he swiped at his wet cheeks. “And now I’m never going to see him again.”

“You don’t know that,” Alex chided. “Give it time, I’m sure he’ll come around—”

“Yeah, in seven more years,” Lucien said mournfully, watching a line of festively decorated houses roll by. “We were going to spend Christmas together.” His chin began to quiver. “And New Year’s.”

“Come on, Lu,” Alex whined. “Don’t do this. You’re supposed to be the one comforting me, remember? I might be getting a divorce. You’re not even married.”

Lucien buried his face in his hands.

“Yet,” Alex added hastily. “You’re not married yet. You never know. This might be a funny story you tell at your wedding someday.”

“Fat chance of that,” Lucien muttered, but he lowered his hands and managed a sniff. “Where are we going, anyway?”

“Mom’s house, remember?”

Lucien groaned.

“Oh, no. Don’t give me that,” Alex warned, turning onto a familiar street. “You’re the one who kept suggesting I come here,” he said, then pulled into the driveway of an old-fashioned, two-story house. “Now, we’re here.”

“You could have warned me,” Lucien complained. “I thought we were going to lunch or something first.”

Alex sighed and turned off the car. “I didn’t think you’d be hungry.”

As his brother dug his duffel bag out of the trunk, Lucien stood back and left the shopping bags where they were. Violin strings and rosin. For Tamlin.

Fresh tears filled his eyes, and he forced himself to look away. Would he ever be able to give them to him? Would Tamlin even accept them? Or would he have to live with the fact that he’d broken Tamlin’s trust in him forever?

“Alex?” Their mother’s voice drifted toward them from the covered porch. “What a surprise! What are you doing here?”

Alex smiled at her and closed the trunk. “Hey, Ma,” he called back. “I thought it was about time we came to visit.”

She gasped audibly at the sight of both of them. “Oh, Lucien, my baby!” she called out happily, then trotted down the steps to meet them.

The former Mrs. Vanserra was a pleasantly plump woman with long auburn hair she wore in a chignon. When she wrapped her arms around her two boys, she smelled like cinnamon, chestnuts, and warm apple pie.

“Mm, it’s so good to see you,” she gushed, giving them both a squeeze. As she pulled away, she looked between the two of them. “Where’s, um, Ianthe?” she asked politely.

Their mother didn’t like Alex’s wife any more than the rest of them, but she at least tried to make an effort.

“It’s a long story,” Alex said with a grim smile.

“Oh,” she said, then noticed the bag in his hand. “Oh, I see,” she said with a wince, then turned to Lucien. “How about you, sweetheart? Are you…?” She trailed off when she noticed Lucien’s red eyes, and tear-stained cheeks. “Oh, dear.”

Lucien didn’t have the heart to tell her that he’d found a boyfriend and lost him all in the same week, but his mother probably already knew that. She knew a lot of things.

“Well, come inside, both of you,” she said brightly, giving her sweatered arms a brisk rub. “I just made some gingerbread cookies.”

As she turned her back to lead them into the house, Lucien gave Alex a knowing look. “Told you,” he mouthed.

Alex gave him a resigned shrug, then followed after their mother, and Lucien shoved his hands inside his coat pockets and trailed along behind.

His childhood home looked and smelled much the way it had when he was growing up, like warm bread and furniture polish. It wasn’t exactly the same, of course, since it had been sold the same year his grandfather died, when Lucien was about eight years old. The Autumn Corporation had been willed and given to the former owner’s three daughters, but his only son-in-law was named the new owner and CEO: Beron Vanserra.

The Vanserra family had led a comfortable life before, but suddenly the modest, red-brick home was too small for such a wealthy business executive, so Beron sold the house and moved them all into the heart of the city.

Lucien had really liked it at first. He finally had his own room, they went to plays and the ballet, and he could get whatever he wanted for Christmas and birthdays… But his mother no longer sang as much, and she baked—and ate—a lot more than she used to. Looking back on it, Lucien knew that his father blamed her weight gain as the reason he started sleeping around, but that wasn’t really true. Beron liked being important. He liked the attention.

Just not the sort of attention having a gay son gave him.

And Lucien despised him for it.

It wasn’t until years later, when all the boys were grown, that Beron’s ego was finally taken down a peg. Once Eris had his law degree, he helped their mother get a legal separation from her husband, and a proper settlement besides. He helped her buy back the house that she had so dearly loved. He had helped her get her name back. She was no longer the nameless wife of the CEO, Mrs. Beron Vanserra; she was once again Laura Autumn, baker extraordinaire, and mother of seven, in that order. She was finally herself again.

Lucien would always be grateful to Eris for taking that kind of risk. Beron nearly fired him when he found out, but he reconsidered once he realized that Eris could end up working for his competition. So he kept Eris close. He kept all of his boys close, even Lucien. Not in a familial way, of course, but at least the job paid well. And it came with a nice expense account… When he was allowed to use it, anyway.

While Alex took his bag into the living room, their mother bustled around the kitchen. The radio was playing a soft version of Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire. The still-hot oven filled the tiled kitchen with warmth and the smell of cinnamon. Rows of gingerbread cookies were moved from cooling racks and onto decorative platters for icing later.

Watching her, Lucien felt like a little kid again. After a long day of school, he’d come home out of the cold and kick off his shoes and drop off his backpack by the door, then clamber up onto the stool and let his socked feet dangle while his mom puttered around the kitchen. She would listen to him complain about math or how the mean kids had made fun of his lisp again, then she’d let him lick the stirring spoon, or give him a fresh cookie with a glass of milk to help him feel all better. It always helped.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the sort of problem that even homemade cookies could solve.

He let out a sigh and shrugged out of his coat, then draped it over the back of the barstool before sitting down at the counter. Just like he used to do when he was little, he hunched over and rested his chin on his fists. “Hey, Mom?”

“Yes, hon?”

Lucien sighed again. “Have you ever made a huge mistake?”

She smiled to herself as she wiped her hands on her apron. “Oh, lots of times.”

He quirked his mouth to one side. “Did you ever make one so big it ruined your whole life?”

Her warm brown eyes twinkled with amusement as she met his gaze. “Nothing that dramatic, I assure you.”

“What did you do?”

Her smile faded and grew thoughtful. “Well, I married a man far too old for me, but… I was eighteen, I was in love, and I thought I knew better.” She sighed as she untied her apron strings and went on, “Now, I do know better, but the knowledge came with more wrinkles and more stretch marks than I’d care to admit.” She pointed at Lucien as she went to hang up her apron on its wooden peg. “But I want you to know that I don’t regret having a single one of you boys… I love you all to bits, even if you do turn my hair gray sometimes.”

Lucien huffed a laugh, even though it hurt a little. “I couldn’t tell.”

“Good. Let’s keep it that way,” she said, giving him the same smirk that he and his brothers shared. She gestured to his own auburn strands. “You’ll get your own gray hairs soon enough. I can promise you that.”

Lucien wrinkled his nose and sniffed. “Probably a lot sooner than you think.”

“What do you mean?”

Alex walked into the kitchen, dusting off his hands. “Hey, Ma,” he said. “Did you get rid of the old couch?”

“Yes, I decided a loveseat was a better fit for the space.”

Alex looked truly taken aback. “When was this?”

“Oh, about three months ago,” she mused, moving some dirty dishes to the sink. “If you came to visit more often, I’m sure you would have noticed.”

Lucien and Alex exchanged a guilty wince. It had been a while.

At their silence, their mother quirked her mouth to one side and placed a hand on her hip. Tapping her elegant fingernails against the countertop, she said, “All right. Who’s first.”

They startled.

“First for what?”

“What do you mean?”

She arched an eyebrow. “I’m lucky if I see one of you boys once a month, and now two of you are here on the same day?” She gestured between them. “There is something going on, and you are going to tell me. Now. Who’s first?”

Lucien took a deep breath, but Alex spoke first.

“I’ll go.”

“No, I’ll go,” Lucien insisted. “It won’t really make sense unless I start from the beginning.”

“How far back are we talking?”

Lucien swallowed. “About seven years.”

* * *

Tamlin glanced up from his seat at the desk as Jurian walked through the office door, bearing a takeout bag with Annie’s logo on it.

“Hey,” Jurian said kindly, setting it on the one clean spot on the desk. “I’ve got Corned Beef on Rye, and Annie’s famous apple pie,” he offered, shrugging off his coat. “Oh, and Alis said to tell you Hello.”

Tamlin swallowed, but he still had no appetite. “Thanks,” he said quietly, then returned his attention to the piles of papers he’d been sorting. He’d needed to file them for a while now, and now was the perfect time to take his mind off of… well, everything else.

Jurian sighed, then closed the door to hang up his coat. “So, any calls?”

“No.”

“Any calls from him?”

Tamlin shook his head this time. “No.”

Jurian considered this, then gently lowered himself into the empty seat across the desk. “You want to talk about it?” he asked gently.

“Not really.”

“Okay,” Jurian said, sitting back in his chair. He took a deep breath and twiddled his thumbs. “What about that assignment I gave you before. Any luck?”

Tamlin sighed, and ran his thumb over the papers’ stapled edge. “I couldn’t do it,” he said quietly. “There was someone there, in the park, who looked like Vassa, and I couldn’t do it.”

Jurian lowered the chair to the floor. “There’s no shame in that,” he said gently. He seemed to be considering his words carefully. “Maybe… maybe we shouldn’t be doing this, anymore.”

That got Tamlin’s attention. “What do you mean?”

Jurian took a deep breath. “I made some calls today,” he said slowly. “There’s a Scythian embassy in the northeast part of the country. It’s going to take some time, but… the guy I spoke to on the phone, he’s interested in working with us… He wants to know more about Mr. Koschei.”

Tamlin’s brows rose in shock. “What about Vassa?”

Jurian shrugged. “Any information we can give him, he’ll take, but I don’t think we have to give Koschei anything else.”

Tamlin let out a sudden breath. It was the best news he’d heard all day. “So we’re free? Just like that?”

Jurian chuckled. “I wouldn’t go that far,” he said wryly, “but essentially, yeah.”

“No photos?”

“No headshots. No nothing,” Jurian finished, smiling tightly. He shrugged again. “I thought you could use some good news, after today.”

Tamlin’s smile faded. “Yeah,” he murmured, and dropped his gaze. “Thanks.”

“Of course, this means we won’t be getting a new couch,” Jurian remarked. “So, if you’re okay with that…”

Tamlin’s heart twinged, as did his neck. “Yeah, it’s okay.”

Jurian sighed and shook his head. “You don’t have to lie, you know. You can say it fucking sucks, because it does. It really does.”

Tamlin breathed a laugh, but it was a sad laugh. “Yeah. I know.”

* * *

The kitchen was almost peaceful as Lucien sat at the table with his mother and his brother, drinking hot tea and nibbling on fresh gingerbread as they looked out at the snowy backyard. Twittering birds flitted from birdfeeder to birdfeeder, fattening themselves up on nuts and seeds before perching on the same snow-covered swingset that he and his six brothers had played on all those years ago. It would have made the perfect Christmas card… if Lucien had not just finished telling his mother the story of what had happened to Tamlin all those years ago.

Crack.

Lucien winced as yet another walnut shell shattered under his mother’s forceful nutcracking.

Shells littered the table like shrapnel, but she didn’t seem to notice as she dropped the kernel into a separate bowl and reached for yet another walnut.

“If that devil woman ever dared to lay a finger on one of my babies—” She put the nut between the jaws of her metal pliers. Crack. “—She’d be marking the days on her jail cell wall with chalk held between her toes.”

“Ma,” Alex said cautiously from the other end of the table. “Don’t get so worked up. You’ll give yourself a heart attack, or—or arthritis, or something.”

She glared and reached for another nut. “Don’t worry. I’m perfectly fine.” Crack.

Alex sighed and shook his head, and Lucien sighed, too.

As he crumbled gingerbread crumbs between his fingers, he asked her, “So you don’t think I was wrong to ask Eris for help?”

Crack.

Their mother huffed. “No,” she said quietly, reaching for yet another nut. “But, really, you shouldn’t have kept it a secret from your boyfriend. If you had told him what you wanted to do from the beginning, he might have been upset, but I think he would have come around. Eventually.” Crack.

Lucien leaned forward. “See, that’s what I wanted to do, but if Eris didn’t think he had a case, I didn’t want to risk upsetting him.” He glared at his brother. “Then Alex had to go and open his big fat mouth.”

“Hey!” Alex squawked. “Don’t pin this on me,” he said, pointing. “You’re the one who stuck his nose where it didn’t belong.”

“Me? You’re the one who kept pestering me with so many questions.”

“That’s because you never tell me anything.”

“For good reason!”

“Boys,” their mother warned.

The two of them sat back andcrossed their arms and mumbled an apology.

“Sorry, Ma.”

“Sorry.”

Their mother drew a deep breath, then set the nutcracker aside. As she wiped off her hands with a clean dishtowel, she declared, “It was an unfortunate accident. What’s done is done. The only thing you can do now is… well, wait for him to come around.”

Lucien sighed again, and shoved his plate aside to slump forward and rest his folded arms on the table. “What if he doesn’t? What if I never see him again?”

She gave him a sympathetic smile and rubbed his shoulder. “I’m sorry, baby. But that’s up to him.”

“It could be worse,” Alex offered. “He could be cheating on you and giving you the silent treatment at the same time.”

“Is that what happened to you, sweetheart?” their mother asked gently.

“Yeah,” Alex mumbled, glumly swirling his mug of tea. “Well, maybe. I know Ianthe is pissed at—sorry, Ma—I mean, mad about me staying late at the office, but that’s not my fault. Dad’s been hounding me over the numbers for this stupid audit.”

“Oh, has that started already?”

“Not yet, but—” Alex sat up. “Wait. How do you know about the audit?”

“Because I called and asked someone to look into it.”

Alex gawked at her. “You mean you called the press?”

“They weren’t my first call,” she remarked, reaching for her tea, “but, yes, I did.”

“You, wha—Were you going to tell us this?”

She smiled sweetly. “If I did that, then that would ruin all the fun, now, wouldn’t it.”

“Fun?” Alex echoed.

“Mm-hmm,” she said, still smiling, and took a sip of tea.

Lucien sat up, stunned. “Why an audit? Why now?” he asked her.

She rested her elbows on the table as she cradled her mug, looking thoughtful. “That’s a good question,” she mused. “I suppose I decided to do it this way when your father’s picture appeared in the paper last month. You know, at the city’s annual charity dinner?”

“Sure,” Alex said, but he looked as confused as Lucien felt.

“I didn’t go,” Lucien said with a shrug.

“Neither did I, but do you know how much your father paid for a plate at this particular dinner?”

“No.”

“But I can guess,” Alex offered.

She didn’t give him the chance. “It was more than he gives me in a month.”

Lucien’s mouth fell open. “What?!”

“No way,” Alex declared, leaning forward. “I’ve seen the books. You should have gotten a lot more than that…”

She smiled a tight smile. “I know.”

Lucien and Alex exchanged worried glances.

When neither of them spoke, she assured them, “Don’t worry. I have plenty of savings. I’m perfectly all right.” She shifted in her seat, then went on, “But, per the terms of our separation agreement, Beron agreed to pay me a generous monthly stipend. He would never agree to divorce me, because my father wrote that into his will. If Beron left me, for any reason, he would get nothing. Unfortunately, the same was true for me.”

She smiled sadly and ran a thumb over the handle of her mug. “My father wanted me and my sisters to have some security,” she said softly. “After my mother died, he was never the same. He knew I was making a mistake by choosing Beron, but… he wanted me to be happy. And at the time, I was.”

She sighed and shook her head, then continued, “I first noticed my stipend decreasing this past summer. Beron said sales were down, and I chose to believe him. Every company has its ups and downs. I know that. Besides, Eris made sure I was comfortable.” She paused to take another sip. “But then, last month, my stipend was almost half of what it was. The holidays are the busy season. They always have been,” she said firmly, then smiled a cool, calculating smile. “So, if sales are truly down, then an audit is the least of Beron’s worries, wouldn’t you say?”

Lucien huffed an amazed laugh. “Damn,” he said appreciatively, then winced. “Ooh, sorry Mom.”

She chuckled as she lifted her mug. “That’s all right, baby. I’ll take it as a compliment.”

Alex rested his chin in his hand. He suddenly looked very tired. “I wish you had told me,” he complained. “Then maybe Ianthe wouldn’t be giving me such a hard time right now.”

Their mother gave him a sad smile. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. But you can always call her. Provided that she doesn’t tell Beron about the audit. And I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you both to keep this a secret from your father, too.”

“I thought secrets were a bad thing,” Lucien pointed out, even though he had no intention of telling his father anything.

She gave him a wincing smile. “I know. But I just don’t want to give Beron the chance to retaliate. He would burn the Autumn Corporation to the ground before giving up control, especially to one of you boys.”

“Can we tell Eris, at least?”

“I’ll tell him myself,” she promised. “But only after the audit starts. Then Beron will have no reason to suspect he was involved.”

Lucien sat up with a start. “Hey, Mom, did you ever do any research, or hire a private investigator before you got started, or…?”

She looked surprised, but shook her head. “No. This was all my idea. That’s why I don’t want your father to know.”

“So, Tamlin wasn’t involved at all?”

“Did you think he was?”

Lucien felt a relieved smile grow on his face. “Eris thought he might be, because he works for a private eye, but…” He breathed a laugh. “He’s not, is he?”

She shook her head. “Not as far as I’m concerned.”

Lucien grinned, then pushed himself away from the table. “I need to go see him. Can I tell Tam about the audit? I promise he won’t tell—”

“Lucien.”

He paused at his mother’s firm tone.

She took a deep breath. “Does your boyfriend know that you suspected him of being involved?”

His hopeful smile faded. “No.”

She gave him a sad smile in turn. “Then you shouldn’t tell him. He needs time to be alone. Just give him that. Can you do that, for me?”

Lucien sighed and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Yeah, I can do that.”

“I know this is hard,” she said gently, “but it’s for the best.”

She pushed herself away from the table to take the bowl of nuts over to the counter. As she began cleaning up, she offered, “Why don’t you stay for dinner? I have some pasta in the fridge, or there’sthat charming little pizzeria we used to go to when you were little. How does that sound? I’m sure they still deliver.”

He managed a smile. “Sure. Thanks, Mom,” he said quietly.

The pizza was as good as he remembered, but he still didn’t have much of an appetite. When dinner was over, he asked Alex to take him back to his apartment. He agreed without arguing, for once.

“Are you sure you’ll be all right by yourself?” his mother asked as he and Alex put on their coats. “You’re welcome to spend the night, you know.”

“I’ll be fine,” Lucien assured her, buttoning up his coat. “I’d rather sleep in my own bed, anyway. It’s been a long day.”

She sighed. “I understand,” she said kindly, and rubbed his arm. “Call me when you hear something, all right?” When he said he would, she pressed a bag of cookies into his hand. “And here’s something for when you get home.”

He chuckled, and accepted the cookies, and his mother’s hug. “Thanks, Mom,” he said, bending his head to kiss her cheek.

Snow was just starting to fall when Alex’s car pulled up under the awning of Lucien’s apartment. Alex kept the car running while Lucien retrieved his bags from the trunk. Before he could go inside, though, Alex rolled down the passenger side window and called him over.

“Hey, Lu?”

Lucien trudged over and leaned in. “Yeah?”

Alex gave him a tight smile. “You take care of yourself, okay?”

Lucien nodded, even though his heart wasn’t in it. “Yeah, okay. Be safe out there.”

“I will.” Alex tapped his thumb against the steering wheel. “Listen. I’m sorry again, about your boyfriend…”

Lucien shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Mom’s right. I just need to wait it out.”

Alex sighed. “Yeah. Well, if you ever need to talk…”

“I’ll let you know,” Lucien agreed, nodding. “See you at work tomorrow?”

Alex sucked in a sharp breath and winced. “Probably not. I think I need to avoid Dad for a little while. You know how shit I am at keeping secrets.”

Lucien snorted. “Yeah. I noticed.”

Alex smirked. “Hey, at least I wasn’t the one who told you Santa Claus wasn’t real.”

“Wow. Anything else you want to say to ruin my day?”

Alex chuckled and made to put the car into gear. “See ya, Lulu.”

“Oh, fuck off.”

Alex was still laughing when he rolled up his window and drove off into the snowy twilight.

Lucien shook his head and smiled, but it had faded by the time he made it up to his floor. It was a lonely walk back to his apartment, and it was going to be even lonelier when he went inside. As he unlocked the door, he thought about having a glass of wine, and maybe watching a movie to unwind.

As he remembered the movie he and Tamlin had ‘watched’ the night before, he decided to havetwo glasses of wine. He’d have one hell of a hangover the next day, but at least it would give him an excuse to call off work. Then he wouldn’t have to face Eris, or their father… or the memories.

He sighed as he dropped his keys onto the little table by the door, then set his bags underneath. As he straightened to unbutton his coat, he paused. He hadn’t had any wine yet, so why was he seeing double? There were two sets of keys on the table, and the fireplace was lit, which could only mean…

“Hey, Lu.”

He gasped, and his heart leapt to his throat as Tamlin pushed himself out of one the easy chairs in front of the fire.

Tamlin managed a tight smile as he slowly wrung his hands. “Can we talk?”

[httpiastri]

okay so!

if we look at the race hair, it has two things, shorter hair is a lot softer while the curls seem more frizzy. Curly hair is often more hard to maintain and if you have curls like Paul then its always best to have curl specific shampoo and conditioner (which from my experience makes curly hair puffy especially if its longer)

I think he might not have had correct hair products or he doesn’t use correct one and uses regular one you can buy at a store just for race weekends (or he uses ones you get from hotels)

what also influences this is weather as he travels alot, curly hair has alot more texture and pulls in more humidity and dryness which makes it seem more frizzy.

its alot more different when it cones to off season hair, it seems like he has correct hair products and is taking more care (maybe even using hair masks) it can also be from feeling less stress that makes the hair seem more healthy

omg elle you really popped off with this 🥰🥰

the frizzyness when it’s short is so 🥺 like in monaco and spa? very cute 🤭 oooo interesting about the haircare, i didn’t think about that…. yeah it would make sense for him not to have the right products (or not have the energy/time to properly tend to his hair) during race weekends, but the thought of him actually thinking about that and putting a lot of time into his hair when he's at home 😭

oh yeah i bet the weather affects it a lot too, and also just the racing in general? i suppose having a helmet rubbing down on it when it's all sweaty and the helmet is fuggy/stuffy is not great for the volume & curls either.... but the off-season hair, the puffiness!! the volume!! love how its sometimes very like individual, tiny curls and sometimes just a big flop of curl 🥺

[mali-milk]

Grey

☆Bang Chan x Gn!Reader

☆Non-Idol Au, College Au.

☆Warning: Swearing. Angst? Mentions of smoking. Reader is a little depressed?

☆Genre: Romance Fanfic

☆Wordcount: 8153

The struggles of life are hard,especially when you feel like you have to go through with them alone. The pressure of life gets to you and you feel dull. Don't you? Don't we all? You feel empty,lifeless and colourless untill you met him. Untill you met Bang Chan all thanks to a bit of rain...

This was a faited day. The clouds were grey and puffy. A comforting familiarity inside the clouds.

Have you ever thought about it? The thought that you actually feel a similarity with a dark and large cloud in the sky? On the verge of tears,on the verge of a thunderstorm.

The breeze is soft and cold,whispering into your ear while tears fell down from the sad sky.

Comfort.

Your eyes were heavy,unsure why. It may be the lack of sleep or there may not be any reason behind it at all. Your eyes lazily examined the campus grounds from your dorm room through the large window situated infront of you.

It's the end of the year,final exams are upon you. You look up at the clouds one last time,wanting to remember the comfort they bring.

The door to your dorm opened,revealing your roommate/best friend behind it. She stepped in and fell down onto her bed,dropping her bag next to her on the floor.

You turn in your seat,your arm on the back of the chair to look at her. She takes a deep breath and she turns her body to look at you.

"She wasn't there." She said,sounding hopeless.

You sigh and you get up from your chair to get down on your knees next to her bed. You move a few loose strands of hair from her face before you speak.

"I'm sure she'll be there tomorrow...why don't you try texting her?"

She looks away and lets her face fall onto her pillow.

"As if " she scoffs and she lets her head stay on her pillow.

You stand up and you rummage through your drawer to find something.

"I'll be back in a few." You walk to the door after taking your phone and you walk out of your dorm room,closing the door behind you.

The walk to the café is a bit faster since its silently raining. The air is still as cold.

Upon pushing the glass door of the café you're greeted with the sound of a bell and the smell of freshly brewed coffee.

The windows had a few potted plants by them,fairy lights hang from the wood ceiling. A few candles in candle holders around the cafe on the walls. Its a very comfortable and inviting place.

Behind the front counter you spot the person who you believe to be working there. Soft brown curly hair,broad shoulders and back. He was listening to music,his back turned to face away from the entrance of the café.

You walk closer to the counter and you hesitate for a moment. You look down at the shoes you're wearing,they used to be white sneakers. Now they're just an interesting shade of brown and worn out.

"Excuse me?" You got the courage to speak,though it wasn't much.

The male turned around and took out his earphones. He smiled nervously and a bit embarrased and stood up to be facing you now.

Soft facial features,a fairly large nose and plump lips. His eyes are a beautful brown,if kindness were something you had to find,you definitly found it in his eyes.

"Sorry about that,i didn't think i'd have any customers for the rest of the day." Your eyes wandered down to his name badge as he spoke. C. Bang.

You look up at him again and you nod.

"What can i get for you today? " he asked with a welcoming smile,dimples beautifully on display. You noticed the Australian accent that caught you off guard a bit.

You look away at the menu above his head to try and avoid the awkward position you've seem to put yourself in.

You look down at the man in front of you again,he's still smiling brightly.

"I'll- uhm...i'll have a hazelnut coffee and a vanilla iced coffee,to go please."

He nods, " No problem. I'll have that ready for you in about 10 minutes. "

You take a seat after he moves around to start the coffee. Your eyes follow his hands for a few seconds before you look away.

"So,are you from campus?" He asks and you look back up at him,he's leaning on the counter,his arms crossed.

For some stupid reason you look around,expecting him to be talking to someone else. You look back at him to see him still smiling at you with that warm smile of his.

"Oh,yes i am." You answer after clearing your throat.

He nods and he puts the two cups of coffee on the counter.

"Order for...? " he looks at you and you stand up to retrieve the cups.

"Y/N." you say while taking the cups,averting his gaze.

He smiled again and repeats after you.

"Y/N. Have a wonderful day and come back soon. " he smiled and you smiled back slightly,bowing your head a bit and walking out of the café after paying for the two drinks.

You arrive back in your dorm room to your best friend sleeping the exact same way you left her. You set down her iced coffee on the small side table by her bed and you make your way back to your desk to stare out of the window again.

Sipping on the warm hazelnut drink in your hand. As you stare out of the window you notice that you can see the cafè. A small smile tugs on your lips as you see it.

You're the first bit of colour i've seen in years, C.Bang.

---

"This isn't going to work Y/N,i'm telling you that she's most definetly straight! I've been seeing her around with this one super hot guy so much recently,what if they're dating!?" Your best friend,Sam,practically yelled at you.

"Sam calm down,she's not dating some guy okay? You two totally hit it off last time,remember? There's no fucking way Hannah's straight." You replied,not even knowing who the guy you're talking about is.

She let out a devestated sigh and that's when Hannah walked out of the lecture hall you were about to enter.

You turn to look at Sam who was gone all of a sudden.

"Sam?" You looked around and went into the bathroom to find Sam sitting on the floor,her face buried in her knees.

You let out a deep sigh and sat down next to her. Upon deciding it's best to not speak you pull her closer into a hug with one arm.

After a while Sam looks at you and sighs.

"Lets go to the lecture."

---

The sky was dark again,heavy clouds gliding in the sky. Tears theartening to spill from them. The wind is soft yet loud at the same time,like a Silent Cry.

The tree infront of you was a large one,the leaves on the tree rustling with the wind. The pencil in your hand tracing and recreating the curves of the tree on the paper in your sketchbook.

The tree seemed dull and livelesss like the sky. But wasn't everything you looked at like this?

Dull and liveless.

Thats when you remember him. Your eyes scan the park,its empty. A few other people pass by from time to time but none stay because of the rain forecast.

You put your sketch stuff back inside of your black tote bag and you start walking back to the campus.

A few drops of rain fall from the sky as you walk and the more you walk the more the rain starts to pour.

It was a faited day once again.

Just as the rain started pouring you found yourself close to the café and ran inside of it,praying that the rain wouldn't ruin your phone or your sketchbook.

You look outside the glass doors at the downpour outside. The whole campus was grey from the rain,not a lot visible.

You take a deep breath and turned around to look at the inside of the very familiar café. This tike you noticed that there were stairs on the other side of the cafe,under the stairs there seemed to be a wine holder.

A male came down from the stairs of the café. He has a slim waist and puffy black hair. His cheeks are squishy,he reminds you of a certain Australian animal.

"Oh hello. " He says as he dries off his hands with the small towel he had in his hands while looking at you.

You bow slightly. " Hello. " you reply and he offers you a small smile before making his way behind the counter.

"Can i get you anything?" He asks as he sets down the cloth.

You look at his name badge, J. Han You look back up at him and you nod.

"A Hazelnut coffee please. " He nods and starts making your drink. You go to a table and you set your bag down to look through it in hopes that nothing got damaged from the rain.

"Hey Han?" a male comes down from the stairs and your gaze curiously lift to meet the ones that belong to the familiar voice.

"Y/N! Nice to see you again!" He says,displaying his dimples with a smile and his Australian accent as he walks over to the both of you.

Han looks at him and raises a brow. "You've met? "

He nods and looks at you. "Yeah we've met once before. " he smiles and he crosses his arms over his chest,your eyes can't help but notice the veins on his arms. Its the first time you see him fully and he is gorgeous.

"Right,i never told you my name," He extends one of his hands out to yours and you mirror his actions,shaking his hand.

"Its Chan. "

"Nice to meet you again,Chan. " you reply and you look at Han who finished your drink. You thank Han and you take the warm drink from him.

"It seems the rain won't be stopping for a while,it's cats and dogs out there. " Han says and he folds his arms.

You pay for your drink and then you look outside the Café again.

"Is it okay if i stay here untill the rain stops? " You ask,looking at Han and taking a sip of your coffee,trying to maintain the courage you have to speak right now. Of course you're trying not to look or sound socially retarted infront of two hot guys.

Han nods and then looks at Chan again.

"You wanted to tell me something? "

The two head to the back of the café,leaving you by one of the tables.

The items in your bag were luckily unharmed by the rain. You sighed in relief and packed your stuff away,sipping at your coffee.

Chan makes his way towards you and sits down in front of you,offering you that wonderfully warm and comforting smile again.

You offer him a small smile back and thats when you realize something... Bang...

"Mind if i ask you a question? " you ask him,leaning a bit forward.

Chan looks at you and he sits back against the chair,crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah,go for it."

"Do you by chance know a girl that goes to the Uni here,Hannah Bang?" You tilt your head slightly as you look at him awaiting his answer.

"Yeah,she's my younger sister." Chan answers,it seems the question wasn't exactly what he was expecting.

"Younger sister...Okay i have like two more questions. Is that okay? " you ask him and take a sip of your coffee.

Chan nods and makes himself more comfortable in his chair,awaiting your questions.

"Question one,have you been spending a lot of time with her recently and question two is she straight and if no then is she single?"

Chan looked taken aback by your questions and lets out a soft chuckle. He smiles and he answers, "Well yes i have been spending a lot of time with her recently and no she's not exactly straight,yes she's single."

You can't help but feel relieved with his answers,finally some good news for Sam.

"Okay,mind if i ask you a few questions now?" Chan asks,leaning a bit closer to you.

You look at him and offer him a slight smile while nodding. "Alright. "

He seems pleased with your answer and he starts asking his quetsions.

"Are you the one asking about Hannah or is it for a friend?" He raises a brow,a soft smile still tugging on his lips.

"For a friend." You smile back at him. He nods and he places both his hands on the table.

"Are you single?" He looks right into your eyes,his smile never faltering,not for a second.

"Yes i am." You answer and you finish your coffee. He hums and he closes his eyes,nodding.

"Can i take you out on a date then?"

♡♡♡

The days were colder than they used to be. Clouds on the verge of tears never left the sky,not even after having their mental breakdowns.

You woke up this morning thinking that it would be the same. You'd stare out of the large window infront of your desk,looking at the dark puffs in the sky. The dull and sad clouds that always hung over your head.

---

"Will you let me take you out on a date?" Chan looked at you as he asked this. That stupidly pretty smile on his stupidly gorgeous features.

"A date?" You ask,looking at him as if you misheard him due to the storm outside.

He chuckels and he nods. " a date. " he confirms and he smiles at you.

This is the most colour i've seen in years.

"Sam! Over here!" A voice echoes from the end of the hallway. You and Sam turn around to look at the female who's waving her arm around for Sam next to you.

Sam approaches Hannah and they walk off together since they don't have classes for the rest of the day.

You don't have class untill later at two in the afternoon so you make your way to the park. You sit down by a bench that's close to the river that flows through the park.

You rummage through your bag and pull out a small container which holds a singular cigarette and a lighter.

You take the ciggarette and place it between your lips,you take a deep breath in and out. You take the lighter and you play with it,the lighter doesn't work anymore,it hasn't worked in years.

"I never knew you smoked." That familiar Australian accent appears from behind you and you turn to face him,removing the unlit cigarette from between your lips.

"I quit." You turn back to look at the pond and Chan makes his way to sit next to you. Chan doesn't ask questions and stays silent for the time being.

The clouds seem to retreat and soften when he's around. The grey and dullness of them seem less.

He smiles and he looks at the river flowing in front of you.

You look at him,he's never been this close before. His jawline is sharp and his skin seems flawless. His head turns,his eyes implying to gaze upon yours and the kindness you saw in his eyes were shot at you with full force,pulling you in dangerously fast.

You look away as quickly as you can,hoping and praying to whatever god above to calm your thumping heart.

"I'll pick you up at 7: 30." He smiles and he stands up. You automatically stand up with him and you bow slightly.

"Is there a certain way i should dress?" You look up at him,you try to avert his gaze but his eyes meet yours and the way he's smiling? The way he's smiling at you? Your heart gives a flutter.

"There's no specific way to dress,just as long as you're comfortable."

Comfort.

---

"Sam I can't wear this."

Sam looks at you,unsurprised by your words.

"Yes,you can. Come on! Y/N,this is your first date in what,7 years?" She grabs your shoulders and pulls you closer.

"Exactly. I can't wear a tanktop and a shorts to my first date in years Sam."

Okay lets reprhase that. You totally would but the ones Sam picked were showing a lot of skin and Chan said comfortable. This was not comfortable,not to you at least.

Sam let out a heavy and dramatic sigh and pushed you towards your bed. She walked over to your closet and started looking through it.

You sit on your bed and you look at your thighs,thank god you got to her head because this short was so short you would die of the cold.

"Sam? When do you plan on asking out Hannah?" You ask her,looking up at her with your hands placed on the bed.

Sam stops moving all together.

"I'll ask her out after i confess my undying love for Julien Baker to Julien Baker." She goes back to looking through your closet.

Sam has never been the serious type. You've known each other since you were 6 and now you're both 20 and in your second year of college. It's honestly a miracle that you two are still best friends and that you got into the same college and dorm.

"Sam you know she's not straight,right?" You ask her standing up from your bed and walking to be by her side.

Sam takes out your cream cargo pants with your favourite blue blouse and hands them to you.

"This looks cute."

---

His hair was straightened for the first time and it was styled,a few strands of hair falling over his forehead. Oh of-fucking-course he wasn't just a gorgeous cutie,no he was also stupid hot.

The black shirt he was wearing with the black slacks comfortably hugging his waist,going well with the trench coat he was wearing. It was so hard to not stare,even respectfully.

"You look beautiful." He smiles at you and of course your heart gives a flutter.

"You look amazing yourself,Chan." He smiles brighter at you,his dimples now making their way to your heart.

I haven't felt this much colour in years.

A simple and soft breeze accomponied by the sounds of the shores hitting against one another.

Sounds of laughter and glass clanking against glass.

The beautiful ocean view,barely visible due to it being so late.

Chan smiles at you after you two gave your order to the waitress.

"In what year of college are you?" You look at him and you blink twice.

"I'm in my second year. Art major. "

Chan looks at you and he folds his hands over the table.

" Do you paint or sketch or mold or? " Hi voice trails off as he suggests the few.

You fiddle with a piece of the table cloth,trying to avoid his gaze the best you can.

"I sketch. I like to draw. " You say with a small smile as the waitress sets down the drinks.

"Please let me know if i can get you anything else." She says and she leaves the table.

Unfortanutely for you,you make eye contact with Chan.

"Sketching huh? That's so cool,i have a friend who likes to paint. Maybe you know of him,i think he's in the same year as you. Hwang Hyunjin? " he says with a suggestive tone,not breaking the eye contact that you wish he would.

Your face notifies him,aswell as your reaction,that you do infact know of him.

"Hyunjin? You're friends with THE Hwang Hyunjin?" You ask in shock,making Chan chuckle and nod.

He crosses his arms over his chest and leans back in his chair.

"Yeah,me and him go way back. We've been friends for almost 6 years now. " he says as if it's nothing.

Of course the man had gorgeous friends,i mean,just look at him.

You swear the friends that you've met so far and probably the others, were all handcrafted by Aphrodite herself.

"Okay wait,so you're friends with the Campus' heart throb? Do you go to this college? " you ask,leaning forward to hear him better.

He nods. "Yeah I'm in my last year,this is Hannah's first year,that's why i've been spending a lot of time with her. " he smiles and it all connects.

This was the smoking hot guy that Sam was talking about? No wonder she thought the two were dating.

You nod and you take a sip of the drink that you ordered.

The salty oceanic smell stays under your nose along with the freshly made basket of french fries that you and Chan were sharing for the night.

"May i ask you about yourself? " He asked as he fixed his jacket.

"Go ahead. " you smile at him. A chilling breeze makes your hair go right into your face and Chan can't help but chuckle.

He leans over the table and helps you with your hair,your heart definitely skipped a beat or two. Yet you are way too embarrased to be able to admit it.

"Aren't you cold?" He asks and he looks at you. You are definitely freezing but you don't want to worry him.

"A little but it's nothing i can't deal with. " you give him a reasuring smile.

He nods and he takes a sip of his drink then he looks back at you.

The night goes by with you two asking each other questions,telling each other stories,giggling and smiling at each other.

"Okay wait,but if you were an animal,what animal would that be? " you ask him and you place your hands on the table.

"Now that's a hard one." He hums and he looks at you. "Right so i think i'd either be a Kangaroo or a Wolf."

You look at him intrigued.

"A Kangaroo or a wolf?"

He nods and he starts explaining.

"One of my many nicknames given to me by my friends,is Kangaroo. I think it's because I'm an Aussie and because I can jump pretty high. The wolf is more hard to explain. Lets say that for example we were wolfs,we could be carefree,running through a forest. Nothing that stands in our way of freedom. Permantly having your pack with you,never being able to feel... alone?"

You look at him as he explains and you listen to his words. You can't help but feel the lonely tone his voice expresses as he speaks. Eyes that always looked so kind now seeming lost.

He smiles at you and before you could say anything the waitress comes with the bill.

---

At this time of night you can't see the misery of the sky,yet you know its there.

The walk on the shore is quiet but its not a bad silence. It's soothing. It's calming. It's safe.

"Do you like the ocean?" He asks out of nowhere and you look at him.

"Yes i do. Do you?"

He nods and smiles while looking down at the sand. He spots a seashell a few steps to the front and he hurries to it. The seashell is your favourite colour,its a small horn like seashell.

He picks up the seashell and he goes back to you like an excited puppy,handing you the seashell.

You take the seashell from him and you examine it.

"It's beautiful." You say with a soft smile.

Chan looks at you and you put away the shell in your bag. You look at him and he takes your hand in his.

"You're beautiful."

♡♡♡

There's a time in everyones life when they dont feel anthing. There's a time where all you feel is dull. That time can last for days, weeks, months, years.

When things seem liveless and unreasonable. When things seem to stare at you and you just stare back blankly.

When you feel like a dark cloud in the sky, ready to break down into tears.

---

"Wake up." Sam awoke you from your slumber. "Do you know what time it is?" She asks and you turn around in the warmth of your bed,trying to ignore.

"I'm not even joking right now,you have a lecture to get to in five minutes."

You get up from bed and you look at her,blinking a few times.

"Get moving girl!" She looks at you and reality sets in. You quickly get out of bed and you grab a random pair of jeans from your closet and you put them on.

You walk out of your dorm room after slipping on your sneakers and you hastily make your way to the other side of campus.

On the way there you bump right into someone,almost making you fall backwards completely. You stand your ground and look at whoever you just bumped into,waiting for the worst.

"Y/N...great way to bump into each other." He laughs softly and he holds your hands to help steady you.

"You alright there?" He looks at you with concern,his warm tone heating up your cold body.

You nod and you take your hands away fron him.

"I'm so sorry,are you alright?" You ask him, trying your best to fight off the embarrasement you feel creeping closer and closer.

Chan giggles and in the most Australian way ever he says, "Yeah,im alright."

You nod. "Sorry to cut our meeting short but i gotta go to my lecture. Sorry again." You bow slightly and you leave for the lecture.

---

On your way to the Campus Library you pass the Music room. From inside you hear a guitar being strummed. Shall you investigate? Indeed you shall.

You open the door to peek inside. A male,dark circles under his dark brown eyes,soft straight black hair that hasnt been cut for a few months,lazily hanging just above his eyes. A tattoo visible on his neck and collarbone.

He looks at whoever it may be at the door,only raising his eyes,not his head. His electric quitar stays in his arms.

"Minho?" You look at him a bit shocked.

He looks up at you fully now,cocking his head to the side slightly.

"Do i know you?" He asks in a not-so-polite way.

You start panicking a bit. "Yeah we... uhm,we go to the same lecture from time to time."

He looks you up and down and a small smirk plays onto his lips.

"Y/N,right?" He asks and he stands up to put his guitar away. Lord the veins on his arms are insane... Focus.

You nod, "So you do know me?"

He looks at you and crosses his arms. "I dont know you,i know of you." He looks at you,waiting for you to either leave or enter the room.

"Sorry for disturbing you...i never knew you played."

He looks at his guitar and he speaks, "Its just a hobby." You nod and you notice the rings he's wearing on his fingers.

"Well i wont bother you for much longer...see you around." You say and you close the door again.

Minho wanted to say something but he decided to keep it to himself. He sighed and he picked up his phone.

---

The library is surprisingly quiet considering that its this close to final exams.

You sit down by an empty table in the library. Theres a window right next to you,displaying the campus grounds outside.

The wind blows quietly outside,the branches on the trees swaying with the grass under them.

Theres a cat that you notice under one of the trees. Its a small white cat,fluffy and it has a purple collar. The cat is then approached by a male who happens to look a lot like Minho.

"Minho and those cats man..."

You turn to look at the familiar voice.The smile on his face playing with your heart strings.

A sense of relief washes over you and you smile back at him. You smile back at him.

"May i sit down with you?" He asks,his fingers already on the chair in front of you.

"Please." You gesture for him to take a seat. He keeps smiling and he sits down infront of you.

"Is the library a place you frequent?" He asks as he looks at you. His arms crossed over the table.

"Not really. I just like when its this quiet...plus I'm very sure that your sister and my best friend are having a wonderful time in that room..." your voice trails off as you think about it. You shake your head and you open your laptop.

Chan chuckles and he rests his chin on one his left hand. He looks out the window,eyeing the grey clouds homing themselves in the sky.

Your gaze turns to Chan and you notice him looking outside.

"Do you frequent the library?" You ask him as you wait for your laptop to turn on.

Chan turns his gaze to you and he shakes his head. "Not exactly." He smiles slightly and looks outside the window again.

"Oh? Well why are you here on a friday afternoon?" You ask him,your fingers typing away on your laptop.

He thinks for a moment before he speaks. "I saw you come in here. What's better to do on a friday afternoon than spend it with...friends?" He smiles slightly.

You look up at him from your laptop and you smile slightly.

Chan turns his gaze to meet yours. That stupidly attractive smile of his perfectly tugging on his lips. His eyes glossy because of the lighting and his skin shining. His soft brown curls lazily hanging just above his eyes. Fuck he looks so soft...

It takes you a lot to keep your heart actively pumping blood into your system. How can one look this...ethereal?

You snap out of the trance he has you in and you quickly look at your screen. "Oh,I have to get a book." You look at him as you stand up and he looks up at you.

"Can I help you look?" He arises from his chair and now he's looking right at you. He's only about 2 inches taller than you but to you it still counts. Always has.

You nod, "Sure,the book is called Pride and Prejudice." He nods and you both part ways to find the book.

You're in one section and Chan is in the other. You pull out a few books to look at the name in search of the book.

"I think I found it." You hear Chan say and you make your way over to him. He's holding a book in his hand and he holds it out to you.

You take the book and look through it, "Yeah I think this is it..." You look through the pages and then you close the book and nod.

"This is the book,thank you." Your heart skips a beat at the way he smiles at you when you thank him. If he keeps that up,you might end up in a hospital or something.

You both make your way back to the desk after Chan also took a book he was interested in reading. You needed the book for a research essay you had to do for one of your classes.

Chan is reading the book he chose and you're looking through the instructions of the essay.

You turn your head to look outside of the window,the sun had been shining through a cloud for the first time in a week.

Chan looked up at you and then out at the window in the same direction as you.

The amount of color that I see when I'm with you...

♡♡♡

Clouds have an endless cycle. The first part of their cycle they're small white clouds just living in the sky. In the second part of this cycle they start to grow and become larger,taking up more space in the sky.

The more time goes by,the bigger they get. The third part of this cycle they start to go light and dark grey. They start to grow angry and displeased.

The fourth part is where they start to let out all of that anger. They let out all of their feelings,good and bad. They cry out their sadness and throw their anger at other. They just let go of all that pent up emotions that made them this dark and heavy grey.

The fifth part of this cycle is where they find peace. They find themselves again. The either dissappear or they go back to the first and second phase. This cycle repeats itself many many times.

Needless to say,this cycle never ends.

---

It's been a week since the encounter with Chan in the library and you and him have grown quite close. You frequently bump into eachother in the hallways and you sit together whenever you two can.

You visit him at the Café a lot as well. Things were going great. You were feeling happy.

That's something you didn't feel a lot. The only person who could ever really make you feel happy was Sam,that was before you met Chan.

You met a few of his friends and you did learn that your suspicions were correct. All of them looked like they were handcrafted by Aphrodite herself.

You were growing quite fond of him.

---

"Could I have one Hazelnut coffee please."

"Certainly Ma'am. Coming right up." Chan smiled and started making your coffee.

You sat down at the table you frequented and waited patiently for your coffee.

After about 4 mintues Chan has finished your drink and he came to sit with you.

You absent-mindedly sip on your coffee and then Chan speaks.

"Y/N,i was wondering if you wanted to go to this art gallery with me this weekend." Chan looks nervous as he asks this,though you dont know why. Its not like you'd say no.

"There's an art gallery nearby?" You ask,seeming a bit surprised.

Chan nods and seems more excited and confident. "Yes,theres one just a bit out of town. Hyunjin actually git a place there to show a few of his art pieces and he invited me. He said i could take a plus one aswell,and who better than you?"

You smile at his words, 'who better than you?' God,this man was going to kill you.

"I'd love to go with you." You answer him,relieving him of any anxiety involving rejection.

He smiles and he nods. "That's good then."

Maybe it was the loneliness in your life or the bittersweet coffee that he makes you,but Chan seems to have really made his way into your heart.

Its a strange feeling,one you haven't felt for a long time. Its strangely comforting to be around him and to be with him.

---

Its Saturday morning,you're choosing your outfit for tonight and scrolling through Tiktok for some cute Make-up ideas. You don't normally wear Make-up,ither than Eye-liner so you let Sam help you.

Long black silky slacks with a long-sleeved white button-up shirt and a black trench coat. Your hair decided to be nice today and stay soft and fluffy.

You felt ready,excited for something to come. Happy that you get to have this day with Chan.

You stare outside the window in your dorm,up at the clouds. To your surprise,there were only two or three small clouds visible. The day was clear,happy and colourfilled.

You spent the rest of the time working on some of the materials that you struggled with. The time seemed to go faster that way.

A knock is geard from the outside of your dorm room and you stand up to investigate.

"I brought you flowers." Chan says as you open the door,holding a boquet of baby's breath infront of his face. His eyes peeked from above the flowers in half crescents,making it evident that he is smiling behind the flowers.

"Hannah told me which dorm is yours by the way." He hands you the flowers and you look down at them,a small smile on your lips.

Chan studied your facial expression as you examine the flowers. You look up at him and you both exchange a smile.

"Let me put these in some water and then we can go..." as you start walking you quickly stop and turn on your heel, " and thank you for the flowers Chan,they're beautiful."

Chan laughs softly and nods as you put away the flowers. His eyes land on your desk behind the giant window and next to your laptop he sees the seashell he had given you. He hums and smiles,happy to see the shell there.

The both of you leave the dorm and the campus and hesd over to a black car thats in the parking near the café.

"You have a car?" You ask as Chan pulls out the keys from his jacket pocket.

He shakes his head and laughs softly.

"Nah,its my friends. Had to beg him to lend it for the night."

The car drive is quiet but its nice. Its not an awkward or eerie quiet. Its calm and relaxing,it feels safe.

Your eyes wander as he drives. From his hands on the steerwheel,up his arms to his black button-up shirt and black trousers. His hair neatly combed and straightened. You notice an ear piercing in his lower lobe and then you look away,smiling at yourself.

"Have you ever been to an art gallery before?" He asks,his eyes staying on the road as he speaks.

You shake your head," Not that i know of. You? "

He hums. "I've been once or twice." He smiles and looks at you for a second and then at the road again.

A large white building,glass windows taking up most of the space in the wall,making the building look like its made of glass. A bunch of cars parked in the area surrounded by rose bushes that outline the gallery. The view is breathtaking,almost straight out of a romace movie.

The venue wasn't all that large but there were still a lot of people. You and Chan made your way to the entrance of the art gallery.

The soft music playing in the background accomponied by the soft chatter of the other people.

Everyone looked dashing, expensive and sophisticated. Though it was an art gallery, one that holds pieces from artists all over the country.

"Shall we look for Hyunjin's exhibit first or would you like to look.around untill we get there?" Chan asks as he leans a bit closer towards you so that you cam hear him properly.

You could smell his cologne from the close proximity he was in. Your heart once again fluttered,how could it not?

You look up at him and of course,he had that stupidly pretty smile on his face. You look at his lips and back up at him again. You remember that he asked you a question but you can't exactly remember what the question was.

"If you want then we can check out Hyunjin's pieces first." You replied,your gaze turning to the marble statue infront of you.

The exterior seemed fragile and delicate. It's a statue of a woman,her fingers placed on a harp,indicating that she was strumming the chords.

Chan nods at you and he moves his gand to place it on the small of your back,his hand moving to your hip to guide you through the crowd of people to where Hyunjin's art was located. This man definitly knew how to make your heart do a backflip.

You and Chan spent for what felt like hours in the Art gallery,looking around, laughing, talking and sharing opinions on the art all through the gallery.

You were having fun and actually enjoying yourself for once in your life.

Later you and Chan were walking outside of the gallery,near the lake located next to it.

The moon was reflecting on the water as you and Chan walked over the small bridge that lead to a wooden floor in the middle of the water. It was large and it had white railings and a white wooden roof.

You looked around it and Chan smiled at you. He took your hand and spun you around to face him,your body close to his, closer than ever before.

One of his hands on your hip and the other holding your hand. You look up at him and you smile as he starts to slowly sway with you. You place one of your hands on his shoulders and you slwoly sway with him,letting him take lead.

"I can't dance. " you say in a whisper,a soft laugh leaving your lips after.

Chan doesn't answer and he twirls you around, pulling you back, your back against his chest.

He hugs you this way, his arms wrapping around you, keeping you close to him.

Colour has never been this bright before

♡♡♡

Maybe there was a small part inside of everyone that felt the dread of being alive.

Maybe everyone has felt the sting of distrust and dishonesty.

Maybe everyone knows the feeling of feeling like a dark grey cloud.

Maybe everyone knows,what its like to feel grey.

---

The smell of the raining campus always smells like childhood. It smells of dirt and it smells damp.

The rain has caused your window to fog up in your dorm. You're sitting by your desk, studying for your upcoming exam.

The rain is softly drizzling outside,the sound heloing you focus on your studies.

After another hour of studying you lie down on your bed,staring up at the ceiling.

You don't feel like doing anything today.

You don't feel like eating,talking,studying, not even sleeping.

Your phone vibrates on your desk and you turn your gaze to it.

You don't feel like picking it up,so why should you? You let it ring and you watch as it continues to vibrate on your desk. The luminescent colour shining in the room.

After two minutes it stops vibrating and you stare at the roof again.

The rain starts to pour louder and the room starts to feel colder. It seems darker aswell, the sun must be hiding away behind the clouds.

You close your eyes and listen to the rain. The way it falls on the ground, a few drops falling on your window and windowsill as the wind blows.

Time goes by and you hear a different sound, a knock on your door.

You ignore it and you stare at your ceiling again, but the knock is heard again.

You sigh and you stand up, going to your dormroom door. You open the door and you're greeted with an out of breath and wet Bang Chan.

"Chan? What are you doing here?" You ask him and he laughs softly.

"You weren't answering your phone so i decided to come and check up on you." He speaks as if there's nothing in the world that could go wrong.

You quickly get him a towel and you allow him to come into your dormroom.

He thanks you for the towel and he dries his face and hair with it. He takes off his soaked hoodie,leaving him in his shirt and sweatpants.

It starts to rain harder and louder, the wind howling with it.

"Are you cold?" You ask him and you take the biggest hoodie you own and give it to him. He thanks you again and puts it on, he looked as if he was freezing.

"Is this a bad time?" Chan asks.

"It's not a good time but not exactly a bad one either." You try to explain and Chan hums.

The crackling of thunder alongside the storm outside makes it obvious that Chan can't leave right now.

"Would you like to stay for a while?" You ask him and he smiles.

"If that's okay with you." You nod and you both go to sit down on your bed.

He looks around your room and he spots the shell again,a soft smile tughing on his lips as he sees it at the same place as before.

You look at him as he looks around and you feel strange. There's a painful sting in your chest. A strong tug at your heart.

He turns his gaze to you and he notices that you seem a bit off. He examines your expression before he speaks.

"Are you okay? Did something happen?"

You look at him as he asks this and you dont know how to reply. He seems more worried by your silence.

A loud thunderbolt strikes really close to Campus, making your window shake.

You keep looking at Chan, everything about him is just perfect. You feel unworthy of it all.

His smile, his kindness towards you, all of it. You feel, you don't deserve the things he gives you so willingly. Why?

He seems even more worried now seeing as there are tears welling up in your eyes.

"I'm sorry, I'm just having an off day." You say softly and you wipe the tears involuntarily falling down your cheeks.

Chan feels his heart sink down to his stomach and he softly pats your back.

"Don't be sorry. Its alright, yeah? Don't worry about it."

You laugh softly and you look down at your legs.

"Did something happen?" he asks you again and you look at him.

You take a deep breath and you shake your head. "No, nothing happened. I just feel..." your voice trails off and you look out the foggy window. Chan follows your gaze and looks outside the window aswell, still worried about your answer.

"Have you ever felt like a cloud?" You ask him,turning your gaze back to him.

Chan looks genuinely confused and you laugh at his reaction.

"A cloud?" He asks you and you nod.

You take his confusion as a sign to explain what you mean.

"There are always clouds in the sky. They start off fine but then over time they start to turn darker,heavier and larger. They turn grey and angry even when everything's going good," Chan nods and you continue to explain.

"A cloud always breaks down in the end. They turn grey and then they fall apart completely. It's not that easy to explain the feeling. I don't really know how to explain it. I feel like there's always this part of me thats about to turn grey."

Chan doesn't really understand what you mean, but you don't either. You sigh and you look away from him.

"Have you ever felt like a candle?" He asks you and you look at him. Now its your turn to give him a confused expression. He chuckles and starts to explain.

"A Candle is meant to burn, it's meant to shine a light. The purpose of a candle is to show a ray of light. Though a candle always melts and burns out." His explanation is much easier to understand that yours.

You feel like a cloud and Chan feels like a candle. What a combination.

"A candle comes in many colours and also shows colours as well." You smile as you say that and you look at Chan who's smiling back at you.

"You've helped me see a lot of colour since all i could ever see was grey." Chan smile at your words and he looks away from you for a moment.

He looks back at you again and it seems the rain has calmed down a lot now.

"I have an idea." Chan says and he takes your hand in his. He pulls you with him and takes you out of your room and outside of the Uni building.

"Chan what are we doing?" He stops and he turns to you with a smile.

"Allow me this dance?" He asks and he lets go of your hand. He walks into the rain and he smiles at you, the drops of rain falling onto him. He holds out his hand, inviting you with him.

You smile and you walk forward, into the rain. You take his hand and he puts his other hand on your waist.

He starts to slowly sway with you in the rain, holding you close to him.

The rain falling onto you both, as if you're the only two poeple in the world. He pulls you a bit closer to him to keep you warm as you follow his lead in the rain.

"I still can't dance." You say and he chuckles.

"I can tell." You jokingly hit his shoulder and he smiles at you. His dimples have already made themselves home inside your heart.

This moment you share with Chan is precious to you. Its one you've only ever dreamt of having with someone. Now you were,you were dancing with the one guy you never thought you'd meet.

Just like before he twirls you around and twirls you back, but this time its slower. He pulls you back to him and he holds you close to him. Your eyes meet his and he leans down.

His lips meet yours in a soft and warm kiss, one that you fear to forget.

A kiss in the rain.

A feeling of warmth.

A sign of colour in all the grey.

♡♡♡

[witchesoz]

Fashion in Oz: the Good Witches (2)

Given I couldn't find any pictures of the Good Witches in the 1902 extravaganza, I'll immediately jump to the MGM movie and its Good Witch, Glinda. Which is a fascinating case - because this character is the literal fusion of the original two Good Witches, bearing the name of the Good Witch of the South (Glinda) and yet holding the title of Good Witch of the North, and fulfilling the role of the two witches successively. And it is interesting to see that, in Glinda's costume right here, we have a fusion of visual elements taken from both of the literary characters. Indeed, the Good Witch holding a magic wand as tall as her (so a sort of magic staff) and having her dress covered in sparkling stars does come entirely from the Good Witch of the North - with the change of the stylized "N" at the top of the staff being changed here for a silvery star. Meanwhile, the fact that Glinda wears a sort of tall crown is taken from Glinda's depictions, as we saw earlier - though here Glinda's crown is larger, silvery and with stars at the top (to keep the whole "star" aesthetic). Of course, no need to point out that Glinda's headwear is also here to mimick and oppose the Wicked Witch's own hat. Interestingly, we find back here the curly red hair of Glinda in Baum's original description of the Good Witch of the South, even though here Billie Burke, while beautiful, plays a more mature Glinda than the original "young sorceress" Baum depicted her as. And... well I said red hair, but to be fair it is actually more of a venitian blond/strawberry blond kind of color, given how Burke's hair can look a deep blond depending on the lighting. We could almost say that the fact Glinda's dress is pink was maybe also lifted from the book illustrations of Glinda - as we saw before, John R. Neill added reds to the white of Glinda's outfits (or at least the red was added in the colorization of her dresses), and often it resulted in pink outfits. After all, pink is a "soft and feminine" color, isn't it? It might be a nod to these illustrations... or it might simply be the movie crew's very own invention. After all, they wanted to depict a "good witch", they wanted to depict a feminine character that was kind and gentle - and pink would certainly be the color to go. Overall, what the MGM movie did was also insist on a true... "fairy" aesthetic, or "fairy tale" vibe for the Glinda costume. The fact her magic staff has a star on top is made to make it seems more like a fairy magic wand (which is usually depicted with a star at the end) ; having her be in a pink costume with a heavy star motif also works in this "fairy" concept ; while her puffy dress is very... princess-like, a feeling that is reinforced by the "crown" she wears. All in all, without a doubt, we can say that this costume is one of a "fairy-princess". In fact, look carefully at the puffy, translucid sleeves. The way they are placed is no mere coincidence - they are not here to cover the arms, they are here to ornate the shoulders. And the way these "transluscent puffs" were shaped is clearly meant to evoke insect wings - or to be more precise, fairy wings. In fact there is a true irony when we look at the color palette. In the MGM movie Glinda gets all the silver (it is her main color patterns, silver and pink) - while in the original book it was the Wicked Witches who were associated with silver (silver shoes, silver whistle). And in reverse, in the MGM movie the Witches got a strong red pattern (red shoes, red smoke, red hourglass), while in the books red was the color of Glinda's lands and people. EDIT: Re-watching Glinda's scenes, I actually missed a detail in her outfit... She doesn't just have a star pattern on her dress, she also has a butterfly one! If you look carefully, she wears on her clothes small, silvery, shining butterflies. There is one around her neck, another by her left shoulder, and a third on her belt. It clearly reinforces the "fairy vibe" they were going with for this character

Given I have started looking into MGM's Glinda (or North-Glinda), who is a very unique character breaking the usual Good Witches pattern, I'll take a look at other incarnations of her before moving on to other adaptations of the original Good Witches (Locasta and South-Glinda). The most recent would be this incarnation, from "Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return". We keep here a heavy MGM influence - the curly venitian blond hair (though it is a darker/browner shade of strawberry blond than the original MGM movie), a large, puffy, princess-like dress entirely pink, puffy shoulder pieces and a high crown... However this design changed significantly several details. Such as the skirt - quite "simple" in the MGM movie, here we have several levels piled on and wrapped up around each other, for a more complex and... "regal" I guess effect. The addition of numerous pearls on the lower part of the skirt notably enhance the feeling of "royalty" or at least "wealth" this Glinda produces - I wonder if the pearls on her dress are meant to evoke the "pearl of truth" Glinda is said to wield in "The Marvelous Land of Oz"... Other details include the puffy shoulder pieces losing the "translucid fairy wings" effect to become more traditional puffy, elbow-long sleeves, typical of "old-fashioned" dresses  ; the crown, which is here actually a high diadem/tiara instead of a full circling crown, or even how the silver-and-pink palette becomes here white-and-pink. But the most significant change would probably be the change of Glinda's pattern. Here, no more stars. On her dress and in her tiara, what you see is flowers - and even her sleeves and collar are shaped like petals. Oh, and of course the size of her star-topped staff got massively reduced, now becoming just a simple "magic wand".

Another North-Glinda incarnation comes from the cartoon series "The Wizard of Oz". No, not the recent thing for little kiddies that is posted everywhere on Youtube nowadays - I am speaking of the unfinished 1990 cartoon, supposed to be a sequel to the MGM movie. Their version of Glinda was based on the MGM character, but they added numerous design changes. Most notorious being that Glinda suddenly turns blonde for some reason. The star pattern of Glinda's dress is still present (with a bigger, golden star on her cleavage, to represent the North star which, in this cartoon, she is the mistress of), but the dress herself has a drastic color change, with only the torso part of the dress being pink and the rest, skirt plus sleeves, becoming pure white. Glinda keeps the strange high pink crown of MGM's Glinda, but the jewels on it go from random silvery jewels to deep purple ones actually shaped in a given pattern - you can see a crescent moon on the crown. As for her wand, while still longer than a traditional magic wand, it is still not as long as the MGM character's original staff, and if you look closely you will notice that a purple pattern appears on the star at the top - a crescent of moon seemingly passing in front of the sun (a motif that Owl House fans will recognize without a doubt). You can see it all in detail here:

Given the show's disdain (or ignorance) of the original books, I doubt the addition of purple in this Glinda's designs were supposed to be a hint at the Gillikin country. A last addition by the cartoon is the apparition of a few butterfly-shaped ornaments on Glinda's dress: one on her belt, a second on her shoulder, and a third around her neck. EDIT: Okay I got something completely wrong. I thought the butterflies in Glinda's dress were invented by this cartoon but actually NO! I checked back and the butterflies ARE on the original MGM Glinda's dress - silvery and shining. It is just that I never noticed them before. So my bad

[original-character-championship]

Bracket C Round 1

Poll 4

Layren Atelie (@murrittimeswithscar) vs. Argus (@mojothemaltipoo)

135. Layren Atelie (@murrittimeswithscar)

he/him

hes like a mary sue but cooler. hes a ghost. hes in purgatory. hes actually alive. hes dying but not really. he lives in the forest and terrorizes travelers by roleplaying with them. hes scottish (?). the reason he does this is unknown. he's friends with the protagonist and she fucking hates him. he only exists to get on her nerves. he talks weird. hes out there so Watch Out.

a troll like from homestuck, he's read and wears a shirt that's white and puffy on one side and a black dess shirt-ish on the other. he has shades and a crown, as well as very short imp-ish horns and a black cape with a red pentagram on the back. his skin and hair is lighter than a regular troll and he has necrosis on his hands. also he has grey pants and red dress shoes.

136. Argus (@mojothemaltipoo)

He/They/It

Argus should win because they are not only peak blorbo material, but they have everything a good OC needs! Traumatic backstory? Check! Cool powers and abilities? Check! Appealing design? Check! Gay? Checkity-Check!

Argus is the ultimate bitch-boy, babygirl, blorbo, who needs no introduction! (Except, of course, when it does need an introduction.)

Make the right call, Tumblr citizens, and vote for Argus! The most blorbo of them all!

Argus is technically two beings in one, the first being a humanoid. The humanoid has red-ish brown, curly hair. He has black and gold armor and a black scarf. And his eyes are covered by a blindfold that can't come off.

The other being is a giant eye that follows the first around. the eye appears to be made of glass, but it is generally indestructible. Its pupil is black most of the time, but occasionally glows a pale blue. And it has five gold spikes that surround it. The spikes represent Argus' life span. When all five break, they die.

[cee-grice]

it is blorbo thursday again and so I shall talk about more blorbos >:)

Some relevant info:

In Ethelen, the headmaster of Cielle Academy is often involved in the city's ruling as well. In fact, it's not uncommon for them to be its leader, and even if they're not, they're still a highly important figure

Besides Merridie, the other more relevant country is Edkava (where Endra is from), and it should be noted that, albeit officially being a uniformly governed country, it's split into many 'underground' districts that the government doesn't recognize on paper, but often does off it

Renowned mages are often referred to as 'Master/Mistress [surname]'

The Ladies

Clariene Silvoir

the current headmistress of Cielle Academy, going on her fifth year

(Quil's exile has also been lasting for five years....curious)

is technically an all-rounder mage, but taught mainly transmutation, despite rarely performing it herself outside of class

Quil's past mentor!! the students in the Academy get assigned mentors in their third year (out of six), but Quil got her in the first year, so they've known each other for A While

that was a huge deal, too, because already she was a favored candidate for the headmistress' spot and famously took on very few students

anyways they sure had an. Interesting relationship

will do what needs to be done and will do it with a smile

the Peak of high society etiquette

she didn't reach the top of the mage community by being nice and polite, though :)

47ish, prefers puffy gowns regardless of the occassion, has curly purple hair, likes to have gold dusting her skin, lots of jewelry

I just now realized I could have been adding quotes to these intros. fuck. anyways gonna add some to the previous ones too ahaha but here's one from her:

Mistress Silvoir hummed, an odd look crossing her face. “No… Certain circumstances arose at a later time which forced our hand.” ‘We’, ‘our’; it was always we and our with Mistress Silvoir. Not I and mine. Just in case in the future it’d need to turn to they and their.

Mela d'Alisso

Quil's mom :) :(

current matron of the d'Alisso family, cares very little about anyone outside of her immediately circle, though, lol

like most of her family, specializes in charm magic, and is frickin good at it

used to work at the Cielle Academy as a field researcher, left shortly before Quil enrolled. now works at a private institution that deals with breaking/reversing charms

married a doctor that dislikes magic (???), they're divorced now lol

her and Quil are pretty similar in character, which. considering Quil's tendency to do as he likes and not listen to anyone else, causes issues lmao

absolutely adores him, though—there's nothing as important to her as her child and nothing she wouldn't sacrifice for his wellbeing. when she loves, she Loves

hm yeah he's definitely her son lolll

I feel so bad for her it's not even funny

53ish, tall, long, chestnut-colored hair, prefers to wear earthy colors and opts for simpler, elegant dresses

quote:

"I’m not asking for anything," she said, quieter. "I’m not asking for your gratitude or consideration. If you don’t wish to have me in your life, fine. But I refuse to aid you in your suicide." "I'm not asking you to," Quil said, curt. "I know what I'm doing." Her face twisted. "Like you knew last time?"

Leanda Velion

Endra's mom :D D:

a venemagik herself, also a pretty unique one (can't say what, spoilers :((). has holographic skin because of it

the youngest of the ladies and was almost a teen mom

The baddest bitch, though

managed to secure her own district, albeit a small one, in Edkava at age 22, and the politics there are Cutthroat (she may have actually had to cut a few throats....we don't talk about that)

established a venemagik-exclusive settlement there which houses venemagiks who for whatever reason don't want to live with the rest of society/are persecuted. it functions as a safe haven for them, essentially. on the brochure, anyway lol

the younger ones refer to her as Mother, so, uh, make of that what you will

absolutely despises mages and priests

the one with the highest kill count out of the entire cast

are these two statements linked? maybe

does really care about her child, too, but has a bit of a funny way of showing it at times...

anyways, in short. goddamn Intense

44ish, short, blonde, wears simple but bright clothing (looks nice with her holographic skin :))

quote:

Leanda breathed a high, wry laugh as she moved closer to him. “Has a single word I’ve said ever stuck with you? Or are you as unteachable in life as you were in class?”  Endra bristled, “I’m not a kid anymore, I’ll have you fucking know. Stop treating me like one.” “Yes, you stand before me as an adult, yet you lack all the wits of one.”

taglist (let me know if you wanna be +/-): @writerfae, @tate-lin, @iriswords, @sternenmeerkind, @thecrookedwriterspath, @pure-solomon, @moonshinemagpie, @arowanaprincess, @scribe-of-stories, @thesorcerersapprentice, @stuffaboutwriting, @doriians

[atlas-of-the-mind]

[ID in Alt text and under cut] [lore also under cut]

Gentles and ladymen I present: He

@rinzydings and I made a joke about Bootleg wishdotcom Moon and uh. Here we are

This is Prototype Moon! He's feral and I love him.

Lore under cut:

[IMG ID: A colored sketch of my version of dca moon, named “prototype moon”, on a grey background. He has noodley, rubber-hose style limbs made of dark grey, ribbed metal pipes that get wider at the ends of his arms to make the palms of his hands, which have three sharp claw-like fingers and a similarly sharp thumb. His face is very simple, with a full silver face and wide, sharp-toothed smile that ends in large curls at the corners that sit by his eye sockets, and a nose that mimics the normal dca’s nose but is mirrored. He doesn’t have eyes, instead sporting shadowed holes where his eyes would go.He has a large, fur-lined hood with a long tail, which has a large kink in it before it curls and ends in a large bell. He wears a layered, flat jester collar with a five-pointed dark blue overlayer and a smaller under layer, and a set of short, puffy blue bloomers with red ruffles around his flexy pipe waist and around the leg holes. His shoes loosely resemble jester shoes, with a large curling toe and a smaller curly piece coming off the heel of the shoe. He has a built in vest with one side being blue and the other side being red, and his hood and shorts are the same blue fabric with cartoonish silver stars all over it. His shoes have a singular big silver eight-pointed star on the top of them and a gold crescent moon on the inside of the ankle, and small bells hang off the large curl at the toe. More small gold bells hang off his jester collar, and his waist ruffle has a gold band across the top of the red fabric. His fingers are the same silver as his face.

There’s notes around him, pointing to various parts of his body. The top note points to his eyes and reads “<- no eyes, can only sense light levels”. A note directly underneath that points to his smile and reads “<- teeth can retract up into mask” with a small sketch of his mouth being “open” beneath it. Slightly beneath those notes is one that reads “<- Arms + legs can lengthen/shorten 2-5ft”, and there’s a final note by his left hand that reads “<- grabby hands”. End ID.]

LORE TIME:

- Prototype Moon is exactly what it sounds like; A scrapped prototype of the dca moon when they were meant to be a pair of stage performers. After Fazbear Entertainment found it was more cost effective (and less dangerous) to have the dca be one animatronic instead of two, the unstable prototype of Moon was scrapped and Sun was reworked into both Sun and Moon.

- Prototype Moon was meant to be the villain of the stage play, and is still programmed that way.

- Proto moon is extremely sensitive to light levels. He doesn't have eyes, so he can't actually see, only sense light and dark areas. He functions like the endos just with light (i.e. if his sensors pick up over a certain number of lumens, his motors lock up and he can't move), so if you shine a light in his face he stops moving.

-> fazbear entertainment used this to their advantage when working on/salvaging parts from him (its easier than shutting him down)

-> When he was officially scrapped, he was locked in something called The Light Room

- He can easily fit in small spaces due to how bendy his body is.

- He's not as sentient as the other robots, only possessing a beta version of the usual software. (We think)

[wolfisland]

27 & 28!

27: a description of the person i love

my fiance! ive been talking about my wife (and partner system as a whole but right now this is about my wife) a lot lately and i will continue to do so.

anyways, shes pretty short (we have a 6 inch height difference lol) and very soft looking and has really gentle features. she has wavy/curly dark hair that she usually wears in a claw clip. she has these fucking gorgeous dark brown downturned eyes with long lashes and they get kind of puffy when shes tired and its so cute. lots of really cool tattoos (she has a half sleeve and this super sick thigh piece. we also have matching pinky tattoos) and a nose ring and round glasses. usually wears a lot of darker colours, but my favourite go to outfit of hers lately is a long dark pleated skirt and turtleneck because its winter and she looks like an alt girl from a 90s movie. super into it.

she has a beauty spot on the opposite cheek to me and she has dimples when she smiles and perfect teeth because she had braces. she does the megan thee stallion smile lol. shes gorgeous. like shes genuinely so beautiful. her eyes are my favourite eyes in the whole world. i realised so many of the characters i design to be love interests for mine have similarities to her as well, and that started before we even got together 😭 before i even realised i liked her.

shes so fucking funny and literally endlessly kind. im not someone with a lot of social stamina but i spend most of my day with her and i never get tired of being around her. we have the stupidest in jokes and the dumbest exchanges and i constantly say we have a silly relationship because we DO. we have so much fun together. i love hyping her up and im so proud that shes mine. she makes me a better person and i write fucking poetry about her man. shes literally my best friend in the whole world and she has been since i was like 18. shes always so supportive and shes incredibly fucking smart too, shes in stem and when we hang out while she studies im just in awe at how clever she is. i love her music taste, i love that we bond over it. i love that she gets me and i get her and it feels kind of like even if the rest of the world is against me at least shes always on my team, and im always on hers.

ive changed a lot since we first got together, quite drastically too, and sure shes changed too but ive pretty much done a total 180 as a person from who i used to be (for the better though) but shes always been so patient about loving each person i grow to be. i think we complement each other really well. we generally cover each others bases and what i struggle with shes usually pretty good at and vice versa. we make each other stronger i think. i love taking care of her and she takes really good care of me. just being around her makes my day better. i really cant wait til we like actually live together.

i know this is like barely a description at this point and just me rambling but i could really talk about her for hours. i sometimes do just straight up.

basically tl;dr i love my hot smart fun kind wife

28: a description of a person i hate

too many to count. insert random white person whos Wronged me here.

wanna be nosy? here's your chance!

[cinnamoodles]

heyy can I get a 🍓[strawberry dream] from the hp fandom: golden trio/lightning era (no poly stuff please)

I am a straight female Slytherin. I'm kinda mean but like to my really close friends and it can be considered banter (by them anyway) I am like really nice to strangers. I love drawing I take my sketchbook with me everywhere.

I am 167.5 cm (5'6 approx) tall xx

Trauma Dumping is a guilty pleasure of mine. I often make bad decisions like choosing friends but I have a usually positive influence on people around me and often tend to change them for the better.

I excel in maths and english and currently am working on getting a degree in maths and or computer science.

I am an infp-t. I'm introverted around almost everyone except like my really really really close friends. my super close friends are usually the negative influence type but I still love them because they understand me the best xx

I'm a pretty well behaved student but my friends most definitely aren't. My friends got told off like all the time in school whereas the teacher never had to give me any warnings.

I am loyal to my friends. I will fight for them. One example of that is both me and my (now ex) bff liked the same person and I gave them up for her xx

I get along with more males than females despite being a female myself.

I'm kind of an idiot sometimes and end up giving stuff up for people that would never do that to me. In fact my bff that I gave up my crush for actually sided with someone else. One thing you outta know about me is that I digress a lot so like you can ignore this paragraph lmao.

I feel bad for people easily and believe everyone deserves a second chance even b*tchy people (excuse my French)

I love art and music and am really good at drawing portraits if I do say so myself. I've been doing music since I was 6.

As for my appearance, I have a sandy/tan skin colour. I have naturally curly dark brunette (almost black but not really) hair.

My clothing style varies. For formal occasions I wear vintage ish clothes. I wear checked dresses with puffy sleeves and white collars (really specific because it's one of my fave dresses and I own one). I wear "cute" outfits like skirts and sweatshirts. I also wear jeans (apple bottom high waisted jeans own my heart) and I wear cargo pants with cropped tops far too often.

I wrote a lot absvsccsav

Sorry if that's too much xx

thanks for checking out the cozy cafe event !

i ship you with…

cedric diggory !

— the both of you are definitely enemies to friends to lovers coded, probably only becoming enemies because of something your friends pulled on his friends.

— you’re very loyal and caring, which he respects, and how you’re always willing to give people a second chance, no matter what they’ve done.

— i get the vibes that you’re better at supporting other people then standing up for yourself, so he’s your personal bodyguard (even if that isn’t true).

— he would listen to your rambles with literal STARS in his eyes and whenever you apologize for trauma dumping, he has to take a minute and be like ‘why are you apologizing? go on, keep talking’.

— MATCHING OUTFITS OH MY GOD they’ll be so cute because you dress so pretty and formal and he’s such a rich prep boy so your dress styles go along great.

— you trying to teach him art is so funny because he has no idea what he’s doing (its canon he told me) and he just wants to impress you so much.

— the banter is great because he’s a pretty flirty person, but he BLUSHES every time you make fun of him and his friends totally rag on him for being so whipped.

anyway, i hope you liked your 🍓 — [ strawberry dream ] and please apply again! this was super fun to do!

[yippieitsarvensart]

GRAAAAHH savanaclaw and pomefiore appearance hcs :3

leona- he is obviously muscular but also is kind of bigger bodied because he eats a lot and intentionally puts on weight like a lot of athletes do. he has a flat nose (like a lion/feline) but also because hes BLACK.. I HEADCANON leona has sharp teeth like the tweels because lions do, its just those two canines happen to be a bit sharper. also he has wicks and maintains them well. theyre not in a specific style or anything he lets his hair do what it wants, so some are super thick and some are super skinny! his eye with the scar is almost completely shut and he cant see out of it at all. also hes darkskin OH ALSO has long nails

ruggie- super skinny and lanky. skin and bones. he did put on some weight after joining NRC, i also think he has super slow metabolism!! lightskin with a lot of freckles like a hyena., also has a flat nose. same as leona all of his teeth are somewhat sharp, the canines are just bigger. he has a LAZY EYE because one of the hyenas from the lion king had a lazy eye, and also a bite mark in his ear. he has dark circles under his eyes like a hyena aaaand uhhh has curly hair he can twist. its not 4c but its curly maybe 4a idk :3 has a buncha scars from various fights and activities and like stuff (and cracks on his arm from leonas OB)

jack- muscular but not too muscular. i hate muscular teenagers what r u doing with all those muscles. you are 16. stop that this instant young man. but anyway i think hes pretty toned but i just dont like muscular teens i think theyre uhhh. unattractive(?) personaly. nothing against them. anyway. same teeth as leona and ruggie blah blah blah ALSO instead of that fuckass confusing hair he has he has white locs and stuff :3 his nose is darker than his face like an actual dog. i also think hes a husky so his hair and tail and stuff get super puffy in humidity. has a supr long tongue like a dawg blehhh uhhh yaaa ^_^ i also think he has monolids. has.. very few scars from like tripping and falling during track maybe. brownskin

vil- WHITE WOMAN with a hooked nose. i said this on twitter buttt she has a pudgy body to account for the beauty standards of the 1950s, which i mainly base her off of due to me also basing her off of marilyn monroe :3 nnnd she has a pear shaped body kinda curvy also a thigh gap. she has sharp downturned eyes and kind of curly hair which she straightens. blonde is her natural hair color!! she has sharp bow shaped lips!!! i hc she has bad back acne that she covers up LOL.. uhh also lots of moles! and stuff. she has sharper than normal canines :3

ILL FINISH TOMORROW ITS FUCKING LATE

Goodness GRACIOUS Chef you are COOKING. 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥AUGH🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥ciel....🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥you and your🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥beautiful mind🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥thank you for giving me these hcs🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥I lobr you🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

Honestly these'll help me so good with whenever I get around to drawing like, any of these bitches. I'm so bad at thinking of my own hcs I gotta steal from all'a'yall XDDD

I gotta say I am so so in love with your vision of Vil... She's an icon she's beauty and grace... Vil oh Vil I love you so... Idk man idk what to even say you cooked you slayed you ate you buried me alive you massacred my family WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT FROM ME

[drunktayloratthevmas]

Stevie nicks is a singer, she was know for being in the band fleetwood Mac in the 70s mostly, and in the pictures, the on in the Right is from a show wich is very inspired in fleetwood Mac and the history of the band and Everything like that as a band in the 70s also "You look like stevie nicks in '75,the hair and lips" is cause you can see a Picture of her performing and its very close to that Picture of taylor in that Dress and mostly when taylor has her hair wet and is more puffy cause she actually has curly hair

You look like Stevie Nicks

in ‘75, the hair and lips

[total-fandom-tr45h]

3,779 words later, I present you with this;

A Destiny 2 x FNaF Crossover fic, as well as a Sun & Moon x reader fic

The Traveler's Celestial Guardians

You nudged the body of a Fallen Vandal with the toe of your boot, keeping your rifle ready to shoot at the slightest sign of life. Luckily the Vandal was dead, and with a sigh of relief you lowered your rifle and removed your helmet. 

You were a guardian, resurrected by the Traveler to protect the last of humanity from the threats of The Darkness. You were brought back approximately 7 months ago, found by your ghost in the burnt down ruins of a pre-Golden Age building. After making it to the Last City you were introduced to the Titan Vanguard, Commander Zavala, and the Warlock Vanguard, Ikora Rey. You had asked where the Hunter Vanguard was only to be met with silence and sullen looks. 

After being outfitted with the proper gear and weapons you began your duties as a protector, fighting off the forces of Darkness that threatened to end humanity. After a while, you were sent back to where you had come from as you had been the first Guardian to come from that part of Earth. Your task was to look and see if there were any new guardians, but you always came back empty handed. 

You were back at the ruins you were found in, searching around when a band of Fallen jumped you. It was just a small scavenging team, nothing you couldn’t handle, and you dispatched them with ease, aided by your Light. You also were able to wield the power of Darkness in the form of Stasis, which honestly you preferred using, not that you would ever admit to it. 

Your ghost materialized over your shoulder, sweeping her eye over the scene. “Efficient as always.” You just nodded, moving to drag the body of the Vandal off to the side as your ghost floated around, scanning various things in the room. 

You tossed a Dreg on top of the Vandal, and were about to move another when your ghost got your attention. “Hey Nyx, come check this out.” You sighed, kicking a wire rifle towards the pile of bodies before wandering over to see what your ghost found. 

She was hovering in front of some sort of robot, scanning it. “What is that, Hoshi?” You asked, kneeling down in front of the hunched over bot. It was badly singed, but you could faintly make out the yellow colors of its slightly rusted body. It was tall and lanky, and the head sort of looked like a strange, cartoony version of the sun, a creepy static grin plastered across its face. The face molding had a distinct crescent shaped side, colored a slightly darker shade of yellow. 

It wore a funny ruffle around its neck, the edges of the fabric burnt and frayed. You couldn’t see the rest of its body very well, but you could tell it was wearing some kind of pants. You hummed as Hoshi completed her scan. “Wow, this predates The Collapse! Actually, it goes back to before The Golden Age…! It belonged to a huge company called… ‘Fazbear Entertainment’.....” She blinked, seeming to look through some data. “Oh wow, they were almost as big as Braytech!! Not as advanced, but their AI technology was incredible…. apparently some of their AI gained sentience. That’s so cool..” 

You nodded, starting to move some of the charred metal off the robot. Hoshi moved to the back of its head, scanning over the wires. “Oh, I think I can turn it on! Hang on a sec…” You didn’t pay attention to what she was doing until suddenly the robot sprang to life, causing you to dodge backwards and pull out your rifle. 

“H-H-Ho ho ho!!” The robot was easily able to stand since you had moved most of the debris burying it, and now you got a good look at the rest of it. It wore strange, puffy red and yellow striped pants with a ruffle at the waist and curly toed shoes, rusted bells on the end of the toe. Hoshi floated back over to hover behind your shoulder, seeing how you were on edge. 

The robot looked around for a moment before its eyes landed on you, and a gasp-like sound came from its glitching voicebox. “Y/n!! Y-y-you’re okay-ay-ay!!” It said, taking a step towards you as it opened its arms. You took a step back and raised your rifle, aiming at the center of its head. It went stiff, dropping its arms. “Y-Y-Y/n? Why do y-ou-ou-ou have a gu-gu-gun?” It asked, tilting its head with a gut wrenching metal-on-metal screech. 

You frowned, keeping your weapon trained on the robot. “Listen buddy, I don’t know who you think I am, but that’s not my name. Now I suggest you stay where you are, otherwise I’ll make sure you aren’t salvageable.” You didn’t like being so cruel, but it was calling you a name you had never heard before. You seemed to be saddened by your words as its shoulders sagged, and it sat down on the ground. 

“How-ow-ow do you no-no-not recognize me-e-e? I thought-ought-ought you loved us-us-us…” It hung its head, staring at its hands in its lap. Hoshi floated out from behind you a little, her eye trained on the robot. 

“What is the last thing you remember?” She asked, getting the robot’s attention and causing it to look up. It looked around, almost in confusion before looking at the little machine floating by your shoulder. 

“I remem-mem-member the plex was on fire-ire-ire, and I tried to s-s-save Y/n, but I didn’t-n’t-n’t make it…” It fiddled with the rusted bells on its wrists, running its finger pad along the opening. Hoshi hummed and moved to be in front of you, trying to get a better look at the bot. 

“What year did this… ‘plex’ you speak of burn down? Or when was the date when you were last online?” She asked, spinning a few parts of her shell as she spoke. 

“Um….. 2035. Why?” It sounded confused, and you immediately shared a look with Hoshi before looking back to the robot. 

“That was right before the Traveler entered the Sol system.” You said bluntly, lowering your rifle but not stowing it away. “And you seemed to recognize me. Care to explain a little?” You decided to sit on the ground, making sure you didn’t sit on your cloak. 

“Oh! Of course-ourse-ourse! You worked in my day-ay-aycare at the pizzaplex-ex-ex as our assisstant-tant-tant! Shortly before the fire-ire-ire we confess-fess-fessed and….” You held up a hand, making it stop talking. 

“What do you mean, ‘our’? Who else is there?” The robot chuckled, static filling the sound. 

“Moon, of course!” It fell silent for a moment, as if realizing something. “Wait-ait-ait…. How are you alive-ive-ive?” Hoshi settled on your shoulder, her machinery humming softly. You gestured to her with a small smile. 

“I was chosen by the Traveler to become a Guardian. This is my ghost, Hoshi. She found me here in these ruins.” The robot tilted its head, making the awful screeching, grinding wound again. 

“S-s-so you were dead-ead-ead, but this Trav-av-aveler you speak of-of-of and that brought-ought-ought you back-ack-ack?”  It pointed to Hoshi as it spoke, and she rose off your shoulder with an indignant huff. 

“Yes. All Guardians are dead, brought back to life using the Light. Every Guardian has a ghost like me. There are also other ghosts still out there, searching for their Guardian.” Hoshi explained, floating over to the robot, much to your discomfort. You didn’t trust that thing yet…. She scanned it again which seemed to scare it, as it went totally still. 

"So you we-we-were brought back t-t-to life?" The robot asked once Hoshi was done scanning it and she made her way back to you. You nodded. "An-an-and that was possible be-be-because of this light?" You nodded again, but before you could speak or react the zap of a wire rifle rang out through the air before making contact with your unprotected head, immediately killing you.

When Hoshi revived you the bot was gone, and you looked around quickly while sliding your helmet back on, seeing that it was- fighting with the Vandal that had shot you? Despite its rusted frame and stiff joints, it still managed to pry the weapon from  the Vandal’s claws and toss it to the side while the Fallen’s lower arms scratched at the bots’ torso. The bot hissed in pain and started to grapple with the Vandal, sparks shooting out of the hole that was now torn open on its chest. 

You pulled out a sniper rifle and lined up a shot, waiting until the robots head was out of the way before pulling the trigger. The Vandal screeched as the bullet pierced through its skull, a puff of ether being released as it went limp. The robot tossed the dead Fallen off to the side, then looked over at you, giving you a thumbs up before collapsing. You quickly stowed the sniper rifle and ran over, kneeling down next to it. 

You had Hoshi scan it, and when she finished she looked at you. “Its AI card is still intact- both of them. What do you want to do…?” You hummed, tracing a finger along the crescent shape of the faceplate. 

“Let’s bring it back to the Tower, see if anyone can help fix it up.” You decided, looking up at Hoshi. She dipped in the air as if nodding, and you called your ship out of orbit to load the bot onto it. You really hoped you weren’t going to regret this.

When you got back to the Tower and got the robot off your ship, you were immediately swarmed by people asking about it. 

‘What is that?’

‘Where did it come from?’

‘How much will you take for it?’

‘What does it do?’

Eventually you got fed up with all the noise, so you removed your helmet and whistled loudly, getting everyone to fall silent. “I don’t know a lot about this, only that its AI is incredibly advanced to the point of sentience, it needs to be repaired, and it’s not for sale. Please just go back to your tasks…” You said the last part a bit softer, making it less of a demand and more of a request. People grumbled and shuffled off, a few lingering behind to get final glances at it before leaving. 

With no more people lingering around, you hauled the bot over to Tess Everis, asking her to watch it for a moment so that nobody stole it before heading off to find Zavala. You went to his office, knocking on the door a few times before hearing his voice, “Come in.” 

As you entered his office he looked up from whatever he was doing and gave you a small nod in greeting. “Ah, welcome back Nyx. Did you find anything?” He asked, tapping on the holo-screen in front of him a few times before turning his attention to you. 

“No new Lights, but I did find an interesting robot.” You replied, tucking your helmet under your arm. He lifted a brow, seeming a little interested. 

“Oh? Do explain.” 

You explained everything you knew about the robot to the Titan as he nodded his head, obviously thinking. Once you finished, he folded his hands in front of him, looking at you. “You know how I feel about chasing your past.” He said very matter-of-factly. You sighed and nodded. 

“I know, but with all due respect sir, I’m not interested in my past, I’m interested in the AI itself and what it’s capable of.” You stood your ground, not about to give up without a fight. The Titan sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head before looking back up at you. 

“Do what you must, but don’t let it get in the way of your duties as a Guardian.” He relented, and you just about squealed in joy but kept your composure, instead giving him a small smile.

 “Thank you, Commander. I will make sure this doesn’t get in my way. My duty is to protect humanity, as always.” You knew those were the words he wanted to hear, and he gave the smallest smile of approval before standing up. 

“Go on, thank you for reporting to me before doing anything reckless.” He motioned for you to leave, and you bowed your head again before leaving, just about skipping back up to the main area. You were so excited to learn more about this AI. It was older than the Warmind Rasputin! 

You found the robot right where you had left it, and you thanked Tess a ton before hauling it back to your ship. You needed to get a few things before you left, first heading over to Banshee-44 and buying a few upgrade modules from him before grabbing a few things from your vault. Once you had everything you wanted you hopped in your ship and headed back to the burnt husk of a building you and the robot originated from. 

You did a quick sweep of the area before unloading the robot from your ship. You hummed as you rummaged through some rubble, grinning as you came across what looked like a slightly melted banner of sorts. You laid it on the ground, rolling the robot onto the banner before picking up one of the ends, testing it by giving it a pull. The material stretched but held together, and you nodded in satisfaction. 

“Hey Hoshi, d’you think you can find a map of this place?” You asked as your ghost appeared next to you. She bobbed in the air, twisting her shell around a couple times. 

“Why are we back here anyway? Couldn’t you just fix them back up at the Tower?” Hoshi asked. You just hummed, dragging the robot on the banner behind you as you began to walk towards an area you hadn’t explored before. 

“I could’ve, but I know there are parts for this thing somewhere here. I don’t know how I know, but I just have this gut feeling I’ll find what I need here.” You kicked aside a burnt receptacle of sorts, a small cloud of ash falling out from inside. 

“Huh, I dunno…. Oh, there's a way to get into the basement right over here-" Hoshi swerved to the left, moving over some rubble to a half buried door. "Through here, Nyx." You nodded, starting to shift the debris out of the way, making a path wide enough that you could drag the robot to the door. 

You pushed the door open, the metal creaking and groaning with protest. It opened only a few inches before the ancient door simply fell off its rusted hinges. You winced as it crashed to the ground, looking behind you to check and see if anything heard it- luckily you didn't see anything, and you let out a sigh of relief.

Hoshi lit the path ahead of you, and you began to make your way through the dark, dusty hallway, weaving carefully through the many obstacles. At one point the floor became too cluttered to drag the robot behind you anymore, so you hoisted it up, slinging it’s limp frame over your shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Continuing through the hallways you eventually came to a set of doors, the sign above them reading ‘Parts and Service’. “Bingo. Gotta be some stuff around here somewhere.” You muttered, pushing through the doors with little effort. 

The room was littered with the rusting bodies of simplistic robots, all in various states of disrepair. Their eyes stared forward wherever they landed, looking like soulless voids. You stepped over them, continuing to look around the room. 

In the very middle of the room stood a huge structure surrounded by broken glass. It was roughly cylindrical, and there was an odd-looking chair sat in the middle with straps where arms and legs would go. You shuddered at the thought of someone being tied there, continuing your search. 

“Looks like that torture chair is the only place to set the robot down, Nyx.” Hoshi said, looking around without taking the light away. You sighed, knowing she was right as usual. 

You gently set the robot onto the horrible chair, rubbing your shoulder before turning away. “Alright, now to find some parts. Hoshi, can you run a quick environment scan and see if you can find anything that could be useful?” You asked, and the ghost nodded as a blue light swept across everything in the area, then disappeared from sight. 

“There’s a whole room filled with spare parts nearby. Follow me.” She said, taking off in a random direction. You followed, making sure to keep your rifle at the ready just in case. Everything seemed to be relatively untouched, but you could never be too safe. 

Eventually you made it to a room labeled ‘Parts’, and you grunted as you tried to open the door. Locked. There was a little spot to scan a card, and Hoshi immediately began hacking it. Soon enough it beeped and the door swung open, allowing you access. 

The room was a mess, various parts strewn about haphazardly, littering the walkways with dangerously sharp robotic parts. Walking through the room you eventually found an area with bins labeled ‘Daycare Attendant’. Peeking into the boxes revealed miscellaneous parts that seemed to be for your new robot friend, and you grinned.

You rummaged through the parts, marvelling at how advanced the technology was for being Pre- Golden age. The body casings were covered in silicone, which was miraculously still pliable and soft after sitting around for hundreds of years, and you could see touch sensors all over under the silicone. Your body practically vibrated in excitement as you began grabbing everything you could carry, even going as far as to shove it all in a huge bin before carrying it back to where you had left the robot.

Setting down your haul of parts you then searched around for tools, managing to find some that weren't totally rusted. "Awesome! Now, let's get to work." You said to no one in particular before you set about fixing your new companion.

Several hours and a couple electrocutions later and the bot was powering back on, good as new with some added modifications, such as using glimmer as an energy source instead of electricity. The bot's LED eyes blinked to life, looking around before letting out a high pitched shriek of terror. 

"No, no! Why are we here?! Where is Y/n?!?" It jumped up from the chair, bolting for the doorway. You sprinted over and slid in front of the bot, causing it to come to an abrupt stop and windmill its arms in an attempt to keep itself from falling. You stood up, brushing yourself off as the bot began to blabber.  "Oh, Y/n there you are! Why are you dressed like that? No, wait, it doesn't matter, let's get out of here." 

Before you could protest the bot grabbed your hand and started leading you through the tunnels, getting back to the surface much quicker than when you went down. You squinted at the bright sunlight after being down there for so long, lifting your free hand to shield your eyes.

You took your hand back from the robot before turning to look up at it. "Again, my name isn't Y/n. If it used to be, it's not now. Now I'm known as Nyx. What is your name?" You remembered it- no, he- mentioning something about a counterpart named Moon, but you didn't know this half's name yet.

The bot looked disappointed, as if suddenly remembering your earlier interaction. "Right, sorry… I'm Sun." He replied, shuffling his feet a bit. Before you could reply, Hoshi alerted to a presence nearby, and you threw on your helmet, seeing multiple enemies approaching on your radar. 

"Shit- Sun, can you use a gun?" You asked, pulling out your scout rifle. He looked at you confused, then shrugged. 

"I suppose, why?" 

You threw him a spare auto rifle you had, which he fumbled with before managing to get a proper hold on it. "Don't shoot me or Hoshi, otherwise if it moves, shoot to kill." 

Sun let out a strangled noise from his voice box as a shot rang out through the rundown building, coming from the still intact rafters. You brought your eye up to the scope of your rifle and looked around, spotting a Vandal crouched with its wire rifle, readying for another shot. You centered your aim on the Vandal's head and pulled the trigger once, twice, three times and it was dead. 

Sun let out a squawk as a few Dregs started to surround you, and he lifted the auto rifle and began firing, taking down four of the Dregs before having to reload. In the middle of him reloading you noticed the shimmering outline of a Marauder approaching Sun, and you grabbed the robot's arm, yanking him aside before tossing a grenade on the ground. The void grenade killed the Marauder almost immediately, and took a few other Fallen down to half health.

"Stay behind me, and when I say go, shoot." You said, shoving Sun behind you as you stepped closer to the oncoming band of Fallen. Just as Sun was about to retort with the fact he could take care of himself, you hopped into the air and popped your super, shooting your Nightstalker arrow into the middle of the group of enemies. The void energy immediately tethered to all of them, and you looked back over your shoulder as you dropped to the ground.

"NOW!" 

Sun began firing at the tethered enemies, while you readied a rocket. He managed to kill a few before you triple jumped into the air and back, then fired the rocket into the group. All the Fallen ended up dying from the blast, and as you landed on your feet Sun rushed over to you, seeming torn between worry and excitement.

"Wow, you were so cool! Was that your Light? Oh, are you okay? You're bleeding!" He waved his hands around, taking your arm into his large hand to examine where a Wretch had gotten you with their staff. 

"Hey, don't worry about it bud, that's what Hoshi is for." Upon hearing her name the ghost materialized next to you and healed you, Sun watching in amazement as your wound disappeared. "See? I'm fine. You did great by the way. Wanna stick with me?"

Sun's rays spun around his head as he clapped his hands together, grinning. "Absolutely!"