#but just going through the band stories I was interested in was enough to have them gain my intrigue

[aidaronan]

The years go by. The retail jobs that Steve thinks are temporary keep piling up, but he has no idea what else to do with his life so he just keeps on keeping on.

Until a large tree falls on the lawn of the little house he managed to buy and he gets the quote on removal and the number literally hurts his soul.

He buys a small chainsaw instead. Over the course of a few weeks, he gets most of the branches cut up. He collects some large rocks from down by the quarry and digs out a fire pit in his backyard. On his days off, his friends come over and they sit out back and have a few beers. The pile of wood dwindles. The giant trunk is another story though. His chainsaw isn't big enough for it. Burning it would take forever, and Steve's terrified he'd disappoint Smoky the Bear. He's at a loss.

Until he sees another giant trunk in someone's yard carved into a bear.

He knows what to do then. Not a bear, but something else. Through trial and error, the trunk becomes the rough shape of a woman, the remnants of the branches like a crown on her head. It's not as amazing as the bear he saw, but it's his. He finds he loves the smell of sawdust and the feeling of creating something.

Just like that, Steve realizes what he wants to do. It takes several months and a lot of yard sales, but he scrounges up the tools he needs to start woodworking. He learns to measure twice and cut once. He makes tables and chairs and carves them with art and designs that get better and better the more he learns. Shockingly, people actually buy his pieces.

Even more shocking comes the realization that he's making enough money to do it full time. He puts in his two weeks notice at Melvald's and hands in his assistant manager badge.

He's not sure he's happy, but he is content. It feels good to work hard and actually have things to show for it. It also feels good to work muscles he hasn't used since high school. He carries on for a few years like that, creating and learning and creating some more. Then Eddie Munson blows back into town. Invited back so Hawkins can have their most famous alumnus sing the national anthem at homecoming. Steve's honestly surprised he shows at all. "Can't believe you didn't tell them kiss your hairy ass," Steve says. Because of course Eddie ends up around his fire pit, sipping on Steve's cheap beer like he doesn't have three Grammy awards on his mantel. The years fall away with each drink, reminding Steve of just how much it had hurt when Eddie left. He'd wanted Eddie so bad back then, more than he'd ever wanted anyone. He can feel the echoes of that deep ache across time.

"Pfft. Don't you know all famous people wax our asses now? All the rage in LA." Eddie cuts a look at him and smirks when Steve rolls his eyes, grateful for the lighthearted moment to snap him out of his maudlin nostalgia. "Really though I thought about it, but then I thought it would be way funnier to donate a metric fuckton of money to Hawkins High with the stipulation that it go to the theater and band programs. Kind of bummed they couldn't honor my other request though."

"Which was?"

"My old Hellfire throne. I miss her, but apparently she's not around anymore. Something about water damage."

"Oh yeah. Water main busted a few years back and flooded the theater. I remember that." "Yeah. Had to settle for the promise they'd make a game lounge and stock it with all the supplies a budding young nerd needs."

"That's really nice, Eds."

Eddie shrugs. "I've been known to be nice on occasion. You'll come to homecoming, right? Moral support?"

Steve hasn't been to homecoming in years because he sees the other people who stayed in town all the time, and he has no interest in seeing the people who didn't. He can only answer the same questions so many times. Oh, I'm doing woodwork now. Yep, I still live right here. Nope, still not married, no kids.

He goes though, and he answers the uncomfortable questions. Because Eddie asked him to. Because no matter how long it's been, Steve can't deny that some part of him still...

He says goodbye after, and Eddie leaves again, and Steve tries not to think about that too much in the following days.

He's halfway into the project before he realizes what he's building. He'd seen Eddie's throne quite a few times back when. What he doesn't have memories of, he makes up. He adds his own touches too, making it a throne fit for a rock star, a nerd, a friend.

He carves ornate patterns, he creates scenes of dragons being beaten back by a man with a guitar, crowds of people that could be knights or concertgoers.

It's his favorite piece he's ever done, and his hands are shaking when he dials Eddie's number. He gets an answering machine and stumbles through a message.

"I made you something. I guess it's kind of silly, but it's here in Hawkins if you want it. Or I'm sure you can afford the shipping if you don't want to come. Just, I made you a chair. It's more of a... Well, you'll see. Unless you don't want to... It's Steve by the way." He hangs up before he can embarrass himself even more.

Eddie doesn't call him back. One day passes and then another. Steve tries not to let it get to him. He works on orders and new projects. He enjoys his little backyard oasis. He rents a few movies and thinks they're okay.

He's debarking some wood in his driveway when the rental car pulls up, Eddie stepping out in ripped jeans and an old Metallica tee. "Hi again, Stevie."

"Oh." Steve clears his throat. "The thing's in the garage. I'll..."

Eddie doesn't say anything for a long time, circling the throne, running his tattooed fingers over each little detail.

"You made this whole thing?"

"I did."

"For me?" Eddie looks at him then, one hand still touching the wood like he doesn't want to let go. Even under the harsh lights of the garage, his eyes are such a warm shade of brown that Steve forgets to breathe.

He nods. "For you."

"Why?"

There are a hundred answers Steve could give, but he spent so long not knowing who he was or who he wanted to be. Too long. "Because you'll always be the one that got away. Because some part of me will always want to make you smile no matter how long it's been."

Eddie falls into the throne like he just got the wind knocked out of him.

"You don't have to respond to that," Steve says. "You can just say thank you and take the chair."

"I can." Eddie blows out a breath. "But that would be incredibly stupid considering half my early ballads are about you."

"What?" Unfair. Steve doesn't have a chair to fall into.

"Oh sure, I changed the hes to shes for a while there because..." Eddie waves his hand. "But they're about you, Steve. God, I should've asked you out. I just thought..."

Hearing those words is a lot like seeing that carved bear all over again, something clicking into place that wasn't quite right before.

"Go out with me now then," Steve says. "Or stay in. I've got a frozen lasagna and I rented Contact."

"Steve Harrington? Asking Eddie 'the Freak' Munson on a date? Did hell freeze over?"

"Pfft." Steve takes a step closer toward what he wants most. "Hell froze over in 1986, Eddie. You were there."

Five months and a lot of long distance phone bills later, Steve opens Harrington Woodworking in Los Angeles. That same day, Eddie takes photos for Rolling Stone posing in an ornate throne in his living room. He tells the reporter exactly who made it and what he means. At concerts, he starts singing those ballads the way he always wanted to. More often than not, Steve stands in the wings singing along.

[dcxdpdabbles]

Cave Boy Danny is a dad and that one fact makes Tim less suspicious of him.

Because the contingency plan for Bruce is his kids. It's also really concerning HOW young Bruce is a parent. (How old is he?!)

And this story won't be complete without Dani showing up to cause mayhem while calling for her Father.

She commits to the bit without even knowing all the details. Or the bit.

So, in Cave Au, I had planned to have Danny call Dani, his adoptive sister, instead of his daughter to make the Waynes much more nervous about him, but I'll write a different Au for you to make up for it.

Dani Fenton is the new kid in Tim's class. She's moved with her single father, Daniel Fenton, from a small town in Minnesota. At first, there is not much to her, even with her large brian.

She's a scholarship girl with a mind for chemistry that could make any scientist green with envy. Her uniform must be better tailored, likely second-hand, because it hangs loosely around her body as if made for a taller girl. She doesn't talk to other students, often popping in headphones when they are dismissed to the next class or during breaks.

Most of Gotham Acadamy doesn't want to interact with her, and she's completely fine with returning the sentiment. Personally, Tim only noticed her because she had a Dumpty Humpty sticker on her laptop.

He's surprised to find anyone in his generation who even heard the band, much less enjoyed it enough to have merchandise. It was a rock band that was popular twenty years ago when Bruce was a teenager.

Tim only knows about them because Bruce sometimes puts them on when he wants to work on any Bat vehicles.

He recognized her sticker, but it wasn't a reason to go over and start a conversation with her. The only action this realization caused was Tim pulling up his playlist and pressing one of Dumpty Humpty's songs.

No, what caused him to talk to her was an incident that happened three weeks after she arrived at Gotham Acadamy. It's a well-known fact that scholarship kids were picked on. Even though Waynes attempted to curb the bullying, it still happened to the kids they gave financial assistance to.

Tim had stumbled across a group of girls surrounding Dani by the soccer field. She was sitting on the grassy hill overlooking the field, and around her were various art supplies. Dani had likely been painting when the girls had rudely interrupted her.

It didn't take any of his Bat training to see how they were mocking her, and he sped up just as one girl reached out to try and snatch her screech book out of her hand.

The key word being tried.

Dani had been much faster, for she not only tugged her book out of the bully's reach but also kicked out the feet from under the girl in the same motion.

"Nice try." Dani taunted, her accent just peeking through. "Now, do me a favor and get your daddy to buy you a yacht you can't drive instead of bothering me."

"At least my Dad has money!" The other girl screeched.

Dani snorted. "Oh boy, you really cut me where it hurts. How will I ever recover from that comeback?"

"You Bitch!" A blond girl yelled. Tim knows her. Tina Lumière, the youngest of Harry Lunmiere- a family who ran luxurious vacation services. A family that was always quick to lure in investors. She's been trying to flirt with Tim since Bruce took him in, convinced he'll fund her family business if she bats her eyelashes hard enough.

Tim hates interacting with her.

"Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. I'm a poor bitch that won't amount to anything, and I need to stay away from Timbo Dragon so you can go make rich stupid babies with him."

"That's not his name-"

"Look, I only have one day of the school week where I have a free period, and you're wasting it on this." Dani waves her hand around the group with an over-exaggerated squint. "I mean, honestly, why would I go after some guy? I'm a lesbian."

"You are?" The brunette in the circle of bullies asks, with too much interest. Dani sends her a wink, and the girl actually blushes. Tim is suddenly reminded of Steph, and that causes him to smile.

"That's not his name!" Tina shouts, stepping in between the flirting girls. Dani's face clouds over in distaste as she continues. "His name is Timothy Drake. I know you're lying about not being interested in him! I saw you staring at him in biology."

"I was looking at his rock band sweater. It's a band my dad likes-"

"Shut up!" Tina slaps Dani across the face, seemingly smug, but it doesn't last long since the raven-haired girl springs up with a nasty right hook.

It hits Tina right in the eye, knocking the girl down like her friend. She screams, which triggers all her friends to jump at Dani. Despite being smaller and outnumbered, Dani gives as good as she gets, throwing a girl over her shoulder and punching another in the throat.

Tim picked up his speed, walking into a fast run. He barely has the mind to pull out his phone and point it in the group's direction. "Hey, break it up! Break it up!"

The two holding onto Dani's hair let go like they've been burned. If a teacher had tried to stop the fight, they wouldn't have gotten far, but Tim is a Wayne. They have much more power than some poor staff.

"Tim," Tina wails. Her eye is already starting to bruise. She's going to look terrible for a while while it heals. "She attacked me!"

"No, she didn't," He says, rolling his eyes. He waves his phone at them. "Don't lie. I recorded the whole thing. Also, harassing others is super unattractive."

He didn't, but they don't know that. Tina's face falls apart as he helps Dani get her things and then escorts her to the main building. He doubts that will stop her harassment, but hopefully, it will detain them long enough for him to find a better solution.

"Thanks," Dani says after they finish walking. "That was cool of you."

"Don't mention it." He gives her a standard Wayne-dizzy smile. "What of mine sweater were you talking about?"

She grins. "The Dumpty Humpty one.'

"Oh yeah, that's my dad's. He loves the band."

Her eyes light up. "Mine does, too. Maybe we can get our dads to meet and discuss it."

Great. Dani Fenton was another opportunist trying to get Bruce to meet her parents. Pity.

"I'm sure there will be a chance in the future. Maybe the parent-teacher conferences, we'll run into each other," He says with a laugh, not giving her a direct answer. Dani nods and then walks off to her next class. He reports the girls, compiles enough evidence, and when he's sure the school will step in, he doesn't think about the afternoon.

Then, four months later, it's parent-teacher conferences. Bruce and Tim are just about finished visiting all his teachers, that are falling over themselves to get on Brucie's good side when Dani appears, dragging her dad behind her.

"That's him." She says, and Daniel's face lights up.

"You're the Dumpty Humpty fan?" He asks Bruce. His dad has no choice but to play along even though Tim knows he's dead tired and wants to go home.

"Of course. Who doesn't love a good Fairy Tale Ending to listen to on the way home?" Bruce laughs, and Daniel's grin widens.

"That's great, but I like Bloody Prince Charming more. Daniel Fenton, by the way." He holds his hand, and Bruce shakes it slightly more interest now. It's not that Dumpty Humpty isn't just old; it wasn't popular in this part of the country, so it's even rarer to find fans in Gotham.

"Bruce Wayne."

"Nice to meet ya!" Daniel chirps- seeing anyone other than Dick be that cheerful is odd. "Wish we can talk more, but I got to get to this one's art class."

"Of course," Bruce says, even though he's surprised they walked away so quickly without asking for anything more of them. Most try swinddle a second meeting somehow.

Dani waves Tim goodbye, and the Fentons are off down the hall, chatting between them in ordinary, eased tones. It's odd but a forgotten interaction for Tim after a few days.

Not so much for Bruce.

Tim finds out a month later that Bruce not only met up with Mr. Fenton again but even asked for his number on their second meeting. Then the two men went out for dinner, went to the mall, went shopping, and even did some charity fundraiser together.

Bruce would often message Daniel that it felt like he was the new teenager. Tim still did not think it odd.

Only when Damian burst into his room, dragging the rest of their siblings in. The youngest had called on a sibling meeting to discuss a new issue that worried him about Bruce.

"Tim, who is Father's suitor, and what are his intentions with Father?" The boy asked after everyone had settled.

"What?"

"Babybat has a point. I haven't seen Bruce this interested since Catwoman first appeared," Dick added. "I really hope this lover sticks around."

"What lover?" Tim questions Jason, who shrugs.

"A Daniel Fenton? The old man has been going steady with him for about a month now. Haven't you noticed? You were the one that introduced him."

"No, I've been focused on the Phantom case," Tim says, gesturing to the board covered in red yarn and a news clipping of the new hero.

Phantom had appeared a while back, going through the city and helping the little people. He's even harder to catch a glimpse of then Batman, but he's been helping to slowly cut down the pity crime and muggings, letting the Bats focus on the big guns like the Rouges.

The Bats had been trying to pin him down to offer assistance and gradated for all his hard work. They just catch him since Phantom is a meta and always slips away at the last second.

"Whatever the case may be." Damian started up again. "We must protect Father from those with less than honorable intentions."

"Hear, Hear," Steph and Duke cry, lifting up their juice boxes that Cass had passed out. It wasn't a proper sibling meeting without snacks.

"He can't be all bad," Tim said. "He's a single father."

"Having a kid makes him more worthy?"

"In my experience, step-parents have been really great." But Dana was incredible like that, so maybe Tim put too much faith in Bruce's dating life.

They all agree to closely monitor Daniel Fenton and his daughter Dani. There may be more than meets the eye.

[thecuriousbeauty]

Traitor-The Present

Chapter Five

Warnings: Gun, violence, physical assault. Smut. Degradation, fingering, slight anal play, spanking, cum play, oral (male receiving), choking.

Summary: Just when y/n starts to think that Harry isn't the old mafia gang's leader, she discovers some secrets about him that makes her wonder whom she really fell in love with.

Word Count: 8.3k

Catch up on the story here: Chapter One, Chapter Two, Chapter Three*, Chapter Four* ______________________________________

There couldn’t be a better place to be, y/n thought, as she sat beside Harry on the beach side, gritty sand in between her toes and the cool breeze making her feel refreshed. Harry’s arm around her shoulders kept her close to him, close enough that his fresh, masculine scent blanketed her. 

“I want to stay here forever. It’s so beautiful.”, y/n tells him. “The sea looks so calm.”

“It may be calm now, but I feel like it’s getting ready for war. Quiet, and calculating.”, Harry spoke softly, and y/n looked at him, raising her eyebrows. Harry chuckles, pressing a kiss to her temple. “It is beautiful though."

“Well, when you put it like that..”, y/n mumbles. She wonders what goes inside Harry’s mind half the time. 

“I’m hungry.”, Harry says, nudging his nose against her cheek. “Me too, let’s go grab some food. What do you think is good here?”

y/n and Harry talk as they walk to a shack It was located on the beachside, with a live band and people dancing.

"Do you think where we live is unsafe? It's not the first time you've mentioned about me moving someplace else and settling down.", Harry asks y/n, referring to their previous conversation, just before they told each other how they feel.

"Um, I-I'm just worried, the crime reports from our place increases every day.", she quickly comes up with something, and Harry cocks his head to the side, not believing her. "Uh huh. And it’s not because you want me to go away?”

y/n laughs, and nudges his ribs. “Now why would I want that?”

They walk into the shack, and she leads him to a table at the back. She notices two men eyeing her as she walks in. They were swinging beer from their bottles. One of them winks at her, and she turns away, ignoring them.

y/n and Harry look at the menu and decide on what they want to get.

"You don't have to worry about my safety, y/n. I can take care of myself.", Harry tells her. "And I'll take care of you."

She smiles, leaning into his side as she feels cold. Harry was warm. They have their food, and y/n gets up to use the restroom. On her way back, she feels a squeeze on her ass, and shivers climb up her spine. That was not Harry.

She looks back to see the man who winked at her earlier.

"Hi beautiful, want to take it somewhere private?", he grins, showing her his teeth as he runs one of his hands through his messy black curls. A cigarette stuck out between his lips.

"No. Touch me again and I'll report you.", she warns, and the man laughs, looking over at his friend. "Feisty one, this."

"Told you she'd be a good one. You can tell from the rack.", the other guy walks towards them, eyes on her breasts.

"Shut the fuck up and stop staring at me. I'm going to-" One of them grabs her wrists. "Don't tell us what to do, little girl. We will-"

"-Finish that sentence, and you won't have a tongue to say anything again."

y/n struggles to get her wrists free as she sees Harry glaring at them both. "Let her go, now."

"Ah hah, this is getting interesting. Got your boyfriend out to play huh? Show us what you got, man."

Harry didn’t hesitate. He smirked, before he punched his fist straight into the man's nose. He groans and holds his nose.

"Your turn now. Let. Her. Go."

Before Harry could reach him, the guy pushes y/n away with force, and her hip hits the drinks counter making her yelp, her head smashing on a glass.

“You fucking bastard!”, Harry charged at him.

"Oh my god. I told you to keep those douchebags out, Frank!" A lady helps y/n onto a chair, probably the owner of the shack. "Are you okay darling? Oh god, I'm so sorry. They're such creeps, always getting into trouble."

y/n was too shocked to reply. Shocked because of what she was watching. Harry had the man who grabbed her on the ground. He was kicking him, growling. "I warned you. Nobody fucking touches my girl!"

Everyone in the shack watches as Harry beats the crap out of him.

"Harry!", y/n shouts as the other man prepares to swing a bottle against Harry's head from behind. Harry's arm shot up to grab his arm, without even turning back, and with one grunt, he flipped him over, making him fall at his feet with a big groan of pain.

"Harry that's enough-", y/n tried to say, but Harry wasn't listening to her. He was burning with rage. y/n noticed that every kick and every punch he threw was while he stood in perfect form. His biceps flexed while he reached behind him and the veins in his neck popped. What he did to the guys was rough, but his movements were sharp and defined. 

“Who do you think you are Mr. Show Off?” Suddenly, a few other men joined the fight, and they were armed. One of them held a pocket knife, and the other held a baseball bat. Two others screamed as they ran to Harry.

y/n brought her hand to her mouth in shock as she realized something. All these four men who joined now were the ones that were following them, back at home. They were the ones who kept watching them.

y/n wanted to pull Harry into safety, but she didn't have to. Two arms projected out and grabbed one of their necks, while he punched the other one's head, throwing them both onto the wall. He kicked the knife out of the third's hand, and y/n thought he looked like he was flying in the air after the kick made the man slam onto the floor with a big thud.

The last man standing raised his baseball bat, and Harry slams on to him, leaving them both on the ground.

Harry was unscathed. Six men were down, and he continued to beat them up, making sure no one could get up again. A normal man couldn't fight like this.

This was the job of an experienced fighter. He had been in fights way worse than this before. Even if Harry couldn't remember how he could do it, his body was moving out of muscle memory.

This was what y/n was searching for. Some glimpse of him from the past life. The man that everyone was afraid of. y/n now saw why.

Harry groans, looking down at the injured men. "Don’t you dare lay a fucking finger on my girl again.”

All his anger vanishes when he looks at y/n. Her small frame was shaking. He rushes to her, and grabs her wrists. "Are you okay, y/n?"

She nods, looking at the blood on his knuckles. "H-Harry.."

"It's not mine.", he assures. He put his arm around her. "Come on, let's go."

She feels everyone's eyes behind their backs as Harry walks them out of the shack. y/n's head hurt. She wasn't sure if it was because of the injury, or because of everything she saw. What was she thinking? They had warned her that Harry could get dangerous. She was scared.

Harry held her hand tight in his as he led them to their room, and then to the bathroom.

"Harry..", y/n opens her mouth, taking a breath as he looks through his bag for something. "Y-You-"

"There are glass shards on your head baby, let me take care of it for you.", Harry cuts her off, coming back with a bag, it probably had some first aid stuff. It was bigger than a normal first aid kit, but he was a doctor by profession, so it made sense. He washes his hands, and she searches his eyes for the look she saw a few minutes ago. How his eyes were darker, and there was no hint of kindness on his face.

Harry grabs her waist, and places her on the slab next to the sink, before going through his first aid supplies. 

"Any dizziness? Headache?", Harry asks softly, gently taking her face. One of his hands held her chin, tilting it up while his other hand examined the wound carefully.

"H-Head hurts a bit..", she mumbles, and Harry nods. He picks up a pen flashlight and turns it on. "Just gonna check your eyes, yeah?"

She holds in her breath as Harry flashes the light in her eyes, the thumb over his other hand on her eyebrow. She stared into his beautiful eyes, but they remained focus. He kept the pen flashlight away, and put up numbers on his fingers, asking her to follow his finger.

"You're okay, no signs of concussion.", he sighs in relief. "And your wound doesn't need stitches, I can fix it up in two minutes."

"Harry we should talk about-"

"-You're hurt.", Harry tells her firmly. "We'll talk after I make sure you're gonna be okay."

She didn't protest. She flinched when he dabbed the cotton dipped in antiseptic on her broken skin, making it sting. "I know, I'm sorry..", Harry murmurs, gently holding her face. These were the same hands that roughed up the men, but now they were so gentle. He picked out little glass shards with tweezers, and she pulled her face away when it hurt.

"Shh..almost done, baby. Stay still for me.."

y/n sat there, caged between his legs, and watched his face as he treated her wound. She couldn't believe it. He was a completely different man when he fought them.

"That's it, you're all done. Nothing to worry about, that'll heal very soon." Harry gives her a small smile as he finishes applying an ointment and then bandages it.

"Thank you.", she nods.

"Of course. If they had hurt you any worse I would've-"

"-You would've what, Harry?", y/n finds her voice finally. "Y-You beat them to a pulp, they'll need to be hospitalized. T-There was blood."

Harry looks at her while he dries his hands after washing them. "What did you want me to do, y/n? They were hurting you!"

"S-Some of them..I-I knew some of them. I've seen them follow us around. W-Who are they?"

"I don't know.", Harry grumbles, while placing her back on the ground, and she grabs his hands, moving them away from her waist.

"Where did you learn to fight like that? H-How did you disarm them like that? Tell me Harry, please, who are they and why were they targeting you?"

"I said I don't know!", he snaps loudly, and y/n takes a step back, afraid of him. Harry curses, looking down at her feet. "Fuck, I'm sorry y/n, I-"

She steps further away when he tries to hold her hand. "Please tell me what you know, Harry.", she begs, tears running down her cheeks.

"I-I've seen them too.", Harry finally says. "I know they follow me around. There are more of them. But I don't know why. I honestly don't know, baby. I don't know why they don't let me go on with my life! I don't know why they tell me to remember stuff that I don't! I don't know how I can fight like that and I don't know why they're after me."

Harry looks into her eyes, desperate. "But I do know that I'll never hurt you. I felt so angry when I saw them touching you. I couldn't control myself. You mean a lot to me, and I'll never hurt you or stand back and watch as you get hurt, y/n. I would never put you in danger. I-I..I love you."

y/n crashes into his chest and he wraps his arms around her tight, pulling her as humanly close as possible. His warm big hands rub down her back, comforting her "I-I'm sorry for scaring you. E-Everything just burst out of me at that moment."

"T-They deserved it.", y/n admits, and Harry lets out a nervous chuckle, kissing the top of her head. "I will always protect you, sunshine."

y/n trusted him. His words were filled with emotion and she had seen how much he cares about her.

"We'll figure it out together, okay? All the missing pieces, we'll figure it out.", y/n tells him, holding his face and he nods. "I love you too, Harry." She kisses him before going back to hugging him. They would figure it all out.

____________________________________________________

"Just because I let you sleep yesterday doesn't mean you can sleep today!", y/n pokes Harry's ribs making him groan from his curled position in the passenger's seat.

"Talk to me unless you want me to crash us both into a tree.", y/n says, and he opens his eyes, squinting at her. "Aw, is my passenger princess angry?", she teases.

"Shut up.", Harry pouts at her, and she giggles. "I'll give you something to do. I need some rest too."

y/n pulls over, and Harry gives her a look. "Why are we stopping in the middle of nowhere?"

"For a switch. Your turn to drive.", she says, turning the engine off.

"No!"Harry's eyes widened. "I can't drive y/n! I won't sleep, but don't make me drive!"

"You do know how to drive! You have a license. Come on Harry, you can't be that bad. The road's empty, it's all yours.", y/n says, already getting out, and pulling Harry out of the other side. She opens the door for him and pushes him in despite his protests.

When y/n was settled, Harry looked over at everything, adjusting his seat. "Okay. You brought this upon yourself, sunshine. Seat belt on."

She pulls it over herself, and grins. "Let's go."

Harry changes the gear, and starts the car. "Okay, good start-"

y/n's voice cuts off as he changes the gear again, and stamps on the accelerator, speeding down the empty road.

"Oh my god. Harry!", her heart skips a beat as the air slaps against her face.

"I warned you.", Harry smiles, and then laughs. "I missed this!" "I wouldn't mind if you slowed down a bit-"

He only goes faster, and she squeaks, gripping onto the sides. "Don't worry, I got this.", Harry assures her, and she looks at him with wide eyes. "What else do you have hiding? Were you an F1 driver in the past?"

"That would be cool but I don't think so!", he laughs.

Hearing him laugh, and seeing his happiness, she broke into a laugh too. "You're a different breed altogether!"

"This car is amazing! Do we have to give it to that guy?!"

y/n laughs as she reaches to keep a hand on his knee. "I love you."

They sang at the top of their voices, enjoying the drive. "Do you know these routes?", y/n asks him, as he takes a left turn without cross checking with the map.

"Um, no, I just thought this is the better road.", he says.

"Huh. These roads were used for gold smuggling, illegal drug transport and things like that, apparently. They were used regularly a few years back, did you know?"

"Why would I know that random fact?"Harry raises an eyebrow.

"Just asking.", y/n shrugs, and changes the topic. They were planning on staying in Las Vegas for the night. They had found a hotel in the heart of the city, and they planned to spend some time there exploring before hitting the road a little later tomorrow.

Harry goes to take a shower once they get to their room, and y/n calls Uncle Luke. She was happy to know that he was doing perfectly fine. 

The room they got was beautiful, they had a big bed, and a beautiful view overlooking the city. Las Vegas was a party capital. They had to check out some of it.

y/n couldn't find her hair brush, and she thinks she might have kept it in Harry's bag, so she quickly goes through it. Sure enough, she had.

Just as she was about to pull out her hand, it landed on something cold, and heavy. y/n frowns and moves her fingers over it, and it was shaped like a..no way.

She pulls it out, and gasps in horror. Harry comes out of the bathroom at the same time. He looks at her as she stares in disbelief at the weapon she was holding.

"y/n, put that down.", Harry says calmly. "It's loaded."

A loaded gun.

"W-Why do y-you have a gun?", she asks shakily, dropping it. Harry quickly picks it up and puts it back in his bag. "Why were you looking through my bag?", he grumbles.

"Harry! That's not an answer.", y/n held his arms and looked into his eyes. "Tell me why you have a gun. Is that even yours?"

"Let it go baby-"

y/n pushes at his chest. "T-Tell me the truth please, Harry. Stop playing your games with me. Who are you?"

"I-I don't know.", Harry whispers, grabbing her hands and squeezing them when she tries to pull them out of his grip. "The gun is for safety. I told you that those men have been following me, and it's been going on for a long time. Before I even met you. I live alone y/n, what if all of them sneak up on me when I'm not expecting them to? That's why I have a gun. Yes, I shouldn't have brought it along and I should have told you. I'm sorry."

y/n wanted to believe him. "I-Is that the truth?"

"Yes, I promise.", Harry kisses her hand. "I'm not playing any game with you, y/n. It drives me crazy that I can't remember things. I wish I knew why all of this happens to me. You're the only normal thing in my life and you're the only person I have. I would never lie to you. You know who I am, you've seen who I am. I trust you sunshine, I've let you into my life because I trust you, and I love you. I wouldn't keep anything from you."

He pulls her into a hug, and she closes her eyes, holding on to him. She knew he was telling the truth. She was the one lying to him. She was breaking his trust. She was a monster.

"I-I need some air.", she whispers, pulling away from him.

"y/n please-"

"I have some things to think about Harry, please." She looks into his hurt eyes, before grabbing her phone and stepping out to the balcony. Harry didn’t want to let her go, but he understood that she needed some time alone.

y/n called Romania.

"Hello y/n, I was waiting for your call. How is-"

"-Romania, I'm done. I'm done with your memory game and I don't want your money. I can't do this for you."

"y/n what happened?"

"He's dangerous!", y/n whisper shouts. "He took down six big thugs all by himself yesterday and now, I found a gun in his bag."

"What?", Romania laughs. "He fought?"

"What the hell is so funny about that?", y/n snaps, so mad at her.

"Harry has not fought anyone since that incident, y/n! That means he's still in there. He was one of our best. He can take down anyone. Tell me what caused the fight."

y/n explained last night's event to her. "That is fantastic news y/n, that means he cares about you so much that he risked his mask coming off. Everyone who saw him there now knows that he's still someone to be feared. He must care deeply about you."

"A-And I care about him.", y/n whispers. "I know I'm in too deep now, but I can't keep hurting him by keeping this from him. I have to tell him."

"No! y/n you have two more days. I need you to get him to the location and then you're free to go, or tell him, or whatever you want to do. We will pay you double the amount. Please y/n, no one's got this close to him, you can get him to remember. Please. Reagen would want him to remember the memories they had together. He has to remember what happened that night."

y/n sighs, running her hand through her hair and she felt like pulling it out. She thought like Reagen. What would she do? She heard that she was extremely brave. However scared she must have felt deep down, Reagen wouldn't have given up. She probably died to save Harry. y/n couldn't let that sacrifice of love go to waste.

Harry had to remember.

"F-Fine..two more days.", y/n whispers.

"Harry won't hurt you y/n, trust me.", Romania said. "But if you feel unsafe, I can send my men to make sure you're safe."

"No it's okay, h-he, he won't hurt me.", y/n nods. "I'll call you later."

"Yeah. You got this, y/n, I'm-"

She hung up before hearing any more of her crap. How had she got herself into this fucking mess? y/n wasn't ready to face Harry yet, so she went down to the hotel's bar. She had to drink. She needed the alcohol to burn her emotions. She sat there by herself and tipped drink by drink down her throat.

Two days. Romania told her she'd be free to leave after that, but she was sure she couldn't just walk away without a scar. She had a feeling her life was going to turn upside down in those two days.

__________________________________________________________

Harry was jittery. He was sitting on the bed, knee bouncing with stress as he thought about everything. The last thing he wanted was to make y/n feel unsafe. He didn't know what to do. He wanted her to trust him. 

It had been too long since she walked away. Three hours. Harry worried about someone getting to her, someone hurting her. He was scared. He knew the world was full of bad people.

Harry takes his phone out and tries calling her. She doesn't answer.

"Fuck it.", he gets up, and he's tempted to stuff the gun into his pocket in case someone's got her, but he decided against it. That was only for emergencies.

Harry looked in the most obvious places first. He searched the restaurant, the rooftop DJ Party going on, and the bar.

He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw her sitting on a bar stool, sipping her drink and blabbering to the bartender.

"y/n.", Harry says as he approaches them.

"Oh hey Berty, meet my boyfriend! Harry, say hi to Berty!", y/n gives him a big grin, turning around on her stool to pat Harry's arm.

Harry looks at Berty, who gives him a small smile and a nod. "I was just going to ask her if there's someone to take her to her room, or back home if she's not staying here tonight."

"We're staying, and I'll take her. Thanks." Harry looks at y/n. Her eyes were dazed with the amount of alcohol she must have drowned, but she still looked gorgeous to Harry.

"Wait, Harry, have a drink with me, I haven't had one with you since that first week. Berty, get him a whiskey! The fiery kind!", y/n giggles, and pats the chair next to her. "Come sit, Harry."

Berty looks at Harry who shakes his head, and Berty nods, going away. "I don't want to have a drink now, love. Come on, it's late, you're sleepy."

"You don’t wanna have a drink with me?", y/n pouts at him, and his heart melts, so he sits down, but he doesn't ask for a drink. He knows that she is not a big drinker and he caused this now. He felt horrible about himself.

"I would love to have a drink with you sweetheart, but not now, okay? You've had a lot too, let me take you back to our room, okay?"

She nods, looking into his eyes. "Harry?"

Harry strokes her hair back, away from her face, nodding. "Tell me, babe."

"D-Do you..do you really love me?"

A small tear rolls down her cheek, and Harry's heart breaks. He cups her cheek, thumbing that tear away. Harry knew he had done horrible things, but if there was anything in his life that was steady, it was y/n. y/n showed him love, again. She was healing him.

"I do, I love you with all my heart, sunshine. I always have and I always will.", Harry whispers, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. "I'm so sorry for everything, I wish-", he stops talking, and words himself again. "I would never hurt you on purpose."

"I know, that's what I keep saying.", she says, nodding to herself.

"Saying to who?", he asks, confused.

"Romania. You smell good.", she says, smiling at him like he was the best thing that ever happened to her.

"We should go, y/n.", Harry motions to Berty. "Add her tabs to our room please, 401."

"Yes sir, have a good night y/n.", Berty waves at y/n and she laughs, waving back as Harry helps her off the chair and puts his arm around her waist.

"Good night Berty, live your life while you can. Don't be greedy for money, just be happy."

Harry wondered where that came from, while he walked with her out of the bar. He holds her hand tight in his, and keeps his eyes out for anyone following them or spying on them. She leans on him in the elevator, and he holds her close as she mumbles incoherently.

"What happened that night, Harry?", y/n asks, looking up at him.

"Which night, love?"

"On the night you were smuggling the gold? The night you had your accident and lost your memory? Do you remember?"

Harry freezes, and his nostrils flare angrily. He hates anyone asking him that. He was sick and tired of all the accusations he had heard about him.

"I-I don't remember.", he answers coldly. The elevator door opens, and he ushers her out and to their room.

"That's too bad.", y/n says. "I know you don't, but those thick heads don't understand! Woops!" y/n goes off her balance, and Harry grabs her before she can fall. "Careful. There’s another step, there you go." He leads her inside their room, and decides to just pick her up. He easily picks her up bridal style, and she grins, putting her arms around his neck.

"You are so strong, babe.", y/n pats his shoulder.

"You're not at all heavy.", Harry kisses her nose, taking them to the bedroom. He lays her down on the bed, and she pulls him down with her, yanking him by the shirt. "Let's have some fun.", she wiggles her eyebrows, like she was telling him a secret, and he couldn't help but laugh.

"Not now, darling. Tomorrow, okay?"

"You don't think I'm sexy?", she asks, and he kisses her sweetly. "I think you're very sexy, sunshine. You're drunk now, so we can mess around later. Let's just sleep now, we drove four hours."

Harry gets her some water and makes her drink it. "Do you know Oliver?", y/n asks him, as he takes the glass back.

"Oliver? No.", Harry says, while taking her shoes off.

"Oliver Khan.", y/n says. "Or so he says. I heard mafia people have different names, so I don't know."

"Mafia? What are you talking about y/n? One of your mystery movies?", Harry asks, taking her shirt off for her. She giggles. "I wish! It is kind of like that."

"Gonna slip your jeans off, yeah?"

"Uh huh.."

Harry's fingers brush her skin as he unbuttons her jeans, and pulls it down her smooth legs. "He was your best friend. Don't remember, do you?"

"No."

"What about Hans? Strike a bell?"

"No."

Harry unbuckles her bra, knowing she wouldn't want to sleep with it on. He slips one of his shirts over her body while listening to her.

"You were a mafia leader, Harry, you were good at everything. You were smuggling gold that day you had the accident. And your name isn't Harry Turner like you call yourself, it's Harry Styles."

Styles. A mafia leader. Harry wonders how she knows that. She does seem to be sure about that.

"What are you talking about y/n?", he leans closer, cupping her cheek. She smiles sleepily, rolling over on the bed. "I don't know either. I'm drunk as hell!"

"y/n. What mafia? What do you know?" Harry pats her cheek, but her eyes are already closed, and she is out like a light.

He would ask her when she's sober. She knew things about his past life. And he wanted to know what she knew, and why she was hiding them from him. She said they'd figure it out together, didn't she? Now, she was the one keeping secrets.

__________________________________________________

y/n wakes up with a massive hangover headache, and groans, turning over and burying her face into the pillow. What had happened? y/n tries to remember what got her into this hangover misery and then she wishes all of it never happened. How was she in bed now? Did Harry come and get her?

She looks beside her and sees an empty bed. The sheets were rumpled, so Harry had slept here, but he wasn't here now. Or was it even their room? Where was she? She sits up and looks around. Yes, she saw her bag, it was their room.

"Harry?", she calls, hoping he would answer. She had made peace with the fact that he had a gun. And like Romania said, it was good. He is showing parts of his old self and it's only a matter of time before he remembers everything.

Harry appears, holding a cup. She thought it's her coffee, and smiled but it quickly disappeared. "Water?", she looks up at him when he hands it to her.

"You're dehydrated.", he murmurs, without looking at her. "Ibuprofen's there if you have a headache."

She found the pill beside her on the bedside table, and took it, washing it down with the water. "Thank you. Did you um get me to bed?"

"Don’t remember?", he asks, and she scoffs, it's usually her asking him that question.

"No, I don't. Last thing I remember is talking to Berty about his date...um, I thought about it Harry. I understand why you have a gun, I just needed some time."

Harry nods, sitting down on the bed, looking away from her. "What’s the matter? Are you okay?", she asks, frowning, noticing how he didn't spare her a glance yet.

"I'm hungry, breakfast closes in an hour.", he grumbles.

"Oh. Give me just one second to look a little presentable and we'll go." y/n gets off the bed, and kisses Harry's cheek before going into the bathroom.

They go to breakfast, and eat in silence. y/n was used to Harry being quiet, but he would hold her hand or keep his hand on her thigh, brush his shoulder with hers, he would do something. He did none of those today, and he seemed to be in deep thought as he ate. y/n worried whether she had said something to him last night. She doesn't remember one bit of her drunk rambling. Or was he mad that she ruined the one night they had in Vegas?

Probably everything. She kept quiet too. She deserved it.

Back in their room, Harry got some work calls and y/n laid in bed, watching him. She couldn't let him give her the silent treatment for any longer, she had a task to do and it won't work if both of them remain quiet. y/n loves talking and hates silence.

"Harry, talk to me. I'm sorry for running away like that.", y/n pipes up when he was done with the call.

"It was not  safe.", he murmured.

"I was around people, it was safe. I didn't go out of the hotel either. Why do you think it wasn't safe? Did you see those guys again?"

Harry walks over to plug his phone for charging. "No. I don't know, they could've been there."

y/n slowly nods. "I didn't think about that. We still have some time before hitting the road, wanna go check out the streets?"

Harry sighs, finally looking at her. "I don't wanna travel anymore. I want to go back."

"Why?", y/n asks, reaching for his hand. "Harry-"

"-Harry Styles.", he says, making her freeze. Did he remember his real last name?

"You said I'm Harry Styles, yesterday.", he completes. "Something about the mafia, and Oliver Khan. How do you know those things about me?"

His green eyes bore into hers, and she was speechless. Shit. Had she drunk blabbered all that? Had she told him everything? About the money and the deal with Romania?

"Tell me, y/n. Are those true?"

She couldn't tell him the full truth just yet, but she could tell him some of it. She nods.

He groans, running a hand through his hair. "How do you know? And tell me everything you know, right now."

"I um one of my friends recognized you, and they told me all this information about you."

"What friend?"

"Um, T-Tony?"

"What does Tony do?"

"He um...he's in the media.", she stumbles out another lie. There was no Tony.

"I need his number, I want to ask him myself.", Harry tells her, making her sweat.

"I'm not sure if I have his number-"

"Isn't he your friend?" Harry looked angry now, and that's the last thing y/n wanted.

"Was, not anymore. I'll find out his number, okay? I'll uh tell you what I know in the meantime."

Harry nods, not even blinking as he listens to her. y/n told him everything she knew. "R-Reagen died that day..but you lived. T-That's the story.", she completes.

She studies Harry's face which appeared expressionless, then he buries his face in his hands. "I don't remember any of that, y/n."

"I-It might not be true, Harry, that's the story I know.", y/n rubs his back gently. "I-I'm a doctor, I don't do all that stuff..", he whispers. y/n scoots closer to him and hugs him tight. She knew that. She knew Harry in front of her wouldn't do all that.

"That's why those men were following you and they're all scared of you Harry. Even if you get back a small piece of who you were, they don't stand a chance against you.", she speaks softly. He looks up at her, eyes watery. "A-Are you scared of me too? Is that why you kept all this from me?"

"No, I just didn't want to upset you.", y/n cups his face. "I'm not scared of you Harry, I never was and I never will be. You saved me. I know you'll never hurt me. I feel safe in your arms, I feel loved. I know who you are. You're a brave and kind man. No matter what I hear, that's what I'll believe, okay?"

Harry buries his head into her neck, and she wraps her arms around him, cupping the back of his head. "I love you and my feelings are real. That will never change."

"I-I love you too.", Harry whispers. She held him while he processed everything. She made sure to tell him that it might just be a stupid story with zero truth in it. y/n still hadn't told him everything, but she would, in time.

"You trust me?", Harry asks her, and she nods, kissing him. "I trust you."

Harry pulls her onto his lap as they kiss, y/n's hands moving to his hair. His lips attacked hers roughly and desperately. She feels him getting hard, and starts moving, straddling his lap, making him groan. 

"Let me make you feel good, Harry.", she whispers as she tugs his shirt off. She had to distract him from thinking more into Tony or anything else, she didn't want him to get worked up. Harry's hand grabs the back of her neck, pulling her lips away from his. "Get on your knees."

y/n bites her lip, getting off of his lap. She loves when he gets dominant in bed. Maybe it's because she's so busy and in charge of her life, she likes to be manhandled and thrown around a bit in bed. It's like a stress buster. And sex with Harry always feels so good.

y/n gets on her knees on the floor as Harry takes off his pants and sits back down on the bed. y/n palms him through his boxers, and he sucks in a breath. "Go on, take me out."

y/n obeys, her fingers slipping inside the waist band of his boxers, and slowly pulling them down his legs. "You're so big.", she murmurs, admiring his thick, long, dick. She wonders how that fits inside her.

Harry smirks, looking at her as she takes his dick in her hand, stroking it from it's base to the top, dangerously slow. Her other hand played with his balls, squeezing them ever so gently. 

"You're such a tease.", he says, looking down at her. "Wait. Take off everything except your panties."

"Whatever you say.", she pulls away to take her top off, leaving her upper half bare. She hadn't worn a bra. She slipped of her shorts as well, leaving just her panties as he asked. Her nipples were hard, and Harry groaned at the sight of her on his knees for him, ready to pleasure him. He leans down to cup one of her breasts and squeezes. "Are you gonna be a good girl and take this big cock down your throat?"

Harry's eyes were dark with lust, and y/n moans, "Y-Yes, Harry."

"Get to work.", he says, sitting back up. She keeps her eyes on him as she spits on his dick, and rubs it all over. He groans, hands going to hold her hair up for her.

y/n teases him at first, slowly running her tongue along his length, while her hands palm his balls. She leaves little kisses on his dick. Harry was getting painfully hard and frustrated.

"Okay that's enough, put me inside your mouth or I'm going to do it myself.", Harry mutters, not able to handle the teasing anymore. She takes him in her mouth and he lets her adjust, trying hard not to just push it down her throat.

"That's a good girl.", he coos, and curses as she bobs her head up and down his length. "Fuck."

She was driving him crazy. Her pretty lips wrapped around his cock, her gorgeous eyes looking up at him like she only wanted to please him, that was enough to drive Harry over the edge. She moves her head further down, gagging around him, her eyes watering but she loves it. 

"Oh bloody hell, that feels so good. Are you gagging around me, baby?", Harry moans. She knew how badly he wanted to just have his way with her. She pulls out. "Fuck my mouth.", she tells him. 

"Beg for it.", he says, continuing to stroke his dick as she stops. He pinches one of her nipples, and she clenches her thighs together. She was getting so wet. "P-Please Harry, fuck my mouth."

"That's not good enough, try harder baby.", Harry rolls her nipple between his thumb and forefinger. 

"Please make me gag. Make me choke on your big dick, Harry. Use my mouth as you please."

Harry moves both of his hands back to her hair. "You're so fucking hot. Tap my thigh if it gets too much, alright?"

"Yes.", y/n smiles, opening her mouth wide for him, making her jaw go slack. "Your throat's gonna to be sore by the time I'm done with you, darling. You asked for it.", he says before thrusting his dick into his mouth.

y/n chokes as his dick touches the back of her throat, and she feels the sting on her scalp as he moves her head up and down by her hair. He pulls her away to give her a second to breathe, before pushing it back in her mouth, keeping her head still as he moves his hips. Saliva drips down her chin. 

"So f-fucking good for me.", he moans, legs starting to shake as he feels him getting close. He pushed her head down, and tears run down her cheeks as she gags around him, her nose buried into his hound. 

"Just like that, baby, your mouth feels s-so good. I-I'm going to cum."

He pulls her head up. "F-Fuck..."

"G-Give it to me Harry, cum for me.", she whispers, her voice coming out hoarse. Harry strokes his dick, and she opens her mouth to catch his cum as it shoots out. She hums, tasting him on her tongue. 

"Keep your mouth open.", he groans and moves his dick to paint some of his cum over  her chest. y/n sits like a perfect girl, tears running down her cheeks, mouth open holding his cum, and her beautiful breasts covered in his cum as well.

"You look so pretty like this.", Harry strokes her hair. "Swallow."

She does, and shows him her empty mouth. He grabs her jaw to see. "Good girl."

She smiles, pleased with his praise. Her fingers scoop up the rest of his cum on her body and brings it back to her lips, cleaning it off, all while looking at him. "Tastes so good.", she tells him.

"Yeah? Stand up, baby." 

She raises on her legs, and he pulls her in between his knees. He taps her thigh and she separates them. Harry's fingers touch her wet core through her thin panties. "Did you get so wet from gagging on my cock, y/n?"

"Uh huh..", she's tempted to close her legs. "All for you."

Harry hums, tugging on her wrist. "Bend over my lap, let me take a good look at that beautiful pussy."

She listens, bending over his thighs and Harry adjusts her so her ass is propped up and her feet are dangling. 

Harry's hands go to her panties, and he rips them apart. "Oh god.", y/n moans. Everything he did was so hot. "I liked that.", she pouts, her poor panties.

"Sorry baby, I'll buy a new one.", Harry grins, throwing the cloth pieces away after ripping it in half. He spreads her cheeks apart, looking at her glistening pussy. "You're dripping, sweetheart. Oh, look at all that sweetness."

"Please Harry.", she whines as his fingers stroke over her folds, feeling the moisture. 

"You want my fingers? My mouth?", he asks, enjoying her being a mess for him. 

"A-Anything, please." She starts to use his thigh, moving down on it to cause some friction and yelps as his hand comes down on her bottom. "Did I tell you to move?"

"No, sorry.", she moans. "More, please."

"More? You like it when I slap your ass, baby?", he asks, giving her another slap. He groans, watching her ass jiggle from the hit. 

"Fuck, yes.." She gasps as he spanks her again. She loved the pain, and as the sting faded away, she was only left with pleasure. Harry's hand smoothed over the sting, before he thrust his fingers inside her pussy without warning, making her let out a scream and hold on to his legs for support. "P-please, please..", she begs, as he spreads her legs with his knee.

He pulled his fingers away to give her ass another swat, making her whimper. She was getting dizzy from all the pleasure. "Feels good, doesn't it? You gonna cum, baby?"

"Y-Yes, yes..oh.." His fingers curl around her g-spot and she's a mess on his lap as she tries to lay still. It felt so good. "Come on, cum for me.."

y/n's sure she's seen stars, as Harry helps her through her orgasm. All the blood was rushing to her face as she was dangling on his lap. Harry notices and places a pillow beside him, before bringing her up so her head's laying on the pillow. He also lifts her legs and lays them on the bed. 

Harry brings his fingers to his lips, tasting her. "So sweet, baby."

He takes some of it dripping out of her, bringing it to her lips. "Here, clean my fingers, darling."

y/n's lips wrap around his fingers as she sucks on them. He pulls his fingers out of her mouth and brings it back to her pussy, making her whimper.

"What? Is your little pussy sensitive already?", Harry chuckles. "Okay, I'll give you a few minutes. How bout I play with your other hole?"

She gasps as he spreads her cheeks with one hand, and circles his finger over her asshole. She grips onto the sheets, letting out a small whine. "I will fuck you in this little hole one day. I bet it'll be tight like your pussy."

He pushes his finger into her asshole, and she moans at the new feeling. "Harry.."

"So tight, and pretty." He spits on her hole, and pushes his finger back in. "Would you like that baby? I'll fill all your holes up, and you'll take it, won't you?"

"Yes, yes I will. Please." She whines when he pulls his finger out, and he laughs. "Not today, you're very tight and we don't have lube. I don't want it to hurt. Some other time, huh, baby?"

He sits her up on his lap. "I want you to ride me. Your tits look so pretty and perky today, I want them bouncing on my face."

She looks at his dick which was hard again, standing up straight. "That's what you do to me.", he says, and she grins, placing her hands on his shoulders as she gets comfortable. Harry holds her hips, and guides them over him as she sinks down on him slowly. 

y/n moans, feeling him deep inside of her. Harry moves one hand from her hip to her clit, his thumb rubbing slow circles over her sensitive bud of nerves, as she starts moving. 

"F-Fuck, Harry..", y/n's body over flows with pleasure. "Let me hear how much you like it, baby.", Harry says, watching her breasts bounce up and down as she rides him.

"G-God it feels so g-good, so good."

Her thighs were burning, and her body was tingling. His dick felt so good inside her, and if he kept up with her clit rubs, she was going to cum again within minutes. Harry takes one of y/n's nipples into his mouth, sucking on it. 

"H-Harry I'm gonna-"

"-Already? I think you can hold it for a bit.", he tells her, teeth grazing against her nipple as he looked up at her. y/n moans, trying to keep her pace, but she slowed down. Her thighs were burning and shaking with too much pleasure. 

"Be a good girl for me.", Harry murmurs. "You're my dirty little slut, aren't you?"

She yelps as his hand slaps her ass before squeezing the stinging flesh. "Y-Yes.." She tried to move, but she couldn't. "Harry.."

"What's wrong baby? My cock too much for you?", he teases.

"P-Please fuck me, please.", she begs. 

"Since you asked so nicely.", he grins, grabbing her hips again.

Her fingers curled around his shoulders and she screamed as he thrust his hips, hard and fast. She was almost falling off his lap. 

"You can cum, baby.", he tells her, and her eyes roll back in her head as she lets go. Harry fucks her through her orgasm and it hurts from over sensitivity before it feels good again, Harry doesn't stop. "W-Who's making you feel so good?"

y/n couldn't answer. Harry brings one hand to wrap around her throat. "I asked you a question."

"Y-You. You, Harry..", she moans, and her vision goes blurry as his fingers press against the sides of her throat. He was driving her crazy. "T-That's right."

y/n looked so divine, covered in sweat, cum, and tears as she bounced on his cock. Harry released inside her soon, and she cums again. She slumps on him, exhausted and he wraps his arms around her before falling back on the bed, letting her lay on top of him.

They breathe heavily, taking a moment to recover, before y/n looks up at him. Harry smiles at her, stroking her hair back gently, before taking her chin and bringing her close for a kiss. "T-That was crazy.", she whispers. "I can't feel my legs."

Harry laughs, running his hand down her back. "I'm sure it'll be fine after a nice warm shower and a small nap."

"I do need a shower, but you might have to carry me inside."

"With pleasure.", he nods, and kisses her nose. "I love you, sunshine."

"I love you too, H.", she squeezes her arms around his waist. "You're perfect."

After a few minutes of laying down and catching their breath, Harry carries y/n to the shower,  holding her under the warm water. He mumbles praises against her skin as he washes her, and she tangles her hands into his hair as she massages the shampoo into his locks. It was very relaxing. 

So relaxing, that Harry let his mind wander. y/n kisses his chin, looking at him fondly as she continues to wash his hair.

"What's on your mind?", she asks, after a few minutes.

Harry turns the water back on, running his hands through his hair as he washed the shampoo out. "I was thinking about everything you told me. She's not dead, y/n."

"W-Who's not dead?", y/n asks, although she feared the answer.

"Reagen. She didn't die."

y/n felt like throwing up.

"They were in love. Love like you've never seen before. Harry would do anything and everything for her.", Romania's words ring in her ear. Reagen wasn't afraid of anything. She didn't have anyone. Harry was her world."

Maybe Harry was starting to remember things, and his mind didn't want to believe that his love was dead.

"H-Harry, I'm sorry but, Reagen is dead.", y/n says slowly, rubbing his arm. "Only you survived after that night-"

"-No.", Harry cuts her off, staring right into her eyes. "Reagen's alive, y/n. I don't know where she is, but I know that she's not dead. Things..they're coming back to me."

[munariplans]

Hiii thank you for updating on your recent story! I enjoyed it!!💓 could I request Natasha x reader in a situationship & there’s a avengers wedding and they both get invited separately only for reader to see Nat in a different way and suddenly realised they had feelings all this time for her 🥹

the arrangement | natasha romanoff

synopsis: based on the request above!

natasha romanoff x reader

word count: 5.6k words

a/n: i really do have a fondness for writing pining and angst, enjoy hehehehe

masterlist

in a rare instance in the years you’ve known natasha, it was her that awoke first that morning, shaking you awake as yelena pounded on the door to her room.

“hey, hey,” natasha whispered-yelled, prompting you to get up while opening your eyes blearily, “you have to go. yelena’s here.”

yawning, you gave her an “OK” signal as you gathered your surroundings. you had once again fallen asleep in her room after last night. gathering your clothes and fixing your hair then, you spared a look at her mirror first before leaving, and what you saw almost made you want to laugh out loud. 

“how the fuck did you manage to cover me in this many hickeys?” 

natasha turned to you, halfway through freshening herself up as well. the redness in her cheeks grew prominent as she saw the many purple and red bruises littering all around your neck. cursing, she threw you a turtleneck from her wardrobe and pointed at the window. yelena was asking her why she was taking so long now.

but just before you climbed out, she thought about it, and risked it for a few more seconds, before pulling you in to press a kiss to your lips. “that girl that was hitting you up at the party last night was being annoying. had to show her you weren’t interested.”

you grinned, shaking your head at her ridiculousness. 

and right as you shut the window and slipped out, yelena barged in and threw her several wedding dress options onto natasha’s bed, demanding for her sister to decide which one looked best. but natasha hated to admit she was still distracted from the way your ass swayed right as you sultrily sneaked out of her window. 

–

later that same afternoon, you were walking with your friend, accompanying him ring-shopping, when the question first came up. 

“aren’t you ever interested in marriage? or, at the very least, finding a partner?” he half-joked. everyone knew you had been single for a while now. “we’re not so young anymore, you know.”

in response, you shrugged. “i don’t see a point.”

“in loving someone?”

“in being with someone, at all. the domesticity, the mundaneness, it’s all so…boring, after a while. i don’t see why you, and so many others, would want to be tied down by all of that, forever.”

“...so you don’t see a forever?”

“right now, with just one person, i don’t,” you said, your eyes drifting off to the street across, where a girl in braids of red hair reminded you of a certain someone you had begun sleeping with in the past few months. 

–

you called natasha on the way home, asking if she had company for the night, and if not, whether she wanted yours. 

she replied that she was frustrated, and that yelena was being a bitch about her wedding planning. natasha had insisted that a band would have been a better musical accompaniment, yelena had wanted to allow tony and clint to get drunk enough to sing for her.

you came to yelena’s rescue, apparently. because right as you arrived right back at natasha’s apartment, where the two women were clearly at each other’s throats and yelena had literally picked up a butter knife to threaten her sister, you caught natasha from lunging at her and wiping the stupid smirk off her face entirely. she thrashed in your arms, but with a few reassuring words and a promise to let yelena have a taste of her own medicine later, she relented. 

“can you believe how stupid she is sounding? wanting the drunkards to sing for her?!” natasha pointed out then, to which yelena took offence once more. 

“i’m sorry i want my wedding to be fun!” she screamed, “you can’t help it if god made your sister boring!”

“why, you–”

you held natasha firmer by your side, at the feeling of her nearly jumping to strangle her sister. “–natasha, enough. let it go.”

“she was being–”

“–it’s her choice, her wedding. let it go, will you? we can discuss this another time, when you two are less…riled up,” then, you leaned in closer, and whispered, “if you behave now, i’ll let you try fucking me against the glass of that window you like seeing me escape out of so much later.” 

her breath hitched, you knew you had struck a deal with natasha. she backed off, and even stopped herself from retaliating at yelena’s middle finger and stuck-out tongue.

but when yelena had left for the day and the two of you were alone, natasha found herself being strapped to the passenger seat of your car, as you drove her to her favourite ice cream parlour nearby.

a pout on her face, natasha asked as you parked, “i thought we were going to have sex after she left.”

you nodded understandingly. “we are, but i think i need to cool you down with ice cream first. i don’t want to get myself injured from your wrath with yelena earlier.”

the truth had been because you thought natasha needed a space to calm down and process her feelings first, and not to bottle it up and shove it away from sex. plus, you thought that the treat would cheer her up a little as well, putting aside how hot you found angry sex was with natasha.

of course, with your little quip, you could only expect natasha elbowing you as hard as she could, as you laughed and opened the door for her to the parlour.

–

“they have a new flavour here,” natasha pointed against the display, “apple pie.”

“you won’t like it.” you thought about natasha’s preferences for ice cream, and while they were boring, they were safe. “they have your usual today.”

but she took it as a challenge, apparently. “i’m going to try it.”

and as the cashier took both your orders, natasha noticed you place an order for her usual flavour. while it was odd that you would deviate from anything even remotely far from cookies and cream, she chose not to speak of it. 

you watched as natasha took her seat in front of you, then taking one bite of her apple pie scoop, before her face morphed into one of doubt, then slight discomfort, and finally, disgust. still, she tried to hide it from you, putting on a straight face as you asked her how it tasted. 

“fine,” she said, but her disdain said otherwise. 

in response, you smirked, offering her a bite of your own scoop. she was persistent in not wanting to at first, but as you offered her again, she took a bite, then another, and another, and oh well by that point you had given her your entire scoop and taken hers away from her. 

you tasted the apple pie scoop. it had cinnamon, something natasha clearly disliked. there was no wonder, you thought, smiling to yourself as you watched her finish the last of her usual order of vanilla with chocolate sprinkles. 

–

you were at the bachelor’s party of yelena’s fiancé when natasha’s call came in. she had dropped you a string of drunk texts that night, a product of her own consequences from attending yelena’s bachelorette party.

“hello, natty?” you answered, moving away from the noisy atmosphere of the club to a secluded side. you caught the groom giving you a confused look, you gestured that it was natasha on the line, and he gave you a weird smirk. 

“hellooo,” she drunkenly slurred. in the background, you could hear yelena asking for more shots. “my lovely, lovely, friend. where–are–you? i want to go home nowww…”

you moved further away from the club, bringing your phone closer to your ear. “i’ll come pick you up. are you sober enough to text me the address?”

just then, the phone was brought to maria’s side, and you could hear her shrieking for natasha to let you enjoy the party, and that there were designated drivers to bring her home if she needed to. natasha yelled back that she wanted you to come pick her up. 

you got the address from the groom, as he and the other people in the party boo-ed you for leaving so soon. you still had a line of shots to finish and a karaoke match that you would be missing, but you had already picked up your jacket and began finding your car keys to pick up natasha then. 

when you found her, she was slumped over the bar counter, in a conversation with the bartender, who was clearly wanting to serve the other customers to earn his keep. you approached, and natasha immediately went to your side as she hung off of you, smiling from ear to ear. her smile made your own lips turn up in amusement. 

“are you the one she’s been talking my head off all night?” the bartender asked, and you chuckled. 

“i guess so,” you thanked him for taking care of her, and left the bar after saying a round of goodbyes to the people in yelena’s party as well. 

– 

you helped natasha to the passenger seat of the car, but right as you reached over her body to help fasten her seatbelt, her hand caught your wrist, forcing you to look up at her. 

her eyes met yours, and in a clear split second of momentary sobriety, you saw sincerity in them. she whispered, “you’re so pretty,  i think i might be in love with you.”

you couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled in your throat, as your first reaction was to snicker, then look away from her. then, when you heard her groan behind you, the snickers became full-blown chuckles as you laughed in her face at the drunken confession. “oh, i have so much blackmail material against you when you’re drunk.”

natasha hit you frustratedly as you returned to the driver’s seat, but you caught her hand as you continued, “you’re drunk, natasha. you’re saying things you don’t mean.”

you helped her out of the car again as you reached her apartment, her leaning her body on yours as she stumbled finding her way through the building. using the extra set of keys she had given you, you unlocked the door and set her down on her sofa. 

guiding her to her bedroom, you felt natasha’s hands then start travelling up and down your body, and while in any normal circumstance you would have indulged her, and perhaps initiated more, you knew she was drunk. you weren’t going to be the asshole who took advantage of their friend, with benefits, when it was unclear even to her what she was doing. 

you removed her hands, and let her lie down on the bed. she pouted. “do you not want me?” 

she saw you disappear into her bathroom for a minute, before returning with her toiletries. “i do. you know i always do. just not when you’re drunk.”

“but i want youuu,” she slurred, “and i’m so horny nowww.”

you smirked, but still refused. instead, you rested on top of her, slowly removing her false eyelashes, then wiping off her makeup, and finally helping her carefully wash her face. she sighed at the gentle massage and warm water. “you know, anyone else would have said yes. anyone else would have been dying for natasha romanoff, me, to sleep with them like this.”

“but i’m not anyone else, aren’t i?” you quipped, taking off her clothes and rejecting yet another advancement for her to take yours off as well. you went to her dresser to find her pyjamas. 

natasha rolled her eyes, turning her body away from you as you dressed her up again in protest. you smiled to yourself at her cuteness, tucking her in and pressing a kiss on her forehead. “tomorrow, when you’re sober and still up for it, call me. i’ll be here right away.”

she watched you place a strip of advil and a glass of water for her hangover tomorrow, before gathering your things again. “...you’re not going to stay? where are you going?” 

drunk natasha really was clingy natasha, you thought. “i have another hookup i need to get to. need to make the most of my nights, you know?”

in truth, you didn’t want to overstep any boundaries you and natasha had set up for yourselves when you first got into this…arrangement. she was clear on not wanting any feelings to be involved, and with how things were turning out tonight, you were afraid that if you stayed, there would be a blurring of some lines from her end on her feelings; lines that she would reenforce the morning after even more strictly. and while you didn’t generally have a problem with that, you had felt that you had gotten natasha to lower her walls down enough to enjoy your company beyond your flings; you didn’t want to risk all that just for a night where she could possibly tell you her drunken feelings about you. you treasured your friendship too much for that. 

and so you left, leaving natasha slightly stung and hurt with the implication that you had someone else, or a lot of someone elses, waiting for you if she wasn’t sleeping with you, and strangely, it affected her more than she thought it would, even drunk as she was. watching you leave, she thought selfishly about how she hadn’t slept with anyone since she began sleeping with you, so was it only fair that you had the decency not to as well?

but you and her were just friends, she had to remind herself. it was not like she had power to dictate who you were seeing, and who you slept with, anyway. it was not like you two were exclusive, or in a relationship at all, which was precisely what natasha hadn’t wanted at the start. now, she was wondering why she even uttered those words at all. 

little did she know, you were doing nothing of the sort. instead, you had gone straight home, put up a romantic comedy on the TV, heated yourself some leftovers, and sighed as you pondered over your own early end to the night.

– 

everyone who knew you and natasha, knew however, that whatever relationship you two had, was more than just friends. that the two of you had crossed the line of just friends about twenty late-night hookups and rendezvouses ago, no matter what either of you claimed about the other. 

it was clear in the way you cared for natasha more than any other friend you had, it was clear in the way natasha sought out for you more than she even initiated a conversation with anyone else. 

which was what made it so incredulous; that you would allow anyone else try to court natasha before you did. 

everyone had warned bucky that what you and natasha shared was more than just a surface friendship, and relations ran deeper than what he thought was possible. but still, it didn’t stop him from taking your own words against yourself, and confronting you about it one day.

“you’re just friends, right?” he asked haughtily, interrupting you as you were helping yelena sort out the final touches to her wedding venue arrangement. you dismissed him with a quick grunt and agreement. 

but he followed you. “then you wouldn’t mind helping me get to know her, would you? or better, helping her fall for me?”

you paused in that moment, yelena, overhearing the conversation, consequently giving him a weird look as well. surely not, she thought, turning her attention to you, but you seemed to contemplate his request. 

and she nearly choked in disbelief, when surprisingly, you agreed to help him out in chasing natasha.

you shared with him that natasha’s birthday was approaching, and when he asked what kind of gifts she would like, you wanted to say something small, heartfelt. but then you realised it was probably only in your case she would like it so. from anyone else, you thought she deserved the world. 

“something big, extravagant,” you told bucky, “natasha deserves only the best, you see.”

he happily lapped up any information you gave him about natasha, the person who knew her best. 

and when her birthday did arrive, you watched by the sidelines as bucky shyly presented his gift to her, an outlandish, extravagant display of just his infatuation for the woman. everyone had thought it was well-thought out, very well suited to what she liked, and you patted yourself on the back at the comments. it was you, after all, who had accompanied bucky to get her gift. 

natasha looked flustered, admittedly, at the surprise of someone knowing what she wanted so well. it wasn’t everyday that she told the people around her what she wanted for her birthday, after all. and to think about it, she had only told you, of her wishlist upon her birthday. 

when she found a moment with you alone that night, as the party winded down and everyone began to leave, she was interrupted by bucky hanging around foolishly, almost as if he was waiting for something to happen between them. she kindly gave him a kiss on the cheek, and promised him she would call him the next day. she needed to get to you first.

you were by the bar as you watched their interaction, the giddy look on bucky’s face as he left and gave you a thumbs-up making you chuckle. 

then, natasha appeared by your side, asking you what was so funny. you didn’t have the heart to tell her. 

“i didn’t forget to get you a gift, by the way,” you told her when she had coaxed you up to her bedroom, “i just…didn’t want the others to see. saved you the embarrassment of the teases and accusations in front of everyone.”

“oh god,” natasha replied, “you’re going to gift me a sex toy, aren’t you? i just know it.”

“you are such an addict,” you snickered, “what do you take me for?!”

then, you pulled out a small box from your jacket, tied in a tiffany blue ribbon with her name written in an accompanying card alongside the box. natasha’s fingers trembled as she received your gift.

to my natasha, my bestest friend. 

she didn’t know why her heart dropped a little in disappointment at the note. but she kept up her unwavering smile, and pulled on the ribbon. 

it was a silver necklace, with a flower pendant right in front. it was neither tacky, nor extravagant and luxurious, like bucky’s gift had been. and while his gift was definitely something natasha liked, and was surprised by, your gift had been the one that almost sent her to tears. 

“because you’re beautiful like the flowers,” you said, a little uncertain as you watched tears well up in her eyes, “natty, are you okay?”

she tried to reel in the tears, but to no avail. worried, you said, “if you don’t like it, i can return it, it’s okay. i can probably get back a half-refund for it, and get you the voucher to spend on something else. oh god, you’re crying because of me, is it that bad…?”

but then, suddenly she was throwing herself onto you, arms wrapped around your neck as she sobbed hysterically. she had never known someone who knew her so well. you wrapped your arms around her body, still confused, when she choked out, “i-it’s perfect. thank you.”

she asked you to help her put it on, and when the clasp was tightened and natasha felt the pendant rest on the base of her collarbones, she held it as if she was holding it close to her heart. it was the best birthday gift she had ever gotten. 

“i’m sorry it’s a little small, and kind of lame,” you professed later, as she laid on top of you, spending the last few moments of her birthday together. it was also the rare few times the both of you were fully clothed while laying on that bed. “i know you deserve so much better, but i…i saw the pendant, and it reminded me of you.”

natasha listened to your heartbeat quicken as she reached out for your hand, interlacing her fingers with yours. “i loved it. you don’t have to apologise. thank you, for today as well. steve told me you planned the party from start to finish. called the caterers to make sure they had what i liked, arranged the drinks from the bar, even nearly having a fight over the cake decorations with the bakery. it must’ve been so much trouble.”

your laugh this time was warm, rumbling from your diaphragm. “not at all. not if it’s for you.”

your eyes met hers, and when natasha readjusted her face just so that she could be closer, to give you a perfect opportunity to lean down and kiss her, to give her the perfect end to her birthday night, you stupidly looked away, and told her you couldn’t stay. 

as you left, you reminded her to call bucky again, and natasha nearly threw her own phone at you in frustration. 

– 

natasha had unwillingly agreed to a lunch date with bucky, upon your suggestion that he was a nice guy, and that she was the only one left to go to yelena’s wedding without a date. she made you promise to pick her up right after, and while you feigned that she was so troublesome for asking for such, you were happy to do it for her. 

“well, how was it?” you asked. you had been driving for a good fifteen minutes after picking her up, and natasha still had not said one word about him. she had only been talking to you about your day up until then. 

she shrugged, almost as if not giving a care for it. “it was okay. he paid for the lunch. we talked about yelena’s wedding.” 

“okay enough for a second date?”

she looked away to the window. you thought you said something wrong, when she replied, “what do you think about him?”

“well, i don’t know,” you said, “when he came to me, asking for help to get you to like him, i thought he seemed genuine enough. so…i helped him.”

“wait,” natasha suddenly sat up, shooting you a glare, “you were helping him? to get to me?”

your gaze met hers for a brief moment, before returning to the road. “...yes? is there anything wrong with that?”

she stayed quiet for a moment, but you knew she was seething. you offered to explain yourself, to tell her that you just wanted the best for her, that’s all, and that bucky seemed like a good partner for her, when natasha held up a hand to stop you. 

then, she demanded for you to stop the car and let her out.

“what?” you asked, puzzled. “it’s still half an hour to your apartment, natty. and it’s about five degrees out, you’ll freeze to death if you get out.”

“i said, stop the car!” she argued back defiantly, “stop the car or i’m opening the door right now and throwing myself out!”

you knew not to take natasha’s words lightly, as you stopped finally. then, you watched with even more disbelief, as she unbuckled her seatbelt, got out, and slammed the door shut again. 

when she began walking her route home, you followed her with your car and pleaded, “come on, natty, are you mad at me?”

she refused to make eye contact or acknowledge you. 

“fine, i was wrong. i never should’ve helped him, and i won’t help him anymore. i just…i wanted what was best for you, you know? come on, get back in the car, it’s cold outside, and you still have so far to go if you walk.”

“what’s best for me…” she said under her breath, “...how do you know what’s best for me?”

“natty, i said i’m sorry!” you begged this time, but natasha suddenly took a turn to the right, leading up to a row of shops where the roads didn’t allow for cars in, and you knew it was your sign to leave her alone. she still didn’t acknowledge you when you said you were sorry for the third time. 

–

the next time bucky came up in a conversation between you both (you had been very careful not to tread upon it since that day), natasha told you that she had let him down and told him to try again when she was more ready for a relationship.

you were afraid of asking why, in fear that she would ignore you and get upset all over again, but she invited you to do so. so you asked, and she said that she had her eye on someone else the whole time, so it was unwelcomed at the thought of you trying to set her up with bucky.

you had wanted to ask who it was, your curiosity piqued, when you were interrupted by wanda asking you for a dance. it had been at another friend’s wedding, after all. 

natasha found herself digging her fingernails into her palms when you took wanda’s hand and danced with her.

–

the woman showed you just how jealous she had been of wanda hours later in your bedroom. with the knowledge that her and bucky were no longer a thing, you no longer had to respect your boundaries with her as a friend, and the both of you returned to sleeping together again. to say that you missed natasha’s touch had been an understatement.

“you look so pretty with my hands around your neck,” natasha whispered harshly. there it was again. the last time she called you so pretty, she was drunk. now, she was sober, and you were still finding it hard to believe her words. perhaps it was just something she said in the heat of the moment.

you moaned as her fingers plunged harder, and deeper, within you, letting your eyes roll to the back of your head as natasha ravaged you for the night. in the morning you would wake in her bed again, and it would be okay, because you had her back, finally. the red, raw trails on your back from her fingers wouldn’t feel so sore, the hickeys around your neck and jaw no longer a nuisance. because you had her back, and it was all that mattered. 

–

leading up to yelena’s wedding, the two of you returned to a shared normalcy that was similar to before the bucky incident; something both you and natasha were grateful for.

you would pick her up for lunch at her favourite restaurants most days, and on more than one occasion, you would catch natasha taking pictures of you when the both of you were alone. she thought you looked too good, in the natural sunlight of the restaurant window, and in the scarf that she had bought for you for your birthday. 

when you would ask to see the photos later on, you found it hard to disagree that the world did look better in natasha’s eyes. 

away from your prying eyes later, natasha would set the photos she took of you as her phone wallpaper. 

– 

with natasha as the maid of honour and you being one of the grooms (wo)men, natasha was the one who insisted that you at least knew how to dance properly when the slow songs came about. you had whined that you wouldn’t be dancing anyway, since you didn’t have a date, and you weren’t looking to find a date, but the woman was insistent, and you could never really say no to her. 

“it’s easy, just follow me, and try not to step on my feet,” she reminded you, fixing the turntable to an elvis record. you watched in adoration at the warm lighting of the room, and how, even in her pyjamas and her hair tied in a messy bun, natasha still managed to look beautiful even in her apartment’s living room. 

she took your hands in hers, placing it on her waist, as she laid her head on your shoulder. “breathe. and follow me.”

the music played. it was easy enough keeping up with natasha, following her footsteps and swaying to the music. but what was not easy, was having her breath fanning out against your neck, the smell of wine in her mouth, and the music, oh the music. it was a huge mistake to dance with natasha when elvis’ can’t help falling in love was playing in the background.

the both of you softly, slowly danced, natasha taking comfort in your touch, while the music accompanied all that you were feeling for the night.

shall i stay? would it be, would it be a sin? if i can't help falling in love with you 

would it be a sin if you fell for natasha? you could only hold her closer, relishing in the fact that in that brief moment, where the two of you were dancing, no one else mattered, and nothing else was there, except for your two souls, beating as one. once the song was over, it would be back to being just friends for you both, but in that moment, you were infinite, and you were natasha’s. 

when she felt you let go first as the song ended, natasha resisted the urge to hold on tighter and ask for a second song. 

– 

on the morning of the wedding, you woke natasha up first, pressing kisses all over her cheeks and face as she giggled and wrestled you off. then, she tried sneaking her hand past the band of your panties, to which you reluctantly pulled her out of, mentioning how you couldn’t be late to yelena’s wedding, of all events. she groaned and kissed you for a consolation prize. 

the both of you got ready together. in the bathroom mirror, when the two of you were brushing your teeth, you made eye contact with natasha and she did with you. she smiled shyly, and you realised you didn’t mind spending the rest of your mornings brushing your teeth beside her for a lifetime. 

she sat on your lap as she did your makeup, and you did the same doing hers. the both of you must have had a silent agreement to not look into the other’s eyes for too long in those moments, because you knew natasha wanted to kiss you just as much as you wanted to kiss her when she got too close. 

and when the both of you arrived and separated into your respective sides of the venue, you wished natasha the best of luck with a kiss to her cheek. she hugged you back in reassurance, telling you would do well in the slowdance later. 

when the guests were seated and ready, and natasha and you standing in the opposite sides of the bride and groom, you caught her eye again, watching yelena walk in. she looked absolutely radiating, and you knew she was thanking natasha secretly for convincing her that a band was a better musical accompaniment than whatever she had planned for herself. 

you look beautiful, you mouthed to natasha. she hid her blush in the bridesmaid beside her, as she mouthed the same back to you. 

but when elvis’ song came on again, as yelena walked down the aisle, your eyes were still transfixed on each other. it didn’t matter, because everyone else’s eyes were on the bride then. only you and natasha had each other.

and suddenly, you realised that forever with someone, didn’t seem so bad at all. not if it’s with her. not if it’s natasha. 

 the domesticity, the mundaneness, it wasn’t all so boring if it was with her. you realised you would relive the thousands of days of doing nothing, if it was spent by her side. 

you realised you would do anything for her, even go out to get a ring for her right then, propose and then marry her in a chapel, if that was what she wanted. if it meant forever with her. 

you realised that maybe you loved her, more than just friends. and loving her meant realising that you didn’t have to make a wish ever again because you already had everything you could ever want with her. 

– 

you wanted to ask for her hand when it was time to slow dance. you wanted to ask her to be yours. you wanted to ask her if it hurt to breathe while you loved her as much as she loved you. 

but when you found her, and went to her side to ask her, you were interrupted by bucky once again, who patted you on the back and diverted his attention to natasha. 

he asked her to dance first. and the smile on your face fell, natasha noticed. she halted him, turning to you to ask what was wrong, but then you shook your head, telling her you were fine. she asked again, but you insisted that she dance with him. you would tell her later.

you didn’t know if you were too late. you didn’t know if there were good reasons natasha had established boundaries between the two of you, and whether breaking them meant losing her forever. what were you thinking, that just because you caught feelings, meant she would catch them too? 

you wouldn’t risk what you have with her just because of your feelings. you treasured natasha too much for that. 

and so when she slow danced with the man on the dance floor and tried catching your eye to dance with her instead, you only gave her a small smile and left the ballroom first. 

because you weren’t hers and she wasn’t yours. that had been the arrangement from the start. 

[bvidzsoo]

Love Me Like A Rockstar (14)

ー☆ Chapter 14: Follow You

Author: bvidzsoo

Pairing: Song Mingi x female reader

ー☆ Warning: none ー☆ Word count: 7.8k ー☆ Genre: university!au, enemies to lovers!au, rockstar!au ー☆ Rating: sfw ー☆ Summary: Love. You wanted none of it. You had already been heartbroken very badly once, you didn't wish to go through that ever again. But the Universe works in intricate ways and, somehow, you found yourself webbed up in a local rockstar's life, Song Mingi. He was everything you expected him to be, yet nothing like you imagined him he would be. What happens when you find mutual understanding and have heartful conversations? Will he be able to break down your walls? Will you be able to chase away his darkness?

A/N: Hello, my lovelies! And the last actual chapter is here (as I still have an epilogue ready for you all), I can't believe we're wrapping up LMLAR and that I have to let go of the characters I have created for this story. I can't lie, I might have become really attached to Mingi in this story because I accidentally portrayed in him my ideal type, but what's new? I somehow always manage to hurt myself when I write with Mingi lol (ig that's the burden I have to carry if I write a story with my bias lol) I will be going on a holiday for possibly two weeks, so that means I won't be able to write nor update for two weeks (which sounds horrible and I'm already dying over it, but I hope I'll manage to find time to still write even if a little). Now, don't worry too much about the epilogue and I ask you to read the note at the end of this chapter attentively! ;) For once, I am asking you all to listen to Follow You after you've finished the chapter and not before or during it! I'm curious if the lyrics will be familiar hehe. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and let me know through feedback <3 divider

Taglist: @orshii @or5i @lovely-red2 @scarfac3 @juicy-red

@sunaswifes-blog @voicesinmyhead-rc @teez-the-time @maru-matt @kyeos4ng

@deathbyyeekies @chicksmoothie @mjlbn01 @xhexy @tmtxtf

@hwashiningstar @thatfavouritesong @ateez-atiny380 @xciiiomwliah @vixensss

@catchingskzzzs @tesssaurrr @ginger-mingi @mingisbbg

⟨Series M.list ↭ Previous Chapter⟩

♫Playlist♫

            Being here with him, doing this with him had no business being so nerve-wracking. This was Mingi, the guy I hated at first—did I?—and then found a friend in and—well, now found something more in him—wanted more from him. But the flutter of my heart and my stomach twisting despite still feeling somewhat calm, reminded me that no matter that I was with Mingi, this was a completely new setting for us. Yes, it was just the two of us going out and about, but at the same time, it was a date. Something we both discussed and agreed upon, leaving our houses with the purpose of going on this date, the two of us. And perhaps it wasn’t even me feeling nervous about going on a date with Mingi per se, but more the fact that I hadn’t done something like this in ages, which made me feel giddy about it. Like a child when they get the present they really wanted on Christmas Eve.

Mingi, like the true gentleman he was, had picked me up once we were both done with our classes for the day, the sun only half an hour away from setting. The sky had been coated in orange and pink hues as Mingi drove us to an unknown location, grinning from ear to ear as he talked about his day to fill the silence since his old Honda’s stereo had stopped working a few days ago. I didn’t mind that, not at all, if that meant I got to listen to his deep voice and excited tone as he told me about his professor asking about Outlaw and whether he was allowed to attend one of Noir Zenith’s performances. It seemed like word had gotten out lately about Mingi’s band, and even more people from our university were interested in watching them play, I feared soon Outlaw wouldn’t be enough to house the fans. The thought made me feel—made me feel proud and happy for him. Mingi deserved this, he was hard-working and diligent, and I wished him nothing but the best.

When I realized that Mingi was driving us to a rather high-end part of the city with tall and fancy buildings, I found myself more nervous about the surprise he had in mind for me. I didn’t exactly want to dine out in a super expensive restaurant—it really wasn’t my thing—but if this is what Mingi prepared for us, I wouldn’t mind. I knew I’d enjoy myself as long as he was by my side. But, thankfully, he veered us away from the main street and drove down a few narrower ones, buildings nestled together and looking cozier than ever. Graffiti and murals covered every second bricked wall, and I watched curiously as Mingi pulled over and parked the car at the side of the road, in front of a black building, smaller than the ones in the area but a lot more modern and fancier looking. It was dark inside and looked unlived in, but I didn’t question him when he just grinned and grabbed a blanket and basket out of the backseat, then grabbed my hand and guided me towards its front door.

He had fumbled with the key for a second and I snickered at him as he flushed, but then we were inside and I watched in awe the high windows, the place vacant of anything. It was dark, now with the sun setting as well, and I noticed that quite a few lightbulbs were still missing, but Mingi grabbed my hand and walked us towards the end of the hallway.

“Are you sure we’re supposed to be here?” I asked quietly, as if afraid someone would hear us. The place was unfurnished still and Mingi hummed as I noticed light coming from a room whose archway was covered by a black blanket so that you couldn’t see inside. I had paused and looked at Mingi questioningly as he chewed on his bottom lip, then released my hand and yanked the blanket down. My eyes widened at the scenery inside, completely taken aback by the fairy lights strung above and the fort which was built by three stands and a blanket dangled over them. Besides the fairy lights, there was a projector and the white wall was covered in the image of a forest, with a creek slowly flowing through, and the distant sound of birds chirping echoed around the room, it was quiet so as not to disturb any conversation.

My jaw was completely on the floor as I felt my heart race even faster, completely in awe at the view in front of me. I couldn’t believe someone would do something so sweet for me, and as I turned to look at Mingi, for the first time, he looked nervous. He smiled tentatively and I noticed his trembling fingers as he pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his tall nose, and then without thinking, I threw myself in his arms, hugging his torso tightly as I gnawed on my bottom lip, embarrassed by the sudden tears in my eyes as I buried my head in his chest. Mingi made a surprised noise in the back of his throat but didn’t hesitate to return the embrace, and I had to gulp multiple times to try and get rid of the lump in my throat. Nobody has ever done something this nice for me. It was thoughtful, there was effort put into it, and I knew Mingi did this all by himself.

“So, based on your reaction, I assume you like this?” He didn’t sound smug or playful, he sounded genuinely curious, and for a second, I couldn’t believe I was stupid enough to even think of ruining a relationship with someone this precious.

“I love it, Mingi.” I whispered into his chest, the softener of his clothes carrying a flowery scent that mingled with his cologne that I was familiar with by now. It felt safe, it felt warm, and Mingi was comforting to be around.

“Oh, that’s good.” He heaved a sigh and I finally managed to get rid of the tears as I pulled my head back to look up at him, his cheeks were flushed a deep red, a great contrast against his tanned skin and platinum hair, “I was scared you’d hate it, but Wooyoung told me to trust my gut, so I did.”

I smiled and released him, stepping back to offer him space so that he could proceed with his plans. He beckoned me further inside the warm room, towards the fort as he laid the blanket out on a mattress for us, placing the picnic basket next to it, “If the weather would’ve allowed it, I would’ve loved taking you down to the creek for a little picnic under the warm sun, but autumn and winter suck, so I had to get creative.”

“I wasn’t expecting anything less from you.” I chuckled as I had walked towards him, shrugging off my long coat. Mingi followed suit and I took my time to take in his attire, loose black jeans held onto his narrow hips by a thick belt, a beige sweater tucked in slightly at the front, and a black denim jacket with the sleeves rolled up. His wrists were decorated with beaded bracelets, the rings toned down as he only had three on his left and one on his right hand, three necklaces dangling at different lengths around his neck. His nails were bare today, void of the familiar black tint. And, without meaning to, it seemed like we wore matching outfits for our date. I wore black jeans which was loose at the knees paired with a black off-shoulder long-sleeved blouse and a beige sweater with holes over it. I didn’t want to comment on my observations as Mingi settled on the mattress with a grin, patting the spot next to him, “What’s this place though? Are you sure we’re allowed to be here?”

Mingi chuckled as he opened the basket, pulling out the thermos I had brought the hot chocolate in for him days ago, and then he grabbed two mugs, “I pulled some strings for us to be here, but we’re not trespassing, so don’t worry.”

“Who owns this building?” I asked curiously as I watched Mingi pour hot chocolate into the mugs.

“Well, last I heard Hongjoong bought it, so…” My eyes widened as I had taken the mug from Mingi, curious to know more, “This building will be Seonghwa’s art studio. He wishes to launch a brand soon, and Hongjoong thought it would be best if Seonghwa has his own office, or studio as Hwa likes to call it. I think he wants to turn the front lobby into a smaller art gallery of sorts, you should talk to him and see whether he’s interested in displaying your paintings and drawings.”

I hummed, thrilled at the idea of having my own exposition one day, “I don’t think I have enough creations for him to display just yet, but I will keep it in mind.”

It’s my dream to be a well-known painter all around the world, to have to travel to display my art in various galleries, to have people interpret my works to their liking and imagination, and to be able to spread a message through my work. I love creating and I love sharing my deepest thoughts through whatever I put on a canvas, or in my sketchbook and, perhaps, I love it even more when someone else appreciates it and interprets it through their own lens, through their own experiences.

Being here with Mingi felt warm, it made me forget about every concern I had prior, completely disregarding my nervous state as I now found myself comfortable sitting beside him and sipping on our hot chocolate, snacking from time to time on popcorn and whatever salty snack Mingi had prepared for us. The scenery through the projector never changed, and I found the chirping of the birds and the flow of the water as white noise rather relaxing. If I closed my eyes, I could easily picture myself with Mingi by the creek, the two of us sitting on a blanket in the green grass, the warm sun beaming down on us as we laughed and talked about whatever came to mind. It seemed like time passed by like a slug when in reality, it was flying away way too fast, but neither one of us cared. Wooyoung and Seulgi knew we were on a date—and since this building was Hongjoong and Seonghwa’s, they probably knew we were here too—and I had told my mother earlier today that I was going out with Mingi. There was no point hiding anything from her anymore, and she was beyond excited to hear the news. She had a night shift today, but she promised to pester me at breakfast about every single detail tomorrow, swearing she wouldn’t go to sleep until we had the chance to talk. And when she put her mind to something, I knew she would follow through with it.

Mingi and I had been talking non-stop since the whole fiasco in his studio—through texts, phone calls, or in person—and I found myself craving to be around him more and more. Surprising even myself, I bought pastries just the other day before going to my first class, and knowing Mingi would be in his studio, I surprised him with his favorite pastry before I was off to class, not wanting to bother him anymore. It also didn’t come as much of a surprise when he and Wooyoung sat with me and Seulgi at lunch, Mingi huddled up close to me as he wouldn’t stop nagging me about eating more, giving me half of his portion despite me not being able to stomach it. In the end, he finished both of our lunches, and I couldn’t have been happier. Seulgi and Wooyoung didn’t comment much on our antics, but I knew Seulgi was dying to tease me. I knew I was in for it later in our art class, and I wasn’t wrong.

The tension I felt around Mingi—due to not being completely honest with him—had now completely disappeared and was, instead, replaced with a tingling feeling that made me giggle and flush any time I allowed my thoughts to stray towards him. Towards his tall build, his firm muscles, his deep and raspy voice that covered my skin in chills any time I listened to it, and his sharp eyes that could make anyone weak in the knees unless they were creased due to his wide smile. His long nose and crooked teeth and that wide smile that had my stomach doing weird flips, his throaty giggles and rarely flushed cheeks. His hands, which were always warm in contrast to his chunky silver rings, which, surprisingly, have become comforting whenever they dug into my skin, his thick fingers intertwined with mine. His cologne and scent, which had me craving more of him, his clothes tucked away securely in my closet—and if perhaps one of my hoodies’ started smelling like Mingi, nobody had to know that I would snuggle up in it before falling asleep. His arms, which always brought a wave of comfort with them and made me feel smaller than anyone has managed to make me feel before. His hands and nails which I would stare at and flush whenever Mingi noticed what I had been doing, and ultimately, his platinum blonde hair, a color that I started loving instead of hating so ardently. It suited him, it made him look unfairly handsome, it sharpened his high cheekbones and his well-defined jaw, gave his eyes more depth and sharpness, and yes, I loved the color, but I also missed his naturally black hair. It made him look softer, more like the Mingi he was on the inside, easily fooling others of his true personality.

A personality that was goofy and giddy, yet a personality that felt everything intensely and spoke boldly, expressing himself directly and never expecting anything besides fair treatment and the truth in return. Mingi was a sensitive soul who offered without asking anything back in return, and he was rewarded rightfully by those around him who appreciated and loved him. He was easily lovable and I found it harder each day that passed by to ignore the need to cherish and protect him. I didn’t think coming clean with my feelings would be such a liberating feeling, that it would make everything so much easier to accept, to mull over. I was scared, of course, I still was, but I felt hopeful. I knew Mingi well enough by now to know he’d never pressure me into anything I didn’t want, that he’d never make me feel uncomfortable, and that he’d always take it slow if that’s what I needed.

When our mindless chatter finally subsided, the two of us now laid on our backs, staring up at the moon Mingi had hung up in the fort—it felt serene. I knew we were nearing late evening by now, but I couldn’t find it in myself to actually care, to actually look at my phone to check the time. I didn’t even want to look at my wristwatch to see—I wished to stay in this moment with Mingi for as long as possible. We had eaten almost all the snacks he brought and the hot chocolate had been long gone now, all we did was enjoy each other’s company right now. With a finger fiddling with the holes in my sweater, I reached the pinkie of my other hand out until I could poke at Mingi’s hand. I didn’t look at him, but I could see from my peripheral that his eyes were closed. He hummed when I poked his pinkie again, and then, finally gave in as he hooked our pinkies together, sending my heart into a frenzy as I tried to remind myself that this wasn’t the first time we’d be holding hands—it did nothing to my poor flushed cheeks nor churning stomach, I was horrible at hiding how he made me feel.

“Can I ask you something?” Mingi’s voice was quiet as if not to disturb our peace. He sounded just a little bit hesitant, and I got a feeling of what our next subject would be about. I hummed and listened as he took a deep breath, then asked his question, “Do you hate Yunho?”

My eyebrows furrowed as I glanced at Mingi, his eyes were still closed, except that now he was gnawing on his lower lip nervously instead of looking at ease. I didn’t have to think much about his question, I don’t think I have ever felt such negative feelings against someone before, “No, I could never hate anyone, to be honest. However, I did resent him for a long time.”

“And now?” I could understand his curiosity and the need to know more about whatever was once between Yunho and me. It didn’t make me feel uncomfortable, I was rather thankful that we could openly discuss it. I know that if it bothered him, Mingi would’ve told me because that’s who he was. We didn’t hold secrets from each other, we spoke directly and honestly.

“I don’t feel anything,” I whispered with a small shrug, finding it weird how impartial I had become to Jeong Yunho. A few months ago I still couldn’t think of him without distaste, let alone talk about him without my stomach dropping and heart clenching. I still didn’t appreciate the way he’s treated me, of course, I didn’t, but I found it easy to let go, to not care anymore at all, “It’s been over five years that we dated, and I’ve been over him for a long time now.”

“But you couldn’t completely let go,” Mingi muttered and I had to gulp, not that surprised that he saw right through me.

“He was my first love, my first in everything so I—” I gulped, wondering whether this was uncomfortable or not for Mingi to discuss, but he intertwined our fingers and gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. I took a deep breath and slowly continued, “I was attached to him, people always say you’ll forever remember the first person you truly loved, and I think they are right. It’s a bittersweet memory, to be honest, but not something I feel locked down in anymore. Even the resentment I felt towards him now feels so distant like it happened ages ago and not months ago. It feels good and refreshing to have gotten rid of such consuming thoughts and emotions despite never saying it out loud. I hated myself for latching onto that last fraction of emotion I felt towards Yunho, thinking it would make his life as miserable as he made mine but in reality, I was only holding myself back and hurting myself furthermore.”

I turned my head to watch Mingi, to take in his expression, and I was surprised to see him smiling. He was gently rubbing his thumb over my skin, “Yunho’s parents got divorced around the time you two started dating, and his older brother moved to another country in order to pursue the career he’s always wanted, so Yunho had it hard. Between the two of us, he’s always been the stronger person, the brighter mind with never-ending hope, cheering me on and encouraging me to never back down if I had goals to reach. Even when I knew he was suffering due to his family’s situation, he wouldn’t let me comfort him, wouldn’t let me be his shoulder to cry on. He had a huge ego back then, refusing to show the cracks or admit that he was doing worse than ever, and I think he was abusing every relationship he had back at that time. He needed validation and love, he felt worthless and used after his parents didn’t even warn him of their split up, just showed him the documents and made him choose who he’d want to continue living with.

“His parents were good people but they handled some things in a shitty way, and it showed because Yunho lost himself in alcohol and meaningless relationships for a while. I’m not calling your relationship meaningless, because as much as I can remember, you were the only one who was able to tie him down for a longer period of time back then. It’s not you who wasn’t enough for Yunho, it’s him who wasn’t ready to commit and love others the right way. I warned him often to stop whatever he was doing, but he was addicted to the feeling and even hurt me in the process. I’m in no way invalidating your feelings and whatever you have gone through, I just hope you can forgive Yunho’s foolishness one day. He was just a kid trying to navigate his life as he lost his path for a short amount of time. I can guarantee he’s changed now, he’s better than he’s ever been before and he regrets everything he’s done. If you feel like it, I’m sure he would even reach out to you to apologize.”

Mingi’s eyes slowly fluttered open as he turned his face, and his eyes widened when he realized I had been looking at him the whole time, “I probably would’ve killed for this information back in highschool, it would’ve made things a lot less complicated for me if he was just honest and explained things before he left me. It wasn’t always easy growing up without a father, and despite never caring much about what others said, Yunho made me feel unworthy and undesirable and perhaps it’s that which hurt more and not even the fact that he left me. I knew relationships didn’t always last, but I didn’t expect him to be such a huge asshole.”

Mingi snickered and bit his lower lip as I rolled my eyes, trying to restrain the giggle that threatened to bubble through, “Yunho would be digging his own grave right now if he were to hear us, too embarrassed and ashamed of himself to even apologize.”

“Serves him right.” I couldn’t help but laugh and Mingi did the same, looking content and not bothered by the nature of our conversation. After all, it was him who was curious about it and I had nothing to hide from him anymore, “What about you? Any past girlfriends I have to look out for?”

My tone was teasing and Mingi instantly flushed, turning his head away as if that would’ve hidden it. His glasses were placed between us and he cleared his throat as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, “Well, I wasn’t a heartthrob like my lovely best friend, so I didn’t date many girls.”

I raised my eyebrows, prompting Mingi to continue speaking as he sighed, “I dated a girl back in highschool for a few months, but I don’t know. She was nagging and I didn’t like the way she berated me whenever things didn’t go her way, so I broke up quickly with her. After that, I just wasn’t in the mood to date anyone. I was content with watching anime and reading my mangas and hanging out with Yunho.”

I grinned and pushed up onto my elbows, wiggling my eyebrows at Mingi when he quickly averted his eyes, “And in university? Come on, don’t be shy now, where’s the cocky and annoying Mingi I despised?”

“You were into it, don’t lie.” Mingi chuckled as I scoffed, but I couldn’t find myself to correct him. Maybe I was into it, but he didn’t have to know, his ego was big enough already. After a longer pause and a squeeze of his hand, he gave in and groaned, “Yeah, fine, I dated casually a few people but wasn’t into any of them much. I feel like nobody has ever seen past my looks or the fact that I have a band and sing, so I didn’t feel like being with someone who only wanted me for my looks and for the far-fetched idea that I’d become famous one day, subsequently making them famous too so that they could parade around saying their boyfriend is a rockstar.”

“It’s not a far-fetched idea, Mingi.” I muttered and he looked up at me again, looking hopeful, “It’s good to know, though, that I won’t have to fight any jealous exes in the near future.”

“It’s rather the exes I’d be worried about,” He snickered, and as I narrowed my eyes, a cheeky smile was back on his lips, “you are the jealous type, not them—”

“Now that’s simply not true.” I huffed and fell back, glaring up at the new moon Mingi had hung up in the fort, “I’m not the jealous type.”

“Are you not?” His voice dripped with tease and I rolled my eyes, “Because I’m pretty sure you don’t like Mina—”

“Who’s Mina?” I interrupted, eyebrows furrowing as I cast a glance his way.

“The blonde girl, my fan.” I gulped, suddenly feeling an unexplainable drop in my stomach and a scowl on my face as I turned my head further away so that Mingi couldn’t see it. Yeah, I simply couldn’t stand her. Mingi started laughing loudly and I huffed as I retracted my hand from his, crossing my arms in front of my chest. It only made him laugh harder, and soon I found myself grinning, his deep laugh infectious.

“I’m not jealous of her, though.” I tried to defend myself but it fell on deaf ears as Mingi continued snickering.

“I don’t mind.”

“Of course you don’t.”

Mingi chuckled at my scoff and then it was silent again as I felt my heart rate settle, Mingi’s breaths stable and loud in the fort. The sounds of nature alongside the projection of the creek would be able to lull me to sleep, but Mingi spoke up again before that could happen, “Remember when we were in the library all those months ago and I flipped through your sketchbook without permission?”

I hummed and gave him a pointed stare, making Mingi smile at me sheepishly, “Well, sorry about that, first of all, and secondly, there was a drawing of eyes which was scribbled over. That’s when you said those were Yunho’s but I’m pretty sure I can recognize my own eyes, doll—”

“Are you claiming again that I was drawing your eyes?” I raised my eyebrows and Mingi pursed his lips as he nodded, “I feel like we’ve had this discussion a million times before, Mings.”

Mingi chuckled and then shrugged, playing with the beads of his bracelet, “Yeah, but hearing you confirm it again would be nice.”

I sighed but gave in nonetheless, I would adhere to his wishes only today, “Yes, Mingi, my sketchbook is full of your eyes, of your face, of your body, of you performing on stage, of you sitting in your car—of you.”

I didn’t expect to see his face, even his ears, turn red in a second, eyes widening as his mouth fell open. For once I felt like I had the upper hand, that it finally wasn’t him making me feel flustered, and I smirked, raising an eyebrow at him teasingly. Mingi cleared his throat and patted at his cheeks, clearing his throat again as he opened his mouth to speak, stuttering a bit before a sound actually came out, “Well, I—uh, I wasn’t expecting such honesty. Thank you? I mean, that’s really cool, thank you. I knew you were obsessed with me since the second you saw me.”

And that’s why I mostly kept to myself about stuff like this, I knew it would get to his head, “No, I couldn’t stand you the second I saw you. Then you turned out not to be such an idiot and too annoying, thankfully.”

Mingi chuckled and intertwined his hands as he placed them behind his head, kicking his legs out, “Well, I actually knew you before meeting you at Outlaw. Wooyoung told me about Seulgi, and then the next day he pointed her out in the hallway and you were there with her. And, uh, yeah.”

It was my turn to tease him as I turned my head and grinned at him, “Did little Mingi have a crush on me before he even got to know me?”

I shouldn’t have felt so pleased by his sudden flush or the way he avoided eye contact, “Yeah, I did.”

And apparently, I was worth sticking around for so long, pushing to get through to me, to make me realize opening up to another person wasn’t such an awful thing, to make me realize liking someone else wasn’t the end of the world, and that I very much wanted to be loved and that I also wanted to love another. The silence that dragged on wasn’t awkward, but I felt Mingi tense the more I didn’t say anything, and as he looked at me with eyes that held light fear in them, I smiled. And then, I was turning onto my side and leaning over to kiss him. As always, his plush lips were soft and warm, welcoming and eager as I pressed a chaste kiss against them, trying not to smile but I failed miserably as Mingi sighed quietly. I pulled back as my intention wasn’t to turn this into anything deeper, but Mingi chased after my lips, our noses bumping together as I cupped his cheek with my hand, my hair falling around us as our lips pressed a little firmer against each other.

It was slow, neither one of us desperate or trying to prove anything as we got lost in the feel of the other, of the other’s warmth and taste—which was a mix of salted caramel popcorn and hot chocolate, Mingi’s cologne making my head dizzy as our lips slotted perfectly together, moving languidly against each other. My hand slipped to hold his jaw and he freed a hand from under his head as he held onto the back of my head, sucking my lip between his teeth without bruising them or nipping at them. I hummed against his lips and pressed another swift kiss against them before pulling away, my face hovering above his as I didn’t want to open my eyes just yet, basking in the feeling kissing Mingi brought with itself. Our noses bumped together again and I smiled as Mingi giggled, no doubt enjoying the proximity.

“So,” His voice was quiet and when I opened my eyes, I was met with an unexpected flush to his cheeks, that subsequently made me blush as well, “what are we now?”

“What should we be?” I asked, my tone warm as I bit my lower lip to contain my smile.

“What do you want us to be?”

“A couple?”

It felt like time stopped as I muttered those words, feeling nervous and scared, but so ready to offer everything I had to Mingi, to make him happy, to make him feel loved and appreciated. I never wanted to see him hurt, especially not because of me. I had seen Mingi’s smile before plenty of times, but nothing could’ve prepared me for the way his eyes disappeared and nose scrunched up, all teeth on display as he smiled up at me, making my heart flutter as I just realized something. I loved him, I loved this man lying underneath me and nothing would stop me from cherishing him like he deserved to be.

“Yeah, I want us to be a couple.” He spoke as he didn’t stop smiling, and I tried to keep mine in check.

“But we have to go on more dates, at least three more, to get to know each other better.” My eyebrows slightly furrowed and Mingi smoothed them out with his fingers tenderly.

“Of course, we’ll take it at your pace, I have nothing to rush for.” I felt grateful as Mingi winked and I pressed a swift kiss before I buried my head in his neck, letting him pull me closer to his body as I cuddled up against his side, “Can I tell Wooyoung at least”

“You think I won’t tell Seulgi?”

And we giggled together as Mingi pressed a kiss against my head, humming in contentment as our fingers intertwined, resting upon his beating heart. I’ve never felt more like I belonged than at this exact moment. Not even with my art.

            By the time Mingi drove me home, it was well into the evening, the dark streets illuminated by the lampposts, some having burned down as Mingi turned onto my street. We didn’t feel the need to discuss much on our way back, our date was successful and filled with laughter and deep conversations that only confirmed my suspicions of Mingi. He was a good guy, too good to be true at times, but I was more than grateful that he was by my side.

His old black Honda Prelude came to a slow stop in front of my house and I unbuckled my seatbelt as Mingi turned his head and smiled, placing the car in neutral as he pulled the handbrake up. I turned and looked at him, our smiles almost shy as if we weren’t ready to say goodbye just yet, acting as if we wouldn’t see each other tomorrow. I agreed to let him pick me up for a breakfast date as we both only had classes starting at noon. If my heart fluttered and lungs convulsed at the thought of having Mingi pick me up tomorrow for a breakfast date, I would only admit it to my mother as now I had to explain why I wouldn’t have breakfast with her in the morning. I had a feeling that I wouldn’t be getting much sleep tonight, too excited to actually get the amount of sleep that was healthy. Perhaps I would even paint some more, for once, I wasn’t behind on assignments, but I felt the itch under my skin to create something new.

“Well,” I cleared my throat once the silence got too much, “I loved spending my time with you, Mingi, thank you for taking me out.”

“I’m glad you liked it.” He looked away abashed, but only for a second as he gave me a cheeky look, “I bet it’ll be hard to overdo my efforts now.”

“You wish.” I chuckled and grabbed my backpack from between my legs, “Don’t forget, I might be artsier than you are, love.”

It was certainly surprising to see Mingi’s face flush, ears included. If I remember correctly, Yunho’s ears always flushed before his face could if he was flustered, flattered, or embarrassed, and now I couldn’t help but find it endearing that the two best friends had similar mannerisms, “Uh—yeah, I—love?!”

I giggled and bit my lower lip, leaning over the center console with a cheeky grin, “Well, did you expect me not to call you nicknames? You call me doll, it’s only fair I return the favor—”

“But love?!” Mingi exclaimed, slightly confusing me as he rubbed his eyes behind his glasses, “I—I think I’m unwell.”

“What?” My eyebrows furrowed, suddenly concerned, “Why?”

“My stomach won’t stop flipping around and because I’m losing my mind?” Upon Mingi’s helpless expression and whine, my eyes widened and I fell back into my seat, not quite laughing as I couldn’t help but gape at him.

“Do I fluster you—”

“Very much so!” Mingi exclaimed as he hid behind his hands again and I might have malfunctioned for a second as I’d never seen him acting like this. Did he have a fever? Did a simple nickname turn him into a whiney kid?

“Well, it’s payback time for all the times you made me suffer, love.” Mingi looked like he was about to combust and I couldn’t help but cackle as I blew him a kiss before grabbing the handle to open the car’s door. But before I could step out, Mingi shot forward and opened the glove box.

“Wait!” He said hurriedly and I froze, looking at him curiously. He grabbed a black notebook and handed it to me, eyes boring into mine despite his still red ears, “Flip through it once you’re settled down, please.”

I smiled and nodded, feeling curious as I took it from him, and certainly blushed an ugly shade of red when he pressed a quick kiss against my cheek, making me stumble for a second as I got out of his car. It was his time to feel triumphant for making me feel flustered, and I couldn’t help but flip him off as his amused laughter was audible through the closed doors and rolled-up windows. He winked and waved cheekily before putting the car in first gear and motioning for me to head inside. Feeling giddy and curious, I waved before turning my back to walk to the front door as nonchalantly as possible, fishing my keys out of my pocket. Once I was inside, Mingi drove off and I slammed the front door shut, locking it quickly as I had half a mind slipping out of my boots and throwing my jacket onto the floor absentmindedly as I raced up to my room, not bothering to turn on the lights. I might have bumped into the edge of the railing and the edge of my door as I turned on the bedside table lamp, dropping everything on the floor except the notebook as I plopped down onto the bed.

My heart was racing as I got comfortable, almost forgetting my phone was in my back pocket and would be crushed if I sat on it, so I retrieved it and placed it on the bed next to me. My fingers trembled lightly and I licked my lips as I flipped the notebook open, surprised to find Mingi’s name written prettily on the first page with doddles decorating the rest of the blank page, all kinds of little animals and shapes signed by his friend’s names, no doubt them having drawn those in here. Too curious about the contents of the notebook, I started slowly flipping through the pages, eyes skimming over all the words and musical notes, Mingi’s handwriting was pretty despite it being rushed at times—most of the time.

Then, I flipped to a page that had my name only on it with a small heart next to it. My heart was suddenly in my throat as I took a shaky breath, flipping to another page, eyes slowly taking in all the words.

‘And the world is cold/But it's beautiful/I wish you were here now’, I could imagine Mingi’s soft tone singing these in a whisper before the beat picked up. ‘It's your magnetic hold/A gravity pull/I can feel you in waves/When your melody comes/It falls from above/I will not be afraid’, I gulped, eyebrows furrowing as I slowly traced over the words, Mingi’s pen having made an indent in the paper when he scribbled them down. Eager to read more, I looked further down, drinking in what I now realized to be lyrics, ‘So lost/Coming from me when I'm lost/You kiss my neck and then you're gone/Turn me off and turn me on oh/Eat up every word you say/My perception dilates’. I bit my bottom lip, heart racing just a little faster as I realized Mingi offered me a glance inside his mind, inside his feelings and how he’s viewed me and our relationship over the months, ‘Want you to waste my time/Mess with my mind/Fly me to the other side/Don't say goodbye to reds in my eyes/Love me enough to hate me/Waste my time, waste my time/Waste my time, waste my time’.

I gulped, suddenly feeling guilty for having tormented Mingi for so long, for having made him feel like I was playing with his feelings, ‘Like a phantom, I will steal your heart/Until we're dancing in the dark/Like a phantom, I will steal your heart/Until we're dancing in the dark’. I chuckled, imagining Mingi hunched over his desk with a frown on his lips as he jotted the lyrics down, then smirked in triumph at the fantasy of finally having my heart in his hands—and I think he’s rather close to achieving that now, ‘Chit chat, do you want that/Or wanna take me home tonight?/All this chit chat is holding me back/And I'm breaking just to bend your light/I thought I told you, I really need your sugar/A rollercoaster, I'm going supernova/Chit chat is holding me back/To you, you’. I tried to refrain from grinning too hard at the lyrics. Going back home with Mingi wasn’t a repulsive thought anymore as it would have been a month ago. No, now I would rather go home with him. I wanted to be around him, I wanted him.

‘Oh, my oh, my oh my/Why's it every night/I'm feeling so sleepless?/Oh, why oh, why oh why?/I'm losing my mind/Maybe you're the reason’, I couldn’t help but gulp at the thought of Mingi not being able to sleep, bothered by thoughts of me, ‘Started as friends, but less than lovers/It's all making sense/On days, I'm thinking about us/Yeah, I know I'm so selfish/Hate the thought of someone else/Making you laugh, smiling, happy, if it ain't me or myself’. I gulped, feeling like Mingi got a glimpse inside my head too, making me remember how quickly and easily my jealousy previously flared whenever I saw him talking to the blonde girl. ‘I was more than just a body in your passenger seat/And you were more than just somebody I was destined to meet/I see you go half-blind when you're looking at me’, my breath faltered for a second as I quickly read over the lyrics again, wondering just how obvious it was to everyone else but myself that I was into Mingi, that he was into me.

‘I, I, I never thought I'd find true love/I, I guess I wasn't looking hard enough/If my heart stops now, you're the one thing that made it all worth it/If the sky falls down, right now, you're the one that I'll worship’, the words had no reason getting to me, yet I couldn’t help but flush hard as I blinked my eyes and rubbed at them, trying to cool off for a second, but I was too curious of what more was in the notebook, ‘Well, I heard you whisper/To all your friends/I heard you telling them that/You need a man in whom you can depend’. I chuckled, feeling amused but completely in awe of Mingi’s lyrics, his words somehow making complete sense and almost like a challenge to admit he was right about me, ‘Well I'd be the gasoline/To keep you alive/And I'd be the cold, so unbreakable/We'd burn together straight through the night/That's alright’. And now I had no doubts that Mingi would do anything for me, but what he didn’t know just yet, was that I would be his ride and die from now on.

‘Oh, and my love/Did I mistake you for a sign from God?/Or are you really here to cut me off?/Or maybe just to turn me on’, and perhaps if breathing became harder, it would be obvious to anyone as I tried to regulate my breaths and ignore the flush over my body, ‘'Cause these days/I would be lying if I told you that/I didn't wish that I could be your man/Or maybe make a good girl bad’. I gulped and sat up straighter, flipping another page hurriedly to read more of the song’s lyrics, easily imagining Mingi up on stage, raspy and smooth voice blending into the microphone and making the hairs on my arms stand as we made eye contact, his gaze intense and sharp, challenging in a way that would get me all bothered and hot, ‘I've got a river running right into you/I've got a blood trail, red in the blue/Something you say or something you do/The taste of the divine’. And I honestly to God hoped to see them perform this song one day, curious of what the band would sound like together, of Mingi’s voice and his eyes, ‘You've got my body, flesh and bone/The sky above, the Earth below/Nothing to say and nowhere to go/A taste of the divine’. I was ready to turn another page when my phone dinged loudly, making me flinch in surprise as I was completely immersed in Mingi’s lyrics.

Mings 🖤: home i hope you enjoy whatever you find in there some are spicy lol

Without thinking much, I pressed the dial button next to his name and raised the phone to my ear, my heart beating out of my chest. It barely rang twice before Mingi’s deep voice greeted me through the phone and I gulped, mouth working faster than my brain, “Mingi.”

“Yes, doll?”

“I think I’m falling in love with you.”

The deafening silence was filled with the loud thumps of my heart that only I could hear, and I was sure my pulse was way too high, but I couldn’t care less as I listened carefully to hear Mingi’s reaction. His gasp was loud as I licked my lips, eyes boring into the notebook again, “I read it, your lyrics.”

More silence, until there was a deep breath and Mingi’s raspy voice made me sink in on myself, goosebumps covering my whole body, “Good, because I think I’m already in love with you.”

I huffed out a breath, my smile was huge as Mingi’s chuckle that followed sounded breathless but somehow as if he was at ease. I couldn’t help but fall back on my bed, holding onto the phone tightly as I pushed the notebook to the side, eyes falling on my sketchbook, “I’ll send you something, listen to it now.”

“Alright, thank you.” Mingi hummed and then hung up, making my heartbeat quicken once again as I watched the dots in our chat move, and then a voice file was sent, with a message attached to listen to it with headphones. I quickly turned onto my stomach to reach for my nightstand, grabbing the headphones and connecting it to my phone as I placed it on my head, biting my lower lip as a familiar melody, lyrics, and voice traveled through the headphones, covering my skin in goosebumps.

『'Cause I'm telling you, you're all I need

I promise you, you're all I see

'Cause I'm telling you, you're all I need

I'll never leave

So, you can drag me through hell

If it meant I could hold your hand

I will follow you, 'cause I'm under your spell

And you can throw me to the flames

I will follow you, I will follow you』

❱❱ Epilogue

A/N: Can y'all imagine this was supposed to be the last chapter?? lol, back in December when I wrote the whole plot this is how I tied everything up BUT THEN, maybe around two months ago I was tbh just gushing to my bestie about Mingi and some other things, and I realized, wait a minute-I can totally write this for LMLAR?! And so, that's how the epilogue came into existence, which I'm grateful for because I feel like it ends the story on a good note *cries*, would you like me to post the epilogue this week on Friday or next week on Wednesday? majority wins lol

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[whipped-for-kpop-fics]

Session Three; A Lesson Learned? - L.JH ft K.SY

🎙Who; Lee Jihoon & Kwon Soonyoung (Seventeen) x reader 🎙What; smut, fwb, producer/idol Jihoon, idol Soonyoung 🎙Wordcount; 4.9k 🎙Warnings; profanity, threesome, dom jihoon, sub soonyoung, sub reader, over clothing handjob, edging, orgasm denial, oral(m), fingering mentions, voyeurism/exhibitionism, penetrative sex, protected sex, choking, auditory kink I guess?(idk if that's the right term for this), coming untouched(m), no actual m x m.

Summary; "There's something about Soonyoung today that makes you want to play with him. Who cares if it's in Jihoon's studio while Soonyoung is supposed to be recording his lines."

Minors do NOT interact, which means liking/reblogging/commenting on this story. I WILL block any account that interacts without an age indicator in the bio.

-2024 Masterlist- 🎙 In The Studio Masterlist 🎙

Part 3/? of In The Studio; a series of Jihoon fucking in his studio.

You don't mind watching Jihoon work, sometimes it's even pretty interesting but today? Not so much. Time just seems to drag on and on.

Soonyoung is currently in the booth working on his verse for the next Performance Unit song that's due for release in a couple of months. At least being able to watch him work hard in his sleeveless top and shorts gives you some very nice visuals to somewhat entertain yourself through your boredom.

It probably really does not help that before Soonyoung arrived, Jihoon had his hand in your panties doing a very good job of getting you close to a wonderful climax, and then Soonyoung turned up and caused Jihoon to quickly pull his hand to himself before the pair of you could get caught.

So now you're bored and horny from an orgasm being unfairly ripped away from you.

Jihoon notices the way you keep fidgeting both restless and still aroused. Honestly, so is he, but he has his work to focus on so he can ignore the lust simmering lowly in his veins. And he definitely doesn't fail to notice the way your darkened gaze is lingering on Soonyoung.

Something sparks in his lower stomach that reminds him of a vague fantasy he had a few months back when the pair of you had almost got caught fucking in the backseat of your car. The thought of someone opening the door and seeing you two fucking had turned Jihoon on enough that day that he came instantly, and well, it certainly reawakened some rather exhibitionist thoughts of his own.

So really, Jihoon isn't exactly against Soonyoung seeing you two having sex, though he isn't sure how you would feel about that so he keeps it to himself for now and knows he'll probably bring it up at some point in the future.

Yet for now, there's another thought at the forefront of his mind. "Keep staring at him so much and I'll think you want to fuck him," Jihoon murmurs lowly to you, even if Soonyoung most definitely cannot hear the conversation while he's in the recording booth.

You hadn't expected Jihoon to talk and honestly, you had been a little lost in your fantasies about going into that booth and seeing if Soonyoung's dancer stamina carries over into sex, so you jolt a little in surprise before turning your head to look at Jihoon without lifting your chin from your palm, elbow on the desk to keep you propped up. Jihoon's tone hadn't sounded annoyed or negative in any way, just his normal neutral voice but you can't always be sure. Yet looking at him, it's clear he's not particularly angry at the possibility of his own words being true. "Maybe I do," You start, causing Jihoon to slide his gaze from his computer screen and over to you with a slightly raised eyebrow at you essentially confirming his suspicions. "Got a problem with that?"

To your surprise, there's only a second of hesitation where Jihoon genuinely considers your question, and then he shakes his head a little. "No, you can fuck whoever you want."

"Even if I want to work my way through your band?"

Jihoon doesn't hesitate to shrug this time. "So long as you come back to me and don't make shit awkward, yeah, go ahead, have fun."

You watch him get back to his work with excitement fizzling in your chest. He's pretty much just given you a giant green light to fuck his band members and you won't lie, you've most certainly considered more than just Soonyoung in a sexual manner before. Knowing that Jihoon won't care if you do, you're already thinking about ways to seduce each one of them into bed and turn your head back to watch Soonyoung with a whole new level of horny to your gaze.

Twenty minutes of very thorough fantasies later, Jihoon gets up after using the mic to tell Soonyoung he's going to the bathroom meaning it's a break time. Jihoon's gaze meets yours as he gets to his feet, there's something odd in it that you can't quite put your finger on but honestly, you don't have the mental capacity to linger on it. All you can think about is that you know Jihoon will sit and play the mobile game he downloaded recently, in the bathroom for at least ten minutes before returning and getting back to work. You can seduce Soonyoung in ten minutes, you've done a lot more with less time.

Pretty much as soon as the studio door closes securely once Jihoon is out, you're up on your feet and entering the booth.

Soonyoung smiles over at you when he hears the door open, the headphones around his neck as he repeats the line he's been working so hard on. "Oh hey," He greets, looking back at the lyric sheet as you approach and peer around him at the sheet too. "This line is really kicking my ass."

"Mm, you're getting stressed." You confirm with a hum. "You need to relax." You lift your hands to place on his shoulders gently so as to not make him jump and then start to dig your thumbs into the muscle in a massage. Soonyoung lets out a soft breath and melts a little under your touch.

For a few minutes, you work your hands against his muscles, gradually working from his shoulders down his back and Soonyoung lets you, just keeps relaxing further and further under your hands with his eyes closed contently. Up until your left hand skirts over the side of his hip and to his thigh.

Soonyoung's breath catches and his eyes fly open. "W-what're you doing?" He stammers in a whisper, head tilting down to watch the way your hand kneads at the outside of his thigh, slowly edging over to the front.

"Helping you relax, babyboy." You reply so simply like it's so fucking normal to 'massage' a friend's thigh like that.

You're so nonchalant about it that despite his nerves fizzing behind his sternum and gradually mixing with budding arousal, Soonyoung doesn't say or do anything else and lets you continue.

Not that it lasts long when your hand slides around towards his inner thigh and brushes against his very gradually hardening length. Soonyoung lets out a sound that could be an attempt at talking if it isn't just a few vague stammered syllables.

"You okay, baby?" You ask gently and pull your hand back slightly, not wanting to push him too far; though you don't move your hand away entirely, there's at least some breathing room between your still massaging fingers and his cock. Soonyoung makes a hum of confirmation in a higher pitch than his normal voice. "Want me to stop?" You wonder, just in case.

"What about Woozi?" He worries, flitting his eyes over his shoulder to you nervously though they return down to watch your hand.

"You know his routine as much as I do, he's going to sit there playing on his phone for at least ten minutes." You assure and smoothly relocate around him to stand more to his side and give yourself a better view and reach. He looks at you through his lashes shyly and blushes darker than the soft pink flush of arousal on his cheeks as you look down at his crotch and visibly see how he's getting harder with every press of your fingers into his strong thigh muscle.

"How…how long has he been gone?"

You lift your gaze to meet his own still shy one. "Not ten minutes."

Soonyoung stares at you for a moment in careful deliberation before he licks his lips and nods a little. "Okay."

"Okay?"

His features twist a little as your hand falls still and he lifts his head to lock his softly pleading eyes on you. "Don't stop. Please?"

"Okay, baby." It's so easy to agree when he looks at you borderline desperately already. Not that you need much encouragement right now anyway, just consent and he's certainly given that. You don't linger on his thigh anymore and move your hand over to press your palm against his length. Soonyoung whimpers and wraps one hand around your wrist for stability, already feeling so sensitive despite the fact you've done nothing to him yet. You wonder if he's always like this or if he's just pent up and it's been a while since he's felt any touch but his own. You'd really like to find out. "It's okay, I've got you, gonna make you feel good, okay, Soonyoungie?"

"Please," He whispers, swallowing thickly before letting his lips stay parted as you start to move your hand against him.

You're far too invested in the little whines and pants prettily escaping Soonyoung's mouth as you grope and rub at his cock over his shorts, and he's far too caught up in the pleasure you're so easily and skillfully giving him, that neither of you notices Jihoon's return.

Honestly, Jihoon is not entirely surprised to find you in the booth and touching Soonyoung. Part of him had hoped you'd initiate something there, he had tried to tell you to do as much with his eyes when he left earlier. But he knew you hadn't noticed. He's just glad you're horny enough to still do what he wants, even if not directly.

For a minute, Jihoon stands by his desk, arms folded over his chest and watches. Part of him has been wondering for a while if he's into watching. He knows he likes watching you touch yourself, he often has you spread your legs wide with your hand in between while he sits and watches intently with his hand wrapped around his cock. But he wasn't sure if it was just because it's you masturbating with and /for/ him, or if he really is a voyeur.

But now he knows he's definitely a fucking voyeur. He's already half-hard in his shorts and only getting harder the longer he watches.

Jihoon knows he won't be able to keep his calm for much longer so he unfolds his his arms and leans down onto his left palm while the right presses the button on the mic on his desk to pass his voice into the room. The second Jihoon starts to speak, Soonyoung jerks violently and spins to look at the window between the booth and studio with wide, guilty eyes. "You really think you can play like this in my studio without inviting me?" Jihoon drawls darkly.

Soonyoung gulps while arousal sparks brighter in you. You know by his tone alone that Jihoon is turned on and wants to fuck. And when you look at him, it's clear by his expression that he wants to play. At least to you it is because Soonyoung clearly doesn't realise that Jihoon isn't mad.

"Guess I'll have to teach you both a lesson, huh?" Jihoon chuckles and meets your gaze directly. "On your knees, baby." You don't hesitate and lower to your knees with little more than a nod, more than happy to play whatever game Jihoon wants because you know he'll fuck you right when it's time. He always does.

"W-woozi-" Soonyoung stammers out but Jihoon just raises an eyebrow at him, causing him to cut off with a thick swallow.

"If you want to see where this goes, Soonyoung, put the headphones back on and do your lines. If you don't want to play with us, I suggest you leave now." Jihoon warns firmly. Soonyoung holds the younger's eye contact for a moment before he turns his head to look down at you where you're kneeling patiently to get this show on the road.

"You can change your mind during, neither of us will force you to stay if that happens." You assure, putting a comforting hand on Soonyoung's thigh to squeeze gently. He naturally puts his hand over yours to show that he registers the comfort then swallows once more and nods.

Soonyoung's hands are slightly shaky when he turns to the mic and lifts the headphones from around his neck to put back comfortably over his ears. Though he pushes the left one back a little, freeing enough of his ear on your side.

"Baby," Jihoon prompts. When you look at him he nods towards Soonyoung simply then sits down to get back to work without even waiting for your confirmation that you understand.

As you shuffle closer to Soonyoung, he inhales sharply and drops his attention with wide eyes to watch as your hands untie his shorts. His hands are still trembling a little at his sides but he makes no attempt to stop you despite his nerves. It's all very new to him, not sex but this kind of sex especially with someone right there and able to see what's happening. He's not entirely certain he's into it but he's more than willing to try it out, especially as it means he finally gets to know what you look like on your knees for him.

"Here's what's going to happen." Jihoon's voice echoes into the room again making Soonyoung jump a little and glance over at Jihoon but your hands are tugging down Soonyoung's shorts and boxers so his attention quickly returns to you. "You're going to do your lines, Soonyoung, while she sucks your dick."

"W-what?" Soonyoung baulks, looking at Jihoon with wide eyes. "B-but I won't be-" He cuts off with a sharp moan when he suddenly feels wet heat around the very tip of his cock. He looks at you and finds your lips wrapped around his erection, barely any of his hard cock is actually in your mouth but enough that it's already driving him crazy.

"Good girl." Jihoon hums in approval and smirks as he watches Soonyoung struggle to gather himself. Jihoon hadn't known that Soonyoung is that sensitive but it sure is entertaining. "Lines, Soonyoung, you can't cum until you've nailed them."

That makes Soonyoung look over in alarm as soon as the words have fully registered in his mind. "What?!"

"You need to learn your lesson. Mic." Jihoon points to the mic, and then focuses on his computer to play the track, sending it into Soonyoung's headphones.

You decide to be nice and pull off of Soonyoung to give him at least a chance to get his lines right. He gives you a grateful look before facing the mic again, making you shuffle around to be able to still get to him when you deem him ready.

Just when Soonyoung opens his mouth to start his lines at the right point, you lean back in and abruptly slide half of his length into your mouth. A loud moan escapes Soonyoung's open mouth and his legs weaken at the sudden pleasurable touch while his eyes roll back.

Jihoon cuts off the track with a disappointed tut. "Try again," He demands.

That's how it goes for long enough that Soonyoung is a trembling, whimpering mess, hands on your head as he pleads you to just 'let me cum' but you don't. Jihoon hasn't given the go-ahead and honestly, you're enjoying making Soonyoung such a mess with nothing more than your mouth wrapped around him, alternating methods but still never giving him too much. You want to drag it out, need to really in order to give him a chance of getting his lines down. But the longer you're there on your knees, the worse Soonyoung gets.

"Alright, enough." Jihoon sighs when his own arousal is too hard to ignore any longer. He's been fighting the urge to reach into his shorts and jerk himself off for at least ten minutes now. Watching you edge Soonyoung time and time again really does a fucking lot for Jihoon.

"P-please," Soonyoung practically sobs out when you lean back and remove your mouth from his leaking cock. He's practically throbbing he's so desperate to cum. He truly had been so close to an orgasm on multiple occasions yet you had somehow always noticed despite him not even attempting to warn you and pulled away while he sniffled and wailed for you to come back.

"Jihoon says no." You shrug and look over as the door opens and Jihoon steps in. There's a very obvious bulge in his shorts and he doesn't even try to hide it. You really do love it when he's so shameless about his own arousal, it turns you on even more. "Ji," You call, a slight pleading edge to your voice as he gets closer to you.

"I know, baby," He coos softly and cups your jaw with one hand, letting his thumb pull on your bottom lip a little. "You've been a good girl, huh, on your knees for so long for a man who can't even control his orgasm enough to get one thing done, hm?" You pout a little, playing on it as much as your partner while Soonyoung just stares between you with glassy, wide, hope-filled eyes. "I think you've learned your lesson, right, princess?"

"Mm, I have. I'll never play in your studio without you." You confirm, even though you're pretty sure you will if the opportunity arises. It's clear to you that Jihoon isn't genuinely annoyed by walking in on you two in any way, it's just an act. An act you really wouldn't mind repeating.

"That's my girl, up you get." He encourages and moves his hand to offer it to you and tug you up to your feet. And then he leans right in and slots his lips against yours. The kiss is utterly filthy from the get-go, full of tongue and soft moans from you both.

"Fuck," Soonyoung's whisper pulls you apart to look at him. He has one hand around his throbbing cock, slowly jerking himself to the sight of the two of you making out right in front of him.

"I said you can't cum, why the fuck are you touching yourself?" Jihoon questions harshly. "Put it away."

"W-what?" Soonyoung sputters in disbelief. "Put it away?"

"Mm, you didn't listen so you don't get to cum. Put your cock away and go sit in my chair with the headphones on that I left on the desk. Do not touch yourself either."

"I…okay." Soonyoung's lips protrude in a disappointed pout before he awkwardly tucks his cock back away and removes the headphones from his head to put on the stand, and then he waddles out of the booth to sit at Jihoon's desk and does as told.

"Ji," You murmur once you see Soonyoung settling the chunky noise-cancelling headphones over his ears. Jihoon hums as he turns his head to you after watching until Soonyoung falls still with his fingers holding onto the arms of the chair on either side of him. "Please?"

"Of course, you know I can never say no when you ask so nicely." He kisses you once more then reaches for your trousers to open them and pull them down your legs as he lowers to his knees. Obediently, you lift each leg, in turn, to allow him to pull the material off and fling it aside. To your surprise, Jihoon stays on his knees and slides his hands up your thighs, nudging a little until you open them enough that he can see the wet patch on the seat of your panties. "Oh, baby, you really need me, huh?"

"Yeah, need you so much." You confirm, knowing how much it gets Jihoon going to hear you being as shameless as he can be about what you want.

"Want my mouth, baby?" He teases, brushing his lips over your inner thigh.

"Want your cock."

Jihoon huffs a short, low laugh and looks up at you. "My cock?" You nod, pouting at him. "Want it that much you don't even want my mouth first?"

"Want you to fuck me."

"Mm, what my baby wants, my baby gets." He confirms and makes short work of removing your panties before he gets to his feet. "Face the mic." You listen, turning to face the mic and meet Soonyoung's wide gaze. "Can you hear us, Soonyoung?" You watch him nod as Jihoon steps up behind you, hands pushing his shorts and boxers down just enough to free his cock. "Did he nod?" You make a noise of confirmation as Jihoon focuses on pulling a condom from his pocket to open and slide it onto his length, tossing the wrapper aside carelessly. "Good. Want him to hear what he doesn't get because he didn't learn his lesson."

"Are you saying you would've let him fuck me if he had got his lines down?" You muse, breath catching with excitement when Jihoon grips your hip with his left hand, his right holding his cock as he gently taps your foot with his own to prompt you to spread your legs to accomodate him.

"Well, if he could get hard again after cumming in your mouth, sure." Jihoon scoffs condescendingly. "But judging by the way he can't even hold back to get a few lines down, I doubt he'd have the fucking stamina to go again."

"Shame," You inhale sharply as Jihoon starts to slide his cock into your dripping hole. "Ji,"

"Yeah, fuck, I know, baby, you're so desperate to be fucked, huh?" He teases, too breathless from the friction on his needy cock to sound as mean as he wants to right now. "This pussy needs to be filled, huh?"

"With you,"

"Yeah, with me." He jerks forward, sheathing himself inside you and making you moan at suddenly being full. It's a good thing he had been fingering you earlier and that you're so turned on and wet from everything that's happened otherwise he would not be able to do that without causing you both discomfort bordering on pain. "Fuck, you always feel so fucking good, baby." Jihoon exhales after just admiring how your walls hug his length so fucking perfectly. He'll never get over how good you feel around him. Every time it feels like the first time all over again.

He's fucking obsessed with your pussy at this point, utterly convinced he'll never find anyone as good as you again. And honestly, the feeling is pretty mutual, nobody has ever fucked you like Lee Jihoon and you doubt no one else ever will.

"Fuck me, Ji, come on," You encourage in a whine, gripping his hand on your hip to pull it around your waist knowing you'll need his strong arms to keep you up once he actually gets started. As it is, your legs are already shaking just from having his cock pressing motionlessly so deep within you.

As much as Jihoon would love to draw it out purely to wind up both you and Soonyoung, who is still watching with wide eyes and hands gripping the armrests so tight his knuckles are getting paler by the minute, Jihoon is honestly not faring much better himself where control is concerned. So he pulls back his hips after tightening his arm around your waist. He puts his right hand on your chest for extra stability and to keep you in position before he snaps his hips forward, forcing a high-pitched moan to tumble from your mouth and right into the microphone inches from your face.

After glancing over at Soonyoung to make sure he's paying attention, Jihoon truly does not waste time or hold back.

His hips slap against your ass so harshly with every rough thrust into your dripping pussy that your skin is starting to sting in the most delicious of ways. You're certain your ass with be red raw by the time he's done with you and honestly, you wouldn't have it any other fucking way.

"God, baby," Jihoon groans, leaning forward to talk lowly into your ear as his hand on your chest slides up to the bottom of your throat, applying no pressure but just resting there. Still, it makes you squeeze down around him at the mere suggestion of him wrapping his beautiful fingers around your fucking throat and choking you as he pummels your walls with his cock. "W-want it? Wan-wanna show Soonyoung how-fuck-how pretty you sound with a hand-hand around your throat?"

You can't even attempt to respond in any way, even if his hand isn't inching up your throat and threatening to restrict your airflow, you wouldn't be able to. Jihoon's fucking you way too good. All you can do is let more filthy noises tumble from your parted lips.

All the months of sex have really given Jihoon ample time to know your body inside out, literally. So he knows what the tightening on his cock means, knows what the stuttered 'ah-ah-ah's from your open mouth means. He fucking knows you want him to choke you even if you can't say it. He knows you, knows what you like and his hand on your throat isn't new to your sessions at all.

"Good girl." He breathes out and finally gets his hand in the right place while he slows his thrusting so he isn't jostling your body as much. He doesn't want to risk hurting you more than you like even if his cock is throbbing and trying to urge him to keep fucking you like a mad man.

The second Jihoon's fingers start to apply pressure, you grip him tighter, both with your hand and pussy. You're so fucking close to an orgasm, you can feel it right there but this isn't quite enough for you and Jihoon knows it, knows what the gasped attempts at babbles mean as your eyes roll back despite already being closed.

Instead of letting go of you to play with your clit like he usually would, Jihoon starts to grind into you, forcing his cock to rub hard and incessantly against the most sensitive spots amongst your throbbing walls in the most intensely pleasurable way.

"Fuck!" You squeak, eyes flying wide and unintentionally meeting Soonyoung's through the glass. He looks so far gone, practically drooling from his open mouth as he stares at you intently as if he's forgotten how to blink. You're not sure if that's what sends you over or if the timing is just too perfect but suddenly your orgasm crashes through your body so powerfully that your legs give out and Jihoon is forced to wrap both arms around you securely as your body sags. You barely even notice, mind and body flashing with bright pleasure.

Jihoon barely lasts a few more rolls of his hips as he does his best to work you through the climax before his own hits him and he groans into your neck as he fills the condom.

Slowly, you come around from the intense orgasm with a heaving chest and ears buzzing. You can vaguely tell you're being talked to but nothing is registering yet.

It's not the first time Jihoon has fucked you to this state and although it still always worries him a little that you get unresponsive as your mind puts itself back together, he knows how to handle it now and just focuses on carefully pulling his length from you without losing the condom.

Even though you can't hear him clearly, Jihoon still talks to you and tells you he's dealing with the condom as he awkwardly does his best to tie it off and then just tosses it to the floor gently to deal with later. He knows he'll regret throwing it to the floor later when he has to clean it up but right now he only cares about you.

Once his shorts and boxers are back up, Jihoon adjusts his arm around you until he can manoeuvre you up into his arms bridal style. He knows he doesn't have to be that careful with you so he doesn't feel bad about jostling your sated form as he opens the door to the booth to take you into the studio, but he does go back to being gentle as he lays you on the couch and pulls the blanket from the back over your lap for your modesty with Soonyoung in the room and still watching the two of you.

"You alright?" Jihoon asks, glancing over at Soonyoung quickly so the elder knows he's being talked to. Soonyoung removes the headphones quickly. "I said are you alright?"

"Oh, uh, ye-yeah. Is she?"

"Mm, she'll be around in a minute," Jihoon confirms and backs away from you to face Soonyoung. "You're not hard." He gives the taller a pointed look while putting his hands on his hips.

"I didn't touch myself!" Soonyoung defends rapidly, eyes wide and honest. "Just…"

"Came untouched?" Jihoon smirks as Soonyoung looks away embarrassed, cheeks darkening from the pleased flush from his post orgasm state. "I fucking knew you'd lose it with her moaning in your ears."

"She sounds so good, how do you stay so calm?" Soonyoung marvels looking at Jihoon utterly awestruck.

"Guess you need to learn some self-control, Soonyoung." Jihoon teases with a chuckle.

"I don't think I'm very good at learning lessons," Soonyoung admits with a sheepish smile that makes Jihoon scoff a laugh.

"I noticed. You still need to do your lines, don't think this gets you out of it for today."

"I don't think I can go back in that booth without getting hard again."

"Then I guess you'll have to be taught another lesson."

"I'm never going to be able to set foot in this studio without a boner ever again."

[mechaknight-98]

Outrage (NSFW) FT Nayoung (Lightsum)

Author’s Notes: this piece came about in a kind of silly way. It arose as a challenge from another writer I know. He’s seen my stuff and finds it really interesting, but there’s some repetitiveness to the content so as a challenge he said write a mature story without smut, and loads of cursing. So this came about. Now granted it still probably has some bad habits of mine but it is thematically different and heavier emotionally. Note you have been warned

The young man walked up to the sound stage for the talk show he would be performing at. It was the last of many mini promotions he’d been asked to do since his side project “Kraken” took off. He was tired but excited. He hoped that this would lead to his main project “The Flying Dutchman” finally getting the traction it deserves. He flashed his ID to the guard when the guard gave him a funny look the young man replied.

“It should be under Kraken,” the guard smiled and let him in while saying, “You know that song goes hard. I love all of the little wordplays you do, and your voice modulation how did you make some of those sounds?”

The young man smiled “Oh studio magic I guess”

“Well, Mr Jones or should I say Kraken have a good time on the Late Show.” The guard said

Mr. Jones smiled and said, “I’ll try” After getting through the guard Mr jones bumped into his label representative Michael Hale. Well, bumped is the incorrect word. Mr Jones stood confused for a large portion of time as he tried to see where to go for the interview. The hustle and bustle of the stage made it hard to know where to go.

“Ah, Davy or I guess I should call you Kraken good to see you made it. Oh and don’t you look sharp” He said

Davy Jones nodded and said, “Last show, I had to show off for my hometown”

“Well great because you’re on first thing. It’s a simple song “Buy it Back”. Answer a few questions then you’re home free. Mike said

Kraken nodded and walked into his marked place.

“after performing his viral hit Kraken walked over to the talk show host for an interview”

“So that "buy it back" huh? It’s a great song with the cool edge to it that makes it feel like getting into a cold beach on a hot day.” Kraken chuckled as he nodded.

“I guess that’s true, but yeah I wrote it a few weeks ago, and no one I reached out to performed it correctly so I just recorded it and did it,” Kraken said nonchalantly. The host nodded attentive but also a little manic. Kraken was uncomfortable with the host's jerky and spastic motions but kept to himself enough so it wasn’t a major issue. He meandered through the interview with an assertive calm that the interviewer felt.

“Next question, why Kraken it’s such a weird name?”

“It’s a Pirates of the Caribbean joke. In it, Davy Jones has two things he leads. The Kraken and the Flying Dutchman. The Flying Dutchman is a team-led thing and my main band is called The Flying Dutchman so when I wanted to do something solo I came up with “Kraken” because Davy Jones controls that alone, and for this side project it’s just me.” Kraken explained

“Okay next question: not since Dazzler’s last mega-hit Sparkle Sparkle has a mutant artist been in the top 100 charts you are also the first openly mutant male artist to make it in. How does that feel?”

Kraken thought about his answer as he looked into the crowd he thought about all the people watching at home and how I used to be like them.

“When I was about 15 or so a lot of bands I loved were hitting their stride; The Devil Wears Prada, Miss May I, Silent Planet, and Like Moths to Flame just to name a few. Their music helped me get through some of the rougher times growing up. Now that I’m older I feel responsible for being that for the next generation so in all my music endeavors like this one or The Flying Dutchman, I try to keep my music accessible and impactful. Me being a mutant is just who I am and hopefully not what makes me special” The interviewer nodded at Kraken’s question with an insincere smile and laughter.

“That’s such a great answer. Now how has being a mutant affected you? I have heard some of the songs of Flying Dutchman a lot of them seem to have a very hostile edge to them.”

Kraken considers his words carefully before saying, “I write from a place of contemplation a lot of the time and when you have a marginalized existence it’s hard kinda not to sound angry at times. Like when I was writing Spirit Ripper both of my sisters had just been attacked by members of the LGBTQ community for confronting them over their bad behavior. The members cited that my sisters were perpetuating harmful language and that it was self-defense to break my younger sister's arm who by the way is a very well-known political activist who supports LGBTQ rights and equality and for my oldest sister a white Lesbain woman threw a brick at her head even though my sister is a lesbian herself.”

The interviewer paused hearing that as he reconciled that he figured he’d lighten the tone by asking,

“So you’ve had it the easiest then.”

Kraken chuckled as he said, “Nope! I had to transfer colleges because I was falsely accused of sexual assault by my first college crush, which led to me developing an intense fear of intimacy with anyone but also led to this massive investigation that revealed that the girl’s boyfriend was abusing her and that this was the only way she could express some control over her life.”

Kraken looked at the room as the silence and shock was palpable. Realizing that this was getting dark fast the interviewer changed subjects.

“Okay, so last question who is Nayoung? You mention her three times and wrap up some of the song’s best punchlines using her name?”

Not expecting that last question but one about his mutant heritage and why was the song called Buy It Back so it took him a second to process the question.

“Oh um, Nayoung is a K-pop singer I find cute. She is in a group called Lights. Her name is easy to couch alliteration and rhyming couplets on so I did that a couple of times.

The interviewer smiled falsely now having control of the interview again and said,

“Well, we will have to check them out. While we happily await your next song see you later Kraken.” Kraken smiled got up and waved. When the cameras stopped rolling the interviewer’s face dropped from a smile into a frown.

“I hoped you enjoyed your 15 minutes of fame Mutie.”

Kraken smiled and said, “Of course, I try to never take anything for granted.”

As the interview across the world, Nayoung sat cross-legged on the couch, a bowl of popcorn in her lap, eyes glued to the television. Her group members were scattered around the living room, some scrolling through their phones, others half-watching the interview playing out on the screen.

“Hey, isn’t that the guy from The Flying Dutchman?” Chowon asked, looking up.

“Yeah, Davy Jones! I love his music,” Nayoung replied, her voice tinged with enthusiasm. She had been following his work ever since she first heard his powerful lyrics and unique sound. His music had helped her through some challenging times, and she admired his courage in being unapologetically himself.

As the interview progressed, Nayoung listened intently, nodding along to Kraken’s thoughtful responses. Then, the interviewer asked about the name that popped up in his songs: Nayoung. Her eyes widened, and she leaned forward, nearly spilling her popcorn.

“Oh my gosh, did he just say my name?” she exclaimed, her voice rising with excitement. The other members turned their attention to the screen, now curious.

Kraken’s explanation was casual yet sincere, and Nayoung felt a rush of warmth spread through her. “He thinks I’m cute!” she said, unable to hide her grin. “And he uses my name for rhymes. How cool is that?”

Her group members laughed and teased her, but Nayoung was too thrilled to care. To hear her name coming from someone she admired so much was a surreal experience.

As the interview wrapped up, she clapped her hands together. “I can’t believe it. I’ve got to send him a message or something. Maybe we can work together one day!”

The idea filled her with inspiration, and as she daydreamed about potential collaborations, her excitement was infectious, spreading to the rest of the room.

When she went to Cube the next day she was the talk of trainees, other groups, and management.

During practice one of the producers came in and asked for her. Her members teased her as she walked out. The producer and Nayoung paid them no mind.

“I take it you saw Kraken’s interview?” The producer asked. Nayoung’s pupils dilated to the eyes of saucers.

“You convinced Davy Jones to do a collab with us?” Nayoung asked her sparkling with joy.

“Um no but the higher-ups and I were wondering if you can convince him to work with us?”

Nayoung smiled and then realized that it probably meant he wouldn’t be Davy Jones but Kraken. She nodded and said, “I’ll help where I can.”

Davy Jones and the rest of “The Flying Dutchman” were working on their parts for the next album. AJ was focused on getting down some of the more intricate baselines that made this song Their most technically impressive one yet. Jojo was on drums trying different beats and fills to better match the rest of the song, while Douglas and Noah fought about everything as always. Davy Jones or as his friends called him JD was writing. As he always was. After about 15 minutes of tuning arguing and preparing JD got up from his notebook and they started working on new stuff.

“The Sky Breaks free while you Break me,” AJ (the clean vocalist) sang out as the kept working on the chorus. Despite AJ’s technical skills as a vocalist JD often found himself not liking the way he sounded on this specific Chorus. He felt that powerful wasn't what the song needed but a softer touch...maybe a feature, but who would he get? Their group was fledgling at best and he doubted he could call in any favors with his Kraken side project yet. The rest of the song sounded right but something was missing. He just didn’t know. As they finished up JD was reminded that the label would be expecting the album soon which he was aware of he just didn’t like it because he couldn’t nail the chorus.

After the recording session, Davy Jones drove home. His parents were watching his interview and congratulated him on the song again. He smiled and then went to his room where he checked his email on a miraculous whim.

He saw an email from Cube Entertainment with the subject Collaborating opportunity and his eyes went big. He read the email saying how Lightsum was willing to work on a couple of songs together. He did notice they used Kraken and not Davy which meant they expected Kraken but hey this gave him an opportunity, so he took it.

A few days later Davy Jones was on a video call with Lightsum who were all smiles to see him. He discussed what the collaboration would look like and how promotions for it would work. Davy Jones had two stipulations they also helped him with a song or two while he was out in South Korea recording, and for this collaboration, the girls get the brunt of the money made and writing credits. Cube was hesitant at first but when DJ said he would do their song for free they quickly agreed. Now the hard part getting an extension from his label. Davy Jones took out his phone and called his label representative.

“Hey Mike it’s Davy Jones. Is it possible to get a 9-day extension on the album?”

Mike was quiet for a moment. It wouldn’t delay anything as even now the boys were ahead of their schedule, but Mike was worried because when Douglas was the leader of the group and not Davy Jones they were constantly missing the mark on release dates. He decided to take a chance and ask why

“Well, I secured a feature for the last song. The only issue is I need to be in Korea to capitalize, after that’s finished I’ll send the last master to you.”

Mike was surprised that Davy Jones of all people was able to secure a feature but knew that this would be excellent for their sound at least for one song.

“Sure. I can manage a week.” Mike responded, and Davy Jones sighed relieved.

“You won’t regret this.” He said. Mike scowled and then said

“You haven’t flopped yet so I’m trusting you, Davy Jones, otherwise you’re sinking with the ship and no Kraken will save you.”

Davy Jones sighed and said, “Okay” he then thought about calling one of his bandmates to see if two of the group could go.

Davy Jones sat on the edge of his bed, his phone in hand, staring at the list of contacts. He scrolled through until he found the first name he was looking for: AJ, the bassist for The Flying Dutchman. Davy dialed the number, listening to the ringtone with anticipation.

“Hey, Davy! What’s up?” AJ answered, his voice cheerful.

“Hey, AJ! I’ve got some exciting news,” Davy said, trying to keep the enthusiasm in his voice. “I’m heading to South Korea to work with Lightsum, and I was wondering if you’d like to come along.”

There was a pause before AJ responded, his tone apologetic. “Man, I’d love to, but with Katie’s new job, it’s been hectic around here. She’d have to come with me, and I don’t think we can swing that right now.”

Davy nodded, even though AJ couldn’t see him. “I get it. No worries. We’ll catch up when I’m back.”

After ending the call, Davy dialed the next number on his list: Jojo, the drummer. He drummed his fingers on his knee as he waited for Jojo to pick up.

“Yo, JD!” Jojo greeted him, sounding as lively as ever.

“Hey, Jojo. I’ve got a proposal for you. How about joining me in Korea for a bit? It’ll be fun, and you know how much I’d love to have you there.”

Jojo laughed, but there was a hint of regret in his voice. “I wish I could, man. But with the twins starting school soon, Gina and I have our hands full. There’s no way I can leave right now.”

Davy sighed, understanding but still a bit disappointed. “Understandable. Family comes first.”

Next on the list was Douglas, the guitarist. Davy hoped at least one of his bandmates might be able to join him. He hit the call button and listened as it rang.

“Hey, Davy! What’s going on?” Douglas answered, his voice as laid-back as always.

“Hey, Douglas. So, I’m heading to Korea for some work with Lightsum. Thought I’d see if you wanted to tag along.”

Douglas hesitated, and Davy could almost hear him weighing his options. “Man, that sounds awesome. But I’ve got this big project at work, and I can’t get the time off. Plus, Melissa’s parents are visiting next week, and I promised we’d spend time with them.”

Davy chuckled, not surprised by the response. “No problem. Sounds like you’ve got your hands full.”

After hanging up, Davy leaned back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. It looked like he’d be heading to Korea solo. Though he wished his bandmates could join him, he understood their commitments and knew they’d be cheering him on from afar.

With a sigh, he put his phone down and mentally prepared himself for the journey ahead, determined to make the most of the experience on his own.

A week before Davy Jones's visit Nayoung had a secret meeting with her CEO.

Nayoung sat across from the CEO in his sleek, minimalist office, the city skyline sprawling out behind him through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The atmosphere was formal yet tense, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that this meeting was more than just a routine update.

“Thank you for coming, Nayoung,” the CEO began, his tone cordial but businesslike. “As you know, Kraken, or Davy Jones, is coming to South Korea to work with Lightsum.”

“Yes, I heard. It’s exciting! I’m a big fan of his work,” Nayoung replied with a polite smile, trying to hide her nerves.

The CEO leaned forward, clasping his hands on the desk. “I am aware and we want to make sure his experience here is exceptional. His collaboration with us could open many doors. That's where you come in.”

Nayoung blinked, taken aback. “Me? What do you mean?”

“We’d like you to make him feel welcome, maybe even charm him a bit,” the CEO said, his words carefully chosen. “We believe that a personal connection might encourage him to engage more with our company, and of course bolster our efforts with Lightsum.”

Nayoung's heart sank. She had anticipated discussing schedules and logistics, not personal involvement beyond the music. “I’m not sure I understand. Are you asking me to…?”

“Not to deceive him, of course,” the CEO interjected quickly, sensing her discomfort. “Just be yourself, but perhaps a bit more attentive. Show him the best of our culture, our hospitality.”

Nayoung shifted in her seat, processing the request. It felt like more than just being friendly. “I can be welcoming and professional, but I want to make sure it’s all about the music and collaboration. That’s what I admire about him.”

“Of course, of course,” the CEO assured her, though Nayoung couldn’t help but feel there was more to it. “He’ll be here for a few weeks. You’ll have plenty of time to make an impression.”

Nayoung nodded, her mind racing with the implications. She understood the stakes and the potential benefits, but she also valued her integrity and the authenticity of the collaboration.

As the meeting wrapped up, Nayoung left the office with a sour taste in her mouth she couldn’t place. While she liked Davy’s performances and music she was unsure if she would mesh with her personality. Regardless she resolved to handle the situation with grace and to focus on what truly mattered: the music.

Flash forward to today Davy gets a text from Cube that a representative would be on the way. So he goes through baggage claim and walks out to Arrivals and pick-ups where he waits. Surprisingly the wait isn't long. A cube representative does pick him up...just not the one he was expecting.

Nayoung pulls up to the curb nervous. This was the first time meeting one of her heroes and she hoped to make a good impression. She walks out and waves happily to him, but all she sees is shock and fear on his face as Davy Jones gets in with his three bags she notices that he didn’t even let her try and grab one. His silence and almost visceral refusal of her help were unsettling to Nayoung, where was his humor where was the light-hearted banter? Was it all an act she wondered, or maybe he was just tired.

Davy was frightened seeing only Nayoung there to pick him up. Sensing some kind of trick his guard was immediately up. He didn’t speak he didn’t let her near him any more than she had to be.

As she drove Davy to the hotel she tried to speak to him.

“So how do you like it here so far?” Nayoung asked gently

Davy Shrugged as he responded ambivalent, “It’s pretty. The skyscrapers remind me of home. Except y’all have less heat.” Said gruffly

Overcome by her habit of mimicking people and desperate to break this frigid man who has distinct speech patterns Nayoung replied in a similar tone.

“I take it y’all gotta lot of heat back home?”

Davy Jones smiled and nodded.

Nayoung beamed. She got one of her favorite artists to smile and laugh she won at life.

“So where do you wanna go?” Nayoung asked.

“Can we go to a studio? I have some things I need to iron out.” Davy Jones said serious

“But studio time is planned for tomorrow. Aren’t you worried you won’t have anything to do tomorrow?”

Davy Jones shook his head surprising Nayoung who shrugged and found a studio. She was also surprised by his paying the full amount for two hours in paper won.

He headed in and started working on the song that had been giving him trouble running through everyone’s part quickly. This surprised Nayoung because she didn’t know that Davy could play multiple instruments, and do clean vocals. When he finished he turned to Nayoung and asked if she could come in and record a chorus.

“So um I have been having issues with this song. Do you have any idea what it needs?” Nayoung was still in shock so she asked for another play-through. Davy Jones obliged he played it through for Nayoung who listened to the demo when it finished she said "I think the chorus needs to be softer," Davy Jones nodded and responded, "You wanna do that?" Nayoung's eyes went wide, and in her excitement said, "Of course!" Davy Jones cracked a smile as he set Nayoung up in the studio. Nayoung was beaming and asked if he could run off the chorus without vocals. Davy Jones nodded and Nayoung did her recording. Unsurprisingly she was exactly what Davy needed for the song and made some adjustments to the chorus and tempo (which made Davy have to remix and adjust the chorus instruments) then the song was perfect. Kind of a blend of Basilisk By Like Moths to Flame and Ghost of Me by Make Them Suffer. After he finished the mix for it Davy added it to his hard drive. All the while Nayoung watched enchanted as he did all the tasks and positions to get it done. When they got back to the car she noticed Davy’s eyes dimmed a bit and his energy was down. It made Nayoung have this pit in her heart.

As the duo drove off Nayoung felt closer to Davy Jones like she had seen more of who he was than anyone else. She felt so close that when she dropped him off at the hotel she said beaming,

“That was so exciting. You are like this artistic machine it’s crazy. You were buzzing around like super fast. I have never had a recording go so fast and simple. Davy smiled and said,

“I know what I want and know how to get it.” A brief flash in Nayoung’s mind was that she wanted to be gotten by Davy but realized that she needed to chill for a bit.

Davy smiled at Nayoung happy to work with her. He waved her off before heading into the hotel where he freaked out when he got in his room.

“She’s even prettier in person…this is going to be hard. All I have to do is not fall for her, and fight my impulses. She’s a colleague. One who I want to cherish and love… no bad brain and heart do not fall for Nayoung. Besides I have a job to finish.”

Davy Jones leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms above his head as he hit send on the email containing the final track for The Flying Dutchman’s new album. The song featuring Nayoung had been a labor of love, and he was eager to hear what his label rep, Mike, thought of it.

Minutes later, his phone buzzed with an incoming call. Davy picked it up, already knowing who it was.

“Davy, this is incredible!” Mike's voice boomed through the speaker, filled with enthusiasm. “The track with Nayoung is a hit. It’s got everything—emotion, energy, and that unique sound only you can bring.”

“Thanks, Mike. I’m glad you like it,” Davy replied, a smile tugging at his lips.

“Like it? I love it! We need to make this the touring single. It’s too good to pass up,” Mike continued, his excitement palpable. “When can you start the tour?”

Davy hesitated, glancing at the calendar on his desk. “I can’t leave South Korea just yet. I’m still helping Lightsum with their promotions. They’ve got a few big events coming up, and I promised to see them through.”

Mike sighed, but there was understanding in his tone. “Alright, I get it. But we’ll need to get you back on the road soon. This single deserves to be heard live.”

“I know, I know,” Davy reassured him. “I’ll wrap things up here as soon as I can.”

There was a brief pause before Mike asked, “So, Nayoung—she’s something, huh? What made you feature her?”

Davy chuckled. “She’s incredibly talented, for one. I’ve always admired her work, and when I came up with this project, she just seemed like the perfect fit. Her voice adds a whole new layer to the music.”

“And the Kraken side project? What’s the story there?” Mike inquired, curiosity evident in his voice.

Davy leaned back, contemplating his answer. “Kraken is more personal, a way for me to explore different sounds and ideas. It’s about pushing boundaries, both musically and personally. Working with someone like Nayoung fits right into that vision.”

“Well, whatever you’re doing, keep it up. This track is going to be huge,” Mike said, his confidence infectious.

“Thanks, Mike. I appreciate the support. I’ll keep you posted on the timeline,” Davy promised.

The next day Nayoung picked up Davy they smiled when they saw each other and were chatting the whole way to Cube’s building. Davy thought it a bit weird at first that it was her and not all of Lightsum or a cube representative but his ease with Nayoung made it easier.

When they arrive at the studio Nayoung goes rejoins her group mates to formally greet Davy Jones.

“123 Hello we are Lightsum “The girls all smiled as Kraken waved back introducing himself. After that, the girls led him to the studio where he’d be working with them.

The studio was buzzing with energy as Lightsum gathered around the recording booth. Davy Jones, known to them as Kraken, was setting up equipment, his focus evident in the way he adjusted knobs and checked sound levels. The group was excited to collaborate with such a talented artist, and Nayoung was especially enthusiastic.

As Lightsum’s main producer played a rough cut of the track they were working on, Nayoung leaned in closer, nodding along to the beat. It was meant to be a remix of their hit song “Honey or Spice“. “This part sounds amazing,” she said about this space made on the song that was for his small space to do a quick sixteen bars, her eyes meeting Kraken’s with a bright smile.

“It is,” he replied, returning her smile. “Your vocals elevate it.”

Chowon, sitting nearby with her notebook, couldn’t help but notice the easy rapport between them. She observed how Nayoung and Kraken seemed to mirror each other’s movements, leaning in at the same time or laughing at shared jokes. It was subtle but unmistakable.

During a break, Nayoung approached Davy, offering him a bottle of water. “You’ve been working hard. Make sure you stay hydrated,” she said, her tone playful yet caring.

Davy chuckled, accepting the bottle. “Thanks, Nayoung. I appreciate it. I guess I got too dialed in.”

During the break Nayoung began humming a tune and the members of Lightsum noticed that Kraken was unconsciously making a beat to her little melody on the drum kit.

Chowon watched the exchange with interest, noticing how Nayoung lingered a moment longer than necessary, her attention fully on Kraken. It was clear to Chowon that there was an underlying chemistry between them. The other members noticed as well. They seemed to fire on all cylinders with each other.

As they resumed recording, Davy suggested a change in one of the verses. “What if we try it this way?” he proposed, demonstrating with his guitar.

Nayoung immediately picked up on the idea, adding her twist. “Or maybe like this?” she offered, her enthusiasm infectious.

Their collaboration flowed seamlessly, each suggestion building on the other’s ideas. Chowon marveled at how in sync they were, almost as if they were having a conversation through the music.

After the session, as the group gathered their things, Chowon sidled up to Nayoung, a teasing smile on her face. “You and Kraken seemed to have your own little world in there.”

Nayoung blushed, her cheeks turning a shade of pink. “Oh, come on. We’re just working well together,” she stammered, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear in an attempt to appear nonchalant.

Chowon raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. “Sure, just working. But you two have a vibe.”

Nayoung’s smile widened despite her embarrassment, and she glanced away, trying to hide her flustered expression. “It’s not like that,” she insisted, though her voice lacked conviction.

Chowon laughed softly, giving her friend a gentle nudge. “Okay, whatever you say. But your face says otherwise.”

Nayoung opened her mouth to protest, but Chowon held up a hand. “Listen, Nayoung, he obviously likes you, too. Why not see where it goes? You never know what could happen.”

Nayoung hesitated, considering Chowon’s words. “You think so?”

“Absolutely,” Chowon said with a reassuring smile. “You should go for it. Life’s too short to hold back on something that feels right.”

Nayoung nodded as the girls left to do their other schedules while she was left with Kraken. For her now there was only one worry, would he accept her being a mutant?

After the break, Kraken was working on more verses for the song and asked Nayoung what was the phrase "Our Time" Korean. She told Kraken and he added it to the verse. Eventually, he came up with something he was pleased with Sonically and lyrically. When he started rapping the members fluent in English and Koren noticed that his verse was doing something interesting. So the Korean parts contained idioms and sayings more associated with English and did the inverse with the English verbs creating this weird but kinda of funny split of lyrics.

After spending 5-6 hours working on the Honey or Spice remix. They finished up. The producer gave the go-ahead for Davy to take over. The rest of Lightsum left for their schedules as Nayoung was still "assigned to Davy Jones." Nayoung was surprised when his eyes dimmed and his face became serious again. It was weird and she wondered why he did this.

Davy Jones started playing drums until he found an intro he liked. Nayoung walked into the side of the studio he was in. Davy looked up to see Nayoung and asked if she wanted to do some vocals. Nayoung noticed that Davy Jones was trying to get around her, but she pinned him to the wall.

"Why are you so different when it's just us?" she asked Her eyes contained a fire Davy Jones didn't know what to do with

"I thought you liked me. So why are you always so distant when it's just us?" Davy Jones sighed realizing he was trapped.

"Simple I don't trust being alone with you...well not you personally but any female to be honest," Davy says which shocks Nayoung to her core.

"But why?"

"Because despite my best intentions every woman I have ever gotten close to only hurts me because they don't get me."

Nayoung paused as she tried to consider this. It would explain why out of all of the members of "The Flying Dutchman he was the only single one, despite being the most charismatic and "normal" one of the bunch. It also explained a few other things like never going for hugs when she opened her arms to greet him or his overall caginess around her.

"Okay I am going to do something I don't normally do, but I'll be right back," Nayoung said leaving Davy confused but he played along.

She went into the bathroom and changed into her X-men suit, before sneaking back into the studio where Davy Jones was.

She smiles then says, "Okay. I am a mutant and I want to try something. I want to enter your mind but I need you to relax."

Davy Jones (Whose parents and sisters are all telepaths) had a hard time relaxing about Nayoung's revelation, but his desire for intimacy overrode his defensiveness so he eased. Nayoung smiled before becoming engulfed in flames. Davy blinked thrice before freaking out. He tried booking it but Nayoung intercepted him. Despite her whole body being covered in Flames. When she touched Davy Jones her hands didn't burn him. She smiled brightly and said,

"Please let me in. I won't hurt you." Against his better judgment, he let Nayoung in.

Nayoung flew deep into Davy's mind she watched as the world faded away and was swallowed by an impossible expansive ocean. She watched as stars and other celestial bodies filled the skies. But something else was there with her. Nayoung ignored it looking for some form of guidance about this place but all she got was more of this following her until it caught her. When she felt this immense presence she turned around to see...Davy? It looked like him but it was different.

The entity spoke to her.

"Does anyone ever tell you you're hotter in person?" Davy said before laughing. Not understanding the joke Nayoung turned to him confused before Davy said, "Get it? Because you're covered in the fire? Or is this lava? I can't tell."

Nayoung smiled. This was the Davy she was familiar with. The smile he wore on interviews and the joviality he brought not only emotionally but physically. This Davy was goofy and fun.

"So Miss what do you want to see?" Kraken asked her.

"Well, what do you want to show me?

"Well, I'd love to show you my most positive memories but a lot of them are nerdy and really goofy."

Nayoung held up her hand and said, "I'd love to but I'd also like to see you how you see yourself."

Kraken's smile wavered a bit, but quickly returned, "Okay then fine."

Kraken guided Nayoung to the brightest star in this infinite ocean and guided her to it.

The room Davy Jones found himself in was stuffy and cold, as he waited for his first girlfriend to come through. Nayoung noticed he was covered in bruises.

"What happened?" she asked Kraken.

"Oh Football injuries," Kraken explained. Nayoung nodded a bit more at ease.

As he waited for his ride he noticed a bald woman approach him. he locked eyes with her in confusion.

"Oh, what a naughty boy out here all alone. Someone could hurt you."

Her accent said British which automatically put the young man on edge, as she approached. Her face held malice which frightened the younger Davy. Until she became too close. she touched his forehead and entered his mind. A vibrant seaside palace

"Ooh, you have one of the prettiest mind palaces I have ever seen." The bald woman said. Davy in his efforts tried to shake her off, but she was the strongest telepath he had encountered thus far. She tightened her grip on his mind. Massive tendril-like fingers weaved through them. As she got closer to his mind palace she sighed and said,

"Shame I have to break it." before tearing the palace apart and casting it into the ocean. she tore through Davy's memories suppressing the ones she deemed useless and enhancing the ones that would make him her perfect weapon. A lot of those memories included how worthless he would always be and how he would never amount to anything. These memories began to manifest as these massive chains.

Nayoung watched in Terror she knew this Telepath. it was Professor Charles Xavier's sister Cassandra Nova, and as the memories faded a defense began to mount itself against her.

. The voice was monotone and mechanical

"HATE. LET ME TELL YOU HOW MUCH I'VE COME TO HATE YOU SINCE I BEGAN TO LIVE. THERE ARE 387.44 MILLION MILES OF PRINTED CIRCUITS IN WAFER THIN LAYERS THAT FILL MY COMPLEX. IF THE WORD HATE WAS ENGRAVED ON EACH NANOANGSTROM OF THOSE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF MILES IT WOULD NOT EQUAL ONE ONE-BILLIONTH OF THE HATE I FEEL FOR HUMANS AT THIS MICRO-INSTANT. FOR YOU. HATE. HATE."

from the oceans arrived a titanic beast, that swam through Davy's mind, which Nayoung recognized as Kraken.

What startled Nayoung the most about this memory was how as it became corrupted and this almost machine-like coldness began to warp it, all she could sense from the memory was Hate, but also surprisingly Hope. when she came back to the "real world" she held Davy Jones close.

He smiled unguarded with her.

"So what now?" he asked.

As Nayoung delved deeper into Kraken’s mind, the vast ocean of his subconscious swirled with stars and shadows. She moved carefully, feeling the echoes of his past. Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted. The water around her grew turbulent, and a chilling presence made itself known.

From the depths emerged a figure shrouded in darkness, with piercing eyes that seemed to cut through the very fabric of his memories. It was Cassandra Nova, the malevolent telepath who had tormented Kraken in his past.

Nayoung felt Kraken’s fear and tension ripple through the ocean. The water grew cold and constricted as if reacting to the memory of Cassandra’s control. She could sense the trauma Kraken had endured, his defenses crumbling under Cassandra’s relentless assault.

“Little Davy,” Cassandra’s voice echoed, dripping with malice. “Did you think you could hide from me in your mind?”

The memory of Davy, younger and more vulnerable, appeared beside Nayoung. He was struggling against invisible chains, his face a mix of defiance and fear. Nayoung could see the weight of Cassandra’s influence bearing down on him, a testament to the psychological scars she had left.

Cassandra approached, her presence overwhelming. “Your powers are nothing compared to mine,” she taunted. “I could twist your thoughts, make you see what isn’t there. And you’d be helpless to stop me.”

The memory shifted, showing Kraken isolated, trapped in a web of illusions crafted by Cassandra. Nayoung watched as Kraken fought to maintain his sense of self, his mental barriers barely holding against the onslaught. The only thing that barely could stop her all combined into Kraken even little Davy mounted an all-out attack on the interloper

Determined to help, Nayoung reached out to the Kraken. “You’re not alone,” she whispered, her voice carrying strength and warmth. “I’m here with you.”

The presence of Nayoung seemed to bolster the mental apparation of Kraken. The waters began to calm, the chains weakening. Cassandra’s image flickered, her control slipping as Nayoung’s influence spread through the memory.

“Who are you?” Cassandra hissed, her figure dissipating under the combined willpower of Nayoung and Kraken. “This isn’t over!”

As the memory faded, Nayoung found herself back in the present, holding Kraken’s hand tightly. His eyes opened, meeting hers with gratitude and relief. Tears running down his eyes. Nayoung Kraken wasn't a side project it was what remained of him mentally. she smiled at him before stroking his hair as he collapsed in her arms. when he recovered and got up he stammered.

"Um Sorry you had to see that. I um hope it wasn't too much. I just um," as Kraken stammered for words Nayoung smiled then said,

"Well Kraken I can wipe your mind off this little exchange and we can resolve your issues the normal way. Or we can have some fun now that you are "okay" with me with Cube's money." Nayoung said while waving a card out.

"I don't like telepaths touching my psyche too much so let's have some fun," Kraken said. Nayoung smiled as they walked towards the exit. On the way out she realized Kraken said Telepaths plural.

"Wait You know multiple telepaths besides Cassandra and I?" Nayoung asked Kraken nodded, and replied

"Yes, my two sisters, Mom, and Dad,"

"You're a mutant like me?" Nayoung questioned incredolous." Kraken nodded and said.

"While I don't really flex my powers all that much I am very proud to be one. My Song Buy it Back was mutant slang where I'm from."

Nayoung's eyes went wide as she listened.

"That explains so much now Like the song Brotherhood, or the song Milita... no wonder I feel such a connection to you. Okay now that I know I have to ask the obligatory: Who do you side more with Xavier or Erik?" Nayoung asked.

Having been exposed to the question numerous times growing up Kraken picked his favorite response.

"Neither. their dead and have been dead for 15 years or so."

Nayoung rolled her eyes and then said. "Okay, then Mr. Smart Alek. What about Logan or Scott?"

Kraken smirked as he responded, "Oh Neither they're are both the worst. My choices are between a racist and a war criminal. Neither." Kraken said as he got in the car with Nayoung who pouted.

Nayoung turned to him with an annoyed smile. "How did you survive on Krakoa?"

Kraken shrugged as he responded, "I have never been."

Nayoung's brain broke upon hearing that, "What do you mean you have never been to Karkoa?"

Kraken shrugged before responding, "No Point."

"What do you mean no point? You are a proud mutant you need to go to the motherland." Nayoung challenged.

"My "Motherland" is Cali Missy," Kraken said which made Nayoung smile despite being teased. The two drove to a nearby Ramen shop

As they pulled up to the cozy ramen shop nestled on a bustling street corner, Nayoung parked the car and turned to Kraken with a playful smile.

“This place has the best ramen in town. You’re in for a treat!” she said, her eyes twinkling with excitement.

Kraken grinned, unbuckling his seatbelt. “I trust your taste. Lead the way.”

As they stepped out of the car, Nayoung reached for Kraken’s hand, intertwining her fingers with his. He glanced down at their joined hands and then back at her, feeling a warmth spread through him.

The restaurant was warm and inviting, with the comforting aroma of simmering broth and freshly cooked noodles wafting through the air. They were seated at a small table by the window, offering a view of the lively street outside.

After placing their orders, Nayoung leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand. “So, you mentioned your family earlier. What’s it like having a family full of telepaths?”

Kraken chuckled, leaning back in his chair. “It’s… interesting, to say the least. Privacy is a bit of a challenge, but we’ve learned to respect each other’s boundaries. Once my powers kicked in and I was able to create mental barriers it was a lot easier. What about you? How did your family react to your abilities? Wait are you a first-generation mutant?”

Nayoung smiled softly. “ No, my dad was a flame user and my mom was an empath. Their powers combined when they had me. They were a bit surprised when I burst into flames in front of them but they were supportive. A bit surprised, but they always encouraged me to embrace who I am. My mom always says I’m destined for great things.”

Kraken squeezed her hand gently. “I’m not surprised. You’re pretty amazing, Nayoung.”

She felt a blush creep up her cheeks and looked down at their intertwined fingers. “You’re not so bad yourself, Kraken.”

They both laughed, the sound mingling with the soft chatter of other diners. Their ramen arrived, steaming and fragrant, and they released each other’s hands to pick up their chopsticks.

Between bites, Kraken asked, “Do you ever feel like you have to prove yourself because of your abilities?”

Nayoung nodded thoughtfully. “Sometimes. But I try to focus on what I can do, not what others expect of me. What about you? Do you feel pressure, especially with your family being mutants?”

Kraken shrugged. “A bit. But I’m learning to carve my own path. It helps to have people who understand.” He glanced at her, his expression softening.

Nayoung reached across the table, touching his hand lightly. “Well, I’m here if you ever need someone to talk to.”

He smiled, turning his hand to hold hers again. “I appreciate that.”

"So what are your powers?" Nayoung asked.

Kraken thought for a moment and made some gestures with his hands before giving up. He noticed Nayoung had some beef on her cheek and grabbed a napkin to wipe it off. Nayoung smiled at his cute gesture. She watched as the gears in his mind turned as he processed. It was something she had seen him do a couple of times now. Mostly when he's working on Music.

"So my powers are weird. I take the residual psionic energy that all mutants give off and use it that alter reality in a limited range that increases per mutant in the range. It also increases depending on the strength of the mutant as well.

Nayoung's eyes widened and she asked, "Well how much range do I give you."

"25 meters," Kraken answered

"So with me around I make you a god for 25 meters?" Nayoung asked.

Kraken smirked at her assumption, "Um yes and no. My powers are limited to a very specific range and while powerful are limited to my perception of reality."

"What do you mean?" Nayoung asked.

"I am a limited being. I can't know or think of everything." Kraken explained

Nayoung nodded thoughtfully "Okay, so your power is limited by your creativity and range."

Kraken nodded as he clarified "Yes. So if a telepath engages with my brain and I don't have my powers up they can do really bad things. Typically I know when one is near so that is less of an issue, but to use my powers I have let my Psionic barriers down leaving me super open to Telepaths."

"Okay So keep you protected from Psionics with my powers. Got it." Nayoung teased. Kraken chuckled and said

"Bold are you."

Nayoung smiled, "Yes I am. Besides you are my boy now whether you like it or not."

"Really in two days, you are claiming me?" Kraken asked confused

Nayoung nodded "Of course. You're my little angry heavy metal buddy."

Kraken was bewildered as he responded, "But Nayo I am taller than you by 14 inches."

"Yes, but you're heart's smaller so you're just my little guy." Nayoung teased.

Kraken laughed it off before wanting some clarity on Nayoung's powers.

"So how do your powers work?"

"Well, my powers work like so. My psionic flames cover me while I use them and increase my psionic powers of telepathy, pyrokinesis, and Telekinesis,"

Kraken nodded at Nayoung's explanation.

As they finished their meal, Nayoung looked at Kraken with a playful glint in her eyes. “So, what’s next on our adventure?”

Kraken returned her smile, feeling a sense of ease and excitement he hadn’t experienced in a while. “I guess we’ll have to see where the night takes us.”

"Karaoke?" Nayoung suggested.

"Sure" Kraken agreed. Nayoung paid for their meal and then took him to a nearby Karaoke Parlor, where they rented a room for a couple of hours. On the way in there was a claw Machine. In said Claw Machine was a rabbit keychain that Nayoung wanted. She raced to the Machine and made three attempts at it, but failed.

"I know there is supposed to be a trick to these, but why not use your powers to secure it?"

"Because that's cheating?" Nayoung replied stubbornly

"but these machines cheat. All the time."

"Well, I like beating cheaters by being better than them. Now are you going to help me or not?" Nayoung said defiantly.

Kraken rolled his eyes and let down his psionic barriers, as he put the coin in. Nayoung who was unaware watched as he upped his Luck percentage so high that the machine would give him the keychain when he was successful he gave her the keychain. Nayoung smiled and said,

"Thanks, big guy,"

Kraken smiled and said, "Oh now I am a big guy." Kraken teasese and Nayoung rolls her eyes. As they finally entered the room Nayoung hugged Kraken for the first time, well outside of a traumatic response from Kraken. She felt a cool warmth that was peaceful. It felt like a summer day at the beach. Kraken smirked confused.

"Um, what was that for?"

"You seemed like you'd be a good hugger and you are. I wonder how good of a kisser you are." Nayoung said absent minded. Kraken kindly ignored that as he searched for a song to play. He laughed when he saw his on the list but none from "The Flying Dutchman" Nayoung laughed with him saying,

"You know I didn't like "Buy it Back"." She said.

Kraken laughed and said, "Fair. I am often surprised it got so much love."

Nayoung held her hand up, "No I get why it did. It's got all the hallmarks of your art. Cheeky defiance in the face of similar-sounding music. It was a rallying war cry and killer instrumentation. My only wish it was more metal instead of a rap bop."

Kraken laughed and said, "Well then little miss Metalhead. Do you want to write a song together?"

Nayoung's eyes went wide and said, "Absolutely."

Kraken smiled as he picked hot and spicy. She laughed when he really tried to go for it on Nayoung's parts of the song, and smiled that he showed that he cared about not only her music but her art. after the song Nayoung smiled at Kraken.

"That was pretty good. What do you want to hear me sing?" Nayoung asked

"Oh that's easy Dreamcatcher, Odd eye."

Nayoung smiled, "you know they are how I found out about you." she said

Kraken's eyes widened before saying, "Wait they know about me?"

Nayoung laughed, "No but you were on their recommended video under Odd eye,"

Kraken laughed then said, "So I guess Odd Eye is our wedding song."

Nayoung laughed at the joke with a hearty smile. After singing Odd eye to a wildly impressed Kraken a competition ensued between them of who could sing better. No one really won this competition but they did impress each other with their vocal range and catalogue of music knowledge. After that Nayoung dropped off Kraken back at his hotel.

"I am glad that you're my "babysitter". Despite my earlier reservations," Kraken said.

Nayoung turned to him surprised, "What do you mean?"

"Um well, You have been stuck with me and doing whatever I want instead of you being able to be with your group. At first, I thought this was a manipulation attempt but honestly, this time with you has been some of the most fun I have had making music. Also one of my most healing times as well."

Nayoung's heart swelled. At that moment, she realized how much she had grown to like Kraken and how well they clicked, but also what surprised her was how smart he was to pick up on what Cube was doing."

"Why did you accept the offer?" Nayoung asked, she looked at Kraken who smiled at her, and then she added, "Your interviews make you seem like the one who embraces the rockstar identity more so than the other members of "The Flying Dutchman but spending all this time with you, and seeing how thoughtful you are. This seems like you would hate the fakeness of all of this. So I have to ask Why?"

Kraken smiled, "Obligation, I see all of this, and now that Cube is throwing y'all away. So why not see if I can help out at all." he explained

Nayoung looked at him with big happy eyes before grabbing him tight. Despite his awkward return she said, "Thank you for not giving up on us." Kraken pat Nayoung's back before leaving. while he walked out he waved back to her. Nayoung smiled and waved back until she lost visibility of him before driving back to her dorm.

Nayoung entered the dormitory, her cheeks slightly flushed from the day’s excitement. As she closed the door behind her, the familiar sounds of laughter and music filled the air. The other members of LIGHTSUM were scattered around the living room, lounging on the sofas and floor.

Juhyeon was the first to notice her arrival. She looked up from her phone and grinned widely. “Look who finally decided to come home!”

The others immediately perked up, turning their attention to Nayoung with mischievous smiles.

“Someone had a busy day,” Sangah teased, wiggling her eyebrows. “Was it fun?”

Nayoung rolled her eyes, trying to play it cool. “It was just ramen and some music stuff,” she replied, but the slight smile on her face betrayed her.

Chowon leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand. “Oh, sure, just ramen. And who was the lucky guy you had ramen with?”

“Yeah, spill!” added Yujeong, clapping her hands excitedly. “We need all the juicy details.”

Nayoung sighed, knowing she couldn’t escape their playful interrogation. “Fine, fine. I was with Davy—Kraken, from The Flying Dutchman.”

There was a collective gasp of delight and surprise, and the teasing began in earnest.

“Kraken? The heavy metal guy?” Hina exclaimed, eyes wide. “Isn’t he super mysterious and cool?”

Jian joined in, nudging Nayoung’s arm. “I bet he’s got that brooding musician vibe. Did he sing you a love song?”

The room erupted in laughter, and Nayoung couldn’t help but laugh along with them. “He’s actually really sweet and funny,” she admitted, warmth in her voice. “We just talked and had a good time.”

“Talked, huh?” Juhyeon teased, nudging her playfully. “Holding hands, maybe?”

Nayoung’s blush deepened, and she covered her face with her hands. “Okay, maybe a little,” she mumbled, eliciting more squeals from her friends.

“Well, it sounds like you had a great time,” Sangah said, smiling warmly. “We’re happy for you, Nayoung.”

Nayoung looked around at her friends, grateful for their support and camaraderie. “Thanks, everyone. It was nice.”

“Just promise us one thing,” Chowon said, holding up a finger. “You’ll invite us to your wedding!”

The room filled with laughter again, and Nayoung shook her head, amused by their antics. “I’ll think about it,” she joked, knowing she wouldn’t hear the end of it any time soon.

The rest of the week was a blur of discussions; logistics, royalties, and promotion cycles. This led to Kraken appearing on quite a few shows with Lightsum.

In between one of those shows and another Chowon "confronts" Kraken over his time spent with Nayoung.

Backstage at the bustling music show venue, the air was filled with the sounds of instruments tuning and crew members rushing to set up for the next performance. Kraken leaned against a wall, his eyes scanning the chaotic scene, enjoying the brief lull between shows. As he took a sip of water, he noticed Chowon making her way towards him with a determined look on her face.

“Hey, Kraken,” she greeted, stopping in front of him. Her expression was friendly but serious, the kind of look that told him this wasn’t just a casual chat.

“Hey, Chowon,” he replied, curious about the purpose of her visit. “What’s up?”

She crossed her arms and gave him a scrutinizing look. “I wanted to talk to you about Nayoung.”

Kraken raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “What about her?”

Chowon’s demeanor softened slightly, but her tone remained firm. “You two have been spending a lot of time together, and I just wanted to make sure you know how important she is to all of us. She’s like a sister to me.”

He nodded, understanding the underlying message. “I get it. Nayoung’s great, and I really enjoy being with her.”

“Good,” Chowon said, her eyes narrowing playfully. “Because if you ever hurt her, I’ll have to kick your butt.”

Kraken chuckled, appreciating her protectiveness. “I wouldn’t expect anything less. But seriously, I have no intention of hurting her. She’s… special.”

Chowon’s expression softened further, and she smiled. “I can see that. She talks about you a lot, you know.”

“Really?” Kraken asked a hint of surprise in his voice.

“Yeah,” Chowon confirmed, leaning against the wall next to him. “She’s been happier lately, more relaxed. That’s a good thing.”

Kraken felt a warmth in his chest at her words. “I’m glad to hear that. She makes me feel pretty happy too.”

Chowon nodded, satisfied with his response. “Just remember, she has all of us looking out for her.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Kraken promised, meeting her gaze with sincerity.

“Great,” Chowon said, her tone lightening. “Now, I think it’s almost showtime. Ready to rock the stage?”

Kraken grinned, feeling the energy of the impending performance. “Always.”

They killed all the performances and had runaway hits. Lightsum was on track to be a household name. To Celebrate this massive momentum shift the group plus Kraken had a little party on a rooftop bar.

The evening was filled with laughter and chatter as Kraken sat with the members of LIGHTSUM at a cozy rooftop bar, enjoying the view of the city lights twinkling below. The atmosphere was relaxed, and Kraken felt a sense of camaraderie and warmth among the group. It was his last night in Korea, and he was determined to make the most of it.

As Sangah told a funny story that had everyone in stitches, Kraken's phone buzzed in his pocket. He glanced at the screen and saw Mike's name flashing. Excusing himself from the table, he stepped away from the noise to answer the call.

“Hey, Mike!” Kraken greeted, holding the phone to his ear.

“Kraken, my man!” Mike's voice boomed with excitement. “You’re not gonna believe the buzz that’s happening over here. Your performances have been a massive hit! Everyone’s talking about you!”

Kraken smiled, pleased to hear the positive feedback. “That’s great to hear! I’m glad people are enjoying it.”

“More than enjoying it—they’re loving it!” Mike continued enthusiastically. “When you get back, we need to capitalize on this hype. I’m thinking we can push for some big promotions. Maybe even a solo tour or a collaboration with some big names.”

Kraken’s smile faded slightly as he caught the emphasis on solo work. “Uh, Mike, you keep mentioning promoting me as Kraken. What about The Flying Dutchman?”

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line before Mike responded, his tone slightly less enthusiastic. “Well, of course, there’s The Flying Dutchman, but I’m talking about opportunities for you as an individual artist. You’ve got this incredible momentum right now.”

Kraken took a deep breath, feeling the need to be firm. “I appreciate the excitement, Mike, but The Flying Dutchman is my project with the rest of the band. We’ve built this together, and I’m not interested in sidelining them. If we’re promoting, it’s gotta be all of us.”

Mike hesitated, then sighed, understanding Kraken's stance. “I get it, I do. But think about how much bigger you could be if you pursued this solo angle.”

“I’m already big enough with the band,” Kraken said with a slight chuckle, trying to keep the conversation light. “And that’s where I’m happiest—creating with them. We’re a team.”

There was a pause, and then Mike’s tone softened. “Alright, I hear you. We’ll focus on promoting The Flying Dutchman. Just know the offer’s there if you ever change your mind.”

“Thanks, Mike. I appreciate it,” Kraken replied, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders.

As he hung up and returned to the table, the LIGHTSUM members greeted him with smiles and curiosity.

“Everything okay?” Chowon asked, noticing the thoughtful look on his face.

Kraken nodded, taking his seat again. “Yeah, just some talk about the future. But right now, I’m here with you guys, and that’s all that matters.”

Chowon laughs and then says. "Well if that's the case there is someone you need to talk to." before pointing at a partying Nayoung. Kraken smiles. Nayoung and he had both been avoiding the "So what happens next" talk because they knew that. It was going to hurt no matter what happened, but it was now or never.

Nayoung smiled when she saw Kraken approached.

"Hey Nayoung can we talk?" he said.

Nayoung sighed, she noticed he wasn't using her cute nickname Nayo which meant this was serious. She nods and the two find a quiet end of the bar to chat.

"So what happens next," Kraken asks.

Nayoung thought about his words... she knew they were about to go heavy into tours and traveling, which meant strain on their friendship.

"Well the way I see it we can put our friendship on pause, or you can move out to Korea, and we see where the rest of this takes us."

"I am not moving out here, but my powers do grant me limited teleportation."

"Wait really?"

"Kinda. Typically I need an anchor point. Usually, that's an omega level or higher mutant, but I think I know a girl."

Nayoung pouted not realizing who he was referring to. She stood up from the seat flustered, "Who is she, and how did you meet her out here?" she asked. Kraken furrowed his brow in confusion before pointing to Nayoung. Nayoung finally made the connection and laughed heartily.

Nayoung smiled and then said, "Okay well that changes things because if I knew you'd always be a quick teleport away we could have spent more time together."

Kraken nodded then asked for confirmation, "Okay so that's the plan?"

Nayoung nodded then replied, "Yes I have custody of you on the weekends."

"That's an interesting way to put it." Kraken looked at her funny while he responded

Nayoung raised a defiant eyebrow, and asked "Am I wrong?"

"No Nayo, it's just funny," Kraken replied

"Good now dance with me," she said as her favorite song came on. The two danced all night as their hearts poured themselves out on the dancefloor. Nayoung and Kraken felt at peace in each other's arms, and just like that. A spark ignited between the two "Friends" as both felt their hearts yearn for something more.

[st4rluvrr]

Friends

☆ “tell me we weren't just friends"

synopsis: fem!reader x jealous! ellie williams. you and ellie used to be friends before she randomly stopped talking to you and you bump into her at a party. based on friends by chase atlantic.

wc: 1.7k

warnings: smut, metions of alcohol, dom!ellie, sub!reader, degregration, overstimulation, blood, no aftercare

an: another chase atlantic song. this is not proof read and im not proud of this so yeah.

Lights flicker over Dina's face, painting her skin blue as she talks. Music plays loudly over a stereo, making it difficult to hear. The beat pulses through your body, leaving your heart pounding and ears bursting.

“So then she says that I’m being overdramatic. And I’m like you cheated on me, the least I should do is break up with you.” She says, irritated as she retells the details from her weekend.

You try to listen to her story, truly interested and wanting to be a good friend. But you were on edge, constantly checking the door, to see if she would be here. You didn’t want to face her, never wanted to see her again, you only agreed to come to this party because Dina promised that she wasn’t going to turn up but it was like your body craved her, needed her.

“Oh, you said she wouldn’t be here,” You say when you see Ellie walk through the door. Your heart raced at the sight of her. Her hair is cut short, shaggy against the back of her neck, fringe swept to the side. A brown button-up shirt is rolled up to reveal her tattoo, the top buttons were undone. There was no need for you to find her that attractive when you were still so mad at her.

You roll your eyes when you see everyone move towards her, desperate to greet her. You look over at Dina, and she at least looks a little apologetic. She knew it was better if you never saw each other again as you would be unable to resist her.

“She wasn’t supposed to, she told Jesse she was staying in,” As much as you tried to avoid Ellie, it was difficult when your friends were also her friends. They never truly knew what happened between the two of you. You couldn’t explain it yourself. Just that one day you both couldn’t stand to be in a room with each other. Jesse always insists that you will become friends again.

You don’t think you can, not after she left you. Abandoned you for her. Cast you aside like you meant nothing to her.

But she meant something to you. She made you feel wanted and needed. Your name was the one she was moaning at night when she would stay over, and she would fall asleep in your arms, only to be gone before the sun rose.

She didn’t need you. She proved that every time she left. She just needed someone to want her, and you would never be enough for her.

The longer she ignored you, the quicker the pain turned to anger. You finally had enough of her antics and swore to never take her back again.

You watched as a girl trailed after her, following everywhere she went like a lost puppy, begging for a drop of her attention. You hated to admit that that was you a couple of months ago. That you would have done anything for her. And deep down, you still would.

-

The room swarmed with heat, and your body flushed as more people began to turn up. As the night wore on, the alcohol started to take effect. You began to lose track of time, you becoming less and less aware of your surroundings as the night progressed. You found yourself getting lost in the moment, completely forgetting about Ellie and the girl she brought with her.

You were dancing with Dina, spinning each other around to the music. Laughing when she slips, grabbing onto her to stop her from falling.

“Oh sorry,” You apologise when you knock into someone while trying to save Dina. They turn to face you, your pulse quickens when you see their face.

Their hair is tied up, curls breaking out of the hair band, framing her face. Her lips were tainted dark red, perfectly complementing her skin. She was pretty, very pretty and you deserved to have a little fun. It had been months since you were last with Ellie, and you wanted to be wanted.

“Oh no don’t worry about it,” You lean in closer to her to hear over the blaring music. Her perfume wafts over to you. It’s sweet and flowering and pulls you in. “I’m Olivia,”

You return with your name, and when a new song starts to play, she places her hands on your hips, moving both of you to the beat. You step closer to her, shoes bumping as you dance with her. She starts to lean closer to you, your lips brushing over each other. You only need to move an inch, and her lips with be on yours.

A hand grabs your wrist, pulling you away for her. Their grip is tight and unforgiving and only tightens when you try to break free. You pull your hand from their grip roughly as she slams the bathroom door behind her, locking it.

“What the hell is your problem?” You yell at Ellie, walking over to the sink and leaning against it, trying to keep the distance between the two of you. 

“You shouldn’t be with her,” She says, her jaw clenching when you roll your eyes at her.

“What the fuck?” You state in disbelief. She has no right to think she can stop you from moving on. She is the one who left you. She is the reason you are moving on in the first place.

“She’s no good for you,”

“And what you are?” Her silence says enough. You both know you are too good for her, that she would never treat you right. “You don’t get to choose who I date.”

“Well, I should if that’s who you pick. You just can’t help acting like a slut for the first person who gives you the tiniest bit of attention,” She starts slowly walking towards you, and you press further into the marble, trying to escape her. You feel small under her piercing gaze. She is close enough that you can see her pupils are blown wide in lust. You know how this is going to end, and it becoming harder to deny her the closer she gets.

“Or is it my attention that you wanted?”

“You’re so full of yourself,”

“I’m right, aren’t I?” You feel her breath fan over your face as she speaks. She smirks when you don’t respond. Her lips brush over yours, and as you tilt your head, she pulls her head back slightly, making sure that your lips don’t touch. “That’s why you dressed like a whore.”

And her calling you that shouldn’t make you wet, but you can feel your arousal pool in your underwear. It makes your mind foggy, and all you can think about is her lips on yours.

You connect your lips with hers, roughly kissing her. She grabs onto your hips tight enough that she will leave bruises. Your hands wrap around her, tugging at the hair on the nape of her neck. You suck her bottom lip into your mouth, biting hard enough to taste copper.

“You fucking bitch,” Ellie pulls back. You can see blood pooling on her lip, and you grab her shirt to drag her mouth onto yours again. You lick over the cut, soothing the ache, and she moans into your mouth, giving you access to deepen the kiss. Her hand moves up to grab your tit, palming the flesh through your top. Her other hand reaches down to push up your skirt, leaving it bunched up around your waist.

“Fucking hell,” She whispers when she sees your lace panties, “You really are a slut,”

Her hand tugs on the fabric, pulling it tight against your clit, and you moan at the pressure you are finally receiving. Her hand drags your top down, making your boobs spill over the edge. She rolls your nipple between her fingers, pinching hard.

Ellie starts trailing kisses down your neck, biting the flesh and leaving behind a mark. You moan at the pain, the sting making your cunt throb.

Her hand slips under the lace of your panties, moaning at how wet you are. Her fingers graze your clit, brushing past it to dip the tip of her finger into your hole.

She pushes two fingers into you quickly, but you are wet enough that they slip in easily. Her thumb grazes over your clit, making your head spin. You are already close to the edge. It has been a while since you have felt someone else’s fingers on you.

She curls her fingers inside of you, reaching the spot that makes you see stars. The coil is tightening in the stomach so close to snapping.

She circles your clit faster, her fingers pumping in and out of you. And that’s what makes the cool snap. You moan loudly, your legs buckling beneath you, Ellie’s grip the only thing keeping you standing.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” She kisses your lips, slow and softly this time. Her hand cups your jaw, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear.

She lifts you up and onto the counter, before Ellie drops to her knees before you, her hands passing over your side as she kneels. She pulls your panties down, leaving them to rest on top of your thighs.

She lifts one of your legs onto her shoulder, trailing kisses down your thigh, sucking marks into the fat. Her hands push your thighs further apart before she kisses directly over your clit. You are still sensitive from your last orgasm, and you jolt backwards in pleasure. She licks a strip along your folds, swirling her tongue around the throbbing bud.

It’s almost too much, your legs close around her head, trying to push her away. But Ellie pins your legs open, and you cannot fight against her strength. She sucks your clit into her mouth, and the pleasure is blinding. You grab onto her hair, pushing her harder, making her moan into your cunt. The vibrations cause you to cum, and you can feel your juices flowing down her thighs and dripping down her chin.

Ellie stands back up, licking her lips and wiping her chin with the back of her hand. You sit for a second longer, catching your breath before it all comes back to you. The pain Ellie has caused you over these last weeks. The girl that’s probably still sitting on that sofa, waiting for Ellie to get back to her.

“I should go,” You pull up your underwear and readjusted your skirt. “You should go back to your girlfriend,”

“She’s not my girlfriend,”

“You should tell her that,”

[ladykailitha]

Icarus Part 21

Hey guys!! The story is starting ramp up to the finish line! I hope you guys are still enjoying it as much I enjoyed writing it.

In this we have Steve taking back his agency, Eddie and Jeff having a little chat and Abbadon leaning on his friends.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20

~

As soon as Abbadon grabbed the mic, the audience knew they were going to be in for a ride.

“Las Vegas!” he roared to the crowd, who roared back. “There seems to be some confusion about how naughty I got with Eddie Munson in Denver.”

The crowd went wild, screaming and jumping up and down.

“I never do anything without prior consent,” he grinned. “I’m a gentleman, until you tell me you want it otherwise.” He winked and the crowd screamed back. “I’m not saying I’m coming for Asmodeus’s job,” Abbadon said, draping himself over his guitarist’s shoulders, “but I’m no innocent. I don’t need protection.” He walked across the stage to Astraeus. “I’ve always been affectionate. But I think it’s time to be put the rumors to bed.”

“Oooooohhhhhh!” Asmodeus and Astraeus shouted and got the crowd to say it with them. Once they were loud enough, Azrael started rapidly tapping his drums to further build up tension.

Just when Abbadon was sure the tension couldn’t stretch much further he said, “I’m not a slut. I’m the slut!” The throng of people roared back. “And I’m not going to hide who I am to make myself palpable to people I’ve never met or no longer have any connection to me. I am Abbadon! I AM THE FALLEN!”

Waiting in the wings was Jeff and Eddie. They had gathered to watch Steve do this in person instead of watching it live in the green room.

Jeff cocked his head to the side and clicked his tongue. “Whatever else you think of Abbadon and the rest of the band, you have to admit the man has charisma.”

Eddie pressed his lips together and nodded. He was proud of Steve. Of course he was, but it did sting a little that it took Shane to get him to talk about it. Not him, Not Robin. Hell, not even Simon, whom Eddie thought was unhealthily close to Steve. Shane. Of all the band members, Shane had the least in common with Steve. Spence had the EMT thing, Simon, the upper class upbringing. Other than them liking metal, they couldn’t be further apart then if God planned it that way.

Shane came from a middle class liberal family with an older sister he was close with. Hell, he even still talked to his parents while Steve definitely did not. He was a giant nerd who loved history and myths. Steve struggled in school and only made it out alive because he was on three sports teams and captains of two of them. Shane even slept around to Steve’s search for ‘the one.’ Which Eddie really, really hoped was him.

But maybe that was it. Maybe the reason Shane could get through to Steve was because they didn’t have much in common. Maybe their connection were their differences. That they were friends in spite of the gap between them.

Eddie almost wanted to get Steve into therapy like Gareth was. Because even though it always seemed to him that Gareth was one drink away from destruction these days, the therapy did appear to be working.

Steve could really use something like that.

They watched the set a little bit longer.

“Are you sure you’re okay with Abbadon flirting with Gareth?” Jeff asked.

Eddie blinked for a moment wondering where the comment was coming from. Because, sure, Gareth had talked non-stop about Abbadon being his favorite member, even going as far as to tattoo Abbadon’s mask on his left bicep. But Gareth didn’t seem interested in Abbadon as a person.

And it wasn’t like Steve was really interested in him that way before or after becoming a rockstar.

“Gareth and Abbadon both say it’s fine,” he murmured after a moment or two. “And I trust Abbadon.”

Jeff hummed thoughtfully. “Yeah okay. So this time it’s not going to be the duet?”

“No, I don’t want a repeat of last time. Abbadon is going to be taking the lead vocals on ‘Might as Well Fly’, I think he’ll lend a haunting quality to it.”

Jeff pursed his lips. Steve definitely had the pipes for it, but it wasn’t the song out of their discography that he would have chosen for Abbadon to shred.

Eddie huffed beside him and crossed his arms in front of him. “Let me guess, you have other ideas?”

“Can Abbadon play guitar?” Jeff asked rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Eddie shrugged. “I mean, I guess. He’s like able to play piano, violin, and guitar. Can he play the song you’re thinking of is the real question.”

Jeff turned to him with a grin. “Oh, if I know our friend as well as I think I do, he knows it.”

Eddie frowned at him and cocked his head to the side. “Which one?”

Jeff told him and Eddie rubbed his lips, skeptical. It was a good song. Harder than ‘Might as Well Fly’ and faster too. It had an extra guitar to it because it originally featured a famous guitarist. But it was also the lead guitar on that song.

“Do you really think he can do it?” he asked, licking his upper lip slowly.

Jeff scoffed, “Why? Do you think he can’t?” Eddie just shrugged. “Because holy hell, dude, I was talking to Asmodeus and he was telling me they formed their band over their love of our music. I’m betting if you asked Abbadon he could list his favorite albums alphabetically, chronologically, or which one is best musically. Even before you guys got together, before their band, before we even got a record deal, he’s been your number one fan. And he’s got the chops for it. You know he does.”

Eddie looked around to make sure no one had heard Jeff’s impassioned speech. He ducked his head. “Have Abbadon meet us before we go on to discuss the change while they setup our equipment.”

Jeff grinned and licked his lips. “You won’t regret this. And neither will they.” He jutted his chin out at the roaring crowd.

And yeah, Eddie knew he was being ridiculous about the song. He was trying to play this safe, but Steve didn’t need safe right now. He needed to take back his agency and Eddie knew that this song? It was fucking perfect for Steve. They would be able to feed off the roar of the crowd and give Steve a chance to really show them how good he is.

~

Steve loved the idea of the change in song. Don’t get him wrong, he loved ‘Might as Well Fly’. It just wasn’t the vibe he was trying to send today. Steve already was flying. Now he was raging at the people who were trying to clip his wings. And fuck them.

It meant that he couldn’t start on Gareth’s lap, but that was okay. This was going to be better. A hell of a lot better.

He pulled on his Corroded Coffin logo lined coat and swapped his mask for the lighter everyday one. He was going to need the extra movement for these vocals. He started in the middle again, this time in front of Corroded Coffin instead of between them.

“Hey, Las Vegas!” Eddie cried. “You bitches ready to rock?”

The crowd screamed back and Eddie laughed. “We’ve got a treat for you tonight!” The crowd screamed even louder. “We don’t usually play ‘Nightmare Killer’ because we don’t have that third guitarist.”

The audience went wild, screaming and whistling and stomping their feet in excitement.

“We asked Asmodeus,” Eddie continued. “But he’s too cool for us!” The crowd made teasing booing noises and oohhed. “But that’s okay, we found someone else willing to play.”

The room fell to a hush as Abbadon’s spotlight came on. There was some uneasy wrestling from the audience as he stood with his ear mic and white guitar. Something that eagle-eyed fans would know about Eddie and Jeff was that they didn’t own a white guitar. And all The Fallen fans knew that all of Asmodeus’s guitars were red and vaguely devil themed. This wasn’t his either. This was clearly Abbadon’s.

Abbadon began the opening riff and the crowd took a massive intake of breath as he sailed perfectly through the chunky bits of the original artist’s style. Then he began to sing, the haunting quality of his voice filling in the gaps of the silence that seemed to stretch on from the audience.

Eddie didn’t even bother trying to hold back the look of admiration on his face as he joined Abbadon for the chorus. Their vocals mixing beautifully to the backdrop of a hell beast looking for more from life than the violence it was weaned on.

Throughout the song the only sounds from the crowd were clapping in time to the beat. Eddie had never seen anything like at their concerts before. It was like there was this reverence for what was happening on stage.

Abbadon ate it up and played it up as he enticed the members of Corroded Coffin to him. Each of the members resisted. Then Abbadon handed his guitar off to a roadie and climbed the stairs to the platform that Gareth was on. He straddled Gareth’s lap and drumming cut out as his bandmates played on. From behind it looked like they were kissing, but with Abbadon’s mic off they were making fun of each other. Then suddenly he whirled on Gareth’s lap and hit the drums right on the last note with a crash.

Then in an instant the crowd thundered to life, cheering and stomping and clapping.

Abbadon blew Gareth a kiss and leapt off the platform to take his bows. The flutter of the coat revealing the Corroded Coffin logo again and the crowd screamed even louder. He blew kisses to the crowd and continued to bow. Eddie whistled loudly and Abbadon laughed.

Eddie grabbed the microphone. “Abbadon everyone! One very talented son of bitch! Another round of applause everyone!”

The crowd continued to go wild. Abbadon let out a whoop and jumped up and down, laughing. It was exhilarating, everyone just feeding the energy back to Abbadon and just feeling high off that. Eddie and Jeff shared a glance and Jeff winked. Eddie shook his head. Because yeah, Jeff won that bet.

Abbadon waved goodbye and walked off the stage. Once he was out of view of the audience Hopper swooped in and immediately threw a cool, damp towel over his head and Steve nearly sank to his knees in relief. Because try as they might, the hoods were still fucking hot. Hopper lead him to the dressing room where the rests of The Fallen were waiting.

As soon as the door closed tightly behind Abbadon, Steve pushed back the hood and ripped off the mask. His hair was wet and sweat clung to his face and neck. He let himself sink slowly into the soft cushions of the sofa and laid his head back.

A bottled water was being pushed into his hand and an ice pack was placed on his brow. He let out a small shuddering breath. He opened the water and dumped half of it on his face and the rest into his mouth.

“Thanks, guys,” Steve muttered, his eyes fluttering shut. “How did I look out there?”

Simon huffed a little a laugh. “Like fucking rock god.”

“I’m with Simon,” Spence said. “It won’t silence the naysayers but it’ll drown them out which is even better.”

Steve laughed. “Fuck that was so much fun. Gareth called me a queen. So I called him a bitch. I honestly don’t know if he likes Abbadon more now, or less!”

“Considering how little time you had to prepare,” Shane said, sprawled over an armchair instead of on the floor for a change, “I say you kicked ass. You’re going to get people saying you weren’t really playing but, they can suck your dick!”

Steve lifted his head, the ice pack sliding into his hand. “I hate doing this without you guys, though,” he admitted. “But as Shane pointed out, I’m already super affectionate with you already and short of French kissing Simon, they aren’t going to believe shit.”

“Nothing against you, Steve,” Simon said with a wince, “but I really don’t want your tongue down my throat.”

Shane raised his hand. “I volunteer! I volunteer!”

They all laughed. Then Robin as Celeste slipped in and sat next to Steve. She grabbed the ice pack and pressed it to the back of her neck. They all waited as she let her defenses slowly come down. She pulled off the wig and tossed it Spence who caught it deftly.

“Vickie has been working tirelessly tonight to keep an eye on social media,” Robin began, “she even has two of her assistants watching all the accounts, constantly refreshing.”

Steve turned on the couch to face her. “And what are they saying?”

Simon and Spence immediately moved over to her to sit on either side of her and Steve. Shane sprawled over the back like some Renaissance painting. He rustled her hair and she huffed out a laugh.

“You’re getting the trolls from both fans shit talking about how Abbadon is better than Corroded Coffin and should have turned them down like Asmodeus,” she continued, pausing only for Simon’s huff of laughter. “The Corroded Coffin fans were whining about how Abbadon’s vocals ruined the song and that he probably faking the guitar playing for the views.”

“I’d like to see them fake that bridge,” Steve scoffed. “It’s insane.”

Simon nodded. “I don’t think I could do it.” He snapped his fingers. “That’s what I’ll do. I’ll post a Tiktok of me trying to play it.”

“Wait!” Spence said. “Have Steve do it first, showing a close up of the hands dancing on the frets. Then you stitch it with your version. That should kick them in the ass.”

Steve and Simon fist bumped each other. “Hell yeah!”

“But the rest of the tweets and shit coming in is overwhelmingly positive,” Robin finished. “So that Tiktok should silence the Corroded Coffin fans.”

When Simon did his stitch of Steve’s video he made sure to admonish their fans about thinking who’s better than who. He was friends with the boys in CC and the being ‘too cool’ was a fucking joke.

Then Eddie did a stitch of both of their videos and showed them again how complicated the riff was for Abbadon to play by playing it himself. Abbadon and Asmodeus’s videos racked up a lot of views and shares, but Eddie’s really did the numbers. It blew up and completely overshadowed all the haters.

Steve made sure to thank Eddie for that later in the privacy of Eddie’s hotel room.

`

Tag List: CLOSED

1- @mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog

2- @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @val-from-lawrence

3- @goodolefashionedloverboi @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog @irregular-child @blondie1006

4- @yikes-a-bee @bookworm0690 @anne-bennett-cosplayer @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten

5- @genderless-spoon @y4r3luv @dragonmama76 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thedragonsaunt

6- @disrespectedgoatman @eyehartart @dawners @thespaceantwhowrites @tinyplanet95

7- @iamthehybrid @croatoan-like-its-hot @papergrenade @cryptid-system @counting-dollars-counting-stars

8- @ravenfrog @w1ll0wtr33 @child-of-cthulhu @kultiras @dreamercec

9- @machete-inventory-manager @useless-nb-bisexual @stripey82 @dotdot-wierdlife @kal-ology

10- @sadisticaltarts @urkadop @chameleonhair @clockworkballerina @garden-of-gay

[benkyoutobentou]

Beginner Manga Recommendations for Japanese Learners

It's time, you've done your due diligence in studying. Now it's time to jump into native material. But where to start? Here are a few manga series that I've read that I think would be a reasonable place for a Japanese learner to start their immersion journey.

Disclaimer: I haven't read every series, and the manga that's interesting to me might not be interesting to you. We also all encounter different words as we go along our language learning journeys. A series that I find relatively easy might have you looking up every other word. The trick is to not get discouraged and just keep on pushing through! As with everything, it gets easier the more you practice.

消えた初恋 - アルコ＆ひねくれ渡: This BL series follows a group of four friends and their experiences with love in high school (it also has a drama adaptation that I highly recommend! Available to watch for free on Viki). This series is so silly and just a fun time. The art has great visual gags and it's definitely a series where you can sit down and not even realize that suddenly you've gone through an entire volume and why didn't you buy more of this series to start with? It has furigana on everything, but the characters do speak pretty casually, so there's some slang and less standard language. This series is completed with nine volumes.

佐々木と宮野 - 春園ショウ: This is another sweet BL about Miyano, a high school first year, who catches the eye of an upperclassman, Sasaki. After asking to borrow Miyano's book, the two bond over a shared enjoyment of BL manga. The vocabulary is pretty simple in this one as well, but it does use quite a bit of otaku slang, which can be difficult if you've never encountered it before. It has furigana on everything, though! This series is ongoing with nine volumes and also has a spin off series titled 平野と鍵浦 which is also ongoing with four volumes.

月刊少女野崎くん - 椿いづみ: The first manga I ever read in Japanese! This series follows a high schooler, Sakura, as she confesses to her crush and classmate, Nozaki. However, Nozaki thinks that Sakura is just a fan of his shoujo manga series, and recruits her to be his assistant. This series is so enjoyably silly with a wonderful cast of characters that absolutely steal the show. There's a bit of vocabulary specific to the process of making manga, but it isn't too overwhelming. There's also plenty of casual speech and some great moments that can't quite come out in translation (bonus fact: I actually wrote a paper on this series and how humor is translated in one of my university linguistics class). It also has furigana on everything. It's ongoing with fifteen volumes.

加瀬さんシリーズ - 高嶋ひろみ: This adorable little GL series follows two high school aged girls, popular and athletic Kase and the shy gardener Yamada, as their relationship develops over their high school years. The vocabulary in this one is relatively simple with the exception of some more specific words, but those tend to pop up time and time again. This one doesn't have furigana but I think it's a great introduction to readying manga without furigana! This series is completed with five volumes, but there's an ongoing sequel series called　山田と加瀬さん that currently has three volumes released.

ささやくように恋を唄う - 竹嶋えく: This is a music based GL series about a high school first year, Kino, who tells an upperclassman, Nagi, that she loves her music. Nagi, however, misunderstands this as Kino confessing her love for her. The story follows both the relationship between Kino and Nagi as well as the trials and tribulations of Nagi's band. This is another one without furigana, but the vocabulary tends to be simple enough that I think it's still pretty accessible. It's ongoing with eight current volumes.

かけた月とドーナッツ - 雨水汐: Our last GL, this follows two coworkers, Uno and Satou, and their blossoming relationship in a society that pushes conformity and marriage on women. I really loved the way this series depicted coming into one's sexuality as an adult. Another one without furigana, but simple vocabulary regardless. A possible difficulty with this one might be the office vocabulary, though. This series is completed with four volumes.

[abiiors]

chocolate // ross macdonald x reader

valentine's week - day 2: love potion

a/n: this is about abiior ross specifically hehe (short hair, shot beard etc) cw: use of aphrodisiacs against their knowledge (lets suspend our belief there), masturbation (f), implied voyeurism, unprotected sex oops (they're too horny to think it through) wc: 4k

sweet taste of chocolate dissolves on your tongue as elena continues to recount her latest holiday to belgium. she has that “just back from holiday” tan on her and you laugh along to her stories, popping another square of chocolate in your mouth while sorting through the pile of gifts she’s brought for everyone. 

a heap of chocolate wrappers sits between the two of you and you’re certain you have enough sugar in you to feed a small village—still, the sweetness lingers on your tongue and makes you sigh wistfully every time you think about it. 

“i’m seeing ross later,” you slip in quietly when she takes a breath between her rambling and elena’s eyes go round. 

“seeing him seeing him? you finally asked him out?”

your head hangs in shame at the question and you can’t help the wince that leaves you. elena tsks. “oh babe, come on! he’s such a sweet guy and he clearly likes you back.”

“you don’t know that!”

several seconds pass and elena arches a perfectly shaped eyebrow. she’s right, you know she’s right. you’ve had this silly, desparate crush for six months now and you should have done the mature adult thing of asking him out. but your heart races every time he’s near and every single word in your head disappears along with all sane and rational thoughts. 

“well,” you shrug, “can i take some chocolate for him? he’s got a sweet tooth.”

elena smirks and flicks your hand away before you can reach for one. 

“only if you promise to ask him out. a coffee date. that’s as casual as it gets!”

you blanch at her but she stands her ground forcing you to at least mull it over in your head. 

once again, she is right. you can ask him out for a coffee and pretend it’s just a friendly little thing if the vibes seem purely platonic. you’ll figure it out. you know you will. 

scrunching your eyes shut, you give in. “fine… fine, i’ll do it.”

elena squeals, pulling you into a tight hug. you giggle at her excitement but let the butterflies take flight in your stomach. once she lets go, she points behind her. 

“the fridge has a better selection. go take as many as you want.”

you’re out of the chair and halfway to the kitchen before she’s even done speaking, big goofy grin on your face at the thought of meeting him later and teasing him when he inhales the chocolates faster than humanly possible. 

the fridge is messy as usual—half empty bottles of milk, some past their expiry date, opened bags of cheese and old chinese takeout. you ignore all of it and dig your way to the back to find the rest of them (in elena’s little hidden space in the fridge to keep it away from her boyfriend). 

most of them are the usual ones and you take a few to put it in your bag. a new one catches your eye—it’s just a simple black square with a golden heart embossed on the cover, not one you’ve tried yet and it instantly piques your interest so you take two of them and put the bag back in its place. 

then you close the fridge and make your way back to the living room.

the backstage at the band’s practice show is chaos incarnate. everyone’s in a rush to set up things in their proper place. the props are strewn on the stage, waiting for their permanent place, the instruments are neatly arranged in a corner and ross is leaning against the wall, cigarette in one hand, phone in the other. his thumb scrolls on his screen. a second later, he snorts, types something on his phone and you feel yours buzzing in your pocket with an incoming text. 

it makes your silly heart skip a beat. 

his head snaps up when you clear your throat. a warm smile spreads across his face, and he quickly stubs out his cigarette, tossing it into a nearby bin. 

“didn't expect to see you here so bright and early," he says, pushing off the wall to approach you. at his full height, ross is nearly a head taller. on top of that, he’s been working out and staying fit, his beard’s sparser than it was before, his hair neatly cut and gelled back perfectly. 

ross looks devastatingly handsome, a proper rockstar. you look like… you. 

“wanted to see you–uh, see what you were getting up to,” you hope the breathlessness stays out of your voice, you hope he hasn’t noticed you blatantly checking him out. 

all that goes flying out the window the moment he gathers you into a hug. his body is warm and solid, his t-shirt soft and familiar. the scent of his aftershave surrounds you thoroughly, invades all your senses until you just debate throwing all caution to the wind and jumping him right here. 

the hug lasts longer than you would have expected. 

when he pulls back there’s a faint flush on his cheeks (probably the heating, you rationalise) and a wide grin on his face. 

“are you excited?”

“to watch you play? always!”

you cringe at how eager it sounds, how desperate. fortunately, ross giggles and offers you his arm. 

“come on, let me give you a tour.”

twenty minutes later, you’re back where you started, arm in arm and excited about the concept of the new show, about their new setlist and the live debuts of some new tracks. ross is already beaming with excitement and his eyes crinkle in they way they do only when he’s genuinely happy. it’s infectious. more often than not you find yourself staring at him and giving him a loopy smile. 

utterly fucking love-sick. 

“jamie’s gone all out too,” he continues. “there’s a whole dressing arena for us even though this isn’t a real show. we wanted to try out a couple styles i guess.”

“oh, you’re a fashion icon now?” you tease and he rolls his eyes fondly. 

“let me show you what patti’s got for us,” he offers and once again, you take his arm and follow him to some corner of the arena.

the dressing room is pretty much what you’d expected—a room full of mirrors and closet doors. there’s a sofa in the corner and bottles of water on the table. clothes are scattered across chairs and hanging on racks, each outfit carefully selected for the show, each outfit a statement aesthetic for every member on stage. 

and that’s pretty much it.

you plop onto the sofa. moments later ross does the same, slinging an arm around your shoulder that’s almost-a-cuddle-but-not-really. you desperately pray he can’t hear your hammering heart that’s almost in your throat now. he’s so cool and casual, so comfortable in the silence. you on the other hand, desperately feel the need to fill it. 

“elena’s back from her holiday. stole some chocolates from her stache for you.” 

his playful grin returns and ross straightens eagerly. “you really are a sweetheart.”

the word does funny things to your insides, almost like there’s an entire flock of birds going haywire in there until his hands comes to rest on your knee and every thought in your head goes quiet. 

“go on then, show us what you got.” 

one by one you pull them out—bonbons and candy and silly little heart-shaped sweets that were everywhere in preparation for valentine’s day. his face lights up like a kid at christmas, he unravels the nearest sweet, moaning at its sweetness dissolving on his tongue just like you had. 

you stare at him unabashedly. 

“i got this too,” you pull out the two black squares, handing him one. “dunno what they are but they looked fancy enough. i haven’t tried them yet though.”

together, you unwrap them and look at the dark square inside. they look nothing special, they smell like regular dark chocolate too. perhaps they’re a little richer than the ones before, slightly better but he shrugs and moves on to the next bonbon. 

you do the same.

if the arena was chaotic before, it’s damn near cocophonous now. somewhere, someone’s yelling for all the instruments to be moved. jamie and matty are in a heated discussion with a few other creative consultants. adam has his headphones in and he’s plucking something on the guitar. george is nowhere to be seen and ross is on stage making sure his bass is tuned just the way he wants it. 

you take the moment to stare at him while he’s busy. a stubborn strand of hair escapes onto his forehead, falling into his eyes while he focuses on the bass in his hands. his mouth is parted in concentration, eyebrows scrunched together with an adorable little crease in between. 

a quick thought flashes in your brain—what would it be like to walk up to him and straddle him right now? to set his bass aside and demand his attention in a way you’ve never even imagined before. to kiss away his frown until everyone and everything in the room fades away into the background. 

the butterflies in your stomach come back with a vengeance. ross shifts in his seat. 

“will you settle a debate for us, love?” matty’s voice startles you enough that you almost stumble back but he’s already passionately begun explaining the dilemma. 

you try to focus on him, you really do. usually, it’s fun to give your input on things, fun to listen to his everchanging and eccentric ideas as he tries to explain his vision in a cohesive way. but your attention can’t stop drifting to the man on stage. 

your eyes can’t seem to move away from his fingers as they pick string after string. 

heat simmers under your skin at the sight of them. interestingly enough, ross fidgets with the collar of his t-shirt and wipes a few beads of sweat off his forehead. 

“are you… listening?” matty snaps his fingers, his face contorted in a puzzled look while jamie looks on impatiently. 

“sorry, i—”

before you have the chance to finish again, they’re back at each other’s throats, bickering like an old married couple. you don’t even notice when they walk away and their voices peter out. you keep your eyes trained on ross and the hollow of his throat and his hands. subconsciously, you clench your thighs together.

what the fuck is wrong with you.

this isn’t the time or place to be horny. and yet the more strings he plucks, they more it reverberates through your entire body and makes your head spin with lust and heat. this is getting out of control and you cannot fucking figure out the reason behind it. 

hurriedly, you make your way back to the dressing room. it’s deserted by now—everyone including the band and the crew are by the stage. it’s your luck that the room isn’t locked, that not a single person seems to be in this part of the arena. 

you chest heaves as you slam the door shut, beelining to the sofa in a fucking daze. the chocolate wrappers from before sit innocently in the bin in the corner. you struggle with a bottle of water, gulping in down in hopes that it would cool you just a little. some of it spills down your top, the cotton sticks to your skin and the feel of it against your nipples feels overwhelming. electric, if you are being honest. 

curses spil from your lips as you throw yourself on the sofa, on the left side of it, where ross had sat before. your mind conjures up the scent of his aftershave again, the feel of his hand on your knee, and you imagine it trailing up—fingers testing and taunting until they’re at the waistband of your jeans. until they’re dipping inside your underwear and swiping through your slick folds. 

your breath catches and your hand drifts to the crotch of your jeans. 

maybe if you could just take the edge off a bit. maybe if you could just do this and then never think of it again and then go back to to your day and never look ross in the eye ever again. your cunt pulses in rhythm with your heartbeat, which is already racing faster than it should be.

you’d be lying if you said you didn’t think of him then. his body hovering on top of yours, pressing down on top of you until he sinks into you so deep that you feel him in your gut. you think of his lips, fucking perfect and so out of your leage. you think of the calloused pad of his fingers tracing your lip, your cupid’s bow. 

against your better judgment, you sink further into the sofa, running your hands on your breasts, stomach, the insides of your thighs, all the while imagining how ross’ calloused fingers felt on your back and waist the countless times you'd hugged before. how they would feel in other places.

it’s fucking depraved but the thrill of it feels so sinfully good that you can’t stop your fingers from tracing circles over your clit—languid and loose.

your fingers feels too small, too soft. this isn’t what your body wants. it desperately craves him but he’s busy doing his actual job. your ears ring with the bloodrush and every touch against your skin feels like a zap of electricity passing through you. 

one hand buried deep between your legs and the other kneading and massaging your nipples, you are on cloud nine. once or twice, you bite your lip to keep the moans down but what’s the point? the solid concrete walls would keep all the sounds inside anyway. 

your pants fill the room, sweat gathers on your forehead and you feel it drawing closer, some semblance of a release at least. through the haze you see ross standing by the door, still as a statue, his mouth slightly open.

“ross…” you moan softly, willing this hallucination to come closer, to replace your hands with his, and finish what you started, but he doesn’t move.

a second passed by and then another, and then as if you’ve been doused with cold water, your entire body goes numb and cold.

he’s here. he’s not a hallucination or a figment of your lust-filled imagination, he is really. fucking. here.

you go cold and then hot again, sure that your entire face—hell, your entire body—has gone beetroot red. helplessly, you scramble to get your hands away from you, as if that would salvage anything at this point. as if that would wipe his memory of the last five minutes. 

how did he even get here without you hearing so much as a creak? and you’d just moaned his name for fuck’s sake. the blood drains from your face, your heart stutters—this time for all the wrong reasons. 

‘ross…’ your voice sounds all high-pitched and thin. all wrong and panicked.

ross only stalks toward you, deliberately slow and graceful, and stops a few inches away from the sofa. too far, the pervy part of your brain chimes in, he’s still standing a bit too far away. his eyes look dark and stormy, his face utterly fucking calm.

you try to suppress the tremor in your limbs, try to look anywhere but at him. (ideally, you try to look for something sharp to stab yourself with) and it’s then that your body betrays your entirely. slowly, as if against your will, your eyes slide down his body and linger on the bulge in his trousers. hard and prominent and fucking big enough to make you salivate despite the current situation.

“what are you doing here?” the words comes out as a weak whisper. 

“watching you.”

his voice sounds deep and husky, with a dangerous edge to it. his eyes roam all over your body, or whatever’s visible of it—over your stomach and a sliver of underboob—and heat, more intense than you felt just minutes before, floods your entire body. 

and yet, you still can’t look him in the eye. 

“you are fucking stunning,” he breathes.

the words make your brain short-circuit. hastily, you try to cover your face, wishing for the earth to swallow you whole and spit you out into some parallel universe where ross just doesn’t exist anymore. 

“oh, baby,” he tuts, moving closer until you’re face-to-face, and even now it isn’t enough. inspite of your humiliation, you want him closer, on top of you, and under your skin, and inside you, pounding into you until you are dumb and drooling.

he hooks a finger under your chin, tilting it up so that you have no choice but to look him in the eye. your mouth goes dry at the sight of them. his pupils are dilated to the point where his hazel eyes are almost completely black.

“don’t–don’t hide from me… you have no idea how long, i…” the rest of it dies on his lips when you whimper. your body feels liquid, blood flowing through your veins like molten lava, searing every inch of skin that’s begging for his touch. 

“so touch me then,” the voice that comes out of you is pathetic, needy, but you can’t care less right now. if you had to stay in this state of limbo anymore the flimsy little thread holding the last of your sanity together would snap.

agonisingly slow, he pulls his t-shirt over his head. his chest gleams with sweat, tattoos starkly visible against his pale skin and you want to trace each and every one of them with your tongue, memorise all the grooves of his body with your fingers, fill up his scent into your lungs until it’s all you can smell. 

just in his trousers now, he settles over you, knee pressed between your wide-open legs, brushing against your clothed clit. you hiss at the barest of touches. ross looking down at you is the hottest thing you’ve ever seen, enough that you moan his name again. and again when he kisses you, softly at first and then harder, urgent and feverish. 

his hands toy with the hem of your top and you nod fervently, eager to be rid of it. his tongue traces every inch of your mouth. 

“just how i imagined you would taste,” he breathes in between kisses, and the words spear through the haze in your brain, burrowing themselves deep in there.

“you thought about how i’d taste?” 

tenderly, he kisses your jaw, peppers a few more kisses on your cheek. “every moment of these last few months.”

you say something unintelligible, dumbstruck by how fucking sweet he sounds in the middle of everything. his hand trails up and down your spine, raising goosebumps in their wake, while his mouth continues to kiss your jaw, your neck, your cleavage. all you can do is tangle your fingers in his hair, pulling him as close as you possibly can. unable to take it any longer, you fumble with the buckle of his belt, undoing the button and unzipping his trousers till you can palm him through his boxers. in spite of them still covering him, you moan at how big he feels, how deliciously thick and hard.

something in him snaps at the sound. it’s as if he’d been holding back until now, but now he grabs the hem of your top and slips it clean off you. his discarded trousers join the small heap on the floor and he takes one of your nipples in his mouth while pinching the other between his fingers.

“i need you inside me. please ross…”

“ride me,” he says instantly and you nod, flipping until he’s on the sofa and you’re on his lap, fumbling to get out of your jeans and underwear while he pulls his boxers down. 

with one hand around your waist, ross lifts you up until his tip’s grazing your cunt. “go on darling, you can take me,” his voice trembles with barely controlled restraint. and you might as well be his puppet because you obey instantly, sinking onto him until he’s deep inside you, until you feel the delicious stretch and burn.

your gasp makes him groan. 

his fingers grip your face gently, moving it to make you look at the giant mirrors next to you, at your bodies locked together. 

“look at you…” he moans and thrusts up into you. you mewl at the suddenness of it, but it’s impossible to look away from the image in the mirror. you bouncing on his cock, rutting and moving your hips, shamelessly chasing ecstasy. his face slack with pleasure, his eyes roaming all over your body, taking in every inch of it while you take in every inch of him. 

his thrusts are slow in the beginning, punishing almost and you try to increase the pace, digging your nails into his shoulders, until he’s smiling smugly at all the desperately written so clearly all over your face. 

“faster,” you almost beg and he obliges instantly, going deeper and deeper with each thrust. his fingers work at your clit again; pinching and rubbing, until you can no longer look at the mirror, can’t look at anything as your eyes roll back into your head and stars wink on the insides of your lids. 

filthy words fill the room mixed with groans and moans from both of you. it almost feels like a trance—to feel him so deep inside you that your head buzzes, pleasure coild in your belly and you squirm and writhe, trying to feel more of him, greedy and insatiable. 

heat builds in your stomach, the feeling from before starts at the base of your spine again, travelling up until it’s spreading throughout your body, to your fingertips. from the way ross’ thrusts turn wild and erratic, you know he’s close too. 

“you feel so good, so–so fucking perfect,” you tell him, trying to get the words out in between moans and gasps. 

“oh baby,” he coos, “we are fucking perfect together, aren’t we.”

frantically, you nod, capturing his mouth in another feverish hot kiss. “yes, yes.”

because that’s what you’ve been dying to hear for months now, dying to know that he felt the same want and yearning you did. 

when the orgasm finally hits, you almost black out, eyes rolling to the back of your head. your loud moans fill the room, overshadowing any sounds he makes, but you’re too far gone to care. the sound undoes him within moments and ross thrusts hard into you, cumming with a loud groan. you feel the cum spilling in you and running down your thighs, sticky and wet. 

vaguely, you’re aware if slumping forward and pressing your face into his chest. ross strokes your hair softly until you can get your breathing back to normal. 

you giggle in his chest when the conversation with elena springs back into your mind. it feels so far away now, like it happened days ago instead of hours ago. 

“what?” ross asks, sounding a bit amused. 

“i was supposed to ask you out for coffee. elena dared me, in exchange for the chocolate.”

he giggles at your answer, pressing a quick kiss on your head, which instantly makes your heart melt. 

“those chocolates were… something.”

you snort. that’s one way to put it. finally, you pull away, looking at him properly for the first time. his face is flushed and coated in sweat but he looks… happy. more than you’ve seen him before. 

“so… coffee?” you bite your lip, irrationally shy now of all times. 

ross kisses you in response, sweet and slow, a proper chaste kiss as if you’re not sat on his lap, still naked and dripping with his cum. but you kiss him back equally slow, giggling like a teenager. 

“like you have to ask.”

lemme know what you think <33

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[simplydannie]

What if it wasn’t Floyd in the diamond but one of his other brothers. How do you think that would go?

Haii!!

Good question! These are kinda like short little summaries that kinda popped into my head:

John Dory

Now if JD were in the diamond, I suspect him and Velvet budding aheads a lot. If you look at it, he and Velvet share the same head strong personality…. Them needing to be perfect in what they’re doing and bossing their siblings around, really not thinking about the well being of their siblings at first.

Through out his time being captured I can see John Dory seeing a lot of himself in Velvet. Throughout his time being captured he begins to open his eyes and see how he was with his brothers at one point, and how he really just betrayed them.

John Dory would try to speak words of wisdom to Velvet on how she is being and treating her brother isn’t right. He’d try to be her voice of reason while Floyd was Veneers. There would be moments where she listens and it hits her, but it only last a moment as her desires would kick in and she’d use his essence.

While his brothers would still come over to rescue him, John would make attempts to escape multiple times and fail miserably at that. John would have gotten Velvet to almost let him go multiple times… of course he would fail.

After being rescued, John Dory would go back to Rageous to visit Velvet in attempt to help her change to be a better sister just as he became a better brother.

Branch

Originally, wasn’t it going to be Branch? This honestly would have been interesting. Now Branch would have kidnapped when one day after the wedding, he steps out alone. The memory of his brother had just come back. Wow now out of all the days and years they have been gone? He doesn’t know either. He hears a sound…. In a quick flash he is captured where he then finds himself in Mount Rageous.

That’s where he meets the twins and is their prisoner for two whole months as the events of Trolls Band Together unfold. During this time he is observant of his captors and finds himself feeling sympathy towards one Rageon in particular…. Veneer. He sees the way Velvet treats him and can’t help but see himself a lot in him. He knows what it’s like to be treated like the baby, like his opinions don’t matter, so day by day he begins to converse with the Rageon and make his way into Veneers heart.

Veneer actually lets Branch go! But unfortunately his brothers get captured as they fall into Velvets hands. Now Branch finds himself rescuing them, but has the help from a tall green, haired friend.

(I really like this concept! I might make it into a story!)

Bruce

This one would be heartbreaking as he is being taken from his family. The ones who go and inform John Dory of Bruce’s kidnapping are Bruce’s family. John Dory then would go to his brothers for help.

Being a father already, Bruce comes across fatherly to the twins. He tries to talk to them about the choices they are making and how it can affect them in the long run. Unlike most people around them, Bruce actually sees potential in the twins and tries to convince them that with practice they can do it! The twins remind him of two of his own children that bicker like they do: he sees Velvets head strong personality in one and Veneers willingness in another. The only one willing to practice with Bruce in this case is Veneer, who proves he can sing.

When the twins try to go through with their plan he tries to talk sense into them. Unfortunately it doesn’t work and they proceed to catch the rest of brozone. Now here’s the catch, upon the mics turning off, Bruce encourages Veneer to sing like he’s been practicing. A turn of events unfold that Veneer actually helps Brozone with the perfect family harmony that releases Bruce.

Clay

Clay would have gotten captured when he and some Trolls happened to venture into Rageous. The Rageons seemed friendly enough, so there was no need to be afraid of them… until they came across the twins. The twins would capture Clay as he saved the others from being captured.

Viva would have been part of this group. She attempted multiple times to release him and break the diamond. It isn’t until she is told by Clay that the only thing that can break it is the perfect family harmony. So Viva is the one to try and find Brozone to bring them into Rageous.

Being Clay, he is able to learn a lot about the twins and their past. He realizes how mislead they are and how they are being manipulated. Veneer even vents to him about things he’s felt and how he has a growing concern for his sister reach really sparks Clays interest. Being the reader and observant Troll that he is he sees how his essence is somehow altering the twins.

Clay is actually able to worn his brothers before they are all captured. He figures out a plan for them to sing the perfect family harmony that allow him to break free, but then discovered that the perfect family harmony not only broke the diamond, but broke whatever spell the twins were under. Of course being a Troll in the practice of law, Clay is able to get the twins to do community service rather than time in prison.

[maknaeswrld]

a life forgotten | l.mh, h.js

memories are both a treasure and a curse, and the bliss of them barely outweighs the pain that comes with bearing them

wc: 2.1k

genre: soulmate au; reincarnation au; fluff; angst; poly!minsung x reader

cw: marriage; cheating/allusions of cheating; mentions of pregnancy/parenthood; mentions of food/eating; I’m sure there’s other things, please let me know what you catch🫶 no happy ending for you; memories of past lives in italics

a/n: IN HONOR OF MINSUNG OUTTING THEMSELVES???????? respectfully I have no other explanation, enjoy!!!

Soulmates were an unpredictable thing. Everyone has them, but not everyone meets theirs.

Some actively avoid trying to find them, some do everything in their power to seek them out. You had always been in the boat of knowing it’ll happen when it happens, and if not in this life, then in the next. You had always been at peace with the knowledge that your soulmate was the one person you’re meant to find in every lifetime, so you didn’t see a point in searching for or avoiding them. 

Everyone grew up hearing the stories, that seeing your soulmate for the first time will feel like instant recognition, like deja vu, and slowly as you spend more time together and see each other more, your memories of your shared past lives slowly unravel. You could understand why some would be scared of that, of the knowledge of who you were in a completely different lifetime, but you liked to think it was natural, otherwise it wouldn’t happen. 

You always assumed you’d find your soulmate in a normal setting, meeting on the street or at one of your places of work, feeling the tingly feeling of familiarity and planning to meet up for a coffee, giving it the natural time to build to see if it was actually the soulmate bond or just mutual attraction. You found solace in inevitably becoming a statistic, in seeing your soulmate for the first time and them seeing you and everything happening the way everyone always told you it would. 

But as your best friend was telling you about her current favorite band, listing off members names and facts faster than you could think, swiping through pictures of them all, you felt your heart sink as your eyes met the digital ones of two frighteningly familiar faces, your mind buzzing with soft recognition.

You felt like you couldn’t breathe as you grabbed your friends phone to swipe back to the picture, your brain alighting with renewed interest at the second look of the boys on the screen.

Water surrounded you in every direction, the sounds of laughter coming from behind you. You felt relaxed and happy, your body swaying with the peaceful rocking of the boat.

You startled only slightly when arms wrapped around your waist, a chin propping on your shoulder and a kiss being pressed gently to your cheek. 

“Where is your beautiful mind right now, my love?” 

“Just lost at sea, I suppose.” You laughed, turning around in his arms, one of your hands coming up to cup his face, the other reaching behind him to the other man. “Just thinking about how happy I am.”

Jisung’s smile lit up his entire face, his eyes twinkling as he leaned in for a quick kiss. 

“Come back to the group, love. The boys are going to start their whining if you ignore them for too long.” Minho groaned, squeezing your hand lovingly.

“Just the boys?” You ask teasingly, raising a brow at your lovers, Jisung grinned sheepishly.

“You know how your boys can get.” He waved nonchalantly.

You excused yourself, apologizing for cutting the lunch date with your friends short, but you needed air. Stumbling down the street, you were thankful the place they picked was only a block from your apartment.

The cool spring breeze calms your nerves and clears your head enough so you could watch where you were walking. You stumbled through your door, kicking off your shoes as you made your way to your couch, sitting heavily, head in your hands as your leg bounced.

A path cleared between two groups of people, a beautiful altar covered in vines and wildflowers at the end of it. Everyone present was looking at you, but you couldn’t take your eyes off them.

Jisung had a lovesick smile on his face, Minho’s eyes were shiny with unshed tears. You felt weightless as you made your way to them, being the center of their attention making you feel like the most incredible person in the whole world.

Chan passed you off to them with a kiss to your cheek and a teasing threat towards your lovers, filling in for the father who disowned you for loving two men. They took one hand each, guiding you to stand in between them, all three of you giddy throughout the entire ceremony. 

The rings Hyunjin made for the three of you were intricately beautiful, you saw them for the first time only as they were placed on each finger. 

It was a fairly small and sweet affair, but you wouldn’t want to have had it any other way, everyone that mattered most to you and both of your husbands were present.

The night ran long as your love was celebrated, and ran even longer once you three finally got a moment for yourselves.

You felt numb, staring blankly at your floor while memories seemed to drown your mind. 

“Do you ever feel like there’s something missing?” You asked quietly into the darkness. The arms around you tightened as Minho sucked in a deep breath, you knew he was frowning.

“What do you mean, darling? We have everything we could possibly need or want right here in this home.”

You didn’t disagree. You were happily married to the love of your life, three beautiful children sleeping peacefully just down the hall. You were safe from the wars raging in distant lands, your husband was far from being called to join, but yet you felt as if there was a space that was yet to be filled.

Sighing, you propped your chin up on Minho’s chest, squinting to see his face through the darkness.

“I think you know what I mean. I cannot explain it, but you must feel it too.”

You knew you and Minho were soulmates, you had no doubt about that, the endless shared memories in different worlds proved it well enough, but it almost felt as though that bond didn’t fully seal, despite everything.

“I think you should be worrying more about getting proper sleep so our child you're growing stays healthy than to worry on about something neither of us can actually explain, my love.”

Your hands slid down to your stomach, rubbing it as if second nature. You tried to ignore the pang in your heart now, knowing that what was missing in that memory was your second soulmate.

You got up from your spot on the couch, realizing it was already dark, and stumbling your way to the kitchen to make yourself some dinner.

“You two are never allowed in this kitchen again. I’m serious. How do you burn water?” 

You and Jisung couldn’t stop giggling as you held each other, the both of you also confused as to how you’d managed that particular situation.

“Does that mean you’ll take care of us and cook for us every single day of the rest of our lives?” Jisung asked teasingly. 

“If I did, it would only be to save our house from burning down.” Minho grumbled.

“Awe! Min loves us, Sungie!” 

You and Jisung’s giggles started back up as you both took a side to sandwich your lover into a hug, heart fluttering when he didn’t reject it and instead wrapped his arms around you both to drag the two of you in tighter, nuzzling his face in the nook between you.

“Yes. I absolutely do.” Minho muttered into Jisungs shoulder.

You didn’t think soulmate bonds worked this fast. You were always under the impression that it took time for the memories to surface. You felt dizzy by the non-stop assault, heart swelling with love and breaking with loneliness at the same exact time.

The early morning light cast a gentle glow across the kitchen, the birds were chirping peacefully, and the welcome scent of fresh coffee was filling your house. But your morning was far from peaceful.

You had barely moved from your spot on the couch all night, refusing to lay in a bed that was half empty and unable to sleep while your husband was God knows where. 

Jisung had stormed out last night, leaving you sobbing and took nothing but his keys. You weren’t even certain he’d come back at all unless it was to get his things, and it was honestly your fault.

You had always despised cheaters, they were amongst the worst kind of people in your mind, but when you’d met Minho, he drew you in the exact same way Jisung had. You couldn’t fathom how it was possible, you and Jisung were soulmates, you had loved your husband more than anything in the world, but you somehow also shared all of that with Minho.

You never should have hid it, Jisung was a kind and understanding man, he would have been willing to at least hear you out before leaving you, but instead he found some of Minho’s belongings in your shared home. You tried to explain it to him, but he wasn’t in the mind to listen, just repeatedly asking for your secret lovers name and leaving the second you’d finally uttered it, ignoring your pleading for him to stay.

The wedding band on your left hand felt heavy as you twisted it subconsciously, as if trying to remind yourself that Jisung was still your soulmate and still legally bound to you, you hadn't lost him. At least not yet.

You leaned against the counter, trying desperately to keep yourself from breaking down again as you stared at the extra mug you had subconsciously poured for your husband.

“Can you poor another one of those, Y/n?” You whipped around at the sudden voice, fear and love filling you at the same time at the sight of both Jisung and Minho standing in the doorway, holding hands. “I think it’s gonna be a long morning.”

Grabbing your laptop, you settle into your bed, looking up your best friends favorite band and throwing yourself into compilations of your soulmates. The proof of them being soulmates was glaringly obvious, the subtle glances and touches, the soft looks, all the little things that scream they're in love, you truly couldn’t comprehend how people could look at it and assume it’s all perfectly platonic.

The more you watched, the more you fell into a pit of confusion. You didn’t miss the endless amounts of fans claiming to be any of the members soulmates, claiming they remember things, that if they could just be given a chance to meet up, the members would see. It was glaringly obvious that if you’d tried to reach out, you’d just be marked off as another fan seeking a way in to the bands inner circle. 

Memories continued to interfere with your research on your soulmates throughout the night, in between ‘Minsung’ edits and compilations of the whole band. You could see why your friend liked them so much. They were the type of band with a bond so tight it was obvious their loyalties lied with one another first and foremost. From what you knew of the K-pop industry, that wasn’t standard. 

The more you watched, the more you started to recognize all of them from your memories, not just your soulmates. Tears pricked your eyes at the thought, the fact that this group of souls seemed drawn to each other in every lifetime, and you were supposed to be one of them.

A quick search proved that they’ve talked about it before. Not much, mostly only in small subtle jokes, like one of them saying they all clicked so well from the beginning cause it just felt like they already knew each other. It was never actually said outright, but the evidence that they all knew they were a friendship that transcends lifetimes was obvious to anyone seeking it. 

You could feel your soul longing for its other parts, and you began to wonder if there were more of you out there. Soulmates of your other apparent friends who know exactly who their souls belong to, and know that in this lifetime they are essentially unattainable. Your heart aches at the thought that if that were the case, there are more people out there that are likely extremely important to you that you won’t get to meet in this lifetime.

That realization hits hard. The reality was you wouldn’t meet the loves of your life, you wouldn’t meet the friends you have endless memories with, and you’ll never remember the rest of those friends or get to learn their faces and the memories you hold with them in this lifetime. 

Because soulmates are an unpredictable thing. Everyone has them, but you wouldn’t get to meet yours.

a/n: I’m sorry?😅 I’m really not🤧

Part 2: a life remembered

[dbnightingale24]

React

A Stepcest love story about Jim

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Because why not? I have a million other stories to update, so why not add another one to the list? I've been working on this story for a while, but I've been anxious to upload it. I've decided to go back to my old ways (for this story only) and not give you guys a novel. We're gonna do this bit by bit. I have more than enough to post the full story, but I know a good amount of people haven't seen it. As always, thank you to @fuckingbye for an amazing moodboard! I think the world of you, and I can't wait to hug you again, and cry entirely too much over life. ANYWHO, let's get started, shall we?

P.S. The playlist is going to be the same for this entire story. K, lets go!

Word Count: 3,514

Warnings: Swearing, Family Drama, Stepdaughter/Step Father interest, Drinking, Drinking Relapse, MINORS DNI, Emotional Cheating...I think that's it for now?

Song(s) That Inspired This Chapter: You're Turning Me Cruel Cause I'm Just Wanting You To React

Summary: You and and your Mother have never had the best relationship, but the both of you have always tried. However, when she invites you to stay, and you're met with the last surprise you were expecting, will any progress be made? Or will it just get worse? Catastrophically worse.

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I do not give permission/consent for my stories/works to get posted elsewhere. I do not condone this type of behavior/relationship, this is for entertainment purposes only.

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Chapter 1

It wasn’t exactly exciting, going home for Summer Holiday, but the thought of getting your own place just feels too daunting . Yes, graduation is coming up soon, but with the cost of everything as it is, you’d much rather wait until you actually have to rent one. Yes, you’re Mother is the last person you want to spend any time with, but who knows? Maybe she finally got a handle on her drinking?

Yeah, that’s likely.

As you knock on her door, you shift nervously from foot to foot, and you don’t know why. It doesn’t matter that you two rarely talk, or rarely see each other, she’s still your Mother.

Whether she likes it or not.

“Hello,” a man greets with a soft smile once he opens the door.

Well, hello to you too.

“Hi, I’m looking for Y/M/N? Last I was told, she still lives here.”

“She does,” he laughs softly, standing aside to let you in, “she ran off to the store. She wanted to be back by the time you got here. She’s been anxious,” he confesses softly, closing the door. 

You give him a look over as you place your bags down, and you can’t help but marvel at how handsome he is. He has beautiful ocean blue eyes, a slender physique (but you can tell there’s some muscle there), black hair that’s starting to gray a bit that you just wanna run your hands through and, lastly, a gold band on his finger.

Pause. There’s no way...oh, fuck no.

“What’s your name?” you ask with a kind smile, though your mind is racing a million miles a minute. 

“Jim. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“That wouldn’t be because you’re married to my lovely Mother, is it?” you question, and he softly shakes his head.

“She wanted you to be here.”

“Oh, I bet she did,” you scoff, shaking your head. “I bet she fucking did. Do you want a drink? I want a drink.”

“She doesn’t keep booze-” “Oh yes she does, you just have to know where to look,” you smirk, making your way into the kitchen. “How long have you two been married?”

“About a year.”

“Well, God bless you,” you mutter, stomping around on the kitchen floor. “Oh, don’t tell me you’ve gone all saintlike on me now,” you scowl, before finally stomping on the hollow tile. “If there’s one person I know, it’s my Mother,” you scowl with a nod, before crouching down and picking at the at the worn tile. “So, how did you two lovebirds meet?”

“Maybe it would be best if she told you,” he mumbles as you pull up the tile on the floor. 

“I’m gonna level with ya, Jim. My Mother and I? Not the best relationship. So, whatever she says, I’m not gonna believe her. Hell, she’s been married a year and I’m just finding out about it. So,” you huff, standing on your feet once you’ve dug out the bottle of whiskey from the floor, and recovering the hole with the tile, “how’d you two meet?”

“At a bar,” he tells you, seemingly shocked that you actually did find a bottle. “Someone I used to see worked there. Her and I broke up and soon enough I started seeing your Mother.”

“I’m guessing things went well if you married her,” you mutter, grabbing two glasses.

Do you mean to turn her world upside down? No. However, it doesn’t change the fact that your world has been turned upside down, and you can’t help but be a little irritated by it.

Irritated by her.

“Do you have a drinking problem too?” you ask, pouring you both a drink, “don’t wanna mess up anyone’s progress or lack of,” you scoff.

You really don’t mean to be rude to the handsome man, this is just the last thing you expected.

“No, but-”

“Well, lets work on that,” you laugh humorlessly as you raise your glass to cheers him. 

Once again, it’s not the handsome stranger’s fault, but you’re also caught completely off guard.

“Has she cut down on drinking?” you ask, after taking a sip.

“She really hasn’t started drinking since she told me you were coming home for Holiday.”

“That makes an awful lot of sense. I handle her about as well as she handles me. She didn’t give you a warning?”

“She just said that things will be tense for a few days, but things will smooth out.”

“ ‘Things will smooth out’. Well, that’s one way of putting it. Well, Jim..Dad,” you scoff humorlessly, “I’m sorry you’re in the middle of this,” you mumble as the front door unlocks. 

“Honey, is she...oh,” your Mother sighs as he closes the door.

She’s more than likely seen the bags by the door. 

“I wanted to be here when you first got here, but I realized I forgot a few things at the market and had to...ah,” she mutters, taking note of both you and Jim drinking whiskey.

How the hell else did she think this was gonna go?

“I know what it looks like, but it’s not-”

“If you’d have told me, I would’ve gotten you a wedding gift,” you laugh as you raise a glass to her. 

“I didn’t want you to be mad.”

“You got married and this is the first time I’m hearing about it. What reaction did you think you were going to get?”

“I just knew you wouldn’t get it. I know we’ve been through a lot, but once you get to know him-”

“I don’t need a Father, Mum,” you shrug before finishing off your drink. “I’m not even trying to be a cunt. I’ve just gone all these years without one, and I’m a full grown adult now. I just would’ve appreciated a heads up,” you shrug before pouring yourself another glass. “I’ll be in my room if anyone needs me.”

You’re quick to grab your bags in the entry way, and finally make your way upstairs. You only make it three up three steps before an argument breaks out. You take a deep breath before continuing your way up the stairs. You know what’s coming, and you know it’s gonna last for the entirety of the Summer. God, if only you knew how much damage you’d truly done.

You would’ve never come home for the Summer.

**

“I don’t want to argue,” Jim sighs, clearly exasperated, “I just wish you would’ve told me! I’m coming into this looking like the bad guy.”

“Of course, make it all about you,” your Mother slurs and you roll your eyes.

They’ve been arguing since you’ve retreated to your old bedroom. You truly didn’t mean to start an argument between the two of them. Despite what your Mother believes, you do want her to be happy, but you’re just tired of her shit. At this point, it truly feels like she goes out of her way to make things complicated, and there’s no fucking reason for it. She always needs to paint someone else as the bad guy and, for as much as she may love Jim right now, she will make him the bad guy if she thinks it’ll workout better for her in the end. 

“Honey-”

“I’m meeting up with Rose. Don’t wait up,” she slurs as she storms out, slamming the door shut behind her.

Somewhere deep, deep, down inside, you do feel bad. However, it’s not bad enough for you to actually apologize to her. Yes, you’re used to her bullshit, but this? This is a new level of audacity, even for her. Not to mention, you do feel bad for Jim. You know absolutely nothing about the man, so he may be complete and total scum, but you do know she won him over with a personality built on lies. However, you truly didn’t mean to drag him into you and your Mother’s years and years of drama.

Which is why you’re now picking up your empty glass and making your way downstairs, taking a deep breath as you reach the last step.

Can’t hurt to get to know the man that’s apparently your new stepfather. 

“I’m sorry about that,” you greet as you make your way into the kitchen, taking a seat at the small table.

“It’s not your fault she kept things from me.”

“While that is true, I didn’t have to burst your bubble like that. You two had a life, and I just came in and made a mess of it. When it comes to my Mother, no one ever seems to make me as angry as she does.”

“Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her that angry before,” he laughs halfheartedly.

There’s an awkward silence, so you take the moment to pour the both of you a drink.

“She told me that you’re in your last year of Uni?”

“Yeah, so it’s about time for me to find my own place. The price of everything is just so damn high right now,” you sigh, finally looking over at him.

No, you’re not exactly a fan of your Mother going out and getting married without a word to you, but you have to commend her on her taste in men.

The man is gorgeous.

“You’re not wrong, I don’t know how your Mum was able to afford this place before I moved in.”

“Her parents. My grandparents kind of always took care of us, because shes always been a wild child and they never really trusted her to be able to make a stable living. When they died, they left her everything. Including this house,” you mumble, swirling the dark brown liquid around in your glass. “Lets table the talk about the crazy lady for a bit though,” you smirk and he chuckles, “tell me about yourself.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Is this your first go at marriage? What do you do for a living? Any kids? Fill me in on all the basic information I should know,” you shrug, cocking an eyebrow.

“I’ve got two kids, this is my second time being married, and I’m a writer.”

“Your second time getting married, and you chose my Mum? I’d really love to know how she won you over.”

“She loves does love you, Y/N.”

“In her own way, yes she does. However, you’ll come to find this Summer that, that love will drive you mad. You’ll find out just how strong your love is for her.”

“Well, what’s so wrong with you?”

“God, if I knew, I would tell you,” you laugh before taking another sip of your drink. “I think I just remind her of failure, which is fine by me, honestly. I learned to accept it early on, and we’ve both been better for it. I call her on Christmas and her birthday, and that’s enough. She calls when she remembers or when she’s drunk and sad, but I barely heard from her this past year and I assume that’s because of you. Thanks for that.”

“I’m sorry-”

“No, I genuinely mean that. You’ve made her happy and I appreciate that. I’ll try not to stay long-”

“She does want you here,” he interjects sincerely before taking a sip of his drink.

“Not as much as you’d think she would. You are her do-over, and I could easily ruin that for her. My best friend lives close by and I wasn’t gonna ask to stay with her, cause she has a daughter so space is limited, but I will. I know she’ll be more than happy to have me, and I miss her like crazy anyway.”

“I feel like I’ve done something wrong.”

You stand up and grab your glass and slowly make your way to the counter, “well, you shouldn’t because you’ve done nothin’ wrong. You can’t break or cause more damage to something you had no knowledge of. Have you eaten today?”

“Y/N-”

“It’s alright, Jim. You’re not breaking up some happy Mother/Daughter relationship,” you laugh softly. “Now, have you eaten?”

“I had a light lunch, your Mother said she wanted us all to have dinner together.”

“She has these ideas, and then she gets drunk. Lets see what we have,” you mutter, opening the fridge and bending over to see what your Mother picked up from the store.

You and Jim spend the next hour or getting to know each other as you bake some salmon, make some mashed potatoes, and steam a bit of broccoli. You make sure to make enough for your Mother, because you know by the time she gets back, she’ll be shitfaced and will need something in her stomach as soon as she wakes up tomorrow. 

“You and your Mother have two very different cooking styles,” Jim notices as he leans against the counter, his third glass of whiskey in his hand.

“My grandmother taught me how to cook,” you smile at the memory while taking the salmon out of the oven, opening the foil just a bit to check on it. “My Mother learned how to cook from me and then put her own twist on it.”

“What did your Mother teach you how to do?”

“Umm, I’m really good on skates because of her. That would be our thing on the weekend. She taught me that getting hurt is okay and apart of life, and that I shouldn’t ever fear pain from anything or anyone. That she was right about.”

“She truly was excited about you coming, Y/N.” “I don’t doubt it, but she and I...we’ve always had a difficult relationship. She never wanted to be a parent, and she got to play “big sis” until my grandparents died. I was 12 and she never grew into the roll of being a parent. I used to hate her for it, but I learned to accept it. She kept a roof over my head, food on the table, and attempted to show up to school events. She wants a friend, not a daughter. There’s a reason she never told me about you, can you pass me two plates?” you ask, turning the oven and the stove off. “You seem like a nice guy though, and that’s what she needs. She’s never had a good guy before.”

“What about your Dad?”

“I’ve seen him twice, and both times, he was a complete and total cock. Pardon my language,” you smirk as he laughs. “No, my Mum wasn’t all that great, but at least she stuck around and tried. He only came around for money, both times my grandparents told him no and Mum threatened to break his knee with that fire poker in the other room.”

“Fuck.”

“Yeah, he wasn’t a good man,” you shrug, starting to plate the food. 

“I feel like I should’ve helped.”

“You kept me company, and that’s just as good as helping,” you smile up at him.

“I should at least set up the table,” he offers, clearing his throat as he stands up right, taking the silverware out of the drawers.

“If you insist.”

“Can’t have you thinking too little of me so soon,” he teases and you scoff. 

“You get a pass for today, it’s been a rough one for you.”

You don’t notice the way his eyes travel over your body, and even if you had, you wouldn’t have thought anything of it. He’d had a few drinks and his day went from good to a headache. He wasn’t the first guy to look you over and he wouldn’t be the last.

While he poured more drinks, you grabbed two water bottles out of the fridge, before finally taking a seat across from him at the table. Once again, the conversation flowed effortlessly and, the more you both drank, the harder it got to remember that this man was married to your Mother.

He’s your stepfather. 

When dinner is done, he insists on doing the dishes.

“It’s no big deal-”

“I derailed your day a bit, it’s the least I can do,” he laughs softly as he starts washing off the plates.

“Alright, you have a job, you’re a good Father, you’re good looking...why didn’t your first marriage work out?” you question, leaning against the counter.

You don’t miss the heavy sigh or the way his movements faltered a bit before answering.

“I cheated on my wife with a family friend. She never found out that it was a friend, but it wasn’t hard for her to figure out that I’d been up to something I shouldn’t have been.”

“Ah, so you are capable of making a mistake.”

“You’re not mad at me?” he laughs softly.

“It’s not like you cheated on my Mum, besides, it’s not like her record is perfect.”

“No stern talking to?” he smirks towards you.

“I’m just getting to know you,” you laugh. “She clearly saw something in you and didn’t feel the need to consult me on it. If she trusts you, I’m gonna have to trust that she knows what she’s doing.”

“You are somethin’ else.”

“I get that a lot.”

For just a moment, as both gaze at each other, you forget that there’s a line you shouldn’t be crossing with this man. It was literally just discussed that he’s married to your Mother. That doesn’t seem to matter right now , though. Not when he’s fun, handsome, and looking at you like he wants to get to know every little thing about you.

Well, that is until your Mother comes stumbling through the front door. 

“Fuck!” she exclaims, crashing into the wall.

“I’ll handle it,” you mutter, quickly pushing yourself up from the counter.

You need to get away from him anyway.

“I hope you’re happy,” she slurs as you collect her. “He hates me and it’s your fault. Men always hate me because of you!”

“So happy to be staying here,” you mutter, kicking the door close as you help her stand upright.

“You ran your Father off, my other boyfriends-”

“Did ya eat tonight?”

“As if you give a fuck,” she scowls barely bothering to help you get her up the steps. “Jim is good man-”

“He’s done nothing but sing your praises all bloody night, he’s not goin’ anywhere. Now, stop being difficult and walk with me.”

“I can do it m’damn self!”

“As tempted as I am to let that happen, you’d break ya neck and I’d feel bad. Now, lets go.”

“Bitch.”

“I know,” you sigh.

Lacking both style and grace, you get her up the stairs and unceremoniously into the bed, helping her to get her shoes off as well as her shirt. By the time you pull the covers up over her, she’s snoring. You’re quick to get to the bathroom and fill up one of the disposable cups in there and grab two aspirin, before quickly and quietly making your way back into the bedroom and putting them down on her nightstand. Giving your small kiss on her temple, you quietly make your way out of the room and let out a deep breath. 

There’s no way you can stay here for the entire Summer.

With a look of pure pity written across his face, Jim asks, “are you okay?” once you’re back in the kitchen.

“Nothing I haven’t handled before,” you respond with a defeated smile. “I’ll be out of here by the time both of you are up.”

“Y/N-”

“She’ll be like this for the entire Summer if I stay, which will make the both of us miserable in return.”

“I can talk to her.”

“You’re sweet. I can see why she worked her magic on you.”

“Please-” “Thank you for doing the dishes and putting the food away. Don’t stay up too late,” you smile at him before getting on your tiptoes and giving him a small kiss on the cheek. “Good night, Jim. It was nice meeting you.”

You grab your phone off the table and make your way upstairs, laughing softly and shaking your head at your Mother’s snores which have grown much louder in the short amount of time it took you to get back upstairs. 

Plopping down on your bed with a heavy sigh, you unlock your phone and text the one person you can always count on.

Y/N: I’m sorry it’s so damn late, but would you be okay with me stayin’ with you for the Summer?

Cherry Bomb: Just put your goddaughter down. You know you’re always welcome here! Y/M/N being a cunt?

Y/N: I’ll tell you all about it in the mornin’. Love you and thank you.

Cherry Bomb: I should’ve been ya first stop ;) 

You laugh softly, placing your phone down on your nightstand and turning over to your side, doing your best to ignore the events of the day. You’re half asleep when you hear Jim make his up the stairs and join your Mother in the bedroom. 

‘Soon enough, all of this will be a distant memory,’ you think to yourself as you drift off to sleep.

If only that were true.

~~

[silenzahra]

They keep saving my life ✨

Dear friends, I've been missing today because I've been trying to recover from last night's experience! I went to watch my favorite band live again and I'm not exaggerating when I say they saved my life once more 🥹 It's just what I needed to feel entirely good again! My beloved Estopa never fail to make me feel better, them and the Mario Brothers are literally keeping me ALIVE these last years and I'm seriously so blessed 😭

I'm not gonna repeat everything I said here as the repertory was essentially the same, but I do want to add a video and some pics, and also a VERY silly conversation they had (as well as something related to my writing). So keep reading if you're curious, and it's totally fine if you're not! 🥰

Still, I believe perhaps @bberetd @vulpixfairy1985 @stripetkattelalala54-gf @itsavee4117 would like this! Of course, if you're not interested, just let me know and I'll remove your tag! 💖

THE FOREHEAD TOUCH AT THE END. THE WAY THE CROWD STARTS SCREAMING WHEN THEY DO IT. People do LOVE seeing them doing it, me included of course, and I can only melt and CRY 😭 (Yes, you can hear me singing and screaming, I recorded this video myself, so surprise! Voice reveal 😂)

And the line they were singing face to face right before bringing their foreheads together...

"And I'm still here by your side until the wind blows me away."

... I'm not crying, I just got some brotherly love in my eye 🥲🥲🥲

Also, a few minutes ago I just ran into this pic, a close-up of THE moment, and I DIED again 👇

THEIR FACES. THEIR FOREHEADS. I CAN'T. These brothers are gonna be the DEATH of me I swear 😭😭😭

The fact that they're REAL. I just can't get over it. Mario and Luigi have a WONDERFUL bond and you all know I love them wholeheartedly, but the fact that Estopa are the real, actual personification of brotherly love? In our world?? Them having so much fun together and always showing how much they LOVE each other in every single concert???

Excuse me if I CRY but they're too PRECIOUS.

I just can't have enough of them. As you all know, they inspired me to write my musicians post, and also two of my WIPs that revolve around different things (the brothers on stage and Luaisy smut). They inspire me. They've been doing so ever since I became a fan of them, which, btw, happened exactly 18 years ago today! Man, I'm old 🥲

And the thing is... If you've been following me lately, you know I've been going through some hard times and I've been feeling down for a long time. So much so that I was unable to read... nor write. I'm still in the process of getting over my reader's block...

... but my writer's one might be coming to an end at last.

It's too soon to speak yet, but Estopa's music does inspire me, as well as their brotherly dynamic and their chemistry on stage. And yesterday, a few things happened that only gave me more and more ideas for that future story I wanna write with Mario and Luigi being musicians and performing together.

First of all, a very silly conversation:

"I am your brother." "Yes, me too." "... No." "Yes, I am your brother." "I am your brother, but you're my brother. I'm not my brother." "Of course, because I am your brother. You're my brother." "No, I'm not my brother, I'm your brother!"

I swear, me and my friend were just cracking up at the stupidest conversation EVER 😂 You can't tell me this isn't Mario and Luigi 🤭😂

Unfortunately... there were a couple of times where David almost fell off the stage 😅 The first time, I didn't even notice because I was further back, but I was a bit confused that he was standing still at one end of the stage when he's usually running and dancing here and there while singing.

And then... I saw this. Unfortunately it's an Instagram story which means it'll be gone at some point, but even though I've tried, Tumblr just wouldn't let me add a second video to this post 🤦‍♀️ So I just hope you can get to see it before it's gone, but it's basically poor David tripping and being about to fall off the stage 🥲

Poor man, I swear I feel SO BAD for him 😭😭😭 All I wanna do is run and help him through the screen! Thank God he handled it and didn't hurt himself but I swear I SCREAMED when I saw this 🥺

On a brighter note though... the second time was hilarious and he didn't hurt himself 🤭 To give you some context, it turns out there was a famous artist among the crowd watching the concert. His name is Dani Martín and he's friends with Estopa. They actually sang one of Estopa's songs together a while back, and when they started playing it last night, David suddenly noticed his friend...

... And he jumped off the stage to go sing with him! 😂😂😂

The moment his butt literally kisses the ground, I'm so DEAD I swear 😂😂😂 You just CAN'T convince me Mario wouldn't do something like this if he spotted, I don't know, Geno, maybe? 🤭

They're so friendly I swear! This was such a big surprise, and my friend was elated because she's also a big fan of Dani Martín! So it was really so great they did something like this 🥹 David jumping to bring him on stage and Jose ceding him his mic, they're just so nice and pure 😭

Anyways, as I said, the rest was very similar to the concert in Sevilla I attended back in June (only that this time I was WAY closer and I couldn't believe it 🤩), so I'll just add that I've been sharing some videos of the concert on my Instagram stories, and I'll probably share a few more tomorrow as I recorded a lot 🤭

Also, my friend sent me the videos she recorded and her phone has such a higher quality than mine! So yeah, those are coming to my insta stories tomorrow too 😂 Just in case you'd like to see said videos, here's my Instagram account! I'm saving them all on the higlighted stories called "Estopa Chiclana" btw, so they're gonna remain there no matter what 🥰

And to say goodbye, here's an AMAZING pic my friend took at the beginning of the concert and that has become my new lockscreen! 😁🔥

It captures their essence SO WELL and it gives me so many ideas for Mario and Luigi! 🥹❤️💚

[punkeropercyjackson]

Batfam and Spiderfam dynamics

Jason and Miles are platonic soulmates,thanks.As a black dominicano myself,there is no reaction Jason would have to meeting the Spiderfam other then making a b-line to the lil nigga talking with his hands to someone who's not listening and asking him about what he's rambling about to genuinely listen and this applies to any timeline Jason cause the Lazarus Pit isn't gringofication juice.Miles takes an equally quick liking to him and they've got tons in common but enough differences to keep their interactions interesting and add some mutual angst(I see you in me and you see me in you but the feeling isn't exactly the same,not always but we're getting there for eachother)

Babs fucks with Miguel by hacking his Spidertech and dosen't even do any actual damage but pretends she has or is planning to to keep him on his toes.He is Screaming

Stephanie and Gwen hit it off almost as instantly as the Flowerghost Brothers did for the same reasons and Stephie calls Gwendita 'sister' first as the slang but then as a found family thing.Gwen convinced her to dye her hair like Hobie did her and Stephanie now has a split down the middle purple dye to her natural black butterfly locs and she brings her over to Batgirls hangouts so she can feel like a real girl as gender validation but also trauma healing and on first meeting Stephanie had a reverse to her and Jess' first meeting as Gwen chattered off about herself in autistic awkwardness and she responded with 'Can i adopt you?' to Gwen's touched shock and Steph's embarrasment(Gwen is still 16 and Stephanie was 18 btw)(Death may love you but i love more and i'll save you from it)(You're the Robin that flew the highest even though you flew for the shortest time)

The babygirlfication of Duke Thomas:By Hobie Brown.Duke was flustered and weak in the knees enough just from Hobie unmasking but the fact that Hobie found him equally attractive didn't help since he instantly started flirting with him.Duke powered through after getting used to it a significant instences of Spiderpunk rizz and Hobie was pleasently surprised that he actually wasn't a shy meek 'normal' boy but as chaotic as he is and that was when it went from attraction to real romantic love as they got to really know eachother and Hobie shows off Duke to his band's fans and they take care of eachother post-hero work and before it too(You're SUCH a punk........I can't fucking tell if i wanna be with you or be you or roast you/I'm Spiderman and you're Robin.We can do all three,Sunlight.This the part where you kiss me,yeah?/Obviously-Why else would i have done that 1920s toons ass shit to get you upside down?)

Dick and Peter B are iconic 'The ones who started it all and mentor the ones to keep the legacy going' solidarity but Dick's a cool hot tgirl about it and Peter B's a lame in a sexy kinda way tboy about it.Their friendship is healthy if weird and they do hero jobs together occasionally and exchange trans stories/jokes.Also:".........We seem to have the same type?" "You mean.....Redheads...?" "What?!No,black women!" "OH THANK FUCK,I KNEW THAT CREEPY RUMOR ABOUT YOU WASN'T REAL!!!"

Talia and Rio met through Jason and Miles and formed a friendship of their own.It was really nice for Talia to befriend another woc who's deep into and proud of her heritage and they do cultural bonding and hang out casually too and they're also both bi women with a past history of multiple girlfriends which is a nice surprise and they can be found drinking tea and eating tostadas together at least once a month.Talia and Uncle Aaron would've been besties too if he'd lived and her breath hitched when she met his 42 Variant and Miles G from the flashbacks to Jason's ressurection and her reconnection with him as he turned into Red Hood under her wing(It's like looking at ghosts that'll never really die)

Cass and Peni suffer from the infantalization and moefication of easian women and girls both in-universe and out of universe so they go beyond and Cass helps Peni go back to her authentic japanese roots by having a storyline with her that's a ref to her Nge inspo and this includes Earth 14512 and Prime Earth glitches fuckery and Cass briefly goes chinese cartoon incarnated which she's more than okay with.They listen to Mcr and participate in Cass' tradgoth hobbies and Peni gets her to embrace her hidden small love of cute shit and there's anatomically dehumanized child soldier bonding(Don't let them make you a rose without thorns)(Be beautiful to everyone you want to but terrifying to everyone else.You've earned both)

Kory and Jessica get black milf-y with it by increasing their hotness by 100+ with their combined energy and Kory teases her about the Spiderkids calling her 'Spidermom' as a half-joking mantle and Jessica just rolls her eyes playfully and says she's jealousy she's milf x 2 now.Kory also gives her free clothes she got from her modeling job and Jessica takes her out on motorcyle rides with her own pastel pink helmet and was confused for a Tamaranean a few times so she gaslight the media about it for funsies.Street food gyals too and get their nails and hair done together at different dimensional black salons as a quest of sorts.THEE Spiderbatfam battle duo,they are whole ass GREEK TITANS in damage level(Also jic no ion ship Peter B and Jessica,Dick was talking about 616 MJ who is black to me due to one of few mcu W's)

Maps and Margo be peppy girl geeks of color who're twinnin' on almost all their tastes,the only real difference being Maps' japanese ones vs Margo's haitian ones BUT they get to diaspora bond thanks to being inmigrant kids♡Margo has pretend drawn constellations with Maps' freckles and this my friends was the true beginning of Margomaps.Margo social media brags and posts about 'her girlfriend Maps' like the slang and Maps drags her into Gotham mystery solving and they're call themselves 'Team Birdbyte' know damn well that's a ship name.Maps once put her hairclip on Margo's hair and kissed it 'for good luck' because she was scared shitless for her on a life or death mission and Margo sweeped her up into her arms to give her a big 'ol smooch upon return and Maps had heart eyes afterwards as they went on their first 'date' i.e Sharing a bed for the first time as they talked out their love for eachother in detail over pizza and strawberry fizz(You're not my Player 2,you're my main girl)

I don't got fancy schmancy for these last two but Tim x Miles is so fucking real,,,,,,,,,Better than any yt boys only crossover ship for sure.They're just,autistic trans teenage boygirlfriends but like realistic ones not fake deep wonderbread and they're brown4black because Tim's biracial on Janet's side cause she was cherokee and Miles is an honorary Young Justice member who earned a Blue Lantern ring and they're so sweet and soft and sappy and cringe together...........Cool girl Miles and her losercore bf who loves her so fucking much and that she loves so fucking much back and she thinks SHE'S the desperate loser.And the other thing is Tiffany Fox is Batgirl here!!It only feels right considering it's Spiderverse and she hangs out the Spiderteens/Tim and Duke's age group/the older Batgirls!!She's a recurring major character i have for this in my head and is one of Miles' big crushes although not endgame since she realized she'd rather make friends for a long time first than date right then.And she grows up to have a happy healthy marriage and kids!!♡(Red Table mutual you know who you are,ADD TIFF)

Misc extras:Prime Earth has a Dairy Queen equivalent called Dairy Super,Miles and Jason have texting Tamagotchis that were upgraded by Margo at random because she wanted to see if she could and Miles' is a cat while Jason's is a bat,Gwen's mom was afro-dominican and she got her Atsv hair but in locs and Stephanie is specifically jamaican/korean and blondephobic as is Tim,Peter B's character assasination didn't happen cause the writers were so darksided for that,Jessica is trans as per her comics,Stephcass is a thing and share an apartment and basically act like a butch4femme eternally married couple(A la Bubbline in Obsidian and onward)and it's perfectly possible to make a Batfam crossover that isn't about blue eyes,incest or pedophillia shipping or spits in the name of superheroes and what they stand for in favor of propaganda,gatekeeping and writing that's so horny it circles right around to being sexless.And you just read one :)