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misayani · 2 days ago

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DOPAMINE — G!P SQUID GAME WOMEN + COCKWARMING HCS

◜ featuring ... kang mi-na (player 196), no eul (guard 011), se-mi (player 380), jun-hee (player 222), young-mi (player 195), kang sae-byeok (s1 player 067)

𔗨 author's note — was supposed to write a cock analysis for each character but i got too shy and then realized that im kinda terrified of dicks. no hyun-ju :) [lowercase intended]

🧷 𝓜isa mentions — @joc3lynx @mymel1008 @justredsw @wlvlurvsfimmia @azansstuff @dvrk-hoon @yersang-dreams @keiradg01

warnings: nsfw [too many mentions of cocks (oops), public sex, exhibitionism, somno / free use, unnie + breeding kink, masochism + knives]

mi na —

𓏲๋࣭࣪˖ cockwarming shameless gf mi-na while on a karaoke date with your girl-friends ♡ [public sex]

- here's the thing, they all don't know you two are in a relationship

- so it's definitely not weird when mi-na asked you to sit on her lap because girl-friends do that !!!

- she's wearing a skirt, you're wearing a skirt .. need i say more?

- mi-na's always shifting you on her lap, solely to make you feel her boner underneath you

- she took the chance when your friends excused themselves to go to the bathroom

- she slipped her already hard cock from her panties and hiked your skirt up so that she can move your underwear aside and finally push it inside you

- "m-mina they'll come back soon—" "and? your skirt's covering everything so they won't see a thing."

- when your friends finally came back to the private karaoke room you all booked, party's resumed!

- little did they know, the both of you were having your own fun while they sing their hearts out

- luckily, the speaker was loud enough—too loud actually— to blur your moans out everytime mi-na bucks her hips up

- but other than that, she completely stays still the whole time, making you needy and desperate for any movement

- mi-na doesn't stop you though when you decide to take matters in your own hands and grind yourself on her dick

- she doesn't let you cum though, bc what's the point of cockwarming her then?

- you both stay like that for the entire evening—her whispering dirty things in your ear and then you squirming on top of her.

- "dirty girl. really? in front of our friends? fucking shameless."

- shs tells you that as if she wasn't the one who initiated the whole thing ???

- uh oh .. ! one of your friends notice the both of you quiet, not socializing and singing with the others.

- "babes! you both good?"

- mi-na smiles, "absolutely," then looks at your state—face flushed while looking down— "although, i think she's had too many drinks, but i'll handle her."

- your friend simply nods and joins back in on the others' conversation so... phew, close call.

- the karaoke date finally ends and then here's you, tired and worn out, even though you just sat down the whole day ??? just on mi-na's cock

"hey, party's over, you still okay?" mi-na whispers while snaking an arm around your waist. a few seconds goes by without any responses coming out from your lips and then she breaks into laughter, "what? have you gone dumb now? i haven't even done anything."

no eul —

𓏲๋࣭࣪˖ cockwarming strict older gf no-eul while she's working ♡

- she tells you to wait until she's done working but how could you?— not when you just woke up from a wet dream, seeing no-eul's side of the bed empty, and dragging yourself to her office just to find her working late, again.

- she ignores you while you're whining and sulking beside her chair.

- tenses up when she feels your hands gently massaging her shoulders, and then traveling them to her neck, before leaning down to leave wet kisses on the spot below her ear.

- "stop that." she warns, "why? is your work more important than me?"

- she clicks her tongue in annoyance, why do you have to be so stubborn right now? right when she's working?

- you frown when she still won't budge despite your efforts.

- "please, just need you inside me." you voice out, burying your face on the crook of her neck, before she lets out a sigh and then finally moves her chair back so that you'll have space when you straddle her !!

- a groan slips from her lips once she's finally inside you

"you're not allowed to move. let me finish my work first then i'll take care of you." she speaks, tone strict. you pouted, "huh? i thought you—" "you gonna stay quiet or should i make you leave?"

- and then she's got you totally quiet before you sighed in defeat and just rested your head on her shoulder, muttering a small 'i hate you' under your breath.

- you started wiggling yourself, resulting to no-eul's hand reaching for your throat and firmly gripping the sides, making you dizzy

"didn't i tell, you're not allowed to move?" "i was just trying to get comfortable.." "stop disturbing me if you want me to get this over with faster."

- "can i at least kiss you, eul? please?" and of course, how can she deny you more? restricting you from bouncing on her cock was enough—and so she says yes <3

- you start to leave sloppy kisses on one corner of her mouth, while her eyes stay still on the laptop screen behind you

- oops ... you 'accidentally' clench around her, which makes her stop typing

- "i'm sorry eul, i didn't mean to," you apologized softly against her mouth, letting out a yelp when she suddenly turns her attention to you and actually crashing her lips onto yours

- no-eul's not really great with controling herself .. so here's the both of you, making out, while her work was loooong forgotten

- no-eul's hand reaches for her laptop and closes it, before gripping your thighs from under and lifting you up

- she's such a loser. betraying her own words from earlier— "let me finish my work first then i'll take care of you."

- because she's literally pounding into you right here, right now now while standing, not even bothering to take you to your shared bedroom

"you're so damn stubborn" she chokes out while thrusting hard and deep inside you.

se mi —

𓏲๋࣭࣪˖ cockwarming bandmate se-mi while inside the music studio ♡ [exhibitionism]

- se-mi can be lewd sometimes ..

- because what do you mean you're sitting on her cock right now while you're both in the music studio WITH your bandmate, mi-na, inside the soundproof room ????

- your back is facing her as you adjust the controls in front of you while se-mi is literally dying behind you, face red, trying to lift her hips up into you

- but everytime she does, you're totally unbothered—not making even the slightest sound—because you're too focused on what you're doing

"please can we just record the fucking song tomorrow? i can't handle this anymore" "shut up, i can't focus."

- she gets whiney, but she's kinda enjoying this.

- when mi-na's finally done recording her part, she exits the soundproof room and her gaze immediately lands on the both of you—you on se-mi's lap while she's red as fuck underneath you—and then makes a disgusted face, "ew"

- you guys really need to get a room because wtf

- and then thanos walks inside the studio, not even sparing the three of you a glance as he walks straight inside the soundproof room.

"hey! these two are fucking while we're recording!" mi-na complains, though thanos was already inside the soundproof room, unable to hear a word she's saying.

- you just laugh, sending vibrations through se-mi's cock, making her grip onto your thighs tightly, "babe, he doesn't give two fucks."

- se-mi just hides her face on your neck, slightly biting it, "gonna fucking kill me, you know?"

- a playful smirk tugs on the corners of your lips, savoring the moment, "i know." while purposely grinding down on her length

"baby please, can we go now? let's just have nam-gyu do all this work." se-mi sulks, her right hand under the skirt you're wearing while she rubs your clit. you sighed, "min-su still needs to record his part." cocking your head to the side towards where min-su was sitting down, his palms covering his eyes. poor min-su.

jun hee —

𓏲๋࣭࣪˖ cockwarming girlfriend jun-hee while she's asleep ♡ [somnophilia / free use]

- to get things straight, the both of you had numerous conversations about this before— both parties consenting and agreeing to free use in the relationship.

- and here is one of the moments where the agreement is applied:

waking up from a wet dream, you gently flutter your eyes open before stretching your arms over your head. and then, due to the dream, there's that ache in the space between your legs, your throbbing core clenching around nothing. this early? you huff, your eyes finding their way onto your girlfriend's sleeping figure beside you.

- slowly grinning to yourself, you move closer, before you start hiking her nightgown up and then pulling her underwear down

she shifts a bit, her face scrunching, before she falls back still again. you carefully slide your own panties down until they reached your toes.

- once they were finally off, you straddled her with no hesitation, slowly sinking your soaking cunt onto her soft length before resting your body on top of hers, sighing in satisfaction

- jun-hee is a deep sleeper, so she didn't react at all, not even a single twitch, no anything.

- and you were still tired yourself, even though you were horny as hell, so it did not take long for you to fall back to sleep

- hugging her tightly, your eyes slowly closes. her being warm inside you helping you fall asleep better

you wake up an hour and a half later, moans involuntarily slipping from your lips as you pry your eyes open. you realized you're laying on your back now, with your legs pinned down and jun-hee in between them, pumping her cock in and out of you. "good morning, sweetheart"

young mi —

𓏲๋࣭࣪˖ cockwarming younger bestfriend young-mi while you do her makeup ♡ [unnie + breeding kink]

- baby is such a puppy :( she'd get shy about it at first once you initiated the idea

"are you s-sure, unnie? i don't wanna make you feel uncomfortable.." "it's okay sweetheart, think of it as a repayment! i'm gonna make you pretty, while you make unnie feel good, how's that sound?"

- she then nods slowly, sliding her pants down and revealing her already hard cock, pre cum leaking at her tip

- "so pretty." "t-thank you..." "i'm gonna make you even prettier"

- you make her sit on the chair before sinking yourself down, soft gasps leaving the younger girl's mouth

- "you're so warm, unnie"

- she rests her hands politely on your thighs that were on either side of her lap, while you start applying concealer on the spot below her eyes

- you tease her the whole time ! clenching around her dick on purpose just to see her face scrunch up

- then here's you, being mean, complaining. telling her to stop making expressions so that you won't make a mess of her make-up, as if it was all her fault !!!

- your lips would form into a mocking smile, gently cooing at young-mi whenever she makes those pretty pretty noises

- and then her hands travels their way onto your boobs, gently cupping them over the shirt you're wearing—well, that was before you make her stop and guide her hands underneath it, making her actually feel your boobs.

- you were now applying her blush, making her cheeks even pinkier than what it had been just earlier. (she stares at you with puppy eyes the whole time)

- soon enough, you're finally onto the last step which was applying lipstick onto her lips

- when you were about to do so, she slipped out a hand from underneath your shirt and grabbed your wrist before her cock suddenly twitches inside you

"unnie... i feel something.." she softly mutters, "hm?" tilting your head curiously at her, before realizing something and then chuckling softy, "are you gonna cum baby?" she nods, her eyes getting glossier. your lips form into a satisfied smile, "go on. inside."

- her eyebrows furrow, looking at you in disbelief, "r-really?"

- not responding, you put the lipstick down on the vanity table, before wrapping your arms around her neck and crashing your lips onto hers

her hips buck up into you while letting out whimpers against your mouth, and then you finally feel it inside you—hot cum painting your walls white—before breaking the kiss and then looking at young-mi, pushing her hair away from her pretty face, "my good girl."

sae byeok —

𓏲๋࣭࣪˖ cockwarming ex girlfriend sae-byeok while she carves her name onto your thigh ♡ [masochism + knives]

- i'm so sorry please forgive me after this

- saying sae-byeok is mean would be an understatement

- how did you end up here?—crying while sitting on top of your ex's lap, her cock hard and deep inside of you, while she's busy carving your thigh up

could you blame her? you were entertaining and flirting with somebody else at a party—where sae-byeok just happens to also be in—and that somebody wasn't her.

- she pulls you in one of those private club rooms, one that smelled of sex and cigarettes, and drags you to the firm couch, before harshly pushing you down

"sae-byeok what the fuck?!" you yell, your voice barely audible over the blaring music outside, while turning around to look at your ex, only to find her starting to unbuckle her pants

- she just looks at you blankly, but her eyes held something else—hatred and lust—which scared the shit out of you. who knows what she's capable of right now?

- once her pants were off, she walks towards the couch before sitting down, "strip."

you didn't know what has gotten inside your mind, because all of a sudden, you found yourself sitting on her lap with her length inside you. you glare at your ex as you sniffle, "fuck you."

- she snickers, "sure." before pulling out a small compact knife from her pocket

- sometimes you'd ask yourself, what is wrong with you? why the fuck are you getting even more turned on at the sight of her fucking pocket knife

- she glances at you, licking her lips before looking down, seeing her buldge on your lower belly

"i knew you still weren't over me." she speaks, tone cocky. you scoff, "you wish. not even three days after our breakup, i was already over you."

- she raises an eyebrow, "really now?"

- a loud hiss leaves your lips as you felt her press the blade hard, enough to slice your thigh

- "gonna carve my name on your thigh. you want that slut? for everyone to see you're mine?"

- you look at her with tears in your eyes that were threatening to fall

"fuck you." "is that all you can say?"

- and then she starts writing, moans leaving your lips at every slice !!

- fortunately for you, the pleasure from her being inside you overshadows the pain from her carving you up

- when it was getting too painful though, you would start grinding down on her, trying to feel more and more pleasure

- but it is strange—the fact that you also feel pleasure from the pain alone—surely, you knew you were fucked up

"fuck— slow- stop, please stop." you finally cry out, your hand wrapping around her wrist and gripping on it. she looks at you with her eyebrows furrowed. you just stare at her dumbly, drool escaping your mouth.

- it hurt. more than you'd like to admit it.

- you looked down to your thigh and saw the bloody mess, which made you timid,

- she grabs your hand that was wrapped around her wrist using her free one, and yanks it away, "not done yet. you don't want me leaving it just like this, right?"

- you felt so dirty. many thoughts raced around your head, 'am i gonna fucking bleed out to death?'

soon enough, she's finally done. she looks up at your pathetic state, seeing dried tears on your pink cheeks. she grips your chin tightly, making you look down at her work— 강새벽.

@misayani

#squid game #squid game x reader #squid game season 2 #squid game smut #kang mi-na x reader #se-mi x reader #kang no-eul x reader #jun-hee x reader #young-mi x reader #kang sae-byeok x reader #୭ ୨♡୧ ৎ misa writes ...

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fingerstealer · 3 days ago

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[Image ID:

a very wise woman gave me a piece of advice. She told me to start a journal. In the morning, she said, write down the percentage that I felt was that day. 20% Maggie. 90% Maggie. Then I should write down what I accomplished that day. thought at this point she was going to tell me to admire how much I'd gotten done each day despite M a being ill. I didn't want that, I didn't need a pep talk. I needed my brain.

But that wasn't what she said. She told me: write down what you've managed to do on a 20% day, what you've managed to do on a 40% day. Eventually you'll have a guide so when you wake up and you're at 20%, you won't try to do the things you do on a 40% day. You'll know you can just go watch a movie or sit with your goats or whatever and not feel guilty, because you were never going to write words you could keep or be able to exercise or whatever.

And that was the right way.

It meant I no longer labored for 12 hours each day, doing nothing but trying to smash my way through a draft. Instead I slowly began to write bits and bobs in on my good days. A funny thing happened then: once was not spending every second forcing myself to do things I couldn't, I found I had enough energy to actually start to work on myself. To look for patterns in my good and bad days. To research healthcare providers and new studies on what was wrong with me still. Slowly I found I was able to chain more of the 60% days together, then 80% days. Slowly I began to realize that although it was taking months, was improving overall.

End image ID.]

I've seen this before, but it's been years and it just came across my Twitter in its dying days. The words are from a favorite author of mine, Maggie Stiefvater, and they are the words I most need to hear when it comes to dealing with chronic pain and illness. I didn't need this the first time I saw it, six years ago. I need it now. Maybe you do, too.

#described #transcription #chronic pain #chronic illness #disabled #resouces

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wolvietxt · 2 days ago

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𝓢ILENT 𝓣REATMENT.

pairings : frank castle x fem!reader warnings : argument, crying, hurt / comfort, happy ending, established relationship au, shouting, implied size diff (like my fav trope if you can’t already tell) silent treatment summary : after an argument with frank, you both end up giving eachother silent treatment, until the tension gets too unbearable for you in the car. wc : 4.5k a/n : i got a req for this a few days ago but i think i deleted it or something i can’t find it now💔 but it was from an anon so thank you for this one because i loved writing this ALSO!! thank you to everyone who leaves feedback + little comments on my frank fics i notice it happens more when i write for frank and it’s the absolute sweetest

the air in the apartment felt heavy, charged, like a storm was brewing right there in the middle of the living room. frank was pacing now, his big hands flexing at his sides, his jaw tight enough that you swore you could hear his teeth grinding.

you didn’t fight - not like this. not with him raising his voice and you trying so hard not to let yours crack. it wasn’t how things usually went. frank was tough, sure, rough around the edges in a way that didn’t really go away even when he was at his gentlest. but with you, he was softer. he made an effort to rein it in because he’d told you once, in a rare moment of vulnerability, that he didn’t want you to ever be scared of him. and you never had been.

but tonight, he was angry. angrier than you’d ever seen him at you, and the worst part was you weren’t sure how it had even escalated to this.

“so what?” frank barked, spinning on his heel to face you, his broad frame taking up what felt like the entire room. “you think i’m just gonna sit back and let this slide?” his voice was sharp, cutting, and it made you flinch, even though you knew deep down that he’d never in a million years actually hurt you. “you think that’s who i am?”

you held your ground, even though your heart was pounding against your ribs. “it’s not about letting it slide, frank,” you said softly, your tone calm, measured - a stark contrast to the heat in his voice. “it’s about not making it worse. escalating doesn’t fix anything.”

“escalating?” he repeated, his voice rising, almost incredulous. “this isn’t escalating, this is handling it. you don’t just let people treat you like crap n’ walk away. you should know that’s not how it works.”

“sometimes it is,” you said quietly, refusing to match his volume. “sometimes walking away is the only thing you can do. not everything has to be a fight.”

“bullshit.” the word came out harsh, and the bite in it made your chest tighten. frank rarely swore at you, and when he did, it was never like this, never with this kind of edge.

your hands trembled slightly, so you folded your arms across your chest, not in defiance but as a way to steady yourself. “frank, please. i don’t want to argue about this.”

“yeah, well, maybe you should’ve thought about that before you went and tried to handle this on your own.” he threw his hands up, his frustration spilling over like a dam breaking. “you didn’t even tell me, and now i’m supposed to just sit back and be okay with it?”

“i didn’t tell you because i knew this is how you’d react,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

his face twisted, a mixture of disbelief and something else - hurt, maybe. but it was gone as quickly as it came, replaced by a hard, almost cold expression. “damn right this is how i’d react,” he shot back. “because i give a shit. because i don’t want you getting hurt or screwed over or whatever the hell else might happen if i’m not there to step in.”

“i know you care,” you said, your voice still soft but firm. “but you can’t control everything, frank. sometimes things happen, and you just have to let them go.”

he let out a sharp, bitter laugh, running a hand through his hair. “letting it go gets you hurt. letting it go gets you walked all over. i’m not gonna let that happen to you.”

his words were loud, forceful, like he was trying to hammer them into your head, but they only made your throat tighten more. “i can handle myself,” you said, your voice shaking slightly despite your best efforts.

“can you?” he snapped, and the doubt in his tone stung worse than any of the yelling.

you flinched, your eyes dropping to the floor. “that’s not fair,” you whispered.

“yeah, well, life’s not fair,” he shot back, his tone still razor-sharp.

silence fell between you, heavy and suffocating. you could feel the sting of tears threatening to spill, but you refused to cry - not in front of him, not when he was like this, which he never had been before. you’d seen flashes of it occasionally, never once directed at you. so instead, you turned on your heel and walked out of the room, your steps quick but steady, your back straight even though every part of you felt like curling up into yourself.

you didn’t look back, but you could feel his eyes on you as you left.

the door clicked softly as you shut yourself in the bathroom, leaning back against the cool wood as you tried to pull in a steadying breath. it felt like all the air had been sucked out of your lungs back in the living room, and now the weight of it all was crashing down on you.

you stared at the tiled floor, your arms wrapped around yourself like that might somehow hold you together. your chest felt tight, your eyes stinging with unshed tears, but you bit down hard on your bottom lip, refusing to let them fall. not yet, anyway.

you weren’t used to this - not with frank. he could be sharp, blunt, even infuriatingly stubborn sometimes, but he was never cruel. not to you. in the years since you’d met him, since the whirlwind of your relationship had gone from cautiously circling each other to something real and steady, frank had always been your safe place. he was intense, sure, but his intensity had always felt protective, grounding, like you could lean on him no matter how bad things got.

so why did it feel like he was the one knocking the ground out from under you now?

you pressed the heels of your hands against your eyes, trying to will the tears away. it wasn’t fair to pin all the blame on him, you knew that. this argument wasn’t entirely about frank’s temper, or his need to protect you - it was about your own unwillingness to let him.

the issue had started small, just a casual remark you’d made earlier in the week about someone you worked with - someone who’d been taking advantage of your kindness. you hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but frank had picked up on it immediately, and the more you’d tried to brush it off, the more his protective instincts had kicked in.

at first, it had been sweet, his quiet grumbles about how people didn’t deserve to treat you that way, how you needed to stand up for yourself more. but somewhere along the line, it had turned into this - a full-blown argument where neither of you seemed to be able to see the other’s side.

you weren’t blind to why he was upset. frank had been through more than most people could even imagine, and the idea of someone hurting you - or even disrespecting you - lit a fire in him that he couldn’t always control. but the way he handled that fire was what made your chest ache. it felt suffocating, like his need to protect you was overshadowing the fact that you didn’t want - or need - him to fight your battles for you.

you let out a shaky breath, the first tear slipping free as the weight of it all settled heavier on your shoulders.

frank had always been larger than life to you - not just physically, though his sheer size and strength made you feel small in comparison, but in the way he carried himself, the way he seemed to command every room he walked into. it was part of what had drawn you to him in the first place, the quiet confidence that bordered on intimidating until you saw the softness he tried so hard to hide.

he’d always been gentle with you, even when his hands were so calloused and rough, even when his voice was so gravelly and low. it made the harshness of his words tonight cut deeper, the sharp edges of his anger something you weren’t used to being on the receiving end of.

you wiped at your face quickly, straightening up as you tried to pull yourself together. you hated crying - especially over arguments like this. it made you feel weak, even though you knew it wasn’t, and the last thing you wanted was for frank to think he’d broken you. he’d never stop beating himself up over it.

still, you couldn’t bring yourself to go back out there yet. not with the way his words were still echoing in your mind, the frustration in his voice still ringing in your ears.

you stayed there for a while, letting the quiet of the bathroom wrap around you like a blanket, giving yourself the space to breathe and feel without the weight of frank’s presence bearing down on you.

meanwhile, in the living room, frank was pacing again. his hands were on his hips, his brows drawn together in that way they always did when he was deep in thought - or pissed off.

he knew you were upset. hell, he wasn’t an idiot, and he’d seen the way your eyes were brimming with tears before you’d turned and walked away. it wasn’t the first time he’d pushed too hard, but it was the first time it had been directed at you, and it was eating at him in a way he didn’t want to admit.

but the anger was still there, simmering just beneath the surface, and he couldn’t seem to let it go. it wasn’t directed at you - not at all. it was at the situation, at the asshole who’d made you feel like you had to handle everything on your own. but frank wasn’t exactly good at untangling those things, at separating his frustration from the people he cared about most.

he scrubbed a hand over his face, letting out a low growl of frustration as he dropped onto the couch. his mind was running in circles, replaying the argument over and over again, each word sharper than the last.

the silence in the apartment felt deafening, and for a moment, he considered going to find you, to try and talk this out. but he stopped himself, his jaw clenching as he forced himself to stay put. you needed space - he knew that much, even if it went against every instinct he had.

he sat there for a long time, the tension in his body refusing to ease as he stared at the spot where you’d been standing just minutes before.

the car keys sat on the counter, untouched, while the clock crept closer to the time you were supposed to leave. it had been a whole thing - this charity function a few towns over. someone important to frank had invited him, and even though it wasn’t the kind of event he’d normally go for, he’d said yes because it mattered to them.

you had said yes because it mattered to him.

but now, with the argument still heavy in the air, the thought of sitting next to him for almost four hours felt like trying to breathe underwater. the quiet that lingered between you wasn’t the natural kind you often enjoyed. it was thick and suffocating, and neither of you seemed ready to cut through it.

you stood in the bedroom doorway, watching frank tie his boots like the act itself had wronged him. his movements were sharp, jerky, and his mouth was set in a grim line. you weren’t sure if it was guilt or frustration written in his expression, but either way, it left your stomach in knots.

he grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair, yanking it on with a force that looked like it made the seams strain. his head turned slightly toward you as if he was about to say something, but then he thought better of it, his eyes dropping to the floor instead.

you didn’t move, didn’t speak, just hovered in the doorway as he brushed past you toward the front door. the weight of it all - the argument, the way he hadn’t looked at you since - pressed down on your chest like a boulder, and your throat burned with more unshed tears.

when he held the door open for you, you walked through it wordlessly, your gaze fixed on the floor.

outside, the crisp night air felt sharper than it should have, like even the weather was conspiring to remind you how raw everything was. frank locked the door behind you without a word, and the sound of the lock clicking into place made you flinch.

he didn’t notice.

the car ride loomed ahead of you like a punishment, the thought of sitting in that confined space together for hours making your palms sweat. but there was no way out of it, not without causing more problems.

frank climbed into the driver’s seat, his hands gripping the wheel so tightly his knuckles went white. he started the engine without looking at you, the low growl of it filling the space where words should’ve been.

you slid into the passenger seat, keeping your hands in your lap and your gaze fixed on the window. the city lights blurred into streaks as the car picked up speed, but you weren’t paying attention to where you were going. your mind was stuck on everything that had been said - and everything that hadn’t.

he’d been angry. louder than usual, harsher, the words tumbling out of him like he didn’t know how to stop them. but you knew frank. you knew the fire in him wasn’t because he didn’t care - it was because he cared too much, and it scared him sometimes.

still, knowing that didn’t make it hurt any less.

the silence in the car was unbearable, the kind that made you want to fill it just so you didn’t have to sit with the weight of it anymore. but frank wasn’t giving you an inch, his eyes glued to the road and his shoulders hunched up like he was trying to shield himself from the world.

you stole a glance at him, your chest aching at the sight of his furrowed brow and clenched jaw. he looked tired - angry, yes, but tired too, like the argument had drained him in ways he didn’t want to admit.

your own emotions were bubbling up, threatening to spill over no matter how hard you tried to keep them in check. your hands trembled slightly in your lap, and you clenched them into fists to try to stop it, but it didn’t help.

you didn’t even realize you were crying until a tear slipped down your cheek, cool against your flushed skin. you brushed it away quickly, hoping frank wouldn’t notice, but you doubted he’d even glanced your way.

the road stretched on, dark and empty except for the occasional glow of headlights from oncoming cars. the longer the silence dragged, the heavier it felt, like it was wrapping around your throat and making it hard to breathe.

eventually, the ache in your chest grew too much to bear. you didn’t know what you wanted - comfort, maybe, or some kind of reassurance that everything would be okay - but the urge to reach out was overwhelming.

your hand hovered hesitantly over the center console, your fingers trembling as you debated whether or not to do it. it felt like crossing some invisible line, like putting yourself out there in a way that left you completely vulnerable.

but then you glanced at frank, at the way his brow furrowed and his jaw tightened, and something in you broke.

with tears brimming in your eyes and a small, helpless pout tugging at your lips, you let your fingers reach up to grasp at his. the touch was so light it was barely there, but it was enough to draw his attention.

he glanced down at your hand, his gaze softening instantly as he took in the way your fingers trembled and the sheen of tears in your eyes, the wet tracks of tears that’d already fallen etched on your face.

“ah, sweetheart,” he muttered, his voice rough but laced with a tenderness that made your heart ache.

his hand moved to cover yours completely, his fingers curling around your smaller ones in a gesture that felt both protective and grounding. his thumb brushed over the back of your hand in slow, deliberate strokes, and the tension in your chest eased just a little.

you sniffled, blinking quickly to clear your vision as you looked up at him. his expression had shifted, the hard lines of his face softening as he met your gaze.

“i’m sorry,” you whispered, your voice barely audible over the hum of the engine.

frank let out a heavy sigh, his grip on your hand tightening slightly as he pulled the car off to the side of the road. the tires crunched against the gravel as he put it in park, and before you could ask what he was doing, he was out of the car.

your breath caught as he rounded the front of the vehicle, his movements deliberate but not rushed. he opened your door, the cool night air rushing in as he crouched slightly to meet your eyes.

“c’mere,” he said softly, his tone a stark contrast to the anger that had been there earlier.

you hesitated for only a moment before unbuckling your seatbelt and letting him pull you into his arms. his embrace was warm and solid, his arms wrapping around you in a way that made you feel small and safe all at once.

“’m sorry, baby,” he murmured against your hair, his voice rough with emotion. “shouldn’t’ve yelled. shouldn’t’ve made you feel like that.”

you buried your face in his chest, your own arms slipping around his middle as you let out a shaky breath. “i’m sorry too,” you whispered.

“you don’t gotta be sorry, you did nothing wrong. my sweet girl’s just nice to everyone, isn’t she?” he cooed, his hand came up to cradle the back of your head, his thumb brushing gently against your temple as he peppered hard kisses over your face. “we’re okay?”

you nodded against him, a small, shaky smile tugging at your lips. “we’re okay.”

he pressed another kiss to your forehead, lingering for a moment longer than before. but instead of pulling back completely, frank’s lips trailed down, brushing lightly against your temple, then your cheek.

your breath hitched, your hand tightening around his shirt as he hesitated, his lips hovering dangerously close to yours. when your eyes flicked up to meet his, there was something unspoken between you - an ache, a pull that neither of you could ignore.

“frank…” your voice was barely a whisper, and it only made him lean in closer.

his hand moved to cradle the side of your face, his thumb brushing over your cheek as his lips finally found yours. the kiss was slow at first, soft and careful, but there was a heat behind it, a depth that made your stomach twist in the best way.

he kissed you like he needed you, like he couldn’t get close enough no matter how tightly he held you. his other hand slid to your waist, pulling you against him just enough to make you feel the strength behind every touch, every movement.

when he pulled back, it was with a low, rumbling breath, his forehead resting against yours as he tried to steady himself. “you’re somethin’ else, you know that?” he murmured, his voice rough and tinged with something deeper.

your cheeks flushed, your heart racing as you tried to find the words, but all you could do was nod, your fingers still gripping the front of his shirt.

he pressed one last, lingering kiss to the corner of your mouth before stepping back. “c’mon,” he said, his tone softer now, his thumb brushing your cheek one last time before helping you back into the car.

as he slid into the driver’s seat, his hand found yours again, holding on tightly. this time, neither of you let go.

the rest of the drive was quiet, but not in the same way as before. frank kept one hand on the wheel, the other holding yours firmly in his grasp. his thumb moved in slow, lazy circles over your knuckles, a silent apology with every stroke.

you felt the tension melting bit by bit, your chest no longer tight with the weight of everything left unsaid. instead, there was this warmth - a softness between you that hadn’t been there earlier. it was unspoken, but it was enough to ease the ache in your heart.

“we’ll stop soon, yeah?” frank broke the silence, his voice low and softer than usual. “get you somethin’ to eat.”

your lips curved into a small smile, your first real one since the argument. “i’m okay,” you murmured. “we don’t have to stop.”

“nah.” he glanced over at you, his eyes lingering for a second longer than they should’ve. “you didn’t eat much earlier. ain’t lettin’ you sit through this thing hungry.”

the tenderness in his voice made your cheeks heat, and you squeezed his hand lightly in response.

it wasn’t long before frank pulled off at a small diner on the side of the road. the neon sign flickered against the night sky, casting a warm glow over the parking lot.

“c’mon,” he said, cutting the engine and stepping out.

before you could even reach for the door handle, frank was already there, pulling it open for you. his hand was outstretched, waiting for yours, and when you slipped your fingers into his, he gave them a gentle squeeze.

inside, the diner was quiet, the hum of conversation and the clatter of dishes filling the space. frank led you to a booth in the corner, his hand never leaving yours until you slid into your seat.

“what’re you in the mood for?” he asked, his eyes scanning the menu even though you both knew he’d end up ordering the same thing he always did.

you shrugged, your fingers playing with the edge of the napkin in front of you. “maybe just some fries.”

frank frowned, lowering the menu to look at you. “you need more than that.”

“frank, i’m fine - ”

“i’ll get you somethin’ else too,” he cut in, his tone leaving no room for argument.

you bit back a smile, knowing better than to push him when he got like this. instead, you let him order for both of you, his gruff voice somehow softer when he spoke to the waitress.

when the food arrived, frank nudged the plate closer to you, his eyes narrowing slightly when you hesitated. “eat, sweetheart,” he said gently.

you rolled your eyes but grabbed a fry anyway, earning a satisfied grunt from him.

as you ate, the tension from earlier felt like a distant memory. frank had a way of grounding you, of making you feel like no matter how bad things got, everything would eventually be okay.

after the meal, frank walked you back to the car, his hand settling on the small of your back as he guided you outside. the night air was crisp, but his touch was warm, steady, and it made you lean into him just a little.

“y’alright?” he asked once you were back in the passenger seat.

you nodded, looking up at him with a soft smile. “yeah. i’m okay.”

his eyes lingered on yours for a moment, and then, without a word, he leaned down and pressed a kiss to your forehead. it was quick but tender, and when he pulled back, his hand cupped your cheek for a second longer.

the drive to the function was quieter this time, but it wasn’t the heavy silence from before. it was comfortable, the kind of quiet where words weren’t necessary because you both knew everything was okay now.

as you pulled up to the venue, frank cut the engine and turned to you. his expression was softer, his usual rough edges smoothed out in a way that made your heart ache.

“you look beautiful,” he said, his voice gruff but sincere.

your cheeks flushed at the compliment, and you glanced down at your dress, suddenly feeling shy. “thank you,” you murmured.

he leaned over, his large hand settling on your knee as he pressed a quick kiss to your temple. “‘m gonna keep tellin’ you that all night,” he added, his lips quirking into the faintest of smirks.

the warmth in your chest grew, and you couldn’t help but smile back at him. “you don’t look so bad yourself,” you teased, your tone light.

he chuckled, the sound low and rumbling, and you swore it was the best thing you’d heard all day.

“c’mon, sweetheart,” he said, opening his door. “let’s get this over with.”

as you stepped out of the car, frank was already by your side, his hand finding yours once more. he held it tightly, his grip firm and reassuring, and when he glanced down at you, there was something in his eyes that made your breath catch.

it was love - raw and unfiltered, the kind that didn’t need words to be understood.

and in that moment, you knew that no matter what, you and frank would always find your way back to each other.

ᰔ frank castle : @stvr-dust, @uncertified-doc

taglist form linked in pinned post :3

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darkficsyouneveraskedfor · 2 days ago

Text

A Barter 3

Warnings: suggestions of death, I am a dark blog and I write dark things.

Summary: You are bargained to be wife to the witcher if he can slew the beast in the village.

Character: Geralt of Rivia

**note, I am not a Witcher genius or aficionado and so I may get some things wrong.

As usual, I appreciate any and all feedback and enthusiasm. Please reblog and leave a comment. Love! 😍

There’s a hush throughout the barn. The guildmen crowd around the doors as Todrick presses himself to the wood. With the help of several others, he lifts the bar that keeps the entrance in place. You sit with Marsh and watch patiently. A group of women titter nervously and wring their hands.

The end of the bar hits the ground with an echoing thunk and the men angle it away to lean against a post. The doors shift as the clustered bodies let them open bit by bit. The smell of dew pervades the space, swallowing up the stink of confinement.

There’s a gasp and the doors are let go. The daylight pours over Todrick and the guildmen. They stare out into the village.

“The fog has lifted,” Marsell declares.

“The witcher has slain the beast,” Todrick adds.

The women creep forward as your little brother stirs against you. His head is wobbly as he sits up, still confused in the dregs of sleep. You rub his bony back and peer around. Your father sits in a corner, as despondent as the day the witcher came.

“Is it true?” Caralyn appears with her sisters, Orania and Aster, “has he done it?”

You look over at the doors as Todrick fusses with the short sword on his belt and steps out with heavy hesitance in his boots. Marsell keeps close as he follows and the other men clutch their tools, hammers and sickles alike, as they brave the open air.

“I am to be wed,” you squeeze Marsh’s shoulder.

“Will you go away?” Your brother asks. “Like mother and Lessa?”

You share a look with Caralyn, “I will go wherever my husband bids, Marsh. And I shall miss you and father but perhaps he would be gracious to let me visit.”

Marsh sniffles, “I will be alone.” He wipes his cheeks mournfully, “without Lessa, without mother, and father...”

“You will have us,” Caralyn says. “We have all lost those we love so we must learn to love what is left.”

He nods but continues to snivel. He turns and clings to you, “promise you’ll come back. Promise.”

You pet his head as icy hollowness consumes you. You stare up at your loyal friend. You gulp, “I promise, Marshy. I will see you again.”

Caralyn gives a bittersweet smile before her sisters tear her way. They catch up to her brothers as the men without holler. “It is gone. It is clear.”

A cheer goes up and draws the women from their fear as they creep forward to see through the barn doors. You stay as you are as those who live erupt in glee. Marsh continues to weep as you find not well to draw from. You are empty.

Your strength only comes with the approach of hooves. You lift your head and look at the wall as if you might see through it. You gently urge your brother away and take him by the hand. You bring him up with you and near the doors.

The dark horse and its rider come up between what is left of the mill and a house. There is ruin left in the wake of the unnatural fog. Whatever that monster was, it ate at more than the living.

You step out with Marsh and stop him. You bend to hug him and whisper to him, “I love you brother, keep well.”

“Sister,” he sobs as you pull back.

You give him over to Caralyn and she ushers him away, her own face streaked in grief. A sombre air falls over the uproar. The villagers quiet and Todrick looks in your direction. The rest follow his gaze. They watch as you stride toward the witcher.

He slows his steed and looks down upon you. You bow your head, “you have defeated the evil as promised, sir, and so, on behalf of my people, I will fulfill my duty. We are most grateful for your service.”

You keep your chin down, your body rigid, your spirit shaky. He does not respond but to extend his arm, his leather gauntlet filling your vision. You steel yourself and latch onto him. He hauls you up and sits you in front of him. He clicks his tongue and the horse sweeps around and canters away.

Just like that, as swiftly as he came, you are gone off to your fate. A witcher’s wife, whatever that may entail.

#geralt of rivia #dark geralt #dark!geralt #geralt x reader #drabble #series #the witcher #a barter

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chocobje · 13 hours ago

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How I like to characterize Sprout is that he’s great talking with the ones he’s close with (Cosmo, Astro, etc.) But incredibly socially awkward with others. He comes off as brash, but he’s trying his best.

What guidelines do you try to follow when writing Sprout? I’m just curious.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to yap about one of my favourite characters hehe..

You asked for guidelines I gave you a character analysis instead.

(Don't mind the images I didn't want this post to look naked)

ALSO NOTE THAT AT THE END OF THE DAY THIS IS MERELY MY INTERPRETATION OF HIS CHARACTER. EVERYONE HAS THEIR OWN!! Don't take my post as a mandatory guide to follow.

Let's talk about what's canon:

I like checking the Wikipedia for his dialogues every now and then to make sure he's not too out-of-character.

Sprout comes off as blunt, he does not sugarcoat his words when he has something to say.

Not even an excuse or a reason as to why he doesn't want to join Teagan for tea; It was straight up a "no" until Teagan told him Cosmo will join them too. (Also I want to point out he doesn't immediately say yes when he's told Cosmo will be there, so for all we know he'd still decline even if his best friend's joining Teagan).

Dandy's dialogue when you purchase Sprout. I think about it a lot. Out of all the character dialogues, the one with Astro is what I feel like is an example of his overprotectiveness coming across as "pushy".

He'd definitely be the type to scold his friends. Especially after Gardenview's shutdown with all the Twisteds wreaking havoc and whatnot. I don't think Sprout is fond of going on runs, but only does so he can watch over everyone and keep them safe. He makes sure everyone is focused and on high alert, he doesn't want anyone to be reckless.

He prioritizes safety over answers. His dialogue with Rodger shows that. Maybe he's also curious as to what has happened, because in Vee's dialogue he tried talking to Dandy only for Dandy to walk away. I assume Sprout just wanted to check up on him rather than knowing what's going on with Gardenview and the Twisteds.

Another thing I don't really see often is how Sprout is actually pretty forgetful and impulsive.

For a Toon who's constantly keeping watch on everyone he surely does not apply the same kind of attention to himself.

He talks before thinking about his words, but once he realized that he immediately apologized to Vee. I don't think he always notices when he comes across as rude though.

I actually think he's actually quite reckless when he bakes. I obviously can't show it in this post but if you look at that animation with Cosmo and Sprout baking they're not even measuring the ingredients. I mean what. 😭

The way he bakes feels so impulsive and it just looked like they were winging it. Somehow despite that their baked goods still end up great and that's honestly impressive.

Okay now for that dialogue between Bobette and Sprout, I was getting there-- I've never made a gingerbread house but from what I've seen from other people it requires a lot more patience and carefulness.

Sprout is neither.

According to him, his gingerbread house fell apart immediately and then he stopped trying afterwards. It's honestly funny.

I feel like this also shows through his stats. Both his extraction speed and skillcheck is 2 stars. His stamina and speed is way higher. He prefers running around, probably to make sure he can watch over everyone during their runs. That or because he has long legs.

Anyway to recap; Sprout in canon is blunt, pushy, overprotective, and impulsive. But he genuinely has good intentions and means well. He cares for his friends, which is why he scolds them because he wants to make sure they're safe.

Now for some headcanons:

Okay this is the part where I make stuff up. So it's just my take;

• He has ADHD.

I'M STARTING WITH THE NEURODIVERGENT HEADCANON.

This is not a unique headcanon. I've seen so many people who headcanons this too so it's relatively popular. Personally, I only see him with ADHD. (I'm projecting).

He's forgetful, impulsive, and quite socially awkward in a way aswell. He's easily distracted. He keeps forgetting about the oven. He's impulsive when baking. I'm a very impulsive and reckless person myself, I constantly make mistakes when I draw, yet somehow they end up okay 😭. When I'm not able to draw something right, I give up immediately. (I projected this onto the gingerbread house thing earlier).

• He comes across as intimidating.

You know in Kids' birthday parties when there's a mascot a lotta kids go run and hide? I based it off of that. I remember when I was like, 6 or 7, when a mascot came in I cried and hid under a table. They were tall.. <\3

I feel like there was a concerning number of kids who were actually afraid of him, despite how friendly he appears both in person and in the show. Maybe it's the RBF when he's not smiling..

I also like to think he's taller than some of the kids who comes to Gardenview which plays a factor to the whole "intimidating" thing. The way Sprout deals with this is giving the kids cupcakes or other sweets. Once the kids actually talk to him they're immediately comfortable.

• He was one of the very first to become "Twisted".

I don't have a concrete idea on how the story of the game goes, but I always imagine the Mains being the first victims. Sprout is a healer and he keeps an eye on everyone, so he had to go first.

–

Okay, I think that's all now. If you read all of that wow thanks, this took me hours to write 😭. I love overanalysing characters.

#ask #rambles #can you tell i think about him a lot #Sorry asker this might not what you've expected #But I needed an excuse to start yapping about Sprout and his character cause it's so interesting #I might have missed a lot of other details tbh #Oh well!#Anyway bonus headcanon Filipino Sprout.#No evidence no basis no proof I just want him to be Filipino cause I am too #This was genuinely so fun to do tbh #if you guys like these posts I can try making them for other characters too #dandys world #dandy's world #dandys world sprout #dandys world analysis #dandys world headcanon #dandys world hcs #character analysis

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lurkinglurkerwholurks · 3 days ago

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Oh oh I can tell you how I handle this!

First, I must acknowledge that epithets are hard. When writing in a specific character's POV, you have to be careful about describing another character only using descriptors that they would use or it'll feel awkward and weird. (I don't generally think about my sister's height relative to mine and therefore wouldn't refer to her as "the tall one" or even "the taller one", for example, unless it's relevant in the moment. Talking? Not relevant. Her hitting her head on a ledge that I missed? Relevant. That wouldn't be true of someone I just met. If you're tall[er than me] I'm probably noticing it and don't have other ways to differentiate you from other strangers.)

Luckily, I don't usually have to resort to epithets in writing, because readers can generally follow pronouns and support way more proper name uses than you might expect! Pronouns by definition are placeholders for proper names. Where writing gets confusing is when it feels like the pronouns are floating free and unmatched. Reconnecting the proper noun and the pronoun is all you need to reset.

Within a paragraph, use a proper noun enough to be clear. Vague, I know, but it really is an art instead of a science and largely comes down to personal taste. Refining your personal taste can help a ton, and one way to do that is to look at works by people who you feel write these kinds of scenes clearly and cogently. I'm going to use my own writing as an example, just to make it easy for myself.

Structuring your writing so the subject is fairly consistent will help a ton, as will "checking in" with a proper noun when it feels like you've checked in on the other person more recently.

[alt: The muscles in Bruce’s face, Jason realized, were good at going completely still when surprised. That was useful. He had said intervened like Jason had done it on purpose, throwing himself into this nightmare to save Bruce instead of acting like a petulant, stomping child. He had just a moment to wonder if the look from Bruce was meant as gratitude or as an apology when Bruce turned his attention back to the others. “It should reverse in a few days.”]

In the snippet above, because I'm moving tightly between two he/him characters, I use their names just enough to stick into place who's being reference at any given point. If I had wanted to be extra careful, I could have changed "He had just a moment to wonder" to "Jason had just a moment to wonder."

Over multiple paragraphs, when you're sticking with one person, reconnecting (or what I mentally refer to as "checking in") can happen once a paragraph and really shouldn't be needed more than that.

[alt: He really didn’t have much of note to say. Dick narrated his way through the canned goods and the dry goods, making jokes about Wally’s Skittles stash and the cans of Spaghetti-Os Roy demanded be kept on hand but no one else ever touched. He talked about a TV show he had been watching and made a joke that elicited a hrmm from Bruce that would have been a laugh from anyone else. And the more he talked, the more he remembered little stories from his week that he had tucked away with a mental note to tell Bruce.

At last, though, Dick had finished his final story and let the call lapse into a pause that stretched into silence. He bit his bottom lip and fidgeted with the rolls of gauze, stacking them into pyramids outside the gutted medical kit. He could never tell with Bruce whether the silences were contented or an interrogation technique, the patience of an investigator applying pressure to a reluctant witness. In the end, it didn’t much matter.]

But really, truly, the TL;DR of it all is you don't need as many epithets as you think; as long as you don't go crazy with your subject and object switches and check in on your connections regularly, you can lean on pronouns way more than you think; and readers can handle way more uses of names than you might suspect.

Me writing a scene with two or more people of the same gender and trying not to get the readers confused, while also trying not to overuse the characters' names or epithets

#I don't know how coherent this is because it's HARD to explain something you know by feel #but man do I love proper noun and pronoun linkage #gbu Prof. Cheney you stuck with me for life #writing advice #fanfic writer problems

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okwonyo · 1 day ago

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PARTITION ꣑୧ 이희승

𝖲𝖢𝖤𝖭𝖠𝖱𝒾𝖮 ✴︎ 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗐𝖺𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗄𝗂𝗇𝖽 𝗈𝖿 𝗀𝗂𝗋𝗅 𝗁𝖾 𝗅𝗂𝗄𝖾𝗌.

【備考】 academic rival!heeseung & fem!rea 11OO high school au fluff ( ˵ˊᯅˋ˵ ) tension flirting

じや ⠀⦂⠀for hana banana bby @yeokii

reblogs ────── ㅤㅤ✿︎ㅤㅤ ︎ㅤㅤ︎ㅤclick

this isn’t how you imagined your day to end. it wasn’t what you imagined when you woke up this morning. this isn’t how you planned your evening nor this definitely wasn’t what you thought would happen.

but, you admit that it is nice. well— from your point of view. spending some time with the boy you spent you entire year competing, fighting to get better grades, is nice. even if it’s because you both got told to clean the classroom as a punishment.

it might see weird. it would be weird, if it wasn’t for the fact that your heart flatter at the mention of his name alone.

being here with him makes you happy.

the sun shining behind the classroom’s windows makes the winter cold weather more bearable. it reflects on the tables in the room, the rays follow a precise trajectory— from the sky to the boy at the opposite of the room. you try to not stare too much, but you admit that you let yourself peek over at him from time to time.

the silence is quite deafening. you and him never talked much about anything that wasn’t school related. even then, you just tell each other who will top the other in the school’s ranks.

it’s during a time where you are not looking that his voice reaches you, making your blood stop in your veins, your heart jumps.

“why did you do that?” heeseung’s eyes don’t leave the floor he is cleaning as he asks. unlike you, he doesn’t stop in his frenetic movements.

your gape at him. saying that you are confused is an understatement, “what?”

this time, heeseung stops. taking a deep breath as he leans the sweep in his hand against the wall. watching him close his eyes and slide his hands in his pockets makes heat rise in your body.

his steps lead him to you when he opens his eyes again. how he presents himself in the decelis uniform distracts you so much, you don’t realize how close he is getting to you.

your eyes are fixated on the red and grey cravat. you wonder how he makes it seem so much more attractive that it looks on anyone else.

“the reason we are here in the first place,” you feel something in your stomach when he speaks again. he has gotten so close, you have to tilt your head up to see him properly.

the memory of what happened a few hours prior makes you look away in embarrassment. you bite your lip nervously as the image of him finding out about that appears in your brain.

still, you decide to feign pure ignorance, “i don’t know what you are talking about.”

you still don’t look at him as he gets closer, making you walk backwards. he doesn’t say anything for a while but you can feel his stare— although your gaze is fixated on the floor beside you.

he calls your name, still stepping closer. you look at the floor then at your other side, carefully avoiding any eye contact, “don’t lie to me, please.”

the way his body language contrasts with how pleading he sounds is utterly attractive.

“i know how smart you are,” he continues, praising you as his body oppresses your own. he corners you between a table and his tall frame as he continues, “so smart. i am sure you wouldn’t do bad on a question as simple as it was.”

your breath catches as he leans forward. he is obviously waiting for an answer but you can’t find enough strength in yourself to come up with one.

heeseung is so close. so much that his hands are on the furniture behind you, each one next to your hips. he is straight up jailing you with his body. you can’t breathe, you can’t escape.

“why did you write an wrong answer on purpose?” he explicit his question, even if he knows you understood it already. what you don’t really comprehend is how he expects you to say anything when he is so close. “c’mon, look at me.”

you take a moment before obliging. his eyes have never been this wide before. so lovely, so demanding. you want to melt.

and before you can stop yourself, your heart speaks for you, “i thought you would like it.”

it is like the world stops as soon as you talk. his eyes grow a tad wider— mirroring his surprise. it is definitely not what he was expecting, you can see it all over his face.

but heeseung is smart, not smarter than you are, but smarter than most. it takes him a few seconds to realize what you truly meant by that.

to be frank, you did think he’d prefer a girl that wasn’t like you. you still think the same, maybe if you weren’t always competing and winning against him, he’d see you for something else than a rival.

that’s the kind of girl he is usually seen with. girls that praise him.

heeseung for sure doesn’t think the same.

he leans back, finally letting you out of the jail he made. you can finally breathe properly, your chest heaves and relax— nervousness finally leaving your body.

it comes back like a boomerang. when you look at heeseung again. he is still close to you, way too close and the way he looks at you isn’t pleading anymore.

he doesn’t seem displeased by what he found out. not at all. he seems to like it a bit too much.

he tilts his head to the side, a grin growing on his face. it annoys a lot, how easy he can make you blush with his antics.

“it is what this is about?” he chuckles, now almost smirking down at you. he gets leans towards you again, his face a few inches away from yours. his breath is on your mouth and it makes you so warm all over. but you can’t look away from this beautiful sight.

“you are smart,” he praises again. butterflies in your stomach, you swear you might be doing heart eyes right now. “much smarter than i am and i find it hot,” you feel the need to lick your lips slightly when his gaze falls on them. “really hot, i don’t need you to make me feel smarter to like you.”

you can’t say anything back. your throat is well too dry to even think of it.

he keeps getting closer, his mouth brushes yours, “you are the only girl who challenges me and,” he is almost there. “i love it.”

taglist open + net— @sgz-net

#⠀𝑓 ⟡⠀命运’𝑠 ⠀#enhypen #enhypen x reader #enhypen imagines #enhypen fluff #enhypen headcanons #enhypen drabbles #enhypen oneshots #enhypen smau #heeseung #lee heeseung #heeseung x reader #heeseung fluff #heeseung imagines #enhypen heeseung

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euphoria-looney · 19 hours ago

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Who Said Money Can't Buy You Happiness?

Yan! Batfam x Princess!Reader

Special

"Mother said be good, father said be nice. That was always their advice. So be nice, [name], good, [name]. Nice, good, good nice (tighter!). What's the good of being good if everyone is blind. Always leaving you behind." Prologue: Into the Woods.

(I needed the full thing in it)

Divider Creds: @selysie and @anitalenia

This plot was inspired by @niwaart and @mimiiiiiiiiisstuff

Life is not fair, and while the rich eat like pigs the poor people eat scraps and still are charged no matter if they can afford it or not.

As a princess, I understood that.

I am labeled as the defective princess, the Imperial Princess of Gotham, [name] Wayne.

While all my siblings were intelligent and had strength, talent, and power that upstaged most people, I had none of that, I wasn't smart, actually, I was a complete dunce. I had no strength to my name and was disgracefully unable to use my magic, but I knew I had some...

I had to. Right?

My talent, probably being an embarrassment to my family name.

My mother, she also glanced at me with disgust, she made sure if I wasn't able to do anything useful I'll at least have etiquette while being useless.

I admired my mother, she was beautiful, graceful, sharp, and always upheld her image.

She sneers at me when I mess up, which is all the time, but we don't talk about that.

Oh gosh, and my siblings they were all so amazing.

Barbara held the same personality as our mother, she rose the social class fast. Too bad she doesn't talk to me, I think she would be a great person to take an example from!

Stephanie and Cassandra tagged behind Barbara. They were like those cool trios in the books.

Yes, I read books, but they don't count since they are all novels.

Damian berates me on the fact that I'm nothing like them, but it just shows he cares, doesn't it?

Dick will he coaches Damian he's the #1 Knight of our kingdom and woman all over swoon over him, he talks to me... sometimes.

Duke, well he's a gentleman we don't talk but he's nice enough to greet me.

Jason, well like those novels he'd be titled the 'bad boy' and it does in fact charm lots and lots of ladies.

Tim, it impresses me every time at how smart he is. Maybe that's why we don't have many conversations because I'm not on his level.

And my father, well, it's okay. He's the emperor of course he's busy, I can't ask for attention that would be so childish!

It's of course upsetting when they all hang out without me, but they're just letting me have more time to myself to read! If you think about it they just care about me.

I remember we went to an event, and I was alone and no one talked to me, but it's fine, that's when I met the love of my life, he was like a prince charming, I bumped into him and he caught me before I hit the floor, I swear I fell right then.

Connor Kent.

Then I found out he was in fact a prince! And I got lucky and arranged a marriage with him, he didn't seem as static, but it's okay, arranged marriages usually don't last anyway...

I don't know what took over me, but when they found this orphaned girl one day, out of nowhere, they adopted her, and that's when my life changed.

Serena.

It wasn't fair how she was the apple of everyone's eyes.

She was also clumsy and dumb, she didn't know how to use magic, just like me, but there was a fine line between us. For one I know etiquette and for two, I'm of royal blood.

But instead of also disliking her they doted on her. I let it go until Connor also started being attracted to her. I was enraged.

But kept to myself. I started writing things I felt like doing those things to her. Then slowly I started doing said things. But they were harmless! Mostly...

I always ended up getting caught every single time though.

I still did them though, I don't know I just felt like it, and then I started having dreams of this weird world, about a girl.

Her name, was just like mine, [name] [last name], and she's so cool!

It started off showing what kind of woman she was, a CEO, doctor, lawyer, but mainly an entrepreneur, I didn't know a woman could be in those fields. Also, what are some of those things?

Then those dreams.

"What a bast-, I can't with this main character! Oh and don't even get me started on the family, who wrote this?! And a poly relationship for what? Just for her to focus on one guy? That's it I'm balding. The only character I like is [name] but sometimes I wish she would just stand up for herself!"

Yes, for I found out she was just like me she also liked reading novels.

Her reactions to them were also quite funny, then one day I don't know why but I prayed to the Gods that I wanted to be just like her.

"Go hang yourself! Shitty ahh characters. Go suck a titty."

Okay, not exactly like her.

Then it was the next morning and the maids took a while to finally get me ready, I couldn't stand their murmuring about how terrible I was compared to Serena.

I wanted to rip my hair out when I heard her name.

Then I made an idiotic choice again, I shoved her while on the staircase.

Then my world went black before I woke up startled with NEW MEMORIES.

I had become [name] [last name].

But for some reason, I was smart, I knew how to manage her jobs…

5 years later

It's been, what, 5 years?

[name] was right to be cocky she had every right to be, I feel bad now that I stole her life.

[name] wherever you are I wish you the best.

I wanted to write this to show that both girls will get happy endings, and I rushed this because idk.

Anyway, thanks cuties for the interaction with my last post!

And again with the last post please give me constructive criticism!

Taglist -

@kittzu @charlenexoxo1 @bat1212 @silverklaus @sillysealsies

#platonic batfam #platonic yandere batfam #yandere batfamily #yandere batfam #yandere batfam x reader #yandere batfamily x reader #batfam x neglected reader

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doodledrawsthings · 2 days ago

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you. Oh my god, you. (Positive)

listen. Before I had internet access, all I had was 1 hour of allotted browser time, bing image search, and a single dantdm play through of a hat in time that never got finished. I googled fanart and got pretty much nothing, I googled fancomics and got pretty much nothing, but you know what I did end up finding?

your art.

from ages 11-14, my goal in life, in art, was your art. I can’t tell you how much I loved finding random screenshots of your posts, because I was always just so impressed by how clean and consistent your sketches are, how the characters always stay on model, the shape language, how you could somehow sketch a character in like 20 lines when it took me 50 to draw sans in my little spiral notebook— like! Holy shit! For years I have looked up to your art! There’s still a photos folder on my dads old huge-ass 12 inch work iPad labeled “holy crap” and filled with your art. Because it inspired me so much. It’s become an undeniable part of my artstyle, now — I still have fanart I drew way back in the day of Hattie and the rest, I didn’t even know anyone’s names because I couldn’t play the game, but you’re the reason I eventually did play the game. Your coffee shop au and different versions of the prince— one of those ieterations inspired the main character of my novel! Well, novel that I tried to write, I was 13 so it was eh, but I tried!!

I’m submitting this on-anon because I don’t want to out my age on the wide internet (I like my privacy) but. Your art has really meant a lot to me. It’s the reason I played hollow knight, and it’s the reason I kept trying to develop an art style I was happy with. You’re the reason I started scribbling comics in my notebooks. Being 13-14 was pretty much the worst two years of my life, but I had Bing image search and the occasional glimpse of your signature, and I’d be so happy every time I found a new (if crusty) three-times screenshotted jpg. You literally introduced me to the concept of polyamory and nonbinary-ness with the coffee shop au. I had no other access to that in my household, and. Yeah. It meant a lot to me.

Anyway. I’m so glad I’ve finally tracked you down (in the most non-ominous way possible) and I’m so glad you’re still active— Please never stop making art. Your art is incredible, and amazing, and also you never know who’s out there on Bing image search. Thank you for creating for as long as you have. You’re pretty much the reason I’m shooting for an art degree (Wish me luck!) so just…Thank you.

(Also I had no idea you were a professional storyboarder, which is insane because that’s what I want to be when I’m through college. Hey, maybe I’ll end up storyboarding a remake of something you’ve storyboarded! hehehe)

Hi anon!

So right off the bat, I gotta tell you that this message made me start bawling when I woke up and saw it. Like I had a full-on cry session while reading your message and lying in bed for almost an hour. I am crying as I am typing this response, on my phone, still in bed. It’s 11am and i woke up at 9. So I hope it turns out coherent.

The last two years have been. weird. I say that a lot because I wanna say “rough” but that still doesn’t feel quite right. I’m almost hyper-aware that there are so many people that have it worse than me rn, so it feels hard to even acknowledge when I’m going through anything, myself, sometimes- REGARDLESS, it’s been kind of an all-time low for my mental health. There was a point within in the last year where I just HATED drawing. I struggled to bring myself to work, I struggled to bring myself to even draw for fun. It felt like I was posting just to post, trying to keep people aware of my existence and it almost felt physically painful to force myself to sit down and do it, sometimes.

I’m getting better now, I think, but. Yknow.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the “oh I can make money off this,” “oh I can get attention off this,” “oh I can prove myself a functional person in society with this,” of it all. I forget why I actually do this, sometimes, or if I even enjoy it. And then I get messages like yours, about the kid with limited internet access looking for A Hat in Time fan art on Bing image search, and I get taken back to when I was a kid scrolling Google images and deviantart for the same thing.

I don’t mean to like. Foster some kind of parasocial thing with you or any one of my followers. There’s a reason I’m saying all this, I hope it ties up in the end.

We don’t know each other. I’m not some mysterious legendary artist, or whatever. I’m a person who gets burnt out, and jealous, and insecure. I need inspiration to function, just like you, and when I don’t have it, I get art block. But I also really like to draw fictional characters kissing and hanging out. I like coming up with comics and stories and playing out dramatic and funny scenarios in my head like I’m mashing Barbies together. And when other people tell me they enjoy the stuff I put out when I do this, it makes me really, really, really happy.

I think I needed to read your message, probably. With the state of… Everything… Right now, especially recently, I feel like a lot of artists are also struggling with a sense of purpose, pride, and reason as the world makes it harder and harder to even BE an artist, these days. And when I read this message it was like Anton Ego at the end of Ratatouille, I got taken back to when I was a kid looking at my favorite artists and studying their style and striving to be better and better at it over years of my life. Not just because I wanted a job for it or cuz I wanted to be a famous Disney animator or whatever, but because it was fun and I just liked doing it.

Thank you, SO much. I say this in the most genuine and earnest way I possibly can possibly express. I wish you luck on your own path in art and art school. And if you decide that animation industry is your thing, then I wish you the best in that endeavor, as well. I think I will keep making art for a long time.

Peace and love on the planet earth ✌️✌️✌️

#alright I gotta get up and start my day I’m still in bed it’s almost noon lmao #you really never know who’s out there on Bing image search #rainy days tag #starting a new tag I wanna keep this

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lilacchao · 1 day ago

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a source (of the original, not the becatted edit): https://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/artworks/julie-manet-100382

some interesting stuff about this painting, which it turns out there's a lot of:

according to this, renoir painted this as a commission for his close friends and painters berthe morisot and eugéne manet (lesser known brother of the famous édouard manet), of their child julie manet (age 9)! the impressionists were apparently a relatively tight-knit community, which i didn't know before :O

5 years later eugéne would die of ill health, and 3 years after that berthe would die of pneumonia contracted while treating julie's pneumonia, leaving her a 16-year-old orphan, writing a note the day before her death:

My little Julie, I love you as I die; I shall still love you when I am dead; I beg you not to cry, this parting was inevitable. I hoped to live until you were married ... Work and be good as you have always been; you have not caused me one sorrow in your little life. You have beauty, money; make good use of them ... Please give a remembrance to your Aunt Edma and to your cousins ...

after this, julie went to live with poet stéphane mallarmé with lots of support from renoir, who had raised 2 children decades earlier (one of whom died aged 15), and who then... died 3 years later, oh no...

julie manet herself married painter (and mathematician!) ernest rouart in 1900, introduced to her by degas (who apparently hated this painting, likening the face's depiction to a flower pot), had three children who have no wiki articles, and lived to the age of 87, dying in 1966 - she lived through the end of france's "long nineteenth century", seeing most of the french third republic, and lived through both world wars and died partway through the vietnam war

her diary was published (by whom? i think it was her, but i haven't seen anyone say explicitly) as 'growing up with the impressionists', and is an important (and apparenly very evocative) record of her life, the personal politics of impressionists like renoir who otherwise kept their views private (turns out they and she were very antisemitic, at least at the time!), and important historical events like the dreyfus affair (interestingly, a letter pointing out the french government's antisemitism in response to the dreyfus affair is the source of the use of "j'accuse" in english)

saying interesting stuff about this painting turned into an unexpectedly lengthy post, oops,,

The Cat with Julie Manet (detail), 1877

by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (French, 1841-1919)

#sourcing #trivia #i love wikidelving

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daryltwdixon · 2 days ago

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So could you write a pretty angst-y fic where Joel and reader are in an established relationship and they've been settled in Jackson for a while, taking part in patrols and all. And one day, reader and Tommy go out on patrol and they're taking longer than they should to come back and Joel is anxiously waiting by the gate. Then he sees Tommy approaching on his horse with reader's limp body in his arms and a scared look on his face. Reader's been badly hurt while saving Tommy's life. Joel thinks he's gonna lose her but thankfully she recovers (so happy ending!!!)

Thanks! I hope you can understand the general idea, English is not my first language so bear with me lol

first ever Joel request :') thank you anon!!!! had this in the draft for the past few days

The air bit at Joel’s face as he paced near the gate, his boots grinding against the frost-touched dirt. The sun had started to dip, its light staining the snow a faint amber, and still, there was no sign of them. He glanced at Maria, who stood a few feet away, her arms crossed and her expression tight.

“They’re late,” Joel muttered, more to himself than her.

“Give them time,” she replied evenly, though her voice carried no conviction.

Every nerve in Joel’s body felt like it was stretched thin, pulled taut by the silence. He wasn’t the type to panic—he’d seen too much, lost too much that he'd grown a thick skin—but this was different. You were different. And Tommy... Hell, he couldn’t let himself think about it.

When the sound of hooves finally broke the stillness, Joel’s head snapped toward the horizon. Relief flickered in his chest, but it was fleeting. The sight of Tommy riding toward the gates, his horse kicking up fresh snow, sent his stomach lurching.

You were slumped against Tommy’s chest, your body limp as a rag doll.

Tommy’s face was pale, his jaw tight. “Open the gate!” he shouted, urgency sharpening his voice.

Joel’s feet moved before his brain could catch up, his heart thundering like a war drum. His hands felt clumsy as he helped Maria shove the gate open, the cold metal biting into his palms.

“What the hell happened?” Joel demanded, his voice rising as Tommy reined the horse in.

“She—she saved me,” Tommy stammered, his breath fogging in the cold. “Raiders. She pushed me outta the way, Joel. Got hit bad—”

Joel didn’t hear the rest. His eyes were locked on you, on the blood soaking through your jacket and the way your head lolled against Tommy’s shoulder. He reached up, his hands trembling, and carefully took you from Tommy’s arms.

“Jesus, no—no, no, no,” Joel muttered under his breath, his voice cracking as he cradled you against him. You were too still, your face too pale, and the warmth of your blood seeped through his clothes.

Maria was shouting something about getting a stretcher, about calling for a doctor, but Joel barely registered it. He carried you toward the infirmary, his steps uneven and frantic.

“C’mon, baby,” he whispered, his voice breaking as he pressed his face to your hair. “Don’t you dare leave me. Don’t you dare.”

The hours that followed were a blur of blood-stained bandages, hushed voices, and Joel’s chest so tight he could barely breathe. He sat by your bedside, his hands gripping yours like they were the only thing tethering him to the earth.

You didn’t stir.

“You’re gonna be okay,” Joel rasped, his thumb brushing over your knuckles. His voice was low, hoarse. “You hear me? You’re gonna be fine. I’ll kill anyone who says otherwise.”

Joel hadn’t moved from the chair in hours. His back ached, his legs felt stiff, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. The only thing grounding him was the steady, rhythmic rise and fall of your chest.

The infirmary was quiet now, save for the faint hum of the heater. The blood had been cleaned off your skin, the deep wound on your side stitched and wrapped. But the pale cast to your face still gnawed at him, clawing at the frayed edges of his composure.

“C’mon,” he murmured, his voice low. His fingers brushed a strand of hair from your face. “You’ve fought through worse, haven’t you? Don’t make me sit here and talk to myself like a damn fool.”

He didn’t realize he’d drifted off until he felt your fingers twitch in his. It was subtle—barely there—but it sent a jolt through him. His head shot up, his heart hammering as your lashes fluttered.

“Hey,” he breathed, standing so quickly the chair scraped against the floor. He leaned over you, his hand cupping your cheek as your eyes cracked open. “Hey, there you are. You’re awake.”

You blinked sluggishly, your gaze trying to focus on his face. “Joel?”

“Yeah, baby, it’s me.” His voice cracked, his forehead lowering to press against yours for a long moment. His breath was shaky, his hands trembling as they cupped your face.

Then—in a move that to anyone but you that knew Joel would be uncharacteristic—he kissed your temple, your cheek, the corner of your mouth—his lips lingering as if trying to will you back to life.

But the reprieve didn’t last. When he pulled back, the familiar furrow of his brow returned, and his jaw tightened.

“What the hell were you thinkin’?” he growled, stepping back just enough to meet your eyes. The raw edge of his voice sliced through the haze of your exhaustion. “Throwin’ yourself in front of Tommy like that? You tryin’ to get yourself killed?”

The gruffness in his tone didn’t surprise you—it was Joel’s way of dealing with fear. But the storm in his eyes made your throat tighten.

“Tommy—he… needed help,” you rasped, your voice weak.

“I don’t give a damn what the excuse is,” Joel snapped, his hand raking through his hair. He paced to the foot of the bed, then back to your side, his frustration barely contained. “You think I can just sit here and watch you—watch you almost…” His voice broke, and he turned away, rubbing a hand over his face.

Your heart twisted at the sight. Joel Miller wasn’t a man who wore his heart on his sleeve, but here he was, raw and undone.

“Joel,” you whispered.

He turned back to you, his jaw tight. “You don’t get to do that,” he said, his voice low but firm. “You don’t get to make that choice for me. For us.”

The weight of his words settled between you, and you reached out, your fingers brushing his hand. He hesitated for a moment before taking your hand in his, holding it tightly like it was the only thing tethering him to sanity.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” you murmured.

“Well, you did. You scared the hell outta me,” he shot back, though his grip on your hand softened. “Don’t ever do that again. You hear me?”

You managed the faintest of smiles, your lips quirking despite the ache in your body. “Bossy.”

Joel let out a low, humorless laugh, shaking his head. “Damn right I’m bossy. And you’d better start listenin’.”

For a moment, the room was silent except for the hum of the heater and the quiet, shaky breaths Joel took to calm himself. He sank back into the chair, his head bowing as he rested his forehead against your joined hands.

“You’re stuck with me,” you whispered, echoing the words he’d once said to you.

Joel huffed, "Got that right.”

When he lifted his head, his eyes were softer, though the tension in his jaw hadn’t fully eased. He kissed your knuckles again, lingering for a moment.

“I mean it,” he muttered, his voice gruff but tender. “Don’t scare me like that again. I can’t…” He trailed off, the words hanging heavy in the air.

“I’ll try,” you said softly, your fingers brushing against his.

“That’s all I’m askin’,” Joel replied, his lips twitching into a small, reluctant smile.

He stayed there, his chair pulled close to your bedside, his hand never leaving yours. And for the first time in hours, the storm inside him began to quiet.

#Joel miller #Joel Miller x you #Joel Miller angst #Joel Miller x reader #requests #the last of us #tlou #the last of us fanfic #Joel Miller drabble #tlou drabble #the last of us one shot

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heartsriki · 2 days ago

Text

A KEYCHAIN FOR TWO ⌇불꽃

pairing ᝰ ni-ki x fem!reader — featuring.. everyone but hee, srry pook :( | word count: 6.3k+

⌇ … warnings & genre ↺ highschool au, small love triangle, moving cities, a little rivals to lovers (sort of), riki is a jerk sometimes, kissing, fluff, a lil angst, misunderstood feelings, lots of bickering, cussing, drama vibes.

synopsis — after moving to a new city, you worry about the rest of your high school years being spent alone. your worries are immediately shut down as you meet a cute aussie next door and his chaotic group of friends. you all got along, well, everyone besides you and riki.

lee's ₊˚⊹ ᰔ comment ┊whoever knows where that keychain is from get a kiss... also this took so long to write bc I didn't know where I wanted it to go but I think it ended up cute??? hope you like it!

You never expected your high school years to go like this. It was nearing the end of your 10th-grade year, and out of nowhere, your parents decided to move far away from your hometown. You were afraid. You wouldn’t have your friends or family with you anymore, and the farther you drove from home, the more emotional you felt.

Your dad glanced at you through the rear-view mirror. “What’s with the long face, huh?” he asked, returning his attention to the road.

You didn’t respond. Even though you knew moving was better for your parents for reasons they wouldn’t tell you, you still felt upset.

“Don’t be too mad, sweetheart. You can start fresh here! The education in this city is one of the best!” your mom said enthusiastically as she turned around.

You rolled your eyes, huffing as you turned your gaze back to the view outside the window.

After the long drive, you finally arrived at your new home. The car pulled into the driveway, and you examined the house. It had two floors and looked brand new; the rising sun complimented the lush greenery around it. Your parents excitedly stepped out of the car to admire their home and immediately went to the trunk to unpack.

You stayed inside the car with your arms crossed, still feeling stubborn, until your dad opened your door. “The moving truck won’t be here until the afternoon, but you can go pick out your room,” he said with an encouraging smile and a nod.

That made you happy. You hopped out of the car and jogged to the front door. “Don’t get mad if I pick the master bedroom!” you yelled playfully, looking back before opening the door.

You didn’t spend much time exploring downstairs. Instead, you skipped up the stairs, humming, and made your way down the hall. The first room was small, and the second was way too big.

When you opened the door to the last room, you paused to look around. It was cozy and—

Your train of thought was interrupted by a thud against the window. Slowly, you crept toward it and looked out, spotting a boy halfway out of his window, waving at you. Raising an eyebrow, you opened your window.

“Hey! What’s your name?!” the boy shouted from across the way.

You glanced side to side, then back at him. He had long black hair, an accent, and probably the most gorgeous smile you’d ever seen. “Uh—it’s Y/N!” you shouted back, giggling.

He nodded. “Y/N… That’s cool! My name’s Jake! Are you new to the town?”

You laughed pointing at your parent unloading the car. “Yeah! Pretty obvious don't you think?”

He pouted as he looked at the car, putting a hand on his chest in embarrassment before turning back to you. “Want me to show you around the neighborhood!?”

From that day, you and Jake quickly became friends. You learned that he attended the same school you’d be going to after summer break. You were happy, though that happiness dimmed a bit when you found out he was a junior who is now becoming a senior, which meant he wouldn’t be around for long.

Still, you pushed that thought aside. Over the summer, Jake took you all around town—restaurants, parks, arcades, PC rooms, shops, and even the school you’d be attending. You were practically attached at the hip. He was fun, funny, and smart. You had to admit, he was quickly becoming part of your everyday routine.

By the end of the summer, your small town already felt less intimidating. Slowly, your resentment about the move started to fade. Jake made everything feel easier like the town wasn’t just a place you moved to but a place where you could belong.

When he wasn’t around, you’d find yourself wondering what he was doing. Would school change everything? You didn’t know, but you’d grown attached to him in a way you didn’t know yourself.

Everything went well—until the start of the new school year.

“There’s no way I have to wear this,” you said, picking at your school uniform.

Jake laughed, throwing his basketball up and down. “Come on, you look fine. Besides, every other girl is wearing it too,” he said, half truthfully and half mockingly.

You rolled your eyes at him and started to pack up. “Let’s go before we miss the bus,” you said, putting your headphones on.

Jake groaned from your bed, slowly falling off of it. “Being late doesn’t sound so bad.”

You glared at him, and he quickly stood up, grabbing his things as well.

The walk to the bus was quiet. When you both got on, he spotted one of his other friends and sat down next to them. He invited you to join, but you waved him off. You needed to clear your mind before the start of your 11th year.

You turned up your music and drifted away, watching the scenery pass by.

After a while, the bus neared the stop around your school. You were still out of it and didn’t notice everyone wearing the same uniform as you.

From the back of the bus, a boy in your uniform glanced at you for a second before walking toward the front. He didn’t wake you up until he reached the driver.

“Hey, kid, doesn’t she go to your school?” the driver asked, nodding toward the mirror.

The boy removed one of his headphones and turned to look at you. “How should I know?” he said with a shrug.

The driver made an annoyed face. “Just wake her up, will you? Hurry.”

He groaned and turned back. “Seriously, this is so annoying. Who falls asleep on a bus?” he muttered to himself.

He made his way to you and nudged you, but you didn’t budge. That’s when he grabbed your shoulder and shook you roughly. You yelped and looked at him, but he quickly turned around and got off the bus.

You looked around and realized what had happened. “Oh great, that’s just perfect,” you huffed, quickly adjusting your bag and sprinting to get off the bus.

Once you got off, you realized you had no clue how to get to the school from this area. That’s when you spotted the same boy walking in a direction. You noticed he was wearing the same uniform as you and quickly followed behind him.

“Hey, how do we get to school from here?” you asked, walking beside him.

He looked at you before turning away, ignoring you.

You scoffed and tried again. “Did you hear me?”

He ignored you once more and checked his phone. After glancing at the time, he cursed under his breath and started running.

That made you look at your phone too. You saw it was five minutes before curfew. “Oh shoot!”

You ran behind him, struggling to keep up with his long strides. You both ran until he suddenly stopped. You came to a halt beside him, ready to ask what was wrong, but then you saw it. The entrance monitor was holding a group of late students.

You almost freaked out, but before you could, the boy threw his bag over the fence and started climbing it.

You rushed to the fence and looked up at him. “Help me too!” you whisper-yelled.

He looked down at you with a squint, and you caught a glimpse of his name tag: Nishimura Riki. So that’s his name.

“Why the hell would I help you?” he clicked his tongue and hopped to the other side, leaving you stranded.

You almost got angry, but then you heard footsteps approaching. You knew it was over.

Jake laughed at you. “Are you serious? That’s hilarious! I’m surprised they let you off that easy.”

You glared at him, holding your head in your hands from your desk. Jake had come to visit you in your classroom, which caused a stir among the students. Seniors rarely showed up in this area.

“Haha, very funny. You just left me stranded, you jerk.”

He raised his hands in defense. “Whoa, hey, don’t blame me! Anyway, who was that guy—” Jake glanced at the clock. “Never mind. Class is starting, and I’m not in the mood to get in trouble. See you at lunch?”

You gave him a sweet smile and a small nod. “Sure.”

After he left, two girls turned around in their seats and looked at you. “Is he your boyfriend?”

Your eyes widened, and you shook your head. “No, no, no, of course not—he’s just, y’know…”

“Oh, whoops,” the girls giggled and turned back around talking about how cute he was.

You sighed, resting your head on your desk. Your first day was already a mess.

When the lunch bell rang, students quickly dispersed around the school. You wandered aimlessly, not knowing where to go until someone bumped into you from behind. He stumbled a bit before looking at you in surprise.

“My bad, I didn’t see you. Are you okay?”

You nodded, then noticed Jake beside him.

“Hey, man! Oh, Y/N! I was looking for you. This is Jay. Jay, this is Y/N,” Jake introduced.

Jay grinned and waved. “Hey.”

“Anyway, let’s go meet the rest of the guys. Come on—the stall might be out of snacks by now.”

As you walked behind them, you giggled at their silly arguments. Eventually, you reached a small, tree-shielded area where three guys were already sitting.

“About time,” said a blonde-haired guy. “Who’s this?”

“This is Y/N. Y/N, that’s Sunoo. The other two are Jungwon and Sunghoon,” Jake said.

They nodded and greeted you, and you waved shyly.

“Wow, there are so many of you,” you said with a smile.

Jake laughed, sitting down beside Sunghoon, who was already eating. “Well, one of us already graduated, and the other—hey, where is he?”

Jungwon shrugged. “Late as always—oh, there he is.”

Everyone turned around, but you didn’t realize what was happening until you backed up, startled by someone’s presence.

You looked up and saw him—the guy from the bus. Riki, wasn’t it? He was covered in milk.

You gasped. “I am so, so sorry! I had no idea you were—”

“It’s whatever. I’ll see you guys later,” he mumbled, turning to leave.

You winced and looked back at Jake, who seemed just as shocked.

“Don’t worry, he’s always like this,” Jake said, waving it off.

Since then, you got to know the group very well. They became your closest friends. You barely saw Riki, though, and the others said he was just shy. Still, you couldn’t shake the feeling that he didn’t like you very much.

A few weeks had passed since you joined Jake’s friend group, and while you’d grown close to most of them, Riki remained distant. Every time you tried to talk to him, he would brush you off or give one-word answers. At first, it annoyed you, but now, it just made you curious.

One afternoon, as the group sat together under the trees, you noticed Riki sitting off to the side, headphones on, scrolling through his phone. Sunoo was telling a funny story about something that had happened in class, and everyone was laughing, but Riki didn’t even glance up.

You leaned over to Jake and whispered, “Does he ever, like, talk to anyone?”

Jake chuckled. “Riki? Not really. He’s like that with everyone unless you’re Sunoo. They’re really close.”

You glanced at Riki again. He looked so unapproachable, but that only made you more determined. “I’m gonna go talk to him,” you said, standing up.

Jake raised an eyebrow. “Good luck.”

You walked over and sat down a few feet away from Riki, not wanting to invade his space. He didn’t acknowledge you, so you cleared your throat.

“What are you listening to?” you asked, trying to sound casual.

He slid one headphone off and looked at you, clearly unimpressed. “Music.”

You rolled your eyes. “Obviously. What kind of music?”

He sighed as if the question was the most exhausting thing he’d heard all day. “Why do you care?”

“Because I’m trying to be friendly,” you said, crossing your arms.

“Well, don’t.” He put his headphones back on and turned away.

You stared at him in disbelief. For some reason, his attitude stung more than it should have. Frustrated, you stood up and walked back to the group. Jake gave you a knowing look, “You'll grow on him, trust.”

Despite the occasional moments of civility between you and Riki, he still acted like you were more of a nuisance than anything else. Every interaction with him was a balancing act—sometimes he’d make a snide comment or ignore you entirely, and other times, you’d catch him glancing at you with an unreadable expression.

One day, during gym class, you were paired up with Riki for a partner relay. The teacher’s decision seemed to irritate him immediately.

“Seriously? Out of everyone here, I have to be paired with you?” he muttered under his breath as the two of you walked to your starting position.

“Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence,” you replied, rolling your eyes. “You’re not exactly my first choice either.”

He shot you a glare but didn’t say anything else.

The relay involved passing a baton and running a few laps. You were doing fine until it was your turn to hand the baton off to Riki. As you reached him, your grip slipped, and the baton fell to the ground.

“Are you kidding me?” he snapped, snatching it up and taking off without waiting for you to respond.

After the race, he stormed up to you, his dark eyes narrowed. “Do you even know how to hold a baton? Or were you just trying to embarrass me?”

“Relax,” you said, wiping sweat from your forehead. “It was an accident. Maybe if you weren’t so busy staring at me, you could’ve caught it better.”

He scoffed, shaking his head. “You’re unbelievable.”

You felt your cheeks heat with frustration as he walked away, leaving you standing there, fuming.

Later that week, during lunch, you accidentally bumped into a senior in the crowded cafeteria, causing their tray to spill. The student glared at you, their voice dripping with irritation.

“Watch where you’re going,” they snapped, their tone loud enough to draw attention.

“I’m really sorry,” you said, bending down to help clean up the mess.

Before you could finish, the seniors crossed their arms. “Do you even know how expensive this food is? You better pay me back.”

You opened your mouth to respond, but someone beat you to it.

“She said she’s sorry. Let it go,” Riki’s voice cut in, sharp and cold.

You looked up to see him standing a few feet away, his hands in his pockets and his gaze fixed on the senior.

The senior sneered. “And who are you supposed to be? Watch who you’re talking to, I’m your senior”

“I don’t care,” Riki replied, stepping closer. “Just take the apology and move on.”

The senior hesitated, clearly debating whether or not to escalate the situation, but Riki’s icy stare seemed to do the trick. With a huff, they turned and walked away.

You stood up, brushing off your hands. “Thanks, I guess.”

“Don’t thank me,” Riki said, avoiding your gaze. “I just didn’t want to watch you make a fool of yourself.”

“Right,” you muttered, annoyed by his tone. “You’re such a hero.”

He rolled his eyes and walked off, leaving you standing there with mixed emotions.

That was the back-and-forth limbo you and Riki had. It slowly got better up until the end of the year. Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, and Jungwon were all graduating, and they decided they wanted their last hangout to be at a huge festival a good distance away from the city. With permission from your parents, you were allowed to go. You decided that after all this time, you would definitely confess to Jake since you admittedly had a crush on him ever since he showed you around the city. What other chance would you get? If you didn’t tell him before he left, you’d seriously hate yourself.

You were sitting in your room packing your bag when you heard the familiar thud of your window. You rolled your eyes and turned around to see Jake and, surprisingly, Riki too. Though Riki looked shocked to see you—maybe Jake hadn’t told him that you were neighbors. You opened your window.

“What is it, Jake?” you asked.

“Everyone’s done packing. Are you ready?”

You looked around your room. “Yeah, I just finished. Are we seriously taking the train?”

Jake rolled his eyes. “Do you prefer we take a million buses instead?”

Riki groaned at the playful bickering Jake was having with you and checked his phone. “Let’s go.”

Jake nodded and yelled something at you before closing his window. Then he turned to Riki. “Hey, real quick, let me ask you something.”

Riki raised an eyebrow and stopped in his tracks. “Okay?”

Jake took a deep breath. “Do you like Y/N?”

Riki’s eyes widened, and then he scoffed. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

Jake awkwardly laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. “My bad. It’s just… it’s been months now, and you still act… weird around her. I thought something was up.”

Riki stayed quiet, looking at Jake.

“You should give her a chance. She’s cool.”

Riki remained silent, examining Jake before turning around and leaving.

Everyone met up at the train station and hopped on, finding seats where they could all fit. Everyone paired off, and you hoped to sit with Jake, but as you walked up to the last person without a partner, you realized it was Riki, not Jake. He looked up at you and exhaled, realizing the same thing. He sat up and put his headphones in.

You sat down next to him and did the same, turning on your playlist for the ride and opening a book to pass the time.

Eventually, you nodded off. Riki didn’t notice until he felt a soft nudge on his shoulder. He glanced at you and saw you sleeping soundly against him. He was about to move you off when you adjusted yourself, getting even closer. His ears turned bright red, and he coughed, looking around to make sure no one was watching. He looked back at you and smiled for a brief moment before catching himself and nudging your head away.

When you arrived, everyone was excited about exploring the new city. You went sightseeing, exploring the beautiful greens and skyscrapers when you walked around. That was until you found the famous amusement park and headed inside. Everyone stopped at the gift shop by the entrance to browse. Jay and Jungwon got matching headbands, and Sunghoon and Jake argued over accessories in the corner while Sunoo was adjusting his hair in the mirror.

You looked around for something to buy and ended up spotting a keychain that matched the color of your bag. You loved it, It was perfect but you checked the price and immediately put it down, opting for a headband instead. You looked back at it and pouted. You should've brought more money.

After leaving the gift shop, the group decided to split up again to explore the park more efficiently. Jay, Sunghoon, and Sunoo ran off to check out the go-karts, while Jungwon and Jake insisted on getting on the water ride. That left you and Riki standing awkwardly near the haunted house.

“Guess it’s just us,” you said with a small shrug.

Riki shoved his hands into his pockets, looking thoroughly unimpressed. “Yeah. Great.”

You narrowed your eyes at him. “You know, you could at least pretend to enjoy hanging out with me.”

“I’m here, aren’t I?” he said flatly.

You sighed, deciding it wasn’t worth arguing. “Fine. Let’s just go in.”

The line for the haunted house was surprisingly short, and soon you were walking into the dark, eerie entrance. The atmosphere was perfect—dim lighting, fake cobwebs, and eerie sound effects played from hidden speakers.

The first jump scare came from a man dressed as a zombie who popped out of a hidden panel in the wall. You screamed and instinctively grabbed Riki’s arm. He froze at the contact, glancing down at your hand before quickly pulling his arm away.

“Scared already?” he teased, though his voice lacked the usual bite.

“I wasn’t scared,” you lied, brushing it off as you continued walking.

The next scare involved a ghoul lunging out from behind a curtain. This time, Riki flinched slightly but tried to play it off. You noticed and couldn’t help but smirk.

“You sure you’re not scared?” you asked, mimicking his earlier tone.

“I’m not,” he grumbled, but his defensive tone made you giggle.

As the haunted house went on, the scares became more intense. At one point, a person dressed as a ghost followed you for what felt like forever. You clung to Riki’s sleeve without realizing it, muttering under your breath about how creepy it was.

When you finally made it out of the haunted house, you let out a relieved laugh. “Okay, that was actually terrifying.”

Riki didn’t say anything at first, his gaze focused on the ground. When he finally spoke, his voice was quieter than usual. “You weren’t much of a wussy as I thought you’d be”

You tilted your head, confused by the comment. “What? I screamed, like, five times in there.”

“Yeah, but… you didn’t freak out as much as I thought you would.”

“Was that supposed to be a compliment?” you asked, laughing softly.

Riki shrugged, but there was a faint flush to his cheeks as he muttered, “Maybe.”

That moment with Riki was shortly lived as the others found you. You guys were wandering around the park for a while, someone suggested riding the biggest roller coaster there. The excitement in the group was palpable—well, for everyone except Sunoo.

“I’m not doing that,” Sunoo declared, crossing his arms as he looked up at the towering, twisting structure. The screams of riders echoed across the park. “That looks like a death trap.”

Jay smirked, nudging him. “What’s the matter? Afraid you’ll mess up your hair?”

“I’m afraid of dying, genius,” Sunoo shot back, glaring.

“Come on, Sunoo, it’s just one ride!” Jake encouraged, grinning.

“I’ll sit this one out, thanks.”

Jungwon groaned, rubbing his temples. “Fine, you can hold our bags. But we’re not letting you skip every ride.”

The rest of you got in line, Sunoo begrudgingly following along to take everyone’s belongings. While waiting, Jake kept the energy up by teasing Sunghoon, who was unusually quiet as the ride loomed closer.

“You’re nervous, aren’t you?” Jake grinned. “Sunghoon’s scared!”

“I’m not scared,” Sunghoon grumbled. “I’m just… mentally preparing.”

“You mean mentally panicking,” Jay quipped, earning a laugh from the group.

When it was finally your turn, you all piled into the cars. You ended up seated next to Jake, while Riki sat with Sunghoon, and Jay and Jungwon paired up behind you. The car began its slow ascent, the clicking of the chain pulling it higher and higher.

“Why do I let you guys talk me into this stuff?” you muttered, gripping the bar in front of you.

Jake laughed. “Because you secretly love it.”

Before you could respond, the car reached the peak, pausing just long enough for you to see the entire park stretched out below. Then, it plummeted.

The screams were deafening. You yelled along with everyone else as the car whipped around corners, climbed steep hills, and dove into sharp drops. In the spur of the moment, Jake grabbed your hand in fear but you took it in another way.

Somewhere behind you, Jay and Jungwon were whooping loudly, while Riki’s distinct “What the hell?!” cut through the chaos.

When the ride finally screeched to a halt, you stumbled off, legs shaky but adrenaline pumping.

“That was insane!” Jake said, practically bouncing.

“I think I lost my soul back there,” Sunghoon muttered, his face pale as he leaned against a nearby railing.

“Riki looked like he was about to cry,” Jay teased, earning a glare from him.

“I did not,” Riki snapped.

You couldn’t help but laugh at their bickering as you all regrouped with Sunoo, who had been watching from a safe distance.

“Did you see Sunghoon’s face when it dropped?” Sunoo asked, laughing as he handed everyone their bags.

“Don’t even start,” Sunghoon grumbled, still recovering.

Despite the teasing, everyone was in good spirits as you walked to the next ride. It was one of those rare moments where the whole group felt completely in sync, the laughter echoing between you all as the sun began to dip lower in the sky.

The night sky began to settle over the park, casting a soft glow from the flickering lights of the rides. It was unanimously decided that the last stop for the group would be the Ferris wheel. Everyone paired off, and once again, fate (or misfortune, as Riki would claim) left you with him.

“Seriously, this is getting creepy now,” Riki muttered as he stepped into the cart, his hands shoved into his pockets.

“Shut up,” you grumbled, climbing in after him and sitting as far from him as possible.

The ride started with a lurch, pulling your cart upward, and with it came silence that neither of you dared to break. You both sat with your attention fixed on the window, the glowing lights of the amusement park sprawling below like a dream.

Your mind raced, running through the confession you’d been rehearsing for weeks now. After this ride, the fireworks would begin, and it would be the perfect moment to tell Jake how you felt. You could already picture it: the brilliant colors of the sky with fireworks, the spark in his eyes, and—hopefully—his mutual feelings.

Riki, on the other hand, was struggling with something of his own. His fingers fidgeted with a small keychain tucked in his palm, the same one he saw you admiring in the gift shop earlier. He wasn’t sure why he bought it, but the idea of giving it to you now felt almost unbearable. What was he supposed to say? Why did he even care?

The silence stretched on until he noticed you pulling a crumpled piece of paper out of your pocket.

“What’s that?” he asked, breaking the quiet.

You glanced at him briefly before looking back at the paper. “None of your business.”

He raised an eyebrow, leaning forward slightly. “Seriously? Just tell me.”

You hesitated, chewing your lip. “Promise you won’t tell?”

He shrugged but gave a quick nod.

You sighed, holding the paper tighter. “It’s… my confession speech. To Jake.”

Riki froze, his gaze flickering from your face to the paper in your hands.

“I was planning to confess after this ride,” you admitted softly, a small, nervous smile playing on your lips. “I’ve been working on this for weeks. It’s kind of embarrassing, but… I just thought it’d be the perfect time, y’know?”

Riki stayed quiet, his chest tightening as he clenched the keychain in his hand. You went on, explaining your plan in detail—the timing, the words, how you’d muster the courage to pour your heart out. But his thoughts drowned out your voice.

Why Jake?

He snapped back to reality when he noticed your voice falter. Following your gaze, he leaned forward to see what had caught your attention. Down below, standing near one of the snack stalls, was Jake. But he wasn’t alone.

You froze.

Jake leaned in, pressing a kiss to another girl’s lips, his hand resting casually on her waist.

The world seemed to tilt on its axis. You stared, unable to look away, your chest tightening painfully as reality crashed down.

“I should’ve known,” you whispered, your voice barely audible. “Of course…”

Your vision blurred as tears began to well up, but before they could spill, a hand gently grabbed your face and turned it away.

“Look,” Riki said softly, guiding your gaze to the horizon.

The first firework burst into the night sky, a brilliant explosion of color that lit up the cart. More followed, painting the sky in shimmering reds, blues, and gold.

Riki didn’t let go of your face for a moment, watching you instead of the display. He hoped the fireworks would be enough to distract you, to erase the image of Jake. But when your shoulders began to shake, his breath caught.

Tears silently rolled down your cheeks, and Riki froze, unsure of what to do. His arms twitched, hovering awkwardly as if he wanted to comfort you but didn’t know how. He moved his hands from cleaning your tears to your shoulders, now rubbing them.

“Don’t cry,” he mumbled, his voice unsteady. “It’s not worth it.”

You didn’t respond, wiping at your cheeks hastily as the cart slowly descended. By the time the ride ended, your tears had dried, and you stepped out without a word, walking back toward the group as if nothing had happened.

Riki followed behind, his hands shoved deep in his pockets, the keychain still tucked tightly in his fist. He didn’t know why it made him so angry seeing you like this, but it did. For the rest of the night, he watched you from a distance, wishing he could say something—anything—to make it better.

But he stayed silent.

And the keychain stayed hidden.

After the happy persona you displayed in front of the group that night, you stayed tucked away in your room. Occasionally, your friends would text, asking where you were and if you were okay. In reality, you weren’t. Nobody knew what you saw on the Ferris wheel or how it made you feel—except Riki. It was mortifying, honestly. You felt so stupid.

Sometimes, you’d hear the familiar sound of pebbles hitting your window. You didn’t need to think to know who it was. How could you face him now? Could you even say anything? Hopefully Riki didn’t tell him, he wouldn’t.

As you lay in bed, slowly succumbing to your thoughts, you heard a soft knock at your door. You assumed it was your mom—she’d been trying to get you out of your room for days, though nothing had worked. That’s what you thought, anyway.

The door creaked open slowly. Instead of your mom, a familiar face peeked in. “It’s me.”

You jumped at the sight of him and quickly straightened up in bed, fixing your hair and rubbing your eyes. “Riki? Why are you here?”

He smiled softly and stepped inside, his eyes wandering around your room, taking in the unfamiliar space. Finally, he looked back at you.

“You know why,” he said, sitting down beside you. He placed a paper bag on the bed and began to open it.

The bag was filled with snacks and your favorite meal. Your heart swelled at the gesture. “Riki…”

“You like this, right? You always ate it during lunch,” he said, shoving the bowl toward you and looking away slightly, his ears tinged red.

A small laugh escaped your lips, and his eyes snapped back to you, his expression softening at the sight of your smile. As you opened the bowl and settled more comfortably, he cleared his throat, as if preparing to speak.

“Are you okay?” he asked gently.

You stiffened but forced a small smile, poking at your food with your fork. “I don’t know. It was pretty dumb of me to start crushing on our senior, right?” You laughed nervously, trying to play it off.

“I don’t think so,” he replied, opening a snack. “Feelings are complicated. We can’t control them.”

His eyes found yours, holding your gaze with an intensity that made your breath hitch. “I would know,” he whispered.

The sincerity in his voice and the way his eyes softened in the warm glow of your room made you quickly look away, your face heating up.

The two of you sat in comfortable silence. Unlike others who tried to console you by distracting you, Riki stayed, grounding you with his quiet presence. He didn’t try to fix anything. He simply let you exist, and it was exactly what you needed.

His eyes wandered, landing on a piece of paper on your desk. Curiosity piqued, he leaned forward to grab it.

“Don’t touch that!” you yelped, grabbing his arm to stop him.

In your haste, you accidentally pulled him toward you. He landed on top of you, and the room fell silent as the weight of the situation settled over you both. You expected him to pull away immediately, but he didn’t. Instead, his eyes met yours, searching, as if trying to understand what you were thinking.

Moments later, he lowered his head onto your shoulder, wrapping his arms around your waist in a loose hug.

“Riki…?” you whispered.

“Hm?” he hummed, his voice muffled.

“You’re squishing me,” you muttered.

He quickly sat up, brushing himself off and clearing his throat, his face flushed. He ran a hand through his hair before glancing back at you.

“Sorry—I don’t know what that was,” he said, his voice awkward as he got up. “I’ll, uh, head out so you can enjoy the food. No more skipping school, okay? They—we—miss you.”

He walked toward the door, pausing with his hand on the knob. “You left something in the bag,” he added with a small smile before stepping out.

Raising an eyebrow, you checked the bag again. At the bottom, you found a small blue box. Your heart raced as you picked it up, inspecting it carefully before opening it. Inside was a keychain you’d desperately wanted from the gift shop.

Underneath it, a folded note read:

I didn’t know how to give this to you, so yeah. Don’t lose it or I’ll beat you up. – N.R.

Your heart sped up as you held the keychain. How had he known you wanted this? You stood, conflicted thoughts swirling in your head.

At first, you thought Riki was cold and distant. But now, looking back at the past few months—the festival, the Ferris wheel, the way he held your gaze under the fireworks—you realized just how wrong you were. Riki… You overlooked him for too long.

Without another thought, you grabbed a coat and ran out the door. Had he really walked home in this weather without a jacket?

The icy night air stung your exposed skin, but you didn’t care. You sprinted down the street, your breath visible as you called his name in your head.

Riki walked slowly down the street, his thoughts lost until the sound of hurried footsteps pulled him back to reality. He turned, wide-eyed, as you stopped a few feet away, breathless and disheveled.

“Riki… it’s freezing. Are you an idiot?” you panted, draping your coat over his shoulders.

He blinked, startled, before laughing softly. “You chased me just for this?”

You pouted at his teasing, pulling the keychain from your pocket. “How did you know I wanted this?”

He froze, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. “I-I don’t know.”

“You do know. Why did you get it?”

“I… don’t know that either.”

“You know that too,” you said quietly, stepping closer. Your eyes flickered to his lips before meeting his nervous gaze.

The cold night air bit at your skin, your breath visible in soft clouds as you stood beneath the flickering streetlight. Riki’s hands found yours, his fingers warm despite the chill, and for a moment, he just looked at you—his gaze intense, pulling you in like gravity.

Without a word, he leaned in, the world falling silent except for the faint crunch of leaves under his shoes. His lips pressed against yours, soft and unhurried, yet full of unspoken emotion. The cold melted away in an instant, replaced by the warmth of him, his touch grounding you as his hand gently cradled your face.

Time felt like it stopped. It wasn’t rushed, it wasn’t tentative—it was deliberate, like he wanted to make sure this moment stayed with you forever. When he pulled back, his breath mingled with yours in the cold air, his forehead resting against yours, leaving you dizzy and breathless.

“Here, open your hand,” you said pulling away and he did questionably. He felt something being placed in his hand, he stopped admiring you and looked at his hand to see a keychain, similar to yours but a different color.

“When did you—“

“I returned my headband and bought it after the festival as a thank you for the incident in the ferris wheel, look, we can match!” You said grabbing his keychain and holding it next to yours.

He grinned at you, putting an arm over your shoulder to drop you off back home.

His keychain ended up being a keychain for two.

BONUS 𝜗𝜚˚⋆

“Ha! I told you, where is my money sunghoon~“ Sunoo exclaimed clapping his hands.

They promised Riki they would drive away after he was dropped off but.. Sunghoon decided to place a bet.

Sunghoon deadpanned as he watched you run out of the house to chase after Riki. “Okay, how was I supposed to know they liked each other with the way they were acting.” He grumbled giving Sunoo money.

Sunoo flapped the money in his hands smiling. “It was very obvious if you looked closely.”

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