#bottom kai agenda

[arsenalgbt]

................. yeah alright *opens docs* *impregnates him again*

[tj-dragonblade]

[FIC] Chaos and Calm

Fandom: The Sandman Pairing: Dreamling Rated: G Word Count: 1551 Tags: fluff, domesticity, single dads, pre-relationship, outings in the park, feeding the ducks, rain

Notes: For Day 1 of Dreamling Week 2024 as organized by @mr-sadman, for the prompt 'hunt'. Also dedicated to the wonderful @chaosheadspace, whose single-dads AU Castle in the Sand rotates in the back of my head quite often - I meant to have this coincide with your birthday but didn't quite make it, alas.

Summary: Searching for rain boots and meeting friends in the park. No real plot, just meandering domestic parenting vibes.

On AO3

"Robyn! You 'bout ready, kiddo?"

Hob winces at the sound of something heavy thudding on the floor above, and then his son appears at the top of the stairs. "I can't find my boots!"

Hob suppresses the urge to sigh. "Do you remember where you had them last?"

Robyn's brow furrows. "Maybe? They might be in the cupboard? But I think I might have used 'em as astronaut boots and forgot to put 'em back."

"Did you check by the washing machine?"

"Not yet."

"Okay. You keep looking in your room; I'll check down here and then come help you look if I don't find them."

"'Kay." Robyn scrambles back up from where he'd started down the stairs and dashes back to his room, and Hob heads to check the coat cupboard in the front hallway.

They're meant to be meeting Dream and Orpheus at the park in fifteen minutes. The day has turned out to be dreary and grey, light rain off and on keeping it misty and damp and a raincoat plus wellies are definitely called for.

If only he or his son could be relied upon to consistently put things back in their expected places. Ellie had always scolded them about it, gently, and for all the years since she's been gone Hob has kept trying to do better, but it's not always top of his mind and they're both surviving okay, despite the current inconvenience.

He checks the bottom of the coat cupboard; no boots.

He lets the sigh out this time, since Robyn's not there to see the frustration. He checks the utility room next, where last year's too-small snow boots are still sitting next to this year's because Hob hasn't gotten round to dropping them off at the charity shop yet. This year's snow boots will have to do if they can't find the wellies, but he's not giving up yet.

He's not going to tear the house apart looking, either, though; he's eager to get going. Letting Robyn spend time with his best friend is important, but also. Hob really looks forward to seeing Dream, for—well. For lots of reasons, that he's comfortably aware of but cautious about acting on because the kids would be caught in the middle if it didn't work out and that's the last thing he wants. Right now he just wants to let himself enjoy the possibilities. Hanging out, conversations while the kids play, watching Dream's pretty face go soft and expressive as they talk.

So. Best check all the likely spots in this comfortably-cluttered chaos he lives in, then, so they can find the boots and get going. It would certainly be easier if his home was less messy, but he's a single dad with a very active kid, he teaches secondary school, and taking the time to make his home look like a magazine spread is just not on his agenda. And sure sometimes it bites him in the arse, like now, but most times the chaos is of a manageable level and more importantly, it works for them.

Just. Not today, apparently.

He pulls his phone from his pocket, fires off a quick text to Dream.

May be a few minutes late We've a crisis of missing wellies over here Keep you posted

Dream's response comes through almost instantly.

I wish you luck in your hunt, then. We will wait.

Hob smiles, tucks the phone back in his pocket and heads up the stairs to join the search.

Robyn's room is a little bit of a disaster zone, as he's been throwing things around in his haste, and Hob kneels to crawl around the floor and help him look. He'll help him straighten up later, too, but for now they're boot-hunting.

Robyn is a little worried, as it turns out. "What if Orpheus and his dad leave before we get there? What if they think we're not coming because I can't find my stupid boots?"

Hob laughs, a small laugh full of kindness. "They wouldn't," he assures, pulling his kid into a one-armed hug as they sit on the floor. "And besides—I texted Orpheus's dad so they know we're running late." He drops a kiss in Robyn's hair. "Now let's find those blasted wellies so we can get going, yeah?"

The boots are not under the bed, or the desk in the corner; they're not in the toy chest, nor the basket for Robyn's dirty laundry, nor under the laundry that hasn't quite made it into the basket. Hob helps that last category get to where it was meant to be and sits back with a sigh, making a mental note—and hopefully he'll remember later—to be sure to run a load of Robyn's clothes.

"Alright, kiddo, is there anywhere you haven't looked yet?"

Robyn ponders for a moment, face scrunched in thought, and then lights up. "Oh!" He scrambles off the floor and over to the wardrobe, yanks it open. Hob would have thought that would be the first place to check, so he hadn't looked himself but obviously he should have, because Robyn dives into it with a little yell of victory and emerges with a boot held high in either hand and triumph radiating from his grin.

~ They're only a little bit late to the park; Robyn and Orpheus spot each other at the same instant and yell in excited unison, charging across the wet grass and crashing into a hug that also involves a lot of jumping up and down. Hob grins at their enthusiasm, eyes searching beyond them to find Dream looking for him as well; the smile that blooms on Dream's face, visible even at this distance, makes Hob's heart do a pleasant little flop in his chest.

"Your hunt was successful, I see," Dream says, when they are close enough for speaking; they are trailing after the boys, who are cavorting in the general direction of the duck pond, splashing in collected puddles on the path. Dream's got his umbrella up, even though it's not raining right this moment, which somehow just enhances his general goth vibe.

Hob stuffs his hands in his pockets. "Yeah, time to do a major cleaning. His room's a bit of a mess but we finally found his wellies in the wardrobe. Which honestly would have been the first place I checked if I'd realized he hadn't. Kid brains work on different logic, I suppose."

"True." Dream shifts a little, casts a glance sideways at Hob. "Robyn is fortunate to have a father so skilled at finding lost items."

"Got a lot of experience misplacing my own crap," Hob offers, laughing to cover the flustery warmth seeping into his chest at Dream's simple compliment. "And he found the boots himself, just needed some help thinking it through."

"As I said. He is fortunate to have your guidance," Dream reiterates, and Hob is saved from having to respond when Robyn comes running back to where the two of them have stopped at the path's edge. Orpheus is over by the pond, bending down to peer between the rails of the short wooden fence that surrounds it as several ducks swim toward him.

"Dad! Did you bring the peas? The ducks're hungry!" There's eager excitement in Robyn's voice and Hob smiles.

"'Course I did, kiddo, here." He rummages in the bag at his hip, slung comfortably across his chest, and hands over the snack-size freezer bag of peas; Robyn thanks him and dashes back over to Orpheus. Whether or not the ducks are 'hungry' is arguable, but Hob won't deny his kid the human joy of personifying the world around him nor of feeding the ducks, which is generally their purpose in coming to this park. He glances sideways at Dream—who is Hob's own private secondary reason for any of the activities they do together with their kids—and finds him watching the boys with the softest little smile crinkling the corners of his eyes.

He's so beautiful.

It starts raining, then, just a light misty sprinkle. The boys put up the hoods on their raincoats and carry on tossing peas to the eager birds who've gathered for the feast; Hob is about to dig his own umbrella out of his bag but Dream steps closer and shifts his own broad umbrella over Hob as well. His arm presses up against Hob's, from shoulder to elbow, and Hob swallows the urge to lift his arm and put it around Dream's shoulders, leans solidly into the touch instead. It's nice.

It's so, so nice, and Hob revels in the imagined warmth he can feel seeping into the contact despite the layers between them, the way that seconds turn to minutes and neither of them moves away, how they both watch their boys in comfortable silence. Hob's thoughts and emotions often feel chaotic and jumbled up in the same way his house manages to be a mild-but-functional disaster zone but this—sharing an everyday domestic moment with Dream, the casual unremarked closeness between them—it quiets something in his head, makes anything and everything seem gloriously possible.

This, this is a feeling worth finding, a feeling he did not even realize he was searching for.

He is still entirely grateful to have found it.

= Started: 6/2/24 Drafted: 6/3/24 Posted: 6/3/24

[transgnckon]

>'Talk to me about trans hcs and my life is yours'Okok t4t Stephcass agenda time!!

Stephanie was an early cracker and being blasian(jamaican + south korean)made her naturally androgynous so she passed pretty easily thanks to also being femme and pastel punk

Cass is also transfem but had no real concept of girlhood growing up due to David's whole thing with her and the pink dress flashback was him making her look nonthreatning.She's butch and a comphet lesbian too!!

Based on vibes,the Stephcass relathionship gives major 'more experienced tgirl x newer to being a tgirl' with Stephanie teaching Cass how to handle her transfeminism and them becoming enamored with eachother's personal version of it

Stephanie diy'd her own estrogen and showed Cass how to do the same.Almost all their surgeries were done by Taliacorp doctors(Taliacorp=Superfam Talia company because we need to free her from the bat)

Cass' tradgoth but in a butch kinda way and ofc Stephanie's pastel punk femme swagger includes black girl styles/fashion

They're also autistic4autistic✊🏼No masking game Stephanie x No emoting to no emotional regulation game Cass

And busty butch king x flat femme queen

Their dates include rollerblading,going to local boba shops and cat cafes,petty crime sprees for fun,Cass doing Stephanie's hair and Stephanie helping Cass with her solarpunk garden♡Stephanie's fat and tall asf so Cass picks her up and calls her stuff like 'Princess' to lighten her dysphoria and Cass is absolutely jacked so Stephanie tells her what a beautiful/pretty/cute/etc girl she is nonstop to lighten HER dysphoria

They live together irl and on Animal Crossing and Pokemon too actually /lh

Cass dosen't get bottom surgery because she 1.dosen't want it and 2.wants to have biokids with Stephanie.Their kids names are Sunny,Hunter,Kai Li,Naomi and CJ aka Crystal Junior

I don’t rlly have much to add but very cute <3

I did scream at the idea of them having 5 kids though like omg a handful 😭😭😭

[tyungelic]

wanna know ur thoughts on what fem!txt would like to be called.. like their petnames 🥺 in/out of bed

oooh i love this 🥺🥺

fem!yeonjun would love to be called daddy in bed, it starts off as a joke but becomes less of a joke as you’re taking her strap and begging her to go harder 🤭 outside of bed she would love being called your baby she’s putty in your hands when you sweetly call her that before asking for something, calling her daddy outside of the bedroom is a guaranteed way to get what you want and then some 😏

fem!soobin would like to be called bunny/good girl in bed whether she’s in her service top bag or bottoming, she just wants to be your good girl no matter what she eats up every word of praise you give her, outside of bed she would like being called any diminutive of her name, like binnie 🥺🥺

fem!beomgyu would LOVE to be called princess i fully support the bratty princess gyu agenda she loves going out of her way to piss you off just so you can pin her against the wall or spank her while calling her your princess 🤭 outside of bed she would answer to gyu, puppy, or baby bear 🥺🩵

fem!taehyun would like to be called mommy i think 🤭 she loves being the one you depend on in bed, the one to give or take away at her discretion i feel like she would even like master too and would like to make you dress up for her 😳 outside of bed, she would love being called honey 🥺

fem!kai would like to be called puppy/cutie i feel like she would love the cutesy nicknames while she’s fucking you or you’re fucking her, especially when she’s going down on you or you’re fucking her in missionary with eye contact 🥺 outside of bed, i’m going from warm blood and saying she likes to be called pudding 🤭🤭

[dailyanarchistposts]

CONCLUSION: WORKING CLASS POWER FOR A BETTER WORLD

The organisational power and strategic location of the Malaysian union movement provides an excellent point of departure for building a counter-movement. The strength of the Malaysian working class, both in white and blue collar jobs, can and should be translated into a viable political and social movement that has a clear agenda for change – and provide an alternative to the current, ruinous state system. A movement that should exemplify a counter-culture, counter-power and practice that is bottom-up, democratic, based on solidarity, participation and accountability, that refuses to rely on politicians and leaders and that fights for a world that goes beyond both capitalism and neo-liberalism and statism and parliaments.

To struggle to fix the current state system would be an exercise in futility: even the best politicians are powerless to change the state. We dare not tinker with reform that always fails. Rather, we need systemic change that can guarantee equality, fraternity, self-management and socialisation of the commonwealth, guided by a bottom–up approach to decision making. We need a labour movement that is multicultural and international, feminist, active in urban and rural struggles, and that prizes reason over superstition, justice over hierarchy, self-management over state power, international solidarity over nationalism. We need to fight for a universal human community, not parochialism and separatism.

This is our appeal and message as we celebrate this May Day, on the eve of dark days in which the storm clouds gather over humanity – but in which the light of hope of a better future can break through, if we arm ourselves with the correct ideas and approaches.

May Day began as an example of globalisation-from-below. And it continues to be a rallying point for workers everywhere, 120 years on. Let us rally to it. Let us take back its original vision: liberty, equality, unity.

Hence, May Day should be an occasion to reflect not jubilate, to engage not agonize, to demand not relent, and to organise, not complain.

REFERENCES

On Malaysian anarchist history: Datuk Khoo Kay Kim and Ranjit Singh Malhl, “Malaysia: Chinese anarchists started trade unions”, ‘The Sunday Star,’ 12 September 1993.

[40sandfabulousaf]

大家好! I found a pic of me at the same Batam hotel gym 8 years ago (top pic) and decided to share it, as well as what I look like now, (bottom pic). N said, 'You haven't changed' when he saw them; it's somewhat true, nothing changed and yet everything changed. Physically, I'm slightly heavier, but I'm more emotionally resilient after splitting up with the ex and having weathered the covid pandemic. Stuff which used to matter to me, such as luxury goods, restaurants and hotels, seem frivolous now; what use are they if I'd lost my loved ones to covid?

Lately, I've been listening to Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee because this song always makes me feel closer to God. I need this because, as I read about the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, I wonder why Christians and Catholics aren't speaking up more about the carnage. So many innocent lives are being sacrificed; whilst my faith in the religion is unwavering, it's those who profess to believe in Christ who make me doubt their devotion. God, to me, isn't solely about the Bible. To love Him is to live our lives with acceptance, tolerance, compassion, love for others and patience.

Over 28,000 Palestinian civilians have died to date, more than 20 times the 1,200 Israeli death toll. It seems inhumane to consider the carnage as collateral damage; innocent lives are being tragically cut short. If we want to lead our lives in God's glory, can we condone this possible genocide? Besides praying for a ceasefire, I'll pray that parties who directly or indirectly allow this massacre to continue will be punished. The suffering they've inflicted and continue to inflict on a civilisation is, to me, cruel, malicious, evil, wicked and vindictive.

Remembering to eat meat is easier nowadays since N loves it and I just make catching up with him meat days. This week, I remembered to eat more of it. The cai fan (mixed dishes and rice) stall had a tasty-looking pork chop and I tried it. OMG it was delicious! They added curry leaves, which imparted an addictive fragrance to the sauce. There was also stirfried loofah, a veggie that I love!

Time flies, we've entered the second week of Chinese New Year! In the next post, I'll share about what I got up to on ren ri (humans day) and, since Grace, Douglas and I will celebrate kai gong (open for business) on Sunday, I'll also write about it. I'm really enjoying the festivities, joy and fun. Inflation may have made life harder but it shouldn't stop us from letting loose and enjoying ourselves as long as we can afford it. 下次见!

[crowhyun]

TXT DISCUSSION POST

dom/top or sub/bottom? and what kind? let’s discuss.

My Opinions:

Soobin is a sub/bottom. I’ve always seen him as one and he will always be one. I can sometimes see him as a dom/top, but never a hard dom or a daddy dom. I see him being a service top. But at the same time, I feel like he’s selfish in bed and wants to be a pillow prince. I honestly think that he’s like to receive both degradation and praise, and he’d only give praise. Very soft when he’s on top, but wants to be treated like a disgusting pervert when he’s bottoming. He also has a mommy kink, no one can tell me different.

Yeonjun, to me, is a dom/top. This was a little harder for me, bcs I could see him as a switch tbh. It depends on who he is with, and if he’d want to give up that control. I see him as a soft dom/top tbh. He’d pair well with a pillow prince/ess. Like, I see a bit of the hard dom agenda that people got going, and I enjoy that, but I feel like he is much softer than that.

For Beomgyu, this is another complicated one for me. His looks are giving sub/bottom, because he looks softer and tiny lmao, but overall, he gives dom/top. Like Yeonjun, I see him being softer, but I definitely get the hard dom aspect more. I think he’d like to tease his s/o and degrade them. I’d closely link him to being a power bottom, actually.

Taehyun is a MF SWITCH. I don’t CARE what anyone else has to say. BUT, it depends. See, I was doing some thinking. When I was writing “Three’s a Party pt.2”, I was thinking…what if there was some mlm action? I didn’t write it because I don’t think i’m knowledgeable enough, but still. I feel like Taehyun would be a hard dom with a woman, and a bottom with a man. If I were to write a beomgyu x taehyun smut, then Taehyun would be the bottom.

My lovely baby Huening Kai is a dom/top. NOW HEAR ME OUT HEAR ME OUT! I really feel like he’s one of those kpop idols that are really different off camera than on camera, like vastly different. I still believe he’s soft and loving, but that man has a heart of steel and that leads me to believe that he has so much self control. And the strength on that man??? He’d like to utilize it! Idc y’all he’s a dom/top and he has a strength kink, a size kink, and a bulge kink. 😤

[zen-suality]

CURIOSITY | HAN JISUNG

Genre: Smut

Word Count: 950

Parental Advisory Note: The following contains explicit content such as masturbation via use of sex toys and profanity.

Notes: This is purely for entertainment and this in no way represents who Han Jisung (or the rest of Stray Kids) is in real life or accurately portrays their sexual preference and/or sexual practices, concepts or fantasies.

This one goes out to Kim (@formidxble) because we love our Han Jisung is a polite, kinky bro agenda.

IT BEGINS WITH some lube.

After getting tired of jerking off with his bare hands and spit, Jisung discreetly orders some water-based lube online and hides it in the bottom of his underwear drawer. Two days after it arrives, he has already used the 6 oz bottle and immediately orders three more bottles without hesitation. Spit worked fine for as long as it did, but lube gives spit a run for its money.

When the three bottle order arrives, he decides to pace himself. Jisung gradually grows fond of and aroused at the idea of buying what a website described as “disposable masturbators” but relents from impulsively buying a six-pack of these little critters.

It’s tempting and he knows that if he buys them he’ll be using the shit out of them—two for each day—and plays it cool. He’ll use the lube sporadically, some spit here, a sock there, perhaps even trying something new by, say, stimulating his prostate.

It takes a week before he caves in and orders a “variety pack” of these eggs. A few days later, days wherein he pretended he wasn’t paying attention to every package that arrived in the dorm, the package arrives in a discreet box that someone—Minho, he guesses—leaves on his bed. After a day of recording, practice, producing, and more practice, Jisung takes a bottle of lube, the package—a transparent egg carton bearing the product’s name and brand—and ignores absolutely everyone on his way to the bathroom.

“You okay, Hannie?” Jisung hears Chan ask him, picking up on his confusion and worry in his voice.

“Yeah—uh—just tired—and sweaty,” is all Jisung manages to mumble, hiding the carton on his towel. He doesn’t stop walking and simply waves a hand over his head. “Gonna freshen up.”

Chan chuckles. “Oh-kay,” he responds. “Don’t stay too long, though. I wanna freshen up too.”

“You got it!”

Jisung hauls ass, missing his hyung’s look of amused confusion. He locks the door behind himself, drops everything, and begins to cautiously open the carton where six colored eggs in differently labeled wrappers are waiting to be used. It takes a good five minutes before he decides which one he wants to try out—a teal one labeled Wavy—and begins unwrapping with his tongue stuck out between his teeth.

His fingers are all over the place: crumbling the wrapper in his left hand while opening and putting the egg’s outer casing on the bathroom sink. Inside, there’s a smaller silicone egg and it feels weird to touch it—even more so when he notices a packet of lube inside the egg. He smiles and immediately pulls it out, opens it with his teeth as he undresses, allowing himself to groan as he frees his erection from his boxer briefs.

Jisung eyes his erection—uncut, veiny, the tip glistening with precum—and begins to gently pleasure. Jisung chuckles because (1) he has no idea what he’s in for and (2) he’s jittery with anticipation. Bit by bit, prolonging the inevitable, he strokes himself a bit faster until he stops to squeeze the lube packet on the egg. With his index finger, trailing circles around the little opening where he found lube stashed in, he spreads the excess on the opening’s edges before using what remains in his fingers to pinch his dick’s tip.

“Oof,” he whispers, already too excited about what’s going to happen. “Let’s fucking get it.”

Slowly, as slow as he possibly can, he guides his dick into the egg and thrusts into his hand, chuckling a breathy, shaky chuckle due to the egg’s soft texture and the euphoric sensation that begins to wrap around his member.

“Fuck,” Jisung mumbles, eyes rolling back then closing in pleasure. “Fuck—ah—yes.”

He fucks the egg slowly, head thrown back, feeling it envelop his dick until he feels it against his hand against his pelvis. Slow becomes a steady pace of strokes that have him cussing and moaning under his breath. Four different times, Jisung stops stroking to catch his breath when he feels himself close to reaching his climax. Four or five or six or even seven times, he catches himself almost moaning out loud.

After almost ten minutes of teasing himself, he decides it’s time to double down. He pulls out, pours more lube on his dick, then begins fucking the toy again. Jisung indulges himself with broader, faster strokes that leave him biting his lip and closing his eyes, a guttural moan leaving his lips as he loses himself in the moment. Pleasure, in the form of goosebumps, spreads across his body, until he can’t hold it any longer and he unravels.

“Fuck me!” Jisung moans, legs turning to jelly as he leans on the bathroom sink.

The egg feels warm in his hand. When he pulls out, he does it slowly, so slowly he shudders. He feels like his legs are gonna quit on him as he watches with satisfied eyes that he’s still rock-hard. Laying the egg on the sink’s edge, he watches it as a generous amount of cum gradually trickles down the drain.

Smirking, still stroking his still sensitive dick, he reaches for another egg.

“Round two,” Jisung says, ready to overstimulate the shit out of himself.

[darling-cas]

Hoax (an original story)

I amaze myself sometimes. 

My therapist says I need to go back to things that bring me joy, says I need to find happiest in life again. During one specific session, I was asked to name a time when I was truly at peace, a time I felt moments of pure joy outside of my partner and friends. The first thing that came to mind was a time years ago, when I would post stories here, on this website, for you all to see.

This surprised me honestly, because if you knew me personally (*cough* hi @ilikebigbooks-and-icannotlie *cough*) you would know the amount of stress and pressure I put myself under when it came to writing We Are Young, Whatever It Takes, etc, etc, etc. But despite all the negative emotions, the moments that always stand out to me is sitting on my laptop after I clicked post, watching all the love and adoration pure in from each and every one of you.

I say this monthly but, I really do want to get back into writing. Thanks to my therapist and business major partner, I’ve been dipping my toes into editing for others as a side job. But I want to make my way back to writing my own stories and sharing them with even the smallest corner of the world. This story, Hoax, I wrote actually one year ago, when I first started therapy and after a hard heartbreak. It helped me feel like myself again and lifted me out of the darkness.

I hope, for even the smallest number of you, it does the same. I hope you can feel the same magic that I felt when I wrote it. Take this as a thank you for, years ago, bringing me such joy and happiness.

Until next time...

Cas.

--------------------

The air was midsummer sweet.

It was an Indian summer of blue sky dreams and late evening tears, with the weather shifting moods in the blink of an eye. Grey clouds would eclipse the setting sun with their mighty fists, soaking up the colour of the earth like ink drenching a cotton ball.

And with the continuous alternating weather came the busty smell of sunblock and wet grass. Summer scents combined with the salty air and pungent fish that cling to Jake’s senses from the moment he started his journey along the coastal towns.

His mountain travels started just mere days ago. The task of hiking the grand peak was something he was finally going to cross off his bucket list. Dipping into his savings and requesting a week or two off work was a small price to pay when it came to the tranquility and beauty laid bare before him.

Born and raised on the outskirts of the city, there hadn't been much nature for him to appreciate and admire growing up. But from the moment Jake entered the first small, close-knit fishing town, all he could seem to do was appreciate and stare in outright awe.

The land laid undisturbed all around; the mountains, the trees, the ocean, they had all planted their roots, dug in their heels, and refused to surrender. Cities had been conquered, the vast expansion of country fields and towering summits were placed in chains, forced to give themselves to man. But here, on the coast of fishing villages, it seems as if Land and Man came to an agreement, a compromise, an understanding, to live in peace as one. 

Roads of all kinds swerved, twisted, curled up and down along the coast, between the trees. Houses of unnaturally charming bright blues, yellows, oranges, and greens sat gracefully against the mountain rocks, climbing up the forest-speckled cliffs. Homes and buildings of sea-weathered colour rested on the broken shoreline. Boats bobbed in the water, their docks reaching out towards the horizon like fingers longing to reach and touch a disappearing lover.

In the coastal towns, driving along the sunset stained ocean, Jake swore he would never see true beauty again.

Even now, when the sky wept tears of sorrow, its beauty never vanished.

The weather came on suddenly, as he passed the welcoming sign for Higdon's Harbour. The roads became slick, a  ghostly fog settled in, and the colours were muted a few shades darker by the clouds above. Rivers trickled down the mountain side, disappearing into shallow ditches. Waves started to leap and jump to catch the increasing wind. All while the sky cried on and on.

Jake drove on through the town. Classic rock thumped softly in the background and raindrops tapped on the roof of the car. He had planned not to stop for the night until the next town over. He had driven through several rain storms since the start of his trip, and this was nothing.

But the cracks in the sky's broken heart continued to grow with exceptional pain. Tears of despair quickly turned to tears of anger. The beating on the car became more aggressive as the wind wailed daunting threats and the ocean frantically waved its arms.

It became too much, too quick. Jake was used to driving through bad weather, but not seaside storms. Not gusting winds and sideways rain. Plus, he decided, he was already making good time. So when the flashing green neon sign reading Beaumont Motel came into view, he didn’t hesitate to pull off the road, into the parking lot, and turn off his car.

A bell jingled above as Jake pushed open the door. He stepped into the warmth of the lobby, drenched through his clothes and soaking the carpet under his feet.

“Turned nasty out there real quick, didn’t it?”

Jake threw off his hood, shaking out his damp, blonde hair as he caught sight of an older woman with long grey hair smiling at him from behind a wooden desk.

She pulled her beige cardigan closer around her, brown eyes crinkling in the corners. “Looking for a room, hun?”

“If you happen to have one available,” Jake replied, walking towards the desk and setting down his backpack. Judging by the lack of cars in the parking lot, he was more than confident there were plenty of empty rooms. Still, he glanced at the woman’s name tag and flashed her a smile. “Vera.”

“Oh, hun,” Vera chuckled. Her fingers tapped away on the computer that looked too new to be in the small, tacky, lobby with flower-patterned wallpaper. A lobby that was decorated with simply a small sitting area off to the side, a dusty fireplace warming the room, a dark wooden desk, rouge carpet, and outdated lighting fixtures. “I think I have one or two available. For how long will we be seeing your handsome face around?”

“Only a night,” Jake said. “I’m just passing through.”

“Storm pushed you off the road, huh?” Vera turned around and grabbed a key off one of the hooks on the wall. “It should only last the night. Nightly storms are common for us during this time of year. Here you go, hun.”

“Thank you!” Jake took the key before picking up his bag once more, throwing it over his shoulder.

“If you’re looking to warm up a bit, Kay & Elle, the pub next door, is open for a few more hours,” Vera informed him, fixing her wool cardigan on her shoulders. “A lot of the locals inhabit the place, but we’re friendly folks here. I’m sure they’ll keep you entertained for a bit.”

“Thank you for the suggestion!” Jake pulled his hood back over his head. “Have a good night, Vera.”

She waved him off with a dazzling smile. “Enjoy your short time at Higdon’s Harbour.”

Rain beat down around Jake as the lobby door closed behind him. The sticky air promised an onslaught of thunder and lightning, but it had yet to develop. With a glance at the metal key in his hand, Jake made out a marked 9 engraved at the top. His toes were cold as he quickly made it to the door and inserted the key before pushing the door open and stepping into the musty smelling room.

It was just as drab as the lobby. The double-bed was dressed in off-white coverings. Cream walls, dark carpet, and tacky seaside pictures. Along with two side tables by the bed, a small TV on top of a mini fridge, and a bathroom door on the far wall.

It wasn’t the nicest looking room he’d ever stayed in, but he would also be lying if he said he hadn’t stayed in worse before. 

With a tired and uncomfortable sigh, Jake tossed his bag onto the bed, peeled off his wet coat, and padded off into the bathroom.

He never really thought of going to the pub Vera had mentioned. His only plans that evening consisted of taking a scalding shower before crawling into bed. Maybe watching some TV or reading the book at the bottom of his bag to spice up the night.

Yet, once the two former items on his agenda were checked off, an uneasiness fell over him. Neither the TV nor his book could hold his attention. The bedsheets itched his legs. His heart thumped in his chest, just fast enough to be noticeable. He couldn’t sit still.

Lightning flashed outside and Jake’s head whipped in the direction of the window. The pub came into view; the two porch lights twinkled in the dark and laughter sounded in time to the pounding storm. It shimmered in the lightning’s afterglow, the rain creating a silver mist of magic around the stone building.

Jake tossed off the sheets and threw on some clothes and his damp jacket. The pull in the pit of his stomach pushed him towards the front door without Jake even really realizing what he was doing. But he chalked it up to boredom and the anxiety of being knocked off his schedule.

He left the warmth of his room behind, almost crashing into a figure as he gently closed his door. An apology was on the tip of his tip tongue when a feeling of nausea washed over him. He felt dizzy, stomach turning. But it was gone between one blink and the next, along with the person. Jake got a glimpse of red hair out of the corner of his eye followed by bells and laughter as the door to room 8 snapped closed. 

The thunderous weather started to overload Jake's senses and the urge to get to the pub was greater. With his head down, the figure fading from his memory, Jake made his way across the parking lot.

A drink or two would kill some time, he thought to himself. At least it would help settle the uneasiness and put him to sleep.

The mist around the pub seemed to glow as Jake drew closer, but he was too busy keeping the rain out of his eyes to pay much mind to it. Warmth shot up his arm as he pushed the door open, a jingle filling the room.

The smell of liquor and smoke tainted with the slight scent of sweat greeted Jake as he stepped over the threshold of Kay & Elle. The low rumble of a banjo filled the space, bouncing off the wooden rafters, mixing with the low mumbles and chuckles of the clusters of people scattered around the room. It wasn’t a full house, but crowded enough given the storm outside.

With his footsteps sounding off the wood floors, Jake made his way to the dark-oak bar. He received a few stares and nods of acknowledgment as he walked by men and women alike, sitting at tables and standing by pool tables. As he walked past, he took in the stone walls, the empty stage in the back, the shimmering yellow lights, and the photos of fishermen, smiling ladies, and vast landscapes littered throughout the walls. 

He took off his jacket, his heart having settled from the moment he entered the pub. Jake wasn’t a man who believed in faith, but in his bones, deep in his marrow, he knew this was where he was meant to be, for whatever reason.

“Well ain’t you a fresh face,” the elder man behind the bar remarked as Jake sat in one of the barstools, just a few seats down from a hunched over figure nursing a glass of whiskey.

Jake placed his wet jaket on the chair beside him as he chuckled. “Hard to be a stranger in this town.”

“Small-town life, my boy. Everyone knows everyone.” The man threw a towel over his shoulder, his dark hair pulled back in a low pony-tail, causing the wrinkles on his slim, tan face to be on full display. His green eyes sparkled in welcome and his smile pulled at the faded scar on his left cheek. “Passing through?”

The dim lights jumped and danced off the many bottles lining the wall behind the bar. A muted glow hugged the bar, the music changing to the beat of a fiddle.

“I am, but the storm took me off the road for the night,” Jake explained.

“You staying at the Beaumont?”

Jake nodded. “The woman, Vera, recommended I stop by for a drink.” 

The words tasted bitter, full of half-truths and false tales. But Jake wasn’t sure why, just as he wasn’t sure how to explain his need to be sitting in the pub at that particular moment.

“That woman,” the elder man chuckled with a shake of his head. “She sends more business this way than any billboard ad ever could. Well, have a drink while you’re here…"

“Jake.”

The music skipped a beat as the fiddle played a harsh note. The air turned bitter and cold. Jake’s limbs urged him to run, screamed that he made a mistake, scolded him for giving his name so willingly. But it was a reflex; the word leaving his lips before he understood what was happening. An impulse came over him, the same one that pulled him to obey the man's demand and order a drink.

No one seemed to notice the odd behaviour, aside from the hunched over figure a few seats down. His depthless brown eyes flashed to Jake, grey hair falling across his pale, sweaty forehead. There was a look of pain and madness in those eyes. Jake opened his mouth to say something when a draft of beer appeared in front of him. And suddenly he couldn’t remember why his limbs felt tense or why there was a cold sweat on the back on his neck.

“Nice to meet ya, Jake,” the bartender smiled with a gleam in his bottle-green eyes. “Name’s Murphy.” 

“Likewise,” Jake raised his drink before bringing the glass to his lips, downing half of it in a few gulps.

The hunched man tipped back the last of his whiskey, slamming the glass hard on the bartop.

“Murphy,” he spoke in a husky voice, like the sound of asphalt and gravel.

A flash of irritation, with just a hint of sadness, came over Murphy's face. He didn’t say a word as he quickly prepared another glass, sliding it gently in front of the stranger.

“Take it easy, Harold. That’s your third now.”

Harold grunted, shooting back half the glass without a word.

Murphy sighed, every other emotion but worry washing from his face for the smallest moment, before he turned back to Jake with a smile on his lips.

“So, where were you headed before the rain knocked you off track?”

After another smaller sip of beer, Jake explained his mountain travel plans and his desire to reach the great peak that waited for him at the end.

“Good on ya. Do it all now while you’re still young and can move about,” Murphy said with a chuckle. “This a solo trip? Or are you with someone special? Perhaps they’re waiting for you back in your room?”

“No,” Jake chuckled, ignoring the grunt of clear annoyance from the man a few seats down from him. “Just me.”

A glimmer appeared in the old man's eye. “So no one speical then? No sweetheart waiting for ya?”

Glass rattled as Harold slammed his empty drink back down on the bar.

Jake cast a sideways glance at the stranger. Restlessness rushed through him as he slowly sat up straighter. Tension gripped his limbs as Harold turned to look at him. Those unnaturally dark eyes shined with intensity. They held so much knowledge, so much pain, so much fury that Jake couldn’t look away. 

“Don’t waste your time with such things, boy,” Harold grumbled, voice rough and firm. His brows were pulled together so tight they were touching, as the bar cast his face in shadows of back and grey. “Love is pointless.”

He said the word love with such hatred, Jake felt as if the stone structure surrounding them would cave in and collapse. 

Murphy, for his part, looked just as on edge. It was a fact that did little to calm Jake's sudden nervousness. 

“Harold,” he sighed. “Let’s take a moment-”

“There is one thing that is certain when it comes to love,” Harold continued, eyes gazing unblinkingly at Jake. “It is nothing but pain. Love is made up of pain and heartbreak and bitter ends. It is a useless and pointless part of the whole damn human existence.”

A hush fell over the bar, as if even the other guests could sense the mood Harold had brought about. The upbeat tone of the fiddle suddenly switched to a soulless wail. . A shiver ran up Jake’s spine and he begged his body to turn away, to dismiss the man and be done with it. But he couldn’t. His unmerciful gaze pulled him in and suddenly Jake was drowning in the scent of liquor and smoke and dead leaves and depthless seas. 

“You fight so hard." Harold gripped his glass, and a crack started to appear. “You fight with all you have and give yourself completely and it's no good. It doesn’t matter. Nothing you do is good enough. Love is about fighting a losing battle and in the end, only one person suffers the consequences. And it's usually the one who fought the hardest.”

“Harold.”

Murphy’s voice was firm, loud, booming over the music as Jake jumped back in his seat. He didn’t realize how intently he’d been listening to Harold. How he was hanging on to every word like it was air. Or how, while talking to the terrifying man, for the first time since entering the town, Higdon’s Harbour glowed with colour.

An angry, remorseless, pulsating red colour.

Harold held Jake's gaze for a moment longer, intense eyes cast in complete shadow, before turning back to the bar.

“Thanks for the advice,” Jake found himself saying, voice shaking more than he'd like to admit. He didn’t mean to speak, the words simply rushed out of him with an aftertaste of smoke. 

Clearing his throat, Jake downed the last of his beer before pushing the glass towards Murphy for a refill.

A hush fell around them for just a few moments, the tension already starting to subside. Jake felt his shoulders drop as he slowly sipped his beer and Murphy slid Harold a glass of water. After some small talk with the old bartender, Jake felt himself able to breathe once more. His body started to relax, the fog lifting from his head. He was breaking the surface and forgetting all about the darkness of the ocean and the murdered limbs of the trees on the forest floor.

While on his third drink, Murphy started to get busy with the other parties of the bar. Tables started to ask for refills, and drenched couples walked through the door, the wind roaring behind them. He drifted more and more between the bar and the tables. And it was about that time that Jake decided he would soon be calling it a night.

“You shouldn’t have stopped, boy.”

Ice crawled up Jake’s spine at the sound of that sandpaper voice. Murphy was off to some seemingly remote corner of the bar. Jake couldn’t help but notice that every new body who walked in stayed far away from the bar, from him, and from Harold.

Jake gripped the tall draft in his hand, foam and condensation running through his numb fingers. 

He turned to face Harold, those black soulless eyes dragging him into the abyss. He was in a freefall, too much rushed through him all at once. A thumping started at his left temple and his heart dropped to his stomach as he fell and fell and fell from the bowels of the sky through the open arms of the corpse-like trees.

“You shouldn’t have stopped,” Harold spat, teeth clenched and head hung low. “You should get out of this cursed town before they get you too. They know you’re here. They knew you’d be here before you knew you’d be here. They got to the rest of this damned town. They got her. Get out before they get you too, boy.”

Fear rooted Jake in place. Fear for what, he couldn’t tell. But in the back of his mind, in the depth of his soul, he knew Harold was right. He shouldn’t be here. He shouldn’t have stopped. Yet, the thought of leaving caused his heart to clench and spots to form behind his eyes. Without his control, he found his lips forming the words - 

“Who are they?”

The lights flickered with the time of the thunder clashing outside. The fiddle faded out and the haunting strings of a violin floated through the room, accompanied by a soulful woman's wail.

He knew he shouldn’t have asked. He shouldn’t provoke this man. He should just pay his tab, get up, and leave. But it was unexplainable, much like the whole night had been. He simply couldn’t help himself.

Harold completely turned to Jake. The harsh lines on his face caught the glow of the dim lights. His eyes burned with unattainable wisdom and passion. Jake's heart started to race, limbs locking into place as he noticed the music slowed. Along with, somehow, every other body and soul in the bar. A haze filled the room, a mist blurring and engulfing everything that was not Jake and was not Harold. Even the storm seemed to hush, with only the woman's cry continuing on.

“Let me tell you a story, son.” Harold’s voice turned mystical, the words floating in the air between the two. “Cause I’ve lost my friends, my family, this whole damn town, and yet no one will believe me. They think I’m a nut-case, a man full of grief. But I ain’t, you hear? And maybe you’ll believe me. Maybe you won’t. But they took my wife-”

“Your wife is missing?”

Jake’s pulse jumped as Harold leaned in close, his blood-shot eyes burning crimson red. “For years now. Cause they took her.”

“They?” Jake repeated, feeling physically ill.

Harold nodded. “The fairies.”

He should have laughed. He should have backed off. His mind should have been yelling at him that the man was senile, crazy, insane. He should have bid him goodbye, called over Murphy, and been done with this place, this man. This man who was staring at him with all the earnestness in the world.

Fairies.

The word danced around in his head, bells and whistles suddenly joining in with the escalating violin. Suddenly, the whole town made all the sense in the world and yet, none at all.

“Fairies?” Jake spoke slow and steady. “They’re just folklore. A myth.”

Even as he said it, the words turned to dust on his tongue. He wanted to wash the taste out with his beer, but found he genuinely couldn’t move. 

“The Harbour Fairies,” Harold whispered. “Nasty creatures. And if you believe they’re just a myth, you’re as foolish as the rest of them. If you believe there isn’t more to this world, that we’re the only beings here, you’re blin. These aren’t just some little buggers who pick your berries and sprinkle dust. They are savage, mischievous demons.”

Jake started to shake his head, mostly to clear the fog that had started to form. “I don’t-”

“We here grew up wearing our clothes inside out and carrying bread in our pockets to stop the little people from leading us astray,” Harold spoke with more urgency than Jake had heard all night, “But little good it did. Everyone was blinded by what was right in front of them. These creatures play tricks. Oh, they love tricks. And not the fun kind. No, the kind that leads you over a cliff or dead at the bottom of the sea. They are unpredictable forces of nature who lead you in the woods, and suddenly you're never heard of again.”

“And they got your wife.”

“They stole her,” Harold spat the words into the air. His gaze flicked towards the red-head who walked past them, beer in hand, before he spoke again. “They took her from me. Everyone here believes she ran away, but I know. I caught them you see, I saw it with my own two eyes. One day she was in the garden, the next…”

… she walked into the woods, never to be seen again. Jake knew because he saw it himself. He watched it play out in Harold’s aged eyes. And suddenly he was inserted into a story that was not his. He didn’t feel right; too tight in his skin, eyes unable to properly focus on the greys, blacks, and whites of the world. But he still watched.

A grass-stained seven year old boy cradled the arm of a pretty girl with messy blonde hair. They sat in a treehouse, feet dangling over the edge, kicking at the clouds. The girl had tear-tracks running down her cheeks and dead flowers stuck in her hair. She was biting her lip, nodding as the boy spoke.

“I told you not to make your papa mad,” he whispered sternly.

“I didn’t mean to,” her lips trembled, gaze moving to anything but the boy before her. “It wasn’t my fault.”

The boy shook his head as he ran his hand over the forming bruise. “You gotta be more careful Cathy. What if something were to happen to ya?”

“Then let's get out of this town, Harry,” a seventeen-year old girl twirled in the headlights of an old pick-up truck. The waves crashed against the shore in the distance, the sun tenderly kissing the horizon goodbye. The girl’s blonde, messy braids whipped around her shoulder, dress bunched at her ankles. She stood before a brown haired boy, grass-stains on his jeans, leaning against the red truck. “Let’s pack up and leave after graduation next week.”

“And go where, Cathy?” The boy shook his head. “I have a job lined up on the boat and you have-”

“Nothing! I have nothing!” She threw her hands in the air. “I ain’t got nothing lined up. Just my next shift at the diner. I want to go to school, you know I do. But papa-”

“Don’t worry about your father,” the boy grabbed at the girls skirts, pulling her so close their hips touched. “I told you, I’ll protect you from your papa.”

The girl bit her lips, forest green eyes glancing over the boy's shoulder. Her face was tender but the look of caution never left. As if she wanted to believe the boy holding her but her heart refused to pay heed. “Promise?”

“I do.”

Applause thundered across the crowd, the waves beating against the rocky cliffs. The man lifted the woman's veil, tucking a piece of messy blonde hair behind her ear before gripping the back of her neck. He leaned in and placed a kiss on his lips. Whistles and wails filled the air, a screaming violin starting to play as the newly-weds walked down the aisle.

She held on her husband’s arm like a life-line, biting her lip as her father clapped the bride-groom on the shoulder. Her eyes darted around the crowd, the same look of caution from five years ago still masked her face.

It was a look that never left her face, a look that was forever present in the back on her eyes. It was the only thought Jake found he was able to form; the look of a woman who was scared. The look of a woman who was holding a secret.

And maybe she was, for that look stayed with her for all the years to come, Jake noticed. He watched Harold's and Catherine’s life play out before him, just as Harold described. The twenty plus years together. The moments of tender love, the moments of bitter fights. The squealing laughter and howling sobs. The funerals and the weddings, The slamming bottles and doors leading to nights together and alone. It wasn’t the best marriage, but what marriage is, Harold said.

They never had kids, their life centred around just the two of them, their fading love and the growing tension. Every second leading up to that moment, in a garden of muted yellows, reds, and oranges.

Flowers in her messy hair, a near fifty year old Catherine knelt before a bed of dirt. Sunglasses covered her eyes, dirt stained her knees, finger nails, and cheeks. She was silent as she worked.

A door slammed in the distance. “Catherine!”

The tension became electricity in the air. Catherine’s head snapped up as footsteps made their way to the backyard.

Jake noticed it at the exact moment she did. The wind switched directions, bells jingled off the tree tops, mystical laughter floated out from the forest on the other side of the garden.

Catherine turned slowly. The flower fell out of her hair. She tossed the sunglasses onto the ground and her bruised, deep green eyes glowed against the muted world. She walked towards the tree line, footfalls light. Laughter bubbled past her own lips and, between one step and the next, she was gone.

“... the forest swallowed her up and I knew they got to her.”

Jack was back in the bar. Everything rested as it had, and he himself wasn’t even sure if what he had just witnessed was real. Surely not, but the description and details felt real, tangible. As if, for a moment, he truly stood in Harold's memories.

“The forest was the only way out,” Harold’s eyes were wide, urgent, and the brightest things in the whole bar. “It was either through the house or the forest. And she’d been acting out for years. Always in the garden, out on her own. They got her, it's the only answer. But,” a pause, eyes shifting. “I know where she is.”

Jake swallowed, throat dry as sandpaper. “You do?” 

“An island just a few miles out in sea. A rocky cliff, that's where they stay,” Harold nodded, talking more to himself than Jake. “She's there, with them. I’m taking my boat out tomorrow morning. I’m going to get her and-”

“Harold.”

Murphy’s voice was enough to make Jake jump back. He never noticed how close he had been leaning towards the old man. Just as he never realized how tightly he was holding his warm, untouched third glass of beer. He pulled his hand back, wiping it on his jeans as the pulsing in his left temple grew stronger. 

As he looked around the pub, Jake took in all the faces looking his way. Eyes bounced between him and Harold, whispers and murmurs accompanying the flute and violin pair. It was only when Murphy loudly, purposely, cleared his throat that the inhabitants of the bar started to look as if they weren’t listening. 

“Harold,” Murphy spoke softly, placing a hand on Harold’s tense shoulder. “I think it's time to head home, friend.”

There was a fight in Harold’s eyes, Jake could see it. That bloodshot, haunting, soulless gaze held a fire and life to them, ignited by the hatred for creatures that couldn’t exist. But the moment Murphy spoke, the moment Harold looked around the pub and saw all the eyes on him, the fire vashined. It was as quick as releasing a breath, there one minute and gone the next. 

Harold held Jake’s gaze. There was still so much left unsaid, unanswered, and Jake found he didn’t want him to go. His mind and soul craved to know more about fairies and their secret world.

A laughter echoed off the rafters, and Jake realized for the first time that night how terrified and exposed he truly was.

“Tomorrow morning,” Harold grunted as he stood, the invitation loud and clear. Jake didn’t understand why Harold was inviting him along but it somehow made all the sense in the world.

With no other parting words, with not so much as a glance at any other living soul in the pub, Harold walked out. Back hunched as he disappeared over the threshold, rain and wind howling as they swallowed him whole.

A hush carried on throughout the pub for a few heartbeats. Until the flute faded back into the plucking of a guitar. Someone cheered, laughter followed, and soon the lively atmosphere of the bar was back once more. As if the haunted man with an implausible story wasn’t present a few moments before.

“Is it true?” Jake found himself asking, tongue sliding across his chapped lips. He turned in his chair, facing Murphy, who now stood behind the bar. He hoped his shaking hand wasn't noticeable as he raised his beer to his lips. “About those… about the fairies.”

The word tasted like strawberries and metal on his lips.

Murphy glanced up for the glass he was cleaning, scar strained across his cheek as he pursed his lips. “They’re urban folktales. Myths passed down through all the generations of the Harbour.”

“And his wife?”

Murphy paused. He let out a sign, placed the glass under the bar before turning to Jake. Worry and concern shinned in his eyes.

“She left him,” he explained softly, mindful of the ears around. “Packed up and left, just like that.”

“Just like that?” Jake raised an eyebrow at Murphy’s hesitation.

“There were… rumours about cheating and drunken fights but…” Murphy took a breath, crossing his arms on the bartop as he leaned in close. “Look, Harry's a good guy, difficult but good. Our families know each other well. And Cathy… well she had a hard life with her father. She wasn’t all there before she left and Harold took it hard. He still won't get help and has himself convinced the Harbour Fairies are behind it. Says he’s seen things with his own eyes that explains it.”

Jake swallowed, leg bouncing restlessly. “He’s going out tomorrow morning-” 

“Yeah,” Murphy nodded solemnly. “We’ve tried to stop him, talk sense. But he won’t listen. And he’s at the age and point now where we've given up - what can ya do.”

A lot. Jake glanced around the pub, taking in the numerous people laughing, chatting, drinking. He didn’t know these people, he shouldn’t judge, but they could be doing something to help that man. He may be talking crazy but… was he? 

The more Jake studied the bar, the more it felt like a fog was lifting. The pieces were falling into place. The math was suddenly starting to make sense. And Jake refused to acknowledge the answers that were before him.

“Where is she then?” Jake asked, breathing through his nose to calm his racing heart. “His wife. Catherine.”

“No one knows,” Murphy admitted. “She got out of this town, that's for sure. And no one has heard from her since.”

“No one checks in?” Jake couldn’t hide the disbelief from his voice. “No one’s tried to find out where she is or what happened.”

Murphy watched Jake for an uncomfortable moment. His eyes looked him over, mouth twisting as if to say something. But then his lips shut, he blinked, and he shrugged before pointing to the still full glass in front of Jake. “You want another?”

Jake's breath caught in his throat. Claws bit into his spine. His skin felt too tight as a breeze brushed the back of his neck, red flashing in his vision. The room was too small and too big all at once. He didn’t know why he was feeling such a way or what had brought it on. But his gut knew it was because of this town.

And he knew he wanted to get out.

The door to the pub shut as a couple walked out, but the noise still rattled against Jake’s bones as he shook his head.

“No,” he stood up, hand shaking as he pulled out some bills and tossed them on the bar. “I think I’ll call it a night actually.”

Murphy picked up the money, either not noticing the odd behaviour or choosing to ignore it as he smiled. “Well, Mr. Jake, I hope you enjoy the rest of your short stay. Maybe someday we’ll get to see you passing through the Harbour again.”

“Who knows,” Jake gave a nervous chuckle, “It seems anything is possible.”

He left the pub in shambles. The smell of ashes and fowl fish followed Jake as he made his way to the door. Tables were knocked off centre, chairs were tipped over. The banjo played too loud and slightly off key. Men and women alike stumbled over one another, drinks spilled onto the floor. Even Murphy’s slicked back pony was a mess, falling into his dark, sweat covered face.

The illusion was breaking, the corners being pulled back to show something ugly and monstrous. Something those who inhabited Higdon’s Harbour refused to acknowledge.

Jake stepped over the threshold, blood pounding through his veins. He welcomed the rain beating down on his face, the wind biting through his damp jacket and nipping at his icy skin. The door to Kay & Elle closed with a thunderous bang. The banjo and hysterical laughter was replaced by sorrowful wind and wailing rain.

He stood there for a moment, face turned towards the sky as he tried to will air into his lungs. 

He needed to get out of this town.

Whatever force pulled Jake towards the pub earlier was controlled by a demon. He didn’t know what purpose it served him, to hear about Harold and the fairies… fairies that shouldn’t, didn’t, couldn’t exist…

Someone squealed and giggled across the parking lot. With a jump, heart in his throat, Jake started to make his way back to the safety of his room.

And he was almost there, just a mere few steps away, when his body suddenly felt as if it were stretched too thin. Nausea overcame him and his head spun. The rain pierced his skin like devilish needles and the wind sang a woman's lullaby in his ear. He could hear his blood pounding in his ears, thunder crashing as someone bumped into his shoulder.

It was an innocent tap, the woman clearly too captivated by the lady on her arm to notice him. But it did all the damage in the world.

“Oh!” She gasped, the sound like a thousand bells. She grabbed his arm, full-lips pulled back in an apologetic smile as all the air vanished from Jake's chest. “I’m sorry.”

He couldn't breath, the pulsing in his left temple was suddenly magnified by ten. The warmth of her hand on his arm spread through his whole body. He no longer felt the wind and rain beating against him, he was too allured by her auburn curls, high-cheekbones, and hazel eyes that glistened like moss coated in morning dew. 

She was the most hauntingly beautiful creature he had ever beheld. And every part of his being begged him to run.

“Are you okay, Jake?” Her partner spoke up. They were holding one another so close, arms locked tight, it was as if they were one. Gravity pulled them together; where one moved the other followed. A simple stranger such as himself could not doubt their adoration and love.

Jake ripped his gaze away from the red-headed woman and looked at her partner. He took in her slim face, the dirty dress, and messy blonde hair pinned back with a flower.

It was then that Jake noticed that both women were completely dry.

It was then that Jake realized they knew his name.

It was then that his eyes met the blonde’s green ones, and he saw it all.

“I told you not to make your papa mad,” a seven year old boy with grass stains on his knees told the six year old girl with a bruised arm.

“I didn’t mean to,” she trembled, and Jake realized she wasn’t avoiding the boys gaze. She was looking at someone else. She was looking at the young auburn haired creature standing a few feet away, invisible to the boy and eyes tense with worry. “It wasn't my fault.”

Be more careful, the boy told her at the exact moment the creature met the girl's gaze and said, I know. I’ll protect you.

“I told you,” said a seventeen year old boy as he gripped a sixteenth year old's skirts. “I’ll protect you from your papa.”

You know he can’t, Cathy, The auburn creature said, standing over the boy's shoulder as she held the girl’s green-eyed gaze. I’ll protect you from them both.

The blonde trembled. “Promise?” 

With all the power of the forest and the sea. I promise.

She was there, always there. She did all she could to keep her promise. But it seemed even she was limited in her abilities.

Jake watched Harold and Catherine's life play out once more. As the twenty plus years faded together, the moments of tender love vanished. The fights were more frequent, more aggressive than Harold let on. He stumbled home in the dark more than once, eyes bloodshot and words slurred. There were many years of fights and screams. Fists were thrown and bones were broken. And the red-head was there through it all, helping as best as she could. She cared for Cathy, tried to protect her, but it wasn’t enough.

Run away with me, Cathy. It's the only way.

And run she did.

It wasn’t a laugh that called Catherine to the forest that day in the garden as Harold’s raging voice bellowed off the walls of the house. No, it was not a laugh at all, but her name, spoken in bells and chimes, love and warmth.

Catherine stepped over the threshold of the forest, laughter on her lips, as she jumped into the arms of the beautiful red-headed fairy.

She didn’t leave, wasn’t taken. She willingly left her delusional old life for one of magic and wonder and respect.

Jake stumbled back a step, shaking off the hand of the creature before him. His head was spinning, his stomach turned and his vision blurred as he truly saw the two ladies before him. As he noticed the glow around them, the electricity that danced in their wake. 

This town, these people… how could anyone let a woman suffer as Catherine did and not do anything? How could they not see what was right in front of them?

And these creatures, the fairies, Harold painted them as the demons and yet, this fairy was Catherine’s saving grace, her lover, her protector...

They shared a look, the two lovers, before turning back to him. They didn’t say another word as the fairy smiled at Jake, white teeth flashing, and blew him a kiss. They turned to leave, Catherine giving him a wink over her shoulder, before disappearing into their hotel room. Right next door to his.

Jake stumbled as fast as he could to his room, slamming the door behind him as he tried to catch his breath and will his mind to understand what the hell was going on.

It took him a few moments to realize, for the first time all night, he was completely dry.  

----------

Light had yet to transform the morning sky when Jake sped out of the Beaumont Motel parking lot. The rain had stopped and the winds were whisked away. Grey clouds lingered in the sky, suffocating the rising sun on the horizon. 

What was once a piece of art to Jake was now the ugliest thing he had ever seen. 

The mountain reached its claws to the sky, holding all the trees and buildings in the palm of its hand. The roads swerved in and out of its fingers, weather-worn homes running up the forest-speckled hills, trying to escape. The ocean leaped for joy as it played with the rocky cliffs, trying to capture and destroy anything it could reach. The boats bobbed in the water, begging to be let free, while the docks pointed their fingers to the open sea, luring in any desperate and lonely souls to the corrupt town. 

The ocean was painted an angry blue against the grey light. The white-capped waves pounded against anything in their way. What Jake once thought was a place of harmony, he realized now, was an illusion.

The image had been shattered, broken beyond repair.

The land had won after all, he realized now. It had conquered Higdon’s Harbour and all within it. There was no agreement, no compromise to live in peace. For nothing could truly defeat nature.

The land cackled against the last remains of the raging storm winds. For it knew the game it was playing; it knew who truly ruled the town. And it was not man.

Jake made it out before the first kitchen light flickered on. Before the inhabitants of Higdon’s Harbour woke and started about their delusional lives. His heart pounded in his chest the whole way, hands shaking as they gripped his steering wheel. Even when he passed the city line, his body refused to relax. Not as the sound of chimes echoed on and on and on in his head.

By the time Jake remembered Harold, he was long gone. And he was too far out to turn back. Too far out to hear the news, or see the headline of the Higdon’s Harbour newspaper that morning. And to hear the otherworldly laugh that accompanied it.

Man Crashes Boat Off Rocky Cliffs In Desperate Search Of His Wife.

[han-shinsuke]

l e v i a c k e r m a n

content warning

•s t a r t•

“Still dating,” I really don’t mind elaborating the kind of relationship and interaction Levi and I had every time we were together. As long as he’s happy and contented, I won’t ask and won’t even dare open up if he has plans to level up ‘us’. It’ll just make things complicated between our hearts and our real agenda.

“Did you fuck each other already?”

“What? No.”

Although, some nights, he’s in my dreams, fucking his loads into me until he fulfilled his bank of satisfaction.

Let’s just say I’m indebted to him that’s why I am letting him use me as a bait or a shield againsts those women who tries luring him to a marriage or to any responsibilities that would tie him up in a kind of life he never wanted.

Willa flashes a malicious grin and pinches my side, “what if he asks you to do some job for him, will you do it?” I did not falter when I responded.

“I will if he wants me to but, I’m just a bait and nothing more than that.”

“He’s here.” My friend cocks her head to the main gate and we watch his expensive rover enters our University and park right in front of us, “Levi.” Willa acknowledges his arrival and he responds with a nod, “Willa, it’s good to see you.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Wils.” I give my friend a hug and hop on in his car.

Levi drives in silence which was his usual behaviour when we’re together. We lived in a same house but sleeps in different rooms and definitely not into romantics. Though, I’d be happy if we could engage ourselves into it.

He’s just uh, too uptight to be as sweet as a candy.

“Hey there, wait a sec.” His left hand almost got squeezed by the door of my room but he managed to remain calm and unbothered.

The door creaks open and slams closed when we stepped in to my room, him dragging me to the bed I don’t sleep on.

“Wh–why?” I ask when he instructed me to kneel. He sits on the edge, unzips his pants and freed his thing.

I gulp secretly and even curse under my breath. My eyes water at the sight of it and he’s very attentive in cupping my face and wiping the moisture on the corner of my eyes.

“We’ve been dating but you haven’t had a taste of me, right? Let’s start from the bottom, yeah?”

Can I do it? I have never sucked a man’s thing before nor had a chance to touch one.

“You can do it, baby. I’ve seen you licked an ice cream before. Close your eyes if you must, hmm?”

Sounds easy but too hard to execute. I shut my eyes closed. Pray first. Put my trembling hands around his long rod and breathe in strength and confidence.

Its skin feels soft and delicate between my lips but the whole thing is far different. It’s thick and hard as his fingers combing my shoulder length hair, slightly pulling the tension from the scalp. My mouth feels full by just having the tip around the circumference of my lips. It is bigger and harder, enough to piston down the sensitive muscle of a woman.

“Full already?” he teases, grabbing my hair fully as he lifts my head to spit in my mouth. It caught me off having a man’s saliva on my tongue but it feels warm and sweet and arousing that when he dropped his lips onto mine and kissed me hard just to force more of his spittle down my throat, I did nothing but moan alongside with his rough and sloppy kisses.

“Ooh, God!” I gasp after feeling his tight pull on the strands of my hair.

“Do it, baby, ‘kay?” I nod, lowering my head back to his tip, swallowing it first and clenching it against my lips. Levi let out a grunt and before I could even ask if I’m doing the job right, he pushed my head deep to his member, slamming the hard cap against my throat. I squeal and squirm and cry in my head all at once. The feeling of his erection installed fully and deeper in my mouth feels lethal and the tension down my pipe was forcibly undeniable. I let out choking noises and I heard him laugh at it, pulling my head up and slamming it back again. Then pulled again, withdrawing his size to look down at my tears dampened face.

“First time, baby?” I nod again, muffling my cries from the rough force that lingers in my mouth and down my windpipe. I failed in suppressing my cries that’s why I ended up sobbing on his muscular thighs, “ssshh, baby, it’s fine. You hurt?” I shake my head no. Liar. I scream in my head. My throat was throbbing in pain and my mouth feels numb by his huge size that previously stuffed in my airways.

Levi pulls me back to my feet, squeezing my sides with his calloused palms and fingers, face leveling with my chest.

“Why are we doing this?” I sob, holding onto his arms that continuously squeezing and kneading the skin under the uniform I am wearing.

“Can’t we do it?” he asks back, lips thinning into a mischievous grin.

He warms my heart and eases the pain in my throat by lacing his fingers along the lines of my lips, then pushes a digit between it, pressing softly and then poking my tongue with his sharp nail. I closed my eyes as I moan his name, almost like a whisper but loud enough for him to hear.

“Le–Levi... Levi... ” want him to do something to me. Something dirty. Something new. But how can you name a feeling so new, so strange and so addicting?

Another digit was added between my lips, pumping gently, heating the already burning fuel in me, “say it, baby. Say it.” He knows I’m craving for that heat. He’s putting me on the edge like how a bait should be treated. On the edge. On the brink of death.

Completely succumbed, I whisper those filthy shits, “fuck me, please.”

Those words were just a whisper but strong enough to snap him out of his own reverie. I’m just as lost as him. So high and dumb that I didn’t even notice the force he uses on me, tearing the front of my blouse, buttons flying everywhere. Finally, the part of me that aches for some attention, he didn’t think twice and cage the perked buds alternately in his mouth, lapping the pad of his tongue around its tiny size, sucking it hard that makes me bend my top body in a curve of delight as I ask for support through his head.

“Oh my! Levi!” the sounds of his lips between those cruel kiss as he pops each buds with force were enough to take away the remaining sanity in my head. My knees betrayed me, trembling down from the obvious defeat, Levi scoops my weight onto his lap, wrapping my legs with eagerness around his waist, putting his mouth back to business, my grip tightened on his hair, pulling his face tight against my aching breasts.

“Shit, baby!” I feel soaked and it was because of his habit spitting the spot he wants to claim as his own, “damn tits! I can suck these all night aah!” I follow his thirsty moan with a loud gasp and tight squeeze on his shoulders as he devours my chest with so much hunger. The kisses were soft but the teeth works were harsh, leaving marks of his pure desires.

“Come on, Levi! Aah! I–I hhyaahh! I–I need to pee, ooh!” I push his face and look at him pleadingly. The heat was turning up in my stomach. I really need to pee, “Hwait—Aaah!” He bites hard the left bud and I swear I fucking shit myself in my skirt but it was far different from my normal urine. It feels warmer and thicker that a question in my head pops up, “you’re quick to cum.” He confirms it, humping my hips against his protruding erection that has white cream on its tip.

Panting, I crash my lips on his and he’s quick to catch mine and give it the kiss I wanted.

“Levmmpphhh! Haahhh! Too hard hhmmpp!” He uses more of his teeth and tongue, biting the corner then licking the part he made to bleed a little. Levi was strong, his arms were crashing me with its tight embrace, holding me with so much force and selfishness. Trying my best to cope up with his need, I return the kiss in a very sensual manner, moving softly on his lower lip, nipping it, sliding my tongue inside his mouth. The table was turned. His kisses changes course, mimicking the slow pace of my mouth on his.

“Hmmm... ” I moan between his hungry but careful kisses, swallowing everything he could.

The kiss paused for a moment, engaging our eyes full of lust, I dip my mouth once again for a quick smack on his softness. He smiles, tugging down the blouse he tore apart down my elbows, exposing the cold skin of my shoulder and back. I tilt my head voluntarily for him to dip his own with ease. His hot mouth touch my skin, tracing warm kisses from my shoulder up to my neck. He blows a kiss on my throat and suck its skin, nibbling, determined to leave another mark .

“Fuck me, Levi. I want you in. Rail me, please.” He chuckles against my skin, peppering my softness with his cruel kisses. God. Unknowingly, humping and grinding my bottom against his hardness that screams for attention and womanly flesh.

“So desperate, baby huh! Can you take me huh? You don’t blame me if things gone wrong huh?” I won’t hold him accountable for things I pleaded him to do. I want it and I’ll deal with it.

Levi lays me down on the bed, pulling my lower half near the edge, folding my thighs to his heart’s desires after removing my undergarments. He eyed me down there carefully, constantly looking at my worried face. He must have noticed it, the flesh blocking his passage.

“I won’t scream. I won’t make a sound and I won’t hold on to you.” I heard these information from all the girls he had fucked to sleep. He despises women who screams, who cries and those who dares touch him while reeling deep a hole.

It would be painful, I know, but I prefer myself ready if something like this happened and it’s happening.

Levi tosses the clothes around the room, flaunting his perfect built and massive thing. I hold my legs for him, shutting my close as he rubs his tip on the hood, gradually pushing its head.

“G–go on... ” I encourage him, tilting my head to the left, biting my lips hard.

“You desperate little shit!” I unconsciously let go of my legs to cover my mouth when he goes really deep and penetrates the intact hymen to reach the place only his thing can touch.

My whole body shakes as my fingers clutches the bedsheet for external support.

His thing burns the life out of me, burning the core further, suffocating me with how his thing feels like, throbbing ang growing bigger from the fact that he’s the first man to use me like this.

I breathe his name helplessly, “Levi. Levi.”

He’s not making a move yet. He’s watching my every reaction and how my face contorted due to the pain he caused me.

“Are you expecting something after this?” his thing throbbed, growing even bigger. What a cruel way of knocking down my airway.

My lips parted, gasping for air. Pain from the bottom flesh increasing rapidly all over my veins, “N–No... don’t worry.” I give my most genuine smile and swallow my cries and sobs.

“I–I know my place, Levi.” I added before he gone merciless with his deep thrust and cruel kisses.

“Levi, ooohhh!” tightly, hold on to the sheet tightly. There’s no one to cheer me all throughout this session so I did what I needed to do. I comfort myself on my own, grabbing for support onto the sheet as he strikes harder and fast with those thick hips and thighs, spreading my legs with his expert hands.

“Shit, baby! So tight here hah! Damn!” hard blow followed by another blow, forcing my core to accommodate his growing size by folding my legs and spreading them when he’s not comfortable.

I need something to hold on but who and what to hold.

“Lev—” his lips crashes back again on mine, kissing me torridly, fucking my tongue with his tongue, swirling, tasting my mouth full of his spittle.

My heart swells in affection, my tummy from his long and thick manhood. He says, surprisingly, “hold tight, baby.” When I didn’t move because I couldn’t comprehend his words, Levi grabs my right hand and put around his toned arms while lacing his other with my left as he picks up his face and strength. Drilling his rod deeper and fast as he buries his face on my neck, sucking its crooked part, licking his way up to my mouth to kiss me again.

“Aaahhh~ oh my God! You’re so deep! Aahh!” I couldn’t contain my moans anymore. It’s getting louder and he’s not bothering himself with it. He keeps ramming his hips against mine, creaming the already drenched hole.

Another heat is building up in me, making me hold tighter on his body and hand. I started squirming when he put a finger on my clit, rubbing it hard as he pumps hard his long shaft, “shit, baby! Aahhnngg cumming! Aah!”

My body convulses with his shaking ones, pumping even harder, filling me with warm cream until it oozes down my core down to the anus.

“Levi... ” his name rolls out my tongue before I dropped flat weakly on the bed, him on top of me, pressing more of his weight ‘til he completely dry his member out of his jizz.

He moves again. Blowing off another strikes but I’m too weak and too tired to cooperate with him. I just let him use me again and again.

He’s the love of my life after all.

•••

I woke up alone on my bed, feeling numb from the last night activity. He wasn’t here. He must be out and working already. My stomach growls, hunger occupying my senses. I force myself out from the bed, heading to the bathroom to clean myself. His marks are all over my body. The most visible were the one around my neck and my left wrist. He’s gone hard and wild last night, holding me by the neck to kiss me while fucking me from behind. Ah, Levi, what a poison you were.

I dress in my usual boyish clothes, leaving the house with my sore body and numb legs.

The day was peaceful and I’m having my breakfast at a café when this man storms in and snatches my aching body.

“Ouch.” I hiss lowly, not wanting to draw attention on us.

He sits me back on my chair, setting down really close to me, pressing our forehead together.

“You’re not allowed to leave me, Y/N! Fuck. I was so scared!” he’s breathing heavily and angrily.

I sip my coffee before answering, “I can’t even if I want to, Levi. Not in this condition. I can’t even feel my legs.”

I giggle at my own helplessness but he’s still mad, “I have been calling you! Where’s your goddamn phone?!”

“Oh! I think I left it in our house.” I answer innocently, grabbing a waffle from the white china, “hey! that’s mine!” my lips pouted when he stole my food and bit it angrily.

“I love you!” I think I misheard him.

“Huh?” I questioned.

“What an idiot and slowpoke.” Levi commented before gripping my chin and pressing his lips hard on my mouth.

•e n d•

[arsenalgbt]

bottom!kai headcanons? what’s he like?

not even kidding; grab ur popcorn snacks wipe your blue light glasses etc 😤

in my head!!!! I feel like he’s not into verbalising The Dirty Talk. loves receiving it, sure, something vanilla like “You’re so wet / Can you feel how deep I’m inside? / Show me” kinda thing! not the extreme I'm-gonna-fill-you-up-ur-a-slut-for-my-cock-aren’t-you LMAO

not into feminisation. sure he squirms at being called ‘pretty’, but not out of arousal. he’s just shy and is having a hard time believing it lol

doesn’t like getting fucked somewhere uncomfortable, due to being too tall

doesn’t like riding his top’s cock unless they’re on the sofa (likes the bounce, the headrest that he can use as an anchor, the overall smaller space compared to a bed); he feels self-conscious about his long legs, and he gets cramps if he sits on his knees for too long criesssssss

however he is good at sucking cock as long as he’s got something to cushion his knees (them lips? iykyk) (he 80% always swallows)

gets mistaken as a top easily!!!

doesn’t mind topping, but he gets lazy in the middle AJKSJDF like he’d lost interest or get tired JASJFJSA

only owns one toy and that’s a silicone dildo, flesh coloured, 10 inch and thick lolllllll

surprisingly into phone sex and FaceTime sex, but not sexting

idk man in my head he’d look so fucking ethereal getting fucked out of his mind, caught in 4K, the phone is shaky, the video is blurry… but his face. oh his face. hooded eyes, swollen, pink lips, the desperate but quiet moaning… the red spots all over his cheeks, neck, chest, his hard, untouched cock leaking, his wet hole gripping the top’s cock…

like

say it’s a uni AU. kai slept with an asshole who recorded him sucking cock. that 0:11 video got leaked ajkdjfjkadkjfajk. boys who never ever talked to him, they begin to ask him out to parties or blatantly ask if he charges for his time. IMAGINE!! imagine kai is in the football varsity team. an actual jock. rival teams start to taunt him with derogatory remarks. some ask him out as well lol

I think he’s the type of bottom who ‘isn’t aware’ of how alluring he can be!!!! due to being too tall (again) and shy and introverted. literally I'd like to read a fic in which everyone is vying for his attention. add everyone; Declan, big gabi, jurrien, Leo and Martin, Julian, mason, etc etc

like I swear Declan and big gabi are into him because he looks ✨fragile✨ (too often, they see him getting jostled easily, dropping files or whatever’s in his hand, looking lost, tired, like he needs someone with a sturdy head and shoulders and a big cock to rely on lmaoooo this is an office siren AU or summing)

damn that’s a long HCs!!!!!! hope you enjoyed and feel free to add more!

[middleofnowhere92]

Ranking all ATLA Villains/Antagonists from worst to best (by someone who loves villains)

This post was inspired by this ask 

Warning: I swear quite a bit in this post and I’m a dumbass, not an ATLA scholar, so take this with a grain of salt. Also I have no idea wtf my ranking criteria was. I assigned arbitrary and meaningless points like Dumbledore giving all the points to Gryffindor at the end of the year. 

Iroh

 I have a secret for you...Iroh is an antagonist.... Say it with me... Iroh is an antagonist. For the people in the back, IROH IS AN ANTAGONIST. He’s not particularly good at at it, but he belongs on this list. Primary reason being, his siege on Ba Sing Se, which was a major battle in the 100 year war and all the other things he did in the war to become a general. If he was good at being a villain, he would at least have the decency to conquer the city, but as Ozai points out, Iroh excels at tea and failure. When we see Iroh in Book 1, He’s a very chill antagonist for the same reason a lot of our other antagonists are (June, the Yuyan Archers, Combustion man etc)-they are helping a villain achieve their goal. In Iroh’s case, he does help Zuko in many ways ( like sneaking him onto Zhao’s ship) and these in turn help Zuko get closer to his goal of capturing Aang. I love Iroh as a character, but he’s not good at being an antagonist, which is why he is ranked the worst. 

Circus Trainer

This man is straight up, evil. I like villains, but I do not like this man. He’s cruel and not in a fun way, which is why he’s near the bottom of the list. The whole point of being a villain is to be cool and do bad things, but he’s not even a little fun to watch. He’s the least interesting to look at... 

Yon Rha

This man is a coward. Like how did he lead the Southern Raiders? He went soft when he got old. He was more savage back in the day. Like this man is a firebender, but he cowers from Zuko before Katara even pops up. He needs to grow a pair. Like Katara said man is pa-thet-ic. 

The Rough Rhinos (ignoring the comics)

They get points for creating my favorite antagonist, Jet. But the first time we see these clowns in the show, the gang just rides away on Appa, easily avoiding them. And then the gang easily defeats them in their next run in. These clowns are good at destroying things, but not really fighting or pursuing others. 

Ozai

I expected more from this man. He was hyped up for three seasons and I just didn’t feel like he was smart enough to be the bad guy for the whole ass show.  The man clearly doesn’t think for himself or show up throughout the series doing  menacing things. The final agni kai overshadowed Ozai and Aang’s showdown. That’s the theme, Azula outshines a grown man as the star villain of the show. He does get some points for his fashion and flair for the dramatic. 

Mai's Uncle (Boiling Rock Warden)

This man, is a dumbass with the reflexes of a sloth. Suki overpowered him in 2 seconds flat. How is this grown man getting defeated by a little nugget like Suki? She was only holding his wrist. He could have just kicked her? Like you are a prison warden, look alive man! And he should have captured Zuko’s little ass and sent him right over to Ozai to get some street cred, but instead he just gets pissed cause Zuko broke up with Mai? First lesson in being a villain/antagonist- power over everything (including family). He does get points for ordering them to cut the line. That’s straight savage. 

Xin Fu and Yu

Toph gets it right, these are two dunderheads. How did they not hear Toph bending metal? They react almost as slowly as the Boiling Rock Warden, letting Toph easily overtake them. They are two skilled benders and they didn’t even stand a chance. 

General Fong

This man gets points for being a bat shit crazy. And I think he’s one of the first non fire nation antagonists we see in the show, so points for him. He’s an underrated antagonist. He does cool bending and his emotional manipulation to get Aang into the Avatar state is A+ villain work. 

Azulon

Azulon gets villain points for keeping the war going. He didn’t fuck it up like Ozai. But Azulon gets his villainness handed to him on a platter, he didn’t really do much, besides maintain status quo. We do get the scene where Ozai asks for the throne. But I don’t think Azulon assumed Ozai was going to kill Zuko. Azulon was trying to make a point, that Ozai’s request was absurd, but he obviously didn’t know Ozai well enough...

Koh

Koh almost didn’t make the list. I don’t really consider him to be an antagonist. Aang came to him asking for information and Koh was trying to do what he does..steal faces. He was just vibing. I included him on this list, because he antagonized us (the viewers). Dude is easily the most terrifying part of the show. 

Ghashiun

He muzzled Appa! He’s not ranked high on this list, because he didn’t know Appa was Aang’s so he wasn’t intentionally trying to fuck with the Avatar. I do like the sandbenders as a whole. They just run around causing chaos with their cool bending. This character, however, loses points, because when he is confronted about stealing Appa, he gets defensive and tries to lie. If you do something bad, at least have the balls to own up to it. 

Wan Shi Tong

Gets points for his flair for the dramatic a la Ozai. I did like Wan Shi Tong’s logic around not giving the gaang information: “You think you're the first person to believe their war was justified?!” He had more brain cells than some of our other villains/antagonists, but was also dumb too? Sokka pretty easily outsmarted him. This Spirit has been alive forever, he shouldn’t be outsmarted by a child. 

The Old Man

Oooof. I almost put him in the number one spot tbh. He did us and Haru so dirty. Like he could have died,but he turned in the person that saved him??? He gets points for shock value and pettiness. I personally think Jet should take him out...

June

June gets points for being a bad bitch. I like her vibe. She’ll do anything as long as you’re paying her the right price and I can respect that. She isn’t higher on the list, because she is executing someone else’s plan, not her own. 

The Yuyan Archers

Speaking of bad bitches, the Yuyan Archers are so cool and I wish they got more screen time! We see very few antagonists that can keep up with Aang the way that this group does. They add a bit of spice and a different flavor to what we know about Fire Nation fighting styles, which I approve of. I hope we see more of them in future ATLA projects. They aren’t higher up, because they are still doing someone else’s bidding. If they had their own leader and their own agenda, that would be some cool shit. 

Combustion Man

This man gets points for giving the gaang a lot of trouble. As viewers, we really worry about whether they will be able to defeat him. I like that he has a different style of bending, which in and of itself is terrifying. He still doesn’t make it up higher on the list, because he’s still doing someone else’s (Zuko’s) bidding.

Rig Warden

On second thought, I may have him ranked a little too high. But oh well, fuck it. He gets many many points for being voiced by George Takei. This man also gets points for having general villain swag. He is sassy and I am here for it. He’s highly effective at crushing the souls of the Earthbenders on the rig. Also, he does not stutter when Haru throws those rocks at him.Came at him full force which is what all the other himbos on this list should have been doing when these children played them! He outright told Katara he was gonna kill her “You’re one mistake away from dying where you stand.” Loses points for begging as he’s dragged off the rig. Go down with some dignity!

The Southern Raiders

So the Southern Raiders get ranked separately from Yon Rha, because he led them towards the end of their conquest. I think they started under Sozin’s reign. This group gets ranked fairly high, because they were very effective at their task. They came, they saw, they decimated-leaving the SWT defenseless and barely able to sustain itself. 

Mai

I like Mai and wish I could rank her higher. I like her knives, they are very cool form of defense that was unique to her. I also love how she just immediately flung arrows at Aang, no hesitation. She does get style points, her aesthetic is everything. Her one liners are pretty funny, “You’re so colorful, you’re making me nauseous.”  She lacks in her commitment. Anytime anything inconveniences her she’s just like eh, no thanks. Hardcore antagonists need to be have some dedication to their cause, which Mai does not.  I feel like she would eventually run out of weapons in a longer battle, which would be a big issue for her. 

Long Feng

Gets instant points for villain swag, creepy vibe and sass. This man kept news of a whole war from Ba Sing Se, even though the city was filled with refugees? Long Feng had his work cut out for him. He loses points, because he lets the children get away with too much. He should have locked down Aaang and co immediately, because they were trouble as soon as they rolled up. Also, he should have fought Azula. He let a fourteen year old take his whole career away. He was never even a player.

Sozin

Sozin gets a  large amount of hypothetical points from being the one to start it all. He’s the one who initiated the 100 year war. He did not play around. He used that comet to its maximum potential. Also he has a dragon, which is fucking cool. He gets bad bitch points for leaving Roku on the exploding island. Like that’s a power move right there. He wiped out the air nomads and invaded the Southern Water Tribe, which is why his successors  are ranked much lower on the list. They really didn’t do shit.

Hama

Gets points for being a waterbender, which is something cool that we hadn’t seen in a villain yet. She also gets points for executing her own deranged agenda. I would love to see her and Jet link up, cause that would have been chaos. She also gets heaps of points for inventing bloodbending. Many of the villains of this list can barely think and homegirl has big brain energy. She is cunning and quick, like when she utilizes Sokka and Aang to attack Katara. I like her general bruja (witch) vibes. She gets more points because she does not motherfucking stutter when Katara figures her out, she just starts bloodbending immediately. She really enjoys her power and I can’t blame her for it. She’s a baddie and she knows it. More points for Hama, because she gets Katara to carry on her legacy (whether she wants to or not) and goes off to jail with her dignity. She’s an all-star villain and I love to see it. She loses a few points, because her bloodbending is limited to the full moon, but she still has her waterbending which is terrifying enough...

Dai Li

Like the rig warden, I probably ranked these himbos too high, but I love them as henchmen. Their bending is amazing, they are sneaky and they can brainwash you? Like fuck me up man. They really are just a joy to watch and their betrayal of Long Feng is so unexpected. This group really creates the creepy/ominous aesthetic the creators were going for in Ba Sing Se. Don’t think their bending is good? They one upped Toph and almost had her, but Jet saved her at the last second. 

Zhao

I feel like Zhao’s characterization is inconsistent (sometimes he has a bad temper, sometimes he doesn’t?) which makes him hard to rank, but let’s do it anyway. He gets points for being voiced by the guy that played Lucius Malfoy, like yaaas work that Slytherin aesthetic. Gets points for using the Yuyan Archers. Loses a lot of points in his fight with Aang, like that child was obviously baiting him. He has a lot of ambition and actually has to work to his rise to power, which he obviously relishes. He’s the perfect antagonist for Zuko. He accomplished his goal of frying the fish/moon and he actually captures Aang. I think the writers added in his hot temper later on, because they realized he was too competent and had to give him a flaw. 

Zuko

Ohhh my morally confused prince, Where do we even start? Zuko gets a lot of points for his sheer determination. I would love to see an unhinged Zuko without Iroh. Zuko’s tenacity and unpredictability make him a fantastic antagonist. Iroh and Azula try to control Zuko, but they never really know what he’s gonna do next and neither do we as the viewers. He’s near the top of the list, because even with so many struggles he kept Aang on the run for two seasons. I like that he actually struggled to be good. He obviously loses points for joining the good guys, but we still love him. 

Jet

Speaking of morally grey, cue up Jet’s theme music. He gets instant points for swag and cool swords. Like the Yuyan archers, Jet is one of the few antagonists we see that can keep up with Aang. Like Zuko, Jet’s dedication to his cause get him high on this list, because he will defeat the Fire Nation at any cause. The creators lose points for being cowards and killing him off. We saw plenty of other people (Sokka) get hit with similar rocks and not die. Jet is a fantastic antagonist with a backstory that the audience can sympathize with. He loses points for not being more versatile in his tactics. I’ve written more on this here. 

Ty Lee

Katara is terrified of her, do I need to elaborate? Ty Lee by far has the scariest skill set on the show. It’s too easy for people to underestimate her. Katara and Suki make that mistake once and then never do it again. Like Toph, Ty Lee knows to wait for the right time to strike, making her highly effective at taking out our favorite benders and whole groups of benders (The Terra Team). Her betrayal of Azula is ICONIC and unexpected, but as always, Ty Lee knows just the right time to strike. I think Ty and Mai were perfectly capable of getting away at the Boiling Rock and I’m disappointed they were captured so easily. 

Azula

Look down, you’re talking to your highness. Can’t see her? She’s the reason for your blindness. 

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Azula is the baddest bitch in the game. PERIODT. She is ruthless, cunning and powerful. Her lightning bending is at a whole other level. She is the smartest person on this list. She takes Ba Sing Se from the inside out, utilizes the Da Li perfectly and has antagonized Zuko from the beginning. As far as I’m concerned, she was made to be Firelord. 

[langdxn]

Kai likes to shower and bathe with you, he loves washing your hair and adores it when you wash his. He loves having soft sex with the water running down both of your bodies, and the fluffy towels that you both wear afterwards.

Best. Mental. Image. Ever. 😍

As the warm water washed over Kai, a sensitivity swept over him in turn. Almost as if the water made him malleable, pliable, vulnerable.

“It’s like I can be myself in here with you,” he hummed, your hands freezing in motion as you combed your fingers through his shampoo-soaked hair.

Had he read your mind? Or were you that easy to predict?

“It’s just you and me, no Divine Ruler, no agenda, no political connotations.” Tipping his head back to catch the heavy stream of the shower, the blue-tinged suds sliding down his glistening, marble-sculpted body, Kai groaned deeply. “You make me feel vulnerable.”

You swallowed hard, but fortunately the shower drowned you out. How could he possibly hear your thoughts?

“There’s no shame in vulnerability, Kai,” you soothed as you tangled your fingers into his lengths, rinsing the last of the foam as the cascade down his back streamed a steady cobalt blue. “You don’t have to keep your guard up around me.”

“I know, baby,” he sighed, turning to face you and reeled you into his lips, letting a contended hum slip free as he melted into you. “That’s why I’m marrying you.”

Smoothing his soaking curls down as you wrapped your hands around his neck, you looked into his deep brown eyes and saw the old Kai gazing lovingly back at you. Before the cult, before Trump, even before Pastor Charles. The Kai you met in high school across the history classroom, the Kai you fell in love with a year before he plucked up the courage to ask you on a date. The Kai you never thought you’d see again.

“Come on babe,” you sighed, reaching for the shower door. “Let’s get you dried off.”

Kai’s hand rested atop yours on the door handle as he leaned in to kiss you deeper, a needy hum dripping from his tongue and onto yours. “Not just yet, please?”

Positioning your arms back around his neck, Kai stepped you against the wall and pressed your back to the cool tiles, keeping his lips pressed firmly against yours. As you reached to redirect the shower head to pour gently over you both, Kai dipped his fingers into the meat of your thighs and instructed you to jump before hooking them around his hips.

“Kai—“

“Shh, princess,” he cooed as his lips devoured yours, one hand wandering between your thighs to position his length with your dripping entrance. “Be vulnerable for me.”

His words earned a soft moan deep in your throat as his hips rolled gently into yours, his tip sliding slowly through your folds like every inch of you was made for him.

The repetitive cacophony of water splashing against Kai’s back drowned out every desperate whimper that left his tongue as he fucked into you slowly, tantalisingly, teasingly. As you began curling your hips toward him to deepen his access into your cunt, Kai fell further and further into a dream-like state. The sting of the shower flow and the blissful warmth of your walls pulsing around him sank him further and further into a world where nothing else existed but you both, making slow, passionate love in the shower.

“I love you,” Kai sighed contentedly, teeth gently dragging down the column of your throat as he planted staccato kisses into your soft skin. “You make me feel things I didn’t know I could.”

Kai’s eyes rolled as he bottomed out inside you, throwing your head back against the wall as his tip pressing into your sensitive spot instigated a gnawing, hollow ache in the depths of your cunt.

“Kai, please don’t stop,” you moaned, nails digging trenches into the back of his neck as your legs quivered around his waist, threatening your stability against the wall.

“It’s okay, baby girl, I’ve got you,” he soothed, drawing out the next roll of his hips as his cock pressed an urgent, determined streak against your walls. “I’ve always got you.”

Watching your eyes roll to the ceiling as you constricted your walls around his shaft, the time bomb in your cunt almost at its detonation, Kai raised a hand to pull you back to look in his eyes.

“Look at me, princess,” he smiled warmly, eyes widening and lips parting softly as he drew his hips back and pounded into you once you complied. “Let—let go... go for me.”

Kai’s command faltered with purpose, his own orgasm stealing his composure as he focused on spilling against your walls while holding you securely to the shower. A soft tremble of his knees beneath him and a delicate twitch of his length signalled his release, followed by a truly animalistic growl as he maintained eye contact.

As he snaked his arms around your waist and held onto you in a tender embrace, the water pounding relentlessly against his back, you gazed at Kai’s blissed-out smirk — if this was what vulnerable sex was, you’d give anything to do it more often.

“If that’s what vulnerable sex is,” he beamed from ear to ear, panting furiously. “Can we do this more often?”

[saikostories]

EXO - Dating be like...

Dating Byun Baekhyun would be like

• constant laughter, to the point of annoying the hell outta anyone around you two

• skinship would be a must and he’d honestly always want to be touching you

• like, even something as simple as his arm around your waist, or his hand resting on your thigh when you’re watching a movie would be enough to satisfy him

• phone calls that last for hours and before you both know it, it’s like 4am

• constant teasing about the stupidest of things

• and you’d probably get annoyed, telling him you hated him

• but then he’d pout, and you wouldn’t be able to help bursting into laughter at how cute he is

• neck kisses would be huuuuge with this kid

• playing hard to get whenever he’s in the mood

• you’d honestly just tease him so much when he tried to initiate sexy time with you

• but like, it wouldn’t take long for you to give into him

• so many selfies. Like, both your phone and his would be absolutely full of the dorkiest selfies imaginable

• having to deal with Chanyeol on a constant basis, since he’d probably rarely leave your place

• kissing him to shut him up when he starts babbling

• but like, he’s not gonna complain ‘cause that was his intention from the start

• being super blunt and honest with him, ‘cause sometimes Baek needs to hear things that he doesn’t necessarily want to hear

• competitions to see who can annoy Kyungsoo the most in the shortest amount of time

• pillow fights that start off innocently, but probably turn pretty serious very quickly

• but he’d always let you win, because he’d just love seeing that victorious smile grace your face

• honestly, this kid can be a bit of a handful at times. But be prepared to have a life full of smiles and constant laughter, pranks and competitions, and just honestly good times. He’d be the type of guy that you’d never be bored around, and he’d always put you first on his priority list.

***

Dating Park Chanyeol would be like

• him playing his guitar, strictly for your entertainment, and singing to you in that low, melodic voice that’s he’s got goin’

• being the best of friends with Baekhyun

• and being nearly inseparable from them both

• annoying Kyungsoo to the point where he snaps at you both, forcing you to sit on opposite sides of the room

• but still finding ways to exchange humorous looks and faces, resulting in even more annoying, and not-so-subdued, fits of giggles

• him always being the first to apologize if you two ever happened to get into a fight, ‘cause he wouldn’t be able to handle arguing with you

• constant laughs and smiles over the cheesiest of jokes

• you’d probably snort while laughing at a joke he told, which would just cause him to laugh even harder, which would cause you to laugh even harder, and so on

• plenty of teasing from him because you’d be so much shorter than him

• like, every time you had to go on your tippy-toes to kiss him, he’d give you the hardest time, not even bending down a little just to tease you

• and he’d probably make you tell him exactly how much you wanted his kisses before he’d crouch to your level and give you what you wanted

• or if he’s feeling lazy, he’d settle for gentle, ghost-like forehead kisses

• his long arms easily enveloped your entire body in his comfortable and warm embrace

• the cutest pet names, for the both of you

• playful tickle/pillow fights

• getting scolded in public places for being FAR too loud

• sleeping with his long limbs wrapped tightly around your body and your face nuzzled into his chest

***

Dating D.O (Do kyungsoo) would be like

• him cooking all of your meals for you. Occasionally allows you to assist him in the kitchen, but prefers to be the only one to cook for you so he can feel like he’s providing well for you

• skinship being a rarity and making him super flustered whenever it comes up, especially in the early stages of your relationship

• like, even grabbing his hand in public would turn him into a gooey mess

• him singing to you in that sweet, angelic voice of his when you’re feeling sick and/or sad

• him only ever looking at you

• like, you’d never have to worry about Kyungsoo checking out other women because you’d know that he only has eyes for you

• staying at home for date nights doing easy-going things like watching movies and just simply enjoying each other’s company

• you having to do literally ALL of the talking when you’re out in public together

• him stealing loving glances of you when he thinks you’re not looking

• but you likely catch him every time, turning his face a bright hue of pink as he blushes fiercely

• using your free time to catch up on and binge watch all sorts of missed anime seasons

• his own smile being impossible to suppress anytime he sees your beaming grin

• doing the dorkiest of things when you’re alone together

• and laughing so hard that your tummies start to hurt

• him doing literally anything and everything to ensure your beautiful smile stays planted on your face

***

Dating Chen (Kim Jongdae) would be like

teaming up to execute some of the best pranks the two of you could think of on the other unsuspecting members

• but always being forgiven by them because you’re both just too friggin’ cute

• high-note singing competitions, which are really just you two squealing random nonsense at each other

• honestly just so much teasing, both playfully and sexually

• so many hugs from behind, like it’s his favourite way to hold you because he feels it’s the best way to get your body as close as possible to his own

• him shooting super clever puns your way whenever you present him with the opportunity

• only to have you retort with the lamest puns ever created

• so much ass-grabbing, by both of you

• water gun fights in the summer that start off innocently, but quickly turn ridiculously serious, involving super-stealthy commando rolls and sneak-attacks

• creating the most kick-ass pillow forts when you’re home alone together

• and having some seriously heated make-out sessions in your little “castle of pillows”

• him always waiting until you’re least expecting it to give you kisses

• like, you’ll be totally spacing out when all of a sudden, he’ll quickly peck your cheek, but then pretend like he didn’t do a thing

• him being constantly prepped with his phone’s camera, ready to capture any embarrassing situation you may get yourself in

• you practically worshipping those God-given, sexy arms of his~♥

• him giving up his sweater when you’re cold, with absolutely no hesitation

• like, you wouldn’t even have to ask, he’d pick up on your shivers instantly and hand his hoodie over to you, even if it leaves him in nothing more than a thin t-shirt

• honestly, just him giving you all of the love his heart can possibly manage to give out. He’s the most sincere, caring guy in the world and he’d make you feel like you’re constantly on top of the world, showering you with all of his attention at any given time and always making sure you’ve got a smile on your face

***

Dating Kai (Kim Jongin) would be like

• super passionate kisses that leave you absolutely breathless

• taking his dogs for late-night strolls like, every night

• knowing that he fully trusts you when he’s willing to leave his dogs with you when he goes away

• so many late-afternoon naps with his arms wrapped loosely around your body and your head resting gently on his chest as it heaves up and down in perfect rhythm

• talking on the phone until 3am when he’s away, just because you both miss each other’s voices

• him always finding you in the crowd at concerts and locking eyes, looking only at you while he performs

• him getting super bashful whenever you ask him to dance especially for you

• heart-melting moments whenever you see how absolutely fantastic he is with children

• lazy days when you two just chill at home, playing video games or watching cute movies

• him trying to be sexy around you but, no matter how comfortable he feels with you, he always turns into a bashful mess under your stare

• him completely losing his mind whenever you tell him you love him

• like, he becomes so flustered he can’t even manage to form a reply for a good three minutes afterwards

• him gazing at you with an intense stare, chewing nervously on his bottom lip as he watches your every movement

• but then freaking out and getting super flustered when you catch him, pretending like he wasn’t looking at you at all

• being able to feel entirely comfortable with him, no matter what

• like, you could let out the most unladylike burp in the world and he’d just laugh his ass off and find it friggin’ adorable

• just Kai constantly making you feel like you’re on cloud nine and giving you this fantastic feeling of comfort. Like, he’d honestly be your best friend and your boyfriend, all rolled into one

***

Dating Lay (Zhang Yixing) would be like

• blowing on and/or kissing his neck just to see that ridiculously adorable reaction of his

• and he’d try to be mad and pout at you for it, but you both know he’d never really get angry with you over such a silly thing, so you just find his feigned anger adorable

• seriously just the best cuddles in the world. Like, Yixing would just want to give you his utmost love and attention constantly, and cuddles would be his time to shine, you’re just going to feel so loved when you’re wrapped up tight in his embrace

• so many phone calls and so much facetiming whenever you’re apart because he’d always want to hear your voice, or see your face

• because even just the thought of you puts this guy’s mind at ease

• impromptu dance battles at the most random of times

• you being his official agenda, keeping track of any kind of appointments or meetings he had

• and like, you’d start to feel like you’re nagging him about it all, but he’d honestly just be so grateful that he had you to help keep everything straight, since he’s got such a hectic schedule to try to keep up with

• having to remind him constantly that he doesn’t need to work so damn hard

• like, seriously, someone needs to force this kid to take some breaks for himself

• deep, completely serious daydreams about your future together

• him always buying you small gifts that may seem silly at first sight, but really hold some deep meaning or another

• him getting all flustered any time you compliment him, just because your opinion means everything to him

• him not being super touchy in public, but in private, he’s going to be one of the clingiest babies ever

• like, you’re not going to be able to do a single thing around the house without him being by your side

• him being absolutely flattered anytime you do something for him, even things as simple as cooking a meal for him, or doing his laundry, and he’s just going to be so friggin’ grateful

• him constantly reminding you how lucky he feels to have snagged a girl like you, even when you sincerely feel like you’re the lucky one to have him

***

Dating Oh Sehun would be like

him standing behind you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders and resting his chin on the top of your head

• and then always complaining when your hair goes up and/or tickles his nostrils

• but that doesn’t stop him from doing the exact same thing an hour later

• sassy comments from him that’ll honestly make you want to smack the friggin’ bajeezus outta him

• but he’ll use his best aegyo against you and you’ll completely forget whatever he had said

• having to do literally everything for him when he’s sick, ‘cause he loves the feeling of you taking absolute care of him

• him occasionally picking out your outfits for the day

• face-timing or skyping at least once a day when he’s away from home ‘cause he can’t stand not seeing your face for so long

• sleeping with at least one of his long, lanky legs draped across your lower body

• him low-key saying “I love you, Y/N” every single day

• like, he’ll say it in a voice barely above a whisper, and you’d have to ask him to repeat it, but he’d deny it all

• “Did you need something, Sehun? I thought I heard my name.”

• “What? Nobody said your name, get over yourself.”

• PDA being a rarity

• but when you’re home alone, he wouldn’t keep his hands off you

• heated, passionate kisses at the end of long days because he’s always surprised at how much he missed you

• running your fingers through his hair, only to be scolded for messing up his style

• him laying with his head on your lap, staring up and admiring you

• so many ups and downs because he can occasionally be a handful, but he’d be absolutely sure to take the time to show you how much he appreciates you and, while he can seem a little cold to some people, he’d be sure to show you his softer, gentler side

***

Dating Suho (Kim Junmyeon) would be like

• so much intense eye contact, it’ll make you blush

• him giving you the most comforting advice whenever you’re feeling down

• shopping trips where he absolutely insists on buying you anything that you happen to even glance at for too long

• giving him massages whenever he has had a stressful day

• but once the stress melts away, your massages always lead to heated sex

• helping take care of the other members, in hopes of lightening his responsibilities

• secondhand embarrassment when he acts like a complete dork in public

• tons of impromptu dates

• like, you’ll randomly say something about being bored and he’ll just grab your hand, dragging you to one of your favourite date locations

• dramatic goodbyes whenever he has to leave you for an extended period of time

• long, comforting hugs

• like, you’re never sure if he actually intends to let you go or not

• him constantly being a worrywart when it comes to you

• like, you’d get a tear in your eye from a clump of dust and he’d immediately jump to the worst conclusion, thinking something terrible must have happened

• him nonchalantly complimenting you when you’re least expecting it

• him forcing you to reenact that scene that he describe in one of the interviews about his ideal type

• like, he’ll make you read while sitting by the windowsill and he’ll walk over to you and tuck the hair behind your ear, smiling at how dorky the whole setup is

• just him being the best thing that would ever happen to you, and you being the best thing that would ever happen to him, and he’d be sure to constantly remind you that he thought that way.

***

Dating Xiumin (Kim Miseok) would be like

• constant aegyo from him, which you’d likely always fall for

• him always bugging you to play sports together

• but he’d get way too competitive and serious about it and go all-out against you

• him absolutely adoring the way your eyes shine whenever he made you smile/laugh

• him always being around with a shoulder for you to cry on if you’re feeling down

• ‘cause he’s literally the best listener. Like, ever

• constant snuggles whenever the two of you are home alone together

• literally everything that the two of you do together would start out normal, then become an intense competition

• like, you’d be on a good, ol’ walk, enjoying the scenery and then it would suddenly turn into a race, to see who could make it to certain landmarks first

• or when it came to the more heated moments, it would always turn into a competition to see who could go the longest without touching the other (which you’d probably almost always lose)

• always having to ensure your house is spotless, ‘cause Xiumin’s a huge neat-freak

• him not talking a whole lot

• but when he does, he’d always have the perfect things to say

• watching cheesy movies that would always, ALWAYS end in you two making out, not giving a second thought to the movie playing until you noticed the credits rolling at the end

• just having the most comfortable, perfect relationship

• like, you’d never have to be anything but yourself around this boy, and he’d always accept you wholeheartedly

[xiumin-on-this-shit]

Take Care of You Pt 6

I snap up, “Oppa,” Is the first word out of my mouth, followed by a quiet whimper caused by the pain radiating from my leg. My eyes scan over the world around me, I recognize nothing as panic begins to bubble with in me. A shadow on my side moves closer, I react without thinking, scurrying back away from the stranger.

The man shushes me, “It’s alright Love,” He tells me. He holds out his hands in a show of surrender, a kind smile comes into my vision as the light settles on his features. “Hey there sleepy head, how are you feeling?”

My wide eyes scan the room around me, it looks like part of a warehouse that has been converted into a living area. There’s a large industrial kitchen in one corner of the open space, all stainless steel and high end. A large leather couch cradles me with the help of a few blankets and pillows, forming a nest around me and the man. My eyes shift to him. Soft features remind me of a sweet puppy, his smile radiates nothing but kindness and innocence, but I know looks can be deceiving.

“Where is my oppa?” I demand, not bothering with polite words.

The man chuckles as he shifts slightly closer, “You are in a strange room with a strange man and your first question is about Minseok hyung?”

“Should I be worried about myself?” The question is for both of us, the man hasn’t grabbed me, his tone is soft and sweet. He doesn’t seem like he is going to harm me in anyway at the moment, he had his opportunity to when I was unconscious and at his mercy. Looking down though I realize I am in different clothes, from just a sniff I can tell they don’t belong to Minseok.

“No,” The man answers, “You are very much safe here with me.”

“And who would you be?”

He scoffs, “I’m offended that they didn’t even show you a picture of me, but I guess they had to be careful in case any police happen to come by. I’m your Baekhyun oppa!”

“Baekhyun oppa?”

“Yea, it must be nice to finally put a name to a face, right?”

“How do I know it’s really you?” I snap back without a thought, after this whole night I don’t trust anyone I don’t know.

The cheeriness on his face falters for only a moment before he resumes the façade, “Hyung wasn’t kidding, you are a very smart girl.”

“Where is Minseok? Or Chanyeol? Or anyone else?”

“You’re sounding a lot like Kyungsoo.”

“Answer me,” I demand once again, before adding on a meek please just in case this really is Baekhyun.

“Minseok is resting along with Chanyeol, just like you should be.”

“What about Kyungsoo?”

“Resting, he got grazed and had to deal with a lot of people after. You know that takes a toll on him,” He chuckles.

“Suho?”

“Out and about.”

“Kai and Sehun?”

“Damage control.”

“Jongdae or Yixing?”

“Resting, they were taking care of Minseok and Yeol, that was a lot of work.”

“Okay who the fuck isn’t off doing something right now?” I end up snapping again.

He sighs as he once again scoots closer, “I’m all you’ve got right now Love. Hyung should be waking up here soon, until then you should rest or eat something because I know the first thing out of his mouth is a demand to see you.”

I nibble on my bottom lip as I consider my options, “What is there to eat?”

A large smile graces his face once again, “Soo had lots of things brought over! I was going to run out and grab some take out but he threw a fit and sent me to his place instead for some left overs.” He jumps up and rushes into the kitchen for whatever leftover he has in mind, his mouth still moving a thousand words a minute, “I was going to eat a little, but he gave me strict orders that he would kill me if I ate anything before you, he didn’t want to lower your options.” I move to follow him but his eyes snap to me at the movement, “Don’t even think about it.”

“But-“

“If you so much a move an inch to stand up I have been given permission to hold you down and I really don’t want to do that. So, do us both a favor and stay there, I can guarantee your leg is going to hurt, and I don’t need you on the floor with a concussion on top of the hole in your leg.”

I sigh but curl into a loose ball on the couch again, holding a pillow tight to my chest as Baekhyun continues rummaging through the kitchen humming a happy tune. His words echoing in my mind. Everything he says sounds right, Kyungsoo’s threats and the smell of his food are very familiar, but I can’t trust this man so blindly as much as I would like to.

“Where are we?” I ask as my eyes continue to wander over the renovated building.

“The club house, Yeol was bringing you here with everyone else when the idiot crashed the car.”

I nod, remembering our sweet moment before blacking out, “Why are you here? Why have I never seen you before?”

“I don’t know if I can answer those questions.”

“Trust me, Minseok oppa is going to be in so much trouble he won’t be worried about what I know and who told me what, if anything we can blame it on Chanyeol oppa.”

The man busts out in a fit of laughter, “Now I see why Soo loves you so much. You are both looking to get that man killed. I can give you a summary of what lead me to being… placed out here. I can assume you know that Minseok is involved in some shady things?”

I nod.

“Well one night a few months ago things got a little crazy, there was a fire, or two, a few people were injured, or died, the details aren’t very important but what happened was that I was caught on tape being involved in said things and had to recover and hide out for a bit.”

“People died?”

“People die every day!”

“Is that supposed to be comforting?”

He shrugs, “I don’t know what you want me to say. I followed my orders.”

“Orders from Minseok?”

“The man was killing two birds with one stone, got rid of some bad people and did something a little selfish for himself while he was at it.”

“What selfish thing did he do?”

Baekhyun rolls his eyes as he offers me some of the food, some western style pasta in a bowl along with a sliced apple on the side in the shape of a bunny, no doubt Kyungsoo’s work. I accept the tray and balance it on my lap as I stare at him expectantly.

“Think back, have there been any fires that have affected your life?”

It takes me longer than it should have to connect the dots, “My work.”

“Your work. While Suho corralled the younger boys to work on that I was sent on another job to make it seem like random attacks and knocked out some competition in the process.”

“How can you say that so casually?”

“Because I, like you, can count the people I care for on two hands,” Long, pretty fingers wiggle as an example as if he is speaking to a child. “What happens to everyone else is not my problem.” Baekhyun has dropped his fake smile and replaced it with something much more somber, finally showing a bit of his true self. We sit there for a long while silently munching on our food. I don’t know what I would say if I spoke, there is no clever snap back to what he said for me. He is right. I’ve been a selfish person my whole life, never caring about who lives and who dies but I’m not a murderer. The blood has never been on my hands and from the cold look that has settled over Baekhyun’s face this man has a lot of on his. I can’t help but wonder how much of it was his own doing or an order from his boss, my Minseok?

“I just wanted one nice, simple thing in my life,” I mumble into my hands where I buried my face. “Was that too much to ask?”

Baekhyun scoffs, “Asking the world for anything is asking too much.”

“This is all my fault,” I blurt out without any real thought but once the words are out I can’t help but believe them. “I shouldn’t have convinced Minseok to go out, he didn’t want to, but I basically forced him. We could be sitting at home right now cuddled in bed,” I hit my forehead a few times, cursing myself for being so stupid. “God, I just want to go home. I should have used my getaway free card to convince him to let me cook dinner for a change.”

“I can’t imagine Hyung cooking.”

“He has gotten really good at it now, but I wish he would let me cook.”

“What would you make for him?”

“Pancakes,” I hum, “Breakfast for dinner kind of thing.”

He chuckles, I echo the noise to the best of my ability, “I’m sure Hyung will let you get away with that now consider he will probably keep you inside for the rest of time.”

I nod but inside my mind is whirling as I try to understand everything that is going on but I can’t grasp it here, not with Minseok and Chanyeol both in mind. The fact that they are both lying somewhere in this building with a few extra holes in their body is clouding my logical thinking. These men are mobsters, they are monsters who murder people when it seems to fit their agendas but at the same time it’s my Minseok, the love of my life. It’s my best friend. I need to get away from them, I need fresh air to breath and I know won’t be getting that with this whole situation if Baekhyun won’t even let me stand. Once again, I’m looking over the room in a new light, looking for an exit.

“When will Minseok oppa wake up?” I question.

He seems surprised by but quickly recovers and answers calmly, “I’m not sure, whenever he feels like it.”

“I really want to talk to him, could you go check please Baekhyun oppa?”

“Sure,” The man sighs as he stands, he walks to the door on the far side, with glance over his shoulder he opens up a little key pad I hadn’t noticed and types in a code. The lock clicks, “I’ll be back in a few minutes, I’m going to talk to Yixing if he’s awake, so he can check on you.”

“Okay.”

He nods as he heads through the door to some gray hallway. The minute the door closes behind him I’m on my feet wincing in pain as I drag myself towards one of the large windows nearby. I curse the world and whoever designed the windows when I realize that they don’t open, of fucking course not since this is a hide out for the mob, there’s probably security everywhere. I scan the room once again for another way out, the door with the key pad was obvious but who knows how many times I’m able to get the code wrong before an alarm goes off. There is a large vent near by that might be wide enough for me to fit through, I shake my head. How the fuck did this go from some sweet romantic movie to the godfather to fucking mission impossible? I know I should probably be more mature and talk this out but right now I need space and I know Minseok would not give that to me right now after all of this, I can almost grantee I wouldn’t be let out of his sight.

Hopefully, He won’t be too mad to know I let myself out.

I grimace at the thought as I pull the vent out of place and set it quietly down to the side. With all my strength I get my legs into the waist high vent and kick the inside of the metal cylinder out of place, hoping that there isn’t some kind of sensor in the system. The thin metal gives after a few solid kicks from my good leg, sinking down slightly creating the exit that I need. I push it out of the way enough for me to slide not-so-gracefully to the ground. The gravel digs into my heel as I force myself to place all my weight on to my good leg. Sneaking has never been one of my better skills but I manage to make my way across the compound of warehouses. I see Minseok’s car near the gate and rush to it, hoping they left the keys inside.

The world is on my side for once, the key fob is sitting in the center cup holder, a puddle of blood on the passengers seat. I gasp at the sight, nearly collapsing, it has to be Minseok’s. I almost turn back, but Baekhyun told me he was fine. Minseok is fine! I’ll check in on him in the morning, right now I just need to get somewhere safe, where I can think things over. My hands move in their own, turning the car on and driving towards the closed exit.

I panic at the sight of the guard standing by, he looks over the car briefly before sending me through without so much as a peek inside. Luck is really on my side right now. I’m on autopilot as I drive back into the main part of the city in complete silence. Just the soft hum of the cars’ motor buzzes. I don’t know where I’m going but my body seems to as it’s steers me around corner after corner. It isn’t until I pull into the parking spot so I realize that I’m at home.

Minseok’s home.

This isn’t the best place to clear my head of him for a moment to think about everything that happened but it’s the place I feel comfortable. I feel safe the moment those elevator doors close and pull me up to the top floor. Using his keys, I let myself in and automatically head to the bedroom and climb into bed. I curl in on myself, nearly crying at the realization that the bed is warm. Burying myself deeper into the heated sheets I try to figure out what I should do. The reasoning part of my mind tells me to get out of bed and make a run for it.

Minseok is in the mob.

He fucking runs it for God sake.

I have to admit I’m slightly proud of myself for going for the head honcho. This must be some joke from the universe, I ask for one good thing and they give it to me but with some double sided tape. An amazing guy who treats me amazing, has friends that I get along with, but also happens to be the leader of the mafia, who kills people for a living. Perfect.

I sigh.

This is such a mess.

I’m not helping the situation by leaving. I’m sure they already know I’m gone, they will probably someone to kill me now that I know.

I shake my head.

He would never. Even though he kept this from me I can’t honestly question if he would hurt me. He couldn’t, he just took however many bullets for me and still tried to stay with me because he loves me.

And I love him.

[sitkowskiryan]

hi, so no one really cares and i might be writing it for myself, but i think i am going to do kinktober again! i really want to do it with nct (so i can further my bottom mark lee agenda) but i feel like not many people would read it : (

but i am kind of already set on the idea of NCT Spunktober and maybe adding it kai, taemin, and baekhyun?

i don’t know, if you are interested let me know! i think this could be fun if i can keep up with it!

note: this will not include the under age (under 20) members