#but i can't get through 2 seconds of that without being like. NO IT'S CRINGE YOU'RE CRINGE

[faradaykay]

if i just like. wrote some short little fics about shinji and hamuko being happy and doing silly cute little things together in a not-necessarily-ship-but-you-can-view-it-as-ship-if-you-want way. would that be cringe

[alphabetboyluvr]

LANDSLIDES - 002 | GUILTY AS SIN - JJK

part title credit: guilty as sin - taylor swift

these fatal fantasies giving way to laboured breath... they don't know how you've haunted me so stunningly... without ever touching his skin how can i be guilty as sin?

pairing: officeworker!jungkook x female reader (coworkers)

premise: jungkook asks you to dog sit over chuseok. he doesn’t ask you to steal the empty spaces in his head, the dreams he’s yet to have, nor the idea of you always just being ‘you’ to him - and yet, like a thief in the night (with his own damn dog as your accomplice), you do. (part one link)

warnings: slow burn (emphasis on slow, emphasis on burn), miscommunication, missed opportunities, missing jungkook, inappropriate mentions of masturbation between friends, frustration (sexually and emotionally!)

wordcount: 18K

note from holly: this was supposed to be a 30k chunk but the 1000 paragraph limit told me no </3 so instead, this is part 1 - part 2 will come tomorrow :)

minors dni // cross posted to wattpad

When Jungkook comes to stand by your desk, his freshly pressed suit unspoiled from his morning commute and with a coffee in either hand, you know he must be up to something.

"Let me guess," you hum. "You dipped your nib in the company ink again and need me to do damage control?"

It wouldn't be the first time, and the new secretary has been ogling him ever since she started just before the Chuseok break. You've joked about it a few times, but you really wouldn't put it past him.

Popping your coffee on your desk, Jungkook toys with his tie a little, smoothing it down. "Why do you always think so little of me, you little gremlin?"

His pouty whine would be believable if you didn't know him as well as you do. Glancing up from your screen, you're greeted with a smirk. Even he can't keep up his pretence of innocence. "You know exactly why."

"I'm a good boy," he promises. "Got you coffee and everything this morning!"

"Because you want something," you laugh. "I wasn't born yesterday, Jungkook."

"Can a friend not get a friend a coffee just because?"

"Yes—but you don't."

In fact, Jungkook normally waits until midday for his first coffee. Treats it like a reward for getting through the morning without any caffeine. He's gone out of his way today—or just ordered coffee to the office to make it look like he has. Regardless, an effort has been made.

He takes a second. Purses his lips. Narrows his eyes.And then he smiles. "Fine. I need a favour."

"See, I knew it was too good to be true!"

"Oh, c'mon!" He laughs. "I'd get you coffee if you asked."

"I asked last week when I was running late, and you told me to wake up earlier and get it myself!"

"Well, it was your own fault for being out until arse o'clock in the morning!"

Your fault, you think but don't vocalise. It's not like you'd been out with him. You'd been on a date. Another with Mingyu. Hadn't stuck to your word of cooling things off. Spooked yourself with those dreams about Jungkook. Needed to bring yourself back to reality.

If he hadn't asked you to dogsit, you never would have gotten so caught in the domestication of it all. It's your biggest weakness and he damn well knows it. If anything, he should be thanking you for choosing to realign your focus instead of leaning into silly little thoughts about him. It also helps that in the cold, harsh light of Monday mornings, the thoughts just make you cringe more than anything.

"Sorry, Dad," you roll your eyes. "Didn't realise I had to ask your permission."

Jungkook's lips purse in the gentlest of ways, corners upturning ever so slightly. He shakes his head. "You're cranky this morning."

"And you're up to something," you reply. Have barely even had a chance to look over your weekend emails yet, let alone prepare yourself for Jungkook being a nuisance. His department is two floors up. There's no need for him to be here.

In the corner of your screen, an email pings through. Though your glance is quick, it connects a flurry of dots together.

Subject: International Food Expo - we're in!

The company you work at is the head office of a chain restaurant. Jungkook works in franchising—negotiations, specifically. Gets the restaurant placed in the best locations. Recently landed a spot in Starfield Mall. Got himself a nice little bonus.

You're over in the interior design team. It's a small cohort, just three of you, but you're responsible for ensuring cohesion amongst all the spaces. It's up to you that customers get the same feel whether they're in Seoul or Sokcho.

Both starting the job at the same time, directly after graduation, Jungkook had approached you with a strategy in mind. Roped you into creating the interior mood boards and mapping out the spaces before they'd even been acquired. Gave life to them that made it so much easier for investors to imagine.

It had been seen by management as a waste of resources before then—why waste time creating hypotheticals?

They just hadn't yet experienced Jungkook, and all of his charm, pitching for them, using your content to tip negotiations in his favour. It's a partnership that works. Is a practice now adopted by the company across the board, thanks to the pair of you. It's why you work together so often, even if you're on completely different floors and dealing with such vastly different tasks.

"I've been asked to go along," he says, nodding towards the screen. "Little old me is our brand ambassador for the week."

"Congrats," you beam, knowing that Jungkook is the best man for the job. He loves the company. Really believes in the restaurant. Clicking into the email, you scan the details. "A week of schmoozing, huh? However will you cope?"

He's about to joke about how tiresome it'll be, but then you hum in confusion.

"Jeju?" You question, looking at the location. You scroll, just to check you aren't imagining things—but there it is, clear as day. Location: International Conference Center, Jeju. "All the way in bloody Jeju?!"

"It's for international markets," he says, putting his best guess out there. "Seoul's been done a hundred times over for different Expos. Busan, too. I think they're trying to attract more foreign companies—and would the CEO's rather send themselves on city breaks or island getaways? Anyway, that's actually the favour I wanted to ask you..."

It all sort of clicks into place, now. "Bam?"

With a sweet nod, Jungkook offers a gentle smile. "You know there's no one I'd rather look after him. The trip is four days, Tuesday to Friday. If it's too much, I can book him into a kennel, but—"

"No," you shake your head. "Don't do that. You know I'm happy to look after him."

"Sure?"

Jungkook would rather die than leave Bam at a Kennel for the week. He doesn't trust anyone with his baby unless they've proved themselves, but the way you happily cuddle up with Bam on the floor of Jungkook's apartment on any given day of the week is proof enough to him that you love him, too.

If he's gonna trust anyone with his most prized possession, it'd be you.

"One condition," you bargain, 'cause you know that you can. Jungkook'll do anything to have you agree.

"Go on..."

"Have you replaced all the cheese I ate last time I looked after him?"

He narrows his eyes. "Yes."

"Good," you beam. "And could you be a babe and make me some of your pad kee mao? The sauce at least? I can do the rest."

If there's one thing Jungkook will never fail to impress you with, it's his cooking—but your favourite of all of his dishes is his Thai drunken chicken noodles. He imports the special basil needed for it. Goes an extra mile to make sure it's just right. You haven't been to your favourite Thai place since you learned just how well he makes the dish. Will just send him a text when you fancy it, and end up at his place an hour or so later with beers from the convenience store and ice cream sandwiches to chuck in his freezer for dessert.

"That it?" He laughs. "Cheese and noodles? God, you are easily pleased."

"I'm a woman of refined tastes," you say, pompously poised.

Jungkook knows you well enough to know you're no such thing, but he needs this favour, so he doesn't bite. Just says, "And you're sure?"

"I'm sure," you promise. "Now leave me alone. I've got work to do—and thanks for the coffee."

He nods, that little smile of his affecting you far more than it really should. You can't help it. The lighting in your office is far nicer than the rest of the establishment. Makes him look... well, makes him look like himself. Like 'home' Jungkook. The same one who hangs out with you in sweats and messy hair on Sunday mornings, not the suited and clean-shaven Jungkook who swaggers through the corridors of your workplace.

Three of you work in your specific office, and you're all interior designers. Changing the bulbs was one of the first things you did. Lea, your manager, is the most senior in your team. Below you is Jiwon. A fresh graduate, she's still learning the ropes, and as much as you like her, you really wish she wouldn't go all heart-eyed over Jungkook every time he enters the room.

It's not her fault. The warm bulbs just bring out all of those terrible, intrusive little stars in his chocolatey brown eyes. They're terrible, 'cause they're stolen from other people; intrusive, 'cause as he walks away and your gaze follows him, it seems like they've landed in your eyes, too. A secret shared that neither of you even realises exists.

"How do you do it?" Jiwon sighs once Jungkook is out of earshot. "I'd melt if he looked at me like that."

"He looks at everyone like that," you deflect. "And trust me, he's just as disgusting as he is charming. Don't let the tailored suits fool you."

It's been a little while since Jungkook last used the copier room for indecent affairs that would have gotten anyone else into a meeting with HR. Workplace violations are far easier to get away with when you're doing them with someone from the HR department, after all.

Jiwon joined the team just as Jungkook was curbing his bad behaviour. Granted, you know about more of it than most, but everyone who was lucky enough to grab his attention for more than five seconds used it as bragging rights for months.

One thing that you did enjoy about Jungkook's slut era was the lack of women he ever took home. Didn't want to introduce new people to Bam, if they were only going to be fleeting endeavours.

But you're his friend, not a casual fuck. He knew that bringing you into the fold wouldn't be fast nor fleeting. It'd be a lifetime kinda thing.

Which is what makes you feel so guilty as you stand by the water cooler a little later that morning, daydreaming about being back in his space again. Silly little thoughts about facetime calls when you were wrapped up in his sheets, and he was back at his parents' place in Busan. Memories of lazing the days away with Bam, and the look on Jungkook's face as he finally arrived home after a few days away.

You've seen him at home a million times over, but there was something different about him then. Serene. At peace. You know that he was probably just happy to be back with his baby, and tired from driving, but the lazy smile that had hung off his lips, round glasses framing his equally round eyes, just seemed... new.

Your thoughts are cut off by your boss—not Lea, but your actual boss, Mr Seo—calling you into his office. A little flustered, you realise that you've been running the water for too long. Your bottle has overfilled, and the excess tray is almost full, too.

"Hi," you greet him all rather pleasantly, waiting to be told to sit before you actually do so. "What can I help you with?"

A burly man in his late 50s, he built the brand from the ground up. It's been his life's work, and so he's selective with his staff. If you aren't pulling your weight to make the company a success, then he doesn't want you tying your name to it.

When you and Jungkook started going rogue in the early days, he hadn't been happy—but Jungkook had blagged a probation extension for the pair of you. Had told Mr Seo he'd work for free, if he could just prove his strategy would work.

In the version of events Jungkook tells you, he pretends that Mr Seo agreed without docking his pay. Filed away in the back of his cabinet which houses his contracts, past and present, Jungkook has a written agreement with Mr Seo, and a month's worth of missing wages in his salary from that year.

Your pay was never docked, though. Jungkook's a damn good negotiator, and was just as competent back then, too. He was the one that got you into that damn mess in the first place, so it was only fair that he keep you as clean as he could.

What you do know is that you both cut it incredibly fine to losing your jobs before they ever really began. While Mr Seo respects you both for what you've done for the company since then, it still scares you a little bit.

"I trust you've seen the email regarding the Expo, yes?" He says, nodding towards the chair on the opposite side of his desk.

You take it in a hurried fashion, quickly sitting down because, quite frankly, it feels like your legs are jelly. "Yes, yes. Very exciting! I'm sure Jungkook will bring the company great results."

He nods. Agrees. "And I also trust you've been making plans for our stand?"

You learned of the expo approximately fifty minutes prior. Like fuck have you made any plans.

"Oh, of course!" You bullshit. "As long as we can work out the logistics with shipping our materials to the island in time, it should be brilliant."

How the fuck you're supposed to plan a stand at an Expo for a week's time on a different bloody island is beyond you.

You'll get it done. You always do. You'll just be incredibly stressed about it until the event begins.

"Naturally," he nods. I know the turnaround is tight, so we'd like you to go with Jungkook to oversee the preparations. He arrives on Tuesday, but the event doesn't start until Wednesday evening, so you'll have a day to finalise things."

"Oh," you say, unable to hide your surprise.

"Flight and accommodation will be covered by us, and Jungkook's getting a healthy bonus for any deals signed at the Expo—I'm sure we can make a cut for you, too. After all, you two are our very own dream team."

You take a moment to gather your thoughts. You want to go. Of course you want to. A trip to Jeju with one of your closest friends? Under the guise of work? All expenses paid? Who wouldn't want to go?!

But without you in the city, there's no one to look after Bam. Sure, Jungkook could take him to a kennel, but you know what he's like. He'll spend the entire time stressed. Won't be able to relax and engage with people in such a way that deals will be cut. Punters usually like him for his carefree nature. Without it? Well, you're sure they'd like him all the same, but you don't want to tempt fate.

"Mr Seo," you awkwardly begin, uncertain which answer will slip out of your mouth. "I'm afraid I already have commitments in the city that I can't cancel. I'm not available."

Silence lingers for a moment. Just a second. It feels like an eternity.

"Very well," he accepts.

"I'm sorry," you quickly apologise, knowing that you probably look like an ungrateful employee. If there's one thing you are, it's a fixer, and so before you can even comprehend what you're saying, you're throwing solutions into the void. "But I know Jiwon is just itching to get more involved with different sides of the business. I can get her on board with my planning this week and coach her on Jungkook's strategies. I'm sure she'd be eager to work hard, if she were given the opportunity."

Mr Seo mulls over your proposition—one of you which you already regret—then nods. "Alright. I'll trust your judgement. Can you send her down to my office?"

"Sure!" You say with a little too much glee, before you retreat back to your office with your tail between your legs. Lea is at a meeting, so once Jiwon has been sent on her way, it's just you, your water bottle, and a whole lot of regret.

Laying your head on your desk, you let out a little whimper.

It's for the best. For the company, for Jungkook, for you. For the sanctity of your friendship. For your sanity.

A message dinging through on your work chat interrupts your self-pity party. Glancing up, head still on the desk, you see Jungkook's name in the corner of your screen.

Jeon Jungkook, Franchising: oi you little gremlin

Jeon Jungkook, Franchising: i could have booked him into a kennel

"Shut up," you groan at your screen.

Jeon Jungkook, Franchising: it would have been fun :(

Sitting up with a sigh, you poise yourself to send a message back. Find that nothing wants to come out. Your fingers hover above your keyboard with uncertainty. Takes a full minute before you can muster anything up.

Two floors above you, Jungkook is slumped in his desk chair. Has an office of his own, 'cause it's easier for the amount of meetings he has.

In the background of his screen, an email thread with Mr Seo details how Jungkook was the one to ask Mr Seo if you could join him. Explained how it just made sense. Offered part of his bonus package up with it. Said he'd cover the extra expenses if necessary, but that he thought it would be beneficial to the company to have you there, too.

While you're the person Jungkook trusts the most with Bam, you're not the only one. He could always ask Jimin or Taehyung before resorting to a kennel.

As your reply comes through, another email from Mr Seo is delivered, too.

RE: IFE JEJU, Interior Des. Department

Jungkook—

Have spoken with Jiwon. She will accompany you.

Any problems, let me know.

Mr Seo

With a sigh, Jungkook shakes his head. This isn't what he wanted at all.

And when he checks your message, he only frowns even deeper. Unlike you, he's renamed your contact details on his list. Everyone else still has their work-focused username.

Gremlin: It's your lucky day

Gremlin: You get a hot young thing to keep you company instead, wooo

Gremlin: HR if you're reading this, ignore it

Gremlin: Try not to be too miserable without me

He sinks down a little further into his chair. Purses his lips. Would far rather be alone than with anyone that isn't you.

Chewing on his bottom lip, he decides that maybe this is for the best. While he does think it would be good for the company, he knows that isn't why he suggested it. He just remembers what happened last time he spent more than a weekend away from you. Is scared it'll happen again.

Or maybe it's the opposite. Maybe he wants it to happen again. Just you and him, away from the confines of life as you know it.

Thing is, you'd have to return home at some point. If anything ever happened between you both, it'd change the very fabric of your friendship. He doesn't want that.

So instead, he decides to reply in the same way he would have done maybe a year or so prior.

Jeon Jungkook, Franchising: She'll fall in love with me

Jeon Jungkook, Franchising: They always do

Jeon Jungkook, Franchising: Don't say I didn't warn you.

In the warm lighting of Jungkook's living room, the main light is off, lamps providing you with just enough clarity to go over the files on his coffee table.

Over by the sink, Jungkook is washing up your plates from dinner, while Bam leans against his legs. Your overnight bag is still by the door, and Jungkook's glasses are in your hair, keeping it out of your eyes. Highlighter in hand, you're picking out key markets for Jungkook to make contact with over in Jeju.

"Avoid Babiyeo," you tell him, switching over to a thin red pen, putting a star next to their name.

"As in the leisure centres?" Jungkook hums, familiar with the company but not well-versed. The soft melody of his playlist carries a tune around you both, keeping your thoughts connected and in sync.

"Mhmm," you say, flicking over to the next paper. "The CEO's son is in legal trouble at the moment. They're keeping it fairly well covered up, but to do that they're making huge expansions they can't afford. Keeping the news positive, things like that. I reckon they'll go bust before the end of the year."

"Shit," Jungkook lets a breathy laugh escape his lips. Had no idea—but you've both got friends working in various industries. Have your arms dipped into numerous grapevines. Drying up the last of his bowls, he turns to face you and is unable to continue on with his words.

He gets it. Understands why domestication is your biggest vice when it comes to feeling things you shouldn't.

"Acorn Limited are also bad news," you add, putting a little star next to their name.

"Yeah?"

Jungkook puts the now-dry bowl on the counter and walks towards where you're sitting on his living room floor. He joins. Sits on the opposite side of the table. Lets Bam clamber over his legs, and encourages him to sit, too.

"Yeah," you nod, then look across at Jungkook. "They're a hot-shot protein company. Are trying to get themselves partnerships with different restaurants. The guy running it is some twat from Singles Inferno. Company'll be done by the next quarter."

"Some of them do alright, y'know. Reality stars are raking it in—"

"He's besties with the Babiyeo CEO's son," you tell him with a knowing smile. "Kept getting pictured together outside clubs. Whatever baby Babiyeo has been up to, I'm willing to bet the acorn guy has been, too."

Jungkook presses his lips together. Accepts your expertise. Nods, then sighs, "You should be coming on the trip. I can't do this without you."

Yes, he can. He's more than capable. Has closed more deals than most people have had hot dinners.

What he means is that he doesn't want to do it without you, but admitting such a thing verges on territory that Jungkook doesn't feel comfortable entering.

In the house he likes to call his mind, he's bolted the door of the annexe. Occasionally, he will sit and stare at the locks. Wonder if maybe he made a mistake locking you—or more specifically, the idea of you—away in there.

But then he watches Bam choose to shuffle around to your side of the coffee table, and watches as he rests his head on your leg. His snout is by your knee, sniffing at your bare skin with his wet nose. There's something familiar about you. Safe. You don't smell like Jungkook, but you still manage to smell like home, in a way.

"Bam would be even more lost without me," you softly say, scratching behind his ear, and it does admittedly give Jungkook a little solace.

"True," Jungkook accepts, then sighs.

It's getting late and he's got to be up early for his flight. Is leaving for his flight at just gone 3AM, so you're staying over. Crashing on the couch, 'cause having a home gym was more important than setting up a spare room. Thankfully you've never known a couch to be so cosy. Have fallen asleep on it a dozen times over, and it's yet to make you ache in the mornings.

It's all very normal, how you set into a routine. He lets you wash up first. Sorts out Bam while you sort out yourself. Doesn't need to, but writes you out a list of feeding times and emergency numbers. Grabs a spare blanket—one Bam hasn't slept on, but by the morning definitely will have—and turns the sofa into something that really does resemble a bed.

"Sure you're gonna be alright out here?" He asks when you come back through.

He ignores the teeny tiny shirt and even tinier shorts you like to call pyjamas. Or at least he does as much as he can. Doesn't mean to look at your ass. Does it regardless. Four times.

"Yeah," you promise, grabbing a bottle of water from his fridge. There are containers full of his speciality noodle sauce and enough cheese to keep you very happy for the next few days. He got an extra block of the one he knows you like the most as a thank you. "Go to bed. Get your beauty sleep, uggers."

"Hey, you need it just as much as I do," he assures you, then tips his head and makes a small click with his tongue. "C'mon, Bammie, bedtime."

The sound of his paws tapping across Jungkook's hardwood floors is ever-so-soothing. It's hard to be in a house with a pet and not inherently feel like home, you think.

"Night night, Bammie," you coo after him. He turns back. Tilts his head, just like his daddy. Trots on over to you for a few more scratches behind his ears. Doesn't leave until you tell him, "Go find your daddy."

Glancing up to Jungkook with a sweet little scrunch of your nose, you hadn't called him that name to take the piss for a change. The scrunch of your nose is actually an outward display of your inward cringe. Jungkook just scrunches his up right back.

"Gross," he whispers, then holds his hand out for Bam to sniff. "Night, Gremlin."

"Night, Kook."

The sharp sound of Bam's bark snaps you awake. The room is dark, but enough light bleeds in through the blinds for you to see Jungkook awkwardly trying to shush him. Rucksack slung over one shoulder, he's holding a bag with his other hand.

"Leaving without saying bye?" You sleepily mumble, rubbing at your eyes with a yawn.

"Didn't wanna wake you," he whispers. Bam, apparently, had different ideas. "He knows I'm leaving."

"What time is it?" you ask, still totally out of it.

"Just gone three," Jungkook says. It'll take him an hour to get across to Incheon, and even though he knows it won't take him much time to get through security, he still likes to be on time. Would have been easier if he was flying from Gimpo, but he's guessing Incheon must have been cheaper.

Nodding, you adjust your body to sit up, and reach out for one of the files on the coffee table. Hold it across for him.

Popping down his bags, Jungkook takes it with great interest.

"Here. I was having a think before bed. Did a little research on an American company that's gonna be at the Expo. Their head marketer has shares in a bunch of baseball-related companies. Get pally with him," you mumble, thoughts not really cognitive, but you've written it all down for him regardless. "Talk to him about the K-league, or something, I dunno. I reckon Mr Seo would shit his pants if we expanded into stadiums and sports venues."

Jungkook flicks over the notes. Nods. Doesn't know how the fuck you manage to find out half the shit you do, but knows you're wasted on the interior design department.

"See," he softly whines. "This is why you should be coming with me."

"You'll be fine," you promise him, then yawn a little bit all over again. You woke up at the worst possible time.

"You can take my bed, y'know," Jungkook offers. "I'll be gone in a minute or so. It's all yours."

Would be weird getting into his bed while it's still warm, you think.

Shaking your head, terribly covering a yawn, you insist it's fine. He begs to differ, so you double down—until all very suddenly, your notes are tossed onto the sofa beside you, and Jungkook is pulling you over his shoulder. Yelping from the surprise, you don't have time to cognitively respond, let alone demand to be put down.

He wouldn't listen anyways. Instead, he walks you across to his room, and tosses you down on his half-made bed. It's a little haphazard, he finds himself leaning a little too far forward. Almost ends up on there with you. Finds that his blood pumps just a little faster through his veins for a nanosecond.

God, he wishes he wasn't leaving.

Or that you were coming with him, at least.

Can't bear to tear himself away from you when you're all sleepy and sweet and—Oh get a grip, man.

"There," he says triumphantly, pushing his thoughts well out of reach. "Now, go back to sleep, alright? I'll let you know when I fly."

Sitting up on your heels, you find yourself unsure of how to say goodbye—and so you don't really say much at all. Just mumble, "Fly safe."

"Will do," he nods, then exits his room to give Bam a farewell that is just as rough and tumble as yours had been. "Be good for the gremlin, Bammie."

"Fuck off!" You call through, knowing that you'll forever be known as a gremlin, even on your deathbed, you're sure. Tucking yourself under his duvet, you're secretly comforted by how warm his bed still is. Smells just like him, too. "Bye Kook."

"Sleep tight!"

With that, the door slams shut, and everything feels a little colder. Bam whines by the door. Scratches at it a little. Begs for Jungkook to come home.

"Bammie," you call through. "C'mere!"

The way he excitedly bounds through Jungkook's apartment and jumps up onto the bed is borderline comical. He's not used to people being in the house after Jungkook goes out. Thought he was alone—but now he knows he's not, he's quite content. Nuzzles his snout into the duvet and flops his body down on yours. Doesn't realise he's not still a puppy, but you don't mind.

Moments like these make you realise that you definitely did make the right decision.

But moments that come a little later fill you with regret—like the picture that is sent to the office by Jungkook on the work messenger. Working hard or hardly working? He captions it.

The photo is of the booth that's been set up to look like a beach house version of the restaurant. The intention was for it to look like a 'Jeju' branch, of which you're yet to open— but it looks bloody fantastic. How you were able to wrangle contractors and suppliers in such a last-minute rush was nothing short of a miracle.

And yet—

Good work guys!

Wow, looks great!

Jungkook and Jiwon, doing us proud!

Dream team! Good luck!

It's that last one that really bothers you. Dream team. Exactly what you and Jungkook have always been called in the office—but you're easily replaced, apparently. It's your own fault. You're the one who said she should go instead.

It doesn't stop you from walking around with a face of thunder for the whole day. Not a scrap of work gets done. All you can do is lament your choices.

Still, you get to go home to Bam, and that does admittedly soften the blow.

"Show me him," Jungkook immediately whines when he calls later that evening.

You shake your head. "Tell me about the day first."

"That's so not fair."

"Quicker you tell me, quicker I show–"

"Fine," he scowls at you, but softens his expression almost immediately. Yawns. His shoulders press up to his ears as the rest of his face scrunches up. He's lying down on his hotel bed, the crisp white sheets not too dissimilar from his ones back home that you'll be curled up in later that night. "The set up was fine. Most of the vendors are here already. I'm so mad we didn't manage to snag a slot in the catering tent, yanno? Give people a chance to try our menu, but whatever. There's always next year, right?"

"Right," you nod. Yawn, too—and then adorably so does Bam. "It's our first year there. We're just making our presence known. Bigger and better things next year."

"Exactly. Now show me Bam."

His impatience makes you smile. You're just about to tap the switch camera icon, when a sweet, feminine voice echoes through your speaker.

"Did you say something, Jungkook?"

He glances over the sound of the voice, and then flicks his eyes back to you. Gets a read on your face as quickly as he can before you flip the camera, 'cause you're not really sure how much your face is giving away, but you know your surprise wasn't hidden.

"Er, no," he says to the girl. "Just checking in back home—"

"Oh, is that your puppy?" the voice, of which you know all too well, squeals. There's a slight ruffle of sheets as Jiwon tucks herself beside Jungkook. Hair a little damp, the straps of her top are loose against her skin. "Oh my gosh, isn't he the sweetest."

"Isn't he just?" you reply with a smile so fucking fake that it's a good job the camera isn't on you. There's a look on Jungkook's face that you don't really understand. He almost looks guilty—but there's nothing to feel guilty about. He can do what he likes. "Gonna take him for a walk in a bit, then I'm just gonna pop out for half an hour to see Mingyu."

"Are you taking Bam with you?" Jungkook asks, brows a little hard, the ridge between them nicely defined.

"Hadn't planned on it," you chirp, your face just as hard as his. "But I can take him to meet Mingyu, if you like?"

Jungkook swallows. Tries to pretend as if his jaw isn't tense. Is incredibly stern when he says, "Rather him not meet new people when I'm not around."

"Sure," you say, then flick the camera back to you. Are pleased to see nonchalance sitting prettily on your features, no matter how perplexed you might feel."I should be off, though! Call me if you need anything."

"Wait!" Jiwon says quickly, clearly unaware of the weirdness between you and Jungkook. She sees you bickering all the time, so must just figure this is what you're like when you're not ripping each other's heads off. "Just wanted to say thank you—I'm so glad I'm here."

Jungkook's eyes focus on your face as Jiwon gives even more thanks. He doesn't understand the sudden attitude you've developed. All he wanted was to see Bam, but you've a face like a slapped arsed and are trying to hang up. It's fuckin' rude, and if Jiwon wasn't there, he'd tell you so.

He lets you hang up. Doesn't ask you to stay.

"She alright?" Jiwon innocent chirps after you go. "She seems a little..."

"Just tired," Jungkook dismisses. "I woke her up at like, three this morning when I was leaving."

"Oh? She was at your place?"

It's really none of Jiwon's business, but Jungkook chalks it up to her being young, and unaware of when to keep her mouth shut.

"Yeah," he states definitively and plainly, ending the conversation. Heads to the bathroom to clear his head. Turns the shower up to just as hot as the one at his house has been ever since you left his apartment the last time.

'Cause Jungkook's been lying to himself.

There's no lock on the damn annexe. Or at least not from the outside.

The annexe has everything he needs. He's been sitting there, inside, quite comfortably with you for a little while now.

He really did think you were gonna call things off with Mingyu.

Is unaware that Mingyu got left on read four days ago after another dull, fruitless 'how was your day', 'fine thanks, and you?' conversation. As hot as he may be, he doesn't challenge you. Excite you. Anger you. Make you feel any kind of passion.

Which is funny, 'cause you find yourself reaching for a bottle of wine that you know is far too expensive for a Tuesday night glass, just to piss Jungkook off from afar and well in advance of him ever realising what you've done.

Just like you mentioned going to see Mingyu just to get a reaction out of Jungkook.

Childish as it may be, you feel threatened. People praising Jiwon in your place already made you feel insecure at work, and now she's in his hotel room in a state of near undress? Something about it just irks you.

It shouldn't.

It shouldn't, it shouldn't, it shouldn't.

But it does.

And so you spend your evening on Jungkook's couch with cheese, wine and Bam. Put Love, Rosie on, 'cause it's your favourite guilty pleasure film and you think it'll cheer you up.

Instead, you end up silently sobbing by the halfway point, Bam only snuggling into you even further. Can understand that you're upset. Comforts in the only way he knows how.

Sleep is hard to come by that evening. You're full of wine and cheese, so it should be easy. Lights out as soon as you close your eyes—but you toss and turn, and with every move, the scent of him wafts even deeper into your senses. Any further and it might just enter your bloodstream. Seep down into your heart.

By the time morning comes, you feel even more rotten than you did the night before. Have slept on it all. Know that he hasn't done anything wrong, which only makes you feel even more stupid for being so annoyed.

You've also slept on the idea he might have slept with Jiwon. It wouldn't be out of character, but it would be the first person in your department he's shagged. It's always been out of bounds. He knows this. For the same reason you wouldn't shag anyone he works closely with. It'd just be weird. Make meetings uncomfortable.

When you call on your walk that morning, you half hope he won't pick up.

But he does. He always will.

"Hey," he says a little breathlessly. A towel is whipped over his shoulder, sweat dappling his skin. There's something so devastatingly beautiful about mid-workout Jungkook. "Sorry, didn't think you'd call."

Almost as if you're looking for reasons to be annoyed, you take offence to this.

"I always call?"

"Well, yeah, but you were so fuckin' weird last night," he laughs, heading out of the gym and into an empty corridor of the hotel.

"I wasn't anything," you reply back with a scowl—and realise how terribly you're hiding your annoyance. Flick the camera over so it focuses on Bam as he trots along the path. "Just tired."

It's the same excuse he bullshitted to Jiwon. Knows you're talking bollocks.

"Even Jiwon asked what was wrong with you—"

"Oh, well I'm terribly sorry to have inconvenienced you, Jungkook," you snap, completely unjustified. It's too late, though. You've started. Have to see it through. "But if you don't mind, I'm responsible for your pet right now and I'd rather not be having this conversation when I need to be focusing on a million other things at once."

"Fine," Jungkook snaps right back. All he wants is to see Bam, but he doesn't want to be having this conversation either. "But you know what? Don't bother calling back until you've taken that stick out from up your arse."

You shouldn't be surprised when Jungkook hangs up.

But you are.

For the second time in as many days, you find yourself crying. 

Oh, it's all so pathetic! And stupid! There's no need for it, you think.

Thankfully you're not too far from home—Jungkook's home, that is—so you can cut the walk a little short as long as you come home at lunch to check on Bam, too.

You don't even really understand why you're fighting with him. Wish you weren't.

When Jungkook zips open his suit bag as he's getting ready for the Expo opening ceremony, he finds himself wishing just the same.

Tucked on top of his blazer is a brand new tie; one of which he most definitely did not put there. 

An incredibly muted bronze and black paisley pattern swirls over the material, and on top rests a note.

Jungkook rubs his face with a flat palm. Rakes it through his hair. Swallows back the awkward heat prickling at his eyes and the tickle in his throat. Doesn't wanna bawl.

But then he reads the note, and he just can't stop himself.

Dad!!!

You're gonna do great!!!!

Come home soon tho :(((((

Woof woof!!!!!!!

Your Bammie <333

P.S. I'm colour blind but the gremlin said this one is the same colour as me!!! Do you miss me??? I miss you!!!!!

The first time you had ever learned of Jungkook's tattoos was in a dive bar a few blocks over from work. It was just after you'd pulled off your first deal together—the one that set your working relationship in stone—and you'd both been blowing off steam.

The walls were red, and so were your cheeks, blushed from the heat of what it felt like to sit beside him in a tatty booth.

So used to sitting across from him at meeting tables, something about it changed your dynamic. Any threats of being on opposing teams were whittled down to nothing more than a life that could have been.

He had your back. You had his.

Blazer off, his sleeves were rolled up. You didn't ask him about a single one of the tattoos, like he half thought you might. 

Instead, you just accepted him as he was. Didn't stroke your index finger up his arm, tracing the lines, like most girls do as an excuse to get better acquainted with him.

That night he made a promise to himself to never ruin the working relationship you have together.

You work too well to jeopardise it. He has goals. Knew, even back then, that you'd help him achieve his aspirations, like some sort of twin flame type of shit he didn't believe in.

Didn't. Past tense.

These days, when you think of Jungkook and his tattoos, you always think of the snake. It's the one you see most frequently for it's so close to his wrist. Have always understood snakes to represent change.

Jungkook is yet to shed his skin. He's still just the same as he always was, you think, as you get in the lift and head up towards your office floor.

Just 'cause he hadn't hooked up with anyone from the office in a while didn't mean that he'd changed his ways. More fool you for thinking that he might've.

And it's not like it even matters at all. Who he lays down with is none of your concern. You've never cared before. Not really.

It's just that you've been going to sleep in his sheets. Eating dinner he prepared in advance for you. Waking up to his pup excitedly doing zoomies around the room, 'cause he's ready for his walk.

When you get home, you put Bam's leash up next to your coat, which is hung on top of Jungkook's. Kick your shoes off by a pair of his. Use his shower gel when you get washed, and wistfully tuck yourself up into the armchair you helped him pick out for his bedroom. It's tucked in the corner. Is perfect for watching the world roll by.

You know you should have just called him this morning. Spent the entire walk stubbornly hoping that he would instead, but he's just as childish as you are.

You've bickered with him a hundred times over since you first met him, but never like this.

The elevator dings to a stop, pulling you from your tiresome thoughts of Jungkook. Pulling your body from its slumped leaning stature against the mirrored walls, you trudge into a place that endlessly reminds you of him.

Impossible to escape, is Jungkook. Perhaps that's it. Maybe you've just had enough of each other. Need a little time to breathe.

Everyone else who started at the company around the same time as you has already left. It's just you and Jungkook still here from the small pool of fresh graduates that had been taken under Mr Seo's wing.

But you like it here. Like your job. The salary you earn is great—far more than you would get anywhere else.

Again, you don't know this, but Jungkook's always negotiated on your behalf behind closed doors. He makes the company far more money, and does admittedly get a pretty huge bonus every year according to the amount of deals closed.

That being said, he also stomps down to Mr Seo's office in the fourth quarter when news of the next fiscal year's raises are shared. Will demand that your base salary is matched to his. Has threatened, on numerous occasions, to call for a pay disparity audit from external forces if your wage isn't boosted up, even if it means his is cut down to make up for it.

You went out on a limb trusting him in the early days. This is how he repays you.

That's just friendship, though, he thinks. You help him, he helps you.

He also knows you'd probably be annoyed if you ever found out he meddled with things like that.

The girls in the accounting office always think it's so lovely whenever they see the pay increases. Yours and Jungkook's are never quite what they should be, and they know exactly why. It's why they always ask you how he is whenever you go to drop off inventory reports and materials lists with the lead accountant.

You think they just fancy the pants off him.

Which is also true.

And it's also why a couple of them are curiously standing outside your office space, giggling like school girls as you approach it.

"Morning," you smile, then laugh a little too at their giddy excitement—but when you turn the corner and realise what they're so smitten over, you're a little lost for words.

Sitting on your desk is quite possibly the largest bouquet of flowers you've ever seen. Peonies, you think from afar. Pretty and pale pink, they're in a glass vase. Two dozen easily, if not more, blooming just for you.

"Oh," you hum, because it's hardly what you expect to walk into on a Thursday morning.

Mingyu flashes through your head, but you haven't heard a peep from him since you last let your conversation dissolve over the weekend. He has no reason to send you flowers.

But nor does anyone else.

"We tried working out the message," one of them admits. "But whoever your secret admirer is, they're hell-bent on keeping it secret!"

Shameless, you think, suppressing a well-natured laugh. They've got balls to admit that they've read the note.

Walking to your desk, you see it sitting atop of the flowers, and read it for yourself.

Anyone reading the note who knows a single non-superficial thing about the mystery sender would know who it is in a heartbeat. All it takes for you to know is to see the name of who it's addressed to.

Bammie—

She's right. It does match you. When I get home we can dress you up in my new tie.

Tell the gremlin that you deserve head scratches.

And extra treats.

And that I miss her.

Glancing over to the girls, who desperately want gossip, you simply shrug. If they've never heard Jungkook talk about Bam before, then they clearly don't know him at all. If he wanted his name on the note, he'd have put it there.

He could have gotten them sent to his apartment. He chose here. But he also chose anonymity.

And so you give him a little grace.

"Your guess is as good as mine," you bullshit with an apologetic smile that no one believes.

Lea just looks at you from across the room with a raised brow. Waits until the girls leave, then says, "That's not the kind of bouquet you send a colleague."

She already knows you're looking after Bam. That being said, she hasn't read the card. Has no idea what it says. Just knows that there's only one man you ever talk about with such warmth to be deserving of those flowers from.

"Apparently it is," you shrug, all but confirming who sent them with a coy smile.

"I hope he lets Jiwon down gently," Lea sighs, knowing just as well as you do that she's got a bit of a thing for Jungkook.

What she doesn't know is that it's the exact reason you're fighting with him.

Hell, even he doesn't know that!

So deep in your denial, neither do you.

"Why would he need to?" You downplay it all. Lea doesn't know about the awkward call Jiwon inserted herself into, or the fact you've already decided that he must have fucked her. "Like I said, apparently these are the kind of flowers sent by just a colleague."

Lea shakes her head. Has been observing you and Jungkook for years. Was waiting for a Christmas party, or one of those nightmarish summer tennis tournaments for the pair of you to finally figure it out. You're just as thick as two wooden planks when it comes to all of this, or so it would seem. A little push might be needed.

"Colleagues don't send flowers just because," she tells you with an air of authority. "And if I know anything about the stories you've told me, Jungkook doesn't send flowers full stop."

Just like that, you're thinking of those damn tattoos again. The snake, specifically.

Maybe, just maybe, he is changing.

And if you weren't confused before, then you sure as hell are now.

During the summer months, Jungkook often goes home to see Bam at lunchtime. It's not uncommon for you to go with him. In the winter, when the temperature of his apartment is less of a worry, Jungkook probably only goes home for lunch once a week or so.

Walking up to Jungkook's apartment in the middle of the day without him feels a little bit wrong. In one hand, you're holding a peony by its stem. In the other, you're clutching your phone just in case he calls.

In all honesty, you had planned on taking the entire vase back, but it was bloody heavy. You'll wait until he's back in the office.

It might just be paranoia, or the misplaced assumption that everyone is obsessed with what Jungkook does, but you swear there have been far more people passing your office today than usual. People you've seen maybe once or twice in your entire lifetime.

Lea was right. Jungkook doesn't send flowers. 

Has a repeat order going monthly for his mother, but that's it. And even then, he's kind of forgotten about it.

You've debated it with him before; flowers and their presence in relationships. 

He thinks a potted plant would be far more practical, but if he was really going to get someone something, it'd be herbs. Maybe a potted mint bush. Something useful that they could enjoy together.

A few weeks ago, you had told him he'd make an awful sugar daddy.

"Well, yeah!" He'd just laughed. "I save my money for myself. Me alone. If someone wants nice shit, they can get their own job."

"Oh, so you'd never treat a girlfriend?" You'd scoffed, forgetting the fact he never really has girlfriends. Just flings. "Never get her nice shit?"

"Well, that's different," he'd said. "It's not transactional."

"Everything in life is transactional, whether people like to kid themselves it is or not."

Jungkook looked affronted when you said this. You'd had differing perceptions of life for as long as he'd known you, but you'd always been a romantic. Always believed in the prevailing nature of love.

Bam had adjusted in his sleepy position. Curled up a little tighter, then stretched right out. Rested his hind paws on your thighs and tucked his nose into his chest.

"Bam disagrees," Jungkook assured you.

"You trained him using transactions," you reminded him regardless. "Rewarded him with a treat every time he did as you asked. Transactional."

"Okay, but this?" He gestured to where Bam was curled between the pair of you on his sofa. That's always been a rule of his. No sofa for Bam—he's got all the beds he could ever want! But when Jungkook is on the sofa, it's the only place he wants to be, too. "He knows he's not supposed to be on here. He knows he won't get a reward, so why is he up here? It isn't transactional. He just—"

"Is playing you for a fool," you had laughed. "He wants to be on the sofa, so he lets us pet him in return for us not shooing him off. He's the one setting the transaction up. You're the one getting the reward. He's playing you at your own game. Aren't you, baby?"

You'd cooed a little, scratching at Bam's thigh. He shook it ever so gently and readjusted, but didn't stop resting against you.

It was a curious thought; the way that nothing in life ever comes for free. Even the favours you do for Jungkook by dog-sitting are transactional. You get just as much out of those days as he does.

The conversation had mellowed into something else, 'cause Jungkook didn't want to get into a debate. Knows that you can defend your point until the cows come home—has been in enough meetings with you to know as such. Likes being on your side 'cause you always win—and with a negotiator like him to seal the deal, it's always so much sweeter.

As the calling screen of Jungkook's contact details takes over your screen, phone resting against a wine bottle on the coffee table, you wonder how transactional this is.

He gave you flowers, and now you're giving him a call.

Anyone with a rational mind would surely ask: is this not how romance works?

But when he accepts your call, and you're met with a stern face that's desperately trying not to smile, you're reminded of what he really is: your best friend.

Neither of you wants to be the first one who cracks and gives in first, even if you both know this is all so stupid.

You reach over to pick up the peony. Hold it in front of your face. The petals have bloomed so spectacularly that it almost eclipses you.

Jungkook's face scrunches up a little, his terribly hidden smile slightly distorted but ever so hard to hide.

"Will you stop hating me now?" Is all he says.

"Never hated you," you grumble, bringing the flower a little lower, but still in frame. Sitting on the floor, your back is to the sofa and Bam is behind you, right where he's not supposed to be.

If Jungkook is bothered by it, he doesn't mention it. "I missed him this morning."

The guilt that crawls into your stomach and makes itself at home is rancid. Anguish is her name, and she loves nothing more than ruining a good thing.

The frown that steals the pretty smile from your face isn't one that Jungkook enjoys seeing on you, no matter how cute it is when your eyebrows pinch together.

"I should have called," you acknowledge, knowing that it was cruel of you not to, even if you were fighting. "I'm sorry."

Jungkook just smiles. "I assumed the stick was still up your arse."

Narrowing your eyes, you're pleased that he's joking with you; that things feel normal.

"It's fine," he dismisses regardless. "Last night was the opening event so I was a little worse for wear this morning, and then Jiwon was rummaging about at fuckin' six in the morning. Took her fuckin' hours to get ready."

And there it is; confirmation that she's been sharing his bed.

Though you don't frown, there's a stupor to the muscles in your face. The brightness you were looking at him with fades—and very quickly, Jungkook becomes the one who looks unhappy, now.

"What?" He says, genuinely a little confused.

It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter.

You just shake your head. Dismiss it. Flick the camera around and lift your phone to focus it on Bam as you give him a little scratch behind the ear.

"He's been good as gold," you begin to waffle on. The ridge between Jungkook's brows deepens. "Best boy in the doggie park, aren't you? There's a new couple who have just started walking a Yorkie. Yappy little bugger. I don't think Bam's a fan."

"No," Jungkook supposes. "He doesn't like yappy dogs—and I don't like it when you deflect. Show me your face, gremlin. What's going on?"

"Nothing!" You insist, but don't flick the camera back. Just get a little more boisterous with Bam, and while it does make Jungkook smile, he can't shake the horrible feeling that's building in his diaphragm.

Your Anguish has a cousin who goes by the name of Confusion, and she adores wrapping herself up in men who fail to communicate in a way that is healthy.

"C'mon," he softly says. Flicks his camera around. Shows you an empty hallway of the convention centre. Says, "I've left Jiwon in charge at the height of the day just so I can answer your call. Talk to me. What's wrong?"

"You didn't have to answer," you grumble.

Jungkook is smarter than most. Will have clocked the time of day and knew it was lunch. Definitely assumed you must be with Bam. It must be why he picked up.

Flicking the camera back on himself, Jungkook is almost at a loss for what else he can say to get you to open up.

A little honesty is needed.

And so you pout. Mumble, "They're calling you and Jiwon a dream team in the office."

Jungkook's frown intensifies as his dewy pink lips rest ajar. You'd say he looks distressed, but that's far too intense of an emotion for such a childish qualm.

He just knows that if he heard your partnership with another colleague—especially one in his department—being referred to like that, he'd take offence. It's you and him. You're the dream team. Always have been.

Shaking his head, Jungkook doesn't hide his contempt. Scoffs. "Fuck off. Dream team? She's using your strategies at a booth you designed, and even then, she's barely doing that—you know Acorn guy? The one you said to steer clear of? She's gunning for him—"

"Oh, you're kidding me," you gasp in disbelief. You warned her that he's bad news, multiple times. "Him?!"

"She's young," Jungkook says with a little judgement. Is scared of turning thirty, but definitely doesn't understand people who are closer to twenty. "He's just some hot guy on TV, to her. Doesn't realise his business is gonna tank. She isn't thinking about it long-term."

Which is funny, 'cause Jungkook never really used to think about things long term, either.

Sure, with investments and saving his money, he's always been a little cautious. When it comes to the business, though, it's someone else's money he's playing with. He takes risks. Does dumb shit and it gets rewards.

He really is incredibly good at his job, though. It's part of the reason the women love him, you always think.

It's not.

They like him because he's kind and also so bloody hot he should be on billboards, not in boardrooms.

You like him because he's competent.

In fact, you think there's nothing hotter than a competent man who just knows how to get shit done. And when said competent man can cook like Jungkook? Cares for his dog in the way he does? Looks like he does?

Sigh.

You ignore the way he looks a lot of the time, but you've a pair of eyes and a part of your brain that recognises attractive men. It's hard to ignore all of the time.

"Anyway," he shakes his head. "Not important. She's perfectly fine if not a little misguided—but she isn't you. So, stop worrying about it."

You take a second before you reply. Flick the camera back to you.

It surprises Jungkook, how Confusion has travelled through his bloodstream. Her bony fingers toy with his heart, and he's taken aback by just how sharp her nails are.

Looking at you never used to feel like this. He's not sure why it does now.

You muster up a little courage, even if you can't bring yourself to look at him properly. Let out a deep sigh. Now or never. You run the risk of causing another fight, but if you don't come clean, it'll only dirty everything.

"I just thought we kind of had an agreement, Kook," you eventually whine with an ever-so childish pout.

The hands that have been tearing at his heart migrate through his bloodstream. Get into his brain. Get into his house. Opens doors. Begins moving the furniture.

Stay out of the annexe, his thoughts hiss at Confusion.

Still he seems perfectly calm when he asks, "Watcha mean?"

He's not making this easy for you.

In fact, you'd say he's making it difficult. It would be far easier for you if he just acknowledged what he's already done.

"Well, just..." you take a moment or so to think about how it can be phrased with any dignity—and then you think fuck it. "She's in my department, Kook. I always thought you wouldn't fuck anyone I have to directly work with. It just makes it awkwa—"

"Woah, woah woah," he interrupts. Confusion sits on his shoulder, now, with a twisted smirk on her greyed-out face. "Wouldn't fuck anyone? What the hell do you think I've been doing?!"

"Well, I mean, it's less what and more... who," you joke a little too flippantly.

You don't think he's ever looked so offended in the entire time you've known him.

"You've got to be kidding me."

If anything, you're a bit surprised by just how offended he is. Jiwon is an incredibly pretty girl. A little young for him, granted, but not abhorrently so.

"What?!" You reply, equally confused, then relay everything back to him. "She woke you up this morning getting ready? Was in your room when I called you? Fucking got on your bed right in front of my face and cosied up with you to look at Bam."

Admittedly, that last one was said with a little venom. It annoys you the most.

"She woke me up this morning from across the room," he counters. "Was in our room because we were a last-minute addition to the convention, and it was the only room left within a ten-mile radius—twin beds, may I add! If I don't even share my bed with you when I'm at home, then what the hell makes you think I'd share one with her?! Yeah, the call thing was weird. I'm not gonna lie, it was, but I answered when she was around because I didn't want either of you to get the wrong impression."

A smile wobbles on your lips, as you try to remain stoic. Either of you. You know that you apparently got the wrong end of the stick—but you're not entirely sure what he means by either of you. You wonder what impression he's trying to give her, then decide it's not important.

You clasp your hands together. Lean forward. Put on your best noble old man voice, and say, "Well, it appears that it might have just happened, regardless."

Confusion's perch on Jungkook's shoulder is knocked loose when he laughs, though those sharp nails do claw onto his back. Leave scratch marks that will take a little while to heal—what's important is that they will.

One day, this awkward misstep will be something you laugh about. Kind of like he is, now. You'll forget your tears, but you won't ever forget the strange feeling of weight lifting off your shoulders, mind eased by Jungkook.

"You're a fucking idiot," he laughs with such fondness it almost doesn't feel like an insult. "Seriously? You thought I fucked her? And was then, what? Trying to brag about it? C'mon, you little gremlin! Give me some credit."

Never before has 'gremlin' ever sounded so kind. So warm. So much like 'darling', or 'mon amour'. Secret code for unspoken words.

"I don't know," you whine. Bam shuffles a little bit on the sofa behind you, turning his face away from the noise. You reach back to scratch his head as an apology. Jungkook smiles. Your care for his baby is so innate that you don't even realise you're doing it. "Her hair was damp, and she was practically falling out of her top—"

"Oh, but what I am supposed to do?" He laughs. "I can't tell her to cover up in her own damn room, and even then I just ignore it. I didn't sleep with her. I'm not going to sleep with her. Okay?"

He's not even thought about it. Feels nothing when he looks at her. No excitement. Even if she is attractive, he doesn't think his body would work properly.

Hasn't been working as it should do for the best part of a year now.

Or maybe it would better be referred to as 'malfunctioning'.

'Cause it seems to work okay when he thinks about you.

He 'malfunctioned' earlier on that day, as a matter of fact. Was just showering. And he missed you. And was thinking about those damn pyjama shorts. How smooth your legs had been when he'd hoisted you over his shoulder. How pliant you'd been as he chucked you down into his sheets. Your sleepy eyes and the 3AM husk to your voice. Fuck.

Even thinking about it in a dingy hallway of a convention centre, with your pretty face smiling at him through his phone, is making his heart race. If he doesn't get a hold on it, he'll go into cardiac. Might just flatline.

"Look, I gotta get back, okay?" He softly says. It's not a lie, but it is more sensible than he wants to be. "Have to make sure Jiwon hasn't sold the company to the acorn guy. There's a networking event tonight, so I can't call during Bammie's walk, but I'll check in at some point."

"Alright," you nod, a little sad to see him go, but understanding of it. "Hurry up and come home. Bam misses you."

"I miss him, too," Jungkook pouts. "Show me my baby before I go."

Phone angled to fully capture Bam, you indulge Jungkook for a few moments before he really does have to go. He lingers for a second or so after you say goodbye. Can't muster up anything good to say to make you stay.

Holding the stem of the single peony you'd taken home with you, you roll it between your thumb and fingers. Watch the petals twirl.

"What should I do, hey, Bam?" You wistfully sigh, eventually getting up to pop it in a glass of water. Jungkook has no vases, for he's never had any need for flowers.

The peony isn't the only thing blooming in his kitchen these days, though. It hasn't been for a while.

Work passes slowly that afternoon. You want to get home. See Bam. Finish off the wine you opened so that Jungkook doesn't scold you for letting it turn into vinegar when he gets back. And then you wanna sleep—just so you can wake up the next morning and take Bam on his walk.

It's not like that isn't part of your agenda tonight, too. It's just that Jungkook won't be around for that one.

Instead, his evening is spent in fancy rooms with men in even fancier suits and women who take a fancy to him, too. A whisky is in his hands at all times, his pretty lips embroiled in conversation. He talks so much he barely has any time to drink.

People gravitate towards him; those who feel threatened by his charm gravitate towards Jiwon. Mistake her for a prize he's trying to keep. Don't realise his unbothered facade is anything but a facade.

It's gone midnight by the time he's kicking off his shoes with a little wobble as he gets to his hotel room.

"I'm being serious," he almost giggles, phone between his shoulder and his ear as he loosens his cufflinks. "It's a wig. I'm positive."

280 miles away, phone on your tummy, loudspeaker on as you gaze up at Jungkook's bedroom ceiling, you're laughing too.

"It can't be," you protest the current topic of conversation—Mr Acorn (as he's now affectionately known between you both) and whether or not his hair is real. Jungkook had left Jiwon to continue her poorly judged perusal of him, in favour of checking in with you instead. There was no one else at that party he wanted to talk to more than he wanted to talk to you. Laughing and joking about stupid shit, he's glad you answered. "He went swimming on Singles Inferno!"

"So?!" Jungkook snorts, tapping his phone over to loudspeaker too and tossing it down onto his sheets. A little haphazard, he's unbuttoning his shirt. Is a little tipsy, but not enough to warrant any huge issues. "Maybe he used industrial strength glue."

"Surely he'd rather people just know he was bald? Start a trend?"

"Maybe he's got a terrible head tattoo," Jungkook theorises, tossing his shirt across to a chair, before finally discarding his pants, too. Is just in his boxers now as he clambers into the sheets. "Bald eagle. An ex's name. I dunno. But I'd take chemical burns over that."

"You'd never get a girl's name tattooed on you," you laugh in response. Legs tucked up, heels to your ass, you let your knees gently sway. Bam is curled up in his own bed by the foot of Jungkook's. You're not on facetime, mainly 'cause Jungkook clicked the wrong button, but it's also nice not using poor Bam as an excuse to talk to you.

"And I'm also not balding, so we don't have to worry about that."

"Are you not?" You hum, just to wind him up. "I swear there's a patch of missing hair—"

"Shut up," he cuts you off, voice just as fond as it is stern. "I will swim all the way back to the mainland and speed run up to Seoul just to shut you up. Don't speak it into existence. I have great hair."

"Mmm," you hum. Sinking a little further into his sheet, you turn on your side. Take him off speaker. Hold your phone to your ear. Look at the empty side of his bed and wonder what it'd be like if he were here. Know better than to indulge it. "And you are just so modest, too. Absolutely no ego whatsoever."

"It's why the ladies love me," he jokes, not realising just how true it is. Jungkook takes a moment before he says anything else. Is comforted by the silence you leave for him, totally unaware it's because you're not sure how to respond. "Not that it matters."

Though his delivery is soft and airy, like feathers falling from a well established nest, it lands in your chest with a heavy thud, like a stone from a bridge. You couldn't swerve in time. It shattered your windshield; plummeted straight into your heart. 'Causes a pile up on the freeway, all your thoughts held behind a tongue that cannot speak.

"You tired?" Jungkook hums down the speaker when a response never comes. "I'm sorry, I can let you go?"

"No," you say incredibly quickly considering you've been leaving your side of the conversation empty. "No, sorry. Just can't believe you're actually behaving yourself. Who are you, and what have you done with Cassanova that normally takes a hold of you after a few drinks?"

He's right here, Jungkook laments, knowing better than to act on the way he's been feeling lately. Just says, "Maybe I'm maturing."

"I find that hard to believe," you tell him. If the tiktok psychology gurus who have taught you everything you know about modern men are anything to go by, his brain should have finished fully developing about a year ago.

And while Jungkook would tell you to get fucked and that his brain was already fully developed, he knows that if he sat down and really thought about it, maybe it'd hold some merit. Afterall, it's been about a year since those first thoughts about you started creeping into his mind house.

It's only recently that he's been flirting with that damn annexe door, but he's been aware of someone in there for a while, now.

"What?" He smiles down the phone, resting an arm on his bare abdomen, looking up at the dark ceiling of his hotel room. "Maybe I am. Maybe shagging random girls doesn't excite me anymore."

"You're lying."

"Am I?"

"Yes," you insist, but there's a smile on your face.

There's something about his denial you enjoy.

It's why you're arguing against him. You wanna hear him deny it again. Tell you he doesn't care about other girls. You don't necessarily want him to care about you beyond what he already does. Or at least that's what you tell yourself.

"No," he simply replies back. "I'm not."

"So if Jiwon—"

"Why are you bringing her up again?" He's smirking, now. You can hear it in his tone. "Are you jealous?"

"Jealous?!"

"Yeah," He insists, just like you had been earlier. "You don't like the idea of her sleeping with me."

Incorrect. You don't like the idea of him sleeping with her.

"Well, no," you admit. "But because I work with her—"

"That's not it," he fights against you. Knows that you didn't go and see Mingyu when you said you would, and also now knows you said you would after you thought he'd slept with Jiwon. He might not be able to read women's minds, but he's learnt your M.O. pretty well over the years.

"You're drunk," you whisper, trying to hide behind the alcohol that both of you have in your systems. Neither of you are in any position to make sensible choices.

"Tipsy," he corrects. "And so are you. Go on. Be honest. Tell me."

"There's nothing to tell."

"Yeah, there is," he whispers, his words far braver in sentiment than they are in sound.

You swallow. Can't work out if he's just teasing you or not. "There's nothing."

The silence in the room around you is deafening. It's like all you can focus on is Jungkook, and the way you imagine his lips pouting together at the end of each sentence he speaks. Pretty and pink and—

"So you've never thought about it?" He interrupts your thoughts with a question you're unprepared for. 

"What?" You reply a little dismissively, as if it's an outlandish think to consider.

But Jungkook doesn't buy it.

Has been driving himself insane.

Knows he can't be the only one—and if he is, then maybe he really is insane.

"Us," he replies as if it's water off a duck's back. Simple. Easy. "You've never wondered what it would be like?"

"Kook..."

It's like playing chicken. Both too scared to cross a line for fear of it changing the entire fabric of your lives.

But you can acknowledge something without acting on it. Confirmation means nothing; it's the choices that follow which really mean something,

"Yeah?" He husks. His sleepy eyes are pressed shut, his voice a slow drawl. "What is it, huh? You want me to admit it first?"

You almost laugh at how dumb this whole conversation is. You're friends. Have been for years. Colleagues. Just... Well, just you and Jungkook. He's never thought about you like that. You're certain of it.

Yet still, you ask, "Well, have you?"

He doesn't reply immediately. You half think he's drifted off to sleep, proof that he'd had too much to drink to be having a conversation like this.

But then you hear his breathy little laugh through the speaker. You know he must be nibbling down on his bottom lip as he smirks. The sound is so familiar you can picture it. You wish he was here. Want to see it. Feel it.

Fuck, you curse yourself out. This is not good.

And Jungkook's only gonna make it a whole lot worse.

"Yeah," he quietly admits, keys in one hand and padlock in the other as he stares at the annexe door in his mind. Wide open, there's no going back now. Only forward. "I think about it all the time."

Bam nuzzles the side of his head against your tummy as he adjusts into a slightly more comfortable position on Jungkook's bed. The sheets are a mess from all your tossing and turning, your body plonked right in the middle of his mattress. There's no his side or your side anymore. You've made it yours, and Bam has joined in.

He shouldn't be on the bed. You know this, he knows this. You're both disobeying Jungkook. Are in this perfectly innocent sin together, and will face the wrath of Jungkook as a unit.

There's never really much wrath that comes from Jungkook. He's the type to smirk and laugh in the face of the people who've wronged him. Believes in karma. Fate. He draws the lines at horoscopes, though. Thinks they're bollocks. Smiles, still, when you blame shitty things on Mercury.

The only time you've ever seen him angry—nostrils flaring, jaw tense, agitated beyond compare—was when some guy wouldn't stop hitting on you in a bar. You'd told him no a dozen times over and he just wouldn't listen.

It still pisses you off that he listened to Jungkook without hesitation, but you also know it looked like Jungkook was gonna break his nose. You're far less intimidating when you're annoyed. Jungkook laughs at you whenever you get frustrated. Says you're cute—or at least as cute as a Gremlin can be.

You've got a similar look on your face now, all perplexed and bereft. If he were here, he'd be teasing you, trying to make you crack a smile.

Annoyingly, you know he'd be able to.

You're staring up at his ceiling, early morning light seeping in through the gaps in the curtains. The world you wish to ignore today rudely intrudes on you regardless.

It's his karma, you think.

You disobey Jungkook, the world disobeys you.

With one hand resting on Bam, the other is tightly clutching your phone. For the past five minutes, you've been locking and unlocking it like a wind-up toy drummer.

To call, or not to call, or whatever Shakespeare said.

The faint hum of a wine-induced hangover buzzes between your ears, but it isn't so bad. Probably because you didn't really have that much to drink.

If anyone asks, you'll say you had a bottle.

And by anyone, you mean Jungkook.

If Jungkook asks, you'll laugh— We had a call? Are you sure? —and he'll laugh too— Yeah, we were both pretty drunk —and you'll both pretend like he didn't say the words that he did.

Pulling the pillow he usually sleeps on across to your face, you press it down. Scream into the padding. It's not loud enough to alarm Bam, but it is enough to make him cock his head.

It wouldn't have been so bad if it had only been Jungkook's lips that were loose last night.

The issue is that yours were, too.

You wish you didn't remember all the words you'd said. The way you'd told him to shut up.

The way he'd hummed, "Oh, come on. You know you think about it, too."

The way you'd said, "I do no such thing."

He had laughed. Said you were a liar.

You'd protested. Said it didn't matter anyways, 'cause you both know it'd never work.

"So you have thought about it," he'd teased.

"Briefly."

"How briefly?"

"Like a matter of minutes—"

"Okay, rude," he'd pouted through the receiver. "I last way longer than a couple of minutes."

"You're disgusting," you'd laughed at the way he'd made it all about sex.

For all he knew, you could have been talking about a relationship—but you're right. You both know it'd never work, so of course this is about sex.

"You the one who's thought about it, though," he'd flirted through the phone. Biting down on his bottom lip, the darkness of his hotel room had slipped him into a fatal state of hedonism.

There was a beat of his heart. One. Two. Still no response from you.

He knew you were thinking about it. Thinking about him. Decided to push his luck. Had almost whispered, his fingertips trailing down his torso, as he chanced, "Do you ever think about me when you touch yourself?"

Silence continued to linger for longer than it should have, until you finally just whispered, "Kook."

"Yeah?" He'd smirked.

"You can't ask things like that."

But he can, and he did, and your lack of an answer was an answer in and of itself.

He wasn't even really after the truth. He just wanted to get under your skin; burrow himself down into the deepest, darkest, most depraved corner of your brain. Revenge, he thinks, for that damn annexe you've assigned squatters rights to.

You set up home in him? Fine . He'll do it right back.

"So this is what I am, huh?" You'd replied, with a little faux chip on your shoulder, trying to deflect from yourself. "Just another office girl for you to fantasize about?"

There's always been a challenge to you that Jungkook has liked. You're sparring partners. Will bicker and argue and end up laughing over it all. It makes for excellent brainstorming meetings, 'cause you're always trying to win. You bring out the best in each other, even if it is in a bid to do the opposite.

Jungkook had sighed. Weighed up his options. Rested his hands over his boxers, only to find himself far too entertained by the conversation. It wasn't a surprise, nor was it unwelcome.

The frequency of his thoughts about you had been doubling, tripling, quadrupling ever since Chuseok.

His bed has become a pit of sin in recent weeks; nobody but him in the shrouded decay of a mind-house he's been neglecting in favour of the annexe shared with you.

He already knows just how bad it's gonna be for him when he returns home, and the pillows are dented by your crown, the lingering scent of your perfume wrapping around him just like he knows his hand will be around his cock. Tight. Strong. Firm. It's your name he'll whine, just like it was when he was in the shower earlier that morning.

God, it's gotten so bad.

He needs to stop before he ruins everything.

It's not like sex is an uncommon topic of conversation between you both. Casual vulgarity had been a tool used to bond with; a taboo way to tease one another. It's always been casual. Uncalculated.

It's different, now.

In the darkness of midnight, the stakes were raised almost as high as your heart rate.

"You think so poorly of me," he'd whined, a teasing smile on his lips. It wasn't rare to hear Jungkook address you so playfully. In fact, it was a common occurrence—yet it felt strange, this time. "You know you're not just another office girl."

"Do I?"

"You should."

"I don't," you'd shrugged into his sheets. "Tell me, how am I different?"

The distance between you made a flirt like this safe. Immediate consequences were null and void, and the alcohol in your system didn't seem to care for it either.

"I can't tell you."

"Sure you can."

"You don't wanna hear it," he'd promised.

"Try me," you'd challenged.

And then Jungkook admitted something he knew far better than to confess, but couldn't seem to help himself. He just wanted you to know that you were special. That you were different.

That you are different. Are special.

"None of the office girls have ever made me cum in my own bed."

It came out far less sweet than his brain had told him it would, but it was still a compliment, he thought.

"Jungkook!"

"What?!"

The way you both kind of shrieked at each other only amplified the shock of the confession, but also did well to hide the way it excited you, too. Got you hot beneath his sheets. Aroused.

"Don't say things like that," you'd scolded him with a laugh, playing it off as a joke. "I'll report you to HR."

"You'd do no such thing," he'd smirked down the line. Matched your energy. Played it off as an incredibly obscene, vulgar joke. Will turn his nose up if you ever ask him if he was telling the truth. "And anyways, the HR girls love me. You'd be fighting a losing battle."

"You're awful," you'd told him with such a tenderness that suggested you really didn't think that at all.

And so he smiled. Decided to cut his losses. Agreed. "Yeah. That's me."

The conversation dissolved into casual chatter until you both made excuses about being tired, or needing to sleep off the alcohol.

Yet both of you would spend the next hour awake, staring at your respective ceilings. Occasionally, you'd look to the space reserved for him in his bed. He'd do just the same. Would look at Jiwon's empty bed and lament the fact that it wasn't you on the trip with him.

He never should have asked you to watch over Bam—but there really isn't anyone else he'd rather have in his apartment.

Then he's thinking about you all over again, in his home, hair claw-clipped like it so often is, and how cute those little pyjama shorts of yours would look peeking out from the hemline of one of his shirts. He wonders what you're wearing; if it's your bare skin against his sheets. Wonders if he sleeps naked after he gets home, if it'd feel like your arms are wrapped around him; if the scent of your perfume would sink into his skin.

It doesn't take long for the thoughts to become lewd. He thinks of your lips, and how they'd part with a gasp if he were to stroke your skin with his fingertips. Thinks of your waist, and what it would feel like to hold. Thinks of your body in a way that really ought to get him fired.

How his lips could drag across your skin; the wet pink of his tongue learning where you liked to be touched. How he'd guide your hands. The words of approval he'd use— Yeah, like that. Oh, fuck. Yeah, just like that, baby. You're so good at that aren't you, huh? You know how many times I've imagined this? You're so much better. G'na make me cum, babe. Keep going. You want my cum, yeah? Yeah, you do. Oh, fuck—

"No," he sharply scolds himself, tearing his thoughts from you and his hand from his thick, impatient cock. "Fucks sake, man. Get a grip."

Wanting you like this is selfish, he thinks. Selfish and stupid and— God —so fuckin' dumb.

He also thinks it's your fault. You're an interior designer, after all. Have made that stupid annexe feel more like a home than the rest of his head ever has. Added candles and cushions. Hung pictures on the wall; turned off the main light in favour of warm lamps that just make him wanna curl up and fall asleep with you on the sofa.

It's so different, this little annexe in his brain, to the apartment that he actually lives in.

If he were to assess it thoroughly, he'd realise that the annexe looks just like your apartment.

But he hates your place. Has never been shy about telling you so. Hates all your nicknacks. Hates the clothing rails you use instead of a proper wardrobe, and the way your beside table is actually just a stack of books you're yet to read. Hates how there's always a cosy blanket within touching distance, and how it always smells like black cherry candles. Hates how firm your mattress is, even if he's only ever slept on it once, fully clothed after you'd both had way too much to drink after a tight work deadline.

He also hated how he didn't wake up with an aching back like he usually does. Hated how sleeping in his own damn bed began to feel wrong, and how nowadays it only feels right during those first few days after he returns from trips; when it still smells like you and the rings you take off your fingers in the night are still tucked beneath his pillows.

Kind of like they are now, as you finally decide to stop being a miserable cow and just get up. You're normally the one who calls him, and it's typically always when you're walking Bam. Last night had been an anomaly. There's no reason for him to call you, now.

It's when you're showering that your phone lights up. Only briefly. Messages, not calls.

JK: can't call this morning, gotta head to the exhibition hall early

JK: give my baby a head scratch from me

JK: send me pics!!

JK: of bam

JK: none of you

While the vomit emoji he adds onto the end of the final message is a little uncalled for, it's actually kind of a relief that he doesn't want to call. Having to face him right now, when you're in such a sorry state of confusion, would have only made the situation far worse for you.

At least that's what you tell yourself.

Your face when you walk into the office, and the state of despair Lea seems to find you in, would suggest otherwise.

By half past ten, you've managed to wrangle Jungkook into conversation eight times.

It's not until you mention him in relation to Jiwon that Lea seems to notice.

"Okay, so?" She laughs. "Everyone knows you and Jungkook are like a package deal. She isn't taking your spot—plus, you're her senior . If she tried to undercut you, do you think anyone would want to work with her?"

It's a good point, but you don't really care to listen to reason right now.

"But it's not undercutting," you pout. "You saw everyone in the group chat. Dream team. "

The way your voice heightens in pitch and nose turns up as you utter the phrase is nothing short of hilarious, and Lea makes sure to let you know.

"You're being a big old baby about this," she laughs again. "Jungkook's gonna come back, relay all of the deals he's set up, and then he's gonna whisk you up to his office to spend the next two weeks drawing up plans. I doubt I'll even see you!"

Admittedly, in the busy periods, you'll work at his desk. In the big chair. The special one he got after his first bonus. The one on his side of the desk. He'll work on the opposite side—the client side—with his laptop.

It's caused a fair amount of confusion before, whenever people have come to his office. Your nonchalance about it all makes it seem totally normal. Most people don't question it anymore—and if they do, you just say the programme you have to use runs better on his computer than it does on a laptop.

Which isn't a lie.

But you could always just work at your own desk.

The issues is that Jungkook likes to keep you close when he's working. Makes it easier for the random questions he blurts out that you're always ready to answer. Annoys him to no end when you're not there and he has to go off and find you.

By the time he finds you, the question is always half gone or you start blathering on about something completely irrelevant and he forgets it anyway. It makes him antsy not having you close.

Neither of you seem to realise it's not normal.

"Look," Lea sighs, minimising her tab so that she can give you her full attention. "You're the one who suggested Jiwon should go. It's just work! You're acting like a jealous girlfriend—"

"No, I'm not!" You gasp. "Don't be absurd!"

"Well, whose apartment did you wake up in?"

"That's hardly—"

"Whose?"

"I mean— Well— His, but —"

"Who was the first person you spoke to this morning?"

"Okay, that's not fair. I'm looking after his—"

"Who was the last person you spoke to last night?"

You pause. Narrow your eyes.

Lea just smiles.

"At least tell me you're in the spare room and not his bed," she jokes—but when she notices the look on your face, her smile drops. "Oh, you're kidding me! You know what you're like when it comes to domestication ! You're bloody nesting , aren't you?!"

"Oh c'mon," you scoff. "I'm not an animal!"

"Uh, yeah," she says, dumbfounded. "You are. That's the issue with humans. Too many bloody primal desires—"

"I do not have a primal desire for Jungkook!"

"Look me in the eyes and tell me you've never thought about it."

"I haven't!" You assert, eyes locked on hers. It's almost believable. Or at least it is until your lips begin to twitch. The look of shock on her face is borderline offensive. "Oh my God, shut up!"

Lea's face scrunches up in revulsion. Shoulders to her ears, she whispers, "He's a whore !"

"Okay, that's not nice."

"But it's true!"

Sighing, you slump into your chair. Push your pout up to your nose, and then sigh even deeper than before.

Looking across at Lea with such perplexity anyone would think she's just asked you to design interiors for a rocket ship, you decide you absolutely cannot let this confusion get the better of you.

"It's fine," you assure her. "He's coming home tomorrow evening. Once I'm out of his house, I'll be way more rationable about things."

"You sure?"

No.

"I'm sure."

As Jungkook places his rucksack down beside a bar stool in an airport lounge, he can't help but feel like he's doing something wrong.

It's dark outside, and the dim lights of the bar give way to a seedy intimacy that he's always loved about places like this—how fleeting they are. The casual embrace of a stranger's stare can linger for hours afterwards, consuming his thoughts for an entire flight.

Yet the only people he's even looked in the eyes of tonight have been the airport staff checking him through. Even as he asks for a whisky, he barely registers the woman behind the bar.

Placing his phone down, he also discards the lanyard that's been around his neck. He forgot to take it off before heading to their airport, and just popped it back on after going through the scanners.

It's not like he needs it now. The conference centre is miles away.

He's still in his business suit. Left quickly. Just confirmed with Jiwon that she didn't mind him catching an earlier flight and in all honesty, it suited her better. Jungkook had been so annoying about Acorn guy the entire time. Kept telling her it was a waste of energy, and no business would come from her pursuit of him. She wanted the chance to prove him wrong; to achieve something by herself.

"Are you Leaving early, too?" An American accent drawls from beside him, immediately grabbing Jungkook's attention.

A burly man with greying hair takes a perch on the stool beside Jungkook. Nodding towards the lanyard, he holds up his own. Mitch Ellis his tag reads, and instantly Jungkook is reminded of the folder you had handed to him before his departure.

"Did a little research on an American company that's gonna be at the Expo. Their head marketer has shares in a bunch of baseball-related companies. Get pally with him."

The opportunity hadn't arisen. Jungkook barely even had time to breathe, let alone seek out some elusive American businessman—yet here he is, in the flesh, approaching Jungkook.

Sucking a little air between his teeth, Jungkook nods. Laughs. Says, "Got a family to get back to."

What. The. Fuck.

He doesn't know why on earth he said that, he just knows he can't take it back. A family. For Christ's sake! It's not just the abandoned house in his brain that's rotting—it's the whole damn thing. Stupid .

Pursing his lips in approval, Mitch nods. Lends an expression that Jungkook can only assume means he respects the answer.

"Family man," he says. "Don't see many of them in the industry these days."

Jungkook shrugs. Continues on with his bullshit. "I love my job, but home's where the heart is." Or at least, it's where his dog is. Of course, he loves Bam more than he cares to articulate—but a man and his dog surely don't constitute to a 'family'. "You off early, too?"

"Wife and kids tagged along for the trip," he nods, then quickly asks the barmaid for a whisky, too. "Promised I'd take them to Lotte World tomorrow."

Jungkook grimaces. "Ooft, on a Saturday?"

"The crowds that bad, huh?"

Gritting his teeth, Jungkook tips his head from side to side, then says, "Get magic passes for the family. It's worth the extra price. Trust me."

He'd never dream of going to Lotte World on a Saturday.

In fact, he doesn't dream of it full stop. Grew up going to the Busan franchise, and would opt for it any day of the week. Everland would be his second choice if couldn't be bothered for the drive. But never the Jamsil Lotte World. It's always rammed .

"I swear, kids—" Mitch shakes his head "—All they do is bleed you dry."

Jungkook smiles. "I'm yet to reach that stage, but I can imagine."

Mitch looks appropriately confused. Did Jungkook not just make up a bullshit imaginary family? Surely he hasn't faltered already?

Jungkook clarifies, "Going home to my girl and my dog. No kids—or at least if I've acquired one over the last couple of days, it'll be a surprise."

He doesn't know why he said that.

My girl.

Oh, God. He's going insane. He must be. This is ridiculous.

Those stupid dreams of his had already started migrating into daydreams. Now, they're being spoken into reality. This is terrible. Really, truly, awful.

Mitch has an easy ten, maybe twenty years on Jungkook.

His hair is greying, and there are lines embedded into his skin that tell stories of the life he's lived.

While it's his career Jungkook would typically be envious of, he finds himself jealous of Mitch's personal life. Wife. Kids. God, he hates the conformity of it all, but there's an ache in his chest when he thinks about all that he doesn't have.

And it only worsens when he thinks of you and Bam.

"Ah, young love," Mitch nods, again seemingly in approval of Jungkook and his 'choices'—which is bizarre, because Jungkook wants to punch himself in the face. "Make the most of it. You'll be longing for the good old days once the kids come."

It's too late for Jungkook to correct himself. Too late to admit to the truth. To say 'lol, jk, im single, just fancy the pants off my coworker.'

The thought of it all makes him want to hurl. Fancy.

He's never admitted his crush before, not even to himself. Oh, this is all so awful.

And so Jungkook panics. Says, "Hopefully we've got a couple years before then. We're both at the same company, so we're trying to figure it all out before doing anything we can't take back."

What is wrong with you?!

"Oh?" Mitch chirps, encouraging Jungkook to continue.

"Were interns at the same time," Jungkook begins to overexplain, as if it makes it any better. He's speaking a crush into existence that he isn't even sure exists, and declaring it as love of some sorts? Oh, this is really barbaric. He might throw up. Maybe if he pretends to faint, he can get out of this situation. He thinks it would be less mortifying. Yet, still, he continues! "Have gone up through the ranks together, but are different departments."

Why is he still talking about you?!

Oh God, his head is gonna explode. It's like you're building an extension on the annexe. He never gave you planning permission, and yet there you are, concrete trowel in one hand, a brick in the other. You're so pretty, he thinks.

Get a grip!

"HR nightmare," Mitch laughs, then leans a little closer. "Truth be told, it's how me and the missus met—I worked for her Daddy's company. Thought I'd be fired on the spot when we told him."

"But I'm guessing...?"

Mitch nods. "I'm now their longest-serving employee and am set to take over in the next five years," he laughs. Thankfully, it all worked out. Hopefully, the same'll be said for you and your missus."

Jungkook's lips curve into a tight-lipped smile. Decides he has to change topic, or otherwise he might just self-implode. "Yeah. Fingers crossed—anyway, I don't think we had a chance to speak at the conference, did we? What's your company?"

As if Jungkook has earned a gold seal of approval, Mitch nods his head over towards a couple of chairs that overlook the runways. Picks up his whisky. Begins to walk away. Says, "I was about to ask you the exact same thing. What did you say your name was again? Let's talk."

"Jeon Jungkook," he grins, picking up his whisky, finally forcing you out of his brain. "Yeah. Let's chat."

"Bammie," you whine into Jungkook's pillows when the sound of his paws excitedly clattering across the floorboards wakes you. You can't have been asleep for very long. A couple hours, tops. "It's not time for walkies yet."

Burrowing yourself deeper into Jungkook's sheets, you try and drown out the noise–but it's fruitless. Not only is Bam too cute to ignore, you worry that there's something wrong.

Sitting up, eyes all beary, the dark nothingness around you clues you in on the fact it's definitely the middle of the night. Pushing the duvet off your body, you swing your legs over the side of the bed as your phone begins to vibrate. Jungkook's face takes over your screen, and a frown takes over yours.

Part of you wants to ignore it. Wonder if maybe you've already slept through it ringing out, and that's what woke Bam up.

At this time of the evening, Jungkook should be at the afterparty. It's unofficial, and not endorsed by the convention, which only means one thing: people are getting legless.

He'd sent you a message earlier on in the day saying that Jiwon was still trying her absolute hardest to bag the Acorn man, after an unsuccessful attempt the night before. You wonder if he's wing-manning her.

Bitterly, you wonder if she's cut her losses. Turned her attention to Jungkook, instead.

He's probably shitfaced by now.

Part of you worries he'll want to continue the conversation from the night before. You're too sober to even consider flirting.

Sliding across to answer, you hold the phone to your ear and you begin to walk in the direction of wherever Bam may be.

"Yeah?" You croak down the phone, rubbing your eyes with the back of your hand.

"You sound chirpy," he teases.

Bizarrely, you think he sounds sober. "Fuck off."

"Charming. Undo the bolt on the door," Jungkook demands down the line, but there's almost an echo, as if he's just in the other room or something like that.

Your feet softly pad into the living room, the darkness not much of a hindrance. You know his apartment like the back of your hand; the veins, the freckles, the grooves dappled in your skin below your knuckles. All it takes is a couple of steps for you to reach the light switch, and absolutely zero thought for you to flick it on.

"Hm?" You mumble a confused sound as light bursts into the room. Your eyes squeeze together, a groan catching in your throat. Blinking once, twice, you adjust quickly. Spot Bam by the entryway, looking up at the door expectantly. One of his paws taps at the steel, a soft whine trembling on his lips. Turning your attention back to Jungkook, you say, "What?"

"'I'm home, gremlin," Jungkook softly smiles down the phone. "Let me in."

"But it-" You begin to protest, knowing that his flight isn't until tomorrow.

Jungkook doesn't care to explain himself. Is just as tired as you sound.

"Let me in."

You don't need to be told twice.

He's home.

It shouldn't make you feel the way that it does, all warm and content.

But it does, and for a moment, you let yourself indulge in the sensation of welcoming Jungkook right back to where he belongs.

Hanging up, you place your phone on the kitchen counter, reaching out to scratch Bam's head when you get to the door.

"Is it daddy, huh?" You ask him as he continues to paw at the door. There's a small metallic click as you unthread the bolt, which is quickly replaced by a robotic beep as you press the easy-release button for the latch.

Before you can even properly open the door, the handle is being pressed down from the outside. The sound of Jungkook's hushed voice echoes into the hallway instantly as he coos over Bam just to wind him up a little before he can see him.

"Who is it, Bammie?" He asks through the door, and you already know exactly what he looks like—smile so large it takes over his entire face.

You help to push the door open, and find that there's sunshine in the middle of the night in Jungkook's hallway.

"You're home," you sleepily smile as you watch Jungkook crouch, arms wide and all-encompassing as he greets Bam in the most boisterous of ways. He's not making any sense. Isn't saying any words. Just lets noises rumble from his throat, of which Bam somehow seems to understand.

In a way, you understand it too. The mental translation is a bit patchy, but you know it's something along the lines of, I've missed you so much Bammie, Daddy's home now, let's never spend time apart ever again.

Glancing up to you, that daylight smile hanging off his lips, Jungkook's got a glisten in his tired eyes.

Maybe you haven't adjusted to the light as well as you think you have, but there's something different about Jungkook. Something that's making your weary heart work overtime. It's all a bit strange. All a bit lovely. All a bit terrifying.

"Yeah," he tenderly agrees, hands scratching behind Bam's floppy ears as his eyes fondly meet yours. How could he ever stay away? "Home."

part three to be uploaded tomorrow <3

[jaded-jezz]

Shutter Speed (Part 2)

Jack Champion x Photographer!Reader

Part 2/3

☁︎ Fluff

Summary: y/n is a photographer for the new scream promo and Jack thinks she belongs in front of the camera rather than behind.

(Y/N POV)

"Look who decided to show up!" I hear Jenna say but I am too occupied in taping marks on the floor to turn around. Leah goes over to introduce herself, welcome the late cast to the shoot and explain the plan and rules.

"You must be Y/N?" I hear my name and stand up to correct the voice. "I'm Leah, she's Y/N." Leah turns to me as I appear next to them.

“Woah…I mean Jack, I’m hi.” The boy in front of me stutters. “No! I mean Hi, I am Jack. Sorry for being late.” I hold back a small laugh and smile. “Are you sure you’re Jack? I mean the name ‘hi’ might suit you more.” I jest. “I’m Y/N, did Leah go over all the rules? Are there any questions?” My voice moves back into professional mode as we have a lot of work to do today.

(JACK'S POV)

"You totally played that off man" Mason chuckles behind me, pulling me out of the trance that this Y/N has put me in. I feel my face heating up and I can't tell if its the multitude of lights in here or her stare that burned through my heart. God snap out of it, Jack, you have to do your job today.

I watch Y/N fall into her element and do what, I can tell that, she loves. She is mesmerizing.

"Stop drooling, she may run away" I hear Jenna whisper to me and before I can defend myself, "Umm... next I need Jack Champion over here on the blue mark please" You need me? Ok say less, I joke to myself to calm my nerves. I keep my eyes on the floor to ensure I don't trip but also so that I won't turn into a blushing mess if she looks at me. God, this is the first time I've been glad these lights are this bright.

I follow her instructions, her voice is music to my ears. It's like I am under a spell. A love spell? No lets not get ahead of ourselves. Wait, she's staring at me.

"Jack? Do you wanna see one of the photos?" Leah suggests from the side of the room, trying to break the awkward silence between the two of us. "Oh sure!" I stumble over wires to stand next to her. "No, go over to Y/N, she'll show you how everything works and how the images will be edited after the shoot."

(Y/N POV)

I give Leah a panicked look before Jack turns to walk over. His curls bounce as he hops over the leg of the tripod. "Oh you are tall." I say without thinking. "Oh yeah, but so are you." He answers looking down at me. "It's probably my shoes." I laugh, "Did you wanna see the photos?" I bring up the subject to make sure I don't say anything I may regret.

"Do you enjoy being a photographer?" Jack inquires. That sets me off. I could talk for hours about photography.

"I have loved it since I was 10 and I could not imagine persuading any other career. I am constantly thinking of photo shoots whenever I leave my house. Wall of graffiti? Photo shoot idea. Aesthetic shampoo bottle? Photo shoot idea. I am constantly inspired by everything around me which means my job can be difficult when I am given a strict brief but luckily, whoever hired us, gave us full creative freedom." I wave my arms around for emphasis. But too much emphasism as I almost hit Jack. He swerves and giggles, luckily.

"Oh shit, I am so sorry." I cringe and look back to the camera screen. "It's ok, Y/N" The way he says my name makes a swarm of butterflies flutter in me. I look up into his eyes. Brown eyes used to freak me out because it is more difficult to see the pupil, but maybe I like them a bit more now. Maybe he can help me like other things too. Ew, don't get carried away or you will scare him off.

After our stares last a beat too long, Leah clears her throat and alerts the group that we will now be moving to an outside shoot. She tells them to go back to the changing rooms to get out of their costumes and into the brand we are shooting with for the second part of the day. While they leave, Leah and I start to collect the equipment we are bringing. I grab my notebook for the checklist.

"You are doing great Y/N, especially with a certain someone." Leah raises her eyebrows and winks at me. I roll my eyes and walk over to turn off some of the bigger lights.

(JACK'S POV)

As the group walks to change, I see Jenna and Mason standing by the doors. They are sharing a similar look towards me, it's kinda freaking me out. "He totally does!" "Yep, I can see it in his eyes." I roll my eyes at their odd behavior and attempt to walk past them. "Oh no Mister."

They drag me out of the studio and into the hallway. "Man, when I said charm them with your good looks, I sorta hoped you would also charm her with the rest of you." Mason starts. "Yeah, we knew you were awkward, but not this bad. I wanted to claw my eyes out!" Jenna exclaims rather loudly.

"Could you be any louder? And it wasn't that bad, and I am not flirting!" I shout in a whisper. "No one said you were flirting, except you." Jenna retorts. "We've exposed you without even trying" Mason shouts to annoy me again. "Fine, she's really beautiful and she is really passionate about her job which is kinda cute and-"

"Ok lover boy relax, you don't need to go into detail." Jenna cuts me off with a look of both disgust and happiness, so I know she is just being sarcastic. "We will help you get this girl of your dreams" Mason adds. I can't tell if this is a bad idea but I nod and walk to the changing rooms to make sure I am not late again.

When we are all re-dressed, the cast starts to follow Leah out but I look for Y/N. I see her pacing back and forth, looking rather stressed. I don't know if me going over will make it worse. But I don't have time to decide as two pairs of hands push me towards her.

"Y/N, are you ok? Have you lost something?" "Yes! My notebok. It has all my plans and lists inside. I really need it. Like right now. Is it hot in here? Or is it just me?" She panics. "Ok, you need to sit down before you faint or something goes wrong."

I reach for her hand and gently guide her to sit next to me. I scan the room for a notebook before asking her any questions. She keeps a hold of my hand and I have to pretend not to notice or I might be the one to faint. "Is it that green thing over there?"

(Y/N'S POV)

"Oh my god! Yes it is!" I jump up and grab it. When I turn around, I am again faced with Jack's chest. I look up at him and smile. I feel weirdly calm after that whole anxiety filled fiasco, maybe it's because of Jack?

"Thank you Jack, I think I would've died without this." I try to laugh. "That's ok, I think we need to go now though, I know you have quite a strict schedule for today." He responds.

Jack offers to hold some equipment to make sure I can see where I am going over the pile of objects. When we leave the building I see the other cast members grabbing or putting away stuff in their cars so I take my kit back from Jack to allow him to do the same. I walk over to Leah to let her know I found the notebook.

"I was going to come back to help you but I heard a certain someone calming you down." She says as I stand next to her. "He is definitely your type, isn't he? Tall, lanky-" I cut her off "Yes Leah you don't need to continue. I can't let a silly crush get in the way of today though. It's not even a crush! I've not even known him for five minuets! All I know is his name." I say so fast I almost run out of breath.

"Let's get going while the sun is still out." I shout to the group.

(This is the photoshoot that inspired this series so you can vision this location and photoshoot style)

(TIME SKIP + STILL Y/N POV)

We have been talking photos outside in both groups and alone. It's so sunny outside that no lights are needed, just portable reflectors. Which are big circles of materials that bounce the sun in a chosen direction. Leah and I split up for the last half an hour as we have different ideas due to the location and lighting right now. Some of the cast have moved away to film TikToks and to stand in the shade but some are continuing to model for us if they have less photos than others.

I noticed Jack had finished talking to Mason and Jenna before he started walking over to me.

"Hey Y/N! Is there any last ideas in your notebook?" He asks.

"Oh just this one." I start. "Because of the harsh sun I am are able to play around with different filters on my camera. One of my favorite makes stars in light reflections, would you try out over here?" My hands are shaking as I hand him a small square of mirrored glass.

We mess around for a while, me running back and forth to show him how to pose, how to angle the mirror to reflect light and to show him the results. After a while I am so out of breath that Jack finds it funny.

As the sun starts to go down, the cast all joins up for the last photo including Leah and I for our Instagram. We all start walking back slightly delirious due to the amount of running around some of us had been doing. Jack is walking next to me, at the back of the group, continuing one of our random conversations from earlier.

"You are really talented Y/N, I know you have probably been told that a lot today, but you really are." Jack says in a slight hushed tone. I can't control the big smile on my face. He is such a genuine human being. "Thank you for being a wonderful model." I laugh.

I notice him glance ahead at the group before slowing down and truing to me. "I don't know if i have read this situation wrong but I think you are beautiful and I get feel like we get along so well even though we haven't known each other that long and I am rambling aren't I?" He looks down at his feet and rakes a deep breath.

"I was wondering if you wanted to go out on a date with me?" He finally looks me in the eye as he says this. "Wow Jack, of course I will. I don't think someone has made me laugh this much, apart from myself obviously" I jest. We trade numbers as we catch up with the group.

After the cast all go their separate ways, Leah and I burst out into screams of happiness. "MY BEST FRIEND IS GOING ON A DATE WITH A HOT, FAMOUS PERSON WHOOOOOP" Leah shouts as we skip around the car park, arms linked.

Who wants a Part Three? It will be about pre-date, during and maybe even their reactions with friends after too?

As always, requests are currently open!

Please do not repost this, reblogs are appreciated.

Also some people asked me to Tag them so here you go:

@gwenlore @multi-simp-page @daffodil-darlings @mummatiri

I’m quite new to tagging people so lemme know if you want to be tagged for all my Jack Champion Posts or just this series?

[lightprkdraws]

ooh okay now I'm curious: what don't you like about v3's ending?

Hhh I hope you won't regret asking this, because I am going to rant a looot about it XDD

SPOILERS for ALL danganronpa main games (also, long rant ahead)

The first thing that I want to say is that it makes me cringe. It makes me cringe so hard when the in-universe characters talk about the previous games and literally say danganronpa. It's too meta for my liking.

Additionally, it feels mean spirited to the player. Sorry, I can't get to the moral high ground here, I just don't like getting lectured for the things I like by the things I like. It's a bit hypocritical too, no? You were the one who made the murder mystery game, not me!

---

Having gotten those two points out of the way, it feels really silly as a reveal in comparison to the previous two games' reveals. The first one basically said that the world as the characters knew it had ended, and the second one not only said that, but it also revealed that they were the ones responsible.

In comparison, DRV3 has a very bizarre (also overused, also juvenile) "we live in a society" kind of reveal. "Ooooh look how uncaring all these people are!"

(also, seriously? who could watch 53 of these killing games without getting bored? that number is ridiculous)

It certainly tries to give it more of a punch with the inclusion of the characters' audition tapes (seeing that they signed up to be psychologically tortured and literally murdered on live TV) in an attempt to make it more like DR2 instead of just DR1, however that aspect is brushed aside in favour of dealing with the bigger issue (the actual murder show). It's so incredibly cartoony and weird, and not in a good way. Maybe if it were some kind of underground, dark web type of deal there would be a better flavour to it.

Also, there were sooo many red herrings in the previous chapters, instead of a slow buildup of the reveal. For comparison's sake:

In 2-2 the characters learn that they've lost their school memories, and, after that, Monokuma starts talking about the world ending on multiple occasions. In 2-3 we read a document about a reserve course that exists at hope's peak. We also learn about protests that were carried out by said reserve course. Then in 2-4 we get the payoff that Hajime is in the reserve course. Finally, in 2-6 we learn that all the people of this game were the instigators of the apocalipse. Hajime's personal struggle is only a small part of the bigger reveal, but it also supports the bigger narrative: the fact that Hope's Peak is an incredibly corrupt organisation that treats people as expendable labrats, and how that led to the protests, and how that helped Junko escalate the situation in a massive way.

Meanwhile, in V3 we get some flashbacks of Suichi talking with a random young kid, him talking with some classmates, him being chased by a mob of people. Then there's a whole thing about getting to the exit through the tunnel and hope's peak building a sanctuary for the last remains of humanity?? And let's not forget Kaede's sister, for whatever reason. I'll admit that I don't remember all the details of V3 because it's been a while since I played it, but all these events are so disjointed and random. There's just so many things shown that in the end don't have anything to do with the reveal (apart from showing how stupid the whole organisation running these killing games is).

Another thing to mention, is the existence of the nanokumas. The creators must have really liked the fact that Monokuma could see everything all the time in DR2, because they had to somehow make that work outside of a digital context in V3. I hate the nanokumas. They are so incredibly dumb as a concept.

And after all is said and done, the game has the gall to say "but who knows what the actual truth is"

Neither of the previous games had such an unecessary open-endedness to them. But ig I have to admit that, specifically with DR1's ending, there is a bias of certainty because we got multiple sequels that confirm what the truth is (although I still believe that it didn't really leave much room for debate).

Both games had a feeling of "and the story continues" but not a "wait, what was the truth after all?", if that makes sense.

---

Now, about Tsumugi specifically. It's really really dumb that she was made out out to be a big bad evil mastermind, when she's just a showrunner. She's got 0 actual power. Nothing like Junko or even Izuru. They were the instigators. Tsumugi is a small cog in a machine.

Idk if I've said this before, but I'd like her a lot better as a mastermind if she'd been some rich spoiled girl who's obsessed with the danganronpa franchise and ends up kidnapping a bunch of her classmates and brainwashes them in order to make her own real-life killing game. That to me, specifically for Tsumugi's character, would be 1000x or even 1000000x more compelling than her canon motivations and role. This way, you can even keep the meta-narrative of the previous games being fictional in the V3 universe, but can completely remove the entire world being in on the joke. AND it would make her more interesting because she'd be so passionate about this game that she's literally willing to die for it!

---

In conclusion: there's probably things I can't remember right now, but these are the main points that come to mind off the top of my head.

Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of fun playing it until the trial of chapter 5. It became too confusing and convoluted for me after that point. But before that, I liked seeing most of the character interactions.

I do feel bitter that Kaede was killed in the first chapter (it'd be a lot more interesting if Suichi had died and Kaede had then had to learn how to take on his role, there could even be a lesson that one does not need to keep themselves within the confines of their assigned ultimate talent), but it's not like the whole game suffers from this one decision.

I especially liked the interactions between Suichi, Maki, and Kaito during their nightly meetups. Such small moments of bonding time is something that was missing from the previous two games.

[dried-deep-sea]

Scrapped #8

My beta reader is helping me rewrite chapter 2 of reclamation, were 86ing the sick tikki plot in favor of a worn out tikki, and finding another reason for marintte to level the house. This was the first idea I had but we settled on something jucier.

Finally alone in her room Marinette paused, had she just referred to that entitled brat as her fleabag? She cringed and she felt her face flush. She knew that her mind was being silly because Claw showed her a crumb of affection. She still could not stop blushing when she thought about him. She would admit that she had a bit of a thing for bad boys, and that meant she got her heart stomped on regularly. Something she couldn't afford right now.

She drummed her fingers on her desk aimlessly, trying to think of something to distract herself. She leafed thorough the project list on her desk but nothing called to her. The lines blurred in front of her eyes and it felt like anything she managed to make out wasn't remotely inspiring.

Marinette was grateful for a distraction when she felt Tikki shift in her jacket pocket, and then a moment later come to a rest on her desk. The little creature still looked pale, and drawn, but better than she had before. She smiled at Marinette from behind the Supremes Seal stamped over her lips.

"Hey, how was your nap Tikki?" Marinette asked softly, letting the pages in her hand fall flat. Tikki stretched and yawned as best she could behind the Seal, its main purpose seemed to be keeping the Kwami from talking and the thought of that rubbed her the wrong way. Thinking about the control that someone as cruel as the Supreme had over the world twisted Marinette's stomach in knots. What if he knew that she had tried to weasel out of their agreement, what if he knew she was joining Betterfly and the Rebels. It was his power that had saved her from Chloe's harassment. Was she truly ready to be without it?

Marinette had promised herself that this would be the last year Chole bullied her, no matter what. Even if it meant she had to beg her parents to transfer her to a new school. She can't do it anymore, the bugs, the tripping, the torn clothes and lunched smacked out of her hands and into her face. Marinette is practically in and out of class all day for being a "disruption" because Chole decided to harass her instead of paying attention to the lecture. No matter what this would be the last year.

The Kwami in flew in front of her, breaking through the new line of frantic thoughts racing through her head. She hovered there for a second, like she was trying to focus. Tikki squeezed her eyes shut, her little face was still pallid and drawn but she looked much better.

"Are you feeling better?" She asked softly, "I wish you could tell me what's wrong." She reached to cradle the frail creature, who plopped into the palm of her hand without hesitation.

"Lets get you something warm to eat," She said standing up and holding the creature in front of her. She turned towards her door but was stopped by the Kwami headbutting her hand gently, nuzzling it with affection. Her parents had already rushed off to their event leaving her house blissfully empty for the time being.

She descended on the kitchen, digging thought the cabinets in search of something simple. Marinette was a disaster in the best of times, and cooking was foreign to her. Eventually she found an old fried rice seasoning packet, and set about following the instructions.

She overcooked the eggs, and her vegetables were mushy but it was edible. Marinette portioned some into a bowl, and grabbed two spoons, a large one for her and a small teaspoon for her little friend. Tikki's shakes had stopped for the most part, and she was able to hold the spoon by herself without spilling.

"I'm sorry its not sweet, but I'm sure even magical forces need to eat their vegetables every now and again." Marinette said as she settled into her seat at the counter. The kwami, predicably, didn't say anything. The silence was a comfortable one, far warmer than any of her recent family meals.

Tikki must have enjoyed the food because the little bug was now curled up on an stray oven mitt with a piece of rice stuck to her face. Marinette brushed it away and made to scoop up the kwami before a chime from her phone stopped her.

It was a text message from her "boyfriend." She ignored it, not wanting to deal with his childish bullshit right now. She had been delighted when he asked her out, blinded by rose tinted glasses of her crush. Chloe had pulled back on the harassment, Marinette suspected the Supremes involvement in that one. Little did Marinette know Chloe had only changed her tactics. Something she hadn't know the brainless blonde was capable of.

The girl could be snide and underhanded when she needed to be. No longer was she ripping apart school projects, or ruining lunches. No the cruelty came in the form of nasty rumors. Accusations of cheating started a few weeks ago. She was certain they were Chloe's doing, especially after boys started coming forward, claiming she was flirting with them when she had never seen them before.

Kim wasn't any better, with his awful pranks and childish, insensitive jokes, but at least he never believed them. Sometimes Marinette wondered if Chloe had masterminded the entire situation to fuck with her, or if he had helped in some of Chloe's other plans.

Her phone went off again, swiftly followed by another alert. She sighed heavily and clicked the message. There was an unloaded attachment taking up most of her screen. Marinette huffed in frustration, tapping to to reload before scrolling up too see the other messages.

Did you really think he would choose you over me?

Of all the fools in my court you truly are the most rediculous.

The messages sent a chill down her, spine slowly pooling into dread at her feet and threatening to pull her under. The photo loaded and she was met with an image of Chloe, tucked in bed. Kim's bed. Behind her Marinette could just make out Kim's back, his hair was mussed and sticking out in every direction. Marinette slammed her phone down on the counter, startling Tikki awake.

She hadn't loved Kim the way she had when they had started going out, but she could still feel her heart crumbling. It was so confusing, like a magic carpet ride gone horribly wrong. You want to get off, but you never want to be dropped from a hundred meters up.

Marinette sunk to the floor, blood rushing loud enough to block out everything. She couldn't make her lungs work, to get them to pull in air because every alarm in her head was screaming at once. Panic, despair and humiliation tore her apart until she was nothing but a hollow, empty husk cradling itself on her kitchen floor.

She didn't stay there for long, tears boiling on her cheeks as old injustices played in her head until she had whipped herself into a fury. Hate filled the hole that had punched its way though her soul, burning hotter than a thousand suns. She was going to wring that skinny bimbo's neck. She let the rage fuel her as she rose to her feet, snatching her now cracked phone and a terrified Tikki off the table before stuffing both into her jacket pockets.

She stormed out the apartment door, not bothering to lock it behind her. Marinette practically flew down the stairs with how many she skipped, bursting out the entryway with so much force the door frame rattled as the door bounced off the wall and swung shut.

[holly-fixation]

Silver Turncoat: Ch 2

Summary: The golden child was far different than the blond expected. For now, every step landed on eggshells. They needed a plan and a way forward.

Inspired by this prompt by @im-totally-not-an-alien

Please enjoy!

…

Chapter 2: Boundaries

The blond donned the iconic black coat and silver pauldrons while the golden child blended in with every Shinra Security recruit at the company, with the exception of his black pants and armored boots. Once settled, Cloud looked over the katana at the Silver Soldier's back. At first glance, it seemed acceptable. The red sash at the hilt was certainly fine. The blade itself was unassuming. But the hilt guard…

It was Shinra's logo, the symbol on every device developed by the dreaded company. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that simple detail was another way to brand the boy. It was a dead giveaway of who they were to any passerby daring to look close. A symbol of death and governing the planet until the very last Gil bled from its wounds. 

“What is it?” Sephiroth questioned without emotion. A teenage warrior. A child, glancing between the sword and the look on the other teen's face. 

“...We have to get rid of your sword,” the answer came hesitantly. Mako blue eyes met through the helmet. 

“My blade isn't known to the public.”

“It has Shinra's logo. We can't risk someone spotting and reporting it as a stolen weapon.”

“Who would spot it?” 

“Well, we need to go through the Southern Mountains before we have a chance of being safe. Junon's always an issue to get through…”

There was a pause as the boy looked away. “We have some time. What's the plan?”

Cloud nodded, but he couldn’t shake his concern of the weapon. “We should bury that sword first.” Sephiroth's expression of confusion went unnoticed as the blond removed one of the many blades that built his sword. “Here. This one should be your size.”

The silver haired boy scanned him and his sword again, trying to count the slits that symbolized a new blade.

“Five,” Cloud answered as if reading his mind. “My sword is made of five smaller swords.”

Sephiroth's cat-like eyes widened. 

“It's more practical than you think.” Cloud gripped the flat end of the blade and held the hilt toward the soldier. “You never know when a second blade will be useful. Trust me.”

He hesitantly grabbed the offered handle, testing the balance of the blade with a few quick swings.

“Think you can get used to it?”

“Of course,” came his instant response as he continued to adjust to the new tool. A trained response. As if any other answer was simply unacceptable.

Cloud gave a soft hum and a nod, but nothing more as he began digging a channel in the sand. “We need to get to Western Continent. I have a friend there that can help us. Right now, that’s the plan.”

“You said ‘can’. Not ‘will’.” Sephiroth caught the precautious choice of words immediately.

The blond cringed, scooping slowly as he explained. “Well…he will help when he understands what's going on. He's one of the few people on the Planet that would help without wanting anything in return.”

“I don't understand.”

He sighed. “...he feels guilty about what happened to you.”

He stared hard, pressing for more information. 

“Shinra. SOLDIER. Especially Hojo.”

Hojo. The name echoed in his mind, slimy and weighted as his comment left his lips, dark and reserved, “You know Hojo?”

Cloud audibly grunted at the memory. “I know him. He experimented on me. For five years. Ruined my life. He won't remember me here, but I'll never forget him.” Now he met the teen's gaze with an outstretched hand. “Your sword.”

Sephiroth hesitantly reached for his blade with his off hand, the blade he was never allowed to name for concern of connection to a piece of metal. He looked it over one last time, scanning every detail before snapping off the red strap at the hilt and placing it in his pocket, but his gaze lingered for a bit too long. “...No.” He decided.

“‘No’ what?”

“I’m not giving you my sword.”

Cloud closed his eyes for a moment as if he took a physical blow, but sighed before he answered, “...Okay. Not yet. That’s fair.”

Sephiroth was taken aback.

The blond stood and brushed the sand off his pants. “Once Junon’s in sight, we won’t have a choice. It has to go. But for now, it’s unlikely anyone will spot it.”

His cat-like eyes sharpened. “You’re… serious.”

“Yes. Absolutely. In fact, keep both so you can get used to them. I don't want you to be vulnerable- Get back!”

Sephiroth leaped to Cloud’s side with both the blades drawn. The ground suddenly shook and a circle of coral spikes pierced through it, biting down on the thankfully vacated area with the red teeth and deep blue skin. Its spiked, tube-like body shot into the air and the massive worm met the sand with a crash and an angry growl.

A sea worm.

Here? Now?

There was no time to think. It was angry and they had no place to run. Without speaking they dashed to separate sides of the creature, keeping its teeth away at the cost of being in range of its tail. It launched its body up before slamming back down, the earth quaking beneath their feet. 

Sephiroth adapted quickly as Cloud watched the monster’s moves. The silver teen dashed and stabbed its skin with his blade. It cried out and whipped his tail. Sephiroth expected this and jumped away, but not far enough. Its tip crashed down on his shoulder and he slid across the ground. 

The blond didn’t make a sound before throwing one of his blades through its neck, simultaneously slicing and stabbing the creature in a single blow. Thick blue blood poured from its open artery and the creature quickly thrashed before falling to the ground.

They waited a moment, listening and watching for any signs of played death. However the monster remained silent as its cooling blood seeped into the powder below.

“Those guys are jerks. They only move when the wind picks up. They’re really hard to hear. Don't beat yourself up if you didn't notice.” Cloud approached the boy and held out a hand. “You okay?”

Sephiroth nodded before ignoring the offering and pulling to his feet. He kept his thoughts silent, his eyes down in self depreciation, but the hiss from the other teen’s lips caught his attention.

“Your armor’s dented.” Standard troop uniforms were not exactly equipped for battling monsters. They were strictly effected for person to person combat. No more. “Let me check for breaks.”

“Barely cracks,” the golden child corrected. “They will heal within the day.”

“I don’t care if they will heal. There’s no reason to suffer through pain if we’re not actively in battle.” Cloud surrounded his hand in emerald magic before showering it over Sephiroth, instantly mending the wounds of his shoulder without discomfort. Only after did the blond return to the dead monster with a puzzled expression. 

“A sea worm,” Sephiroth observed. 

“I can see that. But what is it doing so far from Mideel?”

His silver brows knotted. He didn’t have an answer.

Cloud couldn't hide the smallest concern glistening in his eyes. This creature meant something and he did not know what. He shook his head to avoid releasing the questions in his mind before removing his thinnest blade and slicing and carving into the corpse. 

Sephiroth only watched as the other teen created two sacks from its skin, filling one with muscle and fat and the other with horns and teeth. 

“The skin should preserve the meat through the night. Hopefully we’ll find a merchant before that.”

“There are no towns nearby,” Sephiroth stated coldly. 

“But there’s always someone trying to sell goods wherever they can, and that means we have a chance of buying some supplies. Maybe even a tent or two.” Cloud gathered his blades and sheathed his weapon to his back before grabbing both sacks and walking. “First thing we gotta do is to get away from shore. If we take the mountains, we should be able to make it to Junon largely undetected.”

The boy only nodded, his silver hair bobbing. He quickly followed. The rolling green plain laid before them as an obstacle between them and the mountains to the port city. They would be lucky to make it to the mountains or encounter one of these supposed traveling merchants before sundown.

* * * 

Luck smiled upon them. 

Though not a full-time merchant, they crossed paths with an employee of the chocobo farm with a bit of a side gig. This dark haired man simply did not care for small talk and never even attempted to step out of the blue truck as they commenced their transaction. Well, ‘they’ meaning Cloud and the man. Sephiroth stayed silent, scanning the truck and its contents for any dangers and listening carefully for any approaching monsters. The low rumble of the truck and the weather station playing through the radio only served as small annoyances to distract him. 

“And it’s looking to be another beautiful week from Upper Junon to the old Mythril Mines. The chocobos in Chocobo Bill’s farm will certainly be happy about that. Catch them doing their amazing dance any time you visit. Well, after repairs are complete.”

The employee huffed, “Might finally get some time off…” Then he glanced at Cloud again. “How many potions did you want again?”

Cloud focused on trading the parts from the sea worm either Gil or supplies, thankfully keeping the man busy.

“Earlier today, a Shinra Security helicopter crash landed at the entrance of the chocobo farm. Though no chocobos were harmed, the owner went ahead and gave their statements to the station.”

An old voice took over the broadcast. “Those pilots were terrified! They said some SOLDIER and cadet were supposed to be with them but attacked them during the flight? Then they call their boss or somethin’ and they weren’t supposed to have a cadet in the first place? Somethin’ fishy’s goin’ on here. Shinra needs to get its act together. And somebody’s gonna pay for these damages, and it ain’t gonna be me!”

Sephiroth’s breath hitched.

“Shinra’s currently investigating the disappearance of the SOLDIER and apparently rebellious cadet. The head of security stated all hands are on deck to find this missing SOLDIER, though they refuse to release any names just yet. However, a few leaks have made it to the public sector claiming the new and improved SOLDIER models are being held on indefinite hiatus until this situation is resolved. And speaking of resolving, the Migar Major Soccer Tournament is reaching its semi-finals! Be sure to keep up with the action at-”

A fabric bag was pressed up against Sephiroth’s arm, snapping him back to reality as he grabbed it and threw it over his shoulder.

“Be sure to get some new armor when you can,” the merchant warned as he passed the rest of the products. “The monsters around here have been really weird lately.”

The blond nodded, taking the two larger bags. “We’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

In less than a moment, the truck was down the road, a dust cloud disturbing the perfectly calm scenery of the eastern continent.

“Okay, we have an hour before sundown. Let's get to those mountains and try to find a cave. Then we set up camp, get a little rest, make a meal and then we’re back on the road before dawn. Sound good?”

Sephiroth nodded. “First we’re heading to Junon. Then the Western Continent. Where’s this friend of yours going to be?”

“Nibelheim. I’ll explain more when we get closer.”

“Like who you really are?” The venom in his voice did not fall upon deaf ears.

Cloud sighed slowly. He knew that broadcast was bad news. “I know it’s unfair to ask you to trust me. But if I told you the whole truth without any proof, you’d think I’m insane. And to be honest, if I were in your shoes, I would too.”

“So you’re lying to me.”

“I’m not lying, but…” Now mako blue eyes stared into their incomplete mirror. “I know what Shinra does. I know how they think. I have more experience than I can possibly explain looking like…” He glanced down at his form, small and innocent, unprepared and untrained, “this…” His eyes returned to the boy. “I promise I will tell you everything once we get out of Nibelheim. You have my word.”

Sephiroth exhaled. “...Fine. Until Nibelheim, then.”

.

.

.

.

To be continued…

Chapter List

Author’s note: I was kind of delaying this in hopes of a new Ever Crisis chapter, but we’re still in the waiting period. Though that Halloween event? With Sephiroth’s ‘episode’? I’m genuinely surprised they put something like that in a mobile game.

Next up: Camping with Cloud and Meanwhile on Rhadore.

Thanks for reading!

[beevean]

(Feel free to ignore this if you don't want to talk about IDW Sonic! /gen) I don't know if you've seen the solicits for issues 63 and 64 yet, but... yikes. I'm happy Silver is getting more focus, but it honestly feels as if they're just going the Archie Sonic route with him being kind of a literal dumbass jumping to conclusions left and right? In itself I don't mind that, I think it does suit Silver to immediately undertake action without thinking things fully through, but it's how the other characters (are going to) react to it. The fact that the solicit for issue 64 already says "Awkwardness ensures." is promptly giving me second-hand embarrassment, and it hasn't even come out yet! I really don't want another situation wherein everyone is going to jump down Silver's throat (*flashing back to Sonic dragging him by his quills through the town towards Antione in the hospital*) because of the narrative presenting him as an idiot who accuses others without proof and like a dumbass (even if Silver is right; I'm pretty sure it's already confirmed the blue cat dude is Mimic in disguise. I'm not sure if IDW Sonic the comic can be trusted for the others to put a genuine apology towards Silver when this comes to light.). It honestly makes me kind of sad that Silver might get reduced to just being The Dumb Overeager Guy Being Rude To Others And Who Everyone Thinks Is Stupid in this way, not to mention all the weirdness of him getting in the way of the Diamond Cutters and being an overeager fanboy despite having been perfectly able to work together with Whisper at the end of the Metal Virus arc (and, you know, being an immensely powerful psychic and stuff). The comic already went this route in issue 8, why are they dragging it up again despite having shown things that can definitely be interpreted as the contrary in issues 26 and 28?

Just something that has been on my mind ever since I read those solicits, and wanted to get off my chest😅

Stuck in the past with no clear directive, Silver decides to spend some time with the Diamond Cutters and their new member. But he’s too busy being star-struck over Whisper to notice that he’s interrupting their training! Elsewhere, Sonic takes Blaze sightseeing so she can enjoy her vacation.

This issue is all about Silver the Hedgehog! First, he's incredibly suspicious of the Diamond Cutters' new member and he jumps to a conclusion that leads him to some hasty accusations. Awkwardness ensues. Then, Blaze comforts Silver as they bond over being away from home and in Sonic's world.

I'm honestly surprised that they even remembered that Silver is a Whisper fanboy. Remember when people shipped Silvisper and Blazangle, before Whispangle fused together? Good times lol

Yeah, this plot is going to be cringe in the real sense of the word. I hate when the story is about characters making fool of themselves, and Silver is about to be a uwu cute but annoying idiot in #63, and a Mr. Conspiracy Theory (who was actually right all along) in #64? Miss me with that.

Remember when Silver kicked the entirety of Sonic's ass and came close to murder him in cold blood? I do. Silver is not an edgy murder machine and sure I can believe he's happier now, but come on, do something more with him than turn him into the cute child of the group!

Also didn't Silver already have a conversation about being stuck in the past in the 2022 annual, with Espio? A much more interesting interaction since the two have only been paired together in Rivals 2 of all things? Ah, but then again, if they're rehashing Archie, sure why not :V yay can't wait to see Sonic being an utter jerkass to Silver <3

And why oh why did you have to remind me of how awful Tangle's apology to Whisper was 😭 I hate that scene so much

... I hope they'll show Sonic and Blaze having fun on Frog Forest. I love Frog Forest 🥺 please just have two characters having fun on their own

[spookysushi]

So...I got tickled ☺️😅

And omg it was SO MUCH FUN 😍 If you're anything like I was before 2 days ago, the idea of actually having a session is maybe a little terrifying. But if you dream about tickling/being tickled by somebody IRL this is your sign to take that leap and go do it! It's so fulfilling and with the right person you will have such a good time ❤

I might do another post breaking down precisely where I'm ticklish/what tickles the most 🤭 (edit: linked here) but for now, here's some thoughts I have on the session, and tickling in general:

It makes such a difference to be fully comfortable and friendly with your session partner, BOTH AS A LEE AND A LER. I got pretty lucky in this regard, as I hadn't actually met my partner in person until that day, but he walked me back from the station and he was super kind and funny 😅 and really considerate, too, of not pushing me into anything I was uncomfortable with. Obviously I was still super nervous about being tickled but 5 seconds in and all those nerves were gone 😊 I didn't feel awkward making dumb noises and giggling like crazy in front of him, nor embarrassed to tickle him back or tease him about his sweet spots. If I ever have a session with somebody new to tickling, I hope I can make them as comfortable as he made me.

Following on from that...I didn't hate being tickled by a guy! Actually it was really fun, especially because of the above point, but I was really worried I'd find it awkward or just wouldn't enjoy it. But we both had a great time ☺️ I don't really feel like it influenced my sexuality, as we didn't exactly get very intimate (that'd be quite a lot for a first session) but 10/10 would tickle/get tickled by a guy again.

Getting tickled like that...made me feel quite a bit more positive about myself and my body 😅 I'm not exactly a 10, but watching a ler delight in tickling me until I was red-faced and giggling, feeling him trace my body and find the spots that make me go wide-eyed, was actually very securing. Similarly, tickling him right back made me feel a lot more comfortable about my reactions and laughter too. Might be cringe, but I left the session feeling pretty great 😁

Holy hell I am so much more of a ler now 😁 While I'd enjoyed the idea of tickling a lee before that day, it was more from an angle of giving pleasure to my lee, knowing how enjoyable being tickled half to death is. But this time? I felt good tickling my partner because I was actually loving it myself 😁 it's so much fun to have that power over somebody so ticklish, to gentle graze the sweet spots that make them scream, to explore every inch of soft, smooth skin and tease them about how giggly they're getting. Man I can't wait to get my hands on a willing lee again 😁

On the flipside...eeeek I'm so ticklish 😆 Thankfully there was never a time I had to safeword (that shouldn't be the aim of a session unless agreed imo) but it did NOT take much to turn me into a mess of giggles 🤭😅 I knew I was ticklish but scrolling through tumblr and seeing tickling posts is so much worse now I can imagine those sensations on my body. Apparently I was much more ticklish than my ler was expecting too AND IF THAT'S NOT FLUSTERING I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS

Tickling is a WORKOUT and a half 😆😅 at least if you're a squirmer like me, and probably even without it. After the session my tummy ached so much. It was a good ache and I had a huge smile on my face, but I was pretty drained. A good friend recommended I stretch beforehand and I'd highly recommend it.

[juniperhillpatient]

Alright, so I'm done with 'That 90's Show' season 1. Here are a few takeaways from someone who LOVED the original show:

Bad parts:

The theme song is really annoying & it just bugs me as someone who has spent a somewhat insane amount of time watching & re-watching the original & singing along. This probably won't bother most people but it's irritating to me

Ozzie as a character is borderline offensive to me. I'm not sure that I'd go so far as to say his characterization is racist or homophobic EXACTLY but...there's something uncomfortable about it. He's literally just a sassy quip machine awkward ham-fisted joke deliverer & he makes me cringe. If there's a second season I really hope they delve into him just a little more since he is part of the main group.

It's annoying & weird that Laurie & Hyde are both absent without reference. I can understand not wanting to replace actors who can't be there, but these were 2 important characters to the group & they could've very easily given us a throwaway comment about where they were. It's just....bad writing, & incredibly noticeable & uncomfortable.

Good parts:

Let's just get this one out there first - every single OG cameo had me cheering. Yes, I claim to hate reboots & remakes & I scream about letting things end & I stand by that but if they're going to do it, I want it done well damn it & this show did in my opinion. I just absolutely loved every single appearance from the original cast members.

I love Jackie & Michale as the couple in a perpetual cycle of getting divorced & back together. I loved Fez as a hair salon owner living his best life. Donn & Eric were iconic. I cheered for Leo's hilarious & fun cameos & same with Fenton's. They did justice to my faves who appeared.

The new characters are interesting & fun for the most part. I like that they reference the original characters without being stand-ins. These characters have their own stuff going on & their conflicts are funny & entertaining. It took a while to get me truly invested but I was always entertained. This show has the same funny charm & humor as the original. The chemistry between the main cast & the humor works really well.

KITTY & RED!!!!!!!! This one I'm not even sure if it needs to be explained but god...I just fucking love Kitty & Red Forman so much & seeing them with a house full of teens being their awesome selves filled me with joy. I just fucking love them.

Not a good part or a bad part but something I'm speculating about:

I'm fine with the little last minute Jay Nate Leia Nicky triangle / square whatever & the canon romance drama. It feels similar to early seasons 'That 70's Show' conflicts & I'm certainly entertained. And I like Jay. He's fun & cute & he's totally SUCH a Kelso. But.....

I SWEAR I almost thought there was going to be something canon between Leia & Gwen SEVERAL times. I mean, sure, me shipping the two girls? Yeah, that's typical but it almost felt like there might be something canon there. Their entire dynamic is SO reminiscent of Eric & Donna. The dork who lives next door to the cool girl? The moments on the hood of the Vista Cruiser? Sneaking through windows? I'm not delusional am I like PLEASE tell me y'all saw it too? Also, there's a textual (not even subtextual!) love triangle between Gwen, Jay, & Leia! Leia literally promises them both her time & does the whole sitcom double-booking her afternoon thing. She talks about loving them both! What??? Like....I don't know if I'm crazy but it REALLY feels like the show might just be going somewhere with this if it gets renewed.

Alright, that's all I have for this post! Those are my main reactions to this show.

[stregoniconiconii]

For the friendship ask thing: stobin with the numbers of 6, 9, and 13

6. A scene with them that I want to rewrite/change in some way

okay not gonna include volume 2 bc. my ass still hasn't watched it lmao I thinkkkkk honestly you know that scene in s3 when Steve and robin have just fallen over while tied together and robin goes on a monologue about how much Steve sucked in high school? im sure it’s super important for her journey and everything but yeah my Steve girl tendencies reveal themselves bc. my mans Just got tortured and robin is like ur an asshole bc u didn't know I existed </3 again I think it’s a good scene regardless and it opens up a lot of stuff like putting down robin’s relationship with acceptance and establishes her Steve obsession <3 and stuff but im like. kicking my good friend Steve while he’s down (as in literally in the aftermath of torture) I dont blame robin for this tho I think I mostly just want a scene where Steve isn’t like constantly being reminded of how much he sucked </3

9. Would I change anything about their friendship?

nothing they are perfect <3 altho maybe in canon they need to like. stop lowkey being enablers for cheating lmaoo still wild to me that robin wasn’t like bestie. what is happening here with this Nancy thing? bc dudeeee cheating is just too cringe. I blame this mostly on the duffers tho. halfway convinced the upside down spores made them insane (dustin is just like that tho)

13. What I think would have happened if they never met 

I made myself sad for a second imagining Steve facing down the Russians alone but then remembered that they probably wouldn’t have figured out the Russian code without robin so that is one less concussion for Steve!!! (jk he probably gets one anyway when they fight the mind flayer bc duh lmao) other plot stuff hmmmmmm they probably wouldn't have found Eddie so quickly in s4 bc the only reason Steve got the family video job was bc of robin convincing Keith/Kevin (can't remember his name lol) and dustin and max wouldn’t have gone there if Steve wasn’t there soooo besides that I think. hmm Steve would still be feeling friendless..he got in good with the ladies partially bc of robin’s advice so he would be super bitchless....robin would still only be out to herself and no one else....I think they would just be lonely :(( like they’d be technically fine, life would move them along, but I think the type of friendship they have would remain elusive to them..like one of robin’s biggest struggles in rebel robin is finding a friend that is really ride or die and like. she’ll definitely make friends that are important once she goes off to college and she becomes more and more herself but it’s also. they’ll never fulfil the maybe a little childish dream of friendship where they stick with you through thick and thin, understand you completely mindmeld sort of stuff :(( and Steve wouldn’t find his calling of ultimate lesbian supporter until later in life (it’s his destiny so it’ll still happen tho) anyway so yeah. technically fine but still a part of them longing for the true friendship that they have <3

[catgirl-catboy]

It is a mighty need that you talk abt ur OC with plot armour and does not want it. PLEASE

Its a Danganronpa OC, hence the comments about him being cringe (affectionate). (He uses he/she pronouns to keep with the duality theme. Also projection. I only used he/him to not confuse you with another OC that uses she/her that I also mention.)

So he's kind of mentally ill, and the only thing in his life he thinks has value is his childhood best friend, who is completely unaware of this. (conflict avoidant vs sees what she wants to see)

Throughout the entirety of the killing game, he will actively try to talk the group out of making stupid decisions. He will give up his food for his friend without her knowing. He will lie to the group about the motive to prevent people from going murderous. (he thinks every decision he would not make is stupid, and mental health makes his judgement questionable at best)

And because of these decisions, his friend decides he's a heartless asshole (still unaware of his motives) and platonically breaks up with him.

and then a murder happens like 2 seconds later, and she's like 300% certain he did it due to the timing. once they eventually catch the real killer, they spend a long ass time avoiding each other. Eventually, the ex-bestie has a mental breakdown and decides she needs to get out of here at any cost. But she can't bring herself to hurt any of the other friend's shes made while he was going through his angst spiral.

so she comes to him for advice, because she thinks he'll call her an asshole and tell her to snap out of it.

He agrees to help her commit murder, even if the class trial ruleset makes it so that if she succeeds, he dies.

She's confused and horrified that her best friend secretly had no morals throughout the years they've known each other. She's about to talk about it, but another classmate followed her and overheard everything.

In the heat of the moment, she commits murder. He tells her to go back to the group, so she'll have an alibi for this.

The end result of his interference is horrifying even for the standards of my killing game.

(he managed to stop the bleeding, just so the other guy would die slower, and so that she'd have an alibi for the time of death. Then once he's dead, he decapitates and repeatedly stabs the corpse to obscure the fatal wound.)

Eventually, the best friend decides she can't kill all of her classmates so she can live, and offers herself up to be killed by Monokuma.

He is not having this, and actively argues that she's wrong. "you don't need to take the fall for me. Its alright!" and then "bitch. I killed him after you left. I played you, and you only think you did it."

It doesn't work. She dies, and in her last moments she orders him to take care of the group. (before this Monokuma tells her about his mental health issues while he's actively begging Monokuma to not. Communication issues solved by murderous bear.)

He's understandably very fucking upset, but he can't do anything reckless, he has responsibilities now.

[firespirited]

Managed to list the monster high stock and dolls. I'd been putting it off in the distant hope that i'd show improvement enough to warrant waiting. It's stupid I have plenty of projects kept and there will always be gunky bundles. Still my brain bought this and that for a reason and I had often had something specific planned, so a sense of, not quite obligation but when each doll head was in hand there were moments of "well this one only would require an hour or two to complete the vision" and "that one's so rare I'll never see that again while I have the right supplies".

Bratz spare clothes and project dolls tomorrow. Kiwi too. Not sure whether to split Barbie and other 1/6 from 1/7th Licca and Anthro. I have to keep the momentum and remember the relief. It's so SILLY having to go through the same mental blocks every time. I post in the hopes it'll make me cringe someday and maybe learn something.

If you're in the EU, you can still get the whole lot for $100 shipped (if it's not western eu it might be a bit more shipping) massive bargain for you and no ebay hassle for me.

Then new shelves/glass cupboards for the Rainbow High and possibly a few anthro hybrids. Now that the collection has more monsters and novis, they won't be out of place.

There's been an odd sense of loss of identity with not being able to customize but it's so much easier seeing how many people know how to reroot now and also letting myself enjoy being a collector (occasional restyler!) who doesn't have to do anything spectacular to enjoy a doll.

January pushed me out of my habits to learn some minor bead embroidery skills and I did some fun upcycling with clear plastic, silica beads and plastic ab rhinestones. It was a fun exercise in using unusual materials and reminded me that I love a challenge and the odd far more than a full pallette of high quality hair colours.

I have not made any progress on the recoding of the tutorials. I might be motivated if there's a section on the new doll collector site. Hard to get hyped/panicked enough: Tumblr's not ideal for the search engines but at least it's stable for now and people can ask questions directly on posts, spam's minimal, you build a rapport with other doll folks.

I do my walks, my exercises, and just have to hope that it's doing something. I can't build muscle like a normal person just have to measure in how many seconds before collapse or full body trembles. Patience is a virtue I've never had. The high pain shock collar built into my neck with a instant to 48h delay is having to do the work of keeping me on track lol.

On an unrelated tangeant, i really hope AI hype craps out soon. I hated the new 'predictive/most searched' google update, it basically broke the internet for me to not get the most accurate results for my searches.

I have zero interest in having a bot tell me what I really want to hear from some random blogger who happens to be into that subject or who sees a link between that subject and another. That's what this is for, to hear from other people not have their thoughts filtered through algorithms to give me an all sides version of the story. I don't want the review that's a condensed consensus matching the 80% of 2 star reviews I want to hear from the three dweebs who adore this film for entirely different reasons (the train schedule and effects are totally correct and it's the one vhs they used to watch with the neighbour and quote it as in jokes, it's also got great practical effects and it was filmed in a place that is now knocked down but used to be their workplace.) People make the internet interesting. I don't want the information without the superfluous personal ramblings attached. Give me the anecdote with the recipe, it's far less intrusive than the five adverts and I'll remember the recipe as the one that he found in a book about Greece and he's never been but he dreams about it sometimes.

[medusozoic]

*Sees constant warrior nun gifs/posts/begs to watch the show* …hmm, mayhaps this needs to be watched??? Possibly? Probably…. I can feel myself becoming convinced lol

YES it does need to be watched!!

Short convincing::

It has a great wlw pairing. As I'm sure you've noticed. Chemistry and buildup is amazing. Next up it has. So. Many. Hot. People. Also the characters are so goooood. And the show itself looks so beautiful!! Like the sets and the lighting and the effects. Plot is also pretty solid, BUT GET THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF SEASON 1 FIRST. it gets better I promise.

(also I'm pretty sure you'd know this, but it did get cancelled, just saving you for potential disappointment)

LONG encouragement:

So. Numbered list time

1. Starting off with what tumblr is most obsessed with, avatrice. I don't even know how to describe how much I love their relationship. It was something that was very clear to me the second I started watching the show, and in a way that was so obvious it was like. They gotta end up together. Or it just doesn't make sense. The chemistry between the actresses is AMAZING and it makes so many scenes that much more intimate. Their characters and journey makes sense, nothing seems rushed and it's all just very sweet, intimate, caring, at times angsty, gentle and full of sparks

2. The actors. I really like that the show uses almost completely unknown actors, most of them only being known in their home country or not having landed big jobs before warrior nun. It's a diverse cast reflecting different parts of Europe and beyond. The acting itself is really good and the way the actors interact with the fandom really adds to the experience

3. The LOCATIONS. It's filmed in Spain, which makes for some beautiful locations. I really love these places and they add so much character and makes me feel like I'm traveling with them

4. The OTHER characters. So. In many shows with wlw pairings I tend to look at them for my favorite characters. NOT WITH THIS ONE. The other characters are just really amazing as well (especially my personal fav Camila <33) and I feel like tumblr tends to gloss over that. This show would still be SO good even without avatrice which is what makes it one of my favorite shows overall. The characters feel well rounded and each have their own journeys to go through. There's also so many different deep and fulfilling relationships that aren't romantic between them, which I love to see in a show. and also uhm. They happen to be very hot. Which certainly enhances the experience

5. The plot. Personally I'm not all that into religious stories, so can't say much on that. Some people really love that aspect (and yes, it's a large aspect of the show. I mean it's called warrior nun) but for me it doesn't add that much. However it's still a really cool show with amazing fantasy/sci-fi elements and REALLY cool fight scenes (some of the best I've ever seen if I dare say so). If you're afraid the religious aspect will be too much, don't. I'm an atheist with 0 interest in religion and sometimes I might cringe at some of the lines but it isn't a show preaching about how amazing god is or anything. It actually has some really interesting takes in religion itself

6. The costume design. Small one that's more specific to me, because I really like costume design and I love how they did the armor and stuff in the show

7. Kristina Tonteri Young. Should be enough reason to watch she's easily my favorite celebrity

8. So about season 1. It has a bit of a rough starts that some people still enjoyed, and some really didn't. I personally wasn't sold on the show at first, but it quickly got better. Right now I actually like rewatching early episodes to see how the characters developed. In my opinion season 2 is near perfection, and one of my favourite pieces of media EVER. Which says something because before season 2 I was still kind of embarrassed to tell people I watched a show called 'warrior nun' and season 2 actually made me get over that which is. Kind of impressive

9. Even my PARENTS liked it. Put it on when I was there and they normally shut everything off within seconds BUT THIS THEY ACTUALLY GOT INTERESTED IN

10. Boobs. Won't elaborate

11. I feel like I'm forgetting a lot. Anyways if you've read this far congrats!! It's a really really good show and I couldn't recommend it enough

[saikenakoego]

Okay, lets do this

More cringe on the way

These guys are all from different canons of mine, each with their own little story titles. I will write them some day I swear.

For simplicity, I'll organize them here.

Yore & Lara: Yore, Lara.

Gleipnir: Wunjo.

Burn, My Crimson: Lieben, Willow, Manamea

OCTOBER 32ND: Sammy, Silver, Johnny

1. Which one of your OC's do you most often imagine sick? In what ways?

A: I guess it depends on what you mean by sick.

Willow here was born with a degenerative genetic disease that makes his teeth deformed, his pupils sharp and took away his vocal chords, so really, he could be considered sick practically all the time.

But other than that, none in particular I figure.

2. Which of them do you imagine injured in other ways?

A: Ooh boy. It really comes down to a competition between

↘️↘️↘️↘️↘️ These two ↙️↙️↙️↙️↙️

Sammy, the first one, has basically zero sense of self preservation. And Yore, the younger one, lives in a place where she's basically considered the anti-christ.

Naturally, both of them get injured quite often. But really, Sammy edges out on the account that she's a vampire, so she can essentially handle more punishment. She'll just regenerate it anyway.

Though to be fair, Yore's is much, much more disturbing. Sometimes I feel like apologizing to her for the kind of life I gave her.

3. Who do you put through most emotional turmoil?

A: For the first time, Sammy is the least likely answer. Good for her and her vampire genes that make her unable to feel anything.

Its hard to choose. Basically all of them go through their own brand of personal turmoil.

But if I had to choose... Probably Yore again? Poor girl has it rough.

4. Which OC has been tortured? Through what means?

A: Sammy gets the worst of it, at least physically, even if she can't feel pain nor fear. I don't wanna go too much into detail about it, but one of the mildest instances was having her head blown off with her best friend's revolver.

5. Which of them has the worst luck?

A: Yore and its not even close.

Born looking exactly as society's stereotype of what the devil looks like? Check.

To a bunch of individuals considered witches and who are persecuted? Check.

Abandoned at birth? Check.

Being raised by a complete stranger? Check.

Growing up as a doormat due to her adoptive grandma's stigmas, insecurities and guilt? Check.

Having said adoptive grandmother gouge out her eyes to give her any semblance of survival chance? Check.

Being able to hear the souls of other living beings all the time without stopping? Check.

Living as a blind person in a place full of bottomless pits that's also eternally frozen? Check.

All of the above plus having her only semblance of a family mysteriously disappear and having to go on a journey to find the only person in the world who would take her in and care for her? Make that a check.

I could go on and on, but that would make this too long. But at least, she has Lara.

6. Who goes through the most relationship conflicts?

A: Lieben, with Silver being a close second. The only reason why Silver gets left behind is because most of his issues are one-sided.

But Lieben.

Clueless. Bloated ego, low confidence. Lack of social skills. Dislike of change. Sensitive yet apathetic. A prodigy, yet very lazy. Hedonistic. Good natured but egocentric. A recipe for disaster. Eventual girlfailure.

7. Who'd you put into most into stressful situations or other drama?

A: A classic.

8. Who ends up in survival situations the most? How do they fair in them?

A: All of them kinda do. But if I were to categorize them, it would be something like this;

Last place, Yore and Lara. Sure, Yore gets abused a lot, but not usually to a lethal degree. Once Lara comes into play, she becomes the safest girl in the entire world.

Third place, probably Wunjo. She travels in the wilderness a lot, but due to the nature of her magic, survival's never really an issue. If anything, she's the threat.

The face of a girl touched by the arcane as she burns you with eternal fire because you didn't give her your book.

Second place goes to Lieben and her party. They're swords-for-hire, so they tend to run into monsters and bandits often. Their world's power level, if you can call it that, is probably the most overblown out of all my stories, so they tend to handle it pretty well most of the time.

Magic systems sure are a blessing.

And first place goes to the October 32nd crew. Sammy, Johnny and Silver. Their world is a little more realistic than the rest, so they tend to face more lethal threats. That would make Johnny (middle) the ultimate winner, seeing as he's pretty much a thin, human boy whose only power is thrombocytopenia.

Me and the boys looking for

Demons

9. Has any of them had to be saved from the brink of death? Were there any consequences after?

A: Another tie between Sammy and Yore.

Despite being a vampire, Sammy almost died after losing most of her blood. The fact that she was purposely starving herself did not help. But there were no repercussions for her afterwards. Regeneration factors sure are a blessing in disguise.

In her case, Yore almost got stoned to death by two kids literally on the first day of her journey. A wandering caravan found her bleeding out with a serious concussion. Surprisingly, they took care of and looked after her. After a week, she woke up. The only consequence was that she couldn't remember what happened, and her wound took a long time to heal. Unconscious repression of memories is also a blessing in disguise.

10. Has any of them had to be revived/brought back to life? How did this affect them?

A: So, long story short - Lieben has essentially All The Powers. But this comes at the price of her soul being practically scattered across the entirety of existence. Any universe, any multiverse, any dimension and reality, Lieben's soul is somehow tied to it.

This makes it so she's essentially connected to EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ANYWHERE ANY TIME ALL AT ONCE. And given that existence in her story is infinite (infinite number of dimensions, infinite realities, infinite universes, infinite timelines, all of which are infinite in size), she's technically capable of anything.

But she's all of this unknowingly and unwillingly. And these higher states of being are basically too much for her brain and body to handle, leading to a disconnection between her body, mind and soul that she experiences as dissociation.

Think of it as her blanking out, forgetting things, becoming hyperaware of her existence, funky dreams, etc. Her mortal mind is unable to comprehend it.

With all of this in mind, she once faced against what's essentially a demigod with her weak, mortal body, mortal mind, and just a shard of her soul.

Of course, she got whooped, and died in the process. But given as her life is tied to existence itself, her soul manifested as a skeleton covered in flames, blasted the evil demigod with a single ember containing the energy of a star, and then regenerated without remembering a thing.

Afterwards, all she felt was horror at the realization of her overkill and confusion over her own identity, and whether or not the voices she hears during her dissociative episodes are just hallucinations, or maybe something else.

In my own head, whenever she dies physically she'll just regenerate, as the universe literally refuses to let her die. And if she's erased, she'll simply come back in another universe, another timeline, another dimension, etc. And if the sheer concept of her is erased, she'll return in the past, in the memories of her enemies or friends. And even if the entire concept of information is destroyed, if the universe becomes imaginary, nonexistant, she'll eventually resurface once more. Because the nature of her infinity makes it so all that was has always been, what isn't will be and has been, and what is will eventually cease to be.

Did I also mention how she's got a soul contract with a high demon that buffs basically everything about her?

Basically she's a cosmic horror. A blessing, or a curse.

11. Who is afraid the most? How does this affect them?

A: Willow. He's pretty skittish. But who isn't at one point in their life? When it counts, he has the courage to come through, and that's what matters.

12. What kind of health repercussions have they experienced through intense stress? How do they manage them?

A: The ones with the most health issues would be Willow and Johnny.

Willow tends to suffer from anxiety a lot, while Johnny suffers often from anemia under extreme stress. Both of them just kinda hope for the best when it happens, but Johnny is always prepared with bandaged and other first-aid tools.

13. Who cries the most often? What are the usual causes?

A: Yore's the biggest crybaby. She's too kind and empathetic, so naturally, she's also quite sensitive.

Usually, her tears come at the pain or suffering of someone else, rather than her own. Despite being a doormat, she's also the biggest sweetheart.

14. How do your OC's cope?

A: List time

Lieben - Escapism. Her entire character more or less.

Willow - Seeking comfort from others. He's the second biggest crybaby behind Yore. Very touch-starved.

Manamea - Self reflection and physical exercise.

Yore - Crying. And hugging. Mostly Lara.

Lara - Physical violence. Yore has to remind her to keep it to inanimate objects. Almost killed a baby once.

Wunjo - She's always on cloud 9. But if she had to cope, it would probably be through understanding. She's a very logical person.

Sammy - Vengeance. Given as how rage is the only emotion she can feel anymore, its not like she has any other option.

Johnny - Logic. Very similar to Wunjo in that regard, but a lot more cold and rigid.

Silver - Denial. He's kind of bullheaded.

15. To cap off, what kind of hurt/comfort scenarios do you put your OC's in?

A: Lieben, Willow and Manamea - Friendship and fellowship. Their dynamic is very much that of a team made up of best friends that sometime misunderstand and hurt each other, but love each other nonetheless.

Yore & Lara - Understanding and affection. Despite them being quite literally polar opposites, they depend on each other a lot and consider themselves partners. Maybe even for life...?

Wunjo - Family and self-love. Understanding what it means to be human and love someone else.

Johnny, Sammy, Silver - Coming of age and romance. The usual teen stuff, but with paranormal elements involved. Growing and understanding each other, while trying to figure out yourself in the process.

BONUS:

VERY rough sketches of Lieben's many designs over the years.

Torturing your ocs ask game :)

(Delightful, I know. But we all do it sometimes)

1. Which of your ocs do you most often imagine sick? In what ways?

2. Which of them do you most imagine injured in other ways?

3. Who do you put through the most emotional turmoil?

4. Which oc has been tortured? Through what means?

5. Which of them has the worst luck?

6. Who goes through the most relationship conflicts? (applies to any relationships)

7. Who do you put most into stressful situations or other drama?

8. Who ends up in survival situations the most? How do they fair in them?

9. Has any of them had to be saved from the brink of death? Were there any consequences after?

10. Has any of them had to be revived / brought back to life? How did this affect them?

11. Who is afraid the most? How does this effect them?

12. What kind of health repercussions has your oc experienced through intense stress? How do they manage them?

13. Who cries the most often? What are the usual causes?

14. How does your oc cope?

15. To cap off what kind of hurt/comfort scenarios do you put your oc in?

This can be about canon story events or simply rotating scenarios for fun!

[garrettwrites]

Hi, how's it going? Anything new and exciting in your life?

I see you're obsessed with vampires, who are your favourites? 👀

Sorry for the 3day delay I had to think on this. Picking favourites is hard. Reminder that I welcome all sorts of asks! Especially vampire and Worldbuilding ones!

Life's hard, gotta study the hell out of roman fish productions while simultaneously making art for social media and my portfolio, but what's life without a little stress.

Onto your question (which I ended up rambling on, sorry), lore wise I have two absolute favourite pieces of vampire media:

VtM: Bloodlines (2004 game). My love. I like how they write vampires and set their powers, clan divisions and hierarchies. The aesthetic of the game is also early 2000s late 90s, which is nostalgic. It's more fantastical than straight forward, a vampire DnD in fact, so it offers a lot of liberty and flexibility for whatever story you want to tell. It also works well as inspiration for original works, since the more you look into it the more you can pick what to use for your own vampire stories.

Second one is the netflix series Vampires (2020). It's french. It is an... incredibly fresh take on vampires. The series unfortunately only has one season with six episodes. It follows the life of this poor vampire family, but the twist is that vampirism is biological and vampires are born as such, and can die of old age (they just age much slower). Their weaknesses, their biology, their social structures and the way the series explores them through the eyes of a teenage girl slowly coming into her vampire disease (because it is kind of an illness), the way the series IS NOT AFRAID of pushing forward extremely embarrassing moments (such as the girl, still unable to control herself, biting the boy she loves IN CLASS and being viewed as a weirdo for it - refreshing when many writers are afraid of such realistic moments due to how cringe they may come across as for general audiences.... It's pretty solid. The scenes with the girl's mother walking into the sun covered in scarves and pieces of cloth is also really good, more series should do that - makes sense that a vampire would still go outside during the day, they'd just need to look absolutely out of place while doing it. Which they should. Vampires don't belong in daylight.

Honorable mention: Interview with the Vampire. Of course. Especially the new TV series. I love the psychological exploration of vampirism in there. However, I think the series is good because of the characters themselves rather than the blood sucking of it all. Vampire wise I don't care much for the lore, it is there to solidify the fact they're all monsters.

Extra 2: Unironically? I know this might sound cringe, but if you ignore the main storyline and exclusively look at the lore... Vampire Diaries is kinda good. The writers clearly did their research and included ideas from all over the world in their social structures, vampiric powers, etc. One of my favourite aspects is how they utilise the concept of "vampries can't enter a house without consent" to its absolute fullest. There's even a character who is turned into a vampire, and gets locked out of his own home because he lives alone and no one is in there to allow him in. Hilarious.

CHARACTER WISE...

Lestat is definitely one of my all time favourites. He symbolizes what a vampire should be for me, but is still multi faceted enough to be a person rather than a caricature.

Olrox from Castlevania: Nocturne (animated series). I miss drawing him. I wrote two whole ass fanfics about him, but they were romantic rather than focused exclusively on him.... A shame. I think he's pretty interesting. Depending on where Nocturne goes, he might surpass Lestat in the future. He's charming, but dangerous. Tragic yet with a chance of rising above the rubble. He's also native american, and possibly a god - all really fresh concepts. I really love Olrox. Top tier vampire dude, sorry Alucard but you're just not as cool.

Talking about Castlevania... Carmilla. She's not even that original as a character, but she's what people nowadays call a "Girlboss" except she's actually well written. You feel for her. You love her. You hate her. And she's a vampire that knows she's a monster and wants to keep being one. None of that "oh naur I'm immortal but must... commit the sin of drinking blood" bullshit. She, much like Olrox, steals every scene she's in.

Jonathan Reid from Vampyr (2018 game). A very... text intensive game. But I like reading, so I don't mind. He's a doctor, and was a soldier during WW1. He's the main character of the game and you can take his path in multiple directions. He's a favourite of mine because I like the concept of a doctor vampire, plus I genuinely love Vampyr.

The cast of The Lost Boys. No explanation needed,

Least favourite vampire: Astarion because 1) he took over my dash, can't talk about vampires anymore without that man being there and 2) people can't tag his fucking name properly and I'm over here trying to find minotaur content (AstErion) and I see that kind of muscular kinda lean white haired small fangs elf taking over the tags. Please people. Learn how to tag.

[daydreamer12216]

Shining Veins (Chapter 2)Part3

"Don't try to do that again". He says as the worker hands him the container of the food and he shoves it my hand. His harsh voice breaks my focus as I close my eyes for a second and shake my head. I release a breath I didn’t know I was holding and I look up and around the shops to the customers surrounding us.

I feel their stares and notice the worker's raised eyebrows. I could practically hear their thoughts. Why is such an important guard being nice to a clearly lower-class member of the society? I could feel the anger boiling in me.

Before I could even act on it, he suddenly grabs my arm harshly, breaking me out of my trance of thoughts and pulling me uncomfortably close. His nails dig into my skin as I feel his breath against my face making me cringe. I widen my eyes as a pair of blue eyes glare harshly into mine. The same anger and hatred… All I could do was tighten my grip around the container, wishing I could smash it into his face. I had to keep my facial expression neutral. Who knew what could set him off? I was already in trouble.

"I'm serious. Don't ever do it again". He finally lets go and bumps his shoulder roughly against mine as he walks away past me making me stumble back.

"It's not like I have a choice". I mutter my voice drowning through the crowd. I rub at the marks he left on my arm, huffing before looking up to realize everyone had paused to see the interaction.

“What the hell are you all looking at?” I snap at the nearby people. Just like that, they all go back to their business as if nothing happened.

My eyes rise lazily to the sun. Shit… I'm almost late. I quickly rewrap the scarf around my head and rush on my way, getting elbowed by almost everyone I pass.

A smile finally makes its way on my face as I reach our secluded area. I grip the container against my stomach suddenly feeling much better about the handout. Our hideout was far away from the city filled with cottages, the only problem being the lack of food supply.

Our last shelter was a heaven provided with trees that suspiciously grew every day and a river.... That was until it was discovered, and they destroyed everything and caught most of us. I still have dreams of us still living there, quiet, secluded, and undisturbed

Arabelle and I were lucky to make it out alive out of that one. I sigh and slowly make my way down the steep bumpy rock, not caring about the small cuts they cause to my hands and legs. The only thing I cared about preserving at the moment was the small container of fresh heavenliness in my hands. I wipe the dirt on the rocks on my pants, sighing before quickly rushing to our cottage with the container. There’s no use trying to hide.

I pass a couple of our people through my way, but don’t say anything to anyone. They don’t bother either. Even though we are all going through the same thing, everybody keeps their eyes to the ground. Even if some of the people I know are from the past shelter, everyone keeps to themselves. After all, it is everyone for themselves in the end.

I pull away our "door" which is basically a curtain before mustering the biggest smile I could as I find her beautiful jade eyes looking happily at me. Arabelle runs to hug me, completely oblivious to the container I am holding, and I wrap my arm around her small body raising the container so she doesn’t hurt herself. It still feels hot somehow.

"Finally, you're here!” She says in her soft voice that I can't sleep without hearing every day.

"I am here. And I'm here with what I promised!” I lower the container for her to notice and her eyes immediately spark up with joy.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!!". She says, grabbing the container from my hands and quickly putting it on the tiny table we have beside a big water bottle that I raise my eyebrow questionably at.

"Oh! Ethan dropped by and got us water again. Isn't he so nice?” She says, grabbing and handing me the water to drink.

"I know they all talk about how we have to stick together because we’re all wanted, Belle. But please do not trust them so easily". I say, staring at the bottle as if I could tell if there's something wrong with it. I finally sigh before taking a small sip.

"But I think he likes you". Her voice becomes low as she smiles her innocent smile at me.

I roll my eyes before I motion for her to sit on the ground. Going to open the container, I stop when she holds my arm.

"You know... He did offer to heat up the food for us when he noticed me staring at the pile of firewood in his hands". She says, taking her hand off and twirling her fingers together, looking at the ground.

"No. Besides, the food’s still hot. Now eat.” I whisper softly to not hurt her feelings before I start to dig in and she does the same. Just as we're almost finished eating, we hear a voice outside.

"Excuse me?” I see a form of a tall guy outside the curtain.

I groan at the sudden pain in my whole body as I push it off the ground before pushing the curtain out of the way and rolling my eyes when I discover its Ethan standing outside. He greets me in a friendly smile while waving at Arabelle.

Ethan is a guy we met in the last shelter, one of the few survivors from there aside from us. No matter how harsh I treated this guy, he just never took the hint to leave us alone. He makes my blood boil every time he treats us like we’re some helpless tiny animals.

"Hello girls... Um, I just wanted to check in. You know... If you need anything". He says while rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. He tries to direct his smile at me, but hesitates and falters once he sees the look on my face.

"Fortunately, we don't need anything". I say, sighing and raising an eyebrow.

"Um, Ethan? We have a little food left if you want". Arabelle grabs the container, not so filled anymore, and offers it to him.

"Thank you!” He says, smiling and showing his dimples. He grabs the container so carelessly, it almost bothers me. I literally got in trouble for that.

He quickly leaves after that, making me turn around and glare at Arabelle. She just shrugs…She's always like this. We barely have anything for the two of us. I always have to remind her that nobody is our friend no matter how similar we are, but she never listens.