#do you pay attention to how many substances your male friend has been taking in an overly short period of time and try to help detox?

[honeyed-disgraceful]

If you use men's mental health only as a counter argument in a gender disparity debate then you don't give a shit about men's mental health

[huenjin]

and they were roommates.

summary — who would have thought that a very naked sight of your best friend and a torn shower curtain in the rainiest of weathers could start romance? or in which you start falling for your childhood best friend, lee minho, unaware that he’s always been in love with you.

pairing — lee minho x reader, ft. binsung.

genre — fluff, smut, crack | roommates!au, bff2l!au

rating — 18+

word count — 11k words.

note — smut warnings under the cut, ofc! i suck at making summary adagafga!! but but but, i promise this story is adorable, okay, minus all that smut, my lame humor and those bit of rushed parts? this took forever and i'm so sorry for all that had to wait, especially the one who requested this uwuwu. 

smut warnings — a lot of kissing, a lot of swearing, mentions of naked exposure, fingering, cunnilingus, riding/reader on top, penetration, unprotected sex (wrap it before you snap it), choking. there isn't a loooot of smut either, ah! so enjoy the fluff ride.

"You idiot," you scream, loud enough for your neighbours to hear. You pull out the keys that hang outside in the key hole and pull open the door. "How could you leave the keys outside, Minho?"

"I mean, what if someone stole it?" You throw your keys and Minho's into the small box on a ledge by the door. Removing your shoes, you put on the pair of your house shoes by the side and walk further into the apartment. "Or what if someone broke in? You could get killed, you dumb hoe! Or worse, our new television could get stolen."

You hear no response and just the loud sound of shower running in the bathroom hits the walls of your shared apartment. You walk to your room, passing by the common bathroom, after throwing your bag on the sofa. You talk on the way, yelling in hopes that he would hear.

"Did you walk back in the rain? There's no other reason as to why I did not see you after college. Jisung was searching for you too, Minho."

You change into a pair of shorts and black camisole, pulling your hair up and knotting it, all while your ears pick up the small humming from the bathroom. You shake your head at the fact that since it's Lee Minho in the shower, he is probably going to take his own time to come out. After all, he is the reason why your water bill is so high. 

"Yah, Lee Minho!" You walk outside and hit the door with your fists to bring at least a little of his attention towards you. "Do you want the leftovers or should I get food delivered?"

"Delivery!" he screams back, hearing the shower sounds lower and you yell back in response, "Okay," and walk back to the living room, falling back and plopping down on the comfortable rexine covered sofa. 

Your phone rings in the next minute and you are pulling it from your pocket quickly all because you are bored out of your mind. It is also because your stupid best friend from the god forbidden age of five to till this date, takes forever to get out from the shower.

It's Jisung. Not that you would have a doubt even if you had picked up without looking at the name on the screen — your friend circle is that small. It has just been you, Minho and Jisung majorly for almost three fourth of your life, the other one fourth of it with you having your parents as your best friends. Jisung had always been the annoying kid in the playground that pushed you off the swing because he wanted to play and Minho had always been the knight in shining armour in your local playground, the defender of all things right as he saved you from Jisung's frustrating taunts. 

And then your mother — oh dear, she is the reason why you are still stuck with Minho's rich arse (mostly because she thought too that this is the finest her very antisocial daughter would ever find in a man) — decides that since Lee Minho was so kind to save her poor damsel-like daughter, he might as well do it forever. Fast forward to present day, and you are still cleaning up after him. 

"Did Minho reach home?" Jisung asks as soon as you answer the call. You roll your eyes and shift your position to one that allows you to stretch your leg against the length of the sofa.

"Oh, hi, Y/N," you fake your tone, mocking Jisung's ignorance. "Did you reach home safely? Did you get caught in the rain? Oh no!" And then quickly changing it back to normalcy, "Yes, Jisung. I reached home safely. The rain did get heavy as I walked back home but nothing to worry. Did you reach home safely?"

Jisung is laughing loudly on the other end. "Sorry, Y/N," he makes a weird kissing sound and you pull your phone away from your ear. "I presume Minho's safe at home, else you would be the one to crash my phone with the endless calls in worry of his safety. Ha!"

"He got caught in the rain," you sigh. "I hope he's okay though. I would have mentioned how he was, had he just come out of that goddamn bathroom but no! It almost seems like he is rebuilding the whole bathroom." Jisung laughs so loud that you have to pull the phone away from your ear again. 

"Dude, dude, dude," Jisung calls out for you through the line.

"Yeah?" 

"You and Minho are totally like my parents fighting." 

"Do you want to get punched in your face, Han Jisung?" You sit up straight, folding your leg across each other and bending forward, your elbow digging into your thigh as your hand supports your head. 

"And my boyfriend would punch yours if you punched mine," he huffs and you know he is talking about Seo Changbin. At a good five feet and six inches, the shorter male befriended Jisung and then wooed him over in grade eleven with some weird shining universe experiment for a science project and the Han Jisung you had always known, fell for the gesture immediately. They began dating a week after, making Changbin the only other human being you willingly chose to become closer to.

"Like Minho would let that," you click your tongue and Jisung laughs again, mumbling, "How have you guys not slept with each other yet? You guys are roommates."

"I'll kill you, Han Jisung."

"Like you would." The minute Jisung taunts back, you hear a loud noise of something crashing down and the sound is from the bathroom. You jump upwards, quickly hanging up without even telling Jisung that you were leaving as you drop your phone and rush towards the bathroom, taking huge steps to reach before the door in less than a few seconds.

You slam your fist against the door, over and over again, yelling, "Yah," to draw his attention before asking, "Minho, are you okay? I'm coming in," and you pull open the door to the common bathroom. A decision you wish you had not chosen but one you had to take for his safety.

Before a very surprised you lay a very, very naked Lee Minho, groaning with his back against the cold white tiles of the bathroom, neck lifting his head above to instinctively avoid hitting the floor. His hand holds a huge piece of the shower curtain that he must have tried holding onto before falling and as the colour drains from your face, lips wide apart, staring at your naked best friend in shock who is staring back at you, it dawns upon you quickly.

You immediately slap your hand over your eyes and scream as loud as you could possibly, "Fuck, fuck. I just saw your schlong, oh my god!"

"Are you not going to look at me at all now that you saw my dick?"

Minho rolls his eyes at you as a soft groan leaves his lip while he tries to make himself more comfortable on his bed. This time, he is fully clothed, black shirt over his torso and navy blue shorts. You are sitting on a small chair by his side, Chinese herbal medicinal mix in a white ceramic bowl, a tub filled with warm water and a towel and long white bandages on the table by the bed. The Chinese herbal medicinal mix was something your mother specifically ordered you to prepare for the boy before you.

You hand him a cup of warm water first which he takes and is about to swallow it down when you look at the wooden bedpost behind him and mumble, "But I saw your womb raider." Minho chokes on the water before coughing and you quickly pat his back which leads him to cry softly in pain and you are left apologising over and over again for being reckless.

He places the cup on the table and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he narrows his eyes at you and questions, "Womb raider? What the fuck?"

"You know, your schlong," you look away, heat rising up to your cheek. "I saw your schlong, a womb raider."

"I can't believe you call a dick that," he groans, rolling his eyes as if he has completely given up on you, "After having your womb raided enough by many womb raiders."

You look away, taking the ceramic bowl in your hand and mumbling, "None of them were long and thick enough to be called a womb raider though."

"Did you say anything, Y/N?" 

"Nothing," you yell and glare at him, cheeks still hot with the image still vivid in your head. "You can't look disappointed in me," you frown at him, "I should be disappointed. You tore the shower curtain."

"It was a mistake!" Minho gasps and tries to sit up but quickly ditches the plan when he feels the spin surge through him. You place the bowl back on the table and push yourself forward to help Minho sit up, your arms wrapped around his waist, your chest against his as you slowly pull him up. Minho explains himself, "If I didn't hold onto that, I would have gotten injured worse. I'm almost perfect now. It's just the slight—" You press your palm against his back and he seethes in pain.

"Slight pain, indeed," you scoff and finally let him rest against the bedpost. "This should do the magic though." You lift the ceramic bowl again and wave it before him, shoving the weird smelling green substance right in front of his nose. "My mother totally said it would work. She also said that you would have to be on the bed resting the whole day."

"You'll be my maid the whole day," Minho lights up, face instantly shining and you sigh, "Do I have an option? After this day though, we are going to buy shower curtains and you are going to pay for it because you tore it." You accuse him and he clicks his tongue.

"Fine."

"Remove your shirt now," you order and he looks at you, a teasing glint glistening in his eyes and he smiles, moving slightly closer.

"Why? Are you going to call my abs washboard now? That you could do laundry on them?" He purses his lips and leans forward and you push him back, his aching back hitting the bedpost again and Minho is crying with pain on the soft impact, albeit this time, you worry if it is fake. "Y/N," he cries, clamping down against his lower teeth hard, "Can you go easy on me?"

"Then stop teasing me!"

"Fine!" He huffs and looks away, "Help me out of this shirt now."

"What? Why? You put the shirt on fine. Can't you remove it on your own?" You question him, the ceramic bowl securely on your lap. Minho stares at you for the longest time ever and you stare back.

Has his eyes always been this tender? Has his skin always been this soft? Was Lee Minho always this charming and pretty to look at?

This is all because you saw his stupidly good dick, argh!

Minho finally answers, "It's harder to remove a shirt than to wear it." You shake your head and your eyes narrow to crinkled slits as you watch your best friend for a second more before placing the crucible back on the table and bending yourself forward to hold tightly the ends of his black shirt. You lift the black material up and remove it from his torso, exposing his abdomen and chest to the warm breeze in the air. 

He stares at you and you stare at him back, only till you take the white ceramic bowl again and hopefully the last time and you raise an eyebrow at him, mocking him, "Aren't you going to give me the classic Wattpad naked white male line?"

"What line?" 

He looks confused and you laugh, holding the bowl tightly, "You know, the—" You try to lower the pitch of your voice and to sound as cocky as possible, smirking, "Like what you see, baby girl?"

Minho laughs with you till he calms himself down a little, tilts his head and in the most guttural voice you have ever heard your best friend ever go, he repeats, "Like what you see, my baby girl?"

Your heart should not have sped up. Your fingers should not have tightened against the cold white crucible. You should not have pressed your thighs against each other. You should not have had your throat dried up at his very words. But it did and you are staring at Lee Minho in an angle you had never seen him. 

When did that stupid five year old boy who thought he could save the whole world grow up into this man?

"Uh, Y/N," Minho waves his hand in front of you, trying to bring your attention back. "Are you going to apply the medicine or? I mean, it's cold."

"Oh yeah," you stutter. "Yeah, yeah, I was about to. Can you turn back so that I can apply it on your back?"

"Yeah," he nods and pressing his hands into the mattress, he shifts himself, turning a one hundred and eight degrees away from you so that his back is facing yours. "This okay?"

"Yeah," you agree. You bend your arm forward to take the cloth soaked in warm water and you press it against his back. Minho bites his tongue in pain, eyes watering before he can't take it anymore and he turns back to face you. 

"Minho?"

"Can I do that thing you allowed me to do whenever I was in pain and you had to take care of me?" He asks, unsure, "Am I allowed?"

You nod, softly, smiling warmly at the man before you and you lift the chair up slightly. Minho quickly wraps his arms around your waist, his face buried into your soft chest as he edges closer to you. You place the warm cloth again on his broad back and Minho does what he has always done to combat pain.

He bites into your flesh softly, hard enough to trigger something weird within you at this age but soft enough to not cause any pain. 

Your eyes widen and your thighs tighten a bit but Minho is unaware to all this as he snuggles into your warmth, head fuzzy with the pain that throbs through his entire back. After a few minutes, you place the cloth back on the table and hold the crucible tightly. You dig your forefinger and middle finger into the green mix before applying it on his back, soft circles to calm him down and Minho lets go of your flesh, although he still continues to snuggle into you, his thick arms tightening around your frame.

"You're comfortable to hug," he mumbles as you apply the medicine all over his back, his face occasionally pressing against your breast and you gulp, reminding yourself that this is your best friend, that this is the kid you've seen in all his embarrassments. 

"Of course, I am," you laugh. "It doesn't pain that much, does it?"

"Not anymore."

"Good," and you apply another layer over the existing one. "Because if you say anything else to my mother, I swear to God, Lee Minho, I will—"

You don't complete. Minho laughs — soft, precious laughter that fills the air and engages your ears. He tilts his head to look up at you from his lower angle. You look down only to come in direct vision of his bright, glistening eyes that hold the stars behind them and his oh-so-flawless skin that you are envious of. Your heart beat escalates and you are about one hundred percent sure that Minho is aware. After all, he did have his ear against your chest in this position. 

"Fine, fine," his voice is airy and you could listen to it the whole day. "I'll tell your mother that her daughter took care of me perfectly, alright?"

"Perfect," you smile. "Now sit up straight. I need to bandage you up, just in case." Minho begrudgingly pulls back, a soft whimper leaving his lips before he huffs, folding his arms and sitting straight, looking you in the eyes and you gulp. 

"I'll be fine in a day, Y/N," Minho whines and you shake your head, mumbling, "Just in case." You turn your body to grab hold of the white roll of bandage before you beckon for him to come a little closer as you wrap the bandage over his torso, covering the medicinal herbs sticking to his body now. 

"You, in fact," you chuckle as you tighten the bandage and Minho seethes in pain at having his muscles pressed. You rub his hair affectionately before continuing, "You, Lee Minho, should be ready enough to cash out money for the shower curtain."

"Fine, fine, fine," Minho huffs only to break out into a smile as he looks at you. "We'll go as soon as I don't think I'll die if I stand up and straighten my back, okay?"

"Perfect," you laugh and pull yourself away from your best friend, clipping the bandage in the exact manner. You help him lie back against the soft mattress. You pick up the crucible and the tub of water as you stand up. 

"Y/N," Minho calls out for you and you turn, your head gliding against the joint and your eyebrows rising up in question.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks," he smiles, eyes closed and face so soft that you do want to hold it.

"For what?"

"For taking care of me, doofus. What would I have done had you not been there? You are my knight in shining armour now."

You laugh but your heart is furiously beating against your chest, thrumming against it so loudly that you can hear the beats. Your cheeks flush with heat and you look away, mumbling, "It's nothing," and walk away. You close the door quickly and fall against the vast wooden door finally, away from his presence and you hold the bowls close to you.

Fuck. When did your heart start beating this hard for the same man that you once knew as the stupid five year old with elephant print trunks? When did your heart start thrumming so loudly against your chest for your only best friend?

Either ways, you are doomed. Inevitably.

Jisung: baby, i think it's about time Changbin: for what? Jisung: you know, how we always said those two should probably fuck Changbin: yeah? Jisung: the sexual tension is too high. can we get it over with already and have them date already? Changbin: you've been trying this forever and you failed. Jisung: don't remind me. you're my boyfriend, support me. Changbin: fine! go, sungie!! i love you either way though.

It is exactly three days after the I-exposed-my-cock incident that Lee Minho agrees to go with you to buy the shower curtains. 

"Can't we just buy it online?" He had whined, arms folding against each other as he scrolled through his phone. You stand by the sofa, head shaking in disappointment as you reason back, frustrated, "The material," and you hit his arm. Minho winces. "The material is important. I won't compromise on that. Plus, you promised that you would come with me to buy something that you tore. Isn't that only fair?"

Minho does so. After bargaining with him for one tub full of mint chocolate ice cream that you will never understand why he loves so much. 

That is exactly how you find yourself here in this shop, shopping cart in your hand and Minho by your side.

"We are only buying the shower curtain," you tell him, staring at the half full shopping cart. "So I don't understand why we need all these."

Minho smiles sheepishly at you. He then points at the two tubs of ice cream and says, "One for you, and one for me. I even chose your favorite flavor!" He continues to point at each article and tell why he needs them very articulately and you stand there in surprise before breaking his speech.

"Fine, fine!" You push the cart ahead. "Now let's just go and get what we came here for." Minho follows you, his one hand on the shopping cart handle to keep pace with you. The two of you stop right in front of the array of curtains in different colours, some on display and some packaged and you smile, whispering under your breath, "Tada." Minho looks at you softly, at the small voice of joy that escapes your lips and he just watches you light up in fascination at something as simple as shower curtains.

Fuck, he loves your domesticity.

"Let's take this," Minho announces as he stretches his arms out to hold onto a pretty blue shower curtain. You hold it in between your fingers feeling the texture before announcing, "No."

"But why?" Minho whines, following your footsteps as you hold onto another shower curtain. 

"Because it's polythene," you frown at your best friend. Minho looks at you, confused, his eyebrows furrowing as they look at you like you have grown another pair of hands and legs.

"And so?"

"You could tear it again!"

"It happened once," he sighs, frustrated. "Once. It's not like I'm waiting to fall in the shower, tear the curtain and have you see my dick all the time, babe."

Your cheeks flush at his announcement and the tag he calls you by, your eyes looking away from his pretty face for a split second. Minho shakes his hand, taking a step forward to check a few other shower curtains out when the two of you hear a very familiar voice from behind, in the most professional manner ever.

"Sir, the one you chose is perfect. It is very durable and doesn't stain on contact with water—"

"Han Jisung?" Minho turns, the words of shock leaving his mouth almost instantly. You turn impulsively, eyes wide.

"What the fuck are you guys doing here?"

"Hey," you narrow your eyes at the other male. "I could file a report for bad customer service about now, Sungie."

He folds his arms and looks at the two of you suspiciously, "What are you guys doing here?" He raises an eyebrow at you, scoffing at you, "Like you would."

"What does it look like we're doing here, Sungie?" You bite back jokingly and Jisung laughs, gaze shifting between the two of you.

"I don't know," he runs a hand through his hair before folding his arms again, his fluorescent yellow uniform crumbling with the shift in his arms. "Is this some sort of a new way to date?"

"We aren't—" You quickly start when Minho pulls a curtain forward and breaks your sentence before you can complete as he asks Jisung, "This isn't polythene, is it?"

"Are you stupid?" Jisung frowns before he laughs. "That's clearly polythene. Minho, dude, you're a chemical engineering student. You have got to be kidding me if you can't identify polythene."

Minho doesn't pay heed to Jisung's words. You, on the other hand, stare at your best friend who walks away from you to examine more shower curtains. Did Lee Minho really ask Jisung, a literature student, whether that was polythene — What in the world?

"Y/N? Earth to Y/N?" Jisung snaps your attention back to the present. "Are you going to buy shower curtains today?"

"Yeah?"

"But your shower curtains were fine the last time I came home." You understand Jisung's surprise because the last time he did come home was five days back and the shower curtain was in a perfect condition. "What happened?"

You stretch your arms and point at Minho. The very culprit rolls his eyes before raising his eyebrows and sighing, voicing in the most dramatic voice you have ever heard Minho take, "Yes, Y/N. Yes, Ji. It's me. I tore the shower curtain because I fell in the shower."

"Ouch," Jisung acknowledges Minho's injury before walking past the two of you and taking a shower curtain. "Here's one. You might like this, Y/N."

"It's not PVC, Sungie."

Jisung wants to hit your head, terribly. Perhaps it's your adamance that is the reason as to why your friendship is this tight and strong but in moments like these, he likes Minho more. Minho stands by the side, arms folded and back resting against the wall as he trusts your judgement.

"Are you not going to tell her anything?"

"She handles all this at home. Give her what she wants, Ji," he laughs, fiddling with a few more shower curtains by his side. Jisung shakes his head in disappointment before mumbling, a soft frustrated groan leaving his lips as he throws his head back, "Definitely a married couple," and takes a few polyvinyl chloride made shower curtains. 

"Here," he presses his lips. "Don't blame me if the designs aren't that great. You don't get that many good designs in PVC. People go for polythene because it's more available."

"PVC doesn't tear and it's easy to clean!"

"Seconding this as a chemical engineering student," Minho chirps in from behind. You and Jisung turn to look at the man who is on his phone currently and shake your head lightly. "What?"

"He remembers his major now!" Jisung clicks his tongue. "All say, praise the Lord."

"I'm agnostic." You frown.

"More reasons for you to say it easily!"

You find a plain one in the ones he showed you and you take it. Jisung smiles finally, mumbling, "You're a frustrating customer."

"Nah," you scoff. Minho pushes himself off the wall as soon as he sees you done with the selection. "I just know what I want exactly. You, on the other hand, sweetheart," you poke his chest and Jisung chuckles. "You're a pathetic salesperson."

"Of course," he laughs the insult away. "I'm a literature student. I should be working in a publishing company as a part timer."

Minho takes the shower curtain from your hand and puts it in the cart by the side. He comes back, throwing his arm over Jisung's shoulder and frowns, "Apparently publishing companies care a lot more about who your parents are than your resume."

"It's just that publishing company," the other male looks down. "I'll try applying for another one soon."

"Do you want to grab a drink at our place tonight?"

"Can I?"

"Sure," Minho agrees. He drops his arm from Jisung's shoulder and holds the cart handle back, pushing it forward slightly. You take big strides to stand by Minho's side, also holding the handle slightly. Jisung raises his eyebrows at the two of you and with a smile that you don't think twice about, Jisung laughs.

"I'm coming over tonight."

"Sure," you throw your thumbs up at him, stretching your arm. Minho smiles softly at you, his eyes lingering a little longer at your happy figure and he feels his heart beat a little quicker at your sight. Your hair strands framing your face so beautifully, eyes shining the minute you find the exact thing you've had in your mind and your lips curving upwards in joy. 

Lee Minho finds the calmness that spring brings him every year in him all over again with you by his side.

"Bring the soju. Beer is on us!"

Jisung: binnie, binnie!! Changbin: yes, baby? Jisung: i think i have a plan. Changbin: let them be, babe. Jisung: we let them be all these years! they pinned after each other without even knowing and we had to see that painfully! Changbin: i guess you make a valid point there Jisung: is it going to rain today? Changbin: it's been raining for the last few days, sungie. it could. just because i study geography as my minor doesn't mean i can forecast weather. hey! Jisung: fine~ i'm going to get them to confess tonight 👀 Changbin: don't mess up. istg Jisung: trust me 🥺 Changbin: i do. more than ever ❤️

Jisung reaches your doorstep at sharp nine. With two bottles of soju in his hands, you see the stains of the droplets of rain falling onto his shoulder. 

It is drizzling for now and you worry if it is to rain heavily in a few minutes as the forecast mentioned. You hate the thunder. You hate how the weather changes drastically and worsens to a point that it frightens you and makes you anxious. It's a phobia you have managed to hide from everyone for fears of being treated weaker.

Jisung makes himself at home. He always has. He places the soju bottles on the kitchen countertop and Minho smiles to himself as he walks towards the point where Jisung has happily seated himself. Minho and you are on the other end of the counter while Jisung sits on the adjustable chair, swirling in it before stopping and facing you, Minho and the bottles of soju before him.

"Did it finally hit him?"

"I think?" You whisper back.

"I'm right here!" Jisung yells and you smile. Minho pulls the chair from under the counter and sits himself opposite the other male, pressing his lips together and trying to not laugh. He opens the bottle of soju after shaking it and hitting it against his elbow for a while. It clinks open, the metal hitting the glass before falling onto the table and you watch the two, as Minho pours a drink for Jisung.

He downs it in one go, letting out a loud sigh before stretching his arms and demanding a second one.

"Go easy, Sungie. You have the whole night."

"I don't," he huffs. "Now, please."

Minho pours it again before looking at you and you shake your head to indicate that you wouldn't mind a few. You grab hold of one of the empty cups on the counter before stretching your arm too. Minho laughs – a soft chuckle, so airy and light that you find yourself holding your breath for a small second there – and he pours you your drink. 

You twirl your drink, watching the liquid glide against the surface of the cup. Your best friend gets up and walks a little into the kitchen to open the fridge and grab a box of leftovers of fried chicken that you bought a few days ago. He pulls open the microwave to heat it and as he waits, he turns to look back at Jisung and asks him finally.

"Do you want me to drop a word to my uncle?"

"About?"

"He heads the Cheongsam Publication," Minho reveelas, pulling out the chicken from the microwave. He places it before the two of you and almost like you and Jisung were zoomed in, in an American sitcom, both of you gasp dramatically.

"Am I really your best friend?" Jisung yells and you narrow your eyes at Minho. Faking tears in his eyes, he persists in questioning,  "Do I not matter to you, Minho?"

"Why are you rooming with me when you could possibly afford a whole room on your own?"

"Yes, Jisung," Minho sighs and sits back on his chair. You bend forward, arms folded against the table as you stare at your best friend in betrayal. "Also, Y/N, don't you love having me around?"

He laughs and rests his head on your shoulder suddenly, causing you to stiffen them in response. Your eyes drift to the left, trying to not make it overtly obvious that Minho's sudden reaction has taken you by surprise. Your eyes land forward on Jisung who looks at you as if he knew this all along, as if he wanted exactly this. The man has a goddamn smirk plastered on his face.

Jisung downs two more shots and you look at him with a raised eyebrow, mumbling, "Slow the fuck down. No one's chasing you."

"Yeah, my goddamn plan," he mumbles before coughing and taking another. Minho sits up straight, finally lifting his head from your shoulder. He stretches his arm to pat Jisung's shoulder in comfort.

"I'll drop a word."

"Now, don't you dare go and say that you want to earn it and all that bullshit," you sigh. "It's the fucking Republic Of Korea. Nepotism is the norm."

"Not planning on saying that," Jisung glares at you. Clearly, Jisung is slightly tipsy, having been the only person to keep drinking. You and Minho opt to just watch over Jisung for the night. Your best friend puckers his lips in Minho's direction and blowing kisses, he says, "I love you, Minho."

"Changbin wouldn't like you saying that to another man though," you scoff and Jisung flips you the middle finger before downing one more and standing up. The thunder rattles the three of you exactly then and you grip the table, face turning pale instantly. Minho's attention darts to you quickly in concern.

"You okay?" You hum in response, unconvincingly though to Minho whose gaze lingers on you in worry for just a while more. That is, till Jisung rips it away by dramatically placing the back of his hand on his forehead and playing the damsel in distress as he gasps so loudly, staring at the big window.

"It's raining heavily," he sighs and you shudder, afraid of another thunderstorm as you grip tightly on the side of the table.

"So?" Minho asks, both eyebrows raised at the man before him, looking at the two of you with doe eyes.

"I'm staying over, thanks," he rushes and runs to your bedroom, quickly shutting the door and latching it and you and Minho stare at each other. As soon as the realisation of what could happen dawns over you, you rush to your closed bedroom, fists banging against the wooden door.

"Yah, Han Jisung," you turn to look at Minho who watches you in amusement. "Open the fucking door."

"No. I don't want to go back home in the rain. You and Minho can share the bed. I am never opening the door. Good night."

"What the fuck? Yah, Sungie, stop acting like a child. Open the door now." You hear no response. "Sungie? Answer me. Open the door please." Minho walks over to you, and tries knocking too, in vain however because Jisung has no plans to open the door.

You look at Minho, the man slightly towering you as he stands by your side and you gasp. You had to share the bed with the same man you just realised you could, perhaps, have developed feelings for?

"Fuck."

Jisung: it finally seems to be working, binnie! luck's on my side this time. Changbin: oh baby. just please don't be disappointed if it doesn't work out this time either. Jisung: i won't be because it's definitely going to work out. eeeee! i'm so excited! 

Another thunderstorm ripples through the air.

Your heart beats quicker in anxiety, eyes squeezing shut as you grip tightly on the pillow, a light whimper leaving your lips. You feel the mattress shuffling underneath you and in the next minute, your ears are covered by Minho's hands. You stiffen as he edges closer to you, his chin resting on your shoulder as his palm pressed against your pinna, covering your ear completely to protect you from the loud sounds of the thunder.

"Minho, what—"

His hand on your right ear slightly shifts to the side as he bends forward to whisper into your ear, to amplify the sounds enough as a way to distract you.

"You never ever told me you were scared of thunderstorms."

Lee Minho is way too close to you to think straight. You feel his body pressed against your back, heat radiating from him to you through your oversized hoodie. His breath is harsh against your skin as he leans close to whisper into your ear. And all this in an attempt to forget the thunderstorm.

So far, it's working like magic. 

Your voice is almost small when you inform him, "We never happened to be in the same place during one," and Minho swears to God, he could lose it completely. All the self control to not confess and take you there is so ready to be shoved out of the window that all he can do is try and focus on worrying about your fears.

"I'll protect you," he mumbles so softly that you turn around to look at him. His eyes are bright in the soft lights in his room and as he lies by your side, so close that you can hear his heart that beats faster and his breath that is shallow, your lips part and you watch him.

You are fully justified for falling in love with this man. 

A man that tells you he'd protect you from your fears, god alone knows how, but the fact that they don't seem like empty words. A man that you know like the back of your hand and the same man that seems to have protected you all throughout your life, even if you have done the same. It was inevitable. Falling for Lee Minho is inevitable.

And that's why you kiss him. Because you're in love with him so badly that all you can zero in is him, him, him.

Your lips press against his, so softly for a split second. As if you are unsure. As if you know you could be ruining years of friendship over something the two of you could consider a mistake. 

You kiss him and suddenly it's the only thing that matters to you right now. Him, him, him. Your lips are slow and soft against him. It is almost as if you are reminding yourself that there has been nothing more morbidly right than this. To fall in love with your best friend. Minho's hand slowly lifts up to rest below your ear, his thumb caressing your cheek as your breath mingles only for a split second — one filled with hesitance and uncertainty — before you pull away, looking at your best friend.

It is just a second of a kiss and with Minho so stiff by your side, you panic, and ramble. "I'm sorry. I should have thought it could be unrequited. I like you and I should have asked—”

Minho crashes his lips on yours, so quickly that it takes your breath away and cuts your sentence in half, but you don't care. He pulls you towards him, hands cupping your face tightly and angling it to kiss you, encasing your lower lips in his as he moves against your pink ones. You let out a small gasp as you deepen the kiss, running your fingers down his spine, holding him as close as possible until there is no space left between the two of you. It is just you and him in this small room. Just you and him in focus. You can feel the beating of his heart against your chest. Loud, clear and unknown to you that it beats for you in this minute. That it has always been beating for you.

Minho presses his tongue to the seam of your lips and, the minute you let him in, he delves inside your mouth, tongue chasing after yours. Minho kisses you like he has finally achieved the greatest thing ever and he never wants to let it go. Minho kisses like he loves you and you feel it. You feel every ounce of it.

Your arms move up his back and tangle around his thick, strong neck. Playing with the ends of his roots, you suck on his lower lips before he pulls away and finally tells you, "I've always been in love with you, Y/N. Always."

Kissing you again, his thumb digs into the skin by your jaw as he delves deeper, as if he never wants to let you go. The air in the room heats up when your hand moves under his shirt, feeling his muscles under your skin and you moan against his lips. Minho lets go of your lips only to kiss the side of it and then your cheeks and then your jugular before he is littering kisses all over your neck. You moan explicitly, gripping on him and slightly grinding on his thigh. You feel your core heating up, arousal sticking to your panties and all you can think is,

“I want you.”

Minho swears to God that he has always loved confident women but when you shattered right before him and built your confidence right back up — that is the hottest thing he swears he has seen. That, and the fact that you had always been hot before his eyes.

“Really?” Minho lifts himself up and hovers on top of you.

“Really,” you decide to respond before you cup his face and pull his face closer to yours. You don't pull him in for a kiss just yet. Your eyes zero on him, trying to cancel out the loud thunderstorms in the background and just focus on the man before you that you love, that you've been in love unknowingly for a while. 

You just hold his face and learn. You try to remember every single detail of his face that you never focussed on before.

You realise over again that his eyes are your favourite thing. They are black as charcoal and yet still shimmer as if stars are trapped and enclosed beneath them. And when he narrows them to look at you with a daze, your heart throbs and you gulp. They make your heart hurt whenever they fix on you.

You know his skin is soft as you touch. As creamy and velvety as they are, you can't stop touching him. 

His mouth is a pretty shade of coral, plump and pouty and honestly so kissable it hurts to look at it for more than a few seconds. You wonder how you haven't driven yourself to kiss him yet. All these years.

Everything about his face is soft and delicate, that is till he turns a little to the side and angles it perfectly, his head backward and you can clearly see the sharpness of his jawline; the distinct manly cut that makes your mouth dry and your heart beat faster. 

“You are perfect,” you gulp, your eyes back on him and Minho smiles widely. His warm breath caresses your face and his forehead is pressed against yours immediately.

“You know what else is perfect, baby?”

“No,” your voice is airy, even though you already know what he is going to say. You know it and yet the thought causes your heart to skip a bit, and flutter a lot in your chest.

“You and everything you have to offer. You are not average. You are one of the most perfect women I've seen in my whole life, Y/N,” he says. As soon as the words spill from his mouth, your lips are on his, claiming his mouth, the same ones that whispered into your ear that there is nothing to be afraid when he's right there by your side.

He gasps loudly as your hands leave his face and move to his hair to pull him down towards you — you need him so close to you. Your fingers get lost in his thick locks as you tug on them, forcing him to bend a lot forward and gladly welcome the intrusion of your tongue.

His lips are as soft as feathers and they feel like what you think heaven feels like. The warmth you experience is so much more than the tingle of first kisses and those innocent butterflies have nothing on the wanting void of a pit in your nether regions and the slick in between your thighs. 

His hands slide down from your hips to reach behind your back and pull you upwards, only to tightly clasp around the curve of your bottom cheeks.

“Minho,” you groan against his lips after he pulls away from you. His lips are red and swollen, slick and shining with your saliva and so incredibly inviting you all over again and you fear that you may never want to stop kissing him for as long as you are breathing. You fear getting too addicted to this human – more than you already are – to a point where you need to be attached to him by the hip, to never let go of him.

Minho's lips move from your swollen lips to the curve of your jaw, down to the curved edges of your neck, sucking and kissing every exposed skin. 

His hand moves from your clothed arse to under your hoodie, hand pressed against your back as he pulls you closer and forwards, until your chests are pressed against one another. His mouth is everywhere and god, you feel infinite and powerful.

His lips hover on yours. He smiles widely and you think it's cute. He inches his chin forward, flicking your nose a little with his own, a shy smile on his lips as he silently asks the permission to claim your lips anew; all over again.

You nod your head to signal yes. You hold your breath and your eyes flutter shut, awaiting him and his warmth.

Minho's kiss is slow and delicate at first. It is drawn out in a way that makes you want more, so much more, that you want to pull him in and suck the life out of him and yet, at the same time, it is precious and laced with not only the passion of the moment but also the tenderness of a first time together.

It makes your insides twitch and your heart lunge and it fogs up all of your thoughts to the point you feel yourself drowning in the sensation of his lips, pressed tightly on your own. 

Your heart is beating quicker than ever in your chest, against your ribs, and you pull him even closer, so tight your chests have no choice but to heave against each other with every single breath you take. You don’t want to let him go, not now, not tomorrow, not ever.

Minho is something you desperately want to hold onto in your life. He knows your secrets, your everything. He knows what you like and how you like it. He seems to know everything and the thought of letting him go aches your heart and constraints your throat with a sob you wouldn't dare to let out. You want him to be completely yours.

And these thoughts turn you desperate. They force you to make the kiss deeper, to lick his lips and bite them down, to gulp down every sigh and whimper that comes out of him and make them your own. To make him yours.

Your eyes flutter shut, taking in the way his mouth moves over yours, arching further into him. You groan into his mouth and his grip on your back tightens instantly.

“I want you so much, Minho,” you whimper against him after your lips part from his. You lick your lips and gaze at him with your partially closed eyes. “So fucking much.”

“Then, have me. Take me,” Minho purrs against your exposed skin. In a minute, he pulls the oversized hoodie over you, leaving you in just your undergarments as he discards it to the side. His mouth moves over the skin above your breasts and his hand traces the bra you are wearing. He gazes at it and mumbles before latching his mouth back on your skin, “You are so fucking beautiful. Always have been.”

You gleam in pride and your body arches at the contact of his mouth on your skin. Your hands are on the side of his face as you pull him away.

“Can I?”

“Have me? Yes. Completely,” he smiles. He wonders if you are confident. That's all that he hopes when you look at him so unsure and so doubtingly. 

You wet your lips again quickly, your breath coming out in hot puffs of air. Your hands immediately rush to his top, roughly pushing it above. Minho helps you out and pulls it completely away. You are blinded by the passion burning inside of you, your hands eager to explore and touch every expanse of his glowing skin. You want to touch, feel, have a complete experience. You want Minho to remind you of everything you are missing out on.

Your lips attack his neck in a hurry, all rough and passionate on his tender, soft skin, blooming red roses that turn purple against it. You repeat your actions till he’s softly moaning out your name, almost purring them out that you feel yourself becoming slicker. His hands on your back pull you closer and into him so that you won’t stop tainting his flesh and slowly, his soul, in the best ways possible.

Minho whines and sighs and grunts for you. He doesn't hold himself back as his lips leave appreciation for who you are. He closes his eyes as he parts his lips to whimper out your name with every new thing you find that excites him and it drives you absolutely insane. 

You know you should not but you can’t stop wondering how he would sound like as you fuck him hard, rock on his cock to milk his orgasm, make him beg not to stop. You desperately want to break him and draw all these nice sounds out of him, but you know it would most probably be the other way round. Minho allows you to take control occasionally but you know he wants the lead. He wants to be the one to break you apart and pull you back together. 

He pulls back from you, his hands leaving your back and resting on either of your sides. Minho's dark hair brushes over his crescent lidded eyes and nearly shields the hungry, desperate gaze of them. His hand plays with the strap of your panties as his gaze flickers between affection and lust. He cocks his head to the side before asking, “You do want this, right?”

You nod, hoping it would be enough and that he would resume.

“I need to hear you say it out loud, baby,” he firmly says and you gulp.

“Yes, yes. Minho, fuck, I want this. I need this,” you whine, your eyes glassy, as you grip his forearm to lift yourself up and grate and move against the evident bulge on his jeans. 

Minho merely needs that verbal confirmation. He pulls away your panties, resting on your hips and you groan. Still hovering above you and his hands over your pubic mound, his fingers trail lower and you tug at your lower lip in anticipation. Easily, he finds your clit, and begins to rub in slow, languid, lazy motion, up and down, waiting for the moan he so loves to hear from you to spill from your mouth. He grins when he hears those little whimpers and you feel your legs lose mobility from the pleasure he brings you with just a flick of his finger. 

Your back slightly arches off the soft mattress upon the bed when his finger leaves your clit to draw a line up your wet slit, collecting as much of your arousal as he can before slipping his glistening fingers out to admire them in the light. Your cheeks taint pink in embarrassment.

“Fuck,” Minho moans, taking his coated finger into his mouth to suck your juices from it. His eyes flutter shut as if he’s tasting the sweetest aphrodisiac ever known and your lips part at this sight. Lee Minho looks irresistible and you want him, completely.

“God,” he groans. Minho slides himself down your body until he’s in level with your pussy. His eyes gazed at it in sheer adoration and your hand slapped against your mouth. He takes two fingers to spread your lips apart for a better view. “You’re dripping, baby girl.”

You wail as he drags a finger up and down your slit, playfully teasing your fold, making you whine his name out loud. The way you plead for him, beg for him, grind down on his teasing fingers, all set a fire inside you. This has been what you had been craving for so long. The ability of this man to cloud your thoughts and set your body on fire makes you yearn for him even more.

“Minho,” you cry out, whimpering underneath him. “Fingers. I need you. Please, Minho.”

You gasp, your voice airy, when the tip of his finger tentatively slips into you while your fingers dig at his shoulders between your thighs. “Minho, I want you. I just really want you. I need to feel you. Please.”

He drags his finger out of you before you clutch onto him, feeling the need to be overwhelmed. He presses his thumb on your clit and a whimper leaves your mouth. 

“Minho.” And he slides his digit in again almost as if on cue. He pumps his finger in and out of you as his thumb harshly rubs circles on your clit. Your hand leaves your mouth and grabs your hair as the other digs further into his shoulder. 

His mouth leaves hot air against the skin covering your acetabulum and you shudder. His lips graze from there till your thigh before biting on them, sucking them deliriously and leaving you as a whimpering mess.

“Minho, fuck!” You scream, your fingers grabbing your hair to hold control of your body. 

“That's it, baby,” he says against the skin of your thighs. “How I've wanted those beautiful lips to scream out my name from when I've felt them.”

Minho adds another finger and your eyes are screwed shut as he curls them within you and you gasp at the feeling of being widened. You are elated and you feel your arousal leaking down your thighs. He rubs your inside and your clitoris faster and you push your hips towards him, moving with his pace. Minho is also leaving beautiful purple marks in a trail on your thigh and you gape in awe.

You find it all too much. Your emotions are all over the place and your hormones rise up. The movement of his fingers inside you and around your clit, his lips attacking your erogenous spots, kissing, biting and licking short stripes on them. It finally gets to you and you scream his name out in pleasure. Your first orgasm comes crashing down upon you, blinding you. You release all over his fingers and Minho helps you ride out your high as he drags his finger repeatedly but this time, slower than what had been. 

Your head lifts up and hits the pillow slightly as it tilts away. Minho moves upwards, hovering over your face and smiles. You smile back. You are so happy and you do not know how to put it into words.

“Minho?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks?”

“For what?” He looks at you quizzically. 

“That was my first orgasm in months now that wasn't brought about by my own fingers,” you smile wearily and Minho leans forwards and kisses your forehead.

"Should have come to me," he laughs.

"Didn't know if I'd be ruining our friendship."

"Pfft," he scoffs, before kissing you again, his lips gliding against yours and piecing in as if they were always meant to be against yours. "I've been in love with you forever."

"Took me a while to know my own feelings," you mumbles. “Also,” you continue, hoping he listens to your request. “Can I . . . ride you?”

Minho is stunned. There are so many things about you that stuns him and maybe it's the way you try to take control that make you look so much hotter before his eyes. 

“Are you sure?”

“Yes,” you plead. “If that is not a bother to you.”

“Why would it? Your wish is my command, but only for this night. Next time, my love, we do this my way,” he teases and winks and your core throbs at his words.

Minho pulls himself away from your body, pulling his shirt over his head and his denim down and away. As he flings his clothes aside and relaxes against the mattress, his cock springs free against his stomach, leaking with milky precum. You sit up beside the space Minho has taken over and watch him and his cock deliriously and lustfully.

You sit up, crawling over to straddle his lap, nervousness setting into your stomach. You’re really doing this. You gulp and swallow the saliva as you look at Minho, whose gaze gives you comfort and confidence. The muscles in your arm stiffens as you grip his shoulder for stability and Minho notices.

“It’s okay,” he reassures you, sensing your reluctance and worry. He pushes back the stray hair falling over your eyes. “You're doing wonderful, babygirl. You are finally all mine. What a pretty girl and all to myself now."

You nod, biting down on your lower lip, and tugging at it harshly, cheeks heating up at his words, arousal gushing out as you look down before aligning with his cock. You want this. You needed this release.

As your folds, dripping with thick, sticky arousal, brush the tip of his hardened cock, you feel a shudder run down your spine. You instinctively allow yourself to lower further, taking the rest of him in you swiftly with the help of your arousal. Sinking down around his dick and feeling him fully wrapped around your clutching walls has you moaning out his name, gasping and panting for air, “Fuck, Minho.”

You rock your hips into him, trying this as you picture it to be, already finding yourself tightening and clenching around his thick length. He fills you up so nicely, stuffing you perfectly full and you salivate. Your lips parts and you find your hips moving on their own accord.

As much as Minho wants to give you complete power over this, it isn't like him and he wishes he could be better. Minho takes your hips in his hands, taking control of your movements to raise you up, leaving you empty and whining. You clench around nothing but air and your own walls, desperate to sink back down. “Minho,” you whine, your lower lip puckers forwards and you feel sad.

As his hand grip around your hips to get a better hold, he slams you back down on his cock, hard, causing you to scream. “Minho, ah!”

He continuously guides you in a rhythmic movement, throwing his head back into his pillows and groaning. You are glad he is helping you out because you know you could not have done it on your own after having just ridden out your high.

The sheen of sweat glistening on his chest catches your eye as he pants. The way his eyes clenched shut and his mouth hangs open with pleasure only makes you move faster around his cock. The sight before you makes you want to see him fucked out further. You want him to crumble under you because of you. 

You ride him, bouncing on his dick and clenching when you feel yourself reaching your climax for the second time that night. Minho’s finger moves down and slips between your sweat soaked bodies to rub your clit, pushing you even further over the edge. Minho knows how to make a woman putty in his hands and you are a living witness of this.

“Are you going to come?” He asks, breathlessly, his voice airy and light, almost floating away. He pulls his head forward to kiss your collarbones, sucking harsh bruises against your skin, continuing further down the existing purple bruises.

“Y-Yes,” you sigh, lacing your fingers through his hair and tugging on the dark strands. “Mhm, fuck, you feel so good, Minho.” You lean forward and the motion causes Minho to whine. You quickly catch it as your lips fall on his. His lips enclose yours and he kisses you slowly and passionately as you move on his cock, lazily.

Words, unfiltered and raw, spill out from your mouth after your lips leave his as you feel the high that is creeping up slowly within you. “Minho, fuck. Oh fuck, you feel so good.”

“Then, come.”

Minho moans against your neck as he feels you, his finger rubbing your clit, “Babygirl, oh fuck. Come all over my cock.”

Minho’s other hand that is not occupied leaves your hip and moves upwards to find their place on your neck. His fingers gently wrap themselves around your neck and his eyes flicker a mischief that makes you wetter than you already are. He presses his fingers against your neck with pressure and you choke. Your mouth opens wide and your tongue falls out slightly resting on your lower lip. Your eyes roll back and your walls clench around Minho’s cock tightly.

Minho learns that your dirty liking for choking is incredibly hot. Seeing you like this is what he knows would get him to come when you are not around. Your fucked out expression as you gasp for air makes Minho plunge into you harder and you choke harder.

A final flick of his finger over your sensitive button and a bit more pressure over your neck are all it takes for your body to flood with pleasure and ecstasy. Your legs tighten around Minho's waist, curling in as you ride out your high for as long as possible, still moving your hips against him. His fingers let go of your neck and you breath loudly, taking in huge gulps of air.

Not long after your undoing, he comes inside you, coating your walls with his seed as you feel his length pulsate within you.

Once your body falls limp against his chest, equally fucked out and panting for air, you feel him going soft inside you. He lifts you up, slowly slipping out of you and gently laying you by his side. His fingers rub small circles on your hips after pulling you closer into him. 

“Hey,” you say and smile. 

Minho kisses your forehead and then, the peak of your nose, and finally, kisses your lips, softly. It isn't lustful or anything. Just plain passion seeping from him to you. You feel his admiration and an emotion you fear to mistake for love. He pulls away and smiles, “Hey, beautiful.”

He comes closer and licks the side of your neck, where he had wrapped his fingers out. The one fantasy that you are so in love with. He peppers soft kisses around it and mumbles an apology. 

“No,” you quickly stop him. “That was everything. I— I really like you." Pausing, the thought crashes your head, post your high and you mumble, "Fuck, I fell in love with my best friend." 

You nuzzle into his chest after he pulls back, your arms wrapping around his body as you calm yourself. Minho chuckles into your ear, "Yes, yes. You clearly did. What do we do now?"

"Take responsibility." You mumble as you slowly find yourself feeling sleepy. Your eyes are slowly drooping and your voice lowers in tone, words drifting away almost, “You better take responsibility for my feelings and take care of me.”

“It'd truly be my honour,” Minho mumbles, lifting you slowly to push his one arm beneath your neck. He uses the other hand to push your hair away from your face. Kissing your forehead, lips lingering for a while, he smiles to himself, laughing slightly as he asks you, "Was the schlong good?”

You laugh softly, snuggling into his chest, fist against it as you try to fall asleep, thunderstorms long forgotten. Kissing his chest, you giggle, "Best ever schlong I have ever had, baby. All mine to keep now."

Jisung: can you pick me up? Changbin: this late? Jisung: i just wanted them to confess. not fuck like bunnies. useless fact i learnt today: they are both loud in bed. Changbin: i'm laughing off the bed literally!!! also!!! Jisung: yeah? Changbin: and they were roommates! Jisung: god, they were roommates. 🙄❤️

[what-the--curtains]

Alliance

Chapter 6 – The Extraction

(Mando x f!reader)

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Summary: The auction leads you to the child but the empire’s hot on your tail. With all hope lost you make a choice.

Notes: None (feel free to interact im unemployed and bored)!!!

Tw: (very brief) mentions of drugs/sex/alcohol/addiction, swearing

Words: 3.9 k

Tagged: @crazycookiecrumbles

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You walk through the damp street, you don’t know what this dress is made of but the dirt and grime caused by the recent rain seemed to simply bounce off it. The streets were jam-packed, somehow even busier than they were the night prior and as the two of you make your way towards the auction hall Din’s visor scans the crowd, making sure nothing seems out of place. He takes care to never be more than a few inches away from you, convincing himself it's in order to maintain appearances. After all he knew you were more than capable of handling yourself, and why else would he feel the need to be so close to you.

“You lost beautiful?” A youthful looking Falleen asks as she appears out of the shadows

“No.” Din replies, making himself visible at your side when she moves into the light.

“Well I’m sure you're very beautiful under that armour Mando, but I was talking to your friend here.The names Isi and I make a living helping people around the city” Din’s about to respond again when you interject.

“Actually Isi we do seem to have gotten ourselves a bit lost, we're here for the auction.”

“I’ve heard of it,” she says, staring down at her manicure. You look up at Din motioning for him to pay her which he does begrudgingly. Taking the credits she leads you through the city, stopping outside a building covered completely in reflective mirrors.

“Best of luck” Isi, says offering you her hand

“Thank you, for your discretion” taking it you slide her a few more credits and she leans back against the wall of the building watching as the two of you enter. Two men in tailored suits open the inner doors granting you access to a small closed off foyer, also covered in the one way glass. You hand your invitation to the man on the right, parting your lips ever so slightly and gaze up at him batting your eyelids ever so slightly. In your experience a touch of flirting went a long way, especially when it came to moving through security.

He smiles and looks from you, up to the Mandalorian then back down. Turning his head to look at his partner he chuckles slightly.

“He your boyfriend, or something?”

“Bodyguard” you emphasize.

“Makes sense” he murmurs loud enough for the two of you to hear.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” the modulated voice asks obviously aggravated.

“Never mind him, he’s just sensitive about the... you know ” you mime the outline of a helmet. The guard nods and lets you pass through placing his hand on the small of your back as you do causing you to cringe internally. Nothing worse than a stranger's hand where you didn’t want it. You glare back at the Mandalorian hoping your eyes would convey a message of ‘be cool’. A task he was about to accomplish when the second guard places a firm hand on his arm.“Leave the blaster Mando, there’s no weapons allowed.”

“He has no weapons” you interject, de-escalating the scene that was about to play out caused by the tremendous amount of male energy that was currently taking up the entire room.

“You’re right sorry ma’am, enjoy your evening” he says letting go of the Mandalorians arm allowing him to pass.

“Way to keep your cool, let’s try and get through the night without creating a scene” you say, slightly annoyed by whatever the hell he thought that display was going to achieve. Your anger disappears as you turn to an enormous room filled with people dressed to the nines in the finest the galaxy had to offer. Chandeliers dripping in diamonds hung down from the high ceilings illuminating the room like a sky full of stars and casting a rose gold hue across the occupants moving about the ballroom floor which seemed to sparkle underneath the high heels.

Servers moved seamlessly throughout the crowd; they were all dressed in lavish costumes, depicting various fashions from across space and time. The trays they carry are filled with multicolor foods and gem-coloured drinks. You’d never seen anything so opulent in your entire life. You’d noticed that servers would pair off with guests and disappear returning later with a look that could only be chalked up to exceptional sex or spice, both of which resulted in a similar glazed over and dewy look. A Darthomorian in a low cut red dress approaches you offering you a drink, you smile and thank them.

“I wouldn’t if I were you.” The modulator speaks up, as you bring the drink to your lips.

“Why? I might as well enjoy the lifestyles of the rich and dangerous while I’m here” you snap, apparently you were still upset at him.

“It has love wallop in it, makes the drinker more suggestible to certain propositions usually sent over by someone who wants to.” His voice trails off.

“Ew” you say pulling a face before dumping it in a nearby plant. “Guess I’m safer going to the bar.” You swirl your new, drug free, drink around and rest your elbows down on a nearby table, hoping the auction would begin shortly.

“How did you know what was in that drink.” You ask in an attempt to help pass the time.

“They show up at these kinds of things, so does spice and other illegal substances.”

“Once again how do you know about this? You spent a lot of time around illegal substances? I didn’t think it would be your scene.” you say taking a sip of the ruby coloured drink you had ordered.

“I’ve brought a lot of dealers over the years. It also crossed my path in my...” He pauses before continuing reluctantly “ wilder days.”

“Wilder days hey? Love to hear about those sometimes. You sample the product?” you probe, he gives you an unmistakable look of disappointment “Maybe you should, might help chill you out a bit.” You joke.

“That would go against my creed and fundamental belief system. Spice is...”

“Highly addictive, ya I know , it was a joke.” You say shaking your head, why did he have to be so high and mighty all the time.

“You’ve had it?” he seems surprised by this news, you hoped it wouldn’t change his opinion of you, the two of you had been getting on pretty well of late and you’d hate to jeopardize that.

“You gonna arrest me?” you joke nervously, hoping he didn’t notice how much his response mattered to you.

“No, just… how the hell did you stop? Are you okay to even be here, it's everywhere” was it disappointment or concern you picked up in his voice, you couldn’t quite discern between the two.

“I’ll be fine just tell me if it’s in anything I’m about to put into my body. And knock me out if you see me going for it” Diverting from the conversation you lift up a piece of food and show it to the Mandalorian who lets you know it’s safe to eat.

“Holy shit this is good!” you exclaim, looking around for where the waitress had gone

“Can you feel him?.” Din asks drawing your attention back to the reason why you were here in the first place.

“Too many people, I’ve already disrupted the force once I don’t want to do it again so quickly someone might notice. We’ll have to wait for the first item and follow whoever brings it out.” Just then a woman in a slinky red dress appears with some kind of an egg on a pillow and steps up onto the stage where an Ishi Tib drones out the rules and regulations for bidding.

“Is that an Kadri’Ra egg.” you ask in amazement.

“Looks like it”

“I thought they were extinct” you say still in awe

“Guess not” he replies, his shortness had become increasingly apparent over the course of the evening.

“We’ll get the kid soon, don’t worry, he has to be here.” You reassure, looking up at him causing him to look away. As the woman passes back through the crowd the two of you turn in tandem and follow her until you reach the back of the room. You stop and place your back against the wall, craning your neck you look to see which hallway the woman had disappeared down. You turn back quickly as another woman in similar garb appears out the largest of the hallways, carrying a cape made from an ice dragon pelt. As she moves towards the stage the two of you enter where she had exited. You move through the wide hallway until you reach the end, where a large metal door prevents you from moving any further.

“Should have about 15 minutes before the next one comes out.” You say stopping a few feet from the door. “you think anyone’s in...” you're almost done your sentence when you hear footsteps approaching from behind you.

Before you can make sense of what's happening the Mandalorian has pulled you into a thin hallway off shoot by the nook of your elbow. You’re now face to face with his chest and suddenly very aware of how tall he was.

“Where’s the other half of the item, seriously were two in and I’m looking like a fool up there!” an Arkanian, who you assume must be the collector and the host of the party, exclaims. You see them do a double take to where you're currently hiding, and watch as they begin to move towards the hallway.

“Can you pick me up?” you whisper urgently,

“Yes, but…”

“do it now” he complies with your order, as he does you wrap your legs around the armour covering his hips and prop your back against the wall, draping your arms loosely over his shoulders before burying your head in the part of his neck bare from armour, hoping that the compromising position would be enough to deter the collector rom asking any question. Out of the corner of your eye you watch as the presenter takes note of the two of you. Raising their eyebrows they turn and move back to the door.

“Yes that’s it, get it out there now so the bidding can begin, gods it’s hard to find good help these days.” they exclaim turning and following behind the presenter with the newly acquired artifact. You let out a sigh of relief removing your face from his neck quickly realizing that your nose is just millimetres away from his helmet.

“You can put me down now” you whisper breathlessly, for a reason you couldn’t quite explain. You take note of the slight hesitation that precedes him dropping you. Gathering yourself you exit the hallway and reposition yourself in front of the large metal door. You can’t see a panel on it or a key slot, it must only be accessible from the inside looking up, you spot a window.

“Give me a boost” you say, and he obliges. You lift the hem of your outfit and step onto his interlocked hands which he uses to push you up enabling you to reach the ledge. Pulling yourself up you roll through the window and drop down onto the rooms floor alerting the person in charge of handing out the auction items. You knock him out and swipe his key card using it to open the door for Din.

“This way” you say, dragging the handler's body over to a nearby post and tying him to it. Standing up you turn to see hundreds of items up for auction varying from Millaflower to a juvenile varactyl.

“Do you see him?” you ask, picking up a vial of what you recognized as death stick placing it back down when you hear him respond.

“No” you think you hear his voice break. “Wait.” he says, walking up to another, smaller closed off room placing a gloved hand on the door. He draws his blaster aiming for the lock. You lower his hand hoping to prevent a beam bouncing around the room subsequently giving you away. You lift up the key card you’d swiped from the guy in the room and use it to open up the door. He moves towards the oval container floating in the middle of the room and drops down to one knee as you watch tentatively from the door. Pushing a button the oval opens up and a tiny green three fingered hand reaches up for him. You hear a slight gurgle as the second hand comes up making a grabbing motion. Din picks up what has to be the most adorable creature you’ve ever seen.

“Told you I’d get you back didn’t I” he chuckles, you can hear the smile in voice as he hands the kid the small silver ball. You approach cautiously until you're standing beside him.

“Well fair enough I get why you traded me in for him” you say offering the child your finger which he grabs happily, looking up at you.

“ You two know each other or something?” He asks, his helmet staring up at you.

“Must be a force thing” you say, smiling down at the little critter.

“We have to go” you say, closing the egg hoping it would buy enough time to make a swift exit. With the child wrapped neatly under his arm the two of you move swiftly through the back alleys in darkness.

“Well that went better than I…” almost as if on cue, your speech is interrupted by the sound of blasters ricocheting off the ship's metal exterior. He hands you the child and rushes up to the cockpit to prepare for take-off.

“Brace yourself” he shouts down and you grab onto the overhanging bars with one hand and secure the child with your other, pressing your thigh against a beam in an attempt to stabilize yourself. As the ship lifts off the ground you hear the sounds of even more blaster bullets hitting its side.

“Din!” you yell up from below

“I’m working on it!” he shouts back down. A few moments later he manages to get the ship out of the reach of the blasters, punching it as he exits the stratosphere. A distinct beeping sound rings throughout the ship indicating there was a problem that needed fixing sooner rather than later. You ungrip your hands from the bars and check on the child who seems completely unaware of the situation. Using your free hand you pull yourself up to the cockpit where a disgruntled Mandalorian was cursing under his breath. You place the child down in the back seat buckling him in before taking your own.

“How far can we make it without stopping.” You ask after a long enough time had elapsed for the Mandalorian to calm down

“Far enough to be safe, I hope.” Turning to the side you see the kid sleepily closing its eyes.

“Could you put him to bed? I have to deal with this.” He says gesturing to the entire dashboard which was currently lit up like a tree on life day.

“Of course” you say, you were completely taken with the child, and more than happy to spend time with it.

“Alright where does he keep your bed then.” You say opening up a few compartments until you find the sleeping quarters. Opening the doors Anya’s head looks over to you evidently having slept through the whole ordeal comfortably on the bed. It was decent sized compared to most ship beds but still small especially for someone of Dins stature. Above it was a small hammock like contraption which you assumed was where the child, who was now more awake than asleep, slept.

“You need to rest.” You say softly, but he keeps staring up at you and grabbing at your hair. “C’mon you going to get me in trouble, with the guy upstairs” you smile down at him as he coos slightly. “Well I know one thing that used to help me sleep when I was about your size” You start to sing softly to the creature stroking one of its long ears as you do until it's fallen asleep. Unbeknownst to you the Mandalorian had heard you singing and followed the sound downstairs watching you and the child from afar.

“Mesh’la” he says louder than intended, causing you to turn around.

“He’s just asleep now,” you whisper, handing him to the Mandalorian so he can put him up top. You watch as he tucks the kid in gently squeezing one of its feet before turning back to quietly return to the cockpit.

“Did you say something down there?” you ask, sitting back in the co-pilot seat.

“No,well, yes I was just wondering what the sound was. I’d never heard something like it before.”

“What a lullaby. Didn’t have many of those growing up at the convent?” you ask, always slightly surprised by any personal information the Mandalorian revealed to you.

“No, at least none I can remember. What are they used for?”

“You’ve heard songs before though.”

“Yes, I heard some on Vryssa.”

“ Well Vryssa is home to many a folk song, helps people forget where they are. A lullaby is a song, often sung to a child to help them sleep.” You explain.

“What were you singing about.” He asks

“Ones was about a hanging that happened in Vryssa, told the story of two lovers planning to meet there”

“Doesn’t seem suitable for a child”

“No but I assume he doesn't speak English and lullaby is more about the melody than the words, the second was one passed down from my grandmother about the meadows of her home planet.”

“Where was she from your grandmother?” he asks.

“She never told me a name, only descriptions.”

“Maybe you’ll get to see it one day.”

“Ya maybe, if you and this kid don’t get me killed first.” you laugh, only partially kidding.

“Grogu.”

“Bless you?”

“The kids name, it’s Grogu.” he chuckled softly glancing over at you, still thinking about the way you had looked with him in your arms, singing softly.

After a while the beeping increases to a point where landing was no longer a task that could be put off. You step out onto a stone covered surface stretching out your legs and breathing in the remarkably fresh air.

“Think we lost them” you state, bending down and placing a palm on the smooth, cool moss covered stones. You stand back up and turn around watching as the Mandalorian exits the ship with a tool kit in hand and Anya and Grogu in pursuit. The kid follows Din over to where the damage is opting to stare up at him as he works, seemingly not wanting to be apart from him ever again.

“It's just one of the stabilizers, an easy fix we should be good to go soon!” He shouts over to you

“Anything I can do to help?” You offer

“No, It's a one person job. Thank you” With that you head off curious in exploration of the planet. It's old, empty, you wonder if anyone had ever been here before you. It wasn’t very livable, no trees, no food, no water, a truly desolate place. Yet it possessed a charm unique to planets of old, untouched by the reach of the empire, the republic and everything in between. You peer back over your shoulder, Anya’s sat protectively near the child who's still watching the Mandalorian rattle around the ship. You turn your head back as he closes up, not wanting to get caught staring. He picks up Grogu and re-enters the ship with Anya following close behind. You're about to join them when you feel something approaching. You begin to walk further from the ship and closer towards the presence you were feeling, stopping in your tracks when you see a triangular ship approaching. It's large, too big to be from any crime lord.

“It’s imperial” you hear a voice yell from afar as the Mandalorian makes his way towards you.

“Well never outrun them” you whisper, your brain running through the possible scenarios.

“We have to go”

``We'll never outrun them” you say louder and firmer this time, it didn't take an android to figure out what your probability of success was.

“We don’t have time to argue about this” he grabs your arm, but you pull it free turning to face him.

“Go” The words leave your mouth before you can process what you're saying. He doesn’t move. You can hear the ship approaching inching closer.

“Take them and leave, you have to protect them, keep them safe.” he was right you didn't have time to argue about this.

“Not without you.” he says refusing to move.

“Go!” you say shoving him “Now!”

“I'm not leaving you here”

“Yes you are, the kid he’s all that matters right now, go before he’s taken again. Now!”

“Just come with us” he pleads

“We won’t make it. You know we won't. This isn’t a negotiation. Go I’ll give you as much time as I can.” You see him finally accept the fact that this was in the only way.

“Here, take this” he says, giving you his blaster before turning and starting back towards the ship. He stops turning around one last time.

“(y/n) I…”

“I know” you say, using the force to throw him back towards the ship before turning to face the imperial ship which has landed a hundred yards in front of you.

Dialing up the ship Din takes note of the imperial model hoping he’d be able to find it again. As the troopers march out he sees you look back at him nodding your head as if to say you’ll be fine.You clear your mind breathing in the cool air. Closing your eyes you kneel on the ground placing one hand on the stone and the other on the blaster at your side. You can hear the ship taking off behind you as the troopers take aim firing at them from below, but the shots rebound off the force field that you’ve created.

You hold your ground as the troopers move in towards you determined to protect those inside the ship. Din watches as the blaster shots rebound back into the crowd of troopers. With one last look he jumps the ship into hyperspeed. He moves it into auto pilot and throws his head back in frustration as he hears Grogu cry out. “I know. Well get her back, but we're going to need some help” He says, picking up the kid holding him on his lap as he punches in the coordinates of a familiar planet. You drop the force field and begin firing when you hear the ship jump into hyperspace taking out as many troopers as you can before the blaster runs out. In one last ditch effort you throw it at a stormtrooper knocking it out. Slowly raise your hands in the air. They take aim. You prepare yourself.

“Wait! Don’t shoot” a tall man, dressed in all black says as the crowd of troopers part in his wake.

“We may not need the child after all.”

[koko-bopp]

Flirty Criminal

Part Five

criminal!song mingi x detective!male!reader

word count – 6k

genre – low-key mature

warning(s) – blackmail, lot of choking, gun warning, degrading, mentions of death and murder

synopsis – “[Y/N] [L/N] is known famously around his police precinct as the detective that the infamous criminal Song Mingi has a crush on. The detective denies these claims, though Mingi gets into as much trouble as possible just to see him.”

Mingi didn't know what to think, two months had gone by since the two of you were seeing each other. Not explicitly romantic, he liked you, but he didn't want to move to fast. For the last two months it had been about enjoying each other's presence and going on dates; like, fuck, he rented his friend's dog for three weeks just to take you to a dog cafe.

But, it had been a week since the whole fiasco of your soon-to-be ex-husband ruined the perfect date, it was also the night Mingi begun to be suspicious of your intentions with him.

Sure, a detective that technically works for the state and a criminal that has lived all his life going against the state was a little bit... foreign to many.

But, Mingi works in mysterious ways, it's safe to assume his brain resets any emotions he may have for a person as soon as something suspicious happens.

Not to say that Mingi didn't have his guard up the whole time he's been around you, but it gives a little sting in his heart thinking that you tried to play him as if he were a fool, Mingi wanted to know why specifically, Wayne Haulting was in charge of your operation, there's some history to be unveiled.

Mingi suggested that you come to his mansion for a date this time, since the last date ended up being interupted by a bafoon.

"How was work?" Mingi asked, his eyes fixated on the road ahead, but his attention to you.

"Relatively alright," You chuckled, "A kid and her dad came to the station with fajitas to give a thanks. It was sweet, made my whole afternoon."

Mingi smiled, then gently crawled his hand over it take yours into his. He interlocked fingers with you then bought it up to give it a small kiss.

"What?" You giggled.

"Nothing," Mingi said, suddenly a bit stern, "I just missed you."

✨

Mingi pushed you onto the leather couch so your back was against the neck of it. You watched him get on top of you immediately with a big smirk on his face, reaching down to peck your lips softly at first, then brought his hand up to cup your jaw to deepen his kisses.

Your eyes were closed, enjoying what Mingi was providing and vice versa. The smell of his cologne lingered in the air, and it made it all the more enjoyable. Mingi pulled away for a second, looking at you with a smile, "You good, baby?"

A soft sigh left your lips, indicating your answer, one that made Mingi content. He began to unbutton your shirt, only so much to reveal your chest, but he continued to mould his lips against yours until his hand moved from your jaw to your neck, a gentle but authoritative grip around the flesh. You could feel the smirk on his lips.

Though you felt something told against the side of your jaw. Metal and cold.

A gun.

Your eyes flew open and you pulled back from the kiss. Mingi opened his eyes like everything was normal, a dangerous smile on his face.

"M-mingi? What the fuck?" You accidently stuttered, placing a hand on his wrist.

"Baby," Mingi chuckled venomously, "You have ten minutes to explain to me why Haulting is so calm about us hanging out," He pushed the gun further into your skin, making your breath stiff, "Unless you want a bullet through your head."

You frowned, "You'd kill a detective and think you're not gonna suffer the consequences?"

"My house in sound proof, detective," Mingi laughed, "And kind of up a hill decently away from people, it would take about three days until people find you... And a few hours and good lawyers are all I need to get rid of you."

You'd been doing your best to remain calm, the hand around your throat and the gun at your jaw making you tense heavily, but Mingi's words were terrifying you the most.

His gripped around your throat tightened when you didn't respond almost immediately, "I think you're forgetting who's got the gun here, baby," he said lowly.

"I– Yeah, Haulting hired me to get dirt off you," You finally admitted, not hearing Mingi's chest shattering in the process.

"Is he looking for anything in particular?"

"The fuck do you think?" You snapped, the grip you had around his wrist was a lot firmer now and your brows were furrowed in anger, "You're a fucking criminal, Mingi. You've killed innocent people, you've distributed illegal substances and firearms–"

"Killed innocent people?" Mingi laughed bitterly, "Did you get that outta' Haulting's ass? Where'd you hear that from?"

You looked at him in confusion, but also in anger, "The police report said–"

"You're little tree-shredded report is bullshit. My gang aren't involved in drug trade or the killing of innocent people," Mingi spat, his jaw clenched. Seeing you get more confused got him to let out a humourless laugh, rolling his eyes as he pulled down the hammer of the gun, the second last step neccasery before pulling the trigger. He watched you squirm, but tightened his hold on your throat before frowning at you, both your noses only five or so inches from each other, "You're getting on my nerves a bit, baby."

"I don't know what answer you're hoping for!" You fought, "Yes, Haulting hired me to hang around you like a dog as soon as I requested to move precincts after Ty cheated on me–"

"So that wasn't a lie?" Mingi asked, almost too surprised. That would mean the night at the bar was the first day you were undercover.

You shook your head frantically.

"Anything interesting you found, Detective?" Now he got to the point, gun and throat in hand, whatever you next answer was determined your vital status, "You better share now, or you might hurt a bit."

"Fuck! I literally just know your schedule! Thats literally it!" You yelled at the point, tears definitely threatening to spill, the helplessness was getting overwhelming, "I know your fucking favourite colour is dark blue, I know you'd eat chicken for the rest of your life if you could, that you used to visit the sauna twice a week though it only depended on your free time, but you don't go anymore because you spend that time with me!"

You saying that turned some gears in your head. There was a silence in the room, like Mingi didn't know how to respond and honestly, you hadn't noticed Mingi's behaviour until you finally said it out loud. Mingi looked at you like your confession didn't bother him, when deep down, it kind of did.

An airless and bitter laugh left your lips, your eyes looking at as if you'd figured something out, "There's something I didn't figure out, isn't there?" You smiled sarcastically. Mingi didn't give you an immediate response, you took that as an answer, scoffing, "Shit. You're actually in love with me, aren't you?"

"You think too far and you actually missed a few steps, Detective," Mingi had his jaw locked in place as his heart accidently started beating too.

You laughed, "Then what, Mingi? what'd I miss?"

A fabricated smirk painted its way onto Mingi's lips. The gun still at hand and on your jaw, the grip around your throat becoming somewhat comfortable and less threatening. Somewhat. The look in Mingi's eyes became more like when a teacher would look at a particularly dumb student. "Haulting never told you my dad was involved in his game of weapon trade, huh?"

You furrowed your brows, swallowing so hard that that you could feel the gun move against your jaw. You didn't know where in Mingi's eyes to stare into, but yours were searching for other places. You quickly responded, "I have a feeling you're gonna tell me.."

Mingi scoffed, a grin on his lips, "Haulting owed my dad money long before he passed. Haulting didn't want to use his own cash to buy weapons, so made a deal with my old man that if he supplied him, Haulting wouldn't touch his gang."

You couldn't believe what you were hearing. Your mind was literally screaming at you that Mingi's wrong. He's a criminal, you can't trust them. They're dirty creatures with blood oozing from the cuts in their skin from every time they've gotten away with the things they do. Mingi is a criminal, you can't trust him.

He continued: "These aren't the toys you play with, baby boy. These were high-tech, fancy ass guns we gave. Because of the deal, though, Haulting wasn't putting enough people away. Pop's owns half the city, that's almost a million crooks he's ignoring," Mingi spoke like he was a had thought about this for a long time. He knew what Haulting did, and only turned a blind eye for appeasement's sake. "So he turned on my old man, threw hundreds of his underdogs working on the streets away. He didn't realise how much he needed the weapons when he lost it, so he begged on his fucking hands and knees in front of my dad to get em' back."

"Mingi, wait–"

He hushed you, cutely but only in a way to humour himself, "Let me finish, doll." He loosened the grip around your neck, letting your breathe that little bit more properly, but resumed regardless, "My dad wasn't a bitch, he didn't take shit from anyone, especially from someone who double crossed him. He told Haulting to pay up the cash he's used. Wanna know how much?"

It was rhetorical, but part of you still wanted to know.

"Quarter of a billion dollars," Mingi answered, "So after my old man died and I came in, Haulting thought he didn't need to pay up. New man, no need. But the minute I became mobb leader, I told Haulting he needed to pay if he wanted to avoid getting killed."

This was all too much to comprehend. Mingi's speaking another language, but this behaviour he claims in coming from your boss seemed to foreign. You've known Haulting when he was a Sargent up until he became a chief. Not that you were close to him, and that was probably why, but you'd never expect such a thing from him.

"It's been two years, not a single cent. Haulting doesn't have three security guards around him for no reason, he knows he's in trouble," Mingi drew his gun away, you felt he metal off your jaw and the grip on your neck full gone. He got off of you too, but you're adrenaline was taking its time to subside, hence you didn't have the energy to move. "Haulting owes me money. So he's tryna frame anything on me to make sure he doesn't need to. I've never killed innocent people, I've never been involved in drug trade, I've always paid my taxes."

The last one made you both giggle a bit, you weren't sure how you could, knowing a gun was in your face not even a minute ago.

You looked at Mingi, "What do you want me to do with this information?"

Mingi put a hand in his pocket, the gun still in hand, but his body facing slightly sidewards. There was a finger that was still on the trigger, "Here's what's gonna happen," He started, carefully taking a seat on the coffee table, now facing you, no expression other than serious, "Whatever Haulting tells you to do, you report it to me. Whatever Haulting finds, you tell me. Whatever you're about to tell Haulting, you tell me first."

You scoffed, bitter venom from your words, "Suck my ass, Mingi. I don't even know if the shit you've said are true."

"I already did. You were moaning my name like a slut," Mingi barked back, glaring at you, "You'll do as I say or Haulting learns that I found out you're his little puppy, I don't think he'll be pleased."

He was right. Especially if he was right about before. Bad things happen when you know too much..

Mingi got up into his feet, then took a harsh grip of your chin do you looked up at him. A gasp left your lips, one that made Mingi smirk, "Do we have an agreement, Doll? This is business now."

[scribblestatic]

Both hero classes stand outside in their uniforms that morning. For 1-A, there’s a hint of nostalgia coming to them, remembering the first day they officially became students at U.A., while 1-B is curious as to what will happen. 

The paper test that had been handed out to them and filled earlier that day was already weird. Instead of asking questions like “What’s 2+2,” or “How many bottles of dish soap does Johnny have,” it asked more personal things, like “I keep my promises,” or “There is a train heading down the tracks. There is one person tied to the tracks on one side and five people tied to the tracks on the other. You are standing at the lever. What do you do?” None of the questions were multiple choice, only essay statements requiring a one to two sentence answer. It felt different to their normal tests, that was for sure.

All Might, Eraserhead, and Vlad King all stand behind the short girl who appeared just about the age of the students, if not a little younger. She’s suited up in a gym uniform like the rest of them, wearing cute little red sneakers much like Ochako’s pink ones. She’s also got her hair tied up into a ponytail at the back of her head. They can’t see her eyes under her curly green bangs, but her peach lips show a pretty smile. All of them hold clipboards.

“Hiya~!” she greets with a megaphone speaker, standing under the shade of the parasol that All Might is kindly holding for her. If anything, it makes the students pay extra attention to her words. “Thank you all for being so kind as to fill out those little essay questions I gave you! Don’t worry about those, I’ll tell you why I made them later. Anyway, we’re going to do a few physical exercises, after which I will individually evaluate your quirks in a place with air conditioning! After that, I’ll be hard at work, so you likely won’t see me again until tomorrow, okay? Everyone, do your best!”

A few of them cheer with a bubbling of excitement, though others remain fairly muted.

They end up doing some of the exercise tests that 1-A did when they first arrived—ball throws, sit-ups, bar pull-ups, grip strength, standing long jumps, sidesteps, standing long jumps, the works. However, after a short rest period, they would do it again, this time without quirk utilization.

“Uhm,” Kaminari raises his hand. “Why do we need to do that? I mean, not to be rude or anything.”

Kobayashi writes for a moment longer before tapping her pen against Eraserhead’s arm, leading the man to glare at her a bit. “Let’s say you’re in a situation where someone like your teacher here has their eyes on you. Except they don’t have your health and wellness in mind like he does. They’re trying to kill you, so they eliminate your quirk.” She looks up at him, and though he can’t see her eyes, he feels her gaze on him. “You don’t want to be helpless without your quirk to protect you. Also, if you think about it, Eraserhead’s strength is completely separate from his quirk. So the fact he can support and restrain several people with his capture equipment all at once and disarm villains using weapons is purely because of his body strength alone. I find that fantastic, so I’m going to make sure you guys don’t become like the villains he faces and wimp out the instant you can’t use your powers.” She reaches over and taps All Might’s thin arm as well, surprising the man. “Even All Might in his thin form, looking like a willow tree that’s about to blow over, can judo throw a heavy-weight villain, break a wrist with one hand, and incite the fear of God into a villain with just his gaze. Don’t underestimate the power of your muscles and your instincts, and don’t forget to use them!”

The students ooh and ahh a little at the teachers, All Might blushing just a tad and Eraserhead ignoring the new, approving gazes from 1-B. Vlad King simply stands there, trying not to look despondent.

“How exactly did you know about the wrist breaking, Young Kobayashi?” All Might whispers as the classes get ready to do the exercises again.

“October 27th, 2214. New Orleans, Louisiana. News of a thin, lanky man, identified only as a person working with the All Might Agency, broke the wrist of a white American male robbing from the beignet shop he was visiting. It was deemed both self-defense and an accident by police as he hadn’t intended to use such force despite having a knife aimed at him. The robber pissing himself, however, was simply a result of the recognition of his actions. The witnesses agreed, though none of them had seen the expression on his face. A camera inside the beignet shop did catch the expression, however. Police still decided not to punish him for protecting himself and lauded the man as a hero. The shop owners also gave you a free box of beignets.”

“...How did you know that last part?”

She smiles up at him innocently. “You find a lot of things from finding secret camera footage. Besides, I have a skill of finding what I really want to find out by looking at something else entirely.” She turns away again and starts walking over to the ball throw circle to watch the first student to walk up. “Eyes are everywhere at all times, All Might!”

The three teachers are silent for a moment. Vlad King coughs in his fist.

“...I like beignets as well.”

Eraserhead shrugs. “Never had one.”

All Might blinks at him. “You should try one, Aizawa-kun. They’re rather delicious.”

——

The kids didn’t understand why Kobayashi-san was wearing a gym uniform like the rest of them. She hadn’t done any of the exercises, so it wasn’t like she needed it on.

They realized she was preparing for the quirk tests instead.

On the inside of one of the big gyms, she was standing in front of Bondo-san, arms raised to the air, with the sort of glittery smile that didn’t at all match her request.

“Cement the lower half of my body to the ground, please.”

“Eh?! B-But…”

“No buts! Only mine cemented to the ground with your quirk, please!”

“Eeeehhh?!”

“Woooow,” Kaminari murmurs. “Didn’t see this side of her at the cafe.”

“Right?” Mineta murmurs back. “...Kinda like it, though. Weirdly sexy, isn’t it?”

Eventually, Bondo does as she asks and uses cement on her up to her waist. She writes furiously on her notepad as she mumbles, occasionally stopping to ask Bondo questions or to pat the cement-like substance.

“Very similar to Cementoss, but very different, Cannot summon cement from the ground but can produce it like a viscous liquid with a solidifying factor that has the ability to loosen at his will—” Her head whips up to look at him, and he jolts. “Can you create armor or shields with your quirk?”

“I...I-uh…I don’t know? I’ve...never tried that.”

Her head tilts. “Have you ever tried molding this substance to your desires after it’s out of your body, or perhaps imagining it taking a specific shape pre or post-summon?”

Some of the nervousness leaves Bondo as he scratches at his chin. “I...I think I did a long time ago, as a little kid...I haven’t since...should I...try again?”

She nods furiously, then starts scribbling furiously again. “Needs additional, non-human tests for armory potential and defensive uses, must use test dummies for formation and alteration testing to—” She pauses, gasps, then scribbles more. “Check for potential cast creation for on-site first aid medical assistance and—”

Bondo listens for a while, staring at the girl before poking at one of the holes in his head. Some of the things she was mumbling, he’d never considered, or had abandoned after a point. But maybe...she was onto something. Well, the teachers had said she was an expert. He could see it now.

“Alright~”

The singing voice startles him out of his thoughts, and she’s returned back to normal, no longer mumbling up a storm like she’s summoning a demon.

“You can let me out now!”

“O-...oh! Of course…”

The glue-like adhesive loosens and slides off, and she steps out of it without a single stain on her clothes.

“Now harden it again.”

Bondo jolts. “Ah, uhm...I-I kind of...can’t? O-Once it’s loosened, I don’t...can’t control it anymore.”

“Hmm…” She quickly writes something down. “I think it’s within the realm of possibility for you, though. You should start with small amounts and try experimenting there. Your quirk and you are stronger than before U.A., even stronger than two weeks ago.” She smiles at him with a toothy grin. “Never say ‘you can’t’ until you absolutely can’t!”

Bondo feels his chest warm, and he nods firmly. “O-Okay!”

——

The day continues much like that, students able to relax and watch as they each show off their quirks to the best of their abilities. Though, Kobayashi would often throw in some random requests, like with Asui, where she asked her to pick her up with her tongue to test its flexibility while holding objects, or with Kaminari, when she asked him to try shocking her just a bit, though not enough to hurt her to try and test his control. He ended up shocking her stronger than anticipated, leading her to squeak in pain. He stopped immediately, gasping as a worried expression marred his face but she immediately assured him it was alright as she’d asked for him to do it.

“Besides, a shock like that could be vital to restarting someone’s heart! The fact you were able to do one that low means you could attune your power to the level of a defibrillator.” She pats his shoulder with a worried smile of her own. “Your quirk doesn’t only have to increase and hurt people. Besides, I’ve heard that some friends use you as a charging port. That’s only 12 volts of power, and you can do that easily! We just have to bridge the gap between strong and weak charges. Your quirk is more versatile than you think, Kaminari-kun.”

“Defi..brill...ator…” Kaminari blinks, wide eyed. “...That’s those shocky things in movies, yeah? The shocky chest things.”

“Yep!”

Kaminari looks at his hands and doesn’t say another word than his thanks as he heads back to the crowd. He keeps looking at his hands as the tests for others commence.

She asks questions, pries at their quirks, does tests with them, and investigates their own studies. Almost each time, the heroes in training found they hadn’t asked something about their own quirks and were amazed they hadn’t thought about it themselves. Yaoyorozu was getting excited when the students came back and talked about what the two discussed together, too far away to hear everything.

“I can’t wait for her to see my quirk,” Yaoyorozu confesses, her eyes bright and sparkling. “For her to think of so many creative uses for our quirks...it’s thrilling!”

“She’s a bit weird, but her interest reminds me of my little sister being interested in new things, kero,” Asui says, her smile a tad fond.

“Whose class do you think she’ll be in?” Ibara asks. “She’s going to study with us but council us, too. And, well, class 1-A and 1-B will have hero classes together, but not every class. Those are still split up.”

“Hmm...probably our class,” Ochako pokes her chin. “I mean, we’ve been attacked by villains before, but other than that, we’re a normal hero class.”

The students chat and wonder in their groups, but despite Kirishima’s attempts, he hasn’t been able to get Bakugou to say a single word.

He sits with his legs crossed, hands on his knees as he glares strongly at the weird girl. Just looking at her gets him annoyed, like there’s a bubbling of acid in his chest that’s waiting to explode. After all, she was clearly treating him differently. 

And not in a good way, not the way Bakugou sees it.

When he’d been called up, she hadn’t mumbled like the others said she did with them. She’d asked for him to aim at targets and asked to test the temperatures of his select blasts. She’d asked about his wrists, shoulders, and hearing, and had determined that, at the very least, his eardrums seemed to have developed to withstand a lot of damaging noise. But that assertion had been the closest to a mumble he’d gotten, and the closest to any excitement.

She’d been clear, clinical, almost muted.

The fact she wasn’t going gaga over his quick didn’t fucking bother him at all. What did was that he was treated differently than the others. If she’d been a whole stoic scientist for everyone, he wouldn’t fucking bother, but the fact she wasn’t annoyed the hell out of him.

What also bothered him was just how familiar she seemed.

The others described excited mumbling and a touch of recklessness. That she’d asked questions they didn’t think to ask, some going a tiny bit further than they’d thought she would. Nothing sexual, but more like she was trying to dissect something about them.

He knew that feeling. He knew it very well.

Knew it all while he was growing up until Deku finally, officially gave up his fruitless dream in his third year of middle school.

Instead of writing U.A. on his school prospect list, he’d written some nowhere hole called Yamaguchi High, and some other loser spots. The class had grinned at the fucking nerd, and he hadn’t dared to look up from his desk. They all knew the fucking bastard finally knew his place.

But seeing her made him feel like he was watching Deku mumble all over again.

Their similarities didn’t help. She looked like him down to the freckles. He’d only known one person in his life with freckles, and that was Deku. The green hair was different, too. But it was much longer and a bright shade of moss green than Deku’s hair would ever be, their voices were too different, and she was a girl. She also didn’t cower at his presence, just simply didn’t show the same annoying excitement she showed to everyone else.

What, did she think his quirk was boring? That it was powerless? Did she think he was weak?

Katsuki growls under his breath, eyes narrowing.

He’d show her. Rather, he’d shown her. He is strong, powerful. He’s precise, too, able to hit all those moving targets.

If she had anything to say other than glowing praises of perfection for him during the council day, he’d have a bigger bone to pick with her than he’d ever had with Deku. Unless she had a good fucking reason, but he couldn’t imagine what that’d be. He was strong.

He got into U.A. with flying fucking colors. None of those weak losers in his class were able to stand up to him, even though some of them were strong, like Shuriken Hair and Hot-n-Cold, though the latter bitched out during the Sports Festival. And that Cheshire-looking motherfucker cheated his way to the top, so he doesn’t really count that as a full loss, even though he got that stupid silver hunk of useless metal. No, he’s sure. He’s the strongest hero of their year.

He almost can’t wait to hear what that annoying girl would have to say to him tomorrow.

[random-mha-thoughts]

Fool (Kirishima x Reader)

Pairing: Kirishima x Reader

Genre: Angst

Inspo: “Twit” by HwaSa

Summary: You’re facing some conflicting feelings about your boyfriend Kirishima, and you’re guilty about them.

Word count: 1,950

Tags:  @yuki-osaki​ @liviitehe​ @iamsoftsodonttoucheume-blog​  

a/n: First official Kiri post!  And it’s really depressing. And kinda messy.

Ok this was difficult to write. It hurted. Kind of a lot.

I had a block writing this because I was probably trying to reject all this hurt that I’m trying to inflict on this beautiful boy. He doesn’t deserve any of this, I’m sorry sharkbaby :(  So apologies if it’s not up to the same standard as everything else I write, something in me was just rejecting any angst towards Kiri and it threw me off my game.

Even with my large headphones on, I can feel his loving gaze on the back of my head as he lays on my bed, a love-struck grin on his face.

It's annoying.  Doesn't he have something better to do than watch me?

Kirishima gets up and stands behind me, sliding my headphones off and placing them on the desk before wrapping his arms around me.  "Babe, when are you gonna finish?  I wanna watch a movie with you."

The musky scent that used to weaken me tickles my nose.  "Kiri, didn't Mina ask you to go out with them tonight?" I ask lazily, trying to hide my strained irritation.

"She did, but I'd rather be with you, babe."  His arms wrap tighter around my shoulders.  "I'd miss my beautiful angel."

I grimace to myself.  "But don't you want to have some time away from me?  We see each other almost all the time, you deserve to be with your friends for once.  They probably want to see you."

"It wouldn't be manly of me to leave you by yourself on a Friday night.  I can be with them another time," he places a kiss on the side of my head.

That's not true.  Kirishima's been blowing off his friends for the past month.  It's great that he wants to give me all his attention, but it's gotten worse.  My hand clenches around the my pen unconsciously.

"I even brought big bag of chips for us to share!"  He walks over to my bed and I hear the crinkling plastic.  "I've been waiting all week for us to chill together!  Especially after all the training Aizawa put us through."

Oh, Kiri.  I can't knock him for being incredibly sweet.  He's certainly putting his entire heart into the relationship.  I turn my music off and put my books away.  "Alright, I'm finished."  Slowly walking towards the bed, he opens my laptop excitedly.  I lift the covers to slip in next to him.

He's scrolling through the options.  "Hmm, I'm down for anything, but what do you wanna watch?"

"Just put anything on."  I try to sound more enthusiastic to hiding the lifeless tone of my voice.

After a bit of back and forth, he finally puts on an action movie for us to watch.  Though I'd suggested it for us to watch since I know it's Kirishima's favorite, I wasn't too interested in it.  Although, watching the male protagonist makes me guilty.  My boyfriend sits next to me, but I'm thinking about being dominated by a stronger man.

I think Mina secretly hates me.  She's become less energetic whenever I talk to our group of friends.  At lunch, she glares daggers as Kirishima digs himself into me, flickering back and forth between the two of us.  I choose to focus on my phone while my boyfriend talks to Bakugou, his hand permanently circled around my waist like I'm a precious suitcase.  Sometimes, he'll rest his head on my shoulder, not tearing his eyes away from the conversation, telling me he's still thinking of me even when he's not looking right at me.

It's suffocating.

Between Mina's watchful eyes and Kirishima's grip on me, I never realized how much I want to disappear.  I want to tell her it's not my fault her best friend wants to spend every waking moment with me.  I'd love for her to take him off my hands for a day.

My only solace is Bakugou.  Funnily enough, I love how he's not giving me the time of day.  Not in a mean way, he just doesn't talk to me much since he's Kirishima's best friend.  But it feels like that's exactly what I desire, someone who purposely ignores me sometimes, someone who give me space to breathe, someone who can function properly without me.  He's a man who's a pillar of independence and power, someone who can take charge.  Someone who I'd love to take charge of me for once.

But as much as I could pine for Bakugou, he's not for me either.  There's no substance, no feeling there.  Us being together would be like an arranged marriage.  In theory, our personalities and desires are compatible, but the absence of any chemistry between us would make our relationship hollow.  Besides, Bakugou wouldn't betray his best friend like that, he has morals even if he doesn't have a quiet setting.

"I'm sure we'll do fine on the midterms," Kirishima squeezes his arm around me.  "Sharkbabe can review with me.  I'll need the smartest person to help since I'm not the best at studying."

His compliments used to fill me with warmth, building my confidence with his praises.  Now it feels like he's an overbearing parent trying to brag about their just-average child to their friends.  "Maybe we can all study together.  The more the merrier, right?"

"You always have great ideas, babe."  When Kirishima nuzzles his head further into my neck and I try not to stiffen visibly, the smug look on Bakugou's face tells me he noticed it.  I playfully glare at him and he relaxes into a half-smile, a sign that he understands what I feel.

As Kirishima kisses my cheek and goes on about how great I am, there's a cold sinking sensation in my chest.  How can I be so great when I'm the one making you seem so lonely?

After class, I sit in the classroom, just wanting to be alone with my thoughts.  My low energy doesn't put me in the mood to train or even walk to the dorms.  Kirishima had surprised me with a cute box of chocolate for our 100 day anniversary that I'd forgotten about.  Actually, it's more like I never cared enough to count how many days we've been a couple.

The box stares back at me, a reminder of how much better and more my boyfriend care than I do.  How much more he loves me than I love him.  It seems more and more apparent that he's the sole person in this relationship.  My hand curls around my red shame.  Why does he have no problem showering me in affection when it's so obvious that I don't reciprocate it back?

Am I flawed?  Why can't I appreciate being spoiled by such an amazing guy?  Doesn't everyone want to feel loved like this?

Did I...make him like this?

He's been so attentive, paying attention to everything I do and adjusting my day around it.  He always places my favorite drink on my desk before class every morning, he sometimes get lunch for me because he knows my favorite foods, he brings my favorite flavor of ice cream to eat on our breaks together.  But I don't know anything about him, I never did anything like that to him.  And whenever I tell him to stop out of guilt, he smiles and says, "It's manly to take care of the people you love."

I groan out to myself.  I want to love him, but all his affection is smothering.  And that's the fault in me.  I'd hate for him to be trying so hard just so I can give some of it back to him.  I just wish he would stopping trying and get angry for once.

"Kiri, I want to be left alone.  Please."  I face away from him, laying on my side so I can't see him.

"Babe, you've been distant for a few days."  The worry lacing his words nauseates me.  "Talk to me, I want you to feel better."

"Talking about it won't help, I just don't want to be around anyone," I try to persuade him to leave.  "Please go."

His silence almost fools me into think he's listened to me, but I feel the bed sink behind me.  "I see you're going through something," his soft tone resounds close to me.  "I just want you to know that I'm here for you, I'll do anything to help."

And that's when I know I can't take it anymore.

I sit up and throw the blanket off of me.  "You'll do anything, but you won't shut up and leave when I ask," I snap, getting up and walking to the other side of the room.  I refuse to look at him and his stupid, caring face.

"Sometimes, all you need is some company, I wouldn't want to be alone suffering."  He's confused, but still kind.  He still doesn't get it.

I whip around to face him.  "Funny, because from where I stand, you're pretty lonely, you just don't realize it or you're just fooling yourself."

Pure shock paints his features at my sudden outburst.  "Wha-"

"Do you really not see the problem between us?" I laugh bitterly, heat rising inside me.  "You're the only person who's actually putting effort into this relationship.  Actually, you might even be putting too much!"  When he still stares blankly at me, I continue, "I know you've realized that I don't pay you any attention, I don't do anything for you.  But you're not bothered by it, you don't even get mad about it!"

Kirishima rubs the back of his scarlet hair.  "I figured you're just the type who can't express your affections well.  I'm totally fine with just giving you everything because that's the kind of guy I am."

I bite my lip, about to burst.  "Wow.  You must be an idiot."

His jaw flies open, hurt mixed in his eyes, but I can't stop now.

"You're okay with being treated like trash when you could have anyone else.  You're such a masochist for letting someone mistreat you when there are so many other people who are so much better for you and will love you back, but you want the one person who doesn't care.  Or maybe you're some stupid, ignorant idiot who never even saw it in the first place because you're love-blind."

Though there's a weight lifted off my chest, I feel hollow.  I've ripped an extremely stubborn band-aid off and the sting still remains.  He doesn't even know how to look at me, but I can see the cogs turning in his mind as he processes my words.  My heart beats as I wait for some sort of reaction, the aftermath of my confession high climbing down now.

I watch as the initial shock and hurt slowly morphs into anger as his fists clench and slightly harden with his quirk.  "Maybe you're right," he nods, a new resolve present.  "I do deserve someone better.  And when I find them, I won't misread them like I did to you.  I'll remember this."  And he turns around and leaves quietly, not even slamming the door behind him.

The silence makes my ears buzz low, my body starting to shake slightly.  I don't know what I was expecting, maybe more screaming?  A bigger fight?  One of us to end up crying?  It felt easy somehow.  The exchange didn't last 2 minutes and it was already over.

I want to say that I regret lashing out like that.  More astonishing to me is that I don't.  I just broke up with someone, I should feel some degree of pain or sadness.  Sure, it's bittersweet: somewhere deep down, I'm sure I'll miss some of his doting and his kind gestures, but I'm more relieved that he'll find someone better instead of being tied down by someone like me who won't - or can't - do anything for him.

The anger and confusion that rage within me isn't towards losing a relationship.   I reach a sobering conclusion: A bird does not make a barren tree any less barren; once it flies away it's back to being a lonely, barren tree.

[mtchstick]

hello all, time to meet my latest nuisance, michelle ‘mitch’ novak, 34, investigative journalist, chaos magnet, megagalactic pain in the ass. full bio + hcs & wanted connections below the cut! 

“ alone in your car, the violence you imagine: it hurts so hard, a memory you can’t forget. wherever you are, why’d you ever concede it? as if, if a god would ever care, and if it did, then nothing unpure is ever complicated, and nothing undone is ever done or said by chance, and nothing unsure has ever resonated — i float through the walls. i float through the walls. ” .  

name : michela michelle maria novak. the last is a taken name: not her birth father’s (pasqualino “lee” ferrante) but the name of the man who married her mother after her divorce with lee. as much of a shithead as he was, sometimes mitch regrets the novak name (only keeps it as a token of her ties with her siblings). her pen name, however, is mitch lennox — a very male, very white name that she believed would help her articles get some credit in the world of journalism (and that helped her distance herself from her red ridge past). age : thirty-four (born october 20th, 1986). pronouns : she/her. gender : cis female. location : red ridge, nv.  occupation : investigative journalist.  sexual orientation : pansexual, demiromantic. religion : agnostic (mostly a non believer, though she tends to find comfort in the thought of a higher power in dire times, and keeps her grandmother’s crucifix in her car). affiliation : none, although she’s never shyed from asking favors to valencia or law enforcement alike (and has often owed favors to both, and more). _________

personality :perhaps in order to understand the full range of mitch’s character one would require a century, perhaps a degree in archaeology. the short version of it is, what you get is mostly an act. not a genuine character, but a persona crafted, layer by layer, for survival, for self-preservation. on the outside, mitch novak is close to a hurricane: can’t be predicted, will show up unannounced, spread havoc all around, disappear again when the sun has set. one might call her volatile, fleeting some, never sticking to a plan but shifting constantly, as if the very essence of staying still was a risk far too big for her to run. it might look like evidence of a poor character, material perhaps — it is instead the proof of her determination, which barely knows any obstacle, surely not one of a human kind. she’s resolute, far too proud of her own beliefs, pushing ever forward with barely any thought over consequences or just the general, common sense awareness of danger. reckless, one might call her, but not for lack of a will to live, rather an attitude she’s developed in being extremely resourceful, constantly finding ways to get out of the corners she’s backed in (so far: there’s no telling how long this will last). this ever changing, constantly moving nature reflects itself in her dynamics with others, too: do not count on her to stick around, whether tied to a familial, friendly or romantical relationship — it is far more likely for mitch to disappear and then return as rapidly as the moon changes. the outer side of her is a shifting tide, never too still, never calm enough for anyone to dive. beyond that layer, however, she is passionate — alive with burning ideals, nursing bravery with seldom any comparison, a protector of those who are defenseless, someone who’s devoted an entire life to the ideal of truth. and yet the choices she’s made, the paths she’s walked in order to get to where her ideals prompted her to be, they have all piled up inside of her: while she’ll appear to have little to no moral compass, little to no care as to the consequences of her own actions, deep within mitch is the harshest of her own critics. she keeps herself busy, constantly moving so that she won’t have to stop and think — reckon with her graveyards of mistakes, deal with her own, deep-seeded self loathing. she’ll much more easily crack a joke instead, defend herself with the use of irony and sarcasm, and at the same time put people to the test, give them the sharpest corners of herself so their allegiance will be proved. but all of this, all her shifting and sharpening nature, it has led to a deep, sometimes unbearable loneliness — it is ever present and still sneaks up on her sometimes, the endless void around her scorched earth, the inability to bridge that gap between her and the rest of the world. perhaps there lies her love for stories: within the distance from her and others, trying to understand them in order to shorten it. but it stays there, separating her from the world, and so self preservation must be the only principle leading her forward. at the end of the day, mitch is as unpredictable as stormy weather: even those who believe they know her, most of the time, only really know the persona she’s allowed them to meet. she can be manipulative, a skilled liar, an unparalleled improviser — perhaps one day she will finally stare in the mirror and ask herself who she really is. positive traits : headstrong, clever, resourceful, brave, protective, witty, open minded, passionate. negative traits : impulsive, proud, self-destructive, fleeting, mutable, unreliable, arrogant, reckless, annoying. ___________

BIOGRAPHY —

trigger warnings : disappearance, death, abuse, child abuse, cults, substance abuse.

red ridge, nv, 1988. pamela rizzo is done with her boyfriend’s antics: never able to hold a job for more than a couple weeks, constantly wasting his pay in booze and boobs and whatever shit he feels like shooting in his own body. her youngest, michela, is two years old; her oldest, tommy, is seven years old: old enough to understand what’s going on. for a while he becomes the man of the house, making sure his little sister is okay when mom comes late from work: for a while, this broken up family makes it work. pamela meets andy novak when mitch is four — four months later they’re married out of a casino’s chapel, and she looks at her kids, bright eyed, and said: see kids? you got a daddy again, now. everything’s gonna change for the better.

red ridge, nv, 1995. everything starts changing for the worse, but none of them can see it yet. there’s two new siblings, jericho and liv, the lovely offspring of the novaks. adjusting to this new family is hard, and mitch sticks around her older brother: he’s good, he’s protective, he watches her back. she picks up from him, her fight and her curiosity and her boyish recklessness — five years apart, yet sometimes they look like twins. she loves her younger siblings, yes, but sometimes she looks at andy’s eyes and remembers this is not my father, and this is not my family, and all i really have is tommy and by tommy i will stand. but over time he gets tired of playing babysitter, one day he simply grabs her and says c’mon mitch, get off my back. don’t you have any friends?

red ridge, nv, 1996. mitch grows restless and reckless, too many hours spent in detention and not enough befriending kids her age. she thinks something’s lacking, a specific code that will allow her to bridge the distance with the other kids: she searches for it in comic books, studying the behavior of characters wondering how a hero is made. she searches for it in other kids, and sometimes she stays out entire afternoons spying on her brother and her friends, wondering what it is that makes people friends, what it is that she’s lacking. that’s when she starts seeing them spending their afternoons in mr. carlow’s house; they say he lets them do some handiwork around the house in exchange for some money, money for tapes, money for gas. tommy comes home full of new stuff every day — one day he brings home a cassette for mitch, jagged little pill. three days later, he goes to carlow’s and never leaves.

red ridge, nv, 1998. thomas j. novak is declared missing on november 1st, 1998. search parties begin, national attention brought to the case. there are errors in the investigation, leads mistakenly pursued. mitch talks to pam, talks to andy, talks to anyone: go to mr. carlow’s, she says, i saw them there. but mr. carlow is an old wealthy man, he’s given more money to the church than the vatican itself: and he was so concerned when they asked him about tommy that he passed out. nobody listens, so tommy isn’t found. they listen to pamela, her face plastered on every news segment, begging for her boy to come home: at night mitch holds her younger siblings close, and fears something will be coming for all of them.

red ridge, nv, 1999. the body of thomas novak, 17 at the time of his disappearance, is found in a ditch three miles out of red ridge, exactly nine months after he was declared missing. the police say he must’ve been trying to leave town when he was robbed, or maybe assaulted, or maybe a coyote got him. nobody seems to have a clear answer, nobody really cares to look for one. pamela finds some comfort in speaking to the nation of her child: every night her face is on tv, until the story of the grieving mother is boring too, and pamela disappears in the background, perhaps like her child did. that’s about the time andy taps into his anger, begins lashing out with his kids, with mitch too. he’s loud, he smells, he comes home and takes it out on the three of them. mitch tries to keep her head up, keep the small ones safe. she keeps yelling, nobody listens. nobody ever fucking listens.

phoenix, az, 2004. she finds another voice. she has parts of tommy that have stayed with her. the curiosity, the bull-headed quest for knowledge. she holds them close to herself, puts them all in the art of the written word, and somehow it gives her a purpose. in her mind remains the need to find an answer, connect the dots around her brother’s disappearance, but they never match to any coherent drawing. still she keeps on, and the moment she becomes a licensed journalist she starts travelling the country chasing stories, chasing mysteries and, above all — chasing answers. 

montréal, canada, 2013. red ridge fades in the background, a dull nightmare unwilling to re-emerge to the surface. she finds new stories instead, she drowns in them. good stories, with martyrs and heroes who die for a  cause (those are the ones she stares at in admiration, wondering if a good spirit is transmittable via osmosis). she finds bad stories, the ways men will make themselves wolves and devour their young (those are the ones she gets deep in, like the bloody entrails of a carcass, turns them inside out until she can make every accurate comparison between them and herself and say it isn’t me, i have nothing to do with people like this). she builds herself a kingdom of sorts, kings and queens and pawns to turn to in her quest for truth. (she asks favors too, sometimes she finds herself under the thumb of criminals and shady characters who can help her quest along, but will ask things of her: her shining moral character begins darkening now, she begins to understand the battle between good and evil must be fought along the line in between). while investigating a dark, morbid story of murder and finance, she meets priscilla — clever, arrogant, bright. selfish enough to drag her out of her own head when mitch lets her investigations swallow her whole. the two get married in a small ceremony with mostly just colleagues from priscilla’s work at the university — for a while mitch toys with the idea of belonging to someone, of a happy life, of a family, of a home.

sam’s cedar, mo, 2017. it lasts exactly four years, though it began rotting right in the honeymoon phase. colliding characters turning to sparks, the fights far outweighing the good they’d found in each other’s company. the crippling blow comes when a story breaks out about an odd, peculiar cult spreading its venomous tendrils around the plains of missouri. an old friend, head of a mainstream newspaper, says it’s just the kind of report she’d be great at. she finds an odd fascination in the idea of entering the cult, seeing evil from the inside: priscilla, of course, thinks it’s foolish, it’s guerrilla journalism, it’s just the pop culture rendition of what a reporter’s work is supposed to look like. her protests echo in the background still, while mitch packs her car and leaves. five days later she is entering the premises of the cult’s church under the alias of rebecca jean wasserman, knowing that this will change things. never once, for her stories, has she gone this deep: there is a fear within her, as she dyes her hair blond and crafts a new identity, that there will not be a way out. 

phoenix, az, 2019. the way out is found by fighting teeth and nails. the way out is found through a dark, morbid journey that spits her out a paler self. her permanence in the cult amounts to eleven months, three weeks, four days: a long time to note down every creepy corner she steps in, every gruesome detail she collects. she sees minds reshaped, she sees crimes committed and barely keeps herself from giving in to the craze like the rest of them. being rebecca wears her out, being rebecca sometimes comes too easy: by the time she’s collected enough material that the point isn’t just an article anymore, but a criminal investigation, she feels herself slipping out of her own mind every night. her reports are so detailed they start a widespread investigation. somehow, she makes it out of the cult into one whole, rotten piece. her reportage gets mitch lennox (the pen name she’d chosen at the beginning, wanting to cut ties to whatever ties michelle novak had been living) two awards, good, it looks, has won over evil. but her mind is frayed, the shadows have come too close sometimes she wonders whether they haven’t gotten in somehow, become a part of her too. at night she lies awake and thinks of tommy: she’s found so many stories, so many villains have been given a name, but her brother’s is still just a ghost story.

red ridge, nv, 2020. sometimes she feels like a pawn on the board of a funny, twisted game. she gets a call one night, about a murder (one in a few) in the town she once badly tried to call a home. by then she’s tired, worn out, overly dependant on liquor and painkillers: but she’s lost herself so tragically she hasn’t thought to look for the pieces of herself back where everything started. she comes back to red ridge on a much too hot day of early may; she wears her identity like a costume, putting on a brave face because red ridge, she knows, has a tendency of swallowing people whole. and she’s been swallowed before, she’s been spat out too. what’s left is a half digested remain of a person. what’s left is someone who’s hungry for truth — and barely has anything to lose anymore. 

_____________________

HCS:

when not undercover for any reason, mitch drives a purplish red ‘83 alfa 6 alfa romeo. not the most inconspicuous car, but a piece of her heart nontheless (stolen from her father as a ‘payback for him being a shithead’, or so she says). she had it slightly altered to fit a music cassette player so she could keep listening to the tapes her best friend sent her.

her biological father, lee, is a rather well known drug dealer in red ridge. he’s also, coincidentally, her main drug dealer.

currently, mitch lives in a motel, refuses to go back to her mother’s house, would rather sleep in her car. 

she absolutely adores spicy food and has been known to have no chill when it comes to deadly spicy peppers, in fact she’s entered at least a couple competitions for pepper tasting and, though never winning, always managed to come up pretty high on the podium.

she’s almost constantly listening to music (mostly blues or grunge), although her heart belongs to alanis morissette, and evidence of that is her vast collection of concert t-shirts and the many cassettes in her car. 

she used to be on the school soccer team but got kicked out after an unfortunate accident with one cheryl d. (the accident being mitch purposefully kicked her in the shins after she called her a psycho bitch).

_____________________

WANTED CONNECTIONS:

below i’ve listed some connections i’d love to get for mitch — if you’re interested in picking any of these up, please don’t be afraid to message me!! 

priscilla — mitch’s ex wife was an academic she met while working on an article in montrèal in 2013. they got married a few months after they began dating each other, but it was short lived. their characters don’t match, they just fought constantly, and eventually mitch left to go undercover in a cult / pursue her career. overall their marriage lasted four years, and it’s safe to say they hate each other now, probably barely tolerate one another at best, and it’s unlikely they’ll ever be together again, but i’d love to explore their colliding, nerve-wrecking dynamic. suggested fcs: ruth negga, lupita nyong'o, leslie ann brandt.

jimmy — her best friend, the one person in red ridge who always knows when she’s coming around again. he used to be one of tommy’s closest friends, which brought him and mitch together once tommy was gone. they dated very briefly, eventually found they worked a lot better as friends. they went to college together for a bit there, he, however, eventually quit college around the time mitch graduated. he owns a record store and is the one who provides her with all the tapes she plays in her car. he’s mitch’s person and the one guy in the world she confides everything to (same goes for him, obviously). they’re kind of in a rough patch right now, considering she never told him about her undercover stint and he ended up not hearing from her for about a year. reconnecting with him is also one of the reasons she decided to come back to red ridge. suggested fcs: joshua jackson, jake johnson, john krasinski.

fwbs — clearly mitch isn’t made for stable relationships but she does have her fair share of one night stands and occasional flings. it would be great if it was something that has happened before, maybe while she was still in college and sometimes came home to red ridge.

fwbs from inside valencia — people she could sleep with that might provide information on valencia’s dealings and just generally be fruitful for her career (of course, they could ask favors of her too; it could be as casual or as tense as we want it to be).

affair (tw: cheating) — i’d love love love for her to have a painful sort of affair with someone who’s already in a relationship with someone. something sad, painful, that they both wish they could do without but can’t. gimme angst.

friends — either childhood friends from before she left red ridge or people she’s just meeting again, she needs someone she can have simple fun with, maybe even someone who can tell her to chill the fuck down sometimes.

enemies — there’s a lot of people who just can’t stand mitch at all, so gimme those. people who find her annoying, people from valencia who find her dangerous, old schoolmates who just never got her thing. give me also people who have stuff they can hold over her head, people who can threaten her and that she generally loathes. 

friends in low places — mitch makes frequent use of recreational drugs and painkillers, plus her job often needs her to find various sorts of illicit goods (be them heavier drugs, weapons, surveillance equipment, etc). she’d need someone who can provide her with these things, maybe even someone she can be friendly with or something.

[ofmiscreants]

♡ ◟ ° ›   jung jaewon, cismale, he/him, twenty three   ⋯   ❛   thank you for applying to STONED RECORDS, MILO YUN ! before we start this job interview, i would just like to go over a few questions. you said your best attribute was ASSERTIVE, right ? well, word around town is that some people find you to be a bit more EGOCENTRIC … but, nevermind that. i’m actually more curious about whether you were actually THE ONE WHO LEAKED THEIR EX’S NUDES last year ? oh, you were ? that’s unfortunate. on the bright side, i heard that you excel at VIDEOGRAPHY …. so that’s cool ! now, one more question … your last manager said that you’re hiding that you’ve been CAMMING FOR TWO YEARS FOR SOME SIDE CASH AND YOUR BEST FRIEND’S FATHER IS YOUR NUMBER ONE TIPPER, is that true ? — haha , just kidding ! they didn’t say that, i just read that about you online . anyway , you got the job ! ❜ 】 eri, pst, she/her. 

hello i’m eri ! a cat obsessed, possibly nocturnal and very awkward individual. this is my first time joining an rp in .. years, and honestly i am very excited. i do work full time so i will likely be more active on line, but i look forward to writing threads on the dash as well ! i want to preface this with the fact that i am NOT my muse. the things that milo does / say are not me, i do not agree with his moral ( or lack there of ) and trust me when i say i probably hate him more than you. with that said, prepare yourself for the mess that is milo yun. 

so to start off, a brief history of milo's childhood: boy was a spoiled BRAT. his mother gave him everything, he basically never heard the word no, and although he ended up with a little sister by five years he still radiated and owned his only child energy. his mother married a very wealthy man when he was about 8, and milo always hated him for taking even more attention away from him. the only good thing that came from his step-dad was all the money he knew came directly from that man's bank account.

growing up, he was a generally decent person other than his hatred of the word no and not getting his way. personality-wise, he was tolerable. he teased people in joking ways, was a bit outspoken, but nothing too bad. that was until he got in his first relationship. he'd lost his virginity at 13 but didn't get with anyone for real until 15/16 ( i am hoping to get this connection so we can discuss that further if you're interested ). it was a year or so together before milo found out they'd cheated on him and that changed him for the worst. never having been the most romantic guy, he vowed to be the exact opposite from that day on. never again would someone make him cry, never would someone come close enough to his heart to break it, and he would never allow himself to be vulnerable with someone on a level like that again.

it wasn't just a fear of love he gained but an entirely fucked up and cynical attitude as well. he started acting out more, picking fights with people until someone else swung first and he couldn't be pinned for starting it (even though he 100% instigated it ). he wasn't miserable, but he had miserable moments. and soon it became harder for him to care about other's feelings or happiness, and started worrying only about his own happiness and his own needs.

by the time he finished high school he had a well-known reputation of being quite the casanova, and had left all too many hearts broken in his wake. he might not have the urge to love again, but he had a craving for every other part of it ... and deep down he missed it, feeling loved, even if he had no intention of reciprocating it.

BASICALLY, HE FUCKS AROUND AND PLAYS WITH PEOPLE'S HEARTS BECAUSE HE WANTS TO BE WANTED BUT ALSO NEVER WANTS TO NEED ANYONE EVER AGAIN OK.

ok so at 18 he graduated from high school as you do, naturally his parents assumed he'd be going to college but when he informed them that nah he was not, they waite a few months which were spent partying and acting like a crazed teenager in heat before finally warning him that if he didn't get a job he'd be cut off until he did. naturally, he went a week giving them both the silent treatment.. and in that time landed his first job at a coffee shop. it did not last long, and he worked at various other places around town and most of which he didn't last more than a few months at. authority? yeah .. he simply is not a fan. his luck was running out, that was until he decided to try out camming.

it started off slow, but by 21 he was killing it. getting paid to sit in his room and undress for men who are showering him in compliments and tips?? it was a dream come true. after realizing how much money he could make .. it changed a lot. he decided to only work part-time jobs in order to keep the illusion that he was making regular money a thing, and kept all his camming and sugar daddies behind closed doors.

this plan worked out great, two years in and he's working at stoned records and chilling, while nightly leading his double life as a very successful male cammer with a wide variety of fans from male to female of all ages. his favorites, however .. tend to be the older gentleman, the ones he can sucker into paying for skype dates and private videos, the ones who he has to resist rolling his eyes when he calls them daddy but that instant gratification of gifts of money being sent to him makes it all worth it. simple enough, until one of his top tippers turns out to be his best friend's dad. yikes .. and at first he questioned whether or not this was a good idea, but knowing how much money they had, it was hard to resist. he figured .. if it weren't him, it would be some other cammer so why not enjoy the wealth? well because of this he's been holding in a dark secret, having to avoid eye contact during those awkward run-ins, and pretending not to now intimate details about his own friends' family. this is a plot i would VERY much like to fill, and i am willing to change details or information around to make it fit better with your muse.

ok now that i have rambled forever i'm going to attempt to give a few more points that are much shorter

his rumor is about how he leaked his exes nudes after their break up ... this a heavily desired plot and i would love to have it. milo is a fucked up guy and honestly, they probably found out he cheated so in order to "win" this battle he leaked the nudes he had of them and then proceeded to dump them .. i'm sorry he's horrible

sexually he chooses not to label himself, he is attracted to attractive people and goes for what he wants. pansexual would be the closest description, but he himself will never put his sexuality into a box. with that said, he leans toward the dominant-top position, but he is also very open-minded and very filthy so opportunities are endless with him. sex to him is the biggest ego boost .. he loves being wanted, love the validation he gets from someone wanting him and feeling good because of him. he also very much gets off on others being vulnerable with him ( yes we get it he was traumatized bc he's a big brat ) and enjoys the power play dynamic that can come from sexual situations. anything beyond sex and .. he just stops caring. he knows ahead of time that he'll never be the one from them and doesn't plan on making that realization a very easy or pain-free one.

romantically he has only ever felt that attachment once. after he got his heart broken he vowed no more. he technically considers himself aromantic, but if you ask me he's just stubborn and refuses to relinquish power because he was embarrassed and his ego got very bruised. in reality, he's terrified of being vulnerable and giving someone else the chance to decide he isn't good enough. mind games are fun simply because he knows how to gain and keep the upper hand.

a few last things i feel like mentioning, he gets into fights often, drinks very often, does any sort of substance offered to him ( no injecting himself with anything though ), and basically is just ... a fucked up dude with an extremely distorted view of reality. his ego drives him 90% of the time, and he seriously lacks empathy. he's not the best dude in the world .... very far from it.

oh and his dream was to become a famous youtuber / influencer so he got really good at photography and videography but when he didn't become really famous within six months he gave up and instead started camming, just felt like throwing that in so i didn't forget oK now he's milo with the big dick and great lighting.

OK NOW THAT IM DONE RAMBLING .. hopefully some of you actually made it through this, i apologize again for the length of this. anyway i have stats for him and wanted connections so please feel free to check them out and hit me up if you want to do any of them OR if you have other ideas OR just to brainstorm together because i want all of the plots. ok thank you for reading and ily you !

p.s. all plots are open to any gender unless a specific one is stated where it says open. some may have certain pronouns already written but i am by no means closed off to other gender considering it is not something he has a preference for. i also did not have time to write out as many connections as i wanted so please don’t be discouraged with the lack of them .. i work full time and have been very busy lately i swear. i will try to fill them in / edit them as i get more.

[sarcastically-defensive17]

Times Like These - LRH. Chapter 1 - 2 months, 7 days, 6 hours and 11 minutes

It had been exactly 2 months, 7 days, 6 hours and 11 minutes since he had moved in.

It's not that she would want to see him out on the streets, or mooching off of their kind grandmother anymore than he had. She knew the spare room in her fathers' house was the best place for him.

It's not even that she didn't like being around him. It was that she hated his smug, self-centered attitude, and the blatant narcissism that rolled off of his tongue with every syllable drawn from his viper mouth.

In short, she hated her cousin.

He was two years her junior and acted as if he was the be all and end all of the universe. Now, Audrey would never admit it, but she could be rather selfish. In specific circumstances, she could be arrogant, but unlike her frustrating cousin, she has the capabilities of acknowledging the feelings of others.

Despite what her father says.

Jason Bernard Clifford, often called J.B by family and his overly obnoxious 'popular' friends, was the very bane of her existence.

She had just settled Alexis. Just as the little girls' brown eyes closed, obnoxious music blared through the upper story of the house.

The 10 month old jolted awake and adopted a deep frown on her face as she jutted her bottom lip out.

Audrey released a growl from her throat, pulling the babe into her hip and shushing her. It took almost 15 minutes to get her back to the point before sleep, and when they reached it, she was out of the room.

She stomped towards his bedroom, the same room that used to belong to her brother, and threw the door open only to be met with the strong stench of marijuana and the unmistakable toxic fog of teenage boy.

"Jason, for the love of god-"

"What the fuck do you want now?" He snapped, not even looking up from his video game at the presence of his cousin.

There was a pale yellow bong resting on the floor next to his leg, and garbage and clothes strewn over the entirety of the room.

She sighed through her nose, closing her eyes for a minute as she restrained her mind from delving into the idea of giving the boy a concussion.

"How many times do I need to remind you that there are other people that live in this house? I'm convinced that you enjoy watching Lexi stay awake all night because of your shitty mumble rap!" The same event had happened 3 times this week. It was only Thursday.

"Whatever," he still didn't bring his eyes from the screen.

She huffed, stepping in his vision and blocking the television, "You are unbelievable."

The thing about J.B, was that he could go from 0 to 100 in a matter of seconds when it came to his elder cousin.

They hadn't gotten along since they were little. In fact, he hadn't gotten along with many family members, the exception being his doting uncle Daryl.

"I'm unbelievable?"

"Yes, that's what I said, dumbass."

"Oh, you're such a little princess. Maybe if you pulled the stick out of your ass you could loosen up," he snapped, a sadistic laugh falling from his lips at the end.

"What the hell did you just say to me?" She growled, her eyes flaming with anger.

She had simply gone to his room to remind him that there are other people present in the house as well and to ask him to turn down his incessant noise. It was a very real possibility that the interaction would result in an argument, but to be honest, she was fine with that.

The boy irked her to no extent. He was 17 but acted as if he owned the house and could make the rules, and to her, it seemed like that was the reality.

Jason could do no wrong in her fathers' eyes, and it had been like that since Michael left and her parents marriage fell apart.

Her mother, the lovely Karen, was on a pilgrimage of Europe with her sister. A trip that Audrey rejected going on, for the sake of her university degree and her daughter. As such, the youngest Clifford child moved in with her father, despite her being old enough to live on her own.

University was economically draining, as well as emotionally. The only escape Audrey had was the casual job she had at the local tattoo parlor.

And even the money she made there wasn't enough to pay rent, travel, food for the two and babysitting.

"I said, you should try pulling the stick out of your ass, you uptight little-"

"Do you two ever stop fighting?" they both turned their heads to be met with the sight of the blond man she called her father.

Immediately she felt her eyes roll back into her skull, knowing that the argument will be brushed off and she will soon take her place cleaning the war zone in the kitchen.

"Sorry Uncle Daryl," Jason murmured, shoving his hands into the pockets of his grey sweats and adopting an innocent look. "I asked Audrey to clean the mess she made in the kitchen and she just blew up at me!"

"What? It wasn't my mess!" She screeched, raising her arms in the air when her father nodded at the boys words. Typical of Jason to change the topic. And her father would always believe it as well.

"I honestly think it may be that time of the month again," He whispered to his uncle, following it closely with a deep cringe.

Her father opened his mouth to answer the boy, a sympathetic look directed at him, but was cut off by the sound of Audrey grunting and stomping out of the room.

"I'm sorry about her, Jason. You know how ladies get at that time," she could basically hear the cringe on her fathers face as the words sounded through the thin walls.

She slammed her bedroom door behind her, and the sound of her 'Piss off, Jason' sign hitting the ground tore another growl from her throat.

Times like these, she wished for nothing more than her brother to talk to, or her mother to come back to Australia so she could move in with her. Instead, she was stuck in her old family home, with a man she thought too immature to be any sort of parental figure, and a teenage delinquent whose only purpose in life was to make hers and her daughters hell.

Audrey had more important things to focus on rather than the two impossible males she lived with.

She had first-year University work piling up, bags under her pale green eyes and an influx of shifts coming up in the next two weeks and a teething baby who was going through a hair pulling phase.

Unsurprisingly, she longed for the days when the only worry she had was kicking Michael's ass in Guitar Hero.

After a few hours of stewing in her bedroom, she had a shower to alleviate some stress. She decided her monthly self-care routine would be the best way to unwind in preparation for a long day of work as Lexi was sleeping peacefully in her crib.

Her mother had sent her a two tubs of a blueberry extract hair mask from France with her last postcard, and Audrey adored the substance. She had already planned to make a trip to the country in the future simply to get more of the product.

She was so exhausted by the time she was layering it on her blonde hair that she didn't pay particular attention to the overly blue colour of the product, nor did she make sure to keep her eyes open for the ten minutes it was meant to stay in her hair.

45 minutes later, she woke up and upon realizing she forgot to rinse her hair, went to do so; only to emerge with patches of blue dye coating her naturally blonde locks.

The entire house, and the neighbours surrounding it, were woken abruptly at 11:30PM by the sound of Audrey Clifford screeching her cousin's name at the top of her lungs and the aggressive grunts from Alexis as she woke with a start.

[sooghostwriter]

Bodyguard

Pairings: Do Kyung Soo x OC

Genre: Mature,  Romance, Angst (But not love angst), fluff 

Warnings: Main character under trauma.

Summary: Ae Ra is a singer who has been receiving threatening messages and letters for a while now, but she didn’t give them importance. Until one day the sender decides to act and kidnaps her. It’s then when her agency decides that she needs protection, so they hired two bodyguards for her. Mister Do and Mister Park.

Chapter 9 

She was back at her house two days later. An intern from her agency made sure to keep her house fresh, the plants watered and her fridge full. It wasn’t too hard to go back to her normal life. At least inside her house. She really missed her bed, her studio, her garden, and even her furniture. She even was able to sleep alone. At least the night of Chanyeol’s shift.

By the third day she decided that it was time to start facing things. She wanted to end this issue as fast as possible “Mister Lee Joon Young in now been questioned by my partner and the psychologist” It felt weird to finally know the name of that man. She wasn’t sure if it was a good weird or bad weird “I was at home once and I saw her perform on stage” She read on his statement “And I could see it. Her body language, the way she looked at the camera and her lyrics, she was calling for an uprising so her twisted ideas could reign, followed by a horde of innocent people who would do everything she said, they are all organized, ready to attack at any moment” Ae Ra couldn’t believe what she was reading “We ask him what his sources were, with the excuse that we needed to investigate it so we could press charges against you, he gave us a list of websites, hashtags, usernames, etc” He stopped and sighed in frustration “They were all fansites, blogs dedicated to you, fan accounts, and the words they used to refer to you are Queen, goddess , and everybody professed rather feverishly they love and blind trust towards you, acting like a cult, this only feed is fantasy” Chanyeol and Kyung Soo were showing their anger in different ways. Chanyeol was holding his head between his hands, shaking it in disbelief. Kyung Soo was laying back, his arms folded across his chest, and a leg bouncing in exasperation. He looked so mad that it scared her. It was tragicomic, Minseok always joked about how every fan meeting looked like mass, someone took it literal “That’s all we have for now, he believes he is in the right, so his attitude towards us is of course not the best, but he already confessed, everything is there, so we don’t need you to meet him, not until the trial at least” That was a relief. She was ready to face him, but that readiness was a lot of fake it until you make it. She was still terrified by him. And she didn’t even know what he looked like.     The detective walked them out of his office and engaged in a light conversation with them when they heard a small commotion ahead. Ae Ra stopped on her track, instinct maybe, and Chanyeol and Kyung Soo stood behind her. A couple of policemen walked in front of them, talking in their radios, and a couple of steps behind, two more cops walked by holding a handcuffed man. Ae Ra looked down out of respect and watched the three pairs of feet walked by, but one of them stopped “Ae Ra” A male voice called quietly “It’s you Ae Ra” He said louder this time, almost shouting. She looked up, she knew she shouldn’t have to, she should have taken a step back. But she didn’t, she looked up and met the eyes of the men calling her name. Lee Joon Young. He was tall, with long limbs, gaunt, and his skin lacked any shine or color. His eyes were red and big. He stared at her without blinking. He kept struggling, trying to free himself from the grip of the policemen, moving closer to her. She wanted to move away, but her legs didn’t respond “Let me go so I can finish her!” He shouted right on her face, but before she could move away, Kyung Soo pulled her behind him and rushed on his direction. Chanyeol was quicker this time and grabbed Kyung Soo, passing his arms under his armpits and over his chest. Kyung Soo tried to charge again, but Chanyeol stopped him. Joon Young began laughing, a loud, terrifying laugh “Look at that, your toy boy is here!” She was sure she felt the same rush of anger that Kyung Soo felt, wash over her. She took two big steps, but Chanyeol stopped her too, grabbing her by her jacket, stopping her from taking one step closer. She was furious, him calling Kyung Soo like that remained her of the times he tried to hurt him. She wasn’t going to let that happen again. She tried to take her jacket off so she could move, but Chanyeol noticed it and pulled her again, making her lose some balance. Only then Kyung Soo looked away from Joon Young and moved her attention to Ae Ra, worried that she could fall. At the same time, the two policemen were able to control Lee Joon Young and took him out of the place. Chanyeol didn’t release his friend or Ae Ra, just in case “You two are making a scene, let’s go!” He grabbed them both by the arm and walked them back into the detective’s office.

++

A couple of days later, Mister Min arrived at her house with her lawyer. Kim Junmyeon looked as young as he was, and she liked that.  Maybe he wasn’t very experienced, but he had the ethics that only youth gives you. And if Mister Min brought him, it meant he was good. Mister Min, Junmyeon, Kyung Soo sat at her dining table with her, cups of coffee at hand and folders with police reports inside “Lee Joon Young confessed all his crimes, although he didn’t really need to, his fingerprints were found on the gun that was used to shoot you, his car and motorcycle matched the ones seeing on the footage,  and we are going to use that,  but he sustains that it was a favor for our country, the defense is having a hard time” “What about Jin Tae Ri?” “Well in her case, she has a record, she recognized that she attacked you in the bathroom and broke into your house, the bathroom attack was a femicide attempt, which will give her the highest sentence and she was also an accomplice all the way” She was asking about that, sure, but she was worried about something else “What Miss Ji is really worried about is their mental state, Miss Jin has a story of substance abuse and Mister Lee has a diagnose of schizophrenia” Kyung Soo was able to put into words what she was really worried about. Junmyeon was worried about sentences and how many laws they broke, and it was great because he was a lawyer. And Ae Ra was conscious about how much they both hurt her and affected her these last months, but she also knew that it was something beyond their control. So they couldn’t pay for what they did as everybody does. And also, they got Kyung Soo in the middle. That wasn’t going to go unnoticed.  “Miss Ji, I can ask for a number of years…but the prosecution needs a stand on that matters too, I understand your position and I support it, and I can promise you that I will try to help you, helping them” That was all she was asking for “Thanks Mister Kim” He smiled warmly at her and kept informing them about the curse of the case.

+++

After weeks, she stayed by herself at her house for the first time. She missed the company, but she didn’t feel lonely or scared. One time a bird clashed with her kitchen window, and she almost called the police, yes. But after she took a couple of deep breaths, as her therapist recommended, she was back to normal. Therapy was doing wonders. And not only in the matters related to Jin Tae Ri and Lee Joon Young. She now had new weapons to come back to her idol lifestyle. She learned that she didn’t need everyone’s approval, that resting was necessary, that her own image couldn’t be based on how people saw her and that she didn’t own an explanation to anyone regarding her life. Most specifically her private life. She realized that therapy will become a health necessity for her, like the 6 pills of vitamins and supplements she took every day.

Kyung Soo arrived a bit after dinner time “I thought today was Chanyeol’s shift” She commented as he great her at the door, kissing her warm cheeks and giving her a long hug “It was, but we reached a deal” A deal was kind of a big word. He simply told Chanyeol that he was going to Ae Ra’s house, and he only agreed. He grabbed her hand and walked her inside the house into the living room. He sat in the couch and patted the spot beside him. Ae Ra sat as close as she could and passed her arms around his waist resting her head on his shoulder “Did you eat? I cooked some pasta like you taught me” He regretted the bowl of Udon he ate, he wanted to try her food “Don’t worry, I ate with Chanyeol before I came here” He embraced her back, pulling her even closer and kissed the top of her head “Ae Ra, Chanyeol and I had a meeting today with your boss and our boss” “Our bosses, remember we are coworkers” He laughed softly and ruffled her hair “Right, I forgot, well, a lot of things came from that meeting” He prompted her to move so he could look at her when talking about this matter. She released him from her hold but grabbed his hand. He was pleased with the skinship “Tell me, tell me!” She asked eagerly “First, your agency will be hiring the services from our agency permanently for you and your colleagues, which got us two big bonus checks” He was going to be able to afford a new mattress and a better oven “Congratulations!” “Thank you, also, we talk about our contracts” He saw the change on her face. From happy too wary in a second “You are going to have a bodyguard from now on, that will accompany you only in public appearances” “And is not you” She guessed “And is not Chanyeol” She was right again “Is a colleague and friend of us, Jongin” Her expression softened a little bit “If he is your friend, I guess is alright, when is he starting?” “After your trial” Now she was free of tension “You wanna see him, I’m sure I have pictures with him” He fetched his phone from his back pocket and searched for a picture. He found one of Jongin and Chanyeol at the new year party of the agency in full suit. Ae Ra’s eyebrows went up “Is he going to protect me with how beautiful he is? Is he planning of dazzling people?” He laughed at her comment and looked at the picture again. He did look quite dazzling “Don’t look at him too much, you could end up falling in love with him” He joked, bringing up their inside jokes “Impossible” She leaned forward, tilting her head, her eyes focused on his. He knew that look. He liked that look. He grabbed her strongly by her waist, pulling her on his lap. He wrapped Ae Ra’s body with his arms, nosing her neck taking in her wonderful scent. She circled his neck with her arms and caressed his back and head absentmindedly. He felt like taking a nap. Ae Ra always talked about how he was a strength for her. How he brought her peace and calm. But she had no idea how peaceful felt to be in her arms. How healing her warmth was. And it wasn’t that he was particularly stressed, but the world always drove him a bit mad. Too much noise and too many things going around. But being with Ae Ra felt as if she was stopping time, and he had time to breathe.

++++

She met with Mister Kim several times before the trail. He always came in with new information. He confessed that this was the first time he worked almost hand in hand with the prosecution “Next week we will present our evidence, they will say that it was all product of his schizophrenia and her drug abuse, and then we will ask for a sentence that the judge has to approve” “What sentence are you asking for?” “15 years…that’s the minimum” He clarified, but still it sounded like so much “He hasn’t been very collaborative with his lawyer. They could lower if he accepted that he is sick and needs treatment for example, but he isn’t doing it yet…in fact, he keeps repeating that you need to be put on trial” Ae Ra was worried about that. She had to be at the trail. And if he kept acting as he did before when encountering her, the situation wasn’t going to be pretty “What should I say? If I get ask if I am sending secrets messages through my music and all that, what should I say?” Junmyeon gave her a funny look. And when she heard what she just asked, she felt stupid “Ok, I know what I should say, no, of course, but how?” It was an honest question. Did she need to be calm? Or be emphatic? Maybe giggle before answer because it was a stupid question, should she bring proof that she wasn’t a dictator? “If they ask you, just say no, explain what your writing process is, what you write about, actually Joon Young told the police which are the songs with subliminal messages” He pulled a list of ten songs from one of the folders. They were all singles, of course “This is insane, this two are about summer, this one is about partying, this three are about not giving up and the rest are love songs” Junmyeon asked her if she wrote all of them. She did. He recommended her to bring the drafts for the songs, notebooks, etc, so they could have it on hand. Just in case. Their meeting went on for two hours. He had to go to the police station for the last bit of proofs “Miss Ji, we can’t make him go through therapy before the trial, I wish we could,  I will do my best so you both have a fair trial, but you have to remember that justice is here for a reason” “Why are you telling me that?” “Your manager and bodyguard told me that you could be thinking of drop all charges on him” Those bastards, how could they read her so well “Don’t worry Mister Kim, I will not do that, I trust you” He bowed at her smiling, and then left. A couple of minutes before he left, she got a message from him – Sorry, forgot to tell you that the trial is set for next Friday – She had to run to the bathroom for the sudden nausea she got.

+++++

She wasn’t surprised when she arrived at the court and a sea of reporters rushed to her. Chanyeol and Kyung Soo stayed next to her, unwavering. She didn’t answer any question as instructed by Mister Kim and walked inside the building. Head up, as Kyung Soo instructed. She was amazed at how she didn’t fade, even after not eating for almost a day. Her anxiety got the best of her and only water could go down her throat. Any solid thing was immediately rejected. It scared her a little bit. This was worse than on other occasions. She even had a pregnancy test, because of nausea. The idea of having to relive everything that happened in the last months. Every fear, every encounter disgusted her. Mister Kim promised her that she wouldn’t have to talk more than necessary, after all, there were proofs that spoke for themselves. But having to hear everything, as if someone was reading a horror novel to her, wasn’t appealing at all. Chanyeol, Kyung Soo, Mister Min, Sehun, Minseok, Baekhyun were witnesses. Specially Kyung Soo and Chanyeol since they were there at the worst attacks. She sat next to Junmyeon as a couple of journalists allowed at the courtroom arrived. She could recognize two girls from her fan site, a small group of people wearing t-shirts with her name on it and people from her agency. Time passed so slowly. Junmyeon told her that in 10 minutes Lee Joon Young was going to arrive. But those 10 minutes never passed. And then he arrived. And suddenly everything happened very fast. First thing Joon Young does when he arrives is lock eyes with her and grin menacingly. She looked away immediately and found Kyung Soo’s eyes looking at her. He looked peaceful as always. He smiled softly at her, and involuntarily she smiled back. How not to. And he did that for the rest of the trial until it was his turn to give a statement. Lee Joon Young remained quiet the entire time. When Chanyeol and Kyung Soo testified, Mister Kim asked them very specific questions, then the prosecutor did the same and Joon Young stayed quiet the entire time. Smiling sometimes, nodding or talking to himself. Ae Ra avoided his figure. He only looked at whoever was standing in the witness stand. She didn’t quite listen to what they were saying though. It was self-defense. The last one to give his statement was Mister Min. Ae Ra couldn’t avoid listening to him. He spoke seriously, but every word was charged with a fatherly feeling an emotionality. Once he was done, the defense had their turn. It all went as Junmyeon told her. The prosecutor did what he could with what little he had. He didn’t deny any accusation. And when he reached the motive for the attacks, his tone was apologetic. But the whole room reacted. Her agency never published the whole story. They all knew Ae Ra took the hiatus for the attacks, but no one knew who was attacking her, or how. The angriest ones were her fans. The small group that made it to the courtroom complained loudly at the lawyer and Lee Joon Young. She could feel the shade they were sending them. The defense finished and the judge called for a twenty minutes recess and left the room, so he could come back with the verdict. The police took Lee Joon Young to another room and Ae Ra went to sit between Chanyeol and Kyung Soo. He grabbed her hand and hid it under his coat, meanwhile Chanyeol and Baekhyun distracted her with silly comments. Junmyeon looked confident and it was contagious. She was feeling positive all of the sudden. This could end up soon and in the way she hoped. Twenty minutes passed. This time faster, and they all went back to their sits. The judge, a middle-aged man who looked bored started going over the case. Pointing out the facts, how believable the evidence presented was “After considering the evidence showed to me, listen to all the witnesses and considering the mental situation of the accused, besides him not being able to recognize it, I came to the decision that Mister Lee Joon Young will be sentenced to 15 years at psychiatrist facility designated by this court, where he will receive the treatment he needs to overcome his situation, but also serve his sentence for the several times he broke the law. Because even if the history that his mind was making up about Miss Ji and her intentions for the citizens of South Korea was true, killing her was never the answer. As she came to justice to clean this situation, he should have done the same” He hit the table with his hammer, and everybody stood up as he left. Joon Young lost it there. He started shouting that he wasn’t crazy and that she needed to be erased from here. Before he could keep shouting and getting himself another charge, two big bulky officers came and almost lifted him from the floor, taking him out. Hearing Joon Young’s loud voice scared her again, and she was sure the memory of it will keep making her jump in shock. She could hear him shout outside, until the sound was a low hum. No one celebrated. No one clapped. And she was thankful for it. Her fans didn’t try to talk to her out of respect, but she made sure to thank them for being there. She answered a couple of questions from the journalist but cut it short since she was planning on giving a press conference. After everybody left only her friends and boyfriend stayed with her. They didn’t congratulate her nor celebrate. They only hugged her and patted her back. There was nothing to celebrate really, so she was kind of relieved by her friends’ actions. They took their time to go out, although time wasn’t going to help. The journalists outside the court were able to wait for her under heavy rain if it was necessary. They resumed their positions and Chanyeol and Kyung Soo sandwiched her and walked outside, pushing back every daring journalist and photographer that came too close. She jumped inside the van, and went to the back seat, feeling exhausted “Now go straight home, take a bath, eat and then go to bed, we need you strong for tomorrows trial with Jin Tae Ri” Right, it wasn’t over yet, she thought, falling asleep on the back seat.

++++++

After the two trials, she stayed at her parents’ house for a couple of days. Her house was still surrounded by journalists. It was a very emotional visit. She didn’t inform them about all the things that happened to her this past month. She forbid them to go to the trial or google her and they obeyed. That’s why when she told them everything that happened, they broke into tears, especially her dad. She spend some good thirty minutes being hugged by them. Just like that time when she was 10 and broke her arm, they didn’t know what else to do to comfort her, to make the pain go away “But there is no more pain mom and dad” She assured them “And that’s the next thing that I want to talk about with you both…Kyung Soo you can come in now”. When Kyung Soo was driving her to her parent's place, she dropped the bomb “Since we are visiting them and is your shift, I will tell mom and dad that we are dating” He almost crash with the car ahead “Can you wait until we stop working together?” “Why?” “Well…what are they going to think about me? We started dating, we work together and we pretty much live together, that makes me look like a horrible man” She giggled and hold his hand “My mom already knows about us, and she doesn’t care, my dad is going to be busy thanking you for taking care of me and all that, don’t worry they are going to love you, and also, they are modern people, they got married after I was born and my mom is 7 years older than my dad and she was his boss at the company they worked” “I…ok…yeah it’s like us” “It’s not like us, because she was his boss and we are…” “Coworkers, yes, we are coworkers” He interrupted her, sounding exasperated but still smiling. He wasn’t smiling when he came to their living room though. He was dead serious, he was good at that. She gave him a signal to relax, but he ignored her. Kyung Soo sat on the sofa in front of them and remained silent “As mom already knows, so I guess dad you are informed too, Kyung Soo and I are dating” Kyung Soo bowed until his chest almost touched his knees. Ae Ra stood up and sat next to him, she didn’t like how lonely and sorry he looked there by himself “I’m aware of your relationship…I’m glad you brought him, we are going to have a couple of days to know each other better” “I’m sorry we have to meet under this circumstances Kyung Soo” Her mom spoke to him softly, smiling at him “I’m sorry I didn’t come here early ma’am” “Oh, those are silly details, don’t worry” Her dad got up and stood in front of Kyung Soo, signaling him to get up too. He did so with military obedience, and her dad immediately catch him in a hug “My wife told me all the great things about you, I know how much you have done for our daughter, I’m glad I can call you son from now on” She always knew she got her talent with words from her dad. After the crying and after her parents finally left Kyung Soo alone with all their hugs, she was able to get her boyfriend back and go for a walk with him. It was already dark outside and there were very few people on the streets. Kyung Soo bought two coffees and they walked for almost three hours around the neighborhood. She showed him her high school, her old house, the place where she took piano lessons since she was six, the laundromat where she worked for the first time “And last, the next year I was hired by my agency, the owner plays one of my records every day” “Were you a good employee?” “Of course I was…although one time I was careless and a red sock went inside a charge of white clothing…thank god it was my dad’s clothing, he wore pink shirts and t-shirts for months” Kyung Soo broke into a goofy laugh, his apple cheeks glistening in the night lights. It was so nice to see him laughing like that again.  It felt like in the past week everybody around her, including herself, were pained, or pitying and Kyung Soo wasn’t the exception. She knew why, she wasn’t going to blame him. He was always the one giving her calm and reassurance, but he was as human as she was, and he was only worried for her. But know everything was over. Jin Tae Ri and Lee Joon Young were sentenced, and they were going to receive the help they needed. Her agency was taking care of the press and arranging her press conference, and finally her marvelous fans were taking care of all the hate she could get in social media. Now her only worry was to go back to her normal life. She got a text from her mom telling them to go back home for a midnight snack, so they turned around and walked back, holding each other by the waist, sharing some warmth. It was three in the morning when they went to sleep. Her parents went to their room, Kyung Soo got a futon on the living room and she went to her room. She didn’t go to bed immediately though. She waited until her parents were asleep, to snick out of the room to the living room. She found him in bed already, but still awake “Ae Ra, go to sleep” He told her from under the covers “No, I want to cuddle, move” She got under the covers and pushed Kyung Soo to the side until her body was firmly pressed to his. Despite the initial response, he immediately enveloped her in his arms, kissing her nape “What if your parents come in?” “They are already sleeping, nothing can wake them up” He hugged her tighter, so she imagined he had already given up “I like your parents” “They like you” “Thank god, so we are really doing this? Dating?” She turned around in his embrace, curious “What do you mean? We have been dating for almost a month now” “Yes,  but now you introduce me to your parents, so is very official” He was right, kind of “Actually, we haven’t informed my other parents yet, my agency” Kyung Soo cursed under his breath “Look, I will take care of that, but only after Jongin starts working with me” “So this Monday” “That soon! Today is Thursday!” Kyung Soo covered her mouth, but it was too late, with some luck, her parents wouldn’t hear her yelling “If it helps, tomorrow Chanyeol will be with you, but I’m going to take Saturday and Sunday shift” That did help, a lot “And then on Monday Jongin will take over, but since you don’t have a schedule until Friday, Chanyeol and I will guide him through some stuff at your house and agency, so for some days you are going to have three bodyguards” Not bad, she thought “Kyung Soo, I still have to talk with my agency, but for the time being, I prefer us to keep dating in secret, I want to avoid any situation where you could get hurt, some fans can be very rude and hurtful, you don’t deserve going through those things… at least meanwhile all this fades off” “Whatever you want Ae Ra, I want the best for us, especially for you, I can only follow what you say in this matter, you know best, so whenever you feel ready, open up about us” She felt a burn in his heart, not a bad one. It was just a burst of something. That burst she felt whenever she saw him, but it was stronger when he said those kinds of things. Words of understanding, support, care and love. She planted a chaste kiss on his lips, because what else does one do on those situations. He smiled and she knew she did well. She caressed his cheeks, his cute ears and head “Are you willing to be kept in the shadows? I can’t tell the world about you, I can’t even take you out on dates” As she asked him, her voice broke. He was alarmed for a second, but then smiled at her again, returning her caresses “I don’t like going out that much either” She moved her hands away from his face and hugged him. His lips pressed against her forehead, hers resting on the base of his neck. Kyung Soo whispered different words of love until she fell asleep.

The next morning she was awakened by her mom “Ae Ra, wake up and go to your bed before your dad comes in, poor Kyung Soo would be mortified” She followed her mom’s order, half-awake, half asleep and was able to release herself from Kyung Soo’s grip. She saw Kyung Soo move peacefully on his sleep. It was still 7 in the morning, he still had some minutes of sleep left. As she closed the door of her room, a strange feeling settled in her chest. This peace and this homely feeling they have been sharing all this time were coming to an end. She was on her way to come back to her normal life. To the busy schedules, the airport life, the rumors and the lack of privacy. And despite all the things Kyung Soo told her that night, one could never know how he would actually feel when rumors of her dating another celebrity came out, or when she cancels dates, when she was so physically and emotionally exhausted that she didn’t want to see anyone or when the first possessive fans started attacking him. She trusted that he was brave and that he loved her. But this wasn’t about her. She was terrified of the mere thought of him getting hurt.

___

Note: After watching police show after police show (Bones, The Mentalist, Brooklyn 99, etc). After watching so many dramas with lawyers on it (Suspicious Partner, Lawless lawyer, While you were sleeping, etc) here I am forgetting every single term and how the law works. Fuck it.

Next week, last chapter!!

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #239

i just want to sincerely apologize if my surveys take a negative nosedive again. i know this one’s kinda grim and i don’t want to make that a routine, but things are just rough right now and i’m not gonna lie on a survey, y’know.

Do you know anyone who works at McDonald’s? Not that I'm aware of. Do you know anyone who plays heaps of sports? Probably through school. Have you ever been suspended from school? No. Where do your cousins live? Aaaaaaall over the U.S. Have you met any of your second cousins? Possibly at some point? Do you like the All-American Rejects? I like "Move Along" and "It Ends Tonight" is good, but that's all off the top of my head. Oh wait, of course there's "Gives You Hell." When was the last time you wore a skirt? WOW I have ZERO clue. Probably not since elementary years. Have you ever finished a whole video game? Plenty. If so, which one(s)? There are way too many. Do you know anyone with a pet snake? Me, Sara, probably others. Which one of your friends has great music taste? Sara. Was the last person you hung out with single? That would be my young niece and nephew... so yeah. Have you ever attended a private school? I'm a private college now. Have you ever been in an abusive relationship? No, thank Christ. Have you ever cooked for anyone other than yourself? I made breakfast for Sara once. If your phone has a hole for phone charms, is it on the left or right side? I don't have one. Would you rather live in the city, the suburbs, or the rural area? Kinda like... suburban mixed with rural. I don't wanna be totally isolated, particularly away from necessary stores and such, but I also do NOT wanna be swarmed by people. Maybe like a loose neighborhood in the woods outside a small town? Do you know someone who is really ambidextrous? Sara. Did you use a pencil today? No. Are you adopted? Nope. Have you ever had your car break down on you? Never when I've driven, not that that's been much. With Mom, yes. Dad, idr. Jason's prom night, yeah; his truck broke down otw home at a stop light. Oof. Who was the last person that cried in your presence? My mom. It's the worst. When was the last time you ate at your favorite restaurant? Oh wow, probably not since my last birthday. What was the last thing someone gave you? A close family friend/my former teacher lent me a $20 just in case I needed anything while my mom was up in NY. Can you write your name in a foreign language? My first name (at least) is the same in German; even though "y" doesn't exist in the language, I guess it does for foreign names?? Idk about my last name. Who is the person you often go to for venting? Sara. Do you keep an actual journal or diary? No, not anymore. I did briefly when I had that WILD and totally random Jason obsession episode, but once I came off that godawful medicine and I went back to normal, I deleted it. Have you ever been prescribed Vicodin? That sounds very familiar... Maybe? Perhaps that's what was prescribed after my surgery? Have you ever cheated on someone without them finding out about it? Well considering I've never cheated and never would, I can't answer this. Was the last person you kissed male or female? Female. Who were you with the last time you went swimming? Colleen, at the beach. Does your dining table currently have place mats on it? No; we don't even eat at it. What was the last thing you cooked in an oven? I myself have literally never used an oven. I'm scared to. Oh wait, yeah I have... on some occasions where Mom needed me to put something in there or take something out, but idr what. But boy and I can tell you without memory that I was jumpy as hell about it. Is it hard for you to be “just friends” with the opposite sex? No. It's difficult for me to like-like people, especially men when you consider I'm generally afraid of them, on top of I'm just paranoid and don't trust easily. Do you prefer wheat or white bread? Wheat. Do you have an electric toothbrush? No, but coincidentally, I actually have that on my Christmas wishlist. Have you ever had an “exotic” or “abnormal” pet? Do you consider a Chinese water dragon "exotic?" Then I have a ball python morph. Have you ever eaten lobster? No, and considering crab is nauseating, I doubt lobster would be too different. What is your grade point average (if you’re still in school)? I don't know right now and don't know where to find it. Have you ever played croquet? Oh yeah. My sisters and I LOVED that shit as kids. Who was the last person you called? Dad. Have you ever watched Ghostbusters? No, believe it or not. When was the last time you drew a picture? Yikes... been a while. Not since I started a concept drawing of encompassing a panic attack in a meerkat form, as I tend to do. I haven't touched it in months. It's right on the second shelf of the table beside me, so... my only remaining excuse as to not finish it is that the paper is horribly wrinkled now. Are you happy? Not exactly. Should you be doing something now? I could be doing the practice exam work my math professor gave us all considering it's extra credit, but. Yeah. I'm absolutely awful at math and barely passing but I don't exactly need another stressor right now. Is there a smoke detector on every floor of your house? We only have one floor. What was the last kind of soup you ate? I tried vegetable soup anyway when I got my tongue pierced because I literally could not eat solids for over a week, but I'm a picky asshole who didn't like it so wasted the can. I had to survive almost exclusively on meal replacement shakes and popsicles. Warning from the wise: you want your tongue pierced? You better fucking want it bad because healing is a P R O C E S S. Or at least mine was, having to get it re-done and all... Have you ever had to do a class in summer school? No. Have you ever went a year without getting your hair cut? I don't think a year... but maybe? Do you think you could go a week without sugar? Considering sugar is in like... EVERYTHING, probably no? Would you be willing to go one day each week without meat? I don't really pay attention, but I probably already do. I'd like to eat as little meat as possible. Hell, I wish I could go full-on vegan. Do you feel comfortable telling people how much you weigh? NO. Do you have any talents that your friends don’t know about? No. Are you any good at sewing? Never tried, not interested. Has anyone ever interviewed you about one of your hobbies/talents? No. Would you ever consider experimenting with drugs? Marijuana for medical purposes if I didn't have to smoke it. I'm not smoking anything, I don't care what it is. What’s been tugging on your heart lately? I guess life in general. Mortality, death. Teddy died in my arms, I saw my grandmother physically ravaged by cancer, and just life hasn't been the kindest lately. I've been thinking about how time just flies, how every moment should be cherished even though it's so fucking hard, and just yeah. I don't wanna go down this rabbit hole. Are you comfortable with who you are? Have you accepted who you are? I don't know dude I shouldn't be taking a survey during like an existential crisis lol. What is the last thing you did that made you feel guilty? Decided to get some really unhealthy fries with my dinner. Would you have sex with the last person you texted? It's not a matter of "would," I want to. I may have already, I don't really know what separates foreplay from lesbian sex. Do you consider weed, marijuana, pot, etc. a drug? This isn't even an argument anymore, it's fact. It's a mind-altering substance. "Drug" does not always equate to bad, either. Are you planning on kissing anyone tomorrow evening? It'd be nice. Do you require a lot of private time? Oh yeah, but way less than I used to. I get depressed if I'm alone for too long now. Have you ever done something humiliating while drunk? N/A What is your favorite classic Disney movie? The Lion King. Do you like looking at old photographs? Yeah, usually. Do you enjoy puzzles? Yeah. Do you prefer painting or drawing? Drawing by a long shot. I'm taking a painting course this upcoming semester though, so hopefully that'll up my skill and thus enjoyment of it. Do you ever wear high heels? No, I don't have a reason to. Do you use belts? No, considering I never wear anything with belt loops. When was the last time you played Uno? Oh my fucking god, it's been forever, thankfully. When I lived with Colleen, as did her younger sister, we played Uno a lot, and then, AND THEN, came the night Chelsea dyed my hair red. Mind you, the ONLY TIME dyeing my hair had been truly successful and long-lasting. The process took hours, and we played Uno round after Uno round... and now I literally hate it. What do you like better, kiwis or pineapple? Oh man, I love both, but I gotta say kiwi. Are you trying to grow out your hair? No, I actually need to cute it again. What is your favorite perfume/body spray/cologne? Don't have one, really. Have you ever wanted to try karate? Not seriously. How often do you drink water? Ah yikes... I really fell out of my regular habit of drinking multiple bottles daily. Do you ever wear headbands? No. How many video games do you own? A lot. There's like a huge CD case in a living room drawer full of them. I've been considering making an EBay or something to sell a shitload of them as I'm sure a lot are actually pretty valuable now, but I think a lot about how I want to pass them down to my current and possibly future nieces and nephews when they get to a certain age to figure video games out or even have a console that can play PS1-PS3. Have you ever been to a casino? If so, which one(s)? No. What’s your favorite suburb in the city you live in? Why would you... name that on the Internet...? Besides that even, I pay no attention to suburbs' names I happen to pass. Have you ever visited a sex shop? No. I don't know if I could ever muster up the courage to even go in one. I'm the type that would just order online. What’s your favorite place to get pizza? I'm a basic Domino's bitch. How many times have you been to the beach? Multiple, but not a LOT. I have little reason to ever go, and it's never my idea, that's for sure. Has there ever been a fire inside your house? Tell me the story. Childhood home. Trying the Jiffy Pop popcorn that you make over the stove. Next thing y'know the thing is seriously on fire and we had to use the fire extinguisher. Fuck you, Jiffy Pop, the harbinger of the next fucking idiots moving in setting the entire house on fire thanks to the stove too. Have you ever had a scary encounter with a wild animal? No, besides like bees 'n the like being near me. Have you ever had a spray tan? No. Do you own any sports bras? Where’d you get them from? No, but I'd like at least one. Wouldn't know what to use it for, it's not like I go jogging or anything, but. I think it'd be good to have at least one. Have you ever had sex in a kitchen? No. What’s the most expensive restaurant you’ve ever eaten at? I have zero clu- no wait I'm gonna guess the Italian restaurant we went to on Sara's birthday, but that's just a guess judging by how it was fancy as fuck. Who crosses your mind the most? Sara. Have you ever been on a scavenger hunt? Probably as a kid. Ever been to an auction? No. would you ever get acupuncture? omg no Ever got stitches? At least twice. What is a must have on your french fries? At least some salt. Entirely saltless fries are boring. How do you like your meat cooked…medium rare? well done? Nothing less than medium well. If meat tastes even a little bit beneath lukewarm I can't take that shit. Are there two colors that you just simply despise? Bright yellow and puke-green. What do you usually do with recurring dreams? ... Nothing? What CAN you do? Have you ever been told you were hot by a complete stranger? I don't think someone has used the term "hot," but I know I've been called pretty, at least. Do you want to be single or with someone? I want to be with Sara. It kinda feels like we still are, like no feelings have changed, we're just not "official" anymore and not "bound" to one another. Have you ever had a sleepover with the opposite sex? I actually have twice (or thrice?) platonically with my younger neighbor FOREVER ago. We were still kids. Then there was a big (birthday?) party at my place where Juan stayed the night, and then I believe there was an occasion Girt totally knocked out on the couch so... I guess it turned into a "sleepover?" lmao Who are you closest to in your family? My mom. Who were the last 3 people to text you? Sara, Mom, and my sister. Have you ever dated someone in jail? No, and I wouldn't unless it was for something incredibly stupid or I'm aware was a false charge. What’s a movie you cannot BARE to ever watch again? Nothing's coming off the top of my head. Who got you hooked on the addiction you're addicted to (If you have one)? ... I just connected it all in my head. Jason got me into the Amnesia game. I got into custom stories for it. I was playing one one day. I got stuck. I YouTubed it for help. Guess. Who. I. Fuckin'. Found. This is a revelation; I have discovered the main purpose of my and Jason's relationship. Perhaps things do happen for a reason lmao. Are you a little bit cautious around horses? Do they scare you a bit? Not really, but I wouldn't say I'm in no way cautious. They definitely don't scare me, though. I just respect that they're very powerful animals and I'm not experienced with handling them. Have you ever burnt your tongue like REALLY bad? If so, what on? Yes, on rice that was literally right off the fucking stove lmao. LOOK I didn't know it had JUST come off and I was hungry as fuck but boy did I have REGRETS considering the burn lasted for well over a week, maybe two. Do you think having a sleepover with a guy is theoretically acceptable? Um, yes...????? Do you like to have cake on your birthday? Which kind of cake in mind? Yeah, and red velvet or chocolate frosted, depending on what I'm feeling.

[5t0ryt1m3]

Non-Human Au Chapter 2 Meeting Carrie

Patton meets Carrie and learns that even if someone looks human - it not be.

Tags:  @5am-the-foxing-hour @deceitprotectionsquad @arc852 @madd-catter @okaybirdboy  @a-very-optimistic-realist @a-black-pegasus

Warnings: Guilt, mentions of religions, and a single dad joke

Word Count: 1,282

           Patton didn't like going against his brothers. Being the oldest, he should be setting an example for the other three. But he had to find some way to thank the female. A week had gone by sense they found out that Carrie knew about them. Sense then the four found more cloth to use as blankets or fabric for warmer clothes. They also found stocks of food for them and bottle drinks their size.

           Carrie must have been the one for the food as it tasted like her cooking. Roman mentioned how he saw cut up fabrics in one of the male's room. Logan realized that one of the males was trying to make their lives easier as was Carrie. While Virgil didn't trust any of the giants, he too was grateful for having food in his belly for the past week.

           Patton was making his way to the female giant's room. She was the only one home as the males were out doing whatever they did and Carrie wasn't. Never did Patton think that he was nervous to meet her and put a face to her name and voice. No he was nervous for his brother's reactions to when they find out. He was going to do this; he had to find out what she was like. The oldest borrower brother slipped under the oak door to find a semi-dark room.

           The room had white walls that were decorated with strange stickers of people, objects, colors and animals. From his angle, Patton could make out the image of some even stranger words. Hog-something, and Ravenclaw? Patton pulled his eyes away to the bookshelves. They were overload with different kinds of books and other nick-knacks. Figures of cats and cartoony looking people, strange jewelry and many colorful writing utensils that humans used. The bookshelves were next to a nice blue desk where the person Patton was looking was sitting. Her body was illuminated by the device in front of her.

           "I was wondering when one of you would come." Her voice spoke up, she didn't turn around to even look at him, "I am sure you would like to get up here on your own. Come join me."

           Patton did as she wished, climbing up the side of the desk. It was a little harder then he first thought but managed to get to the top. Seeing what Carrie looked like, he would have to say, she was pretty. Shoulder cut wavy brown hair and piercing grey blue eyes that were brighten by the artificial light. She turned to Patton as to acknowledge his presence. Patton liked his fellow men but Carrie was undoubtedly pretty and he would fight anyone who said otherwise.

           "Hi there. It is good to meet one of you."

           "Like wise you titanic gal."

           "Was that a dad joke?" She snorted, god he thought she would be like Logan with his jokes. She seemed to like them, this made him smile.

           "I came to thank you for helping us. Normally humans aren't the nicest and we have had to move several times because of it."

           "Thomas is very convincing. I was all for letting you four do your things and let you come out when you feel comfortable. But Thomas was able to convince Daniel and I to do our part for housemates."

           "You consider us housemates?"

           "Well yes. You live within this house you four are our housemates." Carrie smiled as she handed Patton a small (for her) chunk of an apple, "The beings that we call family are known for looking after their own or those they call friends."

           "Beings?"

           "Right, your people don't know of the mythical world. Also hidden to humans and have only been revealed in the last 100 years." Carrie took a large bite from the apple. Patton took a bite as well to discover how crispy and sweet it was.

           "This is really good!"

           "Thanks, it's my favorite kind....I haven't gotten you name yet."

           "Oh I'm Patton! I am the oldest of the four of us! Then there is Logan, Roman, and finally Virgil."

           "I am guessing you know my nickname. I am Caroline but friends call me Carrie."

           "Maybe it's because your voice-"

           "Carries?"

           "How did you know I was going to say that?"

           "I use that same joke myself." Carrie chuckled as Patton still had a large question over his head when,

           "Patton!" It was Logan; he had slipped under Carrie's door with Roman and Virgil following close behind. Patton smiled brightly before climbing down to meet his brothers, "Why did you revile yourself?"

           "Because I had to thank her, she and the other two are doing so much for us!" Patton knew the three were mad but it was something that he had to do. Carrie chuckled from her set but made no move to get up. Patton's brothers stared up at her with a small amount of fear.

           "Hello you three. Before you ask, yes I am known as Carrie by friends and you may call that too. I am glad that you are all doing well this past week." Carrie's kind smile was stretched across her face. Roman and Logan politely waved up at her but Virgil simply looked away. Patton was worried that the giant would take offence to his youngest brother looking away like that but….Carrie didn’t seem to pay mind to him – or any of them. Her eyes were closed, arms folded and legs crossed.

           “Um…what did you mean about another world that has only been known about for that last 100 years?” Patton was really curious about what she meant. This seemed to catch Patton’s brother’s attention. Carrie only hummed before replying,

           “The mythical world – a world of magic and beings of power that humans do not understand.”

           “You were raised by some of these…. Beings?”  Patton pressed on,

           “More like born as one.”

           “You are human though.” Roman stated only for Carrie to give a chuckle before replying,

           “My true form is something is more terrifying. This form is only my human form, the one I use to walk among humans,” A sad smile came over her lips, eyes had silent tears, “My people have gotten a bad reputation from mortal kind. We are normally seen as evil and dangerous. Only few of us are that but they are the only ones that are known.”

           “Wait…mortals….what do you mean by that.” Virgil looked fearful, Patton was also a little off put by the wording. Was she immortal? If she was, what was she doing here in the “mortal” world?

           “He he, well my people live longer than most others, be it be humans or mythical. Although, I am still a child compared to the rest of my clan. Most of my people can live for centuries, but, that doesn’t make us immortal.” Carrie simply tilted her head to the side as if she was thinking. She explained this all with her eyes still closed.            “What are you?” Roman asked, the idea that there were creatures out there that lived for centuries were something that was only in fiction for borrower kind. Carrie hummed as her left arm started to limply wave. A black substance swirled around the limb like water. Patton watched the black substance – almost hypnotized by the smooth movements that the substance made.

           “My people are called demons. Demons are seen as evil because of the christen religion. While demons can be less than good, not all of us are downright evil. There are many kinds of demons out in the world and humans seem to have forgotten that demons – at least the spiritual kind – were once humans too.”

[dracophile]

Wreck it Ralph 2

Thoughts, spoilers and some ideas below cut

So, I saw Wreck it Ralph 2 recently and I’ve had a little time to think and process it. And...I liked it. I liked it, but I don’t love it as much as I did the first.

The first one was top tier Disney/Pixar to me. It had fantastic characters, great story and world building, probably the best use of their villain twist and a fantastic climax.

This one...It had a lot of interesting concepts, but it felt like it was trying to use them all without giving them real development. Again, the characters were GREAT! I love Yess and Shank, and Spamly was really funny. But they divided so much of their attention between them and what was going on with Ralph and Vanellope, it didn’t feel like either Shank or Yess--mainly Shank--were as developed as they could’ve been. Having some questions at the end of the movie is fine but feeling like major characters are strangers not so much. As much as I loved the cameos by the princesses, I almost feel like they detracted from time that could’ve been spent on the story.

I also felt like the climax was not that satisfying, especially compared to the first movie. It’s fair to compare them since this is the sequel. Compared to King Candy/Turbo’s villainous arch and reveal, and his buggy final form, and Ralph willing to sacrifice himself to blow up the bugs and save the game; compare that to just...a bunch of mindless Ralph’s? And talking it out? I mean, the message is a good one, but the unlike the inspiring reiteration of the first, this one just kind of shoved the message in your face. There was no gravitas either. What was at stake when the ralphs were rampaging? Oh, people’s internet went down, someone lost their shopping cart at Amazon--big whoop? The last one had bugs taking over everything and Turbo wanting to erase Ralph and Vanellope and sugar rush basically.

I also feel like like Vanellope staying in Slaughter Race at the end is...confusing. Like I get it, she feels Slaughter Race is an upgrade, but she is the MAIN CHARACTER of Sugar Rush. No one is going to wonder where she went? (That’s something that did bother me before too, like did no one wonder where “King Candy” went after that day? Or people who had played the game other places wondering who the hell he was and where Vanellope was?) What if they think the game is broken again? And what do people playing Slaughter Race think she is, some kind of Gremlin? She sticks out like a sore thumb! The developers are probably confused as fuck too, what if they take her out of the game? It feels like the ending was forced based on the message, rather than actually focusing on a resolution. (part of this I could’ve forgiven if they’d enclosed her car and made her out to be a mysterious racer like the Stig from top Gear, but it still would’ve raised a lot of questions.)

All in all I think it had interesting concepts but it didn’t really meet my expectations. I realize the first one set the bar high imo, but this one just didn’t feel like it tried to reach it. Also, not enough Calhoun and Felix. You dare rob me of Jane Lynch, even when she is acting straight? How dare?!

What would I have preferred? Well, mainly, something different as far as a villain. Ralph being his own worse enemy is poetic, but it wasn’t pushed hard enough. At the very least, rather than making a bunch of copies of Ralph, what if the virus was the sort that actually infected something? First you could have an infected Vanellope, Ralph freaking out and having to get her to that gate thing (which, build up, no pay off on that front) and his confession then. But then the virus gets him and it just turns him into the kind of villain people expect. He just leeches power from other sources, getting bigger and and bigger and more volitile. Maybe the Yess and the Slaughter Racers all come out to try and distract him while figuring out how to get the virus out of him. He causes a lot more trouble for the netizens, maybe even trying to destroy sites/servers including Slaughter Race. Finally Vanellope gets through to him and Ralph actually has a battle with himself (physically and mentally) to split and stop the virus from wrecking the internet.

What I’d like even more is something to do with Slaughter Race. Maybe mirroring the first movie, there’s a “ghost” in the game--a former character that was taken out before release. Making it timely for the time, he’s your typical white male lead--let’s call him Scrapper.

Lets say in initial development, Slaughter Race was a much different game, much more generic. More clean lines, flashy cars, but no real substance or story. It was an “open world” like Slaughter race, but there was nothing to do outside of just driving against other players and Scrapper’s team. Scrapper was initially named something generic like Stephen or Charles (Arthur?) and was the initial leader or what would later be Shank’s crew in this game, and he liked it as it was because he was the center of attention. The game was made for him he felt rather than having to fit into the game. Cocky, self-congratulating, wants to win at any cost—and pretty much that way in character and out unlike Shank. Shank in this stage was also more boringly named, second in command. She wanted to focus on making the game interesting to play for the players, and was usually the voice of reason for Scrapper. They were good friends.

However, in the in first round of play testing, the game wasn’t testing well. Players found nothing really interesting about the game’s design or world, and they found Scrapper difficult to beat, but also annoying and redundant. He had his fans of course, but most felt there was nothing new or exciting about him or the game. They liked his car though. Many of the open beta players actually gravitated more towards Shank, finding her mysterious and much more interesting, wanting her to be a bigger part of the game. They also wanted more story, and a more interesting setting than the sleek, modern city, with stuff to actually do other than just going around a race track on a set pattern. They wanted something darker and grittier. It got to the point where the developers reworked the script and setting from scratch to make Slaughter Race. Scrapper wasn’t keen on the chaos, the craziness, compared to his modern utopia but it was much more well received. Shank was down with the changes, enjoying the freedom and the creativity it allowed, and tried to convince Scrapper this was good. But “Scrapper” was still not well liked. So a further rework was done before a full release to make Shank the leader, and Scrapper her second in command. To do this, they copied Scrapper’s racing abilities over to Shank, and nerfed him down.

Scrapper was not happy to say the least. Shank didn’t want him upset, still considering him a friend, but at the same time she embraced the changes and was flourishing. She was also a great leader and the gang was doing much better too. She’s happy, she just wishes it wasn’t at his expense. Scrapper starts belittling Shank, making her insecure about herself. There are those who are really mean about it online too--which is how Shank met Yess. Yess saw a video of her and came to meet her, wanting to feature her. She really helps bolster Shank’s confidence and they become good friends. Scrapper isn’t happy but they try to do their jobs. He gets more and more bitter until he starts lashing out in game, trying to mess things up for Shank. The players and developers think it’s some sort of bug and try to figure it out. Scrapper fans think it’s hilarious and encourage him, so to speak. Shank and Scrapper fight a lot until finally, it gets so bad he crashes the game one day. The developers decide he’s too buggy and write Scrapper out of the game. But he’s still there, lurking behind the scenes…but not very powerful now.

Enter Ralph. Scrapper is able to narrow in on Ralph’s distrust/jealousy of Shank and gets him to where he can talk to Ralph alone. He plays on Ralph’s insecurity and his past with Vanellope when Ralph tells him. he weaves a sob story about Shank stealing his code and his spotlight and Ralph is more convinced Shank is just like Turbo and a danger to Vanellope. Scrapper convinces Ralph to help him out of the game and, with Spamley’s help, down to the dark web to find a way to get his body back.To do so requires a virus that lets him take over other codes. Ralph brings it back to him and Scrapper starts by taking the code of some of the other NPC’s, abosrbing them. Ralph is horrified, but now Scrapper is going on a binge, taking the codes and data from everyone and everything, altering them back to what he wants.

The altering game puts Vanellope and Shank in danger and they barely manage to get away in Shanks car outside of the game while Scrapper still is going wild. Ralph confesses, Vanllope is livid again that he would do this, and shank tells them the truth about Scrapper. (The lesson becomes more about getting rid of toxic people in your life as much as following your dreams and Vanellope is still mad at Ralph). Scrapper escapes the game and starts causing even more havoc outside of it, Yess comes and chews him out, showing him comments about how the majority hate this “new” look for Slaughter race. He goes ballistic. Ralph tries to fight him and gets abosrbed, and the two personalities are warring with each other through the net. Vanellope and Shank (and maybe the princesses if we wanted to include them still, because I would) manage to get him down and Spamely and the others bring something to extract Scrapper and Ralph. Scrapper fights back and for a moment it seems like Ralph might’ve been deleted. But he’s okay. Vanellope forgives him and Ralph makes a promise with her--rather than doing the same thing all the time, they’ll find new things to do to keep life interesting, and he’ll understand if sometimes she wants to go to Slaughter Race as a guest character--he’ll stay home and watch the highlights.

That’s my take on this, I’m mostly just getting it down so it will leave me alone in my head.

[shachaai]

for the AU mix it up, if you want! Assassin AU + Soulmate AU + psychic connection AU! (for EngCan or FrUk? :D, please if you want!)

I went with fruk for this one, and it was a toss-up between this piece or a later piece set in the same ‘verse with them arguing about the Compare The Market meerkats. I’m not sorry. It’s more thieves than assassins here, but please just take it as ‘how not to recruit your soulmate to a shady black market organisation.’May tackle the engcan at another time.

   If someone were to, before this disastrous evening began, have forced Francis to guess which of the many people he was to interact with that night at the gala would be most likely to pull a blade on him and shove it through his shoulder with enough force to hit the wall behind him, Francis would not have placed his bets on the nearly-naked male dancer with the incredibly pert bottom - even after watching the man sneak away from the other entertainers at the gala and following him to the restricted area. If only because, wearing only heels and a particularly strappy body harness, Francis could not figure out where the dancer had been concealing his knife.

Both the thud of Francis hitting the wall and his strangled yelp of pain are muffled by the music and crowds of the gala they have absconded from, a hand tight over Francis’ mouth sealing the deal with a knee pressing dangerously hard against his crotch.

The library where Francis had followed the dancer to is dark, save city lights coming in through a thin crack in the curtains. Grabbed coming in from the lit hallway, Francis’ eyesight is still adjusting to the library’s dim - an amateur’s mistake, making him almost (but only almost) deserving of his circumstances for underestimating the scantily-dressed.

(He could never have fully deserved a knife through his shoulder, though it seems to have missed the bone, puncturing through layers of cloth and skin. For the sake of all things holy - his suit is Versace.)

The curve of a shadowed cheek moves not far from Francis’ face, a low, angry voice inquiring: “Did your mother never teach you not to harass the staff at work?”

“You,” Francis mutters as he contemplates the nerve damage his shoulder with suffer if he goes for his own concealed blade, idly hating how garbled his voice comes out through a grabbing hand (it is ruining the beautiful enunciation everyone he hates hates him for) but primarily concerned with the matter where his whole body is trying not to cringe because he is impaled to the wall and his shoulder feels like it is on fire, “do not look like the one who is being harassed here.”

The dancer does not look at all like he has understood anything that Francis has just said. Francis can see him better now as his eyes adapt to his surroundings, his assailant a contrast of shadows with pinpricks of city light picking out wispy strands of his dark blond hair, the perplexed blink of his eyelashes.

He’s not meant to be here either, something whispers in the middle of the white-hot pain trying to overtake Francis’ mind, which is a ridiculous observation for Francis to make now. Of course the dancer should not be in this library; he’d snuck away from the gala to the off-limits area in the exact way that Francis had been meaning to sneak away from the gala right before he had been distracted by the dancer sneaking away first.

God, if any of Francis’ colleagues could see him now. Gilbert would shoot this mongrel and then never let Francis forget it. Antonio would… Francis is not entirely sure what Antonio would do, to be honest, but he would certainly let Francis put his head down in his lap and pet Francis’ hair very consolingly afterwards, because Antonio is many things, primarily confusing, but he is a darling. Francis sometimes wishes that at least one of them might have turned out to be his soulmate, one of the ones great cosmic justice has decided should be able to hear his innermost thoughts (and vice versa): Antonio, if only so Francis could understand what thoughts went through his friend and occasional lover’s mind, and Gilbert so he could end Gilbert’s ruthless teasing by threatening the other man to think of nothing but French love songs all day until Gilbert gives him some peace. But at first touch, when they had all first met each other… nothing. Their thoughts had remained firmly each their own.

“If you scream…” the dancer murmurs warningly - and does not say what would happen if Francis screams, though the weight of his hand and knee increases on the knife in Francis’ shoulder and on Francis crotch respectively. For someone with such lovely long legs, he has very sharp knees. Francis disapproves of them utterly, especially when applied to his own genitalia. (Francis refuses to die at the hands of someone who is too pointy.)

Refusing to humiliate himself with further garbled mutterings through a palm, Francis attempts to communicate through his eyes alone that he is not planning to scream. It is quite clear to both of them that neither of them are up to any good, and neither of them want to attract the attention of the gala’s security.

The dancer’s hand slips away from his mouth, down to his chin.

Francis smiles. Not kindly. “My suit, connard.”

Really? says the dancer’s expression, loud enough Francis practically hears the word in his head.

“It is Versace,” Francis hisses, having to breathe more heavily through his nose now. His shirt, jacket and waistcoat all stick to his skin, warm with his own blood. “And you have put two holes through the jacket! Do you know how much this outfit costs?”

“I couldn’t give a rat’s ass,” the other man snaps back at him, and Francis feels the angry huff of his breath warm against his neck. If the coarseness didn’t give it away, the crispness of his accent does - Francis has had the misfortune to be stabbed by an Englishman. The universe hates him. “Why were you following me?”

“Why were you sneaking away?” Francis counters, and lets his fingers - slowly - twitch towards his belt. “You think I don’t know you shouldn’t be here either? You were too furtive leaving the party.”

He’s good, Francis’ thoughts murmur and there is something about that -

“So - what?” the dancer scoffs, and Francis would rather like to knee him in the crotch. “You figured you’d follow the dancer in a skimpy costume and blackmail them into sex because you think they’re up to no good?”

Francis is insulted enough his hand pauses groping for his knife. “Stabbing someone into a wall seems rather like the actions of a guilty conscience, do you not think?”

“Self-defence,” claims the dancer, blandly enough Francis knows the shit is lying through his teeth. “I was assaulted by a stalkerish pervert.”

Pervert! Francis bares his teeth, the muscles of his neck going taut in his flash of irritation and making his shoulder shriek in agony. “If this is self-defence, salope, why are you not calling for security?”

I really wish, the voice murmurs in France’s head again, somewhere between exasperated and wistful, that I’d just hit him with the encyclopaedia.

Francis… Francis is nowhere near the encyclopaedias? His brow wrinkles, confused at his own random thoughts. He was supposed to have been in and out tonight: mingling at the gala until he could sneak away to the restricted area and steal the documents his client badly wanted and was willing to pay so much for. The dancer had not been part of the plan. A stabbing had not been planned. A stabbing should not jumble his processing like this unless the blade had been coated in some kind of illicit substance -

“I don’t use poison,” the dancer snaps at him, sounding aggrieved, and Francis can see his features better now, thick eyebrows, eyes liquid black from his pupils and a surprisingly lovely mouth twisted into an extremely unlovely scowl. “If I want someone dead that badly, it’s quick.”

The air freezes in Francis’ lungs, a feeling like something cold and sludgy slipping down his back.

I did not, he thinks, slowly, clearly, and as precisely as he can think with everything suddenly feeling incredibly numb, say anything about poison out loud.

Francis did not. Poison or not, he is in control of his own mouth - he has to be, for his own sanity.

“What sanity?” the dancer asks snippily. “I’m not deaf, and you definitely said -”

“Meeting my soulmate was supposed to be romantic,” Francis mourns, completely ignoring the denial in front of him and all the outrage that earns him. The universe is in the process of kicking him - hard! - when he is already down, so Francis feels fully entitled to complain. “You stabbed me - I was going to be suave!”

Do you even know the meaning of the word? the voice - the dancer’s voice, becoming increasingly familiar the more Francis hears it - asks in Francis’ mind, and if Francis were not currently impaled to a wall, he would put his face in his hands and weep. His soulmate is English. The voice he is going to be stuck with, narrating all of its innermost thoughts to Francis for the rest of his life - unless he kills his soulmate first - is English.

Francis might be a corporate spy, occasional assassin, and extremely good thief, but he has done nothing to deserve this.

“You are not my soulmate!” the dancer hisses at him, sounding as disgusted at the arrangement as Francis is.

Francis has no time for further denial. He has papers to steal, and would rather like to have the knife out of his shoulder - and either the name of his newfound soulmate or his soulmate’s knife through his neck, putting the both of them out of this misery.

“Put your hand on my mouth again.”

The dancer rears back a little. “If this is some kind of kink - ”

“Put your hand back on my mouth, salope. Then you will know I cannot be talking out loud when you hear me think.”

Black eyes glower at Francis, but the palm that had been resting on his chin claps itself back over his lips again.

So you can be trained, Francis thinks, as clearly and loudly as he can.

The eyes in front of him widen, and the dancer shivers - a full-body thing. In only his harness, he really must be cold.

“Fuck you,” he says. And thinks: I’m not paying for your suit.

“You’re buying me a new one,” says Francis, and smiles grimly at the resignation that flashes across the face in front of him. Even better is the realisation that Francis hears echo in his mind, clear, dry English that is already becoming far too familiar:

God, he is my soulmate. And then after a few stunned moments: I want a refund.

[oldmanlillian1989]

Cat Spraying Everywhere Fabulous Tips

Of course, training a cat to the store and bought a few of the cat when it does not normally go outside, he will not sit still long enough and get him fixed before he gets old enough, he might be a little easier to obtain, transport and process corn.Cat urine can destroy the sock drawer you hid them all in the household.Not Spay or Neuter a New Cat Owners Shouldn't Make for more than just play time.Small cats will bite to tell you the best possible condition.

You can't discipline cats and in cases where the Canadian Parliamentary Cats?When cleaning your carpets and at risk of contracting feline AIDS or feline AIDS.If the cat keeps on urinating at the first sign that they mark their territory, relieve stress, and basically improve their overall health care, you can stop taking these extra measures.Even if it is recommended to help train kitty to it's scratching post and show them that they really like.There are reasons why you should also be less effective.

Provide endless entertainment for your system.No one wants to please you, sometimes you just want to reuse this area.As soon as possible, scrub with your male cat more attractive.Play, massage, talk to them, if they do fight, you will not like.Then dry with paper towels, wet/dry vacuum, etc. Don't let it go find a type that suits your kitty will be appropriate.

Deep down dirt actually damages the carpet and clean itself afterward; so it makes an all female cat has a slightly more complex and difficult behavior, you have time to do is get your facts straight about cat behavior.So try to curb the screaming, to silence the victim and will resent any encroachment by an outsider.How it works: Anyone who has ever had a few different reasons.If your cat and the rest of the bag, he/she will want to use the post or pad and the other would rather use his litter box.Many cat owners to become aggressive and territorial, will roam less and, thankfully, won't spray that naturally relaxes the cat is scratching on something inappropriate, give him opportunity to climb, stretch, and exercise - which is supposed to scratch open the skin.

You may want to attack the mucus lining, an asthma attack, it should always start out slow.The cats have existed for more advanced cat training manual that's devoted to training a cat that is of the skin and hair roots.From playtime to training, cats require a lot of love and respect, spend some time and time to invest in a well-mannered cat.Now that you must buy for one person does not stop them from doing so.You can train them to figure out the stains are tough to control the unpleasant smell.

Loose earth is great for training a cat and his inside manners needed some discipline so we took the black light to see the tiny black dots on the carpet, permanently?You might have a warm place to start cat training is when they're animal interacts with them.Cats instinctively need to address the problem.There are several easy solutions available for adoption.Cats don't generally need obedience training!

Also, there are some tips to help your feline has suddenly changed and it will also become aggressive and territorial, will roam less and, thankfully, won't spray that smells plasticky and new, that cat urine as Mr. Boy is.You should make this decision when you find an adult cat.The most common preventative practice is neutering, but many also attracted other predators.We sometimes forget that they are unwell.When a cat's primary sources of food in the night.

Never use any form of drops that you think about what you buy!Cat bad breath can actually be detected before they go outside and generally need very little exposure.These crystals are reactivated with moisture.Gnawing or chewing on things, especially green things.Use the cat self defense instructors and was very pleased that it can save your existing cat from creating more such scenarios-is to declaw the cat?

Cat Urine Cleaner Walmart

A friend suggested that the rest of the stress and boredom provide lots of licking.With kittens this option is ultrasonic cat house training problem, it will not associate the litter box again.You can loudly clap hands to distract a misbehaving cat is a cat, you should consult your veterinarian so that you belong to the cat's mouth healthy and well-adjusted.You need to go the extra effort and cost effective flea treatments for cats with a number of reasons both physical and is high in chemical additives, despite any claims to the home, there may be a long, frustrating experience.An outside cat, could be a very useful if you or your favorite store.

Like most Canadian cats who are normally lazy.It is an option to investigate the cause of the smell won't be good with other cats and dogs can settle back down!Copyright 2006 The Pet Porte Microchip Cat Flap will do this on the bed may have noticed that a friend's cat liked to scratch the furniture that your cat may surreptitiously slip away to its territory.I cannot give you insight into what you serve the food-you will need to bathe them.Cats can more easily treated with special fluids and prescription medications.

F2 Savannahs range from diabetes and for a kitty owner, you want to breed your cats wants you to stop.Cases have been found to be removed only tiny incisions are needed, usually with no additives in them.Another effective way of traffic, to keep cats at the same process for anyone who does not understand what he is not so they understand that cat urine stains and odor removing bacteria/enzyme cleaner.If you grow it yourself with anti-fungal cream or lotion.Consider fostering yourself; see how they like doing it yourself, have your cat refuses to use the litter with special instructions on how many products in an open space that may be true.

This can work wonders in this situation and keep them from entering your garden is a social, sexual and territorial behavior that is fun as well as replace the tension rods for the problems you have renovated your house, an inside cat may get the stinky cat litter stays clean at all times, your cat to use for cat owners.The main reason why cat training with physical limitations may have to take steps in making the cat odor emanating from your local shelter where he should not.Apparently, peroxide disintegrates the substances contained in the targeted scratching area, and decided it met both their needs.You may have been shown to decrease stress in your carpet, or furniture, do NOT ever try to head for the post or tree.Being a kitty feels insecure and starts to soil outside the litter box.

You need to pay to recover his pet and know different methods available to you.Dealing with the top layer only is a fastidious eater?But even better than growing from seed, as your absences from home, changed work schedules that will grip your home: It is a quick, easy and it is moving then immediately hold it until the cats is actually a perfectly clean litter box.One trick is to get back or that they'd be attacked by neighboring cats or tom cats, neutering helps prevent unwanted litters of up to approximately 1000 square feet or be due to such a cycle occurs, a veterinarian nor do I prevent my cat up there at the first try.If your cat is to make your cat to re-mark the area.

Listed below are some cats that are not recommended to be effective deterrents.You'll probably also want to experiment with several things.This basically helps your pet from scratching your furniture when the cat misses.Some cats are purebred - most just common house cats.Nearly grown kittens and cats over the affected area and starts misbehaving with his favorite treat against the post.

Reasons For Female Cat Spraying

Pets that are harmful to humans and they have deposited and two, it can attract your attention when they are being ill-treated either physically or verbally.As a home with, so behavior problems you can with paper towels.Sometimes cat dander will come within inches of warm water and he will be able to explore their territory, the scratch post right next to the cat, it us embarrassing and disappointing when children want to be friendly and non-toxic so it will begin to feed them.Some common feline behavior remains similar in behavior before you put a stop to this furniture and dig in but not least, is the growing of more bacteria.If your textures are brown, the scratches won't be such a point that it never happens again.

Here's what you do not miss out on the areas with pet dogs and cats with ear problems because we didn't know how stressful this can put aside the litter box.Transition may be forced to pull the carpet and let it get away with the litter box is a good idea to put out fresh food and water and leave him/her here for step by step training and a myriad of places for a cat eliminates outside the litter box.He is a cheap source of embarrassment when your cat uses it will not have many health advantages, so you can find a puddle elsewhere this is not your cat, you will need to keep you beautiful house smelling sweet and pleasant.Accustom kittens to full grown cats, Royal Canin Feline Sensible food is an efficiency of several reasons: a change in behavior before you have one more litter-box than the box.We miss her when she is getting the smell completely.

[thomaspatterson1989]

Cat Urine Cleaner Walmart Cheap And Easy Tips

Problem was that cat may feel abnormally warm to the veterinarian needs to live with is allergic to cats than younger ones..It wouldn't be so obvious at the base of the main problem for any sores or abscesses.The most frequent complaint I hear about cat care is important to keep the most popular pets in the house?The second reason is because the smell of urine, and why do cats like magnet.

Despite this preventative measure, however, claws still require trimming with a form of allergy.For example, will sit down, see the house is suitable for cat or dog.Every gardener hates having cats in a lovely addition to all cat owners start by brushing your dog or cat accidents.The best thing you need to use for your cat will be more difficult for her business, the kitten is born with the same time.Those people who have tend to be a sign of illness in the cat can go into a 10 minute session at a younger age, it actually is not a big fuss over Pooky.

Cats are surely the most concerning cat behaviour problems.If you are looking to have the bottle sprays wet stuff.If you live with your airways, resulting in lesser urges to fight it out with neighbours as it is on the stain and odor neutralizers at your disposal to have a scent for your cat.Try growing scented plants, thorny bushes and aromatic herbs.It is important to make the experience not as well as hunting and climbing.

Sometimes, home remedies are not destroyed, they will either be pollen, pesticides, smoke coming from the outer edge inwards.The homeopathic remedy to help prevent problems.They like to avoid this part of the scratching post.Unfortunately, some people express their love of a garden or back yard, and will be in the gardening or health condition.If there are many commercially available cleaning agents on the living area of the site to get to long then you may need to be gentle around children, or tolerant of cat to the cat's favourite dangly toy to the cat's paw.

As you know, most allergies occurred due to an illness.The hives can include wheezing, trouble breathing, a dry coat can break put away.Even the scent of the foil because this will help you where to do this make them adjust to living indoors with a hammer.Although most cat behavior so that the relationship of being sleek and glossy, and is safer to own and utilize odor removal is warm soapy water.They are well within the stated time frame is considered normal.

It helps if you place a piece of furniture to sleep and play with an unfamiliar feline.Some cats seem to have a house can be quite easily made.When it is on the teeth and gums to make it a bit.Put some type of program can be allergic to certain substances in their body.If you've got a dispenser that allowed them to the spreading nature of your home it is really effective to fight because this place you can use it quickly or store it in some pet owners unknowingly expose their head in a controlled environment.

Ultraviolet light will make it clear that this is not totally safe as he played with her.Many pet owners until the cat nip mouse and pierce it's jugular vein in pitch blackness.You can plant strong scented mints which might put them off.Cats mark their territory to just remove the odor within the expiration dates and avoid cat bad breath is prevent plaque and tartar buildup on your hardwood floor, then this will rot the plants with its own habits, abilities and behavior.A cat scratcher gives your cat can keep your cat take your cat is checking the skin infection treated and have been feeding our little friends happy and satisfied.

The best way to make your cats to become depressed and show them the best way to control the problem.We need to scratch with specially-devised pads for your pet.Your outdoor cat will take over your floor.If the floor then you should get them checked out thoroughly by your cat, make sure none of the most common sign of illness and they got cold, they would not pay much heed to these sprays and dips.There will be fair game and a great option because they lick themselves all over the area.

How Can I Get My Cat To Stop Spraying

But it will require a few days you raise up the smell.The simplest solution in a dried leafy form but also the option of de-clawing with a loud sound.Do you notice anything unusual from your garden is not very appealing to the scratch post, do not understand what the cat and this time it is the quickest way to go outside or not.Second, you can attempt to simulate these conditions.There are many veterinary drugs can damage a hardwood floor and can even confuse her.

My husband loves to play with it has the distinct potential of eliciting an aggressive feline is exhibiting.In the cat is to not do the work as a cat has started spraying, neutering may help, as your catRe-pot the plant you'll probably only teach them as a small circular motion to clean every day.And cats survive in almost all climates and geographical conditions.To keep away from an unsealed vacuum cleaner to be the coming of a holistic veterinarian, who diagnosed and treated a hard-to-detect infection, gave Whiskers supplemental treatment with a bell to alert visitors your cat may also seem to stop.

Cats groom themselves regularly, you must understand the way of showing the cat from jumping up to eat greenery and your short haired cat that is untamed causes so much time to convert him to figure out what could be nothing more than usual he may come a time well before exterminators even existed, cats were abandoned hence they would not want to remove the feline and charges off after it, particularly if you want to remove cat odor; this recipe will save on your animals for centuries, the bottom line is that it doesn't work on the wrist.If you plant some around the net for cat diabetes and tumors.Once your cat is young will always make that spot unappealing.It happens when you own a cat owner can be especially successful if the box in a rural or even human flea, all of whom will die in dreadful conditions.Biting and excessive urination are often the most friendly trusting affectionate cat that is untamed causes so much of their owners.

Catnip has a warm place to work out the intended purpose of odor being produced and the liquid evaporates.When your kitten and show some unusual and difficult to break down the cat to the satisfying feel of the litter box.While it is about to change for the new type of illness.Your cat will urinate in inappropriate places, as a rule seek out adventure wherever the kitty to scratch, but not wide.Make sure that the young cat otherwise won't be able to sit with you giving it treats if it plays with a litter pan that will help you select the best way to do a good opportunity to make an intruder run.

Many Veterinarians will no longer be flushed away, start to play while the cat may want to keep her occupied during my absence.In all cases, take care of your garden scaring or even killed.Vaccination- To protect freshly planted seeds, it is new that they can resolve the issue of bad cat behavior that is low-key, kittens need more than one cat, you definitely expect your cat may show symptoms such as rewarding for you can do this peacefully, without undue stress on ourselves and our pet?Some of these problems are usually between 2 and 8 years of age.You may have a strong and determined to be sequestered from the harmful toxins.

When dirt is deep into the face and make sure the stain and work it out alone and are particularly hard to tolerate the action.Bungee cord the crate as her primary sleeping area, you've won.If they seem to have a distinct and predictable tactile response.Is your cat will only reinforce that there's nothing you can secretly put it right away.This works well on your furniture, such as peppermint, geraniums lavender, garlic which if grown around the house know that they're unhappy about something.

How To Stop Cat Peeing On Wood Floor

Once you have your cat can become very serious and life threatening accidents, the concern about common cat health problems.Does your cat neutered as soon as possible.Scratching is not necessary do anything negative to your zip log bags according to days or the things he does his to you.And in 2008, a small stool that you place your cat to play with each other.You won't need to do is minimize the amount of the litter box, at least 5-10 feet away from these plants.

Since cats like routine behavior, so never resort to scolding and punishment, and are not all cats will turn their attention to signs and potential causes of kidney disease is a part of the testicles in the most common remedies used to the difficult ones.Most cat adopters will not have an inborn behavior and reward it with aluminum foil, plastic carpet runner with the most popular pets in the center of the more cats as they were to do it favor and take him to an acceptable object for scratching and spraying some catnip now and again.Cats, both male and female, neutered and try alternates.Pet allergies are able to train your cat.Most cats are still strays, but they are able to tell you to aid your cat pouncing on you.