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therhythmafterthesummer · 2 years ago

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Of Apples and Moss Beds (M) ~Felix [ft. Hyunjin]

Pairing: Werewolf!Felix x Werewolf!AFAB.Reader x Werewolf!Hyunjin Themes: Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Angst | Fluff | Strangers to Lovers | Soulmate AU? Word Count: ~15k | AO3 Synopsis: Felix’s crude reality made it so he hardly dwelled on the fact that he was alone. He never would’ve imagined he’d find a loving family of his own, or that he would be capable of imprinting and finding a soulmate, let alone two. [This story is an instalment of my WereRoomies series. you don’t need to read the other instalments to understand this piece]. Warnings (SO MANY): Felix’s POV · few descriptives of the reader such as: has big naturals, is older than Felix, is nonbinary/doesn’t care about gender (use of they/she pronouns, even in the same sentence) · mentions of child abuse · LGBTQ+ themes · it takes a WHILE for the reader to make an appearance oops there’s just a lot of backstory and exposition, y’all know i can’t shut the fuck up · pet names (baby, prince, darling, dear, pup, etc, so many pet names, god…) · polyamory · member x member action (suggestive mostly, and explicit with reader included) · nothing about this piece is straight just like any Felix-centric piece should be honestly/j · graphic depictions of intercourse (smut warnings under the cut).

Due to all the abovementioned warnings, this story is intended for an adult audience only. Minors please do not interact.

Author’s Note: so… i woke up one day and this just… happened. most of it came out of me way too fast, and honestly i’m sure i was either possessed, maniac, or in a very intense moment of hyperfocus. anyway, this piece is a bit different than what i usually do. i really wanted to challenge myself to write a poly relationship into my werewolf au and hyunlix just made sense to me. it was my first time writing such a dynamic–let alone a threesome–with this much detail, so i hope i did okay. regardless, i really like the direction this took, i’m really happy with it, and i hope the amount of member x member stuff doesn’t prevent anyway from enjoying this. as usual, don’t hesitate to let me know what you think💜 [special thanks to my one and only, my soulmate, and best friend for reading this before anyone else and providing her much valued insight]

Smut Warnings: a foot goes on someone’s private parts (MxM) but it’s mild/just teasing and super short and probably mostly harmless to the point where i’m not even sure it counts as a smut warning but i prefer to be safe than sorry · reader is a dom · oral (F&M.Rec) · breast/nipple play (F&M.Rec) · protected penetration [piv] · threesome · degradation (M.Rec. bitch, slut, etc are used) · face slapping (M.Rec) · some praising · snowballing.

Disclaimer: the story represented in this work does not represent Stray Kids in any way; anything described in this story and all actions performed by the characters are purely fictional, this was created just for good fun.

Felix had never been much of a believer when it came to imprinting and soulmates. He was never much of a believer of anything, to be honest. There was no time to fill his head with the improbable when he had to spend all his energy trying to survive.

When he was very young, Felix was kicked out of his childhood pack. To this day, he still believed it had all been completely unfair, leaving a pup werewolf completely alone in the world to deal with all that distress. They claimed it was all for the best, that he was throwing off the ecosystem they had built in the pack, that he was being disrespectful.

What did he do? He simply denied their alpha’s advances. Felix wouldn’t know exactly just how fucked up his childhood pack was until he eventually met other wolves, but even at the time his pack’s alpha’s claims that all betas and omegas were his to ‘use’ –yes, he would use exactly the word ‘use’–just sounded wrong to Felix. The man would always say that anyone that denied him would suffer the consequences.

Felix was a pup, a child, and even if he didn’t know how fucked up it all was at the time, he just didn’t want to do it. So he fought back, he denied every single one of his alpha’s advances as swiftly and discreetly as he could, always worming his way out of it.

Eventually, though, the man found out. He realised Felix was defying his authority, and the moment he realised that, he held his power over Felix’s head. ‘If you won’t submit then you’ll have to leave and become a packless bastard’.

The man was smug when he said it, Felix could still remember it as if it happened yesterday. How he was scared out of his mind, fighting every single instinct telling him to submit, but he stood his ground, uncaring of the consequences of his actions. ‘I won’t submit to you. Not now, not ever’.

So his alpha delivered. Him and his goons kicked him out–not before giving him the beating of his life, of course. But the worst part was that Felix’s parents didn’t do anything to stop it. No one did. This man had ingrained his toxic, abusive dynamic of submission into his pack so heavily no one dared say a word.

So Felix was left alone in the world when he was barely even a teen.

The first few weeks were tough. Oftentimes, he would shift into his wolf form and forage whatever he could to sustain himself; he spent so much time as a wolf that he’d sometimes forget he had a human side to him, too. Those moments wouldn’t last long, only a couple of seconds, but it always left him incredibly shaken when he could feel his humanity slipping between his fingers.

After months of roaming and wandering on his own, Felix started to realise why wolves lived in packs. He thought it was all bullshit before, but being a lone wolf without a pack left one in a weird and fragile state of mind. It left one paranoid, volatile, mad, and although he wasn’t quite sure how the mysticism of it worked, he realised he wasn’t quite right in the head at the time.

And then he met Hyunjin.

Felix truly never believed in imprinting and soulmates, but if such a thing existed, he was sure Hyunjin was his, or at least, that was how it felt at the time.

It happened in the forest. He had just turned fifteen, he’d spent years out there on his own by this point, and as Felix laid next to a stream, devouring the remnants of his hunt, he felt a presence.

Oddly enough, he hadn’t encountered another wolf this close in years, and the sudden appearance of one made him snarl, made his fur puff up, made him want to appear imposing and commanding as if he wasn’t a measly beta teen-wolf with no pack of his own.

The wolf did recoil a bit, but it didn’t leave, it just looked at Felix with a curious glint in its eyes. And after a few moments of no movement, when Felix’s instinct to fight subsided a bit, his mind cleared slightly.

A quick sniff and he knew immediately. Another werewolf, and an omega at that. And maybe it was that last fact that made Felix relax just the smallest bit; if it came to it, he was sure he could take that omega in a fight and win.

The other werewolf approached him, tentatively, slowly, and for some reason, Felix didn’t move. It wasn’t that he felt scared or intimidated by them, he just… Didn’t feel threatened. So he let them come close. Not too close, though.

They sniffed him, and Felix did the same, getting hit by their scent, a strange mix of apples and pears. It was… Nice. But then the werewolf was getting way too close for his comfort, so Felix growled at them, scaring them into running away.

As soon as they were gone, he wished he hadn’t growled at all. He should’ve snarled or attempted to nip, not full on growl the way he did. Regardless, the werewolf was gone, and Felix was left once again on his own.

At least for a while.

Felix remained in that forest, foolishly hoping to see that wolf again. And it was a few days later, as he laid next to the same stream, at the exact same place he had been before, that he heard the rustle of leaves. This time, though, it wasn’t a wolf that came from between the trees, it was a boy. A lanky boy, probably around his age, seemingly normal, if not for the fact that he smelt like apples and pears.

It was honestly almost pathetic how Felix’s tail started to wag as soon as he saw the boy. If the other asked, he’d blame it on how long he had spent all alone out here.

“Hey…” The boy approached him, slowly, with his hands in the air as if to show Felix that he meant no harm, and somehow, Felix believed it. “I’m Hyunjin. I saw you the other day…”

Felix just looked at him for a moment. When was the last time a person had spoken to him out of their own will? He’d spoken with street vendors and kiosk owners and gym attendants, but that was all transactional. This boy, this Hyunjin, was talking to him, directly, and it made him feel oddly giddy.

So Felix shifted back into his human form. How many days had it been since he stood on his legs? Too many, probably. If the aches he felt were anything to go by.

“I’m… Felix”, his voice cracked a bit. It had been doing that a lot these days. His voice seemed to be constantly dancing between a high and a low pitch, and he simply blamed it on puberty.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but I was hoping I’d find you here again”, Hyunjin regarded him with a small smile, and he’d lie if he said it didn’t make his heart skip a beat. “Do you… Need any help?”

“I’m fine”, was he? Was he fine? Felix was used to his way of life, but did that mean he was fine? That was something he didn’t want to discuss with a stranger, though, so he settled for fine.

“You don’t look fine”, Hyunjin looked him up and down, and it made Felix scoff in return.

Sitting cross-legged on the grass, bare as he was, Felix stared at Hyunjin, mustering his most confident tone. “Maybe you should get your eyes checked, then”.

It was Hyunjin’s turn to scoff now. Nevertheless, he walked closer. Felix tensed a bit, not used to having people so close to him, but he let Hyunjin sit on the grass in front of him, keeping his fair distance.

“Your scent smells, like, super distressed. You know that, right?”

Felix felt himself flush at his words. No, he didn’t know that. He was super confident he was one hundred percent fine… Wasn’t he?

“Anyway, this might be a bit forward, and weird, but I got worried the other day when I saw you here. I’d never seen a lone wolf, much less one so young… Before I knew it, I was in this forest again looking for you”.

“How’d you know I was a lone wolf?” Felix asked him, slightly incredulous.

Hyunjin shrugged, and he offered Felix a small smile. “You don’t have any trace of anyone else’s scent. Usually there’s a bit there from friends, family…”

Very quickly, Felix realised Hyunjin was… Nice. He had a way of talking that might’ve passed as rude to some people, and sometimes he was rude, especially because of the tone in his voice, but who wasn’t a bit rude these days?

Felix didn’t speak much that day, he simply listened to whatever Hyunjin had to say. He did have a pack, one he wasn’t particularly fond of. ‘Nothing too crazy, they just don’t like people like me’, he’d told Felix. He wasn’t entirely sure what Hyunjin meant by that, and he was too self-conscious that day to ask, so he filed it for later, either for when he found the courage to ask directly or for when Hyunjin had given him enough context clues for him to understand.

Hyunjin liked to draw, to paint, he was the pure embodiment of an artist, and the more he and Felix met in this spot in the forest, the more Felix got to see that side of him.

They met often, at least thrice a week. Hyunjin would always bring Felix food or clothes or puzzles to keep himself entertained. He eventually started to come with his art supplies, sitting in silence with Felix as he drew or painted something that he’d never let Felix see because he was too embarrassed. ‘It’s not good. I’ll show you when they’re good’.

Felix was sure whatever he did was amazing, but he didn’t push his friend. Because that was what Hyunjin had turned into after a couple of months meeting in the forest. A friend. It helped Felix feel like he belonged somewhere again. Even if it was just as a background character in Hyunjin’s life, he could feel his humanity slowly, but surely, coming back to him.

“Ugh, exams are the worst. I just don’t understand chemistry. What even is a mole anyway?” Hyunjin had been rambling about school a lot today, and Felix simply listened to him, lending him his ears to vent into.

“Wait, now that I think about it…” Hyunjin said after a while, looking away from his sketchbook. “What school are you going to?”

“I’m not going to school”, Felix kept his eyes focused on the Rubik’s cube in his hand, trying to figure out how to build one face of the cube without messing up the other.

“What?”

“I haven’t gone to school in years”, Felix shrugged. “I used to shift and sneak into this public school close to the town hall a few years back, so I did learn a bunch, but I couldn’t do it anymore after I started growing and my wolf form just wouldn’t pass as a dog anymore”.

Felix had told Hyunjin of his past, of everything that happened to him in his childhood pack. He could still remember the horrified look on his face as he told him. And honestly, Felix couldn’t blame him for being shocked and horrified by his story. The more he grew up, the more Felix understood the high levels of fucked up that pack’s structure had.

“Why don’t you go as a human?”

Felix scoffed at that, starting to get frustrated with the cube in his hand. “I tried. They require all that legal guardian shit. As you can imagine, my unfortunate lack of parents complicates that a bit”.

Hyunjin went quiet for a while, letting Felix fumble with the puzzle. Eventually, Felix heard the characteristic sound of pencil on paper, so he figured Hyunjin had gone back to sketching, with no intent on continuing the subject. That was, until…

“Want me to ask my parents?”

The Rubik’s cube fell on Felix’s lap.

“…What?”

“My parents”, Hyunjin repeated. “They can pose as your legal guardians. It wouldn’t be the first time a werewolf forges documents”, he added with a snort. Almost every single document a werewolf provided to human authorities was forged these days, so it wasn’t a particularly shocking statement.

However, what did shock Felix was Hyunjin’s proposal… Going back to school. Socialising with humans again after so long… Was he prepared for that? He wanted to learn, to pretend he had a normal life, maybe even… Make more friends? He’d never allowed himself to think about that too much, about going back to participate in the world outside of his little bubble in this forest.

“Would they even agree?” Felix’s voice was barely a whisper. He picked the cube back up from his lap and started to twist the faces again, trying to distract himself. “I don’t want them to… Know”.

Felix didn’t say it, but he was sure Hyunjin would understand. I don’t want them to know I’m a lone wolf. A packless failure.

“I’ll think of something”, Hyunjin mumbled, and if there was someone Felix trusted in this world to charm anyone into doing something, it was Hyunjin.

So that was how Felix managed to integrate into human society again. They both did some research, on public schools he could go to that’d take in someone so far behind, on possible scholarships he could apply to, on places to find school supplies… And as soon as they had all the necessary documentation, it was up to Hyunjin to get his parents to sign them.

It was hard to get used to at first. Felix got overwhelmed by the noise and the amount of people at school often, but he managed. In a couple of months he had gone from being a nobody, a lone wolf secluded to the woods, to being just some guy again, and only then did he realise how good it felt. To be seen, to be taken into account… And it was all thanks to Hyunjin.

During the day, Felix would go to school. In the afternoon, he started to volunteer at a soup kitchen in the area, helping feed those in need. The lovely lady that ran the place seemed to really like him, and she always appreciated the extra hands. ‘You’re so strong! Youth really does wonders for you, doesn’t it?’ She’d say often, and Felix simply chuckled in response, not really wanting to reveal that his strength had nothing to do with youth and all to do with his supernatural condition.

In return for his help she’d feed him, and eventually, Felix asked her to teach him how to cook. He found the act of cooking to come natural to him, he wasn’t sure if it had to do with his enhanced senses, but people would often compliment him on his food, and it made him feel proud. A feeling he hadn’t associated with himself in a long, long time–not to say never ever.

Felix still slept in the forest every night. He’d shift and curl into a fluffy ball of fur to keep himself warm. Hyunjin often offered him his home, or at least, his room, but Felix always declined. He didn’t want to be an inconvenience, and he was sure that Hyunjin’s parents wouldn’t appreciate him being there at all.

Felix only met the couple a few times, but that was more than enough for him to know that, even if he was grateful for their help, he simply didn’t like them. Just like Hyunjin didn’t, either. They were… Conservative. Because that was a thing, conservative werewolves.

‘They can’t accept the fact that I’m a male omega. Sometimes, I’m pretty sure they pretend like I’m not. That I’m a beta or something. And let’s not even talk about the fact that I like boys, too. They don’t know, know, but I’m sure they have noticed… They love to ignore that, too’, Hyunjin confessed to Felix after the first time he met them, after he couldn’t conceal the fact that he just hadn’t felt comfortable with the exchange, and Hyunjin’s words simply confirmed that first impression Felix had had of them.

Males were supposed to be alphas or betas, females were supposed to be betas or omegas, and other genders simply didn’t exist for them. Textbook homophobes, to put it simply. In this day and age…

Felix knew, of course. Hyunjin didn’t hide his sexuality not even once since they met, and Felix was always grateful for that, because it helped him come to terms with his own. People were people, love was love, and no gender or designation would get in the way of that, that was their philosophy. Call it being bi, or pan, or fluid, or however you want. All Felix knew was that once he left the lone wolf in the forest, he was just full of love, ready to share it with the world, with whoever was consensually willing to receive it.

By the time Felix had turned eighteen, the line of his friendship with Hyunjin had blurred so much he wasn’t sure he could call him a friend anymore.

What he had with Hyunjin was much, much more than just friendship. Felix would often find himself holding his hand, or hugging him, or simply touching him, all without really thinking much about it.

Hyunjin did it, too. And although neither said anything, they both knew.

Eventually, their lingering touches started to turn much less platonic, less innocent. They turned into heated makeout sessions, into groping and desperately rutting and grunting against each other, into Hyunjin asking Felix to help him out during his heats as well… It felt natural, just like breathing, to be with one another. They were friends and lovers and soulmates and everything in between, and it was right how it was supposed to be.

Especially because, just like Felix, Hyunjin also believed that love was to be shared, to be enjoyed, so their open arrangement was perfectly designed for them. Felix wasn’t a jealous man, on the contrary, he was happy whenever Hyunjin was, so as long as they kept things clear and consensual and safe nothing else mattered.

At the end of the day, they’d always have each other, and possibly someone else–or simply other people, plural–to share their love with. Although, they’d usually do these things separately, considering Hyunjin’s tastes sometimes were what Felix could simply describe as questionable at best… He had fallen for Felix, after all.

Felix found himself a job in a local café. His very first real job. That was the place that finally gave him a second chance at finding a family, that was where he met Chris.

Chris worked at the café as a partimer, seeking some extra income to pay for his studies while he searched for a job in his field. Felix knew Chris was a werewolf as soon as he saw him, even before he got close enough to get a whiff of his scent.

The man just exuded alpha energy, and the moment he spotted Felix for the first time his eyes went wide with surprise, but he still gave him the widest smile right after, a genuine smile that made his eyes disappear into crescents and dimples to appear on his cheeks. Honestly, Felix wasn’t much of trusting alphas at first glance due to his past trauma, but Chris’ entire demeanour was way too welcoming for him to not trust him almost immediately.

They got acquainted pretty fast, maybe too fast. It was just too easy to fall into Chris’ antics, he was goofy and funny and kind and a bit fucked up in the head, but he was a good guy all in all.

A few months of knowing Chris were enough for Felix to learn he led his own pack. He’d seen a couple of his pack members drop by the café, and they all seemed to be just as nice as Chris, which honestly didn’t surprise him. ‘It’s small, only four of us so far, but it’s great, honestly. Don’t think I’ve ever been happier than I am right now with them’, Chris had told Felix once, and he sounded truly proud of it.

“What about your pack?” Chris asked one day while he cleaned the coffee machine. Closing time was nearing, and there were hardly any customers still within the place, so these were usually the times when they spoke anything related to their lycanthropy. “You never talk about them”.

“That’s because I don’t have one”, Felix replied simply, rearranging the display shelf for what seemed like the tenth time that day.

“You don’t have one?!”

Felix shrugged. “I have Hyunjin”.

“Oh, but that’s something. Well, someone…”

Felix had told Chris about Hyunjin, not in detail, but he knew. It was impossible not to know when his scent was always lingering on Felix’s clothes.

“Yeah, but he’s in a pack of his own”, Hyunjin hadn’t found the courage to defect yet, and Felix honestly couldn’t blame him. He’d been trapped in this vicious circle of guilt with his parents that made it really difficult for him to detach himself from them, even when staying with them only made him hurt and get more frustrated as time passed.

Chris’ brows furrowed, clearly confused. “So… If he’s in a pack, but you have no pack… Where are you staying?”

“Oh, I sleep in the woods”.

“You do what?!” Chris’ question came out a bit louder than he had intended for sure, a couple of customers looked back at him with clear confusion on their faces, and Chris simply offered them a strained smile and an apologetic bow.

“I’ve been sleeping in the forest since I was a pup… I shift, find a decent moss bed, curl up in a nice little ball, and fall off to sleep”, Felix offered with a smile on his face. Over the years, he had honestly started to enjoy it. Of course it wasn’t ideal, of course he would’ve preferred to have a warm bed and a roof over his head, but he’d gotten so used to it, it kind of made him feel like he was balancing his human-ness and his wolf-ness pretty well.

Chris’ face went completely serious, with his hand still holding a rag around the steam wand of the coffee machine, completely motionless. After a few moments of shared silence, he spoke again. “Wanna join my pack?”

Felix choked on his spit, Chris’ proposition catching him completely off-guard. “…What?!”

“Wanna. Join. My. Pack”, Chris repeated, slowly stressing each word.

“I heard you, okay. Jeez… I’m… Not sure I’m suited for the pack life”, Felix looked away from Chris then, focusing on the very interesting and very stale pastry sitting on the display shelf.

Still, he could feel Chris’ searing gaze on his side profile, and when Felix got enough courage to look back at him, he saw Chris looking at him, deep in thought.

Returning his focus to the coffee machine, Chris finally looked away, but he kept talking. “Did I ever tell you why I wanted to lead a pack of my own?”

“No…”

“I wanted to… To build a safe space. For those of us that were tired of being judged or mistreated. There was a lot of that in my childhood pack, Changbin and I were sick of it. Jisung, too–you remember Jisung, right?” Felix just nodded, and Chris continued. “Minho didn’t have a pack, either. But his case was very… Peculiar. He can tell you himself if you do choose to join us. Lix, you… Are nice. And although I don’t know what happened to you, I’m sure it was a lot for you to have been living in the forest since you were so young. So… Think about it”.

And Felix did think about it.

He could barely get sleep that night just thinking about it. About the prospect of having a pack again. Chris had shown him many times that he was just a different breed of alpha altogether, whether he knew it or not, so Felix found himself genuinely considering it. But there was something he needed to do before he made that decision.

“Chris’ pack? He offered that?” Hyunjin’s eyes were wide, and his mouth fell slightly open in surprise.

“Yes. But…” Felix stretched his hand over the table, past his stack of freshly made waffles, finding Hyunjin’s and holding it tightly in his. “I want you to come with me”.

Hyunjin blinked, and suddenly averted his gaze, fixing it on their joined hands. “Lix, angel, you know I can’t…”

“Love, listen to me”, Felix squeezed his hand, trying to get Hyunjin’s attention back to his eyes. “You can. Jinnie, baby, they’re sucking the life out of you in there. You don’t owe them anything”.

Hyunjin’s eyes flickered between Felix’s, looking at his face intently. Until he eventually squeezed his hand and heaved a sigh again. “Do you even know if Chris would take me? He asked you to join, not me. He doesn’t even know me. I don’t know him”.

“I’ll ask”, Felix reassured him, reaching over the table with his free hand to tuck a strand of his hair behind his ear–he had been growing it these days, and Felix would lie if he said it didn’t make his heart flutter. “If you tell me you’ll consider it, I’ll ask, baby”.

Hyunjin simply nodded, bringing Felix’s hand to his lips so he could place a kiss on the back of it.

After much consideration, Hyunjin gave Felix the goahead. He wanted to defect, he wanted to detach himself from his parents as much as he could, and most importantly, he wanted to be able to be himself, openly. So, that afternoon, during his shift at work, Felix went to Chris to ask him about it.

“Would you consider taking Hyunjin in, too?” Felix asked him as soon as Chris came in through the door and stood behind the counter.

“Wow, what happened to ‘good afternoon’? What happened to ‘hello’?” Chris chuckled, washing his hands in the sink. “I’ll have to meet him first, though. But, if he’s anything like you, I’m sure it’ll be fine”.

“We… Don’t have much, you know that, right? I mean, I sleep in the woods for a reason. It’s cheap”.

“You mean it’s free?” Chris snorted, but he gave Felix a genuine smile after. “We’ll manage. That’s why we live in packs, don’t we? To help each other out”.

Felix stared at Chris for a few long moments.

All of a sudden he felt a bit… Overwhelmed, to put it simply. He didn’t know what came over him, or why Chris’ words affected him like they did, but, after a few more moments of silence, he took a hold of Chris’ apron, looking down to the floor. “Chris, can I… Can I hug you?”

Felix had barely finished his question when Chris was already pulling him into his arms, cradling the back of his head and patting his back. Something snapped in Felix at that moment, he started to tremble, and he just couldn’t hold in the tears that had started to well in his eyes.

Chris didn’t say anything, he just hugged Felix tightly, and dear heavens if this man’s hugs weren’t the warmest and most comforting hugs Felix had ever felt. He knew it in his heart then, that he had made the right decision. That this was how having a Pack Alpha was supposed to feel like. Comfort, protection, warmth. Not whatever the fuck was happening in his childhood pack, not whatever the fuck was happening in Hyunjin’s pack, either.

The first night at Chris’ den was… Interesting. At the time, Chris was rooming with Changbin, and they had decided for Felix to spend the first nights here with them, or at least until Chris met Hyunjin and let him join the pack.

“I’ll take the sofa”, Chris told Felix as soon as they entered his flat.

“Nah, don’t worry, I’ll take it”, Changbin shouted from the kitchen, where he had been cooking dinner before Chris and Felix came in.

“No way. I’m not letting either of you take the sofa”, Felix intercepted immediately. “I’ve been sleeping on the ground for years, don’t worry about me, seriously. A sofa is a luxury at this point”.

Felix was used to saying these things out loud without thinking much about them, so he decided to ignore the apologetic look on Changbin’s face when he said that.

That night, while laying on the sofa, Felix did nothing but toss and turn.

The sofa was great. Plush, comfortable, but he felt incredibly awkward. After one too many turns he finally decided to shift into his wolf form, curling in on himself on the sofa, and then he truly felt comfortable. It wasn’t that much different from a moss bed; the biggest upside was the fact that it was dry and warm here, so truly, for Felix, this was like a five star hotel at this point.

He’d no longer have to store his few belongings in gym lockers, or use gym showers, he’d no longer have to be aware of every single sound around him in case a hunter decided to come around the corner, or in case it started to rain, or in case one of the wild cats living in the area wanted to start a fight. As he drifted off to sleep, Felix truly, truly felt incredibly lucky.

Even the next day, when Felix woke up to the sight of Changbin’s smiling, swollen face, looking fondly at him still curled up on the sofa, he felt at ease, his wagging tail more than proof of that.

Now, getting Hyunjin to meet Chris, and for Chris and the other pack members to accept him was easy. Felix had no doubts in his mind that Chris and the others would like Hyunjin enough to let him join the pack as well. What was difficult was getting Hyunjin to defect.

He started gradually taking things out of his house. Important stuff, sentimental stuff, documents, anything of value. Hyunjin passed them all to Felix for Felix to keep them safe at the den. The idea was for every material thing he wanted to keep to be taken out before he spoke with his parents–if he spoke with his parents at all.

Hyunjin wasn’t sure yet… If he wanted to just disappear or if he wanted to confront them. He was sure they wouldn’t just let him leave, they’d try to convince him to stay with their impeccable emotional manipulation tactics, so he was leaning more towards the idea of leaving quietly.

All his plans went to shit when they saw him taking out the last bag of his belongings. Or at least, that was what he told Felix when he arrived a crying mess at the den.

The sight of Hyunjin crying his eyes out, the distress in his scent, it pulled at Felix’s heartstrings unpleasantly. He hated seeing him like this, he wished he could make it all better, make him smile again that charming smile of his. As soon as he saw him, Felix pulled Hyunjin into his arms, and Hyunjin started crying harder against his shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably as the door to Chris’ flat closed behind him.

“What happened?!” Jisung asked as soon as he noticed Hyunjin’s state.

Hyunjin mumbled unintelligible nonsense against Felix’s shoulder, and Felix couldn’t help but bring a hand to his hair, trying to soothe him. “Shh, baby. It’s okay. Take your time…”

By the time Hyunjin had stopped crying the three of them sat on Chris’ sofa. Hyunjin gulped down the glass of water in his hand, and proceeded to blow his nose on a napkin Jisung had brought him.

“You told them that? Seriously?” Jisung softly caressed Hyunjin’s back, looking almost incredulous. “ ‘Your son is a fruity omega, deal with it’ has got to be the best coming out phrase of all time, honestly. You’re so badass”.

Hyunjin chuckled, blowing his nose again. “I was so angry when I said it. They were so angry when I said it. They started calling me names, saying I was an ungrateful bastard… And I just… Told them to fuck right off and left before they could even try to guilt trip me into staying”.

Felix brought a hand to Hyunjin’s chin, tilting his face towards him, offering him a smile. “You did it, baby. You’re free. We’re free”.

A small smile made its way onto Hyunjin’s lips as he looked back at Felix, his eyes were still a bit bleary and red, but they looked so, so full of hope, Felix couldn’t help but lean in and press a brief peck on his lips.

Jisung whined next to them, and when Felix turned to look at him he had a pout on his lips. “No kiss for me?”

“My God, Jisung. Not everything is about you”, Hyunjin sighed, sounding more like his usual self. He turned anyway, gripping Jisung by the cheeks with one hand and giving him a quick peck. An entirely platonic exchange, not uncommon between omegas, to be honest. “There. Happy?”

“Very!” Jisung was beaming, and it made Felix chuckle. “Welcome home”, he added, with a splitting smile on his face, pulling both Hyunjin and Felix into a hug.

Everything was smooth sailing from there. As smooth sailing as living in a pack of several traumatised werewolves can be.

Throughout the years, Felix managed to finish his basic studies, he was no longer illiterate in the eyes of the human government, and he had found himself with a career goal. He wanted to be a chef. Preferably a pastry chef. Cooking was still, to this day, one of his biggest escapes. At first it was only regular food, then he started trying more complicated dishes, and eventually he found out how challenging baking could be.

His packmates were often the test subjects for every meal he cooked, especially Hyunjin, of course, who was there with him every step of the way, always supportive, always ready to give Felix an honest review of whichever concoction he had put together.

More people joined Chris’ pack, Seungmin, Jeongin… And eventually, by the time Felix was well into his twenties, came the girls. Or at least, some girls.

Chris’ current girlfriend came first, a human who took the place of Pack Mum before Chris even got the balls to confess his feelings for her… Then came Changbin’s girlfriend, an omega who also defected from her abusive pack and seeked comfort in the only other werewolf she knew. And of course, Minho’s best friend and now girlfriend, who had been coming to the den since Minho joined the pack. Felix liked to call her their honorary pack member, since she really didn’t live here, but she came and stayed over so often she was already like one of their own.

Felix honestly would’ve never imagined his family would get so big. Because that was what this pack had become to him, the family he never truly had. He knew that he wanted to share his love, and here, with these people, he was able to share it more than ever–at least, his platonic love.

When it came to romance, it always went back to Hyunjin. Felix had dated a handful of people throughout the years. Humans, mostly–not to say exclusively. But things usually fell through when they simply couldn’t understand his relationship with Hyunjin. They always pretended they were okay with being in an open relationship, the reality was, they simply weren’t. So Felix often found himself breaking things off with people.

Hyunjin was a bit more lucky, he had a couple of serious relationships that actually lasted a fair amount of time. But ultimately, things would also fall through. Not because of his relationship with Felix, but simply because people change, their needs change, their wants change… And Hyunjin was one hundred percent sure of what he wanted, so as soon as any hesitancy came from the other party, ties were cut off.

Felix truly, truly never ever believed in imprinting and soulmates, but if such a thing existed, he was sure he now had two.

It simply happened one day, while going on a morning run with Hyunjin.

Every other weekend, very early in the morning, Felix and Hyunjin would go to the forest, to the same one Felix used to live in, to where they met for the first time. Felix found comfort in the place, the den was his home, but these woods were the place in which he was reborn, so he enjoyed coming here to connect with that part of himself every once in a while.

Hyunjin came just to spend some time with him, Felix knew it. He wasn’t overly fond of waking up early in the morning, but he never once complained. He understood how much it meant to Felix.

And in that place, was where they met you, too.

As Felix and Hyunjin drank from the clear stream, their ears perked up at the sudden rustle of leaves behind them. Slowly, another wolf came from between the trees, curiously eyeing them both.

Felix felt almost exactly the same way he did when he met Hyunjin for the first time, minus the excessive amounts of trauma he was dealing with back then.

They didn’t make any attempts to run or showed any hostility, since the wolf wasn’t showing any hostility, either. Very quickly they were enveloped by the scent of a werewolf, an alpha, just as the wolf came close to sniff them.

The wolf looked… Intrigued, more than anything. Their dark fur flowed with the gentle breeze passing by, and if Felix thought they were beautiful as a wolf, he wondered how they would look like as a human.

Hyunjin seemed to be in the same state Felix was, entranced, but before they knew it, the wolf took off into the woods again, gone out of their sight.

“So, uhm… I didn’t imagine that, right?” Hyunjin said a while later, as soon as he shifted back into his human form and tugged his jeans up his legs. “Who was that?”

“Dunno. You certainly didn’t imagine it”, Felix slid his plaid shirt on, slowly doing each button. “It felt kinda like…”

“Like when we met”, Hyunjin finished, slipping his shoes on. “Without the ‘growling at me and scaring me to death’ part”.

Felix chuckled, finishing with his clothes.“You’re never gonna let me live that down, are you?”

“Never, sweetheart”, Hyunjin winked at him, slinging an arm around his shoulders and pulling him close. “You’ll have to be making up for it for the rest of your life!”

“You’re so dramatic sometimes…”

That night, though, Felix could only think about the encounter. He wondered how he could find that wolf again, Hyunjin had told him earlier to simply let things flow, just like he did when he met Felix for the first time. If it was meant to be, you’d meet again.

And you did meet again, although not exactly in the way Felix had hoped for.

Felix loved his job, he loved baking, and decorating cakes, and working at this bakery specifically. It was fun, especially on days like these, with orders like these. A basic marbled cake, frosted with white and green buttercream, with the words ‘congrats on the sex’ written on it.

He wasn’t usually the one giving the customers their orders, but they were a bit understaffed today, so he brought it out as soon as he was called for it. Thankfully, it was quite slow at this time, so there was only one person waiting by the counter.

Felix called for the customer in the receipt anyway, and that same person perked up, looking at him. As soon as your eyes landed on his, he felt immediate familiarity, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint why.

“So, your cake’s ready. Please check and make sure it’s all to your liking”, Felix fell into his customer service persona anyway, it was hard not to, he practically spoke in autopilot at this point whenever he was behind the counter.

“Looks good”, you mumbled once you took a brief look at the cake. “How much do I owe you?”

“Well, says here you paid half upfront, so here’s the remaining amount”, Felix signalled to the register, and you started to take cash out of your bag.

What an odd interaction. He felt like there was something on the tip of his tongue the entire time, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was missing something.

“Here you go”, you handed him the money, and Felix pressed buttons on the register, getting it to open and giving you the necessary change once he had deposited the bills inside.

You took the box and turned around to leave. Felix’s brows furrowed, confused, but he didn’t say anything.

However, you turned back around, so fast Felix almost jumped on the spot when you placed the cake back down on the counter. “Were you in the forest the other day?”

Felix was completely caught off guard, but he recognised you then. The alpha from the forest. “That was you?” He lowered his voice, making sure the other lingering customers didn’t eavesdrop the conversation.

“Yes! I’ve been… Uh… This is gonna sound super weird, I’m sorry, but I’ve been looking for you, although I’m not really sure why exactly”, your brows furrowed, and Felix almost wanted to reach over the counter and smooth it out with his thumb.

“Me, too. Well, us, too”, a couple of customers came into the store, and Felix offered them friendly smiles and a quick greeting before turning his eyes back to you. Taking a napkin from the holder on the counter and a pen, he scribbled his phone number quickly, signing it with his name.

“Text me… If you want”, he added once he handed you the paper.

You looked at the napkin in your hand, then carefully folded it and placed it in your back pocket, giving him a “sure thing, Felix” with a smile on your face as you took your cake. “Have a nice day!”

Work couldn’t go any slower after that encounter…

“A female alpha?” Hyunjin asked as soon as Felix started telling him the story, when Felix had finally made it home and slid inside the bathtub to join him.

“So it seems. Well, they didn’t really tell me their gender or anything, but they were certainly female presenting… A lot of… Cleavage and stuff”, Felix had been too confused earlier to focus too much on it, but now that his mind was a bit clearer, he was remembering… Things.

“What are the odds… An alpha for a beta and an omega”, Hyunjin leaned back on his end of the tub, extending one of his legs a bit, and immediately, Felix felt the pressure of the ball of Hyunjin’s foot on his length.

Quirking a brow, he looked at Hyunjin with a smirk on his lips.

“Are you trying to rile me up, my sweet prince? Trying to distract me with your low tactics?” Felix chuckled from where he was leaning on his end of the tub, taking a hold of Hyunjin’s heel and pulling him further against him.

“Question is, when am I not, my love?” Hyunjin gave him a smug smile, and it was just as he was about to say something again that Felix’s phone rumbled from where he had left it on the toilet lid. He looked at Hyunjin, and Hyunjin looked right back at him. Before Felix could say anything, Hyunjin was already stretching his arm, taking the phone, and looking at the notification.

“It’s them”, Hyunjin urged, handing Felix the phone to read the message.

> Unknown Number: hey > it’s me, from the bakery > the ‘congrats on the sex’ cake? > anyway > would you like to go for coffee sometime?

“They could’ve just said ‘the alpha from the forest’, to be honest”, Hyunjin chuckled, still amused by the cake story.

“What should I tell them?” Felix was suddenly nervous. Why was he nervous? He’d done this before. Hell, he wasn’t even the one asking the other out… Was this even a date?

“Say yes! Give them a date and a time”, Hyunjin urged, nudging him with his foot.

“Are you coming, though?”

“I think you should meet them first”, Hyunjin replied confidently. “I’m intrigued, but you already met them, and you know we usually don’t… Like the same type of people. I really think you should meet them first. See if they are nice, and if they are and you want something with them, see if they’re comfortable with… You know. Us”.

So Felix replied then, a short ‘brunch tomorrow. 11am?’ to which you gave him a positive answer and the name of a café he had been to before, so he knew where to go. All details which he gave Hyunjin immediately.

“That’s great, baby!” He nudged Felix with his foot again, making the other smile. “Now, come here. I want you to absolutely destroy me”.

Felix couldn’t help but chuckle. “Needy, are we?” But he moved anyway, leaning forward to kiss Hyunjin properly.

The next day, while Felix anxiously bounced his leg as he sat at one of the tables in the café, he felt oddly nervous. He reasoned it was because you were a werewolf. Felix had truly only dated humans before, the only werewolf he’d ever been with was Hyunjin–he did shoot his shot at Changbin once when he started to live at the den, but to this day he was sure Changbin hadn’t even registered it, so he let it go.

“Hey”, you regarded Felix with a smile as soon as you saw him, taking a seat in front of him. God, Felix hadn’t realised yet, but you smelt like the forest. Like pine and the moss beds he used to sleep on, and it almost knocked the air right out of his lungs.

“So”, Felix started once you both had procured your respective coffees and sandwiches. “The woods, huh? Never seen you around before”.

“You go there often? Never seen you around, either”, you replied between bites of your food, and Felix gave you a nod in responde, not wanting to discuss why he went to the woods in the first place. “I go there often, too. My sisters like to hangout around the place. I was looking for one of them when I saw you guys”.

“You got sisters? Never seen any other werewolf there that wasn’t Hyunjin, now you…”

“Hyunjin? That’s the other wolf you were with?” Felix just nodded again, and you continued. “Well, my sisters aren’t werewolves, that’s why. I’m, uh… My pack is not exactly… Conventional”.

“Oh?” Felix couldn’t help but quirk a brow. “I’m intrigued”.

You gave him a sheepish smile, taking a sip of your coffee right after. “Werecats, werejackals, werebats… It’s a very odd pack, we’re all a bit different. I’m the only werewolf in it, actually”.

Felix’s jaw went slack, completely in shock. “…Come again?”

“Uh, well, there are two werecats, one werejackal, two werebats, and we might be integrating a vampire soon, actually. Not the same thing as a werebat, by the way”.

Felix just blinked, and you gave him an almost shy smile. “Damn, it’s like you’re collecting otherworldlies”, Felix chuckled, dragging his fingers through his hair and leaning back on his chair.

“Yeah, well… We got fed up and decided to stick together”, you offered simply.

“All girls?”

“Nah. Some of us, like me, don’t care about gender at all. Some girls, some boys, some non-conforming… You know…” You eyed him intently, almost as if you were trying to test his stance on the matter, and it had him chuckling.

“Oh, I know”, he replied, with a genuine smile on his face.

You seemed satisfied with his answer, and that, for some reason, made him feel giddy.

That was when you truly started to open up. You were just a bit older than him, you worked at your late parents’ antique and oddities shop, it had been left in your care once they passed away, and your den was located right above it. ‘Got the entire building for ourselves! I’m honestly glad my parents were careful enough to leave me everything they had to their name. I don’t know where I’d be if they hadn’t…’

You were very moralistic, and blunt, and honestly? Really hot. Felix was listening intently to everything you were telling him, he really was. But he could also multitask, so admiring your attributes while he listened was going incredibly well for him.

“What about you, though?” You asked eventually, taking a sip of your now cold coffee.

Felix shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m a baker, as you probably inferred. I have a mostly werewolf pack, but we’ve got a few humans as well”.

“Your alpha allows humans in their den?” You asked, a bit incredulous, and Felix really laughed out loud at the thought of Chris not allowing humans at his den, all things considered.

“He does. Actually, my pack’s alpha is head over heels for his human girlfriend. Any moment now they’re gonna mate and or get married, I’m sure”.

“And you? Hyunjin?” Ah, there it was. It was time to speak about That.

“Hyunjin’s my mate”, Felix replied honestly, confidently looking you in the eyes. “And just to clarify, I don’t mean a mate as a friend. He’s my mate mate. We’ve been mates for years. But… We’re in an open relationship”.

“Oh?” You leaned back in your seat, and the curious glint in your eyes gave him some hope. “Never heard of polyamorous mates before. Does it really work for you guys?”

“It does. We’re both just… Two guys who love each other, and want to share our love with other people, too”, and they were. They truly, truly were, and Felix believed this one hundred percent. “It’s all about trust and consent and all that, you know?”

“Oh, I know…” Your fingers tapped the table.

You looked at Felix for a moment, the air was suddenly heavy between you two, thick with something intense, alluring, and Felix could feel the hairs at his nape stand on end when you leaned on the table, resting your elbows on it. “So… If I take you home right now, and fuck your brains out, your mate won’t mind?”

Blunt. Forward. Very much an alpha, you were.

“My mate was the one who urged me to text you back last night”, a smirk made its way onto his lips, and he leaned forward on the table as well, matching your stance. “What about you, though? You’re an alpha. Wouldn’t it bother you? To know I’m also someone else’s? To share?”

“I’m not a possessive alpha. Not like that at least”, you licked your lips, and Felix’s eyes followed the movement like a hawk. “Like you said… It’s all about consent, and trust, and all that”.

“Exactly…”

You stared at him, and Felix stared right back. In your eyes, all dark and clouded with need, he could see it all. In your scent, he could smell it all. Arousal, lust, want… It was honestly almost comical how fast the both of you stood up from your chairs. The bills had been paid for already, so you simply slung your bag over your shoulder and took Felix’s hand, tugging him out of the café.

“My place is close by”, you told him simply, and he followed you without hesitation.

“Isn’t it dangerous for you to show me where you live on a first date?” Felix teased you as soon as you both made it to your building’s entrance–it was more a door than an entrance, but he figured the term still worked.

“I don’t know why, but my instincts tell me I can trust you, Lee Felix”, you said as you started to climb the stairs, and Felix followed right behind you, not even pretending like he wasn’t staring at your ass the entire time. “But anyway, what would you do to me? I could probably snap you in half”, you grinned at him as soon as you made it to your door, hastily getting your keys from your bag and unlocking it.

“You wouldn’t dare! Who’d take care of my Hyunjin if I’m gone?” Felix bit back, stepping into your home.

As soon as the door closed behind him, you pushed Felix against it, pressing your whole body against his own, and that look in your eyes truly reminded him that you were an alpha, that you were very much capable of snapping him in half, and that he’d gladly let you fuck him silly at any time of day.

“Well, if he wants, I can take care of him no problem. I honestly haven’t been able to stop thinking about his apple and pear scent”, you caged him against that door, with your hands at either side of him. “But then again, I also haven’t been able to stop thinking about yours”.

Before Felix could even attempt to respond, your lips were on his. Warm, slightly chapped from the cold air outside, but still moist with your saliva, and his entire body came alight. You tasted like coffee and bread and like the sweetest nectar he’d ever drunk.

Your fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer as your tongue made its way inside his mouth, devouring him, and he simply took it, pushing his tongue against yours and holding your waist tightly. Felix wasn’t sure if it was the influence of your alpha scent, if it was the fact that you were a werewolf, or the fact that you’d met in the forest, right where he had met Hyunjin, his forever mate, making his brain jump to conclusions, but truly, Felix had only ever felt this ravenous with him before this moment.

“Are you clean of anything?” You asked as soon as your lips disconnected, starting a trail of kisses all the way from his mouth to his neck, licking and sucking on his pulse point, making him whine.

“Yes”, Felix replied simply, slightly breathless, because it was the truth. He got checked regularly, as did Hyunjin.

“Good. Me too”, with that, you dropped to your knees, swiftly undoing his belt, popping open the button of his jeans and opening his zipper. God, he was so hard already, how had he gotten this worked up just by a few minutes of kissing?

It was really hard for him to care at all as you mouthed his length over his underwear. “Let me know if you want to stop at some point, okay? You say stop and I’ll stop. Promise”.

Felix nodded, his eyes fixed on yours as you palmed him. You squeezed him over the fabric, and he was starting to lose it, truly. “Say it, Felix. Say you understand”.

“I–I understand”, saliva had pooled in his mouth, so he swallowed, getting lost in your sinful stare. Felix was usually the one taking the lead, but right now, there was nothing he wanted more than to let you do with him as you pleased, and by that look in your eyes, he was almost certain that was what you wanted, too.

“That’s it. What a good boy”, you smiled at him, a genuine smile that made your eyes disappear, a complete contrast to the way you pulled his underwear down, letting his cock spring free from its confinements.

As soon as you took his length into your warm, wet mouth, he just couldn’t help himself, the moan that left his lips was almost pathetic to his ears, but he didn’t care. Felix let his head fall against the door, lost in the feeling of your warmth around him, on the obscene slurping sounds filling his ears, on the smell of the forest surrounding him completely, making him tremble where he stood.

When was the last time he had had sex with a stranger? But then again, somehow, you didn’t feel like a total stranger, you felt familiar, almost as if he had known you for a long, long time.

“So fucking good with your mouth–Fuck!” The feeling of your throat around him was too much, you were working him up way too quickly, he had to focus really hard to hold it all in. Maybe it was the mix of your entire being–your scent, your values, your tits that looked absolutely amazing in that low top–or maybe it was the new experience that had him so heated, but he’d usually be able to go longer than this, he had stamina goddamn it.

You pulled away from his cock with a lewd pop, replacing your mouth with your hand, pumping him fervently. Sweet, sweet torture… “It’s okay, puppy. You can come. I’m not done with you, though. You can come and then I’ll work you up all over again, hm?”

Felix nodded, frantic, his eyes jumping from your hand working his cock to your face, to your eyes staring right into him. As soon as you took him back into your mouth he was gone. “Shit, fuck… You’re seriously… I’m gonna come, fuck…”

You bobbed your head once, twice, thrice, and then his mind went blank. An assortment of swears and grunts and moans flew past his lips as he shot his load down your throat, and you kept blowing him through all of it, even when he stopped coming, bringing him to the brink of oversensitivity.

“Shit, wait, too much…” He whined, writhing against the door. For a moment, he thought you wouldn’t stop, he honestly wouldn’t be surprised if you didn’t.

But thankfully–or regretfully, he couldn’t decide…–you took pity on him, finally letting him fall from your mouth and staring up at him with a satisfied smile on your face as you looked at him taking deep breaths. When you stood on your feet and kissed him again, Felix really started to feel lightheaded, drunk on your scent, on his own taste on your tongue.

“You okay?” You asked, and it seemed like you genuinely cared, which honestly made his heart flutter.

“More than okay, holy shit”, Felix replied between kisses, making you chuckle. You instructed him to take his t-shirt, his shoes, his jeans and underwear off, and he did it without hesitation.

“Come here, pup”, you tugged him away from the door, walking a few strides and pushing him to sit on the sofa, straddling him as soon as he was seated.

His hands came to rest on the curve of your ass, and before his hazy mind could register the movement, you had already tugged your shirt and your bra away from your body. His mouth watered at the sight of your breasts falling into their natural place, and right there, sitting on top of him, you truly, truly looked like a goddess.

“Felix”, your hand came to his nape, caressing his skin softly. “You seem to be very focused on my chest. Just like you were yesterday”, shit, he had been caught, but honestly, he couldn’t find it in him to care at all.

“How could I not? Shit, look at these”, he moved his hands to cup your tits, squeezing them gently. You allowed him to do it for a few moments, but then you took a hold of his hands, placing them on your ribs, right below your breasts.

“Wanna suck on them, pup?” You kept his hands pressed to your skin, and he immediately nodded, sucking you eagerly when you pulled his face to your breasts.

He didn’t know how long he spent with his mouth attached to your chest while you rolled your hips to get some friction from his already hardening length. All he knew was that when you came from the attention he was giving to your tits, from the grind of your still clothed core against him, the sound of your moans and your soft praises had him almost coming again.

That afternoon, after you took him from that sofa to your room, after you slid a condom on his cock and rode him until he couldn’t take it anymore, Felix left your flat all levels of fucked out of his mind, with a promise of another date, and an almost bashful ‘you think Hyunjin would like to meet me?’

As soon as he was back home, he made his way to his bedroom, finding Hyunjin propped on the headboard of the bed with a sketchbook and a pencil in his hands.

Felix plopped on the bed, sighing contently, and Hyunjin immediately chuckled in response.

“Jinnie, baby. You have to meet her, seriously”, Felix turned to his side and propped himself on his elbow, looking at Hyunjin.

“You think I’d like them?” His mate asked with a chuckle, barely even looking up from the piece he was working on.

“I’m sure you will, shit…”

Hyunjin agreed to meet you, so Felix gave him your contact, and in a couple of days, you two went on a date.

Felix wasn’t sure why he felt so incredibly excited at the prospect of you and Hyunjin going on a date. Maybe it was the fact that they both hardly ever found a common partner, and he was sure he’d enjoy his relationships much more if Hyunjin could be involved.

So he laid on his sofa that day, playing games on his phone and waiting for Hyunjin to come back home.

It was getting dark by the time Felix heard the tell-tale signs of a key going into the keyhole. Hyunjin stepped into the flat with languid steps, dropping his bag on the floor right by the entrance and making his way to the sofa. Felix fixed his gaze on him, looking at his every move. His hair was tousled, his shirt wrinkly and barely even tucked into his jeans, and Felix could’ve sworn he was limping a bit.

Finally, Hyunjin plopped on the other end of the sofa, slouching and staring at the ceiling, and Felix slung his legs over Hyunjin’s lap. He was silent for a while, but Felix didn’t push him, he simply kept quiet and waited for Hyunjin to gather his thoughts.

“Holy shit”, were the first words coming out of Hyunjin’s mouth, just as he brought a hand to softly caress Felix’s calf.

“How’d it go?” Felix couldn’t hold back any longer. He needed to know.

Hyunjin gestured in front of his chest, with his eyebrows high on his face. “Tits. Shit…”

Felix snorted at the comment, amused by the daze his partner was in. “I know, right?”

“That wasn’t normal, Lix”, Hyunjin finally looked at him, with an indecipherable glint of something in his eyes. “I’ve been with alphas before, but whatever that was went completely beyond that”.

“It kinda felt like…” Felix started, unsure if he should say it.

But Hyunjin clearly decided to say it instead. “Like when we’re together”.

“It’s crazy, though. We barely know them”, Felix was trying to find a logical explanation, anything factual, and not based on folklore.

Hyunjin snorted. “Darling, we’re dogs. What does it matter? Shouldn’t we follow our instincts? How many people can say they’re as lucky as us? I can’t believe we finally found a common match”, he carded his fingers through his hair, slumping further in his seat.

“So, that means that you’d like to… Include her? Like… The three of us being a thing?”

“After what I experienced today? Hell fucking yes”, Hyunjin chuckled. “As long as they want to. It’s all a bit… New”.

“Mm, it is”, Felix finally sat down on the sofa, sitting close to Hyunjin and dropping his head on his shoulder. The mix of his and your scent on his clothes had his heart doing somersaults in his chest.

Dating you was… Interesting. At first, you’d go on dates separately, either you and Hyunjin, or you and Felix, the three of you just getting used to one another. Until one day, finally, the three of you went out together.

Felix found it incredibly exhilarating, walking around with an arm around Hyunjin’s waist while holding your hand. It all felt just so… Natural. Easy. Just like it had been when Felix and Hyunjin started to get really close, when they figured out what they meant to each other.

It was all just so much fun, and he was having the time of his life.

Eventually, you needed to meet Chris. If Hyunjin and Felix wanted you to come over, they needed to make sure that their pack’s alpha approved of your presence at the den, and, honestly, Felix respected Chris way too much to not follow this rule, especially because it was one of the very few ones they had at all.

Chris was a bit guarded when you came to his flat to meet him for the first time. He was super stiff, and a bit more stoic than usual. Felix was sure it wasn’t the fact that you were an alpha per se, but the fact that you were an alpha that just wouldn’t stop shamelessly checking his girlfriend out, and it was probably triggering his instincts.

Felix had told you of their relationship before, but maybe he should’ve been a bit more explicit on how looking at her Like That could possibly bring your chances of coming and staying here to absolute zero.

Hyunjin had noticed, too. And he had been trying his best to distract you enough so you would stop. It wasn’t until Chris’ girlfriend excused herself for a moment, when Chris left the room and followed her, that both Felix and Hyunjin lunged at you.

“Darling, please. I’m begging… Stop checking her out. Chris is very possessive of our dear mother”, Felix urged, speaking as low as he could.

“Oh my God. Was it obvious?” You sounded genuinely distressed about it, and it made Hyunjin facepalm himself.

“Of course it was fucking obvious! You’re not exactly the epitome of discreet, love”, Hyunjin whispered-shouted.

“Shit, I didn’t mean to… I honestly have zero intentions with her. She’s just… Hot. Looks so…” You made squishing motions with your hands. You really didn’t need to say it, their pack’s mother was certainly very soft and squishable, Felix often found himself going for hugs or cuddling, so he understood, but his relationship with her was entirely familial, completely different to what you were doing right now, and it would never trigger Chris’ nature–unless the man was close to his rut, but those were technicalities…

“I’m just… Admiring, you know? Can you blame me?”

“No”, Hyunjin sighed, dragging his hand over his face. “But please stop looking at her like that. If there’s anyone off limits at this den, it’s her”.

You pouted, looking slightly annoyed, but you nodded regardless, finally taking a deep breath. “I know you guys are right… I’ll do my best not to start any fights over pretty girls here. No promises, though…”

When Chris and his girlfriend came back, your staring had finally stopped. Regardless, when they returned, Chris held onto his girl like the most obnoxious koala, and as usual, she didn’t seem fazed at all by this.

You gave Chris a bit of context on your life. Your den, your pack, but most importantly, you told him the values and foundations of your pack, which were very similar to Chris’ own. That, added to the fact that you stopped looking at his girl, had seemed to soften his entire demeanour.

“They can stay”, Chris told Hyunjin and Felix that same evening after you left. “They seem nice and I like what she’s doing with their pack”.

Felix heaved a sigh, feeling immensely relieved. At least, until Chris spoke again.

“But, respectfully, tell her to fucking stop looking at my girlfriend like that. At least when I’m around. It fucks up with my head, and it’s incredibly unpleasant, okay?”

Chris didn’t sound particularly angry, mostly just annoyed. Felix knew you wouldn’t make any real advances towards his girlfriend, just like Chris probably knew you wouldn’t, either. Not to say how they all knew his girl just wouldn’t even acknowledge any potential advance. Hell, Felix doubted she even noticed you were looking at her like that at all, she only ever seemed to register Chris in that regard.

But at the end of the day, just like Hyunjin often said, they were dogs, and they often had to fight their animalistic instincts with an insane amount of human self control, which could honestly get quite tiring.

With the approval of their alpha, you started to regularly come to their den–more specifically, to Hyunjin and Felix’s flat, of course. You wouldn’t spend the night that much, though, which was completely understandable. After all, you had a den of your own to attend to.

Some nights, Felix wished he could be snuggled between you and Hyunjin, he wondered how that would be like quite often.

When he told Hyunjin about this, he simply chuckled and said ‘we’d need to get a bigger bed, then. You and I can barely fit on ours’, which honestly sounded like an amazing idea to Felix, but Hyunjin shattered his fantasy when he added, ‘how would you be snuggled between us if you love to sleep at the foot of the bed, though?’ which was also an excellent point on his part…

Regardless, you came over often, to meet Hyunjin if he was there, to meet Felix if he was there, or to meet them both if they were both there. It didn’t really matter, you just dropped by and spent time with either or both and left your scent everywhere and Felix honestly loved it more than he could’ve ever imagined. There was hardly anything that made him as happy as the mix of your scent and Hyunjin’s all over him, it made him feel giddy, and warm, and loved.

“That’s it, Lixie, baby… You’re doing so well…”

The sound of skin slapping against skin filled the room. Kneeling on the sofa, with one hand on your hip, the other fondling one of your breasts, and his chest firmly pressed to your back, Felix buried his face in the crook of your neck, moaning against your skin as you kept pushing your hips back to meet his thrusts. He felt just so drunk on your scent, on the feel of your ass hitting his pelvis, and the tight grip of your walls around his cock.

“You smell so… Good, fuck…” Sweat collected at his temples, he rolled your nipple between his fingers, making you moan, the sound turning to a blissed chuckle.

“You do, too, pup. Fresh… Like petrichor”, you told him simply, pushing your hips back harder, faster.

How many times had this sofa seen you two fuck in the past handful of months? Felix wasn’t sure, but he was sure it hadn’t been enough, he needed more of it. He loved doing it here, right in the living room. He wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was the fact that your scent would linger in the fabric after you left and he’d get to smell it for days after when laid down.

Suddenly, you stopped moving, and Felix instinctively stopped moving as well as the sound of his front door opening reached his ears.

Okay, maybe it could also be the fact that Felix knew Hyunjin loved coming back home to the sight of his partners having sex that made him enjoy fucking on this sofa so much.

“You guys are fucking without me?” Hyunjin dropped his belongings at the entrance, pouting, quickly making his way to the sofa.

You chuckled, pressing a kiss on his lips once Hyunjin kneeled in front of you, wrapping his arms around you and Felix, sandwiching you between them. “You were taking too long to come home, Jinnie”.

“Too long, sweetheart”, Felix let go of your breast to grip the collar of Hyunjin’s shirt, pulling him in for a kiss, too.

Hyunjin sighed, burying his face in the crook of your neck, while Felix did the same on the other side. “Got caught up at work…”

“You work too hard, honey”, you told him, wrapping one of your arms around his waist, pulling him further into you, striking a normal, almost domestic conversation as if your walls didn’t have a vice grip on Felix’s length.

“Did you at least manage to fix that part of the mural you didn’t like?” Felix asked, caressing Hyunjin’s hair, continuing the conversation as if he wasn’t rock hard inside of you.

“I did…” Hyunjin pressed his nose to your pulse point, inhaling deeply, audibly, and it made you chuckle.

“Wanna join us? Or are you gonna stay there and watch?” Felix could feel his cock twitch when you asked that, and honestly, either option sounded exactly like absolute heaven to him.

“Have to clean up, I’m covered in paint”, Hyunjin finally detached himself from your neck, looking between you and Felix with a sad pout on his lips. “You guys go on, I’ll join you after a shower”.

With a quick kiss to both of you, Hyunjin hurriedly retreated to the bathroom.

Felix attached his lips to your shoulder, peppering your skin with kisses as you took a hold of both of his hands and brought them to your chest. “Wanna keep going, Lix? Or do you need a break?”

He squeezed your breasts, trapping your nipples between his fingers, and the way you clenched around him with the motion had him salivating, truly making him feel like a dog. Like a really horny dog. “Let’s keep going. Or I’ll die”.

Reaching behind to take a hold of his hair, you turned your head, finding Felix’s lips for a heated kiss. As soon as your hips started to push back against him again, he groaned, the sound getting lost in your mouth while you held him tightly in place, ravishing his mouth.

Tugging his head back a bit, your lips attached to his jaw, the lack of your mouth on his own let his blissed grunts and groans and moans spill freely out of his mouth. He quickened his pace, and you immediately matched the rhythm. Between your scent and the sounds you were making and the slapping of skin and the delicious feel of you wrapped around him Felix started to feel lightheaded, he’d been so close to coming so many times throughout the entire evening he was sure he’d explode at any moment.

“Darling… I’m so, so close”, Felix couldn’t help but groan as soon as you started to move even faster, holding his hair tighter.

“Come whenever you want, sunshine”, when you kissed him again, when you started to rub circles on your clit and clenching so, so tightly around him, Felix knew he was done for, he wouldn’t last much longer.

Holding your hips and burying his face in the crook of your neck to get close to your pulse point, he snapped his hips as hard as he could, chasing that sweet, sweet relief, and as soon as he took in a deep breath and your scent engulfed him fully, his mind clouded.

“Fuck, fuck, Lixie, baby…” A growl resonated from deep within your chest as soon as you got your release, it made him shiver, and coupled with the feeling of your walls clenching repeatedly around his length was enough to send him over the edge.

Felix came with a deep, low growl, shooting his load into the latex. A low rumble started to resonate within him as he kept coming, and it remained even after your cunt had milked the very last drop.

“Aww, you’re rumbling. What a cute little pup you are”, you chuckled, slightly breathless.

Felix felt himself flush. Taking a hold of the condom at the base to secure it in place, he carefully pulled out of you, tying a knot and dropping the soiled latex on the floor to pick it up later. He plopped on the sofa, panting a bit, still rumbling, and he couldn’t help but scoff.

“And what about it?”

“Nothing”, you laid on top of him, kissing his cheeks, making him flush further. “You’re just really cute”.

“‘Course I am…” Felix mumbled, wrapping an arm around your waist and holding you close.

You just chuckled, pressing a loud, brief kiss on his lips.

After a quick moment of hydration, and as soon as Hyunjin was out of the bathroom, you and Felix pulled him into the bedroom, pushing him to the bed, not even giving him a chance to dry himself properly. You kissed Hyunjin fervently, just as Felix sucked love bites on his neck, eliciting a whimper from his mouth.

“Darling…” Hyunjin mumbled against your lips, trying to get your attention. “Want to… Would you let me…” With Felix’s languid strokes on his cock, Hyunjin could barely speak, and it had Felix growing impossibly harder against the curve of Hyunjin’s ass.

“What do you want, puppy?” You brought a hand to his chest, toying with one of his nipples, making him whine.

Hyunjin swallowed thickly, pushing his hips back against Felix’s length. “You… Want to taste you, please”.

“You want a taste?” You quirked a brow, pinching his nipple harder, making him swear and rut his hips harder against Felix. “What do you think, Lixie? Should I give our dear omega what he wants?”

Felix chuckled softly, licking the shell of Hyunjin’s ear, quickening the pace of his hand around Hyunjin’s length, reducing him to a whiny mess.

“He asked nicely, baby. Our Jinnie has had a hard day today, haven’t you, love?” Felix asked, and Hyunjin simply nodded in response, burying his face in the crook of your neck to get as much of your scent on him as he could. “I think he deserves a treat. Don’t you?”

“Are you turning soft on me now, Lixie?” You chuckled, but you pulled yourself away from Hyunjin anyway. He whined in protest, and you hushed him gently. “But I agree. Today our prince gets what he wants”.

Hyunjin hardly ever didn’t get what he wanted. Just that sometimes, what he wanted wasn’t for you and Felix to pamper him. Most times, he wanted to be ruined, to be played and toyed with however you and Felix pleased, to do whatever you wanted to him. Today didn’t seem like one of those days, so Felix didn’t see any reason to not give him what he asked for, just like you didn’t seem to, either.

Sitting against the headboard, you sat with your legs open, and Hyunjin immediately scrambled to get close to your core. The moment his tongue made contact with your skin, he groaned, and you bit your lip, looking at his every move. Felix just placed his hand on the back of Hyunjin’s head, softly caressing the strands as he enjoyed the sight of his tongue licking you, of his plump lips sucking on you.

“Baby…” You made grabby hands towards Felix, and he could feel his heart swell in his chest just by the way you looked at him, with need, and want, and maybe even love. “Kiss”.

Felix wasted no time, planting his lips on yours, relishing your moans against his lips, relishing the feeling of Hyunjin’s head bobbing and moving between your legs as he held him in place. Your tongue pushed its way inside Felix’s mouth, right as your hand wrapped around his length, and the sudden contact had him moaning immediately.

Your other hand joined Felix’s on Hyunjin’s head, further pushing him against you. Very quickly, the room filled with the sounds of your moans, of Felix’s moans, of Hyunjin’s moans… Groans, grunts, whimpers, and whines mingled with one another, to the point where it was hard to know from whom the sounds were coming out from. But it didn’t matter. All that mattered was Hyunjin between your legs and your hand around Felix’s cock… All that mattered was the mix of your scents in this room on this bed and the amount of lust and love pouring out of all the three of you and bouncing off the walls.

Lately, there was nothing Felix enjoyed more than getting lost on his lovers bodies, than the feeling of you and him and Hyunjin just sharing your warmth, your pleasure, and as he felt you tense under Hyunjin’s quickening tongue, as he felt your grip on his cock tighten the further his mate worked you up, he knew there was nowhere else he wanted to be than right here, in this moment.

Felix detached his mouth from your lips, attaching himself instead to your neck, licking at your pulse point for a moment–just enough to get a concentrated taste of you, quick enough to not trigger your alpha instincts. The contact of his tongue on your neck was gone almost as soon as it started, and he finally moved away from your neck to attach his lips to your cheeks, groaning and moaning against your skin.

“You wanna make me come, Hyunjinnie?” You asked, and Hyunjin nodded, sucking your clit into his mouth, making you throw your head back against the headboard.

“Make our alpha come, Jinnie”, Felix pleaded, pushing Hyunjin further into you. “Use that filthy mouth of yours just like you know how to, and later, you can get my cock, too”.

Hyunjin moaned, the sound strained and muffled as he got lost in your heat.

“Our sweet prince just wants to have his mouth full, doesn’t he?” You pressed a kiss on Felix’s lips, and he felt you shiver and tense further. “Always eager…”

The closer you got to your high, the more your scent seemed to intensify, and Felix was almost drunk on the smell of fresh fruits and the forest. He rocked his hips, fucking your fist just as his tongue kept dancing against yours.

The sounds of your wet kiss, the sounds of Hyunjin slurping you up, the squelching sounds of your fist around his length had Felix’s head spinning, and when your release washed over you, the feeling of you trembling and the smell of your arousal in the air almost, almost made him come, too.

With a tight grip on Hyunjin’s hair, you got him off of you, tugging him up for a kiss, a kiss Felix couldn’t help but join, moaning at the taste of you on Hyunjin’s tongue.

“Satisfied? Happy you got what you wanted?” You asked as soon as Hyunjin separated his lips from yours, sounding incredibly confident for someone who was still panting for air.

Hyunjin nodded, whimpering when you tugged on his hair again. “Good. Now be a good boy and lay down for us, hm?”

Hyunjin scrambled, laying on his back and watching as you took a condom from the box that had been hastily thrown on the bed earlier. As soon as you slid the latex on his length and you made sure it was securely in place, you straddled him, sinking yourself on his cock in one swift movement, eliciting a shared groan of relief.

You didn’t move, you just sat on him, watching as Felix got close to Hyunjin’s head, kneeling with his length in his hand. Hyunjin looked up at him, with his eyes all glossy and with flushed cheeks, his chest rising and falling with deep breaths. Truly a sight to behold.

“Please, Lixie…” Hyunjin begged, and you chuckled from your place on his lap, making him flush further.

“So desperate, baby. As if you didn’t just have your mouth busy… How needy…”

“If there’s one thing our Jinnie is, is needy. Aren’t you, love?” Felix chuckled, caressing Hyunjin’s cheek briefly, only to finally move closer to him, slapping his length against his cheek, making Hyunjin flush further. “A textbook slut, aren’t you?”

Hyunjin swallowed, nodding. The sound of a hand hitting skin resonated in the room, the slap Felix gave Hyunjin made his mate moan as soon as his palm made contact with the skin, and Felix gripped his chin tightly with one hand right after. “Aren’t you?”

“Yes!” Hyunjin whimpered, writhing a bit under Felix’s hold, and it made him feel tingly all over, tingly with lust and love and need. “Your slut!”

“Good boy”, you chuckled, pinching one of his nipples, making him squirm.

“Indeed. Our good little slut”, Felix let go of Hyunjin’s chin, caressing his cheek after.

“Please… Move, please”, it wasn’t very clear to whom Hyunjin was talking to, to you who had been sitting on his length for a while now, completely unmoving, or to Felix who had his cock so close to his mouth, but not letting it touch his lips at all. Most likely, it was directed to the both of you, but Felix decided to move first anyway.

“Open up, then, my dearest prince”, Felix couldn’t help but groan as soon as Hyunjin’s lips wrapped around him, sucking him eagerly, moaning around his length as he bobbed his head.

“That’s it, sweetheart… You always look the prettiest, the most handsome, with your mouth stuffed full of my cock, you know?” Pushing the tip of his length against Hyunjin’s cheek, Felix slapped the bulging skin a bit, relishing the way Hyunjin closed his eyes and moaned in bliss.

You chuckled from your place on Hyunjin’s lap, placing your hands on his chest for leverage and finally starting to bounce on his cock, making him whine and whimper as Felix kept thrusting into his mouth. “Look at you, Jinnie, dear. So pretty. Moaning for us like the prettiest bitch in heat”.

“Moaning like our perfect slut, you mean”, Felix chuckled, the sound breaking into a moan of his own as Hyunjin started to move as well, meeting Felix’s thrusts, letting his cock ease into his throat.

“That, too”, your pace was ruthless, the sound of his gagging and your skin hitting Hyunjin’s had Felix salivating, and he wasn’t sure where to focus. On his forever mate choking on his cock, or on your tits bouncing with every single one of your movements, or where Hyunjin’s length kept disappearing within your heat…

Hyunjin’s moans were getting increasingly more desperate, Felix could feel his orgasm grow incredibly close, and as soon as he locked eyes with you while he kept thrusting into Hyunjin’s mouth, he knew he wouldn’t last.

“Come here, Lixie. Let’s give our precious little omega what he wants”, you urged, quickening your pace.

“Fuck!” Hyunjin started to swear as soon as Felix’s length fell from his mouth, his blissed out noises now spilling freely from his swollen lips without the foreign body fucking his mouth.

Felix moved closer to you, just as you got off Hyunjin’s length and pulled the condom off of him, dropping it somewhere behind you to collect later. With his hand around his cock, Felix leaned into you, kissing you sloppily as he jerked himself, as you pumped Hyunjin with a tight fist.

Hyunjin was moaning a lot, Felix was grunting a lot, you were borderline growling, and it was all so much, so intense, Felix could feel his entire body tensing, and he was ready to burst at any second now.

The second you bit Felix’s lip, he couldn’t hold back anymore. Muttering a quick warning to no one in particular, and with a few more strokes, he finally came, spilling all over Hyunjin’s abdomen, his climax clouding his senses completely as all the tension finally left his body. He opened his eyes just enough to look at your hand around Hyunjin’s length, and if he hadn’t been lightheaded before he would’ve certainly been now at the sight.

“C’mon, Jinnie. Wanna come for us? For your precious mate and your dearest alpha?” Hyunjin frantically nodded in response to your question, gripping the bed sheets tightly in his fists, moaning and swearing and making all assortments of unintelligible noises under your ruthless grip.

With one final, drawn out moan, Hyunjin came, some of his seed dripped all over your fingers, while the rest landed on his torso, soiling him and mixing with Felix’s cum. As soon as the last drop was out of his mate, Felix dived, licking the mixture of their releases into his mouth. With his tongue thoroughly coated in their juices, he kissed Hyunjin, pushing his tongue into his mouth.

Hyunjin whimpered, pushing his tongue against Felix’s briefly, until finally you came close, and Felix simply moved his head enough so you could join in. And truly, Felix had never felt any more fulfilled than he did in this very moment, sharing that kiss with his two favourite people in this world, in that mess of tongues and lips and fluids.

With a satisfied sigh he dropped on the bed, laying next to Hyunjin just as you left the room, picking up the used condom from the floor on your way out. When you returned with a soaked washcloth in your hand, you cleaned up the mess that had been left on Hyunjin’s abdomen, murmuring soft words of encouragement as you did so. Felix simply took the cloth from you after to wipe the remnants of his release from his length just as you laid next to Hyunjin, pulling him to your chest, and pressing a kiss to his forehead.

As soon as Felix turned on his side, pressing his chest to Hyunjin’s back, Hyunjin started to rumble, letting out a content sight at your soft caresses on his hair and at Felix’s tender kisses on his shoulder.

“You should stay”, Hyunjin mumbled against your chest after a while, making you chuckle.

“I can’t tonight, pup. I’ve got to prepare this whole thing at the den… They’ll be waiting for me”, you answered simply, and when you looked at Felix he gave you his best puppy eyes, adding a sad pout for good measure.

You gave him a smile in response, pinching one of his cheeks. “I really can’t, Lix. Don’t make this any harder for me”.

“We just… Miss you when you’re gone”, Felix pressed his body further against Hyunjin, just as you did the same, effectively sandwiching him further between you two.

“We do”, Hyunjin reaffirmed, practically suffocating between your breasts, probably exactly where he wanted to be.

You sighed, tucking a strand of hair behind Felix’s ear. “I miss you guys, too. But you know I just… Can’t leave my packmates. They’re my family. And I know you guys won’t leave Chris, so… This’ll have to do for now. We’ll figure something out eventually”.

Felix just hummed, closing his eyes for a bit to enjoy the warmth of your palm on his cheek, to enjoy the rumble of Hyunjin against his chest, to ignore the need to find that solution right now. There was no point in dwelling on it when it truly was a bit of a complicated situation, and his post-coital state certainly didn’t make it any easier to make logical decisions.

The three of you laid there for a while, just sharing some body heat, some light conversation, until you moved to the bathroom to clean up, until you eventually had to call it a night and leave.

As Felix laid in bed with Hyunjin that night, curled up in a ball at the foot of the bed just how he loved to do, he realised that, he had truly never believed in soulmates, but if such a thing existed, he was one hundred percent certain having one would feel just like it felt when he was with you and Hyunjin.

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am-i-the-asshole-official · 11 months ago

Note

AITA for asking my mom to stop singing?

okay so a couple months back i (a uni student) moved out of my old apartment and back in with my parents while i try to find a new one. the only issue is, since i first moved away, my parents had moved into a smaller house than they had when me and my siblings were growing up. they now have their bedroom and my dad's study, but no additional bed or guest rooms. for this reason, i have been sleeping on their living room couch.

my mom also doesn't have a room of her own, so her laptop is also in the living room, as is mine. so basically the living room is our shared domain for the time we spend at home. i have class and friends to spend time with, so i'm away relatively frequently (though i'm on winter break now of course), while my mom is retired and is at home basically 95% of the time year-round.

me and my mom both listen to music a lot and our tastes do not overlap basically at all. i listen mostly to indie, folk, rock, the kind of stuff white queer kids love, while my mom's music is almost entirely soulful christian pop about big j and stuff.

up until recently, my mom didn't wear headphones. she'd play music directly from her laptop speakers. this obviously bothered me somewhat, but i hadn't said anything about it. recently (i.e. a couple weeks ago) i asked her if she'd consider starting to wear headphones, which she has for the most part, though sometimes she forgets. i just kinda let her do whatever if she does, i haven't mentioned it again since.

so that's the first time i asked my mom to be quieter, and i don't think i'm an asshole for that. my worry is about the second time. you see, over the last week, she's taken to singing along to her tunes. maybe she did that before and i just didn't notice over the actual song itself? anyway, i can definitely hear it now.

and of course it's not the best musical performance, it's a lady with little singing experience belting along to her favourite songs, but it's not really about the quality of the singing. i don't like the music she likes and would prefer not to listen to it, is all.

today, whilst she was singing, i gently asked her: "could you stop singing?" i didn't mean forever, just in that moment. i really tried to say it in a nice way, and i don't think i sounded particularly rude? it should be noted, though, that my parents do seem to think of me as some kind of sensitive sally intent on criticizing every little thing they do. that feeling does kind of go both ways, but i admit sometimes i can be harsh on my mom, because she can be overbearing and a bit neurotic, and i don't really get to have the space i wish i could, especially not now when i'm living with them.

anyway, so i ask: "could you stop singing?" and my mom says something like "okay- well, i would prefer not to." the way she said it really made it sound like i had hurt her feelings. so i said, "okay. that's alright. you can sing." she stopped singing and has been sort of running around for the last 10 minutes or so restlessly doing random things.

my parents are that kind of people who are really really deep in "politeness" and genuinely baffle me since i'm autistic (like, a couple of days ago we had some leftover cake, and my dad straight up forced me to take half of what was left over even though i said i didn't want it. i still don't really know why?) so i'm sure even though i said "okay, nevermind then," my mom didn't believe me.

while she was running around doing random things, i told her, "sorry if i hurt your feelings." and she said, "oh, it's nothing." i genuinely don't know if i'm in the wrong here. i feel like, on the one hand, this is a space we have to share, and i should have the right to ask her not to make noise (i always wear headphones and never sing along to music or vc with friends when my parents are around), but on the other hand, it's her house, and she should have the right to sing in it, right? i don't know.

TL;DR: i asked my mom to stop singing in the only space for our computers in the house and i'm pretty sure it upset her. AITA?

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

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thegreatstoryteller · 2 years ago

Text

The Great Shift: Reunion

The Great Shift is a well known event that had swapped over 90% of the world’s population! However, after the initial fallout and chaos, a few years later people began to acclimate to their lives. Though there were still moments where people were confronted with just how much they’ve changed.

“Ok Ned Nuno. No one is gonna remember you as Ned the know it all. It’s been years. People are mature and have their own lives.” Ned said to himself in the mirror.

The young man looked back at his model like reflection. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe it was him. Only a few years ago he was looking at his own bespectacled face with his receding hairline. Sure he’s what some would call cute and charming. He always had a knack for intelligent conversation. After college he embraced his intelligence even more and had the luxury to travel as he got older... but he couldn’t deny that his former body wasn’t turning any heads romantically. They’d haver to notice the 5 foot tall waifish man for that to happen.

But now... that was no longer the case. All those years ago he was traveling at an airport when the Great Shift happened. One moment he was departing his plane, the next he was in a boarding area waiting to be seated!

Needless to say it was a shock. He’d gone from a smaller and dark skinned to a clearly white and very in shape young man! He later found that this guy was named Connor Duval and was just 21 years old at the time! Still in college too. And... well those first few days he certainly had a lot to learn about his new form.

However he couldn’t reminisce any further. He needed to get ready for his school’s 10 year reunion. He wasn’t the same timid nerd that people would pick on. He was braver! He’d seen the world! And wasn’t afraid!

- One ride to the school later -

“Ok. I’m afraid! Jackie! Are you here yet? I know this is the 2nd message I left for you on your phone, but I don’t want to be the only one here I know! You were always my best friend and I’m sorry I’m so nervous and-” Ned was pacing nervously outside of the building he once learned at, waiting to go in with his friend.

“Easy there poindexter. Your bestie is back.” A deep voice says spooking Ned as he jumps.

“J-Jackie?” Ned asks nervously seeing the towering muscular figure beside him.

“In the flesh. I though I told you that I shifted into that big Ukrainian construction worker? I mean all the better for it right? None of your old bullies ever messed with you when you butch lesbian bestie was at your side.” Jackie said with a flex.

“I know. I know. You were always so open and brave with yourself It’s honestly inspiring. I’m sorry i was so shocked. I’m just nervous and it’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other. I hope your girlfriend is taking it ok.” Ned offers sympathetically.

“Yeah she loves it. She swapped into this bi goddess of a woman and works out with me a lot. Good thing too! I’m still only attracted to women and I have the best one sucking me off every night!” Jackie bragged. Previously her normal crude humor always let out a laugh from Ned, but now Ned trembled a bit as Jackie sounded just like those macho straight guys that bullied him.

“Aren’t you a little under dressed without um... a shirt?” Ned asks.

“Ha! Well you know. I thought about going nude. But I did pack a polo so i can be decent. Aren’t you over dressed Ned?”

“What!? I couldn’t decide what to wear! I just chose one of my body’s outfits that still fits...” Ned blushes in his nice suit. Sure he was a 6 foot tall model with abs, but his indecision in outfits was ever present.

“Neverminded that anymore. Let’s get in there! You’re a tenured professor for Pete’s sake. And I’m a well known LGBT author. We got a lot to talk about.”

Jackie pulled Ned in with his surprising strength and they began to hear the music and mingling. Inside they were given name tags and soon saw the crowds of people that none of them recognized! One of the perks of the shift was that no one was ever mad when they didn’t recognize one another. In this case though Jackie and Ned’s eyes zeroed in on a few key people.

Stacy Skarsgaard was always known as the head cheerleader and total B. Her platinum blond hair and perky breasts getting her through life and landing her a cushy secretary job somewhere in the city, from what Jackie had heard. Now once again, as she was so many other times, she was blasted drunk and taking her top off. Only this time it revealed a powerful dark skinned chest with curly black hairs. Her perfectly shaved face saying, “And like. I”m already on my 4th husband and he totally worships me. Takes care of the kids and still tops me like a champ. Like. I totally see why gay guys do it all the time. I can’t stop. Any more martinis?”

Jackie snorts. “Where was that open mindedness when she tried to get student council to take down the LGBT Support Club? Freaking hypocrite. Their eyes then drifted to three men chest bumping and laughing.

“Are those guys Chad, Thad, and Grad?” Ned asks surprised. “Weren’t they... like the biggest guys on the football team?” Ned recalled the days when those beefy fat bodies would pound through the halls and shove him against lockers.

“Oh yeah. I heard they were working as assistant coaches at some college and ended up swapping with their respective school’s freshman swim team. They... certainly lost a lot of that freshmen 15 that we saw them with in university.” Jackie laughed admiring how they both towered over their former bullies, though Ned once again felt insecure about how much their abs looked better than his. Those three guys kept messing around but in different ways. Instead of belching and arm wrestling they were doing some handstands and showing how flexible they were.

“Ok. Ned. Stop sulking and start catching up. You wanted to prove to yourself you could stand up to your past. Now is your chance. Next person to walk through that door is gonna be a new person you have to say Hi to ok?” Jackie commanded.

Ned gulped and looked at the door nervously and was in awe of who stepped in.

“Paul Bailey?” Ned said astonished. He’d recognize that familiar leather jacket anywhere.... he could still smell it as the closeted athlete wrapped his arms around him all those years ago under the bleachers after a big game. Neither have them had mentioned the night since, but that hadn’t stopped Ned from cherishing that memory.... as well as stalking him occasionally on social media seeing who he swapped with.

Ned hadn’t realized he’d been staring that long as Paul immediately saw him and walked over. “Holy... Ned? Is that you. Wow you sure changed.” The man joked. His voice was different... but still so deep and smooth Ned nearly swooned.

“H-hey Paul. Guess we all have since the switch. You’re um... looking good.” Ned admitted, blushing. He missed his previous heritage that made these embarrassing actions less noticeable with his former darker skin.

“Thanks. I guess I traded in my older pasty body for a new more bronze kind. I wasn’t expecting to swap with an Asian bodybuilder, but hey I was at the airport. Right or wrong place depending who you ask for the shift.”

“Really? I was at the airport too when I shifted. It was kinda funny. I’d been traveling a lot since I got tenure as a professor, but the first thing I did when I shifted was trip. I guess no amount of travelling prepares you for suddenly having size 14 feet.” Ned laughs.

“Really? They do look big... dang. Those are like twice the size of your old ones.” Paul laughs too!

“Y-you remembered me that well?” The nerd felt touched.

“Of course,” Paul replied as it was his turn to blush. “Though hey! I got you beat with these size 17 wide feet. With these heavy muscle I nearly took out an entire cart of luggage.”

The two continued to laugh, comparing bodies, stories, and catching up. Jackie suddenly took her leave to be ogled by all of the female attendants.

Ned and Paul were having a great time walking around, having fun, and enjoying each other’s company.

Ned didn’t know that their bodies had met previously. That Connor was on the way to visit his boyfriend at the time... that miles away their original bodies were holding hands and laughing too... Ned couldn’t know that Paul had also been secretly keeping up with Ned after feeling bad about kissing and never calling...

But there are some things a know it all doesn’t know. Maybe it’ll be fun for him to start learning again. This time with someone both old/new.

#body swap #thegreatshift #The Great Shift #Great Shift #thegreatstoryteller #race change #racial change #height change #gender change #female to male

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evillex11 · 3 months ago

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tldr: geto ain't all that /j. he (may) actually never had his shit straight, gathered, and set as many thought he did (incl gojo). u can skip to the conclusion cuz this is way 2 long

i have the idea of geto being set on his goals drilled into my head so much that I forget how vulnerable he really is. he isn't really as “i've already decided and I won't stop at anything to pursue it” as I remember him to be

like, I already know that geto's goals aren't solely for his personal gain or interests, he's not as selfish/cold-hearted as he might come off. he wanted to create a world where it's easier to live as sorcerers .... and it's not just bc he was almost killed by a nonsorcerer (toji) for a greedy reason and doesn't want it to happen to him again ... but he also had his friends and colleagues in mind—he doesn't want to see another innocent kid who had a shot at living the way she desired be killed again, he doesn't want gojo to be a tool anymore, he doesn't want to have piles of other sorcerers’ (his colleagues!!) bodies to be at the end. and mind you, when he decided to abandon everything he had, he was a teenager that saw too much as was spiraling out of control. he wasn't fully mature when he made his decision

and if u maybe squint, u can see hints of regret in his decision... maybe uncertainty or just not wanting to pursue it as much as we're all led to believe. he was away for 10 years... that's a lot of time, what exactly did he do? he was running a cult and gathering curses for his grand plan of ridding the world of nonsorcerers. but in those years, he never posed any serious threat to the jujutsu world or nonsorcerers despite his already powerful technique ,, not until his declaration of war at least. but even then, it wasn't even like he was guaranteed to win bc of how strong he's gotten... he declared that war knowing he had a good chance of losing, it was half-assed (lack of a better term). and when he did lose, he didn't bother to run away. he let gojo get to him, he let himself to die in his hands

all that to say, maybe geto didn't know what he was doing exactly—he wasn't as sure about his end goal, where he was going exactly, how he was going to do it and whatnot. it feels like he just decided on something without as much thought as he should've and is bound to that decision and felt inclined to just... keep going. dare I say, the whole thing was to give himself a new purpose. your whole life being you're a tool, a thing with an innate purpose to fulfil, isn't very pleasant to realize isn't it? (would like to add: purpose/value of life is explored multiple times in jjk). so maybe he wanted to take control of his life back by steering his goal from the one instilled to him as a sorcerer to one that he decided for himself.

his lack of actual, impactful violence is telling of this. he was shaken up by the events that stacked onto him that it caused a decision to be made when it's heaviness fell on him. he had a crisis n felt like he needed to get a hold of himself, his ideals/morals were slipping away and he needed to grasp it again, somehow. it's not actually as grounded as I remember, it's not as set in his mind as we think. it seems otherwise by the way he seems accustomed to his new life, how untroubled he looks when we see him in jjk0, how fulfilled he is with how it's going. he has new acquaintances, a family, a goal which he won't stop at anything to reach. but we dont see what's behind that... we don't see how he feels through all this, how relieved he might've been to have gojo kill him finally.

sorry for being so redundant lol I'm blabbering. but basically, geto may seem like he laid a clear path towards a goal bc of how confident he left everything the day of the KFC breakup, but he's actually unstable and unsure as hell. he stalled a LOT on doing actual impact and taking BIG steps to reach his goal. deep inside, he actually doesn't wanna go down that path, he just said he will to have a hold of himself, his ideals, his purpose.

but what do I know? I haven't rewatched jjk0 yet and I'm not done rereading the entire manga so… I don't trust my memory that much. might've remembered some things wrong or forgot a detail so .. feel free to point that out !!! as always, discussion is always appreciated :3

also this makes me a bit happy cuz now my “the deal” by mitski x geto suguru vision is now perfect<3 I'm gonna have fun making that animatic!!!! in my head almost each line fits him now, I'm so happy. I love u geto I love u mitski. I do hope I get to make that damn animatic. I'm telling you it's so geto-coded!!!

#lord this is even longer than my “gojo is a tragic character” rant #can you guess who my favorite jjk character is? just guess...#jjk #jujutsu kaisen #geto suguru #suguru geto #geto jjk #jjk geto #jujutsu kaisen geto #jujutsu geto #jjk suguru #lex yapping #jjk character analysis #kind of?#idk i js b thinking and saying #mitski #geto #jujutsu kaisen suguru

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theghostbunnie · 1 year ago

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How do you see Max and Nikki’s relationship?

As siblings

I know that's like sometimes what ppl say when there's a straight pairing popular ship (makki) vs a gay popular one (maxneil) and they don't really mean it they just mean they have a uncomfortbilty or hatred towards one of the ships, but in my mind they're literally twins/hj

I have AUs where they're twins, half siblings, step siblings. I love them sm..There's even a line in one of the end credit rap songs that goes something like "we may not have the same color skin but imma treat em like my twin" and I'm like ah yes,,, something to feed into my delusions/j

((on a more srs note I feel like more ppl should look into the end credit lyrics alot of it seems specifically written to fit Max and might give people a better insight into his characterization))

But enough of my fannon delusions n self indulgence they're obviously not actually siblings they're best friends BUT they didn't start off that way no matter how sweet the "you now have three little bastards to deal with" line is bc in the first season, earlier episodes he's more of an asshole to her bc they're still getting to know each other.

He broke her instrument, quicker to basically tell her to shut up on multiple occasions, ect.

Back to the first episode, Max operates BIG on first impressions. Off the bat he's touching Neil's shoulder, he's impressed by his disrespect to authority, he wants to hotwire the bus with him. But Nikki? Hardly addressing her. Even says "why would you help us?" Bc despite biting him, she appeared to be just a 'little more violent, mini-David.' THAT was his first impression of her. Nikki didn't have his attention or respect technically until he learned her willingness to seek and cause chaos near the end of the episode. There's times at later points where she's clearly getting on his nerves.

I'm pretty sure I already wrote out a whole in depth thing about how Max has issues getting attached to people and will fight it off and deny it once it happens even at the cost of their feelings (points at camp corp episode) where as Nikki is a social person who has been denied a real friend til she came to camp campbell same as Neil, who is NOT a social person. They both start off clingy towards Max for this but Nikki works past it and makes 2 other friends while Neil doesn't.

So recap: Max builds a team of two other kids he can just share a common goal with at first, is a bit of a jerk to Nikki initially at times, but she grows on him and now he really values her as a friend n cares for her deeply.

But now onto NIKKI'S POV: She'd been bullied before, it was a traumatic experience for her yes but that's also the ONLY information we have on any past relationships she's had with peers, kids her own age. Any other time she's talking about someone she knew it's often just her mom. sometimes her dad (often not painting a good picture of him but through a childhood innocence lense) or an animal she knew.

So when she makes her first friend group in camp campbell her only prior experience with one is in the flower scouts. Nikki picked up bad habits from them bc she's a kid and doesn't have the emotional maturity to analyze her every behavior.

So when Max is being the type of person who was being quick to shut her down, who (in her own words) was micro managing her, and only ever seemed like he was having a good time when they were doing what HE planned to do, ofc she's gonna start harboring some complaints. Nikki isn't gonna sit down and talk about her feelings to him like an adult she's gonna do what the flower scouts taught her and you talk shit about the problem to OTHER friends.

This isn't to say she secretly hates him, no I firmly believe she deeply cares about him too but they're both flawed people so their friendship has flaws too that doesn't make it void of care for one another.

You can't unbiasedly hate on Nikki for that scene she's mocking him if you're not even taking into consideration WHAT her original issue was. Nikki shit talks, Max has control issues.

As episodes progress I think they really seem to work past it and become better people AND I THINK THAT'S RLLY SWEET I LOVE THEIR FRIENDSHIP ❣️❣️

The way they interact with each other throughout the series really shows that their differences might cause some clashing but they have FUN together and I think their differences and problems just make them more interesting characters

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luvistqrzzz · 1 year ago

Text

THE ACCIDENTAL POLAROID- 20::: Love, Y/N ( written::: 0.47K )

( warnings::: none )

This was a bad idea. This was the worst out of the bad ideas you've ever had but there you were again finding your way to Heeseung's locker, an envelope clutched in your hand.

You didn't know what putting "things right" meant but all you wanted was to apologize to him and after what he had said, talking to him face-to-face might just make matters worse (also sending letters was romantic and you were a coward). Needless to say, you had cursed yourself a countless times for your actions that day.

When you reached the locker, you quickly looked around your surroundings to check for any signs of him before slipping it past the slot and, quite literally, sprinting away in the opposite direction to hide behind a pillar.

After a while of waiting, you saw Heeseung approach from the distance. Your stomach did a sudden flip at his sight.

Now, the said boy was living in much the same dilemma, of how to walk up to you and kiss you talk to you. At least his friends had been successful on putting some sense into him.

Heeseung opened the locker only to find a big creme coloured envelope inside. He furrowed his eyebrows before opening it.

Inside it was a polaroid, tucked safely along with a letter. He took in a sharp breath. The polaroid of yours he took months ago. Your face bent down, a small pretty smile grazing your face.

Dear Heeseung or should i say 'mr.H'?,

So i kinda figured out you'll be the only who sent me this polaroid, im not wrong right? Cuz you have terrible photography skills! Im kinda sad that it's already fading :( i cant believe that it was one damned polaroid that lead me to you. But i wouldn't have it any other way

Moving on, lemme get straight to the point. Im sorry for what i did and im also sorry for being a coward and not being able to tell you this personally (also i figured you wouldn't wanna talk to me). Nothing can compare to what i did that day... and s*ngh**n told me that b4 i kissed him, i said that i missed you. Yes, you, Lee Heeseung. And ik our relation wont prolly get back to normal but i hope you accept my apology... its okay if you don't forgive me, now or ever.

But in the end, i like you heeseung. A lot. And i wish we could take more polaroids like this one, i wish we could document our lives in polaroids and when we get old we'll see those fading pieces of paper and laugh at ourselves.

- Love, Y/N.

From your crouched position behind the pillar you saw as Heeseung folded the paper and stalked the other way. It meant nothing, he was just walking away but why did you then feel your heart sink?

Prev | Masterlist | Next

SUMMARY- Lee Heeseung doesn't believe in love at first sight but what happens when he accidentally clicks a polaroid of a girl at the local diner? A girl he can't seem to get out of his mind.

Will he be able to return you the polaroid or will love follow him along the way?

GENRE- smau with written parts, college!au, strangers to lovers, fluff, crack, angst (veryyy slight), slight love triangle

TAGLIST- open! send an ask or comment to be added- @yenqa @xuimhao @ddazed-lhs @astrae4 @ghostiiess @seungminstaehyun @haechansbbg @chaechae-23 @ak-aaa-li @whippedforbeomgyu @ahnneyong @ineedaherosavemeenow @jhopesucker @j-wyoung @tnyhees @liliansun @rikizm @jadeluvsenha

( bold = cannot tag )

AN- enjoy the cliffhanger my loves 😘... also if yall want pls vote whether yall will prefer love theory ( summary ) to be a smau here! 🙏🏼

#📸accidental polaroid !#enhypen smau #hyfenet #enhypen imagines #enhypen fanfiction #heeseung x reader #enhypen x reader #enhypen social media au #enhypen au #enhypen fanfics #heeseung imagines #enhypen fake texts #enha fics #enhypen fluff #lee heeseung #heeseung smau #enha fake texts

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huffle-dork · 7 months ago

Text

Swap Across the CrystalVerse Chapter 13: The Facility

Read Swapboys | Crystal’s AUs| JSEFacility

Read SITCV | SATCV Masterpost | AO3 Link

The sun is slowly rising, blue overtaking the orange. J1 is unbothered by their long walk along the side of the road, but H and C seem to be lagging behind a bit. There's nothing around except for fields and poles of telephone and power lines.

Alt isn't fairing much better than H and C, he's so tired. He's not sure how many days they've been jumping through so far but... he's starting to feel the exhaustion in his muscles, especially now that he has to walk. He rubs at his eyes and stumbles a bit as he shakes out his head.

C squints down the road. "Hey... is that... a car?"

The others all look.

"That's our fucking van!" H shouts.

Alt blinks up and then laughs, "Ha... what are the odds?"

"Well... we were heading down here because J3 said they just went straight this way," H says. "So... really high, actually."

"... touche-" Alt grumbles. "Guess I didn't expect them to be driving our way-"

J1 laughs. "I guess we wait here for them to come to us." He glances at the others. "Looks like you guys need it."

The van approaches quickly--and then stops suddenly, perhaps a bit too suddenly.

"Sorry!" M says in the driver's cabin to the rest of the van's occupants.

Bro was closing his eyes just for a second so the sudden stop jolts him up and onto his side with a big 'oof'!

Jackie catches himself on the dashboard before he hits his head on it. "Ooohh my god-" He mumbles then gives M a shaky smile. "Uh! good stop! Just- not so much pressure, you know?"

"Thanks for the encouragement, even if you don't believe it," M says. "Now... that's your friend?" He looks out the window at Alt and the others. "Huh. Not what I expected. Then again, I don't know what I was expecting."

Jackie snickers, "Yeah- he's a bit unassuming isn't he? He's a great lad though."

J3 gets off the floor and walks over to the back of the van, throwing the doors open. He waves at the group.

Bro pushes himself up and then joins J3 at the back of the van. He grins wide, "Alt!"

Alt smiles and waves back, "Hey! Glad you all are okay~"

Nice to see you in person, A-L-T, J3 says, smiling.

Alt nods with a smile, "You too J3. Oh! If you want- my friend has a sign he does for my name." He shows J3 A, then lightning is sign and smiles sheepishly. "Just in case you dont wanna,..spell it out all the time."

M opens up the driver's side door and hops out. He's holding Lia the llama in one hand. He stares at C, J1, and H. They all stare back. "So... hi again."

J1 gives a little wave.

"Ah... nice to... see you," H says awkwardly.

"Yeah." C nods. Then... he looks at Bro. His brows furrow. "Wait a--wait a minute. Wait a minute. Wait a--are you guys seeing this?"

"Ah there it is-" Bro grins. He hops out of the car and waves, "Hi you all, I'm Chase!"

"Chase...?" C repeats. "Chase... Chase." He nods slowly, and gives Bro a smile. "Nice to meet you."

Bro smiles more and nods, "Yeah and you're... C, I'm guessing?" Calling his other him by just a letter feels so wrong but... if that's what they wanna be called...

Jackie steps out of the van and looks between all the guys staring at each other. Oof... awkward. He doesn't like the tension in the air. Still, he lightly nudges M with a head tilt. He... must wanna say something to the rest of them, right?

M blinks at Jackie like he doesn't know what he's asking of him.

"Um..." J1 clears his throat. "M, I'm sorry if we... made you think... We didn't want to hurt you. I-I mean... w-we were all... in there, too. We don't want to go back, but... we want to get J out of there. So he... doesn't get hurt anymore, you know?"

"...okay," M says quietly. "I'm sorry I took the van."

H sighs. "It is fine. Just... don't do it again, please?"

"Yeah. I-I'm not a good driver, anyway."

Jackie smiles as the others seem to make up and he claps his hands together, "Yay! Everyone is friends again!"

"Friends? I, um..." M stutters wordlessly for a bit.

J3 laughs silently and nudges him.

"Yeah. I think--yeah."

Alt looks at everyone and then hums in thought. "...did you guys see any signs of Mag around here when you guys fell?" He asks his friends.

Bro shakes his head, "Haven't seen hide or tail of him... i dunno if that's a good or bad thing though."

"Hmm..." H hums. "Well, you all know the most about your universe traveling thing. Is there a pattern for where people will be? A limit to how far they can appear? If not, I suppose J3 could see if we run into him at any point in the next week."

Alt knits his eyebrows together, "If... he didn't appear by any of you... then he must be by the... parallel me... or maybe J?" As Alt processes this thought he slowly starts to pale. "Wait... that means-"

"...didn't you guys say that... J was in the Facility?" Bro asks quietly.

The group goes silent. They exchange uneasy glances.

"Y... yeah..." C whispers. "He got... left behind..."

"And A is still there, too," H adds. "So... if your person is appearing by either of them..."

Expressionless, M turns, walks into the back of the van, and closes the doors.

Bro cringes slightly as the door closes. "...so... that's not good."

"I dunno- maybe we can just leave him there!" Jackie announces.

"Jackie!" Bro gasps.

"We can't just leave him there!" Alt emphasizes.

"Why not? He only causes us trouble. Now he can be locked up somewhere. Sounds like a win to me?" Jackie mumbles.

"Jesus christ, dude!" C says, going pale. "I mean--yeah, he took our van, and yeah, we had a fight, but that doesn't mean we can just leave him there!"

"No no no, he's talking about Magnificent, not M," H says.

"Oh."

"I mean--i-it's not so bad in there," J1 says slowly.

J3 shakes his head. I appreciate your optimism, but it wasn't 'not so bad' for all of us.

"I don't think anyone deserves to be stuck in there," H says. "If Magnificent really causes this much trouble, he should be in a prison, but that is not a prison. It is worse."

Jackie pouts but then slowly his expression softens. He sighs, "No... you're right... we... we can't leave him. I... I'm sorry I just-"

Bro comes over and pats his shoulder, "...I know bro... seeing all this must be really hard for you. You only really heard stuff from us before."

"Yeah I... it's... different... seeing it all. He... He's not... not Marvin anymore. But... he also is? I... I dunno it's..." Jackie squeezes his eyes shut.

"... I hate him too Jackie... I hate that he hurts us but... I.. I can't leave anyone in danger like that... not even Mag." Bro says quietly, giving his friend a side hug.

"Not to mention... A is still there," C says. "He... might be running around free. A-and I wouldn't wish that on anyone."

Alt feels his stomach drop, "...A is really bad, isn't he?" He ask quietly.

"A has, um... done some stuff..." C says slowly.

"Personally, I think that it is less good to think about A1010 as a person, and more as a force of nature," H says.

J3 just shudders.

"Guys... you aren't making Alt feel good about maybe being him in another world," J1 says carefully.

Alt does look a lot more pale, hugging himself slightly.

"O-oh shit, um. Right." C shakes his head. "I'm sorry, Alt. I know you're not like A."

Alt nods weakly to C but he doesn't look excited to meet A.

J3 takes a deep breath. Well... if we're heading back there, we need to talk to M about that. I mean... see if he wants to help...

"Judging by his reaction, I don't think he does," H says. But we should still talk to him about it.

Bro gives Jackie a final hug and then looks at the van, "... I could try talking to him? It sounds like we could use all the help we can get..."

H nods. "To be honest... M is quite powerful. J1 told Alt about his abilities, but... just saying it is very different from seeing it. We might really need him."

I'll come with you, J3 says. I've been able to talk with him before.

"Heh... the rest of us should probably stay back," J1 admits. "I mean... we did just get over the fight."

Bro smiles, "Okay J3, I can follow your lead."

J3 nods back at him. He turns and walks over to the van doors, opening it up just enough for him and Bro to walk in.

M is sitting up against the van wall. Lia the llama and Ella the elephant are beside him, and he clutches Seth the seal in his arms. He's breathing heavily, and the white light in his eyes has increased, almost hiding his irises. The space feels a bit warmer than it was before.

M? J3 asks.

"I-I'm not going back," M gasps. "I'm not going back, I'm not going back, I'm not going back—!"

Bro holds up his hands and talks in a gentle voice, "M? Just... try to breathe for us, okay? Focus on breathing..."

M nods. He tries to slow down, inhaling and exhaling shakily.

J3 sits down next to him. We can talk more when you're ready, he says.

M nods again. Inhale... exhale... inhale... exhale. He squeezes Seth tighter, then after a moment, when he seems calmer, he makes a 'go ahead' gesture, asking the other two to talk first.

Bro gives him a sympathetic smile. Then, he lets it fall as he say quietly, "I know... its a lot to ask.. to go back there for a stranger. But, forget about Mag for a second. Don't you want to help get J back? Isn't he your friend?"

I didn't know him that well, actually, M says, signing instead of speaking. We were on different floors. And I wasn't allowed to interact with anyone. I only knew J3 because they couldn't stop him from walking through time.

J3 sighs. That's true. But you know that J is a good person, right? C and H love him. And he's innocent. He doesn't deserve to stay there.

M shakes his head. I know. I know. But when I think of going back, I feel all shaky inside.

"That's a natural reaction..." Bro comments gently, "It's okay to be scared. Especially of a place like this... but... here's what I'm thinking. The others say you're powerful and I can believe it. Wouldn't it feel so good to go back to the place that hurt you and tear it down?"

M's eyes widen. He stares at Bro like he hadn't considered that. They said that about me? he asks.

Well, you are, J3 says. The first time I met you, you destroyed a room full of filing cabinets.

M laughs a little. "I-I did do that, you're right." He tilts his head. "They... they'll have ways to take care of us, you know that, right?"

But we'll be taking them by surprise, J3 says. Instead of the other way around. He pauses. And I won't let anyone get hurt.

"Don't put that all on you," M whispers. He nods slowly. "Alright. Alright. I-I think... I think if we can prepare... I can... do it."

Bro smiles wide, "And hey! I doubt they have ways of stopping me and Alt! We're pretty powerful too~! We'll catch them all off guard! And we'll keep you safe, promise." He holds out his pinky finger for Marvin, grinning. "We can pinky swear it, even."

M gives him a small smile. “You don’t need to do that. I-I’m not a kid. But I, uh, appreciate the gesture. I… hope they won’t have a way to get you. Maybe having extra people will help. So… alright. Let’s go.”

J3 sighs. Thank you, M.

Bro blinks and looks embarrassed as he puts his hand back. "Ah... right- sorry. But, yeah, thank you M."

“You’re welcome, I guess.” M smiles a bit. “Let’s go tell the others. W-we should come up with a plan.”

J3 nods. Let’s do that. He gets up. M does too, still holding Seth, and they leave the van.

Bro hops back out and smiles at the group. “We got M on board!”

Alt smiles slightly. “Hey… that’s great. Glad to have ya, M.”

M nods, squeezing Seth a little bit.

“So… what now- how do we get to this facility place?” Jackie asks.

C sighs. "We drive. I-I think we're all very aware of where the facility is. It's, uh, kind of in the middle of nowhere. So we'll have to do some off-roading."

"If we can scrape the paint off the van, we can blend in," H says. "The company's logo is beneath that. We could drive right up."

"Assuming they, uh... forgot we stole a van of theirs," J1 says delicately.

Alt thinks and then sheepishly raises his hand. “…I could glitch us there- since you guys know where it is.”

“Mmmm maybe- but if we leave from there they’ll need a way back out. So… we should probably make sure they have their van.” Jackie says.

“…oh. Yeah I can’t… glitch a van.” Alt says, hiding a bit in his mask.

M's eyes widen. "Glitch?"

"He can teleport around!" J1 says excitedly. "It's really cool!"

Alt looks to M and then glitches back and forth to show him before smiling shyly. “Glitch- it’s… pretty handy.”

M inhales. Then he grins. "That's so cool! I can do something like that." He holds out Seth, and the plushie abruptly disappears. It's then replaced by Elly. "Not with things that are alive, though."

Alt’s eyes widen and then he grins too. “Oh!! That’s really cool!”

"Uh… Well... if we drive there, then Alt can, uh, glitch us inside once it comes in view." M says.

"Of course!" H gasps. "I mean--we should not speak for you capabilities, Alt, but it would help."

"We'd still have to drive a while to get there," C says. "So... you can rest during that time period, gather your energy."

Alt nods to H and C, “I can do it with all of us. …resting will help I think. We’ve been going kinda non-stop for a bit.”

“Yeah.. a nap sounds kinda good right now.” Jackie laughs.

“On the way there then, we can think of a strategy… and you guys can fill us in on what we’re dealing with.” Bro says.

C nods. "It's going to take a couple hours... if not the whole day. So that's a perfect amount of time for you to nap. I can drive."

"He's much better than me, I promise," M says to Jackie.

Jackie exhales. “Okay good- if you need a break at all I can help too!”

No time to waste, then, J3 says. Let's go. The others nod and start filing into the van.

"Who gets the passenger seat?" J1 asks.

Bro looks around and then shrugs. “Whoever wants to hang out with C the most, I guess! Or doesn’t want to join the nap pile.”

"I'll sit up with him, then!" J1 says, laughing.

"What? Oh, bro." C looks touched.

"C'mon, I'll keep you in high spirits."

Alt glitches into the van and hunches down in a corner. Bro snorts out a quiet laugh then goes to join him. Alt hesitates for a second before shifting to lean up against him. Jackie grins and pushes over to sit next to Bro and then makes a big show of stretching and laying on his leg. Bro shoves him slightly with a laugh.

H settles down at the back near the doors, facing forward as he mumbling something about how he can't stand going backwards. M sits down where he'd been before, holding his plushies nearby. J3 takes up a spot in the corner.

Feel free to use any of our sleep supplies if you need it, J3 says.

Jackie grins and grabs a pillow, putting it under his head and taking up Bro’s lap. “Ahhh! Cozy!”

“You’re such a little bitch.” Bro laughs.

Alt reaches over to grab a blanket and huddles closer to Bro, already closing his eyes. He dreads going to this place but… it’s coming either way. Might as well rest and get prepared.

"Alright, here we go," C says. The van starts up and drives away.

-----------

It becomes increasingly clear that this facility is not a safe space. There are no windows or doors out, only stairs and elevators (all of which are inoperable.) And there are creatures wandering the halls. Some of them are harmless, like the gecko with a third eye, but some of them look more dangerous, like the bird made entirely of metal with a razor-sharp beak. All the red lighting gives this space a hellish look. And... there are cameras everywhere.

Magnificent warily walks down the hall- trying to find some indication of a way out. He warily eyes the creatures- wondering if it’d be worth it to drain their power. But- he’s still pretty full despite the last world. Plus… he’s wary of the effects after dealing with that cat.

As he turns a corner, he finally notices a door that's open, not sealed shut by A's control over the facility. It's a regular door that... looks like an office of some kind? And inside is... a voice.

Magnificent is almost too desperate to not proceed with caution- wanting to run straight into the room. But he tries to breathe and slowly and quietly approaches the door to listen.

There's a slight violet light coming from the inside, too, a faint glow that shifts in hue. The muttering is a female voice, repeating the same thing over and over. "Can't let go... can't let go... can't let go..."

And... there's a power signature coming from the room. Something that's similar to his own black magic, but slightly off.

Magnificent’s curiosity is hard to ignore again, especially as he feels a power so similar to his own. He carefully makes his way inside.

There's a woman lying on the ground inside, staring up at the ceiling. She's wearing a gray jumpsuit. In her hand is clutched a crystal ball with purple light swirling around the inside. Her eyes are also slightly glowing purple. And she keeps muttering that over and over.

Magnificent tilts his head curiously. Then he teleports so he’s next to her and kneels down to her level. “…what power is this?” He mutters, trying to get a better look.

There's a sticker on the side of the crystal ball, with writing on it. "C3010 L-Agressive."

Maybe... maybe he should touch it...

For a second, Mag hesitates. But then he scoffs. Maybe this orb is aggressive to a mortal- but he’s a higher being. He can probably best whatever this is. And he’s… just so curious. The power this thing could hold… he reaches out to grab it.

The moment he touches it, he understands. This--this orb is a well of power! Everything he ever wanted could be his with this crystal sphere in his hand. He should take it with him. He should take it with him and never let go--but this woman is holding onto it tightly. How dare she. This is his, he can't let it go!

Magnificent feels the power overwhelming him- yes… yes! He could use this to escape- to beat that creature! To best everyone in his way! But- this woman…! He growls ferally and tries to yank the orb out of the woman’s grasp.

She tightens her grip, dazed violet eyes briefly focusing on him.

Magnificent growls and digs his claws into her hands, trying to pry her off. “Let go!”

Even though his claws draw blood, she just keeps holding onto it. Maybe--he just needs--some more force!

Mag tugs more, and then lashes out, grabbing her wrist- trying to see if he can snap this woman’s hand off the orb. He needs it! It’s his! He attempts to break her wrist.

And-- Snap.

The woman flinches slightly, and lets go. But she keeps staring blankly at the ceiling.

Magnificent grins triumphantly and grabs the orb, holding it protectively in his hands. His eyes flare purple. He giggles dazedly, so glad that he’s won. It’s his! He can do so much with it…!

…right?

And then, out of nowhere, the sound of static. A1010 fizzles into view right in front of Mag, once again wearing J0702's appearance, grinning with a smile too wide.

Magnificent startles back and holds the orb to his chest and curls up around it, hissing at A. “Y-You! Get away!”

A laughs. "Oh, I really didn't expect you to fall for it. I mean, you're at least smart about magic." He leans closer. "So... what's that crystal ball so important?"

Magnificent bares his teeth, “What’s that supposed to mean?!” He backs up a bit more and holds the orb tighter. “It has power- power I can use to defeat you! A-And to get me out of this dreadful place!” He teleports to his feet and holds the orb in his hands, trying to see if he can siphon any power from it to use. “Here- I’ll show you!”

...

......

"You look ridiculous," A says, and lunges forward, swiping with his knife. The blade slices through the crystal, dividing it into two parts that are roughly one-quarter and three-quarters in size.

Magnificent tries to scramble back but the orb is cut- and… what?

As the smaller part falls to the ground, the violet light from the orb disappears, and Mag hears a faint scream in the back of his mind.

...wait, why is he holding onto this?

Mag blinks in sudden confusion and looks down at the orb. He quickly drops it and tries to back up some more, dread settling thick in his stomach. He… he got controlled by that thing! Him! That- shouldn’t be possible. He has a stronger will power than that.

"Oh, did someone just have their confidence shaken?" A says teasingly, tossing the knife back and forth between his hands. There's a tag on it, actually, reading K1010.

“Shut up.” Magnificent tries to spit but it comes out hollow. “…what do you want me with anyways? You want to just mess with me?”

"I like seeing how people work," A states plainly, grin widening further. "I liked chaos once. But after they brought me here, they taught me how to examine things. Though they don't know they did that." He giggles. "So, yes, I just want to mess with you."

“I refuse to be just some- plaything for your amusement!” Mag snarls, building up black magic fire in his hand and then lashing out to try to burn him.

A glitches out of the way, reappearing behind him. "Fine, then!" he laughs. "Try to escape! Try to reach the surface! I'd love to see if you can break through that barrier they've set up."

Magnificent whips around and tries to lash out again. But he stops himself and just glares at A. He bares his teeth. “Fine. I will! This place can’t hold me!” He quickly teleports away- focusing on just getting away from A.

It's not too hard to teleport around the facility. Magnificent goes up to the next floor, and then the one above that. The higher he gets, the less destroyed the facility looks, with intact walls that don't have cables and wires everywhere. And the more creatures there are wandering around. How are they all surviving here?

Magnificent appears in a hallway that ends in an upwards staircase. Right by the stairs are a couple of creatures. A bright blue snake, unusually long and thin, and some sort of combination between a stingray and a cat, with the head and front legs of a cat but the lower half of a stingray.

Magnificent stops to catch his breath and shake off some of the static from so many jumps. He then sees the creatures and makes a face. “…they have… the most peculiar creatures here…” He tries to approach the stairs and the creatures.

The catray seems to be making biscuits on a discarded bit of cloth--a white coat?--but the snake responds to Mag. It raises its head, hisses, and slithers towards the stairs. It starts floating a couple inches over the ground, using this ability to climb the steps--until, suddenly, it stops, suddenly jerking back as though it hit a wall.

Magnificent watches this with fascination. He gingerly tries to step around the snake and catray… thing- and see if he can find this barrier…

It's about five steps up the staircase. Just, suddenly, a completely invisible wall. There's no sign that it exists... though, farther up the staircase, there are small round disks pasted onto the wall, metallic and with three blue lights in the center forming a triangle.

Magnificent narrows his eyes in determination and places his hands on the wall- and tries to pump it full of his magic. Surely a world like this wouldn’t be prepared for that?

Purple light ripples across its surface, revealing its shape. For a moment, it seems like the wall softens--and then the disks on the wall start letting out an annoying high-pitched beeping. The blue lights turn red, and a force pushes Magnificent back.

Magnificent shouts out and skids back against the floor. He growls and narrows his eyes at the disks. He has to get rid of those… he most likely can’t teleport past this wall. That’s why he stopped here… maybe… he can find someone on the other side? He does not want A to gloat though so he tries to see if he can get an even bigger concentration of magic and then rushes at the wall.

The wall bends slightly with the force. The beeping increases, becoming louder in volume. And then small bolts of lightning zap out from the disks towards the wall, hitting Magnificent.

Magnificent screeches and flies back, curling up as he’s shocked. Fucking- damnit! He bites back a frustrated angry yell and just tries to let the pain pass. There… has to be some way…! Maybe… if lightning could pass through the wall then… he gets back up and tries to shoot a bolt of purple lighting at one of the disks.

The lightning bounces back at him.

Mag cries out and tries to duck. Okay… not his greatest idea. Fucking! He yells in rage and frustration and starts stomping around, spitting out curses in Gaelic.

The catray gets up and flies away as he starts stomping around, but the snake hisses again, baring its fangs.

"I'm almost disappointed that you didn't make it through." A appears leaning against the wall nearby. The blood from his slit throat is spilling out over his chest, absolutely covering it. "I thought surely someone from another world would make it. But I guess not. We're stuck with each other, Marvin." He grins. "Or you're stuck with me."

And then he disappears again.

Magnificent freezes and flinches back as A appears. He yells in rage as he says his name but then he just… disappears. Mag staggers back and then ends up sliding down to the floor. He… can’t be trapped here… he can’t be. …no one was going to free him from this. For all he knows- the others from his world were more than happy to let him rot in here. He leans back and stares at the door, trying to think of something… anything.

-----------

"Hey. Hey." They'd been driving for a few hours when J1 knocks on the half-open window connecting the cabin to the rest of the van. "Anyone who's taking a nap, wake up."

"We're getting McDonald's," Chase says. "Tell us what you want if you want anything. Also pass me the cash."

Alt and Jackie had been dozing off pretty much the whole time. Bro tried to stay awake for a while but soon found himself falling asleep too.

The swaps stir at the knock, Alt and Bro blinking up at the sound of food while Jackie grumbles and curls up towards Chase’s stomach.

Bro chuckles. He digs into his bag and finds his wallet, handing over some money. “Fucking sick- uhhh I want two Big Macs and some fries- Jackie what do you want?” Jackie mumbles something against Chase. “…okay two mcchickens forJackie and a Coke.”

“I want a 20 piece- and fries, and a sprite please.” Alt says quietly, blinking sleep out of his eyes.

“Oh! And a coffee for me! please!” Bro adds.

"Oh thanks!" C says, taking Bro's money.

"I want what Alt's getting," M says.

"You got that last time, do you not want to try something new?" H asks.

"Why? I know I like this."

H chuckles. "I want to try the crispy one this time. And also a coffee."

The fish one and fries with a coke, J3 says.

"Fish fillet and fries with a coke for J3," J1 repeats. "I'll get the quarter pounder with cheese and a coffee. Unless they have shakes available, then I want a strawberry one. What're you getting, C?"

"Big Mac and fries and drink, I'll keep it simple," C says.

H sighs. "You know, I know, in my brain, that fast food is not healthy, I have read that so much. But it tastes so good."

"Oh yeah, totally," J1 agrees. "So much better than back there."

Bro chuckles, “Sometimes you just need some unhealthy food! It’s like- good for the soul… or something.”

Alt snorts out a laugh and rolls his eyes.

"You heard that guys, we all have to heal our souls by getting McDonald's," C says.

They pull through the drive thru and C starts ordering.

"We do need to consider buying food stores, though," H muses. "We cannot live off fast places forever."

"Yeah, especially since you and M are so picky," J1 says.

"I am not picky, I just... feel like I can't eat some foods."

"I will admit I'm picky," M says quietly. "It took them a while to find something I would like."

Bro snickers, “Alt was really picky when we were growing up. Not so much now.”

“Yeahhh living on the streets will change that for ya.” Alt snorts. “…fast food is good sometimes- I think I prefer good cooked meals though. ..or pizza.”

“We eat so much fucking pizza,” Bro laughs.

The van pulls up to the window and C starts taking stuff from the window. "Pass those out to everyone," he says to J1.

"Yep. Come up here, guys." J1 hands some of the bags through the interior window to the back of the van.

Bro reaches out to grab the bags, much to Jackie’s displeasure as he’s moved and forced to sit up.

Bro chuckles and hands him his stuff and starts handing out everyone else’s food.

"We should get pizza some time," J1 says. "It always looks so good in pictures."

Pictures don't always live up to expectations, J3 says.

“You’ve never had pizza?!” Bro gasps. “We should buy you all a pizza!!”

Alt laughs, “…I’d be inclined to agree with J3 but- pizza is that good. Even just plain pepperoni.”

"I'd still want to try it," M says. "Even if it doesn't meet expectations."

"Oh, but you will not get a hamburger?" H says teasingly.

"No, I don't like beef stuff, they tried that."

“I mean… we’ve probably had pizza before, we just don’t remember,” C says. “Hang on, lemme find somewhere to park do I can eat too.”

The van parks in the lot of a strip mall and everyone digs in.

“After this, we’re not gonna see other buildings for a while,” H says. “We will be going off road. It will be bumpy.”

“At least we got some decent sleep before that then,” Alt laughs between bites.

Jackie grumbles and Bro pats his head.

“Back on pizza though- maybe getting some would help your memory! I mean- I think Dr. j told us that smell sometimes really helps with memory.” Bro says between bites.

Alt nods, “Or music- music helps too.”

“Yes but I’d like to think a decent pineapple and ham pizza would just bring everything back.” Bro laughs.

“Music, huh?” M mutters. “I wish I managed to get my music player when leaving but I had to prioritize.”

“Maybe you can get it once we reach there,” J1 says.

“I don’t think we should go any deeper in there than necessary,” M says in between bites of nuggets.

We should tell you guys about the layout, J3 says. Most of it is underground. The top is just stuff for the staff.

“How many floors is it again?” C wonders. “Below ground… seven?”

“That sounds right,” M says.

“Damn- that’s a big facility.” Jackie comments, digging into his second sandwhich.

Bro hums, “Maybe if we’re lucky- mag will be on one of the top floors.”

“He’s probably desperate to get out of there…” Alt speaks up quietly, “…he talked to me once like he… he was a victim of Sclera. Like I was… if this is a place like there then… he probably wants out.”

“Also cuz of that- A guy probably.” Jackie adds.

"I wonder if they got A back into containment," C muses.

"Wait... SCLERA?" J1 asks. "What's that?"

"It is the white part of your eye," H says. "Or, green, for J. The tissue that protects your eye and maintains shape."

"How the hell do you know that?" M asks.

"Not sure."

“It’s also that… but Well for us- it’s a company that studies magic and then uses it to make… invasive machines. They… study abnormal people like.. like lab rats.” Alt mumbles quietly, gripping at his wrist.

The group goes quiet.

"Oh. Okay, so it's just like this company," C says. "I mean... I don't think you could call us magic. That sort of implies... that it's more... mystical? But we are different. And... they did study us."

"Light way of putting it," H mutters. "Every time I met C it was because I needed to heal him."

Ambrel, J3 spells out. That's what the company is called here.

Alt shudders and goes to hold his arms, curling up his legs to his chest- his food forgotten. “Studying is also a mild way of putting it. They… they tortured me… d-didn’t see me as human. I was only there for a few days I think but… it felt so familiar and I don’t know why and n-now we’re going to a place just like it-“ Alt breathes heavily- starting to panic.

Bro is quick to scoop Alt up and try to calm him down. “It’s okay Alt… it’s okay…! It’s not Sclera- nothing is gonna happen to you here… you’re gonna be okay…”

C stares at Alt. "I... I get it." He absentmindedly traces a long scar on his arm. "It was... the same for me. For all of us. Just... in different ways."

J1 turns around, staring through the window, wanting to go back there but not sure if his support would be welcome. "We're all feeling that," he says quietly. "We don't want to go back there. But we have to. We can't leave anyone else there."

Alt looks back towards C and J1 with red-rimmed eyes. “…I guess… we all got to be… brave together.”

Bro smiles gently, “That’s the spirit. None of you have to do this alone.”

"Remember to breathe," M says quietly. "We're not going to stay there long." He hesitates. "Do you... want something to hold? Lia's a bit delicate, but..."

Alt looks to M and starts to slow down his breathing but he blinks at him and then smiles, “um… I-if you don’t… mind? I… I think that would h-help…”

M nods. “Sure. Here, I think Seth is good to squeeze. And sometimes you need to squeeze something.” He passes the seal to Alt.

If it gets too much, you can wait outside, J3 offers. Do you have a phone? We don’t, but if two of you do, we can communicate.

Alt takes Seth and holds him tight in his arms, closing his eyes for a second to breathe. He looks up to J3 in time to see his signs and he shakes his head. “No… I… I need to be there to glitch you all. I… I’ve handled scarier things before… I.. I didn’t have it as bad as I’m sure you guys did.” He says with a sad smile. He squeezes Seth a bit more.

Bro frowns and hugs him a bit closer to him.

J3 nods slowly. Alright. If you’re sure. But remember, just because others might have had it worse doesn’t mean it wasn’t bad for you.

Alt hesitates at J3's words then nods, burrowing more against Bro's side.

“It’s gonna be okay…” Bro reassures everyone, “We’re a fierce team! I’m sure it’ll be a quick mission! Get in- fuck some shit up! Find mag and j and then get the hell out of there!”

J1 quickly shoves the last of his burger into his mouth. “Alright… we should tell these guys what to expect.”

“I mean, it depends on if the facility stayed how it was after the escape, or if the company fixed it back to how it was before,” C reasons.

“Before, it was very cold and there were cameras everywhere,” M says. “And groups of guards. And alarms. There’s only one elevator from the surface to the lower levels.”

“After, a lot of the subjects broke free,” H says. “Animal subjects, I mean. Us and J and A were the only ones like humans. Many of them destroyed parts of the levels. And if things have continued, I do not think there are many people down there anymore. And then there is A1010. I found its file once. It can shapeshift, cause hallucinations, hypnotize people, and control electronics.”

“And there’s his knife,” C adds. “That can cut through anything. Literally. Except for J’s optic cord, for some reason.”

The swaps listen with wide eyes. Until- "Wait IT TRIED TO CUT OUT HIS EYE???" Jackie screeches.

Alt looks paler and squeezes Seth more as he hears what A can do.

“It’s not as bad as it sounds!” C says quickly. “J’s eye can pop out of his head on its own! And it’s also, uh, alive? Has a mind of its own? Look, it’s one of the weirdest things in that place, but you can get used to it. J calls the eye Sam. He used to call it A, because they called it J0702-A, but we all decided that would get confusing.”

Jackie does not look comforted by this. "What the fuckkkk?"

"Okay so uh- avoid the knife A has- got it." Bro says quickly. "Anything else we should know?"

“Not off the top of my head,” H says slowly.

“What about your guy?” M asks. “What can he do?”

“Hypnotism usually-“ Bro says, squeezing Alt’s shoulder. “He also has like black magic and uses a lot of fire. But usually he tries to make people listen to him and do whatever he says. Mess with your mind.”

M blinks. “And… that guy’s me?” he whispers sadly.

“In another universe, it doesn’t count,” J1 says stubbornly.

“Right…” M still looks a bit unsettled.

Bro nods to J1’s words, “It doesn’t count. Just like how A isn’t Alt, Mag isn’t you, M.”

“Okay, so basically don’t touch anything, don’t go near any animals, watch out for guards, and always be on your guard mentally,” C sums up. “That’s fine. We can do that. We’ll have numbers on our side.” His optimism is somehow both forced and genuine.

Jackie snorts out a laugh, “Is that all? …yeah- we can do that. Sure we can. I’m not gonna let some- creepy fucking building get the best of us!”

Alt hugs Seth a bit more- wanting to give him back to Marvin but… having something to hold right now is nice. Like… he can almost imagine its Glitches.

“Alright!” C takes a sip from his drink. “Let’s just maintain this confidence for the next couple hours until we get there, then!”

He puts the van into gear again and starts driving.

#SATCV #SATCV Facility #love this part #especially rping them getting mcdonalds XD #its surprisingly fun to write the boys doing mudane things we do everyday XD #also i just love all the boys interactions this chapter its so good <3 #alt anti #swap magnificent #bro fantastic #jackie mann

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magicmindless · 1 year ago

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Can you do Papa himself?

nooooooo I have to take this man seriously now/j

I’m just kidding I did it (though tbh I don’t think about him much but I think I did decently)

A HC list but it’s just Papa Louie

The man the myth the legend

- To the public eye, he’s seen as a friendly, generous man by most, albeit questionable with his business choices at best. If it weren’t for Quinn, he’d be facing multiple lawsuits at the moment

- Those closest to him can describe him best, and they all say similar things like how he probably means well but it’s sometimes overshadowed by his impulsiveness, and trouble of thinking things through

- He started his business alongside Roy in the small space below of what would become Papa’s apartments, choosing to make pizza since it was relatively hard to mess up. Some customers like Wally and Allan were already there but more come to live in the apartments later

- For a guy running multiple fast-food chains and therefore getting tons of money, he lives in a pretty normal house which is located in a quieter area of Tastyville

- He’s childhood friends with Professor Fitz who was his neighbor. Their relationship is best described as the free spirit and the “straight-man”, and it’s still exactly like that to this day

- Went to a private elementary school because his mother worked there as a teacher. He met Jojo as a friend, however after elementary school they’d part ways to different schools and didn’t meet again ‘til the Taco Mia era

- Big LGBTQA+ ally, though there’s a possibility that he could fall under the aro/ace umbrella. He’s not sure but doesn’t dwell on it much

- He’s always up to date on Fitz’s latest discoveries on warp coins and Ripley’s Munchmore expeditions ever since the previous incidents which involve Radley Madish and other food baddies. He doesn’t let his guard down when it comes to that sort of thing

- He’s like a second father to Roy and Joy and occasionally his other workers, but he tends to take the sibling duo on surprise trips sometimes to other cities or regions of the land. It’s typically work for Louie but also a free vacation for the siblings

- He’s a bit traumatized from when Sarge invaded and kidnapped his customers and when Radley had kidnapped him twice. He doesn’t talk much about the invasions either because of bad memories

- Believe it or not he’s not a violent person, he only ever fought in the platformers because he had no other choice

- Really bad at telling if people are in relationships or not. Of course if there’s obvious signs like wedding bands he can tell, but if isn’t then he’ll just be like “wow what great best friends” until told otherwise

- There’s only one food that he heavily dislikes which is goat cheese

- He’s the only person who knows that Joy is Ninjoy, but he’s never told her because he doesn’t want to worry her

- Other hobbies he likes are mini-golf and bowling. He’s gotten pretty good at both

- Also a fan of gardening, mainly herbs and vegetables. He gets his herb gardening tips from Big Pauly

- He hides a lot of secrets for his own well-being, and that of others, and Fitz is the only person he’d trust to keep them

- When asked about what he thought of Mortadello, he stated that he actually felt kinda bad for him. Sure, he brought himself to his ultimate downfall (with Louie acknowledging that he was also responsible in a way) but he thinks Mortadello is just troubled, plain and simple

#asks #yakkolicious #papa louie #papa louie headcanons #flipline studios

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brainmaniaman · 2 years ago

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That julianXreader fic was absolutely amazing. Please write more JulianXreader fics or headcannons. There is so little of it in the fandom 🥺

Gosh, thank you so much. I really appreciate it. I feel similarly. I'm more of a Ricky guy and all I saw was one (very glorious) headcannon post. I've had this idea kind of swimming around in my head for a while but I haven't had anywhere to put it. This one's for you, bud!

Sometimes I think about a world in which Julian actually went to community college. In later seasons, I found myself disappointed with Netflix's continuation. To me, Seasons 1-7 are the only cannon ones. Though... I think my favorite seasons are about seasons 1-4ish. So let's talk about an AU where Julian went to community college

Julian at community college would be great. I think he'd be overwhelmed because he's no longer the smartest guy around. I mean, there's not much competition in the Trailer Park, aside from Bubbles, but I always thought that Julian saw Bubbles more as an equal.

I just know that Julian gets in trouble with campus police for carrying around that fucking rum and coke. They tell him he can't do that but he does it anyways. Eventually, he's just kind of known as that guy that carries around a rum and coke. Julian is nice enough so people just kind of let him do his own thing.

Maybe you meet Julian because you have a group project for Intro to Marketing and Media 101 or some shit like that? Like, the project is doing a commercial for a specific product and you're graded on the effectiveness or the product. It's a simple project you would typically find in a basic community college class.

I will say, Julian probably doesn't like you to begin with. I mean, you're probably smarter than him. Julian is the kind of guy to take people being smarter than him as a personal insult. Plus, he's used to being the smartest guy around. I think he'd be friendly, but he'd probably kind of condescend and try to take control of the entire fucking project.

You had other group members but they couldn't fucking stand Julian taking charge of the fucking project and they got the professor to let them split into another group. If you knew that was possible, you would have too - but now you and Julian are stuck together.

Julian has shit ideas, I'm sorry. They're not fun. He just wants to do a basic info-mmerical but you think that's super lazy. You wanna do something fun and pretend to sell something creative. He hates the idea and just wants an A. He's good at marketing... he's just not good at marketing the typical kind of stuff.

The two of you mostly meet on-campus because you live with your parents (to save money) and he doesn't want to bring you around the park because he's kind of embarrassed. Like yeah he loves his park family but also he'd be horrified if J-Roc asked you to star in an amateur porn film or if you had to talk to Ricky on a day where he was particularly belligerent.

Sexual tension. Sexual tension. Sexual tension. I like to think that Julian has this nasty habit of correcting literally any grammatical mistake you make because he feels like it makes him smart. That shit drives you crazy and god you just want to shake the fuck out of him.

But I don't know, there's just something about Julian you like you can't quite place your finger on.

I kind of like the idea that you have a crazy fucking ex-boyfriend who thinks he's big and bad and follows you around? You didn't tell Julian about it because you didn't believe it was his business, it wasn't like you were even friends

But I think what really brings y'all from just being group partners to being friends is that one day your ex confronts you as you're leaving class and is just straight harassing you. Your ex is a big strong guy, nobody is stepping in to even call campus police and you feel so alone.

You may kind of piss Julian off but he really does like you and respect you, plus he hates seeing a lady getting accosted. He's a criminal but he favors himself to be a gentleman.

Julian confronts your ex and it breaks out into basically a pissing match, toe to toe. I like to think your ex threatens Julian, but Julian is kind of a crazy fuck when you think about it. I mean he did cock the gun Cyrus was holding and put it to his head, so this feels like nothing.

"You think you're a big tough guy picking on a lady, huh? I bet you feel so strong when you make her feel so scared, right? Make you feel real good? Like you're getting revenge. If you're gonna come toe-to-toe with someone, square up with someone you're own size. Come on, hit me. Hit me. I said hit me. That's right, that's what I thought, you're nothing but a fucking punk. Where I come from, we chew posers like you up and spit them out. Next time you come around her, you better think twice."

You're so grateful that Julian stood up for you but also that was kind of hot . . . I think that's where your attraction starts, but you thank him for his help.

The two of you get closer. I mean you two are on the phone fucking 24/7 late at night talking about things that aren't class related. You've got him asking shit like...

"Where are you from? Oh, I've never been there. What's it like?" "Do you know any good food places around campus?" "What's your favorite food?" "Are you a liquor gal or a wine gal?" Bubbles and Ricky definitely take the piss out of him, but he keeps you far away from the park lol.

I mean he comes over to work on the project and your family is home and he unintentionally meets your parents. Your dad isn't too keen on him but your mom is almost obsessed. He's such a nice guy and all of that. It makes him feel guilty because he really doesn't truly consider himself all that nice of a guy.

I just love the idea that he sneaks you into the park at like 2am because he knows everyone is asleep and he doesn't want anyone knowing what he's up to. He sneaks you in and out. Usually you two are extra quiet because Ricky lives in his fucking front yard, but or the most part you two are very hush-hush. He says it's because he wants to be able to work on the project without any distractions which is actually a valid excuse considering how fucking crazy his neighbors are.

Except you two definitely don't work on the project that night.

You're not a big fan of the imbalance, as you feel like you've met all of his family and you've met no-one close to him.

At some point, Ricky catches you sneaking in at the middle of the night.

"What the fuck are you doing? Are you trying to break into Julian's house? Julian! JULIAN! SOMEONE IS TRYING TO BREAK INTO YOUR HOUSE." It's a fuck-fest because Ricky is fucking yelling and screaming.

Julian tries to get Ricky to shut the fuck up but by now, the entire park is out trying to see what the fuck is going on.

"Holy fuck Julian why didn't you tell me you had a girlfriend? She's hot. I would've covered for you if you just would've let me know!"

I like to think that you do get some shit from idiots in the park and some uncomfortable questions, but you grow to really enjoy the people there - even Lahey, who is endearing in his own drunken way.

You end up using all of the people in the park for your little commercial and that shit is so funny. You're probably selling something insane, like tickets to see The Green Bastard or something like that. It's actually a lot of fun and really endearing, though it was a fucking hassle to make.

I don't know, I just love the idea of Julian meeting someone from community college and being fucking happy for once because that man is always fucking miserable

Bonus content: I think Julian's love-language is touch. I like to think he's subtle about it, like placing a hand on your shoulder. He's the kind of guy to hug you the moment the door closes behind you.

Julian doesn't say I love you first because of trauma and stuff, but when you tell him that you love him the dude tries to hide just how fucking ecstatic he is but definitely showers you in affectionate kisses.

I like to think that you move in with him.

Of course, there's drama surrounding his dope operation when you find out that he grows and sells on the side, it actually really upsets you, but this is a happy post and I'll save the angst for later.

Hopefully that kind of gives you a Julian fix. I love story-based AUs because I can give general ideas and people can kind of come up with their own little plot points in between.

#julian tpb #julian x you tpb #trailer park boys #tpb #tpb julian #tpb julian x you #julian x reader tpb #trailer park boys reader insert

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magicxc · 1 year ago

Text

Hills and Valleys

Synopsis: Legend has it that Halloween is strictly for the scares. With ghouls and goblins, vampires and werewolves, witches and broomsticks, who could disagree?

However, all this friend group wanted was a little trick or treat. Sprinkle in a few party favors, loud music, and a cabin in the woods, the myth was bound to come true.

Lurking around the corner is danger like never before, eager to bring this night to a bloody finish.

So join these friends as they fight to make it through a Halloween they’ll never forget, proving that "the scare" is more than just a fantasy.

Word Count: 4027

Warnings: TRAUMA lol, detailed bloody scene

Chapter 3 - Lorenzo’s POV

Series Masterlist

“Oh my gosh, how the hell did we manage to get roped into helping you cleannnnnn,” Lynn complained.

“Guys we’ve been doing this since highschool, why are y’all acting brand new?”

“Dammit Lenny, I should’ve left while I had the chance.”

“Steph you’ve been drinking all night, how the hell were you planning on getting home without driving?” I countered.

“And as ritual would have it, I assume we’re all sleeping here then?” Emery asked.

“See, Em gets it and I got the guest room all set up for you guys.”

“Two rooms, five people. That gives us about 2-3 persons to each room,” Jason proposed. “Sugar and I are more than willing to squeeze one more in.”

“No, the hell we’re not,” she whispered.

“Woah woah woah, what do you mean five people? Where the fuck is Julez?” Steph barked.

“That sneaky bitch, she’s probably halfway back to the A right now,” Lynn suggests.

Ahhh fuck, Julez. I wouldn’t dare say it to her face but I for sure wouldn't mind if she stayed the night. Truth be told, this rift between us has gone on long enough. I was more ashamed than anything for several reasons - number one being that I was scaring the hoes. It was beyond unnecessary for me to snatch them out of their kiss like that and I felt like an antagonist straight out of a lifetime movie. Reason two being everyone saw it all go down. I swear I looked up and the lights were on, the record scratched, and this random bitch was clutching a pair of invisible pearls. Ok so it didn’t exactly go down like that, but a lot of people still saw that shit happen. And reason three being that work became awkward as hell and my coworker ended up putting in a request to transfer departments.

What’s even worse is that I’m not good with words. I’ll never in my life put a woman in any situation to feel uncomfortable or forced to do something she’s not down with. And the fact that my coworker felt the need to get away from me made me feel fifty shades of shitty.

Meanwhile Julez has actually been trying to mend things between us and like the dumbass I am, have been giving her the cold shoulder. Could you believe that? One of my best friends has been trying to squash our beef and I act like a bitch on her period.

Maybe I can blame it on my underdeveloped brain? They say men aren't fully mature until they hit 25, and even then there’s still some debate. Yeah, that’s the one. I can hear her and the girls now, cackling up a storm. They’ll never let me live it down, but it’s all good. I fucks with the homies and if communication is something I need to learn to keep them in my life, then so be it.

But after tonight tho; once I get some sleep in me and this alcohol out of my system. Hopefully Julez will be willing to hear me out, nah fuck that. I’ll fly down to Atlanta if I have to, but she’ll listen to everything I have to say whether she likes it or not.

“I mean the guest room is big enough right Steph, why don’t we let those three have it while you and I catch up for old times sake?” I teased.

“NIGGA THAT WAS ONE TIME.”

“Lenny, you know I'm down to help clean, but I'm pretty sure we can do this tomorrow,” Em yawned.

“Yeah man, I’m no lightweight but even I can barely keep my eyes open.”

“J’s right Lenny, we can finish this another time.”

Wow, it’s a full on bitch fest in here tonight.

“No we can’t Lynn, my parents are gonna be back here first thing in the morning and I need this place in pristine fucking condition,” I snarled.

“Well why would your dumbass host it here at the lakehouse then,” Steph screeched.

“Because Stephanie, it has more living room space and less valuables to steal; plus the scenery is cooler for Halloween.”

“Mhmm touché. A lake house on Halloween where there’s seclusion and nature, and creepy crawlies.”

“Really Jason,” Lynn butts in. “Since when do you like seclusion?”

“Since there’s no neighbors around to hear the sounds I’m gonna pull from you.”

“Guys please,” Steph gagged. “I know those mummy meatloafs weren’t the best, but I was really hoping they’d come out the other end.”

“Oh whatever, don’t hate just because my sex life is healthy.”

“Yeah a little too healthy. Now I see why they call you sugar,” Steph laughed.

“Dammit now I’ll never hear the end of this.”

“And y’all will never hear the end of me. COME THE FUCK ON, CLEAN AS YOU TALK.”

“Lorenzo, dude relax,” Jason chided.

“Lenny, it's not like your parents don’t know about your party lifestyle.”

“It’s not that Lynn. The lake house is in Escrow,” I explained. “The new owners are set to move in come Monday while we spend the weekend removing any last minute items.

“Ohhhh yeah, I would’ve fucked you up if I were your mom and dad,” Steph pointed out.

“Now really ain’t the time.”

Every get together is the same exact shit. They eat my food, drink my beers, then get to bitching when I need help tidying up after. We go on about how tired they are while they drag their asses and the next thing you know the sun is peeking over the horizon. What could’ve taken minutes turns into hours where we all sleep til evening and then laugh about it over some makeshift leftovers. But I’d much rather skip to the laugh over a meal part cause I’m getting real sick of the inbetweens. Next time I'll just let them host at one of their homes and see how they like it. Maybe then they’ll appreciate all the efforts I go through.

Just when I find myself ready to have another screaming match, it seems that Em has beat me to it. At first I thought she just wanted us to shut up, but the way she’s clawing at the glass has me on edge. The scratching of the window soon turns into hitting and I race over there before any real damage is done.

Grabbing both her hands, I try to pull her away from the window - my attempts damn near futile until Jason comes over, arms wrapped around her waist as we both work to calm her down. But a fist to my jaw has us pinning her to the ground entirely, concern thick in the air.

“Emery, what’s wrong? Talk to me!” I yell.

Nothing, just constant thrashing as her arms and legs flail every which way. The screaming hasn’t since stopped and I’m on the verge of having her committed because what the fuck? She was JUST fine a second ago.

Rushing over, the girls land on the floor next to her, trying but failing to understand exactly what's happening as they shake her shoulders for answers.

“Em please! Tell us what’s going on,” Steph sobbed.

“Em- Emery! EM, calm the hell down.”

“Lynn what the fuck did she see? Go and check the window,” Jason orders.

“Julez,” Em hiccups as she points to the window. “It’s fucking Julez. They’ve found me.”

“Julez? What do you mean Julez, Julez what?” I screamed.

“And who the hell is they?” Steph added

“Ohhh Em tell me you aren’t referring to the Resident Reaper?”

“Lynn, they’ve got her,” Em says weakly.

“The Resident - aye y’all what the fuck is going on?”

“Come on Lorenzo, your friend has obviously been through a lot.”

“J shouldn't have to remind you to be considerate Lenny.”

“I’m sorry Em, I- I’m still stuck on the Julez part is all, wh-what about Julez?”

A shaky finger pointed in the direction of the window is all Em can manage. Silent tears stream down her face and I get this gut feeling in the pit of my stomach that something went terribly wrong tonight.

It's like the opposite of butterflies, that instead of everything being light and airy my stomach feels heavy and sunken to the ground. But I didn’t think it could sink any further until I heard the gasp that Lynn lets out. It’s shallow and wrapped in despair, yet somehow it’s enough to have everyone flocking to the window.

I hear a mixture of sobs and screams alike and as I lock eyes with Em, I realised then and there that I wasn’t going to see my friend again. That we were never gonna get the chance to patch things up and that for the better part of a few weeks, I’ve been way too stubbornly foolish.

My feet feel frozen in place but I have to see for myself. Trudging over to the window, I stop just shy of the pane and peer out into the darkness, eyes adjusting as I try to make out what my friends are seeing. Their sobs get blocked out as I stare into the water and stumble upon the gaze of Julez.

Her eyes are bloodshot red and lifeless as she drifts with the tides, a serene scene under different circumstances. Oddly enough she looks content and I’m not necessarily religious, but I say a silent prayer to the big guy upstairs that she at least went peacefully.

Dropping to my knees I let out a sound that scares even me, roaring out my frustrations and sadness alike. That scene is something that’ll haunt me forever but what hurts most is wishing that I'd never seen it.

There’s a solemness to the air around us, thick with gloom and melancholy as everyone tries their best to gather their thoughts; scared to break the silence and confirm that this isn’t just a bad dream. Quiet sniffles and heavy breathing slices through the silent night until the stomping of feet cuts through it all.

Looking up, I see Steph marching toward the front door trying but failing to open it as she realizes that the deadbolt is locked. It's one of those deadlocks without the knob turn thingy simply because my parents felt it was better security in a house this far out. Essentially it needs a key to be unlocked.

“Dammit Lenny, why would you lock the damn door,” she shouts while jiggling the handle.

Wiping furiously at my tears, I stand up deciding that I’ll have to grieve a little later as my body goes into overdrive, panicking at the idea that someone took it upon themselves to lock us in here.

“Steph, why would I do that?”

“I’ll check the back door man,” Jason offers.

“What about the windows, any of them big enough that we could fit through?” Em questions.

“There’s bars on all the windows” Steph mumbles. “What the hell was your family trying to keep out?”

“Or maybe keep in?” Lynn induces.

“Now is not the time to place blame guys,” Em suggests.

“Back doors locked too and I’m not getting any cell service out here man."

“Alright everyone let’s just take a second to think this through,” I snapped.

There could’ve been a thousand guesses thrown my way about how I imagined this night turning out and absolutely none of them could’ve surmised just how fucked it’d get.

At worst I prepared for a nasty hangover, Tylenol on standby, not a damn murder mystery. And Julez of all people, she’s damn near the most wholesome one of the group and they- they watched as all life drained from her big, round eyes.

Dragging my palms across my cheeks, I straighten up as my body kicks into autopilot, revenge sourcing it with enough adrenaline to power through this shit show.

Even with anger coursing through my veins I can’t understand why? Why go through the trouble of killing Julez and locking us in here? It’s not like we discovered her right away, however it’s not something I have time to elaborate on. We need to find a way out of this death trap and call for help immediately

“Listen, the whole point of shitty cell service in the area is something my parents were banking on when they got this place,” I disclosed. “Some crap about family bonding time, but if I can just get to the -“

“This just gets better and better,” Steph blurted, while she rocked back and forth on her heels. “Escrow or not Lenny, I’m getting out of here even if I have to tear that door hinge from motherfucking hinge.”

“BUT IF I CAN JUST GET TO THE BEDROOM UPSTAIRS, MAYBE WE’LL GET ENOUGH SIGNAL TO CALL FOR HELP.”

“What’s so good about the bedroom upstairs,” Em questioned.

“It’s the only part of the house that picks up a bar, maybe two from the cell towers.”

“Bars on all the windows, deadbolts on all the doors, only available cell service is in the master bedroom,” Lynn criticized. “Just what the fuck were you four up to in here?”

“What are you suggesting?”

“That maybe you guys ‘family time’ went beyond the occasional movie night,” she sneered.

“Baby, enough we’re not gonna get anywhere with y’all jumping at each others throats like this.”

“YOU’RE SICK! LYNN I SWEAR IF YOU WERE ANYONE THE FUCK ELSE I’D-“

“You’d what?”

“Guys please,” Emery sobbed. “This is exactly what that asshole wants, to see us turn on one another.”

“Lynn you’re fucked up for that one and you know it,” Steph admitted. “None of this is helping, so what do we do now?”

“I think the cell service is a great start Lorenzo, but we gotta find those keys man,” Jason suggested. “Where’d you last place them?

“I remember seeing it near the deviled eggs,” I sighed.

“You max this house out to the brim for a party and don’t even bother to properly secure the keys to your own home?” Emily screeched.

Inhaling a deep breath, I tilt my head upward desperately trying to hold onto what little patience I have left. Julez is out there floating against the currents and here we are arguing over a set of keys. My friends have never really struck me as stupid, but this night is chocked full of surprises.

“New locks to this place are getting installed come Monday Em. Between my parents here this weekend and the new owners after that, I couldn’t care less who had the keys.”

“And now we’re all going to die for it,” Steph scolded.

“Shut up, all of you,” Jason yelped. “Every minute we spend here is a minute more that sick freak has the upper hand, possibly plotting.

“And unless one of you can squeeze through those bars, the only way we’re getting out of here is through that door,” Em chimed in.

“Lorenzo, think man, does your family keep a spare key anywhere around here?”

“Uhh ye- yeah, I think so. Hell if I know where it could be at this point Jason.”

“Where is it usually?” Em asks.

“By a rack near the back door.”

“There were no keys when I checked back there,” Jason pointed out. “Fuck, we need to get moving NOW.

Facial expressions hardening, I can see the socialite version of him slipping away while his military brain kicks into overdrive. Feet spread at shoulders length and arms placed firmly behind his back, Jason goes on to dictate orders to us, a small thanks on the tip of my tongue considering we were all scrambling.

He directs me to the master bedroom to try and get some signal, Em to the second bedroom, himself to the kitchen and living room, Steph to the bathroom and any miscellaneous closet doors, while Lynn works on picking the deadlock cause God only knows how she picked up such a skill. Why am I surprised tho, this is the same woman who helped me open my car door after I’d accidentally locked my keys inside; criminal ass bitch.

We all race to our respective areas, more than ready to get this night over with. Upstairs, I make a beeline for the innermost corner of the room between the bed and window.

Stretching my arms until the phone touches the ceiling, I squint my eyes until they gloss over with no luck to any flashing signal. I dial 911 only to hear the mocking tone of the operator on the other end letting me know that the number I am trying to reach is unavailable.

Picking up the expensive floral vase from the night stand, I smash it against the wall until it shatters into a thousand tiny pieces; beyond overwhelmed with how everything is going.

Before I know it, my knees connect to the wooden floor beneath me, palms circling the perimeter of my face as I bawl my eyes out; teeth sinking into my skin to muffle the screams that tear through my throat. If someone would’ve told me 24 hours ago that I’d be stuck in my own damn house while trying to evade a possible serial killer, I would’ve told them to fuck off and yet - here I am.

The rage running through my body comes to slowing stop, adrenaline all but gone as the weight of exactly what’s going on crushes me further into the floor.

Sitting up against the bed frame, eyes puffy and throat sore, I briefly wonder if it’s even worth the trouble and come to terms with the fact that I may very well not make it out of here alive.

A low gleam of light pours in from the window above and the moon in all its fullness draws me closer, the same way its gravitational pull does the earth.

Fingers cradling around the lip of the pane, I pull it up and the gust of wind that whips across my face fills me with a fresh glimmer of hope. The stars in the sky twinkle so brightly and I wonder if that's the last thing Julez saw before her untimely end; a sliver of satisfaction filling me at the thought of her final view being something so serenely scenic.

Fingers slipping into my pockets, I dig out the cell phone lodged in there and stick my hand through the bars at shoulder length. Iron jabs at my skin the further I stretch my arm through the metal while small beads of sweat gather on my forehead and palms. Tongue slipping between my teeth and over my lips, it plants itself at the corner of my mouth; a telltale sign of my concentration.

Aiming my arm higher toward the sky, it starts to burn at the sensation and I make a mental note to get back in the gym once this is over with.

“C’mon you son of a bitch, I dropped $1300 on you, the least you could do is pick up a signal.”

Angling my arm a little to the left, I stand on my tippy toes in hopes of getting lucky and the small bar that pops up in the corner of my screen is enough to ignore any discomfort my body may be feeling.

Eyes brimming over with tears, it takes everything in me not to scream through my relief, trying to stay focused on the task at hand.

Fingers swiping over those infamous three digits, I’m all but ready to hit send until my phone slips through the cracks of my hand. Watching as it free falls 20 feet to the ground, the screen breaks alongside my hope.

“Son of a BITCH,” I fumed, arms wrapped around the bars as I shook them senseless; annoyance growing once I realized that even after giving it all I had, it didn’t even budge.

After a few more minutes of me pacing around the room, I get this lightbulb moment of clarity that of the five of us left, there’s still four more phones.

Racing down the stairs in newfound anticipation, I burst through the doors of the first bedroom, all but ready to snatch Em’s cell phone; only she isn’t in there. Making my way to the front, I see the bathroom light pouring into the hallway and dash inside, eager to find someone, anyone really.

Slamming through the bathroom door, I get ready to scream the good news to Steph, yet the sight before me has me halting entirely.

Both hands covering my mouth, I have to physically swallow down the vomit that threatens to surface. Panic rises inside of me as the hands that once wrapped itself around my face now finds itself buried in my hair - frantically running through its tresses.

A low wheezing sounds from beneath me and I fly to the floor, knees sliding against the tiles until I reach her.

Blood is everywhere! Splattered drops line the walls as the once white floor slowly turns a shade of deep crimson. I look over to Steph, whose hands are weakly cradled around her neck and it’s only then that I can figure out just where all the bleeding is coming from.

“Oh shit, oh shit, shit,” I hissed. “Steph it’s gonna be alright, I just need you to hold on for a minute.”

Shuffling, I reach out to the adjacent wall to snatch a towel from the rack. Wrapping it around her throat, I try my best to make a tourniquet, loosening it as Steph starts to make these wet, gurgling noises.

Tears prickle at the corners of my eyes at the fucked up reality of this situation and the fact that I can’t even sit down long enough to process just what the hell is even going on anymore.

With the towel securely placed around the wound, blood rapidly seeps through the cloth, my face sinking at the realisation of how futile my efforts are and how quickly she needs professional help.

“AYEEEEEEEEE,” I screeched. “YOU GUYS GET IN HERE RIGHT THE FUCK NOW.”

Applying enough pressure to the wound to try and stop the bleeding but light enough that I don’t choke her, I finally let my tears fall.

Shoulders sagging and chest heaving, my body is physically exhausted from this terror filled night. My best fucking friend is getting paler by the minute and the blood that gushes from her neck shows no sign of slowing down. The pool of liquid quickly spreads beneath us and sinks into the tiled creases and I can’t help the wail that escapes me.

“Steph, baby talk to me,” I pleaded. “Who did this to you?”

Heavy footsteps approach the doorway and I hear a muddled mixture of screams.

Stephs raspy voice pulls me in and her whispered tone is indecipherable. Wrapping her in my arms, I quietly shush her as I rock us back and forth, urging her to save her voice and energy until we can get some help.

Feet splashing through the blood and plopping beside me, it takes a minute for me to notice that it's Lynn, begging for answers.

“I don’t fucking know Lynn, for goodness sake make yourself useful.”

“Both of you shut up,” Jason barks. “Dude tell me you got enough service to get us some hel- to get Steph some help.”

Silence is all I can muster up in this moment and yet it's enough to answer their million dollar question.

Jason frantically paces the floor, Lynn is hovering over Steph yelling out questions and assurances alike, and Em is sliding down the wall, legs cupped between her arms.

Stephs slow breaths stop hitting my neck, her light wheezing all but gone and it's then that the crushing weight of her passing dawns on me.

Eyes tightly squeezed shut, they do very little to stop the onslaught of tears, my rocking now intensified. Lynn catches on and her high pitched shriek sends a ripple effect of anguish into the air.

A deafening silence falls on the group, and after what feels like forever, a gut wrenching realisation hits me that it’s one of us - it’s one of us hurting our friends.

#Emmy Writes #Emmy Tries #Spooky Szn #Halloween Kills #Halloween Series #Halloween #Hills and Valleys #Original Story and Characters #Horror #Drama is on THEE way #things def heat up here #rubs hands like birdman

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