#dedicated WAY too much time to this one BUT HEY... it's christmas

[vellichorom]

Happy chrimble!!

having been reminded of kevan's tweets, i got UNREASONABLY inspired &... well,

happy chrimble ~ !!!

[catherinnn]

Truth or Dare Harrington?

Steddie x reader

summary: The gang has a night out singing karaoke and drinking. When the party dies down, this trio continues the fun at your apartment.

warnings: SMUT (+18), threesome, p i v, unprotected sex (don't do this, this is fiction), oral sex (m & f), no body descriptions appart that it's afab reader, smoking weed and drinking alcohol.

words: 3.2 k. masterlist

It had started as a fun night out celebrating you were all finally available, the entire group.

Ever since some of you started collage and others started working, the group wasn't what it once was. But tonight you were all here, drinking shot after shot and finishing endless cups of whatever you were ordering.

You went to a karaoke bar –Robin's idea– and it was the most fun you have had in a while.

You did all from solo songs to duets.

You sang 'I'm Just a Girl' with the girls; you sang a duet with Eddie doing 'The Chain'; Steve dared you to sing 'Take My Breath Away'; and then you made him sing 'Last Christmas' –even though it is July– but he made you sing it with him. Eddie and Steve dedicated you their version of 'Maneater' which you didn't know if you should be flattered or offended by.

To sum up, every possible song until your vocal cords hurt.

After that, you offered your apartment to keep the party going. Steve and Eddie were the firsts to say yes very excitedly, but the rest of the gang decided to head home already, calling it a night.

Eddie offered to share some of his good stuff but they went off either way. You still agreed to go and smoke at least for a little while with the boys.

That's how you ended up in your couch, passing a joint among the three of you while you played some dumb drinking game.

"Truth" Eddie chooses.

"Who of the two of us was your favorite to sing with tonight?" you ask him.

"Oh, that's mean. I liked both of you," Eddie takes a moment to think. "but I think we had a lot of chemistry on that stage, big boy"

"What?" you ask offended at his answer. "We had so much chemistry with that song, and it was much more of an iconic moment than yours!"

"Hey hey, he already made his decision!" Steve argues. "Control your jealousy"

"Get out of my apartment" you joke.

"Alright, calm down, I'll make you choose too" Eddie starts. "If you were... stranded on a desert island with one of us, who would it be?"

You roll your eyes, "that's easy, Steve" Eddie gasps offended and Steve grins proudly. "Well, because he was an athlete, he has a good body to survive and also take care of me" you tried to defend your answer.

"I'll take care of you baby" Steve winks at you.

Eddie and you start bickering until Steve makes you shut up and keep playing.

"Quit fighting, Eddie I dare you to say your favorite thing about her"

Eddie smirks already knowing his answer, "Umm, let me think," he says, pretending to be indecisive while forming two circles with his hands in front of his chest, mimicking the shape of breasts.

Steve laughs at this and you roll your eyes containing your giggle.

"Uh- no, it's her eyes, definitely" he answers for real this time.

"Yours?" Steve asks you now. "What's your favorite think about him?"

"Umm," you look at him while thinking your answer. "I could say your eyes as well, but I don't want to copy you... and I love your hair but we have the king of all hairs here present" you say referring to Steve. "I really like your smile, your whole face lights up when you smile, and you have those cute dimples too"

Eddie, ironically, can't help but smile at your statement.

"My turn" you declare. "Stevie, truth or dare"

"Dare"

"I dare you to... hold hands with Eddie for the next three rounds"

"Alright" he takes the other man's hand in his as he also takes the joint from his mouth to keep smoking himself. The latter rolls his eyes at this.

More rounds like that continue, where Eddie makes you sit on Steve's lap until you finish playing, and you make Eddie do a sexy dance without music where you couldn't stop laughing.

"Truth or dare Harrington?" the metalhead asks him.

"Truth"

"What is... a fantasy of yours? A sexy one"

"Uh..." Steve debates whether to say it or not. "Well, I've always wanted to- um, to have a threesome"

"Really?"

"Yeah"

"With two girls?" you ask him.

"Yeah... or a guy and a girl too, I think" he confesses.

"Princess, I dare you and Steve to shotgun" Eddie says all of the sudden.

"What? It's not even your turn"

"We're not even following those rules anymore" he defends.

"Uh, fine" you agree either way.

Steve grabs the joint and as you were already on his lap you just turn your head to look at him.

"I'll do it, yeah?" he checks and you nod.

He takes a drag and holds it, you move your head as close as you can so your lips are almost touching. He exhales the smoke into your mouth and you inhale it.

You don't know if it's the weed or having Steve so close to your face you're almost kissing, but you get a little dizzy on your head.

"You okay?" he checks on you again noticing this. You nod slowly without moving away yet, as you exhale the smoke.

Eddie looks at this smirking, enjoying the scene. "Steve, I dare you to kiss her"

"W- what?"

"Oh, you are both dying to! Just do it already!" he accuses.

You and Steve look back at each other as if you're asking the same question: Can we?

And you both give each other a little nod.

Therefore, Steve slowly closes the distance, finally kissing you.

His lips feel soft on yours. You can taste something sweet as well as the weed from before. The kiss is slow and tender, he caresses your cheek to pull you closer. Your hands go to his hair, feeling how soft it is.

When you separate, you let a little laugh out and so does he.

"That's cute" Eddie comments. You both look back at him.

Steve tries something, hoping it goes well. "Munson, I dare you to kiss her now"

He looks at Steve surprised, but with a smile on. As if he couldn't believe he had said that.

"Can I, sweetheart?" He asks you.

It's like having a little red devil on one shoulder saying, 'Yes! Go kiss him!' and a little angel on the other shoulder saying, 'No, you shouldn't be doing this.’

You pick the devil's side.

Getting down from Steve’s lap, you move closer to the other boy now.

He smirks at you before pressing his lips to yours.

This kiss was a little harder, not fast, just more passionate. He tastes like mint mixed with a smoky sent, being the weed and cigarettes. His hand is also on your cheek, almost at your jaw, keeping you in place. Your hands are also on his hair as you play with his curls.

You separate and feel that dizzy head again. What are these boys doing to you?

He smiles as well as Steve did and you ignore the little jump your belly does.

"I think there's only one move left" you comment as you look at them. You point at one, then at the other, and continue moving your finger back and forth between them, indicating both of them.

Eddie looks at Steve with a big grin. He's enjoying this way too much.

"O- okay" Steve agrees and they get closer until they start kissing.

You lean back enjoying the show. They don't hold back, it’s not a mere peck on the lips, not even close to that. They kiss properly. You wonder if now their tastes are mixed as well. Or if they can taste your lips as well as each other's.

You sit up and get closer to them. They separate and both look at you with puffy lips, you smile at that sight. You feel their hands at your waist bringing you closer. You grab both their faces gently as you bring them closer together and to you.

They see you closing your eyes and they follow you.

It's your first three-way kiss, it's not as uncomfortable as you imagined it would be. It's pretty fun actually, feeling both of their lips against yours, tongues meeting each other again. It's really hot.

You separate after a few minutes of that, looking at them smiling.

"Umm, do you... do any of you want to stop?" Steve asks a bit awkwardly.

Eddie is quick to shake his head, looking at you expectantly.

"Me either" you confirm.

Eddie smiles and kisses you again. You extend your hand to Steve so he doesn't feel left out. He takes it and starts to kiss your neck now. You let out a soft moan against the other boy's mouth.

Kisses and touches are shared among the three of you. You feel Eddie's hands under your shirt and Steve's on your ass. The metalhead lifts your shirt up a little as if asking you if it's okay, you separate from Steve's mouth and lift your arms up. He bites his lips as he takes the shirt off.

Both boy's hands are quickly on your waist, belly and chest.

"You can take that off too, you know?" you say referring to you bra. They look at you as if you just told them they won the lottery.

Steve is the first to reach the back of your bra and unhook it. Eddie's hands take your straps and slowly takes it off completely.

They stare at your boobs as if it is the first time they're seeing breasts. You know for a fact that it's not.

Steve's hands that were on your waist, travel upwards to touch them. Eddie goes to kiss your neck and travel down to your chest, and then to your breasts.

Steve kisses you again and you go to take his shirt off now. You moan on his mouth as Eddie plays with your tits expertly, making you more impatient.

“Can you lay down for us, sweetheart?” Steve asks you and you do as he asked.

Eddie sits up next to Steve, looking down at you as well. Steve whispers something in Eddie’s ear and he nods in agreement. You frown.

“Care to share with the class, boys?” you tell them. Eddie smirks at your joke but stays quiet.

“We just want to take of you” Steve starts.

“Enjoy you a little bit. Does that sound good, princess?” Eddie continues.

You’re still intrigued of what they agreed on, but accept either way.

“Good, just relax for us” Eddie says again as he hovers on top of you and starts kissing you. You enjoy having him like this. You feel Steve’s hands on your thighs going up to your hips.

“Can I take these off?” he asks referring to your pants and you give him the green light.

He unbuttons your pants and takes them off, taking his time, caressing your thighs while you still enjoy of the other boy’s lips on yours.

“These are so cute, baby” the bigger boy comments making Eddie stop kissing you to turn his head and see what he was talking about.

“Oh” Eddie lets out sweetly, “Do you always wear pretty panties like these?” he teases and you shake your head. “No? And why did you wear them tonight?”

You shrug this time, acting innocent. The truth is they make you feel good about yourself. You feel pretty and hot with them. As you knew you were going to go out with them tonight, you wanted the confidence. But you weren’t going to admit that.

“Just a coincidence? Or did you wear them because you were gonna see us?” Eddie continues teasing you.

“What do you think?” you say against his lips, challenging him.

“I think you’re not as innocent as you seem right now” he confesses and it takes everything in you not to make him lay down now as you sit in top of him and see if he can still tease you that way. But you don’t, because you also want to focus on Steve.

“Stop it you two” Steve orders.

“Open your pretty legs, baby” Eddie changes the subject smirking as he moves to face your panties now.

Steve takes advantage of this and lays next to you as he starts kissing your neck.

Eddie finally takes your underwear off and you feel him kissing your thighs, traveling up.

You turn to kiss the boy next to you and he responds happily, caressing from your waist, to your back, your neck, your hair. Everywhere he can really.

Eddie’s kisses move to your cunt now, focusing on your clit and teasing your entrance with two of his fingers.

It’s harder to focus now, Eddie puts his mouth to good use when he’s not mocking you. He makes you feel so good, knowing exactly where and how to play with your pussy. This, added with the touches and kisses Steve leaves on your skin, making you burn.

You moan as you back to kissing Steve, one of your hands on his hair and the other on the hair of the boy kissing you lower. Pulling at each mane.

Eddie doesn’t even want to blink, looking at you both make out as you hide your moans on Steve’s mouth. He is enjoying your sweet taste and the beautiful view. Flickering his tongue quickly on your clit and then sucking on it, he enters two of his fingers in you, making you arch, he smirks against your pussy.

His tongue moves in sync with his fingers, picking a more urgent pace as he feels you clench. You separate from Steve as you keep moaning.

“Gonna cum, baby? Are you close?” the latter asks as he enjoys watching you like this.

“Yes, mmph” you let out pulling on the long set of hair and arching even more as you cum. Your legs try to close but Steve stops them before you succeed.

Eddie keeps licking your pussy for a few more seconds after you cum, to then get up triumphantly. Steve grabs the boy to give him another kiss, tasting you on his tongue. Both men moan at this.

While you catch your breath you see them as they undress each other completely. When they’re done, they look back at you.

“Do you want to keep going?” Eddie asks you and you tell them yes.

They make you sit in the middle on them, your back to Steve. Eddie kisses you and you still taste yourself a little, Steve kisses your whole back.

The tattooed boy steps back, and Steve slowly pushes you down, positioning you all on fours.

“If you want to stop at any time, please tell us. Okay?” He says in your ear and you nod.

You feel Eddie’s hand on your chin, making you look up. He kisses you again as you feel Steve positioning himself in your entrance.

“Can I, baby?” he checks one more time, and you give him the green light once again.

You moan in Eddie’s mouth as you feel Steve entering you. He’s big, really big, making you feel him everywhere.

Eddie kisses your check, jaw, and neck until you get used to Steve’s size. Then he gets up, and you’re now facing his belly.

Before either of them says anything, you understand what they want to do. You start kissing his happy trail down to his cock. He’s also very big, a little less thick than Steve, but definitely nothing for him to feel jealous of.

You feel Steve moving slow but deep inside you, and as he feels you getting more wet around him, he fastens his thrusts.

You start kissing Eddie’s head and licking his length for a few seconds just to tease him. Then you finally wrap your lips around him, slowly entering your mouth. He throws his head back, getting lost in the pleasure.

“Your mouth feels so good, princess, fuck” he curses.

Steve moves faster at this, “Pussy’s so good too, you’re just fucking perfect” he moans.

You moan with your mouth completely full, making Eddie grunt and wrap his hand in your hair, also preventing it from bothering you.

Both boys take pleasure on the view as well. Eddie can see Harrington with his mouth slightly open, letting some moans and curses out as he moves perfectly inside you. He can see your round ass and Steve’s hands gripping it harshly. Lastly, he can see your beautiful face in pleasure as you take all of him in your mouth. He wonders how he can be so fucking lucky to be living this, but wishes it never stops.

Steve watches your pussy take him expertly, from his tip until he feels his pelvis come in touch with your skin. He watches your ass all round and perfect in front of him; he can’t see your face, but he sees Eddie’s hand grip your hair tighter and tighter until his skin turns white. He watches the other boy’s tattooed chest and arms, with his head turning back in pleasure from time to time, showing his big neck.

“Fuck yes, just like that, princess” Eddie curses. And Steve smirks feeling you clench around him.

“She likes hearing you, Munson”

“Oh, do you now? You like me saying how good you’re taking me? Best fucking blowjob I’ve ever had” You feel a tingle of jealousy imagining him with another girl in her knees for him, you’ll find a way to bother him with that when your mouth is not completely full.

“Fuck, she really does” Steve snitches on you and Eddie laughs.

“Such a good play toy we have here for us, Harrington”

“Fucking right we do”

Eddie feels you whimper against him. You separate, taking him out of your mouth to breathe for a second.

“That’s good, catch your breath, sweetheart” he says as he brushes his thumb over your swollen lips.

“Fuck, Steve! Harder!” you take the advantage to tell him and he obeys, making you face the cushions now form how hard he’s thrusting in and out.

“I can feel how close you are, baby, cum for us” He orders now, sliding a hand to play with your clit.

“Oh, yes yees, just like that!” You grip the cushions hard as you let yourself come undone.

“Shit baby, you’re so hot” He moves harder and faster now, catching his climax.

He quickly takes himself out, stroking his cock fast until he cums on your back, cursing and moaning as he does.

He picks up his shirt and cleans you out as you catch your breath.

You feel Eddie now next to you again.

“You feel okay, sweetheart?”

“Yeah, I’m really good” you comment, and you see he’s still hard.

“Eds” you get up to sit on his lap, but he stops you.

“Wait, hey. Do you want to keep going? We don’t have to?”

You roll your eyes playfully, still appreciating his concern, and you kiss him again.

He kisses you back so needy, grabbing you to sit on him and feeling you up.

He stops for a second and looks to the side of the room, Steve is sitting down watching you. Eddie signals the seat next to him, and Steve gets closer to you.

You go back to kissing Eddie, and Steve is kissing his neck.

Hands are everywhere, feeling each other’s bodies. You get up slightly and grab Eddie’s dick so you can sit on him.

“Oh, shit” he moans against Steve’s mouth. You move back and forth on him, Steve’s hands controlling your movements, helping you to ride Eddie.

“Oh fuuck” you moan arching my back.

“Sensitive baby?” Steve teases you and you nod.

“You feel so good, princess, holy shit” his head rests back on Steve’s shoulder. You both go to kiss and bite his neck, leaving marks behind just like the one’s Steve’s leaving on your hips from his tight grip.

“You feel so so good in me, baby” You tease him a little, whisper in his ear. “You both did, stretching me out so well, my big boys”

“Fuck- I- I’m not gonna last, I’m so close” He rests his head on your shoulder now, leaving bites and kisses.

“Cum with me Eds, I’m so close too” you jump faster now.

“Look at our little bunny here” Steve keeps teasing you both now, Eddie looks up at you and kisses you once again.

“Mhh, cum Eddie! Cum with me!” You tell him as you let go. He follows you right behind, grunting your name.

You stay like that with him, hugging each other. Steve gets up to grab a glass of water and a towel so he can clean you up once again.

He rests back on the couch next to you two.

“That was incredible” he comments.

“It really was” you say, turning your head to look at him, still resting with Eddie.

“You okay, Munson?” Steve checks since he stayed silent.

“I’m awesome man” he finally lets out. “and was incredible, indeed”

“You’re staying over? Don’t make me sleep alone now” you ask them.

“Of course, sweetheart”

“If you insist, princess”

You let out a small laugh, pleased with their answers.

“Let’s go to bed before we fall asleep on the couch” Steve orders.

And you sleep with one of them on each side, all cuddling together. You haven’t slept that good in a while.

[shadesoflsk]

BLANCA NAVIDAD

pairing: leon kennedy x fem reader.

summary: Leon never liked Christmas. Memories of him being taken away from his parents and countless missions made him a bitter man. However, he wouldn't have guessed that one day, he would be placing Christmas stockings with a wife and a little bundle of joy next to him.

warnings: Mostly fluff, dad leon, mentions of injuries, alcohol problems, Leon being an orphan, mild hurt (nothing bad I swear) so cheesy and sappy.

"to give up one's very self – to think only of others – how to bring the greatest happiness to others – that is the true meaning of Christmas."

The sounds of boxes being moved filled your living room. It’s the first week of December, and both of you have postponed the task of adorning your house with Christmas stuff until now. Between Leon’s job and your newfound activity (taking care of your 1 year old daughter) it’s been nearly impossible to find enough time to dedicate yourself to this special holiday. 

Leon had told you it was more than okay if you wanted to do it by yourself. He knew how much you love this holiday. And ever since halloween ended, you found yourself eager to buy even more stuff to fill your home with. Nonetheless, you waited for your husband. There was no way you would let this opportunity slip away.

And, as you walked into the living room carrying a box albeit Leon’s constant bickering about how you shouldn’t lift heavy things, your heart melted at the sight of Leon placing a christmas hat on you guys’ daughter, which was too big on her and partially covered her sight.

“Da-da” With the baby on his hip, Leon was once again trying to teach his daughter how to say his “name.” It all started with a simple joke about him being the favorite parent, but now it has turned into a serious situation, at least for him. He wanted his daughter to master the art of speaking before Christmas. Although he has noticed that his little one barely said anything else than babbling nonsense. She was almost there, those bwaaah would turn into dada, he was sure.

She had none of that, though. As soon as Leon started talking, she laughed. As if he was telling her the funniest joke ever. Your daughter had heart eyes for both of you, but you had to admit it – she was definitely a daddy's girl. The way her eyes get so big whenever she sees Leon, and how her tiny fingers wrap around his thumb each time he's feeding her – yeah, she loves her dad.

He was an expert in fatherhood. He had no recollection of ever taking care of kids before. But, as soon as his little girl was born, the father's instincts kicked in. The way her cries filled the hospital room made him want to turn off the world for a second and give his daughter and wife a well-deserved moment of peace.

However, he never thought his life would get so lucky that he would get to experience being a dad. Ever since he was born, he was surrounded by disaster and misfortune. Having to grow up at an orphanage wasn't the most ideal place to mold a child into a perfect human being, but it seems that the little time he had spent with his parents shaped him correctly.

“Ma-ma.” You walked behind Leon and placed a hand on his other hip. Your baby instantly kicked her little feet in excitement for seeing her mom. Maybe she's a mama's girl, too.

“Hey! She was almost saying dada.” Leon feigned disappointment as you tried luring your daughter into saying mama first. This was a competition between you and Leon. Which prize will be having the satisfaction of being the “favorite parent.”

“Yeah of course. My bad.” You chuckled, voice filled with sarcasm knowing that your daughter has been the laziest of babies. Most 1 year old babies already say mama or dad. Or both. Yet this little rascal just likes existing, eating, sleeping, and exploring.

Leon saw you carrying a box and sighed in mild disappointment. You could already hear him saying “I told you not to carry heavy things.” Ever since you recovered from surgery, he has gotten even more doting. Every need of you was met by the second, and you wouldn't complain, but you're still a functional adult who can actually lift boxes.

You remember when things didn't used to be like this. In the past, you weren't instantly devoted and whipped for the man that is now teaching your daughter how to say dada. You remember how your past self leaned over the counter, you were met by an usual reek of alcohol this man had. And, with a witty and drunk smile, he said his usual line.

“Another bottle here.” It was his third one that night. Not his third glass, his third bottle. He was slowly killing his liver and himself by the way kept drowning in this deadly and burning liquid. You had never met him before, but the way his dark blue eyes sometimes shone under the dim light, you knew he once was someone important. Or at least, someone needed.

“That would be your third one tonight.” You stated matter-of-factly. However, Leon didn't miss the way you refused to move and get him his booze. 

“Look at that… Smarty knows her numbers. Aren't you so, so clever?” The disdain in his voice had reached your ears. He was never the talkative client, he just spent all of his nights at your bar and drank to his heart's content. You know you shouldn't stick your nose in someone else's business yet you couldn't bear nor allow him to basically kill himself in front of you.

“Now can you please shut up and serve me another bottle.” He groaned as the empty bottle almost fell from the counter. His heavy eyelids almost closing if it wasn't from the fact that after the words he spat, you threw a glass of water to his face.

“You don't fucking talk to me like that.” Your usual warm and easy going self was long forgotten. No matter how many hardships and problems he may have, there was no way you would let him walk all over you like that. “I don't know what fucked up things you have experienced or how many people have betrayed you. But if you have time to drown yourself in this addiction and be mad about it, you also have time to make a change.”

Those words stuck with him. He knew he was being pathetic, Chris, Rebecca, hell even Claire had told him the same thing too. But he felt even more miserable when a random bartender called him out like that. Especially when you just needed to complete your job. Why would someone care? He pays, he gets his booze, repeat. But, you at least cared, even though it was something every rational human would do.

Eventually, his daily dose of booze decreased. You witnessed the small changes in him. Going from three bottles to just one, and to finally a few glasses. You witnessed how his usual dark clothes were replaced with a somewhat more colorful attire which brought out his once dull and empty blue eyes.

His slender frame slowly took form, recovering his muscles which were more visible now. His stubble remained, though. It was like a reminder of his own age – and his now different approach in life. Wiser and more careful with his own decisions. Your words didn't completely change him, but they surely helped him to see his life in another light.

Ultimately, a new Leon set foot in your bar. He was beaten up, his navy blue shirt had some blood spots while his dark brown hair was disheveled. He smelled like sweat and gunpowder. “If you ever need a tour guide in San Francisco let me know.” He said with a charming smile as you moved around your area of work. 

“I'll keep that in mind. What can I get you?” You chuckled as you went to retrieve his order. You could already hear him say it.

“Grape juice...” 

“And your number.”

Soft whines pulled you back from your trance as your babygirl grips on Leon's shirt. She wipes her face against the fabric. The little one was starting to get fuzzy since nap time had come. 

“Oh, someone is sleepy.” He coos, bringing her closer to his chest. Leon takes off the little Christmas hat that was on her head. Immediately, the little one brings her hand to her hair. She has picked up the habit to caress her own hair when falling asleep. Before she even gets to cry, Leon rocks her to sleep. His deep voice soothes her, the gentle tunes of a Christmas song was his choice of the day.

“May your days be merry and bright and may all your christmases be white.” Leon wasn’t the best of the singers but he would sing his heart out to his daughter. It was a tradition now since Leon never had someone to sing to him. The baby calmed down at a comical rate, as if she just needed her dad’s embrace to feel safe. She was safe. As long as Leon lives, you and his miracle would have the best life ever.

“I’m almost jealous, she falls asleep so fast with you.” You set down the box, stretching your arms. This is the first box out of so many, you weren’t the biggest spender nor a shopaholic but when you married Leon, some perks came with him. Those perks included having unlimited access to his black card which you use wisely. 

Wisely was an understatement, though. Having several copies of the same gingerbread man who dances every time you press a button wasn’t the wisest decision. But you and your daughter love it so Leon has to shut up. Everything for his family.

In the past, Christmas was a simple but dreadful date. He didn’t understand the point of it. When he was a rookie cop, he at least tried to force some polite smiles and give words of affirmations to his colleagues back at the police academy. He stupidly thought that once he got to work, his life would change. But the universe had other plans for him that night in September. He spent that year’s Christmas wishing to die. The government had taken away his right to end his life. Dying wasn't an option. The girl he saved back in Raccoon City, Sherry, needed him. 

Year after year, he grew resentful, angry and bitter. He expected to spend this holiday alone until his last days of life. Having to grow old and wither away, no one to care, no one who would remember him as a human and not a machine. Not the government’s lap dog.

But somehow, he met you. He was a dick at first, he knew it. Until this day, he never understood how you could choose him.  There was no guarantee he wouldn’t go back to his addiction one day. He vowed to never do it again, and he was sure to keep his promise. However, you could never know the extent of his words. You lived –at least to Leon– uncertain of how long he would be sober. But much to his dismay (or pleasure) you gave a chance to that renewed man, to that agent who had come from a mission in San Francisco that almost got him killed.

He was content with just you. He never asked for more, scared of being too greedy, too wishful. Your presence was enough for him, your smile made all of his problems go away. Your tender words were the medicine for his broken and beaten up heart, every last bit of self hatred went away with you. There was nothing else he wanted.

Until he realized that maybe, he could have the life he had always wanted.

When you announced you were expecting, Leon couldn’t show his happiness at first. He was scared. Hell, he even had to take a deep breath before telling you something. He never had a father, well he had one but his memories are too foggy. He grew up thinking kids were a mistake and that somehow, he was a mistake, too. 

He found himself slipping into the unborn baby's room when you were asleep. Watching how both of you have decorated the space where your little one will be welcomed. His fingers grazed over the white crib, already imagining what his daughter would look like. He likes to think he looks like his own mother, a blurry memory of her blonde hair swaying with the wind. His daughter will have a better life than his. He's going to fight for it.

His eyes would travel over your body. He knew how anatomy worked but watching it before his eyes was so extraordinary. Your little miracle was safely tucked inside of your belly. He has always known you were beautiful but damn – it seems that motherhood suits you a little too well. He was grateful, really grateful. You gave him the opportunity to indulge in the normal and domestic kind of life. 

“She's already asleep.” Your sweet voice called him, bringing him back to the present. While he was reminiscing about the past, the baby had already fallen asleep. Her cheek pressed against his shoulder as she breathed softly. Her tiny fingers still gripping his shirt.

“She's so lazy.” Leon whispered, his voice filled with softness and lighthearted teasing. He gently laid her on the couch, making sure to place some pillows around her in case she moved. A welcomed and soothing silence surrounded your still not decorated room. This was the perfect opportunity to start your Christmas task.

“You know… Now you can help me put up the countless decorations we have in these boxes.” You chuckled as you placed your hand on Leon’s cheek, your thumb grazing against the growing stubble. You loved moments like this where the only thing that lingered in the air was normalcy and harmony, no missions, no worries, just a happy family. 

“I’ll help you if you promise you won’t judge my artistic side.” His lips turned into a sly smirk before he pressed soft kisses against your lips. A sweet yet sincere demonstration of love. He always worries he’s not enough. You play your role as wife and mother, so he ought to be the best husband and father he can be while also balancing his job life. No bioweapon could compare with the fear of losing his own little family because of himself.

Time seems to fly when you’re surrounded with love, Leon lives by that saying. You both decided to put up the tree first since that’s the most arduous task to complete. It takes you almost an hour between placing the ornaments in the correct place and Leon being scolded because he can’t match colors even if his life depended on it. 

“Now big boy, you gotta put the star at the top.” You crossed your arms as Leon placed the last ornament on the tree. It wasn’t the best tree, especially since Leon didn’t give any artistic advice on his side. Some colors looked rather odd combined with others, but Leon thought it was abstract.

Almost inaudible babblings made you turn around and found your baby already awake. She was playing by herself, her hands reaching for the ceiling. You had to admit it – she was sometimes an angel. She easily entertained herself and barely cried. 

You reached for her and walked toward the tree. Now her fingers tried to grab the Christmas ornaments. The colors reflecting on her blue eyes – that she got from Leon. By the way she kept babbling nonsense it almost looked like she was talking.

“Huh? Right I told your mom that too but she didn’t like the idea.” Leon acted like he understood what the little one was saying. And she also engaged in the conversation, two people against your own ideas.

For a few minutes, you focused on your daughter and how amazed she seems to be with everything. In her own world, that tree was the most wonderful thing she had ever seen.

But out of nowhere, both of you looked back at Leon who was sniffing and gently sobbing in front of the tree.

“Sorry, sorry…” He chuckled before wiping away some of the tears that continued falling without stopping. He then waved his hand dismissively, expecting you to drop the subject. Now he had two pairs of eyes intensely looking at him, yours and your baby’s.

After a short while of him trying to keep his tears of joy at bay, he eventually spoke once again.

“Thank you. For… For this.” A gentle smile formed in his face as he opened his arms. You wasted no time to welcome the hug. Now, the three of you were in front of the Christmas tree. The babbling, the sobs, and the soothing music in the background formed a domestic and warm scene. Full of love, emotions, and devotion. His thank you conveyed so much more than just merely words of gratitude. Thank you for choosing me. Thank you for believing in me, and thank you for marrying me and thank you for giving me the family I never had. He wanted to say those things, but he remained silent. He knew you would understand the meaning behind his simple thank you.

He would have never expected something like this. He had always thought he was doomed from the start. That his life would be about saving others and never being saved. But he was saved, and he will always be saved.

His daughter’s hands reached for his face, her fingers grabbing his cheeks and nose. Leon obliged, moving his face closer. Nothing out of the ordinary. Until her lips moved on her own.

“Dada!”

He will never shut up now.

[whorekneecentral]

The Smell Of The Holidays

Kostas Tsimikas x Fem!Reader

Warnings: friendly neighbourly chats, sweet moments with kos and his puppies, a heartfelt thank you, a little crush from kos's end, some tattoo exploring, sexual tension, it's giving sub!kostas for a minute there, thigh riding - it's more dry humping than thigh riding but I digress, oral (f!receiving), 0.2 seconds of fingering, finger sucking, penetrative sex (p in v), creampie.

Word Count: 3,565

Author's Note: I think this is my favourite and the longest fic so far. dedicated to the president of the kostas fan club, miss ivy @curiousthyme <333

merry smutmas series

--

You over baked for your niece’s holiday bake sale so you do the neighbourly thing and share with your neighbour, Kostas and his two puppies.

Your brother was a single father, he’s a busy guy that he works long hours and you help out with your niece in whatever way you can. Your brother can’t bake to save his life so when she comes home saying she needs treats for the bake sale, he calls you.

You were baking treats for her holiday bake sale; cupcakes, cookies, brownies, lemon bars - you name it, you baked it.

The bake sale was for the whole school, they were raising money for a charity who helped underfund kids, or something along the lines. With your niece's missing tooth, she didn't annunciate the best.

You have been baking all day and it wasn't until you turned around to set the final tray of cookies down that you realized you had run out of counter, dining room, coffee table and couch space. The cooled and frosted cookies, brownies and cupcakes were sitting on the couches in their trays, the ones that were needing to be frosted were on the tables and you had the hot pans on your counters.

Carefully, you shifted a few things around to set the hot pan down, leaving it to cool.

Your hands on your hips, you looked around; you've baked yourself into a conundrum.

It wasn't until you heard the barking next door that you realized what you could do with all of the extra treats that you were baked. You finished frosting the last of what needed to be frosted before packing them away neatly into their trays and loading them into your car.

You went back inside and picked up a small tray that you had set aside specifically for your next door neighbour, Kostas.

He was kind and sweet and kept to himself most of the time. He had two puppies, who weren't really puppies but you addressed them as such; Maui and Fuerte. Kostas wasn't home much as he was very busy with his job but every now and then you'll see him in his backyard with his dogs, training or swimming laps or whatever it is that he does out there.

It's a neighbourly hello and a few tummy rubs for the puppies before you head out and go about your day.

You balance the tray with one arm, setting the majority of its weight against your jutted out hip. You knock on the door and wait for someone to answer. There's some barking before the door opens, you can hear Kostas shooing the puppies away to stop them from coming out.

Behind him, you can see into the living room; a massive tree stood tall in the centre by the window, ornaments hung plentiful along the green branches. There's a few other Christmas-related things around the entryway.

"Hey!" He smiles, black sweatpants hanging low on his hips and a white vest that clung to his chest in all the right places; you scolded yourself for gawking at him. "Y/n, right?" He points to you with his finger.

"Yeah," you smiled at him, "I hope I'm not bothering you."

"Not at all," he shakes his head, shifting to stop the dog you know as Maui from coming outside. She poked her head between his legs, looking up at you curiously. "What's up?" He asks, watching as you look lovingly at his puppy.

"My niece is having a bake sale at school and asked me to bake some treats for her and the thing is, I went a little overboard." You laughed. "I realized I made too much, and I figured I would do the neighbourly thing and bring some over for you."

"Oh," he smiles at you, taking the tray that was heavier than it looked from you. "Thank you very much, I was wondering if someone opened a bakery around here. I've been smelling it since this morning."

A soft laugh slipped past your lips as you shrugged. "It got hot with the oven running so I opened the window."

Kostas nods, shifting his leg a bit as Maui tries to wiggle her head away from his legs. You smiled at the dog, peeking over Kostas's left shoulder to see her tugging on a toy with Fuerte.

"The ones with the frosting on it aren't puppy friendly but I put some in there that don't have frosting so you could share with them. There's also a few brownies and other things, I wasn't sure what you like, so I tried to put a mix of everything."

Kostas nods, thinking to himself that it was very sweet of you to consider his puppies when packing the tray. "Was that intentional? You know, catering to the puppies ?"

"Yes but also no. I did intentionally not put frosting on some of them for the pups, but you know kids and their allergies, all the ingredients are safe for the puppies. I made sure to double check."

"Thank you, y/n. I really appreciate it - we're gonna be eating these for the rest of the week." He says, glancing down at the tray. "Would you like to come in?" He steps to the side a bit, and as much as you want to say yes, you don't.

"Unfortunately, I have to get treats over to my brother's house so perhaps another time?" You looked at him, hoping for a yes to your rain check.

"Definitely," he nods. "Thank you again."

"Anytime!" You skipped down the pathway, giggling like a teenager with a crush. Kostas watched from his front door, smiling at you. "Have a good day, y/n!" He calls after you.

"You too, Kos!"

The nickname was something he heard often, mostly from his teammates, but it was the way you said it that made him blush and almost giggled like a school boy with a crush.

Kostas shut the front door and set the tray on his dining room table. As he takes the tinfoil off the top, all he can think about is what he can do to find himself in your presence yet again.

---

A few have gone by since you dropped in at Kostas's place and you had only seen him in passing since then.

You had successfully dropped off the treats for your niece and she called you to let you know that they were a hit. You had gone about your week as normal, tidying up and getting your place ready for the holiday season.

There was a knock on your door, you're a bit confused seeing that you weren't expecting anything or anyone, but you wiped your hands on the side of your shorts and found your way to the front door.

Much to your surprise, it was Kostas at the door; a pleasant surprise that is.

There's a rectangular box in his hand and an envelope on top. One hand on the bottom, and one hand on top to keep them in place as he smiles at you. "Can I come in?"

"Yeah, of course." You nod, stepping aside to let the man in. "I'm sorry about the mess, I was in the middle of tidying up."

Kostas nods as he glances around, trying to spot what mess you were talking about. The entire house looked as if it had been staged, not a single thing out of place.

And you have carefully thought out where to place your Christmas decorations, and Kostas noticed that. Your tree sitting in your living room in a spot that commanded attention, garlands wrapped around all of the railings and ornaments hung on all of the branches. All topped off with a pretty red and green wreath on your front door.

"Where are the babies?" You asked him, shutting the front door as he took his shoes off. "Groomers, sent them to get their holiday clean up. I can't stay long, I just wanted to drop this off." He smiles, following you to the kitchen.

Kostas sets the box on the table, handing the envelope over to you.

"For me?" You asked, taking it hesitantly. "I hope this isn't payment for the stuff I dropped off, because if it is-" "No," he shook his head with a smile, "just a thank you."

You carefully open the envelope, taking a sheet of paper out of it, and unfolding it. There's a few flowers painted across the piece of paper, it was clear that he used the puppies' paws to make the petals of the flowers. Some scrawled handwriting which you assumed belonged to Kostas was in the middle of the page; thank you miss y/n.

"Tell Maui and Fuerte I love their picture," you smiled at him, sticking the page on your fridge with a magnet.

Kostas smiles, watching you. "I'll let them know they made it onto the fridge as well." He joked, watching as you straightened the paper and stuck another magnet on there to keep it up.

You walk over to the table, standing in front of Kostas who's now made himself comfortable in your space. "What's this?"

"A thank you from me, I'm not as artistically skilled as my puppies."

You smiled, opening the box to find a chocolate cake. The brown frosting covered the majority of it, there are a few green and red decorations around the border, resembling mistletoe.

"You didn't have to do all this," you tell him, walking over to get a knife and two plates, as well as forks.

"It's the least I could do." He watches as you cut into the cake, handing a piece over to him. "I took some of the treats into work, the boys say I should've given you more than just a cake." He chuckles, taking a bite as you shut the box.

You nod towards the couch, and Kostas picks up his slice of cake following you, and the two of you sit in comfortable silence. The now empty plates sat on the coffee table as you rambled on about something your niece had told you about the bake sale.

Kostas listened intently, but his eyes wandered. Your shorts and hiked up a bit when you dropped yourself on the couch. You noticed his staring, not mentioning anything but you knew he wasn't fully listening. You pull the hem of your shorts, fixing it back to its original length. Kostas noticed and glanced up at you, his cheeks flustered and red.

"Sorry," he whispers, blushing like a school boy with a crush.

"I don't mind," you whisper.

Kostas hums, his eyes wandering over your legs yet again. He can't help but notice the colourful ink peeking out from under the hem of your shorts. "You have tattoos?"

"A tattoo," you correct him, pulling the hem of your shorts up and over your hip.

Kostas's eyes follow the design from the top of your thigh to just over your hip bone. There's a vine with a trail of flowers scattered along it; roses, lilies, daisies, wild flowers, any and everything in between. There's a lot of intricate details, the lines carefully placed to make it look cohesive and the colours of the flowers complimenting each other.

He hums in appreciation, stopping himself from reaching out to touch it. "It's beautiful." He smiles, glancing up at you. "Is it the only one you have?"

You nodded, laughing. "I was 19.. and drunk."

"You went big for your first time," his eyes meet yours and you can't help but feel that his words have a double meaning.

You shrugged, slouching back in your seat. Your leg crossed over the other and your shorts hiked up a bit more, showing off a few inches of your skin that Kostas was begging to put his hands on.

"Most people say you get addicted, but I just did the one and done."

He hums, gesturing to his arms that were covered in various designs and words. "Case in point."

"Just your arms or you've got more?"

Kostas nods, "my left leg and my ribs, and behind my neck." He lifted his shirt a bit to show you the tattoo on the left side of his ribs - an intricate portrait of what looked to be Adam and God.

Hesitantly, your fingers reached out and traced the shape of the tattoo. Kostas's eyes trailed from your face down to your hand and to your fingers, watching as you carefully outlined the ink along his skin.

"Beautiful," you mumbled and Kostas's cheeks flushed red, watching as you slowly moved your hand away.

He knew you were talking about the tattoo and yet he blushed, as if you had called him beautiful - but in a way, you did. And you meant it.

"Maybe I'll get another one, something small." You tell him and Kostas nods, offering to take you to his guy. Always the first one to offer up help and advice, he can hear Thiago's words in his head.

You look down at his leg, he was in shorts despite the cold winter air that nipped at you any time you opened the door - he had run over from his place after dropping the puppies off. You can see the lower half of his leg, the delicate shading and line work made up a stunning tattoo along his leg, the ink on his thigh peeked out from under the hem of his shorts.

"What's under there?" You nod and Kos's brows furrowed, looking at you for an explanation. "Under where?" He asks, making you giggle. It took him a second to realize why you were giggling but then he too, began to laugh.

You shook your head, "I meant your thigh, what's on your thigh?"

Kostas lets out a sound of understanding, shifting to pull the leg of his shorts up so you could see the tattoo. There's a massive portrait of a lion roaring, it didn't seem like Kostas's taste in tattoos but at the same time, it fit him to a T.

He nervously bites at his bottom lip as your hand rests on his knee, carefully slides up to his thigh. "Is this okay?" You whispered, glancing at him. Kostas nods, not sure if he remembers how to speak or even breathe - it feels as if you had taken all the air out of his body.

Your hand slips further up, leaning into the man in front of you. Kostas glances at your lips, your eyes and back to your lips. He sees your tongue wet your bottom lip, pressing them together.

Just as you were about to speak, Kostas beat you to it; "can I kiss you?"

You smile, "I thought you'd never ask."

His hand reaches for your jaw, holding it gently as if you'd break. Kostas brushes his thumb over your cheek, smiling at you sweetly before closing the gap between the two of you.

It was something out of a movie, you had never felt this way about anyone before. It just made sense; you fit against him as if you were meant to be there all along.

Kostas must have had the same thought, pulling you over and onto his lap, letting you straddle him. His hand slips down your side, resting on your hip. "You're so beautiful."

You can't help the blush on your cheek, you lean down to kiss him once again. You can feel his shorts rubbing along your inner thighs as he pulls you to him, trying to have you as close to him as possible. A hand on his shoulder, rolling your hips slightly to test the waters.

He seems to have gotten the idea; lifting his leg to give you more leverage. Your thighs are slotting either side of his, Kostas's hand rests on your hip, lazily brushing his thumb over your hip bone. He watches closely, listening to every little sound that slips past your lips.

"Kos," you mumbles, and the man perks up. "What is it, love?"

"Want you."

The words barely leave your lips and you're being flipped over, flat on your back before he pulls you by your legs, re-situating you to his liking.

Kostas is careful, pulling your shorts and panties off - they're tossed somewhere behind you. It's an issue for later. He kisses up from your calf, letting your legs rest over his shoulders. He's gentle, calculated - as if he knew exactly what to do, as if he had done it before.

Thighs on either side of his head, you weren't fully against his face but Kostas's hands grip the back of your thighs, pulling you further down. He glances up at you, a wicked smile on his face. "Is this okay?" He whispers into your skin, moving closer to exactly where you wanted him.

You nod, "please." The word comes out a bit more desperate sounding than you'd like but you could care less. You needed him - in every single way.

His hands rested on the back of your thigh, pulling you down flat against his face, his tongue pressed against your slit. 

Your body juts forwards - not only from the pulling but from the feeling of his tongue on you. Reaching forward, your manicured fingers tangle in his hair.

Kos' tongue curled upwards, brushing against your clit and you tug on his hair, something incoherent meets his ears - partly because he was focused on what he was doing but also because your thighs were squishing his face. 

He didn’t care. 

He loved it. 

A soft groan leaves his lips when you tug on his hair, trying to move him a certain way. “That- oh!” Your chest heaves, tugging on his hair to get him to do that again. 

His grip on your thighs would leave marks as would the stubble scratching along the inside of your thighs. He rocked you a bit, pulling you closer as his nose brushed against your clit, his tongue moving down to lap over your cunt.

Kostas glances up, his tongue on your clit and he can’t help but admire the view above him. Your chest heaving, tits spilling out over the black lace over your chest, your head tossed back and eyes fluttering closed as his name falls from your lips like a prayer.

He lets you pull him closer, his nose brushing your clit, replacing his tongue as he moves it elsewhere, his fingers pushing into you slowly. He sits up a bit, fingers curling and pumping in you, your eyes still closed.

His free hand reaches up to hold your jaw, pulling your focus to him. “You’re perfect, did you know that?” He asks and you can barely focus enough to grasp the words he was saying, let alone give him an answer.

“Need you,” you mumble.

“What do you need?” He asks.

“Need you.” You say once more.

He hums, he knows he’s not gonna get much more of an answer from you, he just had to give you what you wanted and Kostas knew exactly what you wanted.

You whimper at the loss of his fingers but passes his fingers over your lips, letting you suck on them for a moment as he shuffles his pants down.

Both of you let out a satisfied sigh when he pushes onto you, your leg pulled up onto his hip and he leans over you. His lips brushes against yours,

Kostas's cock twitches when you clench around him, “oh fuck,” he breathes, forehead against yours. “This pussy was made just for me, hm? Take me so well, my pretty girl.”

He pushes the straps off your shoulders, tits spilling out over the top of the bra. He glances down, letting you wrap your legs around his waist and he leans down to kiss you once more, leaving a trial of marks and sloppy kisses until he reaches your tits.

There’s a faint purple mark between your tits; his new favourite spot.

“You're so pretty like this,” he says, your hips buck, wanting more from him. He can feel you clench around his cock. “Fuck, gonna make me cum, darling.”

“Kos.. please.” You breathe, and he gives in, he can’t help himself; you’ve got him wrapped around your finger. “Want you to fuck me full,” you whisper to him. He shuffles a bit, pulling both of your legs over his shoulders.

The change in position does it; his thrusts sloppy, signalling that he too was close. You feel Kostas cum, your legs dropping off his shoulders as you do.

He's still buried in you when he drops down onto you, landing with an oof. You let out a giggle, your hand passing through his messy hair as he peppers kisses along your shoulder.

The two of you lay there for a while, basking in each other's company and the silence. It hits you; "Kos?"

"Yeah?"

"Aren't you supposed to go get the puppies?"

"Oh crap!" He's pulling himself up, hurrying to get dressed. You take that as your cue to get redressed as well. You figured you'd see him again at some point, not expecting him to grab your hand. "Do you wanna come with me?" He asks, walking with you to the front door.

"Isn't it too early to introduce me to the kids?" You joked, already grabbing your hoodie.

Kostas smiles, "they love you, and.."

"Yeah, same." You smile, the words left unsaid for another time.

---

taglist: @nosugarallspice  @evieepepi08 @mimithepooh @koufaxx @dannyramirezwife-simpaccount @topguncultleader @molliemoo3 @aisharmi @mamako23 @ac3may @lewislcver @miahgonzalez16  @books-and-netflix-pls  @wibi96 @bwddermilch @pedrisgatorade  @clarasenchant @sainzluvrr // @trentsfav @trentsmyfave @noturbabe22

[squadmuse]

PUZZLE PIECE

A MATT CASEY X F!READER FIC

A/N: So this idea was originally inspired from babysitting my nephew, and I just had to write it for Matt… again dedicated to @deanstead who is amazing and her anons got me into this dad!Matt rut.

It had been a quiet July morning when Matt Casey had arrived for work at Firehouse 51, with a special guest in tow.

“Now sweetheart, Daddy has to go to work, but you’ll be absolutely fine here,” said Matt to his three-year-old daughter, Emma, who was held securely in his arms against his hip. Known as Emmy in the family he shared with you, his wife, she was an adorable little girl and the apple of her father’s eye.

It was the summer vacation, and sadly, little Emmy’s daycare had ended up closed due to an outbreak of chickenpox. Usually, when this happened, you’d take her to the daycare at Chicago Med but you and Matt had happened to awake that morning to find out your other three children were suffering from a very mild sickness bug. This meant that you were home with Emmy’s three older siblings while Matt took her to work with him.

The three-year-old rubbed one of her bright blue eyes. “Uh huh, Daddy,” said Emmy as she laid her head against his broad shoulder. Matt smiled as he walked along and into the building.

He had just walked onto the app floor when he spotted the members of Squad Three already sitting around their table, playing cards. Instantly, each member lit up at the sight of the two Caseys.

Kelly quickly made his way over to Matt and Emmy, and plucked the three-year-old out of her father’s arms, to her delight. Matt smiled as Emma giggled in her godfather’s arms. Kelly was the closest thing he had to a brother, and he very much considered him to be one.

“If it isn’t my favorite little girl!” exclaimed Kelly loudly to the toddler.

“No, no, Uncle Kelly!” giggled Emmy as Kelly began to playfully tickle her, her little rosy cheeks pinking up even further.

Kelly grinned at Matt as he relented, letting Emmy rest in his arms. She was very much a Daddy’s girl, but the littlest Casey absolutely adored her godfather too. “Hey man, where’s the rest of the fam?” he asked Matt, looking behind the Captain of Truck 81 as if to see you bringing up the rear with his three other godchildren.

“Sickness bug,” commented Matt as he shrugged his bag further up his shoulder. Kelly instantly understood.

“So, Emmy is here for the day?” he asked Matt.

“Yeah, we didn’t want Em getting sick too,” said Matt.

Kelly nodded and so did the toddler in his arms.

“Me not sick,” said Emmy out loud. “No sicky!”

The two men chuckled. “Is that so?” asked Kelly.

Emmy nodded seriously.

Kelly hummed, grinning at her. “Well, that means you can have one of Auntie Stella’s cookies?” he smiled at his goddaughter, whose blue eyes lit up like a Christmas tree at the mere mention of cookies.

“Down please!” she squealed, to which Kelly allowed. It didn’t take long for Emmy to find her feet again and run off to the open door. The three-year-old had grown up in the firehouse, visiting even before she was born, and she was familiar with the layout even though Matt and you never let her venture far alone.

Matt and Kelly chuckled as they heard Emmy start to call out for her Auntie Stella, and the two firefighters headed off to follow Matt’s little girl.

Luckily, as they reached the kitchen and recreational area, it seemed that Emmy had found Stella, and was already munching on a chocolate chip cookie happily.

Stella grinned widely as Matt appeared alongside Kelly, her husband. “You should’ve told me my favorite little gal was coming by!” exclaimed Stella as she bounced Emmy, making her giggle.

Matt nodded, making his way over to his daughter and wiping the chocolate off her cheek. “I’ll make sure next time,” he chuckled, taking Emmy into his arms as she reached out for him.

Stella grinned as she ruffled Emmy’s hair. “You better, Captain! This little cutie pie is just so cute,” she said, tickling Emmy much like her husband had done moments before.

“Cute!” repeated Emmy, looking up at her dad, placing her tiny hand against his cheek. Matt smiled, feeling his heart grow even fonder and larger due to his little girl.

“You’re the cute one,” chuckled Matt to Emmy as Stella awwed loudly. There was no denying that fact. However, Emmy’s attention didn’t stay focused on her father, aunt or godfather for much longer as she spotted Tuesday wander into the room with Ritter, Gallo and Herrmann.

“Tues! Tues!” cried the three-year-old, who began to wrestle herself out of her dad’s arms in order to get down to the Dalmatian dog. Emmy couldn’t quite say Tuesday yet but neither she or Tuesday seemed to care as Matt carefully let his youngest child pet the dog.

Emmy’s giggles seemed to ignite within the room as Tuesday excitedly licked her face, Matt and Ritter keeping a close eye alongside everyone else in the room.

“Hey pumpkin,” said Herrmann as he crouched down beside Emmy, her father, Tuesday and Ritter. “I swear you get bigger and bigger every time I see you!”

Emmy waved at him, making the Engine lieutenant smile widely. “Me three now! I go swing with Mama,” she said to Herrmann.

“Oh you do? Annabelle likes the swings too,” replied Herrmann with a grin as he talked about his only daughter. “Likes to give her old man a heart attack too, launching out of them too,” he added, glancing at Matt.

Matt grimaced. “Don’t give her ideas, Herrmann, we Caseys might have heads made out of stone, but I’m still trying to calm down after Joshua broke his arm jumping out of a tree last week,” he commented to Herrmann. “I don’t need my little girl trying to kill me doing the same on a swing.”

“No, no Daddy!” said Emmy as she wandered to the side away from Tuesday and towards where Mouch sat watching the television. “Mama say no, no, Josh hurt!” she chimed in her innocent voice.

Matt nodded again, he was lucky to have such a smart little girl, not that his other children were not, but he hoped that Emma Casey would be the mellowest Casey. “That’s right, listen to Mama, sweetheart.”

Emmy nodded as she determinedly tried to pull herself up onto the couch beside Mouch. As the older man went to help her up, she squealed out loud and made Tuesday bark out loud.

“No, no! I do! I do!” exclaimed Emmy, pulling herself away from Mouch, who looked at her and then Matt with confusion.

Matt shrugged. “The independence stage has hit with a vengeance, Mouch don’t take it to heart,” he commented, watching as his daughter tried to pull herself up. Even at three years old, Matt was impressed with the amount of determination and resilience his daughter had.

“Ahh, a Casey through and through then,” vocalised Mouch, who started to pet Tuesday as she sat next to the couch.

Herrmann chuckled as he stood now beside the door-frame. “You need eyes on the back of your head, especially with the youngest… I don’t know how many times Kenny tried copying his big brothers and sister, landing himself in the ER!” he commented, watching Emmy successfully climb onto the couch.

Everyone in the room clapped in celebration as she did and Emmy beamed happily. Even in his happiest of hearts, Matt hated seeing his youngest become more and more independent and growing up. She was his baby.

Seeing as Mouch had put Dora the Explorer on, which harnessed the complete attention of Emmy, it was then that Matt decided to head off to his quarters to leave his and Emmy’s bags and get some paperwork. He would do the paperwork in the common room area at the table and chair beside the couch as it’d allow Matt the opportunity to work while keeping an eye on his daughter.

Walking over to Emmy, he leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Daddy won’t be gone long okay, kiddo,” he told her. Emmy nodded.

“Kiss kiss, bye bye Daddy,” chirped Emmy, making Matt smile lovingly. That little phrase was a new thing she had started saying whenever he or someone went away. It was absolutely adorable.

Matt glanced over at Herrmann who had sat down at the long lunch table with a newspaper, Mouch bringing over two cups of coffee for them both. “Herrmann, keep an eye on my little girl while I go to my quarters.”

Herrmann nodded as he took a gulp of his coffee. “Will do, Captain,” he replied.

Knowing that Herrmann, a father of five, was there, Matt hurried off out the door. Reaching his quarters, he opened up the glass door and went inside. The little rectangular room had not changed much ever since Matt had become Lieutenant all those years ago, but it held a lot of memories, both good and bad.

Now, there were some changes to his quarters. That was undeniable. Underneath Matt’s bunk was a small box of toys and blankets for whenever his young children visited. There were numerous photographs that he had carefully framed and hung up on the stone walls that told the story of the Caseys.

Sitting down in his chair, Matt smiled pensively at them all. There was a photo from your first date together at Mollys that Sylvie had taken. Then there were the photos from your engagement party and wedding, and Matt couldn’t help but grin as he reminisced about those moments. But his heart swelled even further as he saw the photographs of his four children with you, from womb to now. His two little boys and two little girls with you. They were nothing short of miraculous in Matt’s eyes.

Sighing, he got up and quickly got together the reports and other documents he needed to complete and file today. Slipping back out and locking the door, Matt made his way back to the common area and passed by Stella, who was on the phone with someone. However, as Matt entered the room, he instantly locked eyes with the couch and saw that his daughter was no longer sitting there.

“Herrmann! Where is Emmy?” commanded Matt to the lieutenant, who was arguing slightly with Mouch, Gallo and Ritter over something to do with Mollys. Each one of them quietened instantly at their Captain’s sharp tone.

Herrmann gasped and hurried over. “Shit! She was just there, I swear Casey!” he yelped, frantically looking around the room with his eyes for any chance that the blonde toddler was simply sitting elsewhere.

“I just gave her a juice box!” exclaimed Mouch.

Matt hummed as he rubbed his temples. It was now that he had a good idea of where his daughter could be and most likely was.

“I can search the entire firehouse top to bottom, Captain!” said Gallo seriously. He was quite close to you and Matt, ever since he had been taken under Matt’s wing and mentored by the Truck 81 Captain. He absolutely adored the four Casey children.

Ritter nodded, Tuesday beside him. “Me too, we can go now, Captain,” he stated, getting up to go and do it but Matt gestured for him to sit down.

“No need, I know where my daughter is now,” replied Matt before he turned on his heel and hurried back out the way he had just arrived. Pushing through the doors to the app floor, it was there that Matt did find his little girl.

There was three-year-old Emma Casey, sitting perched on her godfather’s knee, with a Squad Three cap on her little head, as she enthusiastically participated in a jigsaw puzzle with Kelly, Tony, Capp and Cruz encouraging her every step. Her juice box sat on the table next to her.

Matt stood there, watching as his little girl laughed and giggled, placing each piece of the puzzle together as if it were a piece of his heart. Emma was the finishing piece to the jigsaw puzzle that was the heart of one Matthew Casey.

[sp00kymulderr]

Pairing: Dieter Bravo x afab!reader

Warnings: 18+. sexual themes, more love than intended, cock and balls, cursing, drug use, Dieter being ridiculous. Don’t think about logistics too much. Unedited.

Word Count: 900

Summary: Dieter has a gift for you

A/N: This is dedicated to my most beloved @covetyou because I love her and for no other reason at all...comments and reblogs forever appreciated! To follow for fic updates only go to @sp00kyupdates​ or see taglist details on my masterlist. Header by me. Credit to banner maker.

“Dieter?”

Your voice rings out in the empty kitchen where you’d left him wrapping presents an hour ago while you ran the last of the pre-christmas errands. An empty coffee cup and distinct smell of weed the only telltale sign that he was in here until recently.

Turning on your heel, you head back in to the hallway of your newly shared home and shuck off your coat before beginning up the stairs. He’s probably in the bedroom.

Until you hear the distinct grunting breath of a man from the front room – presumably your boyfriend.

“Hey, Dee. You in-” You start through the door and stop your footsteps and your sentence at the same time, losing your breath too for a moment.

There under the Christmas tree lying on his side is your very own Dieter Bravo – stark naked with a cocky half smile on his plush lips.

“Merry Christmas, cookie” Dieter grins wide and proud, ignoring the roll of your eyes because he knows the smile that follows is far more meaningful.

“Baby, what the hell are you-” Again you’re caught off guard as your eyes wonder down his gorgeous form, over the soft swell of his stomach and down to where, yep, you are seeing what you can’t believe your seeing. “Jesus christ did you really…”

His dick in gift wrap.

Haphazard as fuck but nevertheless, your man has attempted to wrap his cock up for you.

He giggles a little and you can’t help but laugh with him as he wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. You can tell from his eyes and his lopsided smile that Dieter is obviously high, which explains a lot, but it’s still so fucking ridiculous that you can’t help the echo of laughter passed between the two of you as you sit on the floor beside him to examine closer.

It’s the gold wrapping paper you’d used for your parents presents, because of course it is – but you try hard not to think too much about that right now. How the hell he hasn’t given himself a nasty paper cut you don’t know. There’s a red string tied in a messy loose bow at his base, and one of the sticky back bows resting beneath that on his balls.

“How the fuck?” Is about all you can muster and he’s still grinning like an idiot, disgustingly proud of himself. You have to pinch yourself to make sure this absurdity is even real.

“Wanna feel your present, cookie?” Dieter asks in the low suggestive tone you’re used to, and using that same nickname he’d given you on your second date.

“You’re fucking ridiculous, I hope you know that”

Your amused smile takes away from any admonishment in your words. Dieter knows how to make you laugh, he always has. It’s part of why you love him the way you do.

“C’mere” Dieter murmurs softly, and pulls you close for a kiss which you happily recieve “Please unwrap me babe, it’s actually pretty uncomfortable” he adds against your lips.

“I don’t even know where to…” You sigh and pull away, making him lie on his back so you can start unwrapping delicately. He’s wrapped everything loosely, but he’s swiftly hardening as he watches you concentrate and it’s certainly making things more interesting.

He groans softly as you untie the string, less slack on it as he gets harder from your touch and your unmistakable heavy breath. It’s not exactly the worst present you’ve ever unwrapped, no matter how many times you’ve seen his beautiful cock before.

Finally unwrapped, you sigh in relief and lean down to place a kiss the tip before looking back up at him.

“You like your present, cookie?” He asks softly, less seduction and more adoration as he watches you. Looking over at his face you’re taken breathless for a moment, heart skipping a beat. He’s so pretty like this, lit up by the lights of the gaudy Christmas tree he’d insisted on. He’s so goddamn beautiful it makes you ache all over for a second.

With one more look at his damn gorgeous face, you slowly pull the sticky bow from his sack and relish in the eager moan that falls from Dieters lips as you give them a tender squeeze. Fuck, he’s fully hard and you’re soaked now.

“I love my present” You tell him gently, already pulling off your own clothes eagerly before straddling him.

“Fuck” Dieter grunts out as you start to rock slowly, rubbing your cunt over him with your clit catching on the head and making you gasp out a moan of pleasure. You soak him as your slick gathers, getting more turned on by the second by your stupid boyfriend and his antics.

After a moment you rise up on your knees and take his cock in your hand, angling to sink down but he stops you with gritted teeth.

“Wait- wait...put these on” Dieter requests with wide eyes, pleading as if he thinks you’re in any position to deny him anything.

You have to roll your eyes again as he holds up the felt antler headband, with little jingle bells attached to it.

“Gotta hear those bells jingle while you ride me” He grins again so stupidly, and you both erupt in to a fit of giggles once more.

He looks at you with pure, honest love as you slide the stupid headband on to your head without protest.

“Love you, cookie”

“Love you too, you idiot”

Find part 2 here

[onlyhereforthestories]

Mi Ángel De Nieve (Ona Batlle x Reader)

Day 5! We love Ona here so enjoy this

Winter in Manchester was very different to what you were used to, this was your first year experiencing it and snow wasn’t something you were expecting. You had joined Manchester United from Barcelona this summer, finally joining the love of your life in the English city. Ona had been trying to get you to transfer for a couple years now but you had dedicated your life to Barca and wasn’t going to move until they no longer wanted you. That happened this summer with you and a few of the other longer term players like your best friend Leila leaving for new opportunities.

The fact that Leila had moved to the same city was perfect, it was the first time ever that you had your favourite people, your chosen family all in one place. You had played your final game of the calendar year on Saturday against none other than Manchester City, you and Leila facing off for the first time in your careers. The points had been shared and you and the rest of the Spanish girls had gone out for a dinner to celebrate.

You and Ona were wandering back from the restaurant hand in hand when you felt the first cold spot land on you. Looking up at the sky you were shocked to see the small white dots slowly floating down. Snow wasn’t something you ever got to see growing up in north Spain, the temperatures never dropped low enough for the weather to occur so you momentarily paused to take it in.

“What’s up amor?” The small tug at your hand helped focus your attention on the younger woman, her curious gaze staring back at you.

“You’ve been in this country too long. It’s snowing. I don’t see snow.” The realisation that crossed Ona’s face was comical, you laughed at the expression before placing a kiss to her cheek. “Its cold can we go home please.” Ona didn’t hesitate in pulling you along the path as the snow got heavier and heavier, small white specks sticking to the both of you as you got closer to the warmth of home.

Pulling your slightly damp coats off, you and Ona were both relieved to be inside the dry and warm appartment. One was quick to put on the fairy lights strung around the living room in honour of the festive season and you made your way into the kitchen to make each of you a hot chocolate.

By the time you had got the drinks ready and wandered back into the living room Ona had already got changed into comfy clothes and snuggled herself under a fluffy blanket. “What you putting on bebé?” You spoke as you put the hot beverages on the coffee table and as Ona replied you leaned on the arm so you could hover your face over hers.

“I was thinking home alone marathon? You’ve not watch them right?” The glint in her eyes as she spoke about the Christmas films had your insides lighting up. Leaning down that little bit more you pressed a series of kisses to her forehead and cheeks before pulling back.

As the younger woman pouted at you you walked backwards towards your shared bedroom. “Okay load it up I’m just going to get changed.” You turned with a wink in her direction and hurried off to get sweats and a hoodie on.

Walking back in you laughed at the pout still residing on the woman’s face. Pushing her forward and slipping under the blanket with her now in front of you, you pressed a few kisses to her neck which only made her grumble.

“Hey bebé?” When she turned towards you, you didn’t hesitate in capturing her lips in a sweet kiss. One that had the both of you smiling into pretty much as soon as it happened.

“Okay better. Now we can watch the films.” Giggling at the Manchester player you pulled her as close as you could get her and settled in for a night of films.

A few days after this and the snow was here to stay. Another layer had settled overnight and you were even more excited to see it today when you woke up. There was no training and no other responsibilities to be done so you had asked Ona if you could spend the day doing all the things you do with snow.

The days started with breakfast and coffee, the latter essential for Ona to function for the rest of the day. Then you got your winter clothes out of your wardrobe, clothes that until this year were only used to ski in. Making sure all the bits that needed to be tucked in were indeed tucked you trudged out into the complexes garden.

The floor was littered with tiny animal prints from the foxes, cats and maybe even squirrels making their way around. The trees had a perfect amount of snow on them to make them perfect to gaze upon and the sun was slightly shining through so the air wasn’t so cold.

Ona had requested the first thing you do was build a snowman so you had both set about rolling balls in the snow and by the end of it you had a small half body height snow man with little pebble features.

Deciding he was Instagram worthy, you pulled Ona into a three person, well two person and a snowman, selfie and posted it to your stories. Leila's instant reply complaining of being left out had you rolling your eyes. After texting her to come join if she was that fussed you laughed at the instant no you received. The woman screamed hot weather lady and you weren’t the least bit surprised she was not going out.

Just as you put your phone in your pocket you felt the cold snow hit your neck. The shriek you let out would be embarrassing if anyone other than your love heard you. Speaking of said love you turned in the direction the snow came from and was gobsmacked to find Ona doubled over trying to stop her laughter with a hand over her mouth.

“Oh it’s on.” You threw a snowball that she managed to dodge and for the next few minutes you and the brown haired woman ran and threw and giggled in your own little world.

You had just about had enough of the small nimble woman dodging everything so you used the only thing you had over her. Speed. You ran right at her when she was least expecting it and gently tackled her into the snow.

After flopping next to her laughing at the shocked face she had on you took her hand and stared at the sky. “It’s so peaceful. There’s something so pure about snow that it makes you want to lay in it until your body goes numb because of the cold.”

Ona just listened to you speak. She would never tire of listening to your soft inner thoughts. After a period of quiet you stood up only to look down at her, eyes closed and smile of her face Ona started moving her arms and legs. You stepped back to give her some room and pulled out your phone to video what she was up to. After a few moments you stopped just before she did and subsequently stood up.

You took a quick photo of her looking down at her work just at the right time. Her shadow from the setting sun was perfectly in the place her body had just been. The angel wings she created spreading out from her shadows body.

You captioned the photo ‘I always knew she had the soul of an angel. Here’s your proof.’

Ona wouldn’t see that photo till after you had drifted off behind her on the sofa later that evening and the new nickname of mi ángel you had developed tonight all made sense.

[writeforfandoms]

White Christmas

Find my masterlist

Okay we are all ignoring that this is two weeks late please and thank you

I am dedicating this fic to @insomniamamma who responded so enthusiastically to this idea that I simply had to write it. J was a great help in plotting and figuring out some ways to meld these two very unalike movies. J, darling, you're incredible and thank you so much for your help.

A couple quick notes: yes I use Bing Crosby's White Christmas here. You do not have to have seen the movie but there are a lot of Easter eggs if you have. And when Benny and Will get on stage, you will want to watch this for reference. Trust me.

Warnings: swearing, fluff, Christmas fluff, seriously you're gonna get cavities from this, the team are all menaces, mistletoe!

Frankie Morales x f!reader

This hotel was supposed to be a good thing. A fresh start. A way for him to keep busy but still live. 

It was not supposed to be… this. 

"I'm a damn fool," he growled to himself as he looked at the owners manual for the water heater. "Never should have bought this place." He paused to wipe his brow, glaring. 

This had to be an unmitigated disaster, truly. There was no snow. And the previous owner had assured him that the holiday season was usually the busiest of the year. 

But this year there was no snow on the ground, only a few reservations, and never ending problems. 

The phone started ringing and Frankie swore as he ran back inside to answer it. 

"'Lo?"

"Fish!" 

Frankie nearly sagged at the voice on the other end, his eyes closing briefly. "Pope! It's been a long time, man." 

"I know, I know. Hey, listen. You got an open room? I wanna head up your way for a week or two."

"Uh, sure." Frankie blinked, taken aback. "Yeah, I've got room. Might put you to work though."

Pope just laughed. "Sure thing, Fish. Whatever you say. I'll see you on the 20th."

Frankie hung up after Pope had, looking down at his phone. His shoulders slumped at the thought of his to-do list, which was growing ever larger. Especially when contrasted with his bank account, which was getting smaller by the day. 

He really needed something to change here. 

–

You stretched as you got off the train in Pine Tree, Vermont, taking a deep breath in. The air smelled fresh and clean, and there was none of the traffic noise you associated with the city. 

In short, it was beautiful. 

Another deep breath in and you smiled, gripping the handle of your suitcase. There was someone else on the platform too, which you thought was kind of nice and kind of unusual. It was just the two of you, after all. He was texting when you glanced at him. 

So you nodded to yourself and stepped out of the station proper so you could order an Uber. 

"I thought I was the only person that got off here."

You jumped at the voice and turned to look. The man you'd noticed earlier now stood next to you, a respectful few feet away. 

"Not this time." You gave him a polite smile, shifting your weight. "Are you local?"

"No, I'm out here to visit a friend of mine. You?" He didn't try to get any closer, fortunately. 

"Just visiting." You shrugged. "Thought I'd come up here and play in the snow." 

Except there wasn't any. No snow to be seen at all. 

"Yeah, that's weird. Feels like there should be lots of snow this time of year." He frowned a little. 

"Well, I'll ask one of the locals when I get to my hotel." 

"Where are you staying?" At your openly suspicious look, he hurried to clarify. "My buddy owns a place here, The General Inn."

"Well then, I guess you will be seeing more of me. I'm staying there." 

He grinned, oddly pleased. "Hey, he's actually coming to pick me up, if you wanted to ride with us. Faster than waiting for an Uber way out here." 

You hesitated. You didn't know if he was really being honest or not, after all. So you settled on a shrug, noncommittal. But not offensive. 

"You got any plans while you're here?" He asked instead, letting the subject lie. "Fish hasn't mentioned a whole lot to me, but I also hear he's been busy with the hotel."

"Fish?" Your lips twitched with your amusement. 

"My buddy. His name is Frankie, but Catfish is an old nickname. We've called him that for years." 

"I see." You smiled and shook your head. "No, I didn't really make plans. Figured I'd wing it, really." 

"Sounds fun. I figured I'll help Fish with whatever project he's working on now, make sure he's doing okay, stay a couple weeks. But I'm sure I can make time for you." He winked. 

You chuckled, more amused than anything with the flirting. "We'll see what happens," you said instead of giving him a straight answer. "Is that your friend?" You nodded to the blue pickup truck driving towards the two of you. It was an older model, but still drove well, even with the few dings and dents you could see. 

Your new friend nodded and jogged over to the car, waving. He heaved his duffel bag into the bed of the truck, leaning on the window to talk to the driver. You waited patiently, still trying to decide whether or not this was a good idea. 

And then the driver peeked around his friend to wave to you, and your brother caught in your chest for a moment. Tousled brown curls stuffed under a ball cap, big brown eyes, dark scruff… oh. Okay he was gorgeous. You walked over closer to the two, cautious still but willing to listen at least. 

"This is my friend," the man told you, motioning in the window to his friend. 

"Frankie Morales. I own the General Inn." He held out a hand to you. 

Feeling only slightly silly, you shook his hand through the window and gave him your own name. Recognition lit in his eyes, which made you feel better. 

"Pope says he offered you a ride," Frankie started, and you blinked. 

"Pope?"

"This idiot." Frankie reached over to slap his friend on the shoulder. "Santiago Garcia. But we call him Pope." 

"Oh. Yes, he did, but you certainly don't have to–"

"It's no trouble," Frankie told you, quiet but sincere. "Since we're all going to the same place. I'll even make Pope sit in the middle." 

You ducked your head and grinned, amused and a little charmed. And. Well. He wasn't wrong - you were all going to the same hotel. "Why not," you agreed, lifting your bag into the bed as Santiago had done. 

It was a bit of a tight fit with all three of you in the cab, but it worked. Soft Christmas music came from the speakers in the car, a little staticky in places as Frankie drove. 

The hotel was set out apart from town, and Frankie parked along the side. Honestly, it looked more like a big old house than a hotel, which… probably wasn't that far off. The site had advertised it as an old fashioned bed and breakfast place, with a big barn available for event space rentals. You could see smaller buildings off to the sides and back of the main building, offering plenty of rooms for visitors.

"Come on in," Frankie told you, grabbing your bag before you could. "I'd give you the grand tour but it's honestly not that much." 

"I'd like the tour anyway." You smiled at him. Okay so maybe you were flirting a little bit. He was gorgeous and he only got cuter when he ducked his head, the tops of his ears turning pink. 

"Check in is just inside," he told you, holding the door for you and Santiago both. "I'll show you to your room, if you'd like." 

"Thank you." You had to admit, you were rather charmed by his manners and mannerisms. 

The check in process went quickly, and Frankie insisted on carrying your bag upstairs and to your room. He handed over the key to you and told you to take as long as you wanted, and he'd be at the front desk for a while if you needed anything. 

The room was beautiful, on a corner of the house overlooking a big open lawn space, with the woods beyond that. A bay window was the perfect spot to sit and look outside, the bench seat nicely padded with a folded quilt tucked to the side in case you got cold. 

The rest of the room was equally comfortable - the bed was big and nice and had extra pillows and blankets. The attached bathroom was done simply but nicely. 

Overall, the room felt quite luxurious. You made sure to note that, taking a couple pictures and making sure your bag was out of sight. 

It certainly wouldn't be hard to write a favorable review of this place. 

Tucking your phone and the room key into your pockets, you headed back downstairs, but paused on the bottom step, just out of sight. You could hear Santiago and Frankie talking, and something stopped you from interrupting them. 

"...not what I thought," Frankie was saying, quiet and resigned. "Seems like every time I fix one thing, something else breaks."

"I'll help you get it all fixed up," Santiago offered, quiet to match the mood. "You know I'm not useless with a wrench." 

"That's not why you came out here," Frankie protested, though it was weak. "I can't ask you to, Pope."

"You're not asking, I'm offering. We'll figure out the rest of it, too." 

There was a pause, so you stepped down and walked over to the two with a smile. "My room is very nice and comfortable," you told Frankie before he could ask. "And I would like to take you up on that tour, if it's no trouble?"

Santiago and Frankie exchanged a look, the kind of look between old friends which spoke more than actual words. Then Frankie nodded, stepping away from the desk. 

"Of course," he agreed. "There's a dining area back this way." He started walking and you followed him. There were a couple doors on your way back to the dining area, and at one point you could peek through to a kitchen, but otherwise the place was quiet. The dining area was nice, at least, with a collection of small tables that could be arranged in various ways. 

"Very nice," you murmured, gaze lingering on the decorations. There wasn't a lot, but there were garlands and lights at least. "I read on the website that this place used to be owned by a general?" 

"Yeah, he bought the place after World War 2," Frankie said, leaning back against a wall and crossing his arms over his chest. "His granddaughter took over after he passed, changing the name to honor him. I bought it from her last year." 

You nodded. "Fascinating," you murmured. Now that you looked, you could see that some of the decorations were dated. Some of the furniture too, actually. "It is a very nice place."

His lips twisted in something that you suspected was supposed to be a smile, but he didn't say anything for several moments. "The barn was converted a long time ago to an event space," he said instead. "Haven't had much use for it recently, though." 

"I see." You nodded to yourself, looking around again. "It is nice. Do you have any recommendations for things to do outdoors?"

"There are some good hiking trails," he answered slowly. "Normally I'd also say there's skiing, but, well…" He waved a lazy hand towards the nearest window, which showed plenty of blue sky and not a single bit of snow. 

You smiled. "Hardly your fault the weather isn't cooperating," you assured him. "But the hiking does sound nice. I think I'll take a look outside." 

Frankie nodded, opening a back door for you. "Have fun," he murmured with a little smile. "And let me know if you need anything." 

You nodded to him and stepped outside. The air was crisp and cold, just burning your lungs when you drew in a deep breath. 

It really was gorgeous here. Kind of a shame it was so quiet, though. You hadn't seen another guest yet. 

You spent a while walking around the property, until the sun started to go down and you retreated back inside. Frankie was not at the front desk, so you went up to your room to warm up a bit. 

According to the website, there were restaurants in town that would deliver to the hotel. Special occasions also offered dinner at the hotel for an added fee. So, you could get food delivered, or get an Uber into town. 

Movement out back caught your attention, and you walked over to the window to look down. 

Santiago and Frankie were down there, both of them standing around a grill. Santiago was gesticulating with one hand, fingers tight around the neck of a bottle, while Frankie stood more placidly in front of the grill. 

You smiled a little, watching them. Personally, you thought they were a little crazy for deciding to grill outside in the cold, but hey. Whatever suited them. 

Santiago turned and looked unerringly up at your window. You swallowed. Well. Too late to back away now, he had definitely seen you. Whoops. 

But he merely grinned and waved to you, beckoning you to come downstairs. And when you didn't move fast enough, he waved you down yet again. 

Chuckling softly, you turned away from the window and grabbed a jacket before heading downstairs and out back to join the two. 

"Did you have fun exploring?" Santiago asked as you approached the pair. 

"I did indeed," you murmured, looking between the two of them. Frankie glanced at you with a little smile before focusing on the food again. 

"Sorry about him, he's demanding," Frankie told you, nudging Santiago with one elbow. 

"It's fine. I was just surprised to see you two out here. It's cold." 

"Just grilling these up, then we're heading inside to eat." Santiago eyed you for a moment before he smiled slowly. It was the kind of smile that you instantly associated with mischief. "Say, d'you wanna join us for dinner? We've got plenty." 

"Oh, I don't want to intrude," you started, glancing at Frankie. 

"You won't be." That quiet assurance came from the hotel owner, and he turned a little to smile at you, small and shy but genuine. "It would be our pleasure." 

"Well then." You couldn't resist smiling back. "I'll be happy to join you two. What can I do to help?"

It took a little arguing, but Frankie told you where to find utensils and plates, so you set the table for the three of you. 

Dinner really was quite pleasant. They were good friends, and they included you easily. Especially once they'd each had a beer and relaxed a little. 

You learned that they'd been friends for a long time, even before their days in the army. You learned about their other two friends, Will and Benny. You learned about Santiago's current job. 

And you learned that there were no other guests in the hotel. 

"Guess people don't want to come out here with no snow," Frankie muttered with a bitter twist to his lips. "So it's just us."

"Hm." You glanced at Santiago to see what he thought of that. Because it didn't sit right with you that there were no other guests. Santiago didn't give anything away. "Well, maybe it'll start snowing soon. It usually does." 

Frankie nodded, though he didn't look convinced. 

The rest of dinner was more pleasant, but you could see Santiago thinking. So could Frankie, based on the nudges and significant looks, but that was between them. 

You helped wash up after dinner before excusing yourself up to your room. You needed to shower and write down your notes so far. 

Fortunately there was wifi, and you let your laptop connect and load while you showered. Sitting on your bed, you started typing up notes, outlining everything you'd seen so far. 

Your shower was warm and had good water pressure, which was a blessing. You added that to your notes as you dried off. 

Faint talking caught your attention. Normally, you were not the kind of person to snoop around and eavesdrop. But when people kept doing it where you could hear? Well, you really couldn't help it. 

"...not great," the man said. Santiago, you decided after a moment when the voice got louder. "Yeah, he won't admit it, but it's bad. We gotta help." 

You took a deep breath. You really shouldn't be hearing this. So you got up and finished getting ready for bed, even though you planned to be up and reading for a little while longer. 

But Santiago's words didn't leave you. Sure, he could have been talking about anything… but you were pretty sure he had been talking about Frankie and the hotel. 

The wheels in your mind started turning, even as you finally settled down to sleep. 

The next morning was more of the same - quiet with an undercurrent of tension, especially between Frankie and Santiago. Frankie told you to help yourself to anything in the kitchen. 

You spent the day in town after getting an Uber. The town was quaint, pretty, very oldsey. Everything was decorated, with lights along the trees and wreaths on every light pole. It was all gorgeous, of course. 

But all suspiciously quiet. You would have expected a lot more tourists around in a pretty place like this. 

Honestly, you had no idea the snow was so necessary here. But your suspicions were confirmed after chatting with a couple people as you did a little shopping and exploring. 

There was no snow, so fewer tourists, especially with no other events to draw them in. 

One shopkeeper told you wistfully of days long past, when The General Inn used to have a big event every Christmas Eve. They used to have live performers, he told you. And food and hot drinks. 

The beginnings of a plan settled in your brain, and you thanked the shopkeeper before going on your way again. 

A closer look at the town and a map showed that it was in a good location. Quiet, not too close to a city, but in a good location near a major highway and the train, of course. In other words, it would be easy for people to travel here from nearby. 

You stood for a few moments, looking down the main street, watching a car turn down another street. No snow. Quiet roads. The town had sort of fallen off the map this year, it seemed. 

But maybe… 

You needed to talk to Santaigo, see if he had been talking about what you thought last night. It wasn't like you to get involved, but, well… there was something about this town and the inn and Frankie himself that made you want to help. 

You caught an Uber back to the inn before the sun went down. You had pizza that you could reheat for dinner, that would be good enough for tonight. 

Nobody was at the desk when you came in, and you put your pizza in the fridge. (Which did feel a little odd, but Frankie had told you to make yourself at home and feel free to use the kitchen, so…) 

Tapping on the kitchen window made you jump, and you pressed a hand over your heart as you whirled to look. Santiago grinned at you, waving and then beckoning you to come. You heaved a sigh, glaring weakly at him before you trudged out of the room. 

"You gave me a heart attack," you grumbled as soon as Santiago was in sight. 

"Sorry," he said, sounding not very sorry at all. "Haven't seen you all day, just wanted to make sure everything is good."

You raised one eyebrow at him. "Is that so?"

He didn't falter, just holding your gaze until you gave up. 

"I was in town, checking things out. It's all pretty quiet."

That made him grimace and nod slowly. "Yeah, Fish said the same." 

You hesitated before you decided to just go for it. You doubted you'd get a better opportunity than this. 

"I heard you last night, I think you were on the phone. Telling someone that you had to help." You paused for a moment, watching his eyes go wide. "I presume you mean Frankie. And if you do… I want to help." 

"You… do?" Santiago narrowed his eyes a little at you, clearly sizing you up. 

"I do." You licked your lips, a rush of anxiety flooding your belly. "I know this is unusual, but I feel bad for him. And for this place. It's got a great history, and I would hate to see it go empty. Frankie has been nothing but kind, and has gone above and beyond the duties of the proprietor. So, I'd like to help, however I can." 

Santiago regarded you narrowly for a few of the longest moments of your life before he smiled. "What do you have in mind?" 

You smiled, and the planning began. 

Honestly, it kind of surprised you how quickly everything came together. You'd expected to have to do a ton of work. But as it turned out, two more of Frankie and Santiago's friends were on their way up, and had started pulling some of their own strings. 

And when Santiago let you into the barn, you found a lot of the things you already needed for an event. Sure, some of the equipment was old, but it still worked fine when you tested it out. 

"We have three days," you murmured, tapping your fingers against one of the tables that you and Santiago had set up to test things out. "And we still need to spread the word." 

"My friends are arriving tomorrow morning," Santiago told you. "I can get word around town with the two of them." 

"That's a good start," you agreed with a nod. You had an idea for how to tell more people, but it would involve doing something you'd never done before. You were just hoping this would be worth it. "And… I can help with getting the word out further."

"Yeah? You got an idea?" Santiago raised one eyebrow at you. 

"I do." You swallowed, feeling a little nervous. "I have a travel blog. I could put up a notice on there." 

Santiago blinked. Twice. "Is that why you're here?" He asked, low and a little dangerous. 

"That's why I came here, yes." You lifted your chin. "But that's not why I'm trying to help. Frankie deserves the help - he's been a hell of a lot nicer to me than many other owners or managers have been. Like I told you before. I would hate to see this place fail."

Santiago huffed out a breath. "He won't like it if he finds out," he warned you. "But if you think it will help…"

"I think so. I know I've got readers in this area, within driving distance. Can't hurt to try." 

Santiago nodded. "Alright then. Let me know if you need help with any of that. And in the meantime, I picked up dinner for us." 

You chuckled and nodded. “Sounds good to me.” 

It surprised you a little, how well you got along with the two men, and how easy dinner was between you three. Of course, that only reinforced your decision to help Frankie. He needed it, and he deserved it. 

After dinner, you retreated to your room to work on your new post. You stared at the screen of your laptop, tapping your fingers against the edge of the keyboard. This was one of the harder posts you’d written up in a while. Normal reviews were easy, even the tough ones. 

But this? A call for help, a personal message? Much harder. 

Eventually, though, you decided that was as good as it was going to get and posted it. You went with simple but heartfelt in the end, asking anyone in driving distance who didn’t have plans to come out and give this place a try. 

Hopefully you wouldn’t get too much backlash on this. Hopefully this would be worth it. 

Santiago and Frankie left together the next morning to pick up their friends, and you used the time to work on decorating the barn. 

Honestly, the barn space was a stroke of luck. It was already set up as an event space, after all, and just needed some cleaning and decorating to be back in working order. 

Whoever had owned the place previously had clearly kept all of the Christmas decorations through the years, as there were several bins set aside in a storage closet. Perfect for you to go absolutely nuts. 

Finally, satisfied with your work, you dusted off your hands and nodded. Perfect. 

Okay, the barn was decorated. You’d put up the post last night asking for people to attend. Santiago and Frankie would undoubtedly be back any minute with their two friends.

You still needed supplies for this party, of course. And perhaps it would be a good idea to call some of the local businesses, too… 

You were so busy that you didn’t even notice when the group of men got back, and you didn’t have a chance to be introduced to the two newcomers until everyone sat down to dinner. (Santiago had to find you and drag you out of the barn by the back of your shirt, ignoring your indignant squawking with the ease of long practice.) 

“Guys, this is our new friend,” Santiago introduced, pulling out a chair for you. “These are Will and Benny.”

“Hi.” You waved, a little shy, and took your seat. Next to Frankie, you noticed with some amusement. 

“Nice to meet you.” Will nodded to you, and Benny smiled. 

“So what brought you way out here?” 

You chuckled. “I travel a lot, and I like staying new places. Plus, the history on the website lured me in.” You shrugged, glancing at Frankie. “It’s definitely been one of my better decisions.” 

Next to you, Frankie looked pleased and a bit abashed. Benny looked between the two of you with ill-disguised glee. 

Sensing the imposing teasing, you struck first. “Santiago has been looking forward to you arriving. And I’m pretty sure I heard Frankie say something about putting you all to work. It is nice to see such good friends willing to help out.” 

Fortunately, Santiago seemed to be on your side and helped divert the rest of the conversation to repairs that needed to be done, as well as some veiled references to the Christmas Eve event. 

You were rather hopeful that things would actually go well. 

But hoping didn't make sleep any easier, and your mind refused to slow down enough to let you sleep. Which is how you found yourself with your phone in hand late at night, sitting in the dining room with the lights down low so you didn't bother anyone else. You just had so many thoughts for this event, and for the hotel in general. You liked Frankie, quite a bit. Enough to surprise yourself. And you wanted him to succeed. 

"You're up late."

The soft observation made you jump, your phone slipping from your fingers and clattering to the tabletop. You blinked at Frankie, catching his sheepish smile as he pulled out a chair next to yours. 

"Sorry," he murmured. 

"It's fine. Just startled me. I didn't think anyone else was up." You smiled at him. 

He shrugged. "Got a lot on my mind." 

Your smile turned a little teasing. "Couldn't lull yourself to sleep by counting sheep?" 

Frankie chuckled, leaning back in his seat. "Sheep don't cut it," he admitted. "Actually…" He trailed off, his ears going pink. 

"What?" You leaned in, undeniably curious. 

"My mom always said to count my blessings, instead of sheep." He looked embarrassed, looking down at the table. 

"Count your blessings instead of sheep," you repeated in a murmur, smiling. "I like that. I might try that." 

"Please do. Mamá would be happy to know she's helped someone." His smile was more relaxed this time. 

Silence settled comfortably between you two for a few long moments as you finally tucked your phone away in your pocket. 

"Why are you still up? Something troubling you?" Frankie looked at you with a concerned little frown. 

"Just a lot on my mind," you dismissed casually. "My mind won't slow down enough for sleep." 

"I know the feeling." He was quiet for a moment before he stood. "Sounds like a cocoa problem." 

You followed him into the kitchen, watching as he got out a pan, milk, vanilla, and chocolate. "Looks like you've done this a time or two before," you joked. 

He shot you a bashful smile over his shoulder. "Not as much now," he admitted. "But before… yeah. For myself and my friends." 

You nodded, leaning back against the opposite counter to watch him work. His shoulders shifted under his shirt, broad and drawing your gaze. He really was sweet. And good looking. And tempting. 

Not something you needed to be thinking about, not if you wanted to sleep ever. 

"Here." Sooner than you expected, he handed over a mug. "Hope it helps." 

"Thank you." You took a sip and made a pleased noise. This was good shit (and added another layer to the temptation). "Really, thanks. You didn't need to go to all this trouble for me." 

He shook his head, one big hand curling around his own mug. "I don't mind," he murmured. "I know what it's like, to still be awake even when you want to sleep." 

You smiled at him over the rim of your mug. "And that's when I should be counting my blessings, hm?"

He grinned back at you. "Well, if you're worried and you can't sleep," he agreed easily. 

You hummed your agreement, eyes closing in bliss at your next sip. Just. Damn. "I might beg for cocoa every night now." 

"Any time you want." His smile was small but genuine and so warm. 

"Thank you for this. And for the advice." You returned his smile, something in your chest easing. 

"Any time." His gaze dipped for a moment and he licked his lips before he abruptly turned away to put the pot in the sink and let it to soak. "I'm gonna try and get some shut eye now. I hope you'll do the same." 

"I will," you agreed. "Sleep well, Frankie." 

He nodded to you and stepped out of the kitchen, heading back to his room. You watched him go and then finished your cocoa. 

You did do the dishes before you went upstairs to bed, though. 

When you got pulled into an impromptu breakfast meeting the next morning, you were very pleased to hear that Frankie had had someone book a room for two nights, starting the 24th. Frankie seemed to be baffled but pleased by this, and his friends immediately jumped into doing some repairs and housekeeping. You followed them into one of the guest cabins, taking a look at these rooms while you had a chance. 

These rooms were also nice, but somehow you preferred your room in the main house. 

Santiago pulled you into a meeting with Will and Benny, leaving Frankie in the main house to do his own chores while you all gathered in the barn. 

“What else do we still need?” Santiago asked, looking at you. 

“Most of the actual stuff,” you drawled. “We need refreshments, snacks, things like that. Now we are in luck, there are heated carafes that still work, and a popcorn machine. But we have no other drinks or snacks, and no entertainment.” 

“We should set up karaoke,” Benny offered, grinning in a way that made you very slightly afraid. “Or have music from the speakers. You said there are speakers, right?”

“Yeah, typical set up,” you agreed, eyeing him. Oh you did not like that mischievous look, not one bit. 

"We can do our thing!" Benny turned his slightly manic and amused expression on his brother. 

"No," came the immediate rejection. "Not a chance." 

"What?" You glanced between the two of them, undeniably curious. 

"You'll find out," Benny promised, grinning. "Soon enough." 

"No," Will grumbled. "She won't, because we're not doing it." 

"Just wait." Benny grinned, rubbing his hands together. 

"Ignore them," Santiago told you. "Music is a good idea. What else can we do?"

"Seasonal activities? Have a cookie decorating station, candles, maybe a wreath decorating station…" You trailed off, thinking. 

"Sounds like you've got it in hand," Santiago agreed with a grin. "You just tell us what you need done." 

"Careful, I'll hold you to that." You pulled out your phone to jot down ideas as fast as you could. 

The day zoomed away from you as you gathered supplies and shamelessly ordered the guys around on errands. They took turns helping you and helping Frankie, who had not been kidding about having his friends help with maintenance. 

And you expected everything to continue in this way - industrious and busy but filled with good cheer and hope. 

Except the evening of the 23rd, Frankie cornered you before dinner, a thunderous frown on his face. 

"You run a travel blog?" He asked, hands in loose fists at his sides. 

You swallowed and then lifted your chin. "I do." 

"Is that why you're here?" He demanded, shoulders rising. "To use me, use this place, for your blog?"

"That's why I came," you answered evenly. "But that's not why I'm still here. That's not what I'm doing now." 

"And what are you doing now?" He put his hands on his hips, mistrust writ across his face. 

You swallowed. "I'm trying to help you. Because you need it and I can offer it and there's no reason why I shouldn't. Besides, I…" You paused for a moment, searching his expression, which had shifted slightly more neutral. Very slightly. But it was a start.

"You what?" Frankie demanded, eyes narrowing again. "You're planning to profit off of this regardless?"

You pulled back, stung at the accusation. "What? No! I do not profit from others misfortune." You shook your head and then drew in a deep breath, trying to find that calm you so needed. "I was going to say… I think you're pretty great." 

He blinked, brows lifting and his lips parting a little in surprise. "You… do?"

"I do." You shrugged, finally looking away as your courage failed you. "But it doesn't matter. It's fine. I have some things to do to get ready for tomorrow, excuse me." You slipped past him and walked quickly away, heart hammering in your chest. 

You had known this was a possibility. Santiago had warned you. 

And yet you hadn't thought Frankie would actually be that mad. And, true, there hadn't been any yelling. But that look… you were pretty sure if looks could kill you'd be six feet under right now. 

Sighing, you let yourself into your room. You needed to relax a bit before bed. That's what you needed. That, and a minor miracle to occur and bring a good turnout tomorrow night. 

The morning was jam-packed with last minute preparations. Santiago had sweet-talked a local baker into bringing a bunch of goodies to sell. Will had taken the cider and coffee under control, with Benny running around doing everything else that needed doing. Frankie had been kept busy in the main house waiting for his guests to arrive. (He was up to two check ins, something that thrilled you no small amount.) 

And you? You were double checking the audio and making sure the room stayed warm and festive. You were determined that this was going to work. 

Even if you ended up having to find another place to stay, if Frankie's temper didn't cool. 

"You ready?" Santiago asked, stopping next to you near the front of the barn. Everything looked ready, about as ready as you could make it. 

"I'm ready." You smiled a little at him, nerves too sharp to allow you a full smile. "Are you bringing in Frankie first?"

"Yeah, although Ben says there are already a few people out there waiting to be let in." 

You grinned at that. At least something was going according to plan. "Alright then, you go handle Frankie and I'll help with food." You hurried off before he could protest, taking refuge behind the pastry table. 

But you did have a good view of Frankie's face when Santiago let him in. He looked awed, nearly floored by the changes in the barn, and a slow smile stole across his lips. With the twinkling Christmas lights reflected in his eyes and the stress gone from his posture, he looked… beautiful. 

And then people started arriving behind him, and soon the barn was full of soft music, laughter, and chatting. A half dozen people had shown up so far, five of whom were staying at the inn, but you held out hope that more would come. 

And more did arrive. In groups of two or three, and one bunch of nearly a dozen. It looked like most of the town had arrived, plus some. You could only hope that some of these were your readers, that you'd helped even a little. 

It was a merry gathering, and you didn't even mind that you were more or less working through it. Just seeing Frankie laughing with Santiago and Will was enough for you. This was your good deed for the year. 

And then Benny hopped up onto the makeshift stage with a microphone (where in the world had he gotten that?) and a Cheshire cat grin. 

"Good evening everyone! Thanks for coming, we hope you enjoy, all that good stuff. There's food and drink, and for your entertainment, my brother and I will start us off with some music!" 

"No!" Will yelled, to much laughter and applause. 

"You gotta do it now," Santiago needled, grinning mercilessly. 

"Don't look at me," Frankie laughed when Will turned a reproachful look his way. "I didn't do shit." 

Will dropped his head with a sigh. Then he glared at Santiago. "You watch the drinks," he growled before he turned and stomped away. 

You blinked after him, undeniably curious. Benny had promised that you'd see whatever this was, after all, and you desperately wanted to know. It must be something interesting, for Will to protest so vehemently. 

"Just wait," Santiago said, and you jumped. "This will be good." 

You didn't have long to wait. Will and Benny walked out, each carrying a very large blue feathered fan. Benny had on a matching blue tutu over his pants and an absolutely devious grin. Music started, and you clapped a hand over your mouth as you recognized the song. 

"Sisters" was an unusual choice for the two brothers but their antics lip-syncing to the song left you (and the rest of the crowd) in stitches. Your favorite moment was when Will held the fan up in front of Benny's face, closely followed by Benny whapping Will in the stomach three times in a row with the fan. Even Will was laughing by the end of the song. 

And that seemed to open the floodgates, as soon people were requesting specific songs (mostly Christmas themes but not all) and singing along, although nobody did a performance quite like the brothers. 

Benny had shooed you out from behind the pastry cart, shoving some warm cider in your hands and telling you to go have fun. So you did. Or you started to, standing back from the established groups chatting and singing and laughing. 

"You know," Frankie said quietly from right next to you and very nearly giving you a heart attack, "I haven't thanked you yet." 

"What?" You turned to look at him properly, eyes wide. 

"For all of this. You didn't have to do any of this." He looked down at the floor, scuffing one shoe against the floor. "The guys told me what you did, all of it. I… I'm sorry, for how I acted last night." He glanced at you through his lashes. 

"It's fine," you murmured automatically. "All is forgiven." 

He finally lifted his gaze to yours and your breath caught in your throat. He was smiling, just a little, eyes warm as he looked at you. 

Oh.

"I found your blog," he muttered, shifting his weight but stubbornly holding your gaze. "It looks good. You're very eloquent."

It was your turn to warm and look at the floor. "Thanks," you murmured, clutching your cider. "I appreciate that." 

"Hey," Santiago stopped next to the two of you, grinning broadly. "You need to see this." 

You and Frankie exchanged curious looks before you followed Santiago to the back of the room, to the big barn doors. Santiago hauled one open a few inches, letting in a burst of cold air and an unmistakable flurry of snow. Frankie held out one hand, watching as a few flakes drifted onto his hand. 

"Open the doors," you told Santiago with an excited grin. "People will want to see this." 

Leaving them to open the doors, you ran back to the sound system, switching the song quickly to the most appropriate one you could think of. As Bing Crosby's crooning started, you waved to Benny and pointed excitedly to the back. 

It took only moments for word to go around, and then there was a surge as everyone ran to the back to look out at the snow slowly falling. A cheer went up and then there was more laughter and singing along. 

Somehow you ended up next to Frankie again, tucked close to his side by the press of bodies around you. 

"A little Christmas miracle," you murmured, grinning. 

"Another one." Frankie looked down at you, smiling a little. One of the kids ran past you to get outside, jostling you even closer to Frankie, who took the chance to wrap one arm around your waist. 

"Oh look!" Benny suddenly declared quite loudly from… above you? You and Frankie both looked up to find Benny clinging to the top of one door like a deranged lemur, grinning like a maniac and holding mistletoe above your heads. "Guess you gotta kiss now!" 

Frankie sighed, dropping his head to his chest. But you just laughed, raising one hand to cup his cheek. 

"It is traditional," you murmured, faux-serious, though you couldn't contain your grin. 

"Wouldn't want to deprive Will of killing Ben," Frankie agreed with a wry smile. But the warmth in his eyes held your doubts at bay as he leaned in and kissed you, soft and sweet. For those few moments in time, the rest of the world fell away. 

He pulled back, lights sparkling in his eyes, and you breathed out slowly. 

And then Ben whooped like the lunatic he clearly was, Will started scolding him, and Santiago said something about lovebirds. Frankie's shoulders shook with his laughter. 

"Welcome to the madhouse, you get used to them eventually," he told you, refusing to let go of you. 

"I bet I will." You smiled back at him, ignoring Benny as he half-fell off the door but landed on his feet. You ignored the people still around you and the cold air and everything else, instead choosing to lean in closer and sing quietly along with the last lines of the song. 

"May your days be merry and bright, and may all your Christmases be white." 

[nkatr84]

Scrooge: Old Vs New

There’s a few posts I wanted to make. The new Guardians Of the Galaxy Holiday Special. Disenchanted. Slumberland. Wednesday. That one Moon Knight fan fic sitting in my drafts. But I’ve got to talk about this.

Scrooge: A Christmas Carol on Netflix came out this year in 2022. While Critics haven’t been too kind to it (I’ll get to my theory why in a second) y’all on Tik Tok and Tumblr have been losing your minds. You’re falling in love with the music (particularly Later Never Comes). But mostly…many of you have this reaction.

The surprising hottie in question being this rendition of Ebenezer Scrooge.

And I get it. As is tradition in animated takes of Dickens immortal classic, the animators clearly took inspiration from their voice actor Mr. Luke Evans. And Mr. Evans is a very handsome man. So I’m right there with you guys simping over an old man with a sexy voice.

But! I would be remiss if I failed to educate my fellow fangirls, fanboys and all between that this movie…is technically a remake.

Directed in 1970 by Ronald Neame, Scrooge was nominated for Four Academy Awards and won a Golden Globe. Quite an achievement in a time when movie musicals were fading in popularity. And it’s composer Leslie Bricusse (who also helped bring Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory to life) was an executive producer and helped write the screenplay for this new version. And since he passed away last year, the animated film is dedicated to him.

Of the original eleven songs, five were carried over to the new movie. Happiness. I Like Life (with updated lyrics). Beautiful Day, Thank you Very Much and I Will Begin Again. Yet while the original movie received generally positive reviews from critics, the new movie only holds a 40% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. What’s the difference? I mean the animation is very nice. Sometimes downright gorgeous. Obviously the music works. I’ve heard people praising both the new songs as well as the older ones. And they actually add depth to the original story.

Well if I had to guess, the new version is very much catering to kids versus families. The Ghost of Christmas Present has cute little Minion like critters. They cut the line of Scrooge saying, “If They (the poor) would rather die then they better do it. And decrease the surplus population!” I guess because it’s too mean? Speaking of, they give Scrooge a dog named Prudence. I guess to show the kids that he’s not all bad. He has a cute doggy! He’s kinda indifferent to the dog but hey! Don’t look at the scary imagery of Scrooge watching his own ghost rise from his grave! Look at the puppy! Look at the puppy! I mean Mr. Magoo kept the mean lines in as did the Muppet’s. Plus they trusted kids with the scary stuff.

Yeah as cute as those reindeer antlers on her looked at the end, Prudence was definitely a studio note and serves no purpose. She could be cut and you wouldn’t miss anything. Plus I’m not a fan of the opening number. Too peppy and modern. I wished they had done an update of the song that opens the 1970 movie, “A Christmas Carol “

Plus I love this song from Cratchit. It’s so Christmas… I wish this one made the cut.

But I do like the new version. Later Never Comes goes way harder than “You” and Luke Evans really balances out Scrooge being an old curmudgeon and a man who knows and regrets his choices. Plus the whole thing is animated like a dream. I love Luke Evans singing “I will Begin Again.” It’s a song of hope, passion and joy. And when Albert Finney’s Scrooge sings it …well… he tried…I can’t post it here but trust me. Luke Evans is a major upgrade. They make up for it with the finale in the 1970’s version where they almost reprise every song in the movie. Plus my parents always like how they made Albert Finney up to really look like a miser than doesn’t cut his hair or even clean his nails or his house. And technically Albert Finney was a sex symbol back in the day. Where he played both the old and young versions of Scrooge. So having a sexy Scrooge is technically precedent…

So give the original movie a watch if you like this one. It can be it’s own kind of goofy at times, but it’s definitely worth a yearly viewing. As is the new version on Netflix.

[joshhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]

Can you ramble about gochi usa for a few paragraphs?

I think Gochiusa exists in kind of an interesting place within the meta of cute girls doing cute things anime, right. Cause a lot of cute girl anime have some sort of gimmick apparent within the very premise in order to stand out from the crowd, which can feel like a necessity given just how many cute girl anime there are. Sometimes it's a band, sometimes it's a sport, sometimes it's a hobby of some sort, hell sometimes it's that they're an isekai. You don't really get cute girl anime that just are cute girls doing cute things these days quite as often, it's always fairly specialised.

It shouldn't be said that Gochiusa doesn't have anything like this - your main hook in the synopsis is that it's primarily set within a coffee shop, and the two main characters' names are puns on hot drinks to lean into that. But that's kinda nothing, right? They're not fishing, they're not rifle shooting, they're not writing manga, they're not dedicated to one particularly complicated board game, they just kinda have part-time jobs. And the show is very much aware of that. So despite the coffee shop being part of the premise, the series as a whole rarely leans into it. It's mostly just cute girls doing whatever. Part of this is cause of its age - the manga started in 2011, even that long ago there was less competition and less need to set yourself apart from the premise alone. But it's still kinda noteworthy that it's a relatively modern cute girl anime without a core thing to set itself apart.

And that's where we get to the fun part. Without needing to be dedicated to one specific thing, Gochiusa kinda gets to do anything it wants without any real disconnect. They'll go to the pool, to the festival, to the halloween party, to the christmas party, to work, to just regular old school. There's no strings attached. It's just kind of normal. And since it doesn't need to justify anything it does, it can focus on just being really entertaining the entire time. The characters are adorable, the jokes are consistently funny, the slice of life is ultra-relaxing, the fuckin town it's set in looks like this

(stole these screenshots from here)

And while Gochiusa does all these normal things as pleasantly as other cute girl anime could only dream of, there's still a little bit of magic in the setting, of all things. Main character Chino's grandfather is currently in the body of a small fluffy rabbit. It's implied that other main character Cocoa accidentally did this when she was joking about casting spells as a child. It's not assumed that this is normal or anything, but for how supernatural that actually is it feels fairly incidental when you're watching the show because hey, who cares about the mechanics of this background magic when Cocoa and Chiya have got English homework to do?

It also needs to be said that a particular area Gochiusa excels in is that really every core character has a well defined relationship with one another, or in other words, there's no dynamic that goes unexplored. This is something that more cute girl shows struggle with than you'd think, but it goes a long way to sell you on group friendships and making the characters believable and shit. How differently does Syaro interact with childhood friend Chiya than she does with her crush Rize, or newly met friends Cocoa and Chino, you know? This even holds true for a good amount of the supporting cast too, whom happen to also be fun enough to carry scenes on their own without making me miss the main characters at all.

I'll say very briefly that the show does have a particularly rough aspect to it early on by way of some rather tasteless fanservice. It is thankfully only of the oldest character, but it's still far from necessary and pretty early on the series realises it doesn't need to operate like that in order to be enjoyable for the audience. So that gets phased out quick.

Past this point I start running into the issue of struggling to convey why I think something is especially good, because fuck me is it easier to talk about obviously bad stuff than obviously good stuff. And that's even harder with Gochiusa because nothing about it screams "yeah no I'm obviously good in an easy-to-describe way". It's a cute girls doing cute things anime without much of a gimmick, in written text format there are few ways I can come up with to actually sell that. And yet, the show's just really really good lol. On my most recent rewatch which was followed by season 3's airing, my face muscles started to get tired from smiling ear-to-ear every episode. Saying that out loud by the way makes me realise season 3 was almost 4 years ago - maybe I'm due for a rewatch lol.

Also as one last brief thing, Chino is just one of my favourite characters in any anime I've seen. Cute as hell design and I especially love her hair, that helps, but she also just has a nice simple character arc that happens across the series, without ever being overstated or anything since hey, Gochiusa is chill like that. Said arc is mainly one of a quiet introvert girl opening up and becoming more confident. She still enjoys her alone time and has solo hobbies the series respects, but she's also capable of taking initiative and making more of her own friends and such. It's nice. Also Gochiusa isn't immune to the passage of time so a lot of this stuff takes place over the course of Chino graduating from middle school and going into high school, which is something the anime hasn't fully gotten into yet but which a season 4 would cover, I imagine. Hopefully that can come soon - the series always does well enough to where I assume it'll happen one day.

Actual last thing just for fun

The dads look like this lol

[gentlemanmoth]

Little Bundle of Joy

[A Viktor X Reader SFW fic]

This one is dedicated to @mischievous-piltovan for the @therealtendercrisps Secret Santa event! I was super torn between doing an art piece and a fic, but ended up choosing this one because, hey, I love cats too. Merry Christmas, Mischie!! ❤️

And merry Christmas to everyone else who participated in the Secret Santa!!! This was really fun!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Knowing Viktor, it would take a lot to get him to come away from his work– even for a fraction of a second– he was that passionate and engrossed in his work. Little to nothing could tear him away from it. Not even you could half the time, but that suited you just fine. You were content to watch him work and to bombard him with fifty million questions about what he was doing and what parts went where and whether or not the Hexcore was safe to touch– oftentimes it drove him up the wall… in the best way, of course. But he wouldn't tell you that to your face.

Today would be different though. The weather had been absolutely lovely all week, and yet Viktor had still stayed cooped up in his lab. While everyone else was taking advantage of the warm sun and cool breeze that countered it, he was hunched over his desk trying to find the key to cracking Hextech. His work was admirable to be sure, but he still deserved a break.

That was why you stormed into the lab and promptly pulled his chair away from his desk, making him gasp in surprise.

"What do you think you're doing?" His tone hinted at mild irritation, but his expression as he looked over his shoulder at you was warm and welcoming. He loved your intrusions regardless of timing.

You smiled down innocently at him in response to his question. "We're going out today! No more Hextech. Forget Hextech for… I don't know, at least an hour! Two would be even better! Maybe three!"

He chuckled and shook his head. "I'm afraid I cannot accept your offer, lyubov. I'm so close, you see, and–"

"It wasn't an offer, Viktor," you interrupt, "it was an instruction. You're coming with me and you're going to like it."

Pulling away, you reached for the cane that rested against his desk and handed it to him. His eyes glinted with a mixture of affection and mirth. He would give in to your whims today… but that would mean that you couldn't do this again tomorrow…!

With a groan, he pulled himself out of his chair and stood, leaning heavily on his cane. As much as he hated to admit it, it would do him some good to stretch out his aching limbs… sitting alone in that dark, cluttered space for so long had done nothing for his condition.

"All right, all right. I'm coming. But to where, if I may be so bold as to ask?"

You started walking towards the door and threw it open again, letting the light and fresh air in. "Out. You're going out. Out of this room. Out of the academy. Just out." You turned back to him, holding your hand out as he approached more slowly. "C'mon! I promise you'll have a good time. I do not have any ideas."

"That's for the best," he replied, lips quirking up in a sly grin, "your ideas are little more than scatterbrained schemes at best in times like these."

You rolled your eyes at his remark. "You can't possibly tell me you don't love it."

"You're quite right. I can't." He took your hand and followed you out of the lab; blinking and shielding his eyes from the glare of the sunlight … perhaps in hindsight I should have at least left a window open, he thought to himself.

"I figured we could just go for a little walk. The weather's too nice for you to be cooped up in there all day." You murmured thoughtfully. In reality, there wasn't much else to do, but this still meant you could have quality time with him regardless.

"Lead on, beloved. I will follow." Giving your hand a squeeze as he spoke, Viktor leaned in and kissed your cheek. As reluctant as he was to leave the lab, he appreciated your efforts to take care of him and make sure he was looking after himself.

As such, he was perfectly content to follow your lead out of the academy and into the warmth of the sun. The twisting and winding streets of Piltover stretched out before you– infinite possibilities ahead. You opted to lead the two of you towards the brighter, sunnier paths. The shade wasn't what Viktor needed right now.ord knows he'd had enough of that for a lifetime.

The two of you were perfectly content in that moment. Walking along at a leisurely pace together and without a care in the world. At least for now. There was still work to be done, and Viktor would resume his old habits the moment the two of you returned to the lab. But you would enjoy this time with him now regardless, and you would continue to listen to his rambling about Hextech and the discoveries he had made that morning… at least until–

… What was that noise?

"Vitya… did you hear that?" You asked softly, interrupting his train of thought and his rambling. Regardless, he went silent and listened intently– not knowing exactly what it was he was trying to hear… until he heard the sound again.

It was soft, barely more than a tiny mewl amongst the hustle and bustle of a prominent city. If he hadn't been straining for a small sound such as this, he would have missed it. He glanced around, looking for the source. "Yes… yes, I hear it. But what…?" He trailed off as you let go of his hand, headding towards the source of the sound. You were certain that it was emanating from a bush just a few paces out of your way. As you approached, the tiny sound came again. You crouched to peer under the bush and… there!

"Darling… come look! Look what I've found!" You encouraged him to come over, motioning with your hand before you reached down and pulled out the sweetest little kitten you'd ever seen. Its fur was soft, downy baby fluff that you would have expected from such a tiny, fragile kitten. Black fur with a thin layer of dirt and filth from the street and a tiny but wide open mouth that squeaked at the indignation of being picked up. Viktor looked over your shoulder at the little kitten and his eyes lit up with excitement.

"Well hello there, little friend!" He murmured softly, reaching out to give the tiny kitten a scratch behind the ears. It purred loudly and blinked up at him slowly, leaning into his touch with a degree of affection that only a kitten could manage. "Aren't you a sweet thing… how cute."

You laughed softly, tilting your head as you looked into the kitten's eyes.

"Y'know, I swear I've seen eyes like these before somewhere…" you glanced up at Viktor, admiring the molten gold and warm amber of his eyes. So full of warmth and life and passion… he smiled back at you, sliding an arm around your waist and holding you close as he leaned on his cane. "Well, I can certainly see the resemblance, if that is indeed what you mean."

"Can we keep it? Pretty please, Vitya? It's such a sweet little kitty…" you pleaded, lips curled into a hopeful smile. Viktor frowned and glanced around.

"Eh, well, I think that very much depends on whether or not the kitten already has a home…" he trailed off again, humming in thought. "Yet I don't see why a kitten with a home would be here of all places…" finally he nodded. "Provided we are unable to find an already existing home, I don't see why we can't."

You immediately turned around in his arms, peppering his face with kisses. "Oooh thank you, thank you, thank you! You're amazing. You're perfect. You're –"

"All right, all right!" Viktor interrupted, face turning a soft pink as he laughed, "Save all of your affection for when we take the kitten home!" Despite his words, he leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to your temple, showing that he still very much appreciated your display of unashamed love and tenderness.

"Oh! Oh, right. Of course. Home!"

And home would be where that kitten went. There was no one else to take the poor little baby on. None claimed it, and none wanted it. Therefore, you and Viktor were able to adopt it as your pet.

And it was back at your shared home that the real fun began. You were pleasantly surprised when Viktor opted to return home with you rather than to the cramped and dark lab.

"I think we should name them Rio." You stated, tying a red ribbon around the kitten's neck as a makeshift collar. Rio started wandering around freely, exploring every inch of their new home while the two of you watched.

"Every time I think I couldn't love you more, you somehow manage to prove me wrong." Viktor's laugh is melodic and full of joy as he pulls you into his arms for a tender embrace. You rest your head against his shoulder, rubbing slow, lazy circles over his back and humming contentedly. "I love you too, you weirdo."

He laughs. "'Weirdo?' I call you all manner of sweet things and I get 'weirdo?' Where is the justification?"

"There doesn't need to be any!" You retorted, scrunching your nose up at him. He rolled his eyes and kissed the tip of your nose.

"Well, this weirdo let you keep Rio."

"Ooooh so you do like the name Rio."

"It was never in question!"

[koolkat9]

All is Calm, All is Bright

Rating: T

Pairing: GerEng

Word Count: 627

Author's Note: Happy holidays everyone. I originally had another plan for my holiday fic this year, but that has been taking longer than expected so I may have to save it for next year. So instead I have two one-shots planned, this being the first. I'm aiming for the second to be posted Christmas Eve. Anyway, enjoy!

Read on AO3

Big brothers were annoying. Both Arthur and Ludwig knew this all too well.

“If he tries anything funny, just let me know, and I’ll take care of it,” Dylan said with a smile, though Arthur and Ludwig both knew what lay beneath that sweet demeanor.

“Yes, yes. Now fuck off.”

“Merry Christmas to you too, my precious baby brother.” With a pinch to Arthur’s cheeks, Dylan was finally off, Arthur closing the door behind him.

“Thank god,” Arthur sighed. He slid down the door until he was sitting. “Sorry about that, darling.”

Ludwig smiled and crouched down. “Don’t worry about it. We’re even. Gilbert is not that much different.”

“But finally, we’re alone,” Arthur smirked. He pulled Ludwig against him, eagerly kissing him until the German was breathless. Hands gripped the back of Ludwig’s shirt as he melted against Arthur.

“I…I thought we were waiting until tonight,” Ludwig panted.

“Think of this as a preview.”

Ludwig rolled his eyes, trying to keep his smile down. He got back up on his feet and pulled Arthur up with him.

Three days dedicated to just them. Ludwig couldn’t picture spending Christmas any other way. Sure, family was important this time of year, which is why all their get-togethers with family and friends were planned just before the holiday (save for their celebration with Peter and his family, which was scheduled on Boxing Day). But the few days leading up to Christmas alongside Christmas day itself were set aside for just them. A time to recharge and reminisce about how far they had come from their very first Christmas together.

“So what’s on our schedule tonight? Baking or movies?”

“Movies and hot chocolate tonight, then an afternoon of baking tomorrow, then our little football game after dinner, and for Christmas day present exchange, and then…whatever we want.”

Arthur cackled. “I must be rubbing off on you. No plans on Christmas after Christmas morning? Really.”

“Hey! I can be laid back…every now and then,” Ludwig practically whined.

Arthur smirked and rolled his eyes, not believing him for a second. He pulled Ludwig onto the couch and flicked on the T.V. “How about something a little stronger than hot chocolate?”

“And make me deal with your hangover?” Ludwig scoffed though Arthur could easily tell he was putting on an act.

“I can just stay in bed all morning. We don’t have anything planned until the afternoon anyway.”

Ludwig let it go, and Arthur rose to get them each a beer as well as two glasses, a bottle of rum, and orange juice.

“What a collection for a Christmas movie marathon,” Ludwig teased, cracking open a beer.

“It’s more fun this way,” Arthur assured him, already pouring himself some rum.

Ludwig grimaced. “I can’t believe you still drink that straight.”

“It’s for the nostalgia. Takes me back to the sea, the salty air–”

“‘The gentle rock of the waves, when we had nothing but the stars to guide us,'” Ludwig recited.

“Quite right,” Arthur growled playfully.

By their second movie and three glasses of rum, Arthur was plastered. Ludwig was following behind, slightly sedated and tipsy. Arthur had melded into Ludwig’s side, drooling slightly as he fought to stay awake through Arthur Christmas.

Ludwig smiled softly. Grabbing the blanket off the back of the couch, he covered himself and Arthur, who was now fast asleep on his shoulder. So much for the night plans. Turning on some holiday rom-com as their previous movie came to an end, Ludwig settled down, pulling Arthur closer.

He wasn’t tired or inebriated enough to join his lover in sleep. For now, he’d enjoy the silence, the cheesy, predictable romance, and the adorable face of a sleeping Arthur, clinging to him as if Ludwig was a teddy bear.

[lily-blue]

Blurred lines

☆ characters: radio dj!woong & script writer!you ☆ genre: secret admirer au, college au, fluff, angst ☆ summary: it’s a story about a popular boy who has a secret admirer - except that you’re not the one who mustered up the courage to put her feelings in words ☆ words: 13,5k ☆ also: i’d like to dedicate this story to @dat-town ♥ merry christmas, love! 🎄 ☆ taglist: @soobin-chois

Fridays were the most tiring days of the spring semester, but Woong wouldn’t have had them any other way even if he could have changed his morning seminar to an afternoon one or had a long enough break between his classes around lunchtime to eat at any other restaurant than the ramen place he was unhealthily frequent at. What if he had changed one unpleasant thing in his day and all the good ones had gotten altered too? 

Listening to his professor’s lifeless voice at 9AM while he was talking about music theory might have been draining, but Woong usually sat right in front of you and there were only a few more entertaining phenomena on campus than your bickering with Woojin. He genuinely doubted the two of you were aware of how loud you could be, but he didn’t intend to enlighten either of you. His mornings would have been definitely duller without you two and your ridiculously creative ways to put your friend back in his place without cursing.

The highlight of his ridiculously short lunch break was Donghyun who had dance practice those mornings, which meant he always ate his entire body weight in chicken ramen while Woong slurped on his large bowl of beef ramen, giggly. Their conversations were diverse, but somehow, Woojin and you always came up in them in the most random ways. Like last Friday when you had been late from your morning class and rushed into the auditorium in pink pajama pants. It had been a story too fun to not share until Donghyun had told him it had been his fault that you had overslept. He hadn’t known you were the type of person who offered emotional support video calls to her friends when they needed someone to keep them on track while working on an assignment, but somehow it hadn’t surprised him that much. He was convinced you didn’t have a single mean bone in your body.

Stretching his sore body while waiting for your late night brainstorming session to continue (then finally end), Woong read through the script draft you had given him and Daehwi before you had left for the bathroom. It wasn’t finalized yet, only containing the outline of Tuesday’s radio show and a few ideas for the monthly special segment, but it was well written and neat as always. One look at it was enough for him to know you had worked hard to save as much time for the three of you as possible. He was hopeful you would all be able to leave the studio around 11PM.

Woong’s eyes widened in surprise and a silent oh sound fell from his lips when he noticed a pastel yellow envelope among the disorganized sheets of paper. His gaze strayed towards his co-host’s pile, but he saw no suspicious letter in front of Daehwi.

‘Hey, did anyone come into the studio while I was at the toilet?’ He asked although he knew it was ridiculous. It was already past the last lecture because the boy next to him was unlucky enough to attend Mr. Choi’s Microeconomic Theory I. instead of Mr. Nam’s, so it was very unlikely that random students wandered around the building. Not to mention that you would have been royally screwed if anything had happened to the studio’s equipment, so one of you always stayed in the room even if you all needed a restroom break.

There was no way someone had sneaked inside to slip this letter in his script.

‘No. I was on the phone with Hyewon, but I’d have seen if someone had walked in that door,’ the younger boy said before his gaze shifted from Woong’s pouty face to the envelope in his hands. ‘Why?’

The older boy looked down at the letter, too, and shrugged. He wasn’t sure whether he should have read it in private or he was allowed to open it in front of his friend, but he was intrigued; he was more curious than worried or scared.

So he sucked in his lower lip and picked the seal flap’s edge open, bewitched by the flowery scent of the paper the envelope hid.

Despite his rather naive personality - his friends never failed to jump on the opportunity when they could call him out on his childlike innocence -, Woong knew it was a love letter even before he took the paper in his hands and his gaze fell on the printed letters.

His secret admirer addressed him with a cute nickname and made a list of those things they liked about him - things he would have never thought anyone could have found attractive -, then finished the message with a promise of future letters. There was nothing that could have indicated who had liked him so much, which was disappointing. His only clue was the fact that they listened to the uni radio because that was only available on campus.

‘Do I wanna know?’ Daehwi asked, making Woong realize that he might have been sulking a bit too visibly. Should he have shown the letter to him in case he recognized the writing style or something? The thought made him blush furiously. The letter’s content was too personal; he didn’t want to give him a reason to tease him, either.

‘Nah, it’s noth–’

‘I’m sorry it took so long,’ you tore the door open with an apologetic smile, drawing both of their attention to you effortlessly. Your clothes were disheveled and your hair fell into your face in a couple of messy locks. Still, you looked pretty with your loose ponytail and rosy cheeks (at least, to Woong). ‘I had to run up to the fourth floor for these, but I brought one for each of you,’ you explained with theatrical hand gestures, careful not to shake the energy drinks up too much.

‘Thanks, you’re a lifesaver,’ Daehwi exclaimed, reaching for the grape flavored drink while you slid the mango one towards the other boy.

‘Sorry, I couldn’t find your favorite. But I saw you yawning while we were reading through the listeners’ messages, so drink it up. There’s no way we can finish this up in time with just Daehwi,’ you shot a playful albeit apologetic smile in Woong’s way, making the boy wonder whether your kindness towards him was strictly platonic or you had something to do with the letter he had found in his script.

Could you have been in love with him?

Honestly, he had never thought of you as more than a friend’s close friend who also happened to be his coworker at the uni radio. You were nice and funny - and undoubtedly pretty -, but despite your friendship with Donghyun, you had never initiated any conversations with him outside of the studio when it wasn’t related to the show. Obviously, you didn’t turn him down when he walked up to you to talk about something else, but those conversations were so brief, Woong often wondered whether he could have ever gotten to know the real you; the you you were outside of the studio.

Seeing your furrowed eyebrows and the worry in your eyes, Woong’s gaze fell on the mango energy drink as well. Since when had he been fidgeting with the can so absentmindedly? He cleared his throat and opened the drink before you could have thought he hated your choice. It really didn’t matter that much whether it was his favorite or not.

‘Mango is good. Thanks,’ he reassured you and you acknowledged his answer with a relieved sigh and a smile that for the first time since he knew you, did something to the boy’s heart; it made it beat quicker while his chest and ears got super warm.

Woong realized he was in trouble when he had a hard time paying attention to what you were saying because he was too focused on how pleasant your voice sounded to his ears; then he knew it for sure when he started to come up with hopeful yet illogical reasons why it couldn’t have been anyone else but you who had left that envelope in his script.

You knew both Daehwi and Woong were popular on Seoul National grounds. They were not only amazing singers, but their show focused on their listeners instead of campus gossip, so they earned brownie points left and right with their caring side, detailed advice on personal matters, and dorky sense of humor. Girls wanted to date them; guys wished to be their friends, so they could have stood under the same spotlight. While you…

You also daydreamed about meaning a bit more to Woong than a hard-working script writer he could rely on, but accepted the role you had in their life. Being close, but not close enough meant you weren’t a real treat to their fans. You might have doubted anyone would have slid into your dms or gotten your number somehow just to threaten you and ask you to leave the boys alone, but one could have never known with people.

‘You’re doing it again,’ Woojin pointed out while he turned on his laptop and opened a new, empty document for the lecture that made no sense to you. You preferred sticking to the same one throughout the semester, but he was his own person, so you never really teased him for it openly. You teased him for a bunch of other things anyway.

‘Doing what?’ You raised a brow in question, slowly turning your head back ahead. You had two lectures in total that you shared with Jeon Woong and this one (un)fortunately wasn’t the one where he sat right in front of you. As you were watching him chatting with his friends, you let out a dreamy sigh.

‘Drooling,’ he said with an unamused click of his tongue that earned him a scoff and a light punch in the shoulder. While you were a firm believer that violence should have never been the answer to anything, especially to insults where one’s emotions were already heightened or out of control, your best friend had a way with words that made it easy to throw your morals out the window. (Though, if anyone had asked Woojin, he would have said your punches were as good as being hit with cotton candy. Your noodle arms could hurt no one.)

You wished you could have been as brave as those girls who gathered around the boy’s desk in the second row. You would have loved to talk to him in breaks, too, but your nerves got the best of you whenever you were around him and there wasn’t a safe, fixed topic to discuss like during your meetings where you talked about your ideas for their next show or the success of the previous one.

‘Why don’t you ask him to be your partner for the group project?’ Woojin suggested plainly, reminding you of your professor’s last email and the upcoming presentations you wished you could have replaced with a written exam.

‘Duh, because we do every group project together,’ you retorted, feigning annoyance since he should have known better than anyone that you would have never considered pairing up with anybody else until he was in the same class. You two were a well-functioning duo from the get-go; working with Woojin was not only comfortable for you, but efficient, too. He brought the best out of your procrastinating ass, while you made sure he didn’t forget to eat or drink once he immersed himself in studying.

‘Not this one, snowflake. Donghyun already asked me,’ Woojin told you, the look of betrayal on your face painting a guilty frown on his own. The mere fact that he called you by your nickname was telling. You knew he felt bad about the situation, but you were also aware that he wouldn’t have chosen your other friend over you if he hadn’t thought it was for the better. Which also meant that you wouldn’t be able to convince him to take you back with your sad eyes and pouty lips. ‘Look, I’m an introvert. You’re also an introvert. Interviewing random students together would be a disaster,’ he reasoned, making an excellent point.

There was no way you could have interviewed twenty students in a single week and written a detailed analysis on it with your social battery dying. You needed someone who could easily walk up to strangers, helping you out with the first phase of your project. And that someone clearly wasn’t your best friend.

You let out a disappointed sigh and created a new headline for your upcoming lecture, jotting down the topic you knew you would discuss and the current date.

‘So you took away my only other friend in this class,’ you complained, pondering whether you should have actively searched for a partner or you should have waited until someone came up to you. Arg! You should have made more friends during orientation week last year. It would have made everything a lot easier if only you had remembered a few names at least. Was the petite, blonde girl beside you Miyeon or Miyoung? Should you have asked the guy in the first row who only ever spoke up during classes when Mr. Jung involved him in the obligatory discussions?

‘Ask Woong!’ Woojin suggested, his voice so nonchalant it made you wonder whether he had ever paid attention to you when Woong was around. Your small voice, shy smiles, and warm cheeks should have been telltale signs that you were a lost case when it came to the boy. With your tendency to leave your assignments last minute, you would have avoided him until you had barely a day left to finish everything.

You saw your professor walk into the lecture hall moments before the cute exchange student from Europe tapped on Woong’s shoulder, your heart sinking into your stomach when her pretty smile turned upside down right in front of your eyes. There was no way you could have asked him to be your partner. He either had one already or he had someone in mind because otherwise he would have never turned her down so quickly. You had once seen him giving a campus tour to a freshman despite how frequently he himself got lost between the buildings just because he couldn’t have said no to someone in need. He had to have a good reason why he had rejected her before she could have talked him into teaming up with her. A reason you had nothing to go against.

For the next one and a half hour, you locked this problem in the back of your mind and didn’t stress over it until your professor dismissed the class and the girl on your left started to shove her things into her backpack. You had seconds to address her or your chance to team up with her was out the window and you couldn’t have afforded that. 

‘Hey,’ you blurted out the exact same moment she said:

‘I heard you still need a partner. Would you like to work with me?’

If you had been one of those cool anime characters you liked so much, an entire mountain of weight would have been lifted off your chest as you processed her question. Smile beaming, it was almost embarrassing how quickly you jumped on the opportunity.

‘I’d love that!’ You said, enjoying how effortlessly she took charge of the situation when she introduced herself as Miyoung and shoved her phone into your hands, so that you could have added yourself on her kakao.

It soon turned out that while you had an empty period before your Music, Social Life, and Scenes class, she had piano practice on another floor, hence you bid your goodbyes quickly and promised to contact each other about the details in a couple of hours, which was… already a lot better than you had expected. Maybe, Miyoung would be able to motivate you to do your job, too, and it wasn’t only a Woojin thing. You were definitely hopeful.

Since your best friend wanted to write a brief draft of those questions Donghyun could have asked from the students they would interview, you told him you would kill some time in your go-to coffee shop before you joined them in the library, then promised to buy him a latte and a ham and cheese croissant in case the other boy didn’t need anything. As a broke uni student who majored in music with a pedagogy minor, there had to be a limit to your generosity, too. You couldn’t have spent all of your allowance on textbooks and your friends. 

You were already in the corridor when someone called your name, the husky tone embracing you with familiarity despite the breathlessness in the syllables.

You slowed down your steps, then stopped entirely.

‘You’re fast,’ Woong stated with a warm smile, trying to catch his breath with his hands on his knees. You furrowed your brows, unsure whether you had forgotten an important promise or a meeting and that was why he tried to hunt you down. ‘I was thinking… would you like to work on the group project together? I heard Donghyun paired up with Woojin, so we’re both partner-less…’

If Woong said anything else, you didn’t hear it. Your surprise completely overwhelmed your senses and by the time you were pulled back to reality, he was already looking at you with his pretty, hazelnut eyes.

There was an itchy knot in your throat that made it hard to speak, but you swallowed it with an awkward smile and wrapped your slim fingers around the strap of your bag to ground your messy thoughts. You didn’t want them to wander in case you had this one chance to tell him how you would have gladly been his partner if only you hadn’t been such a coward and asked someone else to play it safe.

In your defense, you had no idea Woong wanted to work with you of all people. He had never shown any interest in you academically and the two of you barely interacted outside of the studio. Even when you did, your friends were always there to fill the silence.

‘It’s really nice of you, but I already found a partner. I’m sorry. If I knew…’ you rambled, the need to come up with as many excuses as possible within the shortest period of time turning your sentences into a slurred monologue.

‘Nah, it’s okay,’ he cut you off with a reassuring smile, but while his voice sounded stable and unbothered, his body language seemed off and his eyes looked disappointed. He put too much effort into brushing aside your apologies; his exaggerated waves and playful eye rolls felt insincere, which made you worried.

You would have never thought you had the courage to hang out with Woong just for the sake of it without your friends as they were your safety net, let alone propose a friendly date with him, but as you kept your eyes on his face, something inside of you begged you to open your mouth and force those words through your teeth. 

‘I’m on my way to ABNEW. Would you like to join?’ You asked, mentally preparing yourself for a rejection while your heart was simultaneously yearning for a positive reaction.

You told yourself that you wouldn’t be disappointed even if he turned you down, because you had asked him about the campus coffee shop to make up for already pairing up with someone else. If he didn’t want to or couldn’t join you, that might have meant he was fine without your company as well, which should have been a relief.

However, when he agreed to spend his free period with you, you couldn’t stop grinning like a madwoman. It was embarrassing, how happy this sudden turn of events made you feel when an hour ago you had been adamant that you couldn’t have uttered a coherent sentence in his company, not with his attention focused solely on you.

Arriving at the shop, it turned out that you had been wrong. Sure, it took a couple of minutes, but eventually, you were able to calm your nerves with your cinnamon latte in your hands. You even brought up topics the two of you had never talked about before: your obsession with oat milk, the chinese drama you were currently watching, and your dream to work for Arirang. It was nice: letting him get familiar with more sides of you and getting to know him better in return.

The more time Woong spent with you in your natural habitat, that didn’t include your shared classes or the studio, the more sure he became that you were his secret admirer. It was because of those subtle signs - signs that you might have liked him more than a friend - that he hadn’t noticed before, but couldn’t overlook anymore. Like how he always had a piece of your attention even when you were talking or listening to someone else; how you knew his favorite snacks, drinks, and comfort food by heart and surprised him with them when he was lacking energy or motivation; how your cheeks dressed into the prettiest shade of pink when he prioritized you and your needs.

However, just because Woong knew he wanted to give you a chance and see whether the two of you could have worked as a couple, too, it didn’t mean he had the slightest idea how to approach you about the letter. He didn’t want to push you too much in case you weren’t ready to confess; you had put a lot of effort into making sure it remained anonymous after all. But it slowly started to frustrate him that he couldn’t claim the seat beside you during lunch break when your other friends were around or that he couldn’t hold your hand just because he felt like making you blush without said friends giving him weird glances.

‘Jangjun, Daehwi, and Seungyoun said I should keep the blonde, but Woojin, Donghyun, and my mom voted for my natural hair color. Clearly, I’m in desperate need of your opinion,’ the boy said between two bites of pepperoni pizza while he also tried to make you smile with his dramatics.

‘I don’t know. Should I be offended that you’ve already asked everybody else?’ You asked in a playful manner, a lot more comfortable around him than you had been a couple of weeks ago. It was fascinating to see the small changes in your behavior the less eagerly you hid your personality behind your thick walls. You were still one of the nicest people Woong had ever met, but you were also witty and your tongue was sharp when you felt cornered.

Woong swallowed the food in his mouth and tilted his head to the right, observing your soft features to make sure there wasn’t a single pinch of real hurt in your eyes. The jalapeno slices on your pizza might have been a bit too spicy for you, but otherwise, you seemed fine.

‘Why should you? Your vote will decide my next hair color,’ he retorted with a mischievous smile that got wider upon seeing your sauce-coated, pouty lips. He giggled at the funny sight, but gave you a napkin before anyone else could have noticed what a messy eater you were.

‘Fine.’ You took the napkin from him and wiped your lips and chin to make sure all the dirt was gone before you reached for your coke and refreshed yourself with the bubbly beverage. ‘I think you should go for your natural hair color. Don’t get me wrong, your blonde hair looks so fluffy I’m sure it’s a lot silkier than mine. Like seriously, you need to share your haircare routine with me before I do something crazy and chop off my dry hair with a kitchen knife…’ you rambled, getting lost in the details like you often did these days: a cute habit of yours that might have been as old as time, but was still new to Woong. He had yet to figure out whether you did it when you were super nervous or when you were enthusiastic about something. Considering the topic, he hoped it was the latter. ‘What I really want to say is… you look like a fairy like this and it’s so pretty, but there’s something in the way your natural hair color highlights your warmth as a person. It makes you look more approachable: less otherworldly, but still handsome.’

Objectively speaking, Woong was well aware that he was attractive; people around him made it pretty obvious with the way they treated him. However, hearing it from you felt different. Your words had more weight and fell from your lips more genuinely. They filled his heart, but left holes in his chest that made him yearn for more. He wanted you to compliment other aspects of his being, too, not just his looks.

Although he was curious whether you had anything else to say, the boy couldn’t get over the fact that you called him a fairy just like his secret admirer had done in that letter. Your unique choice of word fed his certainty; he might have had strong assumptions before, but now he was outright convinced that you looked at him as a potential lover, too. 

And this was all he needed to put down the pizza slice he was munching on and demand your full attention with the prettiest, most hopeful smile he could have mustered.

‘Would you like to go on a date with me?’ He asked with his heart pulsing in his entire body. Woong liked to think he was an expert in social interactions - he had managed to befriend his Math teacher as a freshman high school student and had a pretty smooth three years with him while his classmates couldn’t have stopped complaining about his hardcore exams and unfair grading -, but he had never asked out anyone, nor had he had a crush on a friend, therefore he was a tad bit nervous.

‘What?’

Scratch that… one glance at your furrowed eyebrows, parted lips, and bewildered eyes was enough to make him super nervous. Had he misinterpreted the signs? That wasn’t an option. You were quite literally a blushing, stuttering mess at arm’s length. You were clearly affected by his question and the concept of a date with him. He couldn’t have given up so soon when there was a chance you were just shy.

‘A date. Just us. We could watch a movie or check out that fancy dessert place where you can decorate your own cakes,’ the blonde boy suggested, promising himself that he would accept your decision with an encouraging smile whether you rejected him or not. He also promised himself that he would do everything in his power to make sure this wouldn’t have a negative impact on your friendship. You were too important to lose.

‘I…’ you spoke up a bit unsure, slim fingers drumming on the edge of your half-empty glass of coke. You avoided Woong’s eyes, but he knew you didn’t do it to hurt him or imply your decision. Instead, you needed time to find your voice and he was more than okay with giving you as much as could soothe your nerves. ‘Both sound pretty nice. I’d love to go on a date like that… with you,’ you mumbled, quiet but sure in the way you slowly lifted your head and looked him in the eye.

You had no idea how happy you made Woong at that moment.

‘Cool,’ he claimed with a nod before he reached for his half-eaten pizza slice and took a huge bite from it, humming around the thin pasta, cheese, and pepperoni like a giddy child.

That afternoon, you chose a day for your first date and eased the pressure of expectations it put on you with childish banters, like when you told him you refused to match your outfit with his, yet he was hellbent on how couples who did that were cute.

You called Woong a menace so softly, it almost felt like a nickname, and whined because the idea of people staring at your couple outfit made you feel uncomfortable, which the boy understood and was willing to respect. Because regardless of Woong’s overzealous reasoning, you could have shown up at the dessert place next Saturday wearing a sack, he would have been fine with that, too. He just wanted to spend more time with you and earn the permission to hold your hand.

In theory, you knew what first dates were like. Naturally, most people put more effort into their appearance when they met someone they liked romantically; they also spent their money more easily that day, so that they wouldn’t have been labeled as a miser. First dates were crucial: they could make or break the future of a relationship, which made them almost as scary as exciting, if not a whole lot scarier.

It wasn’t the first time your heart sank into your stomach at the thought of possible worst case scenarios, especially not when it came to Woong. Ever since you had started to spend quality time together without your friend group, you were often terrified that one poorly chosen word could make him realize that you weren’t worth it: his energy, those secrets he shared with you during your 11PM conversations, and the attention he gave you when so many other people yearned for a piece of it along with his heart.

You obviously didn’t think you were worthless or unlovable. Woojin would have killed you and dragged you back to life to kill you again if he had ever heard you speak so poorly of yourself. Still, even your best friend should have admitted that going on a date with someone popular was a concept ordinary people like yourself needed time to process. Not necessarily because of the most confidence-shattering questions like why he would have wanted to go on a date with you out of all people or what was so special about you, but because your mind had to catch up with your silly heart to believe it was reality.

You had had a crush on Woong for so long, of course, it felt like a dream.

A dream too good to be true until he picked you up on Saturday and walked with you to the nearest bus stop because neither of you had your own car. Despite the small talk you initiated while you were waiting for the crowded vehicle and the awkward silence that embraced you during the ride, you couldn’t have pinpointed a single thing that made this date different from your previous dates with Woong. And you meant this in the most positive sense of the word: familiarity.

Obviously, you were still nervous that one day he would wake up and realize you were too plain for him, but the small skips in your heartbeat whenever he smiled at you fondly greeted you like an old friend would have and that was enough to ease your worries. It was just him, the boy you had liked more than a friend even when he had been a friend. Things might have changed, he might have finally shown some interest in you as a girl, but essentially, you and your fond feelings were the same. You had nothing new to be scared of, just what you had already been accustomed to.

‘Should we decorate a whole cake or just two slices?’ You asked with a small pout when even after staring at the wide range of options for five whole minutes, you couldn’t decide what to pick from the menu. Thank goodness you had already agreed on making your own cake, because if you had had to choose even the type of dessert you went with on top of every flavor and size you could have ordered, you would have spent your whole date in this shop. And you had a movie to catch in three hours.

‘What about two whole cakes?’ Woong pondered, pointing at the smallest options that were about the size of your two palms next to each other. It was tempting, very much so, but you didn’t intend to upset your or the boy’s stomach with so much sugar.

‘You didn’t skip your lunch on purpose, did you?’ You turned towards the boy with your full body, concerned that you should have chosen a diner over the dessert place when you planned to eat popcorn and gummy worms for dinner.

‘Maybe I did…’ the boy admitted with a sheepish smile and while you were super excited about this place, at that moment, you would have been more than fine with leaving if that had meant he wouldn’t have starved later. ‘Or maybe I was just too nervous to eat,’ he added, his confession melting your heart because even though you had eaten a sandwich an hour ago, you felt the same way. It was nice to know you weren’t alone.

Since you would have also hated to be the reason for the sudden change in your plans, you didn’t wish to put Woong in that position. Instead, you quickly thought through your options and smiled at him when the most reasonable solution hit you.

‘Let’s decorate two slices and grab some street food before the movie,’ you proposed with a small bounce in your movements, rocking back and forth on your feet with your hands linked behind your back. Your chest felt warm and your skin was burning around your neck when Woong reached towards you and ruffled your hair.

‘So thoughtful! I love it, let’s do that!’

And you did that. You picked two slices in different flavors and walked up to the counter on the other side of the shop where you could coat your desserts with chocolate, fondant or icing, decorate them with fruit slices, marshmallows, crackers and more chocolate, then pick a marzipan figure to complete the aesthetics.

If you wanted to be honest, you had more fun designing your cake than how proud you were of the outcome, but Woong did a much worse job and he was still proud of himself, so you figured it was okay. They both tasted like a piece of heaven, anyway, and in the end, that was what truly mattered (and the memories you two made).

At first, you were a bit wary that there were certain topics you should have avoided on your date such as your struggles with oral exams and your rising anxiety whenever you thought of the presentation you had to give on pop music next week, but when Woong brought up their radio show with Daehwi, it felt like a permission to talk about anything.

Moving from one place to another, munching on cakes, fishcake and tteokbokki, you shared more with each other than your food. You confided Woong in your insecurities, your regrets, and your family background you rarely talked about. You also got to know that in spite of his easy-going personality, the boy had a hard time keeping more than three or four friendships alive simultaneously because he tended to give too much of himself to those around him and easily forgot about people who weren’t right in front of him.

Some things Woong told you were easy to comprehend; others were too complex and foreign to you to grasp. Still, you made sure he knew you were listening with the intent of getting familiar with the way he thought and felt, because he did the same for you.

If you could have chosen what to do on your first date with the boy all over again, you might have told him you wanted to speak and listen more instead of spending two hours in a dark, noisy room, staring at a screen, but overall, you had a pretty good time.

And the best part was that it didn’t end with the movie or your long ride back to the campus. Woong insisted on walking you all the way to your dormitory, so that he knew for sure that you got home safe.

‘I didn’t know dating can be so much fun. Thank you for today.’ You offered him one of your bashful smiles as your steps slowed down, then came to a temporary halt in front of the main gate of the girls’ building.

‘Does this mean there’s a chance you’re up for a second date, too?’ He asked just as smiley as you were while you turned towards him with your entire body and willed yourself to look up at him, right into his hazelnut orbs, instead of avoiding eye contact. You had no reason to shy away from him now when he clearly wanted to go on another date with you. 

‘Yeah… If you promise you won’t skip lunch next time,’ you teased, choosing to embrace the situation instead of running away from it. You had already survived a whole afternoon in his company. You had eaten delicious food together, brushed hands in the dark, and laughed so hard, your guts hurt from happiness. What else was there to be afraid of?

‘In that case, we should grab lunch together on our next date. We could go to the amusement park right after. How does it sound?’ The question fell from Woong’s lips playfully, making it easy to anticipate your next date and yearn for a dozen more.

Munching on your cheek from the inside, you bit back a flustered chuckle. You thought of all those drama leads you admired and envied, then took a deep breath and said:

‘Like you’re planning to sweep me off my feet.’

You would have never called yourself a spontaneous person. You were terrible at going with the flow because uncertainty often made you anxious, but right then and there you took a leap of faith and stood on your tiptoes. Your eyes were closed when your lips landed on Woong’s cheek, but luckily, you didn’t miss your aim. An accidental nose kiss would have definitely mortified your soul and locked away your adventurous side.

‘But you’ve already done that,’ you whispered against the boy’s soft skin before you pulled away, satisfied to see how stunned he got because of a simple, chaste peck. It meant that your paces weren’t that different, which was a relief.

You waved him goodbye before he regained his composure; your grin twice as wide as it had been seconds before when you chose the stairs to the third floor instead of the elevator. You needed a good excuse for how fast your heart was beating and a bit of exercise might have been able to do the job.

An ice cream date and a retro roller skating slash milkshake date later, Woong was ready to ask you to be his girlfriend. He genuinely liked your company: your closeness and your rosy cheeks whenever he initiated a new form of skinship in public; your sweet and encouraging texts that turned into nagging from one moment to another when he was about to fail behind on his assignments; your long walks back to your dorm after their radio show. He liked you at 1AM, when your face was bare and your moles more prominent and at 1PM, too, when you talked with your mouth full during lunch breaks because Woojin couldn’t stop teasing you. You were who he wanted to be with. It was clear considering how much he anticipated seeing you each and every day. He just wanted to make it special even if Jangjun called him a simp for acting like he was about to propose.

Since Seungyoun’s ideas had been too extra and rather than helping him, Donghyun had clowned Woong for calling for an emergency bro meeting two weeks after his first date with you, Woong had asked his mom about romantic gestures and chosen one from the classics. He had bought you a pair of silver earrings because you rarely wore any other jewelry and a box of square donuts from your favorite shop since he knew for a fact that no matter how much you loved them, you deemed them too expensive to buy them for yourself just for the sake of it. They were birthdays and holidays kind of special for you: just what he aimed at on Friday when he planned to pop the question after your adorable goodnight peck.

Woong found the familiar, yellow envelope with the new love letter in it in the same place, at the same time he had done the first time. It was slid between two pages of the script you had given him at the beginning of your brainstorming session.

Back then, the blonde boy had been too afraid to read the message in front of his friend. This time, however, he thought being teased for being admired by the person he was also whipped for was a small price for reading your letter on the spot. Therefore, he picked the seal flap’s edge open with great care, then took the paper in his hands with a giddy smile on his face. You were so cute, asking for a break before he could have found it.

Something tugged on Woong’s heart when he saw that you started the letter with an apology. It made him feel uneasy because he seriously couldn’t have thought back on a single thing you should have felt sorry for. Could it have been because you had fallen asleep during your video call last week? He had already told you it was fine. Or because Woojin had called him a taken man in front of other girls the day before? Gosh, that was absolutely okay with him, too. If anything, Woong couldn’t have waited to be officially taken after tonight. You worried your pretty little head too much.

But then you went into details and those fragments pulled the rug out from under the boy’s feet. You were rambling about your assignments, your need to blow off some steam, and how you had gone to an outdoor concert with your friend and ended up catching the cold. You swore up and down that you had intended to write to him at least once a week, but you had been too drained to keep up with both your academic life and his radio shows. Nevertheless, you were sure that he had done great with Daehwi and playfully suggested that they should have made a YouTube channel where they uploaded their shows once they were over.

It was a useful idea, something he would have brought up in the second half of your meeting on any other Friday night… This time, however, he was too shaken up by the realization that you weren’t his secret admirer.

Woong’s hands were trembling when he shoved the letter back into the yellow envelope. He didn’t want you or anyone else to see it before he could have talked with you. He had to talk with you first.

Speaking of you, shouldn’t you have come back from your restroom break by now?

‘I’ll step outside for a couple of minutes. Call me if she comes back in the meantime,’ Woong asked his friend with one leg already out of the room. With his back to Daehwi, he shot an uneasy smile at the boy from above his shoulder, then left before the younger could have uttered a simple:

‘Sure.’

Woong had dozens of questions he wanted to ask you. Although, he knew you wouldn’t be able to answer any of them since he had never told you about his secret admirer. He had incorrectly assumed that they were you and now that it was clear that they weren’t, he was a lot of things, but most of all: confused.

He obviously still liked you. You were funny, kind-hearted, caring, and very pretty. You were everything he looked for in a partner, but all of a sudden, there was this other person who seemed to know him on another level and cheered for him from the shadows. They supported him like you and…

He tried to message you, call you to ask you where you were and what took you so long. He felt desperate to be near you before the mess got bigger in his head and he could have started acting differently around you, but you didn’t pick up your phone. 

‘Come on! Where are you?’ He mumbled when he didn’t find you in front of the fourth floor vending machine, either. It was like you weren’t even at the building, which made no sense. You would have never abandoned your brainstorming session, not without a word, not when he and Daehwi were clearly waiting for you to come back from your break. Woong might have been mistaken about the letters, but he knew you weren’t that kind of person.

Still, when he couldn’t find you despite checking every restroom the building had to offer, he decided to rush to the nearest 7-Eleven, too, as the convenience store was right outside of the campus and you had the tendency to overestimate your speed when you had places to be. The closer he got to the ground floor, the clearer he could picture you with snacks in your hands and an apologetic smile on your face. Now that he thought about it, the vending machines had indeed looked a bit empty when he had passed them.

Woong’s lips pulled into the proudest, brightest grin when just like he had predicted, in front of the building’s main gates, there stood you with a plastic bag in your right hand, but it soon wavered when he noticed that you weren’t alone. And that you weren’t walking towards the glass doors, either. Instead, you stood there like a fly frozen in amber, unmoving and stiff, which urged him to speed up his steps.

‘… playing dumb. You two got closer after the first one. I bet you told him it was from you,’ one of the two girls around you said accusatively, pointing at your chest from a distance to give emphasis to her words. Woong had no idea what was going on, what these people could have had against you, but it was clear that they made you feel uncomfortable in your skin. If the way you were munching on your cheek from the inside hadn’t been enough, your failed attempts at speaking up for yourself would have still spoken volumes.

Woong saw you shook your head and took a defensive step backwards when the only guy in the group took one towards you.

‘You think he will still want you when he realizes that your relationship is built on lies? You basically manipulated him into dating you. How fucking sick is that? Aren’t you ashamed of yourself?’ The boy kept throwing his accusatory questions at you and while Woong couldn’t have said with confidence that he understood the situation perfectly, he knew he would have never forgiven himself if he had kept watching from the sideline as they were screaming at you.

So he stepped between you and them, shielding you with his body at the same time you said:

‘I don’t…’

Woong reached behind his back to take your empty hand in his, then checked on you from above his shoulder when you squeezed his palm. It felt weak, almost uncertain, like you were conflicted whether you had the right to seek comfort in him to begin with.

‘What’s going on? Are they harassing you?’ He asked, wondering whether they had told you something that made you act this way - they couldn’t have talked about him when they had said you manipulated someone, right? you had never once tried to influence his decisions in any way, goddamnit! - or you were just too intimidated to react to his closeness the way you usually did.

‘The hell? We’re not harassing her. We came here to defend our friend, dude. She stole the credit for her letters,’ the guy claimed angrily, his lips pressed into a thin line when one of the girls slid her palm on his biceps to calm him. Despite everything, Woong was grateful for the help; he doubted he could have dealt with a guy this big if all hell had broken loose.

‘She’s lying to you. It’s Hari. She’s the one who wrote you those letters, not her,’ the other girl with the messy bun chirped in, visibly shy, but just as harsh with her accusation.

And then it clicked. Stolen credits, anonymous letters, dating… They were talking about the letters he had gotten and his secret admirer. Woong wouldn’t have been surprised if they had been the ones who had slid the envelope into his script.

‘Well, I appreciate that you’re here to clear up this misunderstanding, but you clearly make her uncomfortable,’ Woong started as diplomatically as possible, well aware that he was the one to blame for this mess. Not you. ‘And for that matter, she doesn’t know about the letters. It was me who asked her out, not the other way around,’ he reasoned. His heart sank into his stomach when he realized that your fingers were about to slip out of his hold. Were you mad at him? Were you shocked? Was it your confusion that tried to put some distance between the two of you?

Woong could only hope that you didn’t let go of his hand consciously, but just in case you did or your thoughts were just as fuzzy as his, he decided to take you out of the situation that was messing with your mind before your brain could have rewritten your memories from the past weeks. He turned towards you and gave you all of his attention as he gingerly reached for your hand and pulled you inside the building.

‘Are you okay?’ was the first thing that left the boy’s mouth when you were finally alone and he could cup your face in his hands. Woong’s thumbs caressed your cheeks anxiously while he was waiting for you to speak up. 

In the deafening silence, he wished he could have been able to read your mind.

‘Did you think it was me?’ Your voice was so quiet, it was barely above a whisper, but since he stood close enough to you, Woong could decipher every word. He sucked in his lower lip, unsure whether you really wanted to hear his answer or this was a rhetorical question. After all, those guys had made sure you knew the two of you had grown closer around the time he had received the first letter. ‘Did you ask me out because of that letter they mentioned?’

Woong’s palms fell from your cheeks to the crooks of your neck. The boy was a lot of things: loud, childish, forgetful, oblivious… but he wasn’t a liar. Thus, he swallowed his nervousness and chose to tell you the truth. He liked you. Logically speaking, the circumstances shouldn’t have changed much between the two of you if you had liked him, too.

‘I mean, yeah. I started to look at you differently after I read the first one,’ he admitted shyly while his thumbs fondled your skin absentmindedly. Your heart was beating just as fast as his, he realized, when his finger found a more prominent vein.

‘I see,’ you breathed, your calm tone pushing the boy’s mind to overdrive. Something was off with you, your voice, your posture. Had your shoulders been droopy from the beginning? Why did your eyes look so dull all of a sudden?

‘Hey, it’s not like that. Sure, I didn’t think of you as a girl girl before that, but…’ Woong tried to explain the situation in detail, so that you would have understood that even though he had needed that extra push, in the end, he had fallen for you because of the little things that made you you.

But you weren’t listening. Instead, you cut him off mid-sentence and took his hands off your neck with a resigned smile.

‘I think you should give her a chance,’ you whispered, breaking something in Woong with the way you deliberately avoided his eyes.

‘What?’

‘Hari. Your secret admirer,’ you explained. Every word that fell from your rosy lips added to the wall you were building between the two of you. You might have stood at arm’s length from him, but Woong felt like you had never been further away. You were slowly slipping through his fingers and he had no idea what to do to keep you close. ‘Her letters clearly mean something to you. I think you should give her a chance. Take her on a date,’ you pushed, like it was easy. Like you hadn’t just told him to go out with someone else.

Woong had to force his next question through his gritted teeth.

‘But what about us?’

He didn’t want to be upset. A part of him doubted he had any right to feel that way - at least, towards you -, but even though he saw the logic behind your request, it was hard to not feel unwanted because of your calmness. He hated how calm you were acting on the outside.

‘I don’t know,’ came your answer before he heard you take a deep breath and your eyes met. Was he seeing things or your eyes were teary when you smiled at him? ‘Daehwi is waiting for us.’

You didn’t wait for Woong to figure out whether he liked the letters so much because he had thought they had been from you or you were right. You just turned your back to him and took the first steps towards the elevator.

That night, you left without a word, before Woong could have packed his things and walked you to your dorm. The earrings in his backpack were just as heavy as his footsteps or the silence that embraced Daehwi and him on their way to the boys’ residence on campus.

Letting go of Woong had been one of the hardest decisions of your life. However, it had been a decision you had had to make for both of your sake.

You weren’t angry with him. If anyone, it was Woojin who refused to talk to the blonde boy ever since he had learned about Woong’s reason for asking you out. You had tried to tell him, he was acting ridiculous, that their friendship should have meant more than your broken heart or those tears you had shed during the weekend, but days later, he was still adamant. He said you were his best friend and Woong could easily survive a few weeks without him until you got over your break-up. He didn’t care that you had never been officially together.

‘Stop giving them those stares. You’re making me anxious,’ you whined at ABNEW between two classes, half-determined to spend your free period in bed, half-willing to work on your group project with Miyoung who was still standing in the line in front of the counter, waiting for her drink and those muffins Woojin, Donghyun, and you had asked for.

It was bad enough that your presentation was due within a week and you still had to figure out the structure of your slides, but hanging out at your go-to coffee shop at the same time Woong and Hari did was a whole new low for the day. You had never wished to study in the library so badly.

‘Why? It’s not like her friends aren’t staring at you when you’re around,’ your best friend spat back bitterly, his tone just as black as the coffee in his hands.

Munching on your lower lip, you slowly turned your head towards the couple in the back of the shop and let out a disappointed sigh as your gaze fell on their smiley figures. You weren’t sure what you had expected when you had told Woong to give a chance to his secret admirer, but based on the dull pain in your chest, something told you that not this.

‘He looks happy. It’s better this way,’ you explained, hoping that you sounded at least half as convinced as you felt. It all depended on perspectives, after all. ‘Donghyun-ah! Tell him to stop staring!’ You turned towards your other friend, seeking help where you could only find a frown. So typical.

‘Like he listens to me,’ Donghyun retorted, although he did reach out to the younger boy to gain his attention.

In the following silence, you were sipping on your latte while you busied yourself with trivial things: you created a ppt file, chose a minimalistic theme for your slides, and searched for a few pretty, monochrome icons with transparent background on the internet for later use. You also wrote your names on the first slide and changed the fonts where it was needed. You were desperate to do something, anything that could help you forget about Woong and his love life. Now that you weren’t a part of it, it shouldn’t have been your business.

Too bad, none of your friends had come to the same conclusion yet.

‘She isn’t that cool, by the way. I mean, she’s obviously pretty and she’s kind when she needs to be, but we have a seminar together on Wednesdays and she lowkey looks down on people who are on scholarship,’ Donghyun broke the silence when you started to drum on the edge of your mug absentmindedly; a clear sign that you didn’t know what to do with yourself. You looked up at the boy’s face with sad eyes, feeling conflicted about his words that had meant to be reassuring. Were you allowed to feel relieved that Hari wasn’t the perfect girl you had assumed her to be based on how much her friends loved and supported her? Maybe. But it still felt selfish, because Woong seemed to like her a lot. ‘I don’t even know how she knows who are on scholarship. It’s not like people openly talk about these things.’

You, on the other hand, had a few guesses. She either came from an influential family or she was more popular than you had initially thought. Both sounded a bit scary, especially because both options came with enough power to ruin lives in a collectivist society.

‘But most of Woong’s close friends are on scholarship,’ you mumbled as you lifted your mug in front of your mouth and took a small sip from the sweet beverage. You didn’t like where your messy thoughts were about to go. You didn’t like the odd mixture of fear and excitement that slowly consumed your body.

Yet, there was a hint of a genuine smile in the corner of your mouth when the boy patted your upper arm with his hand. 

‘Exactly. I wouldn’t worry too much if I were you,’ Donghyun said encouragingly, earning a scoff from Woojin with his positivity. Neither of you needed to be a genius to realize that the younger hated the idea of false hope the boy’s words might have been giving you.

Thus, you lifted your chin high and decided to prevent all hell from breaking loose for the nth time with your most believable nonchalant smile. 

‘I don’t,’ you claimed - a ridiculous lie, really -, then took another sip from your drink to steal yourself a little time to actually consider this as your next step in your long journey towards absolute recovery. Because sooner or later you had to face the facts: you had had your chance and you had blown it. Who said Woong would have wanted to be with you once he broke up with his girlfriend. If he had broken up with his girlfriend to begin with.

‘That’s the spirit!’ Woojin exclaimed with a proud smile that honestly warmed your heart. He acted so unlike his age, being your big brother who wanted nothing but the best for you when you were actually a year older. You shot finger guns at the boy to make him smile and to put your gratitude on display in the most you-way possible: you acted like those few weeks with Woong had already been in the past. (Because they were. They needed to be, for everyone’s sake.)

Not long after Miyoung got back to your table and squeezed her chair between Donghyun’s and yours, you saw Woong and his girlfriend leave the café, holding hands while swinging their arms back and forth between their bodies like playful couples did in movies. Eyes glued to their figure on the other side of the glass doors, you pouted like a kicked puppy until Donghyun stuffed a blueberry muffin into your mouth.

Coughing, you felt a little lighter when his laughter embraced your grieving soul. It was time to speed up your recovery, skip a few stages, and advance towards the last step: acceptance.

Lacking first-hand experience, Woong had always thought that every break-up was the same until you liked the other person. After all, he had cried just as badly when he had lost Bbang, his goldfish in kindergarten as he had done in middle school when his cat had run away from home while he had been in the academy. Shouldn’t all hearts have broken the same?

He learned that the answer was no when he broke up with Hari and asked her to remain good friends. With her curse words ringing in his ears and her petite figure disappearing at the end of the hallway, feet frozen and eyes wide, the boy didn’t feel sadness or disappointment like he had anticipated. Instead, he was relieved.

Obviously, he still thought that she was an amazing person - hence his offer to stay present in each other’s life -, but while she had been nothing but kind to him, something had felt forced in their short-lived relationship while it had lasted. Maybe, it had been the girl’s smile that had seemed different whenever Jangjun or Seungyoun had hung out with them. Maybe, it had been his body that had felt stiffer every time the girl had wanted to check out a place where he had already been on a date with you. Maybe, it had been you and your sad eyes that had haunted him since the night you had told him to go on a date with Hari.

Or maybe it was all about timing and his heart simply wasn’t ready to care for someone new when it was still in love with you.

‘Hyung! Could you come already? I really, really can’t stay until eleven this time,’ Daehwi’s plea reached Woong’s ears only a couple of heartbeats before you said:

‘Let him be! I’ve already told you, you can leave at ten.’

The younger boy’s exaggerated sigh and your playful banter about how Daehwi would have never been able to ditch either of you (but mostly you) while you still had promising ideas to talk through made Woong smile. The whole situation and those tiny yet significant steps that led him to this moment were so surreal. Had he really broken up with his first girlfriend five minutes before your Friday brainstorming session? Had he really done it because he had seen Hari frown at you in the elevator? 

The chokehold you had on him was insane.

‘I’m coming!’ He exclaimed as he shook his head and brushed aside his overwhelming urge to be there for you all day every day for the rest of your life. He didn’t want to burden you with his feelings, especially not after what had happened between the two of you - not to mention that he might have needed a bit of time alone to organize his thoughts and emotions before he could have come clean to you -, but he hoped that with time, you would give him a second chance. A chance to show you he didn’t need anyone else; you had no reason to doubt him.

Since Daehwi had an assignment due at midnight he still had to proofread and submit, the three of you decided to skip your usual break and wrap up the meeting around nine regardless of how far you got, because the boys could always improvise during their show in case they ran out of scripted material, but the younger boy only had one chance to impress Mrs. Park with his academic knowledge and that woman was hard to win over once she lost her faith in you. Professors in the Business Faculty were infamous for holding grudges against students who didn’t take their studies seriously.

Considering that your tactic to avoid being alone with Woong was the same since the day you had distanced yourself from him, the boy knew he needed to be quick if he didn’t want you to slip through his fingers again. Therefore, he made sure his papers and pens were already in his backpack when you jotted down your last ideas in your notebook, then stood up from his chair as soon as you did, so that he could follow you to the corridor.

‘Hey!’ Woong jogged after you when you gained a head start because of the table he had to skirt around first. The boy hoped that he could catch up to you in front of the lift, but then he noticed that you were heading towards the stairs, most probably to save yourself from an awkward elevator ride. He could only pray you still had enough kindness in your heart for him to not ignore him intentionally when he was clearly talking to you. Sure, you hadn’t spoken since he had gone after Hari, but that had been your idea and…

When your steps came to a sudden halt with your hand on the door that led to the stairway, the boy almost tripped over his own feet. He was so damn glad you hadn’t ran away.

‘Khm, so I was thinking…’ he started, a little uncertain, but still determined to live with this chance. ‘Would it be okay if I walked you back to the dorm?’

Relatively speaking, Woong didn’t ask for much. He would have been more than satisfied with the tiniest baby steps like walking at arm’s length from you either by your side or behind you if that made you feel more comfortable. Although, the latter might have made him feel a bit creepy, but until you let him, it would have been fine.

The resigned sigh that left your mouth could hardly mean anything good, but turning back now would have been awkward, Woong thought, and he had already done a super impulsive, super reckless thing that day. What was one more? Even if you rejected him or called him a confusing jerk in your own, curseless way, he could have at least said that he had tried.

‘Actually, if you have something to tell me, I’d prefer if you did it here, while we’re still in the building,’ you told him in a neutral tone, making him wonder whether he overreacted it or you treated him differently from everyone else (in a completely different way than before). He tried to recall your first ever conversation, whether you had smiled at him back then or his memories were playing a trick on him, but it was no use.

He was clearly overthinking it: a warning sign that he wasn’t ready to be with you and that he should have given himself a bit of time after his breakup. But you were finally close enough for your moles to be visible and more importantly, you were with him without Woojin who always had a rude comment to Woong when he hung out with the boys.

‘Because of Hari,’ you said, as you most probably mistook his silence for not knowing what you were talking about. Which was funny, because while his mind was filled with you, you, and you, once you spoke up, Woong realized you were actually right. He didn’t understand your reasons, he just hadn’t dwelled on them or questioned your request. ‘I don’t want her to misunderstand. Her friends are already giving me the stares.’

The boy furrowed his eyebrows. What had you just said?

‘I… I didn’t know,’ he stuttered, the confession heavy on the tip of his tongue. Truth to tell, he had rarely paid attention to Hari’s friends since he hadn’t liked what they had done to you and his ex-girlfriend had understood. She had actually encouraged him to spend more time with her without either of their friends, so that they could have gotten to know each other better. It had sounded logical back then. ‘But she’s not my girlfriend anymore. I broke up with her,’ he felt the need to correct you at least, since he couldn’t promise you that everything would be okay. The thought that he might have unintentionally made things harder for you with his actions worried him more than he showed. He didn’t like the thought that they could have put the blame on you, when it was him whose heart hadn’t been in their relationship with Hari.

‘Is this what you want to talk about?’ You asked, raising one of your slim eyebrows as if you were suspicious. It reminded Woong of your arcade date when you had caught him cheating, but he quickly brushed aside the memory.

‘No. Partly. I don’t know,’ he rambled, uncertain of how much he could have told you when his thoughts and urges scared even him. It couldn’t be normal, how much he missed you when you had never been his. But his mouth chose this moment to completely disregard his brain. ‘I just miss you. I miss walking you back to the dorm, holding your hand, spending time with you.’

After Woong’s confession, the silence was deafening. It made the boy anxious that your lips parted to speak, but no words came out of your mouth. The longer you stood there frozen, the more he started to question his decisions. Since when had he been so afraid to take the initiative? He was usually so unbothered by others’ opinion, he was the first to volunteer when someone needed to do something stupid. Like when he had rapped his part of the presentation in first year because they had been talking about popular genres with his partner and they had wished to do something out of the ordinary. Woong was a terrible rapper.

‘Fine. We can walk together, but no hand-holding,’ you pulled him out of his thoughts with a few simple words that made the boy smile even though you couldn’t see it because you were already with your back to him.

Woong didn’t point out that you could have taken the elevator, too, now that you had agreed to let him tag along. Instead, he accepted your decision and followed you from a comfortable distance until you waited for him in front of the main entrance and he could finally walk by your side with a lighter heart.

If he wanted to be honest, Woong had tons of things to tell you on the way. He wanted you to know that he might have needed that anonymous letter to have an excuse to get closer to you, but he had always thought that you were kind and interesting. It just didn’t feel right to bring these up. In fact, he felt utterly selfish from the mere idea to force this conversation on you when you had already let him stay. 

Therefore, he stuck to neutral topics. He asked you about the radio show, your seminars without him, and complimented your presentation skills since he couldn’t have congratulated you after class because of Woojin, the girl you had been partners with, and Donghyun who had pulled you out of the room before he had realized. Blushing, you apologized for your best friend’s behavior and he reassured you it was fine. Sure, it hurt his feelings that his friend had openly taken your side, but he was also grateful that the younger boy had been there for you.

Without taking detours and competing which one of you could take smaller steps, the walk to your dorm felt shorter than Woong remembered, but he didn’t complain or ask you to stay outside for a bit longer. The boy would have liked to believe that his consideration was why you smiled at him so brightly before you bid your goodbye.

Your individual decisions might have damaged your relationship. Yet, your actions gave him hope that it wasn’t beyond repair.

You were as stubborn as a mule. Or maybe, you were just afraid of disappointing your best friend, but it took you longer than any of your friends would have predicted to get back together with Woong.

The night he had told you that he had broken up with Hari, you had been doubtful and so had been Woojin whom you had called up as soon as you had gotten in your room. You had been in desperate need of advice and you had known he had had a movie night with Donghyun, so it had been like killing two birds with one stone: you had gotten both the pros and the cons of letting Woong back into your life in a span of one and a half hour.

What had convinced you to not push him away in the end had been the same thing that had made you sit behind your desk in your dorm room exactly one hundred and fifty days later to write him your own love letter for Sunday: you loved him and you had regretted not holding on to him firmly on each day he had been with someone else.

Before Woong, you had thought that 100th and 1000th day’s anniversaries were only excuses to be a bit more romantic, to spice things up with your partner, and while you were still a bit skeptical, you believed your relationship with the now-brown-haired boy was still exciting and fun enough to not need tricks and aids like these. Nonetheless, you were hyped about your celebration dinner on Sunday and the amusement park you had bought tickets to weeks before your date.

Despite laughing your ass off at Lotte World and filling your tummy with delicious snacks in the shade between two rides, you thought the park itself was overpriced, but it was a special day and the memories were worth every won - thank goodness Woojin had let you tutor two of his students who were preparing for CSATs, you had definitely needed the extra pocket money.

‘Are you ready for the best present anyone has ever given you?’ Your boyfriend asked once you finished your main dishes at the Italian restaurant you had chosen together and you put your elbow on the table, placing your chin atop of your palm, smiling. He looked so proud of himself like a child who had gotten his first shiny star from his homeroom teacher in elementary school. His goofy smile was absolutely adorable.

‘You mean the laptop dad gave me for high school graduation? Nah, I don’t want to leave before dessert,’ you joked, earning an exaggerated groan with your playful attitude, but one look at your boyfriend’s pouty lips was enough to know he wasn’t done with you for real.

‘Very funny,’ Woong grumped, reciprocating your carefree giggles with his own chuckles as he pulled an ocean blue gift bag out of his backpack and shoved it into your hands. ‘Here! Open it!’

You looked down at the small package he had prepared for you, then bit back a smile and took a similar gift bag out of your tote bag in green color.

‘Let’s open them for three!’ You suggested, because no matter how much you wanted to see his reaction and burn it into your memory, you also hated standing under the spotlight and this way you could share it with each other. It was a small sacrifice for comfort - something that your boyfriend didn’t seem to mind.

So you counted to one, two, and three, then pulled every item out of the bag one by one until you had a bunch of self-care products piling up in front of you on the table. Woong hadn’t been joking: it was indeed the best present ever, especially for a busy university student like you whose skin liked to turn into her enemy under stress. He had bought you a box of slime for stress relief, face masks, that fancy vitamin c serum you had been talking about for weeks, a plushie headband, a white USB stick with a winking emoji drawn on one side and the words “you did great, honey” written on the other.

Already overwhelmed, your lips parted when you noticed a light pink envelope.

It wasn’t closed properly, so you could pull the handwritten letter out of it easily, but before you would have started reading it, you stole a glance at your boyfriend and grinned at his similar reaction to your lilac love letter. Gosh, you were both so cheesy.

‘I can’t believe you stole my groundbreaking idea,’ Woong whined, his furrowed eyebrows and sulky voice urging you to roll your eyes with affection.

‘Maybe, you stole mine,’ you retorted, cheeks red like tomatoes when the waiter chose the same moment to walk up to your table with your chocolate cake. You darted your tongue out for good measure.

Not that the old man had any interest in your conversation with your boyfriend or made you feel bad for acting so childish. In fact! He was gone before you could have said thank you for the food.

‘Should we read them now? Not gonna lie, I’m super curious, but if you would rather wait until you’re alone, that’s fine with me, too,’ Woong offered, giving you a chance to save yourself from embarrassment (and most probably, second-hand embarrassment as well), but you wanted to show him just how grateful you were for him as a person… so you gave yourself a quick pep talk and shook your head with pseudo-confidence. Until he was with you, you had nothing to be afraid of, right? And this was your 100th day’s anniversary. When to be crazy and wild if not tonight?

‘Nah, we can read them now,’ you reassured him, waving with your hand as though a single motion could have brushed aside all your worries.

It obviously didn’t work.

You barely reached the end of the first paragraph and your cheeks were already crimson, your heartbeats erratic, and your lips bitten. You couldn’t stop munching on them because of how utterly ridiculous your boyfriend was. Comparing your laugh to a dolphin’s and your eyes to blizzards? Was either of those a positive comparison to begin with?

‘Yah! How could you write so much nonsense about me? I don’t drool like a sick fairy, nor is my snoring adorable. I do not snore, Woong!’ You whined, regretting every real compliment you had given him in your own letter, especially when he shot the most amused grin at you, you had ever seen on his face, then started quoting you, too, just because in his opinion - his words, not yours -, it had been you who had started it.

The rest of your celebration dinner was spent with constant whining, scoffing, and laughing. You both dissed each other for certain words and phrases you had used in your confession such as ethereal, angelic, and your personal favorite: morning voice as smooth as Woong’s to-go strawberry smoothie. You competed to see which one of you was more hopeless based on the months behind your backs and teased one another a bit more when you failed to eat your chocolate cakes without getting some on your faces.

But there were undeniably sweet moments, too, between your playful banters. Like when the boy told you he liked your letter better because it was handwritten and smelled like you. Or when he sat next to you to pull you into his arms as soon as you started crying soundly because of those love yous he had oh so casually written at the end of every paragraph.

‘I love you,’ Woong whispered against your temple, feeding you as though you were a baby, his baby, when you refused to pull away.

‘I love you, too,’ you reciprocated his words immediately, swallowing the cake and shoving a couple of bites into his mouth, too, with your chopsticks.

That night, neither of you knew yet that you had started the tradition of cheesy love letters and exaggerated diss battles that secretly you both liked or that - three years later - this tradition would make it super easy for Woong to ask you to be his for the rest of your lives.

the end.

[musicarenagh]

J.J. Chamberlain Strumming Through Life and Music With 'Tired of Christmas' Hey folks, get ready to meet J.J. Chamberlain, the musician behind the track "Tired of Christmas," a song that speaks to anyone tired of the crazy holiday commercialism. This tune is all about wanting Christmas to be more about chilling with family and friends, you know? He's all about the real stuff in life, pulling inspiration from everything around him. Growing up, music was like the soundtrack to his family life, from his dad's painting sessions accompanied by tunes to his grandpa's jazz singing during family gatherings. No fancy music school for this guy—he taught himself. J.J. Chamberlain is heavily inspired by Kurt Cobain, he picked up the guitar and never looked back. J.J.'s not just about music, He's super passionate about fairness for everyone and loves diving into some good food and coffee. He's got big plans, though. A whole album in the works and some cool collabs.  J.J.'s all about connecting with fans and making tunes that really hit home. So, grab a seat, and let's dive into J.J.'s world of music, life, and everything in between. Listen to Tired Of Christmas below https://open.spotify.com/track/0DJvvf8BltQaz9BD9c5pyP Follow J.J. Chamberlain on Spotify Bandcamp What is your stage name? J.J. Chamberlain Is there a story behind your stage name? Not really, it’s my initials but when I first released Tired of Christmas, a lot of the streaming services put it out on the wrong profile as there was already an artist called John Chamberlain. There are probably still some platforms that have it out under the wrong artist, but if you see Tired of Christmas, just know that it’s MINE! Where do you find inspiration? I think the answer to that is life. There’s always something happening, I’m a really busy person, but I go through phases of prolific songwriting and it’s usually when I’m working through something. Possibly why my lyrics can be a little…emotional. What was the role of music in the early years of your life? It was everything. I remember my parents playing records while they cooked. That’s how I first discovered a lot of the music that I still listen to today. I associate Tom Waits with the smell of frying onions. He’d probably like it that way too. Are you from a musical or artistic family? Yeah, my Dad is a painter who has been quite active in recent years. He also plays guitar. My Grandfather was a singer in jazz bands and on Christmases gone by I remember the whole family singing old folk and traditional Irish songs. My brother plays bass with me in 2 bands (Box Time and Love Barons). It’s woven throughout my family, both historically and currently. Who inspired you to be a part of the music industry? I’ve always wanted to be in a band since I can remember, but never thought I’d end up being a songwriter. There are two people that continue to inspire me to write and create, neither of whom are still with us, sadly. One is my former friend and bandmate Lanfranco, I write a lot for him. There’s even a song dedicated to him that I’ll be putting out in the near future. The other is my Uncle Will, who was just the coolest musician I ever knew. There’s not much he couldn’t do. He and my Dad had me playing one-note solos in their band when I was 4 years old. How did you learn to sing/write/to play? I’m self taught. I had violin lessons as a kid and then I discovered Kurt Cobain, before long I was playing guitar every day and night. [caption id="attachment_53407" align="alignnone" width="402"] I’m self taught. I had violin lessons as a kid and then I discovered Kurt Cobain[/caption] What was the first concert that you ever went to and who did you see perform? My Dad was in a band called The Expanding Wallets and I’m pretty sure I was at his gigs before I was even born. My parents used to take me to festivals as a child. When I was a teenager, my first big concert was seeing The Rolling Stones at Wembley. I’d never seen anything like it.

How could you describe your music? Bittersweet, happy-sad diary entries mostly. Sometimes I write angry songs but somehow they turn out upbeat. My lyrics often contradict the mood of the music. This is what happens if you bring your kids up on Punk-Rock, people! Describe your creative process. Depends really. In the past I used to write a guitar part first and then try to fit words and melodies to it, but recently I’ve flipped it and I’m often writing the lyrics before anything else. I don’t know why it happened but my brain decided it was a better idea and I actually think I’ve written some of my best songs since. It’s a quick way to fix a bad mood, write down your feelings about someone or something that has upset you, leave it and come back to it with new energy later on. What is your main inspiration? Hard to pinpoint, but I think it mostly comes from seeing other musicians perform live. I love watching everything from grassroots music events to big artists at the top of their game. It always makes me hungry to put stuff out there and get on a stage myself. What musician do you admire most and why? Hard to name any single musician here. I always loved Frank Zappa for having the guts to create his own label when all the majors turned him down. He was a true DIY artist. I really admire Mark Oliver Everett or ‘E’ from Eels for the same reason. The idea that everything can be done from home is inspiring. Did your style evolve since the beginning of your career? Massively. I was always the lead guitarist in other people’s projects until I formed Box Time and started writing my own songs which helped me to have the confidence to be a frontman. Who do you see as your main competitor? I don’t see other artists as competition, I think we’re all here to support each other in this game. If anything, the odds are stacked against us in terms of the way that the industry is structured. This is why we all need to help each other wherever we can. I’ve had some overwhelming support from some great artists recently and I’ll give that back however I can. What are your interests outside of music? I’m passionate about neurodiversity and equal rights. Also food, and coffee! If it wasn't a music career, what would you be doing? It would still be something in music. Maybe Film. I used to enjoy taking part in independent film projects. What is the biggest problem you have encountered in the journey of music? There are lots of little bumps in the road. I think the big problem in grassroots live music is promoters that are still operating with ticket systems that are practically pay to play. The problem lies mainly in London and major cities but the cut that bands take is so small compared to the money they earn for these promoters, and the “promotion” that takes place is often as little as a short Instagram story that lasts a day in return. If you could change one thing in the music industry, what would it be? The biggest issue at the moment is the closure of music venues. This is often down to decisions made by the government and the lack of finances. The arts aren’t taken as seriously as they should be. In the pandemic, the biggest insult to the arts was the government advising us all to “retrain.” That tells you everything you need to know about their attitude. Why did you choose this as the title of this project? I’m not a Grinch, or a Scrooge, or a Christmas curmudgeon. I’ve had a tough year in my personal life and although I can usually overlook the ever increasing prematurity of the Christmas hype, I just felt that this year I could do without it. I’m very much looking forward to Christmas itself, but I feel that we’re diluting Christmas by celebrating it too early with hyper-consumerism. What are your plans for the coming months? I’ve written a lot of songs, I’m now selecting and ordering tracks for my debut album which I plan to finish recording and mixing in 2024. There’ll be more singles too, but the album is my priority. https://open.spotify.com/artist/0DXE8u70H90Rdug8UM5rdL?si=DAEHl2MjR_GwiAEz576nSg

Do you have any artistic collaboration plans Yes actually, as I mentioned I play in two active bands separately, but there’s another exciting new project on the way in the coming year. I’ll reveal more on my socials so keep an eye out! What message would you like to give to your fans? Just how grateful I am to anyone who has listened to my song and especially anyone who has decided to revisit it for more. I’ve always felt musically capable, but I never felt capable of writing and recording music that I felt ready to release, until now. To know that there are people out there who genuinely liked my music is an amazing feeling.

[questinwitchface]

Writing Pattern Tag Game!

Rules: Share the opening of your last ten published works or as many as you are able and see if there are any patterns!

Thank you so much for tagging me @sambambucky !

The Offering

Sam has had a very tiring day. He’d gone to work at the Vampire Assistance Agency at seven PM, just after the sun had set. He’d gone to a meeting at 7:30 for training on new services the VAA will be offering next year and review training on the services they currently offer. When the meeting was over at 8:37 (because these things always run long), he’d gone straight to his office to organize his case notes and prepare for the day. He’d made it to one of the group rooms and run a group session for elder vampires at 9:15, spent fifteen minutes cleaning up the room, and then run the group session for recently-turned vampires at 10:30. He spent another fifteen minutes cleaning up the room, and then he’d finally gotten to take his lunch break at midnight. He was finished by 12:45, which gave him enough time to prepare for his individual sessions, which went throughout the early hours of the morning and finished at five AM.

Falling/Already Fell

Sam’s head is once again spinning at how much older his nephews have gotten. Cass had just recently turned thirteen, and that would be a lot on its own, but Sam and Bucky are playing chauffeurs for his very first date. They’d taken the truck from home to Sarah’s to pick up Cass, who looked nervous and was wearing too much cologne—since when did Sam’s nephew even wear cologne? Then they’d picked up Tia, who seemed shy and quiet and sweet, with her hair in a fancy configuration of braids that must’ve taken forever to do and braces on her bright smile. Cass and Tia had talked in awkward, stilted conversation in the backseats of Sam’s truck while they drove to the movie theater, and then Sam and Bucky had dropped them off and headed to the mall to give the kids their time together.

Bucky and His Books

They’re in Sam’s truck, driving back home from Sarah’s after a long day of helping her with the boat and the boys, when Bucky turns to Sam with a guarded sort of frown.

There Was More Than One Bed (But Who's Counting?)

Sam is not okay.

The Guy Next Door

“Hey, you’re bus fight guy, right?” Joaquín asks, watching his new neighbor stare forlornly at the boxes he still hasn’t moved into his room.

Dear Sam

Dear Sam, This is a stupid exercise my therapist recommended. Apparently, I struggle with expressing my emotions verbally, so I’m supposed to try writing out my feelings. I hate this idea. I think it’s dumb. Sorry to drag you into it.

The Pirate Fic

Bucky folds his arms over his chest. The sun is particularly brutal today, beating down on his head, and he’s glad he’d worn his hat this time. He surveys the tiny island his ship is docked at. It’s little more than a stretch of sand with a dock built on it, big enough for one ship to dock at. A craggy rock face looms at the other end. There’s a small, dark cave entrance in the rock face that connects to the cave network the mermaids come from whenever Bucky and his crew meet with them to trade.

The Valentine Struggle

“I need a valentine that says, ‘I adore you, and I want you in my life forever,’ but in the most platonic way possible,” Yelena tells the store clerk. She’s in a Hallmark store, a store dedicated entirely to cards and gifts, and yet she hasn’t been able to find valentines that express how deep her love is without making it romantic.

Date Night

“So, the thing is, I really need your help,” Sam tells Jay before Jay can even get his usual greeting out.

Bucky Barnes Hates Christmas

Bucky Barnes hates Christmas.

Analysis: So it seems like my openings are either a single sentence or pretty long, with not much in between. Shorter works seem to get the shorter openings. Also if the beginning chapter is going to be angsty, it seems like I enjoy starting with like a single angsty sentence (i.e. "Sam is not okay.") and then further explaining it in the next paragraphs instead of cramming all the characters' feelings into the opening paragraph. I like opening with dialogue, but I didn't do it as much as I would've thought I had, but both of the rareship oneshots started with dialogue, which is interesting because I view the rareship fics as being more "for me" than other fics I write, so maybe I have more fun with them and don't overthink the openings as much as I do with SamBucky fics? Anyway, this was a fun little exercise. If you catch any other patterns, feel free to let me know!

No-pressure tagging @allcolorsoftherainbow and anyone else who might want to do this!

[wolint]

FRESH MANNA

LET'S CELEBRATE!

Deuteronomy 16:10-11

Hey, come let’s celebrate! Everyone loves to celebrate something. What and how do you celebrate?

Celebration is the process and time of celebrating and according to the Lord’s command in verse 11, we are to open our hands wide to those who are less fortunate than us.

In what ways can we be more generous or more attentive to the poor and needy people around us, especially believers?

When we think of celebrating, we always think of enjoying ourselves and having a great time, sometimes in the company of others, mostly people we know and are comfortable with. We celebrate in several ways: birthdays, anniversaries of all sorts, promotions, award ceremonies, weddings and so much more. For some of us, the Lord’s Supper is a celebration and annually or occasionally we celebrate, Valentine, mothers/Father’s Day and Christmas.

What makes celebrations unique is that it takes the ordinary out of our everyday mundane lives to do something special, and festive that connects us with the important people in our lives.

God wants us to always have something to celebrate as He wanted the children of Israel to do certain occasions regularly because the people were so forgetful and quick to turn to other gods and like many of us, have short memories of good tidings in our lives that warrants celebration. Exodus 13:3-10 goes as far as instructions to celebrate the dedication of the firstborn son.

Because we have short memories, Christmas, Easter and other special occasions are designed to help us recall and to teach our children what God had done for His people and what He will continue to do. We participate in these celebrations by thanking God for how He has worked in the past and by reminding each other of His faithfulness.

Joy and fun are God’s intention for us all and they should be part of our daily lives, not just an occasional celebration because they lift our spirits and help us see the beauty, value and meaning of life.

During the time of joy and celebration at the dedication of the temple in Nehemiah 8:10, the people celebrated with feasting, festivities and thanksgiving in remembrance of God’s goodness and faithfulness towards them, but it was all done in unity, together with loved ones, neighbours, friends and families. It was also a time to rededicate themselves to God which we should learn to do during such times.

What has God not done for you? According to Deuteronomy 2:7, He’s done so many things and more that are worth celebrating. He’s led, protected, and provided for us, so celebrating Him is not too much to ask. So, celebrate the Lord, celebrate all the people and events that need to be celebrated.

We don’t have to wait only on occasional days or events to give presents, give something of value-a call, a coffee/tea, a token of affection to a friend, brother, sister, or neighbour for them just being them, to appreciate and celebrate knowing them. A freewill offering expresses thankfulness for God’s goodness and faithfulness.

Thanksgiving should be at the heart of every celebration otherwise it would be empty partying.

Let's celebrate our friends and loved ones’ achievements, growth and lives as much as we can now, don’t wait for special days, make every day a special day.

Let the joy of the Lord flood in, it lasts longer and adds more meaning to our celebration.

PRAYER: Lord, I celebrate your love and grace, and I pray that I will gladly celebrate those around me for your goodness and favour in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Shalom

Women of light international prayer ministries.