#been thinking a lot about how whenever i have a dream or an idea marinating in my brain for long enough it then becomes something that i am

[thebeautifulfantastic]

<3

[ryuichirou]

Replies

More replies; mostly about potential ships!

Anonymous asked:

You think that ace/riddle had some good rough sex after that picture? Like right their infront of the whole dorm? Assuming this is an au if he won the battle

(This is about this art)

They should have, and if it was a R18 doujin they absolutely would have, but I think Ace is too much of a tsundere + a bit shy to do it in front of the whole dorm, BUT.

BUT. Let the boy (and us as well) dream for a moment. Just for the sake of how perfect it would be; let’s be honest, it’d be super hot and we all wanted it to happen when Ace first punched Riddle. The main issue is that the rest of the dorm probably wouldn’t hold back and would join Ace immediately because they also had a lot of pent-up anger... Riddle has a long night ahead of him 😔

But it WILL start with Ace! 🫡

Anonymous asked:

i know you're not that into it, but got anything for leona and ruggie?

I actually did write a hc post about them! <3 It’s been a while though, so here is a bonus one:

Leona is planning to take Ruggie with him when he is done with NRC (whenever it actually happens), but he acts like he isn’t. Ruggie has a feeling that he is going to be with Leona for longer than just two more years, but since Leona acts like he doesn’t even think about it, he is looking for other opportunities for himself. And he has a bunch of very good options! Ruggie will even think that once Leona suggests him to come back to his hometown together, he could say “nah, I don’t think so” and enjoy the shock on Leona’s face. But realistically, he doubts he’d ever do that to Leona. He could be annoying, but Ruggie still feels like there is something between them that will keep them together for a very long time. Leona isn’t as good at hiding it as he thinks.

Anonymous asked:

hii, dunno if someone had asked this before butttt Have you ever considered JadeSil?

Jade secretly feeding naive Silver “funny” mushrooms in his risotto and got unexpected results, Jade taking advantage of Silver while he’s asleep…

We aren’t super invested in these two, but I did talk about them a couple of times; about “funny” mushrooms scenario specifically! That risotto event was very thought-provoking, maybe I should come back to it at some point and sketch something... no promises though, sorry.

Replies: 1, 2, 3, 4.

Anonymous asked:

Not sure if you've answered this before, but what do yall think of Trey/Deuce?

Good ship! We’re kind of into them, but haven’t spend too much time “marinating” in them yet. I think they deserve a lot more love, and their dynamic could be very hot. We kind of flirt with the idea of this ship, and I think I’ve sketched them a couple of times, but we haven’t posted anything yet.

One of the reasons for us to ship them is their seiyuu though; I am weak for Chiaki...

[ayearofgoodfate]

i’m staying awake making sure my roommate doesn’t start showing od symptoms. we tend to take things too far. i have my hell day later and it’s all i can do not to fall asleep but i miss my parents house even though they didn’t always know how to be parents and i miss my little brother and sister and my dog and my bookshelf and the wall i would tape up magazine articles and photos to whenever i got sad. and i think that college fucks you up a little bit. there is so much love here. there’s also so much trauma.

when i was about nine my dad decided that he and i were going to read every single book in the middle grade section of the library. my dad had a lot of passion and not a lot of ways to harness it so every saturday he would drive me to the library and he had this old grey car that he could never tame enough to follow the speed limit. and we’d just spend hours there. my dad never talked to me a lot, we never had conversations that weren’t in a group setting. he never told me things or asked me questions but i was a talker so he learned what would work to work around that. he read to me. he’d always read to me. we’d knock out a book or two in the library, literally just sitting there for four hours straight on the old blue carpet while he’d make up voices for the characters, then we’d take about twelve more books home for the week. I’d read most of them on my own, but we’d go through one or two together throughout the week before bed. when we left the library he’d always buy girl scout cookies in quarters from whoever was outside the library selling. we’d eat the whole box. dad never made it feel like we had less than. he never ever told me that we were as poor as we were. he has done a lot of things but i will love him for that forever. i will always defend my dad.

we stopped reading together after a while. he got tired or i got old and he’d joined the church and my siblings weren’t babies and suddenly there were littler kids that needed reading time too. we didn’t finish the entire middle grade section of the library. i don’t think we even made it halfway. i don’t think dad has gone to the library since. the last book we read, we didn’t finish, and i was a bitch about it. it was this big collection of science fiction short stories and the girls in my class had been telling me that stuff was for boys and i simply wasn’t having it. dad wouldn’t have that. every book is every book, so we trudged.

i got really sick that fall. i slept for days straight. my parents couldn’t afford doctors and probably wouldn’t have taken me anyway but dad was really good at taking care of sick people. he’d sit there and watch me breathe and make me mac and cheese and read to me and i’d be half asleep. this one story was about solipsism. i was delirious, drifting in and out of his voice, letting the idea of me being the only real person in the world marinate in my mind. i woke up three days later like i’d never been sick. i needed to read that story again because i needed to know it existed because, mainly, i needed to know that dad did and mom did and baby sister and brother and my friends and the book was gone.

i looked for it for years in different libraries. big. silver. i resigned myself to the fact that it was a fever dream and then like magic it popped up on the library shelves again. i took it out and renewed it for months on end and drew in it with the invisible ink pen I stole from office depot’s back to school sale. i marked it with my name and annotated it with notes on how dad read it when i was little and it was mine until it was overdue. years later i bought a used copy i found at a yard sale. annotated. i play around in my mind with the idea of trading the books out, as if i still live in a place where i could. the point is, it’s real. we’re real. dad was real, our library trips that had been half forgotten were real, and isn’t it nice to feel real and to know everything else is too?

I miss dad. my roommate’s breathing heavy and in a few hours she will wake up sick. between my classes i’ll raid my drawers and wallet for enough coins to run to cvs and buy her some mac and cheese because that’s what we both crave when we’re not doing too good. i will never tell her i paid for it in coins and i’ll never tell her i stayed up to make sure she’d be okay. we’re a lot alike and so i’m not even mad at her for what she did tonight. she just wanted to know she was real. she is my best friend and she has a lot of passion. i take to people like that, latch onto them like a leech because i was taught to feel deeply and anyone who doesn’t i seem to repel. i will go to class and not fall asleep, and i’ll wear cute clothes and there will be circles under my eyes and no part of me will match but that’s how i am and i can’t ever in good faith tell anyone why. i play around with calling dad a lot. I look at his contact but i can’t bring myself to hear the silence. i think that’s why i went to book school in the first place. i think it’s why i’m writing this.

[wishbowl]

𝕾𝖑𝖊𝖊𝖕

My sleep has gotten significantly better since I ‘quit’ pot, well I didn't but I do smoke a whole lot less…and by significantly better I mean I’ve gotten sleep.

Also, I've actually started dreaming again, mind you they are mostly nightmares but they are SO fucked up to the point where I realize I'm in a dream so I just do something so out of pocket that I just wake up. Also, nightmares or maybe reality itself has become so numbing that I no longer wake up from them scared and shaky, i usually just roll over and reach for my vape and scroll through reels until the ick wears off. And then if it was interesting enough I'd open up the notes app and write about it.

Again, HUGE emphasis on better sleep because to a regular person, it's probably not close to a normal amount of hours but I've been trying.

And when I do get to sleep I don't seem to do it consistently as in I wake up multiple times a night. 

I don't know when exactly my sleep got so bad or better yet, when exactly it was that I had ‘good’ sleep because I honestly don't know the answer to either of those questions.

I've been trying to cut back on caffeine at least after a certain point in the day. Mind you it's not exactly 2 pm like the doctors advised you to but still an improvement from 3 am sips off of old monster cans because you can't be bothered to get up to get water from the kitchen. 

I know sometimes it's the case of the book being too good to put down but that whole reading a book before bed thing is actually usually a good idea (or at least a better one than being on your fucking glowing rectangle).

Also just listening to an audiobook or a headspace thing or even just blank noise while you read will probably also help do the trick and maybe I should get back into all of that.

I want to have good sleep, and to get to sleep and to wake up from it energized would it be pushing it if I say be excited to start my day?

Every single family member seems to shove the word meditation in your face whenever the topic of sleep, or more so the lack thereof is brought up. The idea of meditation scares me.

I'm so terrified of facing my thoughts that is why I like reading as it's the perfect form of escapism. 

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I've written on this and taken a few days to marinate with this information even had a semi-normal parent-to-child conversation about it and they softened somewhat helpful suggestions… of course, some of them will not be tried and tested like the MILK because I fucking hate milk, but I will take up mothers offer to ask for an appointment about the nightmares.

THAT and having a schedule, well more so a nightly routine as the girlies call it. I think 10 pm is a decent time to start my night routine and doesn't sound as insane as brushing my teeth at 9 pm. 

I think it doesnt have to be complicated necessarily but brushing my teeth braiding my hair and putting on comfy socks sounds like a good enough start for me. That and reading and we shall see how it goes.

[variousxreader]

i see you said we could send in Koby thoughts… im so obsessed with Koby it’s not even funny. i have an ocxcanon ship with him that ive made over 100 doodles of in a few months and at least 10 pages of dumb thoughts for

i very much hc him as bisexual , usually in my mind he’s cis but i love transmasc Koby too. he’s perfect every way. but i am very much of the opinion he is very muscular either way and dedicates himself to being in the best shape possible.

my oc is a marine so A LOT of my hcs are revolved around a marine s/o who’s his superior. they’re on garp’s ship together and he gets them to talk. oc is a bookworm and has no social skills but Koby is enamored with their insane amount of knowledge and passion for reading and enables their infodumping 24/7, borrows books and they work out together. they get close over their Marineford trauma and eventually cross the friends to lovers bridge because they spend sm extra time together after and understand exactly what’s going on with the other’s mind.

and even though they wouldn’t be able to be together often, I think Koby is a very mature and understanding partner who is able to handle long distance and leaves little notes for his s/o to find, calls them at night once his work is over, and always makes sure to hug them whenever they see each other again. he gets little trinkets for them or a small bouquet of flowers if it’s been longer and will spend the entire night with his attention on them.

i think he’s awkward but well meaning early in a relationship!! scared of messing up or worrying he’s not good enough and still being oh so very shy later down the line. kiss him long enough or pepper his face in little smooches and he will be so!! So embarrassed!! but he loves it… he’s less forward physically but loves to talk and just. look at his so and admire how pretty they are. but I think he loves spooning them and kissing the back of their neck, their cheek and their shoulder at night, or their forehead if they’re facing him. he loves it when they lay on his chest and caress his face. he would be insanely flustered but so tickled by them wearing his shirts or jackets, his old bandana too…

he’s super shy but extremely loving and lovable. i am actually in love with him. no man has ever affected me as much as the existence of Koby and rambling here makes me want to post about him and my character again LOL, thank you for enabling my Koby fixation

Of course!!!! Hes just such a good boy!! I love the marine lover ideas too, but im such a sucker for Koby falling for a slightly older or his age pirate!

Hes so salty he fell for a pirate but he can't help but be so smitten with them lol when i can im writing away for the one shot i mentioned, but that idea spawned a larger fic which accidentally became 2.5k of introduction. Which will allow me to now devolve into chapters of doing whatever i please with the man lmao! It was 100% meant to be smut but i might accidentally turn it into a slow burn romance who knows!

The one shot is now going to be an off shot of the main fic, but being an omegaverse au version. Hell it might not even be a one shot but a mini chaptered fic its self! It could very very well end up as 3 parts or longer

Bi Koby is a dream. My ass really wants to drag him into a reader/ace/sabo/koby relationship thats all levels of debauched.

Theres just something about Koby that makes me primally insane.

Like i fucking love ace and Sabo, but they're so dominant and more sure of themselves (yes even ace) than Koby still

Koby really is the type of man i wanna shake around like a chew toy because hes so precious.

Feral cute aggression w the blorbo.

I shall hug him and squeeze him and call him george,

Also put him into sexual situations that render him fucked absolutely stupid because hes so innocent and sweet and i want to deflower the sweet thing

[queen-asiad]

15 Questions for 15 Mutuals

Tagged by @theanimepsychologist, thank you so much! This was fun❤️

Are you named after anyone?

• an entire continent beloved. Why? I have no idea. My mom said she liked the name. Bright side? It means sunrise and resurrection and I literally feel like I’m recreating myself all the time. Also, it’s an iconic name. Bad side? Whenever I got in trouble at school or around town, I couldn’t blame anyone else because no one has the name.

When was the last time you cried?

• Last night after drinking an entire bottle of wine🫠

Do you have kids?

• I’m too immature for children 🥴

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

• Yes, it’s quite literally a personality trait.

What sports do you play/have you played?

•Softball and Lacrosse (which is unheard of in the south lol). I wanted to play soccer but my mom didn’t think I should play contact sports

What’s the first thing you notice about other people?

• Their smile or their eyes

Eye color?

• Dark brown!

Scary movies or happy endings?

• Scary movies. I love horror and thriller movies and enjoy a good twist at the end

Any special talents?

• I’ve survived this far and have survived a lot of crazy stuff. Quite literally a miracle

Where were you born?

• The US, and I’m still here unfortunately 😒

What are your hobbies?

• I’m getting into painting. I like to cook. I like to workout. I love skincare. I like to do my nails and do hair care mask. Making Pinterest boards. Reading (currently in a slump). Trying new restaurants. I’m actually trying to find new hobbies to stick with (I have ADHD🫠) so comment some that you suggest!

Do you have any pets?

•My baby Bella. Love this dog. She’s been with me from being a preteen to approaching my mid twenties ❤️ best doggo

How tall are you?

• 5’3 or 5’4. Every time I go to the doctor they give me a different one but it’s always those 2 lol 😒

Fave subject in school?

• Science, anthropology and psychology. I love the human brain, I loved learning about different cultures and I wanted to be a marine biologist or archaeologist as a child (I think the archaeology part came from watching the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants tho)

Dream job?

• I don’t think I’m adult enough to answer this question lol. I quite literally don’t know.

[holykillercake]

Red String

𝕊ℍ𝔸ℕ𝕂𝕊 𝕏 𝕄𝕒𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕖!ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣

word count: 2.8k

summary: You had any place in the world to moor, a stable and safe summer paradise somewhere in the South Blue, or you could visit the winter island where cherry blossoms painted the freezing horizon pink. The world was on the menu, and yet you chose to break into a Yonko territory.

highlight:  ¨What about you, Y/N? Will you try to put your hands on me?¨ 

warning: Look out for your arm, it might melt with the fluff.

notes: Hi, guys! This was an anon request for Shanks x Marine Reader. I was given the freedom to write whatever I wanted, so I hope you guys like it! <3 Dear, anon, I apologize for the time it took and I hope you read it! 

𝕃𝕖𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕤, 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕤, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖!

¨I have to say, not a usual place for a Vice Admiral to enjoy a vacation.¨ a smirk bent your lips as you heard the playful voice of the man who courted you with another drink. 

¨Well, I´m no usual Vice Admiral.¨

¨No one doubts that.¨ He put the sword on the table and pulled a chair, sitting close to you. ¨You have grown, Y/N.¨

¨You have aged.¨

¨Oi, not very nice. You hurt my feelings.¨ the red-haired placed the hand on his chest, over the heart, faking an offended tone. 

¨Mission accomplished.¨ 

You stared at each other for about four seconds before breaking into laughter. As always, Shanks was louder, banging his fist on the wooden table and vocalizing his amusement to anyone who had ears to hear. 

¨It´s been a long time, Y/N.¨ he wheezed, still recovering from his overreaction.

¨Yes, it has, Red hair.¨

¨Red hair? Really? I mean, you tried to kill me way too many times already. You gotta call me by my name.¨ You chuckled, sipping your drink. ¨Especially when you´re at my house.¨

You grinned, shaking your head and biting your lip. Of course, the bastard would not let this opportunity slip. 

After years of non-stop hard work, you received a few weeks off duty. That meant that the world could split open, the moons could fall into the atmosphere followed by the sun, and you would not have to move a single finger.  

Issho-san would handle that better in any way. 

You had any place in the world to moor, a stable and safe summer paradise somewhere in the South Blue, or you could visit the winter island where cherry blossoms painted the freezing horizon pink. The world was on the menu, and yet you chose to break into a Yonko territory. 

However, the Yonko in question was more than just an Emperor of the Sea. Your lives entangled at a very young age when the Pirate King was still alive, and Garp had melanin left in his hair. 

You were just two snotty brats fighting your Captains´ battles. 

¨Anyway,¨ he chugged his drink and asked for another one. ¨I missed you in Marineford.¨ 

¨Well, I guess I missed Marineford myself. Had a good view, though.¨ you answered nonchalantly. 

¨What do you mean?¨

¨I had an underling transmit me the whole thing.¨

¨Isn´t that handy?¨

You tried not to laugh. It was stupid, but every time you had Shanks and hand in the same sentence, you felt the urge to laugh.

¨I wanted to see Luffy.¨ you said.

¨Why not go there, then?¨

¨Duty called somewhere else.¨ you shrugged. ¨Besides, I would have been no help for him.¨

¨You´re saying you wouldn´t help him?¨ Shanks carried a suspicious tone in his voice.

¨Of course I wouldn't help him.¨ You took a sip of your drink. ¨But thanks... for stopping that madness.¨ 

The man casually stretched his arms above his head, tilting his head back, enjoying the warm sun.

¨No biggie. You owe me another one, and we should be fine.¨ he smiled.

¨Who´s counting?¨

¨I am.¨ 

¨I already stopped hunting you, Shanks. Isn´t that enough?¨

¨Not on my book, Y/N.¨

For a long portion of your life, you had a personal mission to give the Red Hair the same fate as his Captain. Whenever his crew was located, you would be the one hunting them. No one dared to tell you otherwise. 

By that time, you had no significant position. Maybe a Lieutenant, Captain tops. But being related to the Hero of the Marines, well, that granted you some free passes, and as long as you could hand Shanks´head in a tray, a little nepotism didn´t bother you. 

Actually, although everyone saw you as Garp´s relative, you were just his first protegé, his first rescued dog. Apparently, the highly ranked officers were going through boring times and decided to pay their dues by doing charity.

The only one you got to know was Sengoku´s kid. Rosinante was his name. To this very day, you could not think of him without the twist in your heart. 

Even you didn´t know how to describe it, and honestly, you didn´t care. Was the job done at the end of the day? Good. 

That was all that mattered until another pawn entered the game, a very troublesome one, by the way. Slept like a rock and ate all your food. You couldn´t help but fall in love with little Monkey D. Luffy. 

He was the one to give you the answer you had stopped looking for a while ago.

In order to be his older sister, you had to be Garp´s granddaughter. Everyone loved the idea, except for the man himself. 

You were as keen as Garp to make Luffy become a great Marine. You bought him tailor-made marine onesies and shared stories about the seas. Whenever he spotted you approaching with the leather book in your hands, he would get restless. 

The onesies, however, those never lasted. They were thrown in a boiling dumpster altogether with your dream of him joining you in a job one day.

The sun was about to set, and you had just returned from a long and intricate mission when you received a call from Makino saying that Luffy had gotten into some trouble. 

Not only that, The Red Hair Pirates were somehow involved. It was all you heard before hanging off the den den mushi and hopping in a Marine ship, headed to Foosha Village.  

The idea of Shanks causing Luffy any pain or just giving him a hard time made you turn into a beast. But your bloodshot eyes were washed clean by the image of your brother, safe and sound, hanging out with Red Hair, who seemed rather... different. 

¨Why would you do that?! What do you want, Red Hair?!¨ 

A lot of things went through your head, but none of them could explain why a pirate, why him, would sacrifice his arm to save Luffy. There was no way he didn´t know about your little brother´s connections. 

¨I want to pay you a drink. But only if you stop yelling.¨ 

With a swing of his hand and a smile, Makino appeared with a jug of beer before you could spit fire on him again. 

¨They´ve been really good at keeping Luffy entertained this past year, Y/N-san.¨ she said, kind as usual, before leaving.

You sighed and took a seat by his side. 

¨Why did you do that?¨

¨I bet on his life. Just that. Why is that a problem? You don´t want to feel grateful for a pirate?¨ 

Your grip tightened around the cold glass, teeth clenching and knuckles turning white. 

¨No.¨

Gratitude was never the problem. You would be grateful to anyone who risked their lives for Luffy, but he... you needed to hate him. But no matter how much you tried, you couldn´t get yourself to do it. 

¨I don´t want you thinking that I owe you anything.¨

¨You don´t have to owe me anything, Y/N. But we´ve known each other for a while now, so... we both know that you will.¨ 

His lips turned into an honest smile, no teasing behind it, and you wished not to have your heart beating faster for it. 

¨You don´t kn-¨

¨Y/N!¨ Luffy entered the bar, running to you with the brightest of the smiles on his face.¨Are you done? I have to show you something!¨ he asked, pulling the fabric of your coat.

¨Oi, behave Luffy, I´ll be done in-¨

¨Nooo!¨ he pouted before turning to the opposite side and pulling one of his impish grins ¨Look what I can do! Gomu gomu no...¨ 

His tiny hand balled into a fist, which you watched stretch all the way to the opposite side of the room before coming back and hitting him in the face. 

Did his arm just...      

The air froze in the room. You blinked a couple of times, hearing a few gasps around the bar, your gaze fixed in the same place his hand was seconds ago.

¨Luffy-kun, why don´t you come outside with me?¨ Makino extended her hand for him to take. ¨I´ll bring some meat.¨

The kid screamed in excitement and followed her, drool dripping down his chin. 

So close, Shanks. So close. He thought, lowering his head on the counter and waiting to get chewed up. However, after a few unscathed seconds, the red-haired lifted his head, almost not believe his eyes. 

That was the first and last time you bowed to a pirate. 

Of course, later on, you punched him for letting Luffy eat a Devil Fruit. 

You swore to leave him and his crew alone, as long as they did not cause bigger problems, which they eventually did, but you had a debt you could never pay, and you ended up focusing on other things. 

Those things made it difficult for you to visit Luffy as much as you wanted, but since Garp had sent him to live with Dadan, you could sleep with a clean consciousness. 

Whenever you paid him visits, he would tell you about these other kids, whom he considered brothers. One you got to meet, Sabo, smart and polite. The other, however, ran from you like you were a freaking plague. 

Ace, another one with whom you had an inestimable debt. 

¨Humor me, Y/N. If not Foosha, why here?¨

You shrugged.

¨I was passing by, and the place seemed quite enjoyable.¨ 

¨Hm.¨ the wind blew stronger, turning the gentle swishing of the palm trees into a harsher rustling. ¨Should I get my men ready for a conflict?¨

¨Relax, Shanks. Right now, this is the safest place on earth.¨

¨What do you mean?¨ he asked, genuinely curious. 

¨Oh, come on.¨ you scoffed. ¨Not even the World Government will try to put their hands on you, and I´ll kill anyone who dares to ruin my vacation.¨

¨What about you, Y/N? Will you try to put your hands on me?¨ 

His gaze was heavy on you, conquering aura filling the place. You looked at him with narrowed eyes and a smirk growing on your lips. 

This guy...

You harnessed the moment to take in his features, a lot more mature than you remembered. Although the scars were deeper and he seemed more tired, his hair shone like fresh blood, and his eyes... you were afraid to drown in them. 

¨What would you do if I decided to put my hands on you?¨ you bit your lip. ¨I heard you´ve been terrorizing some kids lately.¨

¨Gotta give them a run for their bounties, right?¨ He laughed. ¨But I also heard some interesting things about you, Y/N.¨

You raised your eyebrows as if you were encouraging him to tell you more. 

¨Apparently, I´m not the only one spending recreational time with young pirates. And there I thought Marines weren´t supposed to hunt Warlords of the Sea.¨

A shiver ran down your body, already aware of the subject he was about to bring up.

¨Well, I have no idea what you´re talking about.¨ You said, giving him your best oblivious eyelash bat. 

¨Oh yeah? Because it was brought to my attention that you made some business with... what´s his name again?¨ he pretended exaggeratedly to think about it ¨Ah, Trafalgar Law.¨

¨Only time I spoke to him, he was a Warlord as well. And I just wanted to thank him for helping Luffy in Marineford.¨

¨You´re gonna start lying to me at this point of our relationship?¨ Shanks teased to eager a bit of the tension, and a scoff left your mouth.

¨First, you´re delusional. Second, you´re too nosey for your own good.¨ 

The two of you laughed along like you were not natural enemies.

¨Did you get to meet Luffy in Dressrosa? Heard they made an alliance.¨

¨Hm, yeah. But no, couldn´t get myself to do it.¨

You frowned, hurting for have had your little brother so close but not being brave enough to approach him. Good thing he had no idea about your presence in the scene, and you could trust Law´s discretion to keep it that way. 

¨He doesn´t hate you, you know.¨

¨Yeah, I know...¨

That was true. Luffy didn´t hate you for not helping him in Marienford, just like he didn´t hate Garp for standing in his way. He had too big of a heart for that. 

Shanks let you have your time in silence, empathizing with your feelings. He too had to make sacrifices by standing his ground before.

¨What now?¨ he asked.

¨What now?¨ 

¨Garp is retired. Joker is down. What´s holding you back?¨

The air got stuck in your lungs. The reality you had been running from, the question for which you postponed to find an answer. 

When Garp took you in, the alternatives available for you were restricted, to say the very least. It was either accept the kindness of a stranger or die. He taught you his trade and molded you into one of the best-skilled marines. 

As the time passed and you learned the ugly truth behind the World Government, the disgust and disbelief made you want to leave. Fortunately, your life was not stained by the passage of a Celestial Dragon, but how were you supposed to protect them, aware of the atrocities they afflicted to people?

At the same time, how could you leave Garp after everything he did for you? Of course, he would survive if you disappointed him that much, but you owed him your life. 

What made you stay, however, was something much less pleasant than a lifetime debt. Thirteen years ago, evil prevailed, and you lost something really important. Or rather, someone. 

Commander Donquixote Rosinante. Marine code 01746. 

He had a sense of justice like no one else. He was strong, honest, and fair. Did he make you want to pull your hair out every time he lit himself on fire? Yes. Did it bother you to have stains on your tatami because he dropped hot tea on it? Yes. He possessed the ability to get you on your nerves, but he was your family. 

You were supposed to be the greatest. 

Long story short, that night, at Swallow Island, you left with more than just his dead body. You inherited his will. 

You swore to take down the man responsible for shortening his life, and hopefully, in a later day, you could meet the little boy about whom he spoke so highly. 

It took you thirteen years. No more ties of the past, no more strings on you. 

Well, just one, if you were to be entirely honest with yourself. A string of a stupid tale, a nonsense legend, a foolish myth. The Thread of Destiny, supposed to connect two people together. They say the thread may stretch or tangle, but it shall never break. 

Bullshit. There´s no such a thing. 

But assuming that there was, why did you feel that if you pulled it to its very end, what you would find would be red as well? 

Red as the vest Luffy wore diligently; red as the nose of a cranky apprentice; red as the pompous sails of the Oro Jackson; red as the locks of the man capable of stopping wars with words.

Would you dare to be anything else? Could you step out of your own life like this? Could you abandon everything you fought for all these years? 

¨You know, I´ve said it in the past, but I´ll say it again. We could use someone like you in our crew.¨ 

You gave him a two-second smirky scoff before frowning again. 

Were you worthy enough to owe yourself the chance to choose? What did it mean, the justice coat of a Vice Admiral you carried so proud on your shoulders?

If piracy took a lot from you in the past, could piracy, or a pirate, give you everything back? 

¨Y/N?¨

¨Hm?¨ You hummed, gaze locked on the lethargic view. 

Hot puffs of air played with your hair and involved your skin in a warm hug. You could hear the gentle sound of the waves crashing on the shore, coastal birds cooing and the wind whistling over the rocks. 

¨Do you think, maybe, one day... I could ask you out?¨

No matter how many times you rewound the tape, you couldn´t find a different answer, a plausible reason for the burning feeling you held for him, whatever that meant. 

From the first time you put your eyes on each other, a contract was opened without even a handshake. A deal was set without your acknowledgment. An ironic fate tied you to the same string. 

¨Yeah... maybe.¨

[softrozene]

Stars and Dreams

Anonymous requested: Hello!!! (＾ω＾) Can I request one-shot soulmate au and (magic au? Idk if you name that. 😅) Law x fem! S/O? Okay it's more like a legend. If a person meet another person (in form of a star) in their dreams they're are soulmates together. Law sees her, her appearance is form of a star but he can hear her voice clear and well. Same opposite for fem! S/O. The timeline is somewhere in Punk Hazard. And she's by the strawhats crew. When she meets Law she thinks "hey! His voice is sounds familiar." She has often dream it if she sleeps. She has also heard the legend of soulmates. If they touch each other. Then both in their body shines a bright light. Like magic. And if they sleep again. Then she sees not the star form but person Law standing before her. That's it. I hope it's not to difficult. 😅 And take your time all you need.

Alright! The first request of the year! I saved it from last year because I am beaming with confidence (and I am such a sucker for fluff and soulmates alkdafs) FLDSA I don’t think this classifies as a magic au but I sure as heck am putting that down because stars??? They are freaking magical fluff to me. This was so fun to do so thank you for requesting it!

Trafalgar Law x Female Reader

Warnings: Fluff- tooth-rotting fluff, Slight angst that is fixed with more fluff, probably grammar like always- Technical spoilers for Punk Hazard but I try to be as vague as possible and skip to the end of it.

Words: 1746

-

You loved going to sleep. You loved it so much and the whole crew knows why- You are one of the lucky few who has been blessed to have a soulmate. Some would consider it not lucky at all since it is so uncommon and more like a legend- But you love it so much.

You love the idea of solely being someone’s and them solely being yours.

The first time you had this dream was roughly when you were twenty. The shock that this legend of seeing your soulmate in the form of a star was beyond shocking to you. He was too bright of a light as a star, and you wondered if you appeared that way to him- If you were just as bright and mysterious to him.  Even so, you loved to stare into the light of the star. Even if you could not see his physical form you knew immediately that you loved him. The second you heard his voice too- You melted. He was perfect in every way even if you have yet to learn more about him.

The part that saddened you was even though you could talk to him in your dream- You were not really talking to him. It was only a dream so whatever information his voice gave you, was all in your head. You had no true way of knowing who he is, what he liked, his name, where he was from, absolutely nothing. It made you a bit heartbroken because this was the sad part- You were destined to be together but the only thing you had to go off from was the sound of his voice.

So, it was around six years ago long before you joined the Straw Hats that the dreams started. The dreams were vague and very rare to happen at first until you did join the Straw Hats two years ago.

They got more constant and you loved to fall asleep and dream away to hear his voice. You tried to memorize it for when you were awake in the real world on islands. To try and pinpoint his voice but it was in vain.

Slowly- Ever so slowly, you began to accept the fact that you may never meet him. It broke your heart, but you began to accept it while you and the Straw Hats were split up, and eventually, it just hurt to go to sleep and dream of someone meant to be yours, but you may never have. You started to avoid sleeping.

~*~

For Law- Things were different.

When he first got the dream at age twenty, he denied it. He thought that soulmates were just strictly legends- Something not real. Until that dream and because of how much it made him feel- Alive and surprised that he may be able to love someone and receive their love in return, it frankly scared him.

He avoided sleep whenever he could- He avoided the fact that he has a soulmate.

He did not want one- He did not want to risk losing the person meant for him since he just kept losing people when he was younger.

It terrifies him and he hates it.

He will be stubborn for the next six years but eventually as the dreams got more frequent and he had no choice but to hear your sweet voice- He started to fall and hard.

It pissed him off greatly but since he slowly started to give in and felt the overwhelming love drift to him in his sleep from your star, he… Started to love to sleep when he can. He enjoyed it so much. To hear your sweet feminine voice call for him- Even if it may just be his mind doing that for you he loved it nonetheless.

Though- He did realize he could not let his dreams, his soulmate, ruin his plans for Doflamingo. He tried to keep a strict schedule and since he knew the possibility of dying was there- He tried to sleep and hear your voice so it can be one last comfort he has before the possibility of the next day taking his life comes.

He pursued his plan- Got to Punk Hazard, waited for someone he put his bid on to get there- Monkey D. Luffy to create an alliance with him. What he did not anticipate was to hear that familiar voice coming from his crew.

It became unreal to him and he did think he was going a bit crazy- But… According to the legends, all he had to do was touch you then after this terrible mission he can sleep, and hopefully- He will find out if you really are his soulmate or if this was all just a terrible dream leading him on and making him believe he can be loved in this unforgiving world.

~*~

You were exhausted. And really grumpy. Those two things did not match well, and it made your brain foggy- Definitely not a good thing when you got to Punk Hazard. An island that seemed to be swarming with enemies.

It was cold and you were miserable- Then you heard an annoying voice trying to make an alliance with your captain- Wait, you know that voice.

You couldn’t place it, but you were fairly certain it may have been from your dream. That is your initial thought until Robin informs you that they all met him back Sabaody Archipelago- Trafalgar Law. You do not recall- You remember a polar bear but that is it.

While everyone was fighting you had gotten lost with Zoro and the poor fool got split up with you and you were looking all over for him so you can’t really remember much. It is a shame since that mostly means you met him- Maybe you think it was his voice because of how loopy you are. You should really sleep after all this.

It becomes a hassle to keep up with everyone, but you are used to being exhausted now and days. The others do keep an eye on you when you become a bit dazed, they help you a lot.

Eventually- All the chaos your crew, Law, and the marines ensue on the island comes to an end- Law has Caesar successfully tied down for the next part of the plan he wants you guys to help him with- Going to Dressrosa.

But for now- Everyone, including the marines, is enjoying dinner together after that long and hectic journey of bringing Punk Hazard’s facility to an end. You wait patiently for your food- Waiting for everyone else to get their fill- Even arguing with Sanji and Chopper (who has been concerned about your health) that you can wait.

You sit down and feel the exhaustion creep up on you and nearly smother you then and there but then- You feel a hand on your shoulder and a warm bowl of stew being offered to you.

You look up to see it is Law who has his eyes narrowed down at you.

“You should listen to your doctor more. He informed me about your sleeping habits, and it isn’t good to be low on energy so you should eat up,” He states rather coldly.

You do not take it to heart. You smile and thank him.

“I appreciate the worry now that we will be working together. Oh- I suppose we still do not know each other well from Sabaody. I am (Name),” You say softly.

He narrows his eyes down but replies, “Trafalgar Law… Unfortunately, (Name) we did not have the pleasure of meeting at Sabaody. I would have remembered but it is wonderful to finally meet you now.  You should rest up.”

He leaves before you can process what he said. You are shocked- Because if you truly did not meet him but just his crewmember… Then that means you may not be that loopy. That the voice you fell in love with but have been avoiding is really his.

You hate to say it but… You feel the need to fall asleep. You hate the feeling of hope just in case you are wrong.

~*~

Law is excited. He touched your shoulder, thankfully not like a creep, but as a genuinely concerned doctor. Now he just needs to wait to see if the star will turn to you tonight- He hopes it does but the part of him that does not want to risk losing anyone ever again also hopes it doesn’t.

They sleep there that night deciding to rest up before going on the move to Dressrosa- And like always he is excited to go to sleep, to hear her voice.

Sleep came fast and easy for him- He welcomes the bliss of a clear mind and how he lands in a meadow-like area surrounded by stars- The main star being his soulmate’s form. He waits with anticipation and slowly the star does begin to transform. He can’t help the blush on his face or how he feels the sudden happiness that it is true.

The star turns into your physical form.

He finally found his soulmate.

~*~

Upon waking up- You feel heated. You feel a total sense of comfort and you feel better. That was one of the most peaceful nights of sleep you got since you avoided sleeping and- It was worth falling asleep. You could cry tears of joy from seeing the star turn into Law.

But now that you are awake and you know who your soulmate is- How do you go about it? Do you even assume he had the same thing happen to him?

You are suddenly anxious as the smell of food wakes you up further. That means people will be gathering for breakfast and you all are off to Dressrosa afterward. That means you get to see Law- You feel even more anxious.

However, you do not get the time you needed to compose yourself.

Instead, you hear a knock on the girl’s door- Nami and Robin long awake and letting you sleep since you haven’t lately, and you feel your nerves light on fire as you open the door to see Law standing there.

You notice the blush on his face and the gentle look in his eyes. He decides to address the issue first. You can hear the happiness in his voice.

“So- We are soulmates.”

You smile back.

“Yeah- I guess we are.”

[simonxriley]

OC lore part 1 of 7 for @gear-redfield 

Since I have a ton of ocs I’m gonna start off with the ones that are in different fandoms and then work my way through the fandoms I have multiple ocs for. I think I’m gonna do 5-6 HCs for them so it won’t be a mile long. The other ocs I’ll go into more details (maybe).

Riley Sanders (Metro Series)

Has three Watchers for pets, they’re her babies. But there was barely any room on the Aurora for them until they ended up getting the other rail carts. They tend to sleep anywhere they want, mostly in place where they stop people from moving around the train. 

She’s not very talkative, likes to keep to herself for the most part. The people she talks with the most is Ulman, Artyom, Anna and Duke. That was until Katya and Nastya joined them. 

Being able to breathe fresh air was kind of liberating for her. It made her happy that there were placing where you can live and breathe on the surface, not stuck in the dark, cold and damp metro. 

Besides her and Ulman, Nastya was the first of the Aurora crew to hold their son. 

Her brother wasn’t with her when that whole issue on the train occurred. He has no idea if she’s alive or not and she vice versa. She’s hoping she’ll be able to see him soon and have him meet his new nephew. 

Amazing at stealth. Can sneak by a group or camp in a matter of minutes without killing anyone. 

Kenadee “The Viper” Taylor (Ghost Recon) 

She joined the US Army right out of high school with her high school sweetheart, Maverick. They married a year later and a year after that had their daughter Addison. 

Joined Delta Force at the age of 24. That whole selection process was rigorous but very rewarding. 

She has a very happy outlook on life, always bubbly. You wouldn’t think she’s apart of Delta. It throws people off every time. 

Lost her husband in the field when their daughter was 5 years old. She retired after that and moved back to her hometown of San Diego where she could raise their daughter in a better environment. 

Joined Nomad’s Ghosts five and a half years later. All thanks to Midas, who she met because their kids go to school together. 

Carries around a knife coated in snakes venom, only uses it during interrogations. 

Anja Kovic (Uncharted)

Was born to Borislav Kovic, a General Major in the Yugoslavia Ground Forces and Svetlana Kovic, a former nurse. Also the younger sister to Vladimir. 

She grew up in a highly abusive household under her fathers rule. He had that mindset of the men work and the woman stay home, then add on the strictness of being in a military family. 

Wanted to be a nurse growing up but those dreams got shot down when her father married her off to the war lord Zoran Lazarevic at the age of 18. 

Marriage to Zoran was horrific, she was just happy he spent more time in the field than with her. His death did not sadden her whatsoever. 

Lost her mother to suspicious circumstances when she was twelve. Leaving her and her older brother at the will of their father. 

After Zoran’s death she was finally free. She left for Serbia in search of finding her brother and during that time gave birth to her and unfortunately Zoran’s son, naming him Dragan. And yes, she did find her brother and became the nurse she always wanted to be. 

Evelyn “Evie” Hazelton (The Order 1886)

Was born to Edith Hazelton and an unnamed father in London, England on October 1st, 1860. (Her mom was a prostitute) 

She lived in a brothel up until her mom’s murder. She loved it, to be surrounded with so many women that helped her through her life, gave her advice and helped molded her into the woman she is today. 

Sir Percival/Malory gave her a spot on the Order after her mom’s death and she became the protege of Sir Galahad/Grayson. There she learned how to fight and shoot a gun. 

The first time she ever saw a werewolf she thought it was a big dog. It was late at night, she was young and couldn’t tell since it was in the far distance. 

Has a scar going down her back from being scratched by a werewolf during a fight. 

Very protective of the people she cares about. She was the only person who pleaded not guilty during Grayson’s trial because she knows him. She knew he wouldn’t have worked with the rebellion if it didn’t suit a good cause. 

Lydia Wilson (Call of Cthulhu) 

Her parents were apart of the cult that was trying to bring back Cthulhu. However, they left Darkwater when Lydia was five and moved to Boston. 

No matter how much her parents tried to make her forget the past, she didn’t. She still has memories of the cult, what the uniforms looked like, the masks. It never left her. 

Started hearing the voice of the Leviathan in her dreams once she hit her late 20′s. Eventually she caught wind of what he wanted and she set sail for Darkwater, a place she hasn’t been since she was five.  

Her father ran a tailoring shop and she helped a lot through her childhood. 

When she spaces out she has a resting bitch face. It makes her loo unapproachable according to her mother. 

The first time she saw the Shambler she though she was hallucinating. That wasn’t the case and she never wants to deal with it again. 

Lily (MCU)

Born on the planet Prometheus. A planet cover in lush green grass and waterfalls. 

Ever since she was a child she had this fight in her. She use to find a decent sized stick and pretend to fight a tree. 

Was married to Thanos for over 20 years. The only good that came out of it were her kids. 

Joined the Avengers after Thanos’ death. It was nice to be around people and strike up conversations. She just loved learning about Earth and she would talk about her home world. 

She was the first owner of the scepter until it was given to Loki. That made her angry, she really loved that scepter. 

The first person she befriended was Carol Danvers because her youngest daughter, Lotus really liked her. 

Ashlynn Davenport (Tomb Raider)

Was born into Trinity. Her father was a sergeant in the Trinity army and her mom was a nurse. 

She liked her life for the most part, loved her parents and friends, but the more she found out about Trinity and all the harm they do she wanted out. Unfortunately they didn’t happen when she was being married off to the Trinity field commander, Konstantin. 

Being married to Konstantin meant moving around a lot, never really staying in one place for too long. Once the mission was done then they moved on. She didn’t mind it, not at first. She liked traveling around and seeing the world, but the stuff Trinity did put a bad taste in her mouth. 

Ash can be quite manipulative when she wants to be. It was something she learned from her dad growing up. 

She helped Lara take down Trinity from the inside when they were looking for the divine source. No one figured it out, all of thinking it was Lara. 

Ashlynn actually loved Konstantin, she just thought his mind was corrupted by his sister and was trying to make him see what was right. So when he died she was pretty pissed and was going to say her true feeling to Ana. Unfortunately the Trinity sniper got to Ana first. Leaving her with a bunch of anger inside her. 

Sawyer Monrow (TLOU)

She was 12 at the time of when the cordycepts outbreak began. Her life was pretty great as well and then over night everything changed. 

Her family ended up at the Hartford QZ, where her and her younger brother went through military training (just like in Boston) to teach them how to kill infected and other humans if necessary. 

Met Joel and Ellie in Pittsburgh. She was with Henry and Sam at the time and after their deaths she stayed with them and made the trek to Jackson. 

She can be very standoff-ish at first glance. It’s how she acts in this apocalyptic world, more so to protect herself and because she doesn’t trust people. 

Started a relationship with Joel a year and a half later. He was the first person she really let in and was happy for the few years they were together. She even considers Ellie like a little sister. 

She lost her family when the Hartford QZ fell. She tried to save her brothers, but couldn’t. That still haunts her to this day. 

Phaedra Alexeyev (Werewolf The Apocalypse) 

She’s very good at backstabbing and manipulating people. All thanks to her former caern. A part of her hates it, but the other knows how in handy it can be. 

She was born at the Shadow Lords Thunderstrike Sept, Ural Mountains, Russia. Close to the city of Chelyabinsk. 

Phaedra and Cahal became a surrogate family after they both had to kill a family member. 

Always the first ready to jump into the action. When there’s a fight she’s on the front lines, she’s not going to miss out. And she just likes to fight in general. 

She born under a full moon making her have the Ahroun Auspices.The Full Moon makes the Ahroun the living weapon of Gaia. They are the warrior among a race of warriors, the champion of a martial people. Ever ready to kill, and to die if need be.

Her name means Bright Defender. 

Emma Ross (Stargate Atlantis)

Joined the Marines to help pay for her college tuition. She surprisingly enjoyed it and continued to serve as she got her degree in science. 

Lived a very mundane life growing up. Had two wonderful parents, a good upbringing, nothing exciting really happened. Which might have been the reason she joined the military. 

The hardest thing she has to do is lie to her friends and family when she was transferred over to the Atlantis expedition. Being so far away from them sucks, but with the Daedalus she has more of a chance to go visit them.   

As much as she’s in danger, she’s never felt more alive than being on Sheppard’s team. All the action just makes her blood pump. 

Ronon calls her ‘red’ due to her being a red head. She finds it kinda funny. 

She’s very friends and loves to strike up conversations whenever she can. Getting to know more people on Atlantis made living there easier. 

[attina-the-responsible]

How to Tell Your Family You’re Moving Across the World According to Mermaids ~*~ [Merfam]

In which Attina and Panic make a big announcement...[takes place at the beginning of the summer.]

@arista-the-musical​, @aquata-the-champ​, @alana-the-brilliant​, @melody-the-unwritten​, @panicked-nights​

[tw -- none]

ATTINA: Attina had cooked a nice salmon and tofu (for the veggies) dinner for everyone. It was almost easier to wrangle everyone now, because there were so few of them. Andrina and Adella were such big presences that dinners felt so small without them. But, she’d already called them both and told them that she was moving. It had been nice to slide into it that way, but they were also the oldest. She had no idea how the rest of her sisters were going to react.

It was nice to have Panic there for moral support. And her dad, of course. Who was aware that tonight was going to be the night.

Attina was not nervous that they were going to be angry with her. She was actually nervous of the opposite. That people would want her to leave. That they would tell her that why did it matter, why was she making a big deal of this?

She waited until the dinner was winding down. One of the sisters actually got up to put her plate up because Attina was procrastinating.

“Wait—“ she barked, when the sister stood. “Uh, please, sit. I, er—we—“ she glanced at Panic. “Have something to tell you.”

Attina took another breath. “PanicandIaremovingtoAustralia.”

AQUATA: Aquata almost choked on her salmon. “Australia?” she repeated.

This was the thing: Aquata was learning to let go of the idea that all of her sisters would stay in the same place forever. Especially after talking to her at the wedding, Aquata now understood that this wasn’t just a phase for Andy and she probably wasn’t coming back. And even though Adella had gotten the brunt of Aquata’s crisis about the family splitting up, Aquata had eventually made her peace with it.

She maybe expected Tina to leave, eventually, especially since she didn’t have her wedding in Swynlake. But Australia?

She coughed and cleared her throat, her expression going neutral. “That’s a long bloody plane ride.”

ARISTA: Arista chewed on her tofu, happy to just sit among her family. Dinner nights were always so lovely. It was how they all caught up on things. (Well, at least the ones who were still in town).

Her brows shot up, Aquata had a point. It was a long plane ride. “Australia? Like forever?” Australia seemed pretty permanently away from Swynlake. But she trusted her sister to not make decisions unless she had already thought it over like a million times. “You think you’ll be near where Jake’s from? Maybe he can give you some pointers or teach you slang.” She tilted her head, trying to think back to all the weird things she’d heard her sister’s boyfriend say over the years.

ALANA: "Australia?!"

To be honest, Alana had a moment of fear. It struck her suddenly and she looked at the dinner table, at the empty seats where Andrina and Adella once sat. She felt something twist in her gut, but then she looked at Tina and that twisting feeling transformed into a swell of pride.

"Ohmigosh that's so great!" she exclaimed. "Wow, more excuses for me to visit."

MELODY: Well, that was far. Was the first thought as Melody digested the news. She wasn't all that surprised though. Each of the girls were moving on in their own way she wondered who would be next truly.

But this wasn't supposed to be sad. Not at all. "When are you planning on moving?"

PANIC: Panic watched everyone's reactions grimacing ahead of time almost expecting for it to go terribly. Though it wasn't that bad not yet. "It's a long plane ride for sure but we're planning on getting a big enough place you guys can all visit whenever." Panic offered leaving Tina to answer Arista because really who knew especially with school. 

"Toward the end of summer, we need to be there by Late August so we want to settle in a bit."

ATTINA: Attina hadn't announced something like this since...well, since her pregnancy. And she'd done that one on one, because as much as she insisted on these dinners and everyone sharing their lives with each other, she always found it a little overwhelming to be the focus of the attention.

It was nice to have Panic there to help her, because she was trying to untangle her tongue while all her sisters and cousin stared at her. She knew it must be shocking and probably felt like it was coming out of left field and she felt herself about to word vomit everywhere a bunch of excuses.

Panic corralled everyone first and Attina shot him a grateful look before nodding.

"Yes, late summer. I will, uhm, I'm--I accepted an PhD studies offer at the National Australia University in Canberra for Marine Biology. It's not near Jake's, unfortunately." She had already looked that up, because of course she knew where her sister's boyfriend was from. "But, I'm sure he can give us plenty of pointers."

AQUATA: Aquata was stunned.

Andy had always been a loose cannon. Adella had always wanted to get out of Swynlake from the beginning. But Tina? Tina, who basically ran Whosits and Whatsits, who went to every community event, who had a house here and friends and, okay, probably a lot of bad memories too, but who seemed more a part of Swynlake than anyone else?

It was like one of those moments when you were a kid and realized the teacher didn’t sleep at school. Attina had her own life. But.... Australia was really far.

Aquata didn’t really know what to say. She didn’t want to make a scene, or be the unsupportive one (again). But for someone who liked plans and routines, who liked being able to keep track of everyone, it was a lot to process.

“Congrats, Tina, that’s cool,” Aquata said flatly. She needed to go for a swim. She looked at Panic and smirked. Humor was a little easier than being sincere. “Better be a mansion. I’m not getting on a twenty-hour flight for any old cottage. Or maybe I’ll just swim there. Probably faster.”

Aquata made a face to show she was joking, because she didn’t want to freak Attina out, but honestly, it did sound like a fun idea.

ALANA: Alana was still processing this. First Andrina had left, which seemed like a given and honestly, Lana had been surprised it hadn't happened sooner. She missed Andrina so much, her absence like a loose tooth she kept on prodding with her tongue. Adella had left second, which hadn't been a surprise either; she'd already left once the first time and she'd never wanted to stay in Swynlake. She had big dreams and a little town in England didn't exactly lend itself to them.

And now Attina --

Maybe this had been coming from the beginning. Maybe Attina dreamed of things too, dreamed of the ocean and helping save it. Maybe it was obligation that had kept her trapped in Swynlake, that obligation growing into fear and spreading across the rest of them. Maybe that's why Andrina had broken away, why Adella had always dreamed of bigger things. Maybe it all went back to Attina and the fact that she had stayed in the first place, instead of leaving.

Alana always wondered why she was working in a shoppe when she had a Master's degree.

Alana didn't know what she'd do without her big sister. It was one thing for Andrina and Adella to go off -- but Attina?

She wasn't sure where to look. Looking at Attina might make her cry. Looking at Aquata might make her scared. So she looked at Arista, who was soft and smiling and with a deep breath, Lana tried to relax herself.

(She wondered, briefly, if she would ever leave Swynlake; she'd thought about it a lot as a teenager but now... well with her own place and her own life separate from the legacy of her family, it didn't really bother her as much. She wondered, out of all of them, who would go and who would remain).

"Oh my gosh, do you have a new place picked out already?" asked Alana. "Is it by the beach? Please tell me it's by the beach."

ARISTA: Arista, of course, was sad to see any of her sisters go. But she knew they all had to do some exploring of their own some time. She had left for a time to find perspective and where her music came from. Andy had left to grow and spread herself far and wide so she could experience everything the world had to offer. Adella had dreams that were outside of Swynlake. And so while she had been sad for those instances, she was happy for them because she knew they were becoming who they wanted to be most in the world.

And though the sadness over Tina hit her heart particularly hard as Tina had been the most patient and the most kind to her growing up (they of course were not without their fights as seen over the last couple years) but Arista knew that Tina had put a lot on hold and been through so much in town that it only made sense that she too at some point would want to find something different out there. And that didn’t mean they were losing her. They were just gaining distance while she became an even brighter version of herself.

She looked between her sisters, they all has their respective reactions but one thing was clear, they loved their sister and wanted to see her happy in their own ways.

She smiled softly, her voice matched her smile as she looked at her eldest sister, “I think you really deserve this, Teens.”

MELODY: Melody sighed softly but nodded, this was good. The degree was amazing. And it would be good for Attina and Panic, she was sure of it. Or at least she hoped. Just like she hoped all the others girls were happier doing whatever it was they were doing right now.

It felt lonely in a way, seeing everyone move on but making her life more steady here. Would she be like them too one day? Would the rest of the Triton's be like that?

"Congrats Tina. That's going to be such a cool program. " None the less Melody would take each day by day and today was Tina and Panic's day.

PANIC: Panic nodded giving the girls all a smile, a brief glance over to JEFF too. "We'll be near the water and no little cottage don't worry. Though maybe not a mansion big." Panic grinned with a raised eyebrow in Aquata's direction.

"Enough room and good scenery, it'll be worth the flight." Reaching over Panic gave Tina's hand a small squeeze. This was going a lot better than expected and part of him wondered if it was because some of the others girls had left. Strangely enough this was more common than you would first think.

ATTINA: No one was yelling. Everyone was smiling--some more reserved than others. The air was a little stilted, awkward, and nervous, but...no one was yelling. That let Attina know, more than anything else, that this was the right decision. She had let out the breath she was holding and managed a tentative smile herself.

There were little tears shining in the corner of her eyes, but she nodded, squeezing Panic's hand back when he reached for her.

"Yes, of course. You are all welcome to visit, at any time. And we'll all FaceTime and text. It will be like I'm not really gone at all."

"We'll miss you too, Tiny, but don't worry. You're going to do brilliantly," Daddy said, reaching over to squeeze Attina's shoulder. She smiled over at him. "Your mum would be proud."

"Daddy," Attina said, those tears trembling--much more closer to falling. "You must promise to keep me informed of everything. I'll miss you all so much."

[imaginingsoftly]

Not My Type - Matthew Tkachuk

Type: first meetings, Y/N insert shorts

Requested: No

Warnings: drinking

(Y/N = Your name)

A/N: You all have Matty Tkachuk stuck in my head and I don’t know how I feel about it. #26 from this prompt list, “Just one drink”

The last thing you’d expected to be doing on your first day of summer break was day drinking at a baseball game and then drinking more at a bar afterwards, but here you were. 

Kay was your best friend, and you really couldn’t say no when she offered to buy tickets for the two of you to go see a Cardinals game, on the condition you’d go out drinking with her after. She wasn’t a baseball fan, so you knew it was really the only opportunity to get her to the ballpark. “Come on, Y/N,” she had whined, “you have to stop in St. Louis on your way home anyway. Why not stay a day or two and visit with me before we don’t see each other all summer?” She had a point. After spending three years and two summer sessions together at Stanford, it was the first time the two of you would be spending any significant amount of time not joined at the hip. Besides, it wasn’t like you were really in that much of a rush to get back to Philly. 

You’d agreed eventually, and that was how you’d ended up where you were now, more than a little buzzed and trying not to be offended Kay had abandoned you at the bar to go hunt for a boy to torture until she was ready to go home. Paddy O’s wasn’t that bad; Kay knew how to pick her bars, even if she chose this place purely because she knew you’d find someone to talk baseball with so she didn’t feel guilty about abandoning you. 

Your Phillies were playing the Mariners, and the beers you’d consumed earlier at the ballpark finally caught up to you as you found yourself caught up in the game. “That’s fucking bullshit,” you said out loud, raising an arm at the television screen nearest you. “That wasn’t a fucking strike, it was two feet outside the box! Holy shit are you joking?” You took another sip of beer as you shook your head in disgust. How Joe West was still calling games was a mystery. The guy lost his ability to identify balls and strikes before you were born. 

“You a Seattle fan, sweetheart?” The voice came from behind you, smug enough you were already readying for a fight before you’d turned around. The face smirking down at you was enough to make you take pause before you responded. Matthew Tkachuk may have been one of the most irritating players you’d ever watched, but he was damn pretty. 

Tkachuk raised an eyebrow, and you realized you’d been staring. “Phillies, actually, but I have a problem with shitty officiating.” He laughed, and you relaxed slightly. Sports was your comfort zone. As long as he didn’t start flirting you were fine. His nose was slightly burnt under the shadow of his Cardinal’s hat, and you realized he must have just come from the game as well. “You at the game earlier?” Tkachuk cocked his head in confusion, and you gestured at his attire. 

Realization dawned on his face, and Tkachuk nodded. “My brother and I try to take in games whenever we can. I don’t know if we can watch baseball together anymore though, he picked up a slight affection for the Red Sox when he was at BU.” He took a seat at the bar stool next to you and continued. “I told him he wasn’t allowed to jump on that bandwagon, and he tried to tell me he went to school in Boston so he wasn’t bandwagoning, it was his team now. Kid went there for a year, he doesn’t get to call it a home team.” Tkachuk shook his head in disgust, and you found yourself giggling. 

“So can I get a name, or am I going to have to call you baseball girl all night?” Tkachuk cocked an eyebrow at you, and somehow you didn’t find his attitude as annoying as you usually would. You must have been drunker than you thought. 

“It’s Y/N. Sorry.” Tkachuk stuck out his hand and smirked again. Nevermind, his attitude was annoying.

“Matthew. You can call me Matt if you’d like.” Yeah, definitely annoying. “I have to ask, what’s a pretty girl like you doing in a bar like this all alone?” You rolled your eyes at his lame excuse for a pickup line. Real original, Tkachuk.

There was a reason you never went for the athlete types. Most of them were hot, or at least had hot bodies, but that was about it. Their egos could reach Mars, and a lot of them couldn’t keep up with your brain. Your grandfather had said it best; “million dollar bat, ten cent brains.” They tried, most of the time, but it got frustrating to try and slow down so they could keep up. That wasn’t to say they were all like that; some of the athletes you’d met over the years were good guys with decent minds, but they just weren��t your type. You preferred watching them on their respective fields of play than screwing them. 

You sighed, gesturing in the general direction of Kay. “I’m actually here with my college roommate. I’m visiting her on my way home from Stanford.” Oops. You usually didn’t give away where you went to school, especially to guys you didn’t know. “She likes to flirt. I prefer watching sports.” You took another sip of beer as Tkachuk’s eyes lit up.

His eyes followed the beer as you raised it to your lips, and you squirmed a little at the way he was looking at you. His eyes held just enough mischief to keep you weary as he spoke again. “You a hockey fan by any chance?” You almost regretted nodding when Tkachuk made a self-satisfied face at the admission. “Me too.” Not the response you were expecting. Tkachuk laughed when you cocked an eyebrow, telling him as much without a word. “You know who I am?” The cocky bastard had the audacity to blush when you said yes. “Can I buy you a drink?” 

You almost refused on principle, ready to end the conversation and get back to your game, when he spoke again. “I’m not trying anything, I promise. I just want to talk baseball, and it looks like the two idiots keeping us out here are currently talking to each other.” You looked over at Kay, and he was right. Her and Brady were chatting away like long-lost friends, and you sighed. Of course she would be flirting with a professional athlete and have no idea who he was. “Just one drink,” you sighed as you stared daggers at Kay, “and then I have to go make sure my idiot roommate knows she’s flirting with a guy two years younger than her.” Tkachuk laughed and gestured at the bartender for refills of what you were both drinking. 

The Phillies had begun a rally while you were speaking to Tkachuk, and your eyes flew back to the screen as Molina lined the ball into the right field gap. You cheered without thinking, holding out your hand for a high five. Tkachuk obliged, and you blushed when you looked over to find him staring at you in amusement. “You weren’t kidding when you said you liked baseball, eh?” 

You laughed and jostled his shoulder. “You a Canadian or something, saying eh?” Tkachuk laughed at your teasing and shook his head.

“I spend most of my year in Calgary, sweetheart, I’m gonna pick up on some of their lingo.” He was surprisingly easy to talk to, and you found yourself enjoying your conversation a lot more than you’d expected over the next hour or so. Matthew knew a lot about baseball, and somewhere in that conversation he’d become Matthew instead of just his last name in your mind as one drink turned into two. Kay had moved on from Brady, thank goodness, though you found yourself a little disappointed when she’d reappeared at your side. She nodded at Matthew, smiling approvingly at you, and Matthew stopped his spiel about why the Cardinals should bring back their baby blue uniforms long enough to introduce himself. 

Kay almost had to drag you away from Matthew, much to the surprise of her and yourself, and Matthew’s gentle kiss on your cheek as you said goodbye was almost too much to handle. He’d said goodbye with the kiss and a cocky “sweet dreams sweetheart,” and part of you wanted to cringe over how arrogant he was. The other part of you was pretty turned on. 

That part of you left him a napkin with your number and a note reading, “if you ever want to talk baseball, I’m more than interested.” 

You weren’t expecting a response. Sober you never would have left the note in the first place. 

You certainly weren’t expecting to wake up to a text the next morning that said “Sweetheart, I can think of a lot of things I’m interested in with you, and talking baseball is only one of them.” 

Maybe that athlete rule could be broken just this once. 

[encyclopika]

25, 36, and 53!

Thank you, Amy! :3

25. role model

Ah, my role model is definitely my mentor, who is a retired teacher I met while working at my local aquarium. She's really outdoorsy and has such a way of communicating about nature, that I give her full credit on teaching me how to present marine science. My Master's degree had a large component that *taught* us how to distill tough, scientific ideas, but it's my mentor who really *showed* me how to engage people with story in natural history. Since then, I've perfected my own style by being really excitable about the animals I talk about and funny, (anyone who read the Fish Explained, you'll see that come through, I think!) Even still, I strive to capture an interest in nature and conservation topics in everyone, no matter their age or background, as effortlessly as she does.

36. 3 dreams you want to fulfill?

I've been thinking about this one for a whole day, and I found that most of my big, life dreams, already came true. Most of what's left feels more like bucket list stuff, but here are the big things I'm striving towards:

Own my own house. My husband and I already own a co-op, but we still have to answer to the community's board and rules. Lots of the things we want a house for involve the perks of a backyard, like my next thing:

Create a mini-preserve in my some-day backyard. It'll be tough, but whatever property we have, I want to landscape it into something that is not only beautiful, but functional to the wildlife that may visit. That means planting native plants and removing invasive species, including stray cats. I want to be an oasis of nature in a suburban hell.

Publish my own original story. This one may come quicker than the others, but I'd love to write a story that I wouldn't mind how well it sold, but just to say I did it, I published for real. I already have great candidates in Paradise and Fire & Brimstone, so maybe I'll just start with them whenever I'm feeling ready to do the work.

53. 5 things that make me happy

Not in any order:

Talking with friends. IRL or my Discord community of writers and fellow BNHA fans, I feel like I have met such amazing people in my life already, and I am so grateful to you all.

My husband. The man knows me better than I know myself. I can tell him anything, and I mean *anything*. He's so understanding of me, my quirks, habits, and disabilities, to the point that I have to marvel at it, because few people have done that for me in my life before him.

Animals and probs just nature in general. This shouldn't be a shocker, but really any animal will do, all things fluffy, scaley, slimey, you name it, I love it and I think it's great. Even spiders and snapping turtles and other animals I'm scared of, I love seeing them in their natural habitat. And just being in nature makes me happy - I feel like knowing how it *works* is part of my happiness, because I can see something that would look insignificant to some - like a drag mark in the sand - and know what it came from or how it formed - spoiler, the drag mark most definitely has a horseshoe crab at the end of it! Even just hearing the ocean waves, bird song, the wind, or bees buzzing make me happy. I just really fucking love this planet. How fortunate are we to live in a world full of adorable things to look at and pet???

Art supplies - this might be a weird one, but sometimes just going to the hobby store and seeing all the paintbrushes, stickers, paper, even the holiday merch, just lifts my spirits. I don't even have to buy anything, I just love browsing that stuff!

Stuffed animals/plushies - I own over a hundred stuffed animals, and, although my collection has slowed down, I still love them so much. And believe it or not, I am very particular about the stuffies I get, namely well-made and accurate ones representing exotic animals (so sea creatures, of course, but I also have a hyena, a bat, and a frilled lizard, to name just a few). But, yeah, this probably goes hand-in-hand with #3, but oh well. Bonus: Dessert. Basically the same as #4 - just looking at cakes at the bakery (and sometimes even just being *read* the dessert menu lmao) makes me really happy, even if I don't get to sample them.

I'm an extremely simple person in actuality, at least I think I am. It's not hard to make me happy, really. Cheap, too, lmao!

Ask me anything from this prompt list!

[stuckonvenus]

𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 » Ellie & Becca

 Ｊｕｌｙ ３１ｓｔ， １９９８

The saying goes as such: the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb... or whatever. Honestly I have only ever applied this proverb to my relationship with my sister whenever we weren’t in mortal peril. While I have plenty of friends and acquaintances who I’ve shared battlefields with (i.e. the morning after a party), that never made me any closer to them in a real crisis. I would say about seventy-five percent of the time that the blood is thicker than the water, and the remaining twenty-five percent is when the water isn’t necessarily thicker, but more pressurized. That’s the only time in our lives when we’ve ever come together as sisters.

Well, this is the twenty five percent, and never has the feeling of being sucked and trapped against a fissure at the bottom of the Challenger Deep been more realized than now. It doesn’t help that my bladder is about to implode and leak the citrus-flavored toxic waste I’ve consumed in rapid succession over the past half hour into my visceral fat and contaminate all my vital organs. 

I waddle awkwardly through the narrow doorway of Page One and slam my tiny palm onto the countertop. A bookkeeper who I can recognize as my lab partner from sophomore year chemistry pokes his nose out from the novel he’s immersed in. Moby Dick. Jesus, who reads school assigned books after graduation?

“Hey, Drew-Drew,” I greet him, a lopsided grin fitted on my lips as he brushes his hair out of his eyes and offers me a smile in return. He has a lot more charisma than I remember. I think his eyes have gotten bigger and bluer, too. It reminds me of the water’s surface I’m staring up at from the very bottom of the ocean. “Where’s Becky at?”

Drew dog-ears his page — which is kind of disgusting to me, do they not sell bookmarks in this busted ass joint? — and he points toward the graphic novel section. “Over there, we just got Spider-Man #76, she’s stocking up.”

“... Didn’t #76 come out in January? Of last year?” I ask him. He opens his mouth so he can answer but I stop him with a raised hand. “No time. You’re lookin’ good, Drew-Drew, considerably less like a delicious pepperoni pizza. Keep it up with the Oxy Pads.” I say before pushing away from the counter and venturing off to my destination.

Indeed, my older sister is crouched down and rustling with a display, slightly disgruntled by the symmetry of the copies of Spider-Man she’s stocking. I don’t really have any witty remarks as a smooth enough introduction, so I settle with, “Need help?”

She whips around and I can almost hear the crack in her spinal cord from the velocity. “Lily?” she half-whispers. I forget that I haven’t seen her since late May, and also that I swore I’d never see her again.

“In the flesh,” I confirm and do a curtsey, which threatens my full bladder. I really need to piss soon or else I’ll die a terribly death in the shittiest bookstore on the eastern seaboard. “Do you have a sec? It’s 9-1-1.”

Becca’s expression shifts from awe and minor annoyance to something resembling concern as she pushes herself off her knees. “What is it?” she asks me, crossing her arms over her chest as a last resort defense mechanism. 

I don’t hesitate to hold up the plastic Walgreens bag I’ve carted with me for two blocks. She recognizes the items inside and her eyes go all moony and her jaw slacks a bit. I jerk my brows up expectantly and she assumes the position of utter bewilderment.

“Do you have a place I can empty the biohazardous contents of my bladder? It’s about to necrotize,” I hiss at her. She reaches down, digs in her pocket, unearths a bronze key and walks ahead of me at full speed. I have to waddle after her like a newly hatched penguin chick. It would be more humiliating if over half the population of Eden were literate, but alas...

Becca jams the keys into the lock and just about bodychecks the door so we can enter the rectangular bathroom. It’s cramped and the lighting resembles something out of a Hitchcock film, but who the fuck am I to be picky about where I take the most important whizz of my life?

I place the bag on the counter and take out the three empty full-sized cans of Surge I used to fuel my bladder before picking up the grossest thing I have ever held: a pregnancy test. I keep it in my grasp for a few passing beats, nearly crushing the box underneath my iron-tight grip before man-handling it open and tearing out the plastic stick that will determine my fate.

“This is by far the most unholy fortune telling experience ever,” I decide to joke as I witness my sister cower in the corner. You’d think by the looks of it she were the one whose life was about to change forever. “You think if I shake it a genie will come out and grant me three wishes?”

“... Only if it’s negative, as a gift,” Becca chimes in at last. “Otherwise not even God can save you.”

I let out an involuntary snort, because while my reflexes register this as a funny joke, I am actually scared shitless.

I stare at the porcelain toilet bowl. I feel sicker now looking at it than when I’ve genuinely been at risk for vomiting up my lunch. I could still do that, I’ve been puking like a bulimic for weeks now. The thought is almost comforting. Almost. I bite the bullet instead and yank my pants down, my boy pants, which I normally wear as a boy when I’ve got slightly wider hips and more junk to hide and taller legs to protect with denim fabric. Fuck me.

“I just... Hold it and piss, right?” I ask her, as if she’s gone through this before. I know for a fact she hasn’t, or else this wouldn’t be our first time. I’m surprised it’s our first time, actually, thinking that karma would’ve caught up with me a long time ago. 

“Just don’t get any on your hand.” Becca replies. Very helpful, I think, but rather than respond verbally I give a sigh of defeat and do what needs to be done. When my bladder is emptied an eternity later, I pull up my oversized pants and briefly grieve my dick before I place the test on the counter.

I glance over my shoulder at Becca, “It’s seasoned. Just gotta let it marinate.”

“Gross.” she says with a scrunched up nose.

I turn around and slide down the wall, an action she mimics a couple seconds later. I stare ahead, up at the light that’s screwed into a 70s pendant-shaped fixture, and pass the silence by making them flicker. I do this as a distraction from the materializing tension between us. Normally, this doesn’t happen, but then again our peril has only involved either extreme intoxication, pedos on AOL (during high school), or something about her and Gabriel’s arguments, which felt like walking through Reactor 4 in Chernobyl.

She’s the first one to say something.

“Whose is it? ... If it’s a thing,” she wonders, and as I look over at her I notice that her eyebrows are knitted together and her mouth is fixed downward. “... Please don’t tell me Topher’s.”

I chuckle at the idea. “I think if it were a thing and Topher’s, it’d have grown like a xenomorph baby and ripped itself out of my stomach by now,” I tell her. “I’d deserve that kind of karma for getting knocked up by him.”

“Xenomorph?” she says, and I open my mouth to offer an explanation before she finishes, “Alien. Right.”

“... Yeah, exactly,” I nod along. How in the hell did she remember that? We only ever sat through Alien and Aliens once, and I could’ve sworn she was too preoccupied reading a magazine to actually notice what was happening on screen. 

I also notice that she’s wearing my favorite striped turtleneck. Stone cold bitch.

Some things never change, huh?

Shit, I think I might cry.

This is why we’re siblings, I think, so I can hate her for wearing my favorite turtleneck while sitting by her side as we await Satan’s final decision on the state of my cursed uterus.

Tears prickle my vision but I blink them away. 

“Whose is it, then?” she wonders again. I visibly tense. This is probably where our unspoken, once-in-a-blue-moon loyalties end. How do you tell your sister that her ex-boyfriend is the reason you’re sitting in the dingy bathroom of her workplace with a piss-riddled stick inches away?

In the end, I don’t have to say anything at all. We look at each other simultaneously and she reads my expression with ease. Her features soften and I can see a glint of hurt in her eyes, and I expect ripples of betrayal to make themselves known across the rest of her body soon enough. But those ripples never come. The water I thought was loosening from around me doesn’t make a goddamn move. 

I’m still at the bottom of the Deep, but she’s with me now.

Her hand grips mine. Tight. I can feel our pulses match up in our paralleling wrists.

“I think it’s been enough time.” I say eventually. She doesn’t release my hand. Our shared warmth creates a comfortable friction between us. “... Will you hate me after this?”

Becca squeezes my hand. A heart beat jumps out from her touch to mine. “I think I’ve hated you enough for one summer.”

A smile flickers on the corner of my lips and I slowly depart my hand from hers. My palm is slick with sweat but I don’t mind. I stand up and feel my equilibrium struggle to steady itself before I’m ready to approach the counter. The test is still there, so I know this wasn’t an abstract fever dream I’ve had after discovering so much eerily similar history.

I’m not a fucking coward. I’m looking this shit straight on, no matter what. Do you think I’m afraid of a sign? Totally not. I lean over and stare down, my gaze idling at the base before finally fixating on the panel.

+

Holy shitstickers.

“... Becca?” I call out, my voice half gone from unknown forces. She perks up and I see her reflection in the mirror with widened eyes. “Do you have five bucks? I’m gonna need more Surge.”

[sooghostwriter]

Chef Soo. Three meals a day

Pairings: Do Kyung Soo x OC (Nameless, but I refuse to use Y/N)

Genre: Romance, canon AU (?), fluff, fast burn, smut. 

Lunch: Miso

The idol  and the chef  

When she met Kyung Soo she was a little bit tipsy. 

That involved a very loose mouth and some difficulty accessing to her memories. She normally had a friend who would take care of her. But said friend left her hanging for her newest boyfriend. So, it was only her, her two empty bottles and a full one. The restaurant was almost empty. Only a young couple seated in the corner and another girl with a friend, or girlfriend, who was she to judge? She was going to drink her last bottle of soju and then call a taxi. She was already looking forward to going home and sleep the drunkenness away. She was about to open the bottle when the sound of the bell at the door distracted her. Another customer. There was something on his form that was so familiar to her. Even to her tipsy brain. Not only his body shape, with his lean form, nice thighs, legs not really long but a nice height overall. His back was wide compared with his waist and what really caught her, the shape of his head under that oh so familiar cap. There was something written on it in white letters. He was walking in her direction, and thanks to her 20/20 sight she could read it "The all England techno club" She read in her head, with a perfect accent. Why was it so familiar? She had read that somewhere. Where was it? 

She stopped herself from keep thinking about it because her head started hurting. She dropped the bottle opener and call it the night. What was she thinking before?  Before she noticed the headache something, was bothering her, what was it?  That was the other thing she got from the tipsiness, mild amnesia. She grabbed the unopened bottle, her bag, and her coat and walked to the counter to pay her bill and bid goodbye to the chef who was also an old friend and ex-teacher.  He was standing behind the counter chatting with a guy dressed in all black and a cap. Oh right! She thought, The all England whatever cap, why was it so familiar? She stood next to the all-black guy and Mister Kang stopped talking to him so he could attend her "Ready to leave? " "Yeah, here, I didn't touch this one" "Your head hurts" She only nodded and took out her wallet. She gave her his card and waited for him to collect his money. She was still curious about that cap "Dear, this machine is acting up,  give me a second " "Don't worry, I have time, I will call a taxi" She searched for her phone on her bag "What happened to your friend?" Mister Kang asked "She planted me,  she got new dick " Ugh damn mouth, the alcohol was showing up. She immediately bit her tongue. Mister Kang laughed, already used to her running mouth but she saw the guy next to her jolt "I'm so sorry" She apologized to both men “Don't worry about it, a girl with a dirty mouth is a trustful girl, right Kyung Soo?" He commented and asked the man next to her. To which he answered affirmatively, followed by a chuckle. She finally found her phone, embarrassed by her comment and her cliché act of I'm a woman and I can't find my phone in my woman bag. She lit up the screen and felt her brain explode. There it was. The cap. The same cap. And under it, Kyung Soo. What a coincidence, the guy next to her had the same hat and his name was also Kyung Soo. Her brain began shouting at her. It’s him. The guy seated next to her was the same guy on her phone screen, smiling to the camera with his bandmates. The familiar figure she saw coming in was Do Kyung Soo. Fuck this. Fuck this night, fuck those bottles of soju, fuck this restaurant, fuck this day, month and year. Her idol was there. And she was tipsy, talking about dick, without make-up, having a moment with her handbag and completely out of words. If she was 16, she would know what to say to him. Shriek a little bit and then profess her love for him. But she was an adult now, she couldn’t go around shrieking on idol’s face. She kept it cool, thank goodness. She didn’t stare at him, no part of her body was shaking. When Mister Kang spoke to her again, her voice was calm, low, a bit sexy maybe? “This machine is not working, you have any cash on you?” “No, nothing, what can I do?” “Stay here, have another drink, my daughter will arrive in half an hour, she knows how to fix this” That was a good idea “Ok, I will go back to my table” “No, stay here, actually you arrived at the right time, let me introduce you to my friend” Fuck this chef too. “This is Do Kyung Soo, he is coming for some personal lessons, Wanna stay too? Kyung Soo, she used to be my student, she could help us too” A lot was happening in a short time and her slow brain couldn’t process it, so it shut down. Because it is always better to give up than try right? “It's a pleasure to meet you, I’m Kyung Soo” He offered his hand, and yes, her brain wasn’t working, but you didn’t need a brain to be polite. She shook his hand and introduced herself. He answered with a warm smile, and oh shit, it was really him. Mister Kang lead the conversation. He would say something good about her, or comment on something on her curriculum and Kyung Soo would gasp in surprise and she would act shy and humble. Fake shy and humble of course, she had a hell of a curriculum “She spent a year in Spain learning about their cuisine, she brought some really good recipes, Hey! You could teach us some right now, Kyung Soo is taking the test for the cooking certification and …” You didn’t need a brain to shout ‘Really?!’ and jump on your seat excitedly “Yes…is an old dream of mine” She felt like pinching his cheeks “Kyung Soo was just telling me that he is a bit scared because is a hard test” “It is…but is very intuitive, if you practice enough and you know your ingredients you know that some recipes can be cooked in one way only or that they need some ingredients to be what they are” “Yes, like salt, everything needs salt” Mister Kang was joking, and it was a bad joke, but she was still tipsy, and Kyung Soo was too polite not to laugh. A new customer arrived and Mister Kang went to take their order. Now that they were alone and that her brain and body felt a bit sober, she was brave enough to speak up. When the three of them were talking, she couldn’t stop thinking about telling him how much she admired him. This was a once in a lifetime kind of thing, and she knew that Kyung Soo was the kind of guy who would appreciate a word of support. So as soon as they were left alone, she took a deep breath, clenched her fist and went for it “Kyung Soo?” He immediately looked up from his plate and gave her all his attention. What should she say now? I’m your fan sounded superficial. I love you was way too much. It has to be something in between. Something that expressed the support of a fan and the devotion of a friend. “Kyung Soo, I just wanted to tell you that your work has helped me through some hard times, has kept me rooted and as filled me with nothing but precious feelings and a sense of love and proudness, so thank you, I’m very grateful for your existence and I hope you know that you will always have my unconditional support”  The surprise and shock on his eyes was comical. She caught him unprepared. She would have been scared by his silence, but she knew him well, he was looking for the right words “I wouldn’t have thought you were a fan” “Why?” “Our fans tend to be younger” Of course she wasn’t offended by it, she always felt a bit older than the fans around her at concerts. But Kyung Soo’s regret was excessive. He apologized immediately “Don’t worry, I know what you mean, I’m always called the big sister, I’m a couple of months older than you though” Kyung Soo looked down, smiling, his legs fidgeting “What you said, applies to our group…or I’m your …favorite?” How could he look so shy asking something like that? He should be used to this “Did I make you uncomfortable?” He moved his hands in front of her face “No, not at all, it’s just…you never really get used to this, people giving you their attention and care without really knowing you” “Well, we know each other now” She heard herself and could punch her face. She sounded so horribly flirty when she said that. She knew that voice. It was her hunting voice. She used it whenever she encountered a cute boy. Maybe she was still tipsy. But that wasn’t the worst thing. The worst thing was that Kyung Soo reacted to her flirty hunting voice. He stopped fidgeting, he squared his shoulders and grinned at her “Yes, now we know each other” Before Mister Kang arrived, they clinked their glasses holding each other’s stares for a couple of seconds.

The three of them stayed talking about cooking for about an hour. At one point Kyung Soo grabbed a notepad from his backpack and began taking notes. He giggled none stop when she and Mister Kang got into a heated argument about which was the best way to cook fish. It was almost midnight, time for Mister Kang to close the restaurant, but he invited them both to his kitchen so she could teach them how to cook duck. They were ready to start, apron on, hands clean and all the ingredients ready to use. She was teaching them how to marinate it when Mister Kang’s wife called him “Go on without me, please teach Kyung Soo, we can’t lose this beautiful duck” He left in a hurry and they stayed there staring at the place where he used to be “Could you go on? I have never cook duck and I really want to learn, I’m a bit intimidated by it” She looked at him and was reminded again that this was a once in a lifetime thing, so she grabbed the knife and began to quarter the bird. She taught him step by step, giving him time to take notes and answering all his questions. It was clear he wasn’t just an amateur, he knew a lot and he had a really good technique. The last step, putting the duck in the oven left them with nothing to do for an hour. It was already the next day. She should be tired after a day of teaching and cooking, but she wasn’t. She never felt tired when cooking “You are very good giving instructions” He complimented her. She was too flustered by his quirky compliment. As they waited for the duck to be cooked and golden, she opened a can of beer she found on the fridge and shared it with him. They cleaned the kitchen table together and as they did so, they began exchanging stories. She told him how she got into Spanish cuisine, the struggles, the distance, etc. He also shared a lot. Some things she already knew, but others were new. How cooking with his mom caught his interest. How happy it made him when people liked his food, and her favorite “I’m so bad at expressing how I feel with words, cooking became the way I tell my members that I love them” There wasn’t a right way to answer to that. Anything she could say wasn’t enough. So she only smiled fondly at him and he answered with a shy smile. It was so weird because she knew all his gestures, the shy shake of his head, the grin when something was slightly amusing and the heart smile and crunched eyes when something was hilarious. The way he scratched the back of his head when embarrassed or pouted when he was thinking about something. She knew all of them. But he was now there, in flesh, and everything seemed new. Or maybe not new, but brighter than on a screen or a picture. She always thought that when she attended their concerts. They are so much more beautiful in person. But know, having him so close, brushing shoulders as they moved around the kitchen, she realized that he really didn’t need a sequined jacket to shine “Why did you decide to become a chef?” He brought her back from her silent devotion and answered him, feeling weirdly comfortable talking to him. She knew that he was listening, paying attention to everything she was saying, and that was very encouraging. Kyung Soo was telling her about the first time he burned his meal when he was 12 years old, almost causing a fire, when the bell of the oven rang. The duck was ready. When she took it out of the oven, Kyung Soo looked at her as if she was caring a bag of diamonds and walked behind her, almost resting his chin on her shoulder, so close she felt him against her back “Calm down Kyung Soo” She joked, but he ignored her “I’m so excited, let’s try it” “Of course we are eating it, do me a favor, in that cabinet over there, Mister Kang keeps his wines, bring a bottle” “Can we do that?” He asked innocently “Of course, I gave him most of them, don’t worry” Kyung Soo followed her instructions with a bit of uncertainty, but did it anyway. She felt a complicity between them that felt invigorating.   As they ate, they kept talking about food. She couldn’t remember talking so much about food with someone, not even her colleagues. Kyung Soo professed his great admiration. He knew a lot, but she was sharing with him little tricks and secrets you could only learn with practice “You know what issue I have with food, especially Korean food or Japanese food? It never tastes as good as in restaurants or…is just never good enough” She got that question from her students quite often “Oh, that’s easy, you are using store-bought soy sauce and miso right?” “Yes…of course” “No, to get the best flavor you have to ferment your beans my boy” Damn it her mouth. He didn’t react, thank god “At home?” She nodded, sipping from her glass “You know how?” His interest had him almost crawling on top of the table “Of course, I have been mastering the art of fermenting for years, I have a beautiful pot of miso that has been fermenting for a year now” “Really?!” This was the louder she had ever heard him speak. Ever. His excitement made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world “Wanna come and see?” She bit her tongue, this was her tipsiness speaking. She was slightly drunk again. She was going to take it back, but Kyung Soo was faster “Yes, I would love to see it” He answered looking very solemn “Oh…ok, ok let’s go then” They both got up, holding into their chairs “Are you drunk?” She asked him, sounding quite drunk “You too!” They giggled together “Ok, are you driving?” “Not anymore, I live three streets away from here, we are walking, the fresh air will help us with our tipsiness” As Kyung Soo took the plates to the sink she went to communicate Mister Kang their plans for the night, he and his wife exchanged an accomplice look and moved their eyebrows suggestively “OK, I’m not friends with you two anymore” She walked away slightly angry, and very flustered “Everything ok?” He asked her when she appeared in the kitchen, looking weird, for sure “Nothing, he said to leave everything there, he would clean it tomorrow” She lied, just to mess with Mister Kang.

The streets were empty, and the night felt delicious. Fine dust-free, fresh and calm. They took a deep breath at the same time, and laughed with complicity. He looked at her smiling softly,  a smile that always set so well on her heart "Thank you so much, I have learned a lot with you" It sounded like parting words, but he was walking with her to her house, they still had some time ahead, she was sure "Least I could do Kyung Soo " "What do you mean?" She was surprised by his question, what else could she mean?  "As my idol,  you have done a lot for me, this is my way to pay you" He laughed a bit surprised "Right, I completely forgot about that" He kept laughing, so adorably that she felt like slapping herself to come out of the stupor “It wasn't weird for you when I confessed that I was your fan?” She asked focusing on her feet walking, kind of scared of his answer “No at all, weren't you uncomfortable with meeting me?” “You must know that people feel very comfortable around you” He smiled, hiding his expression, focusing on his walking feet too “I'm glad, I'm glad you weren't intimidated” “Dumbfounded maybe, intimidated never” He smiled even shyly than before and she decided to cut it there, she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable "Are you afraid of the test?” He moved his head undecidedly, not a yes or a no “You are a great student,  I'm sure you are going to do great at the exam" His eyes shined with excitement "I can't wait actually,  How was it? When you took the exam" That was 6 years ago,  but it felt even longer "I was terrified, and I had to cook the meal that I didn't like and I wasn't very good at, but I remembered something Mister Kang told me,  He said,  remember that you are not a chef because you are super smart, or good at math or super good at memorizing stuff,  you are becoming a chef because you are good at feeding people and there are no mistakes on that,  your food is going to be good always... I know it was a bunch of crap,  he does that a lot,  but it made sense to me, I'm a great cooker, everybody said so since I'm ten, so how could I screw it?  I got in with that mentality, and I did great,  just be careful with the technique, cut things as you should, with the right knife and the right angle,  be careful with no contaminating your flavors and with the nutritional rules, careful with your salt and oil,  the rest is up to your practice and talent, and you have those" "Thank you" “You got this…and we are here” She stopped on her tracks as they reached her building. She began feeling incredibly nervous. She felt her nape tingling and her stomach heavy “Lead the way then” And she did, although her limbs felt stiff. A part of her was feeling weird bringing a stranger to her house. In her short life, she had done that twice, and the guys weren’t complete strangers. Although thinking it better, Kyung Soo wasn’t a stranger either. He felt more like a long-time friend. They climbed the set of stairs and walked down the hallway to the last door. She began looking for her keys in her handbag and soon as her hands touch the cold object she remembered something. The several posters hanging in her walls. Specifically the one of Kyung Soo. That could screw things up and turn everything horribly awkward “Ok, Before you get in, you have to give me 10 minutes” He looked at the door and then at her a bit lost “Oh, Ok, you have to clean or something?” “Yes... Clean” She got in quickly, trying to open the door the least possible. She turned on the lights and she was immediately faced with the framed posters. Two group ones, one of Kyung Soo and another of Sehun. She was one of those. She liked all of them. She grabbed the four frames, one by one, and hid them in the small guest room. She didn’t bother with hiding her Eribong and the records. He already knew she liked Exo, but maybe see himself adorning her walls could be a bit too much. As soon as she was done, she let him in before he regained his senses and run away “Everything is settled, just don't go into that room” She pointed at the closed door where she hid the frames “Did you hide your husband in there?” “Yeah, something like that” The irony of all. He looked a bit shocked “Kyung Soo I was joking, there is no husband there” “Ok, just making sure, where is the Miso?” He sounded very excited, looking around the house, so she guided him into her small but proud kitchen. He followed her inside like a happy puppy and didn’t leave her side as she opened her fermentation station, and took out the crock with the bean gold. She made him wash his hands before allowing him to open the croc, smell it and taste it. He gave her a look. A look she didn’t know. If she had to describe it, she would say it was ambition “Tell me how you did it and I will get you front row tickets for our next concert” She reached for his hand and shook it energetically “You got yourself a deal my boy” She commented, not feeling embarrassed about her weird drunk persona anymore “You call people my boy when you are tipsy?” “I think so” She explained to him the entire process, giving him time to write down her indications. What beans to use, temperatures, times, how much salt, where to keep it, sealing process and all the details to master an ancient custom “It looks like a lot of work” He commented, closing his small notebook and scratching the back of his head “It is, and time too, but it’s worth it, and you will see” “I will?” “Yeah, you can’t go without trying it, I’m going to prepare you some miso soup” His face lighted up as when they called his name in awards shows, maybe more “Also, as you may know, from the fermentation of the miso we can obtain Tamari sauce, I’m going to grill you some fish with it, I have a small bottle so I only use it for special occasions, and this is one” She saw him beam, and he didn’t need to say anything to show how joyful he felt. As she moved around the kitchen, he asked her a question she was glad to answer “When did you start liking us?” “You guys debuted the same day I took the exam, When I arrived home you were performing and I felt a connection, like we were all starting something that day…then my life kept moving on and you guys were there, I did so many things, work in a super busy restaurant, live in Japan, Taiwan, then Spain then I came back to Korea and Exo was there always, it was the only constant thing, you guys gave me a feeling of…family, home maybe, that’s why I Iove Exo and I support and love all of you” “Ah, you are one of those who supports every member” She nodded smiling, as she took the pot out of the stove “I’m one of those, I even support the ones that left” He thanked her, sounding too solemn for the situation. As she was serving the grilled fish, she asked for Kyung Soo to bring a bottle of Soju from her fridge. If he saw the number of magnets stuck on her fridge with his face on it, he didn’t make a comment, she did hear him chuckle softly. She took the food to the small dining table in front of her window and sat in front of him. Their knees touched under the table, the cold denim of his pants brushing her naked knees. It was so weird and a bit scary how comfortable and familiar his company was. He served them both a glass of Soju and then lifted his small glass “Let’s make a toast for the lack of oxygen” She felt a sweet tingle in her chest “Aw, that’s a fermentation toast! for the lack of oxygen!” They toasted for the second time that night, and she didn’t let go of his stare. He didn’t seem bothered “But for real Kyung Soo, oxygen is our worst enemy when it comes to this” “Noted” He answered as he drank the entirety of his glass. They shared that simple meal surrounded by a bubble of familiarity and trust. Kyung Soo ate with enthusiasm, something that was always priceless for a chef. His glossy cheeks got rounder and rounder, his happiness growing with each bite of food. He thanked her for the experience several times. One time he even reached over the table and grabbed her hand giving it a single squeeze and then released her as if burned by the touch, realizing what he had done. She was calm. Of course, her heart was beating fast since he got inside her house. But besides that, she was calm. Because she has known him for a while.  He felt like a friend. Obviously, for him, it wasn't the same. He had just met her. But he didn't look bothered by it, or her. Quite the opposite. She dared to say that he was enjoying her company. A lot. He was seeking her company too. He accepted her invitation to her place, and it was now almost two in the morning and he was still there, sharing moments of his life, making her laugh, asking her about her past. All his focus on her. She felt her ego bloom inside of her. Maybe this could… She stood up, trying to run away from her thoughts, startling Kyung Soo “Hey, what about some ramen, I can add some water to the broth, some more homemade miso and we got ourselves some good ramen” She was running away from her thoughts, but now she was using or implying the most cliché thing in modern culture. Inviting him ramen. But Kyung Soo was innocent enough to not know what it meant. “You are inviting me ramen?” He asked, lifting his eyebrows, clearly making fun of her. She clearly didn’t know him well enough “Don’t make fun of me or I’m not cooking you anything and forget about the miso I was about to pack for you” He apologized, laughing, not sorry at all. She cooked and packed in silence, which made Kyung Soo asked her if she was mad about three times. She packed him Miso for about two or three meals and brought two bowls of ramen to the table. He looked at it with  bulged eyes “All this for just a bunch of songs?” The way he said it, his surprised tone and the despective manner he used to refer to that ‘bunch of songs’ and just how suitable that comment felt to the entire situation threw her into a fit of laughter that brought tears to her eyes. He laughed with her and kept bumping his knees with hers under the table, telling her to calm down, that it wasn’t that funny. But it was. The entire situation, since he got into the restaurant until now looked like a very well-tailored joke. They finished their ramen, cheeks red, tummies filled and lips still tasting the familiar flavor of simple dishes “Are you dating someone? You have a boyfriend or girlfriend?” She jumped on her seat. The question caught her off guard “No I don’t have one of those, why?” He moved his plate to the side and straightened his back “If we want to move on with the night, I need to know that” She noticed that Kyung Soo’s attack…or maybe signature way of conveying something was to look straight into your eyes. And the eyes that looked at you were powerful, dark and deep. It was impossible to look away “You are drunk” She said,  hiding her nervous smile behind her glass of soju “I’m not, are you?” And as some kind of power move, he drank the last bit of soju from his glass “I mean, it’s there, but we ate a lot and I can hold it, I'm not drunk” And if she went over what they had done during the night, she could tell she wasn’t drunk. She hasn’t lost her train of thought not a single time, on the contrary, all her attention was directed to him. Also, her mouth wasn’t that loose. Yes, she called him ‘My boy’ a couple of times, but she didn’t tell him ‘You look hot and juicy like a chicken thigh, and I want to take a bite out of you” Which was a real thing she said once and got her a wonderful one-year-long relationship. For the three bottles of soju and half a bottle of wine she drank, she was feeling fresh as a lettuce, cucumber, and celery. And Kyung Soo said he felt the same. He trapped her legs with his under the table and made her look at him again “What do you mean with move on with the night?” She asked him, looking at his chest, not his eyes. She knew better “I’m thinking what you are thinking” She shook her head “I’m not thinking anything, I’m not allowing myself to do so” He moved his head into her line of sight and grinned at her, moving a hand across the table, reaching for hers, drawing circles with his thumb on the back of her hand “I want to be something more than your idol today”. Her heart and brain stopped working for a solid minute. In the future, she would imagine all the smarts comebacks she could have used. But that was the future, because now, she was shaken to the bone.   Her body was smart enough to avoid questioning what he meant with that and instead busied itself with another shore. She stood up quickly and began picking up the plates from the table. Maybe Kyung Soo would see that as a signal to leave. She didn’t want him to leave. But she needed to do the best for her. The water began filling the sink when he asked her from across the room “What is there for dessert?” He wasn’t planning on leaving, that was sure. She could sense a playfulness in his voice, and her brain and heart began working again. Kind off. Her brain was about to betray her for the last time that night “For dessert... Me!” She followed with a loud curse, bumping her head with the rack on top of the sink “Sorry,  I take back what I said, I'm drunk, only drunk me speaks like that” She didn’t look at him. But she still could tell what he was doing. He could hear him stand up and walk to the kitchen “It's ok, is not like I was going to refuse that dessert” His voice sounded so close she could feel his heat near her “I asked you before who was your favorite, you said all of us,  I don't believe it” “It's true!”  She did her best to sound undisturbed “I do understand that you support all of us, thank you for that, but there must be one of us that's different” The first thing she felt was his hand caressing her back. Just a light brush with his knuckles across one of her scapulae “Well...” His touch worked like a spell apparently, she was actually considering answering “Yeah?” The touch of his knuckles disappeared  and now she could feel his hand resting on her waist, very lightly, but the feeling was there, dominant “Junmyeon is very handsome” He must have heard her indecisiveness because he didn't take her answer as definitive “Jongin is a God” Her answers weren’t still good enough for him because he kept trying to squeeze words out of her “And we all worship him and?...” He completed. Why was he so sure that she wasn't being honest? “And you” Her voice lost volume, but not sincerity “You are different” “How different?” “You are cute” She didn’t notice the water was about to overflow the sink, so Kyung Soo reached for the faucet and turned it off. His body pressed her against the edge of the sink and now she could feel his chest against her back. Her legs wobble for a second “I know that, but no, I know that I'm an out layer, but how am I different to you?” He put clear emphasis on the last word and made no attempt on moving away from her, if anything he was closer, his chin almost resting on her shoulder. She couldn’t understand why her body wasn’t pushing him away, it was basic self-defense “Why are you asking all this?” “I need to know, and I need you to know” No, they didn’t need to know anything. She spent a big part of the night trying to ignore whatever she was feeling. Everything. But she was weak “I dream with you a lot, well not a lot,  but I often dream about you, and not with the other guys” Clearly her mouth had become an independent entity, completely emancipated from her brain. Kyung Soo sighed softly next to her hear, took a step back and turned her around, grabbing her by the waist “What kind of dreams?” He asked with a grin. She smacked his arm, giggling and making him smile “Not that kind of dream dummy” She gasped, embarrassed for calling him that “It’s ok, call me names if you want, your boy, dummy, I don't care” She liked that. For someone who complained about not being good with words, he was nailing it with the sweet talk “Kyung Soo, let me finish what I was saying before, you are cute, but to me you look the most mature and cold headed, I like how you just do what you are comfortable with, image-wise,  work-wise, that’s so manly... And also you are just so cute I could... I could kiss you” He looked at her slightly alarmed “Ok, I heard that before!  What's this thing with people wanting to kiss other people because they are cute?” His mood changed for a moment to honest curiosity “You know when kids are so cute you just want to pinch their cheeks?” “Yeah” “Ok,  it's like that but for adults” He began nodding slowly, his mouth a perfect O, eyes serious and eyebrows furrowed. She really wanted to kiss him there “Oh, that's what they mean... So... I'm being cute now?  Do you want to kiss me?” She had to recognize that in order to deliver all that sweet talk he had to have equal parts of confidence and vulnerability. It was only fair to do the same “You have been cute the whole night” She couldn’t meet his eyes, she wasn’t as daring as him “Then kiss me” He grabbed one of her hands and placed it on his face. His round cheek felt soft and warm resting on her hand. She caressed him out of reflex and Kyung Soo closed his eyes, smiling. Since he had his eyes closed, she felt a bit bold. She leaned in, but the rush of braveness had a short life. Fear made her stop “You are being so unfair Kyung Soo” He opened his eyes wide “Why?” She took a deep breath, twice “Let's say that I like you and we sleep together, What about you? I could see this as me sleeping with a man I like, but you see this as sleeping with someone, one more” “But it's not like that” She couldn't know that for sure. He could be just a smooth mother fucker who really knew what to say to get into someone's pants. There was no way she could come out of this unharmed. She was going to say no. This wasn't something she could or should do. And not with this guy. It was too risky. But as she made that decision, a thought came to her mind. A premonition. She saw herself in the future. Five or ten years of marriage, with one baby on one arm and one on the way. Husband out with his friends and she in front of the TV watching the last episode of the most popular drama of the season and there, on the TV, Kyung Soo. Older but sexier, perfect and talented as always. And she saw herself thinking ‘I could have hit that, yes, now my life is a dumb cliché, but I could have had that memory’ So she dropped her previous decision through the window. Maybe she didn't deserve this, but her version of the future deserved it. She still could end up like that, two kids and a husband, but she would have the memory of that time she slept with her idol. So she went and did what her heart, brain, and body told her. She cupped his face with both hands, pulling him down to her. He didn’t resist, he followed her guidance.

She didn’t close her eyes until their lips met. Watching him so close, seeing his pretty eyelashes flutter and his eyes react to her touch. She felt him smile but was quick to answer her kiss. She held him softly and kissed him the same way. She knew he wasn’t going to reject her, so she didn’t have to be this careful. But since he gave her the control of this situation she wanted to do it her own way. Slow, so she could enjoy it. So she could enjoy the softness and fullness of his lips. The remains of the saltiness of the miso ramen were still there, making the kiss comforting and familiar. Something soothing for the end of a charged day. Kyung Soo followed her when she pulled back and brought their lips together again. This time under his rules. Heatedly, nudging at her lip with his tongue. One of his hands rested on her back and the other one at her nape, his fingers sinking in her hair. His kiss was demanding, his lips reaching to hers over and over again. She was breathless when he pulled back, but finding that he was too, gave her some assurance.  Said assurance made her go and grab him again. He chuckled. A chuckle that sounded like triumph. His kiss was still intense,  and hers too. Her hands went from his face to his chest, encircling his body pulling him closer to her. He was so warm. And he smelled so good. And his body felt right. He just felt right and perfect between her arms. But his kisses were better than all that. When their lips parted, he opened his eyes, gently watching hers and caressed her cheeks with his hand. He passed his arm around her shoulders and pressed her against his chest hiding his face in her neck.  She called his name so that he would look at her, but he ignored her. She patted his back calling his name again and she only got a grunt telling her that he was listening. And she preferred in this way. Talking would be way easier for her if he wasn’t looking at her with those beautiful eyes. She was feeling so nervous because one-night stands weren't a thing she practiced on the regular, or ever. The times weren’t optimal to practice such activities with so many weirdos walking around and also she wasn’t interested. And in her modest opinion, Kyung Soo should be as careful as she was. In his case, as an idol, he was prone to encounter weirdos too. And she let him know. He moved his face from her neck. Only his face because his arms remain holding her tightly “You trust me?” He asked “I do... What about you Kyung Soo, do you trust me?” He nodded, smiling gently “I'm worried though, you shouldn't go around sleeping with fans” She wasn’t joking, and he didn’t take it as a joke either. His lips formed a straight line and his eyes went from sultry to solemn “I don't, this is the first” She believed him “And you decided to let yourself go with me?” “I trust you” That was all she needed to know. They both were on the same ground now. In terms of trust, experience, and want. She moved her hands up his chest and began feeling him, a hint of playfulness in her touch and her voice “What else?” He smiled shyly and rested his forehead against hers "You are funny too, talking to you has been an experience, you are also very attractive” It was nice of him to notice it. His lips were only inches away from hers, she could feel his warm breath, his eyes almost closed and waiting for her to kiss him again. She placed her palm behind his neck to bring him closer and placed her lips over his. The sensation she felt was stronger than before and she felt overwhelmed with the promise of the night or what was left of it. He let go of her lips with a smack but held her face close “You must know though that you are not sleeping with D.O…right?” “No, this is Do Kyung Soo” He pecked her lips smiling “You made very clear that you wanted to be more than my idol tonight” “I can’t believe I said that” She laughed with him, kissing him before answering “It was great, don’t regret it” “I don’t” Along the night she came to learn that Kyung Soo was touchy. And not just now, but throughout the night he has always being…close. He sat really close to her at the restaurant, when they were cooking at Mister Kang’s kitchen he was always behind her posing his hand on her lower back so she wouldn’t clash with him. When they later arrived at her house the closeness just increased, as the light caresses. And now that they kissed he just let himself go. His hands knew no boundaries. His palms were around her neck and his fingers between his hair in one moment, and then they moved to her back, her sides, gently playing with her shirt from time to time feeling her hot skin under his fingers. It was then that he finally broke the kiss and placed soft kisses on her neck. She breathed hard as she felt his tongue on her neck playing with her skin “Take me to your bedroom” He whispered feverishly in her ear, rubbing his growing, and promising erection against her thigh. Thank god he was holding her by the hips or she would have landed face first in the ground. What kind of wet dream was this? And if this was a dream she needed to show more dignity. She grabbed his hand, kissing him one last time just in case, and walked him the short distance from her kitchen to her bedroom. He walked behind her, close to her as always and when she let him inside her room he gasped in surprise “What?!” She asked looking around her room searching for what had shocked him but couldn’t see anything “You have a plushy of me, I knew I was your favorite” She looked at the spot he was looking at and found, on top of her bookshelf, her Duduya. The typical plushy of him with the cute ears and the heart-shaped lips, that was a gift from her friend “No…it’s just the cutest one” “Liar” Kyung Soo’s voice sounded deeper, even when smiling. His hands kept leaving warm paths over her body. She didn’t think he was conscious about it. He was just touching her. Because apparently, he liked doing so. And she was enjoying it too. She always enjoyed being touched. Caressed, hugged, pressed against someone’s body, spooned. A caress could unleash an outburst of dopamine. She was on an overdose of dopamine now. His hands traveled to her chin, cheeks, ears and down her neck to plant small kisses all over her collarbone. And she could do the same to him. She could touch him however she wanted to, so her hands were to roam around his shoulders, back and brush his hair. An old dream of hers. He was allowing her to do it. He felt relaxed and exposed. She was glad she could give him that trust. Apparently he felt like that with her from the beginning. And she didn’t do it on purpose. Things just developed in this way. Hopefully Kyung Soo didn’t think the opposite “Kyung Soo I swear to god I didn’t invite you here to do this” She pushed him away from her and he was shocked, his lips pursed comically “I swear I only wanted to feed you” His pursed lips turned into a merry laugh, throwing his head back. She felt like loving him. She could actually love him if he promised to laugh like that “You just wanted to feed me?” “Yeah, I could see how passionate you are about food, and I love talking about food, and I wanted to share it with you” “Ok, you didn’t invite me here to have sex, but at least you invited me to be friends with me right?” She nodded, really liking what he said “I think I did, I like that” He bent down and placed a few kisses over her cheeks making her release a relax chuckle. He kissed her once on her lips and before deepening the kiss, as she wanted, he asked her “Just to be clear, we are still doing it right?” “Yes, of course, we are still doing it” He kissed her lips greedily again and she left out a quiet groan into his lips as she felt his warm palm sliding under her t-shirt leaving a trail. Her heart was beating like there was no tomorrow, feeling only pleasant sensations with his fingers on her skin and his mouth on her neck making wonders. Until now she held his shoulders but now her hands daringly moved down his back exploring him. They were itching to do so. She felt the muscles of his back, his waist, and her hands, possessed by the devil for sure, went lower and held to his…bottom. He jolted and a chuckle merged with a moan, but he didn’t complain. He only moved closer to her, pushing her to the edge of her bed. His hands got rid of her t-shirt quickly and as her shoulders were visible now, he found a new patch of skin he could kiss and taste. She liked that, a whole lot, but she wanted to enjoy the same privileges. She took off his black t-shirt quickly, but in the way knocked off his glasses “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry” She grabbed them carefully from the floor and handed them to him “Thank you, I need those to see you” She felt weirdly flustered by his words. He put them on and arranged them on the bridge of his nose. She always liked when he did that. Her body was now freed from his grip, and she had finally a moment to take a step back, metaphorically, and look at him.

She felt herself flushing by the sight of his well-formed body. She knew she was now in a position of privilege and felt greedy about it. She lifted a shaking hand to the side of his neck and descended slowly to his collarbone, she brushed his clavicle with her fingertips and then slid her palm down to his chest. She rested her hand there, watching his chest move up and down fast and hard. She knew he was looking at her, and she hoped her eyes weren’t really showing how delighted she was feeling, how much she wanted him. It could look weird, maybe scary “I want to…I want to do the same” He whispered. She looked up and if she wasn’t showing her desire, Kyung Soo was. She felt his eyes burning her skin. She wanted to feel those eyes all over her skin. She moved her hands to her back, unclasping her bra, and before the garment even hit the floor, Kyung Soo was already sucking the skin of her right breast. She moaned loudly, arched her back and grabbed a hand full of his hair. His hand gripped her harshly but his lips were soft and moved slowly over her breast. He brushed her hair aside and sank his face in her neck, but didn’t feel his lips on her. He had stopped  “Can I?” He asked, his lips brushing her earlobe. She had absolutely no idea what he was asking permission for. It was clear they were going to have sex, she had already agreed on that, quite easily. They were already half-naked also. So she asked him what he wanted “Let me leave a mark” His voice vibrated from her neck down the length of her body. She wanted to shout at him, do whatever you want to me! but she refrained to whisper a yes. After that, Kyung Soo’s lips stopped being soft, and they sucked every patch of skin he found and his teeth bit down here and there, not hard to hurt but enough to burn. His kisses were different too. His tongue was very much involved now, and it was wonderful. The kisses were deep, possessive, filthy. She began moaning and his hands showed her he really enjoyed that. He grabbed her by the hips and pushed her to the bed. He crawled on top of her, kissing her the entire time, and didn’t stop until she was finally laying in bed. His lips kept devouring her skin. From her lips to her waist, up and down. Her favorite was when he would stop at one of her breasts and his lips would capture the tip as his hand caressed the other breast. She showed her pleasure in different ways, moaning, caressing and scratching his back and neck or rubbing her leg against his erection. Her breath was deep and fast and she allowed herself to be loud since her neighbor was away on vacation. The heat inside her started to grow and she needed more now. Kyung Soo sat up straddling her legs and grabbed the girdle of her jeans, touching her skin playfully. She wiggled her hips, hurrying him up. He smirked at her and with quick fingers undo her jeans. He pulled them down with such force that she could have fell butt first on the floor. They laughed as she rearranged herself on top of the bed and he threw her pants across the room. She panicked a little bit when he removed his pants and saw his hard member through his boxers. He joined her on the bed, grinning and kissing her just as his crutch rubbed against her. She showed her appreciation vocally. He began rolling his body against hers and she cradled him between her legs to intensify the sensations. Their moans blended into their kiss. Every time he tugged her lower lip between his teeth, she would lift her hips rubbing his hard-on. So he would repeat his action to get her reaction. They remained playing like that for a while until she ran out of patience. Her fingers traveled from his shoulders down to his back until she reached the edge of his boxers. Her touch made him groan and helpfully he took care of his underwear and hers.

She really wanted to touch him. Get him ready for what was about to happen, but he had a better idea. Kyung Soo knelled next to her bed, grabbed her by the hips and pulled her to the edge of the bed. He dropped some open mouth kisses on her thighs and tummy locking eyes with her. There was some shine between his eyebrows, his cheeks were pink and his lips looked somehow bigger. He was a sight to be seen. She knew what he wanted to do, but he was drawing out the situation way too much “Are you waiting for my permission or something? you know you don’t need it” He giggled adorably and dropped another kiss on her inner thigh “I’m just appreciating the view, I can tell you eat well” “What do you mean?” She knew what he meant. How dare he say that “You are so soft” He said, nuzzling her hip “Oh, you meant that, you like it?” “I do, you are beautiful” He must have seen the surprise in her eyes, he grinned and tugged her body closer placing a kiss on her mount “So I don’t need permission?” “No, you can do whatever you want with me” She made sure to burn in her memory his eyes at that exact second, and how they made her feel “Bad idea” He whispered, as he gave the first lick and closed his eyes in pleasure. She knew she was insanely wet and was glad that he knew how to appreciate that. His lips attached to her immediately, sucking vigorously making her lose control of her body. Her hands were touching herself, then him, then grabbing her bedspread and then repeat. Her thighs were clenching his head, she worried, in the beginning, not hurt him, but it didn’t last long. Her mind wasn’t strong enough to think about more than him giving her oral. She gasped loudly as he slipped his finger inside of her, moving them slowly in and out of her. First, it was invasive, she tensed immediately, but after he gave her a perfect lick, she completely relaxed, and she was sure he noticed. She moaned and groaned with every movement. In general, she had a short wick, but now it was too much. She called his name a couple of times, alerting him, but he didn’t stop. She grabbed his head repeating his warning, and only then he stopped “I heard you, why you want me to stop? You said I can do whatever I want, I want you to come in my mouth” He didn’t even look away to say that. Apparently shyness wasn’t part of his language “Already?” He nodded and resumed his favors. After some seconds, she felt the familiar sensation of her orgasm taking over her body. His name was interrupted by a long moan as her body jerked. She placed her palm around his neck and pulled him up to kiss his lips. They were both smiling in the kiss. She was soothed and he was probably quite glad of his accomplishment. They exchanged some stares, some questions, making sure how they were both doing. And after he could corroborate she was ready for more, he graved her calves and bend her legs over her chest, attacking her bum. It was ticklish and electrifying, he bit and sucked the back of her thighs, sucked her clit and then moved to her other thigh. He turned her around and rested his body on top of her, biting her earlobe, kissing her neck and down her back until he reached her butt. He positioned her on her knees and grabbed her butt cheeks kissing them again. She felt his fingers on her clit again, and it felt like a small torture, he was planning on making her work for it or something? Then he attached his mouth to her again, giving her a slow lick, working on her entrance for a little while. She had to call him on that. Her little heart was going to explode “What do you want me to do?” He moved up and whispered against her hear “Fuck me” It couldn’t be simpler than that “If you want me to fuck you, you have to give me a condom” She turned her neck as much as he could so she could look at him “You are not carrying one?” She was honestly shocked and worried “What? I wasn’t planning on having sex tonight, I only came to visit an old friend” “And I appeared” “Yes” “What If I don’t have a condom” She asked cheekily “I doubt it, but we will have to settle with me only using my fingers…we could work it out” “Oh my god” She hid her face on the bedcover. He was exasperating. He had an answer for everything once he was pumped with confidence. Again she felt like she could love him. “There’s a box in the bathroom, on the cabinet, bring a couple” “A couple?” “Yeah, I have big hopes for you” He dropped a kiss on her lower back and got up laughing. He had no trouble finding them, which was weird for a guy, and came back straight to his duty. He turned her around again and got in on the bed on top of her “I brought two as you said” “Great, but before you put it on, I want to do something” He looked around nervously, stuttering a bit “Are you…you want to…” “Give you a blowjob? yeah” She could be shameless too “Oh…well, you see, If you do that I’m going to come immediately, let’s save it for later” She was a tiny bit disappointed, but the promise of later gave her a good feeling. He was planning on staying for a while, maybe the entire night, or what was left of it. He smiled at her and without a word spread her legs, positioned himself between them. After all the foreplay, Kyung Soo didn’t take any shortcuts, supporting his body with his hands on the bed and with the guidance of her hands, she felt the head of his member slowly entering her. She bit down her lip to control the sight of relief she released. When he was fully inside of her he waited a little for her to get accustomed to him and then slowly started to move. It burned, a good burn and she could risk saying that his soft grunts were better than his singing voice. She trapped him between her legs, she knew he liked that. He was in his element, and she was part of it. And she wanted to add to it. She arranged her hips so he could go deeper. But he stopped his movements, cursing loudly and sitting upright “What?!  What happened?” He looked in pain and kept grabbing the right side of his waist “My hip,  I got a cramp” He kept rubbing his right side profusely, a grimace of pain in his face. She kneeled in front of him caressing his thigh, not sure how to help him. His frown relaxed and he sighed when the pain was gone. They looked at each other in silence for a couple of seconds. She giggled first and he followed. The giggles turned into laughter, the kind of laughs that hurt your cheeks “Is the moment gone?” She asked cleaning her tears “No,  of course not,  look at me,  still ready,  let's change positions though” She did what he said looking between his legs, and yes, he was still ready “My pleasure” She sat on her knees and held on his shoulder, her other hand wrapped around his cock. Fucking finally. She rubbed him leisurely and he closed his eyes, tilting his head back. His neck was exposed, and she really wanted to bite him, but that couldn’t be right. Someone could see it, so she settled for a lick and a kiss. He moaned, caressing her thighs, encouraging her “You are on charge, what do you want me to do?” She whispered against his ear, biting his earlobe “Ride me” Ah yes, her favorite.  He rested a hand on her back supporting her as she rearranged herself on top of him and allowed her to accommodate herself before lifting his hips. She could still feel his hand on her back, enjoying how reassuring it felt. His other hand went to her nape, bringing her face closer so he could rest his forehead against hers. His whispered words were supportive and inflated her ego. His eyes were warm, gentle and irresistible. His desire was shining from his eyes and she knew he could see the same on hers “Keep moving like that” He told her, caressing her neck and kissing her slowly, leading her pace with his tongue. She groaned, if she had to choose something from this night it would be his deep, full kisses. She wiggled her hips, trying to feel him even deeper and her arms circled around his neck. She pulled him closer to her chest, wanting one thing. He looked at her, sliding his hands up her sides, under her armpits and back to her shoulder blades, and with a strong grip he brought her chest to his mouth. His lips circled one of her nipples perfectly, sucking on it, his soft tongue brushing over it slowly and tortuously. She was hypnotized not only by the feeling but also by the image. His lips, eyes, cheeks. His rushed breathing and the grip of his arms. These were all things she wanted to remember, so her from the future had something to remember whenever she felt unhappy. He let go of her with a soft pop and met her eyes. She smiled at him and he pouted, grunting softly as he stretched his neck moving closer to her. He wanted a kiss. But how could he be so cute when asking for one? It felt unfair. She gave him want he wanted, and his hands kept busy as his thumbs started to play with the tip of her breasts making her moan and whine into his mouth “Perfect” He said, letting go of her lips to look at her. He caressed her lips with his thumb, and then moved down his hand over her neck, between her breast, caressing her belly from one side to the other and then stopped between her legs drawing circles on her clit “Perfect” He repeated looking at her liking his lips his mouth slightly open.   She was already feeling her orgasm close, and she wanted to feel it. And she wanted to feel it with him, at the same time, although it was a bit greedy. She began to make good use of her muscles, softly contracting them around him, as her hips began to move with skill. He reacted immediately, biting her lower lip and grabbing her thighs. He asked for more, faster. And she obeyed. Their breathings were more and more irregular. Her hands held his head, fingers brushing through his soft hair. She called his name a few times in between loud moans, and whenever she did it, Kyung Soo would lift his hips as much as he could, increasing her bliss. There was a moment of desperation where she didn’t know what to do with herself, hug him? kiss him? crush him between her arms? grab his face, neck, shoulders? She wanted to do all that. She liked this so much, she was feeling this so much. It was maddening. Her thoughts were interrupted by the familiar heat spreading over her body.  An overwhelming feeling of joy and loss of gravity. His arms encircled her waist with a wild force and she hugged him by the shoulders with the little strength she had left. He came with a grunt, and their bodies tensed at the same time. This orgasm was stronger than the one before. So much stronger and violent. Her spine tingled and a massive euphoric feeling took over her body. The wave moved up and down her body for a sprint of seconds. But it took her some minutes to calm down. They were still connected in a tight, tight embrace, panting, riding it out. She kissed him on his neck making him shiver and he nibbled anywhere his lips wanted. They let go of each other slowly. She was unable to meet his eyes, feeling vulnerable and a bit scared of god knows what, but he insisted, pulling her chin up. He was smiling at her, his eyes glowing “Can I stay?” Her voice was nowhere to be found so she only nodded and he cradled her on his arms moving her from his lap to his side. She was glad because her ability to move had left with her voice. He went out of bed, to get rid of the condom she suspected and came back quickly, laying down next to her. She closed her eyes, squeezing the last bits of satisfaction her orgasm gave her. Stretching her limbs, fondling her chest, whimpering softly, closing and opening her legs, rubbing them together “That’s a nice view” He commented, resting his head on her shoulder and passing a leg over hers. She wasn’t surprised to realize that he wanted cuddles after sex. His breathing hadn’t normalized yet, and he felt hot and damp against her. An overall great feeling “How are you feeling?” She could hear some hesitation in his voice, a bit of shyness too. She breathed in and out a couple of times, organizing her thoughts and finding her voice again “I’m feeling very good, you?” “Amazing” She turned around, facing him. He looked as he felt then, she thought. It was so hard to look away, to fight the need to touch him and hold him. It was so hard to fight the burning need of going for a second round. But why did she had to fight it? He wanted to stay. He wanted her as she wanted him. He trusted her enough to let his guard down and sleep with her, share a bed with her. So why fight it, when maybe he was feeling the same? He was looking at her the same way she was looking at him and he was seeking her touch too. The intentions were clear. She stopped fighting. She reached for his cheek, caressing his flushed skin, then his lips stopping there for a second. Her hand went down his neck, his round shoulder. His chest and stomach contracted to her touch and when her fingers reached his dick, he closed his eyes, releasing a long, shivering sigh. She felt so powerful “Oh fuck here we go again” He cleared his throat, fighting a smile “Now is your turn, do whatever you want”. A fuzzy feeling washed over her body. “Bad idea” She quoted him.

---

The ring of a phone woke her up. She was sure it wasn’t hers. It had to be Kyung Soo’s. As his name sounded on her head she felt a strange feeling, like a warning. She pretended she was still asleep. She felt his left arm clenching her waist as his other arm reached for his phone. He picked up, and the sound of his voice made her long for him again “No, I’m at a friend’s house” He answered, pulling her closer to his body “Ok, ok I’m on my way, ok, I will send you my location, I will wait for the taxi at the corner, ok, bye” He hung up and grunted in frustration against her nape “I don’t want to leave” He whispered bitterly “Are you awake?” She remained quiet, still, careful to control her breathing “I guess no” He whispered again, hugging her. She wanted to shout, to turn around, face him and not let him go. She wished he was a bit more daring, so he would wake her up with his kisses prompting her to beg him to stay. But she knew they wouldn’t do any of that. Kyung Soo got up from bed, went to the bathroom and then got dresses. She could only hear him, scared to open her eyes. He sat next to her and called her name, but she didn’t answer. He squeezed her hand and then got up. She was focusing on every sound he made so she could tell when he left, but he was staling at her living room, doing something. Some minutes passed until she could hear her front door close. She waited a couple of minutes before getting up. She walked to the living room with some difficulty, curious to see what he was doing. The container with miso she prepared for him was gone and on its place was his black cap. She grabbed it bringing it to her chest and under it, there was a note. -Thank you- And under those two words, his phone number.

---

Her meeting at the food magazine, where she did freelance work, had just finished when she got a call from a colleague asking her to cover him in one of his classes “It's an advanced class, you only have to answer questions, we are going over some dishes that are included in the exam” “Sure, don’t worry, I’ll be there” He thanked her profusely and sent the details of the class. The institute was known to her. She worked there for a year until she realized freelancing was more enjoyable for her. She arrived an hour earlier to great everybody and prepare herself for the class. She arranged everything they were going to use, put on her apron and got ready to receive her student. She checked the list of six students so she could be familiarized with their names. Her body went cold when she reached the third name. Do Kyung Soo. She cursed loudly, and her brain began preparing different ways to get out of the situation when someone opened the door of the room. Her first student. At it was him. Of course. He called her name softly, as taken aback as she was. His face was in complete shock and he didn’t move from the door until another student arrived “Kyung Soo, get in, what happened? Oh! Our new teacher, we were informed that for today we were going to have a replacement, good afternoon” She was able to relax when this other student came to greet her. The rest of the class arrived immediately after them and they all went to their stations. Kyung Soo’s was on the front, and as she introduced herself to the class he kept looking at her. He wasn’t happy. It was a two-hour class, but it felt like an eternity. She answered all their questions, enjoyed their company too. It was a very good group. But her back and neck were tensed the entire time. Kyung Soo didn’t ask a thing. He only spoke to her went he offered a slice of the roasted pork he prepared. He asked her what she thought. It was perfect. She didn’t have anything else to say. He thanked her and went back to his station. Everybody left after cleaning their station. Except for him. She was writing down the register of the class when he called her name “You have another class after this?” “No” Then there was silence as they kept looking at each other “I'm sorry” They said at the same time. The scene made laugh the both of them, breaking the tension. Some of it “I didn't know you took classes here If I knew I…I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable” “When our teacher sent us your name I was hoping it was you and not just a coincidence” She couldn’t answer. He chuckled bitterly and grabbed his bag, walking to her station. He looked so serious, but his eyes had a hint of sadness. She knew she was the one to blame for it “Why did you say sorry?” She asked him “I was very cold to you just know” She chuckled too, he was acting like that on purpose. She couldn’t blame him though  “Why... Why did you pretend that you were asleep that morning?” She didn’t answer, didn’t know how to. Her shame made her look down at her hands “I could tell you were awake” He followed, taking a step closer. She took a deep breath scratching the back of her neck out of nervousness “Remember what I told you about you being unfair?” “About you having feelings and me just having a one-night stand?” She nodded “Well, I pretended I was still asleep because I was taking care of myself” She looked up, feeling slightly braver now she was opening up. He wasn’t serious anymore. His face looked calmer now, no more coldness. Still sadness though “I can understand that... In fact, I thought that was the reason, but what about my number? I left my number and my hat and you didn't call” “No,  I didn't” “I left my cap so you could have an excuse to call me, I left my number so you could now I was interested in... Keep in touch” She smiled at him, slightly amused. He had really thought about, planned the entire thing. And also he was speaking so much and looking so vulnerable “I'm sorry... I think I'm not that brave” “It’s just that? Braveness?” “I couldn't, I... I didn't even know what to say” He took one more step and now was standing in front of her, arms reach “I thought you weren't interested” There it was again, the sad undertone. Again, she felt the necessity to be as honest as he was. It was what he deserved “I am, Are you?” “Very” “Oh, after one night?” He nodded briefly “Did you...did you enjoyed our time together?” “So much Kyung Soo, I enjoyed so much, it was so comfortable and exciting and so much fun!” She finished with a nervous laugh, and he laughed with her “It was so much fun!...I really enjoyed our night” She loved how he called it. Our night “But for me is simple, I don’t risk anything, but you Kyung Soo” He reached for her hand, squeezing it like that morning before he left “I can make it work, I want to make it work…that night was, I just…It is so hard for me to…you know” “I know” “And with you it was immediate, you clinked your glass with mine, looking at me in the eye, and I was gone” She couldn’t avoid feel so incredibly full of herself “Several times I wanted to go to your house,  but I thought it would be disrespectful, I left my number at your place because it was your decision, I know what being with me could do to you” She cleared her throat, anxious by the meaning of his words “So you want to keep developing that feeling of frien…” He interrupted her sounding a bit exasperated “I want to date you” She gasped covering her mouth, honestly surprised. It never went through her head that he had that intention in mind. She thought he wanted a friend, a friend with benefits maybe. Not a girlfriend “I…are you sure?” He nodded quickly, almost drooping his glasses. He arranged them, pushing them up with his left hand, such a familiar and adorable move. And that move sealed the deal for her “I will like that…all you said Kyung Soo, I felt it too, and I thought it was because I felt like I knew you…but I've been thinking that’s more than familiarity” “It’s more than that, for sure” She looked at their linked hands and squeezed back. She felt him relax “You know if there are cameras in here?” She was confused by his question and looked around them searching for context “No, there aren't, I think it goes against the law” She felt his other hand on her lower back, bringing her closer to him “I’m going to kiss you then” He dropped a soft kiss on her lips, and moved back, looking at her reaction. How else was she going to react if not moving forward catching his lips, kissing him as she knew he liked it. Lustily, meaningfully. And the kiss he gave her was just the same. Whenever they moved apart with the intention of being mature and take this to a private and safer place, they would resume the kiss. It was clear for her that the week she spent wondering if she should call him, missing him, thinking about him was as hard for her as it was for him. She decided to be the responsible adult and gave him one last kiss taking some distance. Her hands couldn’t leave him though “Oh God,  this is gonna bring us so much trouble” She said hugging him. He giggled sweetly, hugging her back, nestling his head on her neck. They stayed like that for a long minute until she felt him go stiff, his shoulders filled with tension “Before we move forward I have to tell you something” She grabbed his  arms pulling herself away from him, defensive “What is it?” “I'm starting my service on July” She gasped almost theatrically, taking a big amount of air so she could curse him as he deserved it.   “Son of a...” He stopped her with another kiss, holding her averting arms. She gave up slowly. For now. She would show him later.

THE END

Notes: Thanks to Brad Leoni from BA for all the fermentation talk. 

This story is a little pleasure that I gave to myself. Hope you all enjoyed it as I enjoyed writing it. 

Feedback is love. 

[wait-there-was-a-plan]

𝐃•𝐎•𝐋•𝐋•𝐇•𝐎•𝐔•𝐒•𝐄

p•r•o•l•o•g•u•e

Words: 1686

Trigger Warning: Dolls, terrifying situations, missing people, kidnapping[kinda??? Could be read as such]

If I need to add more let me know, but note this is an attempt at some spooky horror

S•T•O•R•Y

It was supposed to be a joke. 

Just a fun trip to a spooky shop on Halloween. It wasn’t supposed to end up like this. 

Virgil had always loved the fall season. Perfect hoodie season, and of course the spooks. So when his best friend Remus suggested they get Janus and investigate a creepy looking shack that was parading as a toy shop. Janus loved the idea, but mostly cause it to let the 15-year-old sneak out of his house when it was dark. What his fascination was with sneaking away from his older sister’s care, Virgil would never know. 

Virgil was of course incredibly anxious. So he left a note on his bed in case anything did happen. 

Remus was standing with his hands on his hips looking extremely proud. Janus was the oldest but somehow Remus tended to take the lead. Virgil was never sure why, but he never really cared. It was just always like that. Remus would lead them all into adventure, Virgil got them out of trouble, and Janus made up any excuse they needed. They had a good thing going on. Things were always exciting with them.  

Remus was spouting ideas about how to break into the small shop while Janus was telling Remus that there was absolutely no way they were using fire. Virgil was looking at the shop window as the two behind him went back and forth. 

“Guys. The store is open.” The emo spoke up, pointing to an old-fashioned sign that read ‘Come in! We’re open!’ in bright colors. 

The other teenagers paused and turned to look at the front of the door. 

“Its midnight,” Janus said with a confused look. “What kinda toy store is open three am?”

“The Dollhouse apparently,” Virgil replied, looking up at the wooden letters above the door.

“Maybe it’s too lure in children so they can make toys out of them!” Remus chirped, all two happily. Virgil shuddered at the thought. 

“Oh, that must be it.” The snake-like teen said rolling his eyes. “Are we going in or what?”

Before the others could answer Janus moved forward, opening the door and holding it open for Remus who skipped inside, but when the emo hesitated the eldest paused for a second. 

“You okay?” He asked. “You don’t have to come with us. We can walk you home.”

“I’m fine,”  Virgil told him with a dismissive shrug, and when the other gave him a questioning look the emo rolled his eyes. Janus was always protective of him. Remus too, but the human rat didn’t seem to ‘need’ protection as much, at least by the eldest’s standards. Thus Virgil got the most ‘babying’ from him. Not that the emo always minded. It was nice to be reminded that he didn’t need to do something, or to be assured it was fine. Still, it wasn’t always needed. 

“Really. I’m fine. Let’s go.”

“Alright, if you say so.” Janus gave him a nod before going into the shop. 

Virgil followed behind, looking around the shop. It was almost like stepping through a portal back in time. He didn’t know the exact time period the shop reminded him of, but it was definitely something he could imagine seeing it in a black and white photo if that made sense. Shelves lined the walls, all filled with dolls to the point quite a few of them looked ready to fall off. Everything was made out of wood that looked extremely old and strangely enough, despite the unlocked door and opened sign no one was in sight. Remus was already behind the only counter in the room messing with the old metal til. 

“Remus! Quit playing with that!” Virgil told him, as Janus disapprovingly shook his head. 

“Remus! You’re going to trip the alarm or something!” The snake told him. “They’ll think we’re trying to rob them.” 

“I’m just looking!” The rat whined, rolling his eyes at the other’s worry. “Besides, no one’s here to see anything and this place doesn’t look like it has any alarms.” 

“You don’t usually see alarms, Rem.” Janus frowned. 

“If no one’s here, maybe we should go.” Virgil mumbled, mostly to himself. 

Remus’s head tilted to the side a bit and he smiled mischievously at the anxious boy. 

“Awwwww, Virgin.” He said. “Got a bad fweeling?”

Despite the mocking tone, Virgil knew if he really wanted to, they wouldn’t keep going, no matter how much fun Remus was having breaking into tils. 

So the emo rolled his eyes. 

“No. We just..came. Saw the shop. So we’re done here right?” He asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“Awwww, you don’t have to put on a big brave face for us! If you’re feeling like a pussy-”

“Remus.” Janus warned. 

“Whoops.” The rat shrugged slightly. “My bad.” 

The two mature teens sighed heavily. 

“Okay, what else do you want to do here?” Virgil spoke up looking between them, earning a wicked smirk from Remus. 

Oh dear. 

“Let’s go back here!” He said turning and gesturing to a doorway with those hippy string bead things in place of the door. Virgil didn’t know what they were called, but he did know that the sign above the door said ‘staff only’.

Janus paused looking at Virgil, who sighed and shrugged. 

“...Alright, remus. Just for a minute or two.” He told him. “Then we need to-”

Remus was already off exploring the back of the store. 

“Remember, Verge.” Janus spoke up before they went in after him. “You can leave whenever you want. We won’t get mad.” 

Virgil just nodded softly and followed him before Remus could break anything. 

The room was much larger than the store front. With a lot more shelves and on bookcases but various doll parts and supplies substituted the books. A small desk littered with tools was in the back corner. Running along the walls about waist level there was a long shelf built into the wall, with various completed dolls that must have been waiting to be put out front and be sold. Out of the corner of his eye, Virgil could see Janus move to a large human sized doll near one corner and Remus move to the back of the room. 

Virgil’s attention was caught by a completed doll. While there were many different types of dolls in the shop, porcelain, wooden, a few marinate dolls and barbies here or there, this was seemingly the only stuffed one. Or at least the only stuffed one Virgil could see. It had yellow yarn for hair and two blue beads for eyes. A small sweater around it’s blue shirt while the bottom of the doll was just black to infer it was wearing pants. 

The emo picked it up looking at the eyes. Why this one had caught his attention, Virgil wasn’t even sure. He normally liked the gothic things, and this was for sure not gothic. It looked like something you would give a three year old. Though, there was just something unnerving about them, like the doll was watching him somehow. Which was just absolutely crazy. Dolls couldn’t watch him. Dolls couldn’t watch anything!

“You’re kind of a creepy fucker, aren’t ya?” He asked with a nervous chuckle. Why was he talking to the doll? And why was the watching feeling replaced with disappointment? Was the teen going crazy? 

Virgil swallowed his own spit, setting down the doll. 

“Ooooookkaaay.” He mumbled. “That’s enough dolls for me. Hey, Rem-”

Just as the emo started to say his name, Remus let out a scream worthy to be in horror movies. 

Virgil turned around quickly seeing the human rat holding onto one of the sculpting tools that was laying on the desk, very tightly from the looks of it. But it was hard to tell with a bright light coming from the desk. Remus’s screams got louder and more horrified as his hand seemed to shrink and start wrinkling. It became stiff and shrank slightly, cracking before smoothing out into a pale color that could only look real on a doll-

Wait, no…

His hands were turning into glass! 

Virgil froze. Janus ran over to their screaming friend trying to pull him away from the light before it just got brighter and suddenly Janus was starting to scream too. 

The emo didn’t know what to do, the only thing running through his head was his friends’ terror and pain filled screams. It was only when something wrapped it’s hands around Virgil’s arm did he realize he needed to move. He spun to see who had grabbed him, horrified to find nothing but dolls there, one with its hand somehow holding onto his sleeve. He stepped back, feeling his chest grow tight, and his breathing quicken. 

“VIRGIL-”

Janus’ scream made him turn again, this time met with the large doll the screaming friend had been looking at before right in front of him. Virgil looked past him, locking eyes with Janus, where Remus was he wasn’t sure anymore. The teen couldn’t be seen anymore. But Janus...Janus looked terrified. The emo had never seen him so scared. 

Virgil could hear another scream leave his remaining friends, words,but he couldn’t make them out. The next thing Virgil even knew was he was running through the shop, hearing loud heavy footsteps behind him. 

The teen literally jumped out of the building, landing on the pavement hard. He turned himself over, scurrying back as he looked at the giant doll in the doorway. Frozen. Just staring at Virgil. 

Virgil didn’t really remember making his way home. But he woke the next day to his mom waking him up for school. So he went, hoping it was just a dream.  

But when he got to school, Janus and Remus weren’t there. They weren’t there the next day. 

The last time Virgil saw their faces was on the news as the news anchor talked about two missing kids, and asked anyone with any information to please speak up and go to their families or the authorities. 

Virgil never did. 

…….

And he never will.

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in depth headcanon prompts;

from this post !

are there any recent/daily thoughts they have about death or dying?

he does not think about it, nor does he worry about it — the only times it comes into his thought process is when his survival instincts kick in for whatever reason, and he needs to remind himself that he must suppress the urge for flight and focus on the fight, even if he perishes in the process. he goes into dangerous situation with the acceptance that he may not survive it, and is relatively at peace with that.

do they believe for every darkness there is a lightness? if not, why?

nope. the belief of “light” and “dark” isn’t factual enough for him and he doesn’t care for or understand such comparisons. all he knows is loyalty to his loved ones and complete apathy for everyone else. food for the spider’s web.

name one thing about the way their emotions work that they despise.

haha, oh yes — his emotions completely get away from him when his troupemates are in danger, and he’s more prone to acting irrationally than he ever is ; see the conflict over whether or not to let paku go alone to see kurapika. the fact that he’d gladly comply with a captor’s demands just to see paku and chrollo unharmed speaks VOLUMES. 

would they ever wish upon a falling star? if so, what would they wish?

nah, he wouldn’t. he’s more likely to quietly be reminded of a fact about meteorites he read about in a book once, and relay it to whoever he’s with if they bring it up.

describe how they would spend a stormy, overcast/rainy day.

inside, watching out the window. he doesn’t have much of a problem regulating his body temperature ever since he started developing his transmutation skills and it ended up expressing as ice — in simpler words, he’s not bothered by the cold anymore. he likes to watch the weather as it fluctuates and ponder each raindrop as it falls, it’s pretty easy for him to get lost in thought about pretty much anything. troupe’s #1 space cadet, challenged in ranking only by shizuku.

storms or clear skies?

storms, for the reasons mentioned directly above.

what about nature do they find calming? what about nature do they find disagreeable?

he’s fairly neutral on pretty much everything relating to it, aside from sating his natural curiosity of the world around him by gathering information about it in his spare time ; he can certainly tell you a few things about a particular biome or species of animal if he’s happened to read up on it. the only thing he actual hates is strong windstorms — he clocks in at about sixty-five pounds and is susceptible to being yanked around by gusts of wind, plus it makes his hair an absolute NIGHTMARE to untangle later. 

list three or more people they would call out for during an emergency.

he wouldn’t. he blames himself & his own lack of fortitude for any unfortunate situation he finds himself in and doesn’t expect anyone to help him. he is surprised and very grateful anytime someone helps him out of an emergency ; it’s one sure-fire way to get in his good favor.

what is their typical response to being given orders?

from chrollo? absolute compliance, no questions asked. from literally ANYONE else? he will argue with you if he deems the order invalid in any way, and whether or not he ends up following anyways depends completely on his own whims.

describe a thought or dream that would cause them to have a mental meltdown.

he’s never been the type to have very emotionally intense dreams, so when he does have them, they throw him completely off his game and he may act very unlike himself until he gets back into his groove. ( gestures to this thread for an example of that. )

are there any reasons why they would ever think of self-harm? if so, what are they?

( content warning for suicide and self-harm below. ) ah, yes. pre-troupe, when he was still under the care of medical caretakers with questionable credentials in meteor city, he would attempt to end his own life with any nearby tools to escape from the utter hopelessness of medical confinement with no end in sight. after he escaped and went to live on the outskirts on his own, he was in a lot of pain for several months due to his body re-adjusting to the harshness of his conditions and would paradoxically slash at his own arms and neck in an attempt to feel some sense of control over the pain by causing it himself. it is only by a SHEER series of miracles that he’s managed to survive this long — although, after having unlocked his full potential with nen, he is much more hardy nowadays.

describe a physical action that shows complete trust.

hand-holding. as a conjurer and a transmuter channeling an element of the weather, his hands are the sole conductors of his power. anyone outside the troupe who even tries to capture his hands will swiftly find themselves with a limb twisted off or some similar wound of instinctual self-defense.

describe a verbal way they would express complete trust.

haha, he speaks pretty bluntly, so i would imagine he’d just say “i trust you”. he doesn’t say anything he doesn’t mean, so having it spoken aloud would be proof enough to anyone that knows him that he means it. 

explain how they portray feelings of hostility or dislike.

honestly, it’s pretty hard for him to feel such a thing, because he’s more prone to being curious why someone is Like That rather than disliking it right off the bat. in the case of him finally getting outright tired of someone’s shit, he just avoids them like the plague. when even kortopi gets up and leaves to avoid being in the same room with you, it’s probably time to think about your life and life choices. 😂

what is something that causes them to question themself?

paku’s death was a BIG one that caused him to silently marinate in doubt and self-hate for weeks afterwards. in general, being told that his stance on something is wrong, or even worse, being proven on this is something that disturbs him and will bother him for weeks, prompting him to scramble for the source of the inconsistency within himself so he can correct it. with things that have to do with emotions or his gut reactions, he has no idea how to deal with it and will likely become distant for a while, spacing out into thought on level that even surpasses shizuku.

on a sleepless night, what would they be found doing?

reading a physical book or something on his phone, or shalnark’s laptop, if he’s truly unable to sleep. if he’s just having trouble falling asleep, he’ll just space out in thought, following his train of thought wherever it happens to take him until unconsciousness finally overtakes him. 

name at least two people who can trust them with their life.

tagging the boyfriend @painxpacker and the bff @kyousei . fei & shal are without a doubt his most important people on an emotional level, his loyalty to chrollo residing in a different part of his brain altogether. he would die for chrollo if ordered ; he would do anything for feitan and shalnark, for any reason.

describe a way that will earn affection (whether platonic or romantic) from them.

he very much enjoys being infodumped to, as it piques his natural curiosity about everything and deviates from the norm of him just being given the basics of an order to be carried out ; carry on a conversation with him about something you’re interested in and let him ask a bunch of questions about it, and you may find him hanging around you more often.

describe a way to make them uneasy or apprehensive.

he has trouble understanding some of the more emotionally-driven members such as nobunaga and phinks, and finds their manner of thinking to be more or less unpredictable. he doesn’t avoid them persay, but he is more aware when talking to them that they may suddenly blow up or act irrationally. this doesn’t change the way he speaks to them whatsoever, it just adds an extra element of caution to his demeanor. 

are they prone to violent outbursts or thoughts?

to say that he would never have an outburst would be a lie, but, i mean. the chance of it happening is like.... 0.001%. he is so utterly desensitized to violence that he can hardly even recognize it as such when it happens anymore, especially if there’s only a single target being maimed and there’s no one around to scream about it the horror of it all. 

what are their creative outlets?

his transmutation nen is the main source — while conjuration is rather straightforward, there is a lot of variation to be had in manifesting ice crystals or frigid winds with his nen, and he messes around with it whenever the thought occurs to him to try something out in a particular set of circumstances. 

do they tend to rely on words or actions more?

words and actions are one in the same to him. if he speaks something, he wouldn’t hesitate to act on it as well. if he acts on something, he would have no trouble relaying it in words. there is nothing ambiguous about the way he goes about things and that is his greatest strength as a member of the troupe.