#but yeah. time to admit im not finishing all the prompts from this event lol. gotta start being pickyyy

[roobiedo]

oc-tober 2024 day 10 & 11: personality & symbolism/themes

the kids you probably need to worry about

more leftoverse babies! they're definitely opposites personality-wise, but they both also happen to have the most symbolic roles throughout the story i think? lets just say their journeys include pretty strong pseudo-religious allegories hh

—

first up is Mia, or registered alias 'Illumia', who will also go by the codename 'Chamialeon' (hence the symbol) during the... not so bright parts of her future career. Which is ironic, because glowing brightly is kind of her main thing! though due to light manipulation, she can also turn invisible, which is why the moniker stuck. she eventually also figures out how to temporarily siphon her target's powers (literally 'stealing their spotlight'), giving her another layer of camouflage.

Mia is high energy even in her broodiest moments (many such cases). among the main cast, she easily draws the most attention and speaks the loudest, even without ever using her voice! she has a wiiild arc as far as archetypes go, changing from spoiled princess to ruthless rebel to spiritual leader by the end of things. she would be a leia stan yeah

alsoooo that is not the actual cover image for 'It's My Turn Now' but there's no way im putting the d*sney logo anywhere near my art lol. i don't know who that man is. Sorry to miss palmer

also2 yeah mushrooms aren't flora my bad. sunflower then

—

next is Pepin, who usually goes by Piper (and Clyde calls him Pip sometimes). he's the forever baby of the group and my poor precious good boy who can do no wrong!!1! 🥺💚 ok that's not true, he always tries his best and has an empathetic soul, but life's hard when you're the unwilling Chosen One who has to constantly dodge prophecies and legacies while carrying the weight of the world on your tiny shoulders. he goes through sososo much :( i love him sososo much :(

Piper's a real laid-back, pacifist type that keeps getting bombarded by Stress and Duties. as such, he's no stranger to skipping classes/responsibilities to go chill somewhere hidden away from the world, which is usually in a forest due to his affinity with nature. many think his thing is controlling plants and healing, and it certainly looks that way, but more accurately its cellular regeneration control. a talent this impressive puts many targets on his back, but luckily he's in good hands until he decides his own destiny <3

—

no template version:

[cheeriecherrymain]

What about reader proposing to Viktor? I’m so bad at requests I’m sorry lol <3

Not me taking two months to get back a request OOPS

I know this was for the five somethings prompts, but my brain is working in headcanon format rn im sorry

Viktor x gn!Reader (SFW)

-Neither you nor Viktor had ever expected to end up in a relationship, much less with each other. You’d met when you were merely students, and had been bitter rivals for years, before you’d drunkenly fallen into bed with one another after some fancy event you’d both been invited to.

-A drunken night during which time you admitted that you really didn’t understand why he hated you so much - didn’t understand what you’d done or how you’d offended him to warrant such a reaction.

-The days following had been awkward, before he’d finally singled you out and apologized for how he’d acted towards you. It would take a couple more years to get the reason behind his actions, but for the time being, you were sated by an apology (though you did also manage to get him to agree to dinner together).

-The rest was history. Your relationship had grown stronger from there; you became a force of nature when working together, constantly encouraging each other to learn and grow. There wasn’t a person at the academy who wasn’t aware of your ingenuity as a team, even if most of the student body had never met either of you.

-Eventually your schooling came to an end, though, and you went your separate ways…

-At least in terms of work.

-Viktor found a temporary job as Professor Heimerdinger’s assistant, and you started your career as a lab technician. Both of you were run dry by the end of every day, falling into your shared bed with groans and quiet complaints. You barely had the energy to tell each other about the kinds of nonsense you had to put up with - impossible tasks and hazing by coworkers, or having to sit and read through dozens of shoddy essays written by the first-years.

-You’re together almost three years by the time he starts a partnership with Jayce - four years when you finally quit your job to join their team - five years when you come into the lab one day, riddled with anxiety.

-Viktor is thankfully out for the afternoon, leaving just you and Jayce to finish up with the experiments you’d had planned. Jayce, though -brilliant as he is- did have a tendency to stray from the checklists you’d always lay out. Typically he’d find little things that you’d missed or not taken into account, or a test would go so awry that the prior plans needed to be scrapped and rewritten. But today?

-Today he was chatty.

-Even worse, he was chatty about you. Asking you why you looked so stressed all of a sudden, why you were fidgety, why you kept digging around in your pockets as if to check for something.

-You cared about him immensely, but sometimes you really hated that he was so observant.

- “You have to promise not to tell Viktor,” you whisper to him, glancing one last time at the door. Jayce nods quickly, and you pull a little box out of your pocket - wrapped in dark leather, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand.

-Jayce’s eyes go wide. “Is that what I think it is?” he asks.

- “Yeah. But!” you cut him off before he can start offering his congratulations, “I still need to ask him.”

-You open the tiny box, and observe the ring. Dark polished steel, without gems and subtle enough to not call attention. It doesn’t look like much at first glance, but up close it’s covered in intricate engravings and beautiful details that you know he’ll appreciate.

- “I made it myself,” you explain, “though getting his ring size was a pain in the ass. I never realized how lightly Viktor sleeps until I tried to wrap a string around him - it took me an entire week, Jayce. A week!”

-You sigh, and shut the box, shoving it back into your pocket. “I just…don’t know how to ask him. I want it to be personal, y’know? Private, intimate. We haven’t really talked about getting married, but…I want to spend the rest of my life with him.”

-Jayce’s eyes go wide, and you continue, “But what if we’re not on the same page? We’ve been together for so long that we can predict each other pretty well, but…I don’t know. I’m just nervous, I guess. It’s not every day that you get to ask your boyfriend to marry you, so it’s not like I’ve had any practice- what are you doing, Jayce?”

-The man in question is very urgently gesturing at you, a multitude of movements that you’re completely unable to comprehend.

- “I believe he’s trying to tell you to stop talking,” an amused voice comes from the doorway. “Granted that I’ve already heard most of your conversation, though, the action is moot.”

-You swivel around in your seat, eyes wide as saucers. You open your mouth to speak, hoping you can save yourself, but not a word comes.

-Jayce dips within a couple seconds, loudly proclaiming that he ‘forgot the thing at the place’ before all but running out of the room. Leaving you and Viktor. Alone.

-The silence stretches on for longer than you’d like, before you’re finally able to say anything.

- “This…isn’t how I wanted things to go,” you grumble, leaning back in your chair to stare at the ceiling. Viktor hums a quiet reply, and you listen to him amble across the room to take a seat in the chair that Jayce had recently vacated.

- “And how did you want it to go?” he asks, his tone carefully neutral.

-You roll your head sideways, breaking your gaze away from the tiles above you to instead stare at your boyfriend. “I don’t know,” you admit. “Maybe dinner at our favourite spot, or a night in together. Something quiet, that was just for us - I wanted to ask you without an audience, or without some grand show, because…because I know you don’t like that kind of thing. Plus, I love the moments we have together. Our quiet mornings and lazy evenings, our sleepless nights in the lab. That’s…what I want, for the rest of our lives.”

-You can feel the blood rushing to your face, threatening to set the tips of your ears on fire. “It’s corny, I know, but- Viktor, are you crying?”

-Much to your dismay, your boyfriend’s eyes have glossed over, and you can see a fat line of tears welling up behind his lashes. You’re upright in half a second, scooting closer to him until you’re able to take his face in your hands.

- “Don’t cry,” you murmur, tenderly wiping the damp tracks off his cheeks. “We don’t have to get married if you don’t want to - as long as I’m with you, it doesn’t matter what-”

- “Ask me,” he interrupts.

-You pause.

- “Ask me,” he says again.

-You swallow thickly, but take a breath. “Viktor,” your voice is soft, “Will you marry me?”

-If his lips on yours in the next moment isn’t enough of an answer, then the breathless little ‘yes’ when you finally pull apart is. You carefully take his hand and slide the ring onto his finger, bringing his knuckles up so you can lay another soft kiss.

-It’s a perfect fit.

[lunatens]

take a break

-

requested by anon <3 im sorry this took so long!! i hope u enjoy (i also hope u like dogs lol)

prompt: “don’t be sorry, it was...actually kinda cute”

*part of my 2 years with luna event!

word count: 1.6k

genre: fluff, slice of life au

pairing: lee felix x gn reader (ft. roommate/bff jisung lol)

“are you ever gonna stop staring mindlessly at your laptop?” jisung asks as he enters the kitchen of your shared apartment. you glare at him through tired eyes, and he raises his hands in defence. you’ve been sitting at your kitchen table for god knows how long just trying to get work done, but you’ve been feeling stuck for the past hour or so and you’re starting to feel the effects of sitting and staring at a screen all day. 

“you know, it’s probably a good idea to take a break at some point. you know, get up and walk around, maybe go outside for once,” jisung says as he starts making a bowl of cereal. 

“but i just have sooooooo much work to do,” you groan, rubbing your hands over your face in defeat. jisung sets the milk carton down with a bit too much enthusiasm, the loud sound startling you.

“that settles it. y/n, you are banished from this apartment until you go outside and take a walk or something,” jisung declares.

“you’re not my mom, i don’t have to listen to you. besides, i pay half the rent here,” you argue. 

“fair enough. but nothing’s stopping me from finishing your cereal,” jisung says as he grabs the box of your favourite cereal and dumps the remainders into his bowl.

“jisung, what the hell!!! i was gonna eat that later,” you pout, now in an even worse mood than before. you love your best friend, but god he can be obnoxious at times; he’s honestly more of a brother to you, and you haven’t decided if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. right now, you’re leaning more towards the bad. 

“oops, sorry. guess you’ll have to go get more,” jisung says as he shovels a spoonful of cereal into his mouth, clearly proud of himself. you get up with an exaggerated sigh, closing your laptop and dragging yourself to your room.

“okay fiiiiine, i’ll go outside, happy?” you ask. jisung nods, cheeks full. your eyebrows furrow as you realize something. “hold up, did you pour the milk before the cereal??”

“yep. oh by the way, we’re also out of milk,” jisung says, shaking the empty carton for emphasis. you blink at him, needing to mentally question your friendship with the boy for a moment. deciding he’s worth keeping around, you turn to grab your wallet and pull on a jacket and some shoes as you prepare for the great outdoors. aka a ten-minute walk down the street to the nearest store. 

“i’ll be back,” you call behind you. 

“love you!” jisung calls before you close the door on your way out. you make your way down to the street, shoving your hands in your pockets as you’re hit with the brisk air. you squint in the bright sunlight, taking a moment for your eyes to adjust to the scenery. it’s the middle of the day, so the streets aren’t overly busy; some pedestrians are scattered about the sidewalks, and cars and bikes pass by as you walk down the street. you inhale deeply, realizing the fresh outside air is helping you feel slightly less dead inside; okay, maybe jisung was right to make you go outside, but you’ll never tell him that. 

you pass by the nearby park and decide to walk through it instead of around it like you usually do. it’s a little longer this way, but it’s such a nice day out and the scenery is too pretty to pass by. plus, a lot of people walk their dogs here and you could use a furry friend to cheer you up. 

as if on cue, the moment you enter a park a large ball of golden fur barrels right into you, knocking you to the ground. the dog stands over you, tail wagging enthusiastically as it tries to lick your face. you giggle as your hands come up to gently push the dog away, appreciating the affection but not the slobber so much. you sit up and the dog stands beside you, eager to accept your hands scratching its ears. 

“where’s your owner, huh?” you ask, the baby voice you use when talking to animals coming out. 

“i’m so sorry!!!!” you hear in the distance, and you turn in the direction of the voice to see a boy running towards you, out of breath. “bbokari, come here!!” he calls, and the dog happily trots over to the boy. “oh, so now you listen,” he scolds as he puts it on a leash. he walks over to you, sticking out a hand to help you up.

“i’m really sorry about that oh my god, she’s normally really well behaved when i let her off-leash!” the boy apologizes as he pulls you to your feet. 

“don’t be sorry, it was...actually kind of cute. i really love dogs,” you reply with a friendly smile, brushing yourself off and hesitantly letting go of his hand. now that you’re more at eye level with the stranger and his dog is no longer a distraction, you can’t help but notice how cute he is. despite the chilly weather, he seems to radiate a warmth that almost rivals that of the sun. his freckled cheeks are slightly rosy from the crisp air, and his eyes crease when he flashes you a bright smile. 

“oh that’s good, she really seems to love you!” he says. you look down to see bbokari’s happy face, tongue lolling around and tail wagging enthusiastically as she stares up at you practically demanding to be pet more. of course, you oblige, reaching down to bury your hands in her soft fur. 

“well, thanks for letting me pet your dog; trust me, this really made my day,” you tell the boy as you stand back up straight. you’re about to continue walking, but the boy interrupts you before you get very far, jogging a little to catch up to you. 

“wait!! i’m walking this direction too, mind if i join you?” he asks.

“not at all,” you tell him, a warm feeling starting to bubble up inside you. he gives you another one of his friendly smiles, and you think you might melt at the sight.

“so, you come here often?” he asks, and you can’t help but giggle at the question.

“sorry, i’ve just never seen you here is all,” he explains shyly.

“i used to walk through here all the time on my way to the store, but i’ve been so caught up in work recently that i didn’t want to take the extra time to come here,” you explain. 

“what made you change your mind today?” the boy asks.

“my dumb roommate said i needed to get outside and take a break from work, and it’s such a nice day out i thought it would be refreshing for a change of scenery for once. plus i always love the chance of seeing a dog or two,” you say, smiling down at bbokari. “and also he finished my milk and cereal so i kinda need to go get more,” you add.

“well, i’m glad you listened to your dumb roommate,” the boy says, a little shy at the comment but smiling nonetheless. “it’s really good to take a break and enjoy the fresh air, especially on days like today.” he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

you humm in agreement, admiring how content he looks as you walk under the trees together, sunshine filtered through bare branches before landing on your faces. you quickly look away when he opens his eyes again, hoping he didn’t catch you staring.

you continue making small talk as you walk along the path, however it’s not too long before you reach the end. you’re sad to have to leave this stranger behind, and you wish you could walk together at least just a little bit longer.

“thanks for walking with me, uh…”

“felix! i’m felix,” the boy tells you. 

“thanks for walking with me felix,” you say with a genuine smile. “i’m y/n, by the way.”

“y/n! it’s the least i could do after my dog bowled you over,” felix apologizes. “and if you ever need another break i uh, i walk bbokari around this time every day and we could always use some company,” he tells you, cheeks a bit redder than they were before. 

“then i guess i’ll see you two tomorrow,” you say. felix’s face lights up at your response.

“cool! cool, yeah, i-we’ll see you tomorrow y/n!” he says, and you wave your goodbyes before you head off towards the store and felix turns back into the park. it doesn’t take you long to buy your food, feeling much less bitter towards jisung now. on your walk home you can’t help but hope you’ll run into felix and bbokari again, but there’s no sign of them as you pass through the park. 

--

“someone’s in a better mood,” jisung teases from the couch as you walk through the door, your giddy smile still apparent on your face. “so are you gonna admit i was right?”

“never in a million years,” you say as you put the milk and cereal away. “i just ran into a cute...dog, that’s all.” you tell jisung. as you get back to work, you find your thoughts drifting to a certain boy and his dog; honestly, you aren’t sure which one’s cuter, but all you know is that you can’t wait to take another break tomorrow.

[playtwewy]

The lovely @aceyanaheim was kind enough to tag me in this fanfic author tagging game. Thank you for thinking of me!

Author Name: UselessProtagonist is the current one I go by.

Fandoms You Write For: Multifandom. Right now TWEWY is my main focus.

Where You Post: I post on AO3 and put links to chapters on here sometimes. Before that I had several Fanfic.net accounts that were varying levels of cringy.

Most Popular One-shot: Don’t really have any since the last one i wrote I orphaned and the ones on my older account feel lifetimes away from the writing I do now.

Most Popular Multi-Chapter Story: Reach Up For the Sunrise (Haikyuu!!) Again, feels pretty far away from like my current direction in writing but I am still proud of it.

Favorite Story You Wrote: Don’t Get Lost in Heaven (TWEWY) if you like twewy go read my fic pls  Not complete yet tho, but it’s basically an extension of my soul at this point.

Story You Were Nervous To Post: ,,,,, All of them? lol

How Do You Choose Your Titles?: Music. Lyrics. Song Titles. Pretty generic I know, but I use playlists and specific songs to get the feel of my writing and it helps trigger thoughts and themes. Sometimes the songs might not feel like the greatest fit I’ll admit tho.

Do You Outline?: Hell Yeah! I wouldn’t be anywhere without outlining. It helps me put events I usually think of out of order in order as well as helps me plan chapters. I’m actually currently reworking the outline for my twewy fic so they aren’t always perfect the first time, more a summary of what i wanted when i first thought of the fic.

Complete: Other than the Haikyuu Tsukihina fic i linked before, there’s ‘Tis the Season (Mystic Messenger) which was mostly a challenge to myself to write something everyday and I should probably try that again lol. I am proud of it but it was so long ago that i cringe.

In Progress: my twewy fic i mentioned earlier.

Coming Soon/Not Yet Started: Currently also outlining my other TWEWY fic as well since i wanna start working on it as soon as im done with the current one. I also still want to do a Persona 5 x TWEWY fic, but im not so sure about it anymore tbh.

I have some other scraps of outlines for Persona 5, Tsuritama, Invader Zim, BNHA, and Percy Jackson fics (basically any interest ive had in the last couple months lmao) but idk when I’ll get to them or push myself to. I hope so tho

Do You Accept Prompts?: Not really. But Like if someone wanted to that would be cool, but idk it would depend on the prompt and me if i could actually pull it off and i don’t wanna disappoint anyone.

Upcoming Story You’re Most Excited To Write: My next TWEWY fic which im planning to have come directly after the one im working on now. It’s well, i kinda feel like it’ll be out of my range skdjfksdjf since it’s a lot more about the plot and im always worried about my characterization sdfkjdf but idk it’ll probably be fine as soon as I can finish my outline.

Also since I’m replaying Persona 5 ive been thinking about a fic based on the aftermath of the bad end but who knows if I’ll have the guts to outline it fully lmao

I..... really don’t know who to tag or if they’d even be into it, but if you see this and wanna do it go ahead. like i only have 3 fics on my AO3 and i went off lol

[perfectlyrose]

wrong number, right person

Summary: Complete accident brings Rose and John into each other’s lives by way of a misdialed phone number but as they form a friendship that could bloom into love, it almost seems more like fate.

Pairing: Ten x Rose || Rating: All ages || Word Count: 4264

Note: For Day Seven of 31 Days of Ficmas: prompt “ring.” This is... so much longer than I intended it to be when I started writing lol. - tagging @doctorroseprompts for the event :)

AO3

Rose answered her phone without looking to see who was calling, assuming it was Jack for the third time that evening. “I told you Jack, I can’t come out tonight, I’ve got homework and a bloody astronomy exam tomorrow I need to revise for.”

“Um, I think I have the wrong number but I could probably give you some tips on astronomy if you need them,” a male voice on the other end of the line that was decidedly not Jack said.

“Oh my god, I’m sorry. My friend has been calling me non-stop trying to get me to go clubbing with him tonight and I just assumed he was trying again,” Rose said, cheeks heating.

“No need to apologize! I’m the one who dialed wrong and interrupted your revising,” the man said, very cheerful for someone talking to a stranger.

“It wasn’t going well, so I really don’t mind.”

“I meant it when I said I could give you some astronomy tips. I umm… I might have a doctorate in the subject.” The last sentence came out in a rush, like he was nervous about admitting it.

“Really? You sure you’re not trying to impress some random girl on the phone?” Rose teased.

“Honestly, astronomy and astrophysics don’t usually do the trick.”

“Got degrees in both?”

“Yeah.”

“Bit brilliant, aren’t you?”

“Yeah.”

Rose laughed. “Alright mystery doctor, want to give an impromptu intro to astronomy lecture over the phone to a stranger?”

“Love to, actually. What unit is your exam on?”

“Honestly, if you can make parallax equations make sense I will probably propose marriage at this point,” Rose admitted. “I’m really lost.”

He laughed. “Proposing to me and you don’t even know who I am. Bit hasty but I like it.”

“Hey, I just said I might propose, no promises. Besides, this is dependent on your teaching skills.”

“I’ll have to be impressive then.”

“You better be, I’d like to pass this exam,” she shot back. “I’m Rose, by the way.”

“John, but you can keep calling me Doctor, if you want.”

She raised her eyebrows even though he couldn’t see. “Alright, Doctor.”

Rose could practically hear his smile.

“Alright, ready to learn?”

“I guess. Last chance and all that.”

“Brilliant!”

With that he launched into a lecture that was far more engaging than any of the actual classes Rose had attended. Her impromptu professor had a tendency to go off on tangents but also a knack for actually describing things in a way that made sense to her and by the end of the conversation, she actually felt like she might pass the test.

“Thank you so much,” she said, things winding to a close. They’d been talking for an hour at least. “You have definitely earned a potential marriage proposal.”

He laughed, the sound warm and low. “Wait and see if you actually pass that exam.”

“Seriously though, thank you.”

“You’re quite welcome.”

“I don’t know who you were trying to call but I’m really glad you rang me instead.”

“Me too.”

“Alight, goodnight then, Doctor.”

“Night, Rose.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

When Rose got her exam grade back and saw that she’d actually passed by more than a smidge, she quickly snapped a picture and texted it to her mystery caller.

Text to Space Doctor [5:32 pm]: <Image attached>

Text to Space Doctor [5:32 pm]: i passed! ready to accept my proposal?

Text to Starry Rose [5:36 pm]: Congratulations! Knew you could do it!

Text to Space Doctor [5:42 pm]: my prof is probably going to think i cheated

Text to Starry Rose [5:43 pm]: Nonsense! You’re brilliant!

Text to Space Doctor [5:45 pm]: science isn’t really my thing but thx

Text to Starry Rose [5:50 pm]: Feel free to call me up if you need help again. I’m happy to be of assistance.

Text to Starry Rose [5:54 pm]: If you want. That was probably weird to offer. Sorry. I just like to help and I enjoyed talking to you.

Text to Space Doctor [6:01 pm]: thatd be brilliant!!!! im def going to take you up on that

Text to Space Doctor [6:02 pm]: sorry cant chat rn. at my mums for dinner

Text to Starry Rose [6:02 pm]: Have fun! Look forward to talking again soon :)

Rose stowed her phone back in her purse and headed into the kitchen to help her mum with a smile on her face.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“You know, I never asked who you were trying to call when you ended up ringing me,” Rose said. “Last time, I mean. Obviously, since I called you this time.”

It was a couple weeks after that first call. They’d texted on and off about random things and Rose was really starting to consider him a friend despite never having laid eyes on him. With another exam looming, she’d called John up for another tutoring session.

“Oh, my sister, Donna. She wanted to try and talk me into coming to some dinner party so really you saved me,” he said, voice completely earnest.

“Happy to help.”

“Gracious of you. Ready to start?”

“Don’t need an offer of marriage beforehand?”

“I am a patient man, Rose,” he said loftily.

Rose snorted. “No you’re not. Even I could tell you that.”

“Rude.”

“Teach me of the stars oh wise, patient Doctor,” she intoned, laying the sarcasm on thick.

“Still rude but I’ll let it slide this time.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Text to Space Doctor [8:34 pm]: i looked up the going rate for tutors and i’m really glad you aren’t charging me anything

Text to Starry Rose [8:37 pm]: Who says I’m not logging hours to bill you later?

Text to Space Doctor [8:41 pm]: would have to find an address for me to bill me :)

Text to Starry Rose [8:43 pm]: That /is/ a dilemma.

Text to Space Doctor [8:47 pm]: besides… i already offered to marry you in exchange for your services as tutor. not my fault you didn’t take me up on that excellent deal

Text to Starry Rose [8:50 pm]: I still could.

Text to Space Doctor [8:51 pm]: nope too late now. missed ur chance ;)

Text to Starry Rose [8: 54 pm]: A true tragedy.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“Oi! Spaceman, are you listening to me at all?”

John whipped his head up to give Donna a sheepish expression. “Yes?”

“You weren’t. You had that goofy smile on your face that means you were texting that Rose girl.”

“I did not!”

“You so did. When are you going to actually ask her out?”

He sighed. “I don’t even know if she’s in London, Donna. Can’t exactly take her to dinner if she’s not in the city.”

“But you do want to take her to dinner!” Donna crowed.

John rolled his eyes and pocketed his phone after shooting off a quick text to Rose. “Yes, fine. I’d like to actually meet her in person and maybe eat while doing so. Happy?”

“For now.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Text to Starry Rose [10:21 am]: I wish I was anywhere except this meeting right now.

Text to Space Doctor [10:22 am]: probs better than my astronomy lecture

Text to Space Doctor [10:23 am]: i swear this guy doesn’t realize half the class is asleep

Text to Starry Rose [10:25 am]: I would MUCH rather be in an astronomy lecture right now.

Text to Space Doctor [10:26 am]: nerd

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“Ooh, are you texting your mystery man again, Rosie?” Jack asked, leaning closer to her. They were out at the pub and crammed into a booth with three other people.

Rose rolled her eyes. “He is not my mystery man. He’s just a friend who’s helping me pass astronomy.”

“You don’t even text me that much,” Jack said, eyebrows raised. “So, come on, spill the beans.”

Rose groaned and reached for her beer. “I might, might, have a crush on my mystery man.”

Jack cheered, drawing looks from everyone else at their table. “So make a move!”

“I don’t even know who he is, Jack! He probably doesn’t even live around here.”

“So?”

“So that makes making a move a bit difficult, yeah?”

“You two lovebirds already have a great connection. What’s a bit of distance and putting a face to a name?”

“A lot.”

“Fine, fine. Just think about it though.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Text to Space Doctor [1:47 am]: u stil up?

Text to Starry Rose [1:49 am]: Yes. Didn’t realize it was so late, actually.

Text to Space Doctor [1:52 am]: jack got me drynkj

Text to Space Doctor [1:53 am]: drunk. ha!

Text to Starry Rose [1:54 am]: All his fault?

Text to Space Doctor [1:56 am]: no

Text to Space Doctor [1:57 am]: ur falt too

Text to Starry Rose [2:00 am]: Really? How so?

Text to Starry Rose [2:05 am]: Rose?

Text to Starry Rose [2:11 am]: Are you alright? Do you need someone to come get you or anything? I’m in London but I can call a cab anywhere.

Text to Starry Rose [2:20 am]: I’m going to hope you just fell asleep or your phone died but let me know that you’re alright when you see these messages.

Text to Space Doctor [7:46 am]: remind me never to drink w/ jack again.

Text to Space Doctor [7:47 am]: my head is killing me

Text to Space Doctor [7:54 am]: sorry for worrying u last night. fell asleep

Text to Space Doctor [8:02 am]: also sorry for drunk texting you

Text to Starry Rose [9:13 am]: Glad you’re alright. You can text me whenever, you know that :)

Text to Space Doctor [9:14 am]: :) :) :)

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“I still can’t believe you haven’t finished reading Harry Potter,” John complained. They’d been talking for almost three months now and, as far as she could tell, he had called tonight specifically to complain about her lack of Harry Potter knowledge.

“I’ve been a bit busy.”

“The last one has been out for ten years, Rose.”

“I’ll get there!”

“You’ve at least seen the movies, right?”

“The first couple. I’m waiting to read the books,” she said, grinning. This was too easy.

He groaned dramatically. “I’m not sure I can be friends with you.”

Rose laughed. “You know you are far too easy to wind up, right?”

“What?”

“Doctor, I’ve read the whole series like three times and seen all the movies,” she admitted, still grinning as she moved into her kitchen to pour a glass of wine.

“I cannot believe you.”

“Still want to be friends?”

He sniffed, dramatic to the end. “I suppose, but you’re on thin ice.”

“Even if I tell you my theories on the Sorting Hat?”

“...I’m listening.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Text to Space Doctor [3:34 pm]: i’m going to fail all my finals but especially astronomy

Text to Starry Rose [3:36 pm]: You’re going to do brilliantly. Want me to call tonight to help go over things?

Text to Space Doctor [3:39 pm]: please. i’ll be home around 7?

Text to Starry Rose [3:45 pm]: I’ll talk to you then!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Rose walked out of her astronomy final feeling cautiously optimistic about how she’d done. She quickly fished out her mobile and turned it back on to text John. She quickly shot off a message that she’d survived and then headed straight to Tesco’s to get a celebratory bottle of wine.

Jack wasn’t finished with his tests until tomorrow so they were going out then. Tonight was all hers and she had a date with Netflix and at least one bottle of wine.

She was settling down on her sofa when her mobile buzzed in her pocket. Rose quickly checked it and smiled when she saw it was a text from the Doctor.

Text to Starry Rose [6:52 pm]: Congratulations on making it through your class! I’m sure you aced the final!

Text to Space Doctor [6:54 pm]: SO glad to be done with that class

Text to Space Doctor [6:55 pm]: celebrating with alcohol and crap telly. any watching suggestions before i pick something?

Text to Starry Rose [6:59 pm]: Star Trek?

Text to Space Doctor [7:02 pm]: omg you are so predictable

She grinned and queued up the next episode of the comedy she’d started a week ago and settled in for a cozy night.

About three quarters of the way through her bottle of wine, Rose had the sudden realization that without astronomy class, she wouldn’t have a built-in excuse to call John anymore. She knew they were friends, but what if everything was built on that tutor relationship and things started crumbling.

She’d known for a while that she had a massive crush on her mysterious friend, despite having no clue what he looked like or any identifying details about him. She took a healthy sip of her wine and picked up her phone, quickly opening her conversation with John.

Maybe meeting in person was the next step. She’d wanted to for ages but something had held her back. Fear. The fear that he would be disappointed by who she was outside of their phone conversations or that maybe she would be disappointed in him, but she thought that scenario unlikely. The fear that actually meeting would somehow ruin the magic of their instant friendship.

That feeling was suppressed by red wine, showing up only as a tickle in the pit of her stomach as she started typing.

Text to Space Doctor [8:50 pm]: you know… we should meet up sometime. get chips or something

Text to Space Doctor [8:53 pm]: i’m in london too. don’t know if i ever told you that

Text to Space Doctor [8:56 pm]: but i’d really like to properly meet you.

Text to Space Doctor [9:00 pm]: only if you want tho

Rose stared down at her phone, biting her bottom lips as the television played on unnoticed. He usually answered faster than this. Had she made him uncomfortable? Oh god, what if she’d completely screwed things up?

She set her phone aside and tried to concentrate on her show and reclaim the celebratory mood she’d felt earlier but it was gone.

Soon the wine was as well.

John never texted back.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

When Jack arrived at Rose’s flat the next afternoon, he expected to find his friend chipper and ready for a night out on the town now that they were done with the semester. Instead, she opened the door in sweats and an oversized t-shirt, expression drawn.

“Whoa there, Rosie. You feeling alright?” he asked, stepping into her flat and closing the door behind him.

“I’m fine,” she said, giving him a wan smile. “Just lost track of time. I’ll go get ready, you know where everything is.”

“Hey now,” he said, grabbing onto her arm so she didn’t get very far. “What’s wrong? Did you get a bad exam grade back or something? It’s not like you to be so down, especially when we’re free of classes for a bit!”

“I’m fine!”

“You’re not. Fight with your mystery boy?”

Rose looked away and Jack felt a protective anger rising in his chest.

“What did the jackass do?”

“Nothing, that’s the problem,” she said with a sigh, sagging back against the back of the sofa.

“Care to elaborate?”

“I’d texted him earlier last night to tell him I’d survived the astronomy final and everything seemed fine and then I had to go and open my stupid mouth after having a lot of wine.”

Jack raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue.

She sighed. “I asked him if he wanted to meet up sometime, like in person. Get chips or something.”

“And he didn’t answer you?”

“S’like he fell off the face of the planet. I haven’t heard from him all day.”

“Aw, Rose, I’m sorry. I know you really like him.” Jack gathered her into a hug and his heart cracked a bit when he heard her sniffle.

“I really really do. Why won’t he answer me? He could just say no and we could stay phone friends at least.”

“I don’t know, Rosie. Your man’s an idiot.”

She laughed, a small watery thing but a laugh nonetheless. “Yeah he is.”

“Wanna stay in and watch cheesy chick flicks and eat ice cream?”

“I don’t want to ruin your night, Jack. You go ahead and go out without me,” she insisted, pulling back from the hug.

“Nope. I’m spending the night with you. We can go out another time when you’ll actually have fun.”

“I might have already eaten all my ice cream.”

“I’ll go get us some more while you pick out movies. Deal?”

“Throw in some wine and you’ve got one.”

“Perfect.”

They shook on it like they always did and then Jack kissed her forehead and waltzed back out the door.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

John sped back to town, anxious to get to his flat where he would have both a charged mobile and service so he could use it. He’d gone on a stargazing trip and forgotten that he wouldn’t have any reception or power and he hadn’t told Rose that he was going off the grid.

Damn but he missed her. He was really hoping that she still wanted to be friends now that she didn’t need his astronomy knowledge any more. He thought that she would but there was still this niggling worry that maybe he thought they were better friends than they were. He could be blinded by the ginormous crush he had on her but he was almost positive that they were legitimately friends.

The moment he stepped into his flat he dropped his bag on the floor with a thud and made a beeline for the phone charger by his bed. Powering up his mobile, he winced at the number of texts he’d missed. A couple were from Donna but he went straight to his messages with Rose.

He couldn’t contain his grin when he read the first few, the ones that said she wanted to meet him. John couldn’t believe he’d missed these! Then his heart fell into his stomach as he kept reading.

Text to Space Doctor [10:34 am]: if you don’t want to meet up u can just say so

Text to Space Doctor [10:40 am]: i’m not going to hold it against you or anythin

Text to Space Doctor [5:45 pm]: i hope you’re alright. not like you not to text back.

Text to Space Doctor [6:02 pm]: sorry if i made things awkward

Text to Space Doctor [11:22 am]: you know what, fuck this. i really want to meet you because i really like you and you’re one of my best friends now. you don’t have to up and ghost me just out of the blue like this

Text to Space Doctor [1:30 pm]: please at least let me know that you’re okay

John swore profusely as he checked the time and realized that her last text was from four hours ago. She’d been texting him all weekend, thinking he was just ignoring her because he was an idiot and forgot to tell her he was going out of range.

Hands shaking, he hit the dial button and raised the phone to his ear, praying she’d actually pick up.

“Nice of you to finally answer me,” she said acidly when she picked up on what he thought was the last ring before it went to voicemail. “I do like to know that my friend isn’t dead in a ditch somewhere.”

“Rose, I’m so sorry,” he started.

“For worrying me or for being a prick or for something else?”

“Everything? I was on a stargazing trip and I forgot that I wouldn’t have service out there. And then my phone died and I’d forgotten to pack my charger and I just got back to my flat and saw your messages. I called right away. I’m so sorry.” The words spilled out of him, like if he got them out fast enough, Rose would believe him faster and they could move past this and get to the meeting up part that he really hoped she still wanted to do.

There was silence for a moment and then he heard Rose start laughing.

“Rose?”

“Oh my god, I was worried that I’d scared you off and then that something had happened and you were just being your normal idiot self,” she said through her laughs.

“Um, yeah pretty much. And for the record, you proposed to me during our first conversation, I don’t think you’re scaring me off now,” he said, rubbing at the back of his neck with his free hand.

“Well, that’s good to hear.”

“So, chips? I’ll buy. I really want to meet you too.” He paused, heart racing as he worked on getting the words out. “I kinda really like you too,” he said.

“It’s a date,” Rose said. He could hear the smile in her voice and he grinned too.

“Brilliant!”

“Are you free right now? I could murder a basket of chips right about now.”

“I am! Just have to wait for my phone to finish charging.”

“Perfect. I’ll text you the address of my favorite chippy?”

“Sounds good.”

“Alright, I’ll see you later then!”

John made a little happy noise and Rose laughed.

“I like the sound of that too,” she admitted.

“I’ll see you in a bit.”

“Bye, Doctor.”

“Bye Rose.”

They rang off and the Doctor just grinned down at his phone. He had a date with Rose! A real proper date!

His mobile buzzed and he quickly opened the message from Rose.

Text to Space Doctor [5:47 pm]: meet in an hour? this is the address.

Text to Space Doctor [5:47 pm]: <image attached>

Text to Space Doctor [5:48 pm]: and that’s me so you know who you’re looking for ;)

Text to Space Doctor [5:49 pm]: see you soon! xx

Text to Starry Rose [5:49 pm]: You are gorgeous.

Text to Starry Rose [5:50 pm]: <image attached>

Text to Starry Rose [5:50 pm]: One hour. See you soon :) xx

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Within five minutes of meeting, neither of them could remember why they were so nervous about doing this. They talked as easily as they had over the phone and text for months but now, they could see the smiles they were drawing from the other person and brush fingers as they stole chips from each other.

Rose teased John endlessly about forgetting his wallet when he had promised to buy but said that they were definitely on him next time. His answering grin was so wide and bright that Rose thought she might pay for the chips all the time just to see it.

They reluctantly parted ways after a couple hours, heading in opposite directions outside of the shop. Rose had barely made it around the first corner when her phone vibrated in her hand.

Text to Starry Rose [9:15 pm]: Have plans for tomorrow?

Text to Space Doctor [9:16 pm]: miss me already? ;)

Text to Starry Rose [9:16 pm]: Yes.

Text to Space Doctor [9:16 pm]: big ol’ softie <3 i miss you too

Text to Space Doctor [9:17 pm]: and no i don’t have anything planned

Text to Starry Rose [9:18 pm]: Good. Want to hang out with me?

Text to Space Doctor [9:18 pm]: absolutely. give me the details when you know them?

Text to Starry Rose [9:20 pm]: Will do :)

Text to Space Doctor [11:15 pm]: so i figure i might as well put this out there before i see you tomorrow. i meant it when i said i really like you and you should know that it’s as more than just a friend. i’m hopin that you feel the same but if not than we can stay just friends

Text to Space Doctor [11:18 pm]: really what i’m trying to say is that if you’re not completely opposed to the idea i’m probably going to kiss you tomorrow

Text to Starry Rose [11:19 pm]: Honestly, I almost kissed you today when we hugged goodbye so I’m definitely not opposed and I feel the same way :)

Text to Space Doctor [11:20 pm]: !!!!

Text to Starry Rose [11:20 pm]: Haha, my feelings exactly!

Text to Space Doctor [11:22 pm]: so… do you want to just come over to mine tomorrow and watch netflix and maybe make out on the couch?

Text to Space Doctor [11:23 pm]: i might even let you convince me to watch star trek finally

Text to Starry Rose [11:23 pm]: Yes.

Text to Starry Rose [11:23 pm]: Also yes to the Star Trek. You’re going to love it!

Text to Space Doctor [11:24 pm]: your nerdery is catching, apparently

Text to Space Doctor [11:24 pm]: i only didn’t watch it before because i thought it would be more fun to watch it with you

Text to Starry Rose [11:25 pm]: Now who’s the big ol’ softie? :)) <3

Text to Space Doctor [11:25 pm]: the promise of make outs helps too

Text to Space Doctor [11:26 pm]: still you <3

Text to Starry Rose [11: 28 pm]: I’m going to get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow! xx

Text to Space Doctor [11:29 pm]: goodnight doctor <3 see you tomorrow xx