#come on! lights on! i want him extra pathetic next time!!

[fisheito]

He gets a little ..Dark Mode every other event

[paperbackribs]

tags: steddie, nsfw, the homoeroticism of knowing you could treat them better

🥵🍆💦

"Okay," Robin smirks at Eddie as she pops the open button on the microwave in Steve’s kitchen, "But you understand how pathetically gay you sound right now, yes?" She pulls out a fragrant paper bag of popcorn; she says that she likes to have an extra bag before retiring after one of their movie nights.

Eddie scowls, forgetting that Steve's in the next room as he becomes revved up over a pet peeve that is less pet and more a wild animal, "It's not gay to appreciate a work of art." He gestures wildly, the lights above catch on his heavy silver rings, "It's not gay to understand that a sweet, beautiful boy is tragically unloved."

Robin snorts, pulling open the edges of the paper bag, releasing a plume of buttery steam, "No, pretty sure that's pretty gay. Next thing I know you'll declare 'no homo' while sucking his dick."

"I'd suck his dick better than Brittany or Betta or Betsy or whatever her name was," Eddie declares, sore at the memory of Steve's broken brow as he'd explained that his latest date had ridden his face and then gave him a pat on his shoulder, explaining that it was a nice time but not to expect a callback.

What an idiot, Eddie fumes to himself, neglecting to notice the shifting shadows in the hallway behind him; who doesn't enjoy a man who vehemently and vocally declares his love for going down on his partners? Eddie would kill for a partner willing to suck him dry.

Eddie may have blamed the deficiency on the female of the species, but Steve had allowed Eddie in the inner sanctum a few months ago: letting him know that it wasn’t only Robin and Eddie who were vehement friends of Dorothy, even if it was only Steve who enjoyed the full spectrum of the rainbow. And while B-whatever-her-name-was may be the source of Eddie’s ire right now, he knows that Steve has had likewise lousy luck with men whenever they’d ventured for their weekend nights out to Indy.

Each and every time Eddie had to endure Steve’s sad face a week or two later as he’d admitted that he thought his night’s partner may be up for more than just a brief bit of fun. And each and every time he’s been left dumbfounded because—

Eddie pulls at his hair, trying to work it out because—

Well. He can only imagine that every single person that’s walked away from Steve’s beautiful lips couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn with a fucking canon with the intelligence left over in their little pea brains. Because Steve Harrington is a goddamn catch and every one of them has let him escape their grasp.

Eddie’s too busy scowling down at his Reeboks to see Robin look over his shoulder and softly laugh. She scoops a handful of popcorn into her mouth as she swiftly leaves the kitchen, calling out, “I’m claiming the spare bedroom tonight—the one at the far end—see ya.”

Eddie looks up at the last minute, wondering at her sudden exit.

The air shifts again but Eddie doesn’t realise it until Steve’s right behind him. "Her name was Bella," Seve says in a low caress, close enough that his warm breath rustles Eddie's loose curls.

He stops, frozen, the touch of Steve's words making Eddie ache for something that he's wanted for such a very long time even as he’s unwilling to allow himself to think that Steve could mean anything by leaning in so close. But he can’t help but shiver, a tiny movement that brings his lips against Steve's sharp jaw, nearly stuttering, "Who?"

Strong arms wrap around him, bringing the broad planes of Steve’s chest against Eddie’s back, blunt fingers coming up to grip his jaw, directing Eddie’s lips to just under Steve’s.

Eddie freezes again in desperation, every single fantasy converging at once to break his brain and body while he tries to understand that the arms, hands and fingers wrapped around him are not an invention of a daydream.

"I’m saying,” Steve says patiently, eyeing Eddie with a dark gaze over his firm grip, "That I want you. Not Brittany or Betta or Betsy."

Eddie swallows around the knot in his throat.

"Just you," Steve repeats, a steady weight holding down his words that has Eddie’s gaze flying up to meet the hard pressure of hazel eyes bearing down on him. A force that has Eddie’s heart knocking heavily against his ribs, his breath shuddering against his frame, pressing taut and bullying against the thin of Eddie’s skin as he meets Steve’s expectant gaze.

And suddenly Eddie is angry.

Furious.

He’s had to endure weeks and months of listening to Steve be sad. Listening to Steve tell of glum exploits where women and men haven’t appreciated his freely-given love. Where it hadn’t mattered how quickly and devotedly Steve would put himself forward, that his partner would pat him on the back and distance him or herself after.

Eddie is furious and he glares at Steve’s beautiful hazel eyes, so close to his own and suddenly wide at the clear fury in Eddie’s eyes. Steve stumbles back, “What…” But Eddie lowers himself decisively, knees falling to the ground with a clear thump and thighs spreading as he knows with a deep conviction that he’s finally interpreting Steve’s actions correctly.

He looks up with dark eyes and presses into the tentative hand that falls against Eddie’s nape; Steve’s brows pull together, doubt drawing at them, “Eddie…”

Eddie glares up at Steve with all the strength of emotion running through him like the swift currents of a river. “No Steve, that’s it. That’s fucking it.”

He determinedly wraps his fingers around the zipper of Steve’s Levi’s and, as Steve chokes out his name again, Eddie glares up at him, daring Steve to take his prize away. “No, I’m done. You’ve given me permission now. You’ve given me a sliver of hope, and you’re not fucking taking it away.”

Eddie swiftly draws down the zipper, pulling down denim and soft cotton until Steve’s already hard cock bobs in front of him and he reaches forward quickly, hand already at its base and mouth open as he’s about to swallow him down but Steve’s hand buries itself in Eddie’s curls, gripping him tight.

“Do you want me?” Steve breathes and Eddie somehow finds it in himself to glower deeper, scowling up at Steve while refusing to speak. Inching forward until the tip of Steve’s cock hovers over Eddie’s open mouth. Steve curses and a heavy pearl of fluid drops from the tip to Eddie’s outstretched tongue. Eyes closing in contentment, he hears Steve choke as Eddie almost hums around the welcome flavour.

“Right,” Steve rasps roughly before pushing forward to rest against Eddie’s lips, he traces the heavy beads from his weeping slit against the petals of his mouth, breath running ragged before pressing further.

Eddie gasps, stretching his lips wide and pushing in and forward to embrace the cock intruding his mouth. His lashes flutter as he finally has the heavy weight of Steve’s cock resting on his tongue, stretching his mouth obscenely open before peering up to check where Steve’s at.

He needn’t have worried because Steve’s own mouth is hanging open with eyes darkly trained on Eddie. “So fucking pretty,” Steve gasps, gripping Eddie’s head to pull him closer. Choking Eddie as he moans, “Yes, fucking, yes, baby. Take it.” And Eddie does. Gratefully. Happily. Fucking swallows and devours and pistons back and forward until the bitter musk dripping from Steve’s dick is greedily consumed, taken within.

Steve cries out, throbbing powerfully and pouring into Eddie. Spilling and overflowing, fucking against his face until beads flood and stream out of his mouth. Eddie lets out a long, guttural and broken sound, grateful for the blessing that Steve fills him with.

He’s so consumed with the feel of Steve in him, surrounding him, that he barely registers the hardness in his own black denim until Steve drops to his knees too, meeting Eddie face to face before falling forward, fingers working his zipper open and mouth swallowing him whole.

Eddie gasps at the sudden sensation of the hot welcoming cavern of Steve’s mouth. He bucks, lightning shooting up his spine and overwhelmed at the attention as he thrusts once, twice and another before shuddering as he releases into Steve’s warm embrace.

Gasping, Eddie’s head falls forward to stare down at Steve in wonderment. In clear awe as he stares down at the beautiful boy in his lap. Mind blissed but still a niggle worries at the back of his mind, enough to have his hand reaching forward to Steve’s face, cupping his cheek and bringing him up to meet Eddie.

“Sweetheart,” the endearment drops from Eddie’s mouth without his permission.

Steve’s lips tug up, spreading in a grin and widening his eyes, “You want me, don’t you?” He asks, almost breathless.

“Yes. Fucking yes.” Eddie has nothing but honesty to his name at this point.

Steve smiles. Smug and fucking so proud of himself. He leans forward, “Then take me,” he whispers.

And Eddie does.

❤️ More steddie here

[mytheoristavenue]

DS Stalker!Gyutaro Shabana x Courtesan!Reader 🍋 - Bloodlust

Summary: Gyutaro has stalked you for months. He was so captivated by your ethereal beauty he couldn't keep away. Though he never expected to discover how ruthless and blood thirsty you could be.

Warnings: NSFW, knife play, bloodplay, brief mention of assault by a third party, violence inflicted onto a third party, sado-masochism, fluffy ending, forbidden love, yandere x yandere

Word Count: 3.7K

Gytaro who was a bit shy at first, always lurking out your window, watching you change and work. He was just keeping an eye on your clients, at least that's what he told himself. He knew from protecting Daki how some men could be once they indulged in the drink, he was just looking out for you! You'd never even know he was there, or at least, that's how he intended it, but when he witnessed a customer become a bit too rough with you for his comfort, his body reacted before his brain did.

The gentleman had paid for a dance, the cheapest service you offered, but soon his hands were on your hips, traveling up your ribs. "That'll cost you extra, darling..." You gently reminded the man, guiding his hands off you with a light touch. But he persisted and after a second warning, you stepped away. "I'd love to indulge you but-" Before you could even request additional payment, you were thrown to the floor, pinned against the decorative rug, caged in the man's drunken form. You let out a terrified yelp, knowing all too well what would come next. "P-Please sir, you can have what you want, I beg of you," You pled with glossy, constricted pupils. "Y-You don't have to take me by force!"

Gyutaro's body, upon hearing a cry for help, moved on instinct as he crashed through the door to your balcony. In moments he'd crossed the room, hovering over you with a heinous stare that seemed to bore right through you. Slapping a heavy, grey palm onto the client's head, the intruder sunk his fingers into his hair before lifting him off the floor by it. "I believe the lady warned you to step back. Hasn't your mother ever told you not to put your filthy paws on things that don't belong to you?" His voice was hoarse and venomous, filled with an air of contempt that rattled your bones.

You scrambled back as soon as you saw the chance to, clearing the room until your back hit the opposite wall. While the client was obviously stunned, you could immediately recognize the much greater danger you now faced. Being a courtesan was hard, always being at the mercy of harsh men, but you knew that there were much more terrifying monsters just outside the house walls. And this stranger, your savior, was one such devil. You instantly recognized the demonic features he possessed that your gentleman caller missed through his inebriated haze. "I paid for the whore, I'm entitled to use her how I please!" The drunkard argued, wincing at the scalping grip on his hair.

Gyutaro's fist twisted at the word 'whore', his snarl even more apparent. He never did care for such language, given how many times he had to hear it hurled at his sister. "Care to change your wording, friend?" He asked, venom dripping from his voice as he raised a sickle to his throat. When the man doubled down, his glare hardened in disdain. He could smell the alcohol on the man's breath, which disgusted him further. "What a pathetic waste of flesh. Alcohol taints everything it touches."

The smallest whimper from you reminded the demon why he'd acted in the first place. His head instantly snapped backward over his shoulder and the fear in your eyes had him dropping his prey. He immediately darted over and crouched at your side, looking you over. He checked your skin for bruising or scratches with the confidence of a medical professional. It was almost as if he were experienced in caring for vulnerable young women, especially ones in distress. "Are you alright?" His cracked voice asks, so much softer now. You nod shakily, studying his face and body with wide eyes.

"W-Who are you...?" You asked breathlessly, despite already knowing to some extent.

"I'm not gonna hurt you..." He answered oddly, backing away a bit before standing and offering you a corpse pale hand. You took it delicately, letting him pull you up. "P-Please don't be afraid." Even though his sudden entrance, appearance, and proclivity for violence had petrified you moments ago, the timidness that shrouded him brought you comfort and wore down your guard.

"I'm not afraid of you," You gave him a sweet smile that made him queasy. He eyed you cautiously as you stepped over to the man crumpled on the floor. " Now then," Gyutaro's eyes widened, and his jaw fell slack when you spoke to the client.

"I believe you owe me more money." He watched your hands roam the client's unconscious body, seemingly searching for something. He could tell when you found it by how your eyes caught the lantern light, sparkling with the wonder of a child who has just received their first spending coin. You snatched the sachel of coins from the man's sleeve, tucking it into yours. "Considering you only paid for a dance but still tried to force your miserable needle prick onto me anyway." Your tone was saccharine, but your words were deadly. They sent a shiver down the demon's spine as he watched your leg rear back and slam between the client's legs.

He didn't stop you from giving the man a few more sharp kicks before smiling at him over your shoulder. "Gyutaro, my dear?" He stiffened at the sweet allure of your affection, nodding as a sign that he was listening. "Would you please dispose of this thing for me?" A wicked grin cracked across his face at your request. You both passed each other as he approached the client and you made your way to a cabinet to store your 'earnings'. He did as you asked, ecstatic to realize how cruel you could be while he did, slaying the man where he lay.

"I'm sorry for the mess, I'll take care of it." He said sheepishly, crouched over the body, his hands spattered with red.

"You are good at cleaning messes, aren't you?" You suddenly ask, lounging on the bed, watching him work. "You strike me as the kind of man who lives off dirty work."

"T-That's not far from the truth." He admitted, pausing at your assumption. It unnerved him deeply how well you seemed to guess aspects of him when he hadn't even introduced himself.

"I never caught your name..." You mused, admiring how his skin stained with blood, carelessly smeared across his gaunt form.

"Gyutaro..." He answered nervously, still facing away, head dipped low as he quietly devoured his victim. He worried that he might scare you again if he ate too loudly, but something in the back of his mind reassured him otherwise.

"Well, Gyutaro..." You cooed, your voice oh so inviting. "Tonight is your lucky night. A generous donor has paid in advance for my services, all for you, anything your wicked little heart could desire." You were vile, letting out a deceptively sweet snicker as your new 'client' licked the blood of the 'generous donor' off his fingertips.

His golden eyes snapped wide, still facing away as he slowly turned back to look at you. "W-Whatever my heart desires...?" He repeated in disbelief, carnivorous teeth red and glistening. "Y-You'd lay with someone as repulsive as me?"

"Repulsive? Who told you that?" You ask softly, eyes never hinting betrayal from that he could see. "The only repulsive thing here is half eaten by now. The way I see it, you're quite the opposite." You began to pick apart his appearance, finding something good to say about his every aspect. "You know, a lot of courtesans paint their face white to look this pale, you should be proud. And this hair, such a lovely shade of green. I bet it's so pretty when it's all combed out."

Try as he might to resist you, when you beckoned him forth, he found himself drawling closer as if he had no mind of his own. You had to be a fellow demon with some sort of brainwashing blood art, he dedicated. But that wasn't true at all. You were just a human with demonic tastes. Finally, when he sat between your knees, you cradled his head in your hands, staring down lovingly. You wetted the pad of your thumb against your tongue before running it over the large, oddly shaped birthmark that splinted his face. Your eyes softened when your thumb came back clean. "Just as I thought..." You mused so sweetly.

"W-What is it?" He asked, terrified you might finally decide to reject him. He melted into your lap at your answer, obviously starving for praise and feminine attention.

"These marks don't come off, do they?" He shook his head shamefully, but you reassured him before he could self-deprecate. "They're so lovely, they look like dark clouds. I'd die for an obi with that pattern." That comment tore him, his fate was sealed.

-----

"A-Ahh, fuck-" You whimpered, muffled by the wad of silk bedsheet in your jaw. Tears streamed down your cheeks as you screamed with delight, laying on your tummy as he took you from behind, so generously doing all the heavy lifting. "G-Gyutaro!"

"Louder," He demanded, breath ragged as can be, gaunt hips bullying you into submission- not like he needed to, not with how you'd thrown yourself at him."Tell me how much you want it, how bad it hurts."

"H-Hurts so bad, my love!" You gasped, cock drunk and addicted to the terrible bruising on your cervix. "P-Please don't ever stop!"

"Nothing could drag me away," He rasped, nails digging into your doughy hips, admiring the way the warm blood on his hands painted your skin so beautifully. You'd begged him not to wipe his hands after he was done with the client, and he was so glad he obeyed, intoxicated by the visage of bloody handprints all over your back and ass. It was so warm it made you ache, shuddering as he drew a crimson line down your oh so sensitive spine. "Wanna spend eternity like this."

You gasped at the sudden change in sensation, feeling what resembled cold steel press into your nape. "Stay forever," you begged, leading into the touch of the foreign object. "Never leave me, Gyutaro."

"Wish I could," He hissed, dragging his shaft out of your already sore core, only to rut back into it painfully slowly. "More than anything, I wish I could." One hand held you firmly by the hip, the other gripped the handle of a macabre sickle, made from sinew and flesh, but lacking any softness or warmth of those materials. The blade of it pressed teasingly into the supple back of your neck, slicing a few hairs in half. Ignoring your lusty pleas for his blade, Gyutaro refrained from actually causing you any harm. He'd hate to see such flawless skin permanently tainted.

"P-Please, my love," You implored, ming numb and seeking out nothing but his presence, and the painful pleasure only he could provide. "Stay by my side, keep me safe and I'll keep you happy!" You reasoned, chasing a dangerous high that would remain out of your reach so long as he refused to slice your skin. "I can keep you fed, and you can take me whenever you choose, in whatever way, just say you'll stay with me!"

Gyutaro's nails splintered against the bony snath of the sickle, your desperate words tearing at his sense of reason. He could be nearly content to hide away in your room for the rest of his days, like a monster in the closet, spending all his time eating unruly customers and fucking you to his heart's content but deep down, he knew it was a pipe dream. He could never abandon his sister, she was his whole reason for living, and nobody, not even you, who seemed to hold genuine love and care for him, could ever change that. Even if he decided that was the life he wanted for himself- that leaving Daki wouldn't bother him, he was still physically bound to her as the sixth Upper Moon.

"F-Fuck, I want to, I swear." He breathed through gritted teeth. "N-Nothing would make me happier," As he lamented to you his desires, his hips began to lose pace and rhythm, snapping into yourself erratically and without reason. He was chasing the same rabbit as you, only with the need to inflict pain rather than feel it.

"G-Gyutaro!" You cried, having long since abandoned your attempts to keep quiet, mouth now free of the silk that covered your futon, drool free to spill where it pleased. Your fellow courtesans of the Kyogoku house paid no mind to your sobs, knowing they had seen a rich man enter your room. If anything, they were jealous of the fun you seemed to be having. "Please, please, please..." You chanted dumbly, unable to spit the request off your bitten tongue.

"P-Please what, beauty? Use your words," He grunted, leaning down so close over your blood-stained back that his forehead could almost rest on your shoulder.

"F-Fuck me to death," You wept, tears streaming down your face, finally relieved to feel the blade of his sickle press harder into your throat. The sensation was short-lived, however, as he then drew away entirely.

"Please don't say such things," He pled, wrestling with his own bloodlust. "I-If you don't stop I might-"

"To be slain in the throws of passion by a creature as beautiful as you would be-!" You halted, teetering on the edge of a deadly climax. "Such an honor!" To your surprise and delight, you felt his hand leave your hip, tangling into a fistful of your hair, matting it with blood. His other hand reached your shoulder, pressing the blade of the sickle to your throat. The entire position felt deliciously obscene, even demonic in nature. You felt like a sacrifice and Gyutaro was your merciful god. "A-Ah, thank you!" You gushed as his hips began to move again, bottoming out fully with each thrust.

"I-I warned you, my sweet..." He grumbled, almost sadly. "I-I tried to warn you that I was dangerous but you just," He paused, snapping his emaciated hips against yours, no longer caring for how well you took the blow. "Won't," He paused again, punctuating his words with another harsh roll of the hip. "Fucking," Another one. "Listen..." And another.

You were in trouble now and you knew it, not that you cared. This is what you wanted from the start. This was what you asked for. Now you just had to lie in the bed you'd made, simple as that. "I won't show you any more mercy, it's obvious that you're just trying to make me hurt you. Is that what you want? For me to hurt you?"

You nodded drunkenly, whining in confirmation. "Y-Yes, Gyutaro, please hurt me!"

And then it happened, that sweet sting you'd been so impatiently waiting for. A sting that surely drew the smallest drops of blood across your unmarked throat. The point of the sickle had barely slid across your skin, simply scratching the top layer, but it was enough. You'd spent entirely too long on the edge and this was just the thing to push out off into the abyss.

The prayer you screamed wasn't even intelligible, but Gyutaro understood it perfectly as if it were a secret language that only the two of you knew. He didn't slow as you babbled his name, or what you could attempt of it. His grip on your hair never loosened, and the press of his blade to your lifeline never relented, not until he was satisfied. Even after the climax gave way to overwhelming sensitivity, you never tried to get away from him. You were hellbent on behaving for your favorite 'client'.

"F-Fuck, so good, ahh..." His moans became needier, as he reached the summit, thrusts becoming shallow and breakneck fast, keeping himself buried as deeply in you as possible while still maintaining friction. "Fuck, gonna-!" He warned, both hands releasing their grip as his arms wrapped around your shoulders in a terribly uncomfortable hug. You knew his sickle was out of his reach when it fell beside your hand on the futon with a soft thud. His hips began to falter as he pumped into you, holding you close to his chest, your discomfort in the odd position far from his mind.

You were content with the ache of being stretched backward, knowing he was so close to his end. You reached your hands up, cradling his temples, stroking his hair, and cooing softly to him in broken words. "P-Please, Gyutaro, cum for me," You encouraged, relishing in his sudden need for sweetness. "Please, you deserve it, cum inside, don't waste a single drop. You've earned it, my love."

With a few flexes of your abdominal muscles, you milked him, sending him over the edge almost immediately. "A-Ah, God, fuck!" He whimpered, feeling his seed spill into your warmth as he chanted shallow praises in your ear. "So fuckin' pretty, shit, can't believe you let me cum inside this perfect pussy, oh my God-" You simply fell limp in his arms, exhausted and happy that you were able to provide him any sort of relief from the hard life you were sure he'd had. "Love you, fuck, I love you so much..."

The words caught you off guard, and you wondered if he meant them. It wasn't uncommon for you to hear confessions like this post-orgasm, but none that you'd received ever felt so genuine. You breathed out a weak laugh, shifting in his arms so you both could lay down, you on your tummy again and him ontop of you. Maybe you wanted this one to be real- to mean something. Maybe you felt similarly.

"Will I ever see you again?" You asked, lacing your fingers with his as he threatened to fall asleep on your shoulder.

"Do you...want to?" Gyutaro asked, almost taken aback. "I didn't think you meant all that stuff about me staying..."

"Of course I did, and I still do..." You admitted sleepily, yawning as if to emphisize the point. "Will you?"

The bond that you'd both forged was undeniably strong, but couldn't break the one he shared with Daki. Though it did convince him to divulge more information to you than he probably should have. "I-I can't..."

"Oh," You responded sadly. Disappointment was an understatement. You wanted to feel angry, but you couldn't. Your heart ached for the fact that the one man who had treated you like a human since you began working at the Kyogoku house wasn't even human at all, and even worse, he intended to leave you just like every other man did.

"P-Please hear me out, I beg of you," He stammered, shaking off his drowsiness for the moment. "Promise me you will never speak a word of me or what I'm about to tell you to anyone."

"I promise," You agreed, rolling over as he did the same so that he could look into your eyes, displaying all the conviction he had.

With a deep breath, he explained everything, only leaving out the one man he couldn't name. He was sure that if you were begging him to stay, surely, you could be trusted as a confidant.

"I am not the only demon in this district," He confessed, eyes darting away, as if to avoid potentially seeing your face contort with fear. "M-My sister is also a very powerful one and together, we rank very highly among a sacred group of elite demons known as the Twelve Kizuki." You simply nodded, unable to discern if he was being honest or not. "You are actually very familiar with her, and I'm sorry for that, I'm sure she's been especially unkind to you in the past." You could tell he was stalling revealing the identity of this woman and you laid a reassuring hand on top of his.

"What is her name?" You asked, humoring him and proving that you were listening.

"To me, her name is Ume," He answered almost sadly. "Her current name is Daki, but you know her as Warabihime."

Your content smile immediately dropped and your blood ran cold, recalling all the experiences you'd had with the ruthless woman. "Y-You mean to tell me... your sister is..." You swallowed thickly. "O-Oiran Warabihime?"

Gyutaro nodded hesitantly, understanding your fear. He knew all too well how Daki could be, especially towards other women. "I-I'm sorry, I'll understand if you don't want to see me again. Just please know that I'll ensure she treats you better from now on."

You thought on it for a moment before sighing. More than anything, you wanted to explore the possibility of being with him, no matter the risk. "Does that mean you live in Kyogoku house?" You asked with a brave smile, making his heart skip a bit.

"In a way, yes." He answered with a gulp before continuing. "My entire life is solely dedicated to looking after my sister, to ensure that, I-I... I live inside her." You eyed him cautiously but gave him room to explain. "We share the same rank, body, and bond. Though I'd never leave her for anything, we can't be physically separated for long."

"That is why you cannot stay..." You realized aloud. "I see..."

"Yes," He breathed, relieved that you understood, collecting your hands in his. "Please believe me when I say, my desire to stay with you eternally is only trumped by my oath to protect my sister. If I could possibly have both, I would find a way to in a heartbeat."

You smiled at him, that same overly sweet smile that gave him chills every time you flashed it. "Then we will find a way." You drank in his expression, shocked but so smitten. "I will befriend your sister if it is the last thing I do, I will make myself indispensable to the house. I will ensure that I stay within it's walls if you will do what you can to be with me."

"I-I can try." He accepts, a gentle, never-before-seen smile creeping onto his face. "I-I'll try to convince Daki to favor you above the other girls, and I'll try to visit you as often as I can."

"That, and your love and protection are all I ask for, darling." You cooed, pulling him closer into your chest.

"You have it, beauty," He answered, content in your arms. "I-I do love you, I meant that."

You stiffen for a moment, eyes widen before softening exponentially more. "And I love you."

[buckyandgeraltsupremacy]

remus x shy!reader (part 5)

author: sj

warnings: fluff; BARELY sexual content if you really squint; reader is in hufflepuff; uses she/her pronouns; not edited

next and probably last part will be the other boys finding out !!!!! :)

masterlist

part 1 / part 2 / part 3 / part 4

---

remus felt like he was going to explode. if he didn't kiss you he was going to lose his mind. it all started the week after you had gone on that first date. sirius had made the comment about you snogging someone and then all of a sudden, all he could think about was your lips.

he had woken up from a very vivid dream about your lips and how soft they would be, a warm, fluttery feeling floating in his chest, heart beating wildly while your lips started moving down towards his chest. he could feel you light laugh giggling against his neck while you smiled, moving your way down. remus had woken with a start in the middle of the night, abruptly realizing that you kissing his neck wasn't real.

the next day in class, all he could think about was your lips, moving their way across his body mapping it. he also had to keep readjusting his pants at the thought of you and it only got worse when he had to look at you, eyes drawing towards your lips every time he looked at you.

not only did he struggle with this for a week, but it was also getting close to the full moon and remus was going to cry if he didn't get to kiss you and now, which led to now.

"hey rem!" you exclaimed, eyes brightening and smile getting bigger as you realized he was in the common room, curiously without the other boys. he loved the way you weren't shy around him anymore. the unguarded way that you let your smile shine when talking to him.

"hi bun." he said back, arms wrapping around you as you immediately wrapped yourself around him. you sighed into his touch. nothing compared to being wrapped in your favorite person's embrace. hugs were always welcome with you and your friends, but there's something about remus' hugs that made you all warm inside, melting all your insecurities away and replacing them with warm confidence.

"love, can we talk?" your heart immediately drops at his words, anxiety creeping up into your throat.

"yeah? whats wrong rem?" you ask, pulling away from him slightly to look up into his face.

"nothings wrong love. i just... can't do it anymore." your heart is increasing at this point, thinking he's going to tell you that he's in love with someone. of course he is, why wouldn't he be in love with someone, he's one of the best men you've ever met. or he's uncomfortable with how touchy you are with him. you immediately start panicking.

"what do you mean?" remus can see the panic swirling in your face and how your face has significantly drained of color.

"no, no, bun. i just can't stop pretending i don't have feelings for you. i'm tired of not telling you how beautiful you are, how i want to tell everyone you're mine, and how i just so desperately want to kiss you." remus rushes out, making sure that you don't think he is trying to get rid of you, if anything he just wants more of you.

you stare at his eyes, brain trying to process the information that just came into your ears. you felt your heart beating extra hard, the words you had always dreamed of hearing coming out of remus' mouth not registering in your brain.

"what?" you asked.

"i like you, bun. and if you don't feel the same, we can just move on, but if you do, please let me kiss you." you can hear yourself audibly swallow.

"but rem. i don't... i've never kissed anyone. what if i don't it right?" you whisper, cringing at how pathetic it sounds coming out. remus' eyes widen and a small smirk lifts his lips.

"bun, you couldn't be anymore perfect if you tried. kissing will come naturally to you. plus a little practice has never hurt anyone." he smirks, his eyes looking between yours and going down to your lips. you smiled at his response and tilted your face up towards his. his met yours eagerly and gently, causing your knees to weaken. his big hands came up to your face and cupped your cheeks and after a minute of savoring the moment, he pulled away and your eyes opened to see his gleaming back at you.

"you are the sweetest thing in my life, bun." all you could do was grin back, heat creeping up to your face.

[just-my-latest-hyperfixation]

A chance encounter

Words: 1,732 [also on AO3]

Rated: E

Tags: No UD AU; Future fic; Record label owner Eddie; Waiter Steve; Eddie Munson has a crush on Steve Harrington; Blood and violence; Sex work (implied); Attempted non-con; Homophobic language; Steve Harrington whump; Eddie Munson whump; Protective Eddie Munson; Protective Steve Harrington

Notes: Happy birthday, @house-of-the-moving-image! I hope you have the most wonderful of days. I'm so happy to have found you as a friend and partner in crime. Hope you enjoy your extra long chunk of Upside Diner, even though it turned out quite gritty for a birthday fic. 😅💕🛼

Eddie grumbles under his breath as he locks the office door and steps out into the dark street. 

Don’t get him wrong, he loves his job. Hellfire Records is his baby. Making music, working with all sorts of different artists and bands, helping them make a name for themselves - it’s everything he ever wanted and never thought he could have growing up in the smalltown hell of Hawkins, Indiana. 

What he doesn’t love is the meetings and the paperwork and the phone calls, especially on days like this, when it all drags on until well into the night. 

The echoes of his boots bounce off the empty streets as he makes his way towards the little diner at the corner. Checking his wristwatch, he swears again. Fuck, it’s even later than he thought. What if Steve’s shift is already over? The thought makes his stomach clench with an unpleasant feeling that distinctly feels like disappointment. The realization makes him pause and furrow his brow. 

Maybe it’s a little bit pathetic, how quickly his visits to the diner have become the highlight of his day. Maybe it’s a little bit weird that he hasn’t had dinner anywhere else in literal weeks. Maybe it’s a little bit creepy, this obsession with a boy he knew fleetingly in highschool. An obsession that makes him come by every single day after work, without fail, just to chew on soggy fries and greasy burgers and watch said boy waiting tables, gliding around like an angel in chunky roller skates and stupidly short shorts. 

Maybe he has a problem. 

And maybe he doesn’t care. 

Because for all his initial reluctance and bite, Steve has actually started coming around. Has been accepting Eddie’s money and attempts at conversation with barely a complaint. Has even stopped asking why Eddie keeps ordering way too much food for one person alone, taking the leftovers behind his counter to munch on. Hell, last week when Eddie came in, he even looked up from the order he was taking and flashed him a wave and smile. Eddie rode that high all night and well into the next day. 

It’s the memory of that smile that makes him pick up his steps. Maybe, if he’s lucky, he’ll catch Steve at the tail end of his shift and convince him to stay around for a little longer. 

The diner is empty, except for a lone person in uniform wiping down tables behind the neon-lit window pane. It isn’t Steve. Eddie spares one glance at the bored-looking girl and turns away with an annoyed groan. That’s it, he thinks, pulling his headphones from his pocket and slamming them on with a little more force than strictly necessary. Tonight officially sucks. Time to go home and fix himself some SpaghettiOs, turn on a late night show and fall asleep in front of the- 

For the rest of his life, he’ll thank fate for making him fumble with his discman. Because if he’d hit the play button a second earlier, he would never have heard the voices. But this way, he does, and this way, he halts his steps, peering into the narrow side alley with a wrinkled brow. The light of the streetlamps only reaches so far, and everything he can see are the dumpsters and old cardboard boxes at its entrance. Beyond them, everything is dark. 

“Dude, get your hands off me, I said no.” 

Steve.

Eddie is halfway around the dumpsters before he even knows it, heart beating in his ribcage like a jackhammer. The alley reeks of piss and rotting garbage. At its far end, almost hidden behind another dumpster, are two figures. Eddie can’t make out their faces, but he also doesn’t need to. The colorful uniform is unmistakable, even in the murky half-light, even though it’s paired with a pair of sneakers rather than roller skates. And besides, he’d know that ridiculously floofy hairdo anywhere. 

He doesn’t know the other man. Only knows that the guy's hands are grabbing Steve’s arms and shoulders hard enough to leave marks as he attempts to wrestle him to his knees. 

“C’mon, don’t be like that,” the man hisses just as Eddie rounds the dumpster. “I’ll make it quick.” 

“Are you deaf or stupid?” Steve sneers, trying to struggle out of his hold. “I said get your fucking hands off me.” 

The man slaps him across the face. Steve makes a pained noise and loses his balance, going down on his knees on the dirty ground. 

The man laughs, curt and mean.

“There you go,” he coos. One of his hands grabs a fist full of chestnut hair while the other reaches for the half-undone fly of his pants. “Now be a good little slut and-” 

The force of the impact sends the discman tumbling from Eddie’s pocket. It shatters on the ground somewhere, parts flying in all directions, but he doesn’t have eyes for it. Instead, he grabs the asshole by the lapels of his cheap suit and hauls him against the nearest wall. The back of the asshole’s head hits the bricks, and Eddie thinks he hears something crack. Good. 

“Eddie?” 

While the man sags against the wall, groaning and cradling his head, Eddie whirls on Steve. Steve, who's just swaying to his feet, eyes wide and shocked. His cheek is flushed and starting to bruise. 

“Shit,” Eddie swears. “Are you-” 

Pain explodes inside his skull, sudden and all consuming. He stumbles, trying to keep his footing and cracks his head on the hard metal edge of the dumpster in the process. He manages to blink the stars from his vision just in time to see the man's fist flying at him. The blow makes his ears ring and copper flood his mouth, and when he regains his senses, he's on the ground with two hands closing around his throat. 

“Thought you'd play the hero, huh?” The man's grin is a manic grimace. A glob of spit hits Eddie’s cheek. “Well, how'd that work out for you, you stupid little-” 

“Hey, shitface!” 

The man snarls and turns. Eddie doesn’t see what happens, just knows that something goes crunch and suddenly the hands pressing down on his windpipe are gone. The man's voice turns into a high-pitched wail of pain. 

Eddie rolls around, coughing and gasping for air, and props himself up on his elbows. The man has shrunk against the next wall, clutching at his face. Crimson blood is bubbling out from between his fingers, hitting the alley floor in a steady pattern of drips. 

“Fuck off,” Steve says and lowers the hand holding the roller skate. His voice is deadly calm, his face steely. “Remember to put away your dick first.” 

The guy stares at him. Steve raises the roller skate again, just a little. The asshole whimpers and scrambles upright, mumbling something to himself. Eddie thinks he catches something about fucking lunatic fags, but he can't be sure, what with the way his voice comes out all wet and garbled. And then he's gone, nearly tripping over his own feet in his haste to get away.

Steve drops the roller skate. 

“Fuck,” be whispers, crouching down next to Eddie and brushing hesitant fingers over his split lip. Ten minutes ago, Eddie would’ve given anything to feel those hands on his face, but now he winces and recoils at the sting of pain. 

Steve retracts his hand, flopping down on the ground with a heavy sigh. The shorts ride up with the movement, exposing strong, muscled thighs. His knees are scraped from hitting the asphalt, little droplets of blood beading on the torn skin. 

“What’d you go and do that for?” Steve asks, scrubbing a hand down his face. All of the steel is gone from his voice. He sounds tired instead, infinitely tired. “I had it under control.” 

Eddie can’t help it, he barks a laugh. “Oh, did you, big boy? When was that, exactly? When he backhanded you? Or when he had you by the hair and was about to shove his cock down your-”

“Yeah, well, I’m not the one who got punched and choked half to death!” Steve snaps. 

Eddie opens his mouth to argue, then shuts it again. The boy has a point, sort of. He doesn’t need a mirror to tell which one of them is looking the worse for wear right now, not with the white-hot pain still throbbing through his face with every heartbeat. 

“He didn’t choke me half to death,” he mutters lamely. Steve huffs a humorless laugh. 

“Thanks, anyway,” he then says. It comes out so quietly that Eddie nearly misses it, and when he looks up, Steve has averted his eyes. Eddie has an acute flashback to their first meeting at the diner, when Steve reluctantly accepted his tip money. “Could’ve gone a lot worse if you hadn’t shown up.” 

Eddie feels his mouth tug into a grin, even though his lip stings like an entire beehive. 

“Anytime, Stevie. Now c’mon, let’s get outtaaaaah, shit.” 

Trying to stand is a bad idea. The moment he’s upright, another firework of pain goes off behind his temples and the ground tilts out from under him. The only thing that saves him from going right down again is Steve jumping to his feet and looping one of Eddie’s arms around his shoulders. 

“Shit, he got you good,” he mutters. Eddie can only hum in agreement, too preoccupied with keeping the meager contents of his stomach down. “We should probably get you somewhere with a first aid kit at least.” 

“‘s okay,” Eddie slurs, inadvertently leaning closer into Steve’s warmth. He smells of shampoo and frying fat and blood. “I’ll be fine, I live nearby.” 

Steve’s eyes flit over his face, then off to the side, then back to his face again. He licks his lips and even in his dazed state, Eddie can clearly see how he wars with himself. Finally, he gulps and straightens his spine. 

“Okay,” he says, adjusting Eddie’s weight on his shoulders. “Let’s go then.” 

It’s weird, Eddie thinks as they start to hobble their way down the dark street. He must’ve fantasized a thousand times about taking Steve Harrington home, but never once did he think it’d play out like this. Then again, things in his life rarely go as he imagines, so he supposes he’s just gonna roll with it.

@steddhie @formosusiniquis @steddiehasmywholeheart @ellaelsinore @rozzieroos

Part 4

Tag list: @grtwdsmwhr @p0lybl4nkk @fairytalesreality @colidamae @dissociatingdemon

[chkn-soup]

Baby i need more pervert vox, your so good at writing him, just please, take my soul and let me live in glory!

PHOTOSHOOT PT.2

—————————————————

Warnings: cursing?, explicit sexual content, DUBCON/NONCON (for reference I don’t condone any of these acts IRL) fondling, Somno, use of Y/n, Vox is a gaslighting master, p in V, unprotected, spanking, blood, Vox powers off!!

Syno: Vox (your fellow Vee) is a massive pervert towards you pt.2

—————————————

It made him laugh, the way you’d wake up in the morning and immediately begin complaining about the new found bruises around your body, especially on your chest from how hard his claws had been poking into them while he was fondling you.

Your whines about the pain also got him going a little, just the thought that he left those marks on you and you had not the faintest idea.

He’d put on his key fake smile and completely assure you that it happened yesterday when you tripped and fell, you could’ve sworn that you had caught yourself, but the way Vox was telling you that your chest had hit the floor pretty hard..you just had to believe him, of course..why would he ever lie to you?

He liked that you thought so highly of him that you’d never suspect that it was him, or that he’d even lie to you in such a way because you were such close friends.

That’s why he felt extra guilty about sneaking into your room that night.

—

His clawed hand turns the knob of your door slowly, creaking it open. Seeing you already peacefully sleeping, so sweetly.

He trails his way in, he wants to take it slower with you tonight, instead of just getting into the fun part, he wants to work himself up.

That’s all the more entertaining for him. He sits on your bed, his breathing begins to match your own, watching the rising of your chest as you mewl and shift in your sleep softly.

He smiles at you, genuinely this time, not like the fake ones he’d give you anytime you got in your pretty little head about all your weird injuries.

His hand runs up and down your shoulder feeling the warmth of your skin, he plays with the strap of your white tank-top. And then he places his hand on your chest, cupping your mound and squeezing gently, right on the bruises he left last time.

..”Ow..” His screen glows a much brighter blue, lighting up your features greatly as he hears your voice, you groggily get up.

“..Vox?” you blink in the gleaming light of his face. He tones is down a notch, apologizing quickly.

“What are you doing here?” You yawn out sleepily

“I..Well..I uh..I came to check on you…to see if you were ok..you were uhm..screaming and shifting in your sleep, I think you were having a nightmare.” He lies through his digital teeth.

“..Was I?” You question yourself, you don’t think you were even dreaming? But maybe Vox is right, maybe that’s how you’ve been getting all those bruises, shifting and tossing in bed.

“But..you are ok now, I’m here.” He installs a fake trust in you, he makes you depend on him without you even realizing it..and it works, you truly believe he can help you with anything, his words can cure all your problems.

“..can you stay here with me then..I don’t want to have another bad dream” he grins..,you actually believe him. He nods quickly, and of course sympathetically.

“Of course, what kind of friend would I be if I left you in such a pathetic state.” You are grateful you have such a nice friend like him.

Vox gets comfortable in bed next to you, adjusting himself so you can easily curl up into him. You wrap your arms around his figure and his hands come up to brush your hair.

He could totally take advantage of this, was this the perfect moment he had been waiting for, the perfect moment to pounce?

“..You know..Y/n, I think you’re one of the greatest assets of the V’s.” A compliment from Vox was like a blessing, he only gives compliment to people he thinks truly deserves it. Or to the people he’s trying to manipulate.

“You really think so?” You perk up, Vox knew just when to say the nicest things, just to get his way, and for you it didn’t even have to be nice, he knew how much you seeked validation, that even the smallest compliment would make you ecstatic.

Vox took advantage of that these past weeks, just so he has the opportunity of getting you in this state. He’d purposely find anything wrong with the work that you were doing and point it out, sure it hurt him to see the sad look on your face, but it all went along with his plan, to bring you to your absolute lowest and then skyrocket you back up so you’d feel that only being next to him you’d feel better.

He’d tell the other V’s to purposely pick on you or just leave you out of conversations..but what’s this, then Vox would come up to you, and have a conversation with you. You just thought Vox was so nice, it made you trust him a lot more than you already did.

And that’s exactly what he needed..to strike.

“And you’re beautiful.” Vox pokes your nose as he says this, it makes you blush, had you caught feelings for your best friend?

“..thank you..” You kinda move back away from him a little but he won’t let you slip from his grasp

“Y/n I’ve been thinking. We should team up, make something together, I know that the other V’s are all in different businesses, but..you and me, our things mixed togther would bring a whole new era to hell. Wouldn’t you just love that?” Vox smiles giddily and pinches your cheek.

“Uhm..well, y’know what yeah. It would, that would make me very happy Vox.” You slowly scooch back into him.

“Of course it would baby.” The look in Vox’s eye changes, his body begins to get warmer almost like an overheating device..what’s odd is that so do you, you feel your body warming up and you subconsciously shift your thighs togther.

“Listen, Y/n. You are..so perfect, in everything that you do. You’re so..pretty.” Here comes the praise again, Filling your empty little mind with the thought to do anything that would make Vox happy.

You fall right into his trap, your lips meet his. You pull back surprised at your own action

“Vox..I’m so sorry!” You panic, thinking you made a mistake, Vox just lets out a electronically reverberated chuckle.

Vox just grabs you by your chin and kisses you again, you let out a squeak noise but eventually kiss him back, the kiss than turns into a heated make out, and because of his pushing it includes a lot of tongue.

“You know what would make me so happy baby?” He talks in a different pitched voice, like in the way someone would speak to a pet, and it’s almost as if you are, ready to preform any trick just to get that special treat.

“What Vox, I’ll do anything” Anything? Vox almost snorts, this just all worked out too well.

“Take off these restricting clothes for me, ok baby?” You nod feverishly and sit up to begin taking off your unneeded layers.

Vox tries to act surprised at your gorgeous body, as if this wasn’t something he’s seen everyday.

“So beautiful baby, C’mere.” He roughly tugs you onto his lap. And begins grinding you on top of the stiff bulge in his silk pajama pants that he’s yet to take off.

He also sees that as a power move, that he’s still fully dressed and covered, while you’re just vulnerably naked infront of him. It shows just how much he hold over you, even his dignity.

“Please Vox, please fuck me” Vox just shushes you and goes down to suck on your chest, blue tongue flicking your nipple, and another clawed hand going to tweak with your other one.

His who’s mouth envelopes your boob, suckling on it rather harshly, your soft moans fill his ear, he can’t get enough of them.

He cuts it short to take his cock out, it’s a dark base with a light blue glowing tip, it’s pulsing out a sticky neon liquid from its slit. The sight makes you salivate.

You sink down onto his erection and his face contorts into pleasure, his screen gets brighter, and his body begins to vibrate, as if being a overworked device.

The vibrations are sent straight through his dick and into your gummy walls that are contorting around his cock in ways that he didn’t even imagine

You begin bouncing up and down on his cock, moaning out profanities that Vox was desperate to hear.

“Your such a slut Y/n, really, fucking me like this? What if the others hear us huh?” He ruts up into your warm pussy, your liquids mixing together and trickling down onto your bed sheets, his claws find your hips, and he bounces you up and down on his cock quicker, almost as if you weigh nothing, like your just a toy, a simple pocket pussy that is his to use.

“Vox~ I’m sorry” you so pathetic you’re even apologizing for your slutty behavior.

“It’s ok baby, you’re such a good girl.” He loves switching it up on you, going from attacking you to praising you like you are everything to him..and you kinda are..he just doesn’t know how to show it.

His cock forces it ways through your gummy walls and they are forced to take shape around him, make him the perfect fit and stretch to perfection.

“Oh fuck, your pussy was made for me baby.” He groans out as his heels dig into the bed as he begins to relentlessly pound into you from under you.

Your chest moves with the sheer velocity he’s pounding into you at, the vibrations from his body getting much stronger at this furious workout, a digital sweat trickles down his screen, as he furiously pounds into your pussy like a sex toy.

“Vox! Vox!” His name begins to pour out of your mouth unwillingly like a symphony

“Fuck, already dick drunk baby?” He scoffs as his hand goes to spank your ass harshly, loving the way your skin feels against his palm, he rubs your as and even claws into it enough to draw blood as he uses your pussy for his own pleasure

“I’ve been waiting to go this for years” he moans out, you think nothing of that statement with how caught up on his dick you are.

“Vox gonna-“ you whimper out and the vibrations from his dick and the ruthless pounding of his cock send you over the edge, you pathetically whine out, and your whole body spasms as if your were short circuiting just like him.

“Fuck, cumming already baby, how fucking pathetic are you, was I that good for you to be cumming so soon?” He scoffs at you and the mix of degradation and your tiredness and just pure overstimulation on how he hasn’t stopped his pace, catches up with you and tears begin pouring down your face.

“Haha, oh poor baby, come here honey, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to make you cry.” his lips find yours again as you both begin to feverishly grind against eachother and shove your tongues down each others throats. He even pulls his tongue out of your mouth for a second, just to get a taste of the salty tears streaming down your face.

As he begins getting closer to his edge his claws dig into your skin harsher, drawing more blood, and he begins letting out spurts of electricity from everywhere, the electricity zaps you in short counts. It tingles your skin and leaves you with an itch deep inside your blood stream, it makes you feel all vibratory inside as the electricity pulses through you, his screen begins to glitch as well

And as he comes to a finish, blue sticky strings of cum painting your insides with his seed, his screen goes blank.

You take a moment to breathe

“…..Vox..?” You almost whimper out as you get off his dick, did you..break him?

Suddenly his screen comes back..he blinks.

“Woah..that was amazing baby, we should do that more often.” He grins and chuckles genuinely this time.

“..Are you asking me to be your girlfriend!!” You get so incredibly giddy

“Uh..yeah kid why not” you’re so happy that you dont care how off put he is by actually dating, he’s not used to it..he usually just..fucks and then goes..but..yeah, he can get used to being called your boyfriend.

—————

Thank you guys for all the support, I love you guys. And I’m trying to get as many reqs as I can!!! Pls be patient😞🙏🏼🙏🏼🫶🏼🎀

[sidekick-hero]

I'm a fool (for you)

Written for the Stranger Things Writers Guild daily drabble, prompt was 'meet ugly'. I don't know what happened here. warnings: implied cheating (not steddie) | tags: meet ugly, hurt Eddie, emotional hurt/comfort, love at first sight with the worst timing, hopeful ending | 1.2k | AO3

April is Eddie's favorite month.

Winter is finally over and spring is breathing life back into the world. With the colors of spring, happiness seeped back into people's hearts.

As Eddie walks home from work, whistling his favorite tune, his heart swells with it. The sun still shines brightly, a gentle breeze carries the scent of cherry blossoms from the nearby park, and tucked in his pocket is his very first bonus check. He can't wait to tell David, the exhilaration of a beautiful day gives him hope that maybe they can have a nice evening with some wine and dinner before falling into bed together. It's been a while, and he knows it's partly because he works so much, but lately he feels like he and David are drifting apart.

Determined to surprise David with some quality time together, Eddie plans to come home early. Perhaps they could even use the extra money for a vacation, he thinks with a smile on his face.

Filled with hope and happiness, Eddie opens the door to their apartment, only to be greeted by a sight that shatters both.

A stranger, clad in nothing but black boxer briefs, stands in their bedroom doorway.

"I'm such a fool," Eddie murmurs, blinking at the unexpected sight of an almost-naked Adonis standing in the doorway to the room he shares with the man Eddie thought loved him.

The stranger mirrors his shock. "You're not David.”

A mirthless laugh escapes Eddie's lips. "No, I'm Eddie. His boyfriend. Or rather, ex-boyfriend. Guess he forgot to mention me, huh?"

When the man just buries his face in his hands and groans, "I'm such a fucking fool," Eddie almost feels sorry for him.

Almost, because it's his heart that's just been broken.

"Looks like we both are," he agrees with the stranger. He really is beautiful. Eddie can see why David went for him, he just wishes he hadn't.

"I swear, I had no idea David had a boyfriend or I never would have gone home with him. I'm so, so sorry."

The guy looks sincere and Eddie believes him. After all, it was David who decided to trample on their relationship. It must suck to be drawn into the drama of Eddie's imploding relationship, less cause and more casualty.

Closing the door behind him, Eddie steps fully into the apartment. "I believe you -" he pauses here, waiting for the man to tell him his name.

"Steve."

"I believe you, Steve. Where's David, by the way?"

"Buying condoms," he admits sheepishly, and Eddie rubs his hands over his face.

"Of course. How awfully considerate of him." Steve winces at Eddie's tone, but he's too tired to care. He takes a moment to think about what to do next. "I think it's best if you get dressed and leave now, I doubt you'll want to be here when David gets back. To be honest, I don't want to either, but I guess there's not much of a choice."

Steve looks at him silently for a second before turning and going back into the bedroom, presumably to get dressed. Eddie sighs and heads over to the kitchen to make himself some coffee. He's going to need it.

He's thinking about where he could stay tonight when Steve comes into the kitchen, now dressed in tight, light-washed Levi's and a white shirt that looks painted on. Eddie can even see the dark chest hair through it.

It's hard not to hate Steve for making Eddie feel even more inadequate.

"I know you want me to go, but if it's okay with you, I'd rather stay? Just to make sure you're okay. I've been cheated on before and I know what it's like to feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you. You shouldn't have to deal with it alone."

It's hard to hate Steve when he's so kind to Eddie.

"Do I look so pathetic that I need the man my boyfriend cheated on me with to comfort me?" He spits, more out of self-preservation than anything else. Anger is so much easier to deal with than heartbreak.

Steve's response, however, is gentle. "You look like someone just broke your heart and you could use a friend. It doesn't have to be me, I can take you to one of your friends. I just don't think you should be alone right now." With that, Steve walks over to the coffee machine and pours out a cup. "Sugar? Cream?"

Eddie plops down on one of the kitchen chairs in defeat. "Both. More sugar."

Steve prepares their coffee and then they wait for David to get back. When he does, clearly shocked to find his boyfriend and his hookup in the same room, they both confront him. Steve has Eddie's back the whole time and gets downright mean to David, while Eddie is mostly tired and disappointed. After their confrontation, Steve waits for Eddie to pack some of his things and, as promised, drives Eddie over to Chrissy's apartment.

They park in front of her building and Eddie thanks Steve for everything he's done for him, but before he can get out, Steve takes Eddie's hand and squeezes it.

"I'm really sorry, Eddie. Nobody deserves to get cheated on and I hate that it happened to you. I can understand if you want to be mad at me or forget I even exist, but if you ever need to talk, even if it's just about how small David's dick is, I'm here, okay?"

In the palm of his hand, Eddie feels a piece of paper, and he's pretty sure it's Steve's number.

"Why?"

Steve reaches over and tucks a lock of Eddie's hair behind his ear. "You'll probably think I'm weird, but I feel like I almost know you. It sounds crazy, I know, I know. I can’t explain it. I just want you to be happy, and I can't help but want to be the person who makes that happen."

At Eddie's stunned silence, he hastily adds, "Oh God, I sound like a crazy person. Or worse, a psycho stalker. I promise, I'm neither. And that's exactly what a psycho stalker would say, for Christ's sake. Please say something before I put my foot any further in my mouth."

This makes Eddie laugh again, and this time it doesn't sound bitter. Just a little confused, but mostly fond.

"Thank you, Steve. Really. I appreciate it. You... I have no idea what I'm feeling right now, or what I'm going to do, but you've made this totally fucked up evening suck less, and for that alone I don't want to forget that you exist or be mad at you. I just need some time, y'know?"

Steve's smile is warm, if a little sad. "I do. You should. Take your time, I mean. I really wish we'd met differently."

"Me too. Believe me."

Eddie starts to get out of the car again, and this time Steve doesn't stop him. Just watches him, his hazel eyes shining brightly in the light of the street lamp.

"Take care, Eddie."

"You too, Steve."

As Eddie climbs the stairs to Chrissy's apartment, he saves Steve's number in his phone.

[rebeccccccaaa]

 My Part of Town

__________________

Aaron Hotchner x Reader

:: After what seems to be a rather confusing and tough case, Hotch finds himself in a dark corner of a club watching the girl he interrogated just days ago captivate him in a way he hasn’t been in years. ::

warnings:: talks about violence (canon type cm kind); reader is described to have tattoos, alt styled extras (not goth specified), etc; age gap (reader is in her mid to late 20s), also slight power imbalance? Idk i tried to write it in way that didn’t make it seem like reader fucked her way into the BAU by making hotch a tiny bit subby/pathetic but idk i put the warning anyway sorryyyyyy, no mentions of y/n, sober reader slay, no contraceptives mentioned so stay safe babies, body positivity, mentioned jack at the end for plot lol but he’s not present in the story, not sure what else i should tag

author’s notes:: i originally wrote this with the intention of a certain type of person in mind (me lol) with the tattoos and stuff, i know not all you readers have such but i thought i’d keep the second pov for fun and interactiveness, so i hope that’s ok with y’all, enjoy!!

___________________

Hotch stood at the bar, a drink sweating in his hand. He hardly drank anything, in fact he just wanted to go home at this point. The room smelt of body odor, cheap perfume, and smoke. He didn’t understand how his coworkers could love going out to such a place like this. It was definitely not his scene anymore, but with much begging from the girls and Morgan, they were able to successfully convince him and also Rossi to go and celebrate the success of this last case. He was surprised to even see Reid enjoying himself. 

He never thought in a million years he'd be back in a place like this. He looked around seeing the girls in a small circle laughing and jumping around, Rossi sat at the end of the bar talking to a girl, who was way too young for him, trying to get her away from hims, and Spencer and Derek were standing at the edge of the dance floor wondering who their next flattery target was going to be. Darting his eyes around, they caught a particularly familiar set of eyes that Hotch couldn’t seem to shake until he walked into the overstimulating room of noise and colors, at least until this very moment.

You grinned at him, facing completely towards him now. You dressed in all black, platformed shoes making you much taller than when Hotch had met you for the first time. The silver and gold reflecting the bright lights that scattered over the crowd from your fingers. Your skin covered ink that surprised him just as much as it did the first time he’d seen your decorated skin. And although you dressed in all black, you seemed to stand out more than anyone else in the sea of bodies. 

Hotch tightened his jaw upon meeting your eyes. Your hips swayed effortlessly to the music that boomed through the room. It was like you were dancing just for him. Teasing him, like you did in the interrogation room where you had first met. You were an enigma to the case. You had come from nowhere, had nothing to do with the unsub or the victims, and yet had almost all the answers the BAU had questions for before they could even begin a profile. 

Hotch began to fidget in a panic when you began walking towards him.

Hotch walked in the interrogation room. File in hand. They were in New York City. The infamous concrete jungle. The case involved a long line of girls in their 20’s; their stomachs gutted and filled with dirt, a small white rose planted in place. They hadn’t a long list of suspects but when a security guard mentioned to Hotchner of a strange girl lurking at the scene of the most recent crime they brought her in as suspect or at the very least, a witness. Walking in the room, a girl sat rapping her ring stacked knuckles against the table.

“What the hell am I doing here?”

“Where were you yesterday afternoon?” Hotch asked.

You stayed silent. You knew the position you were in. You were studying behavioral analysis and criminal justice yourself. 

You were at the crime scene yesterday, you asked questions to the security guard who ratted you out. It would be a waste of time and effort, and especially money, to know that after all those hours of studying, your skills would be useless when it comes to navigating a real case. You needed to see for yourself. So you asked some questions, awkwardly and suspiciously at best, and now you found yourself sitting in an interrogation room for a crime you actually have nothing to do with. 

“Why were you asking questions to a security guard about the victim? You asked, if anything had changed? You indicated that you have seen the previous victims’ bodies.”

“I have,” you said. 

“Why’s that? Was there something in particular you saw that made you ask those kinds of questions?”

“Am I being questioned as a witness? Or a suspect?”

“Why do you feel like you are being questioned as a suspect?” he asked, making you go silent. Hotch took his sign to leave, leaving you to continue tapping your decorated fingers against the table like before. 

“She’s not really saying anything. Her demeanor tells me that she’s keeping something from us but her body language also is calm and collected. She may not have anything to do with the crime but she knows something, and she is not telling us,” Hotch said to Rossi and Spencer who stood watching the interrogation. 

“I called Garcia to look into her background a bit. She’s also a student at the same college all three of our victims attended. So I asked her to cross-check each of their schedules with hers for any overlap and she came up empty. They don’t even study the same major,” Spencer explained.

‘What does she study?” Hotch asked.

“Get this, Behavior Analysis,” Rossi said. 

“Hey! If you’re still lingering behind the window, I got something to say. But send the grumpy one in,” you shouted. 

“She beckens for you, Agent Hotchner,” Rossi teased. 

Hotch walked back into the room. You sat properly in your chair again with your hands folded politely, completely contrasting the way he left you. You had discarded your jacket too.  Hotch couldn’t help his eyes drifting across your decorated skin. It tells him that you were most likely extroverted, confident. Though the psychology behind tattoos can be varied so his interest peaked briefly. 

“What would you like to share?” Hotch sat across from you.

“Have you built a profile yet?” you asked. 

“We have some working theories,” he responded. 

“So do I,” you smirked.

“Agent Hotchner,” you strolled up to him, “What the hell are you doing in my part of town?”

“Your part?” he joked with you.

“Did you finish the case?” you asked.

“Yes, much help from you. Thank you,” he replied.

“What?” you yelled over the music.

“I said ‘Thank you,’” he responded loudly as you did.

“I’m just kidding, I heard you. I just wanted to hear you thank me again,” you smirked, before leaning over the counter to call the bartender. He may have been right about your tattoos making you a confident persona.

“So, what are you drinking tonight, Agent Hotchner?” you asked him.

“It’s just Hotch, and um, I’m not too sure. My coworker ordered me this drink. But I've hardly drunk it.” he complained. 

“Yeah the drinks here are like gasoline, but at least you’re paying for what you get,” you laughed. 

“What about you? What’s your poison tonight?” he asked you, he could feel his shoulders start to relax a bit.

“Coke,” you winked before grabbing. 

“Really?” he asked with curiosity, he figured a girl your age would be drinking the night away while you were still young.

“I’m sober,” you told him. 

“Good for you,” he told you, a smile creeping unsuspectingly on his face. 

“Not all that crazy, I’m starting my thirties soon and graduating next semester so I have to start taking life super seriously since it won’t for me,” you said.

“What makes you say that?” he questioned. 

“Seriously?” you joked, “Look, I knew my appearance was eventually going to affect my career down the line but I believed life is too short to not celebrate your body and decorate it the way you want. The body is a temple, and what’s a temple without art?”

“I think your tattoos are lovely,” he complimented. 

“I think so too,” you grinned, making him chuckle. You liked amusing him. 

“What do you mean by affecting your career? I understand not everyone likes tattoos in the workplace but you can easily cover them up with the right attire, can’t you?” he asked.

“Of course, but why would I want to burn up wearing a turtle-neck shirt in the middle of summer just to please some old fucks who don’t even work personally on the cases we would be working on?” 

“I understand you,” he debuted.

“I can help with that,” he told you, after a small pause between you two.

“What do you mean?” you questioned.

“Well, I can talk to my boss about opening an internship position with the BAU. That way right before you graduate you can have a good reference and experience on your resume for when you start looking for a permanent position,” he explained. 

“Are you serious?” you beamed.

“Yes, you were excellent with my team and incredibly effective. And I think it would be good for you to continue exploring that part of the job, if that’s what you want to do after you graduate,” he told you. 

“Uh, yes! Oh my goodness, if I wasn’t sober I’d take a shot with you right now,” you laughed putting your hand on his chest. 

Hotch could feel the warmth blooming from your hand into his system. His breath became slightly heavier than it was. He doesn’t know what compelled him to do this but he knows you could be very valuable to the team, and working with the BAU would set you up for success after you graduate. Those were the only reasons, right? 

You and Hotch stayed a while at the bar talking and laughing most of the night. You told him stories about your tattoos and he told you stories from past cases. Derek and Spencer had left by then, Rossi was making his way out and the girls were still dancing and laughing as they had been the whole night. Occasionally they would point at him talking to you, they giggle at how unexpected and incredible it was for Hotch to be talking to a girl like you. What felt like minutes was actually hours and you were itching to get back on the dance floor again. 

“Let’s go dance,” you tugged at his arm.

“Oh, no. That's not my thing,” he protested.

“Well, pretend it’s your thing tonight! Come on, I want to dance with you,” you begged. 

“Eh,” he whined.

“Come on, come on,” you dragged him by the arm; it worked since he set his drink down and dragged his feet across the dance floor to bring his body against yours. 

His hands hesitantly went to your hips while your arms instinctively wrapped around the back of his neck. Your chests were pressed against each other and if Hotch focused hard enough he could probably feel your heart beating against his. Maybe you could feel his picking up. Your eyes were closed, like you were trying to focus on only the music but unbeknownst to him you were focusing on his touch. 

Finding confidence, Hotch moved his hands up and down your back. His leg moved in between yours and your hips moved together in sync. Hotch had never danced like this before with anyone. He felt a little lost but you were guiding him well and he was feeling more bold than before. Your fingers started raking through his hair and Hotch couldn’t help but sigh with his eyes fluttering close. It had been a long time since someone had been with him, had touched him in any way that wasn’t a professional handshake or a platonic hug. He had been always busy with work and if not work then taking care of Jack. Haley had been gone for a long time, it almost felt unnatural to feel this way again but Hotch was remembering how good it felt and how much he missed it. 

He let his face bury into the side of your neck and you continued scratching his head, pulling your nails down the back of his neck making him breathe out shakily. You had this man suddenly wrapped around your finger. Hotch became as bold as one could get in the darkness of the club, letting his hands completely cup your behind and pulling your hips impossibly close to his. You pulled slightly away from him before resting your forehead against his. His eyes were only focused on your lips. You turned yourself around, hearing the sigh escape from Hotch when you did, but you made for it pressing your hips against his. 

The girls had taken a break chatting and giggling at the bar. They couldn’t believe the sight before them. Hotch, a widower and single dad grinding up against a woman dressed in black and chains with tattoos up and down her arms and legs in a suit and tie he refused to change out of when he agreed to tonight's outing. 

“I cannot believe what I’m seeing,” Penelope gasped.

“I think I’ve drank too much; I’m hallucinating Hotch having a better time than us,” JJ joked. 

“Oh come on, girls. Leave the man alone,” Emily said before downing the rest of her drink. 

“I would’ve been less surprised if Reid pulled a girl like that,” Penelope jokes.

“Yeah, it’s not so much the situation but rather who. I’ve never seen Hotch like this,” JJ said. 

“You know I can’t deny that,” Emily rang. 

“I think I’m gonna go now, seeing Hotch like this is making me feel things I’ve never wanted to feel from my boss,’ Penelope grumbled. 

“You guys are so dramatic,” Emily laughed. 

“I think I’m actually gonna go,” JJ chimed, “I shouldn’t leave my boys alone all night.” 

“Ok, then let’s all just get out of here,” Penelope chirped, “We should leave Hotch to whatever he plans on doing.”

“I think you mean whoever,” Emily said, as she snapped a picture of you two dancing like there was nobody else there with you. 

“Did you take a picture?” JJ gasped. 

“Oh! He’s gonna kill you!” Penelope laughed out loud.

“Let’s go before he finds out then,” Emily chuckled. 

You and Hotch danced like if the other let go you would disappear never to be seen again. You milked the time you had together in these final hours of the night before the sun set in reality. You could feel Hotch’s lips pressing against your hot skin below your ear. Your chest fluttered and your stomach flipped at the feeling. You were so enthralled in the feeling, you didn’t hear him whispering in your ear. The small puffs of air pulled you from this trance and you quickly turned around to better hear him. 

“Let’s get out of here,” he whined.

“Lead the way,” you teased, pulling gently at his tie.

His fingers entwined between yours pulling out of the disco. You nearly tripped over your platforms trying your best to keep up with the man taking you to his home. He opened the door for you and you practically jumped in the car without hesitation. You couldn’t help the giggles coming from you as you heard the quick steps from Aaron rounding the car. 

The drive to his place was quick, or maybe it was long and you were just distracted. He looked so stoic and determined behind the wheel. Not even your light touches along his thigh, or the unbuckling of his belt would shake the fire behind his eyes. His skin was burning up and his knuckles were white against the steering wheel. Once he got home he was quick to open the door, quick to rid his tie, quick to show exactly where he intended on fucking you tonight.  So quick, he hadn’t bothered turning any lights on. Not that it mattered too much.

You laid roughly on the bed watching Hotch undress above you. You couldn’t help but notice the scars across his stomach, that’s when you noticed the scars along his knuckles; even with how dark the room was. You told yourself you’d ask about it another time. You didn’t want to ruin the moment over something he probably doesn’t want to talk about anyway. You started picking at your rings, twisting and pulling hard and fast to take them off; sometimes they were a bit distracting when you were having sex. 

“No, leave those on,” Hotch gowled, before reaching to you to disrobe your outfit from tonight. 

As he reached for those eye-catching platforms that made you stand out from most of the people dancing in the room, you couldn’t help yourself making a bit of a snarky remark. 

“You want to keep those on too?” you flashed a smile. 

“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” he remarked, before his hands left your ankles to flip you over, leaving the shoes on for both your pleasures. 

He peeled your underwear down your legs. His lips kissing the backs of your thighs softly; if you hadn’t been so overly focused on his every touch you wouldn’t have felt them. He stood tall over you, towering like a stoic statue. His hands roughly ran along your spine making you arch your back deliciously, basking in the fiery feeling. Hips pushing backwards to feel every inch of lust from the man behind you . 

You dropped to your elbows, arching your back even more as you anticipated a craving you’ve wanted since he walked into that interrogation just days ago. If someone had told you then that that man would rutting his hips into from behind like he’d never fucked before, you’d had laughed in their face. But you couldn’t be more satisfied with the outcome of it anyway. 

“Oh, Hotch,” you called out breathlessly. 

He grunted behind you as he slowly inserted himself into you, pressure building like a souffle in the pit of your belly. He grunted again, words incoherent, before you realized he was speaking to you. You hummed in confusion, asking to repeat what he said louder, when his hands threaded your hair and pulled you back on your knees effortlessly against his body.

“Aaron,” he growled in your ear. 

Your hands instinctively went up and behind, holding his face close to your neck and he bit and kissed the soft flesh sensually, goosebumps erupting along your arms. You whispered his name in the darkness that blanketed over, your sense of sound and touch becoming overstimulating. Hotch’s hands roamed your body like you were a delicate glass sculpture, contrasting the momentum of his hips that bruised your skin. 

You could feel the intensity building, and your body beginning to buzz when Hotch suddenly pulled out from you to flip you over violently. You smacked down on the bed again like you had before, a playfully shocked giggle erupted from your belly. Your feet felt heavy over the edge of the mattress from the shoes you still had on. Hotch leaned down, stroking his rough hands along your legs from your ankle to your hips before dragging your hips even closer to the edge. He brought his hand to the back of your knee, bending it before he once again entered you with a delicious burn. 

Your hands reached up cupping the back of your neck to pull him closer to you, his damp forehead resting against yours. Your rings felt ice cold against his burning skin. You could see, barely in the blue black darkness, his chest beginning to become red. His hands, although rough, were beginning to feel clammy but you hadn’t minded not one bit; completely enthralled and aroused in his touch. 

You could feel the sweat building between the valley of your breasts. Your back is heating up from the thickness of the sheets that you laid upon. Even more so obvious when you felt the contrasting cold air that swept between when you arched you back in pleasure. 

“Aaron,” you whispered.

“What do you need?” he asked you.

“Kiss me, Aaron,” you begged.

Without hesitation, his lips found yours in a feverous kiss. Your noses bumping against one another blocking your abilities to breath; but with the heightened passion shared between, breathing seemed impractical in a moment like this. Your breasts grazed softly against his chest, your nipples hardening with the friction as he moved swiftly and roughly above you. 

You moaned in the kiss as did he. Your center pulsing, practically sucking him in with each thrust of his hips. The sounds of sex bounced off the walls. The bed squeaked beneath you; Hotch’s hips rutted into you with no particular rhythm. You hand came down from his neck to grip the sheets and you moaned and whined louder and louder as you inched closer and closer to your climax. Hotch breathed heavily above you before dipping head to your neck. Suddenly, without any warning, his hands roughly grab your wrists pinning your arms above your head. 

“Keep them here, sweetheart,” he groaned, before standing straight up again to roughly grab your hips. His fingers dug into your soft skin, bound to bruise the next morning. His hips snapped in and out, in and out, harder and faster than anyone has ever fucked you before. You squealed and whimpered in ecstasy, pleasure. Your thighs squeezing tightly around his hips desperately holding back to climax. 

“Fuck!” His voice was low and guttural. 

“I can’t hold it anymore; can I come, please?” he begged, he reached for your calf pulling your leg over his shoulder. His mouth instantly kissed and bit like he was a rutting animal. 

“Shit! Yes, yes!” you egged him on. Your climax spilling over, waiting for that little drop of water that would break the dam of pleasure. And once you both reach the highest point, your hands grab at each other desperately searching for some stability of any kind to guide through the crashing waves of bliss. His body slumped forward damn near crushing you beneath his strong body. 

“Holy shit,” you sighed, laughter escaping your lips as you felt your entire body and mind buzz with nirvana. No man had ever fucked you that good and you were a little upset that it was over. Unbeknownst to you, Hotch didn’t have any plans of ending your pleasure; at least for tonight. With heavy eyes and a devilish smile, Hotch slid down your body, placing both of your legs over his shoulders with every intention of wearing you out tonight. 

…

You stood in the bathroom staring at yourself in the mirror with a drunken smile you hadn’t seen in years. You were completely naked. Your makeup ran down your face and your hair was practically a bird’s nest, and yet you stared at yourself with admiration. Hours had passed, every inch of clothing ripped or discarded on the bedroom floor of this man. Your shoes were long gone by this point and you felt your face becoming warm knowing you’d never wear those shoes again without thinking about tonight. 

You had taken a quick shower, since Hotch had let you. He left you with a couple of garments he put aside for you to make sure you felt comfortable. You walked under the shower, letting the hot water engulf you and clean you. You looked around for the first and noticed the small toys in the corner of the bath. You stepped out and saw the small green and blue toothbrush beside another larger toothbrush that was also green and blue. You couldn’t help smiling to yourself. 

You walked back to the bedroom quickly seeing Hotch sitting peacefully on the bed typing away on his phone in the soft warm light beside him. The small puddle of light allows you to better look at him. He looked so handsome and calm, so different from the harsh fluorescent lights of that interrogation room and the blinding colored LEDs from tonight. He looked up at you smiling when his eyes met yours. He chuckled seeing how different you looked now than when you had when he first saw you days ago; hours ago. You climbed into the bed, instantly snuggling into his side like a cat. Your lips kissing and biting playfully along his jawline.

“How old is your son?” you asked quietly. Hotch raised an eyebrow to look at you, he usually kept Jack’s room closed and his toys put neatly away.

“You’re going to be an excellent profiler,” he commented. 

“You're not wrong but also you have matching toothbrushes in the bathroom and rubber duckies in the corner of the tub,” you remarked, giggling.

“Right. That would be the obvious answer,” he chuckled. 

“He’s 10; I’m going to pick him up from his aunt’s place tomorrow afternoon,” he told you. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be out of your hair by then,” you told him, sinking lower beneath the sheets ready to sleep.

“Don’t worry, I don’t mind it all. You can stay as long as you like,” he whispered. He craved those little domestic moments again that he had been missing for years. He knew he was crazy for thinking about moments like that, moments of you meeting Jack and whatnot despite only knowing you for such a little time, but he was starving for that kind of intimacy again. He will start thinking rationally again when he wakes tomorrow. 

“I think you ought to take me to dinner first before I meet your kid,” you joked.

“I can do that,” he said seriously.

“Really?” you challenged. 

“Yes, let me take you out to dinner next Friday,” he offered. 

“And if you’re working? If you have to leave?” you questioned. 

“Well, you’ll be coming with us, won’t you?” he grinned.

“Oh, right. Ok, then it’s a date, SSA Hotchner,” you smiled widely before pulling him in a kiss. 

“You’re the only one who can call me, Aaron.”

“You swear?” you laughed.

“I swear.” 

[velvetdesir3s]

Tutoring sessions: Roman Godfrey x Reader (Prologue)

Summary: Reader goes to the Godfrey mansion for her first day tutoring Roman Godfrey.

Word count: 1.6k

Warnings: none (for now)

Author’s note: This is the first part of a little series I’m writing. Second part is out! I hope you enjoy!

As you drove up the winding, tree-lined road, the towering silhouette of Roman Godfrey’s house came into view. The mansion stood ominously at the top of the hill, its dark, gothic architecture stark against the sky. You could feel your heartbeat quicken with each turn, a mix of anticipation and unease settling in the pit of your stomach.

The iron gates creaked open as you approached, revealing a sprawling driveway that seemed to stretch endlessly towards the house. The gravel crunched under your tires, the sound echoing in the stillness of the evening. You glanced around, taking in the meticulously maintained gardens and the eerie statues that dotted the landscape, their stone faces frozen in time.

The house itself loomed larger as you neared, its windows dark and uninviting. You parked your car and sat for a moment, gripping the steering wheel, trying to steady your nerves. The front door, massive and foreboding, seemed to beckon and warn you simultaneously. Taking a deep breath, you stepped out of the car, the cool air brushing against your skin, and made your way to the entrance, each step bringing you closer to the unknown that awaited within.

Olivia Godfrey, Roman's mother, hired you to tutor him. At first, you were skeptical, of course. You didn’t like him at all. You thought he was arrogant, spoiled and a pathetic excuse for a trust fund baby. But you needed the money. If you wanted to get out of Hemlock Grove, you needed to start somewhere, and she was paying you a great amount of money.

It was surprising how she managed to track you down. You hadn't advertised your services; sure, you had mulled over the idea of tutoring to make some extra cash, but you envisioned helping little kids with algebra, not Roman Godfrey. But when you got the call from her, offering a crazy amount of cash per study session, you couldn’t resist. You had to put your pride aside and get it done.

You thought of a few possibilities as to how she could’ve found you but didn’t like to dwell on it since it freaked you out. This whole family gave you weird vibes; every time you passed by the mansion or the Godfrey Institute, you got shivers down your spine. Ironic, since now you’re technically working for them.

You pushed your thoughts aside and walked up the steps to the front door. Each step seemed to echo in the stillness, amplifying your unease. As you reached the top, you paused, taking in the grandeur of the entrance. The heavy wooden door loomed before you, ornate and intimidating. Closing your eyes, you took a deep breath, trying to steady your nerves, and then raised your hand to knock, the sound resonating through the silent mansion.

It didn’t take long before a butler answered the door, gesturing you to come in and wait in the living room. You made your way into the room, setting your backpack next to you on the couch before sitting down. A maid came in immediately, asking if you wanted something to drink or eat. You politely declined, concerned at her anxious expression. After she left, you took in the grand living room, with its plush furniture and elegant décor.

As you waited, you noticed a few framed family photos on the walls and a large window letting in soft, natural light. You couldn’t help but wonder about the circumstances that had made the maid so uneasy.

A few minutes later, Olivia Godfrey came in. She reeked of cigarettes and floral, expensive perfume. She gave you a warm smile that seemed a bit insincere. “Hello, you must be the tutor I hired. Nice to finally meet you,” she said, extending her hand. She shook it quickly, her discomfort not so apparent, before letting go.

“I trust you’re well-prepared for this,” she said, her tone sharp and formal. “I’m somewhat out of touch with modern education, and I’m concerned about ensuring my son receives the best guidance.”

You gulped, somewhat uncomfortable with her tone. “Oh, yeah— you don’t have to worry about that. Today we’re going to start with the basics of calculus and then we’ll move on to—”

“That’s great, honey. Let me just get Roman,” she said, quickly dismissing you.

And just like that, you were all alone again. You leaned back on the couch, sighing to compose yourself.

“She’s such a cunt, isn’t she?”

Roman’s voice cut through the quiet as you stirred on the couch. You blinked awake to find him standing over you, his eyes cold and distant. He sank down beside you with a sigh, pulling out a crumpled pack of cigarettes from his pocket. With a practiced flick, he lit one, the glow of the flame briefly illuminating his face as he took a long drag, the smoke curling around him.

Where the hell did he come from?

You snapped out of your thoughts when he glanced at you with a piercing gaze, removing the cigarette from between his lips with deliberate nonchalance. With a subtle, inviting gesture, he extended it toward you, offering a puff.

“Oh, I don’t smoke,” you replied awkwardly. He smirked, “Of course you don’t,” he muttered, placing the cigarette back between his lips. You rolled your eyes, thinking he hadn’t noticed, but he did and simply smiled to himself.

Then, you heard the unmistakable sound of heels clicking sharply against the floor as Olivia entered the room. She stood in the doorway with an air of poised authority, her gaze fixed on Roman. “Roman, dear, I specifically asked you to be in the living room after lunch,” she said, her tone sharp and controlled, with irritation concealed behind a carefully maintained veneer of sophistication.

“I was taking a shit; I’m here, aren’t I?” he quipped back, taking another drag of his cigarette and blowing the smoke deliberately toward Olivia.

Olivia narrowed her eyes, maintaining her composed exterior. "Charming as always, Roman," she replied coolly. “Do try to behave for your tutor.” She then turned her gaze to you. “I trust you can handle things from here?”

“Uh, yeah—” Before you could continue, she turned and walked out, her heels clicking sharply against the floor.

Roman smirked, taking another drag of his cigarette. “Don’t take it personally,” he said, blowing the smoke into the air. “She’s always got a stick up her ass.” He leaned back, his eyes narrowing slightly. “So, what’s this supposed to be about, anyway?”

You turn to him, your confusion evident. “I was hired to tutor you. Didn’t your mom tell you?”

Roman raised an eyebrow, smirking slightly. “Not exactly. She said I’ve been failing my classes and she’d find a way to fix it,” he explained, taking another drag of his cigarette and flicking the ash into an ashtray. “I figured she’d bribe the school or something.”

Of course he did.

“Well, sorry to disappoint you. We should get to work—”

Roman cut you off with a casual tone, “What if we do something else instead?” His smirk suggested he had something more intriguing in mind.

“What do you mean?” You asked, a little more guarded. You knew about Roman’s reputation for being unapologetically promiscuous. It wouldn’t surprise you if he was suggesting that he wanted to sleep with you right now.

Roman raised an eyebrow, his smirk widening. “Relax, I was just thinking of a change of scenery,” he said with a chuckle. “But if you’re really set on studying, I suppose we can stick to it.” His tone was teasing, but he made it clear he wasn’t pushing further, at least for now.

“Oh, well. Is there anywhere else we could go to start? A couch isn’t really the best place to get some studying done,” you suggested, looking for a more practical setup for your session.

Roman leaned closer, his smirk widening as he set his arm casually on the couch, resting it near your side. “What do you have in mind?” he asked with a teasing tone, his eyes locking onto yours.

“Maybe your kitchen?” you asked, trying to maintain your composure despite the closeness.

Roman leaned back, his smirk softening slightly. “Yeah, the kitchen’s fine,” he said nonchalantly as he rose from the couch and began walking towards the kitchen.

You quickly grabbed your backpack, slinging it over your shoulders, and walked briskly to catch up with him. As you followed Roman through the mansion, the opulent surroundings were hard to ignore. The grand hallway was lined with dark wood paneling and ornate, vintage portraits, casting an almost eerie glow under the soft lighting. The floors were polished marble, echoing with the sound of your footsteps as you walked briskly to keep up with him. Roman’s stride was confident and deliberate, each step resonating with a casual authority.

As you reached the kitchen, the contrast was striking: the space was modern and functional, with sleek countertops and stainless steel appliances. The ambiance was more casual from the mansion’s formal elegance.

“So, what school do you go to?” Roman asked, strolling over to the countertop where a coffee maker sat. He grabbed a cup and poured himself some coffee, then turned around, leaning casually against the counter as he looked at you with a curious expression.

You softly scoffed, incredulous that he hadn’t even paid attention to you before. “We go to the same school. I’m actually in multiple classes with you,” you replied, your tone tinged with a mix of annoyance and disbelief.

Roman raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise crossing his face. “Oh, really?” he said, his tone shifting slightly. “Guess I didn’t notice.”

You walked up to the kitchen table, setting your backpack on it with a sigh. “I guess not,” you muttered, feeling a bit exasperated. Settling down on one of the chairs, you looked up at him and said, “Let’s get to work.”

Roman took another sip of his coffee, watching you with a bemused expression. “Alright, let’s get to it then,” he said, pushing off the counter and walking over to join you at the table. “What’s first on the agenda?”

[vsvillain]

✩ anything for you — m.sk

pairing. sakura (le sserafim) x fem reader

summary. sakura has always been good at hiding her feelings, meaning you have absolutely no idea that she's been pathetically in love with you since high school, and she intends for it to stay that way. but it's getting harder and harder to hide how she feels, especially since you started living in her house.

info. non idol au, best friends to lovers, businesswoman sakura, down bad pining, like 1 random mention of yunjin at the end 👍 overall disgusting fluff ew

warnings. swearing, reader was stuck in a toxic relationship with a Man (not described in detail), brief mentions of overworking

word count. 2.4k

(a/n) this is the grossest fluffiest thing i have ever written so far . i need to write about car chases next

you wake up alone in a bed that isn't yours, pale morning sunlight shining softly through the curtains in an unfamiliar room, and it takes you a second to figure out where the hell you are before the memories of the previous night come crashing back down.

"ugh," you grumble, rolling around and pressing your face into the pillow. sakura's pillow. her expensive perfume lingers faintly, and you breathe in the familiar scent a few times to ground you before rolling out of bed and dragging yourself up to your feet. the thought of sleeping in longer is tempting, but you refuse to let yourself wallow for too long over your now ex-boyfriend—you're the one who ended it with him last night, after all. you don't want to waste any more time thinking about him.

after getting cleaned up in sakura's bathroom (she left out an extra toothbrush and towel for you, and you have to smile at her thoughtfulness) and putting on one of her sweaters, you pad down the hall and poke your head into her office. "kkura?"

your best friend glances up from her desk, face softening when she sees you. "good morning," she says with an affectionate smile, standing up and letting you wrap her in a hug. "did you sleep well?"

"yep. you?" you notice how she's holding herself more stiffly than usual, and you frown at her when you pull away. "i told you not to sleep on the couch! you should've just shared the bed with me."

sakura laughs self-consciously, blushing and looking away. "you were tired, i didn't want to make you uncomfortable." she takes another look at you, and her eyes light up. "is that my sweater?"

"huh? oh, yeah." you pull the sleeves over your hands and playfully flap them in her face. "why, do you want it back?"

"you look cute in it, so i suppose i can excuse the blatant thievery," sakura responds, the words leaving her mouth before she can even think about it. get a grip, she thinks frantically, hoping that her stupid infatuation with you isn't showing on her face. "anyway. um, do you want breakfast? i left a plate for you downstairs."

"you're so sweet." you lean in and kiss her on the cheek, unaware of the way it makes her heart jump. "did you already eat?"

"i did, i got up a few hours ago." sakura nods back towards her computer. "lots of paperwork to go through, so…"

"hey, what did i tell you about working too hard on weekends?" you try to look stern, poking a finger in her face. "i'm forcing you to take more breaks from now on, you're going to regret letting me stay with you."

sakura just laughs, leaning back. "i could never regret it," she says fondly, and immediately regrets saying that when your face lights up with an insufferably smug smirk. "i mean—"

"awww," you coo, throwing your arms around her and pressing an obnoxiously loud smooch on her cheek. "you are totally obsessed with me."

"i am not—" sakura flushes, trying to hold back an embarrassed smile as she struggles halfheartedly against your grip. "go eat the breakfast i made for you before it gets cold, you idiot."

you laugh and let her go, prancing out of her office and downstairs to the kitchen—all the while blissfully oblivious to how painfully fast sakura's heart is pounding.

she falls back into her office chair, putting her hands on her chest and sighing like a lovesick schoolgirl. i am so pathetic.

later that night, after a takeout dinner, you manage somehow to drag sakura out of her office for a much-needed break. the two of you are wandering around in a quiet park, and the cool autumn night air makes you shiver a little.

sakura glances over at you, noticing you shivering. "are you cold?" her tone turns scolding, and she nudges your arm. "i told you to bring a jacket."

"c-cold? of course not," you chatter unconvincingly. there's no way you're going to admit you're cold and face the full brunt of her "i-told-you-so" look. "i'm n-not cold at all."

sakura sighs. "oh, come here." she takes off her leather jacket and drapes it around you before you can even begin to protest, mumbling to herself in exasperation as she focuses on bundling you up. "hmph, you never listen to me… one of these days you're going to freeze to death, i swear. i don't know why i even try…"

you have to smile at the cute frown on her face as she frets over you. when she steps back, satisfied with her work, you give her a little kiss on the cheek. "thank you, kkura. you know you're really cute when you get all fussy like that?"

her face is extremely red when you pull away. "no i'm not."

"yes you are—" you gasp, delighted. "are you blushing?"

"no!" she squeaks, turning her face in the other direction. "that's just—the cold!"

"oh please, it's not that cold." you press closer to her side with a smirk. "you're blushing because of me."

"clearly it's cold enough to make you shiver like a chihuahua," sakura insists, still blushing. that was a friendly kiss, she convinces herself. she's my friend. we're being… friendly.

right, because wanting to grab you and kiss the stupid smirk off your face is definitely a 100% friendly urge.

"whatever you say." you sigh dramatically, breaking her out of her not-so-friendly thoughts. "hey, let's head back. it's getting late."

"alright," says sakura, relieved. she doesn't know how much more of your teasing she can handle until she melts into a puddle on the ground. "do you still feel cold?"

"no, your jacket is really warm. but…" you take her hand as you start walking home, tucking it into your pocket and interlacing your fingers. "i wouldn't want you to get cold without it~"

sakura's blush returns full-force, but thankfully you spare her from further teasing. a comfortable silence settles over the two of you as you continue walking home, and you realize, not for the first time, how happy you feel with her. you never felt this way with your ex-boyfriend, not even once… in fact, just thinking about the way he treated you makes you frown.

"you're quiet." sakura gently squeezes your hand. "what are you thinking about?"

you shrug. "i don't know, just… happy that i'm not with him anymore, i guess."

"he never deserved you," says sakura, squeezing your hand again and smiling softly when you look at her. it's a far cry from her usual expressionless businesswoman face, and you take satisfaction in knowing you're one of the few people with the privilege of seeing her smile like this.

"you deserve nice things, you know?" she continues as you walk along the sidewalk. "things that make you happy."

it just slips out. "you make me happy."

sakura blushes, caught off-guard. "w-well, you have me," she says, a little awkwardly as she tries to sound lighthearted. "you've always had me…"

you beam at her, unaware of the longing undertones in her voice. "i know."

"you're so pretty when you smile," sakura mumbles, almost to herself—but you hear it.

"what was that?" your smile turns into a smirk, seizing the opportunity to tease her a little more. "you think i'm pretty?"

sakura just looks at you, which wasn't the reaction you were expecting, and says without any hesitation, "yes."

"oh." suddenly it feels like you're dying. all the heat in your body rushes directly to your face so quickly that you feel lightheaded. you clear your throat, floundering for words. oh my god, am i dying? "hm. that's—mm."

sakura glances at you curiously, but thankfully doesn't say anything. the rest of the walk home—you've already started thinking of sakura's place as home—is spent more or less in silence, and you're left feeling like something has shifted in your relationship without you knowing exactly what it is.

the days pass, and you manage to get rid of any lingering feelings you still have for your ex. work starts back up, and your life almost completely returns to normal.

except you're still living with sakura. she never says anything about it, and neither do you. clearly she doesn't mind having you here. you think she's secretly grateful for the company, since she's so used to being alone in her big empty house all the time.

every time you sit down to start looking up places to move, sakura calls for you to come taste-test something she made, or to get your opinion on a new suit she got, and you tell yourself you'll just keep looking later. then you proceed to forget all about it until the cycle starts again.

one morning, you wake up in sakura's guest room—your room, now—and squint against the bright morning sunshine coming in through the windows. you and sakura had stayed up late watching movies and playing video games the previous night, and you vaguely recall her having to half-drag, half-carry your sleepy self upstairs and tuck you in.

you start to sit up, but you're immediately pulled back onto the bed with a surprised "oof". you look down to see an arm wrapped securely around your waist, and you glance behind you in confusion to find sakura sound asleep while snuggled against your back.

you cover your face in embarrassment as the rest of the memory returns to you. stay with me, you had implored her while latched onto her side like a koala. somehow your positions had reversed while you slept, and now she shows no signs of letting go.

"kkura?" you whisper, taking her hand and giving it a soft squeeze.

"mm," sakura mumbles, eyes still shut. and suddenly you're extremely glad that you're turned away from her, because the realization must be showing all over your face.

you… are in love with her.

it's such a sudden thought that it actually makes you say "what the fuck" out loud, and she stirs from behind you. "hm…?"

"n-nothing!" you yelp in a strained voice, heart pounding. "go back to sleep."

sakura shifts closer and lets out a cute little yawn, which does not at all help your current flustered state. "good morning… everything alright?"

"yeah, i'm fine," you say quickly, trying to think of how you can change the subject. "um, thanks for carrying me up here last night… and staying with me…"

"of course." sakura seems to notice how tense you've gotten and pulls away to sit up, much to your dismay. "no need to thank me, you know i'd do anything for you."

"oh, anything?" you roll over to face her and immediately regret it. she's smiling back at you, and something about the look on her face makes you wonder if it might be possible that… whatever you're feeling, she's feeling it too.

"yes, anything." sakura's smile is soft and unguarded, and it makes you want to do something stupid.

driven by instinct, you take her hand and pull her down to lie next to you so the two of you are face-to-face. "sakura… anything, really?" were her lips always this pretty?

sakura meets your eyes, lips parting slightly as she catches on to the implications of your question. "anything."

you're not sure who made the first move, but the next thing you know, her hands are cradling your face and you're kissing. and it's not some big explosion of feelings, like you thought it would be. if anything it feels warm and natural, like coming home after a long day.

sakura's eyes flutter open when you have to break the kiss for air. "am i still dreaming?" she mumbles, blinking at you and gently touching your cheek like she's making sure you're real.

"i love you." the words leave your mouth before you can even think, and you cover your face. "i mean—um, i like—no, wait, i—uh—i just—"

"i love you too." sakura cuts off your nervous rambling with another one of those smiles that could bring world peace, looking down shyly at your intertwined hands. "i've wanted to do that for a long time."

"we should get married," you say, because apparently you just have no filter at all this morning. "or, um. maybe we should date first."

sakura laughs, leaning in to kiss your cheek. "that sounds like a good plan to me."

"i mean, we're practically dating already." you feel like your soul is happily floating in the clouds right now, but then you sit up in alarm. "wait, don't you have to go to work now? it's already 9."

sakura shrugs, running a hand through her hair. "i called last night to tell them i'm using one of my vacation days today. i, uh…" she looks away, blushing. "i wanted to stay in with you…"

"awww, you're taking the day off for me?" you gasp dramatically, tackling her in a hug. "the most serious workaholic in the city is skipping work for me?"

sakura yelps in surprise when you knock her back into the mattress, and she sighs in exasperation as she halfheartedly struggles against your grip. "so what if i want to spend time with you," she complains, still blushing. "you know i—i love you."

you giggle and press your lips to hers in another kiss, but then something else occurs to you. "wait a second." you pull back and give her a bombastic side eye. "how long?"

sakura smiles sheepishly, knowing what you mean without you having to say it. "a long time."

"since college?"

"since high school."

you hit her in the shoulder. "sakura!"

"what?" she protests, ducking away with a laugh. "what about it?"

"you've been in love with me this whole time and you never said anything?" you scold lightly, propping yourself up on the bed and crossing your arms. "i can't believe you."

the way she's looking at you right now, her whole face practically glowing with love, makes you feel like your heart might just explode in your chest. "i'm saying it now," says sakura, sitting up as well and giving you a cheeky grin that doesn't match the fondness in her voice. "i love you."

"i love you too," you mumble, heat rushing to your cheeks. then something else occurs to you, and you grin. "hey, you haven't even taken me out on a date yet and you've already got me in your bed. who knew you had so much rizz~?"

"you need to stop hanging out with yunjin," she says, an unimpressed look on her face. "come over here and kiss me again."

"wow, so bossy…" you pretend to swoon, and then you let her pull you onto her lap so she can shut you up with a kiss.

[pinknipszz]

rainbow fish | (previous)

“there comes a day when you’re gonna look around and realize happiness is where you are.”

there are many things ao’nung takes for granted, but you certainly aren’t one of them. the hunter is absolutely smitten– praising and cherishing you everyday, thanking ewya for the woman he mated with.

he also spoils you rotten. if you ask him to run a simple errand, he’ll do it in a heartbeat. if you’re a little hungrier than usual, he’ll catch the biggest fish with his bare hands. if something, or ewya forbid someone, is bothering you, he’ll take care of it before you know it.

you’re his light and day, his happiness embodied, and he would choose you over anything else in the world. that’s why, for your sake, ao’nung decided to take a day off to play the “good guy” around the village. to his surprise, his father didn’t need much convincing. when he asked, the olo’eyktan agreed without giving so much as a second thought. it was odd, but his approval was all that mattered.

to start, ao’nung woke up bright and early to prepare a small meal for you before heading out. it was a simple bowl of chopped fruits you liked, but he wanted to go the extra mile and make it look appealing. he rearranged the fruits this way and that, pushing some to the side to let others shine, before starting all over again. he grew frustrated. 

ao’nung didn’t have the most delicate fingers either. by the time he settled on an arrangement, a few pieces were ugly and deformed. it was too late to fix it though. “what's that?” you laughed, pointing at the mound of fruit in one of your carefully-crafted bowls. it wasn’t exactly what you were expecting when ao’nung told you to wait before attending to your tsakarem duties. “is that fruit?”

“what do you think it is?” he deadpanned.

you grabbed the bowl from his hands and inspected it closely, struggling to find the right words. “they look so… worn out.” nonetheless, you popped one in your mouth. there wasn’t much to say about the taste since it was chopped fruit, but you wanted to humor him. you chewed as slowly as possible as he watched in anticipation, awaiting your verdict. “it tastes…”

“delicious!” you finished, smiling sweetly at how the tension dissipated from his shoulders. 

ao’nung cleaned up the mess before giving you a kiss on the cheek and saying goodbye. he proudly walked down the webbed path, knowing your reaction was first of many victories today. it was time for the next item on his to-do list: apologize to the members of his hunting party.

much of his party consisted of young hunters who recently finished their iknimaya. they were arrogant in everything they did, even out hunting in the treacherous waters. it may not have been his place to berate them in front of a crowd, but if you ask him, it was a long overdue and well-deserved punishment.

na’pey was the unfortunate na’vi who bore the weight of his scolding. since he sported a hideous hairstyle and often chortled like a baby ilu, he wasn’t very difficult to find, but he set those judgments aside for the sake of keeping face. once ao’nung reached the edge of the shore, he found him sitting on some nearby rocks, sharpening his spear. 

“na’pey!” he called out as he approached. na’pey jumped up and whipped his head around at the sharp sound of his name being called. when his eyes landed on ao’nung’s approaching figure, the color slowly drained from his face. na’pey moved his fingers in greeting. “ao’nung.” he acknowledged with his head bowed slightly.

ao’nung nodded. “did i catch you at a bad time?”

“not at all. i’m just sharpening my spear.” the spear in question laid pathetically on the ground, discarded by its owner. at the screwed up expression on ao’nung’s face, most likely judging how the quality weapon was treated, na’pey did some damage control. “w-well, i was.”

“right.” ao’nung said pointedly, turning away to look out at the gentle waves. na’pey looked at the ocean and back at his mentor, confused. “um, is something wrong?” he questioned. when ao’nung didn’t respond, an awkward silence washed over them. na’pey constantly shifted his weight between his feet, whistling a random tune and fiddling with the ornaments on his belt to distract himself.

“are you always this noisy?” he snapped. na’pey froze.

for a moment, ao’nung’s glare relented. “look.” he sighed. “i came to apologize.”

“w-what?” he gaped, perplexed.

“i shouldn’t have been so harsh the other day. i was letting my anger get the best of me, and instead of handling it maturely,” ao’nung eyed him knowingly, “i lashed out like a child. it wasn’t my place to embarrass you in front of your family and friends, and i’m sorry for the trouble i caused you.”

“n-no way!” na’pey stammered quickly. “you don’t have to apologize. i mean, you were just doing your job, and my friends and i were acting out of line. you were just worried about our safety. i really appreciate it.” he flashed a genuine smile, to which ao’nung gladly returned.

it went on like this with the other hunters, apologizing and making amends. many were speechless at how the future olo’eyktan set aside his pride to admit fault, while others rejoiced at his change in attitude. ao’nung didn’t know whether to feel insulted or not, but he simply huffed and moved on. the last item on his agenda was spending quality time with his people.

admittedly, it’s been a while since he’s done so. a normal day for ao’nung consisted of endless training with his father, and he’d spend most, if not all, of his leisure time with you. until today, it never really occurred to him how much the village changed over the years. in a blink of an eye, he could hardly recognize the na’vi from his youth, who now had children he didn’t know the names of.

ao’nung shook off the guilt creeping in his chest.

he started with the elders. to make up for lost time, he rebraided their jewelry while sharing stories of his life, whether it be about the clan, his parents, or you. surprisingly, you were a popular topic among them. everytime he spoke of you, they leaned in eagerly with a mischievous glint in their eyes. really, he’ll never know what goes on in their old minds.

after that, he decided to play a game with the children, namely his little brother’s friends. kalun strongly opposed to the idea until one of his friends convinced him otherwise.

“what do you mean you don’t know how this game works?” ao’nung scoffed and crossed his arms. a few children giggled and followed suit, imitating his “silly” posture. “what are your parents even teaching you guys?” he spent the rest of his afternoon like this, teaching his favorite childhood games. it was a little irritating at first, but eventually, ao’nung found himself having more fun than he ever expected.

once the sun began to dip into the horizon, splashing hues of gold across the expanse of the sky, ao’nung bid each one farewell and moved on to the final destination: his family’s marui. he doubted his parents would be home since they usually handled a plethora of nightly duties, but he knew at least one person would there.

“alright, what are you up to?” tsireya finally broke the silence, scrutinizing her brother. prior to his arrival, she was peacefully weaving a new bassinet for an expecting mother who lived across the village. she was perfectly capable of finishing it on her own until ao’nung abruptly stormed into the marui, stealing her work to finish himself. “lo’ak told me you spoke with na’pey earlier. what’s gotten into you?”

“can’t i do something nice once in a while?” he groaned exasperatedly, struggling to tie two ends together. “why does everyone have to make a big deal out of it?”

tsireya shook her head and playfully rolled her eyes. “because it’s unnatural.”

the two siblings continued like this as time went on. in between their bickering, ao’nung would ask about her well-being, her relationship with lo’ak, and her plans to move out soon. in turn, tsireya would ask about his training, his recent hunt, and you. ao’nung was startled at how nostalgic it felt. as he replayed the day’s events in his head, his mind slowly drifted away from the conversation.

tsireya quickly caught on. “it’s getting late, ao’nung. you should go before our parents return home. if they catch you here, they’ll force you to eat dinner with us.” she laughed, giving him a dismissive wave. ao’nung gave her one last hug before starting the long walk back to his marui. 

along the way, he bumped into the children from earlier and noticed his brother wasn’t with them, most likely running off on his own. he knelt down to greet them kindly. to show their gratitude for the time he spent, each of them gave a shell they had picked from the sand. ao’nung gladly took the shells and promised to play again soon. 

something similar occurred when he walked by the elders, who pulled him away from the path. again, he exchanged pleasantries, gratefully accepted their gift, which was a thin armband made out of dried seaweed, and continued on his way. then, he passed by his hunting party. they smiled and waved widely at him, to which ao’nung smiled back in acknowledgement.

finally, after countless minutes, he saw his home in the distance.

upon reaching the entrance, he found you prepping dinner. ao’nung walked over to sit with you and press a kiss to your temple. “where’d you get the fish?” he noticed, basking in the sense of familiarity of the situation. you smiled knowingly. “it was a gift from your friends.”

(masterlist)

[neetily]

Omg you're back? Welcome back! I hope things have settled a bit for and that you're safe now!

And you have requests open? Would it be possible if I could request something soft and sweet with Sam, since IIRC he's your favourite? So happy to have you back, please take your time!

hi love!! its me, im back :D yippeee!!! everything is A OK for me again, thank you for asking! requests are open so that i can get comfortable with writing again, because it's been a while... so please excuse me if im a bit rusty!!

u never specified if u wanted smut to be included or not, so i hope just a little bit of teasing is okay since i tried to focus mostly on the soft n sweet aspect of ur request <3

thank u for the baby boy sam request, i miss him so </3 also sorry this took me a minute to complete, you'll see why at the end :D !! there's a surprise...

— ✧ warnings: established relationship, lewd, teasing, the morning after, more fluff than smut, smut implications — ✧ rating: fluff, smut 18+ — ✧ word count: 1,798

The best part about rearranging your guts the night before is not when you sobbed his name over and over again all whiny and needy, clawing at his back for a break as your hole milked him completely empty, causing his hips to twitch and stutter against you in a seeking of more of that good feeling. Nor is it getting to see your sloppy cunt utterly coated in his cum, glassy eyes glued between your legs to watch thick globs of it drip out of you and onto the sheets below to leave em all sticky and stained. And it's not the way you kept begging for him to continue, leaving him all dizzy and light-headed in love, a mess of a man with his cock all coated in cum. So cute when you're so needy for him like that, he can never deny you. But no, it's not any of those things. Although, there are many more things he loves when it comes to fucking your shape into the very same mattress you sleepily doze on right now, his absolute favourite part of it all just has to be when he wakes up right by your side the morning after.

All sleepy and heavy, removing his dead arm out from under your neck so that he can stretch the tiredness out from his bones without disturbing you too much. This, the peaceful look on your face, the messy head of bed hair, the slow and methodical rise and fall of your chest as you snooze silently next to him... This is his favourite thing in the whole wide world. Soft and sleepy, he's so in love with the vulnerability you so willing show him after nights like last night. He yawns with the warm morning sun kissing his skin, rubbing the sleep from his eyes only to witness the way the yellow hue turns you all golden and fuckin' pretty too. He wonders if he looks the same, then quickly decides it doesn't matter.

Not when he's sure that you're the prettiest thing in the world— it's no question.

He loves fucking you, absolutely. But spending lazing mornings in the big old farmhouse with you huddled under the sheets with him is the best. Nothing can ever hope to compare, his chest tight with some sort of homesickness the only your fluttering awake eyelashes can cure. Maybe he yawned too loudly.

"Mornin'." He rasps at you, sleep still yet lacing his voice with how hoarse it is— certainly couldn't be from how high pitched his whines got last night, right? "How d'ya feel?"

Honestly, he wouldn't mind if you just never answered him. Left him hanging in a state of heaven, instead allowing him all the time in the world to simply stare, to gaze upon your waking features, his heart skipping a beat every now and then when he realises just how lucky he truly is. Him? Waking up with the love of his life in the same bed? A luxury few have, surely. And one he secretly promises to himself not to take for granted.

But he's just so pathetically in love with you, he can't bear the thought of not checking in on you. Especially considering how rough last night was for the both of you, his body still feels the extra exhaustion you had him exert in an effort to make you cum again. And again, and again. Even after stretching as hard as he could! And even if he took the time to look after you immediately following last night, washing you up and cradling you in his arms with whispered sweet nothings down your ear, he wants to check in with you again. Something about hey, I love you. Let me look after you. Forever and ever. Even in the safe morning. Under the soft sheets. Rely on me, okay?

Because at the end of the day that's all he wants. All he ever strives for, really. Cooing softly at you when you mimic his earlier actions of yawning and stretching, giving you the space you need to properly wake up before answering his confession of adoration.

"Good." You smile at him, and not even the pleasant birdsong that fills the morning air has him cheesing as much as the sound of your voice does. Unable to hide his affections even a little, flashing you a toothy grin from his side of the bed with a followed good behind your own.

"Really good, actually." You giggle at him, all cute and shit— fuck. It's fuckin' stupid just how down bad he is for you, how the mere thought of your knowing laughter is enough to have his cheeks heating up in understanding; last night was pretty fun, huh? The worry burrowed deep in his tummy as he drifted off to sleep last night was for naught it seems. You look good this morning, facing him with as much warmth as the sun bathes you in— he thinks of you as his own personal sunshine.

And he wishes he could stay like this forever. All warm and fuzzy, doting upon you with flicks of his gaze, up and down your half covered frame— he can see the tip of your shoulders from behind blankets, still bare from last nights fuck, and his fingers itch to reach out to tickle gently. Lovingly. Oh, to be so in love... He couldn't stop looking at you even if he tried. So sick with it, actually. Embarrassingly whipped for you he can do nothing but adore.

At least, that is until you ruin the blissful moment. But even then, he can't muster up enough willpower to be mad at you, in spite of the memory your words conjure up.

"Do you remember our first time together?"

Automatically, a grunt escapes him. Followed by an intense eye roll as he flips onto his back, an arm coming up to hide his expression from your view as you giggle away to yourself. Of course.

Of fucking course he remembers the first night he spent with you in bed, remembers how fucking awkward it was to experience, never mind relive in such a wonderful morning. The recollection of how his mom for some fuckin' reason just had to show her face that night, forcing him to hide you under his sheets in a frenzied panic. "Don't— fuck—" He bursts into laughter at himself, how he had been so afraid about fucking up that he somehow ended up performing far worse than he ever thought possible, his cheeks heated at the memory of how the night unfortunately went. He can't remember how many times he's apologised for such a lacking first time performance, and yet his chest tugs for one more. Because you deserve it. "I'm still so, so fuckin' sorry 'bout that—" He huffs out more laughter in between his words, squeezing his bare arm against his eyes as if doing so would somehow push out the shameful memories from his mind.

So embarrassing to be an adult, and yet still under his mothers roof. Prompting you into hiding, something he never wants to do to you ever again, eager to show the world just how much he worships the very ground you walk upon instead. In part because you so graciously accepted his sorries, allowed him a second chance to show you exactly how much he loves you— because that first time in his old childhood bed was not his best display of... Well, anything.

Endurance, capability, dependability. God, he barely lasted more than a couple of minutes if he remembers correctly, too busy focusing on how warm and wet and fuckin' tight you were, how much you wanted him too; it was too much for him to bear at the time! And, he's sure, that if he hadn't been able to undress as quick as he did under his sheets all that time ago, he'd have came in his pants from just some light petting from you.

So really, he did better than most, he thinks. And yet still...

"Course I remember," He sighs, hot and heavy at the remembrance you've brought upon him this morning, rolling onto his tummy to look at you from the side now that he's flipped through the awful memory book and can finally face you again with resolve. "Remember wantin' t'make it up t'ya," He mumbles, pushing air out through his nose in thought. "I remember desperately tryin' again 'n again, jus' wanted t'make y'feel as good as y'made me feel, babe."

As always, it's what he's wanted to do from day one. Anything to make you smile, to make you feel as loved as you deserve. Which, in part, means gaining some sense of control over his dick so that he can at least please you in bed.

It didn't take him long to learn that though, a slanted smirk pulling on his lips when you hum gently back at him. You were a great teacher, and he always loves listening to you. Anything for you.

"Well..." You trail off into another yawn, and instincts beg him to pull you closer. Enough to have one of his arms drape over your waist, heavy weight keeping you pinned in place for the time being. A reassurance, though he's not sure who it serves. "I think you've just about made it up to me now."

Cheeky, he loves it when you tease him.

"Just about? Last night wasn't enough fr'ya?" He tuts back at you, and yet still his smile remains. Wider, if possible.

"Uh-uh."

You're smiling too, in the morning afterglow, sparkling under the sun. It's how he knows you're joking, nuzzling against the pillows sheepishly.

It takes him a moment to think of what to say, sleepy mind struggling to work through the haze your impish words place upon him. But he gets there, eventually. "Just you wait till tonight," He removes his arm from you, a small punishment for pushing his buttons— except it's not really a punishment, he knows you've got to start working on the farm soon enough, and it's his words that'll be really punishing you. "Will show ya just how much better I am. Promise."

You'll be thinking about it all day now, right? Even as he rests easily in your shared bed, under the golden glow while you toil away on the land. Not that he's any better, offering the sheets miniscule little humps of morning wood to ease the tension in his tummy.

He means it. He really loves you, and he intends on showing you that fact forever and ever. Even if you're just joking, he doesn't want to take any chances. Not when it concerns the love of his life.

[bwabys-scenarios]

Reunited

Illumi x Reader x ??????

Part 13

part 12

part 14

warning: violence, some inflicted against the reader

“The Fourth Phase of the exam has just ended. Will the applicants please return to the starting point at once? You will be given one hour of extra time. If you do not return during this time, you will fail the exam. Furthermore, you are not allowed to exchange tags after reaching the starting point. Anyone caught swapping tags will be disqualified.”

After an hour had passed the woman from before left the boat.

“Now we will check the tags of everyone here!”

The names of the unfamiliar faces are revealed.

Pokkle was the boy with brown hair, and Bodoro was the name of the old man.

“Ah, only six applicants have passed? Hmm…”

The group of four, including (Name), Leorio, Kurapika, and Gon appeared just in time.

“Gon, (Name)!” Killua yelled out, his face lighting up.

“Ah, four more arrive at the last second! And now for the last few members…”

She introduced them and announced what tags they had acquired, some of the applicants raising an eyebrow at (Name)’s blank card.

“These 10 applicants have passed the fourth Phase of the exam!”

—————

They board the airship again, (Name) staying with the three boys, exhaustion starting to kick in.

“Pathetic. I needed the three of you to do everything for me during the Fourth Phase. I promise I’ll return the favor. So... thanks.” Leorio sighed, not meeting any of the other three’s eyes.

The speaks roar to life, and the sound of Beans voice fills the air. “I have an announcement for all applicants. The chairman wishes to interview the remaining candidates.”

“Interview?”

“When your number is called, please come to the first reception room, on the second floor. Then, we will start with #44, Hisoka.”

Gon grimaced at the mention of Hisoka’s name.

———-

“Well, have a seat.”

Hisoka stared at the chairman, unmoving. “Don’t tell me this is the exam’s final phase.”

“It may be related. I’ll just ask a few questions to satisfy my curiosity.”

Hisoka’s grinned widened and he sat down.

“First, why do you want to become a Hunter?”

“I’m not particularly interested in becoming a Hunter but…”

“But?”

“A Hunter license can be very useful.”

“Oh, any examples?”

“For example, Hunters usually can’t be punished when they kill someone.”

“I see. Then we’ll move on to the next question. Which of the other nine applicants are you keeping an eye on?”

“#99 and #406.”

“Oh.”

“#405 is also on my radar, but it’s those two I’m keeping an eye on. I would love to take them on one day, although he might not like that…” Hisoka chuckles, imagining the look on Illumi’s face if he found out he was the reason for (Name)’s death.

“One last question. Which of the other 9 applicants would you least want to fight?”

“That would be #405. Though #99 and #406 is up there. If you’re asking whom I least want to fight at this moment, my answer would be #405.”

“Ah, I understand.”

“I should mention that the one I most want to fight at this moment… is you.”

His bloodlust was potent, but not enough to faze Netero.

“Yep, nice job. You’re excused.”

Next was Pokkle.

“I’m watching out for #404. He looks like the most balanced applicant. I definitely don’t want to fight #44. To be honest, I doubt I can beat him.”

Killua was called in after. “Has to be Gon and (Name). He’s the same age as me, and her…” he shakes his head. “She’s someone special. I don’t want to fight #53. I don’t think it’d be a very interesting fight.”

“I’ve got my eye on #44. He has a real presence. #405 and #99 are still children. I couldn’t bring myself to fight them.” Bodoro answered.

“#99 and #406. #44 and #406.” Illumi’s answer was short and sweet.

“Who am I watching out for? #44, Hisoka. A lord happens, so I’ve been watching him. I can’t choose one out of #99, #403, #404, and #406.” Gon said, smiling.

Hanzo was next. “It has to be #44. He’s the most dangerous one here. And #44 is the one I want to fight least, along with #406. I just don’t think she would be much of a fight.”

“I’m watching #405 and #406 for positive reasons, and #44 for negative reasons. If I’m given ample reason, I’ll fight anyone. If not I’d prefer not to fight anyone… however I’d be most affected if I had to fight #406. She’s kind.” Kurapika pushed a strand of hair behind his ear, a smile on his lips.

“#405 and #406. I owe them both, and I hope that they pass the exam. So I’m hoping I don’t have to fight either of them.”

The last applicant to join Netero for an interview was (Name), who looked rather nervous.

“Please sit, Miss (Name).”

She did as told, playing with the fabric of her skirt as she did. “Mr. Netero, I’m glad I get to see you again. Have you been well?”

His eyes widened slightly. Not a single one of the applicants had asked him a question like that in his many years of being an examiner.

“I’m doing fine, you’re kind to ask me. Are you doing okay, Miss (Name)?”

She looked up from her skirt, and nodded. “Yes, I’m doing great! I’m just surprised I’ve made it this far. They say most rookies fail the exam in the first stage.”

He nods, picking up his pen. “I have a few questions for you. First, why do you want to become a hunter?”

“I want to support my family and find a missing person. Though I guess missing isn’t the right word, I just can’t find him”

“Okay, who would are you watching out of the other 9 applicants?”

“Hmm, I would say I’m watching #44 and #301, for very different reasons.”

“Okay, and which of the 9 would you least like to fight?”

“Oh, that’s easy. #301 along with #405, #403, #404, and #99 respectively. Oh, I guess #44 too, but I would be okay fighting him if it meant Gon and Killua didn’t have to. He creeps me out!”

Netero wrote down her answer, a smile threatening to pull at his lips. She was kind, just as Kurapika had said. “That’s all. You can leave now.”

(Name) stood, brushing off her skirt. Before she left, she gave Netero a big smile. “Thank you for this opportunity, I’ll make sure to pass!”

He couldn’t help but grin back.

——————

(Name) left the room and ran the the bathroom to shower. She beamed under the warm water, sighing contentedly as it washed away the dirt and grime from her past week of being outdoors. She made sure to wash out her clothes as well. Thankfully the airship had a washer and dryer.

After her shower, (Name) joined Kurapika and Gon in the hallway, a towel holding back her damp hair.

(Name) sat on the window ledge, kicking her feet. Kurapika and Gon began speaking.

“Gon.”

“Hmm?”

“Did something happen during the Fourth Phase? When we met up, you were acting a bit strange. And you’ve been somewhat subdued since we left Zevil Island.”

“My target was Hisoka.”

Kurapika and (Name) both turned to look at him, (Name) clutching her wrist at the mention of his name. “I waited for the perfect chance and stole his tag, but someone else was tailing me, and he got me with a poison dart. Soon after, Hisoka took back his tag from the person who got me, and he left it with me. He said that I owed him now.”

“Hisoka said that?”

“I told him I didn’t need his help and he sent me flying. I was so mad that I couldn’t do anything against him…”

Tears formed in his eyes and fell from his cheeks, dropping onto the window ledge. (Name) held herself back from hugging him, knowing that if she did it would only make him feel worse. He didn’t need her pity, he just needed her to be there. He quickly dried his tears, smiling again.

“After that, I was pretty miserable and lonely. I felt so helpless. I wanted company… I wanted to help someone. I guess. That’s why I was looking for you three.”

“Gon.”

“Hm?”

“Leorio and I have only been able to make it this far because of you. We’re truly grateful.”

(Name) agrees, ruffling Gon’s hair.

“I’d also like to thank you two.”

(Name) has deepened her bond with her friends, and the 10 remaining applicant are about to begin the exam’s Final Phase.

—————

10 applicants: (Name), Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Leorio, Pokkle, Bodoro, Gittarackur, Hanzo, and Hisoka, head to the Final Phase, having passed the exam’s Fourth Phase.

“Well, ladies and gentlemen, get plenty of rest? This hotel is owned by the Hunter Exam Selection Committee. The place is all yours until the battles have concluded.”

A man in a suit rolls a board covered in cloth in as Netero continues. “For the Final Phase, we will be holding a one-on-one tournament.”

He pulls off the fabric to reveal the lineup.

“So only the last person standing passes?”

“No. One win is all you need to pass.”

Gon gasps. “Just one win?”

Leorio sighs, “then in this tournament…”

“The winners are removed from the competition, while the losers continue up the bracket. In other words, the person who finishes at the top will not pass. Does everyone understand now?”

Hanzo nods. “So you’re saying that only one person will fail.”

“Exactly. Now here is the bracket.”

The applicants look over the bracket, (Name) wincing at who she would have to fight.

“Impressive right? After all, everyone has at least two chances to win.”

Pokkle tilted his head at the pairings. “But some people, like #294 and #405 get five chances.”

“Why didn’t you use a balanced bracket?” Asked Bodoro.

“A question that must be on everyone’s mind. The bracket was assembled based on your performances throughout the entire exam. Those who performed better received more chances.”

Killua raised an eyebrow. “That doesn’t sound right. Can you explain how you scored our performances?”

“Hm. No!”

“Why not!!”

“Haha, your scores are classified information, so I can’t tell you everything. But I can explain our methods.”

The applicants held their breath, nervous about the explanation.

“First, we consider three major criteria. Physical strength, mental strength, and overall impression. For physical strength, we use an aggregate of agility, flexibility, endurance, and perception. For mental strength, we use an aggregate of resilience, adaptability, judgement, and creativity. However, this information is only used as a reference point. After all, you were strong enough to advance to the Final Phase. However, we are most concerned with your overall impression. This refers to any intangible factors not previously mentioned.”

He chucked. “You could consider this an evaluation of your potential as a Hunter. And we also incorporate the opinions of your peers. That was our process.”

Netero continued, glancing between each applicant. “The battle rules are quite simple. Weapons are allowed. No cheating. If your opponent admits defeat, you win. However! If you kill your opponent you will be immediately disqualified. All remaining applicants will pass, and the exam will end. Are we clear?”

The chairman was met with silence.

“Then we shall begin the exam’s Final Phase.”

——————

Gon and Hanzo were up first. The boy leaned down to tie his shoes and Hanzo cracked his knuckles. (Name) watched on nervously. Illumi noted that she seemed worried for the boy and stowed that information away for later.

“The first match is Hanzo versus Gon. Please step forward!”

The referee stands in the distance, allowing the two to enter the ring. Gon watches Hanzo with his brown eyes, only looking away to glance at his friends and give them a reassuring smile.

“I will serve as the referee. My name is Masta. Best of luck.”

“Hey, good to see you again.” Hanzo greets Masta. warmly. “You we’re trailing me during the Fourth Phase.”

“You noticed?”

“Naturally… I’m assuming each applicant was assigned an examiner for the Fourth Phase. Well, I’m sure everyone noticed.”

(Name) gasped, wrapping her arms around herself. She’d bathed several times during the Fourth Phase, feeling safe enough having Leorio and Kurapika make sure no one came to peek, but now she wondered if she’d been giving a free show to an examiner the entire time.

“You have my thanks. My rank was higher because your reports on me were accurate. Though the outcome was never in question!” Hanzo continued.

“Y-yes…”

“Moving on… I have a question for you.”

“What is that?” The referee asked.

“We only win if our opponent surrenders, correct? It doesn’t count if we knock them unconscious, no TKOs allowed either.”

“Yes, that is correct.”

(Name) was becoming uneasy. Hanzo sighed, glancing at Gon.

‘I see. This one could be difficult.’

Gon glared back, his gaze unwavering. ‘He looks tough, but we should be even in terms of speed and strength. I can use my speed to keep on the move until I get an opening.’

“Now then, it’s time to begin.”

(Name) teetered on her tippy toes, her anxiety building. “Beat his ass Gon!”

“Begin!”

Gon ran forward, past Hanzo. ‘Put some distance between us…’

Before he could think of his next step, Hanzo was next to him. “You must be confident in your legs. You have my respect.”

Hanzo landed a hit on the base of his neck, causing Gon to gasp out. His vision was blurry and we was on the floor instantly.

“You did well for a kid.”

Hanzo stood over him. “Well, this would already be over if it were a normal fight… Here, wake up.”

He picked the boy and pressed his back against his knees cracking it. “You must feel terrible. I hit you hard enough to make your brain bounce around. Do you understand? You have no chance against me. Might as well give up now.”

Gon groaned. “N-no way!”

Hanzo delivered another hit causing Gon’s head to spin. “Think carefully. If you surrender now, you’ll still be in decent shape for your next fight. There’s no reason to be stubborn. Just surrender.”

“Never gonna happen!”

Another hit, this time to his stomach. Gon doubled over, and (Name) gripped Kurapika’s sleeve so tight she thought it might tear.

“Surrender.”

Hanzo had no mercy on the child, glaring down at him. Gon slowly rose, on his hands and knees, then stood. Hanzo delivered another hit, causing his knees to buckle.

“Gon, don’t be stupid! You’ll still have another chance! You should-“

“Leorio!”

Kurapika held onto (Name)’s hand, visibly shaking. “If you were in Gon’s position, would you surrender?”

“Hell no! That guy thinks he’s hot stuff…”

“Gon feels the same way!”

“I know! I know that… but there isn’t any other choice.”

“You’re contradicting yourself but I understand how you feel.”

The three winced when he was struck again, flying across the floor.

————

“It’s been three hours.” Pokkle said, glancing over at (Name). Tears flowed freely from her eyes, her nails dug so deep into her palm that blood dropped onto the floor. Gon was in a heap, blood streaking across the marble.

“There’s nothing left for him to vomit.”

Illumi noticed Pokkle looking at (Name) and sent him a glare. Kurapika tried to console her by pulling her close, but it only made her sob. “Gon, please…”

“Get up.” Hanzo looked down at the broken child, his patience fading. Leorio looked close to exploding.

“Enough already, I’m gonna kill you! I’ll fight you in his place!”

Hanzo glanced between Leorio and (Name) his gaze softening ever so slightly at the woman’s tears. “If you can’t take it, leave. It’s only going to get worse.”

“What was that?!”

Several referees ran in front of Leorio, blocking his path. “No one may interfere in a one-on-one match. If you step in, Gon will be the one disqualified.”

Leorio growled, biting his lip so hard it bled.

“It’s okay, Leorio, (Name). This is… nothing…”

He slowly lifted his head to meet their eyes. “I… I can still fight.”

Hanzo kicked Gon’s legs out from under his feet and pulled his arm behind his back. “I’m going to break your arm.”

The four and Hisoka startle at this revelation. (Name) starts to mindlessly walk forward, but is pulled back by Kurapika.

“I’m not joking around, so give up. Surrender.”

Gon took a moment to breathe.

“NEVER!”

CRACK

“He really broke his arm.” Pokkle remarked, a bit surprised.

“There you go. You can’t use your left arm anymore.”

Leorio’s teeth grated together so tightly that you could almost hear them breaking.

“Kurapika, don’t try to stop me. If that bastard does anything else to Gon… sorry Gon, but I can’t stop myself.”

“Me? Stop you? Don’t worry, there’s no chance of that happening.” Kurapika’s eyes burned a bright red behind his contact lenses.

While the two talk, something starts to change within (Name). Illumi and Hisoka are the first to notice, then the examiners.

‘Oh? How interesting!’ Netero thinks, his eyes now locked on (Name)’s form. Her eyes are wide and wild, her breathing shallow.

‘Is she…’

Illumi approaches her, shock apparent on his face. Her aura was no longer slowly leaking away like it did with most non-nen users, it was beginning to be controlled.

‘She’s awakened her nen!’

(Name) stepped forward, her legs shaky. “I don’t think I can wait. He’s… he’s hurt. Gotta…”

Her aura flickers, starting to leak out rapidly as she loses control. Illumi barely manages to catch her when she falls. Menchi runs over, an excited look on her face.

“This girl… she has potential.”

—————

(Name) awakes just in time for her match. She had been sleeping with head head resting on Menchi’s lap. She startled, immediately standing and looking around. Her suddenly standing caused her to double over and cough up blood.

“Easy does it, #406. You passed out. Your friend won his round and is currently in the infirmary healing.”

Kurapika and Leorio were immediately at her side, Kurapika pushing back her hair as she coughed up more blood.

“(Name) what happened? You just fell over all of a sudden.”

She shook her head, holding a hand to her temple. “Don’t know, I had the urge to help Gon and felt like my skin was being pricked by needles, and then I felt like something left my body, all at once. As if I was drained of all my energy…”

She leaned against Leorio, huffing. “Can you help me into the ring?”

He gripped her arm, his face pale. “(Name), I don’t think you’re in the right state to-“

“I’ll do it myself then.”

She pulled away and stumbled into the ring, holding herself up as much as possible.

“The next match is (Name) versus Gittarackur! Please step forward.”

The two entered the ring, (Name) giving Gittarackur a weak smile. “Hoped it didn’t have to come to this. I won’t be-“

She bent over to cough more blood onto the ground, holding her stomach. “Holding back.”

“Is anyone going to stop her? She shouldn’t be fighting.” Pokkle exclaimed, watching the girl stumble.

“She can handle herself, probably better than you.” Hisoka claimed, grinning down at the shorter man.

“Ready, begin!”

(Name) readied herself, holding up her dagger. Illumi’s heart rate skyrocketed at the sight of it. He’d given her that as a gift years ago, and now she was using it. He was flattered.

“Are you even fit to fight, girl? Why don’t you just give up and try again next round? Or do you want a repeat at what happened to your little friend?”

He appeared right next to her, effortlessly disarming her. She gasped, and he pinned her to the ground, a leg between hers.

“Don’t you dare hurt her!” Leorio yelled, having to be restrained by three referees. Kurapika was barely holding himself back. He knew that she wasn’t stupid enough to continue fighting, he knew but…

“I’m not giving up that easy.”

At this Gittarackur’s hands drifted from her wrists to her shirt, pulling her up by her collar until he was standing and she was at eye level.

“I’ve killed stronger men and women than you, (Name). Don’t push your luck.”

He slammed her into the floor, causing the breath to leave her lungs. She cried out in agony when his foot rested on her chest, pressing down just hard enough to hurt, but not enough to break her ribs. Yet.

“If you pass this exam, you might be called in to do very dangerous jobs. You could lose be seriously injured, even lose your life.”

He hated seeing her in so much pain, her hands gripping at his boot to try and push him off.

“I don’t care. If I can keep my family afloat and find my friend, I don’t care!”

She finally found the strength to push him off, crawling forward to reach her dagger.

“Stubborn girl.”

Before she could reach it, he kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying into the wall.

For 5 minutes, (Name) remained unconscious. Killua was beginning to lose his cool, his nails sharpening to points.

“Just give up, (Name). You aren’t built like Gon, one more hit could kill you!”

‘Listen to him (Name).’ Illumi thought, biting his cheek. ‘I can’t stand to see you like this.’

She pushed herself up, her legs barely able to handle her weight. “If I can’t handle this, then I don’t deserve to pass.”

She raises her fists, her nose bleeding.

“Come and fight me, like a man.”

Illumi stops, staring down at that mouse of a girl. She didn’t flinch under his gaze, instead squaring up to bestie her ability.

She was weak physically, but her will was strong. Hisoka watches on, his interest absolutely peaked.

Illumi rolls his eyes, and stepped forward. (Name braced herself for an attack, but he only flicked her forehead. “Fine. You win.”

(Name) blinks, looking up at the man in confusion. “I win?”

“Yes. You’ve bored me, now run along. The next match will be starting soon.”

The referee called the match, and (Name) limped away. She was scolded harshly by her companions, Killua having to turn away to hide his tears.

“Stupid, you could have died. You probably have broken ribs.”

She smiled, ruffling his hair. “Sorry for worrying you.”

The next fight was Killua and Pokkle, but as soon as the fight began, Killua walked away. Confidently, he declared…

“Sorry, but I’m not interested in fighting you.”

He must of felt that he could win his next match. However, Leorio requested that the sixth match be postponed while Bodoro recovered from his injuries. So Killua and Gittarackur fought first.

“Kick his ass for (Name)’s sake!” Leorio yelled out, tending to (Name) as he did. He’d assessed that she needed professional medical attention, but the stubborn girl refused to leave. She wished to finish watching the matches, so Leorio helped her the best he could with his medical knowledge.

“Begin!”

That was when Killua made a fatal mistake. He walked forward, his mind halfway clouded by anger for the injuries Gittarackur had dealt (Name), and halfway ready to get it over with.

“It’s been a long time, Kil.”

Gittarackur starts to pull out the golden/yellow needles that stuck out of his head and shoulders. Killua watched on in confusion as the man’s face started to shift, slowly revealing that the man before him was not who he seemed.

Killua’s face paled when the man’s long black hair fell gently to his waist. He looked down at him with black eyes.

“B-brother…”

—————

(Name) felt an intense ache in her chest, and she couldn’t tell if it was the broken ribs or her strange attraction to the man in the ring. She couldn’t quite place how she felt, but something inside her stirred.

“Hey.”

Illumi’s gaze drifts to (Name) for just a moment, a bit proud to see her cheeks flushed at his appearance.

“Killua’s brother?”

“He used those needles to change the shape of his face?”

(Name) whimpered, holding her head in her hands. “Hurts.”

There was an intense throbbing when she tried to delve into her mind to figure out why she was reacting this way to the man who had just brutally attacked her. Why did she want to reach out to him? Hold him?

“I heard that you cut up mom and Milluki.”

“I guess…”

Illumi tilted his head. “Mom was crying.”

Leorio scoffed. “Anyone would cry if their son did that to them.”

“Tears of joy.”

Leorio fell over, barely missing (Name) she cried out, rolling away. “Hey, watch where your going!”

“She was so happy to see that you’d grown up. But she was worried about you leaving home, so she asked me to check yo on you. What a coincidence. I didn’t know you wanted to be a Hunter. I’m trying to get a license for my next job.”

Killua looked down, refusing to make eye contact with his older brother. “I don’t really want to be a hunter. I just felt like taking the exam.”

“I see. That’s a relief. Then I have some advice for you.”

The room grew tense, (Name) gripping onto Kurapika’s sleeve as her nose began to bleed.

“You’re not cut out to be a Hunter. You were born to be… a killer.”

Killua trembled.

“You’re a puppet of darkness, without passion. You don’t want anything or wish for anything. As one who lives in the shadows, you can only feel pleasure when people die. That’s how dad and I raised you. What would you accomplish by becoming a hunter?”

“True. I don’t desire to become a Hunter. But… I do have something I want….”

“You don’t.”

“I DO!”

Illumi was slightly taken aback by his brothers words, but stayed stone faced.

“There are some things I really want.”

Illumi hummed. “Tell me what it is you want.”

Killua blinked, meeting his brothers gaze for just a moment. He stayed silent, looking at the ground.

“What’s wrong? There’s nothing you really want, is there?”

Killua bit his lip. “That’s not it! You have something you want too!”

This caused Illumi to pause, his eyes automatically drifting to (Name) again. Killua caught this, whispering. “You still love her.”

Illumi’s eyes widen ever so slightly, but he ignores his brother. “We’re talking about you, not me.”

“I want to become friends with Gon… I’m sick of killing people. I want to become friends with Gon and live a normal life…”

“That’s impossible.”

(Name) stands with the help of Kurapika.

“You’ll never be able to make friends. Your only concern when you meet someone is whether you should kill them. That’s how you were trained.”

“That’s not how you raise a child!” (Name) shouts, the effort causing her to fall into a coughing fit.

“You just don’t know how to classify Gon because he’s too dazzling for your eyes. You don’t actually want to become friends with him.” Illumi tried to ignore her, stealing another glance and barely containing himself when he sees Kurapika holding her up.

“You’re wrong…”

“If you stay with him, you’ll end up wanting to kill him one day. You’ll get the urge to see if you can kill him or not. Because you have the soul of a killer.”

Leorio charges forward. “Killua! I don’t give a damn if he’s your brother. He’s a worthless piece of crap! Don’t listen to him! Just beat the crap out him like usual and win! You want to become friends with Gon? Are you dumb? You are already friends!”

Killua startles. “I’m sure that’s how Gon feels!”

Illumi glances at Leorio, relaxing a bit when he sees that (Name) was leaning against the wall. “Is that so?”

“Hell yeah, idiot!”

“Really… that’s no good. He considers Kil a friend.”

Illumi holds up a finger. “Okay. I’ll kill Gon.”

(Name) straightens, her strength suddenly returning. The other three in her group react with anger, Hisoka and Netero looking on with interest.

“A killer doesn’t need any friends. They’ll only slow you down. Where is he?”

Killua watches his brother walk towards the four at the end of the room. “P-please wait! The match is still-“

Illumi throws a needle at the referee, who begins to shrivel.

“Where is he?” Illumi asks without looking.

“The waiting room over there…”

“Thank you.”

(Name), Kurapika, Leorio, and Hanzo step in front of the door to guard it.

“This won’t do… I need a hunters license to do my job… but if I kill them, I’ll fail and Kil will pass automatically. Oh darn, the same thing will happen if I kill Gon.”

He pouts. “Oh, I know!”

He smiles at the four. “I’ll pass the exam before killing Gon.”

Sweat drips down Killua’s face as he trembles in place.

(Name) sends him a warning glance. “You won’t get past me.”

“Bastard…”

Illumi faces the examiners. “If I wait until after passing the exam, I can kill everyone here and still keep my license, right?”

“Yes, according to the rules.” Netero confirms, his eyes drifting from Illumi to the four that stood guard at the door.

“Hear that, Kil? You have to beat me if you want to save Gon.”

Illumi advanced forward, closing the gap between them step-by-step.

“Will you fight me for your friend’s sake? You can’t do it. Because you’re more worried about whether or not you can defeat me.”

Killua gasped as he neared closer. “And you already have your answer. ‘I’m not strong enough to beat my brother.’ ‘Never fight an enemy you can’t defeat.’ I drilled that into you…”

Killua shook uncontrollably, his breath coming out unsteady.

“Don’t move! If you move an inch, I’ll assume that the fight has begun. And if our bodies make contact, that will also mean the fight has begun. There’s only one way to stop me. You know what that is.”

Killua’s eyes focus on his brothers hand had inches closer to him by the second.

“But don’t forget… if you don’t fight me, your dear Gon will die.”

“Take him out, Killua! We won’t let him kill you or Gon! We’ll take him, whatever it takes! Let him have it!” Leorio exclaimed, but Killua was hardly listening.

Before Illumi’s hand could brush against Killua’s forehead, Killua hung his head low.

“I surrender.”

Illumi glared down at him before smiling. “Oh, that’s good. Then the battles over.”

He laughs, clapping a hand onto Killua’s shoulder. “I lied, Kil. I was lying about killing Gon. That was just a little test. But now, I have my answer.”

Illumi kneeled, pulling Killua down to whisper in his ear.

“You don’t have the right to make friends. Nor do you need friends. You should just listen to dad and me, and do your job as you always have. When the time comes, I’ll tell you to take the Hunter Exam. You don’t need a license yet.”

After he was done, Illumi turned towards the four.

“Now… (Name), won’t you be a dear and save me the trouble from having to capture you and come to me?”

(Name) stared at him in confusion, blinking wildly. “Excuse you, but-“

She could barely process being picked up and tossed over Illumi’s shoulder. Kurapika and Leorio tried to reach for her before he had grabbed her, but they were too late.

“I’m taking her to the infirmary. This girl is mine, you hear? From this moment on she belongs to me, so don’t touch her so carelessly.”

He patted her butt before hitting her just hard enough to knock her out.

Before Kurapika and Leorio could attack, Killua stopped them with a shout.

“Don’t touch him. He’s passed, and won’t hesitate to kill you. He’s.. he probably won’t hurt her.”

The three watched Illumi leave the room, the man tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. He gently caressed her face, his aura relaxing.

“I finally have you, (Name).”

Once they reached the infirmary, he tucked her into the bed, gazing down at her with hazy eyes. He didn’t hesitate to pull back the blanket and slip into bed with her, pulling her flush against his chest, trying to be careful with her injuries.

——————

A few hours later, (Name)’s mysterious friend grips the table he sat at so tight it splintered.

“He did what?”

‘I said he attacked her quite brutally then declared she was his and walked off. Messy, really. She’s recovering in the infirmary, currently.’

The man could barely contain his bloodlust, gripping the phone so tightly the screen nearly cracked.

“Went too far. Gonna kill that man.”

He looked down at his phone screen, trying to calm himself by looking at (Name)’s smiling face.

“Keep close eye on them. Report back if something changes.”

The man hangs up without another word, opening up his messages to (Name)’s contact.

If need me, don’t hesitate. Call.

He sent the message, tapping on the broken table.

“I won’t let him have her.”

TAGLIST

@tsukilover11

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[starlightkun]

❧ word count: 28.4k

❧ warnings: cursing, the b-plot pretty heavily references a drowning incident (but it’s not explicitly described), uhm that’s about it for this one!

❧ genre: fluff, slow burn, one (1) idiot and one (1) tease to lovers, modern magical creatures au, college au, fairy jungwoo, human reader, ft. various other magical ilichils and human johnny, spring break au

❧ author’s note: ahhh here it is! i love this one so much, it was so much fun to write, and i hope y’all have a lot of fun reading it!!

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─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ explore the strawberry sunday universe more here!

Just as you were about to turn around and smack Dongyhuck for real this time, Jungwoo grabbed the back of his collar and pulled the shirt over his head. You willed yourself to look literally anywhere else, but your eyes embarrassingly kept watching as he tossed the shirt to the side, laughing at something that Johnny had just said. This was entirely unfair, was he actually, literally, sparkling in the sunlight? Or was that just you?

There’s so much you’ll never know about Jungwoo, you thought to yourself as you snuck a glance his way. You could ask him a million questions every day for the rest of your life and still, you’d never know everything. But you want to try. You want to know what his favorite song is every day, what he had for lunch, what he looks like when he wakes up after sleeping in on Sunday mornings, and what his lips taste like. Strawberries… probably, was what you had decided upon after an embarrassing amount of daydreaming and speculating that you’d sooner be waterboarded than admit to.

And it wasn’t the fact that he was a fairy that fascinated you either, you had been around magical beings all your life. Your own best friend was a dryad, so you didn’t even blink the first time you saw Jungwoo sneeze and his hair flashed pink for a moment. There was something about Jungwoo that made you want to know even more about him, take notes, put him on a slide under a microscope in the lab you two had together, and bottle him up if you could.

Jungwoo readjusted the frames that had slipped down his nose as he worked on his assignment— a lab report, he was a Chemistry major like you. Did fairies even need glasses? They couldn’t magic away bad vision or something? You did manage to ask him that, the first time you’d seen him bring them out at a study session. Turns out they were blue light filtering ones, not prescription; looking at screens for too long strained his eyes.

You’d finished your own lab report thirty minutes ago and had been meandering through some assignments for next week in an admittedly pathetic attempt to prolong your time around him. The rest of your group that you were with all left for a vending machine break about ten minutes ago, and the study room had been just you and Jungwoo since.

Jungwoo hadn’t let up working on his report in that time, and you didn’t want to distract him by trying to take this opportunity to talk to him or anything. So instead, you just randomly clicked things on your computer, looked at Jungwoo, read a couple pages of your textbook, looked at Jungwoo, scrolled on your phone, looked at Jungwoo, drank some of your water, looked at Jungwoo, rinse, and repeat.

Today he was wearing a light pink crewneck sweater that was way oversized even on him, the neck of it slouching down far enough to one side to show his collarbones— you snapped your eyes back down to your keyboard and took a sip of your water. God, you needed Jesus or Pan or whatever other deities your friends had; you’d take anything at this point. After a few more moments, you risked another look at him. His brown hair that always looked so soft looked extra bouncy today, and you wondered if he’d showered and dried it right before coming to the campus library. You had a sudden want to know what shampoo and conditioner he used, and were so glad that you had one iota of common social grace to quite literally bite down on your knuckle to stop yourself from asking him that. You were going insane sitting in here alone with him, you needed to go.

“Uh,” you cleared your throat as you stood up. The force with which you had stood up pushed your rolling chair back with such a velocity that it crashed into the wall behind you, and you cringed at how loud the sound was in the dead silent study room.

Jungwoo looked up at you with round, curious eyes, slowly taking one of his lilac wired earbuds out from his ears. Your skin was practically on fire, and you could hear your blood roaring in your ears as you grabbed your metal bottle, “I’m going to refill my water.”

You didn’t wait to see if he had any sort of reply, fleeing the room.

Donghyuck found you curled up on yourself in a study cubicle ten minutes later. He presumably was able to follow the smell of your self-pity and agony. As a dryad, he was in tune with nature, and, as he so stubbornly reminded you, humans were included in that whole nature thing.

Your friend leaned against the side of the short cubicle wall, resting his cheek on his forearm as he looked down at you with an eyebrow raised, “Were we disturbing you? Had to come get your own little study nook?”

“No, I finished all my work a while ago,” you mumbled.

“I know.”

He tore open his bag of chips, popping one into his mouth then holding it out to you. The two of you shared the snack in a silence devoid of conversation, but full of mutual understanding and the sounds of crunching chips. When all the chips were gone, Donghyuck tilted his head back to dump the remaining crumbs in his mouth before tossing the bag in the recycling bin.

“Alright, come on, Yuta says he’s got a big announcement for all of us.”

“Oh, joy, a Yuta summons,” you stood up with a sigh. “Always a good sign when the siren calls.”

Donghyuck started leading the way back through the narrow library aisles, “It was actually Jungwoo who sent me out looking for you, said he was worried that you might be sick.”

“Shut up, that’s not funny.”

“You’re right, it’s not. That’s like, the lamest joke ever. No set up, no punchline. Not even in the format of a joke. That’s how you know I’m being serious.”

“Oh God, I was being such a little freak.”

“Y/N, you’re down astronomically bad for a fairy, and are friends with a dryad, siren, and basilisk, to name a few. And you’re worried about being a freak?”

“By comparison I pretty much am.”

“Mm, can’t argue with you there.”

Back in the study room, you and Donghyuck took your two empty seats right next to each other. The room was abuzz with chatter now, feeling much livelier than it had before.

“There you are, we were about to send out another rescue mission,” Johnny greeted the two of you brightly. He was the only other one of your friends who was a human like you.

Mark’s forked snake tongue flicked out to test the air, “Everything okay, Y/N?”

“Oh, yeah, got distracted looking at some books,” you fibbed, well aware that at least a third of the creatures with you could hear any jump in your heartrate, one could practically smell (taste?) fear, and another quite literally always knew if you were telling the truth or not. Taeyong never exposed you when you lied, nor held any against you—not that you lied to him often. Forgiveness kind of came with being a unicorn and all, you figured. Believing in a pure heart or whatever.

“I found her wandering with her nose stuffed in a book. Had to drag her back kicking and screaming,” Donghyuck followed your lead with a casual eye roll.

Yuta clapped his hands from where he was standing at the head of the table, immediately drawing everybody’s attention to him and quieting down the room. “Anyway!”

The siren pushed back his white-blonde hair from his face, making piercing eye contact with each of you in turn as he paused for dramatic effect. The iridescent scales visible under the skin of his cheekbones at certain angles shimmered from blue to purple to pink in the fluorescent lights and his silvery eyes flashed as the large pupils met yours before moving onto the next person.

“Tell us or I put a blabbermouth hex on you, Yuta,” Doyoung drawled, readjusting his many crystal and worn leather bracelets around his wrists.

“For the love of Hecate, not again, Doyoung!” Taeil, another witch, scolded him. He was in a big hoodie that had your school’s name proudly emblazoned across the front, so just the edges of his ritual tattoos peeked out on his neck and hands. “Sirens and blabbermouth hexes are practically death machines!”

“Yuta and blabbermouth hexes is hell on Earth,” Jaehyun deadpanned.

Johnny rubbed at the back of his neck anxiously, “Yeah, I almost died last time, Doyoung. I was only just able to go to the pool again like two weeks ago.”

“Which is perfect,” Yuta cut into the rabble, ceasing their squabbling once again. “Because we’re all going to Cape Solaria for spring break.”

“You seriously want me to go around you and water again?” Johnny asked in disbelief.

“Oh my god, you nearly drown your friend one time and you never hear the end of it!”

“One time?”

“Okay, one and a half times! And really, it was Doyoung’s fault, he put the blabbermouth hex on me, I couldn’t stop! Why aren’t you getting pissed at him?”

You and Donghyuck exchanged looks as the volume in the room rose once again.

Spring break was still a month away, and you admittedly didn’t have any plans yet. Cape Solaria was a gorgeous beach a few hours away, and despite the proximity to your college town, surprisingly wasn’t a very popular spring break destination. It was a sleepy little seaside village that hadn’t done anything to attract tourists, and if anything, actively warded them off, especially college students. There wasn’t much to do in the area except the beach itself, which didn’t have any public access points, only residents could use it. All in all, didn’t sound half bad for a siren, of course. Or nine other college students with nothing better to do.

“Come on!” Yuta’s sonorous voice broke through the din of the bickering. “My parents’ friends have a beach house there, they’re out of town until the summer and said we can use it! There’s a firepit on the beach, and a cute little downtown, and I pinky promise to every single god, goddess, and incorporeal abstract deity that we all have that I won’t drown anybody!”

Everybody was looking around the table at each other, clearly suspicious of Yuta’s too good to be true plan, and waiting for somebody else to cast the first stone.

“Sure, Yuta, I’ll come,” Taeyong smiled up at him. “Thank you for inviting us.”

“I’m bringing a spear gun, don’t think I won’t use it,” Johnny warned him.

Eventually, everyone had given their yeses, to varying degrees of enthusiasm, until there was just one left.

“Of course I’m coming,” Jungwoo grinned, his eyes meeting yours for just a flash before looking up at the siren. “It sounds like fun!”

Jungwoo caught up to you as you left the library that evening. Donghyuck had stayed behind to check out some materials for a class, and the rest of your friends were walking out in a large, amorphous blob.

“Hey,” he greeted you from over your shoulder.

“Hey,” you echoed, looking behind and up at him briefly. It was times like this that you were reminded just how big the fairy was, underneath the oversized sweaters, fluffy hair, and pouts. He was one of the tallest of your friends, magical or otherwise.

His glasses had been pushed up on top of his head now, the frames keeping some of his bangs from falling across his face. With his book bag slung onto one shoulder, he looked almost like your average human college student, except if you happened to look a little closer—which you always were—you could catch the faint flecks of gold in his otherwise warm brown irises. As you passed under the lampposts along the pedestrian walkway, the golden flecks would catch the light and gleam unlike anything that could exist in humans. Not quite starlight, more like craft store glitter, the kind that you’d accidentally spill and continue to find in every square inch of your house for years to come. Which was a comparison that as soon as it had clicked in your brain, only endeared him even more to you.

“So what do you think? About going to Cape Solaria?” Jungwoo asked, those big, glittery eyes focused down on you.

You thanked… something godly that he apparently wasn’t going to ask about your disappearance from the study room earlier.

“Oh, uhm, I’m actually pretty excited. I know Johnny’s nervous after the whole Yuta-Doyoung-blabbermouth hex-drowning thing that happened last semester, but I think it’ll be fun. I haven’t been to the Cape since I was little, it’ll be nice to see how much has changed, if at all.”

“You went when you were little?”

“My parents used to take us on day trips as kids in the summer. Still don’t know how they put up with us in the car for that long.”

“How far away is it?”

“Uhm…” You frowned as you tried to think of as accurate an answer as you could for Jungwoo. “I don’t remember exactly. Three hours? Four, maybe? Hold on.”

You had reached into your pocket to bring out your phone, fully intending on looking it up on your maps app right then and there, when a hand covered yours, a light giggle that sounded like the tinkling of bells rang out right next to your ear, and you damn near dropped your phone.

“That’s okay, Y/N, I was just curious,” Jungwoo reassured you, letting your hand fall from his as you went to stuff your phone back into your pocket. “I’ll just find out when we drive there.”

“Right, of course,” you muttered, casting your eyes down to your feet. “So, uhm, have you ever been? To the Cape?”

As soon as you said it, you wanted to smack yourself in the face. He literally just asked you how far away it was. If he had been there before, he would know that.

“No, this’ll be my first time.” Jungwoo bit the tip of his thumb, and you could feel how your eyes were glued to the action.

“Jungwoo!” Taeil called for him from the front of the group, Doyoung beside the older witch. The three of them were roommates, and were presumably all going home together.

“Coming!” The fairy replied. He focused a cheery smile down on you, “Well, see you, Y/N!”

“Bye, Woos…”

As the three roommates left, you desperately blinked yourself out of your Jungwoo-induced trance, trying to remember where you had parked your own car. Taeyong saved you from yourself, looping his arm through yours, “Come on, Y/N, I saw your car over by Jaehyun’s.”

“Oh. Didn’t even realize you guys had parked by me. Thanks, Yong,” you tried to reply as casually as possible, which was utterly pointless when dealing with Taeyong and his vampire roommate. Said vampire was walking on Taeyong’s other side, entirely silent.

When you first started hanging out with Taeyong and by extension Jaehyun, you weren’t able to get a good read on the latter, mostly due to the fact that he said next to nothing and emoted even less. But when he did finally say something, it was usually so entirely out of pocket that you either ended up in stitches laughing or were sent into an existential spiral. Judging solely from the thousand-yard stare on his face, you’d think he wasn’t listening to any of your conversation most of the time, except you knew that his supernatural senses made it impossible for him to do anything except hear everything: conversations, the wind rustling through the leaves, air conditioning, the blood pumping in your veins. You were surprised to find out that he wasn’t several centuries old, only in his mid-twenties; he’d been turned just a couple years ago. (This had prompted a hushed conversation with Taeyong: “So… he’s just like that?” “Like what?” “…Never mind.”).

You knew that Taeyong was Jaehyun’s primary food source, though you didn’t ask for many details aside from one that your morbid curiosity wouldn’t let go of: It doesn’t hurt Taeyong and feels generally pleasant. Since Taeyong’s a unicorn, Jaehyun doesn’t have to feed as often as he would if he were feeding from humans, and that is when you had put your headphones in during that little impromptu Q&A session during a study group. Renjun, the Magical Creatures Studies major who had tagged along with Donghyuck that day, could go ahead and listen about Jaehyun’s favorite places to bite Taeyong or whatever, you had much rather wanted to do literally anything else.

“I’m worried,” Taeyong confessed, gnawing on his bottom lip.

“About?” You asked, concerned.

“Johnny going to the beach.”

“Oh, Taeyong, I don’t think he even knows where to get a spear gun, Yuta will be fine.”

“No, I know Yuta will be okay. But I do think Johnny’s worry comes from a real place of distress.”

You saw the deep sorrow reflected in his features, your own heart hurting too as you recalled what happened to your human friend. “Well, yeah, he did almost drown himself in the guys’ bathtub at our non-denominational Friendsmasgiving as collateral damage in one of Yuta and Doyoung’s spats. Don’t tell any of the others this, Yong, but Johnny couldn’t wash his own face for a month after. I went over and did his skincare routine for him. I don’t even want to know how he showered or washed his hands.”

“Johnny must trust you a lot, Y/N.”

“I actually didn’t know him very well before that,” you admitted. “I think he just asked me because I’m the only other human out of all of us. I was the safest, you know, in his mind.”

Before that Friendsmasgiving at Taeil, Doyoung, and Jungwoo’s place, you had only seen Johnny at a couple group movie nights here and there, so you were honestly surprised to have gotten a text from him asking you to come over. You were mentally prepared for it to be a weird premise for a hookup and had all your usual rejections ready to go in the back of your mind. But no, he actually did just need you to help him wash his face. His hands trembled every time he tried to turn on the tap, and he absolutely couldn’t submerge his nose or mouth— he needed to breathe.

Unlike you, Johnny didn’t have any firsthand exposure to magical beings like your friends until he went to college. He grew up in a small town that was entirely human, and while he had a very open mind about it all, nearly drowning himself under a siren’s spell would understandably take a while to process.

“Oh…” Taeyong breathed out, and you could see his lilac eyes beginning to water, the tears themselves having an iridescence to them. “Oh, Johnny…”

“Shit, sorry,” you shook your head to clear your mind.

Unicorns were highly empathetic, and ruminating on an emotional memory for too long around them would project that state onto them. It wasn’t quite mind reading from what you understood, Taeyong couldn’t access your memories directly right now or anything, but he could get the gist of the feelings and emotions that your memories contained. So he and Jaehyun were honestly a match made in magical weirdo heaven.

“No, it’s okay,” he reassured you as the three of you slowed to a stop at your car. “I’m going to talk to Taeil and Doyoung, see if they can do anything for Johnny.”

“Doyoung should be moving fucking mountains to help, this is partially his fault.”

“I’m sure we’ll be able to work something out.” Taeyong squeezed your arm before letting it go. “Have a good weekend, Y/N.”

“You too, guys,” you gave them a wave as they headed off in the direction of Jaehyun’s car.

SATURDAY

Spring break had snuck up on you. Between studying for midterms, working part-time at the campus bookstore, and maybe possibly sort of avoiding Jungwoo as best you could outside of your shared chemistry lab, you didn’t have the brain capacity to really be cognizant of the passage of time, only your constant state of stress and panic. So you had packed your bags just last night, and were now running around your apartment to get together the last of your things that morning. Johnny had texted a few minutes ago that he was on his way to pick you and Donghyuck up, meaning that you had maybe five minutes left before he arrived.

You ducked under the vine hanging at the entry to the bedroom hallway, and skirted around the monstera that marked the beginning of the jungle that was your living room. Donghyuck generally kept the plants to a lush but tasteful amount, and you liked the greenery, but with both your focuses on midterms week, they had gotten a little unruly without the dryad’s usual careful tending to them.

“Hey, Hyuck?” You called out to him from the kitchen.

“Yeah?” Came his reply from where he was reclined on the couch.

“You seen my sunglasses? I thought they were on my dresser but—”

“You loaned them to Mark last week when he accidentally petrified Johnny. He said he’s bringing them to give back to you.”

“Oh, right,” you stopped your frantic searching, joining your roommate in the living room. “Thanks.”

“Speaking of—” Donghyuck stood up from the couch with a big stretch, a couple small vines reaching out from the very tips of his fingers before receding back in when he dropped his arms. He focused his dark green eyes on you pointedly, “Johnny said they’re here. You ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be at this point,” you sighed.

“Cool. So where’s your phone?”

Realizing that you hadn’t seen Johnny’s text yourself, you patted your pockets fervently. All empty.

“Shit!”

“I’ll call it.”

After retrieving your phone from inside the freezer—you didn’t even want to know how you’d left it in there—you and Donghyuck grabbed all your bags and rushed down to meet your road trip crew. All ten of you weren’t going to fit into one car, so you were splitting up between three in order to have a reasonable number of vehicles in town for the week: Johnny’s, Taeil’s, and Yuta’s.

Johnny was leaning against the trunk of his old SUV, and pushed off it to give you each a hug, “Hey! Ready to road trip?”

“Sure, Johnny,” you chuckled as he popped the hatch on the trunk. “Thanks for driving us.”

“Of course, of course. Always glad to be team dad for three magical creatures and a human,” he ruffled yours and Donghyuck’s heads as you each loaded up your bags on top of the ones that were already in there.

“Three?” You asked.

Johnny was struggling trying to pull his hand back from the leafy tendrils that had wrapped around his fingers when he went to muss up Donghyuck’s hair. When he’d finally gotten the limb back, he answered, “Oh yeah, Mark and I picked up a stray, so someone will have to sit with someone. Mark’s already got shotgun, sorry.”

The human opened up the back door, and Donghyuck and you peered in, just in time for Jungwoo’s head to pop up from the very backseat, cell phone in hand.

“Finally! Thought this was lost to the ether down there!” He said triumphantly, then his gaze fell on you and your roommate. “Oh hey, Y/N, Donghyuck!”

“I was planning on napping, actually,” Donghyuck took advantage of your stupefied silence to declare. “So I’ll take the middle row.”

“D—”

“You always complain about my moss when I nap on you, Y/N. You’ll be free of me this time! It’s perfect!”

And so you ended up in the backseat with Jungwoo, staring out the window as Johnny pulled away from your apartment building.

“Y/N? Could you please hand me my pillow from the back?” Donghyuck requested sweetly.

You narrowed your eyes at him before twisting around in your seat, rummaging around in the trunk until you were able to secure the pillow. Turning back around, you offered him a sarcastic smile as you practically smacked him in the face with it, “Here, Hyuck.”

“Oof!” He fell back, settling long-ways across the entire middle seat. “Thanks, Y/N!”

“Shut up and take your damn nap.”

You heard a jingling giggle from beside you, and looked over to see Jungwoo covering his mouth, but you noticed the telltale crinkles at the corners of his eyes.

“I know I’ve said this before but,” he paused to let out another giggle, “you two are funny.”

“Glad we can provide in-flight entertainment for you, Woos,” you slumped back in your seat, shimmying your shoulders around for a moment to settle in for the long car ride ahead of you.

Johnny’s car didn’t have Bluetooth, so he had a CD of his playing over the speakers. Only one speaker in the backseat worked at all, and it crackled and popped at random intervals. Because of that, the sound controls were set so that the music played only in the front seats. You didn’t mind, you kept your focus on your own music playing through your headphones, eyes trained on the passing scenery. Until your wireless earbuds died.

“No, no, no,” you held the buttons down in a fruitless attempt to resuscitate them. “Damn it!”

“Are you okay?” Jungwoo asked you quietly.

Johnny and Mark were singing along to a nostalgic pop song in the front seat, and you were tempted to ask them to turn it up, until you caught sight of Donghyuck. He was covered in a literal blanket of moss, clover, and small white flower buds from his feet to his arms. His eyes were closed and his shoulders rose and fell with each breath he took. So he really was taking a nap.

Not wanting to disturb your friend for your own entertainment, you snapped your earbuds back into their carrying case. Which was also dead, because in your great planning for this trip, you had forgotten to charge that too.

“No, my headphones just died, and we have like, three more hours left,” you groaned, dropping your head back onto the headrest.

“Oh, here!” Jungwoo held out one of his wired earbuds to you. “You can just share mine.”

“Woos, that’s okay, I’ll just…” You desperately wracked your brain for a reasonable way to finish that sentence.

“Do you really not trust my taste in music that much you’d rather stare out the window in silence for three hours?” He had a playful pout on his lips.

In the back of your mind, you knew he was joking around, but also he was quite literally batting his eyelashes at you—were long eyelashes a fairy thing or a Jungwoo thing? Something else you wanted to ask him—and suddenly you were saying yes, the headphone was in your hand, and Jungwoo was happily scrolling through his music library. He’d found something satisfactory, and you put the earbud in to listen along.

“Y/N, you can’t be all the way over there, the headphones are gonna fall out!” Jungwoo scolded you with an exasperated sigh.

You looked at the empty seat between the two of you in bewilderment, where the headphone cords were pulled near taut. You were way too focused on trying to figure out if he actually meant for you to move to the middle seat to realize that Jungwoo had undone his own seatbelt instead—until his arm was sliding around your shoulders, long legs crowding yours in the small space of Johnny’s backseat, and the entire length of his side pressed up against you.

“There we go,” he said brightly. “Now the headphones won’t get tugged out of our ears if we want to look out the window.”

Your gulp was comically loud as your eyes were trained on your blank phone screen in your lap, “Right.”

“Oh, you’ve got a much better view over here,” Jungwoo leaned in front of you to peer out the window.

He seemed to radiate the warmth of a soft spring day, and while you still didn’t know exactly what kind of shampoo he used, you swore you could smell the faint, sweet scent of strawberries as he hovered just millimeters in front of your face. There was a single small diamond earring in his lobe, and it sparkled as it caught the light filtering in through the window he was looking out. He turned his head to look from the passing scenery over to you, holding your (surely alarmed, wide-eyed, maybe even terrified) gaze for a moment. The corner of his lips curled, and then he reclined back into his new seat beside you.

You hoped that Mark was too focused on their music up front to be regularly checking the scents in the car, or if he was, that he was going to keep his forked tongue to himself. You knew that you were oozing panic from every pore right now, you didn’t need a basilisk blabbing that to the whole car. Taking a deep inhale through your nose, you desperately tried to calm your heartrate back down. Fairies didn’t have super hearing that you were aware of, but with how close you two you were, you wouldn’t be surprised if Jungwoo would be able to hear your heart hammering anyway.

“So how did you end up riding with Johnny?” You asked him quietly, hoping that some light conversation would distract you from how hyperaware you were of every square centimeter of you that was in contact with him. “I thought Taeil would’ve been taking you.”

“Yuta was taking Jaehyun and Taeyong and didn’t have enough room for all the extra beach stuff in his truck. Johnny would’ve had enough room, except he was bringing you and Donghyuck, and we would’ve all been much more squished in Taeil’s car. So I got voted off the island and Taeil’s bringing Doyoung and the extra beach stuff.”

You chuckled, the tension in your body easing as you could perfectly imagine how that conversation went down between your friends, “How tragic.”

“I don’t mind, I like you.” Jungwoo’s breath washed over the shell of your ear, making the hairs on the back of your neck stand up and your shoulders jump a little. Which he could definitely feel.

“Oh!” The squeak in your voice was audible. “Yeah, we— we all like you too, Woos.”

“So do you like it?”

“Huh?”

“The music.”

You admittedly hadn’t even been paying attention to any of the songs playing in the headphones you were sharing, all too focused on your proximity rather than the alleged reason for it. Taking a few seconds, you listened to the song that was playing at that moment. It was a softer indie-sounding track, and you found yourself nodding maybe a little too enthusiastically, “Oh, yeah, yeah, it’s good.”

“Good,” he offered you a gentle smile. “You can pick the next album. I want to know what kind of stuff you listen to.”

Only two tracks into your chosen album, Johnny announced that he’d be pulling off at the next exit for gas, so any snack purchases and bathroom breaks would need to happen now as well. You gave him a weak thumbs-up in the rearview mirror, the only part of his face visible in said mirror being an inquisitively raised eyebrow. As Johnny slowed the van to a stop at the gas pump, Jungwoo slid away from you as casually as he had slid over, leaning over the seat to try to wake Donghyuck up.

“Donghyuck,” he cooed at him. “Donghyuck, wake up. Y/N and I need to get out.”

“That’s not going to work,” you sighed, hunching over the seat as well. “You have to resort to violence with Hyuck.”

“He’s covered in plants,” Jungwoo pointed out. “I’m not a dryad but harming nature still isn’t really my thing.”

“I didn’t say set him on fire or anything.”

“Then what—”

Mark had already hopped out of the car at that point, and opened the door to the backseat then. You and he made eye contact, nodded once in unison, then he grabbed one of Donghyuck’s ankles and yanked on it. The basilisk jerked his hand back before vines could wrap around it. But it worked, the dryad shot up, head whipping around as he looked around for the culprit, and his hands coming up to rub at his eyes sleepily.

“Who—”

“Gas station, Hyuck,” you told him as all the plants on him closed up and disappeared. “Can you move so we can get out please?”

He let out a heaving sigh, scooting across the seat to do so, “Fine, I suppose. Only because I need to pee.”

“Thank you for letting me know that you’ve been hydrating.”

With Donghyuck out, Johnny helped you finagle the fold-down middle row so that you and Jungwoo could climb out of the back, then gave you his card to buy him a soda from inside. You found Mark in front of the refrigerated section, and he dug a hand into the pocket of his shorts before pulling out your missing sunglasses and handing them to you.

“Here. Thanks for letting me borrow them.” His voice slightly drug out the sibilance of his ‘s’ as he spoke, slitted pupils just visible through the tint of his own pair of sunglasses he was donning now. He stuffed his hands back in his pockets as he looked over the drink options.

“Yeah, of course, Mark,” you perched your sunglasses atop your head, then quietly scanned the fridges for Johnny’s soda request.

Mark had come over to your apartment last week to study with Donghyuck for some class they had together, and Johnny tagged along so that you and he could have a little self-care night before the hecticness of finals week. Doing face masks together just felt natural after you had washed his face for an entire month. Johnny had been keeping you up to date on how his roommate was handling the onset of his powers lately. Basilisks, unlike other mythological creatures who were born as such, came into their powers comparatively much later in life, within a year after their first molting. Mark just had his last summer (the details of which Johnny had thankfully spared you but did let you know was awful to have to clean up around the apartment), and had been slowly but surely developing his various basilisk abilities since. One of which, petrification, hadn’t come on at all yet.

Until Johnny had stepped out of your bathroom that night with a green clay face mask on to grab his phone from the living room, turned the corner, and had startled Mark so bad that with just a split second of eye contact, he’d been petrified. Thankfully, not properly turned to stone, just paralyzed more so. He’d remained entirely fleshy and regained full use of his limbs within ten minutes, but Mark had kept your sunglasses on for the rest of the night just in case.

Mark suddenly spoke up again, pointing at a specific row off to your bottom left, the complete opposite direction from where you’d currently been scrutinizing, “Johnny asked for dragonfruit Fanta, right?”

You followed his gaze to a magenta bottle, “Oh! Yes, thanks!”

“No problem.”

“How’d you know?” You questioned as Mark grabbed his own drink, then turned around to peruse the snacks.

“He always tries to cut out caffeine on school breaks since he goes so hard on the coffee during the semester,” the basilisk sighed. “Which means he’ll be right back on it by Monday morning at the latest. If not, tomorrow. Do you see those firecracker things Yuta likes? I made the mistake of telling the others we were making a snack stop and got a whole shopping list.”

“Oh, the ones enchanted to literally pop and sizzle in your mouth?” You wrinkled your nose, remembering when he had let you try one at a movie night. Never again. “Uh… there!”

“Thanks.”

“I’m guessing Taeyong wants his usual too,” you grabbed a holographic box of gummy candies.

After grabbing a few more things, you and Mark paid then headed back out to the SUV. Donghyuck had already beaten the two of you back out there and Johnny was done refilling the gas, meaning that you all were just waiting on Jungwoo to return. Mark and Donghyuck waited in the car with the AC blasting, splitting their snacks between them while you leaned against the side with Johnny, enjoying standing up while you could. There were still at least two more hours left in your drive, not accounting for any traffic.

The human beside you cracked open his soda, holding it out towards you, and you clinked your drink with his before taking swigs in unison.

“So.” Johnny said.

“So.” You repeated.

“What’s uh… what’s up?” He took another drink of his dragonfruit Fanta.

You couldn’t help but laugh, “I don’t know, not much. What’s up with you, Johnny? Finals go good?”

“That’s not what I meant, Y/N,” he gave you a pointed look.

“Then what did you mean?” You asked, bringing your drink up to your lips.

“I meant the romance novel that’s been playing out in my backseat.”

To your credit, you didn’t do a spit take. You did choke on the sip you’d just taken to the point where Johnny felt the need to give you a couple good slaps on the back. When you’d recovered and were upright again, you shook your head.

“Johnny, that’s not— My headphones died, Jungwoo was sharing his and—”

“That’s like, the stupidest excuse I’ve heard in a while. I am actually offended that you think I’m that dumb, Y/N,” Johnny cut you off with a shake of his head. “But fine, you don’t want to tell your best human pal Johnny about your secret relationship, that’s cool. Little tip though, maybe tone down the PDA, then.”

Your tongue felt too big in your mouth as you tripped and fumbled over it trying to correct Johnny’s understanding of the situation. The grin on his face belied that he wasn’t actually that hurt and was instead delighted to know this “secret” information, as he smoothly got you in a loose headlock, affectionately mussing up your hair again.

“Johnny!” You squealed, ducking out from under his arm, not looking where you were going as you scrambled to get away.

And proceeded to stumble right into someone else. Mortification filled your veins as you went to apologize to whatever other patron of the gas station that you’d just bumped into, the words once again getting stuck in your throat as you looked up into familiar brown eyes. Jungwoo held your gaze with a tilted head, not even acknowledging Johnny as the fairy’s mouth turned down into just the slightest frown.

“I’m so sor—”

“Your hair’s all messed up, Y/N,” he informed you matter-of-factly, one hand reaching up to adjust whatever strands were out of place.

You imagined this was what Johnny had felt like last week when Mark accidentally petrified him in your living room. All your muscles were frozen in place, eyes unblinking as Jungwoo dutifully fixed your hair.

He gave the top of your head one last gentle pat, “There.”

“I’m sorry.” You finally managed to finish your thought from earlier. “For uhm, for bumping into you.”

Jungwoo let out a soft chuckle, and you realized that the two of you were still practically chest to chest.

“That’s okay, Y/N. Better you almost knock me over than someone else and we’ve got a pissed off dragon or something on our hands.”

“Hey,” Johnny called out, and you whipped around to look at him. He was still leaning against the car, spinning the keys around his finger as he gave you a knowing smirk. “Are we ready to go?”

“Yep!” The fairy answered cheerily, holding up the strawberry Fanta he’d bought inside.

Finally, after two more hours, many rousing car games led by the now-awake Donghyuck, and several full-car sing-alongs, you’d arrived at the coast. The vast highway gave way to meandering residential roads filled with small, colorful houses clustered together, each with a different quirky mailbox in front of it. Johnny rolled down the front windows, and you could smell the salty ocean air immediately.

A few more twisty roads later, and he slowed to a stop at the dead end of a line of houses in front of a periwinkle colored one, with a familiar small silver hatchback sedan parked out front by the mermaid-shaped mailbox.

“Huh, I thought we’d be the last ones to get here,” Johnny commented, putting his car into park as all of you starting unbuckling and getting ready to get out. Taeil and Doyoung climbed out of their own car to greet you all as well. “The others left before us, and we had to pick Y/N and Donghyuck up.”

There was definitely one vehicle missing, the driver of course being the one who had the key to let you into the house.

“Hey, guys!” You hopped out of the SUV, eager to be out of the cramped backseat again. Your legs weren’t quite ready for your leap, though, but Doyoung thankfully caught you in a half-hug, half-save.

“Hey, Y/N, careful,” he chuckled. “It’s gonna be a shitty spring break if you twist your ankle on the first day.”

“What, you and Taeil couldn’t magic me better?” You teased, righting yourself to give the other witch a hug hello.

“Not this time,” Taeil sighed, patting your back. “We’re a bit tired.”

“Oh? Why?” You pulled back from him to look between the two of them with concern.

“Because they made me this,” Johnny suddenly appeared between Taeil and Doyoung, slinging one arm around Taeil and using the other to hold up something around his own neck. It was a single pearl hanging from a leather cord, and he tucked it back under his shirt after he was sure you got a look at it. “An anti-Yuta charm.”

“Ahh, gotcha,” you smiled at the three of them. “They should really hand those out at orientation at school.”

Johnny let out a hearty laugh at that, giving Taeil and Doyoung each a head ruffle before heading off to see what the others were doing with the luggage in the back of his SUV.

After you were sure he was out of earshot, you turned back to the two witches, “That must be a pretty powerful charm to have made the both of you so tired.”

“Well, it’s a bit hard to tell a unicorn no to their face,” Doyoung rolled his eyes. “Especially Taeyong, he’s got those big round pouty eyes, you know? He asked us to make it for Johnny, said the guy was nervous about coming, even if he wasn’t showing it.”

Taeil added, “And Taeyong was right, it is your fault that even happened to Johnny. You put the hex on Yuta in the first place.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Doyoung waved his friend off, paused, then added, “Thank you for helping, Taeil.”

“Speaking of Yuta,” you said loudly, spotting a familiar vehicle in the distance, at the bottom of the hill.

The whole group burst into noisy jeers and complaints at the old blue truck as it got nearer and nearer, until Yuta had pulled all the way around and parked in the space Taeil left empty for him in the driveway. The heckles finally quieted down when the siren climbed out of his truck to glare at you all.

“Alright!” He held his hands up in a quiet-down gesture. “Sorry to keep you guys waiting. But we’re here now.”

“What took you guys so long?” Johnny asked, starting to help the three newcomers unload the bed of the truck.

“You get lost or something?” Donghyuck teased.

Yuta immediately whirled around on the vampire, “Jaehyun, I swear to God, snitches get stitches.”

A silence fell over everybody, so quiet you swore you could’ve heard a pin drop if not for the quiet background noise of the ocean. Jaehyun was standing on the opposite side of the truck bed, holding an umbrella with one hand to cast a shadow over his face, maintaining Yuta’s eye contact with entirely neutral features.

One.

Two.

“Yuta got pulled over.”

Raucous laughter erupted around you, you yourself cackling so hard your sides hurt.

“That’s it! I’m not inviting you in!” Yuta waggled a finger at Jaehyun, then threw his hands up as he kept ranting. “Hang upside down off the roof and sleep outside for all I fucking care!”

You were doubled over now, lightheaded as you grabbed your knees and tears sprung to your eyes. Taeyong covered his mouth as he giggled, Johnny was leaning against the side of the truck for support, Donghyuck had sprouted bright yellow marigolds along his arms, Mark was rolling around clutching his stomach on the asphalt—which you imagined would’ve been too hot for anybody who wasn’t cold-blooded, Doyoung and Taeil held onto each other to stay upright, and when you looked at Jungwoo, you saw that his hair was flashing back and forth between brown and light pink like a twinkling star. Your cackles lightened up to soft chuckles as you couldn’t help but be transfixed by the image of the fairy’s head thrown back in joy, eyes crinkled into delighted crescents, and laughs that sounded like music reaching your ears.

“What— What did you even do, dude?” Johnny managed to ask.

“I was going like two over the speed limit, okay?” Yuta huffed, crossing his arms.

“Oh yeah, I’m sure it was only ‘like two,’” Donghyuck snorted, standing over Mark as he waited for the basilisk to finish recovering from his laughing fit. The dryad offered out a hand to help yank him back onto two feet again.

“So did you get a ticket?” Taeil called out as he grabbed his luggage from his car.

“Nope!” Yuta announced proudly.

“Oh please tell me you siren charmed your way out of a ticket,” Doyoung said hopefully, hoisting a bag onto his shoulder.

“I would never!” The siren cried out in offense, then pointed to Taeyong. “Taeyong cried a little. Cop felt so bad he let us go with a warning!”

“Is this what those legendary unicorn tears are for? Skirting traffic laws?” You laughed, following everyone up towards the entry.

“I can’t believe you’ll cry to get Yuta out of a ticket but you won’t give me one little vial of your tears!” Doyoung shook Taeyong’s shoulder as he complained.

Taeyong elbowed the witch in the side, “Yeah and this is why! You don’t know how to ask for things nicely!”

Doyoung truly had a special talent, being the only person you’d ever met who was able to rile up the normally patient unicorn so quickly. As their usual bickering escalated into jabs and slaps and kicks, you went to try to duck away from the fray, being directly between and behind them, right in the line of fire.

“Hey, you two! Watch my face!” You warned, holding up an arm defensively in front of you.

“Do I need to come back there and separate you three?” Johnny warned from where he and Yuta were standing at the front door. The rest of you were in a line of some sort leading down the wooden walkway onto the drive.

“Three?!” You repeated indignantly. “What did I do?”

“No, Johnny,” Taeyong mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Whatever,” Doyoung huffed, letting up on the little fight too. “Bet your tears would make weak ass potions anyway.”

“Oh my God, you’re actual children,” you whispered to yourself. With their backs to you and each other, you were free to mimic like you were strangling them, “I’m gonna wring your goddamn necks one of these days.”

There was a giggle from beside you, and you hadn’t even realized that you’d ended up squished next to Jungwoo until right then. When you looked over, he was already looking at you with a smile on his face, and the split second of eye contact warmed you even more than the sunshine.

“What’s the hold-up, Yuta?” Donghyuck yelled from the very back.

“Door’s— just— a— bit— stuck—” Every word from Yuta was punctuated by the siren ramming his shoulder against said door. “God— fuckin— Oh!” He suddenly stumbled forward as the door finally gave way. “There we fuckin’ go!”

Everyone rushed in, stopping just inside of the living room. Well, almost everyone.

“Yuta.” Jaehyun was still standing on the welcome mat outside.

“Did you think I was kidding, you little tick?”

“Yuta,” Taeyong sighed.

“Fine,” Yuta huffed, dragging out the word. “Jaehyun, please come in.”

As Jaehyun lowered his umbrella and stepped in, you looked around where you would be staying for the next week. It was cozy, the beachy aesthetics perfectly encapsulated in the kitschy décor that was plastered all around the living room and attached kitchenette that you’d landed in. But it was kind of… small.

“Hey, Yuta?” Taeil turned to the siren.

Yuta shut the door behind Jaehyun, “Yeah?”

“There’s enough space for all of us to sleep, right?”

“What? Of course… I think.”

“Feels like we’re kids again,” Donghyuck sighed wistfully. “Twin beds, no privacy, I get to listen to your snoring all night.”

“At least we got beds,” you pointed out, heaving your suitcase up onto your own narrow mattress.

You two had been given what looked like a kids’ room, two twin beds on white wicker bed frames with matching nightstands, and a mural of fantastical sea life painted on the walls with friendly, animated faces. Some of the others weren’t so lucky. Taeil and Doyoung got a similar setup to you and Donghyuck, bunkbeds, with Jungwoo on an air mattress on the floor; Taeyong and Yuta were sharing the king bed in the master bedroom; Jaehyun and Johnny had bravely taken the couches (Jaehyun rightly pointed out that he didn’t sleep much anyway), with Mark’s air mattress on the living room floor.

“And nobody on the floor that we have to worry about stepping on in the middle of the night.”

“You know what we should do?”

Donghyuck looked at you with a conspiratorial grin, “Sleepover protocol?”

You nodded firmly, “Sleepover protocol.”

And a succinct ten minutes later, your beds and nightstands had been pushed together, the sheets pulled taut over the posts and lamps, vines and branches supporting the construction where needed: a blanket fort, the form of which had been perfected over years of sleepovers growing up. As you laid inside shoulder-to-shoulder with Donghyuck, you looked up at the ceiling of the fort, watching as he sprouted flowers and leaves along it.

Once he’d finished, he held up his hand expectantly, and you immediately gave him a satisfyingly snappy high-five.

A couple soft knocks came at the open bedroom door, followed by a voice, “Hey, Y/N— Woah!” Jungwoo’s sentence stopped short as he took in the scene before him. “You two got that up quick.”

Donghyuck looked over at you, a mischievous smirk already on his lips, before he innocently replied to the fairy, “Oh, and you should see the inside! Here, Jungwoo, I was just about to go see if Mark needed any help with his air mattress anyway!”

You darted your hand out to pinch him as he sat up on his knees. He hissed in pain as you managed to get some skin, swatted your fingers away, then crawled out of the fort. A second later the entire room mysteriously got darker, then Jungwoo’s head popped in at the entrance to the fort, playful glint in his eye, “Is there a password?”

You shook your head as best you could lying down, “Hyuck and I didn’t get to make one before he just ditched me.”

“What kind of blanket fort is this with no password?” Jungwoo clicked his tongue disapprovingly as he scooched into the empty space your friend had created, his right side now pressed against your left.

“Well then help me think of one, in case anyone else comes barging in,” you nudged his arm that was beside yours.

“I didn’t come barging in, I knocked.”

“Mhm.”

“You know what else this fort needs? In addition to a password.”

“What?”

“Some lights.”

“Okay well Donghyuck apparently turned the lights off on his way out, don’t fault the fort for that.”

“I was thinking something more like…” Jungwoo raised his left hand, and you watched as his fingertips danced across the flowers on the ceiling of the fort. In their wake, small dots of glowing golden light were nestled between the petals and leaves of the plants. You couldn’t help the small gasp that left your mouth at the utterly enchanting sight above you, it looked like a sea of tiny, twinkling stars had been captured and put in a field of flowers just for you.

You’d never really seen Jungwoo do much magic in the time that you’d known him. Sure, he owned the odd magic item here and there, pretty much all your friends did thanks to Taeil and Doyoung, or by way of their own magical community. And of course, the changing hair color, but that seemed more accidental or incidental rather than intentional. But you were hard pressed to think of a time that Jungwoo had really put his fairy powers on display in any distinguished capacity in front of you.

“Woos, this is… It’s unbelievable. Just beautiful…” You sighed out, reaching a hand up towards one of the flowers directly above you—a pink carnation—before you dropped it back down to rest on your stomach, thinking that touching the mysterious magical light might be a bad idea. Turning your head to the side, you looked over at Jungwoo, only to nearly jump out of your skin when you saw him already looking at you. Your noses were nearly touching, and you jerked your head back a tiny bit to regain your bearings.

You snapped your gaze back up to the ceiling quickly, “Uhm, so, what were you coming to our room for? It sounded like you needed something.”

“Johnny and them wanted help unpacking all the cars, so I was sent to get you and Donghyuck. But if he went out there looking for Mark, Johnny definitely found him, so…” Jungwoo shrugged. “I think we can stay here for a little while longer.”

It wasn’t until late afternoon that everything was finally together enough for you all to head down to the beach. Most of the group had taken off by the time you’d emerged from your room in your swimsuit and coverup. Jaehyun was still in the living room, standing at the little breakfast bar that separated the couches from the kitchenette. He was rubbing presumably sunscreen onto his skin, the tube set onto the counter beside him. As you walked by him towards the fridge, you were able to spot the little cartoon vampire fangs on the black bottle—special formula to keep him from burning to a crisp.

The fridge was empty save for some mysterious jars filled with a glittering purple liquid which you chalked up to Doyoung and Taeil, and therefore opted to leave alone.

“Did the others bring a cooler down with all the drinks?” You turned around to ask the vampire.

He nodded as he went to get his ears and neck next. Most of him would be covered by his t-shirt and swim trunks, at least.

“Don’t forget the tops of your feet.”

“Thank you.” He bent down to slather up from the knees down as well.

“Are we the last ones?”

Jaehyun nodded again.

“Alright, ready to go? Need anything else? Hat? Sunglasses? Umbrella?”

He grabbed a pair of dark, mirrored sunglasses that were also on the counter, his sunscreen, then gave you a nod. You nodded back, slid on your sunglasses, and shouldered your bag of beach items before moving to open the back door for your friend. Jaehyun hissed as soon as he stepped out, and you squinted your eyes as you did too. You could see your friends all along the beach already. A couple large umbrellas were set up with several beach chairs, folding chairs, and towels under them; a volleyball net was being put up; a firepit was in fact a little further down the beach; there were some little dots in the water that could be heads bobbing along with the waves; and a couple figures were chasing each other in the surf. From this distance, you were pretty sure those last two were Donghyuck and Mark.

“You know, Jaehyun, you don’t do much to dispel those vampire stereotypes,” you patted him on the back as you started down the boardwalk-lined walkway. “Hissing when you see the sun, being the weirdest fucking dude in the room.”

“I’m not trying to dispel any stereotypes,” he deadpanned. “The Sun hurts my eyes.”

“Why did you come to Cape Solaria then?”

It was then that one of the people who had been sitting down under an umbrella turned around, and you were able to identify them as Taeyong, who gave the two of you a big wave paired with an even bigger smile. You waved back. Jaehyun lifted his hand for a moment before dropping it back down by his side.

“All of you were coming. And I think… I think it would’ve made Taeyong sad, if we weren’t all together.”

You looked over at the vampire thoughtfully, and saw that same blank expression as always. But this time you decided that you could see some kind of fondness there, for Taeyong, for you, for all of your friends. You always joked about Jaehyun being emotionless, but you knew that he was human just a few years ago, had all the same mushy stuff churning inside him then as you did now. He didn’t talk a lot, so when you got to hear these rare moments from him, you were reminded of that fact. And you had to think that no, he wasn’t emotionless, he just felt it and expressed it differently than you were expecting him to.

“I think you’re right, Jaehyun,” you grabbed his forearm to steady yourself to take off your flip-flops now that you’d reached the sand. You let out a sigh at the warm sand between your toes. Giving his cold limb an appreciative squeeze, you then let it go, “Thank you, for coming with us. I’m glad you’re here, and I know Taeyong and the rest of the guys are, too.”

The vampire was quiet as the two of you finished your short walk to join the others who were under the two colorful umbrellas. Taeyong had saved a fully-shaded chair for Jaehyun. You plopped your bag down on a towel that you recognized as Donghyuck’s.

Taeil was on a reclining beach chair, floppy hat brim pulled slightly down over his face as if he were taking a nap. In just a pair of swim trunks, the ritual tattoos on his torso, arms, and neck were on full display in all their inky blackness. Thick, bold, intricate strokes that reminded you of tree branches winding across his skin. What you did know about them was mostly gathered from context clues, what the two witches had freely brought up in conversation. Taeil relied a lot more on grounding and building his internal power through long, studied rituals, which you figured was why he had more tattoos than Doyoung, who favored quick incantations—i.e., hexes, charms, and curses. The latter was magic that could be drawn from external magical sources like certain crystals or metals, hence Doyoung’s usual menagerie of jewelry.

The cooler was at the witch’s feet, and you flipped it open to root around through the ice before securing your drink of choice. Turning around to face the ocean, you took in a deep breath of the salty air. It really was spring break. Mark and Donghyuck were splashing each other in the shallows, about shin-deep in the water. A little further out, you could now see that Doyoung was treading water, watching another figure that was moving around with a speed and agility that made you stop and look with awe.

Yuta was fully in his element here, quite literally swimming circles around Doyoung. Holding up a hand to block out some of the Sun and get a better look, you swore Yuta’s legs were gone, and replaced by a… yep, that was definitely a tail, long, thin, and powerful. It was the same silvery iridescent that you had seen peeks of with his other scales, catching blue, purple, and pink in the Sun when it popped up out of the water. Two large fins were at the end of it, and a dorsal fin went from his still-human back down through where it turned into the tail.

You slowly walked towards the water to get a better look, mindful of Mark and Donghyuck’s splash war that had now turned into water wrestling. As Yuta slowed to instead do some rather ominous circles around Doyoung, you noted more fins had grown along his forearms as well. It looked like some gill slits were on his neck, too.

“Yuta, if you drown me, I swear to Hecate, I will become a ghost and haunt your fishy ass,” Doyoung went to splash the siren, who simply dove underwater, then popped up behind the witch.

“And I promised to everybody possible, including Hecate, that I wasn’t going to drown you,” Yuta pointed out, beginning to circle him again, an absolutely devilish grin on his lips. “That doesn’t mean I can’t play with you a little.”

“Ugh, you make everything sound so weird, can’t you just say that we’re swimming?”

“Nope!” Yuta dove down again with a flick of his tail.

“Shit! Where’d he go?!”

You laughed, taking a sip of your drink before there were suddenly two wet hands over your sunglasses and you let out a screech, “Jesus Christ!”

“Close!” A familiar voice said cheerfully. “Guess again.”

“Hyuck!” You jutted an elbow behind you, satisfied when you made contact with wet skin, and heard a grunt.

“Correct!” He wasn’t as cheery this time, hands still over your eyes. “You know, that would’ve hurt if it weren’t for my six-pack that I’ve been honing at the gym all year.”

You snorted, “Your what that you’ve been honing at the where?”

“Fair,” your friend sighed. “Anyway, are you ready?”

You were immediately on edge for whatever he was about to do to you. Splashing you, throwing you in the water, pushing your head underwater, any number of things immediately came to mind.

“For what?”

His hands suddenly clamped down over your head as he forcibly turned you around, and you grabbed onto his arm for support as you yelped and protested this, the sand underneath you uneven, especially with you currently being blinded. Donghyuck’s voice was closer to your ear as he whispered, “Well, to see Jungwoo shirtless, of course.”

“Oh God, Hyuck! Shut the fuck up!” You blindly threw a hand back in an attempt to smack some part of his face, but just found empty air this time. “We’re not in middle school anymore! I can handle seeing a dude at the beach!”

“Ok-ay…” He replied in a sing-song voice, clearly not believing you, at the same time that he finally took his hands off your face.

You had to blink your eyes a few times to readjust to the brightness of the sunny afternoon. Donghyuck had pointed you straight at the volleyball net that was now fully constructed, where Johnny was on one side. The human was holding a volleyball against his hip with one hand as he conversed with Jungwoo on the other side of the net, who was in a pair of yellow swim trunks and a white tank top.

Just as you were about to turn around and smack Dongyhuck for real this time, Jungwoo grabbed the back of his collar and pulled the shirt over his head. You willed yourself to look literally anywhere else, but your eyes embarrassingly kept watching as he tossed the shirt to the side, laughing at something that Johnny had just said. This was entirely unfair, was he actually, literally, sparkling in the sunlight? Or was that just you?

“Hey, Y/N!” Johnny waved at you.

If this were a teen movie, there would be a record scratch right here. Your stomach plummeted as you frantically tried to calculate how long exactly you had been staring in their direction. You gave a meek wave as Jungwoo spun around to look in your direction too.

“Y/N!” Jungwoo called out, this time waving you over. Oh great, no getting out of this one.

You weakly shuffled over towards them, keeping your gaze on literally anything except Jungwoo’s bare torso. “What’s up?”

“Do you—”

Jungwoo was cut off by a shriek from the water.

“Yuta! Shark!” Doyoung yelled as he paddled back towards the shore.

“Yeah, this is Bear,” Yuta seemed entirely unfazed by the small dorsal fin meandering along around him.

The witch stopped to look at him in disbelief, “Bear the shark?”

“Blacktip shark, if you want to be specific,” the siren shrugged. “And he’s just a baby. He’s barely three feet.”

“Oh, fuck this,” Doyoung shook his head, resuming his journey back to the beach. “You and Bear have fun out here by yourselves.”

Returning your focus to the two men in front of you, you looked up at Jungwoo questioningly, “Uhm, so…?”

“Did you want to play?” Jungwoo asked.

“Oh, no, Woos, that’s okay,” you shook your head quickly.

“Really? You were looking over here pretty intently,” he pointed out, and the little half-smirk that played across his lips almost looked knowing. He leaned down towards you, momentarily blotting out the sun, “Seems like you wanted something. If not volleyball then…?”

Oh, you needed to get the hell out of here. Between Jungwoo’s everything, Johnny’s ‘oh really?’ head tilt, and the heat, you very much felt like you could pass out any second.

“Nah, you know, I don’t think three people would really work for teams anyway,” you rushed to say, scratching anxiously at the back of your neck.

“Hey Taeil!” Johnny bellowed out over yours and Jungwoo’s heads, cutting off whatever the fairy was about to say in response.

The witch flipped up the brim his hat to squint at the three of you, “Eh?”

Johnny held up the volleyball, “Wanna play? We need a magic fourth to make it even!”

“What? Big strong Johnny can’t beat one fairy and a human all on his own?” Taeil sighed as he started meandering over. “You need little ol’ me to come help?”

Jungwoo’s eyes sparkled mischievously as he straightened back up to address Taeil, “So we’re allowing magic then?”

“Only on the ball, not the players,” the witch laid out the ground rules.

“How about on the ball, and on you and me? No magic on Johnny and Y/N,” Jungwoo countered.

Taeil took a moment to contemplate this, then nodded, “Fine.”

You caught Johnny’s gaze, his wide eyes mirroring your own. Accepting that you weren’t getting out of this, you set your drink down by Jungwoo’s shirt.

“So how will we know who wins?” You questioned.

Taeil and Johnny exchanged a glance before the human answered confidently, “Oh, we’ll know.”

You narrowed your eyes at them. “Okay… but just in case, first to ten?”

“First to ten.” Johnny confirmed, sticking his hand through a small tear in the net. You shook it firmly.

As you all backed away from the net to take your places, he tossed the volleyball over the net to you.

“Here. You can serve first.”

“How kind,” you scoffed as you caught it, then turned to your teammate. “Do you want to serve, or should I?”

“You go for it, Y/N,” Jungwoo said, eyes focused over your shoulder. “I’ll be doing a little defense.”

“A little… oh.” You turned and saw Taeil and Johnny conversing much like you and Jungwoo were, the smaller looking over at the ball in your hand. “What do you think he’s gonna do?”

“Nothing you have to worry about,” the fairy patted the top of your head. “You and Johnny are off-limits, remember?”

“I know…” you mumbled, looking down at the volleyball in your hands intently. “Just wondering.”

Backing all the way up to the designated edge of the makeshift court, you waited until everyone looked like they were in place, then tossed the ball up to serve. It started a clear arc heading over the net towards Johnny, who was getting ready to set it back up, until it suddenly changed direction, veering off towards Taeil. The witch got his hands up at the last second, bumping it back towards his teammate.

Johnny hit back over the net, to which Jungwoo set it high for you.

“Y/N!”

“Got it!” You jumped up, spiking the ball down over the net as hard as you could.

Taeil went to save it, but his foot seemed to catch on something as he fell to the ground, landing just short of it. You had to hold back your laughter at the comical trip and tumble that he’d taken, sand flying up around him.

“Hell yeah, Y/N!” Jungwoo came up to you with two hands up, and you immediately slammed your palms against his in a satisfying double high-five. He laced his fingers through yours before you could pull back, a bright grin on his face as he gave your hands a squeeze then let them go.

“Taeil, are you okay?” You checked in on your friend as he brushed the sand off his knees and you all reset your positions.

“Oh, I’m great, Y/N. I’m having fun, promise,” he assured you, then focused a hard stare on Jungwoo. He pointed at the fairy accusatorily, “You, on the other hand, are not about to be!”

“Try me!” Jungwoo yelled back, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Johnny gave you another bewildered look. You shrugged; magic teasing and taunts were commonplace at playdates growing up with Donghyuck, it wasn’t unheard of for the two of you to alter the rules of common kids games to accommodate his powers. This was just the first time you’d seen it at this magnitude of power. Well, sort of. It was the first time you’d seen adults do it like this.

Johnny served this time, and while the ball was initially going straight for the space in between you and Jungwoo, you backed away to let Jungwoo lunge forward for it. A few more passes between the two teams happened without much incident, until Johnny went to pass it to Taeil, but way overshot it.

“Shit! Sorry— oh.” Johnny’s apology turned into wide-eyed surprise as the ball suddenly disappeared into thin air.

Then reappeared directly above Jungwoo’s head. It plummeted straight down, bouncing off his head, hitting the net, and coming to a final rest on the ground. You didn’t bother with the volleyball, rushing over to check on the fairy as he fell to his knees, holding his head.

“Ooh! Are you alright, Woos?” You asked, wincing sympathetically.

“No,” he bemoaned, eyes screwed shut. “I think I need... I need someone to... to kiss me better.”

You could feel yourself glitching out in real time, your hand that had been reaching out towards his head freezing in mid-air, your eyes blinking in rapid succession as you tried to grasp what he’d just said.

After two beats of neither of you moving, perfect statues, like the weirdest Baroque painting you could find at a museum, Jungwoo squinted one of his eyes open to look at you. You held his eye contact, stupefied.

“Hey! If you’re not concussed, can we get a move on with the game?” Johnny called out, startling you into pulling your hand back like you’d been burned. “We’re 1 to 1 and I’d really like to get back to beating you guys!”

“We’ll finish our melodrama another time,” Jungwoo whispered to you before jumping to his feet. He patted you on the back, “Now come on, I need my superstar partner back!”

You shook your head as you jogged back over to your side of the court, desperately trying to clear your mind. Volleyball. Volleyball. Not kissing Jungwoo. Just volleyball. Definitely not Jungwoo grabbing you by the waist and—

“Y/N!”

You looked up at the sound of Jungwoo’s voice, just in time to see the ball sailing over the net towards you. A little slower than it should’ve been, you realized. But that gave you the extra split second you needed to react, bumping it over to the fairy. He sent it back to you, and you leapt up to spike it back down. A satisfying wave of sand parted around the volleyball as it struck the ground like a small meteor, Johnny missing his save as it flew past him with way more force and speed than you had imparted on it.

“Two-one,” you pointed out as Taeil set up for his serve.

Now with your head sufficiently back in the game, you and Jungwoo kept racking up points as the match continued. Four-two, seven-three, eight-three, nine-four.

Jungwoo and Taeil were at maximum magical shenanigans now, and the entire group had gathered around the court to watch. It was a chaotic cacophony of tripping, speeding volleyballs, and ignoring the laws of physics and plate tectonics, all interspersed with very mundane passes by you and Johnny.

You hit the volleyball over. It wasn’t a perfect set-up, nor a perfect hit by you either. The ball was sailing directly in front of Taeil, he could just take two steps forward and get it, no magic necessary. Except as he went to do so, a circle of red-capped mushrooms appeared around him, and he dropped his foot in a childish stomp. The volleyball hit the ground, rolling to a stop at the gathered crowd’s feet.

“A fairy ring?! Seriously, Jungwoo?!” Taeil huffed, throwing his hands up.

But you were buzzing with way too much excitement to pay him any mind. That was ten points.

“Yes!” You pumped a fist in the air, bouncing up and down as you turned around, seeking out your teammate.

Jungwoo was beaming, once again holding up two hands for you, and you high-fived him, expectantly leaving your palms resting against his for a split-second after. He laced his fingers with yours, squeezing your hands even tighter this time. You swore his grin was brighter than the Sun.

He let your hands go only to nonchalantly throw an arm around your shoulders, half-dragging and half-leading you up to the net to address your opponents.

“I’m sorry, Johnny, what was that about you beating us?” Jungwoo teased.

The human chuckled, looking over at the pair of you with a grin, “My bad. Good job, guys. You two are good together.”

“Jungwoo.” Taeil cut in sternly, tapping his foot impatiently. He was still encircled by mushrooms. “The fairy ring.”

“Right. Sorry!” Jungwoo said brightly, and the fungi disappeared as quickly as they had appeared.

“No you’re not.” The witch shook his head.

“All’s fair in love and sport.”

You squinted up at him, “That’s not the—”

The four of you were suddenly swarmed by the others, either jeering at Taeil and Johnny for losing, congratulating you and Jungwoo on your win, or also jeering at you and Jungwoo for winning. It was a mass of teasing, pushing, pulling, yelling, and shaking. One particular tug from Yuta and Donghyuck knocked you loose from under Jungwoo’s arm, but you were too busy laughing to really care.

As the Sun began to set, you all congregated around the firepit and the four benches there. Yuta, Johnny, and Taeyong were looking very much like three dads at a barbeque as they prepared the fire itself— Johnny insisted on doing it the human way for “authenticity” instead of one of the witches magicking a flame. Taeil and Doyoung were grabbing the s’mores ingredients from the house while Jungwoo, Jaehyun, and Mark chatted as they watched the three preparing the wood. You and Donghyuck were sat together on another bench, giggling as you played with a little sandpiper that had been following the dryad around since his arrival. The bird hopped from your hands to Donghyuck’s, then back.

“Thank Pan it’s not seagulls this time.” You gingerly stroked its head as it perched on your friend’s shoulder. Usually you wouldn’t dare to touch or approach wild animals on your own, but they all liked Donghyuck, and he made sure they were never in distress from your interactions.

You remembered coming to the Cape with Donghyuck and your parents as a kid, and instead of a cute sandpiper, he had instead befriended some obnoxious seagulls.

“Hey, those guys were great,” Donghyuck scoffed. “It’s not my fault you didn’t get their jokes.”

“And it’s not my fault that I don’t have a telepathic connection with animals.” You scoffed. “Is this one a comedian too?”

“No, she’s a quiet one. Just chillin’ out with us.”

Johnny let out a loud whoop, and you looked up to spot a little flame starting in the very heart of the pit. The three of them all exchanged enthusiastic high-fives and pats on the back.

Doyoung and Taeil returned soon after with all the s’mores ingredients, as well as some more drinks. The cooler had already been emptied earlier in the evening. You took whatever drink Doyoung pushed into your hand, and the marshmallow on a stick Taeil put in your other hand.

Jungwoo ended up sitting next to you at some point, knee bumping against yours every so often, you didn’t remember when that happened, but everyone was talking and laughing as the fire roared. Your face was warmed by the flames as you rotated your marshmallow, watching it turn golden. You’d lost track of what number this was.

“Can’t believe we get a whole week here,” you sighed contentedly, watching over all your friends having fun.

Jungwoo was quiet, and you were about to look at him, except your marshmallow caught fire, and you pulled it back quickly to blow it out. He laughed from beside you, and you glanced over to catch a glimpse of his smile, glowing by the light of the fire. You found that he was already watching you.

You diverted your eyes to grab your plate and assemble the s’more. “Do you want this one, Woos?”

“I’ll take the next one, Y/N. Thanks.”

Lifting the treat up, you took a bite, the melted chocolate and marshmallow immediately oozing out the sides. After finishing it, you were about to grab whatever was left of your drink when Jungwoo touched your arm.

“Y/N, hold on.”

“Hm?” You turned back to looked up at him.

Then Jungwoo’s hand was gently gripping your chin, his thumb swiping at the corner of your mouth and just barely grazing over the edge of your bottom lip. His hand was gone as quick as it had appeared, leaving a hot buzz under your skin in the wake of his touch. You couldn’t pull your eyes from him as he then brought his thumb up to his lips, cleaning off the digit. Your entire body was thrumming now. Hot, hotter than the fire was making you. His eyes glittered, and it definitely didn’t remind you of craft store glitter this time.

“You had chocolate on your face,” he explained, his voice almost sounding like he was teasing you. But this wasn’t like his usual jokes, there was an unfamiliar tension. He didn’t giggle after.

Your tongue instinctively darted out to lick that same spot, and you could taste the faint remnants of the chocolate bar used for the s’more. You swore his eyes followed the movement.

“Th-thanks, Woos,” you stuttered. Grabbing another marshmallow from your plate, you were in a daze as you said, “Here, I’ll make yours now.”

When the fire was eventually put out, chairs and umbrellas packed up, and the less tipsy of you had helped the more drunk of you into bed, you could finally retire to your blanket fort with Donghyuck. But no matter how late it was, how physically tired you felt, you couldn’t sleep. You knew your roommate wasn’t asleep yet either, he’d just put his phone down a couple minutes ago.

You stared up at the ceiling of your fort, at the dimming dots that Jungwoo had put up that afternoon, and let out a deep sigh. “I feel like I’m going crazy, Hyuck.”

The mattress creaked under him as he shifted onto his side. “Why?”

“Jungwoo…”

He snorted. “Hate to be the one to break this to you: You’ve been crazy for him since the fall.”

“I know,” you whined half-heartedly, not even having it in you to smack him around a little like usual. “But usually he just exists near me and I melt into a puddle. Today, I swear it felt like I was going to die.”

“Oh, at the volleyball game?”

“You saw that?”

“Y/N, it was hard not to. If he were a werewolf, I would’ve thought he was scenting you.”

“Uh…” You completely lost your train of thought, eyes focusing and unfocusing on the lights above you.

Donghyuck snapped his fingers in front of your face, “Earth to Y/N.”

“Stop it,” you shoved his hand away.

“Oh there we go, you’re back.”

“Anyway, it wasn’t just what you saw at the volleyball game.”

And so you recounted every weird little thing that happened just that day with Jungwoo to your friend. The car ride, the fort, the volleyball game before Donghyuck started watching, the goddamn s’mores. If you were talking to anybody other than your best friend, you would’ve been mortified to relay all this to him, to admit both how badly all this had affected you and that you’d remembered every single detail of every single incident.

“Y/N.” The dryad said calmly after you had finished.

“Yes?” You held your breath, ready to be told that you were in fact crazy, and getting worked up over nothing, and desperately needed to get your head screwed back on properly.

“You want to kiss him so bad you’re making yourself look stupid. Of course he was flirting with you.”

And somehow being validated was even worse.

You covered your face with your hands, shaking your head back and forth, “Nonononono.”

“What’s the issue here? You’ve been into him without making any moves for a few months now, and he’s like… very obviously showing interest.”

“I needed you to tell me I was wrong, Hyuck! Not fuel my stupid daydreams! God, I’m going to be absolutely delusional now.”

“Or, I'm right—as I usually am—and you can finally do something about it.”

You let out a prolonged noise that was something between a whine and a groan, crossing your arms over your chest.

Donghyuck mimicked the sound you’d made. “I’m confused, do you actually want to date him or not? I can’t tell sometimes.”

“I do, I do,” you said. “I just… I don’t know. What if he’s just being nice? My headphones had died, you know, he just didn’t want me to be bored on that long car ride. And the fort, I mean you and I are sleeping in here together and I’m not accusing you of wanting to date me. Then the volleyball game, we’re friends and we had just won, you know, he was probably just excited and he’s a sweet guy, he's kind of touchy in general with everyone, right?”

Your words were met with silence, and you braced yourself for whatever opinion Donghyuck had on your rant. But as the silence dragged on, you looked over at him. His eyes were shut, shoulders rising and falling with each breath as he was comfortably tucked under his blanket.

You couldn’t even be mad at him, giving him a fond smile, “Yeah... Goodnight, Hyuck.”

SUNDAY

You were one of the first ones up that morning, and ate breakfast with the earlier risers: Taeil, Doyoung, Jaehyun, and Johnny. More were beginning to stir throughout the house as the first of you finished breakfast and cleared out of the kitchen to make room for the next wave. The two witches caught up to you in the narrow hallway that held all the bedrooms and one bathroom.

“Hey, Y/N,” Taeil said. “We’re going out, wanna come?”

“Sure, where are you going?” You questioned, pressing to one wall to allow a zombified Donghyuck to walk by.

“There’s a coven nearby that runs an apothecary downtown we want to check out.”

“Taeil also wants to get an invite to their dawn sacraments next Sunday,” Doyoung snorted.

“And you don’t?” Taeil scoffed back.

Doyoung’s silence was answer enough.

“Yeah, I’d love to come!” You nodded enthusiastically. “But are you sure you want me to? Or that I’m like, allowed to?”

“Of course!” The older reassured you.

Doyoung added, “Just don’t touch something if you don’t know what it is.”

“To be safe.”

It was a short ride into downtown Cape Solaria, which was comprised of just a couple small cross streets. Colorfully painted storefronts with wooden signs for a candy shop, flower shop, bakery, several different restaurants, bar and pool hall, among other things. And tucked at the end of all of them, a simple sign that just said Apothecary. Street parking was easy to find, and you wondered if it was always like that or just because you were there so early in the morning.

You kept close to your friends in the store. The aisles were narrow, as it seemed like the owners had packed as many shelving units in here as possible. They were filled with jars of herbs, vials of liquids, and bowls of crystals. Some things were familiar to you, some were not. You kept your hands to yourself nevertheless.

Taeil and Doyoung would occasionally pick something up and show it to the other, and they would either nod or shake their head as to whether it would be purchased. You knew the two of them had been friends for some time, but you realized then that you didn’t actually know for how long.

“Can I ask you guys something?” You spoke up from where you were beside Taeil, who was perusing some jars of various powders. Doyoung was examining some of the larger crystal formations.

“Can I ask you something first?” Taeil countered.

“Oh, sure. It’s only fair.”

“Is your question about somebody?”

“Uh, yeah?”

They looked over their shoulders at each other, matching smirks growing on their faces before turning back to their individual sides of the aisle.

“Of course, Y/N,” Taeil answered for them.

Opting not to address that little moment, you went ahead with your real question. “So how did you two meet?”

Doyoung immediately hissed, “Taeil, I swear I will—”

“What, Doie? Hex me?” Taeil laughed. “You really need to try to talk things out with people before jumping right to hexing. This is how you nearly get your friend drowned in your bathtub.”

“Yeah, whatever,” he grumbled back.

“I’ll take that as a concession that I’m right.” The older hummed happily. “Anyway, Y/N, to answer your question, we belong to the same coven back home. So Doyoung and I have known each other since we were kids, kind of like you and Donghyuck.”

“If you can call two families a coven. In our town the only witches are my family and Taeil’s. Covens are usually at least five families.”

“And now you and I have got a two-person coven, Doie. It’s not how many, it’s what you are to each other.”

“Gross.”

Taeil rolled his eyes, turning his focus to you, “He knows that, he likes to pretend like he’s still nine years old and believes in cooties or something.”

“Why didn’t you want Taeil to tell me that, Doyoung?” You questioned the younger witch.

“It’s what usually comes next,” Doyoung sighed, picking up a couple black crystals.

“How we came to university.” Taeil offered.

“Oh yeah, if you had a coven back home, why’d you come to college?” You tilted your head. Covens were family for witches, both spiritually and literally. To leave their coven and come to college wasn’t entirely unheard of, but also wasn’t a typical trajectory for young witches.

“I didn’t care about higher education one way or another, but Doyoung really wanted to do it. He didn’t want to go by himself, though. Begged me to come with him.”

Doyoung snapped around, “Fuck the hex, I’m just going to find some duct tape and—”

Taeil kept speaking to you, voice fond as he recalled the memory, “I mean, we grew up in the coven together, that was all we knew, it was scary to leave. I was terrified of leaving our families and coming here. But brave little Doie still wanted to go, so I told him of course I would go with him. We were a coven, after all.”

“I hate when you do that,” Doyoung huffed, moving onto some herbs.

“Do what?” Taeil asked humorously.

“Be nice so I can’t be mean to you. Why can’t you just spike my tea to give me bunny ears so I can put wartweed in your acne cream?”

You couldn’t help but laugh at the image of Doyoung with bunny ears and poor Taeil with warts on his face.

“Because we’re not in middle school anymore,” Taeil grabbed a few small jars. “But if you want to start a prank war, I’m sure Jungwoo would want to get in on it too.”

You all were now going down the next aisle, which was primarily live plants.

“After seeing you get your ass kicked at volleyball yesterday, I would love it if he did,” Doyoung chuckled.

You felt something brush against your arm, and looked down to see a lover’s embrace vine from the top shelf beginning to wind itself around your forearm.

“Ack! No, no,” you said sternly, gently brushing at it. It got the idea, retreating back up to the top shelf. Thankfully it was a young one that hadn’t bloomed yet, so you were actually in your right mind to shoo it off.

Meanwhile, Taeil and Doyoung were still bickering like an old married couple.

“I did not ‘get my ass kicked.’”

“Ten to four, Taeil.”

“Hey—”

“And you kept eating sand too.”

“Not my fault he thought tripping me was just as funny the fifth time as it was the first time.”

“He was right.”

“And my partner—”

“Oh yeah, blame the human,” Doyoung clicked his tongue and shook his head in disapproval.

“Don’t put words in my mouth! All I’m saying is that Johnny played like he thought the ball was going to explode if he hit it too hard. Y/N actually knew how to play off of Jungwoo’s magic.”

Both witches turned back to look at you.

You raised your eyebrows curiously, “Hm? Yeah, I mean, I grew up with plenty of magical hijinks with Donghyuck.”

“And…?” Doyoung prompted you further.

“And… Jungwoo and I are lab partners, so we already work together a bunch, I guess?” You filled in, voice pitched up as if it were all a question, not exactly sure what they were expecting from you.

They were still looking at you.

“Come on, guys, give Johnny a break, I think he’s done pretty well at keeping up with all of us, all things considered. And the poor guy had to deal with Mark molting last year.”

“Speaking of—” Taeil peered around, “Have you guys seen rattlesnake skin?”

MONDAY

A crack of thunder woke you up that morning. You groaned, pulling your blanket over your eyes and rolling over. Instead of hitting Donghyuck like you’d expected, you instead just found more empty space. Squinting one eye open, you saw that the fort was entirely vacant of your dryad roommate.

With a frown, you shimmied out of the fort, wrapping one of your blankets around yourself to go look for him. He wasn’t in your room at all.

More thunder boomed outside and lightning flashed, illuminating the house as you shuffled through the hall. Johnny and Mark were peacefully asleep in the living room. And that’s where you found Donghyuck, sitting silently at the kitchen table with Jaehyun, watching the rain pelt against the windows.

Their backs were to you, and as you got closer you could see that the dryad had a steaming mug in front of him.

“Hey,” you whispered, gently setting your hand on his shoulder.

“Oh, hey, Y/N,” Donghyuck’s hand fidgeted with the handle. “I couldn’t sleep, and didn’t want to wake you up by tossing and turning.”

You squeezed his shoulder, “Thanks.”

The dryad always got sort of antsy with big storms like this. Just like Taeyong’s mood was influenced by the emotions of the people around him, Donghyuck was sensitive to the weather. A storm as tumultuous as this was definitely affecting him.

“So what do you got there?” You referenced his drink.

“Hot chocolate. We didn’t have any milk to mix with the packet though, so I had to use water,” he wrinkled his nose. “I’m going to ask Doyoung to make me some tea when he wakes up.”

“Ooh, that sounds good.”

“Sucks about the beach, though. No way we’ll be able to go anywhere in this.”

“Oh, I’m sure this will blow over by morning,” you rubbed his back soothingly.

The storm raged on all day, leaving the ten of you stuck inside. By lunchtime, you had exhausted all of the board games that you could find in the house, and you were becoming painfully aware of just how tiny the space was with all of you in here for hours on end.

“Bad news, gang,” Johnny announced from the kitchen, where he had gone to start on dinner preparations. If it weren’t for your phones and rumbling stomachs, you wouldn’t even know that it was time for dinner. The storm outside had kept the sky pitch black and devoid of sunlight all day, and the clocks on the stove and TV were each an hour off in different directions, the stove an hour behind and the TV an hour ahead.

Most of you were sprawled out in various places between the breakfast nook, living room, and kitchen table.

“What, Johnny?” Taeyong called back.

“We’re out of beer.”

A chorus of groans erupted around you.

“That’s it!” Yuta stood up from the couch, taking off down the hall. He came back out with a pair of rain boots and thick coat on. “I am not going to be stuck in here for another second sober. I’ll be back.”

“You’re going to get wet,” Johnny frowned.

Yuta stared at him blankly from where his hand was on the door, silvery eyes flashing with the lightning.

Then your human friend finally seemed to realize, “Oh. Right. Get some pizza too, will you?”

And the siren was gone, slamming the door behind him.

You were playing a game of Uno with Mark, Jaehyun, and Donghyuck that was quickly approaching mutinous with regards to stacking +2 cards on top of +4s, when the front door was thrown open again.

Wind and rain blew in with the siren, howling as it whipped by. You got misted by some of it, shivering as the freezing cold spray hit you. Taeil rushed to shut the door behind him as others helped with the three or four twelve-packs he had squeezed under one arm and five boxes of pizza he had balanced on the other hand. Yuta peeled off his heavy raincoat, shaking out his soaking wet white hair after.

“Behold!” He gestured to the spread on the table grandly, charismatic grin on his face. “Dinner. You’re welcome.”

“Thanks, Yuta!” You slammed your Uno cards down and leapt up, grateful to have something else to do.

Everyone else followed your lead, a mad dash for food and drink.

Somewhere between grabbing food and clearing off the coffee table of all the board games, it was decided that a movie night was in order. Which obviously called for popcorn too.

The living room had two sofas, a central coffee table, and Mark’s air mattress. The larger of the two couches was directly facing the TV, and had the air mattress at the foot of it. The other couch was smaller, closer to the size of a loveseat, and oriented perpendicular to the first.

You had already claimed a spot in the middle of the smaller couch, sandwiched in between Johnny and Jungwoo, and happily munching away on your pizza. You were under a cozy blanket, had good food, and were definitely not thinking about Jungwoo’s arm resting on the back of the couch behind you.

At least you weren’t as squished as the others, even with using Mark’s air mattress. Jaehyun, Doyoung, Taeil and Yuta were on the larger couch, while Taeyong and Donghyuck were on the air mattress, fighting back the others’ legs and feet.

Mark walked out of the kitchen with three large bowls of popcorn then, tongue flicking with distaste as he took in the layout before him. “Well, someone’s got to make room.”

“Oh here, Mark,” Johnny offered. He then made deliberate eye contact with you, “I’m sure Jungwoo and Y/N don’t mind squishing in. Right, guys?”

“No, no, c’mon, Y/N. I’m not Jaehyun, I don’t bite,” Jungwoo agreed brightly, and you could feel him shift beside you as he pushed himself further back into the corner of the couch. Holding your plate of pizza with one hand and blanket with the other, you hovered over the cushion as you planned on just scooting over until you were as close to him as you were in the car.

Then hands were on your waist, pulling you towards the fairy, and his voice was by your ear, for only you to hear, “Usually.”

“Well she does.” Donghyuck grumbled loudly. “Still have scars from summer camp.”

“And I’ll do it again, you little shit.” Your threat was hollow, automatic, as you were processing where exactly you had landed in the seat shuffle.

“And I’ll bite all of you if you don’t shut up for the movie,” Jaehyun stated.

The dark room was filled with amicable chatter as the DVD previews began rolling, none of you taking Jaehyun seriously.

You were practically half on Jungwoo’s lap, one leg over his, and part of your back to his chest. That same arm was on the back of the couch again. You didn’t even know what movie they had picked—some mystery thriller maybe?—there was no way you were going to be paying attention now. You just hoped it was going to be holding everyone else’s focus sufficiently.

In an attempt to maintain some semblance of your composure, you released the rest of your blanket from the tight grip you had on it and instead gently laid it over yours and Jungwoo’s laps. To be considerate.

Despite Jaehyun’s earlier warning, there was a fairly steady stream of conversation throughout the movie as everyone would have reactions to a scene, or guesses as to the who the killer was. Speaking of the others, your seating sacrifice at least wasn’t in vain, the basilisk was enthusiastically watching along with everyone else, smacking Johnny’s leg or chest—or one time, face—whenever anything at all happened.

You, however, had no clue what was going on in the movie. All of your concentration was on trying to appear as normal as possible as you were certainly not feeling very normal about your situation. Mark was on the opposite end of the couch, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees as he was enraptured by the movie. Johnny was next to him, reclined back with a beer in hand, caught between laughing at Mark’s reactions and getting as into it as he was. Every so often, part of his shoulder or knee would bump against you, but you barely even registered this. Because then there were you and Jungwoo.

Jungwoo hadn’t moved since the scoot to make room for Mark. You wanted to look over at him, to see if you could gauge anything about how he felt about this whole situation from his face. But then you’d be facing the other guys, and you didn’t want to know if any of them had realized where exactly you were. So you turned your eyes downward instead. You curled your hands into fists under the blanket, nails digging into your palms as you tried to refocus yourself.

If what Donghyuck was saying before was true... then it wasn’t fair to Jungwoo for him to be the only one putting himself out there like this. You could at least try.

Before you could lose your nerve, you reached one of your hands over to where you knew his other hand was resting on his leg under the blanket. You were a little off-target, you found his wrist first, but he seemed to get the idea anyway, turning his arm over to let you lace your fingers with his. Your skin was burning as you gave his hand a tentative squeeze, and you had a bashful but relieved smile when his thumb rubbed over yours in response.

TUESDAY

The storm was gone the next morning, which was obviously cause for celebration. While the storm coming was reason for staying in and drinking, the storm being gone was just as much of a reason for getting even more trashed. But this time on the beach with the bonfire going.

The Sun had set long ago, and you were sat on a bench with Taeil as the two of you watched the others dance to whatever music played from Yuta’s speakers. Johnny was picking the music from his phone, not trusting Yuta to put on music that wouldn’t lure him to his death. He didn’t budge even after it was pointed out that he was wearing his charm from the witches. You yourself didn’t care, you liked Johnny’s party music better than Yuta’s anyway.

You were catching your breath, having previously just been up dancing with everybody else.

“Y/N, can you pass me a seltzer?” Taeil gestured to the cooler by your end of the bench.

“What flavor?” You reached over.

“Surprise me.”

“Well,” you looked into the empty cooler. “Surprise: we’re out.”

He laughed, shaking his head.

You glared up at the others. “Hey! Who took the last drink and didn’t say anything?”

“Boo! Party foul!” Somebody yelled out.

Taeil stood up and grabbed the cooler, “Y/N, come help me grab some more? And also grab Doyoung, he’s being asocial right now.”

You hadn’t even noticed that your other friend had slipped away from the group at some point. “Oh, sure, sure.”

Looking back into the group, you waited to see if you could make eye contact with one specific person. Finally, you caught Jungwoo’s eye, and he raised his eyebrows inquisitively. You mouthed ‘be right back, Woos’ and gestured towards Taeil and the direction of the beach house. He nodded in acknowledgement, giving you a smile that made your stomach do flips.

You turned back to Taeil expectantly, “Okay.”

He seemed about ready to question that little exchange, opening his mouth but didn’t, closing it again and leading the way to the board walkway up to the house.

Neither you nor Jungwoo had talked about nor acknowledged movie night since last night, but you could feel that something was different. It had only been a day, but you were rarely apart. He was always seeking you out for things, at breakfast, on the beach, for the brief trip a few of you had taken into town to get supplies for the bonfire tonight. And you found yourself anxious if you couldn’t see him, looking for him yourself until he was back in your eyesight, immediate relief coming over you. It just felt natural to let Jungwoo know where you were going... for some reason.

Taeil stopped in the kitchen, tossing more ice in the cooler. He didn’t grab the seltzers in the door, however. Instead, he reached for the jars of glittery, lilac liquid that you had spotted on your first day. He put most of them in the cooler, then handed one to you and kept two to himself.

“Come on, this is how we lure Doie out,” he motioned towards the bedrooms with his head.

Leaving the cooler in the kitchen, you followed him to their bedroom. Doyoung was sat cross-legged on the bottom bunk bed, an old book across his lap. He already had his pajamas on, looking fresh out of the shower too.

“No, Taeil,” he said as soon as you two crossed the threshold, not even looking up from his reading.

“Oh, come on, Doyoung, we brought you something,” Taeil plopped down on the air mattress in front of him. He held out a jar to him, and Doyoung’s eyes flicked up to look at it.

He didn’t take it. “We’re breaking out the witch’s brew already?”

You moved to sit down beside Taeil, looking down at your own jar in your hands. You’d heard of witch’s brew before, it was essentially magic Everclear with none of the burn. But you’d never had the guts to try any before, knowing your tolerance to human alcohol plenty well.

Taeil set Doyoung’s down beside his foot before cracking his open and taking a sip, “Why not? We’re celebrating.”

Doyoung made a disgruntled noise, but said nothing more. You curiously opened your jar as well, sniffing cautiously. It didn’t smell like it had any alcohol in it. Taking a small sip, a pleasant, flowery sweetness immediately coated your tongue. It wasn’t too overwhelming, light and refreshing. And, as you swallowed, no burn. If this was as intoxicating as you’d heard, you could see how dangerous this could be to partygoers. You felt like you could easily chug the whole thing right now.

“So, any particular reason you brought a grimoire on spring break?” Taeil asked Doyoung, though you were sure he very much already knew the answer. “We’re supposed to be taking a break from studying.”

“We’re witches, Taeil.”

“So?”

“We’re going to be students of magic our whole life, not just for four years.”

“You sound like BaBa.”

“BaBa was right about a lot of things.”

“Who—” You got cut off by a hiccup. “Who’s BaBa?”

You’d been taking sips as you listened to their conversation, and hadn’t been watching your intake of the delightful drink. Now your skin was warm, your head was buzzing, and you could feel a funny kind of airiness in your chest. Holy shit, you were tipsy in just a couple minutes.

You set your jar down on the floor in front of you while you still had the motor skills to do so.

“BaBa was one of our crazy old aunties in our coven,” Taeil answered your question, then pinched the tip of your nose between two fingers. “And you are tipsy.”

“Aw, baby’s first brew?” Doyoung snickered.

“Mm, how could you tell?” You answered sarcastically, swaying in place.

“Don’t worry, we’d rather have you try some with us at home.” Taeil brushed some of your hair back from your face as he let you rest your head on his shoulder.

“Gee, thanks, Dad,” you mumbled into his shirt. You were cycling through your drunk phases quickly, already sleepy.

“She’s easier to handle than Jungwoo was at least,” Doyoung sighed. “Can’t believe we’re even letting him around witch’s brew again.”

Your interest was piqued, head snapping up, “J— woah... hold on.”

The sudden movement made the room spin, and you needed a moment to regain your bearings, your stomach, and your train of thought. Taeil giggled, patting your head and shushing you, encouraging you to rest your head on his shoulder again.

“Oh, she’s been Jungwoo’d,” he sighed wistfully.

“What?” You asked.

“Jungwoo tends to… dazzle people? That a good word, Doie?”

“Yeah, sure. How do you think we let a fairy move in with us?” Doyoung shook his head, flipping to the next page.

Panic and angst overtook you, and you buried your face in your friend’s shoulder, “God, I told Donghyuck it was stupid, Jungwoo’s just being Jungwoo. He’s just like this, you know?”

The room was quiet for a moment before Taeil spoke again, “Y/N, do you remember how Yuta almost drowned Johnny at Friendsmasgiving when Doyoung put that blabbermouth hex on him?”

You slowly sat up straight again to look at him with something between a pout and a thoughtful frown, “Uh, yeah. Hard to forget. You two had to make that warding charm for him.”

“Have you ever thought about why Yuta’s siren call worked on Johnny that day and not you? You’re both humans.”

“Oh, uhm, well no. I was too worried about Johnny and all the craziness at the time. And… I don’t know, it’s never been something I’ve really thought too hard about, I guess? This kind of stuff always happens to Johnny, like Mark petrifying him. My personal theory is that Johnny’s mom gave birth to him underneath a ladder while breaking a mirror and knocking over a salt shaker, so he’s just destined to have bad luck for the rest of his life.” They were both silent, and you threw your hands up indignantly, “Okay, come on, Donghyuck thought that was hilarious.”

“Well we’ve been working on a theory,” Taeil said. “One that doesn’t involve ladders, mirrors, or salt shakers.”

“We? Keep me out of your conspiracies, Taeil,” Doyoung retorted.

“Then leave.”

Doyoung stayed seated, turning to the next page in his grimoire.

“Anyway, our theory. Have you heard that you’re not supposed to give fae your name because it gives them power over you?”

You could remember hearing something like that before, legends and warnings from older relatives before you went off to college. “Sure, but that’s a bit impractical nowadays, isn’t it? It’d be really hard for Jungwoo to be at school and not know anybody’s names. And I mean, he knows all of ours.”

“Right. Just like Yuta isn’t out here luring all of us to our deaths, and Jaehyun isn’t draining all of us dry, Jungwoo doesn’t take any of our names for himself. There’s a baseline of trust in society. But the magic is still there, even if he doesn’t actively engage in it.”

“You lost me, Taeil,” you wrinkled your nose. Maybe you should’ve taken more Magical Creatures Studies classes.

Doyoung let out a loud sigh and put his thumb in his grimoire to close it. He looked you in the eyes to make sure you were listening as he explained, “The magic and power around names that fairies have control over…”

“Uh-huh.” You nodded slowly.

“That still exists, even though they’re not actually using it. Just like we still have blood even though Jaehyun’s not drinking it. Make more sense?”

You squinted in concentration. “I think so.”

“Because of that name magic, fairies get very touchy about how people use their names.” Taeil continued with his explanation.

“No nicknames,” Doyoung clarified. “If you give them a name, they see it as you giving yourself more power over them.”

“Wait really? But I call Jungwoo—” Panic hit you like a train and mortification then flooded your veins. “Oh my God! Oh no no! Why did you guys let me call him that? I can’t believe I’ve been like so rude this whole time! Oh my G—”

“Y/N! Hey!” Taeil cut you off, grabbing your shoulders to stop your wildly flailing limbs. “We didn’t stop you because Jungwoo wasn’t stopping you.”

“Seriously, we asked him about it the first time we heard you call him that. He said, quote, ‘She’s cute, don’t you think?’” Doyoung informed you, humor in his tone.

“God, if you’re real, strike me down now.” You clasped your hands together and pleaded to the clamshell-shaped ceiling fan above you.

The three of you were silent for a beat, as if waiting to see if you really would be stricken down. When you were still there after a moment, you accepted your miserable fate of continuing to exist, and, therefore, continuing this conversation, “So what does this all have to do with Johnny drowning at Friendsmasgiving?”

“We think it was Jungwoo’s magic protecting you from Yuta’s siren call,” Taeil declared.

Doyoung opened his grimoire again. “But we can’t prove it.”

“How would me giving him a nickname do that? Even with the name magic stuff,” you pulled your knees to your chest.

“That’s where the conspiracy falls apart,” Doyoung tsked. “We can’t prove one way or another how or if it was Jungwoo—”  

Taeil narrowed his eyes at the other witch, “But it’s the best we’ve got.”

You picked your jar of witch’s brew back up, swirled the glimmering concoction around, and took a swig. “Right. Well. Thanks, guys. I guess.”

WEDNESDAY

“Hey,” Jungwoo’s voice startled you out of the solemn and lonesome reverie you’d been in.

After sleeping like shit last night, kept up ruminating on your conversation with Taeil and Doyoung, replaying memory upon memory of you calling the fairy by that nickname, and now feeling like a horrible person about it, you ended up being awake before the Sun in addition to everybody else. So, you’d made yourself breakfast to take down to the beach, eat by yourself, and watch the sunrise. You’d even made sure to sit in the chair that wasn’t visible to the house behind the umbrellas, not wanting anybody to join you out here. But you’d been found, and you didn’t have it in you to turn Jungwoo away now that he was with you.

“Oh, hey,” you gave him a half-hearted smile, gesturing to the chair beside you for him to sit.

He had a steaming mug in hand, his hair still tousled from sleep, and he was in pajama pants and a t-shirt.

The sunrise coming over the ocean was beautiful, burning oranges and yellows that reflected along the water. You popped a piece of fruit in your mouth. He took a sip from his mug.

“You didn’t come back last night. After going up to the beach house to get more drinks with Taeil,” Jungwoo said quietly.

You winced, “Oh, sorry, Jungwoo, I—”

“Who?” He cut you off abruptly.

“Huh?” You blinked, entirely thrown off from your lie about not feeling well or whatever.

“What’d you say?”

“Jungwoo—”

“Who?”

“J—”

“Who?”

“What are you, an owl?” You huffed, annoyed.

Jungwoo’s brows were knitted together, clearly as frustrated as you were, “Why are you calling me that?”

“What? Your name?”

“Yeah, which you haven’t called me since like August. It’s weird.”

“Everybody else calls you that.”

“You don’t.”

Your words were losing steam as you struggled to process what he seemed to be implying. “Am- Am I not everybody else?”

“No, you’re not,” he was calming down too, look at you more studiously than upset. “And you’re not passive-aggressive either, so I don’t think you’re mad at me.”

“No, of course not, W—!” You stopped yourself before the nickname could come out habitually, quite literally biting down on your tongue in your mouth.

“There! You were about to say it! Why didn’t you? Did someone curse you or something?” He leaned forward, eyes scanning your features as if he could see any remnants of a curse or hex on your face. For all you knew, maybe he could.

“No, I think,” you frowned thoughtfully. Your voice was getting smaller and smaller as you admitted, “I just... don’t want to be rude.”

“You don’t...” Jungwoo’s head tilted in confusion, before his mouth and shoulders dropped at the same time, realization dawning on his face. He sighed, “Taeil and Doyoung?”

You nodded meekly.

He set his cup down on the small table propped up out there, then gently lifted your chin up until you were looking him in the eye, “While I think it’s very cute and endearing that you were talking to my roommates about me, they clearly failed to mention the part where I like you calling me that. They say that?”

“Something like that...” You mumbled.

“Y/N, I like the nickname you gave me. Case closed, okay?” He said firmly.

“Okay.”

“Okay…?”

“Okay, Woos.” You relented, the name slipping off your tongue as naturally as ever.

“Oh, there we go! Everything is right with the universe again,” he exclaimed, finally rewarding you with his bright grin and laugh that sounded like bells. You couldn’t help but smile too.

You held your plate out towards him for him to take a piece of honeydew. He offered you his mug, and you took a sip, immediately recognizing it as some of Doyoung’s tea.

“It’s beautiful out here,” you sighed. The Sun was higher above the horizon, oranges beginning to give way to yellows and blues.

“Yeah,” Jungwoo agreed. “Sure is.”

“You’re welcome.”

You barely contained your scream at the voice that came out of the darkness and the vine wrapping around your wrist and yanking you into the room. Expecting your roommate to still be sleeping when you came back from watching the sunrise with Jungwoo on the beach, you had quietly opened the door, left the lights off, and kept the blinds closed. But it seemed he was awake.

“Hyuck! What the fuck would I be thanking you for? Giving me a fucking heart attack?” You scolded him, shaking off the plant.

You flicked the lights on to reveal him sitting cross-legged at the entrance of the fort, the plants shifted slightly to adjust the opening and height to accommodate for such.

“Gotta keep you on your toes, Y/N,” he inspected his nails. “But that’s not the only reason you should thank me.”

“Oh really? What else have you done in your never-ending quest for charity and benevolence?” You rolled your eyes, leaning against the closed door.

“You mock me and yet I made sure nobody bothered you and Jungwoo during your little beach tryst this morning.”

“What did you—”

“Mark saw Jungwoo going down there and his oblivious ass wanted to get everyone down there to take pictures with the sunrise. I told him that with my dryad knowledge, I could tell that the sunrise tomorrow would be even better and to wait.”

“You can’t predict that kind of stuff,” you arched an eyebrow.

“He doesn’t know that.”

“And nobody else called you out on that?”

Donghyuck grinned mischievously, “Doyoung and Taeil backed me up, actually.”

You groaned, dropping your head back against the door with a distinct thunk. “Just how many of you are in our business at all times now?”

“Our? So you and Jungwoo have joint business now?” He picked up on your word choice when you hadn’t.

“Hyu—” You stopped your string of curses short. The mention of you and Jungwoo sharing something made Taeil’s theory from last night come back to your mind.

Your friend looked concerned, “Hey, you okay? You always follow through on beating me up, verbally or physically.”

“You’re so fucking annoying,” you scoffed, moving to plop down next to him on the beds. “But… what do you know about fairies’ magic?”

“Bits and pieces. They’re similar to dryads and witches in that they’re connected to nature. But I think you have a specific question, Y/N.”

“Name magic?”

“Yeah, fairies can gain a lot of power over others by way of taking their name, their identities. But they don’t really do that anymore. With the way that society is now, they can get in a lot of trouble, especially when creatures like other fairies or unicorns can easily find out which fairy has taken someone’s name. Jungwoo’s not controlling you just because he knows your name, I promise you really are just this pathetic.”

“Hey!” You smacked the back of his head.

“Ow! I deserved that.”

“I swear you’re a masochist,” you shook your head. “Anyway, do you know if that kind of thing like, goes both ways?”

“What? Like how?”

“Taeil and Doyoung have this idea, about why Yuta’s siren call didn’t work on me at Friendsmasgiving like it worked on Johnny. They think that because I call Jungwoo by a nickname, I was somehow using the name magic or whatever and Jungwoo’s magic was protecting me. And I mean, it is weird that Yuta’s siren call didn’t work on me. I’m human, I didn’t have any kind of charm on, I was even sitting closer to him than Johnny was!”

Donghyuck seemed to think about this for a moment, tapping his chin. “That is strange…”

“Right!”

“Have you asked Jungwoo?”

“And how would I do that? ‘Hey am I accidentally using your magical powers by way of an ancient practice of your kind every time I call you by this silly little nickname that you’ve explicitly told me to keep calling you?’”

“One, you’re being intentionally negative and hyperbolic, you’re not that much of a weirdo in conversation.”

You stuck your tongue out at him.

“Two, he specifically asked you to keep calling him by the nickname that his witch roommates think is the conduit for him to be unintentionally—or now maybe intentionally—sharing magic with you?”

“I guess… I don’t know, we had a whole conversation about it this morning. The witches said fairies hate nicknames because of the name magic stuff. It’s basically like you giving yourself power over them in their culture. So I tried to call him by his name but—”

“I’ve made a grave miscalculation.”

Your eyes widened. “What?”

Donghyuck took both of your hands in his, looking you in the eye very seriously as if he were about to tell you someone died. “He wants to kiss you so bad he’s making the both of you look stupid.”

You shoved him off the bed.

THURSDAY

“Seriously? Nobody wants to play?” You whined, volleyball in hand.

“Nobody wants to play you two,” Donghyuck clarified, pointing between you and Jungwoo, who was standing next to you on the court. “You’re menaces with a volleyball. You should be on some watchlist.”

“Hey, we let you all set your own rules every time.”

“Yeah, it’s not our fault you guys suck,” Jungwoo agreed.

Being unable to convince any pair of your friends to verse you and Jungwoo in volleyball again, you decided to pop into the house for a quick break from the Sun instead. Jungwoo tagged along, and you found yourself getting more nervous as you realized it’d be just the two of you in the house together.

“Hey,” Jungwoo grabbed your elbow as you were about to make a beeline for the kitchen, intent on grabbing a popsicle from the freezer.

You stopped, giving him a questioning look, “Yeah, Woos?”

“Let’s go somewhere.”

“Somewhere?” You hated how your voice cracked over the word.

“You wanted to go to the ice cream place downtown, right? On Tuesday? But we didn’t have time.”

“Oh, yeah, I did,” you smiled bashfully, chest feeling funny about the fact that he had remembered some little thing that you had said, a moment that was so inconsequential. “Uh, right now?”

He shrugged, “Why not?”

“Okay, sure. Do you want to tell the others?”

“Do you?”

You bit the inside of your cheek, and shook your head.

He grinned. “Me neither.”

After quickly changing from your used beach clothes, you followed him out front. You expected to hear the beep of Taeil’s car unlocking, but Jungwoo instead veered in a different direction. You followed him towards the blue truck curiously.

“Yuta’s truck?” You asked, now spotting the keys in his hand.

“He’s who said yes to letting us use his car,” Jungwoo affirmed, then opened the driver’s door. “You’ve got to get in on this side, sorry.”

As you went to do so, you saw why. The seat was a bench seat, and on the far side, propped against the passenger door, was a giant rock.

“Do I want to know?” You sighed, climbing up into the cab of the truck.

“Doyoung wants to bring it back, but Taeil doesn’t want it in his car,” Jungwoo explained, sliding in after you.

“It couldn’t go in the back?” You eyed the empty truck bed behind you incredulously.

“Too valuable.”

“What is it? Other than a rock? Or is it a magic rock or something?”

The fairy started the truck, putting an arm over the back of the seat and turning around to back it out of the driveway. “Apparently there’s a relic encased in it. He wants to excavate it at home.”

“When did he find it?” You eyed it cautiously, scooting a bit further away from it, leg pressed against Jungwoo’s.

“Tuesday morning. The storm washed it ashore. I think you were in the shower.” Jungwoo wrapped his arm that had been behind you around your shoulders and pulled you even closer, “Don’t worry, I’m not gonna let that thing come loose and hit you or anything.”

“Oh, thanks, Woos,” you mumbled, looking down at your hands in your lap.

It was a short ride into downtown, and Jungwoo was able to park right in front of the cotton candy pink ice cream and sweets shop you had spotted the other day. It was right next to a yellow flower shop and purple café, and way at the end of the block, you could see the sign for the apothecary you’d gone to with the witches.

A family of sirens was eating their ice cream at a table in front of the shop, the dad rolling his eyes fondly as he took a napkin to his son’s face that was covered in chocolate. But as the mom followed you and Jungwoo in to grab more napkins, you realized she didn’t have the same telltale flashy eyes or flickers of scales under the lights like her partner and son. She looked… human.

After you and Jungwoo got your waffle cones, you took them outside to walk around the shops. You stopped to look over some of the bouquets that were outside the flower shop, most of the blooms familiar to you thanks to Donghyuck. By the time you were at the end of the street by the apothecary, you still had most of your ice cream left. The path continued off away from downtown, unpaved, along the cliffs overlooking the sea. Having seen most of the town, the two of you meandered that way, still chatting between mouthfuls of ice cream.

“Woos, I have a question,” you announced. This seemed as good a time as ever to get in a few of your never-ending stream of things you wanted to know about Jungwoo.

“I have an answer,” he responded, then after a beat, added, “Maybe.”

“Why did you decide to study Chemistry?”

“After being around magic all the time, human science just sort of fascinated me,” he shrugged. “So, kind of the same reason a lot of the humans who pick Magical Creature Studies have, I guess.”

“So you grew up around other fairies for the most part, then?”

“Oh, yeah. It was nothing like how you and Donghyuck grew up. My hollow is really closed off to outsiders, even other fairies.”

“Then how’d you end up coming to school?”

“It’s not like I was under house arrest or anything,” Jungwoo laughed, taking in your wide eyes. “It’s just that I was pretty much the only one who was curious about anything outside of the hollow. I went into town all the time when I was older, so I knew about the college. Nobody in my hollow did any school past the mandatory primary education, of course, so I had to get a bit of help from the Admissions Office to apply. That’s where I met Taeyong, actually.”

“Oh yeah, he did work in Admissions.”

“And he introduced me to Taeil and Doyoung, who needed a third roommate to make rent.”

You nodded, taking another bite of your ice cream. “Okay, you’re a fairy and you’re studying Chemistry, so I think you’re a good person to propose this question to: What do you think is the difference between magic and science?”

Jungwoo thought about this for a moment, humming as he licked around his ice cream. Finally, he answered, voice resolute, “Humility. Science is an earnest effort to understand the world around you, what it is, how it works. And that requires approaching it from the position of inferiority, of acknowledging that you know less than the world.”

“But what about magic? Do we know everything about it and how it works and what it is? Couldn’t it be studied just like other fields of science?” You asked curiously.

“I’m saying this because I don’t want you to lose your cute little head, Y/N,” Jungwoo stopped walking and turned to you, cupping your cheek with his free hand. “Don’t say that to another fairy.”

“O-Oh.”

“There’s a reason I’m the first one in the Chemistry department, you know.”

“Wait, you are?” You furrowed your eyebrows thoughtfully, trying to recall some of your other classmates and professors. And, yeah, you couldn’t think of any other fairies off the top of your head. Plenty of other magical beings, dragons, vampires, dryads, werewolves, but no fairies. Just Jungwoo.

“Yeah,” he patted your cheek before dropping his hand and walking again.

“I didn’t— uh, didn’t— uhm, know that,” you stammered, only keeping up with him because he had looped his arm with yours and was now guiding you down the path. If he hadn’t, you definitely would still be frozen in place, gulping and stuttering. Dazzled, as Taeil had so aptly put it.

FRIDAY

There were only two more full days left of your vacation in Cape Solaria, including today, and you didn’t want to think about it. Maybe if you wished hard enough, this could last forever.

Sat on a beach chair that you’d set up in the surf to stay cool, you sighed to yourself contentedly.

A relieved groan and splash sounded from your right, and you squinted an eye open against the bright sunlight to look at who had sat in the empty chair beside you. It was Yuta, with legs and swim trunks this time as he crossed the limbs at the ankle to recline leisurely.

“Jungwoo won’t mind, will he?” He asked, referencing who had been sitting there up until a minute ago, when the fairy announced he had to grab something from the beach house.

“He’s not using it right now.” You shifted up in your chair to face the siren, “I’m actually glad you’re here, Yuta.”

“Really?” He grinned. “And why’s that?”

“I wanted to get your opinion on something.”

“Yes, Jungwoo likes you.”

You blinked at him, unable to think of how to reply.

“I know, I know, I’m not a mind reader, but—”

“That’s not what I was going to ask,” you cut him off, deciding to breeze right by that avenue of conversation. You had a limited amount of time before Jungwoo came back, and there was something else you really needed to ask Yuta specifically.

“Oh. Well, go for it.”

“Do you know why your siren call didn’t work on me at Friendmasgiving? And only worked on Johnny? We’re both human, I didn’t have any charms on. It should’ve, you know, done the same thing to me, right?”

That clearly wasn’t what Yuta was expecting you to ask. The cocky smirk fell from his face as he scrutinized you, “What? You wanted to drown yourself?”

“No, I was just curious—”

“I almost killed one friend, and you’re saying it should’ve been two?”

You fervently tried to reassure him, alarmed at how fast this conversation had taken a nosedive, “No, Yuta, I don’t—”

“None of you get how— how fucking awful it was, to watch myself nearly kill one of my friends and not be able to control what I was doing at all. So no, Y/N, I don’t know why it wasn’t working on you, but I’m fucking glad it didn’t. I don’t need you terrified of me too.” The siren’s eyes were watery and red, and the sea around the chairs was churning angrily, growing in strength as his words got sharper and sharper.

“Yuta.” Taeyong was suddenly a couple steps behind your chairs, and steadily waded through the turbulent surf.

As soon as the unicorn was in close proximity to the two of you, a calmness washed over you. Yuta’s jaw unclenched, and he bit down on his bottom lip instead.

Taeyong gently put a hand on Yuta's shoulder, and you saw the unicorn’s face contort almost painfully. He looked down at you, “Y/N, will you go get Doie and Johnny? They all need to talk, don’t you think?”

“Oh, uhm, yeah,” you nodded quickly, jumping to your feet.

Turning back to the beach, you saw that most of the others were there, pretending not to be paying attention to the three of you. You didn’t want to know how much they had heard. Johnny was the easiest to find, he was tossing a football with Jaehyun and Mark by the firepit.

You pointed at him as you walked by, “Stay.”

“I’m not a werewolf, but yes ma’am,” he saluted you.

Trudging up the boardwalk, you knew exactly where Doyoung would be hiding out, the same place he had been hiding out during anything that involved Yuta and Johnny and the water. His bedroom.

Jungwoo was in the kitchen, his face lighting up when he saw you, then turning serious when he registered the look on your face, “Hey, I was just grabbing a snack. Is everything okay?”

“Long story short, I’m grabbing Doyoung for Taeyong. Not optional,” you squared your shoulders as you crossed the living room to the hallway.

“Oh.” The fairy followed you curiously.

You knocked on the closed door, “Doyoung! It’s me!”

“Come in.”

You threw open the door, eyes immediately finding your target sitting cross-legged on the bottom bunk in lounge clothes, a grimoire in his lap. Narrowing your eyes, you stalked over to him, “You’re coming to the beach.”

“I’m at the beach,” he gestured around vaguely.

“Kim Doyoung, you’re going to get out of this house and come down to the beach with me. Now.”

“Taeil tried that on me two days ago.”

You pinched the bridge of your nose before switching tactics. Sitting down next to him, you leaned your elbows on your knees and took a deep breath.

“Doyoung, we’re your friends. And we invited you on this trip—Yuta invited you—because we like spending time with you.”

The finger that had been running under the words he was reading paused.

“So, can you tell me if there’s some reason you’ve been holing yourself up in here?”

Doyoung sighed, closing the grimoire, “I thought it best to reduce the likelihood of a repeat of last semester. Taeil’s right. I don’t think before I do things and end up getting my friends hurt.”

“What he was saying at the apothecary?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t remember him suggesting you become a hermit about it,” you snorted, bumping your friend’s shoulder. “And reading a bunch of books and never interacting with people is not going to help your social skills. Skills like, you know, conflict resolution.”

The witch looked down at the closed book with a small smile, “You might be right there.”

“So can you please come to the beach?”

“On one condition.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t tell Taeil I said he was right. Either of you.”

“Done,” you promised.

And just a few minutes later you were marching down the walkway victoriously, Doyoung in tow. Jungwoo walked a bit further behind you two, an unspoken agreement to make sure the witch couldn’t double back to the house. Down on the sand, Johnny was still tossing the ball around, and you pointed at him again.

“Johnny, come on!” You called out.

“Seriously, not a dog!” He yelled back, jogging over nonetheless.

Taeyong and Yuta were still out at the chairs, and you kept your sights on them. Doyoung eyed you suspiciously, “What are you doing, Y/N?”

“We’re going swimming,” you deadpanned, leading the two of them towards the water.

“This was a trap,” he scoffed, starting to turn on his heel.

“Doyoung,” Jungwoo was still behind you all, crossing his arms with a frown.

Doyoung grumbled something under his breath, but turned back around to you. Taking that as his acceptance, you looked at Johnny. The human looked warily between Doyoung and Yuta, hand coming up to grasp at the pearl hanging from his neck, seeming to check that it was still there. He didn’t make any move to leave.

You stepped into the tide, the first of the waves lapping at your feet. The water was much calmer than when you had left. Doyoung and Johnny followed you, and the three of you finally stopped at Taeyong and Yuta. The siren was still sat in the same chair, staring out at the horizon, one hand listlessly making figure-eights above the water, and the ocean below his fingertips swirling with the movements. An octopus had (lovingly?) wrapped itself around his ankle, and you were sure that if the water was deep enough, Bear would’ve been here. He didn’t look back at you all as you approached.

“Here,” you broke the tense silence, looking to Taeyong. “Johnny and Doyoung.”

“Thank you, Y/N,” Taeyong nodded to you.

“I’ll just—”

“Stay.”

It was Johnny who stopped your attempt to excuse yourself. He had a hand on your arm, and an all-too-familiar look in his eye. It reminded you of when he asked you, with trembling hands and a heaving chest, to stay and help him wash his face.

You nodded. “Yeah, Johnny, I’ll stay.”

Yuta finally spoke, “Look, I don’t know how many times I have to apologize. I’m sorry I almost drowned Johnny twice. Do I have to grovel at his feet for the rest of our lives? Will that make everybody happy?”

He slammed his fist into the arm of the pop-up chair. The octopus swam off.

“No, Yuta,” Taeyong shook his head. “That’s not what this is.”

“All of you are holding onto a lot of… stuff from that night.” You made sure to choose your words carefully. “And we think it’d be good if you actually talked to each other about it.”

“I’m sorry.” To your surprise, it was Doyoung who spoke up first. He was holding himself, hands wrapped around his upper arms as he spoke. “To both of you, Johnny and Yuta. I was impulsive, and vindictive, and an ass, and I hurt you with that stupid blabbermouth hex. I don’t want my magic to… leave lasting scars on people, especially not my friends. Yuta, you didn’t deserve the brunt of the backlash from that, I’m sorry I didn’t stand up for you when I should have. And Johnny, you obviously didn’t deserve to almost drown yourself twice. I was a bad witch and a bad friend and I’m sorry, I really am.”

You looked between Johnny and Yuta’s faces hopefully to gauge their reactions. Johnny’s held the same surprise as yours at Doyoung apologizing first, then morphed into a soft smile. He threw an arm around the witch’s neck, nearly toppling him over and he was pulled into the taller man’s side.

“I don’t know much about the bad witch part, but I forgive you, Doyoung. Taeil says you’ve been doing a lot of uhm, reading about magic this whole time to get better at it. I know you didn’t mean it.”

Doyoung screwed his eyes shut, patting Johnny’s back.

“Yuta, tell them what you told me,” you encouraged the siren.

He sighed, finally turning around in his chair to look at the two of them. Around his eyes was pink, and he focused a harsh glare on Doyoung.

“Have you ever had someone do that to you, Doyoung?”

“Taeil and I used to hex each other as kids all the time.”

“No, I don’t just mean put a blabbermouth hex on you,” he scoffed. “I mean make you do something you don’t want to do, use your own powers to almost kill your friend and you just have to watch yourself do it. Twice. And then he’s terrified of swimming, of pools, of the water, of you. Yeah, maybe I shouldn’t have teased you about whatever the fuck it was that day. But Johnny needed a fucking warding charm to even be able to come on vacation with me. You don’t want to hurt people with your magic… you hurt him with mine and I couldn’t do anything to stop it.”

Doyoung gnawed on his bottom lip, “No, Yuta. I haven’t had anybody do that to me. I’m so sorry.”

“Yuta,” Taeyong quietly called for the siren’s attention. “Look at where we all are.”

Yuta’s eyes flicked from Taeyong to you to Doyoung to Johnny, then down to the ocean water that everyone was standing in, about shin deep.

Johnny let go of Doyoung to reach up to his own neck, taking off the leather cord hanging there in one fluid movement. He wound his arm up over his head and threw it out into the waves as far as he could. It plopped under the surface, never to be seen again.

“I don’t need a warding charm against my friend,” Johnny declared simply.

A tear slipped down Taeyong’s cheek from behind his sunglasses, the iridescent liquid catching the light of the sun. You couldn’t blame him, you were feeling a bit overwhelmed yourself, even with your ordinary human empathetic abilities.

“Now, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m getting hot standing here,” Johnny continued, dramatically putting one hand on his hip and fanning himself with the other. “I think a swim sounds like a good idea, hm?”

Yuta looked up at him, and they seemed to immediately make some kind of telepathic connection as soon as they locked eyes. The siren got to his feet as Doyoung started looking around, holding up a hand to cast a shadow over his eyes.

“Y/N made me come all the way out here with my swim suit on, I guess I could—”

Doyoung was cut off by Johnny grabbing him around the chest and Yuta grabbing his legs, his words turning into a yelp as he was lifted up. His yells of protest went unheeded as the other two carried him further out to sea.

“One!” Johnny counted as they started swinging Doyoung between them.

“Two!” Yuta continued.

“Three!” They cheered together, tossing him gently into the thigh-deep water.

The witch popped back up, shaking his wet hair, “That’s it!”

Thankfully, instead of a hex coming out of his mouth, he instead jumped on Johnny’s back, trying to dunk the taller man underwater. Johnny walked out until he was deep enough to dunk the both of them, Yuta following. Now in deep enough water, Yuta transformed his legs into his tail, using his large fins at the end to splash the other two.

Too busy laughing at those three, you didn’t notice that anybody had joined you and Taeyong until a hand was on your back. You looked over at the owner, smiling up at Jungwoo.

“Oh, hey Woos,” you bumped his hip with yours before turning your gaze back to the others still playing in the water. “Nice of you to join us.”

“Didn’t seem like you needed me,” he bumped you back. “Good job.”

“I was just following orders, this was all Taeyong’s idea,” you shook your head, looking over to the unicorn.

Taeyong had a fond smile on his features, “I think it was a team effort, all of us.”

SATURDAY

“So you’re not dating?”

“God, Hyuck, how many times do I have to tell you this? No,” you groaned, pulling your blanket up over your head. It was your last full day in Cape Solaria and the bastard wasn’t even letting you sleep in.

“You two are like all over each other,” Donghyuck pointed out, smugly scrolling away on his phone. “Even Mark asked me yesterday if he missed some memo about you and Jungwoo dating.”

You yanked the covers back down, “And what did you tell him?”

“That I didn’t know.”

“You little—”

“Hey, I didn’t!” He went to defend himself. “And now I do. Now I know that you’re being a wimp.”

“I’m going to kill you.”

“If I had a nickel for every time you said that in our lives, I’d have no student debt, Y/N.”

You rolled over away from him, fully intending on attempting to snooze for a little longer, when your phone buzzed. With a groan, you grabbed it to see who had dared to text you this early in the morning.

[woos: you awake yet?]

Turning to face Donghyuck again so that he couldn’t see your screen, you were about to text the fairy back, but another text came through.

[woos: if you are, i’m going down to watch the rest of the sunrise with a cup of tea in a few minutes]

You quickly typed out your text and sent it.

[you: make that two cups]

Just a couple minutes later, you left your bedroom with the sounds of Donghyuck making teasing kissy noises after you. Jungwoo was in the kitchen, illuminated only by the light over the stove. Johnny, Mark, and Jaehyun were all still asleep, and you quietly stepped around them to wait by the back door. The fairy joined you just a moment later, two mismatched mugs in his hands. His hair was ruffled, a few pieces in the back sticking up, but nevertheless, a sleepy and fond smile came across his lips as he looked down at you. You smiled back up at him.

Neither of you said anything until you had stealthily slipped out the door and closed it behind you as silently as possible. On the back porch, you could give him a “Good morning, Woos.”

“Morning, Y/N,” he handed you your cup.

You eagerly wrapped your hands around it, feeling the warmth seep into your fingers. “Thank you.”

He hummed his acknowledgement, looping a casual arm around your shoulders to start walking down towards the beach. The Sun was just starting to peek up over the water in the distance, giving you enough light to find a towel under the umbrellas to sit down on.

“So why are you up so early?” You asked, taking a sip of your tea.

“Honestly?”

“No, Woos, I want you to lie to me,” you replied sarcastically, earning a laugh from him.

“Had to pee and couldn’t go back to sleep,” he answered. “Ended up just getting stuck thinking and then definitely couldn’t go back to sleep. What about you? I didn’t actually expect you to be up when I texted, I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“No, I was already awake. Donghyuck woke up early and decided to make that my problem this time.”

Jungwoo chuckled, taking another drink from his mug.

You looked out into the ocean, watching a familiar fin meander around. Taking a deep breath, you steeled your nerves, and stated, “Hey, Woos, I have another question.”

“I have another answer.” Pause. “Maybe.”

“Why do you think Yuta’s siren call didn’t work on me at Friendsmasgiving?”

He looked at you curiously, “I’m guessing you asked Yuta this yesterday and—”

“It turned into that whole thing with Taeyong and Johnny and Doyoung, yeah. It didn’t seem like a good idea to bring it up again after that.”

“Why do you think it didn’t work on you?”

“I don’t know,” you confessed, pointer finger tracing the rim of your mug. “I’m human, I was sitting closer to him than Johnny was, I didn’t have any warding charms on me or anything like that. It should have done the same thing to me that it did to Johnny, but it didn’t.”

“Y/N…” Jungwoo said quietly, laying a hand on your arm. “Do you feel guilty that it only affected Johnny and not you? That he went through that, and you didn’t? Like you should have suffered with him?”

You couldn’t look up at Jungwoo, so you just kept your eyes on his thumb that was rubbing soothing circles into your forearm. “I- I don’t… yes. He was so scared of the water after that that he couldn’t turn on the tap by himself, Woos. I had to go over and help him wash his face every day for like a month. And I just got to… sit there? And I know it probably sounds weird, like I want to have gone through something so traumatic but—and I know Johnny wouldn’t have wanted me to have either—but I can’t shake this feeling that I avoided something I shouldn’t have. Like, cosmic balance or something. Does that make sense?”

Despite the disjointed nature of your rant, Jungwoo was able to respond without missing a beat. “Y/N, Y/N, hey. You’re afraid that it messed with some cosmic balance, right?”

You nodded.

“If you had gone through what Johnny did, and were as scared of the water as he was, do you think that you would’ve been able to help him for that month when he needed it?”

Taking your gaze off his hand, you looked up into his eyes, where the golden flecks glimmered in the waking morning rays. And you slowly shook your head.

He nodded encouragingly. “Right. That sounds pretty balanced to me.”

“Okay, yeah,” you mirrored his nods, a shaky sense of relief growing in you.

“And I don’t think you wondering about why something that logically should have happened didn’t happen is weird, either.”

“So… what do you think happened?” You wanted to see if he would bring it up first, or if he had any clue about the name magic at all, about the nickname thing, about Taeil and Doyoung’s theory, about any of it.

Jungwoo’s eyes traced over your face, and for a moment you were taken away, entirely breathless as the dawn light hit him just right and he was glowing, looking so gorgeous there with his behead, pajamas, pouty lips, and big brown eyes. Time restarted when he finally answered your question, “I don’t know. But whatever it was, I’m glad that it happened. I’m glad that you didn’t have to get hurt, and I’m glad that Johnny could have you there to support him after.”

You opened your mouth, tempted to retell the witches’ theory to him, but he was looking down at you so fondly, so beautifully, that in that moment, it didn’t even matter. So instead, you scooted even closer to him to rest your head against his shoulder, a giddy smile overtaking your face when he wrapped an arm around you to hold you to him even tighter.

“I want to show you something tonight, by the way,” he murmured, voice right by your ear.

“Something?” You echoed inquisitively.

“Something,” he confirmed.

[woos: ready?]

Your heart leapt at the singular word lighting up your screen.

[you: ready]

Slipping out of your bedroom and into the hallway, you saw that Jungwoo was waiting for you there. He’d already told you that whatever he wanted to show you wasn’t far, and that there was no need to change from your pajamas that you’d gone to bed in.

With a tilt of his head, he motioned for you to follow him through the living room, this time exiting through the side door at the end of the kitchenette. It lead to a narrow section of the wrap-around porch that had a porch swing and small table. But Jungwoo didn’t sit on the swing like you expected. Instead, he swung a leg up onto the railing that went around the house, gracefully standing up all the way. From there, he could easily step over the gap onto the top of the awning over the porch. He stopped there, turning around and looking back at you expectantly.

You looked up at him with wide eyes, “Uh…”

“Come on,” he said encouragingly.

Watching all of your limbs as closely as possible, you pulled yourself up onto the railing, not liking how narrow it was as you wobbled a little bit. The fairy’s hand shot out and caught yours before you could teeter too much, and you mumbled a thanks to Jungwoo. Aligning yourself first, you took the slight step up onto the awning, wincing at the creak it let out now that the both of you were on it.

Jungwoo kept holding your hand as you were standing on the awning over the porch together, and you took shallow breaths as you looked up at him, chest-to-chest to make sure you both fit.

“Now what?” You asked quietly, well aware that you were staring at him.

“Almost there, promise,” he smiled down at you, and gave your hand a squeeze before letting it go.

He turned around, where the proper roof of the house was, about chest-high for him. After easily pulling himself up, he gave you a helping hand where needed, until you were finally able to scramble up there with him. Looking around uncertainly, you remained kneeling as you got your bearings on the slightly sloped surface. Jungwoo lay down, tucking an arm under his head, then patted the space beside him as an invitation for you.

You shyly did so, suddenly unsure of just how close to get to him, and therefore left a little bit of space between the two of you.

To distract you from that thought, you focused your gaze dead ahead, and immediately your breath was stolen from your lungs. Above you was the entire cosmos, laid out seemingly all for you. More stars than you could count, twinkling in and out of view, sprinkled in the sky like pixie dust. The moon was nearly full, and you could see every crater, shadow, and mountain in crisp, clear detail. Yeah, you’d been out at nighttime before, but you’d never just looked at the stars like this before.

“Oh, Woos…” you sighed, quite literally starstruck. “This is… wow. Thank you.”

“I’m glad you like it, Y/N,” Jungwoo replied softly.

“How did even figure out that you could get up here?”

“This morning, when I was having trouble sleeping. I was kind of wandering around out here and got curious. I used to climb a lot in my hollow. Something about just being up high above everything else…” He inhaled deeply, then let it back out. “It’s really peaceful, right?”

“Yeah,” you agreed. “It’s lovely up here.”

And you finally looked over at him. He was bathed in moonlight, starlight, all the cosmic glow of the universe and yet you weren’t even thinking about any of that in the moment, too enchanted by the craft store glitter that blinked back at you. The cream yellow crewneck sweater he had worn to bed that night was a pale yellow in the nighttime, the bottom of it riding up to show just the thinnest strip of skin. When you realized how close his nose was to yours, you didn’t jerk your head back, but your brain was turning to white noise, so you turned your eyes back to the stars to see if that would get the ringing in your ears to stop.

Jungwoo didn’t seem to mind, letting the peaceful silence drape over the two of you. You kept watching the stars and thinking about the boy next to you, and your heart kept growing and growing with a fondness so strong it felt like your chest was going to burst if you didn’t do something about it.

“…Woos?” You practically whispered, startled at the sound of your own voice in the quiet. In the background, the waves crashed into the shore and receded in an endless rhythm.

“Yeah?” He lolled his head over to look at you attentively. You turned your head back to look at him again.

“What you were saying the other day, about the difference between science and magic…”

“Which part?”

“About how science is an earnest effort to understand the world. You know, how it works, what it is.”

“Mm-hm, what about it?”

“I’ve been thinking about it… and maybe it’s because it’s late and you’ve got me on a rooftop looking at a bunch of stars but…” You took a deep breath, glancing between him and the sky. “I think that’s how love is too. An effort to understand someone else, and coming to them with your heart open, humble. I don’t think love has to be this big, monumental, out-of-control, unknowable thing. I think it’s just got to be an earnest effort to know someone else. You know?”

He was quiet, mouth parted as he just kept staring at you.

“Woos, you’re not saying anything,” you muttered self-consciously. “Did that not make sense? God, I was rambling again, wasn’t I? Just ig—”

“Kiss me.” Jungwoo cut you off, an absolutely wonderstuck gaze focused on you.

“What?”

“Kiss me,” he repeated confidently.

“W-Why don’t you kiss me?” You stuttered out an attempt at a retort, brain simultaneously moving at a million miles an hour and feeling like it had gotten stuck in sticky bubble gum.

“Well if you insist,” he smirked.

Then his hand was cupping your cheek, lifting your chin slightly, and his lips were slotting together with yours. Your own hand grasped at the front of his yellow sweater, needing to ground yourself to something as your head spun and the sweet, soft kiss threatened to sweep you away.

When Jungwoo finally pulled back, you caught a glimpse of his hair fading back from pink to brown. His gaze didn’t leave your face as he mused aloud, “Strawberry.”

“Huh?” You questioned breathily, chest heaving, not sure if you heard him right over the sound of your heart thudding so loudly.

He swooped in to kiss you again, as long and dizzying as the first time. This time when he broke apart from you, he declared with a grin, “You taste like a strawberry sundae.”

“And you… are going to make me pass out.” You pointed at him accusatorily as you tried to catch your breath. “Don’t fairies need to breathe?”

“Sorry. Can’t help myself.” Jungwoo pecked your cheek this time. But it was a false sense of security, as he gave you only a moment to catch your breath before capturing your lips in a sugary sweet kiss once again.

All too soon for your liking, it was decided that the two of you needed to get down and go back inside. Both of you were yawning like crazy, it was getting late, and while you could definitely sleep during the car ride back, accidentally falling asleep on the roof didn’t sound very safe. So Jungwoo got down first, and kindly helped you down by the hand.

After quietly sneaking back in through the kitchen door hand in hand with him, you nearly let out a scream when you saw somebody standing at the fridge, illuminated by the appliance light.

Jaehyun looked at the two of you blankly, a popsicle in his hand. You stared at each other for a good three seconds before giving him a slow nod. He nodded back, then tore open the popsicle wrapper with his teeth. Shuffling by the vampire as he bit into the popsicle, your heartrate didn’t return to normal until you were in the darkened hallway to your bedrooms.

You felt your heart sinking as you prepared yourself to say goodbye to Jungwoo for the night.

“Goodnight, Woos,” you said quietly, squeezing his fingers that were laced with yours.

Enough moonlight was coming in from the living room that you could see half of his face as he looked down at you, one of his thumbs brushing over your cheekbone. He had a small, tender smile on his face, one that reached his eyes.

“Goodnight, Y/N,” he squeezed your hand back.

But you weren’t satisfied. Grabbing him by the shoulder, you pulled him closer to press your lips to his, pretty sure your entire body from your head to your toes popped like a balloon filled with confetti.

“Goodnight,” you repeated, slowly unwinding your fingers from his, almost in disbelief at yourself.

Jungwoo giggled, the sound like windchimes, “Goodnight again, Y/N.”

The two of you turned around to go to your respective bedrooms on opposite sides of the hallway. You had just gotten your hand on the door handle when you heard Jungwoo make a noise of surprise. Turning around curiously, you watched him look between your room and his in disbelief, then close the door again—without going in. And then he stood outside his door, staring at it in confusion.

Concerned, you walked over, lightly touching his arm to get his attention. He looked up to inform you, “Donghyuck is sleeping in my bed.”

You laughed, grabbing his hand to tug him towards your room, “Come on, you can take his spot then.”

“So worth losing my memory foam pillow,” he sighed dreamily, then pecked your temple with a loud smooching sound.

Under the roof of the blanket fort, you watched in delight as Jungwoo replenished the specks of light in the flowers, keeping them at a peaceful dimness. Laid on your side, blanket pulled up to your chin, and legs bumping his under the covers, you couldn’t fight the smitten grin from your face.

“Sleep well, Woos.”

“Sweet dreams, Y/N.”

SUNDAY

A yawn slipped past your lips that turned into a soft groan as you stretched in the morning hours. Rolling over and pulling your blankets back up over your shoulders, you had all intents of going back to sleep. Until you briefly blinked your eyes open, and caught a glimpse of Jungwoo beside you.

He was mostly on his side, cheek squished against the pillow. Even in his sleep, his mouth was drawn into a pout, and his eyelashes were visible against his cheeks. His soft brown hair was mussed up in all directions, and you reached a hand out to delicately readjust a strand that looked like it was uncomfortably poking into his eye.

His hand suddenly shot out of the covers and grabbed your wrist. “Gotcha!”

“Oh my god!” You jumped in surprise. “Holy fuck! Goddamn…”

Jungwoo opened his eyes, mischievous grin on his face. “Morning, Y/N.”

“Well good fucking morning to you too, Woos,” you scoffed, plopping onto your back to catch your breath. “And how long have you been up waiting to scare me to death?”

“I woke up about when you did,” he informed you simply. “Heard you stretching and rolling over. I was honestly trying to snooze until just now.”

You made a noise of acknowledgement, lifting a hand up to delicately trace over one of the petals above your head.

“Y/N,” Jungwoo called for you.

“Hm?” You turned your head to look at him attentively.

As soon as you did, he lunged forward to kiss you. Your hand fell from the carnation to his cheek.

Jungwoo didn’t leave much space between your mouths as he broke the kiss to say, “We need a password.”

“Oh, right,” you nodded, eyes glued to his. “We never did make a password for the blanket fort.”

He connected his lips with yours again. “And I don’t want to let anybody else in this morning.”

“Woos…” you whined, trying to cover your face with your hands, starting to feel shy again in the light of day.

“Y/N…” he imitated your tone as he grasped your wrists, pulling them away from your face until he had them pinned to either side of your head. The fairy was hovering above you on the mattress, a knee wedged between your legs for stability, and you held his gaze for a heavy, breathless moment. Then he went right back to peppering your cheeks and nose with kisses now that his targets were unobstructed, and you giggled as his hair occasionally tickled your ears.

“Woos...” You couldn’t help that the nickname bubbled up out of you again, too much happiness in you to keep it all contained.

Jungwoo stopped for a moment, beaming down at you, “You are a genius, Y/N.”

“What?”

“That—” He rolled off of you, but only to take you with him, pulling you into his arms pretty much on top of him. “Will be our password. Because only you can call me that.”

Thankfully, you all didn’t have to leave too terribly early. By the time Taeil and Doyoung came back from the local coven’s dawn sacraments the rest of you had barely started on breakfast. Well, most of you. You, Jungwoo, and Jaehyun had eaten breakfast first. Jungwoo and you didn’t really want the full brunt of everyone seeing the two of you leave your bedroom together, so you decided to get up and have breakfast earlier. And Jaehyun happened to be awake when you got out there, so he ate with you two—or, sat at the table while you two ate.

Once the witches were back, it was a hustle and bustle to pack. You and Donghyuck had to disassemble the blanket fort after packing your bags.

“Ew, why can’t you and Jungwoo deal with your little love nest—” Donghyuck was cut off by a pillow to the face.

“I’m sorry, who decided to sleep in someone else’s bed without permission last night like a little freak?” You retorted, taking the sheets off of your mattress now that the furniture was back in its original place.

“And who still hasn’t thanked me for my little freak nature, nor even told me what happened last night?”

You couldn’t even pretend to be mad, zooming over to shut your bedroom door then turning back to your best friend, absolutely buzzing with excitement. In a hushed voice—well aware of all the various creatures with superhearing in the house—you relayed the details of last night to Donghyuck as quickly as you could, needing to repeat them for your benefit, too, to convince yourself that it all really did happen.

“Oh fuck yeah, Y/N!” Donghyuck held up a hand for you to high-five, then low-five, then fist-bump. “Now, what do we say?”

“What?” You looked at him incredulously.

“Let me hear a ‘Thank you for being a little freak and taking Jungwoo’s bed last night, Donghyuck.’”

You scoffed, but threw your arms around his neck nevertheless, “Thanks, Hyuck. For being a good friend all week, and for being a little freak.”

You felt his arms and some vines entwine around you in return. “Anytime, Y/N.”

Jungwoo found you again in the living room as everyone else was milling about. At some point, your bags had been grabbed and packed up in the cars by the other guys, and you stayed out of their way, figuring they knew what was best. The fairy bumped your shoulder with his, and you bumped him back.

Taeil suddenly called for him from where he and Doyoung were by the front door.

“Oh hey, Jungwoo, we were able to repack the cars and there’s room for you in ours now,” Taeil said. “This way Johnny has to make fewer stops, and you can come right home with us.”

You and Jungwoo exchanged a glance before he went to reply to his roommate. “Oh, you did? Uhm…”

Then you heard Doyoung snicker, and Taeil broke out into chuckles too. “You should see the looks on your faces. I’m kidding, we have more crap than we came with, actually. Jungwoo’s still in Johnny’s car, don’t worry.”

“You’re not funny,” you crossed your arms over your chest.

“I think I’m the funniest person I know, actually.”

“It was a bit funny,” Doyoung concurred, the four of you walking out together.

You didn’t even want to know what Donghyuck had told them last night when he suddenly appeared in Jungwoo’s bed.

“Okay, everybody ready?” Johnny asked the group loudly. “Nobody’s forgetting anything?”

“Hold on!” You exclaimed.

Quickly running to the very end of the boardwalk before it dropped off to the sand, you gave the ocean a wistful wave goodbye. “Bye Bear!”

You then jogged back over to the rest of the group, and gave Johnny a thumbs up. “Ready!”

And with that, you gave all your friends that you wouldn’t be riding with hugs goodbye. First Taeil and Doyoung, who drove off with little beeps of the car horn behind them. Then Yuta, Jaehyun, and Taeyong, who were going to be leaving last. You felt bad for Taeyong, who was squished in the middle even more now with Doyoung’s rock riding shotgun. Yuta stood on the back of his truck to wave the four of you off as you drove away down the hill. You and Jungwoo were in the backseat again, waving back at them all through the rear window for as far as you could see them.

After they disappeared from your view, you settled into your spot in the middle seat, Jungwoo’s arm around your shoulders as he unfurled his wired headphones.

A hushed conversation up front floated back to you while Jungwoo struggled with a knot in the headphone wires.

“Seriously, they’re not dating, dude?” Mark whispered fervently to Johnny. Donghyuck had already laid down for his nap.

“Not that I’ve been told,” Johnny’s eyes flicked up to meet yours in the rearview mirror. He winked at you. You smiled back.

You leaned over Jungwoo to peer out the window at the passing houses turning into downtown, then the open road. Finally victorious, he held an earbud out to you, and you took it gratefully.

“Any requests?” He prompted you, opening his music library.

You already knew exactly what you wanted to listen to.

“Play me your favorite song today, Woos.”

⤷ blog masterlist  ⤷ anthology masterlist

[thatdamnmutt-exe]

Bambi • Song Mingi

Plot: Ateez just finishes up a concert and Echo finds Mingi looking very delicious. He heads backstage to show his boyfriend just how yummy he is.

Pairing: Sub!Mingi x Dom!Reader (Name: Echo)

Warnings: Dirty talk, degration, praise, hair pulling, choking, slight public sex (in a dressing room), dumbification, edging, overstimulation.

Extras: Not my normal FtM smut as it’s a request from a friend. Echo will have male genitalia.

Song: Bambi - Baekhyun

Word Count:

“You're my only Bambi, Bambi.

It's a perfect night for you.”

—————————————————————————————————————

echo licked his lips as he watched his boyfriend from backstage. the confidence that mingi radiated truly had a strong effect on him and his urges. echo always found it ironic how dominant the large man appeared on stage, but off it he was nothing but his play thing. his fans would never know that though, they would never know that because echo loved having it all to himself.

he watched mingi intently as the song finished playing, planning what he was going to do to him as he waited. echo smiled at his boyfriend as he approached him with a bright smile of his own, he was happy with how the concert went and how excited fans were.

“hi babe! what did you think of the concert?” mingi’s breath labored as he tried to calm it.

echo walked with mingi to his dressing room, “you did amazing, love. you looked very… delicious.” a chuckle left echo’s lips which made mingi blush slightly.

the two made it to mingi’s room where the taller male started to take off his concert gear. echo watched mingi from behind, licking his lips as he admired how sexy his boyfriend was.

mingi noticed and turned back to face echo. “why are you staring at me?” he laughed nervously as he moved to unbutton his shirt.

echo moved closer to mingi and began to help undressing him. each button he undid, he placed a light kiss on mingi’s chest, moving lower as he did.

mingi let out a breathy moan from the sensation, starting to feel his pants tightened. “babe…”

echo smirked as he looked up at mingi, seeing his once cheery face turn into a lust filled one. “yes baby? use your words.”

mingi grasped echo’s shirt, pulling him closer and putting his arms around his neck. “i need you. right here, right now. please.” the taller male begged, slightly grinding against echo to gain any sort of relief.

echo laughed at mingi’s attempts and how he suddenly became so needy for him. “okay slut, on the couch. now.” he commanded.

mingi obeyed and moved to sit straight up on the couch, waiting his next command. echo made his way over to his boyfriend and pushed him down so his back was on the bottom cushion.

echo began making out with mingi, one hand moving to choke him slightly while the other hand moved down to undo mingi’s buckle. echo was successful and pulled out mingi’s aching cock. he began stroking him slowly and teasingly which earned a pained whimper in his mouth.

“baby please, don’t tease me. please make me feel good!” mingi begged.

“all in due time, whore, i want to have my fun with you first.” echo smiled.

echo moved them so mingi was now straddling his leg. echo leaned back against the couch, hands on each side of mingi’s torso. “come on my pretty slut, get off on my thigh. i know you love to do that.”

mingi didn’t waste a minute before grasping echo’s shoulders for balance as he began grinding down on echo’s leg. echo leaned forward and began kissing along mingi’s neck and collar bones, leaving very visible marks.

mingi’s grasp grew stronger as he felt himself coming closer to his release. “fuck, baby, i’m so close. can i please cum?” he pleaded, his grinding speeding up.

echo pulled away from kissing along mingi’s neck and chuckled at his boyfriend. “you’re already so close to finishing on my thigh? you pathetic whore. getting off to nothing but my thigh.”

echo moved a hand up to grasp mingi’s hair and pulled his head backwards as he stopped mingi’s movements. “i don’t want you to cum yet. i still haven't finished having fun with you. i want you begging and moaning my name until you completely forget everything else besides me and my dick.”

mingi looked at him with a desperate look. he really wanted to cum and go home but he knew better than to go against his lover’s words.

echo grasped mingi’s cock once more, causing his lover to lurch forward from the sudden friction. echo began pumping his dick quickly and watched as mingi squirmed in his touch. his breathing sped up as he started whining and whimpering about how good it felt.

mingi felt himself close to the edge again, he was so lost in his pleasure that he didn’t say that he was close. he was only thinking of chasing his sweet release. mingi ended up cumming without a warning all over echo’s hand and shirt.

mingi kept his eyes closed as he caught his breath but suddenly froze upon realizing what happened. he looked down at echo who looked up at him with a hard gaze.

“oh now you’re really in trouble.” echo roughly moved mingi so he was laying on his stomach. he tore down mingi’s pants so he his ass was out. echo moved to lower his pants and lined up to mingi’s hole.

echo spat on his hand and lathered up his cock before sliding into mingi. the two had fucked the night prior which left mingi still stretched out.

mingi cried out from the sudden filling feeling. echo didn't let him adjust fully before pounding into him roughly. the pain turned to pleasure not long after though and soon mingi was a drooling and whimpering mess.

echo moved forward to leave some kisses along mingi’s back along with grasping on to his very over sensitive cock. he matched the pumping rhythm to his thrusts.

mingi was feeling both sensitive, sore, and pleasurable all in one as tears started to fall from his eyes. he was crying mostly from pleasure which mixed in with his drool.

echo was thoroughly enjoying mingi’s whimpers and moans as he continued to abuse his hole and cock. “that's it baby, you're doing so good for me slut. do i make you feel so good baby? are you nothing but a plaything for me to use?”

mingi’s mind was clouded as he slipped more into his sub space mind along with pleasure completely taking over. all he could do was moan in response.

echo laughed at this slightly, happily meeting his goal of getting mingi to think about only how good he makes him feel.

mingi was close for his second orgasm and made sure to say something to echo this time. “i’m so close baby! please can i cum?”

echo thought about it for a moment before deciding no and tightening his grip on mingi’s cock to stop him from spilling. “no. not yet whore. you can wait until i’m done.”

mingi cried out from the grip on his dick as he put his face in the couch cushions. he was sure that everyone could hear them but he didn’t care. all he wanted was to cum again and get affection after.

echo continued his pace for a few more minutes before he felt himself also close to his release. he released mingi’s cock, “okay baby, you can cum.”

mingi whined in relief and response as he came hard for the second time all over the couch seats. echo followed soon after, coming deep in mingi.

the two stayed still to catch their breaths. echo pulled out, cum leaking out after him. he got up and grabbed some tissues to clean up himself than mingi.

“come on princess, let’s get you dressed and let’s go home.” echo praised, kissing his boyfriend’s lips while moving to grab his clothes.

mingi was still in his sub space mindset as he made small movements to get up. he held out his arms, signaling he wanted affection. echo, of course, obliged.

—————————————————————————————————————

“Come down, night rain, night rain, dripping

down on us all night until the morning.”

[lumosandnoxwriting]

i wanted that pain || George Weasley

Title: i wanted that pain Pairing: George x Reader, but also mentions of George x OC and Reader x OC Summary: he wanted a bride, i was making my own name A/N: the next part of the anthology is here! When i originally planned this out it had a different vibe but im actually really happy with how this turned out! As always feedback is welcome! <3

-

She only does it when she’s had a few glasses of wine and is feeling loose, but not sleepy enough to crawl into bed. 

Some people might call her a masochist, looking at what could have been had she made a different choice that day. Others might call her pathetic, that’s she’s pining over something that she gave up long ago. Only Y/N knows the truth. 

She knows that she doesn’t look up George on Wizstagram because she’s jealous of the life he lives and wants to inflict pain on herself. And she also knows that she doesn’t regret any second of the life she’s lived and she’s sitting there agonizing over what her life could have been. Because Y/N knows that she’s happy, and that the path she took in life was the right one for her. She knows that just because her life doesn’t look like George’s doesn’t mean she’s not content and satisfied with where she ended up. 

Looking up her ex-boyfriend on Wizstagram is not a form of self-torture. It’s a form of reassurance. 

Y/N has been feeling nostalgic lately after hearing the news that McGonagall has decided to finally retire, which is probably why she’s curled up under her favorite blanket, second glass of wine in one hand and her phone in the other. It’s probably been over a year since she looked George up on Wizstagram, and unsurprisingly when she types in @MischiefManager2 to the search bar, an account with George’s face as the profile pic pops up immediately. 

The most recent photo is one she knows well, since she was the one who took it. Fred and George have a frowning McGonagall sandwiched between them, the smiles on their faces brighter than the sun. It’s from their graduation, well her and Lee’s graduation, since the Twins didn’t technically finish the year and could only attend as guests. They had insisted on getting a photo with their favorite Professor, and Y/N had been happy to oblige them. McGonagall not so much. 

Graduation day is often the day Y/N thinks back on as the day that changed her life forever. Not only had she graduated from Hogwarts, the culmination of seven years of hard work. But before the ceremony McGonagall had pulled her aside to let her know that St. Mungos had accepted her into Specialized Healer Training. 

And of course, that was the day she ended things with George, catapulting her life in a totally different direction. 

-

“Baby,” George murmurs as Y/N catapults herself into his arms. He grips her tightly, lifting her feet off the ground as he hugs her. He brushes his lips against the shell of her ear, inhaling against her hair. “I’m so fucking proud of you.”

His words light her up inside, and Y/N wraps her legs around George’s hips so she can cling to him even tighter. It’s been a lonely few months since he and Fred made their departure from Hogwarts, and it feels so good to be back in his arms. 

They stand there amidst everyone else celebrating for a few more moments, just content with holding each other. When George finally puts Y/N back down he leans in, capturing her lips with his. “You’re finally free,” he murmurs against her mouth when their kiss breaks, before pressing their mouths together again. 

A pang of sadness rips through her chest at George’s words. Because while her time at Hogwarts is coming to an end, she’s not quite done with school. Just before the ceremony started McGonagall had pulled Y/N aside, letting her know that she was one of four other students who had been accepted into the Specialized Healer training program at St. Mungos. This is the culmination of all her hard work, every hour in the library, extra credit assignment and summer spent volunteering at St. Mungos has led to this. Y/N has always wanted to be a Healer, and this program is the only thing that stands in her way of completing her lifelong dream. 

But it also means more time away from George. While St. Mungos is located in Central London, the program requires participants to spend time at smaller Wizard clinics and hospitals all over the world, to expose them to all different kinds of ailments and treatments. For the next four years she’ll be traveling and studying nonstop, and Y/N had been overjoyed when McGonagall shared the news. 

Except she’d forgotten one major thing. George.

“There’s something I need to tell you about.” Y/N says solemnly, breaking their kiss. 

“What’s wrong?” George responds immediately. He cups Y/N’s face, his thumb gently caressing his jaw. “Whatever it is, baby we’ll get through it together.”

“I got into the Healer Training Program.”

George’s eyes light up with excitement. “Baby! That’s amazing! I’m so fucking proud of you.” Except the smile on his face turns into a frown when Y/N doesn’t share his joy. “Why aren’t you excited? Isn’t this what you wanted?”

“Yes, of course it is,” Y/N starts, her voice apprehensive. “But the program, it’s really intense and it’s four more years of training.”

“Oh,” George murmurs. “Well that’s not too bad. Fred and I are so busy at the shop that we’re barely ever in the flat so it’ll be plenty quiet for you to study in. And in a year or two, once we’re really making money we can get a place just for us with room for you to have a proper office. And it doesn’t even have to be in Diagon Alley, we can rent somewhere closer to St. Mungos and-.”

“George,” Y/N interrupts, pressing a finger to his lips to keep him from continuing. “The program doesn’t take place at St. Mungos. The first few weeks do, but after that the Cohort travels all over the world, spending time in different places and at different hospitals.”

“For how long?” he asks once Y/N lets him speak, but she can tell by the tone of his voice that he already knows the answer to that question. 

“The whole four years, George.”

“Oh,” George repeats, a sullen look taking over his face. “But there’s other programs, right? Other ways to become a Healer?”

Y/N nods slowly, not liking the train of thought George is heading down. “Well, yes. I could become an apprentice, working under a current Healer and then in ten years I’ll be eligible to take the examinations to be a general Healer.”

”And that will keep you in London?”

”Yes,” Y/N answers, frowning when a smile lights up George’s face. Clearly he thinks he’s just found the solution to all of their problems. “But George, this program is my dream. I’ll get to learn from the best Healers in the world, and when I graduate I’ll be in a higher position and I’ll get to enter any department I want.”

A frown takes over his face once again. “But what about our dreams, Y/N? The things we’ve been talking about and planning for the last three years?”

Of course she knows exactly what George is talking about. Ever since they got together in their fourth year, both Y/N and George knew they were in it for the long haul. Even though they were young and people, mainly Fred, found it foolish that they were thinking in terms of forever, they were firm in their assertion that they’d found their person and nothing anyone could say would change their mind. 

So they talked. About Y/N’s career plans, and George’s. Fred and George would open their dream store after graduation, and Y/N would start the journey to becoming a Healer. They’d move in together in the summer, and by the following fall they would be engaged. A small wedding would be held at The Burrow in the spring, and the following winter they’d try for their first baby. 

Back then Y/N never imagined that she’d get into the Specialized Healer Training program at St. Mungos, since it’s so competitive. So she and George never talked about what their future would look like if Y/N had to be away for a few years. In all their daydreaming, Y/N was always an apprentice at St. Mungos, slowly working her way up to being a full Healer while they grew their family.  As an apprentice she would have the luxury of taking time off and being a hands on Mum, and by the time she was a full Healer their kids would be older and George would be settled enough in his career to take over most of the child minding. 

And Y/N had been content with that reality. She would have the husband, the kids and the career she always wanted. But all of that flew out the window the second McGonagall gave her the good news. This program is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and Y/N will never forgive herself if she walks away from it. 

“We can still have those dreams, Georgie. We just need to adjust our timeline a little bit.” She speaks softly, dragging her fingertips across George’s cheek. “We can still have all of those things someday, when I’m finished with my program and back in London full time.”

”But I don’t want those things someday, Y/N,” George responds, his tone harsh. “I want that all now, like we’ve always talked about. There’s space for your things in my closet and there’s an engagement ring tucked away in my sock drawer waiting for the perfect moment. I’m ready for our future together to start now, and I thought you were too.”

George’s grip on her loosens, and Y/N’s heart aches as she steps out of his embrace. “I was, George. But this changes everything. This program is what I’ve worked my ass off for, it’s what I’ve had my sights set on long before I ever even knew you. I’ll never forgive myself if I don’t go.”

“And I don't know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you if you do go.”

His words hurt, jabbing her in the chest as if he’s stabbed her with a knife. Tears pool in Y/N’s eyes, and she shakes her head. “Don’t make me choose between you and this program, George. Please. We can do this, it’s only four years.”

George shakes his head, but doesn’t say anything. His face is firm, his eyes narrowed in determination. It’s clear to Y/N that he’s going to make her be the one to decide. She can either have her program, or she can have the life her and George have dreamed about, there is no world where both options can exist. 

“I’m sorry,” Y/N whispers after a few moments of silence. She slowly takes a few steps back from George, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Goodbye George.”

-

Seeing that picture doesn’t bring Y/N the pang of sadness she expected it to. It took her months to even talk about what happened that day, and it took well over a year before she would look at any of the pictures her friends and parents had taken. A day that was supposed to be full of joy and celebration quickly became one of agonizing pain and she never wanted to feel that way again. 

Taking that photo of George and Fred is the last happy memory she has from their relationship, but looking at it now all she feels is gratitude. Because while breaking up with George was the hardest, most painful thing she’s ever had to do, she doesn’t regret it for a second. 

Joining that training program was one of the best decisions she’s ever made, the places Y/N got to see and the things she experienced were life changing. When she returned back to England and joined St. Mungos she had her pick of placements, and Y/N has spent the last several years in the Janus Thickey Ward, working with their longtime patients and permanent spell damage. 

If she had chosen George all those years ago she’d barely be eligible for the exams to certify her as a general Healer, and she’d never have the opportunities she does now. 

Y/N scrolls through the next few photos, stopping briefly to admire the pictures of him and Fred, and the snapshot of the entire Weasley family taken during a recent family dinner. The Weasley family was always so tight knit, and it’s nice to see that time hasn’t changed that fact. Family was always George’s number one priority, and Y/N knows it would kill him not to be close with his siblings. 

The next photo she stops on is one of George and his wife. Melody is her name, and Y/N has heard from various channels that she was in the year below them at Hogwarts, and they met when Fred and George hired her as a potion master for the joke shop. 

The picture is from their wedding day, and the caption lets Y/N know that George had posted it in celebration of their anniversary. Posted only a few months ago to celebrate their seven year wedding anniversary, she does some quick mental math. It’s been ten years since graduation, meaning it’s been the same amount of time since the break up. George and Melody didn’t meet until a year after that, meaning they were together for around two years before tying the knot. 

It does hurt a little, knowing that it took George three years to meet and marry someone else, when if they had stayed together he wouldn’t have had to wait much longer to marry Y/N. But it would have hurt more if he had met and married someone way quicker than that, so she doesn’t dwell on it for too long. 

In the photo they’re smiling at each other, and the genuine joy on their faces makes Y/N smile too. George may have been someone she cared deeply for, and losing him hurt - but he wasn’t the man she was supposed to be with and she’s glad he found his person. 

She’d be a hypocrite if she ever thought otherwise, considering her person is upstairs right now getting ready for bed. 

Y/N met Ben during her Healer training. He had been a student at Beauxbatons, so their paths had never crossed until the first day of the program. Of course she had instantly found him attractive, but with her heart still so raw from the breakup with George they started off as just friends. Halfway through their second year, after scrolling on Wizstagram and seeing a picture of George for the first time since the breakup, Y/N realized she felt nothing for him anymore and the pain from the break up and fully ran its course.  

She asked Ben out on a date the next night and they’ve been together ever since. 

Y/N doesn’t doubt that what she and George had between them was love, but after being with Ben she knows now that it wasn’t true love. And when she looks at this photo of George and Melody, she knows he has that with her too. 

The sound of Ben’s footsteps coming down the stairs is a sign that her trip down memory lane is coming to an end, so she scrolls to the next photo for one last look. In it George is holding probably the tiniest baby she’s ever seen, surrounded by four kids of varying ages all rocking the same shock of ginger hair as their dad. The caption reveals that it’s a birth announcement, and Y/N can practically feel her uterus contract at the thought of having five kids in under seven years. 

But George always wanted a big family, and she used to think that was something she wanted too. Being an only child growing up was lonely, and when Y/N would go back home with George for the holidays she was envious at how close everyone was, and how The Burrow was always full of laughter and love. So when they talked about their future children it was obvious that they would have several, with them as close together as possible just like George and his siblings. 

Time and maturity helped Y/N realize that popping out baby after baby was only her dream because of her relationship with George. Healing can be a demanding career, and the Healers they trained with who had families always made sure to stress how difficult it can be to handle parenthood and their career. While many of them were able to balance the responsibilities that come with being a parent and their love for their career, for a lot of them it came with sacrifices. Several of them ended up divorcing their partners who couldn’t understand that their job wasn’t always predictable, and there would be times that they came home late or missed out on things. Others had ended up taking time off, or going into lesser positions in order to have a better work/life balance. 

With how much Y/N loved her program and knowing who she is as a person, she quickly found out that whatever plan she and George had worked out regarding children was built on the naïveté of two kids who thought they knew everything. Growing up she had two dreams, being a Healer and being a mother. With the amount of kids she and George always talked about having, also having the career she wanted would have never been a possibility. Something would have had to give, and Y/N knows she would have chosen her family over everything. 

She also knows that once her kids were grown and at Hogwarts and she had no career to fall back on she would have regretted that decision. And that’s not something she would ever want to put on her children. So she decided quite early on that while she definitely would have kids someday, it would not be the brood she always imagined. 

Her and Ben had married a month after graduating from their program, two weeks before a little pink plus sign appeared after Y/N peed on a stick. Having children wasn’t something they had discussed too much in detail. They both had agreed it was something they both wanted at some point, but weren’t too fussy about how many or when. 

After their son was born, Y/N and Ben quickly decided that if they chose to have more kids, it wouldn’t be for several more years. Being new to their careers and having a newborn was a challenge neither of them were prepared for, and Y/N can’t remember how many times she went to work with vomit dried in her hair or her clothes backward from exhaustion. 

And two months ago when their daughter came out, both of them knew their family was complete. 

Two kids in five years is plenty for Y/N, and she silently gives kudos to George’s wife for managing her brood. She’s exhausted just thinking about it.

When Ben plops down on the couch next to her Y/N tosses her phone aside, letting her husband pull her into his side. He takes the glass of wine from her hand, quickly draining the rest of the liquid.

”You’d think I’d be immune to all of the smells a baby has doing what we do. But Godric, the atrocities your daughter committed while I tried to put her pajamas on?” Ben shudders. “I’m scarred for life.”

Y/N just shakes her head in laughter at her husband’s dramatics, knowing full well he’ll be the first one out of bed tonight the second their daughter cries. 

Noticing her pensive mood, Ben places a finger under Y/N’s chin, lifting it up so they can make eye contact. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, just being a bit nostalgic,” she reassures, giving her husband a small smile. “I was stalking George on Wizstagram.”

Ben rolls his eyes, returning his wife’s grin. “Ah, I see. Yearning for the life you gave away?” He teases.

She knows he’s joking, but she shakes her head. “Nope, I’ve got everything I ever wanted right here.”