#but forgive me if the tense is weird or it reads awkwardly

[arihi]

Writing prompt: Biting?

I'm a very rational person - or, I was. I still am, I think. If you'd asked me a week ago if I believed in the supernatural, I'd have laughed at you all the way home. Naturally, it's a bit awkward now as I am, laying in my bed, shuddering and barely able to move.

It's good shuddering, great really. Amazing, even. I met this woman at the local coffee shop. I didn't even know people met there organically anymore. But with all the practice in the world, she pulled me in with her eyes, staring from across the room. Who just openly stares like that? But, I guess it worked.

I thought she was walking over to me at some point, but before I even realized I was sitting at her table. She talked my ear off like we'd been friends for years. I mean, I was glad to make a new friend. She all but invited herself back to my place, but, I mean, I didn't mind. To friends, right?

Or something more. People always say 'it just happened' about one night stands. But how did it lead up to that? My memory's a blur now. I don't know the actions that led to it. Her eyes. Those damn eyes.

Not that I was especially put out or anything. She knew how to make me feel good, and she delighted in it. It even felt so good when she bit me that my vision went white. I'd never experimented with it before, but it seemed like it came natural to her. So, naturally, I let her take charge.

Over time, she would leave little love bites all around my entire body, my skin her canvas. I lost time more and more often. I'd pass out with her body around mine and wake back up as she was still going. One time I woke up in another bed. Hers, I think? I would have been more worried, but she reassured me, and bit me again. And she wouldn't have been so comfortable doing that if she wasn't in control of the situation. Right?

It's unrealistic to think there's anything larger at play here. It's silly to think that she might have any sort of power over me, to keep me here and willing.

But the more I think about it, I had... obligations. And other wants, that weren't her. I had a life. But these days, all I am, is...

I won't say what I think she is. It's not like she is one, or anything. She's just, an especially charismatic person. Anyone would feel naturally drawn to her. She just happened to choose me. And the thought gives me butterflies in my stomach, and pangs of arousal everywhere else.

What's the difference between having powers, and just having that raw, magnetic, sexual energy? Charisma and presence? Persuasion? I guess it doesn't really make a difference. It doesn't matter what she is. I need to feel her teeth on my skin again, I need to lose myself more. For her, I'll call her anything she wants me to. For her, I'll be anything she wants me to be.

I hope she comes back again soon.

[silent-raven13]

It's Over 2

(Part 1)

Warning: Mention of sexual acts, and harsh use of language. 🤷��‍♀️ Read at your risk! Also this is a break up story! Angst! Heartbreak!

Miles had calm down as he walks back and forth while his friends were having lunch with him in Miguel's office. The older Spiderman eats an empanada with one hand, and the other he would type on his holo-graphic key broads. That man never takes a break longer than five minutes, he always have to work.

"Miles, it's okay." Gwen chews his food, "Come here and sit with us. Hobie is dumb, he doesn't know what he wants."

"Yeah!" Pav chews his food while talking, "He's probably upset about the break up."

"They're right, Morales. He said those things out of spite." Miguel's voice ring Miles' ears, feeling those red eyes on him.

Miles stopped his pacing, "I... It's just- God, I thought I was over with him, but what he said really hurt me." He wraps his arms around himself trying to feel secure, he didn't want to ry again. It's humiliating enough that everyone in Spider Society got to witness their stupid fight. He turns to look up Miguel on the platform, "What he said about you wasn't right? You didn't deserve that. I'm sorry."

The twenty one year old didn't expect his ex-boyfriend to be like this. What a way to ruin his day! When things went so well, Hobie had to start by bringing up Miguel and him. Ugh, it's getting to frustrating, he wished he slapped his ex's across the face and tell him to shut up.

Gwen went over to hug her friend, "Miles, it'll be okay. Maybe Pav's right. He's probably saying that because he's mad about the break up." She slowly brought Miles over to sit where her and Pav were, "Come on, eat. Don't starve yourself."

"She's right, Morales. What's done is done. Right now, you have to focus on yourself." Miguel said with his eyes on the Spider-man, he could tell he's hurting.

"You guys are right. Hobie only said that because he's mad." Miles softly said, "But I will not forgive him for it." He'll be damn to be easy on his ex next time they see each other. Hell, he would probably ignore that fucking punker for being a dickhead.

"Honestly, Hobie is just being so dramatic. It's weird how he's saying you and Miguel are thing like everyone knows you two are just teacher and student." Pav said out loud.

Gwen noticed the way Miles' tensed up a bit by the slight mention of him and Miguel, she wasn't sure if it meant he didn't like the accusations or something more. Blue eyes noticed a slight warm tint on her best friend's cheek. What's this, now?

Pav on the other hand noticed the way Miguel avoided the conversation, the way his body awkwardly shifts to work on his massive control panels. His red eyes would glance over at Miles then on the screen.

Normally, when there's a nasty rumor or outrageous gossip, the old Spider-man quickly shuts it down. He will be the first one to bark, and threaten to never bring up the rumor again. So hearing these kinds of rumors, any Spider-hero would think Miguel would have strong opinions against it. What's going on, Mr. O'Hara?

Miles shove an empanada in his mouth before saying anything, "It is." He finally said. "He's just mad that I found out about him and Miles 42... that asshole." This brought back Gwen's and Pav's attention, forgetting about the way Miles and Miguel were acting before, both of their eyes widen like they were about to pop out of their skulls.

"MMhhmm!" Pav mumbles as he had food in his mouth giving a big nod.

"How did you find that out?" Gwen asked.

Miles sighs, "His Uncle Aaron, and I would noticed Hobie's stuff would be left around Miles 42's place. That jerk didn't keep it hidden, huh?"

Miles and Miles 42 had a rather odd relationship, they were sort of friends. Miles 42 never really like to say they were friends, because he's much cold guy, who prefers to vibe and chill. So the two would often hang out, and chill from time to time. Miles would see him as a acquaintance, because they don't have anything much in common.

When they do share something they like such as music or training together, they like to bond over it. Now, Miles 42 always kept it real for Miles, unless he asked him. That one always a quiet fellow, rarely talks like the chatterbox Miles 1610 does.

"I asked 42, too. He said yeah." Miles sighs, "I mean, I should get mad at him too, right?"

"You should. You guys are friends! Who does that?" Pav asked out loud being upset, "It's like I go kissed Gayatri's best friend and said whoops!"

"But me and 42 aren't friends, we just hang out from time to time." Miles tries to find an excuse not to be mad at his alternative self.

"Did he- did he sleep around with Hobie when you two were together?" Gwen saw the sad look on Miles' face.

He bites his bottom lip scared to answered, the tears started to cover his vision. "I didn't ask... I was too scared too. I know, Hobie had cheated on me, but not most of our relationship. I couldn't take it when I found out through one of his bandmates, so asking Miles 42 was a big no for me." He felt Gwen's hands rubbing his back trying to comfort him.

"Dude, it's okay if you don't want to see Hobie anymore. We can find a way to hang out, and do missions together." She hated that Hobie broke her best friend's heart.

Pav agreed, "Yeah, we done it before. I'm sure, Mr. O'Hara can find ways for all us to work separately."

"I already have," Miguel mutters loud enough for them to hear.

"Wow, that's so fast!" The Indian Spider-man shouted being surprised. Well, he is Miguel O'Hara, a workaholic perfectionist Spider-man.

"See."

"Yeah, you're right. I just need to heal and focus on myself." Then Miles winced at his sides causing Miguel to be alert by his sudden movement. The twenty one Black Latino hunch to the side with his hand on his side.

"Miles, are you okay?" Pav asked.

Miguel quickly stopped working to jump down from his platform, "Morales, what's wrong?" he asked sounding concerned.

Miles grunts a bit, "I'm fine! Eh, I think the malfunction from the suit is starting to affect me." He got up to stretch his sides.

"No, siéntate. No estreses tu cuerpo, Miles." Miguel said to the young man, he placed his hand on his narrow shoulders making him sit on his rolling chair. "Coño! No esperaba que el traje te hiciera daño."

Miles sighs trying to hold the pain, "Maybe it wasn't correctly design for me. You did took Araña's body instead of mine."

"That's right, maybe I need to have Lyla scan your body for the update." Miguel looks too upset with himself to allow Miles to take the suit. "I should've let Araña wore it."

"Hey, no fair! I won the bet! Now, we know there's something to be improved!" Miles chuckles, "Besides, I'm fine. It just aches."

"Where's my suit! I would be happy to take a prototype! I've been here longer!" Gwen asked out loud.

"Oh me too! I want one that will take in my natural waistline!" Pav chipped in.

Miguel could only sighs out loud by the two young Spider-heroes. Miles laughs with an amusement look on his face, being a bit chipper than a few minutes ago. The older Latino could only let out a small smile at him.

After Gwen and Pav finishing their lunch, they began cleaning up their mess. "Oh my god, I got a History report to go for my stupid class." Gwen fake weeps about her college classes.

"Same! But with Anthropology!" Pav said to her, he throw his stuff in the trash can, "I don't even know what to write and need to catch up my reading!"

"What about you, Miles? You got homework?" Gwen asked.

"Yeah, just some Statistic problems, twenty questions. I finished most of my work last night." Miles said to them, "Hey, I'ma stay here for a bit longer. Miguel needs to check the damages on this suit."

"Oh sure. Hope nothing is too bad." Pav said, "Send pictures on the damages! I can ask my Aunt Maya for remedies!"

"Yeah, man. Hope you get home safety and," Gwen hugs Miles one more time, "Hey, forget about Hobie. You deserve better."

"Thanks, Gwen." Miles nodded. He saw his two friends leaving back to their home world by opening a portal in Miguel's office.

Just like that, it was just Miles and Miguel in the room. "Lyla, put a the anti-portal barrier in my office." He pushes a button to have the front door locked on his watch. This helps keep any unwanted guest to disrupt the two.

Miles chuckles turning to Miguel, "Really, Miguel?"

"You want people to look to you naked?" Miguel asked being amused.

"No, it's just funny." Miles saw the way Miguel came up to him being so large, looming over him. He can never get over how tall the leader of Spider Society is, and how small he feels.

Miguel's serious expression finally softens with a slight frown on his face, his large hand caress Miles' cheek, "Estás bien, mi cariño? I know, your hurting?"

"I'm fine, Miguelito." Miles finally said giving a soft smiles, "I got you." He finally hugs Miguel tightly, "I've been wanting to do this all day, heh."

"I know, mi amor." Miguel's muscular arms wrapped around the young Spider-man, "Do you think they noticed?"

"God, I hope not! I mean, we're not... really a thing, yet." Miles lifts his head up to meet soft red ruby eyes, something he comes to love.

After the break up, Miguel was one of the first person to check on him. Weird, huh? Well, the older man hated how things were played out on Miles' break up with Hobie, and decided to offer some sort of help. He saw the way Miles became so depress, so broken, it bothered him. Not just bothered, it got him far too upset at the punker. Miles is a good person, and treating someone like that made Miguel's blood boiled.

It brought back awful memories of what he did with his own brother, and he didn't think anything bad at his youth. Now seeing Miles' so heart broken, he could understand what his brother went through. So, he wanted to be there for the young man.

Miles was glad that Miguel been kind to him through the whole thing. They didn't expect to like each other, it wasn't in their bingo card for the year. They wanted to be friends, student and mentor with no love interest. The more they spend time together, the more they started having certain common things about being Spider-man, or Latino foods they grew up with, pretty much a lot of stuff.

Until, the two kissed one time being alone talking about something involving Pan Dulces, and they happened to lock eyes and kissed. To their surprised they pulled away, Miguel apologize first.

Then Miles deny it and blame it on him for being too greedy, and didn't want Miguel to be a rebound. After all, he's still dealing with his break up with Hobie. The two agreed to wait it out until Miles is ready to date, again. Miguel is a patient man.

Still the two like to call each other endearment nicknames, show certain signs of love like holding hands or hugs. Small kisses on the cheek or pecks on the lips. Maybe a little more if they are feeling daring that day.

Miguel took Miles hand to kiss his knuckles, his fangs gently graze the soft prototype fabric, "Not yet." He agreed.

"I'm still upset how he said those things to you." Miles sighs, "I never want you to be involved. It's not like we were a thing after our break up. We just started two months ago." He loves the way Miguel shows his love through touch, it gets his heart beating.

"No me importa. He lidiado con su mierda antes." Miguel places his hands on Miles' arms, "All I care about is you. You didn't deserve any of it."

"I'm glad you're here for me. It means a lot." He smiles at him.

"Me too. I get to see that beautiful smile you have." Miguel's thumb rub against Miles' lips before planting a small kiss. Just a small peck, innocent enough to keep their boundaries.

"You... You wanna see my bruises?" Miles finally asked being a bit shy.

"Sí, I need to know if you're okay. I hate that I allow you to get hurt with this prototype." He said, as he pushes a button to release the nanotech armor over the spandex fabric from Miles' body. The nanotech armor is to help protect a Spider-hero's body or stabilize any of their special abilities.

The suit stays on Miles showing it's much more breathable, flexible fabric, "The armor is light, but..." Miles began as he unzips the spandex-like fabric, Miguel's hand slowly slip into the opening just to feeling Miles' chest, then took off the top part.

Miles feeling flustered having his chest exposed for his new love to see, he focused on the bruises on his sides, "See. Right here, and here." His own hands tug a bit of his skin to show the purple dark marks around his sides, "When I absorb some energy, the suit somehow couldn't respond to it and shock me back."

Miguel's warm hand gently touch the dark bruises, feeling Miles' warm skin, the young Spider-man grown to had a bit more muscle on his body. "Does it hurt a lot, Miles?"

"No, just aches."

"We should take you to med-bay."

"No, I'm fine." Miles laughs it off, "It'll heal a couple of days." He winced when Miguel's hand pressed gently.

"I hate seeing you hurt. I'm taking you to med-bay."

"Okay, Miguelito." There's no arguing with him, Miles knows Miguel worries for him.

The large Spider-man sat on his rolling chair to have a closer look on Miles' bruises, "I need to make sure this suit needs to have the proper tech. Maybe I wasn't calculating the amount of energy, you can handle." He sighs being upset with himself, "Lo siento, mi vida." His face buries into Miles' lower stomach as his large arms wrapped around his waist.

"It's fine, bae. Don't be hard on yourself," The young man's hands rub his crush's head feeling the soft hair and gel through his fingers. "That's why it's a prototype."

Miguel gently rubs his bruises feeling his body winced, "I know." He softly said as he place a kiss on the bruised. Miles blushes feeling Miguel's warm lips planting kisses on his sides.

"Miguel..." Miles softly felt his voice shake.

"Did it make it better?" He pulled away to look up a flustered Miles, his red eyes fixated on his breathing.

"Yes. It feels good."

"Good," Miguel did it again, his lips touch such soft skin. His nose breathing in Miles' scent as he kept giving soft pecks, the only sound of his lips kissing was made in the room.

Miles could only let out a moan, "Miguel..."

"Fuck! Ahh! UGH! Shit-shit-shit!" Miles 42 moans out loud after Hobie gave a few powerful thrusts into him with no warning or thoughts of slowing down. The twenty-one year old had to place his hand behind him to prevent his lover from give another powerful pound. He already came twice, this second got his asshole gaping against Hobie's dick.

"Shit, man! Ahhh!" He moans again, feeling the tall punker on his back finally cumming in him. "Shhhiiitt, papi." A nickname Miles 42 like to use on Hobie, whenever they spend the time together.

Hobie merely groans into Miles 42's shoulder, breathing heavily into his beautiful brown skin. "Fuck, mate. You good?" Noticing Miles 42's legs shaking and his face buried in to the pillow.

"Shut the fuck up and get off me asshole!" He finally shouted being so embarrassed, "Fuck, you cum in my ass!"

"Pfft, what you wanted on your arse?" Hobie pulls out his cock hearing Miles 42 soft mewl, something almost similar to his Miles. He chuckles lowly at the way he glares at him.

"Fuck you!" Miles 42 throws a pillow at him, "I didn't expect you to cum my ass twice."

"Heh, I had a shitty day." Hobie quickly lay beside him taking a joint from the night stand along his lighter, he took a couple of hits before passing it to Miles 42. "Ahh, I needed that." His hungover was bothering him.

Miles 42 took the joint to smoke, his naked body out as he lay on the bed, "So, what happen?"

"Nothing." Hobie stares up the ceiling feeling his high.

"You just said you feel like shit."

"And? Since when you care?"

"I don't, but you coming in here crying to me all drunk it's fucking annoying." He wanted a clear answer than Hobie's drunk mumbles.

"Is it, darling?" Hobie asked with a grin on his face noticing that bashful look Miles 42 did. A bit different compare to his Miles. "Heh, alright. My ex is fucking with our leader."

"For real? Damn, didn't know he had it in him. Miles 1610 always seems to shy to do anything about anything. Maybe that's why he took forever to confront you." Receiving a glare from the punker, Miles rolled his eyes, "I'm just saying, fuck. Chill. You already fucked me."

"Yet, Miles told me, he knew about me and you."

"He asked me. I'm always honest, man." Miles 42 blow smoke into Hobie's face, "You know, I don't lie to him."

"Did he know about us before?" The punker asked already having a feeling Miles 1610 knows.

"Nah, but he knows. I can tell." Miles 42 handed the joint to the punker, "I'm surprised he didn't kick my ass. I would. I would've lay my shit out if I was him."

"Because he already gave up on me. Ughhh," Hobie's head bend down with his hands on it getting upset with himself, "I fucked up, didn't I?"

"Do you have to ask?" Miles 42 snorted, as he sat up to take the joint back from the punker, "Pfft, you either want him back or not! By the sound of it, ya'll over, over."

"Fuck, your a cruel wanker, you know that?"

"I know, papi." He took a hold on Hobie's face forcing him to open his mouth, then blew smoke into his mouth, "Now, you either fuck me and cum in my ass, again or fucking leave."

Hobie inhaled the smoke before tackling Miles 42 into a deep kiss as he got on top of him. Just one more time wouldn't hurt.

(Hehehe, I know some of ya'll gonna be mad-mad. It's okay if you do.🫣😂 We are all rooting for Punkflower, but damn Hobie is fucking up. I might need to put this in a separate section on Archive our Own instead of Punkflower. 🤔)

[tu-linda-hermana]

Lo Siento

Pairing with Carlos Madrigal x reader

Read more of my Carlos Madrigal fictions in this masterlist.

"She's crying, what do I do?" Carlos had ask Mirabel as he saw you crying on the side of your shop.

"Go comfort her" Mirabel nudged Carlos towards you from Julieta's stall.

"How do I do that?" Carlos asked as he gazed back to you worriedly and gazing back to his prima.

"Start with hugs" Mirabel told him, Carlos knitted his brows at Mirabel's response, "With what?" he asked with uncertainty in his voice.

"Just go" Mirabel pushed Carlos close to you, Carlos glared at his prima for forcing him to go to you without knowing what he's going to do to help you.

Carlos had sat beside you and hugged you awkwardly, you heared him and Mirabel approached you just now, and seeing the red maroon ruana is enough to know that Carlos was beside you, especially when you felt his awkward hug, surely this man isn't use yo this kind of stuff.

"What are you doing?" you asked, sniffing away yourself and wiping your tears before looking back at him.

"Comforting you?" He responded to you, still in the weird hug that he's trying his best on.

"Aww thank you" you wiped your tears away, facing him and hugging him back this time, being wrapped in his arms somehow had comforted you and made you feel tamed.

"So what happened corazon?" Carlos asked, tucking a stray hair behind you and wiping your tear stains.

"Just took the blame for the mess in the shop, mamá and papá wasn't really happy about it" you told him, fiddling on your skirt with a sad frown on your face.

"Mess?" Carlos asked looking in front of your shop.

"Yeah, someone must've stole something and made a mess" you shrugged, telling your novio what might have happened at your store.

"Oh...." Carlos reacted, feeling uneasy and guilty, anddd you sensed it, you felt his body tensed and so did his arms around you.

You slowly lifted your head away from his chest, "Carlos? What did you do?" you looked at him sternly and accusing.

He breathed out, looking away, "I-I I-um-" Carlos stuttered as his eyes accidentally met your mad accusing ones.

"Run" you voiced out and immediately he ran away from you across the town and in to the forest.

You ran off after giving him a five second head start, almost bumping with the townspeople as you did, you finally reached him in the forest and you tackled him down on the grass and hitted him in annoyance.

"What is wrong with you!" You questioned him between hits. 

"Lo siento, lo siento, I didn't know" Carlos acknowledged you, trying to avoid your hits.

"Dios mio Carlos! Do you know how badly I got in trouble because of that?!" You exclaimed, complaining to him, feeling all mad and annoyed.

"Lo siento, cariño" Carlos tried to apologize, feeling your punches getting stronger.

"Don't you cariño me" you retorted, getting away from him, and standing with your back facing him.

"Did that made you feel better?" Carlos asked dusting himself away from the grass.

You breathed out. "No" you replied shortly.

Carlos stood behind you for a while before walking towards you and hugging you from your back.

"I'm sorry, I won't do it again" Carlos mumbled as he rested his head on the top of your shoulders.

You scowled, rolling your eyes for the last time before calming down to him. You placed your arms around his on his arms that was wrapped your waist.

"What can I do to earn your forgiveness?" Carlos asked as he staying in his position.

"Help me clean up your mess" you offered, turning your head and sight at him on your side, he peeked up from your shoulders, his eyes twinkled in forgiveness, could say he uses it every time he messed up on something that had affected you.

It took you by surprise when he pecked your cheeks and carried you up, twirling you before putting you back on your feet.

"Would you forgive me after I do that?" He asked.

"Depends" you pouted, shrugging your shoulders.

"I'll do whatever you want me to do" Carlos proposed to you, holding both of your hands up.

You smirked. "Take me on date"

"Already planned" he immediately responded, squeezing your hands tight, leaning closer to you, mirroring your smirk.

"No, cleaning together at the shop doesn't count as a date" you frowned at him and his immediate answer.

"What?! That wasn't my plan! I'm not that kind of a boyfriend, cariño" he spoke, defending himself.

"Hmm? Cause your the type to mess things up?" You questioned him, crossing your arms and eyeing him.

"Cariño, don't be mean, I'm doing my best right now" Carlos felt offended with your attacks on him, although you were right on him on that one, he's the type to messed up.

"As you should" you come backed at him, Carlos frowned at you not knowing how to respond anymore.

You kind of felt bad so you hugged him, "Alright fine, I forgive you cariño, just help me clean up the store then take me on a date, okay?" you smiled up to him after pulling away to see his state.

Carlos lightly smiled as you pulled him down the hill with you, Carlos had caught Dolores' sight in the way and whispered "Ayúdame" to her. Dolores nodded and went away to help his hermano with his 'already planned' date with you.

"Did you say something?"

"No, nothing!"

Hey! Thanks for reading! Do correct me for my mistakes and do tell me what you think of this! Stay safe and have a beautiful week!

[caiuscassiuss]

oppa! | ot7 (I)

Description: Being raised by a caring yet distant father, a close, tight-knit family is the one thing you have craved in your short life. After your adventurer father remarries a rich woman, you’re stuck with seven new brothers. Seven very hot, very different men. This is not what you meant by family.

Arc 1: Stepbrother Introductions

Genre: OT7 x Female!Reader | Brother’s Conflict AU | stepbrother au | fluff | slice of life (For this chapter: PG 13) WC: 15k Warnings: swearing, dub-con (??). In later chapters there will be explicit mentions of depression, panic attacks, thoughts of suicide, self harm, and graphic smut.

Chapter 1: Enter the Oldest Type, Jin!

Fiddling with the charm on your phone, you looked down at the blue text bubble that spelled out the address of what might possibly be your home for the next few years.

You had googled the place as soon as you got home, expecting it to be a random apartment somewhere and boy oh boy, you were wrong. First, the house (not apartment) was on the outskirts of Seoul, on one of the hilly inclines overlooking the Han River. Second, the place where it was located was expensive.

Your eyes nearly bulged out of your head when you saw the housing prices of properties nearby on this popular real estate app. Sure, your father was a celebrity adventurer with his own cable show and so you were used to a certain amount of comfort, but this type of wealth was way beyond your league. Who was this woman that your father married, Jesus Christ?

On the Google streets view (you swear you aren’t weird), you saw the place had at least 2 gates to get through and your father hadn’t told you of any code or given you any pass to get through. You had a feeling if you tried to go in there blind, you would be immediately detained by the police.

Biting your lip, you paced on the fluffy carpet that felt like a dream. Your father was gallivanting off in some remote corner of Nigeria, so he was bound to have no cell service there. You knew no one in the family— much less how to contact them so you could meet up for a coffee or something. It would seem rude not to do something…

Your apartment doorbell buzzed throughout your apartment. Folding your arms over your chest, you shivered as you walked towards the doorway. You had turned up the Air Conditioner too high to ward off the muggy Seoul heat and now it was freezing inside your apartment.

“Hello?” you asked in to the intercom.

“Hi, is this Y/N?” a masculine voice asked at the other end.

You frowned and shifted your weight on your other leg. You don’t recall expecting any guests today.

“Excuse me?” the man asked again after you refused to respond.

“Hi, sorry, who is calling?” you said politely.

“I’m Seokjin, Seoyeon’s son. I’m your, uh, new brother?” he said haltingly, his voice raised at the end.

Gasping softly, you felt your mind pile up with questions and questions until it was spinning. How did he get here? How did you know who you are?

“Oh! Uh, yeah, please come on up.”

You pressed the button to allow the elevator to go to your location and you heard a bright “Thank you!” before the intercom shut off.

You zoomed around your apartment like a psychopath, picking up spare pieces of clothing and putting the dishes in the dishwasher. Your apartment reeked of mild depression, suppressed anxiety, and the beginnings of an unhealthy reliance on take out and that was not the first impression you wanted your newfound brother to have of you.

Putting your hands on your hips, you scanned the now clean apartment. It looked like a moderately adjusted human lived here.

Good timing indeed, as your buzzer sharply rang throughout the apartment. Taking a deep breath, you grasped the door handle and pulled it open.

Your lungs really said “Bye, sister!” and decided to quit working as soon as you saw this man. You couldn’t breath because standing in front of you was one of the most beautiful men you have ever seen in your life.

He was tall, taking up the entire doorway with his height. A dash of neatly groomed, brown hair graced the top of his small head and big eyes peered at you curiously above a strong nose and a pair of big, pouty lips the color of strawberries.

The second thing you noticed about him after his overwhelming beauty was his navy scrubs and the large badge attached to his pocket that read “Kim Seokjin; Pediatric Doctor at Seoul National University Pediatric Group”. You’ve seen people in scrubs and they were, favorably said, unflattering but on this man… he looked like he stepped out of a catalogue.

“You’re Y/N, right?”

Speechless, you nodded.

His entire face lit up with a grin. “Oh, that’s a relief. It’s fantastic to meet you, I’m Kim Seokjin. You can call me Jin though.”

Your voice decided to be nice and start working. You held out a hand and he reciprocated with a handshake. “Hi, I’m Y/N. It’s really nice to meet you. Please, do come in.”

He took off his sturdy shoes politely at the doorway and you retreated further into the hallway of your apartment.

You shivered again through your thin top and crossed your arms. God, you were going to have to raise the temperature. It felt like a fridge in here.

Jin turned around with a smile on his face before his eyes went wide. His eyes flickered down your body and quickly flickered back up to your face.

“I’m sorry if this is a bit sudden,” he started, red climbing up his neck and rising up to his cheeks. “I—” His eyes flicked down again before staying resolutely at your face, despite his very red cheeks.

Did you have a stain on your pants or something? You cast your eyes down at yourself and—

Oh.

Your very regrettable decision of turning your A/C up resulted in stiff nipples poking out from your thin top. To make matters worse, your crossed arms emphasized your breasts.

You felt yourself going red as an unflattering squeak left your mouth. Pulling a cardigan from behind the couch (there goes your good first impression), you quickly threaded your arms through the sleeves and covered your chest.

“I am so sorry—”

“It’s alright!” he said, his voice unwieldy. Jin’s eyes widened again as he realized the meaning of his words. “No! I mean— ugh,” he groaned, burying his face in his hands.

You giggled as you saw his mature composure crack in front of you. 

“I must seem like a pervert,” Jin groaned. “Here I was, hoping to come off as a cool older brother, and I just,” he shook his head. “Forgive me.”

The awkwardness defused, you laughed again, ultra conscious of your chest. “Please don’t worry about it! I had hoped to make a good first impression as well but look at me! Pulling clothing out of furniture.”

He snorted and you both started laughing, filling up your once silent apartment with sound. 

As the laughter died down, you offered him a seat on your couch. He gladly took the invitation, throwing in a joke about being on his feet all day.

“Yeah, I’m sorry to barge in all of the sudden. I didn’t have your contact information— only your address and I realized that you had no way to get to our house. So, here I am,” he grinned, eyes forming cute half crescents.

“I actually have to thank you for it,” you said, setting down a glass of water in front of him. “I was thinking of going to your house myself but I saw the security around it and I knew I’d probably get detained or something.”

“Well, it’s good that it all lined up so well,” Jin commented. “I better introduce myself, don’t I? I’m just a pediatric doctor with the SNU pediatric group and 26— the oldest of all of us. I was born in Gwacheon and moved to Seoul to attend university.”

You smiled softly, despite your unease at his use of the word “just”. “A pediatric doctor? That’s very nice. What made you want to be a doctor?”

Jin’s smile grew strained and you saw his broad shoulders tense up. 

Feeling like you wanted to hit yourself over the head, you threw out your hands in apology. “I didn’t mean to—”

He shook his head. “Please, don’t worry about it. It’s a common question. I chose this specific profession over the OR or surgery because, as a child, I knew someone who was injured a lot and I couldn’t help them at all.” He grimaced, but pasted on a very good smile. His eyes were crinkled at the edges, his head tilted upwards, but you could see through it. “Now I can, yeah?”

“I get what you mean,” you said sympathetically. You were often sick as a child too, and it was… difficult, when your father was off scampering across half the world. 

Jin straightened up in his seat and lost that faraway look in his eyes, zeroing in on you. “What about you, Y/N? You’re college-age, yeah?”

“Yes, I’m 21 and attend Yonsei University as a junior. Although it’s not as exciting as wanting to be a doctor, I want to be a counselor one day,” you told him, your eyes cast down “I want to help people.”

“That’s really admirable, Y/N. If you ever need any help getting an internship or opportunity, I know some counselors and I’d be more than happy to facilitate a meeting,” Jin smiled warmly at you.

A blush infused your cheeks. “I, ah, thank you. I actually work as an operator on Crisis hotline right now, but I’ll definitely need all the help I can get.”

“Of course! You’re my cute younger sister now.”

“I’ve never had a sibling, I’m very excited to have seven older brothers now,” you grinned.

“Yeah! About that,” he coughed awkwardly, “— are you considering moving in with us? Your father told my mother that you would be moving, but I wasn’t sure if you were completely willing?”

You nodded. “I’m considering it. I’d like to meet everyone first, however. Just to get used to your personalities.”

“Completely understandable, all seven of us can be,” he paused, “—a lot. However, if you’re up for meeting a few of us, I can take you to our house for a visit. I can drop you back and everything.”

“That’d be lovely.”

He waited patiently for you as you locked the door to your apartment, carefully watching you as you stepped into the elevator.

“Where did you park?” you asked, craning your head upwards to look at him. “I hope you weren’t forced to park on the street, it can be very expensive.”

He shook his head. “I found the visitor parking, it’s all good.”

The doctor led you through the underground parking, weaving through cars and concrete beams with ease until you stopped in front of a bright white car with a silver trident in the middle of its grill. Eyes wide, you knew what this car was. Your dad had admired Maseratis for the longest time, and this one looked to be very new.

Jin gestured to the white Maserati, looking unfairly suave in his scrubs and next to his fancy car. “Hop in.”

Next Chapter: Press [ X ] for the Mature Type, Namjoon! 

Chapter 2: Enter the Mature Type, Namjoon!

Jin was a model driver, driving carefully on the streets of Seoul. He looked both ways before crossing an intersection and took slow turns. However, it amused you how he hissed at the console as it beeped to warn him if there was a car or curb too close to him.

However, as you looked out the window, the streets got quieter and the houses a whole lot bigger as you crossed into a residential part of Seoul. You were driving parallel to the Han River, and you saw many people doing water activities or boating to cool off in the hot September weather.

Jin slowed down as you entered an avenue lined by trees and you could see a guardhouse at the end of the picturesque street. However, the two of you avoided the guardhouse completely and took what was presumably the resident’s entrance, where he passed by easily with a scan of a barcode on his tire.

“Do you drive, Y/N?” Jin asked, one elbow resting casually on his open window and the other on his lap.

“No, I never really had time to learn.” More like you never had someone to teach you.

“Okay, so we’ll just need a resident pass for you,” Jin muttered to himself, eyes focused on the street.

He drove through large, green spaces with the occasional building speckling the landscape. You gripped your purse harder. Green spaces unencumbered by large buildings blocking the view were rare in Seoul, the cost of natural land so astronomically high only wealthy business people or very famous celebrities being able to afford places like this. You gulped. Their family was definitely out of your league.

The car stopped in front of a very modern looking townhouse and the garage opened, Jin driving into what seemed to be a much more expansive parking garage under the house. However, instead of boring concrete and fluorescent lighting, sandy colored marble and warm lighting lit the space as you descended through the underground.

Biting your lip as Jin backed in his car easily with just one hand steering the wheel, defined forearms catching your attention, you mentally smacked yourself. He’s your brother, for god’s sake!

You froze up as the doors started to lift up like wings on a butterfly, but relaxed. This level of wealth would definitely take some time to get used to.

He placed a warm palm on your shoulder, his fingertips reaching your collarbones, as he guided you to the entrance, up the dimly lit stairs and to a large, wooden door.

“I wish I could’ve taken you through the front door since it’s much more impressive,” he sighed, and pushed the wooden door open with a thumbprint scanner. “However, welcome to our humble abode.”

An abode it was, but humble was it not. You were only on the ground floor, but the ceilings were very high and you were surrounded by many floor-to-ceiling windows. The main theme of the building was warm marble and dark, rich wood with jewel tones interspersed between.

“Woah,” you breathed out. “You guys have a lot of space.”

“Yeah, “ Jin grimaced. “We kind of need it when some of us like to roughhouse and tend to break things.”

You laughed as he then guided you towards a spacious living room, a large window overlooking the Han River and greenery.

“Sit tight, I’ll get us something to drink,” Jin said, his voice getting fainter as he strode to a room off the massive living room.

Ankles crossed together, you peered at the large room. At first, it looked neat. Everything was in its place and perfectly coordinated by the eye of an expert designer. However, you could see the signs the place was well-lived in. The wear-and-tear of the orange and beige blanket emblazoned with an H that was thrown over the chair of the couch, the mess of wires from various gaming consoles, and even the small depressions on the pillows. 

A shelf of colorful books framed the huge TV and you stood up, perusing them. You expected the books to be typical, non-offensive living room books with dust on the covers but to your surprise, the books on the shelves were well loved with their cracked spines and rounded edges. Tracing over your fingers over the books you whispered the titles to yourself.

Candide, Crime and Punishment, The Metamorphosis…

“I’m sorry, but who are you?”

A deep voice echoed behind you and you jumped in surprise. Whirling around you saw another tall man with neat ash blond hair, glasses neatly perched on his straight nose with a pair of fierce eyes peering out from behind the frames. His charcoal suit was well-fitted to his body and his build reminded you of a tiger; sinewous muscles cording his arms, back, and thighs and tensed, ready to jump into action.

A nervous smile crawled up your lips. “I’m Y/N L/N. Are you one of my new brothers?”

The man relaxed minutely but the fierceness of his eyes did not subside. “I am. I’m Kim Namjoon, it’s a pleasure to meet you Y/N.”

He strode across the room in long, confident strides and took your hand. His handshake was strong and you tightened your grip in response, narrowing your eyes at him. His right eyebrow quirked, but he said nothing as he turned his attention to the bookshelf.

“So, what caught your attention here?” He murmured, tenor voice traveling the length of your spine and stroking your sensitive skin. “Is it… this?”

He pulled out a copy of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, obviously less worn than the rest.

A smirk tugged at your lips. “No, not that one.”

He stared at you longer, before crossing his arms over his powerful chest. “Oh? Enlighten me, then.”

With nimble fingers, you pulled out a red, slim novel and handed it to him. You carefully tracked his reaction as he took it from your hands, face and eyes saying nothing. He ran a thumb over the agonized face on the cover, and you felt a shiver go down your arm at the sheer sensuousness of it.

“Clockwork Orange,” he breathed out. “Interesting. Are you a Lit Major?”

You continued to stare at the bookshelf, feeling his eyes boring holes into your face. “No, I’m not. I’m majoring in psychology.”

He hummed, eyes tracing the rough artwork of the novel’s cover. “I liked psychology, but at that point I was already double-majoring. I majored in philosophy and business, which are not as different than they seem.”

“Are you out of university, then?” you asked, trying to keep your tone casual.

Namjoon nodded affirmatively. “I’m 24, but I matriculated at SNU when I was 18. I run a conglomerate group now.”

Trying to keep your mouth from falling open in shock— what kind of twenty something year old owned a large business, much less a conglomerate— you nodded coolly.

“Given or made?” you questioned, an edge in your voice. Something about Namjoon made you want to test him, to prod at him constantly.

His fierce eyes turned to you and they blazed. 

“Made.”

Your lips lifted upwards, minutely, until you heard a clinking of glasses.

“Y/N? Sister-dearest? I got you— oh!”

Jin stopped in shock at the sight of you two seemingly huddled together in front of the book case.

“Do you two know each other?” Jin asked, absolutely bemused, as he set down a pitcher and some glasses on the coffee table.

“We don’t,” Namjoon answered. “However,” he wrapped an arm around your shoulders, “—I can see we’ll get along nicely.”

You did not get the same impression, but you digressed. He was one of your brothers now. Another factor was that one of his biceps, even though it was hidden inside his suit jacket, looked like it could strangle you.

Jin continued to stare in suspicion, before shrugging his wide shoulders and settling down on the couch.

“So what were you chatting about then?”

“A couple of books I had on the shelf. Y/N has some interesting taste,” Namjoon commented.

Jin snorted into his water with lemon. “Oh, ew, now I have two bookworms as siblings? Reading was the worst part of university. I liked all the practical stuff.”

“Sometimes I can’t believe that rational parents would let you near their kids,” Namjoon retorted, helping himself to a glass.

“And I can’t believe some women come near you,” Seokjin replied heatedly.

The two of them stared at each other seriously before breaking out in guffaws, hiding your expression behind your glass of water. This was such a weird dynamic and it was only two of them. Well, the best you could do was adapt the situation.

Just like you always had.

Next Chapter: Press [ X ] for the Rough Type, Jungkook! 

Chapter 3: Enter the Rough Type, Jungkook!

As the three of you chatted about yourselves (apparently, some of the brothers were biologically Seoyeon’s children or were adopted), Jin’s eye caught the clock behind you and his eyes widened.

“Oh dear, it’s almost 6 o’clock,” Jin fretted, leaping up from the couch. “Everyone should be arriving home soon– excuse me,” he said as he retreated into the kitchen.

“Ah, I guess that means I should get going,” you said apologetically to Namjoon, standing up and straightening your ruffled skirt.

“Please, stay for dinner,” Namjoon smiled, gesturing for you to take a seat.

“Yeah, Y/N, stay for dinner!” Jin yelled from the kitchen.

“I mean, if you’re sure…” you trailed off, hoping you could stay. You felt too lazy to cook for yourself tonight.

“Please do, we hope to see you a lot more around here,” Namjoon said, warm smiling at you.

The security system dinged, signalling a door had opened within the house. Namjoon’s ears perked up.

His eyes flew towards the doorway. “That must be Taehyung or Jungkook, coming in. They’re usually the first to arrive.”

You wondered why both of those names seemed familiar and a heavy door slammed shut.

“Jungkook-ah! Your new sister is here! Come and greet her, you punk!”

The footsteps thud to a halt at the foot of the steps and you spin around in your seat.

In the hallway, a buff man in a loose-fitting white t-shirt and grey joggers stood in front of you. In almost humorous contrast to his hulking, muscled body, the cutest face with big eyes and pouty lips you have seen peered at you.

He looked familiar to you and you bit your lip, trying to figure out where you had seen him. Oh wait! Charger guy!

“Jungkook! You’re in my Calculus class, right?”

“Yeah…” he whispered, looking at you like he saw a ghost.

“It’s so funny that you’re here. It’s nice to meet you as my brother,” you grinned at him, tilting your head to the side.

He nodded mindlessly, frozen at his spot in the hallway.

“Jungkook? Are you good?” you prodded.

Namjoon snorted as he kept on typing into his phone. “Jungkook can’t speak to girls, so he gets frozen like this from time to time. Hyung, you fix him.”

“I’m cooking, you dolt!”

“And I’m trying to earn money so I can provide the food. Go.”

Jin shot you a look, as if exclaiming “look at how I’m treated around here!”, and dusted off his hands. Striding over to a frozen Jungkook, Jin poked Jungkook’s very built chest.

Jungkook still didn’t move and Jin pursed his lips. He poked him again. “Yah! Why aren’t you working?!”

The youngest brother broke out from his trance and looked at Jin seriously. 

“No.”

“Pardon?” you asked, wondering if you misheard.

“No.” Jungkook shook his mass of black, shaggy hair and ran a tattooed hand through it, looking in disbelief at the ground. “No, no, no, no, no no.”

Your slight smile is frozen on your face and you feel your shoulders tense up and, nervously, you look to Jin.

“Jungkook—“

“Fuck!” He threw his hands in the air. Jungkook pointed a finger at you, a line creasing at his forehead. “I did not sign up for this! Fuck!” 

Spinning around, he marched back into the hall and you could see the powerful muscles in his back tense through his thin t-shirt.

“Well…”

Jin, with his hands rubbing his temples, sighed heavily and deflated at the counter. “God, I’m sorry about that Y/N. I don’t know why Jungkookie is acting like that; he’s normally really amiable and nice.”

You laugh softly, trying to defuse the awkward tension that had settled around the kitchen. “Jin-ssi, please don’t worry about it. It’s a huge shift in his life and some people are going to take it harder than others. It’ll take some time, but I’m sure he’ll get used to me being his sister.”

Namjoon scrutinized you with hooded eyes. “You’re very kind. I hope my brothers don’t take advantage of it.”

Your grin cracked a bit. “We’re family. I don’t mind.”

—————

Jungkook would not come down from his room, despite the hilarious mix of threats, blackmail, and aegyo Jin tried to coerce him down with.

You could hear Jin rapid-fire lecturing Jungkook outside Jungkook’s bedroom door and Namjoon sighed, his temples in his hands. 

“Hyung, just give up. The kid’s being moody again.”

Jin acquiesced with ill grace, throwing in a last good “You punk!” up the stairs. He stomped down the carpeted stair well, retying his apron and set to reheat many of the things.

“See if I feed him tonight, that ungrateful brat…” Jin hissed, moodily chopping some screen onions.

Namjoon leaned towards you and beckoned your ear towards his and you obeyed, curious. His scent wafted towards you, yet was not as punchy as a normal cologne. It was subtle and musky, carrying notes of old books and bergamot. Perhaps it was a lotion?

“Jin says that all the time, but will leave him leftovers anyways,” Namjoon whispered into your ear, making you unconsciously shiver. “He’s too much of a pushover.”

You snorted as Jin came out of the kitchen with a dish in hands. “Yah, what was that, Namjoon?”

“Just commenting on how good your food is, hyung,” Namjoon replied coolly and leaning away from you.

Jin glanced suspiciously at Namjoon, before setting down the dish. You gasped, immediately getting to your feet.

“Oh, I’ve been such a rude guest! Can I help in any way? Set out the dishes or something?”

The apron-clad doctor clutched his heart, and wailed, “Look! My cute dongsaeng! Finally, a member of this household that is kind and offers to do their part!” Jin’s voice got progressively louder as he directed his voice up the stairs.

You muffled your laugh with a cough, and turned to Jin again. “Jin-ssi?”

Jin shook his head, clicking his tongue as he directed you to stay in your seat. “No, sweetheart, you’re a guest. Joonie-ah, set out the plates.”

Namjoon got up to get the plates, but as he did, his phone buzzed. Namjoon’s forehead creased as he looked at whatever was on his screen.

“Hyung, Taehyung-ah won’t be here today. Apparently his shoot on Jeju is lasting over night.”

Jin sighed, bustling around the kitchen. “How about Hoseok? Yoongi? I know Chimmy is out of the country right now.”

Taehyung, Hoseok, Yoongi, Chimmy, you memorized in your head. These were the four brothers you had yet to meet.

Namjoon snorted and put down the silverware, forks and spoons tinkling brightly. “You know Yoongi— he’s like a stray cat. He’ll be here when he wants. As for Hoseok, I think he might’ve just fallen asleep at the studio.”

“I’m sorry Y/N, I wish I could’ve introduced you to our other brothers,” Jin apologized. “Now, you’re just stuck with us two grandpas.”

You shook your head. “I’m just happy I could have dinner with you guys. Thank you for inviting me over.”

Jin watched you with a fond smile and Namjoon contemplated you carefully again.

Everything was set out and the three of you dug into Jin’s delicious food.

“Jin-ssi, this is very good. Your food tastes delicious. Did you put brown sugar into the sauce? It really rounds out the taste,” you complimented.

“I haven’t heard a compliment from these ungrateful brats about my cooking for 10 years,” Jin sighed dramatically. “Such a cute dongsaeng.”

Namjoon shook his head at Jin’s immature antics. “I might as well introduce you to Jungkook, since he elected not to do it himself.”

“You seemed to know him from university, yes?” Jin asked.

Nodding, you dabbed your mouth with a napkin. “I know of him, yes. He’s in my calculus class? Although, I feel like I might’ve had him in some of my core curriculum classes.”

“Jungkook is at Yonsei for a technology degree, although at first he was reluctant to go to university,” Namjoon revealed. “He wanted to be a Pro-Gamer and streamer full-time, but Seoyeon, Hyung, and I convinced him to get a degree.”

“He chose technology because he wants to combine his passion for gaming and technology into something in the future,” Jin continued, taking a sip of his water.

“That’s a very smart move of his,” you said politely. You wondered why Namjoon referred to his mother as ‘Seoyeon’. Maybe he was one of the adopted ones?

“That brat upstairs might look like he just screams at the monitor and works out, but he’s much more,” Namjoon reflected.

———- 

When you were cleaning up, you felt bad that Jungkook hadn’t had dinner yet. That man must need like four square meals a day and tons of snacks to keep up his bulk.

“Jin-ssi, Namjoon-ssi, I’m going to deliver some food to Jungkook. He must be hungry,” you called out, scraping some of the food onto a plate.

“You don’t have too, Y/N, he usually sneaks down to get something from the fridge,” Namjoon said as he typed furiously on his phone.

“Don’t worry about it, I want to help him,” you grinned, climbing up the stairs.

Namjoon mumbled something suspiciously like, “You’re too kind for your own good” but you had already gotten to the second landing. Stopping in front of Jungkook’s door, you knocked.

“Jungkook-ssi?” you said when no one responded. “You must be a bit hungry, so I just got a plate together for you.”

Complete radio silence. 

Exhaling sharply through your nostrils, you pouted and bent down to set down the plate next to his doorway.

“Well, if you change your mind, I put it next to your door. I’ll be going now!”

You strode down the hallway, making sure your footsteps trailed off. You hid behind a corner, making sure to conceal yourself completely.

After waiting a few minutes, you were sure he wasn’t going to come out  but his door clicked open and Jungkook emerged in a grey-blue hoodie. He took a surreptitious glance around the hallway before his eyes found you behind the corner.

Blushing, you decided to wave at him. To your surprise, instead of scowling or ignoring you completely, Jungkook’s face turned tomato red as he hurriedly gathered up the plate and slammed his door.

You scratched your head. Maybe he was shy or something.

Next Chapter: Press [ X ] for the Bright Type, Hoseok! 

Chapter 5: Enter the Bright Type, Hoseok!

“So, how were your brothers? Nice? Weird? Ugly?” Hyerim pestered as you walked by the subway.

You bit your lip. “Um, really different?”

Hyerim fixed you a look.

“Okay, so I met three out of the seven yesterday. The oldest one— his name is Seokjin, but I call him Jin— is 26 and he’s a pediatric doctor. The other one—”

“Wait, Seokjin?” Your friend squinted at you. “Does he happen to work at SNU Pediatric Group?”

Blinking, you turned to her. “Yeah? How the hell did you know that?”

Hyerim let out a half strangled scream as you stepped down the stairs of the station. You were instantly surrounded by dozens of power blue ads with a purple suit-clad man in the middle, perhaps in the middle of a hip trust, all reading Happy Birthday in aesthetic cursive.

“Hoe! He’s my brother’s fucking doctor, I can’t believe this!”

Your eyebrows nearly touched your forehead. “Shit, really?”

“Yes! Holy shit, did you not listen to me complaining to you about how hot he was? And now he’s your fucking brother? The star must’ve aligned for me! This must mean the rest of the brothers are good looking!” Hyerim squealed.

“Does Jongin not exist anymore?” you asked as you both swiped your subway passes.

“Shhh, just because I’m off the market doesn’t mean I don’t get to look,” she giggled, her pony tail swishing back and forth.

You shook your head, amused at her antics, and continued.

“Anyways, the other brother I met is some fancy-schmancy businessman. Namjoon-ssi is 25? 24? He’s older than me but graduated from college when he was just 18.”

Hyerim’s eyes took on a perverted light and she simpered underneath her hand. “Oh? Am I hearing of sugar daddy material?”

You squawked and hit her shoulder. “Hyerim, stop! These are my brothers, not matches on Tinder!”

“I don’t care, you need a boyfriend— even if it’s a secret and taboo one,” Hyerim said, pushing her hair off her shoulder.

Rolling your eyes, you sat down in a seat next to her. “Anyways, the boys invited me to dinner again tonight in hopes we’ll catch more of the boys in the house. Jin-ssi says trying to get them all in one place is like waiting for a blue moon— it’s very rare.”

“So are you going straight there or going home to change?”

Shaking your head, you gestured at a laminated white pass in your hands. “I wanted to get there early today so I can go home early. Jin-ssi drove me home last night and I don’t want him to be caught in rush hour traffic again.”

Hyerim peered at the pass in your hands. “Hannam the Hill? Hey, doesn’t Han Hyo-joo live there? The actress from Brilliant Legacy?”

Shrugging your shoulders, you leaned into the hard plastic seat. “I don’t know. Probably? All I know is that the place where they live is very ritzy and takes like two security gates to get into.”

“Okay, they’re all sugar daddy material then,” Hyerim commented. She ducked to avoid a hit over the head and you huffed, crossing your arms.

“Stop, they all do pretty well for themselves and I heard my stepmother is some fancy businesswoman from a well-to-do family. They’re just my family now.”

“The train is approaching Yangwon station. I repeat the train is approaching Yangwon station,” the bright voice announced over the intercom.

“Oh, that’s my stop,” you remembered. 

“Wait, you said you met another brother. Who is he?” Hyerim asked as she patted her nose with a compact.

The train slowed to a stop and you got up.

“My other brother is Jungkook. The one from our Calculus class? The streamer?”

Smirking, you dramatically walked away and heard Hyerim’s shriek of disbelief as you stepped onto the train platform.

————— 

“I’m sorry, what?” you asked the guard in disbelief.

“I’m sorry ma’am, but your visitor pass has expired,” the security guard said calmly, eyes scanning you detachedly. Like you were another crazy female.

You were going to kill Jin. Forget his awesome jajamyeon, you’ll bitch-slap both him and Namjoon into another dimension.

“Are you sure you can’t just let me in? Like, call the house or something,” you asked desperately, hands crumpling the visitor pass.

The guard looked like he desperately wanted to roll his eyes, but he picked up his corded phone.

“Building 10, yes?” he asked boredly.

“Yes.”

He waited for the call to be picked up but after several rings, no one picked up.

“Apologies ma’am, but no one appears to be at the house. If you’re done, I’d like to ask you to leave and come back later,” the man said with an air of finality, and turned back to his station and looked at the 6 monitors surrounding his desk.

Your mouth open, you were aghast at his lack of sympathy. He could’ve at least offered for you to let you wait! It was nearing sun down and the boys had invited you to dinner again, and it would be rude to be late.

You don’t even know why they needed this much security. Sure, Namjoon was the CEO of a large conglomeration but wasn’t as high profile as Samsung’s chairman or someone crazy like that. It wasn’t like one of your brothers was a high-profile celebrity, right?

Standing on the sidewalk and looking like an idiot, you decided to call one of your damn brothers. Huffing, you flipped open your phone and selected Jin’s contact. After several rings, the call picked up.

“Y/N?”

“Hi Jin-ssi, sorry to bother you right now. I’m sure you’re busy right now,” you apologized, accidentally meeting eyes with the security guard who stared at you suspiciously.

“You’re fine! Is everything alright?” Jin asked, his voice tinged by concern.

You bit your lip as the security guard raised an eyebrow and picked up his phone, his eyes not letting go of you the entire time.

“I’m trying to get to the house, but the guard told me the visitor pass expired,” you explained, breath hitching as the guard spoke rapidly into the phone.

Jin swore over the phone, the sound muffled as he moved his phone away from his face.

“I’m so sorry, Y/N, Namjoon and I were so sure it was still active. Sit tight wherever you are, I’m texting one of the boys to get you through the gate. Hoseok is about a few minutes away from you.”

“Um, I don’t mean to rush,” you said, eyes widening as the man gestured to get out of the guardhouse, “— but I think the guard is about to detain me.”

“Goddamn security,” Jin hissed. “I’m calling the guard office right now, I am so sorry.”

He hung up and the guard continued to advance towards you, and you grasped your phone a bit tighter. The summer humidity suddenly pressed into your skin, slipped between your waistband and collar to make you sweat. Your eyes flickered to the station. No one was in the guard office to take Jin’s call so you steeled for yourself for what was about to be an ugly confrontation.

“Ma’am, I firmly ask you to leave the premises before I am forced to—”

“Y/N!”

The guard and you turned in the direction of the sound, and you saw a man in a bright yellow windbreaker and black sport shorts somehow jogging towards you in socks and sandals.

“Y/N,” he said, out of breath, as he stopped in front of you and the security guard. He held out a hand as he put his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.

“Hoseok-nim,” the guard bowed in respect, “Do you perhaps know this young lady?”

You got a good glimpse of him as he lifted his head and tennis cap. He pulled down his white mask and you saw his pointed nose, unfairly smooth skin, and sharp chin. You sobbed inwardly. Did all of your brothers miraculously get the luckiest scratch off tickets for the genetic jackpot? The man grinned at you and nodded in affirmative at the guard.

“Yes, I do,” Hoseok said, straightening up.

“I’m sorry, the young lady did not have the proper credentials to enter. My apologies.” The guard continued, speaking to Hoseok as if you did not exist.

Hoseok’s happy expression vanished and his brows furrowed. “Please, don’t apologize to me. My sister looked frightened. My brothers and I would appreciate it if you treated her a bit more politely.”

You hadn’t even noticed how frightened you were as you felt a drop of sweat roll down your temple and the shivers stop.

“I apologize, young lady,” the security guard said, taking off his cap and bowing politely. You smiled tightly and accepted with grace, gesturing for him to get up.

“That being said, we haven’t had time to get her resident pass processed. I’d like to add her to a list of visitors so a mix-up like this will not happen again,” Hoseok said seriously, staring down the security guard underneath his tennis logo cap and eccentric outfit. It almost put a smile to your lips, to see a beefy man in a suit and tie nearly cower under a boy at least half his age and centimeters shorter than him.

“Of course. Hoseok-nim, young lady,” he bowed, and the security guard scurried towards the office.

Hoseok turned towards you and his face brightened, rounded cheeks pulled upwards. “Hi Y/N, I’m so sorry for this mess,” he said, eyes shining with regret.

“I completely understand,” you placated. “You’re… Hoseok-ssi, right?”

He beamed. “Yes, I’m Hoseok. I’m 24, the middle brother. Please, call me oppa, we’re siblings now!”

He slung an arm over your shoulder and you couldn’t help but beam along with him. His bright energy was so infectious and immediately warmed you to him, drawing you into his orbit.

“It’s nice to meet you,” you replied, smile tugging at your lips. “I’m Y/N, 21 years old.”

“I’m so excited to have a cute younger sister,” Hoseok confessed as he walked you through the streets towards the house. “I was always jealous of my friends that could take care of their younger sisters, even though they acted like they were annoyed by them.”

You grinned more brightly. “Me too. I’ve been an only child all my life and having seven new brothers is very exciting to me.”

“You might want to take that back when you’ve met all of us,” Hoseok laughed. “You’ve met Jin-hyung, Namjoon-hyung, Jungkook-ah, right?”

Nodding, you spoke, “Yes, I have. Jin-ssi and Namjoon-ssi are very nice to me, but I don’t think Jungkook-ssi liked me very much…”

Hoseok waved it away. “Don’t worry, Kookie-ah doesn’t socialize well with girls. Or people. It took him ages to warm up to us after he got back from his grandparents.”

“Kookie-ah?” you asked curiously.

“Yes,” Hoseok grinned as he turned you onto a familiar street. “It’s our nickname for our youngest. He’s too cute not to tease.” Hoseok frowned as he remembered something. “Even though he is taller than me now.”

Hoseok was pretty tall himself, and you were starting to think that if you all took a family photo one day you’d look like the dwarf in the middle. Namjoon, Jin, and Jungkook just towered over you.

“On the other note, what do you do, Y/N? I’m curious about what my younger sister does.”

“I’m a university student at Yonsei, Hoseok-ssi,” you coughed, still not comfortable calling anybody oppa. “I’m studying psychology so I can be a counselor.”

“Yonsei? So my dongsaeng is a smart nut, I see,” Hoseok teased. “Did you know Jungkook before you met him as your brother?”

You shook your head. “I saw him around, but I only knew of him. What about you, Hoseok-ssi? What do you do?”

“I’m a dancer,” Hoseok announced, the house getting closer in view. “I’m part of this dance group, Neuron. We travel to perform and compete in competitions.”

“That’s awesome!” you clapped. “You must be very persistent. I tried ballet when I was younger and it was a disaster.”

“I haven’t heard that before,” Hoseok said, looking curiously at you. “Most people have told me I must be very talented or pull girls easily. But you’re right, I worked very hard.”

“What can I say?” you shrugged. “I just see through people.”

Hoseok guided you up the front steps of the doorway, fumbling through his pants to get his key. As he unlocked the front door, you heard the rumbling of a car going through the streets.

Going at least 100 kilometers per hour, a metallic blue Lamborghini skidded to a halt in front of the house. The weird doors stretched upwards and you saw both Jin and Namjoon emerge from the car.

“Y/N? Baby? Are you alright?” Jin asked worriedly, running up the front door.

“I’m good, Jin-ssi,” you comforted but he ignored it, taking your face in your hands and tilting your head to his view.

“Aish, those damn security guards!” Jin complained, clutching you to his chest and turning to Namjoon. “It’s your fault! Why did you give her that pass! She could’ve been detained! Put into cuffs like—like a criminal!” he ended dramatically.

Namjoon looked flabbergasted. “Me? You’re the one who got it!”

As the two descended into bickering, you peered at Hoseok from in between Jin’s arms. Your eyes screamed save me!

Hoeseok helpfully pried you from the still arguing doctor’s arms.

“Sorry about that, Jin is a bit protective over all of us— he practically raised us. We call him our mom sometimes,” Hoseok revealed, getting you into the house and leaving the now huffing and puffing duo on the doorsteps.

Next Chapter: Press [ X ] for the Moody Type, Taehyung! 

Chapter 7: Enter the Moody Type, Taehyung!

As you entered the house, the faint strings of what might be a Daniel Caesar song flowed throughout the house.

“Oh goodie, Taehyung must be here!,” Jin clapped, setting down his keys on a hook near the door. 

Namjoon snorted. “He’s the only one of us that listens to this moody shit.”

Through drought and famine, natural disaster, my baby has been around for me.

A door slammed somewhere on the ground level, and the click clack of heeled boots echoed like muffled gunshots on the marble of the house.

Kingdoms have fallen, angels be calling, none of that could ever make me leave.

Turning the corner, your heart stopped.

Leaning on the wooden doorway was the most heart-breakingly beautiful man you’ve ever laid eyes upon. His dyed ash-grey hair was messy around his face, but behind his bangs peeked half-lidded eyes shaped like tear drops. A strong nose and pink lips, like the petals of a flower, were parted open as he stared through you.

“Oh? Is this our new sister?” he said softly, his gravelly voice filling the hall.

You grinned uneasily, fighting off the urge to cover yourself with a blanket or something. It wasn’t that his gaze was improper; those mercurial eyes just seemed to look through you.

“Taehyung, meet Y/N. She is our stepfather’s daughter,” Jin said carefully, eyes flicking between you like a tennis match.

It’s not fair, you thought. His clothes shouldn’t even match. The silky sleeveless tee had a paintbrush stroke across the chest and was bunched into baggy canvas pants covered in paint. It should’ve made him look like those wacky tube inflatables near car dealerships yet he looked like he walked out of a magazine.

“It’s nice to see you, Y/N,” Taehyung nearly whispered, head tilted to the side like he was evaluating a particular interesting museum installation. He made no move to shake your hand or embrace you.

“And you too, Taehyung-ssi,” you replied, bowing politely. He inclined his head.

“Well, I better get back to my red room. My pretties are coming along nicely,” Taehyung pronounced matter-a-factly, spinning sharply around to disappear into the dimly lit hall.

Namjoon face-palmed. “Well, now it sounds like he has a kinky sex dungeon. He just sees the world a bit differently than us, that’s all. It took some time for us to interpret his words when he came to us; for example, his pretties are his photographs.” The businessman looked suddenly pensieve. “Perhaps that’s why he’s so good at what he does.”

“Oh? What does Taehyung-ssi do?” you inquired, feeling like a strong breeze had swept into the room and left as suddenly as it came. You know that feeling? Where your skin tingles in the aftermath, your lips are suddenly dry, and like you could be knocked over the lightest touch.

“He’s a magazine editor, Y/N-ah,” Hoseok grins, putting down his heavy dancer bag on the couch carelessly. “It’s this really new-age, artsy magazine with a cult following. Maybe you’ve seen it? I think he named it something cryptic like ‘V’.”

“I’ll look into it, then,” you beamed, hoping to diffuse the weird tension that had settled on your shoulders.

———- 

Hoseok excused himself to take a shower and Namjoon had to take an important phone call, so it was just you and Jin left.

“Well, I know us five are at least here, and I know Jungkook is due to arrive soon from the gym. However, I don’t know if someone is going to drop by so I just leave an extra plate in the fridge just in case,” Jin said, stroking his chin.

“So, what’s on the menu today?” you asked playfully, taking a seat on the barstool.

Jin ruffled through the fridge, the fluorescent light highlighting his casual t-shirt. “Well, with what we have in the fridge, I can make some Chap-Chae and perhaps Kimchi Jjigae. However, we’d have a lot of chicken left and we need to eat it soon. Hm…”

“Jin-ssi, I know a good chicken recipe. Dakgangjeong? It’s this crispy fried chicken slathered in sweet and spicy sauce.”

The doctor frowned for a moment, leaning against the countertop.

“Is someone allergic? Or doesn’t like Chicken?” you asked worriedly, biting your lips.

Jin shook his head and chuckled. “No, everyone really likes fried chicken here. I’m just trying to remember if we have the ingredients.”

“That’s a relief, because it’s one of my favorite comfort meals.”

Opening the pantry, he bent down to look for something. “I think we do have everything here, thank goodness,” he grinned at you as he got up. “Do you cook a lot?”

“Yup, it’s my hobby,” you revealed, washing your hands at the sink. “I had to learn how to give myself food as a child.”

“Okay, awesome! You get started on the chicken and I’ll do the other dishes,” Jin said brightly, putting some ingredients on the table.

“Sounds good to me!”

You probably weren’t meant to hear it, but Jin giggled underneath his breath, “I have a sous-chef now.”

————

You put the finishing garnishes on your chicken and stepped back. The glaze looked very savory underneath the kitchen lights and dipping your finger into your glaze pot, it also tasted very good as well.

By the looks of it, Jin had finished with his two dishes. Wiping his hands with a towel, he put his hands on his hips and yelled, “Children! Get down here to eat, you punks!” 

As soon as you set down your plate of chicken, a multitude of footsteps resounded throughout the house.

Namjoon strode in first, only in a white shirt and trousers, and nodded coolly at you. The man looked very attractive out of his form-fitting workwear, and you wish your gaze hadn’t lingered on his tan, exposed skin.

Hoseok and Jungkook came in second, rough-housing with each other in the doorway before taking their seats. Hoseok greeted you brightly but Jungkook stared at you without a word before averting his gaze.

Finally, V came into the dining room in a more casual outfit of an oversized shirt and lounge pants, but still exuded an air of effortless grace. He grinned at everyone and plopped down into his chair.

“Alright everyone, eat up!” Jin fussed, setting down the steaming hot bowl and plate he was somehow carrying. You trailed after him with your dish grasped with both hands, hoping you wouldn’t accidentally trip and spill your hard work over the very expensive carpet.

You had to lean over Jungkook to place your chicken in the middle and you heard a startled “eep!” from beside you.

“Jungkook-ssi, are you alright?” You asked, sitting down in your seat next to him.

He nodded wordlessly, his ears red and gaze intensely focused on his plate. Running your eyes over him, you shrugged and grabbed your chopsticks.

The whole family dug in, loud and boisterous as people argued over which cut was better and devolved into personal attacks. Something warm curled up in your chest and warmed your cheeks, hoping to constrain the ridiculous smile that threatened to split your face. Is this how family looks like?

Watching Jungkook engage Taehyung in a very one sided conversation about the benefits of eating a certain part of the meat versus the other was very different than your empty apartment and lukewarm food.

“Wah, hyung, you’ve really outdid yourself with the chicken,” Hoseok gushed as he took a big bite of your chicken. “Please make it for us more!”

Jin chuckled, and set his chopsticks down. “I didn’t make it, so you’d have to ask her if you want more.”

Namjoon, with a strange light in his eyes, gestured to the nearly empty chicken plate with his chopsticks. “You… made this?”

Nodding in affirmative, you took a sip of your cola and cleared your throat. “Yes, I hope you guys liked it.”

Jungkook choked on his water and Jin rushed over to roughly pat his back. “Breath Jungkookie, breath!”

Hoseok yelled in delight and took out his handphone. “My cute little sister made this for me? Wow, my friends are going to be so jealous!” he grinned, snapping a few nice pictures of your glazed chicken.

Jungkook recovered at this point and was trying to fend off mother-hen Jin. “Hyung, I’m fine! I swear! You don’t have to baby me!,” he whined, cheeks red. “Besides, it was probably a bone or something.”

Your oldest brother huffed and sat back roughly into his seat, muttering something about ungrateful kids, while you tried to roll Jungkook’s comment over in your head. Bone? You used boneless chicken?

Deciding to push it away from your mind, you discreetly glanced at your cell phone and realized it was nearing 8 o’clock.

“Oh dear,” you muttered, catching the attention of the men at the table. “It’s almost 8 o’clock and I need to get home to water my plants,” you fretted.

As if on cue, a crack of thunder shook the table and you heard the rain start to hound at the windows and walls.

“Well, I be-leaf they’re getting watered,” Jin commented, cleaning up the last parts of his plate.

Staring at him in disbelief, you started to giggle and soon you were clutching your stomach with how hard you were laughing. 

“Did she like his shitty joke that much?” Jungkook whispered not so discreetly to Namjoon, who looked a bit weirded out himself.

“I’ve- I’ve never met a man with such awful jokes,” you laughed, wiping a tear from your eyes. “But I can’t help finding them so funny.”

The doctor aha-ed and pointed at Jungkook. “See? My jokes are so bad that they’re good!”

Snorting in disbelief, the youngest brother leaned back into his chair with his arms crossed over his built chest. “She’s our sister, she’s obligated to,” he murmurs sulkily. He sneaks a peek at you and you giggle at his adorable moodiness, to which he reddens and avoids your gaze.

Namjoon looked worriedly out the window, quickly turning on the news with his phone.

“— strong windstorms and rains are going to be surrounding Seoul overnight—”

“I can’t, in good conscience, let you go back home in this weather,” Namjoon stated, eyes flickering between you and the loud weather outside.

You hesitated. You were kind of worried for Mr. Ukyo, your cute succulent on the porch. “I—”

“Y/N, please,” Hoseok begged. “What kind of brothers would we be if we left you alone tonight? Stay in. We have a guest room with all the stuff you need.”

“I… okay. Thank you guys,” you smiled uneasily.

Hoseok laughed and patted your back as he got up to put his plate away.

“Sleepover…” Taehyung mumbled as he passed by you. On his way out the door, he gave you a boxy smile that tugged at something in your head.

Next Chapter: Press [ X ] for the Cool Type, Yoongi! 

Chapter 7: Enter the Cool Type, Yoongi!

“Hi, my cute dongsaeng!” announced Hoseok as he strode into your guest room. “I come bearing gifts!”

You grinned at your exuberant brother as he danced through your doorway, having a pile of stuff in his arms.

“We usually don’t have guests over, but sometimes our mother stays at the house and now we have a bunch of, uh, woman stuff,” Hoseok coughed.

“Thank you, Hoseok-ssi,” you said, moving to sort through the items.

“Call me oppa,” Hoseok whined.

Namjoon peeked through your doorway and saw Hoseok pouting at you, and instantly wacked the back of his head.

“Yah, you literally just met her today. Let her grow more comfortable with us first,” the businessman scolded, before turning to you.

“We have some t-shirts and shorts that don’t fit Jungkook anymore but please don’t tell him that we kept his childhood items,” Namjoon shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. “I got you a toothbrush and toothpaste, plus some face products.

“You’re really kind, I feel like I’m in a hotel,” you joked, moving to plug your phone into the wall outlet. The place felt like your hotel suite suddenly got upgraded. This guest room was bigger than your entire living room and everything was so nicely decorated, you couldn’t help but gawk like a tourist at the fancy light fixtures and furniture. Maybe if you broke a vase you’d have to work in a host club...

“Ah, really? That’s nice to hear,” Namjoon said, sitting down in an armchair near the window overlooking Seoul and the Han River. He steepled his fingers together, tilting his head at you. “However, if you moved in, this room would be yours.”

Your slight smile turned slightly downwards and Hoseok, sensing the change of mood easily, turned over and whacked Namjoon over his head.

“Who’s the one going too fast now?” Hoseok retorted, before plopping down on the chair opposite of Namjoon.

“No, no, you’re fine, Namjoon-ssi,” you acknowledged. “I just… I don’t want to intrude. Plus, the amount of testosterone in this building…” you trailed off.

“Y/N-ah, we just met you but we already know you’d be a good fit with our family,” Hoseok said, smiling softly at you. “Seriously.”

“I don’t want to seem overbearing and I know you’re very independent, but the idea of you living alone worries Jin-hyung and I,” Namjoon confessed, wringing his hands and looking towards the window. “What happens if there is any emergency? Or you got sick? It’d be hard for us to take care of you.”

Tears welled up at the edge of your vision and your mouth twitched downwards. Quickly pressing a hand to your mouth, you averted your eyes from the boys.

“Y/N-ssi, what’s wrong? Are you alright?” Namjoon asked worriedly, getting up from the armchair.

You waved him away, discreetly wiping your nose. “I-I’m fine, Namjoon-ssi. Really. I’m just really emotional all the sudden, that’s all.”

“Y/N-ah, are you sure?” Hoseok piped in concern, craning his neck to see your face.

A hand thrust some tissues in front of you and you took them gratefully, dabbing at your eyes.

“I- I just…” you sucked a breath in, and turned towards the fretful pair of brothers. You suddenly beamed at them, eyes crinkling into crescents and grin splitting your cheeks despite the visible tear tracks on your cheeks. “I’ve never had someone care for me. Thank you.”

The two boys felt their heart stutter at the surprisingly vulnerable confession from the ever-polite yet distant you. They shared a look.

We’re in trouble.

———-

The house quieted down and all the lights were turned out as the rain seemed to get louder. However, despite the busy day, you tossed and turned in the very comfy cotton sheets.

Turning on your side, you watched the rain stream down your window in awe. While the window was big, a building partially blocked your view of the Han river and the Seoul skyline. You unplugged your phone from the charger on the wall and looked at the time. 1 A.M.

For some reason, you couldn’t sleep. Perhaps it was the unfamiliar environment or the dozens of thoughts crowding your head, but you couldn’t force your head to turn off despite counting hundreds of sheep.

Letting out a frustrated groan, you untangled yourself from the sheets and set your feet on the heated marble. Padding quietly to the door, you tried your best to open and close the heavy wooden door softly.

The house seemed bigger when it was not filled by the loud voices and eclectic, varied personalities of your brothers. Clutching a throw blanket over your shoulders, you made your way down the stairwell with only the city’s lights shining through the large, floor-to-ceiling windows around the house.

Flicking the low lights on in the kitchen, you searched the many cabinets for where they kept their tea packets. You finally found a jar of chamomile tea in a corner of the pantry, turning on the tea kettle and waiting for it to boil.

Leaning against the corner, your eyes got accustomed to the dark of the living room and roved over the personal effects of the brothers. There was a large picture of all seven boys on the mantle of the fireplace with their mother sitting in the middle, however, you could not see the faces of the two brothers you had not met due to the reflection in the glass.

Could you see yourself living here? With the amiable and fussy Jin, and the mature, erudite Namjoon? Wake up every morning to see the infectiously bright Hoseok at the counter and the mercurial Taehyung floating through the house like a wraith? Even go to school with your confusing classmate, Jungkook?

The kettle whistled loudly and you took it off its burner, pouring water into a cup. Flicking off the underhead lights in the kitchen, you padded towards the living room and curled up on the outrageously soft, leather couch. Blowing on your tea, you took a sip as you gazed in wonder at the rain streaming rivers over the large, bay window.

For years, the rain had been your only friend when your father traipsed the globe. It had softly knocked at your window to check if you were okay when you were sick and playfully splashed you when you were sad. The rain sang you to sleep every night when you were young and alone, afraid of the thundering din outside.

Looking at the portrait of the seven boys, you saw a new family.

Smiling into your tea cup, your mind was made up.

A loud beep rang throughout the house and a click reached your ears. Your eyes tried to look through the darkness at the basement entrance, where a figure clad in all black emerged. Feeling a momentary panic seize your heart, your fingers tightened over your mug and you tried to think straight. This was probably your other brother, Yoongi or Chimmy.

“Oh? Who are you?” A raspy voice said, shutting the door behind him. “Are you one of my brother’s girlfriends?”

Shaking your head, you got to your feet. “No, I’m your new sister, Y/N L/N.”

The figure made an affirmative noise and removed his shoes at the massive shoe closet next to the entrance. “Ah, I see. I’m Yoongi, your second oldest brother.”

A crack of thunder shook the house and a few seconds later, bright white lightning flashed through the room and illuminated you both.

In that split second, you saw pitch black hair constrained by a headband. However, what caught your attention was his eyes. Contrasted against pale skin and fierce, arched brows, were lids shaped like the outstretched wing of a bird. He stared at you lazily before they widened minutely.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Yoongi-ssi.”

“You too,” he mumbled and bowed politely, shuffling up the stairs like a gloomy specter.

You blinked a bit at how calmly he took this into stride. Christ, were your brothers fazed by anything?

—————

“Y/N-ah. Y/N-ah, wake up!”

You groggily opened your eyes to see Jin close to your face, his brows bunched together in concern.

“Y/N-ah, are you alright? You’re on the couch.”

Straightening up you could see that you, indeed, were still on the couch. You must’ve fallen asleep while watching the rain.

“Oh, yeah, I am,” you stated, rubbing your eyes and yawning. “I must’ve fallen asleep here last night.”

Jin sat across you and looked worried. “Did something happen last night? Was the guest room not comfortable? Did—”

“Oh no, nothing like that!” you tried to say. “The sound of the rain was better here.” 

He looked at you strangely but accepted it with a shrug of his shoulders. “Anyway, I’m about to make breakfast, why don’t you clean up a bit? I’ll wake up the other brothers.”

You nodded and almost stumbled trying to get off the couch, before Jin caught you with an arm. You turned your head to see his face uncomfortably close to yours.

“Careful,” he whispered, his minty breath trailing across your cheeks and his eyes roving your face.

You felt your cheeks heat up before you almost threw yourself out of his touch. “Yeah, um, thank you!” you yelled behind you before you fled to upstairs.

————

By the time you cleaned your face and put on a bra, all of the boys— in various states of consciousness— were gathered around the dining counter.

“Y/N-ah!” Hoseok said enthusiastically, obviously one of the more awake ones. He wore a pair of flowered pants that ahjummas usually wore and white, long-sleeved tee. “Yoongi came in last night, he’s our other brother.”

“We met last night, Hoseok-ah,” Yoongi mumbled into a large cup that, hilariously, was engraved with the words “Daddy-Size”. “I came home around 1 AM and saw her on the couch.”

“Oh, was everything alright?” Namjoon inquired politely, stretching his broad muscles as he yawned. Even his loungewear looked professional.

Smiling uneasily, you took a seat at the counter next to Jungkook, whose head was buried in his arm. “Yeah, couldn’t sleep and the city lights calmed me down,” you reassured.

Jungkook suddenly jerked awake next to you, alarmed eyes peeking through his messy black hair. “H-huh?”

You grinned at him. “Good morning, Jungkook-ssi.”

He mumbled a good morning in the direction of the ground before his eyes zoomed into something at your collarbone.

‘Y/N-ssi, i-is that my shirt?” he asked shyly— the first words he has directed towards you.

You looked at the oversized navy shirt, which you had tucked into the pair of denim shorts you wore yesterday. “I think? Namjoon told me it was one of your own.”

His gaze whipped to Namjoon and he started sputtering as Namjoon snickered, putting on a pair of thick-framed glasses.

Suddenly, Jin swore as he looked at his phone. “Sorry guys, but there’s an emergency at the hospital. I need to go,” he said rushedly, racing to the closest to put on a pair of tennis shoes. “Yoongi, cook for them!”

He shut the basement door with a slam and suddenly the house was silent.

“Yoongi-hyung, please,” Taehyung, who had emerged from some hallway, begged with a pout on his petal lips. His voice was extra raspy this morning.

The black-haired man grunted before hiding his face behind his coffee cup. You took that as a no.

“We’re going to starve,” Jungkook complained into Hoseok’s shoulder, who cooed and patted the muscled man cutely.

“Well, I can cook for us if you’d like? As a thank you for letting me stay over?” you said nervously. All eyes turned towards you and you gulped, not used to having all of your brothers’ attention on you.

“That’d be lovely,” Namjoon said, squinting at a novel he had produced out of nowhere.

“Aw, is our cute dongsaeng going to cook for us? I’m living the dream,” Hoseok sighed dramatically.

You snorted and got out of your seat. “I saw enough ingredients for what I want to cook, so just sit tight.”

The boys thanked you and some exited the kitchen towards the living room. You tried to remember where you saw the ingredients yesterday, but the kitchen was extremely big and had those weird cabinets where you had to push in a certain corner to open.

“Uh, where are the onions?” you asked no one in particular.

“Yoongi-hyung,” Hoseok nudged the still tired looking man. “Next to Jin, you know the kitchen the best.”

The black-haired sighed heavily and got out of his seat, leaving the “Daddy-Size cup” on the counter. He opened the fridge and bent down to a drawer you hadn’t seen. “Green onions.”

You took the bag and thanked, expecting him to leave the kitchen. “What else do you need?”

He stood there, eyes boring a hole through your face. Even as he was sleepy, he still looked like a cool older brother.

Scanning the ingredients, counting the things you had and didn’t, you turned back to him. “Um, I just need butter, tomatoes, and cheese.”

Wordlessly, he grabbed the ingredients and set it down on the counter next to you. Really expecting he’d leave, he surprised you by pulling out a chopping board and knife.

“How do you need the onions and tomatoes cut, Y/N-ssi?” he asked roughly, raspy voice causing the hair at the nape of your neck to rise. You shook your head. He’s your brother, for god’s sake!

“I need both diced, but slice some of the tomato into thin wedges for presentation,” you asked politely.

He nodded and washed both of the vegetables, before quickly and neatly dicing them with an experienced hand.

You broke the eggs and as you whisked the egg mixture with a pair of chopsticks, you decided to break the silence.

“How old are you, Yoongi-ssi?” 

He didn’t pause in his slicing. “25 years old. How about you?”

“21, but turning 22 soon.”

Yoongi hummed and started on the tomatoes. “Ah, that means you’re university age then. Are you attending university right now?”

Nodding, you grabbed some salt and pepper to add flavor to the omelette.  “Yeah, I’m actually attending Yonsei with Jungkook-ssi. What about you?”

“I’m a freelance producer,” he said carelessly, neatly scraping diced tomato onto a plate. “But I graduated from an arts college overseas in classical performance.”

It seemed like many of the brothers were artistically-inclined, you noted as you washed the spinach. But it amused you that this cool-looking brother of yours, with pierced ears and effortlessly stylish street clothes, could play a fancy-looking instrument.

Your step brother cleared his throat and he stepped back. “Is there anything else you need me to do?”

You looked at the finely chopped tomatoes and onions and shook your head. “No, that’s all. Thank you for helping out.”

He inclined his head and padded out of the kitchen, collapsing on the couch with his hoodie over his head.

Turning on the heat, you put the omelette mixture in the pan and waited for it to cook through. As you were gathering the other ingredients to put in the pan, a chin nestled itself onto your shoulder.

“Oh? What is this?” a deep, husky voice rumbled next to your ear.

You nearly jumped out of your skin when you saw Taehyung’s finely chiseled face so close to yours. Squeaking, you turned your attention back to the pan.

“Breakfast omelettes, Taehyung-ssi,” you replied a bit shakily, feeling the weight of his head on your shoulder and his breath puffing into your ear. “I hope you like it.”

Adjusting his bent over position, he wrapped his arms around your waist and buried his face into the crook of your neck. “I will, Y/N-ah. It’ll be delicious.”

Your face flamed and you willed the egg to cook faster, trying not to focus on how his large hands pressed warmly into your stomach.

“Hyung!” Jungkook exclaimed, barrelling out of nowhere. “Hyung, you can’t do that! Stop!” 

“Oh? Why not?” the editor asked monotonously, his lips moving over the sensitive skin of your neck. You stiffened and muffled a squeal, neary getting hot oil over your fingers. Your muscled classmate tried, unsuccessfully, to tug Taehyung’s arms from your body but for some reason, Taehyung’s hold on you was ironclad.

In the midst of Jungkook screaming in the background and the shouts of your other brothers, Taehyung sighed heavily and melted into your body. “I miss this,” he murmured.

Next Chapter: Press [ X ] for the Cheeky Type, Jimin! 

Chapter 8: Enter the Cheeky Type, Jimin!

Over the next few days, you slowly got used to the vibrant and varied personalities of the boys. The brothers were a rowdy bunch but they coaxed you out of your shell with unintentional hilarity and clumsy warmth. Even Jungkook, with your weird first meeting, took to accompanying you throughout school and engaging you in shy conversation. Visiting the house frequently, someone was always there to entertain you and coerce you into trying to move into the house.

However, as the days passed by, you saw neither hide nor hair of the mysterious seventh brother. None of the brothers seemed to be fazed. One day, as Namjoon drove you home, you decided to press the subject.

“Namjoon-ssi? Who is my seventh brother? I haven’t heard much of him,” you inquired shyly.

He hummed, leaning an arm casually against the window and driving between lanes with just one hand. Namjoon didn’t drive as recklessly as Jungkook, per se, but he seemed to think other cars were just nuisances on the road.

“I was wondering when you’d ask about that. Our other brother is not home a lot because he’s usually on tour,” Namjoon revealed in his deep voice. “He’s an idol.”

You gasped and looked at Namjoon in surprise. “You’re fucking with me.”

He chuckled, a chocolatey, rich sound that filled your ears and did funny things to your belly as he turned to exit the highway. “No, I’m not. Our little Chimmy is an idol.”

Taking out your phone, you opened up the web app. “Chimmy? Is that his name? Or does he have a stage name I need to find.”

Namjoon shook his head. “No, his name is Jimin. 23 years old, debuted 3 years ago.”

Smacking your head, you exclaimed, “Oh wait! I know him! I saw his birthday ads all over Seoul a few days ago. Wow, my brother is a celebrity, huh?” 

Typing his name into the search bar, millions of results popped into your browser. Gorgeous, fan-taken photos filled the image section and you clicked on one.

Wow. Jimin looked ethereal on stage, in a loose, white shirt and tight, black pants as he performed some sort of strenuous dance move. His plump lips, sharp jawline, and high cheekbones were still stunning in low quality photos. You were seriously starting to think your stepmother secretly paid for them from a lab. It really wasn’t fair that you, an average 4, were now related to solid fifteens. 

You clicked on a video with nearly 12 million views of him at a fanmeet event, his eyes crinkling and lips pulled up in a grin as he did aegyo for his adoring fans.

“He’s very popular, isn’t he?” you asked Namjoon rhetorically.

Namjoon snorted. “An understatement. We can’t go out in public with him unless he covers his hair and his entire face. He has security tailing him when we go to crowded places, it’s ridiculous.”

Something clicked in your head. “Ah!” you exclaimed. “That’s why you guys live there! And here I was, thinking you were all paranoid.”

His laugh filled the car again and you got a whiff of his musky cologne as he leaned over to adjust the air conditioner. “Yeah, even when we moved there a few years ago before Jimin’s popularity exploded, he had some crazy fans. Seoyeon, Jin, and I decided to choose Hannam Hill for their security.”

“You’re such good brothers,” you grinned at him. You swore you saw a hint of red beneath his collar as he cleared his throat.

“And we’re lucky we’re gaining such a good… sister.”

You tapped at your purse. “At least with my residence pass I won’t be detained now.”

The man next to you groaned and nearly facepalmed into the driver’s wheel.

“Do you have to remind me of this? I take it back, my sister sucks.”

——— 

Jungkook and you walked through the campus gates, finished with the Calculus class and exhausted after the test.

“Wait, shit, did I derive number eighteen right?” you fretted, your sweaty hands fiddling with your bag strap. “Oh my god now, I didn’t foil correctly!”

“Relax, Y/N, you did fine,” Jungkook snorted, no longer as painfully shy as he was when he first met you. You never did get why he had such a violent reaction to you at first, though.

“Easy for you to say, Mr. I-don’t-study-yet-I-still-get-A’s,” you huffed in annoyance, accidentally bumping shoulders with him.

He laughed and wrapped an arm around your shoulders, pulling you into his side. An ‘eep!’ escaped your mouth but you found you couldn’t protest as Jungkook looked down at you with the cutest, bunny smile you had seen.

“Relax, Y/N. It’s just one test.”

You sulked and crossed your arms, trying to push the heat in your cheeks away. Clearing your throat you ducked from underneath his arms. You thought you saw a flash of disappointment in Jungkook’s face, but you quickly linked arms with him so you could walk more comfortably. His eyes widened and he looked upwards, the tips of his ears a flaming red.

Ignoring several stares from your fellow university students, you walked to the campus parking lot where Jungkook had parked his car.

“Jungkook-ah? Which car did you drive today?” you asked, flushing a bit as you heard your own words. Imagine what the you from a few weeks ago would’ve said. What kind of rich bitch did you turn into?

“The silver one. The Mercedes,” he said casually but you knew he was beaming with pride. He had revealed to you, one day when driving home, that he bought this car with his streaming money and not with cash from his brothers or family. Jungkook was insanely protective of this car. 

“Gotcha.”

Throwing your bags into the backseat, he started up the car. Feeling that it was a bit hot, you decided to roll down the window. Fumbling for a hair tie in your bag, you decided that putting your hair up would be smart.

“—gry, Y/N?”

“Huh?” you asked confusion, hair tie in your mouth. 

“I just asked if you were hungry, Y/N?” he said, voice trailing off in a question as he looked up from his phone. His eyes widened at you.

“Um, not really? But if you are, I can whip us up something once we get home,” you said confidently, twisting your hair into the tie. Huh, when did you start calling it home?

“... Jungkook?”

He nervously cleared his throat as you looked at him, pulling back your hair into the tie. The tip of his ears were red and he seemed a bit flustered. Your brother fumbled with the controls, accidentally turning on the windshield wipers. Biting back a smile, you smoothed down your hair.

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

————— 

The house was silent as the two of you entered. It seemed no one was in the house today, all of your brothers very busy with their respective jobs.

“I’m going to take a shower, Y/N, “ Jungkook said as he climbed up the stairwell. 

You hummed affirmative as you threw your bag at the foot of the coffee table, collapsing into the comfy leather couch. Switching on the TV, you couldn’t find anything interesting so you settled on an entertainment channel.

“Thousands of fans crowded Incheon Airport’s International Terminal today…”

Snuggling into a sun spot on the couch, you nuzzled your face into a pillow. The warmth made you feel drowsy and you decided a quick nap was alright. Nodding off, you could hear the shower turn on upstairs.

“...as international Hallyu star Jimin arrived back in Korea …”

—————

“Oh? Who are you?”

You groggily opened your eyes to the high-pitched voice that was honey to your ears, an unconscious “huh?” coming out of your mouth. In your bleary vision, you saw lavender-blonde hair and pink, plump lips hovering above you.

The man snickered and you felt a smooth hand grasp your jaw to turn your head upwards. Your eyes focused and you swore you were still dreaming, because the face so close to yours could only be an angel’s. Ethereal eyes like a storm looked lazily down at you, his high cheekbones and narrow jaw highlighted by the warm light of golden hour.

“Are you a fan? You shouldn’t be here,” he scolded in a sing-song voice, clicking his tongue as he stroked a thumb over your chin.

You couldn’t think after being awoken from such a deep REM cycle and being near such an unearthly man, your thoughts jumbled and disjointed.

“Naughty, naughty girl,” he whispered, minty breath puffing against your face. “Well, if you’re here, I might as well make the most of it.”

With strength you hadn’t expected, he suddenly caged you into the couch— a leg between yours and the other on the floor, his hands trapping your hands above your heads. His silk shirt brushed against the exposed skin of your belly, making you shiver.

“H-hey!” you said, regaining your thoughts. “What the hell?”

He chuckled, a cruel edge to his voice as his face neared yours. “Oh, playing the innocent card are we?” His lips neared your ear and you froze, eyes wide as his plump lips brushed against your earlobe. “Don’t worry, baby girl, you’re pretty enough to pull it off.”

The man started to press a kiss at space between your ear and neck, and slowly started to trail down your sensitive neck. You inhaled sharply as his teeth and tongue prodded at your skin and he snickered, his voice vibrating against your skin. An involuntarily squeak left your lips as he bit playfully at your collarbone.

“H-Hyung?”

You both turned to see Jungkook, hair still wet from the shower, staring at you two in disbelief. His eyes were wide and his lips were opened in shock as he suddenly froze in the middle of the living room.

“Jungkookie!” the man said brightly, no trace of the breathy, seductive voice he had used to lull you into a trance. His limbs no longer trapped you as the lavender haired man sprang up and ran to the stock-still Jungkook.

“Aw, Jungkookie, I missed you,” the familiar yet still unknown man cooed as he clung to Jungkook’s broad shoulders. “It’s been so long,” he whined, lips pursed in a pout.

Still breathless from lavender boy’s attentions, you sat up on the couch and saw stars as the blood rushed to your head. Blinking to clear it away, you reached up to your neck to touch the spots where lavender boy had touched.

“Jungkook-ah?” you whispered, voice rough from lack of use. “Who’s this?”

Your classmate still stared at you in shock as lavender boy clung to him like a leech, cooing at Jungkook.

“Aw, is this your girlfriend, Jungkookie?” Angel boy said fretfully after a moment of silence. “I’m so sorry, I thought she was a fan! Forgive me!”

You cleared your throat nervously, righting your disheveled clothes and messy hair. “Look, I have no idea who the hell you are, but I am not Jungkook’s girlfriend nor your fan and either way, you should not be— be assaulting unsuspecting girls who just wanted to nap!”

“Who the hell am I?” Lavender boy retorted rudely, no longer seductive or cutesy as his eyes narrowed at you. “I live here, wench!”

“Well I’m about to, fool!” you sneered, crossing your arms.

“Jungkook-ie, call security as I deal with this clearly crazy lady!” The still unknown boy huffed, advancing towards you.

Jungkook finally got out of his trance and grabbed Jimin by the shoulder. “Jimin-Hyung, stop! Haven’t we talked about her in the groupchat a lot? She’s our new sister!”

Jimin froze and his eyebrows lifted minutely, whirling around to look at Jungkook. “Wait, what? We have a sister now?”

He looked at you differently, eyes scanning your figure disinterestedly. “Did Seoyeon—” he spat out the name like it was stale gum in his mouth, “—find another baby we didn’t know about? Another poor bastard like me?”

You got whiplash with how much he changed moods and started to inch away. Well, it seemed like your step brother was nothing like how he portrayed himself in the videos you had seen online about him. A frown pushed at your lips.

Jungkook pinched the bridge of his nose. “No, hyung, mom got married again to Y/N’s father. She’s our new step sister now.”

Jimin stayed silent before he turned to you again, his eyes mocking. A shit-eating smirk crawled up his lips. “Well, sister dearest, welcome to the family!”

Arc: Character Introductions Ended. Press [ X ] to continue?

A/N: If you’ve watched BroCon and you’re curious to who each person is based on, here’s the guide:

Jin (Doctor) = A mixture of Uyko and Masaomi

Namjoon (Businessman) = Natsume

Jungkook (Gamer/ Uni Student) = Yusuke

Hoseok (Dancer) = Himself lol he was supposed to be Subaru but i didn’t want to make him super angsty. Don’t worry, in this story he’ll be more than just his stage persona :)))

Taehyung (Magazine editor) = Louis

Yoongi (Producer) = mixture of Yuusuke’s tsundere-ness and Iori’s calmness

Jimin (Idol) = Fuuto with a bit of Tsubaki’s personality

Anyways, if you enjoyed it, please comment and reblog!!! I appreciate any feedback you may have, whether it be a sentence or a whole dang paragraph— I love it all :))) Please, if you’re doing okay, please help me pay for school through my Ko-Fi (link in my profile).

Arc II: Decisions and Settling In will be released in a month!! Comment if you’d like to be tagged :))

[thewritingginger]

Will It Ever Be The Same? P.1

Ok I made the first part of this idea I had that was going to be a one shot but it was getting kinda long so here's what I've got so far!

The beginning was a trip for me to write/edit when I decided to change the tense it was in 🥴  So forgive any mistakes, I’ve read and edited this as many times as I physically could handle before I got tired of the words on the screen :)

Enjoy ~

Fandom: Blood of Zeus Pairing: Seraphim x Fem! Reader Word count: 4.5k+ words  Warning(s): 16+, Mentions of violence and death, Angst, Fluff, (More might be added over course of writing)

Summary: Seraphim saved you from a pair of boys when you were young and from then on your friendship grew. Everything was perfect till disaster struck, causing you to flee. It’d be 10 year till you saw each other again. Will this rekindled friendship grow to be much more or will it end in disaster once again?

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

The midday sun was high in the sky, beating down on the flooded marketplace. There were stall keepers hollering their offers and deals that blended together with the rest of the nonsensical crowded chatter. “Make sure you keep up with me. You wouldn’t want to get lost again.” The boy's mother said, giving him a knowing glance as he refocused on their path.

He stood in a shaded bit by the shop hut as his mother was exchanging herbs and spices for coin pieces. His attention was then drawn to the sound of children yelling.

“Hey, wait up guys!” A girl, younger than he, yelled winded as she chased after a pair of boys.

“Leave us alone! We don’t want a girl with us, you’re too slow!”

“Yeah so go away.” A boy with sandy hair added as he shoved the girl to the ground. The duo started to laugh and make fun of her as she began to cry.

“Well that’s not very nice.” The boy’s mother said, breaking his attention. He turned to her with a raised brow.

“Well not like we can do anything about it.” He shrugged, about to walk away.

“Seraphim.” He stopped. “You should always try to help others if you can.” She smiled at him, sweeping her palm over his hair as she walked past him to the next stall. Letting out a huff he glanced up at the back of her head then back to the girl crying in the dirt.

Walking over to the two boys still joking and laughing he strode right up to the sandy haired boy and shoved him to the ground with a hard thud. “What the heck! What was that for?”

“Now you know how it feels to be pushed in the dirt.” With his hands on his hips Seraphim looked down at the boy then up to his accomplice - who took a step back.

“Whatever.” The boy stood up, dusting himself off. “Let’s get out of here, he can deal with her.” The two of them scampered off through the crowd as Seraphim turned to the sniffling girl.

Looking up she saw his extending hand. Hesitantly she reached for it and got up. “I’m… Seraphim.” He introduced awkwardly as she whipped away the remaining tears and snot on her sleeve.

“I’m Y/n.” She stuttered. “Thanks for helping me.”

“Yeah it was whatever. My mom said it’s good to help people so… that’s why I did it.” He scratched his head and looked around like he wished to be elsewhere than in silence with the snot nosed girl. “Well I’m gonna go, bye.”

“Wait!” She interjects. Twisting her hands together she then shook her head and looked down. “Nevermind.” Seraphim looked at her for a second more and before he could say or do anything else he heard his mother’s voice.

“Seraphim are you ready- Oh hello.” She smiled before looking down at her son. “I saw that some boys were giving you trouble. I hope my son wasn’t one of them.” Seraphim tsked and looked at his mom, a small curve of her lip grew while she kept her gaze towards the girl.

“Oh, no. He actually helped me, he pushed the boy that hurt me and got them to leave.” Seraphim gave a nervous smile to his mom when she raised a brow at him.

“Well I’m glad my boy could help you. I’m Ariana, would you like to join us for lunch?” His mother asked, which caused Seraphim’s head to whip towards her but she just chuckled sweetly.

“Uh, I don’t want to be a bother…” the girl trails off meekly glancing at the dark haired boy before looking to the ground.

“Nonsense! We would love to have you join us. Right Seraphim?” She places her hand on his bare shoulder.

“Yeah, sure.”

~~~

Seraphim’s mom directed the two of you to go hangout in the shade as she gathered a few more things.

Sitting under a tree, Ariana’s back still in sight, you and Seraphim were in silence. He was standing with a  stick in hand, prodding the ground and loosely swinging around like a sword as you ran your fingers in the grass picking at the small white flowers littered about. Growing bored you asked, “How old are you?”

“Twelve.” He responded, crouching down to look in the dirt.

“Oh well I’m ten.” You started to feel like he didn’t want you around because the conversation just teetered off from there.

About 15 minutes later you heard Seraphim’s mom “Okay, are you two ready to get some lunch going?” She smiled at the two of you. Walking a bit ahead of them you noticed Ariana whispering to her son before she directed you towards the entrance of the forest. “This way, my dear.”

After walking for about 10 more minutes you were in a clearing with a river and a small cave. “Wow, do you guys live here?” You asked, looking at the pretty flowers around the edges.

“Yes we do. You know Seraphim was gonna catch us some fish, if you’d like, I’m sure he’d enjoy the help.” You turned to join them by the river and you heard Seraphim give a quiet whine.

“Mom I can do it myself.” His mother just shook her head and walked away to get things together in their rock home. Then it was just you two. Again.

Maybe I should just go help his mom instead You thought, as you turned to walk away Seraphim interrupted you.

“Where are you going? Aren’t you gonna help me?” He asked, looking up from the spear he was sharpening with a pointed look.

“Oh I thought I could go help your mom. I don’t want to get in your way.” Standing up with a small huff he walked away towards the hut leaving you alone by the river. A few minutes later he arrived back, breaking your thoughts as he stuck the base of a spear in the ground next to you, his other hand holding another.

“Here. Now you can actually help me instead of standing around.” He leaned it towards you to take with a trace of a forced smile on his lips.

So for the next hour you were practically just standing in awe of how Seraphim stood in the gentle flowing river looking for fish and throwing his spear in the water. He even tried to teach you the best way to catch fish as well.  “You want to make sure you don’t disrupt the water too much when you move or you’ll scare them away.” You just nodded and focused on what he is doing in hopes to replicate it.

Standing in the middle of the river a few pases away from the boy you suddenly felt something slippery touch your ankle. Letting out a squeal Seraphim looked at you just in time to see you fall back in the water.

“Something just touched me!” Looking up with eyes the size of dinner plates, you just saw Seraphim laughing. Really laughing, with his spear in the water using it as a crutch as his head reared back. “What’s so funny?” You asked, your face began to heat up.

“It was just a fish you scaredy cat.” He said between laughter. “Are you okay?” He walked over to you offering a hand, much like he did earlier in the day but much warmer than before.

Standing up dripping wet you decided you were done “fishing” for one day. Besides, Seraphim had already caught five fish to your zero.

Walking back to the cave where a fire has been made you sat on a log.

A hand rested on your shoulder, “Here Y/n. How about you change into this and we can lay your clothes out to dry.” Ariana said, handing you what looks to be one of her simple cotton dresses. You accepted it and trudged into the cave to do so. The dress, as you expected, was way too big on you. You had to hold the skirt up so it wouldn’t drag on the ground as you made your way back to the fire pit. Seraphim was roasting the fish over the fire, snorted when he saw your new attire. You were right to think you looked ridiculous. “Y/n, you look lovely. Doesn’t she?” Ariana gave her son a look.

“Yup, she sure does.” He said, trying to hold back another chuckle. You just rolled your eyes at him and took a seat.

Ariana laid your drenched clothes out on a giant rock that was soaked in the sun's rays.

From there everything went quite smoothly. You actually ended up spending the rest of the day with them till the sun was beginning to hang low above the horizon. You honestly had so much fun. Once the newness between you two wore off it became much easier to talk and play.

After your clothes weren’t soaking wet anymore you spent much time after eating, running around in the forest and even playing in the river looking for cool rocks.

But all things have to come to an end at some point.

“Y/n, don’t you need to head home? It’ll be nightfall before you know it.” Ariana reminded the two of you of the time. As you walked back to the cave you thanked the woman for allowing you to stay. “It was not trouble. You’re more than welcome to come back anytime, I’m sure Seraphim would enjoy the company as well.” She smiled. The boy in question looked at her.

“Mom!”  He whispered, embarrassed.

“Oh hush now. You should walk her home, make sure she gets back safe.” His mom nudged him forward as she left you two.

At that point walking side by side wasn’t too weird anymore. “Thanks for letting me play with you.” You said.

“Yeah, it was fun.” He smiled.

A few times throughout your journey home the two of you got side tracked, to look at different rocks, flowers and even by an animal passing by.

“That’s my house over there.” You pointed towards a modest cobblestone hut with a straw roof. “Thanks, again.”

Standing at the door Seraphim gave you a nod. “You’re welcome. See ya.” He turned but you stopped him.

“Wait, would you like to- Maybe we can hang out again? There’s a place over here that has a lot of rocks. Maybe you can find some for your collection?” You said, wringing your hands together, admittedly a nervous tic. He thought about it for a few seconds then nodded his head again.

“Sure, that sounds cool. But I should go now before my mom worries. See ya later Y/n.” He said with a slight smile and wave.

~~~

The next few weeks you and Seraphim began hanging out more and more till it became an everyday occurrence. After the first week Seraphim’s mom wasn’t even surprised by your presence.

“Good, you two are just in time to help me pick apples.”

That day you met their bears. It came as quite a startle when you just saw a bear walking up from behind Seraphim. “Oh my god, there's a bear!”

“Don’t worry, these guys won't hurt you.”  He said as he scratched the animal next to him. Taking a few experimental steps forward, the bear accepted your touch when Seraphim guided your hand atop the creature's head. It’s black fur was so soft you couldn’t help but wrap your fingers in it and smile. Then not only did you have Seraphim to play with but also a few adorable bear cubs to pet and roll around with as well.

~~~

Though all this joy would soon come to an end a few short weeks later.

You and Seraphim were fishing in the river a bit away from his home. That day he brought his bow and you your spear. You were actually getting better and even managed to catch one that day. Heading back to the camp laughing Seraphim stopped abruptly making you bump into him. “Hey, wha-”

“Shh.” He cut you off. You felt uneasy by the seriousness on his once smiling face. You heard male voices and then a woman’s cry. Sticking close behind him, he crept around the lightly wooded area of your destination. Peering through the foliage of the forest you saw that it was Seraphim’s mother who cried and she was with company that seemed less than welcomed. There was a group of men holding swords talking to Ariana that was kneeling on the ground before one of them.

“Where’s the boy?” The man barked.

Seraphim? You look at your friend, his eyes glued on his mom. The grip on his bow tightened.

“I swear there is no one here but-” Her pleas are cut off by a sharp smack, you saw Seraphim’s body tense as if he was about to stand up. You grabbed the cloth around his waist to silently stop him, your eyes pleading. He glared at you, eyes locked. As you are growing more frightened you can see the fire in him was building.

Your staring contest was broken by a new voice. There was another  woman the man referred to as Ariana’s sister. Your blood ran cold when you witnessed her apologizing before one of the men stabbed their sword through the back of her neck. Covering your mouth your eyes began to brim over with tears. Seraphim’s reaction was just as shocked till he saw another man grab his mother’s neck, strangling her.

Pulling out one of the arrows he readied his bow, his mother looked at the two of you with worry filled eyes. They were screaming for you to run, to leave before the two of you were hurt. Which was exactly what everything inside you was telling you to do but your body felt numb and unable to move. You were then soon brought back to earth when Seraphim released the arrow into the back of that man’s skull, the head sticking out his mouth.

Before climbing the tree he shoved you to the ground. “Get out of here!” His command startled you. You couldn’t just leave him.

After that everything happened so fast it felt like daze. First the bears you’ve played with countless times charged in mauling the men as Seraphim shot arrows at others. Then everything slowed when you saw your friend racing towards his mother as the man in charge grabbed her and sliced his blade across her throat, a wicked grin you’ll never forget played on his lips. Your heart broke for the loss for your friend and from his cry.

You wanted to look away or run, anything besides watching this nightmare playing out before you. The family you found was getting cut down one by one. The bears, Ariana, and all that was left was Seraphim.

You wanted to scream. Get to him. Anything to stop what was happening in front of your eyes. But you couldn’t. What could’ve you done? You could barely catch a fish without Seraphim’s help so you were forced to watch him face off against a grown man with a sword. This can’t be happening! Run! Your mind was pleading but you were frozen in fear once again. No matter how much you prayed to the gods it was all a dream and to make it stop, it didn’t.

Then in a horrifying moment you witnessed the vicious man’s blade strike down Seraphims face. He fell and so did you. Hiding behind the bushes your palms cupped over your mouth, trying to muffle your tears and quickened breath. Then once more a fire was lit under your ass when you heard more screams from the men and the roar of another bear. This time you got up and ran like Seraphim told you to. Glancing back all you saw was someone riding away on a horse and the blurred image of two figures crumpled on the ground.

~ 10 years later ~

For the past few years you’ve been working odd jobs where you can to earn coin. You’ve swept shop fronts, washed and fed horses, and stocked shop stalls with newly delivered goods.

At the moment you were working at a small tavern, filling drinks and cleaning tables.

You were out front serving a couple when you heard some commotion.

“Hey! Watch where you are going asshole!” A man yelled to another.

Probably just a drunk that wasn’t watching where he was going and is looking for a fight. The man just tsks, “Freak.” Before walking past you. Looking up, you catch a glimpse of the man he was referring to as he was pulling his hood back up. You paused. 

That guy- 

But you’re pulled from your thoughts by a voice. “Excuse me.” An older woman calls you, cup held up. You sighed and got back to work.

~~~

Another long day of work is over, thankfully. “Okay, I’m heading home. See ya tomorrow.” You wave to your friend as you leave through the back of the tavern. Turning the corner you see a large figure in a cloak. It resembles the man you couldn’t shake from your thoughts some weeks ago. You decide, against your better judgment, to take a detour and circle around a building hoping to be in a position to catch another look at his face. You don’t allow yourself a moment to really answer yourself as to why it was so important, you just let your legs guide the way.

Crossing the road, the evening sun casting it in a warm orange glow, you stopped at an abandoned stall that was shaded behind the building, trying to get a look of him from the corner of your eye.

Then your eyes locked!

You looked down and tried to walk away as nonchalantly as possible but you were stopped by a booming voice.

“Why are you following me?” The mystery man asks. You froze, turning on your heel to face him. You are about to respond when your words get caught in your throat. You must’ve looked like an idiot with your mouth ajar. It can’t be, can it? He gives a tsk as he begins to step away

“Seraphim?” You finally say. It came out as more of a whisper to yourself but he must’ve heard cause now it was his turn to freeze. You shake your head, That’s ridiculous! “I-I’m sorry. I must have the wrong-”

“How do you know my name?” He cuts you off, turning towards you, advancing a few steps. His build is much more threatening at a closer distance and his question certainly didn’t help. Though it was more of a command. You just open and close your mouth to find the words. Any words, literally anything at all would work just so you could stop looking like a fool that hit their head. Which you might have because this can’t be happening.

“Is it really you?” He just squints his eyes. “You remember me right? We played together a lot as children.” You can tell your words have begun to sink in the more his eyes scanned you, his face drops. Standing there, nerves getting the better of you, you began to rub your palms together awaiting his response. You’d be relieved even if he just spat a “fuck you” in your face cause than atleast there wouldn’t be this deafening silence. Unable to keep his gaze you look away but you can still feel his eyes burning a hole into the side of your head.

“…Y/n?” He finally says. Your name travels hesitantly past his lips. You feel like you might pass out or scream or just simply cry cause it’s him. It’s really him!

His expression reads the same as yours. For a final silent second of looking over each other you take a tentative step towards him, he stays like a statue.

Standing before him you think about touching him.

He is just like you remember, minus the height and strong build, his tanned skin and long brown hair you were always so jealous of. Though when your eyes reach his face yours falls, he notices and turns his away slightly.

His eye.

The right one is the same hue of obsidian as you remember but his left is cut through with a scar and left white.

That must have been from that day. You shudder at the thought.

Reaching up your palm grazes his cheek, he stiffens from your touch. You don’t know why you did that. Maybe you just needed proof that this wasn’t all a dream. That your old friend really is flesh and blood before you.

Turning his gaze to yours, you tilt your head taking him in. He really is the Seraphim you remember just… hardened.

“I- I thought you died.” You say, voice threatening to cry, because perhaps some part of him did that day and in the years apart.

He stays silent a moment longer, you assume it’s due to the similar shock you’re feeling. But then he pulls your hand away before turning. “You’d be better off keeping it that way.”

His body moves further into the shadows and you feel your blood begin to heat up. Does he really think he can just walk away like that?

Stomping after him you catch his shoulder and spin him back towards you, his brows raised. “What’s the big idea? What do you mean I should keep it that way?” Your hands are on your hips, chest is heaving. Unsure as to why you’re reacting like this you just keep your eyes locked with his.

“Do you have any idea how many nights I spent beating myself up for not going to you? The countless years I’ve spent wishing I could see you again? Just for you to tell me, now that that would be possible, that it’s better that I think you dead?”

After your outburst your arms drop to your side. You look up hoping to halt the tears threatening to seep out and just when you were about to tell him to forget it he responds.

“I don’t know what you’re hoping for Y/n but -” He trails off.

“You want to know what I was hoping for? That you were alive and I could see you just one last time even if that was all I’d be allowed.” You let out a breathy chuckle. “Call it pathetic if you want but… you were my only friend and I missed you. I mean it became pretty lonely without you.” You wipe away a loose tear that betrayed your will.

“Then what do you want?” He asks. You look back up with glossy eyes.

“Meet me tomorrow. I have work but I’ll be off two hours till nightfall and if either of us wants to leave after, then that will be that.” You say matter of factly with your hands on your hips. Another moment passes with him in silence. You let out a defeated sigh. “You know what, forget it.”

“I never said no.” His eyes bore into you in thought before continuing. “Meet me at the river.”

And that was it.  He turned and walked back into the dimming streets, hood pulled high before you could say anything else.

So to say you were a bit shaken would be an understatement. Walking home you just kept replaying the image of his face and his voice.

He’s changed so much. Well of course he has, it's been a decade since you last saw him. He’s practically a stranger at this point.

A stranger…

And you’re going to be meeting with said stranger at the river before dusk tomorrow. Leaning against the door of your home you knock the back of your head against the wood. Y/n, what have you gotten yourself into?

Getting through the door you just flop yourself onto your bed, not bothering to change. The whole night was spent tossing and turning thinking about the coming day.

This is a bad idea! You don’t even know him. I mean sure he is your friend but what if he isn’t the boy you remembered? What if things are weird? What if he’s... different?

You somehow managed to sleep, though your unconscious mind was still spinning with thoughts of Seraphim. You had a dream, a memory actually. One you almost forgot.

~~~

You were running around in the forest like you guys did countless times. But this time the two of you were ‘battling’ but you were doing a lot more running than fighting.

“Come back and face me! For I the mighty Seraphim will take you down!” The raven hair boy declared boisterously, making you laugh. The air was filled with the sound of rustling leaves and laughter from the two of you. You saw a clearing up a head which would make a perfect arena. However, you didn’t make it there before your foot got caught on an outstretched tree root. Tumbling to the ground you let out a small cry. “Y/n! Are you okay?”

Seraphim kneeled beside you on the damp earth. Looking you over he sees you clutching your knee to your chest. “Let me see it.” He said. You removed your hands to show him, you scraped your knee pretty badly. It was starting to bleed a little but nothing too unmanageable. “Stay here, I'll be right back.” He instructed before rushing towards his home.

About 10 minutes passed and your tears had stopped, though you were sure your eyes were red and your nose snotty. You hear rustling coming towards you and looking up you see the boy returning with a small pale of water and a cloth. “My mom is still at the market so this is the best I could do.”

He soaked the clean cloth in the water and started to wipe your wound. “OUCH!” Your knee jerked away from his touch.

“Sorry. But you need to wash it so it doesn't get worse.” You nodded your head and allowed him to continue. You kept wincing and hissing every so often.

Whilst cleaning your knee Seraphim saw you had a big splinter. “Uh this might hurt but I’ll do it quickly.” He tried to reassure you. Bracing yourself he took out the small piece of wood, you actually started to cry again - which felt embarrassing.

Once your knee was as clean as he could get it he then wrapped the clean side of the cloth around your knee. “Are you okay?” He asked, his onyx eyes laced with concern.

“Yeah, thanks.” you sniffle, wiping away the tears from your cheeks. Seraphim leaned towards you and placed a small peck on your cheek, which startled you. “What are you doing?”

“Uh, well I uh- you were hurt so I gave you a kiss better.” He hastily stuttered as he got up and dusted himself off. Without looking at you he extended his hand for you to take. “We should head back, my mom should be there by now.” He then took your hand and started walking back.

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

Wow. Okey if you made it through that I hope you enjoyed it. This start feels a bit rocky but lets hope it only goes up from here 😅  

I’m definitely more of a One shots & HCs kinda girl not a big Fic writer, perhaps that’s because I haven’t done much multi part/”chapter” writing before so 🤷🏻‍♀️

If you enjoyed this let me know your thoughts :3

💛 ~

~ Masterlist ~

[sunfleurry]

Fires and Flames

Warnings: Smut, language, & alcohol.

Disclaimer: I write stories and use Harry Styles as a face claim. In no way shape or form does my writing reflect how I perceive the actual Harry to be. These are my characters, the face is just a bonus!

I should’ve left the minute I saw the look in his eyes when I told him. I was laying with my head on his chest, my bare skin sticking to his with the sheen of sweat covering our bodies. His fingers were lightly tracing the length of my spine as we caught our breaths in the quiet of the night under the lavish chandelier he had splurged on for his bedroom. I knew he could feel my heart rate speed up as my mind fought the urge to tell him, just tell him how I felt—how I still feel—before the courage I had would slip away. So, I did.

“I love you.”

If the room wasn’t quiet before, it was quiet now as his fingers stilled and we both stopped breathing. In my case, it was because I wanted to put all my focus on his response, his reaction, anything. In his case, well, I didn’t know why he did that. I thought it was from pure shock of hearing me say it for the first time, but deep down, I knew it was because of a deeper reason. A reason that would only be the downfall of what was once considered “us.” And I saw it coming the moment we met.

________________

My friend Vi was yelling something in my ear but I could barely hear her over the loud music, so I simply nodded. She looked at me weird and I realized that nod may have been the wrong response.

“I can’t hear anything you’re saying,” I yelled.

She leaned over and cupped her hands around my ear and proceeded to loudly repeat what she said. “That guy has been staring at you since we got here.”

“Who?”

She pointed at the bar and I followed her finger until I spotted a man in his mid-twenties who was alone, nursing a cup of God knows what. When we made eye contact, he nodded his head in acknowledgement then took a sip of his drink.

He was cute.

“Should I go talk to him?” I asked Vi.

“Are you kidding me? If you don’t I will.”

I laughed. She had a point. He was handsome, what with his brown hair that curled slightly around his ears and forehead, or the tattoos that littered his arms. I eyed his clothing and wondered if there were more underneath.

Straightening myself, I awkwardly started walking towards him, extra cautious of my ankles as I hoped my heels wouldn’t betray me in front of the handsome stranger. Seeing me approach, he set his glass on the counter, and watched me make my way over. I was getting self-conscious under his gaze, but I kept my head held high until finally I was standing right in front of him.

“Are you going to ask for my number or are you going to keep staring at me all night?” My words exuded the confidence I was not feeling on the inside.

His lips twitched, the corners turning upwards. It was barely noticeable, and I had to rip my eyes away from his gorgeous green ones to see it. “How about we skip all of that and go straight to mine.”

I laughed in disbelief. “No thank you.”

The man nodded in understanding, then turned back to his glass.

I don’t know why I didn’t leave him alone after that. Why was he here all alone? I asked him just that.

He slowly turned his body towards me before looking away a moment later. “Can’t a man go out for a drink on his own? Maybe I like my own company.”

“You don’t seem to be having a fun time.” I was overstepping it. Who was I to make assumptions about a stranger?

He sighed and looked down at his drink. I decided to sit next to him. “What’s your name?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

I rolled my eyes. Well, I tried. I put my palms on the counter to lift myself up when a ringed hand covered my own.

“It’s Harry,” he said.

I studied his face, trying to understand what exactly was going on inside his head. He had the eyes of a boy trying his best to make up for a mistake he didn’t know he made. He almost seemed desperate for me to forgive his aloofness. It was as if he was just learning how to be social for the first time.

I smiled and replied with my own name.

________________

Harry didn’t say anything for the longest thirty seconds of my life. I lifted my head to peer at him, trying to gauge what he was thinking. He was frowning lightly, his gaze fixed on my face but not my eyes. He seemed to be frozen on the outside, but I knew that his thoughts were running a mile a minute–it’s what he does. He’s an overthinker, and that moment was not different from all the other moments he had to stop and think about people’s intentions towards him.

I would be lying if I said the fact that he had to question my confession didn’t sting, or that the look in his eyes was nothing of what I wanted to see. I wanted to see relief, happiness, contentment. But all I saw was nothing. Emptiness.

Finally, he opened his mouth, and I stupidly felt a surge of hope, but then he closed it without a sound—and my hope deflated.

I leaned over and softly brushed my lips to his cheek. “It’s okay,” I whispered before I started detaching myself from him. I wanted to cry but not in front of him. Instead, with a heavy lump in my throat and tears threatening to spill, I found my panties on the floor and slipped them on, then threw his button up over my shoulders.

I heard rustling behind me, then my name sounding from his mouth stopped me at the doorway to his bathroom.

I turned around and he winced. I imagined it was because the emotion I’ve always been bad at hiding was clear as day on my face. It’s something I struggled with since I was a child and still try to work on to this day.

He was sat up now, the blanket covering his lower half, his back slightly curved. He looked at me with a pained face. “I don’t–”

“I know,” I sighed before concealing myself completely from his view by finally closing the door behind me and letting out a large breath. I clutched at the fabric covering my chest, as if I was holding in my aching heart, my tears spilling, one by one. I dropped my head in my hands to stifle my sobs, not wanting him to hear how much he affected me. I’m not sure why I thought that would work, when not two minutes ago I told him I loved him.

________________

That night, we ended up in my bed together.

“Yes,” I gasped, “harder.”

He fucked me like I’d never been fucked before. He was rough the way I liked it–he quickly learned how to push my buttons.

I was on my knees, my face pressed into the mattress as he took me the way he wanted to. My hands clenched around the sheets at a particular hard thrust and he groaned when I tensed around him. I gasped when he pulled out but then he flipped me over on my back. I smiled as he got on top of me, his arms caging my head, before he entered me once again.

I was mesmerized by the intensity in his eyes as he stole pleasure from my body. I wrapped my legs around his hips as did my arms around his shoulders to bring him closer to me. I welcomed his comforting weight on top of me.

I carded my fingers through his hair and when he moved his gaze from my breasts to my face, I couldn’t resist but lift my head and connect our lips. Upon realizing what I did, I quickly pulled away and opened my mouth to apologize profusely.

“I told you not to kiss me,” he panted as he pulled out of me.

“I know I’m sorry! I don’t know what got over me, I was just in the moment.”

He rolled off and slumped on the bed beside me, the both of us breathing hard. He was quiet, I didn’t know if he was expecting me to say anything else or if he was planning on leaving.

I swallowed and stared up at the ceiling feeling guilty. One of the first things he had told me when when we got in the cab was not to kiss him. I thought it was a weird request, and I was kind of bummed, but I respected it. I tried to at least.

I was about to start another wave of apologies, but I didn’t have time to think about what was happening before Harry leaned his weight on his elbow to slot his lips with mine. I didn’t think twice as I kissed him back, brushing away the initial shock. I realized at that moment that I liked kissing him. A lot.

With his lips still moving with mine, he got back on top of me, and finished what he started.

________________

After a moment of trying to control my breathing, I slipped off what little clothing I had on and climbed into the shower. The steamy water hitting my body helped me relax and my mood lifted slightly as I washed and soaped my skin and hair. Watching the water fall down the drain, I imagined it to be my feelings, one by one, disappearing into the ground and out of sight.

I faintly heard the bathroom door open, then his footsteps, and finally the shower door. Harry climbed in behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist, and pulled me closer, holding me against him. His damp curls tickled my cheek when he leaned forward and kissed my neck twice, before bringing his lips up to my ear.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

I swallowed the lump that had once again formed in my throat. I brought my hand to my stomach where his arms were and entwined our fingers. “I’m not taking it back. I meant it.”

He kissed my skin again. “I know.”

I rolled my lips inward as I nodded my head once, then turned around, his arms still encircling my body. I reached up and gently held his face to simply lock eyes with him. I secretly cursed him for making my heart stutter just by looking at him, at those eyes that say so much, yet nothing all at once. I’d always been captivated by them, not just by their striking green colour, but the stories they hid. Every day, I tried so hard to read him, understand what he was thinking about, what he was worrying about, what he was remembering–I even asked him at times, “what are you thinking about?” or “what is it?” He’d always just shrug, smile and kiss me to make me forget. But I never forgot.

________________

It wasn’t the first time this happened. I was in the kitchen washing the dishes and he was in his room. I was drying my hands when suddenly I heard him call out my name. The tone of his voice had me drop the towel on the floor and hurry towards his bedroom. He was leaning over his dresser, an arm on the top keeping him upright as he took shallow breaths.

“Oh, Harry,” I whispered as I rushed to his side.

I carefully led him to his bed to have him sit down. “Breathe with me,” I said, gently.

His eyes were wild as he tried to comply. I breathed calmly and grabbed his hand, urging him to copy me. The contact seemed to help as he started to calm down.

“Now count with me,” I said. “We’re going to get through this.”

After a while, his breathing finally eased up, and tears welled in his eyes but didn’t fall.

“Come here,” I said as I helped him lay down. I crawled behind him and tangled our legs together while I hugged his back to my chest. I kissed his hair as I worked on keeping my breathing steady, making sure he was still doing the same.

“Don’t ever leave me,” he croaked.

“I’m right here,” I whispered into his hair.

“I need you.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

________________

He let go of me when I grabbed the shampoo. I squeezed some onto my palm as he sat on the protruding ledge in the shower, making it easier for me to reach his hair. One thing I knew about Harry was that he loved it when I washed his hair. I didn’t mind, because it gave me an excuse to run my hands through it, another feature to admire of the man I fell in love with. I could feel my eyes stinging once again and this time I let the tears fall freely. He was peering up at me as I lathered his hair with my fingertips, making sure I soaped his roots thoroughly. I hoped my tears were blending into the water–that he didn’t know I was crying–but then his face fell in concern.

“Hey,” he slid his hands behind my thighs to urge me closer. “Come here.”

That did it for me. A sob clawed its way out of my throat, and Harry quickly sat me on his lap as I buried my face into his neck and let everything I was holding in escape. I felt him lean forward before the water was shut off and we were left in the steam of the shower as I proceeded to break in his arms.

________________

“What the fuck is this, Harry?” I was seething.

“It’s not what it looks like.”

“Of course it’s what it looks like!” I yelled as I shoved the phone in his face.

“They’re just friends,” he sighed.

Tears of frustration welled up as I tried to grasp at this whole mess. “You left, Harry. Without a fucking word and days later I find pictures of you at some beach resort with a random girl all over you?”

He held his hands up. “We were just dancing, I promise.”

I pulled at the roots in my hair. “You don’t get it! Forget what you were doing at that exact moment, Harry! I visit you every day because I care about you and I get worried about you and I want to make sure you’re okay. Then one day you don’t answer the door and excuse me for thinking of the worst case scenario! You don’t answer my calls or my texts, hell, I even fucking emailed you, only to find out days later via Instagram that you were outside of the fucking country having the time of your life?!”

I fell back on the couch feeling nothing but raw anger and hurt as I waited for him to say something.

He got on his knees in front of me but I moved my head out of the way when he tried to cup my face. “Don’t touch me.”

“Baby–”

I balled my hands into fists. “Don’t call me that, I don’t want to hear you calling me that right now.”

“Fine, fine,” he cried. He hugged my legs and laid his head on my knees. “I’m so sorry. You may not believe me but I thought of you every day while I was gone.”

I scoffed at that and crossed my arms over my chest, making sure I didn't touch him. I quickly wiped at the wetness on my cheek, not wanting him to see that I am not only mad, but also sad and hurt. “Disrespect me one more time and we’re over, Harry.”

His head snapped up and panic took over his features. “No, please. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

I started crying because everything was too much for me. He did something that had me panicking for days.

“I don’t deserve you,” he continued.

“This isn’t the first time you do this, Harry,” I sniffled. He got off the floor and pulled me into his arms as he laid back on the couch.

“I know and I am so sorry. I don’t know what came over me. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed, and I feel like I’m in a box, like my surroundings are closing in. It makes me want to escape, it’s animalistic, I feel like I’m going crazy. At that moment, as if someone was listening to my prayers to make it go away, my friend called me asking me if I wanted to go on a short getaway with him and some other people. I said yes and out of sheer desperation, booked a flight right away.”

“And you didn’t even think of me.”

He held me tight. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t know what I was thinking. It was like I blacked out. Again, I am so sorry.”

I let out a long, exhausted breath. I knew what I was getting myself into when I met Harry yet I still went through with it. He was a sad man, a broken man and I still believed he would be the perfect boyfriend. “It’s okay,” I rubbed his chest. “It’s okay.”

As we both laid there in each other’s arms, I couldn’t help but think, I shouldn’t have been comforting him. He was supposed to be comforting me.

________________

“Please don’t cry,” I heard him say as he brushed back my wet hair, the majority of it sticking to my neck. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

I continued to cry into his neck, not believing how much I had bottled up until that moment. Suddenly I felt wet droplets soak my skin, and I knew it wasn’t the water.

A sniffle escaped Harry and it confirmed my suspicions as he hugged me closer and cried with me. “I don’t deserve you,” he whispered brokenly.

I closed my eyes, as we held each other tightly, and didn’t deny it. He was right, I thought sadly, he didn’t deserve me. He put me through hell, and I let him. I naively believed that I could change him, make him feel better–fix him. I wanted to laugh at myself. How could I have been so stupid? He pushed me away too many times to count, yet I stubbornly stayed. Because I loved him. I let myself fall in love with him. And now we’re both facing the heartbreak that’s been looming over our relationship–or whatever it was–since the start.

When I reluctantly leaned back to look at him, I wanted to break down all over again. I’d never seen him cry, and it was a sight I wished I could unsee because his sadness felt like a stab in my heart. I always knew he was a sad man but I’d never seen it on his face so clearly. I saw it through his actions, through his words, but seeing the red eyes, the lowered brows, the downturned lips that I thought about every day, and the tears that littered his red cheeks made me wish I was some magical being who can erase the broken pieces of him.

His gaze followed the movement of my throat as I swallowed then it lifted back up to my own. It was like we were having a silent conversation with our eyes–like we were both dreading opening our mouths and actually sounding out the words that would be the end of us. Then his hand trailed up my skin and the pressure of it on the back of my head encouraged me to lean forward and attach my lips to his.

________________

I smiled brightly as I spotted Harry sitting on a park bench reading a book. He looked so handsome in his tortoise shell glasses and messy hair. As if sensing my presence, he looked up and the smile that graced his features made me want to melt in a puddle. That smile. All for me, I thought giddily as I hurried my pace, eager to be in his arms.

Then, I felt a tug on my skirt and fingers brushing the skin on my thighs. My eyes widened as I looked at the man who had just walked by me and didn’t even look back. When I snapped my gaze to Harry, he was already marching towards the man who had touched me, completely ignoring my pleas to let it go.

“Are you okay?” He asked, eyes still glaring at the man who was now talking to a woman ten metres away.

“I’m fine, Harry,” I said warily, putting my hands on his chest.

“That fucking entitled prick,” he said, anger boiling inside him.

“It’s all good, calm down.”

“Fuck this,” he brushed my hands off and stomped towards the man. The latter barely got a look at him before my boyfriend’s fist connected with his face.

The woman and I let out a short scream. I ran towards Harry, pulling his shoulders to get him off the stranger who was now on the floor, flimsily blocking the onslaught of Harry’s hits to his face.

“Harry! Stop!”

He didn’t seem to hear me as he didn’t let up. I looked around for help, but everyone seemed happy to watch two men fight. I gasped when the man was able to hit Harry in the jaw. There was no room for careful consideration before I flung myself towards the two men with the intention of throwing myself in between them before someone grabbed me by the waist.

“Get off me!” I yelled at the boy who was holding me back but he only laughed.

I was beyond exasperated and annoyed. “Harry, I swear to God if you don’t stop I will turn around and never look back.”

He seemed to hear that at least. The creep put me down, thankfully before Harry saw.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”

________________

I poured every emotion into the kiss. I held his head in my hands as our lips moved together in sync, like they always did. I was telling him I loved him again with that kiss. He nudged my leg and I complied with his silent request to bring it over his lap to straddle him.

He deepened the kiss as his arms snaked around my waist. He’d never kissed me like that, like he was desperately trying to make me understand who he was and why he was the way he was. He kissed me with love and comfort, happiness and fulfillment, but also with sadness and regret, sorrow and dejection.

I was growing tired of my tears but they seemed to be here to stay as my eyes started watering again. “I don’t know how I’ll live after this,” I choked but he only shook his head as he brushed a piece of my hair behind my ear.

“You are the most amazing person I’ve ever met. Listen to me,” he pleaded when I looked down, unable to hold eye contact. He nudged my chin up to lock eyes once again. “You are the light of my life. And I’m begging you,” he whispered, his breath fanning my lips, “don’t let me be the reason that light goes out. I’ve done enough damage, don’t let me do any more.”

________________

I loved him like this. Relaxed, no creases between his eyebrows, a smile on his face. We were spending the afternoon at my place–talking and laughing about stupid things, the wine we drank making us even more giggly.

We were progressing with our relationship and I was somewhat satisfied with it. I knew it would be tough to get him to open up, but slowly and surely, he’d been getting much more comfortable around me–enough to tell me more about himself. Not his secrets of course, the ones that left him the broken man he is, but he was definitely becoming more affectionate. He was letting me in. I had seen pictures of his brothers and sisters and his mother and father around the house but every time I asked about them, he’d shut down.

I asked him again another time and he gave me a little more.

“They’re not around anymore.”

That could mean so many different things, but I decided that was enough for now. I was satisfied with the fact that he was able to give me that sliver of information. Any progress was good progress.

“We’re all out of wine,” I pouted as I stared at the empty bottle on the coffee table, leaning back into the loveseat.

He chuckled. “There may or may not be an extra bottle in the kitchen.”

I jumped up and started making my way to the kitchen but as I passed by him, he intercepted me and I squealed as he left me to fall on his chest. “I hate you,” I laughed.

He kissed my nose, making me giggle. “No you don’t”

“No I don’t.”

“See?” He asked as his hand tickled my side.

I squirmed out of the way, an obnoxious laugh escaping me. “I need to get the wine.”

“I don’t want wine anymore,” Harry said, encouraging me to lay my head on him. “I have you now.”

I sighed in contentment and smiled as I listened to his heartbeat.

________________

“I love you.”

“Don’t,” he winced. “Please.”

I kissed him again and he responded without hesitation. This time, the kiss held more passion and fervour. It reminded me of the first time we had sex almost a year and a half ago, when it was all a rush and we couldn’t get enough of each other. I moaned when his tongue touched mine and he reached down to slip his fingers between my folds, the palm of his hand a constant pressure on my clit. I whined into his mouth when he inserted a finger inside, then two, and started carefully rubbing my inner walls. I reached down and grabbed his dick and stroked until I felt it start to harden in my hands.

“That’s enough,” I mumbled and reached down to stop his hand. I was already going to come.

“I’m sorry. I just assumed–”

“No,” I pressed my lips to his in a searing kiss. “That’s not what I meant.”

I ran my thumb over the tip of his length and he shuddered. “Are you sure?”

I smiled sadly and rested a hand on his cheek. “Yes.”

He helped me lean forward, letting me align his length with my centre before I started sinking down, and he slowly entered me in a way I never got used to. The delicious stretch always required a moment for me to adjust before I started moving. He tightened his hold on me when I started doing just that.

________________

“Harry,” I asked as I brushed his hair with my finger. We were sitting on the floor, my back to the couch as he sat between my legs. I had just helped him through another panic attack and there we were, fifteen minutes later still on the floor. My ass was getting numb but I didn’t want to get up until Harry was ready. “Have you ever considered therapy?”

He stiffened. “No.”

“Why not?”

“Let’s not talk about it.”

“But–”

He turned around and gave me a long look.

“Okay, fine,” I sighed.

He leaned over and kissed me. “Thank you.”

I said, “This isn’t over. I’m not letting this go.”

“I know,” he shook his head before making me lay down on the floor and trailing his lips across my chest. “Need you.”

I laughed and helped him undress me.

________________

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” I gasped as I started moving with the help of his hands on my hips.

The steam from our shower was already fading away, but the heat remained and paired with our movements, sweat coated our bodies, allowing us to move more easily against each other.

My knees were planted on either side of him on the ledge as he held me to him to prevent me falling backwards. Our lips never separated, moaning into each other’s mouths as we relished in the feeling we were experiencing for the last time. The thought made a sob escape my mouth and he squeezed my hips, pausing my movements.

“We can stop,” he mumbled sweetly, ducking his head to try and get me to look at him.

I shook my head. “I’m sorry, I’m fine,” my voice broke at the last syllable. Finally mustering up the courage to look at him, I only wanted to cry harder. He had tears falling, eyes red and sad, and I wished we could turn back time and fix every problem we had the way we were supposed to. I wished we were other people, in another lifetime, who had no issues and who knew how to make us work.

“Come here,” he said and I closed my eyes when his lips touched mine.

I started moving again and he whispered words of encouragement and praise.

Break-up sex was supposed to be quick and dirty. What we were doing right then was sheer torture. We were prolonging the pain, both too scared to face what reality we would face as soon as we were done.

________________

“Harry, we need to talk about this.”

It was another fight. About the same damn thing.

He snapped his head towards me.

“You can’t keep relying on me for your happiness.”

He frowned. “What does that even mean?”

“I mean you finally agreed to go to therapy which is great, but this is the fourth time you ‘forgot’ to go this month.”

“I don’t understand what you’re trying to say.”

I wanted to roll my eyes. Why out of all times, he chose then to act stupid? “Baby, if you would just talk to me, open up to me, I wouldn’t be after you about this but you won’t even tell me anything. Sometimes I sit back and think to myself, I know nothing about him. My own boyfriend.”

He scoffed. “You know plenty.”

I grew restless. “I know your name, I know where you work, I know your favourite drink–especially because you reach for it more than you should.”

He grit his teeth at the last statement but I stood by it. I continued, “I know your birthday, I know what car you drive.”

“What’s my favourite colour?”

“Orange. Harry, that means fuck all compared to what I am trying to tell you. I don’t know where you grew up, I don’t know any of your friends–”

“I told you why! They’re not good people!”

“Then why do you spend time with them? Tell me why!”

“I don’t need to tell you anything,” he snapped.

I decided the best response was to walk away, which was what I did. Fuck that, I couldn’t deal with him anymore.

“Don’t walk away from me!” He yelled and I could hear his footsteps catching up to mine.

That fight ended one of both ways all our fights ended. With me comforting him or sex.

________________

His arms wrapped tightly around me, holding me in place as he started rutting upwards. The moans I emitted told him he was hitting that sweet spot inside me with every thrust. I closed my eyes and rested my forehead on his as I let myself feel every inch of him as he got more rough by the second. I knew he was watching me but I couldn’t take it anymore–looking into his eyes hurt my heart, I could feel it break the longer I stared at him. For the first time since I met him, I let myself hide from him. I didn’t give him what he wanted, I didn’t keep my eyes open the way I knew he wanted. I stood my ground, kept my eyes closed despite the tears slipping past my lids, and selfishly let myself feel him for the last time.

My climax hit me out of nowhere and I jerked forward, clawing at his shoulders as he continued to pound into me. My moans echoed loudly in the closed shower stall as I continued to tense around him.

Harry groaned as he held my head in his hands and wiped my tears with his thumbs. I finally lost self control–I let my eyes meet his and saw grief, a look I had only seen once and that was when I asked him about his family. “Harry,” I breathed.

“Shhhhh,” he kissed me. “I’m okay. I’m only worried about you.”

I shook my head. “No, you—“

He kissed me again to shut me up. I reciprocated this time.

Suddenly he groaned as he thrusted a couple more times and I winced from the sensitivity down there. He tensed and burrowed his face in my neck allowing me to hold him close through his orgasm as he breathed hard and finally spilled into me. I didn’t want him to let go. I didn’t want this to be the end.

“I love you, Harry.”

He didn’t say anything.

I separated myself from him and he steadied me before I looked at him for the last time while wiping his wet cheeks. I couldn’t resist leaning down and giving him the softest of kisses.

“I don’t regret you.”

Then I left.

Part 2

A/N: HI BITCHES IM BACK AFTER A MUCH NEEDED MENTAL HEALTH BREAK <3 I missed you. I’m gonna be uploading my favourite fics that I deleted months ago along with my blog.

[all-might-can-smash-me]

Motherly Instincts, Human Emotions, or Just a Quirk?

Aizawa Shouta/Eraserhead x Reader

Summary: A feeling is haunting you and it seems to just get even more complicated as the number one hero Endeavor is now out of his hospitalization and the world is at an unease. Is it just your motherly instincts that you feel towards your beloved class 1-A? Is it just a normal occurrence of emotion within any person? Or is it your quirk now picking up something new that you can’t quite see yet?

What I listened to while writing: Detroit:Become Human soundtrack, especially Kara’s Theme.

We are finally here! The fifth season of our beloved My Hero Academia/Boku no Hero Academia has finally arrived! And with that also comes some writings! I’ve been swamped with my new busy schedule that comes along with being in cosmetology school, don't ever under estimate those students because we sure go through a lot each day! Please enjoy this short, on the whim writing for a humble celebration.

Masterlist / request info in master list

A chill had risen up your arms as your typed away at your computer, the hurried and petrified voice of the news caster raging out even if your tv was brought down to a hushed volume. 

“Number one hero Endeavor is is currently defeating a villain. Much damage has been caused to the area. No fatalities as of right now....” Though whatever they had left to speak out to all of Japan or even the whole world did not matter as your chair had clattered upon the ground as you reached for your house coat. the bright light of the hall blinding your eyes as wisps of hair that had fallen from your hair tie floated amongst the wind you created with your nervous steps down the stairs. Shoto had fallen to the ground and your colleague was already there hovering over the teen, the rest of the class either crowding their fellow classmate or staring in shock to the news blaring from the tv.

That day the world changed and not even the world’s most naïve person could ever deny such a thing.

“Here is your jacket, Shoto...” You spoke out softly as you stood in front of the boy, hands reaching to straighten out the collar, the young man only silently standing before you expressionless as usual. Though you could have sworn you felt a tremor. Whether it was you or him, that could be debatable. “Just remember the time we set, ok? If you feel uncomfortable don’t be afraid to just excuse yourself so Mr.Aizawa and I can bring you straight back to the dorms, they will understand that if you have too.” assuring you hoped your words would sound to the boy, but that forever blank expression only looked back to you. 

“Ok...” he softly spoke out, you nodding your head as you stepped out from his path.

“Ok” felt like the only appropriate response as you watched him step up to the house, disappearing behind the very daunting front door. 

You didn’t want to come off as one of those crazy conspiracist types who always had a foul theory about a hero, villain, and their families, but with your quirk helping you feel the atmosphere or vibe of people, places, or things, you couldn't help but silently be one. Shoto always carried something awful, something that made your heart become heavy despite his neutral expressions. It always perturbed you to no end. It wasn’t like you have never felt this before either. With your previous job being interviewing and helping rehabilitate “troubled” children and mentally stricken heroes and now being the counselor of UA, it was something that always came. What bothered you though was that it was coming from the son of the nation’s number one hero, a family that would seem normal to all of Japan and the entire world because, well, it was a family of a hero. A had on your shoulder made you snap out of your racing thoughts, now looking over your shoulder and to Aizawa.

“Are you ok?” He questioned, almost a bit awkwardly. You didn’t blame him, your reaction to the atmosphere around was probably strange and maybe even frightening. “I know your quirk can...”

“I’m just worried...” You spoke out with a sigh as rested a hand over his before moving away from his touch to lean against the hood of the car, hands now sitting in your lap as you twiddled your thumbs. “And I’ve been picking up something weird, but who knows, maybe its just that this house probably too damn old and spooky” you tried to joke with a meek laugh, though he only stared with a knowingly look, yet did not press any further. You had to be thankful for that, he sure knew when to back off sometimes, maybe not when it came to his own homeroom students, but for you? He did and you didn’t really care to know his reason for why like whether or not he thought you were too weak to handle it or some other seemingly offensive reason. “Shit!” You exclaimed as a fowl hiss came from the side walk in front of you. There a scared cat arched and puffed it’s body out, though Aizawa paid no mind with a lazy look as he calmly approached the cat, slowly reaching out a hand to let the feral beast sniff, quickly gaining his trust. You couldn't help but let out a giggle as the man scooped up the cat in his arms, now leaning against the car next to you where his hands loved up upon the cat’s dirty fur, his black hair falling to hide the sides of his face. Sometimes you would sit there and imagine what he would look like with that mane of his trimmed and tidied during the sleepless nights you shared playing card games, doing paperwork together, or doing a quick patrol around the dorm to check upon the beloved students of class 1-A. 

“Huh, you sure your quirk isn’t taming wild cats?” You teased as you reached a hand to give the old cat a scratch under his chin. The little chuckle that rumbled through rumbled through you before he began to speak.

“I wish, creating a cat sanctuary of street cats seems like the life best suited for me..” He spoke out lowly with the purrs of the cat. You knew he was joking however which brought a small lift to the corners of your lips. 

It didn’t take him much thought to know that something was still bothering you as the cat jumped from him arms to land back to the ground with what seemed to be a small meow of thanks as it ran off into the night only leaving behind the pesky cat hairs on his all black costume, but he didn’t mind at all. 

“Look at you, covered in cat hair...” Your voice came out in a whisper which you weren't aiming to do as you reached a hand to try to dust away the short hairs in vain, though his rough hands wrapped around yours in order to stop you, a knowing look upon his face. That look made you sigh as you retracted your hands from his.

That damn man. He knew when to not press about things like he did to others, but when it got to a certain point in his eyes, he always intervened. You were foolish enough to think you would be able to suppress and hide it enough in order to trick those fatigued eyes of his. Not this time, the feelings that plagued your heart and continued to poke at you were too strong and too bothersome. 

“Shoto always carried things such as sadness, anger, determination, trauma, just a lot more than I could swallow sometimes.” You began to explain, now looking up to the house watching the shadows dance across one of the windows lit up by the soft light within. “And this whole area is filled with so many bad things...but right now it kind of confuses me” You said as your eyebrows scrunched at the new shift. “Change is happening, which is normal to see in a person once they go through the proper treatment or therapy, but judging by how bad it was before, it is going to take a lot...” You said with a sigh, lowering your gaze from the house, trying your best to shut off the swarm of emotions before you and to end your reading, now looking to Aizawa. “It just saddens me, Shoto seems so aloof, but that boy has went through so much, I guess I’m just worried from him, scared for him..” You explained.

“Doesn’t make since why he would come back?” He asked softly, you only staring back up to him to roll that thought within your head before nodding your head. Aizawa only nodded his head back, his arm now reaching to wrap an arm around your dropping shoulders, you now leaning your head against his shoulder. The embrace was comforting and you appreciated his understanding, but you still had such an anxious feeling in your gut. 

“I know this world preaches forgiveness and for us to fix the wrongs we commit in our life, but even for me who helps those people forgive and seek forgiveness, its still hard to do it myself sometimes. It also goes to show that even a family like this can hold all these...foul things” You explained further as you looked p to the moths and bugs that swarmed the streetlight up above and soon past their mindless flight and to the dull stars above. The tears pulled at the brim of your eyes, your chin beginning to strain with the sensation that came with crying. “These kids are like my babies...” you soon shakily spoke out, fighting back the horrendous expression you knew would come too with your tears as you looked to Aizawa “And right now I can’t fight off this feeling in my gut ever since the Endeavor incident..” Your trembled whisper almost seemed fearful. 

A door slamming made Aizawa’s head snap to the source of the sound where the both of you sat in the silence, bodies tense as you waited. Finally with a deep sigh his body relaxed as he looked back to you, a hand reaching to brush away those tears that could move him to tears if he was off guard, though sometimes that wouldn’t even work and that would definitely not go past you. 

Your hands reach to cup the lower, stubbled half of his face upon seeing that familiar wetness gently pool in his eyes, but it was not enough to fall upon his cheeks and betray his wishes of not wanting to cry. You guessed you were not alone with these feelings

“I know...” He spoke out quietly with a sad smile. “We just have to prepare them as best as we can. Shoto, Izuku, Eri, Shinsou, all the others” Aizawa continued on as he was no fully turned to you, hands holding your upper arms, one of them moving away to reach for a piece of hair that was caught onto your sweater to pluck it off and let it float gently down into the darkness of the night. 

“But they are just kids...” 

“I know, but they chose this path, besides, they have already accomplished and achieved so much. Who knows, maybe whatever is coming will be another thing these students will once again defeat and make us adults look stupid again” Aizawa was trying to joke, trying to lift that melancholy looked that wrinkled your face, but it was no use. With a sigh he stood up straight, those warm hands of his sliding away as he opened the passenger door for you, those eyes seeming to look even more exhausted if that were even possible. “Come on, lets get the car started, its almost time to bring Shoto home.”

Motherly instincts, human emotions, a quirks power....was it simply not a good mix or was it simply something big was coming? How those thoughts came in typhoons within your mind as you sat in silence in there car. 

How you will never be able to figure that one out....

[salmonmakiii]

hii! i'd like to request a timestamp if it's okay with you? Could you people write about 3am boyfriend tsukishima, angst to fluff? thank you so much and have an amazing day!! 💕🤗

Heya! Sorry this took long, writer’s block sucks :( I hope this came out nice!

[03:00]

About : Tsukishima x reader Note : Angst, Fluff. Forgive me if I have mistakes!

It was an accident. You and Tsukishima knew that.

But all the pent up stress and those lack of sleep he’s had, being rational was the last thing on his mind right now.

You met Tsukishima 2 years ago when you had just moved to your apartment. He was the next-door neighbor and you would greet him every morning. A few weeks passed and you guys suddenly became friends because you share the same interest; stargazing. The apartment rooftop was perfect for that. You accidentally met up at around 3 am, awkwardly talk with each other, and would go back about an hour later.

You were interested in him and was happy that you finally got the chance to talk. Although you admit, he was a bit cold and snarky with his comments but other than that he was fun to talk to. The next day you met up again, then the next day, then the next, and then the next. This became a regular thing for both of you. Of course, that was before the busy schedule you both had. Now, you’d probably meet up twice or three times a week.

And with that frequent emotional talks, you both grew closer, and eventually, Tsukishima confessed to you one night. So here you were, two years of being together. There were playful insults thrown at each other, but never actual fights. Your favorite was when he would diss you non-stop when you’re not taking care of yourself.

“Can you just eat? I don’t want to drag your ass to the hospital.”

You would often visit him every morning before his class starts and these were one of those mornings. You visit him in his apartment and there you saw his boyfriend, holding his head with his left hand as he held a paper in the other. A thick stack of papers was right in front of him. You’re guessing it was the assignment he’d been working hard on since last week – because he didn’t totally complain to you at all about it for the past week.

“Didn’t you say you have morning classes today?” Tsukishima asked, his eyes not leaving the paper.

“No. The professor called in sick today, so I’m free.” You teased as you sat in front of him. He scoffed and mumbled something about how lucky you are.

“Do you mind if I go get a drink?” You asked, already on your way to the dispenser.

“Sure,”

You gave him a mini thanks and searched for the glass in the cabinets. Once you got it, you filled it with water in the dispenser.

“When is that due?” You asked the glass was now filled. You walked over to him again as he hummed.

“Tomorrow.”

“Ah, okay.”

You sat in front of your boyfriend once again, watching how his eyebrows were furrowed and how he had eye bags under his eyes. You took a sip of your drink and frowned at your dead-looking boyfriend. You wanted to help him, you do, but you don’t know how. You looked at his knitted eyebrows and an idea popped up in your head.

“Kei,” You called. He only answered with a hum. Pouting, you called him once again,

“Kei, Look at me,” Finally lifting his head, you put on a silly face that he always despises, but secretly found funny.

“What are you doing?” he asked, shaking his head as he tried to stifle a laugh. Seeing that it wasn’t good enough, you leaned in closer.

“I don’t know. I just feel like there’s something wrong with my face, is there?” You asked, still making the face. Tsukishima finally laughed and you were happy to see your boyfriend smiling.

You cheered, but while doing so, your hand suddenly knocks the glass of water in front of you, spilling the liquid all over the table. The stacks of paper in the middle soaking up all the water. The room was now dead silent, both of you staring at the stacks of paper and spilled water with wide eyes.

Your look at Tsukishima and the paper, your eyes shaking at the horrifying expression the boy across you had.

“K-Kei-“

“What did you do?” He asked, his voice low.

“I- I accidentally-“

“Did you know how long it took me to print out all these?!” You flinched at his shout and your feet felt like it grew roots. You stared at him, trying to form words to apologize, to calm him down, to reason with him, anything. But all you could do was stare, mouth agape.

Tsukishima walked past you, going to the kitchen to get a towel. He walked right back towards the table and wiped the spilled water.

“Let me help-“

“No. Just-“ He sighed, scrunching the soaked paper in his hands.

“Just get out.” Tsukishima continued to wipe the table, his back now facing you.

His words felt like knives in your chest. There wasn’t a hint of his everyday cynical attitude in his tone at all and you were scared. Afraid of upsetting him more, you bowed a full 90 degrees, mumbling a shaky apologize as you took careful steps out of his apartment.

If anyone were there to see you walk by, they’ll think you just exited from a murder scene.

Back in your apartment, you sat on your couch, still trying to process all of it. You spilled water into his work he’s been doing for a week and he just kicked you out of his apartment without sparing you a glance. You were screwed.

You jump a little when you hear a door slam, you stared at your door.

Kei must be on his way to campus…

After an hour of staring at the ceiling, you mustered the courage to text an apology to him. Shaky hands and eyes a bit watery when you pressed send. Sighing loudly, you lay there on your couch, trying to calm yourself down and think of a way you could make it up to him.

“Can I send it to your email just in case? You know how my laptop is.”

You jolted from your position, eyes wide. The memory of Tsukishima’s voice replayed in your head as you frantically open your laptop. You opened your email and your heart races with excitement as you quickly downloaded the file as you ran to your bedroom to get your USB. Running back to the living room, you hastily plugged in the USB and surprisingly got it in the first time. Copying the file to the USB, you grabbed your jacket, tote bag, wallet, and ejected the USB as you dashed out of your apartment for a copy shop.

≻───── ⋆✩⋆ ─────≺

You leaned on the railings on the rooftop as you sighed. The wind softly blowing against your features as you looked down at the almost empty streets below you. Most of the lights in the surrounding buildings were off and the sky wasn’t that dark anymore. The moon was slightly on the west side, still illuminating the night sky. The stars above you twinkling as you’re enveloped in silence. It’s the perfect night.

After you had printed out all the papers, you put it in two clear folders, re-check the order, and finally set it nicely inside Tsukishima’s mailbox. You text him to give him a heads up, but you’re still worried if he even read your texts. You took out your phone from your pocket, the screen telling displaying “03:00”. You opened your lock, the wallpaper – a picture of you and an annoyed, blushing, Tsukishima – made you miss him even more.

You open your message with Tsukishima, he still didn’t read your message.

What if he didn’t see my message? What if he already printed out a new batch of it? What if- huh?

You eyed your message.

Tsukishima had just read it.

Just as you were still confused about what to do with this information, you hear someone clears their throat behind you. You flinched and turned around. Your eyes meeting those familiar golden ones. Tsukishima was staring at you, his face stoic and cold as ever. He was wearing his grey hoodie with a roaring dinosaur in the middle, his hair was a little messy but it looked cute on him.

“K-Kei! I almost had a heart attack!” You held your phone to your chest in hopes to calm your beating heart.

“You’re being dramatic.” He said, walking up to the railing and leaned against it.

“So, I heard you spilled water on someone’s project-“

“Kei-“

“That they worked HARD for,”

You winced, hearing him emphasize. You stared at your boyfriend and he was staring right back at you with his smug face. You looked down and fiddled with your fingers.

Tsukishima felt like he was scolding a puppy. He felt the tiniest guilt, but he didn’t want to let you go that easily.

“I’m guessing that’s why you’re here right now, even though you have an 8 am class tomorrow.” He teasingly scoffed. Usually, his teasing would make you feel less tense but it didn’t seem to be working right now. He sighed loudly and ran a hand through his hair.

“Thanks,” His voice was above a whisper.

“Huh?” You snapped your head up in shock. What was he thanking you for?

“I got the package you sent me,” He gave you a side glance.

“But you just read my message?”

“I saw you putting it in my mailbox.”

“Oh,”

There was silence once again. Tsukishima stepped closer and abruptly snaked his hand on your shoulder, pulling you closer to him. You looked up at him and you can see the small blush on his cheeks, his eyes were looking at anything but you.

“Sorry about getting mad at you,” He said in a rather gibberish mumbling, but you were glad you could make up what he was saying.

“Why are you sorry? I’m the one who spilled that water.” You said, reaching up your hand to pinch his cheek.

“Besides, stop acting like that, it’s weird.” You pulled his cheeks, riling him up.

“Will you stop that?” He batted your hand away and you laughed at his bashful sight.

“Let’s just go back, it’s freezing up here and I don’t want to take care of you when you catch a cold.” He groaned, his hand still around you as he walked back towards the entrance.

“What makes you think I need you?” You pinched his sides.

“I don’t know. I’m afraid you might flood the whole apartment if I don’t,”

“I told you it was an accident you salty excuse of a human being!”

“If you don’t shut up, I’ll squish you,”

“If you mean squish as in cuddling, then I won’t shut up!”

Tsukishima suddenly leaned in and placed a kiss to your lips. His actions catching you off guard. He plastered on a smirk, seeing that his plan had worked.

“If I talk some more, will you kiss me again to shut me up?” You asked,

“No. I’ll throw you off this rooftop.”

“You wouldn’t-“ Tsukishima gave you a daring glare, his grip on your arm tightens. You shut your mouth immediately and looked forward.

“Okay! Shutting my mouth now.”

You both ended up cuddling in his apartment that night.

[burnedbyshoto]

shallow or deep

— “Why would you want a guy with such a large and disgusting burn?” he whispered, his tone thoroughly rejected, broken. It was then that it hit you: did he think he wasn't good enough for you. —

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

pairing: todoroki shouto x reader

warnings: fluff, angst (insecurities), cursing

word count: 2,544

a/n: I took the shouto has an insecurity over his scar even if it isnt that deep headcanon and ran with it, I hope yall enjoy this!!!! its been awhile since ive managed to write a fic in a single day!!!

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

“You’re quite the handsome man!”

“Oh, thank you.”

“But that scar... don’t you want to get that fixed? I know someone with a quirk who can fix that up for you!”

“Thank you for your concern, but I think I am content with it.”

~

“Without a doubt, you are by far one of the most attractive Pro Heroes to have existed!”

“Thank you for your compliment, but I think it’s my ability to—”

“Don’t you think you would look hotter without your scar? Have you ever considered getting it removed?”

“...no, I haven’t…”

~

“Just imagine how Shouto would look like without his scar, here are some edited pictures for reference!”

“Wow, if I didn’t want to give him my life already, I would sell my soul to the devil to get with a scarless Shouto…”

“I don’t know, I think the scars sexy! Like look at it, it makes him so mysterious and badass! Guys with scars are so fucking hot! But in my opinion, without the scar? Shouto isn’t shit!”

“Guys with scars are hot, I’ll give you that, but not one-fourth of the face scars! He’s extremely handsome still, but it’s a bit tacky for the scar to be there. If it had been like Deku’s arm and hand scars — hell, even Eraserheads face scar — he would be so much finer.”

~

“And just how did you get your scar, Shouto?”

The American interviewer who sat in front of Shouto during this live national interview had the kindest smile on her face, but to the Pro Heroes who sat on the stage alongside Shouto could recognize that shark-like glint in her eyes. Her face was calm, tranquil, beautiful, but her eyes sent bitter acid through the Heroes mouth.

“I’ve already explained what happened in a previous interview,” Shouto spoke calmly, his fingers digging into his knees.

Your eyes looked over to your boyfriend, who seemed to be trying everything in his power to remain calm. You’d only seen this happen through a screen, never in real life.

The interviewer seemed unconcerned with his rebuttal, most likely expecting this from the man who wasn’t one for repeating big stories. Her chin tilted up almost like she was looking down on him, looking down on who he was. 

“Well then, I’ll bite,” she leaned forward, and you felt on edge to attack, but a hand gripped your wrist when a cruel smirk spread on her face. “Do you resent your mother for burning you that night? How do you feel about the fact that it was your mother who ruined your charming looks?”

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

The car was silent.

Your eyes tried to remain focused on the road ahead of you, but to your misplaced anger and hurt, you focused on the side of Shouto’s face every so often while he drove.

The radio wasn’t even on, something the both of you enjoyed blasting because you would sing stupidly loud and Shouto would hum along in his own mirth. The only sound heard was the tires driving against the gravel road and your irritated breathing. 

The two of you had dropped off your friends five minutes ago, the once awkwardly tense car melting to this angry silence between the two of you in the front. 

You hadn’t defended him on live television because Momo held you back, and Shouto allowed the interviewer to defile his family’s past abuse with her keen touch. The silence between the two of you was also irritating you.

Once the interview was done, Shouto had been the first to rise from his chair and to leave. And you were hot on his heels. You hadn’t been forgiving to Shouto when you finally corned him.

“How could you let her talk to you like that, Shouto?” you blazoned, your heart hammering in your chest, anger, humiliation, and sorrow riling you up. “She was a total fucking cunt, and you just took it!”

Shouto stared down at you, that old yet familiar distant look in his eyes — that anger that burned brighter than any fire he could produce flaming in both eyes. 

“Drop it, y/n,” he all but hissed, his face stone, his tone fierce. “You don’t need to fight every single fucking thing that makes me uncomfortable.”

Those words weren’t enough to make you drop it, had it been any other fight you would have continued to press him for what was wrong with him, but it was that look in his eyes. The old look that you had sworn long ago you’d never allow to meet his eyes again.

The anger, humiliation, and broken look that he used to wear every day.

When Shouto finally parked, he didn’t hesitate to get out of the car, the door slamming loudly while you stumbled to follow after him. 

But he was tall, too tall, and was in the house well before you could close your own door. It didn’t deter the way that you stormed towards the house, the devil, and god riding on your shoulder in this battle to figure out what the hell was wrong with Shouto.

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

“I don’t resent my mother,” Shouto cooly stated. “It was an unfortunate accident, but fortunately, it hasn’t kept me from anything. I still have complete sight and functionality, so I’m okay. I could never resent my mother.”

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

“Won’t you tell me what’s wrong?” you ask, coming into the house.

This was Shouto’s house, something that Endeavor had gifted to him in his expression of apology. He and his siblings had been given their own homes the moment they turned twenty, and shortly after starting your relationship, he had asked you to move in.

You both were now twenty-three. You were neither each other's firsts on many levels, but there was no denying that this was the best relationship the both of you had. You comforted each other to no level, loved each other like no other. It was almost a shame that you didn’t have any feelings for your old classmate during high school because maybe then you’d been together for longer than a year.

But nevertheless, the two of you held no regrets. His house had become yours with him.

It was a bright place, no matter how dull the day was, it was always vivacious and warm in here.

But not now.

The door closed behind you, and you saw Shouto standing at the kitchen table, head lowered, arms tense. The world seemed grey, dull, and cold. You almost swore the house’s temperature was ten degrees cooler while you approached your boyfriend, who appeared to be trapped in his thoughts.

You neared him, your own anger diminishing slowly when you saw the shadows over his eyes, his teeth gnashing in a grit. 

Sorrow, humiliation, guilt.

That’s all you could read from him, but you needed more from him.

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

The interviewer seems to have expected that answer for she remains unfazed, but that predatorial glint in her eyes remains. The eyes of someone who hasn’t shown off their strongest of cards.

“How about relationship-wise? Have any of the beautiful ladies you’ve dated or have wanted to court in the past told you that you’d be much more handsome without it? Don’t you wish that you could be more normal for y/h/n?”

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

“Why would you want a guy with such a large and disgusting burn?” he whispered, his tone thoroughly rejected, broken. It was then that it hit you: did he think he wasn't good enough for you.

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

You stood up, the chair you were sitting on scraping loudly against the black floor. The interviewer snapped her attention on you for just a moment, eyes sparkling with the thrill of getting a dramatic reaction from someone.

But Momo and Uraraka held you down, and Sero’s tape came across your mouth to keep you from talking your mind.

“There have been words like that before,” Shouto says, his voice steely smooth. “But as you can see, I’m not dating anyone who shares those same opinions.”

The interviewer seemed to deflate at that answer, obviously not the juicy breakdown she was hoping for. She continued down the mass interview with the most successful class from UA’s hero program, and you continued to fume in your seat. Anger that couldn’t even be quieted by the sour emotions coming off of Shouto in large waves.

⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆⋄⋆⊹⋄⋆

“W-What?” you say almost in a horrified whisper.

Your eyes were wide, unsure if you had heard Shouto correctly. You prayed you had. A fist clenched on your chest, your gaze followed Shouto’s clouded face when he stood up completely.

���You heard me right,” he repeats, his focus on the wall. Finally, his blue and grey eyes focus on you; they’re distant, so far away, you weren’t sure if you could get him back anytime soon. A soft sigh ragged in his chest, nearly choking in his throat when he looked at you. “I was never insecure about my scar growing up… I didn’t have anything in sight except for wanting to be a hero, and hell, even through high school, it didn’t matter. No one in our class mentioned it, and I went on to believe that it while it wasn’t normal, it was in some way.” His hands found your cheeks, pressing onto them gently, and you could feel them tremble slightly. “Then I finally liked someone romantically, and we were thrust into the crazy world of media, and I realized that my burn isn’t normal.”

“S-Shouto…”

“The first person I ever dated told me they knew someone who would fix it up for me for free. The second person… well, they were an idiot and thought if we had children, the burn would be transferred over. More and more people both privately and publicly told me that I would be s-so much better without it… Do you think I’d be better without it?” his lips twisted, and you could only stare up in his eyes that seemed so far away so broken. “Even the ones who liked it, it was some weird fetish of theirs… the truth is, I don’t know how to feel about it. I shouldn’t hate it because it’s who I am, but I hate it because people always have some opinion about it, and no matter what I hear, it always pisses me off. I just… you’re beautiful, y/n. You’re the person in my life that I never want to see leave, and I know that it’s shallow to value people only for their beauty, but I’m not beautiful. Scars and burns are not beautiful, they’re ugly... My looks are decent at best, but that’s all that makes me desirable. Not you, though. You’re gorgeous, your personality and attitude never fail to make everyone feel better, and yet you’re here with me… why would you love someone like me?”

There it was.

His eyes kept to your feet as if he wasn’t worthy of staring you in the face. His hands continue to hold against you in a weak grasp, as if he pressed any harder against you, you would crumble to dust or say you hated him. 

Your hands grasped his wrists, pressing his hands even more against your skin. It was an intense action, so out of the blue that his eyes snapped up to meet yours finally. 

Shouto wasn’t sure what to expect when he looked at your face; he knew you were upset about the interview, and truthfully he wished he hadn’t warned Uraraka, Momo, and Sero to keep you down when those questions were asked — should they have been proposed. He also expected tears, you were always one to be more emotional than he was. 

What he didn’t expect were steely yet warm eyes.

“You’re an idiot, Todoroki Shouto,” you finally speak. You took a step closer to him, your heartbeat in your throat. This was a raw Shouto standing before you. A Shouto, you had no idea how he reacted, no matter how much you knew him. So, if this was a rebuilding scene, a moment to get him to see what you saw, you would take it. “You’re right, scars and burns are ugly. They shouldn’t be romanticized. It’s also not the same as others, who take scars as a sign of overcoming hardships and victory. Your scar is one of a kind… but like you’ve said, shallow traits aren’t enough…” Your chin trembled just the slightest bit, but you couldn’t let yourself cry. No, you had to be strong for him. “You’re the kindest person I know, which knowing the saint that is Midoriya and All Might, it means a lot. I don’t mean it because you’re my boyfriend, or because I want you to feel better, but you had every reason to not be kind in your life and look at you, you’re gentle, you’re sweet. You also speak your mind, no matter what. Your opinions are valuable, and that’s why you’re such a great leader. You were made to become a hero that surpassed All Might, and you did it without ever once going down the road your father had intended for you. You did that. But if we’re going to be looking at the shallow traits, we can do that.

Your scar is a sign of growth. It’s ugly, and it’s beautiful. It’s ugly because it makes you feel like you’re not good for me. It’s ugly because it was such a dark time for you when it came. It’s ugly because it’s an insecurity. But I also see beauty. It’s beautiful because it’s another place I can tenderly love at night. It’s beautiful because who you were back then is just a scar of who you were. It’s beautiful because it’s a source of your strength despite it all. You can think whatever you want of it, Shouto, think it’s good or bad, but because it’s apart of you I have to and I choose to love it. Why would I ever want you to change who you are if you’re comfortable with it? What kind of lover would I be if I decided to love everything but one part of you?” your fingers trailed to his scarred skin, the red skin forever warm under your touch. “Shallow or deep, I will never stop loving you.”

Tears fell from his eyes, and his lips crashed against yours.

The two of you sink to the floor in this wet and sweet embrace. Lips never tearing from each other, fingers wistfully holding on, a silent prayer to each other of your devotions, and hope to never leave each other’s sides. Your fingers continued to stroke against his scar, and he held you so close until you could no longer kiss.

So your wet and bruised lips pressed against his warm scar, gentle and soft reminders that you were there for him until his faint cries became steady breathing.

Todoroki Shouto may never get over the insecurity of his scar, but he’d be damned if he thought for a second whether it was there or not, you’d love him any more or any less. You loved him entirely, and for that, he was forever grateful.

[claymorecut]

BABYSITTING A 26 YEAR OLD WOMAN IS NOT THE MAIN CHARACTER’S JOB!

CHAPTER 2

A/N: And the second chapter is finally here. I thought I’d be able to finish the story in two chapters but I guess its not happening anymore. The next chapter will be the final one so just wait a little longer. I hope the story isn’t getting dragged too much but I hope you'll enjoy it. And I'll do my best to give it a proper conclusion. Thank you so much for reading this! ^-^

*****

The night sky glimmered with a shade of silver when he felt the dying man point a kunai at his back in a desperate last attempt to kill him. The man knew how cowardly he was, just like him. While webbing a pathetic web to catch the moon, he tried to reach for the moon, look after the moon, mold the moon with his own hands only to understand that the moon illuminated high above him, shining brightly in the dark as he failed to reach her.

She screamed his name, cried out for him to stop but it was too late now. A kunai was already thrown at its designated direction, soon followed by a loud thud that echoed inside that almost pitch black room.

He was lying on the ground, a pool of blood forming around his deformed face as Gintoki turned around in shock to find her standing right behind him. Her beaten up face held no emotions; she looked distant. Cold. But most importantly, broken.

“Yes…That’s exactly how….it should be.”

The spider desired to die by his own hands. And she finally fulfilled his wish.

*****

“To Tsukuyo, that man meant a lot. He was a father-figure to her after all.” Hinowa continued, her eyes once again brimming with tears. “I strongly disliked him for his methods but even after everything he did, I know how great of an impact he had on her life. She looked up to him, always and it was not because of some shallow reasons but because he gave her a purpose. And she too wanted to be as strong as him. She too wished to protect something. But after that day, even though she never talked it, I know how much she was hurting. How much she wanted to change something, how much she wanted to save him.”

Gintoki quietly listened as he remembered the night at the abandoned teahouse. He remembered the look on her face and how much he feared for such a thing to happen. Guilt and regret can make a living man turn into a walking corpse. He knew that. And he saw that. Not just in that man but even in himself. He knew the cost one has to pay when they’re burdened with such agonizing memories and like a pathetic man, he too once tried to escape from it in a very similar manner. And if he was being honest with himself, maybe he’d try to run away from that pain once again.

“Gin-san.” Hinowa spoke once again. “Please take Tsukuyo to the surface with you for today. If she goes there and meet others, maybe she’ll be able to remember.”

The restlessness in her voice didn’t go unnoticed by Gintoki but just like her, he too knew there was no other option for them to bring Tsukuyo’s memories back. It was a risk they would have to take and Hinowa was now entrusting it all to him.

A part of him was scared of things not working out but another part just couldn’t say no. Scratching his perm hair, Gintoki let out a long sigh as he decided to accept Hinowa’s request. “Guess there’s no other way.” His voice was back to its normal dull tone. “So you want me to babysit after all, right Hinowa-san?”

The sarcasm in his voice was purely evident but seeing the man trying to lighten the tense environment, Hinowa gave him a small grateful smile. “Right now, you are the only person I can entrust Tsukuyo with.”

“Yeah, yeah. But don’t forget to treat me with some really fine sake after this.” He bluntly expressed.

Hinowa only found herself smile brightly at this. “Of course I will not!”

Standing up from the bench, Gintoki stretched his arms and decided to get ready for his next job. “So? How do we do this?” he asked.

“Don’t worry.” Hinowa said as she stood up from her seat. “I’ll go inside and talk to her about this. Maybe I’ll be able to convince her to visit the surface with you. Please wait here for a little.” With a small smile, she bowed her head and then went inside.

Fifteen minutes later, Gintoki heard footsteps come from behind as he turned around to see Hinowa coming outside with a small smile on her face. He wouldn’t lie, these past few minutes sure made him feel a little anxious about their whole plan because there was definitely a huge chance that Tsukuyo would refuse to go outside with a complete “stranger” like him. However, when he found Hinowa looking back at him with those hopeful eyes of hers as she sneakily signed him a quick thumbs up, Gintoki felt a huge burden leaving his chest.

Appearing from the main door, a very small yet familiar figure once again came out as she stood beside Hinowa now. Tsukuyo was still wearing the same kimono as before and even though he knew who that person was, a part of him still couldn’t accept this rather ridiculous reality in front of him. However, those few little doubts were cleared immediately as he found those amethyst orbs looking right back at him and all his mind could utter then was ��ah, this is her.”

“Tsukuyo, say hi to him.” Hinowa said as she put a reassuring hand on her tiny shoulder.

Gintoki could see her reserved mannerism as she formally greeted him with a bow. “Hello.”

“Um…hello.” Gintoki awkwardly replied.

Tension filled the room as both found themselves staring at each other for a few seconds before Hinowa broke the silence. “Tsukuyo.” She bent down to reach her height as Tsukuyo once again turned to face her elder sister. “I don’t mean to pressurize you but I hope you understand the situation. You were sick for two days straight and right now even I can’t spend time with you properly. I promise you will enjoy your day with Gin-san.”

“But Hinowa, I’m fine! And ya’ve been workin’ so much so I’ll-“

“Don’t worry about me right now, dear. And no, I’m not letting you work.” Placing a reassuring hand on her cheek, Hinowa gave Tsukuyo her signature smile. “I know you are worried about me but you know I can’t leave. And…I want you to get better. I’m sorry I can’t join you but can you please fulfill my request for today?”

Gintoki always knew how good was Hinowa at in persuading Tsukuyo and even though right now she was a child, she was still Tsukuyo. And there was no way she could ever say no to Hinowa.

Pouting, Tsukuyo simply nodded in defeat. “…Okay. I’ll go.”

A huge beaming smile spread on her lips. “Thank you so much, Tsukuyo! I’m sorry for being so selfish, please forgive me for today.”

Tsukuyo shook her head lightly, a small, reassuring smile on her lips. “Don’t apologize, Hinowa. I know yer doin’ it for me. So, I’ll go and enjoy my day.”

Hearing this, Hinowa felt her eyes water a little but once again smiled apologetically at her. This was still the same Tsukuyo she had always known and yet, a part of her couldn’t accept it, couldn’t accept her. This thought itself made her feel disgusted but no matter how complicated the situation was, it was not the time to give up.

But..I will have to try. No matter how ashamed she was of herself, she would have to give it a chance. Consequences would come later, if there was a chance, she wanted to give it a try. Standing up, she turned to look back at Gintoki who was still awkwardly standing there. “Gin-san. Please, I leave her in your care.”

The desperation in her voice as Gintoki simply nodded at that. Unlike Hinowa who apparently seemed to have confidence in him, he was literally sweating inside. Not only was bringing someone’s memories back was easy but the way Tsukuyo was looking at him right now gave him a pretty decent idea that she was not very fond of him.

“So, yer the savior of Yoshiwara?” Tsukuyo asked as she walked towards him.

Gintoki didn’t like that. “Um… apparently, yes.”

“Hmm.” She stopped in front of him, her eyes scanning him as if he was the most suspicious man to ever exist in this universe. “You have weird hair.”

A vein popped on his head as Gintoki heard Hinowa snort lightly. Twenty-six or ten, Tsukuyo was still Tsukuyo. And whether she remembered him or not, it was clear that she would always make fun of his perms. “Oi! What the hell did you just say, wo- brat!?”

“Um..nothin’.” Tsukuyo innocently replied, her playful smile not going unnoticed by the flustered man as she once again formally greeted him. “It’s nice ta meet ya. I’m Tsukuyo. I’ll be in yer care for today.”

Good thing you’re a child right now or you know I wouldn’t have let this go. “Yeah, yeah, whatever.” Gintoki scoffed, his voice back in his normal bored tone as he turned to leave the tea house. “Hinowa-san! I want my sake and payment to be ready so don’t turn your back on me!”

“Of course I won’t. Take care you two! I will see you guys later.” Hinowa smiled and waved them goodbye as she watched Tsukuyo silently followed the man who was now taking out his scooter.

I’m sorry Tsukuyo. I know I’m being selfish but I can’t leave you behind like this. Hinowa saw the little girl wave back at her with a small, worried smile. Whatever the results come, I will accept it. But for now, I will have to try. Please Gin-san, I leave the rest to you.

*****

It was already noon by the time since Gintoki and Tsukuyo reached the surface and now the scorching sun over their head was making them feel dizzy. More than thirty minutes had passed since they left Yoshiwara and now were riding aimlessly on the busy streets of Edo and the temperature was not currently helping him with his thought process. Sure, Gintoki did agree to take Tsukuyo with him for today but he had no idea what he was supposed to do. Or at least he didn’t have a definite plan. He always knew that Tsukuyo was a woman of few words but even as a child she would be like this, Gintoki really had no idea. All this time she was silently sitting behind him like an obedient child with his huge helmet on and not for once did she try to initiate a conversation, let alone ask him any basic question. And even though he understood the reasons behind her silence, Gintoki couldn’t help but feel a little anxious about their situation. Right now, he was the adult and had taken full responsibility of her. The last thing he wanted to do was make her feel uncomfortable while she visited an almost forgotten place.

“So, where do you wanna go?” Gintoki finally asked as he sped up his scooter after the street lights turned green.

“How’d I know mister? I’ve never been ‘ere.” Came her immediate answer from behind.

Gintoki pictured himself hit his head on a wall at this. Just calm down me! He had no idea what kind of expression she had and the silence made him so nervous he ended up blurting out such a silly question. But the fact that she simply answered his question without much hesitancy put his heart at ease a little.

“Oh yeah. Sorry I kinda forgot.” He apologized, his eyes still on the busy road.

“It’s okay. I jus’ didn’t wanna make Hinowa worry ‘bout me so I agreed to come ‘ere with ya.” She replied sincerely. “But it really feels strange ta visit the surface after almost three years. I never thought so much of it’d change. And the sun is so bright too, it’s really hot.”

Wow, she’s actually talking now. “Yeah it is. But you used to visit here pretty often.”

“Oh. I…don’t remember much.”

Gintoki slightly turned over his shoulder to find her looking down, the wistful look looming over her face at this. “It’s okay, don’t think about it much.” He consoled, once again facing the road. “Wanna visit a café? We can save ourselves from the damn heat at least.”

Maybe it was her condition but Gintoki still could not believe he was being so generous and polite to her. Kagura and Shinpachi would never believe him if he acted like this in front of them.

Looking up at the back of his head, Tsukuyo obliviously asked. “Huh? What’s that?”

“Ah-” Gintoki tensed up. Of course she didn’t know what a café was! “It’s a place where you get kinds of food and beverages.”

“Oh! I’ve heard of that!” Tsukuyo replied, her voice slightly curious. “I once overheard some courtesans talk about the maid cafés and the services they provide to their masters there. I think they’re pretty similar to the teahouses we have at Yoshiwara so it’s nothin’ new.”

Gintoki almost crashed his scooter against a light pole at this but fortunately pressed the breaks and turned around in shock. “W-What!? No! That’s not what cafes are!”

Tsukuyo’s small hands tightly grabbed his kimono at the sudden halt as she looked up, perplexed.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Gintoki groaned at the misunderstanding that Tsukuyo’s young mind had crafted. “Th-That’s not what cafes are like. Not even maid cafes.”

“Eh? They’re…not?”

The way she innocently blinked at him almost made him forget that this was the same Tsukuyo who once let Seita run a sex toy shop and even boldly poured lotion on her body while visiting a public swimming pool. Sure Gintoki was well aware of the fact that she was raised in Yoshiwara but right now, she was a child and having such misconceptions at such an age was wrong.

“Well..” Gintoki calmly tried to explain, “cafes here are not the same. They do provide service to the customers but…it’s not the kind of…service..that is generally provided at Yoshiwara. You only go there to get some delicious food and beverages and…that’s all.”

A small “Oh” came out of her mouth as he saw her turn away from him, her cheeks getting pink. Chuckling lightly at her expression, Gintoki too turned around to kick start the engine. “Don’t worry about it. Hinowa-san wanted you to enjoy your day so we can always go there and grab something to eat.”

Hearing him, Tsukuyo turned to once again face his back as for the very first time today, a small, jittery smile spread on her lips. “Hmm!”

Gintoki only grinned back at her reaction as he sped up his scooter. He couldn’t help but be excited because now was the time for him to make her taste his favorite heavenly double cream strawberry parfait which she always refused to have.

Finally reaching his destination after a few minutes later, Gintoki and Tsukuyo finally made their way inside the café. The cool, refreshing air inside felt too good on their burning skin as they took a seat near the large glass window. Checking her surrounding and realizing how sophisticated and well-designed the interior was, Tsukuyo came to a conclusion that this place was pretty expensive.

“Um, Gintoki-san? Are ya sure this is the right place?” Tsukuyo worriedly asked, her voice a mere whisper.

“Huh?” Gintoki quirked his eyebrow at this. “Of course this is right place, what do you mean?”

“Ya don’t have ta spend so much money here just ‘cus ya’ve to ta take care of me.” Tsukuyo advised. “Hinowa told me that ya don’t have much money so if ya spend it on me, I don’t think it’d be reasonable.”

Once again Gintoki could clearly hear the same stubborn, reasonable Tsukuyo who would always stop him from bringing her here. Not like Gintoki had money all the time that he could invite someone else in with him in his favorite café but surprisingly, Gintoki had invited Tsukuyo here twice with him before and both the times she refused his offer because she didn’t want him to spend any money on her. It wasn’t that he asked her for this with any ulterior motive and she was completely aware of this but a wishful part of him wanted to take her there and maybe, just wanted to see her loosen up a little with him. But now that he had succeeded to bring her here (in her ten year old self), she once again started nagging him.

Hinowa-san you just had to tell her that! Gintoki mentally sighed at his luck. “Don’t worry about the money I’ve enough with me today. It’s my treat.” He reassured. “Plus I’m gonna get enough payment from Hinowa-san so I better do my job properly. After all, Gin-san is a responsible adult!”

“But-“

“No buts!” Gintoki retorted before she could argue. “I’m doing my job here so you’re gonna listen to me for today. Waiter!” he called out, “Two heavenly double cream strawberry parfaits here please!”

Tsukuyo tried to refuse him but it was already too late. “But can ya p-“

“Yes I can.” Placing the order, Gintoki settled down his hand on the table and looked at Tsukuyo who looked a little nervous now. I guess I overdid it. “Um, hey,” He apologetically looked at her. “I don’t mean to force you or anything and if you’ve any problem finishing it, I can always finish that for ya. I just thought you might be hungry.”

Tsukuyo immediately looked up at him, her eyes now unwavering and bold unlike before. “It’s a’right. I guess I understand why yer doin’ all o’ this.”

Gintoki stilled in his place. It wasn’t much but maybe she was starting to remember-

“Yer tryin’ to make a move on Hinowa, ain’t ya?”

And he once again felt slamming his head on the glass window.

“Well, I get what yer tryin’ ta do but really ya don’t have ta. I’ll tell Hinowa ya did a good job and ya don’t have to worry ‘bout yer reputation in front of her anymore. So don’t spend so much of yer money.” She continued, her voice suddenly sounding way mature for her age.

“Oi! The hell are ya sayin’?” Gintoki felt his voice raise but immediately lowered it. “Who told ya that I’m trying to make a move on Hinowa!?”

“Um…well isn’t that clear?” Tsukuyo shrugged, her eyes now closed and voice serious and unchanging. “Ya look like a good man so I’m not gonna threaten ya with anythin’. She’s a pretty lady and I get the story- I’m sick and Hinowa’s worried and workin’ all the time so yer ‘ere to help her out and then win her heart by takin’ care of me. That makes perfect sense.”

“No that does not!” Gintoki exasperated at the absurdity of this situation. How many misconceptions she had made while she lost her memories!? “I’m not trying to make a move on her I’m just doing my job here! What kind of story are you spewing inside that head of yours!?”

Tsukuyo eyes snapped open at this. “Y-ya aren’t?”

“No I’m not! Stop jumping into conclusions like that!”

She really doesn’t remember anything…

Once again, Tsukuyo felt her face getting beet red as she faced away from the annoyed man sitting in front of her. “O-oh. I-I’m so sorry I just though ya two were close so…”

Ah! Damn it! “And you thought I was trying to- what’s wrong with you woma- brat!”

“I-I’m sorry I was just….I’m sorry.”

All Tsukuyo could do now was just lower her head in shame and embarrassment while Gintoki left another long exhale. It was gonna take a lot more than just bringing her to a café and having parfait with her. “Well it’s okay. I hope all your misunderstandings are clear now..” He scratched the back of his neck as he too tried to calm himself down.

Tsukuyo just lightly nodded at this which made Gintoki smile. Grown up or not, she always looks cute when she’s flustered. While he agreed with the voice inside his head, he quickly slammed that door of thoughts close and decided to focus on what he was going to do next. But before he could plan further, two huge parfaits were placed in front of them.

“Here’s you order.” The waiter bowed politely and left the two alone.

With the parfaits here, Gintoki completely forgot about his next step as he felt his mouth water. While on the other hand, Tsukuyo only shockingly looked at the huge pile of cream and strawberries which definitely were gonna make her diabetic.

“Let’s dig in!” Gintoki exclaimed as he put a spoonful of it inside his mouth and hummed in delight.

While Gintoki enjoyed his parfait, Tsukuyo remained a little reluctant. Yes, unlike the man sitting in front of him, she was never very fond of sweets. But now that she looked at this man excitingly eating his parfait while also encouraging her to do the same, she too took a scoop from the huge glass and finally tasted it. Surely it was extremely sweet but the moment it’s smooth and creamy texture encapsulated her taste buds, she still couldn’t stop herself from taking another bite.

“Ish sho good!” She exhilarated, her mouth full with cream and strawberries as she dug in to have another scoop.

"Isn't it?" Gintoki cheered.

“Yesh! Khank you shoo mussh!”

Surely it was unusual but now that he was looking at her face with her eyes glittering in pure happiness, Gintoki felt a wave of relief wash down his body as he continued to enjoy his special parfait with the person he so badly wanted to eat with. Even though she was not the adult Tsukuyo he had spent all his time with, he couldn't help but feel proud after finding the child hiding behind those bold, serious eyes. Never did he try to complicate things by thinking much, not even right now when he was casually admitting that he wanted to eat his favorite parfait with her even though she was a ten-year old child right now. Was this normal? Or was there a deeper meaning his actions? Truthfully, he had no idea. But the moment his eyes fell on the same pure smile but now with cream smeared on her cheeks, he realized he didn’t need any special reason to do something for her.

After all, she was still Tsukuyo. And he was just a lazy bum who never needed any specific reason to meet her. Because after everything that happened, one thing was for certain- spending time with her was now second nature to him.

*****

[twoidiotwriters1]

Happy Birthday, Sirius! (Sirius Black x Fem! Reader)

A/N: Happy birthday to my favorite marauder ever! 

Request: by @siriuslysirius1107​ :I saw that you are taking asks and I was wondering if you could do a Sirius Black fic since it's his birthday. Maybe where he just got a letter for home or something?

btw, thank you so much for request this

Words: 1,587

Music comes from every corner of the Gryffindor common room, no students are in their rooms, even some from other houses are gathered to celebrate the birthday of Hogwarts most famous marauder.

His best friends were in charge of organizing the best party of the year, and although now it got out of hand, they don’t give it any importance. James laughs at a joke some sixth-year boys tell him, wrapping an arm on his girlfriend's shoulders as he staggers a bit from the drinks they got.

Remus is not far behind and in no better shape than his friend. In honor of Sirius, he promised that tonight he would have fun and drink a little, although James saw to it that that little became a lot.

Peter’s in one of the corners talking to a girl who seems to be interested in everything he says, but no one can be sure.

Three marauders in a fun, laid-back habitat while others make fuss and eat cake like nothing else matters.

But where’s the birthday boy?

"Lily!" Y/N yells, drawing the attention of the redhead, who laughs slightly.

"Hi!" She yells back. Y/N notices Lily smells a bit too much like firewhiskey too, but she ignores it.

“Where’s Sirius?"

Lily shrugs and turns to her boyfriend, but then jumps in place.

"He came out and had a piece of paper in his hand, I don't know if he's here or outside, or eating or drinking, but you must listen to this, you’ll die laughing!"

"Maybe next time…”

Y/N leaves the common room, meeting more people wanting to enter the big party.

"Hey, have you seen Sirius?" She asks them, but no one has.

She thanks them and walks through the dark corridors of the school until she hears sobs coming from a corridor. Y/N approaches and just below a window that overlooks the gardens, there he is hugging his legs.

"Sirius?" She asks cautiously and walks over to sit across from him. "What happen?"

His body tenses, but he quickly recognizes her. Sirius sighs and wipes the tears from his cheeks, then turns his head up and sees the girl.

"It's nothing, I'm just sad because James said I'm old, don't worry, love," He says feigning indifference as he takes a cigarette out of his pocket.

She crawls to be next to him, they both lean against a wall.

“He's said worse things to you…”

The girl doesn't buy the poor excuse, but she doesn't want to push him either. Sirius laughs, shrugs and brings the cigar to his lips.

"He's an idiot, he knows I always get sensitive on my birthday.”

They are silent for a few seconds, simply staring at the wall while the cigarette smoke rises each time the boy breathes it out.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" She starts.

“Yes. I uh, I just didn't expect you to find me…”

"Surely someone would come looking for you at some point.”

"No, I made sure the three of them had enough drinks, even Lily." They both laugh.

"Why don't you want them to see you?"

Sirius drops his shoulders.

“Everyone will want to know what's wrong with me.”

“Like I’m doing?”

"Exactly."

Y/N bites her lower lip. “Then I better go…”

"No! Wait–” He stops her. "It's not that you bother me, it wasn't what I wanted to say…”

"It's okay, Sirius. I understand that sometimes we want to be alone. I just wanted to let you know that, whatever happens, I’m right here.”

Sirius has always been used to these situations and when his friends ask, he's told them that, on this date, there’ll be a moment when he’ll want to disappear for a few hours. They never insist.

"I know,” He smiles sweetly.

The boy’s never had the courage to confess, although he knows they were suspicious every year. But with Y/N, it could be different. He sighs, showing the crumpled piece of parchment with his shaking hands.

“Every year…” He says, throwing his cigarette on the floor. “Since I started school, my parents send me a letter for my birthday. And over time their words have turned into complaints,” the boy's eyes water again. “I know what you thinking… I must not let that affect me, they’re bad people, but…” the lump in his throat stops him. “But I no longer live with them, I didn’t expect a letter and, even so, they wanted to ruin my day. It’s stupid and cruel, I don’t understand... after everything that's happened…”

The girl doesn’t hesitate to surround Sirius's body in a strong hug and he responds by hiding his face in her neck. Y/N holds him, strokes his hair and whispers little 'it's okay', 'I'm here,'everything will be fine’…

After a few minutes, Sirius calms down, but his head rests on her shoulder.

“I know that even though you no longer live in the mansion, they want to hurt you in some way. Maybe you’re not angry because they ruined your birthday, but you’re angry because they still have some power over you…”

“Maybe…” he whispers.

"I'm not sure how I can help you with that, but you don't know what I would do to make you no longer feel pain, to make you forget all the bad things they caused… I can't do it and I know that It sounds horrible or weird, but thanks to everything you've been through, what you've lost, you’re here.”

"What?"

"We don't know what your life would be like if your parents had treated you better or if you had been sorted in Slytherin…” He makes a face making her laugh. "What I'm going to say is, if everything had been different, maybe you wouldn't have James, Remus and Peter as friends,” She takes her hand. “Maybe we wouldn’t be together…”

"I'd be with a group like my little brother's" He says horrified and she nods. Sirius looks down and notices their clasped hands. "I think I would at least flirt with you,” He jokes

"I don't think so, but we'll never know,” Y/N smiles and raises her free hand, touching the boy's cheek to bring him closer. “The important thing is that you’re here, you have the best friends, you are popular, one of the best in the class, surprisingly,” She jokes. “You have me… We can’t change our families, and I know it will always be a sore spot for you. But you’re lucky to have something better, Sirius. A real family.”

The black-haired man genuinely smiles and thinks about everything his girlfriend has told him.

"How did I not win you over before?" He says raising an eyebrow.

She lets out a laugh and shakes her head.

“You were too busy distracting yourself with other girls. And you can't say I made it easy for you.”

He winces as he remembers all the effort it took to even go out with the beautiful girl next to him.

"It was worth it,” he answers, kissing her gently.

Sirius throws away the letter from his parents and then deepens the kiss, placing his hand on her cheek. However, the beautiful moment is interrupted by the exaggerated screams of a rather drunk James. The poor boy with glasses staggers until he falls in front of the lovers.

"Sirius!" James gasps. "I've looked everywhere for you! I looked for you in the bathroom, behind the tables, next to the bottles, under the chairs, in Remus's sweater– but you weren't there!"

Sirius and the girl try their best not to laugh.

"Sorry, mate. But you already found me, what wrong? " Sirius says, helping James to sit up.

"I forgive you because it's your birthday, old man,” He chuckles, then he gasps again. “Sirius, it's your birthday! Y/N, we haven't given him his gift!"

She laughs. "That was about to get done, silly.”

Sirius frowns.

"But you both already gave me gifts…”

James rolls his eyes.

"No, Paddie, we have a better gift,” he searches in his pockets and panics. “I can't find it– Y/N I lost the letter! I’m the worst friend in the world!”

"James, lower your voice,” Sirius laughs.

“I have the letter, James. Calm down,” She rolls her eyes, takes out an envelope and hands it to Sirius.

"What is this?”

She smiles.

"Walburga and Orion are not the only ones who wanted to send you a birthday letter.”

“It's a letter from my parents! Do you remember them, Sirius? They gave you permission to stay in our house,”adds James lying on the floor with his head resting on one of Sirius's leg.

The black-haired man looks at the girl still confused.

“Euphemia and Fleamont wanted to congratulate you. I don’t know what that letter says, but I can assure you that it is much better than the one you received a while ago.”

"Yeah, it's better," James babbles.

"Do you want to be alone to read it?"

Sirius nods, but now the need to be alone is different.

“Okay," She kisses his lips chastely. "Come on, James. Lily must be looking for you…”

James lifts his head and stands up awkwardly.

"Lily flower?"

Y/N shakes her head laughing, kisses Sirius's cheek and then stands up. "Happy Birthday, my love.”

Sirius watches as his girlfriend helps his best friend to walk. Only when he is alone does he see the fine print on the envelope in his hands and he can’t help but smile at the written words.

'For our son, Sirius.’

[anxious-witch]

Song of penance, melody of forgiveness

Part seven

 "A monster is not such a terrible thing to be. From the latin root monstrum, a divine messanger of catastrophe, then adapted by the Old French to mean an animal of myriad origins: centaur, griffin, satyr. To be a monster is to be a hybrid signal, a lighthouse: both shelter and warning at once."

-Ocean Vuong, from "A letter to my mother will never read"

 Coming out of Jingshi was...weird. Inside, he could barely feel passage of time. Outside, he could see how different weather was than a month ago, when he was told he will get married. 

 Autumn was obvious with the crunch of leaves under his foot, and different colored leaves. The air was colder, and Huaisang was hit with the longing fro Qinghe. 

 "Huaisang?" Xichen asked worriedly, pulling him out of his thoughts, "are you alright?"

 Huaisang smiled at him before hiding behind his fan. He was trying not to be bitter about this. But when you felt like you were imprisoned, it was hard not to hate the person who locked the door.

 "Of course Xichen-ge.  Just lost in thought. Let's go meet your brother."

 They resumed walking, but Huaisang could feel Xichen throwing worried glances at him. Huaisang ignored it.

 They met Lan Wangji in the library. Xichen came in first, with Huaisang right after him. The tense silence after he met Lan Wangji's piercing eyes lasted for a breath, before Huaisang bowed.

 "Hanguang-jun. Thank you for having us."

 Lan Wangji bowed back, and Huaisang relaxed a bit. At least he wouldn't be openly hostile. That made things easier. 

 "Nie-gongzi. Brother. How may I be of assistance?"

 Huaisang and Xichen exchanged a glance, Huaisang nodding slightly. Xichen turned towards Wangji.

 "Huaisang was cursed before he came to Cloud Recess.  It's something like a truth spell from what I gathered. I should have noticed earlier but...he often refused to speak."

 Huaisang bowed his head, as if ashamed of his actions. If he was good at something,  it was playing helpless and stupid.

 "It wasn't Zewu-jun's fault. I thought I could deal with it myself."

 Lan Wangji shifted his gaze to him. Huaisang doesn't meet it. 

 "And what, exactly, is the nature of this curse?"

 Only now did Huaisang raise his head an meet Lan Wangji's eyes. He fluttered his fan in front of his face.

 "It is a truth curse. But I only have the urge to be honest to people I desperately want to say something to," Huaisang paused, letting his eyes quickly dart toward Xichen before going back to Wangji, "which is why I refused to speak to your brother."

 The reaction is immediate. Wangji's eyes turned to Xichen, whose eyes have widened and he was staring at Huaisang.  The true surprise that he couldn't fake and that Wangji would absolutely recognize. Which was exactly what Huaisang wanted.

 Huaisang slowly turned to Xichen. He let his eyes fall on Xichen on Xichen before his face transformed into the one of guilt, with underlying grief.

 "I am sorry Xichen I didn't want you to say it this way. I didn't want to say it at all but...the curse has been driving me insane.  I-"

 He let his voice crack at that and his lips wobble for a moment before he bit on it. Swallowed. Met Xichen's eyes again.

 "I love you. And I am sorry for what I did. But he killed da-ge and I...I couldn't take it!"

 Huaisang pretended to sob, and threw himself in Xichen's embrace. Xichen's hands easily supported him, despite the fact that Huaisang crashed quite violently to his chest.

 He sobbed in his shoulder, poking his eye with a nail to bring real tears to them. Xichen awkwardly stroked his hair. Huaisang had to push down the urge to laugh.

 "Huaisang I...um."

 Huaisang sobbed harder.

 "Brother," Wangji said over his pitiful cries, "perhaps it would be for the best if you...left. just so Nie-gongzi can explain to be the curse better without such...displays."

 It took a lot of Huaisang's willpower not to snort. Lan Wangji, who practically declared his love for Wei Wuxian in front of all of Jins' court, is shaming him for displays? Huaisang wasn't sure if he should be proud of his acting skills, or offended.

 Xichen hesitated, which in turn made Huaisang annoyed. He ruined his last plan with hesitation, he won't let it happen again.

 He would never admit that, but he took one last moment to soak up the warmth, and the comfort of his arms around him. It was a while since someone last hugged him.

 Huaisang stepped out of his embrace, and Xichen's hands hovered over his waist for a moment longer before he dropped them. Huaisang wiped away his tears.

 "Maybe Wangji is right. I need to calm down and I can't-can't do that while you are here. You are too distracting I-"

 "Brother. Go."

 Xichen looked flinched back a bit at Lan Wangji's tone, but nodded. He gave Huaisang one last, lingering look and turned, walking away. Huaisang really didn't have the time to analyze that. 

 Only after he was sure Xichen left and won't be coming back, did he drop his mask. 

 "Oh, thank god," He said, streching his arms. 

 Huaisang turned to Lan Wangji, whose face was stony. He was looking at Huaisang intently, waiting for his next move.

 "I apologize for that terrible performance but I needed a way to speak to you alone. May we sit? I didn't stand in days and my legs are not liking the change."

 Annoyance flashed over Wangji's face but he did sit down. Huaisang followed his lead taking the silent invitation. 

 "So, here is the truth-Wei Wuxian is the one who is cursed," Huaisang began.

 That got him just the faintest twitch of Wangji's mouth, and his eyes widening a bit. Huaisang wasn't Wei Wuxian, or even Lan Xichen. He couldn't read Lan Wangji like an open book. But he could still see small, telltale signs.

 "He is also here. In Cloud Recess."

 That got the reaction. Lan Wangji half stood up before Huaisang grabbed his elbow.

 "Wait. You can't go and hunt him down! He'll just run away. He is injured and under a truth curse."

 Wangji pursed his lips, but after a moment, sat down again. Huaisang exhaled.

 "What do you propose then?"

 Oh thank god. At least one of the brothers was sensible. 

 "Help me find the cure. Once you do, I will make sure to find a way to get him to be alone with you. If you wish to speak with him before or after the curse is lifted well...that's not my business."

 Wangji's eyes narrowed.

 "Why? How does this benefit you?"

 Huaisang laughed, twirling his hair around his finger. Wangji was smart. Perhaps not as smart as as Wei Wuxian-he didn't have as much experience with liars after all. But still. After only talking to Xichen for a while, it was refreshing to talk to someone who could at least partly guess his next step.

 "Maybe I think I put too much effort into resurrecting him, just for you two not to take the second chance you have been given. Most of us don't get second chances."

 He let himself be wishful for a moment,  before raising his eyes again and grinning.

 "Besides. I need someone to send a letter of mine to new sect leader of Qinghe. I may not be allowed to do so but-nobody could stop the second Jade of Lan from writing to him, now could they?'

 Wangji's mouth twisted unhappily, and he didn't answer. For the first time since the conversation started, nervousness churned in Huaisang's stomach.

 If Wangji decided to go with the plan he presented and not help him, there was nothing Huaisang could do to stop him. For the first time, Huaisang didn't have much to bargain with.

 So he dropped the mask instead. Someone like Wangji would appreciate honesty, and Huaisang didn't have anything left to lose.

 "It's not of political nature. You can read it before you send it. I just...I want to know he is alright. And ask about another disciple of mine. A friend."

 Huaisang fidgeted with his fan, but didn't open it. He wasn't trying to hide, after all.

 "They are the closest thing to the family I have left."

 Lan Wangji's face stayed unreadable. This time there was no movement, nothing. It made Huaisang uneasy.

 "Why not ask brother?"

 Startled laugh poured out of Huaisang's mouth. It was a ridiculous idea, the one born out of Wangji's love for his brother, he was sure. But ridiculous nonetheless. 

 "Your brother is a lot of things, Lan-gongzi. But he isn't someone who would help in a scheme, except maybe for you. You on the other hand...have proved there is nothing you wouldn't do when Wei Wuxian is concerned."

 Lan Wangji held his gaze, silent. He looked thoughtful.

 "That is true. There is nothing I wouldn't do for Wei Ying," he paused, as if weighting his words, "It is in our blood. Lans only love once. And when they do, there are few things they wouldn't do for those they love. No matter the consequences."

 Huaisang suddenly felt as if Wangji's gaze and his words weighted a lot more than a moment ago. He dropped his gaze to the floor.

 "Are you going to send the letter or not?" Huaisang snapped.

 Wangji sighed and extended his hand.

 "I will."

 Huaisang took the letter out of his outer robe, handing it over. Wangji didn't even look at it before hidding it in his. He stood up and Huaisang did the same.

 "I will try my best to find the cure for the curse. I might need more details. I will call you here if that happens. Your letter will be sent and I will pass the answering one to you as well."

 Huaisang nodded, suddenly feeling numb. They walked to the door when Lan Wangji stopped him.

 "I know brother is...difficult, sometimes. For you. You are very different people. But that doesn't mean he can't understand."

 Shifting from one foot to another, Huaisang hesitated. How honest could he really be, with Lan Wangji?

 "I don't think it's the issue of him not being able to understand.  I think he doesn't want to understand," He said quietly.

 Wangji nodded. Opened the door for him. Just when Huaisang was about to leave, he spoke again.

 "Maybe not yet. But when he does...try to understand him, in turn. Changing our views is not easy." 

 Huaisang stood there for a moment longer, thankful for the fact that his back was to Wangji. He only smiled bitterly for himself.

 "I'll keep that in mind."

 And with that, he left. Lan Wangji's words haunted him all the way back to Jingshi. Lans only love once.

 Well, if that was true, he didn't envy Xichen in the slightest. Jin Guanyao was a terrible person to love, hard to unlove even by his brother, with steel will. Lan Xinchen had no chance.

 Briefly, he wondered what would happen, when Xichen decided to give up on saving him. He would have nothing left but his grief for his lost lover. Would he waste away in seclusion, like his father did? And what would happen to Huaisang in that case?

 He shook his head, chasing thise thoughts away. He would deal with that when it became a problem. For now, he had more pressing matters. 

 Huaisang may not be allowed to send letters to his own clan, but he was allowed to send them to other. He put a sheet of paper to the desk, and started writing.

 Sect Leader Jiang, he began. 

Taglist

@demonic-cultivar

@daybreaksgaze

@lets-be-the-happy

[benhardyisdaddy]

must be a dream - part 2

MASTERLIST 

(THANK YOU @roger-bang-the-drum​ FOR CO WRITING THIS WITH ME AND FOR THE IDEA FOR THE LETTERS AND FOR WRITING THE LETTERS!!!! such a brilliant idea and made the story line 100x better so THANK U!!!)

Word Count: 2,790

“Shit!” 

Your whole entire body goes limp as you go to fall backwards. Billy jumps forward and catches you in his arms just before you slam into the ground. He’s panicking as he picks you up bridal style and hurries over to your bed. He gently places you down as he cups your face and attempts to wake you up.

“Y/n?!” he asks loudly as he shakes you a bit. 

His eyes are wild as his heart races. 

“Y/n, wake up!” 

The rest of the crew hurry inside and close the door. Five is at Billy’s side in an instant as she tries to inspect you. 

“Give me some room.” she tells him with a calm voice. 

“The whole point of this was to never be seen again!” calls out One as he runs a hand over his face. “Now we’re in an apartment with an unconscious girl and…and… Three!” he shouts. 

Three is stood over your tiny dining table as he munches on a bag of chips. He looks over to him with a mouthful and a confused expression.

“What?” he asks looking around. 

“Could you possibly not do that right now?” One asks with a disgusted face. 

“Oh my gosh,” harshly whispers Two as she spots the baby. 

Everyone, besides Billy and Five, slowly walk over to examine Stella as she sleeps. Their faces all soften as they coo over her. 

“Is she okay!?” asks Billy as Five feels your pulse. 

She backs away and places a blanket on top of you. 

“She’ll be fine. She’s just knocked out cold. She was overwhelmed.” she tells him.

Billy nods his head as his eyes were still glued to you. He looks terrified as his mind races like crazy. He couldn’t believe that he was back in a place that he once called home. In this exact spot he made you a promise that he would come back safe - and he didn’t. Guilt ripped through him just as he looks over and watches as One slides open a drawer on a small computer desk in the corner of the room.

“What are you doing!?” angrily shouts Billy. 

One looks over fast and quickly holds his hands up. 

“I’m just browsing!” he says in defense. 

“Don’t go through her shit!” 

Billy walks over to where he’s standing and goes to close the drawer. He’s pushing it back just as something catches his eye. He pauses and slowly reopens it. There’s multiple small envelopes with ‘Billy’ written on each one. It’s in your handwriting. His eyes are wide as he swallows hard. 

“What are those?” asks One. 

Billy just shakes his head as he continues to stare at them. 

“I… I don’t know.” 

Billy looks back to you and tenses his jaw. He looks to the envelopes once more and reaches out for them. He picks up the stack and slips the top one off of it. He places the rest on top of the desk and eyes it cautiously. He runs his fingers over his name and takes in a deep breath. He knows he shouldn’t, but he flips it over and gently tears the top open. His fingers slide inside and there’s a piece of paper. He pulls it out and spots writing on it. He feels like he’s doing something wrong, but he doesn’t care. He needs to read them. He has to read them. 

“She’s waking up!” whispers Two suddenly. 

Billy turns around and jumps at her sudden voice. He spots the small baby in her crib as she begins to wiggle around and yawn. Everyone near her all ‘awww’ at the sweet sight. Her big green eyes flutter open as she looks around at all of the unfamiliar faces surrounding her. 

“Hi, sweet girl,” whispers Two as she leans over and gently picks the baby up. 

Billy wants to stop her, but he doesn’t. The baby yawns once more and smiles at Two. This causes Billy to smile as Three walks over and begins making silly faces at her. She grins and does a belly laugh, causing everyone else to. She then looks over at One and stares at him. His eyes go slightly wide as she then reaches her tiny arms out for him. 

“Um,” he says looking at everyone. “Three, she wants you.” 

“No, no, papi. She definitely wants you.” he says with a laugh. 

Two walks over and hands the baby over to One. He takes her and looks super uncomfortable as she reaches her hand out to touch his face. He’s frozen as his eyes look to everyone else. 

“What’s… happening?” he asks as they all giggle. 

“She likes you.” says Seven. 

“That’s surprising.” teases Five. 

“Okay, my turn!” says Three as he walks up. 

“What?” asks One, almost offended. “She wanted me.” 

“Yes, but now I want to hold the baby. It’s my turn!” 

“She doesn’t want you!” fights back One. 

“Enough!” calls out Two. “You both are acting worse than the baby.”

Billy turns his back to them as he looks down at the note that’s still in his hand. He nods his head as he closes his eyes and takes in a deep breath. He unfolds it quickly and begins reading. 

Dear Billy, 

You have no idea what it feels like being told that you’re gone. It’s only been a month, but it feels like forever. Your mum tried her hardest to give you an amazing send off. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her that broken before. She couldn’t even stay during the burial. Hell, I almost had to leave. It was so odd seeing your real name on that stone - William Jones. God, that feels so weird to write. You’ll always be my Billy.

I can’t stop thinking about the day we met. We were just kids. I was out searching for food and the others were teasing me about it. I was hungry and alone, but not for long. You snuck food from your house and brought it to me. I still remember what you told me that day. “I’ll always take care of you.” And you did, Billy. You took care of me. It feels like forever since I’ve heard your sweet voice. God, I miss you so much, Billy. I just wish I could have told you everything I know now. Remember when you promised me the world? That was a promise you kept. I’m pregnant, Billy. This beautiful life, this beautiful, lovely human is ours. I know you would have been over the moon excited about all of this. All you ever wanted was a family with me. Well, now we have one. 

I love you, Billy. I’ll forever wish that you could come home to me. These letters will help make me feel like a tiny part of you is still here. I promise to keep writing to you. Goodnight, Billy. Sleep well and say hello to my mum for me. I love you. 

Yours Always, 

Y/n

Billy is stood there with his heart more broken than it ever has been. Something he never thought could happen. You wrote letters to him. Letters to a man you thought you’d never see again. You poured your heart out to your dead boyfriend, all while he was very much alive. Guilty is an understatement. Tears flooded his eyes as he stares down at your letter. His chin is quivering as his face scrunches up. He feels like the worst human in existence. He feels like he’s betrayed you. He left you all alone and with a baby. His baby. He finally had a family and he threw it all away. He hated himself for that. He could never be forgiven. He quickly wipes his eyes and, without thinking, opens another letter. He needs to read more. 

Dear, Billy 

Three months have gone by and you’re still not here. I don’t know why I keep thinking you’ll walk through that door at any minute with a bog goofy, smile on your face. A girl can only dream. I wish you were here to experience everything with me. You would be so in love with hearing and seeing our baby girl. Yes, you read that write. You’re going to a daddy to a beautiful little girl. I so badly wish you could have been there when I found out. I bawled like a baby, but you would have done the same. You always told me how much you wanted a little girl. 

I got to hear her heartbeat again today. It reminded me of when I used to lay on your chest and listen to yours. It’s strong and fast, just like her daddy’s. I already love her more than words can describe. Exactly the same way I will always love you. You broke that pinky promise we made, but I forgive you. I will always forgive you. 

How I long for just one more kiss, my sweet Billy. My William. 

Yours Forever and Always, 

Y/n

He’s speechless. That’s his little girl. His. He shakes his head as he slips the paper back into the envelope. He’s about to open another one up when suddenly you begin groaning. Everyone freezes as he looks to you fast. Your eyes flutter open and then close once more. His heart is racing as he looks around fast and quickly shoves the rests of the letters inside his backpack. Five was by your side as she slowly speaks. 

“Y/n?” she asks. 

You move your head around and slowly open your eyes. You blink several times as they try to adjust. You look to Five and it takes you a moment to realize that you don’t know her. You gasp loudly as you sit up fast and scoot away from her. You look terrified as your back is pressed against the wall. You’re trembling as you look between them all. 

“Who are you!?” you shout. 

“You passed out.” says Five in a calm voice. “We’re not going to hurt you. We were trying to help.” 

All of a sudden, you hear your baby and your heart almost fully stops. Your eyes land on her as she’s still in One’s arms with her hand wrapped around Three’s finger. Three backs away fast as One looks around awkwardly. He raises his brows and then back to you. 

“This looks weird.” he says quietly. 

“Don’t touch her!” you scream as your face twists with anger. 

You jump up from the bed and go to sprint towards him, but are stopped. Your head is woozy as you stumble slightly. Billy is in front of you with his hands on your shoulders. You stare at him in disbelief as your eyes go wide.

“It is you.” you barely whisper.

Billy just smiles as he nods his head. You look so thrilled to see him as you reach your hand forward to touch his face.

“I thought I had dreamed everything.” you tell him with a shaky voice.

“Not a dream, baby. I’m here.” 

Suddenly, your face goes from a sweet, sad smile to an angry, harsh frown. Your draw your hand back and harshly slap Billy in the face. Everyone gasps by your sudden actions as they take a step back. Billy’s stunned as his hand goes to his cheek and hisses. He looks to you fast, utterly confused. You shout out as tears fill your eyes and your chin quivers. 

“You broke our promise!” you half whisper. “You’re supposed to be dead.” you hiss. 

Billy’s trying to find the right words to say, but he can’t. His mouth is open as he attempts to speak. 

“That was my fault.” finally speaks up One. 

He has the baby still in his arms as you look over to him and narrow your eyes. He gives you a tight lipped smile as he gently hands the baby over to Three. Three’s face lights up as he smiles big and begins making funny noises to her. Stella laughs as she reaches up and grabs his nose, causing him to jokingly whisper ‘ow’ and making her laugh even more. 

“Your fault?” you ask as you begin seeing red. “You’re the reason why he left me?” 

Your voice was a mixture of anger, sadness and confusion. Nothing was making sense. 

“I never would have asked him to do it if I had known he had a kid.” confesses One.

“Do what!?” you half shout. “What is this!? Who are you all!?” 

You were frustrated as nobody spoke a word. You look to Billy and his eyes are sad as he looks down to the ground. You couldn’t believe he wasn’t going to explain anything to you. You tense your jaw as your eyes go dark. You shake your head fast as you look to all of them and sarcastically smile. 

“Alright, fine,” you say quickly. “If nobody’s going to explain what the hell is happening, then get out of my home!” you shout as you look to Billy. “All of you!”

They all flinch as tears build up in your eyes. 

“Y/n, no. Please!” begs Billy. 

“You’re dead.” you whisper again. “You died. They saw you die. I went to your f…” you pause as you close your eyes and silently sob at that memory. “I went to your funeral… I buried you as I stood next to your grieving mother.” you hiss.

This time, it was now Billy who was crying. 

“We can explain.” speaks up Seven. 

The crew look to him fast with wide eyes. One goes to say something that will dismiss that idea just as Two speaks up. 

“Yeah. That’s the least,” she says as she gives One a look. “We can do for you.” 

One shuts his mouth fast and knows that he’s been defeated on this. His shoulders slump as he shakes his head and rolls his eyes. 

“Fine!” he says fast. “But I wanna hold the baby while you do.” 

Three looks to One as if he’s just offended him. He steps away from him and shakes his head no. 

“No, she likes me now.” he tells him fast. “I just met her, but I would die for this baby.”

One gives Three a certain look that reads, ‘if you don’t give me the baby, I might hurt you’. Three ignores the glare as he stares at him ten times more harder.

“Actually,” starts Seven. “It’s my turn to hold her.”

One and Three look at him with wide eyes as their eyebrows fly up. 

“Your turn!?” they both ask in unison. 

The three of them begin talking at once and you can’t take it anymore. 

“Hey!” you shout over them.

They all look to you fast as you look over to Billy. He’s still looking at the ground with shame hitting him hard. 

“Don’t you think her father should hold her?” you ask as you continue to stare at him. 

Billy looks up fast and he looks shocked. He gulps hard as the three men all sadly slump their shoulders and agree. Three walks up to Billy and gently hands Stella over to him. Billy holds her in his arms as she stares up at him. She can’t break her tiny eyes away as she studies him closely. Billy just smiles as more tears flood his eyes. 

“Hi,” he whispers. 

He sniffles a bit as gently runs his hand over her blonde, curly hair. Everyone is watching in silence as they take in this magical moment. Your heart swells as you watch the man you thought you’d never see again finally meet his daughter. You place your hand over your heart as you smile. 

“Hi, beautiful,” he whispers to her. 

Stella smiles as her hand reaches out and lands on Billy’s chest. She yawns a bit as everyone melts. She sticks her tiny thumb in her mouth and slowly leans forward and rests her head on his chest. Billy looks up with wide eyes as you laugh a bit. You wipe away a few tears and nod your head. 

“She’s still sleepy.” you whisper. 

Billy looks to the crib and then back to you. 

“Should…Should I put her…down?” he asks, almost worried. 

“Do you want to put her down?” you ask quietly. 

Billy’s face softens as his hand begins rubbing tiny circles on her back. He gently shakes his head and smiles. 

“No.” he barely whispers. 

You bite your lip as you watch him begin rocking side to side with her still in his arms. He looks down at her tiny, chubby face and he can’t stop smiling. You’re taking in this sweet moment as One speaks up. 

“So, are doing this thing?” he asks in a hushed tone. 

You look over to him and remember that they’re supposed to be explaining all of this to you. 

“Yes,” you say. “Tell me… Tell me everything.” 

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[dapandapod]

Prove it

This little thing is also on Ao3!

_________________________

The light has faded to give way to a soft evening night. The stars are peeking through the fluffy clouds traveling over the night sky. Below a lazy moon rests a small farm at the edge of the forest. In the barn someone is singing. Two someones actually. A male voice, enthusiastically holding a tune, and a young girl, not quite as enthusiastic.. They are dancing together in the light of lanterns. Twirling around each other, every now and then touching hands in a ballroom dance. Jaskier and Ciri smile and laugh as they both mess up the steps every now and then. They have made room on the barn floor, pushed the straw to the sides where Geralt now sits, watching them.

It took them some time to shake off the haunting feeling of the war. Its still there, the war is still going on, but they are trying their very best to keep it at bay. Keep Ciri safe. To keep her smiling. They move over the floor, a light hand on Ciri's waist. “Ow, Jaskier, you stepped on my toes.” “Stop blaming your big feet on me, girlie!” Jaskier grins at her. They walk in a small circle around each other, humming that ballroom tune. From the corner of his eye he can see Geralt making the tiniest of smirks. A thousand tiny wings flutter inside him at the sight. “What are you laughing at you big oaf? As if you could do it better!” he throws at Geralt. “Probably.” Geralt smirks at them. “Rude!” Ciri complaints, Jaskier twirling her and making her golden hair dance around her. “Prove it then!” Jaskier challenges. “Nah, I'm good. I’ll just watch you two.” “Nope! Not letting you insult my dancing and then not having anything to show for it!” Ciri walks over to him, tugs at his arm. “Come on. Show me your moves.” She gets Geralt to stand up somewhat hestitanly. Jaskier will dance with you.” She decides. “Why me?” Jaskier protests. “Why won’t you dance with him?” “My toes are already sore from all your stomping on them, and Geralt is way heavier than you.” She looks so pleased with herself for insulting them both in one breath, a smug smile stretching across her face. She’s getting sharp, that one. Ciri drags Geralt to where she stood. “There! Now prove it!” Hands at her sides, mission accomplished.

Jaskier and Geralt awkwardly face each other. Things have been kind of tense since the dragon hunt. Water under the bridge and all that, but their relationship has changed. Jaskier forgave Geralt after they talked about it, for once really talked, Geralt used his words. He knew he would forgive him, in a heartbeat, if Geralt actually apologized. They are more careful around each other now. And Geralt has a new way to look at him that he hasn't seen before. He isn’t sure he can read it. Not sure he dares to try. Because it gives him dreams at night he never will share with a living soul, ever, and a weird hope in his gut. He smiles more now. Jaskier gives all the credit to Ciri for that one. She is a sweet and clever girl. Sometimes too clever.

The moment stretches a heartbeat too long. Jaskier feels the need to clear his throat, and then lifts his hand, since Geralt obviously isn’t doing anything to help. “Geralt, I have never seen you dance but I trust you not to murder my feet?” “It wasn’t me stepping on Ciri’s toes.” The corner of Geralt's mouth tugs upward, a crooked smile that does horrible things to Jaskiers insides. He shoots a glance at Ciri and hopes he doesn’t look as nervous as he feels. “Rude. Well, if we are to dance, you are to sing, evil little one.” He tells her. Ciri laughs and perches herself on the straw where Geralt was sitting before. She starts humming the same tune they sang before. Leaning back against the wall, she looks all too pleased to have the two men at her mercy.

Geralt touches his hand to Jaskiers waiting one, palm to palm, and they move around each other in a small circle. The dance requires the partners to have intense eye contact, and so Jaskier has no choice. Really, he doesn’t. Bright amber eyes meet his ocean blue. It’s an entirely different experience to dance with Geralt than Ciri. Geralt is a surprisingly graceful dancer. He said he was, but really, Geralt must be bad at something right? Jaskier feels like his palm is burning up where they are touching.Then letting go, taking three steps backwards, one to the left, and three steps forward. Geralt’s eyes are following him, he obviously doesn't have any of the problems Jaskier has with this.

And clearly Geralt is having fun. Jaskier is not sure if he is, actually. His heart is beating hard, spreading fire through his limbs. Ciri’s voice is soft and the tune just a little off. The lanterns give Geralt's white hair a golden shine and it feels so oddly intimate. They do a twirl, and Jaskier can catch his breath for a moment.

When they face each other again, Jaskier falters under the weight of their stare, and manages to step on Geralt's toes. Fucking of course. Geralt scrunches his nose, it’s absolutely adorable. “I see why you wanted to get away, Ciri.” Jaskier glares at him, but Ciris' laugh is worth any jab. “Oh shut up you. Don’t think I didn’t see how you half assed your twirl, it’s all your fault.” “You two are worse than an old married couple.” she teases. “Watch it, little miss, or I’ll dance with you again! And keep singing, we are not done yet!” If Jaskier has to suffer, he will at least not suffer alone.

They dance around each other, fingers brushing every now and then, gazes locked. They are moving in unexpected harmony. Geralt leading and Jaskier following. Jaskier takes great care to avoid stepping on him again. Geralt's big hand on Jaskiers waist when he leads him around. The touch is light, but he feels it acutely before it’s gone again. Jaskiers pulse racing and he is sure Geralt's enhanced hearing can pick it up. He starts humming with Ciri, hoping to drown out the sound.

After a while Jaskier realizes he is the only one singing. He glances over at Ciri and sees her asleep on the straw. He smiles and nods for Geralt to look, who barely spares her a glance. “Don’t stop.” Geralt murmurs. “Singing or dancing?” he asks with a smile. “Both.” A hot blush rushes up Jaskiers cheeks, he really hopes it can’t be seen in the light of the lanterns. “I thought you didn’t like my singing.” “I lied.” Their gazes lock, all humour gone. Something heavy and loaded settles between them as their hands touch again, and they circle. Jaskier keeps humming, and Geralt is all he can see. Somehow they move closer, touches lingering just a little longer.

Geralt grabs Jaskiers hands and twirls him, like Jaskier twirled Ciri before. The world spins and then settles. Geralt presses Jaskiers hands to his chest.

They stop. Everything stops. Jaskiers heart stops, and restarts. He is not sure what this is. If he can dare hope. “What are we doing?” He asks quietly. Geralt's eyes travel over his face, dipping down to his lips and back to his eyes. He lifts Jaskiers hand to his face and presses his cheek to it, letting go of the other one to snake it around Jaskiers lower back, pulling him just a little closer. “Whatever you want.” Geralt promises. His embrace is soft, letting Jaskier break loose if he wants to, allowing him to reject him. As if Jaskier ever could. Jaskier exhales, pulling Geralt's forehead down to touch his. “Whatever I want?” He asks softly, closing his eyes. “Anything.” Geralt's breath is hot against his face. Jaskier brings his other hand up so that he is cupping both of the witcher's cheeks. Slowly he opens his eyes, and those amber eyes are burning holes straight into his soul. That look is back. The one he does not let himself think about. The one he knows all too well from his own mirror. Yearning, wanting. A hint of love.

Jaskier tilts his head up and presses his lips to Geralts. With a soft sigh Geralt pulls Jaskier tight against him. He got shivers, he is burning up, the thousand wings taking flight in his blood.

From the straw he can hear Ciri muttering. “Gross.”

_______________

And I feel like my drawingskills are failing me for this, but if anyone feel the need to draw something pleasethescenewhereJaskiershandsareonGeraltsches i would love to see it!

[urimaginespimp]

Michael Gray: Better Man pt 12

The long overdue talk between Michael and Olivia finally happened, and the heavy tension that came along with it was out of the window.

She couldn't deny that it made her feel like a heavy weight was lifted off her. And he himself seemed to be happier and less tense.

But now what?

Though their talk ended with them being in genuinely good terms, there was something they didn't really get to discuss: where do we go from here?

It was as if both of them were now playing a dangerous but lighter game. The way they'd treat each other was in no means how a purely platonic pair would, nor was it crossing boundaries to a territory where intimate couples would be in.

He would kiss her often, when he's going out of the house or just getting settled in; to greet her in the morning or when he's about to sleep. But it was only either on the back of her hand, her cheek, or her temples.

She would get close to him, maybe lean in for support when she was doing something next to him, to rest for a while, or just because she felt like it; enjoy his cologne while he'd put his arm around her, or even lock arms together when walking down the streets. But she wouldn't give his jaw little pecks like she used to, nor would they intertwine their hands together.

--- Olivia was combing her wet hair in the mirror by the living room when she heard him say good morning. Looking at him as he appeared on the mirror's reflection, he was going down the stairs already dressed up for the day.

"Good morning, Mikey" She answered back with a grin.

"There wasn't enough supplies in the cupboards. I'm heading out for some groceries, and I'll see you in your office." Michael said, approaching her with a grin, then giving her a quick kiss on her cheek.

Every time he did so, she couldn't help the blood rushing to her cheeks. But it was also followed by that annoying little voice of reason at the back of her mind, asking her what in heavens were they doing.

"New York better be careful when you're on the loose in it's streets." She smiled slyly at him.

He laughed at what she said and poked her on the side, causing her to yelp and drop the comb. And before she could make him pay, he was already out the door yelling a quick goodbye to her.

Michael can't deny to himself that he wants to do more than just kiss, touch, and hold her on zones a really really close friend could. But he was doing a great job at containing himself. He wasn't going to cross the line unless she asks him to.

"Well if it'll all be up to her , we might as well just buy friendship bracelets." He muttered to himself, chuckling as he was walking down the streets of New York.

Olivia back at their apartment was just about to finish tidying up the place when there was a knock on the door.

Nobody else in the city except for Michael and Ginny knew where she lived.

That's odd. Ginny rarely leaves the diner when it's daytime, and Michael finally has a spare key. She thought to herself, approaching it slowly as the knocking continued.

Pressing her ear against it, she asked who is it.

"It's the young widow you left in Small Heath." A familiar feminine voice replied.

Ada.

"Linda?" She asked, acting clueless.

The audible gasp and scoffed that followed from the other side of the door was enough to make her break into laughter and finally open the door, to the unamused face of one of her oldest friends.

"Of course I knew it was you!" She laughed at her, opening her arms open for a hug.

Ada rolled her eyes as if in annoyance but nevertheless caved into the hug.

"I've missed you so much, Livy." Ada said into the hug.

Pulling away from each other, Ada's sweet face turned into an angry one, and she gave  Olivia a pinch on the forearm.

Yelping, Olivia asked what the hell was that for. Rubbing the small area that was already turning pink.

"Well we made a pact never to pull each other's hair, scratch faces, or go over just pinching, remember?" She replied, crossing her arms together and shrugged.

"Of course I remember! But why?" She asked incredulously.

"You made me miss you, and you never called." Ada answered shyly, looking anywhere else. "nor wrote." She added.

Olivia smiled at this. "Well, would you please come in so I could start making up for it?"

"You better." Ada threatened, trying to hold back from smiling.

"Does anybody else know my address now, then?" She asked, closing the door, and hanging Ada's coat on the rack.

"All it took was making Karl fake cry in-front of Thomas because he was really missing his auntie Livy." She answered, placing her one piece luggage down.

"Yet Karl's not here with you?" They were now sitting on the sofa, facing each other.

"Oh he might actually need a little refresher of who you are. So he's back home with aunt Poll." Ada replies sheepishly.

The two women shared a laugh.

"So... I see that devil cousin of mine isn't here right now. Tell me everything I need to know about you two here in New York." Ada asked excitedly. Oh it felt just like the times they spent sharing about each other's love life back in Birmingham.

By the time she was done, Ada had never had her mouth gaping like it was now.

"W-wait. What the hell are you two doing?"

"We're co-existing in this apartment?" She answered.

"Oh I'm happy you two made peace of the past. But I'm talking about now." She clarified. Olivia then understood what she meant.

"I don't know A, but is it weird to say that I'm enjoying it?" She smiled shyly at her friend.

"Of course you do. And I'm loving how it's like you're trying to see who'd give in first." Ada winked at her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well it does sound like a type of foreplay. You-l"

"No it's not" Livy cut off her laughing friend.

"Oh it definitely is, Livy. And you need to win."

And just when she was about to respond, the front door opened again. This time, the person that was subject of their conversation walked in with a paper bag with him.

"Your office was still locked so I figured you're still here." Michael called out loudly, and stopped in his tracks when he realized who was with her.

"Michael." Ada acknowledged him, but any hint of the smile she was sharing to Olivia earlier was gone and replaced with coldness.

"It's good to see you, Ada." Michael nodded at her.

Olivia was confused. Michael and Ada were close. He was a great uncle to Karl, and she was always up to tag along the both of them when they asked her.

"I'll uh- arrange these in the kitchen." Michael said awkwardly to her, and left.

"What was that?" Olivia asked her quietly.

"Well, I have been mad at him after what he's done to ya." Ada whispered back in defense.

Olivia groaned. She hadn't anticipated how their own relationship problem could affect Michael's relationship with his family.

As if reading her mind, Ada called her attention.

"Oy. It was his fault. Not yours."

Olivia nodded.

"But since you two made up, I might just go and talk to him right now." Ada stood up, and motioned for her to stay seated so she could talk to him alone.

When Ada got to the kitchen, Michael was just about to throw the brown paper bag into the bin, when she cleared her throat.

This was enough to get his attention.

"I heard you two made up." She started, fidgeting with her fingers.

"Yeah. Livy's a saint to even listen to me." This has been the longest exchange of words they've had for the last two years.

"That's good to hear, Michael." She nodded.

"I'm sorry for hurting your best friend and driving her away from our family, Ada. I completely understand why you've been hating me."

"Well I don't hate you anymore." She gave him a small smile.

"Thank you." He broke into a smile, almost tearing up at the fact that she was the first of the Shelby siblings to actually forgive him for what he'd done to Olivia.

Sure, Arthur and John still spoke and joked around him, even Finn when they got past the time they almost got into a fight. But it never felt the same. He knew deep down they were also disappointed with him. Thomas was as usual all business talk.

"I said I don't hate you anymore. But that doesn't mean you're a hundred percent forgiven." She smiled at him.

"What do I have to do then?"

"I'll let you both enjoy this weird foreplay you both got going right now, but I want you to be the one to actually ask what she wants from this." She explained. "It's for the both of you. You can't just be stuck in this weird phase forever."

Michael nodded in understanding. "I'll talk to her about it when you go back." He promised.

"Good. In two days then." Ada nodded back in approval. "Now give me a stupid hug."

Michael chuckled and approached his cousin, engulfing her in a bear hug.

When the cousins came back from the kitchen, Olivia was still seated and now immersed in a book.

"Livy I wanna go sightseeing by myself. I'll be back by the time you're back from the office." Ada told Olivia while grabbing her coat from the rack.

"Oh that reminds me. How long are ya planning to stay?"

"I'll be out of your hair in two days, luv." She answered, putting her coat on and fixing her hair. "So you owe me two days worth of catching up."

"I'd be glad to, A."

"Oh except for Night times."

"What?" Michael asked what she meant.

"Remember when before he passed away, I promised Freddie that I won't be sharing a bedroom or let alone a bed at night with anyone else but Karl?"

Both Olivia and Michael nodded but was confused. What the hell was she talking about?

"Well it was a romantic promise yet I didn't realize it lacked detail such as exempting family and female friends, and Freddy isn't really here to discuss it with." She opened the door.

"It's still up for a year, so you two better pick which room to share now BYE!" She hastily answered with a wink, already leaving them both.

[cruelfeline]

You know, I actually *do* value Noelle’s takes on Entrapdak *specifically* because she didn’t write them and isn’t the one who understands them best. Because what she does understand, and is very useful to see, is the princesses’ headspace. So I think she’s a good jumping off point for future relations between them. (The princesses not really getting them, kinda thinking Hordak just was evil, but wanting to be friends, wanting Entrapta to be happy...) (1/?)

Like, I haven’t read a ton of Entrapdak fic featuring the other princesses, but they sometimes show up almost like a clique of “mean girls” at a high school, which doesn’t really do them justice for me. And while the scenes they get with Entrapta don’t show them getting along, there’s also very little of them, and most of them are in very tense situations. Hell, if we’re gonna judge Entrapdak w/ princesses based on that, let’s judge Entrapta w/ Catra based on that head pat. 2/?

It feels like due to the show being so short, and Entrapta & Hordak’s focus being different from the main story- you said yourself- not a war drama. Something more like a high-action superhero star-wars- while those two are more in-deep weird-alien sci-fi... their interactions and stories get oddly jumbled. Anyways, all I know is that Bow proved that when a horde commander stops being evil and starts being cute + in love, he squees, and Adora was as gentle to Hordak as can be. 3/4

So I think Entrapta & Hordak as seen by the princesses would be somewhat like them as seen by Noelle. Not mistreated or rejected, but a bit awkwardly fit sometimes from different worldviews. Still fond of them, especially of Entrapta... there’s the Mass Wedding Noelle drew for Josie Campbell, the mother of Entrapdak. 4/4

Hmmm... y’know, I’m not sure that I would say that Entrapdak-as-seen-by-Noelle would necessarily be a representation of Entrapdak-as-seen-by-Princesses (we got that beautiful scene of mercy and forgiveness between Hordak and Adora, after all, and Hordak and Catra share significant trauma), but I do think that her views are a good representation of how the non-Entrapdak portion of the fandom view the situation!

So I think there is some value in that: noting how people who don’t sit and overanalyze Hordak’s life might view him and his relationship with Entrapta. Alongside how the non-Entrapdak portion of the fandom might view Entrapta and her actions.

In the end, I think you’re right, in a way, anon.