#do the other members even know this happened?

[bbokicidal]

skz + cucking

You read the title. Synopsis: Based off of a request asking who SKZ would most want to be cucked by and why.

Genre: Smut Pairing: OT8 x Afab!Reader Warnings: 18+ (MDNI) Notes: None ~

Chan: Minho. Honestly, I think he would be totally fine being cucked by any of the boys; But if it were up to him, and the one that would rile him up the most, is Minho. He's just a little bit younger, and he's the 'uptight, stoic, older brother but somehow mom' of the group - And Chan just thinks Minho deserves a little break and to be able to relax for a while instead of looking out for the Youngers of the group. So, naturally, Chan tells you to ride Minho until he's pink in the ears and near to tears.

Minho: Jeongin. Guy gets off on seeing you with the youngest. He partially likes watching you two get it on because he likes seeing the way Jeongin fumbles with you and is a little surprised that you're so bratty and pushing his patience to see what riles him up and gets him rough. Jeongin expected you to be more submissive, given he figured Minho was the more dominant person in the relationship. Little did he know; This was just what happened when you had two tops who bit at each other and pushed the limits. Jeongin just had to figure out how to handle you.

Changbin: Seungmin. He loves seeing you with Seungmin; Either using his favorite younger to get yourself off, or letting the vocalist take out some of his frustrations on you. Seungmin didn't have a partner of his own so he always came to Changbin if he was needing to blow off some steam, asking if he could borrow you for the night - And Changbin always agreed on the condition that he could be in the room. Seungmin never minded, he actually kind of liked having his favorite Hyung watching. Even if it felt a little dirty using his sweetheart like this...

Hyunjin: Chan. Chan, all the way - but not for the reasons you may be thinking. Hyunjin wants you with Chan and Chan only because he trusts the eldest with everything he has. He trusts Chan to take care of you the way you deserve, to be as romantic as him and to be careful with you when something happens that might be a little more rough. He wants you in good hands and he trusts Chan to be delicate with you. (I'm sure you were hoping I'd say you get devoured and fucked hard the by Red Lights duo and you do, but only when they both need to let off some steam. Otherwise it's usually more romantic and soft.)

Jisung: Hyunjin. Jisung is antsy when it comes to sex; He's touchy, fumbling, rushing ahead of himself and always trying to get the most he can out of the time he has with you - so Hyunjin being with you is perfect because he is the complete opposite. Hyunjin's a romantic and is setting the room up with candles and rose petals, taking you by the hand and kissing you so sweetly while Jisung sits helpless in the corner. Jisung loves watching it all, sitting out and just observing, but because he's so antsy you do have to tie his hands to the armrests of the chair so he can't get up and try to join.

Felix: Changbin. Felix is NOT going to pass up the chance to see you with his favorite Hyung. He isn't super huge on being sucked in general but if it's Changbin, he'll let anything slide. And seeing Changbin being able to manhandle you so easily (not that Felix can't, he just can't toss you and lift you all that easily because of his back) makes Felix determined to work out more often. His favorite part to see is when Changbin literally folds you in half to fuck you easier. He's always learning new positions and techniques from his Hyung. <3

Seungmin: Jisung. Seungmin doesn't trust many of the guys with you because some of them can be so rough in the bedroom and he knows that because he swears he's heard all of them fucking at least once through the years of living together and swapping roommates. He likes listening sometimes, but watching one of his group members with you is so much more exhilarating. And of course he's picking Jisung to ask if he wants to join because he knows the answer will be yes and because he trusts Jisung to not rip you in half in bed. He also finds it a bit amusing how quickly Jisung moves with you, grabbing at your body to try and feel over every inch before his time with you is up.

Jeongin: Felix. His favorite Hyung is always welcome to join the two of you in the bedroom, but Jeongin knows well that he himself isn't interested in a threesome. Not with another guy, at least. So when Felix asks to join in some nights, Jeongin is always happy to say yes and invite him over to the apartment; And Jeongin is never upset about not being able to have sex with you because he's just as happy watching his favorite member taking care of you. Though he always ends up being a bit surprised by how feral Felix can get when it comes to you.

Permanent Taglist :

@dwaekkicidal @possum-playground

@thatonedarkskinnedsiren @oc3anfloor @theyadorevalerie

@jeonginsleftcheek @pixie-felix

[elinty]

Behind the Scenes | L.N

summary : ̗̀➛In the face of increasing tension, you and Lando have a deep and secret attraction.

pairing: ̗̀➛ Lando Norris x Journalist!reader

word count: ̗̀➛ 1,038

The paddock became a cold, dark mess as the rain continued to pour down. Desperate to get away from the storm, drivers and team members hurried between motor homes, heads down. However, you were forced to stand in the media pen with your microphone in hand and pretend that the rain wasn't getting inside your jacket.

It wasn't the worst part, though.

The worst part was him.

With his arms folded across his McLaren fireproofs, Lando stood a few steps away, adjusting himself. Even though his hair was wet and there were water drops running down his jaw, he looked calm and beautiful as usual, other than the glint of annoyance in his eyes.

That look was too familiar to you.

He had no intention to do this.

But neither did you.

because nobody was aware.

Nobody was aware that you were his, that every harsh comment made during a news conference was met with hushed regrets in hotel rooms, that every long look across the paddock resulted in tangled sheets and desperate kisses behind locked doors.

He had to act as though none of it was genuine at the moment.

The camera light went red, and you took a short breath, taming your facial features into something calm. It's showtime.

"Lando," you said in a firm voice. "P9 today. Not exactly where you expected to end."

He let out a breath and cocked his head. "fit analysis."

His tone was biting, but you overlooked it. "After the pit stop, it appeared that you were having trouble maintaining your hold.”

“Could you explain what happened ?”

Lando's mouth tightened. "I can. But you probably already have your own version of the story.”

You twisted the microphone in your fingers. He was pushing and testing. As he always did when he was angry. And with half the paddock acting as if they weren't listening, you couldn't react the way you wanted to.

You looked at him sharply. "I would prefer to hear it from you."

There was a flash in his eyes. Frustrated? Laughs? More than that?

With a sigh, he ran a hand through his damp curls.

“After the pitstop , the vehicle lacked speed. The undercut didn't operate as we had hoped. That's all.”

You raised an eyebrow. "That simple?"  

There was a faint twitch in his lips. "It can be that simple sometimes."

The wind whipped between you as the rain pummelled harder. Only you and Lando were aware of the tension, even if some of the other drivers had turned their heads.

How much he wanted to be near you.

How much you wanted to reach for him and break the rules.

You cleared your throat instead. “ Final question. On the radio, you sounded irritated. Was the team the target of that, or—

Lando shifted on his feet and sighed. "Is it fun to put me on the spot?"

You suppressed a grin.“It’s my job, Norris.”

His eyes darkened, but now something else was there, something that, regardless of the cold, made you feel hot.  

A few seconds later, he leaned in a little and spoke in a voice that only you could hear.

“Can’t wait for you to do your job later.”

Your breath caught. It was clear what he meant when he talked.

You were about to argue, scold him, or do something, but he was already backing off and smiling at the cameras as if nothing had happened.  

Lando Norris disappeared into the rain in a matter of seconds, leaving you breathless, nervous, and eager to see what would happen behind closed doors.

The rain had turned to a light drizzle by the time you finished your interviews and returned to the paddock. The cameras had stopped recording, the media pen had been cleared, and the majority of the drivers had gone to their garages

Lando, however, was waiting.

You saw him with his arms crossed and his hood up, leaning against the McLaren entrance .

He appeared to be just another driver dodging the rain to anyone else, but you knew better. His lips curved into something knowing and arrogant the instant your eyes met.

Despite rolling your eyes, you moved in his direction and slipped through the sliding doors. You walked as you got shivers down your spine from him following you.

"You were having fun with that, weren't you?" You mumbled without looking back.

"Having fun with what?" He teased in a quiet voice.

With a sigh, you let your bag fall onto a chair. "acting like an absolute ass in front of everybody."

A laugh. Then, his hands holding you waist just enough to cause you to let out a bit strongly.  

He said, his breath warm against your neck, "You like it when I push you."

You took a long breath, rolled your eyes, and turned to glare up at him." “I like it when you act professional for few minutes so I don’t have to work twice as hard to clean up your mess.”

Lando tilted his head and grinned. "You enjoy cleaning up my mess."

You were about to start an argument but as soon as you opened your mouth he pressed his lips to yours, closing the gap between you.

His hands moved up your sides and wrapped around your jacket as if he needed you closer during the slow but meaningful kiss.

The tension from earlier melted into something else, something powerful, and you melted into him  with your hands grabbing the fabric of his race suit.

"Are you still upset with me?" he whispered, stepping back just enough.

Your eyes narrowed. "You're crazy"

Lando smiled. "But here you are anyway."  

He simply laughed and grabbed your wrist before you could get away, despite your yelling and pulling at his chest.

"Stay," he said, his tone now softer and more serious.  

Your determination failed. You were supposed to return to the press room, edit interviews, and pretend that nothing was going on. However, here, in private, with Lando staring at you like this.

You let out a breath. "Only for a short time."

He smiled mischievously. "You said that the last time."

You already knew you weren't going anywhere, just like the last time.

a/n: if you have requests lemme know! Also im really excited for the first race of the season!!

[danvolodar]

I don't think it's common to appreciate just how atypically affable the female party members are in BG3.

Minthara is of course an obvious example: given that she's a drow high noble, she is incredibly tolerant of pretty much everyone in the party, including males, arcane magic users, and non-drow in general. Even her teasing of Gale is basically the drow equivalent of friendly bants (which she can admit in the epilogue). Some fan works depict her using orphan meat to make soup for the party, but in the game actual, never once does she do anything vile without the PC's express agreement. Fwiw, for a good Tav, she doesn't even suggest anything outrageous - even her offer to let the refugees inside the city walls in exchange for them earning their keep is only framed as "slavery" by Tav in the dialog, not herself.

But that doesn't stop with Minthara. Karlach is a literal career criminal thug who was sold to the literal devils in hell and got a nasty addiction for her trouble. Yet throughout the game, she's this cheerful teddy bear, not a traumatised junkie murderer. Similarly, Shadowheart is incredibly bad at being a sinister Sharan assassin.

Finally, somehow Laezel is often bashed for the bad impression she makes, but given that she's scared shirtless of basically the worst thing that can happen to a Gith happening to her, she's incredibly restrained just as well. The Githyanki social expectation that Kith'rak Voss voices at their meeting is that every humanoid Laezel might have accompanying her must be her slave. Instead, she not only lets the player character lead the party, she also does her utmost to provide everyone with the only heal for their condition she knows of - despite it being quite a bit of trouble.

The only exception, I guess, is Jaheira - but then again, she has a good basis to be suspicious during the cold greeting she gives the party. She isn't too different from the fan favourite bloodsucker in that aspect - except, of course, there's no chance she kills Tav one night and behaves like nothing happened (unlike a certain other companion).

Some of ya'll severely underestimate just how much Minthara loves Karlach. Out of all the companions, Karlach is the only one that Minthara has no negative opinions about. She doesn't have a mean or cruel thing to say about or to Karlach. Now, she's pretty kind to Shadow and Lae'zel, but she can still be an asshole to them from time to time. Most of Minthara's comments about Karlach is praise and approval.

If you do the Karlach origin and you have romanced her, she will urge Karlach to return to Avernus. If Karlach chooses not to, Minthara will cry. This is the only scene in the game where Minthara cries and shows that level of emotional vulnerability. Lol, she didn't even cry when she was being tortured in Moonrise and thought she was gonna die! She tries to persuade Karlach by basically saying, "I'm going to personally throw hands with Zariel regardless on whether or not you're with me, so you may as well come with me." That vengence paladin in her is really shining through. And Minthara is a paladin of her word. Even if Karlach does choose not to return and dies, and enraged and heartbroken Minthara will walk right into Hell and invent a new flame so hot not even Zariel can resist the heat.

If you do the Karlach origin in which you go to Avernus but do not romance Minthara, she will be excited to see Karlach at the reunion party alive and happy. She also says that once she reclaims her house, she has every intention of joining Karlach in Avernus and she does this completely unprompted! Karlach does not even ask and Minthara is just offering her an army once she has one, and she will provide it free of charge. Karlach can ask Minthara why she's doing all of this. Minthara kind of not so subtly admits that she's in love with Karlach, but, of course, won't use the words "love" and she dances around it.

Romanced or not, Minthara is willing to go head first into Avernus on Karlachs behalf to demolish Zariel. Do you have any idea how huge that is? Minthara has been nothing but power hungry the entire game and is constantly clawing to get more. But in this moment, she is putting all desire for power on furlough just for Karlach. She is going to wage a war against Zarial and all of Avernus for the life of just one person, a person who might still die in the end. If Karlach does not romance Minthara, she is still putting her own ambition and desire for power on hold to help Karlach in which she'd gain no benefit other than Karlach being alive.

You cannot convince me that Minthara isn't canonically in love with Karlach.

PS: even the VA for Minthara, Emma Gregory, ships these two. In almost every interview Emma Gregory has done, she specifically mentions the romance with Karlach and its impact for Minthara's overall character arc.

[lovelybucky1]

1.The Interview

main masterlist

go greek masterlist

“So you’re interested in being our frat sweetheart?” Joaquin asks, a comically confused look on his face. He holds your resume in his hand but hasn’t read a single word on it.

“Yes, that’s why I’m here,” you say, now matching his confusion. “The position is open, right?”

“Yeah, yeah, it’s open. I guess I’m just confused about why you’d want it. I mean…” he looks down at your resume and begins reading. “Secretary of the Environmental Action Club, Co-Editor of the newspaper, English Honors Society, Treasurer of the Feminism Collective. This is all very impressive, but I gotta say, you’re not the usual frat sweetheart type.”

“Well, involvement in Greek Life looks good on resumes and I’m not interested in joining a sorority, so I thought this was the next best thing,” you explain.

Joaquin nods in understanding. “Got it. I’m gonna be completely honest here, I’m not really sure how an interview for this kind of thing is supposed to go. Usually, sweethearts are just one of the guy’s girlfriends, but we’re all single. All the other frats have someone to design cool posters and take pictures and stuff, and we need to look appealing to the PNMs.”

“I do have experience doing social media for the Environmental Club, and I did photography for the Theater department last semester. I’m pretty crafty so I’m sure I can make some party decorations and stuff like that.

Joaquin leans back in the wooden chair that’s likely older than him. He crosses his arms over his chest and the muscles in his arms bulge against his shirt sleeves. “You are definitely way overqualified for us. I just have one more question,” he says. “Do you party?”

You pause. You knew your personal social life would come into question eventually. It’s not like you don’t have friends, you have a great network of people you love to spend time with. You just happen to spend that time doing things other than blacking out and vomiting on a basketball player’s shoes in a sweaty basement.

“Is that a requirement of the job?” you counter.

“Being the sweetheart is more than just a job. Like, yeah, you’ll have responsibilities, but you’ll also be a member of the frat. We strongly encourage all the guys to attend the parties. It’s the whole brotherhood part of it. You wouldn’t have to go to all of them if you don’t want to, but making an appearance at least a couple times a month would be best.”

You suppose a couple of parties a month wouldn’t hurt. You have been meaning to get out more anyway.

“I think I can manage that,” you smile.

“Perfect! Do you have any questions?” You shake your head. “Then I think we have just found the newest member of SAE.”

He grins cheerfully and extends his hand for you to shake. His grasp is firm and warm, and it lingers a touch too long. Before he could say anything else, two men walk through the front door.

You turn around and find Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, the President and Treasurer. You recognize them from the sports articles you’ve read in the paper. Print certainly doesn’t do the pair justice, because you had no idea that guys this attractive even went to your college.

“Buck, Steve, I want you to meet our sweetheart!” he says.

You can’t help but feel a bit shy in front of them, but you smile and introduce yourself as normally as possible. Steve gives you a charming, classic Hollywood smile and you almost swoon. Bucky is just as handsome but in a rougher way that screams trouble.

They’re both sweaty and flushed, fresh from practice. They’re holding lacrosse sticks and wearing matching team backpacks like you’ve seen all the student-athletes have. Steve is in a red Stark University tee and Bucky is in a black crewneck sweatshirt with the same logo.

“Pleasure to meet you,” Steve says. “I know being a sweetheart has a certain reputation, but I promise you that nothing like that is expected of you.” You’re not exactly sure what he’s referring to, but you could take a pretty good guess. One woman in a house full of frat guys… It doesn’t take a genius.

“That’s reassuring, thank you,” you smile. It feels weird to be thanking him for not wanting to sleep with you, but you weren’t sure what else to say.

“Are you free tomorrow at 4? We have a chapter meeting and I’d love for you to meet the guys,” Steve asks.

“Yes, I’m free,” you say. “Are meetings every Sunday?”

“More or less. It really depends on how hungover everyone is,” he jokes. That smile is blinding. “But none of the teams have practice that late on Sundays and everyone is usually free, so that’s when we try to do them. We’d really like it if you came to as many events as possible to take pictures and stuff, but also because you’re a member too.”

“Sounds good to me,” you say.

Bucky is still standing next to Steve but lets him do all of the talking. He seems more focused on trailing his eyes over every inch of your body. You dare a glance, and the smirk that forms on his lips when your eyes meet is nothing short of devilish.

“We don’t wanna take up any more of your time, I’m sure you’ve got better things to do than let Steve talk your ear off” Bucky chimes in, nudging his friend with his elbow.

“I do have some work I need to catch up on,” you say, then immediately regret it. Why did you have to pick the lamest thing to say? Bucky and Joaquin share a look, both with a small smirk on their lips.

“Do you want me to walk you back to your dorm?” Steve asks.

“Take a load off, Steve. I can do it,” Bucky offers.

“Really, guys, you just came back from practice. I can walk her back,” Joaquin chimes in.

You look between the three of them, wide-eyed. You’ve never had this much attention from guys who looked this good before.

“It’s okay!” You speak up. “I can walk by myself, it’s not a problem.”

The three are unfazed by the rejection. “Okay, but you’re part of the family now. We’ve all got your back,” Steve says.

You nod in understanding and wish them a good evening before hurrying out the door, not wanting to make a bigger fool of yourself. You’re not sure how it turned from a professional interview, something you’ve done a thousand times, to you becoming a flustered mess.

As you walk down the sidewalk back to your building, you shake your head. This is just another club you’ve joined. It can’t be different than running the newspaper or the painting club. And those guys were just being friendly, there’s no reason to look into it any deeper than that.

[for-your-modesty-dude]

Valentine

A/N: Purely self-indulgent. I was in need of a good crashout, and have no one to actually crash out to, so why not do so to the Hellfire boys and my one true love, Eddie Munson? - Hy <3

Summary: The hellfire boys love to tease you for your lack of a love life. It's funny, and all in good fun, until it's not.

Warnings: Maybe based on some true events that hurt my feelings? Angsty. No use of y/n.

Word Count: 1.9k

It was easy to ignore at first, because they were all your friends. Best friends, even. Hellfire was a safe space for all the nerds and outcasts who wanted to play D&D and be terrorized by their resident Dungeon Master. The group had been together in some form since high school - though they’d gone through lots of changes in that time. Members came and went, but a few stuck around. You’d joined halfway through college, when you moved to Hawkins from a nearby town in the same county both to be closer to the college you were commuting to and further from the horrible hometown you’d grown up in. They’d been welcoming, and kind, when you had known no one. You’d run into Dustin Henderson when getting coffee and a pastry at the local coffee shop, and when you’d seen his D&D cap sitting on his curls, you asked if he played - the rest was history. He’d been more than happy to give you all of the information you needed to know this was a group you’d be interested in trying out. After you’d gone to your first meeting, the rest was history. You loved the group, and they took a quick liking to you. For some reason, Eddie Munson, resident DM, had realized you had lots of similarities. You had similar interests, you both loved to talk, and you both loved that over-the-top way of telling stories that had your friends in stitches. It created an easy bond between you both, and soon you were the best of friends. 

Throughout your years of friendship, Eddie was known to go on dates, and even had a girlfriend or two. The other guys, too. You watched as they picked up girls, went on dates, broke up with or were broken up with. You were happy for them, sure. They were your friends and you loved them, of course you were happy for them. But they took note that you weren’t going on dates like they were. And at first, the jokes were tame. Again - easy to ignore. You loved them dearly, and they didn’t mean any harm, but it started to get a bit much. They teased you for never missing a session for a date, for never missing their shows for another guy, for never having a boyfriend to get jealous over your best friendship with Eddie. And Eddie often just chuckled along, which stung, but you knew he didn’t mean anything by it, either. 

So it was easy. At first. You’d roll your eyes and laugh along with them, or you’d tease them back. When you were teased for making it to a last minute one-shot session, you gave it right back to them, and they’d shut up, laughing and agreeing. But then there was the big Valentine’s session. The night before Valentine’s Day, the boys got together for a brutal one shot. They’d decided somewhat last minute, as Eddie was annoyed and had recently broken up with one of his short-term girlfriends. Even though it was the night before Valentine’s Day, most girls were with their boyfriends anyway, or going on dates then, too. But you were here, with the boys, in Gareth and Jeff’s apartment. 

When you’d walked in, nothing happened - at first. But then they started talking about how they all had hot dates the next day, and how Jeff had had to do some serious promising in order for his girlfriend not to be upset that he spent the night before the night of love with his friends instead of her. They started talking about the dates they had the next night, Eddie being the only one with too fresh a relationship end to really have a date planned. Well, Eddie and you. You just stayed quiet, listening and laughing along and asking about the boys’ plans. Gareth should’ve kept his big mouth shut, but he couldn’t resist, and finally asked you “no date again this year? You’re on a worse streak than us, dude,” with a playful laugh. 

You knew he didn’t mean anything by it. They saw you as one of the guys, and that was fine. But something about the reminder that it was a regular pattern stung. Still, you kept your smile on, rolling your eyes and opening your mouth to say something when Jeff piped in, also teasing. His joke was a little funnier, and hit less close to home, so you laughed. One of the other boys made another comment, and so it went, until Eddie raised an amused eyebrow at you. “I mean come on, you couldn’t even get a Valentine’s Day date?”

He meant it to sound silly. It felt less silly coming out of his mouth, but he didn’t know how to fix it, so he stayed quiet in wait for a response, not knowing how hurt you felt by his comment. Finally fed up, you stood abruptly, chair pushing out loudly behind you, and gathered your things. You wouldn’t be staying for the special session, damn their plans. 

Eddie, not one to know when to back down, instead doubled down. “Oh come on, you know that was just a joke. It’s just surprising to see a girl have worse game than us. And we’re all pretty bad,” he cracked the self deprecating joke, and again - it sounded so much worse out of his mouth than it did in his head. 

Something about that final joke was what made you snap. 

“I get it, okay?” You hissed. “It’s so funny, ha ha. Laugh it up, boys. You’re welcome to keep talking about how pathetic I am once I’m gone. I’m done. I’ll see you next week for the rest of the campaign.” You were clearly frustrated, and one of the boys tried to make it better, telling you they were just joking. It didn’t help. 

“I don’t care if it’s a joke! I don’t care! I’m tired of hearing it! You have no idea how much it sucks to have the people around you all have dates and partners, and never having one for yourself. It’s funny, until it’s not! I don’t enjoy being this way, okay? I am in my mid-twenties, I’m friends with a bunch of guys, and I still am apparently too undesirable to have ever received any romantic attention. I don’t know what it’s like to be flirted with, to be asked on a date, to be loved or even lusted after! I don’t know what that’s like! Is that what you wanted to hear? You’re right! I haven’t been on a date in years, but not because I don’t have game. Just because apparently, I’m not even worth asking for a phone number! You go out, and girls flirt with you! You flirt with them! You get numbers, you go on dates, you have girlfriends! Even the younger kids in the friend group have had partners galore! The girls have had boyfriends, they’ve been fought over! I’ve never even been flirted with. Do you have any idea how humiliating that is?” You hadn’t even noticed you were crying until your hot tears made it hard to see. You wiped at your eyes roughly and took as deep a breath as you could manage. “You laugh, and you joke, but you don’t get it. You’ve never been the most undesirable person in a friend group. Even in a group of self-proclaimed freaks, I manage to be the biggest freak of them all. The girl no one has ever looked at twice. So excuse me if I’m tired of the jokes, okay?” You finished loudly, and held your D&D folder to your chest, shoving your dice in your pockets and turning to leave, barely slipping your shoes on your feet before heading quickly out the front door. The cool fall air helped the tightness in your lungs from all the tears, and you paused just a moment to catch your breath. 

What hurt the most about all of it, was admitting it all. Not just to your friends - your best friends - but to Eddie. Eddie, who you’d been harboring a deep crush for since you’d met him all those years earlier. You had no idea how you’d face him now that he knew how absolutely pathetic you were - and had always been. You couldn’t even finish wallowing in peace, because before your feet had gotten you all the way to your car, you heard footsteps behind you, hurrying to reach you. 

“Hey, wait!” Eddie called, “listen, I’m so sorry. I feel like such an asshole for what I said back there. I didn’t know it was something that-” he searched for the words, reaching for your arm gently, “I didn’t know. I’m sorry. I never would’ve imagined. You’re like, one of the coolest girls we’ve ever met, none of us ever thought that you’d- be single because you couldn’t-” that sounded better in his head, too, which caused him to sigh deeply. You looked back at him and he was staring at you with those big doe eyes of his, clearly apologetic. “I’m sorry. I’m so bad with my words. You know I am. But for some reason today, I just keep shoving my foot into my own damn mouth. I just mean- you’re awesome. You’re amazing, we all think so. We teased you because we thought you wanted to be single. Independent. Tied to no one,” he finished with a wince, realizing he still wasn’t helping his case. 

“Eddie - it’s fine. You couldn’t have known. And I appreciate your sentiment, I really do. I know what you mean. I don’t hold your wording against you,” you gave him a small smile. “But I can’t go back in there. I feel horrible. I hate thinking about all of this, and I especially don’t like telling anyone about it. It feels so… pathetic.”

“Hey,” he stopped you, frowning. “Stop using that word. You’re not pathetic. You’re super awesome. We love you. We all do. And I get it, if you want to leave. But… can I call you once the session is over? I can fill you in on any of the stupid shit the boys do, and maybe I can distract you once you’re feeling up to a distraction.”

You stared up at him, once again in awe of how sweet he could be. It nearly broke your heart in two, because you really did love him. He was so kind. He’d just never be yours. 

“Yeah, Ed. Of course you can. I’ll be happy to hear all about it. Make one of the NPCs particularly difficult to deal with in my honor, year?” You joked, smiling shyly at him. 

He finally smiled and nodded, “obviously. She’ll be a super cool badass princess, and she won’t stop giving them shit, scout’s honor,” he gestured, and you couldn’t help but to giggle. 

“I’ll talk to you later then, Eddie.”

“Yeah. Later. Bye, sweetheart,” he smiled softly, walking backwards slowly, away from your car and back to the apartment. He still felt horrible, but he had no idea when would be a good time to tell you that he’d only ever dated girls who reminded him of you. 

It would just have to wait. 

[scoupsakakitty]

this is probably annoying since the last couple of requests have been about 14th member BUT i saw a tiktok earlier today of a girl pranking her brother with a fake hickey so i was wondering if you could do the same but with seventeen obvi :D

The Fake Hickey Prank | Seventeen x 14thMember | fluff

The living room was a mess of snacks, controllers, and half-empty soda cans as Seventeen settled in for a night of gaming. The usual chaos filled the dorm—Seungkwan arguing over game rules, Mingyu trying (and failing) to organize the snack table, and DK already too invested in whatever was happening on-screen.

"Y/N! Get over here!" Jeonghan called from the couch, stretching his legs across two cushions. "You’re on our team, and we’re starting soon."

"Coming!" Y/N’s voice rang out from the hallway, but there was a slight delay before she finally entered the room.

The moment she stepped inside, Seungkwan’s eyes immediately narrowed. "Wait. What’s that on your neck?"

A hush fell over the group as everyone turned to look.

Y/N, seemingly unaware of the attention, strolled over casually. But it was too late—Vernon, who had been lying on the floor, sat up slightly to get a better look. "Yo… is that a—"

"A HICKEY?!" Hoshi practically shouted, pointing at her neck like he had just spotted an alien.

Y/N’s eyes widened slightly, and she raised a hand to her neck, fingers brushing over the suspicious mark just below her jaw. "What? No—"

"Oh my god." Seungkwan clutched his chest. "Who? When? How?!"

Joshua blinked. "Guys, calm down, it’s probably just—"

"WHO DID THIS?" Seungcheols voice boomed, cutting Joshua off entirely.

Jeonghan sat up properly, arms crossed. "You better start explaining. Right now."

"Wait, wait, wait—" Y/N took a step back, hands raised. "You guys are overreacting."

"Overreacting?!" Dino gaped at her. "You’re too young for this!"

"You’re literally younger than me," Y/N shot back.

"That’s not the point!" Dino huffed, clearly flustered.

Woozi, who had been quiet up until now, let out a long sigh, rubbing his temples. "I don’t even know what to say."

"Say that you’re disappointed," Seungkwan whispered dramatically. "That’s what she deserves."

Y/N rolled her eyes. "You guys, seriously—"

"Who is he?" Mingyu suddenly asked, looking personally offended. "Tell me. I just want to talk."

"More like fight," Vernon muttered.

"No one’s fighting anyone!" Joshua interjected, but the others weren’t listening.

"Wait, were you on a date today? Is that why you took so long to come back?" DK’s eyes widened as if the pieces were finally coming together. "Oh my god, guys, she was out earlier—"

"IT’S A BURN!" Y/N finally shouted over the noise.

The room fell silent.

"...Huh?" Hoshi blinked.

Y/N exhaled sharply, dramatically pointing to her neck. "It’s from my curling iron. A burn. Not a hickey."

"Oh." Seungkwan sat back down slowly. "Ohhh."

Jeonghan’s eyes narrowed. "Are you sure?"

"YES. What kind of person do you think I am?!" Y/N huffed. "I was literally doing my hair, and I accidentally burned myself!"

Woozi squinted. "That… actually makes sense."

"Wait, hold on." Vernon, ever the skeptic, tilted his head. "Then why didn’t you just say that from the start?"

Before Y/N could respond, Jun furrowed his brows. "Wait a second... but your hair is straight."

The entire room went dead silent once again.

Seungkwan’s jaw dropped. "Oh my god, HE’S RIGHT!"

"Y/N." Jeonghan’s voice was dangerously calm. "Did you lie to us?"

Y/N bit her lip, her expression faltering for a second before she suddenly grinned. Without another word, she raised her hand and casually wiped her fingers over the ‘hickey’ on her neck. The makeup smudged instantly.

The boys collectively gasped.

"NO WAY—" Dino practically shrieked.

Y/N burst out laughing. "It was a PRANK! I saw it on TikTok and wanted to see how you guys would react!"

The dorm exploded.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Seungkwan looked personally betrayed.

"DO YOU KNOW THE STRESS YOU JUST CAUSED?!" Mingyu groaned, falling back onto the couch.

"I ALMOST STARTED LOOKING UP HER LOCATION HISTORY!" Hoshi wailed.

Meanwhile, Y/N had collapsed onto the floor, clutching her stomach from laughter. "Oh my god, your reactions—priceless!"

Jeonghan, shaking his head, finally chuckled. "Okay, that was kind of good."

Joshua sighed. "I knew something felt off."

Seungcheol, however, was still glaring. "You’re lucky this was a prank, or we’d have to have a serious conversation."

Y/N just grinned, completely unbothered. "Guess you’ll just have to wait until next time."

Seungkwan pointed dramatically. "There will be no next time!"

[deception-united]

hello fellow human

i wanna write smut but I suck at writing in general

Hi, thanks for asking!

Writing Smut

1. Describe, but don't get too poetic.

It's always important to have sentences that flow well and use descriptive language no matter what it is you're writing:

Ex: Rather than "He kissed her. She gasped. He touched her thigh," use more sensory language like "His mouth traced a slow path upwards, heat following in its wake. She exhaled sharply, fingers curling into his shirt" etc.

However, something I've noticed some writers tend to do is get too metaphorical with it, and as a reader, it frankly makes me uncomfortable when I read things like 'their bodies tangled together in mother nature's sexual slow dance' or idk.

2. Know your characters.

Smut isn’t one-size-fits-all. When writing a scene, consider their personalities, history, experience, and emotional state, and make it reflect that. For example, a shy character usually won’t become dominant all of a sudden unless there’s a reason; or a guarded character who typically resists vulnerability might be more awkward, unsure, or reluctant at first. Also consider their communication style (are they verbal? Do they tease? Do they hesitate or take control?) Bottom line is, make it more character-driven.

3. Avoid getting overly clinical.

Focus on sensory details rather than the mechanics: don't just list actions like a biology textbook. "He inserted X into Y" isn't hot—describe feelings instead (heat pooling in the stomach, the burn of a touch, hitch of breath, rustle of fabric, etc.).

4. Consent & power dynamics

Even in dark or rougher scenes or the wildest fantasy settings, it's important to have clarity on consent (unless the lack of it is the point). If your character's don't communicate at all, or if something feels off, the scene can easily turn uncomfortable or confusing. A character might want to be overpowered or controlled—but the reader should always know it’s wanted.

5. Word choices matter.

Avoid overly clinical words like "member", but also avoid purple prose. You don’t need to turn into a thesaurus and call it "his throbbing sword of love and desire" (please) but you also don’t want to be so vague that no one knows what’s happening. Overall, keep it natural; if you’re cringing while writing, reconsider.

6. Before & after

Have some buildup. If they go from casual conversation to ripping each other’s clothes off with zero transition, it’s gonna feel flat and likely confusing.

Aftercare is important as well. Once it's over, add a little moment of tenderness, teasing, a shared cigarette, something. Or maybe they don't bask in the moment and immediately get dressed like nothing happened and go their separate ways (it all depends on your characters, their relationship, and the narrative).

___

Aside from all this, it's important to get comfortable with writing first. If you feel like you suck at it, smut might not necessarily be the best starting point—you're not just describing bodies, but have to take into account the pacing, emotion, tension, flow of action, all that. You don’t need to be a literary genius, but it's good to have some sort of a foundation. If you feel unprepared, try practicing with writing simple, mundane scenes, like a character drinking coffee or two people arguing over something petty. If you can describe that in an engaging way, describing more complex scenes will seem much less daunting. Critically reading similar scenes to what you want to write in books or fanfics can also help gain a better grasp of the whole thing.

Hope this helped! Happy writing ❤

[typingtess]

Deeks and Rosa were sitting in a waiting room while Rosa's immigration lawyer was dealing with some paperwork snafu before her interview with her immigration case worker. Deeks was in a suit and tie, Rosa in a lovely blue Calvin Klein dress Kensi found on sale at Macy's. Kensi was at Camp Pendleton testifying in a trial. She was waiting for his text.

"I found your wedding album while I was helping Kensi cleaning her box called 'stuff'," Rosa told Deeks as they waited.

"Our anniversary is next week. It's good to know it survived the move two-years ago."

"That's why Kensi was cleaning up her 'stuff' boxes in the garage. Part of her anniversary gift to you."

"Part?" Deeks was really interested now. "Oh, tell me the other part. I can fake being surprised."

"Where's the fun in that? Just be surprised."

"Please." Deeks pled.

"No. I'm staying out of this."

"You're in. You know what Kensi is getting me, tell me and we're all even."

"To be even, you'd have to tell me what you're getting Kensi."

"Well, it's a surprise." And Rosa was a part of part of it. He booked a Mother's Day spa weekend at Two Bunch Palms in Palm Springs for Kensi and Rosa. He also got the annual Moshe call after Valentine's Day with a good price for some piece of jewelry that didn't move. This year it was dangly earrings with diamonds. "So if you won't share, you'll get nothing and like it."

"'Caddyshack'."

"See, you are catching up on all the good movies. Next Friday, I say we do 'Clueless'."

"I wouldn't mind watching 'Bend Like Beckham' again."

"Again? You have it on Hulu all the time."

"Because it's great."

"You'll like 'Clueless'. Kensi loves 'Clueless'."

"The way she loves '13 Going on 30'?" Rosa asked.

"Kensi doesn't love anything the way she loves '13 Going on 30'."

"That's not true, she loves you more than that movie," Rosa had a big smile. "She showed me all the pictures in the wedding album. Told me about what happened that day."

"It was a day."

"She looked beautiful. You looked handsome in your tuxedo. Mandy was so pregnant."

"The only weird thing that didn't happen in that wedding and reception was Mandy going into labor. She held that off for three more days."

"Why did your Mom wear black?"

"It was a much better dress than the purple one she originally bought. Deep v-neck, open back and the dress ended about halfway down her thigh. It was a lot."

"Julia looked beautiful."

"Yes she did. Not as beautiful as her daughter…"

"Did you know you'd always marry her?"

"No, we needed to work through some things but once we did, I knew she was my last girlfriend and my only wife."

"That's romantic in a very strange way."

"Please put that on my tombstone, 'He was romantic in a very strange way.'"

"Don't talk like that." Rosa looked at her hands for a second. "Do you think Gregory can fix the paperwork problems."

"I haven’t heard any yelling so Gregory is likely making progress." Deeks saw Gregory T. Coates III, immigration lawyer to the stars who does some pro-bono work for Los Angeles uniformed services members, military and those involved in education, making a bee-line to them.

"Those fu…..fools finally got the paperwork right," Gregory said as he sat next to Rosa. "Your interview will start in a few minutes. All the letters of recommendation are in, your school records are up to date, including your first round of SATs. You're in a very good place, Rosa. Go in, be yourself, be calm and remember, Kensi, Marty and I are all here to fight for you. You be you and you'll be great, kid."

"Thank you," Rosa smiled.

"You," he pointed to Deeks. "Keep your mouth shut. It's her show. You answer questions directly asked to you. Don't be cute, don't be funny, don't be…"

"Don't be me." Deeks was not offended.

"You can be you the minute this is over and you're taking me to dinner."

"Rosa Diaz," an assistant walked up to the three of them. "We're ready for you."

Deeks gave Rosa a peck on the cheek. "And you're ready for them." The three walked to the interview room with the assistant. Deeks didn't think he'd spend the Friday before his anniversary in an immigration office but there was no place else he'd rather be.

It’s a love s t o r y! - Densi Wedding

ncisla

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

now wait just a second...

asdvasvyosdviavias I know I haven't commented at all about the 5th anniversary songs or the stories that go along with them, but... I HAVE to comment on Savanaclaw's because it made me do a double take OTL

So the previous dorms (Scarabia, Ignihyde, and Octavinelle) have its dorm members split up to practice on their own before regrouping and then practicing their respective dorm's song together. Savanaclaw does the same thing--but, um... Leona phones up Ruggie and instructs him to go and secretly record the other dorms practicing their own routines. Ruggie goes and does it, but then accidentally lets it slip to Jack, who of course scolds his dorm members for doing something so unsportsmanlike. THEN LEONA TELLS HIM IT'S NOT ILLEGAL SO IT'S FINE???? And Jack goes along with it because technically his dorm leader's right 💀 But then when they're done practicing, Leona tells Ruggie and Jack to make sure no one sees their practice. What a hypocrite 🤡 Whatever it takes to win, I guess????

(I want to point out that in Octavinelle's section, Azul chides Floyd for dancing in the hallway because it's such a public space; what if other dorms see them practicing??? Which, of course, is really ironic considering the fact that Ruggie is actually secretly recording them. Funnily enough, the recording cutscene has Ruggie catching Azul on video, not Floyd.}

While it's not out of character for him to resort to these kind of tactics, Leona's oddly SUPER invested in making his mark on an industry he doesn't seem to care much about 😂 I seem to recall him taking issue with Rook's suggestion that he audition for VDC/SDC in book 5. Leona calls the competition a "kids' show" even though it's described in-universe to be very respectable, attracting guests from all over, and is even responsible for launching careers in the entertainment industry. He also seems to resent that Vil is there (even though Vil is the Pomefiore student Ruggie happens to record practicing in Blazing Jewel).

Is the sudden interest in winning a similar competition where Vil is still present (in Blazing Jewel) considered a canon divergence, since event stories don't always match up with main story content? Or can we assume that Blazing Jewel takes place after VDC/SDC (ie mid-March/Twst JP anniversary/NRC Founding Day), and Leona may have changed his mind since then? Though I guess maybe he's okay with Blazing Jewel and not VDC/SDC since he's in charge of his own group in the former and Vil is in charge in the latter. Has he really changed much if he's only willing to compete if he's the boss/j Guess it’s a matter of pride? In any case, Leona seems to really be gunning for victory in the ongoing event--I'm guessing not because he gives a rat's ass about singing and dancing, but just because he wants to prove he his dorm is the best one + have their handprints taken down in entertainment history.

P.S. To NO ONE'S surprise (least of all mine), Savanaclaw's song is about overturning an unfair world and capturing a "bright light" (which I assume is the crown/being at the top). The song name, DIADEM, even refers to a jeweled crown or headband worn as a symbol of sovereignty. If the song wasn't already assigned to them by some third party, I'd have accused Leona himself of having written those lyrics 💀

[momo-minomo]

Fic Fairy Friday: Batfamily Shenanigans

This week's fic rec post is dedicated to the Batfamily just BEING a family. The snark, the annoying nagging, the overprotectiveness, etc. I feel like we don't get to see the Batfamily together and friendly nearly enough. Some of these would fit in the comics, some are more Wayne Family Adventures coded, and some are full on AU. Enjoy!

Code Bat by Listentothelittlebird

Summary:

Within Gotham, the Bats are a tight-knit group - family - that runs like clockwork. Outside of Gotham, none of their teammates know they’re related. This series explores the shenanigans that the Bats get up to, as well as how this distinction would affect canon.

Momo's Notes: This one is a series rather than a single fic and I love it so much. When Dick first decides he wants to break away from Batman's shadow Bruce agrees to keep their affiliation with each other secret, with one caveat. If either of them call a 'code bat' the other drops everything immediately and comes to help. As they add on to the family the secrets they're keeping from their non-Gotham friends and teammates piles up but it serves to keep the younger, less trained members of the family safe from the older heroes' enemies so they keep it going, each new family member agreeing to the Code Bat protocol when outside of Gotham, complete with entirely different hero names and costumes. It's interesting seeing a Justice League, Titans, Outsiders, Outlaws, and Young Justice that has no idea the Batfamily even a thing even as certain team members sometimes act super shifty when dealing with other teams or after getting a sudden, secret message.

I'm not a villain, I swear! by CoyoteFang1987

Summary:

Tim wakes up in a world in which Batman doesn't exist. And by consequence, the Robins never became heroes. Dick is a Talon, Jason is Red Hood (a villain), and Damian is a League of Assassins assassin. And Tim apparently is a hero called Draken, who, frankly, sucks at being a hero. And in this weird alternate reality, something big is brewing and Batman isn't here to keep the Justice League from tearing itself apart. Tim is really really done with everything. Dick, Jason, and Damian aren't helping. Tim really really hates magic as well.

Momo's Notes: Tim, Dick, Jason, and Damian all wake up in a world where Batman doesn't exist, Bruce Wayne might be the new Lex Luthor, and 3/4 of the Batfam appear to be villains working for various organizations. There's a lot of fun shenanigans going on in this one and all four brothers have good relationships with each other so we get to see them being effortlessly badass together. The Dick/Wally in this is also adorable.

You, Me, and the Humanity in Between by JUBE514

Summary:

Bruce doesn’t know what’s wrong with his child, but he’s pretty sure kids aren’t meant to work like this. From the day he had looked up into the tops of the circus tent and saw a frightened mirror image of a boy who had just experienced the worst day of his life, Bruce had instantly gone into emergency mode. The Gotham PD had wanted to pass the boy off into the care of the circus. The circus had mumbled underneath their breaths about superstitions, about not having a boy like that with them, about not being able to handle something like Dick. So GCPD, not knowing what to do, had started talking about one of the handful of overburdened boy homes that handles a majority of Gotham’s unlucky orphans. All the while, the camera lights flash bright and loud, wanting to know everything. Bruce couldn’t let that happen. Not then, not ever again.

Momo's Notes: This is one of the most unique cryptid AUs I think I've ever read. Bruce's only human child in this is Damian and the variety of magical creature the older 3 batbros are is really neat. The way their abilities and nature interact with each other is also really sweet. For anyone who's a sucker for good dad Bruce, this one is sure to make you happy.

Keep Losing Sleep by incogneat_oh

Summary:

“When’d you last sleep?” Jay asks, curious. “Eleven years ago,” Tim says, at the same time as Dick says, “Tuesday.”

Momo's Notes: In a family as traumatized as this, it makes sense that more than one of them would have trouble sleeping. This is super short but a lovely little glance into the family just being there for each other when sleep won't come.

Brightly Colored Adhesive Papers by LuminaStarCrest

Summary:

Tim liked to show people that he loves them by leaving around sticky notes. Or, 5 times Tim left sticky notes for others to find, and 1 time he found sticky notes that he didn’t write

Momo's Notes: Another one that's short but sweet! My favorite part in this is probably the pure sass between Tim and Jason but Tim doing his emotional support Robin thing and making Bruce get some damn sleep is a close second lol

Cannonball by SunnyBlue

Summary:

Why is it always Tim that disappears? If it was any of the rest of them, it would be a lot less concerning. It’s not like Tim can’t hold his own in a fight — he’s a Bat, after all — but the kid has a tendency to form the craziest plans out of all of them, which often ends up putting him in the craziest situations. When Tim goes missing, it usually means he’s in some deep shit, and Tim in deep shit means Jason scrambling every time. Without fail. This fucking kid. Tim is missing and his brothers track him down and bring him home. Also everybody loves each other and isn't so incredibly emotionally constipated because I just want them to be happy and because I'm the author and I said so.

Momo's Notes: I kinda love Jason's pov in friendly Batfam fics. This one is Jason and Dick terrified and furious as they rush to Tim's rescue with bonus points for the quick bit of Tim and Damian bonding the author added.

Loading and Aspect Ratio by JUBE514

Summary:

So, it didn’t start out like this. Alfred would scoff at the statement, about how Bruce was trying to justify the whole situation to himself. It had started out as a simple design, black everything with black outlines and black hood. It got a little more intense as the world went on, got wind of his ghost on the streets, and became scared of The Bat . So Bruce got a little more creative with it, Alfred and him had a good laugh over the name, the scare, and Alfred had a vicious streak of humor that he had passed onto his ward- So now the suit had a visible bat-theme, an insignia to drape in the shadows and to paint across the streets of Gotham. It only took a year into the whole charade of heroism for Bruce to overhear a conversation between some goons- some low level thug hired by the Riddler this week- about nothing at all pertaining to what the hell the Riddler was doing in the sewers but instead: “ The Batman can fly, you know, I’ve seen his wings.” -- A world where nobody has wings, but people think they do, and that changes everything.

Momo's Notes: This is another fun AU with lots of Batfamily bonding and badassery. Bruce makes his cape wing shaped to further scare the hell out of Gotham criminals but it's little baby Dickie, freshly adopted and traumatized, who convinces him to make them actual capable of flight. The Batfam never claimed to be metas but the rest of the world, especially the Justice League, decided that's what they were anyway. It came in clutch tho. The main pairing in this is SuperBat and they are freaking adorable.

The Waynes, Damsels in Distress by hitthedeck

Summary:

Roses are red, violets are blue, Bruce Wayne and his kids get kidnapped every other week. Some things are just universal, undeniable facts of life.Or, in which Bruce Wayne is still Batman and his kids are still Robins, but they keep letting themselves get kidnapped because they think it's funny.

Momo's Notes: People forget that Bruce Wayne raised Dick Grayson to be how he is and the two of them share the same warped sense of humor that let them shout puns while beating up criminals and put "Bat" in front of freaking EVERYTHING with a straight face. This fic is just the Batfam fucking with the JLA for their own sick amusement. I love them.

Here's a Reminder (That You Haven't Fallen Through the Cracks) by popsunner

Summary:

If it’s a salesperson, he’ll shove them a hundred dollar tip and tell them to go away, if it’s some religious do gooder, he’ll direct them to Metropolis. If it’s a Rogue, he’ll tell them he’s busy and to please get in the fucking line. If it’s one of his siblings-- “Hey, Tim!” Dick says brightly, forearm braced against the doorframe. Dammit.

Momo's Notes: Finally a fic that gives Cass and Duke some love! This is a short one where Tim's siblings drive him up the wall out of love and concern for their workaholic weirdo brother. The snark and sass is flowing freely and the JLA's best detective/spies are being about as subtle as a brick to the head lol.

To Rescue a Bat by Blueseabird2

Summary:

Batman gets into a situation during an alien invasion and could use a rescue. Unfortunately, Dick and Jason don't think the Justice League is up for the task. At all. So Dick lets the League know that he will be handling the situation and to expect Batman back by the end of the night. He even promises that he won't be going alone. No one should stand in the way of a Batfamily rescue, even if the Justice League doesn't know there's a Batfamily at all.

Momo's Notes: I love the closeness Dick and Jason share in this one. Jason and Dick are two older brothers who both struggle with the towering rage simmering just below the surface at all times and in this fic they've come to lean on each other for support. When most of the JLA's leadership is captured and the ransom video shows Bruce to be on borrowed time Dick decides it's time to let that anger loose a little and Jason is ready to back him up (with attitude of course, but still). With their fellow Batfamily members (both official and honorary) right beside them they decide it's the perfect time to reveal their affiliation with Batman to save their dad. Bruce is SO fucking proud.

Monolith by CharlesWaterloo

Summary:

Diana realised with a jolt that none of them had actually asked him how he knew Batman. And she was just as curious as the rest of them about the “we”. It implied Batman worked with more people. ‘How did you come to know Batman? Does he have any other friends?’ His mouth fell open, and he snorted, which evolved into full-out laughter. ‘I’m sorry. Oh my god - friends?’ Diana felt a little hurt on Batman’s behalf. ‘Are you not his friend?' He shook his head. ‘Did B really not say anything? I’m hurt. No, I’m not his friend. I’m his son.’ (An AU where the Justice League haven't met any of Bruce's kids.)

Momo's Notes: The Justice League isn't aware of Batman's identity or that he's a father. When Dick needs to sub in for Bruce at a JL meeting, though, and he realizes this? Cue the sibling shenanigans! Bonus points for Duke, Cass, and Steph getting some attention and praise in this one!

Batman/men? by Bumpkin

Summary:

Batman wasn’t a founding member of the Justice League, and isn’t known for playing well with other heroes. But he does end up joining, and he does try to get along while still keeping his secrets close. It’s a delicate balancing act. Then comes a mission that requires Batman to be the lynchpin for their success. Except there’s a problem with the execution of the plan, Batman would have to be in several places at once. He’s confident he can do it. The Justice League, for lack of any alternatives, can only go along and in the process learn more about their reclusive teammate.

Momo's Notes: Another fic that's short but fun where the Justice League isn't aware of the Batfam's existence and it's entirely in non-Batfam povs over the course of an important mission where Batman seemingly needs to be in several places at once and… succeeds? Easily?

[starryhyuck]

coveting you. (m) — PATREON EXCLUSIVE

pairing: markhyuck x afab!reader

words: 4.9k+

summary: hotel room walls are thin, but mark guesses that you and donghyuck really don’t care.

genre: smut

warnings: voyeurism, sir kink, daddy kink, spanking, pussy slapping, degradation, breeding kink, public sex, fingering, cocky!hyuck, face slapping, squirting, choking

this fic is exclusive to both tiers on my patreon, which you can access here! below is a tumblr preview

Mark swears on his life that he isn’t the one who started this. He didn’t necessarily stop it either, but that’s besides the point.

You don’t visit Donghyuck often due to your conflicting schedules, with his being way more hectic than yours. Every once in a while though, your boyfriend will profess that he misses you and desperately needs to see you. He’ll buy a plane ticket for you at the next concert date, not caring which country it’s in or if you’ve even requested time off from work.

Mark likes you. You’re not as rowdy as Donghyuck, possessing more of a level-headed mindset. You’re easy on the eyes too, but he’d never tell Donghyuck that in fear of his member teasing him relentlessly for having a crush on his girlfriend. You’ve spoken briefly to Mark in passing, complimenting his skills on stage or asking politely if he would like to join you and Donghyuck for dinner. Mark usually declines, not wanting to intrude on your personal time.

The first time Donghyuck flew you out and you slept over, Mark was placed in the hotel room on the complete opposite end of the floor. He didn’t hear anything regarding your antics until Renjun grumbled the next day about not getting any sleep because of the two lovebirds.

The time after that, Mark was two doors down from Donghyuck’s room but he swears he never heard a peep. Jungwoo was the one complaining the following morning, requesting for you to be mindful of other people’s bedtimes.

This time, however, Mark is situated directly next to your room. They’ve just wrapped up their latest concert and after a quick basketball game with Chenle, all Mark wants to do is curl up in bed and fall asleep.

You don’t exactly make that task very easy for him.

He’s tucked safely under the blankets when his ears catch your moan. At first, he’s not certain he heard you correctly. He shakes off the feeling before snuggling deeper into the duvet.

Then, Donghyuck’s unmistakable voice snarls, “Are you going to be a good girl for me?”

A whimper vibrates through the flimsy wall. “Y-Yes. I promise, sir. I’ll be a good girl.”

Mark’s wide awake now. His eyes are as wide as saucers, in pure disbelief of what he’s currently hearing.

“I don’t think so,” Donghyuck chuckles. “You’ve been acting like such a brat tonight. If you’re such a good girl, why were you draped all over Mark earlier, hm? This sweet little pussy was dripping for him, I just know it.”

You had been asking Mark for guitar lessons during soundcheck, smiling shyly at him whenever you plucked at the wrong cord. He taught you patiently in between practicing dances, showing you the basics before offering to teach you in longer sessions. Whenever he glanced over at Donghyuck, your boyfriend didn’t seem to care about whatever occurred between you.

Evidently, Mark sees that this isn’t the case.

“No, sir,” you deny. “I was just asking him to teach me guitar, I swear!”

“I don’t think so, baby. I know what I saw. You were basically asking him to fuck you in private. What, you don’t want me to watch?”

A loud slap echoes throughout the room. Mark jumps at the sound and lifts the blanket to gaze down at his sweatpants, swallowing when he sees a noticeable bulge making an appearance. He shuts his eyes tightly, hoping sleep will somehow find him so he can forget this all happened in the morning.

“I do want you to watch, sir.”

“Yeah? You want me to watch Mark pound this tight pussy of yours? You want me to watch him fuck you until you’re crying? God, you’re pathetic.”

Another slap jolts through Mark’s chest. He shudders, resisting the urge to tug at his length while he imagines what Donghyuck could possibly be doing to you in the next room over. He pictures you bent over the edge of the mattress, ass shoved high in the air as Donghyuck’s hand collides with the skin roughly.

Fuck. Mark should really go to bed.

want to read the rest? access both tiers on my patreon here!

[aithusarosekiller]

You know how ghosts are stuck the way they died? Imagine if regulus became a ghost and he was permanently stuck with a torn up face, hazed over eyes, and coughing up water that isn't even there anymore. He's always just...choking and digging his nails into his palms, struggling to ever get a word out

Because that would be so cool when the order moved in. For ages it had just been Kreacher looking after him (as much as you can look after a ghost) and regulus watching him continually fail to destroy the locket. Sirius isn't there for long before he starts inviting the entire order in so he doesn't even know there's a ghost inside the house. He tries to stay hidden for a while by staying in the attic or in his own room because for some reason it's one of the only places they aren't trying to renovate? (He doesn't know that Sirius explicitly told them not to touch that room)

Dumbledore is the first to know he is there. Regulus picks up the habit of eavesdropping and one day he's listening in and hears dumbledore pause and say 'you can come in'. He looks around but there is nobody there. He waits. 'I'm talking to you, yes. Come in, please, there is little a ghost can do to sabotage our strategy.' He realises that he is talking to him just as the door opens and he's met with a sea of shocked faces, including tonks, who had been the one to open the door. Dumbledore may have called him in but Severus is the first person to recognise him. Sirius doesn't, which hurts a little but he rolls his eyes (in his mind, it hurts too much to actually move them) and tries to forget it. Besides, it's not like Alastor, Remus, Molly, Kingsley, or any of the others recognised him that quickly

It takes Severus standing up and saying 'Black, we weren't expecting you' for people to begin to catch on to what was happening, including Albus. His face is so destroyed and unrecognisable that even when it has been said, people take a moment to realise that this grotesque shimmering blue figure is supposed to be the well-cared-for, wealthy, strong young warrior they had known or heard of.

He almost instantly starts choking and stumbling and Severus lurches forward a little to help before realising that there's nothing they can do but wait. When Regulus recovers he tries to smile out of awkwardness but it hurts and looks ghastly. Everybody wants to ask what happened to him but they seem to be afraid to. They soon realise that either he cannot talk due to the physical damage to his face or he can speak but it makes him choke and hurts too much to be worth it

After that, hes allowed to sit in on order meetings and technically he can go around the house as he wishes but in reality it isn't that simple. Molly is always trying to keep the kids far away from him and he can't exactly blame her. He's scary to look at and he used to be a member of murder cult. He couldn't even articulate why anybody should believe that he wasn't still a loyal death eater but it seemed that the rumour people had taken to was that he'd died a coward. Maybe it wasn't to far from the truth. The others don't really talk to him because they either don't know him or don't trust him. Remus speaks to him once. Severus tries to connect with him as best as he can. Alastor clearly does not want him around, he never looks away from him.

Sirius joins him in his room occasionally, they just sit in relative silence unless Sirius feels like talking. He'll say something along the lines of 'you look worse than me when I got out of Azkaban' or 'what happened to you, kid?' and regulus would have a choking fit and that would be it, back to silence.

The only time he talks is the time he approaches Sirius for the first time. It's during breakfast and other people are already down so they have a small audience. He walks into the kitchen, looking around to see how everybody is doing. He starts to choke and feels his limbs fail him. It's like drinking the potion all over again and he'll never get used to it. Sirius and Bill try to talk in order to bring him down from it and afterwards, he's curled in the corner like a scared animal, looking g up at them through dripping hair. He looks right at Sirius, manages to say 'I'm sorry', then starts to choke again

[khaoala]

Lore request number 1847389291 (sorry I've been asking so much lmao new som som trying my best to catch up) what happened at firsts graduation I saw that hug and that kt almost didn't go but no details help? Pls?

anon, first of all, feel free to send fk lore questions whenever you like. i'll try to give as much context as i can, and people also add things in, and it's a blast, i love when these come in.

second of all, i'm so very glad you're making me talk about first's graduation. it's probably one of my favorite firstkhao moments.

first's graduation (he has a bachelor's degree in cyber business management and graduated with honors, he's that guy) happened on december 15, 2021, so two weeks after the announcement of the eclipse during gmmtv 2022. this event is what we (or at least i do) like to call "the event that inspired the plot of our skyy 2 x the eclipse" because it's basically what happened 😏😏

as you can imagine, graduating is a very important moment and in thailand they do this thing a lot of holding fan gatherings when an artist graduates and many of their friends come to congratulate them too (like when earth, firstkhao and arm went to mix's graduation last year).

first had a lot people over to see him. besides his family members, ofc, first's favorite bruda (tay tawan) attended, gawin, ciize, louis, love, nanon and many many others.

but khaotung, being the rascal that he is, told first that something came up and that he wouldn't be able to attend first's graduation which made first properly sulky. i'm not even kidding. they were all using masks ofc because 2021, covid, all that shit, but we know mr. kanaphan to have amazingly expressive eyes and baby boy looked so sad and pouty because his best friend said he wouldn't attend (tumblr doesn't let me post more than one video, but i'll link you to the videos and the graduation tag so you can check out his contained tantrum in the end of this post).

at some point when ciize (who is the founder of this fandom, may i add, since when they were just a ghostship, she was already in the trenches) approached first, and he was talking in the phone with khaotung and first offered her the phone and she asked "what did you do to make him so angry, khaotung?!"

ofc khaotung was just joking and ofc he wouldn't miss his best friend's graduation. he showed up and i kid you not, it was like first's sunny disposition came back to him in a blink. ofc, he was still annoyed bc khaotung fooled him and there were many instances where it looked like he was going to hit khaotung, but khaotung knows his baby bestie and stayed by his side all the time. there were a few moments when first would be talking to other people but his hand would stay around khaotung (there's one particular video of them talking to what i believe is one of the staff, and while first's eyes are on them, he keeps caressing khaotung's back absentmindedly because the next thing we assume happens is that first scolded khaotung - again - for pranking him).

khaotung was having a blast that day playing around with first. and first was also trying to look nonchalant at some point which was so adorable. you know how in the end of our skyy 2, after ayan's surprise to akk and how he says, "i told you i loved seeing you get pranked. when you make an angry face, you look so… (cute)". that is firstkhaotung during first's graduation.

you can search the tag #FirstkpGraduation on twitter where you'll find many more videos and pictures and here's the links to some of my favorite videos since i can't post them here:

[ link one ] [ link two ] [ link three ] [ link four ] [ link five ] [ link six ]

[mymegrokosmos]

You say I love you but the rest of his members reply with 'I love you too' before he can.

95z under the cut.

seungcheol sighs and squeezes you tighter, lips pressing to your forehead before he pulls away. you'll see him in a few weeks but you’re going to miss him. his nose scrunches as mingyu's hand comes down on one shoulder and pulls his focus away from you for a second. "come on hyung, we're going to miss our flight." he’s exaggerating but he’s trying to make the goodbye easier and you appreciate it. "gyu's right. go round up the kids before they cause too much mayhem." your boyfriend huffs, eyes narrowing. "the kids are doing just fine, babe. they'll live for a few more minutes." you lock eyes with mingyu over your boyfriend's shoulder and bite back a smile as he winks at you. he's up to something but cheol could use the distraction so you nod and watch as your friend's face lights up. "who's supervising?" before mingyu can reply cheol cuts in, frowning at you. "i left them with two managers. they're fine." mingyu just shakes his head. "manager-nim is on a coffee run and manager noona had to take a call." he wiggles his brows at you when your boyfriend isn't looking and you barely manage to school your expression in time. "they left shua hyung in charge." seungcheol sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. "what happened to jeonghan?" mingyu shrugs. "he's taking a nap," you all share a look. "okay, woozi?" now mingyu grins. you know that look. it means scary, scary things. "hoshi hyung..." your boyfriend throws up a hand. "minghao?" mingyu’s smile is blinding. "meditating. he was muttering something about not strangling the babies?" cheol turns to you, looking so defeated you can’t help but lean up and press a kiss to his full lips. "come on, i'll walk you over." he's sulking, pouting even as you take his hand and hold the other out for mingyu. you laugh softly as both men lace their fingers with yours, one much more enthusiastically than the other, and tug them both towards their gate. "let's go before someone gets arrested or causes an international incident." the look seungcheol gives you says he knows you're joking but that both of those options are more possible than you can imagine.

you hear them before you see the chaos, dino and seungkwan's voices easily carrying through the open space of the terminal. minghao's eyes stay closed even as you feel the energy he expends purposely ignoring them, jun's head splayed on his lap where they sit on the sill of one of the walls of windows. the other man is playing on his phone, headphones already tucked over both ears in an attempt to drown out his members. joshua sits with the bags, jeonghan asleep against his chest in a position that looks like it should be uncomfortable but somehow seems to work for them. woozi is the first to spot you, glancing up from where soonyoung plays with his phone. wonwoo waves from where he remains glued to his switch, not even glancing up as mingyu lets go of your hand to stroll over and join his best friend. your boyfriend sighs again, running a hand through his dark hair, and you lean up to press a kiss to his cheek. a tug and then you're pressed against seungcheol's chest. you slip your free arm around his waist and let your cheek rest against his chest. he squeezes you once and slowly pulls back. you reach up to cup one cheek in your hand. he smiles for you and you smile back, leaning up on your toes to press one final kiss to his lips. "go on, i'll see you soon. i love you cheollie." he opens his mouth to respond but before he can answer a chorus of "we love you too"s rings out and you both turn to see all his members watching you. vernon, dk and their manager stand just beside joshua and jeonghan, silly smiles on their faces.

you sigh. "really?" you can’t even be mad because it’s cute and you do love your boyfriend's best friends. they just smile and resume their activities. when you turn back to face seungcheol he's pouting. you laugh. "what is it cheollie?" he shakes his head, forehead dropping to rest against yours. "they stole my line." you grin. "do you want me to say it again?" he shakes his head. "no, the moment is gone now." you just smile and press a kiss to the tip of his nose. "i have to go, drama queen." he sighs and steps back, kissing the back of your palm. "i love you too." you smile. he sighs. "can i please have one cute romantic moment?" without missing a beat you join his members in a chorus of "no". he scrubs a hand over his face. "what am i going to do with you?" you grin. "call me when you land." he sighs and his eyes are tired when he meets your gaze. "i’m not putting you on speaker this time." you just squeeze his hand and wave at the others. that has a hint of a smile pulling at the corner of his lips even as you blow him a kiss and turn to leave. "love you too losers." the chorus of complaints follows you all the way back out of the building, making you smile the whole drive back to your apartment. cheol makes sure you're alone when he calls that night, and damn well gets his moment completely unspoiled. he's still sulking but you know in a few days he'll be over it.

jeonghan lounges on the end of the bed as you get ready. he's been finished for a while now but he never minds waiting a few extra minutes for you to put the last touches on an outfit, your hair or makeup. sometimes if he's hungry he gets a little pushy but usually he'd prefer you be fully comfortable before you leave so he'll trase and complain and playfully annoy you for weeks about it of course but he'll put up with waiting if it means you're happy. his priorities work in ways that still leave your head spinning a little if you're honest but they work for you both so you don’t ask too many questions. tonight he's playing candy crush on his phone when you step out of the ensuite, not looking up while he talks to seungcheol who leans his head in the doorway about plans for this weekend. they're having a sports day for some charity fundraiser and you know they're all a bit nervous even as they're looking forward to it. cheol waves at you as he makes his retreat and you smile, waving back, only to find your boyfriend giving you a look when you turn back to him. "yes?" he just blinks up at you, phone still in hand and expression expectant. you sigh. "yes, hannie darling?" he nods. "better. stop smiling at cheol like that. he's going to get ideas." you shake your head moving to get your heels from the closet. "ideas like what? that we're friends? oh no, how dare he be friendly with his best friend's girlfriend." jeonghan snorts but stands, tugging at your hand to keep you in place. "sit. i'll get them."

you don't even get a chance to tell him which heels you planned on wearing tonight before he's scooping them up from the shoe rack and striding back over. you take his place at the end of the bed and offer him your right foot when he kneels in front of you. "what's wrong with a smile? i smile at your friends all the time baby. what's bothering you today? did you two have a fight or something?" jeonghan's quiet as he slips the shoe onto your foot, his touch soft as he ties the ribbon in a perfect bow around your ankle. when he finally looks up at you from under his messy fringe he seems thoughtful. "no. we didn't fight. did we seem like we were fighting?" you shake your head, reaching down to run a hand through his hair. "no, you seemed just like you usually do, which is why i'm asking. seungcheol is normally the last person it would bother you if i looked twice at or, god forbid, flirted with." he hums but doesn’t explain, moving to put your other shoe on instead. you don’t press. he'll tell you when he's ready to. you watch the way his deft hands make easy work of the bow on this one too and then he’s standing again, offering you a hand as he checks that his phone is secure in a pocket with the other. you take it, pausing to rest your free palm against his chest for a minute and just study him. he smirks. "enjoying the view angel?" you just nod and press a soft kiss against his lips.

he stands frozen for a second as you step back before lacing your hand with his and slipping them both into the pocket of his blazer. sometimes the best policy with jeonghan is complete honesty. it always throws him off a little when you lean into vulnerability and admit something rather than denying it and getting flustered or trying to play off the way he makes your stomach flutter even three years into a relationship together. he's smiling to himself as he gestures for you to step out the bedroom door ahead of him but his expression smooths out immediately as he follows you through and towards the living room. not all the boys are here tonight but enough to make themselves known even from down the hall. seungkwan is home, though you don’t see or hear him now, and seungcheol is on the couch with wonwoo and dokyeom. you're not sure what, exactly, they’re playing but he's swearing up a storm as usual. mingyu's laugh rings out from the kitchen and you think you spot vernon and hao huddled together at the small dining table beside him as you pass by. you know woozi and hoshi are in the studio, working on their latest comeback, and jun is still on set filming for his latest drama. it won't wrap for another few weeks but you miss his presence, especially with the apartment so full of the others right now. the absence is a little jarring. chan is here somewhere, probably off annoying kwan if their discussion when you got home earlier was anything to go by. jeonghan notices your attention waver and swiftly guides you out the door before you can even utter a goodbye. by the time you walk back into the apartment, hand swinging in jeonghan's, you expect it to be quieter. it's been a couple of hours now after all.

if anything there seem to be more men piled in the living room than there were when you left. you just shake your head and squeeze your boyfriend's hand when he stops to say something to shua, who you could swear wasn't here earlier, to let him know you’re going to let go. if you drop his hand without warning you'll have to deal with him sulking about it for weeks and you're too tired to face that tonight. so when he blinks at you with one eyebrow raised you just smile and press a kiss to the back of his hand while you unlace your fingers from his slowly. "i'm going to go change." he nods. "do you need any help angel?" you shake your head. "i can manage." he hums and you lean up to press a kiss to one cheek. "night boys. i love you." the second comment is aimed towards your boyfriend but the entire room chimes in before he can. a chorus of "love you too"s fill the room and you can’t help laughing. until you catch jeonghan's eye and see the twinkle in his gaze. "yoon jeonghan i know that look. all of your brothers had better still be alive and breathing when i wake up in the morning." he just presses a kiss to your forehead and spins you around, pushing you towards your shared bedroom. "no promises angel, no promises." you don't bother to resist. "hannie." he just hums in response to your firm tone. "don't worry about them." you sigh. "do not make me call hyungwon." he scoffs. "what is he going to do?" "file for a divorce and run away with me instead." you toss over your shoulder.

the last time he called you on this particular bluff, after 3 days straight of fighting with joshua and seungcheol and all of them stubbornly refusing to apologize first, he'd found out the hard way that you meant it. you'd called up your favourite accomplice, namely minhyuk, and with his help arranged a follow through on your threat. when jeonghan had come home from work that day to both your overnight bag and yourself mysteriously missing his call had found you, and the sleepy hyungwon bundled into your backseat, halfway to busan for a weekend getaway on the beach. forget that it was mid november and the water was definitely already too cold for any swimming. you grin as you make your way down the hall only to hear jeonghan yelling after you. "that is unfair and uncalled for." his words might say he's mad, and annoyed he probably is deep down, but his tone is laced with pride and you find yourself laughing. only your boyfriend would be proud of you for exploiting his weaknesses and fighting dirty to get what you want. it's not /quite/ cheating but it's adjacent enough that you know the rest of the members are going to be clearing out of the apartment at warp speed as soon as the bedroom door closes behind you. you barely manage to kick off your heels and make it to the bathroom you share with your boyfriend, just starting the routine of removing your makeup, when he bursts in arms wrapping around your waist as he presses himself against your back like if he pulls you close enough he can actually compress you into one being. "i love you too." "hannie, i can't breathe." "what a weird way to answer that. try again." "yoon jeonghan i can't kiss you if i die of asphyxiation." a soft sigh as his nose nuzzles against your neck. "damn." he steps back and you turn to make good on your promised kisses. "i love you." he grins, forehead resting against yours as you pull back just enough to whisper against his lips. "i love you too angel." and just like that the moment is back.

joshua drops his head back onto your lap, eyes closed behind his sunglasses as he soaks in the sun. you're not sure how exactly you got talked into joining your boyfriend and all of his members at the beach today but you aren't complaining. it does feel a bit like having more grown children than you know what to do with but between everyone they manage each other pretty well. mostly. it's loud and they did pester you until you joined them in the water for a bit earlier but you had fun and they've let you have your time alone laying out under the sun since. the peace is more than they've afforded any of their members but they signed up for that you suppose. they have keep pulling joshua away for help mediating a disagreement or to show him something but that's pretty typical. sharing your boyfriend is the price you pay for hanging out with all of his friends. they've left you alone to soak in his presence for the last half hour or so, and shua has spent most of it laying with his head in your lap and a hand on your thigh telling you about his week and talking about plans for their time off next month. it's been coming up quickly and you know he's excited to get some time away from working so hard. it's going to be a joint holiday with his mother but you love his mom, having met her on more than a few occasions now. it's cute how much he spoils her and you like the excuse to spend more time together. she has great taste and she always makes you laugh. plus, it gives you so much to tease your boyfriend about and every time the members facetime to find you with his mom hoshi pouts about how she likes you best now. it only makes you a little smug.

you jump when someone leans over the water that drips on your chest is cold against your skin. you shiver at the sudden change in temperature. shua grumbles from where your thigh jostles his head a little. you both look up to find hoshi grinning and sigh. he continues wringing out his swim trunks right beside you, not caring that it drips onto your towel and the thigh that isn't currently being used as a pillow for your boyfriend's head. "kwon soonyoung so help me." your voice is stern but you can't help softening a little when he pouts at you. unfortunately he's cute when he looks so pathetic and he knows it. he just plops down on your other side and leans his head against your shoulder. "but noona, shua hyung is hogging you again." he whines, hugging your arm. he's sopping wet, fresh out of the ocean, and your whole body clenches in an effort not to let the shiver rolling down your spine shake your boyfriend again. shua has already adjusted where he lays comfortably in your lap and you don't want to jostle him again. you blink at soonyoung. "hoshi, he's dating me. he's allowed to monopolize my attention." you reach out to brush the stray drops of water he's somehow flung everywhere off of shua's forehead. "besides, you guys hog shua all the time." your boyfriend hums and tugs your hand to his hair. you laugh softly but take the hint, running your fingers through it even as soonyoung makes displeased sounds and squishes his cheek against your bicep in complaint.

you watch him for a moment, holding back your smile but just barely. shua's cheek settles against your thigh as he turns to press a kiss to your knee and you pat hoshi's cheek. "love you soonie." he sighs but stops his dramatics, just clinging to you quietly now as he tries to bite back his grin. all it takes to pacify most of shua's members is a little affection, you just have to know them well enough to know what kind and to time your delivery well. you're happy that he's done sulking but when you glance down your boyfriend is pouting at you. you realize what you've done and quickly move to rectify your mistake. shua is nothing if not here for all of the affection all of the time, especially when it comes from you. you praised soonyoung but not him and now he's going to be salty about it until he feels like he's hogged enough of your attention and kisses to make it up to his poor feelings that he was neglected, even just for a second. you laugh and lean down to kiss him softly. soonyoung huffs as it dislodges him from his little koala position and readjusts to accommodate for your movement. "i love you shua." you pepper joshua with little kisses, picking one spot on his cheek and kissing it repeatedly until he starts to laugh and push your face away. his pout slips into a sweet smile but as he moves to reply you look up to a chorus of "love you too"s.

no one is looking your way, most of the others too busy burying a very tired wonwoo up to his neck in the sand but the smile creeping across seungcheol's face tells you everything you need to know. you narrow your eyes at them and when mingyu turns to meet your gaze and jumps, you know you've perfected the scary look. good. let them be intimidated. it can only help you going forward. "you're all uninvited from brunch tomorrow." jeonghan scoffs and dino flops dramatically onto the sand. "however will we survive without shua huyng's freshly baked cookies and your famous brunch hot pot spread." he whines dramatically. "you want us to starve." seungkwan nods approvingly. "she hates us." you sigh. wonwoo tries to hold back his laugh but you can see him and minghao making eye contact. jun just blinks at you. you shake your head. "not you." he grins and returns to fixing the cracks in wonwoo's sand cage. that only makes mingyu whine and cheol turn to pout at you. "okay okay fine. but don't be late or i'm locking you out." they nod and resume their previous activities as shua mumbles against your thigh. you run a hand through his hair and he settles a little but you know he's sulking. your boyfriend sighs and flops dramatically across your lap, spanning both thighs now as you run your hands through his hair and smile. "shua." he huffs. you press kisses to his nose, forehead and cheeks until he's giggling. "say it back loser." he laughs and reaches for your hand again, linking your pinkies. "okay, okay. i love you too darling." hoshi blows a raspberry and shoves you lightly. "go be disgusting in the shade, you're both going red." shua's already standing and offering you his hand.

[chaosandcandies]

UNPLUGGED

CHAPTER Ⅷ: Clowning Around

trope: fem!9th skz member warnings: angst, drama, insecure oc, cyber bullying, slow burn pairings: hyunjinxfem!oc prev|next

THE SHRIEK OF THE SMOKE ALARM jolted Iseul upright. Her heart slammed against her ribs as she blinked blearily at the ceiling, disoriented.

Then came the shouting.

“YAH, FELIX! TURN IT OFF!”

“I DIDN’T MEAN TO! I WAS JUST— I WAS MAKING EGGS—”

“HOW DO YOU BURN EGGS?!”

From somewhere down the hall, Jeongin’s voice cut through, slightly muffled but alarmed. “Uh, guys? I think I’m stuck.”

Silence.

Then Minho’s deadpan voice. “Stuck where?”

“…The bathroom.”

There was a loud bang, followed by a dramatic wail. “THAT’S IT. I QUIT THE GROUP.”

Iseul sighed, running a hand over her face. Hyunjin.

She forced herself out of bed, slipping out into the hallway just as Chan stormed past, looking like he was two seconds away from actually quitting too. His hair was a mess, eyes still heavy with sleep, but the way his jaw clenched told her he was fully awake—whether he liked it or not.

She caught sight of Jisung, still curled up on the couch, mumbling half-formed song lyrics in his sleep. Meanwhile, Minho sat on the floor, lazily stretching, dark circles under his eyes. He looked completely unbothered by the absolute catastrophe unfolding around him.

“What happened?” Iseul asked, suppressing a laugh.

Changbin breezed past her, tossing an apron over his head like he was about to personally save the kitchen. “Felix tried to cook.”

“Correction,” Seungmin called from the doorway. “Felix failed to cook.”

“Guys,” Jeongin’s voice echoed from the laundry room. “I’m still stuck.”

Minho sighed, finally pushing himself up. “If I help you, will you stop screaming?”

“…No promises.”

Chan pinched the bridge of his nose like he was reconsidering all his life choices. "You know what? I don't care. Figure it out yourselves."

Hyunjin flopped onto the couch dramatically, clutching his foot. “No one’s even concerned that I almost died stepping on a Lego.”

"Hyunjin, I swear," Chan said, exhausted, "if you don't get up in the next five seconds—"

“Then what, Christopher? You’ll fire me?”

Chan inhaled sharply, his hands balled into fists. “You know what? Yeah. You’re fired. Congrats. Pack your things.”

"Great," Hyunjin groaned, flopping onto his back. "I didn't wanna be in this group anyway."

Iseul rolled her eyes, stepping around him on her way to the kitchen. Changbin was already at work, salvaging whatever was left of breakfast.

She lingered at the doorway, watching the boys move around each other in their usual, chaotic rhythm.

It was easy to get caught up in moments like this—to feel like she was really part of them.

But then there were moments when they, without meaning to, forgot she was there.

They made plans without telling her, rushing out the door in a flurry of noise, leaving Iseul standing in the hallway. Or they’d huddle together to review choreography, instinctively forming a circle she wasn’t always included in. It wasn’t malicious—just a habit they hadn’t broken yet.

Still, it stung.

She would force herself to shake it off, pretending it didn’t matter. But some nights, when the boys passed out in front of the TV or scattered into their rooms, Iseul stayed awake, staring at the ceiling, overthinking her place in the group.

The dorm was full, but her room felt empty.

“Did anyone actually get Jeongin out?” she asked, shaking herself out of her thoughts.

A brief pause.

“Oh, right.”

“GUYS.”

“I’m going, I’m going,” Minho muttered, disappearing down the hall.

Iseul chuckled, shaking her head as she leaned against the counter. Changbin turned absentmindedly, passing her a plate without looking, like it was second nature.

Like she belonged.

She hesitated only a second before taking it.

The dorm was too small. Too loud. Too chaotic.

It wasn’t built for nine people.

But slowly it was starting to feel like home.

The front door slammed open with a heavy thud, followed by the sluggish shuffle of eight exhausted bodies dragging themselves inside.

No one spoke. No one had the energy.

Felix collapsed onto the couch face-first with a dramatic groan. Hyunjin barely made it to the floor before dropping like a puppet with cut strings. Jisung leaned against the wall, eyes half-lidded as if he might just fall asleep standing up. Even Minho, usually composed, had his hands on his hips, breathing hard.

Chan was the last to enter, rubbing a hand down his face before shutting the door behind him. His hoodie was damp with sweat, his hair a mess, and his usual leader mode had been dulled by sheer exhaustion.

Iseul stepped aside as the boys trudged past her, feeling that familiar twinge again. The exhaustion was mutual, but somehow, she still felt a step behind—like she wasn’t weighed down by the same years of effort, the same unspoken understanding they shared.

No one really acknowledged her presence. Not on purpose. They were just too tired.

She trailed behind them into the living room, where Hyunjin was now sprawled across the floor, Felix had barely mustered the energy to kick off his shoes, and Jeongin sat slumped against the armrest, blinking dazedly at nothing.

“This comeback is gonna kill me,” Jisung mumbled, rubbing his face as he slumped next to Felix.

“Not if Chan hyung kills us first,” Seungmin muttered.

Chan made a vague noise of protest from the kitchen, where he was digging through the fridge for something—probably one of his weird energy drinks.

The comeback was creeping closer, and every day, their practice schedules had only gotten more intense. Rehearsals stretched late into the night, choreography revisions stacked up like a never-ending cycle, and the pressure to perfect every single detail weighed on all of them.

Then Minho clapped his hands once.

“Movie night.”

A chorus of groans followed.

“You’re kidding,” Hyunjin mumbled from the floor. “I physically cannot move.”

“Movie night,” Minho repeated, unbothered. “We need a break.”

Felix barely lifted his head from the couch. “Hyung, I think my soul left my body back at the practice room.”

“Good. Less complaining.” Minho nudged Hyunjin’s leg with his foot. “Get up.”

Hyunjin flopped onto his side. “No.”

Iseul blinked. “Do we even have the energy for a movie?”

“No,” Chan said immediately.

“Yes,” Minho said at the same time. He crossed his arms, giving everyone a pointed look. “Look, we’ll all just crash if we go to bed like this. You know what that means? Stiff muscles. Soreness. Regret.”

“We already regret existing,” Jisung muttered.

Minho ignored him. “A movie will help us relax. Besides,” he added, glancing at Iseul, “we should probably do things as a group more often.”

Iseul paused.

She knew what he meant. The past week had been… difficult. The boys weren’t being cruel, but they were used to being just eight. They didn’t always remember to include her, and she didn’t always know how to insert herself.

But now Minho was actively making sure she felt part of them.

She swallowed past the sudden warmth in her chest.

“I’m in,” she said.

Minho smirked. “See? Iseul gets it. The rest of you, get up.”

There was some more whining, but slowly, the boys started moving. Felix rolled onto his back, dramatically sighing before pushing himself up. Jisung slumped into the couch, still half-asleep, while Jeongin blinked blearily, confused but willing to participate.

Seungmin, ever the realist, muttered, “If the movie is boring, I’m leaving.”

“Noted,” Minho said, already queuing up the TV.

The movie wasn’t boring. If anything, it was the opposite of that. The opening credits rolled in long, eerie waves of flickering images, casting jagged shadows across the room. The kind of music that crawled up your spine and clung to your skin like a chill, winding its way into your bones with every passing second.

The unsettling, rhythmic beat echoed through the room, distorted clowns leering from the screen. The kind of thing that made you second-guess your own reflection in the dark, every creak in the house suddenly louder

It wasn’t the horror that had Hyunjin on edge—it was the proximity.

One second, he was sprawled comfortably on the couch, arms tucked behind his head, determined to avoid moving for the night. And then, like a swift, silent shift, Minho had nudged Iseul toward him, and suddenly, she was sitting there beside him.

Too close.

Much too close.

Iseul was next to him, her warmth radiating through the thin space between them. He hadn’t even noticed how much closer they were than before, until now. Every shift, every subtle movement of hers made his pulse spike. Her knee brushing against his—just a slight nudge—but it made his breath hitch every time.

It wasn’t even a full touch. It was just the shared proximity, the way their legs pressed so close it was almost impossible to ignore. But to Hyunjin, it felt like an electric jolt each time. And that was the problem.

He tried to adjust himself, shifting his legs a little, hoping it would ease some of the tension gnawing at him. His body ached, muscles sore from a long practice, and all he wanted to do was sink into the couch and forget about the world.

But no.

Not with Iseul next to him.

Not with her scent lingering in the air, her presence so familiar yet so distracting.

He could feel the quiet way she was shifting beside him, a soft rustle of fabric as she tried to get comfortable, but every slight movement made her knee brush against his, her shoulder brushing his in the process. Each time it happened, his pulse skipped.

His mind screamed at him to focus. To pay attention to the movie. To ignore the distracting flutter in his chest. But it was no use.

Hyunjin’s eyes flicked over to the screen—jagged images of a twisted, grinning clown with hollowed eyes and sharp teeth leering out from the TV. It should have made his heart race with fear. But the sudden shrill, warped sound of the movie only heightened the awareness of the girl beside him.

And then he heard it—just a soft, barely audible intake of breath from Iseul. It was quick, sharp, like she was trying to hide it, but Hyunjin caught it. He could always hear her better than anyone else, the subtle shifts in her breathing, the almost imperceptible changes in her body language. And he noticed that right now, she seemed… tense.

His lips curled into a slow, teasing grin.

“Iseul,” he murmured, his voice low enough that only she could hear over the movie. “Are you scared?”

Her head snapped toward him instantly, eyes flashing wide with a mix of surprise and defense. “No.” Her answer was quick, too quick, too defensive.

Hyunjin bit back a laugh, his grin only widening. “Oh really?” he teased, leaning back slightly, careful not to brush too close to her as he settled into the couch again. “You sure about that?”

She gave him a tight-lipped smile, her gaze flickering back to the screen, but Hyunjin could see the way her fingers gripped her knees tighter, the way her shoulders tensed. She was lying, and he knew it.

“Oh my god,” Han gasped loudly from the other side of her. “She is.”

The entire room went silent, as if the air itself held its breath in disbelief.

Then came the chaos.

Felix immediately shot up, his eyes wide with shock as his popcorn spilled over the couch. “Wait, wait—are you actually scared of clowns?” he asked, voice thick with excitement.

“She totally is,” Seungmin confirmed, his finger pointing at Iseul like he had just discovered a hidden treasure. “Look at her face.”

Iseul’s face flushed a deeper shade of crimson, and she scowled. “Shut up,” she muttered under her breath, voice barely louder than a whisper, but it was too late. The damage had been done.

“Oh, this is spectacular,” Jeongin said, his grin widening, clearly having the time of his life. It was only a matter of seconds before the teasing began in full force.

“You should’ve said something,” Minho added, leaning in with his signature smirk plastered across his face. “I thought you were so tough.”

“I thought I could handle it,” Iseul mumbled, her arms tightening around her legs as she sank further into the couch, trying her best to shrink into the blanket of humiliation.

Hyunjin bit back a laugh. He wasn’t sure what was funnier—the way she tried to act unbothered or how clearly out of her element she seemed. And the fact that she was trying to hide her embarrassment only made it even more endearing.

With a sense of amusement bubbling up in his chest, Hyunjin grabbed the blanket draped over the couch and tossed it over Iseul’s head, all without a word. The whole room froze for a second, before everyone, including Iseul, realized what just happened.

Iseul, who had been so tense just moments before, now sat perfectly still under the blanket, the only thing visible being the small opening for her eyes, which blinked in bewilderment. Her expression was a mix of surprise and slight exasperation.

For a long, awkward moment, there was nothing but silence. Hyunjin felt heat creep up his neck, suddenly self-conscious, but he kept his gaze locked firmly on the TV, pretending not to care. “There,” he muttered, trying to keep his voice casual, “now you’re safe.”

And then—

Changbin howled with laughter.

“Oh my god—that was so stupidly soft—”

“I literally cannot believe what I just witnessed,” Chan groaned, shaking his head in disbelief, clearly trying to suppress his own laughter.

Hyunjin’s face burned. “Shut up,” he grumbled, turning away from the group, hoping to hide his embarrassment behind the facade of a fake scowl.

Under the blanket, Iseul’s body finally relaxed. Hyunjin couldn’t help but notice the way her shoulders sagged, the tension melting away as she let out a quiet snort. The sound was almost like a release—like she couldn’t hold the act of being unfazed any longer.

For a brief second, it hit him.

This, right here, with her tucked away under the blanket like some shy little creature, was a side of Iseul he’d never seen before. Normally, she was so composed, so sure of herself in everything she did. But here, she was embarrassed and flustered—completely human.

Her fingers clenched the fabric of the blanket, pulling it tighter around her. And when her eyes met his, he saw something behind her gaze: a mixture of annoyance and relief, like she was just waiting for the teasing to die down.

“Oh, this is the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” Han wheezed, still wiping tears from his eyes as his laughter subsided. “You actually made her hide under a blanket, Hyunjin, what the hell?”

Hyunjin, unable to resist the pull of Iseul’s unexpected softness, found himself watching her more than he should’ve. The blanket may have been hiding her from everyone else, but it didn’t stop him from noticing the way her lips tugged into a subtle, embarrassed smile.

Maybe it was the way she had let down her guard, or the way she had trusted him, even in this silly moment, to do something that made her feel a little less exposed. Hyunjin wasn’t entirely sure why it made him feel so… connected to her.

Still, he couldn’t stop looking.

For once, Iseul wasn’t the strong, stoic girl in training. She was just a person, vulnerable and human. And for reasons he couldn’t quite explain, that made her even more captivating.

“Look at that,” Seungmin teased again, poking Iseul gently with his foot, making her wince. “You’re all curled up like a little scared bunny.”

“Shut up,” she muttered again, though this time it was softer. She didn’t pull away from Seungmin’s teasing as quickly, and the subtle shift in her posture told Hyunjin everything. She wasn’t so bothered anymore.

The teasing from Han and Seungmin continued to echo around the room, but the boys’ playful jabs were suddenly interrupted by a loud gasp from Han.

“Wait!” Jisung’s eyes went wide with realization. “There’s no snacks left!”

The room went silent for a moment, as if the collective craving for junk food was just too much to ignore. Then chaos erupted once more.

A collective groan filled the room.

“You just realized that?” Minho deadpanned.

“I was too busy laughing at Iseul.”

“I will end you, Han.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll add that to the death threats list,” Han waved her off. “More importantly, what do we do?”

Minho stretched, standing up. “Simple. We make a snack run.”

“At this hour?” Hyunjin frowned, glancing at the time. “It’s almost 2 AM.”

“Exactly,” Felix grinned. “The best time.”

Iseul groaned. “Can’t we just—I don’t know—starve?”

Jeongin gasped, clutching his chest in mock betrayal. “Noona, that’s the worst thing you’ve ever said.”

“Are you scared?” Seungmin smirked.

She stiffened immediately. “No.”

“Really?” Chan grinned. “Because someone’s been extra jumpy ever since you-know-who appeared on screen.”

“Don’t say his name,” she muttered, shuddering.

“Penny—”

“STOP.”

The boys burst into laughter.

Felix clapped his hands. “Alright, let’s go before Iseul dies of stress.”

Hyunjin could barely focus on the conversation around him as they made their way to the convenience store. Iseul had unconsciously moved closer to him as they walked, her pace matching his without either of them realizing it. He could feel the slight brush of her sleeve against his arm every few seconds, and though it should’ve been nothing, it felt too much in the best and worst way.

There was something about the way she held herself, the way she hesitated, like she was trying to shrink into the hoodie Minho had thrown her way. He couldn’t stop looking at her as she pulled it over her head, the sleeves swallowing her small frame. For a second, all he could think about was how it made her look even more delicate, and then that damn hoodie—his hoodie—caught his eye.

Wait.

His hoodie.

Hyunjin’s stomach dropped.

She was wearing his hoodie.

The one he always grabbed when he was cold.

The one he’d worn on lazy days when he didn’t care to impress anyone.

The one he’d never imagined seeing on someone else.

Especially not her.

Iseul was walking beside him, unaware that his mind was spiraling. He didn’t know if he should say something or just keep walking.

He had to stop thinking about it. He wasn’t that guy, was he? This was just a hoodie, a simple, random exchange. But it didn’t feel simple anymore.

A shiver ran down her spine as a gust of wind cut through the streets. He could hear the subtle hitch in her breath, the way her fingers tightened around the sleeves.

"Hwang," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. He didn’t know what she expected from him, but he couldn’t help himself. He glanced down at her, trying to mask how much her proximity was affecting him.

"Yeah?" His voice came out quieter than he intended.

"Do you think clowns really hide in the sewers?" she asked, her voice tremoring, more from fear than curiosity.

He froze for a second, blinking as he processed the question. A soft laugh escaped him, but it wasn’t teasing, not in the slightest. “I don't know. Why?”

She winced, shuddering as she quickened her pace, the oversized hoodie practically dragging behind her. “I just... keep thinking they’re waiting for me. Or, like, they’ll pop up when I least expect it.”

He couldn’t help but feel a little protective of her. Despite the weird situation of her wearing his hoodie, he wanted her to feel safe. The tension in her shoulders was evident even in the moonlight. It didn’t sit right with him.

“Hey, it’s alright,” he said, his voice softer this time. “There’s no clown lurking around here. Just us.”

She didn’t respond right away, but he saw her nod slightly, though it didn’t do much to alleviate the anxiety that was building in the air between them.

He stepped a little closer, his arm brushing against hers by accident. She didn’t seem to notice, too caught up in her paranoia, but the second their skin made contact, something jolted inside him. He could feel the warmth of her, the way she instinctively leaned into his presence just a little. Her steps were now in sync with his, her rhythm matching his every move.

And it didn’t escape him that she hadn’t noticed how close they were walking, not once.

He tried to breathe normally, but it wasn’t easy. It wasn’t just the hoodie. It wasn’t just the fact that she was visibly rattled. It was the way she looked when she wore it—like she belonged here, next to him.

Hyunjin glanced down at her again, his gaze lingering on the way she adjusted the sleeves, pulling them over her hands as if they were too big. It was ridiculous how much he was focused on something so small.

Then, Jeongin called out, and Hyunjin’s chest tightened when he realized what the younger boy had just noticed.

“Wait, Hyunjin hyung,” Jeongin said with a grin. “Is that your hoodie?”

His gaze flicked to Iseul, and her reaction—flustered, embarrassed—was immediate. She tugged the hood tighter around her face like she could hide from all of them. But it wasn’t just that. It was the way she tried to brush it off, the way she didn’t want anyone to notice. She was trying so hard not to show how awkward it made her. And that made him feel something strange.

Something protective.

Iseul stuttered, her face flushing instantly. “What? No, I—”

The realization was hitting her now, the connection made, and Hyunjin could practically feel the heat rising in his face as well.

“Ohhh,” Seungmin chimed in, a sly smile spreading across his face. “I knew you two were close, but this? Wearing his hoodie now? That’s a whole new level of comfort.”

Iseul looked absolutely mortified, like she wanted to disappear. And honestly, Hyunjin couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. He knew Minho had tossed her the hoodie for no reason other than to mess with her. But now it felt different. It felt… intimate.

His hoodie on her? No one should have that right.

Iseul’s stomach twisted. “It’s not like that,” she muttered, her voice barely above a whisper, but the boys were already having too much fun with it. The teasing was just beginning.

Hyunjin glanced down at her, his chest tightening, not entirely sure how to handle the situation. He wasn’t sure whether it was the fact that she looked so comfortable in his hoodie, or the fact that everyone was pointing it out, but something about it didn’t sit well with him.

Minho, ever the instigator, was grinning from ear to ear. “Comfortable there, Iseul?” He leaned in, voice dripping with mischief. “You sure you’re not getting too cozy, huh? Or maybe you just like the way he smells?”

The words hit her hard, and before she could even stop herself, Iseul shot back, defensive and flustered, “It’s not like that, oppa.”

The second the word slipped out, the entire group fell silent. Iseul’s eyes widened in shock. She hadn’t meant to say it, but now that it was out, she couldn’t take it back. Her hands instinctively flew to her face as she groaned. “I did not just say that.”

The boys were in complete chaos. Han was laughing so hard he almost fell over. Jeongin and Seungmin were grinning from ear to ear, clearly enjoying her discomfort.

“Oppa?” Minho gasped theatrically, clutching his chest. “Oh, you hear that, Hyunjin? Looks like Iseul’s already picking favorites.” He winked at Iseul, clearly enjoying how flustered she had become.

Iseul shot him a glare, embarrassed but trying to keep her cool. “Please shut up,” she muttered, wishing the ground would swallow her whole.

Hyunjin, despite his own discomfort at the teasing, couldn’t help the tiny spark of jealousy that flared up at the sound of her calling Minho “oppa.” It was so natural for her to say, so casual. And now, for some reason, it felt like a mark of something important—something he hadn’t even realized he wanted until now. The jealousy was quick, but he forced it down, trying to act like it didn’t bother him. It shouldn’t.

Chan on the other hand looked absolutely betrayed.

He let out the biggest sigh, shaking his head like he was carrying the weight of the entire world on his shoulders. “No, seriously. This isn’t fair. I deserve to be called ‘oppa’ first.”

Iseul shot him a withering look. “Not you too. Please—”

“No, no,” he cut in, pressing a dramatic hand to his chest. “Think about it! Who was the one who personally talked to your mom one-on-one that day?” He pointed at himself, eyes wide with exaggerated disbelief. “Me. Who was the one constantly looking after you when you first got here? Me again.”

Hyunjin’s jaw tensed at that.

Because, yeah. Chan was always looking after her. Always making sure she was okay. And Hyunjin? He had spent so much time pushing her away that by the time he’d realized he didn’t want to, it felt like she was already slipping through his fingers.

And now, she was leaning on him like it was the easiest thing in the world. But it wasn’t easy. Not for him.

Because the longer she stayed close, the harder it got to ignore the way her warmth pressed against his side, or the way she smelled like vanilla and something faintly floral. Or the way she’d called Minho ‘oppa’ so effortlessly—like she trusted him. Like she saw him.

Hyunjin swallowed.

He didn’t want to care about something as stupid as a nickname. But Minho got an ‘oppa.’ Chan got to be her protector.

What did that make him?

And why did that thought make his chest feel so damn tight?

Meanwhile, Chan was still rambling. “Honestly, I should be first in line. I mean, if anyone here gives off protective older brother vibes—”

Minho snorted. “Older brother?”

“Don’t even start,” Chan shot back before dramatically turning back to Iseul. “Look, Iseul. I’m not asking for much. I’m just saying—if you’re gonna hand out ‘oppas’ like candy, maybe I should get one too?”

Iseul, still reeling from the absolute chaos she had unleashed, groaned and buried her face in her hands again. “I swear to God, if I say it, will you all shut up?”

Jeongin and Seungmin exchanged a look before nodding. “Probably not,” Seungmin admitted.

“Yeah, but we wanna hear it,” Jeongin added.

Iseul exhaled sharply, looked straight at Chan, and with the most deadpan expression she could muster, muttered, “Fine. Oppa. There. Happy?”

Chan immediately turned smug, tossing his arms behind his head like he had just won the lottery. “That’s all I wanted.”

Hyunjin clenched his fists. He had no right to be mad. None at all.

But he was seething.

Not visibly, of course—he had too much pride for that. But internally? Oh, he was livid.

Because now Chan had an oppa. Minho had an oppa. And him? Nothing. No title. No special nickname. Just Hwang.

He sat there, arms crossed, lips pressed into a thin line as he watched Chan bask in his victory. The actual audacity.

“Oh wow, Chan-hyung, congratulations,” he drawled, voice dripping with sarcasm. “You must feel so accomplished.”

Chan, ever the shameless one, just grinned. “You wouldn’t get it, Hyunjin. It’s a privilege.”

Hyunjin wanted to knock that stupid smug look off his face. Instead, he leaned back with an exaggerated sigh, shaking his head. “I mean, I get it. Really, I do. But oppa?” He shot a look at Iseul, tilting his head. “Don’t you think that’s a bit much? Chan’s more like a… I don’t know. A dad.”

Chan choked. “Excuse me?”

“I mean, think about it,” Hyunjin continued, fully embracing his pettiness now. “He nags, he worries, he’s always giving inspirational speeches no one asked for—he’s basically the team ahjussi.”

Minho cackled. “He’s got a point.”

Iseul, clearly regretting all of her life choices, rubbed her temples. “I hate this conversation.”

Hyunjin smirked. “What? You started it.”

Her glare was sharp, but he wasn’t fazed. Good. If he was suffering, so was she.

“Oh, Iseul~” Changbin sing-songed, his eyes twinkling with mischief. “You know, now that you’ve said it for Chan and Minho-hyung… doesn’t it feel unfair if you don’t say it for Hyunjin-hyung too? After all he looked after you and protected you from your imaginary clowns the whole night.”

Hyunjin stiffened. His heart, against his better judgment, leaped.

Iseul, however, scoffed. “Hyunjin? As oppa? Yeah, no.”

Hyunjin froze.

For a second, he was convinced he’d misheard her. Maybe she’d said it wrong. Maybe she’d meant something else. But the teasing lilt in her voice—the absolute finality of her words—made it clear. She meant exactly what she said.

Yeah, no.

The group erupted into laughter, Minho clutching his stomach, Jeongin practically wheezing, and Chan wiping imaginary tears from his eyes.

“Oh my god,” Han gasped between laughs. “That was brutal.”

Even Seungmin, who usually preferred to play the instigator rather than react, had to cover his mouth, shoulders shaking with amusement.

Hyunjin, on the other hand, was going through it.

Not that he would ever show it, of course. He was Hyunjin. Hwang Hyunjin. He didn’t get worked up over stupid things like nicknames.

But still.

Yeah, no? Really?

Of all the ways she could’ve rejected the idea, she chose that?

Hyunjin scoffed, rolling his eyes to mask the sting. “You’re acting like I’d even want to be your oppa.”

“Oh?” Iseul raised a brow, folding her arms across her chest. “So you admit it bothers you.”

“I never said that,” he shot back too quickly.

“You didn’t have to,” she said, a smirk tugging at the corners of her lips.

She was enjoying this. That little glint in her eyes, the way she tilted her head ever so slightly—she knew exactly what she was doing. And the worst part? It was working.

Hyunjin should’ve let it go. Should’ve just shrugged it off, acted like he didn’t care. But something about the way she looked at him, so completely unbothered, made his competitive streak flare.

“Oh, Iseul,” he drawled, mirroring her smirk. “You act like this is some huge loss for me. Please. I’d rather be called Hwang than have the same title as these guys.”

Minho snorted. “Good save.”

Iseul rolled her eyes. “Right. Because you definitely aren’t sulking.”

“I don’t sulk.”

“You’re sulking right now.”

“I am not—” Hyunjin stopped himself, inhaling sharply. No. He wasn’t going to let her win. He was better than this.

Chan, who had been watching the entire exchange with far too much amusement, finally clapped his hands together. “Alright, children. Let’s move before the convenience store closes.”

Iseul, looking far too pleased with herself, turned on her heel and started walking. Hyunjin let her go ahead, watching as the oversized sleeves of his hoodie swung at her sides.

He wasn’t sulking. He was just… processing.

That’s all.

And if he happened to catch Jeongin grinning at him like he’d just uncovered the greatest secret in the world, well—

Hyunjin would deal with that later.

The convenience store was a brightly lit oasis in the quiet night, its neon sign buzzing softly against the silence of the street. As soon as the automatic doors slid open, the group spilled inside with a mix of laughter and chatter, scattering almost immediately in different directions like unsupervised children.

Iseul had barely taken two steps when a familiar presence appeared beside her. She glanced up to find Hyunjin, his expression still unreadable after the whole hoodie ordeal. She wasn’t going to think about that, though.

Nope. Not at all.

Jeongin was the first to disappear, heading straight for the snack aisle with Seungmin hot on his heels.

Changbin and Han darted toward the chips section, their voices already rising in a passionate debate.

"Original is superior," Han argued, spinning a can of Pringles between his fingers with a dramatic flourish.

Changbin looked offended. "No, sour cream and onion is the king of Pringles."

"You’re lying to yourself."

"You’re lying to the world."

"You’re ugly."

"Your entire bloodline is ugly."

Chan, standing a few shelves away, muttered, "Why does every conversation in this group escalate like this?"

Han ignored him. "Say it to my face, Seo Changbin."

Changbin squared up, gripping his can of Pringles like a weapon. "I am saying it to your face."

At this point, Iseul had joined Jeongin and Seungmin in the snack aisle, where they were already strategizing their selections. Jeongin had a bag of honey butter chips in one hand, a shrimp-flavored snack in the other, and a contemplative expression on his face.

Seungmin, meanwhile, had to comment on Iseul’s first choice.

"Are you serious?" he deadpanned, eyeing the pack of yogurt drinks she had immediately grabbed.

Iseul clutched them protectively. "Do not start with me, Kim Seungmin."

"You're actually insane," he continued, undeterred. "You walk into a store full of actual food, and the first thing you go for is yogurt?"

"First of all," Iseul shot back, "it’s not just any yogurt, it’s strawberry-flavored probiotic perfection."

Seungmin made a gagging noise. "You sound like a cult member."

"Iseul’s Yogurt Cult," Jeongin mused, barely containing his laughter.

"Jeongin, I thought you were on my side."

"I never said that," Jeongin said, popping a chip into his mouth.

"Traitor," Iseul muttered, shoving another pack of yogurt drinks into their basket.

Seungmin stared at it. "Are you stockpiling for the winter?"

"Mind your business."

Jeongin leaned in, smirking. "She’s probably stressed."

Iseul blinked. "What?"

"Because of a certain someone sulking near the drink fridge."

Seungmin and Iseul turned in unison.

There he was. Hyunjin.

Standing near the refrigerated section, looking way too broody for someone in a convenience store.

Seungmin’s lips curled. "Oh, he’s pouting."

Jeongin grinned. "It’s spectacular."

Iseul shot him a look. "Don’t use that word against me."

Jeongin just wiggled his eyebrows.

Meanwhile, Felix had also noticed Hyunjin’s mood and, because he was Felix, he had to poke at it.

"Hyunnie, why do you look like you just lost a fight?" Felix teased, slinging an arm around Hyunjin’s shoulder.

Hyunjin exhaled sharply. "I didn’t lose anything."

Felix’s gaze flickered toward Iseul—toward the hoodie she was wearing—and his mouth twitched. "Are you sure?"

Hyunjin tensed immediately.

Felix gasped, eyes widening like he had just cracked a case. "Wait. Are you jealous?"

Hyunjin’s expression shattered into pure offense. "Why the hell would I be jealous?"

"You tell me, sulky boy."

"I’m not sulking."

Felix grinned. "You’re totally sulking."

Iseul turned back to the shelf, grabbing another snack in an attempt to ignore this conversation. She was not involved in this. She was not thinking about the hoodie. She was not thinking about Hyunjin.

But Jeongin and Seungmin?

They were thriving.

"This is the best drama I’ve seen all week," Jeongin murmured, popping another chip into his mouth.

"I feel like I should take notes," Seungmin added.

Felix, meanwhile, was having too much fun. "Hyunnie, do you want a hug? Iseul wouldn't mind giving you one."

Hyunjin’s glare could have melted the ice cream section.

Meanwhile, over by the register, an entirely different kind of chaos was unfolding.

Chan, standing in front of the impulse buy section, had picked up a pack of random trinkets.

"We need these," he announced.

Minho glanced over. "No, we don’t."

Chan held up a tiny portable fan. "But it’s cute and useful—"

"Put it back."

"What about these—look, Minho, tiny screwdrivers. You never know when we might need them!"

"Are you planning on repairing a car mid-tour?"

"You’re not getting it."

"No, I understand perfectly," Minho deadpanned. "I understand that you have no self-control."

Chan scowled but reluctantly put the tiny fan and screwdrivers back. But just as Minho turned his attention away, he grabbed something else.

"Minho," Chan called sweetly.

Minho sighed, already done. "What now?"

"Look."

Minho looked.

And froze.

In Chan’s hands was a sheet of cat stickers.

Minho’s eyes narrowed. "I don’t need them."

Chan smirked. "You sure?"

Minho’s gaze flickered to the stickers, then back to Chan.

A pause.

Then—defeat.

"... Get two."

Chan burst into laughter, throwing an arm around Minho’s shoulder. "Knew it."

Just then, Seungmin and Jeongin arrived at the register with an absolutely ridiculous amount of snacks, piling them onto the counter with zero shame. The cashier—who had likely seen far worse at this hour—didn’t even blink as they rang everything up.

The total price flashed on the register, and Chan, ever the responsible leader, took one glance at it and immediately turned to the younger members. "Alright, who’s paying?"

Everyone, without hesitation, pointed at him.

"Unbelievable," Chan muttered, pulling out his wallet. "One day, you guys are gonna be rich and famous, and I’m gonna make you pay for everything."

"Sure, hyung." Jeongin grinned, already tearing open a pack of chips. "Sure."

Once they stepped outside, the cool night air pressing against their warmed faces, Iseul sighed in relief, adjusting the plastic bag in her hand.

Then, suddenly—something soft brushed against her fingers.

She blinked, looking down.

A lollipop.

Iseul stared at the lollipop resting against her fingers, its bright wrapper crinkling under the soft pressure of her grip. The warmth of Hyunjin’s touch still lingered, barely there, but enough to make her pulse stutter for half a second too long.

She swallowed, willing herself to play it cool.

"Seriously?" she muttered, turning slightly toward him. "A lollipop?"

Hyunjin didn’t look at her. He just shrugged, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his hoodie, gaze locked straight ahead like she wasn’t standing right next to him, holding undeniable evidence of his random act of kindness.

"Thought you liked sweets," he said, voice too casual.

Iseul frowned, staring at the candy. "I do, but—"

"Then eat it."

She blinked. "Are you—are you giving me orders now?"

Hyunjin sighed, finally glancing at her. "Just—" He gestured vaguely at the lollipop. "Take it or don’t. Whatever."

Felix, who had been watching everything from behind them, covered his mouth to muffle his very obvious giggle.

Jeongin, on the other hand, had no such restraint.

He leaned in, grinning like he had just been handed a new piece of gossip to wield against them. "That’s not just any lollipop, you know."

Iseul narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"It’s Hyunjin’s favorite flavor," Jeongin sing-songed.

Hyunjin whipped around, face immediately burning. "Shut up."

Felix gasped dramatically. "He gave you his favorite flavor?"

Seungmin popped up out of nowhere, as he often did when chaos was brewing. "That’s, like, the ultimate sacrifice," he mused, fake-serious. "Hyunjin never gives up his favorite snacks. It’s unheard of."

Hyunjin was two seconds away from shoving Jeongin into oncoming traffic. "You guys are so annoying."

Jeongin just grinned wider. "I prefer the term spectacular."

Iseul turned the lollipop between her fingers, staring at the wrapper as if it held some kind of secret she wasn’t meant to understand.

Something about this moment—this tiny, insignificant moment—made her chest feel warm in a way that unsettled her.

It was nothing. Just a lollipop.

And yet.

She unwrapped it, popping it into her mouth without thinking.

Hyunjin’s eyes flickered to her, lingering for a second too long before he cleared his throat and looked away again, fast.

Felix nudged him, his smirk pure evil.

"Feeling generous tonight, Hyunjin?"

Hyunjin groaned, pushing past them toward the street. "I hate all of you."

Jeongin threw an arm around Iseul’s shoulder, completely ignoring him. "So, tell me—on a scale of one to ‘this is the best thing anyone’s ever done for me,’ how touched are you right now?"

Iseul shoved him off. "Oh my God, shut up."

But as they walked down the quiet street, Hyunjin a few steps ahead of them—his head down, hands still deep in his pockets—she couldn’t help but press her tongue against the candy in her mouth, her thoughts tangled in a way she wasn’t ready to face yet.

She could still feel the ghost of his fingers brushing against hers.

TAGLIST: @leewritesstuff, @athens-09xx, @allenajade-ite, @idjdndjzbsdm, @idjdndjzbsdm, @hyuneskkam, @geni-627, @valkirymin, @miminbin, @tillaboo, @dreamerwasfound,

STORY HINT: Hyunjin's favourite flavour of lollipop is grape. It’s a little dramatic, just like him. Some people love it, some people hate it, but it’s a bold choice. Plus, it has that deep, rich flavor that sticks around.

And THAT, ladies, gentlemen, and yogurt enthusiasts, is what happens when you let Stray Kids loose in a convenience store at 2 AM. The maknae trio? MENACES TO SOCIETY. Felix, Han, and Changbin? Should be banned from public spaces. Chan and Minho? The worst responsible adults I’ve ever seen. Hyunjin? Sulking so hard he might develop permanent frown lines. Meanwhile, Iseul’s yogurt addiction is thriving, Jeongin is collecting blackmail material, and Hyunjin, in his infinite stupidity, has decided that sneakily giving her a lollipop is the best way to process his growing crush. Let’s all take a moment for Hyunjin, who is currently in denial. He will stay there for a while. Pray for him. (AFTERALL DENIAL IS A RIVER IN EGYPT) Anyway, RIP to the store employees, pray for Hyunjin’s sanity, and as always, leave likes and comments. Comment down below your favourite part or I’ll steal all your yogurt. Stay safe!! ~Candy

[emiixuu]

gratitude to dedicated

a continuation to ‘blossoming devotion’ in ‘the cat puppet and bunny doll’ series

💌 pairing :: harbinger!scaramouche x doll!reader

🌌 content warning :: unhealthy & developing relationship and characters

📝 synopsis :: and I shall have all of you, and you shall hide the pieces.

✒️ word count :: 4,084

🐰 author’s note :: after the events of blossoming devotion, before the events of puppet’s beloved

Like birds chirping, it seemed like the Fatui members probably have done all their duties with now not much to do except for their idle chit-chat. Gossips and rumours, they were almost scaring one another with their stories of what happened to the latest Fatui recruit.

An unknown addition working under the Sixth. Some say The Balladeer has sunk their teeth right into them and sucked them dry after they were an utter failure on the last mission. Others that he has quite literally cooked and ate them, forcing the others to eat with him, too.

It was you. As far as you were aware, you were alive and well. You were not eaten, you were not sucked dry.

The story has been twisted too many times to the point it was nothing but a spooky tale now. Another way to make the Sixth Harbinger even more frightening to the eyes of Fatui.

Silly rumours, you weren’t sure how they exactly came to exist. On the last mission, you were injured in the stomach by an arrow while trying to protect him. When you really try to think about it, he did, technically, taste you after you started to bleed. You didn’t find it scary, nor abnormal.

Thirst is common to humans so why did it terrify them so much to the point of creating these stories?

Kunikuzushi was, indeed, just thirsty. And you were, oh, so available to him at that moment.

Thirsty for whatever it is he was in need of.

“Am I not allowed to join you on your missions anymore?” You ask simply, looking up at him as you sit in your destined place in the corner of the room, on the floor. Beneath your knees, a kind gesture from him laid, a comfortable pillow.

There have been occurrences he has shown you kindness. Those moments were fleeting but appreciated nonetheless. You will take anything you could get.

“You will be better off here.” He spoke firmly, looking down upon you as he hovered above you. His arms crossed, watching you as if he was contemplating on what to do with you. As if you were an unneeded leftover he had to deal with.

Frankly, you were unfit. He voiced that to Dottore, too. Unfortunately, he was also good for nothing. Kunikuzushi has asked him to make you more resilient, to which he just shrugged and talked about how that would be a waste of material and time. Tsk, he wasted all that time before to create you but no longer cares to make you better? What were his plans anyways? Kunikuzushi didn’t want to dwell on that, he’d rather not get into trying to understand what was going on in Dottore’s head.

“Why? I won’t jump into danger again if you are worried about that.” You try to reason with him, not wanting him to leave you behind. It would be far too lonely and boring to stay here on your own. Staying away from him for too long would not do any good for you.

“And if you do? Do you think I want to visit Dottore everyday?” He shakes his head in disapproval, clearly he wouldn’t let himself get persuaded by you. You could plead and beg, but you will be staying right here.

“What am I supposed to do?” You ask. At this point maybe he should just ‘turn you off’ when he is away.

“I don’t know? Find something to do here?” He sighs, a little annoyed at having to deal with you, “just don’t get into trouble.”

You wouldn’t get into trouble. How could you do that, stuck between four walls? You couldn’t even think of any ways to cause problems. Flood his room? There was no water in here as far as you knew.

He left simply without saying anything else, leaving you all alone, not even sparing you another look.

Silence. The room was eerily dead except for the sound of the clock ticking. Ticking and ticking, minutes turning into hours, restless, you couldn’t just sit around and do nothing. Not to mention, all you had in mind was Kunikuzushi and he wasn’t even here to delight your thoughts.

Standing up from the position of your comfy pillow, you hesitantly walked around the room as if worried you might damage the floor beneath you if you weren’t careful enough with your steps. You stood still before the table, your electrogun, staring at it as it were staring back at you.

The urge to grab it and leave the room, following right behind him was almost unbearable. Leaving you here? How boring. You wanted to be of help to him. What if he’ll just throw you out after realizing you were no use for him? Having to prove yourself worthy of him, you couldn’t stay here. He needed you, too.

Because, who will protect him if not you? He might have told you he doesn’t need protection, but that fell flat on your ears. Your determination was much stronger than that.

You take the electrogun Kunikuzushi has given you in your hands and before anything could stop you, you walk right out the door of his room.

The hall behind the door, you have just gone through, was a long one. Empty yet fancy place. One could get lost here. You look from one side to the other, which way? You remember walking in both directions while you were following Kunikuzushi around before. But you couldn’t possibly know which way he would have gone this time. You didn’t even know what he was up to today.

Suddenly, a certain voice startled you, making you react quickly by aiming the electrogun on whoever it was.

“Ah? What do we have here? Scaramouche didn’t take you with him?” Dottore hums in thought, observing you as you clutched the gun in your hands, pointing it right at him. Your hands were trembling. You didn’t even notice him, where did he come from?

“What are your plans? Going around the Zapolyarny Palace and attacking everyone in your way?” He tuts at you, calmly pushing your gun away with his finger, “I don’t remember programming you to attack Fatui.”

“I’m sorry, you startled me, Father.” You lower your electrogun. What were you thinking? There was no threat inside the palace. You shouldn’t be so jumpy. Kunikuzushi wouldn’t be happy with you accidentally harming anyone from the organization while he was away. That would just cause issues for him.

“Did he leave you behind?” He smiles wryly at you and you nod to his question, “of course, you poor thing, he thinks you are not worth his time.”

He cooed sadly, as if you were a wounded little bird, unable to fly. Sudden wave of anxiety flows through you, his words alarming. Not worth his time?

“B- But I, he told me to wait for him.” You retort weakly. Dottore only laughs at your increasing worry, he knew he hit the bull’s-eye.

“Wait for you? And what is it that you are doing now?” He tilts his head at you, studying you. Evidently, you were doing the opposite of what you have been told to. You were aware Kunikuzushi might be displeased if you showed up in front of him, but you were doing it for him. Dottore just shook his head at you in pity.

“Come on, my child. Let’s repair that, hm?” He holds out his hand for you, luring you sweetly.

You raise your hand, hesitating for a moment. Would Kunikuzushi get mad? You were aware that he didn’t seem to like Dottore much. Still, there was no reason to not listen to your creator.

Kunikuzushi would understand. So you took Dottore’s hand.

Whatever The Doctor does to you will stay between the two of you. You won’t tell, not like you could. You won’t go to Kunikuzushi telling him about how you so eagerly wanted to go after him but were stopped by Dottore. Neither will he tell him he has borrowed his possession. It was just for a minute or two, he won’t notice and you won’t know the next time you are back in Kunikuzushi’s room either.

Essentially, nothing happened.

Sitting up abruptly, Kunikuzushi awoke. The room was dark with only the moon giving it a light, his vision slightly blurry as he started to come back to reality. He touches his cheek, feeling a wetness on them. Tears? He cried in his sleep again it seemed.

It was just a nightmare. Just a nightmare that was gnawing at him once more. He was in his bed, in his chamber. He was fine, everything was fine. He shouldn’t let it get to him. It comes and goes.

Sighing, he looks to the side and almost falls off right from the bed. Your face right next to his, your eyes watching him, a curious look on your face. It might have been a mistake to move you from the floor to bed.

“Were you still not taught about personal space?” Kunikuzushi grumbles. He seemed a bit softer than his usual irritated self as he just woke up.

You were far too close, observing him as if he was an unknown specimen to you.

“Are those tears?” You ask, your hand reaching for his face. Before you could get your hand on him, he slapped it away, not amused by your nosiness.

“Probably.” He deadpans.

What kind of answer was that? Now he wanted to slap himself instead, cringing at his own words, it must have been the grogginess. He didn’t want you to see that, it was nothing important. Crying in his sleep was no more than an ordinary occasional occurrence that meant nothing. Just a bad dream that will soon be forgotten.

“It’s nothing.” He says, rather quietly, his eyes no longer paying you any attention. Such behaviour from him was uncharacteristic. It seemed almost vulnerable, the small cracks glowing through his sharp exterior.

His expression made your heart ache, hollow yet with a hint of hidden sorrow.

Looking away won’t save him from you as you move on the bed to be right in front of him. Slowly, you raised your hand to his face again. Touch – gentle – like carefully holding a fine porcelain. Yet, touching him would be far more poisonous than the chance of him shattering under your tender fingertips.

You cup his face in your hands, surprisingly, he does not move away, nor did he smile or react in any way. He just stared at you, utterly unfeeling to one’s eyes. His face wanted to hide so much from the whole world, to bury himself entirely. You peeked behind that facade with dedicated solicitude. It was a once in a lifetime moment. Perhaps, it was the quietness of the room, coating the both of you in an engrossed bubble of each other. The moon gazing at the two of you, the only witness to your sin.

“Even Gods have the ability to shed tears.” You murmur, kissing his cheek as you sit in between his legs, feeding him with the promise of divinity, your words wrapping around him like silk.

You still didn’t understand what personal space meant, he assumed. Otherwise, why would you still be this close despite his warnings? But he couldn’t be cruel to the one who held him on pedestal.

“Weren’t you just made to be my glory, hm?” He quips, a light chuckle escaping past his lips but it does not reach his eyes.

Kunikuzushi ignores the itch to push you down and smother you with his desire. To sink his teeth into you, taste what you have been granting him with, closely and completely. Instead, all he does is slips past your hands and rests his face into the crook of your neck, warm and mellow place. He gives into this short tranquility with you. It felt right. There was no threat, he could lose himself in you. You were worthy. You were his. His rise. What good would it have done him to bleed you dry all at once?

Darkness enveloped you as the fine silk covered your eyes. One hand of his around your waist, the other holding your hand gently, leading you somewhere. Blindfolded and without any idea of what awaits you. Kunikuzushi said he wants to surprise you. You count your steps and the number is not so high, wherever he is taking you is not so far.

“Here we are,” he mutters quietly, almost as if he didn’t want to disturb the dark ambience with his voice, “careful.”

He slowly sits you down, the chair beneath you cushioned and comfortable. He doesn’t take off the silk on your eyes yet as he moves away from you. A quick sound of fire flaring, you flinch a little. Your small frightened reaction forced a hushed chuckle out of him.

“Do you not trust me?” He asks, his voice heightened to your senses, you couldn’t see but from the sound of his voice he was definitely smirking.

“Nothing to do with trust. You are free to do whatever you’d like with me at the end of the day and I shall trust your judgement.” You mumble into the darkness. You were just startled by the loud noise of a fire, that was all. You weren’t scared of him.

“Am I? Hm, so should I burn you?” He questions, you could feel sudden warmness in front of you. The fire he ignited, right in front of your face. His early amusement eerily fading away.

You didn’t dare move away from it, you stood still. No words came out of your mouth.

“Are you not afraid to turn into dust? The doctor might not be able to fix you again.” He taunts you.

“I will accept death if it’s chosen upon me by you.” You reply, but there is a hint of shakiness in your voice betraying you. A hint of fear. Of course. Even a puppet fears the everlasting darkness, to turn into nothing.

“Heh, it’s fine. You don’t have to act brave. Are you trying to impress me?” He cackles, moving the fire away from you again. He was only messing with you, playing with your mind.

He steps close to you again, carefully untying the silk as he lets you see again. You open your eyes, starting to slowly focus on what is in front of you. You found yourself in a room surrounded by a new darkness with a single candle lit on the table. A cake that seemed meticulously prepared to perfection on the rather expensive-looking plate.

You eye him, the utter confusion on your face tugs a self-satisfied smile on his, “I believe I have not given you any food to try yet.”

His words surprised you, did he really want to give you food? You did not need to eat, nor anything else of the human needs. This was not a necessity, but a pleasure. From the concealed benevolence of his, he has decided to give you a taste. A gratitude for your sweet worship. A pleasure for pleasure.

“T-There is no need, my Lord-” you shook your head, taken aback by his action. It would be a waste of cake if you ate it.

“No. This is a present from me. I’m not giving you permission to refuse,” he quickly interrupts you with a frown, seemingly not happy with your bashfulness, “and did I not tell you to call me Kunikuzushi?”

You reluctantly nodded, looking back at the dessert on the table.

“Strawberry cake,” he adds almost gently, trying to teach you something ‘new’, “that’s a fruit.”

You were not stupid. You knew what strawberries were. It seems he is underestimating your intelligence. It was not surprising he would do that. He looked down upon most people. Still, he should be aware by now that you did have a basic knowledge of the world. You nod to his explanation, “I know what strawberries are.”

“Don’t give me an attitude.” He chides you, the tone of his voice turning dangerous.

You look at him once more, panicking a little, “I didn’t!”

For a moment, he just stares at you as if what you have spoken has insulted him greatly. He was already quite lenient with you than he was with anyone else. He was even kind to you, in his own way. Gave you food, tried to provide you with an insight to the human world and all he gets is you muttering that you know? Maybe he should just throw the cake away.

Instead, he just bursts into humourless laughter after what seemed like an hour-long staring contest, sneering at you mockingly, “you should see your face.”

He was a bit hard to figure out. A ticking bomb that threatened to explode at any time, yet it didn’t. You were glad it didn’t. You admired him but that didn’t mean you weren’t a little scared of him at times. Gods are powerful, aren’t they? It was normal to fear a God.

He took the tiny fork in his hand, pointing at it, “a fork used for desserts.”

Now that was on purpose, you were sure as his lips curled up into a sly smile, his eyes glinting with sardonic mischief. He didn’t put the fork in your hands, instead he sunk it into the cake, slowly taking a piece of it.

“Open up.” He spoke in a gentle manner, coaxing you into opening your mouth for him, “you’re special so I will feed you myself.”

The word ‘special’ coating on his tongue, sticking, honeyed. You open your mouth for him, letting him place the piece of strawberry cake in there. You let the flavour melt in your mouth for a few seconds before starting to chew it, the fruity jam harmonizing with the fluffy cake on your tongue, releasing a newly found satisfaction in you. Sweet, light yet rich, and inviting as if made with the most tender love in one’s mind.

“It’s good.” You spoke with your mouth filled with it. He clicked his tongue at you, but no scolding words came out of him for talking with your mouth full, the look on his face still somewhat endearing. As soon as you swallowed, another piece came right into your mouth, not giving you a space to talk, resulting in a strained whine from you.

His smirk widened, shushing you. His free finger moved to the corner of your lips, wiping off a bit of cream on it right back into your mouth, “messy and clumsy.”

After you were done with this piece, you quickly tried to talk again, “don’t you want a taste too?”

“No, thanks. I am not a fan of these sweet things.” He mumbles, while again pressing the fork in front of your lips.

You were slightly surprised he gave you something he didn’t like. If he dislikes cakes, why prepare one for you? Of course, you still appreciated what he did for you. You were sure it came out of a place of care.

“Then what-” as soon as you opened your mouth again to talk, he shoved more into you. You frown lightly to which he just smiles in faux-innocence as if he wasn’t aware you wanted to talk. He didn’t care about your growing frustration and you didn’t try to show it more than the small frown on your face. You wouldn’t throw a fit with him.

“Then what do you like?” You manage to ask before he feeds you.

“Tea.” A simple reply comes out of his lips, not interested in having conversation with you at the moment.

He was simply enjoying feeding you the cake he himself prepared, made with only the greatest ingredients. He knew how to bake, and he was definitely not bad at it. It was not something he has done a lot. There was no reason for it, he didn’t enjoy the things he baked, and who would he bake for?

The Sixth Harbinger baking? As if he would let anyone from Fatui see him like that. He didn’t mind you seeing him like that. Definitely not, you were much different from those insects.

The last bite of the cake was presented before you, ready to eat it, you opened your mouth once more for him, expecting the taste of the velvety cake soon to meet you one last time. But there was nothing. The last bite of cake went right into his mouth. A hint of disappointment played on your face as you were looking forward to savouring the cake for the last time. Pouting at him, it was like taking candy from a child. Easy and slightly mean. But you would not complain, you wouldn’t talk back to him, would you? Smirking at you as he was chewing the cake, he seemed pleased with himself.

Without any warning, he leans his face into yours to the point of lips meeting, his hand on your face making sure you wouldn’t withdraw from him. Gently, he bites onto your lower lip to make you part your lips. And you did. He wasted no time, his tongue pushing the contents into your mouth, all of it, back where it was supposed to go in the first place, unintendedly caressing and intertwining with your tongue in an almost sensual manner. But he didn’t stay in your comfort any longer than he was supposed to, not even to explore you a little. He held back his selfishness. As he was rid of all the pastry, he moved back from you. You let the taste melt and savour it on your tongue a little longer, before swallowing it with ease. Kunikuzushi has made it seem like nothing, he simply mouth-fed you.

Bewilderment was not enough to describe the level of confusion he has given you. Did he really find this much amusement in messing with you? You could not predict his behaviour, it may be that you just need to study him a lot more. The Doctor didn’t give you a manual to understand the Sixth.

“I didn’t want to damage your teeth too much. It was your first time eating and the last bite was not so soft.” He says but it seemed more like he just made that up to feed your gullible mind, “plus you are right. I should have tried it first before feeding it to you. My mistake.”

“In any way, you should be honored you got it right from me.” He shrugs, putting the fork away on the finished plate. You were honored, perhaps his own saliva made the cake even better, that he would be as kind as to not only spoon-feed you but also directly feed you from his own mouth to yours. How thoughtful from the man you see as your God.

He did like playing with his food though. So it was no different.

“Thank you.” You say softly. He brings tissue to your lips, making sure you are all clean and proper, simply discarding it on the plate when he is done.

He steps away to the different room and in a few minutes or so he comes back, holding a tea set. He puts it onto the table, the flame of the candle still dancing, wax dripping. Taking the teapot in his hands, he pours the tea for you and himself, too.

“One cup of tea for you.” He hands you the cup and you take it into your hands, warming them.

The taste was bitter. Leaving a sharp, unapologetic edge across your tastebuds, no sweetness whatsoever. It was much different from the cake you had. So this is what he likes. He seems to be looking at you the whole time as you tasted the tea, his eyes not moving from you, not even to sip his own drink.

“How do you like it?” He questions, getting a little impatient as he waits for your opinion.

“It’s.. interesting.” You reply, intrigued by the flavour, your words careful as you drink more. The bitterness was addictive, each sip sending an intense wave through you. It was fitting for him, you were not surprised he liked tea. Addictive, intense, unapologetically sharp.

He smiles, more to himself than at you, content with the fact you were enjoying the tea.

“Want more?”

It would be Kunikuzushi’s pleasure to bestow upon you more of him.